It’s 10pm and my two little cherubs are still crashing around in their bedroom. Due to lack of space they share a room, which I generally am really happy about. They adore being together and it’s lovely to see how close their relationship is becoming. For the past few months, though, bedtime has been a total and utter nightmare. 

They go bed around 7pm and they are both deffo ready for it. Sophie, my two and a half year old, dropped her day time naps around a year ago which was way too early. She just didn’t want to miss out on whatever her big bro was doing and simply refused to sleep. This means that she is extra ready for bed by 7pm as she is already having less sleep than other kids her age. 

We do our little bed time routine, shut the door and wait for the carnage. They get out of bed almost immediately and start coming out of their bedroom. Here are just a few of my favourite (not) reasons they have given lately for getting up;

• I’m thirsty
• I need a poo
• Sophie pinched me
• Georgie won’t let me sleep in his bed
• I hurt my knee climbing out of Sophie’s cot
• George keeps waking up my bubba (doll)
• I just need to do the code on your phone

Seriously? I don’t know what to do! Help me! I have tried soooooo many things. Putting them back to bed without speaking, taking away a privilege, bribing them with a treat (don’t judge me), audio books. Nothing works. I get so tried of it because the evenings are so precious after a busy day of being a mummy. I need to get stuff done or just sit in a heap or watch a rubbish tv show. I’m so frazzled by the time they finally fall asleep and there isn’t much of an evening left to do anything. It makes things tense because we are all so tired all the time. Occasionally they go to bed perfectly and I think we’ve cracked it, but they are just lulling me into a false sense of security and are back up to their old tricks the next night. 

They are such good children and I know this won’t last forever. I know it’s just ‘one of those stages’ and that it will pass. I know I’ll look back when they’ve left home and wish they were still keeping me up at night. I know all of this and I know it will be ok but it’s hard to see through it when you’re in it.

I need to be a bit more relaxed about it I think because it doesn’t help when I get worked up. If they are staying in their room but still being noisy then I’m trying to leave them to it and carry on with the evening. I’ve done a lot of reading about it all and I came across some wise words in someone’s blog that really helped me. The mother was saying that she puts her kids to bed and let’s them get on with it. As long as they aren’t hurting each other and they stay on their room then she doesn’t worry about it. “I know they’ll go to sleep eventually, how they get to that point is up to them!”

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. They’ve gone quiet now…but I’ve been stung before so I’m keeping a safe distance for at least another half hour.

Gemma 

Helloooooooooooooo out there!

BT sent us an email about a month ago saying ‘goodbye and thank you for your custom.’ Er, what the? We phoned them immediately and I won’t bore you with the VERY boring details but it took three weeks and around ten hours of phone calls by my poor husband to get back online. Un.Be.Leivable. I felt really cut off and unable to do so many things that I usually do, like blogging. I used up my phone data allowance so fast because I was having to use it all the time and it was just a real pain. Anyway, it’s not the end of the world and things are back to normal now so here I am.

More interesting news is that I went on a girls holiday and it was amazing. Myself and four friends have been saying for ages about going away somewhere but not really seriously. I decided to look up some flights and found out that a return to Copenhagen was £31!!! So, we found a date that worked and booked to go for two nights, woo hoo. The Dad’s were left in charge of the kiddos and off we went. I was so excited, even for the plane journey as it meant time to sit and read (or nap) which is rare these days.

We booked a lovely air bnb right in the city centre, such a perfect location. It was on the fourth floor (with no lift, sheesh) and so it had stunning views and felt really peaceful. We dumped our luggage and went straight out to explore. None of us had ever been to Copenhagen before and we were keen to see as much as we could in the relatively short time we had. We decided that a boat trip would be a good start so that we could get a feel for where things were and have a good look around. It was really fun and so relaxing to just sit and look at pretty things and take photos. I love being on the water, I find it so calming, so this was the perfect start to the weekend.

We had made a dinner reservation that evening for Host after reading lots of great reviews. It looked cosy and very Danish, which is what we wanted. They have a set menu so we pretty much all went for that, but got way more than we bargained for…They started bringing out dishes that weren’t on the menu saying that they just like to surprise their customers! It was food that I had never eaten before and it was really fun to try new things. Some were yummy (powdered chicken skin), and some not so much (a big mouthful of salt that I thought was powdered chicken skin but was just part of the plate decoration), but all a great experience. Eight courses (yep, eight) and three hours later, we were ready to head ‘home.’

