Secret Mum Club with Sophiena - The Santa Toy Recycling Round

Episode Date: April 23, 2026

Soph and Emma hear one ingenious listener's hack for getting rid of those pesky unplayed-with toys, fuss free. Hint: Santa might be involved... yep, Christmas in July! Plus, the ladies share their love of chaotically self-dressed toddler outfits. After all, who doesn't love a princess costume at the ballpit?! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello, this is The Secret Mum Club. I'm Safina. And I'm Emma. And welcome to your Thursday's episode. Where we get to squeeze in all the extra bits and bobs from the week. You can't squeeze my bits, honey. The Botox is upsetting. You're trying to wink, but...

I can't. And all of your comments, thoughts, questions and fun stories. To keep you going through the weekend. Show a jump bonie. How's your face? And my face is fucking great. Yeah. I can't believe you notice.

Oh, you look fresh. I look fresh. Shit, that's fresh. For a girl their hair's a bit. firkin slept. You would think the baby kept me up, but he didn't. In fact, it was Dottie. She kept me awake. Is this linked to your secret? No, no. The secret is funny. Obviously, you have to tune into the next. Tune into the next one. I've got a great secret. Maybe a bit disgusting. Out there, crazy one, this one. I feel like the older they get,

the scary the secrets become, you know? But no, my face is great. Yeah. I'll wait two weeks for it to set in. Yeah. Got to go back in two weeks to make sure that she's happy with it if she needs to top me up. I think you're looking really good. Thanks, honey. Yeah, I feel great. Really smooth. Apart from puffy hair today. I don't know what that's about. I washed my hair for the first time. Well, I actually styled my hair for the first time in what is about three weeks. I think I'm out of touch. I slept on my wet, so I feel like we're on the same. Emma also arrived early today, guys. Well, three minutes. I think I arrived at 1027. Couldn't believe it. I said to her, did you wet the bed? Is that what you're here, early? I pissed my doubt. Didn't come on the train from Cardiff this morning.

Did you stay here last night? A little update for you. Yeah, I've been on the breakfast show this morning on Absolute. So I stayed in London, been up since half four. What a dream. Shimmied on over. And as if you thought you weren't going to be doing this again. I know.

And you've gone right back into it. Yeah, I am. What a babe. Doing my old commute. Our best news reader ever. Thank you. Anyway, we digress. As always, we digress.

Right, it's time for the correspondence corner. Oh, do you know, there is a, I'm a celebrity, get me out of here. South Africa I asked you about it about three weeks ago I said are you watching it and you said no Oh Okily dookly

I thought it wasn't celebrities from the UK I thought it was going to be people they didn't know Yeah it's people Is it people that been on it before Gemma Collins is actually in there Is it like it's kind of like an all-stars one

Isn't it? Is it? David Hay is in there I think it is people that have been in there before Fingy Thomas is in there Adam Scarlet Moffet?

No Adam Thomas Ryan Thomas No That's the older one Scott and Adam Adam? Who's Adam Thomas?

Yeah. Adam Thomas is in there. Is Scarlet Moffat in there? I don't know. Ashley Piscuit dolls? Banjo. Oh, no, I went with the wrong Ashley. Ashley Roberts? Is it?

I think so. I thought they were making a comeback. I might be chatting absolute shit. Clearly, Emma's not fucking watching it. She's told me to watch it and she's not even fucking watching it. I've seen one clip on Instagram. That's what I'm going on. I just keep seeing Gemma Collins and Adam Thomas.

I'm claustrophobic, Darren. Is that trifle? Anywho, right. Right. We digress. Okay, take it away, honey. This one is from Jen with Two N's from NY.

Oh, I thought you were going to say it's my Jen because we call my Jen with two N's. Jen with two N's? Yeah, she's Jen with two N's. She's not J&E. Fun fact, she also called me randomly out of the blue a couple of weeks ago and said, I think I'm your cousin.

