Orchard Toys New Monster Catcher Review and Competition

We love Orchard toys, they are a brand who symbolise the importance of learning but also the importance of having fun! They have this talent when it comes to designing games and puzzles that are both educational yet fun to play.

Earlier this year little man along with some of his classmates at his special school for children on the autism spectrum, reviewed a couple of games from the Orchard toys range.This review did a fab job at highlighting the importance of learning through play and all the children involved had a great time testing the games.

So, I was delighted when the guys at Orchard Toys sent us one of their newest game releases, ‘Monster Catcher‘.

The game is targeted at children aged 3 to 8 years, and although Harley is not 3 in-till the beginning of December I figured his big sister Alice-Sara could show him the ropes of play, which she was more than happy to do.

Packaging:
This game comes in a nice strong but compact box for good easy storage.

Game contents:
20 monster head cards
20 monster feet cards
6 full net cards
4 empty net cards
Six monster Cachar cards

There is a total of 56 cards altogether. Cards are strong and durable so will last the test of time I’m sure.

As mentioned monster Catcher is one of Orchard Toys newest releases, so I had no idea what others thought of the game and knew very little about it up In-till it arrived. Believe it or not, I also like to read reviews before purchasing products as well as reviewing products myself.

Setting up the game proved a bit of a mission as the toddler insisted on constantly grabbing a hold of the cards and doing a runner.

Finally, once the initial excitement had settled down a little we were then ready to go catch some monsters.

The Object of the game is for each player to match the coloured monsters feet to that of the correct monsters head all while avoiding the monster catcher who will swipe all the players cards leaving them with none. The player with the most complete monsters at the time the monster catcher is completed, wins!

It’s a simple enough concept, though smaller children may need some help along the way.

What’s more this is a game that is so easily adapted. Kids seem to do this without even thinking about it! Harley asked to play with the game yesterday but he didn’t want anyone else disturbing him, preferring to play alone. This is actually a game for 2-4 players, So, play alone is impossible right? Not for Harley it seems. This little clever clogs placed all the cards facing upwards and one by one he matched up all the monsters, placing the catcher cards etc to one side.

I love how he adapted it to work for him, treating it as a puzzle as opposed to a game.

Monster Catcher has done well to help harley develop his colour recognition as-well as his matching and pairing skills. He used a lot of logic when trying to place the pieces together correctly (not only match the colours but ensuring he had placed them the correct way around, etc).

£7.50 is fabulous value and a really reasonable price to pay for this game.
Monster Catcher will be sure to provide children with years of fun while teaching them a thing or two. The educational benefits to this game make it seem a very little price to pay.

Educational information
• Develops matching and counting skills
• Encourages social interaction
• Develops instruction following and turn taking
• Links to National Curriculum and Early Learning Goals.

Orchard toys have been great and offered me another Monster Catcher for one of my readers to win right here on the blog. Here’s how….

Compulsory action: Leave a blog comment below telling me your child’s favourite board game.

All comments should be left with a means of contact (twitter or email).

You can earn additional entries by doing any of the following….

Tweet: “I want to win Monster Catcher with @clairelouise82 and @OrchardToys” comment to let me know who you are on twitter.

Subscribe via my rss reader (top of the sidebar) comment to tell me the name or email u are subscribed under.

Follow my sister blog Mummy of many talents then comment below to tell me the name you follow as.

Follow me on pinterest then comment to say who you are below.

Use any of the share buttons below commenting to tell me which ones (email exempt)

Competition will close on the 25th September 2012 at midnight.

Terms and conditions: UK only please, all comments should be left with twitter or email contact. Prize drawn a random, winner has 72 hours following winning notification to claim prize. Prize will be sent directly from PR/Brand. Winners name maybe published on blog with winning notification if author decides.

Flu, Campaigning, Gratitude and getting sodding old

Yes, I’ve been absent from blogging for a few days but not without good reason!

I was hit with the nastiest most evil flu bug ever! Yes, lifting my fingers was a tiresome effort let alone typing! This thing was the Daddy of all flu’s and note this woman’s had swine flu at 8 months pregnant and even that didn’t have a patch on this evilness!

As a kid, one doesn’t fully appreciate the “Benefits” of being a young “victim” to the flu… No “Need to do lists” no commitments and most significantly… No children to care for!

Oh yes… It was hell, pure hellishness in its almighty form! Surely there is nothing worse than parenting three quite demanding children between the ages of 2 and 11 one on the autism spectrum who is wanting to have in-depth conversations on his interest one minute then swearing the next, while your basically feeling like a big piece of steaming “Shit” (excuse my language but I have no nicer words for the experience). I love my kids so… much, but flu and parenting is never going to be a good mix is it? Worse still their father got washed down with the same bug the following day! The echoes of the croup type coughing episodes throughout the house must have driven the neighbours barmy while passers-by would be forgiven for thinking they were walking past an old people’s home (only one full of kids)!

