Christmas Gift Ideas for £5 or Less From Sportsdirect

Posted on November 19, 2017 by Fiona Martin

Sports Direct has been a great shop to kit my children out with sports wear over the last few years but would you have thought of popping in there for your Christmas gifts? With an array of items under £5, it’s well worth checking out whether you are just after a small gift, secret santa or stocking filler item.

I was challenged to pick up a few gifts from there and was actually surprised at the choice available for both adults and children. For me toiletries or socks are always a winner when it comes to stocking fillers or added extras to main presents so I was pleased to pick up some items that would suit my family this year.

The Korres gift set seemed a bargain at £5 and contains two quality products and is perfect for someone I know (just a shame that the box is a bit battered but I will put the contents in a gift bag with tissue paper instead). I’m sure you are well aware that I have a little minion crazy boy at home so what better than a set of Despicable Me mini shower gels. I love these small sizes as he does have a tendency to tip a whole bottle out at a time – oops! Star Wars socks will be a hit with him too so ideal for his stocking (he’s a massive believer in Santa at 7yrs old so lots of little surprise gifts keep him happy!). The Star Wars gift set looks great and I have a couple of people in mind for that one.

Overall I’m really pleased with my Christmas purchases from Sports Direct and shopping online was simple as you can filter gifts into one place. You have the option of delivery at £4.99 or if you click and collect in store you still pay the £4.99 but receive a voucher to spend in store for the same amount valid for 12 months (well worth doing if your store is easily accessible).

Why not check out Sports Direct online and see what goodies you can find this year for Xmas?

This post is an entry for BritMums #sdfiverchallenge Christmas Challenge, sponsored by Sportsdirect.com.

Ready Brek – the Super Smooth Oat Cereal to Start Your Day!

Posted on November 17, 2017 by Fiona Martin

Ready Brek has always been a part of my life from very young when my mum used to make me a bowl for breakfast on a cold Winter’s morning before school. The lovely warm feeling in your tummy is the perfect way to set you up for the start of the day.

Having teamed up with Despicable Me 3, Ready Brek is offering lots of chances to with prizes with codes inside each pack. My little boy had already requested for me to buy some after seeing adverts on television before we even received these boxes to try out! I’m more than happy to buy him some as the cold frosty mornings are upon us as it’s really important to ensure the children get a healthy breakfast at the start of the day.

Benefits of Ready Brek include:

Rich in calcium
Rich in vitamin D
No added sugar or salt
High in oat fibre

We do like our Ready Brek just as it comes out of the box for breakfast but are also fans of the chocolate variety – they even do honey or seriously oatey if you fancy them!

Other than eating the Ready Brek for breakfast or supper we do like to bake with it and one of our favourite recipes that we make is Secret Ready Brek Cookies – chocolate Ready Brek with a hidden white chocolate square inside. Why not give them a try?

Despicable Me 3 fans will love the new toys that are out now – perfect stocking fillers for Christmas. Firstly the DVD of the movie which my children loved watching again after seeing in the cinema after it was first released. I just know my little boy will watch it again and again checking out Grue’s latest tricks and adventures.

He was also rather thrilled with the Mineez Fizz ‘n’ Surprise Submarine which he took in the bath with him. It’s like a bath bomb that fizzes on the outside and out pops a little plastic submarine complete with two minion figures inside. This is now his favourite bath toy so we have minion adventures every night in the bathtub!

Overall I think Ready Brek and Despicable Me 3 make a great team and it’s definitely appealed to my children. What’s not to love? A super tasty warming breakfast along with fun and games with the minions!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product along with payment in order to write an honest review.

Ravensburger Despicable Me 3 3D puzzles

Posted on October 23, 2017 by Fiona Martin

Ravensburger Despicable Me 3, 3D puzzles can’t fail to be a hit with minion fans. Not only are they puzzles, they are covered in minions and also can be used as storage containers once built!

