We’re big fans of mixing foods together to make one meal, but it seems the kiddos aren’t so much. They like to see things separated into neat little piles so they can, you know the next part, huck them at the dog. We like the Skip Hop mate stay-put mat + plate for so many reasons. The compartments are great, but what’s even better is the mat, it’s skid resistant and virtually unmovable. The little plate pops out to reveal a smiling face, cute. Utensils are fine, but we usually use something else, think they’re suited for the 3 and up crowd.  BPA, Phthalate and PVC free. Dishwasher and kid safe. Won’t break the bank. $20, here.

With summer on its way out, and because we’re big camping enthusiasts, we thought we’d recommend a book that will keep the camping spirit alive throughout the year. Our neighbors initially told us about Mr. Magee and his loyal dog, Dee. They loved it and so do we. “A Camping Spree with Mr. Magee” by Chris Van Dusen is a hilarious tale of a camping trip gone wrong and then gone right again; we’ve definitely had a few of these, so we could relate. Van Dusen’s illustrations are hip and funny, love the teardrop trailer, and the rhyming text is a blast to read. The kiddos always say “again” after this book ends. The neighbors were so inspired by Mr. Magee and Dee’s camping trip adventure, they had a little marshmallow roast in the back yard. Love that. $15.95, here.

With the newest member of the cleeo & bea gang on her way, we’ve been taking inventory of what we have, what worked when our other kiddos were brand new and what we’ll need. Swaddling seemed pretty daunting when we were new parents, but guess what? We figured it out. The papas were particularly savvy when it came to making a baby burrito. We were given Aden & Anais’ muslin swaddlers before our bundle arrived and were so glad we had them in those early months. These swaddling blankets are huge, much larger than we’ve seen before, so there is plenty of fabric to stretch and tuck. The muslin is light weight, breathable and warm enough when doubled, so baby feels safe and secure. Good looking designs, washable. Organic cotton available.  47″ x 47″. 4 per package. Great value. $44, here.

Not sure why, but  Charlie Hope’s I’m Me! a collection of songs for children melts our heart. We find ourselves listening to it over and over again. Something about Hope’s beautiful voice, the folksy acoustic guitar and sweet lyrics have us reaching for the tissue and our wee ones, every time. Our favorite song, hands down, is “Train Song.” The strum of strings and Hope’s siren like train horn vocals are great. The kiddos love this collection, too. “Frog Song” is a real crowd pleaser, we love to change the lyrics of what the frogs eat and get belly laughs every time. And we usually can’t say this, but the cd packaging is green (hooray), made with 10% post-consumer recycled content and printed with vegetable inks. A cleeo & bea favorite. Get it! $14.95, here.

We were hoping our kiddos would gravitate to a quieter instrument, the triangle or ukulele maybe, but it seems our burgeoning rock stars love the drums. It started with a set of pots, pans and wooden spoons and quickly became clear we needed to upgrade. Plan Toys makes a great starter drum kit, perfect for toddlers. It comes equipped with drumsticks, two toms, a guiro and cymbal. Made from reconditioned rubber wood, this kit is durable and stylish, though the cymbal is a little wonky, and is the perfect size for storing in the kiddo’s tiny room. As a first drum kit, Plan’s is not too loud and satisfies our tots. Rock on little ones! Not cheap, but will provide solid entertainment, priceless. $50, here.

Long before we had kiddos, we loved the songs and poetry of Woody Guthrie. And to learn he fathered eight children, well, who knew? Guthrie wrote many childrens’ songs, poems about his children and the wonders of childhood, some of which were never adapted to music. Released by Rounder records in 2000, Daddy-O Daddy! Rare Family Songs of Woody Guthrie is a fantastic recording of several artists, including Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Taj Mahal. They honor Guthrie’s memory, poetry and music in a tribute compilation that results in a great collection of children’s songs, fun for the whole family. Guthrie is featured reciting his “Howdy, Little Newlycome,” which is such a sweet welcome to newborns. He cites all the things that went into creating the “newlycome”, like eating “good cheese to make your knees.” Another fave of ours is “Dry Bed” performed by Billy Bragg & The Blokes. Six previously unreleased recordings. $16.98, here.

