Cocoonababy: Review

One item that I fell in love with during my pregnancy was the Cocoonababy. I will be completely honest, I saw it and just loved it. I read all the sales information and decided I wanted it. It looked good and claims to help babies sleep and reduce reflux (which can be common in babies). I do feel like the reason behind me wanting it was because of the good sales pitch and the high price (it looked like a luxury item), it wasn't necessarily a logical want. My pregnancy hormones may have been influencing me.

However, I am so glad we got it! My son has been sleeping in it since birth, so for 2 months now, and he loves it! He sleeps so soundly in it. Of course, this could be down to many other factors as well (he may just be a good sleeper). But I can not deny that since birth he falls asleep quickly when he is put in his Cocoonababy. He is also very settled at night, and apart from the odd spit up he doesn't posset anywhere near as much as when he is lying flat on a normal mattress.

Although Red Castle (who make the Cocoonababy) would be unlikely to encourage co-sleeping I have found that this can be done with the Cocoonababy (of course, always be careful when doing this and I am in no way promoting co-sleeping, this is just my experience).

My husband has been sleeping in the spare room during weekdays, as he works long days, so I have been putting the Cocoonababy next to me in bed during these nights (without any pillows or duvet under or close to it). This was really handy at night as I had a C Section and getting around was hard at first. Being able to be next to my baby and soothe him without getting out of bed was so useful. I felt that he was safe in the Cocoonababy, while next to me in bed, as I was much less likely to roll on top of him (one of the dangers of co-sleeping).

From what I have read the Cocoonababy was designed in France for Neonatal babies and is even used in French hospitals. Some of the benefits can be found on the Cocoonabay website here, and include:

• improve the quality and the length of the child’s sleep.
• reduce the involuntary jerky movements which wake baby with a start and make him cry (startle or Moro reflex).
• limit gastric reflux (thanks to the slope of the Cocoonababy®).
• limit the risk of flat head syndrome (plagiocephaly).

I believe in complete honesty so I will say that I haven’t noticed it really reduce the startle reflex (my baby does that often even in the Cocoonababy) and he does have some flat head syndrome (but not much). The best benefits, that I believe are down to the Cocoonababy, are him sleeping longer (he is 8 weeks old now and almost sleeping 6 hours at night) and less gastric reflux.

The Cocoonababy is expensive and it can only be used for a few months, John Lewis sell it for £129.95 (Link), but it does have its advantages and I would get it again in a heartbeat. I guess in terms of value for me it has paid for itself in better sleep for me and my son, and it being so useful for co-sleeping in those first weeks (when I struggled due to my C Section scar and recovery).

If you have any questions about my experience with the Cocoonababy please feel free to ask in the comments below.
 
This is not a sponsored post.

Let them eat cake!

Sometimes I feel like the only thing I eat as a Mummy is biscuits and cake. Mostly because of all the coffee mornings you can end up attending as a Mum. Whether they are baby and Mummy groups or just meeting up with a fellow Mummy, this has meant that cake and biscuits has become the staple of my diet.

Often that afternoon coffee and cake, during a meeting with a fellow parent, is the first chance I get to eat. It can take the whole morning to get ready and pack everything you need for just a few precious hours out of the house.

Anyway, because of this cake diet, when I find a good coffee and cake near me it is like gold dust. All these coffee mornings and Mummy meet ups make me feel like I have become a connoisseur of the humble Victoria sponge. 

Luckily I have a few places to pick from when the need for cake arrives and Couch on Ecclesall Road (in my home city of Sheffield) has a top selection. But the king of cakes, both in Couch and locally (in my opinion) has got to be their Salted Caramel Brownie.

This cake is our reward as mummies... Place it next to a large latte and I melt. This brownie is beautifully gooey in the middle and you can really taste the salted caramel flavour (it doesn't leave you wondering where they hid the caramel like so many other cakes can).

  

I have also tried some of their other sweet offerings and can report that they are delicious too including various brownie flavours, carrot cake and Victoria sponge. They do seem to have a flare for brownies though, as their snickers brownie is also another top treat!

