We have just returned from holiday and the kids had to spend many hours in the car. So how to keep them busy? I quickly packed a couple of paper pads and colouring books hoping it would distract them for more than 5 min. Well, you might be surprised to discover that they spent many hours concentrating over their drawings.

I realised I had made the right choice when I bought a box of Stockmar Crayons. The colours are really bright and they stick to the paper. I don't think the children would have been happy (and us neither once they would have been bored and whinging) with a cheap box of crayons where you can hardly see the colours. Even with a pad balancing on their  knee, they made some great work of art.

The box was also very handy to put them away without them rolling around the car.

So yes at £9, they are not the cheapest box of crayons but they do last and the beeswax used does not contain any nasties. As they come with a nice handmade handbook, this makes a very nice present for toddlers and older children and will definitely become the favourite set of your children. 

The elderflowers at the end of the garden are finally sending out their May (ha ha) perfume and thank goodness they are bit late this year. With a 2 month old on top of the other tiddlers, things tend to slide! However, I am rolling my sleeves up and getting ready to make some this weekend. If you are interested in making your own, the two recipes I would recommend are:

Ashridge Nurseries recipe: this is for serious makers who want to make quite a big batch and preserve the cordial properly. It has worked a treat for me in the past and, because of the inclusion of Campden Tablets, lasts up to 2 years.

Peapod magazine (Page 30): a simple recipe, great for first timers. (And a lovely little magazine too.)

Having recently treated myself to a set of the lovely coloured glasses  made from recycled glass that we sell (perks of the job) I am lookng forward to tasting the fruits of my labours. Our garden is humming with life at the moment and sipping elderflower cordial amongst the cabbages really is one of life's small pleasures. Cheers.

NapNap's 1st Birthday!

Yep, that's right, only a year ago was NapNap launched.

Since then, we have developed the NapNap Voucher and it is now a pretty popular baby shower gift . If you are not in the loop: give a NapNap Voucher to your pregnant friend and they can choose the cloth nappies of their choice. It will save them lots of money and because we now work with 21 retailers, they will be spoilt for choice.

We have also launched The Really Eco Baby Shop so you can even add a lovely eco-friendly and ethical gift to your voucher.

So let's celebrate!

Until Thursday 24th June midnight, all our products, except for the NapNap Voucher are on sale. Yes, everything!

That means you can bag a Little Green Radicals's "let it bee" bodysuit at half price.

That's £7.50 for a fairtrade and organic cotton bodysuit. I don't think you can find cheaper anywhere else.

There is 20% all our kenana fairtrade knitted animals. A hand-knitted toy that will easily become a child's best friend. Choose between a giraffe, zebra, a leggy lion or a cool cow.

Even our latest products: Ava & Luc organic cotton T-shirts have £3 off. 3 cool designs with bold colours to choose from.  Available until 4y.o: a toddler's favourite.

The Baby Bathtime Hamper is one of our most original and useful gift. Its Green Fibres' organic towel is soft, big and absorbent and you will be proud to offer the new little one his or her first bamboo toothbrush. Grab it now for £21 (that's £5 off!).

There are some other incredible offers going on. Enjoy at least 10% off and still free delivery on orders over £35 but the sale will stop on Thursday night.

And for our local followers: if you live within 3 miles of Letchworth Garden City (North Herts), get your order delivered to your door free of charge. Just place your order and we will refund the delivery.

There will also be more competitions going on all week to win some NapNap Vouchers and nappies, so follow us on Facebook and Twitter (@really_eco_baby).

Really Eco Baby - the eco friendly, green, ethical baby shop and the home of the NapNap

Have you heard about NapNap Vouchers? They are the perfect eco friendly present for new parents. They can be exchanged in loads of different nappy shops and let people choose the nappies that are right for them. Find out more about NapNap Vouchers from the NapNap website www.napnaphq.com

But if you are worried that people might actually really want another pair of pink bootees or teddy rather than this super useful gift (that results in lovely fluff anyay!) I thought I'd reassure you by sharing this. It comes from a mum who recently used a NapNap Voucher:

"Dear NapNap - thank you! I jsut thought I'd tell you: my mum bought me a voucher and it meant I could buy a new set of nappies for my newborn. I have an older child still in nappies so it was going to get a bit tight. I wasn't going to bother - thought I could get by with disposables for a bit tut tut - but the voucher means I am now all sorted. I had my eye on a changing bag too so I was able to treat myself without feeling too guilty. An absolute treat and a brilliant change from the other things that I was given. Of course, I am not ungrateful for those but this was my top pressie."

Convinced? Buy a friend a voucher here at Really Eco Baby by clicking here. They start at £5 and any unused vouchers are refunded to the purchaser as credit to be spent here. Nothing to lose!