The Shrunks Toddler Travel Bed Review

Holly is at a funny age for travelling. Too big for a travel cot, too small really to be trusted in a full sized single bed, especially a bed away from home where the likelihood of falling out is much greater. The Shrunks make an innovative inflatable travel bed for toddlers (and one for older kids) which inflates in minutes and is sturdy enough to spend the night on.

I will admit that we have tried toddler travel beds in the past and, while they've seemed fine for a fun sleepover event at home, when we've had to actually use them in anger when travelling abroad, or in the UK, we've slowly stopped using them because of the stress of having to spend 20 minutes manually pumping them up!  The Shrunks Tuckaire toddler bed comes with a really compact electric pump which you can use to inflate and deflate the bed.

It takes about 3 minutes to pump the toddler bed up.  The bed is in two parts, the central part on which your child sleeps, this area is coated with a soft, thick fabric which helps to keep them warm during the night.  The outer part creates the height and the protective sides which prevent your toddler from rolling out during the night.  You inflate both parts separately.  Both myself and my husband have struggled a bit with inflating The Shrunks Tuckaire bed due to the valve which should flip back the second you pull out the pump (to stop the air from rushing out)... there must be a knack to it which we haven't yet discovered.

Despite this, I really like the bed.  When deflated, it is as compact as a child's sleeping bag (including the pump) and when inflated, it offers a really good bed size suitable for even the most fidgety of toddlers.  The bed is suitable from about 2 years to 6 years old. It packs away in its own drawstring bag and can squeeze into small spaces in among your suitcases in the car boot.



The feature we like most about the bed (as opposed to the pump... which rocks) is the ability to tuck in the sheets or blanket around your child into the gap between the two parts of the bed.  This really helps when you have a child like Holly who just needs to be tucked in tightly to help her settle off to sleep, otherwise she is up and about within seconds!

For children over 6 The Shrunks make a similar children's inflatable travel bed.  They also make an inflatable bed rail which tucks in under the sheets but can be deflated and popped away under the bed at other times.

   

Jurys Inn Derby Family-Friendly Hotel Review

During half term we took the girls to visit Alton Towers in Staffordshire.  Because it was a long way from home, we decided to make a weekend of it and stayed overnight at the Jurys Inn hotel in Derby city centre which is about a 35 minute drive from Alton Towers.

The Jurys Inn hotel in Derby made a great getaway for a family.  Our room was large enough to host all four of us (including a cot) comfortably.  Our room was well presented and very comfortable - everything I would expect from a chain of hotels, done well.  The view from our seventh floor room was amazing - the girls couldn't tear themselves away, especially after it had gone dark.

It was getting late by the time we arrived at the hotel so we decided to eat in the hotel and we were pleasantly surprised.  The children's menu was obviously not something that was regularly cooked (judging by the number of times the waiting staff had to take a copy into the kitchen for reference) but the girls both enjoyed their roast dinner and sausage and mash so much that nothing was left over.  We felt the children's menu presented good value but the normal dinner menu was a touch over-priced, even for hotel dining.  Although the dining area was well-furnished with highchairs, we felt the staff weren't well-prepared for dealing with children and a 2 hour turn around for dinner was hard work with two fidgety girls who couldn't sit still.

The Jurys Inn Derby hotel was very smart throughout - the lobby, bar and dining room all still felt like new.  It certainly didn't feel like a budget hotel and yet the room rates at the weekend were very competitive with budget brand hotels.  The hotel has limited on-site parking so we parked in a public multi-storey car park a short walk away (the hotel can provide a discount for this car park if you park within certain times of day).  I was very impressed to find out that this Jurys Inn also had a small onsite gym, but we didn't take advantage of it.

Breakfast was awesome.  There was literally everything you could think of providing for breakfast, including a big vat of porridge.  I think Holly tried some of everything - fruit, toast, cooked breakfast, cereal and pastries.

The most family-friendly part of our stay at Jurys Inn in Derby was bedtime, thanks to a selection of bedtime story books available from reception.  At many Jurys Inn hotels there is a Little Library selection of Egmont reading books and picture books for all ages that you can borrow during your stay.  The girls thought this was awesome because normally, when we are away from home, we don't have much luggage space for story books.

We arranged our Alton Towers trip separately through family but Jurys Inn Derby does offer a UK family break package.  One night’s bed and breakfast, based on 2 adults & 2 children sharing with up to four entry Tickets to Alton Towers starts from £160.

Disclosure: Jurys Inn supplied our overnight accommodation for the purposes of this review.

