Miscellaneous

Beautiful artwork and personalised cards at a sensible price

By GG… On Monday I shared the very exciting news with you that Mum and Dad are getting married. Again. It has been 13 years since they married, and whilst they had a fabulous day, with good friends and family, there are now other people in our lives who we didn’t know then, and we want to celebrate with them too. A large part of these new additions to our social circle has been afforded purely by the arrival of moi. Well, moi and mon cute petit frère. From ante-natal coffee-mates, to a select number of mothers trusted to walk us …

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Date Night for Mums and Dads??

By GG…  Date night. Two words which leave me shuddering in disgust. It’s not so much the getting ready – I’m actually quite partial to Mummy’s wardrobe, and there’s always a chance of a dab of powder and a smear of lippy coming my way if I keep her company as she dresses. It’s not the prospect of a babysitter either. I’m a savvy creature, and I can normally convince them that yes, I am allowed to stay up for the whole of X Factor, and yes, I usually get hot chocolate and hobnobs before I go to bed. So …

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When pyjama day became party day: Wii Party U review

A rather epic parcel arrived in the post yesterday. As with another recent delivery, the word awesome was used quite a lot by my brother. As luck would have it, yesterday was also the day we had planned for a pyjama day, and we quickly cast aside all thoughts of baking, movies and craft in favour of exploring this box of goodies. We were beside ourselves with excitement and wanted to get started straight away. It did take Mummy about half an hour to set us up, but then she is a neat freak and wanted all the cables tidied …

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Bullies: Wot so Funee?

Short and sweet for us this week, but here’s one from The Bug: I’m delighted to confirm that I have moved up 3 book levels in my first half term of Year 2 at school. I’m particularly taken with a book series about Big Barry Baker. I’m less keen on my mother’s attempts to focus me on the wider issues in the text I’m reading. We recently read Big Barry Baker and the Bullies. Two chapters, and I read them very well, thank you. Then begins the inquisition: “Why do you think children become bullies?“ She begins to quiz me. “They’re …

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Saturday night is Sodastream cocktails night!

By GG… It’s the weekend! Which in our house heralds only one thing. Daddy cracks open the Sodastream flavours and mixes some mean cocktails! We reviewed our Sodastream Source machine back in June when Daddy took a nostalgic trip back in time on Father’s Day, recalling how he had once attempted to fashion champagne from a bottle of Blue Nun in the seventies. The new machines have come a long way since then, and ours is elegant enough to be allowed a permanent spot on Mummy’s minimalist kitchen work surfaces 😉 Now, we tried them all at the time and …

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Instagram fridge magnets: genius idea for Christmas Stocking Fillers

I have been 9 for all of 3 days. It was great, but it’s finished now, so I’m looking forward to Christmas 😉 I used to think that the best part of Christmas was unwrapping presents, but now I’m ancient, I actually love the shopping even more. And with only £2 pocket money a week (I know!!!) I can only afford the stocking fillers. So I was thrilled to discover Stickygram. Something about Instagram appeals to the narcissist in me – I have been known to take ‘selfies’ behind Mummy’s back on numerous occasions: With Stickygram, you can create Instagram …

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Wot so Funee? Violin Practice

by GG… Mummy and Daddy went out last week. They left us with the babysitter, and the strict instruction to go to bed after 10 minutes of TV. Then I remembered I had to brush my teeth. Then I remembered to go to the toilet. Then I remembered to tidy up my books. Then I remembered to do my violin practice. I made a pact with the babysitter to wear that all of it only took 10 minutes. Then I had to come down and write Mummy a note. I left it outside my door. Now, if you have your …

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I took the Savage Challenge. Will you?

Would we take the savage challenge and eat the grasshoppers?   Today sees the start of the Savage Challenge blogger book tour, and I’m delighted to kick off the challenge by telling you a little bit about both the tour, and the book which inspired it. Over the next 20 days, 20 fabulous bloggers will be setting you a #savagechallenge. Read on to discover the theme for today’s challenge. Discover the Savage World The book itself is the kind of read that children won’t notice they’re reading – even reluctant readers very quickly start to find themselves immersed in discovering …

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Skylanders SWAP Force is here!

By the Bug… I am the envy of all my friends. Skylanders SWAP Force is in shops today, but I’ve had it for a whole week already so I could review it and let you know what I think. Which means I have been much in demand for playdates. Understandably, as the Portal Master in our house, I impose certain conditions upon players. They are as follows: Skylanders SWAP Force – Bug’s rules of the game Swapability – you may swap the 16 SWAP Force characters into more than 250 unique combinations, but I retain final approval – especially over …

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Pocket Money: Wot so Funee?

From the lips of the Bug… I have an axe to grind with Mummy. You see, we’re supposed to get £2 each every Saturday, but we forget to ask, or she forgets to pay, or we’re out without money when we remind her. It’s all very convenient… She has promised to set up a Roosterbank or PKTMNY account for us so that money can be sent magically from her account to ours every week by pocket money fairies. I’m not exactly sure how I get it out of there to spend it, but I’m not fussy, if it’s in my …

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I got my Festival Skirt! Miss Francis pettiskirt tutu review.

