Recent Freebies, Bargains and Wins! #1

Happy New Year you lovely lot! I'll be writing up my Christmas post soon but I wanted my first post of 2016 to feature my most recent freebies, bargains and wins because I'm hoping to have the whole year full of cheap or free stuff to save money! Hope you enjoy!

Using magicfreebiesuk.co.uk, latestfreestuff.co.uk (you might recognise them from this weeks Dragons Den!) and keeping my eye out on Twitter (follow my other account here for comping and freebie finds!) I've had a nice few bits of free happy post pop through my door in December.

Olay was a great find on Twitter and I totally forgot about it! I was really pleased when it came in the post, love a surprise! This cream is retailing for £9.99 in my local Superdrug so a great freebie win. I've put it in my hamper which I've started again for birthdays throughout the year and Christmas. I got the Candy Crush perfume through my sister and it actually smells lovely. The cream was from a free stuff search and it's really nice.

I hit the sales after Boxing Day and wasn't disappointed. All these buys have been either put in the hamper or under the bed for 2 impending January birthdays! One box of M&M's may have already been eaten!

Before Christmas I was sent a hamper, I think a few people on social media got one and a few bloggers did too. It was a hamper with a Yorkshire theme from Plusnet and was a nice surprise through the door.

My most recent win (I haven't been lucky yet this month) is still from December and was a set of Sims games from a mumsnet Twitter competition, I was well chuffed!

Have you nabbed any freebies? Won any competitions or bagged any bargains recently? I want to know!

Happy (Frugal) New Year!

Cupcake Mumma

Tsum Tsum Squishies Review!

I'm pretty sure everyone has now heard of Tsum Tsums. I first came across them as little plush collectable toys in a store, I had no idea how big they were until I saw my sister in laws huge collection. Now, I have a few collections on the go so plush toys, no matter how small, were not going to be something for me. However, I've been sent some Tsum Tsum Squishies for this review which are the perfect size for my collecting addiction! 

I really love these Tsum Tsums, they are perfect stocking fillers or even perfect pocket money gifts. A 2 pack will cost you £3 and a 4 pack £5, you can also buy a 5 pack set for 10 which includes a bag clip carrier so you can attatch your favourite Tsum Tsum and carry them around with you.

What we love about the new Tsum Tsum collection is stacking them up and having fun. Tsum Tsum comes from the Japanese word tsumu which means 'to stack'. It's good fun stacking your Tsum Tsum Squishies in different ways or seeing how high they can go before toppling over. If you have the same squishie you can even do swaps with your friends so everyone's happy!

I like that while these may be called 'squashy' they are not too soft, so whilst they are indeed soft and yes, squishey, they are still hard enough for their purpose (to stack) and because they are not too soft they will not damage and rip easily.

Fun Facts About Tsum Tsum!

• Did you know that you would need 5,852 Tsum Tsums to reach the top of Blackpool Tower?
• It would take a whopping 217,452,301 Tsum Tsums to fill up Big Ben.
• If you wanted to create a line of Squishies reaching horizontally around the earth, you would need an incredible 1,113,194,444 of them!

Tsum Tsum Squishies are exclusive to The Entertainer stores and can be purchased right now! All your favourite characters from Aristocats, Toy Story and Micky Mouse to the recent films including Frozen are waiting in store now!

Are you a Tsum Tsum collector or planning on buying any soon? Let me know!

Bargains and Freebies Week 1

I'm really getting back into charity shop hunting and signing up for free stuff, it's been years since I collected free stuff online and it's great fun. I'm also starting to do comping as a bit of fun and hope to win something next year at least once! You never know after all. I've had 1 freebie this week but it's because I've just started collecting them again which means with any luck in a few weeks time I'll have some more land on my doorstep! This weeks freebie was a new design Pull Up pant plus a £1 off coupon!

So this week I'm showing off some great finds that I've got for an absolute bargain. First is this phone case for Mr B's Christmas gift. I thought it was very him and although you can get these cases in Poundland they are much softer, I picked this up from eBay for £4.99 it'll be perfect for Mr B, it's a harder case and has 2 little card inserts which he's wanted for ages.

