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Things to remember when swaddling your baby

2010-09-07T14:07:00.000+02:00

Things to remember when swaddling your baby

Some newborn babies have difficulties settling after a feed or wake themselves up with their own reflex movements. This means that you may end up holding your baby the whole time - and not getting any rest yourself!

A swaddled baby can settle comfortably and safely within its blanket because it feels warm and enclosed like in the womb.

Swaddling is, in fact, a simple technique that has been used for Centuries by midwives all over the world.

It involves wrapping the baby in a blanket to make sure he or she feels snug and secure. This helps baby getting used to life outside the womb.

You have to watch out that you don't overhead your baby! Dress your baby according to the room temperature and check up on your baby regularly.

It's best to use natural breathable clothes that allow air circulation - you don't want to end up irritating your baby's skin through sweat or artificial materials!

Use a blanket that stretches so you can wrap your baby without him or her having to lie on uncomfortable creases.

Make sure your baby is fed and clean before swaddling him or her! Always burp your baby after feeding - regardless whether bottle- or breastfed. Trapped air won't allow your baby to rest.

Swaddle your newborn for no more than 1 month whilst he or she is awake. After that your baby will need to develop his or her own movements which shouldn't be restricted!

For sleeping it's fine to continue swaddling your baby for several more months but stop when your baby can roll over!

If you're not swaddling your baby in the blanket you can alwasy roll it up and use it as a support for your baby, in the pram or car.
A lot of toddlers form a strong connection with their 'blankie' so make sure you get one that lasts!

Have a look at our range of organic baby swaddle blankets - with hand-croched designs.

Funky Organic Baby, Toddler & Kids Hats

2010-08-23T13:03:00.001+02:00

The Summer seems to be coming to an end here - we've had gails and rain ever since going back to school a week ago!

A good time to launch our new organic cotton hat range with hand-knitted designs... I've really enjoyed putting together this baby hat collection. From flittery, flattery hand-knitted butterflies, delicious strawberries to cute snails and ducks. Check out our collection yourself!

Of course we also have organic hats with different coloured hand-knitted cars for car-obsessed little people... my son would be devastated if I left these out!

The hats have been tried and tested by numerous babies, toddler and preschool kids - and met great enthusiasm!

Good-bye to colds this Autumn?!

What to look out for when buying first baby or toddler shoes

2010-06-17T13:01:00.006+02:00

What you need to look out for when buying first baby or toddler shoes

Do you feel, 'Oh, how cute!' when you see little baby shoes in the shop? Tiny little sportive or glamour versions of your own shoes? Well, that's because often enough that's what these baby shoes are - tiny versions of adult shoes!

The thing is that your baby has somewhat different needs than you have for your shoes. Of course everybody's shoes need to fit and be comfortable but whilst adults sometimes choose to compromise on quality you shouldn't compromise on behalf of your baby. Fancy flip flops or trendy knee-high boots may well look great but are they appropriate to what your child currently needs?

So this is what you should be thinking about:
1.   'My baby is crawling, standing up, learning to walk and climbing stairs'. This means that his or her co-ordination and balance need to be developed.

Let your baby go barefoot! What better way is there to learn? Or put non-slip socks on.

2.   'We're in the garden a lot and there are a lot of sharp stones around'. Or 'our floor tiles are too cold to walk on'. Babies and toddlers have very delicate skin that needs protecting.

Soft sole leather shoes can protect your child's feet whilst still allowing to 'feel' the ground. They're also non-slip and will therefore hopefully reduce some of the inevitable toddler topples.

3.   'My toddler has chubby feet, I need extra wide shoes!' That's normal, many toddlers have wide feet to start off with.

You need shoes that fit snugly to the size of your child's feet and are moulded by his or her individual foot. There should be room to grow a little!
Soft sole leather shoes allow just this whilst providing the support your toddler needs.

4.   'My little cherub sweats a lot. He or she is so busy with exploring the world!'

