Win tickets to The Baby Show and a beautiful pair of shoes from Poco Nido

The Baby Show is back and offering a shopping haven for new parents and parents-to-be at the NEC Birmingham from 18^th-20^th May 2012. Forget the hassle of the high street, The Baby Show takes out the stress and confusion of shopping for your baby by offering the UK’s biggest baby brands all under one roof, so you can compare and try products before you buy! The UK’s leading parenting experts will also be on hand to offer advice on sleep, breastfeeding and first aid. Don’t miss this brilliant day out! For more information visit www.thebabyshow.co.uk.

Poco Nido is a refreshing modern, eco aware brand for little people offering affordable, good quality, limited edition, British designed baby footwear and t shirts. Their debut range features contemporary, baby stimulating illustration and simple shapes. The pull-on mini shoes have no exposed elastic and are made from cotton and leather, safely hand printed with water-based inks all playfully packaged into a recycled card tube box, which also cleverly doubles as a postal tube, meaning less packing waste and more crafting opportunities. See them at The Baby Show on stand D26. For more information log on to www.poconido.com

To win this prize, just do one (or all) of the following, and leave me a separate comment below to let me know what you've done. Remember to leave a way for me to contact you if you're the winner - email address or twitter id. Good luck!

• Leave a comment below saying who you'd take with you to the Baby Show
• Follow me on Networked blogs or Google Friend Connect (links on the right)
• Follow me on Facebook here
• Follow Poco Nido on Facebook here
• Follow Poco Nido on Twitter here
• Follow me on Twitter here
• Tweet the following 'I've entered @pondering_kate 's giveaway to win @poconido shoes and @TheBabyShow tickets. Enter here  http://ponderingsfromthekitchen.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/win-tickets-to-baby-show-and-beautiful.html ' 

The winner will be drawn randomly at 7pm on Tuesday 15th May. 

The winner will be picked using random.org

No cash alternative
Collection of prize will be by visiting Poco Nido's stand at the Baby Show
The Prizefinder.com
Loquax competitions

Good luck!


And the winner is....

Comment number 7 - Aimee.

Well done Aimee - an email is on it's way to you with more details

Donating Milk: Every Drop Counts

I'm not gonna lie, for a number of reasons I didn't get on all that well with breastfeeding Eden. I made it to 6 months (just) because I'm stubborn and that's the goal I'd set myself. This time around though things are going so much better with breastfeeding - Asher has a good latch, I was much more confident from the start, I feel awareness of breastfeeding in public has improved, and my sister in law gave me a fabulous breast pump. I'm proud of myself for feeding Asher just with my own milk for the 9 weeks of his life so far, and I hope I continue for much longer.

I've found expressing milk has given me such freedom, and I find it rather satisfying in a strange kind of way, to see the amount of milk I produce. Actually, I've got so much milk in stock in the freezer now for Asher that I realised a couple of weeks ago that I really didn't need to save any more. So instead, I've started donating my extra milk to a local milk bank - to be used for premature and sick babies. Donor breastmilk protects from infection and is easier to digest than formula, thus helping these little babies to grow and recover.

My first bottle of expressed milk for the milk bank

You can read more about donating milk on the UK Association for Milk Banking website.

The Baby Show is coming to Birmingham!

I'm so excited that the Baby Show is coming to Birmingham next week! It brings with it the UK's biggest baby brands and latest products - all under one roof. Last time I went, there were some fab deals and special offers to be had - the savings more than outweigh the cost of a ticket, making it so worthwhile to go along. For me personally, I'm especially looking forward to some great deals on reusable nappies, but you'll find everything you need for your little one - feeding equipment, clothes, toys, pushchairs, nappies... the list goes on. As well as the shopping, on the Main Stage you'll find experts on hand to offer advice on a wide range of parenting issues, including sleep, feeding and first aid topics. There's also an under 1's cafe for your little one to sample some Plum food, and a free creche where children can have fun playing with the latest Fisher Price toys while you do your shopping.  

The Baby Show is running from 18th - 20th May 2012 at Birmingham NEC. It's central location has good transport links and is easily accessible by car and train, or even plane if that's how you choose to travel! Tickets are £12 in advance, or two for £20. To book tickets and for more information, visit www.thebabyshow.co.uk 

You can follow @TheBabyShow on Twitter here
Or like their Facebook Page here