The year that was 2010...

I thought as it's getting closer to Christmas and the end of 2010 that I would share my reflections on the year that was 2010.

• I became even more addicted to watching the T.V series; True Blood and Burn Notice...
• I watched my 3mth old baby grow into a walking, babbling, throwing toddler...
• We endured months of sickness (thank you day care) and now have immune systems of steel...
• I thought about loosing weight...alot!! But have had to realise that thinking about it doesn't actually make it happen (damn it); this is on my 2011 list...
• I came up with an idea that would make parents life easier and so the decision to launch alittlebird was made even though I haven't had an unbroken nights sleep in over 12 months...phew!
• Further to sleep and lack of it; we spent a week at sleep school, controlled cried, rocked, patted, nursed and finally co-slept in order to stay sane during those broken nights....
•  I did not spend nearly enough "date nights" with my hard working husband (it's also on the list for 2011)
• I gained new friendships through my mothers group that I know will last a lifetime...
• I saw alittlebird go live in August (yay!) and have since seen our community grow and benefit from what started as an idea..
• I realise my friends can get tired of hearing "I'm working" whenever I'm asked "what are you doing tonight"
• I have learnt heaps personally and professionally and look back over the journey 2010 has taken me through with a smile on my face and am eternally grateful for the amazing supportive people in my life :)

So how was your 2010 and what are your thoughts on 2011?

I'm looking forward to 2011 bringing my family and I prosperity, good health and a few less kg's for me would be great.

The adventures of 1 Advent Calendar and 2 Kids...

(Guest Blogger)

Advent Calendars

So here we all are, counting down the days until the Fat Man visits.  I’ve noticed all the comments on facebook and like many of you, we too have an advent calendar (thanks Ma-Ma and Grandad, that was a very special visit from the postlady).  

To my mind, an advent calendar gives a visual reminder and countdown to Christmas Day.  As a child, I would be so excited to receive it in the mail from my own grandparents, and ‘negotiate’ a roster of door-opening with my siblings.  It was all fairly well executed and reminded us of the religious nature of the event, because in those days there was no chocolate inside, only parts of the Christmas story so that when all the doors were read in sequence, the full story of Mary & Joseph & baby Jesus was revealed.

Now my kids have their advent calendar and it’s a totally different affair.  We have Rudolph on the front and chocolate inside.  The only mystery to it is the shape  embossed on the chocolate.  Every morning we open a door and get the chocolate, and usually share it without too many hassles. 

The problems actually start approximately 30 seconds after the calendar is put back on the shelf, when Miss 18mths says “chocolate” (in her own special way) and tries to climb up to get more.  When I say no, she throws herself kicking and screaming onto the floor.  Then Mr 3 joins in with the “why not” and instantly it’s total chaos.  This scenario repeats a few times a day and seriously, I can’t stand the calendar!  Meanwhile the ants got stuck into it overnight so we’ve had to clean off and re-engineer the whole thing. 

Instead of bringing the joy of anticipation to our December, the chocolate has brought tantrums (theirs) and tears (mine).  Next year I’m talking to Ma-Ma and Grandad about finding some religion instead!  Does anyone know where to buy non-chocolate calendars???

Postscript…

It’s all over… Mr 3 found the stash of chocolate in the fridge this morning, where we had hidden it (badly) to protect it from ants and children.  He came to me this morning with chocolate literally spilling out of his mouth.  For this year at least, the dream is over!

Rainy Day Ideas!!!

Are your kids stuck inside for another rainy day?

alittlebird is here to help with some great Rainy Day Ideas for kids.

Rainy days don’t have to be dull and boring. Don’t forget to improvise to create craft ideas for kids. With a little preparation, your children will almost be wishing that every day is a rainy day.

Share with us your favourite Rainy Day Ideas.

§  Make a book. Kids of all ages can work on making a book. Young children may want to make picture books while older children can write out a full story. You can bind your books using either a stapler or string. Don’t forget a cover!

§  ABC scavenger hunt. Give each child a piece of paper that has the ABCs written on it. Children must go around the house looking for things that start with each letter. The first one to find an object for each letter wins.

§  Play board games. Board games are great for rainy days and getting children to play together. You should always have a couple of different choices on hand. You may want to periodically swap games with another family. This way, you can make sure that your kids never get bored with the games you have on hand.

§  Baking. Rainy days are also a great time to bake some cookies. Kids love to help out with cooking and this will give them something to do. If you make sugar cookies, they can also decorate them after they’ve been baked.

§  Crafts. Make a special “rainy day craft box”. Inside, put in various craft supplies such as paints, markers, glue, glitter, and clay. If you only allow your children to use these craft tools on rainy days, they will be excited when a rainy day comes around. Every once in awhile, get a new craft for the box so that they will be surprised.

