Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween everyone!!

It's seems that every year this American tradition becomes more and more popular in the UK - It certainly has in our house! I have put a few decorations up this year (mainly bought last year in the sales)...

Please excuse the wipes, I forgot to move them before the photo (#reallife)!

We also did the pumpkin picking, mentioned in a previous blog, which was just so much fun!!!

Chris and I carved some pumpkins but we did this when Jackson was in bed, as he's still too little to do it. Chris gets very serious about this, he was googling ideas a few days before!

Instead of carving one, we let Jackson paint a pumpkin. He thought that this was the best thing ever!

On the actual night of Halloween, I went out to the theatre with my mum and sister, leaving the boys to see all the Trick or Treaters. We didn't get him an outfit this year as he again was too little to go out trick or treating but I did however get him a couple of halloween themed clothes (which he will wear for most of the Autumn season!!!).

What did you all do for Halloween? 

Love Sophia xxx

Weekly meal plan #3

It's that time of the week where I sit down with all my cookbooks and meal plan before hitting the supermarket. This week wasn't a big shop, as we still had quite a few random bits left over from the week before, but I am still loving shopping at Lidl. 

Due to Jackson being a bit difficult this last week and not napping in the day, I thought I would plan some easier meals, incase he is in the same mood next week! 

• Joe's Sweet Potato Cottage Pie (Joe Wicks' 'Lean in 15' cook book) - I am going to make this one on Monday and make loads of it, so at least I'll have one cooked meal ready as a back up for later in the week!

• Chicken with Creamy Mild Mushroom and Tarragon Sauce (Joe Wicks' 'Lean in 15' cook book)

• Lamb Chops and Cous Cous

• Sausage, Mash and Gravy

• Pasta Pesto

Love Sophia xxx

Weekend Vlog

Chris normally works Saturdays but had a rare weekend off. See what we got up too...

Love Sophia xxx

Open letter- Oct 16

Dear Jackson,

You are nearly 19 months old now and you just seem to be growing into a little boy more and more every day. You are saying new words everyday too - last night's was 'night night', which you said to Dadda on the phone.

I love watching you grow and learn new things, even if it does cause a few tantrums at times. Recently, whenever we park the car, you refuse to walk to our house, screaming and throwing yourself on the floor, all because you have learnt that the park is in the other direction.

Another of your new words is 'no', but you say it more like the guy from 'The Vicar of Dibley' - 'nononononono', apart from the fact that you don't end it in a yes! You really know what you want now and don't like it when I tell you something you don't want to hear. We visited our neighbours house a few days ago and it took 20 mins to walk between our two houses as you wanted to play in the trees outside instead, which I didn't mind as it was really sweet watching you play.

Today, I made sure that all my jobs were done so that we could have a Mama and Jackson day. This is something that I want to ensure that I make time to do as much as I can before your baby brother or sister is born. You are yet to understand that a baby will be joining our family but I know that you are going to be a brilliant big brother because, with all the other babies that you know, you shower them with kisses and cuddles. Sometimes you are a bit rough by pulling their arm or poking them in the eye, but I think that you are just trying to work them out. So we might not leave you to babysit just yet (hehe)!

Back to today, we went swimming in a new pool which neither of us had been to before. You loved it, splashing around and jumping into the pool. You seemed to know so many people and toddlers there, as you were waving at everyone - you have more friends than anyone I know!!! Your gorgeous grin always gets people's attention and they stop in the street to have a talk when they see you. The other day, you had the lady in the local jewellers waving to you as she was putting new stock in the window (a good place to have friends as Mama has a birthday coming up!).

Keep being your happy little self, your Mama loves you more than you know.

Love Mama xxx

25 Week Pregnacy Update

Here is my 25 week pregnancy update...

Symptoms: This week, I have started to feel a bit more pregnant - putting on shoes is not as easy as it once was! I also find that if I lift jackson too much, I really feel it by the evening. I can still do pretty much everything I would normally do but it is just all a bit restricting. The scary thing is, it's only going to get worse in the next 15 weeks!!!! I also have been suffering from a lot of heartburn this week. 

