Another fabulous interactive colouring book just begging to be illustrated! They seem to be popping up everywhere these days and with good reason too. Created by talented Melbournian Nicole Mandile, in the first of her My Picture Storybooks series, The Magical Milky Way’s Super Galactic Zoo kept my rambunctious 4-year-old son in check on a long-haul airplane flight recently. So naturally I am a big fan. He was totally engrossed in creating, drawing and pasting away, each page providing the perfect canvas for his masterpiece. It helps that he has a complete fascination with all things galaxy-related.
The book is created using uncoated paper, a great surface to sketch on and is staple bound so the pages open flat. It is printed in Australia on 100% recycled paper. It isn’t too long or too short — just perfect to capture their little attention spans.
Available through weheartbooks for local and international shipment.
It is the 17th book in the ‘This is…’ series and Sasek is visiting down under! This is Australia is a wonderful book to add to the classic travel series, first published in the ’70s, which Courtney posted about here!
In line with the later books in the series, the colours are slightly vintage and the images are retro and whimsical. And Sasek’s mode of travel to the land down under? Not in chains like the first British colonists, but on a Qantas big bird!! (which incidentally, ‘flies very well’, unlike the Australian penguin and emu!) I absolutely love these books — they introduce children to the people, customs and places of interest in cities around the world, captivating young readers with gorgeous illustrations and a witty narrative. I also think it’s fascinating to see each city from a 1960’s perspective. And…needless to say, in my family we just love the Aussie edition!
I went to a friend’s house recently and she had a large collection of the Kid O educational toys for her daughter, and I was so blown away by the beauty of the toys and also by the concepts behind them. Kid O is dedicated to ‘enriching the play and learning experiences of preschool children at home’. They take a very Montessori approach in helping to create confident, life-long learners.
The Kid O collection includes beautiful wooden puzzles, stacking toys, sorting games and blocks. They’re the type of toys that look great on a coffee table, but are truly designed for the benefit of children.
Since we’re celebrating our second birthday this week, I thought I would mention these toys… they’re perfect for a 2-year-old!
I just love these decorative tapes by Famille Summerbelle. I can see myself using them in so many ways… like wrapping up a basic gift box or package, creating cards or signs, or decorating a wall to make it more festive. I always like to keep stuff like this in my craft cupboard because with all the kiddie birthday parties we have these days, it seems I’m wrapping presents left and right. These tapes offer an easy and quick fix!
Famille Summerbelle also makes beautiful paper banners, good for party decoration, and of course loads of beautiful prints.
Aren’t those pink octopuses just so stinken’ cute?
Of course ALL the posts were fantastic, but these I picked because of specific reasons:
1.) Real American Pancakes by Emilie, because we have been religiously cooking these pancakes for Sunday breakfast ever since Emilie posted about them. They’re the best!
2.) Poisson Rouge by Michela, because it’s just what I need when I want 15 minutes to myself — brilliant! My kids absolutely love this and so do I. Thanks, Michela!
3.) Crocodile Clothespins by Courtney. Such a wonderful idea and perfectly executed. I’m sure even Martha Stewart would be impressed. I am for sure.
4.) The Best Reward System by Sara, because I love this concept of a reward system in combination with (educational) family outings. A great idea!
5.) Paris Plage by Emilie, because we were in Paris this summer with the kids and followed all of Emilie’s tips from the Babyccino Paris city guide, and it was great! I just love the concept of our city guides!
I have two daughters, one who is 18 months old and just likes any old party, whether it’s hers or not, just as long as there is music, lots of kids to run around with and a general buzz in the air. She still prefers the wrapping paper as opposed to the present inside it and, in fact, is as happy to receive an empty egg carton wrapped up as she would be receiving an expensive gift. As long as she can make a mess, she is content… (you might be able to see that in the photo…).
My three-year-old is a completely different kettle of fish; her own birthday party is the event of the year. She has been talking about her 4th birthday party ever since she turned 3, so that means this party has been planned for a whole 12 months, which is longer then people have to organize the Oscars.
She invites random people on the street to her party if they are nice to her. If she’s upset at me, I am told, “You are not invited to my party anymore!” (there is no point in me pointing out that without me there is not going to be any party). I am so used to people not making a big deal about their birthday and even trying to hide their age, that this birthday party obsession has taken me a bit by surprise!
