Toy Reviews
Makedo sets.
Creativity – something we all want our children to exhibit.
‘Creativity is the currency of tomorrow. Creative people invent, problem solve, and see the world as full of potential. They ask the question ‘what if?’ that leads to world-changing innovations’ (Makedo)
Creative thinking is ever present in the notes my children bring home from school indicating how we can encourage creativity at home. My kids are brilliant at this – they try to creatively think there way out of homework every evening!
As a child, I remember making my own dolls house. These memories are so special, my mum would say all I ever wanted from the shops was scissors and sticky tape!
As a parent, I try and encourage creative thinking and this is so easy with Makedo sets, in fact, this is what Makedo sets are all about!
Various sets can be bought from this award winning company– the new set being the ‘Box Props’ which can be used by children as young as 4 yrs. Inside a Makedo packet you will find child friendly screws, saws and various attachments to enable your child to make interesting items from cardboard boxes and other recycled home products.
‘Makedo™ construction kits nurture children’s intrinsic curiosity and imagination with their range of creative making projects based around the greatest toy of all – the cardboard box’ (Makedo)
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Give the gift of Makedo this Christmas and sit back on Boxing-day and watch your children turn the empty boxes from santa’s toys into a plane, house, animal or even a robot!
![51wBHDfiyDL._SX342_[1]](http://pamperedpresents.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/51wBHDfiyDL._SX342_1.jpg)
Available from http://mymakedo.com/ and other online retailers.
The majority of these sets are well under £10.
Gift Reviews, Toy Reviews
Big City Wooden Rail Train Table from the Early Learning Centre.
WOW, from the second I spied this, I showed it to my hubby – ‘This will solve all our problems’!! A huge statement and maybe a little bit heavy, but I was convinced.
The Big City Wooden Rail Train Table from the Early Learning Centre is just what it says – A big wooden train table, but it is also much more.
This table itself measures: 40cms high, 119cm wide and 83cm deep, so it is a brilliant size. Now, you may think – ‘Do I have room for that?’, but we are short of space and I still believe it was a great addition to our house.
There are over 100 pieces that come with this set – trains, track, train accessories and a colourful 2 sided table top – one side train suited, the other a road which is great for playing with cars.
I got this table for neither of the above reasons! My children LOVE building bricks – as I am sure all children do. Every weekend they would cover my entire dining room table with their ‘town’ and it would look great until Sunday morning when I wanted to set the table for dinner. The bricks never lifted off in one piece and there were tears all round.
We have the table in my son’s bedroom. Somedays I go up and it is a beautiful well organised and buzzing train station. The next week, it is lined with houses and cars – unfortunately my children also play ‘funerals’ like I would have as a child – is this normal?? They simply love to line the cars in a row and move each one about a millimetre forward at a time funeral style!!
Following that phase, they will then turn to the bricks. This table is great for cars and trains but it is INCREDIBLE for playing with bricks. The ‘car’ side of the table top is the street, and they play for hours on end on this table.
Conviently, the table has a storage drawer which will hold all the accessories when not in use – another brilliant idea.
No more standing on Lego – isn’t that the most painful item to ever stand on, even when wearing shoes?? OOUCH!
All the bricks, cars and trains are now off the dining room table and also the floor mat and played with neatly on the Big City Wooden Rail table. This cannot come highly enough recommended by myself – absolutely the ultimate Christmas gift this year. Treat yourself mum’s – with this table, you will never have to spend half an hour tidying up after the kids go to bed ever again!
Available from www.elc.co.uk RRP £100
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Toy Reviews
All in 1 Car Toy from Taf Toys.
I presented my sister with this toy for her 10 month old baby wishing I had had it for when my own children were small. I always kept my rear facing car seat in the back of the car behind the passenger seat as recommended, which made it difficult to see and soothe the baby safely without stopping the car and turning around.
When people tell me their unsettled baby always went to sleep in the car, I used to get very jealous as this wasn’t the case with mine. My sister found that with this toy, her car journeys have been made much easier. Our families live two hours apart so travelling long distances with young babies is a frequent occurrence for her.
