Baby Jungle

Did you ever see these creatures called Clump-O-Lumps? I think I might have a teeny-tiny crush on them. But who wouldn’t, just look at how cool they are! Each can be split (unzipped actually) into three pieces and then mixed and matched with each other – all that with a zipper! They also look super cool, a bit weird even by showing their insides when taken apart – so just the way I like them! I know, I am strange… Nothing new.
I believe these little weirdos are only available in stores across US for now but not to worry they ship to Europe too!

Individual Clump-O-Lump costs $25 (about €19.50) and shipping to EU goes from $13.83 (about €11)

Psst! If you sign up for their email newsletter you get a code for 15% off purchases of $50 or more (€39)!

I love this toy for a few reasons: it’s made of wood and it’s great for improving fine motor skills, developing coordination and concentration and to help learn colours. The idea is simple: placing bees in their matching hives (by colours) with a set of wooden tweezers. Hives can also be stacked or laid flat. And being from Plan Toys you can only expect an impeccable design and quality.

£19 (ca. €24) over at The Egg Box and shipping to UK £3.75.
To get quotes for other countries just contact them and they’ll try to find the most competitive rate for you

I just love how beautifully the summer range is coming together at Noeuf, My Little Square, Scandinavian Minimall, PetitHOOD and VUP Baby. So I thought I’d share a few of my favourite picks that should not be missed at the beach! Like?

From top left, clockwise:
1. Petit Crabe Sun-Protective Tee £23.50 (€26.60)
2. Munster Kids Swim Shorts 30% off – €42
3. Egmont Toys Wicker €7.50
4. Sons & Daughters Sunglasses €47
5. Finger in the Nose Baby Sun-Protective Swimsuit £35.50 (€40)
6. Mini Rodini Visor in Fuschia €18
7. Egmont Toys Fishing Ducks Game €29.90
8. Egmont Toys Lounge Chair €29
9. April Showers Espadriles €31
10. Green Toys Sand Play Set £17.99 (€22.30)
11. Sons & Daughters Sunglasses €47
12. Mini Rodini Visor in Green €18

And never forget about the RIGHT sunscreen!
 

Generally I’m not a big fan of pre-made and packed smoothies or purees especially if kids eat fruit and vegetables but these 100% organic fruits + veg ones from Ella’s Kitchen (which are suppose to be baby purees btw) are an essential in our “out and about backpack” since Tila is not crazy about any kind of veggies and each and every meal needs a lot of persuasion and yes, time! So when we’re out or on the way this way she at least gets some raw, unprocessed veggies – no hassle from her side and a big smile from mine!

I usually order them from Planet Organic (along with (too)many other products) where one 120g pack costs £1.19 (€1.50) but you can even get them from Amazon and their range is a bit wider – pack of seven only between £6.30 – £6.93 (ca. €8 – €8.50)
 

I’m always on the look out for cute hair accessories. Not only because Tila’s hair is growing longer and longer and for the fact she looks incredibly adorable with her hair pinned but mostly because we loose at least one every, let’s say – 3rd day?
I like them to be small but noticeable and cute but not tacky. I think I found the perfect brand – HELLOshiso. I just love every single piece from their collection so I’m going to have a really hard time choosing only a few as I really want them all! For Tila of course! Who else?

You can buy directly from their own online web shop (P&P only $4 – $6 /ca. €3 – €5) or this lovely, lovely shop I’ve mentioned before – Darling Clementine. But I bet there will be more than just hair accessories in your shopping bag if you pay them a (virtual) visit!
 

I’ve been trying to find a folding chair for Tila. She’s always dragging her metal (and not so light) one around for numerous purposes. She has her books and toys stacked in a cabinet and she loves to play with those while sitting on a chair. She even prefers to cook that way – wanna see? And of course we need to have one while playing on a balcony. And I could squeeze in a few more examples. So I though I could get her a nice folding chair or stool so we can just fold it and store it away at the end of the day.

