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App suggestions: Everything from tracking nappy changes to recipes!

April 23, 2012 //

I confess, I am a smart phone addict after initially being very resistant to them. I have found it brilliant with a baby and now toddler! So I thought I would share a few of my favourite apps here. Obviously there are a million out there and a few options for each type…but this might give you a few ideas and you can have a look for ones that best suit you!

BABY SUPPORT:

So you have your precious bundle finally….now what?!? My husband and I have really fond memories of recording every feed and nappy change on a scrappy piece of paper until we worked out we could manage it on the phone!

I used one called Baby Connect (www.baby-connect.com) after trying a few different options at the time. The only thing it didn’t seem to do was actually change, feed and pop bubs down to sleep….so I felt it was well worth the $4.99 it cost. A great feature is you can log in anywhere, so in our case Dad could keep an eye on what baby was up to during the day while at work. It works great if your kids are in childcare too.

We also found it very handy that you could enter other useful information such as temperatures, heights, weights, lengths, and vaccinations. It even charted the stats on a graph for you.

I notice there is a new one called Baby Nursing/Breast Feeding Tracker which is free. It lets you time feeds, record which side, record nappy changes etc.

FEEDING:

There are lots of apps out under this topic and hence you can probably trial a few free ones, but the “Annabel’s Essential Guide To Feeding Your Baby & Toddler” by Annabel Karmel for $6.99 is the one I am excited about! Well categorised by age and from everyday ingredients, her recipes have been famous for years now.

MEDICAL:

Ok you should always seek medical advice from trained professionals when your kids aren’t well. With the 24h Healthdirect line (1800 022 222), give them a call if you’re worried. However, what about that emergency situation? Obviously you call 000 but having an app that talks you through CPR in clear diagrams can be a life saver!

First Aid by the St John Ambulance Australia Incorporated is $4.99 and covers a huge range of serious first aid issues (from allergic reaction, asthma attack through to choking). First Aid White Cross by Bruno Mandolesi is free and covers infants through to adults.

ENTERTAINMENT:

Whose entertainment – the parents or baby??? Realistically both have needs in this area.

For parents:

Social media apps such as Facebook and Twitter are free and invaluable when you’re not out and about as much as normal. They can also be a great way to learn more about everything from cloth nappies J through to the latest TV series to watch!

For the active toddler, what better than the Playground Finder, free from Teacher Learning Network. This nifty app allows you to search for playgrounds in your local area and read or contribute reviews about them. The more people that use the app the more information it has to share.

Now I won’t recommend specifics here (there are many options and it is quite area specific), but some ideas of other helpful apps for parents include menu apps (allows you to find certain cuisines in your area, peruse the menu and order), and grocery shopping online which usually include a delivery service. Most major supermarkets have an app and/or website service these days and there are some great “from the farm/grower” initiatives.

For Kids:

When they were little, Amelia’s girls went crazy for iwritewords (lite version for $2.99) which sings the alphabet, teaches letters and numbers; writing them, reading them and counting them. Doodle Buddy, free, allows kids to draw, stamp and stencil to their heart’s content. Phone for Kids allows the little one to “play” with a phone keypad that is linked to 6 educational games.

I also love apps that allow kids to practice other languages. E Flash are talking flash cards that come in a variety of languages. Lingu Pingu is very cool too, a little penguin that speaks both English and German. There are many different language apps too so perhaps have a look in the app store for those in the language you want your bubs to learn.

Hope this has given you a few ideas and we would love to hear what apps/websites you recommend!

Real Nappy Week Giveaway!

April 16, 2012 //

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In celebration of Real Nappy Week in the UK from 16-20 April, Bambooty is giving away two nappies a day this week to Australian parents too.

The whole idea of real nappy week is to abolish the myths that real nappies are difficult to use! One of the best ways they achieve this is by giving away free nappies so people can have a try themselves and hopefully realise: Real nappies, real easy! The week has become a huge event in the UK, with many events and opportunities for like minded people to meet. Excitingly it has stretched to the US and now Real Diaper Week is celebrated at the same time!!

Check it out here: http://www.goreal.org.uk/real-nappy-week.

This initiative is a natural fit for Bambooty as all of our nappies are designed to be super easy to use while offering a few different products to suit different bottoms!Hence we are a key sponsor in the UK Real Nappy Week.

