IT’S always good to share some appreciation, so with this in mind, here is what I have loved, enjoyed & savoured this week.

Happy Friday everyone x

The Happiest Home Blog

Whenever I come across amazing blogs, I’m always awe struck by the depth of talent that is out there! And this brilliant blog has definitely become a new favourite of mine after stumbling across it this week.

After having a miserable few weeks of motherhood (with Elsie being very poorly and deciding not to sleep) I searched the web looking for some advice and came across this inspiring and informative site.

If you’re a new mum and struggling to adjust, you will love it. If you feel down in the dumps or need to get your motherhood mojo back (like me) you will love it. Basically if you’re a parent or guardian to a little one…well you know the rest.

I’ll leave  it to you to decide what you need to read but can definitely recommend these posts to get you started: “Hey Moms, Yes You Do Have Time For A Shower” and “Do Fewer Things. Do Them Better.”

I promise you, you’ll feel much better about the world and being a mum in general when you read them.

My new blog design!

Eagle-eyed readers will notice that Pouting In Heels has had a bit of a makeover over the past few days! Yep, it’s out with the old and in with the new. The pretty illustrations and ‘pink’  have been delicately ditched in exchange for what I think (hope!) is a simpler and more sophisticated look.

Why the change? Well, I loved my old design but felt that it no longer reflected both me and the blog, as we’ve both changed so much over the past year. We’ve evolved and grown up and so a new look was definitely needed.

The new design and layout is definitely more a reflection of who we both now are. I hope you like it as much as I do.

Appearing on Dexterous Diva

I’m a HUGE devotee of this wonderful blog and the very lovely and charming lady, Jo Gifford, who creates it, so was absolutely thrilled to be asked to feature on it!

Here I am talking about Pouting In Heels and providing a few of my blogger secrets! Enjoy!

(While you’re there, take a moment or two to check out Jo’s other posts. She really is quite an inspiration and I don’t say that lightly.)

A heart-warming tribute to the incredible James Gandolfini

As a massive Sopranos fan, I was genuinely upset to hear about the death of the amazing actor, James Gandolfini this week, aged just 51.

Like most people, I will remember him for his incredible portrayal of Tony Soprano, one of the greatest TV characters ever to be created in my humble opinion.

Much has been written about him in the last few days but this beautiful tribute to him brought a tear to my eye and a lump to my throat. If you’re a fan too, it is a MUST read.

RIP James Gandolfini and thank you x

Finally… a full night’s sleep!

Ok so some of you may be reading this, thinking “What on earth? Big deal!” but honestly, if you’re a lucky person who sleeps all night without any interruptions (from little people or otherwise) I don’t expect you to get this at all.

But I will tell you this,  four, long, exhausting weeks of very little -and always broken- sleep, breaks you. Truly it does. Parents to little ones… are we in agreement?!

As I’ve discovered recently, going without sleep, decent sleep, is absolutely brutal. It wears you down, makes you miserable and puts a long, lingering dark cloud over your previously sunny world. It’s the pits.

Which is why today, I wanted to take a moment, to show ‘sleep’ a bit of love and affection.

For you see…after deciding for weeks that sleep was no longer for her, last night, my beautiful and very clever little lady, finally decided to succumb to her zzzzzz’s and slept, ALL night.

This meant that I too, slept ALL night and also means that today, I feel like a new woman. And let me tell you folks, I am just so incredibly grateful and appreciative of that. :)

Till the next time, never underestimate the beauty of sleep!

Katie