For this outfit I've tried to put together a monochrome look with a bit of colour to bring more life to it and make the outfit look happier. This yellow printed scarf is from H&M and it's a definite spring favourite of mine. It's such a cute and happy addition to most outfits.
I love an all-black look and I tried going for that casual chic vibe with this outfit. It might look like a fancier outfit, but it's really not. I've got a pair of black trainers on and some black jeans, together with this blazer that I've had for a long time. Underneath I just have on a white tee and that lovely scarf I love.
We're thoroughly enjoying the nicer weather we're getting. It's so much more fun when you're able to spend lots of time outdoors with your toddler. Staying indoors all day can get cray-cray - I'm sure other moms can relate, haha! :)
A lot of you seemed to love this cardigan in my previous outfit post and over in the Instagram comments. I loove it too! I have been wearing it so often and it's such a great layering piece for these days when we're transitioning into warmer weather.
I love wearing this cardi with regular jeans for a casual look, but today I decided to go for an all-white combo just to mix it up. So I've got my white jeans and white trainers on - a very casual mom look. I just need to throw on my tan backpack and I'm good to go!
There are so many products for babies and toddlers on the market at the moment that it's hard to know which ones are worth spending your money on. I want to share with you today my favourite ones so far that I've used a lot and that my toddler also loves.
These are products that are mostly suitable for the 12-18 month old age. Here are the products that I think are the best for us (and might be for you too):
1. Water colouring books.
These are magical and awesome! Why? Because they are mess free - woohoo! That's probably one of the loveliest phrases to hear when you're a mom, haha! These come with a pen that you fill with water and your little one can easily paint with it. It doesn't spill and once the paper dries up, it can be used again.
You can basically use this colouring book forever. The pictures on these are really lovely. We have the Farm Animals one, the Safari one and a small pack of flashcards for on-the-go.
2. Flashcards / First word books
Toddlers respond really well to flashcards because they are a quick and snappy activity that catches their interest, so they are more likely to learn from it. We have a set with animals and another one with objects around the house (both with realistic pictures).
The way you use them is you pull 4-5 flashcards and say each object/animal on it while showing it to your toddler. Then you can lay the cards down and ask your toddler questions to encourage them to interact and respond. You can ask them to point a certain object, for example. They will learn so fast from these! You can also use First Words Books for this. My toddler loves this one.
3. Brain Rules for Baby
The Brain Rules for Baby book is all about how a baby's brain works, what you can do to help them achieve their maximum potential, the 4 types of parenting and which one is the best one, how to help toddlers to start talking more. It also talks about how empathy and validating a child's feelings will help in tantrum situations and will give your child a boost in self esteem and confidence in the future. It's an all around amazing book and I've gotten a lot of great tips from it, so I'm recommending it to any parent out there.
4. Diaper Pull Up Pants
Fact: Toddlers are wild! Changing their diaper can be challenging most times, so these make life so much easier. If you haven't transitioned to pull up diaper pants, I would highly recommend it because they are so much quicker to change when you've got a mobile toddler you're running around after.
5. Velcro or No-tie shoes
Sticking with the "toddlers are wild" theme, putting on shoes when you've got a toddler who's overly excited to get outside can be a bit of a task. Make your life easier by getting shoes with no laces, as these go on so much faster. We have these velcro ones, but my absolute favourite are these Adidas no-tie shoes (they're like slip-on trainers).
6. Non-slip Bath Mat
Must have for bath time, in my opinion. We have a non-slip bath mat from Munchkin that is awesome. It sticks really well, it doesn't budge an inch and it helps avoid any bath time slipping. This one has coloured dots on it and we actually also use it as a learning activity. While he takes his bath, I will ask him to point out colours for me and it's been a really fun activity for him to practice his colours.
7. Baby Toothpaste
My toddler doesn't like when his toothpaste is too minty or flavourful, since it's probably too overwhelming for him. So I picked up this Nenedent neutral-taste toothpaste from the pharmacy and he prefers it so much more.
8. Baby markers
Using baby markers on paper is such a fun activity for toddlers. The reason why I like these ones in particular is because they are super-washable - they come out of clothes or surfaces quite easily and don't stain. The only thing is I have to supervise my toddler at all times with these, because sometimes he still wants to put these in his mouth.
9. Shopping Basket Toy
My toddler loves doing anything that I do, so pretend shopping is definitely one of his favourites at the moment. We got this toy shopping basket and he loves putting them in the basket, pouring the food bits in a pot or pan etc. It's a very fun activity for him.
