Britney's Carseat - Correction!

*Correction* We goofed!

Britney and son Sean returned to LA on Sunday by private plane. We didn't get to see the baby but we did get a tiny glimpse of his hip carseat. Even though it's covered by a blanket, it appears to be a Combi Connection Carseat in Carolina Sky. Thanks to all the people who helped me to realise my mistake. Check out the picture for yourself at UBritney.com

Get your own Combi seat at Albee's.

New From Coach - Baby!

Purse maker and shoe guru Coach has come out with a new baby line for winter. Shoes, a pom pom hat, cashmere blanket, some frames and albums, and a couple of cute bears are all part of the new collection, aimed at fashionista moms. The above is the Optic Signature Shearling Slipper, which comes in both pink and blue. Great for the little ones who already know style and want to look like their mommy's purse.

Insulating Totes

Insulating totes are not an easy thing to find. So let's start there. One of the hardest baby products to locate and then find a good one, is the baby bottle and food tote that provides a way to keep things cool for hours in a diaper bag. Once you find one, does it have enough space? Does it keep things cool for a long time? How big is it? And then of course, how totally ugly is it and how badly does it clash with the diaper bag. Sparkability just got these in. The Built NY On-the-Go Kit is a collection of insulating baby totes and bibs. The Thirsty Tote (left) is made for bottles, sippy cups, and juice boxes. The matching Strolling Tote (middle)is made for diapers, travel wipes, and any other little thing you need to keep handy. The Tidy Bib (right) comes with a pocket to catch messes and of course, matches the collection. All of this is also made with a machine-washable material that soaks up spills.

Very nifty little gadget for modern babies. Comes in blue or pink.

New Fleurville Bag

What does this remind you of? Fleurville's Luxe Leather Diaper Bag is new for the winter time and resembles something more like a Gucci purse than a baby bag. The bag is made of water-proofed pebble grain leather on the outside and has a fully water-proof, seam sealed interior. So unlike a true Gucci, this one won't get ruined by a tipped over bottled or baby drool. It also comes with a bottle holder, a changing pad, and a wipe case all inside. Not only fashionable I see, but fuctional too! At Bare Babies.

Opinion: Why there should be more Buy Buy Babys

First off, I know it's spelled "babies". But, it's the name of the store and it was one of those tough calls so I am going with "Babys". English majors beware.

Now, onto my point. Buy Buy Baby is like one of the best baby stores around for gear and such. One of the best I have ever been into and I truly mean that. I like it a ton more than Babies R Us, USA Baby, and the rest. But sadly, there are only eight of them total on our lovely planet. Eight!? And the majority are up north in New York and New Jersey, with one in Maryland and one in Virginia as well. Why so few? It's a great store and offers products that are middle of the line all the way up to top of the line. Which is nice because not everybody mines paying a little more for a stroller or carseat that will last an entire year. So in closing, I am asking people who go on vacation to the spots where there is a Buy Buy to check them out. Give them your zip code when you buy something. Because together, we can change the baby world. One top notch store at a time.

Julia's Baby Entertainer

Actress Julia Roberts appears in this month's Vitals Woman Magazine with her twins and a look inside her home. While Julia holds daughter Hazel, son Phin shows us how well he likes his Baby Einstein Activity Center. The not-a-walker is rated very highly by parents and babies alike, according to Babies R Us's website where you can pick one up for yourself. The article itself is pretty interesting, but mostly deals with Julia talking about her life since having the babies.

Also pictured on another page in the article is a Baby and Me Float by Aqua Leisure, also available at Babies R Us. Check out the whole Julia article online at About Julia.

The Cameleon - A Review

I got to see the Bugaboo Cameleon up close and personal while I was in New York these past few days. I had been looking forward to seeing it since it first came to the USA a few months ago and I was pretty sure New York would have a ton of them. Sure enough, they did. At Buy Buy Baby, they had the Gecko, Cameleon, and still the Frog displayed at the bottom of the stairs on the first floor. The Cameleon is beautiful and I thought actually thinner than the Frog. The colors are great and the new fleece felt fabulous. I liked the new handle bar as well. Everything about the stroller was an improvement from the Frog.

