Miles Kelly Mini Playbooks Review And Giveaway

We were sent Miles Kelly Mini Playbooks range to review this week. Written by Sarah Parkin and Designed by Rob Hale. Each Mini Playbook has a story, playmat, pop-up building and over 20 press out pieces. There are currently 6 books within the Miles Kelly Mini Playbooks and we have 3 books to offer one lucky winner! Read on and enter below.

Miles Kelly Mini Playbooks

Miles Kelly Mini Playbooks

Currently, the six Miles Kelly Mini Playbooks available include Farm, Animal Hospital, Fire Station, Castle, Airport and Garage. These fantastic books encourage reading and learning through play.

Miles Kelly Mini Playbook - Animal Hospital

Mini Playbook Fun

Each storybook follows a character at work, explaining the different tasks they do each day. Once you’ve read the story and learnt the tasks, it’s time to play and act out the different roles! There is a handy guide to setting up and using the book inside too.

Animal Hospital Instructions

Each book turns into a square playmat with a road, pop-up building and relevant scenery. The buildings all have doors that open, allowing your press-out characters to go in and out easily.

Miles Kelly Animal Hospital Mini Playbook

Animal Hospital Playmat - Miles Kelly Mini Playbooks

Inside each pop-up building, there is plenty of space to move characters around. Both girls enjoy setting up these books and playing out the roles. Izzy especially loves animal hospitals and this was definitely her favourite. Reading about Sam the Vet’s adventures at work and then playing Vet kept Izzy busy for hours!

Castle

The Castle Mini Playbook follows Cedric the knights adventures in a medieval castle. The Castle comes with a Dragon, knights on horses, a Lord & Lady, Musician and more, the girls quickly got lost in this Mini Playbook.

Castle Miles Kelly Mini Playbook

Fire Station

We read about Firefighter George’s adventure at work, then we set up all the pieces. The girls had hours of fun playing as firefighters, rescuing cats from buildings and putting out fires. This Playbook comes with a fire engine, fires, barriers and various firefighters.

Fire Station

Airport

Jack is on his first visit to the airport in this storybook on his first family holiday. Learn about what goes on in an airport then fold out the playmat, pop up the building and play! I love how the aeroplanes go together for this playbook making them 3D.

Airport

Farm

Follow Farmer Sam around the farm as he cares for all the animals. Farms are very busy places with lots of jobs to do, press out the pieces and help Sam look after the animals. With cute farm animals and a shiny red tractor this Playbook is amazing.

Farm

Garage

Learn about mechanic Matt’s adventures at work in this storybook before getting busy helping at the Garage. Help wash cars, change tyres, repair engines and become a marvellous mechanic for a few hours.

Garage

The Mini Playbooks fold back down after being played with. This makes the Mini Playbooks easy to store until next time. Simply flatten the press-out pieces and store them inside the building safely too. We are really impressed with the Mini Playbooks as they are so easy to set up and clear away. They certainly kept the girls occupied and having fun for hours at a time and the enjoyed building a few at a time and connecting the roads on the playmats to create their own little town.

Miles Kelly Mini Playbook Giveaway

As promised, we have 3 Miles Kelly Mini Playbooks to giveaway to one lucky winner*! The winner will be able to pick any 3 titles from the 6 available, simply enter the giveaway below and keep an eye on your emails.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*Winner will be notified within 24 hours of the giveaway closing and will have 72 hours to respond or a new winner will be picked.

Which 3 Miles Kelly Mini Playbook titles would you pick?

Hero Fun With Herodrive Vehicles

Izzy’s been having Hero fun with the new Herodrive Vehicles. We were kindly gifted the vehicles to review Both of my girls love DC, with Batman being their favourite! Obviously, because of this, we were really excited to check them out.

Hero Fun

Hero Fun With Herodrive vehicles

These fantastic vehicles are a mash-up of favourite DC superhero characters and vehicles to create the ultimate her powered adventure! Choose from Speed Squad Minis or Mash Machines for some hero fun for your little one.

Herodrive from Asda

Join in with the superhero action with these super speedy vehicles and your favourite DC hero. Available from Asda and some items are available from Amazon too. Although the Herodrive range is aimed at 3-6 years, Eva (8) really enjoyed joining in with the hero fun too! These fabulously speedy little vehicles will have your little one off on superhero adventures for hours.