I picked up a onesie for Midges Christmas Eve box. Since One D took a break I've noticed a huge increase not only in the obvious merchandise that has the original 5 on but the other bits and pieces that don't. This onesie was only 50p and all it will need is a wash to freshen it up. I love charity shops and so do my children, no shame here!

I recently visited Hogwarts in the snow and wanted to pick up a booklet which contains all the information on all the sets and props. These are priced at £9.99 so I decided against it. When I got home I went onto eBay and grabbed myself one in mint condition for only £1.50. Score!

Below is a selection of goodies I picked up cheap too. Poundland have some wonderful story books for children, I picked up Thomas for Little A and a Pooh Bear one for Midge, these are for their Christmas boxes. A woody doll which still works but is missing his cord (which doesn't bother me at all!) was all of 99p; happy Hannah! I've always wanted to buy one but at £30 plus I could never afford one. I got some Tsum Tsum Squashies this week too which are for a review coming soon. I don't consider these freebies though because it takes time and effort to write good reviews for companies!

I'd love to hear about your bargain hunting, charity shop finds and any freebies you've found lately!

Cupcake Mumma

Road Trip

If you follow me on Twitter you may have seen a few Tweets from a very unsocial hour (try 3am) just before being collected by the parents and younger sister for our 7 hour road trip to Keele University. I'm already missing my sister like mad but it must be all in my head because I never saw her loads when she lived down here! I think it's about her being so far way with no family around.

We set off in total darkness, had a few debates which were really not suitable for such early hours and eventually both my sister and I took a half hour kip trapped under her full length mirror and other student must haves! When I woke up the sun was breaking through the clouds and the day was finally beginning!

We arrived in good time and set about getting my sister all set up. The process was actually surprisingly quick and even the ques for party tickets and freshers passes weren't that long. I found myself getting excited and I wouldn't even be staying!

Bracelet to be kept on all week to get into
all Freshers events!

After all the excitement of becoming a proper signed up new student we located the accommodation blocks and began unloading. We all took it in turns to take bits and bobs up the 3 small flights of stairs to my sister's room which is a lovely size (it's bigger than the bedroom she's had to leave behind) There's plenty of storage space, a nice big desk, phone all ready to go and a lovely view with a tree to the left which actually gives her some privacy. The block she's in is at least a couple of miles from the actual campus so it's like she's totally removed from the university and actually in the countryside. I'll be visiting!!

It didn't take long to get all of the car unloaded and I helped put things into place. We're both pretty organised little beings so I don't think she'll move too much stuff that I put out. When the bed was made and all the boxes flat packed her room looked lovely and cosy. All it needs now are some photos on the notice boards and a little homely touch. 

The first items to be removed from storage! Sourz, I am told,
have already been consumed!

I snapped a photo of the campus as we were walking to her blocks. It's so peaceful and lovely I really hope she'll be happy there. I could see myself immersing into crafting communities and eating cupcakes on the lawn!  

After unloading the car we took my sister off for some much need first week shopping! Seeing all the lost students was such a funny sight. Everyone was having the same conversations about how to use a washing machine, what were dryer sheets and how do you use them? Do I need this, that and the other (usually a 'no' from the wise parent). 

We've been lucky in that we've always had to muck in with the washing up and laundry. Because our parents have never been 'well off' like so many we've learnt to budget and prioritise and save for the luxuries. I don't live by this all time though, life's for living after all!

 The shopping came to a reasonable price given we bought items in bulk so she won't have to spend much over the next few weeks. My sister is really adamant on using meats and vegetables from the local market on campus so I hope they are offering students a good deal to enjoy the fresher foods.

We left my sister at 3pm making one stop on the way. I think I fell asleep for another half hour about 10 minutes into the journey. My phone didn't die until we were an hour from home which was good going considering I had been busy on Twitter and reading blogs during the journey up! 

We made one stop at 'Road Side Chef' which was OK. Nothing amazing but then where can you stop on a road side that will be 'amazing!?' My Dad asked us to buy him something, 'just not a burger,' he said. That was a problem seeing as we were standing right in front of the only shop open which a huge sign displaying the name 'The Burger Bar'! Mum and I grabbed some fries and picked Dad up a surprise Krispy Kreme. I hate the fact I can't eat these delicious looking doughnuts but apparently it was 'Yeah very nice. Professional like,' nom nom nom....Hmmmm

I've since heard there's already been a bit of partying and a rather successful comedy night on campus. I'm really pleased my sister has already made friends and I haven't contacted her yet. Breathing space and all that! I'm writing her a letter tonight so hopefully she'll get that and put drinking aside to give me all the weekend gossip and details of upcoming excitement! She better be getting me some freebies while she has such a great opportunity!

