Experienced Mums’ Top Tips

Parenthood doesn’t come with an instruction manual but when it comes to knowing what’s what, listening to experienced mums can help. To find out more visit http://www.prettylittlebaby.co.uk/2012/03/07/baby-changing-bags-six-of-the-best/

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They say you can’t teach a grandmother to suck eggs, which may be one of the oddest sayings around, but basically means – they know a thing or two. And there’s no doubt that your parents and grandparents will be quick to tell you what to do when it comes to raising your baby. But although our parents and grandparents can be great source of information they are often of a different culture and time. Food, television and computer habits have changed how we live. And your grandparents may not have had to contend with things like pester power when it comes to must-have toys.

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The Essentials

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Experienced mums who are of your peer set can help. They understand. When it comes to preparing a new nursery and getting ready for parenthood, there are a few essentials you’ll need such as baby changing bags. But it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the huge range of ‘must-have’ baby products new parents are supposed to buy. Even mums for the second or third time can lose focus. On a specialist mums website, one mum who was giving birth eight years after her first baby said, “I can’t believe how much more there is to choose from now…The drawback is that you want one of everything, whether you actually need it or not.”

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Stylish Baby Changing Bags

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So what are the essentials you do need to help you parent well and efficiently?

The basics include nappies, a cot, stroller, car seat, baby changing bag and clothing. But there are hundreds of varieties on offer. Try not to get too overwhelmed by the latest models or on colour co-ordinating! Most of the baby products on sale are not for the good of your baby but for the convenience of parents. New mums need to consider then which products they feel would make their lives easier and less stressful. Treating yourself to designer baby changing bags is one way of combining practicality with luxury. If you’re used to beautiful hand bags and stylish accessories, you don’t have to compromise on the baby changing bag you choose.

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Shop Online

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Shopping online is one way of trying to focus your search through the mountain of baby products available. Consumer reports and reviews are available on dedicated parenting websites to help you buy in confidence when it comes to safety and performance.

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Baby Yoga

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The great thing about Yoga is that anyone can do it and this applies as much to babies as to Grannies. If you’ve just had a baby, or you are pregnant and thinking about post-natal classes, then consider Baby Yoga. Baby Yoga helps parent and baby bonding, whilst also creating a positive environment for babies to develop. Relaxing and enjoyable for all, it can help babies feel comfortable when teething. Although Nelsons teething powder is a God-send for many mums dealing with teething babies.

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Nelsons teething powder

Although there may not be a Baby Yoga class near you, there are plenty of book and video resources to help. All you need is a little bit of time in a calm space, with a Yoga mat, maybe some music, and you baby. You clearly can’t expect your baby to get right into those complicated positions, but just a bit of gentle stretching, massaging, singing and rhythm can make all the difference to them.

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Baby Yoga practitioners say that babies who attend classes or practice Yoga with their parents are happier babies; that Yoga can help with classic baby problems such as sleep troubles or colic, that Baby Yoga encourages free movement, unlike car seats, buggies or walkers, and helps with play.

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Parents who take up Baby Yoga with their little ones also learn how to pick up, carry and move with their babies, which decreases the incidences of back or shoulder pain and strengthens the bond between parent and child.

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Key points for Baby Yoga are:

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Make it part of your routine, whether at a class or at home

Practice in a calm space, with music or fragrances that are special to your Yoga time

Use a Yoga Mat, and also use large cushions or pillows to help with some positions

Make singing, chanting and rhythmic exercises part of your Baby Yoga

Use available resources: Teachers, books and videos to make the most of your Baby Yoga time.

Aquatics – Education for Kids

Aquatics isn’t just a hobby for adults – kids will love learning about fish too. To find out more visit www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/

Everyone knows children learn best when the learning process is made fun, so what better way to give them an insight into the underwater world of fish than with a home aquarium? The aquatics industry has grown so much in popularity that there is a vast variety of fish, aquariums and accessories to choose from, so your kids can get involved from every process starting with the set-up. Here are just some ways you can help your children learn about fish.

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Aquatics – Teaching Kids about Fish

The obvious benefit of introducing your child to aquatics is they will learn about fish – their shapes, sizes and colour, behaviour patterns and the way they interact with each other. Very small children and toddlers will benefit from watching the fish – they will be intrigued by the colour and movement, and you may find they are calmer after watching fish swim around a tank. You can teach older children about the different species of tropical fish or marine fish – depending on the contents of your aquarium – and help them understand how fish can grow to different shapes and sizes. They can learn about the feeding habits, social patterns, the way they interact, and explain why some may be more territorial than others. There really is so much about aquatics that you can teach to children, with the extra benefit that it will bring you closer as you watch and care for the fish together.

