Pink, grey and white nursery theme... with a heap of cushions for good measure (because I'm addicted to buying cute cushions)

So bub is 20 months old and I've just finished her room. Well actually, technically its not 100% finished because I'm waiting on some photos to arrive to fill her collage photo frame. But other than that we've finally got around to finishing her nursery, almost 2 years after she was born, better late than never right? Although I'm not sure I'd still call it a nursery because she's definitely a little girl now and not a baby any more, even though she still sleeps in a cot {thankgod - I'm so not ready for the bedtime shenanigans a toddler bed will bring}.

The main reason why it took so long was because I was so indecisive. Shock horror there, not. Before I had her I had the nursery all planned out, I even got it mock ready for a pregnancy photo shoot at 25 weeks with only a weeks notice. Not bad hey {and yes I hear you saying well if you can do that in a week why has it taken 20 months....}. I say mock ready because I basically borrowed everything in the room from a friend and once I gave it back I was back to a bare boned room again. 

Photo | Katharine Maree Photography

And then I got bigger and lazier and tired, and a dislocated pelvis and well then I had a baby so all my spare time went fair and square out the window. As it does. Newborns have an uncanny ability to siphon all energy out of you.

I also was dead set on a Winnie the Pooh theme for her nursery before she was born. I loved Winnie the Pooh as a child so I was adamant my child would too. I even had a Winnie the Pooh themed baby shower {thrown by the same lovely friend who allowed me to steal all her daughters stuff to use as props}. The problem I found was that unless I was willing to pay a ridiculous amount of money to order "girl Winnie the Pooh" nursery sets from America, there really were only typical boy options available here - lots of blues and greens. I would've thought there'd be lots of yellow versions, but apparently not. So I kind of changed the nursery theme to pink + Winnie the Pooh bits and bobs thrown in.

Then life got in the way and she slept in our room until she was nine months, so I kind of forgot about the whole needing to finish the nursery situation...

During the first twelve months as she was starting to develop and show her personality more and more it became glaringly obvious that she had a natural love of owls. It all started with Giggle and Hoot. It was the first show that she actually stopped and paid attention to on the ABC and she used to point at Hoot and Hootabelle non stop. Her face would light up the entire time Giggle and Hoot was on and then after she'd go back to ignoring the tv and playing with toys. Then she started pointing out owls whenever we saw them - in books, on tv, toys and even on clothes in shops. It soon became clear her nursery needed to revolve around owls and not Winnie the Pooh {at first I was sad, but now I've very much embraced the owl love}.

So her room is now a pink, grey and white theme with owls thrown in here and there for good measure. And incase the title didn't give you a hint, I'm somewhat obsessed with buying cute cushions for her room. I apologise that some of the photos are a little grainy because her room doesn't have the best light {which is great for her sleeping, but not good for taking photos}.

Letters - Spotlight | Cloud pillow - Mama & Cub | Owl & Watermelon cushions - Cotton On Kids

Rocking horse - Kmart

Print - Kmart

Clock - Target | Figurine - Willow Tree | Cloud light - Cotton On Kids | Basket - Ikea

Cloud light - Cotton On Kids

Love word - Masters | Litecup | Hootabelle - ABC Shop | Ice cream light - Myer

Shadow box - Typo

Teepee - Kmart | Shelves - Ikea | Love sign - Cotton On Kids

Cloud cushion - Target | Heart cushion - Kmart

Owl night light - Pretty Little Closest

Did you do a theme for your kids nursery/room? 

Toni x

Making the switch with Food Switch

This post is in conjunction with Bupa Australia and The George Institute for Global Health

I'm a bit of a habitual buyer when it comes to grocery shopping. I tend to stick with what I know. Having said that I am prone to going through phases when it comes to food, but for the most part I usually buy the same things week in and week out. Not all of our choices are healthy, however since becoming parents to a child with numerous food allergies we are making better choices than before. I've become well versed at reading ingredient labels for bub, but I sometimes forget when it comes to us.

Thanks to Bupa I've been introduced to the new FoodSwitch app which is a free app that allows you to make better choices when it comes to packaged food. FoodSwitch was developed by The George Institute for Global Health in partnership with Bupa. It's available for both android and apple devices for free via Google Play or the App Store. 

Using the app is really simple. Essentially you just have to scan the barcode of a food item and it displays whether its a healthy option or not and also lists other healthier options below. The contents of the food is displayed as grams and % of an adults daily intake. You can choose the traffic light display mode or health star rating mode. We chose to use the traffic light mode which shows each section in either red, yellow or green which makes it even easier to work out if the levels are good or bad. Obviously red is bad and green is good.

We actually started playing around with the app at home going through half our pantry contents scanning it to see what was healthy and what wasn't {other than obvious things like chocolate}. It's kind of hilarious how much fun we had playing around with the app, even at home. Its like a grown up version of playing shops, and who didn't love playing shops as a kid. It's just as much fun using the app at the shops, however a few people may have given me weird looks taking photos of T scanning things.

It was actually quite interesting when some things that I thought would be healthy turned out not to be. We both thought these Waterthins twists would be relatively healthy {although we mainly based that on the fancy packaging and the fact they were near the healthier biscuit versions in the aisle}. Turns out they're not that great, which makes it obvious that you shouldn't just pick the items with the fancier packaging.

Another one which pleasantly surprised me was the fried rice packets we've recently discovered. We bought them one week when they were on special and fell in love with the flavour. I thought for sure that they'd be bad for me so scanned them with a bit of apprehension, however turns out they're quite healthy. Now I don't feel bad about occasionally having fried rice as a side dish on the nights I couldn't be bothered cooking a huge meal :)

There were some others that didn't surprise me at all, like my beloved Tim Tams. Of course they're bad for me, but deep down I already knew that. Something that tastes so good has to be bad. Another product that rated as expected is the Cocobella Kids coconut water juice range that we give bub. No surprises that it's super healthy.

As well as the choice of display image mode, the FoodSwitch app also has 6 different modes you can switch through depending on what your health goal is. We just stuck to the FoodSwitch classic which gives general healthier alternative suggestions. You can tailor the mode to suit your needs if you're looking to minimise or eliminate one element e.g. sugar.

1. FoodSwitch Classic is great for anyone looking to make overall healthier food choices.
2. SaltSwitch is great for people with, or being treated for, high blood pressure. It’s also useful for people with heart disease and kidney disease.
3. GlutenSwitch helps people living with coeliac disease or a gluten intolerance to identify gluten-free products.
4. FatSwitch has been designed for people with, or being treated for, high cholesterol by helping to find healthier foods with lower levels of saturated fat.
5. EnergySwitch can help people choose foods with lower energy (kilojoules) to help them manage their energy needs.
6. SugarSwitch helps people choose healthier foods with less total sugar.

Overall the FoodSwitch app is very informative and extremely simple to use. Its a great tool to help those trying to achieve certain nutrition goals and also those who are just looking to make healthier food choices. I love that it's available on both apple and android devices and best of all its FREE.

Do you read ingredient labels when you buy food?


Toni x

Disclosure - I was sent a gift card to go food shopping using the Food Switch app. I wasn't obliged to post about the app, however I think its something that you guys would benefit from. I did not receive monetary payment for this post.

Linking with Grace & Sonia

52 WEEKS OF MEMORIES | 12 - PLAYING

Somehow I managed to not get one single photo of bub playing this week. There's been a lot of playing {as usual} but I've been too busy participating to remember to grab my phone and take a photo. I always wish we had a third person with us just to follow us around and take photos, mostly so I don't have to worry about it and also because then I'd have more photos with both of us together {that aren't dodgy selfies}. But alas that didn't happen, so this week T is making a guest appearance.

12 | PLAYING

If you'd like to play along too, join in with 52 Weeks of Memories and get creative. Feel free to share with your friends on Facebook or Instagram, the more who join in the better!

You can follow me on Instagram and join in on Facebook. When sharing via Instagram or Facebook don't forget to use the hashtag #fmy52weeksofmemories so I can see your lovely photos. I've also started a facebook group for the challenge if you feel more comfortable sharing in a group setting. If you have a blog feel free to link up your photos via the linky below and come back each week to link up each new prompt. 

Reminder - next weeks prompt is sharing.

