#MeAndMine - A Family Portrait (November 2014)

I can't believe it's December tomorrow!

Where is 2014 going?

Life just doesn't seem to get any quieter. I thought I'd have more time to blog with TC starting to go to Play School a couple of times a week now but I don't. I'm desperately wanting to blog about my huge 80's themed 40th Birthday party but haven't gotten to that yet.  I have so much to do before Christmas and I don't know how I'm going to fit it all in.

Last time I blogged was about TC struggling to settle in to Play School but thankfully that all seems to be working out well now. He goes in without fuss now. I know he'd prefer to be at home or out with Mummy but he reluctantly accepts his time there and talks about all the fun he's had when I pick him up. I've noticed he's becoming more confident and less reliant on my apron strings so it's all a step in the right direction.

I was busy this month organising a charity event for The Lullaby Trust in memory of Matilda Mae. That consumed the vast majority of my time and, with the help of a few fellow bloggers, we managed to raise over £550 which will be doubled to over £1100 for the charity - it's more than I could've hoped for.

I between all the other stuff I've been doing I'm taking the children to private swimming lessons now. TC on a Wednesday and MC on a Saturday. The other Saturday we all decided to go and watch MC but we arrived early. Now, I'm always messing around with selfies of the children so I thought it would be nice to take some of us all. It wasn't my attention to use them for my Me and Mine post - they were for my '23 Snaps' app on my phone where I just share photos of the children with immediate family - but the series I took has made me laugh so much that I want to document them.

MC is a little madam and always like to be the centre of the shot…often to the detriment of her little brother…

Poor TC!

May Is #MatildaMae Month - Come Join Us

I can't believe it's almost May already.

As I sit in my kitchen looking at my 'Matilda Mae' tea light star on my windowsill, the tears sting my eyes.

2nd May should be Matilda's 2nd Birthday.

Baby Tilda.

A little girl who never got to see her 1st birthday, let alone her 2nd. I still struggle to believe that she was taken from Jennie like that. I still struggle to comprehend how cruel life can be to such wonderful people.

Jennie is one of the bravest people I know.

The amount of money she's raised for The Lullaby Trust with help of family, friends and fellow bloggers is phenomenal and it continues next month.

I haven't been blogging much at all. In fact, this will be my first and last post for April but I I want to try and use my blog to tell you all about these wonderful events that are taking place. One in the North West and one in the South of England.

These events are not to be missed.

First up is the 'Mile In Memory of Matilda Mae'.

This is taking place Saturday 17th May at 11am at Walton Gardens, Warrington. Jennie, David and the twins will be there along with friends and fellow bloggers to walk a 'Mile in Memory of Matilda Mae'.

Walton Gardens is a lovely spacious park with large lawns, picnic areas, a large cafe, play areas, a children's zoo and other outdoor activities. We are excited to be holding the Mile In Memory of Matilda May in such a lovely setting and we hope the weather will be kind to us.

You can read more about the event and find all the details on the Mile In Memory of Matilda Mae Facebook page. If you would like to join us then please register your family on the 'Mile In Memory of Matilda Mae Eventbrite Ticket page'.

In order to join us all you need to do is make a donation of at least £1 to the Matilda Mae JustGiving page and ensure you register your family. Please note that you will be required to pay £3.20 for the car park at Walton Gardens but it is well worth it as you can enjoy all the Walton Gardens has to offer. As we get closer to the event we will be updating details so keep your eyes on the Facebook page.


Then, at the end of May, Jennie is hosting the fabulous 'Baby Tilda' Barn Dance.

The barn dance will be held on Saturday 31st May at 12pm - 6.30pm at the Millennium Hall, Egerton, Kent and will be another lovely event for all the family.

The cost to attend the barn dance is a super-low price of £10 for adults and children over 11, £5 for those between 3 and 11 with under 3's free!

The afternoon is set to be wonderful with live music, a hog roast, afternoon tea, a play marquee and much, much more.

We are going down to Kent for it and we cannot wait to go! I wouldn't miss it for the world. Although I'm a little concerned that since Jennie, Susanne and Lisa found out I used to line dance years ago (oh the shame) they expecting big things and I will be disappointing them!

If you wish to find out more about the Baby Tilda Barn Dance you can join the Barn Dance Facebook page. If you wish to purchase tickets you can buy these from Beebies Baby Store page dedicated to the barn dance.

If you are unable to attend the Barn Dance then please look into sponsor opportunities for the Baby Tilda Barn Dance. You can do this by visiting Beebies Baby Store where you will find sponsorship opportunities at the bottom of the page ranging from £10 - £100. If you are unable to sponsor then please consider a donation to The Lullaby Trust in memory of Matilda Mae on Jennie's fundraising page.

I really hope as many of you as possible can make it to the events and I look forward to seeing you there. Please share these events with family and friends as much as possible - thank you.

Matilda Mae

2nd May 2012 - 2nd February 2013

9 months here. 9 months gone. But never forgotten.

