36 Weeks Pregnant

Today brings a new week, week 36.


This pregnancy seems to be flying by so fast and has been such an easy pregnancy.


I had a midwife appointment at the birth center in Canterbury. I didn't have my usual midwife.


Everything is fine with me and Bubs. Bubs is head down, took a lot of poking and prodding to tell which way Bubs was laying and even the student wasn't exactly sure what she was feeling. Bubs is in an awkward position either back to back, which Gwen was, or slightly to one side. The head isn't engaged yet but I didn't expect that especially after Jorja and Gwen didn't engage until labour had started.


I've been told that if my waters go I have to ring the hospital asap in case the cord comes down before the head does but it's very unlikely that that'll happen as my labours rarely start with waters going.


I go back in 2 weeks time when I'll be 38 weeks.

My 36 week bump

My waist is measuring at 44 inches and to Darren and I the bump seems a little lower. I'm not feeling many pokes from baby at the top of my bump its mostly in the mid section or really low down.

I'm so happy Bubs is head down. Since the midwife told me Bubs was breech at 32 weeks I've been worrying myself silly about c sections and how hard the recovery might have been with the other children about. Now I can leave the worry behind me and enjoy whats left of this pregnancy and just try to have a little hope that Bubs doesn't decide to arrive too late and induction starts to get mentioned.

Bebesnuggles Fleece Soaker Review

I've used cloth nappies now since Jorja was 5 weeks old back in 2006. I've always used pul wraps when using two part nappy systems.


Recently my other nappy using friends have been raving about fleece soakers instead of pul wraps. I was intrigued and also a little sceptic and wanted to try them but put it off.


I finally got around to buying a Bebesnuggles soaker for Gwen and kicked myself for not having done so sooner.


I ordered an XL size for Gwen and when it arrived it looked huge. I tried it on her over a fitted nappy (a nappy that requires a wrap) and it looked baggy in the crotch area. She wore it during the day just to see how it lasted on her and it managed 5 hours easily without any leaks.


It was washed and it then shrank a little and it fits better now. The fleece is still soft and looks great. To wash you simply throw it in the machine either with dirty nappies or with normal clothing and because it's fleece it dries super fast.


Gwen is a heavy wetter and most pul wraps can't handle her. The Bebesnuggles soaker goes over night without any problems or leaks. It's fantastic and she loves the little sheep on it.


I cannot recommend these soakers enough. They do exactly what they claim to do and regret not having bought these before. I've even bought Bubs a small and medium sized soaker for when they arrive and hoping to get more.

Gwen in her Bebesnuggles fleece soaker

Bebesnuggles are available from;


Bebesnuggles.co.uk

Babybots.co.uk

Etsy

What We've Been Up To Lately

We've had a lot of things going on the last couple of days so I thought I'd do one big blog update about it all.


Cerys is part of the school council. She gets to go into the younger half of the reception class when the teacher, Mrs White, needs to do something and Cerys will help the children to do things for about an hour each day. She starts her job next week.


Harvey found out he had also gotten a position on the school council on Thursday. He's not sure what his job is yet though.

We ventured into town today. We had no plans to do any Christmas shopping but ended up buying 5 advent calendars. Two Hello Kitty, two Toy Story and one Peppa Pig calendar. We also got a few stocking fillers for the children too. A mini dolls house and a new tooth brush for Jorja, nail varnish and a tooth brush for Cerys, bath ducks, toy phone and a tooth brush for Gwen and the boys both got a toothbrush.


Hubby got himself Gears of War 3 on the xbox, which he is on right now. I haven't heard a peep out of him for ages.

He was so immersed in the game he had no clue I took this photo of him lol

Archie had also given us a mission to buy him hair gel. He refuses to let us cut his hair so it's gotten quite long and he's wanting to style it a bit so we found him a huge tub of  it so he can go nuts with it.


Archie and Cerys also got some new school shoes. We decided to go for a shoe that has no straps or bits that could come off for Archie as his straps usually go funny and come away from the velcro or break off so he has slip on shoes which look smarter than his usual type of shoe.

For Cerys we decided we'd go for slightly more grown up looking shoes. She normally has shoes with a strap over the foot which is a bit baby-ish for a 10 year old so we got her some ballerina style pumps with a simple bow on the toe. She loved them.

We also had a look around at baby clothes and found some very cute Christmas outfits for Bubs in Boots. We couldn't buy anything yet as we aren't sure what size to buy as Bubs could be in 0-3 mths or 3-6 mths at Christmas so we'll have to wait and see nearer the time.


Canterbury had another bomb scare today, this is the 3rd in the last month. The police haven't arrested any one yet so it's very likey the  same person has staged all 3 hoaxes and wasted police time. Why they are doing this in Canterbury is any ones guess.


The children, the older 4, took part in a sponsored event today at school. They had to run laps around the playground including obstacles and tasks. Cerys managed to run ten laps, Harvey managed six laps, Archie managed to run five laps and Jorja managed four laps.  The money raised will go towards P.E and music equipment for the school.

I Was Asked 'The' Question

Last night I was sat on our bed with Archie, Jorja and Cerys having a little natter before they got in to bed. I can't remember what we were talking about exactly but noticed Archie was staring at my belly whilst the girls were having fun feeling Bubs moving around.


Archie then asked me "Mum how do babies get in mums tummies?"


Now I've been waiting for this question to come up but wasn't expecting it from Archie. I did think to myself do I just say it's a special cuddle between mums and dads or do I go into things a bit more. I decided more detail was the best option.


So I explained how mums have eggs that look like balls and dads have sperms that look like tadpoles, which had Archie giggling. I explained where they are in the body and that there are millions of sperms and how they move to find the egg. I said that when a sperm finds an egg it bashes its head on the egg until it breaks in to it and then it's tail falls off. Again Archie thought that was funny. 


Cerys then asked "It's the dads that choose if a baby is a boy or a girl. Do the dad's know?"


So I then explained how dads and mums have no idea and that all the information that makes a baby a boy or a girl is in the head of the sperm and it is up to luck and which one gets inside the egg.


They seemed pretty happy with that and happily went to bed afterwards.


It's a moment I thought I'd cringe through but it was a very natural conversation and didn't feel like an embarrassing topic to talk about and the children obviously felt ok to ask me more questions.

35 Weeks Pregnant

Today I hit 35 weeks. This pregnancy is flying by so fast, has been from the start.


I'm measuring 43.5 inches at the waist which is a little less than last week which was just under 44 inches.


Bubs was breech at my last midwife visit at 32 weeks and I'm due to see her again next week. I have a feeling Bubs is still breech as I haven't felt any feet at the top of my belly which I usually do with my others.


Here's a photo, don't mind the stretch marks lol

Gorgeous Post Arrived

Today a parcel arrived from America.


I knew it was on it's way but wasn't expecting it quite this soon.


I had ordered a custom cloth nappy for Gwen back in the middle of August from Holden's Landing in the part 1 of the Facebook co op.


I opened it and loved it the moment I saw it. Its the indigo rainbow colour way which is hand dyed by Bonnie, the owner of Holden's Landing.


Gwen loved it when she saw it but it's now been hidden away for Christmas.

It is navy inside and has 3 inserts which is fab for Gwen as she wets through most nappies. I can't wait to use it on her. She out grew her medium/large Roman the Reindeer Holden's Landing nappy during the summer.


When we eventually get to use this gorgeous little nappy I'll review it for you all.

Mega Bloks Hello Kitty Mini Figure Series 1 Review

We treated Cerys and Jorja to a Mega Bloks Hello Kitty Mini Figure each last week. We got ours from a comic shop in town but have found them available on Amazon.co.uk for £2.99.

The girls were so excited to see what they would get and when they opened them they found they both had the same figure which annoyed them a little but that's how luck goes.

What you get in each pack

Figure all put together

In the pack you get a Hello Kitty figure, mini accessory and a mega blok. 

Cerys thought the figures were cool and she liked the little accsessory that came with it. 

She found that the paint came off of her figure easily which she isn't happy about. Jorja liked her figure. She loved the little outfit it had on. Jorja also found her figure's paint came off easily and looked awful.

These figures, 8 in total, can be used with playsets available in Argos and on Amazon. I'll list all the links below with prices.

They are fab little figures with moveable heads but they are let down greatly by the paint coming off so easily which defeats the point in trying to collect them and keeping them looking brand new if a child is playing with them.

