Well I think I am ready to share a little bit of what is going on behind the scenes here at Beyond The Baby.

Over the last 6 months I have been at a bit of a cross roads on the direction Beyond The Baby is taking. I love this site, however I wanted more from it but just could not put my finger on what that was. After many many talks with my people (husband, friends and my dog …. she is a great listener!) I decided what I wanted and have started putting it all into action.

While I can’t share a lot with you right now I will share a few details and will share more once it is all official.

Beyond The Baby is closing …. but not really. I am revamping everything and creating a whole new website that will complete all areas of your life, not just parenting. We are creating an entire lifestyle website, a one stop place for women to find information and support. The areas we will cover will be – Weddings, Family, Craft, Home, Health and Beauty, Cooking etc. It will be a huge site, one you could get lost in for days.

However it will be really user friendly and still have a wonderful community feel about it. Each section will be separate but still combined with the rest of the site.

We will still be doing the same things, however it will be across all areas of life, not just parenting. So this means Beyond The Baby will be no more but we are moving upwards and onwards!

It is going to be fabulous!

So now rather then needing 7 different sites you will only need one ….

The name of our site will be called Lovely Living – www.lovelyliving.com.au (coming soon).Lovely Living is going to be a fabulous site complete with a forum, facebook group and much much more! I am so excited about where it is all going

We expect to launch in 12 weeks ( I am hoping sooner, but I know how hard it is working with web design people! LOL) ! So stay tuned and we will keep you updated on everything that is happening!

Jen xx

This has been a hot topic in the past couple of months and I thought it would make an interesting discussion. As hubby and I are both business people we always like reading the business section in the newspaper or on news.com.au. In the past month the amount of big brands and businesses going into receivership is insane and I am sure is the result of a slump in domestic buying. Only in the past few weeks – Borders, Angus and Robinson and Colorado have all gone into receivership with major store closures for Angus and Robinson and the unknown fate of Colorado.

I have been buying overseas for many years, my first dabble in overseas buying was like most – Ebay. What a fabulous concept Ebay is not only for finding local bargains but also for opening up the world to consumers.

Over the years I have become more confident with buying overseas and recently was introduced to the world of parcel forwarding which I will touch on more later.

I found it interesting a couple of months ago that Gerry Harvey had teamed together with other big stores to try and stop or curb the amount of overseas buying, he was trying to push taxes to encourage people to buy locally. But lets look at why the average consumer, like me is buying overseas.

Let’s start with my most recent purchase, yesterday I purchased a Stokke Xplory. I am a bargain shopper so I did a lot of research and shopping around including a trip to my local baby store and a few Australian baby stores online. After all of this research I decided to buy from overseas and here is why ….

Cost of Stokke Xplory plus accessories in Australia (Prices from an extremely popular online store) -

Stokke Xplory in Beige – $1799
Carry Cot – $499
Mosquito Net – $21.99
Rain Cover – $52.20
Change Bag – $169.95
Toddler Rider Board – $169.95
Cup Holder – $44.95
Travel Bag – $189.95
Parasol – $94.95
Summer Kit – $349.95

Total – $3,561.84

Buying Stokke Xplory Overseas -

Stokke Xplory in Beige Complete (Includes Carry Cot, Mosquito net and rain cover) – $1089
Carry Cot – Included
Mosquito Net – Included
Rain Cover – Included
Change Bag – $124.70
Toddler Rider Board – $116.90
Cup Holder – $23.35
Travel Bag – $109.10
Parasol – $54.55
Summer Kit – $236.90

Sub total – $1754.50
Plus shipping – $550

Total Cost – $2,304.50

Total saving – $1,257.34

Why wouldn’t I buy overseas saving that amount of money?

This is just one example of how much money you can save shopping overseas. Many brands especially in the baby industry have placed limitations on international sellers and not allowing them to sell overseas. Thankfully I found a store that would ship directly to me, however even if they wouldn’t I would have used a parcel forwarding service. This example also shows that manufactures are taking advantage of the profits that can be made selling their products in Australia.

What is a parcel forwarding service?

There are companies such as www.borderlinx.com who will provide you with a USA or UK address to have your goods sent to you, once they receive the goods they will then forward them to you. It is a little more expensive to do it this way, but when you are saving thousands of dollars it’s well worth it!

