Horrible Histories Toys Review

Horrible Histories is a popular childrens TV show which for the past 5 years has been encouraging childrens love of history by incorporating humour to make the gruesome facts from the past appealing to everyone

Now fans of the hit show can build their own battles and re enact great scenes from historic battlefields with the brand new range of toys from Worlds Apart.

The new Horrible History toys are, as you would expect, lots of fun, with the main idea behind them to fling pigs with the catapult into your opponents battlefield and knock over their men.

The starter sets retail at £14.99 and contain everything you need to get going with a catapult and several figures and collectors cards.

There are Roman and Egyptian starter packs available, in the Egyptian pack you get to lead your army with the most powerful Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesse the great, you also get 2 soldiers and 2 peasants, along with removable armour and weapons, a score board and 2 collectors cards, flying pigs and the all important catapult. In the Roman starter set you get to lead the battle with Julius Caesar.

Also available are additional battle packs retailing at £9.99 which are great to boost your army,and come with an extra 4 peasants and 2 soldiers and a special golden hero figure.

You can collect and build up your very own fictional army mixing together characters such as Blackbeard the pirate, William the conqueror, Viking Berserker and Tudor Executioner. in single blind booster packs priced at £1.99 they make great pocket money toys

All characters heads remove, which my children thought was great, and the base stands double up as point scores. The different colour bases give different amounts of points, and as you knock down your opponents figures, you can take the base 'groat' and notch up your score peg accordingly.

The score peg is as fun as the rest of the figures with a stake to place characters heads each time you reach 10 points, and Rattus to move along to mark your score.

The toys are all very well made, with great attention to detail to make them instantly recognisable as characters from the show.
The catapult is good quality, and comes ready assembled, however you do need to attach the supplied elastic band in order to make it work correctly. Once you have attached the band you can easily fling pigs, adjusting the power to suit your need, with practise you really can get good at knocking over the enemy!

These toys really are great fun, with the catapulting pigs and familiar characters from the show, abit of grizzle death mixed in with the removable heads the whole concept appeals to children of all ages.

There is plenty of scope to adapt the rules, and children can collect the figures, or play with the toys or battle using the collectors cards.

The collectors cards each have a historic fact on them making them a great way of learning about the characters without even realising, and each card gives extra tactics which help you beat the enemy so children love them and want to collect and read them.


We really love these toys and are sure they will be a big hit with lots of children everywhere, look out for them now in Toys R us and other good toys shops or take a look at the whole range online www.horriblehistoriestoys.co.uk

Alternative Easter gifts - ones that are not chocolate!

Easter is really fast approaching but if you are still not sure what to buy your little ones this year then here is a few great last minute  Easter gift ideas that are not Chocolate!

Easter is a funny celebration for me, and I am never quite sure how much to celebrate, when we were little my Gran always used to buy us something as an Easter gift that was not a chocolate egg, these ranged from small token gifts to very extravagant presents when I was around 15 she treated me to a flying lesson in a light aircraft! But normally it was nice little gifts, small gimmicks ranging from cuddly rabbits to new socks, and as children we didn't really get Easter Eggs from many other people my mum and dad would buy us one, but not a huge massive fancy one like some you see in the shops these days, just a standard cadburys smarties egg or such like, then we'd get maybe one or 2 other small eggs from aunts and uncles.

My childhood Easters seemed a good balance, and I try to do similar for my own children, I do buy them chocolate, we often have an Easter Egg Hunt, but I don't like to go overboard on the choclate treats and always like different gift ideas to suggest to granparents and family. I was please to recieve this lovely selection of toys which reminded me alot of the gifts I used to love to recieve as a child.

I posted reviews for the StarWars Angry Bird Plush toy and Ravensburger Rabbit Jigsaw the other week, both of which are perfect Easter gifts for the slightly older children, the awkward tweens who do still love toys but are getting abit old for traditional toys and games.

Other great ideas for children are little collectable gifts sch as shoulder Buddies, these are loved by my 9 year old daughter.

We first heard about Shoulder Buddies back in May 2012, these funny little creatures make a great gift idea, perfect addition to an Easter Basket or a prize in a treasure hunt if you don't fancy all the chocolate!

