Category: Reviews

1. Little Fun Fest - Fantastic fun for little funsters

   Posted on 9:03pm Sunday 6th Apr 2014

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   We have lots of adventures on the Lilypad and today our adventures took us to the Red House Barn and the Little Fun Fest.

   

   It was our first ever festival (yes mine included) and I totally embraced the whole thing by ensuring we ALL had wellies. The weather forecast wasn't brilliant but a few rain showers weren't going to dampen our spirits and once as we saw the Big Red Top as we came closer to Red House Barn, we couldn't contain the girls excitement. They grabbed their wellington boots and off they went through the mud.

    

   With varying ages, there is usually a debate over what activites we were going to do and amazingly the girls were generally happy to take turns in choosing an activity, with the little one only getting a bit upset over there being water on the bouncy castle. It was a little "bounce, splash" .... which added to the fun in the end!

   The venue wasn't huge, which was perfect for us (and the little legs) as we could happily choose activities from either side and get there quickly. There was an amazing array of things to do and see from Baby Ballet, Dr Ranj's travelling surgery, Mr Yipadee to cBeebies very own Alex Winters, without all the extra's like the fair ground rides, stalls and play area. Mr Yipadee was a particular favourite, with the little one getting right in front of the stage and dancing and singing along. 

   We had to take cover from the rain showers but the craft corner came to the rescue .....

   

   And don't forget the parachute .....

   

   As soon as the rain stopped, we were outside again and this time learning circus tricks from tight rope walking to stilts!

   

   Little Fun Fest is all about providing top class family fun! It is marketed as the under 10′s first family festival and I was worried that it maybe a little too young for the "almost" 9 year old but she loved it and wants to come back next year already!

   

   We didn't get a chance to meet and greet the stars of Little Fun Fest as the little one was beyond exhausted from all the excitement and she was asleep within 2 minutes of us leaving the car park but it wasn't about the characters for us, as it was just a fabulous event although we were able to watch the princesses from Frozen sing "Let it Go" before we left .....

    

   The girls just didn't want to "let it go" and want to come back again tomorrow!!

    

   We received a family pass for our entrance to Little Fun Fest but all opinions and adventures are our own.

2. Skribbies : Review

   Posted on 1:13pm Tuesday 1st Apr 2014

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   It is no secret that there is a love of shoes by the girls on the Lilypad, so when we got the opportunity to review the Skribbies shoes, we jumped at the chance! Skribbies is a UK based company founded by Jennifer Duthie. The idea behind Skribbies came when Jennifer was reminiscing about the sweeter days of childhood. Jennifer wanted to develop a product for kids that was more versatile and would allow kids to keep on customising and as a result, Skribbies was born.

   So what is in a Skribbies box? The 8 year old takes her first leap into (a very shy attempt at) vlogging. 

   I have to admit I *may* have teased her with the box until the weekend and I purposefully didn't look inside either, so we were both thrilled with the contents. The Skribbies come with 6 pens in varying colours, monster stickers and a wristband.

   

    We made sure that there were no distractions (i.e 2 year old sister) to encroach on her artistic talents and she got to work straight away.

   

   She couldn't decide between the stickers or the pens so ended up using a little bit of both. The Skribbies come with a handy wipe clean cloth (that doubles up as a funky wristband for art on the go) so if you don't like what you have done, you can simply wipe away.

   

   Uh oh ... then the peace was shattered as the 2 year woke from her nap and insisted on getting involved! The chunky pens were the perfect size for her, much to her sisters dismay.

   

    Et Voila!

   

    You can just imagine how delighted the 8 year old was when the 2 year old found the cleaning cloth ...... (action shot to follow)

   

   I am told by the ever critical 8 year old, that the trainers are really comfortable to wear and she loves showing them off when we go out.

   She is a bit of a creature of habit, so once she has a design she tends to stick with it ..... until her sister gets hold of them of course.

