As your child grows from a baby into a toddler, the focus becomes more on their meals than their milk. It can become hard to know if they're getting the right nutrition in their diet, especially if you have a fussy eater!
Thankfully though, SMA® Nutrition has continually invested in early life nutrition research. As a result of this, SMA® PRO Toddler Milk was born. Inspired by the specific nutritional needs of toddlers, SMA® PRO Toddler Milk is their most advanced toddler milk yet.
But what makes it so special?
SMA ® PRO Toddler Milk is a fortified milk drink, suitable from 1 year until 3 years. It contains NUTRI-STEPs®, a unique blend of ingredients to help support your toddlers’ nutritional needs every day.
SMA® PRO Toddler Milk gives you peace of mind. You know your child is getting important vitamins and nutrients it needs through their milk - which is part of a lot of toddler's routines anyway. And just two 200ml servings provides 108% of their recommended Vitamin D intake, for normal growth and development of bone helping to build a nutritional foundation for life.
As well as containing Vitamin D, SMA® PRO Toddler Milk with NUTRI-STEPS also contains Omega 3 and 6.
Finally SMA® PRO Toddler Milk is fortified with iron and iodine. Iodine helps to support normal growth and iron helps with cognitive development. So by giving your child SMA® PRO Toddler Milk, you know your child is getting all the nutrients they need every day.
I give Parker SMA® PRO Toddler Milk in the mornings and at bedtime, but you can feed your child up to three servings a day. Alongside a healthy balanced diet, it can help support the diet every step of the way!
SMA® Nutrition has just launched a Facebook page, called ‘SMA® Baby Club UK & Ireland’. There are regular posts to help parents – both mums and dads – navigate their first 1,000 days of parenthood, from conception until their baby turns 2.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: SMA® PRO Toddler Milk is suitable for young children from 1-3 years, as part of a healthy balanced diet and it is not a breast milk substitute. Breastfeeding should continue for as long as possible.
How are we another month of the year down already? I honestly feel as if I'm writing these Me and Mine posts every week.. it's crazy! But what a wonderful month we had in May. Definitely made that much better by our family holiday to Ibiza, which I'm hoping I get chance to blog about at some point soon.
May also saw the sun make it's appearance, and my goodness was it beautiful! Arriving home from our holiday to sunshine and warmth, really made the holiday blues that much easier too. The littles have loved being able to play outside again. Having our own house now has made this weather that little bit more exciting too - a garden means playing out late, paddling pools and water play!
I love the pictures I managed to capture this month. I knew I wanted to take them on holiday, so armed with our tripod we wandered along the beachfront to find the perfect spot. I always wonder if people think we're strange, running back and forth from a tripod doing different poses (we did get some reps laughing at us, but they said we looked sweet). I'm so glad we do it though. We may look silly for 5 minutes, but we have wonderful memories of a lovely holiday captured forever!
The holiday did come with it's problems though. Both littles were ill (Parker while there and Indie the day we arrived home), and we're having troubles with Indie's sleep too. I think having Jack at home with us so much during May has also confused P a little bit. He's definitely more upset when Jack leaves now, as he's so used to having him home.
Hopefully we'll get through all these problems in June, and have a month that's just as exciting as May. Fingers crossed this lovely weather sticks around too!
Party planning. You either love it or you hate it I think. Thankfully for me though, I LOVE it! Deciding on a theme, collecting all the co-ordinating items, putting it all together on the day.. and then watching as all your hard work is 'enjoyed' (I say it like that, as really it's only you who really notices isn't it?).
Indie will be turning four this year *sob*, and I'm already thinking about what kind of party we're going to have. She's into so many different things at once at the minute - princesses, Trolls, and even Mr Bean. So picking a theme this year is definitely going to be a little trickier, especially as I don't think I can get away with what I like best anymore either!
Thankfully though, Funidelia have my back. They are the biggest fancy dress online shop in Europe and they have a huge range of children's fancy dress costumes. You can also find the party decorations and accessories you need to go with them! These can then be ordered and delivered in a quick, easy and completely secure way.
