Review and Book of the fortnight: What the Ladybird Heard Next by Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks

This week G and I have been lucky enough to be sent a copy of the latest title from Julia Donaldson & Lydia Monks; 'What the Ladybird Heard Next'.

Along side the review, this book is my young children's book of the fortnight and here is what we thought of it!

What the Ladybird Heard

Following on from 'What the Ladybird Heard', Lanky Len and Hefty Hue are back and this time they are after the fat red hed.
For those not familiar with the first book, don't worry you can still enjoy this book without having read the first.







Using her successful story telling formula, Julia takes us back to the farm where the ladybird and friends reside. With guidance from the little ladybird, the animals work together to once again foil the plans of the two theives.

I have to be honest, at first I was not sold with this book. I felt that it might be just too familiar to the first, with the verses of fun and repetitive farmyard noises found in the first, reappearing in this second story.

Fun farmyard verses

 Obviously though this book was not aimed at someone in their late 20's and the above were a part of a magic of the first book, where I enjoyed them and a are a great way for children to interact with the story. We all know young children love repetition.

What makes the story original was the introduction of a new character, the 'snuggly snerd' and it was this that my 4 year old noted as her favourite thing about the book. She particularly loves the picture and how it lays huge eggs.

Julia has once again teamed up with illustrator Lydia Monks for the these stories, whose pictures really bring the story to life. I particularly love the bright, eyecatching front cover of this book. It's something that would stand out to me from the shelves of the bookstore.

Along side What the Ladybird Heard and her other collaberations with Lydia (The princess and the wizard, The singing mermaid, Sugarlump and the Unicorn to name a few) this book also has the lovely glitter effect which is a another great way for little one's to interact with the story.

We enjoyed this story and the new way in which the animals mislead Hugh and Len and we have read it three times already.

Lovely detailing

Colourful, appealing illustrations

I'm sure that most households across the country with young children will have atleast one title from Julia Donaldson in their bookcase and this is a great one to add to the collection.

For those who want a closer look, you can see the trailer below

The book is not out until September the 10th but you can preorder your little one's a hardback copy of it here with a preorder special price of £5.99, when normally it retails at £11.99. You can also get free delivery if you are ordering over £10 of books.

Coinciding with the launch of the book, Macmillan children's books have posted a fun Q&A session with Julia and Lydia for you to get to know them a bit better.

So what do you think? Will you be buying a copy?

*This is not a sponsered post but for the purpose of this review we recieved a copy of the book. All views are our own.

The Further Adventures of The Owl and The Pussycat by Julia Donaldson & Charlotte Voake - Review

So I've been super lucky this week and along side the new publication of the owl and the pussy cat I am also reviewing The Further Adventures of The Owl and The Pussycat by Julia Donaldson.

This book again is beautifully illustrated by Charlotte Voake who brings the story and it's characters to life.


I'll let the pictures do the talking....

 Julia continues where Lear's poem leaves off, in a mix of her own charming style that has been so successful and Edward Lear's original poetic techniques. She introduces characters and places from Lear's other work's into her story. I think this is a lovely idea, although if anything, I would say as an adult reading this book it helps if you are familiar with Edward Lear and his works, otherwise you might feel she is introducing too much nonsense. From a view of a child who the book is actually aimed at I'm sure the more nonsense the better and other Lear devotee's I'm sure would approve too.

The book has been well received, being shortlisted for both the spec savers national book awards and the CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway medal. It has an RRP of £7.99 but can also be found at the cheaper price of £5.99 at the Book Depository.

We received a paperback copy of the book complete with the CD. My 3 year old has a bit of a thing about CD's that come with books so she had this straight on and plonked herself on my knee to listen and read* along. The CD, in which the story is narrated by Julia herself, does go at quite a fast pace so to enjoy the pictures it's best read by an adult (or the child themselves if at reading age). However it's a great addition along side the book and expands the experience and enjoyment of the book.

Reading along with the CD for a second time.

