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Two of my favorite things are: 1) accessories and 2) being organised. So you can imagine how I felt with the arrival of my new Maclaren accessories that promised to make my life easier and more organised! I think many of the Maclaren accessories look useful, but for now we chose the Travel Bag, Universal Organiser, Reversible Seat Liner and Field Bag.

Travel Bag (Single)

With our family spread across Europe, Canada and all parts of Australia, we have become quite the practiced and proficient travellers. However saying this, I still dread maneuvering the towering mountain of luggage required when travelling with Toddler. So I welcome the Maclaren Carry Bag which is great to help keep our pusher protected and our luggage neat and organised whilst in transit, which means we have had good luck with everything turning up on luggage carousels in perfect condition.

We find both our Maclaren Volo and Maclaren Techno XT ideal for travel and whichever we take, we find the Maclaren Travel Bag helps to ensure the pusher is protected whilst in transit. It is made from heavy-duty black nylon fabric and reinforcing strapping and has a single long grey zip making it is easy to get the pusher in and out.  It has sturdy little wheels to enable the carry bag to be wheeled as well as carried and a Velcro strap to hold the handles together. It is a classic and neat design, coming in black fabric printed with the Maclaren logo and comes with a customised red Maclaren luggage tag.

On our last trip from Brisbane to Melbourne, after a bumpy ride the carry bag arrived with some general wear and tear and the pusher inside was protected – the carry bag had done its job, and Baby was wheeled out of arrivals with mummy very happy and relaxed!

Universal Organiser

The Universal Organiser has proved to be a little gem. I find it enables me to keep all our essentials easily accessible and close at hand so we can have a much more relaxed time when out and about. The Universal Organiser attaches to the pusher’s handles with Velcro straps and hangs behind the seat back. It has a large central pocket with a mesh front, two insulated cup holders and a little pocket in between with a Velcro closed top.

The generous central pocket has the capacity to hold quite a lot, such as a couple of small toys, books and snacks and even a small nappy pack. The mesh front makes it easy to see where everything is, so you can easily find what you are looking for, preventing those frustrating moments of fumbling around in the dark!

Initially I found the two insulated cup holders to be little tight, but they have proved to actually work well holding cups/drink bottles firmly. I use the small pocket in between the cup holders to hold my phone and keys and feel comfortable knowing that they are safely enclosed but also easily accessible. This is particularly good if Baby is asleep and my phone is on silent and I can hear it vibrate, or if I am having one of those days and am in a rush to get a tired grumpy Toddler in the car and need the keys!

Reversible Seat Liner

The Reversible Seat Liner is a practical accessory that protects your pusher and helps to keep things neat and organised.  It comes in a great range of two-sided colours and patterns, is soft and comfortable for Baby, durable and best of all is machine washable.

We chose the sunny yellow striped/black Reversible Seat Liner and use it in the pram permanently. I love the splash of colour and find it very practical to catch any bits and pieces that Baby will inevitably drop in the course of a day. Of course if there is a major spill whilst out and about one can just flip it over and deal with it later! Even though the pusher seat is washable I do find it easier to just wash the liner instead of having to wash the whole seat.

We only have one Reversible Seat Liner at the moment, but I can imagine that having a couple of them would be a great idea so you have one to use whilst you are washing the other.

Field Bag

The Field Bag is a great looking and practical bag, which can be used as one’s primary nappy/child’s bag.  We chose the Scarlet colour, which has great red, grey, white and black striped lining. I think it looks great by itself or with either our neutral toned Maclaren Volo pusher or Crown/Blue Maclaren Techno XT.

It has a large central pocket, which can fit everything required for a trip to the pool or playgroup and it is magnetically secured for quick and easy access to avoid those tricky moments when you feel like you could do with a third hand. It has an exterior front pocket and two exterior side pockets and lots of zipped and non-zipped interior pockets in which to store various small items, such as bottles, creams, snacks, sunscreen etc. I usually carry our Field Bag in the pusher’s basket, however it has an adjustable shoulder strap and can be carried across your back/chest or over one shoulder – however you feel most comfortable.

For me, one of the winning features is the change mat. It is neatly zipped to the back of the bag and unzips to provide a generous (detachable and machine washable) change mat. This provides a safe and comfortable surface on which to change Baby no matter where you are, which means no more worry about those questionably clean public washrooms!

