Hello 2015

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I can't believe its 2015 already. Eek. I hope everyone had a great 2014 and you are looking forward to 2015. Have you made any resolutions? I normally have a list as long as my arm but I never stick to them, so this year I am only doing a few and I must stick to them.  My first resolution is the same as every other year for as long as I can remember - lose weight and get fit. Unfortunately I never lose weight and I'm not fit either but this year I am going to try my hardest. We have a summer holiday planned and I really don't want to go away looking like a beached whale. I know I will never be a skinny minnie but I do think I could lose a stone or two. I just need to get motivated and I think once I see some results that will spur me on. I might start to record my progress on my blog each week. I know lots of bloggers do a weigh in Wednesday and show their results each week to help others get motivated too. I like the idea of this because I think it will make me more determined if I have to write down my results each week.  My other resolution isn't really a resolution but more of a 'must do'. This year will mark the five year angelversary of Isabella and Rosie and I would love to continue to fundraise for Sands and raise stillborn awareness. My just giving account has reached over £12,000 and I would love to reach £15,000 before the end of 2015.  I have a blog related resolution and that is to give vlogging a try. For those that don't know what vlogging is - its very similar to blogging but you video instead of writing. Its very very popular at the moment over on YouTube so I would love to give it a go too. Might take some practising. I would love to know your resolutions and to all my readers Happy New Year.

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The Snowman and The Dog Grotto at intu The Trafford Centre

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I recently saw an advert on TV that there was a Snowman and The Snowdog grotto in intu Trafford Centre. When I went online I was gutted that it was pretty much sold out, obviously very popular. We were going to the Trafford Centre last weekend but there was no times available. I double checked the night before to see if any times had become available and I was so please that one time slot was showing green instead of the sold out red. 
I quickly whizzed through the booking form and secured our placed in the grotto. There was an option to book and pay for your photographs and other souvenirs online but I decided to wait until we got there.
The Snowman and The Snowdog is situated in Barton Square amongst lots of festive stalls and a lovely Victorian Carousel.

We arrived 10 minutes earlier than are booking time and joined the queue. Only 45 people can go through at any one time so even though are timed slot had past by the time we got to the front of the queue we had to wait a further 15 minutes to go through as it had reached full capacity. 

We left our buggy by the entrance and when it was our time to go through we were taken into a room that was set out as Billys living room and we were greeted by Billy's Mum. We took a seat on the benches provided and the children were invited to sit on the floor at the front.
Billy's mum told us all about the Snowman and The Snowdog and what had happened on one Christmas Eve when Billy had made them both and at the magic hour 12:00am they both came alive.  There was a large TV screen and we got to watch snippets of The Snowman and The Snowdog. It really put us in the Christmassy mood both the Snowman and The Snowman and the Snowdog are our favourite christmas movies.

Once we had finished in Billy's living room (approx 15 minutes) we walked past all the snowmen until we cam to a place were we could write a letter to Santa.

We were actually first in the queue to walk through the magical walkway to see Santa but little J kept running back and forth and looking at all the snowman so we were actually last in the end.

Towards the end there is a huge display with the snowman and the snowdog. 

We managed to get little J to sit down for two minutes while big J wrote him out a list so we could post it in the big red postbox.
Once we had done that it was time to see Father Christmas. He was lovely and gave both big and little J a gift. 
The overall experience was lovely and it was well worth the wait and I can see just why it is so popular. We were inside for approx 30-40 minutes in total and it was truly magical.

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The Dinosaur That Pooped

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Its pretty obvious from past posts that I am a huge Mcfly/Busted/McBusted fan. As well as amazing singers, song writers and musicians, Tom Fletcher and Dougie Poynter have put pen to paper and created a trio of children's books featuring a Dinosaur that likes to poop. The Dinosaur That Pooped Christmas, The Dinosaur That Pooped A Planet and The Dinosaur That Pooped The Past all feature rhyming text, colourful illustrations, great fun and yes, a great big pooping dinosaur.   