Late night girly chat and giggles led us into the wee hours and then off to bed knowing we could sleep in, woop. I realised how much I love girl time, it makes me feel young.

The next day we spent ages getting ready…

…and then headed to Frederiksborg Castle and it was so pretty. We had a guided tour, which I’m not usually into but I’m so glad we did. It was so interesting and I loved looking at all of the beautiful art work and architecture.

In the evening we visited Tivoli Gardens which, for me, was the highlight of the trip. It is a really old amusement park and is said to be where Walt Disney got some of his inspiration for the Disney theme parks. It was SO MUCH FUN. It rained a lot but we didn’t let that stop us. We went on roller coasters and bumper cars and just wet ourselves laughing half the night. There was also a big music concert happening in the grounds so we were dancing and laughing until the early hours.

We had to check out by 11am the next morning so had planned to go out early but that didn’t quite happen for all of us after such a late night. One of the girls got up super early and went exploring by herself. Two of the girls woke up at the same time and literally got out of bed and left the house to walk around for an hour before check out. Me and my roomie were the last to leave and we headed to a breakfast cafe called Atelier September that we had read about, even though we didn’t really have enough time…We had some amazing avacado toast and eggs with this delicious Danish cheese, so yum. We rushed back to pack and vacate our pad and then did some shopping, last minute sight seeing (we went in the church that had the original Christus which was pretty special) and then lunch before heading to the airport.

I had such a lovely time with these girls, it was medicine for my soul. I missed my family and was excited to see them. I felt really refreshed, it was just the break we all needed I think. Copenhagen was magical and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a beautiful city holiday.

Girls trips rule.

Gemma

One of my most FAVOURITE things to do is look out for celebrities. Maybe that makes me a bit of a loser? I am lucky that living in London I get to see quite a few famous faces and this makes me HAPPY!

There are famous people and there are famous people though, right? I have compiled the following list and I’m a bit of a geek so some of the least famous are basically not famous to anyone but me.

DAVID BECKHAM – Yep, that’s right. I actually saw David Beckham, and not just saw him, interacted with him.  I was driving around North London and was hopelessly lost. I turned a corner in a slight fit of frustration (which means way too fast) and almost crashed head on into a black four by four. I was even more annoyed at the prospect of having to reverse back onto the street to let the guy pass. So you can imagine my surprise when the driver beckoned me forward and reversed all the way back to let me pass! How nice, I thought, and rare that someone would be so kind. As I got closer and was waving to thank the nice man it quickly dawned on me that it was David Beckham! I literally lost it and waved and smiled until my arm nearly fell off. It was pretty obvious that I recognised him and he was very gracious and smiley back at me, I guess he’s used to it. The only other person in the car was three year old George and he just didn’t quite appreciate my excitement.

COLIN FIRTH – Ahhhhh, Mr Darcy himself. Turns out he lives right around the corner from me and I happened to be walking past his house one day as he was pulling up in his car. I did a huge double take and slowed right down so that I could confirm it was him (and be a stalker and see which house he went into). I literally reverted back to my 14 year old self that had a poster of him on my bedroom wall. I was staring at him so hard that I wasn’t looking where I was going and I tripped and broke my flip flop. Right there in front of Mr Darcy I tripped and looked like a complete goober. I’ve seen him a few times since then but I totally play it cool now. Not.

LIAM NEESON – I saw him in Hyde Park and did my usual jaw drop stare. He wasn’t like the others though, he stared right back! He’s hardcore.

SIR IAN McKELLEN – I was in a box at the proms last year next to Gandalf himself. I couldn’t pluck up the courage to speak to him and just stared at him the entire night…he was way too cool / scary / intelligent for me.

SIR MICHAEL GAMBON – I know, another old man, but he is Dumbldore so it’s ok. He must live near me because I’ve seen him a few times at cafes and in the park.

SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR – I have seen her soooo many times, she lives really near me. One of her kids is ginger and I want to be like ‘hey, I have ginger kids too. We should be friends.’

ELIZABETH McGOVERN – She plays Cora in Downton Abbey and I absolutely love her. I walked past her on my local high street and I just literally couldn’t believe my eyes. She is super tall and thin and she just elegantly floated past me with a fixed smile on her face. I want to be like her when I grow up.

