Tag Archives: babybackpack

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Tignes To- Do List

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Before we went to Tignes I had a “To-Do List” of activities I wanted to do whilst we were there. Im pleased to report we ticked off quite a few. This could hopefully help people visiting Tignes with a baby/ children. Obviously we will need to go back to do the other activities we didn’t manage;)

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Build a snowman

Turns out building a snowman is harder than you think, although I’m sure kids manage it? So after some failed attempts with snowmen that looked like a saggy Mr Blobby, we just claimed someone else’s snowman. Way easier. Not sure why he had a tail, but Arlo seemed pretty taken with it, well eating it to be precise.

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Baby sledging

I thought Arlo would be WELL into this, adrenaline junky baby. We put SO much effort in, dragging him up the hills, and running down next to him. Then wondered why he wasn’t squealing with delight, and in fact, not even moving. I lifted his sunnies up and couldn’t believe it, he was having a sly 40 winks!! Caught red handed. Obviously sledging was waaaaay to lame for him. Next time bigger hills Mum!

Baby Snowboarding

The main reason to go to the mountains was for Arlos first training session. After all, if he’s going to make the Olympics we need to get him started!! Was difficult as he wasn’t actually walking, but we found some fun ways to include him in snowboarding (see my previous blog post). It was so lush to involve him in something that has been so special to us over the years.

https://megamum.com/2016/04/27/3-ways-to-snowboard-with-a-baby-before-they-can-walk/

Baby Swimming

The swimming pool in Tignes is pretty epic. Mainly because of the amazing view …..plus the water slide. On a Sunday and a Wednesday they heat the big pool and baby pool up so its like a hot bath. Then put lots of toys and fun things in the pool and have an hour of fun. We went twice that week, saying it was for Arlo…..but secretly I think it was a good excuse to go and soothe our aching bodies from snowboarding ( actually felt like I’d been run over by a bus).

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First Croissant

When in Rome. Ended up being the main part of Arlo’s diet for the week. Why not, WE’RE ON HOLIDAY!!!

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First Crepe

Chocolate was the obvious choice here. Safe to say Arlo was a huge fan. Pretty expensive in the mountains but well worth it for seeing the stoke levels from your baby. It gets messy.

First Tignes Cusine

The best noodles in Town. A must! Sit out on the terrace and enjoy:) Arlo was intrigued by the worm like creatures we were eating.

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Walk along lake

The lake in Tignes is beautiful. In the winter you can walk straight across the middle of it. Unless you are partial to a bit of ice diving, this is not recommended in the spring. But a walk a round the edge of the lake on the sturdy paths is just as nice.

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Visit a Snow Park (for a baby!)

We were no longer looking for rails and kickers…..now we wanted to find slides and swings. Most of the winter the childrens park is covered by snow. We hit it just the right time of year when everything was beginning to melt off. We could call this “Dry Land Baby Olympic Training”

 

Apres (avec Baby)

Waaaaay too drunk to get any photos of this…….JOKING!!! We managed to visit our friends bar (La Queue de Cochon and TCs) one afternoon. Arlo found some little mates and had fun trying his hardest to become part of their gang. Sure they had accepted the little ginger one by the end. Not sure he even realised we were doing Apres but it was nice to be in a bar again. Very very different Apres than “back in the day”.

US Snowboarding

We got 3 days on the hill, more than what we were expecting to be honest. And what a wonderful 3 days it was. You almost appreciate it a lot more when you have a baby (and have to pay for a lift pass!!!). You know your time is limited so you make the most of every second. No time for coffee breaks AND we got a powder day!!!

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Snow Angles

Falling flat on your face, getting snow wedged in your sunglasses and crying counts yeah? Not sure Arlo enjoyed ticking this one off the To-Do List.

Snow ball fight

Again no photos of this as Mum got battered. Thanks Arlo (Dad)

Show Arlo the ACTUAL spot where we first met…..

Quite cheesy and I wouldn’t expect other people visiting Tignes to go to this spot and share a moment. But for us it was nice to reminisce where we had first laid eyes on each other 11 years ago ( well I cant remember seeing Rich but he spotted me because of my baby blue hairy boots with pink trimming……HOT). Formally known as “The Red Lion’ pub, it’s now a Spar…..yes, as in The Shop. Very romantic. Arlo just wanted another Croissant.

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A massive shout out to Tignes Spririt for helping us sort everything out. See you next year:)

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3 Ways To Snowboard With A Baby Before They Can Walk!

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The countdown to your snowboard holiday is on. You’ve seen the videos on social media of the “youngest snowboarder EVER” and you have dreams of your baby being the next biggest viral sensation. But your dreams are slipping away as your baby is yet to take his/ her first steps, despite your hours of “training”.

So here are 3 tried and tested ways to have fun with your baby snowboarding before they can actually do it themselves.

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Mini Snowboard + Baby

The obvious first choice. Borrow/ rent mini snowboard equipment (mega cute, take lots of photos). Cling on to the hope that when your baby is all strapped in that they will magically be able to do it (could be easier, more exciting than walking anyway?). When you realise that actually this is never going to happen, just place the babies feet in the bindings (we actually sacked off the baby snowboard boots…..wriggly baby syndrome) and drag snowboard/ baby- attached along the snow whilst supporting them. The baby’s feet WILL pop out of the bindings without the boots, so make sure you get a photo/ evidence really quickly. If you’re feeling confident, then go- for- gold and try to stand the baby up on their own. Then, with the speed of light, run out of the shot so you can get the “Baby Snowboarding All-By-Himself” photo ( we didn’t manage this).

Baby Backpack + Baby

Choose one confident snowboarder (adult) with exceptionally good balance. Strap baby into baby backpack and onto back. Snowboard (slowly, no tricks, no backflips and certainly no big jumps) along past the camera and wave. Hey presto!! Baby LOVES it, and lets face it, you look pretty cool!!!

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Snowboarding Holding The Baby

I have done some pretty scary snowboarding in my time, but this was different. I actually felt responsible for another human life, MY little humans life!! So pick somewhere relatively flat to start, and empty of other snowboarders that could crash into you. Get a steady base and get someone to hand you the baby once you’re ready. Place baby in between legs, holding under the armpits, and off you go. DONT CATCH AN EDGE!! Also goes without saying, don’t accidentally drop the baby. More importantly, don’t get distracted if they pick that particular moment to do a massive sh*t. Concentration is key.

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Next holiday your baby will basically be doing Triple Corks, and it’s all down to you for starting them early. Good parents.

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Wearing Your Baby…….The Backpack!!!!!

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So you might have seen in my million Instagram’s (I’m really sorry about all of them) that we often use a baby backpack to get around. This not only gives Arlo his own little mode of transport (he thinks he’s in a Convertible up there), but it opens up the places you can go walking that aren’t good for prams. I wanted to be able to take Arlo on the sand/ rocks/ snow…..skateboards/ snowboards??!! EVERYWHERE!!

https://megamum.com/2016/03/09/skating-with-a-baby-level-2-very-dangerous/

Why not a sling or normal baby carrier I hear you say? Have you ever tried to carry several bowling balls on your front?? or an over excited Hyena?? Our few walks with Arlo in the sling were similar to a vigorous Army Weight Training Program.

Before Arlo was born I had a sling (ok, 3 slings), beautiful laid out, ready to use for our baby. I loved the idea of wearing my baby, having my hands free, just looking down and seeing him all nestled in my boobs!! ” They liked to be cocooned” they said, “swaddled and close to their mummy, they like to feel secure”…….oh no, not this baby. Even from the first night in hospital (when I’m sure they aren’t really supposed to do anything?), I kept wrapping him up in the blanket, but he would somehow find a way to wriggle out of it.

The older he got, the more he thrashed, and my outings in the sling would be greeted by high pitched screams and attempts at suicide by Arlo trying to dive bomb backwards out of the sling. He did not like to be contained. I got fed up of people passing me on the street and saying “oh, someones not happy??”….. And the screams are REALLY loud when the baby is attached to you!

He would eventually cry himself to sleep bless him, but it was a traumatic experience for both mother and baby!!!

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Once I tried to wrap him up in one of those material slings, but he was so wriggly it was near enough impossible. His head ended up under my armpit, his leg in my cleavage and his arm near my nose??

The only way he liked the baby carriers is if he could face outwards, I guess he felt more free that way. Curious Arlo could observe what was going on. But we got to the stage where he was so long that his legs were dangling down by my knees and not only did I look ridiculous (umpa lump) but I was finding it hard to walk. I thought people were looking at me because he was such a cute baby, but when I looked back at pics I realised these looks had been of shock/ horror because Arlo was nearly the same size as me. I decided I had lost the spring in my step and something had to be done.

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So here comes in the baby back pack!!! Life saver!! The inspiration was actually from my Dad, he used to use a baby backpack/ or just a regular backpack (!!!) to carry me around in the olden days! I think I was a similar baby to Arlo and very wriggly.

Today we use the Littlelife Adventurer Child Carrier. It says you can use it until the child is 3, but I feel Arlo will be taller than me by then so our window might be smaller? Maybe we could take it in turns to carry each other??!

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It’s great, it distributes the weight to your hips so its easier to carry a heavy baby. It has adjustable straps for when they grow, and even has a secret pocket to put all your baby bits in (I didn’t actually find this until last week) so you don’t have to carry yet ANOTHER baby bag! It also has a pull out stand so “technically” you can just stand the baby up on the ground to just chill. Maybe pop him next to the table with you? But if you are in possession of a wriggler, this is not a good idea, they WILL capsize!

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The baby has a good view point up there, I swear Arlo thinks he’s on neighbourhood watch or something. But this does distract him from trying the escape. Unfortunately the baby is now at the perfect height for vomiting on your head (is this good luck? or is that bird poo?). And of course you now have the issue of hair pulling. We found putting some little mittens on Arlo (even in the summer?) prevents bald patches.

Now he can kick his legs and fling his arms around to his hearts content. He just so free up there!!!!! However it’s difficult to keep a tab on his activities because he’s on your back. So I recommend taking a friend with you, or a mirror so you can have a look at him. Or use the selfie mode on your phone…..which means you get some good photos too!!

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I also thought there was nooooo chance he would sleep in the backpack. But he has actually been caught red handed grabbing 40 winks!! Miracles do happen!

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The baby backpack really does give you the freedom to go anywhere…….although I must admit you do look a bit silly doing the Tesco food shop or the housework. And its actually a great workout, feels like you’ve done 100 squats in the gym after carrying a large baby for 30 mins! Arlos new favourite game is to hit who ever is carrying him on the shoulder (does he think he is on a horse now??). So it’s basically like having a personal trainer on your back telling you to go faster!