mum to be Archives - SAHARASPLASH

saharasplash3 October, 2017

Those final days of pregnancy

Those final days of pregnancy are to be frank, pretty crap. Not just because you’re feeling tired, stressed out, unprepared and all of the above already- what makes things even worse is if you think you have an idea on when your baby will arrive, and then it doesn’t. It’s a crazy time, you’re about to enter an unknown world with a million possible outcomes you just cannot predict. Worries of ‘will my baby be healthy and normal?’ are floating around in your head and you just can’t push the doubts of ‘am I able to do this?’ from your mind. I have found my pregnancy to be a fairly good one up to this point, but I’m ready to admit that I am just a little bit fed up now.

I’m sleeping well and eating great. No issues in any way health wise. The only problem is, it’s the anticipation that’s really getting to me. I don’t know if my waters will break at any moment, or if I’ll be needing to make an appointment next week to kickstart things once I reach the overdue stage. I have been telling myself for 8 months that I won’t go past my due date, and that’s part of the reason why I think I’m starting to get disheartened with only a few days to go till I reach the 40 week mark.

So, while I have frequent meltdowns and shout at my sister for no reason, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about the importance of making as much time as possible for yourself in those final days of pregnancy.

nspa Mum to be gift box- £10*

The nspa collection at Asda have a wonderful mum to be range. Whether you are currently expecting or would like to find a gorgeous gift for a mum to be, here’s a little bit about the range:

The nspa mum to be collection has been created for your special time (goodness knows I need it this week!). The collection of naturally inspired cruelty free products will help take care of the changing needs of your skin not only during pregnancy but as a new mum too.

Taking the time to relax and de-stress is key, as is ensuring your skin is kept silky soft, supple and in great condition throughout your pregnancy and beyond. Not only does the range allow you to look after your skin during this life and body changing time, it also provides an escape that you can count on to help your inner well-being.

I have found that time to myself with my baby is so important. Bonding with your growing baby while it’s still living inside you is a useful tool to keep your mind strong and focused before labour begins.

The aromas from the nspa beautiful mum gift box have really helped me during those final days of pregnancy. Keep your fingers crossed for me that this baby arrives before my due date! If you have any more tips then leave them in the comments below!

Saharasplash x

Thanks for reading! Here’s the latest news from my last London trip: Joining the sit-stand movement with Fellowes and Viking

*PR samples included. All thoughts and views my own

saharasplash15 September, 2017

Weaning Tips with My Little Piccolo and Waitrose

I have been spending a lot of time counting down to milestones- when the baby reaches full term at 37 weeks (today!) for example and how many days left till my predicted due date. Like I’ve mentioned previously, I want to maintain the lifestyle aspect of my blog from fashion to the family, so this is something I’m really trying to focus on doing. I still want those without children to come to my site to read a post about what Cadbury is bringing out this year for Christmas as well as something like this- Weaning Tips with My Little Piccolo and Waitrose. I hope that my new readers as well as long time supporters can sort of co-exist together in one harmonious bubble of awesomeness. Read on to find out what happened when a bunch of mums (and my pregnant self) took over the Kings Cross Waitrose to explore the shelves…

The amazing brand behind the morning trip is My Little Piccolo. They are an organic baby food brand who have been organising trails up and down the country over the past few months to spread the word about best weaning tips. Together with Alice Fotheringham, an infant nutrition specialist and nutritional chef, they have reached out to all sorts of mums and had a big impact on the groups from the tours. I’m here to share a few things I learned myself which I’d love to pass on to any mums going through weaning, or just as food for thought for the future!

Frozen fruit is not cheating

Alice lead us through Waitrose aisle by aisle where we all had different types of questions. One popular question being about fruit and veg and how to incorporate this into a weaning baby’s diet. Frozen fruit is the perfect way to create a lovely dessert for baby and the family. Seasonal fruits such as strawberries can be bought frozen and blended up or cooked to make a compote, smoothie or crumble base. Stewed apples from frozen can settle a sickly tummy too. It’s absolutely fine to feed fruit from frozen to hungry little ones so don’t feel like you have to buy it all fresh.

