Strong willed children are amazing

Strong willed children are hard work. They're constantly pleading, arguing and throwing huge tantrums in order to get their own way {at least the toddler variety do}. They flat out refuse to do what you say, develop selective hearing at the drop of a hat and everything {I mean everything} has to be on their terms. It can be downright exhausting and takes an enormous amount of patience. Trust me I know, I do it every day. If I'm honest there are some days where I wonder what I did to deserve such a stubborn child {perhaps my mother would say its payback, but I honestly don't think I was ever as zealous as my daughter}.

Of course I love her to pieces and wouldn't want it any other way, but there are days where I'm worn down to my breaking point and I just have no more to give. In those moments her independent streak can be overwhelming, but I have to remind myself there are also many benefits to having such a sassy, headstrong child, even though we're smack bang in the middle of the terrible 2's and the tantrums are sometimes outweighing the awww moments. Those who witness her at her worst might not be able to see all the qualities that make her amazing, but there are so many. Although they may be a bit harder to handle on occasions, strong willed children have a number of characteristics that will serve them well later in life.

STRONG WILLED CHILDREN ARE AMAZING BECAUSE:

They're determined - they will stop at nothing to get what they want. During a tantrum {especially in public} this can be frustrating to say the least, but when this determination is focused on tasks or learning new skills it can have impressive results. She will practice new skills over and over and over until she masters them. She's just as determined to succeed as she is to be right and she doesn't give up. The trick is to harness this determination and use it for good not evil.

They know their mind - there is no indecisiveness. Strong willed kids know exactly where they stand on any given topic. They will not be coerced, bribed or tricked into anything. They are the decision makers and they let everyone know. Although this means the words "nope" and "mine" get thrown around on a daily basis, I can't help but feel like I'm raising a leader of the future.

They don't take things on face value - they never stop questioning. Instead of just doing something because they're told to, strong willed kids need to understand why they're doing it. They won't just follow the crowd. They only do things because they see merit in them. I can already see the next few years are going to include the phrase but why mum on repeat thousands of times a day. As frustrating as that is, challenging the norm and constantly asking why isn't necessarily a bad thing, without this there would never be any change. These children are the innovators of tomorrow.

They stand up for themselves - they're definitely not wallflowers. If they have an opinion on something they won't be afraid to voice it. Instead of standing back when they think they're right, they'll argue their point until they're blue in the face. They certainly don't lack self confidence. I'm secretly proud of her self belief and the fact that she's willing to express her feelings.

They have plenty of personality - all that sass. Yes they are stubborn, sassy, defiant and often frustrating, but they're also cheeky, intuitive and highly entertaining. There's never a dull moment around here. Life would be pretty boring without her putting her two cents into every conversation.

They love as hard as they fight - they will make your heart melt as much as they make it break. Although the tantrums can sometimes feel soul destroying, the awww moments will restore your faith in humanity and fill your cup til it overflows. The same passion that's exerted during daily struggles over what to wear, what to eat and how everything should be done is also poured into how they show affection. They will love you with all their might and remind you of it at the perfect moment.

*****

My strong willed child is not a curse or a punishment, she's amazing {and so is yours}, I wish more people could see that. She's a highly motivated, curious and determined little girl. She will not be held back by anyone, she will speak her mind and one day she will accomplish great things. But, I'm a realist, I know there'll still be plenty more moments like this before that happens.

Love to Dream Nuzzlin Sleep Bag Review

It's no secret I'm a fan of sleeping bags for babies. We've been using sleeping bags ever since bub transitioned from swaddles at a few months old. Mainly because I'm super paranoid about SIDS so I took every step possible to reduce the risk of it happening. Plus once she started rolling there was no way she'd keep a blanket on anyway {or stay at the right end of the cot}. Not much has changed over the last 18 months, she still hates blankets, she still zooms around the cot all night never staying at the "right" end and we still love sleeping bags. I don't see any of it changing any time soon to be honest.

We've recently added to our collection of sleeping bags again. Every few months I get another one because the weather changes and we inevitably need a different tog. She's been wearing a 2.5 tog for winter, but with the weather warming up it was becoming far too hot for her overnight even with short sleeve pyjamas on underneath, so we've now switched to a 1.0 tog Nuzzlin Sleep Bag™.

The 1.0 tog Nuzzlin Sleep Bag™ is the latest offering from Love to Dream. It's a trans-seasonal "all rounder bag" meaning its suitable for the whole year {just adjust the layers of clothing underneath to suit the temperature}. The bag is made from the same new generation muslin as the 0.2 tog Nuzzlin Sleep Bag™, but with an added 100% cotton lining. It's super soft inside and out and is still nice and light. It also has some stretch allowing her to move her legs around freely within the bag {and zoom up and down the cot throughout the night}. 

The 1.0 tog comes in aqua with a cute pear motif, pink with an elephant motif or yellow with a watermelon motif. We have the the pink one and as soon as I opened it bub said "look mum elephant". We clearly got the right one {although I dare say she would've been just as impressed with a watermelon or pear}. The bags are also available in three sizes, 4-12 months, 12-18 months and 18-36 months. Bub is in the 18-36 months size and can I just say thank god they make them to 36 months because I have no intention of giving them up any time soon.

