Magic Nickers Vrs Magic Tights

Its coming up to party season and I have been on the hunt for the perfect underwear to go under my perfect party dress. I need underwear thats up to the all mighty task of holding in the mummy tummy smoothing out the lumps and bumps.
Of course the first thing that springs to mind when thinking of shaping underwear is Spanx, retailing at 60-80 euro. They do have a lot of other cheaper versions on the market, which I am sure are just as good, but I needed to see what all this fuss was about. So I bought my self a pair of Spanx. One of my loveliest girlfriends got married in the summer so I thought this was the perfect time to try them out. It took me about 20 mins of jumping around my bedroom, wiggling and squirming to get in to them. They are as you can imagine not very attractive and you wouldn't want to be getting them off in a hurry. Note to self, don't wait until bladder is completely full before heading to the ladies. Once I put the dress on it did what is said on the packet, my tummy was remarkably flat and it did smooth out the lady lumps, however I had fat knees and fat ribs. The spanx does indeed hold you in, in all the places it says but what it fails to say is that it pushes the unsightly bits up and down. Do they make an all over body spanx?
Once I put the dress on over the top it looked fine and was actually quite comfortable. So feeling quite confidant I enjoyed the day immensely, until the dancing started. Spanx are not breathable, so once I started jumping around the dance floor I got very hot and sweaty, by the end of the night when I fell back to our bedroom at 3 am I wanted to cut them off. SO the verdict on spanx. 6/10 fine for summer weddings over a flowing dress if you are back to your pre pregnancy weight and just want to hide a few lumps.
On to the next item on my list. Trinny and Susanna magic tights. These magic tights promise to lift your bum, hold in the tummy and smooth out the thighs, sounds good to me. Usually these magic tights retail anywhere from 20 euro to 40 euro depending on where you get them, however good old Tk max have them for 8.99 Euro. BARGIN!
A dinner party at a friends house was a perfect time to try these babies out. They are a lot easier to put on than the spanx, you do have to wiggle a little bit to get in to them, but once they are up past the knees they go up fairly easier. They also go up to your ribs, so unlike the spanx you don't get fat knees or fat rolls by your ribs. I am pleased to say they do exactly what they say on the packet and more. My bum was high and firm, my legs looked long and lean, lady lumps gone and my mummy tummy GONE! In my opinion these are the best things since sliced bread. I even tried on my tight pre pregnancy dress just to see what it looked like. Kim Kardashian eat your heart out! For the first time in a year I actually liked what was looking back at me in the mirror. All signs that I had a baby 8 months ago were gone, well apart from dark circles and the mashed banana in my hair.
So now I have the perfect underwear all I need now is the perfect party dress.
Verdict 9/10. The reason I give 9/10 is that I had to take them off.


xoxo

Things I wish I was told when I had a new born

I am still learning about being a mum, but here are a few things I wish I had known when I had a new born. It would have saved me a lot of stress..

* For the first week there is still some mucus fluid in there lungs, and they make a funny noise when breathing. This is normal so don't worry

* They are noisy sleepers

* After the first few weeks when they sleep all the time, the usual rule of thumb is that they sleep every 2 hrs and eat every 4 hrs. (even though my hungry monkey ate every 2hrs)

* You can over feed. I thought every time DJ cried he was hungry, when maybe he had some wind or just wanting comforting. I only found this out when he had a bad week of colic. So even though I was feeding him every 2 hrs. I thought he wanted to feed every 30 mins or so.

* Sore boobs do go away after the first week, so if breast feeding keep persevering it will be something you will enjoy.

*Its normal for a breast fed baby to go maybe 3 5 even up to 10 days with out a bowel movement.


* Try giving them a little cooled boiled water with half tea spoon of sugar to help them go

* If breast feeding what you eat can affect them, so keep greens and anything acid to a minim. Poor DJ had terrible wind and tummy trouble after I though I was eating healthy. No one told me that what I ate affected him!

* Take lots of video as well as photos, you will forget how little they really were.

* Change nappies quickly, You will get caught out at some point! BEWARE

*Sleep when they sleep. NO really do. I never listened to that piece of advice and I suffered with it.

