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POCO DOLCE: SPICY sweet gift FOR YOUR favorite chocolate lover

Oh dear readers, in case you were wondering, this is what to send me the avid chocolate lover, read on!

My favorites are the spice ones | photo via Poco Dolce

I was going to buy my step-dad a $50 box of Scharffen Berger cocoa powder to feed his chocolate habits. He currently likes to add Hershey’s syrup to his every coffee and keeps a squirt bottle in his brief case. but I realized that unless you’re a cocoa or mocha fiend/snob like my husband, it would just be a very sad waste of cacao beans and space in his pantry.

So then my mind wandered over to these little gems that Sunny introduced me to and I thought I should pass along the find to you.

If you want to buy a truly decadent chocolate gift for the spicy person in your life, you absolutely must get some of these $$ chocolate tiles. Flavors like Aztec Chile and Burnt Caramel or Ginger are infused into the dark chocolate and I’m getting a little droolly just thinking about it.

Bittersweet chocolate combined with the finest ingredients from roasted almond to bits of burnt caramel toffee and finished with grey sea salt. Our tiles are made by hand in our San Francisco kitchen and packed in our signature blue box. from bits of burnt caramel toffee to roasted almonds.

Spicy sweet. and it’s at the stupid price point that is crazy to buy yourself and only Santa can afford.

 

Related links:
> read a rave review on thenibble.com
> buy me (or someone you love) 16 Aztec Chile tiles for $34 at pocodolce.com
> get way too much cocoa powder for $50 at scharffenberger.com

A long weekend of birthday events

I’ve milked my 37th birthday to be sincere since why not, hey?! I wasn’t really in the mood for partying considering that the passing of my auntie Zak however if it’s one thing she taught me, it was to accept as well as take pleasure in life.

The 16th was on a Thursday this year, making it the best reason to spread the events out into a long weekend of fun with household as well as friends, as well as there was nowhere as special as Cliveden home health club to spend my huge day.

Meeting up with my great buddy Charlotte at Cliveden House, we proceeded to online out our finest lives as women of the Manor. It was actually the most best birthday possible which was kicked off with a morning run in the spa’s state-of-the-art fitness center overlooking the grade I outside pool as well as clock tower (what a view) before a day of swimming, massages as well as dips in the hot tub…Oh, as well as a champagne lunch to boot (please don’t dislike me).

Now let me show you around!

Lady of the Manor 1

Lady of the Manor 2

We were so lucky that the sun came out to play too…and all the time long on a day it wasn’t arranged to. Zak liked the sun as well as I felt it was her smiling down at me on my birthday.

I am so exceptionally grateful to James, the service advancement manager at Cliveden home for all his generosity as well as for making my 37th birthday one I’ll never forget.

James really reached out to me when I very first transferred to Windsor, welcoming me to the area as well as he’s provided my household as well as I the most outstanding experiences there considering that we shown up in Berkshire as well as I feel genuinely touched by his generosity. James is the most outstanding chap (you’ll get to satisfy him in the vlog below so don’t miss it) as well as I feel lucky to have made a buddy in him!

…Charlotte as well as I actually floated out of Cliveden home at the end of the day feeling absolutely rested as well as relaxed. What a spa-the massages were the very best of our lives! book in for a health club day if you understand what’s great for you!

After all that R &R, I was prepared to celebration like it was 1999 (99 was most likely the last time I partied like that to be fair) as well as Saturday night was all about fantastic friends, Greek food as well as dancing, as well as so much laughter. My jaw actually ached the complying with day as well as I’d lost my voice. indication of an legendary night!

Thanks to Next for my shine gown of dreams for the evening soiree, as well as for Lauren of wardrobe Doctor, my stylist, for always understanding what fits me!

Here I am with my sibling from one more mister Lela London as well as her boyf Michael, Jason Collier , my bestie as well as hairdresser as well as my youngsters as well as husband, Peter.