The bag has an extra long zips that does up across the bottom and side of the bag, making nappy changes during the night really easy {no need to take off the entire bag for a quick change}. Bub hardly ever needs a nappy change during the night, but there are the odd occasions when they're needed and easy access comes in handy. It means I can change her quickly and while she's pretty much half asleep still so it doesn't disrupt her sleep too much. There is also a zip guard at the top to stop it rubbing against her skin while she sleeps. Plus the zip closing under her arm means she can't undo the bag herself during the night or when she wakes in the morning {which she's started trying to do with another bag we have}.

Since we've switched to the 1.0 tog Nuzzlin bag she's been having much better sleep. She was waking up every night for a couple of weeks before we switched bags, which I put down to her being overheated. She's only woken two or three nights over the last two weeks and that's been due to night terrors. Having the right tog bag definitely helps everyone get a better night's sleep.

With the bag being trans-seasonal and her bag size being designed to last for another 9 months until she's 3 we'll no doubt get a fair bit of use out of it. There's really no need for us to get another sleeping bag unless she grows out of this one before she's meant to. Its a snug fit width wise {although with the stretch she can still move around freely} but she still has a fair bit of room length wise so hopefully she won't be growing out of it any time soon. I'm really hoping she lasts until she's 3 because sleeping bags have the added bonus of stopping her from trying to climb out of her cot {and I'm so not ready for her to go into a toddler bed yet}. I know she probably won't still be in a cot when she's 3, but I'm going to hold off on moving her for as long as possible, for the sake of our sanity.

Disclosure - I was sent a 1.0 tog Nuzzlin Sleep Bag™ for the purpose of review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own based on our experience with the bag, as per my disclosure policy. I did not receive payment for this review.

Plan Toys Wooden Pretend Play Food Review

Ever since bub got her Ikea kitchen for her birthday back in July she's been all about food. Play food at least, not real food {don't even ask about the dramas we're having with her not eating real food at the moment}. She's constantly cooking us dinner and bringing it over to us to eat. "Mummy eat dinner, daddy eat dinner too". Mmm I love wooden bananas, beans and carrots for dinner, they really hit the spot. Pretend play is definitely all the rage at our house at the moment. If only I could teach her to cook me real food then I'd be set

She's also taken to watching YouTube videos of kids cutting up play fruit and veggies, she'll sit and watch them for ages {as long as I let her anyway}. I don't mind too much as the videos are pretty educational because they teach kids colours and food names {much better than the random unboxing ones}. After a while I thought why not get her some velcro fruit and veggies so she can cut them herself instead of just watching it on a screen, so I decided on the fruit and vegetable sets from Plan Toys.

PLAN TOYS WOODEN FRUIT & VEGETABLE SETS

Plan toys specialise in wooden toys and sustainable play. They use sustainable rubberwood plantations for their toys plus they also use non toxic glue, water based dyes and organic colours. The toys are super safe for little people as well as being environmentally friendly.

Each set comes with 5 pieces of food, a cutting board and a knife. The fruit set includes a strawberry, orange, kiwi fruit, apple and lemon. The vegetable set comes with a tomato, onion, mushroom, cucumber and capsicum. The wood grain has a cork like speckle which creates a realistic appearance when mixed with the organic food colours. The inside is also realistic with seed holes and rind markings moulded into the wood. Are they not the cutest wooden food sets ever?

When I first set them all up all she wanted to do was pick them up and open them all. She was fascinated by the velcro. She didn't really have a clue how to use the knife, which didn't surprise me because the only time she's used a knife before is to poke play dough or kinetic sand. So we initially played with her pots and pans cooking the different fruit and veggies. 

She was soon curious of the knife and started trying to cut them all open. I'm not going to lie, while she was learning to use the knife properly was one of the most frustrating times in my parenting life so far. She kept saying "mummy help, daddy help", but when we tried to help she'd lose it at us. Over and over and over again. But, we got there in the end.

After about 40 minutes of us trying to show her the right way to hold the knife and enthusiastically clapping each time she cut a piece open, she had it down pat. I actually thought it would take her a lot longer to master, but it seems positive reinforcement does wonders. Now she won't stop playing with them. Each night after her bath she sits at her table and chairs and cuts up fruit and veggies for almost an hour {she'll make a great sous chef one day}.

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES 

• Colour recognition
• Hand/eye co-ordination
• Improves concentration
• Language development {fruit and vegetable names}
• Fine motor skills {holding and cutting with the knife}
• Imaginary play

The fruit and vegetable sets are great for developing her fine motor skills as she cuts them open and puts them back together. Grasping and pushing on the knife and even pulling the pieces apart with her hands are definitely building her hand strength. Its actually quite impressive the amount of time and concentration she puts into cutting them up and sticking them back together. 

We also use them to practice her colours and the names of all the fruits and veggies. She knows all the colours although she gets a little perplexed by the beige mushroom stalk {apparently its orange, that's her default colour when she doesn't know what something is}. She's also doing really well learning all the names, especially the vegetables {begables} which she didn't really know before. There's mato, mushwoom, stawbwee, orange, apple, lemon, wiwi fwuit, pear. Yep you're right there's no pear, but according to her the cucumber was originally a pear, now its a bubumber. How cute are kids when they're learning to talk?! I could listen to her mispronounce words all day and not get sick of it.