Her little girl loved looking at herself in the mirror from the minute she could focus (don’t know WHO she takes that after!) She quite happily does this in the car now with the handy curved mirror which fits very easily to the headrest and also lets the driver have a great view of her at a glance.
When baby moves on from ‘looking’ to be entertained, there are great little hanging toys attached to this car toy. A Jingle bells ball that, when touched with a hand or foot, make a very seasonal jingling sound, and a rattling flower is also within easy grasp with this toy.
My sister said lots of her friends have asked for this to be ‘passed on’ in the future when her daughter no longer needs car toy, but this may be some time as even her 4 year old plays with it!
The All in 1 Car Toy is available from Taf Toys. Visit www.halilit.co.uk 01254872454
Also available from nursery and toy retailers across the UK and Ireland.
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Toy Reviews
Little Hands Music Band.
We seem to use batteries at a rate that other households would use bread and milk, so there’s always a selection of screwdrivers on the kitchen window sill for this very reason. This is one of the main reasons why I love these musical toys, they will never stop working as they do not need batteries.
My friends children seem to be quite happy playing with fabric or board ‘quiet’ books, fiddling with their shoes/blankets or soft toys. My children were never that easily amused.
![little_hands_music_band[1]](http://pamperedpresents.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/little_hands_music_band1.jpg)
Toys just can’t be loud enough for them and they love the Little Hands Music Band. My four year old plays happily with all of the four toys for prolonged periods of time which is more that I can say for a lot of his (more expensive) toys. I always make sure I have at least one of them in my bag when going out in the car or to coffee with friends.
My favourite instrument has to be the xylophone and I love watching my children play with it. Also, the fact that the stick fits neatly underneath it means I don’t have to go hunting for it all the time.
The ‘wave drum’ very easily captivates children, including small children like my young niece. She is ten months and she can grasp it and turn it around. She loves watching and hearing the tiny balls slide across the inside. It is also very sturdy as she whacks it on the floor very hard to increase the sounds and it hasn’t cracked the plastic surround or tore the drum!
The ‘spinning beads’ rainbow maker-type toy is also very durable as it’s still intact too….despite rather ‘rough play’!
In conclusion, a fabulous toy, I have since purchased two more as baby presents for my friends to ensure they don’t have to compete with my son for his. He refuses to share them and they’re so nice I think he’s quite right not to!
Little Hands Music Band available from www.halilit.co.uk and from nursery and toy retailers across the UK and Ireland. 01254872454
RRP £29.99 for ages 12 months and over.
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Gift Reviews, Toy Reviews
Mask ‘N’ Ask from Drumond Park.
I have this game saved for Christmas for my 4 year old son. He will absolutely love it. Children of a young age are obsessed about what they will ‘be when they grow up’ – I am sure you will agree??
![386-1335190UC1452577M[1]](http://pamperedpresents.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/386-1335190UC1452577M1.jpg)
My children ask me every night what they will ‘be’ and I always try and steer then towards ‘nice’ jobs (in my opinion!). I suggest careers like teaching, veterinarian and nursing. My suggestions are somewhat limited I know, but I believe in realism. What’s the point in suggesting a marine biologist, an astronaut, or an explorer of new worlds?
Am I a pessimist? I learnt to be care-full with my suggestions when my younger sister was choosing her college career. I had just seen Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and suggested to my sister that she should be an archaeologist! No-one could change her mind (mum and dad tried) but she studied archaeology for 4 years to degree level and came home every weekend covered in mud and her clothes were in tatters. She did however love it, working on the digs, but alas, opted for a career in insurance as Tutankhamun’s tomb had been discovered and she lost heart!
![Mask n Ask montage LR[1]](http://pamperedpresents.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Mask-n-Ask-montage-LR1.jpg)
Mask ‘N’ Ask is a game where the children (and adults) wear a mask but they do not know which one they will be wearing. The object of the game is to guess who you are. Each player takes it in turns to ask a question to help them determine who they are. I think this is brilliant as a quite a few careers are covered and a few animals as well. Children will find themselves learning about jobs, who wears a uniform, a hard hat, and also about animals and the world around them. Best of all, they learn this through play – and not a computer in sight! Hurrah!!
