I hope your well and thanks for heading over to read my latest blog.
October has been a crazy month for me so far, it always is as its my birthday month so plans are always full steam ahead. But this year I thought I would attend something a little different to what I usually do and that was the The Baby Show at London's Olympia exhibition center. I never attended this with my first pregnancy so I wanted to go and check out a few things in particular that I didn't have/need with my first baby that I now feel I may need this time round e.g. a Baby Carrier being one of them. I also wanted to see what else I could find that wasn't high street like some boutique concessions that were perhaps different to what I have locally, and it didn't disappoint.
The show itself is brilliant for all expectant parents, and first time parents in particular who are wanting discounts on their prams and nursery furniture but for us, although we are doing a new nursery up, our son is only 2 years old so our silver cross pram is immaculate and he is also now in a toddler bed so we have transferred the cot into the new nursery. We will be purchasing a new nursery wardrobe and draws but new prams and cot's were not on our agenda but for first time parents this is what seemed really huge big popular purchases.
Every parent walking in had the option of the Made for Mum's bag which was amazing for goodies, I was really impressed with what it contained and the sizes of what was included.
Weaning
I was lucky enough to receive some pouches from company called my first savse and what really caught my interest most is that they are the first company in Europe to produce cold pressed puree's using organic ingredients. All their pouches have to be kept refrigerated meaning they are kept as fresh as possible to deliver the best benefit to your little one! Flavors included Apple, Kiwi, Spinach, Kale, Banana, and our 2 year old was happy to try all the samples which certainly went down a treat!
I can't wait to get trying these for our second baby! my first savse can be purchased in Harrods, Morrisons, Ocado, Planet Organic and many more. Just head over to their website for more details.
Clothing
We found and fell in love with a company called ''Magnet Mouse'' they are a UK family owned company (a mum of 4 I must add!) who make baby grows and maternity wear with magnets rather than poppers. Their range was absolutely stunning and I can honestly say if I knew BLUE OR PINK I would of brought the whole collection! Instead we went with their neutral gender range and I cannot wait to see our baby number 2 in it.
Not only are their designs beautiful and very prince George style fashion, but the idea behind it is genius, as a new parent you will all agree with me here that the amount of times you change their poo-ey nappies and have to un do all these poppers and re do them all is just tedious. Magnet mouse is literally is a game changer especially for those who like me will have a toddler on their hands.
You wash them on a 30, the quality of material is well made and a gorgeous strong cotton, and you are able to even tumble dry if need be.
See our chosen ones above, you can also find them on instagram @magnetmouse_uk
Infant Carriers
Our demo's of the Ergo and Baby Bjorn infant carriers were great, both Chris and I got to try putting them on and off, and for us we decided that the Ergo 360 was the one for us. We found it had less weight on our shoulders and most weight was round the hips/stomach area which for us was more comfortable. I can't wait for it too arrive!!! I feel it will be a god send for me with having a toddler running about and saves buying a double buggy as my little one to be fair is a good walker so there really is no need for make another investment when I love my silver cross pram.
So many friends and fellow mummy bloggers recommended them!
Nursery Decor
We found a stand full of the most gorgeous nursery items to decorate and accessorize the babies room. The colors we are going for are grey and white and we purchased 2 wooden handmade rabbits to sit on a shelf along with some wooden block bunting in ''DREAM'' I just think they are so adorable, and cute!
Will post some more photos once the nursery has been completed but here is sneak peak until then!
Newborn Must Have - Snuggle Bundl
So this item is called the Snuggle Bundl and it was invented by a dad who struggled to put his baby down or move them from one area to another with out the crying and waking I.e. Arms to moses basket, car seat to pram etc you get my drift.
The idea behind it is that the baby gets full neck support whilst being maneuvered with out being woken up meaning you literally put the baby in the blanket which has handles as shown in the photo below, so if holding the baby it can be used a blanket and can then be placed in cot, or moses basket or car seat with ease and quickness.
It is the ideal item for a mum who has a clingy baby and who needs to get stuff done in the house or more importantly needs to get some sleep! I can see exactly where this will work for us with our second baby! We went for the mink with white star design and I will upload some photos of it in use once baby has arrived, it can also be used as a breast feeding cover up!
You can follow them on instagram on @snugglebundl
It has been up for many awards!
Bottles
I breast fed my first baby for 7 months and then moved him over to formula once we was well into the weaning process so I really hope to breast feed the same with my second but the reality of it is, I am going to have a toddler to also to attend too whilst doing on demand feeds and boy I remember how demanding they actually were. SO I am preparing myself IN CASE I need to feed formula earlier than expected we invested in the amazing MAM bottles.
At the show there was a midwife on the stand giving advice on why MAM are such a fantastic bottle for new borns and babies. These bottles are actually used within the premature birthing unit in hospitals and are highly recommend for their self sterilizing USP and also for their anti colic benefits. The bottles itself ensures the feed flows smoothly and the baby doesn't swallow any air and colic is reduced. There were 3 packs offered at the show and we decided to go for the middle size which included both small and medium sizes bottles! My son took really well to these.
Dribble Bibs
Just as I am a huge fan of muslin cloths, I am huge fan of dribble bibs. You can never have to many of these and I am crazy for white and grey at the moment!
I would also like to feature the food shop ''Lidl'' as until attending the show I didn't realise how big their baby range was. I got to spend some time with one of their team members and she informed me of the awards they've won from nappies, to bath products to weaning products! I came away with a goody bags of their dried snacks for toddlers, so watch this space for more updates on baby and toddler weaning tips where I can let you know how my 2 year old got on with these snacks!
Hope you all found the read helpful and if you want to attend next year it will also be held again in May in Birmingham - For more details go on the website.
My TOP TIPS
sign up to Emma's Baby Diarys for up to 35% off tickets!
Try and get a baby sitter for the day, lots of parents there with children and babies but it got very busy! There is a however a free creche.
Pizza express outside for lunch (London) go and download your vouchers for 50% off
PRE Book your car parking otherwise travel by tube!
Enjoy - hope you enjoyed the read.
Please note: I have huge passion in sharing what has worked for me and my motherhood journey so far. so all views are my own.
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Thanks for the support!
