loving : diesel kid white graffiti ankle trainers

love it or hate it. it's monday.

i'm a winner : n is for nanette

i had to share these two adorable headbands i won through n is for nanette's facebook page. i'm not clever enough to photograph them on my own head, so out came the bribes and miss moo became my little model. her bribe was the blue and pink headband, although she really wanted them both, i just couldn't give up the rose vintage headband. it is absolutely stunning and went straight into mummy's bathroom, out of reach of little hands.

i'm so happy with my suprise win, the work put into these headbands is impeccable. nanette is currently doing another giveaway on her page, where you send her a picture of your favourite dress and the winner gets a customised headband to match their dress. off i go to check my wardrobe...

hello saturday

iphone italk : little crew

you may have seen this cute little bird flapping his wings around the place lately. he is the mascot for a cute iphone app called little crew. i don't know about you, but i am a sucker for anything that looks gorgeous, is fun, and has anything to do with kid's shopping. if you're the same, you're going to love little crew. at the moment the app is free, so grab out your phone and look it up, or click on the image above and grab it from itunes.

peta is a mum of 3 and the woman behind little crew. she has created an app that is "the luxe guide to children's shopping", and that it is. there are 5 categories in the app : clothes, travel, toys, accessories and featured. each product that is reviewed has been road tested personally by peta and her children.

a while ago, peta road tested our new kids tea's : the tea party and superhero juice by she-tea {and he-tea}. you can find peta's article on our tea's here.

if you're on facebook, the little crew app also has a facebook page which gives us snippets of bits and pieces that have been featured on the app. the app and page are both worth a download and a like. we recommend.

iphone italk : stella mccartney kids fashion and fun

with all the hype of the stella mccartney kids launch this week, i was pleasantly suprised to see that there is a free iphone app to go with the package.

the app easily lets you browse the lookbook and see the whole collection {babies, girls and boys, 0-12}, you can view and select items and keep them in your favourites, and then when you're ready to purchase you can drop them in your shopping basket and purchase. oh my, purchasing from your iphone. how easy. how dangerous!

there's also a play section which i found a bit fun {see image above}. i also noticed there is a playground on the website aswell. i love this extra feature, it's nice to keep it real and make it fun, for the kids and the mum's! if you're into kids fashion, this free app won't dissappoint you. go grab it now!

smell me yummy

do you have a signature scent, or do you like to have several scents? i used to have 2 or 3 bottles of perfumes going at the one time; one for work, one for weekends and one for going out. these days, i don't go to work as such and i rarely 'go out', and that disposable income i used to have, no longer seems to exist! so i've been a one bottle mummy for a while now.

i have just finished my bottle of fendi palazzo, and oh my i loved it. but i'm the type who likes to move on and try something different. the image above represents my 4 favourite smells; fendi palazzo, jean paul gaultier classique, chanel coco madamoiselle and calvin klein euphoria. i am considering going back to either euphoria or coco madamoiselle, as it's been a while since i've had them. i remember the days when in my lunch break i would pop into myers and try a new perfume on each arm, let them sit, then decide if they were me or not. nowadays, i don't really get to the malls that often, not when most of my shopping is done online.

i saw over on good mum hunting a few suggestions, and i had lots of lovely suggestions on our facebook page too - like gucci guilty, chloe love, marc jacobs daisy - all of which i made a special little trip to the myer perfume counter and tried on, but just wasn't totally grabbed by any, if you know what i mean? i did try jil sanders jil, it was ok, again though, didn't grab me.

what do you currently wear? what would you suggest i try next?

hot spot : little kickers gold coast

i like to take summer to the occassional activity lesson. i don't like to fill her week with activities, there's plenty of time for a social life once she gets a tad older, i'm sure! she currently goes to swimming lessons, and more recently she has joined little kickers.

what's little kickers? play not push - a fun and imaginative introduction to soccer for children aged 2 years to 5 years. devised in the uk in 2002, little kickers has arrived down under to benefit our little aussies.

it's so much more than kicking around a ball. the idea is to use soccer as a fun medium to help the kids learn social skills like listening, sharing, taking turns and teamwork; practice learning skills like colours and numbers; and fine-tuning their basic balance, agility and co-ordination skills.

