Sponsored Video - Master Moves Mickey

Disney and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Fisher Price have come together to bring us Master Moves Mickey this Christmas. This Mickey (M3 as he's known to his crew) really does bust some moves in a Hip Hop Style! Mickey has a changed a lot since I was 7 years old and I had a Mickey Mouse watch where his arms went round! This Mickey has 8 original songs and knows 15 original dance moves, including the Windmill (I'm sure I was known for doing that one in my day!) and The Insane Headstand! He's suitable for children aged 2 and over and I'm sure once Isla catches sight of him during the Ad breaks on children's TV he will be in her sights as a Christmas present. He's sure to get the kids up and dancing and if Noah has anything to do with it that means we have to get up too, he's forever saying 'Up, up' when I'm sitting down and he wants me to join in! If anything I think this could be a great way to encourage exercise for all the family and it's cheaper than a Wii Fit!

To inspire you to get on your own Mickey Dance journey the Master Moves Mickey Website is offering your child the chance to win £1000 and a bundle of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse toys. All you have to do to be in with a chance of winning this fantastic prize is film your children throwing some great dance shapes, make it as hip hop or as unique as you like! Upload the video to Youtube and then post your Youtube link here. Take a look at some of the entries to get some inspiration - there's some energetic Mickey impersonators out there! Good luck!

If you want to know more about Master Moves Mickey, Like Mattel on Facebook and Follow on Twitter


This is a Sponsored Post, but all thoughts are my own.

Frankie and Benny's Review - Includes Cocktails!

A couple of weeks ago 3 lovely ladies (i.e. me and my 2 best friends) went for a rare evening out together where we could talk, eat and drink without being interrupted 500 times by children who need a drink, need a biscuit, need the toilet, need their nose wiped. It was fab and it was thanks to Frankie and Benny's. We were charged with the difficult task of trying out their new cocktail menu (designed by Andy Pearson, award winning mixologist and formerly of Something for the Weekend) and have a 2 course meal thrown in. As you know we reviewed Frankie and Benny's as a family previously here and that was obviously a very different experience to going out in the evening with girlfriends. So here's my round up:

Cocktails: 
I had a Mojito and a Bramble - apparently a Mojito drinker is someone who can't resist a bit of spice and are usually first to the dance floor. I would say this aptly describes the pre-family me to a tee, however these days I'm usually asleep before the dancing starts! I really enjoyed my cocktails. Mojito is my cocktail of choice and although the Bramble was a nice change I could drink a large Mo' all night long! My only negative comment about the Mojito was - the mint garnish was a bit wilted - it needs to be FRESH! B1 (Best friend 1 - imagine Bananas in Pyjamas) said that she didn't think her cocktails were brilliant, she had a Cosmopolitan and a Bramble. But she did think that maybe she had her 'wine head' on that night and really enjoyed the glass of house Sauvignon. B2 was designated driver so she had just had a glass of wine that she also reported was delicious.

The food:

Full Rack of BBQ Ribs!

My meal was totally delicious. I enjoyed this meal so much more than I did on my last visit to Frankie and Benny's - it's an Italian American diner, so it's not fine dining or anything but it was tasty and I enjoyed every single mouthful of those ribs! The corn was melt in the mouth. Chips are chips I guess, but those ribs were fab. I had Frankie's Calamari to start and it was also scrumptious - the batter was crispy and fresh and the squid was good. 

BBQ Chicken and Ribs

B1 said:

My loaded skins were OK, but not great. I thought my ribs, chips and corn were lovely, but the chicken was over cooked and very dry. The coleslaw was cheap and not home made (I have to agree on the coleslaw point - it would really make a difference to have a lovely creamy coleslaw on the side).  What I tasted of the Eton Mess was DELICIOUS! I like the restaurant generally. I think the food choice is good. When I have been there with my children the staff have been great to them including giving them balloons which is a lovely touch. The waiter was really attentive. 

8oz Larder Trim Sirloin

B2 said:

I really enjoyed my meal. The skins I thought were fab as they were done how I like them (crispier as opposed to half being like half a jacket potato which is what a lot of places loaded skins end up like) and I thought the portion size was just right for a starter. My main course was lovely, nice taste and steak cooked just as I asked it to be.  Again , it was a good portion size as it was on the lighter bite menu and came out as such. Pudding superb (Eton Mess). No complaints at all on size or quality. Service was second to none, we should have got waiters name as I was watching him at other tables and he was equally as attentive with them. Only grumble was that the main came out within minutes of us finishing our starters and I would have liked a little longer in between. 

