NEWSLETTER - DECEMBER 2005

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE NEWSLETTER ARCHIVES

CONTENTS
Ed's Note
Because I said so… your monthly column from the editor
Giveaways Galore! See what's on offer this month
Last Month's Winners
In Closing...

Ed's Note

Firstly, I am VERY proud to welcome our brand new monthly cartoon, Babies on the Run, by my good friend Mark Sage - I am sure you all had a good laugh, I certainly did! Particularly since Megan got a whole lot of Barney stuff for her second birthday and had a Barney party! Can you believe that another year is on its way out, nearly time for the holiday season, and whatever special holidays you and your loved ones might be celebrating! For this reason there is NO article this month - it's time for those mushy brains of ours to relax, take a breather, and go with the flow so to speak! Instead we bring you lots and lots and lots of giveaways thanks to my powers of persuasion and some very generous sponsors - thank you to everyone involved! What my wish for the season is (apart from goodwill to all men and peace on earth and all the rest) is for all you mums to get using the forum - it has been up for some time now and is really there for you to post anything that grabs you - be it a comment or advice, or just irrelevant conversation! So please make my day and post something... anything... :-) Oh and the articles and kids pics pages have been updated - so if you have sent me a pic of your little one have a look! Of course I wouldn't let you end your year without a final column from me, so it's business as usual in that regard, but first this gem from my good friend Liezl: The kind of aerobix I could get used to... take one weetbix, take one Aero chocolate bar, cruble the Aero over the Weetbix... Aerobix!

Because I said so…

Aah, the end of school term, the start of the holiday season, and what memories holidays bring back…

Picture it, mid eighties, two little ten year old girls on break up day. What bliss – a whole month off! Julia's nanny would fetch us from school and we would walk the short distance to her house (which in those days felt like ten miles). We would rip off our pink school uniforms in favour of our matching Laura Ashley dresses, oh so cute, and spend hours playing My Little Pony, melting chocolate on the stove (we didn't have microwaves in those days) and then sit licking off the chocolately spoons while watching Gummy Bears on KTV. Christmas meant Church in the morning, loads of presents under the tree, nuts on the table, and grannies and grandpas being wrapped around our little fingers. Those were the days!

But of course we got older, headed for high school, and new end of term traditions started… Break up day meant school ending early (the best thing ever!), a bunch of fourteen year olds shoving creased uniforms, blazers, standard issue brown shoes and equally revolting brown socks into gym bags before wafting away in a cloud of Body Mist in designer jeans and belly-baring tops to the nearby mall, where we would spend the afternoon oohing and aahing over clothes that our pocket money would never afford (okay well mine wouldn't) before heading to the local salon to have our eyelashes tinted (in those days it cost me only R15 for what now costs about R60!). School holidays meant sleepovers, movies, the Waterfront, and Sweets from Heaven – bags and bags of it. And Julia and I also spent hours creating all manner of things out of clay and beads, especially tree decorations. Christmas was plate after plate of every food imaginable, lots of girly presents, a small glass of champagne (big stuff I was!) and an afternoon spent listening to my very first CD – Queen's Greatest Hits.

And then I turned 16. My mother's worst nightmare. End of term still meant a trip to the mall, where my R5 entertainment money bought me a burger, chips and milkshake at the Spur, but unlike my friends, there were no tight tops or designer jean in sight. Nosiree. I would never be caught in those. Ever. The order of the day for me was jeans torn at the knee (no accident), a black T-shirt proclaiming my love for whatever metal band was the favour of the day, and… um… yes, a safety pin through my ear (hey I was a teenager rebelling against conformity!). Christmas was still a big affair for everyone else, while I tried hard to be cool and aloof, secretly savouring the last of the chipolatas and revelling in the new Gun's n Roses CD that my parents gave me… perhaps they were coming around after all.

At 17 I met Clayton (my future husband – at his matric dance – long story) and became ‘normal' again. Before I knew it I was 18, finished school, and looking forward to the longest holiday season ever! Oh those varsity vacs. Three whole months of nothing. Sorry to say I was never into waitressing – holidays were for chilling on the beach not working! Christmas again became a grand old affair with all the trimmings, starting with Midnight Mass the night before, followed by a day of presents, food and family. I would wait in anticipation all afternoon for Clayton's imminent arrival, while my brothers constantly teased me with ‘He's not coming. He's forgotten about you!' Nice hey. Of course Clayton always showed with a gift more expensive than his student allowance could afford, and before I knew it we were married in a place of our own starting new traditions!

