Before you had a child, a cosy little beach shelter would have been just the thing for a bit of summer nookie with your mistress.But now you’re a father, and your mistress has left you for a man without vomit on his clothing, you’ll be needing a beach shelter to house your gorgeous wife and child on those hot summer days.
Shelta are an Aussie company and should therefore know a thing or two about sun protection.Their UV Beach Tent is self-erecting (snigger, snigger) and takes only seconds to construct.It has sand pockets to keep it firmly rooted to the beach, and also comes with a handy groundsheet so you don’t need to lay towels inside.Unfortunately it costs quite a bit of wonga - much too much when you consider what else is on the market.
A little more reasonably priced is the Family Cabana Sun Tent from Nivea, who are better known for producing sun cream than sun shelters.Their sun-tent is also ‘pop-up’ which means that it will be erect quicker than a teenager in a brothel.Sadly, it doesn’t have an integrated ground sheet so you’ll have to use towels to avoid your little boy getting sandy balls while he crawls around the tent.
Can the winner of my sun shelter buying guide really cost only £15? Yes siree Bob!The Coleman Sundome really is a top-notch beach shelter for very little moola.It has the all-important sand pockets for stability, and impressively it has a huge groundsheet that extends far beyond the tent.This provides a really sizeable area to frolic around in, and has the added feature that it can fully zip up to close the dome while you are changing, or perhaps to hide your huge Dadget collection while you’re out at sea.The only downside is that it is not self-erecting – like a married man, it will require a few minutes of careful attention before it is fully erect.
Henry and I have bought a Coleman Sundome and we’ll give you our full review very soon!
As well as helping his Daddy out with Dadget reviews, my little Henry also helps his Mummy to review coffee shops for their baby-friendliness.To read all about Henry’s adventures with my wife then please check out Coffee with Babies.
Way back when I educated you about the Slingbox and how it was a boon for kids to watch their favourite TV when away from home (and for Daddy to watch Sky Sports when away on business).I was most excited to see an iPhone application for the Slingbox that finally gave me the opportunity to watch Sky Sports Super Sunday whilst sat outside the women’s changing room at Next or the feeding room at Mothercare.
Imagine my dismay, then, when not only did the iPhone application recently appear at the extortionate price of £17.99, but it also only works on Wi-Fi and not 3G!So when I am at home with full access to my large screen TV, I can use my home Wi-Fi connection to stream TV to my little iPhone screen.However, when I am out at the weekend shopping for women’s clothes and Henry’s anal cream the iPhone app is no good to me whatsoever!Shame on SlingMedia for allowing Apple and/or the mobile networks to render their application completely useless.
Don’t you just hate it when you cycle your child to the local strip club, and then you have to find somewhere to lock up your bike?Well struggle no more, because there is a new bike on the block called the Taga.It’s a bike with a child seat that quickly converts into a pushchair – pure genius!Now your little boy can watch the dancing girls from the comfort of his throne, and you’ll never need to take a bike lock with you.
Henry and I are hoping to have a weekend test drive of the Taga in July. If we do, we’ll be sure to tell you all about it right here.
Babies are renowned for chewing through anything that comes in their way – fingers, arms, wooden furniture, razor wire – and it can be pretty annoying when they chew through one of your favourite Dadgets.Watches are at particularly high risk when cuddling your child, so how about a solid Dadget watch that can also help with fatherhood’s other challenges – saving the environment for your offspring, and being on time wherever you go.
The snappily titled ‘Casio GW-056E-3VER Radio-Controlled Solar G-Shock’ is my Dadget watch of choice.Being of G-Shock pedigree means that it is resistant to slobber, milk-teeth, and milkshake blenders.The ‘Radio-Controlled’ aspect means that it automatically sets the time according to atomic clock transmitters through the UK and Europe.While having a child will make you late for everything, at least you’ll know exactly how late you are.Finally, the watch battery is charged by the sun courtesy of a solar panel on the watch face.So you will be doing your bit for the environment as you should never have to replace the battery.
I managed to import one of these fine watches from an eBay seller in Germany, but in the UK you’ll have to settle for the 1VER version which has a black-on-white LCD display rather than the snazzier white-on-black reverse display of the 3VER.Regardless, both watches both have the same great set of features and, in my opinion, look far more stylish than most of the chunky G-Shock watches that Casio tends to produce.
