Review: Sylvanian Families Cosy Cottage & Chocolate Rabbit Twin Set

Miss E has liked Sylvanian families for a while now and she was over the moon when we were offered the Cosy Cottage to review. The RRP for this is £24.99 and I think that price is a really good deal

In the past I have found that many Sylvanian buildings come without anything inside, no furniture and no figures and it then becomes a bit expensive to buy the building and kit it out. I really liked that the Cosy Cottage comes with a starter pack of Freya chocolate rabbit, table and chairs, bench, cooker and accessories, bed and linen and ladder.

You can have the house as two storey or the top floor is removable and when turned over the wooden floor becomes green grass and it can go just outside as the garden or in the case of Miss E be used as the picnic area.

I was super surprised that when Miss E (age 7) got this out to play with her 10 year old brother came over and really wanted in on the action too, so they got the camper van set out and played that long lost cousins had come to visit. I do love a bit of good imaginative play and the Sylvanian families sets really lend themselves well to this.

In my experience the Sylvanian families toys are very good quality and are built to last, the plastic is not flimsy like with some toys and there is also really beautiful and detailed styling in the accessories that come with the sets. In this case it was saucepan, plate and food.

Another good feature about the cottage is that it can be connected to Maple Manor and Beechwood Hall if you choose to buy more and extend your collection.

As well as the cottage we also received chocolate rabbit twin set and considering my girls are twins they really loved this. You get two little tiny babies, a double pushchair and a few accessories like a dummy and bottle for £9.99. Freya the rabbit that came with our house must be over the moon to have twins, but where is her husband?

Great prizes to be won
There is also a fabulous competition running at the moment to win a wonderful Forest holiday worth £1000 and some super sylvanian families products. All you have to do is take a picture of your Sylvanian family characters enjoying their summer and submit it by the deadline of 31st August 2014. Take a look at their webiste for full details and the T&C's too.

Just look at these little guys enjoying their time on the beach!

Disclosure: We received these toys free of charge for the purpose of writing this review. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.

Stylish Lunch bags from Sweeleestuff (review)

My girls have new lunch bags for school and they are over the moon and feel so grown up, I know that even the teachers have mentioned how great they are and if I was still working out of the home I'd happily take one with me.

Sweeleestuff lunch bags (or totes if you are posh) are a zipped bag made of Neoprene and they measure H29.5 x W29.5 x D17.5 cm.  They are small enough for even a young child to carry confidently and yet you can fit so much in them.  My girls have a box of sandwiches, bottle of drink, yoghurt and something snacky for lunch and this all fits in with a load of room, I could literally fit a couple of decent sized salad and fruit boxes in as well as a drink and they would still work fabulously.

Probably my favourite part of the bags (apart from them looking super stylish) is that they fold flat for storage, just look how much space I save on a weekend/ in the holidays when I put away these bags rather than the kids old more ridged ones.

When we first received the bags they did a smell a bit but I think that is just what happens with neoprene, we have had it with wetsuits too. A cool wash in the machine sorted this out in no time and that is another fabulous plus point for these bags, that I can put them through the wash as much as I like, I no longer have to deal with the horrible smelly stale yoghurt corners in square boxes and there is no lining to trap water when it goes through the machine, they are making my life just that little bit easier which is important as a busy mum.

The neoprene is super soft and the handles are comfy to use, there is a massive range of fabric designs but they definitely are more for those who like girly designs but there is plain black for a more masculine design. Here are some of the designs I particularly liked -

The bags are all the same size but the price does seem to range from £5.99 through to £12.99, I assume this depends on how popular the fabric design is. Both the designs my girls chose retail at £8.99 currently and I think this is good value for a stylish but long lasting and washable bag that is also free from Lead, PVA, Pthalate and BPA, harmful substances which have been found in lunchbags of other materials.

We are really pleased with our Sweeleestuff lunch bags and I'd happily recommend them.

Disclousre:  We received these lunch bags free of charge for the purpose of writing this review.

Making money go further: Tips from your mum

Many have heeded their Mum’s advice to be more frugal. Implementing the penny jar for loose change and cutting down to one takeaway coffee per week can make a big difference, but most mums are savvy enough to know many more tips to help make your money go further. These days there are a whole host of things you can try to get the most out of every pound that comes your way. That said, some of the tried and true money savers that worked for your Mum and her generation are still good to today, even in our fast-paced, technology-heavy world. The speed and mediums of information exchange may have changed, but the fundamental principles of good money management haven’t. Earn It, Save It, Invest It – this is the mantra of many mums, some of whom remain the most successful financial wizards in the world. For more information on how to get most out of your money you can also try the websites of wealth creation education organisations like Learn to Trade.

