Happy bathtime with Turtlemeter

Meet Rosa, a fun bath toy with a built-in thermometer. Well, it is actually called Turtlemeter (by Ozeri) but my younger son Eddie has given it a name Rosa (not sure where that comes from, but Rosa it is). This safety toy allows you to know if the water in the bath is just the right temperature. Yes, I typically use my elbow to check the water but this fab toy is useful if you're not sure if the temperature is right. I would imagine it to be a particularly great little gadget for any parent with a newborn, when you question everything around you.

How does it work?
Turtlemeter instantly activates in water without any buttons or switches, as there are three tiny water sensors on its tummy. The digital display on its shell lights up immediately, once immersed in the water. It calculates the water temperature and displays it with 3 different colour screens. Blue light indicates cold, red - hot, and green - just right.
It floats in the bath and is compliant with safety standards.
What did we think of it?
My little man is mesmerised and fascinated by the little screen. He loved the toy so much he wanted to take it with him to bed and also to the nursery to show it to his friend Charlie. I had to persuade him that the turtle prefers to stay at home.
It might help the reluctant tots to get in the bath. It's a very cute toy, and will make a lovely gift for any new parent.

This toy runs on 3 AAA batteries (which are included and preinstalled). It is advisable to dry the toy completely after use to prolong the life of batteries, it reacts not just to water but to moisture, so if you hold it in wet hands, the screen will light up.

What is useful to remember:
Water temperature in the bath can vary from one side to another. Always submerge your hand and forearm into the bathwater before placing your child inside.

Disclosure: we received the Turtlemeter by Ozeri for the purposes of reviewing. All opinions are mine and Eddie's.

Bubble beard and giggles with Matey

Bathtimes are happy times usually, unless I tell my little man it is a high time to wash his hair, then he makes the tragic eyes and implores "Mama, tomorrow", and then the next day the story is repeated, that tomorrow would never come if I agreed with him. However, if there is no "threat" of hair-washing looming, my son is very happy to play in the bath, splashing the water, chasing the bubbles, singing and laughing. We have a whole collection of toys next to the bath, and Eddie is very reluctant to get out, as he enjoys playing with his bath toys and books so much. If you have young children, you are probably well aware of the Matey bubble bath products in funky big bottles. Now the collection of Mateys includes a new limited edition book from Matey bubble bath. It is called Matey Bubble Fun.

Max Matey and his buddies Molly Matey and Peg Leg live on a Scrub-a-Dub island where the good ship Matey is docked. Unscrew the top hat and pour the lovely smelling bubble bath in the water.
A bottle of Matey makes up to 30 baths. And it is truly very bubbly.

With its hypoallergenic and skin-pH neutral formulation, it is kind to sensitive skin.
Funnily enough, it was my husband who was the first to test the bubble bath. He was running a bath for himself and I offered him a bottle of Matey and said jokingly that my blog readers might demand the photos of the product being used.
All four of us have tested the bubble bath (on separate occasions, I hasten to add) and enjoyed the lovely scent.

A recent research revealed that 60% of parents consider the bathtime one of the most important bonding experiences with their child.
"The research commissioned by Matey bubble bath also found that over a third of parents (38%) agree that bathtime with their children is a highlight of their day, with 43% admitting to looking forward to bath time".
I know my guys are always looking forward to their bathtime and bedtime story after the bath.
And if you are curious to find out what were the top ten parent-child bonding experiences as chosen by parents they are:
1. Having a cuddle (29%)
2. Playing together (22%)
3. Reading a story (15%)
4. Bathtime (9%)
5. Chatting (6%)
6. Mealtimes and feeding (5%)
7. Going for a walk (5%)
8. Bedtime (3%)
9. Watching a film or cartoons (3%)
10. Listening to the music (2%)

Some parents admit that the bathtime could be pretty stressful. To help parents to make the bathtime a fun experience for both kids and parents, Matey has produced a limited edition waterproof book.
Matey Bubble Fun (book) is written by Emma Greaves and features the familiar characters: Max, Molly and Peg Leg. It is made of PEVA & PU foam and floats in the bath.
Emma Greaves is a Mum of two from Surrey. She won the writing competition run by Matey and is now a published author.

There are not that many pages in the book, and it is just the right length for reading in the bath. Colourful illustrations will appeal to little readers.

Just as the book says "Sail with Max Matey in his big, bath boat, Make him a bubble beard and go for a float".

Bubble beard

I treasure the bathtime with my little man, soon enough he will be too big to have me around at bathtimes, and I will look back at these days with nostalgia.

Disclosure: we received a bottle of Matey bubble bath and Matey bubble fun book for the purposes of reviewing. All opinions are mine.

Crazy about DGJ Organics' Wild'n'Crazy

A few weeks ago my lucky little man Eddie won a range of DGJ Organics' Wild'n'Crazy range. Eddie loves the bathtime, especially splashing for England bit, but not very keen to have his hair washed. He needs to be persuaded to do it, with "Don't you want to be nice and clean and smell lovely?" or "Eddie, monsters can build nests in your hair".

When the colourful bottles of shampoo from DGJ Organics arrived, I told Eddie it was a present from Mr Tumble's favourite brand (just look at the colours, they match Mr Tumble's spotty bag). Well, if it's good for Mr Tumble, it is good for Eddie as well.

The first impressions: we love the colourful bright bottles. Very appealing to young kids.
We have tried the whole range (not just Eddie, the whole family including Daddy) and this is what we thought:

Organic Wild'n'Crazy Kids Hair Juice/Detangle Shampoo with Banana & Berry extracts (yellow bottle)
First thing that you notice is the most delicious smell of ripe bananas, it is so tasty, you can almost eat it (not that we tried). Loved by all four of us. Left our hair soft and clean. And it does what it says - it is much easier to comb the hair afterwards due to the detangling action.

