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How a Soda Stream broke my addiction.

One of the things I used to do regularly was buy diet drinks.  I was totally addicted to them.  I would have a raging headache if I didn’t have any, so it was not good.  Last year, I decided that I needed to stop the ridiculous cost that I was spending monthly on drinks if I wanted any money to spend on anything else.

I was drinking up to 4 litres and sometimes more a day, and nothing else if I could help it.  Drinks also had to be super cold to be totally enjoyable, and give the breath taking feeling in the back of the throat when drinking.    All that caffeine and artificial sweetener was not doing me any good.  I had tried to stop a few times, but always gave in with the headaches and went back to my old habits.

The brand I liked, I won’t mention, but it was not easy to stop.   I had terrible headaches for about a week, and a sore throat.  I decided to stick it out, and had one or two cups of coffee a day to try and alleviate the caffeine withdrawal symptoms from such a long term caffeine habit.  Using the coffee did help, and I saved one for bedtime so that the headache would go down a little for trying to get to sleep.

I tried drinking water, which is just yeuch to me.  Ok, I know people like it, and it’s the lifegiving nectar, but I just don’t like it.  If I have to drink it, I will, but I’d rather have something flavoured.  I began to use cordials and got fed up of how boring it was.   Then I bought some bottled fizzy water and that was great with the cordials.

Carrying around lots of bottles again, nearly had me revert to picking up the brand I so desired, and on a whim, the next step was to buy a soda stream (just to try it, as you do).  I bought it when we were on holiday and it was reduced in price, so it was a bargain.

I didn’t really expect very much from it, and at first I thought it would be a flash in the pan, and believed I wouldn’t bother with it once the gas bottle ran out.  I didn’t bother with the soda stream syrups, and use the fizzy water it makes to add to lime juice and cordials.  I have even fizzed up some boring wine to make it more fun to drink.

I order enough CO2 bottles to last a few months at a time from Lakeland, and they cover the returns cost so it works out pretty cheaply now to have fizzy water on tap all the time.  The kids and Mr Scottish also use it a lot, and the buzzing is a frequently heard noise in this house.

I’ve kicked the caffeine and now use decaffeinated coffee, and I can have a caffeinated drink now and again without stressing about it any more.  Freedom from 20 years chained to a brand of diet drink may seem silly to some, but it was a big deal for me.

I love my soda stream, and it is THE most used kitchen gadget in our house next to the kettle, but shhhhhh, I would never admit that in RL.


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Tech Decks and Flick Trix

It’s that time of year again when shops are starting to take away all the year long staple items on their shelves,and replacing them with glittery, twinkling and shiny temptations for Christmas.

This year though, one of the hardest toys to find locally are the Tech Deck and Flick Trix finger trick skateboards and bikes.  In case you have not come across these little gadgets, they are found in the hands of many a grubby 6 – 12 year old boy in our area.

 

September and October brings a totally different perspective on these little toys from one year ago.  Last Christmas, a generous Santa Clause brought a big box with some generic finger skateboards and a huge ramp to our house.  This box was used for all of 10 minutes and relegated to the back of the toy cupboard.  Fast forward six months and the ramp and boards were being pulled out of the cupboard and fought over by two of my minis’.   The change was brought about by the onset of the new boy craze around town.

The generic finger skateboards were not good enough though, and pester power started.  If they are not the “real” Tech Decks, then seemingly no-one will talk to them.  A birthday or two came and went and some “real” Tech Decks arrived in the house, courtesy of www.toysrus.co.uk, along with a couple of ramps by someone called Ryan Sheckler from www.amazon.co.uk.

The two trickster skateboarders started to practice in earnest, and with miniature screwdrivers at the ready had boards with orange, white, black and yellow wheels, so that they would be good enough to swap at school.   The old Top Gear card craze of early summer was well and truly over.

I thought that I was safe, skateboards in place, ramps in place, different colour wheels in place, and lots of skateboard swapping going on in schools and playgrounds nearby.

The peaceful life was not to be.   September 2010 saw an interest in something that is a miniature BMX bike.  Small comments began to be dropped about how fantastic they were.  On the way out of school, many children were trying their hardest to get someone with a shiny new Flick Trix BMX bike to swap for their “best” Tech Deck.  The smart children of the Flick Trix brigade held onto their prizes and slowly, very slowly, the pester power began again.

With no birthdays between September and Christmas to be able to have one of these beauties for themselves, and being from a family that does not just buy everything that kiddies demand, I was struggling to find a way to end the misery of my children by not being with the “in crowd”.

A flash of inspiration hit me and, and suddenly my boys had a new bedtime routine, with deadlines to achieve.  Once they reached 10 nights of perfect behaviour in the evening going to bed, and keeping their rooms tidy – one of these bikes would be theirs.   It took 15 nights for the deadline to be achieved and the day of reckoning finally came yesterday.  After dropping boys off at school, off to www.tesco.com  I go.   Disaster struck as there were none of the £4.95 boards in stock, and they didn’t know when the next delivery would be in.  Also on the shelves were two bike shop packs at three times the price.  In these packs was a selection of different accessories to add to the BMX, and a box to hold all the small parts.    There were only two of these beauties left on the shelf, and after wrestling with my conscience, I decided to buy them.

On emerging from school, the first question that greeted me was a cry for the BMX with moving parts, working wheels and pedals, and I was really pleased to be able to say that I had one each for them.  The look on their faces was priceless, as I had warned them that I might not actually manage to get my hands on them and that they might have to be ordered.

Fast forward 28 hours and these bikes have not been out of their hands.  I have been pestered and pestered and pestered again to help with changing over pedals, bike seat, wheels, grips, pegs and helping with nuts and bolts.  The enjoyment out of this little toy is immense.

When I first bought the skateboards, I baulked at the price of them, and of the ramps to go with them.  On reflection over the last few months, I can honestly say that they have been excellent value for money.  The amount of hours spent with these toys, fiddling with screwdrivers, concentrating, improving dexterity and the sheer benefits of the power of negotiation in the playground between children of all ages is astounding.

The bikes may only have been in the house for 28 hours, but already the signs of being an enhanced version of the Tech Decks is emerging.   Both toys are on the table, the Tech Decks are still being used on the ramps along with the bikes.   Both the Tech Decks and Flick Trix feel quite substantial for such little things and seem to take quite a bit of punishment.  They are certainly breakable with quite a bit of force, but they do give the feeling of quality when you hold them.

The bikes have taken their place in our household as staple favourites, along with the skateboards and the Xbox.  What will come along between now and Christmas I have no idea, but there are rumblings of a special edition gold Flick Trix, and I am now scouring the internet trying to come across this elusive beast for Christmas day.

Am I mad?  Probably, but I have to admit, I have had many an enjoyable hour with my boys using these toys as they sometimes struggle with the tiny pieces, so it has been a “win win” situation and amoung our “best buys” of  the year.

What are your “best buys?”