And I think I found the one! These J.I.P folding chairs and stools are not only adorable as a folding chair can be but from what I’ve heard also very sturdy and not expensive either! You can get them from £14.52 – £29.99 (€18 – €37) over at Amazon (free shipping for UK) and if you’re from France by any chance be sure to check French Amazon – they only cost between €10,52 and €29,70 over there! And of course free shipping across France –yeey!

Recommended age for the chair is 1-4 years and 3-5 years for the stool
 

I just stumbled upon this kitchen range from Hape, a brand known for producing “smart” toys from only natural materials and using water based paints. Tila received one of their toys for her birthday and it is not only fun for the whole family but also incredibly well made. Design and quality is something that usually gets lost somewhere on the way with big toy companies but that’s definitely not the case with Hape.
So now I’m admiring their kitchen range – isn’t it cute? There is so many must-have appliances that tiny kitchens need. Just look at the Fridge – it even has the icemaker! And the Grill…I bet dads will love it even more than moms! How about the Coffee Maker and the Gingerbread Baking Set? Aaah I want it all!

There’ a nice range of Hape Kitchen range at Babi Pur and on Amazon or you can just look up for your nearest dealer right here
 

I seriously can’t remember the last time I bought something for myself. But Masha from Style Lemon got me obsessed with Wedge Sneakers in this post and I could not get them off my mind. The ones I really wanted were the black and white Isabel Marant’s but they are not only ridiculously expensive but also completely sold out EVERYwhere! So I was searching…and searching…and yup, searching…and…finally found the ones I just had to have!
I wanted a quality wedge sneaker with a wide heel allowing short sprints without having to worry about falling flat on my face. I have a little girl literally bursting with energy, you know that by now right? So I found this Italian brand Serafini producing handmade shoes since 1885. I fell in love with their Manhattan Blue/Red/White and decided to treat myself.
And you know when you really want something and then when you finally get it doesn’t really look the way you imagined and hoped for? Well, nothing like that happened this time – the shoes are a perfect fit and they look even better than I imagined. And I am speechless over the quality – no visible glue, the perfect shape, unbelievably comfortable, gorgeous colours, I even love the box and the extra laces and straps and I could go on and on… One of my best purchases so far.

Ok, at €234 I cannot say they are cheap but you truly get what you pay for here!

Ps. Gotta be honest – my heart still does strange things whenever I see the black and white Marant’s though!
 

Oh I have been looking for this for sooo long! Tila loves rubber bath toys but they only last a few weeks or until mould gets them – don’t you hate that? Plus I’ve simply stopped buying them because she just loves to chew on them and I feel that they’re full of stuff that shouldn’t end up in her mouth like BPA, PVC, artificial colours, you-name-it- and again – mould! I don’t really get why they still make them with holes?
But these HEVEA Bath Toys are just the opposite of the above-described; 100% natural rubber latex without PVC, BPA, Phthalates, Artificial Colours and yes – holes! So these are not only safe to bathe with but we kids can chew the heck out of them without you (ok, me) worrying about the hard-to-pronounce stuff they might consume!

£19.99 (€25) pack of three at Thinking Baby

Have a teething baby in need for a teether? Look no further – this, also Hevea’s, Panda is a perfect solution.  £8.99 (€11)

Great news: Marena from Thinking Baby kindly offered all Baby Jungle readers a very generous 25% discount on all their products until the end of September! Code: JUNGLE12 Enjoy!
 

Tila got a few very nice gifts for her birthday but there is one that I just have to show you. Remember the DORIMU dolls? Well, Ziva’s imagination apparently wouldn’t settle down and decided to take a step forward. And here is the outcome – these gorgeous Dreamy Fairies. How incredible are they? Just look at all the little details like pearls, the wooden swings (our is made of tree bark!), wings, hats, crowns, hair, shoes or even tights! And the choice of colours is just incredible.
There is actually a story, a book, behind these fairy creatures (which is for now only published in Slovenian) and so each fairy comes with its own part written on a piece of paper. So you can make a lovely bedtime routine out of it: swing a fairy, read the story and off you go to la la land. Doesn’t it sound nice? I’ll try that with Tila for sure.
These little beauties are practically gone before they’re even made so you need to place an order about 2 weeks in advance. The price is at €25 quite kind and same goes for shipping – €5 across EU
 

Sometimes, when I have a spare moment or two (sooo sooo rarely but soooo soo darn appreciated) I like to snoop around Etsy. And this is exactly how I found this lovely boutique Little Korboose. Completely gender neutral (ok maybe moms with little boys will appreciate me a tiny bit this time), non-tacky and utterly and irresistibly cute! Plus clothes are made of organic cotton.

