First baby stand off

November 28, 2009 at 11:36 am | In Baby Development, General Advice | Leave a Comment
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I met up with some girlfriends at Snakes and Ladders, a local play centre yesterday – a safe option when you want to give your children the chance to let off steam, catch up with friends and not have to host or clean up the mess afterwards.

On getting the bear out of the car seat it soon became apparent that we would be queue jumping, heading straight to the baby change, and putting a new outfit on before doing anything else – but now that he’s 16 months I took this in my stride having done it numerous times before, even able to smile jovially at the on looking parents as they tried to work out why my son was wearing a parka and not much else; oh apart from socks.

So we managed to overcome that little obstacle before anyone else arrived and spent the next few hours in the ball pit, up and down the slides, on the swings and bouncy castle, and dodging the huge gym balls – that my little softy decided were more terrifying than anything he’d ever encountered before, including the MMR jab, the hoover for a short time, and a small sinister purple bath time penguin that he detests with a passion.

 

The bear particularly likes the Little Tikes cars that you can scoot around in, and in a confident moment he approached ‘an older boy’ (all of about three years of age), and started talking to him about his position in the driving seat.

‘Sherr sherrr baa naa’ he enquired politely.  This was met with a very definite and slightly defensive ‘no’.  So he collected his thoughts and tried another approach – pushing his passenger along in the car.  Again, ‘no’

I stood and watched, engrossed in the little scene unfolding before me.  The bear is just getting to the age now that he’s starting to interact with other children.  Despite being at nursery since the age of 6 months (part time) and being used to socialising, it seems he’s starting to engage with other children a lot more recently.

So as I watched, I wondered at what age do parents start getting involved when baby debates escalate into full on arguments.  The little boy was starting to look pretty ticked off by this stage, a slightly concerned expression had replaced the ‘I will not be moved’ stance as he considered whether this pint sized enquirer could actually remove him from the car.

Realising that he was making no progress my son headed back to the ball pit instead, figuring that he’d be better watching from a distance until a set of wheels became free.  As a parent you realise that they understand a hell of a lot more than they can actually verbalise back to you, but yesterday I learnt that toddlers understand conversation before they can talk, bargaining before they understand why, and tactics before they know the power they’ll soon have over their parents.

We went on to have lunch at a nearby pub and as all of our children sat round in their high chairs being amazingly well behaving, the bear shared his peas with his neighbour, a girl of 10 months.  I felt a glowing sense of pride at my young son and his newly developing social skills.

I shall enjoy it will I can, before the bedtime tantrums, refusal to share and sit in protests in the supermarket begin…

One for the family album

November 25, 2009 at 8:49 pm | In Christmas, General Advice | 3 Comments
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To quash my worries about missing out on capturing those special festive family moments, we’ve been looking for a new camera.  Really, I need to get over myself and just get on with enjoying time with my family, but an unruly obsession descends on you once you become a parent doesn’t it?  Bringing with it the overwhelming need to capture each and every special moment on film (or video!)

So, we’ve been really lucky to borrow and test out the Olympus E-620.  I’m not really a technical person so I’m afraid I can’t go into the specific qualities of the zoom, aperture, resolution la la la.  However, I can say that it’s a very, very nice camera.

After a little practice and lens twiddling, I got THE nicest picture of the bear.

I have a little click and go camera at the moment, which at the time of purchasing I thought was all singing all dancing, but I really struggle to capture those really lovely, emotional shots.  I truly want to be a natural with a camera, like my dad, or my cousin, but I aint.  And any parent knows that it’s virtually impossible to set up a nice shot with a baby.  They don’t keep still, they don’t pose, and they definitely don’t smile on demand.

So, being able to capture that special moment is really hard without a decent camera that eliminates shake, adds just the right amount of flash, and gives that lovely blurry effect to the background.

I decided to get some expert tips ready for Crimbo, determined to add the most impressive of holiday albums to Facebook (competitive, moi?!), so with a little bit of the following from Snappy Snaps, I set to work.

1. It’s all about the setting the scene, seasonal outfits, pictures by the tree, unwrapping gifts have your camera at the ready (ready being the operative word, you never get a baby in a Santa hat for more than 20 seconds!).

