Askamum love my blog, ooo-errr how exciting!

Christmas is nearly here and we are all excited in my house. Excited for the time spent with family, the presents, the food… Everything really. We’re not at all religious if I’m honest. I mean I put Christian down on forms but none of us go to church and I’m not entirely sure what, if anything, we believe in. Some might say we are hypocritical to celebrate when we don’t do it solely for the religious purpose but I would say we are not in the minority. I do teach my children about Christianity, just as I will all religions when the topic comes up and because it’s Christmas and topical I have told them the story of the nativity. They have watched a performance of it and Florence has an advent calendar with crackers and inside each one is a new figure to add to her very own nativity scene. I have told her that some people believe this and not that we particularly do or particularly don’t ourselves because, well, that’s the truth.

My children are growing up in a predominantly Christian country and like I said, even most of us in the UK who don’t practice a religion, celebrate Christmas so I do think it’s important my children know what it’s all about, even if they then choose not to believe it themselves. I actually think that if you live in a country where something is celebrated it is very important that you at least explain what it is to them, inform them and let them join in with it when things are on in their schools etc. Fair enough if you don’t want to celebrate it at home but to segregate children at school is just too much as far as I’m concerned. When I was little, growing up in Norwich, the children who didn’t celebrate were the Jehovah witnesses and they sat outside assembly every day. My parents didn’t believe in God but I got to go in and sing the songs and have the fun. Everyone knew who the children sitting outside with a book were and I just think why separate and alienate children when they could be learning about something even if they don’t practice what they’ve learnt.

Now that my children are growing up in East London they will learn about Diwali, Ramadan, Hanukkah… Whatever comes up in our multicultural society and so they should! I believe though that our barmy PC nation, although embraces all other cultures (as we should) tries to dampen down anything to do with Christianity and why? I know teachers who have to call Christmas the ‘Festive period’ less we offend anyone?! Who would be offended though? That’s what I want to know? People celebrate Christmas, some people believe a certain reason why? Are we so scared of brainwashing those who believe in other religions we can’t even utter the very word Christian anymore? Do we think people of other beliefs are so weak in their faiths that they would be turned? or do we really think us practicing our religion might offend them? I can’t see that it would and if it did then surely that’s their problem? Barmy I think! It’s Christmas, it’s not a chance to turn a nation with dictatorship!

For a rounded society where everyone embraces one another, everyone needs to know about each other, Knowledge is power and not knowing and fear is what causes religious wars… Just saying…

MY LIFE WITH 2!

I have been like a busy bee trying to get organised for Christmas! I still haven’t bought many presents and am struggling for ideas if I’m honest. I made a list of the things I do know but I haven’t even gone and bought those! My plan is to do it all once I’m in Norwich and can deposit the children with a Grandparent or two! The reason I’m so flipping busy is because it’s not only Christmas but it’s my Father-in-law, Jonny and Florence’s birthdays all that week too… Too much to organise! I should totally start this process in July like the shops!

Jimmy, who has been commando crawling for the past few weeks and is now super fast, is up on all fours! I’m ridiculously proud of him but not as proud of how he himself feels! He’s so pleased and can’t stop smiling! My in-laws better watch out on Christmas day cause it’ll be THREE children majorly on the move!

Jimmy is SO proud of himself!

And Florence is really pleased with her little brother too! Every time he does one of his tricks: the clapping, crawling, waving, his new one of offering you his food, etc then she claps and shouts ‘Good Boy’! I’ve also over heard her running to him when he cries and saying ‘It’s alright, Florence is here’! Too cute! She’s very bossy with him and tells him what he can and can’t have – I think he might just have to get used to it! She rolls him over and over and sits on top of him… All the time I’m shouting ‘Florence, be careful!’ and she replies with ‘But he likes it Mummy’ and sure enough, when I look at him, he’s giggling away. He absolutely adores her and follows her round the room! They’re having loads of fun together and with their cousin Arthur, Christmas is looking like it’ll be a barrel of laughs for us all! They’re the best entertainment around especially with Florence’s new game of ‘presenting a show’! It always starts with ‘Welcome to the Florence Show’! I think she might just have a touch of her parents performance genes there!

The three amigos! Jimmy, Arthur (my nephew) and Florence are looking forward to their first Christmas as a threesome!

So that’s me blogging off for Christmas! Wishing everyone good tidings and see you in the New Year!

In the meantime follow me on Twitter @rocknrollerbaby

(All opinions and words, apart from those in green, are my own. I have not been paid for this article although I did receive some products to keep after I had reviewed them.)

