MUMMY TO THE MAX

Toilet training is a massive milestone. It is something some children find easier than others and something which can come to children at different times. Over two weeks ago Maxwell finally cracked toilet training and as of yet he has not had a single accident.

These days there is so much pressure for parents to have their children potty trained as soon as possible however what if a child is not ready? What if a child has a developmental delay? What if a child is experiencing speech delay and is does not understand the toilet training process easily? There is so much pressure out there for parents and on children to be potty trained as soon as possible.

As a parent who's child has speech delay, I felt that pressure. I was asked if Maxwell was toilet trained regularly by different people and I felt many other children were ahead of Maxwell however, whilst Maxwell was behind in toilet training he was ahead of other children who were toilet trained in so many other areas. Over time I learnt and accepted that every child is different and Maxwell would be willing to learn about toilet training at his own pace. As a parent I did not feel the need to push him. I felt that pushing him would only make him anxious and I felt that the more anxious he became, the less interested he would be.

For us, once Maxwell wanted to learn about toilet training and took a interest in us going to the toilet the whole experience was easy. We went from going on the potty regularly to using the toilet with a toilet seat, to being confident wearing pants, using any public toilet and managing to not need the toilet on long journeys.

For anyone toilet training their child and are feeling the pressure, these are my 5 simple tips.

• We found that using a personalised story book helped Maxwell with his journey. Due to Maxwell having a speech delay, Maxwell favors learning through seeing. We read Pirate Maxwell's Potty book every night to Maxwell before bed and before long he was interested in trying little things he had picked up in his story book.

• We felt that a reward scheme helped encourage Maxwell. Maxwell's reward scheme was made up of some colourful card from the 99p store and some cheap fun stickers which we found on the internet. We did not buy into any expensive reward books. From the get go we explained to Maxwell per 20 stickers that Maxwell got on his chart, we would take a trip to our local toy store and Maxwell would have £7 to spend on a treat. We found that as soon as Maxwell was rewarded through stickers and praise, he really worked hard to achieve his toy trip visit.

•  As frustrating as it can be that your child is not ready to learn to toilet train, stay calm, positive and do not shout. I found that a calm approach to toilet training helped Maxwell become confident in what he was learning to do.  If I had not stayed calm through the process, Maxwell would have picked up onto my negative vibes and would have not wanted to carry on the process.

• We found that Maxwell finally completed his toilet training journey in half term. Due to Maxwell attending 2 preschools and doing extra activities outside of preschool, he has a busy week, every week. Through half term Maxwell had more time to concentrate on learning to toilet train and it also allowed us to be around him. Being around him that week meant if a accident did happen we were on hand to reassure him accidents do happen. 

• If you are reading this and you are worried your child is not toilet trained, don't be. Children develop at different times and learn things at different paces. Our potty training journey seemed to last a life time however Maxwell has finally become confident and is happy to use the toilet in most situations.Your child is next! Stay calm, positive, offer support and do it with a smile on your face.

Recently we were sent a iCandy Raspberry Pushchair to review. We have had the pushchair for a month now and we adore it. You are able to see our introduction to the pushchair here however today I wanted to write a post about our day out with the pushchair.

We took the iCandy  Raspberry Pushchair for a trip in the New Forest. We met my parents and decided to go for a walk in the forest, shortly after our walk we visited a lovely holiday park for a bite to eat.


The iCandy Raspberry Pushchair was easy to fit into the boot of the car. I was a little worried to see how it would fit in the car due to the fact we have a Ford Focus ST which I think has quite a small boot however it folded up neatly and fitted well. Due to us having a small boot, I feel this pushchair will fit in a arrange of boots so transportation is not a problem.

When we arrived at our destination, we got the pushchair out and put Maxwell into it straight away. The pushchair takes seconds to put up and the process of doing this is very easy. You simply push a button on the handle and a button on the chaise and this releases the pushchair.

As a family, we headed off on our walk. We had a brilliant time and Maxwell adored walking around the forest. After our walk we passed the holiday park and explored.We went to the park, went over a lot of speed bumps, went to the soft play and had fun in the arcades.

Throughout our whole day out, we were pleasantly surprised at how well the iCandy Raspberry pushchair handled itself. We found that the pushchair handled different terrains well. Although it did struggle over some grass areas where the grass was long, it handled speed bumps, concrete, wood and managed to handle bark - the type you get in the park well.


We found that the iCandy has some amazing features that really make it a massive hit in our household. We love the fact that the iCandy has a secret compartment which can hold keys, my phone and other items that need to be secured safely. The basket is designed well, it is large in size and can hold my handbag, Maxwell's bag along with a bag of shopping. I also adore the fact that the handle can be adjusted to suit your height, as I am very short this is a massive blessing in disguise.I was able to walk with ease when handling the pushchair.

