Elliot's First London Trip

Although we only live a 2 hour train ride away from London, I'd never taken Elliot for a day trip before. The thought of taking the buggy on the tube brought me out in a cold sweat!!

This week though we were invited to the George Christmas press day at Somerset House and I decided to bite the bullet and take him up. I checked the map and realised that I wouldn't actually need to use the tube as Somerset House is walking distance from Waterloo so I had no excuse not to go! 

The day started off a bit stressful as we missed our train by about 30 seconds but my husband drove us to the next (bigger) station where we able to jump on the next train. It was a slower train but it was better to be on our way rather than sat at the station for an hour with nothing to do and a bored toddler to entertain! I managed to store the buggy behind the seat so that was another worry ticked off. Elliot was so excited when we sat down, he shouted "WE'RE GOING TO LONDON!!!!!!!!" ....just in case the commuters forgot where we were off to ;) 

We arrived in London just before 11am and made our way to Somerset House.....we may have got a bit lost and by the time we arrived I was feeling all flustered and sweaty but we made it - yay! Somerset House is a stunning venue and Elliot was very excited to see the fountains in the courtyard. We met up with the lovely Sabrina who blogs over at The Mummy Stylist and it was great to meet her and her son Tyler. Elliot and Tyler hit it off and it was cute to see them playing together!

There were several rooms for us to look round at the George event - one was all the lovely Christmassy homeware items such as the Gingerbread cookie jar that the boys wouldn't stop touching!! This was probably my favourite room, all the items were lovely and I will definitely be purchasing some for our Christmas.

It was good to see some of the new Winter range that will be hitting the shops soon. I'd love to be able to write about how the outfits were bang on trend etc but fashion blogger I am not! To be honest fashion and me do not mix well!! My favourite item was the novelty Christmas jumper - says it all really ;) 

In the main room there were some cute kidswear on show - I spotted a few things that I will definitely be buying for Elliot at Christmas time. I loved the cute little festive sleepsuits but sadly he's way past that age now! 

I would love to say we had a relaxing time perusing the rooms but in reality Sabrina and I spent most of the time telling the boys to stop touching things!! Luckily the boys were able to get hands on in the craft room where they made a glittery tealight holder.

I'm not sure if I would go to an event like this again, it was fun but I did leave thinking "was that it?!". I was expecting more Christmas spirit I think and there wasn't a mince pie in sight ;)

The boys were itching to run around so we let them loose in the fountains. Elliot said he wanted to go in (brrr!) so I took off his shorts and shoes but he dipped one foot in and promptly took it straight out...must have been cold! The boys were having loads of fun running up and down chasing each other :)

We decided to go and find somewhere to have lunch so we walked along The Strand and ended up at Byron Burgers. Been wanting to try one of these for ages and I wasn't disappointed - could have eaten it again! 

After lunch we said our goodbyes to Sabrina and Tyler and wandered up to Trafalger Square. Elliot had dozed off in the buggy by now but I did wake him up - he'd been talking about seeing the lions all week and I didn't want him to miss out! He was very excited to see the lions and even more excited about the dinosaur skeleton on the fourth plinth. Although I've just googled it and it's actually a horse skeleton! A horse?! It looks like a dinosaur!!

We headed down Whitehall passing Horse Guards Parade and then past Downing Street. It was very busy with tourists! We then decided to head back to Waterloo so we crossed over and ended up popping out right opposite the London Eye. Elliot was happy because we passed a policeman who said "Ello!" to him!

I don't think I've ever seen the London Eye from this angle (other than on telly!) so it was a great spot to get some photos. We walked over the Golden Jubilee Bridge and thankfully there was a lift to get us and the buggy up the steps! Again, lovely views from the bridge but Elliot just wanted to climb up the railings - eeek!!! 

We had a quick ice-cream stop next to the Eye and then it was time to head home via WH Smiths for some magazines for the journey home. We accidentally ended up in the quiet zone on the train and I had visions of Elliot shouting out "boobies!!!" and annoying the other passengers but luckily his magazine and the free play doh kept him quiet!! 

Whilst the press event was a little disappointing, it was great to meet up with a fellow blogger and I enjoyed showing Elliot some of the sights of London. Maybe next time we'll be brave enough to use the tube! 

Magformers UK Giveaway!

Recently we reviewed the brilliant Magformers toys and Elliot hasn't stopped playing with them since.

What are Magformers?

