When my eldest son was a toddler, I came to that stage we all get to. You know. The bed-and-no-nappy stage.

As any slightly experienced Mumma knows, this is the point that you Need Protection.

Oh yes.

I happened to be in Mothercare, and saw a handy bed mat, reduced to about £4. Bargainous! I snapped it up, and whistled on my merry way.

Little was I to know that this was to be one of my Most Ace Buys. No, really. Ever.

That very same bed mat is currently residing under the sheets of child no.4. It has protected four cots and four beds from minor accidents and copious sick bugs both. It has been washed and tumbled more times than I can count, and still looks shiny white and perfect. It has protected my own mattress from the indignities of pregnant waters breaking and subsequent post-birth flooding (from both ends).  It is the envy of all who see it. That mat is now my (9 year) old and very dear friend.

Because, you see, I wasn’t aware that it was reduced that fine destiny-draped day in Mothercare because they were end of line.

And nowhere have I seen such things since.

Plastic sheets, I’ve spotted, oh yes (Bleurgh).

Throwaway disposable pads aplenty (sigh).

But a proper cotton rubber backed mat to slip under the sheet, or even just lie on top of in a limp hot-bodied-sick-fuelled toddler way – or a swollen, milk-filled uncontrollably-leaking-baby-boobs way – have just not been found.

Until now.

Ladies and Gentleman, I give to you… Vertbaudet. And their amazing, wonderful Mattress cover.

Ta Daaaaaa!

Looooook, just look at this thing of beauty called a baby changing bag! The very nice people at Mummy & Little Me are letting us give away two of these delicious Pink Lining Cowshed baby changing bags in our latest competition.

We’ve a heart-warming competition for you; Heartland Series 1 DVD set.

A Family Ranch… A Horse Whisperer… A Fight to Save a Dream…

Adapted from Lauren Brooke’s best-selling novels (6.5 million copies worldwide), Heartland is a family drama series set in the fictional town of Hudson located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

Heartland is a place like no other; a horse ranch with a special mission of healing abused or neglected horses and finding them new homes.

To enter our competition to win a DVD set, click here for further details and entry form.

Neeeeigggghhhh (that’s horse speak for good luck…)

ooooh! Look! Go on, would you just LOOK!

Now, I know that The Pink One does love her pink things. Just a bit.

Oh my, yes, she does.

But almost as much she loves COLOUR. When she sees a new pot of crayons her eyes widen and she does a little gasp of glee that gets me every time. It’s the colour. So you can imagine her reaction when she spotted the most delicious Jasmine Doll on my screen today. She quite literally stroked it. And then got very cross wanting to know where HER orange doll was.

Cornrow braids with different coloured knots, a real necklace and the all-important (I”m learning) removable dress, pinafore, bloomers and boots.  She is made from 100% hand woven cotton, the dresses are made with the finer mercerised cotton, all carefully hand dyed with eco-friendly, safe dyes, and finally stuffed with kapok.

Like all of So Indigo‘s products, she is made from hand using sustainable, traditional methods.

Oh and there’s the small matter of just how lovely she is, yes? Go on, take another look and tell me you’re not smiling.

I’m not normally a huge fan of personalised clothing – or even of slogan-wear, if I’m being truthful.

But.

Oh Jack Spratt Baby – you do it with such STYLE!

Fresh, Funky and totally modern… I was grinning within minutes of arriving at the site. After all – who wouldn’t want a Vegas Elvis romper for their boy?

The good folk at Fisher-Price are letting us give away two sets of their fantastically fun Little People play sets.

Two lucky winners will each receive a Fisher-Price Racin’ Ramps Garage and Animal Sounds Farm.

Click here for full details and entry form. Zoom, zoom, moo, mooooo!

Like everyone we love some nice-smelling soft stuff to pamper ourselves with. And we’re pretty sure you’re no different. But of course you already have a bathroom cabinet full of the stuff, and you have your favourites, yes?

Yes, of course.