I was also very impressed by the Gecko. I didn't think much of this stroller when I saw it online but up close it is awesome. You can get both online now at Babystyle.

Home from my trip

I just returned home from my trip to NYC last night. I spent four days there and visited nearly every children's store in the Manhattan and then some in Connecticut. There were some that I really liked a lot, some that were ok but not what I was thinking they were, and some that were just a waste of time. Instead of dwelling on the negative though, I thought I'd share some of my more pleasant experiences. These are just my opinions so don't get mad if you own a store and it's not named. I may have missed it, as I was unable to see a few due to the weather.


Kid-O - I loved this store. I bought some toys there for my class and everything there was so amazing. The baby section was pretty big and the store was so clean and pretty, even in the nasty rain they kept it nice. The saleswoman was so super nice too. One of my favorite visits.

The Blue Bench - Stunning store. Very friendly staff and their Little Folk Art Collection was wonderful to see. It's one of the few places that sells Little Folk Art right now. Very pretty bedding and furniture, a rather big store too. I was glad to see something that wasn't the size of a bathroom.

Jacadi - One of the largest Jacadi's I have ever been in. A big nursery section and lots of clothing. Nice staff and they even gave me a catalog. I went to the one on lower Madison Ave.

Bonpoint - Most friendly Bonpoint I have ever been in. Great baby selection. The woman working there was really nice in helping find stuff. This was the one on lower Madison Ave.

Just For Tykes - Very pretty store and they had a great selection of stuff. The front part had all of the nice little clothes and the back part was the nursery section. Very well organized.

Spring Flowers - Wonderful selection of upscale clothing. They had lots of brands there that no one else had. They also had a large baby section.

Buy Buy Baby - Just all around, one of the best baby gear stores I have ever been in. Beats Babies R Us anyday. I wish we have one around here. The store was very large, had a clean bathroom, a nice sales staff, and everything was arranged so neatly. I strongly recommend this place if you live by one.

Best & Co. - In Greenwich, CT. I really liked this store and wanted to see if it lived up to my expectations. It was great. The store is so pretty and the clothes are just darling. The sales staff was great too. And thats not typical in stores like this. One woman was so friendly and sweet to me, I just had to buy something.

Petit Patapon - Also in Greenwich. A great store you don't see every day. They have catalogs too.

Veronique - A wonderful maternity store that had a lot of customers. Nice people working there too.

Kids Supply Company - Loved this place. They were so nice to me, they even let me use their bathroom without buying anything. You don't get that kind of good customer service anymore.

Candy Nichols - A really big store in Greenwich, CT. A great selection of stuff and the store was really pretty.

The Modern Maclaren

Stroller maker Maclaren has teamed up with modern designer Philippe Starck to create a stroller and a changing bag. The above photo (which I found at Daddytypes) is suppose to be the first ever photo of the set. As you may recall, Maclaren has teamed up with designers in the past such as Kate Spade, Lulu Guinness, and Burberry to create limited edition strollers and changing bags. Philippe Starck is best known for his many modern designs in everything from furniture to kitchen tools. He has an expensive line sold in retail stores and a line at Target.

Read more about the Strack Mac at Daddytypes.

Urban Bundle Me

JJ Cole has done very well in the past few years with their Bundle Me collection. Designed to fit stroller, joggers, and car seats, the not-a-blanket cover has been made in every fabric from pink fleece to suede. And now we have the Urban Bundle Me for parents of cool kids. The Urban Bundle me comes in Pink Diva, Green Wasabi, and Ice Grey and has a distinct look with a rich microsuede interior.

Total bling-bling for the little one with everything. Available at the Right Start and lots of other baby stores.