There are so many ideas on their website, but I've tried to pick a little shortlist of some fun party themes, which I think would be perfect for 4 year olds.
Disney Princesses
What little girl (or boy, Parker LOVES dresses too!) doesn't love dressing up as a princess? With the release of the new Beauty in the Beast film, Indie is now obsessed with all things Belle. I know she'd love to get dressed up in a beautiful dress, and twirl and dance throughout her party. Of course Frozen is still a firm favourite too, so it's great to know Funidelia have everything any Elsa and Anna fan would need, including the birthday decorations too.
Fairytales
We have a huuuge classic fairytale book that's actually one of Indie's favourites at the moment. Stories such as Little Red Riding Hood and The Little Mermaid are so well known, that I'm sure everyone would love this theme. I think it would make a nice change from the regular Disney princess theme too.
Superheroes
As I mentioned above, Indie is into so many different things at the moment. Of course she absolutely loves princesses and all things girly. But her second favourite love is definitely superheroes! She loves watching Batman cartoons with Jack, and I think she would absolutely LOVE this theme. Definitely one for everyone.
Animals
Now I think this is the theme I'm definitely heading towards most.. how sweet would it be to have a hall full of little animals running around? Funidelia have a huge selection of animal costumes including frogs, dogs and lions.
Thankfully I've still got a few more months to decide, although I already think it's going to be a struggle! What theme did you have for your 4 year olds birthday?
This post in in collaboration with Funidelia. All opinions are honest and my own.
I'm probably going to be amongst a sea of people sharing bluebell shots for this month's Siblings Project. But you know what? I am so excited to be a part of the cliche! These are some of my favourite photos of my two this year, and they remind me of what a lovely morning we had exploring the woods for the bluebells.
These pictures really make me stop and take a step back too. Just look how big they are! And I'm sure as each day passes they look more and more alike. The same golden hair. The same beautiful blue eyes. And definitely the same cheeky smiles. It really does make me wonder what a third would look like when that day comes. As Indie and Parker really are little peas in the same pod.
This month has thankfully been an improvement on last month. Indie being at preschool really does make such a difference - they're not under each others toes constantly, and they get time to miss each other. And my goodness does Parker miss Indie when she's there.
Preschool pick up is his favourite time of day, and he practically pulls me out the door calling for Indie. The second they see each other they both light up, giving each other the biggest snuggly cuddle ever. Usually followed by a kiss from P.
It also means they seem to enjoy their time together a lot more too. Of course they do still fight and bicker (that's just a normal sibling relationship isn't it?), but they have played together a lot more. Their favourite thing to do at the moment is to snuggle up together under a blanket, with a film or some Ben and Holly. Just enjoying each others company. And if I'm lucky I get invited in too!
The age gap between these two was definitely tough when they were little. But when I see them now; how close they are, knowing they'll have each other to turn to always. My goodness was it all worth it!
We love exploring with our National Trust passes. Living in West Kent we have so many fantastic properties and places around us; so last weekend we decided to visit Sheffield Park and Garden.
Situated halfway between East Grinstead and Lewes, Sheffield Park is really easy to get to. It's even close enough to the Bluebell Railway, that you could hop aboard the train (at weekends you can get a bus from the station straight to the entrance).
The park features acres of landscaped garden, bordered by historic parkland and woodland. Four lakes create the centre of the garden, with paths then circulating through the glades and wooded areas surrounding them. The house is private, but forms a beautiful backdrop for photos!
There was so much to see and do for the little ones, and Sheffield Park is very child friendly as the paths are all mostly buggy accessible. There are lots of open areas of water though (the lakes don't have any fences), so do keep that in mind if you have a wild one on your hand like I do!
Family facilities include:
Natural woodland play trail across the parkland.
Family activities to pick up from reception every day.
All-terrain pushchair and back carriers available to borrow.