PENELOPE WILTON – She plays Isobel Crawley in Downton Abbey (sorry if you haven’t seen Downton, but where have you been?!) When I went to look around primary schools for my son a few months ago, she was there with her daughter looking around for her grandchild. I spent, like, an hour with her and pretty much didn’t take in any information about the school. My four year old decided to do a moonie which he has never done before or since, so that was nice.

JARVIS COCKER – The ex Pulp singer walked across the road right in front of us as we were driving around North London. I was a big fan of his in the nineties and he literally looked exactly the same as he always has.

There are loads more but lots of them are a bit z list!

Richard Osman, Cherry Healey (I went to drama school with her and now she lives right by me), John Humphreys, Alistair McGowen, Moira Stuart, Nathanial Parker, Shirley Williams, Ruby Wax, Jeremy Vine, Charles Dance, Des O’Conner, George Cole, Holly Willoughby.

My next goal is royalty…..

Gemma

 

I want to be healthy, but I love junk food. I want to be healthy, but I love junk food.

This phrase just goes round in my head all the time. I want to be healthy and look after my body, I know what’s good for me, so why can’t I just do it? Why do I say to myself that I’ll start tomorrow and just tuck in to another take away? I eat like a teenager and it has to stop. I don’t want my kids growing up with an unhealthy mum, I want them to form good eating habits. I always make sure they eat healthily but I just don’t give the same attention to myself.

I am notorious for trying out new fad diets and only sticking to them for a short period of time. I recently wrote a blog post about the 5:2 diet where you fast for two days out of seven and eat normally the rest of the time. It was actually going really well and I felt great. I was losing weight and feeling a real sense of achievement after every fast day. Then, Easter weekend came and I thought I would have little break to enjoy some chocolate treats for a few days. Well, that was it, I never went back to the 5:2. I feel like a total failure, why couldn’t I just stick to something?

I’ve been thinking seriously about my relationship with food and have realised it’s pretty messed up. I eat when I’m bored, when I’m sad, when I’m happy, even when I’m not hungry. One of the biggest things I’ve noticed is that I eat as a reward to myself, I justify it. If I’ve had a hard day with the children, for example, I feel like I deserve to eat a whole tub of Ben and Jerrys. Yep, an entire tub. But it was a difficult day so that makes it ok, right? Ugh, it’s just a vicious circle because I feel like rubbish after I’ve eaten the bad food so it’s not like I even feel happy about it. Then feeling rubbish just makes me want to drown my sorrows in some Nutella, what the heck?! Serious problems.

A friend of mine and her husband have totally changed their diet and it’s really inspired me. They have started juicing every morning and eating salads and healthy stuff the rest of the day. Sugar has become a rare treat rather than a daily staple and they’re perfectly happy with that because they feel so good. My friend said to me that her tastes have changed and she wants to eat healthy stuff because junk food makes her feel ill. I want junk food to make me feel ill! I’ve realised that I haven’t felt well for ages and I know it has so much to do with my diet. I don’t drink enough water either and my body has just been feeling twenty years older than it actually is. I am so lethargic and my joints creak, I’m only thirty four and I know I’m not meant to feel like this.

I’ve just got a juicer and I’ve been juicing this week, just for breakfast. Then I’ve been eating healthily for the rest of the day. I haven’t had sugar since Monday, which is probably the longest I’ve ever been without it. It’s a mini victory for me and it feels great. I’ve honestly noticed a difference in how I feel just in this short time, it’s brilliant. I’m not saying I’ll never eat junk food again, I know I will, but I just want it to be balanced with the good stuff in a way that it hasn’t been for so long. We are having a take away with friends on Saturday and I’m really looking forward to it, partly because I feel like it’s ok as I’ve been good all week. Often, I get to the weekend and nothing is a treat because I’ve been living it up all week with take aways and ice cream.

I am the worlds worst at being consistent and sticking to anything so if I’m brutally honest, I don’t know how long this will last. But I have a real desire and drive this time that feels different to other times. I think about my children and that I want to be the best I can be for them and that helps a lot.

Do you find it hard to eat healthily? Have you found a particular diet or lifestyle that works for you?

Gemma

I live in London. And I love it.

