Pregnancy and Parenting Blog

Car Safety and your Newborn
Parenting Articles

Car Safety and your Newborn

I remember one of the scariest car rides I have ever had was taking our newborn home from the hospital.  It was a cold and icy day and I was sleep deprived and anxious, not a good combination.  Suddenly your brain starts working overtime; Is the car seat safe?  Is baby strapped in safely?  Are we driving too fast or too slow?  Something I took for granted had suddenly become laced with danger.  What I needed to do was take a deep breath and stay calm!  If this sounds like you then read on for my top tips to ensuring car safety with your newborn.

Do new mums need a baby box ?
Breast feeding / Pregnancy

Do new mums need a Baby Box ?

In Finland every parent receives a baby box, and most babies initially sleep in the box as well. They contain lots of good quality items such as a jauntily printed snowsuit, a toy rabbit, a blanket.  The concept behind baby boxes is two-fold. First, in a country that still remembers widespread poverty, it provides every child with the equipment to start life (parents of a second child can request cash instead). Second, it is a constant reminder that all Finns are equal in the eyes of the state. It doesn’t matter how rich or poor you are, you still get the box.

Latest News & Views

Merry Christmas Around the World

As we prepare to celebrate another Christmas my daughter asked me if everyone celebrates Christmas like we do ?  We decided that they probably don’t as most countries don’t have snow at Christmas so they must have different traditions such as a barbie for the Australians.  This handy infographic has loads of information on Christmas traditions around the world.  Did you know that the South Africans eat deep fried caterpillars as a treat – rather them than me !

My father told me as a young boy in Aberdeen they did not celebrate Christmas and you got a stocking at Hogmanay.  Now I was sceptical about this so did some research and it turns out he was right !  Christmas was not celebrated as a festival and virtually banned in Scotland for around 400 years, from the end of the 17th century to the 1950s. The reason for this dates back to the years of Protestant Reformation, when the straight-laced Kirk proclaimed Christmas as a Popish or Catholic feast, and as such needed banning.  Right up until the 1950s that many Scots worked over Christmas and celebrated their winter solstice holiday at New Year when family and friends would gather for a party and to exchange presents which came to be known as Hogmanay.

5 Types of People you will find at the supermarket
Latest News & Views

Five Types of People you will meet at the Supermarket

The daily or weekly trip to the supermarket is always a unique experience. From the time I can remember, as a kid the most exciting part of going out with mum would be the stop at a supermarket. It was a time of wonder, being pushed while sitting on the trolley full of groceries, looking at the marvellous stuff on each aisle. I even remember throwing a couple of tantrums so that mum would wheel me towards the chocolate and biscuits aisle.  Today as an adult, I still love visits to the supermarket, and much like Ginsberg’s famous poem “A Supermarket in California”, it is a place of wonder for me, meeting the strangest people and watching little stories unfold between the aisles. Here are a list of a couple of people you will definitely have met during one of your visits!