Yep, that was, and she is, she was my cousin. What? You didn't know. We've had this friendship for years and didn't know that we're actually related. What? Gen with two ends. So actually, Jen with two ends is not. my friend, she's my friend and my cousin. What the hell? What a small world. Isn't that just the

most peculiar? Is that never happened to you? No. It happened once to me at school, but it's also happened again now later in life. So yeah, Gem with Two Ends is actually my family. What the hell is it? She'll be listening to this as well. She'll love the, I'm talking about her. Oh, Jen with Two Ns. We love, all the Gens of Two Ns. This is Jen with One. This is Jen with One. This is this is Gen with One. This is a lot of ends. Where is she? Oh, New York City. New York City. Well, or New York State. Oh, not sure. Is there two different ones, Yeah. Oh, okay. She says, hello ladies. I'm responding to the mum whose three-year-old refuses to get dressed and only wants to wear a nightgown. Yes. I can relate so much. When my now

almost nine-year-old was three, she used to do exactly the same thing. It was really hard in the mornings trying to get to work and get her to preschool. My mom and I would buy her beautiful outfits and matching sets, but it was honestly a battle every day. Eventually, I had to surrender to the fact that she just wanted to wear what she wanted, even if it didn't match at all. She She once went to preschool in shorts, a tank top, and rainbow rain boots. She looked wild, but she was so proud of herself and loved what she'd put together. That was the day I gave in and stopped picking her outfits. Now she's almost nine and she absolutely loves putting outfits together, no longer wild, but

very much her own style. She even does her own hair now with a bit of help from me. I really feel like it's given her confidence and her own sense of style. She doesn't let anyone tell her differently. Thanks for this amazing space for mums to feel heard and not alone. Oh my gosh. God, that was a lot. I nearly fucking cried then.

Jesus, I'm very sleep to prong. So basically, if you let them do what they want now... I feel like it's a girl thing. No growth. Dotty was three. She was three. And now, we did have this, if you remember, a few months ago where Dotty wanted to do her own hair. And the lovely lady messaged in to say that her mom allowed her to have the freedom to do her hair.

And she's now a hairdresser. So I just think, well, why not? She's not doing anybody. Dotsie still does her own hair. Like I even bought her the other day. So she really loves lacquer. a hairspray so much. Like she loves that shit.

Rock hard, slick. That's just how she likes to do her hair. But the other day I bought her a little, you know, them like barme sticks. Yeah. It's like a wax stick, isn't it? And then it can take down your own. She was so excited to come in. So obviously she used it yesterday and I was in London yesterday.

So she come into me this morning. She was like, you need to try this product. It's fantastic. Doesn't make your hair crispy. A little bit of sticky. But it's wonderful, Mum. Look at this. She's done all of her little hair and I just think, oh gosh.

What's she like at doing it? Is she all right? Does it turn out looking all right? She does. So I don't know again if it's the trend at the moment or the age that she's going through. She just loves a really slick with a parting little back pony. That's just what she likes to do. But she's mastered that.

So I think because she's mastered that, that's what she's running with. But I have actually looked into buying like a real hairdresser model head. Yeah, that she can't you? Yeah. Because you can get like the Barbie heads, can't you from like the top? toy shop, but I want to buy her a real proper head. That sounds weird, doesn't it? With human hair. She'll come in in the middle of the night. I'm like, it's looking at me again. I have to turn it against the wall, won't I? So she can practice doing hair. Have you seen

pints and ponietails on Instagram? They get all the dads to the par, but they like have a pint, but they have one of those model heads to practice for doing like their daughters or their son's hair on. Yes. They do these amazing styles like French plaids, Dutch plats. Oh, maybe I should do. Just ponytails, everything. But you can. I could start agree. Get her along to pint some ponytails. Without the pints, maybe. But yeah, she loves picking her clothes. She knows what she likes. Yeah.

I did buy some new pants at the weekend because she needed a bigger size pair of pant. And they're the wrong type of pant. Oh. So she's like, I'm not wearing those. Because instead of them having a straight hem around the leg area, it's got a frill. Oh, she doesn't like that. She had to go to school with Colby in Colby's box shorts yesterday because she didn't, she couldn't take the pants. She was like, my missus too much.

I'm either going pantless or wearing Colby's. I was like, okay, you do you, boo-boo. Joseph's gone like that now. He won't wear a brief. No. He only wants a boxer. But I've got mostly briefs and not enough boxes. So when the boxes are all in the wash, he's like, no.