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Aquatics – Kids Learn Responsibility

Another great reason to install an aquarium in your home is that you can help your children learn about taking responsibility. Fish need regular feeding and care, and their environment needs to be checked for correct temperature and cleanliness. If they can understand and take on board the responsibility that comes with aquatics, then they will be able to apply this to other areas of their life as well, such as caring for other pets, tidying their bedroom, doing their school work and so on.

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Aquatics – Kids Understand Environmental Issues

Aquatics is also an excellent way to teach children about environmental issues. Fishing and the depletion of the ocean’s fish supplies is such a big issue that they need to know how it can affect them, as well as the planet. You can also highlight issues like pollution and global warming too. As kids learn more about the fish in their home, they will care more about other fish in the world, and you may find they learn how to be more compassionate in general too.

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Spy Equipment and Spy Kids

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Spy Equipment isn’t just used by adults in books and movies – kids are turning into super-sleuths too. To find out more visit http://www.spiesonline.net/spy-gear-for-kids.shtml

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If you think spy equipment and gadgets only feature in adult films like James Bond, XXX, The Bourne Supremacy and Charlie’s Angels, then think again. A new trend for young spies has hit our cinemas and book shelves, and kids are getting as excited about the glamorous spy’s life as we are. So if your child loves the thought of becoming a secret agent and getting kitted out with all kinds of spy equipment, treat them to these books and movies and indulge their dreams.

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Spy Equipment in Operation Stormbreaker

This 1996 movie was the first to be made out of Anthony Horowitz’s Alex Rider series, aimed at older children. Alex Rider (played by young actor Alex Pettyfer) is an orphaned teenager, living with his seemingly ordinary banker uncle Ian Rider (Ewan McGregor). When Ian goes missing, Alex discovers he was actually an MI6 agent killed by a famous assassin. Alex himself is then recruited by MI6 for their special operations division, and put through gruelling SAS training. He then sets off on his first mission, loaded down with spy equipment provided by the Q-like character Smithers. It’s down to Alex to prevent a computer virus called Stormbreaker from killing every child in every school across the UK. Teenage boys will especially love Alex Rider’s adventures in both book and movie form, and will wish they could have his special spy equipment – especially the obedience serum that puts you in control of anyone it’s administered to.

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Spy Equipment Used by Agent Cody Banks

With the fun tagline “Save the World. Get the Girl. Pass Maths”, the Agent Cody Banks movie is a US hit for teenagers. Starring Frankie Muniz and Hilary Duff, it follows the story of a 15-year-old boy who secures a position with the Junior CIA. He has to foil the plot of an evil mastermind by attending his daughter’s school and uncovering his plans. Unfortunately Cody falls in love with Natalie and nearly jeopardises his job and the mission. Featuring fantastic spy equipment like a rocket-propelled snowboard and an ExoSkeletal Flying Vehicle, Agent Cody Banks is a movie for all spy-loving teens who wish they too could save the world and get the girl.

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Spy Equipment in Spy Kids

The most popular and well-known series of children’s spy movies, Spy Kids is an action packed adventure with the tagline ‘Real Spies…only Smaller’. Carmen and Juni think their parents are normal and boring until they go missing, and it is revealed they were once rival spies who fell in love and started a family. It is now up to their children to go and rescue them in the bizarre castle of the baddie, using awesome spy equipment on the way. Spy Kids has three movies in its series, all starring Antonio Banderas as their Dad.

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Fabulous Wardrobes for Fabulous Clothes

Reports suggest we’re dumping chic lit for recession lit – but for some people, our wardrobes have never been so important. Nice clothes need to be kept nicely. Whether it is your workwear or kids designer clothes, a good wardrobe will help them look great for longer.

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kids designer clothes

The idea that chic lit authors are dumping their characters’ obsessions for designer clothes and shopping trips in order to write fiction that’s more sensitive to the fall out of the credit crunch has received something of a backlash. Women love their wardrobes. And fans of chic lit say the reason women love it so, is because it’s all about escapism. Nobody wants to read about financial hardship and misery when we’re faced with financial hardship in day to day life. They want to read chic lit that indulges in glamour and excess. And in times of financial difficulty it’s time to take a long hard look at our wardrobes!