Are birthday parties this important to all kids?? Or am I related to the youngest party animal in the world?
It was so much fun to look back at all the posts from the past year. And I have to say, I really fell in love with Babyccino all over again. Here are my five favourites:
1.) The sound of silence by Dina, because we are planning a big ‘around the world’ trip this winter and I have a feeling those headphones are going to save our sanity.
2.) Merci by Emilie, because it just may be my new favorite shop in Paris, or the whole of Europe, for that matter.
3.) What did you do at school today? by Michela, because I have the same issue with my boys and that trick totally works!
4.) Easy tomato soup — from the cupboard by Esther, because it is THE easiest soup to make and it has come in handy so many times when I found myself with an empty fridge and a herd of hungry mouths to feed.
5.) Dream Big by Esther, because I really love discovering great new books for my kids, and this one is especially ‘awesome’.
I love a bargain. I always have. And so I was excited to discover the website (thanks to one of the stylists at work) Chinatown. It’s an online website that sells all things Chinese – such as lanterns, parasols and decorative boxes – for a great price. Plus, they deliver so you can shop during your lunch break. For Little C’s first birthday I bought white, aqua and red lanterns to hang from the ceiling ($7.95 each) and then filled party boxes with some of the smaller lanterns ($24.95 for 24 pieces) along with black paper, coloured chalk and lots of stickers and balloons. They were a huge hit.
Often we’re asked where one can find tasteful, cute party supplies. Here in the Netherlands we are lucky to have Hema, which has a really good selection, but since it seems to be the only tasteful choice locally available, we seriously see the same decorations on nearly every birthday party we attend!
Then there’s Martha Stewart, who comes up with wonderful suggestions for homemade party decorations, but most of them involve complex and time-consuming craft projects which may eventually result in a well decorated house, but chances are that you’ll suffer a nervous breakdown simultaneously.
Now look at this: Homemade Happiness. Great downloadable deco kits for every birthday, holiday or other special occasion.
These super-cute digital DIY designs are downloadable in return for a small fee, and you may print them as often as you wish on card-stock paper. Next cut, fold and glue (even the most non-creative soul with two left hands and 5 children running around can do this!) and presto – you have an extremely original and cute selection of cake toppers, gift tags, gift boxes, party hats and buntings. Seriously everything you need for the cutest and most original birthday party you can think of. Every Homemade Happiness download comes with clear instructions and paper suggestions, and they even thought of including recipes, suggestions for games, sweet to-do-lists, etc. etc. Have a browse, I’m pretty sure you’ll love everything!
Now, the only disadvantage is that the original website is still in Dutch, but the two lovely work-at-home mums behind Homemade Happiness, Caroline and Diana, are working hard to translate their designs and the English versions of most of them can be found in their Etsy shop.
It has been really hard to choose my five favourite, but really fun to look through a year’s worth of posts! There were so many recipes and craft ideas I had forgotten about and will try to do soon. Here are my favourites…
1.) Carrot Cake by Courtney, because I have been searching for a good recipe for years and this whole time Courtney had the perfect recipe up her sleeve.
2.) Reuse your rubbish by Courtney, because since reading the post my girls and I have spent hours of fun crafting things out of our recycle bin.
3.) Do they always need a fig leaf by Michela, because I have just come back from a beach holiday in the South of France and I had forgotten to pack my youngest swimmers… it reminded me of this post.
4.) A quick quiche by Esther, as there really is nothing better in the world than a good quiche. I think even my kids would agree!
5.) Inspirational Ideas by Natalie, as I simply love the idea of drawing with water on concrete. It is simple, easy, free and fun. Just the kind of thing my kids love doing.
I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen anything cuter! These wooden candle holders take the cake, literally.
They have a hole in the top for the birthday candle, and a stick in the bottom to place into the cake. They’re ultra sealed to protect them from the frosting, and can be used year after year for every celebration.
The Small Object also makes the cutest wedding toppers, wooden magnets, and so many other cute things that I have just spent the past hour browsing and obsessing…
It was hard to choose as always, but it was also nice looking back! Here are my top five favourites…
1.) A tutu for you by Emilie, because I can just feel the relaxed atmosphere in that English cottage in the evening (and the tutu is great too).
