The Baby Show Review | 2015 Highlights

Posted on March 6, 2015 by Catherine Balavage

You may have noticed by now that Frost Magazine has a new(ish) parenting section. To find great articles for it, and have a bit of fun, I headed to The Baby Show at the Excel Centre. The Baby Show is the UK’s leading event for bump, baby and beyond. This year it also incorporated The Work & Family Show. a section sponsored by My Family Care and dedicated to helping new parents return to work after having a family – giving them access to a range of ideas for starting up their own business and advice on how to make the successful transition to the role of a working mum or dad. The Baby Show itself is sponsored by Made for Mums.

There is a lot to do at The Baby Show and you really get your money’s worth. There are a lot of great exhibitors and you can buy pretty much anything you could ever want for your offspring as well as getting plenty of advice. In fact there was over 200 brands exhibiting including Mothercare.com, iCandy, Chicco, Emma’s Diary, mamas & papas, Maxi-Cosi, Quinny, Stokke and Tommee Tippee. There was plenty of talks on The Baby Show stage and the Work & Family Show stage. On The Baby Show stage nutritionist and author, Annabel Karmel MBE gave a great talk on weening, leaving the audience feeling inspired. Other experts who gave great talks included breast-feeding gurus Clare Byam-Cook and Geraldine Miskin, sleep experts Jo Tantum and Lisa Clegg, fitness guru, Michelle Heaton and child safety expert, Tracey Taylor from the British Red Cross. Tracey was great and showed the audience how to save their baby’s life. It was fascinating stuff and I can recommend taking a Red Cross class on first aid for your baby.

Treading the boards of The Work & Family Show stage experts include Daily Telegraph journalist and author, Bryony Gordon, Stylist Editor, Lisa Smosarski, business coach and founder of CEO Mums, Nicola Huelin, Chief Executive of Working Families, Sarah Jackson and prize-winning journalist and former editor of Psychologies and Good Housekeeping, Louise Chunn.

Louise Chunn gave a great talk on being a working mother. Louise also talked about the fact that her own mother was always starting businesses and that her most read article was one about her regrets about being a working mother.

This year’s charity partner was Theodora’s Children’s Charity which works hard to fund laughter in children’s hospitals, hospices and specialist care centres across the UK. They train ‘Giggle Doctors’ who are professional performers such as magicians, singers, actors and musicians, to bring magical moments and laughter to brave children in difficult times. It is a worthy cause so donate if you can.

Highlights on The Work & Family Show included:

A CV Master Class – how to make your CV stand out from the crowd after a career break

Building your Network – building relationships

Balancing work and family

Building your personal brand – gaining confidence and believing in yourself

Visitors will listen to industry experts and inspirational working mums give their advice on how to balance work and family and choose the career path best for them. The Baby Show stage will also host a dedicated session on Shared Parental Leave and what it will mean.

Other highlights of The Baby Show include:

Catwalk shows with all the latest fashions in maternity, baby and toddler wear

Exclusive show offers and competitions from top parenting brands

A complimentary crèche where parents can drop off their little ones

The Baby Show Stars’ themed competition held by Bumpkins Photography where the Show’s cutest baby will be awarded a high end, exclusive photo shoot

Dedicated baby facilities including the Tommee Tippee feeding area where parents can take advantage of heating and sterilising equipment, complimentary baby food and a comfortable space for breast feeding.

www.thebabyshow.co.uk / www.theworkandfamilyshow.co.uk

The Baby show was a brilliant event. I learned a lot and there is a lot to do. It takes a full day to go around all of the stands and listen to the talks. There is also an option for networking and a complimentary crèche so you can take a look around without your little ones. The Baby Show will be in Birmingham in May next, then Olympia in London in October, followed by ExCel again next February. Catch it if you can.

Cuddledry Review | Parenting

Posted on February 26, 2015 by Catherine Balavage

The Cuddledry is something that immediately caught my eye. Reason? Because it is so damn cute. It would take a hard person indeed to look at the pictures of the cute baby wrapped in this towel and not go ‘aw’. But we can’t be worn over on cuteness alone (mostly). Does it work? Is it convenient? Read on…

First of all, it looks good. It is obviously high quality. It is very soft and feels great. Perfect for baby’s skin. If you don’t already know what the Cuddledry is; it is an apron style towel that lets you dry your baby hands free. This is not to be underestimated. Anything that stops you dropping your baby is a good thing. The baby bath towel also keeps you dry and it has a hood which makes baby look adorable and keeps the water away from baby’s skin and hair. We love this apron towel. It makes life with a newborn significantly easier. A brilliant, yet simple invention.

