Scleich Horse Stable

We are huge fans of Scleich as you’ve probably gathered over the years. Their quality and attention to detail is next to none! So we were very excited when they kindly sent us their Large Horse Stable to test out! My 7yo loves horses and he was ecstatic!

My 8yo was eager to get building. There were a lot of pieces but the instructions were so good that he only required help for strength purposes. It took about 15 minutes for him to put together.

The horse stable has 7 animals, 2 horse boxes, 2 farmers, saddles, hay bales, buckets, a hoist, a hayloft and loads more accessories. There is also a feeding chute and transport rollers. It’s very authentic! It even comes with labels for the kids to personalise the horse boxes. It retails at £79.99 and is available at Smyths Toys.

The horse stable is a really great addition to our house. We love imaginative play here, my kids thrive on it! My boys set up a little farm scene and sensory tray with theirs!

There are lots of additional playsets and animal figures to collect to grow your very own farm world. The only limit is your imagination!

Tiosebon Footwear

Tiosebon recently sent us some of their footwear and we are SO impressed! They have been so comfortable! These knitted walking shoes are like walking on air!

KONHILL Lightweight Casual Walking Knitted Shoes
About sneakers These walking shoes are perfect for indoor or outdoor any casual leisure assemble. Ultra-light upper vamp with Synthetic design provides maximum breathability and durability. Let these comfortable fashion sneakers be your new favorite casual shoes! They also make the perfect holiday gift.Your feet can breathe easy in the latest iteration of fabric upperHigh elastic MD outsole, slip-resistant, easy to manage any areaFit for various occasions, perfect for casual, walking, running, sportsPerfect accord with human body engineering, green, healthy concept design. Selection of good material, breathable, lightweight, comfortable shoes. Fashion unique durable, safe environmental protection material. 10 
colours to choose from.

These shoes have been such a good wear. They have been on the beach, to the mall, in the town, in the countryside and at home in the garden. I can honestly say I’ve never worn a pair of shoes so comfy yet they look great too!

We would definitely recommend them!

Schleich Dino Cave Review

As you know by now my boys love dinosaur play, whether it’s making fossils or creating their own small world play. The fun is endless with dinosaurs and a vivid imagination!

My boys were thrilled to receive a parcel from Schleich a few weeks ago; a Dino Cave Playset! An actual cave! They were super impressed.

The set contains a Herrerasaurus, a Psittacosaurus, a Microraptor, a cave, a column, a stone and a stone slab.

The Dino Cave set comes with loads of great features; the front part of the cave can be transformed into a catapult when the stone column is moved, which we loved, the stone slab buries everything under it, and the Herrerasaurus has a moveable lower jaw!

The set is so well made, sturdy, and factual. It opens up a whole world of play. We made it into a sensory activity too. We added water, cereal, and pasta. My boys played for hours. And the beauty? The Dino Cave set and dinosaurs are ALL waterproof!

The Dino Cave set is available online and retails at £44.99. We highly recommend it!

The dinosaurs also make great diy fossil templates to for some saltdough creations!

Sleigh gets another BIG thumbs up from Swords and Snoodles!

Schleich Bayala Unicorns Review

In our house we have a thing for unicorns. When I say ‘we’ I mean my 6yo and I! I have loved unicorns for a very long time, and it appears my 6yo shares that love. We have mugs, pens, notebooks, jewellery, cuddly toys, lights, statues but strangely no figures. Until now! Schleich very kindly sent us two unicorns from their new Bayala unicorn range. And they are divine!

These figures are beautiful and full of detail, which is a major strength of the Schleich brand. The figures are part of the Bayala Elves range which allows your kiddies to explore the fairy-tale world and let their imagination run free by playing with the magical creatures which now includes these beautiful new Unicorns. This magical world is right up my 6yo’s street! (And mine!)

We recieved the decorated Unicorn mare and the decorated Pegasus stallion.These figures are available from Scleich and retail at £14.99.

These Scleich Bayala figures get a big thumbs up from us!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Schleich Dinosaurs Review

We have shared various toys with you from Schleich over the years, we love their products so much, and these Schleich dinosaurs we received did not disappoint! They are fab!

My boys love dinosaur play, they enjoy setting up little scenes with rocks and leaves and dinosaurs of all kinds. It keeps them entertained for a long time, especially if we add a little swamp to the equation.

We received a lovely little package with three dinosaurs in; T-Rex (rrp £15.99), Dinogorgan (£7.99) and a Psittacosaurus (rrp £7.99). The figures are amazing quality, and very factually accurate. The T-Rex also has a moving jaw which adds to the enjoyment.

These figures will guarantee hours of imaginative play, which I am a very big advocate of. Imagination is the key to success, and Schleich really promotes imaginative play. They are recommended at age 5 and above.

We’ve really enjoyed these dinosaurs and can’t wait to add to our collection!

 

Brio Cargo Transport Helicopter Review

We love Brio here, and have many of their train and track products, some which have been passed down from older generations yet are still in immaculate condition. That’s the good thing about Brio, it ages well, so well that it’s timeless.

We were recently sent the Brio Cargo Transport Helicopter, and boy were my boys excited! They loved it. It retails at £34.99 and is well worth the price. It’s made so well and really helps with fine motor skills too. The helicopter is from age 3+.

The Brio sets are made to fit in with previous models and sets, so it fitted in well with our train tracks and trains very well. It comes with a helicopter, a pilot figure, two 2-wheeled transporters and four sets of cargo. The rotary blade also spins. The helicopter is able to carry all of the cargo and makes for a fun time of imaginary play, even for my 6 and 7 year old.

We love Brio and will definitely be adding to our collection again this year!

BrickHats

My seven year old is totally obsessed with Lego. He breathes, eats, and sleeps, and talks a bit more, Lego. Our house is full of Lego. It is absolutely everywhere. So can you imagine what an excitable morning it was in our house when he opened one of his birthday presents and it was his very own Lego Snapback! He didn’t even know they existed. And straight away he customised it…

BrickHats is the UK home of Brick Brick Gear and is a patented brick system hat that is compatible with Lego and variouos other toy bricks. You can create scenes, build your name, and show off your master builder skills for all your friends to see.

These hats are such good quality too, and definitely worth the price of £25. You can also add a little selection of bricks for an extra £2.50 which is a nice little add-on. If you have a Lego fan at home then this is definitely worth putting on the list for Santa! I have even managed to get an extra 20% for my readers, so look out for the promo code below!

We’d love to see your photographs of your kiddies (or grown ups) in their hats with their own creations! Take a look at some creations in the video below.

The discount code expires on 24th November, so be quick!

 

The Snowman Tour 2017

Who loves Christmas? You do? Then we can be friends! I love this time of year so much, I’m like a big kid still, and my children share my excitement too, my husband not so much. I’d put my decoration and tree up in November if my husband agreed, sadly he doesn’t! He does agree to Christmas movies though, and one of our absolute favourites is The Snowman. I’ve always loved it so much, even as a little girl. It makes you feel all warm an fuzzy inside don’t you think?

This year we are going to watch The Snowman Tour, and we are SO excited, it looks amazing! Take a look at this little promo video;

How wonderful does it look? The live orchestra sounds amazing.

There are several venues in various areas hosting The Snowman, they include Blackpool Tower Ballroom, Chester, Derby, Liverpool, Hull, and various others. Take a look here to find your nearest venue. Tickets are already selling like hot cakes so book yours asap!

The classic film is shown on a big screen accompanied by a live orchestra playing the original score. A young local soloist will also sing the classic “Walking in the air” and there will also be a visit from the Snowman himself. How exciting! I’m not sure who is going to be more excited out of me and children!

Photography © Tom Bangbala

 

Photography © Gareth Widdowson

And not only do you get to see this performance of The Snowman there is also a short animated film being shown too, this varies from venue to venue but will be The Nutcracker, Cinderella, or The Bear and the Piano. Double whammy!

Go and book your tickets today and add a little extra magic to Christmas this year! Look out for us!

#SnowmanTour17

 

 

Casdon Kenwood Mixer

My boys have always loved imaginary play, especially baking and cafes. We have wooden food you can dice, plastic veg, wooden pull-apart meats, teapots, coffee machines, tea sets, a cash register, pretty much anything you can imagine would be needed for role-play we have it! We even have a little wooden macaron and fresh cream cake set, which my 5yo loves to pretend to make and then sell at his cafe.

We used to have a plastic mixer which was well loved, so much so that it only lasted about 10 weeks until it broke at the hands of my 5yo, so we were so excited to find this new Casdon Kenwood Mixer!

The mixer is so realistic, and promotes imaginary play as well as hand-eye co-ordination, social skills, and also problem solving. It’s been a big hit here in our hoouse. This mixer features  two speed settings, a whisk beater, a spatula, and a recipe book. The mixer can also be either hand or battery operated, which adds another dimension to the mixer.

The mixer is £22.99, and in my opinion is very worth it. It’s easy to use and is easy for the kids to change the whisk over too. It’s very robust, and also looks so realistic. Both of my boys love it, and I think they will for quite a long time too.

Happy (fake) baking kiddies!

Disney Crossy Road Review

We are huge fans of Disney in our house both online, in movies, on TV, on our tablets, and also for toys, so we always get excited about new additions; and Disney Crossy Road is one of them! They have just released pixelated minifigures and pixelated plushes to coincide with their very popular app Crossy Road.

Each character comes with a unique rarity status; rare, epic, secret, legendary, limited edition! There are over 40 characters to collect which include Mickey, Toy Story, Big Hero 6 and Lion King. They are great collecting-fun for all of the family, not just the children!

My five year old loves his new Buzz plush! Buzz is £9.99 and makes the perfect bedtime companion or travel partner.

We’ve also loved the Crossy Road pixelated minifigures. You can buy them in either small mystery boxes for £2.99, or in packs of 4 for £9.99.

My boys had lots of fun with their minifigures.

The Disney Crossy Road collection is available online, and also from Tesco, Asda, Toyrs R Us, Smyths, and Argos.

And if your kids love watching other people open toys and surpise eggs etc, then there are also some great unboxing videos over on Moose Toys, which my boys also enjoyed too!

Happy collecting!