Yummy Mummy's Christmas Gift Guide: Dads!

So next in the series is present ideas for your dad! Now, I for one am not overly close to my dad, as him and my mum divorced when I was only a baby and he now lives in Essex so we don't see each other much... However, I do get to see him at Christmas, and ever since I got my first pay cheque when I was 16, I have been giving him a present from me and my brother (yes, not overly fair that I end up buying the present every year!). If you are still stuck for what to get your dad, I hope my gift guide helps!

Clockwise from top left: Soap and Glory for Men Beard Science Set (£20, Boots); Remington Shaver (Half price at £69.99, Sainsburys); Slippers with Freshtech technology (£14, Marks and Spencers); Baylis & Harding Male Pamper Gift Set (£9.99, New Look)

Clockwise from top left: Navy Over head Cable Shawl Jumper (£35, Burton); Beckham Instinct EDT (available from Boots, £20 for 75ml); Nissan GTR Driving Thrill Experience (£88.99, Play.com); Brown Export Embossed Wallet (£12.99, River Island); Ben Sherman Purple Dial and Black Strap Watch (£34.99, H Samuel)

Clockwise from top left: Sports Trivia game (£3.50, Marks and Spencers); iPod Shuffle 4th Generation 2GB Silver (£39, Sainsburys); Haynes Jaguar E Type Kit (£10, Sainsburys); Digital Tyre Gauge (£12, Marks and Spencers); Couch Potato With Cider (£10, BHS); British Food Cook Book (£8, Marks and Spencers); 80's Music Quiz (£4.99, New Look)

And, if your parents are still together, why not get them a present they can share?

From left: Gourmet Getaway for Two (£99.99); Sightseeing Cruise and Trip on the London Eye for Two (£64.99); Winning Race Day Package for Two (£48.99). All available from Play.com

2011/2012 Challenge: Day 8: Things you hope for in 2012.

The main thing I desperately want for 2012 is to get a job and actually make a start with my career.... but the more I talk to people about my options, the less likely this seems! As a single mum, I am stuck due to sky high childcare costs, a lack of jobs and all the rent and bills to pay alone. Things are looking bleak. I had hoped to have everything sorted for when my tenancy ends in mid February, but this is unlikely, and I guess I may have to face up to the fact that this ridiculous government has made it impossible for me not to 'sponge off taxpayers', and stay on benefits for the time being at least.

Other things I hope for in 2012 are of course health and happiness for myself and my family.

My Little Baby Elf!

This weekend I thought I had better get Cameron to try on the Elf suit I have bought him to wear Christmas morning as it is 9-12 months, and he will be 16 months by then! It fits at the moment with a bit of room in it, so hopefully it will still fit at Christmas!

I wanted to get him something festive to wear, but don't want him in something novelty all day, so instead he will wear this as his pjs Christmas Eve and then keep it on for presents before getting changed into his smart little shirt and black jeans! What do you think?

My Weekend!

Another reason I have been a bit slow on Blogging lately, other than the near death of my laptop, was a visit from my lovely friend Katie this weekend! I met Katie through More Magazine's Facebook page a year and a half ago and have met quite a few times since and we talk online a lot as well. Katie said she needed some cheering up, so the first thing I did in preparation for her arrival on Friday was to stock up on lots of junk food!

Katie arrived in the evening and met my boyfriend Tim, and we all hung out over my mum's for a bit before going over to my flat (my mum very kindly looked after Cameron both nights Katie was down so that we could drink alcohol and have a relax). I cooked a pizza, but because we were catching up and drinking Bellinis, I managed to burn the pizza!

So we ended up ordering Pizza Hut pizza instead which was so yummy! We got a medium pizza to share with two sides: cheesey garlic bread and delicious chicken strips, so in a way it was a good thing I burnt the pizza!

We decided, after a few Bellinis, to put my Christmas tree up which was quite amusing. It looked so good when we had finished though!

On Saturday, my mum dropped Cameron round and we all had a chilled out morning at my flat before going shopping. We bought some more yummy food including curries and snacks to eat whilst watching the X Factor that night. In the afternoon we went over my mum's flat and chilled out watching TV and Bridesmaids on DVD, and ate food pretty much all afternoon and evening (not a great weekend for the figure!)....

