Katy Hill's working mum diary

As a Blue Peter presenter Katy Hill had her fair share of adventures, but these days she faces tougher challenges - juggling full-time motherhood with a TV career. From Daybreak to day’s end, Katy and husband Trey have their hands full with a five-year-old daughter and toddler son. And there’s not a nanny in sight. This could get messy…

The countdown has begun!

By Katy Hill on 01 Dec 2011 No comments

I always know Christmas is officially on it’s way when we head to Winter Wonderland in London’s Hyde Park. SO much fun for all of us! Father Christmas, ice skating, rides, hot chocolate and mulled wine? What’s not to love! The atmosphere is amazing as it starts to get dark and the lights start twinkling. As you carry your sleepyheads home you’ll be grateful for the extra energy from those roasted chestnuts ;-)

And, as the countdown to all that I love about Christmas begins, I’m being ruthless when it comes to presents this year. My home is experiencing a Plastic Revolution! Yes - if there’s one bit of Christmas advice I could give any new parents - it’s AVOID PLASTIC!

Why?

Well, there are several considerations.

First off, on a purely AESTHETIC level, a build up of plastic in your house looks pretty ugly, let's be honest about it!

But way more important than that are the ENVIRONMENTAL implications of plastic and as parents surely we should be doing everything we can to ensure the world is left in as good as state as possible for our future generations?

One toy might feel like just a small drop in the plastic ocean, but every plastic toy generally comes with its own plastic packaging - then you have to think about the fuel used to transport the toys, the pollution from the plants making the toys - and you soon realise the ecological impact of your Christmas! Multiply that in households around the world and you see why the effect on the environment is so huge!

SAFETY is also a consideration. Many plastic toys are made with Bisphenol A which is known to cause hormone changes in children. There’s also toxic PVC and phthalates from the vinyl found in some toys can damage the liver, kidneys, lungs and reproductive system. I don’t mean to sound like Ebenezer and darken your Christmas, but I wanted to get in quick with the facts!

Wood is also more cost effective. Yes, initially wooden toys may cost more but think of how often plastic toys break and get replaced? Wooden toys are typically stronger and last longer which is a bonus, especially if you’re handing them between siblings. Take it from me - now that I’m onto child number two I SO wish that I’d gone wooden with every purchase since the very beginning.

And thinking long term - once your wooden toy reaches the end of its road with your family, you either have a lovely memory for your future generations to play with, or you can make back a greater percentage of the cost by selling the toy. You only have to look at e-bay to see how well wooden toys hold their value!

And the biggest bonus of all with going wooden? Wooden toys typically come minus the horrendous noises/lights/action of so many toys you’ll be putting together this Christmas, which encourages greater creativity in your kids and means you won't have to put up with the same horrendous noises over and over on Christmas Day.

Smiles all round for your kids and less of a headache for mummy on December 25th? Happy Days!

This week I'm loving

I’ve spent November trawling through the best of the websites offering quality wooden toys! Here are a few of my favourites:

Bigjigs Toys

www.bigjigstoys.com

www.woodentoyshop.co.uk/Bigjigs-Toys

This site really does have everything on offer and super fast delivery!

Supermarket Trolley - £45.95

Wooden Food - £16.99

This is so lovely and solid, and heavy enough that it doesn’t fall over when filled with shopping, so won’t drive them, or you crazy! Kaya’s getting a shop for Christmas and loving practicing with this. The food is really useful for teaching Akira food names / colours etc.

Bigjigs City Auto Centre Car Garage - £60.75

There are so many elements to this garage that Akira loves! The lift, ramp and car wash totally do it for him, and the mechanisms all work smoothly enough for him to operate by himself, with his little 2 year old hands! Hours of fun!

Bigjigs Cash Register with Calculator - £22.49

Bigjigs Food Scales - £18.91

The perfect addition to any shop. Kaya loves that the needle moves on the scales, and the till has a 'grown up' calculator which she’s very proud of!

Aspace

http://www.aspace.co.uk

http://www.aspace.co.uk/gift

I recently discovered this company and love it! There are shops, one of which is in my local Marlow, and online too - happy days! The company were a pleasure to deal with.

The Farmyard - £35

Akira loves this farm! The quality is amazing, and the farm set (sold separately) comes with a 'mummy cow' and 'baby cow' which totally does it for him! He spends forever putting them into the farm, out of the farm... into the tractor...

Farmers Tractor - £25

This has been a huge hit with its detachable trailer and farmer. Akira is fascinated by it, and has the noises perfected!

Honeybake Breakfast Set - £50

This is equally adored by Kaya and Akira. 'Dippy eggs' (egg and soldiers) is their favourite meal ever, so to be able to make it for each other has been a big hit!

Great Little Trading Company

www.gltc.co.uk

The most adorable website, with great traditional toys for your kids. You can lose yourself online for hours!

Honeybake Tea Set - £24

I got Kaya this Honeybake Tea Set which is just gorgeous. The quality is amazing, and it’s a lovely addition to the playroom! Children of every age that come over the seem to love making me cups of tea! The tea bag in the pot is a great idea. The website was really easy to navigate and had some amazing bits. Definitely one I’ll be re-visiting!

Hippychick

www.hippychick.com

Moover Baby Truck - £49.95

From one of my favourite websites, Akira love this! It’s danish made from wood sourced in sustainable plantations and has that really classic feel. It has simple building parts kids can easily manage, and so build themselves! The crane part moves, and Akira can ride on it too! And I love the rubber tyres to protect my wooden floors ;-)