Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Day & Night (GIVEAWAY!)

So much of the parenting experience, especially when it’s presented in the media, is tailored to women. So when I was invited to attend a Tommee Tippee launch party for their new Perfect Prep Day & Night machine, and was told that they specifically were going to highlight gay dads who used surrogacy, I knew I couldn’t miss out.

With the promise of delicious food and fabulous mommy/daddy bloggers, I threw on my fiercest suit and headed to The Pavilion Restaurant in Sydney.

I got to the event quite early, so I decided to strut around the Royal Botanic Gardens and make some Instagram Stories. Because, duh.

The event kicked off with a cocktail hour, so I was introduced to literally all of the most successful parent influencers in Sydney before the event even began. I was starstruck. I instantly met EmmyLou Maccarthy from EmmyLou Loves, who I’ve been stalking on Instagram for months. I also had lovely conversations with Nama Winston from MamaMia, Tigga Natoli from Twin Tales and Bump Day Spa, Hadassah Hines from Three Little Hines, and Mel from Healing Gracie’s Gut.

If I’m being completely honest with you, I was a little sceptical when the event kicked off. I work in advertising for a living, so when I hear “product launch”, I immediately imagine a senior marketing executive reading flashcards and performing a bland product demonstration to a room of sleepy magazine editors.

Luckily, this event was the exact opposite of that.

Tommee Tippee made the smart decision of casting EmmyLou as their MC. She’s as real as a host can get. Not only was she informative and inspiring, but she was authentic and hilarious at every beat. It’s really easy when you’re talking about parenting to either dwell in the negative or overhype the positive, so I was relieved that they chose someone who was as comfortable and confident talking about the realitites of parenting as EmmyLou is. Immediately I felt like I was in a room with a bunch of friends who just wanted to have seriously juicy conversations about what it’s actually like to be a parent.

She interviewed my cost-host of The Baby Bubble podcast, Zoe Marshall, as well as Jennifer Hamilton from Wot Baby, Karen Faulkner from Nurture Parenting, and Sam Everingham from Families Through Surrogacy. Every one of them brought a different energy, perspective, and area of expertise to the dialogue.

Oh, and guess what? We actually used Karen Faulkner as a sleep specialist when we first moved to Australia. We were so sleep deprived and lost when we first called her, that I didn’t recognize her face when I saw her on the panel. But the moment she started talking, I had immediate flashbacks and knew it was her. Small world, huh?!

What I loved most about the Q&A – other than the fact that Sam was a gay dad who brought twins into the world via surrogacy like we did –  was that while it did touch on topics specifically related to the product (feeding and sleeping), they let the conversation flow naturally into other areas of interest. This had me forgetting that I was even at a product launch, which is the best way to run an event.

There were far too many subjects discussed during that Q&A for me to do a recap justice, so I’ll just leave you with the moment that spoke to me the most. Sam was asked if parents should be concerned about using formula if breast milk isn’t an option. I loved his honesty. Just like us, breast milk wasn’t an obvious option for Sam. He began with an important caveat that there are “many options available to first-time gay parents” or for parents who can’t or don’t want to breastfeed, including donor banks. And while there are numerous studies that state the power of breastmilk during the first few weeks of life, that gay parents like him shouldn’t worry about using formula. It’s a safe and trusted alternative that millions of parents use daily.

We were lucky enough that our surrogate pumped for us for the first few months, shipping frozen milk across the country every few days. But when that supply ran out, we transitioned to formula. Will our babies score lower on their their exams in Year 12? Who knows. But for now, they seem to be thriving!

Then it was time for the product demonstration. You know those moments in life where you see something and think, “Where the hell was that when I needed it?” Yeah, that’s exactly how I felt watching her use the Perfect Prep Day & Night machine.

EmmyLou walked the audience through the process of turning the machine on and making a perfect bottle. I won’t bore you with every nitty gritty detail, but here are the seven key features that impressed me most:

1. It takes just two minutes to fully prepared your bottle – both to the perfect volume and the perfect temperature.
2. The machine dispenses an initial “hot shot” of water that kills any bacteria that may be present in the formula. That shot of hot water also helps to dissolve the formula quickly and easily, so say goodbye to those chunky lumps in the bottom of the bottle.
3. The machine has a digital display that prompts you along the way – so first-time users and sleep deprived parents don’t need to guess.
4. There’s a “Night Time Glow” that shines gently, making it much easier to read the machine prompts at night.
5. There is a “Sleep Friendly Volume Control”, which silently prepares the bottle so you don’t wake up your baby at night.
6. It’s designed for use with water straight from the tap. Their filtration membrane removes bacteria and other contaminants, ensuring that your water is safe, just like boiled water from your kettle.
7. You can get it exclusively at Big W!

Impressive, isn’t it?

I had to run to a meeting right after the product demonstration, but before I could leave, the team at Tommee Tippee gifted me a few things. Unfortunately, my babies have moved passed formula, so I don’t have a need for the products anymore. That’s where you come in…

I’m doing my VERY FIRST GIVEAWAY!

If you live in Australia, simply jump on over to my Instagram account, give me a follow if you haven’t already, and tag a friend (or two or three or four) on → THIS POST ←. I’ll be choosing a lucky winner at random using Comment Picker on Monday the 4th at 7:00 PM, so help me spread the word! Every tagged friend in a separate comment counts as a new entry!

The winner will receive this $310.50 package:

• Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Day & Night ($220)
• Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Pouch & Bottle Warmer ($80)
• Tommee Tippee Advanced Anti-Colic Bottle 260mL ($10.50)

Good luck, friends. And in the meantime, don’t forget to stay crafty!

DISCLOSURE: While I was compensated for attending this event and gifted product, I was not asked to write this post or pushed to do a giveaway. All of the above information and opinions are mine and mine alone, and I wrote this because I genuinely enjoyed the event and wished I had the product when I was a stay-at-home parent.