Well, of course baby feet also sweat so you should get shoes that allow the skin to breathe naturally.   Plastic shoes won't allow any air circulation and even many leather shoes are chemically impregnated so that the natural pores get blocked.
(This is the reason we don't impregnate the leather shoes in our collection - to enable an exchange of air with the environment and your child's foot).

5.   'I can't stop my baby from putting everything in his or her mouth'.

That's inevitable! You'll just have to keep an eye on your baby and check there are no beads or tassles on the shoes that can be pulled off! If you can, it's also worth checking that the shoe's leather hasn't been processed with chrome or other toxic substances.
(Which is why we've chosen leather for our shoes that is tanned and processed with chrome-free plant extacts only!)

Design your own baby & toddler shoes!

2010-05-27T10:55:00.003+02:00

Don't you just love designer shoes!

You can now design THE perfect soft sole baby and toddler shoe!

The shoes are hand-made with baby chew-safe organic leather. You choose which combination of leather colours you want, embroidered motive, hear or star application, stripes....

AND add your child's name to create a unique baby gift!

Click on this link and design baby's first walking shoes NOW!

Dummy clips - essential baby gear when out and about!

2010-04-13T12:54:00.004+02:00

Dummy clips - the essential piece of baby gear when you're out and about!

Well, we've a brand new range of personalised dummy clips so check it out NOW!

How do you calm down your upset baby?

2010-04-01T13:21:00.004+02:00

How do you calm down your upset baby?

Every parent knows what it's like. Your baby is yelling the place down and all heads are turning to see what you're going to do about it.
Well, WHAT are you going to do?

There may be a perfectly rational reason as to why your baby is unhappy - a full nappy, too hot, hungry... it's easy enough to remedy that!
Sometimes, however, it's not so easy to know why your baby is upset. He or she may be tired but wants to continue playing, sore gums, reflux of all that milk that was just gulped down...

Calming cuddles will often be often be the solution to all babies worries. Carrying your baby around in a sling can work wonders - it also keeps your hands free to get on with other things so there's a double bonus!

Many babies, however, enjoy suckling on a dummy, binky, pacifier, soother, or whatever you may call it. The simulation of (breast) feeding is a natural remedy that can help settle most babies.

In fact, over the last few years there's also been research to indicate that dummies may decrease the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) although there are still many unanswered questions. A dummy can also prevent thumb sucking - a habit much harder to break later in life and that may lead to crooked teeth.

On the other hand, there have also been concerns about a child's dependency on a pacifier as he or she can't sleep at night or grows older. And how good are YOU at making sure your baby's dummy stays clean?

Well, it's ultimately YOUR choice how you do it.

What's YOUR best trick to calm down baby?

Send us an e-mail! The best answer received by 1 May 2010 gets a FREE personalised dummy chain - YOUR choice from our range of wooden pacifier clips!

Rebranding my shop!

2010-03-16T12:51:00.002+01:00

Yes, it's FINALLY getting a bit warmer. I love snow but I'm ready for Spring time now!

Time to breathe in fresh air and go for nice long strolls.... Luckily my yougest daughter still loves being carried in her baby sling so we can cut across fields and go off-path to explore the woods.

I've actually spent the Winter upgrading my shop and renaming it to Unique For Kids. I'm still focusing on personalised gift ideas for babies but have decided to expand a bit. Now I'm also offering unusual gifts for siblings and older children.

In fact, there's a whole new range personalised dummy chains coming soon and our kids bags section will expand dramatically too - together with kids party activity ideas....so make sure to come back soon!

2010-02-01T20:55:00.002+01:00

Special Valentine's offer!

If you're looking for that special Valentine's gift for your kids, have a look at our personalised range of kids and baby clothes as well as personalised kids bags.

For a short time only we're offering FREE DELIVERY for any products bought in the following categories:

Personalised kids hoodies
Personalised kids novelty aprons
Personalised kids bags (printed ones only)
Personalised big brother/ big sister - little brother/ little sister shirt
Personalised baby shirt - 100% organic cotton
Personalised baby underwear - 100% organic cotton
Personalised baby hat - 100% organic cotton
Personalised baby T shirt - 100% organic cotton
Personalised baby bib - 100% organic cotton

Just enter this code when prompted during the checkout: Valentine2010

So hurry! This offer expires on 6 February 2010!!

