Win | My Fairy Unicorn Garden

When it comes to toys for Blake we love for him to have ones that aren't just fun but educational too. Toys that also get children exploring nature through play are also ones that we feel are important too.

My Fairy Garden range is ideal with helping children to create, imagine and grow there own fairy garden. The kits offer children a delightful experience of imaginative open-ended play whilst discovering the magic of growing real plants. There are cute little flowerpot fairy homes, fairy doors to place in your house to allow fairies to enter and Fairy Tale stories to encourage children’s imaginations! Make your child’s bedroom an enchanted place with these magical toys!

 My Fairy Unicorn Garden: Create a magical Unicorn Garden where Fairy Belle can make a wish. This 'Grow & Play' playset includes Belle the fairy and her unicorn and mouse friends, along with a sparkly fairy house, wishing well with working acorn bucket, bunting, fairy dust and lots more. Sow the seeds provided and watch this enchanting garden grow together!

 Available for £19.99rrp from toy retailers, supermarkets, department stores, homeware/garden stores and online

For a chance to win all you have to do is complete the rafflecopter below. 

-To enter you must be 16 and over 

- This competition will close on 19th February 2018 at 12.00am GMT 

- The winner will be chosen at random and notified via email, twitter or facebook

- If the winner doesn't reply within 30 days another winner will be drawn

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Leapfrog: Fridge Numbers & Melody Musical Turtle #Review

Leapfrog are a brand that we love,in fact the majority of the toys that Blake owns are by Leapfrog. We are excited that we were sent two wonderful toys from the brand for Blake to have fun playing and learning.  Both toys are suitable for ages 2 years and over. 

First up is the Leapfrog  fridge numbers magnetic set which is  the perfect toy to introduce children to numbers and counting. The fridge number magnetic set is a colourful fridge magnet, which also acts as a tile reader and comes with 20 interactive number tiles. Place a tile in Scout’s picnic basket to hear the number out loud, and count along with Scout. Matching numerals to object sets help reinforce the concept that numbers represent quantities. £14.99. 

Blake hasn't really taken much interest yet in this toy. However I feel that as he isn't 2 until next week that as he gets a little older he will start to take more interest. He did however recognise Scout as he has the My Pal Scout which he adores and sleeps with every night.  

Next is the Melody the Musical Turtle that is the ideal toy to keep children engaged over and over again. Melody the Musical Turtle is a modern mix of classic memory play with a musical twist. Ten musical activities prompt toddlers aged 2 years and over to find numbers and colours, repeat sequences from memory and create tunes by pressing light-up buttons on Melody’s shell. It fosters skills such as learning numbers and colours, memory, music etc.  £14.99

Blake absolutely adores this toy and he will spend most of his time when playing with it in the music mode. I feel that this toy will grow with him and once he starts learning numbers and colors he will enjoy doing more of the memory games. 

I fully recommend these new toys by Leapfrog they are fun and engaging and will grow with your child as they start to learn numbers, colors etc and will keep them entertained. One thing I have always liked about Leapfrog toys is that they have not just got an off switch, but they have 2 volume settings which is great as some toys can be really loud. As you can see in the photo below Blake is really enjoying playing with the Melody musical turtle. 

Do you and your child/ren love the leapfrog brand? If so what is their favorite toy from them?

As always I'd love to know so comment below your thoughts. 

Aldi Toy Event

I'm very excited about today's Aldi Special Buys as today (Thursday 27th October) is there toy event. The event has a wide range of toys which will make great gifts for Christmas. 

The special buys toy range boasts everything from great value, FSC certified wooden toys to super sporting equipment and treats for tiny tots. 

One of the items I'm really hoping to get my hands on is the large wooden kitchen for£29.99.It features a microwave, oven, hobs, chalk board and sink. You can also purchase a wide range of wooden kitchen accessories such as the pots and pans below for £9.99.

 Another fab item is the Wooden rail way set for £14.99 which is ideal for Blake who absolutely loves trains. The set comes complete with array of wooden vehicles.

There is also a great selection of sound books at £2.99 each, Blake loves the fire engine to the rescue one and it is now his favorite at the moment. Its a fun interactive book that all little ones will love. 

