Natural Beauty with Baby
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2017

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Safe Halloween makeup options
Makeup

Beautifully safe Halloween makeup

Kids and adults of all ages love getting dressed up for Halloween. And we all need some essentials to get our Halloween look just right. A spooky Halloween outfit, dramatic hair styling, face makeup, and fake blood to complete the look. But what if that Halloween makeup contains ingredients you’d rather not use on yours or your kids faces? Not to mention the makeup remover needed to get it off. What we need are some beautifully safe Halloween makeup ideas. The hidden ingredients in Halloween makeup This article from Campaign for Safer Cosmetics explains how some American Halloween makeup kits marketed at kids are contaminated with heavy metals such as lead and cadmium. Isn’t that terrifying? There are no safe levels set on exposure to lead. It can cause a range of long-lasting health problems including hyperactivity and learning difficulties. Cadmium is an endocrine disruptor that interferes with hormones. UK and European makeup is…

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Weleda Nipple Balm
Breastfeeding

Weleda Nipple Balm review

In this post, I’m reviewing the beautiful Weleda Nipple Balm. Weleda is my absolute favourite natural skincare brand. As a family, we use so many of their gorgeous natural beauty and baby care products. I was totally delighted to discover that the latest Weleda product is a nipple balm. Weleda is so supportive of the mother and baby journey, it’s really lovely. There’s a range of calendula bathing products, nursing oil, and tummy oil – and now this nipple balm helps to complete the range. Why do I need to use nipple balm? My baby is almost 16 months old – but recently my nipples have been damaged by Jonah’s teeth. He’s cutting four molars and four canines all at the same time. Biting isn’t really the problem, although he has clamped down on my nipple a couple of times. It’s the digging in of his teeth when he’s nursing…

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Birchfield Farm Dairies Pumpkin Festival review
Parenting

Birchfield Farm Pumpkin Festival review

Birchfield Farm Pumpkin Festival runs from the 14th to the 15th October, and the 21st to the 31st October 2017. It is open from 10am to 4pm. The farm is in Summerbridge, a few miles out of Harrogate, North Yorkshire. It’s in the valley of Nidderdale – an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. We travelled about an hour from Teesside to get to Birchfield Farm Pumpkin Festival. The Pumpkin Festival and the farm in general make a great family day out for children and adults of all ages, although those with difficulty walking may not find it easy to navigate around the farm. The day centres around the pumpkin patch, where you can pick your own pumpkins straight from the field. There are lots of family-oriented activities to take part in at the farm, and I will cover them in this review. Let’s jump straight in! Car parking at Birchfield Farm…

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BeeMom Silicone Breast Pump review
Breastfeeding

BeeMom Silicone Breast Pump review

In this post I’m reviewing the fantastic BeeMom Silicone Breast Pump. I’ve been breastfeeding Jonah for 15 months now. I never imagined we would get this far, as we did struggle at the start. I’m passionate about breastfeeding, and so grateful to the women who helped me learn to breastfeed in hospital – and the lactation consultant who supported me through difficult times. Jonah lost a lot of weight in the weeks following his birth, so we (probably needlessly) supplemented with formula. When his weight gain stabilised, we gradually decreased his formula intake and I pumped to increase my milk supply. We used the Medela Swing Electric Breast Pump. Now we find breastfeeding so easy, and it forges such a strong bond between us – we both love it. Jonah breastfeeds about three times during the day, and breastfeeds to sleep. If he’s poorly, he breastfeeds more frequently for comfort.…

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Baby Jonah
Children's Skin Care

Four ways to choose truly natural baby care products

Many large toiletry manufacturers are jumping on the natural skincare band wagon by creating natural baby care products. But can these products really be trusted? Nobody wants to purposefully expose their child to harmful chemicals, but the truth is that many personal care products designed for babies and children still contain unhealthy ingredients. Large brands know that parents are looking for safe skincare options for their children, and they wrap a wolf in sheep’s clothing through what is known as “greenwashing”. Greenwashing is the term used to describe the duping of customers into buying something they believe is natural and healthy, when in fact they’re buying something that contains unhealthy ingredients. How can we as parents be sure that the “natural” brands we use are truly healthy? Well, a bit of detective work is all it takes. Try these four tips to help you find truly natural baby care products.…

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My positive birth story for Mini Mummie Blogger
Little Ones

