Category / Review

by jo

Sherlock Holmes and the Disappearing Diamond by Sam Hearn

Sherlock Holmes and the Disappearing Diamond is the first fiction series that Sam Hearn has written and illustrated. We are taking part in a blog tour, here’s our review.

Sherlock Holmes and the Disappearing Diamond

Sherlock Holmes and the Disappearing Diamond is a story about John Watson starting the Baker Street Academy. While there he meets Sherlock Holmes and Martha Hudson, and the three of them try and solve a mystery.

The story tells through various ways which appealed to H. She liked the comic book illustrations and detective notes. You also read the story through school assignments, media reports and Watson’s blog.

Holmes and Watson go on a school trip to one of London’s top museums which is home to the world’s most famous jewel, the Alpine Star. But, someone has stolen the jewel.

They find the jewel, and the police close the case. Yet Sherlock Holmes isn’t so sure that it should be. John and Martha work with him to try and solve the mystery.

Our copy of Sherlock Holmes and the Disappearing Diamond arrived on a day H was off sick from school. Until the postie had arrived she had been ambling from one activity to the next, not focused on anything. Since she started reading the book she hasn’t put it down. It’s a winner here.

It’s a nice easy read, and with the pages laid out like they are, it makes it a good attention-grabber. There’s plenty going on inside.

H says “I like that it’s like a comic strip, but also like a book. It’s half comic strip, half book. I like the detail in the pictures and how everything is in a logical way”

I asked her what she means by logical

“so it makes sense” she replied. “I like the blog part too.”

I asked her about the story

“They find the jewel, but it’s a fake. I like how Sherlock Holmes and John Watson and Martha Hudson all realise this and work out how to find the real one.”

I like how the start of the book has a few pages of character introductions. That kind of thing helps me a lot!

In summary, Sherlock Holmes and the Disappearing Diamond is a good, fun read which she hasn’t put down. H recommends it for 7-10 year olds who like books that have mysteries in them which get solved.

We have one final question. Who is Sam Hearn….?

Just Who is Sam Hearn

Sherlock Holmes and the Disappearing Diamond is published by Scholastic. You can buy it now from all good booksellers, plus of course, Amazon. (affiliate link)

Sherlock Holmes and the Disappearing Diamond Blog Tour

by jo

Dobble – a Great Fun Family Game

Have you heard of Dobble? We had, and it intrigued me. A card game which was suitable for all, pretty easy to learn how to play, and is down to observational skills. It has been on our wishlist for a while now, and we were lucky to be sent it by Esdevium Games right before Christmas.
dobble

Dobble is a really straightforward game. In fact, it’s so straightforward we were playing it within two minutes of opening the tin. The rules are really simple – there are 55 cards. They have eight pictures on them. You turn two cards over at a time, and spot the matching picture.

dobble cards

That might sound easy, but it isn’t – often the pictures are different sizes. Sometimes we’ll play and I’ll spot loads in a row, but then H will spot as many too – it’s a very random but good game.

This is the bit where maths come into it. There are over 50 symbols, there are 55 cards and only one will match per card. No two cards are identical either. With 8 symbols on each card, I’m still trying to get my head around how they manage to do it. It’s really simple and really clever.

dobble tin

H loves Dobble – she played it over Christmas with her cousins, her Nana, her Aunt, her Uncle and of course Shaun and I – and everyone enjoyed it. It’s the simplicity – and that everyone is on the same level.

You can expand on the simple game, and have tournaments. The Dobble instructions have points per image too. We haven’t gone there yet as we’re still having too much fun with the basic game!

playing Dobble

There are also other mini games you can play which again we haven’t got to but will. There are five games in total.

I love that it’s a simple, straightforward game that up to 8 people can play. It doesn’t take long to master – it’s like an easier version of snap – you just need to spot the symbols and there will be a match every time. There’s a simplified version for younger children, Dobble Kids.

You can buy Dobble now – it’s available through all good retailers and costs £10.49. Amazon have it here (affiliate link) The link on Esvedium Games is here.

We were sent Dobble to review, it gets a big thumbs up from us and is the kind of game we’ll be buying people for presents this year – it’s a lot of fun!

by jo

Cinderella at York Theatre Royal

I have been going to the York Panto since it first started in 1977. There has been one consistent force since then, the actor Berwick Kaler. This is his 38th panto. This year we headed out to see Cinderella at York Theatre Royal.