Food Cravings: Avocados and sugar (not together though, it's not a weird pregnancy craving!).

Movement: There has been lots of movement, I also had 'Braxton Hicks' a couple of times this week, which made the baby start doing flips!!!!!!! 

Sleep: I have been really tired this week but I think it's because I have been going to bed later than I should be. I have also been getting up to go to the loo again in the night.

Things I am missing: Having as much energy as I normally have. 

Best Moment: Seeing all of Jackson's buddies and my Mama friends. It has been 2 weeks since we last saw them all - the first week, Jackson was sick and then we were away on holiday. 

Worst Moment: Same thing that I mentioned above which I am missing; having lots of energy. I just don't want Jackson to miss out on anything and I think that this often leads me to do more in the day than I would normally, which means by the evening I am knackered. 

Love Sophia xxx

Pumpkin Patch Picking

Something I have seen all over Instagram lately is lots of gorgeous photos of toddlers and children pumpkin picking - so I just had to get on the band wagon! I searched the internet and couldn't find any nearby, so it was a bit of a drive to our closest one - we went to Garsons in Esher and it was amazing!!!! There were so many different areas for 'pick your own' and they were so big you had to drive to each one! They also had areas that can be used for picnics, which we said we would definitely come back in the summer to use, as you could spend a good few hours there walking around the beautiful area. We bought 2 big pumpkins for our annual carving competition (look out for the photos which will be coming soon!). Here are some snaps of the day...

Afterwards, we went to the cafe for a slice of cake and a coffee. I brought Jackson some healthy melon from home which he ate like this...

Not sure where he gets that from?!

Love Sophia xxx

Jackson's Toddler Room Wish List

When we designed Jackson's nursery, we put him in the smallest room with the idea that when number two came along, we would move Jackson into our second, bigger bedroom. That means that now we get to design a big boy room for him!!! We want to do it this side of Christmas, so that he has time to settle into his new bedroom and not feel pushed out with the new baby arriving. 

We are moving some of the furnishing from his current baby room into his new one - I have done a blog post in the past about his baby room which you can see here. We are also changing his curtains into a cordless blind for his big boy room, seen as he is a lot more mobile now and explores everything! There are a few extra bits that we want to buy too, which I have listed below. I have also linked each item to where they are each from... 

I think Jackson is still too little to go into a toddler bed, so we are going to buy a Cotbed, with the idea that within the next year, we can change it into the next size bed. I love this one with the added storage underneath.  

We are also going to get him a pillow and duvet to start getting him ready for the transition into the toddler bed. This means that we get to buy some fun duvet sets; I like this one from John lewis.

And this one from Asda.

It's still not a big room that he's moving into, so I like these wardrobes from Ikea, as they are so tall. I want one with double rails and the other with just shelves in. 

I want to keep quite a few toys upstairs so that he can play in his room when he wants to. I also have a comfy chair upstairs that I will hopefully use for breast feeding the baby, so having lots of toys there will be easier to keep Jackson occupied while I am doing so. I love this one from the Great Little Trading Company. You can also buy a cushion for the top. 

I want to have some of his books on show so that he can easily see them. I love these shelves from Ikea. 

Let me know if you have seen any other interesting accessories for a toddler's bedroom!

Love Sophia xxx 

Center Parcs - Part Two

Here is Part Two of our holiday, I want to go back already!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Enjoy...

Love Sophia xxx

'What Jackson ate' - Holiday Addition

I thought that I would share Jackson's day of food for one of the days we were at Center Parcs. I took quite a few bits with us so that we didn't have to keep buying bits for him on the go, which seemed to work quite well.

For Breakfast, he had 1 and 1/2 Weetabix with raspberries, mixed in with milk. On the side, he had his morning milk and a cut-up pear. 

Chris and I were yet to eat breakfast so at around 9:30am, we headed to the Pancake House and Jackson shared a bit of a taster of our breakfast! He had pancake, beans, mushrooms, bacon and some ketchup for dipping.

For lunch, he had a crumpet, cheese, grapes and pepper sticks (he didn't eat the pepper sticks unfortunately!).