Christmas is nearly here and it’s time for the Rocknrollerbaby nativity! Just for a bit of fun we have made our very own little scene using none other than Le Donk. Well, he is a Donkey so he had to be the ‘little donkey’ in our recreation of the scene!

Cast:

Le Donk – Little Donkey

Ruth/Mummy – Mary

Jonny/Daddy – Joseph

Jimmy – Baby Jesus

Florence – King 1 (her choice)

Bollo Cat – Sheep (errant from picture as out on the lash – naughty Bollo)!

Various toys as the supporting cast of Kings, Wise Men, shepherds and animals…

Happy Christmas and hope you’ve enjoyed our nativity scene!

For more information on the ‘Donkey’ and all other ‘Bugaboo’ products please see their website www.bugaboo.com. It’s also worth noting that ‘When you choose a ‘Bugaboo’ product (now available in more than 50 countries) you are choosing a company which is a proud (PRODUCT) RED™ partner. ‘Bugaboo’ contributes a portion of its profits across all products – to the Global Fund to help eliminate AIDS in Africa, with the goal of ending mother-to-child HIV transmission by 2015.

I talk about HappyLand from The Early Learning Centre on my blog all the time because I absolutely love it! It encourages ‘small world play’ which is a vital part of children’s development and the toys are all such super quality and built fantastically well! As far as I’m concerned you can’t have too many HappyLand characters and houses and with the range being as extensive as it is there is something to interest every personality! Whether you like whimsical mice in a tea-pot, people travelling on a bus, standard doll house play, space men in space ships or farm-yard characters, then the range is for you. The things I have mentioned are merely just a touch upon how many things there are in the range; there’s simply masses to choose from but the one theme running through the whole collection is the standard and quality as well as the colours and fab character people!

I love the way they always stay current as well and bring out sets which are topical! Florence, who was jubilympic crazy, was thrilled with her ‘Queen’s Jubilee’ set and now the queen rides the bus with all the other HappyLand folk in her collection!

Florence loves the bus and her Queen set!

Florence plays with her collection every single day and Jimmy is also a bit of a fan of the people much to Florence’s chagrin! He loves to hold them and chew on them so we’re going to get him some people of his own for Christmas! And for Florence it’s going to be the HappyLand Circus! It’s just up her street and I’ve already had a little play with it so I know she’s going to be thrilled! The whole set (which is on offer at only £10 at the moment!) comprises:

A play mat which is also a jigsaw puzzle and provides the floor of the ‘Big Top’!

A catapulter with a lever to pull which shoots a HappyLand character into the air.

A character with a helmet ripe for the catapult!

A hoop for the character to fly through after being catapulted!

A Ring Master character.

A Clown Character.

A Character on stilts.

A truck.

This set is SO much fun and even better is that it doesn’t require batteries. I love the way the little dude with the helmet is catapulted into the air by the catapult which has a lever to pull down which then pushes the character up, out and into the air! It’s fun and will be a brilliant addition to her collection! It’s especially good that there is a ‘Big Top’ floor scene to be put together with puzzle pieces and then played on with the set! Florence has been to the circus so she knows all about it and will love to play with this!

The HappyLand Circus!

If you’re unsure about buying any particular HappyLand set then it might be worth popping down to one of the stores where they have lots out for you to play with. We live near the Edmonton store and Florence always has a blast playing in there too! It’s a particularly big store so has lots to offer with playing (they even have giant HappyLand characters) but my Mum lives in Norwich where there is quite a small store and they still have lots of toys out to have a go with. It’s always good to have a play first and ELC are confident enough, as they should be, to let you do this! I’ll be back to let you know how Florence (and Jimmy, I’m sure) get on with the circus set!

Florence having a play with the HappyLand collection in our local store!

She loves these giant HappyLand characters they have in store too!

For more information on the HappyLand Circus, other HappyLand toys I’ve mentioned and the entire Early Learning Centre range please see the website www.elcuk.co.uk.

Ever heard of Bizziebaby? I’m sure if you’re a Mum and you look for reviews before you buy anything then you absolutely will have done but if you haven’t yet been introduced may I do the honours now?

Way before I started blogging and reviewing products for my blog I liked the idea of being a road tester for baby products and a friend of mine introduced me to this company, Bizziebaby, who for a five-pound yearly membership would send me products to review and then be published on their site! I immediately signed up and was sent some massage oil, followed by a stair gate, followed by some nursing lingerie. I didn’t have a platform to publish my own reviews at that point or the resources. Bizziebaby did everything for me: found the product, sent it to me and then when it came to the writing they provided me with a comprehensive questionnaire to complete and I didn’t have to do too much thinking about what to write! It was a great way to get into it and actually, even if you don’t want to review stuff all the time it’s just a really nice thing to do from time to time. Not only do you get to keep the products you’re sent throughout the year (they will always be worth more than your initial fiver) but you get to use their website for your own perusal when making any purchases. (Amongst many things I might add!)