§  Puzzles. This is a great time to bring out a 1000 pieces puzzle and have everyone in the family work together to complete it. If you have a child that is too young to do this, you can find a piece and tell them where to put it.

The emergency bag!

(guest blogger)

Well this week I finally did it... 

After 3 ½ years of parenting, keeping an emergency bag in each car fully stocked with nappies, clothes, shoes, hats, bottles, drink cups, sunscreen, bum cream, toys, and goodness-knows-what-else for each kid...

I finally needed the emergency bag!

Because of course, I always carry the monster bag with everything I need anyway, so for 3 ½ years I haven’t actually needed the emergency bag... until this weekend.

So this weekend, I left the monster bag on the kitchen bench, and took off to another town to visit Grandad.  I realised due to a bizarre series of events and car-swapping I had no emergency bag either.  No matter, we were cool.  Then I went on a whim for an overnight visit at my parents’ house in another town.  2 ½ hours from home I connected the dots and realised I had used the last nappy and had absolutely nothing for the kids, not even a change of clothes.  AARGH!

Never fear, a quick trip to the shops sorted nappies, milk and toothbrushes, and I figured nothing else mattered.  I put the kids to bed in oversized clothes I scraped up at mum’s place and chucked everything else in the wash.  Voila – sorted.  The only thing we REALLY missed was a security teddy, but after so much time playing with the grandparents, my little boy was so tired he went to sleep without. 

So now I ask myself the question – knowing I will survive happily without it - can I ditch the emergency bag idea, or is it a sensible “Be Prepared” precaution?  Do you carry everything everywhere you go, nothing, or something in between?  Let us know!

Kids...we love them through and through...

Oh what a week!! When your kids are sick and you have to spend the whole entire week quarantined to the house; how do you stay sane?

By the end of my "I can't do anything but hold you" week; I was very thankful when the weekend finally rolled around but it also made me realise a few things:

1. I like my dedicated work days (tiny human day care days) where I can wholly concentrate on my work and do what I need to do during those days.

2. I like my dedicated "tiny human" days; where I look forward to spending the whole day with my special little guy knowing I don't even have to turn the computer on if I don't want to (ok I do when he's sleeping tehe)

3. If I don't get Point 1 and Point 2; well it's not pretty.

I know; sickness happens; kids get sick and there's nothing we can do about it; I whole heartedly accept it although it doesn't mean I have to like having a child permanently attached to my waist all week.

I know I know I sound wingy but the real reason I wanted to share my tail of woe last week is that I do have a saving grace that I wanted to share with everyone and no it's no vodka ;).

It's a little book called "I love you through and through" and even after a terrible day with the small people in our life when I read this book at the end of every night; I am only filled with love and appreciation for my special little guy.

http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/book/9781405240772/I-Love-You-Through-and-Through (Thank you book depository)

I came across the book during my week long stay at Sleep School where I met an incredible bunch of women including one lady in particular who mentioned this book to me. She was at sleep school for her youngest who wouldn't sleep plus had full time care of her disabled toddler; this book helped her stay sane.

So when times get tough just remember that you love their top side and their bottom side, their insides and their outsides. But most of all we love them through and through...yesterday, today and tomorrow too :) 

Share your thoughts on how you stay sane when the kids are sick at home.

Sunshiney Goodness...

Out and about...in the yard!

What gorgeous weather we have been having; so we decided to get out and about...in our own backyard.

With all the rain we've been having the weeds have literally taken over our yard and all our gardens; some nearly as tall as me (eek). It’s also super annoying whenever the cat or Koby or well anyone goes outside they always come back with those “sticky prickles” all over them; something had to be done!

So sunscreen, hats and gloves on; we started the massive task of weeding and the funny thing is we all started to really enjoy it. Koby did his best to help with the weed pulling in between throwing pebbles and chasing our cat Mr Sooty; who is becoming the best “baby sitter” ever. If you ever turn around and wonder  ”where’s koby?” just look for Sooty; that’s where Koby will be.

So with about 20% of the gardens weeded we had a family excursion down to the local nursery to pick out some new plants. It was a great way for us as a family to spend the weekend; outside in the fresh air; tending to the garden and accomplishing well overdue tasks.

NB: The only negative; I seemed to have forgotten to sunscreen my entire right arm; which by the end of the day was a bright lobster red while my left arm a lovely pale sunscreen covered colour; oh dear!!

Sunday Markets

With $20 in my pocket; one bright red arm and Koby strapped into his pram we ventured down to the local Ferny Grove Markets. Wow!!! So many great bargains to grab, loads of plants and those yummy little tiny pancakes. We picked up a $4 book of “Games to play with toddlers” (I have the predecessor “ Games to play with babies” and it’s awesome), $3 swim suit for kobys swimming lessons in great condition and for $10; a toy bus packed full of mega blocks.

We took off from there on our way to the Mitchelton Farmers Market; this time rather than take the pram I thought I would let Koby practise his walking; with a quick stop at the atm. But would you believe all 3 places to withdraw money on Blackwood Street were all empty; so with a quick walk through the markets; meeting various puppies; we went home empty handed.

Swimming classes

Do you take your kids to swimming; do they love it? We’ve been going every week since Koby was 4 mths old and he loves it. He loves it so much he has turned into a spectacle due to how crazy he is in the pool! All the other parents have quite dignified kids who do all the correct moves and manage to leave the pool with most of their hair nice and dry; unlike me who is completly soaked through from Koby’s insane splashing which is while I keep him at arms length.

With the warmer months coming I have to say it’s a relief to know that Koby is so confident in the water and we are looking forward to our holiday at Caloundra and enjoying the sun, sand and sunshine.

Where are you taking the kids this xmas; share here with other parents.

Oh the places we've been...

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.

In the last 3 days we have been exploring some great places and events that Brisbane has to offer.

Friday – Shand St (Grinstead) Park @ Alderley

My Mothers group still meet regularly and this week we checked out Shand st Park; wow!! What an awesome park for big and little kids! It’s been designed so well that the little kids can easily explore as well as places within the wooden fortress for parents to sit and chat while keeping an eye on the kiddies. The big kids will love the 2 x awesome slides and theres also great paths for kids like Koby who have just mastered walking to zoom around on their walkers along with swings, loads of shade, picnic tables and a little footbridge.

Saturday – Furniture Shop and Ausfest, Arana Hills

There were so many events on this weekend it was hard to choose; but Ausfest is in our suburb so we went down to support our local community. But first we started the day with a visit to a large discount furniture store; who knew so much fun was to be had in store; running around, jumping on couches, playing peek-a-boo with the sales staff!

After lunch we headed down to Ausfest; checked out the baby animals; got a balloon and an icecream; but the sun was blazing and it seemed to be catered more towards older kids; so we didn’t stay long. However my sister stayed for the fireworks with her kids and she said it was a great night with dancing for young and old.

Sunday – North Lakes Farmers Market and Redcliffe Lagoon

With a 6am start; alittlebird headed off to the North Lakes organic and artisan markets which was having a special family farm day! alittlebird stall was all set up and we met some lovely parents and kids. The kids had an awesome day with  jumping castles, pony rides, getting their face painted, running around checking out the swans in the lake and generally having an awesome time. The day was such a success they are considering having one each month; watch alittlebird for details. BTW I picked up a lovely bunch of flowers, some awesome organic fruit and vegies for the week; I will definitely be back .

Meanwhile the hubby took Koby and his cousins down for a swim in the lagoon right at the end of Anzac Avenue....The Redcliffe Lagoon. WOW! what an awesome place to take the kids; no need to go all the way to south bank for a swim and there is heaps of shade and space for the kids to run around.

Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done!

Have you checked out some great places lately?

We would love for you to share them here with other parents.

The Great Toy Bonanza...

Toys, Toys, Toys...everywhere. Just looking around my house; there are toys spread from one end of the lounge room all the way through the kitchen and out onto the deck! Do kids really need all these toys? With Christmas nearly upon us; a friend of mine asks these questions in this weeks blog....

Guess Blogger

Well it’s the 1^st of November and we all know what that means.... don’t we?  Oh right, it’s only 54 sleeps until Christmas!  Now I don’t know about anyone else, but as much as I love Christmas, I’m becoming very boring about the presents.  I have a 3y/o and a 1y/o and we just don’t need any more bits of coloured plastic for me to trip over.  I have nowhere else to stash them, and we already bought (and filled) a bigger house!

A friend recently mentioned buying toys for his daughter at a 2^nd hand market, and how she loved these toys as much as she could new ones, and within days, you couldn’t tell if they were new or not.  A great idea, great for the environment and the wallet.

Still, as much as I want to have a mountain of presents for the kids to rip into on Christmas day, I don’t want the contents to stay at my place.  So what to do?  Ma-Ma and Grandad already tip into the kids’ swimming lesson fund instead of gifts, but they can’t resist a little something to wrap up. 

And the mountain of toys aside, before the actual day there’s the nightmare of the shops (with toddlers in tow) to deal with.  For the last 2 years, a friend and I have put our kids into daycare for 1 day and shopped until we dropped, giving the boys instructions to pick up the kids and with the rule “we don’t come home until it’s done”.  Sure we probably might miss a couple of sales but we also miss the stressful, last minute rush on December 24, and last minute always means big money.

I’m considering (seriously) wrapping up some of our existing, forgotten toys for the big day.  Would the kids realise, and if they did, would they care?  Probably not.  I’m sure the Chinese economy will live on without me.

Should we make a pact?  A toy swap instead of a new toy bonanza?  Should we donate old toys to charity to make way for the new?  What do you do for Christmas and how do you deal with the shopping and the cost and the mountain of toys?  All ideas gratefully received! 

Have you ever had one of those days?

You know the days.....those days....when all that can go wrong....inevitably does!

Monday was one of those days for me; you may or may not have noticed but our sweet alittlebird disappeared for a while on Monday. Flown the coop and gone for a fly around; in reality we were at the mercy of our I.T company. I reckon dealing with I.T help desks has got to be up there with dealing with certain telephone companies; very painful!!

Any who I don't want to spend the whole time talking about my crappy Monday so I will summarise :). Apart from the huge headache and frustration of not having a live website, it also involved; a misquoted item which was now going to cost me 3 x as much, my best friends health results getting worse, the grandparents being sick so they couldn't look after the small person the next day and lastly my weekly dose of gossip in the form of a magazine delightfully delivered to my house every Monday afternoon....did not arrive :(

So what do you do when faced with a day like that? Well firstly I treated myself to a very indulgent and unhealthy lunch with my girlfriends. Then in the afternoon I picked up my smiley little boy from day care; came home, put on some great music; turned it up loud and we danced around the house together laughing and singing! By the time my husband came home the crappy day was well behind me; as I told him; I had isolated "that" day so the next day and the next day could be be awesome!

I would love to know what you do when you have one of "those" days.....

Out and about with kids...and their hats!

Firstly don't forget to check out our new and improved alittlebird.com.au; we are dedicated to providing parents with a comprehensive uptodate service of what's on in your area. .
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Isn't it awesome when the weather is sunny; you've got the kids bags ready and decide to head to the park for the day. In this last week we spent a day at the amazing kids playground at New Farm Park and a local park near the Ferny Hills Primary School with my lovely mothers' group.

The kids have a ball; running around, eating bark, interacting with other kids, while the mum's either chase after the kids because they've decided a drain is way more interesting than the actual playground and occasionally we get to sit down and relax.

Being out and about in Australia as we all know it's important to be sun smart especially with our little peoples delicate skin; so it's hats and sunscreen to the rescue. Except for my 1 year old boy! Let me explain...

He has ginger hair (there I said it; btw we have NO idea where it came from) and therefore he has that gorgeous translucent skin that often accompanies gingers. BUT he will not wear a hat of any description; no matter how tight I tie the under chin strap; even with 2 other mum's helping me. All the other bubba's are happily playing with their hats on..except Koby! I've tried making it fun, wearing it inside, me wearing a hat and the ever so joyful game of "I'm not going to loose Koby" where I followed him around for 20 minutes putting the hat back on his head every time he pulled it off; I ended up loosing.

So as much as we both love getting out and about to our local parks (alittlebird lists some great one's in it's new directory) I'm concerned about his sun safety.

I think in the end I will have to sunscreen his head :)

Love to hear your suggestions on hat wearing along with what your kids are like when it comes to sun safety.

What does your child really eat?

This week’s guest blogger talks about all things diet with our kids and despite all our best intentions to give our kids a healthy balanced diet like in everything they do; ultimately it’s up to them and what they choose to eat.

So common fess up and share with other parents, what does your child really eat?

The other day all Koby would eat for lunch was biscuits; I figured it was better than nothing :)

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Guest Blogger

My 3 year old has Up and Go’s for breakfasts; does that make me a bad mum?

She loves to eat raw mushrooms, straight from the brown paper bag (occasionally she eats one before we have gone though the checkout).

She also loves corn on the cob and more often than not will choose to eat a plain piece of Pita Bread for lunch; nothing on it! She loves meat of any variety; this was a child who was chewing a piece of steak when she was 9 months old; she loves it! 

Should I be worried about her eating?

I don’t want to make a big deal of her eating habits as I want eating to be a joyful experience, not something we argue over. I figure she’ll come around to eating cereal for breakfast....one day. On a plus she does love eggs and soldiers but that only happened in the past 6 months.

She runs about, laughs and is a very happy child. She loves her mum and dad, her friends, her cousins, doggies and she loves life. She has beautiful manners, cares for others and gets to spends lots of quality time with the people that love her; so should I really be worried about what she eats?

I guess it's important to remember that it’s perfect for her not to be perfect, just like her mum and dad and all the other interesting and colourful people in the world.

So in the end who really cares if she will only drink Up and Go’s for breakfast.

Share with us your child's interesting food habits :)

7 Steps to being a good parent...

I found this today on the internet and thought gosh so often we get busy with our lives or in my case busy with a certain little bird and can forget that the most important thing of all is being an awesome parent to the small people in our lives.

I have printed this out and stuck it on my fridge :)

What would you say to other parents is the most important thing to being a good parent?