Speed Squad Minis

Herodrive 2.5inch vehicles

These fun, free-wheeling vehicles are super fast and feature DC icons Superman, Batman, The Flash and The Joker. This new range provides high-speed hero fun with these fantastic little vehicles. Zoom about the streets of Central City as your favourite DC hero saving the day!

Mash Machines Batman Police Car

Mash Machines Batman Police Car

These super cool Herodrive Mash machines are HEROIC! Patrol the streets in the Batman police car and don’t forget to push the Batman logo for backup if needed! Just like the Speed Squad Minis, Mash machines are seriously speedy, perfect for saving the day.

Our Thoughts

Honestly, we love the Herodrive vehicles, the girls have been playing with them non-stop. The Batman Police Car is so much fun with the Batman noises! The Herodrive cars really are super speedy. They are perfect for high-speed chases through the flat. Personally, I think these would make a fab alternative to chocolate this Easter and the perfect gift for any little one. Izzy says the herodrive vehicles are so cool and she loves them, she call the speed squad mini Batman car, Baby Batman and the Batman Police Car, big Batman.

Izzy playing with Herodrive vehicles

More Herodrive products will be launching soon too, so keep an eye out!

Which DC icon is your childs favourite?

Glasses Repair Kit – SnapIt Review And Giveaway

I received a Glasses repair kit to review called SnapIt and I have a giveaway for you to win one too! As someone who wears prescription glasses all the time or contact lenses with sunglasses, a repair kit always comes in handy.

Glasses Repair Kit - Snap It

Glasses Repair Kit

Anyone who wears glasses will know that from time to time screws can come loose. Anyone who weares prescription or sunglasses will find a repair kit is always a useful tool to have on standby. I have lost count of how many times I’ve had to repair my glasses over the years. Most kits include tiny fiddly screws so I was interested to see how SnapIt is different.

Repairing Glasses with Snap It

Snap It

Unlike most repair kits, the SnapIt kit uses their unique, patented Snap-Off feeder tip screws. These allow easy handling and makes insertion into all types of frames from sunglasses to prescription frames less fiddly.

The stainless steel screws cut new threads to fix the stripped hinges. This can be a life saver in itself! The screws can easily be inserted from the top or bottom.

Repairing glasses with SnapIt

The kit comes in a handy little tube with a screwdriver and 5 different screw sizes allowing you to repair 99% of all glasses instantly! I’ve struggled in the past to find the correct size screw for my glasses so I love that there are 5 different sizes.

Considering the cost of new frames, this fab little glasses repair kit is a great buy and worth having in your bag. With the small tube you can easily store this kit anywhere.

Giveaway

As promised, I have a giveaway to win a SnapIt eyeglass repair kit, simply enter below.

Win A Snapit Glasses Repair Kit #3

Have you heard of SnapIt before? What do you think of their unique design?

Freshen Up Your Bedroom Easily With Bedspreads

You can freshen up your bedroom easily with one small change, bedspreads! Bedrooms can look a little dull and be awkward to change around regularly but bedspreads can make a big difference. Our bedrooms are a place to switch off and we spend more time in there than we may think! Freshing up your bedroom easily with bedspreads is a cheap and efficient way to change the whole look.

Freshen Up Your Bedroom

Freshen Up Your Bedroom Easily With Bedspreads

Beds are the main focus in a bedroom as they take up the most space, by adding a touch of colour, sparkle or a pattern you can completely change how it looks. You can buy bedspreads at sale prices from Yorkshire Linen Online to freshen up your bedroom. There are so many styles and at great prices allowing you to regularly freshen up your bedroom and create a new look.

Add Some Sparkle!

To really change the look of your bedroom you could add a runner with a bit of bling. This gorgeous Crystal Amethyst Bed Runner is sure to change the whole look of your bedroom. This adds colour and shine to your room brightening up even the smallest of spaces!

https://www.yorkshirelinen.com/crystal-amethyst-bed-runner.html

Pretty Patterns

Adding pretty patterns like this Coppice – Mulberry Bedspreads can really change the look and feel of a room too. Patterns are a great way to brighten up the room and often you can team them up with matching wall prints, cushions and other bedroom decor.

Freshen up your bedroom easily with bedspreads

Purple & Cosy

https://www.yorkshirelinen.com/mink-faux-fur-throw-purple-150x200.html

A great choice for new bedspreads is to go with your favourite colour. We have several bedspreads for our room from full sets to cosy throws. Adding something purple like this gorgeous Mink Faux Fur Throw makes a real difference. Adding a lovely throw like this can make your bedroom feel really cosy.

