Monthly Archives: September 2014

Sep 25 2014

Have a #ToyellaChristmas and win £150 in Toys

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ToyellaComp

I’m delighted to announce I’m partnering with Toyella for this exciting blogger competition. You could win £150 in toy vouchers to redeem at their online store that could help make Christmas that little bit easier. Better yet, entry couldn’t be simpler. Both Toyella and I have worked hard behind the scenes to make this competition easy-to-enter & inclusive. Ultimately, we’d like to see your kids getting involved & some really creative entries.

Toy stores take on an extra special quality during the build-up to the festive season. Yet for many, it’s also a source of frustration. Our children’s favorite television shows are swamped by adverts squarely aimed at them. When you pass them that bit of pen and paper to write their list to Santa, you find it lists 1001 gaudy plastic toys you already know will entertain your child for less than an hour.

Toyella’s award-winning toy collection offers parents the sophisticated buying experience they’re craving. Catering for children up to the age of 12, they’ve searched all over the globe to find toys that offer something just that little bit different. Every toy exudes style and clever design with many brands exclusive to Toyella here in the UK. Toys that don’t measure up to their strict requirements, simply don’t get in.

They have to be cool, exceptional quality, progressive and stimulating. Quirkiness, build quality and toys that educate your children are key; either by providing sustainable mental challenges, or helping to refine physical skills through traditional play. Not only do this, but each toy really looks the part too. Toyella pride themselves in sourcing toys that parents will be proud to have on display in the nursery.

Toys such as the Tash Quad Ride-on, exclusive to Toyella, offers children aged 12 months to 4 years a safe and silent ride. Practical restricted steering meaning there’s plenty of maneuverability but prevents children jack-knifing and hurting themselves as they perfect their co-ordination.

 

 

For children over 3 years, the fun Oogi by Moluk teaches us you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. This strange yet endearing character offers bags of versatility. Made from super soft elasticated silicone, its arms, legs and head are suckers. This flexibility allows children to stand, hang, stretch, bridge or swing their Oogi. One Oogi can connect to another and the suckers mean Oogi can be used to connect any number of different objects together. Strong and durable, it can even be thrown as a game to see who can ‘stick’ him to a wall or surface.

Watch children learn and express their creativity or perhaps have one for yourself as a desktop companion!

For creative types, Mon Petit Art’s range showcases some truly innovative games and crafts. From funky sketchbooks to origami, to (my favourite) the Familia Tipo, there’s endless hours of both independent and collaborative play to be had. These would make wonderful unique stocking fillers.

Finally, construction addicts will enjoy the endless possibility of shapes and objects that Plus-Plus offers. Available in different sizes for various age groups, Plus Plus is highly regarded in education and is used in most Danish schools for strengthening motor skills.

*** BLOGGER COMP ***

Toyella want to see your children embracing creative play. This can be anything from dressing-up, to building towers, to putting paint to paper. It doesn’t matter what age your child is, creativity is beautiful in all forms, so we just want to see them engaging with the world around them. For this, we’ll need either a picture or video taken by mum or dad.

Then it’s mum and dad’s turn. We’ll then need you to describe in no more than 300 words what your child is up to & why creativity is an important feature of their playtime. You can write this in whichever style best suits your blog - whether you have a wicked sense of humour, or you just want to inspire other parents. Poems, rhymes or jokes are all welcome. The best entries will be those that most accurately describe your picture and what your child is gaining from the experience.

The winning entry will be judges by Toyella and My Mills Baby based on the level of creativity, originality and interpretation of Toyella’s brand and values, so do head on over to the Toyella.com and have a look around!

WINNER: Cat from Rock and Roll Pussycat! Here’s her entry > Halloween 2014 : Baby friendly Halloween crafts

We’d like to thank all the bloggers who entered and gave their time and inspiration to others. As a father of three I’m well aware of the responsibility of parents to bond and develop with their children. But it’s also important to see the importance of a parents needs in children’s play too.
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I felt Cat detailed the core benefits in her post. Yes, the development benefits of her child through play. But also highlighting the simplicity and low cost that the activity can take; the importance of her child developing social interaction with peers in a play group; the importance of routine and regularity rather than as a ploy for distraction; and lastly the aspect that it gives Mum (or Dad) more time themselves in a busy schedule. Parents often forget the importance of self preservation. This job is for life and you can’t resign! The early years I know are tough so creative play not only benefits baby but also the parents as the children become more focused and independent giving more time to you to get through the day. Carl Shaw, Owner of Toyella

Terms and Conditions:

  • The prize is £150 to spend at Toyella.com. There is no cash alternative
  • Entrants must publish a blog post with an image featuring their child at play, and no more 300 words accompanying the picture
  • Do follow links are included at the authors discretion but are not compulsory
  • The blog post must include the embedded blog badge
  • Once complete the blog post must be linked to in the comments of this post
  • The entrants blog post must also be shared on Twitter with the hashtage #ToyellaChristmas
  • Entrants must follow @Toyella and @MyMillsBaby on Twitter
  • The winning entry will be judges by Toyella and My Mills Baby based on the level of creativity, originality and interpretation of Toyella’s brand and values
  • Open to UK residents aged 18 and over, excluding employees and relatives of Gemma Mills and Toyella.com
  • One Entry per person
  • Competition closes on 25th October 2014 11.59pm
  • The winner will be contacted by email within 7 days of the closing date and will need to respond within 7 days
  • The winner’s name will be available on request
  • The prize code will be given direct from Toyella.com within 14 days of receiving the winner’s address
  • Entry to this confirms that participants have read, understood and agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions
  • This is a joint promotion between My Mills Baby and Toyella.com

 

Sep 24 2014

Munchkins on-the-go essentials!

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Since starting our role as Munchkin Ambassadors, we’ve been sent some amazing products to review. They all slot perfectly into family-life and we can’t imagine life now without our Click-Lock Cups and all manner of other feeding gadgetry. But when their latest parcel arrived I was a little shocked. They’ve sent me a fab range of out-and-about products to review that I’ll admit to not knowing even existed.

In our package were three products; A Munchkins Travel Booster Seat, A Munchkin Teether Baby and a Munchkin Designer Change Mat. All are vibrant, practical and innovative - exactly what we’ve come to expect of the brand.

Munchkins Travel Booster Seat

Munchkin Booster Seat

The Travel Booster Seat has since become invaluable. So much so, we’ve invested in a second. One lives in the car and accompanies us on holidays, day trips and visits to family members. The other has replaced a garish blue plastic one we bought for 99p off eBay. Dexter was never comfortable on this monstrosity, and had even fallen off it a few times. Naturally he grew scared of it and refused to eat from it. This means he sat with us on an adult chair at the dining table with no straps. As he’s now a ‘big boy’ the highchair has long since been donated to his baby sister.

75% of the time, he was fine. He’d chit-chat to us and eat his food sensibly. However, when we dared to serve him vegetables or something he didn’t like, it was WW3. Food would be flung, he’d climb onto the table, he’d buck precariously from side-to-side.

Munchkin Booster

Suitable from 12 months to 3 years, the lightweight Munchkin Travel Booster seat has since transformed mealtimes. It secures to any chair with adjustable clips that hug the chair seat and chair back. It also has two adjustable height positions.

Index 7

To make the seat higher you simply twist up plastic legs underneath. These have non-slip rubber feet to keep the seat secure on the chair. If using in the lower setting (as we do), these little legs are hidden away under 4 flaps secured with velcro so as not to scratch your chairs. 4 rubber non-slip pads will ensure the fabric stays snug against the chair seat. Dexter is then secured via a 3 point harness.

Munchkin Travel Booster Clips

The pretty and fun seat fabric is soft and comfy whilst being wipe clean. We can certainly testify to this as Dexter likes to hide food in-between his legs when we’re not watching. It’s been coated in baked beans, tomato sauce, mash potato… you name it!

Furthermore, it also doubles as a travel bag. There’s a neat little storage section underneath the hard part of the seat (where Dexter’s bum goes) for you to pop a few bits and pieces (bibs, a drink and the like). You don’t have to take everything out before using the seat as this compartment is not integral to the seat at all. Although you wouldn’t get away with popping a whole day’s worth of ‘stuff’ in here, if you’re dining out of an evening you can ditch the change bag. Give the whole thing to daddy and mummy is hands-free! Bonus!

Munchkins Travel Booster Seat Bag

Transporting it from A to B is simple as it’s incredibly lightweight and boasts both a top handle and an over-the-shoulder strap. If you were to therefore use it as a bag, you can hang it over your buggy handles.

In summary, it’s allowed Dexter to eat with us at the table making mealtimes much more sociable for him. It also means we’re not relying on restaurants to provide grubby highchairs. At £18 from ASDA it’s also a right bargain!

Munchkin Teether Baby (a.k.a Ellie)

Munchkin Teether Babies

Not to be left out, Heidi also profited from this months mailer. She was sent an uber cute Teether Baby. Her little elephant has crinkle paper ears, silicone chewable hands and teether bar (that doubles as a pushchair / change bag link for safe-keeping). It’s quickly become a favourite toy and I don’t think its left her sight since she clamped eyes on it! Luckily for us it’s machine washable to keep it plush and clean and wash off all that baby drool!

Munchkin Designer Change Mat

Finally we were sent a very stylish-looking foldable Designer Change Mat. In soft pink stripes, this suits Heidi-Bum down the ground too.

Munchkin Designer Change Mat

This is a cute and compact nappy changing kit for making bum changes that little bit less stressful. Luckily Heidi is as good as gold during changes, but Dexter was a complete horror and had a completely irrational fear of baby changing stations. I don’t think he liked the hard plastic against his head and back. This would certainly have helped him get comfy.

It folds down to an impressive little pouch which is ideal for stowing in your change bag. If you’re shaking your head at your laptop now as you simply can’t imagine squeezing anything else in there, a handy little carry strap allows you to attach it to your stroller.