Hello Kitty Flower Boutique Play Set - £19.99 (Argos)

Hello Kitty Play House - £29.99 (Argos)

Mega Bloks Hello Kitty Scoop and Build Tub - £24.99 (Argos)

Mega Bloks-Hello Kitty Pretty Playgound - £9.95 (Amazon)

Mega Bloks Hello Kitty School House Playset - £8.99 (Amazon)

Mega Bloks Hello Kitty Buildable Candy Store Playset - £9.79 (Amazon)

Mega Bloks-Hello Kitty Happy Picnic - £9.99 (Amazon)

Mega Bloks Hello Kitty 10814 Birthday - £4.98 (Amazon)

Todays Goings On

Today Cerys got given her 2 reception class buddies. As Cerys is in year 6 they get assigned a buddy or as in her case 2 buddies. It's to help the reception class children to settle in easier and to have an older child they know looking out for them. Cerys has been waiting since the start of the summer holidays to get her buddy. She was so pleased she came out with a huge smile on her face today after school.


Archie has invited his friend, Toby, for dinner after school on Friday. He's told us that we have to have pizza, chips and baked beans as Toby likes that. He's so excited.


We visited Kelly, Ian, Katie and Chloe after school. They have a puppy which is about 2 weeks old. She's a little cutie. She's a very special little pup. Her siblings all died and her mum nearly died too but luckily Poppy, the mum, was seen by a vet in time and her life saved. The puppy is doing so well and seems to be on some kind of super milk she's grown so much since I last saw her. She's a white and pale beige colour. Kelly has also taken in 3 kittens which were left by their mum at just 2 weeks old. Sadly 2 lost their fight for life this morning but the 3rd is still hanging in there but doesn't look so good. It's so tiny and having to be fed by syringe. We all hope it pulls through.

I got some lovely post today. I won a prize in the Cloth Nappy Hunt at the end of August. I was picked from a hat after finding the hidden icon on a website. I won a Gap bodysuit for Bubs all the way from Australia. The website was Bluemist Kids. She threw in a little surprise too. It was a gorgeous little Hello Kitty pack back which we've put aside for Jorja or Gwen for Christmas.

How cute is that bag!!

Coming Soon on the Mummy Stygle Blog

Just thought I'd post to say what we have coming up on the Mummy Stygle blog.


The girls have reviewed Hello Kitty figures.


I've been using a new nappy rash cream on Gwen so will be posting a review on that.


The kids all have a sponsored event at school this Friday.


I hit the 35 week mark tomorrow, Tuesday 20th September.

Our Washing Machine Kicked The Bucket

Our washing machine has been a faithful friend of mine for 10 years. We've recently had episodes os it leaking and not draining water which left our washing sopping wet.


We knew it was on its way out but think we thought maybe it had more life left in it yet.


Last week we had a wash cycle going and we smelt this burnt motor type smell coming from around the area of the washing machine. It had finally given up and lost its fight.


So now we're hand washing clothes, towels and even nappies. Its taking a good hour to do by hand.


Hubby is having to do most of it as my back just can't handle it but funnily enough all the clothes, towels and nappies are coming out cleaner and softer after hand washing them rather than when they were washed in a machine. We're hoping it may be the fact our machine wasn't doing as good a job as it should have been in the last year or so and that when we get our new machine, which could be a while yet, the clothes etc come out just as well as we've been getting from hand washing.


R.I.P washing machine we shall miss you

Character Building Dr Who Series 2 figures Review

 We treated the boys to a Dr Who figure each whilst in town a week ago. They retail at £1.99 each.

Harvey got Amy Pond and Archie got The Silence.

Harvey was pretty pleased with his figure, Archie not so much.

They've lasted very well, no scratches and the figures actually look like the alien/character they are modelled on. They are easily lost though as they aren't very big but for a young Dr Who fan these are fab little treats and collectables. They come in parts and you build them and stand them on a tardis shaped blue stand.

Amy Pond Figure

The Silence Figure

All the figures in series 2

The series 2 figures have just been released and they can be used with play sets and series 1 figures  available in Argos.

Character Building Doctor Who TARDIS Console Room Mega Set  £49.99

Character Building Doctor Who Dalek Factory   £29.99

Character Building Doctor Who Cyberman Conversion Chamber  £19.99

Character Building Doctor Who Exclusive Cyberman Army Pack  £9.99

Character Building Doctor Who Mini Playsets  £9.99

Character Building Doctor Who Dalek Army Builder Pack   £9.99

Character Building Doctor Who Micro Figures   £1.99

A very arty weekend

This weekend was full of arty homework with the kids.


Harvey had to cover his homework book which would have been fine if we had anything to cover it with. So I grabbed some parcel paper and covered his book with that and then drew Angry Birds and coloured them in and stuck them all over his book. Took a while to do but he loves it.

I then find Archie wants to cover his homework book in Angry Birds too so I had another lot to draw and colour in and then stick on his book.

