So your little angel isn't being so angelic? You're not alone!

This is the first blog in a little series I'm doing with the lovely Marlene Roy, on Behaviour Management.  Marlene is my own personal child expert!  She has over 35 years in the childcare industry, is  childhood education and behaviourally qualified and is an expect in baby sleep and settling (if you've been blessed with one of Marlene's Home Visits, you'll know what I mean!). Through articles on my website Zimmer & Jee and through this blog, Marlene hopes to share her child knowledge with all of us! Here's our first installment - please enjoy :) 

Being a parent is both rewarding and challenging, and we've had times when our child displays behaviour we think is inappropriate, and that we can find hard to deal with - how many times has your child thrown a huge tanty in the supermarket and you find other customers watching you....curious as to what you might do about it?  Well I've been there...as I'm sure most of us have!

All children will test out limits and try different behaviours - trying to see what works and what doesn't work; trying to make us respond and to see where our boundaries lay.  The challenge for us as parents is to learn how to respond to these behaviours to keep the bad ones at a minimum!  (I'm sure you're thinking right now...easier said than done! Hang on...keep reading....)

Let's talk mind mechanics for a second - on a psychological level all children have a NEED to belong...in other words, they need to feel noticed and accepted.  CHILDREN OFTEN MISBEHAVE to get the attention they crave, because on a psychological level getting is trouble IS getting attention.

So what can we do if our little precious is acting up, causing trouble, just  to get attention? POSITIVITY - focus on their good behaviours, acknowledge them when they are behaving okay, or when they are co operating or helping. A good tip here is to use language of ENCOURAGEMENT rather than PRAISE, as it has a more positive long term effect.

For example when child has been playing quietly with his little brother you might say “Jamie it looks like you’re enjoying showing Sam how to use the Lego. Thankyou for being so gentle with him” rather than simply saying “Good boy Jamie” - be specific, be positive and direct, and detail what behaviour you're happy with - that way "Jamie' will know what you liked, and will (hopefully) try to do it again in the future.

Now lets face it, it is unrealistic to expect that we, as parents, can react the RIGHT way every time. Life is so busy these days and most families are trying to juggle so many things. But we all do the best we can and that's the important thing...that we try to encourage, support and direct good behaviour.  Not only for ourselves and our own sanity - but we're shaping little citizens here, that will one day go out into the world and who wants to be the parent of the delinquent trouble maker??? Not me!

Trust me, I get that it's hard to be a friend of a defiant or uncooperative child, but the time when a child is being most difficult is the time when they are in most need of a friend and understanding.  Trying to diffuse their frustration, encourage their good behaviours and praise with love will go a long way to not only helping good behaviour form, but also help to foster a long term positive relationship.  Humour is also good to lift the stress of a situation - but always remember, there's nothing wrong with walking away if you have to. Even today Mr 4 was being so challenging I got to a point where I had to leave the room ... so I left Daddy in charge and sat on my bed with a book for 10mins....I needed downtime, so I took it.

So in a nutshell Marlene's points for combatting bad behaviour:

• learn which situations to react to - we can't win every battle, and honestly who wants to spend much of every day arguing with a child - so choosing the more important situations and behaviours and letting "smaller indescretions" fly under the radar, can make life easier for everyone
• remember WHY children can misbehave, some are craving attention. And often through no real fault of our own - we're not "neglecting" our kids...but we have to work and so many things have to fit in each day that sometimes it's easy to forget to add the "quality" into the "time" we spend with our kids
• encouraging good behaviours leads to repeated good behaviour (well we hope) - and remember, this is more than just positive praise
• don't berate yourself when you slip up! There will be times where you can't help yourself and find your yelling madly, even before you realise your doing probably...don't worry, kids for the most part are resilient little things and also quite forgiving...

So that's it for our first installment on Behaviour Management - hope you enjoyed the read! Next installment will be chatting about the "4 C's" of managing behaviour and how routines can help.

Thanks and look forward to the next chat :)

"Loving life & being a mum...well, most of the time!"
Cass from
Zimmer & Jee Baby and Toddler Store

Work, life, hobbies, fun & responsibility - making it fit

Let's chat about hobby's, life & doing what we enjoy doing...balancing it with doing what we must...!  You know what I mean..we'd love to sit & say, crochet, all day; but the kids need lunch, the dog needs a bath, you have to go grocery shopping plus a million other things that are yours to do each day...

I'm creative & crafty, as many of us mums are. Funny how so many of us only find our creativity once the kiddies come along..perhaps it's all the clag-glue & playdoh we find ourselves immersed in everyday!