Do you regularly freshen up your bedroom with new bedspreads like these?

Winter Wonderland Weekend Box Review

We received a Winter Wonderland Weekend Box to review last week! We’ve worked with Weekend Box reviewing their fantastic craft boxes before and couldn’t wait to try the Winter Wonderland box.

Winter Wonderland Weekend Box

Weekend Box

Each Weekend Box comes with 4 themed STEAM activities along with a booklet of activities and instructions. Each box also comes with a set of stickers for your booklet for each activity as well as fun character sticker cards.

Winter Wonderland Weekend Box

Winter Wonderland Weekend Box

The Winter Wonderland theme comes with some really cool and fun activities. The booklet is full of fun activities like word searches, pictures to colour, stories to complete as well as fun facts and jokes. There are also instructions for each activity in the booklet. Everything you need comes in the activity packs apart from a few items you will already have like pencils, scissors etc.

Pop Up Penguins Craft

The first activity we chose to do was this fun and simple pop-up penguin craft. Male penguins find the smoothest, shiniest pebble and places it in a females nest as a ‘proposal’.

Making pop up penguins

This fun activity involved making 2 penguins that pop up, one presenting the other with a smooth, shiny white stone provided in the pack. We began by cutting out 2 penguin shapes, penguin feet & beaks. Then we stuck the feet on to the bottom of the penguins then made a paper spring as instructions and stuck the head down on to it. We then added the eyes and beaks.

pop up penguin craft

This was a lovely, quick activity that only took 10 minutes and the girls loved making them!

Icy Tea light Holder

Next we made an Icy tea light holder, another really easy but satisfying activity! Using the balloon provided we filled it up with water and froze it for a few hours. We then cut the balloon off, broke a hole in the top, let out the water. We then lit the tea light and popped it inside which created a gorgeous effect!

Icy tea light holder

Rocky Road Snow Bites

rocky road  snowbites

A quick and tasty activity like this onev is perfect at the weekend! We simple melted chocolate buttons, mixed in crushed biscuits and marshmallows, sprinkled with icing sugar and let them set in the fridge for half an hour.

Rocky road snow bites

We only managed to make two rocky road snow bites but they were delicious! We’ll be making these again ourselves with enough for everyone!

Salted Snowflake

Salted snowflakes

Making Salted snowflakes was quite fun but a little messy! We traded the snowflakes with a glitter glue pen, let it dry slightly, sprinkled it with salt then dropped watercolour paint onto it and let it dry. It created a gorgeous colourful, sparkly effect.

salted snowflakes

Try A Weekend Box

 Use code SCBR199 and pay just £1 P&P to receive your first box free!

Having Fun with Zimpli Kids Products

We’ve been having fun with Zimpli kids products. They have a fab range of Gelli Baffs, Slime Baffs and Snoballs, great fun for the kids!

Having Fun with Zimpli Kids Products

Gelli Baff

Gelli Baff

We tried the Gelli Baff first, which was really fun. You simply pour in packet 1 and mix the water around and it turns into Gelli. We were sent pink and blue to try and both turned out great.

Having Fun

The girls really loved this although at first, the sensation seemed really weird to them! It didn’t take long for them to get carried away having fun though. This is fab for sensory play! 

Gelli Baf

Once you are finished you simply pour in packet 2 and the Gelli dissolves again. Gelli Baff is something we will no doubt buy time and time again. It’s such a fun product to play with and because it dissolves with ease it’s mess free too. 

Slime Baff

Slime Baff

Next we tried the red Slime Baff! The girls love slime and were really excited to see how it turned out. It mixed up to an ok consistency but I think we ran the bath slightly too warm as it wasn’t too thick like the Gelli had been.

Slime Baff - red

The girls have definitely been having fun playing with the Slime Baff but I struggled to get it to wash away. Again, this may be because I ran the bath a little warm but I think having a dissolving solution like Gelli Baff has would be really helpful. 

Snoballs

Snoballs - Zimpli Kids

Snoballs are a fun way to make snow balls that don’t melt! Simply add water in a bowl to the powder to create your own snow and make Snoballs.

Snoball Contents

There are 2 packets in the box which make at least 30 Snoballs in total. The instructions are really simple to follow and Izzy was able to mix it up herself.

Mixing Up Snoballs

We quickly had a thick fluffy bowl of Sno! It worked really quickly and felt almost like real snow. We were able to make a good few Snoballs and Izzy really enjoyed playing with it.

Snoball

We love Snoballs, these are great for indoors or outdoors and break down easily Simply scoop it up into the bin or leave it to break down naturally. Adding more water also helps Snoballs break down but this can be really slippery so be careful.

Zimpli kids have a fab range of products for children making every day fun!

Have you used any Zimpli Kids products before?

Trying Bristol CBD Oil To Ease Anxiety

I’ve been trying Bristol CBD Oil after receiving a sample to review. I was sent the 300mg CBD Oil which is a 2,000 mg full spectrum, organic hemp sativa extract. CBD Oil is often reported for it’s health benefits and I was keen to see if it had an impact on my anxiety especially.

Trying Bristol CBD Oil To Ease Anxiety

I have a few different health and mental health issues and I’m always keep to try natural remedies where I can. If you want to try CBD Oil for yourself, enter code PURPLE20 FOR 20% off and free delivery at the checkout.

What is CBD Oil?

CBD Oil is derived from a strain of cannabis plant calle hemp sativa. Hemp Sativa naturally grows with very low levels THC making it legal in the UK. Instead it contains high levels of CBD (cannabidiol) and over 100 different healthy cannibinoids.

CBD Oil is a food supplement rich in cannabinoids and terpenes. CBD works on the endocannabinoid system in the body. Our body productes cannabinoids which are used by the endocannabinoid system. This is responsible for creating a balance (homeostasis) internally. Most of us are unable to produce enough cannabinoids leaving our endocannabinoid system out of balance, resulting in poor health.

CBD Oil bottle

The use of CBD Oil has wide and varied benefits. The World Health Organisation stipulates CBD Oil is non-toxic, non-addictive and non-psychoactive. Research suggest taking CBD oil helps your body create more of the cannibinoids needed, helping maintain balance and wellbeing.

Trying Bristol CBD Oil

The CBD Oil I have been trying came in a little dropper bottle. I read all the instructions and as recommended started with 2 drops to begin with. I wasn’t too sure what to expect from trying the Bristol CBD Oil but I had heard lots of benefits from others. The taste was a little different but I guess that is to be expected. I held the drops under my tongue for a minute then waited to see what happened.

I noticed the CBD Oil had a calming affect on me. With my awful anxiety this was a welcome relief. Being able to feel a little calmer over Christmas even with a few issues and both girls taking turns to have chest infections, was lovely.

I’m looking at getting the next strength bottle next time as there are several different strengths available. Anything that eases my anxiety even slightly is a bonus for me and CBD Oil seems to help. I’m hoping along with my medication and regular self-care, using CBD Oil will make my anxiety much more manageable.

Have you tried CBD Oil before?

Part 2 – Purple Crocheted Summer Cardigan

Part 2 of my Purple Crocheted Summer Cardigan is finally here! Yes, that’s right, after far too long, I finally finished! You may remember Part 1 when Ritohobby kindly sent me some of their gorgeous Infinity Hearts Rose 8/4 yearn to create this cardigan with. 

Purple Crocheted Summer Caridgan Using Ritohobby Yarn

What Took Me So Long?

I loved this project so much but being a much thinner yarn and using the purple 3mm hook began to cause excruciating hand pain. After just 5 minutes of crocheting I’d begin getting sharp pains and after 10-15 minutes, I just couldn’t continue. This led to me crocheting in very small spurts and not overly looking forward to it. I did manage to slowly make progress, but each sleeve took a month.

Part 2 - Purple Crocheted Cardigan

Part 2 

I began getting quite stressed about the delay to part two of my post which unfortunately Checka heard all about! After getting fed up with my moaning she kindly treated me to some new crochet hooks with much more ergonomic handles.

Crocheted cardigan in progress

I was quite overwhelmed, to be honest, crochet has helped me so much until this point because it was the only body part that didn’t hurt! Pain slowing me down had been really hard to cope with. As soon as my new hooks arrived I got to work again, completing the final piece of a sleeve, hem and beginning the hood. 

Front of Purple Crocheted summer cardigan

With a better hook, this yarn began to work up even quicker than before too. The Infinity Hearts Rose 8/4 yarn is gorgeous to work with and the colour still amazes me. I’m a little sad not to be working with this yarn any longer. I am however very pleased to be adding this cardigan to my wardrobe! Originally meant to be a summer cardigan, it is one I can see me wearing year round too.

Back of Purple Crocheted Summer Cardigan

So what do you think of the completed purple crocheted summer cardigan?