Berwick Kaler in Cinderella at York Theatre Royal

Berwick Kaler in Cinderella at York Theatre Royal – photo by Anthony Robling

Cinderella at York Theatre Royal is 2016’s panto. This is the fourth production over many years, and of course is a story we’re all familiar with.

The ingredients for a good panto :
• slapstick. Essential, and must be executed well
• a dash of anarchy in a child-friendly manner
• the obligatory water scene
• a cast who work well together
• plot – not essential, but needs to get where it needs to be
• ad-libs
• corpsing. It is acceptable to laugh at anything you weren’t expecting which happens during the panto, especially if you are a castmember
• catchphrases that return every year
• very famous people are NOT essential to make a panto good

I would say if there was a tick box of these essentials, then Cinderella at York Theatre Royal has them all. There has been one big thing missing this year though.

Berwick Kaler, the co-writer and the longest serving Panto dame in the country had a pacemaker fitted back in August. He’s fine now, and is back in this year’s performance. His trusty sidekick Martin Barrass had a horrible motorbike accident in September. He is recovering, but has had to miss this year.

Suzy Cooper and Harry Hughes plus mice at Cinderella at York Theatre Royal. Photo by Anthony Robling

Suzy Cooper and Harry Hughes plus the young people’s team as mice at Cinderella at York Theatre Royal. Photo by Anthony Robling

Other regulars are present and correct. David Leonard (long-serving too) is back as the baddie – Baroness von Naff. Suzy Cooper has also done over 20 years at the Theatre Royal, and returns playing Cinderella. Making up the numbers is AJ Powell who takes what would be Barrass’ place alongside Berwick Kaler. They’re the ugly sisters Priscilla and Hernia.

AJ Powell, Berwick Kaler and David Leonard in Cinderella at York Theatre Royal. Photo by Anthony Robling.

AJ Powell as Priscilla, Berwick Kaler as Hernia and David Leonard as Baroness von Naff in Cinderella at York Theatre Royal. Photo by Anthony Robling.

The production starts with a song ‘It’s a Pantomime!’, and Berwick is on stage. I always well up a bit when he stands at the front, and says “me babbies, me bairns”. It gets me every time! I’m not sure when he started saying it, but it’s something which has always been there and that I’ve grown up with.

The story follows the classic Cinderella tale but with a few variations. The ball happens, the glass slipper is lost, and Prince Charming’s love needs to be found. There are references dropped into the show from 2016 – Brexit, Trump, Pokemon are three that I think happened. Pokemon had my nephew laughing out loud.

Cinderella has the usual films which feature in key parts of the show. They don’t disappoint. We get Carpool Karaoke with Suzi Quatro and Berwick Kaler which is good daft fun. Then there’s a Rocky Horror Picture Show tribute featuring Harry Gration. This had me laughing out loud and cheering by the end.

The York Rescue Boat features too. The boat works on the Ouse and Foss and has had a horrible busy year. There is an option to donate to them in the programme too.

Cinderella at York Theatre Royal. Photo by Anthony Robling

Cinderella at York Theatre Royal. Photo by Anthony Robling Charleigh Webb (as Charleigh), Harry Hughes (as Buttons), Scott Wallace (as The Newcomer), Hermione Lynch (as Prince Charming), Jake Lindsay (as Dimdini), Danielle Mullan (as Fairy Godmother), Jack Lansbury (as Prince’s Equerry), Lauren Newton (as Lauren)

There are plenty of references to things around York including the obligatory mention of the suburb Clifton Without. Wagon Wheels feature (we got one!!) and more. No more Newcastle Brown this year for the daddies, they’ve changed the beer!

People travel from all over to see the York Panto. I can’t even try to explain it, it’s bonkers. It’s Cinderella, but not as you know it. You’ll go once and you’ll want to return.

What I love about the York Panto is that it works on every level. We were sat up in the gods where I could hear my mum laughing out loud. Shaun was enjoying it, and I had H and her cousin next to me who were both laughing out loud.

It’s a small production – it runs without understudies. If someone gets injured, the show must go on. I do remember Berwick Kaler getting hurt one year and having to be careful in the water scene the following night. It’s a brilliant production and it’s the same cast, bar the children dancers, every night. It’s a team.

For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to bring H to the York Panto. Every year when I lived in York or went back for Christmas we would go on Christmas Eve. This year we went the day before, and we’re still talking about it! This might be as H got a shout out by Berwick and the gang during the songsheet section!

