Monday 27 February 2017

See in the Spring with Octer!

I love browsing kids clothes, my 2 have wardrobes filled to the brim with gorgeous clothes and I really can't help myself looking for more to add to the collection. I've recently been browsing lots of lovely Spring clothes at Octer and thought I'd share a few of my picks with you.

A little bit about Octer......this one stop online shop is fab for all your needs. Octer provides customers with a simple solution to shopping providing hundreds of brands and stores in one place, truly brilliant.

First up, how about this gorgeous, girl coat from Hatley (John Lewis on Octer), this would be a perfect choice to see your child through Spring. I adore the design and bright colour. 

Buy Hatley Baby Polka Dot and Ponies Waterproof Rain Coat, Blue/Pink Online at johnlewis.com
How about this absolutely stunning dress by Ted Baker? I love the bright design and how floral it is, perfect for a Summer holiday wouldn't you agree?

Baker By Ted Baker Baby Girls Border Print Woven Dress

 How about this utterly amazing swimsuit? How cute it this.......expensive but worth it?? Maybe.

Toddler's & Little Girl's One-Piece Snack Swimsuit

I am also loving this lovely shirt for my son, it's super smart and would be great with a pair of skinny jeans or even a pair of shorts, very on trend.

Polarn O. Pyret Boys' Reversible Checked Shirt, Blue/Green

Lastly, how about these uber funky tropical board shorts. These are absolutely fab and I'm totally going to get a pair for Alfie!

Ebound Swimming shorts blue

This is just a small selection of what's available over on Octer, it's a brilliant website and I have spent hours browsing. I love that all the brands that I love are on one website and it's easy to navigate and access things you're trying to find. 

Go have a nose, anything take your fancy?

* Collaborative Post. 

My Nursing Journey......

* This is going to be the 1st in a mini series I've been wanting to write for a while now. I don't often bring my job into my blog but I'm so passionate about nursing and my career that I want to share my experiences and love as working in the healthcare sector. If my posts can encourage anyone of thinking of starting a nursing course then I'll be pleased*

Our NHS is in a sorry state at the moment isn't it. Gosh it makes me so sad hearing all the negativity surrounding it. We are incredibly lucky to have the NHS and more often than not people forget that we are getting free healthcare. People monopolise it, inappropriately use it and bad mouth it but my god you'd miss it if it was gone. It's all so glum, we never hear the good side of the NHS, and believe it or not there is a brighter side of it.....I promise.  Amongst the darkness there is light and a damn hard working bunch of people that keep the NHS going.

This post is inspired by a recent thread I saw on the RCN (Royal College of Nursing) Facebook page with regards to the recent drop in university admissions to study nursing. You can read about here which gives you a bit more of an insight. It really deflates me to hear that not alot of people want to go on to study nursing, although I have to be honest I'm not overly surprised. The fairly recent change to a degree course from diploma and cutting the bursary is bound to have a big impact. Two huge factors that attract people to the course are now not available and will no doubt have a knock on effect in getting the numbers in. 

When I applied to do my  nursing in 2009 it was a very scary time, I was entering at a changing time within the healthcare sector, I was none the wiser really but knew I was in for the long haul. It was a tough course to get on then and I expect it's even harder now. When I applied I had to do an access course for my maths as my GCSE grade D (not afraid to admit it) was not enough to meet the required entry requirements (grade C and up), I did a Learn Direct course to gain an extra qualification to enable me to be able to apply. Once my application had been processed I was invited for a formal interview, then a group interview and literacy and numeracy assessments. It was stressful to say the least.  I was over the moon to be accepted, it was like the making of me, the beginning of my new life. 

Starting the course I was going on age 25, I was classed as a mature student which was totally bizarre because at the time I barely felt my life had started. I was very fortunate to be in receipt of a bursary and have tuition fees payed for. The bursary was not alot at just over £500 a month and if I'm being honest the lack of money over the duration of the course nearly broke myself and my husband. It was a shock to the system, I'd left a fairly well paid job and took a substantial pay cut but I was well aware of the challenges ahead and willing to take that risk. However, that being said having a non repayable bursary was fantastic, I had debts yes but these were so much less than if I was to have a loan to see me through 3 years. 

The recent changes to the nursing course I feel are very obstructive to people like myself. I did not have the required qualifications to apply to a degree program and I definitely know I wouldn't have been able to afford to take a loan, we just wouldn't have been able to sustain our life knowing that we had a huge loan hanging over us. 