Bjorn makes a cover

I guess Baby Bjorn saw all the baby covers being made for their carriers and decided to get in on the action. The new Baby Bjorn Fleece Carrier Cover will go on sale this winter. The cover conveniently fits over the Original or Active Baby Bjorn Carrier and even has its own hood for the baby. Looks like a very nifty item. Available at the Right Start very soon.

New Peg Perego

Peg Perego has not only made significant design enhancements for their new line of carseats, strollers, and highchairs, but they've also made some really cool new fabrics. Above is the new Primo Viaggio, complete with new headrest for side impact protection and a new weight limit (22 lbs). You can also use the new carseat alone without the base, an added feature for parents with travel systems.

The new Pliko Free Ride matches the Primo Viaggio in design and style. Both come in the new mint and rose colors. So does the newest highchair, the Prima Pappa Diner. Check them all out at the Right Start, along with a lot of other new stuff.

Celebrities shop the virtual shelves

We've all heard of the more common places where celebrities shop for their babies. Babystyle, Kitson, Barneys, etc. But you may be surpized to learn that one of the oldest and best known is also one of the most hard to find. That's because they only have a store by appointment...and online. The Elegant Child of Beverly Hills was founded in 1989 by Teri Weiss as an exclusive gift basket and gift company that caters to the best dressed baby. Since then they have designed gift baskets for quite a few big names. Jerry Seinfeld, Celine Dion, Joely Fisher, Mark Wahlberg, Kelsey Grammer, Eddie Murphy, Dave Chappelle, BabyFace, Blink 182's Travis Barker, Marc Anthony, Denise Richards, Stella McCartney, The Rupert Murdoch Family, Liv Tyler, David Letterman, Kate Hudson, Courteney Cox, Will Ferrell, and Reese Witherspoon have all shopped at their showroom and on their website.


Elegant Child also features some of the top brands of today including Fattamano, Little Giraffe, Mustela, and more. Lots of different baskets and gifts to choose from. They have diaper cakes.

Ballet is in!

If you have a little girl this season, be on the look out. Ballet is the new black. It seems like everywhere you turn, someone has a ballet line. From the more moderately priced Gymborre and Gap to the high end Dior and Simonetta Tiny, its all there. The tutu, the half sweater, the little strap-on shoes. The above shoes are part of Janie and Jack's winter line for infant girls. Very cute indeed.

Even celebrities are getting on the fab. Denise Richards bought matching pairs of these ballet slippers for her daughters at Intuition.

Nick Cage's odd baby

There is a child at the school where I teach whose family is obsessed with Batman. The little boy carries a Batman lunch box, has Batman PJs, and constantly refers to himself as Batman. His father also thinks HE is Batman. The boy has told me his dad is in fact the real Batman and his mother is Catwoman. His father drives the Batmobile, his mother drives the Catmobile. And I thought was joke until I saw his dad's car one day and it was a long, black car with BATMAN on the license plante.

And sadly, I saw one of his dad's commericals on tv for his business recently and it featured...you guessed it! Batman.

I thought these people were a bit odd.

Until now. Actor Nicolas Cage and his wife Alice Kim Cage, welcomed son Kal-el Coppola Cage into the world Monday morning. And as any good Superman fan would know, Kal-el (or Kel-el, not sure on the spelling) is Superman's real name on his home planet Krypton. This is just sad. The only good thing that can possibly come out of this is a possible role for the child somewhere in the future. And even then, people will so make fun of him.

If you too are a Superman fan and don't want to go so far as to name your offsrping after him, fear not. You can still get a cool little Superman costume for your kid.

New Juicy For Winter

Juicy Couture has their kids' winter collection out now and it's available at Fred Segal. I really think this new collection just rocks. This is the kind of stuff I wish they had made when I was a little girl. I espeically like the above top and their winter parka with faux fur. Very instyle, even for the little ones.

Juicy makes clothing for women and girls, starting at toddler sizes. It can be found at most upscale stores as well as some online ones.