My mum came back and we opened a bottle of wine and had our curries and watched X Factor. We did have a second bottle of wine to drink, but it tasted really horrible, like red wine even though it was a Rose! So in the end we just chilled out some more watching I'm a Celebrity, and then went back to mine to go to bed.

On Sunday we had a bit of a lie in and then Katie went home. I went into town with my boyfriend for drinks and, largely due to the fact that I hadn't eaten anything all day, I got pretty drunk on only a few glasses of wine. It was a very funny weekend all in all!

2011/2012 Challenge: Day 7: 10 things you want to say 10 people.

1) To my mum:

I appreciate everything you do for me and Cameron. I wouldn't have been able to make it through the last couple of years without your help. You are amazing and I really hope you find someone who truly deserves you soon so that you can be as happy as you should be! Love you! xxx

2) To my best friend Aimee:

I miss you lots! I hope you are coming back to Bournemouth at some point over Christmas as Christmas day would not be the same without seeing you! Hope everything is going ok in Brighton and can't wait to see you as soon as possible with the Chubster, who also misses his Godmummy lots! xxx

3) To my boyfriend:

Hope you are feeling better soon, I think you may have given me your germs... Can't wait for the weekend! xxx

4) To my other Best Friend Sealy:

I miss you!! Hurry up and return from Oz so that I can give you a big hug! Love you lots! xxx

5) To Cameron:

You are the best thing to ever happen to me and I love you so so much! Everything you do amazes me, even the naughty stuff! Can't wait to spoil you this Christmas! Also can't wait to meet Santa with you on Saturday!! xxxx

6) To my friend Katie:

I hope everything went ok at school today, and I hope everything else is ok. I am here for you whenever you need me :) Had a great time this weekend! xxx

7) To my 'internet' girlies:

Love you all! You are all amazing at giving me advice or the kick up the bum I need! Have to meet all of you asap! xxx

8) To my Uni besties Abi and Georgie:

Miss you both! Can't wait to see you both in the New Year! xxx

9) To my cousin Aaron AKA Joey Essex:

Hope your head is feeling better today! Apparently you went out on 'the biggest night out ever' last night? Thanks for giving me male present giving advice, even when hungover.... and for watching TOWIE with me and getting just as excited, if not more, by its storylines.... xxx

10) To my family as a whole:

Can't wait for Christmas this year! It is going to be AMAZING!! Love you all loads! xxxxx

Yummy Mummy's Christmas Gift Guide: Mums!

As promised, this is the first of a series of blog posts on gift ideas for your nearest and dearest. I thought I would start off with an easy one for me, mums! I absolutely adore my mum as she is so amazing and helps me all the time, so when it comes to her birthday and Christmas, I love being able to give her presents that show her I care. For the last few years I have bought her a pretty diary from Paperchase as part of her present, it's become a bit of a tradition. For all of you out there struggling with present ideas for your mummies, hope this helps!




Clockwise from top left: Gok Wan Totally Gorgeous Gift Set (currently better than half price in Boots! £22- was £45!); Dove Indulgent Silk Duo Gift Set (£6.49, Superdrug); Embossed Heart Robe (£35, La Senza); Selection of 'Experience' Gifts (pictured left to right: Afternoon Tea for Two £14.99; Mother and Daughter Photoshoot and Makeover £19.50; Pamper Day at Bannatyne Spa £34.99, all from Play.com); Cosmetic Bag and Hand Lotion Gift Set (£3.99, Superdrug); Bagpuss Hot Water Bottle (£15, River Island).

 Clockwise from top left: Euphoria, Calvin Klein (available at Boots, 30ml £29.99); Beige Purse (£25, River Island); Models Own Nail Polish Set (£10, River Island); Anais, Anais, Cacherel (Available from The Perfume Shop 50ml for £22.99)

Clockwise from top left: Adopt a Reindeer Gift Set (£22.95, Play.com); Chocolate Feast Box (£18.50, Cadburygiftsdirect.co.uk); Cable Knitted Cardigan (£22.99, New Look); Aqua Floral 2012 Page to Day A5 Diary (£10, Paperchase); Selection of Festive Gift Bag Bouquets (Pictured: Christmas Rose and Freesia and Rose Gift Bags, both £35, Marks and Spencers)

Watch out for my next Christmas Gift Guide, coming in the next couple of days!