Magformers are super powerful magnetic construction sets that can be made into a variety of different shapes and objects. The magnetic shapes give children a natural understanding of the geometry of 2D shapes and 3D figures. 

Although Magformers have just launched in the UK this year, their toys have been popular around the world for many years. The biggest markets are the US and South Korea and they hope to replicate this success here in the UK. Magformers can already be found in many independent toy shops but from this summer, Hamleys will be also stocking them.

Want to win a set of your own?

We have one WOW set to giveaway to one lucky winner (UK residents only) - see below: 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

We love Magformers and I'm sure this will be a classic toy that never goes out of fashion. 

What was your favourite toy as a child? 

#HiddenGems - Bournemouth and Beyond

I have written about Dorset lots on this blog recently - I might be biased but I think it's one of the most beautiful places in the UK! There is so much to do here - festivals, clean sandy beaches, amazing play areas, stunning scenery. There are hundreds of hotels to choose from - Bournemouth has 4 Travelodge's alone! What could be better than waking up with a sea view?!

You may have heard of the more famous attractions in Dorset, but here's my pick of the #hiddengems of Bournemouth and beyond...

Boscombe Chine Gardens

Located just a few minutes walk from Boscombe Pier, Boscombe Chine Gardens provides a welcome change from the hustle and bustle of the beachfront. There is a great play area for kids which includes an interactive water feature and mini golf for the budding Tiger Woods. The best part of the gardens though is The Clock Cafe - homemade cakes, fresh coffee, amazing roasts on a Sunday and best of all they are child friendly!

Bournemouth Coast Path

You may have visited the beautiful beaches in Bournemouth but I bet you didn't know that you can walk from Sandbanks in Poole right along the coast to Milford-on-Sea. At 20 miles long its more than a little stroll but there are a few pubs along the way to keep you watered!

Bournemouth Flying Club Cafe

We discovered this hidden gem a few months ago and couldn't believe it had taken us so long! The Bournemouth Flying Club is located right next to Bournemouth Airport (funny that!) and they have a lovely little cafe which overlooks the runways. The best part is there is plenty of outside seating so you can grab a slice of cake and coffee and watch the planes take off/land! Brilliant for kids as you are SO close to the runways - and even better when you see the Red Arrows take off like we did! 

Canford Cliffs Village

Located a stones throw from Sandbanks, this is one of the more affluent areas of town. There's some great places to eat and my favourite bakery Oxfords. This is the third time I've mentioned cakes in this list but they do THE BEST belgian buns!! We love to park up on the clifftop (with our belgian buns..!) and admire the stunning views. You can see all the way up to Hengisbury Head and over to the Isle of Wight and in the other direction are the rolling hills of the Purbecks. 

Alum Chine Beach

Bournemouth Beach can get really overcrowded during the Summer so it's well worth travelling a few minutes down the road to Alum Chine instead. There is plenty to do for all ages including a Treasure Island themed playground, cafes, tropical gardens, paddling pool and bowls. 

Christchurch

Head east from Bournemouth and you will find the busy town of Christchurch, a popular tourist destination which attracts 1.5 million visitors every year. Walk along the Quay, feed the swans (although be careful if you're the only people there - you'll get swarmed by hungry swans which isn't fun with a screaming toddler!!), take the ferry to Mudeford, get wet in Quomps Splashpark and visit the beautiful Priory. And if you like chocolate brownies then a visit to Cheese & Alfie's cafe is a must! 

Checking out the Priory....just before the swans scared him!

Moors Valley Country Park 

We love this place and I'd highly recommend a visit if you have children. Various paths stretch out across the forest and kids will love the wooden climbing frames along the play trail...look out for the snakes! You can hire bikes and segways, play a round of golf, take the Treetop trail, ride on the steam train, swing through the trees at Go-Ape and wear the kids out in the adventure playground. You might even spot the Gruffalo!

Hamworthy Park

I have been visiting this park for as long as I can remember and its now one of Elliot's favourite places to visit. Located just outside of Poole town centre, the park has a large paddling pool which is very very popular with the kids in the Summer months. The water is always freezing but they don't seem to care do they! There is a big play area including slides, swings and climbing frames for the little ones. What's great is that the play area and the paddling pool is all enclosed so it's very safe, plus no dogs are allowed. If all this wasn't enough to keep the kids occupied then there is also the beach - not a massive beach but still perfect for sandcastle building and paddling. Lots of people bring picnics and use one of the many picnic tables and benches but there is also a great little cafe which serves hot and cold food, and most importantly sells ice creams! 