I guess it didn’t help that Little man and my daughter were ill at the beginning of the week leaving no time for adult sickness to take place! The toddler… he just ran around like a child on red bull, though he was the only member of the gang consumed with energy at this point I can assure you that the older two more than made up for any lost adventures… Oh yes…

The overwhelming need to sleep was the ultimate killer, a mum fully capable of losing sleep and spending nights up with the boy’s (Yes BOYS… the toddler is still at it) but Oh my…. When sickness becomes part of the accession then I’m a zombie moaning monster

So… You can appreciate the smile upon my super pale face today, when for the first time in a week the shivers, aches, pounding head, sweating trembling and general feeling of death decided not to show up for its evil work today… No more hours spent head over toilet pan while the older two kick the crap out of each other and the toddlers gentle knocks on the bathroom door turn to great big thuds accompanied with the words “Mummy… Mummy… What you doing…?” Over and over again! God, how you take feeling well (as well as can be) for granted!

Well, I guess I’ve got some catching up to do! Let’s not forget its April tomorrow, therefore the beginning of a month-long awareness campaign for autism! Despite trying to raise awareness throughout the year, it’s still an opportunity to push that bit harder as people tend to listen a little more and take note which I guess is because more activist are out there putting the word about, just look at last year… we even had a number of news reports and documentaries make the TV, a great thing but still we have a long road ahead before ignorance is reduced at an even greater level and importantly more awareness is raised amongst the public and those in authority… schools, LEAs… social services, the list is endless! Why is it more important more now than ever before but likely to be more important tomorrow than what it is today? The Statistics, increasing numbers of children and adults receiving a diagnosis every single day!

That’s why on the 2nd of April, this World Autism Awareness day I’ll be “Doing it for world autism” and with some great bloggers getting involved in the action I’m more confident about the whole idea, with a bit more pushing can I possibly pull it off? Haven’t a clue what I’m banging on about? Click here and discover how myself and others are planing to raise awareness on the 2nd of April, feel inspired and leave me a comment to let me know your up for it too… you don’t even need to write a blog! Yes, myself and thousands of other families could truly benefit from a smudge of your time this World autism day.

Another challenge I’ve set my self is to take part in the April health blogging challenge! 30 prompts, 30 days, 30 post… goodness let’s hope that flu stays at bay!

On a massive high note, I’ve discovered some of you lovely lot nominated me for “Brilliance in Blogging” (BIB) award hosted by Britmums (without none of my begging too)! As a result I’m actually shortlisted in not one but two Categories, Change and inspiring! WOW, there are some amazing bloggers on that shortlist and I feel privileged to be there! Whoever felt me worthy of a nomination, Thank you… YOU’RE TOTALLY AWESOME!

Now I wont spoil it by pleading for you to now vote for me but I’ll include the badge regardless, well it would be totally rude not too! 🙂

On top of all this it’s the Easter holidays which means no school for 2 weeks… with this I’m feeling that there maybe some crafty play and a serious need to carefully construct a plan of action for some day-trips. Maybe I’ll even share a post on any autism friendly finds I may discover during the Easter break, watch this space!

And lastly Good Friday is my big 30, Yes sadly I’m leaving my twenties kicking and screaming and in true Claire-Louise Birthday fashion I’ll celebrate this milestone by not only getting my heels and lipstick on while drinking cocktails throughout the night… yer right… But I’ll also be hosting a 30th birthday giveaway… So… you can raise a glass and toast the wrinkles with me!

Related articles

• Help Me Reveal The Bigger Picture This World Autism Day (aspergersinfo.wordpress.com)
• Never fulfilling the criteria (aspergersinfo.wordpress.com)
• Go blue for World Autism Awareness Day (mnn.com)
• Lego Build for World Autism Awareness Day (wired.com)
• Autism: in our own words – ABC Online (drugstoresource.wordpress.com)

Win Orchard Toys New Teddy Bear Game

My fab Britmums Live sponsor Orchard Toys are giving my blog readers the chance to win one of their awesome newly launched game, and what a great game it is!

 Teddy Bear Game is aimed at children between the ages of 3-6 years old and can be played in groups of 2-4 players. This is a fun but educational game , helping your little one’s to master the skill of counting and colour recognition.

 Children will have great fun as they race to collect and count the teddy bear cards before the puzzle is complete. 

 I got a peek at this game pre-launch, at the fabulous 2012 London Toy Fair last month and was really impressed with how simple, yet fun the game was (despite it being demonstrated by a fully grown man as opposed to a toddler)!

