New friends

I love meeting new friends! Today mami and I went to the park and met with Jacqui of Mummy's Little Monkey and Little Lucia. 

Jacqui has a big belly and can't run very fast. I think mami said she has a baby in there. Really? I kept looking for it, but it never came out.

Maybe next time.

I was a little shy a first. I don't like to go all out with people I've just met. Lucia smiled at me and then she just took off running! Poor Jacqui had to get her from the other end of the park! 

I, for once, decided to play it cool and actually be on my best behaviour and sat with mami at the table. But it didn't last long. After having my mac and cheese for lunch, I was outta there!

I tried it! Plum Foods

It’s no secret. I love to eat and I have a big tummy to prove it. I weigh 13.5kilos and as mami says, the scales don't lie.

That's me on the scale!

It was a dream come true to open up a box full of delicious Plum foods a few weeks ago. After all, I am a toddler foodie – and I know what is yummy and what is yucky.

Some of the food mami makes is yucky – I can tell you that! Anything green and I won’t eat it. She tries to fool me and mix it in, but oh no! I pretend to eat it and then I throw it on the floor.

There were lots of different kinds of snacks, cereals, fruit packs and little pots. All have been eaten by the way! And it wasn’t just me – I saw mami eat some few of the biscuits with her tea. I knew it wasn’t just me.

My Great Escape

Today I gave mami a VERY BIG SURPRISE.

When she opened her eyes she wasn’t expecting to see me at her bedside. Ha ha ha ha!

You should have seen the look of complete shock when she realised I had climbed out of my crib and walked into her room.

“Yeah, that’s right mami. I know how to get out now!”

In it to win it!

Philips AVENT: Win a set of 3 Truman Cups

Mami and I have been really busy lately!

With her running, my rock collecting and working on getting nominated for a Comso Blog Award we are pooped!

But not too tired to bring you a very special giveaway!

Philips AVENT, the No.1 recommended childcare brand by mamas in the UK got in touch and asked if I would like to giveaway a set of 3 New Truman Cups to one very lucky reader.

These 260ml/9oz cups keep water or juice cool and fresh longer and they are non-spill which makes mami very happy. They have a hard spout, making it more difficult to bite. And as you can see, they are decorated with educational story-telling designs. I really like the blue one with the bunny watering the plants!

So you want to win too? It is really easy!

All you have to do is watch this fun video about toddler feeding with mummy Lucy and little James





Then answer this question:

What percentage of toddlers feed with their hands?

Please make sure you are following my blog (add to Reader or on Google Friends Connect) and leave in the comment box below:

• The correct answer
• Your Twitter name/or best way to contact you

One entry per person please.

The competition is now closed. Mami and I selected a winner using a Random Number Generator.

The winner of the cups is @mummygetsyummy!

Congratulations!!!

bye bye and ¡buena suerte! (that's good luck in Spanish!)

  

A day called Monday

Mami and daddy always talk about different "days".

Its not easy for me to know what day it is.

All I know is:

• Some days I go to nursery

• Other days its just mami and me

• Then it's mami, me and daddy!

Oh, and I also know that I go to sleep when it is dark and wake up when there is light outside. In between I take a nap, but that is only for a short time and mami turns off the lights to make it look dark. But she can't fool me!

After being at home with mami and daddy and after 3 sleeps, it is time to go to nursery again. Mami calls this day Monday, but she says it with a loud groan. Mami doesn't do well on these so-called Mondays.

I tend to sleep in on this day, especially after all the fun I've had with daddy over the past days. Mami wakes up panicking because "we are running late!"

She pulls me out of my crib, says "Little M, you didn't wake me up!" (What does she expect? When I do wake her ups she takes ages to come get me!) and then big rush begins.

Her eyes are puffy and her hair is messy. So funny!

She quickly gets me dressed and brushes my hair with her fingers and yells out "ya, vamos. VAMOS!"

Then before you know it, we are running down the high road to catch the bus.

It's pretty much the same every single Monday. And on top of that, she always forgets something:

"Oh no! I've forgotten my keys"

"Oops! I left my lunch in the fridge"

"Ahhhh, I forgot my Blackberry" (this causes the worst reaction of all!)

Once she even had on mismatched socks! Silly mami.

I don't know how she copes for the rest of her Monday. But as for me, I'm pretty chilled - 12 hours of sleep does wonders!

How are you on Mondays?

Bye bye
Little M

A tiny favour please...

I saw that Cosmopolitan, a magazine for mamas is launching the Cosmopolitan Blog Awards. Not my first reading choice, but I thought it could make mami very happy.

She was looking at the site last week, but she didn't say a word to me about it.

I later went on the computer and thought, "I should put my blog forward for the Lifestyle Category. After all, being a toddler is serious business!"

And because I can't really nominate myself in the fashion or gadget tech categories!

If you like what I write, or have laughed at any of my stories, could you nominate me please?

Just click the logo above, select Lifestyle and that's it! (well, you have a write a few things, but I hope that won't be too difficult)

Mami rocks

Abuelita/grandma is gone bye bye. She left on an aeroplane.

I miss being with her. She reminded me a lot of mami. Sometimes she kind of looked like mami too. Even her laugh was the same. I liked feeling that mami was close by even it wasn't really her.

I can tell mami is extra tired again because she has to wake up early instead of sleeping in. Abuelita would take care of me, and mami is having a very hard time getting back into our routine. Bless her, she does try!

Yesterday, after "resting" all day we went for an afternoon in the park to get back to our old selves.

