BRAND IN FOCUS // ETTA LOVES

 

BRAND IN FOCUS // ETTA LOVES

You may, (or may not), remember that back in 2017 I used to run a Q&A segment,   “NEVER CONCISE CHATS“, where I would chat to the founders of businesses or services, who also happen to be parents. One of those chats was with none-other than Jen Fuller of ETTA LOVES. You can read our original chat, here >>> NEVER KNOWINGLY CONCISE CHATS TO // JEN FULLER | @ETTALOVES

Since Edie was born in August, we’ve used ETTA LOVES products with such great success! So, I just had to write a Brand In Focus post on all the amazing items that we’ve been able to test in real life.

 

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Who is ETTA LOVES?

I love to champion a family-run business and ETTA LOVES is precisely that; founded from the sofa by Jen Fuller whilst feeding her first-born daughter, Etta. Jen quickly realised that a 4 week Etta’s gaze was locked onto a black and white jumper she was wearing – it was the first thing her daughter had concentrated her focus on, that wasn’t a face.

Something clicked and the ETTA LOVES creativity began. All of the ETTA LOVES range is carefully designed with actual science.

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“Babies are born with fully formed eyes however they are not born with the ability to see clearly. This develops with time through practice and the forming of critical eye-to-brain connections.

Because of this, at birth babies are attracted to high contrast, large scale patterns but as the weeks and months go past their vision improves steadily and the world starts to appear in more vivid detail and colour.

At Etta Loves we use the knowledge of what babies can and can’t see at various stages of their visual development to design patterns that support their incredible discovery of the world around them. It’s why our patterns are often described as magical, as babies are calmed and mesmerised as they try to make sense of the fascinating shapes and contrast before them”.

Your baby is, quite literally, spellbound by science with the ETTA LOVES designs. The range started with Muslins as Jen knew how you ALWAYS need one (or two, or three!) on hand at all times.


 

CLICK TO SHOP >> 3-PACK ANIMAL PRINT MUSLINS

We have this 3-pack of Animal print muslin’s – and they’re the ultimate multitasker! Not only are they mega soft (that Bamboo-Cotton is magical in its own right!) but they’re mega functional too. Use them as usual for spills and snotty noses and for when you need those moments of calm. I can’t recommend these muslin’s enough! Even after washing what feels like a million times, the quality is still the same. Edie was completely taken by the prints straight after they were out of the box – they’re the first things she’s learnt to focus her gaze with. The Etta Loves magic knows no bounds here!  We tie the muslins to the side of the play gym/pram/cot/back of the car seat to keep Edie mesmerised (which also gives us a few minutes peace to sit down and drink that hot cup of tea – which is so important!). The science behind the designs is really quite something – they catch the eye of everyone we come into contact with, so the print also works on adults too! Stylish AND scientific, you can’t get better than that!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What ETTA LOVES say:

Triple pack of super-soft sensory muslin squares in high contrast black and white patterns. Designed to the millimetre to support babies’ cognitive and visual development between birth and around four months.

The ultimate multi-tasker also delivers sensory calm through our scientific patterns.

Pack includes 1 x zebra, 1 x starfish and 1 x Dalmatian design presented in our stylish box packaging.

Each muslin is 60cm x 60cm.

Made from: 100% viscose from bamboo.

“Muslins are so omnipresent for the first year of life, and beyond, so when you add in how multi-functional they are and the close proximity they come to a baby’s face it made sense to start there and make them do something far more valuable than just mop up baby yuck!”

JEN FULLER, FOUNDER OF ETTA LOVES

Eli is 7 and still uses a muslin for spills or when he’s got a cold – proof that this is product that you’ll be using for a long time after those new-born day’s are over!In times where we need to think and buy in more eco-friendly ways, its a good job that the muslin’s are designed to last – and even better when a muslin is as stylish as the ETTA LOVES designs.

 

click to shop >> NEW ZEBRA KNITTED BLANKET

We absolutely LOVE this knitted blanket in zebra print and wish it was made in adult sizes for us too! I’ve never felt a softer knit, which Edie loves to snuggle into. It has a gorgeous hand-feel, which hasn’t decreased since washing several times – just superb quality. We love how the science behind the design keeps Edie calm as she begins to drift off to sleep. It looks looks mega cool in the pram. It would make a great newborn gift too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What ETTA LOVES say:

Our first knitted blanket delivers super-soft sensory stimulation, for calm snuggles at home or on the move.

Our zebra print is designed to support babies vision from birth to 4 months old.

Soft, snuggly and sensory knitted blanket in high contrast black and white zebra print. Designed to the millimetre to support babies’ cognitive and visual development between birth to four months.

Perfect for in the home or on the go, keeping snuggly and calm at the same time.

100cm x 80cm with black edge (white edge on reverse) in our stylish box packaging.

Made from: 100% cotton.

Image may contain: one or more people, stripes and baby

CLICK TO SHOP >> ZEBRA COMFORTER

Much like the muslin’s, during a meltdown, we can guarantee this Comforter calms Edie. The print, plus the soft bamboo cotton against her cheek, immediately mesmerises her to sleep. We’ve washed ours plenty of times now and again, it still looks and more importantly, FEELS, brilliant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What ETTA LOVES say:

Super soft, super cute comforter in clever zebra print that your baby will want to keep in their hands and near their eyes. Babies not only love the clever zebra pattern but will also fiddle with the cute floppy zebra ears, providing an additional sensory experience.

Our zebra print is designed to support babies visual and cognitive development from birth to around 4 months old.

40cm x 40cm double lay knotted muslin.

Made from: 100% viscose from bamboo.

CLICK TO SHOP >> ANIMAL PRINT PLAY-MAT

reversible: 0 to 4 months and 5+ months

I was first of all struck by the stylish look of this play mat as it fits in perfectly with our decor – but its actually the science and design consideration of this product that mesmerises me (never-mind Edie!). The fact that the design is illustrated so carefully for brand new baby eyes is a real winner for us – its made Edie cope so much better with tummy time- she loves this dalmation print, her eyes widen and she is immediately transfixed! Really wish we’d had this for Eli 7 years ago as he absolutely deplored tummy time! The mat allows us time to get on with bits around the house or EVEN sit down for a few extra minutes while Edie is captivated by the monochrome print. We also love that from 5 months the mat can be turned over to further the eye development with the colour side – how clever is that?!

The mat itself is really soft, a great size and has lovely padding for the comfort of your babe. It rolls up easily for storage and carting around when travelling. Oh and you can whack it in the washing machine too – which is very important – as all new parents will understand!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What ETTA LOVES say:

Our playmat provides perfect stimulation for tummy time and playtime. Reversible dalmatian (0-4 month print) and leopard print (5+ months) in soft organic cotton with a comfy padded fill.

Designed specifically to support babies’ visual and cognitive development throughout their first year.

The pattern also encourages your baby to use their back, neck and shoulder muscles (helping them prepare for rolling and crawling) as you’ll notice them trying to push up to make more sense of the print before them.

Comes in our gorgeous box packaging with a band to hold the mat together when rolled up – making it perfect for home and away.

Size: Circular – 1m diameter

Made from: Outer – Organic cotton. Inner: Polyester padding

Machine washable to make your life easier too.

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“OUR MAGIC IS BY DESIGN, NOT CHANCE”

“From the colours we use, the scales within each pattern and the placement and space between each shape, everything is designed on our consultant Orthoptist Laura’s recommendation to support your baby’s visual and cognitive development.

As a result, our patterns will look different to your baby from week to week as their vision develops. This is the magic of Etta Loves and what makes us unique in the world”.

JEN FULLER, FOUNDER OF ETTA LOVES

So as you can now tell, we’re big fans of ETTA LOVES in our household. We can’t recommend all of these products enough. They would all make great gifts for loved ones. And remember when you buy from a small business, you’re supporting a family. And that always feel’s nice. Even better when the products are this clever and functional!

What Jen has created is really quite extraordinary – especially for such a young and small brand! What ETTA LOVES has accomplished in the 3 short years that its been going is amazing and I honestly can’t wait for the new products to launch next year. Jen, you and your team of specialists are so very clever and you have helped a lot of families and babies learn and grow. That is really quite epic!