2. Pictures of props make great intro shots for Photo Books and Albums. And nothing says Christmas like close-ups of decorations or the Christmas tree in its full glory.

3. Make it a family occasion with a group shot, it’s worth organising everyone together for a family shot by the tree, around the table or outside before the after dinner walk.

4. If you’re having trouble taking good night time pictures it could be your flash. Try turning it off and raising your ISO to 400 or 800 and slowing down your shutter speed.
 
5. Avoid blurry photos by steadying your camera with a tripod, table, rolled up jumper or beanbag.

6. Your camera might have night mode built in. Sometimes this will create a great effect.

7. Shooting from different angles is fun and creates unique and artistic shots. Don’t be afraid to experiment, its Christmas.

I tend to get a little carried away with the close up arty shots….

Anyway, the Olympus camera we borrowed was really easy to set up and use.  It’s a much bigger camera than I’m used to but the case made it easy to take out and about and I secretly felt like a bit of a pro…and like changing career to be a pap!  Look out Katie Price.

Check out the Olympus for the perfect family camera, a little pricy at around £659.99 but well worth it as a special Christmas gift…have fun David Bailey’s…off to arrange a little pre Christmas fire side shoot….not really…Spooks is on!

 The Olympus camera was kindly loaned to us by Olympus.  We stick to the bloggers with integrity code to only promote products that we truly, truly love. 

Babymel tool pouch changing bag – a review

November 24, 2009 at 9:58 pm | In Days Out, General Advice | Leave a Comment
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A review from Molly’s Mum….Vicki

So I got to check out this cool bag. I was delighted given that I had vowed to change my old bag for the last 9 months. And yes it was the free one from Boots that everyone seemed to have hence why I had a need to get something different. 

Well, I didn’t get a first look in with this bag, Molly’s Dad spied it when I was poorly and he has been a huge fan ever since. It fit the criteria for a ‘Dad Bag’. It wasnt pink, and had lots of zips and side pockets. Great!  When I finally got round to using it I liked it too.

It has a good design and surprisingly spacious for a small bag.  We had room to fit inside a couple of nappies, travel baby wipes, snacks, her book for nursery and a spare set of clothes. (We did take the baby change mat out on occasion where we needed the spare clothes?!?)

On the outside there was room for her beakers and bottles.  It has actually helped me to travel light, and I have discovered that most of the things I carry in a changing bag werent really necessary. (I found a pack of batteries whilst clearing out my old one….very bizarre)

I would recommend this bag, it now goes along with Molly to nursery everytime she goes. It is ideal for short trips out and for those times you dont really need to carry that huge bag weighing about 5 stone. Available online from Babymel for a bargain £22.50.

The Babymel change bag was kindly loaned to us by Babymel.  We stick to the bloggers with integrity code to only promote products that we truly, truly love. 

My budding romeo…

November 21, 2009 at 10:37 pm | In Christmas, General Advice | 3 Comments
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In the run up to Christmas I’ve been stressing about capturing all of the festive family fun (family politics, sprout ball (another story), and the obligatory opening of random presents from elderly relatives).

When you have children you don’t want to miss a moment; and there’s the chance of creating something worthy of Harry Hill’s TV Burp.

We’ve been lucky enough to test out the Flip Video camera, and it’s awesome.  You know what it’s like, they say a three year old could use it, which means a highly trained, abnormally clever, Mensa member of a three year old could use it, but actually a three year old could use this.  My eight year old niece picked it up and started making a film like it was as simple as hosting a Bratz tea party.

Note to self though – simple technology never negates the need to read the instructions.  I had packed it up to return it after the loan and then realised on visiting the website that the camera has an inbuilt editing program that you can install.  If I wasn’t impressed before, I certainly-diddly am now.  Although a little eggy with myself for not realising this sooner, despite being told in email from company (must read things more carefully).

So, I created this video of my little man using Windows Movie Maker, because I’m a dumbo and moved my clips from the camera to my laptop before realising about the inbuilt software, duh.  However, I just had a look at the FlipShare software and it’s so easy to use, wish I’d read the damn booklet. I don’t think you can add titles throughout the clips like this, but it’s pretty similar.

