I still remember when the original Frozen film was released, I took Gracie to watch it at the cinema, just the two of us and I got to see her fall in love with a film for the first time. She loved everything about the film, it was just so magical to her. She was a big fan of Princess Anna and wore her Anna costume all the time. It is a much loved film in this house and both girls are really excited for the upcoming release of Frozen 2! Smiggle recently got in touch to let me know they had released a brand new Limited Edition Frozen 2 Collection and wanted us to visit our local store and choose some goodies. I didn't have to ask the girls twice if they would like to go to Smiggle to check out the new arrivals. 

The girls worked well together to hatch the egg to reveal the first few surprises. The first few surprises included the Royal Pixie, a few hatchimals and some crown accessories. Each came in a little bag to be opened. I definitely think opening and finding the surprises was their favourite part.



When they got half way through, they found the layer with peel-to-reveal sections. The middle one contained codes to unlock content on the free Hatchimals app and the outer sections all contained different Hatchimals. There were some really cute characters in this collection! This layer could also be removed and underneath the girls found stickers and a character chart telling them who they had received. 


The girls absolutely loved opening this up to see what they could find. I was pleasantly surprised at how most of the items were actually characters and not little bits that would be instantly lost. The crown accessories fit the Hatchimals or Pixie and were placed straight on them so the only loose bits were masquerade masks and a spare pixie crown to swap. It did look like there wasn't much content compared to the size of the egg once we finished but you can use the egg itself and the layers as a playset to play with the characters.

The girls were definitely impressed and really enjoyed it. They love their Hatchimals and have quite a collection now of cute little characters from different series. 

The Hatchimals CollEGGtibles Crown Jewels Mega Secret Surprise is available to buy now from Smyths Toys

* We were sent the item featured in return for a review, all opinions are my own. 

The children were very lucky to be sent a bundle of Rubiks games and puzzles just in time for half-term. I am ashamed to say that we have never owned a Rubiks cube before now, though I knew exactly what they were. The bundle we received included Rubiks Cage, Rubiks Match, Rubiks 3x3, Rubiks 2x2, Rubiks Edge and Rubiks Orbit. The kids were so excited when they arrived. Here is what we thought:


Rubiks Cage

This is definitely our favourite of the lot and has been played with the most. It is a nice simple game, similar to connect 4 but with a 'twist' you have to get three coloured cubies in a row to win but your competitors can choose to twist a layer or flip the cube on their turn to literally turn the game upside down!

It is such a fun game and I found it is so easy to accidentally make someone else win when twisting, much to the children's amusement when I helped them win! The instructions are really easy to follow and the game doesn't take long to play, with next to no time to set up. The children can play it alone but it can also be enjoyed by the whole family. 




Rubiks 3x3, Rubiks 2x2, Rubiks Edge

The Rubiks 3x3 is the original famous Rubiks cube. The 2x2 and Edge are smaller versions that look easier though I can assure you they are not! The Rubiks puzzles are famously difficult though some people can solve them in seconds. They are great at keeping children entertained for long periods of time though can also be super frustrating! The kids keep picking them back up to try again but we are yet to solve any of them!


Rubiks Orbit

The Rubiks Orbit is similar to the 2x2 Rubiks cube. The aim is to make the colours match all the way round. Again, we still haven't managed to solve this one but we are determined to keep trying. We keep finding ourselves very close! 

We have really enjoyed trying out the Rubiks range. We love the games and got the hang of them pretty quickly. We still need a lot more practice with the puzzles though. There is still time for one of us to become a Rubiks master! With Christmas coming up, I love that there are so many items in the range that would make great stocking fillers. A recent survey actually revealed that a third of all parents would choose the Rubiks cube as a stocking filler for kids this Christmas. The survey, which had 2,000 respondents, also included stationery and chocolate as top stocking solutions. 

These items are available to buy at most toy retailers or you can buy direct on the Rubiks website. 

Bright Eyes hats are a collection of hats that think they are a torch! We were sent some to try out just in time for these early dark evenings! So far there are four character designs to choose from; Rusty the Raccoon, Cassie the Cat, Una the Unicorn and Amanda the Panda. Each one has light up eyes to help you see in the dark with an ultra bright beam of over 10m and two different light functions, full beam and flashing. 

We absolutely love playing games in our house and regularly have family game nights. As we play together so often, we are always looking for fun new games to add to our collection. I was recently sent the Colourbrain Disney edition and we were so excited to try it out! The game is every Disney lovers dream! Use your expert knowledge and memory to win.

The first thing I wanted to try in the book was the beetroot risotto. We love risotto so I knew it was something we were all comfortable eating already but this had a fun twist. I would have never thought of adding beetroot. I have to say my kitchen looked temporarily like a murder scene whilst I was preparing the dish but it was so worth it. Everyone loved it! It was really tasty and it has been requested a few times since. I found the recipe very easy to follow and the ingredients were all found at my local supermarket. Even just cooking this, I felt much more confident in myself and my cooking.

I then tried to make the healthier chocolate cookies. I am much happier baking than cooking so I was excited to try these. I love to make sweet treats for the family and the main ingredient in these is bananas which we always have available. There are very few ingredients needed for this recipe and the cookies were so easy to make. They were lovely and moist tasting and totally more-ish! It is definitely a recipe I will use over and over again. They actually make a great activity for children to join in with. 

I absolutely recommend this book, even if like me you don't have trouble getting your children to eat anything. What I really needed was inspirational recipes to help us enjoy some different options and the book has definitely given me that. It has also given me more confidence, the recipes in the book with ingredients I am not keen on, I am thinking about what replacements I can include to make that meal suit me. If there is anyone you can trust to come up with tasty meals it is Emily!


It is now available on Amazon at the low, low price of £8.94. I have provided an amazon affiliate link below. I may receive a few pennies if you click to order. I received this book as a gift from Emily but all opinions are my own!

We were recently sent an Owleez interactive flying toy to review. Owleez is a cute owl interactive toy that needs lots of love and care. You can care for them by feeding them berries and petting them amongst other things. The colour of their eyes tells you what you need to do to nurture them. Owleez come with a berry, a nest and an instruction leaflet that tells you clearly about their eye moods and how to teach them to fly. 

I gave our Owleez for Elsie to try out. She loves Owls, in fact she just loves animals and caring for them so I thought it would be fun for her to try. Using the Owleez is simple, you charge it using a USB cable that is wrapped on the underside of the nest (which means it cannot be lost!). It doesn't take long to charge and once it is ready you can get started. You simply turn it on and follow the instructions, which happen to be very easy to follow and are printed in large writing so it can be read and understood by children too. Also, they are handy to keep hold of to remember what the eye colours mean. 

Elsie was so impressed the first time we managed to get our owleez to fly though it soon crashed into the sofa and she was a bit horrified. It is much louder than I expected but so cool! The more you practice flying your Owleez, the better it gets. Just like any bird learning to fly. We did find that each time it lasts a little longer. It does have quite a crash landing though. I'm not sure why I expected a toy to have a graceful landing!

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|AD-Review| I am just finishing writing my review of Elsie’s Owleez toy. It is an interactive owl that you teach to fly. Here is a video of it in action the first time we managed to make it fly!

A post shared by Carly Markham (@carlymarkham1) on Sep 22, 2019 at 12:04pm PDT

Overall, I think it is a great fun toy and it is certainly different to any other interactive animal toy we have ever had. I do wonder whether it will last long with the crash landings but we haven't had any problems yet with multiple crashes. I would recommend playing on soft surfaces like carpets etc. just incase. Elsie loves it. She loves caring for it, cuddling and feeding it like a good owl mama.

Owleez are available to buy at most major toy retailers including Smyths Toys Superstores.

*We were sent the item featured in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

The summer holidays are flying by and if you haven't quite finished your back to school shopping by now, like me, you may be panicking. Here are a few examples of back to school handy items from some of our favourite brands. 

One of my biggest issues with school is that I spend a fortune on school uniform for the children at the start of each year and by the end of week one, I have the dreaded stained white polo shirts. It doesn't matter how smart Elsie is sent into school in the morning, she will come home filthy each day without a doubt. I don't mind though as long as I can get them clean again. I would definitely recommend stocking up on stain removal products early on and use them for all of your white washes to keep the school shirts looking clean and fresh for longer. I have recently been trying ACE stain removal products and am impressed so far but I will keep you updated on whether they work long-term! They are available to buy at Tesco’s, Morrison’s, The Range, Wilko, Waitrose and Sainsbury’s and prices start from just £2 each. 



Gracie is just going into Year 4 at school and it is the first year that she is encouraged to take her own pencil case and stationery into school. I remember choosing my pencil cases each year and it being so exciting seeing what everyone else had on the first day of school. Also lunch boxes are exactly the same, my younger two still get free school meals due to their age but Gracie has packed lunches and again gets to choose her lunchbox for the year. Smiggle is THE place for young children to go for a back to school shopping spree. They have absolutely everything you could ever possibly need and more from bags to individual stationery items.


Staying hydrated is so important so I do try to make sure my children remember to take a water bottle to school each day. I like to buy them nice ones each to encourage them to actually remember them. We are all big Harry Potter fans in our house and I love this aluminium drinks bottle, it has the Hogwarts crest on one side and a Gryffindor Quidditch symbol on the other (as seen above). I would definitely use this myself but Zach has claimed it as his. You can look at the range of aluminium drink bottles from GB Posters here. They do some really cool ones (I want an AC/DC one!) and I have been told there will be more added shortly including this Harry Potter one. 



These BIC Gel-o-city quick dry gel pens have been added to Gracie's pencil case ready for school. Now that she has her pen license, she can use pens at school and I thought these would be great for any poster making activities etc. that she might have. The fact that they are quick drying means she won't end up with smudges all over her work and the small tip means that they will be nice and neat in comparison to felt tip pens. They are available to buy from most major retailers. 



Something that I often buy for school is handy pocket packs of tissues. Especially in the winter months, I like to make sure the children have a packet either in their bag or coat pocket so they are accessible on the school runs or at break time. You can buy multipacks of these Kleenex pocket tissues at most major supermarkets at a reasonable price. 