Baby-changing facilities in toilets at reception and the tearoom.
Children's lunches and lunch boxes in the tearoom, as well as bottle and baby food warming facilities.
Children's scooters are allowed (weather dependent though).
I must say the park was absolutely beautiful to walk around. Blooming flowers wherever you looked, ducks waddling along behind you (much to our twos delight!), and just a calmness that seemed to be created by the place.
We were gutted to have missed the Bluebell woodland walk, but I can imagine this was lovely to walk through. We also would have loved to explore the play trail but with so much else to see, we just simply didn't have the time!
Before we had a proper explore we did check out the Tearoom for a quick lunch. I'm a sucker for a National Trust meal - they're always crazily overpriced, but the fab quality does make up for it. The Tearoom itself was lovely. A good size with a great outdoor seating area and great facilities for little ones.
The food was disappointing though. The children's lunch boxes were pre-made, so you couldn't choose each item like you usually do (there only seemed to be 4 instead of 5 items too!). My sausage roll was undercooked and the cleaning staff cleared up our tray without asking, throwing Jack's half full drink away in the process!
Hopefully it was just a one off bad experience, and I know we'll definitely go back again. Just a heads up if you do visit.
A few weeks ago we traveled down to Somerset, to spend a few days at Butlin's Minehead. We didn't want our holiday to end there though. So we decided to book a couple of nights stay at the Wellington Somerset Travelodge.
Situated on an industrial estate at the edge of the Blackdown Hills AONB, and close to the M5, the Wellington Somerset Travelodge is in a great location. It was a perfect base for us, as the M5 made getting anywhere so easy - but it was also far enough from the main roads that it wasn't noisy or busy.
Arriving around 7pm (there's a large free carpark out the front), we were greeted by a lovely gentlemen who checked us in really quickly. We had a family room (room for two adults and two children, or three adults), and were located on the ground floor.
All Family rooms include:
A kingsize Travelodge Dreamer Bed (medium / firm support with hypo-allergenic fillings) with a 10.5 duvet and 4 plump pillows
One or two additional pull-out beds
Shower over the bath, as well as hand, hair and body wash
A TV with up to 17 channels
A set of fresh white towels for each guest
Tea and coffee making facilities
Hair dryers and irons are available on request
Cots are available at some hotel but they are dependent on availability!
The room was a brilliant size, and despite there being four of us in there (two adults, and two children) we didn't feel on top of each other at all. The two pull out beds were right next to each other, but the littles seemed to really enjoy this, and they slept snuggled up together both nights!
I will be honest and say the rooms aren't anything too special - but the beds were clean and comfy and the room had all the basic amenities, so it just what we needed after busy days out. The only negative we did find with the room though was with the bathroom. It seemed to have an odd smell in it throughout the whole of our stay - a definite negative to rooms without windows!
During our previous stay at a Travelodge (you can read my review of the Southampton Central hotel here), there was a full breakfast included. Unfortunately the Wellington Somerset Hotel doesn't have these facilities, which was a little disappointing.
They did mention this on check in though, and told us about the breakfast boxes they offer instead. There are two options (Good Morning and Rise & Shine), which both offer a selection of cold breakfast treats. The boxes are £4.95 each, which is definitely far too much, but they were filling and tasty.
If you fancy something cooked though, there is a lovely pub / restaurant located right next to Travelodge. We had an evening meal here one night and we were really impressed! The food was good and reasonably priced, and they had a fantastic children's play zone which kept the littles amused the whole evening.
Wi-Fi is available free for 30 minutes per day, or you can pay £3 for 24 hours access. This was really strong though (we were streaming Netflix without anything buffering), and I do think it's good value for money.
Overall we really enjoyed our stay at the Wellington Somerset Travelodge. It was perfect base for a few nights away, and in a lovely location. I did worry about how the littles would be with us all sleeping in a row, but it was actually no trouble at all! I managed to film a quick room tour which you can view below...