Made with natural bamboo fibre and pure cotton, the Cuddledry is much softer than a normal towel, and stays that way after washing – ideal for snuggling and drying your little one’s soft skin.

Cuddledry designers, Helen Wooldridge and Polly Marsh, were inspired to create the Cuddledry after they and their husbands struggled at bath time with slippery babies, and realising this was a challenge every new parent faces:

“We asked hundreds of parents and found that mums and dads everywhere battle with baby towels held awkwardly under their chin, or in their teeth, or put crying babies onto towels on cold bathroom floors, to get over the need for an extra hand to hold the towel at bath time,” explains Polly Marsh, one of Cuddledry’s creators. “It is of course impossible to safely lift a baby without two hands, but you also somehow have to hold a towel and wrap them in it!”

“Cuddledry have thought of everything, it clips around the neck to free up your arms for picking up your bubba and drying them in a flash, before you know it baby is all snuggled up in the cuddly side. Fantastic invention, why didn’t I think of it first” – Zoe Ball

“I’m so glad my mum bought a Cuddledry for me, it’s the best thing anyone can buy for a new parent.” Denise Van Outen

Helen and Polly were asked by the BBC to take the Cuddledry apron towel onto Dragons Den. They amazed the dragons by turning down three offers of investment. Since the show, the entrepreneurial duo has secured private investment and the business has expanded beyond all expectations. The Cuddledry is now used by tens of thousands of parents, endorsed by celebrities and recommended by midwives and maternity nurses worldwide. It has won over 40 prestigious awards and is recommended again and again as the number 1 baby bath-time essential.

The Cuddledry apron is available to buy for £29.99 here or from Boots.com, John Lewis.com, JoJoMamanBebe.com and Mothercare.com as well as the Cuddledry website www.cuddledry.com

There Is Only One Word For Sex Selective Abortion: Gendercide. But Should It Be Illegal?

Posted on February 25, 2015 by Catherine Balavage

On Monday the 23rd February MPs voted on whether to amend the serious crime bill to make abortion based on foetal gender a crime. MPs ultimately rejected the amendment to the bill from Fiona Bruce. But was it the right decision?

Sex selective abortion is only one thing: gendercide. This brilliant article on gendercide in The Economist states the shocking fact that at least 100 million girls have been killed. It will be much more now, the article was written five years ago, but it has always stayed with me. I always thought sex selective abortion was a problem in China and India, I had no idea that it was also problem in Britain. And lets be clear: it is a problem, and a growing one.

I tend to be wary of amendments to abortion rights. In the US more and more bills are passed to take away a women’s right to her own reproductive future. History also proves that it doesn’t matter if abortion is legal or not, women will still have them. Legalisation means less maternal deaths. I am pro-choice even though I would never have an abortion myself. A woman’s body belongs to herself, not the government. But what about gendercide? Which is a very real crime.

As I write this I am 35 weeks pregnant with a boy. When we told people the sex of our child I was shocked at the sexism. I was told congratulations for having a boy. I was even told it is ‘better to have a boy’. Why? Usually no reason was given. Or a fluster of babbling that made no coherent sense. I was supposed to feel proud that my body was making a boy, as if by making a daughter I would somehow have failed. What makes a boys life more important than a girls? It’s a good question, if only so we can address and dismantle it. If there is pressure for a white, British, non-religious female to have a boy, can you imagine how much pressure a woman from another culture would feel?

Feminists widely criticised the amendment. Bryony Gordon spoke out against it. Rebecca Schiller wrote an amazing article on it but I think they are both wrong. Should gendercide be illegal? Yes. Schiller says “This is not about whether sex-selective abortion is right. This is about a woman deciding what happens to her body throughout her life and valuing her as the key protagonist in these decisions across her lifetime.” She makes a good point, but if that decision is to kill a baby girl then it is not okay. The Telegraph did an amazing expose on doctors agreeing to do sex selective abortions.

