momstory

Meet USA mom Rachelle living in Boise, Idaho

Hi, My name is Rachelle and I am a mom of one little adorably cute daughter named Kenzie. She is 15 months now and has quite the personality. I along with my husband & Kenzie currently live in a little ole' town outside beautiful Boise, Idaho. Boise is now the third largest city in the northwest U.S., behind Seattle and Portland. In September of 2008, I decided to start a blog all about baby. When I was pregnant, I was always on the internet searching for everything about baby from clothes to decor. I found it difficult to find trendy & cute baby items. This Inspired me to start my blog Kenziepoo.

LIVING
Do you like to spend time on decorating your home and the children’s room?
 I love to spend time decorating my home and Kenzie's room. I believe your home is an expression of who you are, and I love creating fun and glamourous spaces in my home!

Where do you look for interior inspiration, favorite magazines, websites, blogs?
I find interior inspiration from may blogs, these are a few of my favorites: Simply Grove, Design Sponge, & Decor8. I also find inspiration from these amazing magazines, Elle Decor, Living Etc, House & Garden etc...

What are your children’s favorite items in your house?
Kenzie's favorite item in our house is her Eames Rockers! She loves sitting and rocking in them. She loves putting her pillows and stuffed animals on them and rocking them as well.

UPBRINGING
Can you mention some of your ‘how-to-raise-your-kid’ values?
I realized something awhile back, that I did really know what was best for my daughter. I had so many people with good intentions that loved Kenzie and myself always telling me how I needed to raise her and what they did with their kids. One day it was like a light bulb turned on and I realized that every child is different and they all have different needs. This has definitely helped me in raising Kenzie!!

Can you tell us a funny story, quote or remark one of your children recently made or happened?
Kenzie is quite possibly the most expressive child I have ever known. She loves music! Anytime my husband or I play any kind of music she shakes wildly. My husband thought it would be so funny if he started and stopped the music that Kenzie was dancing to... like you do in Musical Chairs. He then started the music, and sure enough Kenzie starts shaking and dancing. He then stopped the music and she instantly stopped dancing. Maybe she will be a dancer??


CRAFT AND DIY PROJECTS
Are you a crafter or DIY person?
I am a crafter and a DIY person! I have so much fun being creative.  I make myself laugh sometimes when I do DIY projects. They don't always turn out how I envision them to turn out...haha. Oh, well, but I really enjoy doing them.

PLAYING
How do you like to celebrate birthdays and other special days in your house?

I am such a huge do it Big Kind of person! Everyone knows that if I celebrate a Birthday or a special occasion it's going to be Extravagant. Kenzie just had her first Birthday and we packed out our house full of people. I spent months in prep time for this Big occasion and days decorating for it. It turned out so beautiful!!

COOKING
Are you a ‘cook’ or ‘food’ lover or both?
I like to cook, but my husband is the cook in our home. He almost went to Culinary school, and enjoys cooking for us girls. He makes incredible Salmon, which by the way is my favorite!

What does Kenzie really like?
My daughter is obsessed with string cheese! ( Mozzarella pull apart cheese)  I think she could, quite possibly, eat it all day long...Breakfast, lunch and dinner. She also enjoys any kind of fruit. String cheese and fruit, you think she could branch out a little bit. She does eat other foods though!


TRAVEL
What kind of place do you like to go to on vacation with and or without the children?

I love Hawaii. My husband and I have gone there many times. We went there on our Honeymoon and have been going there ever since! We haven't gone there with Kenzie yet, but plan to soon!

..Kenziepoo blog..
..Kenziepoo online shop..

Meet Australian Mom Hayley living in Dee Why

I, Hayley Blease, live in Dee Why, which is on the Northern Beaches of Sydney.  I live in a 70s red brick unit block with my lovely husband Simon and my two gorgeous children, Keely 3 and Taj 9 months.  I grew up in Canberra, the capital of Australia.  I decided to have a sea change at 25 and I moved to Sydney where I met Simon.  We instantly fell in love!  I have always had a thing for fashion and decided to mix my fashion experience with my creative head.  It all came together not long after I had Taj and I started what was once a dream, Little Pinwheel, an online boutique for playful and free spirited little people.  I also have a blog attached to my website, which is a creative look at Little Pinwheel, me as a mum and my life in general.  It is full of beautiful images, most of which are by my husband, the photographer.  It is a place that allows me to still use my creativeness.  

