Legacy of Love...

When I was a child one of my most favourite places in the whole wide world was my Nana and Pop's house... it was always home to me and I love everything about it and today as I create a home for my own children I think back to the feelings and the moods created in their home and I know that I want to create that for them too.

I remember waking up at Nan and Pop's house, the blind would still be pulled down, little sparrows would be sweetly chirping outside and the smell of freshly cooked porridge and toast would be wafting into the room... I knew that outside that room my pop would be sitting at the table reading his paper and nan would be in the kitchen making sure breakfast was on the table when I woke up.

I loved sitting at the table with them both, I would add sultana's to my porridge and have a glass of tomato juice just like pop... I would also have a glass of powdered milk... not because we had no real milk but just because I liked it. Nana would sit at the end of the table with her tilted writing easel reading, writing and sorting bills.

My Nana would spend hours in her sewing room with me, she would help me create pretty much anything I could dream up... even when sitting hunched over the machine made her back hurt. My Pop would take me fishing on his boat and take me yabbie pumping along the shore, he'd get me outside and in amongst all that fresh air and sunshine... But of all the things we did together the thing that meant the most was the time they both had for me. 

It's amazing how all those little things the where the 'norm' in my grandparents house meant the world to me. Sometimes I wish I could go back in time and take my babies with me just so they can experience that same warm fuzzy feeling I got from being at my grandparents house! I know that each of my children will have a time, a place or a person that gives them that same feeling but how wonderful would it be if we could share ours with them too?

My Nana passed away this last year and there are no words to say just how thankful I am for the time I shared with her and the love of all things crafty she helped embrace. I sit and watch my daughters creating gifts and special things for themselves, their family and their friends and I smile because I know that that urge to create and give comes from their Great Grandmother and her daughter, my mum... and myself and is something that has been passed from one generation to the next. One day it will be passed to my grandchildren too and I only hope that my home will mean to them what my Grandparents house means to me.

Book Love - My Top 5 For Children

Good books are one of those things that we often forget to share with our friends. Unlike the name of that wonderful coffee shop who makes a perfect 1/2 strength hazelnut latte, you know the one that we choose to keep to ourselves... books should be shared, reading is a wonderful way to bond with your child as well as a very fun way of teaching them the literary basics. We often talk about the awesome bargain we found at the shopping centre or a great movie we saw but we often forget to mention our great reads... especially when it comes to children's books! In the spirit of sharing and the love of books I thought I would share with you 5 of my favourite books and explain why I love them.

My most favourite book of all time would have to be Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss. It is the very first book I have read to all of my babies. Dr. Seuss is one of my childhood favourites and my girls love it too. The repetitive rhyming and whimsical drawings are what makes Dr. Seuss books so appealing to the younger generation (and mine too!). The catch phrase 'I do not like green eggs and ham, I do not like them Sam I am' is iconic to this book and makes a fun way for your child to read along.    

Cuddle Up Tight is a beautiful picture story book by Rosie Reeve. The soft pastel illustrations make this book a pleasure to read and the storyline makes it the perfect pre-bedtime read. This book is one of my favourite 'read with the kids' books

My fave daddy 'humour' book would have to be My dad thinks he's funny by Katrina Germein and illustrated by Tom Jellett. I love that this book addresses all those 'Dad-isms' that dad and the kids think is funny but sometimes makes mum roll her eyes :)

My all time favourite childhood read would have to be The Magic Far Away Tree by Enid Blyton or anything by Enid Blyton to be honest. Although the characters in The Magic Far Away Tree have kind of rude names (Dick and Fanny - although they are common names for the era the book was written) the storyline is very wholesome and magical. I think I reread this book maybe 20 or 30 times during the course of my childhood.

What's your favourite book for children? 

Nûby Mummy Review - Prima™ Orthodontic Pacifier

Nûby Prima™ Orthodontic Pacifier

One of the things I have learnt as a mummy of four is to do what works for you. I remember when I was pregnant with my first baby and I heard many people say:

'Pacifiers damage your baby's teeth'

'Your child will not learn how to self soothe'

 'Thou shalt not use pacifiers' 

Okay, so maybe the last one is a slight exaggeration... When my 1st little bundle was born 6 weeks premature I soon realised that the benefits of her using a dummy for the first few weeks of life. Using the pacifier meant that she was able to leave the hospital and thrive out in the real world.... you see being so early Ellie didn't quite have the ability to suckle and to top that off her tiny lips just weren't able to attach to my breast at first. We used the dummy to 'teach' her how to suckle and with it's help she bloomed! 

We found that there was no need for our second daughter to use a pacifier... and so we didn't, simple as that! :) 

While pregnant with my 3rd daughter my partner passed away and once she was born I choose to use a pacifier to soothe her at times when it just was not possible to feed her on demand... such as when I was ushering her 2 sisters out the door, my arms full of nappy bags and school jumpers frantically rushing to the bus stop in hopes we hadn't already missed it.

With baby number 4 Nûby offered me the opportunity to review their Prima™ Orthodontic Pacifier and so we decided to try the pacifier to settle our new little boy Ronald while we bathed him. Our little guy just didn't like to bathe no matter what we tried and so we offered Ron the pacifier and immediately he settled and while he happily sucked away we washed to our hearts content... no stressed baby and no stressed mummy and daddy. We also offered him the pacifier when he had had enough of being in the car and had started to work himself up on family trips. Once again he took the pacifier and he even nodded off to sleep, thus the paci has earned the affectionate nickname of 'The baby Shusher' in our home. 

The Nûby Orthodontic Pacifier has an orthodontic shaped teat that Baby Ron took to straight away, I am also breastfeeding and found that there was no nipple confusion caused by the pacifier at all. Bub went back and forth from the breast and the pacifier without a hitch. The Paci also has a raised textured section where the teat meets the faceplate which are designed to stimulate bubba's gums by massaging as he soothes. The Nûby Pacifier left no marks on Ron's skin at all in the first few weeks but now that he has grown quite a lot and he consists mainly of cheeks ;) I have found that occasionally it will leave a slight line on his cheeks where the face place meets his skin.

The Nûby Prima™ Orthodontic Pacifier is also BPA Free! If you don't know BPA or bisphenol A. is a chemical found in some plastics that can cause health problems in babies and children. We definitely want BPA free products for our little ones! The Prima™ also survived our microwave steam steriliser without losing colour or damaging the paci's appearance or the teat! YAY! With all those cute designs available you really want them to keep their designs and I was very happy to see the cute patterns still on Ron's pacifiers when I opened the lid of the steriliser. 

All in all the Nûby Prima™Orthodontic Pacifier has lived up to all it claims to do and I have been very happy with it's performance. Besides the marks Ron sometimes get's on his chubby little cheeks I really can't fault them. If I was going to suggest an improvement I would probably suggest Nüby make the handle of the pacifier glow-in-the-dark making it easier to find for the parents who wish to use them during the night or for when they are dropped in the car. 

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Nüby range of pacifiers so please pop on over to the Crafty Mumma Facebook PAGE and have your say!

{ NOTE } I have not been paid for this review. The opinions expressed in this review are mine and mine alone and based on my experience with the Nüby - Prima™ Orthodontic Pacifier supplied to me by Nüby Australia for the sole purpose of review.