NOTE: THE FOLLOWING IS A PAID REVIEW.

Baby names; could there be a more divisive topic between parents? Mum like Sebastian, Dad likes Trevor. Mum likes Gabriel, Dad likes Brian. Will they ever come together and decide upon a decent name that they both like?

The discussions that Mrs C and I’ve had about the name of our child reminds me of the episode of Friends (“The one where Chandler has a bath” to be precise) in which Ross and Rachel are arguing about the name of their unborn baby:

Ross: Fine, you go.
Rachel: Okay, James.
Ross: Huh.
Rachel: But only if it’s a girl.
Ross: Oh, veto. How about—Ooh, I like Ruth! What about Ruth?
Rachel: Oh! I’m sorry! Are we having an 89-year-old? How about Dayton?
Ross: Veto. Stewart?
Rachel: Veto. Sawyer?
Ross: Veto. Helen?
Rachel: Veto.
Phoebe: Is it me, or is “Veto” starting to sound really good?

We didn’t fancy “Veto” (or the whole veto process) so Mrs C and I set this test for any baby names that we might finally pick:

“If when you shout the name out across the school playground it sounds like you are calling a dog, the names off the table.”

This has of course reduced the number of middle-class aspirational names that we might like to pick from down to zero. So we could really have done with a tool like BabyNames1000.com when we were coming up with our final names. It allows you to see the trends for a name for both boys and girls names as well as letting you see the most popular names of (pretty much) any give year.

I’ve checked the names that Mrs C and I have picked for our son and one isn’t so popular, the other slightly more so. I will, of course, let you know what those names are in the very near future.

NOTE: THE FOLLOWING IS A PAID REVIEW.

One of the things that never fails to amaze me as I navigate the minefield of expectant fathering is the amount of things that a baby needs on a day to day basis. If it’s not baby-grows it’s baby wipes. If it’s not baby food then its nappies. With all this baby gear, moving your baby from your house to say, the house next door is such a massive task that it would even have the planners at the MOD stumped as to how best organise it. With so much stuff you need some pretty good kit to transport it around in.

Another challenge for us young hip, down with the kids and generally happening parents is where to get quality baby gear that is neither too expensive nor is owned by every other parent down at the baby and toddler group.

Fortunately, this is where Hazel and Melvin come in. They make afford, fashionable and high-quality handmade baby products. As their products are handmade not every mum under the sun is going to have one but they’re still don’t cost the Earth to buy.

Their range of Handmade Diaper Bags is particularly fetching all of which feature large, roomy main compartment, with multiple interior pockets; internal clips for keys; and turnlock closures on external flap. Go check them out!

NOTE: THE FOLLOWING IS A PAID REVIEW:

When i was a child I was a big fan of the He-Man cartoons (probably one of the reasons I’ve turned out so muscular) and as such I always wanted new He-Man toys, books, clothes. It wasn’t until many years later watching Father Ted on TV that I realised I missed out on an entire range of products that I could have forced my Mum and Dad to buy me. I’m talking about Dougal’s He-Man duvet cover. I can only imagine that it would have been like sleeping in the bed at Castle Greyskull. Happy times.

I’m certain that I was like every child. I had a favourite cartoon and wanted all the stuff I could get my hands on that had a picture of it on. They just never seem to have much more than the occasional toy in the local department store.

Fortunately for the modern child there’s a better way to get their hands on their favourite cartoon character, courtesy of withcharacter.com. They sell baby gear that’s branded with a number of different cartoon characters, so whatever your kid likes there’s something for them (I’m particular taken by the Patrick Cuddle Pillow!).

If you want to kit out your babies room in a stylish fashion they also sell a really nice range of MiGi bedding. The green and blue fish patterns, stripes, polka dots and argyles create a tasteful and timeless style for your baby’s nursery.