The Green Cross Code

From my 2 kids being really young, I have stopped them at the kerbside and taught them the Green Cross Code. Each time they leave the house I tell them to "be carefull for the roads."
On Tuesday 27th July 2010, my biggest fear became reality so forgive me for this blog post but I needed to get it off my chest.

On Tuesday, my oldest daughter who is 15, was out with her mates but due home by 6pm. As usual, she rang and asked for an extra hour so we said that was fine. Just after 7pm, my partner got a phonecall from her saying she'd be a little late and asked if he could get on his mountain bike and peddle down to meet her - it's only about 10 mins away so off he went. I thought nothing more until 20 minutes later my phone rang and it was my other half telling me that his parents were coming to take me up to the hospital as our daughter had been knocked over!!
He was half way towards where she was when she rang him again, but he could hear lots of shouting etc and thought maybe she was having trouble as they kept asking who she was on the phone to. The shock hit him when he got there and saw her lying in the road with a few people standing round...the local shopkeeper had called an ambulance so my partner held her until it got there to check her over. Once the ambulance left with her, my partner, still on his mountain bike, peddled up behind it to the hospital where myself, my youngest and my mother in law were already waiting.
I did get to see her in the ambulance before they admitted her and thats when the tears came thick and fast! My baby was lying there with a full head brace etc on, blood trickling down her head and neck and her trousers ripped where the ambulance staff had to cut them loose.
I plodded off to A & E to give them her details, then sat waiting for about half an hour before I found out anything, never mind getting in to see her!!!
Eventually, I was taken to her. I walked in and she took one look at me then I noticed a few tears begin to roll....I wanted to wrap her in my arms and say that everything would be alright but was too scared in case I hurt her, so a gentle kiss and light hug were all I could give. She told me that she stepped off the kerb but had to step forward to see past another car and as she did this, she was hit! Turns out that the driver is a friend of ours and he waited with her till her dad arrived, whcih I am so grateful for as he was obviously in shock too.
The cut above her eye was quite bad and required a few stitches, she had stitches in one knee and bad cuts and grazes on the other knee. Her arms and sides are bruised quite badly too from the landing but alas, no broken bones! Considering the impact etc, she has been extremely lucky to escape with the injuries she has, it could have been alot worse!
Unbelievably, for those of you who believe in fate, my daughter wanted to wear her fave tshirt and jeans to go out, but they were dirty so she wore not so favourite things, i'd bought her new underwear last week so she was wearing this too and the lad who hit her usually drives a large jeep, but luckily it failed its MOT last week so he was driving a Saxo instead and to top it all off, our other mate is a taxi driver who is always working, but on Tuesday he'd decided to take the day off so helped us out with lifts etc.
Even more amazingly, my best friend's daughter was knocked over almost exactly 6 months ago to the day, she was hit by someone we all knew and was very lucky also to escape with just stitches to her head!!

The whole experience is the worst i've ever been through as a mother and it hurt even more when I saw how upset my partner was too - he doesn't often show emotion, but my oldest has always been a Daddy's Girl and it hit him really hard although he tried to stay strong for us.
I'm not sure quite how i'm going to be when she's fully recovered and asking to go out again...reckon i'll be a nervous wreck but unfortunately, I can't wrap her up in cotton wool for the rest of her life - although i'd love to!!
Massive THANKYOU for all the lovely messages and well wishes on twitter, you are all fantastic and really helped.
Please feel free to leave a comment - I do read them all and don't mind answering any questions too :-)

And the Winner is.....

Sorry i'm a little late with this but I had a bit of running round to do this morning since my kids broke up from school at dinner time.
Alas, the wait is finally over! I had a whopping 7 entries (plenty of interest then eh!) to this comp so the odds of winning were pretty darn good. 
To keep it all fair, I gave each of you a number from 1 to 7 based on where you entered, ie
jenniwren12 = 1
pied_wagtail = 2
blissbubbley = 3
paulineppp = 4
madamejoy41 = 5
singlemummynet = 6
anniemcs = 7
I then used a Random Number Generator to choose the winner.......

As you can see from the above screenshot, number 3 was chosen so Congratulations to BLISSBUBBLEY
I won't tell you how long i've been sitting here like a numpty trying to work out how to upload my screenshot to blogger, phew, all done now though!
Anyway, Congrats again to blissbubbley....if you could DM me your address via twitter i'll get that posted out to you! :-)

Compy, giveaway thingy!

Okay, this is going to be one of my shortest posts ever lol I have 1 bottle of 150ml Rodial Brazillian Tan in DARK, as shown below, to give away to one of you lucky lot!

Now, I have to warn you again.....this is DARK, so probably not much use if you're fair skinned....now that would be heading for disaster!!
I can't tell you whether this product is good or bad as I haven't tried it myself, however reviews i've read suggest that it's pretty darn fab!
This is available to buy from the Rodail website for £39.99.

Now then, I bet you're wondering what you need to do to get your hands on this....at least I hope you are!!
Simple, leave a comment below...any comment does whether it be a 'pick me' comment or a tale of woe, they'll all be placed in the draw! Feel free to share on twitter etc too, although not essential!
The all important rules:
1. UK entry only
2. 1 entry per person
3. Closes midnight 22nd July 2010
Please leave your twitter name if you have one.
Winner will be announced on here and over on twitter....so don't forget to check back!
GOOD LUCK!!