*These items were gifted in exchange for this post but all opinions are my own. 

On Saturday we visited National Forest Adventure Farm in Burton-on-Trent. We had been invited to experience the space themed events to celebrate 50 years since the moon landing. To celebrate the big anniversary, National Forest Adventure Farm have carefully designed their maize maze which was revealed earlier this month. The maze design features Neil Armstrong and the Apollo 11 mission Saturn V rocket recreated in maize form. 

I was recently sent a variety pack from Gatorade to try out the different flavours with some merchandise as an added bonus. The variety pack includes a Gatorade branded sports towel, a Gatorade branded reusable sports bottle, 3 x Gatorade Red Orange, 3 x Gatorade Lemon, 3 x Gatorade Cool Blue and 3 x Gatorade Orange. 

Last weekend we had a whole family day out back in my hometown of Coventry. We were invited to attend the Monster Jam tour at Ricoh Arena and I knew that all four kids would absolutely love it. We were given passes to the pit party beforehand so managed to make a whole day of it, getting there early to see the monster trucks up close and meet the drivers. Unfortunately, the rain that day was horrific so the pit party was cancelled, though you could still enter the pit party area to take photos with the trucks themselves and then queue up to meet the drivers inside the arena, rather than meeting them next to their trucks.

I was a 90s kid and like most young girls in the nineties, I was Spice Girls obsessed. I bought every single on cassette tape and would look out for any magazine which featured them to spend my pocket money on. I would watch them on Top of the Pops before the days of Youtube. My Dad still resents me for the fact he missed Boxing Day one year waiting in line with me to take me to see Spice World The Movie. He brings it up every Christmas without fail. That was the Christmas I received my much wanted Sporty Spice doll. I love that every little girl had her favourite Spice Girl and mine was definitely Sporty Spice, despite the fact I am not a particularly sporty person! I just thought she was awesome.

In the Easter holidays we took a little trip to Lincolnshire for a few days. We aimed to have a low cost holiday so we house-sat for a family member and spent our days exploring different parts of Lincolnshire. As National Trust membership holders, we can visit any National Trust property free of charge and there are many across Lincolnshire. Tattershall Castle was my first pick. I always find that castles tend to have amazing backstories and the kids love the idea of exploring castles. We only had Logan with us, as the other three were away with their Dad, so the three of us spent a lovely day exploring Tattershall Castle.

Photo Credit: My Mummy's Pennies

Photo Credit My Mummy's Pennies

• Monster Jam trucks stand 12-feet tall and 10-feet wide, sitting atop 66-inch-tall tires and weighing a minimum of 12,000 pounds.
• 1,500 to 2,000 horsepower is generated by these larger than life trucks that are capable of speeds of up to 70 miles per hour.
• They can fly up to 125 to 130 feet in distance and up to 35 feet in the air.
• A Monster Jam truck engine burns up to 9.5 litres of methanol per run
• Some custom designed trucks require more than 40 hours of paint time
• The average Monster Jam truck team will go through eight tires in one year
• Tyres are 1.7m high by 1.1 wide 
• It takes 1,500 man hours to build and remove a track 
• 113 litres of paint are used to paint the track and obstacles 

As you can see Elsie loves them. She has spent many sunny days sat on a blanket in the garden playing with them. Setting up little scenes and letting her imagination run wild. Up until now, her Schleich horses were her favourite but these have just really opened her up to being able to use magic in her playtime. She likes to pretend the baby is learning to fly like it's mother. It is such a beautiful collection and I can see them having years of use. I am sure she will be asking for more magical horses for her birthday this year!

The Bayala Collection is available to buy at Smyths Toys. 

*We received the items featured in return for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

We have just finished February half-term and what a glorious week it was, well the tail end at least. The weather has been amazing and we managed to get a sneak peek of what Summer will hopefully be like once it arrives! We managed to have a couple of family days out at the start of the holiday, whilst Sam was at home,including National Trust Calke Abbey and Warwick Castle then the kids spent the rest of the week playing outdoors! Just before Christmas we put up the children's enormous trampoline which was an early present from their grandparents and it was the first chance they had gotten to really enjoy it.

Yesterday we were invited to visit Warwick Castle to enjoy a day out over half-term. It was our first official day of half-term and we surprised the children, they had no idea where we were going. Over the years Warwick Castle has become a family favourite. We have been so many times and it never gets boring. They are always adding new attractions and shows which makes it a really fun way for the kids to learn about history. 

I have just completed my first Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Session with the Talking Mental Health Derbyshire Team. I am so thankful for the mental health resources in my area. With the house move and leaving my friends behind, having so much stress renovating the house and simply feeling so alone at times, it has really taken it's toll on me. 

Wow I seem to have taken almost two months out of blogging, not intentionally, but I had planned to take a few weeks out over Christmas and New Year to enjoy every moment I could with my family. I really did have a lovely relatively stress free Christmas, we celebrated Gracie's birthday after Christmas and January has been so busy! I know most people feel like January is a very long month but it flew by for me.