Jason provided me a birthday strike dry before we hit the town as well as isn’t is DIVINE. What a friend! Oh, as well as exactly how awesome is my unicorn birthday cake produced by cake brilliant Kerry of The Berkshire Bakesmith. It was unpleasant cutting into it!

#Poser.

One a lot more photo for great luck!

P.S Kerry has kindly shared the recipe for my unicorn cake on the blog!

More shots from an unscripted picture shoot pre-meal, since you understand me, people!

The genuine Greek restaurant was quite dark however Peter handled to snap a few pics of us all in action.

Here I am with my stunning woman Mirka of All infant recommendations as well as physical fitness 4 Mamas.

…And a lot more terrific buddies including darling actor buddies Harriet Thorpe as well as Angela Dixon!

Enjoying the sparkler with my great friend Jacqui of Jacquipaterson.com as well as Jason!

The style of the night (in my head) was what would a 37 year old Joan Collins do/wear! I believe I did her proud, don’t you?!

This final picture genuinely shows the night: a happiness from begin to end! humorous fun with outstanding people!

It’s seems cheesy af however I feel so extremely liked ideal now, as well as that’s all this 37 year might ever want, or need.

Thanks guys!

Opa!

Don’t miss the vlog:

 

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Buy my bestselling book in paperback or audio

My debut book is my guide to surviving as well as thriving at work as well as at house as well as uses insight into exactly how to produce a digital service or return to work with confidence.

Mumboss: The sincere Mum’s guide to Surviving as well as Thriving at work as well as at house (UK 2nd Edition)

Available on Amazon or Audible

The working Mom: Your guide to Surviving as well as Thriving at work as well as at house (US/Canada Edition)

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WEAR FLEECE

My friend at work, Melanie, gave me this tip for parents in the professional world. It’s sorta the opposite approach of Heather’s suggestion to keep your shirt off.

Pick an old large fleece and designate it as your pre-work cover up. get dressed for work in your cashmere sweater set, dry-cleaned blazer, or whatever your uniform is, and then put the fleece on top.

Now get your last minute baby snuggles in without worrying about spit up or banana goo on your shirt. head for the door and remove the fleece on your way.

If baby barfs on your pants, sorry, can’t help you.

GETTING BACK ON THE HORSE, CONFESSION OF A ROOKIE MOM’S night OUT

It was Mama’s night out and you have no idea how badly I needed it.

My husband,Tyler, had just returned from being out of town for work and would be leaving again in a few days. I love my baby, don’t get me wrong, but being alone with a 7-week old, around the clock, tends to make me a little crazy, so I jumped at the chance for a night out before the hubs left town again.

Tyler and I made a decision to do dinner and drinks with friends. That alone wasn’t going to be enough to satisfy my craving for adult interaction though so I made a decision to take it up a notch.

You see, I pointed out I had a 7 week old. That indicates that I had recently had my 6-week check up with my midwife (while my spouse was out of town). As I’m assuming you mommies know what that means….the all clear for sexy time.

But here’s the thing: just because your doctor says you can “do it” doesn’t indicate you (A) feel like it or (B) could find the time even if you wanted to.

But my husband, God bless him, deserved it. He hardly bugged me once over the course of the 6 weeks after our daughter, Piper, was born (probably because I told him to go take matters into his own hands). I felt like it was time to give him the best 30 seconds of his life.

So what did I do…..?

I paid for sex

No, not like that you weirdo. who do you think I am?

You see, I had figured out that getting busy with my spouse was hard to make happen at our house. Our kid fusses like crazy in the evenings (holy witching hour). By the time that is over, I’m exhausted and the last thing on my mind is bumping uglies.

And while we’ve gotten a babysitter before, she pertains to our house and it would just be odd to run off into another room (though the thought has crossed my mind).

So, I made a decision to get a hotel room. for what [turned out to be] around 30 minutes. $110 hotel room, 30 minutes, that’s $3.67 a minute (not including taxes)!

My “night out” started out “normally”. We met up with our pals  (also parents of a young one) and I had my first Moscow Mules. In a year. and yes, they were delicious.