 It’s very durable and great on the eye, with a brilliant design and the use of some visually inviting colours. With links to Early Learning Goals and National Curriculum maths key stage 1, its certain to not only keep the kids fully entertained but also teach them a thing or two!  

 So… fancy trying to win your little one’s a Teddy Bear Game in our latest competition? Here’s how!

 subscribe to the blog via “Feedburner” then comment to let me know you have subscribed as well as telling me what educational games you like to play with your children?

 For extra entries you can… Tweet, “I want to win a Teddy Bear Game with @clairelouise82 & @orchardtoys http://wp.me/plAS9-18g”

 Follow Orchard Toys on twitter

 Follow me on twitter

 Subscribe to my sister blog “Mummy of many talents”

 Subscribe to my Youtube channel

 Follow me on Pinterest 

 Use any of the share buttons within this post (One additional entry for each used)

 PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT FOR EVERY ACTION YOU MAKE OR EXTRA ENTRIES WILL NOT BE VALID!

 NO EXTRA ENTRY IS VALID IN-TILL THE COMPULSORY ACTION HAS BEEN COMPLETED

 Email or Twitter handle must be supplied with comments to valid all entries.

 Competition is open to those in the UK only, and will close at midnight on the 15th March 2012

 Good Luck

 T&C

Open to those in the UK only, all entries are checked and verified before winner is randomly selected. All rules must be followed and those entry must leave a valid email address or twitter handle so they are easily contacted in the event they win. All that enter need to complete the compulsory action before submitting any extra entries. Winner details will be passed to the prize provider in-order to dispatch the prize. Winner must respond to winning notification within 72 hours from time of draw or may risk losing the prize due to another winner being drawn.  

ThePrizeFinder – UK Competitions

Casdon toy reviews and competition

8

DAYS TILL CHRISTMAS

Woo-hoo… were now in single figures & to celebrate I have two fantastic Casdon products to add to the Little Helpers Wish List, as-well as two Casdon Self Service Checkout’s to give to two very lucky ‘A boy with Asperger’s readers’!

 First up we have the ‘Little Helpers Dyson Ball Upright Vacuum‘

Housework… Yes, I’m training them young, especially the Littlest tot, Harley! At the grand old age of 2 this little dude really is a dab hand with the vacuum cleaner as you can see from this super sweet image below.

Seriously, I’m not punishing my tribe with child labour, “What do you take me for?” 😉 This perfectly formed Little Dyson happens to be nothing other than a perfectly formed toy! Please, don’t pretend like you already knew, you really did think the two-year old was doing the chores, didn’t you!

 Casdon are the guys responsible for this fantastic lifelike gadget known as the Dyson ball upright which forms part of it’s Little Helper range of toys. It’s so brilliant that it really does actually have some degree of working suction and cyclone action for understanding cause and effect as-well as providing much amazement from mum!

 This little toy Dyson ball upright is a great addition to any little tots toy box with it’s bright colours providing plenty of visual stimulation. Not only does it help develop your child’s all important gross motor skills with its great manoeuvrability but it also helps your child to explore the world of make-believe while training them up for the real deal (well, one day)!

You can’t get much closer to a real Dyson ball if you tried, this groovy little replica is so realistic you’ll have to look twice.

 Honestly would you believe it, this awesome toy has already created some fantastic parent/child interaction, it’s cute but funny watching my little fella grab ahold of his vacuum and walking beside me as I engage myself in the real task of housework.

This is the perfect size for the little guy and he can work the on and of function with ease, what with it’s nice fat chunky red button located right below the handle. Once started the Little balls in the cylinder fly about madly and once you get going with the chore of vacuuming you can really hear it becoming more & more powerful making it sound like a real life vacuum.

However, one word of advice… Do reframe from vacuuming your pets, cats especially!

It’s clear to see the 2 year loved it (however, note this is recommended for the slightly older tot of 3-8). Me… I like to train them that little bit earlier and as you can see, Little Harley will make a fine husband one day (though I don’t really want to think about such a prospect)!

 Parental Perspective

 What can I say? This looks great, it’s made well, in my opinion its good value for money and it trains your little people for the days of reversed roles, you know, the ones where you sit on your back-sides watching the box and they do some housework.

 Note this is a Battery operated product which requires type C batteries.

