Christmas Parties // Hotel Chocolat Wreath

Christmas is the season for parties and gatherings, mulled wine and delicious chocolates and an excuse to get together with old and new friends.  In our old house we were quite stuck for space and we are really enjoying the new place and being able to host friends now.  This year we have Ed's family coming to us on Boxing Day and it will be the first time hosting a family event for us!

With school about to finish, I decided to celebrate the end of Archie's first full term by inviting some of his friends and their parents over after school one day.  The children quickly split off with the school boys going upstairs and the little siblings choosing the playroom.  The living room was for the adults and it was lovely to chat without the rush and distractions of the school run.  

I was sent a Hotel Chocolat Christmas Wreath and it seemed the perfect time to open it.  I left it in the middle of the table as it made a great centerpiece.  Once all the children were occupied, we broke it open and it was absolutely amazing inside! Our favourites include the 'Christmas mess', the 'Bakewell tart' and the champagne truffles, and the selection was brilliant with something for everyone's tastes!  I find that usually when we open a box of chocolates there are the same ones always left at the end but having some left at the end wasn't an issue with the wreath!

The Hotel Chocolat wreath is perfect for Christmas gatherings and I might have to buy one for a Boxing Day treat for the family too.  It is the perfect festive centerpiece and incredibly delicious!  When we have eaten too many roast potatoes and stuffing, I think bite sized sweet snacks will be great to nibble on.

I couldn't easily get pictures of all the children playing but here are a couple of my little two who loved having a house full of friends and playmates (although one still needs to work on sharing his toys with them).

Hotel Chocolat have an amazing Christmas collection to suit all families big and small, so whether you are having a quiet Christmas at home, a few friends over or the whole extended family, check out their amazing Christmas chocolate collection.

This post is sponsored by Hotel Chocolat but all chocolates were eaten exclusively by myself (and my friends)

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Toddler in Traction - A Mum's Survival Kit

I posted earlier this week about Dylan's survival kit for the four weeks we spent in hospital whilst his leg was on the mend, but now I am going to share mine.  For four weeks I slept on a pull out chair, and every night that I was there, so was Archie. As a breastfed baby he is too reliant on me to stay anywhere else and is still fed in the night so we had a rather cosy cubicle.

I could not have survived the month without my friends and family.  Every single visit, for however long made such a difference to our day and I am forever grateful to my Dad who drove up on his lunch break every single day to bring me a sandwich and let me get some fresh air.  Being stuck inside 24 hours a day means every little break is so important, even if it was just a wander up to the canteen.

I am a strong believer that chocolate is its own food group and it was my secret treat and guilty pleasure during our stay on the children's ward.  There were only a few minutes a day when both boys were asleep and I was not and I made the most of them with the help of some Dairy Milk.  Never underestimate the power of chocolate!

I was sent a beautiful baby friendly necklace from the people at Babyologie and this really cheered me up.  It was lovely to get something for me and it was perfect for keeping Archie occupied.  He has taken quite a shine to it and will happily sit on my lap for ages just playing and chewing it which was great for when I needed to do something with Dylan. 

Twitter was always there when I needed to talk to someone and I had so much support.  It was great to know that at the press of a button I could talk to an adult at any time day or night and I had some great advice too.  It can be very isolating stuck in a children's ward (especially when the other children and parents in our room didn't speak any English) so it was lovely to have this connection to the outside world.

The last part of my survival kit is my attitude.  I decided early on that there was no point stressing, wishing I was anywhere else or getting upset.  My job was to be strong for my boys and I tried my hardest to make sure that we had a good time.  I rested when I could, took people up on their offers and indulged myself whenever I needed it.  I really think that positive thinking goes a long way and despite the professionals quoting us 5-8 weeks, we were out within four and free to enjoy the rest of the summer.

Disclaimer:  I was sent this necklace as a gift from a company that sympathised with our stay rather than as a review.  I would buy it ten times over though as it is the only teething necklace Archie wants and it looks gorgeous with near enough everything!

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How to Survive a Hospital Stay - Staying Sane

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and their client.

As you may well know, we have recently moved into our local hospital.  Dylan managed to break his leg just as the summer weather was starting and so the boys and I are now inmates.  Days are long and difficult as keeping two immobile under 2s occupied when they have such different needs is a challenge in itself.   Add in that the usually active toddler cannot wear himself out and the days go on for a long long time.

I am busy writing a couple of posts about how we are surviving our stay but I thought I should start with the most important lesson - staying sane.  