Like I said, they are a review website and have comprehensive reviews of all the baby products you can imagine which are all tested by people like you and me, the people whose opinion counts, the Mums! On top of that they offer exclusive discounts in their on-line shop! It’s not just baby things either but things for the whole family have been reviewed and can be up for review by perhaps you?!

One of the things they are doing now, on top of everything else they offer, is running weekly polls on their facebook page to find out what we really think about stuff! There’s also often the chance to win things in their competitions!

Bizziebaby have not asked me to write this post and nor have they paid me to do so. I really love this company and what they offer so just wanted to share! Happy reviewing guys!

Florence is a massive fan of dressing up and has a collection of outfits which she plays with loads. They’re fab toys because they don’t take up much room when folded and in the toy box and provide hours of entertainment requiring them to use their imagination! I’m not overly keen on cheapy ones which fall apart, it seems like a false economy to me; instead I prefer to use ones from The Early Learning Centre because they’re still not wildly expensive but they are made exceptionally well and don’t fall apart!

Ever since Jimmy was born Florence has loved to play ‘delivering babies’. The product of having a home birth with the older child in the house I guess but I love it and it’s super sweet watching her make Jonny give birth and assisting him from her capacity as midwife/Doctor and nurse! She was desperate for a Doctors set so Jonny bought her one on eBay but the case cracked and half the tools broke within a day. It wasn’t even that cheap if I’m honest but it wasn’t good quality, I should have gone to ELC. So, when we were in there a while back we bought her the dress-up Doctors outfit to go with the medical tools which hadn’t broken. Luckily the Doctors Outfit comes WITH a stethoscope as that had broken and to Florence is the most essential part of her game. She has to listen to the tummy to hear the baby’s heart beat. (She was at every single one of my midwife appointments so really knows her stuff!)

As I said, the coat comes with the main Doctor tool, a stethoscope, but a Doctors case, a sturdy one and much better than the one we have mostly binned now, can be bought separately with all the other things a Doctor might need! (It might have to be an extra birthday present for Florence actually as it really is very good and so much better than the one we have)! The coat has pictures of tools coming out of the top pocket, does up with velcro and comes with a hat and surgical mask also. It fits children up to 116cm tall! We love it!

Florence listening to Jimmy’s tummy!

Because we love the outfit so much she’s going to be given some more dress-up outfits for Christmas and ELC is my first port of call for them obviously! There are lots to choose from including all the services, a pirate, ballerina and a fairy! Florence would love all of them but sticking with the medical theme we think she’ll enjoy the Vets outfit! It comes in pink or blue (we have blue) and is a trouser and top combo with a surgical mask. Just as good quality as the Doctors outfit this will assist her with even more scope for play! I think the dress-up outfits are superb!

Another toy we adore which lets a bit of dress-up fuel the imagination is the ELC RockStar Guitar! Florence’s Daddy is a musician and Florence wants to play guitar just like him so this is fab! We love the guitar which comes with a microphone attached to some cool rock star sunglasses and really works when plugged into the guitar! It has loads of different sounds, music and buttons and some strings which can be strummed! It’s loud but c’mon, children love it! All Florence’s friend’s make a beeline for it when they’re over!

For more information on the dress-up outfits, accessories and the entire Early Learning Centre range please see the website www.elcuk.co.uk.

Jimmy’s been weaning and with it learning to drink from a cup. I tried him with a cup from mOmma, an Italian brand, and to begin with wasn’t entirely sure about it but quickly came round. So, first of all I thought the No Spill Cup (which I have without handles) might be a little difficult for Jimmy to grip. I held it for him and fed him so that he didn’t have to attempt picking it up himself and was pleased to see that he sucked on the silicone spout as if it were a normal bottle teet. It’s soft and feels the same as a teet but is the shape of a spout. I liked the way the spout actually doesn’t leak at all even though it looks like it should and because of the round shape of the bottle (making it a bit weeble like – weebles wobble but they don’t fall over) it never falls on its side but if it did the teet wouldn’t come into contact with a surface anyway. It’s clever for sure.

