Roger & Gallet Fleur De Figuier Ultra Nourishing Oil

I've been an avid, AVID fan of Roger & Gallet's Fleur De Figuier scent since its launch last year. The musky floral is everything I look for in a fragrance and then some. So bereft was I that Dublin Airport threw my stash in the bin 2 weeks after I received it (long Smurfy story) that I've had a back up bottle on hand ever since. I honestly thought the fragrant water couldn't be topped. Until the Ultra Nourishing Oil landed on my desk. 

10 plant oils enriched with almond oil, passion-flower oil and apricot oil and blended with 6 rich fruit oils and 4 skin friendly vitamins means you need this oil in your life. In your life and on your boddeh. 

The spray application makes this nourishing oil a stand out for me. I had it ensconced in my shower stash as it's best applied to wet skin but, truth be told, it's now in my mála and travelling everywhere with me, much to the delight of colleagues in the office (who have taken to proffering their forearms, saying 'Spot me, Bren!' when they're in need of a top up). For me, it's used to add a deliciously scented sheen to my arms and decolletage but I also rub it through my hair to tame flyaways and disguise stray split ends as I spot 'em. 

If pomegranate, blackcurrant, grapefruit, sweet almond, mandarin & fig milk rounded out with cedar and musk sounds like your kind of scent then this range and this oil in particular is for you. If not, then you need to smell it again. 

Fleur de Figuier Ultra Nourishing Oil is a extremely reasonable, for the scent, €26.95. You'll find stockists here but you can also buy online here . In their wisdom, the brand have also released the fragrant water in a travel friendly 30ml bottle for just €17.50 - If only that'd been a year ago my airport grief could have been spared!

Have you tried this incredible scent? Are you a fan of body oils in general? 

Route 66 - Travelling The Mother Road with Babies and On a Budget!

Hai and welcome to the first installment of Tuesday's Travels with mise, Corrina. Mother of 4 and half childer, Wife of Colin, Sister of CherrySue and Haver of AWEsome holidays with very few eurobux. 
As promised, we're starting out with Route 66. 
Buckle UP!

When we first drove Route 66 our twins Orla & Aoife were 11 months old & I was expecting our third child. We loved it so much that we did it again the next year with 23 month old twins & 5 month old baby Seamus! We thought we’d never get a chance to do it again but then we realised how cheaply it can be done. That and the fact that children under 2 years travel for a nominal fee on flights. 

We found when travelling with children and on a budget, the best time to go is in October as you won’t be paying high season prices & the weather is perfect. The photos you see over the next few Route 66 posts will be a mix of both trips showing you the best of what Route 66 has to offer.

Sue always gets the heebie jeebies at this pic of New Mexico (Historic Route 66), I always tell her we would've seen a truck coming since last Tuesday!!

What a difference a year makes!! (Sue still hates it)

While travelling Route 66 you not only get an amazing holiday you also get to see some of the most beautiful little towns and experience the vast variety of food & culture that the US of A  has to offer. The first thing we did was bought 3 different guidebooks so we could get a broad view of what there was to see and do on the 2,448 miles (4,000km) from Chicago to L.A. 

Famous Neon on Route 66

Next thing I did was book separate flights as it was (and is) cheaper that way. We used American Airlines to Chicago and Aer Lingus from L.A. to Dublin. I also booked our rental car from O’Hare Airport and haggled via e-mail so I saved the one way fee of $199! The last thing I did was book hotels for the first and last night of our holiday. Other than that we were free to explore the 8 states and 3 time zones of The Main Street of America.

We hired a minivan so we had lots of room for the children & shopping 

(but not off-roading, much to the hubby's chagrin) 

Happy Little Eggs with OODLES of room. 

So we packed the car with our 11 month old twins and headed to Dublin Airport. We brought the girls car seats with us, sealed them in refuse sacks at the airport and checked them in with the luggage, free of charge, saving us a fortune on renting them per day. We also left their prams here and brought them to the plane in their slings. 

Driving from O’Hare Airport into Chicago. 

When we got to Chicago and collected our car the first thing we did was head to a supermarket where we bought strollers for $6 each and travel cots for $15 each. This saved on the nightly rental fee, which can cost anything up to $15 per night(!) We also bought a $5 ice box so we could keep the children’s food & drinks cool in the car while travelling.

Wal-Mart trolleys big enough to carry a family!

View of Chicago from Navy Pier 

First Stop was Chicago, Illinois.  We stayed in the Travelodge Hotel Downtown Chicago we got a great rate, (approx $85 room only). There was a Dunkin Donuts next door but just around the corner is one of America’s best franchises, Jimmy John’s. They make the best subs and sandwiches with the freshest fillings, you have literally hundreds of options to choose from.

Jimmy John’s, sharing is caring you know!

We booked the Chicago City hop on hop off trolley tour via Viator.com as they had the best rates. A trolley/bus tour is the best way to see a City in a short amount of time. We got to see Millennium Park (The Bean), Wrigley Field and Sears Tower. 

