Splash and bath

Congratulations, it's a girl! Oh thank you... Now, you have to bath your baby, she's hardly bigger than your 2 hands and looks so delicate. It's ok, you could use the FISHER-PRICE AQUARIUM BATH CENTRE . The hammock is fantastic, it supports and cradles your little one so you don't have to hold her. Once baby is old enough to sit up, you could remove the hammock.

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3760189/c_1/1%7Ccategory_root%7CNursery%7C14417537/c_2/3%7C15701330%7CFeeding+and+bathing%7C14417596/c_3/4%7Ccat_14417596%7CBathing+and+potty+training%7C14417599.htm?_$ja=tsid:11527%7Ccc:%7Cprd:3760189%7Ccat:nursery+%3E+feeding+and+bathing+%3E+bathing+and+potty+training

Baby carriers

It's cold, you could see the streets covered in snow, you just want to quickly go to the shop to buy some milk for your breakfast tomorrow but... you have to bring your baby with you and you live on the 2nd flloor. Ok, don't panic, you don't have to get your light, medium, double or extra large pushchair out, just get your baby carrier! Simple after a few uses, it's a total time-saver! Even for heavy duty babies that had to much to drink, you get all kind of baby carriers on the market to find the best one for you and your baby.


My favorite one, BABY BJORN.  BABY BJORN has got different choices of baby carriers. I used the BABY BJORN CARRIER ORIGINAL CLASSIC. It's simple and looks good. The baby is not too low and doesn't tip forward so you don't hurt your back. I used a CHICCO one before and found it too low and not so safe.


http://www.babybjorn.co.uk/products/baby-carriers/baby-carrier-original/classic/
Also, for my second child, I went for the BABY BJORN CARRIER ACTIVE. With a superior lumbar support, I found it easier to have my big baby in this one.
http://www.mothercare.com/BabyBj%25f6rn-Active-Carrier-Sporty-Black/dp/B000ILIP7G/ref=sr_11_1/278-3691074-7662433?_encoding=UTF8&mcb=core

SLINGS

I tried one sling , but there're lots of slings out there in all kind of colors and shapes. The PREMAXX BABY-BAG . I didn't really like it 'cause the baby was squeezed in and I didn't feel comfortable to let go of my hand. It might comfort certain babies, but my one just wanted to get out!

http://www.premaxx.com/en/products/baby-bag/colours.aspx

Babies and sleep Zzzzzzzzzz

Your baby isn't born yet and you're reading all the books regarding your futur baby's sleep. Well, good for you but... you won't know much about it until the baby is actually born and screaming his head off in the middle of the night. What you might already know:

You could rock your baby to sleep,you could wrap him in a blanket, you could sing to him or you could just put him in bed. It's up to you, you'll know soon enough what's best for both of you. There're two rules that I tried to respect for my second child:

Rule number 1: Do not speak to your child at night, do not sing to your child at night and try not to look at him in the eyes at night, even if he's got the biggest smile in the world.

Rule number 2: If you breast-feed, breast-feed as much as you want but try not to have the baby falling asleep on your breast (yeah right, tell that to your newborn!)

My lovely newborn ONLY sleeps on his belly:

Ok, you're in trouble with the rest of the world. Never mind, I know everyone says that babies shouldn't sleep on their belly until they could lift their head but if you decide to take the responsability to do so, here's a little product to help you. The ANGELCARE DELUXE SOUND AND MOVEMENT MONITOR. This is a sensor pad that you put under the mattress of the baby's bed. If the baby stops breathing for 20 seconds, the alarm will sound. I NEVER heard if ring once by mistake so I have to assume that it's extremely reliable. Just read the instructions properly! You shouldn't just rely on it but it's still very handy if you have an animal in the house and you're concerned that he might jump in the baby's bed or if you baby sleeps on his belly.

My baby is getting older but he's not quite 6 months old.

Should I introduce solids to make him sleep through the night?

Well, you could do it if you want but I promise you that it won't make much of a difference. Ok, all kids are different but from my own experience and some people around me, it ain't working that much!

Baby number two just arrived, how are you going to survive with two kids?!

Baby number two is brand new, fresh from your belly, looking good and very sleepy most of the time.

Then, you have baby number one, becoming a bit jealous, trying to pull his tiny fingers, bangs his head and jumps on you when you breast-feed. How to survive the first few months and try to rest in the same time? Well, everybody tells you to spend the only time you might have with your toddler. Sorry, but what about resting?

It took me 3 months to get used to two children, why should I deal with it straight away? We all need a bit of time to learn new things, your first child is not going to be scared for life if you delegate to other people and ask them to have your older one.
Don't feel guilty, just enjoy any help you can get!

Double buggy, should you, should you not?



Double buggy, yes or no?

I love a bit of pushchairs! Should you get one or should you not? You might have a stubburn toddler who wants to walk a lot but takes ages, then you could forget about a double buggy. You might think to use your baby-carrier and put the older one in the single pushchair like I did, until you realize that your breast-fed baby is so big and heavy for his age that you're gonna break your back!


But if you have an active toddler whom also likes to seat in a buggy and a small baby, you need to get yourself a doubble buggy. But which one?

