Baby Bugs 'n Berries

30
May
2013

I can do it myself!

categories: More

Mornings in our house have become a battle between wills and some days I just have to take a deep breath and smile. B has discovered that she can do things for herself and while this has always been a good thing that I encouraged, she now wants to help herself get dressed in the mornings by putting on her own pants and her panties. She even surprised me yesterday by waking up, taking her own nappy off and coming to show me what she had done!”I can do it myself!” Another line that has developed is “I want to stay in my pyjamas for 2 minutes Mommy”, and she adds the cute little smile and holds up 2 fingers. Sometimes I let her, sometimes I don’t.

The things is that one only has so much time in the morning between getting yourself dressed, her dressed, making sure I have everything for the day including her bottle and making sure that we leave the house at a reasonable time so that she isn’t late for porridge and Morning Ring at school! She has also taken a liking to Lollos so she watches a bit of that while this mama runs like a banshee to get myself dressed!

What I have learnt through this is that one just has to have patience; there really isn’t anything else one can do! Oh and breath in and out! She has to learn how to do this and it is important for her development! So chin up, encourage her and just go with the flow, after all, she is only 2 and a half, there is still a lot of things to come like being a teenager! Gulp!

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20
May
2013

Woolworths and Every Paw Print Counts giveaway!

categories: Giveaways, More

If you are South African and watch T.V you would have heard all about the rhinos and animal poaching that has been going on. It’s enough to make you sick and I would love to give those poachers a Judo-chop for what they are doing! Enter Woolworths and the “Every Paw Print Counts” Campaign.

What is that you may ask? Woolworth has launched 3 new products and for every pack of ‘Every Paw Print Counts’ Soft Fruit-flavoured Gums sold, R1 will go to protect these endangered animals; for each ‘Every Paw Print Counts’ bracelet R8, and for each reusable ‘Every Paw Print Counts’ shopping bag sold, they will donate R10! I tried the sweets and they were yummy and best of all, contain no milk so B can eat them too although there was nothing but an empty packet by the time I got home! The bag is cute and very durable and will be able to carry anything from shopping to library books to arts and crafts!

It’s great that a big corporate company is helping out the wildlife and environment, a portion of what you pay goes towards helping one of two MyPlanet beneficiaries, the Endangered Wildlife Trust and the Wildlife ACT Fund, for the conservation of the cheetah, rhino and African wild dog. How cool is that, so in fact you are helping the animals and I really like that.

Want to enter a giveaway? Woolworths will give two packets of the sweets and one bag to one lucky winner! How to enter, leave a post on the blog below and tell me one of the animals that will benefit from the fund made? Competition runs from 20 May to 24 May and is open to SA residents! Get entering!

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09
May
2013

Sofia the First

categories: More

When I was a little girl, I dreamed of being a princess when I grew up and would prance around playing dress-up. I still believe that all women are princesses, we just dress up now in another way!

I was really excited to hear about a new show starting on 11 May at 09:00 for kids aged between 2-7 on Disney Junior on DSTV (channel 309) called Sofia the First. The story is a cartoon story about an average Joe little girl called Sofia whose mother marries the King! She is then transported into a world of glamour, pretty dresses and the life of royalty. She also gets new step-siblings in the form of Amber and James. This world is strange and new to Sofia and she has many challenges that she has to overcome.

What I like about it is that the story is not just going to be about pretty dresses and glamour but is going to teach little children lessons like how to make friends, how to build new sibling relationships and discovering new skills. Sofia will be a little girl that they can see as a friend and someone that they can relate to. The aim is also to teach children about generosity, kindness and loyalty and that it isn’t what you have or wear, but the princess inside that matters. I like that part as I find many shows today don’t really teach children anything! Sofia will also be having some blasts from my childhood with the fairies Fauna, Flora and Merryweather (fairies seen in Disney’s classic Sleeping Beauty) being in the show as well!