This book, along side The Owl and The Pussycat, would make a lovely Christmas gift and for those of you lucky people reading who have joined me on my new blogging journey, I have a set to give away here.

*read through viewing the pictures 
** This is not a sponsored post and all views are my own. I was however given a copy of the book to review by The Bigshot. 

The Owl and The Pussy Cat by Edward Lear & Charlotte Voake Review

'The Owl and the pussycat went to sea,

in a beautiful pea green boat.

They took some honey and plenty of money

wrapped up in a five pound note.....'

The Owl and the pussy cat, a well known classic nursery rhyme by the wonderful Edward Lear was a favourite of mine as a child. I have been fortunate enough to get my hands on a copy of both the latest edition of the poem, published by Puffin, as well as The Further Adventures of The Owl and The Pussycat by Julia Donaldson! The latter of which I'll be reviewing in a separate post. 

Wonderfully illustrated

This edition has brought the poem to life once more for a new generation of children to enjoy (and for us older ones to continue to enjoy). It has been beautifully illustrated by the talented Charlotte Voake, who's artwork brings a magical feeling to the books.
Obviously the way a book is illustrated has a particular importance in books for young children, it allows children to see the story through their own eyes when they haven't learnt to read yet. When choosing books for G, the way it's illustrated strongly influences whether I'm going to buy it or not. I do love lovely pictures!

Beautifully detailed

Beloved children's author Julia Donaldson has written a foreword for this edition, introducing new readers to the world of Edward Lear. I think this is a lovely touch and will bring the attention of her young fans to a wonderful old classic.

This hardback copy has a RRP of £10.99 but can be found at a lower price's at various retailers including the price of £7.69 at The Book Depository.

I think that this publication of the poem, along side The Further Adventures of The Owl and The Pussycat, would make a lovely Christmas gift. They are beautiful books to be treasured for years to come and we were excited ourselves to receive them through the post! They are my Young Children's book of the fortnight recommendations.

For those of you lovely people who have joined me on my new blogging journey I am giving a set away of these lovely books here!

* This is not a sponsored post. We were however given a copy of the books to review by The Big Shot. All views are my own.

What was in our Free Toucan Craft Box

A couple of weeks ago we were lucky enough to get a code from a friend to enable us to receive a free petite craft box from Toucan Box! Toucan box send out the required materials for a craft project to do with your child to save you the time of finding and getting the materials yourself and having to come up with idea's.
They are suitable for ages 3-8, have age appropriate projects and follow different themes. The boxes come in three sizes, petite, grande and Super.
Your free box will be a petite box which usually cost £3.95 (plus approx 82p postage) but you can upgrade to Grande for an extra £6. Grande are £9.95 a box (not inc postage) and you can add extra materials for a sibling for £4.95. Super are £16.95 (not inc postage) and again you can add materials for a sibling which is £9.95 for this box.

We received our box towards the end of October so appropriately it was Halloween themed and the project was a Halloween Lantern. The box was addressed to G personally which was a nice touch.

Here is what was inside our box:

• sheet of orange tissue paper
• sheet of green card
• sheet of orange card
• square of black craft foam
• a small glue stick
• a green pipe cleaner
• a purple glow stick
• a lolly
• a Sticker for a chart*

G was especially pleased with the lolly and intrigued by the glow stick!

The Lantern was straight forward to make but obviously with G only being 3 I had to assist her. She loves a bit of gluing and sticking so she had no problem with those parts and she did some of the cutting and then mummy took over.
She also decided what shapes to have for the face so our face was our own original design by G.

Here is the finished lantern below:

We enjoyed our Toucan box project and had some left over materials but put in G's craft supplies. It was something exciting to get in the post and I think these boxes are great for busy parents who might not have the time to sort out a craft project but would still love to do one with their child and for those with older children they could let them get on with it themselves. We will be getting a second box due to a discount and I would consider keeping on with the petite boxes once on a better income. It is great they have different options to suit different budgets. 