The Despicable Me 3 Storage Box 3D Puzzle comes with 216 pieces and along with a base, top frame, tray and yellow paper inserts. With a 7yr old minion fan and a 9yr old who loves 3D puzzles I left the two of them to get on with this. They had a production line on the go with Miss M finding the correctly numbered pieces and Mister B piecing them together. What I like about Ravensburger 3D puzzles are that each piece is numbered with a little arrow alongside to show you where to place to the following piece. Within just a short amount of time the puzzles started taking shape and the children were impressed with their structures.

Once each puzzle is complete they each have a base and top frame that turns them into sturdy storage units. A great bonus of the storage box is a tray that slides across the box and can hold little items but can easily be lifted out.

The Despicable Me 3 3D Pen pot was equally a pleasure to make and came together easily. Once constructed there is a thin sheet of yellow card to insert inside to finish the look as well as the plastic base and top frame. Mister B was absolutely thrilled with his pen pot and I think it looks great too!

Overall we are really impressed with both of the Despicable Me 3 3D storage puzzles. Not only are they fun to do, they are useful and look great. We’ve found with 3D puzzles in the past they normally stay up for a while then we have to pack them away as they take up too much room but these are fully functional and look great in Mister B’s bedroom.

These would make brilliant gifts at any time of the year but with Christmas on it’s way I’d definitely think about wrapping some of these to go under the tree!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Arthur Price Despicable Me Minions Cutlery & Bone China

Posted on July 25, 2017 by Fiona Martin

Arthur Price known for it’s quality cutlery, tableware and gifts for over 100 years have just launched a Despicable Me range for children. With a choice of two cutlery sets and some bone china tableware, there really is something for every little minion fan in your household.

There are two cutlery collections available, Sea of Minions and Expressions. which is the one we received below. Both are made to a high standard of 18/10 finest stainless steel and have a 15 year guarantee although I’m sure they’ll last beyond that having grown up in a household that uses Arthur Price cutlery and the same set is used each and every time I visit my parents many years later! Each set consists of a knife, fork, dessert spoon and teaspoon which are all highly polished with a slogan and image on the handle. My six year old’s eyes lit up when he caught sight of these (he’s minion obsessed) and couldn’t wait to check them out at dinnertime. As the cutlery comes in a presentation box they’d make an ideal and fantastic gift for any young person. The size of this cutlery is aimed at approximately 4-10 year olds.

The bone china Despicable Me collection from Arthur Price comprises of a mug, plate and bowl which can either be purchased separately or as a two or three piece set. This features the Sea of Minions design and is bright and fun to look at and the pieces are a lovely size for younger ones to use. The bowl is generous meaning it’s suitable for desserts, cereal or main meals such as pasta, and the mug is a perfect child size as I find any larger and it’s too much for them to drink.

The whole Despicable Me table setting looks charming, modern and you can see it is of a high quality with it’s well made pieces. It’s incredibly inviting to children and definitely something that will encourage them to sit at the table and use to eat with.

So there was only one thing left – time to test them out. Well to say my 6 year old was delighted with his new cutlery and tableware is an understatement. Out of all the characters he has encountered in his six years, minions have definitely had the biggest impact and become his greatest passion so to be able to eat off minion covered tableware using minion cutlery is an absolute pleasure for him. For me, knowing it is all of a high quality means that it will last for many years to come and will keep my little boy happy for as long as he’s interested in using it.

Overall I’m thrilled with the new Despicable Me range from Arthur Price. It exudes the Arthur Price quality I’ve grown up with and I’m pleased to see my children using something that both they and I admire and appreciate. If you have or know of any minion fans then this is well worth checking out as a really lovely gift for them, one that’s durable, of high quality, will last and be used daily – you can’t get better than that!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Despicable Me 3 Minion Tom Inflatable Remote Control

Posted on July 14, 2017 by Fiona Martin

Despicable Me 3 Remote Control Inflatables from Bladez Toyz are just about the coolest remote control to be had at the moment. Not only are they remote control, they move, they talk, they are minions and they are large inflatables making them quite a sight and a hit with anyone that sees them!