10. Snack cup
Keep a snack cup in your bag at all times - it will save your sanity, haha! I have a small container that I used to use for his baby food, but now I just put baby-cheerios (they're actually called Alpha Bites) in there or any type of snacks that I want to take with me. They won't spill everywhere and these will keep your toddler entertained while you finish your grocery shopping for the week, for example.
11. Bepanthen
This diaper rash cream is the best one we've tried. I know babies are different and not everyone reacts the same to products, but this is definitely our favourite and it clears any irritation in no-time.
12. Toddler Baby Carrier
I don't use this toddler baby carrier as much as I used to when he was smaller, obviously. BUT sometimes it's a life-saver when your toddler gets tired at the park, but doesn't want to sit in the stroller. Having a baby carrier with you will save your arms and back, since it's so much more comfortable to wear them than to carry them in your arms.
I also made a video all about these, if you want to check it out:
I recently had to re-do my toddler's wardrobe, so I decided to share the process with you and give you a few tips I followed in deciding what pieces we needed. If you're a toddler mom, you might get some inspiration from this hopefully.
My toddler is soon turning 18 months old and this is about the time when they also change size in clothing. I could definitely tell that Victor is not really fitting well in the previous size, so I had to get a series of new clothes for him in the next size up (18-24 months or 1 1/2 - 2 years).
TIP 1: Think about how many times a week you do laundry.
Since we got a dryer, things have been much easier when it comes to baby laundry and I find that I can get away with having less items in his closet. If I find that I've run out of tops for some reason, I can quickly pop them in the wash and dry - and they're all clean and done in about 3-4 hours. That's been a definite game changer.
If you only do the laundry once a week, for example, then you might want to get more of certain items so that you have enough until you catch up on laundry.
TIP 2: Choose a few basic colours.
This makes life so much easier when you go shopping for your baby's new wardrobe. Picking a few colours that complement each other well will give you a lot of options in terms of outfits.
I went for mostly neutral: grey, white, navy and a bit of mustard for some colour (as you can tell from the image above).
TIP 3: Try to pick things that go well with each other for the most part.
If you got colours that match well, then this step will be easy. Try to find things that go with each other well and that match a lot of other items that you picked. For example, the animal print tops that I picked are quite neutral, so they would go well with pretty much any of the bottoms. That makes picking outfit sooo much easier.
The two pairs of shoes I went for are a pair of white trainers and a pair of grey Adidas trainers (these fit him like a glove and they're so perfect for running around, these are similar to the ones we picked). Finally, we needed a few new hats and some socks that I bought in sets of three and I made sure that they have grips on the bottoms so that they don't slip.
Here is the checklist for you if you want to use it:
This capsule wardrobe is mostly a spring one, although I know most items will last us for so long. Into the summer I will probably add some shorts, t-shirts and sandals to this. We also have some other bits in his wardrobe that we got as gifts or hand-me-downs and those are always nice to have. I find that having this core wardrobe makes things a lot easier though and any add-ons usually fit nicely within. I also did a video sharing a haul of items I picked up recently for my toddler, so if you want to have a better look at these, here you go:
I hope you found this useful! Have a beautiful day!
We're still struggling with the recent daylight savings hour change (it was just this weekend here in Europe). Our baby routine is totally off and it's been a bit chaotic with bedtime lately. Although we're still fighting off a cold, so that might also be a culprit.
So today's outfit is a total fit because it's been my go-to one for the past few weeks. I am in love with this "love" sweatshirt (Get that super fun mom joke? :) Haha!) It is so cozy and it's perfect for mom playdates or going to playgrounds with my toddler. I paired this top with pretty much black as far as the rest of the outfit goes.
As moms, we're always looking for ways to entertain our children. So I thought it would be fun to share a few hacks and activity ideas you can do with your toddler this Easter.
My toddler is 17 months old, but most of these will work for a lot of ages around toddlerhood. Victor had a lot of fun with these and they kept him occupied for quite a while. #MomWin :)
Here are some things you and your toddler can enjoy doing this Easter:
1. Whipped cream coloured eggs
I have two ways to safely colour eggs with a toddler. This first one is my favourite. You will need: whip cream, food colouring, vinegar.
I hard boiled the eggs beforehand. Put whipped cream in a bowl, add some drops of food colouring and swirl it around with the end of a spoon or fork. Dip the egg in vinegar, pat it dry and then add it to the whipped cream bowl. You can then take it out and leave it for a few minutes to work its magic. I then cleaned it up with just a bit of water and it turned out a really lovely pastel colour.