Magicbed Portable Travel Cot Review

We have just got back from a weekend away in a hotel - the first of many hotel stays in the coming weeks. This weekend we put our new Magicbed travel cot to its first real test and I'm so glad we have it for the weeks ahead. At nearly 18 months old, Holly can be pretty active in her cot which can often be a bit hair-raising in a rickety traditional travel cot which is why, a couple of months ago, we tried a hotel visit without a cot... we regretted our decision immediately and spent most of the night trying to convince her to lie down and go to sleep in a bed. I think it will be some time before Holly is ready for a bed, which is why I am quite so pleased to have come across the Magicbed.



Magicbed lightweight travel cot in a hotel room

The Magicbed is a pop-up travel cot which takes a matter of seconds (and I mean less than 5 seconds) to put up and to collapse. It comes in its own zip-up travel case which has handles and a shoulder strap to make it easier to carry it along with your luggage. I have owned a popup travel cot in the past but this is something quite different. The Magicbed is the same size as a traditional travel cot (100cm x 60cm) but it rests on the floor. It is a one-piece cot so doesn't require any assembling other than placing the foldable mattress inside it.

When Lara was tiny, we owned a compact pop-up travel cot which I will admit was lighter and more compact than the Magicbed but which simply wasn't practical - we couldn't use it at all with Holly because she was always too mobile to sleep on the floor. The Magicbed works so much better because it is a traditional cot shape, size and height so your baby can't roll over in it or climb out. Holly tried her best to shake it and tip the Magicbed over this weekend but she simply couldn't budge it!

We placed our Magicbed in our car boot underneath all of our other luggage because it can lie flat. The bed folds flat by squishing each side of the cot down to the ground. You slot the mattress and the non-slip mattress cover into the bag and off you go. I was really pleased with the Magicbed mattress - most travel cot mattresses are lumpy, thin or uncomfortable where the folds are but this is nice and padded and the folds doesn't seem to be noticeable, due mainly to the fact that your baby doesn't sleep directly on it - the mattress fits into a pocket underneath the cot. The Magicbed is particularly cosy when you top it off with the super-soft cotton fleece sheet which sticks in place at the corners.

I think the Magicbed is a great balance between convenience and practicality.  Because it rests on the floor I think it is actually more stable than traditional chunky travel cots but I might worry about using it on a cold hard floor even with a nice thick mattress.  I think that ease of use is the factor which appeals to me most so, despite finding it a little bit bulky when carrying it (large but certainly not heavy!) I think the Magicbed is an awesome travel cot.

The Magicbed comes in a range of different colours, weighs just 3.4kg and I even available in a mini version for babies from 0-6 months (although I'd be happy to use the larger Magicbed for this age too).

 

BabyZen Yoyo Review - The Ultimate Lightweight Buggy

As you probably know, this June we took another epic family road trip down to the sunny south of France and back again.  A 12 day, 2000 mile round trip.  Car boot space was at a premium, and since my old lightweight umbrella pushchair had gone to buggy heaven, I was panicking about what to do... there was simply no way I could fit our travel system into the boot as well as the luggage for a family of 4.  And then I discovered the Yoyo by Babyzen...

... We borrowed the Yoyo for the duration of our trip to really put it through its paces.  Could a lightweight, one-handed fold buggy this compact actually meet the day to day demands of a toddler on our travels?

This little sister looks proud of the Yoyo!

Babyzen is a French brand so we really looked the part on our holiday.  The Yoyo is a VERY smart pushchair that I felt proud to be pushing among the classy locals on the Cote d'Azur (in fact I did see another one pushed by a local!)

If you've watched the short video above then you will know how mind-blowingly easy the Yoyo is to put up and to fold away; it is designed to be able to use it with one hand while you hold your child in the other.  I'd say that I struggle to do it one handed but Mr. B. seems to have the knack.  Nevertheless, it is astonishingly quick and easy and I can't recommend it enough.  I LOVE it.

Chilling with the Yoyo in Port Grimaud

For a buggy so clearly designed with travel in mind, I was surprised at the other features it had to offer - no corners seem to have been cut in order to achieve this level of convenience.  It is extremely steerable, easy to recline when Holly fancies a nap, has a nice big sun shade (in a choice of colours) and a reasonably sized carry area underneath the seat.  The seat cover and sun shade come as a separate colour pack - I found them easy to fit and the seat pad seemed very thick and comfy.

Spot the Yoyo

I still can't get over how compact the Yoyo buggy is when folded - it was small enough to fit in our car footwell in front of Holly and it is small enough to be taken as hand-baggage on a plane!  The Babyzen Yoyo comes with a shoulder strap and a carry bag for when you are in transit.  I can picture a trip into central London being a lot less hassle with this buggy than normal as you could fold it up when on the train or tube or bus and sling it over your shoulder if you need to quickly carry it (and baby) up a flight of stairs.

