When setting up the nursery, I followed the Montessori method and I’ve seen first-hand how a toddler’s independence can really thrive when everything is within their reach and at their level. See example below!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jen Mama’s Got This (@mamahasgotthis)

We managed to stick with the Stokke Sleepi Cot (set-up to be sort of a raised floor bed as pictured) until Clara was just over three. After the most recent growth spurt, it became obvious that it was time for an upgrade!

Our original plan was to buy the Junior bed extension kit ($229) to convert the cot into a big bed, but with a second child in mind in the near future, and Clara’s persistent demands for a ‘big bed without baby bars’, we threw those plans out the window!

Here’s a time lapse sneak peek of the transformation:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jen Mama’s Got This (@mamahasgotthis)

Now for all the details!

Bed

If you follow my Instagram Stories, you’ll see that we took Clara bed shopping, initially with a bunk bed in mind… However, she instantly fell in love with the Venus Bed at Fantastic Furniture ($299) and to be honest, so did I! The soft velvet just feels so luxurious and the matching armchair with foot stool ($199) and storage chest ($149) is the cutest! The entire bedroom package is so lush and the quality really surprised me. Velvet furniture can look so tacky but I think they’ve really nailed the design here. The shell-inspired look also ensures that there are no sharp corners or edges, unlike many of the other beds I considered, so that was another plus!

Clara is currently going through a pink phase after having blue as her favourite colour for the longest period of time so not surprisingly, her big girl room has morphed from a gender-neutral colour palette to a very girly pink room!

Mattress

I’m a big believer in supporting Aussie businesses and Eco Kids makes this an easy choice when it comes to choosing a kid-friendly mattress. They ticked all the boxes for what I was looking for, and some more!

I love that it is hand-crafted in Melbourne and they offer peace-of-mind in that they don’t use harmful glues, bonding agents or chemicals in the manufacture of the mattress.

My favourite feature is probably its Maxi-Boost edge support which prevents kids from rolling off the side, and has been stable enough for me to lie right on the edge when I’ve needed to!

Eco Kids have kindly offered me two exclusive discount codes to share with you all!
Use code: mamahasgotthis_ecokids for $90 off!
Use code: mamahasgotthis_pillow for a FREE Bamboo Classic Low Profile Pillow (valued at $126.65)
(This isn’t a sponsored promo, I paid for the mattress in full and having done my research, I think it’s definitely the best kids mattress on the market!)

Wall decals

The wall decals are by Ginger Monkey who are based in Melbourne, Australia. They occasionally have 15% off sales so wait for the discount! I love that they’re removable and reusable. They’re made from a peel and stick, polyester fabric material so it can be reused on any flat surface and leaves no adhesive residue. They were SO easy to apply and adjust!

I used the Australian Gum Tree decal set (full set, 69 decals, $285) and split it across two feature designs with the decals arranged to flow out from the corners of the room. The decals have a gorgeous watercolour-look so it makes it look hand painted on the walls! You simply peel them off and overlap the decal pieces to suit your room. The best thing about this is that there is no ugly white border around the decal, and if you stick it in the wrong position, you simply peel it off and re-apply!

Bedside table

The side table is the Home Republic Bahama Rattan Honey Bedside Table ($179.99) from Adairs.

I offer small baskets for Clara to store her treasures and trinkets. The one of the left is a set of three woven baskets, handmade in Siem Reap Cambodia using traditional water hyacinth weaving techniques and natural vegetable dyes. This was from The Fair Trade Cove in Lane Cove. The one of the right is an oldie from Target.

The books read in high frequency before bedtime are also stored in the bottom shelf of the bedside table. Our current favourite reads are:

• Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth
• Back To Sleep
• No One Likes a Fart
• Bluey – The Beach
• This is How We Do It
• Peppa Pig – Big Story Treasury
• The Very Sleepy Bear

Rugs

The Ecowool sheepskin rug was kindly gifted to us at our baby shower and I adore the fact that it is still part of Clara’s bedroom.