The 3VER works exactly as expected: it picks up the UK time signal with no trouble and gives me perfect timekeeping all day long; there is a charge indicator for the battery that went up to full after being worn outdoors during a couple of days of sunshine; and Henry has chewed it, spat on it, and given it dirty looks, all without any degradation in its desirable Dadget appearance.What more could a Daddy want?
No, no, no – not her bicycle, her menstrual cycle!For generations men have been suffering at the vicious hands of our lady-folk’s egg-dropping routine, but now it’s time to fight back and earn some Dadgets for our centuries of hardship.
The key to this tip is knowing your wife’s cycle, so I suggest investing in a pocket calendar or some clever iPhone application (search the app store for something like “How can I track when my wife is going to turn into a crazed lunatic each month”).Armed with this information, you’ll know the best time to bite.
Now you might expect my next piece of advice to be based on asking for Dadget-purchase authority when she is not in her monthly mood.In fact, I encourage you to do exactly the opposite.Whip out that huge list of elaborate and expensive Dadgets that you know she’ll never approve, and ask her at the worst possible time of the month.Not only will she say ‘No’ to each and every one of your suggestions, but she’ll also singe your eyebrows with the flames coming from her mouth.
Now to the real beauty of the plan.Later in the month, when she’s over the she-devil phase, ask her to sign off on a more realistic Dadget.Any initial reluctance can be overcome by the body of evidence that she flat-refused 20 other purchases you proposed only last week, and ended up pinning you against the wall with a meat cleaver during the discussion.Guilt will ensue, and approval will follow.
“Darling, muffin-pie – do you mind me buying a Nintendo Wii?Henry would love it!”
“No. He’s only 10 months old, don’t be so ridiculous.”
“But only last week you refused to buy Henry that battery-powered Jeep convertible and the video wall for his bedroom.Don’t you remember how you swore at me so viciously while you were saying ‘no’?”
“I…er…well, I suppose a Wii would be OK.I’m sorry for being such a grump. And pick up a new torch for the car while you’re shopping, darling.”
“Your kindness reflects glowingly in the font of your beauty.”
Our Y-Cam Knight continues to impress (read my full review here).Here’s a screen grab from my iPhone from a few weeks ago, showing our cheeky little boy in all of his glory.
Sadly, Henry is now able to climb up the sides of his cot, so the Y-Cam has had to beat a hasty retreat to the top of his wardrobe.Rather than these great close-ups we now have a wide angle view of his bedroom, and we have to be content with seeing his little body wriggling through the bars of his cot.Time for Y-Cam to provide a version with a decent zoom lens?
We’ve all been there – you’ve been caught in the breastfeeding room having a sneaky look, and you need to make a swift getaway from the fuzz.As you make your escape with your pushchair and baby, the rozzers deploy their stinger device, burst your tyres, and lock you up for being the pervert that you are.
Avoid such inconveniences by using some Tube Seal (Halfords, £7.99).Simply inject this gooey substance into your pushchair’s inflatable tyres, and they become immune to punctures from stinger devices.It worked great for our Jané Slalom Pro pushchair, which was getting frequent punctures from rose thorns, nails and other sharp objects that we encounter on our travels.The added bonus is that I can now go back to catching a bit of nipple without any fear of the stinger.
Tell yourself that you’re a modern father who is fully in touch with his sexuality.You also enjoy cuddles with your baby, and the Daddy HeartString Baby’s Companion might just be able to stop your child from chewing your face.
Tell your wife that just because you are wearing a necklace it does not mean that she can start buying you pink shirts.
The HeartString Baby’s Companion (HBC) is essentially a lump of plastic on a necklace for your baby to touch, chew and yank on while they are breastfeeding or cuddling you.I have limited lactation powers but I do enjoy a good cuddle with Henry, so I offered to give the ‘Daddy’ version a go.
Reassuringly, the lump of plastic is made of well-researched ‘safe’ materials.The HeartString web site impressively proclaims that the material is made to ASTM, CPSIA, MSDS and FDA standards.Well, thank F*CK for that.The necklace is also pretty special – it’s a non-toxic organic cotton lanyard that has a special safety-release connector to stop your little pride and joy from inadvertently garrotting you.The whole package comes with a nice little cotton bag to keep it safe and clean.