If you'd like to read all about my sisters lead up to leaving for university you can do so here. When she has the Internet up and running again you'll be able to read more of her thoughts as a new student as well as lots of tips which will be handy for any newbie students.

CupcakeMumma

What A Week!

My my what a week! I'm sure most parents are feeling pretty happy that it's finally Friday (this week has gone so slow for me) I am ready for the weekend! Tomorrow we are having a lovely little party for my sister (whose blog you can check out here) she's off to university next week so I thought we needed to have a little 'send off' for her. I've gone with a 'rainbow' theme. Not so many rainbows included but more like bright colours.

Anyway, for a little re-cap, Midge has just finished her first full week of school and she has loved it. We've had a certificate for settling in so well, made a new best friend who is very quickly becoming like another limb and already been placed 'on the cloud' for leaving class without telling the teacher and then fibbing. I may have to do another post entirely on this subject!

The days have felt pretty long but Midge is already settling in well and her teachers seem pleased with her. She's still pretty stroppy as the evening goes on but hopefully as time goes by her body will get used to these longer days of fun and learning and eventually my little angel (I wish) will return.

Little Man had his first pair of wellies this week (big, blue pirate ones no less) which he just loves to stomp around in. I'll be sure to post those photos up soon. I have managed to get out and do a bit of what I call 'scavenger hunting' this week in my local charity shops and have two items I want to share with you. First is this not so nice necklace (if you like it fair enough but it's not my thing)

Why buy it then? I hear you ask. Well, I'll show  you why I bought it:

Isn't it lovely? I'm going to pop her on some silver chain to wear around my neck. I have wanted an item of jewelry like this for a long time and when I saw this just hanging there added to this chunky necklace I had to have it.

There are also lots of lovely beads I can use to make bracelets and anklets, not mention this beautiful cross which is also on it. 

The second item I wanted to show you is this beautiful teacup I found surrounded by all sorts of ugly mugs (real mugs- not people) I had to have it! My plan is to fill it with wax and make a tea cup candle for my Gran as a Christmas gift. I'm also going to make her some earrings and soap. What do you think?

It's even got a cute tassel!

As for now though I have to get back to baking. So far I've made 3 cakes to sandwich together with thick icing and jam, I let the husband decorate (it is now resembling some sort of creature from Monsters Inc.) but it's creative and after my marzipan disaster I think it looks better to be out on the table!

I've also got a bunch of balloons to blow up and hang from the ceiling (talking of ceilings, my cupcake bunting has been made so that's also going up tonight!)

Hopefully I'll get a chance to blog tomorrow.

CupcakeMumma

Sunny Days and Grown Up Time

Haven't we had some beautiful weather? Cornwall finally caught up with the rest of the UK and we had our long awaited heat wave. It's not so nice now, the sun is still out but we really needed some rain and air after all the stuffiness.

We've been nicely busy in the Cupcake House. Little Miss was finally able to have her bike taken out of the shed. Daddy gave it a once over and adjusted the seat but I think she still looks too big for it and we'll be investing in a new one soon. 

Usually I can't think of anything worse than taking scooters and bikes to school (I always end up carrying said items you see...) but I walked home with Little Miss from nursery the other day and she decided that she was going to ride her bike ALL the way back,

We had a few pit stops of course but no whinging which was a nice change! I was really proud of her because we have such a small garden and rarely get to the park with the recent rubbish weather, the nursery run was her longest go on the bike and I think she did really well.

Well done Midge!!

As you can see above we were set a task for nursery. This task was to make our favourite bug! Little Miss and her friends have been looking at all the different bugs over the last couple of weeks and she's really into them. The recent influx of ants into my home has got her beyond excited (and has just got to me to be honest, horrid creatures!)

Little Miss loves Ladybirds and so do I so we went hunting around our house for some junk to recycle. We found a Peppa Pig bottle which we emptied of its pancake mix into a spare tub so the lady bug had a body to be painted bright red. Little miss coloured in some spots and we stuck them on. I cut out some wings and poked some pipe cleaners through the bottle for her little legs.