And then came Christmas with a baby. Who to spend it with? Every grandparent wants to see the baby on Christmas day... Do we do two dinners on the same day, and stuff ourselves stupid to please everyone? I was only just getting over the Caesar, colic was just setting in, and clearly my brain was not functioning, so I agreed to host both families at our house. Thankfully everyone brought food, and fun was had by all, except for poor mom and dad at seven o'clock that night, all alone after a long day with a screaming Megan who had just had too much excitement for one day!

I must say I am really looking forward to Christmas this year. I can't say much about the holidays – being a fulltime mom means that life goes on even when schools break up – in fact us moms resent holidays because it means no more toddler groups for six whole weeks! Help! We will have to make a very concerted effort to get together regularly for our own sanity! But Christmas this year means seeing a two year old's face light up at the Christmas tree, the look of glee at the amount of presents, the whole ‘wow' factor! I am going to be a little kid myself again watching her enjoy all the excitement and magic of Christmas!

And one last thing… Clayton, Megan and I have been given an early Christmas present… a present in the making which will make his or her appearance in July next year… guess that means no champagne for me on Christmas day, just as long as the morning sickness has gone, after all I have the best excuse in the world to stuff myself stupid!

And to those of you not celebrating Christmas itself – Happy Holidays! Have a good one!

Back to contents

GIVEAWAYS GALORE!
Closing date for all giveaways is 24 December 2005! Get entering to ensure your chance to win! Please include your postal details!

SPUR vouchers!

Ahh, what would life be without Spur. Quite frankly, there would be nowhere to take Megan when we felt like a meal out! They just don't care about the chips under the table or squashed into the seat crevices, or the secret sauce dribbled all over the menus and placemats! Ahh the stories I could tell, of cokes and milkshakes over table clothes, food splatted in the neighbours hair... I always feel welcome at Spur and always have a good meal. In fact if Megan sees a Spur logo, she says "shippies and mato sauce!" - yes we go there quite a bit! AND Spur has been most generous in their donation of a fabulous prize! We have THREE meal vouchers to give away, one for R200, one for R150, and one for R100 - enough for a couple of meals methinks! But to win this great prize, you need to do just a little bit of work. Send us your Spur stories (be they funny, embarrassing or just memories of days gone by) to sally@mumstheword.co.za - and posting them on the forum gets you an extra entry!

Bababag™!

A 100% cotton inner and outer, is soft against the skin and washes well time and time again. Prevents baby kicking off his blankets, getting cold, crying and waking up - so parents sleep well too! A wide range for different seasons ensures that baby sleeps safely and soundly at exactly the right temperature every night. Sleeping in a bababag™ is much safer, and reduces the risk of suffocation as baby can't slip down inside or pull it over his head. Baby can wake up anytime, play in his cot, and still go back to sleep without losing

his covers and getting cold. Baby can go to sleep anywhere in his bababag™ and still be easily placed back into his cot without waking up!The bababag™ will give baby a sense of security because no matter where he falls asleep, he will still be in his own bababag™ With a FREE thermometer to indicate the temperature of the baby's room and provide guidelines for appropriate sleepwear.
On a personal note Megan has been using her bababag for a number of months now and sleeps really well in it - she can't kick it off and she likes the security of being completely enclosed! Putting on her bababag is also part of her nighttime routine which heralds bedtime, and the best thing is that she can't get out of it and climb out of her cot (okay at 2 she has figured out the zip but before then we had no problems!) 

We are giving away one summer bababag™ worth R200 to one lucky baby - to enter email sally@mumstheword.co.za with "bababag Giveaway" in the subject line. Please state your preference of size - either 0-6 months or 6-36 months. To order your own baba bag email Sally at dizzydots@tiscali.co.za.

Kidz Only Bath Hamper!

Introducing a new range of children's bath products for good clean fun!  Kids will love their range including the very ishy squishy Jelly Wash in three  colours, the cute star filled Twinkle Bubbles bath foam, the colourful Star Dust powder and the mild and gentle Bubbaloo range (pictured). Kidz Only  products are very reasonably priced, and make great gifts or party prizes - and your little one will be jumping into the bath at every opportunity!

We are giving away a hamper including a set of Star Dust powder in three colours, a Twinkle Bubbles and a Jelly Wash, totalling R115 in value. To  enter send an email to sally@mumstheword.co.za with "Kidz Only Giveaway" in the subject line. Kidz Only products can be ordered from Di at ritchchem@telkomsa.net .

Babybanz!

