Fun mandala colour in

Mandala means circle in Indian Sanskrit. Colouring in a mandala is a great way to spend time focusing on a positive shape, like a circle, creating a medative state while you take the time to completely cover the mandala's surface.
After it is finished, it looks fantastic as a framed work of art or turned into something functional.... like a laminated place mat or wrapping paper!
Print an extra one out for you to do while your child is doing theirs, it will create a bit of 'time away' from everyday things.

I will be designing more mandalas for you to do. Please let me know any themes you would like to see, so I have an idea for a design.

We will be displaying finished mandalas on our Facebook page. Please up-load your own or email them in to me and I will pop them up for you. Include name and age for each picture and any thoughts about your piece.

Welcome to our own brand: bpab

It's official, beyond pink and blue has it's own in-house label, smartly going by the name of bpab.
I know I don't have to explain what these letters stand for, because if you are a fan of beyond pink and blue, you're a clever cookie!
So far the only goodies we have in store under bpab, are our fabulous lucky dips. These are very popular for parties, surprises and rewards. They come in $2 and $5 value AND you can select which age group and gender the dip is for. Hooray!

I will be completing some more 'colourful fun stuff' this month to add to bpab. Will keep you up to date as things happen. If you want a sneak peek at something in the pipe lines.... checkout the new issue of My Child magazine, on the Style Collective 'buy independent' page. Hehehehe x

Time to make some music!

Get into the rhythm with these cool wooden instruments, just added to our music section at bpab. There are 4 colours to choose from, so you can mix or match! Chicka-boom!
If there is a musical instrument you'd love to see in the shop, let us know here.
What is your child getting into?
We have lots of 'proper' instruments in Mat's studio, so the girls have a good time trying them out. Chai is drawn to the violin and La loves the electronic drums (she's a human beat box actually!). I wonder what they will want to learn when they are older?

Welcome Smallprints + giveaway!

Designed and made in Australia, these awesome, colourful (well if you put them altogether!), but most importantly stylish party invitations are by Smallprints.
Designed by Sydney mum and Art Director Alex McCarthy, Smallprints offers modern invites for young ones and older kids (like 'Rock On' above).
We'll be stocking the boxed range, which include 10 postcard style invites and 10 matching colour envelopes. 6 designs to um and arr over. $24.95 a set.
We have 2 set of invites to giveaway! Yippee!
All you need to do is:
1. Visit the Smallprints range at beyond pink and blue and choose your favourite style.
2. Pop back to the rainbow blog or our Facebook fan page and leave a comment under this post/note stating your fave.
3. You must be a fan of either blog or fb page (or both!) to enter and it would be super awesome if you 'shared' this giveaway with your friends and family BECAUSE the name I read the most via other people joining in on this giveaway WINS the first set! (So tell them to write your name along with their comments.)
The second set will be drawn randomly (so entrants who are lazy or without friends get a chance too... hehehe).
Giveaway will open right now and closes on 28th Feb. 2010. Then I'll work my magic!
A good excuse to start planning a party! Good luck.

A rainbow stack!

Original photo by I Am Mommy

For a special occasion or to cheer someone up!
Remember there are natural food dyes out there for you to use..... here's a set you can purchase in Australia on line by Hopper Smart Snacks at Healthy Kids.
Or make your own from food around the kitchen....... here's a list of natural food colouring alternatives over at Snippets of Life. The colours won't be as vibrant as the commercial variety, but probably a cheaper, fun option!

Djeco Flight of Fancy mobile

Spent a few loooonng minutes today trying to re-assemble our own mobile, which we took down from the dining room light to make way for a party recently. I proceeded to do this without looking at the set up diagram that comes with the mobile. It was not working, as it requires mathematics to calculate the ratio of balance with air (and sticky fingers from children who shouldn't be touching it while mummy is trying to put HER mobile together)!
Of course, because I'm not a scientist, the mobile kept swaying on an up right angle.... not at all balanced like it should. So I found the instructions and promptly assembled the bird mobile rather quickly and it now sways majestically in little La's room. Hooray!
You can attempt to show me up, if you like. The mobile spans 80cm, so you'll need a large flat surface to assemble it.
Djeco Flight of Fancy mobile $44.00

Theme Shopping: Trees

1. Christening tree invitations by Poppies For Grace $24.50
2. African trees by The Cheekeyes $19.00
3. Owl onesie by Monstar Kids $29.00
4. Leaf swing by Kaper Kids $26.95 (leaves come from trees, don't they?)
5. Tree notebook by Poppies For Grace $9.00
6. Tree wall art by Look At The Wall $99.00 (Made on wood too!)
7. Princess stickers by Djeco $4.95 (There are some cute tree stickers in this pack of 160 stickers)
8. My family tree poster by Red Bunyip $19.95 (Insert photos of your family to complete your tree.)
9. Early stART stencil set by Micador $12.00 (One of the 5 stencils shown here)

February news..... we've had a miracle!

February news..... we've had a miracle!

Posted using ShareThis

Facebook - we're back!

bpab is back on facebook, so if you are not a fan as yet, please show your support for a colourful childhood and click on the button above.

Things to do on our facebook page:
Leave comments about what's posted on our wall and if you are lost for words, you can always 'like' it... sometimes that's more than enough for me!
By all means, please write about bpab on our wall (you may have had a pleasant experience, or in love with a particular product or brand we stock.... I don't know...)
Up load your own photos of our products in use.
Comment on and 'like' photos (slowly making colour albums of our products)
Write a review or start a discussion.... ask me a question, request a brand or product.... I'd love to know what you think and want from bpab.
We will have giveaways time to time too! (Just had one for reaching 101 fans... sorry you missed out. There will be more. Promise.)

There is also a 'suggest to friends' link on the left hand side under our profile pic on our fb page.... please share bpab with your friends and family too.

Hope to see you there soon, oh and you may as well say hello!

First day at Kinda today!

Chai had her very first day of being anywhere structured, supposedly without parents and siblings..... 4 year old kindergarten!
I say supposedly, because she wouldn't let me leave her there.
That was okay, I had planned to possibly be hanging around as Chai had expressed concern about me not being there with her.
So I hung out, scared a couple of shy kids, made small talk with a few others, re-molded smashed play dough, cut up fruit, swept up sand around the sand pit..... all while quietly observing the goings on and conversations of the little folk.

I left Chai to experience her new surroundings on her own, only encouraging Chai (if she approached me) when she felt lost or confused. As she had not been in this situation before, she had a few of these moments. I'd direct her to her teachers or another activity and then she'd be right. By the end I could hear her voice amongst others and one of my happy thoughts were 'here comes the chatter box' and knew she was settling in. Chai even found a kindred spirit, another girl who also had plaits in her hair and wearing a similar necklace as herself.

On our way home, Chai told me how much she loves kinda. We had a little chat about how the other mummy and daddy's came back to get their children and maybe I could do that. Plus, they need to have a turn cutting up the fruit as well. She though it would be a good idea too and decided that next time she goes to kinda, I could come back and pick her up at the end.
So that's tomorrow!

Another milestone down......