Enjoy, the important baby phone call…(click on the image to see video)

So, if you’re looking for the perfect easy to use video camera, this is it.  Think Christmas dinner, granny can have a go, the kids can, anyone who can point and press can make a movie, simples.  Have fun, it’s flippin’ cool!!

The Flip Video Camera was kindly loaned to us by Flip Video.  We stick to the bloggers with integrity code to only promote products that we truly, truly love.  We are also sending toys on to our local children’s centre.

I never knew that about raisins.

November 19, 2009 at 4:36 pm | In Baby Care & Health, Baby Development | 2 Comments
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Now that the bear is nearly 18 months, it’s time to get a little more adventurous with his diet.  Adventurous may not be the word as he already likes a lot of varierty including spicy food – tapas on holiday in Spain this year stained all of his nice summer outfits but never mind, they grow out of them in a month anyway.

So, wanting to align the bear with our eating habits and move from the cooking and freezing of batches of baby meals, I asked for some expert advice….

1)    How much salt is too much for a toddler? 

From Helen Heap, Nutritional Therapist at Viveka

Try not to use any salt in cooking because it is best to get children used to food without needing this condiment. Herbs and spices are fine.

From Laura Williams, Wellbeing Expert for the Pampers Village Parenting Panel.

When you’re buying foods and need to check the labels, opt for products that contain less than 0.1g sodium per 100g. Avoid salty foods such as ready cooked meats, pizza, tinned veg, cheese, bacon and crisps. Small amounts of these occasionally are okay but try not to let your toddler eat lots of salty food regularly. 

The bear eats so much cheese!  Will have to wean my little mouse off it a little bit, eek!

2) If our son eats mainly what we do,  a little salt, a little chilli, garlic, and other seasoning, is that ok?

From Laura Williams, Wellbeing Expert for the Pampers Village Parenting Panel.

Seasoning such as garlic is fine; go easy on the chilli (you’ll soon find out if something’s too hot for your toddler) and try not to add much – if any – extra salt (see above). It’s good to encourage your toddler to try new foods and tastes though.

Thinking the fact that he likes Thai green curry confirms the like of spice…!

3) Now that he has teeth and is eating solids with us, how many times a day should we brush his teeth?  He hates the toothbrush, and although he never has sweets, cakes, chocolate or fizzy drinks, we’re worried about looking after his teeth.

From Laura Williams, Wellbeing Expert for the Pampers Village Parenting Panel.

Your toddler should brush his/her teeth twice a day – first thing in the morning and very last thing at night. He/she should brush in small circular movements, not from side-to-side. Eating sweet things quickly in one go is best for your child’s teeth; slowly sucking on a lollipop or sipping a fruit drink all day is much worse for a toddler’s teeth than one small (quick) piece of cake.

From Helen Heap, Nutritional Therapist at Viveka

Maybe try to make it fun so he doesn’t mind having his teeth brushed!

Because the bear is too young to brush his own teeth, I need to come up with a cunning way to make it fun….suggestions on a postcard please!

4) Is there such a thing as too much natural sugar?  In things like fruit for example?

From Laura Williams, Wellbeing Expert for the Pampers Village Parenting Panel.

Fruit is highly acidic and isn’t great for the teeth; the sugar in dried fruit such as raisins is particularly bad as it clings to the teeth staying there. Try and stick to fresh fruit if you can. 2-3 servings a day of non-acidic fruit such as apples, pears and bananas is ideal.

 OMG I never knew that about raisins!!  The bear is mad about raisins!! I need to introduce some new non teeth destroying alternatives!!

5) In the toddler years, are there still foods you should avoid such as shellfish?

When your child’s still a toddler, avoid raw food such as raw eggs and shellfish as these can easily cause food poisoning. Make sure all eggs are cooked thoroughly. Fish that contains high levels of mercury (shark, marlin and swordfish and excessive amounts of tuna), which can damage the nervous system, should be avoided. Also, the government recommends that whole nuts shouldn’t be given to children under five for fear of choking.

