Day 6 - Maxines Shape Up Challenge

My intention was to try and at least get something up each day for my Maxines Shape Up Challenge so I could look back on it and remind myself of how far I have come and to ensure that I know I have to eat well because every little bit of it if I was to eat bad would go in here.

Unfortunately I have been caught up with my personal life as we received news that my Grandma was going to be leaving us shortly last Monday, it was hard to hear and we spent everyday with her in the nursing home to ensure we would be with her for those last moments. I think knowing someone is about to pass away is much harder then getting news that they have passed away because each day we saw Grandma we would shed more tears for her.

Salon Melbourne/Hair Melbourne Expo 2015

For the Melbourne hair, beauty, wellness and medi scene its time to make haste as Victoria’s ultimate boutique industry experience, Salon Melbourne/Hair Melbourne swings into action for 2015. 

This is the expo that's not to be missed. Flocks of beauty lovers adore this expo due to they discounted expo prices from their favourite brands. 

Not only is it good to pick up a bargain but you can also have a test of brands and products you may have been interested, learn about products and come across some brands that you may have never even heard of. 

Sexercise - The Musical REVIEW

SEXERCISE - definitely not for the prudes. 

I was really intrigued when I was invited along to come and see Sexercise, it had me guessing what it would be about and in which I gathered from the title name it would be about sex and exercise obviously but how would they put all this together on a stage show performance? 

To sum up Sexercise it's exactly what it's called that happens. A married couple with a child who seem to have lost their connection with one another and don't spend that quality time together in the bedroom and outside the bedroom which has put strains on the relationship making them feel like strangers in the house with one another. 

A hardworking Dad and Mum who both have the busy lifestyles with working, trying to keep fit by attending gym, yoga classes or riding their bikes. It gets to the point in their relationship where they need to seek help and use the last resource by going to couples therapy. 

DAY 1 - Maxines Shape Up Challenge

I wasn't all in for the Maxine's Shape Up Challenge to start with as I'm a repeat offender of being only in the challenge up until weeks 2-4 and then I just give in. My gym and exercise commitment is always spot on, it's just my eating that I always give into.

I was talking to my now gym buddy about it as I was really worried about the eating part of the challenge and with the help of her and some other close people in my life they convinced me and talked me into it so I started getting prepared.

Seeing Eye Dogs (SEDA) Open Day

Seeing Eye Dogs Australia (SEDA) is thrilled to be hosting a public open day at their state-of- the-art national Kennel and Puppy Centre in Kensington, Victoria.

People are invited to learn more about SEDA and participate in guided tours where they can explore the extensive facilities, which feature a rehabilitation therapy pool, breeding centre, public viewing platform directly into the heart of its kennels and puppy play centre.

This family friendly day promises to be both fun and educational, where people can watch Seeing Eye Dogs at work, and gain a better understanding of how SEDA helps to transform the lives of people who are blind or have low vision.

Bondi Sands Blogger Gifting Event

Bondi Sands ran a beautiful blogger gifting event last Thursday at the stunning rooftop Circa in St. Kilda, Melbourne which Niah and I were luckily able to attend. Melbourne graced us with a beautifully hot day where the sunshine was coming down in the perfect spot for this event.

Walking through the doors of the event location was just breath taking, the location was on point for the brand. Their was tables on top of tables filled with the Bondi Sands range stocked up for all the lucky people to take home with them who attended on the day.
Bondi Sands provided us with light refreshments and a had a delicious mocktail made from coconut water, lime syrup and lime juice topped with ice, fresh lime and mint.

Attipas GIVEAWAY

You may recall Attipas being featured on blog previously when I we were sent out their special christmas release, which you can catch up on here.

Attipas have returned for a giveaway with NJT Blogger - how exciting is that. 

Attipas toddler shoes are made with a non-slip gripped sole, are highly breathable and support your infant from their very first steps. As light as a sock, but more supportive than a pre-walker, Attipas toddler shoes have been specifically designed to help infants learn to walk based on seven years of research at the University of Seoul in South Korea.

Strictly Ballroom The Musical REVIEW

I'll be completely honest with you and tell you that I have never seen Strictly Ballroom the musical because I didn't think it was my type of movie and thing to watch but as the say goes don't judge a book by its cover I decided to give it a go.

Nuffnang did a callout to bloggers who were interested in tickets to go along and see the show in which I applied thinking if I don't get tickets I won't be too upset as there is probably die hard lovers out there who would enjoy the show more then myself but was lucky enough to secure tickets in the second lot of ticket allocations and in which then I wanted to try and watch the movie before the show, but never got around to it so I went full cold turkey into this stage show not knowing what to except or what the storyline was about apart from it had ballroom dancing; obviously from the name.

Disney Live! presents Three Classic Fairy Tales REVIEW

Disney Live always showcase fantastic performances that can really make your little ones have such a ball of a day out from. As soon as I think Disney, the characters from my childhood who I adored come to mind and get myself excited to take my little girl to see.
I enjoy being able to relive my childhood loves through my daughter and am so glad that Disney are still producing shows with the old favourites.

Back in January Disney Live was on for a three (3) day special showing in which we luckily were able to attend. They were in perfect showing time in the Dec-Jan school holidays.

First off I was surprised that it wasn't a Disney On Ice performance as this is the way they have done their shows for the past few ones so I was intrigued to see how they would perform for us and also being that it was held at the Plenary, Melbourne Exhibition Centre which I have never been to before.