Staying Warm With The Hot Water Bottle Shop

I’m staying warm this winter with some gorgeous products from The Hot Water Bottle Shop. They sell a full range of microwavable wheat bags, hot water bottles, slippers and more! Products like these can comfort, ease aches and pains, warm you up and with essential oils such as Lavender help you de-stress and sleep better.

Staying warm this winter with hot water bottle shop

Hot Water Bottles And Microwavable Products

The Hot Water Bottle Shop sell both Hot Water bottles and Microwavable products. If like me you have peripheral neuropathy then microwavable products are best. Hot water bottles can cause severe scolding and peripheral neuropathy may prevent you from feeling this, especially if you have Diabetes Millitus.

If you have no health concerns then hot water bottles are perfectly safe to use. The Hot Water Bottle Shop have a great guide here on how to safely use a hot water bottle.

Heat can help ease a range of issues from arthritis, back pain, cramping, muscle aches, digestion and constipation, pregnancy and period pains, stress, anxiety and  sleeping difficulties.

Staying Warm and Purple!

Warmies - Purple

I was kindly sent this gorgeous Lilac fully microwavable bottle to try out. Due to my chronic pain and peripheral neuropathy, I often feel the cold awfully throughout winter. Products like these are perfect for helping me through winter. With a lovely lavender scent, this microwavable bottle is fantastic for warming up with, easing pains or just feeling comforted and relaxed for a bit. 

Staying warm this winter with the hot water bottle shop

I’m in love with this fluffy bottle of heat, it is so soft and comforting. With the calming lavender scent it is a great way to relax, especially just before bed after a busy day.

Easing Aches And Pains

The Hot Water Bottle Shop kindly sent me an amazing purple, lavender scented microwavable neck warmer too. This lovely Neck Warmer arrived at the perfect time, just as I developed a painful neck ache.

Purple Microwavable Neck Warmer

The neck warmer quickly soothed and eased the muscles in my neck. You can find out how to safely use neck warmers here. They truly are amazing for helping with neck aches and relaxing.

Lavender neck warmer

The Hot Water Bottle Shop is now one of my favourites! They have some lovely products that make fab gifts for adults and older children. I’m now looking forward to staying warm this winter!

#MakeChristmasBearable With Teddy Mountain UK

I’ve been sharing the #MakeChristmasBearable campaign by Teddy Mountain UK over my social media recently. They are running a daily giveaway until 25th December. Each day someone who has been nominated will be picked to win their own Bear kit. The idea is to nominate someone who deserves to win a bear, perhaps they’ve had a tough year or just generally struggling and feeling low. With your nominations, you can help  #MakeChristmasBearable this year. 

#MakeChristmasBearable Campaign

#MakeChristmasBearable

Each day you can nominate someone you feel deserves to win a Teddy Mountain Bear. Simply comment on any of their social media platforms with who and why you think they deserve to win. The winner is announced via Facebook Live videos on their page each evening. I think this is an absolutely lovely campaign. I know many people who most definitely deserve to win and would love their own bear. Because of this, I  would like to help raise as much awareness about the #MakeChristmasBearable campaign.

A New Purple Friend

Amethyst the Gumdrop Pony

As I have been helping share the campaign Teddy Mountain UK kindly sent me a gorgeous new friend, their Gumdrop Pony. I was overwhelmed by their kindness and thought I’d use my new friend to help spread the campaign so others feel that too. I ran a few polls on Twitter to give my new friend a name. After a day of polls we finally named her Amethyst which I love!

Naming Poll

Teddy Mountain UK

Teddy Mountain UK have a huge range of fantastic bear kits to make yourself at home. These kits are fab and I know lots of smiles will appear due to their campaign. Teddy Mountain UK have kindly given me several shout-outs during their Facebook live videos for sharing #MakeChristmasBearable so I wanted to share a blog post too. Hopefully, it will help raise even more awareness for such a lovely campaign.

How To Nominate

I know many of my readers struggle this time of year and I’m sure many can think of someone who does too. Together we can help put a smile on a few more faces by sharing and nominating people to win daily.

With 13 more days to go and a prize each day, why not pop over to Teddy Mountain UK’s Facebook page and nominate a friend. I’m sure it will mean the world to whoever you win it for and could #MakeChristmasBearable for them!

This is a fantastic campaign and I would love it if you could share, nominate or even just watch a video and see what Teddy Mountain UK are doing