The pals that we met up with are pregnant with their 2nd child, so naturally the conversation centered a lot around babies. It’s funny how that happens. I’ve turned into “that woman”. before I had a kid I hated talking about other peoples kids for a lot more than five minutes.

But what about the sex?

I had made a decision the day prior that I was going to do this whole hotel thing. However, planning this stuff is difficult with this newly acquired kid.

We have our babysitter for a limited amount of time and I’m going to need to pump at some point. So instead of eating dinner at my favorite restaurant downtown and then driving across town to a hotel, I just shortened the whole thing. I booked dinner reservations at a restaurant that also happens to be in a hotel (I’m efficient!). considering that it’s a restaurant we’ve eaten at, it wasn’t suspicious to my husband.

Now, it absolutely wasn’t as good of a restaurant as my normal downtown favorite, but I got to eat a hot meal and there was no baby crying. So I’ll take it.

After dinner I busted out a room crucial and gave it to my husband. Boy, he was ecstatic (and surprised!).

Without going into too lots of details, it was absolutely better than I expected. but still slightly painful.

We checked in around 8:00 and made it home by 9:00 with a quick stop at Trader Joe’s on the way home.

Was it the most romantic thing I’ve experienced? probably not. However, often you just got to jump back on the horse. You see if you weren’t hungry, you’d still eat at some point during the day. Well this is kind of the same thing. now that we’ve got that out of the way, I’m sure there will be much less anxiety about future “sessions.”

It was fun, it was refreshing, it was exactly what I needed.

Now I want to hear from you! In the comments below I’d love to hear your best idea for keeping the romance alive post-baby. We could all use some inspiration!

A poor MAN’S PHIL & TED STROLLER

I just saw that mod*mom and our pals at Babyccino have been blogging about the Phil & Ted stroller, the slickest buggy around for a two-kid family.

Both Heather and I debated whether this was a (major) purchase we needed as we had our second babies. We both made a decision to skip it, although it sure does look nice. Instead, we usually wore the small baby in a Bjorn and pushed the toddler in a stroller.

Pic by wayne

As the small baby got too big for the Bjorn, s/he got promoted to the stroller and the little dudes had to walk.

Then one day Julian made a decision he would get in the undercarriage of my cheap-o universal stroller, and we both loved it! It is so much faster to get two kids from a city vehicle parking space to a destination two blocks away (in San Francisco, two blocks distance is considered a pretty good vehicle parking space) when I am not counting on the little man walking on his own two feet. Julian says that it’s his clubhouse.

Who needs Phil & Ted?

10 things To make with youngsters in Bristol by Maria Newman

We utilized to online in Bristol as well as absolutely liked it there so it’s a genuine enjoyment to welcome Maria Newman of Mummy on a break to the blog to share her 10 things to perform in Bristol with kids, below. We have to make a see this summertime now.

Over to Maria!

First, let me introduce myself, my name is Maria as well as I online in Bristol with my other half as well as two children, Lea as well as Louka. I’ve resided in Bristol for a lot more than 20 years as well as I believe that it’s a magnificent city with great deals to make with a family. 

Since ending up being a mum, I’m on a regular basis in browse for things to make with the kids that are both fun as well as different.  below are my top 10 things. I hope they influence you to make a trip to Bristol!

 

Visit a national depend on property

I never believed I’d state it however I’m a fan of the national Trust. When I was young, I keep in mind my parents dragging me around these grand homes as well as not being remotely interested, generally since then, youngsters weren’t actively motivated to get included with the sites they were visiting… exactly how things have altered now though!

We on a regular basis see properties which are on the outskirts of Bristol with Tyntesfield () in Wraxhall as well as Dyrham Park () near bath being firm favourites. Both are set in achingly beautiful grounds with great deals of outside area for the youngsters can run wild in. Plus, as a parent I have peace of mind understanding my youngsters can’t get themselves into as well much difficulty there. when inside the historic houses, the kids are then encouraged to touch things with fun activities from trying on historic hats as well as having a go at playing a tiny harp to counting the number of Easter eggs hidden around the house.