I feel so used
The standard HBC, for parents with breasts, comes in a heart shape with many pastel shades to choose from.For the special ‘Daddy’ version it comes in a black and white disc.I do feel a little stereotyped here – just because it’s black I’m supposed to be impressed?When you’re trying to get blokes to wear a necklace you really need to work a little harder than this.I’d suggest bundling the HBC with a Taser and some pepper spray to help you deal with the inevitable teasing.
Chew on this, son
So regardless of any philosophical debate on necklaces and manhood, how does the HBC actually work in practice?Well, at 9 months old Henry is increasingly difficult to keep still, and so I’ve been trying the HBC as a device to stop him from leaping from my arms whenever I hold him for more than 30 seconds.In that role it has performed pretty well, and it usually keeps his attention for a couple of minutes.He stares at it while passing between his hands and he also enjoys chewing it with his solitary tooth.The plastic seems to hold up fairly well against this treatment, although Henry’s tooth does leave permanent indentations on the surface.
I have also put the HBC to good use when changing Henry into his pyjamas at night.When I lay him on his back and begin to undress him, he instinctively tries to roll over and begin crawling unless I can come up with a good distraction.Having the HBC dangling from my neck while I’m leaning over does seem to do the trick more often than not, although in this case any old necklace would probably do the trick.
Diamonds are for babies
So what is the downside of the HBC?Well, as well as the fundamental problem of guys wearing necklaces, there is also a strong possibility that regular HBC use will result in your child developing quite a necklace-chewing habit.Diamonds, pearls, emeralds – they could all become fair game, and your sweet little baby could soon be tasting the odd carat or two.
Dadgets.info says that if you can bear to wear a necklace, then you might find some good uses for the HeartString Baby’s Companion.If only the manufactures could spend some time making it more manly (rather than just making it black) then it could develop into an essential Daddy Dadget.
Grin like a child when your baby cuddles you for longer because he has something nearby to grab on and chew, other than your ear.
Cry like a baby at the fact that you are actually wearing a necklace.And the fact that your baby will destroy all other necklaces from this day forward.
Yesterday we had the pleasure of meeting up with Stefan Korn of DIYFather.com and WebFund during a family trip to London.Some of you may know that DIYfather.com already publishes some of our Dadgets.info articles – Henry and I are both avid reader’s of their site!
It was a great opportunity to get together with Stefan and chat about fatherhood, writing, and the British weather, whilst soaking up some sunshine and tourist sights.It was particularly interesting to hear all about Stefan’s promotion of the DIYfather.com book ‘Call Me Dad’ which is now available across the globe as a fine source of information and entertainment for all new dads.
We also had the chance to talk about some exciting new ventures for DIYfather.com including a writing project that I hope to be involved with.Hopefully all will be revealed by the end of the year!
As a footnote, yesterday also presented me with the most challenging nappy change of my short parenting career.A bumpy train journey, a tiny train toilet, a small and rock-hard changing table, a very wriggly baby, and a soap dispenser within easy reach of Henry’s flailing hands.Oh, what fun we had.Having said all that, I must give credit to South West Trains for even having baby changing facilities, so well done to them!
As well as helping his Daddy out with Dadget reviews, my little Henry also helps his Mummy to review coffee shops for their baby-friendliness.
Babies are renowned for chewing through anything that comes in their way – fingers, arms, wooden furniture, razor wire – and it can be pretty annoying when they chew through one of your favourite Dadgets.
The snappily titled ‘Casio GW-056E-3VER Radio-Controlled Solar G-Shock’ is my Dadget watch of choice.
I managed to import one of these fine watches from an eBay seller in Germany, but in the UK you’ll have to settle for the 
The 3VER works exactly as expected: it picks up the UK time signal with no trouble and gives me perfect timekeeping all day long; there is a charge indicator for the battery that went up to full after being worn outdoors during a couple of days of sunshine; and Henry has chewed it, spat on it, and given it dirty looks, all without any degradation in its desirable Dadget appearance.
The key to this tip is knowing your wife’s cycle, so I suggest investing in a pocket calendar or some clever iPhone application (search the app store for something like “How can I track when my wife is going to turn into a crazed lunatic each month”).
We’ve all been there – you’ve been caught in the breastfeeding room having a sneaky look, and you need to make a swift getaway from the fuzz.
The standard HBC, for parents with breasts, comes in a heart shape with many pastel shades to choose from.
I have also put the HBC to good use when changing Henry into his pyjamas at night.
Yesterday we had the pleasure of meeting up with Stefan Korn of 
