A baby’s first Christmas is a really special time of celebration, enjoyment and magic for the whole family; although it does have the potential to be a stressful time as well, as all of you attempt to balance the festivities with the baby’s routine.

We do remember our little ones’ first Christmas, so we thought we’d share our top tips for a super festive and happy all round baby’s first Christmas!

• Christmas is often all about seeing friends and family, especially those you might not see so often, but for your first Christmas with baby don’t overstretch yourself. Make plenty of time for your little family unit to relax so you don’t tire out baby, or yourself.
• Baby is sure to get loads of presents, so don’t be afraid to ask for practical ones if well-wishers ask what you’d like. Asking for clothes or toys that baby can grow into means that they are sure to get plenty of wear before he grows out of it; there’s only so many times he can wear different variations on a Christmas pudding outfit!
• And of course, be sure to mention that you’d prefer ethical Christmas presents for baby, such as fair trade and organic cotton clothes and toys. Babi Pur has a huge range of ethical toys, blankets, clothes and accessories that mum and baby will love.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help from family and friends if it all gets too much – they’ll be more than happy to help you out if they can.
• Buy a few small keepsakes, like a special bauble, decoration or stocking; you’ll be able to bring it out year after year and reminisce with your child as they get older.
• Don’t forget to take LOADS of pictures of your baby’s first Christmas. In our digital age, you can never really have too many and they will make a lovely keep-sake for your child as he gets older. You could even have them made into an inexpensive photo book later on.
• Use one of the nicest pictures to print out and make into personalised “thank-you” cards for all of your baby’s Christmas presents.
• And lastly, have lots of fun! Don’t worry about the little things; just relax and enjoy your first Christmas with your beautiful new baby.

What special things did you do to celebrate your baby’s first Christmas? We’d love to hear from you, so share your tips in the comments box below!

All images have been supplied by our lovely customers.. here's some more...

Happy first Christmas!

Woke up this morning to find snow in the mountains - yipee!

Today its sleeting and freezing cold, so I'm hoping  we might get some snow in the village over the next few days.  I've been desperate for snow this year because a month or so ago I became the proud owner of a stunning Davos toboggan/snow sledge.

Hand made in Germany these  must be the ultimate in sledging chic (much better than a bin bag/estate agent board anyway, not that I have used either of course)!  These beauties are built to last,  an item to cherish for years and enjoy with your children,  and hopefully grandchildren too.  Plus the metal runners underneath make it look  like it's going to  go really really fast!

I loved all the snow last year and would like to see it repeated, it somehow added to the festive spirit.  I'll never forget how, after being snowed in for over a week, OH and i put in a superhuman effort to dig out the car so that DW could keep his appointment to meet santa for the first time. I'll also never forget the novelty of sledging down to the shop, and really hope we get to repeat  that this year on our super fast new sledge.

If it doesnt snow, i do have a plan b . Santa may well find himself leaving a sledge behind, piled high with pressies for my beautiful boys.

Any sign of snow near you yet, and do you love it or loathe it?xxxxx

What to do with all those boxes you end up with at Christmas?

Get creative and make some funky stuff with Makedo!

Makedo is a series of strong clips and hinges which allow you to create things from the stuff around you.  A perfect Christmas stocking filler that will encourage children's creativity and building skills.  The clever "re-clips" and hinges are specifically designed to hold cardboard and other materials together securely while, unlike glue and tape, being re-usable.  There's a number of packs which include stickers to decorate your creations and they vary in size from smaller flowers up to big playhouses.

All packing and stickers are printed on 100% recycled paper

Shop for Makedo at Babipur here

I’ve been banging on about cloth nappies for a while now, but I’ve decided to temporarily abandon my cloth trials in favour of something a bit more festive.

Like Jo & Co at Babi Pur, I’ve been trying to green up my Christmas over the past few years, mainly by getting crafty. Over the next few weeks, I thought I’d share my makes with you, and as its the 1st December where better to start than our advent calender.

Last year DW was old enough for an advent calender for the first time, but I didn’t like the idea of the commercially made chocolate ones. Firstly because I didn’t like the idea of him starting every day with chocolate, and secondly, because I didn’t like them being disposable. This wasn’t just about waste. More to do with the fact that I wanted o establish some form of special family tradition, and create an heirloom that DW could keep and remind him of his childhood.

So I set about making this:

Last night we fished it out of its box and hung it over the fireplace. By this morning Santa's little helpers had been along and filled the stockings with all sorts of treats! I’m told that there are all sorts of goodies in the stockings - little parcels filled with little toys and crafty bits, tickets to go see the local panto, and even invites to go and meet santa!

Hopefully, the socks will provide us with lots of lovely festive activities, as well as create some special lasting memories for my little man.

I pretty much made it up as I went along, but in case you want to have a go at making your own here’s a brief outline of how I went about it. They are easy to make, although time consuming, and could be made with all sorts of fabrics and customised with sequins, buttons or anything else your heart may desire!

1. Make a sock shaped template from a bit of cardboard (I usually use cereal boxes for this).
2. Cut out 48 stockings.
3. Pin, then sew the stockings together, remembering to include some form of tab for hanging.
4. Work out what numbers you need, cut them out and then sew them onto the stockings (this is the really time consuming bit, you may want to use stencils or shop bought numbers). Blanket stitch around the top of the stockings.
5. Get a length of nice braid and position your stockings, pinning them in place, adjusting them to make sure they look right, then sewing them on.
6. Tie a loop in either end of the braid, and hang up!

If you’ve made your own advent calenders/stockings, please post some pics. I’d love to see what you are doing, and maybe pinch some ideas for NW’s calender next year!