After a nap and before swimming, he had one of these squeezie yogurts from Lidl as a little snack. 

I forgot to take a picture of this but he had some 'Organix Goodies Sweet Cinnamon Puffcorn' as a post-swimming snack and to hide the fact that dinner was going to be late! 

I think that this meal is shown or mentioned loads on my blogs but it is one of my favourites! For dinner, he had Sausage and Lentil Casserole with peppers and courgettes. 

He ended the day with beaker of milk. 

Love Sophia xxx

24 Week Pregnancy Update

Here is my 24 week pregnancy update....

Symptoms: This week, I am getting more numbness and a bit of pain near my C-Section scar. I have spoken to the midwife about it, at our last appointment, and she just said to keep an eye on it and if the pain gets really bad (which it's not at the moment) to then go and see a doctor. Apart from that, I have just had a lovely week - we have been on holiday so Chris has been around, which does massively help when looking after Jackson! 

Food Cravings: Nothing much this week. 

Movement: Lots of movements this week, Chris has felt the Bubba quite often as well. 

Sleep: I have been dreaming loads this week and have also been waking up quite early, which is a bit pants, especially when your boys are sleeping in!!! 

Things I am missing: Wine again this week, I think that's mainly because of being away and having that holiday feeling! 

Best Moment: Going on our last family holiday as a family of 3!!!!

Worst Moment: Nothing this week as it has been an amazing week!!! Shame we need money to live as it would be lovely to have Chris around more! Was so much fun.

Love Sophia xxx

Must haves for Center Parcs

We LOVED our holiday to Center Parcs and we will be re-booking for next year very soon. Below are a few things that I will be taking with me next time, some of which I did take this year and also some that I realised, whilst away this time, that would have been useful. Here they are... 

A friend had mentioned to me to take with us:

• Toilet roll - you can buy more at the shop there but it is quite expensive.
• Dishwasher tablets - again, you are provided with some but not enough for the week and it is cheaper to bring some from home than to buy in the on-site shop.
• Towels for swimming

Next time, I would also bring:

• Washing up liquid - none was provided at the cabin
• Kitchen Roll
• Coffee machine - we actually did take this with us this time, which was an absolute treat (we do like our coffee)!!!
• Bird/Animal feed - there are so many birds and animals around the cabins; we gave them some bread but if you bring proper bird feed, I am sure you would be able to see loads more.
• If you are going with a toddler/child and you have to stay in in the evenings, a few DVD's and blankets would be lovely (also wine if you are able to drink!!!).
• You spend so much time outside because of the different activities so I would have definitely packed so many more layers given the chance again. When walking at night I was generally fine but when on the bike I was freezing! 
• The kitchen was a little basic so one thing that I brought was a Lasagne that I had made at home and which just needed heating up. I would have brought more meals like this as it was so much easier (eating out with a toddler is just not as relaxing as eating at home!).

Let me know if you have any other suggestions on what we should take next time!

Love Sophia xxx

Center Parcs - Part One

I have split our week at Center Parcs into two parts, otherwise it would have been over 30 minutes of video and no one wants to watch that much of me in one go, hehe!

Enjoy...

Love Sophia xxx

Weekly Meal Plan #2

Last month, my meal plan was the most popular blog that I published, so I thought that I would do another one (I am so nosey and love reading these type of blogs myself)! If this month's also proves to be a popular one, I may start it to make it a weekly thing, as I hope that it not only gives some of you recipe ideas but it also ensures that I plan our meals for each week! 

Like last time, I haven't put the days for each recipe, as I like to pick which one we are having on the actual day. Three out of the five recipes are from Joe Wicks' books, and I also tend to make some of the meals so that there is enough for 4 people and freeze half of them, either for the weekend or for the following week. Here is our menu for this week...

• Happiness Pasta; Sweet Tomato, Aubergine and Ricotta 
• Thai Green Curry - I will make more and freeze half of this
• Teriyaki Salmon with Courgette Noodles 
• Turkey Meatballs with Feta - I will make more and freeze half of this
• Joe's Chicken Pie - I will make more and freeze half of this

Let me know of any new recipes that you have found this week. 