5 stars 

 This funky Little gadget for funky little people can be picked up from around £19.99

Prices do vary according to retailers… Here’s one or two…

Tesco direct & Amazon,

 For those of you that didn’t know already, this mum is happily playing the part of Mrs Santa, giving you my lovely followers the chance to win one of two ‘Casdon’s Little Helpers Dyson Ball uprights’

 The Competition is currently already running and will close on December the 22nd 2011

Click Here to be taken directly to the giveaway

for my next competition just continue on…

Next up it’s the Casdon Self Service Checkout

Harley went from cleaner to shop worker in a minute when I presented him with the Casdon Self Service Checkout, however being just two he didn’t really do much role play here, rather just made a mess of his freshly vacuumed living room. Nonetheless, it didn’t matter because as soon as my daughter dropped her school bag at the door, this little self checkout somehow made it’s way into her bedroom.

 As many may know, Little man (my eldest with Aspergers Syndrome) was never good at make-believe, he just wasn’t interested. Then Little sister came along and required a friend to play with, so… over time she taught him games such as school’s and yep, you guessed it, “Shops” even though his not very imaginative when engaging in such activities (tends to play the same way every time) he still enjoys it, and the fact that this was a “Self Service Checkout” made his day, given he loves the real deal at our local supermarket! Once home, Little man joined his sister and they went missing for some time. In this respect it’s my opinion this one isn’t  just loved by little monsters, as my daughter is 8 and will very soon become 9 and Little man is 11 though his just catching up on all that play he missed out on! 🙂

 The Casdon Self Service Checkout has some pretty neat features!

Spoken instructions for understanding and cause of effect; realistic features with lights and sounds for visual and aural stimulation plus pretend play food and money (great for the development of counting skills, as well-as social & life skills).

 Prenatal Perspective

 It’s a good toy with lots of accessories supplied therefore providing lots of playability. I’ll be honest, I was surprised, yet overjoyed at how it appealed to the older two children. The fact that it helped to develop some great interaction between the two was fabulous given these days you are more than  likely to find them fighting (and I mean full on punch ups)! I can most definitely see this one appealing to the slightly older child 3-4 which is what it actually recommends, though Harley is only 2 years old, he does still continue to gain lots of enjoyment from this toy, Ok… he doesn’t actually play shop keeper (which at 2 I wouldn’t expect) but his enjoying himself all the same! The two older children loved the Casdon Self Service Checkout and have tried their hardest to claim it as their own. Therefore it’s fair to say that it was a definite hit with them (they gave it a full 5 stars) However as a parent I’m going to give it a 3 and a half stars as I think it should be a tad lower in price though I still would recommend this, as it’s a great toy providing hours of fun .

 The Casdon Self Service Checkout is priced at around £19.99 though prices may vary from retailer to retailer

Amazon currently have it in-stock and are selling it at £19.03

Big Countdown to Christmas Competition 

 win one of two 

Casdon Self Service Checkouts

That’s right I have two of these babies to give away! So do you want to win one for your little shopper? Here’s how!

You must follow the complusory actions, those who don’t will not go into the final draw.

Complusory Actions

Comment & share your thoughts on another review out of the options below

Mookie Street Cruz

KidCam

Olly the Little white Van

Jack & Holly’s Cosmic Stories

Come back here and leave a comment telling me which review you commented on!

You must leave a contact either twitter or email please

Additional Enteries

For every additional entry you must leave an additional comment again leaving a contact. You can enter as many additional entries as you please.

Subscribe to this blog (either by email, networkblogs, google rss, or wordpress follow {for wordpress users only} as far as I’m aware). Then leave a comment letting me know how you subscribed.

Tweet: I want to win a Casdon self-service checkout with @clairelouise82 adding the ULR to this post! Please then leave a comment telling me you did it and your twitter name.

Use the stumble or Digg buttons located in this post to share the competition, remember to let me know you did it in a comment leaving an email or twitter contact.

 Competition will close on the 30th December

T&C

You must follow all the required steps to be entered, your post may be deleted if you don’t. Competition is open to the UK only and will close at mid-night on the 30th December 2011, with winners being announced shortly after. There is no cash alternative for this prize and winners name will be published on this blog. Winner has 72hrs to respond to the winning notification.

Related articles

• Win a Toy Dyson Ball in Our Big Christmas Countdown (aspergersinfo.wordpress.com)

Review and competition of the new Jack and Holly’s Cosmic Stories

11

DAYS TILL CHRISTMAS

 Welcome to the wonderful world of Jack and Holly & wonderful it really is!

 We were sent a copy of Jack & Holly’s Cosmic Stories to review as part of our Santa’s Little helpers and Christmas countdown feature. The series, a low-budget children’s production has been developed with the help of parents, teachers and more importantly children themselves.

 Cosmic Stories is the second release following Jack & Holly’s Christmas Countdown and is brought to us by ‘Blockhouse TV’ a husband and wife team who are proud parents of two children aged 3 & 6 years.

 The couple have more than 20 years of experience between them & being parents themselves makes them passionate when producing a series aimed at pre-schoolers.