The BabyZen Yoyo is not cheap (at a RRP of £309 - find stockists at Babyzen.com) but I still genuinely believe that it is great value for this price.  The buggy is suitable from 6 months upto 15kg.

AudioGO Audio Books Review

Next week we are off on our travels across France. We had the chance to try out an audio book download from AudioGO and I thought this would make the perfect holiday treat for Lara.

AudioGO stock a large range of audio books and series, many of which are available for instant download.  An audio book is ideal for us to take on holiday because it doesn't take up any space in our suitcase!  I downloaded our book direct to my PC and then transferred the files onto my ipod so that Lara will be able to listen to the story from her headphones while we are on the move or once we get to our destination.

We chose to download "A Dinosaur called Minerva" by Tessa Krailing which currently costs £5.49 to download.  I had the files downloaded and ready to play within minutes.  AudioGO also sell a CD version of the story (Lara calls them CDStories... all one word!).

I played Lara the first chapter of the audio book late on Saturday night when she needed some calming down time.  I was really impressed at how quietly and attentively she sat and listened to the story, far more soothing than when I read to her!  The story is narrated by Una Stubbs which offers a different voice and accent than Lara is used to, which I really feel adds some value - it is nice to know it isn't always my voice she associates with story time.

For Lara, this Audio book has proven to be a fascinating change and she is really looking forward to hearing the rest of the chapters when we go on holiday - I think she will enjoy the novelty!

AudioGO have quite a number of audio books for children, many of which are well known characters such as Charley Bear, In the Night Garden and even Henry's Cat!

Skoot Ride-On Suitcase Review

As you may know, last week the Mellow household had a very mellow holiday in the Canaries and Lara loved parading through the ariports on her brand new suitcase of her very own - the Skoot ride-on suitcase by Worlds Apart.

The Skoot ride-on is part luggage, part retro scooter!  it comes in red, blue, pink and lilac and really does look like a mini motor scooter.  There is absolutely no doubt that Lara was turning heads as she shuffled through Gatwick airport from both adults and children alike.

The Skoot, much like the rival Trunki, is specifically designed for children and can be used as hand-baggage.  The handle bars are easily detachable for when you want to stow it in an overhead locker on the plane.  Lara really enjoyed riding it although I would say, that at 3.5 years old and towards the lower age range for the product, Lara does seem to be a bit enormous on it and I think that by 6 years old she would be struggling to move herself around on it.

Although Lara enjoyed using her Skoot, and felt very grown up with it, I have my reservations and feel that it is a little bit like style over substance.

Mummy & Daddy Like:-

• Two secure clips to ensure the luggage won't come open or be too easily opened by your little ones when it is inappropriate!
• Carry strap which clips on to allow you to pull your child along or carry the suitcase on your shoulder when your child gets bored/tired or when you are in a hurry.
• The handle-bars were very easy for Lara to grip
• It looks really groovy - I suspect it is more appealing to grown-ups than kids!

Mummy & Daddy Were Disappointed By:-

• The internal luggage space is actually quite small.  We put in snacks, a teddy bear, headphones and games but couldn't fit in a picture book into the space inside.
• The handle-bars allow your child to steer which sounds brilliant but is actually blimming annoying because when you are trying to pull the suitcase behind you, the handlebars have to be pointing exactly forwards or else it goes astray.
• The suitcase gaped at the sides if it was heavily loaded and was hard to close and open.
• There is not much growing space for Lara.
• The clips on the strap regularly unclipped themselves and inverted the clip when you tried to carry it as a shoulder-strap.  This is particularly stressful when you have a queue of stressed passengers waiting behind you while you struggle to clip it back together.

Eating Out With Babies & Toddlers – Gadgets That Make Life Easier

As you know, I'm particularly keen on encouraging people to eat out with their babies and toddlers. I strongly believe that the social experience of a special meal away from home shouldn't be reserved for adults only. I know lots of parents are put off the idea of eating at a restaurant with their child for a number of reasons, most commonly the embarrassment of them misbehaving, but also the stress of getting them to sit still and I often hear mums complain about the cleanliness of restaurant high chairs. I thought I'd do a summary of some of the great gadgets that exist to make your life easier when eating out with a baby or child and which address some of the common concerns.

The Fabric Highchair

   

Regular readers will know that I really, really rate my Totseat (around £22) washable, squashable highchair. It has been with us the world over and has been particularly useful in parts of the world where restaurants don't commonly provide highchairs. We have used the Totseat right through from when Lara was first able to sit unaided, right through to toddlerhood. It is washable and fits on any chair, anywhere so I know that when I go into a restaurant it doesn't matter if they don't have a highchair available, or if they are all really manky – I will always have somewhere for Lara to sit. You can buy the Totseat online from lots of great retailers including My Funny Bunny and Hippychick.