So here is where the debate gets interesting. In bad economical times where petrol is almost $1.50 per litre, electricity and water costs have gone up by up to 30% and wages have not had a big shift in 10 years are we really meant to support local companies and shop locally or should they be meeting the market? Our dollar has never been stronger, so this should mean big companies importing from overseas are making more profit than they have in years, yet the consumer is seeing no price changes on the shelf.

I would love to support local business, but at the end of the day $1000 in my pocket is just too much money to give away even a saving of $50 or $60 is enough to make me shop overseas. Money is money and as my Dad has always said …. no one ever got rich giving it away!

Yesterday Gerry Harvey announced Harvey Norman would be entering the online shopping world. But will they be able to offer enough savings to entice customers to shop at home rather than abroad? It certainly will be interesting!

So how do you feel? I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic so comment below.

Jen xx

I don’t know about you all, but we have piles and piles of toys! Cooper’s birthday is in December and after Christmas I could not believe the amount of toys he had accumulated.

The last 2 months it has been an ongoing battle, after Christmas we removed all of his old toys and put them in storage and filled 3 buckets and shelves with his new toys. Within a week of Christmas he was bored with all of his toys he would barely glance at them and wander around like he was bored most of the time. Everyday we had the same routine, he would tip all 3 toys buckets all over the floor and walk away. Occasionally he would see a toy that took his fancy but it was quickly discarded after a few minutes.

Last Friday hubby and I both turned to each other and at the same time expressed how over the toy situation we were. We both decided the toys had to go and we needed a new system and new toys. Out with the plastic licensed junk and in with more educational activities.

Cooper goes to a Montessori daycare where each day they have “shelf time”, they are allowed to pick an activity from the shelf and play with it. Once they are done the activity is returned to the shelf and they can then select another if they wish. Cooper loves this and his teacher tells me daily how much he loves his shelf time.

So we decided to adopt the same approach. I did some research online and we decided to go to our local toy shop. Forget the big chain stores and Target etc. We wanted a real toy store! When we walked in I fell in love instantly! Not a licensed character in sight! They had a play area at the back of the store where the kids could test drive some toys. We looked around and talked to the owner and found a collection of toys that were educational and fun. Best of all, Cooper got to test drive most of them before we left the store!

We came home and I set up our new toys system, I unboxed everything and placed one toy or activity on each shelf. We used an Expedit from Ikea as our toy shelf and it works perfectly! It has 8 small shelves and we also placed 3 baskets on top to make a total of 11 activities.

From the top, left to right -

- Basket of small cars and trucks
- Magnetic crane game
- Ludamino (fun game with nesting boxes, animals and dice)
- Basket of Duplo
- Magnetic teddy bear dressing game
- Stacking flower blocks
- Magnetic fishing game
- Stacking blocks
- Puzzle
- Felt fruit and vegetables (Ikea)
- Basket of musical instruments

To the right of the shelves we have also set his train up on a coffee table. The tracks are stuck down with Blutack! No more rebuilding the track every 3 minutes!

After almost a week of this system it’s been a huge success. Cooper is allowed to take one toy or activity from the shelf and he must return it before he collects a different one. He loves his toys and actually plays with them now!

I must admit I was a mother who thought my child had to have everything! If he wanted a Buzz Lightyear, I wanted him to have it. But I have now realised that kids like the fancy flashing toys for about 3 days. After that they are over them as they provide no stimulation at all. They fulfill the want for a short time then the child is looking for the next bigger and better thing. I know I can relate myself, I get all excited about a new fancy kitchen appliance and after a week it’s put in a cupboard and never seen again!

I wish we had have done this a year ago and saved lots of time, money and mess!

My learning outcome for this project and advice to others? KEEP IT SIMPLE!

Jen xx

We have writen our first draft for our testing criteria and we would love your input! We will be writing up proper checklists for our reviewer to complete on each nappy that will fill the outlines of the criteria.

Is there anything else you would add or expand on?

MCN Testing Guidelines

Star Rating

1 Star – Below expectations / Overly Complicated
2 Star – Average / A Little Complicated
3 Star – Good / Average To Use
4 Star – Excellent / Easy To Use
5 Star – Exceeded Expectations / Super Easy To Use

Nappy will be tested for 4 day wears and 2 night wears.

Initial Inspection

Nappy will be inspected for any defaults. We will also inspect stitching, shape, material quality, overall design and first impressions.

Absorbency and Containment Test

Nappy will be worn for 3 hours maximum. A timer will be set to ensure time is kept and nappy will be changed earlier if it leaks, gets too full or if there is a poo in the nappy.