Disclosure - We recieved our stay free of charge, in exchange for our review. However all opinions are honest and my own.
I'm honestly struggling to get my head around the fact our beautiful baby boy is now 21 months old. Just 3 more months until we're celebrating his second birthday! It's mad. And I don't like it. Can't he stay little forever? Well, still little, but maybe not so defiant and mischievous.
I've seen a huge change in Parker this month. He's always been so daring and unafraid of doing anything. But suddenly he's becoming a lot more cautious. Not really in regards to physical things - if anything he's climbing / jumping / etc even more...
But when it comes to other people (and even family members can fall into this), he almost seems afraid. He ran off to hide himself completely when someone spoke to him in Mothercare today, despite me being right next to him. And will burry his head into my legs if someone speaks to him on the preschool run.
In general though he's turning into such a little character! Constantly chatting away, and always listening to / watching what's going on. He will try to copy words if you ask him too, and is always coming out with things I never knew he understood. His sentences are improving too - although I'd be happy if he just stuck with 'I love you mummy' which he loves to shout at me constantly.
Parker really does understand much more than you'd think. He knows when daddy picks up his bag to leave, he's off to work. He knows when we're dropping Indie off at school. And can associate different places with different things - for example when we walk through town, he knows which toy is the toy shop and drags us in there, and he knows the route to our house (but usually runs past giggling anyway!).
He loves to sing and whenever he hears music it's like his little body can't control itself, and he has to start dancing. Having a big sister has definitely been a huge influence on him too, as he loves to dress up in her fairy costumes, have his nails painted, and basically be just like Indie!
This month Parker has loved running wild and free and exploring on holiday, trains / buses / anything that moves basically, watching our neighbours cat out the window, Peppa Pig, stealing apples out of the fruit bowl and eating the entire thing, his new digger pjs (I thought he was going to cry when I got him dressed this morning!), and daddy feeding him.
This month Parker has hated teeth brushing, being told off (especially by daddy), dressed up characters at Butlin's - he was physically shaking when he saw Bonny Bear, Indie being back at preschool, and wearing socks.. for some reason he always takes them off when we're at home!
We recently visited Butlin's Minehead, for a weekend of fun over the Easter Bank holiday. We stayed in a beautiful two bedroom Lakeview Chalet (Edinburgh 34), which is situated in the West Lakes Village. Our chalet was ground floor as requested; we then had neighbours either side and upstairs. I filmed a chalet tour so do make are to read to the end to watch!
With it's own dedicated check-in and plentiful parking, the West Lakes Chalets really are that little bit more special. Built around two lakes and landscaped gardens, the new chalets were built to pay homage to the traditional ones Sir Billy Butlin's started with.
Butlin's even "worked with Mumsnet to guarantee families the ultimate place to stay and play together; balconies and verandas, open-plan living areas, L-shaped family sofas, giant board games, village greens, and children’s playgrounds... all designed to help hard-working families ‘unplug’ from day-to-day life".
Main Bedroom
Full of Butlin's charm and quirky little extras (check out that bunny towel!), the master bedroom was a perfect home from home. A comfortable bed with plenty of pillows, ample storage / hanging space, and a full sized dressing table area.
The storage area also housed an iron and ironing board, and a safe, and hidden in one of the drawers was a hairdryer. I loved the attention to detail with the Butlin's logo hidden in the bedspread, curtains and even the wallpaper!
Twin Bedroom
With two full sized beds, and room for a travel cot (these have to be added to your booking extra), the twin room was also a good size. The beds are a little high off of the ground though - maybe something to consider if you're going to have little ones in this room.
I loveee the fun little decorations around the whole chalet, but the canvas in the twin bedroom was one of my favourites! The room also had a decent storage space, however this was covered by the travel cot - this was obviously only a problem for us, and wouldn't be an issue if you didn't use one.
Family Bathroom
The second I walked into the family bathroom, all I could think was "I LOVE THOSE TILES!" - aren't they lovely? On a more serious note, the bathroom was perfect. Fluffy towels and complimentary toiletries, and even a sweet little Happy Easter sticker on the loo roll.