* Post natal depression can hit you at any stage, its not just in the first few days of baby blues. Yes you will get a few days of baby blues but just look out for the signs of Post natal depression.

Post natal depression isn't just when you don't bond with your baby. I had post natal depression and didn't realize. I would look up the signs and I didn't really have any of them. I loved my baby, I just didn't love my self. I blamed myself if he cried. I felt like a bad mother. I was in a bad place and it was all a haze. I was surviving not living.
Thank fully I got help and went to talk to someone.

Hope this helps any new mums out there.
xoxox

Halloween

We went out shopping last week to get the perfect pumpkin. I have never been so excited getting a pumpkin before. DJ thought the pumpkin was his new toy he kept trying to pick it up to eat!
I am going to attempt to make pumpkin pie when we gut it out next week.
Dj Is going to be a skeleton for Halloween. I thought he would make a great bat, as he is always flapping his arms about, but he wasn't to keen on the bat wings he kept trying to take them off. So a Skeleton baby grow it is. Will post pictures of him dressed up in the next post.
xoxo

One week Left save a Life

The Big Kiss challenge is coming to an end. We have one week left to make a difference
Please click on the Big Kiss Badge One click = One vaccine = One life
Thank you all so much for your support
xoxo

Bambino in Roma

We are just back from our trip to Rome. It was amazing, even if we did have a few mishaps along the way!
When we arrived in Rome we had a car come and pick us up, the first thing that shocked me is. Babies (bambinos) don't need to sit in a car seat! We didn't have one, as we thought we would be getting the bus in to town and then the metro, which brings you practically everywhere you need to go. So when a car came to pick us up the first thing I said is "Do they have a baby seat" I was waved off and told they don't need one. So I held, very tightly on to DJ in the back of the car, even when we stopped to ask a policeman he just looked at is and smiled! CRAZY! So we arrive at our destination, an apartment right by the Colosseum. Unfortunately our apartment was at the very top and there was no lift.. Um excuse me I have a baby a buggy 2 suitcases and a baby bag.. The apartment left a little to the imagination. Everything in Rome is very expensive, and we happened to be there, the same time the Pope was making a few saints.. As you do.. he was making the first Australian saint, so the city was hopping with tourists. So everything was booked up. Andrew had to go to a meeting, and so left DJ and I to look around the city. Of course the min he leaves us, I try climbing the stairs to our apartment, and what happens, I drop the baby, somehow I lost grip of the buggy, as I was pulling it up the stairs and he went down smack on to his face on to the old stone steps. I have never been so scared in all my life as I go to pick him up there is blood all over his mouth. I run out on to the street like a mad woman asking everyone if I can borrow their phones to call Andrew.( I forgot to turn on roaming on my mobile/cell phone) By the time Andrew comes back DJ has calmed down , but I am still a mess! Luckily he only busted his lip. And I got the award for the worst mum of the year award. We promptly moved to a hotel with the last room in Rome available. I didn't care where it was as long as it had a lift.
After we settled and had a little sleep we then went walking around Rome. There is just so much to see, and every corner you turn is something more beautiful than the last street.
Rome is not the easiest city to navigate a buggy around. The streets are all cobbled, so not great for high heels, or buggies. If you must have a bit of height, go with the wedge heels. If you can the best way to go around the city with a baby is to bring the papoose. Especially when visiting the famous sights. We made the mistake of bringing the buggy to the Colosseum. Too many steps un even ground not good! Another tip if your visiting the Colosseum, or any other famous landmark, is to go with a tour. Usually I steer clear of those tours , I hate people coming up to me saying "Tour in english " I don't trust them. However when I saw the line in to the Colosseum, I did some re thinking. It was 20 euro each as opposed to 12 Euro each, you skipped the que, and you also went in to see the the forum aka the oldest part of Rome. You also get to know all the inside information, and not just the standard blurb you get in the guide books. The company we went with was Romaround. I would also recommend taking the 110 tour bus around to all the landmarks. Its an open top bus that you can hop on and hop off as you please. You also get to see a lot of Rome in a short space of time. Especially if your there only for a weekend like us
If you are going to Rome with a baby bring your own formula milk. I don't know if they just go straight from breast to cows milk, but they don't seem to sell formula milk. They do stock baby food though, but not in the super markets you will find it in some chemists.
Italians love bambinos, but there are no babies around. Its most bizar. Seemingly 50% of the population of Italy is over 60, People are only having 1 to 2 babies now. Oh times have changed. I coul not go down the street with out men and women stopping me to admire my baby. DJ took all the attention very well. In fact he relished in it. Smiling flirting he loved it.
So we arrived home yesterday. DJ has caught a terrible cold on the flight so we are now tucked up on the sofa looking through our holiday photos.
xoxo