What do you think?

On the way to nursery I spotted a real ladybird keeping our creation company on the pushchair hood! Little Miss was really excited and wanted to show her friends but sadly the ladybird didn't share her enthusiasm and flew off! Poor Midge, but her teacher loved the ladybird she made and it was put next to the window. She keeps an eye on it to make sure it doesn't 'fly away Mummy.'

Over the Tamar Bridge

On Saturday Little Miss and Man went to Grandma's and Pop's house for the day. They had so much fun at the park and in the garden, I can't wait to see the photos my sister took.

While the Little Ones were having fun myself and Other Half were having much deserved 'us time'. We booked last minute tickets to Plymouth for the day changing our decorating plans to shopping plans. I wasn't complaining!
We had a small budget of money but were both surprised to be more looking forward to the quiet train trip there than all the shopping.

I did buy a new belt, some shorts (to accommodate my increasing hips and thighs- a problem that is being sorted asap) and a few other bits and bobs. We had a cheeky McDonald's lunch (2 medium fries for me!) and did plenty of walking and exploring.

The train back was a bit manic with lots of people coming back from a local football match and there appeared to be some rather rude people on board which was a shame.
 In the evening though Mum and Dad dropped the kids back to us and I cooked a lovely roast. We watched Eurovision (thanks Dad not my choice at all!) and chatted a lot. They didn't leave until nearly midnight but it was such a lovely day and evening I hope to do it again in the future.

Cupcake Mumma

Being A Tourist in my County!

I visited my parents' house this weekend. They live just up the road from a beautiful harbour and the beach is just a short walk away. It hasn't been warm enough for me to go quite that far yet but I know Other Half has taken Little Miss out on several occasions to get her feet wet.

Armed with our baby back carrier which was undergoing its first try, my little camera and both children we ventured out to be tourists for the day.
I love being a little tourist. Getting your camera out for everything, buying nick knacks from the local shops. My nick knacks don't ever go much further than a few postcards and maybe an item to the value of 99p but nevertheless I still have fun searching!

We also had a quick look around the charity shop around the corner from my parents house. We got a big Weeble Playhouse for £1.25 which was a bargain although not necessarily true considering we really don't need anymore toys but you just try and stop Other Half when he's in 'the zone'.

I got some beautiful shots of the harbour, the sea, the landscape. I never get sick of taking photos of this area, I can see why it's such a tourist attraction and holds a lot of holiday homes.

After taking some pictures and having a walk we decided to venture into the local pub for some drinks and chips. It was pricey at ten pounds for 2 bowls of chips, 2 Capri Suns and a half pint but it's a pub! And local so it doesn't matter too much! The children liked having a good munch and warming up. The chips were delicious and the atmosphere was nice too.

After that we searched for more postcards and had a general browse before heading home. Of course, Little Miss and Other Half had to buy a Mr. Whippy to complete the day!

Hope you had a good weekend everybody!

CupcakeMumma

My Week So Far...With Bags!

Well, after waking up at 2.30am on Monday morning with the most hideous stomach cramps I was officially ill when eventually after 7am I was sick in my baking bowl...hmm won't be using that one again! So yes, as you can imagine not the finest way to start your week.
It did get better though. I lived on toast and butter for the whole day which was pretty dull but necessary and was firmly wedged in the arse dent on my corner sofa watching trashy television. My Mother in law to be had both the children which I was extremely grateful for and even more so when I learned that Little Man had been up pretty much all night with the unfamiliar setting and his teeth causing yet more trouble for him.

I got a relaxing bath, did a little tidying just to make me feel clean (obsessed) and then napped on the sofa just as Eastenders was nearing the end. SO Monday was not fab, it could have been much worse which i'm glad it wasn't!

Tuesday is good TV night for me and its always been my favourite day of the week for some odd reason so I always manage to get up pretty well in the morning! I actually had a nice lay in that morning as Other Half was working earlier to get some extra pennies for Little Man's birthday next week.
I was woken up by my babies a bit less than hour later which was lovely. I felt ten times better and looked forward to a day of a better diet and fresh air! I started on my next #Pinaddict challenge as well which is harder than it looks, well more fiddly. I won't say anymore though as I'm determined to keep it a surprise for a special someone.