A photo posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on

Cinderella at York Theatre Royal runs from 8th December 2016 to 28th January 2017. Just go. You won’t regret it. The York Panto always makes The Guardian Top Panto picks every year (possibly as Alf Hickling is an old York lad so he too grew up with it).

Thank you to James the York Theatre Royal Communications Manager for sending me the photos! 

by jo

Stories for Life with Penguin Books.

Books make the best Christmas presents – and within those books there may be stories for life. I know there are books which have stuck with me to this day, having made a lasting impression when I was young. We received a parcel from Penguin Books with three books inside.

We love Books - Penguin, Stories for Life, presents

The challenge was to get the three books and wrap them, and give them to someone who would also love them.

I have a bookworm here at home – a seven year old bookworm. She’s fed daily on a dose of books which she seems to devour with little or no fuss. Fruit and vegetables come as an optional extra. So getting three new books and keeping them away from her was a task in itself.

Today is the 5th December, which is a special day in mainland Europe. They give a present for Saint Nicholas Day. So I’ve let H open one of these presents early. I decided that Clare Balding’s debut book ‘The Racehorse Who Wouldn’t Gallop’ would be a fun read. H loves horse riding and has had a couple of goes this year. I like that it sounds like a fun story with the horse being the main focus, and getting him to actually gallop.

Penguin, Puffin, Stories for Life

We also got a Diary of a Wimpy Kid book, Double Down. I know my nephew loves that series, so that will be one for him. I suspect there may be tears as H has recently declared a love of the Wimpy Kid books. The story is about a mum worried about her boy – Greg Heffley. She worries his brain is turning to mush from watching too many video games. So Greg has a plan to convince his mum that he’s actually a creative soul which he hopes will get his mum off his back.

There is also a Zoe Sugg book – aka Zoella. I have heard of this young lady, though as H isn’t quite in her age range she hasn’t made it into this house. My cousin’s eldest daughter is thirteen and I think this could be a good one for her. Girl Online – Going Solo is about a girl called Penny. Penny makes friends with Posey, and it looks like there’s a charming Scottish boy called Callum in there too. It sounds like a fun teen read anyway – so it’s all ready for her!

If I was to buy a book which was much-loved as I was growing up, then I know what it is. I was OBSESSED by The Famous Five. This was especially due to the 1970s tv series (which I now own on DVD). I think the tv series couldn’t actually adapt the first book as it had a different copyright holder. They touched on it for their first production. I had all the books, and they were all the 1970s TV series covers. But then I grew up. The books were given away… and only one was kept. But I kept it with me – it moved from house to house through the years and is still with me now. Given how H treats my Harry Potter books, she has not yet inherited it – maybe when she’s a bit older. You can quite clearly see the number 1 in the top right hand corner, so I’ve already defaced it a bit in my younger days – and there are scribbles at the back too. It is well-loved!

Five on a Treasure Island Stories for Life

Ah, The Famous Five. A world which existed full of adventures, buried treasure, caravans, circuses, wrecks, Kirrin Island. Of friendship and being there for each other. Family too. I love that the books are available with new covers by well known artists. We’ve now got her the Box Set for Christmas – The Book People did a good deal. I think we may have to sell the older copies to make some space! H has recently moved on to Malory Towers, and I’m certain I still have all those books hidden away at my mum’s. At this rate she’ll end up owning them before I can find my copies!

H loves reading, and I love that stories I read when I was younger are still in print and loved by my daughter. Maybe her books will in turn be passed on to her children when she’s older?

You can’t beat the gift of reading – these are all stories for life.

by jo

The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music DVD Review

The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music is out on DVD, and is available now. It tells the story of the Von Trapp family, who I’m sure most people are familiar with thanks to The Sound of Music.

The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music DVD Cover

The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music tells the story of the Von Trapp Family. This time it is from the perspective of eldest daughter Agathe.

You live your life, and your stepmother writes a book about it. The book becomes a film in Germany, which in turn leads to a Rogers and Hammerstein musical. Oh and it’s the most successful musical of all time. The only problem is, you feel like the actual story everyone knows isn’t your story. You feel like your father is a different person. Any problems you had with your stepmother were completely washed over.

You’re not happy.

Agathe Von Trapp, whose life story became The Sound of Music, wrote her own book which is now a movie. This time it’s The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music.

Don’t expect songs and dance and the sights of Salzburg. This is a far more accurate tale of the Von Trapp family story, but will still feel familiar.