She really loves making me and daddy come and sit at the table with her while she plays {but we're not allowed to play, just watch}. She loves cooking her veggies in her pots and pans and serving us dinner, or bringing us random pieces of fruit throughout the day. If only she loved real fruit and vegetables as much as she loves the pretend ones.

WHERE TO BUY PLAN TOYS PRETEND PLAY FOOD

Lots of online toy stores stock Plan Toys - here in Australia you can purchase these sets from Growing Kind, Catch and Amazon AU. They can also be purchased from Amazon US via the links below.

Toni x

Disclosure - This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience, which means I earn a small commission at no cost to you, should you make a purchase.

What its like being an allergy mum

When I was pregnant I never imagined I'd have a child with allergies. I knew I'd be apprehensive when trying peanuts for the first time given so many kids react, but other than that I never really considered allergies would be a problem. The only allergies I knew of in our family are seafood based and I figured the baby wouldn't be eating seafood for a few years anyway so that never really concerned me.

What I never, ever imagined was that I'd have a daughter who has a severe dairy allergy. An allergy that wasn't diagnosed for weeks despite my constant trips to the drs pleading with them for help because I knew something wasn't right. An allergy that caused her to scream inconsolably for hours on end. One that caused her skin to be flaky and dry and over time develop an extreme eczema rash covering half her body. An allergy that caused her to projectile vomit repeatedly after every feed. An allergy that even caused her to stop breathing on a couple of {extremely scary} occasions.

But that's exactly the reality I find myself in. I'm an allergy mum. And its not just dairy, she's also allergic to numerous other foods {soy, eggs, avocado, apple, pear, nectarine, bacon, pork and sausages to be exact, and probably a bunch of other foods we're yet to try}. On the whole I have to say having a child with food allergies sucks {for so many reasons}. People often dismiss allergy mums as hypochondriac helicopter mums who overreact, but trust me that's not the case. To others we may seem to be over protective, but in reality we're just trying to keep our kids safe like every other parent, we just have to work a little harder to do that. There seem to be a number of misconceptions out there so I thought I'd give you a glimpse into what life's like with a child who has food allergies.

I'm always worrying if she's going to have a reaction.

Trialling new foods with an allergy bub isn't fun and exciting like it should be. Its nerve racking. She's had different types of reactions to each food she has an allergy to, some are mild and she probably doesn't even notice them, but others are quite painful and can become life threatening. Reactions include hives, welts, chemical burns in her nappy, swelling, vomiting, and in some cases she can stop breathing. It means I'm constantly living on high alert. I'd love to be able to give her a new food and not have to second guess whether its going to cause a reaction, but that will never be a reality for us.

I always have to monitor what she's eating.
When she was a baby controlling her food intake was relatively easy because a) she couldn't move and b) I was her only source of food. Now that she's bigger, mobile and can talk {read: can try and con other people into giving her food she wants} its a lot harder. I have to watch her like a hawk whenever she's around other kids with food. 

Telling a toddler they can't eat certain food is hard.

Most parents have to explain to their kids that they can't have certain foods at some point, i.e. no you can't have ice-cream for breakfast, but I have to do it on a daily basis and not just regarding junk food. I have to say no to the most basic of foods, like apple juice and biscuits, things other toddlers eat every day. There are often tantrums. She doesn't understand why her friends can have certain foods and she can't, but thankfully most of the time she accepts it. But it breaks my heart that she can't eat the same food as her friends.

I make her food from scratch.

I was going to make most of her food from scratch anyway so in reality having to do this hasn't made a huge difference in our lives. However, having to do it, rather than choosing to do it, sometimes does leave me a bit exhausted. Making her food is not as simple as grabbing a few things and throwing something together, it involves scouring the health food aisle to find the limited number of items I can actually use to bake with. It has to be pre-planned to ensure I have the necessary substitutes on hand. There have been so many times I wish I could just buy a packet of biscuits, or muffins instead of needing to bake for her to have snacks. I'd also love to be able to take her to a restaurant and order her a meal off the menu instead of having to make her food and take it along with us {then hope we don't get in trouble for bringing it and not paying for something off the menu}.

I'm an expert at reading ingredient lists.
Although I make the majority of her food from scratch, there's still times where I need to read ingredient lists on foods to make sure they're ok. For example when finding substitutes to use in cooking {like nuttelex, bio cheese and coconut yoghurt}, or when other mums offer her packet food. Years ago I never really looked at ingredient lists when buying food, I just bought what tasted good, as most people do. Now, I'm a ninja when it comes to deciphering ingredient lists, I can spot even the smallest amount of hidden soy or milk.

Birthday parties aren't as fun.

Nothing sends an allergy mum into a panic quite like the words birthday party. I don't expect other parents to cater for her dietary needs when organising their party, that's not fair on them, but it does mean that she's not really left with many options when it comes to eating food at parties. I wish she could just go to a party, eat all the food and have fun like all the other kids.

I can't send her to day-care.
Ok so technically I could send her to day-care if I could find one which would cater to her allergies {which is hard enough in itself}. However, after hearing first hand of how kids sometimes drink each others bottles by accident at day-care, there's no way I'm risking my child ending up drinking milk {even if its completely by accident}. If that was ever to occur her choking is silent and deadly and unless a carer was literally watching her face to face there's no way they'd even know she couldn't breathe. Given the ratio of carers to children in most child care centres I know she won't be watched face to face 100% of the time so the risk that something could go wrong {as minute as it may be}, is one that I can't take. I would never forgive myself if something happened to her.

