Katy Hopkins : I am an Irish Mammie

I normally don't post on a Saturday but something inside me had to write this.

If I left it too long, I was likely yo burst.

Katie Hopkins is a woman I never knew existed until her outrageous interview on ITV's This Morning show.

She was on the show talking about how she decided who her kids can play with on the basis of their name or where they live. After watching this interview I was appalled that someone would judge children like this. 

Their CHILDREN for god sake.

I'm not naive. I do know that this happens. I know that in every town, there's "that" part of town. Or "that" family. But would you really stop you kids from playing with them because of that? You should judge people by their actions and words not their name.

If I were to judge Katy Hopkins on her name alone, I would not have much to say really. Pretty normal name. But I would be sorry for doing that. Her actions on The Late Late Show were horrible. She didn't hold back when it came to talking about “full-time mummies” as she sarcastically called them. Tubs, who I love, did try to give as good as she did and stood up for Irish Mammies but she was a woman on a mission.

 "They drop off their kids in their pyjamas or their onesies. They slop off home in their Ugg boots. They meet for coffee, they compare breast sizes [because of breastfeeding]…and then they go back and they pick up the kids. I mean really. That’s it."

Katy  Hopkins, I am a full time mummie as you put it.

I do not pull up to school to drop off my kids in my pj's.

I do not own a onesie.

I do not have time for coffee and comparing boob sizes.

I cook.

I clean.

I wash.

All the time.

I spend time with my children.

We play, craft and sometimes do nothing together.

I do not judge people based on where they live.

I do not pick my friends based on their name.

I do not have pictures of myself naked in a field.

I do not spend my evenings on national tv insulting the people of the country

i'm in.

I do not spend time being a judgmental, prejudiced person.

I am a mother.

I chose it. I did not just become a mother.

You also chose to be a mother.

But for some reason have decided it's better to criticize others.

Maybe it's to make you feel better about your short comings. 

Maybe it's because you want the attention.

Maybe you feel the need to justify what you do.

I should not have to justify why I am a full time mother.

Not to you.

 Not to anyone.

And I will never do it again.

You are forgetting that people do judge others by their actions and words and one day your children will see what kind a person you are. 

I have pity for you when that day comes.

PS. Irish Mammies Rock!!

Favourite Things Friday

Happy Friday y'all!
It's the last Friday of January.
Woohoo! I'm glad to be saying "see ya" to this month.
Spring is arriving and I can't wait for longer days and some spring projects around here.

Last week I posted my first Favourite Things Friday.

I can't believe how popular it was.

So I'm back for another week sharing my favourite thing I have found on Pinterest this week.

Favourite Desk

I would love one of these in my kitchen so I could have somewhere besides the kitchen table to work. 

Oh Husband...

Favourite Craft

I'll be making some of these bad boys this week to hold the million things that live on my fridge.

Who said clutter couldn't look pretty?!

Favourite Quote

Every single day!

Favourite Look

I need this in my life. So Cute!

Favourite Valentine

There are loads of really cute ideas on here. I'm going to try some of these over the weekend with the kids.

Favourite Bathroom Art

Just need to get some cute pictures of the kids without my camera getting wet.

Favourite Colour scheme

My Kitchen is Yellow. I think it's time for some updating.

I hope you enjoyed my "Friday Favourite Things" this week.

My hopes for these posts is to share my favourite things and inspire others.

Have you checked out any of my favourite things?

Did you like them?

Do you have something that you want to share with me?

Let me know in the comments or on my Facebook page.

Have an amazing weekend Friends!

Get Fit, Stay Fab : A new weekly fitness linkup

Is it over yet.

I'm so over January.

It has been the longest, wettest month here and I'm read for some better weather.

Now!!

Bad weather make me fell bad.

I've been in a fitness funk since the new year.

I just can't seem to get motivated to get up and do it.

I hate working out in the rain.

It's my glasses you see. 