Packing for Rome

Packing has never been an easy task, but add a 7 month old baby in to the mix and it becomes impossible. I am packing for Rome, we are only going for 4 days, Yet I have two out fits for everyday. Everything I put in to the suitcase DJ takes it out when I turn my back. Does he not realize we are going to the very stylish Rome, where dressing babies up is a hobbie. We cant let the side down. He has his best out fits ready for dinner, his most stylish outfits for sightseeing, and Ive got a big hat for him to wear to try and protect his little cheeks from being pinched! Those wonderful italians are delightful, but if my memory serves me well, I remember as a child having my cheeks pinched A LOT.
My luggage allowance is only 15kg, thats for myself and DJ. In that has to go 3 pairs of shoes, 2 coats, 6 outfits for both of us, toiletries for me, toiletries for DJ, food Nappies and milk ( just in case they don't have the SMA formula over there)
I don't think we are going to make the weight limit some how. Our flight is nice and early, try 6 am. Which means we have to be up by 4am to be there for 5am. DJ is still taking a bottle then too so at least one of us will be up. Ill feed him his next feed on the plane to help his ears equalize. I am bringing a stroller as our buggy is a 2 piece and they wont allow that, Stupid Ryan Air. I am also bringing the papoose, just in case the air port becomes to much for him. I am traveling with Andrew (my man) too so at least there will be another set of hands. Its not so easy taking your shoes off for security while having a baby strapped to your front.
Well Ill be back to update on Sunday
Enjoy your weekend
xoxo

New Mums loosing too much weight

Now I am the first to admit that I am slightly obsessed with loosing weight, especially since having DJ. I am always thinking about what I eat and trying to get in exercise where I can. I am not happy with my body, even though the scales say I am the same weight I was before I got pregnant. I still feel huge. I know I am not alone in saying this. All of my friends who have had babies, look fab, in fact they look slimmer now then before they had the baby, but every single one of them will say " I need to loose more weight, look at my tummy"
Before I had DJ I actually wanted to slap them. Now I think the same thing about myself. But I actually see it in the mirror. Isn't this the same way anorexics think? They look in the mirror and see something completely different than what everyone else sees. I do believe that some women, including myself think the same way they do.
They actually believe that they are huge and need to loose more weight.
Celebrity mums are a prime example. ALmost all of them are far skinnier now than before their babies were born. Going back to my good old friend Gisele Bundchen, (pictured here on a beach in Miami yesterday) I think she has gone too skinny.



I ve always loved her body, but now I think she has gone too far.
Another celebrity who lost a lot of weight after the birth of her first biological baby is Angelina Jolie,
She is constantly criticized about her weight and she said in a 2007 interview with OK magazine " Having a baby really takes it out of you, they take all your nutrients, I know I need to take better care of myself" She was pictured on a movie set 5 months after looking incredibly waif like.



I know that if you ask any woman if she is happy with her body, baby or not, she will tell you something she is not happy with.
The funniest quote I read recently was from Jessica Alba who said "“My breasts are saggy, I’ve got cellulite, my hips are bigger.” after the birth of her baby.. UM REALLY JESSICA... ARE YOU MAD.. She is one girl I would like to slap!
But I do think that there is something that happens to a woman's brain after having a baby, that her self image gets altered.
I'd love to know if there actually was a medical condition for this?
What ever the reason is, I think we all need to be a little kinder to our selves, and try to see our selves through the eyes of the people that love us, through our babies eyes, because they will love us no matter what..
Be healthy and happy people..
xoxo