LIVING
Do you like to spend time on decorating your home and the children’s room?
We have lived in our cute little home now for 5 years and we love it.  We are so close to the beach, which we feel is the best backyard for our children.  With all this in mind we really have been focusing on what we would do to keep our 2 bedroom unit and have it be our children’s home too.  I am very inspired by the whole European way of living, where huge families will squeeze into a small unit.  With this inspiration we are planning renovations to the children’s bedroom so we may eventually have at least one more baby.  We will organize a Joiner/Cabinetmaker to build their beds and storage solutions.  There will be a lot of decorating to be done!  I have this thing with red and there is always at least one interior design element that is red in our home and if I have my way red will be our bases of decorating.  I, however drive my husband crazy as I do like to change my mind with the style I think we should go with.  Plus I am not scared of changing my daughter’s room around to give it a new look!

What are your children’s favorite items in your house?
My daughter loves our gorgeous 1950s Italian fold away picnic stools.  She was with us when we found them in a retro furniture shop and she was the one who made us buy all three!  I guess being little they suit her size and the bright colours make them more inspiring.  My son even likes them to hold onto and walk from one to the other or just pull on the ground and push around the house like they have wheels.

What is your idea of a perfect day with your children?
I adore the beach and all that it has to offer.  There is so much fun to have and you don’t need one toy to entertain them while at the beach.  We are so close and can walk or we do love to drive to a couple of our favourite beaches that are so safe for children, they have what we call ‘kiddies corner’ and this is where the waves are smaller and smooth for them to play in.  Also being surfers they are the best beaches for our little ones to learn how to surf, it is where I learnt to surf!  In summer it is all we do, we go to the beach in the morning before it gets too hot for the little ones, come home for lunch and a break from the sun and then it is back to the beach in the afternoon.  There really is nothing like giving them a bath at the end of the day and seeing a bath full of sand!

Can you mention some of your ‘how-to-raise-your-kid’ values?
I don’t necessarily have any, ‘how to raise your kid’ values I am really a go with the flow person.  I listen to my own intuition and raise my children that way.  That way I don’t get too confused about what one book says while another book says something else.  Every child is different and so is every mother.  But I guess the one thing we all want is the best for our children and that is what I am trying to give them.  To me the best thing is happiness, and that is the one thing my mum taught me was to be happy.
 
CRAFT AND DIY PROJECTS:
What kind of DIY projects do you like to do with your children?
I love to watch my daughter paint, draw and stick anything and everything down with glue.  I was always artistic and it is nice to see she thinks with her creative head too.  We have a ‘craft’ box, which we collect different things to put in there for the days we do craft.  We also have the regular items you buy from the shops like felt shapes, googley eyes, coloured matchsticks and paddlepop sticks.  I do love when we collect shells and make beach themes.  It is a great thing to do with your children and it is an easy thing to take away with you when you go on holidays.  Her craft box is always packed!

Any tips for keeping the house clean when crafting?
This for us is pretty easy as we have the concrete floor in our kitchen so painting and any messy craft jobs are easily cleaned up.  I do find however if you are organized for when it is clean up time then it really runs quite smoothly.  We try and do the craft in the afternoon together, close to bath time, so if she gets paint on her then it is straight into the bath!

What do you do with all the projects your children made at home or in school?
I have a box that I have put all of her sentimental items in.  I make sure I put the date on the paintings, pictures or little craft object and pack them away to look through together at a later date.  Unfortunately we cannot keep everything, but we do choose the items that are memorable and that show the development stage she is at with her creativity.  Of course the fridge is lined with pictures, less now as Taj can stand up and pull them all down.  These pictures get rotated as new ones arrive home from pre-school or as we do more from our home craft days.


PLAYING AND RELAXING
How do you like to celebrate birthdays and other special days in your house?
It sounds bad but it is all about the cake! We have the women’s weekly cookbook with children’s cakes in it and my daughter chooses her cakes to be made each year.  There really has only been two years of her choosing and last year I talked her into an easier one, the lady beetle, as the year before was the mushroom, or better known as the fairy’s house.  I am not the cook of the house, so I need simple!  Although, I have surprised myself with each cake being a success.  My daughter really is at the age where she loves to help cook, more the sweet stuff and it is nice to have an occasion to cook a cake together.  It will be interesting to see what cake she chooses for her brother’s first birthday!

What are favorite games in your home?
Funny, our favourite game is ‘hide and go seek’, and in a 2 bedroom unit there is not many hiding places!  My daughter still does not understand the whole concept of the hiding.  She always giggles or yells out where she is.  Of course we have to pretend we are having trouble finding  her!


How do they prefer to spend their leisure time?
Being near the beach we are forever there, if it be playing in the sand and having a swim or playing at the park.  We really do have the best backyard for the children.  Taj is also at the age now where he can cruise around the park and have a push on the swing.  I also love the fact there are no toys involved and they can use their own imagination. 
 