But what if we said this was entirely natural too?

Entirely natural, and entirely fantastic at what it does?

And not only natural, but handmade?

Handmade in Wales?

Handmade to be extra concentrated, so you need less?

Handmade in Wales using fairly traded, ethically sourced sustainable ingredients?

Palm Free, Cruelty Free and proudly Vegan?

Well, you’d bite my soft and sweet-smelling hand off, wouldn’t you?

Of course you would.

Did I mention the bottles are pretty too?

(welcome, Maia skincare. We are SO glad you joined us. *beam*)

When Piran reached six months old I was pleased to be able to use a lighter, umbrella folding style buggy for popping to the shops. The Mamas and Papas Tour is designed as lightweight solution for holidays and days out. It is easy to open and close and has a clip to keep it together. It has a carry handle and a shoulder strap which makes it easy to carry. Folded it is quite small and fitted easily into my boot with lots of room (and I have a small car!).

My particular favourite feature is the window in the hood that helps you see your child. The backrest lowers quite a bit compared to most buggies of this type I have seen which was great if we were out at nap times and the handles were at a good height. The rain cover was very easy to fit and when it was folded up it fits in a pocket on the back of the hood which is very handy. The shopping basket is quite big, but it is hard to get items in and out of it, and almost impossible when the backrest is reclined. My only other issue is that sometimes the steering is a little jerky, I think it is something to do with the front wheels but it is not a huge problem.

Overall I am really pleased with the Tour, and we have used it almost every day since we got it.

Currently £89 from Mamas & Papas

Review by Kelly (who usually lives at A Place of My Own)

You need to prepare yourself when you go see LittleStuff’s newest friend, All About the Boys.

Because I feel obliged to warn you that Things May Not Be as You Expect.

Tis true. It happened to me.

So I just need to make one thing very clear.

It is certainly NOT ‘All about the Boys’.

Oh no.

There are Many Pretty Things in its pages that are most certainly All About The Girls.

So, now we have that cleared up, take a delve into the cool clear freshness of its pages and you’ll find childrens clothing of quality and substance. Branded designer clothes imported direct from America, which means limited high quality stock at great prices. What’s not to love about that?!

And for my own part I love that the site covers all the way up to age 14. Fan-flippin-tastic for those of us with older not-so-smalls (I have my eye on some oh-so-smart Ralph Lauren shorts for no.1 son). But also wa-a-ay back down the other end there’s bespoke girls dresses to coo over from Karen’s own Milly By The Sea label.

Stock sells out quickly, so be sure to check back regularly for newly listed items. And don’t tell me you don’t feel calmer just wafting around the lovely website, either.

Oh, we do love pretty websites. And quirky websites. And invitingly funky websites. Oh, and websites that sell lots of yummy ‘oooh!’ stuff too.

So.

Needless to say, we LOVE Peanut and Pip! (I mean – how cute is their LOGO, for goodness sake?)

The latest member to be welcomed into the LittleStuff House, I’ve seriously just lost 15 minutes  while I tried to write a simple welcome post – I got sidetracked meandering through their pages.

Don’t miss my favourite Mandy Sutcliffe Belle and Boo prints… or the fantastic T’es fou Louloup… or the reach-out-to-stroke Playforever racing cars… or… maybe I’ll step away from the mouse now…

So go on – go look for yourself. I dare you…

It all sounds lovely doesn’t it? Popping out in the sunshine for an afternoon of pottering in the garden with the toddler, Getting Things Done.

But the trouble is, they’re a bit over-keen when they do help; and frankly are a pain when they inevitably get bored and wander off mid-job.

So when I saw these Vegetable Gardens in a GroBox from Lakeland (yes, Lakeland! Who knew?!) I just had to try it out…

WITH Pink.

Oh yes.

So – here’s how we did…

Take one Gro Box, and one toddler - preferably not mine, and any colour will do they don't have to be pink.

Get gleeful toddler to create one hole, several inches deep, to place said GroBox in... Filling shoes with soil optional.