Also linking with Trish, and Raychael

Linky rules

1. Follow Finding Myself Young

2. Add your post for this weeks prompt

3. Grab the button below and link it to the bottom of your post or sidebar or text link

4. Visit some of the other blogs and share some comment love (because its the nice thing to do)

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An InLinkz Link-up

To create a photobook like I did with the 2014 photos visit:

Mummy Must Have Review | My Lil Pouch

I've been making bub's food since she first started out on solids. To be honest I'd always planned on doing this, purely based on the cost factor, but when we learnt about her dairy allergy it became pertinent that I be very strict with her food. The best way for me to do this was to make my own so I knew exactly what was going into everything she ate.

When she first started solids though and was on purees I didn't know anything about reusable food pouches. I used to freeze all her food in ice cubes and then separate them into plastic zip lock bags and then defrost them into containers when we needed them. I so wish I'd known there were reusable food pouches available - it would've saved so much time and plastic!

MY LIL POUCH REUSABLE POUCHES

Even though we've long moved on from purees, I've recently discovered coconut yoghurt as a dairy free alternative for bub and she's obsessed with it. The pouches make it so much easier for bub to eat the yoghurt when we're out and about {which is all the time}. The pouches mean there's no mess while she's eating and there's no waste because I can wash them and reuse them.

My Lil Pouches are non-toxic BPA, PVC and Phthalate free and recyclable. They're dishwasher safe - pouches can be washed on the top shelf and lids in the cutlery basket. They also come in varying sizes from 100ml to 500ml pouches.

The 100ml pouch is the perfect serving size for her yoghurt. I thought at first she might have a bit of trouble working out how to eat it from the pouch given she's never had a pouch of baby food, but she quickly proved me wrong. She grabbed it out of my hand and was sucking it down within a few seconds. Talk about a quick learner.

So far she's only had yoghurt out of the pouches, but I'm going to experiment with some smoothies using almond milk. She's never really had anything other than formula, water and coconut water to drink so it'll be fun experimenting with some new drink flavours for her. I'm also going to try out this banana custard recipe from the My Lil Pouch blog.

MY LIL ICE POPS

We've just started getting into ice blocks around here in a big way. I've felt sorry for bub because she can't eat ice cream like other kids. However, now that I'm a lot more confident with managing her food allergies and I'm more aware of what does and doesn't cause a reaction, I've delved into the wonderful land that is home made ice blocks. To say she's loving it is an understatement!

The My Lil Ice Pops ice block moulds are made from 100% FDA approved silicone and are really easy to fill. Even though the silicone gives them a squishy feel compared to traditional cardboard ice block packaging, they're quite thick and durable. The lids are also really easy to fit into place and seal well. They come in a variety of solid bright colours as well as a selection of swirl designs. The shape makes it easy to push the ice blocks out of the mould, which makes them great for younger kids through to older kids. T loves them because they remind him of the Calippo ice blocks so he's stoked I can now make home made Calippo's {although I'm not sure they'll taste quite the same}.

So far I've made a couple of different flavours - watermelon & coconut yoghurt, mango & coconut yoghurt, mango slushie, pineapple & coconut yoghurt and pineapple crush. She has reactions to a lot of other fruits so I'm trying to come up with some other combinations so she doesn't get bored over time {but then again who ever gets bored with ice blocks}. I'm going to try a strawberry one once they come back in season because I'm a little too sceptical to use frozen berries at the moment. If anyone has any other ideas let me know.

She loves these ice block moulds because she can push out the ice block herself and it also makes the whole process a lot more mess free than the traditional paddle pop stick moulds. The ice block moulds are 80ml which is a pretty good size for a toddler, but if she ever doesn't want to finish it daddy's always on hand to help her out.

MY LIL POUCH ACCESSORIES

There are also a number of accessories that can be purchased to use with My Lil Pouch products, including funnels, lids, labels, spoon attachments, recipe books and pouch coolers. I've used the mini funnel with both the pouches and the ice pops and it makes filling them so much easier. I also love that it collapses down. The cooler is super cute and also great for when the pouch has been frozen or is fresh from the fridge and still cold.

The choke safe lids are also a must have with children under 3 years old, as far as I'm concerned. The normal lids do the job, but I think they'd be too much of a temptation for bub if she managed to unscrew them. Given she's still in the stage of putting everything in her mouth I could see exactly what'd happen if she got a hold of one. The choke safe lids are perfect being large and they need to be squeezed in to be turned and unscrewed, so they're perfectly safe around bub.