They’re never bored!

For the events where you just want to check out the outdoors, head to Leigh woods (). The primary attraction is absolutely being able to build your own tepee!

 

Go to an animal attraction

Like lots of children, my kiddies like animals as well as there are a few choices to select from in Bristol.

If we’re in the mood for the a lot more standard zoo experience then we go to Noah’s Ark Zoo farm ()…Set in over 100 acres, there’s an excellent range of animals to see there from lions as well as elephants to chickens as well as rabbits. plus there’s lots of open area for the kids to check out as well as keep busy.

If it’s a lot more attractions as well as rides you’re after, then Puxton Park () is ideal. My two particularly like the tiny train that takes you on a gentle trip around a a few of the park. They discover it humorous pointing out the plastic animals as well as in specific the crocodile, which my kid is adamant, is real.

There’s likewise Slimbridge Wetland Centre () if we’re in the mood for bird spotting. They have all five types of flamingo and the a lot of unusual goose in the world there. I like enjoying the youngsters try as well as feed every bird they see.  It’s unusual exactly how far a bag of bird food can go. My children’s much-loved activity nevertheless has to be Welly Boot Land (on site) as they get to sprinkle around in a big enclosed area complying with the stream as it takes them from challenge to obstacle. Fun!

 

We The Curious

My youngsters are curious creatures who yearn to comprehend exactly how things work. This normally indicates testing things to the limit as well as then potentially getting upset when things can’t be fixed. That’s why We The curious () is always worth a visit. A risk-free atmosphere for kids to check out whatever from exactly how the eco system works to comprehending what it indicates to be an astronaut, it’s a one-stop day of question for curious bit minds.

 

Chew Valley Lakes

If we want to take advantage of the excellent British weather, when the sun is shining, we head to the lakes, Chew Valley Lakes (). very first on the agenda, is a long walk around the lakes to develop up an appetite, (in the summer we area electric blue damsel flies), complied with by a area of lunch at Salt as well as Malt (), which serves tasty fish as well as chips. After a huge lunch, we either like to feed the ducks or let the kids work off lunch in the park, whilst we adults take five minutes to rest and admire the scenery.

 

Portishead Lake Grounds

A excellent location to spend a long time is Portishead Lake grounds () which makes for the best picnic spot. We likewise like to take a football with us as well as bat as well as sphere for outside fun. Failing that, the youngsters like to play in the park as well as we like to drag them along the esplanade for a walk! The reward being an ice cream from the onsite quirky café.

 

Clevedon

Just a short drive outside of Bristol is the seaside town of Clevedon () with its famous grade 1 provided Victorian pier (), which has some breathtaking views, so much so, on a remove day you can see across to Wales. We then normally take a stroll to the Marine Lake to see if the crabs are biting as well as then jump on the light railway before heading back house for tea.

 

Bristol Museum

A place we pop into now as well as then is the Bristol museum (). found in the centre of Bristol, not only does it have significant exhibits spanning archeology, geology as well as artwork from regional phenomenon Banksy, but it also holds routine household events, like celebrating Chinese new Year.

 

Soft Play Centres

One thing that my kiddies like is soft play as well as Bristol has great deals of those on offer. My kids are at an age where they want to be challenged so we go veer between Playspace () which stimulates as well as influences (with incredibly views as well as coffee too) as well as our local garden centre, Thornbury garden Centre () where we enjoy home made cake whilst the youngsters go wild!  If we’re feeling especially brave, then I agree to go to jump (), which my kids go bouncing mad for!

 

Family-friendly restaurants

As a family, we want to be able to treat ourselves to lunch as well as afternoon tea right here as well as there as well as say thanks to completely Bristol is bursting with family-friendly restaurants as well as cafes. After the institution run, you’ll discover me in Boston Tea celebration () with two floors as well as a magnificent garden. On the weekend, it’s commonly a area of lunch at Grounded () with its instagrammable interiors as well as menu full of locally sourced ingredients. 