We felt Maxwell had a comfy journey in the iCandy, the seat was big enough for him to sit in - despite him being a 3 year old and we found that the straps adjusted well to suit his size. The iCandy has a small footprint which is fantastic as it meant Maxwell and the pushchair could fit through small doors. With a older pushchair we found that Maxwell would have to often get out to fit through some doorways which can often be a pain.


Since having the pushchair we have taken it on day trips to the Isle Of Wight. We found that the pushchair was great to use on the ferry due to it being lightweight and easy to get through the aisle that people we sitting in. We have also taken the pushchair on bus journeys. Having hated taking my old pushchair on bus journeys, the iCandy is a dream to use on the bus. It fits well into pushchair spaces and if needs be it is easy to fold. It is compact enough to fit in storage areas or by your feet if there is enough space.

If you are looking for a pushchair which handles the city well but also can handle the country well, this pushchair is for you!

I have always had a massive love for pushchairs. Whilst out and about I always take a good look at what other pushchairs people are using. I love to browse shops and look at the latest designs, colours and styles that pushchair company's have bought out. Recently Maxwell and I were sent a new iCandy Raspberry pushchair to review.

Maxwell and  I were thrilled to get the iCandy Raspberry to review. Although Maxwell is not a baby that is in need of being pushed around all the time in a pushchair, he is a small child that can get tired on long journeys or on long days out. Maxwell and I have been reviewing the iCandy Raspberry pushchair for the last month and we are looking forward to bringing you 3 blog post's about our thoughts and feelings on the iCandy Raspberry pushchair.

The iCandy Raspberry is described as the smart choice for families who enjoy urban adventures. Due to this Maxwell and I were looking forward to using the iCandy on buses, cafes, in the city but also in our local country side. We wanted to make sure we tested the iCandy in different settings to see if it fitted up to its name. The iCandy Raspberry promises to have an agile chassis, ease of fold and innovative, spacious storage capsule the iCandy is also promised to be the quick and lightweight stroller.

When buying your iCandy Raspberry you are able to choose from either a black or brush aluminium chassis. You are also  able to choose from one of seven flavour pack colours. After having a browse on iCandy website I was amazed at the selection of colours that they offered for the iCandy Raspberry. It took me a while to decide but in the end I decided on the beetle colour pack. I choose this along with the black chassis as I thought that it would not only look stylish but it would also hide any dirt that comes with a excitable, clumsy, messy toddler.

Due to the book being personal for each child, we allowed Maxwell to choose what he wanted in his special potty training book. Maxwell is a visual learner and with a little help Maxwell and I tried to get the character in the book to look like Maxwell. Maxwell was able to choose what first name and surname he wanted in his book along with some important features of his character in the book such as hairstyle and colour, skin tone, eye colour and a mention of the parent who would help with potty training the most.

Once we had completed making the book, we waited for the book to be shipped to us. We were told a time period in which Penwizard thought the book may get to us in however the book arrived much quicker than they stated.  The book was wrapped well when it arrived and it was clear to see that little damage would occur in between Penwizard shipping the book and you the customer receiving the book.


Once the book arrived Maxwell was amazed with it. The story is quite basic, the story is about a little boy who still wears nappies. The story unravels and tells the reader that the little boy is getting a big boy and needs to start learning to use the potty and wearing big boy pants.

Throughout the story, the readers is asked which potty and pants he prefers, each potty/set of pants are pictured in various bright colours, wacky patterns or have pictures on that children are able to identify easy and come in different shapes and sizes. The language used is easy for a young child to follow and Maxwell found it easy to follow the book and comment on what he was hearing/seeing.

Dry Like Me, the award-winning potty training pads worn in children’s own pants, have just filmed their first ever TV advertisement – and it is hilarious. The ad features a class of toddlers being taught about potty training by an older child and, during the shoot, the toddlers had lots of fun with the Dry Like Me potty training pads, playing with them like they were toys and sticking them all over their bodies.

Co-creator of Dry Like Me, Jude Hough says: “ We know they are a hit with parents as they can help children get out of nappies and into proper pants, but we were surprised at how much the children loved playing with them. Watching the two year olds run around with pads stuck on the heads and faces was hilarious, and their antics were great to include in the advertisement, which is really funny.” The advertisement, called ‘Miss Smarty Pants’, can be viewed on on Disney Junior, Nick JR, Boomerang, Cartoonito and Tiny Pop.