Along with the inflatable Tom is a remote control and you need 6AA batteries in total to power him along. Tom comes on a small base and then his body inflates which my daughter did in a matter of minutes so really simple to do. The first thing my 6yr old observed and was rather impressed with were his googles which also inflated!

The remote control is very simple to use and kept both my 6yr and 9yr old occupied. You can move the minion remote control forward or spin it around and also listen to it chatter which my boy thought was hilarious and briliant. We found that it did work on carpet but we also used it on a hard floor which got great results and plenty of minion action.

The children both loved controlling jail break Tom as he was simple to operate but fun with the way he spun around and his sounds. The 6yr old loved dancing and jumping over him as he spun, whereas the 9yr liked controlling it and steering it around the house making sure it didn’t bang into anything although if it did no damage is called due to it’s inflatable nature. With a 30m range this minion remote control allows for great play value and it looks impressive with it’s 35cm height.

Check out this video of the children taking Tom for a ride:

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

My Handsome Little Man is 6!!

Posted on October 23, 2016 by Fiona Martin

Last Sunday my handsome little boy celebrated his 6th birthday. I’m so proud of him and everything he has achieved over the last year, more than I could have imagined. He started school just over a year ago and sailed through the foundation year, so much so that he got awarded with a special book ’50 Utterly Silly Stories’ at the end of the year for his amazing achievement of reading 188 books throughout the year and outshining the rest of his class in his all round abilities!

blake-6 To think he’s come this far is amazing. Mister B and his older sister Miss M are like chalk and cheese in so many ways yet have an amazing sibling bond and come together to play and help each other throughout every day. I’ve always known Miss M falls in the upper half of her class but expected Mister B to be Mister average with his silly ways, jokey nature and clown antics, but it seems he’s proved me wrong in many ways.

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He’s different to his sister in that she is incredibly sporty and always eager to try new things. Mister B is more laid back (think daddy!) although he has an incredible imagination, can play independently and come out with some amazing stories and fun ideas. He’s also very humorous and loves to tell a joke.

A couple of the areas he was slightly behind in over the last year have suddenly hit a turning point over the last few months. On our holiday this year we had a private swimming pool which the children disappeared in two or three times a day (obviously with and adult or two in tow!). The first few days Mister B was there in his armbands, but by day 3, he had ditched them and was jumping in, diving under the water and swimming a whole width on his own!!

Over the Summer we managed to upgrade both of the children’s bikes after a friend was selling some fairly new ones quite cheaply so we managed to get them both the next size up. The only downside was that Mister B’s new bike didn’t come with stabilisers. This proved a sticking point for many weeks as poor Mister B was terrified about riding without any support, yet daddy insisted he tried. It was a fraught time which I found quite hard, but then this amazing company followed me on twitter. Intrigued I looked into their product and sent them a message and we ended up reviewing the amazing BikyBiky cycling harness which turned my little boy from a nervous cyclist on stabilisers to a fairly confident rider on two wheels in just a couple of weeks!

I cannot believe within the last 3 months my little boy has ditched both his armbands and his stabilisers – amazing progress for him!

So I was so proud last Sunday when he turned 6 years old. I baked a rather vast amount of cakes for him using my new Savisto stand mixer and we celebrated with a big Minion themed disco which I felt he deserved due to all his hard work.

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The children had fun, Mister B danced the afternoon away showing everyone his funky dance moves (with a bit of break dancing thrown in!) and the party proved a huge success. (Excuse the red disco light in Mister B’s eye in the photo below – couldn’t have timed that worse could I ?!?)

blakes-party The day after his party was his actual birthday and as we had family visiting, we went to a restaurant for lunch where we all enjoyed too much food and had a good time!

4f93577e-eb94-4786-a566-9d689d846a46 All in all we spent a whole weekend celebrating Mister B’s birthday, it was hard work for me, but rewarding watching my son hit a milestone and celebrate everything he’s achieved over the last year.

As much as I hate watching the children grow up (it goes way too fast!), I can’t wait to see what Mister B achieves next and where the future will take him. I love him to bits (as we all do our children) and he never fails to give me a hug at every given opportunity.

