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12-18 Months

  • Theatre Review: Me… – Little Angel Theatre at mac birmingham

    Based on and inspired by the Emma Dodd children’s book, Me… follows the adventures of a small baby penguin, exploring a world that is so big, so fast, so steep and so long. From the moment that little penguin hatched, brought to life with careful puppeteering to an enchanting soundtrack, I knew we were in for a treat. I’ve waited a long time to see any of Little Angel Theatre‘s work, and I’d built up pretty high levels of expectation, so I’m thrilled to report that I was not disappointed. Not even a little bit. It was all I hoped it would be, and more.

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    12-18 Months, Culture, Parenting
    / November 19, 2017
  • Glitter Baubles from John Lewis

    Unprecedented Levels of Christmas Excitement

    There’s something about being a blogger that means you plan seasonally way in advance. Or, at least, you probably should do. I feel like I’ve been working up to Christmas since August but rather than feel festive fatigue, I’m ridiculously excited for it this year. I’m talking Buddy the Elf levels of excitement. Bash-me-over-the-head-with-a-candy-cane and can-we-put-the-Christmas-tree-up-in-October excited (which I’ve refrained from, by the way… if only because I’m too short to get up into our loft and fetch the decorations down). This is totally unprecedented for me. Historically, I wait until my birthday has been and gone – which is next week – and then I start thinking about Christmas. So what’s changed this year?

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    12-18 Months, Parenting
    / November 16, 2017
  • Finding Cows at Hanbury Hall

    Ooh-ooh-ah-ah, Oink Oink & Baa – Teaching Animal Noises

    We all know that babies, toddlers and even children do certain things at their own pace, in their own time. I’ve tried not to worry too much about hitting certain milestones by a particular age, and I’ve never had reason to be concerned, but I have noticed that Pickle isn’t as vocal as some of his friends. He’s quite good at telling us what he wants by pointing and making noise enough to be quite clear, and he does say some recognisable words (cheers, please, this and go being the four most commonly used!) but that’s more or less the extent of it. So, in an effort to encourage him to try saying more sounds and words, I’ve been trying my best to hammer animal noises into him.

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    12-18 Months, Parenting
    / November 3, 2017
  • Baby Pizza Making at Ask Italian Stratford upon Avon

    How should a toddler behave at a Restaurant?

    You may have spotted on my Instastories that last week, Pickle and I had a little lunch-date after being invited to a newly opened Ask Italian restaurant in Stratford-upon-Avon. I was so looking forward to the opportunity to learn more about the restaurant chain, how they make their pizzas and enjoy some top notch pasta that I didn’t even get nervous about Pickle’s behaviour until we were in the car on the way there. And then it hit me like a bus: what if he won’t sit nicely? What if he throws his food everywhere? What if he shrieks like a banshee and disturbs the other diners? I suddenly began to think of all the things I didn’t pack for him that I probably should have: a plastic plate so that we didn’t risk smashing the restaurant’s ones, his water bottle, a handful of quiet toys and a fully charged tablet ready to go with the Cbeebies app. I was putting a lot of faith in the magical powers of a single board book (although, it was The Gruffalo so you know, that is pretty magical). And I had no idea how I’d have enough hands to contain him as well as take photographs for the blog.

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    12-18 Months, Dining Out, Lifestyle, Parenting, Reviews
    / November 1, 2017
  • Lottie Doll Close Up

    Splashing with our Muddy Puddles Lottie Doll

    I’ve been reading a lot recently about gender stereotypes, especially when it comes to children’s clothes and toys. Whilst I wouldn’t say I’m a gender-neutral parent, I’d like Pickle to grow up without assuming pink and dolls are just for girls and that he needs to play with trucks and footballs to be a ‘proper’ boy. He’s spent most of his time so far playing with things like stacking cups, wooden peg blocks and balls but I’ve been keen to get him a doll for a while – partly so he has a variety of play choices and also because I’d quite like him to be kind, nurturing and interested in babies (it would bode well for any future additions to the family!). When Arklu got in touch about their Lottie Doll range, it ticked all the boxes and I was delighted to pick the Muddy Puddles Lottie Doll to be sent out for review – and if you like the look of it too, you can win one for yourself by entering the giveaway at the bottom of the post.

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    12-18 Months, Parenting, Reviews
    / October 10, 2017