2008 was a big year here at bebe, as we refurbished our flagship store. We have now moved back and are in the midst of final preparations to re-open our store on Saturday 3rd January 2009.

Please come visit us and check out our unique range of contemporary baby and children’s furniture, decor, gear and accessories. This includes some exclusive international brands such as Svan, Oeuf Sparrow Collection and Nursery Works, as well as some old favourites Bugaboo, Stokke, Bloom,  Leander and Silvercross.  

Opening hours are Monday - Saturday 9.30am - 5.00pm, as of this Saturday 3rd January. Located at 36-38 Toorak Road, South Yarra (near Punt Rd/Toorak Rd intersection). See you there!

Wow,  what a year it’s been for us here at bebe! We’re all well and truly in the Christmas spirit and looking forward to re-opening the doors of our fab re-furbished flagship store at 36-38 Toorak road in just two weeks from now!

We wish the families of all of our loyal customers and  suppliers a joyful, love-filled Christmas and New Year, and look forward to bringing you more great new gear in 2009.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you !

By Pinky

Your baby or toddler’s sleep patterns can be affected by his diet. Restlessness can be caused by allergies or food intolerance, sometimes to foods passing through your breastmilk (your baby is never allergic to your breastmilk). If you or your partner suffer from allergies such as excema, asthma or hay fever, or if there is a family history of allergies, there is an increased liklihood that your baby will also suffer from allergies. The best way to protect your baby from allergies is to breastfeed exclusively for the first six months. If you are bottle feeding and suspect allergies, consult a doctor. There are hypo-allergenic formulas, but these are expensive without a script.

Food allergies in exclusively breastfed babies are caused by foods that pass into your breastmilk, not to your breast-milk itself. Allergies in infants may cause symptoms including: colic, nausea, vomiting and reflux, wheezing and respiratory congestion, dermatitis and various rashes (although other medical causes should be ruled out for these symptoms). The most common culprit is cow’s milk protein (found in milk, cheese and yoghurt).

Food additives are present in ever-increasing numbers in almost all processed foods and these can dramatically affect sleep patterns and behaviour. Some babies and children can also become restless after eating foods containing salicylates. Food intolerance expert Sue Dengate has seen remarkable changes in children’s behaviour, including infant sleep patterns, with simple dietary changes, such as changing the brand of bread eaten.

Elimination of foods may take anywhere from a few days to several weeks to make a difference to your baby’s behaviour so allergies are difficult to prove or disprove, but if it calms your baby (and you), modifying your diet is a small sacrifice.

For more great tips about parenting, see Sleeping like a Baby by Pinky McKay available here at Bebe, or visit Pinky’s website - www.pinkymckay.com.au for information about her private consulting work in Melbourne.

One of our favourite brands of 2008, Bloom Baby have consistently impressed us with their product releases this year. Bloom was founded by four dads who wanted to bring contemporary design and intelligent innovation to a range of baby products that had traditionally been funtional but out of sync with parents’ sense of  design.  Bloom strives to design simple, clean and iconic forms that blend seamlessly in contemporary living spaces.

Bloom does not use polycarbonate in places where the product could come into contact with food - instead they use a higher quality food grade plastic.  All Bloom products are free of wood PCP, formaldehyde and other toxic wood preservatives.  The wood originates from certified sustainable beech and birch forests. Bloom also understands environmental responsibility originates by creating quality products that are designed to last for years and years.

Check out Bloom’s full range of contemporary baby products here which include the Fresco high chair, Fresco Loft, Coco Lounger, Nano high chair and Otto table and charis. Stay tuned for some exciting new Bloom launches in 2009. Want to win a Bloom Fresco Loft High chair valued at $799.95? There are just a couple more weeks left to enter bebe and Bloom’s Fresco Loft giveaway. Read about this competition right here.

It’s not too late to get  your Christmas orders in. Bebe dispatches orders numerous times throughout the day via Australia Post (express post next day delivery) and Startrack Express Couriers. Current timilines for orders are:

VIC, NSW, SA - next day

QLD - next day for small items, 2 days for large boxes/furniture

NT, WA, Nth QLD- 3-4 business days.

We recommend orders are placed by Friday 19th for pre-Christmas delivery, or by Wednesday 17th for more remote areas. Please call us on   (03) 9821 4405   or email us sales@bebeonline.com.au, for any questions regarding delivery timings.