The main rug is the Itarsi Blush and Ivory Transitional Rug (225cm x 155cm, $247) from Miss Amara. It is the softest, most divine rug I’ve ever felt under my feet. There’s a soft peachy tone to the blush and I think it adds the perfect amount of softness and warmth to the room. One of the greatest benefits of rug shopping with Miss Amara is their free delivery and free returns! It definitely took the fear away from choosing a rug that I may not like in-person!

Storage

The Aruba 6 Drawer Storage Unit is an oldie from Fantastic Furniture that’s no longer available. A similar style that they have in-stock (at the time of publishing) is the Java Dresser ($399) or the Wyndham Storage Unit ($129).

The kids clothing rack with shoe rack swing is also an oldie, from a store that used to be called Love Ellie. This was another one of the precious baby shower gifts we received. When Clara outgrows this, I think it’ll make the perfect storage rack for all her costumes and dress-up accessories! If you’re looking for something similar, check out the Mocka A-Frame ($59.95).

I’m also a big fan of Kmart’s collapsible hamper which we have in gold polkadots ($10). We pretty much shove anything and everything in here to keep the room tidy! Clara is now strong enough to lift and tip over the entire hamper and she fondly refers to it as her toy basket.

Small keepsake items go into a personalised memory box I had made when Clara was born.

To organise Clara’s hair bows, we have a personalised hair bow holder ($26) by Little Birdy Finds.

I got a little ahead of myself and already have a Tooth Fairy Box ($22) made as well!

Behind the tooth fairy box is our Aroma Snooze ($115) which is an essential oil vaporiser and sleep aid / white noise machine with built-in air purifier and ioniser. The Aroma-Snooze uses safe ultrasonic technology to turn the room temperature water into a fine vapor and released as a mist through out the night. This will help relieve your child of dry irritated skin, and provide optimal breathing conditions, allowing your child to sleep comfortably. It also creates healthy negative ions known as ‘anions’ during the ultrasonic vibration of the oscillator disc. Scientific research shows that healthy negative ions are found abundantly in nature, and improve the air you breathe. These ‘healthy’ negative ions counteract positive ‘pollutant’ ions in the air, removing dust, germs and bacteria and will improve respiratory problems such as asthma, sinus and allergies. I love this machine!

Wall art/hangings

One of the earliest items I ever bought for Clara was this ABCs of Life art print (USD $34) by Little Truths Studio. We also have the Family Manifesto Art Print in our entrance hallway table and they’re both such beautiful reminders of some of life’s most important lessons.

The small accordion hook ($9) at Kmart is a simple solution for scrunchies, headbands and other things, like Clara’s Olli Ella luggy or for hanging art (pictured is With Great Love All is Possible printed by Yogi Town). Simiarly, the hanging wall shelf ($5), also from Kmart, makes a cute little wall display unit.

The mirrored rose gold name plaque ($70) is from CMC Gold and was thoughtfully gifted to Clara by one of her aunties and uncle a little while back!

Doll beds

The rocking wooden bassinet ($29) is from Target and the wooden bunk bed ($25) is from Kmart. Putting the dolls to bed is part of our bedtime routine — pretend play bedtime sequences enable toddlers to subconsciously learn the expectations for a healthy sleep time routine for themselves.

Pillow

And lastly, you may have noticed that the pillow looks quite small relative to the single bed. That’s because it is! It measures only 42cm x 26cm and is 7cm high. It’s basically half a standard pillow case. I’ve searched high and low for this one — many of the other toddler pillow options available were either too soft or too high! This is the Giselle low profile contour memory foam pillow ($39.95 twin pack).

Disclosure: I occasionally use affiliate links to monetise my content. I may receive a commission on products or services that you purchase through clicking on links within this page. This doesn’t affect your price in any way, but helps me with the cost of maintaining my website so that I may continue to share resources to help you embrace play-based learning and mindful parenting.

The post Clara’s big girl room transformation appeared first on Mama's Got This.

“If someone had told me 8 years ago that I would create a brand that is sold Australia wide and internationally I would have laughed!” Cinzia exclaims.

Cinzia adds: “If you’re a mum with school age children, then you likely know the struggle of getting kids up and ready for the day. You may experience daily the problem I had with trying to get my youngest daughter, Lana, to eat breakfast before school. She wouldn’t have a meal in the morning but she would happily drink something. To give her smoothies some sustenance I started to combine the nuts and seeds and superfood ingredients that we had in our cupboard into pre-portioned boosters.”