And so to today. I returned the lay in favour to Other Half who was most pleased and cracked on with Mummy mode. Little Man refused to sleep before baby group which worried me no end but we went anyway and had a lovely morning there. I love seeing him interact with the other babies and I'm getting on quite well with 'pushy mum' who isn't so much pushy as an overall protective first time mum. i can totally get it, but I don't need hidden protective comments about my parenting choices thank you! She's okay though, harmless and I think I quite like her!

Mummy's and Little Man's butterfly

Little Miss's lovely butterfly.

 Little Miss tagged along which is unusual because I do like to give me and the Other Half our individual bonding times. We made butterflies and sung some songs and in general had a lovely morning. It went down hill from there as Little Man has developed some serious buggy hatred and screamed all the way home from the nursery run. I think I was this close to to handing him over!*

I wrestled him to sleep which he did...for the grand total of 20 minutes. Still, better than nothing and a bit of shut eye cheered him up and gave me some lunch so i wasn't so crabby. We circled the shops for various things to add to previously mentioned secret Pinaddict project. I accidentally went over my budget so i owe my tin a fiver *sighs* could be worse!

  Also I got some new bags in the post. What do you think?

Now I shall catch up on my lovely blog, e-mails and maybe venture over to Twitter if I dare. I have things to do and am afraid my time would dangerously drain away if I hang about there too long.

I hope my readers are having a good week so far too. Only 2 more days until the weekend. Oh poop I have parent consultation tomorrow. Muffins.
Until then! Hannah X
* No handing over ever took place. Promise. 

A Loyal Customer?

I used to fancy myself as a very loyal customer to one big supermarket: Tesco. The main reason I have always been their loyal little shopper week in week out was actually because it was the only store for many years that I was closest to.

Sainsburys opened when I lived out on the sticks but for me they didn't quite live up to the hype surrounding them. Now these two stores are not much different. I have also tried Asda and for me personally, the less said about them the better.

No it has definitely been Tesco from the beginning for me. Especially with their little blue loyalty cards that make you think twice about leaving them. Think of the points! I've used those points at Christmas and various times throughout the year. Mind you the only reason I have so much at Christmas is because I am incredibly underwhelmed at the amount I see written on my leaflet which promises such goodness to be inside. Not much for a 'loyal' customer.

Anyway, I decided I had had enough of Tesco, as I have before but then I began thinking of 'the points' and ran back like a little girl. Now I am a big girl and I will not look at that damn blue piece of plastic and be lured back..Okay i will sometimes after all it's about shopping around.

There is one supermarket I have never paid that much attention to. Not Waitrose nah ah, they're not made for folk like me. I doubt I could afford a *carrot . Nope I'm talking about Morrisons.

On Thursday the Other Half, Little Man and I hopped on a bus, shopping list in hand with a challenge in our minds: Make this supermarket make us smile. Especially at the final bill in my frugal little hand.

First off we were a little peckish. I don't like to do this often as I find supermarkets can be pretty stingy with their portions, have not great tasting food (not because they're often value range, that stuff is just as good) and really lets face it, it's a waste of money. But we had a spare ten pounds, we were all hungry after dropping Little Miss off and catching the earliest bus that we qued up with the rest of them.

How different was this place? The atmosphere was so much calmer despite there being just as many people being in the cafe as any other supermarket. Morrissons has a slightly smaller cafe department than most stores too. The staff were really friendly which isn't usually a problem for me anywhere else so is just a bonus. The food was really nice. Okay so we only had egg and chips. a cake, burger and chips for Other Half and a baby jar with 2 drinks as well this total came under budget costing around £7.68 I was really pleased because that's the cheapest I've eaten in a supermarket with 3 of us.

After the quick lunch we went off to the real challenge: The food shop. My budget is £60 a week with the hope of having left over cash at the end for the pot in the kitchen in case we need extras during the week. It was hard going around a store new to us, and we were at great risk of popping things in the old trolley just because we were passing through aisle's we didn't need to. Always a danger. Luckily we didn't add anything we didn't need.