We recently tried out the Koo-di Pack-It seat harness (around £10) which is, if anything, even more compact than the Totseat. It folds into itself so you don't risk the possibility of losing the carry case. It isn't quite as flexible when it comes to the numbers of styles and shapes of chair that you can put it on (our own dining chairs were too tall for it), but most restaurants (such as Cafe Rouge, above) have pretty standard shaped chairs so this would rarely be a problem. It is also washable and it is so tiny when folded that you'd have to have a pretty good excuse not to have one in your changing bag at all times. Koo-di seat harnesses can be found at Amazon John Lewis, Asda, and Mothercare among other retailers, (a complete list can be found at Koo-di's own website. The Koo-di Pack-It is suitable from 6-30 months although our reviewer felt that even at its tightest setting, the Koo-di seat harness was a little baggy for her (larger than average) 7 month old so, as always, you should exercise caution when your child sits in a highchair - particularly a fabric highchair on an adult's seat.

A foldable washable highchair such as the Koo-di Pack-It or Totseat can be life-changing. That might sound over-the-top but really, it opens up all sorts of new avenues for you of days out, or visits to restaurants or cafes you would otherwise consider off-limits. Jojo Maman Bebe sell a number of foldable highchairs – one of great interest to me is their wipe-clean pocket highchair which might save on washing the highchair after pretty much every use!

The Travel Booster
Foldable highchairs are fab but they do suffer from one down-side. Adult chairs are often very low and toddlers who want to eat at the table can struggle to reach their plates. I often get around this by sitting Lara on a cushion and then strapping her in.

  

Another solution is the travel booster seat such at this one from Polar Gear (around £22) which you can buy from Jojo Maman Bebe or Amazon. Suitable from around 1 year old, we've found the Polar Gear booster to be really well designed and effective. It straps to the seat with clip-on straps, one of which can also be used as a carry-handle (the others do tend to get in the way a bit when not in use). The seat is wipe-clean and is a good size so, unlike many travel highchairs, it will be suitable for toddlers right up until their are old enough to sit in an adult chair. The Polar Gear booster comes with a folding changing mat but we think it works well as a wipe-clean placemat to keep the dining table clean.

Amazon also sell the similar Munchkin Travel Booster (£19.99) which has the added bonus of storage space inside the booster pack to put a drink, or baby wipes.



The Tray Cover
Restaurant highchairs are not always the cleanest of things. Its hard enough keeping your own highchair clean so the last thing you want to do when you get to a restaurant is to start cleaning away other children's muck from the tray. I've seen some fairly disgusting ones in my time and have had to put in a lot of elbow grease to shift the crusty bits of baby-gack before letting Lara take her seat.



Tidy Trays (£15) have a neat solution to the problem. The Tidy Tray is a light fabric washable high chair tray cover that you can take with you anywhere. It simply slips over the tray of the restaurant's highchair meaning you're in control of the hygiene at mealtimes! Jojo Maman Bebe sell the Tidy Tray but for a full list of stockists, check out the Tidy Trays website.

The Hygeine Solution


And, if you are happy to use the restaurant's own highchair but would rather it were a little more sanitary then can I recommend these wipes from Tommee Tippee (£1.99 for 30). I know that they are called teat and teether wipes, but I now keep a pack of these biodegradable wipes in my changing bag and use them on highchairs and changing mats when I'm out and about.

Travel With A Toddler – My First ReadyBed

Image courtesy of Worlds Apart

You will probably know by now that Lara is out of the cot, in a small bed and that this was beginning to worry me just before Christmas when it dawned on me that while visiting grandparents and great grandparents over the holidays, Lara would no longer be able to sleep in the travel cot.

For a while I was stumped, especially after our failures with the 'portable' bed rail but World's Apart came to my rescue just in time. Lara was sent a Peppa Pig 'My First ReadyBed' to try out. This product could not be more perfect for us if it tried!

One: Lara loves Peppa Pig. This is fact. Lara's first words (other than 'daddy' and 'doggy') were 'Peppa Pig'. She wears Peppa, watches Peppa, eats Peppa, drinks Peppa and now sleeps Peppa!

Two: the 'My First ReadyBed' is a compact, inflatable bed that we can take with us when we take Lara to visit friends or relatives or when we stay in a hotel, B&B or cottage.

The My First ReadyBed from Worlds Apart comes in several different themes for little boys and girls such as Waybuloo, Timmy Time, Thomas and In the Night Garden. It is a cute little inflatable bed that you can put up almost anywhere and is suitable for toddlers of around 2 years old.