 The producers have deliberately used muted colours as opposed to the more traditional high-octane colours seen more today. This combined with soothing music and good old-fashioned animation techniques makes it kinder to little minds. The overall aim is to create an informative, yet entertaining animation that when viewed later in the day (the child’s last bit of TV time) it will help bring relaxation while encouraging interesting chats at bedtime alongside good parent, child interaction.

 Jack & Holly’s Cosmic Stories sees our two best friends ‘Jack & Holly’ reveal interesting, educational facts and stories about our universe. This is a DVD created to bring awareness of some of life’s key questions such as “What is a Solar System?” or “What is the moon made off?” it even talks about the ‘Big Bang’ and the possibility of other life forms on other planets.

 I will be honest, when sitting down to watch this with Harley, I myself become pretty engaged and therefore was really impressed by it.

 I was pleasantly surprised at how educational yet entertaining the feature was. The animation reminded me of my own days of watching children’s TV back in the eighties when I myself was a child with a mind like a sponge.

 We were also very lucky to be sent a copy of the first DVD ‘Jack & Holly’s Christmas Countdown’ which aims to teach children as young as two the joys and meaning of Christmas.

 Harley loved both titles but was very impressed by the Christmas Countdown, mainly due to his age (his aged 2). Harley has since become overly interested in Santa and more so the ‘Snowman’

 The title ‘Cosmic Stories’ is aimed at children 3+ nonetheless at age 2 Harley was pretty engaged in the production which managed to hold his attention really well.

 Overall Parental Perspective

 The balance of both informative educational material & entertaining animation is perfect and it’s my opinion that children will learn a great deal from the Jack and Holly series without even realising it.

 There are many children with Aspergers & autism out there with a real taste for interesting facts on our universe! This would be perfect for them as it would aim to answer all them questions too often thrown at parents. I say this because I know a child on the autism spectrum who would go crazy for this DVD (note this isn’t the Little man, his more of a transport lover, though he did sit and watch this from start to finish, alongside his sister Alice-Sara).

 The makers of the series have been very clever thinking both about both the attention span of young children alongside what maybe considered an appropriate amount of TV viewing time a parent may want their child to engage in. With this in mind the DVD has been chopped into seven bite sized pieces to give the parent complete control over how much time to allow their child to watch the DVD.

 I honestly think that despite the recommended age of 3+ the second DVD release ‘Cosmic Stories’ would appeal to child of all ages, even those in the primary years as it’s packed full of interesting educational facts, some that I didn’t learn about myself till I was at-least 7 or 8. With this in mind I think it would be a fabulous resource for schools, especially for those teachers who are planning a term of lessons around the subject of the universe. If teachers were to screen ‘Jack and Holly’s Cosmic Stories’ as to form part of their lesson plan, children would see it as a rewarding treat without even realising that their little minds were being feed  loads of interesting & educational facts, therefore learning without knowing it, which in my opinion is one of the best ways of educating any child, regardless of their age or abilities.

 Would I recommend either DVD? Without a doubt, yes I would!

 Christmas Countdown 4* (better for the younger children aged from 2).

 Cosmic Stories: 5* (Recommended for children 3 and above but safe viewing for the younger child too).

Visit the Jack & Holly website for more info and a list of retailers, just click HERE

 COMPETITION

 I have been lucky enough to be given an extra 5 copies of Jack and Holly’s Cosmic Stories to give away to my lovely readers (Yes, I really did say 5)! This would make a wonderful gift for any child and really is safe viewing for little minds.

 So… to win one of 5 copies of Jack & Holly’s Cosmic Stories, its dead simple, just follow the instructions below making sure you are careful to do all the required actions to validate your entries (sadly comments that don’t contain the required actions fulfilling all the rules, will have to be deleted without warning)!

Twitter ID or email contact must be left with all comments!

 COMPULSORY ACTIONS

 First… follow @jackandholly on twitter then tweet: “I want to win a @jackandholly DVD with @clairelouise82” ADDING THE URL TO THIS POST

Lastly come back here and leave a comment informing me you have done the compulsory actions including  your twitter name and I’ll validate your entry.

 ADDITIONAL ACTIONS

 These actions will not be valid without the compulsory action having been taken.

 For additional entries just use any of the ‘Share buttons’ located in this post to share the competition with others.

 For every share button used, you must validate the entry by leaving an additional comment from that above for each and every button used!

 Remember to leave a contact

 IT’S AS EASY AS THAT!

 Competition will close on the 30th December 2011

T&C

 All required actions must be taken to be entered into the random draw that will close at midnight on the 30th December and announced soon after. Winners have 72 hrs to confirm by sending me their postal address for delivery of their prize via email. Each winner can only win the once and the prize will be sent directly via the brand itself. Note, the prize is for 5 copies (one per winner) of the title ‘Jack and Holly’s Cosmic Stories’ and no cash alternative is offered. Competition is open to those in the UK only.

