The pebble beach at Dunwich Heath is a favourite retreat of mine. I love the cliffs and the panoramic views across the sea and Minsmere Bird Reserve. I’ve always had an affinity with the sea and feel a wonderful sense of calm whenever I visit the coast.

We’d been planning this trip for a week or so. The gorgeous weather was making me keen to spend a nice day in the sun, so we chose our destination and purchased a beach tent. Of course, it then proceeded to cloud over the next day and I was gutted at the prospect of weeks passing before we were blessed with clear skies again. This morning the forecast looked hopeful, so Sprogzilla went down early for his nap at 11am and we got everything ready and packed. This in itself is quite an achievement for us as both Sprogdaddy and I are terribly disorganised.

It was beginning to feel like we were not meant to go because the boy decided to sleep for three hours instead of his usual one hour and twenty minutes. By now, sheer stubbornness had determined that we were going to the beach today, so we no longer cared that it would be halfway through the afternoon before we arrived.

The journey was fairly dull and it didn’t help having a whiny child in the back, but at last we were there. It was a bit windy, but the sun was shining and it turns out we had the beach to ourselves! We pitched our tent in front of a little sand dune and laid out our blankets and picnic.

Sprogzilla was fascinated with the pebbles and industriously collected them in his bucket. He even helped us fill the sandbags in the tent to weigh it down. Whilst I lounged in the shade, he paddled around in the sea with his Daddy and got himself thoroughly soaked. We stayed for a couple of hours and it was a lovely afternoon.

As well as taking photos of the boy, I couldn’t resist snapping some of the scenery and the view across Minsmere to the nuclear power station at Sizewell. To the north, you can just make out the lighthouse at Southwold. Had we more time, it would have been nice to nip up to Walberswick or perhaps walk around the bird reserve.

I’ve linked up this post over at Coombe Mill’s Country Kids, so do pop over and look at the other lovely entries.

I’ve been blogging for over ten years and this niche has definitely been the toughest to earn readership in. I don’t know if the problem is my content, my style, or perhaps this part of the blogosphere is simply over-saturated. I’ve thought about broadening the subjects I write about and being more general, but then surely I’ll put off the (few) readers I’ve already got who are interested in parenting anecdotes?

My reviews are my most popular posts by a long shot, but those readers rarely comment and never come back. I find this the most disheartening because reviews take me much longer to put together and for people to not even say “thanks, that was useful” or even “that wasn’t particularly helpful” makes me wonder why I bother. I guess it’s because I take blogger reviews into account extensively when I want to buy something and I love being able to help out other people doing the same.

So, back to the title of this entry – what do you think readers are looking for? I know that content is king, but what kind of content? What draws you in and makes you want to say something? What makes you want to come back and see what’s new? How important is the look of the site? Are my images too big/small, posts too short/long etc. Or am I really just a rubbish blogger? Go on, tell me the truth. I may not like it, but I’d rather be told I’m doing a bad job and be able to do something about it.

First of all, it’s not very clear but there are two versions. One is the wool & cotton model and the other is wool & polar fleece. I really liked the sound of the latter, but try as I might I could not find any stockist here in the UK. I imagine it is limited to Australia, the home country of it’s creator, Outlook. This wasn’t really a problem as cotton is nice enough and if I need extra warmth, well that’s the point of the wool.

Outlook also sell a cotton-only seat liner. Effectively the same thing, but both sides are cotton with a different design/colour. This sells for slightly less than the wool version, so make sure you are buying the right product.

If you look at photos online, you may have noticed that some show a version with only one pair of shoulder harness slots and others show three. The version I received was the latter, which I feel is a better design because you can position the shoulder straps more comfortably for your child. Sprogzilla is very short, so we are using the lowest slots.

I switched from using a regular footmuff to this, largely because I hated putting Sprogzilla’s dirty feet into the muff. With the Travel Comfy, his lower legs and feet don’t come into contact with the fabric, so there’s no need to fiddle about taking shoes on and off.

I was going to buy a full-on, luxury sheepskin liner, but the Travel Comfy was a better option for several reasons. One is that it is reversible, and on a hot day I do think the cool cotton is more comfortable for my son. This also makes it more cost effective as you basically get two seat liners for the price of one. Secondly, you don’t have to be so fussy when sticking it in the washing machine – it’s suggested that you use a wool detergent, but I used my normal eco liquid on a 30C quick wash and it has come out fine. When the Travel Comfy arrived, it smelled strongly of chemicals thanks to the plastic packaging and the wool was brushed flat. After washing, the smell was completely gone and the wool is now nice and curly!

The wool is quite a short pile which I’m personally very happy with. The cotton side feels soft and is nicely padded. All the seams around the harness slots are neatly stitched together and look like they will hold up well over time. Likewise, the edges of the Travel Comfy are very tidy and a lot nicer than the rear of a standard sheepskin liner.

I do love how easy it is to move the Travel Comfy from one pushchair to another. Only the shoulder straps go through the actual fabric, the waist straps come around the side and the crotch strap goes between the legs. This is especially handy when used on my Baby Jogger Summit XC because I can access the quick-fold strap by just lifting the Travel Comfy up. It’s not bulky at all and causes no problems if left on a folded pushchair.

As for negatives, there are a few minor points. It would be nice if the polar fleece option were available here in the UK and the retailer information about this product should be clearer and more consistent. Also, Outlook offer their cotton-only Travel Comfy in a selection of lovely colours, yet the wool version is only available in black. Finally, because the Travel Comfy is only held in place by the shoulder straps and your child’s weight, it can be prone to rucking up underneath them and needs readjusting occasionally.

Generally though, the Travel Comfy is a good little seat liner. At around £25-£30, it’s very reasonably priced, but being reversible with two different fabrics makes it an even better deal. I don’t regret selling my old footmuff and going for this instead.

Little Fox Music Box features two well-known melodies – London Bridge and Old MacDonald – along with a gentle folk tune simply named “Evening Song”. The two former songs are sung by children and the words are displayed along the top for your little one to learn. You can also enable karaoke mode, which removes the vocals so any budding singer can take over!

What really makes this app shine is the wonderful animations. Almost every part of the screen is interactive and you can scroll to either side for more content. The characters exhibit a wide range of traits – some can be moved, some will interact with one another and some will make interesting sounds. I personally love the ice-skating cow and horse! In the Old Macdonald song, you can switch between seasons and the animals do completely different things.

If all this isn’t enough, there is a song studio included as well. This features a variety of animals and objects, each making their own unique sound when touched. Cleverly, you can touch things in any order and you will get a surprisingly good tune! The app is also bilingual, you can choose between UK/US English and German.

Little Fox Music Box is available for £1.99 in the UK App Store and has just had a graphical update for the New iPad’s retina display!