So many times, everyday, I have ideas for little projects I'd like to undertake but by the time I've made a toddlers' morning tea, given the baby a bottle & washed the brekky dishes I've often forgotten the brainwave already.

Oh yes, I know about keeping journals and notebooks for ideas...I have plenty of them..they keep the dining table & office desk level!  So one of my aims right now is to get out those notebooks, from under the wobbly furniture legs, dust of the cobwebs & actually get moving on the ideas.

My journals (or visual diaries as I like to call them..) are mostly filled with crafty little projects plus the occassional "potentially world changing" business or product idea - my flugelbinder (anyone remember Tom Cruise in Cocktail???). But right now the aim is to see the journals scribbles come to life & actually get completed.

Some of my projects are good - some are even great (like my kindy easy sheets!), some probably not so good (like Zoobie Owl that looked more like a cross between Furby & a penguin).  But I'll share the creative journey here with you...and anything that's a flop...hopefully you'll have ideas to help me turn a bad idea into a good one!

From time to time when I have extra of my handmade items like kindy easy sheets, kiddy stuff bags, handmade toys & other funky things...you'll find them here at Zimmer & Jee Handmade Range.  However most of these are sold before they're even made, in custom orders.

And as for the time for me to complete all these gloriously rewarding projects...well I'm still looking for the journal with THAT plan of action...which table leg was that....?????

If you'd like some more info, want to chat, or would like to request a custom order, you can do so using the Zimmer & Jee Contact Page or post below & i'll get back to you :)

Oh, and my little secret...fav places to buy fabric....

Fantasia Fabric Land - Machinery Drive, South Tweed Heads
http://www.funkyfabrix.com.au/
www.theozmaterialgirls.com/

Low Allergy Recipes & Meal Ideas for Toddlers & Kids My first child presented very early with multiple allergies - he was allergic to quite a range of foods (some very common & seemingly simple foods too) and could suffer a range of reactions from rashes & eczema right through to swelling of the face & mouth & breathing difficulties. While still a baby sleeping in his cot, he reacted to the mere smell of cooking onions & presented with swelling of the face & breathing difficulties. So it was crucial we found & developed safe meal alternatives. My sons allergy list included - dairy, gluten, wheat, lactose, beef, pork, fish, capsicum, tomatos, pumpkin, onion, garlic, orange & citris, egg, green beans - and that's just a snippet! But take egg, dairy, wheat & gluten from your diet & it doesn't leave a lot of meal options. Here we'll share with you recipes that we, and other parents of children with allergies, have used successfully with our kids & families. Remember that your child may have different allergies so it is important to assess each recipe's suitability for your child (both allergy-wise & age wise) before using it. If you'd like to submit a recipe idea please email to info@zimmerjee.com.au. LOW ALLERGY CHICKEN VEG STIR FRY NOODLES serves 4 (2 toddler, 2 adult serves), not suitable to freeze suitable for toddlers that can eat solids well, but you could puree a portion for a younger child What you'll need: - Chicken cut into strips 500gm (thigh or breast - thigh has a higher iron content) - Noodles - we use Hakubaku Organic Udon as it's gluten & egg free - 2 cups Vegetables cut to stir fry - whatever you like that your child will eat - try carrot, celery, brocolli, zucchini, baby corn, capsicum For Sauce - 2 tbsp Soy Sauce - we use Tamari Japanese Soy as it's wheat free - 1/2 cup Honey or Golden Syrup - Golden Syrup is the best low allergy option, as some children react to honey - 1/4 stock chicken stock cube - we use Massell brand as it's free of lactose, gluten & msg (many stocks contain MSG so read labels carefully) - 1/2 cup boiling water - 1 tbsp cornflour - to avoid wheat use real cornflour, made from corn (some cornflour is actually wheat flour ground finely) - 1/2 cup boiling water How to Make It: Prepare the vegetables & chicken & set aside ready to cook. Make sauce by placing cornflour in a jug & add a little boiling water to make a smooth paste. Add honey/golden syrup & soy sauce & mix - add more boiling water to turn the paste into a sauce. Sit aside ready to use. Cook chicken over a high heat in a little oil to brown. Then add vegetables and stir fry ( you may need a little water). While this is cooking prepare noodles as per directions on the pack. Once chicken & vegetables are ready add the sauce & mix to coat, heat through & allow to thicken a little. Turn off the heat, add noodles & mix to combine. You're done - serve & enjoy! Want a more adult version? Add a spash of sweet chili to the sauce mix. For added texture water chestnuts are great too, or nuts if your kids aren't allergic. HIDDEN VEGGIE PANCAKES not suitable to freeze, best eaten as soon as made suitable for toddlers A great recipe to add vegies to a fussy eaters diet! Potato is low allergy, sweet potato even better, but you can easily hide a number of different vegetables in this dish. It's more a hash brown really than a pancake. We've made it successfully with or without egg - as long as the pan is hot enough the white potato starch will combine the ingredients when you don't use egg. Great as a side dish to a meal, or a snack. It is cooked in oil so choose a good quality, healthier oil. What you'll need: - A couple of good sized potatos, grated - Other veg you want to "hide" in there - sweet potato, carrot, pumpkin, zucchini all work well grated into this dish - 1 egg, if you're using egg How to Make It: Mix all grated vegetables in a bowl, add the egg (if you're using it) and mix well. If using egg you can drain some starch liquid from the grated potatos. Add a little oil to a heavy based frying pan & heat, then add tablespoons of the mixture & flatten slightly. Cook till brown and crisp then turn and cook the other side. Great served with dips/garnish - my kids love mashed up avocado & hommus dip - but also nice with salsa if your kids can tolerate tomatos. And for kids that can have dairy, try a Cheesy Pancake version, simply add a handful of grated cheese into the mix. More recipes & low allergy info will be added to our Zimmer & Jee page in the coming weeks so you can view our INFORMATION & ARTICLES FOR PARENTS HERE.