Sofia the First also has an amazing cast doing the voices of the different characters! Starring as the voice of Sofia is Ariel Winter (Modern Family); Sara Ramirez (Grey’s Anatomy) is Queen Miranda; Wayne Brady (Let’s Make A Deal) is Clover; Tim Gunn (Project Runway) is Baileywick; Darcy Rose Byrnes (Desperate Housewives) is Amber; Zach Callison (Land of the Lost) is James; Travis Willingham (Ultimate Spider-Man) is King Roland II; Jess Harnell (Doc McStuffins) is Cedric; Ashley Eckstein (Star Wars: The Clone Wars) is Mia the Bluebird and Meghan Strange (Special Agent Oso) is Robin. Disney Legend Russi Taylor (Minnie Mouse), Barbara Dirickson and Tress MacNeille (Daisy Duck), bring Fauna, Flora and Merryweather, respectively, to life. Jennifer Hale provides the voice of Cinderella

So get your snacks ready, grab a blanket and watch Sofia the First on Disney Junior (channel 309) on 11 May 2013 at 09:00 and see this little princess in action!

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22
Apr
2013

A review on Organics Kids Shampoo range!

categories: More

Have you ever watched those ads on TV about shampoo where the ladies flick their hair and it looks like a waterfall cascading? Well, I have been doing that since I tested the Organics Kids shampoo range!

As you might know, as B has allergies, I have to be very careful as to what I buy for her so I was quite excited to see “Hypoallergenic” on the side of the bottle. I also test everything I buy first so that if it is safe for me, it should be safe for her. Cue the Organics Kids Strawbelicious 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner! I took the plunge to test the No Tears formula as some of the brands I have tested say this but they aren’t really. This mama had no tears or burning so I added another little tick to my imaginary chalk board! The name is true to the smell, I smelt like a strawberry the whole day! It actually made my hair quite silky, smooth and actually made it feel quite thick! So I wasn’t apprehensive about it at all when it tried it on Bella. She loved it and her hair looked all clean, shiny and pretty! I then used the Funtangling, a hair detangler that comes in a spray bottle, to get the knots out from all the rubbing to dry her hair and it didn’t even make her hair oily the next day! That’s what happened when I used another product who I shall not name.

There are three flavours in the Organics Kids Shampoo range namely Strawbelicious, Coconutty and Mangomania and each flavour smells true to its name. The range is a 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioners so they save you some time from trying to do both! The detangler comes in an easy to use spray bottle and smells lovely! You can buy the shampoos from any supermarket and they really are worthwhile price wise as well as the amount that you get in the bottle! This mama was very happy and I might “borrow” some to use for my own hair! Then I too can smell fruity and fun!

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16
Apr
2013

Quick Pancake recipe

categories: More, Recipes

Well winter is upon us and I can feel how the need to stuff my face is descending upon me! Winter brings soups, warm curries and everything that is yummy for both my mouth and my hips! One of my favourite winter foods is pancakes! You can eat them plain, with filling or just about any way that you want. Here is my quick pancake recipe! The best thing about these pancakes is that they don’t have milk in them so B can eat them to her heart’s content! I normally double it to ensure everyone gets to have lots and if there are left over’s, they freeze really well! Here is the recipe! Please note that you need to leave it to stand for a while.

Pancakes

About 10 pancakes

Ingredients:

Dry

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1 ml salt

Liquid

1 cup of water

10ml of vinegar

25ml of oil

1 egg

Method

Sift the dry ingredients together. Add all of the liquid ingredients together and slowly add them to the dry ingredient mix. Make sure to get rid of any lumps, for this I usually use a whisk or a hand-held blender. Leave the mixture to stand for about 15 minutes, an hour if you can but 15 minutes will be enough. Once the time is done, use Spray and Cook to coat your pancake/ frying pan or lightly coat the pan with a thin layer of oil. Once the pan is hot, pour the batter into the pan and swirl the pan so that the batter covers the whole of the pan. Leave it on the hob for a few minutes until little bubbles start to show and then turn it over for about 20 seconds on the other side. Put it onto a plate and start the pouring and swirling again! Put in your filling and serve!

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12
Apr
2013

Nominate products for FAIRLADY Consumer Award’s 2013

categories: More

Calling all Mommies, Daddies, Grandparents and anyone that has friends with kids! The 2013 FAIRLADY Consumer Awards have started and they are looking for the best kid-friendly products in South Africa!