it's heaps of fun, and although it's not just all about kicking soccer balls and scoring goals, this does happen and let me tell you, there are some champion goal scorers in our group! i have to tell you about one of the little kickers... in one of our first sessions, he was scoring goals and then doing the whole lift his shirt over his head and running off with his arms in the air thing. seeing a 2 year old do this had me in stitches, what a legend!

we sit in circles at the beginning and end of the lessons and say hello and goodbye to each and every player. we pass the ball around the circle, putting all of those above mentioned social skills into play yet again.

and... they even get stickers and stamps to go home with! can't get much better than that!

the coaches are awesome. our coaches at southport are coach amanda and coach dane. coach abbey {in the middle with summer} and hubby coach brad are the ones who have brought little kickers to the gold coast.

sound cool? sound like something you'd like to take your mini me along to and check out? well your first session is a free trial session, so why not! for us gold coasters, there are currently sessions on saturday mornings in southport and pac pines. classes are at 8am, 9am, 10am and 11am in both locations. you will need to contact abbey on 07 5574 9027, 0457 602 219 or goldcoast@littlekickers.com.au to reserve your free trial spot and to find out more information. little kickers gold coast have also recently started up a facebook page, so if you're on facebook pop over and like their page to keep in the loop and up to date with classes and little kickers goss.

check the little kickers website for other locations accross the nations. i noticed there are loads of nsw locations to choose from.

loving : peter alexander maternity slinky nightie

guest post : heidi from miss fit's baby boot camp

last friday i finished my 6 week course with miss fit's baby boot camp. man it was good, i actually enjoyed every session i had. our trainers, heidi and tara, were very informative, helpful and fun. the mum's i met were lovely and so friendly. i never once tried to think up an excuse not to go {i used to do this when i had gym memberships}, maybe it was because it was set at the beach, maybe it was because my head was in the right frame of thinking, maybe it was because summer asked me every day if we were going to exercises today. she loved it too!

i have asked heidi to guest write for me today. i think very highly of heidi and her advice and supervision to me during the course has been vital. thanks heidi xx

Hello my name is Heidi of Wholly Fit Personal Training and as I live and breath health and fitness and have no difficulties with motivating myself to exercise and eat healthy, my purpose it seems is to share my motivation, energy, knowledge and experience with those that struggle.

I have recently moved to beautiful Burleigh Heads to live my dreams and be by the beach. I still run a successful business up in Brisbane but I am also starting my business down on the Gold Coast.

So that you know a little bit about me, I come from a long competitive sporting background with my biggest sporting achievement being an Australian Title in Body Sculpting. I am not telling you this to brag, but to let you know that you are in the hands of one that has tried and tested and studied and sacrificed and therefore know first hand what it takes to have the body of your dreams which is what I can share with you.

In knowing how hard an industry it is here on the Gold Coast I thought the best way to get noticed was to bring the very successful and ever growing Baby Boot Camps down from Brisbane. I have teamed up with my good friend Kate Beeley, owner of Miss Fit PT and Baby Boot Camps in Brisbane.

The Baby Boot Camps are for those Mums that are a minimum of 6 weeks Post Baby and need help in getting their bodies back to where they want them to be. We go over and beyond any other Boot Camp in that not only do we specialize and focus on Mums and Bubs but we make you accountable to us, by keeping a journal of your experience. You are given written dietary advice and guidance from a nutritionist specifically designed for you as a Mum. There are, before and after strength and fitness tests, girth measurements recorded, and you are encouraged to stay focused and healthy through your goals, journals and an accumulative point based reward system. Giving you not only the rewards of your goals but a prize at the end!

The best part of it all is that you don’t have to worry about baby sitters and not having quality time with your little ones. Nor do you have any more excuses to find time to exercise, as you bring your babies with you and exercise with and around them.

We are slowly getting Baby Boot Camps off the ground and are now in our second 6 week intake. This is where I met the lovely Bec Watts of Yummy Mummies and her beautiful little mini me “Summer”.