Orla & Aoife at Sears Tower in their $6 strollers.

Right across the harbour from our hotel was one of Chicago’s biggest attractions, Navy Pier and if you time it right you might just be there on one of their free fireworks nights! It truly is a stunning way to see the city after dark. I’d recommend eating at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co on Navy Pier and the Cheesecake Factory do great lunch specials with enormous desserts!

Fireworks over Navy Pier, Chicago

While travelling Route 66 you will pass through Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona before ending in Santa Monica, California. We also took a detour down to Tucson Arizona to see the Airplane graveyard and across to show the children the bright lights of Las Vegas.  While we did it in 3 weeks the first time we easily did it in 2 weeks the following year.

My hubby dressing to look the part!

We'll park it there and allow you to catch your breath but do please drop by this time next week to see the next leg of this once twice in a lifetime trip. 

Have you been to Chicago? 

Any tips or recommendations on places to see or things to do?

Summer Sandals that Won't Break the Bank

I don't mean to alarm anyone but there's been a bright yellow orb in the sky for a couple of weeks now. I know what you're thinking, 'Don't be daft, sure it's only mid June' but I'm telling you, Jean Byrne forecast this and for once she was right! There's nowt like a ray or two to encourage us to cast off the waders of winter and get our tootsies into something a little more flattering and with the help of PurpleTag.ie, I've picked out some summer sandals that won't break the bank. 

1. Evolve Wedge Beige Sandals:€59.99 

These wedge sandals have a padded insole and a height boosting but back friendly wedge. With leather uppers and bright yellow detailing, you could style these summer friendly sandals up or down to suit your occasion. They're on offer now too. 

2. Vagabond Flat Metallics: €69.95

Metallic is ha-YOOGE this season and these flat leather sandals are as easy a way to incorporate that into your every day wear as you're likely to get. Full leather uppers and a toepost to keep everything in place, pair these with a neon pedicure and you are summer ready, instantly (maybe add a maxi dress too if you're feeling shy)

3. Bourbon Amy Huberman Splash Sandals: €89.99

Can the Hubes do any wrong? The short answer is 'Hellz NO', just one peek at her shoe collection will show you just that (her photobooth skillz will reaffirm if needed). The Irish funny woman has given us something just a little bit gorgeous with the Bourban sandals. With patent straps and a rope effect wedge, you've got all your summer trend textile needs met with these bad boys. 

4. Marila Double Strap Multi - €49.95

These flexible high quality leather sandals sing summertime to me. I see the bight colours and I want a holiday, immediately. Again, a multi-purpose sandal that could bring you from the office to the beach and out of an evening. If you live and work near a beach that is, in which case I hate you but your shoes are awesome. 

5. Geox Alia Wedge: €96

These Geox wedges are the most expensive of the lot but with ergonomic design and breathable Italian leather, they're also my favourite. The beaten coffee colour means they're wearable with most all of your wardrobe and the design means you'll be hella comfortable doing it. I fell a little in love with Geox having worn their wedge trainers so these are the ones next on my never ending list of wants. 

All of the above lovelies and oodles more can be found on PurpleTag.ie. They're an Irish online shoe company that promise to take the hassle out of shoe shopping with affordable prices, free delivery and free collections (from your home) should you not be 100% happy. 

The kind folks over at Purple Tag have given me a 10% discount for all CherrySue readers should you find a pair of brogues that you just have to have. 

Simply input the code CherrySue at checkout. 

That's almost a tenner off those Geox wedges... BRB... 

Monday's Moments - 16/06/14

Oh what a beautiful mooooorning, oh what a beautiful day - what's not to love about the summer months, eh? Sure it's Monday but that means a fresh start and a headlong run into what the week might bring - all good stuff!

The sunshine is certainly lifting my mood but so too are these five Moments that mean Monday blues have vamoosed once again. Catharsis FTW!

1. Cut Price Coffee? Aww Yiss!

You know a product is going to be popular when one tweet about it receives more than 10 retweets in minutes. Lidl, the creative minds behind Secret Garden Dublin have come up with another master stroke. Nespresso compatible coffee pods, for very few pee that are feckin' delish. That ticks all the coffee boxes for me, thanks v much. 

Priced at just €1.99 for 10 (that's just over 20c a cup, coffee nuts), these capsules have replaced my dwindling Nespresso stash nicely and I didn't have to join a poncey queue to get 'em. Two pods over ice with a splash of milk (and occasionally a dash of caramel syrup) have been keeping me going all week & saving me a forch. Well played, Lidl, well played!

2. InstaThrilled

I was hella late to the Instagram party, despite people telling me how much I'd love it (soz, Karen). I bit the bullet last year though and you know what? Everyone was right - addicted. 