They have different categories, like Babies and Toddlers and Kids 3 years + so that the best products in the different categories can be found! Last year Tiny Love’s Soothe and Groove Mobile won the Babies and Toddler award and the Leap Pad from Leapfrog won the Kids 3 Years + award!

This years above mentioned categories are going to be judged by the fabulous Jenny Collins who is the editor of Your Baby and Your Pregnancy magazines as well as Helen Schoer who is the editor of Baba & Kleuter! If you are a fan of these magazines you will know that these ladies have excellent taste! They will be joined by the panel of FAIRLADY Test House judges, including FAIRLADY editor Suzy BrokenshaFAIRLADY speciality editor Robyn MacLarty (wine), Justine Kiggen (food), Sally Kramer (Test House editor), dieticians Lila Bruk and Kim Hofmann (health), and Tasneem Larney (consumer).

You can vote for your favourite companies or products at the here and help other parents out there to find out about the amazing products that they might not know about. The closing date for online entries is 23 May 2013 and no late entries will be accepted.

But wait, there is more! They are also having the Reader’s Favourites Survey which is a reader competition that you can enter once the winners of the categories have been announced! Who knows, maybe you can win too! This mama is going to enter those products that I know are wonderful and when the Reader’s Favouries Survey comes out, I’m going to enter that too!and I

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11
Apr
2013

Win with Bio-Oil

categories: Giveaways, More

Most people think that only pregnant ladies get stretch marks but in today’s society of fast foods, fad diets and yo-yo weight-gain, they aren’t the only ones! I have reminders of my nine months of being pregnant but I also have scars from operations that I had. Enter a little bottle of happiness. Bio-Oil!

To be honest, I didn’t use it while I was pregnant and looking back, I should have. I have very elastic skin and should have realised I might end up with more than I bargained for! After B’s birth, someone gave me a bottle of Bio-Oil and I can say that there has been a vast improvement! It is very easy to put on, just unscrew the lid, pour some into my hands and rub in all the places I need it. As I mentioned I have also put it on my scars they too have improved. It is a little oily but I have found that if I put it on after showering, it seems to absorb more. I suggested it to some of my friends and my brother has a big scar on his hand from an injury and it has been working for him too! It is even safe enough to use on B and when she has a scratch from falling, once it has healed I put it on her too!

It has lovely ingredients like Calendula Oil, Lavender Oil, Rosemary Oil, Chamomile Oil and vitamins including, Vitamin A and E! It has also won awards such as:

Best Can’t Live Without Beauty Product, Best in Beauty Awards – New Zealand, 2013
Miracle Worker, Essentials Top 100 Beauty Products – South Africa, 2013
Best Stretch Mark Product in the Face / Body Skincare Category, and Watsons Health, Wellness & Beauty Awards – Thailand, 2013

I like the fact that it has won awards around the world so it proves that it is a great product! If you want to find out more information on them, you can follow this link

I am giving away a Bio-Oil hamper to the value of R500 to one lucky winner. The hamper consists of a great Jamie Oliver water carafe and glass set, as well as a 60ml, 120ml and 200ml Bio-Oil for the winner! How fab is that? To enter like their Facebook page and say that Baby Bugs ‘n Berries sent you! Like Baby Bugs ‘n Berries and leave a comment on this blog post for an extra entry! Refer a friend for another entry! Competition closes 18 April 2013 and is open to South African residents!

04
Apr
2013

Lollos, coffee and computers at 5:40am!

categories: More

I’m sitting writing this with a steaming mug of coffee, imaginary matchsticks in my eyes and Lollos playing in the background. It’s not too bad except for the fact that its 5:40am on a Thursday morning and I went to bed at 23:00 and was up from 2:30-4:30 with a toddler.

We have taken away B’s night time bottle so that she goes to sleep without one and if she wakes during the night, she also doesn’t get one. This went reasonably well the first night but tonight was the third night and I can honestly tell you I was ready to give that bottle over but I stuck my ground and just hung in there. I can understand how she feels so I’m not giving her too much grief about it. it has been her source of comfort, the one thing she can count on when she goes to sleep and while I have done it in a very gentle and peaceful way and she was excited to be a “Big Girl”, I can understand how this must be making her all confused. Her dad is also on a business trip so I had to listen to her sob for her daddy for 20 minutes at a time while she went through the list of things to get out of bed and not go back to sleep. Eventually after trying every trick in the book, I told her I was going to close my eyes and go to fairy land and eat donuts there and this seemed to calm her. She seemed to drift off and so did I!

