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Mother’s Day gift guide…

| amazonianmummy

With Mother’s Day fast approaching – Sunday 31st March 2019 (how is it March next week?!) I’ve put together a little gift guide of some things I think would make any mums/nans day that extra bit special.

The first and one of the more unusual items I’ve found is a little blue plaque. London’s famous blue plaques link the people of the past with the buildings of the present – run by English Heritage, but if you’re not in the running for a real plaque… http://funblueplaques.co.uk/ have got you covered! You can personalise it to say anything you want so it’s quite a fun idea priced around £22 – I want one!

If you’re looking for something a little more pricey then https://www.poshtottydesigns.com/ have some gorgeous jewellery that can be personalised and it’s still not ‘break the bank’ expensive. I love the ring necklaces that you can have your children’s (or any) names printed on.

If you are addicted to instagram (like me) you have probably seen this lovely lady’s work in lots of instagrammers homes – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/margomcdaidart Margo in Margate’s prints are simple, yet stunning and put a smile on my face every time I spot one.

Another great place to check out is https://www.artfinder.com/#/ I brought my mum a painting from here for her birthday and she adores it. It looks really expensive and only cost me £25 (with free delivery!) Thanks to sites like artfinder and new blood art (to name a few) https://newbloodart.com/ owning original art doesn’t have to come with the hefty price tag. They have pieces for all budgets and having brought from both sites I can assure you that it was a very easy process. The sites and artists keep you up to date with dispatch and delivery and since buying from artfinder I am regularly sent discount codes and informed about new paintings from my favourited artists. I currently have the discount code of ART-5QRDF if you wanted to use it. (This post is not sponsored – I wish it was) I’m not sure how long it’s valid for or what the limit is but if it works it’ll give you 15% off your first order.

(This is the painting I brought my mum – there’s loads of great artists on this site)

If money was no object…I’m sure a lot of us would love a Mulberry handbag, but having searched online Fiorelli https://www.fiorelli.com/blackout-event.html have got a great sale going on some of their bags right now and you could pick up an absolute bargain that looks so much more expensive…then we can tote baby wipes, snacks and toys in style haha!

If your budget is a little lower – a new book is always a winner, or you could make your own little pamper hamper with a book, a mug, a hot chocolate sachet, some bubble bath and a face mask – for example.

You don’t have to spend a penny to make the biggest impact, the best things I’ve ever received from my children are the homemade cards so there’s always that! (Unless you’re – a grown up…that might be a little awkward 😉😂) Whatever you’re up to…if you’re lucky enough to still have your mum – let her know how much she’s loved and I wish you all a wonderful Mother’s Day x

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I’m watching you…always watching you…

| amazonianmummy

Only if you’re at my door that is – thanks to my new ‘Ring’ doorbell. We finally got round to putting it up last week and it’s been great.

So far I’ve been able to speak directly to a delivery driver and instruct him to leave my parcel in a safe space instead of taking it back to the depot with him and I also know when any postman, leaflet droppers or cold callers have knocked at the door.

My daughter likes to press it every time we come home (something I hope she gets bored of quickly haha). It was so simple to set up and the app talked you through everything in real time.

If you’re looking for a bit more peace of mind or are out a lot when things get delivered, I would definitely recommend ‘Ring’ – although my partner now knows exactly how many things I order and gets notified like me when a delivery man is at the door haha!

I would love to add a few more ‘Ring’ products to my collection in the future as the camera quality is fantastic.

So now I just need some *actual* guests (not postmen, delivery drivers etc) to try it out…although there’s no guarantees I’ll actually answer the door…I’ll just talk to you through the speaker haha! X

Alright pet?!…

| amazonianmummy

When is the best time to introduce a pet into the family? We have a goldfish called Matilda but seeing as the kids can’t stroke her and she’s not very good at catch, my eldest child has been pestering me for a pet. 

She adores cats. We used to have a cat called Stanley when she was younger but he went out one day & didn’t come back. She used to tell everyone that he went to sainsburys 🙈 (do you think I shop there too much?!) but as its been 4 years – I don’t think he’s coming home. 


(Stanley 😻) 

We were recently offered a little kitten by a friend of mine who just wanted her to have a good home. I was keen, but my other half wasn’t so sure. Our youngest is 19 months and may be a bit too ‘hands on’ with a kitten. 

As well as cats and dogs – I love tortoises. I don’t know why, maybe it’s their little wrinkly faces or the fact they’re like little living dinosaurs 😍 I saw a picture recently on Gina Martin’s Twitter (if you don’t know who she is you should check her out – she’s awesome, she launched the campaign to make ‘upskirting’ illegal) she has a gorgeous rescue tortoise called Gary Tortellini (amazing name right?!). It was Gary’s birthday and she made her a birthday hat – I literally can’t even deal with the cuteness – LOOK 👀


Do you have pets? If so what do you have? And what ages were your children when your new addition came along? I’m pet broody…proody if you will! Is that a thing? 😂 if not it should be x 

What’s that sound?…

| amazonianmummy

Rain glorious rain! Oh how I’ve missed the sound of you on the Windows, whilst being curled up on the sofa under a blanket, with a good book. I will *try* and never moan about you again…but I know that’ll never happen…I’m British – take weather out of the equation and there’s not much else we have to talk about haha! 

As much as the heatwave was nice I’m so looking forward to cosy indoorsy evenings, wearing jumpers, Halloween…let’s face it it’ll be Christmas before we know it 😉🎅🏼 the year is really flying by. 

