Last night I had a well deserved night off and headed up to London with my best friend Jess to see the beautiful and amazing Beyonce!

Scott is soon to be a scriptwriting graduate. So naturally we are film and tv geeks and spend most evenings watching something and critiquing it as we go along. 

Naturally Max needed all of these. Who else is there to show the world what taste in films we have haha. There is everything from Goonies to Jaws. Totally pre 90's and totally awesome. 

Let's not forget the Disney films though. With Toy Story and Monsters Inc. being Max's favourites these are constantly being washed and worn again and again. 

So as I've written before, Max is obsessed with music. Telling us his favourite band's are 'Nirbada' and 'McFlee' (Nirvana and Mcfly) and always asking for the radio on rather than the TV. He is always singing into a toy microphone and playing his ukulele. 

This weekend Max popped over to his lovely nursery worker Dani's house to record some songs. Some of the parent's mentioned that they wanted to know what some of the songs (with action's) the kids did at nursery, so she offered to record it all with Max so they could watch on some private youtube videos of nursery rhymes.

It didn't turn out exactly as planned with an impromptu gig of Nirvana and Foo Fighters and very little nursery rhymes actually being sung but we have time to work on that.

Part two of the lovely series where I show you all of Max's favourite clothes (well mine but he wears them...)

This one is focused on some of the lovely stuff he has for spring/summer this year. Last year we were still dressing him in easy clothes as he was always getting food on things and there was still the occasional leaky nappy. This summer he's taller, older and has a cute sense of style where he normally picks out his clothes for the day. 

First up is this gorgeous skull top from Next. I knew I had to have it for Max straight away as it's something different and would look great paired with everything from jeans to chinos to leggings.


Next up is this cute sailor top from Sainsburys. I always find them hit and miss for boy's clothes as some of them can be quite gimmicky whilst others just seem boring. They also don't seem to have a massive selection of boys clothes in general so I love it when I find something new and cute that I can pick up for him. Next to that is a 'Dog's Rule' top that I got from Next. It's just awesome. It doesn't need much explanation. Below that is another top from Next. I always find that their quality is good and doesn't lose shape easy compared to some of the cheaper places. This one is great for summer, maybe at the beach or something to channel his inner pirate. And next to that is a cute aztec style rhino top. It was £2 at Tesco's so will look great with most things but also it doesn't matter too much if it get's ruined.

Finally is this gorgeous Day Of The Dead top. It's from an organic clothing company called Conquer. All the illustrations are done by their artists and then screen printed on. We picked this up for Max at Camp Bestival last summer knowing it would fit him for this one and it's one of my favourites. I can't seem to find kid's clothing on their website but the adult stuff is just as brilliant. 

So a few day's ago our sofa well and truly broke. Not in the way that it snapped in half. More like we could feel like the padding inside was going to wear thin and the other night when sitting on it the spring decided to poke itself in my leg. Luckily it's still under the leather but unless there's a cushion on top of it, it's pretty un-comfy. This got me thinking that when we buy our place I want a nice sofa. Not one that just does the job. But one that I can curl into with a nice book and maybe nap on if I ever get that opportunity!

I've been scouring the internet to see what awesome sofas are out there. Most I've found are really expensive or just look boring. I also wanted something that is practical so I could clean it easily and maybe convert to a sofa bed as we know whatever place we buy won't have tonnes of room. Also I want to have those duvet days where I can just pull out the sofa and have everyone lay on it haha. It also needs to look good. I've seen hundreds of sofa beds that just look boring. Or look uncomfortable to sit on. It also needs to be durable. We have a 2 year old so of course his favourite past time will be jumping off the sofa. I'm pretty picky but I found a few that seem to fit all the right boxes and don't cost the earth.

1 - Who doesn't love a good corner sofa. This one looks like my mum's one which was so good for curling up in the corner surrounded by food and books for hours on end. You can get this as a separate 2 seater sofa bed which is a bonus!
2 - Okay it's the cushions and the footstool that sucked me in because blue and green are my favourite colours and definitely my colour scheme for life. This one isn't a sofa bed but it was too gorgeous to not include.
3 - Another corner sofa. You can tell I miss the room of having something bigger than a 2 seater! Again this one doesn't come with a sofa bed but with the chaise end it means that you can definitely nap on there anyway (depending on how long your legs are)
4 -  Probably the most unpractical for a family with a small child but the cutest sofa I found. This striped one looks as if it stepped out of the pages of Country Living and would look adorable with some pale pink accessories to match. It's also a sofa bed. Yep.
5 - Not a sofa strictly but I think I need this. Just to hide away somewhere in the quietest area to do some reading or cross stitch. It just feels like a giant hug in a chair.