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED....SEE ABOVE POST FOR WINNER!!

Lovea Tahitian Monoi Moisturising Body Lotion

Time for another My Pure reveiw and this time it's Lovea Tahitian Monoi Moisturising Body Lotion which is available for the fair price of £6.99 for a 200ml bottle. 
The active ingredient Monoi is said to help soften skin after washing and is especially good for use after swinnimg as it fights against the damaging effects of salt, sun and wind. As always, I was very keen to try it...heres what I thought:
Firstly, I am really impressed by the pump action on this bottle as it eliminates the risk of you ending up with too much cream. You just twist the top in an anti-clockwise direction to unlock the pump, dispense as much or as little as you need, then twist clockwise to re-lock, so simple and mess free.
The smell of this is quite similar to the Lovea's Moroccan Argan Brilliance Shine Shampoo which I reviewed a few weeks ago...check out my review here. It is definately a smell I love.
The lotion itself has quite a nice consistency, not too runny yet not too thick, and is easily spread over the skin. It didn't take very long to absorb either which is always a bonus, especially if you're getting ready for a night out!!
Upon initial use my skin felt soft and moisturised although the effect didn't seem to last too long for me as I have very dry skin and this is suitable for 'normal' skin types.
I would certainly recommend it to those of you who have 'normal' skin as it's a lovely cream which isn't too heavy and smells divine!

Aveeno Discoverer's Programme

I have been accepted on to the AVEENO® Discoverer Programme, helping to spread the word about AVEENO® products. I get sent free AVEENO® products and have the possibility of being rewarded with additional benefits.

As you can probably guess by the above statement, I am one of those lucky enough to have been chosen as an Aveeno Discoverer...and I feel very privelaged to be one of the chosen few!
I was recently sent 2 fantastic boxes containing a selection of Aveeno products, 1 of which I am to use and review, the other to pass on to friends and family to get their opinions.  For this reason, I will be doing a double review of each product....my own opinion and that of whoever has been lucky enough to trial for me.
Here is a pic of what i've been sent:

Just in case you can't read them, the products are:
Daily Moisturising Lotion (fragrance free) - this contains finely-milled Colloidal Oatmeal and rich emolients and is said to replenish the skin's natural barrier function. An improvement is to be seen after just 2 weeks of use and skin willbe left soft, smooth and healthy.
Daily Moisturising Lotion (lightly scented) - this has the same description as the above product, but is lightly scented with Lavender.
Skin Relief Moisturising Lotion - this is made using Shea Butter and a unique Triple Oat Complex, also containing finely-milled Colloidal Oatmeal, Oat Oil and Oat Essence to soothe on contact hence providing immediate relief and comfort to dry and irritable skin. It is also said to leave skin soft, smooth and healthy and is fragrance free too.
Hand Cream - containing Colloidal Oatmeal, it is said to form a 'protective glove' which also lasts through washing.

This is just a little information about what i'm going to be reviewing.  I have already began using some of the products and have handed some to friends too. Watch this space for those reviews and any questions, just ask...I don't bite!
I will add another update with a bit more information about Aveeno and their fantastic range of products too, if theres anything specific you'd like to know then again, just ask and I will try and answer as best I can....no trick questions though!!

A'kin Jojoba & Lavender Conditioner

As many of you already know, I am a My Pure blogger and because of this, I receive free products each month for review.

The first product this month is A'kin Jojoba & Lavender Conditioner.

  

The description on the label reads: "Certified organic lavender flower extract combined with cold pressed Australian jojoba provides light conditioning & natural lustre whilst improving the vigour of your hair and scalp.  Your hair will have body and be silky soft, shiny & manageable."
 
I have to admit, my expectations were pretty high after reading this and I couldn't wait to try it out!  Personally, I found the design of the bottle a little awkward....you have to squeeze it to get the conditioner to come out and I found this took quite a bit of effort.

As you can see from this pic theres only a very small hole for the conditioner to come out of, I found it much easier to remove the lid altoghether.....this is something which definately needs improving.
The conditioner itself is quite creamy but I did found that I needed to use quite a bit for all over coverage - my hair is below shoulder length and quite fine but I did seem to use more of this than my regular conditioner.
Sorry, but I also found the smell to be quite overpowering.  I do like alot of smell in the products I use, but this almost took my breath away....the lavender being the most overpowering.  However having said that, the smell did subside once dried and my hair smelled clean and fresh.
After use, my hair was reasonably free from tangles so it did it's job there, but it did seem to lack life and shine compared to normal. This could have been due to the fact that the conditioner is suitable for "Normal, Fine and Oily Hair" and although my hair is normal and fine, it is also very dry!!
Overall, it was nice to try this product, especially as it is 100% natural and it's vegan too, but it just wasn't for me and at a cost of £7.49 for a 225ml bottle, it's also a little out of my price range.
A'kin Jojoba & Lavender Conditioner is available from the My Pure website and the also have an offer on where you can get A'Kin Pure Rose Hydrating Mist FREE with any 2 purchases of A'Kin - check out my review of this product here.