I'll go panthers. He's like, they cut me. They cut the leg. I'm like, I can see what you're saying. The boxes are more comfy. Yeah. And then Sadie, I've got knickers ready to go for when we're potty training. She obviously doesn't need them yet because she's still in a nappy.

But when she sees them in her drawer, she's like, my pants, my knickers. and I have to just put them on there. It's really hard to find a knicker that small though, isn't it? I've got her little, what are they, 18 to 24 months. Are they? Where did you get them? M&S. Did you?

Yeah, so I found some the other day, but bless Renner's, he needs a three to four. I looked, there was a two to three and then a four to five, so they weren't big enough. But they were pepper pig. Oh. And I was like, oh, I'll get him those ones. Because I bought him some little ones. Yeah. But they've just got like aeroplanes and stuff on them.

He does love them. but they're a little bit small, but snug on his tushy. But it's funny that they like wearing them even when they don't need them. So I'll like fully dress her and then she'll be like knickers and then I have to put them on over her clothes like a superhero. Or over the nappy. Reni really likes them over the nappy. Yeah. Yes.

And then when you've got changed the nappy, you're like another fucking layer. Why did I do this three hours ago? Fuck sake. But I think we should embrace it. I think it's character building and I know it's really hard when you are, life is busy. Yeah. to let that go. And also I do feel like it's one of those things that, like we always say, the last bottle,

the last baby girl, the last hug before bed and all the last bits that we actually forget that we do, it's one of those that we're trying to hold on to it and we try and hold on to that last. A little bit of control. Like, I've put you this really lovely thing that I want you to wear, please wear it. But sometimes you just can't win the fight. No. I have to fight with her every day not to wear high heels. To school.

Not even her high heels, mine. With three sizes different. But no, I love that. Thank you so much. And I hope that it makes our mama at home feel less alone. Yeah. And it's okay to let them be who they want to be. Yeah.

It's when they see photos of them when they're 18 and they go, why the fuck? Did you let me? That's what you chose, honey. No, but I love it. When I go out and I see a child that's dressed in a truly unhinged way. It makes me really happy. I'm like, go, mama. Yeah.

You go, mama. You obviously insisted on coming to soft play today in your snow white dress and I am here for it. I'm here for it. It brings me a lot of joy. And everyone knows. All the other parents know what you're going through. The mummers that get it. Get it.

Yeah. If you know, you know. Yes. But thank you so much. So we've got another message here. It says, hello, lovely ladies. Hello. I know you love a good birth story.

So here's mine. Shit, I'm really excited. We haven't had one in a really long time. I haven't had one for ages. All right, it says my partner and I were expecting our first baby. And it just so happened that his best friend of 30 years was also expecting their second. Our due dates were very close. So it felt really special going through it together.

Anyway, I got to four days past. my due day and after a sweep I started to feel like things were finally happening. My partner and I stayed at home as long as we could before calling the maternity unit to say we were heading in. In the car, my partner mentioned that his best friend and his partner were already at the hospital because she was being monitored. We thought that was a crazy coincidence but didn't think too much of it at the time. Oh my God. We arrived at 9pm and by midnight I was only one centimetre even though I was having contractions every two minutes. So I was told to go back home. We made the long walk back to the car through the hospital and as we got to the car,

my waters broke. So we turned straight back around and went back up to the maternity unit. Meanwhile, our friend had also gone into labour. At one point, my partner asked if he could go and meet his friend for a dad debrief before the babies arrived. So at 2 a.m., the two of them were sitting in the maternity ward canteen checking in on each other. In the end, we both had our babies just one hour apart. We were even on opposite beds on the postnatal ward so we could pull the curtains back and check in on each other. 18 months later and I still can't get over it Lots of love, anonymous Isle of Man

That is absolutely fucking How magical is that? I actually have goosebumps That is adorable, isn't it? One hour apart, what the chances? What are the chances? And just imagine now them growing up Yeah

That is absolutely You couldn't have planned that if you tried And she was almost sent home She was! So if that, yeah Well she almost went home So if she hadn't had turned back around And her water's broke

Then it would never have happened That experience on the war together as well Also, the post-nature ward can be the Wild West. So how nice. It's out there. It's survival of the fittest out there. I had a woman vaping when Renley was born. She was just vaping out of her.

