Everything is awesome...

We needed to confirm our restaurant booking for tonight so took a walk to The Brewery. This 5-10 minute journey took us 35 minutes today and here's why...

How to go for a walk by Honey:

1/ Take hat off and put it on again at least 3 times outside the front door. Insist on wearing gloves which are much too big then laugh at your own hands a lot.

2/ Stop to sit on walls, climb steps and touch doors. Point and giggle at dogs, cars and railings (which are the funniest of all metal objects).

3/ Wander off 'by yourself' then, when legs are tired, return to Mummy, point at her bag and dance.

4/ Grab Mummy's bag and pull sling out because she has no idea what you want!

Honey wears... Hello Kitty leg warmers by eBay

Our town...

We love living in Cheltenham for so many reasons but one of Honey's favourite things about our town is the fish clock in The Regent Arcade. Yesterday, she was feeling chilly and the only time she stopped asking to go home was when we caught a glimpse of the arcade and she started opening and closing her mouth like a fish and repeating the word 'bubbles'! Luckily, it was nearly 4:30 (the fish plays a tune and blows bubbles every half an hour) so we were able to grant her request!

Honey wears... 'Bubbles' coat by Marks and Spencer

Family Tatty...

We decided to try a Family Tatty session out today. Having attended Baby and Explorer sessions before, we had an idea of what to expect but the reality was so much more! Children from a just a few weeks to around 6 years old worked together to take Tatty on a winter adventure which saw us riding a sleigh, jumping like a frog and rescuing a bee from a pond! Clever Tatty even managed to include a few Frozen songs and help us build a snowman, much to everyone's delight and cue enthusiastic, loud (and out of tune) sing along! An older girl took Honey under her wing which was so cute to watch and the new venue (The Wheatsheafs on Old Bath Road) kindly provided a slope for everyone to run up and down at the end, so smiles all round! We found Family Tatty to be a fantastic, energetic progression from the baby classes.

Honey wears... Spotty vest from H&M

Ho Ho Ho...

We took Honey and her BFF Freddie to see Father Christmas in The Enchanted Castle at Cribbs Causeway today. It was Honey's first time meeting the man in red so we were hoping for something special. We had to book in advance and arrive in plenty of time for our slot (he's a busy man you know). Honey occupied herself by petting the light up animals and knocking on all the doors while we waited. She was first through the door when it was opened and coped well (no meltdowns) as she was led through a Christmassy scene by a Princess and some sparkly elves. Father Christmas himself was lovely and had a fabulous knowledge of Transformers (much to Freddie's delight), he even gave the children a little, cuddly polar bear each, which they didn't let go of for the rest of the morning.  Car parking at Cribbs is never a problem and The Mall was nowhere near as busy as we expected so we were even able to tuck into a Full English breakfast at Patisserie Valerie without feeling crowded and harassed! All in all, a fab morning with great friends!

Honey wears... Father Christmas jumper by Next

Tea with the Christmas Fairy...

This afternoon, Honey met Fairy Sarah who hosted a fabulous party at Blue Skies. Honey was pretty awestruck at first as we listened to a story and sang some songs, she began to warm up once the musical instruments came out and by the time party games rolled around she was dancing and squealing with all the other children. Sarah was great, she had bags of energy and entertained with a wide range of activities delivered at a fast pace to keep everyone engaged. That was our last trip to Blue Skies in its current home but we are really looking forward to visiting the new venue (Sandford Park Lido Cafe) when it re-opens on Monday 19th January 2015!

Honey wears... Fairy Dress by Matalan

Sharing the Oobalove...

We've been waiting until the Grandparents had received their special cards to share Honey's official Christmas 2014 photo on Honey Wears... We met Sheryl, of Oobaloos Photography fame, at the NCT sale a few weeks ago where she had an awesome little pop up studio! Honey was her usual energetic self and raced around the place picking up everything in sight (mainly things that were not designed as props such as Sheryl's flip flops) and was not in the mood for posing! Imagine my delight when I saw the fabulous selection available on the Oobaloos website, there were some gorgeous shots and I had to stop myself from buying them all (which would have led to creating an enormous Christmas card)! Downloading and paying for photos from the website is simple and quick and the image quality is fantastic! Merry Christmas one and all, love from Honey! xoxo

Honey wears... Tutu by Next

Photo by Oobaloos photography

Nom Nom to the rescue...

Now that we've started taking Honey to a childminder, we have to have a morning routine that gets us out of the house in next to no time. My main concern was being able to fit in Honey's breakfast amongst getting us both ready and leaving the house with everything we need for the day. I have taken to packing everything up the night before and using our wonderful Nom Nom pouches to hold Ready Brek or Weetabix which she can finish in the car if we don't have time at home. We were lucky enough to be given some of the brand new, bigger, better pouches at last week's GBSN Christmas Fair where we finally met the Queen of Nom Nom* (this may or may not be her official job title) and they are doing a stirling job helping us leave the house on time! Thank you for our pouches Suzanne, we can't wait to try out the Nom Nom recipe cards too!