C
✖️✖️✖️

 


 

THE ETTA LOVES TEAM

JEN FULLER – FOUNDER

Founder of Etta Loves and mum to Etta and her little sister Uma. I started this business to give parents the gift of calm and babies pure wonder through our sensory patterns. I want to make everyday moments easier, calmer and super sensory.

LAURA – ORTHOPTIST

Mum to Sophie and Thomas, Laura has 20 years’ experience as an early years orthoptist (or specialist in children’s vision development to you and me). She has provided in-depth knowledge of the first 12 months of a child’s visual development, to ensure that every pattern, colour and scale we produce is led by science to delivery the sensory magic.

SHRUTI – DESIGNER

Jen met Shruti through NCT. Shruti is a phenomenal designer. She’s the super stylish one in the group, whose baby Kiran looked effortlessly cool since day dot. Once Jen and Shruti agree on the theme and style of a new pattern, she uses Laura’s expert input to create the stunning designs.

SAMIA

Samia has a wealth of experience in the children’s wear market, so brings her unique knowledge to the team to help grow and drive the brand forward. She is also critical in helping Jen make product decisions and giving the confidence to reach for the stars

THE ETTA LOVES STORY

Sat on my sofa with a heap of mucky muslins by my side, I realised that 4-week old little Etta was staring at my top. It was the first thing I’d noticed her actively trying to focus on and unsurprisingly it was a simple black and white pattern.

After a month of trying to rotate black and white clothing (which got both difficult and boring) this got me thinking; why aren’t the most seen items by babies designed to stimulate them and capture their attention? And why wouldn’t you use medical knowledge of babies’ visual development to make them the best that they could be at doing this? And while you’re at it they should be stylish.

Etta Loves was created to turn everyday essentials into sensory sensations, by using the science of what babies can and can’t see to create clever and stunning patterns. The result is that babies are mesmerised and supported in their visual and cognitive development, whilst parents benefit from a priceless moment of calm.

 

*Some words taken directly from EttaLoves.com to ensure information delivered is correct.

For clarity, I was kindly #gifted all products that are highlighted in this post above, by ETTA LOVES.

This is not a sponsored, paid post or an ad and I was not obliged to write this blog post or link back to the ETTA LOVES website. I only shout about items that I genuinely believe in, so be safe in the knowledge that I’m in love ETTA LOVES as much as Edie is!

 

WHAT EDIE WORE // THE 2019 BODY SUIT

WHAT EDIE // WORE

We bought this “Born in 2019” body suit ahead of Edie arriving. In fact, it was the very first item of baby clothing I did buy.  I’m not keen on kids clothing, adorned with cartoons and the like. We prefer to keep slogans understated and to a minimum – so this baby grow celebrating Edie’s year of birth was spot on!

 

Part of the H&M CONSCIOUS collection, this body suit was just £3.99 and will make for a lovely memento. The actual body suit on its own has now sold out, but you can buy a similar body suit as part of a cute 3-piece set:

3-piece cotton jersey set - Natural white/Born in 2019 - Kids | H&M GB3-piece cotton jersey set - Natural white/Born in 2019 - Kids | H&M GB 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CLICK HERE TO BUY: 3-piece cotton jersey set // £7.99

CONSCIOUS. Long-sleeved bodysuit, a pair of trousers and accessory in soft organic cotton jersey. Bodysuit with press-studs at the crotch. Trousers with wide fold-over ribbing at the waist.

If you’re looking for a gift for a newborn, this would be perfect.

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Edie has worn this body suit a few times – it works well with those comfy little leggings and with a pair of dungarees too. We have this one, also from the H&M CONSCIOUS collection, in a few colours. Above, Edie is wearing the Dark Grey version.

 

Cotton dungarees - Dark grey - Kids | H&M GB

Cotton dungarees - Dark grey - Kids | H&M GB 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CLICK HERE TO BUY: Cotton dungarees // £8.99

CONSCIOUS. Dungarees in sweatshirt fabric made from soft organic cotton. Straps with press-studs, a kangaroo pocket and ribbing at the hems. Soft brushed inside.

Cotton dungarees - Light pink - Kids | H&M GB 1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CLICK HERE TO BUY: Cotton dungarees (Light Pink) // £8.99

All of these clothing pieces have washed really well and I’m so happy with the cost-per-wear too – as we all know, babies grow at alarming rate!

C
✖️✖️✖️

PREGNANCY & ME // MY POSITIVE BIRTH STORY

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  • STM
  • Edith (Edie) Lavender Aurora Hill
  • 🌈 Bébé
  • 02/08/2019 at 00:18
  • 40 weeks + 6 days
  • 7 lb 1.5oz
  • Spontaneous labour
  • No pain relief
  • No intervention
  • Gave birth in Triage
  • Stepping Hill Hospital, Manchester, UK

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I feel so bloody chuffed to be finally writing a POSITIVE birth story. Despite beginning our Hypnobirthing journey at 25 weeks pregnant, I think its fair to say that I doubted how this labour would pan out. I had a traumatic birth with Eli that lasted 30+ hours due to induction at 42 weeks. I won’t go into the story of Eli’s birth, because I have made ‘peace’ with it now and its not healthy to continue to dwell on it (hiya Mum-Guilt, great to see you again).

So I’ll push the previous history to one side and start from the beginning with Edie’s birth now.


I had initially set out to avoid ALL intervention with this pregnancy, including any sweeps.  I’d had 4 failed sweeps with Eli and felt it was a pretty pointless procedure, in my opinion. I voiced this in my birth preferences and talked through interventions with my community midwife team. Instead, from around 35 weeks I started drinking in my all of the Raspberry Leaf Tea, I started eating 6 dates a day and then when we hit 37 weeks, I started taking a bath on an evening infused with Clary Sage essential oil, I started eating fresh pineapple (including the core, ‘cos Bromelain), I added Clary Sage to the oil diffuser with lavender, we added Clary Sage to Cowshed body oil and massaged it into my bump and ankles (!!), I used my Medela Swing for 5-10 minutes on each breast in an attempt to stimulate oxytocin and continued to go to bed and meditate using my Positive Birth Company MP3′s.

But at my 40 week appointment, I was HOT and beginning to feel a bit fed up. When asked if I still wanted to decline any intervention….I said “sod it” and agreed to a one-time sweep. Just to see…

I was advised if anything was to ‘happen’ it would do so within 48 hours. Obviously, all of the above are old wives tales – Hypnobirthing science aside, of course! Nothing is going to push your body into giving birth. Your baby will come, when your baby is ready.

At 1pm, 48 hours (practically!) to the minute, I started to have what I thought were Braxton Hicks. Eli and I hauled ourselves into my bedroom and I whacked Friends on whilst he played on Minecraft. We had lunch and I kept an eye on the frequency of the surges (contractions). They seemed regular. I opened up the Freya App on my phone and began timing the surges – they were lasting 30 seconds or so and were 6 minutes apart. I convinced myself this wasn’t labour and decided it would be a good idea to tidy the entire house, hoover, clean my bedroom window and then sew up a pair of James’ trousers that I’d been putting off.

Now it was about 4pm and the surges had continued to stay regular throughout all my weird nesting chores. I texted James and asked him to keep an eye on the trains (we’d had dreadful local flooding the day before) but assured him that I was fine and it ‘probably’ wasn’t even real surges. By 5:30, the surges were more frequent and lasting 40-60 seconds. I texted James and asked him to leave work because the surges were lasting longer and had become more powerful (painful). I was really feeling the effects of ‘Up Breathing’ at this point – I couldn’t get through a surge without it.

James got home just after 6:30pm and made me beans on french toast, incase I was in labour. Then he fannied about making tea for himself and Eli. Meanwhile, the Freya App told me I was in established labour…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By 7pm, the surges were less than 3 minutes apart and I was reallllllly feeling it. I had two paracetamol (LOL) and made James get a rush on with eating his tea and sorting Eli out. Of course James was ridiculously laid back about all of this! By 7:30pm I got in the bath and I asked James to ring Maternity Triage to ask for advice. We both spoke to the Midwives on Triage – they were so lovely and advised I should go in to be assessed.

