Childrens sun hats are the bane of my life. They don’t fit, they don’t stay on, they get lost, the children don’t like them so they won’t wear them, the ones they do like don’t provide enough protection…. Ugh.

So I have to admit I was less than enthusiastic at trying out the Baby Banz stuff, despite Judith from Kiddymania prompting that I would love them. Hats for a 4mth old? Mm-hmmm.

And sunglasses? I have to admit my children have never had sunglasses – I could never see them keeping them on for more than 5 minutes, and they *should* always be wearing a hat to shade their eyes.

But when the parcel arrived, I’ll admit. I was pleasantly surprised. Excited, in fact. The glasses were shallow – no nasty nose bits – and had this fab wrap-around soft headband which would keep them in place all day long.

And it just got better.

Tobys hat was the legionnaires style – but probably just about the very best one I’ve seen. The peak is wide and deep, providing great shade for the face, the neck flap is again really generous, covering not only the nape of the neck, but the ears too. The material is the same stuff swimsuits are made from, which means it’s perfect for summer – light, washable and quick-drying if it gets dunked in the sea.

Theres an additional string-tie for under the chin, but we haven’t needed to use it yet. The stretchy nature of the fabric means it fits snugly, but not tightly – and Toby thinks it’s just the coolest thing ever.

So, to the baby brim hat. At first glance, what a foolish thing. A hat to fit 3mths to age 2 – like that’s going to work.

But it does!

Really!

There’s this brilliant adjustable band on the outside of the main ‘body’ of the hat which is just a stroke of genius, and completely works.

The wide brim is brilliant protection, it’s a lovely strong cotton fabric, and it fits Pink without shifting when she swings her head.

But it’s all about The Brim. Genius, it is.

It is actually soft enough to bend when she lies back in the pushchair/on the rug without pinging the hat off her head – Huzzah (that’s her at the top, demonstrating)! but it remains strong enough to stand out to create plenty of protection.

Have I sold you yet? I don’t need to even start on the UV protection – that’s about the best you can buy in babywear. I love these, and guarantee you will too – we can’t recommend them highly enough. You can see more pics of them on trial by Pink and Jolly-the-Rock-Star last week here.

The Baby Banz range can be found on the Kiddymania site.

*2011 ETA – since writing this review Kiddymania have reduced a lot of their range, but we also work closely with The Beach Factory who have a fab range of cool options for your childrens sun protection.

No news – no work today :D – just thought I’d share my breakfast in bed. Presented by 3 boys before school, the bed became a little overcrowded, and hot-tea-drinking temporarily ranked as an extreme sport, but Happy Days.
Made more so by the gift of a super-whizz-bang new food processor (LOVE shiny new kitchen toys :D)and a Nintendo Wii (YAY!!!).

LittleStuff have the proud honour of being the very first people in the UK to try out the new Wiona Bio-nappy. Review is coming shortly on the site, but here’s first impressions (thats Ella on the left there, proudly showing you her Wiona nappy…):
Soft and silky – but most important of all NO leakage!
I’m loving them – have to admit that Katy’s the eco-warrior, and whilst I try and do my bit, with nappies I’m firmly in the convenient-brand-disposable range (though i do think tescos are as good as pampers…).
But I’m converted. I love the way these feel on Ella, when I take off even a bulgingly heavy full wet one in the morning her skin feels soft and smooth and dry. And not a leak is to be had, despite her wearing them for 12hrs a night.
All that, and goods for the environemnet too. Its looking like a thumbs up from us for these…

We have this highchair for review – so here’s first impressions (we’ve used it twice, Ellas just been introduced to the delights of food-that-comes-on-a-spoon):
It’s well built and sturdy, and was all put together and ready to be used wihtin 5 minutes of opening the box. How practical the casters (even with brakes) are on a laminate floor remain to be seen, but so far so good.
The seat reclines nicely for Ella, who at 5mths still hasn’t mastered the art of sitting up, but refused to wait any longer for some decent food (or rather, I got tired of the new 2hrly-feed demands at night form the baby who has slept through from a week old).
She seems confortable, the seat is nicely padded without being bulky, and the straps adjust enough to fit her well, but have plenty of scope for expansion (!).

