The Boden Preview: Autumn 2016

The Boden sale preview is here! I have always been such a big fan of Boden, particularly their children's range. Nothing beats it in terms of quality and hardiness. I think the only pair of trousers that Austin didn't manage to wear a hole in were some tartan baggies he had a couple of years ago, and he wore them to death!

I have picked out my absolute favourite pieces from the new collection, although lets be honest, I could happily roll around in every single piece!

Naturally we have to start with the Baby Boden collection. Bryony is now 2 and a half (albeit a small 2 and a half!) so the time that she will be able to fit into the baby collection is limited and this does make me well up a little. I was thrilled to see that they are now doing some of the baby Boden pieces up to 3-4 years, which gives me a whole extra year or so to be able to buy from it, which I hope to throughly make the most of! The collection for baby girls this year is particularly stunning. Cord, squirrels and florals galore. What is not to love about that?!

1. Pale Blue Play Set

2. Cord Squirrel Pinny

3. Floral Pinny

4. Pink Play Set

The Mini Boden Girl's collection is equally beautiful. I LOVE the hotchpotch floral dresses on either side, they remind me very much of dresses I saw in Portugal last summer and I think the navy one would suit Bryony's colouring perfectly. Some more lovely casual bits; I adore the tree print on the casual smock dress and cord skirt, as well as the ever popular rainbow detail pieces too which would be adorable for playgroup or nursery.

1. Hotchpotch Pink Dress

2. Tree Print Smock Dress

3. Hotchpotch Navy Dress

4. Rainbow Sweatshirt

5. Rainbow Tee

6. Tree Print Cord Skirt

7. Rainbow Raglan

An honourable mention must go to the PJs. Bryony would love the doggy print, and I particularly love those vibrant green sheep printed ones! 

1. Doggy PJ's

2. Sheep PJ's

The boy's Mini Boden collection for Autumn is equally cute! Austin is almost 5 and now at school full time, so I don't find he needs as many clothes as his younger sister. I think these pyjamas are just adorable jammies for little boys! They have an autumal theme with conkers, bugs and trees. I definitely want to get him a pair of the tartan baggies and this pig top is super cute and funny too!

1. Autumn Jammies

2. Tartan Baggies

3. Pig Tee

I don't tend to reach for the ladies collections in Boden; I am in my early twenties and to be honest most of their pieces don't excite me. I do love this dress though. In a mint green colour, a flattering shape and cute bird print I could definitely see myself in this!

'Hannah' Bird Print Dress

Have you checked out the Boden Preview yet? Which are your favourite pieces? 

My Spring/Summer 2015 top picks for my Baby Girl

As I'm sure you all know by now, I am a sucker for baby and kids clothes. The problem intensified a year ago when I had my first baby girl and ever since I have been well and truly addicted! (Check out my baby style tag on YouTube for more baby clothes goodness!)

As I recently posted a spring/summer clothing 'wishlist' for myself I thought it would be fun to do the same for the items I have spotted around and about in stores recently for my baby daughter. 

I'm on a ban from shopping as finances are super tight this month so this online window shopping exercise is the next best option to get my spending fix!

Marks and Spencer have brought out some gorgeous baby girl outfits this season and there are several that I love. My favourite is probably this one -

The shorts are very Liberty-esque and I adore the greyish blue cardigan. Such a beautiful outfit that can be mixed and matched or worn together for effortless baby style! 

Another that I love is this little set:

Can you tell I have a thing for bloomers on baby girls? The print of this set is just stunning and I would totally let Bryony wear this on a picnic in the spring or you could even use the two pieces separately with plain white vests or leggings to tone it down a little. Just gorgeous! 

H&M is a store that I usually like however I am quite disappointed with this season so far. I had a little look online and one piece did catch me eye. This white broderie anglais blouse is really sweet and would look lovely with a pair of jeans in the spring or denim shorts in the summertime. 

I definitely won't be ordering this off the H&M website as the standard with delivery is shockingly bad. If I see it in store I may be tempted to pick it up!

Next up is Next. See what I did there? I am rarely disappointed with the choice of kids clothes when I walk in to a Next store; they always have a good few things that catch my eye and this season's offering is no exception. There is lots of rainbows featured which I adore (ranbow leggings will be making their way to Bryony's wardrobe soon and we already have a couple of long sleeve tops from this collection). This outfit in particular is just adorable!

Another happy addition to the range for me is all of the dinosaurs featured in the girls range this spring. It makes me happy because it's scratching at the surface of those gender barriers that children shouldn't have to face. Who says girls can't wear dinosaur shoes and what's to say boys can't wear pink! Love it.

Is there anything you have your eye on for your baby girl or boy this season? 

Milestones

Today is a big day for me. My daughters first birthday, a big milestone not only for her but also for me. My best friend Gemma said to me this morning 'hurrah, we both survived the first year of having two kids' and if I'm honest that pretty much sums up my feelings about today. I am so over the moon to be celebrating my little girls first birthday; but yet I also feel tinged with sadness. John and I are so happy with our little family of four and we do feel very complete; but the mother hen in me will always yearn for a pregnancy and a baby. I just love the newborn moments; nursing a baby, skin to skin, breathing in their smell. Unfortunately, those moments are so fleeting. They are gone in a flash and in many ways I would just love to do it over and over. My heart and head are dancing to two very different songs, and as much as I would love to spend a decade with a newborn against my chest, realistically two is the right number for us at this time. I feel that I am going through a grieving process knowing that this may be the last time I get to experience the magic of my baby's first birthday. 