I woke up at 5:25am, got out of her bed, walked down the passage and into my bed and started to get warm and cuddly. 5:30am Bella starts to call me and came into my room demanding to know what I was doing! I have a sneaky suspicioun that I may have been snoring cause I was so tired, apparently I am good at that, and the lack of noise must have woken her up. And so here I sit with my blanket around my knees like an old lady, dreaming of the extra hour of sleep that I could have had and if I put my head down or close my eyes for too long I may disappear into that blissfull sleep that everyone else is currently having!

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02
Apr
2013

Gareth Cliff to play in Phineas and Ferb!

categories: More

On a Saturday morning at the crack of dawn, waking up isn’t that much fun, especially if it involves a 2 year old who is wide awake and has no chances of going back to sleep. Luckily she has grown to love cartoons like her parents and so the ritual has started of cuddling on the couch with a blankey and watching what is on. Usually Phineas and Ferb.

So imagine my surprise when I heard that the famous and opinionated Gareth Cliff was going to be in this cartoon as a character and a voice? Besides being an accomplishment for him, this was going to be interesting and I must say that my curiosity has been spiked. Gareth is going to play Ducky MoMo (see the pictures) and it seems that Gareth Cliff has a few traits that are similar to Ducky namely that they are both sarcastic. If you listen to Gareth on 5FM in the mornings, you will know what I mean!

Phineas and Ferb have been nominated for a BAFTA award and has even won an Emmy Award so you know that it isn’t junk! This is actually quite a pat on the back for Gareth Cliff as his name is being listed among A-List celebrities of Hollywood like Selena Gomez and Michael J Fox who have also been characters or voices in the show. Phineas and Ferb have also been running for three seasons so you know that they have to be popular have gotten this far.

Here is a video on what Gareth Cliff has to say about the show and a little more information on Ducky MoMo! All I can say is that my popcorn is ready to pop and my seat allocated on the couch so when the episode is released, it can have my full attention! Go Gareth Cliff, sorry Ducky MoMo!

This post was sponsored by Spreaditfast.

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26
Mar
2013

Win Vanish products!

categories: Giveaways, More

My hubby has a motorbike and while he is pretty tidy when it comes to it, there is often grease or oil on his clothes. Add to this a 2year old with grass stains and paint on her leggings and shorts. Then add a mama who likes to eat with her hands and is often more messier than 2 year old. What do you get? A laundry disaster!

Yip that is what used to happen in our house. That and my attempts to dodge washing stains out by hand as I really don’t have the energy time to wash everything out by hand. Hubby did get back into the good books by finding our secret ingredient to making our clothes look better with less fuss and issues. We found Vanish! Yes this little pink or white, depending on what I need it for, bottle has found a lovely spot next to my washing powder. If I need stain removal, and I am not sure how to get it out, I go and have a look at here where it tells you which product to use for which! They have everything listed from food and drinks, to outdoors to makeup! They even have braai sauce listed as a stain and how to remove it! Wish I had known about this a while ago when I messed oil all over my top and it took a dive into the dustbin!

It is a really easy product to use, all you do is cover the area with the product and then leave it to soak for up to an hour, pop it into your washing machine and wash as per normal. Voila! Stain removed!

Want to try the product out? Enter our giveaway with Vanish to win Vanish products! One lucky winner will win a pack of Vanish Oxy action! Like their page and Baby Bugs ‘n Berries and say that Baby Bugs ‘n Berries sent you! Leave a comment on this blog post and refer a friend to get an extra entry! Competition runs from 26/03/13 to 08/04/13 in South Africa.