ABOUT MY LIL POUCH

My Lil Pouch is an Australian owned and operated company based in QLD. Owner Sarah created the products as a solution for messy meal times with her two sets of twins {yes you read that right, TWO sets of twins}. After years of research, sampling and design improvements, My Lil Pouch was born - creating an environmentally friendly, durable and reliable food pouch that's available at an affordable price. Over the years the product lines have increased to include the Ice Pops plus accessories and recipe books.

My Lil Pouch are offering Finding Myself Young readers 20% OFF all purchases, simply use the code YOUNG20 at checkout when ordering via www.mylilpouch.com.au.

Did you make your own baby food?

Toni x

Disclosure - I was gifted My Lil Pouch products for review. All opinions are my own based on my experience with the products, as per my disclosure policy. I did not receive payment for this review.

Linking with Jess

Trust your mama instincts

As a first time mum its easy to get confused and overwhelmed by all the advice that gets thrown in your direction. Its nice that people care enough to share advice, but often it can be conflicting, which does nothing more than make you second guess yourself. Then there's the people who think they know so much more than you and outright tell you what you should be doing instead of making suggestions. On the one hand yes they technically may know more about mothering than you because they've been doing it longer, but that doesn't mean what they know is right for you. Here's the thing they may have mothered longer than you, but they weren't mothering your baby.

You're the only mum your baby has. You spent nine months (or thereabouts) nurturing your baby while they grew inside you.You are the only one that spends hour after hour taking care of your precious babe. Others may come and help, but at the end of the day when they've gone home, you're the one up at night looking after your little one (unless you have a really helpful partner).

You are the one that knows your baby best, even if at times it doesn't feel that way. 

Being thrust into motherhood and having to take care of a helpless baby is daunting. Suddenly you're responsible for a whole other person, something you've never had to do before. There's so much to learn. There's a little person to get to know and countless sleepless nights to navigate. But if you listen closely, deep inside, you'll realise you have those wonderful mama instincts. Babies don't come with a manual, but when they come out they do switch on those instincts. So when you're in doubt look inside and see what your mama instincts are telling you. 

Trust your instincts.

When bub was born she was happy and content for about two weeks, after that it all changed. She would scream for hours. She wouldn't burp. She went from sleeping in between feeds to refusing to sleep sometimes all day. She would projectile vomit continuously (sometimes up to 16 times) after breastfeeding. She started getting a rash on her face that spread to her neck, then her chest, then her belly. I knew something wasn't right. My instincts told me it wasn't normal even when others assured me it was.

I got so much advice from friends and other mums. The problem was most of it was conflicting. Use wind drops, no don't just hold her upright for half an hour. Babywear her to sleep, no leave her to cry herself to sleep. Keep breastfeeding, no put her on formula. 

I was so desperate to make my baby feel better I pretty much tried everything. I used wind drops, held her upright, did bicycle legs, kept her close, changed my diet, supplement fed with formula on occasion; amongst a list of other things. There was slight improvement but I still knew in my heart that something wasn't right.

I took her to doctors on countless occasions and it felt like they kept brushing me off as an overreacting first time mum. They explained away her symptoms without ever looking any deeper to see if something was wrong. Vomiting after feeding is normal, she doesn't have reflux. She's crying because she has gas, colic isn't real. Her rash is just milk spots, its normal. 

Her rash is spreading, its probably just heat rash. She hasn't got back to her birth weight, but she is gaining so we're not worried. Time after time I was brushed off, but I didn't give up. I knew something wasn't right. Even though I'd never had a baby before, my instincts were screaming at me that something else was going on.

Finally, after persisting for weeks, a paediatrician at hospital agreed with me that these weren't normal reactions for a baby to be having. It was suggested that she could have a cows milk protein allergy and she was reacting to my milk. We went onto allergy formula and she started improving straight away until one day she choked and stopped breathing after a feed. After a hospital stay it was determined she was definitely allergic to cows milk protein and was put on a specialised prescription formula. After that she was a new baby. No more vomiting, no more choking after bottles, no more rash and no more screaming. She now has regular paediatrician and dietician appointments and has a strict diet, but shes much happier.

I knew there was something wrong from the beginning and I was right. I'm so glad I trusted my instincts and persevered until we got the help we needed. I can't imagine where we'd be now if I hadn't. 

Trust your mama instincts ladies, they're there for a reason.