Bec has invited me to write on her Blog giving you some expert advice when it comes to exercise and nutrition, so stay posted for the next installment “The Good and Bad Exercises 6 weeks post baby” due soon. In the meantime why not log onto http://www.missfitpt.com.au/ and grab a spot for the next up and coming Baby Boot Camp (which starts this Monday).

baby got back

{yeah baby}

i've been neglecting my online profile for the past month or so. but all for good reason. home life has needed me all to itself and i am one who doesn't hesitate to log off for a while. i actually find it quite refreshing to have a break from all of the social networking, and return with a fresh attitude and idea's.

i'd like to say i've been out at the beach, eating mr whippy ice-creams, shopping and meeting girlfriends for lunch by the pier. but no, sadly i have been a little off colour and have either been on the lounge feeling sorry for myself, or having daytime naps with my little one {this is normally the time where i hook in and get some work done}. i did, however, manage to do a little bit of baking with the mentioned little one and have convinced her my new name is mummy darling. everything needs to be please mummy darling, it makes me feel better!

i have a whole bunch of blog posts to catch up on, and today i start my quest. wish me luck!

the cheeky receptionist

if you are calling us, you may very well be greeted by our cheeky little receptionist. our apprentice has really started to get the hang of her mini me role lately. while i sit at the computer catching up on emails or paperwork, miss apprentice scurries off to get the calculator, sits on the step and starts punching away at the number pad. if the phone rings, she has started chasing me a little bit to try and get to the phone before i can. and when we wrap up parcels to get sent out, she sings happy birthday. oh yes, your parcel is wrapped with loads of love and cuteness, mixed with a whole lot of cheekiness!

loving : milk from a thistle forest maxi

style file : lilly b

colourful maxi's; that's what i'm seeing and loving this spring/summer in maternity fashion. recognised for their gorgeous maxi dresses, the lilly b label will have you looking and feeling fabulous while pregnant, in any of their delightful designs. the calypso dress as shown above has to be one of my favourites. i am a colour person, i love how wearing a colour can lift your mood for the day, no matter how hormonal it may start out as!

the calypso is a super maxi, meaning it is extra long in length. however, it would be no problem to slice a little from the hemline if you feel it is too long for your height. us shorties will no doubt need to slice some off, but for the taller, this dress will indeed cover your ankles. available in sizes small, medium, large and extra large, this maxi is really quite generous, so if you're on the smaller size of your sizing, then definately go down a size. priced at $199.95, you can see the calypso dress here.

my next favourite is the flora multi tiered maxi in aqua. this dress was extremely popular last year and was featured throughout every pregnancy magazine and worn by some of our aussie celebrities. it was remanufactured so many times to keep up with the demand, but this season see's the popular colourway in aqua, as shown, phasing out. which is such a shame as the colours used are so sweet and soft. the only sizes available now are a small and large. this dress is also $199.95 and is a standard sizing, so stick to your regular size for this maxi.

and one more of my fave's is the drawstring print maxi. this dress is featured in the latest copy of cosmo pregnancy and although this image above looks fab, it doesn't do it enough justice. this dress is divine! it is made from polyester and spandex, so it has a bit of a shimmery look to it {perfect for a wedding or special occassion} and is also quite long in length. available in sizes small, medium and large and is again $199.95. you can find this dress here.

note that all of the dresses i have picked out are bra-wearable. i have a lot of customers who prefer to wear a normal bra wherever possible, so these dresses all have awesome boob coverage! any of the maxi's on the site are generally over $150, so this gives you free postage with your purchase.

congratulations to all of our readers who are expecting, we hope you're enjoying it xx

let's get physical {physical}

do you ever look at your child and think, wow, you used to be in my belly and now look at you! it's been over 2 years since this little moo has been in my tummy and only now have i decided to get into a bit of exercise and start paying some attention to my body. better late than never, right? in my defence, my god that 2 years has gone so quickly! the first 6 six months of summer being born just flew by, gooing and gaaing and filling in the baby book after every new trick she had done, emailing monthly photo's to our family down south. then i brought yummy mummies and the next 18 months of starting a new business mixed with the learning curves of parenting, has also just flashed before my eyes! life is busy, there's no doubt about that.