2010-01-25T14:50:00.000+01:00

We've reopened!

Under a new name: Unique for Kids - personalised, organic, practical gifts & more!

As my own kids are growing at the speed of light, they're now 1, 4 and 6 I made the decision to move away from ONLY baby products.
You'll now find an increasing collection of unusual children's gifts in my shop. Currently, there's a fun range of personalised children's clothes and kids bags available - and loads more things are in the pipeline!

I enjoy keeping in touch with what kids like and what's practical - or what's not! My own kids tend to be the most honest product reviewers, it's great to have their help!

2010-01-10T20:37:00.000+01:00

New year - new ideas - new technology

Christmas has come and past and now we're already well and truely in the middle of the new year. I still feel the freshness of it in the air - probably helped by supreme skating conditions and the natural beauty of snow.

I'd like to wish you the best of luck and good health this year, loads of fun and enough motivating successes!

As for the International Baby Shop, we're in the process of updating our entire shop technology to the latest standards. I know this sounds boring but it's actually a great opportunity to incorporate some of your feedback on the shop! For instance, for many customers it's very important that they are able to send gifts by post to the intended receipient rather than receiving it themselves first. Fair enough if you don't live in the neighbourhood of the child in question or the child's in another country...

Anyway, we'll have an even easier way for you to choose a separate delivery address once the new shop goes live...

A lot of our products will also be updated to give you great gift ideas for unusual gifts, personalised gifts, baby gifts, big sister gifts, big brother gifts, christening gifts etc.

Most importantly, we'll be changing the name of the gift shop to Uniqueforkids.com to include products for bigger children as well...

You see, lots of changes... I can't wait to show you in a couple of weeks!

2009-11-12T14:49:00.001+01:00

Why soft-soled leather shoes are the next best thing to walking barefooted!

Your child is reaching an important milestone in his or her little life: learning to walk!

Just image how hard it must be on those little delicate feet to start bearing the weight of your bubbly, bow-legged baby. Just as well he or she has such a well-protected (nappy) backside - learning to walk comes with bumps and bruises!

Anyway, give your child the sensory advantages of walking barefoot and protect those delicate feet with soft leather shoes:

Here's why:

1) because of the natural flexibility within the leather, they adapt to the shape of your child's foot beautifully

2) the roughened yet soft sole gives a good grip whilst still allowing your child to feel the floor's texture

3) the shoes will stay on your childs foot (even with socks on!) because the ankle section has integrated elastic

4) natural pores within the leather allow an exchange of air between your child's foot and its environment. This should prevent sweaty feet!

5) even as your child has mastered the art of walking, parents often continue using leather shoes as house shoes because they keep the feet nice and warm on cold tiled or wooded floors...

Have a look at our range of organic soft leather baby shoes with fun motives and embroidered with your child's name!

2009-11-11T11:06:00.009+01:00

Let your baby go barefoot!

Babies learn by touching and feeling things. Instinctively, they grab everything they can get their hands on and put it in their mouth. This is a natural exploration every baby goes through. Of course their feet are part of this exploration.

As your baby becomes more mobile she'll start pushing herself off the ground with her feet. She needs to learn to co-ordinate her muscle groups and balance before she starts crawling. Often, babies start moving around by making swimming-like movements. Some babies start off by crawling backwards or crawl like a bear without using their knees. Others others simply shuffle along on their backsides.... each to their own! On all accounts, it makes for excellent video footage!

Whichever way your baby starts off crawling, she'll develop her co-ordination and senses best if she's barefooted. The perfect grip of bare feet will give her the confidence to go on making the first tentative steps of her own!

Unfortunately it's not always practical to go barefooted. You may have a cold floor at home or, if you're lucky enough to experience this fun phase in the warm Summer, there may be ants, sharp stones or prickly leaves around...

