When you fail - Me and Mine September

So our Me and Mine pictures this month are..in the lift in our local retail park heading up to NEXT.. yep that's the only picture I could find of all of us from September..and frankly Mabli is barely in it.

I tried to rush and get a pic this morning before work/school/life..let's just say I won't be trying to repeat that exercise and no pictures where taken.

September has been a really full on month. There's the obvious, school starting and the massive change that has been to our lives and routines. We're all tired, I'm not sure I'll ever get used to the school run..and the baby has timed this with barely sleeping so..it's been a tricky one!

There's also been a lot of heartache, not something I'll go into really here, but it would be hard for me to explain why I've been more silent over this month. Frankly it would be hard to explain at all if I'm honest. Relationships with family members aren't always easy, things are never black and white. What remains a constant is my small family unit, Tom and the kids. I'm so thankful for that. Even if I scream and shout in the mornings, even if I find it hard to say sorry (always), even when I'm not being a good wife or mum and when I'm trying to be a good daughter and sister.

Sometimes I want a grown up to tell me what is best..and then I remember that I'm the grown up!

There have been some really joyful moments too of course. I'm so excited to see how Wilf is developing at school, within weeks he's come on massively with his reading and writing. I know that is a sometimes controversial subject and I don't in anyway think 4 years old 'should' be doing things at this age. All children are so different but Wilf is definitely the kind of kid that wants to do these things and is picking up on things now so quickly. He's been able to spell his name for a while but has now mastered our names too and is able to pick up on lots of words and work out how they go together. It's an exciting time as I think reading is such wonderful thing to be able to do, I can't wait for him to get lost in a good book and to see where his imagination takes him.

Mabli has always changed massively over the past month, I'm not sure its it a leap or not but she's also coming along really well in her speech. When I say speech she's just babbling away but she can recognise words now too. She still has no teeth though!

I've been feeling a bit lost whilst I try and work out me new routine as a school run mum. I was feeling a bit lonely with some of my friends moving away and not really seeing people as much as I used to when I had Wilf with me. In fact I was becoming a bit of a hermit for a couple of weeks as I just couldn't work out what to do with my time in-between drop off and pick up and how to fit in all the things I needed to do in that time. It's odd as I thought I'd have more time but I actually seem to have less!

I'm feeling positive about some new friendships I've been making lately though and I think that this new phase of our life will be a positive one once we've found our feet. I'm trying to cut out bits of social media that were making me feel a bit negative too. It's hard because of my job of course but I think it's just finding a good balance..like everything in life!

Gosh this has turned into a bit of long winded post hasn't it! Hope any of that makes sense, I'm so sleep deprived I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't. I'm even quite starting to like our funny lift picture, ha! Must try harder next month to make up for it ;)

Don't forgot to visit the other Me and Mine hosts Lucy, Katie, Jenny, Alex and Lucy. I can't wait to see all your posts!

Reading with Disney Life

Now Wilf is at school (still getting over the fact I have a school aged child now) we're settling into everything that comes with that. The school run, the routine and the structure of a school setting. What I love about his school is pretty much all of their learning is based around play and 75% of it outdoors too. There is a repetition to his day, which involves circle time, snacks, outdoor play and stories, it also involves two sessions of 'playing with dough disco's' which is basically dancing squeezing a blob of dough in each hand. Apparently this is to strengthen the muscles needed to do things like hold a pencil in the grip needed for writing! I had no idea that these muscles needed to develop before kids could do things like learning to write, but it makes total sense when you think about it. 

In reception, the only thing Wilf need's to bring home so far is his weekly book. My little boy has always loved reading, he will ask for story after story without losing interest; I do think that reading to him since he was a baby really helped when it came to him speaking at quite an early age. One of the things I'm most excited for him to learn, is to be able to read for himself and I know that whilst school helps, the work is really done together at home. 