I said my goodbye’s to Eli – and he kissed the bump for the last time. He told me he was proud of me and that I MUST remember to keep breathing! (I did). He grabbed his suitcase, iPad and monkey and off he went on his own adventure next door!

 

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At 8pm, we were in the car making the 10 minute journey to Stepping Hill Hospital. I had the soothing tone of Siobhan Miller in my headphones and whacked on a eye-mask so I could concentrate – I’d also added Clary Sage and Lavender to one of Eli’s old muslin’s to breathe in. I’d convinced myself I must have been about 5-6cm, especially as the surges were so close together now.

We made it to Triage just after 8:15pm and were immediately seen. I really struggled with the examination due to the frequency and power of my surges. It took my Midwife, Deb, a little while to get me on the bed to be assessed. Eventually she managed and announced that I was JUST 1cm dilated. I couldn’t believe it. If this was barely the beginning, I had absolutely NO IDEA how I could cope with the rest of labour. I had to knock that doubt straight out of my head and by 9pm, we were on our way back home.

James put candles around the bedroom, closed the curtains then on the oil diffuser went. I kept the Positive Affirmations MP3 going via my headphones, rocked back and forth on my birth ball and we continued to time the surges. By 10pm James noticed that my breathing had changed and kept putting me back on track. Sadly, I couldn’t deal with him massaging my back or doing the light touch we’d planned on – I was completely in the zone, kept my eyes closed, and was doing exactly what my body told me to do.

By 11pm, I couldn’t cope with the sheer power of the surges and there was little to no break between them now. I had to switch off the MP3 at this point because some of the affirmations weren’t totally relevant. Instead, I used my visualisations (of St. Ives beach! and also of the placement of my favourite positive affirmation cards around the house) and I kept repeating my favourite affirmations to  myself: ‘my surges cannot be more powerful than me, because they are me‘ and ‘every surge brings me closer to my baby‘. I got James to ring Triage again, they advised that being in our home environment for as long as possible would be better than going back to the hospital again – especially as it had only been 2 hours since we left (and my waters were still in tact).

Reluctantly, I continued to labour at home – we knew I was in real labour so I turned off my phone and the Freya App which had proven to be so invaluable during and up till this point. By 11:30 I  found I had too much discomfort in my coccyx and it felt like my bladder was overly full – but I couldn’t pass urine (I couldn’t get off the ball to get to the toilet to be truthful!). I’m not gonna lie here, I was in total agony. My breathing had changed once again and I was actively ‘Down Breathing’, James kept trying to bring it back to Up Breathing, but there was no chance. I was screaming out as I reached the peak of each surge now too. It was an animalistic release – which brought me a real relief too.

I was thinking I needed an immediate Epidural – or even better -to be knocked out for a C-Section. I felt like I couldn’t go any longer*. There was no way any other drug would help me now. I needed my baby to come out and we HAD to get to the hospital. Then POW my waters broke. It was a massive gush of warmth down my legs, which I ignored and continued to breathe and bounce. Thankfully, my waters were clear. PHEW.

*I now understand that what I was feeling here was TRANSITION.

Transition is the final phase of the first stage of labour, following early and active labour. At this point, a woman progresses from seven to 10 centimetres, often in less than an hour. The word transition means that her body is making the shift from opening the cervix to the beginning of the baby’s descent.

 

As I’d been induced with Eli and the midwives failed to break my waters on no less than 3 occasions, I had no experience of what it felt like to have your waters break naturally. It was absolutely crackers – it was a big pop towards my public bone and I knew then, that she was coming. James rang Triage and told them we were en route again and my waters had now gone.

It took me about 6 minutes to get from our bedroom to the car on the drive. How I managed to get down the stairs I will never know.

Outside was so eery. It was midnight and there was a low cloud – you could barely see in front of you – it was completely silent. James drove SO carefully to the hospital – I screamed at him “this is one time you’re allowed to rag the car about!”. It was quite honestly like a film.

But he kept his cool. He has since admitted he didn’t think I was much further along than the 1cm, so he was relatively laid back.I do have a reputation for over-dramatising situations – so this isn’t his fault.

We got to the hospital and he parked up. I couldn’t get out of the car. I was screaming through my surges and my body started pushing down. I had no control over the pushing. It’s what my body wanted to do. Once through the hospital entrance, James grabbed a wheelchair. I jumped onto it, on my knees and he dragged me to the lift. There was another woman behind us, who was apparently also pushing. She waited for the next lift.

James tried to get me through the double doors once at Triage, but he was struggling, so I jumped off the wheelchair and ran into a room, stripped all of my clothes off and got on the bed, on all fours. I announced I was Hypnobirthing and pushing.

Deb, my midwife, who I’d seen only 3 hours earlier, was attempting to calm me down so she could assess if I was indeed dilated enough to be pushing. She said she could see the baby’s head and that she was going to coach me through the pushing. Sarah, the second midwife on Triage came in and let us know that the lady behind us was also pushing and she had alerted the Delivery Suite about the two of us. But it was too late for me – I was going to give birth in Triage!

I pushed Edie’s head out in 3 pushes – 2 pushes later she was completely out – shocked, but blinking. She’d been born in the wrong department, 10 minutes after arriving. I scooped her up between my legs and rubbed at her little body. She wasn’t breathing – Deb cut the cord and grabbed a towel to try and rouse Edie. After a minute or so, Edie was taken away to Resuscitation.

 

As we’d not been able to have delayed cord clamping because Edie had rushed into the world, I used my B.R.A.I.N and agreed to having Active Management of the placenta. Deb administered the injection of Syntocinon and began massaging my tummy. A few minutes of surges and pushing later my placenta was delivered. While the placenta was in tact, Deb noticed that out came a gush of meconium with it. This indicated that Edie had passed her first bowel movement with the stress of coming out so quickly.

We were all shell-shocked.

Completely shell-shocked.

It felt like a lifetime before Edie was brought back to us.

 

When she was finally placed in my arms, I relaxed down. I felt the biggest rush of love, EVER. I’d done it. I’d given birth to our daughter, using Hypnobirthing tools and without any pain relief whatsoever. I’d gone from 1cm dilated to giving birth in the space of 3 hours.

I couldn’t believe it.

I still can’t believe it – almost a fortnight on. It still feels like a totally surreal, but serene, experience. Kind of out of body. I can remember every single detail. Which is something I am missing from Eli’s birth, due to the amount of drugs that were administered.

A run-down of my labour – total time is cited as 1 hour, 40 minutes!

Deb finished cleaning me up and then we were taken to the Delivery Suite (ironically). Once there, Edie was taken to the warming cot by my new Midwife Eileen, who took bloods and called a Paediatrician down. There had been issues with the PH gasses of the placenta, meaning Edie needed some extra monitoring. Eileen was an Irish midwife who was just the biggest and brightest soul. She was old school and simply magical.

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There was a struggle with getting the right amount of blood from Edie so more specialists were called. Remembering my Hypnobirthing kept me as calm as I could possibly be. James didn’t leave her side – he held onto her tiny hand while Eileen repeatedly checked my stat’s and then called for a Doctor to repair the 2nd degree tear I’d received. After a fairly shocking Episiotomy (that landed me with blood poisoning and a week back in hospital following Eli’s birth), a specialist was required for the repair job. I finally got my hands on Gas & Air. I did as I was asked and took 10 deep and quick breaths on the gas, I shouted that it didn’t work in that oh so familiar low-tone and then felt that floating feeling. My Doctor, Sarah, started stitching, I could feel it, so I got my breathing in order using Up Breathing and sailed high and free. Bliss.

I didn’t want to hand the gas back, but Eileen made me. She then brought that Tea and Toast… so all was forgiven!

 

 

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If you know, you know!

 

This experience was so far-removed from my previous labour and recovery. For one, James was addressed at every single opportunity. Which made such a difference.

Eileen ever so sweetly grabbed my toiletry bag from my case and started unpacking the shampoo and conditioner so I could have a shower with everything I needed. It’s such an intense relationship that you form with a Midwife, in such a short time. I felt so overwhelmed with love and support from Eileen – I could actually cry right now, remembering how she cared for me.