From Helen Heap, Nutritional Therapist at Viveka

Some experts say that introducing these more ‘allergenic’ foods earlier may reduce their sensitivities.

I must admit I rarely call on my health visitor with questions, but having asked these experts for advice on diet and nutrition, it’s made me realise how much help there is out there with the little questions I ponder on a daily basis! 

If you have any questions email them to catherine@babygenie.co.uk and we’ll get one of our experts on it!

Did someone say swine flu?! You’ve come to the right place

November 17, 2009 at 10:27 pm | In Baby Care & Health, General Advice | Leave a Comment
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Isn’t it funny how when faced with a drama or crisis we develop super human strength?  New energy.  Renewed drive.

For the past two nights the bear literally hasn’t slept, so after a quick power nap at 6am I woke feeling shattered.  Absolutely and miserably dog tired.

Then husband called from his early shift at work with the news.  ‘Babe a few other people are off with swine flu, I think that’s why I feel so rotten, and probably why the bear is miserable too’.

I literally sprang out of bed.  My heavy eyelids vanished.  My aching bones subsided and suddenly this spritely person I didn’t recognise appeared.  Why is it that when we’re needed we go into overdrive?

I don’t like a crisis.  It’s not that.  It’s just that I think women in particular thrive when someone is depending on them.  Especially in the case of a husband and baby struck down with swine flu.

So I energetically picked up the phone to the national pandemic helpline service.  Help really is not the right word – when I said I didn’t know if Mr Dad was urinating more often she said ‘does he need to pee a lot’ and I had to explain that I understood the question, it was just that he was at work and I wasn’t sure.

After a long series of yes and no answers they were both diagnosed with swine flu and I was given a reference number for each of them in order to get Tamiflu.  I think these are actually more like secret codes, as she read them out including the papa uniform echo bits and I felt more like a spy than a caring mother.

I whisked the bear off to the GP on their recommendation, just to get him checked out, tweeting my updates as I went.  I stealthily crept into the ‘little waiting room’ at the back on doctors orders so as not to spread the disease.  Mission accomplished.

All clear there and on to the next town to collect the drugs.  Unfortunately I arrived without required ID for all sick parties.  After being asked twice by the pharmacist if I wanted to do my shopping while she checked if I could take the tablets and tried to be polite and explain that I had a sick family (I managed not to say dying, although I felt I needed some extra clout at this point) and no I didn’t want to do any shopping.

Drug pick up refused, I set back on the 15 minute journey home, collected passports to try again once more.  I returned, determined to complete my mission – and get the phrase ‘I doubt you’ll be getting employee of the year’ into my departure this time.   After another ‘kind’ offer to do some shopping I finally got the prescriptions, and left (not without picking up a complaint form from customer services…yet to decide if I actually have anything to complain about ….really, but I felt short changed for my added travel time, and the customer service lady even adopted my mission like tactics and covertly ran out to the car and gave me the pharmacists name!).

In my hast I forgot the shopping I did need.  I didn’t NEED shopping, just some cocodamol at Mr Dads request.  So I went to another supermarket not wanting to undo my theatrical exit, which after bundling my germ ridden son into another trolley appeared not to have a pharmacy.  Last time I go to the next town I tell you that.

Back to the car, and the third supermarket fortunuately had all supplies needed.  Ready to return home.  Thank god.  On exiting third supermarket, beardy man on RSPB stand says brightly ‘do you like wildlife madam?’.  Not today I shrilled loudly back at him. 

I’m really sorry nice bird man, please don’t take it personally, I was busy on operation trotter.  It’s not your fault, it’s not as though my family have bird flu after all…

Am I remembering that right?!

November 14, 2009 at 5:47 pm | In General Advice, New Born, Something for Mum | Leave a Comment
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I’ve just been writing my second blog post for my local newspaper, about life with a newborn, and it struck me how we remember some things differently, or we describe them differently for the benefit of others.

Mummy and the bear

Life with a newborn, from the outside in.

