Some things that I love

It's been a while since I last blogged - babies do take up quite a bit of time, but things are getting much easier now and he is letting me put him down for more than 5 mins at a time!

So I decided to link up with butwhymummywhy and join in with her 'Some things that I love'

Something I read

When Charlie was born we had some difficulties getting to grips with breastfeeding and so my lovely friend lent me her book - The Womanly Art Of Breastfeeding. This book has been my lifesaver and when I felt like giving up breastfeeding completely it really helped me to focus and give it another go. I am so grateful for this book, without it I would probably be using formula now.

Something I watched 

I don't get a lot of time to watch TV! I tend to have This Morning on in the background in the mornings but in the evening hubby takes over the TV! I was out the other week in town and popped in to Superdrug where they had Les Miserables for £9.99. Hubby wouldn't come to the cinema with me to see it as he hates things like this so I hadn't seen it. So I got the DVD and managed to watch it whilst hubby was out last week. It is amazing! I didn't know what to expect but it is really good. I wasn't too keen on Russell Crowe as Javier but the rest of the film was fab.

Something I wore 

Whilst I was still pregnant I bought a few bits of clothing with some Christmas money I had been given to save for after Charlie was born. One of them was these jeans from River Island. I love them! Even better I had to return them and get a size smaller as they were too big after pregnancy as I lost so much weight to begin with, down to breastfeeding I think. So I am loving wearing these, they are skinny but stretchy and I love the pattern down the side of them. 

Something I listened to

As I am not watching much TV I have started downloading more music onto my iPhone, especially to listen to in the car. Charlie seems to be soothed by music, particularly Empire State of Mind! But my favourite track at the moment is Still Into You by Paramore. It seems a bit cheesy but I think it sums up hubby and me at the minute. 

Something I cannot live without 

This has to be Charlie! He is my world and I cannot believe I made him! I miss him when he is in someone else's arms, which I know is stupid, but I just can't get enough of him. He is really growing up now and has begun to smile and laugh quite a bit. He is still small in weight for his age, but he is gaining weight well so no one is concerned about him. He has such as wonderful little personality and he loves to play, especially with his daddy. He sits and talks to his animals and it is just the most wonderful sound! 

If you would like to join in with Some things that I Love, please pop along to butwhymummywhy.com and click the linky to enter. 

mummystartingout x

Xmas Party Outfit Blogger Challenge

Choosing a Christmas outfit, both for the party season and indeed for Christmas Day itself, has always been a time of year I look forward to. There are always lots of gorgeous dresses in the shops and online and I love getting dressed up for Christmas.

As you know I am now nearly 27 weeks pregnant; fashion, at the minute, is passing me by to be honest. The trousers and jeans in my wardrobe don't fit me anymore and I just generally feel uncomfortable in anything that isn't pyjamas or doesn't have some sort of elasticated waist (and I do not mean M&S Classic range trousers! I have not sunk that low. Yet. Instead, I bought some 'treggings,' whatever they are - probably a bit like leggings but more of a trouser style. And fabulous and very comfortable).

So when I got an email from Fashion Vouchers, about their Christmas Competition, which you can find here, I didn't really take much notice. The competition was to put together a Christmas party outfit for £100 or less. I certainly didn't think that, being pregnant, I would be able to find a suitable party outfit, that was both fashionable and stylish but also didn't make me look like a meringue.

Bored one day over lunch time, I read the email a bit more closely and clicked the link to the Fashion Vouchers website where there was details of the competition. I happened to notice that Asos was one of their brand stores and I remembered how I had bought a couple of maternity dresses from there a few weeks back. So I decided I would take on the challenge; after all, what have I got to lose!

I'm a dress girl. I came to dresses, I suppose, rather late on, probably when I was around 22. I believed, up until then, that they were for special occasions or going out etc. But since I discovered dresses I have to say, they are my staple wardrobe item; my go to item. I wear them for work, I wear them at home, to go out etc. With this in mind, I wanted to put together a Christmas party outfit based around a dress. I went across to the Asos website and of course, clicked 'Maternity.' I was actually quite surprised and pleased, with the amount of party type dresses available and it took me a while to choose my favorite one.

Anyway here are the results. I hope you like it. Buying and wearing clothes at the moment is a bit traumatic at times, but this really cheered me up and I felt I would feel comfortable but also fashionable for the party season.

Asos lace skater dress in green - £28

Luxury spike gem drop earrings - £18

River Island (from Asos) black clutch bag - £15 

Emma Jane Maternity tights 60 denier (from Asos) - £8

Asos Black Panther wedge shoe - £22.50 

Total - £91.50 (with change left over!)

Now I do realise that my outfit doesn't compare with some of the entries on other fashion blogs, but I am pregnant after all, and my intention was to create something that was stylish, but also practical for a pregnant woman, who will be nearly 31 weeks by the time it comes to wear this outfit, and also comfortable. Comfort is definitely the key to clothing in pregnancy, otherwise you end up hot, sweaty, and in a right old grump! 

I think this outfit could be worn on Christmas Day, but also to a Christmas party; the earrings add a bit of sparkle and bling for the festive season.
I would love to see other Christmas party outfits for pregnant women so if you come across any or you do one yourself - please link up!

If you want to get involved in the competition yourself, please click here to go to the competition page for more details. The winning entry receives £100 of vouchers for their chosen retailer (for the online shop they put their outfit together from).

mummystartingout x