We weren’t rushed at all; given all the time we needed, but by 5am, it was time to head to the postnatal ward, MAT2. I went into a wheelchair, pulled by Eileen, holding tightly onto Edie who was now bundled in blankets and her very first baby grow. A red knitted hat was given – this was intentional – we later found out that different coloured hats meant different things. For us, the red hat was a signifier for staff that Edie had needed special care (as well as keeping her little head warm!). We said our goodbye’s to Eileen and settled into the cubicle on the ward. James was even allowed to stay – again, this meant the world to us as he’d been sent straight home following the birth of Eli.

6am and James was snoring in the corner, I watched the sunrise through the gap in the curtains and felt the most intense love for this little human in my arms.

At 6:30am I was introduced to Emma, the Midwife on duty – she took mine and Edie’s stat’s and I was given Paracetamol for the after-pains you experience post-birth. We were also shown to the family kitchen, which was stocked to the brim with breakfast foods and an array of tea’s and coffee – of which James was allowed to access too. I was soon given a menu to choose my main meals for the rest of the day. We were then left to chill for 3 hours until our stat’s were repeated again. I tried to sleep, but it was warm and loud as new patients were added to the ward – along with people having their own stat’s read. I couldn’t stop staring at my new sweet baby girl anyway, so nothing was going to interrupt or impact on that!

By 9am, James wanted  to grab Eli from our amazing neighbours next door and freshen up. At 11am he returned and our glorious children met for the very first time.

 

To say I was emotional at our little family all meeting for the first time, would be a total understatement. I cried the happiest tears I imagine I’ll ever cry. I am so proud and so happy and so full of love, I’m not sure how I haven’t burst yet!

As Edie had needed special care, she was closely monitored by specialists – they found that her temperature was going up and down (only very slightly), but enough to warrant an extra night in hospital.

This was completely fine by me. It was a welcome stay. I wasn’t rushed out – in fact, the nurses told me we could stay as long as we wanted to! This really helped with my anxiety and stress. I felt like we had real personal care here – by professionals who were passionate about our wellbeing. We weren’t just another ‘number’ – which is how we felt at the hospital where we had Eli. (I am trying not to dwell on that past experience!)

Unfortunately, our first night, just us two, was not so successful. Edie screamed the ward down from 11pm until around 6am. I think she was over-tired and nothing I could do would overcome that. Two midwives came to the rescue and she eventually calmed down. I tried my best not to get stressed over it, but when you’re on a ward, its difficult to not worry about everyone else! I ended up walking up and down the hospital corridors for a few hours. As soon as I fell asleep, James and Eli arrived for the day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had a full day of monitoring to get through before we were allowed to go home. Edie’s temperature eventually stabilised and all my stat’s were good. We then had a the Newborn hearing test and as Edie had received special care, a Paediatrician had to sign her Newborn Check off before we were discharged.

Everything was signed off and we were given the A-OK to head home in the evening!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We got home and all our neighbours came out to greet us. We had fish and chips and we all slept mega soundly. It was just the perfect start to our new family life.

In complete honesty, I would not have had the same pregnancy OR indeed  birth experience without The Positive Birth Company. I may not have had any of the TEN birth scenario’s that I wrote preferences for, or planned for (didn’t get to use the LED tea lights, playlist, oils or massage, birth pool or delayed cord clamping) but this was still such an incredibly positive birth.  An amazing labour and birth and so far, postpartum period.

From the Digital Course to reading the daily positive birth stories, I would not have been able to do it without the PBC and the Freya App. I felt so prepared and at ease this time around. I was genuinely excited for Edie’s birth and I’ve probably never felt more ‘zen’ in my entire life – which is quite the statement, coming from me. I feel a peace with both my birth experiences and the Hypnobirthing tools I learned will live with me forever!  I’ve even used several affirmations and the breathing techniques since having Edie.

I have never, felt so empowered and strong and brave in my entire life – and I doubt I ever will feel like this ever again.

So thank you Siobhan and the PBC for allowing me to have confidence in myself and my own decisions. I cannot recommend The Positive Birth Company enough. From our little family of four to you Siobhan, THANK YOU!

C
✖️✖️✖️

 

EDIE LAVENDER AURORA HILL
02/08/2019 at 00:18
7lb 1.5oz

 

 


For clarity, I was kindly #gifted The Digital Course by The Positive Birth Company. This is not a sponsored, paid post or an ad.

I only shout about items that I genuinely believe in, so be safe in the knowledge that I’m in love The PBC!

BRAND IN FOCUS // THE POSITIVE BIRTH COMPANY

I’ll try and be brief with the introduction here, because I’m doing my upmost to avoid all and any negativity right now!

(I’m currently 40 weeks and 2 days pregnant). 

—–

My pregnancy with Eli wasn’t straight forward. We had a lot of complications and constant monitoring. We were high risk. Then came labour. I won’t go into the details, but I had a pretty awful and traumatic labour with Eli. I was induced at almost 42 weeks, I had no say in the labour, it was an agonising 30+ hours with every intervention possible. It all ended in a whirlwind of a dodgy episiotomy and ventouse that saw the room fill with 15+ people and before the threat of emergency C-Section.

It was VERY medical. I was never given options – I accepted what was told to me, because heck, Doctors know best, right?

We knew no different. We actually thought it was a ‘normal’ labour!

Following the stress of Eli’s pregnancy and in hindsight, the trauma of his birth, plus my miscarriage in-between; falling with this my third pregnancy, I KNEW something had to change.

My anxiety was through the roof when we began trying again; despite my medication and an abundance of self-help. The anxiety was surely inevitable following a miscarriage, yes. But the anxiety surrounding labour didn’t need to be there. This is where Hypnobirthing comes in…


I started researching into Hypnobirthing properly as soon as I got the second line on that pregnancy test back in November 2018.

My initial belief was that Hypnobirthing was all about being hypnotised during labour… L O L. No, it’s definitely nothing to do with being hypnotised. But after reading the birth stories on forums and blogs, I still sat on the sceptical fence… I mean, what even is this HIPPY, DIPPY, BALONEY?!

The more I read, the more I became obsessively intrigued by it. To the point where, yep, you guessed right, my anxiety surrounding labour took a real back-seat.

Having used The Yes Mum cards for daily affirmations I ordered the book: Your Baby, Your Birth.  I would pick the book up and fall asleep and it became clear I needed something more engaging. I also wanted to do something that James could get involved with at the same time. Local classes were really expensive and not at convenient times for us.  It’s certainly worth mentioning here too that James found my labour with Eli horrendous. He felt totally helpless and all he could do was sit beside me with his hands turning white under my constant clench. Him being there was all I needed at that time, but he will be first to admit that its scarred him somewhat – he definitely experienced birth trauma too. This time he wanted to be helpful, to have a real role in my pregnancy and subsequently, the labour.

—-

Then pops up The Positive Birth Company on Instagram. Boom. I began following and was hooked. Incidentally, Siobhan had been following me too and very kindly offered for us to give her Digital Course a try.

I obviously jumped at the chance! I’d read that starting a Hypnobirthing course would be best from 28 weeks onwards. But as we had it at 25 weeks, it seemed daft not to begin straight away.

Once my profile was all set up on the Digital Pack, I familiarised myself with the platform. From a user point of view, it’s a really neat and simple platform first of all. It’s organised perfectly and so easy to use. The branding is spot on too – which really helps when you’re trying to learn but also ‘zone out’, the colours and fonts used are quite obviously well-thought through. I was so impressed with how thorough the course looked – six sections with everything you could ever possibly need to know (and more!) surrounding pregnancy, labour, birth and beyond.

It came to bedtime so we grabbed the laptop, put candles on and cosied up in bed with the first of the 6 sections in the Digital Pack. Each section is from 40-60+ minutes long. So you want to dedicate some real quality time to this. We decided we would look at one section a night – where possible; spreading it over days where needed, so it wasn’t too much information at once.

