Time for a change

With our eldest child’s 6th birthday fast approaching it has made Lee and I think about how quickly time is flying by and that we are both getting older too. We are far from being spring chickens. I am in my early 30’s now and Lee who is 8 years older hit the big 40 late last year.

As we are getting older and are feeling the aches, pains and tiredness of our busy lives now more than ever we have decided that it is important that we take more care of ourselves. So that we can play and have fun with the kids and be there for them as they grow older we need to think about our health and be as fit and healthy as we can be. Whilst on the whole we are relevantly healthy and do not have many bad habits (we eat healthy and neither of us drink any alcohol) there is always room for improvement which will hopefully leave us healthier with more energy.

#GiftToFamily - A surprise for daddy

Giving gifts to loved ones is a lovely act that can mean so much.

It is nothing to do with the biggest, shiniest and most expensive gift either. It is also not to do with getting or expecting a gift in return.

Even the smallest, most inexpensive gift can be priceless and truly precious and unforgettable.

Small acts of kindness and heartfelt gestures can mean the world to people. They can show that people are kind and selfless whilst showing the excellent they a worthwhile and valued.

The act of giving a gift can convey love, thanks, appreciation and respect. Random acts of kindness and small gifts can lift spirits and add a little light of joy and love to one's day.

Inspired by the movement of random acts of kindness Saga are encouraging bloggers such as myself to surprise their loved ones with a gift. In the run up to Christmas, Saga Equity Release have launched a Gift To Family campaign in an aim to inspire people to think about their loved ones and the little things that they can do for each other.

Hope for a hair transplant

I’ve written before about male hair loss and Lee’s experience of it. Both Lee’s dad and his brother have male pattern baldness, with his brother suffering from baldness since his early 20’s. Whilst Lee did not suffer from thinning hair and male pattern baldness as early as his brother, in the last couple of years as he has approached the big 40 it has hit him.

Lee’s ever thinning hair and growing bald spot on the top of his head is something that he hates. It is a big source of his lack of confidence and a hatred towards his body image.

How I would dress my other half

Whilst I love Lee's style and like the clothes he wears, he does tend to stick with the same style clothes and will rarely try or wear clothes that differ from his reliable style. Even though I like the clothes he wears and find his style attractive there are at times where I wish he would step out of his bubble and try a different fashion style.

Often I have admired a t-shirt or pair of trousers and thought that Lee would look amazing in them but if they do not fit in with his reliable style he has been reluctant to even try them on. As he is a little obsessive about sticking with his style – his motto being if it ain’t broke don’t fix it – and does not like change when House of Fraser recently asked me how I would dress him for the day I thought at least I can virtually give him a make-over.

Jacamo wish list.

As Lee very rarely gets any new clothes or shoes, wearing his existing clothes till they are completely worn, his wardrobe is looking rather old, tired and worn out.

With a summer filled with family days out and holidays to visit family to look forward to he has been a little downhearted about having such a drab wardrobe and that he will not be looking his best especially when seeing loved ones thanks to his aged clothes. But as he hates to treat himself, preferring to treat the kids and get them new clothes or use spare money for extra days out, he will just make do and not even consider getting anything new for himself.

As I hate that his old clothes make him feel blue, less confident and want him to feel good about how he looks especially when visiting his family who he rarely get to see (it has been a year this time since he last saw any of them in person), I have been shopping online to get him some new clothes to breathe some life back into his wardrobe.

Are you #SCRUFFSENOUGH? Scruffs Trade Denim Work Jeans review.

It is rare that Lee treats himself to new clothes. As it is a very infrequent occurrence when he does get new clothes or shoes he likes them to be high quality yet affordable, durable and wears well for long lasting use.

When he does need some new work wear he relies on the top quality work wear and safety footwear from Scruffs.

As he loves his Scruffs Expedition Tech jacket and Pro Softshell Jacket he was keen to see how their work jeans lived up to the quality and durability of their jackets.

The Scruffs Trade Denim Work Jeans are top quality, being made to a superb standard with high quality jean material.

Theradome™ LH80 Pro Laser Helmet update

So here's our first update on how Lee is getting on with the Theradome™ LH80 Pro Laser Helmet since he first started trying it and shared his initial opinions about the helmet.

It has been a little over 4 months since he first started using it.

The history of paintballing

With Father's Day looming on the horizon next month on the 19th of June I have started thinking what the boys can get their dad as a 'we love you daddy' gift. Whilst we shy away from merchandise created and promoted for the specific holidays the day is a lovely reminder of showing our dad of the house how much we care, love and appreciate him.