Each tube contains 5 smoothie bombs. They are easy to crumble, toddler and kid friendly, great tasting, vegan, gluten free, palm oil free, dairy free, refined sugar free, certified organic and have no preservatives.

My personal favourite is The Defender golden chai (pictured) which I blend with mango and soy milk for a delicious fuss-free breakfast smoothie. So how does one start a business like Smoothie Bombs? Read on! 

What motivated you to start your business?

What has been the most memorable moment in business?

What challenges have you faced and how did you overcome them?

What is the best or most worthwhile investment you’ve made? Could be an investment of money, time, energy or other resource.

How did you decide to make the investment?

What advice would you give to your 20-, 25- or 30 year old self? 

What have you changed your mind about in the last few years? Why?

What are your morning rituals or any habits you do which set up your day for success?

What is your favourite business book/tool/podcast/resource?

I have lots of great podcasts/audiobooks I listen to. In fact it’s all I do in my spare time. Even when I clean my house, I put on my headphones and catch up on my favourite podcasts. I am a big business nerd as you will see below

1. Zero to One – by Peter Thiel – one of the founders of Paypal and serial investor. Very smart and full of great advice.
2. GRIT – The Power of Passion and Perseverance – by Angela Duckworth – tells of how hard work pays off 
3. Principles – Life and Work by Ray Dalio – again an incredible business leader.

What is your secret to juggling family and business?

What’s next for Smoothie Bombs?

The post Ask Her: Cinzia Cozzolino, Smoothie Bombs appeared first on Mama's Got This.

What motivated you to start your business?

To be honest I kind of fell into working for myself. We had 3 children in under 3 years and when it came time for my youngest to start day-care I just couldn’t imagine the stress of having to get them to day-care early, leave work on time to collect them and having to take time off work when they were sick and having to explain this to my boss. So I decided that working for myself would still allow me to have my children at home with me for 3 days a week but then I could work the other 2 days along with evenings and weekends. When deciding what I was going to do, it just had to be teaching other women hypnobirthing! I had 3 wonderful births with each of my children and I wanted to support other women towards this and show them that birth can be a really positive experience!

 What has been the most memorable moment in business?

Just the fact I am doing it and doing something I really believe in! I never thought I would be working for myself especially with 3 young children in tow. From a business point of view all the little things group together to feel like big wins. Not so long ago I wouldn’t have known how to get a business logo designed, how to advertise on Facebook, or build my own website, whereas now I look forward to learning new things and taking on the next challenge. With regards to the most memorable moments from doing my job, without doubt it is when I hear about a new baby arriving and mum telling me the experience was a positive one, regardless of how baby came into the world. For me, births are on a spectrum and we don’t know how or where baby will make an appearance, but how you feel before, during and after the birth can make all the difference about how you then reflect on this major event.

Hypnobirthing course materials (image supplied)

What challenges have you faced and how did you overcome them?

The biggest challenge for me was taking on all aspects of the business myself. I didn’t have the money to outsource parts of the business at the start so I had to very quickly learn how to do these things. In order to overcome this challenge prioritising the most important things was key so I could focus on them first.

What is the best or most worthwhile investment you’ve made? Could be an investment of money, time, energy or other resource.

The biggest monetary investment I made was in relation to the initial training to be a hypnobirthing and childbirth educator. I researched the various courses available and chose the Hypnobirthing Australia approach. Their training, resources and philosophy is wonderful and I am so proud and confident in the courses I run through them so it was money well spent!

How did you decide to make the investment?

I took the time to research the other hypnobirthing courses available but then ultimately went with my gut – something just felt right about the Hypnobirthing Australia programme and since starting with them my gut decision has been validated time and time again.

The Hypnobirthing Mum course venue

What advice would you give to your 20-, 25- or 30 year old self? 

I would tell myself that being a business owner IS for you. Don’t be scared about the prospect of taking the leap and working for yourself, be scared of never taking it and instead always wondering what could have been. As long as you feel passionate about what you are doing and you have a clear purpose about why you are doing it, then go for it!