Roaming With The Romans For #TeamHonkRelay Wales #SR14

If you've been living under a rock recently on social media then you probably wouldn't have heard of the latest mad badass thing us crazy bloggers are partaking in.

For those of you not in the know, let me try and explain a little...

Team Honk has been raising money for Comic Relief since December 2012 and last year a team of mad intrepid bloggers climbed Mount Snowdon. This year they thought big…and when I say big I mean HUGE!

Well over 200 bloggers, tweeters and Facebook'ers plus their friends and families are joining forces in a massive relay for this years Sport Relief. We are carrying the Team Honk baton as a relay from Lands End to John O'Groats in a huge zig zag across the country taking in 38 regional teams. The aim is to raise over £20,000 for Sport Relief.

Just HOW awesome is that?

This is one of the many reasons why I absolutely love blogging. Sure, there are the occasional spats - unfortunately it's a fact of life that you get the odd few that let the team down in some way - but, generally, the vast majority of bloggers are pretty blooming awesome. Some of my most treasured friends are ones I've met through blogging. We unite against the odds. We hold each others hands - albeit sometimes it's a virtual hand. We stand tall and fight for good causes. We raise money. We are a powerful voice.

So, when I heard about it I was keen to get involved.

Fair play to Tanya, Penny and Annie for pulling this mammoth task together. They deserve medals. Imagine trying to pull all this together with all these strong bloggers types? It's no easy task. But it's one that's been going amazingly. Just look at the photos of the relay so far.

I bet you're asking how I'm involved.

Well, my lovely blogger friend Claire and I are tasked with the important job of taking the baton across the Wales / England border for Team Honk.

Because there aren't really enough Welsh based bloggers to carry the baton into Wales and back out again us Welsh bloggers are a special bunch, we have our own second baton which started off in South Wales. It will eventually meet up with the main baton from Land's End and go all the way to John O'Groats on it's travels.

Claire and I have spent the last couple of weeks planning and scheming to try and get something good to live up to the awesomeness that has gone before us. We tried desperately to get some local or Welsh/Chester linked celebrities involved. Jade Jones and Iwan Thomas were sadly busy and the likes of Michael Owen just totally ignored us!

However, we have managed to bring together something that we are really happy with. Something fun and friendly and we are really looking forward to it.

This Thursday we will start off in the market town of Mold, Flintshire at a local school where some of the pupils will take part in a mini relay with the Team Honk Wales baton. Claire and I will then be walking through Mold hopefully via the Fire Station for some pole sliding (tbc) and on to the awesome Theatre Clwyd - home of fabulous arts and culture - to wreak some Sport Relief havoc. We hope to get on stage! Fingers crossed!

After that we will travel across into England proudly carrying the baton where we will be met by a Roman Solider at the Chester City walls. He will march us up into town telling us of the delights of Chester. I have to say a massive thank you to Roman Tours Ltd. for supplying us with our very own Roman for the afternoon. I am lucky enough to live very near to Chester and it's a superb city full of lots of history and culture. If you're thinking of visiting then be sure to get in touch with Roman Tours Ltd. I often see them with visitors and school parties and it really is something very special and unique in the city.

We will be hanging out down by the river and taking in the famous sights of Hollyoaks (aka Queen's Park Bridge)…sadly celebrity-less but having fun all the same. Then it's on to The Church for some well earned wine and cake!

But, and I've saved the best until last, Claire and I will NOT be doing all this in our normal clothes. Oh no! We will be wearing our Sport Relief Onesies, Sport Relief Headbands and our Sport Relief Deeley Boppers. Now, having never owned a onesie in my life, I was unsure what to expect. If someone had said to me (to quote Claire) "I look like a butch car mechanic" then I probably wouldn't have ordered one. But I did. It cost me £25 and despite looking like a very butch (and idiotic) car mechanic I will be wearing it all. Thankfully Claire and I will be together wearing the same!

Also, we will be giving out free Team Honk hugs to anyone who would like one in the hope that they enjoy their free hugs so much they feel they have to donate to the main text number. Although I get the feeling that we will be given a wide berth in our ridiculous outfits.

Surely that alone has got to be worth some sponsorship?

Thankfully my wonderful friends and family and been very generous in sponsoring us. I also jokingly said to Matt last night that if he sponsored us generously then I'd make it up to him. Unbeknownst to me, while I was in the bath, he sponsored £100. So yes, I've officially whored myself out for Sport Relief.

Again, that's got to be worth some more money, right?

If you normally donate to Sport Relief and/or Comic Relief then please donate to our fundraising target this year and support Team Honk Wales!

SPONSOR US BY CLICKING HERE FOR TEAM HONK WALES

Or you can text HONK to 70005 to donate £5 to the Team Honk target.

Thank you xx

A Day Of Love - The Matilda Mae Welly Walk #MMWellyWalk

Just over 9 months ago a community was rocked.

Family and friends were heartbroken.

And a family was torn apart.

I still struggle to believe what happened to Matilda Mae. I always knew life could be so painfully cruel but I never realised just how much until I heard the news that lunchtime 3rd February.