We were immediately into it. Siobhan has such a gentle and clear tone – plus the information was exceptionally thorough and we really, really enjoyed learning. We were pausing videos along the way to recap what we’d learned so far- and again when we had decisions to plan between us. Learning to use more positive ‘birth language’ still has me on my toes at times – for instance, we refer to contractions as a Surge  – it just rids the questioning of any negativity and apprehension that could slow labour down. Likewise, talking about the ‘power’ of a surge, as opposed to the amount of pain I’m in, will help me to understand how my body is working to birth my baby – allowing my body to be in total and instinctive control of the labour.

I think we’d both agree that one of the most interesting sections for both of us was the SCIENCE section. We both learned SO MUCH about the female body and what it goes through during pregnancy, labour and birth. I honestly can’t believe I’ve reached the age of 33 , having had one child, not knowing some of the actual childbirth process. I feel like Siobhan really needs to take elements of this course into schools – its been a true education for us!

One of the best bits of this course has been getting to grips with the roles each of us will ‘play’ once labour begins. My only job here is to remember my Up & Down breathing and to keep calm, relaxed and at ease. Whereas James has an actual  list of things he will be seeking to fulfil – something he’s genuinely excited about and so grateful to have responsibility for; especially following the helplessness he felt during my labour with Eli.

It’s also worth highlighting here that Hypnobirthing isn’t just for ‘normal’ vaginal delivery – this is an education that will take you through all aspects of labour, whether that be via water, land or theatre – whether thats planned theatre or unplanned. The relaxation tools and techniques will enable you to have confidence in your OWN decisions during labour and birth (and postpartum too!). The tools will give you back the control of your labour. This feeling of being in full control is something that I’m finding very empowering after such a dreadful labour with Eli.

After completing all 6 sections of the Digital Pack, you can quickly review specific sections in the Course Notes Booklet (which you can download and print – we’re taking a copy with my Maternity notes) – which is great for back-referencing. There are also a series of MP3’s included too, which have been so invaluable during my pregnancy – especially these later weeks when I can often get into bed feeling deflated. I listen to the Positive Affirmations for Pregnancy MP3 on repeat when I’m in the bath or for an hour or so, as soon as I get in bed. This normally soothes me into a lovely slumber (before I’m awoken shortly after for my first loo-trip of the night!). I can imagine this MP3 being perfect during labour – I’d been looking at Spa Music to play – but actually, I think I’d prefer to have the MP3 running in the background as a reminder that I’m getting closer to meeting my baby.

 

On top of all of this, you also get a (now editable!) downloadable PDF template for highlighting your birth preferences; should you wish to prepare any.  Obviously, you can do this yourself, but the sections on the template are perfectly set out and clear to read in a rush. My midwife was very impressed when I presented them at my 36 week appointment (!). My birth preferences have completely changed since starting this Hypnobirthing course – and again since reading the positive birth stories on the closed Facebook community page (which you also get access too once you sign up for the course!). Reading these stories every day has been so helpful in cementing the notion that I CAN do this and I WILL do this – whenever my baby decides is the right time.

To surmise, I can quite honestly say that this Digital Course has changed our lives. Obviously; we have the birth bit to come. But I have to say that the course, by @thepositivebirthmama (and her amazingly soothing voice), has provided such wisdom, scientific facts, relaxation tools and the foresight to retain control this time; for both @jameshill.tv and I. Weirdly, I am actually excited for labour to begin – however and whenever it does happen✨ And I most certainly would not be feeling this way had we not studied this course. I’m not even sure I would have gotten through the last 20 weeks so easily without it either. How many people can say that?

Thank you so much @thepositivebirthcompany for making me feel so different this time around – and the tools you’ve taught us both will continue to be helpful for life in general postpartum, I’m certain 🖤 We’re both shocked at how informed and relaxed and prepared we feel.

I will be doing a full write-up post-labour, however it pans out! But for now, I cannot recommend @thepositivebirthcompany enough. Currently pregnant? You MUST go forth and seek for yourself!

C
✖️✖️✖️

—-

MORE FROM THE POSITIVE BIRTH COMPANY

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Upon completing the course, I purchased the Little pack of positivity directly from The Positive Birth Company website. Each pack contains 28 cards, each with a positive affirmation for pregnancy. I immediately placed the cards around our house where I would see them as a little reminders; reducing anxiety and boosting confidence around birth. The more confident you are, the more relaxed you will feel. The more relaxed you are the better your birth will be.

—–

Also available, to continue your understanding of Hypnobirthing (or instead of doing the course), you can find Hypnobirthing: Practical Ways to make your Birth Better, by founder, Siobhan Miller. The book is widely available, including from Amazon.co.uk, here.

—– 

Now that I’m mentally prepared for labour – I also wanted to share the accompanying App by the Positive Birth Company. The FREYA app is currently available on the App store. I’ve used it frequently when tracking Braxton Hicks – again, its simple to use, effective and we know this is going to be an essential when labour begins for real. During the timing of surges, the Up Breathing soundtrack is so useful  – especially if you don’t want your birth partner to attempt to do it for you (we tried and I found James’ voice too distracting – and we also creased up when he attempted to read out the positive affirmations too).

“Freya is the world’s first hypnobirthing-friendly surge (contraction) timer and virtual birth partner. She will coach you through each surge with a simple breathing technique and help you to relax in between with positive affirmations, calming visualisations and guided relaxation. The more relaxed you are, the more efficient and comfortable your labour will be. Freya will help you to remain calm and in control throughout. She will also keep track of how frequently your surges are coming and how long they are lasting. She will even let you know when it might be a good idea to contact your midwife! Freya will be with you every step – or surge – of the way!”

ALSO COMING SOON – THE POSTPARTUM COURSE.

Follow @ThePositiveBirthCompany for the latest details!

—-

MORE ABOUT SIOBHaN MILLER

Expert hypnobirthing teacher and founder of The Positive Birth Company Siobhan Miller has made it her mission to change the way women around the world approach and experience birth. Through her teaching she seeks to educate and empower women – and their birth partners – so that they can enjoy amazing and positive birth experiences, however they choose to bring their babies into the world.

Siobhan debunks common myths about hypnobirthing and explains why she believes it can make every type of birth a better experience – from a water birth at home to an unplanned caesarean in theatre.

So, what is hypnobirthing? Essentially, it’s a form of antenatal education, an approach to birth that is both evidence-based and logical. Hypnobirthing certainly doesn’t involve being hypnotised; instead, it teaches you how your body works on a muscular and hormonal level when in labour and how you can use various relaxation techniques to ensure you are working with your body (rather than against it), making birth more efficient and comfortable.

Siobhan’s advice and guidance will change your mindset and enable you to navigate your birth with practical tools that ensure you feel calm and in control throughout.

By the time you finish this course  you’ll feel relaxed, capable and genuinely excited about giving birth.

To read more about how and why Siobhan started The Positive Birth Company, please click here.

 

 


For clarity, I was kindly #gifted The Digital Course by The Positive Birth Company. This is not a sponsored, paid post or an ad – but does contain a highlighted Affiliate link, above.

I only shout about items that I genuinely believe in, so be safe in the knowledge that I’m in love The PBC!

BRAND IN FOCUS // AMAZON.co.uk – THE BABY WISHLIST

Baby Wishlist

When it comes to a new baby, regardless of whether its your first or 5th child, you will ALWAYS need to buy new things/newborn safety products/textiles/GENERAL STUFF. Plus, there’s always something new thats come out to make life as a new parent easier too.

When we had Eli, we were pretty organised. We love a spreadsheet and we love a bit of market research as it happens too. Getting organised was a real pleasure and never, ever a chore. We spent  a lot of time researching exactly what we needed and using the spreadsheets helped keep us in check with budgets too. Once you’re into the swing of this new parenting lark, you will realise that there are more items that you simply cannot live without. You won’t know this until the baby is earth-side and understand how your baby works and what their additional needs may be. You’re learning on the job basically.

When it came to this pregnancy we were obviously excited to get organised again. We pulled out the pram and got it cleaned up. Went through all the old furniture, toys and essentials. As there is a 7 year age gap between our two children, some things we had sold, donated to charities or as we sadly found, a lot of the remaining items had actually perished (yes, you read right, we’ve actually had plastic items, electronics and textiles perish) after 5 house moves and their years in storage. Out came the old spreadsheet and we continued to add to it as we remembered all the items we really could have done with in those early weeks/months with Eli. SO many new items have launched since we had Eli in 2012; that will definitely help us and keep our little family unit afloat amongst the newborn chaos that will very soon ensue.