The ready bed is really compact when deflated. It comes with its own handy little carry bag and a small foot pump with which to inflate it (Lara thinks it is great fun watching Daddy inflate the bed). It has a small inflatable headrest and a soft integral cover so there is no need for additional sheets or blankets (temperature-permitting). The fact that I don't need to take extra covers for Lara is really important to me because I do tend to forget and Grandparents don't always have blankets and sheets available to borrow. The covers are machine washable, which is a must for a toddler bed.



Lara loves her ready bed. We've used it a few times and it is definitely now a replacement for the travel cot. I have even tried letting her sleep on it in our living room for an afternoon nap as these days she can be very stroppy if I try and take her up to bed for a nap in the afternoons.

The My First ReadyBed costs around £30-£35 and can be bought from Argos, Amazon or Littlewoods.

Worlds Apart also make the Junior Bed which is slightly larger and suitable from 3 years and the Tweeny Bed which is great for sleepovers.

Lara DOES... Switzerland!

Last week we took Lara to Switzerland. We stayed with relatives near Geneva and also took a short break to Interlaken in the centre of the country among the towering alps and the crystal clear lakes.



We started our trip with a cable-car ride in the Jura mountains with stunning views over Lake Geneva and Mont Blanc. Lara was unfazed!



In Interlaken, Lara had great fun playing in the pedestrian zone while we enjoyed the local beer and obligatory ice cream.



Interlaken was gorgeous as soon as you ventured just a tiny way from the tourist centre.





We took a ride up into the mountains above Interlaken with a stunning panoramic view of the Jungfrau.



I think Lara found it a little overwhelming! especially in the extreme heat.



We cooled off with a dip in the Thunersee lake!

Travel Cots: What Type and When?

I remember when I first bought a travel cot. Lara was just a few weeks old and I discussed the options at length with my Mummy friends. These days there are so may options and unless you have unlimited funds, it is hard to decide which one to buy that will cover as many of your different requirements as possible.

I thought I would share my experiences with you and introduce you to the three main options you have and the age ranges and journeys to which they are most suited.

Traditional Fold-Up Travel Cot

Your first thoughts may be for a traditional fold-up travel cot with a collapsible metal frame. Yes, they can be bulky and heavy, yes they can be awkward to travel with but they are incredibly good value.

We recently trialled the Kiddicare Traveller Travel Cot. I was pleasantly surprised at how non-bulky and non-heavy it was! At only 7kg is is not as heavy as some of the bigger named brands. It has its own carry case and I can genuinely picture myself carrying it around an airport. Most airlines will take a travel cot in addition to your luggage allowance but check before you travel.

Traditional travel cots were, in the past, notoriously complicated to set up. These days they are generally pretty easy. The Kiddicare Traveller is one piece with sides which unfold and click easily into place. Within 2 minutes of receiving it, we had it up and in use in our living room.

One of the benefits of buying a traditional travel cot is that, in most cases, their mattresses are standard sizes. Additionally, they are all pretty sturdy and can take babies and toddlers upto around 15-18kg. However, you do have to search hard for a cot with a mattress which is comfortable – I have used travel cots in hotels before where the folds in the mattress have been firm and lumpy.

A traditional travel cot is useful for when you are staying away from home for a while (perhaps your main summer holiday) and for holidays where you have plenty of luggage space. At home it is convenient to put one up in your living room as a safe place to plop your baby while you nip to the toilet, or answer the door.

The more you pay for a traditional travel cot, the more bells and whistles you get. For travelling abroad, you can get handy wheels for ease in the airports. For small babies, you can find hanging bassinettes. You can spend a lot of money on one but you don't need to . The Kiddicare Traveller costs just £36.99.

Pop-Up Tent Cot

A pop-up tent-style cot is a great option for young babies who are too big to sleep in a moses basket or travel bassinette. A pop-up cot is incredibly light and compact, so light in fact that you can pop it inside your suitcase rather than messing about with an extra piece of luggage. They are quick and easy to set up and collapse.

Many pop-up cots are multi-purpose. Some, such as the Samsonite pop-up bubble (£55), come with a built in mosquito net for holidays to warmer climes. Others such as the new Samsonite Sun & Sleep tent (£74.99) can be used as sun-shades on the beach with their built-in or zip-on UPF covers.

In my experience, a pop-up tent has its limitations. I have stayed in places with hard floors where I have felt guilty about leaving Lara's travel cot resting directly on the cold, hard floor. You tend to also find that the mattresses are non-standard sizes and are often integral to the cot meaning that you are limited to the manufacturer's brand when buying sheets and covers.


I've blogged about my Samsonite Pop-Up Bubble Travel Cot before (read it here). We have found it indispensable during Lara's first 12 months and it has travelled the globe with us both inside our case, and as a separate, lightweight piece of luggage. You can buy them from several online retailers, including JoJo Maman Bebe.

