Just before we set off for Wales, the temperature in Surrey had soared to almost 30 degrees. But we arrived in Pembrokeshire to a very different climate – it was cold, wet and windy! The weather took a turn for the worse on our first day so donning our waterproofs, we headed to a deserted Tenby beach. When I say deserted there was an ice-cream van circling the beach on the hunt for potential customers!
I’m not sure I know anyone that doesn’t adore Italian food. The Doves certainly love it so we were totally up for the #PrezzoLaFamiglia Challenge at Prezzo. La Famiglia is a pasta sharing bowl designed to feed up to four people. That did mean of course the three of us had to agree what to have! Initially, we thought we might share Spaghetti Bolognese as it’s one of POD’s favourites. That said, we had our eyes on one of the other sharing bowls.
With Father’s Day fast approaching (18th June if you’re wondering), we thought we’d pull together the ultimate gift guide for dads. You know so you don’t have to trawl the internet looking for awesome things. We have some amazing products to share with you too whether you’re spending £20 or £200. So in no particular order, here are our top picks for Father’s Day.
Six year old POD has always been interested in nature. Of course it helps living in Surrey, I’m not sure her sense of curiosity would be the same if we were still in London. In addition to the garden, we’re surrounded by green space whether it be woodland, parks or National Trust sites which we have in abundance. POD may seem like a girly girl but in actual fact she loves the great outdoors and will always be the first up a tree.
The new Braun Series 3 ProSkin is a real hero for sensitive skin, and launching just in time for Father’s Day, it’s the perfect gift for sensitive dads. I’ve partnered with Braun to tell you about some of the times the POD Father has shown his sensitive side! It’s funny how being a parent changes perspective isn’t it? I’m not sure he had much of a sensitive side before POD arrived, there were definitely no tears. Not that I remember anyway. Well blubbing is not befitting for an ex-rugby type really is it? We’ve been together 18 years now by the way so my memory might be slightly hazy. Even when we discovered I was pregnant, it was more of a joyous occasion. Although we were seriously distracted when we played a game of tennis afterwards that’s for sure!
It was only this January six year old POD secured a place at the local primary – it’s been a long wait! The 18 months prior to that were spent driving to another school which was a two hour round trip on some days. While this time in the car enabled POD to perfect her colouring skills, it was also a great environment for chatting. We’d have the usual kind of discussions with a bit (a lot) of silliness along the way. Sometimes though the conversations we had about school were actually quite revealing.
The Doves love blowing away the cobwebs in the great outdoors. It’s one of the reasons we upped sticks from London to Surrey back in 2010. That and POD’s impending arrival on Christmas Day the same year. She might seem like she’s a ‘girly girl’ but don’t let that fool you. She’s been a climber since before she could walk and she’ll be the first to scale a tree. I love that POD enjoys being outside as much as we do and has the same adventurous spirit. She even climbed a mountain while we were in Cantabria last year, great going for a five year old especially in the Spanish heat.
We’re huge fans of Schleich and have reviewed a few of their products over the last year. From the showjumper and horse, Horse Club Riding Centre and Wildlife Starter Set to the Smurf House and Giant Volcano with T-Rex. One of the reasons we love Schleich toys so much is that the products are always great quality and the attention to detail is superb.
Remember Hatchimals were THE hottest toys to have in 2016? Well now children can hatch a whole world with Hatchimals CollEGGtibles from Spin Master. These small speckled eggs just need a little nurturing to hatch and there are over 70 to collect in season one, each belonging to one of 13 families. Having missed getting an original Hatchimal for her Christmas Day birthday, POD was almost beside herself when the Hatchimals CollEGGtibles arrived. She saw the spotty bag as soon as she returned from school – even though I’d tried to hide it on the top of a cupboard!
When you’re six, there really is nothing better than scooting to school is there? POD probably relishes it more than most given she only learnt how to scoot recently. The opportunities to do so up to that point had been few and far between. Partly because we didn’t get a place at the local primary school and spent 18 months driving to another one. Suffice to say POD has outgrown the scooter we bought for her a couple of years back so she was thrilled to try out the Yvolution Y Glider Deluxe. Being pink like her helmet was an added bonus of course – it does come in blue and green too.