I'm blind, pretty much anyway, with out them and can see if they get all wet.

And yes I could wear contacts but I don't look like me without my glasses and it's kind of a waste if I'm just going for a 20 minute run.

But February is just around the corner and I'm giving myself a kick in the ass.

I'm going to start blogging once a week about my fitness highs and lows.

I was involved in a fitness link up last year over on Jen's blog last year and it really motivated me.

I got back into running and I loved it.

I miss the support I got from the group of lovely ladies that linked up.

I missed how we pushed each other to do more, be healthier, stay fitter.

So today I'm starting my own fitness linkup.

The first linkup will be next week.

If you want to link up and find great workouts, good healthy recipes and people that know what it's like to fail and start again, then join in.

Come February,  I'll be starting a new challenge.

My abs are more flab than fab and I'm ready to do something about it.

I'm hoping that this link up will keep me accountable for my fitness too.

I hoping that you will join in and share your fitness highs and lows with me.

If you're on Instagram you can follow me HERE and use the #getfitstayfab4life .

If you don't have a blog and want to follow along, you can leave a comment under the blog post or on my Facebook page under the post.

Check back next week for the link up and to see how I did with week one of my new challenge.

Don't forget to grad the button and add it to your post.

Have a great day!

Bye bye Dummy : Tips for saying bye to your child's dummy and a Giveaway

A few months ago I noticed that my sons teeth were starting to change shape because of his dummy. I don't really like dummies but he was a baby that needed something to settle him. My daughter never had one but she did use her smallhand to suck on and so I never had to deal with getting rid if the dummy.

I decided we'd try and send his dummy off to the North Pole with Santa and we'd be done. Not a chance. As much as he loved Santa, and he loves him, he loved his dummy more.

I trolled pinterest for tips to help the process but nothing came up. With all the mothers in the world I thought someone would have shared their wisdom to help us less knowledgeable mothers. Information is power after all.

So I decided to write my own list of things that worked and didn't work for me and some of my friends.

Give advanced warning. 

Let your child know that you're going to be taking away his dummy. Usually, a week’s notice is enough time as long as you continue to remind your child daily.

Try the Slow and Steady Approach

I had to remember this was an addiction. Just like any other addiction, he was not going to give it up easily. I tested the waters every few weeks to see if he was ready. When he didn't seem to miss it I took it away a little at a time. This made it easier, for both me and him, even if it takes a little more time than some other methods.

Appeal to your child’s sympathies. 

This didn't work for me. He loved it too much and didn't want to part with it. "No baba" is what he used to say. But it might work for you as long as you don’t mind telling a little white lie. Simply tell him that dummies are for babies, and since he's a big kid now, he can give it to a baby that needs it. 

Snip It. 

Snip a small hole in the end of the dummy with a pair of scissors or poke it with a needle. This will reduce the sucking effect that he gets from the dummy. Then, explain that the dummy is broken and has to be thrown away. If he doesn't want to throw it away let him suck on it. When he doesn't get the same effect from it he throw it away himself. I'm hoping he won't ask for a trip to Tesco for a replacement.

Don’t Offer the Dummy. 

As your child gets older and no longer needs the dummy as a soothing device, stop offering it to him. If you’re lucky, he may forget about it for longer and longer periods of time, effectively weaning himself. This work for me during the day. Still fighting the battle at night time.

Limit the Quantity of Dummies in the House

Many parents make the mistake of stocking up on dummies because they are so often lost. I did this and as he got older he knew where they were kept and would try and get one himself. So as they got lost they stayed lost. We now have only one dummy and that is the last one. When it's gone it's gone for good.

Enlist Some Magical Help

My little guy was and still is too young for this but it might work for an older child.

We have a long history of telling little white lies to ease our children’s fears and put a little magic into their childhoods. Recently, the Dummy Fairy has taken up ranks with Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy as a popular night-time visitor. Prepare your child beforehand for the Dummy Fairy’s arrival and be sure to leave a thank-you note or even a gift when you (um, I mean the Dummy Fairy) snatches the dummy while your child is sleeping.