Victor loved playing in the whipped cream and moving the egg around in there with a spoon.
2. Coloured eggs with vinegar, water and food coloring
This is also really easy and safe for toddlers, but it was messier than the previous method. I used 1/2 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of vinegar and about 20 drops of food coloring. Mix it all together, place the egg in there with a spoon and let it sit for a while. Super easy to do and my toddler loved it, but -again - quite messy.
This is a hack that can make colouring eggs easier for toddlers, because it helps them handle the egg better. My toddler actually preferred working around with a spoon, but your little one might enjoy this more and it might be easier for them.
This is a super easy way to decorate the eggs you have previously coloured. I used washi tape around the egg and it was a fool-proof way to make them look cuter.
5. Decorate muffins together
I'll be honest, I initially wanted to bake cookies and decorate them. But #momlife ... so I decided to keep it simpler and, since cookies can be quite hit or miss when it comes to the recipe, I just went for my trusty muffin recipe and decorated those. My toddler could care less if it's cookies or muffins.
Muffin recipe: 100 grams of butter, 150 grams of flour, 2 eggs, 3 bananas. That's it! Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. This will make about 8 muffins.
I used store bought coloured icing, but you can make your own if you prefer. This obviously has sugar in it, so it's not something I would do often with my toddler, but on a special occasion I think it's fine.
I tried my hand at making a bunny on a muffin. I'm no expert, guys, but when my toddler saw it he said "bunny", so I guess it's not that bad if even he can recognize it's a bunny, haha! :) He loved decorating and squeezing the coloured tubes and, of course, licking the icing off the muffins.
6. Sticky bunny on window
For this I drew a bunny shape on some contact paper (or any type of adhesive paper). Place some double sided tape bits on the side of the paper that's not sticky. Stick that part with the double sided tape on a window at your toddler's level. Then you can peel off the adhesive paper and you have one sticky bunny surface. I also drew some eyes and nose to make it cuter.
Get some cotton pads or cotton balls and encourage your toddler to stick those on the bunny (if your kid is younger like mine, make sure you supervise them, so that they don't end up with cotton pads in their mouth). Victor had more fun ripping off the pads from the bunny than actually sticking them on - but, hey, whatever entertains him!
7. Eggs in socks
This sounds a bit silly, but it was quite fun for my toddler and it helped him practice some fine motor skills. Get some baby socks, play eggs and a bin/basket/bowl. I put each egg into a sock and then handed my toddler the basket full of those. I showed him how to take out an egg myself and then he kept trying on his own. Once he figured it out he was so proud of himself and he really enjoyed this.
8. Sensory bin with rice and eggs
This one was my toddler's favourite (although also the messiest of them all). I made a sensory bin with rice. I cooked some basmati rice and added a few drops of food colouring to make it blue. Then I added the rice to a tupperware container, got a couple of bowls on the side, some spoons and some plastic eggs and I let my toddler go to town with this.
He was absolutely obsessed with this activity. He played with this for more than 30 minutes (that's a lot for a 17 month old). He loved practicing his fine motor skills, taking rice from one bowl to the other with a spoon. He used the egg halves to scoop rice. It was awesome and he really had fun with it!
9. Add snacks to surprise eggs
I also used the eggs I mentioned above for making little surprise eggs. I put a little snack inside each of them (a cheese puff, a little oatmeal bite, anything really) and he was so excited to open each one and enjoy his snack.
10. Get an egg carton and encourage them to put eggs inside
I didn't use real eggs for this (for obvious reasons), instead I also used those plastic eggs. He loved placing all the eggs inside the carton and then he loved even more taking all of them out. It's a super simple activity, but quite a fun one for kids.
Those are all of my hacks and activity ideas for toddlers for Easter. I really hope you find these useful. I also made a YouTube video all about these, so if you would like to see them in action, here it is:
If you try any of these, let me know how your toddler or kid liked them.
As a new mom, life can be overwhelming sometimes. Here are 15 new mom hacks that might make your life a little bit easier while you're trying to figure things out with your new precious baby.
If you have a newborn or a tiny baby these hacks will be really helpful (at least I think so). Some of these hacks apply even to older babies or toddlers, so I think any mom should know these.
Whether you would like to know some diaper hacks (including how to know when to change diaper size), some bottle feeding and formula hacks, diaper bag hacks or stroller hacks, then keep on reading.
1. Put onesie over newborn's hands when changing a dirty diaper
When they're really small, you can get away with this hack in order to prevent them from getting their hands into the dirty diaper. Simply pull the bottom part of the onesie on top of their hands and that should do the trick.