I just still didn’t think it was going to be good for Jimmy to hold and wished I had the one that came with handles. Instead I went and bought a standard hard cup with two handles and a hard spout. Immediately Jimmy could pick it up using the handles but he wouldn’t or couldn’t drink using the hard spout and I realised that he was after the softness that he is used to. I decided to give the mOmma cup another go as I liked everything about it aside from the fact that I didn’t think he could pick it up himself. I hadn’t actually tried it though. It’s quite heavy so I just assumed it would be too difficult.

Actually, when it came down to it and I gave him the option to try Jimmy managed to hold the cup himself rather well. He uses both hands and grips it in what actually appears to be a much more steady way than he could manage with handles. When using the handled cup he just shakes it about but with the mOmma one he can lift it carefully and guide it to his mouth easily. Suddenly I realised why the cup is the way it is and knew that I’d been wrong in my initial assessment. It’s heavy and rounded so that little hands can grip it well and not fling it about but guide it in gently.

Well, with the teet being soft, the no spill aspect, the hygienic way it doesn’t come into contact with surfaces and I am very pleased indeed as is Jimmy – I think we will get the one with handles too but for when he’s a bit older. It even fits in my bottle bag despite its odd shape!

Jimmy with his cup!

As well as using the mOmma cup we have been trying out the teether.

We have the blue seal and its super cute. I simply love the Italian design, just as with everything in the range it’s all very cool and edgy but actually serves a good purpose too! The teether is chunky but not heavy or too big. It’s about the size of the palm of my hand and has a cheeky interesting face on a smooth bulbous head which is nice to touch in itself. The gel part of the teether forms the hoop which isn’t big enough to slip over a little wrist but perfect for them to grip with one or two hands. It has prominent circles which form a texture sticking out and can be put in the fridge to cool for a soothing sensation on sore gums. I always take this one out and about with me, it’s easy to clean, hold, chew and play with while Jimmy seems to like it very much! An interesting and unusual teething toy!

We’re so impressed by the mOmma products we’re going to try the tableware next – it looks great!

Living in the capital City you might be forgiven for thinking there’s not much sense of community. I live in East London and I think people in Norfolk, where I am from, assume it’s an insular life and no one says hello to anyone else. Ok, so it’s true on the tube people don’t speak but where I live and there couldn’t be a greater sense of community. For families in particular, it’s a great place to live with much going on for children and welcoming faces in all the cafes, shops and even (with children) the pubs! EastEnders (the TV show) might have got it wrong on many levels; we do definitely have our own washing machines in the real EE and we don’t talk about ‘going up West’ as if it’s a mighty affair but they have it right that we do know each other and have a strong bond; well, the families with children do anyway and that might be in part down to our fabby SureStart centres! I have known the same group of Mum’s since Florence was tiny and we met at those groups and over time the group has just expanded. I can’t leave the house for five minutes without seeing a familiar face. We all see each other often but rarely get the chance to ALL be in one place at the same time unless it’s something festive. In the summer it was at the local festival where we gathered in the park to watch live bands and have a jolly summer day and at Christmas we all get together to hire a venue and have our own little Christmas party, although it’s actually quite big really!

This year is actually the first time I’ve joined everyone as haven’t been able to make it in the past so I was keen to lend a helping hand and co-organise it with another Mum (she’s also a blogger and writes mummyisagadgetgeek). Now I have to say she did most of the donkey work, wrapping up parcels for a massive game of pass the parcel, making bags of sweets for ‘Father Christmas’ to hand out to the little ones (that was meant to have been helped by me but wasn’t… eeek) and also making food herself… I am a lazy bee and not particularly great at cooking so brought with me some wonderful ready-made treats from Asda. They have their Extra Special range which is created with the Leiths School of Cookery and it’s so good and such a good price it just seems like a no brainer to me… Party = Food. Food = Bought in! Bought in = Must be excellent! And when ‘must be excellent’ is at very affordable, family friendly prices then even better!

I might not be a brilliant cook but I do know bad food when I see it! There are just some things I wouldn’t even taste! Have you seen some of the adverts for supermarket nibbles this year? One of them is producing these mini lasagne things that look positively revolting! Seriously, that’s a massive case of quantity over quality if ever I saw one! I’ve always had expensive tastes especially when it comes to food and drink and I spend over the odds for food if it’s good quality. Most of the time I wouldn’t even think about it when buying things like party nibbles and would immediately go to the two (much) higher priced supermarkets because I know they’re good. In the past I’ve not found cheaper ones which match up so I won’t compromise. This year though and I’ve been invited (because of my blog) to a number of Asda PR events where they’ve used their own range of food (obviously) – I have to say I’ve been incredibly impressed. I can honestly say, and this is with a total hand on heart, no one has paid me to say this, that the Asda Extra Special food, Christmas nibbles in particular, easily rival their higher priced high street retailer competition! Compared to supermarkets of a similar price band and they’re streets ahead. Let’s not even go there with the mini frozen food place…