I grew up in Essex so London has always been a place I’ve spent a lot of time in throughout my life. I lived here for a year or so when I was an 18 year old drama student, then I moved back in 2007 and have been here ever since. I first lived with a bunch of girls in a not so nice neighbourhood in North London. I have really special memories of getting on the bus in our pjs to pick up a pizza and being broken into by someone actually cutting through the wall downstairs (we lived above a post office so I’m pretty sure we weren’t the main event.)

I moved back in 2007 to study to become a dental hygienist. I moved from Cornwall and at first I hated London, literally, hated it. Everyone was so moody, everything moved so fast, I had black bogies. I just didn’t see the appeal at all, it was just a big stinky place to me.

I met my husband here and we got married in 2009. His job is here in West London so we have lived within this small area ever since, almost seven years. During that time, I have come to adore this city. It is so vibrant and energetic and fast paced, it just has so much to offer.

I caught the end of a radio show today in which they were discussing why people choose to live in London in a tiny residence, as opposed to living outside the city and getting far more for their money. I have a lot of friends who say this to me too. They just can’t understand why I live in a tiny flat with my two kids and pay more rent than they do for their four bedroom houses. Sometimes, I ask myself that question too. But I know the answer, because it’s where we want to be right now. A lot of it has to do with my husbands job, he works less than a 20 minute walk away from where we live. How amazing is that?! He can walk to work and we get to even meet him for lunch at least once a week. Many people ask me why we don’t rent a bigger place on the outskirts and have my husband commute. This just makes no sense to me! We would pay slightly less rent, sure, but not much. We would then pay a lot of money for commuting, when right now we pay nothing. On top of all that, we would see my husband a lot less that we do now. I love it when he texts to say he’s leaving the office and I know he’ll be home in 15 minutes or so. I feel really spoilt that we have this set up, it’s not like that for most people and I feel lucky. I know that it won’t always be like this but for now, the children get to see a lot of their Daddy and I love that.

There are so many things that I love about London, I couldn’t possibly write them all. I love waking up in the morning and deciding that we are going to take the 20 minute tube ride to the Science Museum. I love walking five minutes to the most incredible, huge park that is right on our doorstep. I loved it when we had a date night the other week and went for dinner at 11pm. I love hopping on the bus and changing my mind about where to get off at the last minute just because I have so many options.

Today, it was the most beautiful sunny day. We met David for lunch by the river and then the kids and I jumped on the tube to central London. I took them to M and M World because they love it and it’s a real treat for them. They got their candy (that’s for you Americans) and then we just scooted around with no particular destination in mind. There was such a buzz in the air, I was almost skipping along! We walked past a guitarist in Leicester Square singing the most beautiful summer song. We walked all along the Mall and stopped outside Buckingham Palace to eat M and Ms and listen to the marching band. I just felt so in love with London today, and so grateful that so much is on my doorstep.

I know that we can’t live in a tiny flat forever, and often I wish we had more space. But I wouldn’t trade it right now, I really wouldn’t. It makes sense for us to be here but we are also here because we love it. When you’ve lived here, you kind of just get it and you can’t imagine living anywhere else. I can’t, anyway.

I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, the countryside has a lot to offer and maybe one day I’ll end up in a farm house in the middle of nowhere. Right now though, my children have some lovely experiences and I just want to soak it all up for as long as it lasts.

Gemma

So a few days ago I wrote about getting rid of the dummies. We decided to go for the dummy fairy method and I wanted to write a quick update for those of you who have been asking how it ‘s been going.

George and Sophie slept through the night without any hassle and bounced out of bed, excited to see what the dummy fairy had left them. They were delighted with their gifts and were really amazed that the fairies really had taken the dummies away.

I must say, it’s been pretty plain sailing! Way easier than I ever imagined it would be, thank goodness. Sophie has only asked for the dummy twice and when I remind her about the dummy fairies, she seems happy and accepting. There also aren’t any more arguments over dummies which is wonderful. They were both so in love with them that things could get pretty intense. It feels so good to just remove them completely. My husband said we should put them in the cupboard just in case of an emergency! I told him that we had to be strong, we couldn’t go back after all this. If we did then it would totally confuse them, it just wouldn’t be fair. So in the dustbin they went, and it felt so good.

I am surprised that Sophie hasn’t been asking for it at bedtime. The only thing I have noticed is that she hasn’t been falling asleep as quickly as she usually does. When the dummy would go in, she would immediately snuggle down and just knew it was time to sleep. Without that cue, it’s just taken her a little longer to get sleepy but this is really no big deal.