Shipping to EU goes from about €3.50 to €15.50, depending on the size of item
 

I am completely amazed that I didn’t hear about Nico Nico before. This young New York brand has some serious potential of becoming my favourite. It just has it all – the style, the comfort and it’s organic! I love the mix of effortless chic style with a drop of retro even. And I wonder yet again – maybe also in my size? Unfortunately no; their collection is designed for kids between 18 months and 12 years.
Do you love it as much as I do? Then Smallable and Lille Figaro are places to visit
 

So my baby turned 3 today. Well she is going to at exactly 15.12 and ever since I woke up there is only one thing going through my mind and it’s the first thing I said when she came to this world: “oh my God, oh my God, look how gorgeous she is! Look what we did!” I know I am just another mom completely in love with her child but I thank whoever (mostly my boyfriend ;o) for giving me such a perfect treasure. When I was still pregnant we didn’t want to know the sex of our baby but I always thought it was a girl. Still, we thought it’s going to be a nice surprise. And then when she was finally born I never even asked, like I didn’t care – she was just a perfect human being. My little Tila. My heart, my life, my essence and the reason I am the person I am today. Thank you for choosing us to be your parents! We both love every intsy-bintsy tiny bit and part of you!
 

The weather is apparently playing a little trick on us here in South France. It already felt like summer two months ago and now we have rain, wind and ccc-ooold! I’m longing for a hot summer day when nothing else but a pair of shorts, t-shirt and flip-flops are needed. And add an ice pop for Tila. I found this crazy recipe (scroll down the post a bit) for homemade ice pops on this even-crazier blog called Cannelle et Vanille and I can’t wait to make them! But you know what comes with an ice pop on a cold day, right? If you’re lucky only a runny nose so I think I’ll wait for that lovely, shiny and WARM thing called sun first! But if you’re having better luck than we go ahead and let me know if they are as good as they look! In case you don’t have the moulds yet I’ve found a few BPA-free options for you:

1. Stainless Steel Ice Pop Molds $39 (€29) plus shipping to EU between $15 and $25 (€15 – €19) from Onyx

2. Mastrad Silicone Ice Pop Maker £9.95 (€12) from Amazon

3. Happy Mummy Ice Lolly Moulds £4.99 (€6) from VUP baby

4. Groovy Ice Lolly Moulds £10.99 (€13) from MiniMakers (shipping inside EU only £1.95, ca. €2)

5. Rocket Ice Lolly Moulds £9.99 (€12) from MiniMakers (shipping inside EU only £1.95, ca. €2)

6. SiliconeZone Ice Lolly Moulds £8.50 (€10) and shipping within EU €7.31 (lower for UK) at Cookability
 

So here it is, finally – a new give-away! VUP baby is being generous again and this time the prize is meant for mummies (not judging if some daddies want it also) and it can also sort of be shared with babies. This lovely silver necklace from Tales From the Earth is based on Mayan Music Ball used for relaxation and mediation because of a chiming sound it makes when gently shaken. It is also known that that same sound can amazingly calm babies. Every single pendant is handmade following a tradition of several centuries so each is unique and no two will sound the same.
Don’t you love it? And it could make one heck of a gift for a new mommy don’t you think? Or you could just keep it for yourself – I’d love to have one just because it looks gorgeous and sometimes I’m the one in need for some chiming if you know what I mean…

What to do this time:

In order to enter this give-away simply find this necklace on VUP baby’s site and check out it’s price. Then write an email with a subject ‘Baby Jungle Competition’ to competitions@vupbaby.co.uk and write down the price of the necklace. Simple as that.
You have time until May 7th 2012 and the winner will be drawn at random.

Open Worldwide!