So? Whats this a bout a wishlist then?

WELL, stranger on the internet, I just had to share the secondary helper in all this organisation. Let me introduce you to >>>The Amazon Baby Wishlist.

Firstly, this has been great for us to keep track of what we still need to buy and what we’ve managed to get. Amazon is usually the cheapest place to find items; with the exception of individual retailer sales and promotions. We always cross-check before we buy online. But in general, Amazon.co.uk is our go-to! Its been great for budgeting too.

So? What’s so good about it then?

Well, let me talk you through how it works!

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 // CREATE YOUR WISHLIST

This is mega simple to set up with your details, including potential baby arrival date. You can have a few users who can participate in adding to the wishlist – this is helpful for when James and I are both looking at different items and can easily see what eachother has found. You can also see what has been purchased too (this is great when you’re sharing the wishlist, but I’ll get to that bit shortly).

// ADD ITEMS FROM ANY WEBSITE OR BROWSE THE AMAZON CURATED LISTS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS

The curated lists are really helpful, especially for first-time parents!

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// PLANNING ON A BABY SHOWER? OR SIMPLY WANT TO SHARE YOUR LIST?

This is a great, great tool! You can easily share the link of your wishlist with friends and family so they know *exactly* what you would like, or in our case, exactly what we NEED. This also means you’re not getting duplicate items from well-meaning gift-givers or items that you really don’t need or have the space for! Thus saving your friends and family time and money too.

 

// FINALLY, ADD ITEMS AS YOU GO AND KEEP TRACK OF EVERYTHING IN ONE PLACE

As mentioned earlier, this is great for when several users are adding to the list. Again, also useful to see what’s already been purchased – especially when you’ve shared your list with friends and family, so no duplicate items! James has a tendency to delete items from the list once purchased. But there’s no reason why you can’t leave items on the list as the status changes to “Purchased”.

And thats not all!

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FREE WELCOME GIFT
An exciting new gift is released each month, choose one and make it yours.
Claim yours here >

 

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SAVE UP TO 30%

Prepare for baby’s arrival by saving up to 30% on a wide range of baby items.

// Spend £200 to receive 10% off. Use code WISHLIST10

// Spend £500 to receive 15% off. Use code WISHLIST15

// Spend £800 to receive 20% off. Use code WISHLIST20

// Spend £1000 to receive 30% off. Use code WISHLIST30. (Prime members onlY)

 

We managed to take advantage of the 20% code above – it worked out so well – especially as we had been given gift cards too. We managed to get £800+ worth of items for £360 in the end! There are several terms and conditions to being able to take full advantage of the codes above however – so make sure you read all the details here. Our main issue when trying to checkout was the delivery, oddly. For this promotion to apply, you need to make sure you select the same delivery option for all items being shipped, for example, all items must be dispatched to you using FREE delivery or all PRIME etc.

Head to the Baby Store on Amazon.co.uk to get started! You’ll find the ‘Add to Baby Wishlist‘ button on each product page, in the right hand navigation, as I’ve highlighted for you below:

If you’re pregnant or know someone who is, please share this blog post with them. It’s honestly been so much quicker, easier and CHEAPER for us using this Amazon Baby Wishlist this time!

C
✖️✖️✖️


For clarity, this is not a sponsored or paid post – but does contain Affiliate links.

I only shout about items that I genuinely believe in however, so be safe in the knowledge that I’m in love with this Baby Wishlist tool!

PALOMA FAITH x COSATTO // HEAR US ROAR

 

Let me start by mentioning that Paloma Faith is one of the nicest human beings I had the pleasure of working with, whilst at Bestival, back in the day when I was the (Global) Social Media Exec at AllSaints.  Paloma was friendly, welcoming, full of humour, laughter and was genuinely just a total joy to be around. Since then, I have indeed followed Paloma’s musical career and admired her for speaking out about her parenting methods.

So when I saw that Paloma had joined forces with Cosatto for a creative collaboration, I was ready to be hooked. I knew that Paloma would create something unique, fun and eye-catching; but the collection itself is just stunning. Using my favourite print of all, Leopard, Paloma and Cosatto have created a range of items from newborn that have bags of style, personality and of course, functionality.

For the low-down on the collaboration, including some behind the scenes photos, scroll on below.

 

Paloma Faith for Cosatto

 

“THESE DESIGNS MAKE ME FEEL HAPPY TO BE DIFFERENT – MY CHILD LOVES THEM TOO.”

– Paloma Faith

 

Paloma tearing up the rulebook. Cosatto’s Creative Director Vicky loving it.

Cosatto believes in celebrating parenthood by creating baby products that make a statement and stand out from the crowd. The new collaborative range, therefore, is irreverent, opulent and confident, bringing a new dimension to the parenting experience.

 

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Outrageously opulent. Outrageously rare. Crafted with over a million stitches.

Hear Us Roar

Hear Us Roar reflects the huge leap in popularity of animal print across all design categories. The leopard print design features on Cosatto’s bestselling model, Giggle 3, the classic pram and pushchair.

Channelling Faith’s signature retro Hollywood glamour, the design is also available on an oversized hat box changing bag. This is alongside a coordinating leopard print footmuff.

Anarchy in the Nursery

Taking its luxury travel system, Wow, Cosatto has also crafted a short run of prams taking reference from the ancient orient and 19th century Russian decorative arts.

This limited-edition design features state of the art printing techniques, traditional style embroidery as well as enamelled gold trims. Other highlights include a leatherette handle in teal, air filled tyres together with an extra-large carry cot. The travel system also has a coordinating luxury footmuff.

 

Extremely exclusive, extremely embroidered. Crafted with over a million stitches, Paloma’s Anarchy in the Nursery design pram is the rarest beast with only 50 available worldwide.

The world in your sights . It started with a sketch then took flight. Start where you are and the possibilities are endless. Paloma said so.

 

Finally, there is the Paloma Faith for Cosatto original coordinating Utility Bum Bag. This statement accessory can hold an iPad, nappies and bottles.

Commenting on the range, Faith says: “When I was a new mother, I felt like none of the designs out there really suited my personality. They all made me feel like I had to become someone else to be a good mother.

“I wanted to design something that allowed me to celebrate who I am while also stimulating my child and showing them that it’s ok to stand out from the crowd and have joie de vivre about all things. These designs make me feel happy to be different and my child loves them too.”

 

This is the caption

Faithful to her vision. Paloma admires her handiwork with Vicky, Cosatto’s Creative Director.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vicky Morley, creative director at Cosatto, adds: “We are chuffed to bits to be working with Paloma. She is a creative force with a natural flair for spotting trends. Paloma has an uncanny sense for what is at once extraordinary, outspoken and outlandish, while at the same time irresistibly appealing.

“She is a true talent with a unique view of the world. Paloma is not afraid to be herself and stand up for what she believes in. This is also a Cosatto sentiment. We are kindred spirits – this is what drew us to her.”

—–

5 Reasons to Buy Giggle 3

Meet the Cosatto Giggle 3 pram and pushchair. Taking gold-winning Giggle 2’s famous features and smooth handling even further, Giggle 3 is your nippy three wheel from-birth pram, reversible pushchair and Cosatto car seat carrier. Discover even more premium detailing, from the stitched leather handle to the deluxe amped-up wheels. Choose your statement around-town wonder. Relax with all you need from birth and beyond.

Classic 3 in 1. No need to buy separate carrycot, pram or duo-directional pushchair – Cosatto Giggle 3 pram and pushchair’s got the lot from day dot. The from-birth carrycot, (suitable for occasional overnight sleeping), converts to pram mode. Swap it to the reversible pushchair seat unit when they’re ready to sit up – facing you first, then the world.

Ultra-Portable. Compact Giggle 3 is your go-anywhere, stow-anywhere hero with flat-folding lightweight chassis. Great for smaller cars.

