What's in a name?

Image courtesy of dailymail.co.uk

My parents weren't very adventurous when it came to choosing mine and my sister's names. Both our names came from TV programmes of the 70s.


Mine from this

and my sister's from this 

Can anyone guess what her name is? Does anyone actually remember this programme?!

My middle name is Jane (same as my Mum's-very original!) and my sister was forever teasing me by calling me Plain Jane, especially at the time of Jane Harris in Neighbours. It could have been worse....if I had been a boy I would have been called Barry!

For Girl B and Middle B we got our inspiration from a book of baby names, although my eldest niece originally suggested our daughter's name. Tidgy was almost called Bobby, which I loved, but hubby would only allow it if he could have 'Robson' as his middle name. I toyed with the idea even though I hate football but I could see it would be important to hubby, being a lifelong ITFC fan. I just couldn't do that to my son though. What would have happened if he was a Canaries supporter?! I also had visions of him being featured in the Evening Star for his unusual name and being ridiculed forever more.

How did your parents choose your name? How did you choose your children's names? Baby names book or something less conventional?

Up On The Roof

This is the sight that greeted me as I looked out of the kitchen window

No wonder I am rapidly turning grey!

Wicked Weekend

In the words of my daughter this weekend has been 'wicked'. I have to agree with her. 


Saturday morning was started with our Pyjama Drama classes with Jane and we had a fantastic time. Middle B can be a tad shy at times, despite being much more confident than Girl B, but this week he was in his element. Joining in the actions and songs, shouting out the answers and generally have a great time. The minute his Dad, sister and brother walked in just before the end of class he clammed up again so I quickly told them to get out and then he was soon back to joining in, hiding behind the 'branch' he was carrying to go birdwatching. He has been singing the bird song all weekend and had us all joining in! It's lovely to see him taking part as he does love the classes. It just takes him a while to settle in anywhere new but he's often singing about the other children, pretending to be Pyjama Drama Jane and teaching us the actions.


Tidgy is the only one in his class at the moment and Jane kindly invited Girl B to join in with us and she really enjoyed it. Although she attends Rainbows she feels a little left out not going to Pyjama Drama so it was nice for her to be included. She told me this morning that she would love to join a drama class and would be happy performing on the stage of a theatre. She gets nervous at Sharing Assemblies in front of a small school audience, let alone hundreds of people!

On Sunday we packed a picnic, loaded the children's bikes into the car and headed to Alton Water. We expected the children to cycle for a mile or two, stop for lunch and then moan all the way back to the car that they were tired but we were wrong! They cycled and cycled quite happily. After lunch we reached Lemon Hill Bridge at Tattingstone which was a little over 3 miles from the start. To carry on the circular route would have taken another 5 miles to finish. The children had the choice of turning back or carrying on and they chose to carry on. Middle B must've cycled another 4 miles on top of that as every few hundred yards he'd turn around to cycle back to us.

Alton Water is beautiful and there are some lovely sights along the way. The terrain is uneven in places and it was hard work for me & hubby pushing the buggy, especially as he had a bad back and my hip dysplasia makes it difficult to walk on uneven ground sometimes but the children were racing off. We made regular stops to rest but I think that was more for our benefit than theirs!

Royal Hospital, Holbrook in the distance

View from Lemon Hill Bridge, Tattingstone

At 6 miles I really started to feel the pain and by the time we reached the car park I was ready to collapse but the children loved it and cannot wait to go back again. 

I want that house! Bet it has a lovely view of the reservoir

"Yep, we're on the right track!"

Being pushed around is such tiring work

Waiting for Mum & Dad to catch up

The dam and Royal Hospital not so much in the distance now. Nearly there!!

We drove to Felixstowe to have chips for tea and then parked up at the viewing point while hubby fed Tidgy in the car. Middle B and Girl B still had some energy to burn off (I wish I was that energetic!) so we headed on the beach to have a look at Landguard Fort.