Baby Tilda's death has had such an impact on so many people. Not just family and friends of Jennie but strangers who heard about what's happened.

I've mentioned briefly before just how much of an impact it had, and continues to have, on me. TC is just a month older than Tilda. Whenever he does something new I feel happy but a part of my heart aches a little...I struggle with my emotions knowing that a friend is missing her baby girl with every part of her body and soul. Each and every milestone lost. Never to be.

I'm going to openly admit now that I've been struggling lately. You will notice that I have been absent from my blog. Even though I often find blogging therapeutic I haven't wanted to blog a 'woe is me' post. Why should I be so sad? I still have my baby boy. My life is good. I should be happy, right?

But like many people far and wide I can't help it.

I've known the Welly Walk was coming. I knew that the date was such an emotional milestone for Jennie. The day her baby girl has been gone for longer than she was alive.

It's been pulling at my heart.

We put our names down to go to The Welly Walk pretty much from the start. I knew we couldn't miss it, despite the distance from home. I wanted to be there. To see Jennie again, to show our support, to honour baby Tilda and raise more money for The Lullaby Trust.

It was an incredible day.

It was a sea of pink and purple. Stars and hearts were everywhere. Family and friends pulled together to help Jennie create something truly amazing.

Something beautiful.

Just like Matilda Mae.

I spoke at the end of the day about how Tilda had witnessed love in abundance in her short life.

That love was evident everywhere on Saturday.

It completely filled Beale Park.

You could see it in every look. Every smile. Every tear.

I don't need to go into detail about the day. I think the few photos I'll share speak for themselves.

Family, friends and strangers created something very special on Saturday. Every person there, every brand and everyone who couldn't attend but showed support through donations, tweets and messages should be very proud.

Very proud indeed.

Matilda's legacy lives on and this is just the beginning!

So many families. So many friendships. So many memories. 

So much love.

All because of one special little girl.

Matilda Mae

2nd May 2012 - 2nd February 2013

9 months here. 9 months gone. But never forgotten.

The Matilda Mae Welly Walk - Sat 2nd November 2013

What are you doing Saturday 2nd November?

I know what we will be doing.

My little family and I will be at the Matilda Mae Welly Walk at Beale Park, Reading.

And we cannot wait!

The day has been planned by Jennie (Edspire) beautifully. She's had so much support and it's so amazing seeing it all coming together.

The day sounds perfect.

Please visit Jennie's blog for the full run-down of what to expect at the Welly Walk. Please also make sure you share this with friends, family, work colleagues, neighbours, strangers...anyone.

But how can you not want to be part of this?
(Please see Jennie's blog for all the details of the sponsors and more!)

• Car seat safety checks and buggy MOT's 
• A Men's, Women's and Pre-School Welly Wanging Competitions
• A special pink and purple Matilda Mae entrance
• A musical warm-up before the walk
• A quiz along the walk route 
• Bubbles to blow and giant bubbles
• Entertainment and live music throughout the day 
• A Music With Mummy Workshop
• CPR demonstration and first aid questions answered 
• Lots of fun and so many amazing prizes to be won
• Play with lots of toys, try out some animation or explore online tools
• Play dress-up and have your photo taken in a photo booth
• Eat crepes and enjoy refreshments throughout the day
• Craft activities and face painting
• A special storytelling tent
• A special sparkler farewell

Tickets are selling out fast and can be purchased from Beebies Baby Store NOW!

Please help spread the word so we can raise as much money as possible for The Lullaby Trust.

If you can't make the walk, please consider a donation to the Matilda Mae Starlight Fund.

This event is taking place in memory of Matilda Mae who was given her angel wings at the age of just 9 months to the day. 

2nd November marks the day she would have been 18 months old. 

9 months alive. 

9 months gone.

This week marks Baby Loss Awareness Week.

Baby Loss.

Two words no-one wants to hear but people need to talk more. Together we need to raise awareness. Break the silence. So many families lives are destroyed each year.

Please help the love and support live on.

Saturday Is Matilda Mae SkyDive Day #MMSkyDive

This coming Saturday is a very special day.

It's also a very scary day for 9 amazing women.

They are jumping out of a plane to raise money for The Lullaby Trust in memory of beautiful Matilda Mae.

However, it's nowhere near as scary as every Saturday that Jennie faces.

If you follow my blog or are part of the blogging community you will know the story of my friend, and fellow blogger, Jennie. We shared our pregnancy journeys together - me with Tiny Ched and Jennie with her miracle daughter, Matilda Mae, who was born just a month after TC.

Sadly, Matilda was taken away from Jennie, at just 9 months old, on Saturday 2nd February by Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)... more commonly known as cot death.

A cot.

Somewhere you expect your baby to be safe.

But for many parents it isn't.

Each year, in the U.K., over 600 families are torn apart because of the devastating loss of a precious child to SIDS.

Each year these families go through the unimaginable pain that no parent should have to go through.