Unfortunately, Lara is now mobile. She twists and turns in her sleep and then, when she wakes, she crawls out of the cot. Even if I zip her in (using the built in mosquito net), my little monkey will rock and roll the pop-up cot until it tips up and rolls with her. My pop-up cot claims to be suitable up to around 18 months (some are only suitable to 6 months, so check before buying); I think their usable lifetime comes to an end once your child is mobile.

Inflatable Bed Guards

My final option is something I only recently discovered. The Dream Tubes are a great travel solution when you have slightly older toddlers who are too big for a travel cot (I must admit that Lara is getting worryingly heavy for the max. 15kg cots and she is only 13 months old).

The Dream Tubes by Dusky Moon comprise a high-quality cotton fitted sheet (for either a cot bed or a single bed) which has two zip-up slots into which you insert inflatable tubes. The tubes sit either side of your child and prevent them from rolling on to the floor – an integral bed guard if you like!

I can see the Dream Tubes being a great way of ensuring that when you go on holiday or away from home, that you have a means of converting a hotel or guest bed into a safe place for your toddler to sleep. The Dream Tubes are compact when deflated and weigh considerably less than a travel cot.

Currently, I feel that Lara is a little too young for me to place my trust in the Dream Tubes over night. When she wakes, she wriggles and squirms and can, with a little effort, haul herself over the tubes. She has not yet learned about the dangers of falling out of bed. The Dream Tubes are really designed for children who have already moved out of a cot.



I believe that you can also buy foldable, collapsible bed guards that are more like the traditional bed guards you would attach to the side of your child's bed at home.

Drop me an email or leave me a comment if you would like to know more about travel cots – I have plenty of resources to draw on.

Kiddicare and Dream Tube images courtesy of threepipe
Samsonite images courtesy of Weybury-Hildreth

Travel With A 1-Year Old: Foreign Food!

I'm not a fussy eater and when I go on holiday, I am usually more than happy to sample the local fare. Thanks to our approach to weaning, Lara will eat pretty much anything we give her, and at 12 months old, she requires little assistance at meal times. On our recent trip to the USA I was extremely grateful for the baby-led weaning approach but even so, I did struggle at times to find food that was suitable for Lara to eat.

We were staying in a small town in upstate New York, not too far away from civilisation. On one occasion, myself and Mr. B. went out exploring to find food for a light lunch – a picnic of sorts. The only food shop in the town was part of a petrol station. There were aisles and aisles of food, and even a deli counter – it seemed promising at first sight. And it would have been perfect if we fancied a carb-fest. Crisps, Pastries, Crisps, Breads, Nachos and more Crisps. The deli counter turned out to sell (a) sliced ham by the kilo and (b) processed cheese by the kilo – that is all. We quickly moved on.

We managed to find a local pick-your-own farm where we bought copious quantities of raspberries, blueberries and strawberries for Lara to devour (messily). A few miles further down the road we found a supermarket where we planned to stock up on soft drinks, bread, cold meat and cheese. That was easier said than done. The choices were endless. We finally plumped for ham that was marketed as 'without added hormone' and cheese that was marketed as 'deli slices' rather than cheese. With these things we hoped to provide Lara with a healthy, filling lunch.

Eating out wasn't much easier. Most of the places we visited served grease, with chips. Fresh, home-cooked food but always served with chips. Lara ate way too many chips that week. We did find one gorgeous modern restaurant who were happy to accommodate Lara. The menu was totally different to anywhere else we had been, the atmosphere was great but almost everyone else in the establishment was eating... chips.

The most horrific food moment was in a motorway service station on the way back to the city. In the UK, even in the grimmest of service stations, I would expect to be able to find something suitable to feed a toddler – low sugar, low salt and preferably bearing some resemblance to it's raw material be it animal or vegetable. At this service station though, we had the choice of coffee & muffins, bagels & ice cream or Macdonalds. There was NOTHING we could offer Lara. It was a good job that I had a banana stashed away in the changing bag.

On our travels we took with us the Totseat and the Brother Max Travel Weaning Bowl. I couldn't have managed without them.

Travel WITHOUT a 1-Year Old aka The Stress Hormone

I've blogged a lot recently about travelling with Lara; I've shared my tips on how to remain mellow, especially when travelling abroad by aeroplane. Yesterday, for the first time since Lara was born, I had occasion to fly abroad WITHOUT Lara. The luxury.

Yesterday I flew to Frankfurt to visit the Pampers R&D department in Schwalbach. It's a fascinating story that I shall tell you about in more detail at a later date. It is the first time I have ever been away and travelled back by plane all in the same day and it felt so good to be taking only hand luggage with me. No queuing at the bag-drop desks. No hanging around at the baggage reclaim. This is travel at it's fastest, right?

