Head Over Heels Appeal - For the children and families of flood affected Queensland

Inspired by a story on the Today Show this morning of a family of six children whose new school shoes were lost in the floods in Queensland, the Head over Heels Appeal was born. Most families get their children new school shoes at the start of the school year and I sent out an appeal for my group of school mums to see if they had their children's old school shoes available to be donated to this family and also to others in this particular town that was in the Today Show story. I went on to include school supplies in my appeal so that the kids would have new supplies to start the year. I also emailed our school principal, the Today Show, rang in some favours from some local newspaper contacts and sent out a few tweets to the lovely reporter who broke the story and what started as a little appeal for shoes has grown to include clothing, toys, manchester and first aid equipment, all of which my friends and their friends have so far offered up for donation. My husband and his mate had planned on taking an overnight road trip in his ute and trailer direct to this town so that the goods went straight to the family mentioned in the story and I am now looking at some bus options as the response has been overwhelming.
I am blown away by the generosity of my friends and their friends and I hope that we can now get alot more things to take to put smiles on the faces of these families again. The plan is to wait until the first week of February to head up north, as we would like to allow time for more donations to come in and also to give the families some space to clean up first, as this is their number one priority. If you live in Sydney, Australia, and would like to donate some old school shoes or school supplies, please email me for details : )

Billy Cart Markets - this weekend in Sydney's Northern Beaches

For those of you that live in Sydney, I have come across a gorgeous market - specialising in handmade children's goods - that is on this weekend. This Sunday, 26th June from 9am - 3pm, why not checkout Billy Cart Markets, situated in the Lakes Parish Hall, 21 Lagoon Street, Narrabeen. The handmade retailers that will be on hand have some beautiful wears and you can even go to their blog to get a more detailed look at what's on offer. The lovely part about this market, which caught my attention, was that the $2 entry fee goes to the Starlight Children's Foundation Australia. I have a pretty busy day but am hoping to go down and check it out for myself!

Support OmniPeace with these terrific tees

As featured on Celebrity Baby Blog, OmniPeace has launched a children's tshirt line, with proceeds going to their charitable foundation supporting human rights in Africa. The tshirts by joah love say "when I grow up...I want to make a difference". Available in a variety of colours, why not support a worthy cause that helps teach your children about compassion and giving to those less fortunate than us

65 Roses Day - Cystic Fibrosis

Today is 65 Roses Day - a day of national awareness for the debilitating condition cystic fibrosis. This cause is close to my heart as I had a friend pass away from this genetic condition 15 years ago. Due to advancements in medical technology, the life expectancy for a person with CF is now in the mid thirties, however my friend made it to her late thirties, which at the time was amazing, along with the fact that she also gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, which was such a wonderful miracle back then as well. The lovely story behind the name "65 Roses" is that of a little boy who had a sister with CF and could not pronounce her condition properly, instead telling people his sister had "65 Roses". For more information on how you can help or make a donation, go to the website: www.65rosesday.org.au

Mother's Day Classic - Sunday, 10th May

According to statistics, breast cancer occurs in one in nine Australian women. To help the National Breast Cancer Foundation with their research, why not spend a day with the family on Sunday 10th May, Mother's Day, and join the Mother's Day Classic - Walk or Run for Breast Cancer Research. For more information, check out the website here

Make every day a Smile Day! 1st April brought to you by the Clown Doctors & Humour Foundation

Wednesday 1st April is Smile Day!
Brought to you by the Humour Foundation - creators of the Clown Doctors - please give generously to this wonderful programme that helps put smiles on the faces of sick children in hospitals throughout Australia. The Clown Doctors "dispense doses of fun & laughter" and help the children in our major hospitals take their minds of their illness and their extended stays in hospital. A great organisation and a great initiative - don't forget to spread the joy tomorrow and SMILE.
As my Nonna used to say: "if you see someone without a smile, cheer them up by giving them yours" x x x

Bandaged Bear Day - Friday 27th March

Today is Bandaged Bear Day - raising funds for the Children's Hospital at Westmead in Sydney, Australia. Donations received from the sale of the cute Bandaged Bear merchandise helps to fund research into childhood illness, the purchase of high-tech equipment and the provision of extra services for sick or injured children and their families. Having Gigi admitted here with an illness at 4 months old, I can't express enough how great a facility this hospital is. Also, a few years ago, before I had my two princesses, I volunteered at Radio Bedrock, which is the kids radio station and adjoining games room, situated in the Children's Hospital at Westmead. It provided the sick children with an outlet to go and dance, play games, draw and generally just forget, if for only a little while, their pain and the reason why they were there. One little girl with cystic fibrosis looked forward to just having her nails painted every week. I must say, it was one of the most rewarding things I have done in my life, the children there are an inspiration to us all and the staff who care for them are amazing. This is a wonderful cause so please dig deep today to support this fantastic hospital

Dannielynn Birkhead back in the news AGAIN - but this time for all the right reasons and a wonderful cause..