User-Friendly. With height-adjustable premium leather handle for walking tall, easy-release buttons for mode-changes they can sleep through, pop-off swivel wheels to whizz under the tap and snoozy multi-recline seat – Giggle 3 makes life a breeze.

Comfy All-Round. The luxury carrycot has maximised space to accommodate growing babies and the luxury zip-in liner is tailored for extra comfort. Add the matching Cosatto 0+ car seat to make Giggle 3 a travel system.

Patterns Babies Love. Designed in their studio in the North of England, Giggle 3 unites Cosatto’s passion for design and baby science. It’s crafted with engaging, baby-pleasing patterns in the hood. Put your baby at the heart of the story and the heart of Great British design.

Cosatto. Clever stuff for happy babies.

—–

Giggle 3 Pram & Pushchair // CLICK TO BUY
£559.95

 

 

Hat Box Changing Bag // CLICK TO BUY
£79.95

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Car Seat – Group 0+ // CLICK TO BUY
£184.95
Footmuff // CLICK TO BUY
£79.95

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EXCLUSIVELY AVAILABLE TO ORDER FROM MOTHERCARE

*Port adaptors required for use with the Giggle chassis.

 

I’m seriously keeping my fingers crossed that James lets me buy into it ahead of this baba’s arrival (note from narrator, I bet he won’t).

 

Paloma Faith for Cosatto

 

 


MORE ABOUT // PALOMA FAITH

Paloma Faith. Artist, style icon, actress, activist, mother. This inspirational Brit-award-winning artist with three double platinum selling albums and a career spanning over a decade appears regularly on our TV screens, has over a million followers on social and is a force for empowerment of young women.

 


Some words covered in this blog post and story of behind the collaboration, taken from the dedicated website: HEAR US ROAR

I just absolutely love this collaboration, but please also note, for clarity, this is not a sponsored post or a post or #AD, though there are some Affiliate links embedded.

Mumsnet: This Is My Child | Mr Eli has Talipes and Benign Paroxysmal Torticollis.

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I have been looking, with interest, at some of the posts that have been published during the This Is My Child awareness campaign via Mumsnet. We live our life day-to-day as normal. Because THIS is our ‘normal’. Eli is our first born and we know no different. But I suppose, our story is different. I’ve not really highlighted Eli’s Talipes or (recently diagnosed) Benign Paroxysmal Torticollis on my blog before. I have mentioned in a few posts about his Talipes. But nothing in depth. So here it goes!

Everything stems back to when I was pregnant. I had a very tough first few weeks, after a bleed we were told that the pregnancy might not be viable at a 5 week early-pregnancy scan and told to return in 3 weeks time; where we saw the most amazing and incredibly tiny flickering – a heartbeat! PHEW!

We so looked forward to that 12 week scan. The sonographer was lovely, but seemed concerned. Eli was jumping ALL OVER, I thought she was just having difficulty measuring up dates because he wouldn’t keep still. She then turned the machines off and said she was sorry to tell us that our bundle of joy had a “nuchal fold measurement on the cusp of high”. The exact measurement was 3.5 mm. This was indeed the cusp before they offer you further investigation. We needed to know. We were informed that a high NT measurement could mean a multitude of conditions, including Down Syndrome. This was heartbreaking. This baby was so wanted – we needed to know what we were facing. We had ‘counselling’ and I had bloods taken. The nurse then called University College Hospital London and told us they had a referral for the the very next day. We were told we could have a more in-depth scan at the Fetal Medicine Unit; where we would also be offered the option of CVS – which would indeed confirm any anomalies, through a horrendously invasive procedure. After the lengthy scan with several specialists, we were advised that we could either go ahead with CVS there and then, or wait… It had been picked up that there was a lack of nasal bone; another marker for Down Syndrome. Our world shattered. HOW WOULD WE COPE?! We went ahead with the CVS there and then. It was like a whirlwind.

The procedure was horrible. Just horrible. I had soreness and tenderness for a few days after. Not to mention the constant worry and stress of the risk of miscarriage. It was a very very hard time for both of us, waiting for the results. 3 weeks passed and we received a letter confirming that everything was spot on with Eli. He didn’t have any of the common anomalies that CVS tests for.  We were over the moon to say the very least. PHEW!

But this was not the end of our hospital visits. To cut the (very!) long story short – we had a total of 9 scans. Because of the NT measurement, Eli’s heart, organs and growth was routinely monitored. He developed fantastically. At the 25 week scan, it was found our baby had a degree of Bilateral Talipes.  But it was “extremely mild”. PHEW! It was corrective. We were happy. In the grand scheme of things.

Fast forward to almost 42 weeks pregnant, I was just a HUGE pregnant ball; unable to move, pretty much. That little boy was so so squashed up inside my petite 5 ft nothing 1″ frame. I was eventually induced. Which, shock horror was just the WORST thing ever. (Incidentally, I would never recommend an induction. Just bloody wait till the baby wants to arrive!). After 30 hours of labour, Eli was pulled out of me in an emergency situation using Ventouse. He was out, safe, at long last. PHEW.

Or so we thought.

We both immediately looked at his feets. Yes, they turned in, but probably weren’t half as badly affected as we were imagining.

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Again, fast forward to 8 weeks old. We’d not been seen by a specialist. Not even had a referral. At Eli’s 8 week check the GP who was head of the surgery, told me that his feet would ‘correct themselves when he learns to walk’. I wasn’t happy with that. We’d been massaging, manipulating and exercising Eli’s feets since birth, but at about 8-10 weeks had hit that brick wall. They weren’t getting any better. With the encouragement from @BexandMic on Twitter, who’s beautiful son Hugo was also born with Talipes, I kicked off at the Health Visitor. I got a referral to see a Physio about his feet. At the very first appointment our lovely Physio, Jenny, pointed out that Eli’s head was tilted to the left. I couldn’t understand what she was referring to, he just couldn’t hold his head up yet… She explained it looked like he had something called Torticollis. Possibly from being so squashed up during pregnancy, possibly from the trauma of being pulled out so quickly. I was given exercises to do with his neck regularly, after a week, his head was straight! I still to this day can’t believe we didn’t notice it. Looking back at photos, his neck is completely to his shoulder on every single one. There was still tightness after a few sessions with the Physio and more manipulation on our part. We eventually saw our consultant, Mr Tuite at Broomfield Hospital on 31st October. Eli was almost 14 weeks old. Worryingly, most children with Talipes begin their treatment shortly after birth.

We were devastated when Mr Tuite said that Eli would in fact require plaster casts to begin the correction process. Mr Eli was pretty mobile at 14 weeks old! He was used to his bedtime routine and his bath. We knew the casts were for the best though. We had to do it. We were told Eli had really mild Talipes, again, so would require 2 weeks worth of casts…

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6 weeks later Eli was still in casts. It was incredibly tough.

Being the age Eli was, we got a lot of stares. You could just tell people must have thought he’d been dropped and had broken legs. When people asked what had happened, they didn’t understand. They made me feel like the story I was telling was a pack of lies. It was just a horrendous feeling. We did however have luck on our side, in the fact that it was Winter when Eli was in casts. It wasn’t hot, he would have been so much more uncomfortable if it was! He spent a lot of time in long socks and snow suits! In hindsight, I wish I’d been more confident with his casts. Embraced them more. Decorated them, even. The casts did not hinder Eli in any way, he was rolling over in them and they were SO heavy and awkward. He kicked his legs up and down and bashed the casts to bits! He was so brave – he didn’t sleep at night, but hey, he doesn’t now either!

The Torticollis would occur when Eli seemed to meet new milestones. It wasn’t constant. It was irregular. His neck tilted for around a week when he started rolling, sitting up and crawling. But also seemed to coincide with teething too. We continued to repeat the exercises and manipulations.

Mid-December 2012 and Eli went into Ponseti Boots and Bars 23 hours a day. He got an hour “free” where we gave him his bath and he had a kick about afterwards. This was a huge relief. We could get back to normality somewhat. We hadn’t even thought about the visual  impact the Boots and Bar contraption would have on other people. After our journey, we had just accepted what we had to go through.

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In the coming weeks, I had an array of comments and conversations about his B & B’s.