   My mum was a little worried at encouraging the children to draw on their shoes but they both understand that they are a special design and you can only draw on the Skribbies. At £39.99 they are not the cheapest shoes you are going to buy for your child but certainly not the most expensive either and with the ability to change the look whenever you want, it is a great way to encourage their individuality too.

   We love them ..... what do you think?

3. eBay Inspires .... me!

   Posted on 3:18pm Thursday 27th Mar 2014

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   I have to admit that I have only really started using eBay in the last few years (I am not entirely sure how it passed me by before) but now before I buy anything, the thrifty side of me has to check eBay to see if I can get a better deal. The range of products listed every week never ceases to amaze me and you really can find anything on eBay.

   So in March 2014, eBay launched their eBay Collections and we were delighted to be asked to create some of the the first collections to feature on the site. This was extremely exciting, especially when we found out that we were in the company of style icons such as Danni Minogue and Kelly Hoppen. The collections are essentially a mood board or an online scrap book for you to create a visual picture of what you are trying to create, whether that be a room, a theme or (like me) just indulging a shopping habit!

   

   eBay have rolled out their collections now so you can click and create collections to your hearts desire. You will find  "add to collection"  just underneath "add to watch list" on each item listing. It really is that easy. I have created collections around our home and socialising .... which is something we love to do! The Man on the Pad is a little concerned at how excited I got over finding new things to add to each collection but it is a great way to see if items work together, especially if you are redesigning a room.

   If you would like to have a little look at our collections, just click here. You can follow the boards too, if the mood takes you!

   Click.

   Create.

   Inspire.

   eBay Inspires me to shop more cleverly. How will you use the collections?

    

   This post, is part of my ongoing partnership with eBay.

4. Mia Tui Amelie Bag : Review

   Posted on 10:22pm Wednesday 12th Mar 2014

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   Since becoming a mother, I have had even more reason to indulge my passion for bags. I have an ever increasing collection of oversized bags and my justification for this is that I always need to carry "everything" with me and when I say everything, I really do mean everything. (My friend and I recently went to a soft play and she didn't have socks but my bag had a spare pair for her little one .... and her!)

   So when I was given the opportunity to review one of the bags from the Mia Tui range, I leapt at the chance and chose the Amelie bag for its classic design and amazing specification. It retails at £63.00 and there is an extensive range of colours to choose from but I typically chose black (as it goes with pretty much every outfit). I was delighted when it arrived as it was beautifully packaged and the quality was obvious from the first moment.

   

   
   

   What can you fit in a Mia Tui bag? by littlelilypadco on Polyvore

   The Amelie bag is made in an ultra soft faux-leather and wipes clean (perfect for any mom with a sticky fingered child), which appeals to my tactical and sensory side. Whereas the the practical side of me loves that the Amelie bag comes with:

   • 2 Clear internal bags with hand strap
   • 1 Matching clutch bag with hand strap
   • Water bottle holder
   • Key clips
   • Phone pocket
   • Pen holder
   • Hands free shoulder strap
   • Zipped pocket on back of bag
   • Blue Interior

   Despite my love affair with a "big bag", I have to admit that the Amelie is probably too big to be considered an every day handbag but it is perfect for those occasions when you do need to cover every eventuality, such as travelling with children or it is a great option for a stylish gym bag. The matching clutch is a great addition to the bag, as you can go from day to night in the blink of an eye, if you going from work to play at a moments notice (or after carefully arranging babysitters in my case).

   

   
   

   Mai Tui - Perfect for all occasions by littlelilypadco on Polyvore

   We have had great fun working out how much we can actually fit in the Mia Tui Amelie bag and the only thing that we have struggled with is my ability to carry it, rather than the lack of space in the bag! (My toddler has attempted to get in the bag but I don't recommend that you carry small children in there!!)

   I know everyone isn't as passionate about bags as I am but even if the Mia Tui Amelie bag is a little too big for you, they have an amazing range to choose from. I am an existing customer and very happy reviewer ..... the only downfall about Mia Tui? They have so many bags for me to lust over!

   

   Disclaimer: I was sent the Amelie bag to review but all opinions are our own.