Click below to read on

School run style and feeling the feels

It's week three of the school run..I think..I've lost track of the days and weeks a little bit if I'm honest. I go through feeling like 'I'm liking the routine, he's happy, he's learning so much, this is good' to feeling like 'nope I can't be doing this everyday, I just saw a girl being mean to him, I'm taking him out we'll go home and built forts and watch movies'. It's a swinging pendulum of emotions.

I'm lucky that he's not shown any signs of NOT having a good time. He knows a couple of the kids in the other class, he always has someone to play with at break. He's one of the oldest in the year, he loves learning, he's desperate to read and write.

I went to the park after school and some girls were telling him boys can't play, only girls. I wanted to cry. He told me his friend said she wasn't his friend that day, she had a new friend. I feel like my heart is breaking for him, I can't bare other peoples kids. I want to wrap him in cotton wool and protect him and to always be there as soon as he falls down and grazes his had. I can't, sometimes kids need to work out their own things. I don't want anyone to make him feel like he can't play with his My Little Ponies. He loves My Little Ponies, he's a boy too, shock horror.

Does this settle down? Does anyone feel 100% about their school choice? About sending them there in the first place? How do you deal when people's kids are just...meanies?!

Any advice gratefully accepted.

My friend Kat gave me a great piece of advice about the school run. She said throw on some joggers for the run, when you're home you can shower and get changed. Wear a hat in winter, no one has time to wash their hair before 8 and get children ready..right?

For someone who spent about 15 years of their life living in skirts and dresses I've succumbed to the jeans and sweater look. Half way through the first week I was wearing pink joggers, unfortunately it's too warm still for hat to hide the hair situation. Blessing come in it still being sunny enough for sunglasses to hide the eye bags.

So I thought I'd come up with my favourite pieces for the school run, if your interested!

I've recently become obsessed with these 'mom jeans', I'm also not 100% sure I can pull them off. I tried these jeans in about 101 combinations of size and length and decided on the W 30/ L 30 size (I'm usually a 12) but in hindsight at they have stretched as I've worn them I could have gone a little smaller. I love that they are high rise because I have quite a long tummy AND because I always tumble try my tops and then accidentally make them that bit smaller!

I've teamed them with these trainers from Boden which I am currently living in and this top from La Redoute . My saddle bag is from here.

I've been trawling the internet for some other ideas on easy school run ideas though so I thought I'd make a little list below of others items I've been loving.

Oh P.S don't forget you can 'shop my looks' here now too if you want to see the bits and pieces I've been loving lately :)

Getting some 'me time' with L'Occitane

Picture the scene, I'd been running on about 3 hours sleep a night for the past fortnight. The baby is surely teething, won't let me put her down, the house is a tip, work gets back logged and I'm sitting on the living room floor, breastfeeding and holding back the 'oh so tired tears'.

Mum life.
The bits you forget, once your child is sleeping though, walking, talking..off to school. I know it goes so quickly, the hard bits are hard but the good bits are wonderful. It's amazing and lonely and wonderful and frustrating and the best and worst feelings you've ever felt time 1000.

The afternoon, when it felt like I was the brink of tears (OK there were tears). Then the baby napped, things didn't seem quite so bad. I made a cup of tea, went to the bathroom, cleansed my face properly and slowly (not like the mornings school run were I'm lucky if I get to moisturise) and popped on this L'Occitane facemask. Suddenly just like that, having some 'me time' made it that little bit easier. True story.

I'm working with L'Occitaine in this post to let you know about their competition to win a luxury hamper worth £300 . A little bit of pampering, of 'me time' that I think everyone needs once in a while. There are also runner up prizes which include L'Occitane Shea Butter travel essentials and L'Occitane Almond Travel essentials so you have a few chances of winning something for yourself. The comp ends on Oct the 3rd so be quick!

OK so a facemark isn't 8 hours uninterrupted sleep but it helps right? I feel like just these tiny moments to yourself, a hot bath, a cup of coffee, reading a chapter of a new book in bed. Life's little luxuries for sure!

What do you do to recharge? Are there little things that help you feel a bit more like yourself again? I'd love to know any 'quick fixes' you have to make you feel that way!

In association with L'Occitane