Toy Review: Zoobles - play & collect

When I was asked if I wanted to review Zoobles, a new toy and collectible for girls around the age of 4 years, I did two things: First, I checked Google because, being the mum of a 5 month old girl, I am really no expert for pre-school toys, and when seeing their cute little faces, I jumped up and down in excitement thinking they'd be the perfect toy for my niece Ellie. 

Zoobles are small fantasy animals that come as a little ball (about 3cms in diameter) but magically spring alive when you place them on their 'happitat'. A happitat is the Zoobles' unique living space where they can curl up and sleep if they are tired or transform into cute little animals that blink, wag their tail or wink. All this happens with the help of a little magnet that sits on top of the happitat.

We received Zooble Icetasia and her daughter Iceabella for our review and we both agreed that they are just super cute. Icetasia and Iceabella look like fantasy teddy bears and come in a pale lilac colour and with a cute little snowflake motif that gives them a wintery feel.

I personally think that they are reasonably priced with £5.99 for a single Zooble and £9.99 for a double pack. I can imagine though that it might get pricey, if your little darling decides she wants to have all Zoobles in her not so little collection. What I really liked about them is that they come in such a great variety. There are not only the normal Zoobles but also Hair Zoobles with hair extensions to style, light up Zoobles that glow when you place them on their happitat and special edition packs all costing between £7.99 and £9.99. They would make great birthday presents for friends, stocking fillers or even a reward for when your little one has collected enough stickers on her reward chart. The larger play-sets cost about £20 and are fantastic present ideas for Christmas or a birthday.

Overall, a great toy and collectible that can improve children's role playing skills and helps them use their imagination and creativity.  

Disclosure: I was provided with a Zoobles double pack for the purpose of this review. All my words are my own and have not been influenced by Spin Master.

Mummy Alarm Review: Leap Frog Twinkle Twinkle Little Violet

Amy is a great sleeper, don't get me wrong, but getting her to settle down for bedtime can be a real struggle sometimes. She is just too interested in everything happening around her that she just can't switch off and relax. We have been thinking about different ways to help her wind down, e.g. taking her for a walk in her pram, sitting on the swing with her or giving her a calming bath. None of it did really work, so I was delighted when the lovely people from Leap Frog offered to send us a toy called Twinkle Twinkle Little Violet.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Violet is a soft cuddly toy that has two functions: a) it helps children to explore first words and counting and b) it gently teaches them to settle for bedtime.

Amy absolutely loves her new fluffy friend and I can't believe just how quickly she has got used to settling with Violet. As soon as she listens to the lullabies, Amy calms down and you can't believe how cute she smiles when Little Violet tells her "Night Night". It's just adorable. Her absolute favourite, however, are the environmental sounds that are the second sound setting that the toy comes with. You can hear a train, the ocean, a carrier bag in the wind (at least that's what I identified it as) and many more sounds which all send Amy to dreamland within minutes. How good is that? You can choose between two settings for sounds and music and either let them run for 10 or 20 minutes. We usually have Violet set for 20 minutes and in general, Amy doesn't need any longer to fall asleep, however, we sometimes have to give her an extra ten minutes to make sure she really is fast asleep. Unfortunately, this is where I can find the only little thing to moan about. Violet obviously does not know that Amy is almost asleep and gives her another cheerful "Night Night", so it can happen that my baby girl happily opens her eyes and gives Violet another big smile before settling again and cuddling with Violet's soft blanket.

Twinkle twinkle Little Violet is available in Leap Frog's Online Store as well as in all good toy stores and costs around £15 - in my eyes an absolute bargain because this toy is an absolute life saver and must-have for all parents of little ones that struggle going to sleep.

Mummy Alarm Review & Competition: John Crane's High Tea Shape Matching Set

Some toys are almost too pretty to play with. One of them is John Crane's High Tea Shape Matching Set that we were sent to review.

It consists of a gorgeous wooden two tiered cake stand and 15 different types of beautifully coloured and decorated cakes that look so yummy that little mouths might want to try them. Amy is still a bit young to be able to match the shapes but she loves looking at the beautiful colours and touching the cakes. In fact, when I opened the parcel that the lovely people from John Crane Ltd had send us, I was (for a very short moment, of course) tempted to keep the High Tea Set for myself. Not to play with it obviously but to put it up for decoration. It really is that beautiful!

The small wooden cakes can be matched to their places on the cake stand either by their shape or by number. This does not only allow little ones to develop hand/eye coordination but also to improve their shape recognition and to practice their first numbers. The High Tea Shape Matching Set does also make a great toy for pretend play. I can already see Amy and her cousins and friends having their own little tea parties. I just hope Mummy gets an invitation too.

The High Tea Shape Matching Set is available from all good toy stores including Dillon’s ToyBox and retails at £23.95 - brilliant value for money, if you ask me. It is easy to assemble (all you have to do is screw the tiers on to the stand) and Amy will be able to play with it for years to come. Given the fact that both the cake stand and the cakes are made of wood, I am sure that even a little sister (no, nothing is planned) will be able to play with it in a couple of years. Also, you can combine it with many of the other toys from John Crane Ltd. - I already have my eyes on the Tea Time Set and the Daisy Tabletop Kitchen.

If you want to be one of the first to know when new John Crane Toys are hitting the shelves, why not follow  John Crane on Twitter and 'like' their Facebook page? Want to see what the team is up to behind the scenes? Check out the John Crane Blog. 

 Win 1 High Tea Shape Matching Toy with Mummy Alarm and John Crane Ltd.

How to enter the competition:

1. Leave a comment telling me what your favourite cake is - required

For extra entries:

3. Comment on one of my non-competition posts and let me know which one you commented on

4. Subscribe to Mummy Alarm's RSS Feed

5. Follow @caro_mad on Twitter and tweet "Win a High Tea Shape Matching Toy with @caro_mad and @johncraneblog. Enter here: http://bit.ly/ntMjAI - Pls RT #win #comp"

6. Like Mummy Alarm on Facebook

7. Use the +1 button below and share on Google+

Please, use separate comments for each entry. Failure do to so will result in only one entry per person.

The closing date of the competition is 12/08/2011
The winners will be chosen at random.
The winners' names will be shown on this page.
Competition is open to residents of the UK only.
The prize is non-refundable and cannot be transferred. No cash alternative is available.

ThePrizeFinder - UK Competitions

Competition: Win 2 FlexiBaths and co-ordinating bath toys

Three years, two Danish engineers and one million pounds transformed a frustrating problem for all parents into the award-winning FlexiBath. The FlexiBath is the first ever foldable baby bath tub, it resolves storage concerns by folding flat and can fit just about anywhere; against the wall, in a cabinet, under the bed. The FlexiBath is made of hard plastic with soft folding lines made of rubber, which makes it both stable and flexible, for additional safety and comfort, the bottom of the bath has a non-slip surface. 

Although at first sight the bath looks smaller than traditional baby baths, this is an optical illusion, once filled with water it expands easily accommodating two babies aged 0-4 years. New parents appreciate its easy storage, safety features and environmentally-sensitive design.
FlexiBath have not only introduced the new purple colour this year but they have also just launched a fabulous range of co-ordinating bath toys. The bath toys include an ingenious small table, which can be attached to all bathtubs, the table offers an additional space to play with their favourite toys while enjoying a bath. The FlexiBath (29.95) and Co-ordinating bath toys (12.95) are available to purchase from www.flexibath.co.uk

How to enter:

To be in with a chance of winning one of the 2 FlexiBaths and co-ordinating toys, simply enter your details here and leave a comment below telling me what your little one's favourite bath toy is. 

For 1 extra entry:

1. Tweet "I want to win a FlexiBath and co-ordinating bath toys with @caro_mad. You can enter here: http://tiny.cc/6ecjm"

The closing date of the competition is 14/05/2011

The winner will be chosen at random.

The winner's name will be shown on this page.

Competition is open to residents of the UK only.

The prize is non-refundable and cannot be transferred. No cash alternative is available

The Prize Finder - UK Competitions  

And the winners of a FlexiBath and co-ordinating bath toys are

Marzena - @marzutek

and

Medsdemon - @medsdemon

Congratulations - I will be in touch shortly.

Competition: Win a Happy Hopperz

Not since the past crazes of the Rubik's Cube, My Little Pony, Cabbage Patch Kids & Space Hoppers has the children's toy market seen a product that has captured the imaginations of young children as much as the newly launched range of inflatable toys from 'HappyHopperz®'.

HappyHopperz® are a collection of bright, inflatable animals that not only rival the space hoppers of the 1970's but take the bouncing experience to a whole new level. With ears or horns for children to grip on to and sturdy feet to steady the bounce, these colourful Hopperz come in a variety of different animals that give 'Old Macdonald' a run for his money! Not only are these loveable toys fun to play with but they also help strengthen core muscles, increase balance control and also develop co-ordination skills. Products such as Happy Hopperz® bouncers are used by physiotherapists & therapists as a rehabilitation tool and are also used to stimulate motor neuron systems - the foundation for developing skills such as memory, language, jumping and running. They are also brilliant as a pre-walker aid, encouraging crawling babies to work their leg muscles and take those wonderful first steps.

They can be inflated and deflated in a matter of seconds making them super-portable. So, play with them indoors or in the garden, or why not take them to the park. Even better, deflate them and pack in your suitcase for a happy-bouncy holiday! The HappyHopperz® are now also famous amongst the world of celebrities, after recently making an appearance at the BAFTA's in London and various celebrity weddings and events. These little toys are fast becoming the 'A List' stars of the animal world.

HappyHopperz® are available Nationwide from £19.99 at Argos as well as independent toy stores and www.happyhopperz.co.uk 

To be in with a chance of winning a Happy Hopperz of your choice simply enter your details here and leave a comment below telling me you've done so. 

The Prize Finder - UK Competitions 

And the winner of a Happy Hopperz of their choice is ...

Kirstie Shuttleworth

Congratulations - I'll be in touch shortly!

Discuss: Is children’s play dying out?

New research by the Institute of Education, the University of East London and the University of Sheffield as well as a ground-breaking website from the British Library and a documentary film all show that, rather than dying out, children’s play is in robust health. It is simply changing and adapting to today's society: The researcher's findings counteract the belief that the media is destroying the imaginative play of children. By observing play over two years in playgrounds in Sheffield and London, researchers have found that games consoles, pop music and television actually enrich children’s pretend play, adding topical themes to fantasy scenarios as youngsters incorporate their favourite characters, reality TV stars, pop songs and dance moves into their make-believe worlds. Today’s children act out the Jeremy Kyle Show, or Britain’s Got Talent, as well as engaging in play based on computer games, in which scenarios of combat, stealthy hunting, fantasy weapons and warriors, and computer consoles feature. Other media sources include pop stars such as Beyonce, musicals such as Mamma Mia and High School Musical, adventure films and novels such as Harry Potter and Percy Jackson or computer and animation characters such as Mario and Ben 10. “Pretend play is still flourishing,” says Andrew Burn of the IOE, leader of the project. “Children have always enjoyed enacting scenarios from their home or school lives, as well as fantasy stories involving witches, zombies, princesses, martial arts warriors and other figures.”

What do your children like to play? Are they interested in the games that you played as a child or are Wii and TV their best friends?