HEXBUG BattleBots Arena toy review

Jacob was super excited when the HEXBUG® BattleBots® Arena™ arrived, and so was I.

If like me, you enjoyed watching the TV programme Robot Wars which started back in 1998. Then you will love this new toy from HEXBUG.

This huge box arrived and my son Jacob was desperate to open it. So we decided to record a video of Jacob opening the box and having a battle against daddy!

Here's a little bit about HEXBUG®. 

By leveraging our robotics expertise, we entered the toy industry in 2007 with the launch of the HEXBUG Micro Robotic Creatures product line. HEXBUG was designed to give children a positive experience with robotics at a young age. Our passion for robotics, as demonstrated by our VEX Robotics program, was the main catalyst fueling HEXBUG's inception. Hence, the brand was born! People are drawn to the HEXBUG brand for our products’ fascinating behaviour, intelligent bug-like attributes and eye-catching packaging. Some of the products are so animated, they even fool cats, dogs and some humans into thinking they are alive!

What's in the box?

The lights dim as the audience roars, you have just entered the ultimate robot showdown! Modeled after television’s favourite metallic war-zone comes HEXBUG® BattleBots® Arena™.

• Two push activated pulverizing hammers
• Battle-worn detachable robot pieces 
• BattleBots I/R Witch Doctor included
• BattleBots I/R Tombstone included
• Realistic protective walls 
• Fold-out game board
• Batteries Included
• Ages 8 and up

Jacob had so much fun playing with the BattleBots. The remote controls are a perfect size for little hands. He took great pleasure in trying to beat daddy. Even though he did cheat a bit!

Check out the video of Jacob and daddy's battle. If you like this video please give it a thumbs up and subscribe to Planet Jacob. Thank you for helping to grow our channel.

You can buy this fab HEXBUG BattleBots Arena from Toys R Us and Smyths Toys.

Disclaimer: We received the HEXBUG BattleBots Arena free of charge. All views our own.

Make a Victorian girl schoolgirl outfit

You know when you receive one of those letters from your child's school saying 'costume needed', it sometimes fills me with dread!

My daughter, Amber brought a letter home from school about a school trip where the kids had to dress as Victorian schoolchildren.

The Victorian era is my favourite. I started to Google what kids wore in this era. The theme for girls seemed to be a white pinafore over their dresses, to keep them clean. As I carried on reading, I found that the mums used to make these pinafores. So I bought a long black skirt and a long black top but I set about making the pinafore myself.

Now I love sewing, I mainly only have time to read about sewing so when this project came up I thought I'd give it a go.

We had an old off-white bed sheet that I thought would be perfect to use, and I also found an old piece of material from my stash (I love collecting fabric, especially from charity shops), which had a crocheted edge, I also had an old pillowcase that had lace all around the edge.

I set to work trying to figure out how I would make it. The first thing I did was find a t shirt that Amber currently wears, so I knew it fitted her. Then I folded the t-shirt in half and traced around the edge onto baking parchment (this is my cheap version of dressmakers paper). I then added an extra 1 cm all around the edge for the seam allowance.

I cropped the t-shirt pattern quite high as I noticed the Victorian children wore them like this.

From the width of Amber's t-shirt at the bottom I just roughly followed it down to create the skirt part (again adding the seam allowance).

Amber in the Victorian schoolgirl outfit I made, you can just see the bottom. Looks good with the Earlybird filter in Instagram, would be better without the iPod in shot though! 

I then went round and hemmed all the edges, I double folded and sewed down the middle. You can just zig zag stitch the edges (which would be quicker).

I ended up with 4 pieces, 2 tops (1 front, and 1 back) and 2 skirt parts (front and back).

Because I used a well washed old sheet there was no need to pre-wash, if it had been new material, it's best to pre-wash to get all the shrinkage out of it.

I cut off the crocheted piece and the lace piece off my pillowcase and fabric.

I sewed my 2 top pieces together at the top (across the shoulder), then I sewed on my crocheted fabric from the arm hole from the back, right the way up and over the top, down to the front arm hole area.

I then sewed the skirt part to the top, both front and back. I wanted a few pleats in so I made the width a little larger.

After doing this for both the front and the back, I had almost finished. I know, by looking at Google images, that most Victorian school children tied at the back, but I discovered this after I had already cut my fabric! I could have cut it up the back but I decided to put some small metal press stud fasteners on instead to hold the shape, and for ease for my daughter.

The ribbons in here hair came from a tie on an old pair of my pyjama bottoms!

