Stay pure

The weather's changing and dare we say it, thoughts of that piggy flu and other seasonal nasties are coming to the forefront. If you're a laidback type of gal, your defence system might come down to regular handwashing and perhaps a bottle or two of anti-bacterial spray.

But if you're a bit of a germophobe, you're probably looking for something a little more proactive to tackle those hidden horrors. You should be impressed by the Purespace Sanitizer, a unit for storing and sanitizing personal items. This clever piece of tech kills 99.9999% of all known viruses and harmful bacteria including those linked to flu, heart disease and diabetes.

The Purespace Sanitizer stores up to 6 manual and electric tootbrushes at a time. It also holds baby bottles, pacifiers, nail scissors, jewellery, razors and other similar tools that could carry and spread germs. For more info including where to buy, visit the Purespace homepage.

Bump and groove

With the Bank Holiday coming up over here, Londoners are either heading away from the Notting Hill Carnival or getting ready to be elbow-deep in the craziness.

If you're insane enough to be pregnant and partying at Europe's biggest street fest, you'll need to be wearing comfy shoes and relaxed clothing. Check out The Maternity Barn for a range of cool, customisable t-shirts that make a statement.

Just pick a style and colour, scroll down the list of slogans like 'Pregnant Not Fat', 'Oops I Did it Again' or 'Funky Mama 09' or even add your own. The most useful message to help you navigate through the crowds is probably 'Hands Off the Bump'.

The Maternity Barn also offers clothing for kids and dads so visit the web site to scope out more styles.

Bags of style

After the untimely demise of my last baby bag, I had to find a way to comfort myself. Recovery has come quickly in the shape of a red hot number by uber-trendy Stork Sak. In fact you could say I've become unreasonably pleased with myself since I started rocking this bag around town.

The only thing that dents my swagger is taking a trip to the Stork Sak web site where I could spend days lusting after their gorgeous range of totes, rucksacks and unisex bags. My new baby is the red version of the Dori Red Label Messenger featuring multiple wipe-clean pockets, thermo-insulated bottle pockets, adjustable shoulder strap and a fold-out padded changing mat. Even cooler is that it doubles as a laptop bag so should provide years of use. I picked one up at Bebe Bisou boutique in west London's Westfield shopping centre but you can snap one up online at Lullabys kids' store. Visit Stork Sak for more styles and stockists.

Bump and swirl

We've featured clothing line Nordic Kids several times on our sister blog Hype Baby as their range of cheeky, cheerful labels are the last word in Scandinavian cool. Mamas-to-be should not hesitate to check out the Maternity section for some funky-fly outfits to make you feel bumpalicious.

I adore this Red Peace Print waistband skirt by Plastisock. The combination of lime green strip and groovy red patterns shouldn't work but somehow it does. Even if you've lost your will to party while preggers, this skirt is guaranteed to make you twirl. Visit Nordic Kids and put a little pep in your step.

A timely gift

Little Big Cheeks is already heading towards his half-year birthday and it seems like forever since I was lugging him around in my belly. I don't exactly miss being pregnant, but I do wish I'd known about My Pregnancy Digi Time Capsule when I was 'with child'.

The fantastic techno keepsake provides a way to capture and store your pregnancy journey, from ultrasound and heartbeat recordings to video messages and photos of your growing bump. On 4GB, you can document the process of decorating your baby's nursery, record baby showers and gift items, even put down timely details about the world leading up to your baby's birth. From gender predictions to old wives' tales, pretty much anything you can think about plus loads of stuff you haven't can be saved on the My Pregnancy Digi Time Capsule.

Available in Signature Silver & Gold or White Leather, this award-winning product makes a truly original gift for any mama-to-be. What's great is that once you pop, you will soon be able to create My Baby Book Digi Time Capsule with equally comprehensive features. Visit the Digi Time Capsule web site for more details and updates.

So fresh and so clean

Having just come back from our recent trips to Africa and France to a post-heatwave, somewhat gloomy London, I thought I'd maintain a little holiday cheer with a few posts about most useful travel products.

When you're abroad, keeping yourself and more importantly your kids clean and fresh can be a challenge when sometimes even the local water is tainted. You might even resort to using your own spit on a handkerchief (even though you remember how much you hated the feel of your mum's saliva on your face as a child).

Enter MomSpit, the ingeniously named no-rinse cleanser for hands and face, for use on anybody aged two and above. With its witty caption 'Inspired by the original', MomSpit serves to freshen up grubby cheeks and paws, easily removing anything from mud and sand to dried food and drink.

It comes in several flavours, such as the delicious Fig & Green Tea, equally yummy Lemon & White Tea or plain and simple Unscented. When there's no soap or sink available, wash up with just a squirt or two of this magic foam. The residue is slightly sticky at first but fades to a softly moisturising feeling that certainly beats the drying out quality of those alcohol hand rubs.

MomSpit comes in a range of dispensers that are small enough to fit in your hand luggage, baby bag or even your clutch. So put your tongue away and pick up a spit kit from these clever mumpreneurs. Trust me, your kids will thank you for it. Visit the MomSpit web site for more details.

What Dad really wants

It's not the first time I've bemoaned the lack of decent maternity lingerie on the high street. Even finding a good fitting nursing bra can be a struggle if you wear a popular size. So I'm happy to send any readers in search of solid yet sexy undergarments along to Ma Mere, a site dedicated to designer lingerie from Australia and around the world.

With Papa's day approaching, the canny mompreneur behind the megastore is offering a special promotion to help keep the home fires burning: buy any 2 sets of Hot Milk undies and receive a free pair of Milkman boxers for your partner. Now that's what we call the gifts that keep on giving. Check out Ma Mere web site for more info.