If you would like to try a Toucan Box for free you can type in my name (Adele Baxter) at the check out or follow this link. If you sign up you can then refer your own friends to receive 50% off your next Toucan box.

Let me know if any of you do and what project you receive!

Clinica Tissue oil and vitamin E cream Review

Whilst pregnant with G and for a few months afterwards I entered A LOT of pregnancy and baby competitions. I managed to win quite a few (I probably entered about 200!!) 
Out of the a couple I won when pregnant, two were for Clinica products; one run by Bizzie Babies Facebook Page and the other by Mumstreet.co.uk.
Here is the review I wrote whilst pregnant and trying it out.

The prize from the former was a 200ml bottle of Clinica's tissue oil and the latter, which was sent by Clinica itself, was a 200ml bottle of tissue oil and two tubes of their vitamin E cream.

My mumstreet.co.uk prize

I was obviously keen to try out the tissue oil due to being pregnant so it was a great product to win, but not only that, I have sensitive skin. 
It's less problematic than when I was younger but I also suffer from dry skin. In general it just needs a bit of extra TLC, so I was very pleased to receive the vitamin E cream.

The Clinica packaging stands out to me, clearly labeling the uses of the product on the front of the Vitamin E cream (and the side for the tissue oil) and it's active ingredients.
It may not be attractive but this is the kind of labeling and packaging that I'd go for now I'm older. I prefer the facts over a pretty design and knowing the product is going to do what I need it to so I won't be wasting money.

Currently it's only on sale via their website Clinica.

 Clinica tissue oil:  

As the packaging and website tell you, it "contains a blend of natural oils, which soothe and nourish the skin and nails."

It can be used for:

• Ageing Skin
• Blemished skin
• Treatment and prevention of stretch marks
• Skin containing scar tissue
• Before and after pregnancy massage oil
• After sun treatment
• Dry, dehydrated skin conditions
• Moisturizing/therapeutic bath oil
• To assist in refining the skins natural oils and moisture

Extra info:

• The oil is rich in Vitamin E, Evening primrose oil, Almond oil and coconut oil extracts
• Its a non greasy & non staining formula
• It's safe for all ages

So its not only useful for pregnant women to care for their skin whilst its under a lot of strain, but it can be used for those who perhaps have had operations and accidents, those with skin conditions (i.e eczema which I had as a child) and those just wanting to take good care of their skin.

It contains the all important ingredient of Vitamin E, found in many good skincare products, the benefits of which can be read about here: Healthy Skincare and evening primrose oil, which among its many medicinal benefits is great for the skin.

My BizzieBaby Prize

  

When using the product I found it to have a pleasant fragrance and only a few drops were needed to cover and massage into the areas you are treating, and with a bottle this size it means it won't run out too quick even with every day use. Which is handy as it advises you to use it morning and evening. I have used my first bottle a few times and as you can see, there is still plenty of the product left.

I've been lucky and don't seem to have any stretch marks apart from one on the top of my thigh, and a few old ones have become a bit more prominent from when I was on steroidal treatment for an illness, but without this my skin does become dry, tight and itchy due to it being stretched too much, so I have no doubt this oil is helping my skin stay in a better condition. Its a quick relief from the irritation and its long term affects are protecting my skins components and helping me avoid any further skin damage.

The 200ml bottle retails at £10.80, with a smaller option of 60ml also available at the price of £5.40.

Clinica Vitamin E Cream:

From their site, a 100g tube of this cream retails at only £3, which is a great price for such a beneficial product, and I received 2 of these. If buying myself I would go for the even better value of the 500g Jar which is only £4.80 ......five times the amount for less than £2 more.

Again the clearly labelled packaging tells you all you need to know, that its is " B5 and Evening Primrose enriched".