Have you visited Dorset? Have you managed to visit any of these hidden gems?

*This post was written in collaboration with Travelodge

Elliot's Dream Lego House..... #OceanDreamHomes

Being a blogger's kid can mean great opportunities and this one certainly ranked high on the fun factor! We were lucky enough to take part in Ocean Finance's blogger competition and Elliot was challenged to build his dream home from Lego. Obviously being at the smaller end of the age bracket he did need a bit of assistance from Daddy but all ideas were his own and he got stuck right in!! 

We sat down and ran through a few ideas and I showed Elliot a few of the entries that had already popped up on the internet. He thought about it for a minute and said that he wanted to build a dinosaur house.......ok then, if that's your dream house Elliot! 

We were sent a box of the classic Lego and we already had lots of Duplo Lego so we combined the two. The classic Lego was a bit fiddly for Elliot so he concentrated on the Duplo construction and started to build the main house whilst Daddy got to work on the outside features. 

Obviously dinosaurs are quite large so we went with an open roof so there would plenty of room for their heads to stick out the top! Two matching stylish yellow windows sit beside the large open door. Inside Elliot kept it quite minimal with two "beds" either side for the baby dinosaurs to have their naps on. Hopefully they like hard beds because there's no option of fluffy pillows and memory foam mattresses in this house! 

Elliot kept the colour scheme to green(ish) to match all the big trees in Jurassic Park but added the blue bit on top for effect! Obviously any dinosaur is going to get hungry so he built a large

table for them to congregate around for their grub. First up was fresh goat, yum! But then we thought we'd better cater for the herbivores so it was a chocolate muffin...what every herbivore wants!

The house has prime position with the local water source running beneath it and is a stone's throw from a dormant volcano. One of a kind, this house proved a big hit in the dinosaur community and within minutes of opening it was swamped with noisy dinosaurs, one of whom couldn't resist taking a selfie! #dinoselfie

cheeeeeeeese

I think Elliot deserves to win because this house is a bit different from the standard entry and he's really used his imagination. He absolutely loves dinosaurs and thought it was so exciting building them a house. Elliot had loads of fun playing with this and went to bed dreaming of dinosaur houses! 

*Disclaimer - We were sent a box of Classic Lego to assist our house building

#TheChokeables - Raising Awareness with St John Ambulance & First Aid Kit Giveaway

I'm sure the fear of your baby or child choking is one that all parents share - infact, for 58% of us, it's a major fear. Would you know what to do? 

79% of parents wouldn't know the correct technique for saving a baby from choking, which is a pretty scary statistic. St John Ambulance believe that everyone should have the skills and confidence to know what to do in an emergency. Knowing basic first aid can be the difference between life and death. 

St John Ambulance have made a short memorable video, The Chokeables – featuring the voices of David Walliams, David Mitchell, Johnny Vegas and Sir John Hurt – that shows people how to help a choking baby.

In The Chokeables, a video launched earlier this year, the celebrities take on the characters of animated objects that could potentially choke babies: a small princess toy, a pen lid, a jelly baby and a peanut. They've joined together because they've had enough and want to show how easy it is to save a choking baby's life.

In just 40 seconds you can learn how to give first aid to a choking baby.

The St John Ambulance website is packed with useful information such as first aid videos, training courses and much more. 

For a chance to win a universal compact first aid kit, please see below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Entry via Rafflecopter - the winner will be picked randomly

UK residents only

Table Table Pub Restaurant Review - Holes Bay Poole

We like to eat out as a family a few times a month and since having Elliot our choice of destination has definitely changed. Nowadays we like to find places that are family friendly with a decent kids menu, good value for money and most importantly, tasty!

The Holes Bay Poole - Table Table Pub Restaurant 

The Holes Bay pub is one of our favourite places to visit for a quick bite to eat. It is part of the Table Table chain which you can find all over the UK. Table Table cater really well for kids and this is a big part of why we keep returning! 

We decided to go along last weekend and we had a table booked for 6pm. Elliot was given an activity pack and crayons when we arrived and this is a great little touch to keep kids amused whilst waiting for their food! Table Table have partnered up with the Horrible Histories books and the activity packs feature games, colouring, history facts, jokes and more. The packs change every so often too - our favourite was last Summer when the pack included a sheet of rat stickers!! I would say the packs are aimed at older kids purely because of the content but a pre-schooler would still enjoy looking at the pictures and colouring in. 