Toni x

Dyson Cool AM06 review

I still remember years ago {back in 2008} when the first Dyson blade-less fans came out. I was working in David Jones and we had to walk through the electrical department to get in and out of the staff areas so I got to walk past the fans each day. I couldn't help myself, I had to put my hands through them every time. A fan without blades was so fascinating to me and I couldn't for the life of me work out how on earth they worked. I loved walking past them each day and daydreaming of owning one.

Its taken me 7 years, but I can now finally say I own one. Better late than never.

When I went down to the bloggers bbq, in Melbourne in January, I connected with Dyson and they were after bloggers to test out and review their new Dyson Cool AM06 desk fans. Of course I couldn't put my hand up quick enough. Not only are these fans super cool, but they're also the perfect solution for someone who has young children. With an inquisitive, daredevil child like mine I definitely need a blade-less fan if not purely for safety reasons. For the past few weeks we've been testing it out.

It turns out the fan actually came at the perfect time because our air-conditioner down in the lounge room {where we spend most of our time when home} has been dying for some time. On top of that our screen door also needs fixing {the toddler can easily escape out of it} so I can't leave the front door open to allow breeze through during the day. Combine QLD summer temps + no fresh breeze + no air-conditioning and you get a very cranky toddler and mummy. Hence why we spend so much time out and not at home! Thankgod the fan came into our lives!

Post by Finding Myself Young.

DYSON COOL AM06 FEATURES + BENEFITS

No blades - The most obvious and beneficial feature of the Dyson AM06 is that, like the other Dyson Cool fans, it has no blades. Like most toddlers, bub has a fascination with fan blades and no fear or understanding of the consequences so she constantly tried to put her fingers into the blades of the air-con motor when she's outside {on the odd times it was actually working}. As such fans had been banned in our house in order to protect her tiny fingers. I love, love, love the fact that this fan has no blades. Of course it only took her about 2 seconds after it was put together before she climbed up to the desk and put her hand straight through the fan.

Air Multiplier™ technology - I finally know how it works without the blades! Basically these fans use the same technology as a jet engine on an aeroplane in order to create a high velocity jet of air that comes out around the edges of the oval rim. Thats about as technical as my explanation gets, but if you want to know more then check the website for the full technical explanation. I think it's pretty bloody cool that Dyson use this technology in a fan.

{Image: Dyson}

Oscillating & Tilting base - Like most standard fans, the AM06 can oscillate, however instead of just the head of the fan moving, the entire fan {including the base} moves from side to side. Its so cool, like watching a little robot dance back and forth. On top of this the body of the fan can be tilted on an angle while the base remains in the same position, so the airflow can can be adjusted up or down without compromising the sturdiness of the base. The base is also pretty sturdy and not easy to knock over unlike other fans {yep she's already tried that too}.

Remote Control - The fan comes with a remote control, which is pretty awesome in itself, but when I found out all the functions it can do I got really excited. You can make the fan oscillate and adjust the power of the fan via the remote. It goes to level 10 in power and mine sits between 7-10 here in QLD because my house is ALWAYS hot. The remote also has a sleep timer {um hello, how cool is that?} which can be set for 15 minutes up to 9hrs. On top of this the remote is also magnetic so it sticks to the top of the fan so you won't ever lose it. To be honest I didn't know about this for the first two weeks {because T threw out the instructions} so I did lose the remote once or twice so its a godsend that I now know it sticks to the fan because little fingers like to walk off with little things like remotes!

75% quieter - Dyson claim that the new AM06 is up to 75% quieter than previous generation Dyson fans. To be honest I have no idea if this is true or not, because unlike the rest of the lucky people who've previously owned a Dyson fan, I haven't so I have nothing to compare it to. I do know however that it's a lot quieter than the ceiling fans we have and a lot quieter than any other fan I've ever owned. The only time I really notice the fan noise is when everything else is quiet {which lets face it pretty much never happens with a toddler in the house}.

They also claim that the AM06 uses less power than previous models as well and again I have nothing to compare this to so can't really verify the claim. I will however be super happy if it makes a difference to my next electricity bill because they have been nasty recently!

Post by Finding Myself Young.

Since we got the AM06 we paid an electrician to come in and re-wire our fuse box which we thought fixed the air-conditioner problem so I was all set to move the fan up to my spare room which I'm converting into an office. However, before it got moved the air-conditioner appears to be broken again so the fan will be staying down here for a bit longer. One day it'll make its way upstairs and I will have my office.

