Mummy & Moose
clapping, napping and yapping our way through the day

Living Arrows Week 20 2019

“You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth”

Last week we had to head back to the opticians to pick up some specs for Moose. He was absolutely adamant that he definitely didn’t need to wear them but a short visit to the eye clinic at our local hospital and a diagnosis of a lazy eye with a prescription of +4 said different.

I was a bit worried that the choice wouldn’t be there and to be honest being left to stand around feeling utterly clueless for half an hour. No, I am not exaggerating. Before a very nice man came to tell me that the pairs I had finally plucked from the shelves were entirely unsuitable did not help with the anxiety.

It didn’t take long to find a pair to suit Moose. He is of course, adorable.

However, he has inherited my big head so that cancelled off a big percentage of the frames on display. He settled on a pair with a Transformers character on them along with some super cool Spiderman sunglasses.

Then we went to Tesco where he successfully managed to time his request for LEGO with a massive wave of Mum guilt over not noticing his lazy eye up until now. Not that I actually noticed it at all. Thank Dog for school nurses and their checks!

He has now had his frames for a week and he has been so much better than I thought at wearing them. I presumed it would be a hard sell but they must be really helping his vision because he rarely takes them off which is great!

Moose had also completed 10 days of being dry overnight so we are having a pretty good time at the moment parenting wise. Of course, the reward he wanted for this accomplishment was more LEGO so now we are just resigned to being poor forever. Can’t win em all though.

 

 

Living Arrows

How to Stay on Track With Your Slimming Efforts

Body positivity is a wonderful thing, and we ladies should love our figures regardless of the size. However, if you have made the decision to lose a few pounds, you’ll know how tricky it can be to stay on track.

There are some clever little tricks that can help you to stick with your healthy eating plan. Here are just a few to help you.

Staying focused with your slimming

  • If it’s deprivation, it won’t work in the long-term. There’s no point in going on an extreme diet. Sure, you’ll lose the weight to begin with, but because you’ll feel deprived of all the foods you love, you’re likely to slip back into your old eating habits quickly. Plan what you’re going to eat in advance, and make sure it’s delicious, low-fat food. Remember, it’s a long-term lifestyle change, not a short-term fix.

 

  • Take up exercise. Exercise on its own won’t make you weigh less However, building muscle means you’ll be burning more calories, which is never a bad thing. You’ll also get the adrenalin rush of working out; another great benefit. Do an activity that you find enjoyable. There’s no point going on a five-mile run if you loathe every step of it.

 

  • Eat regularly. Feeling hungry is horrible. Those familiar mid-afternoon tummy-rumbles can swiftly derail your healthy eating plans! Keep some tasty low-fat snacks close to hand. A rice-cake with a smear of nut butter provides a hit of energy, and is pretty filling too.

 

  • Don’t ban foods. You can guarantee that if you try to ban your favourite unhealthy treat, you’ll only crave it all the more. Keep it on your eating plan, but eat less of it. For example, if you’ve got a major ice-cream weakness, have a small scoop with some berries as a treat, instead of an entire bowl with chocolate sauce on top.

 

  • Distract yourself. Don’t mooch around at home, as this will inevitably lead you to wander to the fridge. Instead, get out of the house. Go for a walk. Take the kids out somewhere and do a fun activity together. See some friends. Whatever you do, just make sure it stops you from brooding over food!

 

  • Give yourself a reward. Humans are hardwired to love rewards for good behaviour. Set yourself a target weight-loss (realistic, of course – don’t be brutal to your body), then, when you hit it, treat yourself to something. Don’t make it food, though. Instead, buy that eyeshadow palette you’ve been hankering after for a while, or a new perfume from a site like Copycat Fragrances.

 

  • Eat high-fibre foods. Aim to eat foods that are really high in fibre. Fibre’s not only great for your health, but it really fills you up. Good sources of fibre include: lentils, beans, brown rice, oats, peas and wholewheat pasta.

 

  • Keep track. As you’re getting started (and adjusting to your healthy-eating plan), use an app like MyFitnessPal to keep track of how much you’re eating during the day. It’s an effective way to stop yourself from snacking too much.

This is a collaborative post

AD | Feisty Pets – Sir Growls-A-Lot Bear

We were sent this toy to play with in exchange for an honest review. All opinions remain our own.

My first encounter with Feisty Pets from Jazwares was just before Christmas. I had been searching for a gift for my niece and I spotted the unicorn but was sadly forbidden to buy it by my sister (aka lil miss party pooper). She was a bit worried that it would scare her then 3 year old. I still maintain that the niece is fiercer than the Feisty Pet – but it’s a close run thing.

feisty pets

Fast forward to much more recently and Moose was sent his very own Feisty Pet to play with. If you have been paying attention you may be aware that Moose has a bit of a strange taste in cuddlies… His favourites are still his Crate Creature and his Fuggler.