Ideal for: 

• Dry skin
• Sun Damaged skin
• Scars
• Stretch marks
• Wrinkles
• Ageing Skin

On the back: The cream "is a specially developed hypo-allergic formulation for dry, damaged and ageing skin. Vitamin E is not only responsible for repairing damaged skin and enhancing elasticity, but also as a potent anti oxidant. /with regular use, your skin will have the ultimate anti-oxidant protection". 

So again this isn't just useful for during and after pregnancy, its great to take care of your skin if it needs that extra bit of TLC if you're not a teenager anymore, which sadly I'm not. I struggle to deal with the fact I'm 25 now but hopefully I won't have to struggle looking after my skin now I have these products. 

As I'm nearing the end of my pregnancy I'm pretty sure my tummy is as stretched as it can be (so knowing my luck even thought I think I've escaped without stretch marks, they are all going to turn up in these last 3 weeks). I have also developed some dry skin by my belly button, and this cream has been great to settle it down, stop the the itching and soreness and keep the area well moisturized. I'm also extremely prone to sunburn, and although I'm sensible and usually remember to put my sun cream on, this is great for extra protection and recovery after you have been out in the sun.

Its also non greasy and easily absorbed into the skin. 

                                        

After I'd written this review the next time I used the oil I did suffer a reaction to it. My skin became extremely itchy and I couldn't stop scratching my bump! This resulted in something what would fit in well in a horror film. As your skin is so stretched and tight when you scratch it leaves blood like brusies.
However I used the vitamin E cream and it soothed and calmed my skin down. 
I

Munchkin bath toy review

Around May 2011 we were very lucky to win a whole box full of Munchkin bath toys. At this point in my life I was in the midst of a complete breakdown due to terrible issues in my personal life so I didn't get to do a review.

Over 2 years on, still being used

I don't have shiny photo's from when we had the products all brand new and in packaging or photo's of my at the time 10 month old exploring her new box of excitement but some of the products
have lasted until now, over 2 years later and have been great toys for my little girl so I wanted to share my views.





Here is what were lucky enough to win:

We had the green version

Shampoo Rinser - they no longer do this version and have replaced it with a new model. After using this for 2 years we had to throw it out due it getting mouldy round the rim. We got a lot of use out of it but I think the newer version without the separate section is less likely to collect mould. A great idea to make washing your little one's hair a bit more stress free. G enjoyed using it herself sometimes for just pouring water or trying to do her own hair.





Bath time turtles

As a baby the bright colours and rattle sounds from these kept G busy. As she got older she gained more interest in the different features of the turtles (a mirror, one has beads to shake like a rattle, the other has a spinning middle section) and then at some point worked out they can stick together in a line. she still plays with them now. These are suitable from 12 months plus but G was fine with them from 10 months.

Dolphin Divers Bath Toy

Also no longer on Munchkin main site

G has loved this. Your baby/toddler fills the whale with water, pours the water in through the top which makes the dolphins wheel spin round. At one point we had to start putting the toy at an angle or it won't spin round. G has loved just playing with the whale on it's own and she started to use it to wash her hair with at one point. A great idea for a bath toy but the problems with motion can be a bit off putting.

Daredevil dolphins Bath toy  no longer on their website so I assume not produced anymore. We still have the hoops but at some point the dolphins got mouldy. The dolphins are squirty toys that can fill with water and be played with like that or you can dive them through the hoops. A great bath toy. G still happily plays with the hoops, wearing them on her arms or feet or balancing them on her head! We could do with another dolphin but she gained one replacement from the mermaid toy we brought a few months ago.

Bath toy scoop

This sticks to the bathroom wall with double sided sticky tape. After moving house and having to pry it off one wall it wasn't sticky enough to stay on the new bathroom wall with all the toys in. I've still yet to find any proper thick, strong enough double sided tape to stick this & her name plaque for her room back up. This is a great space saver though so now I've reminded myself I better have another search for some tape. It's great that you can just scoop them up and it drains out....though as mentioned the squirty toys can get mouldy so with those you can't really just scoop them up and be done with it. They need a proper squeeze out or they get mouldy much too quickly. Any others toys though scoop away! I would recommend this.