What have you changed your mind about in the last few years? Why?

I haven’t changed my mind about anything fundamental to my business but my mindset towards it has changed. This change has come about as my business and confidence has grown, and also by having very supportive and inspiring people around me who both motivate me and give me a good balance of constructive criticism and credit where it is due!

What are your morning rituals or any habits you do which set up your day for success?

The evening before a workday I have to get my workspace clean and tidy. I find it very difficult to concentrate when I have clutter around me so this sets me up to start working straight away the next morning and helps me gain momentum for the day ahead.

What is your favourite business book/tool/podcast/resource?

I love watching TedX talks on youtube. Simon Sinek talking about “Start with why” is a favourite, but in general I find that TedX talks are a great way of learning more about business and inspiring my next steps.

What is your secret to juggling family and business?

Juggling a family and business is hard. I am mindful of boundaries and not letting them become so intertwined that neither of them is getting my full attention. Some days I’m still trying to find the right balance!

What’s next for The Hypnobirthing Mum?

I can see that hypnobirthing is becoming an increasingly popular approach to birth so in the short-term it’s supporting more couples and delivering more courses. In the longer-term I would love to gain my own premises and expand my business to include counselling focusing specifically on perinatal and postnatal anxiety and depression. I have also started a second (unrelated) business in Inner West Sydney – www.jellybeanstreet.com –3 children, 2 businesses and 1 husband ought to keep me busy for a while!!!

For course dates and more information, go to The Hypnobirthing Mum

The post Ask Her: Kerry Sutcliffe, The Hypnobirthing Mum appeared first on Mama's Got This.

The post Lemonade Scones appeared first on Mama's Got This.

What motivated you to start your business?

We are two best friends who started our business Bella Buttercup over four years ago. We both come from design and retail management backgrounds and after talking about our shared desire to start a business we decided to join forces and build one together. We started Bella Buttercup knowing we wanted to create stylish baby and toddler products and since beginning we have continued steadily adding to our collection growing it to be what it is today.

What has been the most memorable moment in business?

There are a few special moments along the way and it is hard to choose just one! Getting new samples of something we have designed and brought to life is always an exciting moment and receiving the very first Play Bar prototype was definitely pretty special. There was also the time where our brand was published in British Vogue as part of a Dream Nursery section, that was a memorable moment as we have both grown up admiring Vogue and could never have imagined our designs would one day grace their pages.

Bella Buttercup Play Bar (Image supplied)

What challenges have you faced and how did you overcome them?

Living on different sides of the world when we first started the business was quite a challenge. Chloe was based in Melbourne and I was in London, but with both our passion to succeed and naivety towards what we were about to do, we worked together without distance being much of an issue. We had to rely greatly on skype, email and phone calls to keep us connected for the year that we worked apart from each other.

What is the best or most worthwhile investment you’ve made? Could be an investment of money, time, energy or other resource. How did you decide to make the investment?

Every time we place an order for product this is a large investment for us, but one that is crucial for us to continue to build the business and provide a great range of products for our customers. As we grow we are finding that this investment gets bigger each season, with a higher commitment in terms of spending and sometimes taking a chance on what we believe will be popular. This growing investment also comes with the positive of allowing us to build on the product lines available, offering different styles and colours within our collections.

Bella Buttercup Change Pad Cover (Image supplied)

What advice would you give to your 25  year old self?

Jaimee – Don’t be in a hurry to grow up and get serious about life. Enjoy the time that you have as a young woman who has few commitments around work, life and family. As much as we love our lives now it would be lovely to go back and live in that moment, even just for a little while.

What have you changed your mind about in the last few years? Why?

Jaimee – As my working life balance has changed over the last year and I have moved into more of a role with Bella Buttercup I have realised that a life can be forged around what you want it to be. It doesn’t have to match the perceived norm around 9-5 working days and it is entirely possible for women (mothers or not) to create their own working lifestyle that works best for them. I think I always wanted to believe this was the case but now that I am living and doing it I know it is entirely possible.

What are your morning rituals or any habits you do which set up your day for success?