Award-winning Dry Like Me potty training pads were created by mums, Jude and Di , when they couldn’t find anything that helped to move their potty training children away from nappies and into their own pants. They commissioned independent research, which showed the pads reduced accidents after only one week, and Dry Like Me are now sold by most supermarkets and online at amazon and www.drylikeme.com. One size fits all ages of children, and there are three types to choose from: ‘Early Days’ for the start of potty training, ‘Original’ for the middle to end stages and ‘Night-Time’ to help children get dry at night. They cost around £3.49 a box, are designed to be soft and comfortable and are recommended by health professionals.

To celebrate the launch of their first TV campaign, Dry Like Me are giving away 1 pack to help get your little one out of nappies and into proper pants. Each ‘Smart Way to Potty Train’ pack contains four boxes of Dry Like Me pads, a ‘How to Potty Train’ book (written by Jude and Di) and a sticker reward chart, and is worth £24.

We have 1 set of prizes to give away. To have a chance of winning simply enter the rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

For more information on Dry Like Me potty training pads, as well as lots of tips and advice go to the Dry like me website or their Facebook page..

If you have followed my blog for a while you would know that Maxwell adores dressing up. Maxwell now has a whole toy box full of dressing up costumes and his box of costumes is continuing to grow. Maxwell has costumes for all occasions for the year and has costumes suitable for him to wear daily. All Maxwell's costumes are bright, fun and are costumes which he loves to wear. Recently Maxwell was given the chance to choose a new costume to celebrate the new year in.

Maxwell was given the opportunity to choose a costume from the online shop Time To Dress Up. From the word go we had great customer service and were kept in the loop the whole time. We were advised about fittings and were given advice about sizing which I found to be very helpful due to the fact Maxwell has a tiny waist but is quite tall for his age.



In the end Maxwell decided on a Triceratops Dress Up costume. Maxwell adored the costume due to it being dinosaur themed however as  I parent I loved the costume as I thought it was practical for Maxwell to wear and was a costume which Maxwell would not grow out of easily.

Once ordered Maxwell and I awaited for the costumes delivery. The delivery was fast and the costume was well packaged. Once received we were excited about dressing Maxwell up and allowing him to run around in the costume.

Maxwell wanted to put the costume on straight away. In my opinion it is one of the most detailed dinosaur costumes I have seen recently and it was a costume that I was proud to see Maxwell in. The costume itself was well made, was a perfect fit and the design was fantastic and well thought out.

The Triceratops costume is a dark green costume and is made from a plush material. The costume features a soft tummy and a cute tail. The head of the costume includes a hood design which allows Maxwell to either have the hood up or down which I think is a great feature as often Maxwell can get hot and bothered with having things on his head. The hood has horns and spikes which I feel gives the costume a great effect. On the hands and feet the costume features soft claws, the claws are the final special touch to the costume and make it look great.


The costume seems to be hard wearing and Maxwell has worn the Triceratops costume in the garden, around the home and around relatives houses. I have no negative points to make about the costume. It has become one of Maxwell's favorite costumes and Maxwell loves to roar at people whilst wearing it. Although we got the costume in age 2-3 years and Maxwell is now 3 years old, there is plenty of growing room in it yet.

The costume can be bought in sizes 18 month up to 6-8 years and costs just £31 with free delivery. When Maxwell has worn the costume, he has had a lot of feedback. If you are after a eye catching costume for your child, this costume is for you.

Last year we started a new tradition of creating Maxwell a Christmas Eve Box. I wanted to make it into a tradition to make Christmas that little bit more exciting. As always I wanted to do Maxwell's Christmas Eve Box on a budget this year so I shopped for bargains and decided to reuse some of the bits that we had from last year.


In Maxwell's Christmas Eve Box 2014 you will find:

Orchard Toy Christmas Surprises Game: I bought this around July this year and I payed just £4 for it. Maxwell is now at the perfect age where he can start enjoying games and he adores the Orchard Toy Games. They are great to help with learning and development. This item will feature in many more Christmas Eve Boxes.

2 Snowman and Snowdog Crackers: I picked up a pack of these for £1 in the January sales this year and I have saved them for Maxwell to enjoy this Christmas. I shall save the rest of the pack for next Christmas as I think 2 is plenty for Maxwell to have in his Christmas Eve Box.

Disney Pjs: These were a bargain which I picked up in Tesco. Tesco has been one of my favorite clothing shops this year due to there highly reduced items. These Pj's normally are priced up to £5 but I spent just £2.50 on them. They are themed with Maxwell's favorite Disney character and I think he will love wearing these on Christmas Day.