Lisa Hallgarten, chair of Voice for Choice, said: “We urge MPs from all political parties to oppose this dangerous amendment. This is the wrong piece of legislation to address the issue of son-preference and gender discrimination and could disadvantage the very women it claims to be helping. “If passed, this amendment would seriously undermine abortion law and provision in this country, which is clearly the intention of its proposer Fiona Bruce MP.” Some feminist may be up in arms but what is more anti-feminist than a girl being aborted just because of her gender? One way to fix this is the gender of the child not being revealed until the abortion limit has passed.

Women’s reproductive rights have been hard won and should always be protected but the truth is sex selective abortions are becoming more common in Britain. Christina Odone wrote a great piece in The Telegraph and stated that ‘We should be up in arms at the thought of would-be parents deciding that girls are not worth conceiving. In a country where the culling of baby seals brings out street protests, the culling of baby girls is happening without a murmur.” We must defend the rights of girls. In the womb and out. Labour MP Yvette Cooper MP has said that the practice of aborting a foetus simply based on their sex is already illegal, but more must be done to enforce it. Over one million girls are lost every year to gendercide. Something must be done about it. We must show that a girls life is just as important as a boys.

New Social Shopping Site Launched For New And Expecting Parents

Posted on February 6, 2015 by Frostie

Parents need all the help they can get. Which is why we think BerryClever, a brand new social shopping site for new and expecting parents is great. It aims to make online shopping more fun and interactive by giving parents the power to discover and choose the perfect parenting products by reading and sharing honest advice from the people they can trust the most, their friends. BerryClever has had over 7,000 members joins since it launched 3 months ago.

Online shopping has revolutionised our lives and the range of product choices available to parents for their little ones has never been greater. But with this overwhelming range of choice often comes more questions than answers, especially for first time parents who are under pressure to buy all sorts of baby essentials that they often know nothing about. BerryClever’s research found that an incredible 91% of people surveyed admitted that they had wasted money buying the wrong products for their babies. What’s more 86% of people surveyed wanted their friend’s recommendations when making purchasing decisions. So where do you start when it comes to choosing the right products for your baby? That’s where BerryClever comes in.

BerryClever has created a unique online environment, which allows you to connect with existing friends and new like-minded ones to discover the products they love, regret or simply can’t live without. Kristi Flax and Emma Kafton, who are both mums themselves, recognise that parents in particular prefer recommendations from people they know and trust when it comes to buying products for their babies. Because the reviews on BerryClever are written by friends in your network, you know they have no vested interest in promoting certain products and that they are just sharing their own honest and experienced views. Emma explains that “the idea is to make online shopping for your baby feel intuitive rather than the transactional and anonymous experience you get on many other ecommerce websites. With so much online content being disingenuous, the ability to read information from people you trust is ever more valuable”.

BerryClever’s reviews, known as ‘tips’, are no longer than 150 characters making them quick to write and read on mobile devices and ideal for busy mums on the go. As parents overwhelmingly prefer reviews from people they know, BerryClever’s unique algorithm ranks reviews based on their social profile so they will always be shown the most relevant products reviewed by their friends and the people they are most similar to first.

Users can also upload Pictips – a product photo review, watch recommended videos from the web and create lists of favourite or most wanted products for themselves or to share with others. The ability to explore friends’ lists provides a simple way for experienced parents to help their newly pregnant friends find everything they need for every stage of their birth and child’s development, from weaning and feeding to potty training, playing and learning.

Not only does BerryClever help parents make the important decisions on what to buy, it also quickly and easily links directly through to their Amazon account or the retailer’s website to allow them to make the purchase. There is even a ‘demand a lower price’ feature to help parents, who on average spend £5,000 in the first year of their child’s life alone, save money on expensive items like buggies and car seats. If a lower price can be found, the user will be sent an email within 48 hours confirming an offer which they can choose to either accept or decline, with no hidden small print.

Every feature is intended to make BerryClever a place where shopping can become a fun, social and resourceful experience.

Peppa Pig Visits Selfridges At The Trafford Centre

Posted on December 15, 2014 by Keeley Watts

Last week was all about Paddington Bear at Selfridges, this week it’s Peppa!

