Brilliant Bioskin Junior

As a mum I am always on the look out for products that can help with my son's skin. During the winter months, his skin becomes extremely dry and he suffers with itching which then leads to him drawing blood from the constant scratching.

Having tried products such as Diprobase, Oilatum and Aveeno, we have struggled to find something that doesn't cause our son additional discomfort.

Recently I came across Salcura Natural Skin Care, well to be exact the BioSkin Junior range. I received a small sample pack in the post which consisted of a trial version of their

Daily Nourishing Spray & Outbreak Rescue Cream.

The Bioskin Junior Range appealed to me as it stated it was ideal for severe skin dryness which is what the main problem is for my son. At 4 years old we had been told that it would likely improve over time and eventually be no longer problematic to him but each year we find ourselves trying to find something to deeply moisturise his skin.

The product claims to be 92% natural and no steroids which for me is important as having used steroid creams on my son previously the Doctor had advised that prolonged use was not advised so we have been desperate to find a suitable alternative.The spray was absorbed into the skin quickly and appeared to offer relief a lot quicker than other creams we had used.....so far so good.

The Outbreak cream has no limit to the amount of times that it can be applied to the skin, again an ideal solution for us knowing that we can apply it when the skin condition worsened and needed some additional soothing relief it can also be used from the age of 3 months.

Since we have started using the Bioskin Junior range there has been a reduction in the amount of itching my son has experienced and we continue to spray to ensure his skin remains moisturised, his back looks practically normal, as the cuts from scratching has disappeared.

We plan to purchase additional products and continue to use them and will also try the Bioskin Junior Bath Milk.

The Daily Nourishing Spray is available in 100ml and 250ml sized bottles retailing from £9.99 and the Outbreak Cream in 50ml and 150ml sized tubes retailing from £8.99.

I saw the light...

When it comes to coughs and colds, for me personally it is the one thing I dread getting, when my son gets poorly I feel even more helpless!

This is the 2nd time in the space of 3 weeks that my son has developed a troublesome cough which he has struggled to clear. As any mum I try anything I can to try and offer him some relief, including calpol, vicks and vicks on the feet with socks on top!

However Friday evening our son seemed to really be suffering the cough was relentless and he was so tired he just wanted to go to sleep but the cough kept disturbing him.

Then I remembered.....

The Calpol Vapour plug.

I had purchased this after a recommendation from my brother that it had worked wonders with my nephew when he had last been ill. I had bought one at the tail end of his last bout of a cough so I still had some of the refills left.

The plug acts as a nightlight whilst releasing lavender and camomile vapours into the air. The plug has a small refill that lasts for around 8 hours. It is suitable from the age of 3 months and I think that it is well worth investing in after our experience this weekend. 

As our son was bed hopping it was difficult to really know if the plug was offering any benefit as it was left in his room when he came into our room in the middle of the night so he wasn't really getting the full benefit.

Friday night we placed the plug into the main bedroom and my husband shared a bed with him. As I am currently 29 weeks pregnant we agreed it would be better if he looked after him rather than me catching the infection. After spending hours downstairs in the evening within 40-60 minutes of him being in close proximity to the plug he was settled and able to get to sleep.

The next day the cough remained and although he initially seemed much better in the morning, by late afternoon he was coughing constantly once more, we gave him a warm bath and placed vicks on his body and feet and decided to plug in the vapour plug in the living room with us all to see if that helped ease the constant coughing.We replaced the refill, which was easy to do, simply push the old one out with the new one as shown below.

 Again within the hour the coughing eased and he was able to drift off to sleep.

I genuinely believe that it was this product that helped him to breathe easier and allow him to drift off to sleep, the soothing blue nightlight is not overpoweringly bright in the room but is ideal as it is only activated when the room is dark. This for us will remain a key investment for the winter months as we had previously thought about investing in a humidifier as well as other products when in fact it seems this little plug does all we need it to.

A great product that actually works and helps to soothe your child to sleep and alleviate the troublesome symptoms caused by colds and coughs. 