There are 30 double sided masks in total so boredom will not set in, everyone wants to be the Princess just like Kate, or a Sailor and so on.
Oodles of fun to be had and a lot of learning too. Excellent value at £16.99.
Available from many department stores, most major toy shop chains and independents, plus the leading grocery chains and catalogue and online traders.
Gift Reviews, Toy Reviews
LOGO Billionaire from Drumond Park.
‘The latest board game in the super-popular LOGO series is the new card- and cash-collecting LOGO Billionaire (rrp £24.99, age 8 to adult). It’s the battle of the big brands! Fortunes can be made or lost on a Cornetto… someone is planning to steal your beloved Beetle… and the humble Hob Nob could propel you to billionaire status!’ (Drumond Park)
This game is THE game for your family this Christmas, buy it, you will not prove me wrong!
There are two versions of the game and this is an ingenious concept as it can be as difficult or as easy as you like, depending on who is playing.
The Apprentice version is what we play, my children are 10, 8 and 4 yrs and they all love it. The familiar brands add to the appeal – Pot Noodle, Sun-Pat, Weetabix, Twix, Mini Cheddars and Dairy Milk. For Dad, there is Volkswagen Beetle and Mini Cooper!
Children will have their ‘business heads on’ as they wheel and deal, trading their brands and negotiating deals which will launch new companies. The excitement builds from the very beginning, with everyone keeping their cards close as the odds could fall for or against you! As in the ‘real’ world of business, you can go from mega rich to bankrupt in seconds!
When the kids are tucked up in bed, we take the game to another level and thing get real serious! The Executive game allows for an increased element of suspense and the risks also increase. If mum wins dad does the dishes for a month – Love it!
Endless hours of fun is to be had with this new game – Logo Billionaire from Drumond Park. RRP £24.99
Available from many department stores, most major toy chains and independents, plus the leading grocery chains and catalogue and online traders.
Toy Reviews
Chuggington Stack Track – Rescue at Rocky Ridge Mine
Any idea what will be topping the Santa lists this year? I will give you a clue, it’s the same EVERY year…. Train sets!
Children love trains and mine are no exception. My kids are 10, 8 and 4 and they all play/played with train sets. Why? I don’t know. They just love whizzing trains on the track, connecting carriages, going high speed through tunnels and more slowly over bridges.
TOMY have your Christmas gift list sorted with the Chuggington stack track. Look no further, I assure you, this is one super collection of trains and superb tracks. Intrigue is added with the introduction of an ‘adventure’. Join Brewster and koko on their eventful rescue at Rocky Ridge Mine. Imitating the same adventure on the well known television episode of Chuggington, this will keep your children entertained for months! Do they enter the hazardous mine tunnel and fall for the boulder trap? You can have endless outcomes on this adventure and the set can be added to over time to suit the Chuggington enthusiast.
I love these Stack Tracks as we do not have a lot of space in our house. A train set is something that would indicate you need plenty of room, but not with these sets. This space-saving system allows the children to build track up and not so much outwards, which is brilliant as they can have quite a lot of track in a small space. These elevated adventures can be built in a number of ways to ensure boredom does not ensue and with the ability of connecting sets, this is something your children will enjoy adding to.
So, are you ready for a load of imaginative play and buckets of adventure for the good old price of £39.99? Yes, thought so.
Visit Amazon, Smyths or Toys R Us to get the ultimate train track this Christmas.
Rescue at Rocky Ridge Mine Deluxe Playset RRP £39.99
Suitable for 3yrs plus.
Gift Reviews, Toy Reviews
Wow Packs, Snot the Zombie and Cutzee the Kitten.
My 4 year old will be simply delighted on Christmas morning. He has asked Santa for Snot the Zombie. What is Snot and does Santa really deliver Snot?? Yes he does!
