It has been so busy recently and every day I have said “I will write a normal post just about us tonight” but something has cropped up.  I was sat here staring blankly at my PC screen trying to get some motivation and though YES now is the time to babble away on my blog like I did when I started it a year ago!  Looking back at when I first started writing I can see how much everything has changed.  I never thought people that I didn’t know would read what I had to say and if I’m honest the fact that you do puts a lot of pressure on me!  I would love for my random rambling posts to interest you as much as the reviews and competitions so I feel like I have to really think about what to type before I type it!  With Project 366 and Facebook status’ – in my head I am keeping everyone up to date but really I’m neglecting you all!

A lot has changed over the past few months.  Spud is now at proper pre school and his speech is fantastic.  He will talk whilst I stand there gawping at him because it’s as if he knows every word possible!  He is a right cheeky chap though and has definitely inherited my bossy streak.  He was shouting demands at his little friend in the park today and can be found bossing poor Spike around on a daily basis.  He still goes bananas for anything with wheels and will ALWAYS check the fire station when we drive past looking for the “fire enggggenin.”  He gets most excited if the station doors are open or if the engine is outside.  If it’s on the road near us he is practically wetting himself with excitement, get those sirens going and he’s shaking with the most gorgeous smile on his face.  With that, trains and buses I really think he will be the Transport Minister when he’s older!  He has been doing swimming lessons every week and has so much confidence that he has literally taken to it like a duck to water.  He tries everything that he is asked to do and loves jumping in and going under the water.  This week he discovered the wonder of goggles so would have his head under the water for the whole lesson if the teacher would let him!

Spike is getting more and more grown up by the day.  He is almost 17 months which I quite often refuse to believe!  After weeks of him bawling his eyes out when I dropped him off at Creche he has started wanting to go in and today ran in as soon as they opened the door!  Running is his newest past time and as a fairly new walker he is a tad wobbly so looks absolutely hilarious as he potters along.  The inevitable happens and he flops over and more often that not requires a big cuddle.  He is still an extremely cuddly baby and has major clingy moments.  I think they are what make it quite hard to believe that he is almost 1 and a half.  He resembles a little baby with his walking, balance, clingyness and speech but is fast becoming a little boy that will need to stand on his own two feet a bit more.  I know that I have babied him more than I ever did with Spud but getting to the next stage with him doesn’t excite me like it did with Spud.  As he is getting older and shows us by being extremely smart I do love that we aren’t quite as restricted as we were.  He is growing up and getting to the lovely toddler stage where they aren’t SO demanding.  In the blink of an eye he will be the age Spud is now and well and truly out of the baby stage – this provokes “time for another??” from all of my friends and I think I may bow to peer pressure. (Oh Hubbby!!!!)

As for me nothing much has changed, I have been swanning off here, there and everywhere with the most recent being to Amsterdam for a press event where I had the most amazing time!  I felt thoroughly spoilt with a lovely hotel room all to myself, a day at the event, a yummy 3 course meal and then a night at the bar with some fab people!  I could get used to that I can tell you!

]]> http://spudandspike.co.uk/2012/05/update/feed/ 0 http://spudandspike.co.uk/2012/05/underwater-adventures-136366-project366/ http://spudandspike.co.uk/2012/05/underwater-adventures-136366-project366/#comments Tue, 15 May 2012 20:03:43 +0000 Lauren http://spudandspike.co.uk/?p=6220

As you may have noticed I take A LOT of photographs, it annoys me when the Hubby has to be prompted to take photos so figured if I started Spud off young then he wouldn’t annoy his wife in years to come!  We gave him a little children’s camera for his birthday after he spent most of his time filling the hard drive of my phone and I was struggling for ideas on how to save his photos.  I decided that no matter how bad the quality or choice of subject it wasn’t fair to delete his photos and that I needed to make something to capture (see what I did there!) the memory of his first camera.

When CEWE Photobooks asked me if I wanted to review for them I instantly knew what to do especially with prices starting at only £5.99.  We left Spud to his own devices with his camera for a few weeks and after he had clocked up a whopping 506 photos I uploaded them onto my PC.   To create the CEWE Photobook you need to download the software which was fairly quick and very easy to do.  Using it on the desktop ensures that any Internet glitches that you may encounter don’t affect the creation of the photobook and you don’t lose any of the work that you have done and means that you can save and go back to it if needed.

The software was easy to navigate and had step by step procedures to get the photobook designed and made.  It had backgrounds all categorised to help choose and layout samples to give you some inspiration.  It was easy to edit everything from the size, position and layout of the pictures to the colour of the background and text in the title and on the pages.  Once I had settled on the layout and colours I completed the order, it connects to the Internet and sends everything across.  I then received an email confirmation.  Within a few days I received a dispatch email and told that it was on its way.

Spud was extremely excited when his photobook arrived so we opened it and had a good look through.  The hardback cover and pages are good quality and I have no qualms leaving it with Spud for him to look through it on his own.  The picture quality is good but you do need to be very careful on the layout to make sure they don’t overhang or overlap too much.  For example the cover title is too far to the left for me because of the crease on the cover but I could have edited that before I placed the order.  CEWE Photobooks do have a 100% satisfaction guarantee so if for any reason you are unhappy they will do an exchange or refund.

Spud absolutely loves his book and is always looking through showing anyone who will listen that he took the photos.  I am really pleased with the results and will definitely be using CEWE Photobooks in the future to document memories captured by myself and Spud.

I did not receive any financial reward for writing this review. However, we did receive the product for review purposes. This post is my own honest opinion. For more information please see our Disclosure Policy.

For months we have been umming and ahhing about whether or not to get bikes.  We had visions of weekly bike rides in the sun with both boys on the back having awesome family days.  On the other hand we had visions of spending money on them and seeing them go to waste sat in the garage for weeks on end.  Four years ago British Cycling and Sky teamed up to help bikes in need that have been rejected in a shed or garage.

They put together Sky Rides, free community bike rides that are open to people of all ages no matter what level of cycling you are at.  The routes go through city centres and parks, along closed roads and cycle paths showcasing the city’s best sites.  They are all across the UK and have lots of activities to make it a really nice family day out.  As well as the activities going on at the event there is a chance to win prizes just for attending.  From a cycling experience with Sir Chris Hoy to a Sky HD package.  You don’t even need to own a bike as most venues offer bikes to hire so that you can take part (limited availability.)

Image Credit - http://www.goskyride.com

Today Plymouth hosted the first Sky Ride of 2012 and we were invited to take part.  We were a bit worried at first as Plymouth is extremely hilly and they mentioned that it was an 8.5km route.  Luckily there is no official start or end point so you can join or leave whenever and wherever you want.  With that knowledge we decided that we would probably cycle at a lesuirely pace and stop to rest take in the views at regular intervals.  We arrived at Plymouth Hoe at about 11am and met up with our Sky Ride representative who was extremely friendly and showed us where our hired bikes were waiting at the Plymouth Cycle Scene tent.  They helped us get set up and lent Spikey a little helmet after ensuring that he was strapped in properly.  Both boys were set up and ready to go!

We watched a bit of Andrei Burton’s display team performing on the Hoe before setting off down the course.  The route went down through the Barbican and around the streets of Plymouth as well as through the Royal William Yard.  We were reminded of Plymouth’s beauty when the sun is out and Spud was extremely excited by all the boats out on the water and in the harbour.  I was a little worried about Spike for a while because he was being very quiet but after about 25 minutes he started singing and pointing out various things so I think he was just in awe of the whole thing!

The route was very good and we saw a lot of Plymouth on the way around.  Considering how hilly Plymouth is we did a lot of down hill riding but not a lot of up hill as it tended to be quite staggered on the way back bar the very last part.  We didn’t struggle with the distance which greatly surprised us as we are both so unfit but it was a lot of fun.  The Hubby is still laughing at me because I did have to walk the last hill but in my defence I had Spike shaking his head vigorously and pulling on my bag so it was very hard to concentrate and push through to make it up a very steep hill!  We have decided now that bikes and regular family rides are definitely on our “to do” list as it was massively enjoyed by every one of us.  After completing the route we had a nice rest on the Hoe and then went for some lunch so it really was a lovely day.

 We don’t have that many “family” days out because of the sheer cost of things but Sky Rides are totally free so there really is no excuse not to make the most of them!

I did not receive any financial reward for writing this review. However, we did receive bike hire and lunch for taking part in the event. This post is my own honest opinion. For more information please see our Disclosure Policy.

When we were asked to review the new menu at Frankie and Benny’s we definitely weren’t going to say no.  On a Saturday afternoon we popped in to put the voucher to good use.  We didn’t book a table and were a bit worried that we hadn’t, but being only 4.30pm there were still plenty of places to sit.

I love the Americana theme at Frankie and Benny’s, from the wall art to the old American music it has a really nice atmosphere for a family meal.  It has an open kitchen which immediately caught Spud’s attention as he was fascinated by the Chefs.  We were greeted in a timely manner and shown to our booth.  I was really surprised that we were seated in a booth because in other restaurants we always get put on the outer edge due to the need for a highchair but they use the type that attaches to the table so he was able to sit nicely with us and we can still experience the heart of the restaurant.  The waitress was extremely friendly and offered us some dough balls and garlic butter to accompany our drinks whilst we looked over the menu.  We were asked if the boys wanted a drink but we declined not knowing that it was actually included in the price of the children’s meals.  We didn’t discover that until we looked at the children’s menu again after our main whilst trying to choose the boys dessert.  It did irk me somewhat because by then it was too late to give Spud any juice and guarantee a dry night.

The menu is packed full of appertising meals that would expect to see at an American/Italian restaurant from steaks to pastas and pizzas with starters, mains, sides and desserts.  We decided that after the dough balls and garlic butter, which were scrummy, that we wouldn’t have starters so we ordered spaghetti bolognese for both the boys (£3.95 each), steak and fries for me (£10.95) and the mixed grill for the Hubby (£20.95)  The steak and fries was just steak and fries so I ordered a side dish of mushrooms.  It didn’t take long to arrive and the boys had both been given an activity pack so we didn’t really notice the waiting period.

The boys meals arrived first and I started cutting up the spaghetti for them.  The portion size of the children’s meals was very generous and it was nice to see that older children could have a larger portion for £7.25.  I was extremely disappointed that the ratio of spaghetti to bolognese was about 80:20 so they both had a massive amount of pasta and not a whole lot of sauce.  It didn’t seem to bother Spud who wolfed down the whole bowl but Spike struggled with just pasta and ended up sharing my chips and having the Hubby’s sausage from the mixed grill.  The Hubby liked his meal, but I was a bit surprised at how small it looked for £20.95.  I am glad that I ordered the mushrooms because my plate looked a little bare without garnish.  A little bit of salad would have perfected my steak and fries.

When we had finished our mains the dishes were cleared promptly which I liked because I hate sitting around waiting in restaurants and we were offered the dessert menu.  The dessert menu was crammed full of delicious puddings so despite 23oz of meat the Hubby was keen for a dessert and Spud was getting very excited about the prospect of fruit salad.  The Hubby ordered the Banoffee Sundae (£5.25) I ordered the Eton Mess Sundae (£5.25) and the boys both had fruit salad which was included in the price of their main.  These arrived in good time as well and Spud definitely had eyes bigger than his belly because after a few grapes he gave up.  Spike wasn’t really interested in his fruit either but happily had a few tastes of my sundae.  The sundaes were both mine and the Hubby’s favourite part of the meal.

Once our dessert dishes were cleared the boys were both given a balloon which pleased them greatly and we asked for the bill.  We can not fault the service at all, we hadn’t made them aware that we were there for a review we simply acted like normal customers and the waitress was first class, bar the children’s drinks incident.  Our bill came to £64.30 which isn’t bad at all for a family of 4 with two courses each.  The food was OK, not totally amazing but worth the money.  Frankie and Benny’s is a fun, family friendly, affordable restaurant and it perfect for young families because the noise and atmosphere meant that the boys loved it and I didn’t feel like I had to try and keep them quiet!

I did not receive any financial reward for writing this review. However, we did receive a Frankie & Benny’s voucher to redeem for review purposes. This post is my own honest opinion. For more information please see our Disclosure Policy.