Winning baby goodies

Way back when I entered a competition where you had to write a review of The Wonder Weeks book.  I used this book as my bible in understanding what the developmental stages mean & how they impact your baby, so was quite happy to write a review.  And brilliantly, in early January I received an email saying I’d won.

All I had to do was reply telling them my address and something about my baby (err, what exactly?)…I opted for age, sex and how he was just about walking, by a certain date.  Reply sent, I then didn’t hear anything back.

Odd, given that some competitions they just send a prize and you have no idea where it’s come from, but given they’d emailed I thought I’d have heard something to confirm what was coming.  But no, nothing.

Obviously, having had a prize/carrot dangled, I chased it up at the end of January, wondering if my email response hadn’t gone through.  Still no response.

I was by then getting a bit annoyed as the prize was meant to be European designer baby goodies, and I quite fancied some of them, given I’d gone to the trouble of writing a review and that it wasn’t just a prize draw.  So I tried once more on email and result!  Supposedly the woman had missed my email and all the prizes had gone out.  Err, well if you didn’t see my email, mine wouldn’t have done.  On chasing at her end, I then got told mine had been sent out as well, but they would send another parcel out.

I then had an amusing email from a Dutch guy who’d been sent out shopping for my prize (not sure whether I’ve missed out on the original prize, and he’s just bought random things, or whether I’ve got the same as I should have received).  

It arrived the other day.  A very well sellotaped parcel, and both N & I were excited to unpack it and see what had been sent.

There was a puzzle for when he’s a bit older, a ‘discovery’ bed cover (interested to find out what that actually is when we get him a duvet), a comforter taggy type thing (bit young for him, but very sweet), a fairtrade toy bag (useful for taking things out and about on the back of the buggy), and the best which is a ‘mother and child bag’.  It’s a canvas bag brilliant for shopping round town with long and short straps, but the bonus is a strap for children to hold onto near the bottom of the bag when you’re carrying it.  Very cute – although I’m not convinced it would quite work with N at the moment.

So a lovely haul.  Wonder what other things I can try and win now.  Shame I don’t have as much spare time as I used to to enter competitions as you really need to enter lots if you want to win regularly.