Peppa Pig will be at the Selfridges ice rink at the Trafford Centre for a special appearance on Sunday 21st December

Skaters will get the chance to have their photograph taken with Peppa Pig and also go home with a Peppa Pig cupcake from Hey Little Cupcake, a new addition to Selfridges Trafford Centre food offering.

There are two early morning sessions available either 9am-10am or 10am-11am. Tickets are priced at £15 per person and include a skate, meet/greet with Peppa and a cupcake. Adults accompanying children are free of charge where not skating.

Tickets are available here… http://style.selfridges.com/whats-on/ice-rink-selfridges-manchester-trafford

Skip Hop Duo Special Edition Changing Bag Review

Posted on December 12, 2014 by Catherine Balavage

It is hard enough to find a bag you like in life without the addition of baby paraphenalia. Which is why changing bags have it so hard: they need to be functional and gorgeous. Parents don’t expect anything less.

First thoughts on the Skip Hop Duo Special Edition Changing Bag were good. It is a beautiful bag. It is well made and has a lovely design. It is so stylish and beautiful that I would actually buy it if it wasn’t a changing bag. But is it functional? Yes. The bag has wipable fabric and a cushioned changing pad. It has a total of nine pockets which included a personal zip pocket and two hidden insulated side pockets.

It has two pockets on the front of the bag which are very handy, and the pocket at the back has the cushioned changing pod in. The back pocket still has room for other things too. The front pockets have magnetic closure and one of the things I really love about the bag is that it is not bulky at all. It is incredibly well designed and you can tell a lot of thought and time has gone into making such an excellent changing bag.

The bag is a good size and I love a big bag. Other great things are the slip-resistant adjustable stroller strap & the rolled handles, the key fob zipper pull and the fact that the bag is BPA and Phthalate-free. This bag really is a winner: highly recommended. It is perfect for fashionable parents who want the best of everything.

The latest changing bag to come from the New York based SkipHop brand is the Duo Special Edition. The bag’s ultra-stylish, fresh design came about after Skip Hop cleverly incorporated all the style and functionality of its best-selling Duo Deluxe changing bag, but added three contemporary patterns and several extra special features, ensuring parents really stand out from the crowd.

With the Duo Special Edition, Skip Hop has cleverly combined high style with practicality. Mums will love the faux leather detailing, smart key fob zipper pulls and rolled clutch handles in addition to the slip resistant shoulder strap. And when it comes to the bag’s material, it looks just like a regular, smart fabric but in fact it’s a clever, wipe-able material that ensures the bag stays looking as good as new for years to come.

Other features on the Duo Special Edition include Skip-Hop’s special patented shuttle clip system which allows the Duo Special Edition to attach effortlessly to the buggy handles in seconds. The nine compartments let you organise all of baby’s essentials and keep wet and messy items separate; the pockets include a large, roomy main compartment with a zip closure to keep contents safe, large rear pocket for changing pad and nappies and two roomy front pouches. Contents are easy to spot with the contrasting lining and the convenient side phone holder and easy access pen holders ensure mums and dads have everything to hand. Parents will also appreciate the ‘quiet’ magnetic closures to help prevent waking baby. The changing pad is cushioned and waterproof and the entire bag is of course BPA and Phthalate free.

Parents have a choice of three fabric patterns: the smart black and white ‘Aztec’, chic ‘Blue Pin’ or the ‘French Stripe’, a classic ‘boating’ style navy striped fabric that looks just like canvas.

Skip Hop Duo Special Edition: RRP £65.00

STOCKISTS:

French Stripe – marksandspencer.com

Blue Pin – marksandspencer.com

Aztec – www.jaijai.co.uk

More Skip Hop Duo Changing Bag’s available here.

www.maguari.com

Paddington Bear Visits Selfridges At The Trafford Centre

Posted on December 11, 2014 by Keeley Watts

This weekend sees a Hollywood star visiting Selfridges at the Trafford Centre! Currently starring in his own movie Paddington Bear will receive his public at the ice rink on Saturday 13th December between 9am-11am before moving into the store to meet his fans.

The Selfridges ice rink holds 120 ice skaters and is a winter wonderland which echoes the Christmas storytelling theme of the Trafford Centre with forest greens and sparkly gold accents to bring the magic of enchantment and fairy tales to life.

The ice rink is covered meaning it is perfect in all weather with hot food and drinks available to keep you cosy.

Booking and directions information can be found here… http://style.selfridges.com/whats-on/ice-rink-selfridges-manchester-trafford or you can call direct on 0161 629 1204. Don’t miss your chance to meet a Hollywood movie star and help to bring the magic to life for your children this Christmas.

Things That Suck About Being Pregnant

Posted on December 9, 2014 by Catherine Balavage

Pregnancy is supposed to be an amazing time but it doesn’t always work out that way. My mother always talked about her wonderful pregnancies and, in truth, I don’t think I ever heard a negative pregnancy story from a family member or friend. Sure there were some truly awful stories in the media and, although I found them horrifying, I cast them out of my mind. Which is why I am pretty annoyed now. Pregnancy is not this magical thing people told me about. It is not a magical time at all. Okay, creating our child is wonderful and I would not have it any other way but wonderful or any other such word does not encapsulate it. In fairness, my pregnancy has been termed ‘unlucky’ by my doctor. It is a bit of an understatement due to the horrendous acute morning sickness but, never mind. Here are my pregnancy rants. Feel free to add your own because ranting is good for the soul.

Bump Molestation

Seriously, what is up with this? Today I actually had a stranger molest me from barely underneath my breasts all the way down. I may have been in a sitting position but it was not appropriate and if it had not been an elderly woman she would have at the very least been slapped. It is not okay to touch a pregnant women’s bump without asking her. And even then, keep your hands to yourself unless you are a very close friend or family member. How would you like to be felt up? Especially when you are creating a life and feeling very protective of your bump? This brings me on to my next rant….

A Women’s Body Does Not Become Public Property When She becomes Pregnant

Not only does this mean NO TOUCHING but it also means you don’t get to tell her what to eat or drink, how to exercise or how much weight to put on. You don’t get to make comments on how she looks or what she does so mind your business.

The Unsolicited Advice

Your pregnancy choices were good choices for you. Only share them with other pregnant women if they ask. If you are a man, keep quiet unless you are a doctor and a question is asked. Also annoying is pregnancy advice from women who have never been pregnant. I mean, really?

The Constant Personal Questions

When people find out you are pregnant they ask you everything from what you are going to call your baby, what the sex is and how much weight you have put on. It really is too much. People seem to forget their manners when they are in the presence of a pregnant woman. If you feel uncomfortable just smile and avoid the question or say you are not sharing that information publicly yet.

Morning Sickness

As Miranda says in Sex & The City, ‘I don’t know why they call it morning sickness when it lasts all fucking day.’ Exactly Miranda, exactly. Some woman get barely any morning sickness and some, like Kate Middleton, get acute morning sickness which is otherwise known as hyperemesis gravidarum. Morning sickness is not fun. Think of your worst hangover ever and then think about suffering through it everyday for about three months, sometimes longer. There you go: morning sickness.

Not being Able To Tell Anyone Why You Are So ill

The chances of miscarriage are high in the first 12 weeks so you are recommended to keep your pregnancy to yourself. Suffering in silence is not= fun and colleagues will probably notice something is up. Just know you will get to the end of it.

Having To Do All of the Stuff You Did Before

There is a popular quote that Ginger Rogers had to do everything Fred Astaire did but backwards and in heels. Well, pregnant women have to do everything everyone else does but whilst dealing with morning sickness, being kicked internally, headaches, muscle pain, nausea, random pains, tiredness…the list is endless. The pressure for pregnant women to not let anyone down and act like some kind of superwoman is tremendous. The reality is: pregnant women should be given some slack. If you don’t like that, just remember that the little baby they are creating will be paying for public services in your retirement.

The Fact That EVERYTHING Hurts

I mean everything. From your head to your legs to your vagina. A lucky day is when it doesn’t hurt all at once.

The Constant Worrying

I stopped reading the pregnancy literature before 12 weeks. I could not take it. Even now the stuff overwhelms me. Sure, things can go wrong in pregnancy but do you really need to know about every single thing that could go wrong? No, you don’t. So relax and read a magazine or a good book instead. Ignorance is not bliss, but somedays it is easier.

The Glee of Awful Things To Come

Too many people take such glee in the fact that, apparently, you will never sleep again, nor have a life. People can seem pretty happy because they think that having a child will ruin your life or career. Ignore these people. They are jerks.

What are your pregnancy rants?

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