Adventure, baby!

Giveaway

Sydney: The Secret Life Of Suitcases Ticket Giveaway

Secret Suitcases Giveaway via adventurebaby.org
A fun giveaway for you this week! If you are looking for some holiday fun in Sydney, the Monkey Baa Theatre Company will be presenting The Secret Life of Suitcases from September 28 to October 2 at the Lend Lease Theatre, in the Darling Quarter.

A little bit about the show:

Larry works in an office and he likes it very much. But one day, a suitcase suddenly appears at his door. A suitcase with a tiny label with Larry’s name on it. And this suitcase has a mission…

Join Larry as his world gets turned upside down by a fantastical flying suitcase taking him further than he ever thought possible. Follow Larry’s journey as he discovers the thrill of adventure and the joy of coming home again.

Check out the trailer below:

I’m so happy to offer one reader a family pass (4 tickets) to the Friday October 2nd 1pm session of The Secret Life of Suitcases at the Lend Lease Theatre Darling Quarter (right across from the children’s playground).

All you need to do to enter is comment below with who you would take and why they’d enjoy it. Easy peasy!

Please read the dates and location carefully. There is no exchange or refund and you must find your own way to the theatre. The giveaway is open Friday August 28 9am to Friday Sept 4th 11:59pm.

Full terms and conditions here.

To Market, To Market! Market Basket Giveaway

Market Basket Giveaway via christineknight.me

I am so obsessed with bags. Not fancy pants handbags (although I love them too!) but mostly bags that I can use to carry all the stuff around that I have to lug now I have a kid. I’ve tried all kinds of backpacks and shoulder bags, and I’m currently really enjoying the Market Basket.

This really cute Market Basket was introduced to Australia by Lindy McLeod. The baskets have been used in France for a long time by women to carry their fresh produce in. I’m a strong believer in using recyclable bags for groceries rather than plastic anyway, so I really love that this basket does double duty for me. I can use it for my grocery shopping, and also for all of Cheese’s stuff that I inevitably need to take with us, like water bottle, snacks, spare clothes and toys.

These baskets are genuine French-style market baskets imported from Morocco. Each one is uniquely handmade using traditional methods, and is made of strips of woven palm leaves from a species of date palm – Phoenix Dactylifera. The strips are then sewn together and the basket built up in “rounds” into the traditional triangle shape, variations of which can be found in countries all around the Mediterranean. The handles are of genuine Moroccan leather and firmly fixed to the baskets so they won’t pull off. Handles are either short so the baskets can be carried in the hand or on the elbow, or longer to go over the shoulder.

Market Basket Giveaway via christineknight.me

The lovely Lindy send me a Market Basket “Mia” to test drive. I was full of intentions to use mine to get the groceries, but this happened when I tried to take it out the door. Cheese also loved my beautiful new basket and hijacked it to use as a toy carrier. It was so adorable I couldn’t resist taking a few photos (please excuse my messy apartment in the background! There’s nothing like spontaneous photos to show up when you need to tidy up.).

Market Basket Giveaway via christineknight.me

The market basket is also great for the beach (not that it’s beach weather in Sydney right now!). The basket is fine to get wet, but needs to be hung up after use to allow for drying thoroughly.

Market Basket Giveaway via christineknight.me Market Basket Giveaway via christineknight.me Market Basket Giveaway via christineknight.me Market Basket Giveaway via christineknight.me Market Basket Giveaway via christineknight.me

GIVEAWAY! WIN A “MIA” MARKET BASKET

Lindy at Market Basket is offering one lucky reader the chance to win their own Mia Market Basket. (RRP $49). To enter, fill in the form below and tell me what you’d use your basket for.

Entry open to Australian and US residents. The most creative answer will win. This is not a game of chance. Competition is open Friday June 5 2015 to 11:59pm Wed June 10 2015. For full terms and conditions click here for Aussies and here for the U.S.

Thanks so much to Market Basket for sending me the basket for reviewing purposes. 

New ABC Kids DVDs + DVD Giveaway

#Australia DVD #giveaway via christineknight.me

My daughter loves watching shows on ABC Kids. I think the ABC kids’ programming might be one of the best things we’ve discovered since moving back to Australia. It means Cheese is able to watch some really sweet and entertaining programs instead of rotting her brain with her beloved “Easter egg” YouTube videos she and all the preschooler set seem to be addicted to.

We had a very exciting week in our house watching brand new DVD releases from some of Cheese’s favourite shows. Make sure you scroll down to the bottom of the post and enter the giveaway to win these exact same DVD titles for your own kids.