The plug with 5 refills retails for approximately £6.99 and a pack of 5 refills for approximately £5.99 available in most larger supermarkets and pharmacies.

An 'Extra Special' Treat at Christmas.

Being almost 8 months pregnant and with Christmas coming up, we spent this weekend in the supermarket looking for bits for Christmas at Asda. 

Browsing the Seasonal Aisle nothing really appealed and I wanted something nice as a treat as I would be missing out on my regular Christmas treat of Brie and Alcoholic beverages. As we ventured past the bakery section there was a lady offering some samples of the Extra Special range and something new which I hadn't spotted before.

These little beauties.

Asda Extra Special Salted Caramel and Ginger Tarts

I think if I hadn't been convinced to give them a try from the sampling station then they wouldn't have been purchased. The flavour and texture had me sold from the moment they went into my mouth.

You can find these in the cake section located within the bakery, in my store there was a specific section for the Extra Special Range and we also purchased the Extra Special Italian Pandoro which I will review at a later date.

My only disappointment was that they went out of date before Christmas actually arrives! Such a shame as I would have to stock up again with a pack or two......

The small tarts are literally 2 bites but are packed with flavour the salted caramel is creamy and not too sickly, paired with the delicious crumbly pastry. The ginger is not at all powerful and you are left with a slight aftertaste of the ginger which combines perfectly with the salted caramel. The white chocolate star to top the tart adds an extra layer of flavour.

If you are following a healthy diet then these scream red on the front of the box in terms of Fats, Saturates and Sugar levels but as it's christmas if you are going to have a treat then I do highly recommend these.

So the box lasted the weekend, in my defence it does state on the box that once opened they should be consumed within 3 days so I did not want to exceed this timeframe did I!

A lovely little product from Asda that will certainly be finding its way into my basket on my next visit.

Let me know if you decide to give them a try and what you think!

Enjoy!!!

 

 

 

Smokin' Hot!

When my coupons arrived for the latest campaign for Orchard that involved Tesco Finest Cheese, I was excited to see what the range had in store.

My local store however only offered a small selection of the range and with being 4months pregnant I was only able to try the hard cheese as normally I would have gone straight for Tesco's Finest Goat's Cheese.

The first cheese that I opted for was the Smoked Extra Mature Cheddar which I have learned is produced by Wykes Farms in Somerset.

This cheese appealed to me as I am a fan of Applewood and as this promised a similar balance of flavours it was an easy choice.

The cheese is tightly packed and is not resealable, one of my main frustrations with cheese as you end up with lots of little packages made up of aluminium foil in your fridge, especially at Christmas time.

The cheese was fairly dry when I opened the packaging and it was clear the cheese had been smoked with the aromas that wafted out of the packet and the clear smoked tinge on the edges and throughout the block of cheese.

I cut a few slices off to try and was overpowered by the flavour. The strong mature flavour of the cheddar with the smokiness hit me straight away and I was unsure if I liked the taste. I had expected more hints of the cider to flow through the cheese but the actual taste was masked behind the smoked flavour.

I went for good old cheese on crackers to try out this cheese to begin with and was a bit unsure, I sliced it thinly, the cheese then went from the dry texture and found that it was a little wet and stuck to the knife when cutting which I think if left out to get to room temperature would make it more of a softer cheese such as the similar tasting flavour of Applewood, I did however, find that the cracker complemented the richness of the flavour of the cheese and would infact be a great addition to a cheeseboard.

I added a few slices of Black Garlic cloves to see how the combination worked with the cheese as it offered a sweet flavour and found it a tasty combination but again the actual cheese is very overpowering and when teamed with other foods can be a little overbearing.

I did find however that the taste stayed with me and left a pleasant aftertaste and would definitely be a cheese I would consider having in the future for special occasions.

As an everyday cheese however, I would have to avoid.

Sweet meets Savoury

I was invited to join the latest Bzz Agent Campaign to review the latest offering from Jacobs in their snacking range 'Cracker Crisps'

 

In my box of treats I recieved 1 of each flavour of the 150g Share Bag and some coupons to pass along to friends who would like to give them a try for themselves.