Keep digging, "it's a 'Portant Job, Mummy". Waving trowel in a threatening manner at curious older brothers also optional.

Place entire box in beautiful, wonderful, lovely hole (darling) and pop out each hole in the top. This bit is Very Fun too.

Willingly, but in slightly confused fashion, cover the lovely box back up with all that earth you spread around before.

Nab a passing big brother to handle the tricky watering can. Bossy commands to make sure he Does It Right may be necessary.

And that's that. Easy peasy.

Honestly, that’s all there is to it. You plonk the box in the ground, water it… and wait.

Each box is a complete kit containing seeds and compost, so that really is all you have to do.

The box insulates the bulbs, giving them the best start in life; being made from 100% biodegradable, recycled cardboard and infused with special growth enhancers, it automatically releases nutrients as it breaks down in the ground, to help the seeds grow.

And the box comes filled with a year-round array of veg.

So we’ll keep watching and waiting and watering, and will let you know what happens…

And there you have it – veg planted by the 3 year old… and it really was lots of fun.

Looking for the funkiest of children’s wear? We know a place that’s got some of THE funkiest stuff around; Green Eyed Monster.

Moomin, 65 years young but as gorgeous as ever. The Beatles icon images such as Yellow Submarine – fantastic! Ahhhh, you just can’t beat gorgeous designs for the little people. Best bit of all, their stuff is organic and/or fairtrade. Marvellous!

P.S. When you’ve finished ooohing and aahhhing about the gorgeous clothes, take a look at the Fun & Games section of the site… the Create Your Own Monster is fun!

See that glimmer of sunshine? Oh yes, the Winter coats are being put away as the air is filled with the noise of lawn mowers and children playing. Ahhhh, just the best isn’t it?!

Fun stuff for the outdoors is what we need! Pedal Pushers is the website to visit, oh yes. Stacked full of trikes, scooters, go karts and all sorts of ride on toys. They also have loads of swings, slides, trampolines, climbing frames, garden games and more!

But when the British weather does it’s thing and the rain does fall, fear not, they have a Rainy Day section too. Phew.

Yes, yes, I know, I know… Easter holidays kind of got in the way of Brisk and Efficient Blogging Service.

But it’s Monday, they’re all back at school (and nursery… sob), and Here I Am.

Last This week’s Blog Love is flying half way round the world, to one of my favourite reads. The Reluctant Memsahib is a blog I’ve been following for a year or so – I love her writing, I love her photography… and most of all I love her life. I read her blog and dream that one day soon we’ll be brave enough to take off and live the dream in Africa.

But not today.

This particular post is very poignant for me, coming as it does at the end of a really very special two weeks holidaying with my family, watching them with that mix of pride, joy and sadness as they grow and mature right before my eyes. In ten years time, this post “The sustaining scent of the sea. And memories.” could be written by me, I can see it already.

Except I, of course, won’t do it half as beautifully…

Click on the flower, and enjoy.

… and an attractive Death Stalker (apparently) too.

The puppy, of course

The Soldier – hat and jacket models own. Sigh.

The Death Stalker. Lovely.

We’ve been sent a pack of face paints by the fab people at Snazaroo, so with a holiday afternoon meandering past and no one having any better suggestions I offered to paint a face. Or three.

Well – my dodgy artistic efforts aside (GCSE art wasn’t much help) it was a HUGE success! The two boys took a long time to choose their’face’ (actually, that’s a lie – Jolly didn’t even glance at the book before insisting “soldier”), and they sat very still – seemed in fact to find it quite calming – and even Pink tried to sit still.

Though the iffy whiskers are testament to the fact that still isn’t something she’s very good at.

And she apparently has a very ticklish chin. Who knew?

Most surprising of all was how interested they were in watching each other be painted, all crowding in and commenting as we went.

Anyhoo, it was a great activity for all of us, and led to a Very Grand Game in which the soldier hunted the puppy, and the Death Stalker stalked the soldier. And the puppy rushed about shrieking “yip-yip-yip”.

