I wish it would Snow...

Ok, so it's not snowing yet, but I am so excited about the fact that according to weather reports it is going to be snowing soon. I love snow. I always have. Hubby thinks its hilarious, because I am prepared for snow by the end of August - making sure we have emergency supplies at home, snow boots and clothes, de-icer and scrapers, and emergency snow kits in case we get stuck in the car in snow - can anyone say preppers?!!

I thought you couldn't possibly meet anyone who was more excited about snow than I was - then along came the two mini me's - who love snow even more than I do!

Where we live, which is on the top of a hill (though not literally) we always seem to get a good dumping of snow. Even if its not snowing a few miles away, you can guarantee it will be snowing here - ensuring that trying to get the car out is a nightmare, and so its best to stay at home and watch the snowfall from your window.

Youngest who is 3, has seen snow for the last two Christmas's and so she is fully expecting it to snow again this Christmas - that's a big ask but hopefully this year she won't be disappointed.

Two Christmas's ago we went to the Christmas Eve crib service at our local cathedral. The frost was so hard and the snow was so heavy, that we were able to stand (very temporarily) on the lake - that's something you can't do every year. When the snow comes, the kids find the world even more magical than they do already - that surely can't be a bad thing!

Are you snow mad or do you hate the white stuff?

Lights......

Sometimes in the busyness of life, it's easy to become blinkered and so focused on getting to the next thing or getting through the day, that you forget to sit back, take stock and appreciate what is actually going on around you and how simplistic life can be.

With two kids going to school and after school activities in two different towns, the kids and I spend a LOT of time in the car driving from place to place between 3pm and 6pm. Often this is quite stressful, especially if there is a lot of traffic to negotiate and so I am so worried about getting to places on time, I rarely even notice the scenery we are passing. Darkness has descended upon us earlier and earlier over the last couple of weeks. This week, in our local area that many places - both commercial and residential have begun to put their Christmas lights up. On our familiar routes, an array of coloured lights in various different formations are now brightening up the dark nights.

Many adults (myself included) take them as a foreboding sign that Christmas is descending upon us, or begrudge their presence before the beginning of December. Indeed, hubby and I were aghast that one of the local houses had gone the whole hog by the second week of November!

It seems that recently, youngest (aged 3) has really begun to notice what is going on around her and can now recognise the familiar routes we take and where we are on them. This week as we were passing a parade of local shops, there were suddenly screams coming from the back of the car:

Mummy!!! Lights!!!  LIGHHHTTSSS!! LOOOK!! WOW!!!! They are so pretty!!!

Youngest was completely overawed by the new presence of these lights and they were all she talked about when we got to our destination, and for the rest of the evening. Over the last few days, the glimpse of any Christmas lights has sent her into such a frenzy and has made her beside herself with excitement.

The wonderment of a child at such simple things never fails to amaze me. When I am in the car driving on my own, I barely even notice these lights. Sometimes, it takes a child to make you look around and appreciate how bright and colourful the world can be, and how joy can be found in the simplest of things.

This Christmas, hubby and I have been bemoaning having to buy presents for the kids to fill their already overflowing rooms with more toys, whilst also worrying that we don't want the kids to feel hard done by on Christmas day. Sometimes the wonderment of a child reminds you that in years to come, it won't necessarily be the mountain of presents that kids remember about Christmas  - it could be something as simple as seeing the Christmas lights for the first time that year.

This Christmas, rather than going to the panto, paying for a ridiculously over priced grotto visit, selling our souls to Lapland UK or taking out a 2nd mortgage to pay for the kids presents, Hubby and I are going back to basics.

We want to find joy in the simple things of Christmas, just as the kids do. We are going to take the kids Christmas light hunting as many times as we can so that they can enjoy the wonderful displays. The house will be filled with sparkly lights and Christmas songs. The kids and I will bake mince pies and biscuits, make decorations, and whatever else it is that they want to do, and we will choose things together as a family that we can enjoy over Christmas which don't include traversing the Christmas crowds. Who knows...we could even get some snow!!

