The New York ShopUp, a recap in photos

This month we had our first ShopUp Holiday tour with events in Los Angeles, London and last weekend was our final stop in NYC at 501 Union. We had over 30 shops, tasty food and fun activities for the little ones. Our wonderful photographer snapped many beautiful photos of the shops and families which we’d love to share with you here along with a few of our highlights.

The little ones were kept busy with unique portrait making craft by Curious Jane. Our favorite, Mischievous Goddess who has been at all of our New York events, had special third eye face-painting and goddess messages.

Artifact Uprising set up a DIY photo booth with a festive holiday backdrop. We also had a gift wrapping station for mamas to wrap their gifts.

WaterWipes handed out samples of the World’s Purest Baby Wipes, made with 99.9% water and a drop of fruit extract.

We had yummy treats for all ages including Gorilla Cheese for lunch on Sunday and Stuf’d for lunch on Monday. The shoppers were energized by the coffee from Chorus Beans, refreshed by the tonics from White Moustache and treated by the Mojo Mousse by Johan.

We had an ultimate raffle with goodies from our partners including Artifact Uprising, WaterWipes, mommybites and Lo & Sons. Lo & Sons is offering 20% all regular priced items until 1/31/18 with code SHOPUP20. We love their new Hanover Deluxe Backpack! Artifact Uprising is offering 15% off your holiday card order until 1/5/18 with code SH984XT.

Thank you to all our amazing boutiques who brought the most beautiful products and poured so much effort into making their booths so special. It is such an honour to work with so many beautiful brands. You can browse the boutiques year-round on our shopping portal.

And one last thank you goes to our photographer Lauren Kallen for all the wonderful photos above.

Hope to see you at the next one!

x

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New children’s backpacks from Baby Tula

We’ve already mentioned how much we love the Baby Tula brand. Earlier this year I shared about the clever new Free-To-Grow Baby carrier which grows with your baby from newborn to toddler. We also recently interviewed Tula’s founder to learn about the inspiration and ideas behind this great brand. It’s no secret we are big fans!

What is especially impressive about the Baby Tula brand is how they continue to grow and evolve. This fall, Baby Tula introduced an entirely new product line for growing kids — and adorable range of children’s backpacks made from the same high quality, water-resistant fabric as the carriers. The same cute patterns too!

Like the carriers, the backpacks are designed to be as comfortable as they are stylish.  The padded shoulder straps are adjustable and include a sliding chest clip to help your child carry their backpack comfortably. Straps are lined with soft and durable mesh for added comfort, and the magnetic snaps make it easy for toddlers and older kids to open and close the backpack and pockets on their own. Every detail has been considered! I especially love the handle on the top of the backpack for grown-ups to easily grab and carry as a satchel.

We’ve been really proud to work with Baby Tula this year in partnership with our LA and NY ShopUp events. If you’ve attended our events this year you will have seen the wonderful collection of carriers and backpacks on display. We look forward to watching this great company continue to grow. 

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PLAY etc. — fun clothes for playful girls!

Summer has started here in the southern hemisphere and we’ve already had our taste of hot, sunny days and balmy hard-to-sleep nights. So hot, it’s hard not to want to spend all day in your swimsuit, or better yet, in the ocean. Thankfully, my friend Bronwyn has just launched a brand of girls’ clothing perfect for this hot weather and perfect for summertime play.  PLAY etc. is a Sydney-based brand of clothing for girls aged 0-8 with bright and playful designs and easy-to-wear shapes. The easy breezy dresses feature loose shapes, big arm holes, and super light-weight cotton fabrics. They’ve also left out the buttons and zips, to make it easy for girls to dress themselves. And have I mentioned that everything is super cute?

Everything about the brand has been considered, including the packaging. Each parcel comes in a bright pink box, the inside of which can be coloured in (see above) — a great way to re-use the packaging and keep kids entertained. They even send a little package of crayons! And what’s more — they’ve teamed up with Room To Read — a not-for-profit organisation supporting girls’ education and literacy in developing countries, and every item purchased will educate a girl for one day (more info here).

Put simply, PLAY etc. is just an awesome new brand making great clothes for girls and helping to empower girls around the world. What’s not to love!

Courtney x

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Three products I can’t live without

There are three new products that I discovered this past summer and can’t live without anymore. Well, ok I could but don’t want to.

The first one is a TePe Supreme toothbrush. I am no expert when it comes to tooth brushing but my best friend suggested I try this one and it was such a revelation! I felt like I’ve been living under a rock and brushing my teeth with a twig until now! The head is made of short and long bristles that also clean in between the teeth. And it is also super soft. So it does its job perfectly, without harming the gum and your enamel. They also have super cute ones for the kids.

While I was toothbrush-shopping (haha I really am getting old) I also decided to try out one of the new and very popular toothpastes that contain Activated Charcoal. I am never ever looking back now! Really, my teeth have never ever felt so clean. And I’m a little shy to say but I also received a few compliments on my teeth looking white lately. There are many on the market already so just look for the activated charcoal toothpaste.