Here are a number of other tips that will help you spend less and invest more -

Cook at Home

That’s right, one of your mum’s top money saving tips is to spend less on eating out. Cook at home and invite friends to your place rather than going out. If everyone brings a course or a side dish, it can cost you very little to host – you may only have to make the main course. Try sticking to easy-to-freeze meals like pies and pastas with homemade sauces so you can reuse any leftovers easily, plus you can freeze it and thaw later in the week to use as a base for a soup or a great sauce for pizza. Vary your condiments and herbs and you can have a few lovely nights in for very little outlay. Work out how often you eat out, what you spend, and how much this might save you per month. Now think about that money doing something besides sitting in a savings account. Can it pay down some debt? Can it be added to an investment fund you’ve got going? How hard can you make your money work? The harder it works, the more return

Avoid Debt Like The Plague

You’re already ahead if you’re not carrying any personal debt, such as credit card debt, personal loans or store cards. Should you have any accumulated personal debt, cut your expenses to the bare minimum and make it a priority to clear that as quickly as you can. If you’re storing stuff you don’t need or want, see what you can sell it for on second hand sites like eBay or Gumtree. Look for savings on phone data plans and insurance – anywhere and everywhere you can find a spare pound makes a difference. You might even consider selling your car and taking public transport for a while. Put everything you can spare towards that debt until it’s gone. Move forward with a clear household budget that will help you steer clear of the debt treadmill in future.

Invest

Once you’ve paid off your debt, see if you can keep tithing a similar amount of money into an investment account. This is when all your careful money management really starts to be fun, as you can drive your money to work as hard as it can for you. Set some investment goals and track your progress. You’ll find taking a proactive interest in your money pays dividends.

In the end, most mums know that investing is all about making the money do the work. The more you save, the more money you have to invest. And you can take it a little easier if you’ve got your money doing a lot of the hard work.

But what about you, do you have a top tip for making your money go further? Don’t keep it a secret – share it in the Comments box below.

JJ Reviews Minecraft Figures - Steve with Diamond Armour and Animal Mob 6 Pack

JJ was super excited to receive some Minecraft action figures last week.  Take a peek at his video review to see what he thought -



Disclosure: We were sent these 2 packs of Minecraft figures free of charge for the purpose of this review. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.

Review - Scotland Yard board game

As a child I recall a friends big brother having the Scotland Yard board game and we always wanted to play it but he used to tell us we were too young and it was not for girls, so I never got to play sadly.

I then don't recall seeing the game anywhere else for quite some years so you can imagine my glee when I was offered the Ravensburger re-released version just recently.  Would we like to review this?  Easy, yes please! JJ was super pleased when it arrived as he knows what Scotland Yard is and he is a little obsessed with cop and spy programs, he seems to be think he is a bit of a super sleuth.

He announced that he could not wait for me and he would start to unpack the game and read the instructions and get on with it himself.  I did of course advise him one person could not play this game alone so he roped in his 6 year old sister. Now this game is aimed at children of 10 years plus and whilst she is a bright little thing it was a bit hard as a first attempt with a bossy 10 year old trying to teach a bossy 6 year old!

Getting Ready
Getting the board and pieces ready for play was easy, all the transport tickets had to be popped out and they are a nice thick laminated cardboard so I think they will last well. The board itself is really up to date and has all the popular London landmarks like Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, the London Eye and even the Shard. It is probably the thickest and most durable board to a game I've ever seen. I'll certainly say that for Ravensburger they know how to produce something that will stand the tests of time.

The Instructions
For some reason you get two instruction booklets and it really was not clear to me why this is. The English text is buried at the back behind 5 other languages and even the main writing on the box is in German, which feels a bit odd when the game is being sold in England and is about our capital city.

You need to prepare yourself to take some time to read these and absorb. As someone is playing Mr X and then others are playing the detectives, there are two different sets of instructions to grasp, so this is not a game you can pick up in 5 minutes.

Objective of the game
Notorious criminal Mr X is on the run in Central London. Can Scotland Yard’s finest detectives track him down, or will he escape forever? One player takes on the role of Mr X, whilst other players take on the role of detectives and work as a team to try to find him. Mr X only reveals his location every 5 moves, but the detectives can get clues as to his location by looking at his travel log, which reveals his chosen method of transport. The detectives also move around the board using taxi, bus and underground tickets, and must try to surround Mr X, and then move to his hidden location to catch him and win. But the detectives don’t always win and Mr X can escape to any of the 199 locations shown on the detailed map of Central London!

Did we enjoy it?
In a nutshell, yes. Once we had got the hang of it but it did take us a few goes to feel as if we knew what we were up to. We have also only played the beginners version of the game so far and we have yet to move to the more advanced or the two person game.

I love the fact that this game teaches kids to strategise and really think about what moves Mr X has made and how they should go about finding him and it also encourages team work as the detectives which is super and well needed in our house!

Another plus point is that no game is ever the same and that keeps it really fresh and means the kids want to come back to it again and again. I'm told that next time Miss M wants to try and be Mister X, so I think we will be roping Daddy in to help her.

How long does it take?
It took us about 5-10 minutes to set up the game and then with 4 players it was about an hour long and that is a real bonus as games like Monopoly can go on forever and ever.

Where can I buy it?
Scotland Yard is available from Ravensburger on Amazon and the price is just £17.99 currently.  I think this is a fabulous deal and real value for money. You can also watch a short video about how to play Scotland Yard on there too.

Disclosure:  We received this game free of charge for he purpose of this review. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.