We want to bring a little piece of Real Nappy Week to Australia….hopefully one day we’ll have a whole schedule of celebratory events too! But for now, please comment on this post to have a chance to receive a free nappy. Two will be randomly drawn each day from those on the comment thread. Perhaps you want to share your thoughts on this initiative or share your story about your journey in cloth? Maybe you haven’t tried cloth nappies yet and would like this opportunity? We want to hear from you!!

The winners will be announced daily on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/bambooty.the.baby.happy.nappy

At the end of the week all winners will be announced here on the blog too.

We are REAL excited and hope you are too!

Hugs for now, Team Bambooty!

Cheap Nappies: Bambooty Vs. Disposables

March 25, 2012 //

So you’ve probably heard people say over and over again that using cloth nappies saves you hundreds, but how much is that really? In this post I thought I would compare the cost of disposables and Bambooty cloth options.

Important to note that my disposable sums are an average as prices vary quite wildly between brand, store and naturally your baby might be in the various sizes for shorter/longer. The prices I have picked represent what is generally on offer at major supermarkets and when buying in bulk, if you live in a rural area or can’t buy on the regular specials then it can cost another $500 plus. Likewise the number of changes may be more or less than what I factored in here. I have looked at the cost over 2.5 years, but your child may also toilet train earlier or later which would naturally affect the sums. You could do your own table and work out the actual cost.

Disposable Nappies:

AGE (approx.)	# per Week	Cost/Nappy	# Weeks @ Size	Total Cost
0-3 months	70	$0.30	12	$252.00
3-6 months	56	$0.35	15	$294.00
6 months +	42	$0.47	103	$2033.22

Total # Nappies (2.5 years): 6006

Total Cost ($): $2579.22

So how does this compare with using Bambooty? The table below lists the nappies at their rrp listed on the website, but don’t forget you can get discounts for buying in bulk and at expo’s. I suggest adding around $100 per year for laundering, which is obviously going to be lower if you don’t use a dryer, use a front loader on cold, use minimal detergent, wash full loads etc etc. If you have solar panels you’re laughing too J Please note this is the recommended amount of nappies for 3 days use, but all children are different so some use less/more nappies per day/night.

Easy One Size:

Item	Cost	#	Total Cost
Easy One Size	$32.95	24	$790.80
Boosters	$3.50	10	$35.00
Liners	$13.95	5	$69.75
Wet Bag	$9.95	2	$19.90

Total Cost $915.45

Easy Dry (Sized Nappy):

Size	Cost	#	Total Cost
Small	$19.95	24	$478.80
Medium	$24.95	15	$374.25
Medium Night	$24.95	3	$74.85
Large	$26.95	15	$404.25
Large Night	$26.95	3	$80.85
Boosters	$3.50	6	$21.00
Liners	$13.95/100	5	$69.75
Wet Bag	Free	NA	$0.00

Total Cost $1503.75

So looking at the Bambooty sums, I bet you’re thinking “Why would I go for sized nappies?”. Yes the Easy One Size system is cheaper, but being realistic it may last for less children as (a) it is undergoing vigorous washing and use for 2-3 years and (b) the next child may come along before the first is finished using their nappies. The sized nappies are not used for as long a period for each child meaning they may last a bit longer and the smaller sizes are ready for the next child. Both have their good points and it really is a personal choice, a mixture of systems can work too.

The total cost of a Bambooty cloth nappy system (including laundering) is $1165.45 to 1753.75, keeping in mind that the saving increase with every additional child that uses the nappies. Total cost of disposables is approximately $2579.22 for one child, $5158.44 for two children and 7,737.66 for three children. Lets not forget that with disposables, over 6000 nappies are going into landfill per child too, very concerning environmentally.

I think the sums say it all, Bambooty modern cloth nappies are not only an excellent ecological choice but a very smart investment!

Try Bambooty’s nappies today at 10% off:

http://www.bambooty.com.au/catalog/trial-package-from-p-8.html

Come check out Bambooty’s fabulous range of MCN’s at an expo near you!

March 9, 2012 //

Come check out the whole Bambooty range at an expo near you! The perfect opportunity to have a look at and feel our cute yet very functional nappies. As most of you know there are some great specials to be had if you make it to the expos. At our stand you’ll meet Mum’s like you who have plenty of experience with Bambooty! It is also a great opportunity to get your child fitted or trouble shoot any issues you are having (if you already have them of course!).

Hope to see you there!