Sometimes, it takes the wonderment of a child to remind you that sometimes the best things in life really are the most simplistic, and the least expensive (apart from the petrol of course!!).

Christmas Wish List Linky - What do YOU want for Christmas?

It seems that the run-up to Christmas is starting to reach it's full momentum at the moment. For weeks now retailers have been releasing lists of the top women's must-have gifts, or at least, gifts they think women have just got to have this Christmas. Some of these gifts are items that I wouldn't buy my worst enemy - let alone receive myself! Others seem to be accompanied with a pretty hefty price tag which leaves most regular consumers worrying about how they will pay for that "must have" gift that costs the earth and which probably doesn't really appeal much to it's recipient (well not if this list is anything to go by anyway!).

I keep being asked by various relatives what I would like for Christmas and the truth is, this Christmas - not much! Of course there are things that I would love to have this Christmas, but I am very conscious that in the current climate, I do not want friends or family bankrupting themselves and spending a lot of money on myself and my family just so we can have a few gifts at Christmas.

Still... It is nice to be able to open something on Christmas day.

However, as parents, often considering what we would actually like for Christmas, gets lost in worrying about what to buy the children, and ensuring that they have a good Christmas. Therefore, today I am featuring a couple of (hopefully affordable) things I would like to find underneath the tree on Christmas morning, and just for fun, my ultimate money-no-object wish list Christmas present too.

To make this more interesting (and not all about what I want!), I would also like to hear from YOU about what YOU really want for Christmas. You can link-up to this post below so that others can pop over to your blog and see what presents you are hoping to wake up to on Christmas morning (or maybe get some inspiration for their own gifts!)

Here are some of the gifts on my wish list:

Love to Have
As the world's number one self-confessed Downton Abbey fan, this Season Three Downton Abbey Boxset is my "must-have" christmas present this year. Retailing at around £20, I would hope that I might wake up to find Santa thinks I have been good enough to receive it!

Like to Have

Being into cookery and homeware, this year the "Log cabin" themed range from Marks and Spencer is right up my street - I would love to wake up to any of these under the tree on Christmas day - or perhaps even the whole range! (wishful thinking)

Cushion £12.50, 

Tray £15 

Cups £19.50

Ultimate Money-No-Object Present

Kitchen Aid Mixer - £300-400. 

If money were no object and we didn't have endless kids ballet, swimming and piano lessons to pay for (or we had won the lottery), then this would be on the top of my Christmas List. I have been secretly lusting after one of these for years. Functional and pretty - they are the ultimate kitchen p*rn for any foodie and if I had one of these in my kitchen, I'm sure no cooking would ever get done as I would just be staring at it all day!

So there you have it, I have shared my wishlist of Christmas gifts - now its your turn! 

What is on your wishlist this Christmas? Why not write a quick post and share what you would love to unwrap this Christmas, or what your ultimate money-is-no-object christmas gift would be? You could feature just one thing, or you could feature as many as you like! 

Link up your blog posts below and I hope you wake up on Christmas day to find exactly what you have been hoping for!

Review of "Birth and Sex" by Sheila Kitzinger

As an antenatal teacher, I am an avid reader of the work of Sheila Kitzinger - a social anthropologist specialising in pregnancy, childbirth and early parenting, and a campaigner for the choices of women in childbirth. As well as being a pioneer campaigner, Sheila's work also includes research, writing and lecturing on the subject of childbirth and she has written over thirty books on the subject.

Recently, Pinter sent me a copy of Kitzinger's new book titled "Birth and Sex". For those familiar with Kitzinger's work, this book builds on her body of previous work. In this book, Kitzinger develops the ideas of others such as Gaskin and Odent, who believe that the experience of childbirth is inexplicably linked to sexual experience. Through the book, Kitzinger describes how women need to rediscover and embrace their own sexuality to have a positive experience of childbirth.