2.) Homemade maracas by Courtney, because it’s such a great project, of the kind I never do with my children.
3.) Auto trash by Esther, because it made me discover such a smart product that all families travelling by car most likely need.
4.) Sidney’s little star by Natalie, because it’s great to discover that people all over the world share the same views and have the same problems!
5.) A walk in New York by Courtney, because I love this book and so does my son. It’s such a sweet adventure (and Courtney’s book suggestions are always great).
It’s hard to believe, but we’ve been going at this for two whole years now! What started as a private conversation between four good friends, four new mums with very little blogging experience or computer know-how (uh, ‘HTML’ you said??), has developed into an international blog and fun parenting reference. The four of us are still the best of friends, and we’ve added some great friends along the way (Sarah, our advertising expert, four new contributors in great cities, and not to forget all of you, our loyal readers!). We’ve learned so much these past years, met many talented people, discovered countless cool products and special places. Babyccino to us means having fun, having friends, and enjoying our families on a daily basis. We hope you feel this too!
So, in honour of our second blogging birthday we are devoting this week to everything birthday-related. We’ll also each share our top 5 favourite posts from the past year. We hope you enjoy!
Milan is an expensive city, and when you are visiting on travel it’s probably even more difficult to have dinner without spending a fortune. During the day the ubiquitous bakeries allow you to eat on a budget easily but at night it’s easy to have to shell out a small fortune for a dinner, however nice it may be. If you take into account that children’s menus and small portions are hard to find, then the bill will be even higher for families with small children.
A nice solution might be to make the best of the Milanese aperitivo or “happy hour”. The hour is happy not because you get two drinks for the price of one, but because by paying for a drink you get unlimited access to a free buffet.
Most bars now, after 6 pm, will offer way more than a few crisps and a bowl of olives. The quality of the food will obviously depend on the venue, but most of them will offer some pasta or rice, focaccia and fritata, cold cuts, raw vegetables and many styles of bruschetta-style nibbles. More than enough for a light dinner and definitely food that appeals to children.
I have already written about an aperitivo option in Milan but the peculiarity of what has become a habit here has attracted the attention of Matt Gross, the NYT Frugal Traveller, who has spent a whole week in Milan without ever paying for food at dinner! (You can find all his suggestions and comments here.)
Actually, it is the best things in life that are free! A cliché but oh, so true. In a quest to live more simply and to try and instill this truth in my children, I have been trying to entertain them these term holidays with ‘nature inspired’ activities and simple pleasures. Homemade picnics in the garden, collecting pebbles and leaves to paint, walking rather than driving, and so forth.
Now in doing so I am learning 3 things – one, my children know a lot more about recycling than I do, even my 4-year-old (for this I have their school to thank!). Two, my kids are quite happy living more ‘simply’; they have much more of a respect for and interest in nature and their planet than I ever had, which I am ashamed to admit but of which I am so, so proud (and which I am determined to keep fostering as I learn too, with them). And three, that in Melbourne you can treat your children to the most beautiful nature attractions without needing to pay for the pleasure as you do with so many other activities – they are ‘free’, indeed just as they should be, for everyone to enjoy.
This gorgeous garden is designed specifically for children to enjoy and explore and is enclosed with only one gate in and out. It is full of interesting and interactive spots where children can play and hide, dig, climb, paddle and generally have a wonderful time learning about plants, conservation and the environment first hand. There is a wetland, a rainforest, a bamboo forest, a rocky gorge, a ruin garden with an ancient redgum, plant tunnels and a winding “river” meandering around grassy mounds. There is also a fantastic kitchen garden planted with seasonal crops.
The garden is really a great day out for all, children and adults alike (afterall, who isn’t wowed by gigantic vegetables?) and a cheap one too (well….that is, providing you don’t read the parking signs incorrectly and incur an astronomical parking ticket as I did on my last trip!)
Just don’t forget to pack the homemade picnic or you may have to rely on supplies from the ‘Observatory Cafe’ – very delicious but can be a little pricey…
My kids tear their clothes like it is going out of fashion. I’m constantly finding scuffed-up knees on their jeans, torn tops and unexplained holes on the seats of their pants! The fact is: kids are always going to tear their clothes. And while the ripped jeans look has never been my thing, I am just not willing to throw clothes away anymore. So I have started patching their clothes, just like in the good old days.