Food

We ordered a sharing platter to start and this included breaded mushrooms, chicken goujons, calamari, onion rings, garlic bread, coleslaw and a choice of 2 dips. This arrived promptly and we all tucked in. Everything tasted fresh and wasn't too greasy. The calamari was lovely so I would definitely think about ordering this as a starter next time! 

For our mains I went for gammon steak with peas and a jacket potato. There was the option of pineapple, or eggs or both to go on top. I went with pineapple - got to be in the right mood for an egg! My husband was feeling hungry so he decided to have the 16oz t-bone steak which arrived cooked to perfection with chips, peas, grilled tomato and mushrooms. My gammon was very nice however I felt that it was on the small size compared to other gammon meals I've had in different restaurants. 

I love the kids menu in Table Table because everything is pictured and the sides can be mixed and matched. Not everyone wants chips or beans and so this is great for fussy kids, or kids that want to decide themself! Elliot chose cod cubes, skinny fries and peas. The meal of a generous size and Elliot really enjoyed it, especially dipping his chips in the little pot of ketchup! 

Elliot's kids meal came with a free pudding and he'd already picked what he wanted from the menu. There were lots of options but he went for the Scary Face Sundae which is vanilla ice-cream with strawberry laces, gummy teeth, smarties and a cone. The idea is to make a scary face but Elliot just gobbled all the sweets first before starting on his ice cream! 

My husband and I were pretty stuffed already but it would have been rude not to try a pudding....! The dessert menu is amazing and I really struggled to narrow down my choices but I went for Eton mess which was really nice and light, didn't fancy anything too stodgy after such a big meal. Paul had the apple & cherry crumble with custard which he said was very nice. 

 Customer Service

The staff are always friendly at the Holes Bay and even when serving in really busy periods such as when we visited, they are attentive and very willing to help. We had to wait slightly longer than usual for our food but it wasn't a problem as it was a peak time on a weekend and it was to be expected. This is where the activity packs come in handy! 

Value for Money

Our entire meal, plus several rounds of drinks for the 3 of us came to just over £60. This is great value for what we had although we don't usually have a starter AND a pudding! 

Table Table have an extensive menu and lots of daily offers including daytime deals starting from £4.99, 2 evening courses for £9.99 and even a Mums eat free offer on a Sunday. The best deal in my opinion is that kids eat free Mondays - Saturdays before 5pm. And the offer includes pudding too! 

Summary

Overall, Table Table is a great place for a quick pub meal and they do have some brilliant offers to save you money. We quite often go on a weekday to meet up with friends and their children and the kids eat free offer is absolutely brilliant, especially as it includes a pudding too. 

I love that kids are so well catered for and the staff are always very welcoming when we turn up with toddlers in tow...even when they are noisy, or demanding rat stickers, or trying to run towards to toy machines!! 

*Disclaimer:  We were provided with a voucher to use towards our meal but I have been 100% honest with my review

Linking up with the following:

Love Where I Live Linky #7 20th August 2015

#LoveWhereILive

It's that time of the week again when I invite you all to link up your posts about your local area - I want to know why you love it!

Maybe you have some stunning photography you want to share, or maybe you want to tell the world about a fun local attraction you recently visited. Maybe you've got a favourite cafe, or a favourite shop you want to blog about. Anything goes really, as long as it's about where you live!

We had some lovely link ups last week and my favourite is from Amy over at Everything Mummy. A fellow Poole resident she often blogs about all the lovely places I have visited/want to visit. Last week she linked up a post about Summer Breeze on the Quay which is a family friendly event held on Poole Quay. I've not been down this year yet as I'm not sure Elliot will stay awake for the fireworks at 10pm but it was great to read all about it and the photos of Amy and her gorgeous girls are lovely!

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Rules 

There's just a few rules to abide by: 

• You can link up however many posts you like (old or new) but please make sure it is relevant and about your area
• Please display my badge on your post
• Make sure you comment on at least 2 other blogs, more if you have time! 
• Don't forget to comment using the hashtag #lovewhereIlive so people know where you found them

The linky will run from Thursday 12.01am until Sunday 11.59pm.

Feel free to tweet me @eelliotblog using the hashtag #LoveWhereILive and I will retweet your posts. I will also comment on each one.

Each week I will pick my favourite post .

I look forward to reading your posts!