Cute little creatures are much like the Trolls from the 90's with their long hair, but these little buddies are clever because they can connect through clothing to their magic spot, which is a magnetic board. This holds them in position and makes them a great novelty to children.

Each Shoulder buddie has their own personality and 'smart' The smarts are little caring mottos. Each series of Shoulder buddies has several different coloured buddies to collect. There has just been a new series released for 2013 and even a hello kitty range.

Shoulder Buddies are priced around £5 each and available from most good shops.

Other perfect gifts are the Schleich range of figures, there is sure to be something perfect for every one included in the wonderful range, we have reviewed the dinosaurs which still are a huge hit, with their amazing realism and detail, do take a look at the photos I took of the dinosaurs last year here

New for 2013 Schleich have brought out a great selection of beautiful farm animals.

Included in this brand new selection are swans, goats, playful kittens beautiful rabbits horses and even some very cute boxer dogs!

Schleich figures are always well loved by children, tiny in size but big in detail these pocket money and pocket sized toys are classic favourites and can be enjoyed as a one off piece or you can build up a collection to make the perfect visual role playing game.

For younger children however a soft cuddly toy might be more appreciated, and these cute cuddly sheep make the most ideal Easter gift.


The range by Nici is lovely,  they have some beautiful sheep soft toys in their Jolly Mah range, This adorable sheep comes in lots of different outfits, but always has his dangley blue sleepy hat on. He is joined by his friend the cute green frog and sometimes the wolf, Jolly Mah Sleepy Sheep can be found on mugs, backpacks and key rings as well as several different sized cuddly toys.

This really is a lovely range and these toys are top quality soft and fleecy they are perfect to snuggle for children from the youngest to the oldest.

Another lovely range of toys which I often used to receive, is Sylvanian Families


Sylvanian Failies are such a fantastic range and with them having so many families and furniture sets they make the perfect gift for occasions like Easter where you want to give something which will be loved and appreciated, and you can grow your collection further for birthdays and Christmas.

Sylvanian Families have been around for 25 years now, and I still have my old collection, I am pleased to see these figures making a come back and with the same quality and attention to detail as they have always had.

The Dale Sheep family would be ideal as an Easter gift, with  sheep being so fitting for spring. I love that the Dale sheep family have lots of traditional detail to the clothes and the soft fur that I loved so much as a child.

Every detail with Sylvanian Families is thought about and it makes them have so much play factor, all clothes can be removed which children always seem to love to do, and they can bedn at the hips so they can sit down. Their hands have a grip too which makes the able to hold and interact with their surroundings, and the play sets available are always so amazing with lots and lots of individual detaled pieces really giving children the chance to recreate a whole new world. I think I will always love Sylvanaian families, they are just simply one of the best figurines for children.

We were sent all of these products to review, I love them all and hope this has given you some last minute gift ideas that will be loved by children, young or old this Easter.

Skylander WINNERS Announced!

Thank you to everyone who entered my Skyland Competition

I gave each entry a number, there were 24 entries. I put the numbers into a hat and got my daughter to draw out three numbers.

Congratulations go to these three lucky entries!

I will be contacting the winners today, or if you see your name here please contact me via Email so I can collect your delivery Information 

20 - Victoria thurgood
5 -  Shahnaz MummyBeBeautiful
15 - Gordon MacPherson

Thanks again everyone I hope that you all enjoy playing with this very special limited edition Chop Chop!

Fun Easter Egg Hunt - Print out!

I love to do treasure hunts, they are a great boredom buster, but Easter is a perfect excuse to set up a really fun Treasure hunt, which takes only a few minutes to set up but can provide loads of fun!

This year the weather may not be good enough to do a hunt in the garden, so instead I am going to set up a treasure hunt inside for the children to follow in order to find their Easter Gifts.

I have wrote out a series of riddle style clues which take the children from one place to the next, each time they follow the clue correctly they will find the next clue and a couple of small chocolates. When they have completed the whole challenge they will come to their main Easter Gift. 

This style of Easter Egg hunt is so quick and easy to get organised and is very cheap, all you need is some paper for the clues, maybe a bucket or goodie bag and a few chocolate surprises.