#Australia DVD #giveaway via christineknight.me
THE WIGGLES: ANTHONY’S FRUITY FEAST
We have a HUGE Wiggles fan in this house. Join Anthony, Lachie, Simon and, of course, Emma, in 12 wiggly episodes and over 40 upbeat songs. Episode selection includes recent favourites like “Cowboy Anthony” and “Captain’s Magic Buttons”.
RRP: $19.95
RUNNING TIME: 140 MINS

#Australia DVD #giveaway via christineknight.me
OCTONAUTS: GREAT ARCTIC ADVENTURE
Our other favourite show in high rotation in our house is the Octonauts. This fun DVD features 6 episodes, including a really sweet one with Captain Barnacles helping his sister and her new polar bear cubs learn to navigate the harsh conditions of the frozen arctic.
RRP: $19.95
RUNNING TIME: 82 MINS

#Australia DVD #giveaway via christineknight.me

BING: SWING & OTHER EPISODES
Bing is brand new to us. It’s an adorable new 10-episode TV series about a 3-year-old bunny named Bing. This playful, energetic and joyful bunny embodies life as a preschooler, and encourages kids to experience the world around them with equal enthusiasm.

Exclusive to ABC Shops and Centres
RRP: $19.95
RUNNING TIME: 70 MINS

#Australia DVD #giveaway via christineknight.me
PLAY SCHOOL: COLOURS OF THE RAINBOW
The cast of Playschool has changed since I was a kid, but the educational content has not. This DVD explores the wonder of colour in nature, painting, culture, food and experiments. Kids will enjoy following the activities at home such as painting rainbows and staging a piggy opera.

RRP: $14.95
RUNNING TIME: 137 MINS

The kind people at Roadshow Home Entertainment are giving this exact DVD pack to one lucky reader. (RRP $74.80). To enter, fill in the form below and tell me what your kids’ favourite ABC Kids show is.

Entry open to Australian residents only. The most creative answer will win. This is not a game of chance. Competition is open Wednesday June 3 2015 to 11:59pm Tuesday June 9 2015. For full terms and conditions click here.

Thanks so much to Roadshow for the review copies of these DVDs. 

Mummy Make-up: Secrets To Looking Bright-Eyed & Awake

Mummy #Makeup via christineknight.me #giveaway

I’m pretty rubbish at putting on make-up on a day-to-day basis. I always have the best intentions to put on a bit of foundation, but I’m lucky if I remember to slap on sunscreen. Part of the problem is not knowing how to make myself look decent with minimal effort – because, let’s face it, who has the time to fuss with make-up when you’ve got little kids underfoot?

I’ve teamed up with L’Oréal and beauty writer and YouTuber Fadhila Prabu to bring you a simple tutorial on ways to use make-up effectively – and quickly – to give you that bright-eyed and awake look you used to have pre-kids. At the end of the tutorial you can enter my giveaway to win the exact same L’Oréal products for yourself. I love these make-up tips for mums on the go – thank you Fadhila for sharing your secrets with us!

Mummy #Makeup via christineknight.me #giveaway

L’Oréal and Adventure, Baby! are giving one lucky Australian reader the opportunity to win a make-up pack valued at $124.75, containing:

L’Oréal Paris True Match Foundation RRP $29.95
L’Oréal Paris Lumi Magique Concealer RRP $27.95
L’Oréal Paris False Lash Butterfly Wings in Black RRP $25.95
L’Oréal Paris Brow Artist Plumper 04 in Dark Brunette RRP $18.95
L’Oréal Paris Colour Riche Made-For-Me in 235 Nude RRP $21.95

Entry open to Australian residents only. The most creative answer will win. This is not a game of chance. Competition is open Saturday May 29th 2015 to 11:59pm Saturday June 6th 2015. For full terms and conditions click here.

Thank you to L’Oréal for providing the products to create this tutorial. All opinions are by Christine Knight and Fadhila Prabu.

Linking up with Bron.

Disney Into The Woods Movie Blu-ray Giveaway

Into The Woods Blu-ray #Giveaway via christineknight.me

I love a good movie night. If you do, too, then you’ll love this giveaway I’m running with Disney this week. FIVE readers will have the opportunity to win a blu-ray copy of the Disney movie Into The Woods. This giveaway is open to Australian residents only (sorry US peeps!).

Into The Woods Blu-ray #giveaway via christineknight.me

Into the Woods is a funny and warm musical that follows classic fairy tales with a twist – they’re all tied together by an original story about a baker and his wife. Some big names star (and sing!) including my personal favourite actresses Emily Blunt and Anna Kendrick. I really enjoyed the new additions to traditional tales, and the wonderful singing.

A big thanks to Disney for giving me FIVE copies of Into The Woods for this giveaway (RRP $49.95). To enter, fill in the form below and tell me what your favourite fairytale is.

Entry open to Australian residents only. The most creative answer will win. This is not a game of chance. Competition is open Friday May 22nd 2015 to 11:59pm Thursday May 28st 2015. For full terms and conditions click here.

The Love Affair Of Motherhood {Uberkate Giveaway}

The Love Affair That Is Motherhood {#Uberkate #Giveaway!} via christineknight.me
When I think about how to sum up what motherhood means to me, I keep coming back to “it’s a love affair”. Not the same kind that I have with by husband, but a relationship of the heart nonetheless. Let me explain.

It all started when I was trying to get pregnant. The hope of a new person to love and be loved by was an ache in my heart that I didn’t know how badly I wanted until it seemed like I couldn’t have it. The idea of a brand new love that I could nurture and grow was a dream that just wouldn’t go away.

Dearest child, I loved you before you even existed.

And then, I was pregnant. The anticipation of starting our lives together as a family of three was too exciting to have to wait those nine months to begin.