Santas Magic Key: No box is complete without a key! I have always taught Maxwell that it is important that we lock the door behind us when inside for safety. I would hate for Maxwell to grow up thinking Santa was a intruder. This was in our Christmas Eve box last year so of course this year it cost us nothing.

Peppa Pig Chocolate: Maxwell adores Peppa Pig still and watches her daily so I knew she would need to feature in Maxwell's Christmas Eve box. Upon wondering around the 99p store a few weeks ago I spotted the Peppa Pig chocolates and I knew I had to grab a box to include in Maxwell's Christmas Eve Box.

Numberjacks And Smurfs Christmas DVD'S: This year Maxwell has not been interested in Christmas TV. His favorite film which has been on TV has been the Railway children and he has also loved watching the pantos on Cbeebies. These were the 2 Christmas DVD's which I purchased Maxwell last year, he loves Numberjacks and the smurfs so I am hoping he will enjoy watching one tomorrow.

Santa's Coming To Southampton  Book: This was a buy last year which I adored. Since buying last year I have seen a lot of people have now purchased them for their children. I have to say the book is magical and the pictures are amazing. The book goes into detail about local places Santa will visit this Christmas and includes illustrations of local places as well. I think I payed around £6 for it last year and it is well worth the money. This book will be used for many more Christmas's.

Christmas Dish: This was a buy from the 99p store last year and  I think it is perfect to add nibbles into but also to eat Christmas dinner out of. It is simple, childproof and a little bit of fun.

Soft Toy Santa: Maxwell is very much into soft toys at the moment so I thought this would be a nice little extra to add into his box. It is a simple soft toy from the 99p store and he is super soft. Maxwell adores talking on the phone to Santa this Christmas so it will be nice to tell him that he can talk to Santa on  Christmas eve and Christmas day as he has his own soft toy version.

Magazine: I won a few magazines in a recent competition and I decided to save one for Christmas. Maxwell loves looking through magazines and he enjoys sticking all the stickers in the magazine once he has had a look through it so this is going to be a popular item in his box this year.

As you are able to see, Maxwell's Christmas Eve box cost me under £10. I didn't feel the need to go mad on his Christmas Eve box this year and I thought it was nice to keep it simple for him as he is still very young and I did not want to overwhelm him. I am looking forward to seeing his face when he opens his box Christmas Eve morning.

1. Maxwell can now put his own shoes on
2. Maxwell is repeating lots more words
3. Maxwell can use interactive gadgets and spell words out 
4. Maxwell continues to love anything which lights up
5. Maxwell has been enjoying lots of Autumn walks

A few weeks ago Maxwell and I were sent a lovely box of goodies from Baker Ross. The box was full of Halloween crafts. After having a look at them I was excited to start crafting with Maxwell. Inside the box there were some fun 3D Halloween Kits as well as some Halloween Scratch Art Masks. Maxwell and I settled down to complete the crafts together.


The masks looked like a simple black plain mask however there were sticks in the packs to create fun designs on the masks. All you had to do was simply use the sticks to scratch away at the masks to make designs. Maxwell decided to draw all over his whilst I carefully added cat ears, whiskers and created glowing eyes however once completed the masks both looked fantastic.

Once we had completed the mask we simply attached a piece of elastic to them to ensure that they would fit round our faces. The masks fitted around both mine and Maxwell's faces and I think the end result looked brilliant.

Overall we were very happy with our Baker Ross crafts and once again were impressed by there fantastic quality. If you would like to buy the scratch masks you are able to buy them here. If you are interested in purchasing the 3D decoration kits you are able to buy them here.

1. Maxwell's speech is coming on leaps and bounds
2. Maxwell adores role play
3. Maxwell is trying different foods and is enjoying them
4. Maxwell can nearly ride a bike (with stabilizers)
5. Maxwell loves cuddling on the sofa

At the weekend we went to our local Clarks store in Whitley Village to pick Maxwell some new shoes for the fast approaching Autumn/Winter. Before heading there I had a little look at the shoes I thought may look nice on Maxwell on the Clarks website, there was a lot of choice, a wide range of prices to suit everyone's budget and a whole load of designs. After a long look on their website I had in mind what I was after.
When we got to the Clarks store in Whitley we were greeted by friendly staff. We were told to take a number and we were asked to wait on comfy seating, we were then asked to wait for our number to be called out and we were told we then would be seen by a staff member who would measure Maxwell's feet. We waited a short amount of time and we were then seen.