So if barefoot is not an option then socks should keep your baby's feet nice and warm indoors. Do make sure that you get socks with non-slip soles, though! You don't want your baby gliding all over the floor and picking up unnecessary bruises.

There are disadvantages to wearing socks, however:

1) they have the annoying habit of slipping or being pulled off - so you'll just loose them.

2) tight-fitting socks may actually be too tight round the ankle which can restrict blood flow and be uncomfortable for your baby.

3) you can't really use them outside very well as they get wet quickly and torn

4) they get all clammy from being chewed on by your baby

5) and they don't provide very good protection - against very cold stone floors, splinters or sharp objects.

So what's the alternative?: Soft-soled leather shoes. Read why leather shoes are a great alternative to walking barefoot.

2009-11-02T11:04:00.005+01:00

Just in case you're not entirely sure on how to fix your baby's pacifier to his or her personalised wooden pacifier clip chain, here are some instructions:

2009-10-05T10:28:00.011+02:00

A new range of personalised dummy holders!

Do you use a dummy chain for your baby? You should do!

They're a simple but brilliant accessory to have. You fasten the dummy to the chain and clip it to your child's jacket or buggy. Like this you won't loose the dummy when your baby drops it or throws it away in one fo those baby tantrums... This also means that the dummy won't pick up nasty bacteria and other harmful things from the ground!

What's more, your baby can play with the chain, exploring the fun shapes and colours of the wooden beads.

In fact, your baby is likely to massage his or her teething gums on the beads which is why we are very careful to only use materials made of sweat and saliva-proof non-toxic materials with rounded edges. The chains conform to strict safety norms (DIN EN 12586) which means that the total length of the dummy holder (excluding fastening clip) doesn't exceed 22cm.

We know that your child can't yet read so won't really care about having his or her name on the dummy chain. But we also know that a dummy chain spelling out your child's name is a lovely gift and keepsake.

The nice thing about these dummy holders is that they're just-so accessories - small enough for your pocket, light enough to take along anywhere, fun to play with, really useful and very affordable!

2009-09-24T09:46:00.010+02:00

So school has well and truely started again. The kids are a bit older and facing new adventures and challenges.

Swimming lessons, football, tennis... In fact, yesterday I went out to buy a tennis racket for my daughter - with a short stubby handle as it'd be too long for her otherwise. In October she'll be starting her first tennis lessons...

A good time to introduce more bag models. We already offer children's nylon rucksacks with their name embroidered on it - or backpacks for those who prefer that term. We also have small kiddies canvas and nylon shoulder bags with name and lots of fun designs.

Our latest addition are large personalisable sports, school and nappy bags. These can be personalised with the same fun motives as the smaller bags.

Whereas the smaller bags are great for young children and babies, the larger bags are also suitable for older children, teenagers, Mums & Dads or even Grannies & Grandpas. An ideal special gift for special people!

Alternatively you can have your name and favourite motive printed on a retro-style school, sports or nappy bag.

The choice is yours!

2009-09-14T11:21:00.007+02:00

Hurray, we have a new collection of nappy cakes, trains and boats!

Due to popular request we've extended our range of nappy design gift ideas. They're all deliciously 'baked' with Pampers nappies and useful baby care products such as organic items from Weleda but also creams, soaps and lotions from Penaten, Babylove, Bebe etc. You decide yourself which brand of health care products you want.

Each cake is also decorated with a variety of eye-catching bits and bobs such a a musical toy, a hooded bathrobe, lunch set, baby shoes - even a potty!

If the nappy creation is meant to be for a really unique baby then it's a great idea to choose a design with personalised molton cloth, hat or dummy chain - these will spell out the name of your baby!

You also get to choose what size nappies you'd like. After all, babies quickly grow out of the smallest sizes!

Back-to-school bags

2009-08-19T12:10:00.003+02:00

What a fantastic Summer! With so much sun, friends & family staying, swimming in the Amstel river...I've not been sitting still for long enough to blog....

But the Summer holidays are almost over and my eldest goes back to school next week. High time to start thinking about what she'll need and what she wants. Kids can be quite fussy - even at 5!