I was very much looking forward to a fight without the need to carry vast quantities of baby supplies with me. I felt slightly un-nerved without a changing bag and a pushchair to hinder me and, as I passed hesitantly through security I hung around expectantly, imagining that a customs official might want to ask me to taste one of the items in my bag. But no, this time I was travelling with no strings attached and no baby-gubbins to weigh me down.

Travelling out to Germany yesterday wasn't too bad but on the way home, our flight was delayed by over an hour. That may not sound like much, but on a flight than only takes just over an hour, that's double the time you expected. Exactly a week beforehand, I had been on the same end of a flight-delay. A 15 hour delay on a 7.5 hour flight from the USA with a 1-year-old in tow.

Lara crawling in at midnight after a hard night drinking and dancing in the US of A

The fascinating thing for me was that where a week ago I had been relaxed and resigned to my fate, last night I got stressed and impatient. I've decided that this demonstrates the Lara-effect. Lara calms me down. Lara makes me mellow. Ever since Lara was born, I have been transformed. The manic, control-freak, stress-meister has disappeared and the mellow, pragmatic, realist has been revealed. Last week I took it all in my stride and never once did I feel my blood pressure rise, or the red mist descend. But yesterday, in Lara's absence, I felt that naggy, stressy feeling again. I was up out of my seat, scouring the departures board for updates, ranting about airline staff and hurling abuse at fellow passengers. The old me had returned.

I'm sure that there is a scientific explanation to the mellow mood that Lara causes in me. It's probably hormones but it might just be her gorgeous smile and twinkling eyes that melt me. Mr. B. says that it's just that all other stresses pale into insignificance compared to a stroppy toddler and a poor night's interfered sleep.

Travel With A 1-Year-Old : Be Airport Savvy

Airports. Ug. I found them stressful enough before I became a parent, but now... OMG! I've travelled abroad twice now with Lara so I have some tips and rants to share...

The first tip I have is to make sure you know what your plan of attack will be if you are bottle-feeding your baby.

The first time I took Lara on a plane, she was 3 months old. At the time, I had just started combination feeding and as we were going to warmer climes, I also needed to offer cooled boiled water. I did my research in terms of what I would/wouldn't be allowed to take through security in terms of formula and water and found that although the rules are clear (you can take what you need for your child during the flight but you may be asked to sample it), that in reality, it is very much up to the individual member of staff you meet at the security desk and that the rules and approaches differ greatly between airports.

We were told that at Gatwick you could buy cartons of ready-made formula from branches of Boots in the departure lounge. They only had SMA available so if you are after a specific brand, I'd recommend giving the branch a call beforehand as I believe they are happy to get different brands in on request but it does all seem like a bit of a faff. At Heathrow, I've found that the Boots branches stock a much wider range of brands and types of formula.

That first trip, I chose to take powdered formula and bottles of cooled boiled water through UK security. We were asked to taste the water but, more stressful than that, Lara was subjected to a detailed search! After queueing over 40 long, hot minutes for an X-Ray, we were stopped as I passed through the scanner and they member of security staff insisted on running the metal detector over her causing to scream even louder than she already was.

A random photo of a sleepy Lara

This time around, UK security was a lot less stressful now that I don't have to deal with cooled boiled water and sterilised bottles. We were however asked to taste the sachet of emergency fruit puree that we took for Lara, even though it was well within the guidelines for the maximum volume of liquid allowed. This is particularly annoying given that it then had to be used within 24 hours when I had been hoping not to have to use it as all. I'm pretty certain they only did it because they didn't recognise what it was.

My second tip is to make sure you take plenty of supplies of all the essentials such as nappies, wipes, cream and snacks.

On my recent trip to the states we took just enough disposable nappies and infant formula to last the trip. On our last day I had 6 nappies and 3 sets of powder left for the journey, which should have been plenty. As we entered the airport we discovered that our flight was delayed by 15 hours – argh. In Newark airport there is simply NOWHERE that you can buy any of the above baby essentials... NOWHERE. As the day wore on we were getting low on nappies, so low that I begged the airline for some but they bring them in from the UK and had already run out on our plane. Argh. We finally made it home with a single nappy to spare – that was close!

My final tip is to pay attention to what the airline want you to do with your buggy! Not every airline or airport is the same. Some places like you to take the buggy all the way up to the aeroplane door, others require that you leave it at the departure lounge or gate. Some places will send your pushchairs through on the conveyor belt to baggage reclaim, others will plonk them at random places in the airport. It is best to find out from the staff on your plane exactly what will happen to your pushchair otherwise you may find yourself hanging around like a lemon, as we did, waiting for a pushchair you should have picked up miles away.