I zoomed through writing it, determined to get it finished while the bear has his afternoon nap.  He’s still asleep, so here I am on blog number two and I’m pondering my memories of life with a tiny baby…

I spent my first week telling people how lovely it was to have such a good reason not to leave in the house, and spend the day in my jimmies.  In reality, the moment I knew we had a visitor coming round I was in the shower, baby in bouncer in the bathroom with me, I swished over surfaces with a duster, put a full face of makeup on and shoehorned myself into a two sizes too small pair of jeans.

So determined to give off the in control, on top of it, natural earth mother type vibes, I continued to approach everything like this.

I diligently made thank you cards, with little pictures of our newborn son on the front, and wrote out the notes from my carefully recorded list of presents we’d received.  Meanwhile husband lay on the sofa with baby sleeping peacefully on his chest, watching 13 going on 30 or something similar that I’d chosen and had looked forward to watching.

Next time, I will be buying a bumper pack of cards and will just be writing thank you for the gift in each one.  Hopefully you get less gifts for the second baby as people are now bored by the fact that you can have children, then I can watch trashy movies instead.

Finally, the cooking thing, what’s that all about?!  I’m 100% positive that I recall telling people that I’d been living on pizza and Chinese takeaway because ‘you just don’t have the time to cook’.  The truth was that my mother had kindly given us a number of home-made meals to freeze, and I had developed an unhealthy obsession for making everything from scratch.  If it came from a packet it simply wasn’t good enough for a new family  Queue homemade everything – soups, stocks, sauces, the lot.  I also cringe when I recall throwing drop scones into the frying pan at an alarming rate ready to take for brunch at a friends while the bear sat patiently in his car seat ready to leave.  Why do we do it?!

So I remember life with a newborn fondly, and can now laugh at some of the ridiculous lengths I went to in order to carve out what I thought life as a new mum looked like.

When we decide that the time for number two is right, I will be taking it in my stride a little more.  I may even go to the shops in my pyjamas, and have pizza for breakfast – and lunch…and dinner.

It must be a mummy thing…Christmas could be tomorrow

November 11, 2009 at 9:03 pm | In Christmas, Toys & Books | 2 Comments
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I am literally Christmas obsessed.  I know it’s November now but this started in early October.  Similar to the nesting instinct which took over when I was pregnant (manic decorating and gardening at 8 months), this started with a simple list of who is coming for Christmas – we’re hosting Christmas and Boxing Day for the first time and I am UBER excited!

So, I started a little box in the garage -  chocs, decs, crackers, added to with the Christmas wine yesterday – had to get it because Tesco were doing a £25 bottle of champagne for £8 if you spent over £30!!  Love a deal!

In addition, because we’re hosting I figured I better get my shopping done early so I can focus on foodie related things nearer the time.  So, I decided I had to share some of the brilliant gifts I’ve come across (I can’t seem to content myself with the fact that they are waiting patiently in their carrier bags to be wrapped in my spare room for some reason).  Anyway, here we go, hope you find the odd thing that brings a present solution!

Elodie Hat

Cuter than cute Elodie Details hat – £13.49 from Easy Nappies.  Was tempted to buy an extra one in case we have a girl sometime in the future.  Don’t think Mr Dad would be too impressed if I put the bear in this.

Sue Mason

Customisable prints (add your childs name) from Sue Mason – price on application.  We got one of these as a gift from my cousin for the bear last Christmas and they are simply gorgeous.

Huggalegs

Huggalegs leg warmers – £6.49 from Easy Nappies.  Again, not a good look for the bear, but for the little girlies these are adorable.  Ok so I have a pair in the drawer and sneak them on under the bear’s jeans!

Cargo Room Stickers

Cargo room stickers – £14.99 from Cargo shops.  Had to stop myself from buying the whole range.  Drew the line at a girly set for the bear’s BFF, and a set of aliens for him.

Lullaby Gloworm

Playskool Lullaby gloworm – £7.49 from Argos.  The bear loves his and we just got the pink one for his newborn friend (when it was still £9.99 boo).

