Nivea - the nation's preferred wipes brand

Nivea Pure and Natural Facial Cleansing Wipes - UK's Preferred Wipes Brand

Nivea have been voted the nation's preferred brand of wipes, with a range that covers all skin types. You can use wipes as part of your night time routine or for a quick clean-up fix when on the go, as they are so versatile and convenient.

We recieved a pack of their Pure & Natural Facial Cleansing Wipes, which contain Bio Argan Oil and Aloe Vera.  They cleanse, tone and hydrate, and remove make-up including mascara.  They are made from 95% of ingredients from natural origin and are free from parabens, mineral oils, alcohol, silicone and colourants. The pack contains 25 wipes, which are biodegradable.

They feel gentle on the skin and do their job well, removing make-up and leaving the skin feeling soft and clean.  They are really convenient and great for travelling.

The full range includes:

NIVEA® Daily Essentials Gentle Facial Cleansing Wipes

NIVEA® Daily Essentials Refreshing Facial Cleansing Wipes

NIVEA® Pure & Natural Facial Cleansing Wipes

NIVEA® Daily Essentials Sensitive Facial Cleansing Wipes

Each pack retails at around £3.00 and are available from Boots, independent chemists or online at shop.nivea.co.uk.

Freddy's Ribbon Twirling #NailedIt

Embrace Every Moment With Your Children #PowerofSoft

From the very moment that your newborn infant is lifted onto your chest in the delivery room, the feel of your child's soft, warm skin against yours, pushes aside all memories of the pain and discomfort of labour.  A cuddle is such a beautiful and magical thing.

Those early days with a baby are wonderful but exhaustingly hard.  Sleepless nights create a tiredness that consumes you mentally and physically, but holding your child in your arms makes it all worthwhile, even at 3am. Snuggling them close and breathing in the scent of your newborn is the perfect reward for the seemingly endless rounds of feeding, changing, burping, bathing and washing that comes with early motherhood. I'll never forget those super soft early cuddles that saw me through those long days of being a new mum.

And as our children grow up, the power of precious cuddles need not diminish.  Clumsy toddler hugs, with chubby arms around your neck and sloppy kisses planted on your face are simply perfect.  Sat together on the sofa, cuddled up watching Peppa Pig is a wonderful way to enjoy some closeness with an otherwise boisterous pre-schooler.  These hugs are all utterly priceless and each and everyone of these beautiful moments can be treasured for a lifetime.  Memories of soft skin and love-filled hugs can see you through even the darkest times.  Sharing that closeness and knowing that you love and are loved in equal measure is, for me, what family is all about.

The time spent with little ones flies by so quickly.  The moments between them being completely dependent on you for their every need to them becoming little people in their own right are fleeting. You can never get back that time, but you can embrace those precious moments and never stop letting your children know just how much they are loved.  However busy you are, you can always find time for a hug.

I have been blessed with five wonderful children and have enjoyed a lifetime of cuddles from each and every one of them.  Freddy is my youngest and my last born child, and I treasure the cuddles he gives me. Now he is at school, the time I spend with him has lessened, but he always gets a kiss and a hug as I say good-bye to him in the classroom. If he wakes up in the night and creeps into bed with us, I enjoy snuggling him up against me, feeling his warmth as he cuddles close.  One day, he won't need to seek out the comfort of mummy and daddy's bed when he wakes up, but while he does, there will always be a place for him between us.

Being close to all of my children, even the grown-up ones, is part of who we are.  We still hug, we still snuggle up to watch a film together, we still enjoy the closeness of a cuddle.  It's no surprise that we enjoy a loving relationship with each other, because even now I still love a cuddle with my own parents and never fail to jump up to give them a hug when I see them.  I love to embrace every moment and let my loved ones know just how treasured they are and just how special a place they hold in my heart.

With my third child, Ella about to fly the nest, I know only too well that our children are ours alone for a very short time.  As they spread their wings and fly, I look at my children with such utter pride and I know that they feel utterly and unconditionally loved, giving them the strength and confidence that they need to forge their own paths in the big wide world.  And I know that however old they are, they will always be hugged and cuddled whenever I see them!  For me, cuddles are not reserved for the littlest members of the family, they are for everyone.

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After listening to mums across the UK Fairy Non Bio has discovered that parents hold their children's pre-school moments as some of their most treasured memories.  25% of mums confessed to missing their child's super soft kisses and cuddles after they start school, so Fairy want to remind us to give our kids an extra big cuddle today!

Fairy Non-Bio are encouraging mums to embrace the Power of Soft and to make the most of every special moment with this moving video entitled "The Softest They'll Ever Be".


           

www.softeningyourworld.com/fairy-non-bio

I have been recompensed for this post but I have retained full editorial integrity.

Still Missing You ...