Some people are just down right ignorant.

I get that people don't understand food allergies and that's fair enough because I didn't have a huge grasp on them before either, but some people actually dismiss her food allergies {because apparently everything the paediatrician has told me is wrong and they know better}. I've also had lectures from people {who aren't drs and clearly have no understanding of cmpa} telling me all sorts of different things that I should do to make her right "oh she's allergic to dairy, just give her lactose free stuff, she can have the lactose free yoghurt and milk she'll be fine". Actually she won't because she's allergic to dairy protein, not lactose and she'd probably stop breathing if you gave her any of that. The truth is none of their {hopefully well meaning} advice would have any affect on her allergies other than to exacerbate them and cause reactions. In the beginning I used to try and educate them, but it soon became clear these people think they know my daughter and her allergies better than I do, so instead of correcting them, I usually just allow them to say their piece and thank them for their advice and move on {while making a mental note to never leave my child alone in their care}.

In a way I understand why allergy mums come across as helicopter mums to other parents. From the outside it probably does seem like we're overly paranoid and coddle our children, but trust me it comes from a very necessary place. The truth is you can't really understand what it's like to care for a child with food allergies until you have to do it yourself. Unless it's your own child who has the potential to have a life threatening reaction you'll never truly understand the enormity of it. You just can't, but hopefully this has given you a glimpse into what its like. And hopefully you can now see we're not crazy helicopter mums, we just don't want to lose our precious babies.

Toni x

Dairy Free & Egg Free Jam Drops Recipe

Apart from tinkering and creating savoury recipes for dinner, I've never really had the need or desire to bake. Especially sweet things. With just two of us in the house it was always easier to go buy a cake or biscuits, because the effort I'd put into baking them and the fact we'd never eat them all, meant it really wasn't worth doing myself. However, along comes a child with dairy, soy and egg allergies {amongst others} and suddenly I find myself with a pretty good excuse to bake everything from scratch. So this year I've been desperately creating recipes for dairy free, toddler friendly foods and at some point that has to include sweet treats {because savoury just doesn't cut it full time when a toddler is concerned}.

So, my latest recipe is classic jam drops, with a dairy free and egg free twist. Until a few weeks ago I had absolutely no idea how to bake jam drops, but Cate is currently running a series of 31 days of cookies where she's baking 31 different cookies over 31 days and she's inspired me to give cookies a go. She shared a jam drops recipe as part of her series and it inspired me to come up with a dairy free and egg free jam drops recipe.

It's relatively easy to make most recipes dairy free if you know what to substitute things with. In this case I've substituted butter with Nuttelex, and milk with almond milk. I went with almond milk for this recipe instead of oat milk because almond milk {although I use unsweetened} has a sweeter taste than oat milk. I also omitted custard powder, which in most cases would be an ok ingredient, but I don't take any risks when it comes to bub. For our jam drops I've used strawberry jam, but you can use any jam of choice. Just make sure not to overfill the holes as the jam will spread a little as it cooks.

The jam drops have a lovely crumbly texture with the nice sticky gooey jam in the middle. Be warned though they're addictive, you won't be able to stop at one. Each time I've made them they've been eaten within a day {and the recipe makes approximately 25 of them}, so they must be good. They also go really well with a cup of tea as an afternoon snack.

DAIRY FREE JAM DROPS RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

• 80g Nuttelex {softened}
• 2 tablespoons almond milk
• ½ teaspoon vanilla essence
• 1⅓ cup self raising flour
• ⅓ cup caster sugar
• Jam of choice

METHOD

1. Pre-heat oven to 180℃

2. Beat together butter and sugar until it is well combined and turns pale

3. Mix in milk and vanilla essence

4. Sift in flour a little at a time until well combined and mixture turns to a dough consistency

5. Roll dough into small balls and place on tray

6. Indent a small hole into each ball and fill with jam

7. Bake for 15-18 minutes {depending on size of biscuits}

MORE ALLERGY FRIENDLY DAIRY FREE RECIPES

• Dairy Free Banana Muffins 
• Dairy Free Zucchini and Corn Muffins

When your child breaks you.

We all have those moments when we reach the end of our tether and just want to lose our shit or crumble into a useless mess on the floor, right? I know I do. Parenting small humans is such a hard and relentless job. And tiring, oh my god its so tiring. There are bound to be periods of time where we feel like we just can't cope with it all.

Yesterday I had one of those moments.

After a week of up and down night sleeping plus unpredictable day naps {i.e. will she have one or won't she}, I've been exhausted. But I went off to mothers group regardless because I still needed my adult time {with real people outside of facebook} and to ply myself with copious cups of tea {mothers group is always good for that} plus I knew she needed to socialise with the other kids too. We definitely aren't home bodies, it drives us batty being stuck in the same four walls for too long, so we go out more often then not even when we're a little bit exhausted.

Inevitably though there comes a time of the day where all the kids get tired and are losing their shit and start to get frustrated with each other's company. Their play deteriorates into play fighting and we become referees instead of relaxed mums watching our cute kids play together. Coincidentally yesterday this point in time coincided with me having a raging headache, so that didn't help. Funny how kids can always pick the moments where you're at your weakest to cause the most havoc. They're smart like that.