Kitzinger explores how modern day birth has been de-sexed by the move of birth from the home to hospital, and examines the impact this has had on the way women give birth and the experiences they encounter as a result. Kitzinger suggests that the rush of hormones and surge of energy flowing through the body during birth is similar to the hormones and energy a woman experiences during orgasm as pain and pleasure are closely linked. When a woman can follow her instincts during birth, oxytocin and endorphins in her body behave in the same way as they do to create an orgasm during sex. However, in today's modern culture where we revere technology and use it to enhance every aspect of our lives, women forget, or are hesitant to acknowledge that birth is something which is not necessarily enhanced by technology. During birth, women need to embrace their inner mammal in order to shut down the thinking part of their brain and allow the mammal side of the brain to take over. The traditional high-tech birth environment which the western world has become accustomed to, often inhibits or suppresses the woman's animalistic instinct and stimulates the thinking part of her brain, resulting in her mind working against her body. Research shows that the best environment for women to give birth in, is typically the kind of environment where they would have sex - a familiar, safe, dark environment where the woman is able to trust her own instincts, be confident in her body and be able to completely let go into herself - much as she would when experiencing orgasm.

In Birth and Sex, Sheila Kitzinger suggests what can be done to create an environment in which a woman is able to trust her instincts and be confident in her body. Kitzinger believes that by rediscovering the power and passion that lies within their body, women can reclaim the spontaneity and sexual ecstasy of childbirth. The book also explores alternatives to medicalised pain relief such as the use of water and song during childbirth.

For those unfamiliar with Kitzinger's work, those who are very immersed in medical childbirth or who experienced a very medicalised childbirth, some of the chapters in her book may require a small step of faith to entertain Kitzinger's ideas and consider her point of view. (Note: Those who are squeamish may want to approach the "Genital Geography" chapter of the book with caution). For those hoping to experience a positive of childbirth, or for those who believe in a woman's ability to birth her baby, and understand how closely birth is linked to sex, and the birth environment, this book cements everything they may already be aware of.

For anyone interested in childbirth, this book offers a refreshing alternative to other books on the market. Whatever your views on childbirth are, this book, from one of this century's leading pioneers of natural birth is a great read and offers interesting researched, evidence based information to pregnant women, their partners, and those caring for them during birth.

Disclosure: Book offered in consideration of review

Silent Sunday 18/11/12

E2Save and their Fraudulent Employees!

As a mobile customer I seem to get lots of cold-calls from every mobile phone company going. It seems that every week there is a different mobile phone company phoning to offer me the latest upgrade, handset or deal.

As a grown adult and consumer, you would think that I would be able to decide for myself if, or indeed, when, I would like an upgrade, or a new handset, or tariff.

Apparently not it seems.......

A few days ago I received a phone call from a girl that went roughly like this.... "alright, yeah, we got the new IPhone 5 in stock and I wann ed to know if you wann ed one". As a busy mum of two, these phone calls are a complete pain in the backside and so she got a curt no thank you as all cold callers of her nature do. I had no idea where she was calling from and I had no idea where she had been passed my details from.

I thought no more of it.

However, imagine my surprise two days later when I receive a text message on my current phone from my provider saying that my contract had been upgraded to a two year £46 per month contract and then another text message from a company called E2 Save who told me that my new phone was on the way. 

I thought this must be a mistake as I had no idea what was going on and was completely confused - especially more so when I logged onto my internet account and saw that my phone tariff had changed to this new more expensive tarriff. I immediately contacted my provider and explained that I had no idea why or how my phone had been upgraded and I was extremely concerned about what was going on. They told me that this had happened at a Carphone Warehouse Company and they passed it to their fraud team - who I am waiting to hear back from.

A day to think it over, and I realised that my call a couple of days earlier must have been too much of a coincidence not to be linked to this sudden unauthorised activity on my account. I called the number that the cold caller had called me on, and a girl answered with "hello E2 Save". I told her that someone had upgraded my mobile phone without my authorisation and she denied all knowledge of having any of my details on her system, saying that it must have been a different company.