“They’re funky boots” “Thanks! They’re to straighten his feet” “ohh… I thought they were just fashion accessories! I’m so sorry. Didn’t realise your son was ill”. “He’s not ill?”

“Does he have broken legs?”

“Does he have broken hips?”

“Is that a contraption to stop him wriggling away from you?”

“Do they make him taller?” “WHAT?!”

 Etc. Etc. Etc.

We had a lot of nasty glances. A lot of nasty sniggers. I’m REALLY not thick-skinned at all. Like I say, I’d completely accepted that this was his treatment. It did not bother me. This was normal to us now – this was part of our every day lives! Until someone pointed his feet out, or made that eye contact, that’s when I’d think. Then it would upset me. But, I needed to get through that for him. It was in his very best interests. He wouldn’t be able to walk without it! Had we just been too blasé about the entire thing?!

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Eli wore his B & B’s for 23 hours a day, for 6 months. Most children wear them for 23 hours a day for just 3 months, then hours are dropped throughout the day until they eventually just wear them at night time. To our surprise, Eli went straight down to just nights at our next review. This was just insanely cool. It was just magical seeing him so free. His feet look PERFECT! We’re so so pleased. We’re also convinced though, that Eli struggles at night time because of his boots and bar. He’s free all day long, then come bedtime he’s confined. He can’t move with ease. It’s uncomfortable and heavy. He will sleep for 2-4 hours at a time. Then I will need to settle him. There has been nights where I have taken his bar or both his boots and bar off, and he’s slept soundly. I’m sacrificing my sleep so he can walk. Easy decision. I do worry it’s not good for him, the broken sleep. But what can I do?!

At 10 months, he started pulling himself up and cruising around his play pen. I can’t tell you how proud we both were. It was just so special; still is! SUPER PROUD PARENTS!

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Not long after Eli started standing up, there was an afternoon where Eli was particularly miserable. Anyone who knows Eli knows he is a jolly boy. Barely cries. He’s only ever grumpy in the night! He was super grizzly. I put it down to teething. Then he projectile vomited. His neck was tilted. He went floppy in my arms, the colour drained from usual his rosy cheeks, his eyes rolled back and he seemed to pass out. I was beside myself. Naturally. I rang my OH who calmed me down. I’ve never been so frightened, it was seriously scary. This had happened previously, but I wasn’t there. Another bout of sickness and drowsiness and I let Eli sleep. We then recalled another time when he projectile vomited (he was never a sicky baby so could recall these occasions clearly). Within in a few hours, his neck was back to its mid-line straight position. Without any manipulation. We worked out that they all coincided with his neck tilting. Could the Torticollis be causing this?

I took Eli to the doctors – who were, USELESS. He googled Torticollis and told me what Wikipedia says… He said he’d seen just one other case of this and to go back to the Physio if I was concerned. Hell yeah I was concerned. We didn’t know if it was underlining with something else. I went to Portugal for 4 days. Eli had another bout of the sickness and drowsiness with the Torticollis. Again, his neck had straightened up itself by the next morning. It was all definitely linked.

I went to the Physio again after my trip. She was lovely, she explained that the condition was Benign Paroxysmal Torticollis. This variation of Torticollis comes in waves, or ‘attacks’. The attacks can last anywhere from minutes, to hours, to days and is accompanied by vomiting, pallorataxia, agitation, infantile migraine, unsteadiness of gait upon learning to walk, general malaise and nystagmus. All sounded about right. The periods in which the child’s head is tilted and other symptoms appear can last anywhere from a few minutes to a few days, with a frequency of anywhere from two per year to two per month. Looking back at the frequency of the attacks, we’ve found they seem to happen at the beginning of the month – every month, so far. It seems to surround teething, more than milestones now.

So now we know.

But what to do about it. Well, we’ve been told my several doctors and the physio (as well as Google) that Benign Paroxysmal Torticollis is something that Eli will grow out of, probably by school age.

His most recent attack was on 6th August, his 1st birthday. His neck didn’t straighten up quickly this time though, it’s taken a good 10 days this time.

The additional care that Eli requires surrounds his Talipes and his Benign Paroxysmal Torticollis. We don’t know when he’ll be out of his boots and bar, could be at his next appointment (28th August), could be when he’s 3 or 4 or 5. We also worry about relapse; there’s also cases where the feet have been over-corrected so they point outwards. We also do not know when he will have another attack of Benign Paroxysmal Torticollis, or the severity. I have to carry dozens of muslins with me, just incase he projectile vomits. I often worry it’s just going to come out of nowhere. I also worry about when he goes to nursery – are there people who are going to be able to look after him if he has an attack? Luckily, at the minute, I can work from home. But he will need to go into nursery sooner rather than later, for him to be able to socialise with children his age, more than anything else.

We currently do not receive any help, support or funding. I do know of people who have been granted Disability Living Allowance for their children with Talipes.

I’d absolutely LOVE to hear from others who have experiences with Talipes or Benign Paroxysmal Torticollis. The latter being quite rare, so not heard or seen anyone else who has had a child with BPT.

Would we have had it any other way? Ideally, I’d love to have Eli without all the discomfort and challenges he’s faced – of course I would. But my goodness me, he’s a brave boy. He’s SUCH a character. And frankly, it’s made me and my OH better people. We’re stronger. We understand.

Worry, worry worry – isn’t that what all parents do?

MM.

Brands: Summer savings at Kiddicare.com!

 

Ooooh, look what I just spied! Save yourself up to 15% off purchases at www.Kiddicare.com! Perfect timing for other prospective parents-to-be… and it’s the Summer holidays for those already (lucky!) parents!

You just need to enter the below codes, respectively.

• Save an extra 10% off when you spend £75 at www.Kiddicare.com or in store: ‘summer10’

• Save an extra 15% off when you spend £150 at www.Kiddicare.com or in store:  ‘summer15’

Enjoy! And tell me what you purchase!

MM.

 

Terms and conditions: 
10% off is only available on purchases of £75 (excluding delivery) or more online at www.Kiddicare.com. 15% off is only available on purchases of £150 (excluding delivery) online at www.Kiddicare.com or in store (Peterborough, Hampton). The discount codes must be entered to receive the discount. Discounts cannot be applied retrospectively. The voucher is not transferable. Offer ends at 11am on Tuesday 31st July 2012. Kiddicare have the right to amend or withdraw the promotion at any time.

Don’t forget the Kiddicare Big summer Sale is still on and New Lines have been added.

 

Surprises from my best friends!

Table at Babylon restaurant, Kensington Roof Gardens.

On Saturday of last week (9th June), I was whisked off to Kensington for lunch with my best friends at Babylon, Kensington Roof Gardens. The restaurant and garden’s were absolutely amazing… there were real-life flamingo’s in the gardens! On the ROOF, in Kensington! Crazy!

When I arrived at the restaurant I called my friends and they came and met me at the reception and lead me to our table. They’d decked the table out with ‘Baby Shower’ banners and presents! What a lovely surprise!

I thought I’d share the lovely gifts that they got us 😀

Scrummy cupcakes from Whole Foods.
Scrummy cupcakes from Whole Foods.

 

We're massive fans of "The Very Hungry Caterpillar", so this amazing box has taken pride of place in the nursery!

 

Lots of presents! Lots of essentials 🙂

 

Beautiful gifts from The Little White Company.

 

Absolutely adore this super-soft bunny rabbit and elephant rattle from The Little White Company!

MM.

Warning: May induce hysterical tears. (Or maybe that’s just me then!)

While watching the Britain’s Got Talent – Final last night an advert came on that reduced me to hysterical “I can’t breathe” tears. I got emotional at adverts before my pregnancy, but now it’s an absolute extreme set of events. Horrendous. Not only did I sob my heart out at the entire advert, not even knowing what the advert was even advertising, it got to the end and I couldn’t breathe when I found out it was for Volkswagen Polo. OUR CAR! Cue more intense hysterical sobbing.

The advert is tells the story of a very protective Dad, through the years of his lovely daughter growing up. Then handing out a brand spanking new Volkswagen Polo to her as she drives off to university… more crying ensues (on my part).

If you think you’re tough enough to watch this advert, click the play button below! Don’t say I didn’t warn you…