Nappy will be worn during the night for 10+ hours. Nappy will be changed earlier if it leaks, gets too full or if there is a poo in the nappy. If there is a poo in the nappy during a night time wear we will test the nappy another night to ensure we get 2 full nights of wet nappy testing per nappy.

Wash Test

Nappy will be washed 8 times before the first use. No fabric softeners, whiteners or bleaches will be used at any time during testing. Nappy will be line dried after the 8 washes, all nappies will be washed and dried at the same time to ensure they are subject to the same drying conditions.

Nappy will be washed 2 times between uses and line dried.

Nappy will be dried in the clothes dryer after it’s last use to test how it holds up.

Nappy will be washed a total of 20 times to test it’s durability.

Size and Fit

Nappy will be inspected for sizing an fit. We will inspect the waist and leg to ensure they fit well without being too tight. We will also rate the bulkiness and width of the crotch area.

Nappy will also be rated on comfort noting any red marks around the waist or legs and any complaints or irritations by the wearer.

Ease Of Use

Each nappy will be rated on their “ease of use”. We will follow the instructions given to us by the supplier and will rate the nappy on the amount of “fuss” required to assemble including inserting boosters, amount of boosting required, securing the nappy etc.

Daddy Usability

Our tester will also have her husband use each nappy unassisted once to test “Daddy Usability”. If the nappy requires instruction our tester will show the Daddy how to assemble the nappy and allow him to do it himself.

Let us know what you think!

Jen xx

So who wants to know what brands we have on board so far!? I left our submissions open for 2 weeks as I was sure it would take a while for everyone to get back to me, however to my surprise the response has been overwhelming! Modern Cloth Nappy brands are so excited to be involved!

So here is a list of who we have on board so far!!

Angel Tears – Provided by www.angeltearsnappies.com.au
Bambooty – Provided by www.bambooty.com.au
Bonnibums – Provided by www.bonnibuns.com.au
Bubbalooba – Provided by www.bubbalooba.com
Bubblebubs – Provided by www.bubblebubs.com.au
Bums Up – Provided by www.bumsupmodernclothnappies.com
Cheeky Butts – Provided by www.cheekybutts.com.au
Chloe Toes – Provided by www.nappiescovered.com.au
Close Parent Pop In’s – Provided by www.fluffytails.com.au
Cushie Tushies – Provided by www.cushietushies.com.au
Dream Dri – Provided by www.fluffytails.com.au
Envious Cloth Nappies – Provided by www.enviousclothnappies.com.au
Green Kids – Provided by www.greenkids.com.au
Grovia – Provided by www.mummalovesbubba.com.au
Itti Bitti – Provided by www.ittibitti.com.au
Mandy Mac – Provided by www.mandymac.com.au
Mini La La  – Provided by www.cottonbottom.com.au
Nip Naps – Provided by www.nipnaps.com.au
Tots Bots – Provided by www.cottonbottom.com.au
Twinkle Lily – Provided by www.twinklelily.com
Weepantz – Provided by www.weepantz.com

This is an incomplete list with a few more brands pending. If you would love to send us a nappy to review please email me jennifer@beyondthebaby.com.au

We are so excited about our review and will keep you posted during the whole process!

Jen xx

With so many MCN’s (Modern Cloth Nappies) on the market we have decided to make it easier for you when selecting a brand (or many)! We have decided to do a big nappy review where we will review all the brands and give you honest and unbiased feedback.

Here’s How It Will Work

We are gathering up as many nappy brands as we can and we will independently test them against our criteria -

* Fit and comfort
* Wear, washability and durability
* Style and design
* Ease of use
* Absorption
* Slimness
* Value for money

Our tester is a toddler who will put each nappy to the test for 4 wears plus 2 night wears, a total of 6 wears for each nappy. We will also wash the nappy multiple times to see how it holds up!

All nappies are supplied to us by the companies and the review is completed for free so will be 100% honest and unbiased.

We will also create a printable guide for you to print out and keep!

We will not compare the nappies to each other, we will score the nappies on the criteria we have set out and will crown our overall favourite. We will also open voting for a member favourite!

Stay tuned for more info and the final list of brands in the next couple of weeks!

Jen xx

Planning a party or any sort of event there is always a fear it wont come together. I was very well organised, but staring at the two boxes full of supplies I was fearful it wouldn’t come together or look the way I had imagined it.

