I’ve wanted to create with Fimo (also known as polymer clay and modelling clay) since I was at middle school. There was a really talented creative girl who made me a little ornament (which I’ve still got!) and I really wanted to have a go myself but never got round to it. So when Merry from Patch of Puddles asked if I would like to try out some of the kits she stocks I jumped at the chance. Her business was set up in her kitchen cupboard while she was at home with her children. Fimo Polymer Clay was the…
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Edward is a geek already! He loves playing with our iPhones and iPad so we’re always on the lookout for new apps to amuse him. At 20 months he’s learned how to unlock the home screen to look at photographs of himself. He’s equally happy to take photos too! We were asked to try out the new app from DK, My First Word Play which has been designed for pre-schoolers, the design matching the iconic My First books. The app features: 4 x My First Word games: Letter Match, Phonic Fun, Rhyme Time and Word Painter; Interactive A-Z dictionary and…
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Yesterday I read on Facebook that one of my friends was putting up her Christmas tree. November seems a little early to me but her grand-daughter insisted! With Christmas just around the corner it’s the perfect time to get together to create some unique home-made decorations for your home. I’ve been busy ‘pinning’ crafty ideas to keep Edward occupied and I’m really looking forward to seeing what we can make. We were sent some new Scotch Restickables Tabs which should help keep our decorations up. The double-sided adhesive tabs are really easy to use and ideal for sticking festive decorations…
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I’ve never tried parkin before but knowing it was some kind of ginger cake was happy when offered some of Lottie Shaw’s Seriously Good Yorkshire Parkin to try. It’s described as “a ginger cake predominantly baked using oatmeal and a perfect blend of syrup and black treacle”. It contains no artificial life enhancing ingredients but the syrup preserves the cake for up to 12 weeks! The packaging was lovely, the parkin was baked in its own tray and smelt divine. My only criticism was that the portion could have been larger – I didn’t realise parkin was so delicious and…
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We were asked if we would like to try an outdoor version of Connect 4 – Giant Connect 4. We love our garden and spend a lot of time outdoors so thought this would be a great addition to our collection of toys and games. Giant Connect 4! The game is the official HASBRO Giant Connect 4 so is instantly recognisable from my childhood with it’s red and yellow counters. First introduced in 1974 it is a firm favourite with families and the outdoor version is a great edition. It’s made from very hard wearing plastic for a long gaming…
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I’m sure I can’t be the only woman with a husband who is difficult to buy presents for. Birthday or Christmas, it really doesn’t matter. He’s a complete geek and difficult to buy for. There’s lots of inspiration for gifts in this handy Christmas Gift Guide and I recently found something which I thought he would love (and Edward too!) – the lightspeed ihelicopter from paramountzone. The lightspeed ihelicopter is controlled via your phone (iPhone, iPod, iPad and some Android phones). Simply download the free App (Copter Controller) from the apple App store or Android market, plug the (included) IR…
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As a first time mum not too many months ago I meticulously recorded everything Edward did on paper and through his online blog. I also used the electronic baby journal WellStart but to be honest didn’t find it very easy to use and quickly abandoned it. So I was really happy to hear about Gurgle Baby Milestones which is a major development of WellStart, still very recognisable but with a lot of great improvements. With the imminent arrival of Second Baby I was delighted to be asked to try it out. The software is simple to install and allows you…
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My biggest fear about our new addition is the sleep deprivation! I have awful memories of the first few weeks with Edward where I quite literally wanted to gouge my burning eyes out I was so tired! At least I know what to expect this time. The people behind BBC Dragons’ Den success, Magic Blackout Blind, have launched a new book,‘Diary of a Sleep Deprived Mum’ written by a mum, inspired by mums and aimed at every parent suffering at the sharp end of sleep deprivation! It’s a fun book to read but also aims to inform via anecdotes and…
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Simply Tap would like to offer all of the lovely readers of the gingerbread house a chance to win one of 10 boxes of Thornton’s chocolates worth £15 each. Simply Tap is a new instant mobile checkout available on both iPhone and Android. It allows you to pay for things in seconds when you see something you like in magazines, out and about, on-‐line and in store. Its the sort of app that makes busy people’s lives so much easier. Simply Tap offers you a secure way of paying for things through your mobile without having to enter card details,…