So at this point in time we decided to call it quits and leave. Cue mass exodus of mothers group. If you have kids though you'll know leaving somewhere is not a quick exercise, it takes time. Time to pack stuff away, time to bribe convince them to stop playing with the toy they've recently taken ownership of that isn't actually their's and then more time to get them out the door and into the actual car. This time is often filled with crying, yelling, screaming, kicking, throwing things, and any other way they can exert their displeasure at the situation. It's so much fun.

One of the other mums was doing much better than I was and managed to leave without much fuss while I had a screaming banshee follow me into the toilet. When I finally managed to remove her from the toilet {after yet another tantrum because I stopped her trying to pull off all the toilet paper and shove it in the toilet} I was greeted with an empty peaceful {apart from my still screaming child} room while they were outside. As much as I wanted to hurriedly pack said screaming child and all our things into the car and disappear, I decided to take a moment and sit on the couch and re-group.

And then I lost my shit and cried like a baby right along with her.

I'm usually ok with handling her tantrums. I can usually keep my cool. But given how exhausted I was + my pounding headache + her relentless screaming and kicking I reached my limit and lost it. I just sat there on the couch and cried right along with her. In fact I think I had a lot more actual tears than she did. She broke me and I had nothing more to give.

A few minutes later Lyndi {who's house we were at} came back in and saw pathetic me on the couch in a blubbering mess us having our moment on the couch and went and got a toy to distract bub to stop her crying, and then set up a dvd for her to watch for a bit to calm down. Isn't it amazing how kids will respond to someone else, but will ignore everything you say to them. Anyway that's not the point, the point is she saw I wasn't coping and she immediately offered to help. And on top of that she then told me I was doing a good job.

Those are the best words someone can tell you when you're losing your shit and feeling like a really inadequate parent. You're doing a good job.

Those words made me feel so much better. They justified my feelings and reminded me that I have got this and I can do this. No matter how shit I felt in that moment I knew I was doing the best I could and it was so nice to have someone else essentially tell me you are a good parent. We all have good days and bad. We all have those moments when our child breaks us. But its ok. You're still doing a good job.

Of course today bub is back to being her adorable sweet self, and she's having a nap {hallelujah}. Like adults, kids are going to have their days where they're feeling off and they're going to make their feelings known. And often they will do it relentlessly. They're going to push your buttons, and some days they might break you down to the point where you can't do it any more, but its only temporary. It will get better and you will get through it, even if you need to have a good cry. I want you all to know that you're doing a good job.

Have you had a day where your kid/s got the better of you?

Toni x

Sensory Play with Kinetic Sand

From early on it was obvious that bub was a very tactile baby, moreso than the other babies we hung out with. She's always loved touching and feeling everything and other mums have commented on it on numerous occasions. So I always knew sensory play would be a big part of our lives. Of course we had to wait until she got over the I-must-put-everything-in-my-mouth stage. That stage seems to go on foooorever, doesn't it? But we finally got past it.

I have to admit I really love sensory play too. I love feeling different textures {perhaps that's where she gets it from}, but I don't always love the mess that goes hand in hand with it. I don't mind playdoh because its relatively easy to clean up {although when she mixes all the colours together my OCD goes off the charts and my brain almost explodes}. However, playing with playdough all the time gets monotonous and if you're like me and don't clean it up as soon as they lose interest then the stuff tends to go hard and become useless. Yea I've been guilty of ruining a few bits of playdough in my time. So we've been expanding our horizons lately and looking for alternatives to the humble old playdough and have discovered kinetic sand.

Being an avid beach babe bub took to the kinetic sand straight away. In fact I think her eyes nearly popped out of her head when she saw it. "Beach mummy, beeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaach!". Sand + the actual beach are both the beach to her, so she was super excited to have her own beach at home. We don't have a sandpit {I know poor deprived child} and kinetic sand is the closest she'll ever get to one, because cats + a tiny townhouse courtyard = no room for a sandpit. Kinetic sand is heaps better though because I can set it up anywhere {we used her play table out in the backyard} and put it away again when we're done. Totally portable and maintenance free.

We've both had heaps of fun using the shape cutters to make different shapes in the sand. Yes we, because we all know I'm a big kid at heart. Bub was also quite impressed with herself using the knife to cut the sand because mummy still doesn't allow her to use real knives. This one is plastic and completely blunt though so it passes the helicopter mum test. The shape cutters are also great to use with playdough or as cookie cutters {but maybe clear the sand residue off first or they may be a tad crunchy}.

Kinetic sand has been around for a while now and everyone's been raving about it, so of course I've wanted to try it for ages {but that I-must-put-everything-in-my-mouth stage meant I had to curb my enthusiasm and wait a while}. Kinetic Sand is really cool, mould-able sand. Its basically like the sand equivalent of playdough. Its 98% sand and 2% magic {aka bonding agent} which means it can keep its shape when pushed together so it can be moulded into all different shapes and sculptures. Its similar to playing with wet sand, but when you pick it up it becomes fluid and takes on a fluffy liquid like texture. It has the best of both worlds because you can run it through your fingers like dry sand and mould it like wet sand {plus it wont fly in your face if its windy}. This video demonstrates the texture of it really well.

