Letter to my younger self....

Dear Rachel,

Congratulations! You have become a wife and a mother in the short space of 18 months.

Firstly I want to tell you to enjoy these precious few moments as a brand new family, you are in a great place emotionally, physically and spiritually following the move to your new church and you are starting to discover who you are and why God put you here on this earth.

Your role as a mother will not define who you are. You are more than a cook and bottle washer, more than a cleaner and laundry attendant. You are an independent woman who is strong, confident, accomplished and gifted, no matter how you may doubt and question yourself. Can I really do this? Can I ever be good enough? Am I qualified? The answer to all these questions in God is yes. If He has called you to it He will bring you through it.

Your girlfriends are your world right now, and that is OK. Fellow moms who are going through the same stages as you, attend the same church as you, attend the same toddler group, women that you have so much in common with. 

Don't take things to heart, you have a tendency to wear your heart on your sleeve a little too much so why not protect it and keep some things just between you and God. He knows your heart, He knows your desire to be loved, accepted and to belong which is why He sought you out to become a daughter of the King, part of the Kingdom of Heaven. This is also the reason He gave you a great marriage, a husband who knows you intimately and loves every part of you. A strong man who will uphold you and strengthen you in every area, a man who has got your back.

In the years to come you will face trials an tribulations but you will never be alone. God is with you, He is for you and He has gone ahead of you. You will overcome redundancies, health scares and depression. You will rise above doubts and dilemmas, bad decisions and bad behaviour. You will learn the difference between being a friend and being faithful and your personal faith will reach levels you never dreamed of.

Take courage and stand tall, the future is bright, you just need to believe it and grab it with both hands.

R

MAD Blog Awards 2014

What a weekend! On Friday I went to my first ever MAD Blog Awards and all I can say is wow!! I was fortunate enough to win tickets to the awards in a competition just over a week ago, and since then have been frantically sorting out train tickets and cocktail dresses ready for the big night out. There are some seriously talented bloggers on the world wide web, and it was such a privilege to finally meet some of the UK's best Mummy and Daddy bloggers in person at the MADs.

I was a little apprehensive about travelling all the way down to London form Birmingham on my own, but I needn't have worried because as soon as I had entered the Palace Suite at the prestigious Royal Garden Hotel I was instantly put at ease and welcomed by fellow bloggers. Having been an avid fan of twitter for years, it was so lovely to put a face to the name of some of my favourite bloggers such as Katie from Mummy Daddy and Me and Morgana from But Why Mummy Why, plus I made lots of new friends amongst the fabulous finalists including thrifty lady Jennifer from My Mummy's Pennies, Lucy from London Bird Lucy, Grace from Eats Amazing and Katy from What Katy Said UK.

The venue was amazing, I felt like a VIP having my photograph taken on entry with some gorgeous girlies, then it was into the foyer for bubbles, nibbles and a spot of networking. There was a giant sized Operation game in honour of our host for the evening Dr Ranj and a giant Pikachu doing the rounds for some fun photo opportunities!

Once in the awards ceremony hall itself we were greeted by elegant candlelit tables and impeccable service by the waiting staff who rapidly brought us some truly exquisite dishes. The handsome Dr Ranj kept us all entertained all evening and the awards themselves were great fun and highlighted some of the extraoridnary stories of the mum and dad bloggers in each category. It was wonderful to hear the great fundraising and awareness campaigns that have been started by so many bloggers.

Finally we finished up with a huge goody bag filled with all sorts of treats from brioche loaves to baby cream and - my personal favourite - the handmade baking chocolate buttons! Sadly I had to leave before the end of the awards as my train was leaving from Euston at 11.30pm, but I left buzzing with ideas for my blog (hence the new name!!) and hope that with a bit of hard work I might one day make it back to the awards as a finalist myself.

Finally I have got to say a huge thank you go Sally Whittle and her team for organising such a superb event from start to finish! Thank you for having me, see you again soon!

R