We went along to Poundland to see their amazing selection of Easter Eggs and Chocolate treats, as their ambassadors we were sent some vouchers to help us put on our Easter Hunt. Poundland had a great range of cheap Easter gifts with lots of lovely baskets and goodie bags which are perfect for this type of  Easter hunt.

They have a great range of Large Easter Eggs for the final Prize, and lots of little chocolates to place around the house along with your clues.

The children always really enjoy solving the riddles and running along from one place to the next, it helps build team work too as they  take it in turns to read out the clue when they get to the next spot, filling up their goodie bags as they go along.

We picked up some goodie bags from Poundland 2 bags for £1 and some plastic buckets for £1 each, we also brought some choclate bunnies, Easter lollies and hollow eggs, so we have loads of surprises to places along our treasure hunt so we could invite the cousins along and have plenty of supplies.

If you are thinking of having a Easter Treasure hunt and are struggling to think up riddles as clues here is a free printable page with the clues I have wrote out to use this year in preparation for our Easter Egg hunt, you can download this by Right clicking on the image and then selecting 'Save Image As' and then printing it from your computer, or you can simply copy out the riddles by hand.

The Treasure hunt clues take the children all over the house, and are all easy enough for different aged children to solve.

 I have put them in order so they have to go from one end of our house to another without having too many close together, which means the children take abit longer and don't spot the next clue before they have solved the riddle!

But you can jumble the clues up to suit your own house, The first clue takes them to the Shoe cupboard to find their wellingtons as I thought this was fitting seems as we have had such snowy weather recently! Then They are taken to the toilet, and then to the clock... and so on and so forth, The last message is taking them to the washing machine and washing basket which will be where their big Eggs are hiding.

Do you do hunts like this with your children?

Snowy Sunday!

Wierd Weather!

This week it has been cold... so very very cold... and yesterday the snow started to fall but it was slush mushy horrible snow, it continued to fall all night tho and this morning there was a thick layer.

I do like the snow, but its March... I want the sun to shine and spring to be in the air, there is nothing nicer than the warm Easter break, and I do hope the weather improves over the next week so that we can enjoy the Easter Holidays (my children don't break up until Thursday so we are yet to begin our Easter half term break)

The weird and wonderful snow fall this morning when I was hoping for spring sunshine, daffodils and little lambs frolicking in the meadows made me think what the weather has been like in previous years.

In March 2012 we had weather that was warm enough for swimsuits and water bombs in the garden.

Granted it perhaps was abit of a heatwave last March but looking back though my photos from the last week of March from each year, it seems March certainly doesn't normally bring snow, in fact the last week in March and the first few weeks of April are often the nicest months of the year!

 In 2009 it was warm enough for the ice creams and T shirts with the doors open, in 2010 it was nice enough to pick flowers and play outdoors, and in 2011 it was sunny enough to enjoy trips out with our cousins at the local forestry centre.

I do hope this extended winter weather that we're experiences in 2013 means we are in for a lovely long hot June, July and August!

Cheap and Easy Easter Bonnet Craft ideas

Every year my youngest has a Easter Parade in school and so he has to make a Easter bonnet to wear on that day. With my very limited craft skills I often struggle to make a fun Easter hat easily without spending too much money!

You can see Last years bonnet on this post : Easter Crafting the unconventional way, which won Mikey 3rd place in the Best Bonnet award!

This year we have had a little helping hand from Poundland, as there ambassadors we were set a challenge to create an Easter Bonnet from their fantastic Easter range. They provided me with vouches and off we went to find some bargains to create the best Easter hat of all.


In my local Poundland store we found everything we needed, Poundland do a  great selection of Easter Arts and Crafts, along with different coloured Bonnets which make a perfect base to decorate, and make the whole bonnet decorating so much easier.

I decided to pick a yellow bonnet again, and thought it would be great to have decorative eggs hanging around the edge, abit like the Australia outback hats with corks on, Poundland had the perfect sized polystyrene eggs in a pack of 6 for £1.

I also picked up some pastel coloured tissue paper, some shredded purple decoration, Easter stickers, and a  paper chain making pack, and some all important glue from the non Easter craft section.