Unfortunately, things were about to get much worse....

This evening I received another text message about my handset, so I decided to call E2Save again. This time I called their main number - at 10p per minute plus standard network rate - daylight robbery! I waited around 5 minutes to speak to someone. When I got through, I told the guy on the end of the phone what had happened and said I wanted to speak to a manager. He said I had to get past 'security' first. I wasn't giving him my details only for him to steal more information!!

Finally, I gave him my name and address and he asked what phone I had ordered - I didn't order a phone and I have no idea which phone was ordered!!!! Someone ordered a phone without my authorisation!! However, here is the kicker, next, he asked me my date of birth - which I reluctantly gave him. 

"sorry, it doesn't match the date of birth on my system. You have failed security so I can't discuss the account with you" WHAT? IT'S MY DATE OF BIRTH!! - how could my REAL date of birth not match their systems???

 I repeated it and asked him to check again and there was a completely different date of birth on the system. Someone had either stolen my identity, or made up a completely random date of birth in order to access my account and selfishly gain their commission. I told the guy that this was MY REAL DETAILS and MY REAL DATE OF BIRTH and he said that I had to give him the date of birth on the system ......

So some fraudster could phone E2Save, or an employee could access their systems, give a fake date of birth, tell them the phone they had purchased and then get access to whatever personal details of mine that they wanted, but I could not talk to anyone about an account that had been set up in my name!!! Unbelievable - what protection is there for real mobile phone customers NONE!! it seems that this company are happy to take FAKE SECURITY DETAILS and give out personal information about me. I am worried about what other details they hold on me. Do they have my bank account details? Debit card number? My kid's dates of birth? What other details do they have on me that they are happy to give out to someone else but not to the person who ACTUALLY OWNS THEM!!!!

The staff member I spoke to was extremely rude, refused to discuss my account, refused point blank to put me through to a manager and said that I could not discuss the account, even though I had reiterated that the company was at fault because of some random employee, who stole my details, illegally authorised my account when she did not have my permission, and locked me into a contract that there is no way in the world I would ever have accepted, All because of a disgusting need to gain her commission.

However, the guy I was dealing with on this call still moronically refused to put me through to anyone as I had failed to pass security. He was absolutely abhorent and couldn't cope with me going off of his 'script', so he didn't know what to say and refused to help me. Mind you... take a look at their employees...... Does this look like the kind of person who would be helpful? - It certainly doesn't to me!

photo credit E2Save

Would you trust any of these people with your personal details? Would you trust any of them not to screw you over?  I would love to know how a cold call ending in me stating " I am not interested" could be taken by a member of this asanine group as an authorisation to gain access to my account and illegally order mobile phones and contracts in my name without my say so!

Photo Credit: E2Save

I have since taken to E2 Save's twitter account and surprise surprise, I have heard nothing. My provider have passed it to their fraud dept and are looking into it but I have no idea what is going to happen and I am getting no answers from anyone as I cannot speak to E2Save as apparently my REAL DETAILS don't match the imaginary ones on their system - I am totally stuck, with a huge two year bill and no help from E2Save.

I fail to see how this is moral, ethical or even legal, or how E2Save are allowed to get away with practices like this. Worryingly, if you put E2Save into any search engine, the results bring up a catalogue of complaints and disgusting, unethical and unsavoury practices by this company dating back to at least 2007, and it seems that OfCom and the like are happy to let these practices continue and are happy for E2Save to continue screwing over honest members of the public. 

I am hoping that E2Save might have the decency to contact me and explain to me how this has happened and what they intend to do about it, however, judging by their previous performances, unfortunately, I am not holding my breath. However, I am not paying for an upgrade I never authorised and so hopefully my provider will be more helpful than this abhorent company and reverse me back to my original contract, Worringly, at the moment I am not sure what is going to happen.

A Firework Poem by Eldest, aged 5 3/4.