“This is epic! I look like a giant fluffy marshmallow. Don’t eat me, will you…?” I got excited on Friday when this fabulous pettiskirt tutu arrived from Miss Francis. It was out of its gorgeous box and onto my tiny tush quicker than you can say #autoawesome. I’ve wanted what I like to call a festival skirt since my visits this summer to Just So, and to Feastival, where I saw cute little girls in spotty wellies and frilly skirts rocking moves to the music in the mud. It’s a seriously cool look, in a “oh I just threw it on and …

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Children’s Book Week review: Stick Dog Wants a Hot Dog

By Tom Watson. We hadn’t come across Stick Dog before seeing Stick Dog Wants a Hot Dog. The narrator claims terrible drawing skills, but we think his stick caricatures add something to the slightly pre-teen humour you’ll find Stick Dog’s dialogue with his fellow strays (named to appeal to kids and make parents roll their eyes):  “We need to give the raccoon a name,” she said simply. “A name?” “Oh yeah, said Karen as if this was a perfectly logical thing to do. “If we’re going to have a nemesis who is trying to snatch what is rightfully ours, it …

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Children’s Book Week review: Barefoot Books

We’re in the middle of Children’s Book Week, and in solidarity with Save the Children’s Born to Read campaign we are posting a children’s book review every day. We started on Monday with a review of Skulduggery Pleasant, and today we’re pleased to bring you not one, but two books for different reading ages, from Barefoot Books. What are Barefoot Books? Barefoot books are beautifully illustrated books for children from ages 1 to 14. From picture books for the very young, through Independent Readers for those getting used to reading, and books that retell classic tales in original ways. The founders …

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Children’s Book Week: Born to Read

GG loves to read. She loves to read so much that it has frequently got her into trouble; sneaking illicitly indoors at break time to hide in the library; disappearing on play-dates to raid her companion’s bookshelf; and countless fairy-light reading episodes where she has been threatened with blindness to make her consent to sleeping. I took these video clips over the course of 24 hours last week: Born to read It is fair to say that life would be miserable for my daughter if she couldn’t read. Life would be a lot less pleasant for her family too, as …

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What Age is Skulduggery Pleasant for? Children’s Book Review

What is the best age to read the Skulduggery Pleasant series of children's books?

Children’s book week review: Skulduggery Pleasant – Last Stand of Dead Men (Review) by Derek Landy. Recommended age 11+ Today sees the start of Children’s Book Week in the UK, and we are celebrating by posting a children’s book review each day between now and Friday. Today we are reviewing the latest in the children’s book series Skulduggery Pleasant, by Derek Landy. Last Stand of Dead Men is number 8 in the series, and the sequel to Kingdom of the Wicked. GG has always been a prolific reader. She almost literally consumes books, maxing out her library card and finishing …

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Harry Potter Studio Tour London review – don’t bother with Universal

I am not well-known for wanting to go out. I may have mentioned before that leaving the house is a process which requires expert “people management” skills on behalf of my parents. It begins with a bright and cheerful “Today we’re going to….” followed by some strategic groaning and face-making by yours truly. So I astonished even myself when I was up and dressed before the old’s alarm went off, on the day we had scheduled to visit the Harry Potter Studio Tour in London. When you book tickets you have to choose a time-slot, and we were a tad early …

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Geocaching – a treasure hunt for families with a difference

Durdle Door – a geocache location I have to confess that the word geocaching used to leave me cold. I had visions of map-reading in extreme circumstances, rain, rock scrambling, and walking – WALKING! Just Dance it is not. Nor is it hanging out with friends, watching the X-Factor, or chilling out in bed with a book. In short, not something I wanted to do. But then we did geocaching at Center Parcs: we scrapped over who was going to follow the GPS coordinates, and by the time we had our second code we were hooked. We came home determined …

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Taking a bet: Wot so Funee?

Conversations in the back of the car: GG: Talking of bets (were we?) Jodie owes me £3.20 The Bug: Why? GG: Because I bet her that she couldn’t do 7 sums in 5 minutes, and she did, and I was going to pay her, but when they came back corrected, she’d got 3 wrong, so she lost. Mummy: Why £3.20? That’s an odd amount. GG: *sighs* Because I already owed her £2.20 from when she bet me I couldn’t go all day without touching my face, and I nearly did it but forgot at the last minute. So then we …

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7 things you need to pack when camping with kids

I dragged my parents camping several times this summer. Some of it they enjoyed (namely, the parts where they were asleep, and the parts where they were drinking cider), some of it they didn’t. I enjoyed ALL of it. I know how to have a good time, and so I offer you my best tips for getting rid of the camping jitters and throwing yourself into the spirit of camping with kids. What to take when camping with kids Friends: there is nothing like a couple of middle-aged people whining about boredom to wreck your holiday. There are fields full …

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