Baby Bath Ball

She still uses this too. Lovely little ball that 'rains'. 

She likes to pour it over her head sometimes or other wise just fill up make it rain out water over and over. Good sensory play. Listening to the sound the water makes when 'raining'. Feeling it rain out on her hands. Also can be shaken to make a noise/act as a bath rattle and spun around in the water too. This is a great one for young babies. Suitable from 6 months plus.

Lazy buoys

She loves the two characters of these. Mummy 'brought them to life' once by making them jump up and down around the bath tub and made appropriate noises and dive into the water and after the first performance she demanded that every single bath time for quite a while.

Bright and colourful. Lots of fun scooping water, pouring out into the bath or into one of the other pieces. Making the little ball spin around by pouring water on that. Lots of activities for your little one with this set. Good for developing motor skills.

Snail Stacker 

We still have all of this set except the squirty flower that went on the top. That went mouldy like the other squirty toys at some point too. We found the snail did not balance/capsized when the flower was placed on the top anyway but it was still good fun for G just using it as a squirty toy. Learning how to fill them up and squirt them out by herself.

Two of the rings themselves can be filled with water and pour out in a different way. The top stacker has 3 colourful beads on that G used for counting when she was just beginning with her numbers. 

With it being a stacking toy it was good for very early math skill for learning about the sizes and order. All that I really want out of a bath toy is for her to have fun though. 

So as you can see G was a lucky pup winning that haul from Munchkin. It was her 1st birthday a couple of months after we won these and one of my work colleague/friends very kindly brought her the Bath Dunkers set.
We hadn't asked for anything specifically but she had spotted it in a shop and it stood out to her. So much so that she brought a set for another of our colleague/friends who had been pregnant at the same time as me and has a little girl the same age.


Bath Dunkers

G loved this. I think it was/has been her favourite bath toy. Sadly we don't have it anymore. One puffer fish was thrown down the toilet by madam when being a bit of a monkey. Another ended up splitting in two. I'm not sure how or why. Part of the net started pulling away from the side. I don't think this was a fault of the toy, I think it was because it was used so much. G would put all of her squirty toys in the net and the dolphins would sometimes get stuck leading to her tugging the net a bit leading the gradual wear and tear.
She still asks about this toy so maybe Father Christmas will gift her with a new one if she's a good girl.
It's good for developing spacial awareness skills but most importantly very fun. The puffer fish could be used separately just as squirty bath toys also.It's suitable from 12 month plus.






About a year ago we added to our munchkin collection (partly to replace those that had to be thrown out, partly as mummy thought this looked great and it was in a baby event at a local supermarket) and purchased the Splash along mermaid.
Your child pulls the shell/star/crown at the top of the mermaids head and the mermaid swims, her tail propelling her through the water. There are two designs of this. The pink mermaid with a purple dolphin squirty toy or a yellow haired mermaid with an orange starfish squirty toy. I went for the one pictured to help replace one of her dolphins. A lovely toy suitable from 18 months up so great for older children in the bath.






I've found all munchkin bath toys to be great quality and they come up with original products.
The number one critic has loved them and still does even now she's turned 3.
Even though several of the toys I've reviewed are no longer available on the Munchkin site you can still find many of them for sale elsewhere on the internet. I always shop around to make sure I get the best price.

Has your little one had any munchkin bath toys? If so which did you rate the highest?

MAM Soother Review

My little girl has turned 3 now and luckily has been off dummies during the day now for a while. Night time has been more of a struggle due to her sleeping issues. Despite the difficulties of getting to the 100% dummy free status (very almost there :) ) I don't regret the use of a dummy. However if I went back or do it all again I would try to lessen the use of it during her waking hours.

Here is the slightly updated review I did on MAM soothers when G was a baby.

