Do You Have Baby Lag?

Well it's official. I do. I am 87% Baby Lagged according to the JOHNSON'S Baby site. I'm sleep deprived but striving. I would say that's pretty accurate actually. Noah is 16 months old and we've only just started to get a few unbroken nights sleep. It's never guaranteed but the ratio is approximately 5 nights bad sleep to 2 nights good sleep! Now I've typed that out it doesn't feel much to celebrate actually. Baby Lag is mainly associated with new parents, who have a baby not sleeping, but I can say that as parents of two children (I have to mention Isla is a great sleeper!) we definitely have that 'zombie feeling' during the day and we also crave uninterrupted deep sleep. It's been a hard thing to accept having a bad sleeper when we were so spoilt first time around with a child who sleeps like a dream and who will sleep through 12 hours a night.

Dr Dev Banjaree, a sleep expert, has been working together with JOHNSON'S Baby on the Baby Lag sleep campaign. He has identified that there are a few things that parents can do to help their babies sleep well:

• Routine is key!
• Try to get your baby to settle on their own at night
• Be Consistent with your approach, keep the lights low, soft voice, minimal stimulation
• Keep a sleep diary so you can track progress - when you're tired you'll lose track of 'good' nights and 'bad' nights - note it down and then you can truly see if your baby is getting better at sleeping!
• And finally if you can catch up on some sleep in the daytime. Easier said than done I know - that washing basket will be calling out to you, or the hoover will be glaring at you to run it round but actually as a parent you'll do yourself more favours if you catch up on the zzzz's. Baby Lag can threaten to spoil your enjoyment of your little one. 

You can test whether you are Baby Lagged by clicking on the badge below. It'll take through to the JOHNSON'S Baby site where you can play 3 fun games to help determine how 'Baby-Lagged' you are, based on reaction times, coordination and memory, once you've received your score you will be introduced to a 3 step bedtime routine - I do hope you're less than 87%!

This is a sponsored post, but the advice from JOHNSON'S Baby could stop you looking like the cast of Shaun of the Dead!

Managing Your Energy Online

I don't know about you but I find life as a working mum of 2 pretty hectic and I find myself cramming so much into each 24 hours. There just isn't enough time and if someone could wave a magic wand and give me another 2 hours a day then I think that might help (a bit!). My days right now look a bit like this:

Get woken up by kids, get kids ready for nursery, make myself look reasonably presentable for work, get kids to nursery, commute to work, WORK, commute home, get the family meal cooked, bathtime, kids bedtime, tidy up, collapse in a heap. 

The thing is though that amongst all that there is time to do things - like when I'm commuting for instance, I use my phone to do a lot of admin bits to do with daily life, like replying to emails, shopping, organising the family diary and paying bills. I'm not the only mum who maximises her time like this, British Gas research shows that mums are the most efficient multi-taskers. They are saving up to an hour a day by going online for routine daily tasks, such as, managing finances and paying energy bills at the same time as doing the housework (39%), whilst on the toilet (22%), pushing a buggy (10%) and seeing their children off at the school gates (7%). I'm going to stick my neck out and say that I have been known to be surfing the net whilst sitting on the loo.....wn to mhave k kk k  

I LOVE that so many companies nowadays are really thinking about us busy mums and making it so easy for us to complete tasks that would previously be a hassle. One such thing that really helps me and rewards me at the same time is the British Gas app I have on my phone. Every quarter I get an email reminding me to submit my meter readings. British Gas have made it so easy by having an app where you literally just log into the app and submit your readings. And even better you also earn 2000 Nectar points when you initially sign up and further points everytime you provide meter readings! Tim Copper, Digital Director, British Gas said: “We’re helping our customers save time and hassle by giving them the tools they need to manage their energy online – freeing them up to spend time doing other things. From submitting meter readings to checking their balance really easily at the touch of a button, online or via our app, we’re making it easier customers to stay in control of their energy every day.” 

The picture above shows how the app looks - it's so clear and simple. You can also log in to your account online if you don't have a smart phone and it is really just as easy. 

Key benefits of managing your energy online with British Gas:
1. View your balance
2. Print your bill
3. Enter meter readings
4. Monitor your energy consumption
5. Book and track an engineer 

You’ll also receive 2000 Nectar Points for registering for an online account with British Gas, as well as receiving additional rewards for submitting meter readings and utilising the online dashboard. 

British Gas recent research found that more than half of mums (54%) admit that without the technology, they wouldn’t be able to cope with the demands of their increasingly hectic lives and I thought it was only me that felt like this but apparently 30% of mums even claim a lack of internet action for an extended period of time makes them feel anxious. Busy mums are increasingly turning to the internet to save a lot of their precious time and as the saying goes, "Time is Money" and if you think about your time in that way then you'll probably use it better. By paying energy bills with British Gas by direct debit you'll make an average annual saving of £67.
   
If you want to find out more about how you can maximise your time and pay your energy bills online then Register now



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