With the sadness of that grief comes the happiness of seeing my daughter grow and gain independence. Before my very eyes I can see her turn into a real little girl and I couldn't be more proud of the person she is growing into. She is fiesty, fun and fearless and I love her to the moon and back.

Happy birthday Bryony May! 

Finding out the sex of my babies

During both of my pregnancies, I was asked daily by friends, viewers and strangers alike when I would be finding out the sex of my babies. When I replied 'well...at the birth!' I was almost always met with the same confused expression. 'Why wouldn't you want to know now?' They would ask. 

But the truth is, I was adamant right from the start that I wanted to save that moment of finding out for when I met my babies for the first time. We live in a world where we have instant gratification; patience is becoming less and less required due to the advance of technology and social media. Until 50 years ago, it was impossible to even see unborn babies via ultrasound. Women trusted their bodies, and waited patiently for their children to make themselves known to the world. I suppose the traditionalist in me wanted to stay true to this and not interfere with the natural pattern of pregnancy and new life.

You could say it is tradition in my family to keep the sex of a baby a surprise. All of my cousins and aunties and even my mum chose not to find out, so I suppose I had little pressure from my family, they wanted to save the big reveal for the birth too. 

Of course there are pros to finding out; it is easier to get organised with decorating the nursery and buying clothes. It helps older siblings to understand about a new baby coming and for lots of people they feel it helps the bonding process during pregnancy.

For me, that magical moment when my babies left my womb and entered my arms was worth the long 9 months of waiting. Holding my beautiful children to my chest for the first time, absorbing every millimeter of their exquisite faces and to love them with every bone in my body; in that moment their gender wasn't important. The seconds pass by,  you embrace your partner and marvel together at this beautiful creation; and then the curiosity sets in. You peek in between their legs and discover whether this perfect child is your new son or daughter. The joy I felt at that moment was immeasurable, and I wouldn't of changed it for the world.

Did you find out the sex of your baby during pregnancy or after their birth? Would you do the same with future pregnancies? I'd love to hear your opinions on this topic!

6 Months of Breastfeeding with IGT

Today is the 27th July 2014, which marks the half birthday of my daughter Bryony. 

Like all parents of a little one, the past 6 months of my life has consisted of sleepless nights, smiles, poop explosions, and lots and lots of snuggles... But probably the most poignant of all milestones for me - six months of breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding did not come naturally to me and my baby girl. I have a condition called IGT, or insufficient glandular tissue of the breast - a result of a horse riding accident when I was 13. This means that I don't have enough of the milk making glands to ever have a full supply of breast milk, but thankfully I do make at least some of our daughters milky needs. 

I think back to the trauma of the first few weeks of Bryony's life, where she lost 10%, then 11 and eventually 12% of her body weight due to my lack of milk. I was devastated, sobbing into John's chest on a daily basis, traumatised that my body would not do as it should to sustain my baby. I made a promise to Bryony on the day that she was diagnosed 'failure to thrive', that I would get as much of my breast milk into her fragile little body as I could. I breast fed, I pumped, I drank litre after litre of water, bowl after bowl of porridge. I used an SNS to supplement Bryony at the breast to avoid nipple confusion. I tried fenugreek, goats rue, blessed thistle, alfalfa, red clover. I avoided peppermint and did hourly breast massage. Endless amounts of skin to skin. I was clawing by, day to day, praying for just one more drop of milk for my angel, just one more feed. I took a photo of every single nursing session, terrified it would be our last. I never in my wildest dreams considered I would achieve one month of breastfeeding, let alone reach the six month milestone. 

Alas, here we are. Bryony has a few bottles a day, to keep her from starving. But she is still getting all the milk I can give her, and so many of the benefits of breastfeeding. Finally, I'm at peace with the breastfeeding relationship I have with my daughter. I don't cry anymore when I leak those precious drops into my bra. Or when I spill my half oz of milk onto the kitchen side. I breastfeed with pride in public, and marvel in telling people 'yes' when they ask if I am feeding her. They don't need to know how much, because in fact I AM still a breastfeeding mum!

Bryony has been feeding less of late, and I suspect she is gradually self weaning. I'm happy to let her lead the way and will let her feed as long as she wants to, but I would be at peace if she did decide to stop. I have enjoyed every moment of breastfeeding her and I am so lucky to have had this experience. I'm so proud of her for persevering with my broken body and loving it anyway. I'm proud of my son for being patient and understanding of us and I'm proud of my John for the support he has given us; my rock. But most of all I am proud of myself. Breastfeeding has been the hardest journey of my life and here I am, six months later,  laughing in the face of IGT. Go me! 

Happy six months to my little Sweetheart, Bryony May Cole.

X