Jul 11 2013

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Posted on July 11, 2013 by admin

The first time you’re handed your newborn, especially if you’re a first time mum, you’re bombarded with information. No sooner have you glanced down at the newest addition to your family and decided upon ‘whose nose he’s got’, than he’s snatched away by the midwife and hoisted onto your breast. Tired and exhausted, getting your baby to latch on for the first time can be an uncomfortable moment. To make things worse, for the next few hours the nurses will be hovering at your bedside every 20 minutes asking how many times he’s fed? For how long? Has he had a wee yet? Has he disgraced himself? It’s a hugely overwhelming experience.

With Dexter, I recorded every little thing in a notepad for his first 6 weeks; The hours he slept, the hours I slept, the length of time he spent guzzling from each boob… my scribblings were more thorough than one of Craig’s tax returns! Every time Dexter made a move for a feed, I’d quickly grab the tv remote, press the ‘i’ button and make a note of the time. If the remote wasn’t to hand I’d get in a panic and convince myself the world was coming to an end. I put so much pressure on myself to record every moment that Craig and I started to bicker, and my initial experience of breastfeeding was utterly hellish.

It’s exactly this kind of experience that registered nurses and lactation consultants Cindy Leclerc and Jana Stockham have sought to address with their brand new iPhone app Nuunest. They’ve been working with families since 1995 and have helped nurse more than 20,000 babies - they’ve seen firsthand how parents have been inundated with information regarding newborn care, and want to make tracking their babies progress as simple as possible.

With an incredibly user-friendly interface, Nuunest allows parents to easily track a newborn’s feeds, diapers and development. You create your babies unique profile and enter in information frequently to get a full record of how he or she is doing. There are also a number of handy features such as timer to record how long you’ve spent expressing milk on each breast, and pop-up notifications (can be disabled at any time) to offer pearls of wisdom and gentle reminders on a variety of post-natal topics.

It really is a case of the-more-you-dig-the-more-you-find with this app. There’s a whole host of health information for both mum & baby including a very useful section on babies nappies and the little presents they might leave you in their first few weeks. For mum, there’s advice on how to cope with fatigue, post-natal depression, c-section healing, sore breasts, and when it’s safe to resume business-as-usual in the bedroom.

It’s true there are a number of similar apps available, but I did find Nuunest particularly easy-to-use and appreciated its simple no-nonsense approach. As you might expect, some of the language is very american (diapers, moms etc) but it’s still a very handy tool for first-time parents, particularly those who are planning to breastfeed.

If you’d like to try the app for yourself, I have 5 promo codes to giveaway (usually $4.99 in the App Store). Just enter via the very simple rafflecopter below. For a sneak peek of the sort of advice you’ll find on the app, Cindy and Jana also have a really useful blog, and you can also show them some love on Facebook and Twitter.

Requirements: Compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation), iPod touch (5th generation) and iPad. Requires iOS 5.0 or later. This app is optimized for iPhone 5.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

T&C’s – a.k.a – the boring bit!

- Only 1 option is mandatory (leave me a comment) – the rest only improve your chances of winning so just complete as many as you feel like

- This competition is worldwide so please feel free to enter if you’re outside of the UK!

- The winners will be contacted by email and must respond within 1 week of having been emailed (I’ll try all known avenues to contact them) or a new winner will be drawn

- These promo codes end on the 27th July 2013 so please ensure you have redeemed them from the App Store prior to this date - otherwise they’ll become invalid and you’ll miss out!

- When the giveaway is closed, Rafflecopter will select the winners completely at random

- The winner’s names will be published on this site

ThePrizeFinder - UK Competitions

Jul 10 2013

Nursery Art: Personalised Posters from Paper Themes

Posted on July 10, 2013 by admin

Pinterest has a lot of answer for.

As soon as I found out I was having a little boy, like most mummys-to-be, I began to obsess about getting his room ready. For the next few months I grew an epic nursery mood board of several colourways, craft projects to make, things to buy… It seems I overlooked the fact that Dexter’s nursery is actually no bigger than an executive room available at Her Majesty’s Pleasure.

Since he’s been here, I’ve recreated just one project from Pinterest, and his room hasn’t seen one lick of paint. Despite this, I think we’ve done a pretty good job of kitting it out for a little boy. It’s an aquamarine colour with plenty of bunting, and all the obligatory little features that make visitors go “Awww…”. But I’m always on the hunt for new things to add. Nurseries should be chaotic with lots of textures, features and colours to make small spaces really engaging for inquisitive little minds.

So I was very pleased to get my hands on a beautiful personalised poster from Paper Themes to add to Dexter’s little collection.

I opted for the Patchwork Baby Boy Poster as I knew the colours would work well in Dexter’s room; lime green, greys and baby blue. The poster features his name, d.o.b, weight and time of birth and other baby-centric images.The quality is top-notch - nice and glossy on good quality poster paper.

It comes unframed, but the website states my poster will fit an 330 x 330 mm ‘standard’ frame (roughly 13″x13″). I must admit there was a distinct lack of choice on the high street but eventually I managed to pick up a bargain frame for under £2 at The Range. It would be great to see Paper Themes sell suitable frames on the website for ease of ordering. This would make things even easier if your poster is intended to be a gift.

