I am featured on Eco Toys!!

A few months ago I saw that one of my favourite sites http://www.ecotoys.com.au/ was after articles for their blog. I happily put pen to paper (or in this day and age, fingers to keyboard) and wrote about something that I am truly passionate about - connecting children with nature! I was delighted to get an email today saying that my article had been published - http://www.ecotoys.com.au/blog/2010/11/connecting-children-with-nature/

Hopefully this will be the kickstart I need to get this blog back on track and really get cracking with some writing!

Food, glorious food!!

Well our little puddin' has been into the solid foods for a little while now and is LOVING them. One thing I am finding a challenge at the moment is being creative with his food without any uneccessary ingredients. I am committed to making our baby food myself and eventually getting him eating what we are eating! In the process I am hoping that it encourages Arron and I to become better eaters ourselves - less processed foods (which are bad for so many reasons - preservatives, chemicals, impact on the environment...) and more fresh, healthy meals!

So in attempt to create mouthwatering meals for my little man I have been googling (thank god for google!) and have come across some great sites that I thought would be worthwhile sharing:
* http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/
* http://www.annabelkarmel.com/

So far for us it has been simple purees and thankfully there has been nothing that our little man has turned his nose up at. His current "menu" consists of:

* Potato

* Pumpkin

* Sweet potato

* Banana

* Apple
* Pear

* Rockmelon

* Carrot

* Broccoli

* Cauliflower

* Zuchinni

* Rice cereal

* Rusks

He is at the point now where he is really wanting to feed himself - grabbing at the spoon or bowl, using his  tommee tippee mesh feeder to shovel banana in his gob and gumming a rusk until there is nothing left.

 This has led me to look into the baby led weaning route...something that is often mentioned on parenting forums and at mothers groups.

For more info on BLW check out http://www.babyledweaning.com/

BLW basically introduces solid foods as exactly that - solid! Rather than pureeing, you simply cut food into bite sized pieces and allow bub to feed themselves.

For us, I think it is about balance - B loves his pureed vegies, so I wont be taking them away anytime soon. On the other hand he is keen to do things for himself so we will start giving him a few bite sized pieces for him to explore.

I would love to hear what sort of feeding journey others are on... do you make your own or buy it? purees or BLW? When did you start??

Amber teething necklaces

About a month ago we bought an amber teething necklace for our little man when it appeared that his first tooth was coming through. Four weeks on and that tooth has poked its way through with very little fuss. If it wasnt for the bright red cheeks and constant drooling you wouldnt even know he was teething! Now some sceptics may say that the necklace isnt really doing anything, but while ever my little one is a happy camper when new teeth are coming through - I will stick with it thanks!

My gorgeous boy in his spunky necklace!

I would love to know what other people think of Amber Teething necklaces and if you havent got one and would love to get your hands on a freebie,The amazing blog hip little one, are giving away a gorgeous set frrom Bambeado!

Soap Nuts...are they any good?

In my random online browsing I stumbled across "Soap Nuts" at http://www.soapinanutshell.com.au/ and they have gotten me thinking.... at this point in life (with a 4month old in cloth nappies and going through countless bibs a day!) washing has become a major part of our day.I try to make eco-friendly choices when buying washing powder/detergent, but there don't seem to be a great deal of options on the market!Every time I scoop detergent ut of the box I wonder what chemicals are in it and what they could be doing to our skin and our earth!  As someone with sensitive skin and a young bub, I do choose "sensitive" options...but it still worries me!

So when I found these soap nuts I was intrigued...this is what they look like:

I have a few questions that I will be looking into...but would love to hear from anyone who uses SoapNuts.
* Do they get your clothes clean?
* Do they leave any residue?
* Do you think you save money?
* If you have sensitive skin how do you find them?
* If you wash cloth nappies how do you go?

Can't wait to hear more about this innovative product...

Wood Play Gym!

Well after looking and looking it appeared that there were only a small selection of wooden play gyms available online and they were pretty expensive. So my very clever partner decided he would make one (although when he suggested it I thought it might be just a ploy to visit Bunnings - his favourite place!)

Well it took a little time, but finally last week it was all finished. I love the wavy detail that he has put into it and the squares and triangles on the sides. Mum and I did our bit - adding the soft blocks, and one of my besties Tash bought the beautiful wooden beaded owl hanging for Bodhi before he was even born. So the whole thing is a bit of a team effort!

And from the expression on his face I think its clear that B loves it just as much as I do.

I am sure this will become a precious part of our family for years to come!

Still here.... but back at work!

Just a super quick post...my poor blog has been neglected for the past few weeks while I unexpectedly returned from maternity leave. My fantabulous partner Arron now gets to be a stay at home dad on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while I spend time working on my other passion - early childhood education!

Lots of new things to add to the blog...including pics of the gorgeous timber baby play gym Arron made for Bodhi and a post about our new Baltic Amber teething necklace! For the moment I am engrossed in looking at my gorgeous friends' gorgeous photos of Vanautu, but I shall return soon!

Amazing Op Shop Finds

I am a lover of op-shopping, but since the little man arrived have had slightly less time to do it. In the last few weeks though I have managed to get out and score some geat stuff...

Some super cute overalls for $1

A gorgeous shirt  for .80c for my lil man!

Jeans for me for $4

A cute wooden mobile (part of a set) $5 for my little mans room

A wooden nutrcracker which now stands guard on Bodhi's bookshelf! - $4

The best thing about op-shopping is finding unique treasures that might otherwise have become landfill!!