20% off Close Pop-in nappies

We've got 20% off all Close Pop-in nappies.  Grab a bargain whilst we have this offer on. Available on singles, 5 packs, 10 packs and 20 packs, plus on the limited edition prints. Pop-in nappies come in thirsty bamboo and quick drying minkee fabrics.

5 things I need to massage my baby

Baby massage is a lovely way for mum and dad to bond with their baby.  In this article, Anna from Gentle Touch Baby Massage explains in 5 easy steps what you need to know.  To find out about classes in Bristol to get you started contact The Gentle touch via Born Together. For details of baby massage classes in London see here.
Eva

Massaging your baby is a simple way to build a connection between you and your baby - It’s free and easy to learn. The wonderful thing about baby massage is its simplicity, it’s just you and your baby and the only things you need are:

1. Time – so you can focus on your baby. With our very busy modern lives, it can be easy to forget to spend time 1:1 really looking at each other, with no radio or TV, or friends round. You don’t need a huge amount of time though; baby massage can be incorporated into your daily routine at nappy changing, after a morning nap, or at bedtime. Whatever time you have available for baby massage, it’s the quality not quantity that counts! Babies love to feel your loving gentle touch, so experiment to find a time of day that suits you both.

2. A warm quiet room – we all know it’s hard to relax when you’re chilly, so find somewhere warm and cosy, and lay your baby on a towel or blanket. You can put on soothing music that you’ll both come to associate with massage.

3. Oil - We recommend using cold pressed organic sunflower oil because it’s edible, so during the hand massage it doesn’t matter if it ends up in their mouth. Perfumed oils can interfere with the bonding process, babies just want to smell your real body smell! We don’t recommend using baby oil due to the unnatural base (it originates from petroleum).

4. Deep breaths – before you start massaging a baby, make sure you’re relaxed and ready to focus on your baby for a short while.

5. A baby! – There are a few instances in which we wouldn’t massage babies (for example after immunisations, or if they have a fever, broken skin, etc), but babies love to be massaged. Your baby should be alert and ready for a massage. If they cry pick them up for a little cuddle, and then try again. If they are telling you they don’t feel like a massage right now, check they are warm enough, not hungry or too tired. Talk to them about what you’re doing as you go and incorporate songs and rhymes to keep them interested as they get older.

If you’d like to find out more about baby massage classes and how you can learn the strokes to help your baby relax, then please get in touch - we’d love to hear from you the-gentle-touch@hotmail.co.uk 


This is a guest blog from The Gentle Touch Baby Massage, Bristol. 
Classes at various venues in Southville, and also in Fishponds from April. Also available for 1:1 sessions or home groups with friends / antenatal groups.

Win the Petunia Pickle Bottom City Carryall changing bag in our competition

Petunia Pickle Bottom make gorgeous changing bags as well as beautiful baby clothes.  We've just taken their range of changing bags, footmuffs, baby clothing and breastfeeding covers.

The company has been in the USA for many years and we're proud to help launch them in the UK.  To do that we are giving away one of the luxury changing the Petunia Pickle Bottom City Carryall changing bag worth £149.
 

To enter click on the link to our Facebook page for instructions.


We love their unique, distinctive prints. Click here to see the whole  Petunia Pickle Bottom collection at Born.

Haven Breastfeeding cover

Mothers Sharing, a new group for Bristol

A new weekly support group has started to support Bristol mums-to-be and mums.

The group takes place every Monday at 10.45am to 12pm and is held at the wonderful Family Practice, 116, Gloucester Road, BS7 8NL Bristol, just 2 minutes from our shop.

Subjects that may arise are positive infant feeding, (breast and bottle feeding), sleep issues, coping with change, boredom and the transition from couple to family. This is a place to bring your worries, to be heard, supported and leave feeling you have picked up some useful tools for mothering.

We aim to bring relaxation and joy to parenting experiences, and presence and enjoyment to every moment.

The group facilitator is the incredibly experienced Dominique Sakoilsky, Director of Relaxed Birth and Parenting and a personal friend.  It was Dom who first helped me navigate the uncharted world of pregnancy, birth and parenting when I moved to Bristol 17 years ago. She is a Relate trained relationship and personal counsellor as well as a pregnancy and postnatal yoga teacher, Craniosacral therapist and also has a Ante-natal and Doula training course.  It's a fantastic honour to have to lead these sessions.

In Dominique's back up team are Suzanne Yates, founder of Well Mother Shiatsu, Suzanne is a  Body-worker and Birth Educator and author of numerous books on Shiatsu. Suzanne travels the world teaching massage therapists and health practitioners, including midwives of the benefits of Shiatsu for pregnancy, birth and post-natally.

Amanda Rayment, from Welcome World Herbal teas has supported many a mother with her nutritional and herbal advice as well as her teas.  She brings many years of experience and the knowledge that with a little guidance we can all be our own healers.