When I returned home and Mikey arrived back from school we set to work, other than the hanging eggs I wasn't sure what else we would do to decorate the bonnet, but Mikey instantly decided he wanted a nest on the top of his hat.

So he stuck down a handful of the shredded purple to the top of the hat, which wasn't that easy, but with plenty of glue it eventually stuck. We then cut one of the polystyrene eggs in half and placed one of the Easter stickers in the middle of the cracked egg.

Mikey then made the paper chains, which were really simple and very effective, with a lick and stick fastening he was able to make these completely by himself, and the pack contained plenty of pre printed sheets to make a very long chain!

We used just a few sheets and fastened the paper chain around the edge of the bonnet.

To fasten the hanging eggs I used scissors to make a small hole in the base of the hat and threaded the eggs ribbon through the hole and secured them in place with a dab of glue.

Mikey loves his bonnet and can't wait to take it to school next week. If you are also looking for inspiration and ways to make a quick Easter Bonnet then be sure to take a visit to your local poundland I am sure you will find plenty of craft supplies for all your Easter crafting ideas.

The Croods Movie Review

We were lucky enough to be invited along to the preview of The Croods 3D at our local Odeon Cinema, and so we went along to give our verdict on this new film.

We all throughly enjoyed the film, it was enjoyable for the whole family from my 5 year old to my 11 year old. If you are thinking of taking a trip to see it then here is our review.

The Croods is a Dreamworks animation from the creators of Madagasca.

It is all about the last surviving cavemen, who have managed to survive by following their fathers rules, the main one being that anything new is bad. They live thinking everything in life is to be feared, the starting sequences gives you a glimpse into their life with an action packed egg chase in order to get their breakfast!

But their simple life in their cave is to be changed when an Earthquake destroys the cave and they are forced to venture out of the world they know.

The film is beautifully animated the visuals are simply amazing, the 3D element really brings the show to life whilst not being too overpowering.

During the movie, you get to know the whole Crood family, with a dynamic much the same as modern day families which really helps you relate to the characters.

Grug is the protective father voiced by Nicolas Cage, Eep is the headstrong teenage daughter voiced by Emma Stone, she is the one who goes against Grugs rules and in doing so Meets Guy, who is a nomadic caveboy, where he may not be as physically strong as the Croods he comes up with great inventions and inspires everyone to follow the sun to Tomorrow.

Guy captures the Croods attention with his ability to make fire, and he saves them from a deadly swarm of piranha birds.  Eep is instantly attracted to Guy, but  Grug is not happy with his appearance and initially believes he can manage to find a safe new place to live without his help, but as they travel through new worlds it becomes apparent that the new ideas that Guy has are infact needed.

Other Family members include  Ugga the mum, baby Sandy, Thunk portraying the middle child, and Gran, who is very old and a bit of a burden on the family she adds such a great dash of humour.

The whole story is well played out, with enough funny laugh out lound bits and touching moments, it flows nicely with the progress from cavemen to thinking humans, cleverly thought out snippets make this a really enjoyable movie like where the Croods all find the joy of pets and they interact with the animals they encounter in new ways.

Heartfelt moments include the time Grug uses his strength to save the family, whilst not knowing if he himself will make it, Eep appreciating her fathers protectiveness and wanting to tell him that she really does love him inspire Grug to finally using his brain and invent something - a hug; named because it rhymes with Grug!

My three all equally enjoyed the film. Mikey who is 5, didn't quite follow the story as well as the others, but was excited by the lively characters and 3D visuals.

My elder two aged 11 and 9 loved everything about the film, and easily related to the characters and family dynamics.

The new paradise 'Tomorrow' reminded me very much like the forests in the film Avatar, with bright coloured plants and wilderness which seemed to come alive.

There were moments of actions but nothing too scary for younger viewers, and the animals were all very well detailed in a friendly manner.

The overall lasting theme of the movie was 'never be afraid' and a strong 'family bond' a really great notion for all children and adults alike.