2. Diaper hacks
Diapers have butterfly edges, so make sure you pull those out when you put it on your baby. These help prevent leakage and blowouts. Also, most diapers have a stripe down the middle that is a wetness indicator. When the diaper is clean the line should be yellow, but when the diaper gets dirty the line will turn blue. It helps to know when you need to change them.
3. When to change diaper size
There are two indicators that you should move up one size. 1 - If your baby starts having a lot more blowouts or leakage than usual, it could mean the diaper is simply to small for them. 2 - If your baby's tummy has a lot of lines and marks when you take the diaper off, it means it's too snug for them, so you need to go up a size.
4. How to get baby to take a pacifier
If you want your baby to accept a pacifier and he's reluctant to do so, try dipping the pacifier in his milk (breastmilk or any type of milk) and offer it that way. They might have more incentive to take the pacifier, so it's worth giving this a try.
5. Check milk temperature on your wrist
It's the best spot to check the temperature. It should not feel too warm or too cold, but kinda neutral, since milk is supposed to be pretty much your body temperature.
6. Clipping nails of a newborn
Clip their nails when they're asleep, but make sure you get the timing right. It's best to wait a bit after they're fallen asleep to do this (15-20 minutes). That should ensure that they're in a deeper sleep and won't wake up when you're cutting their nails.
You can freeze baby food in an ice cube tray. After it's frozen, take he cubes out, put them in a ziploc bag and store them in the freezer that way. They take up less space and you get to reuse your ice cube tray afterwards.
8. How to get rid of cradle cap
Most babies will develop cradle cap because their skin is getting used to the outside world (outside of the womb). What you can do to help them it use a cradle cap cream, apply it to the spots you see, leave it for a bit and then use a special comb to get all the bits off of their heads. It works really well, even though you need to repeat the process a few times until it completely goes away.
The Nose Frida is the best thing I've found to relieve a baby's snotty nose. I tried a little pump, but it wasn't efficient enough. I also tried one of those tubes that attach to your vacuum, but that seemed intimidating and my baby hated the vacuum at first, so I didn't end up using it. Nose Frida is the perfect one for us - it's a tube that you use with your mouth to suck the snots out of your baby's tiny nose (don't worry, it has a filter so it's not gross in any way). It works very well!
10. The best invention ever for moms - the baby carrier!
It is the one most useful thing I've ever bought for my baby. It is awesome for the baby because they feel really secure and loved in there, strapped to your chest. They can take naps, watch you carry on with your day etc. AND it allows you to have two free hands to get stuff done. I would cook, clean, blog, do pretty much anything around the house with my baby in the carrier. It is awesome and it makes your life so much easier, so I would definitely recommend getting one if you're a new mom.
If you use formula, this will help so much. We got a dispenser with three little containers and it was super handy. It was very convenient when traveling, but also at home. We would fill it up with portions for all throughout the night (for example) and then when you wake up at night to get their milk, you can make it so much faster. I would often wake up groggy in the middle of the night and try to make my baby's milk. And as I was pouring scoops of formula, at some point I would think "Did I put enough scoops?"or "Did I put too many scoops?". This hack makes it so much easier.
12. If your baby hates tummy time
Try to encourage tummy time by laying yourself down and placing the baby on your chest. That will help them feel more safe and secure and will give them a chance to practice.
13. Before putting your baby's change of clothes in your diaper bag, roll them up and place a sock on each end of the clothes-burrito.
This will make the spare clothes take up less space in your diaper bag, plus it will be easier to find them when you're looking for them in your bag.
You never know when you've got a massive explosion to handle and you need to put all the dirty clothes somewhere until you get home to wash them. Just put them in your resealable bag that you packed in your diaper bag and you're good to go.
15. Use a universal hook on the stroller for your shopping bags
You can buy these universal stroller hooks that are a game changer when you go shopping. It's so convenient to have a place to put all of your bags. You can also get other add-ons for your stroller, like a cup holder (super handy as well).
Those are all of my hacks for new moms and newborns. I also did a video on this if you're interested:
Hope these make your life easier if you're a mom! :)
Last week I did anASOS & H&M haul of a few items that I picked up for my spring wardrobe. What I'm wearing here is pretty much all new bits that I got and I'm obsessed with all of these. It's so exciting when you get new pieces that you love, isn't it?