Love Sophia xxx

A Week on Jackson's Dinner Plate

I have shared Jackson's breakfasts and lunches before, so thought that I would write about his dinners too...

Jackson normally eats the same dinners as we do, so you also get a sneak peak into what we eat. For most days, I actually forgot to photograph the puddings, mainly because I tend to wait and see how well Jackson has eaten his main meal before deciding what to give him for dessert!

Day one: Sausage and Lentil Casserole with hidden peppers and courgettes (I think this is my favourite home cooked meal!!!), plus some carrots on the side. He also had a yogurt for pudding. 

Day two: Chilli Con Carne pasta bake. Again, he had a yogurt for pudding. 

Day Three:  We had a very poorly baby on this day; he had a sore throat so we gave him a classic sickness dinner - Tomato soup with bread and butter. We also struggled to get water in him that day, so we gave him watermelon for pudding. Sorry, no picture for this one but you all know what it looks like! 

Day Four: I made Pork Stir Fry with green beans, peppers and onions, served with rice. I have to admit, this did not go down too well! He didn't eat any of the vegetables and found the pork a bit too chewy. He had grapes, rice cakes and a yogurt as well, to make sure that his tummy was full. 

Day Five: It was a nice and easy dinner tonight! This is one of Gigi's recipes that I try to copy but with tinned tomato instead of the gorgeous, fresh tomatoes we normally have in Greece. I also put in eggs, feta, spring onions and a little chorizo. He also had a piece of toast on the side (which he had already had a quarter if when i took this photo!). For pudding, he had some blueberries. 

Day Six: Today I feel that it's not a very toddler friendly dinner but Jackson seemed to love it. He had Lamb Cutlet, couscous with veggies thrown in, broccoli and some humous for dipping. For pudding, he had chopped up apple and a teaspoon of peanut butter. 

Day Seven: Tonight on the menu is fish fingers, mash and carrots - something nice and easy. It's a meal that I know he will eat and every now and again it's not the end of the world that he has it.

I hope this has given you all some ideas for some yummy dinners!

Love Sophia xxx

23 Week Pregnancy Update

Here is my 23 week pregnancy update....

Symptoms: At the beginning of this week, the baby was soooooo low down, basically sitting in my hips. The bubba has now moved a bit higher which is making it so much easier to bend down and also to pick up Jackson. Again, heartburn has been bad this week unfortunately. 

Food Cravings: Avocado and Feta!!!!

Movement: They baby seems to be falling into a little routine, still not a really set one but I am noticing a bit of a pattern. Chris also managed to feel the bubba again but a lot higher up this time!

Sleep: Totally normal this week. 

Things I am missing: Really not much this week. I was starting to miss the ability to bend over but now that the little one has moved up, that's not longer such an issue. 

Best Moment: Jackson hasn't been unwell this week, but as much as I have hated being in all the time, it has been lovely spending time just as Mama and Jackson. We also had a midwife appointment, so we got to hear the heartbeat again, which is always lovely and reassuring. 

Worst Moment: My little J being poorly!! 

Love Sophia xxx

Packing for Center Parcs

Holiday time!!!! We are going away to Centre Parcs this week for 5 days - Monday to Friday. Neither myself or Chris have ever been before, so slightly unsure of what to expect. As usual, I have probably over-packed but hey, it's better to be over-organised rather than under, especially with a toddler!

I have made a list of what I am going to pack for Jackson and below I have also included the video of what I have actually packed... 

Packing list: 

7 x Outfits

5 x PJ's

Trainers

Wellies

Rain Coat

Body Warmer

Swimming Costume x 2

Swimming Towels x 2

Swimming Nappies x 8

Bath Towel

Bubble Bath

Sudocream

Cream

Nappies x 25

Pack of wipes

Sleepingbag

'Ellie'

Big Muslin

Musical Toy

Trunki

Toys x 4

Scuttle Bug

Here is my packing video, enjoy!

If anyone has got any advice on anything else I should bring, please let me know!

Love Sophia xxx