Don’t be afraid of strong flavours

This is a really great tip I discovered on the tour. Alice explained to us that you shouldn’t be afraid of introducing stronger flavours such as mature cheddar (suitable from one year) or mustard in mashed potato for example. These strong tastes will help your baby to get used to trying out lots of variety, and apparently many weaning babies are fond of tinned mackerel or sardines too! Using different herbs and spices is also a better way of flavouring food instead of reaching for the salt when preparing meals for your baby.

There’s more to dips than just ketchup

A lot of us will open our fridge doors and be greeted with your standard bottle of ketchup, mayo and potentially a BBQ sauce. On our way round the shelves, we discovered that low and behold- there’s more to dips than just these three! Yogurt dips, pesto, and pea hummus are all perfect alternatives to the red sauce, here’s why:

It gets baby used to many different flavours
It reduces the sugar intake immediately on the plate (especially if dessert is on the menu too)
Colour variation in dips and sauces will help teach your child that green isn’t always related to yucky veggies!

Breakfast can be deceiving

So I’m a really big cereal eater. My go to tends to be the Nestle gluten free honey nut cornflakes day to day in the mornings. For babies and toddlers however, cereal is a sure way of starting the day off with too much sugar. It was also interesting to hear that Weetabix (compared to Waitrose own brand) contains three times the amount of sugar- that’s a big difference. We were advised to simply rule out 3/4 of cereals altogether when weaning and focus on porridge.

A huge thank you has to go out to Alice, the My Little Piccolo team and Waitrose for such a great day, I can’t wait to put it into practice in the New Year!

Meanwhile for mums already on the weaning journey, the My Little Piccolo website has a wealth of exciting recipes to try at home and has info on where you can purchase the products seen above.

Saharasplash x

saharasplash31 July, 2017

Clever Little Discoveries for baby

As a mum to be and also an observant bystander when seeing parents out and about, I know that being a mum/dad is a tough job. From birth, you are responsible for a new life, and you want to do the best you can possibly do for your child. Of course, no child is going to breeze through the first few months/years of its life without some drama, be it a bump or bruise or a fever or trapped wind. I’ve come up with a few items from a very handy website that you may well already know about, but if not then continue reading my clever little discoveries for baby, sponsored by Babythingz.

1. Sock Ons- £2.99

I had a few pairs of these given to me as a present for my baby shower. They are such a cute little gift which I could see saving a lot of time and hassle. I cannot wait to try them out as I know my baby is going to be a real fidget bum just like me!

Sock On's (White) 1xPair Size 6-12 Months

2. Head support- £15.99

I really do think that something like this is worth investing in as it can be used straight from birth and up to around four months. Its main function is to prevent flathead but I’m guessing that by the looks of this cushion, baby will find it super comfy and supportive too! You can use this in a bouncer, rocker, carrycot or wherever your baby’s head is lying and it will help elevate them a few more degrees which makes a lot of difference to their field of vision.

Babymoov Lovenest Head Support (Taupe)

3. Crib wedge- £24.99

This is a little different to the head support. The crib wedge (designed for the crib or cot) can also be used from birth but is designed to help baby sleep better. The main reasons you should give this a go is if your baby suffers from regurgitation, colic or breathing problems during the night. Of course, these are all very common occurrences in babies, so I really wanted to show you this as I had never seen one on the shelves before.

BabyMoov Cosymat Crib Wedge (Smokey)

4. Wood effect corner cushions- £3.99

For someone who lives in a farmhouse where the walls and ceilings are pretty much wooden, I’m definitely investing in these! The usual plastic looking corner cushions just wouldn’t fit in with our decor at all, so these are definitely on my purchase list for when baby gets a bit older!

Clevamama Corner Cushions (Wood Effect x4)

5. Crib rail teething protector- £18.99

Carrying on from the last clever little discovery, again for when baby is older, this caught my eye on the Babythingz site. Available in multiple lengths, this looks like a saviour buy if you are walking in to find your baby sucking on its crib edges! The protector will provide a safe and soft surface for baby to bite down on when teething starts to kick in.

Prince Lionheart Cot / Crib Rail Teether Protector (4 x 12" Lengths) Clear – 3cm wide

6. Baby banz sunglasses- £12.99

Lastly, I wanted to share this cute little item with you. Again, the website has a ton of choice in colour and style, but I fell in love with these retro white sunglasses! Suitable from 0-2 years and fully adjustable, hopefully this will help those parents out there who struggle to keep sun protective headgear on baby’s head!