I know that a lot of people don’t agree with dummies in the first place. I did give my children dummies from a very young age, even though I never thought I would before I became a parent. Sleep deprivation can make you change your mind on all sorts of things that you hadn’t planned out previously. I always felt a bit bad about it but then again I always knew that it wouldn’t last forever. I wasn’t going to let them go to school and still be having a dummy, they would be gone before the kids were old enough to be affected in a negative way. I would say that limiting them to nap and bed times is a great way to slowly start weaning them off, and it also reduces the risk of problems with speech. Dummies have their place, I really believe that.

I am soooooooooooo happy with how this has gone. it’s been a few days now so I’m hoping we won’t have a relapse. I whole heartedly recommend the dummy fairy method, as well as a little gift being left. I just love seeing their little faces and hearing all of the questions about where their dummies went. They decided that the fairies live in a dummy castle. Perfect.

Gemma

It’s time for the dummies to go. Forever. And ever.

Last night I was woken up four times by crying children. Sophie (two and a half years old) was screaming because her brother George (four years old) had stolen her dummy while she slept. I took it from George and gave it back to Sophie which then made him scream. This scenario continued throughout the night and I realised it’s all my doing. I have been way too soft as far as the dummies go and I should have taken them away ages ago. We took them away from George when he was around two and a half but since Sophie has had them, he has become obsessed with them again. He just loves them! I have been a lazy parent and just put off taking them away because I know it won’t be easy.

There is lots of advice out there about the best way to remove the dummy, it can be a bit overwhelming. You can go cold turkey and just take it away without much explanation other than ‘you’re old enough not to have it any more.’ I feel like that’s a bit harsh. Before I had kids, I would have said I would definitely go for that because I’m the parent and I’m in charge. I never imagined, though, that children can become so emotionally attached to the dummy. It becomes a real comfort to them and is something that’s been constant to them for as long as they can remember.

Another technique I heard about is snipping bits off the teat of the dummy so that the child doesn’t like it any more. I did try this with Sophie a while back and she was so distressed that it was different that she just went insane. I could have stuck to it but I’m weak, so I didn’t.

Another idea, which is what we are going for, is the dummy fairy. The dummy fairy comes and takes the dummies and leaves a little gift in return. I’ve been really bigging it up to the kids and trying to get them excited about it. I’ve explained it a few times so they know what’s coming. I also had the idea that we could make a house to put the dummies in so that the fairies can collect them. We spent the afternoon constructing our Lego house for the fairies to come and play in.

They really enjoyed building it and making it nice a cosy for the fairies. It’s nice to make it fun for them and get them involved. They put it by the front door before bed and the final step was to put the dummies inside. It was kind of a sad moment for all of us, which I know sounds weird. I suddenly had this pang of sadness that my babies are growing up and leaving behind things that they won’t ever need again. They were both saying a fond goodbye and having a last suck before placing them carefully inside the house.

George hopped off to bed, excited to see what would be waiting for him in the morning. Little Sophie was crying and crying, she really wanted a dummy so badly. I managed to settle her but she kept periodically shouting out for me. I heard George telling her in such a sweet way that she needed to go to sleep or the dummies fairies wouldn’t be able to come. I love hearing him take care of her. I got them each a little present that I hope they’ll like and I’m excited to see their little faces in the morning.

Fingers crossed we make it through the night and from this day on, my kids are dummy free zones.

I’d love to hear other people’s tips and experiences with saying bye bye to baby’s best friend!

Gemma

 

Today, I was having an interesting group discussion about helping people in need. We were talking about people that you see begging on the street and whether or not we should help them.

Living in London, it is an almost daily occurrence to walk past people on the street who are asking for money. There are people with dogs, people with babies, people who look like they are in a really bad way and people that don’t actually look so bad. Sometimes they are sitting next to a sign asking for food, sometimes they are just wrapped in a sleeping bag trying to keep warm. Some people are very vocal and try to catch your eye and just outright ask for money, while others just sit and stare into space like they aren’t really there.