Honey wears... Owl coat by Tu @ Sainsbury's 

Christmas Shopping...

Honey and I had a wander round the GBSN Christmas Fair today. The hall at All Saints Academy was packed with stalls selling a wide range of baby and child related products. I was most excited to see our friends at Sling Solutions, Tatty Bumpkin and Blue Skies and to finally meet the lovely lady behind the wonderful Nom Nom pouches! Honey, on the other hand, was a huge fan of Cheltenham and Churchdown Pack-a-Party's play area and the bouncy castle. We also spotted Sheryl from Oobaloos photography taking fabulous photos of the little ones who met Santa, watch this space for some of Sheryl's work appearing on Honey wears soon!

Honey wears... Denim coat by Jojo Maman Bebe

Mighty Mouse...

Our favourite Mouse About Town has a new home! The Mouse Hole in Bath Terrace is now open and we were there for the launch! We arrived to a wonderfully warm welcome from Mr Mouse who served us some cheese (of course) and fizz, we then stepped into the small but perfectly formed Mouse Hole which houses a fabulous little studio and a quirky vintage clothes shop. Gill immediately put us all at ease and Honey had so much fun playing with all her wonderful props (and unsurprisingly for Honey, her business cards and miscellaneous items from around the room). Honey took part in a special 'silly face' competition and as her reward for joining in, she was given her first ever packet of sweets which she devoured in about 3 seconds and swiftly proclaimed 'more, more, more'! I don't know how Gill does it but her turnaround time is super speedy and her photographs really are something special.

Honey wears... Blazer by Junior J

Photo courtesy of Mouse About Town

Room on the broom...

Luckily, there was room on the (pleasantly crowded) broom for us today and we had lots of spooky fun with Witch at Blue Skies! Kind witch read us a story which we got to join in with using signs and props, then we sang songs and played games and finally she provided some scary snacks (banana ghosts = genuinely terrifying). Honey threw herself into the parachute games and particularly enjoyed the one where she had to run underneath when witch called out her animal name, turns out Honey was all of the animals today so she spent a lot of time running underneath! 

Honey wears... Biker boots by Next

Down on the farm...

We paid a visit to the St James City Farm in Gloucester today. The farm is run by volunteers and is free to look round (although donations are greatly appreciated). There is a small cafe selling drinks and crisps (I believe lunch is available depending on volunteer availability so do ring before you go if you'd like to buy lunch there) and you can also make use of the picnic tables outside if you take your own food. We saw goats, a pony, a pig, cows, chickens, ducks and even got to go into the rabbit enclosure to play with the adorable bunnies (although I definitely found that more fun than Honey, who just wanted to eat their food). We parked for free on Albany Street, close to a children's play area which we didn't get to explore as Honey was worn out by the morning's activities!

Honey wears... Peppa Pig wellies by Next

Babel Babies...

We loved our taster session of Babel Babies earlier this year but unfortunately the timings clash with Sing and Sign for us at the moment so we were delighted to find out that there'd be another opportunity for us to try our hand at singing in different languages! Babel Babies and Les Petits Zouszous put on a mini languages festival at Cheltenham Children's Library today and it was fabulous. Honey alternated between exhaustion (she's getting over a cold) and elation (complete with super excited faces and squeals)! She loved all the props, especially the parchute which got the biggest squeal of all!

Honey wears... Ballerina bunny t-shirt by Next

I think I want to carry you...

A while ago I saw an amazing (for amazing, read pink) carrier on the ABC facebook page but couldn't find the pattern in the UK. Well, guess who's taken over the UK distribution of Action Baby Carriers and guess who saved us one of the very few TOTALLY PINK ones? (It's the lovely Nicole at Blue Skies by the way). We are now officially a two ABC family, 'Happy' has not fallen out of favour completely but 'Cadence' will be my carrier of choice for the foreseeable future! It's super comfy as you'd expect from an ABC and as a toddler carrier, has added width and height for long legs and tall bodies. As you can see, the carriers also come with added sleepy dust! A huge congratulations and tonnes of good luck to Nicole as she adds another branch to the Blue Skies tree, we're rooting for you (groan)!

Honey wears... Cadence toddler carrier by Action Baby Carriers

Dry as a bone...

Time for Honey to start earning her keep again and test out some new nappies! We were selected to take part in Pampers' #BritainsDriestNappy challenge through the NetMums Blogger Network and were sent a pack of Pampers Active Fit nappies along with a letter explaining the trial and a memory stick with some product videos on it. My two main criteria for a successful nappy are:

- No leaks.

- Let me sleep.

