Look in my letterbox #7

Look in my letterbox is a weekly linky running on Saturdays. It's to showcase everything you've received through the letterbox that week. This could be  competition wins, freebies, review products or even a rant about the bills all posts are welcome as long as the item was received that week:

• Linky runs Saturday to the following Friday
• Link 1 post showcasing either a haul or a singular item you've received through the letterbox this week
• Mention me on twitter @mummysmonkey #LIML for a retweet
• I visit all my linkers and promote during the week, it would be lovely if you could visit your fellow linkers
• Spread the word!

I'm really pleased to be guest hosting again this week. Thanks to everybody who linked up last week and hope to see you again today. Alice Megan will be back next week and we'll be back to normal over on her blog.

I'm sorry I'm so late this week. I've been waiting in for the postman who didn't arrive until well after one. He did bring a letter for Monkey though so she was all smiles.

Most of the post this week has been birthday cards for me. I'm so lucky to have such lovely friends. These didn't all arrive in the post but here's a small selection of the cards I received - they wouldn't all fit on the fireplace.

My Finnish penpal is an extremely talented crafter (check out her blog here!) and she made me this beautiful bookmark as a gift. She also sent me a lovely notebook all packaged up with rare Finnish stamps to help with various charity appeals. 

Stationary has been a bit of a theme this week. People obviously know I'm obsessed! I received a paperchase gift card (already spent!) and this colourful paper from another penpal.

As well as lots of lovely birthday post I've had confirmation of next years voucher order from Park Hampers. This year is the first year I've done it but it was so easy so I'm starting early for next year. I've also had penpal lettters from Leeds, Dublin, the Czech Republic and USA.

What have you had this week?

An InLinkz Link-up

Blogtober day 3 - Everyday Essentials

For some people an everyday essential might be their morning coffee. Or that foundation they simply can't leave the house without. For us it's something slightly different.

If you've read this blog before you will know that Monkey has allergies. She's allergic to dairy, soya, egg, wheat, apples and pears. Everyday essentials aren't just something that makes our day a bit happier. They really are essential to keep Monkey safe and well.

Our day usually starts with this.

Neocate Spoon. It's a specialist prescription food that means despite her limited diet Monkey is getting all the calories, vitamins and minerals that she needs. It's horrible stuff, reminds me of wallpaper paste. It's a powder that you mix with water to make a sticky flavourless goo. You can mix it with other foods to give it more of a flavour but for some strange reason Monkey likes it just the way it is and polishes the lot off for breakfast - along with a banana and cereal or porridge.

Monkey has been having Neocate Spoon since she was 4 months old and it's definitely made a difference. She's always struggled with her weight gain and is still tiny now but is back on the chart and following the 2nd centile quite happily.

Another essential for us is the medicine bag. It comes everywhere with us. Thankfully we've not had to use it very often but it has everything we need to help Monkey if she has a reaction. There's paracetamol for tummy pains and mild reactions. We've also got piriton and inhalers for more serious reactions. She's quite good with medicine but hates having her inhaler. At the moment we don't have epipens although they haven't been ruled out. She is too small to have one at the moment so if piriton doesn't work straight away we have to ring 999.

Oilatum isn't used everyday but it us an essential. Monkey's eczema can flare up as part of a reaction or sometimes just for no clear reason. So far we've been lucky that Oilatum has helped as I wouldn't want to use a stronger, steroid based cream on her face.

Our final essential is a smile. And Monkey is full of them!

Blogtober day 2 - My favourite quotes

Whenever anyone asks me what my favourite quote is, I always give them the same answer. This!

I remember watching it and not having a clue what he was going on about. It didn't matter though. It was Eric and it sounded great!

There have been all kinds of theories since about what he actually meant. I still haven't got a clue though. And while I still love it and it will always make me smile I thought I'd think more about quotes for this post.

I decided I wanted to find quotes about how I feel about being Monkey's mummy and share a few of my favourites. And here they are...

Happy Blogtober!

So today is the 1st of October, a very special day! Not only is it the anniversary of my birth (I hope you're all celebrating!) but it's also the first day of Blogtober - a month long blogging event.

I've signed up to Blogtober because I love this little blog but I know I don't post as often as I should. The idea is that I will post every day in October using the daily prompts.

Today's prompt asks me to tell you 5 things about me, so here goes!

1. Being a mummy terrifies me.
It's the best thing I've ever done and I love it but being a mum is scary! All of a sudden it's not just me I have to worry about. I'm responsible for this gorgeous tiny person. I have to keep her safe and help her grow into the best person she can be. She's still at that age where she thinks mummy can make everything better. I don't ever want to let her down.

2. I was 'that' person.
Every allergy mum has come across one - the person who doesn't believe in allergies. I'm ashamed to admit this was me before Monkey was poorly. Seeing your baby girl looking like this soon changes your mind though.

Now I believe in allergies. We're dealing with them every day. And as much as 'that' person annoys me, it's mainly down to a lack of awareness which is why next month we'll be taking part in Moovember (cow's milk protein allergy awareness month). Look out for more on this.

3. Monkey's my fave but I love giraffes.
I am slightly obsessed with giraffes and I'm passing this obsession on to Monkey. She has lots of toy giraffes and giraffe based books. A VTech Baby Toot-Toot Animals - Giraffe was the latest addition to our collection and of course our favourite book is Giraffes Can't Dance.

4. I am the girliest tomboy I know.
I love my football. And football should be watched properly. Stood up, on the terraces, singing and shouting loudly. I do all that but I like to do it with pretty nails. And dressed in pink :-)

5. I have a habit of starting challenges I don't finish.
I'm determined to see this one through though. If you notice a day in October that I've not blogged please feel free to give me a nudge!