The verdict on the banana was a huge yummmmm, by the way… :)

Our Wilkinet competition closed last week – the two lucky winners were;
Rebecca Reid from Co. Durham, and Rachael Holmes from Newton-le-Willows.
Congratulations to you both!

Bec was lovely enough to mail us today;

“My Wilkinet carrier arrived today. Can’t believe I actually won!
So many thanks!
Bec Reid”

Our pleasure Bec – hope you get much use out of it, and send us a pic of it in action please!

Ohhhh….
I won’t spoil the site review of these.
But.
I LOVE mine!!!!
Sandra at sasaslings had a feeling we might like them. How right she was – pretty AND practical. What more do we ever ask for?

Once again, here I am, trawling the web looking for a product, and getting CROSS. When I find one, I’m going to give them a FREE listing on LittleStuff – mail me if you can help!
I’m looking for a baby nightdress. Thats all. It’s not much to ask, is it? Once upon a time, we all had them. Until someone invented the popper-filled sleepsuit… I have currently have three nightdresses for Ella, one of which was mine when I was a baby, and two my sister gave me from her first baby, 18 years ago. 100% cotton, no gathering at the bottom, pretty, and SO practical.

But NO ONE sells them anymore! Ella has grown out of the two newer ones, which are narrower in the body, so I’m down to one now. The trouble is, tumble drying my sleepsuits has shrunk them, and all her 3-6mth sleepsuits are now too short. It seems silly to buy new ones for her at the age of 5mths, and the 6-9mth ones are ridiculously long.
A couple of new nightdresses would be just the ticket, I thought, especially for the summer months – no matter how much I manage to shrink the nightdress in the tumble dryer, her feet will just keep on growing right out the bottom :).

But no one sells them!

Anyone reading this – shout of you know of any! I know Cut4Cloth do them, but they’re elasticated at the bottom – call me fussy, but I already have a sleeping bag, I want a nightdress! I bet you all remember them – where can i get one?!

Baby Banz – Judith from Kiddymania suggested we try these out, convinced that we’d love them. Hmmm. I have to admit, I was sure I would be in the “well, they’re okay, but a bit unnecessary” camp.
WRONG!
I LOVE these! Ella’s sunglasses I’m still thinking are possibly not necessary yet and will probably just live in the car. Toby adores his, feels like a rock star in them and its a job to get them off him, so I’m thinking they’ll be in use all summer.
But the hats… oh, they are something else, SO brilliantly designed!

This is Ella, clearly showing how great she thinks she looks – but more importantly how a young baby can wear this big brimmed hat without it popping off when they lie back in it. Genius design.
Oh, and Toby feeling like a rock star has to be included!
I don’t need to bang on about the importance of UV protection – suffice to say that these products just do it really well… You can see the whole range on KiddyMania’s Sun Shop – do go and see, because they are SO worth it! Our full Baby Banz review can be seen here.

Matching polo tops for Daddy and baby, eh? Hmmm…. ok, I’ll be honest, I wasn’t too sure about these tops. The baby one yes, very cute but a big version for the big man? Hmmmmm…. how am I going to write a tactful review about these? So, I tucked them away for Father’s Day and held back on judgement….

The big day arrived and when Peter (Mr Katy) unwrapped them (the wrapping itself is gorgeous, lots of beautiful tissue and ribbons makes it feel very special before you have even opened it) he was really pleased! On they went (see photo on the right) and all day they were worn, with pride. Something that Peter really liked about them is that they were just his and Ben’s. The other gifts he had received for Father’s Day, Jacob (who’s 4) had made and were special for that reason – this was something for just Daddy and Ben for their own first Father’s Day.

The quality of these tops is superb and the shade of blue is just right. If it was any darker or lighter it might not work as well. Laura had the ‘girl’ version, of course, and loves it. The only difference is the hint of pink under the collar and the pink embroidered logo. Again, the colour is perfect – soft, subtle, not too girly. We love the fact that they are made in England, with fairtrade cotton.

A very big thumbs-up from us at LittleStuff. A wonderful gift for Daddy that will be worn many more times than just on Father’s Day.