The day before the party I decided to set everything up ready to go. I didn’t want to be rushing the morning of the party and wanted to enjoy the day with my little boy. So I spent the day before setting the food table with the cutlery, plates, bowls etc. I set up a presents table and we placed the hay bails for the kids to sit on.

The morning of the party was so easy, we woke up and unwrapped presents, Cooper had a special birthday breakfast and we did the final final preparations and we were all ready with plenty of time to spare!

I promised myself before Cooper’s first birthday that I would always make his birthday cake no matter what. I decided that I wanted to be the Mum who made a cake out of love, even if it was lopsided or tasted terrible, I wanted to make sure every birthday cake was made by me. But of course I am a high achiever and can’t stand to do anything basic. Cooper’s first birthday cake was a Wilton cake in the shape of a dog that I decorated myself and I really think it looked awesome. So his second birthday I decided to make a farm cake and I wanted to make fondant animals for the top of the cake so I started learning how to use fondant about 4 months before his party. I made an elephant for the lovely Oliver, Jade’s (Super Organiser Mum) little boy’s christening. Click Here to see my beautiful (even if I do say so myself) elephant!

It surprisingly came very easy to me, I seemed to have a “knack” for it. I am no where near a professional but I think my first cake was a huge success! Now I have a lot to live up to next year and the following years …. I think I am my own worst enemy!

The party went so smoothly, we decided on a BBQ lunch with chicken kebabs, sausages and steak, we had a few salads and a fruit platter along with the usual party snack foods. Having a BBQ is so easy, Marc started cooking about 10 minutes before everyone arrived so the wait was short before lunch was served.

Cooper had a blast! He was so spoiled and loved playing with all of his friends, it really was an awesome day.

So here are the photos of the final result!

The finer details!

Kids Table

The kids table was made by laying down hay bails on their widest side to create a table and standing the hay bails up on either side the create a bench seat.

On the table I placed one of Cooper’s John Deere tractors as the centre piece, what’s more farm than a John Deere tractor?

I made the tablecloth out of 1.5 metres of basic cotton gingham fabric from spotlight. It was really inexpensive at only $10 each cloth. I left the edges raw to give it a more rustic feel.

The plates and cutlery were bought from Emerald + Ella, a beautiful store with amazing party supplies. I actually managed to salvage all of the cutlery, washed them and have packed them away to use again. The plates were disposed of but most probably could have been used again if they were lightly washed.

The gift boxes were egg cartons. I filled them with toys, lollies and a kinder surprise. The label and tag were designed by the talented Polkadot Prints I secured them with cherry and white twine from Emerald + Ella and a small peg from Kikki.K. They were so adorable! Note: I must stress the importance of finding out if your guests have allergies when doing something like this. As some egg allergies can be set off simply buy a carton that has come into contact with egg.

The water bottles were from the supermarket and I found a farm water bottle printable on Etsy to cover them.

The hats were also a printable from Etsy and were so adorable! I employed hubby as my assistant and he put most of them together and did a fabulous job!

Cupcake toppers were round printable tags from Polkadot Prints, I cut them using a Fiskars extra large punch and stuck them together with a toothpick between them.

The sunflowers were a tribute to my Pa (my Dad’s, Dad). He was a farmer all his life, I think about 5th generation on the same property. One of his regular crops was sunflowers and I have vivid memories of our visits to the farm and seeing sunflowers as far as the eye could see. My Pa hates them but they make me think of him and all of my wonderful times with him. So when I saw them in Coles the day before I knew it was a sign

The best advice I can give anyone planning a party is to be well prepared! Buy things over a few months and make sure any printables or craft things you need to complete for the party are done well in advance. It is so easy to under estimate the time required for all of these things. Also make a list of what you need and tick it off as you go, it can be easy to double up especially when you are shopping over a few months. Many times I would have a “did I buy that or only think about buying it?” thought.

Most of all have fun!

Jen xx

It has been bought to my attention that there is a few safety issues with some Mummy made items. I believe that all of these women have the best intentions, however sometimes they are not taking the safety measures they should purely through lack of knowledge.

I believe in sharing this information with you all so you can all be aware and protect your children from an unfortunate accident.

The biggest concern is dummy clips. There are so many beautiful dummy clips for sale however there are things you should look out for when purchasing a dummy clip for your little one that has not been bought from a store.