2011/2012 Challenge: Day 6: Any words of wisdom/advice for anyone?

My biggest advice to anyone:

I try not to have any regrets, and in case I forget, I had 'Live without regrets' tattooed on my foot.......

Yummy Mummy's Guide to Christmas Shopping!

Hello everyone, sorry I haven't been blogging as much lately! I have had some problems with my laptop which are now sorted so will be back to blogging more...

I have finished all my Christmas shopping now, but know a lot of people who haven't even started, so thought it might be a good idea to do a series of blogs on present ideas for those special people in your lives: Mum, Dad, Grandparents, Siblings, partners and babies!

So watch out for my first post, coming very soon!

2011/2012 Challenge: Day 4: Something you’ve learned this year.

Something I have learned this year is who my true friends really are. This year has been quite a tough one for me, and the people that came through for me and actually seemed to genuinely care how I was feeling were not the people I would have necessarily thought. I've also learnt that there are some girls out there who still act like they are 13 years old and in a school playground, but that's a whole other blog post...

I have made a lot of 'internet' friends over the past couple of years, and I know some people find this hard to comprehend, that I am friends with people I have never even met in real life, but I consider these girls to be better friends than a lot of people I have know longer, grown up with, live closer to. These girls have been there for me through my pregnancy, birth, Cameron's first year, my graduation and are still there for me now I am feeling happier. I have been able to meet a few of them: Katie, Joanne, Mel and Frankie and hope to meet many more as soon as possible!

Me and Katie when I was pregnant

Of course this is not to say that my 'actual' friends haven't been there for me too, some of them have and I am eternally grateful to each and every friend who has been there for me.

I just feel that I need to say a big thank you to these girls for being amazing, and that I hope to meet the rest of you in 2012!!

2011/2012 Challenge: Day 3: A person who has impacted your life in some way this year.

I warn you right now that this post is bordering on soppy.... Yes, me, the biggest pessimist ever, being soppy and ever so slightly emotional. However, the person I would say has had an impact on my life this year would be my boyfriend....

Basically, having been single for 18 months, I had started becoming quite anti-men and this in turn was making me quite bitter and hard as a person. People always say you will find someone when you least expect it, when you have stopped looking, And in my case, this was true. Although I had been on the dating site I met him on for pretty much the entire 18 months, I was on and off it and usually only went on it every month or so to check out who had emailed me. I went on it by chance and saw his email, emailed him back and we started speaking and found out we lived only three roads apart.

He had to wait a couple of weeks to take me on a date because I had been ill with the flu but when we did meet I was instantly attracted to him and within just a couple of weeks, I felt like I had known him for ages. Things have just been so relaxed and easy. He met Cameron early on and is amazing with him. He helped him (finally) learn to walk, by having the patience I had lost, to help him walk around until he grew the confidence to go it alone.

We have been together six weeks now and I am really glad I met him as, like I say, I was getting to be very bitter. Since being with him, I have become so much more relaxed, happy and positive about everything. I smile so much more. This is why I am naming him as someone who has impacted my life in 2011 (you may now go and puke... haha).

Shouldn't but apparently Would....

Attempting to feel even more Christmassy today, curled up under the duvet watching the Holiday today, I suddenly came to an awkward realisation. I have a minor crush on Jack Black in the film.....

Jack Black, the funny but not fanciable one.... Oh dear....

If there are any fellow Jack Black lovers out there, here he is:

Twisted Words

You may remember me speaking about top secret plans a while back, well it wasn't me wanting to keep them secret but in fact a magazine who was writing an article about me. The plans were the photoshoot for the article, and the magazine came out yesterday.