As we are a household who loves arts, crafts and all things handmade we usually make a small gift, last year Bug made his daddy a lovely handmade canvas with a superhero themed poem declaring how he thinks of his dad as his hero. Along with a small handmade gift we also tend to treat Lee to something he has been thinking of getting or doing for awhile so that he gets something he wants and would have got himself anyway – if he has been eying up a new t-shirt he gets it for Father's Day or if he wants to got to the cinema or experience an activity we get him tickets.

This year we have plans on treating him to a day of paintballing.

Vaping with the blu PRO™ eCig kit - #bluForYou

* This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. Readers must be 18 years of age or older. All opinions are mine alone. #bluForYou #CollectiveBias

A Just You & blu experience

Like most people Lee has many facets to his character. He 'wears' a number of different hats, taking on different roles in his life. Along with the 'characters' he is called such as dad, fiance, son, brother, friend, and co-worker he has a number of habits, interests and quirky characteristics that he embodies which combined make him the individual that he is. 

One habit that interlaces throughout most of his life and lives on regardless of the 'role' he is currently embodying is smoking.

For over half of his life Lee has been a smoker. Having smoked traditional cigarettes for many, many years Lee recently decided to try smoking e-cigs.

What if I won the lottery? What would I buy?

As a dreamer I often find myself dreaming about 'what ifs'. One of the common 'what ifs' I find myself thinking about is 'what if I was lucky enough to win the lottery'.

If I was fortunate enough to win big on the lotto, perhaps having won a life changing prize playing one of the world's biggest lotteries on Multilotto, then I would inevitably spend some of my winnings on a dream forever home for my family, a new family car, a once-in-a-lifetime family holiday and finally getting married and having my dream wedding after 5 years of engagement.

Whilst I would be over the moon to win a large enough lotto prize to do the above, any winnings would of course be gratefully received. If my lotto win was a more modest one, or a large win with a some winnings left to spare after the above purchases, I would love to treat each one of our family to a gift of something they would love.

Step into the world of short films with discover.film.

One of the interests that Lee and I have shared from when we first met was a love of films. Since the early days when our relationship was budding our kindred love of films and an enjoyment of all genres was an interest that we could share and enjoy together. As we dated and our relationship blossomed we enjoyed many dates to the cinemas or movie nights in watching films together.

Fast forward a little over 6 years and we both still enjoy watching films of all genres however now that we have 2 children together which keep us very busy and tired our movie date nights are sadly not as frequent as they once were.

As we love watching films together so much but rarely have the time or energy to stay awake to watch a feature length film we have recently turned our attention to short films.

Are You #SCRUFFSENOUGH? - Pro Softshell Jacket review.

Scruffs who are a leading UK brand of men's and women's workwear and safety footwear make durable, tough, practical, cleverly designed and fashionable workwear and footwear for hardworking men and women.

To see whether Lee is #SCRUFFSENOUGH they sent him a Pro Softshell Jacket.

Quitting smoking.

Whilst I have and would never judge anyone for smoking and have many friends and family who do smoke, having never personally smoked I find the smell and cost of smoking rather unappealing. As a non-smoker who hates the smell I always thought that I would never date a smoker, as the smell would give any potential partner an air of unattractiveness to me.

So when I met Lee and found out that he was a smoker – one who had smoked for many years and the habit of smoking was strong – I was surprised to see myself overlooking his smoking and not being as bothered by or put off him because of it as I always thought I would be. As I had an instant connection to him and then fell in love with him I didn’t care that he smoked – my love for him blinded me to his habit.

As a person who has never smoked in her whole life I cannot really understand or pass judgement on how easy or hard it is to quit smoking. Whilst I loved Lee regardless of his smoking and accepted him habit and all, and would never dream of giving him an ultimatum to quit or not be with me as it’s up to the person to decide if they want to give up smoking or not; deep down I always hoped one day he would want to kick the habit.

When we started a family Lee's thoughts on smoking changed and he started to consider quitting for the sake of our children and to improve his own health in the hope of being fit and healthy for his family for years to come.

Theradome™ LH80 Laser Hair Growth Helmet – an introduction and initial impressions.

A person’s body insecurities can have a surprising effect on confidence, happiness and mental well-being. Whilst we may not like to openly admit it, many people are not truly happy with at least one part of their body. Be it weight, body shape, lack of muscles, a wonky nose, height, or another body part or characteristic, feeling unhappy about how you look can have a strong influence on how we feel and act.