So I took a load with me and everyone tucked into a wide variety from the range as well as couple of things from the ‘Chosen By You’ range! They are, as they have been chosen by us, pretty good too! We had a lovely party and all came away very full indeed! We really did have a wide selection from the range and everything was really tasty – even when we burned a batch of sausage rolls they still tasted scrummy! I’ve made a list of my top faves and it’s safe to say this is exactly what we’ll be nibbling on New year’s Eve this year too!

From the extra Special Range:

I can’t get enough of the Salmon Terrine Slices. I had two before I’d even put them out! They are so delicate and with a beautiful hint of lemon! I could have eaten hundreds and had to really steel myself from scoffing the lot! Jimmy also LOVED them! He’s got good taste that boy!

The Parma Ham is just divine! Delicately salty and so smooth! I’m going to have it with figs, honey and cheese on NYE!

I don’t even like pate but the Chicken and Mushroom Pate Jar is amazing! It doesn’t taste like offal (that’s how I usually think pate tastes) at all and is smooth and creamy with these gorgeous peppercorns on top!

I love mature cheddar but have never tasted anything quite like this Cave Aged West Country Farmhouse Mature Cheddar! It’s amazing and makes your mouth tingle! So dramatic in its packaging of wax and it does not disappoint in the tasting either!

Breaded Camembert Wedges with Cranberry and Port Dip are literally my favourite. I DID eat most of these… I just stood by them and kind of ploughed my way through. They were just too nice! I’m not sure I should get any more of these for NYE or I might turn into one! The dip is delicious! Yum!

Mince Pies, absolutely wonderful and I’m not generally a fan! You can’t go wrong with these!

I have to also give a special mention to the most delicious cheese cake I’ve ever tried from the Chosen By You range… Chocolatey, gooey, whizz banging crunchy bits on top! Oh my goodness it was good! All the children loved the triple pack lollies of marshmallow reindeer, Father Christmases and Snow Men too! They came as a pack of three but because each one is wrapped individually we had enough to give one to every child old enough!

Anyone for party food?

All the food was delicious! The ones I mentioned are just my own faves but looking at the pics and I have to say the prawns were pretty awesome too, I loved that Christmas yule log and cake and the pork pies flew off the plate! Can’t wait for some more!

My little ones and one of my gorgeous Mum friends and her oldest enjoying our party and the food!

While we’re on the subject of Asda, Christmas and partying it’s worth saying that it’s not just the food I like so much. You could literally shop for the whole of Christmas, gifts to boot in store! From electricals to trinkets, DVD’s and clothes… Toys, DIY gifts, flowers… Everything and all at brilliant Asda prices. The children are giving my Mum some tea light holders and a noteblock from the ‘Made With Love’ range and they’re great quality, elegant and do not cost the earth! Just like their advert depicts (which I wrote about a few weeks ago here) all Mum needs to do is go to the supermarket and then the rest of the hard work can be done at home…

A couple of the Asda gifts you can find in store!

Well, if you don’t already know by now, I’m a big fan Sassy toys. They’re very well made, easy for tiny hands to hold, have interesting features and the colours (which include black and white widely) are extremely stimulating for babies. Jimmy is 7 months old and has been using various Sassy toys through his development so far with great pleasure. I think he’s fond of the style they have running through their range and because they make toys for every occasion he is rarely without one by his side.

Now me personally and in general, am not a fan of the noisy toy. I know children are, so I grin and bear them but anything that makes music is generally a teeth grater for me. We have one toy (not from Sassy) which goes off willy nilly, plays the same tune over and over again and lasts for absolutely ages once it starts! It’s the sort of toy you would see in a scary movie; suddenly everything would be quiet then from the corner of the room the toy would start to play music on its own… LOUDLY! People have actually commented on it and it annoys me loads but… I put up with it.

I wasn’t then, jumping for joy when asked to review another noisy rattle toy but I decided again that if Jimmy likes it then I’ll just have to put up with it. I was very surprised however, to find that the Sassy Piano doesn’t irritate me half as much as I thought it might! It still does keep Jimmy quite entertained though so I think we might just have found our winner for the noisy baby toy category! This rattle has one button (all the keys) which produces four different tunes when pressed gently. The beauty of it is that it produces a similar effect to the other toy but the tunes don’t go on very long, are not very loud and it doesn’t seem to just suddenly go off on its own accord! It also has coloured beads running inside the handle and some rings round the outside of it which makes it even more appealing. With the trademark Sassy colours and being light enough for a little one to hold and play with on his or her own it’s a clear winner for us!

