Hannah Montana Ban

Cindy Crawford has banned her mini me daughter watching Hannah Montanna. Apparently she believes that Kaya 7, will become "sassy" if she starts watching the Disney Show.

Cindy says " I love Hannah Montana, but my daughter learns to be sassy from that show. "I'll say to her, 'I don't let anyone talk to me like that. I 'll certainly not take it from a 7 yr old in my own house.' " (showbiz spy)

Many mothers I know have similar views about Miley Cyrus' show. My daughter only watches in small doses. Does anyone else ban their kids from this show?

Golden Globe Awards

Well here is Miley Cyrus (aka Hannah Montana) with her parents at the Golden Globe Awards...We can see where she gets her good looks from.  

Gwyneth power

Gwyneth Paltrow has launched her very own lifestyle website called GOOP.com. Here is how she describes her site : "GOOP.com is a collection of experiences of what makes life good. My life is good because I am not passive about it. I want to nourish what is real & I want to do it without wasting time. I love to travel, to cook, to eat, to take care of my body & mind, to work hard. I love being a mother, who has to overcome bad qualities to be a good mother. I love being in spaces that are clean & nice. 

Make your life good. Invest in what's real. Cook a meal for someone you love. Pause before reacting. Clean out your space. Read something beautiful. Treat yourself to something. Go to a city you've never been to. Learn something new. Don't be lazy. Workout & stick with it. GOOP. Make it great!!"

Wow, well I'm inspired!! I'm off to check out her website at www.goop.com

Nicole's Favourite Water

Tasmanian Rain is a new brand of luxury bottle rainwater. Bottled in 100-percent-recycled glass, this pure liquid comes from Tasmania, which garnered the honor of having the cleanest air on the planet, according to the Worls Meterological Organisation. It is said to be ten times more purer than spring & artisian water. The sparkling version contains the lowest sodium content of any carbonated water on the market. Available in 375 & 750mL bottles in still & sparkling varieties.

Just so you know, Nicole Kidman is a big fan of this water.. No wonder she has the healthiest looking skin. Buy your bottles online at tasmanian rain.com

Mini celebrity doubles

Celebrity impersonators are a dime a dozen. This fresh approach to celebrity doubles is as funny as it is cute. These mini-me versions of Beyonce & Jay Z, Gwen Stefani, Puff Daddy & Missy Elliot bear a remarkable likeness to their pop idols.  Mini Beyonce is my favourite...she is gorgeous!

Loving this...

Beijing kids are the latest to be treated to some western style indulgence with Kids Republic, a children's bookstore that transports it‚ pint sized customers into a delightful fairytale world full of color and fantasy complete with massive story telling screens and play areas. It's haven for little imaginations in the heart of one of the biggest cities in the world. 

Incorporating the core design elements of a kid's playground, these slipperyslide-inspired-shelves house books in an incredibly fun way. Breaking from the traditional table and chair reading areas, padded L shaped reading stools are used and enjoyed by tiny readers. Dull lighting is replaced by snakelike fittings that radiate a variety of colors whilst providing adequate light to read with. Courtesy of coolhunter

The Art Factory in Melbourne is a fantastic place to visit during the holidays. It is a vibrant art studio that runs children's art and craft work shops. You choose from a wide range of workshops and create masterpieces to take home such as mosaics, canvas collages and other crafty pieces. The classes are suitable for ages 4-14 yrs. 

My daughter always loves to do a class or two with her friends, during the school holidays. For further details you can visit the website here There is also a holiday timetable available to download.

It's always fun to also create your own artwork at home. These beautiful wooden rubber stamp sets are perfect for scrapbooking and craft projects. The ABC Rubber Stamps have a vintage flair containing 26 upper case letters from A to Z. The kit contains 26 stamps and a black felt inkpad, housed in a beautiful reusable tin.  

Beautiful butterfly stamps to adorn cards, envelopes and gift wrap. Come with a black ink pad also  in a reusable keepsake tin.

By the way, these gorgeous products are suitable for all ages. My daughter and I share the Butterfly kit! Both available online at Ministyle

Hope you are all enjoying the school holidays...

Yesterday we spent most of the day in the kitchen with the kids, cooking & baking. My 2 year old son found a block of dark cooking chocolate in the pantry & was begging me to make the "choco cake" that was pictured on the packet. This kick started our cooking streak for the day...We made chocolate cake, honey joys & then we sorted dinner with spaghetti bolognese. 

Cooking can be a lot of fun...particularly when the kids get involved. I find during the holidays we spend a lot more time together in the kitchen experimenting and having a laugh. 

A good way to get the kids involved is by letting them choose what they would like to bake or cook. This way there is a better chance that they will actually eat the food, as they have made it!! Always handy to keep all their favourite recipes in one place. This Kids Recipe Journal is a great concept. It contains 50 blank pages to paste in, write in or print on as well as some handy plastic pocket sleeves. Available in Pink & Blue from MiniStyle  

The Royal Melbourne Zoo offers a great day out for the family. The natural & environmentally sensitive animal enclosures are fantastic & the manicured lawns make the zoo a beautiful park to wander through. Just a hint, if you see a queue as you drive up, go around to the back entrance next to Royal Park railway station - there is hardly ever a queue there! 

It's a good idea to pack your own lunch or else you can eat at the kiosk or licensed bistro.

For further information visit the Melbourne Zoo website 

School holidays...

As we are well and truly into school holidays now, we will bring you some fun holiday activity ideas, to help entertain your little ones. 

Top of my list, is going to the movies with the family. We have already exhausted the movies in the first few weeks with my children...this also includes a session at the Drive Ins in Dromana last week. 

We thoroughly enjoyed BOLT a new animated movie starring Miley Cyrus & John Travolta. BOLT***** is a modern-day action hero dog, that's raised on the set of a hit television show. Bolt believes he has amazing powers, until he is accidentally shipped to New York, where his daredevil stunts no longer go according to plan. Bolt learns his whole life has been a lie. Or has it?  A great movie for the whole family!!  

For cinema locations and session times visit Village  or Hoyts 

Other children's movies out now include High School Musical 3 *****, Madagascar 2 ***, Bedtime Stories  ** ( My children have rated the movies with stars, 5 stars being the highest as a guide)

Happy New Year from the MiniStyle Team!!

From all the team at MiniStyle, we would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year. May 2009 be filled with happiness, love & good health. 

A big thank  you to all of our beautiful customers for their wonderful support last year! We enjoyed providing the best service & products to all of you : )