Organic Wild'n'Crazy Kids Hair Juice/Detangle Shampoo with Watermelon essential oils (green bottle) is a no tears shampoo which gently cleanses and detangles the hair. Again, the smell is absolutely wonderful, though I thought it was more melon-y rather than watermelon-y.

Organic Wild'n'Crazy Kids Swim shampoo & Body wash (blue bottle) with organic blueberry and coconut extracts is effective at neutralising the harmful affects of chlorine in swimming pool water and chloride in sea water. I confess we used it at home rather than in the swimming pool. We only just introduced Eddie to the pleasures of the local leasure centre, but its showers are not enticing to stay longer than a few seconds, it is way too cold to have a proper wash. Hopefully, once the weather is more clement, we could use this facility, until then after a quick dip in the shower, we have a proper wash once we get home, in the comfort of the warm bathroom. This shampoo has a mild smell of the coconut mixed with blueberries, a bit like a blueberry yogurt. Hair is left silky-smooth after its use, and the skin is feeling fresh.

Organic Wild'n'Crazy Kids Lice Repel shampoo with organic strawberry & lemon eucalyptus extracts (red bottle): now for such an unplasant task it is an ultra mild shampoo. It contains natural lice repellents. It is always better to use preventative measures rather than deal with the nasty creepy-crawlies (yep, been there a couple of times with our older son). Unlike the other lice treatments that we came across (which smell terribly and kind of announce to everyone in the vicinity: this person had a lice treatment), this shampoo smells lovely. Used it a few times for our older son who goes to school.

Organic Wild'n'Crazy Kids Hair Juice/Detangle Spray with watermelon essential oils (smaller size green bottle) is just right for kids like Eddie whose hair is very fine, and is often dreadlocky in the morning (he is a restless sleeper, like me, who moves a lot in bed, and his hair looks pretty tangled after the sleep). Use the spray straight on the hair, a very handy nozzle helps you to manage the stubborn knots.

The DGJ Promise: "All our products are made with plant derived natural ingredients enhanced with organic essential oils/extracts and contain no harsh chemicals such as Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulphates or parabens. These products may not foam as much as synthetic based products".

I remember reading on FB some irate parent complaining about the shampoos not foaming enough to his liking. True, you might get less foaming, but that didn't bother us. In fact, I think there is enough foam, as you can see from the photo below. The shampoos cleanse thoroughly and leave the scalp feeling refreshed and moisturised.

When Eddie saw this photo, he said: Eddie's crying. But actually it is the opposite, he was laughing his socks off when I took this photo.

"Sooo funny" - bath time with Nuby

"Sooo funny", seems to be Eddie's favourite expression. Isn't it great to be two years old and find the world an irresistible place full of fun discoveries?! Like most kids of his age, Eddie loves his bath. The bath time turns into the splash time which is made even jollier with interactive toys like Nuby Tub Time Turtle. It is a very cute bright toy which floats on the water's surface, it doesn't go down and is always within easy reach.

Eddie seems to be fascinated by the waterfall effect and is happily lifting the turtle up from the water. The turtle's shell works as a sieve. The toy is soft enough for a younger child to chew.  As a parent, I appreciate that the toy is BPA free.

This toy is available from Nuby and Amazon. This purchase will help support Deaf Children's Literacy Project.

Nuby Bath Letters and Numbers is another fun bath product which is suitable for kids 3+. Eddie is 28 months old, but I think it is never too early to introduce kids to numbers and letters. We count lots of things with Eddie, he is repeating and learning, and is happy to count on his own (at the moment it is "one, two, three, seven, six, nine, ten", but we're getting there).

These soft foam letters and numbers can float in the water, they are so light, and stick easily when wet to the bath's surface.

The letters and numbers are very bright and colourful. I remember we used to have a similar bath toy (a different brand) when Sasha was younger, but once we moved house, they were hidden in the box in the shed. When I decided that it was time for Eddie to enjoy this toy, I have searched in the shed and realised that the mouse has shredded most of the parts, eeek.
Now we have a bright new set of letters and numbers, and one happy tot.
The foam is made of non-toxic material and is BPA free.

To find out more about Nuby and keep up with their latest news, follow them on Twitter & Facebook.

A jolly gnome goes swimming (Morrck Splasha review)

The first time we tried Morrck Splasha on Eddie, it reminded me of an old song from a cartoon from my childhood "Where is a jolly gnome going? The jolly gnome is off to swim"
This adorable beach wrap was our prize from The Baby Website, when Eddie was chosen a baby of the month. Luckily it arrived just before our trip to Cornwall, where we spent a week by the sea. I guess I was over-optimistic about the weather, and packed all our swimming gear. Needless to say, it was quite cold, and I never had a chance to wear my swimming suit. My boys braved the elements though, and Sasha in particular jumped in the sea, as if he were somewhere hot and tropical. Eddie was bewildered by the vast expanse of the water, as it was his first trip to the sea ever. He touched the sand and absorbed the sound of the rolling waves and the shrill screams of the seagulls. The soft Morrck was wrapped around him. He looked cute and cuddly.
What a lovely invention, this towelling wrap, it is incredibly soft and cosy. Eddie loved wearing it, and since we returned home, we use it after the bath. The poppas on the shoulder keep it wrapped around the body without restricting the freedom of movement, which for our little tornado is of paramount importance, as he doesn't sit still when he is awake.
Splasha comes in two colourful designs: pink spots and blue stripes. The stripes are bright and bold. You can get it from Morrck:





Sleeping beauty Eddie, wrapped in Splasha and with his favourite blanket.

Observing the kingdom