Safari Bowl

Safari Bowl – we had the pleasure of testing this out – £26.99 from Fiesta Crafts, it’s brilliant!  The bear was instantly in love with the bowling ball and proceeded to make animal sounds after knocking down each pin…ok so most were lion noises but still.  It’s a lovely squishy squashy product, amazing that the animals stand up but they do.  Think I am as taken with it as the bear is.  Off for a quick practice run…

Tag Junior 1

Leapfrog Tag Junior reading system – £24.99 from Toys R Us.  We also got to test this out, and it’s fantastic.  The bear was instantly impressed, purely by the fact that the reading gadget makes a do-da-da-do noise when you switch it on – the simple things hey.  It’s so clever though, you download the books (easy peasy thank goodness), and then when you put the reader on the page it tells you part of the story, brill, has brought new magic to bedtime story time.

Gas Station

Dream Town Gaskett’s Garage – £39.99 from Argos (pump and car priced separately).  I think Santa should bring this, hope it fits down the chimney, I love it!

Toadstool Nightlight – I had one of these as a child and wish it hadn’t vanished to the loft monster like many of our favourite childhood memories and keepsakes do.  I’d love to get one of these for the bear when he’s a little older and reaches that ‘leave a light on please mummy’ age.  £45 from Punkin Patch.

So, there’s the run down of the gifts for the little ones.  Do you know, I wish I had my own baby boutique selling lovely things…one day!

The Safari Bowl was kindly sent to us by Fiesta Crafts and the Leapfrog Tag Junior was kindly sent to us by Leapfrog.  We stick to the bloggers with integrity code to only promote products that we truly, truly love.  We are also sending toys on to our local children’s centre.

The Dad Bag (well how much moaning do you hear about the Pink Lining change bag?!)

November 10, 2009 at 7:49 pm | In Days Out, General Advice, What about Dad? | Leave a Comment
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The first post from Mr Dad…

 Dad Bag

Well who said that having kids means you’re not bothered about image anymore?  I just recently had my tenth 21st Birthday and can honestly say I’m still as interested in trend and looking good as when I had my first one.

Having a kid shouldn’t mean that you have to sacrifice this but it does mean that you have to maybe compromise on some things (certainly not buying Armani or Versace stuff anymore and wearing a lot more Primark pants now too). One thing is that whatever you do have needs to be functional and often multipurpose.

I recently had the good fortune to be able to try out the day bag pictured (finally something that a man can carry around and not have to look effeminate). Lets be honest although the roles of Mum and Dad are becoming less rigid and a little more blurred these days I would still say that baby products are very much geared towards the mums with lots of feminine touches and cute cuddly animal pictures and colours.

However Baby Soleil have siezed on a niche in the market because more and more dads are taking an active role in the upbringing and nurture of their children which normally means that they can be seen carrying or wearing said frilly or cute items.

Lets get down to business. The bag itself is very functional, having lots of easy access compartments and plenty of room to fit your little ones things in and also some of yours too. It even has a plastic compartment to put wipes in. We all now how quickly you need them and how hard they are to get out of the packaging. Its also hard wearing.

It combines this with the fact that regardless of its purpose, as a man you would be happy to carry it around as a fashion bag anyway!!!! I took it with me on a recent trip to London with the bear and can honestly say I got lots of looks and some positive comments…nothing to do with the puppy dog eyes from my son, honest.  This makes it a double winner in my eyes so if you mums are looking for a present for the dads to that they would be happy to carry around I couldn’t think of anything better!!

The Dad Bag was kindly sent to us by Baby Soleil.  We stick to the bloggers with integrity code to only promote products that we truly, truly love.

A chance for little ones to star in a Winnie the Pooh book

November 9, 2009 at 10:31 pm | In Baby Care & Health, General Advice | Leave a Comment
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Had to give this a quick mention for being such a cool prize.

Huggies

Huggies are offering the chance for your little one to feature in a special Winnie the Pooh book.  All you have to do is submit a caption, video or picture on the theme of every day discoveries.

Off to get my little explorer kitted up for some jungle back garden action…

Learning about snails

Trying to eek out a snail from its hiding place this morning (out in the garden at 9am, why are they more full of beans after a late night?!)

www.superdrydiscoveries.co.uk

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