Another great item is the Little Town 150 piece Dominoe's set which comes in a handy tub for storage. 

There are also others toys such as puzzles,doodlepeid's, soft Disney toys, football tables, rocking caterpillar etc. 

Will you be heading to see what your local Aldi store has in there toy event?

Fisherprice: My first Thomas all around sodor

If you are regular reader you may know that Blake who is 20 months is obsessed with trains.

We have quite a few train books and a train set that he loves and now we have added a new toy to his collection the My first Thomas all around Sodor.

The Thomas set is a good size and the track is very easy to put together.The set even comes with a motorised Thomas train and cargo set. It comes with instructions but i found it simple to put it together by looking at the box as to where each piece of the track goes.  Blake was very excited when he saw the set and was very eager to play with it so I let him play with Thomas whilst I put the track together. 

There are 7 pieces of track which clip  together which are in different colors. Blake has a train set which he already loves but this is different in the sense of you press the color- coordinated buttons and Thomas automatically knows where to go. Thomas is brought to life with his eyes and mouth magically moving. By pressing the yellow button to head to Tidmouth Sheds Thomas can interact with Percy, James, Gordon, and Sir Topham Hatt. By pressing the green button Thomas will chuff over to chat with Cranky the Crane at Brendam Docks, and manually load and unload the cargo.

The set is great for little people the only fault I can think of is that I found that it sometimes derails when going round the shake shake bridge. Other than that Blake loves it and will happily sit there watching Thomas going round the track and getting us to push the buttons on Thomas to take him to the the different areas of the track. 

The Fisher-Price Thomas and Friends, all around sodor set retails at £39.99.

It is a great fun toy for little Thomas fans. 

*I was sent the Thomas and Friends all around sodor for this review although all opinions are of my own. 

Wicked Uncle Toys

If you have children you will know it can be very easy to buy toys for little ones as there is  so much out there to choose from. Of course this can make buying toys hard as well. That's where Wicked Uncle can help you out, aimed at all the family to give a helping hand when buying toys for little ones. Wicked Uncle have a selection of toys suitable from babies to teens in a range of categories from age range, A-Z, gender and popular toys. This makes finding the ideal gift much more easier. As Blake is 18 months in a few weeks, I decided it would be a good idea to choose toys suitable for 2 years +.  Then he will still be able to play with them next year. 

My first choice was the Grow it: My very own garden set. This is great for imaginative role play and is bright and colorful making it eye catching. The set comes with 9 chunky pieces great for small hands. Another fab thing about the set is that the watering can is like a proper one, so that children can also practice watering real plants as well as the toy ones.  The set is made from durable soft plastic which can be easily washed.  Blake loves trying to use the watering can, planting the carrot, radish and two flowers using the shovel with the three colorful pots.

I also chose the Fix it: My very own tool box from the same brand, which is also great for imaginative and creative play. Again the set is made from soft and durable plastic with eye catching colors making it a fun and stimulating toy. The chunky six piece set contains a realistic sounding drill,  hammer, screwdriver, saw and wrench as well as a tool box to keep it all in. It's great for little ones who love to fix things. Blake loves using the drill but doesn't seem to have much interest yet in playing with the other tools (unless you count throwing them at me). I've been encouraging him buy "showing" him how each tool works, I think as he gets older he will certainly start to gain interest. 

Both the Grow it: My very own garden set and Fix it: My very own tool box retail at £19.95 

which i feel is a great price for toys that are of such high quality and fun to play with. 

What do you think of my choices?  Have you purchased anything from Wicked Uncle? 

Charity Shop Haul #1

I love a good bargain and I love looking around the charity shops where I live. 

we have 8 different charity shops in our town which is great but don't tend to shop in 

all of them. I know now which ones near us tend to have the best stuff but I still look in others just less often.  Charity shops can be really hit or miss sometimes and its only 

recently that I have been able to find such bargains especially when it comes to books and toys for Blake. 

Books:

Funnybones is a book that I can vaguely remember as a child. I definitely remember it from when I worked as a Nursery Assistant. I picked this up for 99p as I thought as Blake gets a little older he would hopefully like this. I think I may actually put this back for Halloween. 

Peepo!  is a book that I have read to Blake before as we had picked it out in the library sometime last year and he enjoyed it. I forgot about it til I spotted it the charity shop again for 99p. 