See! How great do our men with their babies look??? (we can hear your ‘aaaahhh’ from here!) :-)

Whether you are a handbag or backpack or shoulder bag or any other kind of bag person or not, the first few years with a baby will MAKE you a bag person. Having just the right bag to hold all the absolutely essential cannot-even-contemplate-leaving-home-without-them bits for the baby is ESSENTIAL. The baby bag will be your best friend, your life saver and in it’s depths will hold the answer to your desperate prayers (oh yes, we DO have a spare vest right down there in the bottom corner).

In my years as a ‘professional’ mother, I’ve had experience with quite a few. To date, I would only contemplate a backpack or shoulder bag to keep hands free. On-the-shoulder bags always fall off, right at the wrong moment. So, when the Caboodle Smart Day bag landed I was hesitant…. hmmmmm, not sure this one will make me happy….. ok, it’s very cute with it’s swanky colourful dots and the shape is pleasing. Yes, yes, I actually cracked a full grin at the polka dot pink interior and matching bottle thermos pouch. BUT, I then discovered the buggy straps and absolute happiness flowed! Ahhhhh, the true convenience of having a bag sitting there, right where you want it and easy to get into. The inside pockets do away with that dance at the check-out of trying to find your purse right deep down, underneath the wet wipes. Ahh, but your wet wipes won’t be in the purse’s way anymore because they are tucked neatly in the fold-out side pockets of the change mat which has it’s own perfect slot too! I have had one minor hitch with it, the zip on the wet wipe pocket has broken off as I was in a flustered panic, clutching onto two little ankles with one hand, keeping them away from the World’s Biggest Poo and trying to get to the wet wipes with the other. Something about those situations that just increase a Mum’s strength to beyond even what Superman can muster on a good day.

The Caboodle Smart Day bag is robust too and manages to be so without looking like something out of a camping-hiking-mountain-climbing catalogue. It has a hard-wearing plastic base with tiny little feet so you can set it down and it won’t fall over. The five smaller pockets around the outside of the bag are marvellous for slotting in mobile phone, dummy, socks-that-have-just-been-kicked off and anything else you need to quickly store or have to hand.

Since we reviewed the Caboodle Smart Bag, the range has been changed, and the £35 Fun & Funky has take its place. We’re always happy for stripes or spots, this is a good move we think….

Leslie (from the Price Jones Partnership PR agency) hooked us up with some Bambio Merino baby sleep bags. Wow, these are the creme de la creme of baby sleeping bags, no doubt! Read our review at LittleStuff.

Leslie has some more products up her sleeve for us to baby-test so watch this space.

Katy

What a DISASTROUS afternoon.
Thought I’d be sensible and combine the school run with a quick trip to Sainsburys.
Ha.
Ella loves to sit and be adored from the trolley throne. But she’d been ‘off’ all day, and in the fruit and veg section she was approached by a really nice lady who wanted to tickle her toes – Ella apparently didn’t WANT her toes tickled – and hollered about it very loudly. She continued to grizzle or cry all the way round…. sigh…
THREE times I was asked (bear in mind Ella was wearing jeans with pink flowers embroidered on them, and a white top with a bright pink rainbow) how old HE was. This made Toby very cross, and the final straw was a lady asking him what his brothers name was – ‘She’s my SISTER not my brother, and her name is Ella – can’t you SEE???’ in that very vocal disdainful way that only a 4yr old can get away with.
Finally, we made it to the checkout, all boys still in one piece, not too much junk added to the trolley when my back was turned, Ella STILL moaning loudly.
And my card was refused.
AARGHHHHHHH!!!!
Plenty of money in the account, PIN number was correct – but card was denied.
No chequebook, and flustered brain can’t think of the PIN numbers for any of the four other credit cards in my purse, husband was in the studio and not available for help.
Nothing for it but to leave the shopping and drive the 13 miles home, ring the bank, shout at the bank, listen to banks abject apology and nonplussed assurance that the card ‘should’ have workd (No, you think???). Thankfully husband is now home, so i leave the boys with him and head back to the store. All hail the computer age – I had visions of having to have the lot rescanned, but no. they simpky rescanned the receipt, my shopping appeared, and ai paid. Same card, same PIN – no problems. My trolley was rescued (still fully packed) from Sainsburys store chiller, and I got to go back home with shopping again.
Two and a half hours this has taken (my ‘quick’ shop…), it’s now gone 6, Ella’s managed to drift off in the car (yes, like I want her sleeping NOW…), I have done nothing for dinner…
Get home to find clean tidy house, boys all sat at the table eating, laundry all sorted and next days lunches being packed up. God bless my husband, eh?

