In celebration of the beginning of Autumn (yay) we went blackberry picking. Autumn is my favourite season; I love the cold weather, cuddling up on the sofa under a blanket and the leaves changing colour. There is something so pretty about this time of year. 

Fruit picking has become one of our favourite things to do as a family because it gets us outdoors and is a relatively inexpensive activity. Oliver absolutely loves helping us to pick the berries and place them into the carton. One of the sweetest things is to see him picking a berry and shouting 'berry daddy!' as he races over to Steve to give it to him. 

If you watch our weekly vlogs, you will know that I love cooking for my family. One of the most satisfying things is going out and picking our own fruit, then coming home and making something with it. I made a blackberry pie which came out much better than I was expecting considering it was my first attempt. 

Recipe: 

Blackberries (we used one full carton pictured above)

Demerara sugar

Plain all purpose flour

Cinnamon
Pre-made shortcrust pastry sheet (or you can make your own)

1. Combine the blackberries, sugar, flour and cinnamon on a low heat. I didn't measure out the quantities as I prefer to taste until it is to my preference, I kept adding more sugar/flour/cinnamon until I was happy.

2. For the pastry I used a ready rolled shortcrust pastry sheet (shh don't tell anyone) and simply assembled in in a round 9" pie dish. I brushed the top with egg and sprinkled a little sugar on the top to sweeten it.

3. I baked for around 35 minutes at 200C, but again I didn't follow timing religiously as I prefer to just check every 5 minutes or so to see if it has browned. 

And voilà, a really quick and simple blackberry pie!

HELLO AUTUMN

Outfit details:

White long sleeve top (Primark) - SIMILAR HERE

Burgundy cord pinafore (Topshop) - SIMILAR HERE

Ankle Boots (ASOS) - SIMILAR HERE

Silver Hoop Earrings (ASOS) - HERE

We have been loving the autumnal weather recently and have been making the most of the last few days of sunshine. Oliver has been fascinated with the brown leaves and the crunchy noise he can make with his hands and feet. We also found some pinecones which we are going to spray paint gold and silver for homemade Christmas decorations. I love this time of year, I feel like there are so many activities you can do with your little ones. On our list of things to do is blackberry picking, visiting the pumpkin patch and conker hunting.

What have you got planned for this autumn?

FAREWELL SUMMER

So the time has come for us to put away our summer clothes and get out our winter coats, and truthfully I am glad. Autumn and winter are by far my favourite seasons, I love Halloween and Christmas especially now we have a toddler to excite with the magic of everything. I am very fickle in my relationship with the sunshine - I enjoy it when I am on holiday and the rare days we get in the UK but anything above 28 degrees is a total no go for me. I hate feeling hot, sweaty, being unable to sleep amongst other things. Trying to entertain a toddler who is grumpy from being roasted for days is not fun either.

Bring it on Autumn!

DOES YOUNG MUM = BAD MUM?

This is a topic I have wanted to discuss for a while, but as yet I haven't been able to articulate it well enough to turn it into a video. As you guys will already know, I became pregnant with Oliver aged 19 and had him shortly after my 20th birthday. Although I’m not the youngest of ‘young mums’  and actually gave birth when I was no longer classified as a teenager, I still fall into that category. 

And its been tough.

I’m not going to sugarcoat it, being a parent is hard. It has the most amazing moments yes, and I wouldn't change my life for the world, but it is hard. One of the hardest aspects of parenthood for me has been constantly feeling like I have to prove something because of my age. I have to prove I am a responsible parent. I have to prove I am earning money to support my own child. I have to prove I am a good mum. The media loves to perpetuate this stereotype of all young mothers being these awful women who have no intention of working, go out partying every weekend and dump their children with ‘grandma’ whenever the opportunity arises. I am sure that there are some young mothers that behave in this manner, but I also know that there are older mothers that do the same. 

The truth is I have yet to meet a single young mum who fits this stereotype. Yet I felt the need to prove I wasn’t what society expected. I went back to work part-time when Oliver was only 2 months old, a decision I now look back on and regret. It wasn’t for monetary reasons that I went back to work, although that was nice, it was because I felt as though I had to show everyone that I paid for my own child. That I was the one funding his milk, nappies and clothes.

I’ve felt a tremendous amount of pressure since Oliver was born to show that I am just as capable as a 30+ year old mum. I’ve had other mums comment, trying to be lighthearted, that they wouldn't take my parenting advice because of my age. I had a girl from my secondary school see me in town whilst pregnant and ask me ‘are you happy about that?’ As if I should be unhappy and hide myself away in shame. I’ve had trouble forming friendships with other mums partly because of our differing ages and partly because of my own defensiveness. And that is wrong. I shouldn’t feel like I have to be on guard all the time or like people are judging me. 

I know that I love Oliver and that Oliver loves me back in equal measures. I know that I am a good mum. I just wish that the media would spend a little less time portraying all young mothers as being burdens on the state, because I would hazard to guess that it isn’t true for the majority of us.