Parenting for Beginners

OiOi Diaper Bags, the rapidly growing brain child of International designer Lisa Bennetts, is Australian born and spans the globe in its scope and appeal. Now well established in England and the United States, we have the opportunity to enjoy her hot summer styles and share her functional designer fashions with celebrities like Lisa McCune, Rachel Griffiths, and Cate Blanchette who rely on their OiOi Diaper bags as godsends. We chose 3 of the most popular of Lisa’s sizzling designs for a fun filled and rewarding summer with baby.

Black on White Giraffe Tote Diaper Bag

A Nappy Sack you ask? Absolutely, we answer, and one of the best examples of how OiOi Diaper Bags creates fashionable functionality that help Moms look and feel good. The Giraffe Tote, which also comes in Cocoa, is made from a printed nylon canvas that is durable and easy to keep clean, with natural cotton weave handles, faux leather trim, stroller straps and a detachable nylon shoulder strap. The tote has one major compartment with 3 elasticized pockets and a burnt sienna, water resistant, nylon lining and an outer zippered pocket for Mom’s personal belongings. These bags are easy to adapt for personal or baby use because the large padded micro fiber changing mat, the insulated bottle holder, zip top mess bag, hard wipes case and carabiner key clip are all removable. The base of the tote is protected by metal feet and in total it measures a very manageable size of 15.5″L x 13.5″H x 6″D.

Floral Bouquet Hobo

Absolutely new for summer and perfect for travels with baby is the Floral Bouquet Hobo style of OiOi Diaper Bags. Fresh, bright, and fun, the citrus, pink, and blue blossoms with a warm chocolate base are printed onto canvas that has a water resistant finish, making it a very stylish bag for the beach. The chocolate theme is carried over into the trim, nylon lining, adjustable shoulder strap, and accessories. The Hobo style has internal pockets for diapers, burp cloths, and extra clothing, an insulated bottle holder, large padded microfiber change mat, a pvc zip top mess purse, pvc hard wipes case, and a handy clip for keys. On the outside, it has zippered pockets for your cell phone, wallet, and any other treasures you keep with you. The Floral Bouquet Hobo also has protective metal feet and measures a comfortably large 12″ wide x 15″ high x 6″ gusset.

Pansy Backpack

The thirds style of OiOi Diaper Bags that we chose is the Pansy Backpack which is bright and beautiful with brilliant Azure blue and rich Chocolate Blooms on an alabaster microfiber backdrop which is waterproof and easy to clean. This backpack is perfect for leisurely strolls on the beach, blazing trails or just a day at the park with the family. The interior compartments are detailed with mesh and zippers, the straps adjust for Mommy or Daddy, the outer pockets hold your wallet, keys and cell phone, while inside the insulated bottle holder, large padded microfiber changing pad, zippered wet bag, and a wipes case. It measures a good 15″ high x 10.5″ wide x 6″deep.

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Cora Lee is the owner of BlissDiaperBags, widely known for a huge selection of OiOi Diaper Bags including unique OiOi Diaper Bags, custom mother’s jewelry, designer diaper bags, and exclusive baby gifts. BlissDiaperBags.com has been featured in US Weekly and People Magazine’s Celebrity Babies and Pregnancy Magazine, and has been listed as one of the highest rated sites by the Better Business Bureau, with A ratings, for five years in a row.

When our daughter first moved from breast feeding to baby bottles, she had excessive wind and gas. After we tried Dr. Brown’s baby bottles we found them to be helpful in reducing discomfort from wind and gas for our daughter.

During her first 4 months our daughter was breast fed, and from 4-6 months she was weaned onto bottle feeding with pumped breast milk. The early appearance of teeth was a strong motivation for my wife to move to bottles, and I could see why after a number of nipple stretches of cartoonish proportions. We started with typical baby bottles, and found our daughter would burp numerous times after feeding, and had a lot of gas later during sleeping. Even with lots of patted burps prior to sleeping, we also found our daughter would often burp-up milk during the night, the discomfort causing her to wake up. Wind and gas from breast-feeding had been a lot less, so the baby bottles appeared to be the culprit.

The discomfort caused by this excessive wind, gas and burped-up milk seemed to be caused by the ingestion of air bubbles during feeding. We could hear a small hissing noise as air struggled to return into the bottle to fill the vacuum left as our daughter drank the milk, and we could see bubbles form in the bottle every time she took a breath and air rushed back in via the nipple. After a couple of months of our daughter’s struggle with typical baby bottles, a Dr Brown’s bottle was suggested by my wife’s relatives. Funnily enough my wife had them sent from overseas because we mistakenly thought they were not available locally in Australia.

The main difference for the Dr. Brown’s baby bottles compared to the standard type we used was the collar insert and plastic pipe that fitted inside the bottle. These 2 parts formed a vent which allowed air to flow under the teat collar and through the pipe into the space behind the milk. The intake of air allowed milk to flow with little effort from the teat, and we found our daughter could now easily drink a whole bottle without having to stop. After a small burp or two she is usually free of wind, and has been sleeping a lot better without waking up because of burped up milk. So problem solved. Now if only that mean bunny could stop chasing her in her dreams…

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Founder of Motherslove Baby Products, stay-at-home dad for his daughter, and professional Engineer experienced in automotive product design, Scott Thomson offers an interesting perspective on baby products in daily use and on the technical aspects of their design and use.

Product articles are for items Scott and his wife have actually used at home with their daughter. Motherslove stocks some of these items, such as Dr Brown’s baby bottles, which they have found to be effective. See Motherslove’s range at http://motherslove.com.au/