Mothers Choice is a well known and loved Australian brand. Over the years we have used many of their products, with a portacot still going for the past 10 years!

I'm here to share the awesome competition they have running at the moment! Can you help piece their history back together?

Back in 1989 all their records were lost. As this year celebrates 40 years of Mothers Choice, they want you to share your photo's from over the years, anything from a carseat you had when you were little or the one you use for your children now!

To help Mother’s Choice build up a new collection of memories, be sure to like their page on Facebook, upload a photo of a new or old Mother’s Choice product on the competition page and add a description of the photo.

The older a photo is, the better. For example, photos from the 1970s will earn ten additional entries, photos taken in the 1980s will earn five additional entries and photos from the 90s will net you three additional entries. Photos taken from 2000 onwards will get you one standard entry.

There is a grand prize of $5,000 cash for one lucky winner and two runner ups will also receive Mother’s Choice vouchers worth $1,500 each. What are you waiting for? Help Mother’s Choice piece together their history and start making new memories!

If you are in Brisbane, you should head to the Pregnancy, Babies & Toddlers Expo! It's on this weekend Friday 20th June - Sunday 22nd June at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre. You can find Mother Choice at stall L20 and there you have the perfect opportunity to view the range of baby products as well as receive great offers and other goodies!

We were lucky enough to have been surprised by hubby with tickets to the Lego Convention at the Royal Exhibition building in Carlton last weekend. I was a little put off at the thought, but I knew the kids would love it as Mikayla and Zarah are right into building it all at the moment. We have Lego friends and Lego City all over the house!

 

                

The designs that were created are beyond words! I was amazed over and over again with the detail and the scenes that had been recreated.

Castle from The wizard of Oz

Summer

Autumn

Winter 

                       

  

 

One of my favourite designs were the Melbourne themes. I was so excited to see the trams and Luna Park! Even with a running roller coaster! I honestly was transported back to when I was younger, plain with my little brothers Legos!

 

The Melbourne Cup

If you are a die hard 007 fan, you too will blown away by the clarity and detail found in the following pictures. These were apart of the exhibit that is running at Melbourne Museum at the moment!

 I have visited the Exhibition Building many times for the garden show and wedding expo's etc, but I am still floored by its beauty. The classic style of the building is stunning and makes me smile to think this is in our backyard. Very proud to be a Melbournian, even if our weather is a little temperamental!

Mid year is busy for us with birthdays and such. Well that's a lie, all year round is filled with special occasion. With big families, that's what happens I guess!
I still love making my gifts look impressive, and on a budget too! If you agree, try using these adorable tags I've stumbled across. They are super cute, printable and add style and colour to your wrapping!




Or for something a little funkier, try these babies! They are colourful and attention seeking, bringing life to your present on any occasion!








Thank you to Creature Comforts Blog for sharing these super cute tags!!

And keeping with the gift theme printables, I have also stumbled across these DIY Gift Bags! They are way too cute not to share so check them out!



Thank you to The Pretty Blog for sharing these! Enjoy!

Thanks ... MCM xxx

Good morning!

I stumble across these this morning and thought I better share!!

I had a money a couple of weeks ago where I had a small gift and nothing small enough to put it in!! Keep this template on hand and you'll never be stuck again!

Thank you to the wonderful people at Pretty Things you can have little pillow boxes on hand with just a click of a button!!


Lots of other goodies too! Great site for anyone who loves vintage scrap booking and crafts!

Enjoy!!!

Thanks ... MCM xxx

Good evening all!

Firstly I want to apologize for the lack of interaction of late. Sadly I have hit a brick wall (not literally) I just have been feeling a little overwhelmed and preoccupied at the moment. Just lots of things happening all at once I guess! Plus the heat here in Melbourne over the past few weeks has been enough to send anyone batty!

So lots has been happening, kids are at school and kinder, there's lots of dancing and swimming and more dancing (that's what happens when you have girls) and poor old hubby has been working TOO MUCH lately. The poor bugger picked up some extra work while it was quite and now cant leave them in the lurch but his business is picking up again too. So he is feeling the pressure a bit at the moment.

Hi all!
Today is a post about how proud I am, not of my girls or of myself but about hubby.
On Saturday, hubby not only entered but completed the Tough Mudder challenge. He and two mates (plus his cheer squad) made their way to Phillip Island and endured a treacherous 21kms of mud, ice and gruelling obstacles to crown themselves Tough Mudders!
Only days before hubby was certain he would not be able to compete due to back and leg pain he had encountered while training. Having spent weeks resting and seeing an osteopath, he still was feeling the pain and was unsure if he could do it. But the stubborn side of him shone through and he was adamant he would!
By 6am Saturday morning we were packed up and on our way, nerves being the winning feeling within the car! After meeting up with the second car of competitors, we headed down the freeway. At 9am we arrive and quickly make our way into the registration area and the guys don their numbers before making their way to the starting point.




At the starting line, waves of competitors we set off in fifteen minute increments. At 9:45 with music pumping everyone up and the guy on microphone yelling and cheering, they set off. For the next three and a half hours they waded thought ice water and mud, climbed hay bails, wooden fences and ropes, slid down muddy hills, climbed through tunnels and were attacked by electroshock's. In all there were 22 obstacles over 21 km's of track, over hills and uneven ground, not a single part of the event was easy!
Having not being able to find the guys until they reached obstacle 9, the had already endure more than I could ever had handled!




Hubby looked sore but as he told us afterwards, it was seeing his girls yelling and smiling and cheering him on that got him through the rest of the course. The girls were amazed by how awesome he was (Miss 9's description!) Miss 3 was a little less impressed with the amount of mud on him!!
At 1:45 they crossed the finish line, a little worse for wear but very satisfied that they completed such a tremendous effort!