To be honest, we have tried most nappies and only ever found two which were disasterous and we'd never go back to (Carrefour Discount and Naty by Nature Babycare) and the Pampers Active Fit join the list of successful nappies. Previous experience of this brand told us that it would be better to ask for a size up from our current brand (Tesco Loves Baby) as for some reason, Pampers usually come up small on Honey. Pampers asked for honest answers to some questions at the end of the trial, the gist of my feedback was that I would only buy them again if they were on offer as we felt that they equalled rather than out-performed our usual brand so wouldn't pay more for them.*

*Although we were given products for the purpose of this product test, the opinions expressed in this blog are my own.

Honey wears... Pampers Active Fit Size 4+

Wiggle wiggle wiggle...

Honey really enjoyed her first Wiggle Beat class today. It just so happened to be Humphrey's Corner pyjama week (in aid of The Children's Trust) so the morning routine was cut short as we bypassed the getting dressed aspect! Wiggle Beat lets toddlers dance alongside their parents, who may or may not be wearing younger siblings in a sling too. Honey shared a few of her favourite moves but mainly enjoyed playing with all the fabulous props provided by Emily-Rose throughout the session! She did come up for a cuddle in the sling halfway through but eagerly went back down when ribbons were on offer and 'Let it Go' started playing!

Honey wears... Busy bee pyjamas by Mothercare

The more that you read, the more things you will know...

We had a wander round the Cheltenham Literary Festival this morning. It was lovely to see town so busy despite the rain and even lovelier to see so many children enjoying The Hideaway. Honey shared some toys with The Cat in the Hat and was desperate for a cuddle with Spot (whose arms weren't really built for that sort of thing), she also happily lunched/people watched in the food court while Mummy and Daddy enjoyed a 'luxury' hot chocolate!

Honey wears... Double layered tutu by Marks and Spencer 

Just like Mummy...

After seeing photos of Honey wearing her doll in a scarf, Emily-Rose (of Sling Beat fame) knew she'd found the right baby to try out the latest SB merchandise! The Sling Beat branded mei tai carriers are made by a local Mum who has become a Sling Beat regular. The sewing is super neat, the fabrics are high quality and the embroidery has been done to an excellent standard. I found the straps quite long and had to wind them round Honey quite a few times but I guess that just means it will last and last as she grows up! As you can see, Honey started dancing as soon as she and her baby were secure and ensured she had regular stops for kisses and cuddles with her tiny partner. Honey put the carrier through some rigorous testing and I am pleased to say that it passed every test, even the little known 'climbing up a slide' sling safety test!

Honey wears... Dungarees by Adams

Give me a sign...

We were so chuffed to win a whole term of Sing and Sign classes in the Blue Skies birthday raffle and couldn't wait to get started! Honey was quite reserved at first and took a couple of weeks to get into the swing of things but now she likes to join in with the songs and play with all the instruments as much as the next baby! The only signs she really does at the moment are 'all gone' and 'hiding' but hopefully she will pick up a few more by the end of term, especially as she seems to get more confident within the class by the week.

Honey wears... Pink long sleeved vest by H&M

Out the door, dinosaur...

Due to my fondness for dinosaurs, we just had to fit in a trip to Meet Rex at The Wilson before the extinction date at the end of September! Children under 4 go free and adults are £6 each, I was annoyed with myself for missing out on a half price groupon offer as the price felt a little high for what you got. Honey was slightly apprehensive at first but soon warmed up and started trying to pat and feed the dinosaurs. There were lots of fact walls, computerised quiz games and dinosaur models, as well as some of the equipment used by the BBC while making their Walking with Dinosaurs series. A must for dinosaur fans but look out for closing offers if you can and try some of the linked offers/discounts (for example 10% off at Boston Tea Party on production of your ticket) so you get your money's worth.

Honey wears... Sparkly bunny jumper by H&M

Choo Choo...

Honey was honoured to be invited to take a trip on Alfie's train today! Technically, the train belongs to Evesham Country Park but given that Alfie's parents had both saved up enough loyalty stamps for a free ride, I think he deserves to call it his! Seeing Alfie's face as we chugged along was priceless and Honey spent most of the journey with her head stuck out of the window which she loved! We went through a tunnel, stopped at a station and experienced the sights and sounds of a real (if miniature) steam train. As well as the railway, Evesham Country Park boasts a range of shops (I even located a Ruby Shoo section), a large cafe/restaurant with play corner and a whole host of diggers while they extend their facilities!

Honey wears... Stripy tights by Mini Club @ Boots

Moreton Show...

It's that time of year again, although we took a toddler rather than a baby to Moreton Show this year! Honey was much more aware of what was going on and of all the animals, but she did find all the walking very tiring and had a snuggly nap in the ABC while Daddy was carrying her. As always, it was great to catch up with lots of people we know and we even got to meet some other babies which we had previously only seen on Facebook! The main attraction was The Bolddog Lings who were amazing (insane would be a more accurate description) and really held Honey's attention with their motorcycle acrobatics and their loud engines!

Honey wears... Grey, sparkly shorts by Next