Share your thoughts here.

Provide unconditional love and encouragement to your child

• Saying "I love you," is important. But even more important is showing your child that you love them by giving your time and attention. Playing games, reading stories, and talking all show your love. Encouragement is also essential. Every child needs to feel like their parents are their best cheerleader. And with their parents help they can accomplish anything. I often tell my son you can do and be whatever you want and he believes me.

Make your kids a high priority

• This doesn't mean that you don't take care of yourself and your marriage. But it does mean that your children should come before others. This may mean that you need to say �no� sometimes. I have a hard time saying "no" and I often have to remind myself that if I say "yes" I will be placing my children lower on my priority list.

Strengthen your team

• Strengthening your team applies to parents. It means that parents agree beforehand on important issues like rules and discipline. They discuss together important decisions that need to be made concerning the children and family.

Discipline consistently

• To cultivate this quality of being a good parent is one of the hardest things to do. At the end of a hard day it is so easy to give in to a child that is crying or whining, but that is not consistent. It does not teach them and only makes your job as a parent more difficult. Set limits and rules and always enforce them.

Teach responsibility

• Give your children responsibilities. My son is required to make his own bed. He also empties the small garbage cans every week. All my children are responsible for helping clean up the house and clearing their dishes off of the table. Children need to understand that they are responsible for their own actions and the consequences that follow. I often tell my children "no one can make you mad, you choose how you react."

Source: http://www.thecutekid.com/parenting/build-child-confidence.p

Sleep ideas when out and about with kids...

How do you ensure your kids have a sleep even when your out and about for the day?

Do you try and stick to a routine or just go with the flow and see how the day pans out?

Do you take the long way home so they have a sleep in the car or hope they sleep in the pram while you have a coffee?

It's a question that for some sleep deprived mum's can be quite stressful and I know for myself in the early days used to put me off going out at all as I didn't know what to do about...sleep!!

Kids love getting out and about; trying new things and having fun and here at alittlebird we encourage and promote acitve kids SO how do we as parents ensure we have active healthy kids AND manage the ever important and ever elusive S.L.E.E.P!

Share your thoughts, suggestions and amusing stories here; love to know what you do when your out and about :)

I heart my Ergo!

Ergo Carrier that is!! For those that haven't read my birth story (click here) I gave birth to a very large boy nearly 1 year ago and thank goodness I had an Ergo Carrier. I also had other sling type carriers but when you have a baby the size of a 3month old they don't do a whole lot apart from break my back.

That's where the Ergo comes in handy; even now at 12.5kg I can still carry him in it. That's the great thing about it; it takes big kids! AND being that my husband and I are "giants" it fits us great as it sits on our hips and takes all the weight there; unlike other baby carriers where the weight is around your middle.



Why am I blogging about my Ergo Carrier you might be wondering? Well there are 3 reasons:

1. If anyone is pregnant or has a friend who is pregnant well I wouldn't reccommend any other carrier 
2. It's International Babywearing Week this week; which is all about celebrating parents who carry their bubbas and there will be celebrations at local parks and cafes all week.
3. Any excuse to put up photos of Koby

Check out some of the great events on this week @ Babes in Arms whose initiative is sponsored by ERGObaby

School holidays, wet weather and sick kids..

School holidays have drawn to an end; I hope alittlebird helped make planning what to do with the kids easier and that we got you out and about trying new things :)  

As a new parent I was so impressed with all the awesome activities on offer for kids over the school holidays. Even my local shops had this cool Paint with Sand thing that I almost had a go of; instead I watched the young girls put brightly coloured sand on their ballerina pictures.

The wet weather did however put a dampener on a lot of the awesome outdoor activities. I have my son's 1st birthday party planned in a local park for this Saturday but I may need to re-think that option. If you got this weeks newsletter we are focussing on indoor fun - places to go and fun things to do inside!

As a kid I remember telling my mum on rainy days after she dropped me off at school that I didn't want an umbrella to walk home with. Instead I purposefully took my time walking home so I could jump in puddles and pull on the leaves of trees so the rain would pour onto my head. Sure I got home soaking wet but that hot shower never felt better. There are some older kids who live in our street and I saw 3 of them the other day running around outside in the rain - now that's having fun!!!

So as much as there are heaps of fun things to do indoors when it rains; sometimes the most fun to be had is outside with your gum boots on; splashing in puddles; collecting rain in a container; searching for all the different critters that come out in the rain, making paper boats and racing them in the water......

You may have noticed my post also includes sick kids.....well this weekend was our first bout of a vomiting bug with Koby and if you're a parent reading this I know you will understand but wow! I have never seen so much vomit in all my life. Thankfully my little boy improved one we got some electrolytes into him and we are slowly introducing solid food again. We were going to go to the Thai festival on at South Bank today but instead we are going to stay at home.

I hope you all enjoy your week. We are also on the look out for people to join our alittlebird team; if you have sales experience and love the alittlebird brand please contact us.

Happy 1st Birthday Koby!!

We want to hear from you :)

We know that the best sources of information is other parents; so we want you to be involved with alittlebird :)

When you are out and about with your kids; send in some photos or just a blurb about where you went and what it was like and we will publish it along with your details.  

• Where did you go last week for school holidays?
• Did the kids have fun?
• Would you go back again?
• Would you recommend it to other parents?

We want to hear from you...and we will send you an exclusive alittlebird told me brooch to say thanks :)

Email me at melissa@alittlebird.com.au....

Guest blogger....on a trip to Sydney with 2 kids!

I would like to welcome my amazing sister-in-law and friend Sarah along to the alittlebird blog; she has kindly offered to guest blog about her recent trip to Sydney with 2 kids under 4...full of great things to do with your kids!

Home is wonderful but every now and then alittlebird just has to fly away for a few days.  Hubby had a conference in Sydney so we packed up the kids and took off in search of new and different things to do. 

At the airport we thought we were in for a day of hell, with our flight delayed (along with everyone else’s) due to fog in Sydney.  We survived with brekkie, a few races around the gates, excursions to ‘feed’ the guide dogs their pocket money, and generally being inquisitive and chatting to frequent fliers. 

People always think it will be traumatic to fly with little ones, but these days, if it even starts, the screaming stops shortly after take-off, because the seat belt light goes off and the dvd players turn on!  It’s quite funny really, Toy Story over here, Wiggles over there, and free DVD exchange between families.  I think the only ones who were really stressed were the childless travellers around us, who were in constant fear that all hell would break loose – but it didn’t.  I had to suppress a giggle when Miss Cranky Pants in front of me informed us that 1 year-old Audrey was kicking her seat ‘really really hard’ and asked us to please make it stop!  “So sorry, so sorry...”  We then refrained from the fun game of removing and replacing magazines in the seat-back pouch ;-)

On the ground in Sydney we had decided to go car-free for the weekend, and found the public transport so much easier than the hassle of BYO car seats or risking cabs without.  Anyway, 3 year-old Elliott loved the adventure of tunnels, lifts and trains to get from A to B.

 So big question was:  what is there for kids to do in Sydney?  Most of the websites I had checked out were pretty useless (alittlebird will be expanding to Sydney in 2011 to solve this :0), and brochures at the hotel were also unhelpful, so we set out on foot and found the Aquarium. 

Mental Note 1:  next time buy the slightly-more-expensive 1 year passes instead of the 1 day ticket, with the added bonus of entry to Wildlife World next door and the Sydney Tower. 

We could have spent all four days at the Aquarium, but spent a few hours checking everything out, walking under sharks, stingrays, turtles etc in the underground tunnel, and touching and feeling things in the touchy-feely tank.  We sat around just watching life in the tanks and had a few amusing moments, one in particular where Audrey crawled along the wall of a tank, and a huge shark followed her path on the other side of the glass.  If only I’d had the sense to pull out the video camera!  A few dollars later Bruce the shark joined us for the rest of the holiday, and he hasn’t been far from reach since.

Day 2 dawned and finally we got the chance to meet some friends’ new bub, then spent the afternoon playing in the awesome Pyrmont Point Park, set on the harbour below the cliffs.  It’s an amazing set up with huge sandpit where the kids can control the flow of the ‘river’ around it, a water fountain play section, plus all the usual swings, slides, and spider-webs.  There was a touch of history as some of the landscaping materials were actually re-used sandstone blocks from a long-gone building.  A cafe on-site kept the coffee pumping and the parents happy, and you have never seen such pristine public toilets, with handy large sinks for washing off grubby kids.  5-star playground all round, and contrary to my expectations in such a posh residential area, all the parents were friendly, kids well-mannered, and the vibe was just amazing. 

Mental Note 2:  Bring at least 3 changes of clothes to this park. 

Bath time was extra-long that day, and due to sheer exhaustion the kids were well-behaved for the outing to dinner with aforementioned friends. 

Mental note 3:  when booking Sydney restaurants, always book number-of-prams as well as number-of-people.  Another day down and another night with lights-out early. 

Mental note 4:  next time book 2-roomed apartment! 

Day three saw us embarking on the ferry for a $2.50 all-day family treat.  Unfortunately it turns out Elliott is susceptible to sea-sickness, so luckily we had started with a short journey and jumped off at the next stop.  On a wander around the rocks markets we meet lovely people and chilled out in the sunshine.  We spent some quality time on the monorail and quite frankly, I don’t know where the day went!  We met Daddy after his conference and Mummy took off to do some serious shopping J

Our last morning was bittersweet, again we don’t know where it went.   DJ’s provided the picnic and the botanical gardens were great for a free ride on a lion (bronze statues).  We took a final adventure on the monorail then headed off for the airport. 