There was a heated towel rack, and another one of those fab canvases on the opposite wall to the bath. And I loved how they provided a non-slip bath mat - an essential when bathing little ones! Speaking of bathing, the shower was fantastic too.
Hallway
I love that the chalets have a large hallway - it really made the place feel more homely, and it's a perfect dumping ground for a buggy.
There was plenty of storage space for shoes and coats, and even a little chalkboard (with the chalk still there!), to doodle on. We had a lovely little message on it when we arrived, and I left one for our fantastic cleaners when we left.
They were absolutely fantastic, always going above and beyond - washing up for us, putting the dishwasher on, and tiding up Parker's toys, when they really didn't need to! So a huuuuge shoutout to the team.
Living Area
The main hub of the chalet was the living area, which then ran into the kitchen. I absolutely loved the style they went for with the chalets - bright, colourful and so much fun! This really does spill into this area with the huuuge Butlin's mural being the main attraction.
The living room comes equipped with a DVD player, a TV with Freeview channels and lots of comfy spots to sit. I will be honest and say we didn't actually get to spend that much time relaxing here, but it was perfect for winding down in the evenings.
The dining table seated four, although there wasn't a highchair provided. I'm sure you can hire these though! The door in the above picture connects you to the chalet next door (this was obviously locked during our stay). I will say we could hear next door really well in this area - so much so I may have subtly told them I could hear their conversations at one point - but this would be great if you're visiting with family or friends.
One of the few problems we encountered during our stay, was in this area. The information packed explained that the heating was controlled, and only came on when necessary - but there was a boost button if needed.
Our problem was the one heater in the living area was constantly on, so the room was very hot. We saw no way of turning it off, and as the doors were fire doors we had to prop the main door open with a chair to try and cool it down. Of course we could have had the veranda doors open, but with two little ones under 4 and an open lake, this just wasn't an option!
As I mentioned above, luckily we weren't in the chalet for too long each day, so we didn't bother mentioning it during our stay. We did log this when we checked out though.
Kitchen
We had the premium dining package for the duration of our stay, but all of the chalets are equipped for a self-catering holiday. We did use the kitchen to prepare snacks, drinks and lunch a few times though.
The kitchen has everything you could need, as well as the added bonus of a dishwasher, and a little cleaning starter set included. The tea and coffee facilities were replenished daily, and although small, the fridge was perfect for storing the essentials.
The drawers have all the necessary utensils, cutlery and crockery you would need for a family of four. Although the bin was rather small in comparison, and they could probably do with making these a bit bigger.
Veranda / View
As our chalet was ground floor, we had a veranda to the front. It was quite cold during our visit so we didn't make too much use of it, but a table and chairs are provided - I can imagine it is lovely to sit out watching the world go by in the warmer months!
The second disappointing area of our chalet, was the 'lakeview'. The picture below shows the view from the veranda - a lovely little park, other chalets, a bin and then a teeeeeny tiny view of the lake. I was really disappointed with this, as there were other chalets with the most gorgeous view, and ours was mainly of a bin.
These chalets are expensive to stay in, and if I'd have paid for a lakeview, that's what I would expect. I know we weren't the only disappointed ones either, as another lady was complaining when we checked out, that her 'lakeview' chalet was actually overlooking a carpark! I definitely think Butlin's needs to look into this.
View aside though, I really did adore the location. Tucked away in the corner meant it was lovely and peaceful. Ducks would come right up to the window (the littles loved this), and you wouldn't even realise you were in Butlin's sometimes. Yes the walk to everything was a little long, but after all the buffet food, sometimes it was needed!
We absolutely loved our West Lake Chalet - and the whole of the West Lakes Village overall! It really did make our visit that extra bit special, whilst providing a comfortable base for our holiday. The attention to detail and added little extras, like providing free scooters for the little ones and board games for the whole family, just topped it off.