Larry Birkhead is at it again..and no, I don't mean fighting over his gorgeous little girl with Howard E Stern. He is once again auctioning off his daughter Dannilynn's baby clothing and accessories, on ebay, with all proceeds going to US charity, Camp Kindle. You may remember my post back in November when Larry first made this generous gesture to help improve the quality of life for the children infected or affected by HIV / AIDS, which is the main purpose of the fund raising by Camp Kindle. Once again, Larry has stepped up and shown that, like him or loathe him for all the publicity he has generated around his and the late Anna Nicole Smith's beautiful little girl, he appears to be a stand up guy, and from all accounts, a great father to his little princess
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Victorian Bushfire Appeal - Australian Red Cross

I cannot let the recent bushfire tragedy in country Victoria, Australia, go without mention, despite my blog being far from related to the horrific events of the past week down there. Whilst I am blogging about material things for your little princess, some families have lost everything, including their lives and I appeal to anyone who has the means, please give generously to the Australian Red Cross Victorian Bushfire Appeal. We hear in the news stories of children wearing the same set of clothes for a few days, sleeping in cars because their family has lost their home and sadly, some children have been orphaned as their parents lost their lives battling to save their properties. It is both the worst natural disaster in Australian history and some would argue one of the worst acts of terrorism you can imagine as it has been revealed that arsonists were responsible for some of the deliberately lit fires. I cannot comprehend how someone could do something so cruel & heinous, but then no one would ever had thought anyone would deliberately fly a passenger plane into a 110 storey city building either. It is sometimes a sad world that we live in but we can get comfort from some of the miracle stories that are emerging out of the tragedy and even if you can spare just $20, that would pay for a packet of nappies for a baby or even a tin of baby formula. Australians are tough cookies, and we will get through this but please, if you can spare a few bucks, please go to www.redcross.org.au and make a donation

Christmas Little Red Dress #22 - Oobi Baby Vintage Corsage Fireworks

Our family loves Oobi Baby - as I have mentioned in an earlier post, we have several little dresses in our princess wardrobes. This is one of my faves - the Vintage Corsage A-Line Pinafore Dress in Firework print. You can remove the rosette and pin it on a cute white t-shirt or leave it on this dress, Carrie Bradshaw style. Either way, this little number is the perfect opening-up-presents-on-Christmas Day dress. Oobi Baby is an Australian company and proceeds from the sales of their garments go to the Wurli Wurlinjang Health Service which assists Aboriginal women and children in remote communities. They also support the Malawi Project which is a Youth Centre for Orphans of HIV, World Vision and WSPA. You can get this delightful dress from online baby boutique - Kid's Got Style
Source: Photos & logo courtesy of the Oobi Baby website

National Adoption Awareness Week - Nov 17-23

This week is National Adoption Awareness Week - a time to create the opportunity for all families affected by adoption to get together and communicate their experiences. There are hundreds of millions of children around the world in need of a loving home, just as there are countless loving homes missing the sound of a child's laughter. National Adoption Awareness Week assists in creating the opportunity to satisfy both needs and in doing so, giving a greater understanding of the adoption processes around the world. Actress Deborra Lee Furness, wife of superstar Hugh Jackman, themselves parents to two adopted children, spoke of the frustration about the time it takes for the process of adoption, particularly in Australia - in some cases several years - as she and Hugh attended the launch of the initiative in Sydney this week. Added to this, adoption laws have stood unchanged in Australia since 1964, and she expressed the need for new provisions and international cooperation to ensure that these children can be placed in loving homes more quickly and readily. For more information, please follow the link

We HEART Family Fun Day!

As I have done in the past, today I have attended an event that I have recommended in my blog, with the intention of giving my feedback on my experience there. What can I say - today we have had an absolute ball! The last time we really flew by the seat of our pants and had a fun, no stress day was probably when we went on holidays in March. Needless to say, it was well overdue. We started the day at Matilda's Market - a fantastic market of handmade wares from several talented local designers & artists. I met many new contacts, several of which I will be blogging about in the near future, and at the same time, caught up with Melissa of 4 Little Ducks, who I have recently raved about, and saw her new summer & Christmas ranges of kids wear. Wait till you see Gigi & Lulu in their new 4 Little Ducks Tees. We then moved on to the Touched by Olivia charity Family Fun Day. This was a great event, with lots of families enjoying the market stalls, amusement rides, face painting, celebrity appearances, pony rides and much much more. Gigi even got to have her first pony ride - and she loved it! After a turn with Daddy in the teacups ride, we even put Lulu in the swing ride, next to Gigi, and she was beside herself - she laughed the whole time she was on there. Besides the ladies toilets at one end of the park being out of order (a council issue, not the event organisers), we had such a lovely family day. The delight in your children's faces when they get a simple balloon just melts your heart, let alone squeals of delight when they see Dorothy the Dinosaur. To top it all off, we passed an awesome Christmas shop on the way home so Daddy stocked up on more Christmas lights. Did somebody say Griswalds?

Today is McHappy Day!

Today is McHappy Day! When you buy a Big Mac from any McDonalds, $1 from the sale of every Big Mac today will go directly to helping seriously ill children and their families. Plus, you never know who might serve you on the drive-through window as many celebrities offer their time on McHappy Day. Dig deep
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Buy the clothes off Dannielynn's back for a good cause

If you are a fan of Anna Nicole Smith and want to purchase some of her beautiful daughter Dannilynn Birkhead's clothing and accessories, baby daddy Larry Birkhead is auctioning them off on ebay, with all proceeds going to US charity, Camp Kindle. The mission of Camp Kindle is to improve the quality of life for children infected or affected by HIV / AIDS. Some of the items are brand new, others pre-loved. Some you may recognise, others just a cute collection of baby girls clothing and accessories. Unfortunately they do not ship outside the US but thought I would post about it anyway as it is a nice thing for Larry Birkhead to do, in his daughter's name, in memory of her late mother

Touched By Olivia - Sunday November 16 - Drummoyne, Sydney - Family Fun Fair 08

A friend of mine introduced me to Touched by Olivia - a foundation formed by the parents of little Olivia Perkins who tragically passed away at just 8 months old from a rare illness. Olivia's legacy provides financial assistance in many areas involving children and you can find out more about this wonderful charity through their website. This Sunday, November 16 in Sydney, the Touched by Olivia foundation is hosting the Family Fun Fair 08, which features a free Dorothy the Dinosaur show, a free Jay Laga'aia (from Play School) Show, a Live Walkabout Reptile Show, amusement rides, market stalls, face painting and special appearances from players from the Balmain Tigers and Sydney FC Soccer Team. If you are looking for something fun to do with the family on Sunday, come out and support the Touched by Olivia foundation

CanTeen - National Bandanna Day - October 31

CanTeen is the Australian national support organization for young people, 12-24 years of age, who are living with cancer. It is a wonderful charity giving so much encouragement and support to young people who are already dealing with the pressures of just being a teenager, let alone the diagnosis of cancer, both personally or that of a close family member. Today is National Bandanna Day - a day where you can show your support for this fantastic organization by purchasing a signature bandanna. Click here to see where you can purchase a CanTeen bandanna - which can be worn any way you like - see the picture above for some alternative ways to wear a bandanna. There is a beautiful section on the CanTeen website called Inspirational Stuff where you will find some moving poems written by some of CanTeen's young people (click through to the Creative Corner section). Please buy yourself a bandanna today to support this inspirational charity

Pink Ribbon Day for Breast Cancer Foundation

October is Breast Cancer Month and Monday 27th October is Pink Ribbon Day, signature day of the National Breast Cancer Foundation. A day to raise funds for the ongoing research into a cure for breast cancer, along with the celebration of the wonderful achievements to date in this quest. You can contribute in many ways including participating in the Dove Pink Star Walk on Saturday 25th October, hosting a Pink Ribbon Breakfast or simply buy an actual pink ribbon or related merchandise from participating retailers. The statistics state that one in eight Australian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer before the age of 85. When you speak to your friends, you will usually always find that they will have known or know someone who has had breast cancer, myself included, so this is a wonderful charity to support.

National Babies Day - Friday, October 17

The Bonnie Babes Foundation presents National Babies Day this Friday, October 17. Make sure you head in to your local Target store to purchase some of the National Babies Day merchandise, with all proceeds going towards the purchase of medical equipment for special wards for premmy babies nationwide. The Bonnie Babes Foundation is a wonderful organisation which provides counseling for families who have a lost a child to stillbirth, miscarriage or prematurity. This charity is particularly close to my heart as it assisted my cousin in coping with the loss of her stillborn baby girl. If you or someone you know would like to contact the organisation, please go to their website for details

Three Little Trees

I love it when I come across a label that is both beautiful & charitable at the same time. Then to find one that combines my favourite flower in the world - the frangipani - well, now you really have my attention. Three Little Trees have a lovely range of baby & toddler wear but the wonderful part about them is their little gift with purchase - "native frangipani" tree seeds attached to each garment to encourage your little cherubs to plant them and nurture them, which gives children a great appreciation of nature in the process. Added to this, Three Little Trees donates a portion of their sales to Bush Heritage Australia, a fantastic charity which seeks to protect native plants and animals in their natural habitat.

The Teddy Bears Picnic - Oct 19 - Rosehill Gardens

If you are looking for a fun day out with the kids in Sydney, support the Children's Hospital at Westmead on October 19 by heading to Rosehill Gardens for the annual Teddy Bear's Picnic. Tickets are only $15 or $50 for a family of 4 (some transaction fees may apply) and are available through Ticketmaster. There will be so many great things to see and do from fun rides, face painting, jumping castles, art tables and a free concert by some of the kids favourite characters, including the Saturday Disney team. There will be a host of celebrities there signing autographs and lots of merchandise & showbags for the kids. A few years ago I volunteered for a little while at Radio Bedrock, which is the kids radio station in the Children's Hospital at Westmead and my time there was very rewarding. It was the first time I had seen what goes on behind the scenes in helping our sick children. Years later I had first hand experience at the hospital when Gigi was hospitalised there as a baby and it makes you realise how lucky we are to have such great medical facilities available to us. All the staff at the Children's Hospital do such a wonderful job so if you have nothing planned on that date, take the kids out for the day, all the while supporting this fantastic place.