TerfficTrains I picked this one up as Blake has a thing for Trains at the moment and just loves his toy train and books about them so I saw this for 99p and got it. It's meant to come with a DVD which it didn't but we aren't bothered about that.   

I have been wanting to pick up a sound book for Blake for so long this one cost me only £3 something which is great as they retail at £12.99. I had given up the idea of getting one of these books for Blake as I felt that their retail price are too much for me to spend on a book and I couldn't justify it. The Usborne Noisy Farm is such a fun sound book and Blake's loved me reading it to him and helping him press buttons so its a hit! 

Toys wise I managed to grab some great bargains and have put two away for Blake for either his birthday or Christmas as they are new in boxes. 

The Happyland post office set which retails at £15 on the ELC website I manged to get for £5.99. I am so thrilled to get this at such a great price, Blake loves his Happyland Train and I had been wanting to get him some more Happyland toys for Birthday/Christmas so I grabbed this quick when I saw it. 

The other toy which I put away for him is the  Orchard Toys Teddy Bears Picnic Puzzle which I picked up for £2.50. Blake is starting to like puzzles and doing them with our help

so when I spotted this one I thought this would be a cute addition to his puzzle collection. 

I've put it away for him since its new in its box so ideal as a present. 

The LeapFrog My Discovery House I picked up for £1.49. It works perfectly fine and when I saw it I chose to get it as Blake loves his Leapfrog Sing and Play Farm that my Nan got him for Christmas and as this very similar I knew he would love it and I am right. 

Last of all is pad which teaches the alphabet, letter sounds etc and I picked this up for £1.99. I saw this and as I am trying to get Blake to say new words I thought that this would help encourage him. 

What do you think of my bargains? Do you shop in Charity shops? 

*This post contains affiliate links 

Comparison: Fisherprice Laugh and Learn Puppy Vs Leapfrog My Pal Scout

When it comes to toys there are so many products on the market that some people don't know where to start or know which are the best brands etc. 

Now for Christmas Blake got two different interactive puppies which we love. 

I decided to do a comparisons post as then I give my thoughts on both of them

so if you have seen both before and not sure which one to get then this post should help you. 

Blake loves both and they both have different songs etc for play and learning. 

So the first is the Fisherprice Laugh and Learn Puppy (smart stages) then we have the  Leapfrog My Pal Scout which you can also purchase in purple called

My Pal Violet.

I'll start with the FisherPrice laugh and learn puppy. 

This puppy comes with the smart stages technology so that the puppy can grow with your child. 

There are a variety of developmentally appropriate songs, phrases and sounds within three levels of play. Puppys light-up heart even twinkles along to the music! 

Smart Stages Technology Level 1 

 Explore  6M+ First words and sounds spark babys curiosity 

Level 2 

Encourage  12M+ Prompt baby through questions and simple directions

 Level 3 

Pretend 18M+ Imaginative fun and early role play. 

With this puppy we like that it is touch sensitive and that on the back you have an on and off switch and also can change the volume to high or low.  The songs are great and teach numbers, colors,ABC's etc so it fits in well with your child's development. 

The downside is the off switch on the paw as Blake keeps turning it off and on and

its a pretty annoying hearing it say bye bye frequently. Other than we really love it.

My Pal Scout  can be personalised which is amazing!

This is done via connecting to your mobile or tablet using the app.

You can personalise it to says your child's name but its worth 

checking in advance if your little ones name is on there if its unique name. 

You can then choose your child's favorite food, color and animal from a wide selection. 

Scout comes with 5 pre-loaded songs, or you can select and download your choice of learning tunes and lullabies from an online list of 30 songs. Press a paw to play music, learning songs or games. 

The cute puppy teaches:

- Learning about numbers: children are introduced to number names and number order through counting games and activities.

- Introducing daily routines: learning about daily routines help children develop a sense of time and sequence.

Learning about feelings: even very young children can begin to recognise and express their feelings, as well as the feelings of others.

Again like the fisherprice puppy My Pal Scout is touch sensitive which we love. 

I like that the color of Scout is eye catching so catches Blake's attention easily. 

There is an on and off button on Scouts foot like the laugh and learn puppy but it 

is quiet when it turns off. 

Blake loves both of them and we love that each puppy teaches him different things.

The fact that Scout is personalised is just an added bonus to the interactive puppy. 

Does your little one/s have one or both of these puppies? 

I'd love to know your thoughts

comment below. 

Gift Guide: For Children (Toys)

Hi Everyone today I have compiled some toy ideas for your little ones. 

Most of the items included are gifts that we have got for Blake for either Christmas or Birthday and also some from his amazon wishlist or that I have come across and thought that's a great idea. 

Tomorrow I've got a non toy item list coming up which includes clothing, books etc. 

Playmobil City Life Car*

This playmobil city life car is suitable for ages 4-10 years. 

The car accommodates two figures the front window is removable and the trunk can be opened. An ideal gift for children who love the Playmobil range. 

£14 Sold in most toy stores. 

Fisher Price Laugh and Learn Piggy Bank

We purchased this toy for Blake's birthday its suitable from 6 months . 

This piggy bank introduces counting, colors and music. 

There are 10 colorful coins that drop into the piggys back.

There are a variety of developmentally appropriate songs, phrases and sounds within two levels of play - just slide the switch to choose the right one.

Level 1 - Explore - 6 months+ First words and sounds spark baby's curiosity

Level 2 - Encourage - 12 months+ Prompt baby though questions and simple directions. 

In The Night Garden Explore and Learn Musical Activity Table

We have also got this for Blake for his birthday. 

I can't wait for him to play with this he loves In the night garden especially iggle piggle. 

There are many fab features of this activity table: 

-  Table,hammer, bridge, carousel, cave, Igglepiggle, Upsy Daisy and Makka Pakka figures

-Dimensions: 40L X 60W X51H cm

-Iconic In the Night Garden bridge which the figurines can stand on

-Put Makka Pakka to bed in his cosy cave

-Use the character figurines to wind up the carousel for a gentle lullaby

-Flip the page on the electronic book to hear short stories

-5 light up stepping stones featuring character images

-5 electronic learning games – use the squeaky hammer or hand to play

-Store accessories within the table

-Batteries required: 3 x AA (not included)

Sold in most toy stores

Fisher price Beat Bo

This is said to be one of the popular toys for Christmas 2015. 

Suitable for 9 months and upwards. 

 Press  Fisher-Price Bright Beats Dance and Move BeatBo’s tummy or any of the buttons on his feet to  activate fun songs, learning content and dance moves. 

 BeatBo is your futuristic friend even allows parents or baby to record a phrase, and he’ll remix it into his favourite song.

 His 3 modes, Dance ‘n Move, Learning and games, and customized Sing-Along, "grow" with baby to make him a fun, entertaining companion for years to come. All the while, he’s introducing baby to letters, colors, counting, music and much more!

Barbie Malibu House

Barbie loves her Malibu House there are tons of possibilities for play. 

From relaxing quiet time to a house party with her fabulous friends and family. 

With six rooms, stylish furniture and awesome accessories, you can recreate favorite scenes and imagine new Malibu fun adventures. 

Suitable for 3 years and above 

Megabloks time to build 

60 builders blocks for hours of fun play. 

They are in  classic primary color theme although you can buy pink ones too. 

I personally don't like the idea of pink for girls and would have the classic ones

for both genders. 

They are eco friendly with PVC-free packaging with strap for storage and portability.

compatible with other megoblocks products to continue the fun. 

Fisher price smart stages scooter

This is Blake's main Christmas present and it looks like so much fun! 

It has the smart stages learning technology meaning it will grow with him. 

Every baby develops at his or her own pace, and Smart Stages technology gives you the ability to select the stage that’s best for your child! 

There are a variety of developmentally appropriate songs, phrases and sounds within three levels of play,just slide the switch for level changes.

 Level 1  is Explore  suitable for  12M+ First words and sounds spark baby’s curiosity.

 Level 2  is Encourage suitable for 18M+ Prompt baby through questions and simple directions.

 Level 3 is  Pretend  suitable for 24M+ Imaginative fun and early role play.

Leapfrog My Pal Scout/My Pal Violet

Give learning a personal touch with a soft, cuddly puppy pal. 

My Pal Scout/Violet can learn your child's name and likes such as favorite food.

This is done via connecting to your mobile or tablet and using the app. 

If your child has a very unique name though its worth looking to see if that name

is in the list of names.

Suitable for children 6-36 months. 

The cute puppy teaches:

- Learning about numbers: children are introduced to number names and number order through counting games and activities.

- Introducing daily routines: learning about daily routines help children develop a sense of time and sequence.

Learning about feelings: even very young children can begin to recognise and express their feelings, as well as the feelings of others.

Lego Duplo my first  farm

Introduce farm life to little ones with Lego Duplo 

my first farm. 

An ideal gift for helping with fine motor skills.

Includes chunky, special decorated bricks which help to teach your toddler about farm life.

Features an easy-to-build farm with opening doors and windows, a feeding trough and two child LEGO DUPLO figures.

Also includes a sheep, cow and chicken animal figures, plus three brightly coloured bricks decorated with farm animal produce.

Suitable for children 2-5 years

Leapfrog Sing and Play Farm

Keeping with the farm theme the Leapfrog Sing and Play farm 

is a great toy that has many buttons to push, keys to turn and switches to flip. 

The farm has lots of great little features, including an illuminating lantern, a chirping chick, a hidden owl and lots, lots more! Every touch triggers familiar tunes, sound effects, and voices.

Ideal for 6 months and up

Connect 4

I love traditional games for Children that we grow up with.

Connect 4 is one of them games which is why I have included it in

this gift guide. 

suitable for children 6 years and up. 

Orchard Toys Shopping List

I use to work in a Nursery and studied childcare at college, so this 

was when I first came across this game. 

I really love it and the children in the pre-school had so much fun.

It's suitable for children ages 3-7 years. 

I will certainly be wanting Blake to have this game when he is a little older. 

So there you have it my Christmas Gift Guide for children. 

I have tried to include a mixture of ages so that you can find something suitable. 

Check back for tomorrows gift guide on non toy items for children. 

Blake's 1st Birthday Gifts

Nine days before Christmas is going to be a very special day. 

A special day because Blake will be turning one! 

It's pretty scary as this year has just flew by and it only feels like yesterday since

I held him in my arms for the first time. 

Because Blake's birthday is so close to Christmas I have had to be pretty organised

so all his presents for both his birthday and Christmas have all been brought. 

I've not found it too hard for him to know what to buy him as I had a rough idea of the things

I wanted him to have plus I have a list on Amazon so that other family members can get ideas on what to get for him as well. 

The In The Night Garden Activity Table was the last item that we purchased for him as it was 

something I really wanted him to have since he loves In The Night Garden (especially Iggle Piggle).

But at £59.99 I felt that it was far too much to spend on a toy however Amazon have it as of writing this post down to £32.84. 

The ball pit  is from argos and I also got the balls for the pit from their as well I like that this toy can be easily 

stored in his toy box as it folds down small and the balls also have a little case to put them in. 

All of the clothing is from HandM's Kids range from the 4 months to 2 years boys section. 

I have a little thing for Monochrome at the moment and just love these pieces. 

This is the first lot of clothing that he owns from there and I am so impressed with prices and quality of the items I have received. 

Sweatpants 

2 pack long sleeve tops

Black and white outfit (think no longer sold) 

Laugh and Learn Piggy Bank

We actually got Blake's second hand but it's a great condition. 

I love that this piggy helps with counting and learning colors but is 

also great for fine motor skills and hand eye co-ordination. 

Tomy Hide and Squeek Eggs

I like the look of these they look like a fun and simple toy

that I know Blake will love and have fun with as he loves anything that makes a noise. 

So that is as far as gifts go for Blake's birthday I still have some more things I need to do. 

I have his outfit sorted but want to find some cute shoes to go with it. 

I also have showed my mum a cake idea as she will be making his cake. 

I just need to sort out the little bits like decorations, balloons and wrapping paper.

If anyone knows where I can purchase Iggle Piggle or in the night garden wrapping paper 

that would be great I can't seem to find any. 

I hope this post has been useful as with Christmas also coming up I know a lot of you are going 

to need some ideas for your own child, family or even friends little ones. 

 I would love to know what you have purchased for a child's first birthday?

comment below.