For me my weight and excess body hair thanks to PCOS are my body insecurities and what I dislike about myself. Over the years I have tried a whole host of ways to improve and change what I dislike, slowly learning to love myself for who I am and being happy with who I am. Yet there are days when rising above it can be hard and I look in the mirror or see a photograph and cringe a little.

As someone who has had their fair share of body issues I can relate and empathise with how strongly body insecurities can affect happiness, confidence and mental health.

Are You #SCRUFFSENOUGH? - Scruffs Expedition Tech Jacket review.

As parents on a tight budget it is a rare occasion when Lee or I get anything new ourselves, always putting the needs of our children first. Because of this it has been a long time since Lee got his work coat, which thanks to being used on a daily basis is looking worse for wear. Not only is his coat looking very used and abused, it is also useless in the rain as it is does not keep him dry at all.

Thankfully I got the chance to treat Lee to a new coat recently when Scruffs kindly sent him an Expedition Tech Jacket.

The Expedition Tech Jacket provides ultimate protection from the weather including rain making it ideal for when working outdoors. Thanks to the waterproof membrane and taped seams the jacket is fully waterproof. Not only does the jacket provide protection from the rain but it also keeps the wearer warm too thanks to the 3M Thinsulate lining. As well as being waterproof and lined with Thinsulate the jacket is also breathable.

Gift giving.

I love Christmas. There is something very uplifting about the festive season. I love the magic of Santa and visits to Santa’s Grotto. I love seeing the joy of Christmas on children’s faces. I love sparkling decorations and twinkling Christmas lights. I love Christmas markets and Christmas shopping. I love Christmas inspired crafts. I love Christmas treats. I love everything about Christmas!

One of the things I love most about this magical time of year is gift giving.

Whilst I am a believer of being there for friends and family all year round and that Christmas should not be the only time to be kind and give to others I do love the excuse of Christmas to give my loved ones a thoughtful gift that I know they will love.

Even though I prefer giving to receiving gifts, I do love it when I loved ones are kind to give gifts to me too. Over the years I have been fortunate enough to receive a number of lovely gifts that I have loved receiving.

Gifts for the man I love this Valentine's Day - Debenhams Valentine's Day blogger competition.

Whilst we do not celebrate Valentine’s Day with gifts, trinkets of love or by going out for a special night out – mainly due to money and lack of a babysitter – I do love to treat the love of my life when I can.

So when I recently saw a Valentine’s Day blogger competition by Debenhams where entrants had to create a moodboard of gifts you would love to give the man in your life from Debenhams this Valentine’s Day it gave me the perfect excuse to dream about what I would love to get my man if money was no object.

Valentine's Day - what it means to me.

With Valentine’s Day fast approaching it can be hard to ignore the signs everywhere, from love inspired gifts and cards adorning shops to talk of Valentines on social media, hinting at the impending day of romance when love is in the air.

For some people the day can be one they dread, some people are passionately anti-valentines, others enjoy a Galentine night in with the girls, whilst many loved up couples enjoy the day to its fullest by sharing gifts with their loved ones and having romantic time together.

Having experienced the dread of valentines whilst single as well as having enjoyed the excitement of the love-filled day when in the first sparks of a relationship, I have experienced both sides to the day – the tear-filled, single and lonely side of dread and the romantic, loved-up side.

Now that I am in a relationship I thankfully no longer experience the feeling of being single and lonely on Valentine’s Day when it feels as if the whole world around you is loved-up. But whilst I have enjoyed special and romantic Valentine’s days with Lee after years together and a child the day for us has changed from a day of being in a romantic bubble together, going out to celebrate the day and giving each other trinkets of love and Valentine’s cards to a day where we simply appreciate each and are thankfully that we have each other.

Celebrate Father’s Day with Hallmark and win big for your Football Dad.

Bug’s dad is football mad, he loves playing and watching football and is especially excited about the upcoming FIFA World Cup. 

As Lee is mad about the beautiful game I have entered a fab competition perfect for the footie mad dad in our family, and with Father’s Day fast approaching the footie prize would make an awesome gift to show him how much we love and appreciate him. 

Hallmark are offering you the chance to win an amazing experience for your dad with the Hallmark Father’s Day Prize Draw.  If you are the lucky winner you will win Two Tickets To Tour Your Dad’s Favourite Sports Stadium!!

The winner of the Hallmark Father’s Day Prize Draw will be able to choose a stadium tour of their choice from a variety of stadiums including Man United’s Old Trafford stadium, Liverpool’s Anfield stadium, Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium and Fulham’s Craven Cottage stadium.