This poem is the intellectual property of eldest aged 5 3/4. Please seek permission before copying or reproducing it!

Every week at school, eldest has 'big writing'. She is very proud of her 'big writing', because it indicates that at the grand old age of 5 and 3/4, she is in fact, now, big!!

Eldest loves making up and writing stories and poems, so this big writing lark is right up her street. Just before half term, her task was to write a poem about fireworks using alliteration and 'wow' words (that's interesting adjectives to you and me). Here's what she came up with. She was so proud of her poem that she asked me to put it up on my blog - so here it is!

A holiday to Greenock, Scotland

Well you may have noticed its been a little quiet around here this week. Following on from our wonderful trip last summer, this half term, Hubby, the kids and I took a trip back to the west coast of Scotland to visit family and have a little holiday. It's a looong drive from where we live - around seven hours if you put your foot to the floor and have a bladder made of steel, more like 8 and a half to nine hours if you have the kids in the back who require feeding and exercising every once in a while.

On the way up to Scotland, we stopped overnight in a Premier Inn in Cuerden Way, Preston. We love this particular Premier Inn as it is really modern and has huge king sized beds - the kids find it a real adventure staying away in a hotel, and their hotel breakfast the next day is always a bonus. I can recommend this particular hotel as great for breaking up the journey between southern England and Scotland as it makes travelling much more manageable.

My father's family live on the west coast of Scotland near Greenock - recently famous for being the new backdrop for Waterloo Road. Typically we stay in a caravan park with beautiful panoramic views of the Clyde, but it is far too cold to stay there this time of year and so we opted for the Premier Inn in Greenock. Alas, we were not as impressed with this Premier Inn as the Preston one as the welcome wasn't as friendly, the rooms were really dated and the bed was one of the most uncomfortable I have slept on. They also had a volume lock on the TV - so it only went up to a volume where it was barley audible over talking children - very frustrating, but at least it was warm.

We woke up on our first day to rain - typical!! To shelter from the rain, we decided to go to an open day at the Greenock Victorian Fire Station Museum and Heritage Centre. Definitely a good choice as the kids cited this as the best part of their whole holiday.

Ten years in the making, this attraction, which opened earlier this year oozes fire fighting history. Housed in the Victorian Fire Station which was operational from 1887 to 1960, displays on show include hoses, vehicles, breathing apparatus, uniforms, ladders, and even a stuffed fire fighting dog! The museum recounts the history of Strathclyde Fire and Rescue Service from 1887 to present. It features the big fires they attended including fires during the blitz, the Cheapside Fire, where many men lost their lives, and the recent attacks on Glasgow Airport. There is a really impressive amount of exhibits on show and history is evident all around. The girls loved trying on the fire fighting outfits, watching Billy the fire investigation dog in action and doing puzzles on the interactive white board. The volunteers were all extremely knowledgeable about the station and it's history, and what was even more lovely was that they knew all of the past firefighter's names, and could tell you about their families, even up to the present day. Community in this part of the world is evident as people do not tend to stray too far from their birth place. This was definitely a fantastic day out that I would recommend to anyone - whether you are a visitor, or local to the area. For more info and to see when the museum is open, see the Strathclyde Fire and Rescue Preservation Group website.

The following day we took a trip to Loch Lomond, which has beautiful views, and walked around the scenic village of Luss - life definitely is very different here to back home! I wouldn't mind waking up to this beautiful scenery every day. The girls loves exploring the stony shores and brought some "shiny stones" back home with them. They couldn't believe that the water was so clear - not like our dirty shores of the south.

On our final day we went down to Largs - a seafront village which boasts the famous Nardini's Cafe - especially known for it's ice cream. The girl's love coming here when we visit Greenock and even though the sea was pretty choppy and the the rain was setting in, they had a great time walking along the sea front and eating their ice cream.

We had decided to drive home in one go - ten hours in the car to entertain the monsters. Luckily they were happy to play games, read and sleep, and hubby and I took it in turns to drive. Another lovely half term holiday!