i started my baby boot camp this morning with missfit pt. it was great. it was a really relaxed atmosphere, there was none of that out of place feeling like you get when you go to the gym. i don't think i'm completely alone when i say that gym's are intimidating! instead, our location was down at my local, the gorgeous burleigh beach. we all done a fitness analysis as our first session, jotted down some measurements, took some before photo's and asked questions. next session will be all systems a go and straight into the serious training. and we thought we were buggered after today's session!

so what is baby boot camp? it is a pram based health and fitness program for new mothers. it is run over 6 weeks and includes 2 or 3 group training sessions a week, depending on what package you decide to go with. they take everything into consideration and in class today we touched base on things like breastfeeding and exercising, the importance of drinking water especially when you are exercising and breastfeeding, and nutritional plans. within 8 weeks of having your baby you can sign up to baby boot camp. you get trained by local female personal trainers who have done it before and are successfully teaching others how to do it. i look at it like a mother's group where you get fit!

today marks the start of the next gold coast course, however if you're really keen to join in from our next session, i'm sure it won't be too late to slot into the group, just give kate an email on kate@missfitpt.com.au. this is only the second 6 week course that has been held on the gold coast, missfit have been successful in brisbane for a while now, and have finally decided to come down and share the love with us gold coast mum's! for any brissie readers, the next course there starts on the 4th of october.

if you think baby boot camp might be fun, yes it is! i've got links all through this post to direct you to the missfit pt website and you can click on the banner above or email or phone kate directly. there is also the missfit facebook page too. grab your mum friends and sign up together. and always remember, it is never selfish to do something for yourself. you will find it easier to meet the challenges of motherhood when you are fit and healthy. when mummy is happy, the whole family benefits!

jelly slice

i'm not a big fan of cooking. there i said it. i do wish i had urges to cook up something beautiful for the family every day, or at least once a week, but the reality of it is that i just have little love for cooking and for the kitchen. maybe one day that will change forever. i hope it does.

so when my partner saw me dig out some of mum's old recipes and proudly place the jelly slice recipe on the bench, he laughed. i laughed too. it was kinda funny. but i did it, i made the slice, and it was yummo, so i thought i would share my jelly slice with you too!

what you will need :

2 jellies (3 cups of water) + 1/2 tsp gelatine

1 1/2 packets of milk coffee biscuits

270g butter

1 tbsp gelatine

1/2 cup of boiling water

2 tins condensed milk

1/4 cup lemon juice

make the jelly {i used port wine, yum} with 2 cups of boiling water, stirring until the jelly crystals are dissolved. dissolve gelatine in a further 200ml of boiling water then add to the jelly. stir in together and place in fridge and let set slightly.

crumb the biscuits. i done it the old skool way and put my biscuits in a few layers of freezer bags and smashed the bejeezes out them. found it great for a bit of stress relief. they don't have to be crumbed to minute pieces, but if there are chunky bits, the butter wont stick it together. then add melted butter to the crumbed biscuits. combine well then press into base of a tin {lamington size}. place in fridge to set {i cheated and put mine in the freezer for about 15 minutes}.

combine gelatine with boiling water, stirring until dissolved. add to condensed milk and stir until well combined then add the lemon juice.

once the base is set, pour milk mixture over and let set together {about 30 minutes in the fridge}.

pour jelly on top to make the top layer {keep an eye on your jelly and don't let it set before this stage}, then leave in the fridge until set.

and that's that. jelly slice done. did your mum ever make jelly slice? do you make it now?

review this + giveaway : marquise fundies

toilet training started in our house a few weeks ago. it was unexpected and unplanned, and as many a mum tells me, it will happen when it happens. there is not a truer sentence said in the world of parenting. is anyone else toilet training their mini me's?