 

The Downs

Bristol is understood for being a eco-friendly city, not just for being environmentally-friendly however likewise because of its huge eco-friendly spaces. The Downs () is a stunning, secured parkland area households like to walk, play games as well as picnic in

So those are my city’s top ten.

What are yours?

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Buy my bestselling book in paperback or audio

My debut book is my guide to surviving as well as thriving at work as well as at house as well as uses insight into exactly how to produce a digital service or return to work with confidence.

Mumboss: The sincere Mum’s guide to Surviving as well as Thriving at work as well as at house (UK 2nd Edition)

Available on Amazon or Audible

The working Mom: Your guide to Surviving as well as Thriving at work as well as at house (US/Canada Edition)

Available September 8th 2020. buy now on Amazon

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PAINT YOUR expecting belly FOR THE holiday

When I saw this photo of Caley’s belly on her blog, I laughed as well as asked her to explain what she’d done.

She wrote:

After visiting the pumpkin patch a couple of weeks back as well as having a complete stranger comment that I’d “better pay for that pumpkin being smuggled under [my] shirt! Ha, ha!” I decided, Why not? I’ve seen TLC’s A infant story a gajillion times as well as they’re always doing things like belly casts or painting their bellies, as well as I didn’t do anything like that with my very first pregnancy. I figured it’d make a adorable picture, as well as be something fun to do with my toddler.

The safest paint to utilize is an FDA approved, water-based paint. any type of paint identified as “face paint” should work, as well as you can get them at Target or Walmart or such. Or you can go with some type of “professional” paint, such as this one. (However, I’m not an professional on paints, so don’t quote me on this. This site has some great tips; like it says, just since a paint states “non-toxic” does not mean it is risk-free for skin!) Or you might just purchase a kit.

My hubby put the orange paint around my belly with a sponge, as well as since we only bought the one color (I wasn’t going to buy a separate container of brown just for a bit part like the stem), I provided him permission to do the stem as well as the lines with washable Crayola markers. My toddler, on the other hand, desired absolutely nothing to do with our bit job as well as busied himself by getting into things while both his parents were occupied. So much for bonding over household Craft Time, right?

I washed the paint off soon after taking a picture, however faint Crayola lines stayed for a day or so, just to remind me of exactly how pumpkin-esque my belly truly is.

Thank you, Caley! as well as congratulations on ending up being a foursome!

THE story BEHIND OUR PUMPKIN patch photo {ROOKIE moms challenge #36}

The Challenge: get A Pumpkin Photo

Back in 2009, when I first met my now husband, Eric, he was playing banjo for a bluegrass band in Connecticut; one of our first weekends together he took me to see a show, and the leader of the band said, “You better not take him back to long Island for good!” We had just started dating, so it was slightly embarrassing…but low and behold, 5 months later we moved in together, on long Island.

Five years later, we decided it was time to head back to the vineyard and see the old band; luckily, our visit to Connecticut was during the harvest Festival! We were excited to introduce Weston to everyone, eat some BBQ, and see pumpkins. On the ride to the vineyard it dawned on me that this was the perfect time to complete Rookie moms challenge #36, take a pumpkin photo! Heather and Whitney claim that you can’t take a bad photo in a pumpkin patch, and I’m going to one-up them and claim that you can’t take a bad photo in the Autumn! The green grass, the leaves, the perfect setting sun…everyone looks their best (even with BBQ sauce all over their face!).

Mommy’s little Extrovert

Weston was a dream baby in the long automobile ride, and once we got out at the vineyard, his eyes opened wide: children, pumpkins, llamas! We met up with Eric’s old band, and it felt wonderful to finally introduce the little one to people who knew us back when we were newly dating. We planted ourselves right near the band and got some delicious pulled pork to eat for lunch. Weston happily sat in his stroller, pushed up against the table (highchair hack), and when the band started to play, he clapped and shouted like a regular!