The Croods is opening in all cinemas from March 22nd with a run time of just over an hour and a half  this is a great family film to go to see this Easter Holiday. It is everything you want for an enjoyable family movie, lots of action, humour and a story line which can be enjoyed by the youngest to the oldest viewers.

 We were provided free tickets to see The Croods to give our thoughts on the movie.

School Shoe Sorrow

It doesn't seem two minutes since the summer was over and everyone was returning to school after the long break, Christmas came and went in a blink of eyes and now we are on the brink of the new Summer term. It seems only a short while ago that I was frantically rushing around looking for new school uniforms, yet already the children seem to be outgrowing the clothes that were brought 6 months ago and the tops are looking considerably more worn!

Then this morning I found Chloes school shoes desperately needing replacing, they are only a few months old, but she is so very heavy on her feet and wears through the soles quickly. Not a great thing to come across at 8 o'clock on a Monday morning, why no one had noticed or she hadn't mentioned this to me on Friday I don't know.

Admittedly I brought her cheaper shoes this time, and now I am wishing I hadn't.

So today I am having a look for some good quality shoes, that hopefully will last abit longer, like the kids Startrite shoes, which may be a bit more expensive, but at least you know when you buy shoes from top branded names, that you are getting the best quality and they are made to last. Start Rite shoes have over 200 years of expertise and really are leaders in footwear for children, I have brought them in the past and always been very impressed with the quality.

Start Rite don't only do school shoes, in recent years they have used their knowledge to create a range which covers all your childrens needs, and they do sizes to fit children upto the age of 12 There range includes shoes to match all occasions from formal days to casual times at the beach too, I think I will have to start planning the summer season footwear with the children now that we are starting to get abit of sun.

 This is a sponsored post - but all opinions are my own
 - yep they really are Chloes school shoes that I found this morning!

WIN A EXCLUSIVE SKYLANDER FIGURE

We love Skylanders here, its a great game that everyone can join in and play,with the ability to keep adding to the game with new characters it is a game that gets played over and over again. So its no surprise that Skylanders Giants has been nominated in the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards 2013.

To celebrate I have an amazing competition for all my readers and Skylander fans, giving 3 people a once ever chance to get your hands on a very rare Skylander Character.

This totally unique Chop Chop character has had a paint job, making him totally blue except his shinning eyes. He works with both the original Skylander Spyros Adventure game and the new Skylander Giants. This Exclusive Chop Chop is not available to purchase anywhere and never will be, but I have 3 to give away to 3 lucky readers.

To get your hands on your very own Chop Chop Skylander you simply have to answer a question about the Nickelodeon choice awards, and leave me a comment on this blog post with your name, contact information and correct answer. Visit the website here:  http://bit.ly/Yi4P6C where you will find the answer. (And why not vote for Skylanders whilst your there!)


Question

How many games are nominated (including Skylanders) in this year’s Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards?

Please leave your answer in the comment box below.

Competition is open to UK residents only and the deadline for entries is Midnight 12.00pm Saturday 23rd March 2013

Winner will be picked at random from the correct entries, please leave your name and a means of contacting you - (An email address or twitter name)

I will contact the 3 winners and request their delivery address details once the competition has ended.
If I do not receive confirmation of delivery address within 7 days I will repick a winner.

Thank you and Good Luck

I am not a Monday person

Chocolate biscuits and a cup of tea... yes please!

Today was that sort of Monday. I was woke up at 5.30am with Lacey needing the toilet and then refusing to go back to sleep.

She always has boundless energy in the mornings and it is shrinking my already small amount of sleeping hours having to get up and entertain her whilst everyone else is still in the land of nod.

I was joined by Mikey at 6am which is much earlier than his normal getting up time, and he was grumpy and tired, which set the scene for the rest of the morning.

I found Chloes shoes which look worse for wear with holes in the heel, and Jakes coat under the dirty towels in the bathroom filthy!

Somehow we managed to get out the door looking almost normal.

Mikey then decided we HAD to get the budgie some food from the shop, and decided he was going to stage a sit down protest until we had got the food, ok I admit I have been asking him for about a week to remind me to pick some up from the shop on his way to school (its the only local shop which sells bird food) but today was not the ideal time.