So why not make your kid feel really special by giving him or her a brand-new school bag for the start of the new school year! But not just any old bag, it has to reflect the uniqueness of its bearer - a bag spelling out his or her name!

We have children's schoulder bags made of canvas or nylon or children's rucksacks in many different colours to choose from. Mother-of-3 and pregnant with baby 4, Tatjana, should know what unique kids want. She has loads of fun motives to embroider on the bag and will embroider your child's name on his or her very own school bag!

Well, I call them school bags but my son also takes his bag to day-care. In fact, it's a regular companion to him when we go on car journeys as he always wants to take along his cars etc.

2009-06-30T13:14:00.002+02:00

We have a fun new range of personalisable organic cotton baby bibs. Have a look for yourself!

2009-06-11T12:38:00.003+02:00

Air travel with your baby and toddler

For many of us, air travel is part of our lives – as we go on holidays, business trips, visit friends or relatives… but for children, flying can be an adventure beyond imagination!!! Some love it, some hate it and others will be indifferent - as long as they're with their trusted parent.

In any case it's good to plan ahead and travel prepared otherwise even your 50 min short flight (or however long your flying) will feel like you're flying to the end of the world!

Tips for flying with your baby:

* have plenty of fluid to give your baby during the flight and make sure that she’s drinking or eating during take off and landing. That way you’ll automatically get her to ‘equalize’, that is adjust to the changes in air cabin pressure by swallowing.

* however, taking fluids on board is not necessarily that straight forward these days with heightened safety measures. Custom officials may ask you to open a milk carton/ bottle and sample the contents in front of their eyes – regardless of the fact that this may spoil the milk for your baby or leave you stuck with an open carton. You should definitely check with your airline what types of restrictions are currently in place before you pack your bags!!

* if you’re breast feeding then you’re obviously not going to have any problems with taking extra fluids on board so if you’re about to travel somewhere by plane it may well be worth delaying weaning your baby off your breast until after your trip.

* a spare set of clothing for your baby and enough nappies to last you the journey are a definite must, too! In fact, take an extra top for yourself, just in case your baby’s sick all over you. I once sat for a good two hours with semi-digested banana vomit down my cleavage because my daughter was sick all over me and I had no choice but to hold on to her for the rest of the trip without being able to clean myself up properly – of course I’d brought an extra set of clothing for my daughter so she was nice and clean again once I got her changed…

* toys for distracting a little baby are also a good idea although small babies don’t need much more than an un-inflated balloon or the inboard magazine to tear apart.

* depending on how long you’re travelling your baby is likely to want to sleep during the flight so you might want to reserve a bassinet for a long-haul flight and take your baby’s sleeping clothes along (including sleeping bag). If you’re travelling by yourself and the flight is not fully booked, try and ask that the seat next to you remains unoccupied as you can always rest your baby on it when your shoulders have gone all stiff from holding her in the same position.

When you are travelling with a toddler most of the above points also apply although you need to be a bit more adventurous with your snacks and toys.

* thick short pencils and something to draw on are always a favourite but don’t take felt tips as you’re bound to loose the tops and your toddler will start colouring the seat in front of you!

* in fact, your toddler is likely to show real interest in the seat and person sitting in front or behind you anyway. Whilst you can sort of discourage constant kicking of the seat in front of you or prevent your toddler from pulling the hair of the person sitting in it, you won’t be able to stop a tantrum if you’re being too restrictive. This’ll be worse if your child is suffering from air sickness so take nose drops and baby paracetamol just in case!

* although you’re generally discouraged from allowing your toddler to run around the plane, you should definitely allow your child some exercise if the alternative are yells - it's not fair on your child, you, your fellow travellers and even the stewardesses! Remember that sitting still for a long period of time is totally unnatural for a young child and you should just apologise to your fellow travellers in advance of your child playing up if you know he may be difficult during the flight. On the other hand, your toddler might be so excited by the whole adventure of being in an plane, maybe even seeing the captain and cockpit and playing with the window blinds that you’ll have no problems whatsoever!

