RemyAndSam.com

When Jeremy turned 6 months and was confidently holding his head up, we bought a MacPac Baby Carrier for him. MacPac makes 3 different types of baby carriers, the Koala, Possum and Vamoose.  We chose the Koala for the price and based on what we expected to be doing with a baby-toddler. Paul and I love the outdoors but didn’t imagine that we’d be treking overnight in the bush with a one - two year old.

The MacPac Baby Carrier that we have has done wonders for our level of enjoyment of the outdoors. We simply put Jeremy in and off we go. Initially, we didn’t buy the Sleepyhead but found that with the walking movements, he was often lulled to sleep so we happily bought it shortly after he turned 9 months. We’ve received many compliments with the MacPac Baby Carrier and Jeremy is at eye level with adults so his enjoyment is increased.

We’ve found it versitile in use. Great for overseas trips, at airports and going sight seeing in the city. It folds flat and travels well as cabin baggage on flights. 

The 25 litre base pocket is more than enough for bushwalking and keeping all those extras. Actually, it’s more than enough for short day bushwalking trips. We also like to hang things like jumpers and water bottles on the external straps for easy access. It’s much easier than digging around inside the base pocket!

I am not a large woman, 163cm and on a good day weighing around 61kg. I used to carry Jeremy for up to 1 hour in the MacPac without rest when he went through a stage of not wanting to sit in his stroller, going shopping and walking in the park. This was when he was around 10-12 months. The hip support and shoulder straps are fairly comfortable. I found that after a while, the first place that took it’s toll were my shoulders. Now, I wouldn’t dream of attempting to carry him for more than 30 minutes in the MacPac at 15 kgs. 

Jeremy is 32 months now and we’ve just come back from a long weekend spent bushwalking. Once again, the MacPac Baby Carrier has been unreal and it by far has been the best buy we’ve made since Jeremy was born. I know that it’s a big call, but we haven’t bought any products for him that has been used as often as the MacPac Koala and as versitile and durable. The MacPac Baby Carrier goes where no stroller or pram can go!

We highly recommend a MacPac Baby Carrier, whether it be the Koala, Possum or Vamoose, especially for parents who love the great outdoors.

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For many months now, I’ve watched all of my friends turning the dvd or tv on to entertain their kids. I’ve watched in envy as their kids quieten down and become happy little angles in front of the tv and wondered to myself why Jeremy doesn’t like watching tv. Perhaps the occasional ad keeps him entertained for a short period of time but nothing else. Not Thomas the Tank Engine, Not Dora the Explorer, Not The Wiggles, Not High 5, nothing, zilch… until In The Night Garden, it only took 2.5 years for Jeremy to finally be fascinated by something on tv!

I can’t tell how much of a saviour it has become. I now turn it on when I need Jeremy out of my hair, it is almost an indulgence that I feel guilty about doing except I don’t! I watch it with Jeremy, easily through a whole episode and forget that I’ve been sitting there watching it. That’s how entrancing it is. 

Spurned on by it’s powers to entertain Jeremy for the whole programme, I decided to go out there and get him some In The Night Garden toys. They haven been almost as good at keeping him entertained as the programme. I think the toys are a bit pricey but Target, ABC Shop, Toys R Us often have special promotions for these toys. There is not a huge variety from the In The Night Garden range to choose from but the ones they do have are enough to entertain Jeremy.

It’s fantastic and I highly recommend it to any mums out there who need that 30 minutes of quiet time. I know that sounds awful and all sorts of children’s experts are telling us not to let our kids spend so much time infront of the tv but a mum’s got to do what a mum’s got to do.

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I recently purchased a Wii Fit after much persuasion from my hubby. I had my doubts at first, thinking it was like any other computer game console. Before Jeremy, Paul was addicted to PS2 but since the introduction of the Wii, he’d been trying to persuade me that it’s a must. I finally agreed after seeing the Wii Fit advertised on TV. 

We’ve had it for a couple of weeks now, and it was suprisingly easy to use for a woman does not like playing games of any type using these consoles.  I don’t exercise formally and for me, exercise includes occasionally walking Jeremy to the park, cleaning the house and doing the shopping. Fun stuff, but far from going to the gym, aerobics or laps at the pool.

The Wii Fit assesses your real age based on your weight, height and fitness level. This age should not be taken too seriously as it can be judgemental. For example, I was given a depressing ‘real age’ of 42 because during the fitness test, I got distracted and bummed out. Oh well, I’ll just have to re-assess my Wii Fit age.  

It has activities such as yoga, jogging and some balance exercises such as skiing and keeping the soccer ball out of the net. You choose your fitness level, I’m still on beginner and go from there. It’s easy to navigate around even for people like me. 

My personal view on the Wii Fit would be that it’s fun but the real stuff is better. For example, it’s better to go to a yoga class and experience the real thing or going skiing. But if you can’t, then Wii Fit would be the next best thing to do in the comforts of your own home, because it’s fun and can be challenging. 

For those who are lazy to exercise like me, it’s the perfect way to get fit in my pjs, except that unless you spend hours on it, you wouldn’t get any fitter. With that time, you could go to the gym or pool.

We now treat it as what it really is, a game that we spend time on for entertainment, and if we get fit during the process, it’s a bonus.

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We recently returned from France. It was the first big trip we took Jeremy on. I was a little apprehensive as to how Jeremy would fare on the flight and in transit. After doing some research, I came across the Trunki. Yes, it is a trunk for kids. I swear that it was the best thing we bought for him this year. It’s lightweight and we were able to bring it on board as carry on luggage. Jeremy helped pack all his favourite toys in it and we stowed it away under the front seat, ready to use anytime needed on the flight.

Jeremy riding his Trunki in Heathrow Airport

When I bought it, I actually stood on it, sat on it and gave it a kick (when the shop assistant wasn’t looking, ahum!) and it stood firm. I decided on the Towgo Trunki (unisex blue, green and pink) because I was hoping to be able to get a bit more use out of it for a second child.

Jeremy LOVES his Trunki. On our trip, he mainly used in at the airports, train stations and bus stations. At home, he drags it around the house, riding it and pushing it. Basically, it gets a heap of use! There is rarely a day since we purchased it that he hasn’t been on it. 

If anyone is considering travelling with young kids, I highly recommend the Trunki. Although, with the popularity of the Trunki, it’s hard to get it at a heavily discounted price, but I have seen them sell for 10-20% off.

Oh, one more point, it’s not recommended as check in baggage and hasn’t been designed to be as such…

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