It's about a 15 minute walk to Mikeys school on a good day, we were already running  behind and with a shop visit thrown in too it was not a great start!

There were tears and angry words muttered as I hurried Mikey along through the school gate.  I hate mornings like this.

Roll on the Easter Holidays.

Matalan - Monochrome Style

I was recently asked by Matalan if I would like to pick out some items to review.

I often shop at Matalan, there is always a great selection of clothes for everyone from children to adults and a great range from casual to more dressy, the quality of the items I've ever brought has always been great and the price is really affordable so I jumped at the chance to add some bits and pieces to my wardrobe.

I am not a huge follower of fashion but I have heard this spring a key trend is a good sound classic, Monochrome, with contrasting black and white patterns its one of the simplest ways to look stylish.

So I looked over at matalans website, where you will find all the latest offers and outfits, you can search out the style you want quickly and easily. There is so much to choose from, lots of tops and dresses, even accessories and handbags.

I loved this Padded Gilet, Which is currently half price making it a bargain at £10

Gilets are perfect for this time of year, when its starting to warm up but still too chilly to leave the house without a coat and this is a great quality jacket, with removable hood, large buttons and pockets its a great staple for any wardrobe.

I coupled it with a casual black top, and a pair of black PU leggings,

These leggings are priced £12 and are great comfy leggings which add a touch of style to everyday outfits. They are half PU leather feel and half polyester/elastane making them soft and strecthy and very comfy to wear, the great ankle length means they are perfect with boots, they are thicker than standard cotton leggings too making them a  great choice for the colder spring days.

 I also thought these Wellies were great, with the bold patterns they are perfect for the dog walks - which you may be able to tell are already getting good use!

Take a look at all the monochrome items on the Matalan website I'm sure you'll agree there is a great selection.

Leapfrog Leappad Disney Brave review.

Please scroll down to the comment section if you are looking for tips on how to complete the levels in the adventure mode - and please help out if you know how to complete any of the bits other commentators are stuck on - thank you.


Nearly 2 years ago we reviewed the LeapPad Explorer from leapfrog for the ToysRus Toyologists, and it has been a favourite ever since, admittedly the older two (aged 11 and 9 now) lost interest in it although Chloe still will pick it up to doodle on in the art studio and take photos, but Mikey my 5 year old still very much enjoys playing on it, especially when he gets a new game to try out.

We were recently asked to review a great  Educational App, Disney Brave, which is a new game for the Leappad explorer, and is also compatible with the old and the new LeapPads and the Leapster.

Disney Brave is available to buy as a cartridge game or to download directly from the app centre. Priced £20 it is aimed at children aged between 5 and 8 years old.

With the games being expensive its always good to know what it is your getting for the money and how long will it entertain the children.

We downloaded this a couple of weeks ago now, and Mikey has really enjoyed playing on this game, he has not lost interest in it and there are still lots and lots of parts to the game he is yet to uncover.

The main portion of the game the 'adventure' mode see Merida exploring her world, you can make her walk around using the stylus, and as she goes along you come across various items to inspect and learn about.

The adventure mode has a set pattern you have to follow, and you have to work out what you need to do in order to progress, this really does make the kids feel like they have achieved something as they unlock the next sections of the game, as you progress you find new mini games, and you can then get to these games directly from the main menu.

The game has a science theme to it so the mini games help children learn about animals life cycles, and the names of plant parts aungst other things.

One of the mini games 'picture parts' is where you get to sort out and order pictures into the correct sequences.

 Another mini game is where you have to drag the word labels to the correct places on the diagram.

You also get to hep the triplets explorer in the mini game 'tricky triplets', a fun puzzle game where you have to pick from a selection of shapes to enable the triplets to follow the path through the tunnels.

Even if you have not seen the movie (which we haven't yet) this is still an appealing game, with Merida working out how to fix and fire her bow it has enough action to entertain as well as having a strong educational underlying theme.

We've really enjoyed playing this game and give it a big thumbs up!

Extra Note :  We have been receiving a few questions about the controls in the game and instructions on certain aspects how to walkthrough the adventure mode - please read the comments and get in touch if you would like us to give you some hints on anything you may be stuck on!