TRU Review: Elefun Poppin' Park

by 4 Comments

When we opened up the box this month and I saw this toy aimed at tiddlers from 9 months old, I spent a while trying to think of any babies that we knew who would like it. I failed because, just like The Boy, they've grown up and are now all two years plus. In the end, I decided to get it out of the box and let him try it out.

This is where the first negative of this toy comes into effect. But let me reassure you, there are only two; one is over the minute you get it out the box, the other isn't that big an issue.

Getting the Elefun Poppin' Park out of the box is easier said than done. I wouldn't normally comment on something so mundane, but I think you need to know this or you are going to lose valuable time on Christmas (or a birthday) morning, getting irritated and having a baby who will quite possibly cry with desperation to play with it. There is a ridiculous amount of ties and sellotape holding the Elefun into the even more ridiculous amount of carboard. It took a full fifteen minutes to just get it out of the box. Then there was the small amount of assembly; click the steps on the base on (easy enough) and push the ears into place. Ha! Both Mr. TheBoyandMe and I struggled with this, but eventually (just before I was going to throw it out of the window in exasperation) it decided to relent and allow us.

And so to the toy. It's simple enough, but very effective. There are five plastic balls which you put into the Elefun's solid ear. Once you press the red button on his 'hand' (paw, hoof?) and the air flow starts, they get sucked up into his head and shoot out of his trunk.

Once the balls come out of the trunk there are a couple of different options of where they go based on the direction that the trunk is pointing in; they can either shoot out randomly into the room which would be good for encouraging crawling babies to get moving, or down through the ear with a hole in it to the pouch in the Elefun's tummy, or into the other ear and back up through the trunk creating a continuous loop.

In watching the video, hopefully you'll see my only other negative with this toy: the noise. If you've followed my reviews, you'll know that I've got a low noise-threshold (how, with my son, I'll never know!) and therefore something like this is a little irritating. It sounds like a hairdryer on constantly, and almost drowns out the music which is played. However, after a while you learn to live with it.

I was really pleasantly surprised by this toy, because The Boy adores it and is still playing with it on a daily basis months later. I think it appeals to different ages and abilities on many levels: sitting-up babies, crawlers, cruisers and toddlers. Oh and five year old boy-cousin quite likes it too!

A winner, and at £24.99 I think the Elefun Poppin' Park is a well priced toy to provide hours of fun for babies for quite a long time!

For more reviews, visit the Toys R Us Toybox application on Facebook by pressing below

We were provided with this item for the purpose of this review. My opinion is honest, and unbiased.

Competition: Pink Lining Rucksack

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As The Boy is now toilet trained, I've carefully put away my mahoosive changing bag and brought out something that I haven't used in two years; a handbag! Not needing to carry around oodles of spare nappies, or bibs, or bodies, etc. has seriously reduced the size and amount of things I do need to have with me. And now that The Boy is more independent, when we do go out, he can and likes to carry his own bag with a few toys in it to play with.

Luckily we were recently sent a gorgeous rucksack from Pink Lining to review. Pink Lining are probably better known for their absolutely gorgeous selection of change-bags; trendy and stylish, cute but modern. However, they also have a selection of children's bags and it is one of these that we were sent.

Isn't it cute? The main fabric of the bag is called 'red busses' and is really self-explanatory as it's covered in a red bus print. It also appears to be waxed or finished with a waterproof coating, which is great as wet books are a bit rubbish for drawing in. On the front is a really adorable denim pocket with a dinosaur and the word 'Grrr!' embroidered on it. At £15, this is a really good quality, long-lasting rucksack for your little ones. The straps are thick so as not to cut in, and adjustable so that they don't slip off little shoulders.

Competition:

In order to be in with a chance of winning a rucksack for your little one, you will need to do the following:

I want to win a Pink Lining rucksack with @TheBoyandMe https://www.theboyandme.co.uk/?p=6323

Please leave one comment only below to tell me that you've done all three.

Please tweet the specific message mentioned, using the retweet button at the top of the post is not a valid entry!

T&C

Competition closes on Tuesday 6th December 2011 at 8pm. I will pick one winner and notify them that evening. I will need a response by Thursday 8th December 2011 at 8pm to pass onto the PR who will despatch the prize, a prompt reply is necessary in order to ensure delivery in time for Christmas. UK entrants only.

We were sent a rucksack for the purpose of this review. My opinion is honest and unbiased.

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED

Congratulations to MummyMummyMum who was chosen by random.org as the winner.

Get Busy With The Fizzy!

by 3 Comments

When I was a nipper, some of my friends had a trendy gadget which I hankered after. It worked like magic, almost Biblical in its ability to transform water into, well ok not wine but, orangeade, cherryade and cola! I was desperate for one, but it was never going to happen: we didn't have fizzy drinks in our house, let alone the money to buy something to make them.

Fast forward twenty years and I was a home-owner with a monthly wage of my own. We bought a fizzy drink maker and our soda-stream was an adored item for quite a few years. That is until we moved back to south Wales and it got broken in the move. Fast forward another seven years and I have one in my possession again, and this time no-one is touching my precious SodaStream!

We've found the SodaStream to be incredibly useful, not only did it help create some marvellous mocktails for Hallowe'en, but it is also incredibly economic. Using tap water, plus a capful of syrup to make a bottle of cola (to accompany my Tia Maria) or some lemonade for mum is cheaper, quicker and convenient. We often open a shop-bought bottle, only for it to go flat halfway through before it's finished. £1.50 wasted.

Then of course, there's the environmental impact. Reusable bottle which is fairly long-lasting? Gas cannister which gets sent back and is refilled? Ecologically sensible choice.

We were also sent a range of flavours, which was interesting because the range of flavours are no longer contained to the sugary syrups any more. There are a whole load of SodaStream flavours which are free from artifical flavours, colours and sweeteners: Mango & Apple, Kiwi & Pear and Passion & Mango and Cranberry & Raspberry. Scrummy!

One of the changes from the my previous SodaStream is the addition of the display. The SodaStream Fizz which we were sent has a digital display for an accurate and timely amount of bubbles, which enables you to have the strength of fizz that you want. The Fizz Chip will also display the amount of CO2 remaining in your cylinder.

SodaStream has never been so attractive, easy to use and damn cool!

I was sent a SodaStream Fizz and a range of flavours for the purpose of this review. My opinion is honest and unbiased.

Little Photos From Little Fingers

by 11 Comments

I was tagged by Momma Two ages ago to complete this meme created by her and Mammasaurus. Well she didn't originally tag me, but I sulked on twitter so she told me to consider myself tagged, I favourited, did the leg-work and then forgot to write it!

I am forever finding photos on the iPod Touch taken by The Boy, and I've blogged about them before. They make me chuckle, especially when I find random ones of my feet when we're walking around the supermarket, or of me putting my make-up on but only from the waist down.

Well both Momma and Mamma had been having a conversation late one night on twitter about the same thing, and so created this meme with the objective of showing off the photos that our little ones take. I will confess to giving The Boy the smallest amount of guidance beforehand; showing him how to hold the iPod so that the item he wanted to take a picture of is in the frame. Then I let him go with it, and these are the shots he came up with:

I don't think he did too badly really, in fact the crayons are quite arty!

I want to carry this on for Momma Two and MammaSaurus and so am tagging the following five bloggers, because I know for some of them, that their children are always having a play around with iPods, iPads, LeapPads, etc:

  1. The Crazy Kitchen
  2. Mummy Mishaps
  3. The Moiderer
  4. Mummy Mummy Mum
  5. Multiple Mummy

Review: Digital Scales Measuring Jug

by 8 Comments

I've been doing a fair amount of cooking with The Boy over the past few months, and my trusty digital scales have never failed me. My measuring jug on the other hand is a joke because all the markings have rubbed off it. I have a metal one, but it only has millilitres marked in 100s and pints on it, so for more precise measurements or fluid ounces it's a pain!

Killing two birds with one attractive and trendy green stone is this Digital Scales Measuring Jug by Maxim.

On one side of the jug is a scale in cups, the other side has millilitres and fluid ounces. However, in addition to this, the base has a digital scale built into it which can measure in grams and ounces.

But here's the nifty bit, you can select your ingredient from one of five presets to calculate its weight or volume. For example, the scale on the side in millilitres shows markers in 50ml. However if you needed 320ml of water you could be left guessing. By using this scale, if you press the button to get to the water marker it can measure it accurately. Likewise for milk and oil (based on their differing densitities: oil = 0.9kg/l, milk = 1.03kg/l, water = 1kg/l). It can also calculate the weight of flour and sugar using the same technique but showing the weight (in either grams or ounces) not the volume.

Another great thing about this is that the 'tare' setting (reset) button can be used with additional ingredients. Weighing out your mixed dry ingredients can be super-easy: measure the flour, press the reset button and measure the sugar, press reset and measure the spices, etc.

I used this earlier with The Boy when making our Gruffalo cookies and it was incredibly easy. I will confess to double-checking the first two ingredients' measuements against my normal scales and they showed exactly the same reading.

This digital measuring jug is going to make life a lot easier over Christmas!

I was sent this for the purpose of this review. My opinion is unbiased and honest.