Snot is a Wow Pack, one of the first world’s animated backpacks for kids aged 3-7 yrs. They come in 2 characters – Cutzee the Kitten and Snot the Zombie, one for girls and one for boys. Obviously my little boy would like Snot. He is green and with his huge eyes and ‘runny’ nose, he will be sure to be a hit on Christmas morning.
A few months back, my daughter got Cutzee the Kitten and it is really unbelievable the amount of mums have phoned me to ask where she got her school bag and does it really ‘move’!
Wow Packs move and make sounds which can be controlled by buttons on the handle – the buttons control the eyes, nose, whiskers and ‘snot’ depending on which pack you choose. The noises – laughing and funny sound effects will have your children’s friends thinking – ‘Where is that coming from’??
They look fantastic, big enough for a school bag. They would hold A4 books and a lunch box, but also excellent for sleep-overs and for taking on holidays too. No more boring journeys – these packs are so much fun.
The website is very entertaining and perfect for kids to navigate, providing hours of fun – print out a fun colouring sheet, play dot to dot and enjoy the maze, the list goeson. They can even play WOW Packs snap!
Available from Smyths toyshops nationwide SRP £29.99
Toy Reviews
Combat Creatures Attacknid Doom Razor.
This is amazing and I just have to share it. Winner of Dad’s Choice Awards 2013 comes the very scary Attacknid Combat Creature! Perfect for both dads and their sons, this will really shake things up on Christmas day – don’t be expecting any help with the dinner!
This award has been allocated to Combat Creature for several reasons – fun factor, creativity, value for money and whether it actually does what it says on the box, so well done on scooping first prize!
The Attacknid is a remote control toy, from Wow! Stuff. The robots came in different forms, and can also be used with the App-Attacknid. I have Doom Razor, a frightening fierce red robot.
Control your battling robot and shoot discs at the enemy, racing into defence and attack position on spider like legs. Combat sounds really do transport your kids (and dad) into another world and when a hit is scored, the armour flies off and you keep going full throttle until 3 direct hits to the battle brain shuts down your opponent – Yes!! You are the winner.
![RC-Atacknid-Doom-Razor-Combat-Creatures[1]](http://pamperedpresents.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/RC-Atacknid-Doom-Razor-Combat-Creatures1.jpg)
This is brilliant fun used alone or with another Combat Creature, and very well priced at £70. I love it as from it arrived, no-one has hounded my computer – its all action in our house now!
Definitely excellent value for money and well deserving of its first place in the Dad’s choice award.
For further information visit www.combatcreatures.com and check out the models – which one will you choose? Stryder would be the perfect sparing partner, and he looks just as mean!
Why not customise your robot using the decal stickers and create your very own unique Combat Creature? If this impresses you as much as it has myself, don’t delay, these WILL sell out before Christmas.
Toy Reviews
Wasjig, ‘A Bright Christmas Night’ from Jumbo.
What exactly is a Wasjig? No, I haven’t misspelled jigsaw at all! A wasjig is a jigsaw with a difference, a big difference that is!
The thing with a Wasjig is that you have to work out what caused the scene you are looking at on the box and them try and piece together the scene as you think it is. Priceless! If you’re looking for something fun to do when waiting on the turkey to cook this Christmas day, this could well be what you’re after.
This puzzle has 1000 pieces and is suitable for kids of all ages – ‘A Bright Christmas Night’. It measures 48x65cms when (if!) completed and is printed on high quality cardboard. I love this because you have to use your imagination and it allows all the family to have fun together, with everyone guessing what they think the scene is. It took the 5 of us (2 adults and 3 kids) the best part of a Sunday afternoon and evening to complete this. We haven’t had so much fun in ages. I’m thinking of getting another one and keeping it for Christmas day.
There are many different Wasjigs available. Ours has a festive theme but there are other humorous scenes available to choose from. These are widely available from all good toy stores or indeed Amazon RRP £11.99. A great value entertainment idea from Jumbo for all the family. I’d forgotten how much fun jigsaws are!