But I didn't recognise the way.

The boy who lived in a box

Wordless Wednesday

Mami runs. Part two

My mami is running. And not just after me!

Let me explain. First she is going to run a 5k (or 3.2 miles) in Hyde Park in September and then a half marathon (13 miles) in October.

If memory serves me right, I have seen her run before...but that was back in my baby days. I’m a big boy now!

The excuses

“Shouldn’t you be training for the Royal Parks Half Marathon?” daddy asked mami as she was a about to eat another chocolate reindeer she had in the fridge.

“Arrrrg, yes! I know, but I can’t run now, I’m tired!”

“Well, you have to start soon, otherwise it will be painful”

“Ok! OK! I’ll start this week, I’m just not motivated” and ate the chocolate.

MotherCare, more like MotherDOESN'TCare

I may be little, but I know when mami is happy and when she is not happy. This week, she has not been very happy.

Before leaving the waters and coming home, mami and daddy had everything ready for me. My bed, my clothes, toys, blankets and nappies. Most or all had been bought at a store called Mothercare. Daddy really liked their selection and would say "they have everything we need!"

In November (mami mentioned the month) before travelling on a plane to visit abuelita, mami said "we need a lightweight stroller, I don't want to take the big one the on the plane" Daddy agreed and said it would be good for nursery too.

And guess where he went to buy me a new pushchair? That's right; he went to our favourite store, Mothercare.

Now its summer time and just the other day the back wheels broke off. I was surprised because we only use it to go to nursery. I have had my other buggy since I was born and nothing has happened to it!

We went to our nearest store, and they said we were past the 6 month guarantee. Mami asked if it could be repaired and they said we would have to pay for it.

But wait! According to an email from customer support:

"If it has a manufacturing fault and you return it after 28 days, we'll repair it. If  we can't repair it, we'll exchange it or give you a refund."

The email went on to say:

“If your pushchair doesn't have a manufacturing fault, has been used and isn't in its original packaging, we don't refund or exchange it.”

Very sneaky! Based on advice provided by email customer support anything that is a “manufacturers fault” should be replaced but in the store they bully you into thinking this coverage only lasts 6 months. So which is it?

Talking to daddy she said, "Either they don't believe their own brand is of good quality with just 6 month warranties or they are trying to pull a fast one."

Daddy and I looked at each other and he said they should rename themselves either MotherDoesn'tCare or CustomerSupportDon’tKnow due to the conflicting messages.

Some of mami's friends on Twitter also said they were unimpressed with Mothercare items and their service and had moved on to other shops for their essentials.

I know mami, when she says something she means it! Says she won't be shopping at Mothercare and wanted me to write about it to let you know to be careful when buying anything from them.

What are your experiences? Is mami right to want them to replace the pushchair after only 8 months of use?

A very secret club

Oh no! I completely forgot to tell you about me and mami's first Secret Post Club experience! See we are part of a very secret club where bloggers exchange gifts every month. Its so much fun!

Dear mami

Dear mami, 

I love you a lot and I missed you and daddy when you were gone.

Abuelita/grandma and I almost melted here in London because it was so hot, but we made it. Next time can I go with you please?

We did lots and lots of things.

First thing abuelita did was cut my hair! She heard daddy say I had a “mullet” and she cut little bits off the back. Did you see she put my curls in a bag for you?

Someone named John Lewis

Last week, someone named John Lewis asked mami and other blogging mamas along for a lunch to talk about Christmas. There's that word again - Christ-mas...Chris-t-mas? I still can't remember where I've heard it, but I am hoping to figure it out soon. All I know is that toys keep being mentioned which makes me very very happy! I think John Lewis is a friend of mami and daddy, but I can't be sure.

Simply and honestly me

Been busy here entertaining my abuelita/grandma who is visiting for a few weeks. Hard work I tell you, I have to show her where my milk is and which cup to give me, how to open the door to take me out, and which park to take me to.

Poor abuelita, she can't keep up with me and she tells mami that she is "muy cansada"/ very tired after spending a day with me. Funny how everyone I spend a day with seems to say that. Not sure why?

Bilingual Corner No 2 - What's your name?

Gracias to so many of you for writing about being bilingual and the funny stories you posted for the first Bilingual Corner! Its all just for fun, so this month I thought I would talk about our names! See, I realised that being bilingual not only means speaking two (or more) languages but experiencing different ways of doing things – traditions I think mami calls it.

Out of this world - CyberMummy 2010

The day finally arrived! This past Saturday, mami woke up extra early to meet all of MY blogging friends at CyberMummy at the Ibis Hotel in Earls Court!

I followed mami’s tweets throughout the day on daddy’s laptop and saw that minute after minute she was meeting more and more great mamas! I sure wish I could have been there, especially since I’m the blogger!

Christmas, Chris-t-mas?

Mami and Chef Phil Vickery

I don't know how mami spends her days. She takes the train after leaving me at nursery, but after that I have no idea how she fills her time. I have heard her talk about her "office" and "work". But that is as much as I know.

So when she came home last week talking about seeing new toys and food for something named Aldi, I was even more confused than before.

"There was a room full of delicious food and chocolates and fun toys in another!" She told daddy.

Hot hot hot!

I've been very sticky and wet lately. I have never felt like this before. I feel warm all over just like when I was sick a few months ago - but I feel fine.

I hear mami and daddy say "hace calor/its hot" and that now it is "verano/summer time". There is a lot more light and sun than I remember and on some days its so hot that mami doesn't even dress me - and that never happens!