We expected them to be exhausted but at 8pm last night they were still wide awake and full of beans. Us, well we just collapsed onto the sofa.

The children have been impeccably behaved this weekend and we've all been really happy. If an 8 mile cycle ride is what it takes then I will do that every weekend!!

Silent Sunday

Now take a look at the other Silent Sunday entries at Mocha Beanie Mummy's blog

Always look on the bright side...

Image: nuttakit / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Lately my blog posts have been a tad more than negative. There were a few memes that meant questions were answered about my past and I got a lot of comments about how awful my life must have been and what a terrible time I had.

Yes, my past was tough but I came out the other side. I wouldn't say I'm as strong as others make out but it did take strength to leave a situation where I was being controlled and manipulated.

That said, I am incredibly lucky with how my life has turned out. Soon after my divorce I met a wonderful man who is my soulmate. We have 3 beautiful children who bring us joy every single day, despite our trouble with Middle B. We live in a lovely village and we have family close by. My husband has a career that pays well, enabling me to be a full time Mum and he doesn't have to work long hours. He's a huge support to me when I'm struggling and has put up with a lot from me over the years!

It's not all bad and I just need to keep reminding myself of that.

I am a wonderful Mum..

...and doing all the right things according to two of my health visitors. I just wish I could agree with them.


My children are my life and I would do anything for them but just lately I've been feeling so useless and pathetic that I wonder why I became a parent. 


Over the last couple of months we have seen various health professionals for support with our son's behaviour and we'll be seeing a lot more now that he has been referred to a community paediatrician. I cannot cope with the way he has been and I am constantly feeling on edge wondering when the next episode will come, what will make it happen and how long it will go on for. Yet again it's making me ill. 


Today a health visitor specialising in behaviour came to chat to me about ways of dealing with the tantrums. She wasn't really able to give me any tips that we hadn't already tried but she has given us a different reward system to try with him for a fortnight and then she'll review the situation.


What struck me during her visit was how human she was. During her children's childhoods she had made the same mistakes that I had and she shouted at her children and got involved in arguments with them when she should have walked away. Just talking to her helped a little, although I struggled to keep composed at times. 


Her telling me how great I was as a Mum was nice to hear but to me it's not true.


If I was so wonderful, capable and doing all the right things I wouldn't be in tears through exhaustion, daily. I wouldn't need a Homestart volunteer to support me. I wouldn't be dreading collecting him from preschool, wondering what they'd be telling me about how his behaviour had been that morning. I wouldn't be dreading every waking minute with him, just in case his temper flared. I wouldn't be feeling like this at all. I do love him, of course I do but there are times I could happily wander off into the sunset towards a life of solitude. It impacts on us that much that the feelings of my husband and my other 2 children pale into insignificance at times.


I'm lucky enough to have some support from my lovely HV & my fabulous GP, who deserves a medal, but it still doesn't seem enough. I wonder how I get through the day without cracking up. 


So, as much as it's a compliment to hear that I'm a good parent, it'll be a long time before I can believe in it.

Review: Hasbro Games

We were sent two Hasbro games to review: Monkey Dunk and Pop Goes Froggio. 

Both games feature Elefun, which I'm sure most families have owned. My children love Elefun so they were very excited to see him in these games. 


With Monkey Dunk you have to flip the monkeys into the lagoon and collect bananas for each one that lands in the 'water' but Elefun could pop up at any time and send monkeys flying back out. It was really easy to set up and follow the instructions for playing but we struggled at first to get the monkeys jumping anywhere but backwards. We soon discovered that it was us being on carpet that hindered play so  it's advisable to play at a table, tiled floor, or flip the monkeys on a flat smooth surface like a book. It's a race to get the most bananas before Elefun flips up so the children loved that element and it's a relatively quick game, which suits my children, especially my 4 year old with his short attention span.

Pop Goes Froggio 

Lily pads featuring Elefun & his friends are placed face down around the room (or facing up for younger players) then someone spins the spinner and you race to turn over the lily pads and find the matching picture. When you've found a match you race back to stomp on the lily pad launcher. Froggio leaps into the air and then you have to catch him to keep the card. The winner is of course the player with the most lily pad cards. 

