When the second trimester isn't all sunshine and rainbows

I'm a few weeks into the second trimester - in fact getting scarily close to the half way mark - and I have to say I was not prepared.

I've done an entire pregnancy. 

I have friends who have done it all too. 

And I believed the rumours that the second pregnancy is easier if your first was uncomplicated. 

It's all lies!! 

Holiday planning with kids is very different to trips as a couple... but they're just as fun

This is a sponsored post*

So much changes when you have kids, particularly with everyday little things, but also with the big experiences. And one of the biggest experiences is going on holiday.

No matter when you decide to go, whether alone, as a couple, with friends, or as a family, it's pretty exciting.

We haven't yet planned our first abroad trip, but we have definitely thought about the places we want to go as a family. We want something that is going to interest everyone and be a great experience for all of us.

You know you're a mum when....

After weeks of feeling totally useless and spending a lot of time in bed, I finally feel like me again.

It really took it's toll, especially on how I saw myself as a mother as I wasn't really doing a huge amount of actual parenting as I either in bed or the bathroom.

But I've got my mama crown on now, and am feeling top of my motherhood game. In fact I'm pretty excited to become a mum of two this year.
So I thought I'd share some things that are clear-cut signs that you are a mum (tongue in cheek, of course).

Why reading is my favourite self-care therapy

Even since I can remember I've been a bookworm. I've always been the one in our family with my nose in a book. However for some years I kind of lost my reading mojo in favour of hours of mindless scrolling and binge TV watching.

Last year I started to make a real effort to read more, which started well but did slow towards the end of the year. This year, again, I'm trying to continue my reading efforts, and broaden my horizons. With one very important reason behind my decision.

I realised towards the end of the year that reading was part of my own self-care regime, and a really big part of it. I think it really hit me when an old man on my bus stopped to talk to me on his way off the bus to say "you're never alone with a book". And he was right. That's why I find books so important for my personal mental health and wellbeing.

18 thoughts about winning the lottery

This is a collaborative post*

Do you know what one of my favourite, completely useless, pastimes to do is?

I like to plan what I'd do if I won the lottery.

It might seem a teeny bit sad to be planning something that has odds very much not in my favour, but it's a nice little thing to think about when walking home from swim class whilst Henry chills in the stroller.

Now when I say a lottery win, I do mean a big one. Go big or go home.
And my thoughts usually go a little something like this: