It’s that wonky, back-and-forth between seasons, neither-here-nor-there time of year.

The last few days it’s been sunny but windy and cold here in Stockholm and it’s snowed in Atlanta (thank you Facebook) and Italy (thank you football game). When my husband was in Barcelona last week it was freezing and he was completely underdressed for it. But in the north of Sweden it was a toasty ten degrees celsius.

This is the most frustrating time of year in Sweden. As most of the rest of the world eventually eases in to spring, Stockholm can be frustratingly back and forth, mixing gorgeous warm and sunny ice-cream eating days with sudden flurries. I have learned not to get my hopes up every time the sun peeks out and the locals come out in their shades and sit tucked under fleece blankets under infra-warmers outside every café and restaurant.Last year Alec wore his autumn overall well into May.

This winter has been saved by wool. Of course Alec has had wool inner layers during the winter months since we moved back to Sweden. But it didn’t really occur to me to get Louis all kitted up in wool until I noticed how hard it was to keep him at the right temperature when we were out and about. Occasionally he was cold when we came home but more often he was too hot and sweaty which is not so great in cold weather when you’re wearing cotton. As soon as I put him in wool onesies and leggings – problem solved.

These are our favourite woolens for babies and toddlers:

• Inner layers by H&M – This year H&M started selling wool long underwear for babies. They are great and so so cheap! The downside is that they are only available in onesie tops, which doesn’t really work for a potty-trained toddler. And they only come in cream, which doesn’t work for a toddler who spends all day at nursery school. But for baby, they could not be a better choice!
• Middle layers by Polarn O. Pyret – expensive but lightweight and good quality. Alec has a one-piece that he wore all last winter and part of this one, and he also has separates to layer up in
• Socks by Polarn O. Pyret – PoP socks are more expensive than almost anywhere else but they really are good. They last so you can pass them on to younger siblings, and they have the best anti-slip treads on the bottom. Their wool socks don’t have antislip thought which sucks. Joha makes wool socks with antislip but they seem impossible to get ahold of – always sold out in the size I need.
• Hats by Polarn O. Pyret – Windproof ones for autumn and spring, toasty warm ones for winter. And a wool helmet hat for baby to wear under whatever else is on.
• Wool Baby Mittens by Joha – Louis wears these little mittens under his bunting on cold days.
• Joha Wool PJs – Louis is so cute, and always the right temperature, in his wool pjs.

Besides clothes, this year we have really used lambskins and sheepskins to keep our babies warm. When we were in the country over Christmas and the first few days were absolutely freezing – both kids slept on skins and stayed warm. Alec has a lambskin on his seat in our stroller and Louis even has one tucked inside his 7.AM Baby bunting. Both kids also have gorgeous sheepskins in their rooms as a perfect spot to have a cuddle and a warm spot for changing clothes etc.

I haven’t bought anything from Nature Baby - but their collection of natural merino wool clothes look so so tempting.

Do your children wear a lot of wool in the winter months?

This is Alec’s third Valentines Day and we have been working on a project that I’ll share tomorrow.

On Monday I shared Alec’s and my very first Valentines Day project – DIY Baby Cupid Photos!

And today I want to show you last year’s project. We got our hands dirty and tried finger painting for the first time to make a painting for Daddy. We mixed our own edible finger paints out of yogurt and food color so it would be safe if it ended up in Alec’s mouth (which it did). This is such a great project for big babies and toddlers! Check out the details and more pics here.

Hello Friends! And Happy New Year!

Needless to say, the holidays got the better of me. It was just too much with Alec’s 2nd birthday, my parents coming to stay, Christmas planning. I hit a wall exhaustion-wise and Little Baby L had a dip in his growth charts. I had to slow down, so I had to logout for a bit. But I’m back now.

We had a very idyllic, very white Swedish Christmas at my parent’s place in the country. Little A loved all the snow, tobogganing, visiting the sheep, baking etc. Baby L loved all the attention.