The Lullaby Trust work tirelessly to help support these families on this terrible journey. Their work is vital to not only offer this support but also to raise awareness of SIDS and do all they can to help prevent it.

Anyone who's followed Jennie's personal story will never forget Matilda Mae. I think of her every day and I never had the pleasure of meeting her - I'd only met Jennie before when we were both pregnant. I've spoken publicly about Tilda twice now on behalf of the blogging community and all the beautiful photos Jennie took in her 9 short months are etched in my memory.

Beautiful Matilda Mae and Jennie

A little girl with such a short life but a little girl who has left a lasting impression.

A legacy to be proud of.

A legacy to shout about.

A legacy to raise thousands of pounds for The Lullaby Trust.

A legacy to jump out of a plane for.

How amazing!

Yes, Saturday is a very special day.

The Matilda Mae Sky Dive will be incredible. These women, a few I've never met and a few I have a couple of times (and now are lucky enough to call friends) are doing something so amazing, something so brave, something that deserves to be shouted about.

Something that deserves to be sponsored.

Also, one of these ladies has a very special place in my heart.

Suzanne.

We both attended Matilda's funeral back in March. Although we had met previously, it was only once when we were both pregnant. We then spent the best part of 2 days together, sharing tears and support (and an amazing roast dinner made by her lovely mum) and becoming friends. Suzanne's blog post really sums it all up. We held each other up when we stood up and spoke about Tilda's legacy. Then we did it all again last month at BritMums Live. Suzanne and I always shed a tear whenever we meet up now, as we remember, but we also share smiles and laughter. And hugs. Lots of hugs. I've made a friend for life.

She is an amazing lady, and I know the other 8 (also amazing) ladies jumping with her will look after her for me as I can't be there this weekend.

These 9 ladies are going to jump into the sky.

The sky is somewhere I look when I think of Baby Tilda and on Saturday my eyes will be up in the air most of the day...remembering Tilda and thinking about what these incredible women are doing to raise money.

Please can I ask that if you haven't already sponsored them, can you? Even the smallest amount will go a long way to raise money for The Lullaby Trust. Can I also ask that you spread the word by mouth, by social media, by email...hell, even pick up the phone...call, text...do whatever you can to get people to raise money.

The link for Team Matilda Mae Sky Dive is here. Please sponsor and pass it on.

If you're using social media, please use the hashtag #MMSkyDive. Please let's make this hashtag trend on Saturday. Also add in @LullabyTrust to Twitter to raise awareness of the charity. Shout about the sponsorship, let's make as much noise as we can!

Let's help raise as much money as we possibly can for The Lullaby Trust and their incredible work. Let's support these 9 amazing women as they take to the sky on Saturday. Let's continue the legacy of a beautiful little girl lost.

Lost but never EVER forgotten.

In A Strange Place

I'm in a strange place at the moment.

I'm extremely busy, my head is all over the place. After a few rocky weeks, life is beginning to look good.

Really good.

So why don't I feel good?

I can't help but feel for others.

My heart aches for them. Literally aches.

I'm so busy but I'm finding it so hard to concentrate.

I have some friends that are going through seriously bad times at the moment. Times that you wouldn't wish on anyone. Times that no-one can really begin to understand unless you've been there yourself.

Really bad times.

One of my closest friends is facing a hard time. Her and her husband are the one of the nicest couples you could meet and her husband is great. Always willing to help anyone. A grafter.

A real grafter.

He's hands on with everything and, if you were going to describe him, he'd be the definition of 'diamond geezer'.

He's someone you want as your friend.

Anyway, they are on the verge of having everything they've worked so hard for taken away through no fault of their own.

It makes me feel mad.

It also makes me feel guilty.

I know I shouldn't feel guilty, but I do. Little pangs of guilt that everything is going so well for us while their world is being turned upside-down. It's just not fair.

I try to tell myself that everything is happening to us because we've worked hard for it. I like to think that Matt and I are good people. We are always there for our family and friends if they need us. We see our family and friends regularly. We both give monthly donations to charity and have done for years. I volunteer (although I am taking a small break at the moment but still doing bits from home) in my local Save The Children shop one day a week. We aren't religious but we lead honest and decent lives. In a nutshell...we do our bit.

But my friends work hard too.

They are good people too.

So why is this happening to them?

At the moment I can't make sense of the world. There doesn't seem to be any justice. News this year from a range of friends has just been awful. I look around at all the pain and sadness and I feel really angry.

And guilty.

There's that word again. Guilt.

Why am I feeling like this?

I should be happy.

But I'm not.

As I say, I'm in a strange place at the moment.

One Week On - #MatildaMae

It's been a week since we said goodbye to Matilda Mae.

A week.

7 whole days.

It seems like an age already but at the same time it only seems like yesterday.

I knew that if Jennie was happy for blogging friends to go to the church that I wanted to be there. I wanted to give Jennie a big hug. I'd not seen her since she was pregnant with Tilda. I got to give her lots of hugs last week.

