“Thea is a loving, thoughtful girl with a huge heart. She loves reading, writing stories, playing piano and learning about everything and anything. But she’s also a bit of a tomboy and loves playing football. Ethan  is literally a “bundle of joy”. He is fun, perhaps a bit too exuberant sometimes, but he is also very curious, imaginative and loving. He enjoys reading, sports, doing intricate drawings and one day –through lots of practice- would like to become as wise as Yoda”, writes Yanina Aubrey about her children. A Designer & Social Entrepreneur, Yanina is the force behind the organic brand Aravore.

Thea & Ethan

What do you want to be when you grow up Thea: A Teacher, to teach science. Ethan: A scientist, to do experiments, mix things up and see what comes up!

Someone you admire?  Thea: Amelia Earhart & Amy Johnson, because they were very smart and brave. Ethan: Mummy, daddy & Yoda.

What is your big dream? Thea: To be magic in some way. Ethan: To go on a big adventure to find treasures, magic things, things that are special.

Are you scared of anything? Thea: No. Ethan: No, not even of nightmares…

What makes you laugh Thea: My brother Ethan & my abuelo (grandpa). Joke: Knock, knock. Who’s there? Cows go. Cows go who? Cows don’t go who, Cows go moo! Ethan: Things that my sister Thea says. Joke: Why did the chicken cross the road? Because he wanted to get to the other side!

Your favourite films and books Thea: Book: Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets. Film: Nanny McPhee Ethan: Book: The Jack & Annie collection. Film: Harry Potter.

Something you did recently that you really loved Thea: Visiting my great-grandmother. Because I love her and because she has a little shop full of toys! Ethan: Making a monster out of recycled things at school. It was really cool.

The best holidays you ever had ? Thea: When my grandpa turned 70 and the whole family stayed in a big house in Dorset and I got to play with my cousins all day. Ethan: All of them! Going to the beach in Wales, camping in Norwich, horse riding in Paraguay…

A place that you would dream to visit  Thea: Paris – because I want to see the Eiffel Tower & want to learn French. New York –because daddy goes there all the time and there are lots of skyscrapers. Canada – because mummy used to live there. Ethan: New York – because I love skyscrapers and we are going there soon.

Your favorite belonging Thea: My journal, a scrapbook that my aunty Jo made for me and my Harry Potter book collection. Ethan: My Space Explorer Kit (which actually belongs to Thea!!). My Spider Man.

The next item you would so dearly love to get Thea: A cello. Ethan: A computer

If you had a magic wand, what would you do with it right now? Thea: Hmm… travel through time and see what it was like in the olden days… See what it was like for the children during WWII. I think I would also like to be a good witch like Hermione from Harry Potter. Ethan: Make magic! I would make lots of cool stuff to put inside my toy box.

Yanina

A place you saw when you were a child, and that made its mark on you The Atacama desert. We travelled through it with my family when I was about 12. I remember being enchanted by its light and vastness. Another amazing place was “The Valley of the Moon” in Bolivia, in the outskirts of La Paz. The place has this feeling of otherworldliness which is mesmerizing. I would love to take my kids there one day.

The place you love near your home I love all the woods in this part of North London. From Highgate Woods to Kenwood Park. They are fantastic to visit with the whole family during any season. In London one is spoilt for choice when it comes to museums, but I think that a big family favourite is the British Museum, where there is always so much to explore and discover.

Where do you dream to go for your next family holiday We have many dream destinations :) but we are probably going to NY soon, which I am very excited about as it will be the first time for both kids and I can’t wait to see their faces when they see the city’s skyline for the first time.  I would also love to take them to Taiwan where I met Tom (my husband).

A film that you saw recently and that staid with you? “Las Acacias”, a low budget Argentinian-Paraguayan production that received the Camera d’Or at Cannes last year. It is a very slow-paced road movie that nevertheless manages to draw you right in. I enjoyed the photography, the silences and the fantastic performances, including the gorgeous little Bolivian actor that played the baby. Try and catch it at the BFI if you can: http://www.bfi.org.uk/lff/node/1726

The film that you love to see with the whole family? I love watching old films like The Railway Children, The Secret Garden, The Neverending Story, The Sound of Music…

The book on your bedside table I have a whole pile! I try to make my bedroom as low tech as possible – as I am a complete information junky and find it really difficult to switch off… And yet, somehow I still manage to build a tower or reading material week after week, which obviously doesn’t help… At the moment, I have the latest issue of Monocle, the weekend edition of the WSJ, The Finkler Question by Howard Jacobson, The Art of Looking Sideways by Alan Fletcher, a Brazilian edition of Vogue Home, and the list goes on and on…

The children’s brands your cherish Other than Aravore :) I like the clean lines of Pop Up Shop –which we also stock in our London shop- and a couple of other brands like Kidscase and Imps & Elfs that have also managed to make sustainability a core part of their proposition, without sacrificing style & design.

The children’s stores you love to visit and buy from I don’t have a huge amount of time to shop these days, but I love the new children’s boutique at Liberty’s: Little Liberty. Whenever I am in Florence, I always visit Grevi on Via delle Spade, they have the most fantastic hats. In Buenos Aires I tend to stop by Little Akiabara. I also like rummaging through vintage clothing shops all over the world.

Last thing you bought for your child An illustrated Atlas for Ethan, a new bunch of piano score sheets for Thea.

Favourite pieces in your child’s wardrobe Ethan: Aravore skinny chinos & grey Pop Up Shop polo neck top. Thea: a Limited Edition Aravore dress featuring a gorgeous vintage Chinese brocade that I gave her for her birthday.

What do you buy online?  Books! From Abe Books, a great site to find rare and collectible items. I also really like Mr. Porter and shop there for Tom and I am also a fun of its sister site Net-a-porter.

A website that inspires you Too many to list but I regularly check www.ted.com, http://editd.com , The Style Files, www.forma.com.py,  http://bloesem.blogs.com/ & for kids fashion & lifestyle:  http://www.littlebigmagazine.com , http://bkids.typepad.com , BozAround, Little Scandinavian, TheJnr, Smudgetikka, Smaller, Paul et Paula, http://kickcanandconkers.blogspot.co.uk/ , Novalee… and of course your own!

Something that made you laugh out loudly recently? My kids, every day.