Just had this cloud of smoke like, tonight, Matthew, I'm going to be fucking unhinged on the ward. It was wild. She was vaping and all this smoke was coming out. I had to say to Tracy, I was like, Trace, I think the woman is vaping in her bed. And she was like, Tracy was so, so furious. She was like, no, she can't be. Never. She come out in, like, sexy lingerie.

Oh, my God. Get it, girl. Some people are getting it on. Some in hospital. You have told me this before. I don't think anyone's got jiggy with it on my ward. I'd love to know if anyone has, but my friend who's a midwife said she has seen people getting freaky after having a baby behind the parents. Wow.

On the ward. Yeah. That is a lot. So to pull the curtains back and see your friend is how nice. Thankfully, she wasn't getting jiggy with her on the bed. Well, we don't know. You don't know. But it's funny because all three experiences on the ward were so different with all three of mine.

Obviously, Renly, I was in there nine days before I had him, and then nine days after having him. But I don't know whether it was, because I was on the ward and I was having, they were, obviously, I was having steroids to delay my labour because they wanted me to get past 35 weeks. So I was on a ward with also other mums having either the steroid or they were having a few complications and they had to spend time in. So it was really nice to be on the ward when I was and not in a room on my own because there was other mums there. and then they'd go and they'd go because they're going to have their baby. And then I was basically the last one that was taken off of the ward to have the baby. But it was a really nice experience because you got to then speak to them. And then when I did come back to the ward, I was then with a couple of other Niki mum.

So we'd like walk down to the Niki together. And you could then in the death of the night when they can't sleep and they'd be like, can you not sleep? Do you want to go down? And it was a really nice experience. So I did find, I had three really lovely experiences. on the ward with Colby. Dotty, I wasn't there very long. I basically gave birth to her,

slept and then just got sent home in the morning, discharged at 7am. It was no joke. I was in there like, I slept for about two hours. And then off you go. And then Colby was a little bit longer because I had to have some,

because I had gestational diabetes with Colby had to have some gestational, some diabetes checks on me and him. But yeah, I've had a wonderful experience on the ward. I actually quite miss it. It's a very vulnerable time. Some people are like, can't wait to get. of hospital and I can see why.

It's a really vulnerable moment to be in. So the fact that you're with others, there's something in that that's really, really lovely. It's reassuring. I like to know when I was in good care and good hands in the hospital. I almost didn't want to leave. You feel so safe, don't you? I did like two nights and three days with both of them.

But the actual ward was crazy. It's so loud. Yes. No one's sleeping. No one's sleeping. There's always a baby crying. Yes. It's like quite nuts.

It's quite nice though because also when I had Renly and I was, well, not had him, but before like the nine days leading up to, you would see nurses like with a baby and like they'd be hugging the baby just so the mum could get some sleep. And you just think there's so much power in that. God, it's making me feel emotional. There is so much power in that that women just pull together.

Like you've just gone through something that is possibly the most incredible thing of your whole entire life and mum's just pulled together. And there was just like you'd see a nurse or they'd be walking like the baby in the little bed up and down the corridor or, just sat in the office and having a hug with the baby so mum could get a few, a few hours sleep, obviously with the permission of the parent, you do have to give permission and they will

always ask. Yeah, my mum said that to me. She was like, well, they not take the baby for a few hours, so you can have a sleep. They used to do that when I had you and I was like, I'm not letting that very out my side. Tracy would ask me, it was only ever Tracy may be and Lisa that would just say, do you want to go up some sleep? And Tracy would say to me, I can take him for a hug if you want to get some sleep. Or she said, I can even just hug him and sit next to you.

But obviously, when I'd had him and I'd gone up to the ward after the NICU, he was he had to be in his little his light band and stuff so i think you got to know them all quite because you were there for such a long time yeah didn't you but it's they won't ever take your baby i would just like to clarify that without asking your permission they will ask your permission but it's just very sweet isn't it yeah it's just such a really vulnerable time in the fact that you go into your own little bubble in there don't you yeah yeah i'd do it all again just so i can have that experience yeah just pop onto the post-natal ward trace i'm coming back honey can i get rid of me thank you