And if the mood takes you, Couch also offers an array of delicious breakfasts, tasty treats, tapas and even cocktails. I love a place that you can take a pram into, get a cocktail in the evening and not feel like you are a bad parent in the middle of bar. The atmosphere is relaxed and it has that stylish look where none of the furniture matches.

It is also worth exploring for the offers they always have on; £1 coffee weekday mornings, 241 breakfasts on weekdays, happy hours and more. I am a sucker for a good deal and their full English breakfast is well worth trying, and if you can go with a friend and get 241 then it can be really good value.

If you are in Sheffield then I definitely recommend this place - they also have another Couch on Campo Lane in the centre of Sheffield too.

Link to their website:
http://couchstuff.co.uk/ecclesall-road/
 
This post isn't sponsored.

Review: Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Machine

If aliens invaded my house and said I could only take one thing with me I probably wouldn't take my husband... As long as they returned him after probing him I would sacrifice him and take my Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Machine instead!

Because as a bottle feeding Mummy this machine is currently the Romeo to my Juliet... I am in love with this machine. If it could do the dishes I might even let the aliens take my husband permanently.

After struggling with breastfeeding I made the decision to formula/bottle feed my son. I needed to do something that made me feel like I had some control over everything that comes with being a new Mummy. I was recovering from a C Section, my husband's paternity leave was ending and after a couple of weeks of painful attempts at breastfeeding I moved exclusively to formula.

During this time a friend who was also bottle feeding referred me to the Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Machine... This machine cuts out so much of the hassle that comes with bottle feeding.

For those of you that aren't currently aware, when you prepare a bottle these days you need to boil the kettle and then wait up to 30 minutes for the water to cool before pouring it, adding the formal etc etc...

This 30 minute wait can be the most heart wrenching and painful time as it often means your baby is screaming for a feed. Let's be honest, unless you are a mind reader most Mummies don't know exactly when their baby will wake and/or want a feed. As as you aren't meant to prepare formula bottles in advance these days it basically means a potential 30 minute wait between baby waking and when the bottle would be ready... Thus a screaming baby is highly likely, because most babies aren't reasonable when hungry!

But with the Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Machine it makes a bottle in less than a minute! It was the answer to my prayers... Basically, it puts a shot of boiling water into a bottle, which you add formula to (the boiling water kills any bacteria in the formula) and then it tops up the mixture with filtered cool water. Resulting in sterile formula at the right temperature for a baby, meaning you can give the bottle to them immediately (and within a minute of starting the whole process).

This machine can literally be salvation during night time feeds as well. Avoiding that potential 30 minute wait at night can literally be the difference between you being able to function (somewhat) and going crazy. Especially in that first month when sleep can become a distant memory.

It is an expensive piece of equipment but I know I am going to get lots of use out of it, you can also buy it from several places, including Mothercare and they price match. Or you can buy it from Very and spread the payments over 3 installments.

My only complaint is that it can be quite loud when making the bottles, in the words of my husband it woke him up when I did night time feeds... Saying this to a sleep deprived Mummy might not be the best idea (as he found out). But it's okay because he will get his comeuppance when the aliens come...

  

I havent been asked to review this item, all opinions are my own and this isn't a sponsored post.

I was way too cocky...

I was until recently one of those smug women who didnt have 1 stretch mark on their growing baby bump. Even as my bump got quite big (and people were very verbal about how big) I would smugly remark back "and not one stretch mark"....

Ohhhh how that has changed, I have got my comeuppance. About a month before I was due to give birth I noticed the first signs of those dreaded marks... and then they multiplied like bunnies (but a lot less cute).

I now look at my belly and have to accept that it will not be the same post pregnancy. I wouldnt say it was a well trimmed six pack before, but with a bit of breathing in it looked okay in a bikini. That wont be the case anymore...

However, as I mourn the loss of my mark free belly I realise that this is a sacrafice that I would willing make. It is my mark of "mummy-hood" and I will wear it with pride. I might not necessarily flaunt my post pregnancy belly but I will feel a sense of pride that those are the "love marks" of 9 months hard work carrying my baby.

I wish I could say that any of the creams I have used have stopped the rapid multiplying of my stretch marks but they havent. I think that if you are going to get them, then you are going to get them. All us women can do is moisturise and pray.