Chloe – We both have a coffee addiction and need to start the day this way. We have a favourite local coffee shop that we frequent and once we have had our fix we can then begin the day properly. I also often drop Eva off at day-care in the mornings and although it is always hard to say goodbye I love that she is constantly learning and socialising while it allows me time to get my work done more easily too.

What is your favourite business book/tool/podcast/resource?

As much as we would love to say we have a favourite business book we tend to follow more blogs online and are inspired by women/mumpreneurs who are doing things for themselves. We love to read real life experiences and success stories to try to learn from and incorporate any great ideas into the way we do things ourselves. Some that we love are:

• Little Gatherer
• Mini Style Blog
• Single Mum Diaries
• Captain and Co
• Babyccino

Not so much visual but great for practical parenting information:

• Show and Tell Online
• Mamamia
• Babyology

What is your secret to juggling family and business?

Chloe – This is always an ongoing challenge but one I am getting better at as the years go on. I do try and balance motherhood and work by keeping my days as that, either being a mum with Eva or working when at work. There are some crossovers but I’ve learnt that I’d rather Eva see me working hard at what I love and hope in the future she does understand, plus she has become quite the little helper.

What’s next for Bella Buttercup?

We have recently just brought out two new colours in our soft goods collection and one new product line, the Any Space. This is a large mat big enough for all of the family to enjoy either inside or outdoors at the beach or park. We will be focussing on showing the new collections to our market through new imagery and marketing. So far these new products have been off to a great start with customers loving the sophisticated Midnight and Mist colour-ways. We are always developing new products to sit within the collection and look forward to launching a foam Change Pad insert to go with our very popular Change Pad covers over the next few months.

Shop the full Bella Buttercup range at bellabuttercup.com.au

Bella Buttercup Complete Play Bar (image supplied)

Bella Buttercup Play Space (image supplied)

The post Ask Her: Chloe Blanchette & Jaimee Masters, Bella Buttercup appeared first on Mama's Got This.

During a coffee catch-up with a girlfriend yesterday, I learned about Project 333. The idea behind #Project333 is simple: Wear only 33 articles of clothing for the next  months. All clothing, accessories, jewellery, outerwear and shoes count towards the number. Exceptions include wedding ring, underwear, sleep wear, in-home lounge wear, and workout clothing (you can only wear your workout clothing to workout). Clothing that no longer fits or becomes in poor condition may be replaced during the time period.

Since I’m in a transition phase (woohoo – I’ve just gone over the first trimester hump) and we’re now in a new season (first day of Autumn today!), I thought it’d be a good opportunity to trial Project 333. I’m so over my cramped wardrobe, even though I’m pretty proud of the fact that I’ve kept it neatly colour coordinated for well over 12 months now. I’ll update this post with a photo of my 33 items as soon as I’ve built the collection. Stay tuned. 

You can read more about Project 333 at Be More With Less. 

The post A minimalist experiment: 33 items for 3 months appeared first on Mama's Got This.

It’s the second book I’ve read by Patrick Lencioni (the first being The Five Dysfunctions of a Team) and he uses the same story-telling method which makes the book a breeze to read — The Ideal Team Player was equally profound. I wish it existed when I started my entrepreneurship journey, I would’ve hired very differently which would’ve saved many headaches.

As a soon-to-be mama, one of my greatest concerns with running two companies is obviously what I’m going to do about maternity leave. Sure, there’s the perks of working for yourself where everyday is a holiday or not. But really, a burning question was whether or not I have the right systems and people in place to run and grow the businesses while I stepped away for a few months.

I found The Ideal Team Player’s framework to be relevant and practical. I immediately got the team to do their self-assessments which was interesting in itself to compare my assessment of them as employees versus what they thought of themselves. However, the real value was to then refer back to the book to see how we could collectively help each other increase our weakest virtues. As I’d just hired a new person, it also provided a great opportunity to assess whether or not they were a good fit — not just for the team, but to shape certain elements of the culture that I felt had disappeared over the years. 

I won’t keep the suspense any further. Lencioni says the three essential virtues are:

Humble

Ideal team players are humble. They lack excessive ego or concerns about status. Humble people are quick to point out the contributions of others and slow to seek attention for their own. They share credit, emphasize team over self and define success collectively rather than individually.