My course was the hardest thing I have ever done. There were many a time I wanted to quit. There were times I loved it and times I hated it. Having been out of education for several years adapting to lectures, essays, placements and studying was tougher than I could have even imagined. My life became consumed with studying and juggling life and placements, it was tough, I mean extremely tough, I can't sugar coat it. Placements were incredibly hard in the sense that you don't really have much of a life for 5 weeks, it's intense and I had a mixture of some fab placements but some awful ones too and you kind of just have to take the rough with the smooth. I fell pregnant toward the end of my 2nd year, it was unplanned but a wonderful surprise, it definitely scuppered a few plans! I was so close to finishing the course when I went on maternity leave, I was blessed that I was still able to get my bursary as maternity pay and was fortunate that my university were fairly supportive. 

Going back to the inspiration behind this posts, there were several comments on the RCN thread that really saddened me, however  it's not just the online thread that brought it to my attention just how volatile the nursing career is but many of my colleagues often have expressed how worried and anxious they feel working within the healthcare sector and how nursing is not what is used to be. What concerns me more so with all this negativity is where does the future of nursing truly lie? 

We are soon getting to the point that many of the older nurses will be getting ready to hang up their tunics and who do we have left to step into their shoes? With the recent university admissions dropping there is going to be a real lack of nursing students entering the sector and with the new nursing associate role that is up and running (which I am not going into!) will nursing lose the credit and respect that it once had. I wish they hadn't scrapped the diploma, it made the course so much more accessible for people to be able to get onto, it was the same course as the degree when I studied minus the dissertation, in my eyes I am still the same as the nurse that studied the degree, it makes no difference to the care or compassion that I provide in the day to day job.  

I admit that I would never want to go back into hospital nursing, even from very early on within my course I knew that  I was destined to be in the community/primary care sector it was my calling for sure and I am very happy that I made my choice. Having left the community to enter a practice was a good decision for me and a really learning curve but in a good way. It's really something to love the job that you're in and I really can say that I love what I do. 

So for anyone who is thinking about entering healthcare or nursing then do it. Don't be disillusioned, if I can do it you can. If you think you have what it takes to make it then you will. Yes it isn't the best paid job and it is tough and I mean really tough but you learn to manage your emotions and develop coping strategies. You are constantly learning while questioning what you are doing and also being exposed to abuse, germs, ignorance and unhappiness.

I have a handful of other posts that I would like to share surrounding nursing so I do hope you've enjoyed a little insight into how my nursing career started!




Sunday 26 February 2017

The Month for Desserts!

February Is A Month for Warm Blankets and Decadent Desserts

This is the time of year that everyone starts saying that spring is just around the corner, but what’s all the optimism good for if I’m still sitting here freezing under a pile of blankets! This year, I’m not going to fight February. I’m going to embrace it for all it has to offer. Sure, you might not be able to go to the park and your nights out with friends might be less frequent, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a great time at home! Start by turning the heat up and investing in some super comfy jumpers and blankets. Next, huddle up to a warm oven and get your bake on!

February is for indulging in desserts and is the month when we celebrate Nutella Day and Bramley Apple Week. Here are some creative ideas to make your February a little more active and a lot more delicious!

Celebrate Nutella Day the Right Way

More often than not, the only thing complementing my jar of Nutella is a spoon! But not this year! I’m going to celebrate Nutella Day right by using it to make some fantastic biscuits and cakes. Here are a few recipes I’ve been dying to try!

Get crafty with your Nutella addiction this year and make something toasty and irresistible! Don’t forget to share your results!

Stock Up on Bramley Apples


Fruit isn’t usually the first thing we think of eating in the winter, but with Bramley Apple Week in full swing, it’s no better time to warm your body, mind, and soul with some rich apple pie, hot cider or gooey applesauce. There are a number of tarts and cakes that are packed with nutrient rich apples and taste great, too! Take this opportunity to learn a new skill and bring a little colour into your diet! Check out some popular Bramley Apple recipes here!

Image result for bramley apples
Image courtesy of free2bake.com

Order In and Snuggle Up

Sometimes, after a long winter workweek, I just don’t feel like cooking. Scratch that; I don’t feel like doing anything! This is when I love to get into my pyjamas, snuggle up on the couch with my Silentnight heated blanket and order some goodies delivered right to my door. Delivery isn’t just for pizza and Chinese anymore. You can now order a wide range of savoury and sweet dishes with the click of a button! An effortless night in with a glass of wine and my favourite dessert is all I need to recharge my batteries and bring a little colour to my cheeks!