Hubby has never done anything so challenging before, so it was a bitter sweet feeling seeing him achieve so much, only committing to the event in November, 3 months prior! I was thrilled for him, he is a very ambitious man and proving that you can do anything if you put your mind to it and your heart in it! But most of all, if you surround yourself with the right positive people you can achieve almost anything!
Well done baby! You have done so well and you really can do anything!! Not that you needed to prove anything to us, we already know that you are the bestest!
Thanks ... MCM xxx

Wow!! We had an amazing day strawberry picking in Bacchus Marsh, head to the Babies and Toddlers Directory site to read about our adventures!!

Lots of fun to be had by all ... MCM xxx

So we're sitting at home on Wednesday and trying to agree on something to do, our list of activities was rendered moot as the kiddies are ALL getting sick with runny noses and sore ears and it was windy!!

So I made the executive decision that whatever we were to do, we had to go in the car! So after after playing with a few ideas, I remembered recently hearing about 'Gravity Hill', a hill in which you drive down in your car, put it in neutral and you roll back up the hill.

At first I didn't believe it. I thought it was going to be the biggest load of crap. But the idea was exciting and the kids were intrigued. So we load my three plus one, into the car and head for Woodend. We grabbed some lunch on the way up and visited Hanging Rock too. The girls weren't overly interested in climbing the rock, much to my disappointment, so we did the creek walk, but we did something wrong as we couldn't locate the creek!!

So after our pointless walk, and finding an owl in a tree, we head off for Straws Lane, Woodend. The kiddies were deciding whether or not the hill would do anything, and I was trying to decipher the map! Stumbling upon the road, we wait for the cars to pass the make our way down one of the hills, slow at the foot and put her in neutral. And the most amazing thing happened ... We actually started rolling back up the hill. The girls were freaking out!! They were yelling and saying 'You're doing it! You're making it go up!' I had to show them my feet to make them believe that it wasn't me! We were actually rolling UP a hill!

If you are like me and think its a load of crapola, then you must go and try it out, because I was pleasantly surprised, amazed, dazzled ...

MCM xxx

So what have you got planned these school holidays? Starting to stress out at the thought of bored kiddies? Here's an ideas!

On Sunday the 30th September, the day after the AFL Grand Final, it is the MCG Community Day and you will be able to head out onto the ground for a kick! Don't forget to take the footy! Entry will grant you access to the National Sports Museum, access to the ground, a tour of the MCG and on the day there will also be roving entertainment and plenty to do and see! So get out there with your budding AFL stars and enjoy a great day out!!

Hello everyone!!
Today I met a good friend of mine at the cutest little cafe in South Melbourne call Cheeky Chinos! What a great idea, just imagine your local indoor play centre, then imagine it clean, warm and supervised!! A great idea!
This child friendly cafe is located near the South Melbourne market, just down from Clarendon Street. It is on the small side, but if you are looking for somewhere to meet during the week this is ideal! The cafe has a few scattered tables and can accommodate 7-8 groups. Their menu is suitable for parents and a similar menu but bite sized for the littlies! They are reasonably priced and the kids can play supervised for half and hour or an hour, depending the time needed to recoup!!
The decor is bright and playful and Miss 3 and Miss 1 fell in love as soon as they walked in. The play area is all soft equipment that is suitable for all ages, with climbing areas, ball play and a little cubby too!




The kids are timed according to the length of time you purchase and you can pause their time if they wish to come out and have a break, then the time is resumed when they re-enter. The concept is fantastic!
I hope that the next time you are twiddling your thumbs and want a change of scenery you head to Cheeky Chinos! It was a great time for all!!
Thanks ... MCM xxx

No, no, I'm not about to whip out the vinyl And play a little Kylie, today we went ROLLER SKATING!!!!

It was our cousins 12th birthday yesterday and we hit the skating rink to celebrate! Oh my ... SIL and I had the most amazing time trying to maneuver our way around the rink without either falling on our butts or taking out some littlies!

It was such a wonderful time to reminisce, thinking back to bing a little girl and my mum and aunt taking me skating, then as I got a bit older heading there with my friends on Saturdays and days off school, basically every chance we got! We even made it on to the Oz Skate ad they filmed at our local centre! Then when I became too cool for school we would go EVERY Friday night! We would meet at Maccas and then walk over the bridge thinking we were the coolest! Oh, but if the blue light was on then we'd be there of course!!

Watching my dear Miss 9 was very heart warming. I just wish my children inherited some coordination from somewhere, but sadly not! Miss 9 had her legs bent, walking on her skates (so getting nowhere!) and wore her fear on her forehead like a neon sign! She was so beautiful to watch! SIL and I took it turns of staying with her, so the other could take off and have a skate, we were such big kids!! But after being there for a couple of hours and being so determined, Miss 9 managed to pick up some pace and found her feet on the rink! Then she was having fun!!



We had a truly great day! Something I'm sure we will do again very soon, however not too soon as I have muscles that are aching that I didn't even know existed!!!


Thanks ... MCM xxx

Hello all!

Wow have I got a great idea for you and the kiddies today! Down at ACMI they are hiding away all the old school video games, from PAC-Man, Asteroids and Ghostbusters, as well as Sim City, Sonic The Hedgehog and Angry Birds ... Plus everything in between!


With over 125 old school to new school games, you and the kids will enjoy a fun trip down memory lane and show those video game-a-holics what your made of at the Game Masters expedition!

But don't rush to the change machine just yet!! As on Friday's, ACMI have got $10 unlimited games!!! But only for Friday the 17th, 24th and 31st of August and they are open until 10pm!! So get on down and check out the kickin expedition!!

Tickets can be bought online to save carrying purses that only distract you from the high scores!! So head to the ACMI website for more info!

Thanks ... MCM xxx