And for parents concerned about their child & baby's health & wellbeing, why not check out our range of eco alternatives - we keep organic clothing, bpa free bottles, bpa free feeding plates bowls & utensils, funky stainless steel drink bottles for babies & kids that are bpa free, organic toys, natural baby care products & bath lotions - check out our Eco Bubs, Eco Kids & Eco Mums at Zimmer & Jee today. We're adding to this range all the time - plus our prices are below recommended retail on all items & we ship FREE Australia wide on all order over only $50!

DURING JULY MILK BABY & LARISSA BRIGHT NATURAL, ORGANIC, VEGAN BABY CARE, BATHTIME, NIGHT TIME & SKIN CARE PRODUCTS ARE ALL 25% OFF....HURRY, WHILE STOCKS LAST!!!

Does Your Child Suffer with Eczema? Both my kids have eczema - my first developed it right on 5 mths, my second at only 3 mths. From research I've done & discussions with my naturopath it seems most kids develop eczema around 5 or 6 mths - which coincides with when most bubs start solids. With my second, the date he developed ezcema coincides with when we started using a rice thickener in his bottles - so again, introduction of solids. This supports the opinion that I have, that ezcema is just the external display of things not being right in bubs tummy. Eczema causes the skin to itch, become red & irriated, welt & peel. For the baby or child the symptoms can be a huge range of mild right through to severe. Working as a naturopathic assistant I've seen children covered in dried scratch marks, where they've scratched so hard they've bled. Not to mention the emotional distress these poor kids suffer. My children have varying degrees of symptoms, dependant upon what they've eaten recently. Normally it takes about 3 days for the reaction to be full blown. Hints & Tips to Help Here is a list of things that I do to help combat my childrens eczema. A number of these were recommended by my good friend & naturopath, Tanya Goldie. •Oats - tie a handful of oats in a square of muslin and put it in their bath, squeeze to release the goodness, creating a lovely milky bath. The oats help to calm the itch & soothe the redness, while adding moisture & nutrition to the skin •Beeswax - products containing beeswax are helpful as they leave a barrier on the skin that assists keeping the itch away. I personally use Pure Body Balm and Yours Naturally Baby Balm (these products were so effective, I stock it here at Zimmer & Jee to make it easily available)but their are a number of options available at healthfood shops •Food - eczema seems to relate to foods eaten, with my children limiting wheat, gluten & dairy really help. You need to discover your childs triggers, and limit them. My eldest spent his first 2 years on a dairy, gluten & wheat free diet due to allergies and today (he's 4) he can no longer is allergic to any of these foods. •Pro-biotic - pro-biotics are excellent to assist eczema as they work to repair the gut, meaning your child can better digest food and not react as severely. I personally use one called "Lactobac", my children use "Ultra Flora Immune" & my husband uses "Inner Health Plus" which you can get from any chemist & they have a child form too. Lactobac & Ultra Flora Immune is readily available in healthfood shops or from natural practitioners. •Coconut oil - coconut oil is a great natural base to make your own creams as it's soothing & moisturising (I use coconut oil to make my own chest rub for the boys too). Just be aware if nut allergy is in your family, as coconut is actually a nut (I have a nut allergy but my children and don't react to coconut, but just be careful). You can purchase coconut oil from healthfood shops. •Rosemary - a client recommended this helpful tip - for eczema on the head or in the hair, rosemary brewed like tea & cooled, works well poured over the head. Great tip - thanks Heather! And a quick note about chemist and doctor prescribed treatments - various creams, ointments & lotions are available from chemists & by prescription that are supposed to help. I've tried many and never found any that gave any decent results. The issue I have with many of these products is that many are petroleum and/or steriod based, neither of which I want on my childs skin. If you do a little research, steriod creams are claimed to thin the skin too. I found these worked short-term, but the eczema returned worse after I stopped using the steriod creams. Please remember I'm not a professional healthcare worker, just a mum with a experience with these sorts of issues, trying to offer you some help from sharing what I've learnt. If you like to contact me or offer more advice for this article please do email me at cass@zimmerjee.com.au. And take a minute to check out our great selection of Natural & Organic baby & child bath & body care products - you'll find some lovely things for mum too!