I started to look at pushchairs in the street a year ago. You've got the tandem and side-by-side. I'm really not keen on the side-by-side if you live in England as the streets are so narrow, I don't see how you could enjoy pushing two children if it doesn't fit on the pavement. This is a blog to give you an idea about it, but you need to actually try the pushchairs at the shop to make up your mind.


Anyway, I was impress by one side-by-side model: The MACLAREN TWIN TRIUMPH Very small for a side-by-side, could fit quite well in the shops but the seats are tiny. Great for older toddlers, I wouldn't put my newborn in there though.

I had the chance to try 3 different double tandem buggy. I like my pushchair to be quite compact and easy to fold for travelling reason, so I bought, 5 months ago, the MARCO SKY LONGHORN. If you're a small person, this pushchair is not for you. You could adjust the handles as high as you need but I know it's difficult if you're not very tall, you're gonna end up lifting your arms and you'll have trouble pushing it properly.

For average people like me (height wise), I didn't find it difficult at all to push. I love the back seat, it's like a cocoon, the baby feels safe and it's not exposed to the wind or the sun because of the big hood covering it. The front seat is also great but doesn't recline if the baby/toddler wants to have a little nap. The back seat reclines in 3 different positions so it's very good for smaller babies. It's super easy to fold and you could easily remove the front wheels for extra space in the boot of your car. I had my heavy toddler in front so it was a tiny bit difficult to maneuver sometimes but he reached the maximum weight for any buggy so...



Jane twin two



Still, after that, I decided to get the JANE TWIN TWO.







 I already had the jane matrix cup car seat and it's compatible with this double buggy. For use with the normal seats, it's very good, quite long compared to the Marco Sky Longhorn so I kept banging into things at first. Then, I got used to the lenght of it and I love it! It's quite difficult to maneuver but really great to go straight. I love the different options on it, with two car seats or one car seat and one normal or two seats. It's very strong but light in the same time ( around 9 kilos). It's very easy to fold but quite bulky once folded. It's bulky anyway in general like the regular double buggies. Very good for any ages as both seats recline into a sleeping position. The hoods are tall so it's practical for big toddlers. The shopping basket is great because you have a tiny one at the back, and a big one under it.

But the lightest tandem double buggy I discovered, even if I don't like the look of a 3 wheeler, is: PHIL AND TED'S VIBE

Yes, everybody's got one now! Except me, but I had the chance to try my sister's in law one for two days and I wanted to run away with it! My heavy toddler was on top and my smaller son at the bottom, in the low back seat. SoOOOOOOOOOooo easy to maneuvre, incredible! You actually feel like running to catch your bus with it. It's very very easy to maneuvre and go up and down the pavement. The back seat is super quick to set up and feels safe. I would just think that the baby at the back eventually gets fed up to not see in front and have his legs in the shopping basket but except that, it's good for a toddler and a smaller child. I wouldn't use it for twin though. The shopping basket seems too small but you could actually put lots of things in it, it's just harder to access with the back seat in the way. You've got a massive choice of style for Phil and Ted's, I only tried the VIBE.

In the "weird" kind of double buggy I found one called :
JOOVY CABOOSE ULTRALIGHT
http://www.joovy.com/pages/pd_red_cabooseultralight.php

When visiting my mum in Montreal, I kept seeing this double buggy in the shop and got really curious about it. It looked weird at first like if one of the seat was missing and then I actually went to try it with my toddler, just for fun!!! I think that I might get one after I'm finished with me Jane Twin Two.

So, this double buggy is great for an older child (perfect for kids around 2 1/2 years old and more) and a baby more than 6 months. The seat at the front reclines in one position but not flat, but I found it quite hard, fabric wise. It's not super comfy compare to normal pushchairs so I wouldn't put a child smaller than 6 months old in it but then you get the car seat adaptors so you just have to put the baby in a car seat and traight onto the front seat.

It's excellent with a toddler at the back. The toddler could sit down on a little seat, facing you, that you could adjust. It's super light and has sealed ball bearing wheels (like rollerblades or skateboards). I would really use that to go in the bus! It's so small! Plus, your toddler would love it. Have a look at the link, you'll see what I mean.

In another style, I really like the look of the UPPABABY VISTA WITH RUMBLE SEAT.

http://www.uppababy.com/products/product.php?id=91

Multi-mode, it's amazing. This rumble seat doesn't recline and the child is facing you so it could be a bit boring, but it looks like a single buggy and doesn't take much space(it's like Phil And Ted's style but the extra seat is in front of the pushchair, not at the back).

Great again for fussy toddlers, they could sit for a while then have a little walk. It's not so good if the toddler falls asleep as it's quite straight for their back but it's still better than a buggy board. I would give it a go but £££££!!!!

BUGGY BOARD

I had the chance to borrow my neighbour's buggy which had a buggy board at the back, it was the "heaviest" experience ever. It goes smoothly from the curb to the pavement but it's so hard to steer. I would not recommend a buggy board unless you're really broke and can't even afford a second double buggy. Start saving now! Seriously, you get some nice deals on ebay.







Marco Sky Longhorn