As puppies do.

Stand by for a bit of a love fest.
See, I do love soft things. And stripy things. And lovely coloured things.
And the blankets from the Stripy Blankets Company?
All those things.
Oh yes.
And spots too.

You need one.
No, honestly.

This blanket is perfect, and Pink adores it nearly as much as I do. And the best thing is that it’s such good quality I can see her still using it in 20 years time.

Despite her best ministrations, this blanket still looks perfect, even after months of ‘loving’ it with a bit of dribble, a bit of wee (sorry), a bit too much jam and an awful lot of dragging it around. It’s not too bulky, but is plenty big enough for us both to curl up under on the sofa for a book sharing cuddle-up. It’s big enough for tea parties, small enough for the car, handy to use on her cotbed (you know, as blanket of all things), and despite having pink on it isn’t the least bit offensive to three big brothers (who all try to snaffle some useage when her back is turned).

It machine washes really well (and yes, it is 100% lambswool so use the wool cycle!) and though I’ve not dared to tumble dry such a precious thing (I am not that stoopid) it does dry remarkably quickly.

As always, we suggest you do have a mooch around the lovely, outdoors-fresh site; there’s cotton versions too (and some with spots!), and if you really don’t like the stripes (tsk) there’s even a (nice-but-duller-than-the-stripes) plain one for you.

Bestest of bests, The Stripy Company is run by two Mums – Anouk and Christa – and you know how much we like it when we find Lovely Products being sold by Lovely Mums. Happiness is thus.

*NB – The Stripy Company since changed their blanket sizes. You can now choose between a pram blanket size, or a large picnic blanket. Even better!

We’re getting a tad international here at LittleStuff as we welcome Baby Kneez to our shopping directory.

Baby Kneez is a Canadian company that also ships to the UK. Created by a Mum, Celine, who’d had enough of sore, bruised knees on her crawling babies, Baby Kneez might be just the thing you are looking for if you have an adventurous baby or toddler who doesn’t want to stop exploring just because the terrain becomes knee-unfriendly.

Celine has also found Baby Kneez to be of much comfort to parents of children with special needs and those who get sore at the back of their knees from their wheelchair seat.

Available in many bright, funky colours and machine washable too!

Please join us in giving a warm welcome to another great company joining our superb shopping directory.

Everyday Maternity is just the sort of site expecting Mums like to shop from. Lots and lots of choice for all your maternity and breastfeeding clothing needs and more.

What better way to shop with a bump on your lap than on-line from the comfort of your own home?!

We get excited about Easter, so have decided to have a little competition to celebrate. We are giving away some lovely gifts. Our cow boy and cow girl pencil cases are great for going back to school after the holidays. The beautiful floppy cotton hats, one with a boat design, the other with a dolly design are just in time for the sunshine. And the very popular hand crocheted cat toys are great for a gift or for your own special little boy or girl.

All you have to do is follow us on Twitter @snuggnightwear using #snuggeaster and sign up to our newsletter http://bit.ly/bZ6rxI before midnight on Sunday and you could be in the chance to win. We will be announcing the winner on Monday, a great way to end the holiday!

Well now.

Yes, I admit it, I’m a sucker for a lovely notepad.

What is less well known (though not exactly rare) is that I also happen to be a sucker for all things Penguin (thats the orange book designs, not the black and white cold birds. Though they’re sweet too. Or the chocolate biscuits. Which actually I’m not so fond of, though chocolate is chocolate in a pinch). And of course all things Jane Austen.

So.

Ta Da!

Feast your eyes on that orange rectangle of desk heaven.

How much do you want to jot your noble thoughts into that little package of loveliness?

And in case you needed added incentive – it has Lined Pages too.

*happy*

(while you’re looking at my new best-place-to-lose-ten-minutes-shop Mollie and Fred, fly by the children’s section. I want one of these, too, just for ME)