We adore Japanese artist, children’s book illustrator and zakka (home+life=good) designer, Shinzi Katoh. His work for zakka is so sweet, fun and reminds us of vintage illustrations from the 60s and 70s, could be because he’s been illustrating roughly since the 70s and has a large body of work. We want one of everything, but we’ve started with Katoh’s placemat series. These placemats are washable and durable, two favorite things. Unfortunately, not an eco-friend, but kind of hard to find placemats that are. Made from polypropylene, so no chewing, please. Darn cute. 11″ x 17″ $8.00. A little tricky to find, but check here,  

Where we live, the sun is like an old friend who we don’t see very often, so when warmer weather and sunshine do make an appearance we hold on tight until the very last days of summer. Because we’re outside for much of the time that the sun is around, we go through sunscreen quickly, which allows us the opportunity to try new product. Doctor T’s Supergoop! SPF 30 organic protection broad-spectrum sun screen for face and body seemed quite good, but we noticed after we purchased this sunscreen that it contains parabens and propylene glycol. Not so sure we would’ve picked up had we not bought it quickly and merely scanned the package. Now, we’re using it on ourselves, more than the kiddos. Here’s the good part, Supergoop! SPF 30 is an aloe vera based sunscreen, chock full of  powerful antioxidant vitamins A, C and E and is touted as an anti-irritant, perfect for sensitive skin, not sure about that, since it contains propylene glycol. No animal testing, waterproof, won’t harm marine life, good, but probably won’t buy again. A mouthful of ingredients. $11, here.

On a recent trip to the library, we discovered “Howdi Do” and it’s a good thing because our kiddos love this book. Originally published in 2000, “Howdi Do” is so fun to read and has our tots wanting to shake the hands of everyone they meet, woman, kid, man, cats and dogs. Vladmir Radunky’s colorful and quirky gouache collage illustrations of a narrating dog, (which we love) make a perfect complement to Woody Guthrie’s silly, but fun, lyrics to the song, “Howdi Do.” CD that accompanies the book isn’t so great, we’d rather be listening to Woody, but book is a fun way to help kids greet their friends and family. Howjido. $1.99 +, here.

We’re learning to travel by plane with the kiddos, it’s a bit of a challenge sometimes, but we’re getting more organized, we are. We like talking about modes of  travel with the kiddos, too, when we saw this sweet little tee by artist Kimberly Murray of Decaf Plush, we knew it’d be a good way to keep the conversation going. The little planes are hand crafted appliques custom machine-stitched upon ordering. Long and short sleeve onesies or tees. 100% organic cotton.Various colors. $36, here.

We’re prone to believing our kids are brilliant, maybe because they’re ours, but really they’re quite smart. It’s always amazing to see how quickly they can pick things up, particularly when it comes to puzzles and games that require memory. Memory games are classic examples of developmental activities, and we love them. This beautiful memory game with illustrated cards by Charley Harper is fun for the whole family. The vibrant colors of birds and scenes in nature are so pretty and really keep the game going. Kids can grow with this game, too, going from matching like images to playing the actual game of collecting the most pairs. 36 pairs, 72 cards total. $14.95, here.

We are so excited to announce this giveaway, we can barely stand it, so here it is. We’ve partnered with Portland’s bella stella to giveaway a gorgeous custom made Pascual beco butterfly carrier. It was one of a limited number made specifically for bella stella. bella stella has two stores on NE Broadway in Portland, one for maternity and babies, the other for older children and an online shop. Both stores focus on top notch resale clothing, designer liquidations, sustainable clothing and open-ended toys. bella stella baby specializes in babywearing. We needed some major assistance when we were shopping and the gals offered guidance and instruction on a wide array of baby slings and carriers such as the Beco Butterfly, Ergo, Babyhawk Mei Tai, Moby Wrap, Sprout Pouch and Storchenwiege. If you need a bit more info on the beco butterfly, check out our review or beco’s website. We have been very happy with ours thus far. We completed a four mile hike wearing our tot in this carrier and no complaints. Now, the details of the giveaway. Sign up to receive weekly reviews from cleeo & bea by entering your name into our subscriber sign-up box in the right hand column of our blog. You’ll receive a confirmation e-mail in your inbox to verify, very important to verify, so you’re entered in the drawing. Deadline for this giveaway is August 31st. Sign up and good luck.