we're quite big on nappy off time here. from my own personal experience, i find it's a fast way to help clear up nappy rash. so when miss 2's back teeth were giving her grief and her nappy rash started, it was off with the nappy for a couple of solid days at home. we got one of those toilet training step ladders, with the mini toilet seat attached to it, a while ago from toys 'r' us and have been suggesting to summer that she could go to the big toilet on her special seat whenever she would like to. and whilst she was having nappy off time from her rash, what'd'ya know, she wanted to hop up on her seat and do wee's in the toilet. i couldn't believe it. seems she was paying real attention to all that suggesting, and right there and then, it was obviously time to take it forward and start this toilet training bizo!

it's was all very very cute, and we were all of a sudden in the market for tiny teeny little undies. no sooner later, we got a gorgeous announcement on our emails that marquise has a brand new line of undies called fundies. so i got some in for summer, and let me tell you, they're are the cutest little things ever! they are avialable in a 2 pack for $12.95 and come in sizes 2-3, 3-4, 4-6 and 6-8. i particulary like that the label has been sewn down in these undies so it doesn't annoy the kids while they're wearing them. we did duck off to big w and picked up a pack to get us started, but they have a big tag at the back {which i thought was actually ridiculously too big in general, let alone for kids undies} and summer keeps putting her hand around, grabbing it, saying "what's that mummy, what's that". so i am loving the flat labels on the marquise fundies.

they're made from 100% combed cotton and they are fantastic quality with a great firm stretch, they're definately undies that are going to last the wash after wash they get. they're also breathable and help remove moisture away from the skin, keeping them comfy and happy to have them on. there are quite a few different designs and you can pick some up from myers or dj's.

marquise have sent me an extra 2 x 2 packs of their new fundies to giveaway to 2 of you lovely readers. i have a girls 2 pack and a boys 2 pack, and both are sizes 3-4. the girls pack are the pink and white butterfly fundies, and the boys pack are the robot and striped fundies. the robot is very cool, i like this design! if you would like to go in the draw to win a pack, you just need to leave a comment here with your name and your email address {so i can contact you if you're a winner} and state if you'd like the girls or the boys pack. good luck! i'll draw a winner out next thursday.

and please, if you have a toilet training story you'd like to share, please feel free to do so. i love hearing other mum's advice. i found that we got off to an excellent start with it all, and after a week or 2 of home training, i ventured out into leaving the house with undies on summer instead of a nappy. i think it's more scary for me than it is her! it's a long, full on process and we've taken a couple of steps backwards, but it's all perseverance, i'm sure! xx

review this : stuck on you lunchbox & name labels

do your children have any of the stuck on you products? summer has quite a few things from the stuck on you range that she has acquired over her gorgeous little lifespan. and it's hard to say we have a favourite, because we literally use everything she has in our every day travels, but recently the latest trends lunchbox has been coming everywhere with us!

it comes to swimming lessons with all of our yummy treats and water packed inside it. it comes along with us to do the groceries, filled with all of those very important 2 year old necessities, like a squishy caterpillar toy she won at timezone and her purple beaded necklace! and just on the weekend it came along with us to afternoon tea in the yard with our narna and biccies and cups and saucers for our tea.

i'm really not sure how we survived without this handy sized lunchbox before now! i highly recommend it to you. the size is perfect, it's 23 x 20 cm, so it's not too small, it fits in a drink bottle gorgeously, and it's not too big to cart around either. it has a handy carry handle at the top, summer carries it herself, an easy to open zip around the edge, a mesh compartment on the top inside lid and it's all easy to wipe clean. you can choose a sweet design to have on the front with your childs name printed on the design, we of course chose the owl design {totally loving owls}. and... the price is only $29.95. love that.

the other little goody we got were the latest trends name labels. we got these ones in the caterpillar design, because i can't have absolutely everything in owls now can i! you get 50 stickers for $29.95. if you've never used the stuck on you stickers, then you are in for a treat. just like their slogan says, labels that stay stuck, and that they do! name labels are always handy to have in the drawer, i love them and i stick them everywhere. i think it's just a really cute touch to put a little name label on a lunch bag. i really want to buy some in my partner's name and pack him off to work with name labels all over his lunch. hehe!

there is an art to pouring the perfect cup of tea. and i think my daughter just about has it down pat at the age of 2; tongue and little finger all in correct positions!