Pregnancy, Babies and Children’s Expo
Don’t forget to pick up free tickets at their website: http://www.pbcexpo.com.au/
16/03/12-18/03/12 Adelaide (Adelaide Showgrounds, Wayville)
18/05/12 – 20/05/12 Sydney (Sydney Showground Exhibition Centre, Sydney Olympic Park)
22/06/12-24/06/12 Brisbane (Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre)
10/08/12 – 12/08/12 Perth (Claremont Showgrounds Exhibition Centre, Claremont)

12/10/12 – 14/10/12 Melbourne (The Melbourne Exhibition Centre, South Wharf)

The Baby & Toddler Show
Want more info? Check out their website: http://www.babyandtoddlershow.com.au
30/03/12-01/04/12 Melbourne (The Melbourne Exhibition Centre, South Wharf)
28/09/12-30/09/12 Sydney (Sydney Exhibition Centre, Darling Harbour)

My Child online subscription winners

February 18, 2012 //

Congratulations must go to the following winners of our My Child Online Digital Magazine subscription. Thanks so much for everyone who entered. It seems pretty clear that you all love My Child magazine as much as we do!

The winners are:
Alicia Thoman
Cheryl Chu
Fiona Myers
Wendy Blackshaw
Karen Chrostowski
and
Breeze Prakit.

All winners will be contacted by My Child soon – I have provided your email addresses.

Happy reading!

Emma

my child online magazine subscription competition

December 22, 2011 //

My Child believes that parents and parents-to-be shouldn’t have to compromise on style for great content when looking for information on pregnancy, birth, infancy and early childhood. They package this with real-life stories that warm the heart, as well as great tips for clothing for parents and children, products for parents and children, and how to decorate a room with style.

bambooty LOVES My Child magazine and are excited to announce that we have been given six online magazine subscriptions to give away. To enter, it’s as easy as ‘liking’ bambooty’s Facebook page AND My Child’s Facebook page then sending your name to customerservice[at]bambooty.com.au so we can verify that you’ve met the terms and conditions. You’ve got a couple more days with the competition closing at midday Christmas Eve. Winners will be announced shortly afterwards.

going green on wipes

December 6, 2011 //

Have you ever stopped to consider how much disposable baby wipes are costing you at each nappy change, each day, each week, over the lifetime of your child? It all adds up; so consider giving wipes and a home made solution a go.

Baby wipes vary in value from between 5c each up to around 14c each* depending on what you want in your wipe. Chlorine free, biodegradable, bamboo, jojoba and chamomile. The choices are endless! Travel packs are even higher per wipe but we rarely think about these small costs in toileting a baby during its nappy wearing years.

How many wipes do you use per change? 1, none, or even as many as 5 depending on the ickiness factor! For the first six weeks at 10 changes a day and using an average of 2 per change it adds up to 10c – 28c per change, $1.00 – $2.80 per day, $7.00 – $19.60 per week …

Think about the savings you could make just by using reusable and rewashable wipes at home – graduating to using them all the time. Washers are a simple solution to wiping a baby’s bottom. You could make up your own solution and keep the washers in it so that they’re moist when you need them, or keep a small spray bottle (available at cheap chemist shops for very little money) filled with your home-made wash solution and spray on the wipe or straight on the bottom.

A simple baby wipe wash is 2 tablespoons of (preferrably natural) baby wash and 2 cups of water. Add some olive oil or other essential oil in the same ratio as the baby wash to customise the baby spray. Cheap and (relatively) easy! Washing the wipes with your nappies doesn’t mean you’re increasing washing loads or taking up too much more of your time. Once bub has finished toilet training old washers make great cleaning rags – so you can keep on saving your money.

Only question, now, is what you’ll spend your savings on!!

Click Here to view our luxuriously soft bamboo velour wipes

*woolworths.com.au 01/12/11

to Fluoridate or not to Fluoridate?

November 8, 2011 //

As a naturally occurring mineral Fluoride has become commercially used in many circumstances. Most commonly we know it as an additive to water and toothpaste to prevent tooth decay. It is also one of the most controversial mineral additives to items destined for human consumption even though fluoride occurs naturally in water.

Fluoridation (the addition of extra fluoride to water) of public water supplies has faced opposition since it was first introduced as a public health initiative in the 1940′s. Increasingly it has become commercially available via bottled water, making it easier to ingest too much fluoride and cause some form of damage. A law firm in America is suing a bottled water company on behalf of a mother acting on her daughter’s dental fluorisis (the discolouration of teeth due to too much fluoride).