With this in mind I felt pretty confident that the Feisty Pets would be an equally big hit with Moose. There are several different ones to choose from. We were sent Sir Growls-A-Lot. He is a very cuddly looking bear with a fierce side!

feisty pets

Each Feisty Pet is undeniably cute but each has their own likes and dislikes. Just as well, so you can stay on their good side!

Sir Growls-A-Lot’s are:

Likes: Trash cans, raw meat and hibernating.

Dislikes: Waking up, loud noises, jail food.

The Feisty Pets plush is 25cm tall which is a good size I think for a toy that children will want to carry around (to play pranks on people) and best of all, they don’t take batteries! Their fierce side is brought to life using a mechanism you grip at the back of their head. It’s pretty easy to work and Moose had it sussed after a couple of attempts.

As well as the plush version, Feisty pets are also available as 4″ plastic figures. They have the same no batteries approach which is great and Moose loved taking this one to the park to surprise his friends!

Her name is Princess Pottymouth. Princess might seem like an average kitty, but do not assume anything. She is prone to sudden mood changes during human interactions. It is advised to wear thick layers of clothing before attempting to pet Princess Pottymouth. I grew up with a cat just like that – must be a ginger tabby thing!

In addition to the plush and the 4″ range there is also a Feisty Pets Mini Misfits Blind Figures range! Moose does love a blind bag and this one was a big hit. I quite like that this little 5cm collectable range comes with a mini Feisty Pet as well as a carry case/home for it.

I liked the quality of all 3 of the ranges and Moose really enjoyed pranking his big sister! Moose has been playing loads with his Feisty Pet friends and I will definitely be buying more for him to add to his collection!

Feisty Pets are available from all good toy shops.

 

Living Arrows week 17 2019

“You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth”

We are definitely back into the school routine this week. The weather has cooled off which seems to take everyone’s moods down a notch. I am looking forward to this weekend which I will spend with bloggers at BlogOn, a conference for those who blog to learn some things and generally go and be with our own kind.

Moose

Moose was chosen to receive his teachers ‘Star of the week’ award this week. He failed his sight check in February and we found out this week that he has a lazy eye. He has been trying really hard at school though and I am pleased that it has been noticed. Along with his certificate he had the honour of bringing home the class bear, Stanley, for the weekend.

As you can see, he was very happy about this!

Bess

Bess has chosen her options for GCSE at school and is waiting to see which classes she will end up with. She makes me laugh with her stories from school but this week I really felt for her. She mentioned that some boys make comments when her and her friend walk past them.

Names like “lesbian” and “tranny with a fanny” were thrown her way. I could feel my stomach knotting up as she was telling me. As she spoke, it brought back memories of my own school and having to sidestep the insults from people who felt threatened by someone who didn’t conform to their version of what a female should be.

Luckily my Bess is better than them. She laughed as she told me how she loudly shouted back “CORRECT” at their ridiculous attempts to insult her. I hope she was laughing on the inside too.

 

Living Arrows

Slimming World friendly meal planning – Our menu 26/04/19

I feel like I am becoming a Slimming World friendly meal planning ninja to be honest. Not to blow my own trumpet (parp) but I haven’t ordered a takeaway in a good few weeks nor do I miss it. Meal planning is becoming something I actually enjoy and even look forward to!

That said, this week I have eaten my own weight in leftover easter eggs. Can’t win em all!

The week ahead should be a pretty good one. We have no big events planned so it should be fairly easy to stick to the Slimming World plan and stick to budgeting too.

This week in food

Friday: Pasta Bolognese and green salad

Saturday: Lamb curry with broccoli and rice.

Sunday: Ham and vegetable gratin with new potatoes and veg

Monday: Simple pea pesto spaghetti with baby spinach salad and roasted red pepper

Tuesday: Chicken skewers with slimming world chips and salad and my vegan syn free coleslaw

Wednesday: Sausages and roasted veg for me. Side of mashed potato for everyone else. Lets face it, I will probably end up with mash too because it’s mash and who can resist it?

Thursday: Chicken Chilli and rice. Sounds a bit grim but the Stagg veg chilli is actually tasty and syn free on Slimming World. Great for a very quick meal.

Breakfast will be mainly oat pancakes or porridge. I love it at the moment and you can add loads of different things to it to change it up. I love frozen cherries and a little almond essence and teaspoon of raspberry jam so it tastes like cherry bakewell.

Lunches will be whatever we have. I am trying to save my pennies to shamelessly blow on the BlogOn raffle next week so I want to use what we have in the cupboards. Lunches could get ..weird.

 

Katykicker