200 Facebook Fans Celebration!!!

At Zimmer & Jee we're so thrilled that we've reached 200 fans that it's time to share the joy!!! We have two gorgeous outfits to give away - from the stunning designer label Absorba - one for the boys & one for the girls, both 24mth sizes.

How to enter is so simple....answer this question - in the picture above, what colour is the toddler wearing? (answer - orange)

To enter just go to our facebook page - http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Zimmer-Jee/314845559269?ref=ts and post your answer under the comment "200 Celebration". Competition opens tonight Wednesday 19th May & ends 8pm Friday 21st May. Winner selected by random number generator out of all entries received. Entry open to Aust & NZ residents. Winner will be announced here and on facebook straight after the random draw.

Good luck! Questions can be posted on our page or emailed to info@zimmerjee.com.au

Teething Troubles 2010

How I do not wish to be a baby right now!

Most times I look at bub, sleeping in a comfy cot or being pushed around in a snazzy pram and think "gee, I wish someone would let me sleep in the afternoon" or "how awesome to get pushed around the shops"! I think many of us have thought that before :)

But now we're in hard-core teething territory I'm not so sure I'd want to trade places. Actually, I think it quite advantageous that we grow up and don't remember it.

And I'm not talking just a little dribbly, chewing on a fist with no real evidence of teeth. Oh no, I'm talking huge swelling, little white protrusions everywhere breaking through all higgly piggly. We've gone from two front teeth (that took 3 months to fully rise) to a couple of weeks full-on teething producing (so far) one complete molar, 2 molars starting to cut & 4 eyeteeth all showing through. Poor bub!

Funnyily enough, my first had a lot of teething pain but at least his teeth came in the proper order. My second has gone from two front teeth to a molar - how that works, I'll never know. Apparently "cross-cutting" as my paediatrician described it, is more painful that normal teething. After what's going on here right now, I could agree with that.

So what have we done to ease my little ones pain? Quite a selection of remedies actually :)

Firstly, it began with teething toys (the chewable kind with sterile water inside) that I kept in the fridge. This turned into multiple teething toys that have been constantly rotating through the fridge the last couple of weeks.

Then we needed to "up the ante" so moved onto an natural amber teething bracelet. He was very fascinated with this, so I've had to pop it right up his arm, under his sleeve, where it's quickly forgotten. As the teething worsened, I added an amber necklace wrapped around his ankle a couple of times, under the sock. I think the added warmth helped too. (find out how amber works as a natural analgesic & anti-inflammatory here).

Then the next 2 molars half popped out....ouch!

That's when I remembered the chamomile tea remedy we used with my first son...off the healthfood shop we went! So easy...just make the tea, let it cool then rub it on their sore little gums. I found this really helped. I also soaked a cotton facewasher in the tea & froze it, giving it to bub to chew on. He really enjoyed this :)

I would be lying if I let you believe that's all I did for him - but as molars 2 and 3 started to cut I had no choice but to offer panadol & then nurofen as the pain worsened. Although these did help, I keep it minimal as my bub has some digestive issues & painrelievers aren't generally good for him, & he does tend to vomit them back up.

Just a little soapbox for a minute - chemist style teething gel - you know the brands I'm talking about (but as I'm about to speak negatively I won't mention them by name ). If you do a little research you'll see that there's research linking the use of these gels with stomach ulcers in baby's and toddlers. Keep in mind these products are generally aspirin based, so each time you administer it, you're essentially giving your baby a dose of aspirin, which is known to cause stomach ulcers & thin the blood. Anyway, I'm no doctor, I just think we should all take the time to check it out...