It arrived super quick (just 2 days!) neatly rolled up in a poster tube. There was also a handwritten comp slip to thank me for my order which was a lovely welcome touch in this day and age.

At £25, this isn’t cheap, but it is a lovely gift for a new baby. It makes a great statement picture to kick off a gallery wall and would look really lovely surrounded by canvasses. There are also plenty of other themes to choose from - the wedding ones are particularly lovely. There’s also personalised greetings cards, wedding invitations and plenty of other wedding gifts and stationery available from the website. Follow them on Facebook and Twitter to find out more!

DISCLAIMER: I was sent a charming poster from Paper Themes for my sons nursery for the purposes of this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

May 21 2013

REVIEW: Antler Cyberlite Suitcase (& an over excited little model)

Posted on May 21, 2013 by admin

I must admit, I wasn’t anticipating that Dexie would want to help mummy with this latest review. It seems I was wrong and playing with mummy’s new posh Antler Cyberlite Suitcase this morning was worth missing Horrid Henry for!

Yep - Dex quickly discovered the suitcase had wheels like his toddle truck which makes for lots of fun for a 1-year-old! He also threw a right wobbly when I started to take photographs of the red thing without him modelling alongside it. Naturally, when ear ache kicked in, I relented. So I guess you could say this review is bought to you courtesy of mummy and Dexter (he’s useful for size comparison so we’ll let him join in!).

To be honest, I’ve had more than my fair share of suitcase drama. Around 3 years ago I slumped off a midnight train at Didcot Parkway having been away on business in London. I was utterly exhausted so sleepily lugged my suitcase from the train and made my way home. It didn’t take long before I realised that I had, in fact, taken home a large grey Pierre Cardin suitcase, and left my battered black Primark one on a train bound for Swindon.

Looking inside for any clue as to the owner, there was a ThinkPad laptop, Canon camera and various other expensive businessy type belongings… the poor guy who would end up plucking his way through my tattered case wouldn’t be so lucky. Yep - inside my suitcase had been a few dirty knickers, a dog-eared copy of the Da Vinci Code, and an unwashed gym kit. Of course, First Great Western arranged for Alan Sugar to be reunited with his suitcase, but mine was probably sent to a bomb disposal unit - I never saw it again.

If this was an one-off incident, it wouldn’t be so bad. Unfortunately I’ve managed a similar feat in an airport and was questioned for an hour by American police (with guns might I add) on a trip to the States a few years back. Sensibly I’ve therefore picked an instantly recognisable red Antler Cyberlite to review (this will double as a surprise Father’s Day pressie for Craigy - so ssshhh…).

As you can see, the Antler Cyberlite will comfortably accommodate 3 Dexters (that’s 3.5 kgs). It’s also expandable for greater packing capacity. Complete with comfy grip handles for easy lifting and carrying, and side grab handle for pulling it quickly from airport trolleys, it’s definitely a great option for international travel. Here are its vital stats:

SIZE: 82 x 50 x 33/35 cm

PACKING CAPACITY: 107/113 ltr

GROSS CAPACITY: 135 / 146 ltr

Well, as promised, here’s Dexie demonstrating the ‘easy glide’ wheel mobility. It’s incredibly lightweight too - indeed Little Man had no problems pushing it over. This makes it an ideal option for luggage-heavy families as it means you can pack more before exceeding the weight limit. In terms of negotiating a busy airport, the 4 (patented) wheels glide effortlessly (and mercifully, soundlessly) meaning you can run that little bit faster to the terminal if your little one picks 5 minutes before the flight to soil their nappy…

On our last holiday to Portugal (with another old cheap suitcase in tow) I thought I’d be clever and pop our most essential bits and pieces in the outer zip pocket (the one that normal people pop their toothbrushes and spare underwear in). What made me think this was such an amazing idea, I’ll never know. So, in went my Gucci sunglasses, my GHDs, our mobile phone chargers, hotel accommodation documents… Yes - you’ve guessed it, the pocket ripped and everything fell out. We sat for 2 hours in Faro airport with a 6 week old screaming baby whilst they checked the luggage hold and rang Heathrow to see if anything had been handed in. Police reports were made, insurance claims put in… it wasn’t the ideal start to our holiday…

For further Gemma-proofing, the Antler suitcase has an incredibly durable lining (in a pretty funky print as beautifully modelled below by Dexter) and the outer fabric shell is very tough. Dexter and I tugged at the zips (he also helpfully gummed them considerably) and they really stood up to the task. Couple this with a TSA fixed combination lock (comes as standard) for international travel, and secure front and side pockets, and your belongings are as safe as houses.

You pay for what you get with suitcases and this particular one is £149 (with free delivery on any order over £20 if you buy direct from the online Antler store). As it comes with a 10 year warranty and lots of handy features, I think it represents great value for money and will last you for many future holidays.

You can buy yours direct from antler.co.uk (in a choice of lime green, purple, black and red - like ours!) and whilst you’re there, why not give them a little follow on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, and G+ for all the latest brand news and competitions.

DISCLAIMER: I was sent the Antler Cyberlite Large Suitcase for the purposes of this review. All words and opinions, bad jokes, and terrible modelling are mine alone!