It was actually the saddest and most emotionally draining day of my life. But, it was also an amazing day. A day when I saw how much love, strength and dignity Jennie and David have. A day when I saw family and friends celebrate a beautiful little girls 9 months on this earth. A day when I saw tears and a day when I saw smiles.

I'll admit it. I cried. I actually sobbed.

A lot.

Jennie had put so much thought and planning into Tilda's goodbye and it was amazing.

It was beautiful.

The love inside that church was incredible and is something that will stay with me forever.

Seeing Jennie and David walk down the church aisle. Seeing a broken family. Seeing Baby Tilda's tiny woollen coffin carried by David. Seeing the love and tributes. Seeing the pink and purple. Seeing the beautiful photo montages and words put together by family and friends. Seeing and sharing the beautiful memories.

At one point I didn't think I'd be able to get up and speak but I did. Susanne and I took to the front of the church (shaking like jelly) and we read. I read a goodbye introduction I'd written, Susanne read a small piece she'd written and then we both read these amazing words by Merry. I'm thankful to Merry for providing us with something so powerful. Something to make the blogging community come to life for those that didn't understand it's importance.

I'm so thankful for a lot of things.

I'm thankful to Susanne (and her wonderful Mum who gave me a bed the night before) for her immense support. We held each other. We held each other so much.

Tightly.

I'm also thankful to the lovely ladies I met for the first time. Millie, Monika, Keira, Ruth and Sarah. We shared something very special that day. We shared tears, hugs and smiles. We shared friendship.

Most of all though, I am thankful to Jennie for having me as part of Tilda's goodbye. I'm thankful to her for the love, strength and beauty that radiates from her. Her smile. Her love. Jennie was the ultimate reason that Susanne and I were able to speak. She is one amazing woman.

I will never forget that day.

I will never forget Jennie.

I will never forget her hugging us goodbye and telling us to hold our little ones tight.

But most of all I will never ever forget Baby 'Tiger'.

Jennie, Susanne and Ruth have written beautiful posts which capture the day perfectly. I didn't want to duplicate too much of what's already been said so I urge you to read their words:

Jennie @ edspire.co.uk
Susanne @ ghostwritermummy.co.uk
Ruth @ rocknrollerbaby

In my last post I mentioned about 'Mile In Memory Walks' that are being organised across the UK for 11am on May 11th. I will be part of the North West one in Salford. We will be raising money for FSID's (the cot death charity). There's a little DONATE button on the top right of my blog. Please read more about why we are doing this and please give whatever you can - even if it's just £1. Every little helps to stop another family being broken. Also, if you can donate something to the online auction which will take place the same day - please contact one of us. I will blog more about it in the coming weeks. Thank you for any support you can give us.

Back To 'Work'

I say work but I don't really mean work.

Yes I 'work' whilst I'm there but it's a different work.

I don't get paid a thing for it.

And I absolutely LOVE it!

Regular readers will know that I used to volunteer for my local Save The Children shop one day a week but I had to stop when I gave birth to Tiny Ched in March.

Well, as of today, I'm back!*

I did plan to go back a few weeks earlier but the dreaded mastitis got me so I haven't been fit enough to go in. Today though, there was no stopping me! It was only for a couple of hours but I've also brought a lot of work home with me so I can help out more without going into the shop. I'll need to keep MC away from the pricing gun though or she'll be trying to get me to play shop!

I forgot just how much I had missed the place, my fellow volunteers and the customers.

I can't tell you how great it was to be back.

So, whilst everything is still fresh in my mind (I've mentioned before that a Save The Children charity post has been long overdue on my blog) I want to talk to you about how you can help Save The Children at the moment.

Firstly, if you haven't made a will then NOW is the time to do it. It's not something that 'old' people do and it's essential if you have children. I blogged about Will Aid last year (click to read my post) and it's something Matt and I took part in last November. Throughout November each year local participating solicitors across the U.K. waive their will writing fees and donate to charity. Save The Children is one of these charities. You need to visit the Will Aid website (willaid.org.uk), find a local solicitor and book an appointment before the end of this month! Go...hurry!

Photo by Leanne Spencer

Christmas is fast approaching and there is one very lovely lady, Leanne Spencer - owner of The Delphi Burling Blog, who crafts the most beautiful items. Every year she puts together gorgeous Christmas Boxes full of decorations such as Christmas bells, elves boots, stocking, hearts and doves. She fills them with completely natural fillings and scents them with beautiful festive oils. She has also been busy crating handmade cards and tea lights for the boxes too. The boxes are £10 each plus £2 postage and packing and ALL profits go to Save The Children. Please visit her blog for more information and how to order. They are gorgeous.

Save The Children are Lloyds Banking Group 'Charity of the Year' again and they have made a huge difference to the campaigning that we (I love how I can use 'we' again) do. They have raised over £2.5m to support the Families and Schools Together programme which helps children in some of the UK's most disadvantaged communities.  Next Friday 23rd November 2012, Lloyds Banking Group are teaming up with local Save The Children stores and over 500 of their colleagues will be working alongside Save The Children volunteers for the day to raise even more money. Our local shop is hosting a fun day with cakes, a raffle, 'name the teddy' etc. so please make sure you visit your local Save The Children shop next week to help raise money.