The one product I would recommend though that you can get from your chemist is Hyland Teething tablets. They are in a lactose base that my bub can't tolerate, however we had fantastic success using them with my first. They are a natural, homeopathic remedy that is also very calming. We found them helpful for sleeplessness too bub's sleeplessness that is!).

And as I said before, I'm no doctor, just an ex-naturopathic assistant & mum of two terrible teethers, who thought my experiences might be of assistance to you. I'd love to hear your thoughts & experiences too..feel free to comment below.

And if you're looking for a good range of teething products here you'll find bpa free teething toys, natural amber teething remedies & soon to arrive 100% natural rubber teething toys too - where I stock the products I know, that I have used and that I trust.

http://www.zimmerjee.com.au/

bpa free magic flower teething toy

amber natural teething necklace in cognac

Getting out and about with little people

My husband and I used to love going out to cafes for lunch - we spent WAY to much money doing so actually. After the arrival of my first son we got back into this trend after a few short months, as Alex was very content to just sit in his pram & play with toys while we enjoyed a lovely cafe luncy. But our second bub has been a different game altogether!

Never content to just sit his pram plus he desperately hates highchairs (his own included) we were never able to go out and have a civilsed meal. Trying to do so always caused screaming, crying and fussing from Jasper, indigestion for us due to rushing the meal plus plenty of disapproving looks from cafe staff and fellow diners! It really just wasn't worth it.... As for home, try feeding a crawling baby...chasing him around, stuffing in a spoonful, chasing again, getting another spoonful in. Sounds hard hey? Well it was better than the screaming match and food throwing fight that ensued each time I put him in his highchair.

But I'm happy to report this has all changed! How, you may ask? The solution turned out to be pretty simple actually. It seems our baby doesn't actually like being a baby! Sit him in the highchair - he screams. Sit him on a chair just like everyone else's - surprise, happy baby. He'll happily eat, drink and be cheerful as long as he's sitting on a "big person" chair. Obviously you can't just plop him on a chair, and one of us can't just sit there and hold him, so I embarked on a journey to find a chair solution.

I tried a hard plastic booster seat thingy I got in Target, but my chubby bubby was too big around the middle for the piddly little strap. I tried a portable booster that looked abit like a box, but he felt so insecure he screamed and complained. A bit more money spent, a few more failed options, until I came across a little gem from the UK....

I couple of clever mums put their heads together and came up with TotSeat - "the washable, squashable highchair for babies who lunch" (love that tag line). Jasper just loved it! The design straps onto pretty much any chair (I haven't found one yet is doesn't work with), a unique cummerbund style strap provides perfect support meaning bub is secure (and makes the TotSeat useable on open backed chairs) plus all the straps/buckles are really hardwaring. It's made of a polycotton so it's washable, and mine's washed up perfectly time and again. Weighs only 260gm, comes in a little travel pouch - so I leave mine in the carboot so I always have it.

So now little Jasper happily sits anywhere in his TotSeat, enjoys meals with the family at the family table (which I think is just devine) and we can actually go out and dine in the real world without utter embarrassment! A couple of the cafes we've been too have been so impressed that they've taken on TotSeat too and offer it instead of highchairs - what a great idea....

The best part - TotSeat is only $59 plus is shipped for FREE Australia Wide! Check it out at http://www.zimmerjee.com.au/. Know someone having a baby? This would be a perfect, and unique, baby shower or new baby gift - something long lasting, useful and trendy - the new mum will thrilled!!!

Funky, fun & safe - new ranges added at Zimmer & Jee

I may have been laid up with the flu, but I still managed to finalise some loose-ends this last week and can now confirm some fantastic new additions to the Zimmer & Jee range! I'm sooooo excited, as these are products that I've used and have been so pleased with. Absolutedly thrilled that I can now offer them to you!

First I'd like to announce... Baby Nova from Germany. This family company has over 20 years experience creating excellent products for babies and children. Working with hospitals, paediatricians & clinics they develop a range that is safe, affordable and BPA, PVC and Phthalate free. More than your average bpa free range, they have awesome colours & designs meaning bubs and kids are excited to use the products. Plus its all really great prices. I love this range - I'm sure you will too! My range of Baby Nova including dummy's, teething rings, bottles, toddler drink cups and drink bottles is all being uploaded at the moment.

(Just a sample of my funky Baby Nova range!)

Secondly I'm adding the fantastic Amberease to my range. My two baby boys are both awful teethers and Amberease has offered me a natural alternative to medication, allowing my babies excellent relief. Made from baltic Amber, a fossilised resin, it has natural analgesic, pain-relieving & anti-inflammatory properties when worn close to the skin where it warms & releases its healing properties safely and naturally. Not a teething toy, they work their magick purely by being worn. Great prices too, around $20 for braclets and around $30 for necklaces.