The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music Captain and Maria

Agathe is the second eldest Von Trapp child; the eldest was Rupert as the film swapped the sibling order.  The movie starts where you see how close the Von Trapp Family are, and how loving they all are to each other. When their mother dies, Agathe looks after the children. They struggle, so Captain Von Trapp gets help – which is where Maria enters the story.

Following in Julie Andrews’ footsteps is an enormous task. But this time Maria is a part of the story, not the main focus. This is Agathe’s story, growing up in Austria. We see her lose her love of singing when her mother dies, vowing to never sing again, which lasts for many years. We see Austria being taken over by the Nazi’s. There are no mountain escapes here, as the Von Trapp family stayed in Salzburg for a while once the Anschluss happened.

We find out Captain Von Trapp loses his money when helping out a friend (relating to the Wall Street Crash), and they’re all left with nothing. We meet Agathe’s resistance fighter best friend Sigi that she has known since childhood. We see Agathe and Sigi make friends with the famous soprano Lotte Lehmann and how the Von Trapp Family begin singing together, paving the way for their journey to America.

The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music Von Trapps Singing

As a fan of The Sound of Music, to see the story from this perspective was interesting. I haven’t read Agathe Von Trapp’s book, but did know a lot of the story having read most of Maria Von Trapp’s books. I will be ordering Agathe’s book now!

I would recommend The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music to anyone who wants to know the real story. There are still some changes – Agathe is still the eldest in this film – it shows why the Von Trapp family left Salzburg and Austria. Oh, and what they left behind too.

I haven’t mentioned the actors yet! Matthew McFadyen is a good Captain Von Trapp, Eliza Bennett plays young Agathe – I thought she was pretty good too. Maria is played by Yvonne Catterfield, a German actress who does a fine job.

The Von Trapp Family A Life of Music is released today, 31st October 2016. It is rated 12. H watched it with us and was fine – the scenes which could be troublesome refer to violence. You can buy the DVD from Amazon (affiliate link) and all good retailers.

We were sent the DVD to review. 

by jo

Half Term Fun With The Trolls Merchandise

It’s half term and H has been busy, as have we. There’s a film that I’m sure you’ve all had flashbacks to, and seen the posters. When we were in France in August we spotted them too – Les Trolls – or rather, The Trolls here.

The Trolls are those dolls that were popular back in the 90’s, though they date back to the 1950’s! Oh, and now there’s the film with tons more merchandise on offer.

The Trolls Poppy Wig

We received a Poppy Wig and a Hug Time bracelet – something we didn’t get until we saw the film. See, the Trolls are happy little beings, and every hour it’s…. HUG TIME! They have little wristbands they wear which light up around each other. Oh, and they sing a lot and hug each other lots too. The leader of The Trolls is Poppy, a princess. Her dad is King of the Trolls.

If you’re aware of that catchy little ditty that Justin Timberlake sings, ‘Can’t Stop the Feeling’ features in the film. There are also several other happy pop classics (even The Gorillaz are in there).

Which leads me to how H reacted to the wig and bracelet, and a spot of Mr Timberlake. After our Frubes post, she was feeling confident with her dance moves, so did a few more.

The Trolls, H's moves

We found the Poppy Wig was just a tiny bit too small – I managed to tuck H’s hair into a hairband which got it to fit. I’d say if your child has a large head circumference it may be an issue. (H was always in the higher percentiles for this!) The Hug Time wristband fits fine though – and it only makes sense once you’ve seen the film.

On saying that, she sat with her Poppy wig and flicked on the bracelet, announcing “HUG TIME!” and what with her being my bestest girl, I obliged with hugs.  It would have been nice if the bracelet had done a bit more but H was happy with it.

The Trolls Hug Time Bracelet

The Poppy wig does have that classic style of The Trolls, although we had to work ours a bit – but I think it does suit H!

You can buy the Poppy Wig for £12.99 and the Trolls Hug Time bracelet for £9.99 from Argos.

We received both to review. All opinions are our own. 

by jo

Testing a vTech Kidi SuperStar and Our Thoughts

Recently we went to the launch of the vTech Kidi Superstar. H got to have some singing fun with CeCe Sammy, the famous vocal coach.
Kidi Superstar

The vTech Kidi Superstar is a fun addition to musical toys in your house. It’s a microphone stand, with a console for added activities and effects. Also, you can plug in your iPod or CD player and sing along to your favourite pop songs.

When you’re seven and you think you know all about pop music, it’s one of the most fun toys you can have.