Go Cold Turkey

The tried-and-true method of turning your dummy-sucking toddler into an independent big kid, going cold turkey, is effective. Simply take the pacifier away, and don’t give it back – no matter how much your little one begs, pleads, and screams for it. Stand your ground, and in a week or two, you and your child will be free from the pacifier once and for all. But it takes a great deal of patience and determination on your part. Something I simply don't have right now. If you can do this then well done to you. I just couldn't watch my little guy going through it. I know what it's like to have to give up something your addicted to and it's not easy.

Distraction

Toys, books, cartoons. Whatever your little one loves, use it. If he has a tantrum or just won't stop asking for it, distract him. I have found lego to be a life and sanity saver.

I am by no means an expert. Some of these have worked and some failed. We are now at the stage of no dummy during the day. I'm not offering him it at night but if he looks for it I'm giving it to him. I'm more concerned with him getting a good nights sleep so the next day won't be full of melt downs.

If you found this helpful, let me know. leave a comment or pin it.

Is there anything I left out? Do you have a tip that could change the way us mothers deal with this.

Share your knowledge and put it in the comments.

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Rachel, Marie and the team over at Babytalk, a pregnancy and baby festival have contacted me and have given me two weekend passes to give away to a lucky reader.

Babytalk is a festival for babies and their families, expectant parents and anyone thinking of starting or adding to their family.

You don’t need a bump to go to babytalk – everyone is welcome to come along and enjoy the comfortable, family-friendly festival weekend and supportive inclusive atmosphere. The festival is taking place on the 22nd and 23rd of February 2014 from 10am to 5pm daily in O’Reilly Hall, UCD, Dublin.

All the details for a fun stress-free day out have been considered with free car parking, buggy parking, baby changing areas, lots of comfy spots to feed either out and about or in their quiet feeding area and their gorgeous Easy Parenting café area where you can refuel and relax. With face painting and children's entertainment too,the little ones won't get bored while Mom and dad look around. They're even giving out goodie bags. What more can you ask for?

If your looking for a festival that has no nonsense information form parents that have been there and done it all, then Babytalk is the festival for you.

If you would like to win a pair of weekend passes to the festival all you have to do is one or all of the following:
Head on over to my blog Facebook page by clicking HERE and like the page.
You can leave a comment below.

You can also like and share the post on my Facebook page for an extra entry.

I'll be running the competition until next Tuesday where I'll pick one luck reader to give the passes to. 

Good luck !!

Blowing Kisses Your Way : Valentines craft & free printable

I'm always looking for a way to make cheap crafts that don't take up much time.

I mean, we all have kids and we want to make things special.

But we're busy Mama's that don't have time to spend hours on these things.

I was trying to think of something to make for valentines day, using up what I had at home.

I had bubble sticks that I got from Deals for less then €1.50 and wanted to use them up.

"Blowing Kisses Your Way"

This is perfect to help my use up the bubble sticks.
And they're red.
Perfect for Valentines Day!

I made up a quick printable to use with them.
Feel free to download the printable or share it on Pinterest.

Just click on the image and save it to your computer.

(You may have to change your page settings to get them to the size you want)

It's such a simple way to make your kids feel like them getting something really special with out having to send a whole lot of money.

And what kid doesn't love bubbles?

None that I know.

It's a win,win.

I'll be adding these into the kids Vday bags along with the other things I've picked up.

They would also make a cute classmate gift if that happens in your school.

I don't think it happens in our but I'm sure J will let me know.

The finished product ready for handing out.

I hope you enjoy using these printables.
If you use them and are on instagram, tag your photos with #CGRprintables .
I'd love to see how they turned out.

Check back in next Monday where I'll be sharing another free printable involving glow sticks.

Thanks for reading.