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What’s in Your Wardrobe?

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First off, if you have been saving your pennies by avoiding buying a decent wardrobe this is your first port of call. Having a good-sized, functional wardrobe that looks beautiful is a crucial step. When it comes to creating a capsule wardrobe that will last you years and years, it’s all about making wise investment choices and respecting your wardrobe. Don’t opt for cheap wardrobes that you know will fall apart after a few months of heavy clothes hangers. A decent, sturdy wardrobe that lasts a lifetime will be cheaper in the long term. Similarly, there are a few essential items of clothing for your wardrobe that any girl needs. And rather than flitting through money by buying cheap, low quality clothes, these are the items you need to save up for and see as a worthy investment. A decent coat, a great pair of jeans, a designer handbag and a good pair of day and evening shoes are essential. Buying a great pair of boots means you’ll be able to pull out the same pair from the back of your wardrobe season after season. To buy clothes that will endure, opt for high quality labels and classic, timeless designs that aren’t subject to fleeting trends.

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Your Capsule Wardrobe

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Fashion experts fall into two camps about the recession. Some fashion aficionados say forget scrimping on your wardrobes’ essential items – we all need cheering up so go out and look fabulous! As one fashion designer put it ‘who wants to die in shabby chic?’ Others say, you can still have a bulging wardrobe of great clothes – just use your imagination. Clothes swapping parties are a great way to get your hands on new clothes (for you), while recycling and socialising at the same time. Fill your wardrobes with second hand clothes or shop at flea markets where you can find the finest cashmere at a fraction of the price. Your wardrobe needn’t look like it’s stepped out of the latest fashion magazines to get the wow factor, by establishing your own unique style you won’t have to worry about keeping up with the latest trends.

Whatever your approach to clothes and fashion, don’t neglect your wardrobes. In fact, now is the perfect time to take stock, invest wisely and save up for key pieces like shoes and jackets, so that you get the best out of your wardrobe and your money in the long term, and look fabulous.

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Get Schooled in Fashion by Franklin & Marshall

Franklin & Marshall is not just a fashion label, it’s a high profile college too. For more inspiration, check out this blog: http://www.collegefashion.net/

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Wearing Franklin & Marshall clothing on the Franklin &MarshallUniversity Campus may look vintage and authentic to the American school, but the brand is in fact not made in the States, but shipped fromItaly. And it’s not surprising that to the fashion-oblivious, it might seem odd that such a small American college could produce so many young alumni in Europe andJapan– with swathes of hip young things sportingFranklin&Marshallsweatshirts. Of course, Franklin & Marshall are not just an educational establishment but a major global fashion brand.

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A Fashionable Education

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Wearing Franklin & Marshall is not a mark of your educational status but is a fashion statement. The vintage look isn’t the result of students hanging onto old school sweaters, but is a look that’s carefully crafted inItalyby the Franklin &Marshallclothing company. The Franklin & Marshall look is so popular that it’s recognising its debts to the college that inspired the brand by funding a scholarship at its namesake college west ofPhiladelphia.

The college’s associate vice president for administration told the Press Association that the scholarship was big news: “As they mature as a company, they’re doing the right thing and giving back to help support our students.” And there’s no doubt Franklin & Marshall owe the school a debt of gratitude. The clothing giant began life in 1999, founded by two entrepreneurs – Giuseppe Albarelli and Andrea Pensiero – inVerona. The Franklin & Marshall college was founded inLancaster,Americaover 200 years earlier as a gift from Benjamin Franklin. The Italians were inspired to replicate the authentic classic collegiate look after finding an old Franklin & Marshall sweatshirt in a second hand stall.

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Franklin & Marshall – The Original Collegiate Fashion

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The college was unaware of the collegiate fashion spreading acrossEuropethanks to the Italians. When officials found out from surprised students travellingEuropeabout the curious phenomenon, the college was surprised – Franklin & Marshall is a small, selective arts school. When country music star Tim McGraw wore one of the Franklin andMarshallt-shirts however it triggered publicity about whether the star had attended the college. The answer of course was no. The clothing brand went into negotiations with the college to reach a long-term licensing deal, ensuring the college received a percentage of profits. The recent scholarship offered to the college by the Italian brand shows that they are happy to acknowledgement their debt. But it works both ways – there’s no doubt that the clothing brand has certainly helped put theFranklinandMarshallcollege on the international map too.

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