Here are some easy, inspiring ideas to have a more sustainable (but still awesome - if not more awesome!) Christmas.

​1. Get a real Christmas tree with roots. After Christmas, plant it in your garden (or keep it in a pot) and use it again next year! TIP; buy a slightly smaller tree as they will get pretty heavy once potted and after a year of growing bigger ;)

​Potting the tree is also a fun activity to do with the kids. Neeva Rose loved picking her own tree and potting it.

2. If you are not into a real tree (let's face it with toddlers in the house it might not be all that practical!) - make a wooden Christmas tree instead of buying a plastic one! They look gorgeous, are very affordable and you can easily re-use them year after year.

3. Have wooden, handmade or felt decorations. It's super easy (and super fun) to make your own decorations and kids love to help.

4. When using outside lights, make sure they are SOLAR powered! You can get a huge variety of solar Christmas lights and they work brilliantly (without the huge power bill!)

5. Instead of giving presents, consider giving an experience. Tickets to the ballet, a concert, musical, the Zoo or a trampoline park are great gifts without having to buy more 'stuff'. We just bought Neeva Rose tickets to the Swan Lake and we cannot wait to take her!

6. When buying presents go for quality and not quantity and buy local and support small businesses where you can! Instead of using Christmas wrapping paper switch over to recycled brown paper wrapping. With a bit of inspiration you can make the most gorgeous looking presents that are much more environmentally friendly xx

Pictures by Pinterest.

-When you have little kids it might not always be that practical or safe to have a 'real' Christmas tree. Or you might want to look at alternatives due to sustainability. Whatever your reason a wooden Christmas tree might be your answer and we have put together a little bit of inspiration for you!

​It might not have the smell of a real Christmas tree but it sure doesn't lack in atmosphere or 'wow-factor'.

​Since Neeva Rose was little we had a wooden Christmas tree - James made it and it looked amazing! He constructed it so it couldn't tip over and our little wild child loved playing with the decorations. And we loved it too as there was no risk of her getting hurt.

​I hope you enjoy some amazing examples of gorgeous wooden Christmas trees below xx

Pictures courtesy of Pinterest.

Sarah Ockwell-Smith is a well known (UK based) baby expert & toddler expert and a highly regarded popular parenting author.

After graduating with an honors degree in Psychology, specialising in child development, she embarked on a five year career in Pharmaceutical Research and Development, working with clinical trial data, until she became pregnant with her first child in 2001. After the birth of her firstborn Sarah retrained as an Antenatal Teacher, Hypnotherapist/Psychotherapist, Developmental Infant Massage Instructor and Birth and Postnatal Doula. Over the years Sarah has updated her knowledge with various study days and courses including paediatric first aid, paediatric safeguarding, perinatal psychology and birth trauma.

More info on: ​https://gentlesleepbook.com/

Every year approximately 10% of all babies are born premature (before 37 weeks gestation) in New Zealand. That’s one premature baby born every 90 minutes.  There are also full-term babies whose condition or illness requires admission to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) after they are born.  In all, over 5,000 babies have a difficult to start life in New Zealand each year.

With premature birth, while sometimes there is a history, or a medical condition which may lead to premature birth, more often than not, a mother goes into premature labour with no warning.  With full term babies, parents may know their baby is going to be born with a complication requiring admission to a NICU.  In other circumstances, the complication becomes apparent once the baby is born.

There are five “Level 3” NICUs in New Zealand, in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.  These NICUs admit and provide specialist care for the most premature and sickest babies.

Depending on the parents location in New Zealand and the current capacity of the five NICUs in New Zealand, parents may be flown at any time of the day or night to a different city from which they reside.  They may be flown while in labour with little or no clean clothing nor time to organise accommodation.

All of these parents are thrust into a terrifying world where their much loved tiny (sick) baby, who they have just met, is surrounded by machines, beeps, alarms, wires, needles, doctors and nurses.  The parents often feel helpless.  While the birth of your baby is usually a joyous event, this is a traumatic and very stressful time and depending on the condition of the baby, the parents may be on this journey for a few days, a few weeks or many months.

Aside from the trauma and emotional stress of seeing their baby so sick, there are all the associated financial and logistical challenges, for example leave from employment, childcare for other children and often simply finding a place to sleep and the time to make a meal.

When families are dislocated from their homes and have to spend long hours in a foreign environment with little or no pastoral support (we know the clinical support is first class) this inevitably makes a very stressful journey.

Once a baby is well enough they are transferred to a “Level 2” Special Care Baby Unit, usually in the area in which the parents reside.

Thanks to the highly-talented and dedicated neonatal doctors and nurses, the youngest babies to survive premature birth in New Zealand have been born at 24 weeks gestation.  We aim to provide support to the families of premature and sick full-term babies as they make their journey through neonatal intensive care, the transition home, and onwards.

The Neonatal Trust is committed to "Making a difficult start to life that little bit easier"

The Neonatal Trust has three objectives:
1.    The primary focus for the Trust is supporting parents by helping them in whatever way we can to get through what is usually a very traumatic time. Neonatal Trust volunteers, the vast majority of whom have had babies in one of the country's five NICUs, work to reduce the stress typically felt by families with premature or ill babies. They visit parents in the NICUs to assess individual needs, which can range from wanting access to information, to practical, financial or emotional help.
 
2.    The second aim of the Trust is to assist the NICUs in practical ways such as purchasing or contributing to the cost of equipment and funding for staff to attend neonatal educational seminars or other professional development.
3.    The third aim of the Trust is to aid neonatal-related medical research.