I’ve just had a great email (for us!) from the Soil Association – (it gets better, patience) – asking about our Featured Supplier slot on the homepage.
Apparently, Marie from Organix recommended us (thank you Marie!). It means so much when a really great company passes our name on. Had us smiling for days!

Stephen is in charge of setting up the Soil Association’s new enterprise on WhyOrganic – which we were really pleased to be able to help with. Katy’s a bit of an organic-fanatic (apart form the fact that that rhymes rather pleasingly, she really does have her very own foodie-rant soapbox, known and beloved by her friends) so naturally she was really excited about this. Organix and the Soil Association have teamed up with a freebie box of Organix goodies (£20′s worth!) to anyone signing up to a family membership before the end of June – so please do go and have a look and see for yourself. There are other freebies with the membership too such as the ‘Organic Baby and Toddler Cookbook’ and ‘Mole’s Dream’ – an introductory DVD for young children. And there’s more! Click on this link to find out more.

There’s loads of stuff on the site too, not just interesting organic info., but useful tips, recipes and games for the smalls. Go on, its fun!

I was chatting with the lovely lady from Hippins a few weeks ago, and she asked if I’d seen the new Noonoo products. I hadn’t and she said “but you must!” and sent a few over for us to review.
Well, Ella nabbed the mini blanket straight out the beautiful box and I whisked the Eyepod and the Lambstails off to Katy before she saw those too.
The Noonoo range is just comfort of the highest quality. You couldn’t ask for anything nicer to snuggle up to and fiddle with. We have done quite a long review on these – but we couldn’t help it, we love them so much!
Ben sleeps with his Eyepod every night (have to admit I couldn’t see the point of the Eyepod – but then I’m not 7 months old and apparently, in the World According to Ben, the Eyepod has a very definite and perfect place in the scheme of things). Honestly, seek these out – they are just the yummiest comforters we’ve seen and as Katy said in the review, are the kind of thing that’ll be remembered and treasured for years.

Aaaah, the Noonoo© – what can we say? Perfect – that’s it. Perfect.

Pink has been testing (read ‘staking a claim to’) the Bug-gy mini comfort blanket. It’s just the right size as she works it in her 4 month-old hands. She also shoves it in her mouth for a dribble and a chew, fiddles with the stacks of textured tags and has it balled in her fist when she sleeps. I am absolutely sure we’ll be buying a bigger version for her cot.

Ben has been playing and snuggling with the Noonoo© Eyepod which as well as being made of the same soft and tactile felt it has lots of lovely ‘nobbles’ to fiddle with and is just the right size and shape to cuddle. Many a night we have found Ben fast asleep with the Eyepod clutched to his chest.

The Noonoo© Lambstails are tennis ball sized and great fun for a strapping 7 month-old like Ben to tackle. Giggles galore can be heard as Jacob rolls them across the floor to Ben (and occassionaly lobs them too). Mum’s happy, safe in the knowledge they won’t a) hurt Ben or b) break the TV. Quieter moments can find Ben engrossed in the tags and textures of the Lambstails.

The Noonoo© product range are all just great, oozing quality and sturdiness and plain old-fashioned comfort. They are the least colourful baby toy we’ve probably ever seen but that’s irrelevant, because they’re all about the feel. And they feel just fantastic. Each one is felted lambswool – but don’t panic, Pink’s blanket has already had a necessary wash, and on a cool wash there was no shrinkage at all (I’m firmly told you’re NOT to tumble dry them, though).

Noonoo’s© are those very special baby things. The kind that will be loved for years to come and tenderly packed away in your child’s keepsake box. Decades from now your grown-up-too-fast child will have a nostalgic rummage through their baby box, smile at some old photos and pick up their super soft and much loved Noonoo©, brush it against their cheek and smile blissfully. We can even imagine them being freshened up and handed down to grandchildren. Sigh.

Because they are all hand finished with some very funky, subtle and childlike embroidery, no two are the same. So your child’s Noonoo© will be unique – just as a child’s special noonoo© should be.