Disclaimer

I received a copy of both Jack & Holly’s Christmas Countdown and Cosmic Stories in-order to write this review and run this competition. All opinions are my own and haven’t been influenced in any way.

Related articles

• Jack and Holly release new childrens DVD (your-story.org)
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Win stocking fillers for the toddlers in the countdown till Christmas

17

Days till Christmas

Wow can you believe it people, just 17 days till Christmas! With that in mind, who fancies winning some stocking fillers?

I have two awesome DVDs up for grabs and one lucky reader can win them both. 

These have already proven exteremly popular here on the blog, with both having been featured in previous competitions, both appearing on the Santa’s Little helpers wish list and both undergoing reviews form the little helpers.

Now remember, It’s one winner gets both!

Today’s prize is donated by the awesome Entertainment One, and is …

Image via Wikipedia

A Copy of Peppa Pig international day & a copy of Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom the tooth fairy.

HOW TO WIN THESE TWO FANTASTIC CHILDREN’S FAVOURITES

 

NOTE: THOSE THAT DON’T FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS WILL NOT BE ENTERED! (Sorry, but this happens to be a  reoccurring event)!

COMPULSORY ACTIONS

(THIS MUST BE COMPLETED)

Comment on any other post then come back and tell me which post you commented on, PLUS… Tell me who you want to win these for! (both in one comment, those who do it in two will only have the one counted)! Please leave a contact twitter/email.

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES

TWEET: “I want to win  Peppa pig and ben & holly dvds 4 xmas with @clairelouise82” ADDING THE URL TO THIS POST. Comment and let me know you have done it with your twitter ID.

Stumble this post using the share buttons (comment to let me know you have done it)

Subscribe via email (comment to let me know you have done it)

Comment on a second post (not competition related) comment to let me know which post.

TO MAKE YOUR ENTRIES COUNT A SEPARATE COMMENT FOR EACH ACTION (EXCLUDING THE FIRST) PLEASE.

Competition will close on the 16th of December 2011

T&C

UK only, entries that haven’t abided by the rules will not be entered in to the final draw. All entries are checked before random draw. Due to the fact this is a Christmas Competition please be aware that you only have 24hrs to confirm your postal address once notified.

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Winner of the brand new Peppa Pig DVD title

Sorry about the delay here guys but was just waiting for random picker to finish the recent update of their site.

Nonetheless, I’m pleased to announce that the winner of the ‘Peppa Pig International day’ DVD, that was drawn at random using the ‘Random Picker’ is….

Tired-Mummy (@TiredmummyofTwo)

Congratulations please contact me with your details via the email address in the sidebar or on twitter

Sorry to all those who didn’t win, we have competitions still running and plenty more on the way

To see the winning protocol click HERE

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Win Peppa pigs brand new DVD title

This week’s been all about the pig…

At the start of the week we received a copy of Peppa pig international day to carry out a review. Harley is a massive Bob the builder fan and his been watching Bob pretty much every day, so it was nice when he agreed to watch a little Peppa. 

On the very next day I received an email from the very lovely Romanian mum offering me a lovely little gift… Well, Little is the wrong word, It wasn’t a little gift at all, it was actually a family ticket for four for the Peppa pig live treasure hunt  show at the Gi in Guilford this pass Friday.

Romanian mum had won the tickets from another lovely blogger but wasn’t able to attend due to work comitments. I felt quite humbled that she had thought of me and wish to publicly thank her for here kindness here on my blog!

THANK YOU ROMANIAN MUM  YOU’RE AWESOME.

I took Harley my 22 month old along with my sister and her daughter who is just ten weeks younger than Harley. Wow, They loved it and Harley danced to all songs and bless him, he even copied the actions.

So by the time I left the Gi and traveled on the train back to southeast London I was all Peppa-ed  Out.

I, however could only speak for myself as Harley had only just began! He disappeared upstairs only to appear with a Peppa DVD along with the statement,

“Peppa on… mummy”…

As lovely as Peppa is, I actually fell asleep while it was playing only to wake the next morning with an elbow wedged in my side. 

Since Friday I’ve heard Peppa as background noise as its been spinning in the DVD player non stop so my guess is Harley thinks its great DVD.

(and so did I the first, second and maybe even third time! A tad bored by the fifth I think, :))

Nevertheless regardless of the toddler wearing the hell out off it, the new “Peppa pig international day” DVD is a fab collection of episodes that are sure to put a smile on the faces of all little Peppa fans.

Here’s a bit of info on the latest title added to the Peppa DVD collection.