Cerys had to collect leaflets, print out a map and set herself 3 targets for maths. We raided Morrisons for the leaflets and must have looked very strange taking most of them from the display.

Jorja had fun doing her homework about story characters and settings. She drew one of the characters from the book she'd chosen to do her homework on. It was a small sausage dog and I had fun trying to explain how to draw floppy ears.

It was a fun weekend and have to admit I quite liked drawing and colouring in the Angry Birds.

Here are books we covered last weekend

Ally Cadence Humphries

September 9th 2008 a very special little girl was born. Unknown to Ally's parents, Emma and Karl, Ally had a condition called Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

There are around 100 new cases of Spinal Muscular Atrophy each year in the UK alone, and approximately 1 in 6,500 children are affected. SMA is autosomal recessive which means for a child to be affected both parents must be a carrier of the faulty gene.

Ally had type 1 SMA, there are 3 types with type 1 being the most severe.

Ally lost her fight with SMA just 12 days after being diagnosed at the age of 6 months old. Emma and Karl set up a charity in Ally's name to offer their help to families going through what they went through  but offering the help they never got.

Ally would have been 3 September 9th 2011.

This blog entry is to help spread awareness of this condition. Please visit the links below to get more information and to find out ways that we can help Emma and Karl help other families going through what they went through with little Ally.

  http://www.actsma.co.uk - charity website
http://www.allycadence.co.uk -  Ally's story

Glow in the Dark Rug from The Plantation Rug Company

We received the Superstar Pink rug to review. It's a black background with a large pink star with several smaller white stars placed all over the rug. The rug was lovely and soft and the size is just right. It would easily fit in a smaller bedroom and still look great in a larger bedroom.
 

We didn't have much of a glow on it's first night with us, we put that down to not having a full day of light. The second night it was sitting in our living room and we got a slightly better glow than the previous night. So the next day we tried placing the rug in our garden for a bit of a sun bathing session. That night resulted in a stronger glow but not bright like we expected. We then put the rug in our girls bedroom which is a north facing bedroom. This resulted in the rug not glowing at all for the next few days. We then moved the rug into our boys bedroom, they didn't mind that it was pink, which is a south facing bedroom and the glow returned to the rug but only a hazy sort of glow very faint not anywhere near as bright as when the rug was placed in the garden.

Ideally the rug needs to be in front of a very, very bright window (south facing to catch the sun) with nothing placed on it to hide the glowing parts and a pitch black bedroom at night. The glow disappointed my children, I think they were expecting a bright glow. They loved it's design even my boys liked it and it was a very girly rug. If the glow had been brighter this would have been a massive hit in our house.

The rug we reviewed (retail at £34.99)

Plantation Rug Company Facebook Page

The Plantation Rug Company Website

Meet the Troop

Here are my little troop

This is Cerys, she's 10. Cerys is a fan of Twilight and Hello Kitty. She likes to make things usually involving paper and loads of cello-tape lol. She is in the last year of primary school.

This is Harvey, he's 8. Harvey likes Angry Birds, Ben 10 and Dr Who. He likes to bake cakes, play outside and play games on the xbox.

This is Archie, he is 7. Archie likes Angry Birds, Ben 10 and Dr Who. He likes to play on the xbox and is into Minecraft on the pc.

This is Jorja, she is 5. Jorja likes Hello Kitty and Barbie. She loves playing with dolls, drawing, painting and dressing up.

This is Gwen, she's 2. Gwen loves In The Night Garden and Waybuloo. She loves swings and slides, running about, dancing and drawing on herself.

This is bubs. Bubs is due October 25th 2011. Not sure if bubs will arrive then as I usually go overdue. We know the gender but the children and other family members don't. Everyone will find out when bubs arrives!

And finally Darren and I. Darren is into the xbox and is mostly caught playing Black Ops. He's a major horror film fan too. I am a Twilight fan. I am also into cloth nappies which some find odd. 

Here's to a new venture

So here's my first post on my first blog. I'm a mum to 5 children aged 10, 8, 7, 5 and 2. I'm also expecting our 6th little one in late October. I'm from the UK and live in the south of England in a county known as Kent. I live with my husband, Darren and we have 3 adult cats, one has not long had 3 kittens who are 6 weeks old.


I'm hoping that I can catch the blogging bug and post about life in general but also any toys the children want me to tell everyone about. I'll also be talking about cloth nappies/diapers and many other things that come along with being a mum of many.


Feel free to ask any questions you have about me in the comments and I'll happily natter away to you :)