This is a definite mom-comfort type of outfit for me. Classic skinny jeans, a pair of white trainers and a cozy off-white cardigan with statement buttons - one of my favourite combos. It's so comfy and allows for lots of running around after a toddler (if you've read my previous outfit posts, you would have noticed a theme with this toddler-mom life, haha).
Statement buttons are seemingly everywhere at the moment and it's one of the trends that I'm fully on board with. Love them! They give a more unique and cute look - I think.
As a first time mom, I wanted to buy ALL the best things for my baby and in the process I realized there are a bunch of them I actually didn't need, didn't end up using or just regret buying. If you want to know what products you might as well skip when it comes to babies (in my opinion), then keep on reading.
These are the baby products I regret buying, so you can save yourself some money and skip them:
1. Intricate baby outfits
Anything from newborn shirts to constricting jeans (I think they're ok if they're a more flexible fabric). In the first months I mainly used baby grows, onesies, simple things that you just change quickly, because as new babies they will spit up a lot and have blow outs, so you want to make the changes quick and easy for both of you.
2. Baby mittens
My baby hated these, he hated swaddling or having his hand movement restricted in any way. If you want to avoid scratching, you can just cut their nails really short and that will work just fine. I read that it's actually now recommended NOT to put baby mittens on them all the time, because babies actually use their hands to feel around and learn about the outside world. Textures, fabrics, their own face and feet. It helps with development and having their hands covered at all times is not advised.
3. Baby shoes
Very cute idea, so adorable in your Instagram feed, but completely unnecessary. We got a few as gifts, but in all fairness - we never used them. In my opinion, until they're walking they don't really need shoes, so just save yourself that money.
4. Jumper on door frame
We got this as a hand-me-down, but never used it. For one, setting it up would probably deteriorate your wall/door frame (depending on the type) and two - it's quite dangerous because they can easily bounce their little heads into the door frame.
5. Huge bath tub for baby
You're definitely gonna regret a super big bath tub for the baby since it can get so, so heavy. We did use this for the first few months, but I completely regret not getting a smaller, easier one. It would have been much more convenient. And it was very hard to move it on my own, especially after having a c-section, so I always had to have my husband or someone help me with it.
6. Baby q-tips
I did buy a few of these before having my baby, but I soon after found out that they're not recommended to use since babies are so wriggly. Q-tips can actually cause accidents even if they're "the special baby kind". I didn't end up using them after I found that out. Apparently it can also push the wax further down in their ear and cause build-up, therefore further problems. What I do is I just towel dry his little ears and that works just fine.
7. Breast pads that heat up or can be put in the freezer
They're technically a good idea to help with soreness and pain, but I didn't really use them that much. I just used a damp towel and I actually didn't reach for these too often.
8. Steamer
When you're preparing to introduce solids, you're "supposed" to buy a steamer. Well the one we had was a quite bulky one with three levels - so unnecessary. It was quite a lot to clean up and it took so much space in our kitchen. Plus it's not the cheapest thing, considering we only used it for baby food and we never used it otherwise.
I found out afterwards that you can use a simple steamer insert from Ikea, so I would have much rather had that - a lot cheaper, takes up less space and you might also use in the future.
9. Mesh feeder
This got really hard to clean, especially after using things like banana in it. Even in the dishwasher, it wouldn't clean up that well. I much preferred the silicone ones.
10. Bath chair
This is actually a personal preference, but my baby hated it. I'm not entirely sure why, but he just seemed uncomfortable and wanted to get out whenever I tried using it. Instead, we just got a bath mat from Munchkin and that works really well, he doesn't slip at all.
11. Bath toys with holes in them
This to me just doesn't make any sense at all. It's a huge design flaw since these toys will obviously get moldy super fast because water gets trapped in there. Now I just buy ones without any holes in them. However, I learned this hack from my friend Kinga that you can use a hot glue gun for that hole and keep using the toys. I haven't tried that myself yet, but it might be worth a try.
12. Socks without grips on the bottom
These are fine in the beginning months, but once they start walking, it is so much easier for them to have grippy socks, because otherwise they slip everywhere. They're already not too steady on their feet in the first weeks of walking, so anything that can help them be more secure is worth it.
13. Shoes with laces
I find the velcro ones to be so much easier and faster to put on. Not too much fuss and you're out and about in no time.
Okay, those are the things that I didn't end up using for my baby and wish I would've just skipped.
I feel like buying too much stuff for your first baby is like a rite of passage for every pregnant mom to go through. Even if you find yourself in that situation, make sure to donate them to other people who might use them.
Hope you found this useful! Hit me up on INSTAGRAM for more mom & baby tips.