And thirdly, a brand new product to the Australian market that I think is absolutely fantastic - TotSeat. Touted as the "award-winning, washable, squashable chair harness" this innovative product quickly and easily turns practically any dining chair into a safe, comfortable and secure high chair. Weighing only 260gms & endorsed by the UK's leading child safety charity CAPT, it carries Oeko-Tex certification (meaning it's free of substances detrimental to bubs health), meets all European safety standards, comes in funky fabric options plus sells for only $59!!!

I'm working on getting all of these awesome products uploaded to http://www.zimmerjee.com.au/ at the moment - I'll have the all up by the end of the week. In the meantime if you have any questions or want any more info, please just email me at cass@zimmerjee.com.au. Please take some time to cruise my site later this week when all these items are up & ready to go - and remember, I offer FREE trackable shipping, Australia wide!

All the best to everyone....till next time.....Cass from Zimmer & Jee

About babies, allergies, sleeplessness & other things that led to where we are today....

To say we've had a pretty challenging time with our two babies is somewhat an understatement! Many times my hubby & I have questioned what on earth we've done that karma seems to dislike us so. Luckily there's nothing life threatening wrong with our little boys, and we're very grateful for that. But they've had a number of issues & health complaints that have made life a little hard going the past few years - not to mention a strain on one's sanity & ability to get a good nights sleep! Here I'll tell you a bit about our first son, Alex, and the trials we went through with him. As you'll soon find out my babies come out and are just like everyone elses - till we get them home, then they seem to break.... And why am I telling you this, well there's two reasons. Firstly, so you can understand where the idea of Zimmer & Jee came from & why I stock the products I do. And secondly, perhaps you can learn from what we've experienced & maybe that will make your parenting path a little easier (i hope so!). Alex has a lot of issues with allergies, eczema, intolerance's & similar problems. For the first few weeks of his life he was calm, content & a good sleeper however he wasn't able to breastfeed (he had an issue latching on due to a severe tongue tie that was undiagonsed). After three weeks living on expressed BM the "cow" dried up and we had to move him onto formula. That's when the issues really began. So at 3 weeks of age after starting formula Alex's demeanour changed. He started crying & grizzling all the time, went from sleeping 5 hrs between feeds overnight to sleeping in 20min increments round the clock. Under the direction of our paediatrician & Dr we tried multiple formulas, with limited success. Alex was now unable to pass a "number #2" so every couple of days we had to use a suppository (now that was great fun.....), and what the poor little guy passed was something akin to tar and came with great pain & screaming. He was 12 weeks old before he could pass a #2 on his own. At 6 weeks of age we took Alex for his checkup. We'd researched and decided against vaccination, however at this appointment we were so pressured by the medical staff that we agreed and he was vaccinated. This was 11am. Alex screamed as soon as he was jabbed, and continued to scream throughout the remainder of the day until he collapsed in my arms at 8pm that night. He was basically comatose for the next three days - limp, not waking for feeds, his eyes would roll around unfocused when he opened them - a very scary time. After this episode Alex, my tiny 6 week old baby, began having fits. His poor sleep pattern of 20min naps around the clock continued till he was 10mths of age. We went to, and failed, 3 sleep clinics in that time where my heart broke as nurses pushed me out the room to let my little boy wail (without ever falling asleep). I was sure there was something wrong that was being overlooked by our medical team, so when he was 8 or so weeks I began seeing Dr after Dr looking for an answer to his issues. At which time I was labelled a hypochondriac & post-natally depressed. Poor feeding continued to be an issue, with milk feeds poorly taken even though his tongue tie had been repaired (it was so severe he couldn't lift his tongue off the floor of his mouth, but Dr's missed this when looking for his feeding issue. My husband discovered the tongue tie after doing some internet research when bub was about 4 weeks old and booked him in for surgery that very week). After fixing the tongue tie his feeds were taken better, but then bub couldn't keep them down. He'd loose an entire bottle and have to be refed, with he and I both saturated. I took to feeding him with us both covered in vomit nappies and towels, ready for the enivitable! Our Dr then labelled Alex as having "severe reflux" and put him on a number of medications that were supposed to be a miracle cure - "you won't believe how well he sleeps now he's on Losec" the Dr told us. Oh, but that wasn't to be! Alex's 20min sleeping pattern continued till he was 10mths of age - it would take me 2 hours to rock, pat & settle him to sleep to have him sleep for only 20mins and be back again, grumpy, tired and unhappy. By this stage I was at my wits end, no answers, no help and an endless sleepless issue that saw me only sleeping 2hours worth of little naps every day. Not good! As you can tell, this is a pretty long winded story! To save you getting really bored I'll stop there and start next time with the story of how I tried to give him to an adoption agency - oh yes, you heard right! And the meditation that got me through the severe lack of sleep. And how, you may be asking, does this related to Zimmer & Jee? I can't tell you how many products and how huge the expense was, trying to slove Alex's issues. Thinking the issue was feeding, we went through bottle after bottle, trying every baby bottle and teat we could find. Thinking it was discomfort causing the lack of sleep, we tried numerous brands of baby sleeping bags, blankets, pj's. Then we blamed his ezcema & tried heaps of different brands of clothes & outfits, bath washes, moisturisers, creams, lotions and potions - every chemist brand, prescribed product plus every organic & natural brand under the sun! And that's how this relates to my shop - I've been there, done that and tried it all! So now you don't have to...all the products I found useful and that worked, I'll have on my site. That's quite a list as you can imagine, so it will be a few months before my store is totally stocked. But when it is, you'll have a "one stop shop" for everything baby, set up by someone who's been there before and tried it all! www.zimmerjee.com.au Have you had a situation like mine? If you have I'd love to hear about it & share our experiences (it's so easy to feel alone isn't it). Please feel free to post your comments here, contact me www.zimmerjee.com.au website or email me at cass@zimmerjee.com.au. And don't forget to visit my store for everything baby www.zimmerjee.com.au