Australian cities and towns are forming groups to fight against government’s planned fluoridation of water. Interestingly, Queensland’s water supply remains largeky unfluoridated in comparison to the rest of Australia. This website has some useful articles and is open to those with different views to post their comments. If you have the time there is a documentary that you can watch on the addition of water into fluoride.

Whether you believe in fluoride being added to public or private water supplies, or to toothpaste, it is still important to remember that teeth are important! Brushing teeth is the best way to prevent tooth decay, starting out with babies first teeth. I used a washer with water at the beginning as small toothbrushes seemed too big!

Some ways to avoid using fluoridated products is to drink rain water (or use a filter if you don’t have access to this), avoid toothpaste that contains added fluoride, and check bottled water for additives that you may not want to be taking when drinking water. It’s been a legal requirement in Australia and New Zealand since fluoride was allowed to be added to bottled water in 2009 that it states clearly on the bottle: “contains added fluoride“.

** this article is for information purposes only**

Using cloth nappies at child care

October 14, 2011 //

So, you’ve finally got a place for your precious baby at child care. But will they use cloth on your bub just like you do?

There is plenty of confusing information on the internet – it’s a health concern, it’s manageable, it’s this and it’s that. There are no laws prohibiting child cares from using cloth nappies but it will be up to each individual child care centre whether they want to use them on your child.

Here are some tips for helping a child care realise that modern cloth nappies are as easy as disposables PLUS better for your baby, the environment, and the centre’s garbage bin!

bambooty asked for tips on getting cloth into child care on our Facebook page and received some great tips to help get the child care convinced.

bring a sample of the modern cloth nappy in so the staff can see it and explain how to use it; most people still associate cloth nappies with terry towelling squares, pins and pilchers. When they see how easy modern cloth nappies are to use it may help convince them to give it a go.

referring to cloth nappies as modern cloth nappies may help staff to mentally make that distinction from cloth nappies of the past.

ease their concerns about storing the used MCN’s by providing individual wetbags for each nappy. If a child care centre pops the nappy in a plastic bag before putting it in the wet bag you can suggest that it isn’t necessary but be patient and flexible — if it makes the difference between using cloth and not using it I’d know which I’d prefer!

point out the positives for the day care centre — less waste means less money spent on rubbish disposal, less garbage bags etc. Even one child using cloth nappies for a day would be a great saving for the child care centres over the year. It is also worth pointing out that it may help in their accreditation with eco-points for using MCNs.

suggest a trial period if they are really hesitant — a day or two. This means they are giving it a go and once the trial period is over you can talk over any concerns they may have had and help provide resolutions or a different method to ensure they will use cloth.

suggest liners if there is a concern about the disposal of poo — take a sample in and explain that they’re flushable if not on septic systems. Or suggest tipping the poo into the toilet if liners aren’t used. This is meant to be done with disposables too but often isn’t!

ring around your local child care providers and see which ones seem keenest on the idea. If you have your heart set on a particular child care suggest coming in to talk about – or bring it up when you are doing your introductory tour so you can discuss it face to face.

For more information there is a great little blog post at the Australian Nappy Network which also gives you some research material to arm yourself with if hygiene is the issue stopping the child care centre from using cloth.

Sized New Prints Nappy Competition Winners

September 28, 2011 //

After running a competition where each entrant had to tell us something interesting about safari or dinosaur animals we here at bambooty feel like we could open a university specialising in this area! It was an absolutely fascinating competition and everyone seemed to get as much out of it as we did.

Our winners for the safari nappy are:

- Beverley Mitchell with: “Healthy adult elephants have no natural animal predators. Their only predators are humans”

AND

- Michelle Madine with: “A Giraffes legs alone are taller than many humans…around 6 ft long.”

Our winners for the Dino print are:

- Debbie Clarke O’Grady with: “The heaviest dinosaur was the Brachiosaurus who was 80 Tonnes (which is equivelent to 17 African Elephants!!!) It was 16metres tall and 26metres long!!!”

AND

- Margo Rodrick with: “The Deinonychus is a quintessential raptor, slightly smaller than a person & among the most intelligent dinosaurs.”

All winners were drawn by random.org. A note will be posted on your comment to let you know how to claim your prize.

Congratulations everyone!

Click Here to view our luxuriously soft bamboo velour wipes

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