I'd like to add that the waiter was good that night, really attentive and friendly. He couldn't have done enough for us really. The restaurant was reasonably busy that night but not once did we feel we waited too long for anything and if we needed anything I know it would have been dealt with. Thank you Frankie and Benny's for inviting us along!

I was sent a voucher for a meal for 2 and 2 free cocktails each. We paid for the 3rd meal. All opinions are our own and have been written honestly.

Britax B-Agile 3 - Mumbassador Review

This Dream Machine, the Britax B-Agile 3, arrived in our house recently and I was so excited about it that I asked the OH to put it together before I got back from work. I say put it together, all that involved was putting the wheels on and the hood on, I think I could have done it myself. I'm told that as soon as it was up Isla and Noah were pushing and shoving to get in it first - they were pushing each other round the living room it was *THAT* exciting! This was all before I got home. So I was pleased to see that the new wheels had been gladly received. I do love a buggy, I think if you have a good one it can be the best bit about buying and using baby equipment. It's such a huge purchase and you have to research it well.

We've been sent this buggy as part of the Britax 'Mumbassador' (this makes me think of Ferrero Rocher every time I say it) programme and I was really quite flattered to be asked to join the Britax team. As a family we have never tried any Britax products so I was interested to see how I would take to a new brand. Before we owned the B-Agile I think I felt the name Britax was synonymous with safety and quality and with this buggy they have come up trumps. It's lightweight, easy to manoeuvre and sleek. The harness is safe and easy to fix and the frame feels really sturdy. It's already had the thumbs up from my mum, she says she thinks it's so lightweight that Britax must have been thinking of the Grandmas' when they designed it. She said 'it's brilliant, so easy to push, it just glides'. So there you are, one happy Grandmother. 

We've used it a fair bit for Isla and Noah and I would say that so far my favourite bits (apart from how easy it is to get around with) are the massive hood that extends further still when you unzip it and it has a mesh section so you can look directly through the hood to see baby. Great for checking if baby is asleep. Also I love the basket underneath which is great for when you do a little top up shop and you don't want to carry shopping bags. There is also a very nifty storage pocket in the the canopy for keeping important things to hand like keys and purse.

There's one other use for the B-Agile that you might not realise, it's a very good seat to watch Thomas the Tank Engine on TV in the morning......

We were sent the Britax B-Agile 3 to review - all words and opinions expressed are my own. Over the coming months we will review Britax products and let you know of latest news, offers and updates - keep your eyes peeled!

Persil Mosh and Wash - Get Messy With Music

Last Sunday was one of those drab days outside and all we wanted to do as a family was chill out. Sometimes the thought of staying in all day drives me mad but we all had a really good time, watching films (Star Wars - Isla and OH), playing with the Lego (Noah and I), taking naps (Noah), cooking a yummy beef casserole (Me) and in the afternoon I got the kids to take a look in a box of supplies that Persil supplied to get us into their Mosh and Wash campaign.

The first thing that caught Isla's eye was the big square piece of material and once I tied it round her head like a bandana, she got all into role play and pretended she was a pirate, ok so not exactly pretending to be a rock star but she had fun! Then I handed out the drumsticks. That prompted drumming on everything in sight.....they were withdrawn after a while as the drumming was getting ever more enthusiatic and dangerous....LOL!

Then the best bit as far as Isla was concerned was the face painting! Now as you'll see here I'm not expert when it comes to face painting - I blame the fact that they were sticks rather then paint ones. Once I'd finished Isla's face I have to say that my OH and I were in hysterics. It was an atrocious effort but I soon got him to stop laughing once I made a start on his......

By the time we'd done the faces we had a full on festival atmosphere going on in the house, it prompted a game of musical chairs (this is Isla's current favourite game, but lord forbid if she doesn't win!) and even Noah joined in and donned a pair of cool shades!

Check out the Persil site for some more ideas for activities to do with the kids - great for a grey Autumn day!

Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom Live - Review

This week we went to see Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom Live at The New Wimbledon Theatre. I'll start by saying that I think Isla really liked it and if you ask her what did you like best, she will say "The Frog Burp". This is the kind of humour I have to contend with in our house, burps and farts are hilarious to Isla and even Noah. I also know that she really liked the show because she participated when it was prompted and she got anxious when the interval started, asking me "is it coming back on?" several times!  She loved that Lucy was in it, the girl from the big world and she's a big fan of Gaston (She managed to wangle an £11 ladybird out of me before we went in to the show.....).

The story is a mixture of a few of the TV episodes of Ben and Holly, including the one where they clean up Gaston's cave, The Tooth Fairy episode with Lucy and there's also a Jelly Flood thrown in for good measure. There was also an appearance by the Elf band, lead of course by the Wise Old Elf who are preparing to sing to the King, at which point Lucy suggests perhaps the King would like some different music for his birthday and a rousing rendition of 'Music Man' followed where the whole audience joined in.

My particular highlight of the show was actually when Princess Holly, Nanny Plum, Lucy and Ben Elf flew through the night back to the Little Kingdom. At this point puppets were used and I think this highlighted to me that I think I would have personally preferred the show had it been puppets the whole way through rather like the Peppa Pig show and not adults playing the parts. This small part of the show with puppets actually felt more magical, as if they really were flying. This is only my view though and Isla wouldn't even have considered how else it could have been performed.

Singing Happy Birthday to King Thistle was the final highlight of the show, Isla loves singing happy birthday! And so the show ended and I ushered a very happy little girl out of the theatre and off for some dinner at Pizza Express. Finally another indicator that Isla enjoyed herself, she tiptoed all the way from the restaurant back to the car, clearly copying what the fairies did throughout the show, she even made me do it much to the bemusement of drivers stuck in a traffic jam along the way.

We were given free tickets in exchange for a review but all views expressed are my own.

What mustn't you do with.......?

In the last week we've had to say the phrase "what mustn't you do with (insert object)?" quite a few times and it all started when last Friday I found out that Isla had cut another little girls hair at nursery. I'm friendly with the girl's parents and I received a text from her mum saying that her daughter had a lot less hair this afternoon than this morning. If anyone else was telling me this story I would have probably burst out laughing but I just felt really fed up about it. What were the nursery doing letting them play in such a way with scissors? I was aware that they used little craft scissors but I had thought that they were supervised. Scissors had already caused a bit of a furore last year when Isla was accused by another parent of cutting the hair of his daughter when she was only 2. That time was slightly more awkward as I was told this by the father while at soft play (I'd never met him before but his daughter started trumpeting out loud that "Isla cut my hair!"). The nursery hadn't even told me anything about it. At the time I found it hard to believe because at home Isla couldn't even hold scissors properly let alone be able to cut a small plait off a girls head (she had Afro hair - there were lots of small plaits). So on approaching the nursery on that occasion they said that they weren't sure who'd done it therefore they couldn't tell any single one parent. It then came about that it wasn't Isla it was her little friend who'd done it, but the other parent was determined to believe the word of his 2 year old daughter.

So since then I thought that scissors might be monitored better although I think I have become complacent of late believing Isla to be a lot more responsible than she actually is. What actually happens when it is described does sound absolutely hilarious. The CCTV shows 4 girls playing hairdressers with each other, they all take it in turns to sit and have their hair brushed and 'styled' and in one little girls experience have an actual cut!!! The long and short of this is that I have spoken to the nursery and so have Isla's friend's parents and they have convinced us that scissors will be more closely monitored and will not be out to use over lunchtime where there is a period of children being picked up from a morning session and dropped off for the afternoon and nursery staff are not so focused on an activity such as craft. Staff who should have been watching the children more closely have also been disciplined. I feel that the situation has been dealt with and hope that it doesn't happen again. This incident triggered a whole weekend of me and the OH saying 'What mustn't we do with scissors' over and over again. "Cut hair" comes the solemn answer!

I mentioned that I've been complacent lately too and so following the scissor incident came the drawing on the walls incident! I really didn't think that this would happen to us. I felt like we'd got past the stage where she might do this, that she would understand that the walls aren't for BLACK FELT TIP PEN! No, not quite and so our next phrase was "What mustn't you do with pens?" .......ah, it's so easy this parenting lark.

Silent Sunday