Good luck Mister B in all that you do and every venture that life takes you on in the upcoming year!!

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Ravensburger Puzzles from eTwist

Posted on March 29, 2016 by Fiona Martin

eTwist is an online retailer that sells something for everyone, from toys to watches, home goods and appliances and much more. It isn’t a website I had come across before but after taking a look around, I noticed that there were a lot of recognisable, branded products at very competitive prices, definitely worth a look at before making a purchase.

We were given the chance to try out some Ravensburger puzzles on their website to keep the kids occupied over the holidays. Being familiar with the Ravensburger brand, I could see the prices were really good for these items, and we chose something the kids have longed for, a 3D puzzle. I found one of Big Ben with the Minions on, something I knew that would have the utmost appeal and I can safely say it didn’t disappoint!

Both children were super excited upon seeing the Ravensburger 3D Minions Big Ben, and standing at 41cm tall this is a fantastic looking puzzle that doubles up as model on a shelf. With 216 pieces this was a great puzzle for 8yr old Miss M and just the challenge she needed. The pieces for this are unlike a traditional puzzle, and are numbered on the back to help you construct the pieces in the correct order. We all helped looked for the right numbered pieces but Miss M was chief builder.

We soon saw progress with the puzzle as it rose from the ground, into the shape of Big Ben, and the minion aspect kept 5yr old Mister B amused. He made his mission to put the finishing yellow piece of the tower on the top!

This puzzle is of excellent quality with plastic pieces, many of which are hinged for the corners and angles. These work really well to create the added dimension to the puzzle and in fact a puzzle that has been exceptionally well received by not only my own family but by others that have seen it!

Our second puzzle to complete was this Crazy Cats at the Perfume Shop which I just adored. It is a 500 piece puzzle ideal for families to complete together. We love cats and 5yr old Mister B was my chief corner and edge finder! puzzle 5

We have all had great fun completing this puzzle right down from the children up to the grandparents putting in a few pieces when they pop round. We spent a few days doing this but loved looking for pieces for each of the cats and the children were eager to be the ones putting in the last few pieces.

Puzzles are much loved in this house and are something everyone can join in with. They are a great activity for rainy days and school holidays. Why not check out what eTwist has to offer to keep the kids occupied over the next couple of weeks, puzzles are just one of the things on their site as well as much, much more!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Happy 5th Birthday Mister B

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Fiona Martin

Ten days ago the handsome Mister B became a 5yr old! It doesn’t seem possible, the years have whizzed by, but he is still as cute and cuddly as ever, although I’m sure that will change in future years!

His birthday fell on a school day, but he was more than happy with that as it meant he could choose something out of the present box and everyone would sing two songs to him. He was also insistent on wearing a birthday badge to school as he was a little worried that the teacher wouldn’t know it was his birthday and he’d miss out on that much talked about birthday box.

After school I picked up a very happy 5yr old, who couldn’t wait to tell me all about his day, but also eager to get home to see if he had any presents (he only got cards in the morning!).

Fortunately in the lounge lay await a bundle of presents which we opened whilst having his choice of birthday tea (pasta, ham, cut up cocktail sausages and grated cheese) followed by a star wars birthday cake.

He was a very happy boy with his newly aquired minions winter hat and gloves, along with minion top, minion goggles, minion balloon amongst other things.

We delayed his party by a week to allow for his cousins to come down for a few days so this weekend it’s been Mister B’s birthday all over again with a party at our local soft play centre. He was a very lucky boy and received some really lovely presents from his school friends which we have had fun playing with over the last few days, a favourite being a tube of slime full of monsters – ewww!, a remote control car and a superheroes playdoh set!

It’s been a fabulous week, enjoying watching my little 4yr old become 5. He has made me so proud, doing really well in his first term at school and constantly being a little joker, he always makes everyone laugh with his silly dances, funny jokes and quick witted comments.

He dressed himself yesterday in his new birthday cap, t-shirt and socks which did make me smile when came downstairs – he’s such a cute little character full of energy and always with a cheeky grin on his face! (well.. most of the time)