Getting a real Christmas tree this year? Wondering how you'll find time to go collect it or worrying how it's going to fit on or in the car? Fear not! Christmas Trees by Post have it all sorted for you and what's more they are kindly donating £5 from every real Christmas tree sold to Save The Children. All you have to do is use the code SC12 at the checkout online. Or you can visit them yourself and pick your tree (they are based in Bentham, Lancaster). Don't forgot to mention the code!

Finally, don't forget you can support Save The Children in many ways - quality clothing and bric-a-brac donations, of course.

You can also give donations of old or stained material, clothes, shoes, cushions etc. Just make sure they are bagged up and labelled so your local volunteers know they are to go straight to the 'rag man'. I have blogged about this before as we can make a lot of money through these donations that would otherwise go in the rubbish bin.

You can also, obviously, give cash donations. Make sure, if your local Save The Children shop offer it (and you're a UK tax payer) that you sign up to 'Gift Aid' as Save The Children can claim back 25% on all donations - that's not just cash but through donations they sell on!

Then, if you or anyone you know, has a few hours spare then why not help out in your local Save The Children shop?

I guarantee you will love it!




* Special mention to my amazing parents who looked after TC for me and collected MC from nursery school too. Without them Save The Children wouldn't have me as a volunteer!

#ONEMums - The Power Of Blogging

There are lots of things I love about blogging.

It's given me the opportunity to make some fabulous new friends but one of the things I love the most is being able to use my voice to blog for charity. It's been a while since I've blogged about charity - since just before TC was born. Babies eh?

I'm currently on 'maternity leave' from my volunteer job at my local Save The Children shop which I love. I'll be popping in to see my friends there on Friday with some goodies and I'll be able to provide you with an update on things very soon.

For now though, a very dear blogger friend is currently over in Ethiopia as part of the ONE Campaign. Michelle from Mummy From The Heart has made the trip with 11 other inspirational mums and moms to highlight the success of projects and why it's so important that the support is continued. This is ONE's Living Proof story. It's all about letting everyone know what a huge difference that the UK and the US are making to millions of people all over the world.

Please, please, PLEASE pop along to Michelle's blog and follow her incredible journey. She is blogging the most fabulous audio clips of her journey. She is one incredible lady.

To help spread the word in the blogging community, another blogger friend Clare, from Seasider In The City, has devised a fun meme. Taking the first letters from ONEMums (or ONEMoms) create words or phrases that help explain what being a mum is to you.

Here are mine...

Overwhelming love and emotion

Nights out are few and far between (but I wouldn't have it any other way)

Everything I ever hoped it would be...and more

Memories to treasure forever

Unique. Both the experience and my children

Milk monster. My poor boobs will never be the same again!

Simply amazing

Please make sure you follow Michelle's journey on Twitter. You can do this by following her twitter feed or using the hashtags #ONEMums #ONEMoms.

If you only do one thing today then make sure you add your voice to the ONE Campaign by signing up below



Now I'd like to invite the following five bloggers to join in the meme fun:

Inside The Wendy House
Me, The Man & The Baby
New Mum Online
The Real Housewife Of Suffolk County
The Syders


What do you have to do?

* Complete the ONEMums acronym style meme and link your post up on Clare's blog
* Link to ONE so people can join up and read more about the ONE Campaign
* Sign up to ONE to give your voice if you would like to
* Tag some more bloggers so you keep spreading the word
* Share on social media with the hashtag #ONEMums #ONEMoms

It's My Last Day Today

*blows big teary snot bubbles into a man size pack of tissues*

Yes, this is it.

I'm due to have a baby in a few weeks so I have to say (a hopefully temporary) goodbye to the Save The Children shop that I've volunteered in for the past year or so.

Today is my last official day and I'm going to miss it SO much.

I know I bang on about my volunteering work a lot. It's not that I am trying to big myself up. There are so many people who do vast amounts of charity work - they are amazing.  All I do is spend a few hours each week helping out in the shop.

No, it's because I get so much from it and want to spread the word on how doing something like this can make you feel soooo good.

Yes, I volunteer for ME.

There, I said it.

Yes, I decided to volunteer to help a charity but it's become more than that. I volunteer to meet new people, to gain new skills, to enjoy myself, to get something more out of life - something different.

Becoming a volunteer has given me a new lease of life.

All I have to say is that if you have any time whatsoever, please please PLEASE consider helping your local charity shop. Have a look at what Save The Children have to say about volunteering - there are a variety of roles that you can get involved with.

If you'd like to read my journey over the past year as a volunteer then please check out the Save The Children link at the top of my blog.

In the meantime, whilst I'm not working at the shop I will continue to blog about Save The Children as my chosen 'blog' charity. At the end of December I blogged that I was part of the #66cities campaign for the charter to end hunger. Just to let you know that my letters were heard by the MP's and sent to David Cameron and I received replies in January. Just doing something simple like this helps the efforts of Save The Children. I was invited by Save The Children to deliver the petition to No.10 but I was away on holiday unfortunately.