It was the first Christmas that Alec sort of got into. He still didn’t want to open any more gifts after the first two – his little radio-controlled tractor and his Playdoh Fun Factory – but he definitely enjoyed himself (and those first two gifts!). Here are 2012′s best presents:

1. John Deere Tractor. Alec went crazy over this little tractor when he realized he could control it himself. “Come Tractor!” was heard all through the house on Christmas Eve. I think we went through the first set of batteries in jet one day. It’s from 18 months up so very appropriate for a 2-year old.
2. Voluspa Scented Candles. A set of eight luxurious scented candles for those rare relaxing baths!
3. Chord Buddy. My husband has always wanted to learn to play guitar and he got really excited over this easy learning system when we saw it on Shark Tank.
4. Bliss STHLM Baby Blanket. Soft, warm, luxurious-feeling, gorgeous. Louis won’t be seen out without it!
5. Bosch Tool Box and Work Bench.
6. A combined push present and Christmas gift from my husband!

Christmas shopping for teeny weeny babies? Most baby gifts probably pass the littlest receiver by, but here are some things that our little ones have loved (and you can buy them all online – yay!):

Books: Where’s Peter and That’s Not My Truck are great first books since they both encourage baby’s sensory exploration. Both are short and have big areas for little fingers to feel fuzzy, shiny, ridgy, furry and fuzzy textures. This playbook from IKEA is also fabulous. Perhaps more of a toy than a book, each page has fun stuff for baby to explore with all her senses.

Art Cards by Wee Gallery have been our children’s favourite things from their very first days. My cousin Farah recommended them to me before Little A was born and I picked up a set but couldn’t really understand what the fuss was about. But Alec was immediately absolutely entranced by them. The high contrast images really capture the attention of even the newest little babies. Louis can stare at his forever.

Rockabye Baby Lullaby CDs are such a fun baby gift. We have Kanye West, Madonna, U2, The Beatles and a couple more and they are so fun. With Little A we spent a lot of time in the car and these were a great thing to keep baby calm without driving mum nuts!

Baby Gap Cashmere Blanket. Everyone should receive something soft and warm to cuddle in over Christmas. Baby Gap has a new cashmere line and there is a pretty cream blanket that any baby would love.

Soft Bunny Rattle. Louis has this rattle and loves it. And I love it. It’s pretty and so soft and cuddly. And easy to hold.

Wubbanub Pacifier. I’ve raved about these a dozen times before. They are cute, easy for even small babies to grip, and they don’t go flying when spit out. We love ours. Alec had monkeys and Louis has the giraffe.

Sophie Teether. Every baby seems to have a Sophie already, but there is also another Sophie teether. We call these teether “Mini Sophie”. Alec still takes a bite of his Mini Sophie once in a while when he has teeth coming in. Easy to grip, all natural and with a pleasing rubber texture.

Brio Bell Rattle. This sturdy little wood rattle with a bell inside is a classic. Alec loved his and I’m sure Louis will love his too.

The weather is CRAZY today. So crazy that we are not even considering going out. But yesterday Louis and I put on our winter best and headed out in the snow to run some errands. It was freezing so we had to switch some things up to go from autumn to winter.

Little Baby L had on his winter best (isn’t he so cute?!):

He was just wearing a regular onesie and footed leggings underneath, but I really need to pick him up some wool inner layers now that winter is here, considering how much time he spends in his stroller. Here’s what Louis is wearing these days to stay warm:

• Polarn O. Pyret Wool Inner Layer Helmet Hat. Wool is perfect as an extra layer under the very plush hood of Louis’ bunting. It’s the best temperature regulator.
• H&M Overall/Bunting. Louis is growing so fast, so I was really happy to find such a good overall at H&M – obviously at a much much better price than the Polarn O. Pyret overall he was wearing for fall. I like that it works as a sleeping bag (I don’t even really need to put his arms in the sleeves), but can also be easily converted (with just one zip) into an overall with legs for sitting in the car seat or carrier.
• Phil & Ted’s Cocoon. It’s actually pretty well padded, so I feel like it helps to keep Louis warm, especially when I zip it up properly.
• Lindex Booties. He had kicked one off when we got home, but his feet were toasty warm anyways.
• Wool Mittens by Joha. These are fab. They are wool, so breathable etc. There’s no thumb so they’re perfect for infants and they have a smart little drawstring so they stay on. Love them!