I'm really pleased with the finished look to say I wasn't working from a pattern. I'd love to know what you think. Leave a comment below if you have had to make certain outfits for your kids for school.

I should have taken pictures for a tutorial, I will do next time!

Review: Disney Junior Play App

With so many apps to choose from, it can be tricky to pick one that's right for your toddler.
Disney have just launched the new Disney Junior Play app and we love it!
By we, I mean my three year old son, Jacob, and I.

Jacob's face lights up every time I let him play on it. We're big fans of all things Disney, so we were really excited to see this new app.

It doesn't dissapoint. Great for little fingers, easy to navigate, quick to launch, and lots of games included.

The new iOS app Disney Junior Play is home to Doc McStuffins, Sofia the First, Jake and the Never Land Pirates, and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Disney Junior fans can now get even closer to their favourite characters on the go through a variety of activities including fun games, engaging video-clips and a digital sticker book.

Jacob loves playing on the Disney Junior Play App

Free to download, Disney Junior Play comes with the “Disney Junior Favourites” pack, featuring four multi-level games and a digital sticker book featuring Doc, Sofia, Jake and Mickey. Additional packs based on Disney Junior’s smash-hit shows Doc McStuffins, Sofia the First, Jake and the Never Land Pirates, and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse are available to purchase from within the app, each containing four games, a short form video and a digital sticker book.

It's easy to create a simple profile, and little ones can easily navigate through the home screen and access the games. One of Jacob's favourites is popping the balloons with Mickey and Goofy.

The games encourage creativity, the kids learn how to solve problems, develop dexterity and the app helps with hand-eye co-ordination.

You know how much kids love stickers! Well, stickers are rewarded and collected during gameplay and can be saved in the sticker book; each pack having its own character themed sticker book and 25 stickers to collect.

Disney Junior Play will definitely keep little ones busy with fun, challenging games. Jacob didn't need muy help while playing on it, and I am pleased beacuse there are no adverts within the game, so he can't accidently click on anything. Jacob didn't want to stop playing it!

The app is free to download and you get a good variety of games with the free app. I would recommend you buy the bundle which is currently £4.99, better value which will unlock 4 more parts of the game. Or you can buy them individually at £1.99 each.

These are the games you can buy extra:

• Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 'Farmyard Fun'
• Doc McStuffins 'Here to Help'
• Jake and the Never Land Pirates 'Island Adventures'
• Sofia the First 'A Royal Party'

Key Features:

• 20+ games available, including;
• Jigsaw puzzles to encourage problem solving
• Catching games to reward fast fingers
• Dress-up games to inspire imaginative play
• Placement games to encourage logical thinking
• Hide-and-seek games to reward observation skills
• Three levels in each game
• 25 digital stickers to collect in each pack
• Catchy videos to watch again and again!
• Supports up to four profiles, so each of your children can save their progress
• Play anywhere, any time as all content works offline, including videos
• No adverts so your child can play safely
• In-app purchases are only available in the pin-protected store, so only an adult can access
• Supports iPhone 4+, iPod 4+, and iPad 2+

Check out my video review and see the app in real-time.

Each pack features a set of adventures and stimulating play topics that transport kids into the world of their favourite Disney Junior characters; from helping Doc choose the right clothes for the weather to helping Jake and his crew design a sand castle for a pirate king.

Disney Junior Play has been designed to keep little ones busy with fun, challenging games that feature everyday themes, but while a lot of fun for kids, the app has also been developed with parents in mind.

Purchases within Disney Junior Play are both safe and secure with payments facilitated only after parents have correctly passed through the child-protection screen. Once within the store parents can browse and purchase additional character themed packs to add to their Disney Junior Play collection.  Each pack retails at £1.99, or can be purchased as part of a money saving bundle, all 4 games for £4.99

What are you waiting for, go an have a play on the Disney Junior Play app.
Available to download from the app store.

www.disney.co.uk

Disclosure: I was provided with the full app to review free of charge.

Sleep tips: how to get your little one to sleep for longer

By Adele Jennings

A recent study by Pampers reveals 90% of parents lose up to four hours sleep every night in their baby's first year.

As a parent, no matter how old your child is, you never forget the lack of sleep that comes with having a new baby and trying to function while looking and feeling like a zombie!

I have 2 children and to be honest they are both great sleepers but my husband Mark and I, have put the effort in with their bedtime routines.

Our daughter Amber is nine and son Jacob is 2. With both children, me and my husband used to bicker about who had more sleep, we would say things like: 'You've had half an hour longer sleep than I have'.