Surprisingly all of these seem to be really affordable and come with the scatter cushions which is a bonus as they can end up really expensive in themselves and hard to match if you have a specific colour scheme in mind! I looked and the closest Roomes store that sell these and unfortunately it's all the way in Essex. I have noticed however that they do sell online and include free delivery which is better than some companies that charge regardless!

Are you as picky as me with sofas? I may be over obsessing but a girl can dream can't she?


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This is a sponsored post

So a few days ago I was contacted by the lovely Janine at BeauBelleBaby to see if I wanted to try out a product. Of course I said yes and eagerly picked out what I'm about to show you. 

BeauBelleBaby is an online baby boutique that features some well known brands (Avent, Bumbo and Lamaze) and some awesome unknown ones that you can swiftly fall in love with (Stardust Kids and Dirty Fingers are awesome!). Whilst browsing the online shelves I was mentally making a wish list of things that I either loved and wanted or things that I wish I had used when Max was younger. Still in it's infancy itself I can see this becoming a well known destination for those unusual but practical gifts!

We picked the Happy Hopperz Green Dino and it appeared within a couple of days. Upon opening it was a simple pump and the dino itself.

It took me a good 20 minutes of pumping it up (work those arm muscles baby) but it created an adorable green dinosaur. Max jumped on it as soon as he saw it but bounced away faster than I could say "Max let me take a photo!" So some action shots can wait until we go outside. 

It's 40cm high (base to seat position) and about 60cm long so perfect for kids 18 month to about 4 years. Plenty of time for Max to love it as much as I seem to. The material is really tough rubber so it seems like it could withstand anything from carpet to grass. 

So here are our first impressions. We love it! But I'll give you a better rundown in the next week or two when Max has truly given it a play.

In the meanwhile please check out BeauBelleBaby.

I'm trying to not spend any excess money, what with Scott finishing uni and bills up to our eyeballs we need to save and scrimp as much as possible. Having said that we have lots of fun things coming up over the next month that I can't wait for either!

1. Asos Curve Skull and Rose Top - I've just bought a perfect skater skirt (£8 from Asda!) and this will go with it perfectly when I head to see Beyonce next week. Oh yeah I can see Beyonce next week!
2. Polaroid Z340 Instant Camera - Since normal polaroid film is mega expensive and my camera is a bit rusty this would be perfect for summer to capture all those memorable moments with Max. 
3. Vans Tea Party Shoes - I love these shoes and since my Vans are starting to form a hole in them I think that these are a necessary purchase when I next get paid. The pattern is so perfect for summer. 
4. The Madness Underneath - I loved the first book in this series and can't wait to delve into this one. I'm going to be sneaky and borrow this from work so that technically won't be buying it haha.
5. Springkorn Bedding - Spring always calls for new bedding and Scott isn't one for flowers and pink things so this is a great compromise. 
6. Colour Match Bean Bag - We recently made a little reading corner for Max so this would be perfect for him to sit and read the Gruffalo on!

I love cosmetics and things that smell and look pretty so of course my favourite place to shop for these things is Lush. The main reason I shop here is because all their ingredients are great for sensitive skin like mine. I've found that a lot of the high street and high end cosmetics can make my skin dry, red and blotchy and flare up my eczema. 

So this weekend Max was very lucky and is having a sleepover at Nanny and Grandad's house so that Mummy and Daddy can sleep and clean the house. We attempted to go to the cinema last night but realised that the things on show weren't that inspiring so we decided to go home and watch The Walking Dead instead!

This morning however was the same as every other morning with Max, I woke up before 7am. Though, this was for a different reason for today is Record Store Day. A day where all you fellow music lovers embrace and celebrate the physical record rather than these new digital ones. Along side some great instore performances from great artists there are also loads of limited edition vinyls and cd's on offer to support this great day. 

Having been to my local store last year and not finding anything that took my fancy I decided to head down super early so that I was sure to bag those disks that caught my eye. 

Here is what I got!

Jake Bugg - Kentucky

Biffy Clyro - Modern Magic Formula (live)

Bob Dylan - Wigwam (a birthday present for Scott's best mate!)

David Bowie - Drive In Saturday

Frank Turner - Recovery

There were loads more that I was desperate for (Bring Me The Horizon, Funeral For A Friend) but the local stores either didn't stock them, they were too expensive or they had already sold before my turn to rummage. 

Being a massive Biffy and Frank Turner fan I was desperate for these and almost squealed with delight when I bought them. The others were a bit of a bonus as I managed to get tot he store being the 5th in the queue. 