Final word of wisdom: before the end of your flight you’re likely to be pretty exhausted from all the damage-limitation exercises if you have an active toddler with you so make sure to rest if he's finally sleeping, too!

2009-05-31T20:42:00.003+02:00

My kids love reading books, in the mornings I tend to find a whole pile of books lying next to their beds that they've looked at (they can't actually read yet) after I've put them to bed. It's a bit of a tradition now that they get to look at books after I (or their Daddy) have read them their bed-time stories...

So books were something I definitely wanted to sell in my shop, ideally personalisable - to go with the rest of our unique collection. To start off with I had a couple of titles from a US company but they were simply too expensive to ship to Europe. It felt like ripping off my customers each time they were ordered. I'm now working with a company that produces personalisable children's books in different languages! All the books in our shop are now available in English (obviously) but also Dutch, German, Spanish, French and Italian.

I'm really pleased with this as we're raising our kids trilingually (English, Dutch and German) and have books in different languages anyway...

The books are a fun gift idea, I even gave one to a friend of mine who recently got married - she may be a bit old for it herself but one day she'll probably have kids who'll enjoy reading a book about their Mummy!

2009-04-23T09:25:00.005+02:00

Spring time is great - everything seems to just shoot up over night and be covered in blossoms! The farmer has brought his sheep out on the field behind our house and now the air's also filled with constant baaah-baaah...

Time also for renewals in the International Baby Shop! We have a brand-new collection of 'design-your-own' leather shoes with delightful motives - from farmyard animals to fire engines. You can also have your child's name embroidered on the shoes! This must be the ultimate keep-sake for any proud parent!

The best way to learn to crawl or walk is barefooted but if this isn't practical then choose flexible and soft leather shoes. But these shoes aren't only for babies and toddlers. They are also fun house shoes for older children. After all, they keep the feet nice and warm yet ventilate the feet via natural pores in the leather. In contrast to many other shoes your child's feet won't sweat!. So also for elder siblings these leather shoes are a great gift idea...

We took great care to make sure the shoes are made with highest quality eco-leather! There are simply too many toxins and heavy metals in standard leather and since babies have the cute habit of chewing their toes we couldn't really compromise!

2009-03-19T11:45:00.008+01:00

You can't ever have enough bags! Isn't that what Pat says in 'Absolutely Fabulous'? I never really agreed with that statement until I had kids.

Now we have a whole range of bags lying around our house: apart from the standard shopping, computer, sport and hand bags, we've accumulated day bags, play bags, my daughter's school bags, my son's nursery bag, even my baby daughter has her own nappy bag...

Kids just love bags, mine play 'going shopping', 'going on holiday', 'going to stay with Granny and Grandpa for the weekend', you name it!

The thing about bags is that they're so personal! My husband refuses to go out with the pink nappy bag when he's out with the kids but uses a more 'manly' black bag. My daughter insists on her girly school bag and my son will throw a tantrum if I don't take his personalised nursery bag either. A bag for every occasion!

This is why I was so keen to sell bags in my shop. I've had personalised nappy bags for a while now and have just teamed up with a German Mum who makes personalised children's canvas bags and rucksacks with fun motives. They're so lovely, all my friends are ordering them now for their own kids!

Another cousin!

2009-03-02T14:12:00.007+01:00

The perfect personalised newborn baby gift idea!

My kids are thrilled, they have another little Dutch - Irish cousin. Vos Colm was born on 23 February, weighing an impressive 4300g! He was overdue by almost 2 weeks and his birth was apparently anything but easy - poor Mum!

But all the more reason to celebrate that all is well now and thriving. What an occasion to sample a fun, home-baked nappy cake by German mother Sandra... she's the best 'nappy baker' I've come across - and I've seen quite a few. With great skill the folds disposable nappies into cake shapes, ships or trains, decorating each with practical baby care products. My favourites are the orange designs in which she uses the organic health care brand Weleda but the traditional blues and pinks are also lovely. She always adds other practical baby items such as a milk bottle or mobile and can personalise them with a baby's name on a little cotton hat, burping cloth or dummy chain...