Don’t sit around freezing and sulking this February. Get into the kitchen and get creative. There’s nothing stopping you from turning February from frigid to festive!


* Collaborative Post.

Wednesday 22 February 2017

Best and Worst Linky #85



Beautiful Things


Run, Jump, Scrap!

Hello and a big welcome to this weeks best and worst linky. I totally realised that I haven't updated this for a few weeks so it made it sound like myself and my husband are still ill......which we are not, phew! This week is going back quickly and here we are again, Wednesday and linky day.

Sarah and I hope that the linky continues to go from strength to strength and perhaps 0ver the next few months we might implement some small changes but these are still being discussed. In the meantime let me welcome you, as always to the best and worst linky run by my lovely friend Sarah who blogs over at Run Jump Scrap and co-hosted by myself. If you're new to the linky we're delighted for you to join in, please do have a read of the rules. If you're a regular then thanks as always for the support. Sarah and I split the commenting now, it is working well doing it like that. You should have received a comment from one of us so if you are missing one please do drop us a tweet or email. We've had some great posts over the last few months and we're looking forward to reading some more fabulous posts!

So what is best and worst all about? This is the linky where you can tell us about the best or worst things that have happened in the last week or even the last year, this could in the form of a blog post, a photo or even a video. It can be an old post or a new post, we don't mind we just want you to share it with us. We want you to share your babies firsts, the crappy day at work you've had or a makeup disaster basically the good, the bad or the downright ugly! We want to share your excitement and tears, highs and lows no matter what it is.

What we are going to introduce is more of an emphasis on our #bestandworst hashtag. We would love to see more of you over on Instagram and Twitter sharing your pictures and posts with myself @helsy_1983 and Sarah @runjumpscrap this can be throughout the whole week not just when our linky runs and we will then aim to feature some depending on who uses the hashtag. As this is still a fairly new thing for us it might take a few weeks before people start using the hashtag more.

So as always, on with the linky........please have a little read of the rules and we look forward to reading this weeks posts.

We are going to be keeping a close eye on the commenting in the coming weeks, it's not fair to link and run so please take some time to visit some other blogs and comment, linkys  only work if people spend time to read other blogs and comment on them.

So on with this weeks featured posts. We had another great week with some fabulous bloggers linking up and had some really lovely posts to read it was a pleasure to read them all as always.

My featured post from last week is this brilliant post from The Amateur Man with the rather fab title 'congratulations it's in the right place'.......


The Amateur Man

Sarah's featured link up from last week was from the rather lovely Renee who blogs at Peonie and Me with a very sweet announcement, congratulations!!

Rules


      • The linky will open at 5.30am on a Wednesday and close at 23.55pm on a Friday
      • You can link up one or two posts each week
      • Please comment on the 2 posts before yours and have a nosey at the host's too. We've noticed that some people have just been link dropping and not commenting on the 2 in front, please do return the favour so everyone gets some comments and linky love, thankyou.
      • ***Please add the badge to the bottom of your page so everyone knows where you have linked up***
      • Tweet your hosts @helsy_1983 and @RunJumpScrap once linked up so we can retweet you. When tweeting and commenting use the hashtag #bestandworst so everyone knows where you have come from and remember to hashtag us over on Instagram too
      Best of Worst

      
      
      
      
      
      
          

      Tuesday 21 February 2017

      Dream Pet with Petplan!

      Say hello to the newest addition of Alfie's ever growing collection of soft toys and snakes...... this is Alex the Anaconda. I know, I know he doesn't really look like your conventional Anaconda but in Alfie's eyes this is the next best thing since Ginger his bedtime bear. Alex has settled in remarkably well and has made good friends with Barry the Burmese Python (the kid has a way with names I tell you) and he's a very cute toy to welcome into the Beautiful Things household. 

      So how did Alex the Anaconda enter our lives I hear you ask......? Well, I've recently been working alongside Petplan to allow Alfie to design his dream pet, such an exciting task for a nearly 5 year old. 

      First, a little bit about Petplan Pet Insurance. One of the market leaders in pet insurance Petplan pride themselves on recognising what pet owners require when it comes to insuring your beloved pets and offer reputable and unrivalled  insurance plans.  Having personally used Petplan in the past I can speak from experience when I say that the policies are very thorough and concise and the company has always been a pleasure to deal with. 