The article is about how Cameron was conceived, as a result of a very short rebound relationship. As I was worried it might, it has managed to look a lot worse than it was due to sensationalist headlines used by the magazine (which I am really not happy about) suggesting I had Cameron as a result of a one night stand. Having never had a one night stand in my life I am really annoyed and upset that this is the tagline they went with. The article also seems to suggest that I resent Cameron for no longer having a social life (totally untrue, as anyone who knows me will realise).

So today I wanted to just set the record straight in my OWN words. I have had nasty girls bitch about me due to not knowing the full facts.

I was with my ex for 6 months when i realised things weren't working out because I didn't trust him, and the distance was a big issue. I split with him and started seeing a co-worker. When I found out I was pregnant, although I had been with the two men close together in time, the dates suggested I was having my ex's baby, and I split with the guy I had been seeing, coping with the pregnancy alone as my ex didn't want to know.

Once having Cameron, and him being fair in complexion (my ex is mixed race), I realised I had obviously gotten it wrong, but to be sure I took a paternity test with the other guy, which proved he was Cameron's dad. Since then, he has seen Cameron regularly.

That's the story, with all the magazines spin taken off of it.

One thing I have learnt from this experience is that, although I want to write, I definitely don't want to write features as I would hate having to twist stories in order to sell something. At the end of the day, the people in these stories are real people with real emotions. It's something magazines should consider before writing things...

In Need of a Pamper!

Two nights ago Cameron managed to spill a drink on my laptop keyboard and now half the keys don't work so I am resorting to using my phone to Blog...

To cheer me up, and give my skin a much needed rest from makeup (I've been not taking it off for a couple of days), I have decided to have a lazy pamper day. Ive taken all my makeup off and slapped on a delicious smelling strawberry face mask and laid down on the bed to read a book- bliss!

2011/2012 Blog Challenge Day 2: How much have you changed overall in 2011?

I think I have changed quite a lot over this year. The picture above was taken on New Year's Eve 2010...

This is one taken at the start of October this year:

So physically I look different, but I also feel so much more confident now as well.

I went through an extremely tough year in 2010, meaning that although 2011 was no walk in the park, I managed to finish Uni feeling so much stronger than I would have done otherwise. I made a conscious decision in January to lose my baby weight, and by April (my deadline) I had lost all of it, and started losing a bit more on top. This in turn has made me feel really good about myself, leading to me looking back into dating again, and I have now been with my boyfriend for over a month, so things are going a lot better on that front as well.

I started my Blog in January this year and it has given me even more confidence and more importantly has made me realise my passion for writing all over again. I have been able to Blog for More! Magazine, which was such a fantastic opportunity, and has led to me arranging work experience with them in the New Year, which I am very excited about. I have also blogged for a dating site, and loved that opportunity as well.

Cameron has changed so much more though! He has gone from a newborn who didn't really do much more than eat, sleep and occassionally make some noise, to a right little character. He is gorgeous and so adorable and I am very lucky, and very proud to be his mum.

I am looking forward to seeing how we both grow and change, and the new adventures we will have in the coming year.

Deck The Halls!

I bought my Christmas tree at the beginning of the year, having not had my own before then, but today I went into town with my mum and bought the decorations for it! I wanted a colour theme, rather than just shoving all sorts on the tree, and went with turquoise and silver when I saw some lovely baubles in those colours in Wilkinsons.

I am so excited to put my tree up but am being a very patient and good girl and waiting until after the first of December...

What colour are your decorations? Are you excited about putting them up?

2011 Conclusion/2012 Introduction Blog Challenge: Day 1: What has been your most memorable moment in 2011?

My most memorable moment of 2011 has to be getting my results back from Uni to say that I had passed with a 2:2 and meaning I would be graduating with the rest of my year.

With my Uni friend Abi and Cameron on our Graduation day

I know I went on about this a lot before the big day, but surely this just proves how big a deal it was to me? I am really proud of managing to finish my degree with Cameron as a newborn and it has definitely made me more determined than ever to get a job and make something of my life. Being a stay at home mum is definitely not for me.

A Sweet Christmas Giveaway!

Enter Rachel's amazingly festive Christmas Giveaway over at Life of a Sweetaholic by clicking here.