The little dress for everyday

Yesterday’s blog was all about Ida’s party dress. Today’s blog is about Dangerbaby and what mischief she got up to in her pretty Annafie dress.

Dangerbaby made her play day in the garden all the more special with her Liberty dress.

She opted to wear her’s like every pretty dress should be worn with pumps and t-shirt while she played in the garden.

Haven’t we all worn our posh dresses to puddle jump or play in? If you weren’t allowed to, try it today. Wearing your pretty frock or special shoes to do everyday things makes you feel very special. Doing those simple things with a special item makes your smile in a very BIG way. After all who hasn't wanted to wear thier princess dress or spiderman outfit to school at some ocassion?

Dangerbaby's day went a little like this.

Dangerbaby had a tea part in her dress with her Teddies. They talked about who would be in charge of  watering the garden that day and whether the pink or yellow pot was best for making tea in.

She zoomed up and down the slide with bunny bunny and teddy stopping only so Mummy could snap a picture of all the fun.

When slide zooming was complete she had a quiet chat with her favourite companion, Bunny Bunny about how best she could improve her sliding technique tomorrow.

And at the end of a very busy day she had her milk with bunny bunny and thought about getting ready for bed while snuggled up under her favourite Shuktara blanket.

Dangerbaby made her special day of garden games all the more special as she wore her liberty dress.

All Annafie dresses are  hand smocked making them perfect for every little girls body shape. They all follow a traditional design and are perfect for today's little girls. Either worn like Ida and Kathryn's or worn with wellies to puddle jump in. For pre-walkers and tom-boy’s, Annafie will even make a romper style in one of the pretty floral fabrics to make it easier for crawling around. 

We hope you find your perfect dress like our girls have. 
When the rain stops we may even put on our pretty dresses and find afew big puddles to jump in!

http://www.unikgifts.co.uk/clothing/clothing_annafie.php

Baby showers... how to get it right!

A lovely couple that have been close friends of mine for years [pre husband and baby type years] recently announced that they were having a baby! I'm so delighted for them, they are going to make fantastic parents and their little one will be welcomed into two loving families.

I'm hoping that my friend considers a baby shower, I never held a baby shower and now regret not taking the chance to celebrate being a mum-to-be with my friends and family. I've always thought that baby shower's were an American thing, with big balloons and tacky t-shirts but I've learnt that there's more to it than that.

A baby shower is the perfect time to celebrate being a mum-to-be, it's about the Mum as well as the baby. It's celebrated all around the world and is usually held when the woman is over 5months pregnant, although it can be held after the baby is born as well.

The difficulty of a baby shower is not knowing where to start, as with all things new - it's hesitant first steps for those that have never held or been to a baby shower. So here's a rough guide to baby showers with a little help from us at u-ni-k:

1. Where?! Well since a baby shower is all about the Mum-to-be and the baby it's best to ask her where she'd like the baby shower. We recommend at a close friend or relative's house - cosy enough for a party feel and somewhere where the tired Mum-to-be is going to feel comfortable and not honour bound to tidy up afterwards!

2. What?! It's a party so some cake is at least in order! Remember that the Mum-to-be may not feel very hungry for sausages on a stick or cheese and pineapple pieces. However a selection of sandwiches and cupcakes served on some plates with party streamers will come across as a lovely tea party celebration.

Don't forget that Mum-to-be will not want her usual tipple, so have a selection of different soft drinks to choose from. Imagine having water and orange squash as your thirst quenchers for 5months, the offer of a forrestfruit smoothy or an elderflower and lime juice will seem like the best vintage champagne is on offer. If Mum-to-be is feeling daring there are many alcohol free drinks available as well.

3. When?! As a former Mum-to-be I think that probably an afternoon tea party is best. It's hard for us Mums-to-be to stay awake, the baby takes a lot of energy, and those with morning sickness really feel terrible until way after lunchtime. The evenings are best spent in our slouchy clothes with our other half leafing through the latest Mothercare catalogue discussing which cot bed is best. So organise your baby shower for an afternoon!

4. Gifts?! This is a very personal area, it's so easy to get it wrong! My former boss thought it was great to buy the Mum-to-be a box of nappies?! Errr would you buy someone a present of a lot of loo roll?! Hmmmm.

This is where our baby shower gift ideas page on the website comes into it's own. We have lots of ideas for girl bumps, boy bumps, 'we don't know, we're waiting to see' bumps, and of course multiple bumps!

It's every parent-to-be's rite of passage to spend a lot of time wandering around the big baby manufacturers looking for everyday items for their little one. A baby shower is for those luxury items that other people can treat you too: the beautiful shuktara blanket that you can use in the buggy, the cot, the nursery, or the Yarmood cashmere nest of hats that will keep baby warm without any itch factor, or the coming home outfit of a perfect hat and bootie set! handmade by the lovely ladies at Nyoki.

If you're still a little unsure of the baby shower then please contact Anna or I at u-ni-k we'd be happy to throw you one of our u-ni-k parties.

Make your life a little easier!

 Breakfast board- The Essential Baby Led Weaning tool!

Has your baby decided that solid food is for him/her? Mine did, at nearly 6 months old she crawled over to the old pear tree in the garden and helped herself. From that moment on she refused my attempts at baby rice, mashed up vegetables, and puree baby food from a jar. It was solids for her or nothing.

Breakfast just like Daddy's

Not that I had a clue about baby led weaning, I'd not done any research as I didn't know it existed – I was holding a baby who wanted to suck on pear, or broccoli or anything green (she was a bit colour specific at first). We were still breast feeding at this point, so it was more of an experiment with food rather than her main source of nutriment.

Thankfully Anna had done some research and was a source of information. I was to present DangerBaby with an array of foods, let her touch, feel, taste and explore for herself. She'd soon understand about feeding herself. Oh and don't worry about the chocking, baby's have a very high gag reflex and will usually stop short of actually choking themselves.

Lay out food in front of her?! Hmmmm, mine is very good at picking up those brightly coloured plastic plates – the food goes everywhere!

A solution was to hand. In Germany breakfast is usually served on a wooden platter and for children these are carved into shapes that the children enjoy unveiling as they eat the food from them. Since I'd grown up in Germany I had a few of these breakfast boards! Since they are heavier than plates it's harder for the little ones to pick them up. Once they realise that they're animals there's more fun in pointing and making the animal noises [or signs if you do baby signing]

Hurrah! Now that we are 18ms [nearly] I can arrange a rainbow of colourful food out for my little one on her favourite board. 

As you know, rabbits are big in our house and our Markus Kampe rabbit breakfast board is a favourite. We use it in all our meals – chucky egg and soldiers for breakfast, crudites and cheese with bread for lunch, and perhaps a veggy baby pizza for supper!

Egg & soldiers a favourite

Best of all, you just lift the breakfast board up off the high chair tray with a minimum of fuss to clean in the dishwasher ready for the next day!

If baby led weaning is for you then you should invest in one or two of these fantastic boards. They make life a lot easier.

Here's the selection available right now at u-ni-k gifts: