My two little pre-schoolers love CBeebies so we were excited to hear about a new show coming soon. Called Kate & Mim–Mim, it tells the story of feisty five-year old Kate and her big imagination! Whenever Kate faces a problem or something stirs her curiosity, she and her favourite toy bunny Mim-Mim twirl off to the fantasy world of Mimiloo, where Mim-Mim transforms into a larger-than-life playmate. Kate is high-spirited, smart and sassy and all she needs for her great adventures is her wild imagination and her best friend. In Mimiloo anything can happen, she can be a princess a…
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The weather has been so hot recently we haven’t baked anything. The children have been bugging me to create something though so this week I relented and we baked some rainbow jam tarts. I’m no pastry cook so bought some shortcrust pastry and used Fruit Shoot squeezy jams to fill them. Fruit Shoot have recently launched their new range of ‘easy squeezy smooth’ jams. They have no artificial colours, flavours, or sweeteners and come in three different flavours – Strawberry & Summer Fruits, Apple & Blackcurrant and Orange. The children loved rolling out the pastry and got flour everywhere! The…
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Storm! Shipwreck! Adventure! Lost on an island in the very north of the world, a brave little girl meets a shy, curious creature… Not only does he look very odd, he sounds different too! Meet the Skitterbang. In his cave full of old metal and junk washed up from the sea, he shows her his newest treasure which sounds so beautiful. But who does it really belong to? Last week we returned to the Polka Theatre in Wimbledon for a performance of Skitterbang Island, an exciting tale of discovery and friendship and a magical world of music, song, rhythm and…
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I can’t believe I’ve survived the first week of the Summer holidays. I thought it might be fun to blog about what we’ve been up to. The first week started with afternoon tea with Kirstie Allsopp and a paper cutting masterclass with the lovely Poppy Chancellor. I also snuck in a visit to see the Wedding Dresses 1775-2014 exhibition at the V&A. Big Brother and I attended the Hobbycraft Christmas preview, followed by a trip to the Disney store where I treated him to some of the new Planes 2 toys (he’s obsessed after our recent trip to see the…
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We were excited to be chosen as Playmobil Playologists for the second year running. The children adore Playmobil and I find all the different sets work quite well together. We were recently sent our main review toys. Big Brother received the amazing #5479 The Great Asian Castle from the Dragons range. This was a great set for him. It took me about an hour to put together but the instructions were clear and I only needed my husband to click together some of the larger pieces. Enemies beware! The Great Asian Castle is protected by a fierce fire-breathing dragon. When…
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Last week I attended the Hobbycraft Christmas preview. I loved getting a sneak preview of the new Christmas products and hearing about some fabulous new lines for Gruffalo and Peppa Pig fans. They had a couple of crafts set up which you could try and I was able to try my hand at making Duck Tape bows. Hobbycraft sell Duck Tape in all colours and prints and it’s a really versatile craft material. You can make a bow in seconds from a couple of pieces of duck tape folded in half and a split pin. I had so much fun…
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I don’t have a particular project on the go at the moment. Last week I finished my maverick star dolls quilt for Little Sis. It was a bit of an impromptu make and now I don’t know what to make next. Instead of crafting I have been reading, mainly the new Quilt Now magazine and Mollie Makes blogging bookazine. I love the new quilting magazine and have been picking up some great tips from Mollie Makes blogging. I have a couple of subscriptions to craft magazines such as Mollie Makes and Love Patchwork and Quilting but I can’t help browsing…
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Yay it’s the weekend and I have a lovely giveaway for you all today! Betty & Walter, launched in Spring 2013, is a brilliant lifestyle brand created by Lisa Levis (nee Stickley) creating stylish and practical accessories and homewares all adorned in Lisa’s unique illustrative prints. The brand, named after Lisa’s Uncle Walter and Aunty Betty, takes inspiration from mid-century design and celebrates print, colour and creativity. You can explore the beautiful collection online at bettyandwalter.com There are some lovely products for the kitchen, as well as bags and gorgeous stationery. I’m in love with the range of contemporary pretty…
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We have a fresh water tropical tank which my husband gives a lot of attention to. We recently received a parcel of crafting goodies from Baker Ross to keep us going through the summer holidays and as soon as I saw a pack of Tropical Fish Foam stickers I knew what we could make – our own tank full of little fishes. Materials you will need to make a fish tank Cardboard box Baker Ross Tropical Fish Foam Stickers Blue paint Blue and green felt or craft foam Sticky dots How to make a cardboard box fish tank I cut…