      As part of Petplans latest campaign to encourage pet owners to insure their animals we were asked to design a dream pet, a wish pet if you like. I kind of had an idea what Alfie wanted to design......after all he's been going on and on about having a pet anaconda (eek) for quite some time now. For the record we're not getting a real life Anaconda so Alex will have to suffice!  Myself and my husband sat down with Alfie and asked him what he'd like him to look like. 

      My husband drew the prototype but the colours and design were all on Alfie's instruction and he was really quite specific about how he would like his snake to look like!



      When Alex arrived he was exactly as Alfie had imagined. A little smaller that a real Anaconda (but I'm ok with that) and quite plump, Alex is a soft and squishy  bright green snake with blue patterns with  very sparkly purple stripes (told you he was unique), he's got big eyes and a huge forked tongue. He's certainly a special pet snake! 

      Ooops, chopped his head off, was trying to get pictures while Alfie willing!

      I can't describe how excited he was to see him, the first thing he did was go and get Barry the Burmese Python to introduce them to each other and give them both a cuddle. He thinks Alex is absolutely brilliant and he has to make sure he's tucked in with him in bed every single night. He's most definitely a very proud Anaconda owner......




      I love how a simple idea and soft toy can make a child so happy, Alfie takes such pride and pleasure in his soft toys and Alex the Anaconda is no exception. I love that all his teddies have individual names, when I'd asked Alfie what he wanted to name the Anaconda, Alex was the first name he suggested, we do have some interesting named toys that I have no idea where he came up with them...... for example, we have Ginger and Chloe the bedtime bears, Rory the Lion, Natty the Elephant, Gerry the Giraffe, Bruce the Shark, Luke the Lemur and Craig the Croc......to name but a few!


      Along with Petplans great insurance covers did you know that the company work alongside re-homing charities and in 1994 created the charitable trust that helps which so far has raised more than 7 million towards a healthier and happier world for the animals out there. 

      What do you guys think of Alfie's new pet? Cute right!

      * Please note we were kindly sent the soft toy free of charge in exchange for an honest and unbiased blog post, special thanks to Petplan! 

      Sunday 19 February 2017

      Self Care at Home.

      Still the germs linger on. Isn't Winter just the worst for all the snuffles and sniffles and coughs. Someone in our house always seems to have some sort of germy bug and I for one can't wait to see some sun. More often than not people attend their local GP surgery for treatment but many of these coughs and colds can easily be treated at home with self care, advise from a pharmacist or even an online pharmacy


      There are a dew things that you can do to look after yourself at home saving precious GP appointments for those who really need them.

      • Rest up. Easier said than done but trying to wind down and rest really is one of the best ways to fight an illness. Get an early night, take the day off work and sleep and forget about the housework or anything else that can wait. 
      • Accept help! If parents of other family members offer to help with things or look after the kids so you can rest take them up on their kindness!
      • Take some painkillers as and when required. Pharmacies are fantastic these days and can offer plenty of advice on what to take and what will help. 
      • Drink plenty! Hot drinks like honey and lemon can do wonders f you have a sore throat and can soothe a cough. Also drinking plenty of water is so important especially if you are running a temperature and sweating. 
      • Having a steamy shower (ooo errr, not that kind of steamy though!) and investing in a vapour rub can help with blocked airways and can help you breathe a bit easier. 
      • Remember that coughs and colds are mostly viral infections and should resolve themselves over time, it can be tough when it feels like they are lingering but antibiotics are not effective on a viral illness. 
      Of course id you are at all worried or concerned about your symptoms in anyway or you worsen or do not improve then absolutely seek a GP review. In the meantime remember to try over the counter treatment first and see if that helps. 

      * Sponsored Post. 


      Friday 17 February 2017

      Trunki Eat Range - Review

      We are big fans of the Trunki products in our household. I remember when we were first taking Alfie away abroad when he was little, the first thing I knew he had to have was a Trunki. I knew he'd love having his own little suitcase and he still has his Gruffalo Trunki that he loves to pack himself before we go away. 

      Would you believe that Trunk has been going strong since 2006 and has evolved somewhat since then and has been revolutionising family travel! Have a read of the timeline it really is a fascinating insight into the company and it's journey.

      Having been a market leader in ride on suitcases for several years now Trunki is branching out into the world of 'snacking' and has recently launched the rather fabulous 'eat' range .......