I hope you’ve all had a lovely summer and with a few more weeks left before the children go back to school…what are your best tips of things to do with them or places to take them that don’t cost the earth? We’ve been to parks, the lavender fields (which is a great day out if you go on the tractor ride etc and is inexpensive) done lots of drawings and paintings, swimming, local events like the Kingston dragon boat race are a nice day out, cinema & softplay…but mainly we’ve been indoors trying not to melt haha so if you’ve got some good ideas for days out please leave them in the comments 😄 X 

Should’ve gone to specsavers…

| amazonianmummy

My daughter was due her eye check so I made an appointment over the phone and popped along after school to specsavers. 

She was ‘star of the week’ at school this week which means we get to take this delightfully grubby little bunny teddy called Raggles everywhere we go…affectionately renamed by us as snot rag! 

Anyway, Lulu, snot rag and I arrived in good time for her appointment and perused the endless amount of glasses on display while waiting to be seen.


All the staff are friendly and accommodating and it’s not long before we’re seen. 

We were taken into one of the rooms where Lulu’s eyes were checked by using a mixture of little lights and a big machine that made the letters clearer or blurrier to get a good overall view on what she could see. 


I’m glad to report that both human and stuffed bunny both got glowing results in their eye tests and will not be needing glasses. The optometrist was lovely and really made Lulu feel at ease with all the checks & we will get another appointment for next year just to make sure everything is as it should be. 

If you’re thinking of getting an eye test for your child, look up specsavers online for your nearest store and booking info. I can’t recommend them highly enough! 🤓

The story of Benjy Bunn…

| amazonianmummy

We were lucky enough to be sent a copy of ‘Benjy Bunn’s Busy Day’ so tonight, after bath time my babies and I sat down to read what Benjy had been getting up too. 


You could be mistaken for thinking that Benjy is a naughty bunny…but that’s not the case, he just wants to help even if he gets things wrong along the way. 

The Benjy series was written in 1973 by Bev Scott Prior as a story for her children, now all these years later it has been illustrated by her own grandchildren which I think makes the book that little bit more special. 

My six year old managed to read the book to her brother almost without any help from me and her favourite part was when he tried to make his mummy a cake, she also loved the reoccurring worm illustrations and actively looked for him every time she turnt the page. When asked if she thought Benjy was a naughty bunny, she replied; ‘No mummy, he’s just trying to be helpful!’ 

Overall we really enjoyed the book and can’t wait to find out what trouble Benjy will get into next time…

These shoes are made for walking…

| amazonianmummy

We’ve reached another milestone with my little man…his first shoes. He’s not walking on his own yet but is walking confidently if you are holding his hands so we thought it was about time. Obviously our first stop was Clarks. I love Clarks…especially for first shoes, aswell as being a trusted brand & super comfy, the staff are so helpful and make a potentially stressful situation (with a mischievous toddler) into a moment you will treasure forever. 


We went for the Tiny pebble navy canvas trainers priced at £19 and Rocco looks pretty pleased with the result! I know Clarks are sometimes considered a bit more expensive than other brands, but the quality speaks for itself and these will last him a good while now…unless he has another growth spurt haha! X 

Get a career dear…

| amazonianmummy

I’ve always envied those people who have known from a young age what they have wanted to do and pursued the right channels in education and life to get there. I never knew what I wanted to do, I think half the problem stems from having too much choice. To name a few I’ve wanted to be, an actress, an artist, a psychologist, a spaceman (until I watched that awful George clooney film where they spun so much it made me feel sick) a mermaid (that ones a long shot…but hey you’ve gotta have dreams) and everything in between. 

I had acting lessons when I was younger, for one term. I really enjoyed them but at the time I don’t think my mum could afford them and also told me that she didn’t think acting was a real career option for me…maybe she was right but they’ll always be an empty space on my shelf where that Oscar should’ve been 😉

One thing I’ve always loved is writing but I guess I never thought of it as a career option until a few years ago. I would love to be a published author one day. To see my words printed in an actual book…that one day may be turned into a play or a film that I (I mean real actors) could perform in. But again I get the doubts, will it be good enough? What if no one likes it? What’s the point you’ll never get published anyway?! So I don’t get any further than a few scrambled and rambling pages in a notebook. If you are a published author I take my metaphorical hat off to you…it’s hard work, but I imagine is so, so worth it! 

So basically what I’m trying to say in a round about way is, if you don’t know what career path you want to pursue yet – don’t worry we all get there in the end, it just takes some longer than others to realise their dreams…and even if your mum says you can’t do that…you can! Unless it’s like a serial killer or something…you definitely shouldn’t pursue that haha! So JK Rowling…watch out 😉 X 

Two years ago…

| amazonianmummy

Two years ago today was the last time I heard your voice before you became too medicated to speak. I told you how much I loved you and that you were my dad in my heart and always would be, how proud I was of you and that you were my idol. Even though MS had taken your body down bit by bit, your beautifully funny, sarcastic, spirited and clever mind never faltered. You ran a successful business even though you hadn’t left the house in years through being wheelchair bound, smoked like a trooper, washed down your medicine with a Jack Daniels and coke and always enjoyed life even though you were dealt some bad cards. Your laugh was infectious, your smile lit up the room. Although you could be a pain in the ass at times, like making me roll you 10,000 cigarettes a day (may be over reacting a little bit) I’d do it all over again for just one more day with you. Thank you for teaching me what a real dad should be. Thank you for being my best friend. Thank you for the true love you made my mum feel (I’ve never seen two people more made for each other than you two) and thank you just simply for coming into our lives. I love you and I miss you everyday. I may not have shared your blood but I shared your heart…and that’s more than enough for me. Two years ago I went to sleep holding your hand, you may not have woken up…but you live on everyday in my heart 💗