I'm pretty passionate about little ones feet. Might sound odd, but it's true, and for very good reason as you're about to find out!

As parents we're all concerned about our babies development - we are intently focused on what they can do with their little hands and feet, how many teeth they have today, are they saying what they should and doing what they should....the list goes on.

Somewhere along that thought process I stopped to consider their little tiny feet. So cute and chubby, and flexible like some sort of monkey! Have you ever noticed what you little one can do with their feet and toes...???

These soft little footsies bear the brunt of chubby baby weight (especially my with my bub!) and suffer all the trials of learning to walk. Did you know that only a very small percentage of babies are actually born with foot problems? Most foot problems are developed...doesn't that make you think....

Experts agree the most important time in your child's foot development is their first year, when their feet ar so soft and plyable. This is why we need to start focusing on this important, yet widely ignored, part of babies development.

Studies have shown that walking barefoot early on allows the foot to grow and develop naturally, practising the natural grasping action of toes, developing balance and co-ordination. How many bubs have you seen "clomping" along in heavy & hard soled shoes....not good at all!

But of course, going barefoot isn't always practicable, that's why soft baby shoes are so important - protecting babies cute and soft little feet from cuts, abrasions and other nasties.

Choosing Proper Footwear for Your Baby...

Experts agree on a few main things to look for when selecting footwear for your little one, shoes should be:

- Lightweight, so the child can experience normal movement

- Flexible & Soft, so feet are not restricted or bound in any way

- Breathable, made from natural products such as leather, for natural airflow and good foot health

- Flat, simulating barefoot conditions without any arch supports

For these reasons, Zimmer & Jee focus on soft soled leather shoes for babies and soft leather shoes with flexible rubber soles for toddlers and walkers. The brands we stock meet these criteria and are some of the best in the baby shoe business!

And thankyou to our USA business partner, Pedoodles, for helping us compile this useful and essential information to share with you all :)

Happy shoe shopping!

CHECK OUT OUR WEBSTORE www.zimmerjee.com.au where we've just released a great range of soft leather baby shoes - all at sell out prices!

The terrible 2's happening at 4?????

So I got to thinking today about the balancing act it takes to combine being a mum, with taking care of your little people, combined with looking after hubby (which often times substitutes for child #3!) plus adding in your own work, hobbies, interests and anything else you may like to do with your time... Since starting Zimmer & Jee I find numerous times a day I'm taking phonecalls or doing little bits and pieces on the computer....and suddenly it seems little Mr 4years has turned into the devil child. Is this just an age based thing, or is it because my time is that little bit shorter these days? Being difficult for the sake of it - anything I ask is greeted with "no" and stomping off to the bedroom, multiple toy throwings and screetching "i not like you anymore". I've taken away tv, favourite toys, favourite foods, done time out in the bathroom...nothing seems to be working. Plus little "mr clever" seems to have worked out that saying sorry make mummy happy...he creeps up so cuddly, says sorry, then asks for his toys back! Arghhhhhh So my task this week is to work out if this is a phase or something else, and work out a way to deal with it...whist keeping tabs on the website of course!