Sandra has just opened a shop in Cologne. Her nappy designs are so popular that she quit her job as nursery school teacher - I'm really proud to be able to sell them on in my shop!

More personalised organic baby clothes!

2009-02-16T11:03:00.012+01:00

I'm really pleased I've finally found them - organic baseball tops for babies that can be personalised!

I already had little organic baby vests, T-shirts, hats and bibs to print on with your own text and a fun selection of motives but I just couldn't get hold of organic baseball tops. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of printable baby textiles out there but I really wanted the baseball tops to be organic!

Maybe it's because I studied biology for my BSc and MSc that I've become suspicious of many of the products available or maybe it's because I'm a Mum - I go out of my way to buy organic food, especially meat. In fact, I actually feel guilty if I don't take the organic option if one's available. I spend a lot more money because of it but at least I feel I'm doing the right thing by my kids...

Anyway, it's obviously a little different with general clothes, especially as the kids grow older (although the fair trade element remains important). But a newborn baby's skin is 5 times thinner than that of an adult so when I started this shop I was determined only to offer organic products if they were to come into direct contact with a baby's skin. I do, however also have highest quality wool (cashmere) in my range...

So I'm really pleased that I've been able to extend my selection.

In fact, I've also just included personalisable kiddies' aprons. These aren't organic, the material has to be somewhat sturdier to cope with all the butter and sticky stuff the kids regularly get on it.

My big kids, Joanne and William love baking and 'helping' with preparing the dinner - although I'm actually still recovering from all the baking in the run-up to Christmas! Their birthdays are in Nov. and Dec. so we were baking fairy cakes like there's no tomorrow to hand out at school, nursery and the countless parties round that time...

Personalised baby carrying slings

2009-02-09T09:17:00.012+01:00

What a cold and snowy weekend we've just had! If the snow would at least stay then it'd be great for the kids to play with but it's just wet, cold and miserable outside. So the kids spent most of the weekend running riot. By Sunday afternoon we were all desperate for a bit of fresh air...

Luckily the sun DID decide to emerge from the clouds for a bit so we wrapped up warmly, got out the bikes for the big kids and set off. I put Josephine (almost 4 months) in her baby carry sling so I'd have my hands free for the others.

I do like carrying Josephine in the sling, she feels so close to me, snug and warm. She tends to look around a bit and then falls asleep. I've used the sling indoors as well. From 5pm onwards Josephine starts getting restless and wants lots of attention. But I still have to feed the other two and get them ready for bed so I often just carry Josephine round in her sling.

I wrote a press release on the sling the other day. It's one of the items I sell in my shop. You can design your own colour combination for the sling and have your baby's name printed on it... I just love it!

The joys of trying to work with sick toddler around...

2009-02-02T14:19:00.007+01:00

Today my little boy (3) didn't go to creche as he has the flu. He's feeling rather sorry for himself, poor thing! And so much also for my intended day's work...!!

As most entrepreneurs, I feel rather 'driven' to work and am subsequently quite annoyed if I am stopped from doing so. However, having read William's favourite book to him 4 times and crawled all over the floor with his race cars I realised that this was the whole reason for setting up my own business!

I wanted to spend quality time with my kids as well as having a challenging and satisfying career - in a foreign country whose language I still have difficulties speaking, let alone writing...

The Internet is a great space for venting creativity and allows Mompreneurs like myself to establish themselves on an equal basis to those who spend 1/2h in traffic before starting their 9-5 shift... Although I have to say that I miss the office banter I have discovered that online social networks are quite good at letting off steam, too! For instance, there's a really inspiring new Mompreneur group I've just joined. The group focuses on European Mompreneurs and is quite an interesting site...

Hello and welcome

2009-01-29T20:17:00.003+01:00

This is my first blog entry for the International Baby Shop, my online creative outlet next to my three kids. I intend to post on here regularly, to keep you updated with new developments in the shop and what life's like as a Mompreneur.