Being cooped up in a cubicle with your beautiful but exhausting children takes its toll and at the end of the day I have very little time for myself before I need to curl up on my chair-bed and try and get a little rest  It is very important to use this time wisely, and make sure you relax as everything else can wait.  A happy mamma makes for happy children.

My number one lifesaver comes in a purple packet and tastes utterly scrummy.  That's right, Cadburys produce sanity in shiny little bags called Chocolate Buttons.  I was recently asked to shop for Cadburys products in Asda and you really don't have to ask me twice when it comes to chocolate!

Every night, when the boys eventually drift off, I escape as fast as I can to the children's ward garden armed with a sugary snack.  Every day I reward myself for surviving, for keeping my cool, for playing all day long and for staying strong for them.  The fresh air revives me and the sugary treats relax me.

Every now and again I do share - not with the children of course, but with the friendly nurses who are helping make our stay bearable. Sometimes they come and talk to Dylan, sometimes they take Archie for ten minutes for a walk around, sometimes they bring Dylan gifts for his stay, toys, books and stickers and they are always there when I need to hear a friendly adult voice.

My secret stash is hidden in  . . . well obviously I won't share that information, just in case you know where we are! But lets just say I don't let my stash get too low.  

Parenting can be hard, there are ups and downs and many hurdles along the way, but thank goodness there is always chocolate to brighten even the cloudiest of days!  It didn't take me long to realise how easy it is to run yourself into the ground in this situation and spending my day out of hospital unable to get out of bed was a bit of a wake up call.  Now I make sure I relax when I get a chance and of course a chocolate biscuit or two doesn't hurt!

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Baking With A Toddler

A simple recipe for baking Rice Crispie Cakes with a toddler.  

Take one seemingly happy toddler, one rather content baby, some uneaten Easter eggs and a box of rice crispies.  

Strap the toddler in the high chair in the kitchen and pop baby in his bouncer on the kitchen floor.

Bring out the chocolate eggs and watch the excited smile take over toddler's face.  Help him break up the chocolate into small pieces and watch him smuggle as many of the pieces into his mouth as possible.

Suggest that we heat the chocolate in the microwave and watch the confused look take over from the smile.

Try and remove the bowl of chocolate pieces from his tight grip - use force if necessary.

Attempt to stop total meltdown and distressed cries of 'lock lot egggggggg' as you shut microwave door and fish out tissues for the tears pouring down toddler's face.  Put up with sixty seconds of tears and tantrums as the bowl of chocolate is out of his sight and worry that the neighbours will think you are torturing the poor boy.

Remove melted chocolate from the microwave and listen to sighs of relief as the tears instantly dry up.  Remember that you forgot to wash toddler's hands before you began as they are now immersed in melted chocolate.

Check quickly to make sure baby is still alive and content.

Pour rice crispies into the bowl and watch the chocolatey fingers explore.  Half of these will get eaten in the process so make sure you pour in too many.

Grab two wooden spoons and encourage toddler to mix.  Watch as he uses spoon to flick chocolatey crispie mixture all over previously clean kitchen, bash the glass bowl with it, brush his hair with it and generally do everything other than mix in the cereal.

Mix it up yourself trying not to hurt the little hands that are still shovelling chocolatey cereal into mouth at an astonishing rate.

When it is all mixed well, bring out the paper cases and show toddler how to fill the cases with mixture.  Watch as he attempts to do this with the spoon, his fingers and his mouth.

Fill up the paper cases yourself as you really fancy actually eating a cake at the end of the process, and the toddler's are starting to look a little worse for wear.

Bribe toddler with a spoon full of chocolatey rice crispies so that you can remove the finished cakes and place them in the fridge.  Notice that previously clean kitchen now looks like a cereal packet exploded in it's middle, with some chocolate casualties..

Clean up toddler, let him loose and attempt to save the baby from being fed crunched crispies from the floor by loving older brother.

Leave the room, lock the door and hope the bloke will clean up afterwards

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Day 21 + 22- Sweet Treats

Unfortunately I have not had a camera to hand for the last two days, because the mess was epic.  On day 22, we gave Dylan his first bit of real chocolate, namely, a chocolate finger.  Luckily, he happened to be wearing just a nappy at the time, so the sticky brown dribble pooled in front of rather than spreading and staining his lovely clothes.


As is recommended, he has been weaned on a healthy diet of fruit, veg, and milk but I thought it was about time he learnt the real benefit of solids- chocolate.

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