April Whincop is Bristol's expert breastfeeding practitioner, she sees clients privately and has also run La Leche League support groups for 16 years and works within the NHS and as peer support trainer within Barnado's.  Customers we have referred to her describe her as 'the Mary Poppins of breastfeeding' because she really does know everything there is to know.  The group believes that the right support at the right time can make a huge difference to a mother's breastfeeding experience, however we are also supportive of mothers who choose to bottle feed and will offer support with what we've called 'Positive infant feeding'. The group is non judgemental and open to all mothers, breastfeeding or not.

Also on hand will be Juliana Hounsfield, owner of the Family Practice; a family  of osteopaths who are highly experienced in the treatment of babies, children and mothers.

We will have some spare slings on hand and will be happy to carry babies to give you a break if you need it.

Sessions will take place weekly except on bank holidays


Attendees are asked to contribute £7 to attend. Herbal tea and biscuits will be provided. Babies are of course welcome.

Please link to the events listing on Facebook, post on Twitter or share with your malling list.

Love Eva

The long-awaited new arrival from Stokke is here!

This weekend saw the birth of the Stokke Steps – an innovative high chair and baby bouncer combination. As with other products in the Stokke family, Steps promotes the concept of growing with the child and we think it will be a great partner to it’s older brother, the Tripp Trapp chair.  The Stokke Steps comes in 2 colours, Natural beech and Walnut.






The Steps begin with the Baby Bouncer, gorgeously comfy with an ergonomic design and unique cradling motion to ensure that your baby is lying or sitting in total comfort.

The bouncer has a stand incorporated so you can use it on the floor, but we love the way it easily snaps into place on the high chair and brings your baby up with the rest of the family. By enabling your newborn to be up at the same level, it encourages increased eye contact, interaction and bonding - after all, who wants to be down on the floor looking at feet?!  Let your baby share the banter!

When your little one is old enough to sit unaided, they can move to the next step – the Baby Set, keeping your child safe while providing lots of wriggle-room! There’s a padded cushion to add to the comfort, with slots for the included five-point harness.

The Steps high chair is the first chair from Stokke to have an attachable tray accessory – giving the option of drawing the chair up to the table with the family at mealtimes, but using the tray for snack times, or messy play (it’ll make a great drum, too!).

Finally when your little one is not quite so little, the high chair becomes a stand-alone chair, designed with style, function and comfort in mind. The adjustable height footrest means that toddlers can climb in and out of the chair on their own and allows the chair to adapt as they grow – right through until they reach double figures!

We love the new sibling for the Tripp Trapp, with it’s innovative, versatile and stylish design and at under £450 for the entire Birth to 10 years Complete Package, we think it’s money well spent. But what do you think of the new addition to the Stokke family? Do you have a favourite? And could this spark the beginning of a new sibling rivalry?!










Watch the Stokke Steps in action

Frugi Spring Collection is here

There are three signs that tell me that Spring is here – daffodils in the park, easter eggs in the shops and the release of the Spring/Summer Frugi Collection at Born!

Well okay, this year we have puddles in the park and easter eggs have been on sale since December, but Frugi have brought out some fantastic new designs to make us all feel summery!

Frugi design and make their clothes from a child’s point of view – bright colours, fun styles and ultra comfy, with no scratchy seams or hard itchy labels.  All of their clothes, hats, bibs and blankets are fairly traded and made from 100% organic cotton – perfect for delicate skin and so soft & cosy that you won’t want to put your little ones in anything else!


This year, Frugi (appropriately based in Cornwall) are inviting us all to get partying on the sand with a gorgeous collection of kids beach festival clothes for spring and summer.  Girls can keep cool with this beautiful Reversible Pinafore Dress or get rummaging in the rockpools in the new Ocean Smock Top & Pull Ups Set. Staying nautical, we love these boys Sea Mates t-shirt bodies and they pair brilliantly with the supersoft and comfy Creature shorts.


For new arrivals, there are some fabulous summery babygrows, like the Festival Birdies, which can be paired with the matching muslin bib and cute knotted hat to make a great outfit and an ideal gift for parents-to-be!

Whatever their age, your little ones will need to be protected from the sun, when it eventually arrives!  Frugi have thought carefully about their sunhats, combining style and practicality with broad brims and neck shades, and cotton ties and elastic to keep them in place.

If you’re planning to party on into the evening (or for the inevitable cooler days!), the Frugi Reversible Snuggle Fleece will become a firm favourite and is an essential in the wardrobe of any toddler! Available in a Surf Blue Stripe or Red with White Spot, this snuggly fluffy fleece will keep your little one super cosy – and if it gets mucky, just turn it inside out and start again!

With the introduction of some great new styles and the return of some old favourites, the fun designs and super-soft comfort of Frugi at Born means that whether you’re beach bound or partying round a paddling pool, your little one will be all set!