The rattle is recommended for children aged 6m+ and at just £3.95 (over a pound under the RRP) is a bargain from Precious Little One!

Last week I wrote a post called ‘Where are you meeting Father Christmas?’ I wrote about how Willows Farm Village are currently having a Santa’s Grotto Spectacular and Grotto Festive Fun and how we were hoping to go along and see it for ourselves this weekend just gone. We’d had such a marvellous time there at Easter and we were really looking forward to seeing Father Christmas in style!

When we arrived we couldn’t believe the festive feel! Just walking up the drive way and we could see how much effort had gone into turning ‘Willows’ into the most Christmassy place ever! Talk about going all out! The place was shining, literally shining! We didn’t arrive till lunch time so first stop was lunch which we bought there. They are very happy for you to take a picnic and have lots of warm places to eat one but we decided to go for the very reasonably priced food they offer and had a 99% beef burger from a local butcher – yum! Once our tummies were full we set about the real fun!

On to the ‘Farmyard Favourites’ area. It was here, at Easter, that we got to hold baby chicks and we couldn’t wait to see what the winter would bring! We couldn’t believe it when there were tiny baby piggies feeding from their Mummy! What a treat. On the way there Florence had said she really wanted to see pigs and we couldn’t believe our luck that there were so many sweet babies to ‘oooh’ over! We had a tour round the area and enjoyed the goats, rabbits, mice etc. The sheep are delightful and even more fun for us is that one is also called Florence, we loved that! And then came the crowing glory! A BABY REINDEER! What a treat! One of the lovely things about this area is that it has a sign on the back wall of each enclosure letting you know with a photograph how to ‘sign’ each animals name. I didn’t even notice it but Florence (our girl, not the sheep) just started following the signs and doing it on her own! There are lots of little touches like this dotted around the farm. They obviously really care and it totally shows!

Farm Favourite Fun!

Me and the two Florence’s!

So, all the animals are wonderful of course. We absolutely delighted in visiting the donkeys, sheep, pigs and taking a tour of the farm on Tristan the Tractor (who has had a make-over since our last visit and now has a much more efficient boarding technique). We loved all the firm farm faves like milking the pretend cow, playing on the extensive play equipment (which has dedicated age areas) and eating our lunch in specially designed picnic benches made to look like animal houses. Florence, despite the weather had a ball playing in the sand pits and Jimmy just loved smelling the smells and looking around at all there is to see which is much on a regular day so now is amazing; but we were really there yesterday for all the festive fun and I have to say to ‘Willows’, BRAVO! Your spectacular is, well, spectacular!

We adored playing on the carousel (had a job getting Florence off it actually) and it was just the ticket to get us in the festive mood as when we got to that part of the farm the daylight was fading and everything was becoming just that little bit more sparkly! Having done the ‘reindeer hunt’ all around the farm, checking off each one as we found him tucked away, we settled down to enjoy the nativity play. Lots of children got involved and the religious story was told but in a very sensitive manner. If you don’t want to see it there are other things at different times of the day going on in the ‘show area’ but I think it’s important to know the story and learn about all religions whether you believe or not. It was very sweet and I learned something new too! Donkeys all have a cross on their back, interesting!

And this was all before we’d even made it indoors! Inside and there are still the tractors to drive, ‘fill up with petrol’ and scoot around on but now there is also ICE SKATING! Can you believe it?! Not real ice but tiles which substitute for it and actually, this is far easier for little ones and the day at Willows is all about the little ones! They had different sized polar bears and penguins to hold on to if they wanted and tiny little skate shoes which could go over their own shoes if the boots were too big. Florence adores ice skating and loved this activity before we went into ‘Santa’s Grotto’! Now, this really is exciting and never before have I seen such a splendid display for it! As you queue, you walk down a Christmassy tunnel before turning into a windy pathway with displays either side of the elves at work, penguins on ice, reindeer in the snow and fairies in trees amongst other things. This in itself is exciting enough but then you get to meet Father Christmas who has a little chat and gives the children a golden key to his workshop which is filled floor to ceiling with toys to choose one and take home! It’s amazing and the children were all in awe!

Festive fun at ‘Willows’!

It was a lovely way to finish the day but we had to have a quick stop in the indoor play area and say one last goodbye to the baby reindeer before we headed home happy, festive and worn out with having so much fun! As always, ‘Willows’ is a winner for us!