Don't leave it too late. Get involved. Every action, however small, helps.

A Year Ago Today

A year ago today I was excited.

A year ago today I was nervous.

A year ago today I started a new 'job'.

I say 'job' rather loosely. I don't get paid anything for the work I do but I absolutely love it.

My little corner of the charity world

Yes, can you believe it? A year ago today (well, okay, officially it's Saturday this year but let's not be picky) at this time I started volunteering at my local Save The Children shop every Friday. I honestly don't know where the year has gone - I've loved every moment of it. Volunteering gives me such a buzz and I love being able to help out and also share my experiences on my blog.

I was only supposed to volunteer between 9.30am and 1pm every Friday but most of the time I'm there until 4pm when the shop closes. I love the people I work with. I love the customers. Did I mention I love it?

My day can vary so much. Most of the time I'm customer facing - working on the shop floor sorting merchandise and working the till. Sometimes I'm upstairs sorting through donations and even steaming clothes (considering I very rarely get the iron out at home this is quite something!). There is always so much to do and no two days are ever the same.

I'm almost 35 weeks pregnant right now and my last official day at 'work' will be Friday 9th March. I'm gutted. I love that shop so much that they are even mentioned in my will that I made last November.

I am going to go back as soon as I can but it will be difficult for a while. I will continue as much as I can doing good through this blog and that will have to do for now. I'll have an update on that soon.

For now, I'm going to enjoy my last few weeks 'working' and feel ever thankful that I followed my heart and decided to volunteer.

Save The Children #66cities Campaign

This blog post has been a long time coming and for that I'm so ashamed. Being ill most of November and December has meant this has slipped but it's time to make up for it whilst there's still time.

As most of you know, I feel extremely passionate about the Save The Children charity and I volunteer one day a week to work in one of their shops - which I love. So, I was eager to become involved with their current #66cities campaign.

Photo: Save The Children

The lives of over 400,000 innocent children around the world at risk and Save The Children are calling on governments around the world to take life-saving measures to protect these children. The Charter to End Extreme Hunger has been created which outlines specific actions that governments should take to stop starvation as a result of drought, high food prices and conflict.

Campaigners all over the U.K. who are representing their cities have been emailing their MPs calling on them to raise the issue in parliament.

2 days before Christmas I sent a letter to my local MP (Mark Tami) and the Chester MP (Stephen Mosley) to raise this issue on behalf of my nearest city.

If you have a spare few minutes, please contact your local MP to make them aware of the charter and also use twitter and Facebook to continue to spread the word for this important campaign.  We've seen before the huge impact that the blogging community can have with these campaigns.

If you haven't got time to email your local MP, then PLEASE spare 1 minute to sign the petition

YOU CAN SIGN IT BY CLICKING HERE

and then spread the word on Twitter, Facebook, email, word of mouth, carrier pigeon - do what you must!

I'll be blogging again on return from holiday with an update on a response from the MPs but for now, go forth and continue to spread the word...

Make A Will, Make A Difference.

I turn 37 this Wednesday. I know I'm still young (ish) but I'm starting to freak out a bit that I haven't organised a will. It's something you don't really think about when you're younger - you generally associate wills with 'older' people.

It's something that Matt and I said we would do as soon as Mini Cheddar was born as we hadn't already organised one but it's something we never got around to sorting.

Big fat fail.

Not only do we need to sort out where our savings etc. would go, it also needs to include who would have MC if anything were to happen to us both. It's quite an awful thing to think about and maybe this is the reason I've been putting it off.

The thing is, in November there is no excuse. When I started volunteering for Save The Children back in February I found out about something called 'Will Aid' that I'd never heard of before. Basically, each November a selection of Solicitors in the UK will waive their fee for preparing a will and that fee goes to Will Aid. Then all the money raised is divided equally between 9 fantastic charities, Save The Children being one of them.

We decided back in February that I would wait until November to organise our wills so we could take advantage of donating to charity rather than see it go into a Solicitors pocket.  I think the fee is roughly around £85 for a single will and £120 for a pair of mirror wills - depending on the Solicitor.

By visiting the Will Aid website you can search for you nearest Solicitors and contact them direct to make an appointment.

If you haven't made a will yet and, like us, have been putting it off I think this is a great opportunity to support worthwhile causes whilst sorting out your finances and future.

I'm ringing my Solicitor this week to make my November appointment.

To find out more, visit www.willaid.org.

Make a will. Make a difference.

This Has To Stop Now!

Yesterday was just an ordinary Saturday for most people - but not for some big hearted friends and bloggers who attended the Save The Children conference in London, giving up their precious weekends in the name of charity.

I should have been there and I was totally gutted I couldn't make it.

Regular readers of my blog will know that the Save The Children charity is a big part of my life as I give up my spare time to volunteer in my local shop. I can honestly say hand on heart I absolutely love it. I was ill this week so I couldn't go in and I hated not being able to work.