Have you ever had a Dyson fan before?


Toni x

Disclosure - I received the Dyson Cool AM06 at the Bloggers Bbq in Melbourne for the purpose of review. All opinions expressed in this review are my own based on my experience with the fan as per my disclosure policy. I did not receive payment for this review.

Linking with Grace, Kaz & Bron

52 WEEKS OF MEMORIES | 11 - HUG

One thing I was determined to do after becoming a mum was always show affection to my daughter. Both physically and verbally. I never want her to question whether I loved her. One of the biggest ways I show affection towards her is via hugs. I don't remember getting hugged or much physical affection at all when I was younger and I don't want her to miss out like I did. It must be working because already at a year old she comes up to me and randomly wraps her arms around me for big cuddles. I have to admit I love it as much as her.

This week we had a lot of mummy cuddles to make her feel better after she hurt her head {and scared the crap out of me}. Unfortunately they haven't been the most photogenic cuddles and a lot of the random cutesy cuddles have happened so quickly I didn't have time to snap a photo. So for this week's photo I enlisted the help of T to take a photo of us while we were having cuddles as she drank her bot bot by the beach.

11 | HUG

If you'd like to play along too, join in with 52 Weeks of Memories and get creative. Feel free to share with your friends on Facebook or Instagram, the more who join in the better!

You can follow me on Instagram and join in on Facebook. When sharing via Instagram or Facebook don't forget to use the hashtag #fmy52weeksofmemories so I can see your lovely photos. I've also started a facebook group for the challenge if you feel more comfortable sharing in a group setting. If you have a blog feel free to link up your photos via the linky below and come back each week to link up each new prompt. 

Reminder - next weeks prompt is playing.

Also linking with Trish, and Raychael

Linky rules

1. Follow Finding Myself Young

2. Add your post for this weeks prompt

3. Grab the button below and link it to the bottom of your post or sidebar or text link

4. Visit some of the other blogs and share some comment love (because its the nice thing to do)

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An InLinkz Link-up

To create a photobook like I did with the 2014 photos visit:

The moment I thought everything was about to change...

Last night started out normal enough. Bub had dinner, had her bath, had her bottle and then proceeded to walk around playing with everything in order to avoid bed time. At quarter past 8 I decided I'd had enough and told her she was getting a new nappy then going to bed. To which she responded by jumping on the couch and ignoring me.

Then, just as I told her to be careful and stop jumping, everything changed. She jumped too close to the edge of the couch and lost her footing and launched herself off the couch head first into the tiled floor. I saw it happen from the other side of the room. When she landed face first into the tiles we both let out blood curdling screams (and I've never seen daddy drop everything and run that fast ever).

If you've ever witnessed your child land on a tiled floor, you'd know its the most terrifying thing ever. To know you can't stop it in time is horrible, especially when it appears to happen in slow motion right in front of you. I will never be able to erase the vision of her slumped upside down, head crooked, on the floor. I honestly thought she'd broken her neck or at the very least would be brain damaged. I don't know if that'd be a normal reaction for any parent or if my anxiety took it to the next level, but every time I close my eyes I see it over and over again. Its seared into my memory even though I desperately want to forget it

The good thing was she started screaming straight away. And then she didn't stop. And I don't blame her, if I didn't have to keep it together for her sake I probably would've been screaming my head off too. When we looked at her head it was swelling massively and turning black as it swelled. To be honest seeing her head swelling so quickly and so much was probably more horrifying than when she fell. I still feel physically faint even writing about it now. I hope I never have to see something like that happening to my baby ever again.

I called an ambulance for the first time ever and somehow managed to tell them my address before completely losing it after seeing the huge black lump again. Thankfully daddy took over on the phone so I could take over mummy cuddle duty and compose myself. When the ambulance came we decided to go to hospital to make sure everything was ok. The ambulance officers thought she was ok, but were happy to take her to hospital to get her properly checked out and I was more than happy to go. There's no way I would've slept at all sitting at home wondering whether she was going to pass out or have a fit at any moment.