Opinion is divided on the use of dummies (soothers/pacifiers) but at times when your baby is very distressed or you are incredibly busy - in a rush to get somewhere - in my case say a hosital appointment, then it can make things a huge emount easier. You could just let them cry and scream but I'm not one of those who can leave them like that, maybe it's a weakness but if I can't comfort her in other ways and with life already being difficult it did help to let her have this extra comfort.
Mainly for me it would be those times at night when you are really, really struggling to stay awake with your child and they won't settle, sometimes I felt I needed to use one.

They were helpful for G as she had a sensitive tummy since week two and began to suffer from bad trapped wind a lot. They sometimes helped to soothe her when she was inconsolable and if something helps make her feel better that's fine by me.

I was worried about giving G one so soon, but felt better about it when I saw that they help prevent SID (sudden Infant Death Syndrome). They are FSID approved.We had a small tub of soothers at home as before having my baby, I didn't know which would be best so brought Avent and MAM and we were gifted some Tommee Tippee ones. 

Designs from 2011

The first one we happened to give G was a MAM 'I Love My Daddy' soother and because she became used to the shape and feel of the design, they became her favourite. She was then a bit fussy towards the other makes.

Another important reason I am not against the use of soothers is that many these days are orthodontically designed so support the healthy and proper growth of your children's teeth and gums.

MAM are one company who use this concept. ALL of their soothers are orthodontically designed.

 

We only had two packs to begin with, the Mummy and Daddy set pictured above and a 0 - 2 month pack pictured to the left, which has a smaller plastic frame with larger airholes.

We also had another single one I got free with a magazine - Practical Parenting & Pregnancy I think, which G is pictured with below:

I think this was 6month+ size so too big at the time

At the Manchester Baby Show (2011) MAM had a special offer on - 3 packs of soothers/clips for £10. It was too good an offer to miss, especially as I'd been wanting some more MAM soothers for Grace, but also as proved by her spitting her dummy onto the floor at the show, having some clips would come in handy too.

I got the blue and pink/lilac Night soother packs (pictured below), partly because I love the designs on them, but also as they are glow in the dark, like the one above.

2011 Designs

I think this is a excellent idea, because if your baby uses a soother at night and it has fallen out into their basket/crib/cot somewhere, you don't have to blindly rummage around to find it and also they provide a soothing glow for the baby. I'd definitely recommend them.

Here is Grace with one of the above mentioned:

The clips we got here are pictured below, and again not only are useful, but have a pleasing design.

I would highly reccomend use of the dummy clips* as when not using them (if others needed a wash or we lost the clips round the house) we lost a lot of our soothers over time!
They don't do the above design anymore but they have a lot of lovely designs they didn't have 2-3 yrs ago and are around £1 cheaper now.

So here's what makes MAM soothers extra special:

• The soothers are 'good for the skin thanks to air holes and MAMs unique inside surface'.
•  'MAMs patented silk teat is silky soft and thanks to the anti slip surface the soother stays easily in baby's mouth'.
• 'The orthodontic teat is ideal for baby's jaw and teeth development'.
• They are BPA free
• They are FSID approved.

Aswell as the Original and Original night soothers they have the MAM Crystal, Perfect, Perfect Night, Soft, Latex and Air ranges. They do 4 different dummy sizes so you get the right one for your baby 0 months+, 0-2 months, 6 months+ and 12 months+
You can also personalise a dummy and put your childs name or nickname on.

 I like that they don't have a handle to flap about, on top of the fact they are designed to benefit my baby as much as possible. There are also lots of lovely designs to choose from. Some of my favourites were the owl and cat designs. They regularly change them. My favourite recent designs from looking at the website are the MAM original teddybear and cat & horse with the moon night designs in the 12 month+ range, but sadly I don't have a baby to give them to now!

Current 2014 Designs. £5.15 for 2 pack.

As well as their website MAM soothers are also available at other retailers such as Asda and Boots.

MAM also have a Facebook page ran and my still do regular competitions (which we won a few soothers on and bottles) and is a good place to chat to other mums.