Unless you've been living underground recently you will have heard about the tragic situation in East Africa. Thousands of innocent children are dying each day and it has to stop! A severe lack of health workers in the area means that children die needlessly - one every 6 minutes in fact. Read more about the East Africa Appeal here.

Next week, a fellow blogger, Chris, is attending the UN General Assembly in New York. She is going there with Liz from Save The Children to put pressure on David Cameron to play his part in solving the health worker crisis. There's a target of 60k signatures to collect by this Tuesday so PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION NOW IF IT'S THE ONLY THING YOU DO.

Please don't ignore this post, don't pass it off as someone else asking for help. This is genuinely serious - innocent children's lives depend on it.

Two blogging friends of mine, Michelle and Gemma (who I've both met in person) are asking for 100 people to join this linky by Tuesday. It may seem impossible but I know just how strong and amazing the blogging community is.

Please visit Michelle's blog to read more but basically we want people to sign the petition, write 100 words about a health professional you have encountered in your life (tweet: #healthworkers), ask other bloggers to participate and spread the word in any which way you can - Twitter, Facebook, email, phone or accost people in the street if you have to!

Here are my 100 words:

"6 months ago, Mini Cheddar was struck with the dreaded norovirus and it hit her badly. I can easily say this was the worst moment of my life - watching her unable to hold even a thimble full of water down without vomitting. I was totally helpless. I remember leaving the doctors surgery after my doctor made a swift phonecall to the hospital, running in the house, packing a bag and rushing to the paediatric unit. Dehydration is horrible. Trying to hold my daughter down with a team of nurses whilst the doctor hooked her up to a drip was pure hell."

The thing is, Mini Cheddar had these medical professionals to help her. She had the latest drugs, the very best medical equipment and the knowledge of the professionals which meant she only spent 24 hours in the hospital and we were able to continue her care in a warm and safe home.

The children in East Africa don't have these things that we take for granted. They don't even have fresh water. The situation out there is awful - see for yourself below and don't ignore the crisis. These children need your help...now!

I'd love to see these bloggers take over the baton (apols if you've already been tagged as I'm not really on Twitter much lately):

Mari's World
Real Housewife Of Suffolk County
Reluctant HouseDad
A Matter Of Choice
Mañana Mama
Alysons Blog
Mummy And The Beastie
Doing It All For Aleyna
Looking For Blue Sky
The Syders
This Mid 30's Life

If you're not tagged yet then don't wait to be tagged - there isn't time...please take this as your invite to get signing, blogging and shouting about this. We need to spread this quickly.  I'm so busy at the moment, as you all know, but even I have managed to do this as it's SO important.

Thanks for reading x

Lose Inches And Save The Children

I have a confession to make.  I've never been a 'gym bunny'...show me anything to lose some inches and stay in shape with little effort and I'm there.

So when I heard about HotPants from Zaggora I was champing at the bit to get a pair.

What did they promise?

- Reduce your body fat
- Reduce the visible appearance of cellulite
- Lose 2 jean sizes in 2 weeks with no crazy workout or nutty regime

I must admit though, I was skeptical.  Surely a pair of pants weren't going to achieve all that!

Proof I do housework

But, you know what?

They have and I've done NO exercise either...unless you count vacuuming as exercise!

I absolutely LOVE them.

I'm actually going to buy another pair for when my first pair are in the wash. I also need to buy some new jeans as my current pairs keep falling off my hips. Result!

Imagine what would happen if I actually did some usual exercise too?

My best friend came over last week and saw my inch loss and asked me what my secret was.  Well, wearing Hot Pants is my secret.

Not only that, my Sister has also got a pair and they are working wonders for her forthcoming holiday.  Mind you, I say 'holiday'...where's she going?  She's traveling across the Sahara Desert...always likes to be different my big Sis. She loves them. I've told her she needs to take them to the desert with her. Imagine the fat she'd burn over there in that heat.

Anyway, as usual I digress, sorry.

So, the lovely people at Zaggora are very generously offering all readers 10% off a pair of your very own 'miracle worker' pants (usual retail price £44.99) using the code 'HEATHERLU' at the checkout.  In addition to this they will also donate £4.50 for every pair sold to my chosen charity Save The Children (I could claim this money for myself but I want to donate).  So, not only are you shedding some excess body fat, you'll be helping to help save children across the world, including the UK. At the moment there's a terrible drought in East Africa that I blogged about the other week.  Just think, that money could be going to help starving children.

I wouldn't recommend these Hot Pants if I wasn't entirely happy with them. You haven't just got my word for it, you've got my Sisters word too and hundreds of other Hot Pants Ambassadors across the world.

You won't be disappointed!

Just don't forget to use the code 'HEATHERLU' when you check out to claim for 10% and help Save The Children.





Please let me know if you order a pair with the code so I can keep track of the money raised for Save The Children.  I'd also love to hear what you think of them.

This is not a sponsored post.  

I did receive a pair of Hot Pants to try but all views, 

opinions and photographs are entirely my own.