There is quite an age gap between my two monkeys so I decided to read to both of them and yes as you probably guessed it my 12 year old was grinning from ear to ear throughout all three books. Why is it boys just love toilet humour? Little J loved looking at the pictures and sat for the whole story which he hasn't done before.   I have to admit I did find them quite funny myself and particularly liked the pooped a planet story.  The Dinosaur That Pooped Christmas  

When Danny asks for too many presents, Father Christmas decides that Danny deserves a huge dinosaur. The Dinosaur is very, very big and very, very hungry and eats up all of Christmas and you guessed it what goes in must come out.   The Dinosaur That Pooped a Planet  

Danny and his dinosaur are back and this time they are going on an adventure into space. Unfortunately Danny forgets his very hungry dinosaurs lunchbox. Dinosaur starts to eat everything in sight including the rocket to get them home.   The Dinosaur That Pooped The Past    

Danny and his Dinosaur are sent back in time in their third adventure. Dinosaur gets to meet new friends and all is well until there is a huge volcano about to erupt. How will they get back to the future?   Lots of fun for children of all ages and adults too.   To find out more about Danny and his pooping dinosaur check out https://www.facebook.com/TheDinosaurThatPooped https://twitter.com/PoopingDinosaur   Have you read any of the Pooping Dinosaur Books? Which is your favourite?  

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Christmas Gift Guide

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Buying presents at Christmas time can be quite difficult and there is nothing worse than rushing round crowded shops looking for ideas of what to buy. Whether you are buying for him, for her, for family, fiends or secret santa it can be a nightmare. I tend to browse the internet for gift ideas and I have added a few ideas below for you to enjoy. Hopefully you might spot something you like or would like to receive which could make your Christmas less stressful.  

World Class offer a wide selection of fragrances for both him and her. The Colour Me range are a perfect choice and the Purple is my favourite. An elegant rich modern fruity chypre fragrance. The fresh top notes of bergamot and watermelon are boosted by a subtle floral accord of pretty jasmin, rose and violet notes. The dry down is a tenacious blend of oakmoss, amber and precious patchouli woods.

 

Personalised Bottles have a large selection of gifts that would be suitable for all. I particular like the Scottish hampers. Using only the finest Scottish foods and gifts, the traditional Scottish gift hampers are a luxury gift for that someone special. As they are based in Scotland, they have access to over 60 Scottish food producers, with a total combined list of over 600 products.

 

I love the smell of gingerbread. Baylis & Harding's latest collection captures the essence of this fabulous aroma and presents it in a range of festive and fun pampering products.

Caramel Fudge, Creamy Marshmallow Frosting, Hot Chocolate and Sweet Gingerbread scents will create a deliciously festive feeling in your bathroom.

My favourite is the Baylis & Harding Beauticology Cream Marshmallow Frosting 50ml Hand & Body Lotion.

Christmas wouldn't be the same if you didn't have some delicious sweets to snack on while watching a Christmas movie. Hope and Greenwood have some amazing sweeties and this is my favourite. Splendid Stocking Fillers is packed with Sugar Mice, Sweet Bag Ginger & Chili, Sweet Bag Peppermint, Sweet Bag Cranberry & Orange and Curly Candy Canes.

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Win Afternoon Tea Set And Some Delicious Kate's Cakes

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 I love a nice cup of tea and some biscuits for dunking but I would be tempted to leave the biscuits for some nice scones and cakes. There is nothing quite like afternoon tea and cakes. We were recently sent some Kate's Cakes to try which were perfect for an afternoon treat.  

The individually wrapped cake squares were just the right size to nibble on whilst enjoying a cup of tea. We sampled Chocolate Fudge Cake and Lemon Drizzle Cake. I am such a chocoholic so I thought I would have enjoyed the fudge cake more but both were equally as tasty.  

The chocolate fudge cake is topped with chocolate buttercream and curls and the lemon drizzle cake is topped with lemon juice and sugar pearls. The cakes looked bite size when I opened the box but they are very filling and for me the portion size was just right.  

I've teamed up with Kate's Cakes to offer my readers the chance to win an afternoon tea set and some delicious Kate's Cakes   All you have to do is answer this Christmas themed question.   Q: What is your favourite part of the Christmas Holidays?   Remember to leave your answer as a blog comment and only readers who leave a comment will be entered into the draw.   Once you have left your comment more ways to get extra entries will open up on the gleam app below.   Kate's Cakes Afternoon Tea Set     Good Luck   Don't forget to check out my other competitions.     Terms and Conditions Competition closes on Weds 10th December 2014 at 11:59PM Entrants must have a valid UK address Bulk, third party or any other entries using automated software will be disqualified All entrants and entries are checked and verified. All entrants must follow the mandatory step and answer the question as a blog comment. 1 lucky winner will be chosen at random by the Gleam application. Mummy2Monkeys will contact the lucky winner within 1 day of the competition closing The winner must respond within 28 days. If no response a new winner will be chosen. The prize is a Kate's Cakes Afternoon Tea Set By entering this competition you give permission for me to pass on your details to the promoter. Only for the winner. There is no cash alternative

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