From my experience, my Maclaren accessories really help in keeping things neat and organised. I think the Travel Bag is a fantastic help when you need to protect your Maclaren pusher whilst in transit or storage, the Universal Organiser for me is now an everyday essential, the Reversible Seat Liner continually keeps things clean and the Field Bag is a practical all-in-one nappy bag. Now that I use them, I can’t go back!

For more information on any of the above reviewed products as well as the full range of Maclaren accessories, please visit CNP Brands.

The sunshine has made its spring into Australian lives again and that means a whole new range of protective concerns for those of us with babies.

My husband has photosensitive skin, and our little one is already showing signs of having quite a delicate casing herself, so we’re going to need to be quite careful about introducing her to those harsh UV rays. Baby still loves to be carried around in her BabyBjorn Miracle but to be fair, I don’t fancy carrying around a parasol to shield her from the sun at all times. So I’m pretty chuffed that BabyBjorn has also released its Sun Cover for Baby Carrier.

This product is just lovely. The soft fabric means baby won’t overheat or feel suffocated – which is important, as our little one runs quite warm and with baking temperatures predicted this summer, keeping her cool will be a challenge. Having said that, it’s not a delicate fabric that needs extra special care. You can just pop it in the washing machine. The sun cover is also easy to attach – two elastic loops hold it in place, so no complicated assembly is required.

The sun cover is pediatrician recommended and provides ultraviolet protection factor of 40 and blocks out 97% of harmful UV rays. I think that’s great. Baby has a habit of losing her hat, and no baby is particularly cooperative when you’re applying sunscreen, so the BabyBjorn sun cover is a great way to protect your little one at a barbecue, if you’re out shopping or just going for a walk in the park. Obviously you should take all responsible steps to keep babies out of the sun between the hours of 10am and 3pm.

You can see in the image here that I have Baby facing me (she was snoozing) at a friend’s place recently, but you can also use the sun cover when baby is facing outwards…which she now loves to do so she can check out the world and be a sticky beak. It’s easy, the hood is detachable and can be used separately from the cape, or you can use both with baby facing you or facing away.

I highly recommend the BabyBjorn Sun Cover – ours will be getting a serious workout in the summer months ahead. To find out more about the full range of products visit the BabyBjorn website.

Who can resist a helpful, strong, good-looking Scandinavian that makes life a little easier? The Minui HandySitt is just that, filling two important roles in our day-to-day family life.

Firstly, it is the perfect portable highchair and secondly it is a perfect temporary highchair for Baby’s guests, because it transforms any regular dining chair into a safe and comfortable highchair.

The Minui HandySitt is solid but lightweight and is very easy to pack for travel or storage, folding up into a compact flat package. However, we often have it out when at home, as it is so much fun having Baby’s friends over and all being able to eat at the table together. They look so proud of themselves sitting at the table with the grown-ups and it is amazing to see them keenly watching each other and picking up new tricks!

I was very excited when our Minui HandySitt arrived. Taking it out of its compact box, my first impression was that it looked beautiful and felt strong and well made. It comes in Antique Black and Birch – we chose the natural Birch colour, which goes well with our beloved Stokke Tripp Trapp highchair and looks great in our sunny home.

The Minui HandySitt is intended for babies and children up to the age of five and comes with a 3-point harness system. A 5-point harness system is also available if required, which we chose because Baby is quickly growing into Toddler and a wriggly toddler at that! The HandySitt 5-point harness system securely straps Baby in to the seat; over the shoulders, around the waist and between the legs. There is one child-safe central buckle that is kept neat and tidy with a strap over the top. The HandySitt 5-point harness system is easy to mount to the HandySitt seat, easy to operate, has adjustable straps and keeps him safe and secure in his seat.

The HandySitt is very easy to use; simply fold it out in one movement, hook it onto the back on the chair, adjust the height of the legs and strap it down underneath the dining chair. The Minui HandySitt is assembled by hand in Europe and is made using top quality materials. It is made of 100% Birch wood and varnished with non-toxic lacquer and the other parts of the seat are made of steel and manmade materials, making it durable and easy to clean.

The Minui HandySitt Seat is part of a larger system and can be used in as many ways. There is a set of optional Legs available enabling the seat to be used on the floor or outside and there is a chair base that can turn the portable seat into a stand-alone highchair or be used as a stand-alone adult chair.

The top quality Danish designed Minui HandySitt is practical and thoughtfully designed. It is easy to use, safe, light, looks great and folds flat for ease of transport and storage. It also fits right in at the table, ensuring your child can learn, develop and socialize alongside everyone at the table.

For more information on the Minui HandySitt visit http://lovencare.com.au/