I tried to make a log shape and cut it into little pieces like the one they cut up in the promo video, but of course I failed miserably. Here's a tip, if you're trying to do something cool to take a photo, don't do it when your 2yr old is around because they will take over and ruin it. Having said that though she made my pathetic little sculpture into an awesome train and drove it around the table. I liked it better as a train anyway. Kids really do have extraordinary imaginations and can make anything into a game. By some fluke I happened to grab my phone and record it before she lost interest.

We also grabbed some of her sand moulds from her sand and water table so I could show her how to make awesome 3d shapes. Of course that was about as successful as the log sculpture incident as she wanted to pick them up straight away. Kinetic sand makes great moulded shapes, however when you pick it up it becomes fluid almost immediately so it breaks apart pretty quickly. As you can imagine toddlers aren't the most delicate of creatures so my poor sand teddy never stood a chance. She still thought it was amazing though. Note to self next time take awesome mould photos while she's napping. 

Kinetic sand is a great alternative to going to the beach, for the days you don't have the time or the energy to get everything packed up and drive all the way there. And it can be used indoors so is great for rainy days when kids are bored. Its a really great unstructured play activity which helps build fine motor skills. Plus it keeps kids entertained for ages, bub normally has a maximum attention span of about 15 minutes, but she sits playing with kinetic sand for over an hr at a time. Just make sure you supervise kids while they're playing as they may be tempted to sneak a taste and its not designed to be ingested. If you're after a taste safe sensory option, I have a recipe for edible dirt here which is a similar consistency to kinetic sand.

Are your kids in love with the beach as much as mine?

Toni x

Disclosure - This post contains some affiliate links which means I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you, should you make a purchase.

Infertility hurts

A handful of people know that we've been trying to have another baby. Others have probably guessed, but I've kept it pretty close to my chest. I was really hoping that this time around it would just happen. That somehow my first pregnancy would've flicked a switch in my body and it would just know what to do to get pregnant this time around. I was hoping, actually wishing, my infertility would've gone away and I wouldn't have to go through all this pain again. But here we are after trying for almost 6 months and we're no closer to being pregnant than we were when we started.

It was at this point when trying for bub that I pretty much had a breakdown and went to the fertility Dr to start treatment. I spent 3½ years prior to that trying to conceive with my ex-husband so I knew after 6 months of nothing happening that I didn't want to waste any more time. I didn't want the roller-coaster of emotions to go on any longer than it had to. This time though it's felt different, at least I thought it did. I thought I was coping.

The last few months I've felt much more relaxed than I did the first time around. Already having a child now I haven't been as desperate as I was before. I know its possible for me to get pregnant and I already have a gorgeous little girl who I get to hang out with every day. My life hasn't been hinging on pregnancy tests each month like it was the first time. There have still been pregnancy tests every now and then {thanks to my body being all over the place and giving me false hope}, but there haven't been as many. Because I know how heartbreaking it is watching that ink run across the test window, hoping and praying for a second line to appear. Those 3 minutes seem like a lifetime and then just like that they're over and that one single line is the most depressing thing you've ever seen. Its amazing how a bit of ink on a piece of paper can so vehemently crush you. Well not this time round. I've taken a few tests, but I've rarely allowed myself to get my hopes up. Only once did I actually think I might be pregnant, but I convinced myself I wasn't so the negative test wasn't as hard to swallow.

I thought I was handling it. I thought I was stronger than last time. I have a thicker skin afterall. I've been there, done that and most of all I know it can work. I know there can be success and I thought that knowledge would be enough to get me through. But its not. It's becoming so apparent that its not.

This week I burst into tears after seeing a pregnancy announcement. It wasn't because I'm not happy for them, I'm so so happy for them, it was just a {completely unexpected} knee jerk reaction. Reality smacked me over the head. For some reason that single moment made it glaringly obvious to me that no matter how much I want to get pregnant I can't just decide I want it to work and have it happen. Other people can decide they want a baby and have a baby, and I just can't. And I'm not ok with that. Suddenly, in a split second, all of the feelings came rushing back and the only way I can process that is by crying. The emotional floodgates have opened. I can feel it.

I'm back to feeling inadequate. I'm back to feeling like I'm not a real woman, because I know my body can't do what its meant to be able to do. And that hurts. It hurts so much. It hurts just as much as the first time. I thought it was different the second time around, but its exactly the same, I'd just built up much higher walls around my feelings, but right now they're crumbling all around me and I don't know what to do.

I don't want to be here again. I don't want to be on this roller-coaster. I don't want to feel helpless. I don't want to look at bub and just see time ticking away and realise that there might be a huge age gap between her and a sibling, or that she might end up being an only child. I don't want to be seeing the world this way again, but I don't want to get off this ride either. I don't give up and I won't. I can't. I have to hold onto the hope that we will still have another baby, even if it means more fertility treatment. I just wish I still had rose coloured glasses on and could pretend it wasn't hurting so much.

I know it has nothing to do with the pregnancy announcement either, that was simply a catalyst to something that would've happened eventually. Apparently you can push your feelings down as hard as possible, but eventually they find a way to bubble back up to the surface.

But, I know things are never as bad as they seem and there's always hope so I'll put a smile on my face and keep holding onto that {and cuddle all my friends adorable babies until we can have another one ourselves}.

