How important is your handbag to your daily life?
I am the proud owner of a number of handbags. Before children they used to be fairly small, just big enough for my purse, phone and perhaps one or two other little things.
Nowadays I tend to use these bags rarely. There is only one bag that I use a lot. One bag that I absolutely cannot live without: my ‘mum bag’.
My mum bag is my own giant handbag that goes everywhere with me. Now my children are that little bit older, I don’t need to take a changing bag with me everywhere we go. A normal handbag will do it, but said handbag still has to be a decent size.
My current one has sadly worn itself out – or rather, my demands on it have worn it out – so it was perfect timing when Werther’s Original, the chewy toffee brand, sent me a brand new brown leather handbag from ASOS along with a few packs of their new sugar free toffee.
And they have the same to give away to one lucky Chez Mummy reader.
But first, Werther’s Original asked me to document a day in my life. They wanted me to try out the new bag and see if their new sugar free toffees would help counter any sweet cravings I get during the day. With only 20 calories per toffee, they certainly sound like a guilt-free alternative to other treats.
Things have been hectic at work over the last few weeks, but I’ve now got two weeks off work to help settle Dexter into primary school (his settling in period has been a long one and he’s only just started staying all day). I thought this would be the perfect time to try out the bag and the toffees.
Here’s how my day panned out earlier today.
A day in my life:
My day began at about 6am thanks to my cat Herbie. He was hungry and wanted his breakfast so decided to lie on top of me (he is so heavy) and started licking my arm.
After I gave the cats their breakfast, I made myself a cup of tea and started up my computer. I like to spend some time in the morning checking my email and doing some blogging while it’s quiet.
I’ve been feeling under the weather lately with a bad cold, so I took some paracetamol to get rid of the headache I’ve got and hope it’ll kick in fast.
Just before Sophia and Dexter woke up, I got in the shower and got dressed. I couldn’t find any jeans and wondered if it might be acceptable to do the school run in my PJ bottoms. Then I remembered that I’ve got to go into London straight after school drop-off so that idea was binned. I found some trousers and got dressed.
I woke my children up at about 7.30am and the morning routine kicked into full swing. It’s was hectic as always and not helped today by Dexter getting a little upset at the thought of going to school. I think the long days are proving to be a shock to his system as he only did a few afternoons at pre-school before this.
I somehow managed to get my children to school on time and head to the train station.
I had a quick meeting with Mumsnet first thing (exciting!) so I made my way to North London. By 11am it’s all over so I left their HQ and made my way on the tube to Foyles, a bookshop near Leicester Square, to return an unwanted book.
While I’m waiting for the train, I gave in to temptation and opened my pack of Werther’s Original Sugar Free Toffee.
I arrived at Foyles and returned the book. Another one caught my eye though and I bought ‘The Best of Dr Seuss’ as a surprise for my children.
After that, I walked to Trafalgar Square to get some fresh air. I felt light-headed so I had a couple of Werther’s Original toffees to keep me going. I’m very grateful that I had these in my bag today.
By the time I got back to the train station, it was after 12.30pm. I hadn’t had lunch, but resisted the urge to buy something as there are things that need eating at home.
Cue a few more toffees on the train to keep my hunger at bay.
When I got home, I warmed up a chocolate croissant (as I’m not feeling 100%, my appetite isn’t huge), which crumbled all over my table when I tried to eat it. I cleaned the table and vacuumed the floor. As my vacuum cleaner is already out, I started to hoover the whole house.
I’ve been ruthlessly clearing my living room of toys that my children stopped playing with months ago (yet refuse to get rid of) and my plan is to empty the toy box of a few more things.
The box in the garage, which is currently housing all of the toys I’m planning to get rid of, needs sorting out too. I want to use the child-free time I have to list a ton of stuff for sale on eBay. It’s a mammoth job.
So somehow I found myself on my computer doing non-eBay stuff instead.
Before I know it, it’s time for the school run. I shove my keys and phone back into my bag and head out of the door to pick my children up from school.
Once home we all kicked off our shoes and enjoyed a little sit down. Sophia finished her school homework while Dexter changed into more casual clothes. They then both enjoyed a little down-time while I fed the cats and made dinner for us.
After that, it was time for our regular bedtime routine to begin. Sophia read ‘The Cat in the Hat Comes Back‘ from the Dr Seuss book that I bought them today and Dexter choose ‘Dr Seuss’s ABC‘ as his story to read.
I actually managed to get my children into bed on time and they even fell asleep relatively quickly – bonus!
After that, it’s time for an evening with my husband in front of the television and writing this blog post.
Handbag giveaway
As I’ve mentioned, Werther’s Original has given me an extra handbag with a couple of packs of their sugar free chewy toffee inside to give away to one reader.
To be in with a chance of winning, all you need to do is enter via the Rafflecopter form below.
The terms and conditions of the giveaway are listed within the Rafflecopter form and I’d recommend taking a read before you enter. For instance, the giveaway is open to UK residents only.
Good luck!
This was first published on Chez Mummy