* Ensure all beaded dummy clips are knotted between each bead and secured with a metal clamp at either end to ensure the beads will not fall off if the end knots become untied.
* Ensure dummy clip is sewn with a heavy thread, normal cotton used for sewing is not strong enough to ensure safety.
* Ensure any embellishments are sewn AND glued on with the appropriate glue for the materials used – For example: Hot glue is not an ideal solution for metal.
* Ensure the seller is willing to answer any questions about the safety of the item and avoid those who avoid these questions.

These safety points also apply to all other handmade items – Bibs, clothing, hairbands/clips etc.

Ensure any item you that attaches to safety straps in your car seat or stroller apply with current safety standards and be an approved after market attachment for the carseat or stroller. Carseat/stroller liners are fine as long as they do not interfer with the working of the safety harness, however be very aware of harness straps to prevent your child from wiggling their arms out. These attach to the harness and can interfer with it working properly or cause serious injury to your child.

So remember, while things look pretty, ensure the product is safe for your child.

Jen xx

This is very late but I still want to share Cooper’s super fun 2nd birthday with you!

We decided on a Farm Theme as Cooper loves animals and we have also decorated his room in a farm theme. I started planning his December birthday in early October, I wanted to make sure I was organised because as we all know, December is a super busy time!

The day went so smoothly, I learned a lot from Cooper’s first birthday and from his Halloween party -

* Never have a party before 12pm! It gives you time to finalise the setup in the morning, prepare food and have a shower!
* Only have food you can easily prepare a day or two before or food that is easy on the day.
* Having a party at home is so much easier to coordinate! You can set up the day before, you have a day or two after to clean up properly and you can easily put the birthday boy to bed straight after the party for a little nap.
* It’s all in the details! I learned this while planning our wedding. The overall look of a party is important but once people sit down they see the smaller details. If you have carried your theme all the way through it is those tiny details your guests will love!
* Plan well in advance and buy things when you see them because they may not be there when you go back to find them (I learned this the hard way!)

Being a busy work at home Mum I decided to source most of the party supplies online with the help of some friends with impeccable taste! Jade from Super Organiser Mum is a really bad influence when it comes to party planning! She has amazing taste and a natural talent for party planning.

The first direction Jade pointed me to was the beautiful online store Emerald + Ella (www.emeraldandella.com.au)

I wanted everything to fit into a “farm theme” so I wasn’t interested in having plastic plates or cutlery and when I saw the wooden cutlery sets and the eco plates I knew they would fit perfectly! The plates almost look like wood and have a real “rustic” look. I also bought some blue and white paper straws, some paper food trays and some cherry and white twine.

I then decided to find a printable party pack and searched high and low before I found the right one at Polkadot Prints (www.polkadotprints.com.au). They have the most adorable farm pack called “Billy Farmyard”. I already had an invitation so I used the thank you tags, straw tags, party dots and a special printable they created for the party boxes.

I also gathered a few extra things I needed from Spotlight. I decided to make tablecloths as I couldn’t find anything I liked, so I got some red and white check material and cut it to the right size, I left the edges raw to give it a more rustic look. I also got a red tin drinks carrier and used it as a cutlery holder (I also used it at Christmas too!).

Living in Queensland the weather is never predictable and it had been raining for about 6 weeks so we decided to set the party up inside. This included 6 hay bails! They were rather messy but really added to the feel of the farm theme. We left the hay bails until the day before the party and we ended up having to hunt around town as everyone was sold out! But we finally found some thankfully

The next post I will show you how it all came together and what a fun day we all had!

Jen xx

I haven’t announced this on the blog yet, however I am super excited to tell you all we are expecting baby number two! So far I am almost 13 weeks along.

I would love to share my pregnancy journey with you all and will be doing regular updates about my progress. As most of you know I had a medically required c-section with Cooper and this time I am going for a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean). I have found a fabulous OB who is very supportive of my choice and  I have been doing a lot of research, reading and watching many documentaries about VBAC and natural birth. I can’t wait to share it with you!

Along with all of the birth planning I will also be sharing my baby shopping with you! I have already been a little naughty and bought a few things!

How lovely is this nappy bag! I couldn’t resist!

Also I took advantage of the Babies Galore New Year sale and grabbed some bargains! I decided this time around I want to use a sling or baby carrier more in the very early days to help with bonding etc. So when I saw the organic Hug-A-Bub on sale for only $80 I had to get it! I have also bought a few PureBaby Organic Cotton outfits in neutral colours (whites and grays). But I am now waiting to find out what the sex of the baby is at our 18 week scan before we go overboard buying things!

I can’t wait to share this journey with you so stay tuned for many more pregnancy and baby posts!
Jen xx