Toni x

Dairy free banana muffins

I love baking savoury recipes, but I've never really had a desire to bake sweet things, with the exception of cupcakes for birthdays every now and then. However, since having a toddler I've realised savoury just won't cut it all the time. Even though she doesn't get sugar that often {because she doesn't eat much processed food due to allergies} she's still managed to work out what it is and decided that she LOVES it. So naturally to keep her happy I've had to come up with something sweet that's ok for her to have every now and then, so banana muffins it is.

Of course I still had to keep them allergy friendly so I came up with a recipe that is dairy free, soy free and egg free. For this recipe I've used nuttlex, oat milk and egg replacer powder to substitute the butter, milk and eggs. You could also use almond milk instead of oat milk if you want to add a bit more sweetness {although I think they're sweet enough as they are, but it all comes down to personal preference}.

I've made the muffins quite a few times now and have used 2 large cavendish bananas each time which gives them a subtle banana flavour, but if you want them to be a bit more in your face banana then use 3 bananas. You can of course use lady-fingers if you prefer them. I make the muffins as mini patty cake size muffins for bub and normal ones for us {although lately she's been eating the big ones too}.

BANANA MUFFINS

INGREDIENTS
* 2 overripe bananas {mashed}
* 2 cups self-raising flour
* 1 cup caster sugar
* 2 tablespoons Nuttlex
* 1 egg {using egg replacer powder}
* 2 tablespoons oat milk

METHOD
1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
2. Beat wet ingredients together using an electric mixer.
3. Slowly add in dry ingredients while mixing until well combined.
4. Fill muffin cases and cook in oven for 15-20 minutes until risen and skewer comes out clean.

Interview with Tina Harris from Lah-Lah

We're a little obsessed with Lah-Lah at our place. Bub loves to get up and dance to all the songs and I have to admit I don't mind them either. I particularly love Brush Your Teeth because it helps me to get her to brush her teeth at night {which for some reason is always more of a challenge for me than daddy?}. We also love to dance around the lounge room to Shake it Like This.

Lah-Lah, Buzz the Bandleader {and Lola double bass}, Mister Saxaphone, Squeezy Sneezy the piano accordion and Tom Tom are welcomed into our home numerous times throughout the week thanks to their ABC KIDS show Lah-Lah Adventures. We also have a Lah-Lah dvd which makes an appearance at least once a week {and always has to be played more than once because bub demands more Lah-Lah!}. If that wasn't enough Lah-Lah, we're also going to see them live in concert in Brisbane at the end of September - woohoo I can't wait, I mean bub can't wait.

I know we're not the only Lah-Lah mad household so I asked you guys on facebook if you had any burning questions for Lah Lah and of course you did. I was lucky enough to interview Tina Harris {aka Lah-Lah} via email to get all your questions answered. I also discovered her and Mark once lived in Paris, how cool is that?

TINA HARRIS INTERVIEW

Hi Tina,

Thank-you so much for taking the time out of your busy schedule to do this interview for the blog. 

Lots of my readers are big fans of yourself and the band and would love to get to know more about you and the other band members. I put a call out on social media and these are the questions my readers wanted to ask you. 

When did your love of music first start?

I think I’ve always had a love of music but it probably all started in grade 3 when our primary teacher started a band program. He had a sign up sheet and you could take any instrument home for 2 weeks until you found a match. I started on the trumpet and ended up on the alto saxophone. That was my instrument for years before I picked up singing in high school.

When did you first come up with the idea of Lah-Lah and the big live band, and did you always want to be a children's entertainer?

I had no idea this is the path my life would lead. In fact for many years I studied trained and performed as an opera singer. Mark and I even moved to Paris after I finished my Masters of Performance at the Con in Sydney. I was in love with French music so we moved to France, crazy but true. When Lily and Emily were born life shifted gears and I was really looking for something that fit with family life and my love of music so we started a little class which ended up being a school....then Lah-Lah :)

Did you always plan on having a tv series, or did that evolve over time?

It was after we made our first DVD with Nickelodeon that the idea of a TV series became a possibility. Before that it was a dream of mine but Mark thought I was crazy (this is a regular thought in our family:) but the actual TV series was created with our director Deb Ryan, Mark and myself. It took 18 months to make and was a real love project.

How many instruments can all the band members play in total?

Well Tom Tom plays drum and percussion (so lots!) and Mister Saxophone plays: Saxophone, flute and clarinet. Buzz is bass and Squeezy is piano and accordion.

How do you come up with song ideas?

I’m usually the ideas girl, I sing my thoughts into my phone usually, send them to Mark who works his magic and then we argue about how it should go for a day or so and then usually end up with something we both love. On Sing it Loud the new album all the boys in the band wrote songs for the album and we just love that.

Do you have a favourite song? We're very fond of brush your teeth here as we sing it each night while she's brushing her teeth.

One of my favourite songs is one Squeezy (Gary Daley) wrote called Natures Song. He actually wrote it 20 years ago for his kids when they were little but never recorded it. When he brought it to the band we all just loved it.

Do you have any advice for kids who have a passion for music and drama?

To just go for it, join a group at school or one after school and explore. It really is such a wonderful way to grow your creativity and this really is such an important part of anyone’s education. Thinking creatively heaps to solve problems in all disciplines of life :)

Is there a Lah-Lah movie planned or would you consider it in the future?