Mental Note 5:  Always read the instructions for public transport. 

We had a bit of hassle when despite the advice of the station guard, we had managed to get on the wrong train, so had to cop a few changes of plan. 

Mental Note 6:  a double pram is not practical for train stations with no lifts. 

We finally hit the airport running and when we arrived at the check-in desk had a whole 30 seconds up our sleeves before the flight closed!  Back on terra firma, we were glad we had done ‘dinner’ on the plane, skipped ‘bath’ and hit ‘bed’ asap.  Despite a couple of minor dramas, the whole weekend was the perfect excuse to turn the phone off and just hang out with the kids.  Next time though, I think I’ll stick to Brisbane and take a few days to be a tourist in my own town.  Who knows what we’ll find?  Who wants to come?

a whole weekend at home...eek!

Firstly wanted to say "hi" from our new location; hope you enjoy our blog. We will over the weeks aim to blog more about events and what's going on in Brisbane for kids and babies and less about well....my life hah!

In the meantime...for some reason master Koby decided to have a "super doopa wingey I only want my mum day today" which considering he's usually Mr Independent I didnt' know what to make of it. I did however manage to sit down for 5 seconds on my own and I realised I hadn't left the house since...*gasp* Friday night and it was now Sunday night.

How did this happen? I recall having the best intentions to go out and accomplish tasks and things on my to do list and yet I never left the house, all weekend except for a walk down the park with Koby. 

Has this ever happened to you? Maybe we are conserving all our energy for all the awesome activities on this week. This is my first School Holidays running alittlebird and wow!! I had no idea there would be so much on; enjoy and have fun!

Super mums are Super!

Phew – that sums up my week!

Did you make it to the Teddy Bears Picnic on Wednesday? What a huge fun day out! I decided to be one of those amazing super mum’s who own their own business and take their children everywhere with them; (if Linda can I can; or so I thought).

SO with a car packed up with a marquee, table, chairs etc, young Koby in the back and my mum in the front we were on our way to the Teddy Bears Picnic.

For every bear that ever there was
Will gather there for certain, because
Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic

We arrive nice and early and start setting up; of course Koby has other ideas and he is off; in the wet grass to go exploring. Anyways without going into too much detail; we managed to get everything set up and ready; sure Koby may have crawled off a few times to check out the wheels on random parents strollers; we got there but it was caotic.

Thankfully Auntie Sarah came to save the day and whisked Mr Koby off into the playground so I could focus on meeting all the wonderful mum’s on the day. The response was overwhelming and considering we only launched 4 weeks ago and have so many more exciting changes happening; it’s very exciting.

Lessons learnt:

• Do not bring exploring son who is obsessed with wheels (prams, cars, wheelie bins - yes he found them too) to market stalls
• Print off plenty more colouring in competitions – remember to send them back so your child can win a book of their choice
• Mum’s and Aunties are so awesome!

It’s been a busy week here at alittlebird HQ; I have been attending small business seminars and marketing nights and meeting loads of wonderful talented and supportive people.

We are busy at alittlebird working on making the site even better than it currently is; we will keep you posted with how we are going.

How’s your spring cleaning going? Sunday was an official laptop free day for me (first time in 5 months) and it was awesome; I spend the whole day spring cleaning; only 1 x more room to go yay!

Highchairs, Paint and Fathers Day

Handy Hint #1. If you own a plastic fantastic Ikea high chair like I do; then take heed do not put paint, yes even non toxic water based paint on the chair so your “small person” can paint daddy a lovely Fathers Day picture.

Mine turned a lovely brown colour that after repeated attempts of cleaning and scrubbing continued to look like Koby had smeared #2’s on it

So off to the shops to buy a replacement; on the plus side we now have a nice indoor one and a crazy craft high chair for outside time.

How did the painting turn out; you might be wondering?
Similar to the chair; a big brown mess and of course the gig was up when I had to explain to hubby why we had a new high chair.

Being that it was hubby’s first Fathers Day; I had great plans for the day; that required the following 3 x things to occur: Sunshine, a healthy household and on time delivery.

1. It rained! So the whole park, let’s go for a walk idea didn’t happen.
2. Koby was very sick! The place I booked for breakky was a good half hour drive away and we had a very sick little boy on our hands that needed to go to a doc so it was off to the local coffee club for breakky instead.
3. Delivery was not on time! Instead of this awesome book I had ordered for the hubby he got a photocopy of what it looks like and the promise that it would arrive...some day.

It sounds a bit doom and gloom but as with anything in life; when life throws you lemons; you order fish and squeeze lemon all over it (we had fish for dinner). We had a super fabulous day and instead of a walk we went for a drive through the mountains; we had a sleep in, cuddles and pressies in bed, a lovely breakky and the rain was a blessing because we spent the afternoon at home relaxing.