About new lines - exciting and busy times!

Well, today was a learning curve!

Here's me, a fairly computer savvy person, proficient in many programs from working in corporate marketing for so many years. Purchased a self administered website for my business thinking, "with my experience, managing that will be a piece of cake"....well that wasn't exactly so...

Firstly, the winter range from french designer Absorba arrived Friday. So exciting!!! Nothing better than pulling out gorgeous garment after gorgeous garment....even hubby overlooking the process was full of appreciative "mmm's" and "ahhh's" plus the occassional "keep that one for bub"!

After that fun bit...hit the first bump. Stock image disk that came with the clothing wouldn't work. Would take a week to get a new one, and who wants to wait that long? Not me. So in my wisdom I started photographing the stock myself - I have a top camera, good software, funky tripod thingy, so let's give it try...hmmmmm

The first lot of images wouldn't upload. Not happy, but try again. Second round of images wouldn't upload either...there goes Saturday....

Worked out I needed to resize the pixels to a smaller image size so they'd upload - success!!!!! Until a slip of the hand hit the delete button and whoops, there goes my home page into the internet abyss. Oh boy....

After a lot of fiddling around managed to retreive the home page (yeah!) plus manage to upload reasonable photos for Absorba stock and get some inventory loaded. So all in all, the weekend ended on a successful note.

But note to self, once business has really taken off, employ someone else to adminster the website!!!!

To view our new stock please go to www.zimmerjee.com.au/category/new.htm

about becoming a Label's Agent

Well yes, things to seem to be moving along at a crazy pace right now - I'm the first to admit to that! But I'm a firm beliver in "when you're on the right track, stuff just happens", & I think the curren't "goings on" are testimony to that. In under a week I've started a webstore, picked up agency rights for 3 designer labels & started negotiations to buy a US brand of babyshoes (anyone that knows me knows I LOVE leather baby shoes, and these US guys make some of the best). So I'm all excited about all of this....hubby is freaking out! It's all moving too fast for him I think...but he's a more structured, planned out sort of soul. About becoming the distributer, well that was interesting. I wanted to get a French label, ZaZa Couture for my webstore and had been chasing high and low. You see, a lot of these labels don't want anything to do with you, some already have agents and basically your a little fish with big pond syndrome. However, the Za Za people were very helpful, called me back straight away and were very keen for me to stock there label. The following day I got a couple of calls from them, both of which I missed as I had my hands full with a teething bub. However, once I did call them back they were very upfront and offered me the distributor rights. Wow, that was an exciting and crazy conversation! Short of it is, all the gorgeous stock is arriving next week and I just can't wait!!! Welcome to the world of kids designer fashion retail! www.zimmerjee.com.au

The crazy, busy & exciting journey begins!

I decide to do the strangest things, at the craziest times - my husband will vouch for that. He often says the only thing holding back my spontaneity is my little legs!!!!

That said, I've started an online business! For my boys I love good quality clothes & bitz & pieces, but I don't like to pay the earth either. The concept came about sort-of by accident - a stay-at-home-mum with a love of designer kidswear and a budget that didn't stretch that far! What started as my own journey to find lovely items for my kids; turned into doing the same for friends; and has now turned into a website - check it out http://www.zimmerjee.com.au/.

My aim is to make life a bit easier for us mums by doing all the running around for you. Zimmer & Jee has only just been born so stock is still arriving and I'm still working on aspects of the site. But it's up and running and looks fabulous (love my little birdie logo!). We took our first orders this week so it's all working well....:)

Zimmer & Jee will be stocked with all the things I loved for my bubs, especially those things I found hard to get, or found myself ordering from overseas. I'll be keeping some gorgeous affordable brands seasonally - the likes of Tiny Tribe, SookiBaby & Freshbaked; plus brands that offer a little something different like Eternal Creation & Blessed Earth. I've got wooden toys coming from the US, organic cotton softies from Lithuania, baby shoes from South Africa....I don't care where it has to come from, if I loved it with my bubs it's going on the site!

Plus, the real bonus for us mums, is the top labels at bottom prices! I'm picking up excellent brands by buying bulk lots of "end of season" at great prices so we can all grab something fantastic! I only have limited amounts of these items you'll have to snaffle anything you see, when you see it, 'cause it won't last.

And as for this blog...well, it will be about the store, about me and my life, about my hobbies & anything else I think you'd like to share. As it says in the title, it will be a crazy, busy & exciting journey....thanks for sharing it with me!!!!