COOKING
Are you a ‘cook’ or ‘food’ lover or both?
It depends on what you mean by cook, I am the cook for the children!  Although it is meat and vege and I am pretty sure that does not make me ‘a cook!’  My husband is the cook of our house.  I am very lucky to have someone who is so passionate about food and who has an understanding of flavours.  I am slowly building up my palette and it is nice to experience different food.  I am a lover for food and it always seems to taste better when someone else makes it for you!

What do your children like to eat?
I have the classic ‘fussy eater’ with my daughter and at the age of 3 she is still eating mashed up vegetables.  It cannot be lumpy what so ever as she won’t eat it.  I guess I cannot complain as she eats every vegetable as long as she does not have to feel the lumpy texture of it.  My son on the other hand is exploring food and is loving holding a lamb cutlet while sucking and ripping all the meat off with his 3 teeth.  Being 10 months he is loving finger food, so he is eating cherry tomatoes, strawberries, bananas, meat balls, vegetable sticks, bread and he loves soya beans. 

PETS
Are their pets in your household?  Do they play an important role in your family?
My daughter has 4 fish, we did have 6 to start with, but we lost a couple!  They do play an important role, as firstly they are named after all of  Keely’s best friends.  She loves to feed them and just to watch them play around in their tank.  I think animals with children is great, even if it just be fish, it teaches them responsibility and that all creatures great and small need looking after.  We will eventually get a cat, my daughter loves them and it will be her cat.  I had one all of my life as a child and even an adult and the companionship I had with them was lovely.  I know she would be a great mummy to a pussy cat. 

TRAVEL
What kind of place do you like to go to on vacation with and or without the children?
Interesting enough we love to go away for beach holidays, even though we have the beach in our own backyard.  We like style, so we always try to stay in gorgeous houses and have a holiday where you can just walk everywhere and the beach is only a few steps away.  My husband is an architectural photographer so it is great for him to see interesting and divine houses. 
 

{image from a vacation house the family once rented,image by Simon}
How do you prepare for a trip, any useful tips?
The preparation is the key when it comes to having little ones in the car.  I have ‘the car’ toys and entertainment all worked out.  I organize this with my daughter so we do not miss anything and she has a say in what gets taken away with us.  We have a portable dvd player which comes out for the long car trips and we also have an activity table which attaches to the back of the drivers seat.  As she loves to draw this is a fantastic item to take with us.  I think if you have minimal toys your trip is always easier, the more toys there are the more they will ask you to get things out for them to play with.  It is also nice when you get to your holiday place to explore instead of playing with toys from home.  Imagination is something children should be encouraged to use and it is fun for us parents to use it too!

..little pinwheel..

..little pinwheel blog..

Meet New Zealand mom Louise living in Queenstown

Hi, I’m Lou and I live in the most beautiful place on earth! .. seriously! … We moved from Auckland New Zealand to Queenstown New Zealand about 10 months ago and have never looked back. Aside from wrangling 3 divine little munchkins… I am also a devoted wife, daughter sister and friend. When I’m not playing mummy (or more usually while I am playing mummy) I work from my kitchen bench on a variety of awesome ventures. I am a passionate entrepreneur …. My more recent enterprises include Skout TradeSkout Blog my creative musings, the KPD self explanatory really! …. And my new baby (no I wasn’t allowed a 4th child ) … Trifle which is so totally awesome ! I wanted to offer consumers a new way to shop… and designers a new way to sell … a totally new business model favoring collaboration over competition in the marketplace….  Innovation meets design … Ah … bliss.Fair… an online resource portal for peeps in the Kids Product Industry.

LIVING
What kind of house do you live in, are you and the kids happy here or is there anything you all terribly miss …? Right now we are renting a place in Queenstown, having moved down here last year … the house we are in is huge.. with white concrete floors …. …terribly impractical with little ones I must say! ….  We still have a villa in Auckland …. (that will go on the market in Spring) …. The Villa is over 100 years old… has wooden polished floors and a white picket fence ….  All on one level…. Comfy, cosy, warm and inviting …Idealistic… a psychic once told me when I was 20 that I would live in a house with a white picket fence .. go figure ….