The biggest joy for me (as sad as it sounds) was the Free From section. A constant battle for me is getting supermarkets to stock up a decent size section. My local Tesco is getting better, but I still have to travel by bus to another town just to buy some self raising flour. I can't afford everything from a health food store so I keep them for the cheaper basics.

Morrisons had a really good section for Free From food. I was so happy to have naan breads for dinner and to see there would be no more shopping around for me every week. Yey!

At the checkout the lady was super nice, bags were there already and it was noticed when we were low without having to ask more than twice if we 'could have some more bags please?' Usually I take bags with me but on this occasion I totally forgot. At least I have more to stash under the buggy! Their bags seem stronger I noticed as well. Oh, and the best part? My bill came to *drum roll* £44.86!

Of course that £44 doesn't buy totally everything I need. I nipped over to Lidl (usually it's Aldi though) to buy their nappies which are great. Morrissons are good nappies but when I can get just about 2 weeks worth for £4.99 I'm not likely to go elsewhere am I? I was buying £1.99 nappies in the Tesco Value range but another price hike has seen them go just over £2 so I am making a saving. Even after that there was some change for the pot for my bread (everyone had beaten me to it-darn) and anything we run out of as you do.

Thumbs up Morrisons, you have a new customer in me. I'm not too bothered about my Tesco Clubcard when I realise I don't get much from it anyway. So, which supermarket are you loyal to, if any? Or are you loyal to your local town which is even more important at this time? Or do you just go here there and everywhere much like me but have a preferred choice of supermarket?

I'd be interested to hear you views, or even if you totally disagree!  For me though, I am rather happy with my new choice of store.

******

* An exaggeration

* I have posted this purely for my blog. No supermarket has asked me specifically to comment on their store. I'm just a mummy blogger who thinks too much about shopping and budgets!

Uh, Is It Bedtime Yet I've had a long day!

Oh I've had some day. Earlier I was a right moody arse but at least now I can chuckle about it! It hasn't been terrible just I've been a bit 'off' and staying up until 1am to watch Harry Potter film number 2 probably wasn't my most intelligent moment of all time, not now I'm a fully fledged Yummy Slummy Mummy.

Sooo anyway, I spent up until 11.30am being a grumpy little brat, curled up on the sofa reading blogs and feeding Little Man before his nap. I was feeling a little down, a little tired and wanted to kill anyone who dare said the 'C' word anywhere near me (including the TV people) simply because I feel completely non Christmassy at the moment. I think it's because my house still isn't how I wanted it to be before the time came round and it isn't likely to start getting there anytime soon. Also I can't put these decks up as the walls are too hard and the ceiling too far away (and I don't have the balance for a chair.)

Hey, I'm moaning again, this post was not meant for moaning I promise you! I ventured out and bought a new buggy, fidgety baby in one arm and demented toddler running off ahead in front. I managed to find a nice Ora pushchair for under 40.00 so I was happy. My other pushchair has sort of given up the ghost. I'm still keeping it though, it only has minor collapsing problems but will still be fine for a newborn if we so desire another one of those in the future.Anyway, this pushchair is smaller (but has a wider seat for my ever growth spurting boy) it is purple but not a bright purple so I think he gets away with sitting in it (not that we care much)

After this I figured I might need to buy some buggy hooks to help me carry my shopping home in..Was there anything anywhere..No. So for now I'll be tying my bags to my pushchair or doing my food shop online (which I hate to do because of my 'that's the price for delivery!!!??' rant hurts even my ears.)
Then I had to proceed to the shops (stuck behind the slowest people on Earth I swear) with Little Man wanting  his milk, to look for something suitable for Little Miss to wear to her children's party/Santa meeting tomorrow, so look out for photos of that!

Can you believe I found nothing? I had to go with a pair of tights (Hello Kitty no less) which I was pleased to see were reduced. Okay, so I could've got plenty of clothing items but being a tight fisted cow with my pennies I was refusing to shell out 20 quid on a jumper dress..It's not happening I thought. After we exhausted every option in town and the temperature had started to drop we headed to home where Little Man was fed and Little Miss found some clothes she could wear tomorrow. She's done well. Okay well enough to be comfortable, but who said it was a competition?

Now I'm off to teach her the rules of Musical Statues (serious competition) and to think lucky for winning some raffle prizes. Ill let you know if either happen, plus what my little cherubs get off Santa tomorrow.

Hannah x