      We've been testing out a few items from the range and I have to say we love them! On first impressions they are so bright and cheerful it would be difficult not to be drawn to them. We were sent the Bernard drinks bottle and lunch bag/backpack and the animal snack pots to put through their paces. I can honestly say that they are already well used!

      Image provided from Trunki
      Bernard the lunchbag backpack is so cute, in the shape of a Trunki and with plenty of room inside for the water bottle and snack boxes it's a real roomy little thing. Fully insulated and moisture resistant with a meshed pocket suitable for an ice packet it will keep food fresh and chilled, perfect for when on the go. With straps included the lunchbag backpack can either be worn as a shoulder bag or a backpack it is suitable for all types of intrepid explorer.  Alfie has insisted on taking his Trunki lunchbag whenever we've been out for the day and it really is fab to take with us, I was actually pleasantly surprised how much fit in it and having plenty of room has meant that I'm able to put a variety of snacks in it to keep both kids going throughout



      My favourite item that were sent has to be these fab snack boxes. My favourite feature.......the fact they stack neatly inside each other, I do love a bit of space saving. They're fun and funky in design and the 3 different sizes mean you can pick and choose depending what you want to put in them. I have to confess....I've found the smallest tub very useful for my mint imperials hehe. The largest one fits a great deal of food in it, we have had allsorts in it from Babybel cheese, a variety of fruit, crisps, raisins etc etc, the list goes on!




      The bottle Elarna has claimed which is fine as Alfie has lots anyway. I love the size of it and it's a proper cool looking sports bottle. It's easy to hold and contains a really good amount of liquid as well as being non spill (bonus). The bottle has a pop top lid for extra security and even comes with a spare straw which is very useful addition. The adjustable strap that it comes with can either be used to hang on a buggy or worn. As mentioned above it can also fit inside the lunchbag which is another great space saving idea.



      With prices ranging from £7.99 to £12.99 these Trunki eat items are affordable and you know that you're getting high quality items from a reputable company. We've been really impressed with the range and would highly recommend, if you're looking for some new snack things you're first stop should definitely be Trunki. 

      What do you think of the new 'eat' range?

      * Please note I was kindly sent the items free of charge in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. I will always give my honest feedback, all thoughts and opinions are that of my own.



      Wednesday 15 February 2017

      Best and Worst Linky #84



      Beautiful Things


      Run, Jump, Scrap!

      Hello and a big welcome to this weeks best and worst linky. I totally realised that I haven't updated this for a few weeks so it made it sound like myself and my husband are still ill......which we are not, phew! This week is going back quickly and here we are again, Wednesday and linky day.

      Sarah and I hope that the linky continues to go from strength to strength and perhaps 0ver the next few months we might implement some small changes but these are still being discussed. In the meantime let me welcome you, as always to the best and worst linky run by my lovely friend Sarah who blogs over at Run Jump Scrap and co-hosted by myself. If you're new to the linky we're delighted for you to join in, please do have a read of the rules. If you're a regular then thanks as always for the support. Sarah and I split the commenting now, it is working well doing it like that. You should have received a comment from one of us so if you are missing one please do drop us a tweet or email. We've had some great posts over the last few months and we're looking forward to reading some more fabulous posts!

      So what is best and worst all about? This is the linky where you can tell us about the best or worst things that have happened in the last week or even the last year, this could in the form of a blog post, a photo or even a video. It can be an old post or a new post, we don't mind we just want you to share it with us. We want you to share your babies firsts, the crappy day at work you've had or a makeup disaster basically the good, the bad or the downright ugly! We want to share your excitement and tears, highs and lows no matter what it is.

      What we are going to introduce is more of an emphasis on our #bestandworst hashtag. We would love to see more of you over on Instagram and Twitter sharing your pictures and posts with myself @helsy_1983 and Sarah @runjumpscrap this can be throughout the whole week not just when our linky runs and we will then aim to feature some depending on who uses the hashtag. As this is still a fairly new thing for us it might take a few weeks before people start using the hashtag more.

      So as always, on with the linky........please have a little read of the rules and we look forward to reading this weeks posts.

      We are going to be keeping a close eye on the commenting in the coming weeks, it's not fair to link and run so please take some time to visit some other blogs and comment, linkys  only work if people spend time to read other blogs and comment on them.

      So on with this weeks featured posts. We had another great week with some fabulous bloggers linking up and had some really lovely posts to read it was a pleasure to read them all as always.

      My featured post from last weeks link up is from Laura who blogs at Autumn's Mummy with a very scary post about when her little lady got very poorly. I was reading with a lump in my throat and hoping that it was all going to be ok in the end. Please do go and have a read. 