I always find it uncomfortable to just walk on by. Not because I feel threatened or anything like that, but because I feel like I want to help everyone. It’s just unthinkable to be sleeping rough in the middle of winter (or any time of the year) with no food and hardly anything to keep you warm. I just wouldn’t survive like that, I know I wouldn’t. Everyone should have somewhere to live and I find it impossibly sad to see anyone in these kinds of situations. We feel really strongly that everyone deserves to have somewhere to live, although my husband’s opinion on how to help people sometimes differs from my own. We give money to charities but he feels more like I shouldn’t give to people on the street as much as I do, which view point I know is shared by many others. A few years back, I was a very proud wife when my husband took it upon himself to complete a tower run for the charity Shelter and raised hundreds of pounds for this brilliant cause.

 

During the discussion, I was struck by the difference between my opinion and those I was listening to. Many people were very bold in saying that no one should give money to people on the street. One of their reasons is that we are perpetuating a problem, that people on the street will continue to stay on the street if we give them the means to do so. I get that, to an extent. I see what people are saying but it still doesn’t stop me from wanting to help.

Another reason people were expressing for not helping was that there are a lot of people on the streets who aren’t genuinely in need. Some people beg for money and then go and use it for drugs, alcohol etc, rather than food or shelter. Some people might not even be homeless, they may just want some extra cash and prey on people’s generosity to fill their pockets. I am not naive to this notion. I know full well that there are many people on the street who aren’t telling the truth and that will do bad things with the money they receive. Often, I don’t actually give money anyway. I’ll go and buy some food from a near by shop and give them that instead. I must admit, I have had some snubs from the begging person when I’ve done this as they clearly just wanted cash not food!

My view point on all of this is the following. Who am I to judge these people? I don’t know them, or their situation. I don’t know what they are going through or what has led them to the situation they’re in. I don’t know if they are truly in need or if they are scamming me, but why would that stop me from being a good person? I’m not saying I give to every single person, because I don’t. We aren’t well off and sometimes I simply don’t have anything in my pockets to give. If I do though, then I will give a little here and there. I won’t be worrying about what the person is going to do with it because I have done what I feel is the right thing.

I had an experience with this a few months ago when a young guy approached me near a busy shopping centre. He told me that he had no where to sleep that night and he just needed £20 so that he could go and find a hostel. He seemed genuine and I felt compelled to help him. I didn’t have the money on me but I told him to hang on and I shot to the cash point and got the cash. He was so grateful and I felt so good! Now, £20 is a lot of money to me and way more than I would ever usually give anyone in the street. He may well have been trying his luck with me just to get some money, but what if he wasn’t? What if he really did need that money and I put a roof over his head for the night? I found myself not really wondering too much about what he was going to do with it, but just feeling like I’d done a nice thing.

A lot of people reading this might think I’m super gullible and naive but I really don’t think I am. I want to help people if I can and I don’t feel that I have a right to judge them. I don’t feel hurt or upset at the thought that my offerings may not always be put to good use, I’m going into it with my eyes wide open. I’m doing what I feel is right and for me, that’s the most important thing.

I’d love to hear more views on this. It seemed from today’s discussion that people do feel very strongly about the subject, whether it be to give or not to give. My feeling is though, aren’t we all beggars in some way or another?

Gemma

I’m having my hair cut this afternoon. Since having children, this has become something of a rare treat so I’m really looking forward to it. I feel like having something radical done but I know I’ll regret it, so I’ll probably come out looking pretty much the same as I do now.

Before I had children, I enjoyed gloriously thick and luscious hair. I used to complain about how thick it was actually, and wished there was a bit less of it. Not any more. My hair is so much thinner than it was and the texture has changed too. The worst thing of all, though, has to be all of the fuzzy hair I’ve acquired since losing a lot of hair when my babies were new born.

Hair loss after pregnancy is very common. During pregnancy, apparently you don’t lost the hair that you naturally just lose day to day. This is why so many heavily pregnant women experience the best hair of their lives just before giving birth. I always think that women have such a glow and vitality about them when they are eight or nine months pregnant.

 

For me, my babies were each around three months old when my hair started falling out. I remember washing my hair in the shower and looking down at a huge clump that had just come away in my hand. I audibly gasped! It was really distressing because I couldn’t do anything about it. My hair became very thin all around the front so I felt like it was really noticeable. I was confident it would grow back though, and tried not to get too stressed out about it. It was just one of those things, right? One of the many changes new mothers have to deal with regarding their bodies.