I am not any good at making an invisible patch like my grandmother used to make, so I’ve decided not to even try and instead make a statement with my patches. I actually reckon it should be called customising not patching! Here’s what you’ll need:
-Fabric scraps
-Some Thermobind (which you can get in most haberdashery shops or departments, its like an iron on double-sided sticky tape for fabric)
-A couple of cute designs (my kids are lucky enough to have a dad who is an illustrator and sketched these little shapes in 2 minutes)
-A pen
-A pair of scissors
Print out the shapes (above) and cut out. Cut out a piece of fabric roughly the size of the patch needed and cut a piece of Thermobind a little bit smaller. Iron on the Thermobind as instructed on the pack. Put the shape on the paperside of the Thermo and trace around it (I normally pin them down so that they don’t move around while I am tracing). Cut out the shape.
The patch is now ready to be ironed over your hole. It is really quick and easy and “customising” is lot cheaper then buying new clothes all the time!
A while back I stumbled across this website when I was looking for ideas on how to add a bit more pizzazz to the girls’ room. I am not what you call “gifted” when it comes to home decor but I had to give myself a major pat on the back for what I was able to accomplish for around $75 and a half hour of work. Wall decals offer a quick, easy and inexpensive way to change a room in minutes and I when I scattered these sunburst circles on the wall it brightened up the space instantly. What’s even better is that when you need a change down the road you can just peel them off. I am thinking of investing in their chalkboard stick-ons to write out my weekly schedule and they recently launched a line of items to dress up a laptop. Scribble on Everything offers “Plastic Surgery for your Walls” and I get a kick out of just reading their website because whoever is in charge over there is really funny – just read their “How To” section.
I was reading yesterday that even London fashion week has gone back to basics. As the Guardian reported, instead of last year’s sashimi, this year simple Croque Monsieurs — otherwise known as plain old grilled ham and cheese sandwiches, are all the rage. After all, there is no food more cheap, cheerful and comforting as melted cheese on a buttered grilled piece of bread.
And this is my favourite way of making a Croque Monsieur:
Croque Monsieur for 4 people:
-8 big slices of Poulaine Bread (I love Poulaine bread, but any type of sour dough bread works)
-4 slices of ham
-3 good healthy handfuls of gruyere cheese
-butter
-1 egg
Bechamel sauce:
-200 ml milk
-1 tablespoon of flour
-20 g butter
To make the bechamel sauce: Melt the butter in a pan and add in the flour. Gradually add the milk, mixing constantly to avoid lumps. When the sauce starts to thicken continue cooking it for 2 minutes and then let it cool down to make the Croque Monsieur. (If you want to be really decadent, add an extra handful of gruyere to the bechamel).
Beat the egg and mixed it together with the cheese. Generously butter the slices of bread. Place a slice of bread with the buttered side down on a grill pan. Add on a slice of ham and some of cheese on top of the slice of bread and close the sandwich with a second slice of bread this time with the butter side facing up. Spread some bechamel sauce on top of the sandwich and finish off with more cheese. Repeat with the rest of the sandwiches and then grill until all the cheese is melted.
Now this is the basic recipe. Here are some of the variations I have come up with:
I love adding some mustard onto my bread and some tomatoes, but my girls hate it!
Add a fried egg on top of the croque to turn the Croque Monsieur into a Croque Madame.
And finally the vegetarian option, leave out the ham and add in sundried tomato or olive tapanade.
Oh, and if you serve it with a green salad dressed with vinaigrette, I promise you will feel like you are sitting at a bistro in Paris! Enjoy!
Speaking about Simple Living — what better family entertainment can you think of than old-fashioned parlour and board games?? I think my kids are probably too little for strategy classics such as Chess, Checkers, Backgammon, or Monopoly— but I can’t wait until they are big enough because I just LOVE to sit around a big table and play games!
I recently challenged my husband to a few games of Scrabble (he lost), and it brought back such great memories of playing Scrabble with my mum on a winter evening. My grandmother and I have played endless rounds of RummyCub, so cosy…
As a student I played loads of Yahtzee with my housemates (still love the mix of strategy and luck; did you know dice were found in Egyptian tombs?). And Twister! Such fun!!!