H and the Kidi Superstar

H is growing in confidence the older she gets. When she stood on stage for Jedi Training Academy at Disneyland Paris was a huge moment for me as a parent. She has never been a natural performer, preferring to hide in the background. She’s quite like me in that respect. I get the feeling she’s starting to grow in confidence – and I love that she’s doing this.

Kidi Superstar Console

The vTech Kidi Superstar has several modes in the main console. You can do some tongue twisters, or even just a spot of beatboxing. There are many different things you can try – and H is enjoying playing around. I love that it’s intuitive so she gets on with it without having to ask for help.

Kidi Superstar Warmup with CeCe Sammy

When she had her lesson with CeCe Sammy, it was all about enjoying music. Joining in without knowing the words. Having fun. Feel the music. Don’t feel conscious about it. Again, H got on with it with little or no fuss. It was a special moment to see her doing things and being less self-conscious about herself. Then again, when I was seven or eight I remember singing along with the pop songs on the radio. This is the best feature of the Kidi Superstar.

Plug in your iPod or CD player, and there’s a button you can press which lowers the sound of the vocals of the song. This means you can sing over the top. Which is genius! We’ve found the best results come from a CD, though both are good.

Kidi Superstar Portable with HThe console can be removed from the microphone stand too, and easily carried around. Handy if you want to do a spot of dancing at the same time as singing.

Since H had her lesson with CeCe Sammy, she doesn’t need to know the words – she can just sing along to the tune. Ohh and she is too – a lot. It is possible the only words she knows in their entirety are for Courtney Barnett’s album… as seen with her ‘Elevator Operator’ rendition. We’ve also been getting ‘Hello’ by Adele, ‘Can’t Stop the Feeling’ by Justin Timberlake, ‘Lush Life’ by Zara Larsson and most of Madness’s backcatalogue.

A video posted by Jo Brooks (@mumfriendlyjo) on

One of the fun parts of the Kidi SuperStar is changing the microphone sound. There are five preset modes, with one of them being ‘normal’. Then you’ve ‘higher’, ‘lower’, ‘robot’ and ‘echo’. We like echo… it works quite well with pop songs.

Kidi Superstar Close Up

In summary, would we have bought this for H? Before trying it I am not sure we would. Having played with it now I would definitely recommend. It’s a Kids Karaoke Machine and it is building her confidence. Every night after school she is on there singing a different pop song – and we’re having requests to invite friends over so they can have a go too. I think the vTech Kidi Superstar could be a popular toy this Christmas, and it’s loads of fun too!

H and CeCe Sammy

Here’s a video from CeCe Sammy with some top tips.

by jo

Chloe’s Secret Princess Club by Emma Barnes

Chloe’s Secret Princess Club is the first in a new series of books from author Emma Barnes.

Chloe's Secret Princess Club with H

Chloe’s Secret Princess Club is an easy read, and an enjoyable one too. H didn’t put it down, and by the end had demanded that we make some Princess jam tarts. There’s a recipe as well as some other cool bits at the back of the book.

So what is the story about? Chloe is a normal girl in Year 5, so nine or ten. Her mum tells her she can be anything she wants to be. She decides with her friends Aisha and Eliza to start a Secret Princess Club after school one night.

So what is a Secret Princess Club? It has a few rules: Princesses must stick up for each other, Princesses must call each other by their princess names (e.g. Princess Clarinda (Chloe), Princess Araminta (Aisha) and Princess Elisabetta (Eliza)). The Princess Club is SECRET.

Chloe's Secret Princess Club

Chloe’s Secret Princess Club is a fun story with the girls acting like princesses and making plans to make jam tarts (which they do). The girls set themselves Princess Challenges which involve kissing frogs! They also do ultra-important stuff like saving kittens too.

In the book Eliza wishes that they could learn about princesses during Tudor times, as they wear lovely dresses!

Chloe’s Secret Princess Club is quite a girly book, says H. The girls try to be princesses and do quite well. I like that at the back there’s a little section ‘The Secret Princess Club Notebook’ which has all the kind of things I could see H plotting with her friends if they had their own secret club. There’s also a ‘Which Princess are you?’ quiz too (H came up as Chloe).

H enjoyed reading it – and loved making the jam tarts afterwards. I loved that the book inspired her to make them (and they were delicious too!)

