Gift Ideas for Mother's Day

Mother's Day is almost here but it can be a challenge picking out the perfect gift. Perhaps your Mum loves a traditional bunch of flowers, or maybe they like to have something to drink or eat. I adore receiving home made cards but I have to admit there are a few things on this gift list that I certainly wouldn't mind waking up to on Mothering Sunday. And of course, a lie in would go down a treat!

If you're wondering what to buy, then hopefully the following gifts might give you some ideas...

JOMA JEWELLERY

If your Mum likes sparkly things then a little gift from Joma Jewellery would be perfect. I particularly love the bracelets which feature a gorgeous golden and silver plated stretch design and a lovely little charm such as the one above. You can even create your own design using charms and letters. The prices are very reasonable and I even spotted some really beautiful silver earrings for under £10 - why not treat your Mum!

GUYLIAN 

Why not show your Mum how much you love her by treating her to some yummy Belgian chocolates from Guylian. I personally adore the praline Sea Shells but you can also pick up this gorgeous Master's Selection. Featuring a premium assortment of mini pralines filled with a variety of exotic flavours and topped off with the finest ingredients, this one is special. The Master's Selection is available online at Moonpig and Ocado but you can find the rest of the Guylian range in all major supermarkets. 

GLOBAL CARE SOLAR LIGHT 

If you're looking for something a bit different then you would be doing something amazing by choosing this gift. For £16, you can purchase a solar lamp for a family in Uganda to reduce the use of kerosene fuel. Kerosene fumes can be extremely toxic and can cause respiratory conditions, plus kerosene is very damaging to the environment. Your purchase will include a gift pack which comes with a card featuring the above image and space for a message to your Mum. For more info, check out the Global Care website here. 

No Longer Last on the List - Jo Bevilacqua

No Longer Last on the List by Jo Bevilacqua is a self-growth guide for tired, busy women who find it hard to say no, or to put themselves first. As a Mum I am often guilty of this and I'm sure the majority of other mums would agree that our needs tend to come last! This book will motivate and inspire you and remind Mums that it's ok to think about ourselves first for a change.  A fab read and a great gift for Mother's Day. Find it on Amazon here.

LOVE LEGGINGS

Leggings are a staple in most women's wardrobes and finding a pair that are comfy, practical and not see through is something rare! Love Leggings have a wide range of leggings to suit every Mum's need - from sporty, high waisted, classic colours and lightweight crops, there is something to suit every occasion. And most importantly, every pair has been designed with comfort in mind. 

BEANIES COFFEE BUNDLE

Parenthood and coffee go hand in hand so what better gift than the gift of coffee?! Beanies have a fantastic range of flavoured coffees which are sugar free and low in calories. I love the bundles which you can see above and think this would make a lovely Mother's Day gift. It contains a big stash of the coffee jars, a mug, tote bag and a tin full flavoured sachets. 

Arran Sense of Scotland 

Inspired by and made on the stunning Isle of Arran, Arran Sense of Scotland have been creating vibrant, evocative scents for three decades. From candles and fragrances to luxurious gifts set, there is something to suit every Mum. I personally love the After the Rain fragrance which is their best seller - close your eyes and you could almost be on the Isle of Arran! 

I hope that's given you a few ideas on how to spoil your Mum on Mother's Day.

*Contains PR samples 

Gruffalo Spotting at Moors Valley Country Park, Dorset

You wouldn't think that going Gruffalo spotting was your typical Mother's Day treat but this is what we got up to! The sun was shining and Spring had most definitely sprung so we packed up a picnic and headed over to Moors Valley Country Park, a lovely big country park on the Dorset/Hampshire border.

I had recently heard about the new Gruffalo Spotter app and Moors Valley Country Park was one of the 26 parks in the Country that the app worked at. It's something completely different and something I've not tried out before but the augmented reality app brings the Gruffalo characters to life.

We arrived at the park nice and early and made our way to the Visitors Centre to pick up our Gruffalo Spotters kit. This was £3 and contains activity and fact cards, magnifying glass, ruler, pencil and an evidence bag to store all your bits and bobs you may pick up on your Gruffalo adventure! The app can still be used without the kit but it might be fun for slightly older kids to fill in as they make their way round the trail. In hindsight we probably wouldn't have bothered with the kit as Elliot was more interested in looking for the actual clues in the forest and not what was in the bag!

Moors Valley have wooden Gruffalo sculptures so of course we had to go and see these first - I wonder if they are true to size?!