Before Maxwell was born I already had a idea of what products I would use on his skin. I was aware that baby's skin was sensitive and I hated the thought of putting something on Maxwell's skin which he may react to. After talking to other parents I heard lots of positive things about the brand Johnson's, since Maxwell was born we have used Johnson's bath products. Maxwell's skin has always been soft and he has never had a reaction to their products.

Maxwell and I were lucky enough to receive a bundle of the new First Touch range from Johnson's. The range included: All in one wash, moisturising lotion, barrier cream, shampoo and wipes. The new First Touch range is a brand new fragrance-free range developed for newborns that includes everything mums need to cleanse and protect their baby’s delicate skin from top to toe.


First of all we tried the wipes. Over time we have tried lots of different brands of wipes and to date we have been extremely happy with the Johnson's brand. Previously we have tried other brands and have found that the wipes are to wet or to dry and tend to come out in clumps which make it hard when changing nappies and cleaning messy hands and faces. When we tried the new First Touch range wipes we found that they were wet enough, did not come out in clumps and they did not split. They were perfect to use on Maxwell's skin and came in a large pack of 64 which means that they would last over a long period of time.

Secondly we tried the  First Touch shampoo and all in one wash. Maxwell is a huge fan of baths and adores nothing more than splashing around in a lot of bubbles. The all in one wash can be carefully poured into the bath due to its great pouring hole which is fairly small. This allows the all in one wash to flow into the bath instead of going into the bath clumpy which makes it harder to break down so less bubbles form. The First Touch shampoo was also a hit in our household, I used very little shampoo to wash Maxwell's hair however the shampoo seemed to spread out well and a lot of bubbles were formed meaning Maxwell's hair had a good wash. I liked the fact that these products were fragrance free as after bath time I do not always want to smell a strong smell of bath products on Maxwell's skin.

The Johnson’s Baby First Touch range is available at many supermarkets, chemists and also Boots.

After 10 mins of picking we decided to head back into the house. We both had enough blackberries to last us the next few days.  Although the blackberries were free, I did not want to be greedy and take to many, I thought it would be nice to leave some for another day.

Maxwell and I both washed our blackberries and ate them as a treat after our dinner. We had a great time picking our blackberries and we enjoyed our free desert. I would be interested in making jam or a crumble with the blackberries in the future. This is a free activity which any one can do - there are plenty of blackberries growing in the UK. The public can easily access blackberries for free on the street, in gardens or even on  pick them in places such as parks.

Recently I have been trying to transform our garden. I have been trying to make sure it looks bright as well as fun and last week I decided to buy a few plant pots and some plants. After planting a few of the plants, I find out that I had quite a few plants left over so I decided to go and purchase a few more plant pots and I decided to let Maxwell plant them.

I decided to get some simple flowers which I knew would flower in the winter. I also decided on these plants due to them being easy to maintain and easy for Maxwell to up keep them. I first got Maxwell to add the compost into the plant pot. I explained to Maxwell he had to break the large lumps up and to pat it down to ensure we had a even surface when planting the plants.

Once the plant pot was full, I carefully helped Maxwell add the flowers into the pot. We made sure that there were gaps between the flowers so they had space to grow and we made sure that they were in a neat line. It did not take long to plant them and after we had planted them they looked great.

The flowers were purple, yellow and a creamy colour and stood out in our garden. Maxwell decided to give them a water and then we put them in there places in the garden. I love the fact Maxwell now has responsibility over something even if it is a few plants and  I am sure this task taught him a thing or two. I am looking forward to seeing the plants grow!

To create the game, I laid 3 plastic cups out on a flat space and in front of the cups I added 3 bright coloured stretchy animals. I then gave Maxwell the foam fish and asked him to put them in the cups and match them with the stretchy animal which was in front of them. Although Maxwell got a few wrong, he enjoyed the task and even started to count the fish out.

This game can be made up with many objects which you may find around the home. It is easy to set up and is a great game to get your children learning new skills.

Today we decided to make a game out of simple bits we found in the cupboard. The idea of the game was to be able to hook a disc around a stick in the middle of the room, the first person to hook the disc would win. I thought this game would be perfect to make with Maxwell as I believed it would help him with creativity. Maxwell adored making the game however once we had made the game Maxwell was able to learn new skills. One of the main skills which Maxwell learnt with the game was hand and eye co-ordination.

To make the game we simply used a old kitchen roll tube and 2 paper plates. Maxwell decorated the tube with paint. Whilst Maxwell decorated the tube I cut the middle out of one of the plates, once this was done I then I got Maxwell to decorate the cut plate again with paint. Once both the cut plate and tube was dry I simply got the tube to hold on to the uncut plate so it was stable and would not be knocked over easily when throwing the cut plate.