This was a distressing time but it’s NOTHING compared to how things are when the hair starts to grow back. It grows back as fine, frizzy baby hair that just sticks out all over the place. I found myself with little tufts all around my hair line. I couldn’t wear my hair up because I just had these short strands that wouldn’t tame. I had to be inventive and come up with ways to hide it but nothing really helped much. I considered getting a fringe (like our beloved Duchess) but I really don’t think I actually had enough hair to construct one. I would pin the front pieces back but they would just fluff up again seconds later. I found myself stealing my husbands hair putty and slicking my hair back, not something that makes a girl feel pretty and feminine. I’d also clip it down when it was wet in an attempt to train it to dry in a more uniform manner. I was so self conscious about it. Maybe it sounds silly to be talking so seriously about my hair like this. Words like ‘distressing’ and ‘un feminine’ maybe seem a bit dramatic but it really is horrible. Your hair can make or break you as far as how good you feel about yourself. It broke me.

After George, it eventually grew back to pretty much normal again. It took over a year, though, which seemed like forever. I was relieved that I could return the hair putty and blow dry my hair normally again. I got pregnant with Sophie when George was just over a year old and I was nervous of having to go through it all over again. I took pregnancy supplements that were supposed to help stop hair loss but it still happened. This time, it’s even worse. Sophie is almost two and a half and my new hair has just stopped growing. It has got to a couple of inches and just given up. I’m stuck with this frizz and there is nothing to be done. I don’t hold out much hope that it will suddenly start growing again so I need to get used to the idea of this being my hair forever. I’m not loving it, I miss my normal hair. I know lots of women who have been through this now that it’s happened to me but before I had kids I had no idea about it really. It can just be added to list of ways in which we give our bodies to our children. I’ll get used to it, just like I’ve got used to the saggy belly and peeing myself on the trampoline. Those little cherubs are worth it, right?

Gemma

We all like to look good, right? I feel like I don’t have a lot to work with but I try and make the best of what I’ve got.
I’m ginger. There, I said it. The consequence of this genetic mutation means that I have pretty much got no eyebrows. You just can’t see them because they’re so light. Over the years, I have tried all sorts of methods of colouring my eyebrows. I started off with a pencil which was a big mistake because it literally just looked like a three year old had played a prank on me in my sleep. I then tried actual eyebrow make up which was ok but I could never seem to find the right shade. Then my friend told me about a dye kit she got from Boots that was good so I thought I’d give it a try. It actually works really well, most of the time…

My friend came over and I did her eyebrows for her and it didn’t quite turn out as planned. She’s very forgiving (after the dead arm) luckily for me. You do need to be careful that you don’t leave it on too long as it can totally dye your skin. Lesson learnt.
I just treated myself to the new Gimme Brow thing from Benefit with some birthday money. It’s the best thing ever. It contains microfibers that adhere to your existing hair and just make your eyebrows look so much thicker. I would highly recommend it and I can’t imagine using anything else now.

My quest for eyebrow perfection also includes having my eyebrows neat and tidy. I started having them threaded about nine years ago and I’ve never looked back. I like the shape I get from threading and think it’s much more precise than waxing.
I usually have my eyebrows done once a month or so. There is a little pop up place at the local high street so I just turn up and six quid and five minutes later, it’s all done. I sit back on the chair and ask for eyebrow threading (they do lots of other treatments too). Usually, they just crack on and do a great job. The last few times I’ve been, however, they’ve offered me another treatment at the same time. ‘Upper lip as well?’ They ask, looking at me as if to say ‘you really should you know.’ The first time this happened, I was mortally offended. I looked at the woman in disbelief and abruptly said no thanks. It’s been so consistent though that I’ve started to get a real complex and come away feeling much worse than I did when I arrived!

The last time I went, they asked me again and this time I said yes! I thought, you know what, just do it and get it out of your system, my friend. So she threaded my eyebrows and waxed my upper lip. Agony. I’m VERY fair skinned so I looked like I had really bad sunburn above my lip, and it lasted ages.
Once it had worn off though, I was actually really happy with the results! Smooth and silky, lush. From now on, I’m waxing my upper lip. Why didn’t I just say yes the first time?!

Why do we even put ourselves through all of this? I wish I was one of those naturally beautiful people with no need for make up but I’m not. I need a bit of help and that’s just how it is so I may as well embrace it!
I’d love to hear your beauty tips…and disasters!

Gemma