​With every order placed SNUGBAGS will donate to the Neonatal Trust. To shop and automatically support The Trust please click here >>

Kai Carriers are award winning reusable food pouches that can be filled with homemade food so you know exactly what you and your children are eating whilst minimising the mess. They allow you to make nutritious food free of additives, preservatives and excess sugar and serve it in a convenient way, anywhere, anytime.

​We have been huge fans of Kai Carriers since Neeva Rose was little and first started eating solids. We have used them when she was little as a convenient – first food – pouch filled with homemade baby food and since then we kept using them and still are. Now, at the age of 4,5 Neeva Rose has her yoghurt and smoothies in the pouches and I love how convenient they are. I can fill them at home and I chuck them in my bag for a quick and healthy snack. Healthier, cheaper and a lot less waste – all of which make this mama very happy!

I quite often fill our pouches and store in the freezer for a later date. No more worrying about what to feed Neeva Rose on a whim! The sturdy waterproof ziplock on the top helps prevent leaks and provides a wide opening making filling easy, and the side spout is perfectly positioned for little mouths. 

You can fill your Kai Carrier with any combination of vegetables, fruit, poultry, meat, legumes, grain, dairy, smoothies, custard or yoghurt. Adults can use them too! Store anything from homemade soup, smoothies, sauces, pesto, mayonnaise, guacamole, breast milk, dips or liquids (including cocktails or mocktails!).

Another thing I really like is that Kai Carriers are BPA, Phthalate and PVC free making them safe for your little ones. They are dishwasher safe making cleaning super easy and can be stored in the freezer. 

Kai Carrier are now available in a range of shapes and sizes, including their latest product Kai'cicles (Ice block pouches), which Neeva Rose loves!! So easy to make your own healthy ice cream (we blend bananas with Organic Milk), freeze and voila – a super tasty and delicious ice block!
​

We also have their Snack Packs which are super handy for fruit, raisins, crackers, scroggin and nuts. Once again easy, cost effective as you buy in bulk and no excess packaging.

Kai Carriers are the convenient no mess solution to feeding fresh homemade food on the go and I know you will love them as much as we do!
​
To browse the range click here: www.kaicarrier.co.nz
​

Article written by Vanisha from A Life Unstyled and directly sourced from: http://www.alifeunstyled.com/baby-bed-time-essentials/
Photography by A Life Unstyled
​Vanisha Mishra-Vakaoti from A Life Un-Styled, the amazing life and style journal, writes about her baby bed time routine and essentials. She shares how SNUGBAGS fits into that routine.

Getting ready for bed is such an enjoyable part of the day. There’s something so therapeutic about holding a freshly bathed baby, all snug in his favourite pyjamas. Craddling Rafa for a final feed, reading a book with him or just smothering him with kisses. All three of us will hang out in Rafa’s room until he’s ready to sleep. After a feed he’ll enjoy cuddles and play a little with Patrick. They’ll say a little prayer for family and friends, especially Rafa’s friends. I might steal my little man away for final cuddles and kisses but eventually Patrick will pry him out of my arms and truly get him ready for bed. A few hours into Rafa’s night time sleep Patrick and I are missing  him!

Routines have become a little more prominent in our home, mostly because we’ve seen how positive they have been for Rafa. There are a number of positive associations he has developed and where possible we keep them up. I find having fewer things helps develop and maintain effective routines for us and assists in Rafa developing these positive associations. There are only a few things around him during specific times of day and he has come to know what they mean.

Snugbags Merino Sleeping Bag | We have the Winter Merino Duvet sleeping bag but there are other options depending on the temperature of baby’s room and the climate where you live in. I wrote a review about the bag when we first got it, before Rafa came along (you can read it here). Rafa is in his sleeping bag for all his naps and night time sleeps, in the evenings we swaddle him over the sleeping bag (he’s unswaddled for day naps). Now that he’s in his sleeping bag there has been no need for additional blankets or sheets. He wears his bam and boo pyjamas, gets zipped into his sleeping bag and that’s it. It has also become an amazing cue for sleep, once he’s in his sleeping bag he knows rest is on its way. It’s also a lot easier to handle him for early morning feeds and nappy changes. No fighting with blankets or layers.

As if this daylight savings by itself wasn't bad enough - this year’s daylight savings coincides with a large lunar eclipse which in itself may affect kids and adults alike quite profoundly (!).

Newborn babies are probably the least affected with this change, but some toddlers and young children can really struggle with the change in routine and even adults can also be affected for approximately a week. So patience is essential for big and little kids!

These are some great tips on getting your little one into a new routine when daylight savings starts.

* This week, before daylight saving ends, gradually put your child to bed 10 minutes earlier each night. This way your little one adjust slowly to the new bedtime.

* Understand it may take a week or so for your child to adjust, so expect that your child may be tired after the time change.

* This one really applies for any evening - avoid screens for at least an hour and a half before sleep. It has been scientifically proven that interaction with things like cell phones, TVs, tablets and computers can delay the onset of sleep.

* Since the evenings will be much lighter, children will want to stay up later. Invest in some blackout curtains so the room they sleep in is as dark as possible.

*This is another one that applies for every evening - make sure that your child's nightlight is not too bright. Nightlights are typically white, green or blue which has been known to interfere with sleep. The best colour for a nightlight is Red/Pink and we have found that Himalayan Salt Lamps are perfect to add a soft and calming glow to any nursery.

​*Last of all - try and don't stress out too much and remember 'this too shall pass' xx

WHEN is daylight saving?
When local standard time is about to reach
Sunday, 25 September 2016, 2:00:00 a.m. clocks are turned forward 1 hour to
Sunday, 25 September 2016, 3:00:00 a.m. local daylight time instead
Sunrise and sunset will be about 1 hour later on 25 Sep 2016 than the day before. There will be more light in the evening,