Chloe’s Secret Princess Club has a rrp of £4.99 (affiliate link) and is published by Scholastic in the UK. Emma Barnes website is over here. We received the book for review, all opinions are our own.  We’re part of the Chloe’s Secret Princess Club blog tour – check out the other reviewers on here!

Chloe's Secret Princess Club Blog Tour

by jo

Summer of Bratz is Here! We’ve been having fun.

Bratz have a new campaign, Summer of Bratz. H has a Bratz doll, Yasmin who she has been having lots of adventures with.
summer of bratz park shot

Summer of Bratz is just that. Take some photos of your Bratz doll this summer – on holiday, in the park, wherever you happen to be. Had we been organised, she would have come to Paris with us.  I was so nervous about letting slip to H that we were going to Disneyland Paris that we forgot. But we did remember once we were there, if that counts?

So summer is here and despite a few rainy days it has been a pretty good one. We’ve had two holidays this summer, Cornwall and Paris. While our Bratz doll didn’t arrive in time for Cornwall, she was here by the time we got home. She’s been doing some fun stuff too.

summer of bratz h and doll

Actually, this is where I was puzzled. Bratz dolls have rather big feet – so how do you get them out of the trousers and into say, a pair of shorts? I needn’t have thought about it for too long as her legs pop off at the ankle – so you can remove the feet at the ankles and put them back on.

We were sent a Yasmin Festival Vibes doll. She has two outfits inspired by her favourite seventies bands, and comes with extras too. You get a bag to put all your day-to-day things in, some feather earrings and a hairband, some shades and of course a wristband for the festival.  You also get a hairbrush and a wristband for H to wear.  We’re ready for the Summer of Bratz!

Summer of Bratz Yasmin Music Festival Vibes

There are four dolls in the new Festival Vibes range, and they have a change of clothes too.  So all that’s left now is for us to show you our favourite parts of summer that Yasmin got to share with us!

Sitting outside post-holiday club with an ice cream!

Summer of Bratz Ice Cream

Going to the park and just having fun!

Summer of Bratz Nature Trail

The Bratz Festival Vibes dolls are available now, you can buy here from Amazon.

We were sent the Bratz doll to review. All opinions are our own. 

by jo

Minnie Mouse Tea Pot Playset Review

We were sent a Minnie Mouse Tea Pot playset to review, read on to find out our thoughts!

Minnie Mouse tea pot playsetHow do you keep a BIG secret from a six year old? Like, a really big secret? Like, you will be going to Disneyland Paris on her birthday and she doesn’t have a clue? Especially when she says things like “well, hopefully I’ll like Disney next year” when we said we might be able to do it then.

I like to think I’m a clever mummy, I try not to state the obvious as much as I can (which probably means I do), and will often buy things so H can get to the conclusion I want her to in her own time. It seems to work… I am a master of puppetry controlling my girl from afar. Or maybe not. So when Disney offered us a Minnie Mouse Tea Pot Playset to review I jumped at the chance – as H doesn’t have a tea set – and she loves Minnie Mouse (and eek, she’s going to meet her VERY SOON!)

Minnie Mouse tea pot playset

When I was nine I went to play at a schoolfriends house, and his sister had a teddy bear’s tea party. I thought it was babyish… shame on me. But it made me realise H has never had one herself, which is I think, an even bigger shame on me. Doesn’t every child need a tea set to have pretend tea parties with their toys? This Minnie Mouse Tea Pot Playset does the trick.

Minnie Mouse tea pot playset

I really like the Minnie Mouse Tea Pot playset – mainly because it all packs inside a giant teapot for easy storage. H enjoys tidying up! When we received the tea pot she hand-wrote invites to two of her friends inviting them over for a Teddy Bear’s Tea Party which was awesome, even if she hadn’t bothered to ask me if it was do-able (it wasn’t). But nonetheless, it has got her thinking creatively.

You get one giant teapot, then four cups with matching heart shaped saucers, really cute little matching spoons and a more manageable teapot and sugar bowl. Then it’s about letting your imagination go – and it worked a treat with H.

Minnie Mouse tea pot playset

Which brings me back to this Disneyland Paris thing. We’ve never grown out of Disney, and I know she won’t. Getting cute little things like this Minnie Mouse Tea Pot playset keep her love of Disney alive – and keeps me relieved! Oh, and even though this is a Minnie Mouse set, two of the designs feature Daisy Duck – and they’re really cute.

The Minnie Mouse Tea Pot playset is available from the Disney Store now, priced at £12.95. We were sent one for the purpose of review, all opinions are our own.