Unfortunately I don't have a record player anymore. And I don't think with the small space we have at the moment that it's the best to have one around Max. So these are going to stay on display until we finally manage to afford and find space for one so we can love and listen to these properly. 

Did any of you head down to your local store? If so what did you get?

For my second instalment of this fabulous home makeover series I have picked art. You probably thing this is a crazy choice but I honestly love art. There's nothing like an awesome painting or poster to lift the mood of a room and tell everyone about your personality and styles. 

I'm fortunate enough to have over half of the pictures below already but I felt the need to add them in as I love them that much!

Do you like art? Have you got any special pieces in your home?

Some people may think we are crazy but even with a kid we LOVE festivals. Having taken Max to Camp Bestival last summer we can't wait to add more for him to experience. Taking a child to a festival can be stressful. We found on the first day we were pulling our hair out. But by the second we had got into a routine and were loving it. In fact festivals can be amazing when you take kids and they can enjoy it even more than you do.  Here are a few top tips!

Max and Ariella, they knew each other from a few weeks old and we bumped into them just in time for Mr Tumble.

We took full advantage of the amazing play areas that they had there (including swings especially for wheelchairs! Definitely catering for everyone) We missed out on most of the talks but that worked in our favour as the other spots were pretty quiet. It truly knackered Max out and he had a well deserved nap on the way home. 

So within the next couple of years we would love to own our own place and be able to do what we want with it. I'm getting carried away already and am starting a new series called 'There's No Place Like Home' Showing some things that are catching my eye. Today is statement rugs. I love a good rug. It can really change the look and feel of a room. Here are some that have stood out for me recently. 

One problem I find with buying rugs is that they are either really expensive or rubbish quality. The one we have at the moment has only lasted us a matter of months and it already looks sorry for itself. So when I got told that SCS (yep that sofa place) did rugs I took a look!

I could load you down with more rugs than you can lie on but I'll leave it with these lovely ones. All of these can be found at SCS at this link here: http://www.scs.co.uk/category/rugs/ and with delivery within seven days I could change the look of my room every week if I wanted!


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This is a sponsored post

So writing. I never thought I would say it. But I think I have a story I want to tell. Not my own personal story but I have all these ideas bubbling in my head and I need to jot them down and make some sense of them. 

I have always loved reading, working in a bookshop helps that even more with an unlimited amount of reading material. I have become inspired by authors like John Green and Maureen Johnson to create my own tales. 

When this book (Ready, Set, Novel!) arrived at my work I didn't hesitate in picking it up. It looked like the perfect thing to inspire and help direct me with my writing. It has loads of exercises and steps to help you build characters, story lines and learn how to structure your novel properly. 

I may write something that never surfaces, or I may write something that becomes a smash hit. I just can't wait to enjoy writing my story.

(I also had to pick up this exercise book and pen because they are so darn cute!)

Being a mum I get hardly any time to myself. A shower or bath is the perfect time for me to lock myself away and unwind. Whilst my bathroom is stocked to the brim with Lush products I recently got asked if I wanted to trial some John Frieda products. Never being one to turn down an opportunity I said yes and awaited the package eagerly!

I got sent some of their smooth start shampoo and conditioner, along with their blow dry root booster and frizz control serum. I specified that my hair was pretty thin, limp, lifeless yet frizzy as hell!

Being a Lush addict and swearing that they made the best products out there I was really surprised at how super soft my hair felt after using the shampoo and conditioner. It felt really luxurious and felt like a high end product. I'm not too sure that I would buy it on a regular basis because I find I get a bit too squeeze happy and use it all a bit to quickly (or the Mr is stealing it too!) but maybe as a treat to make it feeling smooth and silky. 

The Root booster was my favourite. I wanted to do a before and after photo but my camera really couldn't show it as well as it did in real life. I  sprayed a genenrous amount on my hair before blow drying and I could really tell the difference even before styling. I think I may have to repurchase this, not for a day to day basis as the bottle is very small but especially for those elusive nights out!

I'm not great with hairspray to be honest. It makes my hair separate and go a bit greasy looking so I wasn't expecting much from this. I was genuinely surprised with this product. It may have been because I used it sparingly and more on the top of my hair than the fringe area but it kept my hair firmly in place for the majority of my 4 hour work shift. 

Overall I was really impressed with these products. It's definitely impressed me enough to recommend them to all my friends and add them to my Boots wish list when I get enough money! (bring on payday haha) My favourite was the root booster by far but still really loved using all the other products too. 

Have you tried John Frieda products? Did you enjoy them too? To find out more about their products please click here