Pop Goes Froggio was an active, fun game and we all enjoyed playing. It was quite frenzied at times and Tidgy B sat there giggling at us racing around the room. It has helped Middle B practice catching, although he has a habit of leaning over Froggio and gets it in the face when it's launched! It's soft foam so it doesn't hurt. 

Middle B and Girl B got this out at Tidgy's party and their Auntie was most impressed with it.

Both games are aimed at preschoolers but Pop Goes Froggio was as big a hit with us adults as it was with the children! I would quite happily buy these for presents, particularly for Middle B's preschool friends.

The games are available from various retailers.

  

Silent Sunday

Now take a look at the other Silent Sunday entries at Mocha Beanie Mummy's blog

Kesgrave Cakes & Cards review

With our youngest child's first birthday approaching I wanted to do something to mark the occasion. We've always had a small family party for our children's 1st birthdays followed a day or so later by a get together with friends, usually at an indoor play area. As Tidgy is our last baby I wanted to do a little something extra so I decided to order a customised cake rather than buy from the supermarket. We've had some lovely cakes over the years but you can't beat a personalised cake. I remember with fondness my Paddington Bear cake from when I was young. 


I got in touch with Sarah from Kesgrave Cakes & Cards as I remembered her from toddler group when Molly was little and I'd seen some of her work at local Pamper Evenings.


Sarah has a huge selection of fab designs on her website and her facebook page but I was undecided about what to have. Sarah asked if there was anything in particular Tidgy liked or if he had a favourite toy and instantly I knew it had to be his Scout teddy. I emailed a photo of the teddy to her and she got to work.

Hubby picked the cake up the day before the party and even he, 'Mr Hard To Please', was impressed. I couldn't wait to get the box open and I was overwhelmed at how fantastic it looked. It was a very emotional moment and I even shed a tear! I'd been feeling anxious all week about my baby hitting one and I hadn't prepared to my usual military precision but seeing the cake brought it all home to me.

Everyone at the party loved the design and we had comments of "Wow!", "Fabulous", "So unique", "It looks just like the teddy". 


It seemed like such a shame to cut it up but most importantly it tasted delicious. Sadly the birthday boy was unable to have any of it as he has been on a gluten-free diet since I ordered the cake but he thoroughly enjoyed his gluten-free chocolate muffin as seen on last week's Silent Sunday post. We managed to get plenty of pieces cut from the cake. There was even enough for Middle B to take to preschool and share with his friends.


If you're local to Kesgrave I can highly recommend Sarah for your cake needs. She's very accommodating and incredibly talented.


We're using her again for our daughter's birthday in June and she'll be having a pony stable cake, which looks fabulous on the website. She can't wait to show it off to her friends!


*This review was written because I was so impressed by Sarah. We were not paid for this review and we  paid for the cakes. 

I'm not your mate!

Rob Dunger (@Dungerman) from BBC Radio Suffolk sparked an interesting debate on his facebook page this afternoon.


Rob took offence to being greeted with "Yes mate?" as he approached the counter in Starbucks. He didn't know the employee. I completely agree with Rob. I don't believe that you should greet a customer using mate, darlin', love or sweetheart or any other term usually saved for those close to you.


I may be old-fashioned in my views and I understand that there are worse things in life to be irritated by. I also realise that these employees are trying to be polite in their own way but it grates on me. "How may I help?" would be much better in my opinion.


What is your view?


•Rob will be discussing this on air tomorrow morning (Saturday 21st May) between 6am and 9am on BBC Radio Suffolk. Tune in if you can or listen on Listen Again

Where's Matt Allwright when you need him?

Ok, so maybe Rogue Traders is taking it a bit extreme but as their blurb on BBC website says 'Consumer show exposing businesses and individuals giving customers a raw deal' A raw deal, well that's what I, and others, seem to be suffering at the hands of Debenhams online shopping service.