Peppa Pig International Day and Other Stories

 AVAILABLE TO OWN ON DVD FROM MONDAY 24^th OCTOBER 2011

 Peppa Pig, the UK’s No. 1 pre-school character, returns to entertain your little ones this autumn in a brand new DVD Peppa Pig International Day and Other Stories.

 Available from Monday 24^th October 2011 (£12.99 RRP, Cert U, Entertainment One) just in time for the school and nursery half term break, the DVD is packed with 11 fun-filled tales about Peppa Pig and her family with all the joy and laughter we’ve come to expect from this adorable character.

 Peppa Pig is a loveable, cheeky piggy who lives with her little brother George, Mummy Pig and Daddy Pig. Peppa’s favourite things include playing games, dressing up, days out and jumping in muddy puddles. Her adventures always end happily with loud snorts of laughter.

 Join Peppa Pig and her little brother George for the lead International Day episode, where Peppa and all her friends at playgroup dress up as different countries from all over the world, and 10 other adventures that will have the whole family singing Peppa Pig – Oink Oink!

 EPISODE LISTING

International Day – Grampy Rabbit’s Boatyard – Shake Rattle and Bang – Pottery — Mr Fox’s Van – Biggest Puddle in the World – Chatterbox – Chloe’s Big Friends – Edmond Elephant’s Birthday –  Gym Class

BONUS EPISODE – Paper Aeroplane

 PEPPA PIG – INTERNATIONAL DAY AND OTHER STORIES

Release date:  Monday 24th October 2011

RRP – £12.99

Entertainment One

www.peppapig.com

Entertainment One have been kind enough to offer me an extra copy of ‘Peppa Pig International day’ for my fabulous readers and followers.

COMPULSORY ENTRY IS BELOW…

Its simple Really … just leave a comment stating the one children’s tv show that really grinds your gears.

Why? Because I’m sick to death of that same old rules of play! Just trying to jazz it up a bit here parents, encouraging you to get it all out your systems. 

YOU MUST LEAVE A WAY FOR ME TO CONTACT YOU! WHETHER THIS BE A TWITTER ID, EMAIL OR OTHER THAT’S COMPLETELY DOWN TO YOU!

Below you will find a list of ways to gain additional entries. You can do however many you wish but…

ALL MUST BE COMMENTED ON SEPARATELY IN ORDER FOR THEM TO BE VALID!

Subscribe to my blog via email (top right in sidebar)

 follow my blog on network blogs

Like the A boy with Aspergers page (Image link in sidebar on right). Note: Remember it’s an addition to this blog but also a support source for parents with children on the autism spectrum and even a supportive network for adults with the condition)

Follow me on twitter by clicking the follow me cute “twitter button” on the right, located in the side bar!

Tweet by clicking the “twitter share button” attached to this post below, adding “@clairelouise82” before posting.

Click the facebook share button below and share on your facebook wall or page.

Rate this post by clicking on the stars above to gain a final entry.

Remember separate comments are required for each action taken, remembering to include a contact (twitter, email add or other)!

Competition is open to UK residents only. All steps will be checked before an entry is validated. The competition is open from the date and time of publishing, closing on the 31st October 2011 at midnight. The winner has five days to claim the prize from the date of the official winner announcement post that will be published on this blog soon after the draw has been completed. Winners must be prepared to supply a UK postal address which will be passed on to the PR in-order for your prize to be dispatched.

Good luck people 

Related articles

• Peppa Pig International Day up for review (mostlyyummymummy.com)
• Ben and Holly’s little kingdom giveaway (aspergersinfo.wordpress.com)
• Peppa Goes to the Library Review (crazyhat.co.uk)

Bumpeez and Chewigem winners

The Winner of the Bumpeez Give away is… Emma Treadwell

Congratulations Emma please contact me for your prize.

Prize ID	Winner ID	Public Info	Private Info	Random Sorting ID	Weight
1: Bumpeez album pack	18	Emma Treadwell		1b7bbef7-305c-4c82-9bcf-176fd2040c96

Also in a little twisted of event’s, I have done a redraw for the Chewigem competition due to the winner being completely unresponsive despite a large number messages trying to make contact. 

So without further delay the winner to the Chewigem give away is…. Kylie Hodges

Congratulations Kylie please contact me with your address and choice of Chewigem.

Prize ID	Winner ID	Public Info	Private Info	Random Sorting ID	Weight
1: chewigem of winners choice	14	Kylie Hodges		9b7b4866-f5c2-4bbb-85bc-0b8105ff3755

Both draws were carried out with the use of Random picker and those that wish to check their participation or the draw results can do so by clicking either of the links below!