GENERAL AND UPBRINGING
What's it like to raise a child in your town? Awesome ! … The kids spent their Sunday up at Coronet Peak Ski field … on the slopes learning how to ski …. I went to school ice skating with my daughter on Monday …  and my son starts cross country skiing at school in a few weeks  ..  my 3 year old witnessed me doing the Nevis Arc AJ Hackett Bungy Swing for my birthday the other week.. and loved it ! …. And they all watched granpa and mum do a skydive last weekend for granpas 65th birthday… they have it pretty good!!!! …  

Can you tell us a funny story, quote or remark one of your children recently made or happened? A while back I was dishing up dinner to our three children.... it had been a long day and I was in the mood to make it as easy and effortless as possible.

Our (then) 3 yr old daughter pushed her dinner around her plate looking rather disappointed... "that’s not dinner"... to which she was told, "yes it is darling... tonight, its easy dinner" ... of course that was not the last of it.... (never is really is it?) .... "I don't like easy dinner" ..... (ok I will play your game) ... "well what do you like?" .....

"HARD DINNER !"

Thinking this wee toddler conversation was well and truly gone and forgotten ... I made the mistake of asking her tonight what she would like for dinner... hmmmmmm ... lets see now....
"I want hard dinner" ! ... bless her wee cotton socks ....

Can you mention some of your ‘how-to-raise-your-kid’ values? Don’t sweat the small stuff. Talk less, listen more, Hold them until they let go. We are a really tight knit family and love each others company… I think its so important to just hang out with your kids…. Share each others space and give of your time. We have a lot of fun together and spend a huge amount of time outdoors… kids need to get messy and enjoy being free to explore… I love it when we spend a day at the beach getting thoroughly messy .. then come home to rinse off and fall into bed full of happy memories!

CRAFT AND DIY PROJECTS
Any tips for keeping the house clean when crafting? Ha ha ha – making a mess is half the fun of crafting ! .. Mess doesn’t bother me …. Its part of the creative process ! “ from chaos comes brilliance ! “

Are you a crafter or DIY person?
What do you do with all the projects your children made at home or in school? Ugh – I keep them all… I am so terrible at throwing anything away! …  I name and date everything …. Its so important to me to record their milestones …. My 3 yr old wrote his name for the first time at Kindy the other day when I was doing mother help …. I was SOOO proud …. So that will go in the draw along with the countless other memories …

PLAYING AND RELAXING
How do you like to celebrate birthdays and other special days in your house? Ooohhhhh .. .the Pavlova.. .when I was growing up my mum used to make a Pavlova every birthday ….. it was our thing … one year she didn’t make one and I remember being totally gob smacked and rather hurt ! … now our kids expect Pavlova for birthday celebrations … either the real thing (Nana’s ! …) or mums (ahem … store bought) …
 
My Mum’s Pav recipe (shhhhhsh – it’s a secret! ) …
You need:
4 lrg egg whites (room temperature)
1 C of white sugar
1 t vinegar
1 t vanilla essence
pinch of salt
6 dessertspoons cold water
3 dessertspoons cornflour
To Make :
Beat egg whites until peaks are formed
Add vinegar, vanilla, and salt
Gradually add water whilst still beating
Gradually add sugar - continuing beating
Add cornflour and beat for at least five minutes
Preheat oven to 125 oC
Place pavlova on a greased tray near bottom of oven
Cook thirty minutes, then turn oven off
Leave pavlova in oven until the oven and pavlova are cold (do not open the door or it will SINK!)
Decorate with whipped cream & berries

HOUSE PETS

Are their pets in your household and do they play an important role in your family? Our Crazy Brussels Griffin x Maltese Terrier follows me everywhere … even the loo! (TMI ? ) … we bought him PB (post babies) … I saw him in a pet store in Auckland and fell in love.. he was sooo little – we went home and my partner (now husband) finally caved in and said Ok we could go back and get him .. but he would be MY dog .. and I even had to apy on my credit card so he WAS my dog wholeheartedly … so when he made a mess or needed a walk etc it would be MY responsibility ! … ha ha ha – my how things have changed… he was in our wedding ! …. And one cold night about 8 years ago in Auckland hubby let him sleep on our bed –“cos he would be cold” .. hes been there ever since ….

  TRAVELING

What kind of place do you like to go to on vacation with and or without the children? We live a short stroll from the lake … and a short drive from the mountains .. so we don’t need to go far for entertainment! .. a favourite in summer is heading down to the lake after dinner and jumping off the jetty … sooo much fun!

 
Tips for traveling with a plane or a long-time trip on the road with children? The car game ! …. You each pick a car colour, you count the number of times a car that colour goes past you …  and the person who gets to 10 first wins ! … we have banned white and silver cars .. .cos my 7 year old figured out they are the most prolific!

Louise's websites :: Skout :: Skout Trade :: Trade:: Skout Blog :: the KPD

...and recelntly opened online shop :: Trifle