Bub was so not a fan of the ambulance ride. She cried the entire time while cuddling into my chest. Like pulling at your heart strings sobbing that made me feel guilty for taking her to the hospital even though I knew I was doing the right thing for all of us. She didn't want a bar of the ambulance man. Every time he even dared to look in her direction she was off on a screaming fit. We tried to give her some lolly water (Panadol) but she just looked at us like we were aliens trying to feed her poison. She spat it at me then pretended she was going to vomit so we let her be. Even though I desperately wanted her to have some pain relief. 

We spent 3hrs at the hospital and once they were satisfied she didn't have any fractures or broken bones they let us take her home. Just past midnight. She promptly fell asleep and didn't wake up properly until 9am (apart from the few time I roused her like they told us to). I let her sleep in bed with me, both for my sanity and to comfort her.

Very tired mummy and bubby

As soon as she woke she was crying her eyes out. No doubt she had a huge headache. She's been ok with pain relief today. She does have a rather nice multi-coloured shiner on her head though, which of course she refuses to let me get a proper photo of. I told her she has her very own rainbow on her head.

The good thing is that she seems to be back to herself today already, albeit with a few more mummy cuddles thrown in. I think I'm actually a lot more traumatised from the whole ordeal than her. She's already gone back and tried jumping on the couch twice today, both times I nearly had a heart attack.

Toni x

10 non chocolate (and dairy free) easter gift ideas for kids

Bub has a really severe dairy allergy so Easter eggs are definitely off the table in this household at Easter (well unless we manage to sneak some in ourselves when she's in bed one night). Sure I hear you all telling me there's dairy free eggs and you're right, but most of the dairy free versions contain soy and she's allergic to that too. Unless I fill her up with sugary candy eggs there's not really many options for her when it comes to Easter eggs, and to be honest she's hypo enough already, she doesn't need the extra sugar!

So this year we're thinking out of the box and decided to give Easter themed toys as presents instead of eggs. I figured others who have children with a dairy allergy, or those who just want to avoid chocolate eggs, may benefit from my list of options so I've turned it into a post to share with you guys.

FUN FACTORY EGG MARACAS

Egg maracas are a great little gift that keep to the Easter egg theme and also let children explore the fun of music. Bub is obsessed with maracas so these would go down a treat and are relatively inexpensive.

HAPE EGGSPRESSIONS

A great educational gift is the Hape Eggspressions set which helps teach kids how to identify and express their feelings.

PERSONALISED EASTER DUMMY

Bub has heaps of cute personalised dummies from Name My Stuff. If you're looking for a practical Easter gift then this eggstra special dummy is super cute (and guaranteed to save your sanity).

ALIMROSE BUNNIES

Alimrose have a number of different bunny rattles which would all make great Easter presents for younger children. They also have bunny snuggle blankies and bibs.

JELLYCAT BASHFUL BUNNIES

JellyCat have a range of gorgeous plush bunnies in varying sizes which would make a great snuggle buddy for little kids of all ages. 

TALKING PETER RABBIT

I don't know about your place, but at our place bub is a little obsessed with Peter Rabbit (and I have to say I'm a little partial to him too). In my opinion any Peter Rabbit toy would make a great Easter gift, but this talking Peter Rabbit would be my favourite.

MINI GIGI DOLL

I found the gorgeous Sophie & Lili dolls via instagram a few months ago when I was looking for Christmas presents for bub. She's in love with cushion pillows so their plush pillow dolls were perfect. I bought 3 including one of these Mini Gigi doll's which I've put away for her for Easter. How cute are the little bunny shoes?!

TOLO BUNNY

The Tolo toy bunny comes in grey or brown. It has moveable legs, head and tail and would make a great present for toddlers who've passed the stage of putting everything in their mouth :)

BUNNY NIGHT LIGHT

We've had this cute little bunny led night light for a while now, however he sits down in her play corner as a decoration rather than being used as an actual night light at our place. He is an awesome colour changing led night light though, but we could never replace Charlie in her bedroom. He'd make a really cute, affordable, Easter present for a little girl or boy.

SONNY ANGELS

If you can't stay away from chocolate entirely then these limited edition Easter chocolate Sonny Angels should satisfy your craving. But be warned - they're just as addictive as chocolate!


So there you have it 10 non chocolate Easter gift ideas I came across while I was searching for alternatives to the common Easter egg. We've bought some for this year and others are definitely going on the list for next year (plus anything else cool I find between now and then).

Do you always stick to Easter eggs for Easter?


Toni x