For more information on Willows Farm Village and their Christmas Spectacular Grotto and Grotto Farm Fun please see the website www.willowsfarmvillage.co.uk.

Dear Low Life Scum,

Today, on my Christmas day out with my children you ruined a lovely day and made me cry from the minute I met you and I’m still crying now.

We started the day with a trip to the theatre, a long-awaited and planned treat which wasn’t for me to review for my blog or to tell the world about but something for us to just enjoy and treasure. We met our good friends and had a ball at Stratford Circus as planned. We went on for lunch and despite a few toddler tantrums the day was all set for Christmas crafts in the ‘Discover pop-up shop’ and meeting Father Christmas in Stratford Westfield…

I went to get money out to pay my friend’s back for lunch, met them in the craft place, left the children with them for five minutes while I made a quick trip to ‘The Disney Store’ for a secret present for Florence and on my way back you struck.

So I saw the three of you, arguing and smoking in the doorway but you had a little girl with you dancing round the door, I didn’t suspect anything. When I said ‘excuse me’ as I tried to get through the door next to the ‘Hugo Boss’ shop I didn’t expect the swearing and abuse you shouted at me as you jostled and pushed. I tried to work out why you were swearing, what your little girl must think and then realised you were still shouting and swearing at me so I ran back into Westfield, scared and straight into the nearest shop, ‘Hugo Boss’ Where I said these words to the store security guard: ‘I’m frightened, please help me’. I didn’t expect him to say no.

The security guard and the management team said repeatedly that they couldn’t do anything about the men shouting and bustling me, it was out of their control and I had to really push to get them to call Westfield security but eventually they did. Because I was crying. While we waited for Westfield security we, the ‘Hugo Boss’ security guard, staff and I, watched as you, the little girl and your friends, walked casually away…

Westfield security came, took a brief statement and said they had you on CCTV, they would catch up with you and have a ‘strong word’. What more could I do but return to my friends and children, angry but pleased I was out of it. As soon as I saw my friends I told them what had just happened and went to get my money to pay them for lunch. It was only then I realised the zip on my bag was undone and my wallet, my Grandpa’s wallet as it happens and the one I have used since I wad 18 and he passed away, was missing.

I burst into tears, cried, got the lovely ‘Discover’ staff to call security again and ran to the bank to cancel my cards. While in the bank the lady from ‘Discover’ brought the security guard, who eventually showed up, to me and I was told ‘everything was on CCTV’, you were being followed and then oh, oh no, you’d left and there was nothing they could do. The security guard then told me the police would contact me if my wallet was found but that was all I could do, I wasn’t to call the police myself as they would contact me if they needed to.

I was crying so hard then. I had just topped up my travel card with £20 and taken £30 out in cash which I’d put in my wallet and although I definitely can’t afford to lose that, I had lost my beloved Grandpa’s wallet. I think of him every single time I use it, every day and it means so much to me.

Florence had been taken to our planned ‘Father Christmas’ visit with my friends and I was missing it but as I walked past ‘Hugo Boss’ I couldn’t help but go in there to shout at the man, through my tears, who had refused to help me. I said to him ‘I asked you for help, told you I was frightened and pleaded for you to do something and you refused’. People were looking but I didn’t care, they had to know their cowardice had caused more upset that they could have helped prevent. The actual manager came out then and escorted me to the Father Christmas area, all the while apologising but saying she couldn’t do anything, her hands were tied and the security guard couldn’t have left the shop…

I managed to get into Father Christmas to watch my little girl sitting on her own waiting for me but I didn’t get to enjoy it with her. She was with friends of course but on her own all the same. I made it just in time to see but it was all ruined as she didn’t realise and I had tears streaming down my face the whole way through. The special treat gone.

When I came out I rang the police myself who came in 5 minutes. They couldn’t believe Westfield had done nothing and they couldn’t believe they hadn’t been called by the ‘Hugo Boss’ security guard in the first place let alone the Westfield team. They were impeccable but obviously by that time my wallet was gone, with my money and everything else.

My friend gave me money for a taxi home, the taxi driver stopped the clock when he heard my story and took me home anyway and my neighbour came round to see if I was ok as her son-in-law had been in the bank when I was in there stopping my cards and had seen how upset I was. I rang the security team head honcho at Westfield to say how upset I was and he was sympathetic and said he’d get back to me. Then the policeman rang me because he was worried about me, he cared. It seems there are decent people, despite you, you utter scum bag!

