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Villagio: A Meal Out in Berkhamsted

Villagio, Berkhamsted review
Villagio, Berkhamsted review
Villagio, Berkhamsted review
Villagio, Berkhamsted review
Villagio, Berkhamsted reviewVillagio, Berkhamsted review
Villagio, Berkhamsted review

Last Saturday we took some well needed and deserved time out for ourselves and visited an Italian restaurant that was totally new to us, called Villagio. The restaurant was cosy yet contemporary with a brilliant atmosphere, packed full of Saturday night restaurant goers including our very hungry selves. Despite being obviously busy, the service was perfect and the food even more so and of course, Adam opted for his usual Italian starter: 'the breadboard' (which is actually supposed to be to share!) Our mains were pasta; our favourite! Washed down with multiple amaretto and cokes (the best type of drink?) and an additional completely refreshing cocktail for me. I'm really starting to love cocktails lately since our recent first-ever cocktail bar visit! By dessert we were both totally full, yet we couldn't resist the mouth-wateringly tempting chocolate fudge cake. For us veggies, Villagio catered well, though an amendment of the dessert menu to state what is and what isn't suitable for vegetarians could be better but the manager was beyond brilliant in quickly checking for us. Loved our meal, loved the town, loved having some time to sit down and just 'talk' together. An all-round fantastic evening!




[Day One]

We are already having the most wonderful time on our first family holiday.The Lake District is more beautiful than I remember it being. I feel recharged and relaxed, and though I miss the cats oh so very much, I found myself a little feline friend this morning to have cuddles with. 



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AFK.



As of Saturday we are away on our Holiday, enjoying the breathtaking views on offer in the beautiful Lake District. So this and the posts between now and next Saturday are all scheduled. I have a fantastic guest post scheduled from the lovely Harriet from A Rush of Love, a restaurant review and 2 awesome giveaways to look out for! So keep an eye out for them and I'll be seeing you soon!

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Life Lately..

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Leaving home with a baby (Warning DO NOT attempt alone!)

I have learned that it is now impossible to leave the house and 'pop' out by self, returning calm and collectively with a baby. Yep, the term 'pop out' now means 'be out of the house for approximately four hours, stopping for various bottles, nappy changes, random grouchiness, a trip down the toy isle for a set of Fisher Prices own car keys to replace the car keys that belong to me that my baby will not let me peel from the grasp of his hand before he pokes himself in the eye with them. 
It also means getting completely flustered, hot, sweaty, close to tears and nearly losing the will to live. 
I have learned that it is in fact better if I do not attempt to leave the house alone with baby and that it is far better to wait for Husband to return home from work or have a day off to attempt such a soul-destroying challenge to Tesco for a 'couple' of bits. 

Packing for our Holiday

/Cry I just don't want to. Can't I have someone pack for me? We leave for the Lake District on Saturday and I've only just started packing!.. A quarter of Ethans holiday type belongings are taking up a whole reasonably large suitcase.. We have limited packing space as it is, as we're sharing the one car with Adams parents. Seriously, how can such a small person take up so much room?!

New blog design?

It's due, I feel. So it is in talks with a proper designer and all, get me! ;)

A full mortgage and a new home?

We have a shared ownership on our 2 bed home currently and as lovely and spacious as our current home is, we are running out of room a little and would like to upgrade to a 3 bed with a more family vibe to it. When we moved into our current home, we never ever pictured that we'd be living here as Mum and Dad with a growing-so-fast-I-can't-believe-it baby who owns an ever-expanding amount of belongings! We've taken a few steps into looking at selling our share of the property and so we shall see how it all goes.. Getting a mortgage on maternity can be a bugger!

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What's your Favourite Disney Film?


Ah the magic of Disney. I've never even been to Disney Land, but I've heard so many magical things about it. I loved all the Disney films as a child, but who didn't? I had a great collection of the books and when ever I see anything Disney related it takes me straight back to the memories I have as a child.


One Disney film I'd never seen was actually The Aristocats, can you believe? A crazy cat lady like me! It's safe to say that I have now, my Husband insisted I watched it when we moved into our house and got sky and the Disney channel. And obviously, as with all Disney films, it was fantastic! Not my favourite though.. No, I think my favourite will always remain as.. Beauty and The Beast! 


I'm a huge romantic, so the magical love story somewhat appeals to my soppy emotional side! I even wore a Belle style dress to school for a Disney theme day, I felt like a princess ha ha.


Writing this and looking for Disney related pictures to go with the post, has reminded me just how many fantastic characters and films there are in the Disney world. I could name so many films that were favourites of mine, The Little Mermaid, Bambi, Aladdin, The Jungle Book, Lady and The Tramp, 101 Dalmations, the list goes on and on..