When you were born, we started what felt like dating. Getting to know each other slowly, through good times and bad. Through sleepless nights and gurgley smiles. There were days when you felt like a stranger who had been left on my doorstep, and I wasn’t sure that this motherhood thing was going to work out. There were absolutely days when I wanted us to break up so I could go back to just being me. But we didn’t break up. I didn’t give up.

You were getting to know me too. Seeing if I would care for you and love you no matter what. As a baby, you were up all night long for many months, giving me such sleep deprivation that I’m pretty sure I was hallucinating half the time.

As a toddler you pushed my buttons to see how I’d respond. Testing my parenting skills and commitment to being as good a mum as I badly wanted to be. Through tantrums and food throwing and hitting-in-the-face, I stuck it out, knowing that being your mum was worth it. I think I passed the test because here we are today, seriously in love.

Our days are filled with comfortable companionship – the kind that comes with knowing the other person’s heart as well as your own. We hold hands and walk together, picking flowers, singing songs and fluttering our pretend wings. I paint your toenails blue and braid your hair like Elsa. You tell me I’m your best friend and that you love me. The feeling’s mutual, kid.

Darling girl, you’ll always be, along with your dad, the loves of my life. The best, biggest, most amazing love that a woman could hope for.

MOTHER’S DAY GIVEAWAY WITH UBERKATE

uberkate - necklace-1

With Mother’s Day just a few weeks away, I’ve teamed up with the wonderful Uberkate to give one lucky reader the chance to celebrate their own family love affair with a piece of Uberkate custom jewellery. I absolutely love my own Uberkate Expression Pendant because it lets me keep my family close to my heart.

uberkate-1-2

One reader will win their own bespoke Uberkate Expression Pendant piece worth $255, customisable with names of their choosing. The Expression Pendant is a flat, embossed solid sterling silver pendant 3.3cm long x 2.2cm wide and 1.5mm thick. Includes 45cm sterling silver curb chain. Below you can see my customised piece with our names on it, written in my husband Alec’s handwriting. For the chance to win your own Uberkate Expression Pendant, enter via the form below.

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Entry open to Australian residents only. The most creative answer will win. This is not a game of chance. Competition is open Wednesday April 8th 2015 to 11:59pm Tues April 21st 2015.



Thanks to Uberkate for my beautiful Expression Pendant. All opinions are, as always, my own.

Opening image by Saving Grace Photography.

Linking up with Grace.

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway #backtoschool via christineknight.me

Cheese is starting preschool in a few weeks and we’re both super excited about the change. She’s been calling her new school “the special school”, which is adorable – less adorable is her calling her current daycare “the bad school” to differentiate them, no matter how many times I correct her that there’s nothing bad about her daycare!

Anyway, in preparation for Cheese starting preschool, the kind folks over at Smiggle sent us some of their awesome back to school range – and have also given us a matching pack to give away to one lucky reader.

Our kit contained the basics for starting school, in an adorable pink and puppy print, which Cheese absolutely adores. In included a Travel Double Decker Lunchbox (RRP $24.95) Travel Tube Pencil Case (RRP $10.95) Travel Wallets (RRP $10.95), Travel Lanyard (RRP $4.95), Travel Holographic Ruler (RRP $3.95), Pop Mini Electric Sharpener (RRP $16.95).

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway #backtoschool via christineknight.me

As you can see, Cheese is into her stationary. I particularly love the Smiggle brand because not only are their products super cute, they’re also well designed. The double decker lunch box, for example, is so useful we take it everywhere. The bottom section is perfect for enough food to last the entire day, and the top section is where I put a cold pack and anything that I want to keep separate, like a frozen yogurt pouch.

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway #backtoschool via christineknight.me

I also love the themed ranges with the creative prints. It’s really nice to have gear that isn’t covered in licensed characters – I much prefer designs such as these dog ones, which are age appropriate and have longevity past a short-lived fascination with particular animated characters.

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway #backtoschool via christineknight.me

All of the Smiggle products are well-made and durable, making them a great choice for little kids. It makes me happy when things don’t break the first time my preschooler (mis)uses them. Big hardy zippers, strong stitching, sturdy plastic, thick velcro – these products are made to last rough use by little hands.

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway #backtoschool via christineknight.me

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway #backtoschool via christineknight.me

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway #backtoschool via christineknight.me

Smiggle Back To School Giveaway #backtoschool via christineknight.me

Is your child starting school soon? Why don’t you enter the giveaway below to win your own Smiggle Back To School pack? Entry is open Monday January 12, 2015, 12:01 am to Sunday January 18, 11:59pm (Sydney-time). Entry is open to Australian shipping addresses only via the form below. You can read the full T&Cs here. The most creative entry will win.

The winner will receive the red Smiggle pack pictured (no other colour option), including:

Travel Double Decker Lunchbox (RRP $24.95)
Travel Tube Pencil Case (RRP $10.95)
Travel Wallet (RRP $10.95)
Travel Lanyard (RRP $4.95)
Travel Holographic Ruler (RRP $3.95)
Pop Mini Electric Sharpener (RRP $16.95)