DJ kissing the baby in the mirror

Had to share this little video of DJ.
While I was trying on a million pairs of jeans, My little man was giving kisses to the little baby in the mirror..
xoxo
xoxo

One Kiss= One Vaccine

I just went up to check on DJ. He is fast asleep in his cot (for the time being)
I often go up just to check on him. To watch his little chest rise and fall.
I am now looking through photos of him, because I miss him, crazy I know. When he is awake all I want is a little piece and quite and a break from having him bounce on me all day, then when he asleep I miss him
The thought of anything happening to him or not being able to help him when he is sick, its just urgh, not worth thinking about. I am lucky enough that I live in a world where I can get medicine readily, and I can do all I can to make him better.
However there are many new mums just like me loosing their babies due to hunger, disease and illness and they can do nothing about it. I suppose this is why I got involved with the Unicef and Pampers big kiss campaign . I know I have written about this in a pervious blog and I am so grateful to everybody and everyone for sending the links on and for writing about it also, but just sitting here looking at photos of my boy and hating the thought that anything should happen to him, brings me back to those poor mothers and babies that are dying the horrible death that is associated with tetanus. I know that there are many other diseases out there and that is a long battle that we and our children and probably their children will have to face as well. but we can get rid of tetanus. We can see an end to this. Its a simple vaccine and we can all help. Buy pampers nappies that have the vaccine on the package, or you can just click on the Bigkiss badge to the right.
Thank you
xoxo

No Sleep

Since the day he was born, DJ was up every 2 hrs. I know this is normal for a new born. I was told " When he is 3 months, he will get in to more of a routine" 3 months came .. he started waking up every 4 hrs. I was told " When he goes on to solids he will start sleeping through the night" We started him on solids he was still waking up every 4 hrs. I was told " When he is 6 months he will sleep through the night" Well 6 months came and he is still waking up every 4 hrs. He is now 7 months old and he is still waking up at midnight for a bottle, and he will wake anywhere between 2 am and 4 am for his dodi (soother) or some more bottle. I have tried switching the milk with water, I have tried watering down the bottle but no, he still wakes up. I am so exhausted.. when will he start to sleep through the night? He wont even take naps during the day unless I am with him. Which is sometimes not possible for me to do as I have to get some work done. So what do I do? I leave him to cry but it breaks my heart. In fact right now he is screaming his little heart out and the tears are stinging behind my eyes. I hate it.
I am lucky I have a partner who will get up during the night as well. But its really wearing us thin.
I love my little man so much, he is such a good boy but really he has to sleep soon
Does anyone have any tips that have been tried and tested? If you have a 3 year old who still doesn't sleep through the night please don't tell me ;-) I need hope at this moment in time....
xoxo

Bringing up your baby gender neutral ?

While flicking through a magazine today, an article caught my attention. A swedish couple who decided not to reveal their babies gender, aside from from a close few who have changed the babies nappy.
In an interview with newspaper Svenska Dagbladet in March, the parents were quoted saying their decision was rooted in the feminist philosophy that gender is a social construction.

“We want Pop to grow up more freely and avoid being forced into a specific gender mould from the outset,” Pop’s mother said. “It's cruel to bring a child into the world with a blue or pink stamp on their forehead.”
The child's parents said so long as they keep Pop’s gender a secret, he or she will be able to avoid preconceived notions of how people should be treated if male or female.

The parents sometimes dress their child in pink dresses, and then sometimes in blue dungarees. The same goes with the hair. Sometimes long and sometimes short.
As a mother of a boy, I don't push "boy toys" on him. In fact as his nickname was peanut, one of the presents I received was a baby in side a peanut. I have a mix of toys for him, a lot of them are for both boys and girls. But its not the toys or clothes that define a boy or a girl. Its just how they are. DJ's girlfriend Amalie, who is 2 days younger, plays with him most days, now when they play Amalie will pick up a toy gently, maybe put it in her mouth and studies it. DJ on the other hand, will pick up the same toy, wether it be a doll or a truck and put it straight in his mouth then bash it on the floor.
The parents of Pop, say that its society that decides a gender not their make up. That boys tend to get up and get on with it when they fall over, where as girls will cry and run to their mummies. Well I know this is not true, Amalie will fall over and pull her self up and rarely cries when she falls, where as my little man will always cry and will always want me to kiss him better.