Jacob getting a good nights' sleep

Sleep deprivation is one of the worse things to deal with when your child is small (ok, so yes there are others but this is a biggie). We all need sleep, some more than others, but if we don't get enough it affects how you and your family function.

We have quite a strict routine at bedtime and both my husband, who is a house dad, who puts them to bed on 3 of the nights, and as I work full-time, I get to do 4 bedtimes. We both do the routine exactly the same. I really think this is part of the reason why both of them are good sleepers (as I touch the nearest piece of wood).

Our routine is: bath (not every night), get dried and dressed for bed with just a low-light lamp on on our bed in my bedroom, drinking milk while we read a story, snug while singing twinkle twinkle little star, teeth cleaned and bed, then when I leave the room, I always say 'See you in the morning for a cup of tea and some breakfast'. I used to say exactly the same thing when I was little (it came from my Grandad Shaw) and both my children say it. It makes my heart melt every time they say it. My 2 year old son asks me to close his door!

We never treat bed as a punishment. If either of my children misbehave (which is quite often), we never use 'If you don't stop being naughty, you will go to bed'. I want them to enjoy their bed and sleep as much as I do!

Recent research by disposable nappy favourite Pampers reveals 90% of parents lose up to four hours sleep every night in their baby’s first year.

Nine out of ten British parents claim they lose up to 28 hours of sleep every week (totalling 60 days per year) due to their little ones waking up in the night – according to new research launched by Pampers to celebrate new Pampers Baby Dry nappy, now with an extra sleep layer to help babies sleep uninterruptedly for up to 12 hours.

The survey of 2,000 parents in the UK also reveals that one in five cite a wet nappy as the most common reason their baby wakes in the night, followed by hunger (25%) and teething (24%). It’s no wonder the majority of parents (32%) consider their baby sleeping through the night as one of the biggest first year milestones, along with uttering their first word (26%) and their first laugh (22%).

For over 50 years, Pampers has been supporting parents with innovative products and information. Through listening to parents, Pampers knows well that parents recognise the quality of their babies’ sleep by their mood and energy level’s when they wake up first thing. New Pampers Baby Dry, with an improved Extra Sleep-Layer absorbs wetness faster than ever before and reactivates quickly to absorb multiple urinations faster over hours of wear.

For a baby, uninterrupted sleep and a good night’s rest means remaining dry and free from nappy leaks, so by keeping the wetness away from the skin, they can wake up ready to seize the day after a dry night of Pampers Golden sleep. 

Wendy Dean, Pampers Village Parenting Panel Sleep Expert, comments:

“All babies wake through the night as part of their natural sleep pattern. Those that sleep well are able to get themselves back to sleep as long as they don’t have a need that mum needs to attend to i.e. are hungry, too hot, too cold, uncomfortable or have a wet nappy. The new Pampers Baby Dry nappy absorbs wetness away from babies’ skin faster than before, so that even if she/he wakes during the process of having a wee, there is no continued discomfort of wet skin. After a few minutes, baby can return back to the Land of Golden Sleep before waking up to a Dream Morning.”

Tips for a good night's sleep by Wendy Dean

1. Spend some quiet quality time with your baby before putting him down to bed. Singing a lullaby or reading a story with bright illustrations will be enjoyable for both. Baby will be ready to sleep through the night and wake prepared for the day ahead.

2. During your baby’s last feed before putting him down to sleep, try splitting his feed in half and changing his nappy in the interval. While the motion of changing his nappy will pep him up a bit so he’s not fully asleep before you put him down, the second half of the feed will soothe him again if the movement of changing his nappy has unsettled him a bit. Plus this will ensure that he has a fresh nappy to sleep in for 12 hours of Golden Sleep, resulting in a great morning of smiles and discoveries.

3. If your baby wakes very early in the morning i.e. before 6:00 am and is not crying, try not to dash straight to him. He may well have a little chat with himself and then surprise you and go back to sleep, but if not leave him for 10 minutes and follow with gentle rocking to return him to the land of golden sleep .

4. As you enter your baby’s room in the morning, gently talk to him. He won’t be able to talk back but it is the fact that you are looking at him and talking to him that he will love and will also give him a pleasant introduction to the day.

5. A morning cuddle is very important and is the perfect way to start the day for both baby and you and should make it a dream morning for both!

To hear more tips from Wendy Dean, check this video out below.

Visit www.pampers.co.uk for advice and tips on parenting.