Munchkins Designer Change Mat

This then folds out into a very generously proportioned change mat with a cushioned pillow for Heidi’s head. At the business-end where baby’s feet will be (and therefore where mum or dad will be hard at work) there’s two fab mesh pockets for stowing all the essentials. This will hold up to 4 nappies and even has a wipes case included.

Again, there’s not one thing I can criticise. Heidi has more comfortable bum changes, and mummy doesn’t have to lug a huge bag into public toilets… all for a tiny £12.99 at ASDA!

Thanks Munchkin! We love our travel essentials and would wholeheartedly recommend every single thing!

Sep 24 2014

Giveaway & Review: Win a Caseapp custom phone case or laptop skin (CD: 27/10/2014)

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I’ve never been a massive fan of phone and tablet skins. I’m thirty plus and think they’re best aimed at teenagers and trendy twenty-somethings. There’s no denying however that they’re incredibly popular though and many fashion labels and gift shops have been cashing in on the action. Swedish company Caseapp.co.uk is just another in a long line of dedicated custom skin / case producers that allow individuals to get creative and design their own.

So why did I agree to review it?

Simply put, this.

The black and white collage case on their homepage just drew me in. This looked so much more sophisticated than other cases I’ve seen, and so personal. I have so many precious photographs of my two babies, I knew I could design something special, unique and stylish to protect my iPhone 4S.

The website is mostly simple to use. You’ll select your device (all iPhones including the long-awaited 6th gen, Galaxy S3, S4 and S5 and iPad mini and iPad (all gens)) then be transported to the editing suite. This is swish without being overwhelming for the technophobe. The photo uploader is super quick, but I did struggle a little with the collage templates. As the case will ultimately wrap around your device, some images will be on the natural curve of your phone - choosing photos for these squares can be fairly tricky as you don’t want your image to warp or be sliced in half (particularly for profile/head shots). I did manage to get away relatively unscathed though in the end!

Instructions for collages would certainly be helpful if you’re after perfection. For example, reading through other reviews, I could have also chosen plain colour edging (6 colours available) but I can’t still can’t see where to select this on the site.

You can also add text and clipart if this floats your boat. Of course if collages aren’t your thing and you crave a little colour, you could just as easily upload a favourite holiday snap, colourful vista or funky geometric patterns - it’s entirely up to you. If you are simply uploading one image the design process is even easier and as simple as uploading a picture and dragging corners to straighten everything up. Handily you can preview your artwork before moving it into the cart to pay. The preview function is fit for purpose but all angle 3D simulation would have been immensely helpful.

The case arrived really quickly, just two days after placing my order in fact. It fitted my iPhone like a glove skirting all the necessary outer buttons (+ 3.5mm audio jack and camera). The functionality of your phone is therefore not affected in any way.

They two types of cases and the option of a high gloss or satin finish. I choose satin finish and absolutely love it. It feels so comfortable to hold and so slim (much better than the rubber case my other half insisted I use beforehand). The plastic used is really light but durable and resistant to scratches, light bumps and shocks. I still wouldn’t want to throw it onto the decking from the bedroom window, but it’s perfectly adequate if you’re generally careful with your phone.

There’s also the option of an “extra protection” case consisting of two parts. The lower part is made of shock-absorbing silicone for those more aggressive falls and bumps. The second part is the custom printing area of the hardshell plastic. I’d recommend this for commuters, active teens and parents.

The colours and images on my device are incredibly clear. Caseapp use a four color printing process for the best resolution and color reproduction which gives an even printing on all outer surfaces of the case, and it really shows. I’ve read through several peer reviews of the cases and everyone raves about the print quality.

All cases are priced at £19 with free delivery. I have no idea if this is reasonable or not given I’ve never thought to buy one before. Personally I’d be more than happy to pay this as I’m really happy with the results. Furthermore, if you know what devices your extended family have, this would make a really lovely gift without breaking the bank.

Finally, Caseapp also offer a selection of skins for an impressive range of devices.

*** WANT DISCOUNT? ***

If you fancy one, just enter MYMILLS20 at the checkout for 20% off (code expires 5/10/2014)

*** GIVEAWAY ***

Caseapp have very kindly agreed to me giving a case or skin away. You really won’t be disappointed if you win.

So, without further ado, to win a Caseapp custom phone case or laptop skin, enter via the rafflecopter below! Good luck guys

a Rafflecopter giveaway

T&C’s – a.k.a – the boring bit!
    • Only 1 option is mandatory (leave me a comment) – the rest only improve your chances of winning so just complete as many as you feel like
    • UK entrants only – you must be over 18 too (sorry)
    • The winner will be contacted by email and must respond within 1 week of having been emailed (I’ll try all known avenues to contact them) or a new winner will be drawn
    • When the giveaway is closed, Rafflecopter will select the winner completely at random
    • The winners name will be published on this site

Win competitions at ThePrizeFinder.com

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