Wouldn't that be fun? Our main focus is to get the funding and plans ready for series 2. There’s a new DVD released last month and a new one coming out in November. For now that will keep us plenty busy :)

Tina is so down to earth and lovely to talk to, I can't wait to meet her and the other band members in a few weeks time. Lah-Lah's Big Live Band are currently on tour playing live shows across the country. They're coming to QLD later this month and have shows in other states up until December. 

Are your kids obsessed with Lah Lah too?

Toni x

SmarTrike® Explorer 5 trikes in 1 Review

There comes a time in a toddlers life when they decide being in a pram is pretty much like being in jail. We're at that point. How dare we as parents put them in their own comfy little chair on wheels and push them around so they can sleep whenever they want. I really don't know what she's complaining about, I'd LOVE it if someone wanted to put me in a sofa bed on wheels and push me around. I'd lap that up and have a little nap while someone else did all the hard work.

Now days when we try and put her in a pram either at the shops or to go for walks we're met with a barrage of protest. Kicking, screaming, crying... or my favourite "the clingon" - where she wraps her legs around me and hangs on for dear life. Getting things done with a walking 2yr old in tow is sometimes just as frustrating though as she either goes at snails pace, stops to jump every 2 seconds or decides to dart off in the opposite direction. To try and combat our current situation, and find a compromise that she agrees with, we've recently introduced a trike.

Most of the boys in our mothers group have had trike's in varying forms for a few months now and love them. We've been a bit slow to take up the trike phase, but we're making up for it now with the new smarTrike® Explorer 5-in-1. The Explorer is the latest offering from smarTrike® which combines the features and benefits of a stroller and tricycle into one product that carries children through five developmental stages from 10-36 months. The smarTrike® Explorer starts out as a parent controlled stroller with reclining seat allowing babies to sleep while out, just like in a normal stroller. It then transforms through a series of steps to a parent controlled trike and eventually a child operated trike.

The smarTrike® Explorer includes a padded, washable seat cover, a removable UV sun shade, a small storage pouch and a large storage bag that sits above the trike bucket. It also has a drink holder and an inbuilt mobile phone toy that has its own caddy. For added safety it has a foot brake the same as a normal stroller. There's a pedal bar for younger kids to rest their feet on and then proper adjustable bike pedals for when they've learnt to ride the trike properly. The 360° full swivel front wheel means the Explorer can be steered under parental control without interrupting the movement of the front wheel. Once they've learnt to ride the trike properly the parental control handle can be removed giving kids full control of the trike including steering. The trike comes in 6 different colours - pink, grey, blue, green, purple or orange, we've got the dusty pink.

We're currently using the Explorer in stage 3 {recommended for 18m+} with the parental control attached and the bike pedals locked. Even though she's just turned 2 which is the right age for stage 4, she hasn't learnt how to use the pedals because she's never had a non ride on bike before and her legs are just a smidge too short to pedal properly. I've also kept the waist bar attached because it gives me a greater sense of security given she won't let me do up the harness over her arms any more {she refuses to let me strap her arms in her prams too so we just clip the harness around her waist}.

When we took it out for our first walk bub was a bit apprehensive but, being the ever industrious parents we are, an ice-block bribe quickly quashed any fears she had and she couldn't climb into the trike fast enough. Daddy made us walk the back way to the shops so we weren't on the main road just incase I accidentally steered her onto the road {he clearly has faith in my driving skills}. I was actually quite surprised by just how easy it is to steer, even with a 15kg toddler in it. It took her a couple of times of being reminded to "keep her feet up" before she got the hang of not dragging them along the ground, but after that it was smooth sailing to the shops.

The height of the parental control bar is perfect and its super easy to steer, infact I've even done it one handed a few times. The top pouch is the perfect size to keep my wallet, phone and keys handy and it still has space to spare. The large bag at the back actually fits a lot more in it than you'd expect. We went to the chemist and managed to fit all 10 of her formula cans in the storage bag and there was still room left for some of our fruit and veggies. The only downside to the storage bag is the zip in the top isn't wide enough to fit bulky items so we couldn't fit all our fruit and veg in the bag even though there was still room to spare. I hung the bags on the clip at the back of the bar though and it supported them well, although I did remove them after a while and carry them because I was paranoid I'd snap the clip {I'm not sure its designed to have weight swinging directly off it}.

The smarTrike® Explorer allows her to feel like she has more freedom and is involved in the outdoors moreso than when she's in a pram, even though she's just as safe and secure. The trike handles let her feel in control like she's the one driving and deciding where to go even when I'm firmly in control. She also loooooves the toy phone. She's always walking around the backyard "phone where ahhh you?" and when we ride in it she's pressing all the buttons then answers it "helloooo?". It actually saved us when we were in the chemist and she started getting antsy {and we forgot her num num and blankie}. We pretended to call her phone and that kept her entertained while we were waiting for our script, thankgod.

Overall I think the smarTrike® Explorer 5 in 1 is definitely a worthwhile investment given how long it can be used for and how many different functions it includes, especially if you get it when your child is closer to 10 months rather than 2yrs old. Its easy to assemble, use and change between each stage. There's also a 3yr warranty for piece of mind. The smarTrike Explorer can be purchased at Target and Toys R us starting from $199.

Toni x