Hungry

Ideal team players are hungry. They are always looking for more. More things to do. More to learn. More responsibility to take on. Hungry people almost never have to be pushed by a manager to work harder because they are self-motivated and diligent. They are constantly thinking about the next step and the next opportunity.

Smart

Ideal team players are smart. They have common sense about people. Smart people tend to know what is happening in a group situation and how to deal with others in the most effective way. They have good judgment and intuition around the subtleties of group dynamics and the impact of their words and actions.

I think a better word for Smart would be Empathetic but essentially, you get the drift. 

I truly want The Bamboo Garden and I Ate My Way Through to be workplaces that people thrive in and now that the teams are a little more self-aware of these virtues and I know specifically what to look for in new recruits, I’m hopeful that we can go from good to great (I’ve borrowed that from another book that I’ve started reading, but more on that later) — even while I’m on maternity leave.

Here are some great free tools and resources:

• Self-Assessment (use this assessment to evaluate yourself relative to the three virtues)
  • Online Interactive Assessment »
  • PDF Assessment »
• Self-Ranking Exercise  » (use this tool to evaluate yourself against the three virtues
• Manager’s Assessment » (use this assessment to evaluate your direct report relative to the three virtues)
• Interview Guide » (use this guide to help you discern if prospective employees are humble, hungry and smart)

The post The Ideal Team Player: How to Recognise and Cultivate The Three Essential Virtues appeared first on Mama's Got This.

It’s easy to forget you’re pregnant in the first trimester because most of the time, I don’t feel any different. Aside from the morning sickness at night, the sore boobs, constantly feeling fatigued and bloated, it’s surprisingly easy to forget that my body is making a human being. 

The dating scan I had at 6 weeks was incredible. I had a bit of spotting so my GP had recommended an early ultrasound. I remember feeling the biggest sense of relief that there was a strong heartbeat living within me. We had created that.

At the first OB appointment a month later at 10 weeks, we saw little hands and legs. There again, was the beating heart. By week 11 when I opted to do the Non-Invasive Prenatal Test (NIPT), the baby had grown another centimetre in under a week and was measuring 4.398cm. It was utterly magical to see that the facial profile had developed.

The NIPT which analyses fetal DNA circulating in maternal blood is a new option in prenatal screening and really demonstrates how far we’ve come with technology. So a few days ago, whilst receiving good news from our NIPT that we were low risk in the most common fetal chromosome anomalies: trisomy 21 (Down syndrome), trisomy 18 (Edwards syndrome) and trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome), we also found out the baby’s gender. And then shit got real.

You used to have to wait until the baby’s genitals had developed in week 16+ to identify the gender via ultrasound, but with the NIPT, they’re able to identify the gender much earlier, from week 10. For practical reasons, Zen and I have always wanted to know the gender as soon as possible. 

However, after finding out the gender, I suddenly felt immense pressure to be the perfect parent and protect the baby from hurt. How was I supposed to raise a confident, resilient, independent, thoughtful, brave, adventurous and loving child with high self-esteem, if sometimes, I wasn’t that myself?

As someone who is used to having a lot of control in my life, it became overwhelming thinking about all the things that would be out of my control. School bullies, heartbreak, etc. 

Zen serendipitously put on Brené Brown’s TED Talk on Vulnerability and it just clicked. Here’s an excerpt I particularly loved:

And we perfect, most dangerously, our children. Let me tell you what we think about children. They're hardwired for struggle when they get here. And when you hold those perfect little babies in your hand, our job is not to say, 'Look at her, she's perfect. My job is just to keep her perfect — make sure she makes the tennis team by fifth grade and Yale by seventh.' That's not our job. Our job is to look and say, 'You know what? You're imperfect, and you're wired for struggle, but you are worthy of love and belonging.' That's our job.

Brené Brown

[ted id=1042]

If we want our children to have courage, compassion, and connection, we must practice these things in our daily lives. If we want them to love and accept who they are, our job is to love and accept who we are.

I’ll leave you with Brené Brown’s Wholehearted Parenting Manifesto which is simply brilliant.

The post Accepting vulnerability appeared first on Mama's Got This.