And I put the toasty muff on the stroller. I had the organizer on the handlebar before, so I’ll have to find another place for that, but it’s worth it to stay warm!

So Louis was warm. And so was I. Though not as cute as Baby L. I was sporting the giant parka I bought last winter to keep my bump warm. Must go shopping for myself at some point!

November and December are full of reasons to celebrate for us. This week we celebrate Divali – basically Hindu Christmas. Last Sunday was Swedish Fathers Day. Both my husband and Alec have birthdays within a couple of weeks of each other. We have an anniversary (five years together!) and of course, Christmas.

I love a reason to celebrate but it’s hard to figure out all the gifts (especially since my husband is really impossible to shop for), and it’s kind of a bummer for Alec especially to be showered with presents over the course of a few weeks and then have no real gift occasion again for a year. I think we’ll have to start half-celebrating half-birthdays…

But for now we at least have figured out the first couple of occasions. For Fathers Day, Alec and my husband received robes. They love swimming class on Sundays but it’s a long cold rush from the pool area up to the change rooms, so we got (sort of matching) robes to make it warmer. Alec’s is by Joha and Sumit’s is Hugo Boss. Louis already has a little terry cloth robe that looks adorable hanging in our bathroom but doesn’t get any real use.

And for Divali, I decided that each boy should receive a book, something to wear, and a toy. Here are their Divali gifts:

Something to wear. A super cute sweater with faux suede shoulder patches and a pair of blue corduroys for Alec. And a knit romper with a faux suede pocket for little Louis. I love that the sweater and romper match!

Books. The Wild Baby for Louis. I love this book. I remember it well from my own childhood (as I remember fondly so many of Barbro Lindgren’s wonderful books). I’m so excited to share this with both boys! And Pippi Longstocking for Alec. This is the first ever Pippi book and it’s a great first Pippi book for any child since it has some pictures and not to much text. And this translation is so much more authentic than later translations. I also like the pictures more than the modern ones. This is Alec’s first Astrid Lindgren book (strangely) but I think they read a lot of Pippi at nursery school. I think she is a fabulous character. I love that she is a girl that is strong and cocky but also kind.

Toys. A classic wooden Brio bell rattle for Louis. Alec had one of these but it is the one toy that we managed to lose somewhere along the way. So Louis gets a new one. He won’t be ready to play with it for a bit yet though… And for Alec a Pippi doll. He is crazy about it and has had it with him to bed since he got it.

Now I have to get on top of Alec’s 2nd birthday and Christmas. Not to mention our anniversary and my husband’s birthday…

What kind of gift policies do you have for your little ones?

Alec’s little friend Rebecka recently turned two. When we asked what she would like for her birthday, her mum told us that she likes crafting. So we decided to make Rebecka a playdough gift box.

First we made a gift box for the set.

I found fabric and wax cloth in a sweet green with white polka dots and I had some champagne ribbon left from our wedding. I used the same easy technique as I did here (to cover bins for the changing table) to cover a gift box and lid with the fabric. I attached the ribbon so that it’s easy to tie it when you close the box so it always looks like a little wrapped present.

And we cut out a big piece (about the size of a place mat) of the matching wax cloth and just rounded the corners to make a mat surface to play on.

We filled our gift box with homemade playdough (click here for our easy playdough recipe – it’s the best!), the mat, some plastic cookie cutters and molds, a little rolling pin and a butter knife (which is Alec’s tool of choice when he is “working” with playdough).

