I am a French mum in Bondi.
I’ve been happily living in Australia for the last decade.
I’ve had my 3 beautiful, gorgeously healthy kids here. “A la natural” as we like to say it: all drug free, despite 2 of them being ultra chubby, my girl was even born in the water.
I love them, I miss them when they are at school/ daycare, they drive me nuts when they are around...   I have a pretty normal life.                                               
Originally, I come from a small village in the South East of France.
Not exactly Provence, not exactly the Southern Alps and not exactly Cannes or Saint Tropez nor the Riviera. Somewhere in between. And this is where my happy childhood lives. For ever.
Where olive trees, lavender, jeunets and cicadas are.
This village, Seillans to name it,  before living “for and with” tourists from all over the world, built its “glory” on a perfume and fragrances factory. Some of the best roses essences for Dior and Chanel  were made there. 100s year ago.
This era is long gone*, never new it personally, despite what my kids tend to think: I didn’t meet dinosaurs either..

Meeting visitors from other countries and continents made me want to travel, often and far. This is partially how, the father of my kids, - also a childhood friend but not a high school sweetheart- and I ended up living in sunny Sydney.
10+ years in and I am trying to finally mix the 2 parts of me.
Do I miss France? Not really. Not at the moment. Not anymore.
I would love to have my family and childhood/sister-like friends near me. But this is not their plans, yet. I haven’t said my last word on this.
I’m not homesick.
However, some days, I wish I could go down the road, to the shop and buy the products I know all my friends are using for their kids.
And all their mums before them.
I occasionally miss the roots, the traditional way of living back there.

I guess globalisation is not total and I can’t blame it.
That’s what creates diversity. And I love it. I adore it.
Anyway, that is a bigger subject..
Back to my kids life and what I miss from the country where I grew up.
Bread is getting really good now in the area, crepes are at each and every corner in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney, cheese is good too, fashion is definitely getting better …
So what do I need?
When my first bub was born I was offered by my mother -in-law, a large bottle of Liniment Oleo-calcaire.
A bottle of what? Even for Frenchies, it is unpronounceable.
A lotion, you squirt on a cotton pad and clean your baby’s bum.
No wipes, no chemicals, and no lukewarm water spilled.
You squirt, you clean and you put the fresh nappy back on. Et voila!
You know the saying, “ if the mountain won’t come…”
I have been doing this lotion in my own kitchen for my own kiddos for years.
I now have a "little bit" of time, energy and focus to realise that this is something other mums in Australia don't know they are missing on.

There comes the original idea for creating my own baby liniment: Petit Kiddo Baby Bum Cleanser.

*note that it’s actually coming back. More on this subject soon.

Morgan came naturally on board: we met totally randomly at the antenatal course for our first borns almost 10 years ago.

When the midwifes in charge of the first meeting asked us to introduce ourselves to the person sitting next to us, Morgan and I had our first chat.

10 years on, I still remember the boots she was wearing on that Wednesday night.

We have now 3 kids each, we have moved cities - for us-  and countries - for them- but never lost the bond we built that day and maintain ours and our kids' friendship. And it turns out our other halves get along very well too.

Morgan is French and Australian. She was a dedicated user of the French liniment for her girls, just like me. 

There was no better fit.

We are the same but different: where I bring my marketing and business background, she adds the rigour and vision of the experienced and internationally qualified architect that she is.

Petit Kiddo Baby Bum Cleanser is our very own Australian version of the French beloved Liniment Oleo-calcaire. This is an old times’ French formula.
Used on babies' bums, it has demonstrated fabulous results:  cleanses, moisturises and helps preventing red bums and nappy rashes.

What is it?

The version I was doing in my kitchen is simple:  mixing oil and lime water  (also known as calcium hydroxide solution) in equal doses for a few minutes, in a blender.
This makes a thick ivory coloured cream. The colour and consistency will vary depending on the oil you choose to use.
And there you are: your oleo-calcareous liniment is ready to be used.
Transfer into a sanitised bottle.
Use it as often as you would use wipes.
This homemade version lasts for a week and it is important to shake it at every single use!

How to use it?

Shake it,
Squirt some liniment on a cotton pad or a wash cloth,
Wipe your baby’s bottom with the pad,
Use the pad to remove the excess of liniment. A thin layer of olive oil will remain on the skin, acting like a barrier.
That’s it. No rinse required.

How does this work ?

What happens when you mix our 2 main ingredients?  There is a “chemical reaction” similar to  when you make a bar of soap  called saponification.
Both the calcium hydroxide solution and oil disappear to create a new component, a natural surfactant, which has incredible cleansing properties.
The pH of our liniment, like a “moisturising/ ultra rich soap” is basic and will balance perfectly the acid pH of the urine on the baby’s bum skin,. For better protection, do not rinse.
Oleo-calcareous liniments have been used for decades on babies’ bums in France and have shown outstanding results, however, skins are all differents, it is always recommended to patch test before use.
This was a crash course on how to make your own, but you can also get our already made Liniment Baby Bum Cleanser here.
Should you need to learn more about liniment in general, this website is a gold mine: http://www.oleassence.fr
Mind you though, it’s in French. You could use your web browser translator but trust me, it doesn’t always make “real” sentences.