However, the poor kid nearly lost his mind when Daddy unzipped his gig bag and took out his banjo. Weston started yelling, “gra! gra!” (Which, I think means guitar and is his word for any instrument?). He struggled to get out of his stroller, and when Eric started playing with the band, little monster boy ran right up to his dad on stage! everyone in the harvest festival thought he was hysterical, and when Weston danced, everyone danced with him! Talk about raising an extrovert”¦

Stop and eat the Flowers

After Eric played a few songs with the band, we all went to check out the llamas together. Weston got to pet them, and kept looking back at me with “this is not a dog?” eyes. since there wasn’t an actual pumpkin patch to wade through, we made the most of the large green field of pumpkins out and about.

Weston thought it would be a good idea to go over to a pumpkin and play, but when I looked back at him, he had a flower in his mouth. The poor little purple leaves sticking out; he made a disgusted face, and I nodded, yes, that is disgusting. We did get him finally, to sit and take a lovely fall photo with the pumpkin…it took a little prodding, but now we have photographic evidence of our wonderful autumn afternoon. And, really, does life even happen if you don’t have photographic evidence to post on Instagram? I think not.

[All photos: Olivia lovely Howell]

Find more baby activities for any season with the 52 weekly rookie mom challenges.

If you’re already participating, use hashtag #rookiemoms on instagram or twitter so we can cheer each other on.

LINKS ROOKIE mothers ought to understand about (FEBRUARY 2015)

Our buddy Lindsay at Suburban Turmoil is always hilarious. If you are overwhelmed by the world’s public obsessions with Paleo, Crossfit, eco-friendly Smoothies, HIIT, as well as other cult-like dedication to healthy habits, her parody is funny.

Retroj.am is so much fun! go into your birthday as well as get a playlist of the top songs from when you were in second grade, high school, as well as other milestones. outstanding nostalgia.

If you have kids old sufficient to checked out as well as use YouTube, you may understand exactly how offensive the comments can be. Here’s exactly how to hide them. Thanks, awesome mother Tech.

I wrote a little primer on infant classes for lifetime Moms. (Hint: It’s about satisfying the other moms.)

Design mother has four girls sharing a room. I loved this trip of exactly how the room is set up as well as styled.

My buddy Lynn’s sister Jill Santopietro is a chef, food editor, as well as mother, so her publish about making infant food is full of fantastic tips.

More on that topic…You have to F**king Eat

is the comply with up to cult smash “children’s” book Go the F**k To Sleep. This author gets me.

WHAT’S the very best guidance YOUR mother has provided YOU?

Over the years, my mother has provided me a great deal of advice. I desire I might quickly put my finger on the extremely finest however everything has a tendency to swirl around me as well as with me. Some I listened to, some I ignored. If only she had had a blog, right? then I might browse for her assistance at just the best times.

Before I had my second baby, Whitney made me a fantastic scrapbook of suggestions as well as guidance from our mother buddies with two or much more babies. including my own mother. Mixed in among my girlfriends’ recommendations to “let some things go” as well as “hold onto purchase even much more tightly” was a bit blast of guidance from the seventies.

We lovingly phone call this piece of guidance from my mother God bless the rocking chair (because that’s exactly how it starts), however the nugget of wisdom I many appreciate is to spend one-on-one time with my kids as frequently as possible.

I believe that the time we spend together doing what they want is a foundation for their pleased youth memories. Whether its playing a silly board game during naptime, building an legendary fort, or producing a LEGO comic strip out of Q-tips, they will keep in mind me as a mom who plays (at least I hope!).

I purchased a comfortable glider like my mom told me

As for the very first part of her advice, I should make sure to get a comfortable huge glider for those snuggles before my kids are as well huge to curl up with. I desired one that might work in other parts of the home when breastfeeding days are done. Time will tell if I selected wisely. Microfiber is a great material for getting rid of milk as well as dirt stains.

 

Related links:

Bonding with each kid by Gina Osher

Cozy gray glider

Tips for having two under two

What’s the very best guidance your mother ever provided you?