The third thing I found are these new pedicure files called “sunflower stainless steel foot file” (named after the raised surface with a sunflower pattern) that last a lot longer than the normal, disposable ones. I always hated the fact how often I had to replace the ones I was buying (not to mention all the plastic waste). But these should last a lot longer, a couple of years even. They are made of surgical grade stainless steel so they don’t wear or flake off. They also have both a rough and a smooth side and are super sharp so they do their job amazing a lot faster than any other I’ve used! And since they don’t have the rasp pads glued on you can also use them both on wet and dry feet. You can find them under “sunflower stainless steel foot file” on Amazon.

I’m super curious to know if there are any products that you’ve been using for a while and can’t live without?

Polona xx

***

You can follow Polona on Instagram or visit her online boutique Baby Jungle shop!

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Untermyer Park and Gardens

It’s no secret that as a family we like spending time in parks, gardens, and green spaces – it helps to balance out our city living, I suppose – and I’ve written about some of our favorite places previously in posts about Wave Hill, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and Storm King Art Center. We recently made a repeat visit to another park that’s been on my mind since we first visited three years ago – a mysterious place with the crumbling ruins of a once-grand estate and gardens, all perched high above the Hudson River.

Located just north of New York City, Untermyer Park and Gardens in Yonkers, New York occupies part of the site of an estate know as Greystone, which entered long period of decline after its last owners donated it to the City of Yonkers as a public park more than 70 years ago. The mansion was demolished in 1948, and vegetation overtook some of the remaining structures, with vandals breaking and defacing others. What’s left of the estate and gardens today is a mere shadow of what once existed, but those remaining elements are fascinating to explore and happily strides are being made to restore portions of the garden to their former splendor. Even though the restoration effort is ongoing, the park and gardens in their current state offer a compelling glimpse into the past and a lovely place to spend a morning or afternoon.

When we first visited the park and gardens, my daughter was still a tiny baby tucked into a carrier. We spent a golden fall afternoon wandering through the walled garden and exploring the the trails through the surrounding woods, captivated by the feeling that we had stumbled upon a secret hidden place whose ruins were a portal of sorts to a bygone era. We watched as older children raced through the woods and up and down the stone steps of the Temple of Love, one of the Garden’s centerpieces, remarking that this would be a completely magical place to play and let your imagination run wild.

Returning this fall, my daughter delighted in the freedom of discovering a new place. She raced along the paths and walkways in the Walled Garden, down the stone steps of the Vista toward the commanding view out over the Hudson River, and through the woods on the trail that leads to the old Gatehouse, near the bottom of the property as it slopes toward the river. We were pleased to see the restoration efforts on the Temple of Love including reintroducing the water element that had once been there, with water cascading down the rocks under the round temple and continuing down the hill to pools below. We collected beautiful fall leaves and sticks as we wandered, filled a bit with a sense of nostalgia for what once must have been. Public tours are given by docents on Sundays for much of the year, but part of the charm of a place like Untermyer Park and Gardens, especially when visiting with children, is the ability to structure your visit exactly as you wish,  leaving yourself open to following their direction, and sharing their excitement as they explore on their own terms.

A few additional notes:

• The park and gardens are open from 7am to sunset, 7 days a week. The walled garden is closed on major holidays from November – March.
• Entrance to the park and gardens is free. The fee for guided tours when offered is $10 per person ($20 per person for special guided tours given by the president of the Untermyer Gardens Conservancy once per month).
• Restrooms are available at the community center just outside the gates of the walled garden.
• There is parking on site next to the adjacent community center for those who drive. Various public transit options (scroll down) are also available.
• Picnicking and blankets are allowed in designated areas.

 

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What we are reading right now

As we are nearing the shortest days of the year and, as a result, spending more time indoors, I thought it might be fun to share with you what we are reading right now in our little home!

Coco, who is 11, is on multiple books (as per usual). She is devouring the Generation K trilogy a Science Fiction/Fantasy Adventure story that is captivating the whole of France at the moment (it does not seem to be translated into English yet though). She is also finishing off the second volume of Wonder and the 3rd Volume of the graphic novel series Les enfants de la Resistance“. Not to forget, in the middle of all of this, she has also started Pax, which was highly recommended to me as a “must read” when I was in London a few weeks ago.

Vivi and I are reading together Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls (which Courtney reviewed a while ago), and she is blowing through The Mathilda Effect. She loves it and it also is very topical for her, as she herself has a grandmother who is an astrophysicist! I have the feeling this little girl seems very focused on equality issues…. or possibly I am influencing her just a smidgen. ; )

I am hooked on Bruce Springsteen’s autobiography Born to Run, which I picked up in Brooklyn recently. I actually got it as it is being used in Coco’s class to study grammar (which I love). Mostly though – I have so much respect for the man himself and his music and it is a great read! My other current favorite is the new edition of Lunch Lady Magazine that popped up in my mail box a couple of days ago — perfect mixtures of articles, craft and recipes!!

Emilie

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