Today you used an innocent child to steal money, that’s abuse! You intimidated me and that’s not just pick pocketing but violent intimidation. You went away with £30, a £20 travel card and a wallet you will have binned but that meant so much to me. If you’d said to me ‘I’m going to steal your wallet’ I’d have given you all the money in my bank account not to have done so.

I haven’t stopped crying since 2pm, my day, my friend’s day and our children’s day is ruined but I feel sorry for your little girl. Does she ever have a non ruined day or know what one is? You don’t deserve her, do you know that!?

Ruth Davies Knowles

15/12/12: Today I have woken up and I’m angry! I’m angry at everything that happened yesterday! Firstly and obviously I am angry at the wicked people using children and violent behaviour to steal innocent people’s belongings but I’m also angry at the care I didn’t receive when I asked for help?

So, to Hugo Boss! I used the words ‘I’m frightened, please help me’! And you basically said that the computer said no! And even when you knew the whole story you stood by the decision you made to not help me! One man, the deputy manager showed compassion and it was only because he asked the security guard that the security guard eventually called Westfield security. When I went back to shout at you for not helping me and tell you what your lack of care had contributed to, he was the only one who showed a glimmer of  feeling. The first man from the management team who I spoke to in the first place when I was frightened and asking for help sneered at me, looked at me like I was a piece of dirt on the floor and laughed in my face when I told him how disappointed I was that he’d lied and said he was THE manager. When I went back and was in floods of tears, THE manager did come out and while she in moments gave sympathetic noises, she KEPT repeating her mantra that there was nothing you could have done and asking the inane question if there was anything she could do now. Well, there was something YOU could have done, YOU watched, with me, the criminal for a good five minutes then watched as he casually walked away. Why didn’t you call the police?  She, the manager, kept getting irritated and almost telling me off when I kept repeating myself. I was in shock! Hugo Boss, I am so disappointed in you, shame on you and shame on your staff! What is the point in having a security guard if they can’t leave the store and what on earth do they do if someone runs off, out of the doors, with goods they have stolen from you? Does the security guard stop on the door line and go no further? I don’t know anyone who would be asked for help, told by the person asking that they are frightened and then not do anything? Surely its human nature to want to help someone asking for it????

And Westfield security team?! You said you had them on CCTV and were following them then you allowed them to leave the mall. Did you really have them or were you lying? The police said I was violently intimidated before I even knew about the wallet and that in itself is an offence so why didn’t you care more than to say ‘you’d catch up with them and have a strong word’? The second security guard took a while to arrive as did the first and when he met me in the bank and I was in floods of tears he just didn’t know what to do and didn’t DO anything. After telling me you had him on CCTV he then said ‘Oh, they’ve gone now, nothing more we can do, if the police find your wallet they’ll call you’. HOW would the police have called me when they didn’t know? Westfield security, you didn’t call them and the security guard told me NOT to call them; I asked and he said NO! Good job I did anyway eh?! What is the point of your job? You take ages to turn up then do nothing and provide no support. I await contact from your manager who sounded appalled!

No one at any point asked if I needed anything, offered me a place to sit or did anything to help. Both teams stood around looking awkward and ‘Hugo Boss’ down right wanted me out of the shop where I wouldn’t be creating a scene amongst their finery. The Westfield teams just looked like it was an annoyance on their day and they couldn’t even be bothered to ring the police! Shame on Westfield too!

And to the police, thank you. Thank you for all your time, for telling me I was within my right to be this frightened and it was natural to be so upset. They told me they were dismayed at BOTH security teams and that they SHOULD have been called. Straight away. They looked after me for over an hour and found the CCTV and I am particularly grateful to PC Elliot Butler who listened, acted, behaved like this was important (it is you know) and escorted me back to my friends. He then phoned me to give me my crime reference number before it was valid saying he wanted to call me but would be going off shift so my number wouldn’t be active for another hour but it was important to him to have that continuity and I am grateful he did. He was young, very young but he obviously has all the right attributes we need in our police officers. I would imagine his parents already are but they should be proud of him, as should his colleagues and superiors. He made me feel looked after, not something Westfield or ‘Hugo Boss’ even had a go at.

I am, essentially with my travel card, £50 down and I don’t have my Grandpa’s wallet but I am frightened and saddened by this whole event and as for Westfield and ‘Hugo Boss’, thanks, thanks a million! You helped ruin my and my children’s special day out. My nearly three year old daughter burst into tears in the taxi home that my friend kindly insisted on because I was so upset and shaken. I still have puffy eyes and a head ache from crying and worrying but thankfully have managed to make my daughter think I was playing a silly game. How do you feel? Have you even thought about it since?