We made four colors of playdough and put them in little airtight containers. We have a great playdough recipe – it makes a soft, pliable dough in bright colors that keeps really well.

Alec was proud to hand over our homemade play doughgift set to Rebecka and we hope she has had a great time playing with it!

Halloween is coming up and I’m excited about Alec’s first real dress-up opportunity. We haven’t really done much real dress-up, besides last Halloween, but Alec definitely likes his clothes and gets a kick out of checking himself out in the mirror when he’s got something new on, so I think he might really get into dress-up.

I came across this DIY costume closet on Pinterest. Isn’t it fabulous?! What a great way to really indulge your little ones’ imagine and interest in costumes and dressing up. Fun!

This is definitely a doable DIY, using an old cupboard and wrapping paper etc. Get all the details and how-tos here.

The set we are using right now is a batch I made a few weeks ago. I had been wanting to make our own play dough for ages and got really inspired by this playdough by Hank & Hunt on Hellobee.

Making your own playdough is super easy – it literally just takes minutes. And it’s nice to know you have a natural end product. The recipe (see below) that we use makes a soft, lovely, pliable dough with fantastic colors and it keeps quite well too in a sealed container.

I highly recommend Americolor gel food colorings – we have the neon ones and the colors are fantastic. Alec especially likes his purple playdough.

Here is the recipe that we use:

DIY PLAYDOUGH

• 1 cup flour
• 1/4 cup salt
• 2 tbsp cream of tartar
• 1 cup water
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• gel food coloring

1. Mix all of your dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl.
2. Add your wet ingredients and mix well.
3. Divide into as many bowls as you have colors. We made four colors out of this recipe and actually gave away half of the playdough, so you will definitely have enough for 6-8 colors or more. Now add your food coloring. The end color will be pretty much the same as what you see now, so add as much color as you want to get really bright, saturated hues of playdough. Or use less color for soft pastels.
4. Place a small sauce pan your pan on the stove top over medium heat. Start with your lightest color (so you won’t have to clean out the sauce pan between colors). Pour the mixture into the pan and stir continuously until it starts to get chunky. Keep stirring until it forms a big dough ball. 
5. When all the wetness is gone, remove the dough from the pan and leave it to cool. Once cool, knead it a bit until it is soft and smooth.
6. Repeat for each color. I just did yellow first, then green, then blue then purple, without cleaning out the pan in between.
7. Store play dough in an airtight container at room temperature. We’ve been playing with the same batch for a few weeks now.

My husband was right. I was wrong.

Cloud dough: I had visions of Alec sitting with his hands in the bin exploring the texture of the cloud dough we made and building little sand castles. My husband said we would have cloud dough all over the flat. To be fair, it wasn’t all over the flat, only all over the kitchen, but this is definitely not a tidy little activity, at least not if you are attempting it with quite a young toddler. But it is fun.

Click past the break for how-tos and pictures of the mess!

Cloud dough is crazy easy to make: just mix eight parts regular flour with one part oil. We used olive oil which had a pleasing scent and left the “dough/sand” an inviting color. Use your hands to mix and add a little more oil or flour as necessary to get the consistency you want. It ends up being a little like wet sand, but dry somehow.

Start by gathering all your materials. We did this in the kitchen on top of a wax table cloth on the floor. We used a plastic tub that has a lid so we can store our sand for future play. Alec helped to measure out the flour and olive oil and then just got right in there.

I guess I was naive to think he would keep all the sand in the tub. He did not. But clean-up was actually quite easy. We just put Alec in a bath, all of our clothes in the wash, and vacuumed up the mess. I would recommend giving your child smaller utensils and molds etc to work with rather than bigger. Alec had some bigger stuff in the beginning but that just made the sand go flying.

We played with this for less than an hour (due to mess and dinnertime) but I think this could keep a toddler busy for a really long time.