Seriously, I cannot wait until Ethan is a little older, so that we can sit down and watch the Disney films together as a family and play games like the new Disney Infinity:

Having a child is just the most brilliant excuse to do it! 

So what's your favourite Disney Film?



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Best Present, EVER?!

                                           

Sold! To the crazy cat lady that is myself! 
I wish!

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Fancy a Beauty Treat?



I like to look good, who doesn't? But the prices on some high end beauty products really does put me off and so, because of this, I stick to high-street which by the way my Husband thinks is ridiculously expensive [if only he knew how much high end costs!]. 
But, if I'm honest there are certain times when a little treat for myself is needed and a high end beautifying product always does the trick. 
I've just discovered beauydept.com, they sell some lovely pick-me-up beauty products such as KerastaseRahua shampoo,  Elemis and much more, including Bio Oil - who I am going to be hosting a giveaway for in the next few coming days!
Beauty Dept offer a wide range of some of the best products about and the site is simple and easy to navigate, with even the option of using Paypal at the checkout, so it's been added to my list of bookmark for picking up some affordable beauty treats!

Have you purchased anything from beautydept.com before?
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Products I Love as a Mum


[1]

[2]
[3]
[4]

I'm really liking the Cussons Mum & Me range [1]. I had previously believed that their range was solely just for Mums to be, but actually, it was nice to discover, after they kindly sent me a few things,  that their range also caters to children and new Mums! Which is great as I was a lover of their bump range whilst I was pregnant. I've been testing out the 'New Mum' and the childrens range and I like them a lot, they smell gorgeous and the children's range is super fun. 
The nasal and eye wipes [2] from TLC are perfect for exactly what they're meant for. I love that they fit nicely into my changing bag. With the eye wipes I feel confident using them and knowing that they're not going to cause any harm to Ethans eyes. The nasal wipes are perfect for runny noses, being much better than a standard tissue as they boast menthol for easy breathing.
How completely and utterly awesome are the Lego lunchbox and flask? [3] I've never seen anything like it and as Mum, I don't think there's anything more 'cool' than buying your children this amazing duo. Obviously, Ethans a little young at the moment, but I just know that he will be as Lego obsessed as his Dad is! So this will one day make the perfect school lunchbox and flask for my little guy.
Last on my list of products I love as a Mum is the fantastic Milton travel steriliser [4]. Perfect for overnight stays in a hotel or for days away. We actually keep ours around my Mother-in-Laws for when we are around there for the day or Ethan is. It is huge so I believe it would fit any size bottle inside of it and it can be used in the microwave or can be used for cold water sterilising with the Milton tablets. I'm actually a bit of a Milton fan already, I think their anti-bacterial spray is probably the best for cleaning down highchairs and other baby contact areas. 

What do you think of my love list? Have you tried any of these? 

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Starlight Mobile from Fisher Price Review


Fisher Price Starlight Mobile Review

In my opinion, there's a lot to like about the Fisher-Price Starlight Cot Mobile. To begin with, it has a rather beautiful collection of mirrored and holographic sparkling stars and teddy bears that hang down and turn around for babies to reach up to. The mirrored stars add to the magic as they catch the light during the day.

Fisher Price Starlight Mobile Review

For us, the most magical feature of the Starlight is the overhead starlight show. When switched on in the dark, lights beam up from the top projecting stars, the moon and even a shooting star onto the ceiling! The light show not only looks absolutely fantastic it also helps to stimulate babies visual skills.

Fisher Price Starlight Mobile Review

There are even two star shaped lights on the arm of the mobile that slowly turn on and off, watching them actually made me feel rather sleepy. They also add to the enchanting 'starlight' theme of this particular mobile.

Fisher Price Starlight Mobile Review

The controls are located on the back of the arm, away from baby, and are very clearly marked, with lots of different options. The beautiful music combinations will even play up to 20 minutes! This for me, is such an attraction as a parent as as much as I like the wind up mobiles and their more traditional sounds, it really doesn't take long for the music on them to unwind and I often find myself running back to the cot within what feels like a few minutes just to wind it up again. So, 20 minutes of music with the Starlight is such a fantastic feature. 

Fisher Price Starlight Mobile Review

Right now, we've fixed it onto Ethans crib as that is where he is currently sleeping before he moves up into his own room and into his much larger cot. The Starlight will be following him when this happens and I fully trust that it will provide comfort to him when he does move into his own bedroom.

Fisher Price Starlight Mobile Review

The Starlight Cot Mobile is from Fisher Price (which personally is one of my favourite baby/children's brands, because of the quality and designs of their products) and it is available from Amazon for £27.99 here


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