Don’t forget Santa’s helpers love to wrap presents, so please make note of this when placing your order so we don’t miss it!

By Pinky

Just as his fingerprints are his alone, you childs personality is unique. As parents we wonder, can we take all the credit (or blame) for our childs temperament? Could he be a ‘chip off the old block’ or is it the fantastic environment  we have provided that makes our child so easy-going? Or have we inadvertently caused our child to be ’supersensitive’ or too ‘dependant’?

Your childs temperament may be a neat fit with your own, or not. You may be a ‘bookish’ person who imagined reading endlessly to your little one but instead you are the parent of a jumping bean who never sits still. Or you may be an athlete who hoped to teach your tot the finer points of football as soon as he could stand but have a sensitive, cautious child who flinches whenever you throw a ball at him. You may wonder, “Where does this child come from?” but it would be more enlightening to ask yourself what this little being has to teach you.

Whether you can mould your childs temperament or whether he is born with a particular tendancy to be easygoing or calm or serious and sensitive, a thoughtful leader or a daredevil, his personality will bloom with your acceptance of the unique individual that he is, and the loving encouragement that you give to his positive traits. It is up to you to channel and develop your child’s special qualities. It isn’t a good idea to label your child, because whether it is ‘good’ or ‘bad’ your child’s self-image will be affected by his label, and he will probably live up to it. Try rethinking descriptions of your child right now. To appreciate the positives, see your little daydreamer as ‘imaginative’ ; your noisy child as enthusiastic; your argumentative tot as independant; and your inattentive little soul as a global thinker with a wide focus! If you are at a loss for positive labels some days, ‘unique’ or ‘motivated’ are perfectly as long as they are meant with appreciation and love.

For more great tips to enhance your parenting life,  see Pinky McKay’s books available here at Bebe, or visit Pinky’s website for information about  Pinky and her workshops for parents.

The results are in for our Annual Top 10  Christmas Gifts for 2-4 year olds 2008. Click on the link below for more on these great picks!

  1. G-Bike

 2. Candela Tooli Night Lights

 3. Plan Toys Pirate Ship

 4. Crocodile Creek ABC Floor Puzzle

 5. Bajo Piggy Money Bank

 6. Red Stripe Teepee

 7. Italtrike Outdoor Passenger trike 

 8.Bajo Rings on Strings play board

 9. Cocoon Couture Bean Bag

 10.Bajo Doll’s Pram

Check out some other  Bebe Christmas  2008 “best of” lists here: 

Bebe Top 10 Baby Gifts

Top 10 Toys for Toddlers (1-2 Yr Olds)

Top Budget Friendly Toys for under $30

by Pinky

The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council are currently  revising safe drinking guidelines and it looks as though pregnant and breastfeeding women will be advised not to drink alcohol at all. This is because, in light of worldwide research, a safe limit of alcohol consumption can’t be determined during pregnancy and breastfeeding. There are potential risks to babies whose immature livers arent able to process the alcohol transmitted through the placenta or their mother’s milk.

Known adverse affects on baby…..Daily consumption of alcohol by breastfeeding mothers has been shown to affect babies sleep patterns (with babies falling asleep more quickly but waking more often), increases the risk of slow weight gain and slows gross motor development.

And you……Although many people may tell you that a glass of alcohol will increase your milk supply, there is evidence that this isn’t the case. Drinking more than two standard drinks can inhibit your letdown and even small doses of alcohol can alter the taste of breast-milk. Babies dislike this, so may not drain the breast. These factors could result in temporarily reducing your milk supply and an inadequately drained breast could increase the liklihood of mastitis.

Alcohol levels in your milk……..If you do choose to drink while you are breastfeeding, it is important to be aware that alcohol will pass into your milk very easily - as your blood alcohol level rises, so does the level of alcohol in your breastmilk. The good news is that as your blood alcohol level drops, so does the level of alcohol in your milk. Alcohol peaks in your blood approximately half an hour to an hour after drinking (this varies among individuals, depending on factors such as how much food was eaten in the same time period, your body weight and percentage of body fat.

Reducing the risks…….Bear in mind that alcohol will affect your responsiveness to your baby so whether you , are breastfeeding or not, if you drink it is wise to have a designated parent (one parent stays sober and in charge of the baby) just as you would have a designated driver.

For more great tips to enhance your parenting life,  see Pinky McKay’s books available here at Bebe, or visit Pinky’s website for information about  Pinky and her workshops for parents.