BabaBooty.comFab finds for funky tots

This week we have spent hours building giant towers, castles, rockets with our Edushape Giant Building Blocks….

And then we have been knocking them over!

These construction/destruction sessions have been enormous fun and cries of “again! again!” abound.

Four years ago, Santa brought a tiny Mr Moo (then 8 months old) a set of giant building blocks and they have provided hours of fun ever since. This year, Santa brought a second set of these colourful blocks for Mr Mirth meaning that our household is now the proud owner of 64 blocks.

These blocks are really super toys. They are bright and sturdy and yet really lightweight. This means that Mr Mirth does not get hurt if he has a little wobble  and lands on one (he is fairly good at sitting up now but sometimes he loses his balance and slumps over onto his toys) or if a tumbling block accidentally bumps a little person on its way to the floor. Also, their size means that the babas can actually get into the structures that they make, yesterday Lollipop was the princess inside the castle while her brave brother the knight defended the perimeter of their colourful fortress.

But by far, the build it up/knock it down game has been the most popular.

There is a downside though, these blocks are a bit on the expensive side with a set of 16 costing £63Stg and a set of 32 blocks costing £104Stg. While these prices are undoubtedly on the steep side, what I will say is that as toys go, these are keepers. Our original set has been played with continuously over the last four years and Mr Mirth is currently having as much fun with his new set as his almost-five-year-old brother and I am hopeful that they will be used long into the future.

In other news, I am seriously considering a new career in architecture…..check out this tower. Renzo Piano eat your heart out!!

On the 1st of February my sister gave birth to a gorgeous baby boy. Master B is tiny and handsome and perfect.

Since his arrival, I’ve been thinking about just the right welcome gift for Master B’s cousins to give him. After much thought, I’ve settled on a comforter. Both Mr Moo and Lollipop have had comforters since they were tiny (Blue Bear and Ruby Rabbit respectively) and both still adore them. They sleep with them every night and Lollipop runs straight for Ruby Rabbit every time she gets upset. Both babas had their own way of deriving comfort from their toys, when he was tiny, Mr Moo sucked Blue Bear’s nose incessantly (so much so that despite my frantic washing Blue Bear’s nose became totally discoloured!) while Lollipop is never happier than when she has Ruby’s bobble tail in her mouth (yes, I know its weird but heh, it works for her!).

So I embarked on a search for the perfect comforter. I wanted something that was suitable for Master B to use immediately so it had to be soft and safe. After some quality time spent on Google, I came across a site that is absolutely packed full of the most wonderful baby toys. The Organic Toy Company is a UK based company that sells organic toys and baby skin care products. They stock ranges that I was familiar with like Kaloo, Under the Nile, Steiff and Taggies but they also have a lot of more unusual brands that I hadn’t seen before: Sigikid, I Love My Planet and Kathe Kruse.

There are a host of soft toys and comforters (or  Doudous as the French call them) to chose from: here are a few that I fell for:

After much deliberation, I opted for the Sigikid Hipp Natural Love Pony comforter for Master B:

I just kind of fell in love with him. There is just something about him, he looks so darn snuggly and I really hope that he becomes a treasured companion for Master B.  This little pony is made with blue and white organic cotton towelling, his body, ears and limbs are unpadded with double thickness fabric  (which make it very easy for tiny fingers to grip on to) and his head is filled with pure wool which is hypoallergenic and dust mite deterrent. In short, he is ethical, baby-safe and is machine washable!! The bad news is that I bought the last Pony in stock so you will have to chose something from the from the rest of the site (which, in reality is no great harship as the examples above demonstrate!).

One of the fantastic things about these type of toys is that if a baby’s mum or dad sleeps with the toy close to them for a night or two, the toys then has their scent. A newborn baby’s sense of smell is hugely important to them and they take enormous comfort from their parent’s smell. Team this soothing aroma with the tactile softness of a comforter and you have every newborn’s ideal companion.

Just a final note about The Organic Toy Company. As is apparent, when it comes to buying baby products, I do 99% of my shopping online so I’ve had quite a lot of experience of internet retail. Shopping online can be a very impersonal thing (which is what some people prefer about it) but it is so nice when online retailers go that extra mile when it comes to service, to transcend the digital barrier and make the transaction personal. There are a huge number of online stores so there is a risk that the really good shops can be lost in the vast ether that is the internet. I reckon that those few shops that are special deserve to be highlighted.