“Ignoring children's natures simply doesn’t work,” says Susan Pinker, a psychologist and newspaper columnist from Toronto, Canada, who wrote the book The Sexual Paradox, which focuses on sex differences in the workplace.

“Child-rearing should not be about providing an opportunity to prove an ideological point, but about responding to each child’s needs as an individual,” Pinker says.

“It’s unlikely that they’ll be able to keep this a secret for long. Children are curious about their own identity, and are likely to gravitate towards others of the same sex during free play time in early childhood.”

Pinker says there are many ways that males and females differ from birth; even if gender is kept ‘secret,’ prenatal hormones developed in the second trimester of pregnancy already alter the way the child behaves and feels. She says once children can speak, males tell aggressive stories 87 per cent of the time, while females only 17 per cent. In a study, children aged two to four were given a task to work together for a reward, and boys used physical tactics 50 times more than girls, she says.


What are your thoughts on this?
xoxo

Pausing this moment in Time

This time last year I was pregnant and could not wait to get my baby out! The days dragged by. I hated being pregnant. I was not one of this women who relished being pregnant, I didn't have the pregnancy glow, or the long flowing locks. I had the sweats and frizzy hair! The last few weeks I couldn't walk because of crippling sciatica so that seemed to make the days longer. I dreamed of the day I would hold my baby. That day came on the 18th February this year. Since that first special moment I held him, it seems life has gone on turbo charge and time is flying by. I am desperately trying to hang on to every precious moment with him. Its been 7 months and I have seen my little baby turn in to a little boy with a cheeky smile. I get choked up every time I think of him, or hear a song with any lyrics with "Your my baby" Sad I know.
This morning DJ was in bed with my and we were having our morning chats, and he kept giggling as he pushed my hair out of my face. I just wanted to pause this moment, and stay here for ever, just the 3 of us all cozy in our bed. I remember once asking my father " Do you wish we were still babies" and he replied "No because every stage is just as magic as the last" I am trying to remember this as DJ grows before my very eyes. But I keep getting flashes of him leaving home going off to college..
xoxo

One of my little secrets

I wanted to let you all in on one of my little secret. Her name is Ellie. She is Irelands top make up artist.( Ok so maybe she is not just my little secret) but her blog is!
Ellie and I have been friends for a few years, and we have also worked together on many shoots. I know that when I need to look good for an event or a magazine shoot, Ellie is the girl to call. No matter how bad you look she always manages to make you look fab. Ellie and her Fiancé also set me up with my man on a blind date.. So I think I'm forever indebted to them for that. Ellie has a fab blog about make up and all things pretty. Her last blog was just what I needed. Make up tips for those days when you feel Blah... You can check it out here http://elliebalfe.blogspot.com/2010/09/my-under-weather-face.html
Let me tell you those tips came in very handy this week.
So there you go one of my little secrets is out!
xoxo

Weekly Update

Firstly I just wanted to say a massive thank you, to all of you have given kisses to the BigKiss campaign. Every kiss helps so keep on kissing.
I have been so bad at blogging this week. I am still getting over this cold, its hanging on in there for dear life.
Of course as luck would have it, the week I am really ill, I had to fly to London and have two of the biggest meetings I've had all year.
London was great and I love being part of the Pampers big kiss campaign but getting up at 4 am voluntarily just completely wiped me out. I had two great meetings Wednesday and Thursday about some films I am involved with, which I will be telling you all about once I get everything in place.
I ve also had a sick little baby this week too. It just breaks my heart when he gets sick. He is frustrated because he can't breathe through his nose and there for can't have his dodi (soother) and he can't take his bottle properly. So he has been a little upset with that. Also his daddy dropped him! Well he didn't really drop him, he rolled off the changing mat when he was reaching for a nappy. he hit his head pretty hard on our wooden floors and gave him self a nice little bump on his forehead. So poor little man has had a tough week.
He is such a little trooper though, he smiles through it all.
Hope you all have a good weekend
Catch up next week
xoxo