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15
Mar
2013

Charity challenge

categories: More

My mom has recently started with what I would call her “To do List” and has set herself a challenge for once a week or every two weeks. The two weeks ago she called all the people in her phone book that she hadn’t spoken to in ages and to catch up with them. Listening to some of those conversations was quite funny! Then last week her thing was photographs and she took pictures with her trusty BB where ever she went. Each and every one of them had meaning to her!

The past two weeks have been difficult for me but, it seems I am supposed to do something with charity as things I think I have managed to pull my head out of the sand and noticed what is going on around me again! It’s almost like my own charity challenge! My friend Cupcakemummy is collecting 100 beanies for kids with cancer and the deadline is 27 April 2013. So far I’ve gotten 17 from a few friends and this helps to bring her total to 30 but I am sure that we will be able to get more. I better pull out the knitting needles again and start making some more. They don’t take long anyway! Don’t ask me to croquet that is really one craft form I have never been interested in doing!

Then I heard of this non-profit organisation called Single Parents Helping Hands that helps single parents that are not coping with keeping their families afloat! I know one of the organisers and she started telling me about this one little family where there is a dad and a 10 year old son and the dad is struggling to buy toothpaste for the two of them. My word that put me back on the shelf and made me stop whining to myself that I want sushi and it’s so expensive! Don’t get me wrong, I am not a millionaire and I know how it feels when it’s the middle of the month and all you have is 2 minute noodles in the house and you have to come up with interesting ways to make those noodles seem “fun”. I also know what it feels like not to be able to buy B those R200 books that are so cute and I B would sit for hours and read. I asked what they needed and off I went to the grocery shop to buy soap, toothpaste and a spray deodorant for a 10 year old boy. Btw what deodorant do you buy for a little boy? Moms with boys please let me know! Anyway so got 2 soaps and 2 deodorants and Axe (?) so that at least the dad has one less worry at night.

I also have been cleaning out B’s cupboards as she has hit this grow spurt again and the once cute leggings are not like hot pants! Ok not that extreme but you get what I mean. So I bagged some of the clothes for another family that I know of and off they went to help. I do hope that they bring the little girl some fun and the mom one less thing to worry about. Hubby and I have been so blessed so we know what it feels like to be on the receiving end and it feels great to be on the giving end as well!

So I am going to challenge you to do something charitable this week, be it cleaning cupboards and giving to those in need or buying a street kid a chocolate cause he’s a kid too. Just this 1 week do something for someone else around you! It doesn’t have to be someone you know! Let me know, after all, there is no harm in helping others!

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11
Mar
2013

Cheaters chocolate croissants tutorial

categories: More, Tutorials

If you come to our house on a Sunday, you will know that breakfast is kind of a big deal to me. It doesn’t have to be a giant meal but something that we can sit together and eat! I decided to make cheaters chocolate croissants on Saturday morning after my brother Steven and his Fiancé Jolana came to sleep over on Friday night.

I call these cheaters chocolate croissants tutorial as I don’t make the croissants from scratch and while I have looked at the recipes before, I don’t think I have the patience to mould all that butter and pastry. So here is my easy cheaters way….

Ingredients and tools

Makes: 9 Croissants

9 croissants

1 smooth slab of chocolate

2 cups of boiling water

1 medium sized pot

1 smaller pot that can fit into the medium sized pot or a metal bowl

1 metal tablespoon

1 sharp knife

How to do it?

Cut the croissants in half length ways with the sharp knife

Break the slab apart into blocks or different pieces and put it into the smaller pot or metal bowl

Put the stove on a medium heat and put the medium sized pot onto the stove plate. Boil the kettle and put the 2 cups of boiling water into the medium sized pot. If the pot can’t take that much water, it is fine, use what it can

Put the smaller pot/metal bowl into the medium bowl so that the hot water can melt the chocolate in the pot through its heat. Using the spoon, stir the chocolate around in the smaller pot so that it melts. Chocolate burns really quickly so as soon as you see it is all smooth; take it of the stove immediately.

Using the metal spoon, spoon some of the chocolate into the middle of the croissant and then drizzle some of the chocolate on top. Grab a few plates and it’s ready to serve!

I made some with scrambled eggs (cooked these in the microwave to save on pots!) so that there wasn’t too much sweetness and strong coffee like the French! Hope you enjoy this!