GAP Christmas Workshop Event

Back in December when all the preparations were taking place and we were in that festive season preparing for the Big Red man we all know as Santa, GAP held an event for a few lucky kiddies to come along and put their creative hats on with decorating their own gingerbread men and create their own christmas tree decoration to hang from their own tree at home.

We headed down to GAP's head office in Melbourne within Chadstone Shopping Centre, the fashion capital so it made good sense that they are there, right?
Chadstone Shopping Centre used to my local place to shop at as I only worked 5 minutes down the road and would spend my afternoons/nights there after work winding down with a little retail therapy. I recall walking into GAP whilst I was pregnant and seeing all the adorable little fashionable pieces GAP had in store and then starting a collection closet for Miss. Niah when she was still on the inside.

Closer to Nature Advanced Comfort + GIVEAWAY

As a Mother myself when I heard about the new advanced comfort bottle range of bottles and teats from Closer to Nature this had me excited for my those parents out there that are struggling colic with their little children but not only that, that there is a brand that I trust in and can use with my future babies should I ever need something to help with colic (when they come along, nothing in the planning yet).

The new advanced comfort range from Closer to Nature is designed to help reduce the risk of your baby ingesting air during feeding, which the air that is ingested during bottle feeding is believed to be one of the contributing factors to colic.

AGENT 18 + GIVEAWAY

Breaking those expensive smartphones that are made with glass screens is the worst, I recently dropped my iPhone 6 plus in the garage of my home which saw my screen shattered in so many places. Protecting your phone is super important and you should always be using a good case so that you are not constantly having to fork out the cash to replace the screen or possibly have to replace your whole handset because it has been that badly damaged. 

At around $150 a pop to fix a iPhone 6 plus screen from Apple itself, it is so worth it to invest in a good quality case that is just a fraction of that cost and in saying that I introduce you to AGENT 18:

AGENT 18 was founded in 2004 by Sargam Patel who designed the first hard plastic iPod case sold at Apple.

February Reads with Scholastic Australia

Scholastic Australia have so many amazing books to share with all ages. Reading is something we cherish being able to do with Niah. I tell you now she is a little book worm, she is so interested in books and will always be sitting at her book cupboard flipping through books.

Niah has a book shelf in her room filled with all the special books (books that are hard for little tiny tots hands to rip up the pages) that we share of a night time. Recently Niah has learnt to say 'book' and will always request to have a book with her on the change table; this is such a help to the once wriggler who would cry through nappy changing and flip this way and that way trying to get off the change table. It keeps Niah still to have a book in her hands and flip through whilst we get her nice and fresh.

BRAND FOCUS: Smiggle

Everyone knows what Smiggle is surely, it's that place that stationery crazed lovers will flock too and that little ones adore stocking up from when it comes time to return to school.

There is no school go-ers in this house yet (when the time comes I will have no idea how I'll cope) but we do have a little girl who took Smiggle with her on our holiday to Samoa to take her belongings around with her.

The Red Dress + GIVEAWAY

CHINA ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT GROUP (CAEG) PRESENTS THE NATIONAL AWARD WINNING PRODUCTION OF

THE RED DRESS

A tale of loyalty, tradition and love

Baby Jogger Summit X3 REVIEW

Keeping active is something we enjoy doing in this house. I love getting out into some fresh air and being able to take Niah exploring around our local areas as well as doing the trips to some attractions that have caught our eye.

Prams will be the key essential to any family who wants to get out and be active with the family especially the little ones who won't be able to keep up with you in those long treks.
The key things we all look for in prams are price, durability, comfort and style - correct?

Omo Ultimate / Jif Bathroom Spray REVIEW

Cleaning isn't one of my favourite things to do but it helps when you have good reliable products that will get the job and aid you by making it easier.

There is so many products on the market that it makes it hard to decide which one you should be using within your home so you look for those stand out labels on the bottle which Jif Bathroom Spray is labelled as 'easy lift' well into the trolley it would go right?
Jif Easy Lift Bathroom Spray falls nothing short of what it has been marketed as.

Attipas Childrens Shoes REVIEW

My little Niah has just started walking in early Decembers so this was a huge milestone and happy days for us.

It was time for us to start thinking about appropriate footwear for Niah as it’s so important to wear shoes outdoors just as much as us adults. These shoes are great for knowing that they’re shoes that will stay on, the kids will have a hard time trying to pull these off - my Niah did.

When Niah goes through her shoe pull off times these shoes do not come off, no matter how hard she tries! Fear not that you will be that Mother that has the child with one shoe on when you get to the car after a shopping trip or have someone run after you in the store with a single little shoe in hand.

Little Bossy Boots Moccasin REVIEW

There is nothing more cuter then seeing a little toddler walk.
I was so thrilled when Niah started walking as it was time for her to really show off those walking feet with cute little shoes. One pair of shoes that always got me when I would see babies walking was those little leather moccasins, they're just to die for!

Our Samoa 2015 Trip

I finally made it to Samoa. It has been a 23 year long wait to experience where my Dad grew up.

Departing on the 12th of January I made my way over to Samoa for 2 weeks of meeting a lot of family I have never met in my whole life and was about to experience a new way of life.

I was scared when it came to flying with Niah as I wasn't sure how she would go on the plane; this was her first plane trip and my first overseas trip which was good to be able to share together. 

Niah completely surprised me and was excellent compared to what I had imagined. Niah would get upset towards the end of each flight but I am assuming that's because she was getting over having to be stuck in the same spot for so long and not getting to stretch her legs and move around. 

We ensured we had lots of snacks and entertaining things for her to do like having books, the iPad with her favorite shows on. Niah luckily slept through most of it which helped us and her out a lot.