The Sunday Review – Brother Max Home & Travel Weaning Bowl

I'm a great fan of Brother Max products. We have been using the Combi-Bib since Lara first started weaning and their set of Bath Toys is one of the best baby products we own (I'd recommend them to any parent of a baby or toddler – they're fab).

I recently tried their feeding / weaning bowls and have not been disappointed. Brother Max products always represent great quality; their feeding bowls are made from shiny, sturdy red plastic – it is BPA-free and so it is a safe for your baby; it is easy to clean and it looks great.

Image courtesy of Brother Max

The travel weaning bowl is a bright red bowl with an in-built portioner that allows you to separate out two different foods in the same bowl. The bowl is a good size – when I first started weaning Lara, I found that many of the bowls and portioners I tried were simply too small to cope with her enormous appetite!

Brother Max products are designed by parents for parents. The bowl is shaped so that it fits comfortably in one hand – it has a thumb hole for you to grasp it with, and a gentle bump in its shape to rest in your palm. The bowl comes with a suction pad so that you can stick it to a high-chair or table when your child is ready to take over and start feeding themselves.

The Brother Max travel weaning bowl comes with an extremely secure lid that fits over the portioner and ensures that the food in each side does not mix. The lid fits so firmly that I have no concerns about just plonking the bowl into Lara's bag when I take her out to the childminder in the morning. The lid has a lift-up flap where you can store the two weaning spoons that come with it.
The weaning spoons are heat-sensitive and change colour when the food inside is too hot. I find the spoons a little too heat sensitive for Lara these days, and certainly too small for her – they have always felt a little too small for my long, gangly fingers to control properly but they are compact, and great for taking out and about.

I have found the Brother Max travel weaning bowl to be compact, useful and incredibly easy to clean by hand, and in the dishwasher. The bowl is microwave-safe which is great for when I send Lara to the childminder with a hot meal for her lunch.

Brother Max also sell a set of 3 bowls designed to cater for your baby's three meals a day. The bowls are the same as the one that is used in the travel weaning set but without the in-built food portioner (which you can use in these bowls if you wish). You can also buy the heat-sensitive spoons separately.

The Brother Max travel weaning bowl and spoons are definitely coming with us on holiday.

Travel With a 1-Year-Old: Choosing the Right Accommodation

I don't pretend to be an expert on this topic. It's not like we've been jet-setting all over the place with Lara over the last year. It's just that we have had the confidence to travel, both at home and abroad, and there are a few lessons we have learned along the way that I thought I would share with you.

1. Stick to Something Familiar
   Everyone's choice of holiday destination and accommodation is different. Just because somewhere is billed as 'family-friendly' doesn't mean it is the right place for you now just because you have a child in tow. Don't change the way you do things just because there are more of you now then there used to be. Being inside your own comfort zone will mean that the break is a lot less stressful. Our first holiday abroad was to a villa we had been to before. We knew the location, knew the facilities and the only thing that was different was the existence of Lara.

2. Think about the Sleeping Arrangements
   If you are choosing a hotel or a cottage or a villa or bed & breakfast, the thought processes are the same. Where will your child sleep? Some hotels are happy to provide cots, but will they be of sufficient quality for your liking? If the accommodation provider won't supply a cot, will there be room for you to take your own? Will there be somewhere quiet, away from everyone else that your baby can sleep? For us, we need to consider whether there are soft floors on which to rest our travel cot.


3. Think about the Eating Arrangements
   If you are staying in a hotel, it is worth checking that they are happy for children to dine in the restaurant (although, I'd suggest finding a different hotel if they object!). If you are self-catering, then is there a high-chair you can use, or will you need to provide your own? Are there eating establishments nearby that will accommodate your family?



4. Location, Location, Location
   Only you can judge whether the location you have chosen provides all the entertainment and facilities you and your family need or expect; so here are just a few pointers. Are there local shops where you can buy baby supplies? What hours do they open? If you want a quiet night's sleep, are there any local places that will put a spanner in the works e.g. nightclubs/bars?



5. Washing / Sterilising / Preparation Facilties
   Will you have access to a microwave? Or to a plug socket if you need to sterilise equipment? Or will you need to sterilise in cold water? Is there somewhere clean and convenient where you can prepare or perform feeds? Is there somewhere that you can wash baby's feeding equipment? Or all of those dirty clothes?

Other Considerations

• What are the bath facilities like? Will you be able to bathe your baby easily?


• How far is your room from the dining room, pool, car-park etc? We once stayed in a hotel where we had to traipse up several flights of stairs with Lara in the infant carrier to get to our room. Ug.


• Are there babysitting facilities?

If you have other tips, please add them here.