Lyonsleaf Giveaway + Discount Code!

*This post contains PR samples/affiliate links

It's Plastic Free July, so what better way to celebrate than hosting a giveaway with one of my favourite low-waste brands, the wonderful Lyonsleaf?

The lovely folk over at Lyonsleaf and I are giving away a Mum & Baby Skincare Survival kit, perfectly timed as my little one is due a month today! The kit contains Beauty Balm, and two types of natural nappy cream (I've reviewed both of these on my blog previously, see links.) It also contains a cleansing cloth which Mama can use with the Beauty Balm (this product contains essential oils to give it its delicious fragrance, so not one to share with baby.) But none of these products are a one-trick pony: the Calendula and Marshmallow Balm has received many accolades when used as a nipple cream which I wish I'd known about last time, whilst the Beauty Balm can double up as cleanser, moisturiser and even primer. Knowing that I can trust these products for their versatility and reliability, this kit has gone straight into my birth bag. If that all sounds good and you'd like to win a set yourself, details on how to enter the giveaway are at the bottom of this post!

A low waste baby wishlist

Contrary to what marketing would have us believe, the truth is, babies don't need that much *stuff*. Now that I'm having my second baby I've realised how much equipment we had last time that didn't really get used. Carrycot? Nope, she hated it so we used a sling. Baby toys? Nah, not really interested. Cute outfits? Thanks, but she mostly lived in sleepsuits due to those double digit nappy changes. In our loft there's a box full of almost untouched rattles and toys that we'll probably get out again and put away almost unused. We already were trying to live low waste when I had Eden, but this time my baby wishlist has changed even more. Having done it all before, I thought I'd share some idea for baby gifts of dreams without the waste!

TTC // Working with a nutritionist

I've honestly been meaning to write this post for MONTHS considering I'm now 33 weeks pregnant, but better late than never! Trying to conceive is a significantly more emotional process than I ever realised. Eden was a surprise pregnancy (the best surprise ever, as it turns out) so the complexities of actually trying to have another baby were unexpected to me. As women, for much of our lives we often focus on trying not to conceive as the matter of contraception tends to fall to us. So one could be forgiven for thinking that as soon as you started trying to have a baby, surely you'd get pregnant straight away. And that does happen! - for a lucky few. For the rest of us it takes a little more time, patience, and for me, getting in tune with my body.

Our breastfeeding journey

Around a month ago, more or less on her second birthday, Eden "officially" stopped breastfeeding. This was entirely led by her - I'd fully expected to be tandem feeding come August!

Zero Zen Greener Lifestyle eco store

[Paid partnership with Zero Zen - all opinions my own]

Recently, Zero Zen put together an eco care package for me from their greener lifestyle store, so for the past couple of weeks I've been diligently testing out the products. Whilst I'm a big believer in plastic free, eco-friendly swaps, I'm also conscious that when it comes to eco living it's ALWAYS better for the environment to use what you already have than to buy new items (even when they're eco!) So I am quite thorough when testing products to see whether they are truly worth purchasing. I'm happy to say I'm very impressed with the items I've trialled from Zero Zen, so here's what I've been checking out to share here..