I use the instant, pic sharing, double tap mecca for micro blogging - that is sharing sneak peeks of products as they're wrestled from the postie, mini reviews, swatches and snippets of behind the scenes at events. I LOVES IT. It helps that I can creep on everyone else's pics too. This past week I passed 1000 followers, I know in the grand scheme of things that's not huge but pour moi? It makes me happy dance lik dis *does Mr Plough hip thrusts*. Come check out our carry on here  & leave your Insta below if you'd like me to check yours out too!

3. You Made Your Mother Cry...

I often share pictures, videos & threats that the Gorgebags send me daily because, frankly, they're hilarious but Aaron this weekend managed to make me blub with just one PM. 

I know there has been backlash about single mams being mentioned on Father's Day but you know what? Screw those guys. It's damn near impossible pulling double duty when your little ones are still little and yep, there were days I honestly couldn't see the light but truthfully, Moments like this remind me how far we've come and how great a job we've done together. 

If you're parenting on your own and struggling, take heart, it gets so much easier, I wouldn't have our lives any other way now and you'll feel the same way very soon, I promise. 

4. Tuesday's Travels

Speaking of parenting powerhouses, we made a little (ie HUGE) announcement on site yesterday and yep, it's a Moment and a half. My own little Sis, Corrina is joining the Cherry ranks and has signed up to be our getaway expert!

If there's a tip or trick about getting a better deal or picking the right destination in holidays then Stone Travel herself is the one to ask. So that's exactly what I did, I asked. Tuesday's Travels starts tomorrow, you can catch the intro post here. We're hoping that it'll be uplifting and informative and will give you (and your kidlets if you have 'em) the inspiration to pack a bag and see some of the world. YAY SIS!

5. AUSSOME!!

One of the pinnacles of an already kick ass week had to be the email to confirm that we have been chosen as one of the eight finalists in the Aussie Blog Awards, sponsored by Her.ie (check out what they said about little ol' us), not only that but we're in the running for Reader's Choice Award too!

Aussome Company to be in!!

If you know me, or you just read Moment 3 up there, you'll know that things like this are just not what I saw for us only a few years ago. I never imagined I'd find something I love doing so much and turn out to be pretty decent at doing it too. Even more astoundingly, people would like the cut of our jib so much that it would literally change the life we live and the future we now look forward to. That right there blows my mindhole, every single day. 

If you took the time to vote for us, I want to thank you, sincerely. If you'd like to vote for us in the Reader's Choice category, then I'm afraid I might have to kiss you, sloppily, at the party, bring your kissing lips! 

Tell me this and tell me no more - 

What the Moment kicking your Monday Blues 

in the shins?

Introducing Tuesday's Travels with Super Mam! (aka Stonebabies)

Just a quick intro from Mise, I've been scrunching my nose with the excitement of my little Sis joining us here on CherrySue. Sing it with me 'It's a Family Affaiiiiirrr'. In all seriousness, Corrina here is one of my 

most favourite people on this planet. 

A rock of support through all of my hard times, while juggling her own life with an ease I never knew possible, this woman inspires me every single day. If you've seen her Instagram or Twitter, you'll also know that she's the kind of Momma that defies belief, the kind of Momma that we all wish we had 

and we all strive to be. 

She's also an unstoppable force when it comes to travelling the world (she's affectionately known as Stone Travel)  & loving every minute. These little chickens are better travelled than I could ever hope to be. With the introduction of Tuesday's Travels, I'm hoping she'll let us in on her secrets and we can all try to catch up. I'm all for Prada travel on a Primark purse! Take it away, Sis!

Hi I’m Corrina, CherrySue's little sister *waves* I’m a stay at home mam to 4 little ones, all under 7 years old & expecting a new little bundle of joy in October. I had been working in Banking Management from my early twenties (and rocking it) but when the girls arrived 7 years ago, I gave it all up to be a full time Mam. 

We all love to travel & do it quite a lot but on a budget I might add! Even though the recession has clipped our wings we still manage to get away. Only nowadays it’s mainly weekend breaks in Ireland.

Sue & I have put our heads together & come up with an idea that those of you who love to travel might like. For all of you that think your options are limited with a young family and not very many sheckles, I'm here to let you in on a little secret, that's just not true! 

To help with a show and tell, we're introducing Tuesday's Travels posts for CherrySue, starting next Tuesday with The Mother Road herself (how apt?!) – 

Route 66. 

We all have a few destinations on our bucket list, right? Well when our twins were 10 months old & I found out I was expecting again we decided it was now or never. Route 66 had always been top of our list, there is nothing quite like the open road driving cross country in the USA. You get to see everything along the 2,448 miles (4,000 kilometres) from the bright lights & big cities of Chicago & Los Angeles to the abandoned ghost towns - brilliantly creepy.

Route 66 - Open Roads for Dayz

 Historic Route 66, begins in Illinois and runs through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, the Texas panhandle, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. After a couple of months planning & researching we set off from Dublin to Chicago with two little babies in tow. Pop by next Tuesday and see how we started our trip. 

They're SO squidgey!!

Care to share your travel adventures or aspirations? 

Excited for Tuesday's Travels? 

Tell us, what destinations are on your bucket list?