Even after 19 years, not a day goes by where I don't think about you. You may be missing in our lives, but you still take up a big part of my heart.  The memories and the love live on.

“The reality is that you will grieve forever. You will not ‘get over’ the loss of a loved one; you will learn to live with it. You will heal and you will rebuild yourself around the loss you have suffered. You will be whole again but you will never be the same. Nor should you be the same nor would you want to.”  ― Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

A Family Day Out at Fordhall Farm Fordfest Music and Beer Festival

We are so lucky to live near to the beautiful Fordhall Farm in North Shropshire.  It is a lovely place where we can go for walks, visit the animals, dine in the tea rooms and breathe in the fresh country air.  Yesterday, they held their annual beer festival, Fordfest.  With live music, local ales and activities to keep all the family entertained, it is a great event.  Plus Ella was invited to play on the acoustic stage in the beer tent!

My nieces were also performing so it was a lovely opportunity to catch up with family.  Ella played beautifully, performing her own arrangements of some of her favourite Killers songs along with an acoustic version of Jason Derula's Wiggle and Iggy Azalea's Fancy!  I just love how engaging Ella's performances are, and her smile and love of playing light up the place.  She gained a new fan who said that she was 'special' and asked for her autograph as he was convinced she will get famous one day!

Freddy and his sisters had a great time trying out the circus skills:  hula hooping, ribbon twirling, plate spinning, stilt walking, diablo and juggling.  It was lovely watching them have so much fun!  I loved the freedom that Freddy had, to run around, try new things and make new friends.

We enjoyed listening to some local bands play on the main stage, we ate veggie burgers and Ian sampled the local ales from Shropshire breweries.  I watched the traditionally rural barrel rolling competition and my niece's boyfriend won the trophy, beating off the competition in a rather ferocious final!  It was a lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon in the country.

Fordhall Farm continues to be one of our favourite local places and we really enjoyed Fordfest!

Old School Fun for a New Generation!

I remember the days of the iconic Panda Pops: the brightly coloured, fruit flavoured, fizzy drinks for kids, always served at school discos. A real blast from the past.  Nowadays, as our demand for healthier options for our kids has increased, Panda has evolved to bring its brand to a whole new generation of children. The Panda drinks now offer refreshingly fruity fun with their range of still juice drinks, flavoured waters and squash, made with natural flavourings and colours and with no added sugar.  Even the trademark Panda has had a revamp, as the cute black and white bear is pictured frolicking with the fresh fruits that flavour the drinks, on each of the bottles' labels.

As well as bringing their fruity drinks to a new generation of children, Panda also want to reintroduce some traditional, childhood games back into their lives : getting kids away from their technological devices, getting them active and having some good old fashioned fun!

With games such a kerby, hopscotch, piggy in the middle, blind man's bluff, conkers and tig, along with skills such as hula hooping, skipping and den building, the kids of today could learn a lot of great activities by looking at the things their parents used to do.

Freddy and Kizzy took the challenge to play one of the old school games and decided to learn how to hula hoop. I bought them some new hula hoops and they practiced hard.  Both of them can now do it and have lots of fun spinning the hoop and swinging their hips, trying to keep it up for as long as possible.  Freddy has even mastered the double, spinning two hoops at once. I could never do it as a child and however hard I try, I still can't!  I just can't get it, although ironically I have the high score for virtual hula hooping on the Wii Fit!

                        


Panda Still Juice Drinks and Panda Splash are available in 250 ml sports cap bottles in a six pack for £1.99. Panda Squashes are 99p for a 1 litre bottle.  Find them in Tesco.

Get Your Skills on with Fruit Shoot

We had a fantastic time taking part in the Fruit Shoot #GetYourSkillsOn challenge this summer.  The children learned some new skills and polished up on some old ones. Mostly though, they had masses of fun together, getting exercise and fresh air.  It doesn't have to cost a lot of money and it doesn't necessarily need specialist equipment for your kids to get their skills on.  Simple things like balls, skipping ropes, frisbees and bats are great props to get the kids trying out new skills.  Dancing, cycling or trampolining can challenge little ones to try something new. 

This summer Freddy has mastered the art of frisbee throwing and catching, kite flying and hula hooping.  These achievements have made him so proud and have boosted his confidence in his ability.  He has also decided that he wants to go to street dance lessons. Challenging children to try new things and watching their delight in learning new skills is a wonderful experience.  It helps with their physical development, balance and co-ordination, and increases levels of fitness.  It helps them grow and develop in so many ways.

Check out what the children got up to with their #GetYourSkillsOn challenge this summer.  They really did well and little Freddy kept his thirst quenched with Fruit Shoot Hydro!

            

You can find out more about getting your skills on with Fruit Shoot on their website fruitshoot.co.uk.  You can discover tutorials for learning new skills, vote for your favourite skillster and  play games.