I ordered some clothes from Debenhams on 26th December last year. Items all were in stock and delivery was due at my local store within 4 working days. I waited for the dispatch email and waited. 4 working days came and went so I contacted their helpline only to be told, rather unhelpfully, that 'they would be dispatched in due course'. How long is due course you may ask? How long is a piece of string? So I waited again. I emailed customer services and got the following reply on 11th January at 11.15am:

Thank you for your email.

We aim to deliver our orders within 4 working days of the order being placed, however, on occasions, this may be slightly delayed.

We would like to confirm however, that your order has been processed and despatched and will be arriving with you shortly.

If your order is not received after 10 working days from the order being placed, please contact us to allow us to make the necessary investigations.

We hope this is of assistance to you.

Kind Regards,

Ben Farbus

Customer Contact Centre

Debenhams Retail PLC

Note the sentence-your order has been processed and despatched and will be arriving with you shortly.

Excellent, I thought. At last. 

No such luck. At 00.07, I received another email from them stating that one item in my order was unable to be fulfilled so that item was cancelled and would be refunded. How could that be so when just the previous morning it had been dispatched? Very odd indeed.

So I fired off another email:

How can you tell me that my order has been processed and despatched when
I've received an email today, less than 24 hours after your original email, stating
that one item has been cancelled due to lack of stock?

This is really the most appalling customer service and I will be taking it
further and making sure others know not to shop with Debenhams online. 

You'd think this would make them sit up and take notice but here is their reply

Please accept our apologies for the delay in responding to your e-mail.

Our records indicate that you should now have collected your order from the Ipswich Debenhams store.

Should you require any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Kind regards,

Joseph Greenwood
Customer Contact Centre
Debenhams Retail PLC

Huh?? No notice taken of what I said at all. My complaint swept under the carpet and ignored. Talk about banging your head against a brick wall. So, I decided to never shop at Debenhams online store again.....until my daughter found the perfect dress for her 'Royal Wedding' party on their website. I had shopped everywhere and found nothing but this dress was The One according to her and who am I to dissuade a very determined 6 year old?

I decided to give Debenhams a chance to redeem themselves. I'm not one to hold grudges and lightening doesn't strike in the same place twice...does it?

This time both items arrived very quickly, admittedly, but the chiffon dress was creased and underneath the first layer was a large dirty mark. Being chiffon it wouldn't have been that easy to clean and I expect my goods to arrive without stains.

 Now, it wasn't as big a complaint as previously but I and my daughter really felt let down, particularly after last time so I let it be known to @DebenhamsRetail on twitter. I got the standard reply of 'can you possibly send your details to blog@debenhams.com and we will try and sort for you? Thanks' So I did, straight away. 2 days later and I haven't heard a thing so I took the dress back into our local store today making a trip into town that I really didn't need to make. The sales assistant looked at the stain she said with a rather accusing tone "They wouldn't have sold it like that". Well, they did! 

A very lovely lady called Claire has also been having problems with Debenhams and we've been discussing it on twitter and tagging them means they have seen our tweets. I received one from them saying 'we're really sorry to hear about your past experiences & are very keen to help Can we get in touch via email to talk?" which annoyed me even more as I had already emailed, as asked previously, but they don't reply!! So much for being very keen to help.

Debenhams online have lost themselves 2 customers today through their appalling

 customer service and after reading up on some other reviews it seems like we're not the only ones. For such a large, well-known company their customer service is shoddy, to say the least. 

You can read an interesting post about Debenhams customer service here


Update
25th May 2011


And so it continues. Claire and I are still waiting for our complaints to be resolved. Claire was promised vouchers last week and after tweeting Debenhams she was told they would look into it and get back to her asap. You would assume it would be the same day but nothing has been heard. I was copied in on the tweet and I was told the same. 


Not only were we both really disappointed and let down on more than one occasion by Debenhams but when they say they will resolve the issue they still seem to be stalling.