      Sarah's featured post is from the lovely Emily from Twin Mum and Dad about why she will be taking her girls out for a holiday in term time (and I am also doing the same in June!), really interesting post go have a nose!


      Rules


            • The linky will open at 5.30am on a Wednesday and close at 23.55pm on a Friday
            • You can link up one or two posts each week
            • Please comment on the 2 posts before yours and have a nosey at the host's too. We've noticed that some people have just been link dropping and not commenting on the 2 in front, please do return the favour so everyone gets some comments and linky love, thankyou.
            • ***Please add the badge to the bottom of your page so everyone knows where you have linked up***
            • Tweet your hosts @helsy_1983 and @RunJumpScrap once linked up so we can retweet you. When tweeting and commenting use the hashtag #bestandworst so everyone knows where you have come from and remember to hashtag us over on Instagram too

                Best of Worst

                
                
                
                
                    

                Tuesday 14 February 2017

                Shopping with Xupes!

                Imagine if there was a place that you could buy amazing, second hand designer pieces at a snip of the original price. Imagine that you could browse all sort of amazing designer items as the touch of the button, these items are high end, luxury goods but actually are pre owned and in amazing condition. 


                Well there is such a place......say hello to Xupes! This fab boutique is both online and in form of a shop tucked away in the depths of Hetfordshire. You can browse online to your hearts content or book an appointment to visit the showroom and see the goods in real life.


                With over 7000 items in stock ranging from second hand Balenciaga bags to antiques and fine arts as well as pre-owned Omega watches.


                Luxury Watches

                Offering a unique shopping experience, Xupes is well worth checking out if you are a bargain hunting fashionista or just have a love of all the fine things in life. 

                Established in 2009 Xupes has been steadily building its reputation and offers integrity, honesty and professionalism when buying and selling with them. There is also the offer of a watchmaker in house to clean, refurb and repair any watches you may have lying around that could do with a new lease of life. There is also handbag and jewellery servicing which is an added bonus. 

                So if this has whet your appetite go and check the website out, I guarantee you will be drooling over all of the fabulous items!

                * Collaborative Post. 

                Monday 13 February 2017

                SmarTrike T5 Scooter - Review

                If you follow my blog then you will be more than aware that Alfie is one non stop lively lad. He's been this way from around 18 months and at times it can be exhausting, no matter what activity we do he always just seems to whizz around and just keeps going. Sometimes I'd love some of his energy, it can be exhausting watching him. 

                We were kindly sent a scooter to test out, scooting around is bound to burn off tons of energy and exhaust him.......yes?


                The SmarTrike T5 scooter (RRP £49.99) is suitable from ages 3 and up and is a very smart looking scooter. Featuring a TPR rubber footboard, a tilting and telescopic handlebar, an easy reach back brake as well as patented 2 stage riding. The T5 promises to be a smooth riding scooter which will grow with your child and challenge them with their 'scooting' ability - stage 1 allows the child to gain confidence with the t-lock function enabled which prevents the handlebars from tilting, while stage 2 encourages freestyle riding and increase their confidence with their skills. 


                We all loved the look of the T5, it really does look smart and tasteful for a scooter. Alfie absolutely loves that it's green which is his favourite colour. As soon as it was out of the box it was tested out around the house. Not ideal but to be honest the weather has been so pitiful of late that we only managed to get it outside for a matter of minutes before it started to chuck it down. It's not remaining in the house forever, it will be living in the garage when the weather is a little better but for the moment I am letting him scoot around the house carefully!




                What I really like about the T5 is the height adjustable handlebar and the easy reach back brake. I think it's great that handlebar will grow as Alfie grows, very handy and economical also. The easy reach back brake is a brilliant added feature aswell, Alfie is fairly new to this scooting business and his older scooter (which he still uses and is very confident on) hasn't got a brake (I don't think) so this is a bit of a novelty to him and will take a little time to get used to but once he's learned how it works it will be a very useful feature! 




                When we did eventually make it outside Alfie really did have a great time testing out his scooter, I can't wait for him properly to be able to use it, please god let it burn off lots of his energy!







                We think the SmarTrike scooter is well worth the £49.99, it really is a fab little scooter and I'm certain that it's going to be very well used when the weather starts warming up.......which hopefully will be soon as scooting indoors is sooo not ideal! 

                What do you think of the T5 scooter?