My positive birth story for Mini Mummie Blogger

I thought it would be nice to share my first ever guest post here – my positive birth story for Mini Mummie Blogger. My story is #3 in Romina’s Positive Birth Story series. All too often we hear negative birth stories and tales of pain and distress. This series helps to redress the balance with some amazing birth stories from a wide variety of bloggers. The series goes to show that birth can be an empowering and positive experience, even if it doesn’t go exactly to plan. Although I’d already written and shared Jonah’s birth story for my own blog, I was so inspired by Romina’s blog. I really wanted to contribute to her series! My positive birth story I hope you enjoy my positive birth story for Mini Mummie Blogger. If you haven’t checked out Mini Mummie Blogger’s blog yet, you should go take a look! Her blog “inspires mummies to…

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Weleda Baby Calendula Bath
Children's Skin Care

Weleda Baby Calendula Calming Bath review

In this review, Jonah tries out Weleda Baby Calendula Calming Bath to help heal his nappy rash and relax him ready for a good night’s sleep. Not to be confused with Weleda Calendula Cream Bath. Backstory: after being nappy rash free for fifteen months, Jonah has had quite bad nappy rash these last few days. The problem lies with teething. His nappies have become very runny, and he’s going frequently. A couple of times this week Jonah sat in a dirty nappy, because I hadn’t immediately noticed he’d gone. So I’ve been looking for ways to help Jonah’s skin heal and recover. We’ve forgone our usual natural bubble bath and opted for something milder and with active benefits – Weleda Baby Calendula Calming Bath. We’re big fans of Weleda Calendula baby products. We use the nappy cream and the body wash and shampoo, and we love them both, so I have high…

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Seven Minerals Organic Aloe Vera Spray
Children's Skin Care

Toddler first aid kit – the first aid & home remedy items you need

This post will help you put together a handy toddler first aid kit. Mobile babies and toddlers get in so many scrapes don’t they? Many of these ouchies are treatable at home with lots of cuddles and a few choice first aid kit items. When Jonah started to walk at 13 months, we realised we needed a first aid kit to treat his minor bumps and scrapes. We didn’t want to buy a first aid kit off the shelf, because we wanted more than just practical items like plasters, bandages, and dressings. We also wanted toddler-friendly and natural remedies that would ease common complaints and support Jonah’s body to heal itself. My husband and I aren’t very physical people, so we don’t get injured that often. And luckily, we don’t tend to get poorly much – apart from when Jonah brings the lurgies back from play group. Reflecting this, our…

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Find out how to make this delicious no added salt chicken gravy, suitable for babies of six months plus and toddlers.
Food

Jonah’s no added salt chicken gravy

Which meat eater doesn’t love a traditional Sunday roast chicken with all the trimmings? If you’re following baby led weaning, or feeding a toddler, they will enjoy this staple family meal too. A traditional accompaniment to classic roast chicken is a delicious chicken gravy. So good – Sunday dinners wouldn’t be the same without it. So here is my recipe for no added salt chicken gravy, suitable for babies. Most traditional gravies are too salty for babies and toddlers – Bisto Gravy Granules have 14g salt per 100g! The government recommendation for babies under 1 year is 1g of salt, rising to 2g for 1 year plus. Anything with more than 1.5g salt per 100g is considered to have a high salt content and will be unsuitable for babies and toddlers. But I wouldn’t have Jonah missing out at our Sunday meal time! So I created a quick and easy chicken…

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Review of Lavera Basis Sensitiv Roll On Deodorant, an effective aluminium free deodorant with skin loving ingredients.
Skin Care

Lavera Basis Sensitiv Roll On Deodorant review

In this post, I review Lavera Basis Sensitiv Roll On Deodorant. These days, I’m able to forgo deodorant far more frequently. Despite being a healthy beauty product advocate, I try to minimise my use of personal care products as much as I can. Some days it just doesn’t matter if I’m not as fresh as a daisy. Jonah doesn’t care! However when I do wear deodorant I’m pretty picky about what goes on my pits. I’ve written previously about the aluminium in antiperspirant debate, and I still choose not to use aluminium salts on my skin. Not just because of aluminium controversy, but because I don’t want to suppress my skin’s sweating, or reduce the number of good bacteria in my underarms. I’m a big fan of Lavera Basis Sensitiv deodorants which contain no aluminium salts or alcohol. The deodorants are certified by NaTrue and are suitable for use during…

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