Spa day / soft play!

Dont get me wrong im partial to a bit of pampering, however the battering it gives my purse, leaves me with a relaxed state of panic, trying to work out whether its going to leave me with any money for the rest of the month!  And I'm sure I cant be the only one!

Yesterday, a good friend and I took our little girls to a local soft play centre.  For £3.50 they could play with slides, ball pools, babies and prams, rollers, and climbing frames for the grand total of 90 minutes.  Except it was so quiet we eeeeked it out to 3 hours! And they serve my favourite beverage - diet coke, ice cold! And they sell wispas!  So for a fraction of the price, I have found the state of calm so longingly desired from the massage, get the lesser panic from the purse attack and get to hear / see my child having a lovely time with her friend..... I reckon soft play centre must be the new spa retreats for the yummy mummys!
Of course, nearing lunchtime the girls were starting to knock three shades of blue out of each other and were more than ready for their nap, meaning a quiet stroll home and naptime to sort laundry out.
Sometimes the simple things are the nicest...

The proudest mummy!

Today was a very proud day.  Today my little girl got her very first swimming badge!!!  As a youngster my life revolved around swimming and I actually went and qualified to be an assistant swimming teacher so after 12 months of taking my little girl swimming and she still wouldn't blow bubbles or let go of me, I was shocked last week when she suddenly started kicking her feet off the bottom and floating.
This morning however was like a fish had suddenly replaced my daughter!  She was blowing buddles, jumping  in, swimming (with aids on her arms albeit!) with her arms and legs and happily putting her head under!!!  The instructor asked if she wanted to do the Ducklings Badge (she was clearly on commision - it cost me £3.05 on top of the £4.10 entrance fee!!!) and she not only said yes but started asking other children if they wanted to do it too!!!


Once she had completed all the tasks each of the children got to go up and shake the instructors hand and say well done for doing their badge and Olivia said very loudly 'youre very beautiful, thank you very much' turned round to me in the water and shouted 'i did it mummy i swimming good'.  My heart officially melted and I was indeed the most proud mummy in the whole world!

On the money saving front we had a cracking day - £14.49 from Amazon selling an old book and a DVD!  Hurrah!!! Total raised is now £18.98 - only £281.02 to go.....

Christmas Savings!

I have just been reminded that its 98 days until christmas - therefore I'm giving myself a challenge - not content with having a second child, I decide to give myself more pressure but hey ho!  I am going to earn, save or find £3 every day until christmas and try to keep a running total on here... so that I can try to have an extra £300 when I realise I have spent all my money on christmas presents, AKA the dreaded January blues!!!
For example, today I managed to sell a game on Ebay which accounts for £4.49 :) Im already ahead! Im like a money saving genius!

I'm contemplating doing one of those shop savings things so that you get an extra few pounds to spend on grub too... maybe M and S may be the way forward.... keep you updated!

The hoarding rules!

As previously mentioned I'm trying to get rid of a whole host of junk my husband likes to collect - yes that right- that HE likes to collect.  The man is unable to throw out a sock with a hole in it from his big toe to his pinky toe as it has sentimental value!

So I have come up with some small rules I like to follow for de-bugging his hoarding tendancies -
1) Pick a different area of hoarding activity every week - clothes, DVDs, shoes... 
2) Hide it for a month.
3) If he doesnt ask / try to find it within that time then its fair game.
4) Sell or throw it away if it cant be reused around the house
5) Use said funds to organise the home or to put in the savings!
6) Every penny is a penny closer to perfection :)


So far I have made nearly £200 on ebay clearing out old DVDs, books, clothes, and obviously loads of my own stuff too.  I have recycled loads and given stuff to charity shops - this also makes you get that nice warm glow in your tummy when you help someone!!!

We are due Mr Bump any day now, keep your fingers crossed!!!!

Im new on here!

First post, what to say... Im currently 36 weeks and 3 days pregnant with my second baby.  Im attempting to declutter my house via Ebay and yet the house looks more like a bomb has hit it every day...
Im trying to make room from the endless DVD and CD piles and yet, cant seem to get the energy to type another ISBN number in the box...
Im trying to potty train our two year old daughter who has decided that she is terrified of going to bed and is hysterical everytime its bedtime!  I can hardly sleep and Im pretty sure my husband must be sick of me.
  Oh, and I have to give birth in the next few weeks.  I do try to be a good wife and mum, sometimes it just feels like Im a bit crap at it though.  When do you actually get taught how to be perfect or at least good at the normal every day crap?  If I were a gymnast I could train and learn how to do those weird roll things they do.  But there is no exercises or teachers... thats an untapped market... I better get onto Dragons Den about that...