I hope your Father’s Day were special no matter what you did.

Spring + Cleaning = Markets

Isn’t it funny what a change in month, season and weather does to so many people?

I wasn’t going to do any spring cleaning; it hadn’t actually crossed my mind...until! Until I received a parcel in the mail from a lovely friend I hadn’t heard from in a while; inside was a lovely note and a gorgeous pair of shoes.
The note read something like this “I was spring cleaning and found these lovely shoes that I picked up in the US; I’ve never worn them as I bought a size too big; I thought you might like them; hope they fit”

Thank you spring cleaning; the shoes do fit and are just lovely!! So armed with a new pair of shoes I set off on my own Spring Cleaning adventures. So far I have completed 2 x rooms of the house and more importantly accumlated a large pile of un-used things. 

Which leads me to my next topic Markets. alittlebird will be showcasing at the Good Buy Baby Markets this weekend and I am hoping to sell some of the hidden unused treasures that I have discovered on my Spring Cleaning journey. I hope to see you there at the markets; I can’t promise pairs of shoes; but you never know.

7 Things you didn't know about me

As a new blogger I have taken to reading other peoples very talented blogs and an awesome one I stumbled across is save mum's sanity which I thoroughly enjoy reading. Anywho she has just posted 7 things you didn't know about me and has dared other bloggers to do the same; so here goes.

1. When I was a little girl around 8 years old I made a list of 3 things I had to accomplish in life.

• #1. Build a snowman
• #2. Have my own desk that I can re-arrange all day (looks like I was always destined for the corporate world)
• #3. To go on the "cup and saucer" ride at Disneyland.

Now I don't want to disappoint the little 8 year old in me so I've explained to my husband that these things are non-negotiable. Luckily for him I've already  achieved #2, the large desk that I can rearrange all day; many many times over; infact I've gone one step further and I now have a whole dining table (my current office) that I can "rearrange all day". But only if I had the time.

2. I feed the local wildlife; even though I know I shouldn't. I am currently feeding the mumma and dadda butcher birds each morning with Koby and in return they sing up beautiful morning songs (we are waiting for the arrival of their little bubba butcher birds in their nest) But that's not all; I also feed our resident possum; who in return for the occasional banana; poops all over our verandah and mows down any flowers I plant each night so I can't have flowers growing. Dan can't work out for the life of him why I encourage the possum and neither do I but I do.

3. I am very much into all things Vampires at the moment (along with every other female on the planet) but particularly True Blood (the HBO t.v. show). Every Sunday night my girlfriends and I head over to gastronobree's house for delectable dinner and dessert creations (check our her yummy food blog) and we sit down with a lovely bottle (or 2) of red and watch True Blood; my fave way to spend a Sunday Night.  

4. I love icecream!! Yes, yes we all love icecream but I really love icecream! I could eat it all day; every day; I never tire of it...ever! I love neopolitan, vanilla, caramel or my personal fave, coconut icecream with cookie dough. Yum!!

5. I don't like coffee!! Did I just hear you *gasp*....sad but true and it gets worse; I don't like honey either; strange huh (well that's what my husband says).

6. I got married in Bali. My love affair with all things Indonesian started when I was in highschool in Cairns; my best friend was Indonesian and we studied Indonesian Language at school for 3 years which came in handy for the many times I've been over there. Our wedding was beautiful and intimate and it was just how we wanted it.

7. My favourite shoes are my Birkies. I hardly ever wear heels coz I'm 6ft tall and already feel like a giant and I don't really have a choice when it comes to shoes due to large giant feet, luckily it doesn't get that cold in Brisvegas.

So, there you go … a little more about me. If you are a fellow blogger feel free to keep it going and share 7 things about you; don't forget to tag me please :)

Festivalley - Activity of the week

After a certain small person's midday snooze we made our way out to Samford to check out the Festivalley; run by the local Steiner School. Luckily we bought along the "4-wheel drive" 3 wheeler pram as we had to park a fair walk away. Having never been to the Steiner School before you can't help but be impressed by the surroundings and how creative the environment is.

We made our way to the "pre-schooler" area where Koby had the time of his life throwing around the dry crunchy leaves (who needs a festival when there are leaves to be thrown) that lasted about half an hour before Dan and I got bored and moved him along.

Next stop the farm animals; which was heaps of fun for Koby and me - check out the "caged animal"

There were heaps of creative and fun activites for kids to enjoy; especially if they are a bit older than Koby. Dan and I got our treat with a belgium spiral pastry; absolutely worth the wait. It was a nice way to spend the afternoon and great to check out the school.

Did you make it to Festivalley? I hope you told them alittlebird sent you; we did