The Gruffalo trail began and I immediately noticed that it took visitors along a different route to where we would normally go - we saw parts of the forest we'd never seen before! We followed the clues along the way until we eventually found the mouse. This is where we tested out the app - I pointed my phone at the Mouse footprint sign and all of a sudden we could see the Mouse on the screen! It's really clever and Elliot loved it. At the end you're able to take a photo - we tried to get Elliot to hold his hand up so it looked like he was petting the mouse...not sure it worked very well though hah!

We had a lovely stroll through the forest following the clues but we did take a bit of a detour at lunchtime. We headed up to the lookout point - it was a bit steep pushing the buggy up but worth it at the top for the views and the fact it was so quiet! We had our first picnic of the year - it was so warm and almost felt like Summer.

We rejoined the Gruffalo trail and found the remaining characters. Unfortunately my phone decided to die just as we got to the snake! It's a great app but totally drained my battery. We managed to watch the animation on someone else's phone but what a pity we couldn't get a picture of Elliot and the Gruffalo!

The trail takes you back to the start of the forest but we decided to go the other way and continue walking as it was such a nice day. We ended up at the railway station which was perfect as Elliot was starting to flag....but his tired legs were soon forgotten when we got an ice lolly!

The railway is always a winner with children and you can ride the little steam trains around the park. This weekend they were offering "driver for a fiver" and collecting for charity so my husband took Elliot to have a go at driving a train. I thought he looked the part!!

We ended our visit with a quick stop in the adventure playgrounds - you could spend hours in here, there are so many things to play on. There's a separate play area for little ones but Elliot loves the big slide in the bigger play section!

We always have a brilliant time at Moors Valley Country Park and this time was no exception. I loved the Gruffalo Spotter app and we can't wait to return in the Easter Holidays to do it again!

Mother's Day Gift Guide

It's almost that time of year when you can spoil the most important lady in your life. Flowers are always a good choice but here's some other ideas you may not have thought of!

1. Backyard Cinema presents Romeo & Juliet (tickets from £20 29th March - 9th April) - imagine watching Baz Lurhman's Romeo & Juliet whilst sat in an atmospheric church complete with beautiful stained glass windows and candle lit aisles, with a live choir performing the soundtrack. Tickets for this are selling fast so don't miss out, what a unique gift this would be for your Mum! (I can't believe that it is the 20 year anniversary of Romeo & Juliet...that certainly makes me feel old!)
2. Belvoir Elderflower Presse (from £2.39)* - Say it with flowers, but with a difference! Belvoir Fruit Farms have produced a limited edition of their Elderflower drink, perfect for Mother's Day. The "You're Lovely" limited edition bottles are available in the shops from 29th February.
3. My-Wishbone Spinner Pendant (from £110) - Emma and Joanna are sisters from London who have created My-Wishbone, gorgeous jewellery with a humanitarian twist. A percentage of every sale will be going towards children's charities. This beautiful spinner pendant is available in gold, silver or rose-gold, all 9k plated.
4. Nelsons Arnicare Bath & Massage Balm and Calendula Cream (From £5.35)* - Nelsons have some lovely natural products that are perfect for pampering your Mum this Mother's Day.
5. Heart and Home Scented Candles (£13.99)* - I love having scented candles burning at home and these ones are beautiful. Not only do they look super stylish but they smell lovely. Why not spoil your Mum with one of these!
6. Cadburys Milk Tray* - Bound to put a smile on your Mum's face, you can't go wrong with chocolates! Milk Tray now include new flavours such as Salted Caramel Charm as well as the old favourites.
7. Scholl Velvet Smooth Nailcare set (RRP £70)* - Scholl have a great range of gifts perfect for Mother's Day including this cute nailcare set to keep your nails looking natural and shiny.
8. Kenwood Pastel Yellow Chef Sense (RRP £449.99) - For an extra special treat, why not spoil your Mum with a Kenwood Chef Sense - love these pastel ones!

Wishing you a lovely Mother's Day! :)

*Some items were sent to us for the purpose of this gift guide

Baker Ross Valentines & Mothers Day Crafts

We are part of the Baker Ross Blogger Network and throughout the year we get sent lots of lovely things to test out and review.

Our latest box of goodies contained lots of Valentine's Day and Mothers Day crafts and Elliot couldn't wait to get stuck in. Fortunately we've had lots of wet days recently so plenty of opportunities to get arty! 

"Let me take a photo without your hand in the way!"....impossible!

We were sent the Tulip Pencil Pot Kits, 4-Part Multi Paint Pad, Heart Pop-a-crayons, Butterfly Ceramic Flower Pots, Flower Stampers, Heart Stampers, Butterfly Wand Kits and Bug Fingerprint Decoration Kits.

