Saturday 30 November 2013

Bert's First Christmas: Fab Present Ideas for 2013...


IT IS 3 WEEKS AND 4 DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS!!!!!

It is 1st December tomorrow and I am RIDICULOUSLY excited that it is nearly Christmas. I am an absolute Christmas-nut I have always found it the most magical and exciting time of the year. This year, as you can imagine, I am stomach-wrenchingly excited as it is my beautiful son Bert's First EVER Christmas. *squeal*

My Little Mr posing for our family Christmas card *cuteness overload*

Obviously, I want to make this Christmas uber-special for him but I am aware that he won't remember any of it as he'll only be 4 months old on Christmas day. For that reason I had to really think about what gifts would be suitable for Bert this year. I wanted to get a balance between things he'll be able to use/enjoy now, things he'll be able to use/enjoy in 2014, and things to keep for re-using Christmas after Christmas. 

Here are a little selection of some fun gift ideas for your little ones this Christmas...

MERINO WOOL SLIPPERS

Gorgeous Merino Wool Slipper from Nel A Ned priced at £22

I'm so looking forward to popping these onto Bert's yummy squishy feet on Christmas Day - they will be especially useful if we get all this snow that is being predicted!!

The slippers/booties are beautifully made, and lined with the softest Welsh sheepskin, perfect for making sure that bubba's toes are toastie! 

HUNTER WELLIES




Insanely cool mustard yellow Hunter wellies from Wellies and Worms priced at £23.95

These wellies are a present that Bert can enjoy when he is a bit older - I'm so excited about the prospect of jumping in puddles and kicking autumn leaves with Bert wearing these wells when he's bigger! 

BIBS



Triceratop bib and 1st Christmas bib from Funky Giraffe priced at £4 each


Bert often wears bandana/dribble bibs; they really are great and help prevent multiple outfit changes each day! All of the bibs from Funky Giraffe are made to an amazing standard, they are the best quality bibs we've used (and we've tried quite a few!). 

T-SHIRT




Anchors Away long sleeved t-shirt from Funky Giraffe priced at £9.00

The Anchors Away T-shirt caught my eye as I have a real love for all things nautical - I am drawn to navy/white combos, stripes, and anything to do with the seaside, so this T-shirt ticks all the boxes for me. Bert looks super-cute in navy too, I'm looking forward to teaming it with his chino trousers, Anchor coat and Ugg-style boots during the cold winter months. 

BURP CLOTH

A very clever idea...a burp cloth which lays over your shoulder from Funky Giraffe priced at £4.00  with a Night Skyrocket pattern.

The burp cloth is a really cool idea - a little funkier that a muslin, thicker (more absorbent), and lets face it, much prettier! It feels very comfortable to wear over your shoulder, and of course, has a bold design which is always popular with little ones! 


CHRISTMAS SLEEPSUITS


Stunning pack of 3 Christmas Sleepsuits from my favourite baby clothes company The Essential One, priced at £18.99.

I cannot tell you how fab the quality of their clothes are. The designs are all so cute; their sizing is reliable and pricing so reasonable. Bert has some lovely vests from them which he wears constantly - they wash so well, and have the coolest prints on them. I cannot wait to see him in these sleepsuits over Christmas - he will look completely adorable! 


CHICCO GOODNIGHT STARS PROJECTOR



Chicco Goodnight Stars Projector - Blue, from Baby Dino - it currently has 20% off, and is now priced at £19.99 instead of £24.99. 

We already own a similar projector which was a gift from my best friend when Bert was born and we totally love it. In fact, I'm not sure who loves having the stars projected on the bedroom wall more - Bert or Mummy! When Baby Dino offered us the chance to review this projector we jumped at the chance! Now we can project stars in multiple rooms meaning Mummy can still have stars to soothe her, even when Bert moves into his own room ;-)

This projector also plays very calming classical music, which I'm a huge fan of! So often these sorts of products play really childish, repetitive (annoying!) tunes which get stuck in your head for days, and I end up humming them on the toilet! This soothing classical music is so relaxing for both parents and baby! Genius! 

It also comes with a cute little detachable soft toy - a lovely little bonus, I'm sure Bert will love it. 

PERSONALISED SANTA & RUDOLPH SNACK PLATE


Perhaps my favourite gift of all that we're giving to Bert this Christmas is this beautiful personalised snack plate for Santa's mince pie and Rudolph's carrot! From a lovely local business called Precious Plates  (based in Bedford) priced at an amazing £8.00 - what a bargain! 

The detail on this plate is perfect; it is so bright and colourful - the illustrations are just adorable, and I LOVE that it is personalised with Bert's name. This being Bert's first Christmas, it was hard to decide what items would make the occasion extra special. I also didn't want to get him all "age appropriate" things, as he'll only be 4 months old and I know he won't remember this Christmas in years to come. Because of that I wanted him to have some presents for keeping - to be a reminder of his first ever Christmas, and to be usable for other Christmases. 

I know we'll be laying out this plate on Christmas Eve for years and years to come, and the promise of all future Christmases is embodied in this fab little plate! 

PERSONALISED DUMMY


Hehehe - I just love this personalised dummy from Talulala priced at £3.19 - you can have any personalisation up to 3 lines (10 characters max. per line) such a fun idea - a really perfect stocking filler for any little ones this Christmas! 

I'm pretty sure this will get lots of giggles on Christmas day, as well as being a genuinely useable and useful gift - a gift that keeps on giving as it means some peace for all the family on Christmas Day! Not that Bert is that noisy (honest!). 

PERSONALISED BIB

I'm hoping we'll get a few years wear out of this awesome personalised bib from Talulala priced at £10.90. The bib comes in either White, White/Light Blue or Navy/Red combinations with font in either Red, Pink, White, Light Blue, or Dark Blue. You can personalise 3 lines of text (each line can have 10 characters max). 

Another useful yet cute gift, that will benefit both Bert and I. The bib is made from 100% pure cotton, which is a big plus point for me as it is lovely and soft and should wash well (a must for a bib!)

PERSONALISED CHRISTMAS CARDS

I really want to share the joy of Bert's first ever Christmas with my wonderful family and friends too. I thought that a fun way to do this would be to send some personalised Christmas cards to them with a gorgeous picture of my boy on the front! 

I made these fab cards on PaperShaker....

Flora Mistletoe Swag Folded Card - a set of 10 for £12.90 (with envelopes)

The inside of the mistletoe card :-)

Shake 3 Photo Panoramic Postcard - a set of 10 for £12.90 (with envelopes)

other side of the postcard :-)

The PaperShaker website was really easy to use, and the cards only took a few minutes to put together. There are some lovely templates and artwork all ready to use, and you can upload your own photos in seconds. The cards arrived very promptly in the post, and were wrapped in protective cardboard envelopes to keep them in pristine condition. 

I am really so pleased with the cards and I can't wait to send them out to my lovely family and best friends. I know that they'll love to see Bert's cheeky face, and the cards will be lovely keepsakes for them to remember Bert's first Christmas by. 

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I hope these ideas have helped you with a bit of your Christmas shopping ... And hopefully I've left you with enough time to get ordering in time for the big day! You know how I love to persuade you to spend your pennies. :-)

Now that it's December expect lots more Christmas themed posts! 
(I'm not even sorry, I LOVE Christmas)

Here's a sneak peek as to what's coming up...

-Christmas baking
-Christmas books
-The Bishop Family Christmas traditions
-Christmas clothes

So until then...here's some Christmas sparkle for you all! 

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Bye for now!

Mrs B
xxx


Disclaimer: I was sent each of these items free of charge for the purpose of this review. However, all words, images and opinions are my own.