Banz and Kidz Banz Sunglasses remind us that the damage to the eyes caused by excessive unprotected sun exposure is cumulative and permanent.  Baby Banz and Kidz Banz Sunglasses meet the world's toughest standards offering 100% UV protection. The lenses and frames are made  from strong, durable material with an adjustable headband. They are endorsed by the South African Optometric Association and are available in bright, children friendly colours.

Baby Banz and Kidz Banz Sun Hats have a broad rim with an adjustable band within the circumference and a UPF 50+rating. Available in six fun colours. For more stockists visit www.babybanz.co.za or call (011) 788 6066!

We are giving away a Kidz Pack consisting of a pair of Kidz Banz and a Kidz hat, worth R250! To enter send an email to sally@mumstheword.co.za with "Baby Banz Giveaway" in the subject line.

Puntino Gift Set!

Puntino's promise is a mother's love for her child is instinctive and natural. Puntino Bebe presents a baby beauty product range using gentle ingredients to enrich, nurture and nourish your little one. There are three  fragrances in  their  range: Sweet angel, Honey child, Fragrance free.   Their wide range includes Botty Butter, D'elicate Oil, Oopsy Daisy Room  Spray, Powder Fresh Crème, Bundle of Joy Laundry Wash, Linen Kisses, Cuddle Wash Crème, Snuggle Lotion and Debut Cologne.  Completely natural and created by Mums. For more information on stockists contact Lynn at info@puntino.co.za.

We are giving away a Puntino gift set consisting of Snuggle Lotion, D'elicate Oil, Botty Butter, Cuddle Wash and Powder Fresh Creme, all in Sweet Angel worth R275! To enter email sally@mumstheword.co.za with "Puntino Giveaway" in the subject line.

Acorn Hamper!

Having trouble getting your toddler in the bath? Make bathtime fun with products from Acorn Kids. Your toddler will have a ball in his colourful bath - with  stars in the blue bubbles or red foam sprayed across the tub! Or let them get their hands into a tub of Squishy Wash, or learn about colours with the  blue, red, and yellow Angel Bath powder. Acorn also has a range of frangrance free baby products as well as the Africa range for grownups.

We have a three-pack set of Angel Bath powders to give away worth R75 to give away.  To enter email sally@mumstheword.co.za  with "Acorn Giveaway" in the subject line. To order your Acorn products contact Tanya on 559 4694 or see www.acornkids.net .

Waiting for Christopher Book!

When fiesty, forthright radio personality Sam Cowen decides to have a baby, it doesn't occur to her that she won't be able to handle the project with her  quintessential sense of humour intact. But when she finds herself at the movies throwing up into her box of popcorn, Sam begins to suspect that pregnancy  is not going to be as easy as she thought. Surrounded by a coterie of supportive and disturbingly efficient ‘yummy mummy' pals, an extremely patient  husband and her delightfully batty mum, Sam runs (OK, waddles) the gauntlet of pregnancy.

Sam - and her sense of humour - survive the experience to come out in full force in a frank and very funny journal of pregnancy and childbirth! You can get your copy of Sam's book here.

We have a copy of Sam's book to giveaway (I have just started it and it's keeping me giggling!), to enter email sally@mumstheword.co.za with "Book Giveaway" in the the subject line. 

Last, but not least, we are giving away a cute animal picture book and a smile puzzle to giveaway (containing a four and six piece puzzle). To enter email sally@mumstheword.co.za with "puzzle/book giveaway" in the subject line.

Back to contents

Last Month's Winners!
Congrats to the following readers: Bennetts Giveaway: Debra Rumble and Doidy Cups: Mandy Gierke, Zaheera Fakie and Heather Terrapon. Congrats everyone, your prizes should reach you shortly! Bennetts products are available from most reputable baby stores, and Doidy Cups can be ordered from Sally at dizzydots@tiscali.co.za.

Next issue:  I haven't got that far yet. Needing a holiday first! You will see when you get it! If there are any burning issues that you would like discussed, post it to the message board at www.mumstheword.co.za or email sally@mumstheword.co.za - whatever grabs you! Your comments on MTW would also be hugely appreciated!

Back to contents

In Closing…

Can you believe a year has come and gone! So much has happened in the last year - Megan is growing up and I finally feel (almost) ready for number two (after I swore I would never have another one!) I would like to wish all of you, no matter what your religious affiliations a happy and safe holiday season - if you are travelling please do so safely and I hope to have many interesting holiday stories filling my inbox in the coming weeks - hey I might even include them in the next issue! As always, I am on the lookout for any contributions, connections or submissions, you know how to reach me (for those porridge brains out there it's sally@mumstheword.co.za )! Please also keep sending your newsletters on -  and feedback is always welcome!

Until next time…

Back to contents