When I ordered Master B’s gift last night, I arranged for it to be delivered to him directly in Belfast. This morning, I got a lovely email from Natalie from The Organic Toy Company asking whether the pony was a gift and if so whether I’d like to send a message along with him. I was very impressed by this thoughtfulness and immediately responded. There followed a genuinely lovely exchange of emails and a super swift service (the pony was dispatched before lunchtime and is on his way to Belfast as I write this).  All in all I am very confident that this little pony won’t be my last purchase from this lovely shop,  but don’t just take my word for it…..

PS: Thanks for all your help Natalie !

I’m a huge fan of Not On The High Street at any time of the year but particularly love having a look in at this time of the year. On my latest visit I came across a host of the most gorgeous traditional toys. They range in price from the very cheap to the very expensive but I thought I’d showcase a selection from the under-£20Stg range in case Santa is in the market for some stocking fillers.

I can just see those bulging stockings hanging from the mantelpiece…..

A friend mentioned that Santa might be bringing a dolls house when he visits her home this year and we got to wondering what type of residence he might pick.

For me, wooden dolls houses will always be the winners (plastic just doesn’t do it for me…) so I had a peak at the options that are out there for Santa to chose from. Here are a few of the homes that are currently available on the doll-home marketplace:

Unlike the real life world, in ‘doll-world’, there’s plenty of value to be found in the period residence market:

If your marionette prefers maisonettes over mansions,  then she might be interested in these slightly more modest (but still charming) addresses:

However, if your baba’s dolls fancy a slightly more modern pad, then these options might be the right buy:

Lastly, if your dolls happen to be environmentally aware (and can get a green card!!…this one is currently only available in the US), then this eco house might be the  home for you. This house comes with a solar panel, wind turbine, rain water collection system and recycling facilities!

Happy house hunting !

Wooden toys are my absolute favourite kind of toy, I just love their look and feel as well as their durability. In fact, the longevity of wooden toys is one of their major attractions for me. But not all wooden toys are well made – splinters and wood chips aren’t fun for little fingers –  so I am always delighted when I come across  brands that are high quality as well as good fun to play with. BigJigs is one such brand. BigJigs make woodentoys for all age ranges from clutch toys for babies, push and pull toys for toddlers and a vast array of role play, construction and outdoor toys for older babas.

Here is a sample of their fabulous wares:

These days, Lollipop is up on her feet almost all of the time. She is a very confident ‘cruiser’ (why oh why do they call it that??) but is not yet fully brave enough to risk too much ‘free walking’ so when it came to choosing a birthday gift for her first birthday, a walker seemed like the obvious choice. As usual, I didn’t just walk into a shop and pick up the first one that I saw…..there was no way I was going to let an opportunity to spend hours scouring the web pass me by.

From my research (and past experience with Mr Moo), I think that the key to a good walker is a mixture of:

• stability (you need one that won’t tip over easily  -  well, not many one year olds understand the law of the lever and baba / walker pile ups on the living room floor ain’t pretty);
• traction (a lot of walkers have no traction whatsoever which causes them to shoot forward too quickly leaving your baba with a face full of floor boards!);
• longevity  (a toy that is just a walker has a short shelf life so the best ones have a life long after the all too short cruising stage is over).

Here are four of the best ones that I found:

Old school – This John Crane walker is full of lovely building blocks which will provide hours of fun – take out the blocks and any favourite toys or teddy bear passengers can be transported:

Girly Girl – This Pintoy walker doubles as a pram so your little lady and her dolls can get out and about:

Activity-a-go-g0 – This EverEarth walker has lots of clever built in activities to entertain your baba  - plus it’s eco friendly and is an award winner (it won the Creative Child Magazine 2009 Preferred Choice Award in the Toddler Toys Activity Center category)

Transformer – The Mishi Design Grow Up is the Madonna of walkers as it can totally reinvent itself each time your baba grows out of it. It starts life as a walker with a basket then transforms into a ride-on bike with a trailer and then for it’s finale it turns into a trolley – fantastically clever!