Me and Mine - A Family Portrait in January

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I'm determined to get back on board with our monthly family photos this year. After loving taking them over the summer, I missed out on the rest of the year as we hardly headed out due to me having so much pregnancy sickness. But it finally seems to be improving, and I'm so looking forward to capturing this year together as a family with so much change ahead of us. We took this month's photos on a trip to Claremont Landscape Garden on what must have been one of the coldest days of the year. Everything was covered in a dusting of frost, and the winter sunshine made everything sparkle. It was lovely to see how quickly Max got back into taking ...

Living Arrows 5/52

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You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth – Kahlil Gibran The Living Arrows series is a photo project hosted by Donna at What the Redhead Said. It's a weekly series where you share a photo which captures a moment in childhood. I love how it encourages me to capture those little moments and I love looking back and seeing all the changes in Max as he grows up over the year.     It's been so cold this last week! We headed out to Claremont Landscape Garden for a frosty morning walk to feed the ducks. I love this close up of Max that I took - his hat down nearly over his eyes, and his flushed red ...

The Pregnancy Diaries: Week 20

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I'm so pleased to have reached 20 weeks pregnant! The halfway point! I just need to do this much again and then all being well we should have a baby with us!   What's going on with the baby The baby is now around the length of a banana, around 10 inches from head to heel. They may well suck their thumb, practising their sucking reflex, and are moving about more and more, doing little somersaults.   What's going on with me   Being 20 weeks pregnant is all about the anomaly scan, isn't it? I think part of the reason lots of people get so caught up in the excitement of finding out the baby's sex is to put aside the thought that the anomaly scan ...

#SharingtheBlogLove #29

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A big welcome back to #SharingtheBlogLove! Thank you so much to everyone who joined last week - it was lovely to see so many new linkers joining us. It's been a hard going week for me this time around. We started potty training on Monday, so we've been stuck indoors for a few days. But thankfully it all seems to be going quite well so far, so hopefully the end and the outside world are in sight! But, on with the linky!   What's #SharingtheBlogLove all about? If you are new to Sharing the Blog Love it is a weekly showcase of our favourite posts that have linked up. It's a chance to introduce you to new blogs and to share the wonderful writing that exists in the ...

Sharing the Blog Love - Showcase 29

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A big welcome back to #SharingtheBlogLove! It was our best week ever for numbers last week, with 58 of you linking up! Thank you so much for joining us, whether you're a regular or if it was your first time, we love having you with us! If you're new to #SharingtheBlogLove, these are mine and Laura's favourite posts from last week's linky. As part of the linky we'd like you to choose one post from each showcase post to head over and leave a comment to show them some extra blog love. It's always lovely to take a look at our featured posts this week and see how many extra comments they've had from you guys!   Top Five Mum I sometimes feel like my whole day is a ...

Tips for managing Pregnancy Sickness

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I feel like something of an expert in pregnancy sickness (I refuse to call it 'morning sickness'), having had quite nasty experiences of it now in two pregnancies. With my first pregnancy, I was sick between 10-20 times a day every day for the first 18 weeks, and although it did ease off, the sickness and nausea continued throughout the pregnancy. This time around, it's not been quite so bad on the actual sickness front ('only' around 5 times a day on average), but at 20 weeks now, I'm still experiencing lots of nausea. There's no doubt that while you're in the thick of it, nothing helps. I know. And you probably want to give the next person who suggests ginger or ...

Cervical cancer awareness - my experience of LLETZ

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How long has it been since your last smear? Let's face it, it's definitely one of the less enjoyable parts of being a woman, but the reality is that 1 in 4 women do not bother to attend regular smear tests. This week is cervical cancer prevention week and I wanted to help raise awareness by detailing my experience of the LLETZ procedure after an abnormal smear test. I hope it both raises awareness of the reality that abnormal smears can be relatively common, but also that the treatment is very straightforward if there are problems detected.   My experience In 2013 I went for a regular smear test and received the letter back that no-one wants to get; that I had abnormal cells. ...

Living Arrows 4/52

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You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth – Kahlil Gibran The Living Arrows series is a photo project hosted by Donna at What the Redhead Said. It's a weekly series where you share a photo which captures a moment in childhood. I love how it encourages me to capture those little moments and I love looking back and seeing all the changes in Max as he grows up over the year.   We loved the Butterflies in the Glasshouse exhibition at RHS Wisley last year, and when I had a fairly sickness free day last week I decided to take Max for a return visit. It's always lovely in the winter to head into the glasshouse to ...

The Pregnancy Diaries: Week 19

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19 weeks pregnant and slowly closing in on the halfway mark! I do think 20 weeks is such a big marker, especially if you've been having a tough pregnancy. It says, 'you made it this far, only the same again to go!'.   What's going on with the baby This week is all about sensory development. The brain is creating different areas for smell, taste, sight, hearing and touch. They are about the size of a mango, about 14cm long. Their skin is developing pigment and will now be covered in the vernix caseosa, a white waxy substance which protects the baby's skin while in the womb.   What's going on with me   I had a real moan last week about the sickness, but I would ...

#SharingtheBlogLove #28

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A big welcome back to #SharingtheBlogLove! I've finally regained my blogging mojo this week - I've been inspired by reading so many 2017 goals posts and I've written down my goals for the year and done lots of brainstorming. I'm feeling motivated and ready to go! I hope you've had a break from the rain this week? We've had almost constant rain lately, so it was lovely to get some sunshine this week. We took advantage and headed out to RHS Wisley to visit the butterflies in the glasshouse - it was so much fun watching Max chase them around! But, on with the linky!   What's #SharingtheBlogLove all about? If you are new to Sharing the Blog Love it is a weekly showcase of our ...