anonymous. That is a wonderful birth story. Yes. So thank you so much for your messages. If you have any comments, thoughts or funny stories, why not get in touch? You can email us hello at secretmumpod.com or with secret mum pod on TikTok and Instagram. Next, it's time for one of your secrets after this short break. Welcome back. We love a secret on the secret mum club. And you're all so good at sharing. So Emma, what have you got for us today? Okay, this comes from Laura. Hello, Laura. It says, Hi, Lovelies. I hate clutter and the sheer amount of toys you collect with two little ones in the house is insane. So I came up with a system to help me donate them. My kids genuinely believe that Father Christmas comes back throughout the year to collect their old toys to fix them up for other children who need them. Oh, gosh. Every six months, we do a big toy send-off and they carefully choose what Santa is going to take back to the workshop. In return, he leaves a bag of sweeties for them to enjoy. They even leave little notes sometimes. It's very wholesome and also extremely convenient.

Anyway, they're now fully invested in the idea that Santa does a post-Christmas recycling round. So I think I've accidentally created a lifelong tradition I can never undo. When they're adults, they're going to be like, is he coming back for my presents in the middle of the year? Have I got a new pair of hair straightens coming? Any chance I could just recycle my old ones? Yeah, but you've only got it till July and then he's coming to take them back. That's a lovely idea, isn't it? That is a lovely idea.

So I do trunks. So I do like there's a trunk in under the stairs and a trunk upstairs. and I basically rotate the toys. Yeah, that's a good idea. But when they are, I put them in the trunk upstairs, I then wait for that trunk to be filled up. And then because they haven't asked about them, I just donate them.

Donate them. Yeah. And then I get the one out from under the stairs. And I'm like, if they ask for something like Colby, maybe not so much Colby now, but Dotty and Renley, they ask for something. Can I say, oh, let's check what we've got under the stairs. And then they find things they forgot about.

And then the one that they originally asked for donated free, Three months ago. It's already gone. It's already out of there. I do get Joseph to put stuff in a box for charity. Yes. And he's very good at giving up his stuff. But he doesn't really understand the concept.

Like he'll put in a brand new thing that he plays with loads. And I'm like, that's not really the idea. I'm trying to like get rid of the old stuff that you don't use as much anymore. So he's very keen, too willing to give up his new toys. I'm like, you've just been bought that. We're not giving that away. And then every now and then he'll go, where's the stuff we took to charity? And I'm like, hmm.

With charity. You can't. Yeah, it's with another child now. I'm not, you can't get that back. It always reminds with Andy, you know, when he donates his toy. That bit always makes me cry at the end of Toy Story. And the children don't understand why it's sad. And we've watched Toy Story 3 so many times. But without fail, that bit makes me cry at the end. And they don't understand the deeper meaning of it. Joseph's like, why is it sad? And I'm like, it's sentimental. He's been with Woody his whole life. And now he's just driving off to college.

My God. Don't. Don't cry. Just giving them to Bonnie. And he's like, okay. And then she chose a fucking plastics fork. She loved more over. Stefan hates Sporky. I just don't see the point.

It's like so shit. And also it's really fucking annoys me that it's a sporky. Yeah. So why is it not called Sporky? It's really fucking annoying. Yeah. And it's an American a spork, isn't it? So why did they call it?

Forky. You should have been spooky. Really it aggravated me. I won't lie to you. I've seen the trailer for Toy Story 5. No. He gets married to a knife. And they're like,

We now pronounce you, husband and knife. And again, I'm like laughing. Is it not a spork and not? And Joseph's like, I don't understand why it's funny. I'm just like, oh, come on. Come on, go. But yes, brilliant idea. Lovely to get them used to giving up their toys to...

How do you donate your toys? I'd love to know that as well. I'd love to know how everybody else donates the toys. And how do you get rid of the stuff that you really hate? Yeah, there is that, isn't there? How do you get rid of the stuff that they... But they really love it. But they love it.

But they love it. Stuff that you hate. Yeah. It's a wild one. Oh, that got lost a while ago. Oh, do you not remember? The fox ate it. So, how are you at decluttering baby toys?

Let us know. Email us, hello at secret mumpod.com or with Secret MumPod on TikTok and Instagram. And we'll be back first thing on Tuesday. We'll have more of your messages on our next Thursday episode. And we'll see you next time on the Secret Mum Club.