Elliot wanted to open the paint pads first - can't think why!! I have to say these were a bit tricky to open, I was expecting the plastic top to peel off but I had to use scissors and cut into the plastic. Could be a bit tricky for little fingers to open! We used to pads with the heart and flower stampers and it was a really great activity for Elliot to do. He got through about 10 sheets of paper and enjoyed using all the different colours, and then mixing all the colours together to make a multi-coloured stamp. He then used his fingers to experiment with finger and thumb prints...good job he was having a bath later that evening ;)

The stampers are nice and chunky and great for little hands. Easy to wash after too - I used baby wipes!

Next we moved onto the bug decorations - these were really bright and cute and we had to make them all! The kits are really simple and perfect for children, it doesn't matter if things are stuck on a little wonky as it just adds to the charm I think. This kit contained mini ink pads so it was another chance for Elliot to get his fingers dirty! The only thing I needed to help with was threading the ribbon and knotting it, the rest of the bugs were completed by Elliot.

On our next rainy day we decided to have a go at the Tulip Pencil Pots which would make a lovely little Mother's Day present. Again these were really simple for Elliot to make - I did help with the gluing but the sticking was all his handywork! I added a bit of sellotape to the backs of the tulip to help the petals stay in place but this is another great activity for younger children.

This afternoon we decided to try out the Butterfly Wand Kits and we even managed to get Elliot's Daddy involved....whilst the football wasn't on anyway! Elliot is at that age where he likes to do things himself so this was another activity where we could just let him get on with it. The only thing he needed help with was tying the ribbon around the stick but he loved doing all the sticking and gluing.

He spent the rest of the afternoon waving his wand and putting spells on us....."Hocus Pocus, I'm going to turn you into a sausage!" ;)

We've yet to try out the ceramic plant pots or the heart crayons but I'm pretty sure we'll have some more wet days this week so I'll definitely be reaching for the craft box!

All the items we reviewed can be found on the Baker Ross website for under a fiver which I think is great value. The kits are great for younger children because they are very simple to put together and won't take too long which is very important for kids with short attention spans!

I think a homemade gift is much more special than something bought so I will certainly be pointing my husband in the direction of the Valentine's Day and Mothers Day gifts on the Baker Ross website!

Happy Mother's Day!

Wishing all the mums out there a Happy Mother's Day - hope you've had a lovely day! I would love to say I had a long lie in and breakfast in bed but sadly I got woken up at the crack of dawn by Elliot shouting "Mum! Dad! Done a poo!"...sigh!!!! By the time I'd dealt with that I felt wide awake so we left Daddy snoozing in bed whilst we watched Cbeebies. So one of us had a lie in at least!

I was very spoilt though - Elliot (and Daddy) got me a lovely bunch of flowers and a pot plant and apparently Elliot picked the card out himself!

We spent the afternoon at my parent's and it's always lovely to spend time with the whole family. Mum made two giant cottage pies (one meaty and one veggie!) and we were all stuffed by the time dinner was over. My mum does a brilliant job of feeding us all - it can't be easy with 2 vegans, 1 vegetarian, 1 who doesn't like vegetables, and the rest of us meat eaters doing Weight Watchers!

So Happy Mother's Day to my Mum who does so much for us and is always on hand to look after Elliot. And here's a picture of us looking much younger ;)

Did you get spolit by your children today?!

Last Minute Mother's Day Gift Ideas

With Mother's Day nearly upon us, the shops are awash with flowers and chocolates. You may have had a gift picked out ages ago or you may be like me and planning on a trip to the supermarket tomorrow!

I've compiled a little list of last minute present ideas incase you're in need of some inspiration!

Flowers

I'm sure most mums love getting a nice bunch of flowers (I know I do!) and there are so many to choose from. The supermarkets always have a great range for all budgets but if you wanted something a little more special, then Interflora offer a Click & Collect service which means you can order something right now online and pick up from your local participating florist tomorrow.

Handbags

You can never have enough bags! These ones from Hotter would make any Mum smile. They come with a matching scarf to finish the look. Hotter have 70 stores nationwide so pop in and pick up something pretty for your Mum :)

Chocolate

So much to choose from at this time of year (especially with Easter around the corner) but these Booja-Booja Hazelnut Crunch Chocolate Truffles from Waitrose sound pretty immense!!

Spa Break

Maybe you want to get something that extra special for your mum. Spabreaks.com have a range of last minute offers and with Spas all around the UK, hopefully you can find something near you!

If you're still stuck for ideas, My Voucher Codes have created a fun little quiz that might help!