 

 

First up was the Thai Sweet Chilli Flavour.

I was expecting the flavour to be somewhat overpowering but found it more mellow and subtle but extremely tasty and after each bite wanting more and more.

As someone who has followed a healthy eating plan for years and maintained my weight for a while now and cut out most of my snacking habits but when the weekend arises, I do find it hard to resist the share bags of popcorn or crisps so as a 'healthier alternative' these really fill a gap in the healthy snack market in my opinion.

 

I decided to try creating a dip for my cracker crisps and opted for the reduced fat creme fraiche which was really a great combination with the cool flavour combined with the sweet flavour of the chilli.

 

Another idea would be to chop up some fresh chives and combine with the creme fraiche for a healthier cream and chive dip.

 

The recommended serving is 25g which would work out to be 3pp.

 

For me, these are my new treat at the weekend and a new found snack that isn't so sinful.

 

Back to review the other flavours shortly.....

Raspberry Ripple goes all Posh at Tesco

Saturday night and it's movie night in our house.

After devouring the entire box of Tesco's Salted Caramel Dairy Ice Creams during the week, it was now time to move onto something else.....

Tesco White Chocolate and Raspberry Ice Cream.

  I have to admit I like these little tubs, small but perfectly formed with just enough so that you don't overindulge, personally if they were bigger I knew that I would!

So as I settled into the sofa, I opened the ice cream tub and was suprised to see a tiny little spoon clipped onto the inside of the lid - very nice touch!

Now I was expecting BIG things from this little tub, going on how impressed I had been with my first venture into the New Ice Cream range at Tesco and well that first mouthful did not disappoint!

Rich and creamy, then the raspberry flavour hit the taste buds and reminded me of that traditional flavour of raspberry ripple but better! I could then taste the white chocolate, not too overpowering but enough to recognise the flavour.

There were also plenty of  white chocolate curls topping the ice cream.

I was enjoying each and every mouthful, so much so that when I looked at the bottom of the tub to see the ingredients, my husband commented whether I was checking to see if there was any left!

I think I am now a huge fan of the Tesco Ice Cream Range, the flavours are so delicious and not at all sickly and this would be a delicious treat served up in the summer.

I was able to enjoy the Tesco Ice Cream thanks to the Orchard programme and the vouchers I was provided with.

A Sweet and Salty Taste Sensation from Tesco

As a member of the Tesco Orchard Programme I quite often find myself trying things that I wouldn't normally think of buying, however when I signed up for the Tesco Ice Cream Programme I was looking forward to picking up a few treats from the new range.

As I picked out the 4 Salted Caramel Dairy Ice Creams from the freezers in Tesco, I wasn't expecting to discover anything special. I have experienced the leading brand in Ice Creams as well as Supermarkets own brand products but little did I know. I decided to pick up a few of the small tubs of Ice Cream to try which I will review at a later date.

As I opened the box I was suprised to see that the Ice Creams were somewhat smaller in comparison to other Ice Creams but you do get 4 in the box compared with other brands offering 3.

The Ice Cream is in a transparent wrapper and being completely honest it doesn't look anything special but then you take a bite...mmmmmm it is amazing! The delicious thick belgian chocolate before you get the rich taste of the salted caramel, I was really beginning to enjoy this.
Tesco have double dipped the ice cream meaning that the dairy ice cream is covered with a salted caramel sauce filling before finally being dipped into belgian chocolate.

The combination of flavours is extraordinary, it is so tasty. The caramel pieces that are on the belgian chocolate coating tastes almost honeycomb against the caramel filling dairy ice cream.

The flavour is rich but not too sickly, in fact I could probably enjoy eating another straight away.

In terms of how healthy they are they flag up the red rating for fat, saturates and sugars meaning it is quite a sinful dessert but for a treat this has to be the best one.

Currently available in selected Tesco stores for just £2.00.