Claire was invited to post a review of her order which she did but it was rejected, presumably on the grounds that it was negative and they didn't want it posted for all to see.


Recently Debenhams have been RT'ing a lot of positive reviews but you only have to read their timeline on twitter (@DEBENHAMSRETAIL) to see that complaints are regularly made.


Come on Debenhams. It really is time you sorted your customer service out and dealt with complaints efficiently and swiftly. 

Silent Sunday

Shhh! Now quietly hop on over to Mocha Beanie Mummy's blog to see some more Silent Sunday posts

Happy Birthday Tidgy! A year in photos.

It's a cliche said by every parent for each of their children but I really cannot believe that today was my youngest's 1st birthday.


He's had an eventful first year, health-wise, and hasn't exactly thrived but now that we're getting closer to a diagnosis hopefully that will all change. 


Tidgy soon developed a fabulously fun character and is very cheeky. My Mum says that he's the cheekiest of all her grandchildren and she's right. He knows how to tug on the heartstrings too. 

This is my son's first year...

Just a few hours old

Meeting big sis & big bro for the first time

On my first holiday Aged 2 months

Cuddles with Mum's cousin before he went to Afghanistan

Glued to CBeebies just like my sister & brother

My first Christmas

My first time swimming

Batbaby

COME ON YOU BLUES!!!

It may only be March but it's hot!

Looking gorgeous but serious at London Zoo

Enjoying the sun

Tractor Boy

Birthday Boy

THE cake...and the gluten-free muffin that Tidgy had to have

Review: My Magic Box by Imaginell

We were sent My Magic Box to review on behalf of Izziwizzi Kids and Imaginell. 


It's the world's first fully recyclable treasure box with fun on many levels. It comes flat-packed and needs constructing.  The instructions are clear, even instructing you to have lots of space and time. We got stuck a couple of times but that was more me being daft that it being difficult to make. 


My son sat watching it as we constructed the box and was getting more and more excited as each part was put together. He was able to help out most of the time but it definitely requires an adult to construct.

Once it was all together it was very impressive. It's strong and sturdy, which is a must with a boisterous boy! There are various levels, compartments and even a secret drawer that locks with a clever cardboard key and flap system. We hid something for him to find and he loved taking the box apart to discover the hidden treasure. It has been a big hit with him and he is regularly filling it with various toys. He couldn't wait to show his Grandad, who failed to find the hidden compartment.


As well as being fully recyclable the website has ideas for what you can do with the packaging. My daughter has to make a jungle scene so the cardboard will come in very hand for us. Imaginell also supply a school bag for a child in India for each box sold through The Imaginell Foundation.


Included in the packaging was a book called Going To School In India which my children have loved looking at. They have a great interest in other cultures and enjoy finding out how children around the world live.


There are 3 types of Magic Box. As well as the box we had there is also a My Magic Dragon Box and My Magic Pilot Box.


Imaginell are currently working on bringing My Magic Box to the UK. Keep watching the website for details

Brilliant Baskets by Galt Toys review

We were asked by Izziwizzi Kids to review Brilliant Baskets by Galt Toys.

The concept of the craft kit is great. 3 card basket bases and paper raffia to simply weave into baskets. Sadly in practise it wasn't that easy.


This kit is suitable for 5+ but although Molly is nearly 7 she struggle to do this alone. I regularly had to hold the end of the raffia strip while she was weaving and she struggled to weave, hold the basket and keep it tight to form a basket shape by herself. A joint effort was definitely required.


Molly soon get fed up after a few strands and although we could have spent more time by pushing down each row of weaving and adding paper she was quite frustrated and wanted to finish. As you get to the top of the basket the gaps between the spokes became tighter and more difficult to get the paper in. She was pleased with the final result but commented on how it looked nothing like the pictures on the box.


This is one for older children with more patience or adult help. Had we have been more nimble fingered and if Molly had had more patience I believe we would have got a better effect.

Brilliant Baskets is available at an RRP of £4.99 from Galt Toys