The great benefit of playing parlour games (over f.i. watching television or playing computer games), apart from being fun and cheap, is that you’re interacting. Children learn to follow rules, wait for their turns, and to correct and challenge each other. It trains their strategic thinking and problem solving abilities, and can improve their skills. They also have to deal with the emotional consequences of their games: handling loss, helping a friend to handle a loss, and being a gracious winner…
To celebrate our ‘Simple Life’ theme week I have put together a tutorial on how to make a girl’s tunic out of an old shirt.
Here is the thing: shirts fray first at the collar and at the cuffs though the rest of the shirt is still in perfect condition. The material shirts are made out of is perfect for a little girl’s tunic, so why not try and recycle the shirt and give it a new lease of life? The best part is that the buttons and button holes are already made, saving you a huge amount of work.
I got together with my friend Purvika, the owner of bebe bunting and a really talented, creative girl and away we went, making a tunic for my 18-month-old, Violette.
I have to say, I am quite pleased with our result! It is very simple, but I think it works well and is an easy pattern to start off with. If you want, you can add on appliqués, trimmings, ribbons, etc. after finishing off the tunic (I added on a little bit of smocking on the front). You can even make it longer and make it into a dress. The sky is the limit.
Here is the tutorial:
Print out the pattern part 1 and part 2, and cut it out. Start by cutting out the front, back and the sleeves. We used the same pattern for the front and back as we wanted to keep the pattern as simple as possible and it worked well.
To make the front and back panels of the tunic:
Lay out the shirt flat with the buttons facing down. Fold the shirt lengthwise in half, with the button exactly on the fold. Now place the pattern on the shirt, placing it even with the folded edge of the shirt. The pattern should be placed on the shirt so that you have a 1 cm allowance over the first button at the top of the panel. Cut out the panels. After the pieces are cut out and unfolded, they will become full size panels.
To make the sleeves:
Align the sleeve pattern with the fold on the sleeve and cut out, repeat with the other sleeve.
To make the bias for the neck:
Use some of the remaining fabric to make some bias binding. Cutting on bias simply means cutting a 3 cm wide by 20 cm long strip of fabric on a diagonal. Fold it in half widthwise and now you have a perfect strip of bias to finish the neck opening later on.
To sew the front and the back panels:
Pin together the front and the back panels right sides together and sew together on the sides and on the shoulders.
To sew the sleeves:
Fold the raw edge of the end of the sleeves twice out 0.5 cm towards the wrong side and press to make a neat hem. Top stitch the hem of the sleeves. Now pin together the sides of the sleeves right side on right side and sew.
Sew the bodice and sleeves together:
Turn the tunic top inside out with the seams facing outwards and insert the sleeves, with the right side facing out, into the sleeve openings. Make sure you align the seam on the sleeve with the seam on the bodice.
Finish off the neck:
Pin the bias around right side of the neck opening . Sew around it, leaving an extra cm allowance on each end.
Trim off the excess fabric on the seam, fold the bias to the inside of the tunic and iron it down flat so that it makes a neat finish. Tuck in the excess bias at the end.Topstitch all around the neck opening.
Another fabulous interactive colouring book just begging to be illustrated! They seem to be popping up everywhere these days and with good reason too. Created by talented Melbournian Nicole Mandile, in the first of her My Picture Storybooks series, The Magical Milky Way’s Super Galactic Zoo kept my rambunctious 4-year-old son in check on a long-haul airplane flight recently. So naturally I am a big fan. He was totally engrossed in creating, drawing and pasting away, each page providing the perfect canvas for his masterpiece. It helps that he has a complete fascination with all things galaxy-related.
Sara in Melbourne
March 7th, 2010
2 comments
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Milan is an expensive city, and when you are visiting on travel it’s probably even more difficult to have dinner without spending a fortune. During the day the ubiquitous bakeries allow you to eat on a budget easily but at night it’s easy to have to shell out a small fortune for a dinner, however nice it may be. If you take into account that children’s menus and small portions are hard to find, then the bill will be even higher for families with small children.
I was reading yesterday that even London fashion week has gone back to basics. As the 