Bumpeez protocol click HERE

Chewigem protocol click HERE 

IF YOU LOVE GIVEAWAYS WHY NOT ENTER OUR ‘MATALAN GIFT VOUCHER COMPETITION’ WITH THE WINNER RECEIVING A £25 GIFT CARD.  JUST CLICK HERE

OR

THERE’S STILL TIME TO WIN A BEN & HOLLY’S LITTLE KINGDOM THE TOOTH FAIRY DVD FOR YOUR LITTLE ONE’S. JUST CLICK HERE

Look out for competitions from Peppa pig & The Wooden toyshop coming very soon

Ben and Holly’s little kingdom giveaway

 Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom 

The Tooth Fairy

We got an email a few weeks back alerting us of a new DVD release for pre-schoolers. We were asked to do a review and run a competition of Ben & Holly’s Little kingdom The tooth fairy which is brought to us from the same creators of “Peppa Pig” which Little Harley adores.

 Well, as you can see we agreed, so here we are!

 Here’s what the creators say..

 Budding fairies and mischievous elves are invited into an enchanting little world that’s big on magic in Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom: The Tooth Fairy, the new DVD release from the BAFTA award winning animation.

 Brought to you from the creators of Peppa Pig, Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom: The Tooth Fairy is available to buy from Monday 3rd October 2011 (£12.99 RRP Cert. U, Entertainment One).  The DVD contains 10 exciting episodes that perfectly blend magic, adventure and humour that will delight and engage young fans.

 Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom is a firm favourite on Nick Jr and Channel 5’s Milkshake where boys and girls tune in every day to follow the adventures of Princess Holly and her best friend Ben Elf. Holly is a young fairy who is still learning how to do magic properly. Ben is an elf and elves don’t do magic, but they are very good at making things.  Along with their friends, Ben and Holly have lots of fun and exciting adventures playing together in the Little Kingdom.

 Small in scale but big on magic Ben and Holly’s Little Kingdom: The Tooth Fairy is set to sprinkle a magical blend of fairy dust on homes across the land when it is released this autumn.

What we thought…

Despite Harley’s Love for Gorge pig we had never seen any episodes of Ben and Holly (Maybe because we don’t have Sky or Cable TV).

 So, I popped this into the DVD player in the bedroom, snuggled up with my youngest and watched this shortly before his bedtime.

 Harley was interested and kept saying “Look mum” In my opinion his pretty advanced for his 22 months and tends to point out and name lots of things.

Each episode is nice and short which keeps the little ones interested. You get quite a few episodes on the one DVD, ten in-fact which is just enough, though we watched around four before Harley drifted off to the land of happiness, so we watched the remaining six the following day. He must have enjoyed them as he went over to the TV as soon as he woke and asked, “Mummy, where gone?” 

Here’s the episodes you get.

 EPISODE LISTING – The Elf Factory – Ben’s Birthday Card – Books – Betty Caterpillar – Queen Holly – The Woodpecker – The Elf Band – The Ant Hill – Redbeard the Elf Pirate – The Tooth Fairy

 We both enjoyed Ben and Holly (Mummy didn’t have a choice given I’ve watched it a further three times).

Ben and Holly’s  Little kingdom The tooth fairy, is fun bold and colourful. It will keep little ones entertained allowing parents to take a breather (unless like Harley yours wants you to join them).

 You can now buy Ben and Holly’s Kingdom The tooth fairy on DVD as it was released this past Monday the 3rd October from Entertainment One priced at £12.99

 Fancy winning a copy?

Here’s how

 Just leave a comment here telling me why you’d like to win a copy

NOTE YOU MUST LEAVE A TWITTER, EMAIL ADD OR ANOTHER FORM OF CONTACT WITH YOUR ENTRY. This allows me to contact you if you win.

 For an additional entry Tweet, “I want to Win a copy of Ben & Holly’s Magical Kingdom with @clairelouise82 (WITH THE URL TO THIS POST). Please leave me an additional comment from that above informing me you have done so.

 For one last entry subscribe to the blog either by clicking the subscribe button at the top of the sidebar or via Networkblogs (Link in sidebar). Again Please leave me a comment additional from those above informing me you have done so.

That’s a maximum of three entries per person (totalling three comments, any others will not be published)

THAT’S IT GUYS, GOOD LUCK

Competition closes on the 22nd October at mid-night, entries after this date will not be accepted. You must be a UK resident to enter. Winner will be drawn at Random with the use of Random Picker and will be notified soon after. You must respond to claim your prize within 5 days of the official announcement post or risk a redraw. 

Related articles

• Skarloey, Rheneas and the Chuggington Factor (theprogenitor.wordpress.com)
• We’re a Milkshake Family Now! (theprogenitor.wordpress.com)
• The Sophistication of Elves and Fairies (theprogenitor.wordpress.com)