Ring o Rosie - Review

Ring o Rosie

Cbeebies fans will be familiar with super-colourful Rosie and her little group of friends.

Our non-resident reviewer Amy did, and she was very pleased to have received a Ring o Rosie doll to try out.

Ring o Rosie(rrp.£22.99) brings a whole new angle to the traditional song.  Hold both of Rosie's hands and the Everything's Rosie theme tune plays.  Let go and the music stops.

The doll is beautifully made and of good quality.  She's bright, cheerful and children are instantly attracted to her, as Amy's reaction of, "Ooh, is that for me?!" proved.

One great bonus that Amy's mum, Karen, pointed out was that the music would stop the moment either of her hands were let go of, unlike many musical toys which continue for a while after they are meant to stop.

Amy loved the doll, but when huge Everything's Rosie fan Dexter came to play he made a beeline for the doll and didn't let go - so smitten by it was he.  Amy very kindly gave him the doll to take home as he loved her so much.  What a sweetie!

At three years old, Dexter needed to get the hang of needing to hold both of Rosie's hands at the same time in order to make the music work.  With a short attention span and plenty of other things to be doing, Dexter still returns to play with Ring o Rosie over and over again which is never a bad thing!

As well as Ring o Rosie, Vivid Imaginations  have also created some other fun products in the Everything's Rosie range.  If you know a big Rosie fan like Dexter, click on over to take a look and you'll be sure to find something they'll love there.


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Dr Brown's Deluxe Electric Steriliser - Review

Dr Brown's Deluxe Electric Steriliser (rrp. £49.96)

We have been huge fans of the Dr Brown's range of baby products ever since we discovered them out of desperation a few children back.

We were used to "good" babies.  Our babies were generally unfussy and easy to please.


Until Eddie was born.  

It soon become apparent that he was our "cry-baby".  He'd cry, sometimes for hours, and not settle no matter what we tried.  For a few weeks this went on.  Eddie was crying.  We were worn out and desperate.  We thought we'd tried everything until I was stabbing in the dark at what the problem could be.  Eventually I thought we'd try switching his feeding bottles and so bought a pack of Dr Brown's Natural Flow bottles.  It was like a miracle had occurred.  For the first time in weeks he was happy.  The screaming had stopped and we were all breathing a sigh of relief.  Eddie is almost seven now and the older brother to six younger siblings, all of whom have used Dr Brown's bottles.  Now we found them and knew they worked we daren't try anything else!

I was offered the chance to review the new Dr Brown's Deluxe Electric Steriliser and it was a no-brainer to accept.  To begin with, the twins are giving us plenty of bottles to sterilise so we'd be able to put it through its paces, plus the fact that, well, I expected it to be a great product.  Talk about high expectations!

When the Dr Brown's Deluxe Electric Steriliser arrived it was larger than I'd imagined it would be.  To date, we had been using the Dr Brown's Microwave Steriliser which, although good and did the job, was now too big for the new microwave we recently had to purchase once the old one had broken down.

The Dr Brown's Deluxe Electric Steriliser has two neat, side storage compartments.  One side holds a measuring cup which allows you to measure out the correct amount of water into the bottom of the heating chamber, the second storage compartment holds the plastic tongs which will allow you to remove the freshly sterilised bottles and parts hygienically and safely.  The unit contains a removable basket on which the bottles and vents are placed, plus a second chamber to hold the smaller parts of the bottles.  Not only will it hold and sterilise both narrow and wide necked, large and small Dr Brown's bottles, but also bottles from other brands too.  As well as this it can also sterilise dummies, teethers, cups and utensils etc, depending on whether they are suited to this method of sterilising (you'd need to check with their manufacturer's instructions just to be on the safe side).  The Deluxe Electric Steriliser holds six bottles and parts, sterilising them in one 12 minute cycle.  I expected that it might be at least a little noisy but the machine was very quiet indeed, at one point resulting in me checking to make sure that it was actually working.  Needless to say, it was.

I was very pleased with the steriliser's performance, finding it practical and made to the high standards I expect from Dr Brown's and think it's a great addition to their range of products.  I would certainly recommend!

(Disclaimer: I was sent a Dr Brown's Deluxe Electric Steriliser for the purpose of this review).

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Theraline Caesarean Belt - Review

It wasn't until my seventh pregnancy that I had to undergo an emergency caesarean due to fetal distress. The same thing happened with my eighth pregnancy and so Joseph, my ninth was my first elective c-section which was planned beforehand. I was informed then that any future pregnancy would automatically mean another c-section. The hospital wouldn't even entertain the thought of a natural labour and of course, once we found out I was expecting twins a natural labour was not going to be considered at all.

Knowing that this was going to happen and how much it hurts during the recovery process I was happy to take the opportunity to review Theraline's Caesarean Belt which claimed to "protect, support and soothe".

The pack contains a soft belt which holds one of the four supplied inserts. The belt fits from 28"-44" in size and can be worn under or over clothing.

The inserts included in the pack are as follow:

1. The Protective Shield

This is a small shield which offers a little protection and piece of mind against knocks and bumps. Anyone who has experienced a c-section will tell you how vulnerable you feel when you are recovering, especially in the early days and so this is a reassuring little pad which offers a little more protection.

2. The Polyfibre Pillow

This pillow is another insert offering protection against bumps and knocks. It also guards against the rubbing of clothes against your scar and can be used with other inserts supplied.

3. The Cherry Stone Pillow

This insert can be heated up in the microwave or cooled in the freezer, either way offering pain relief naturally and simply.

4. The Cold/Warm Compress

The cool pack is for relieving the pain after surgery.  It can also be used as a warm compress.

My verdict:

I found the belt comfortable to wear considering I was still very sore and tender.  I chose to wear it under my clothing and noted the fabric was very soft and comfortable against my skin.  I wore the pillow insert along with the cherry stone pillow insert against my scar and it instantly provided relief from the pain and soreness.  I was a little disappointed that the heat from the pad didn't seem to last for very long.  I originally compared it to a hot water bottle which would last for hours but then I remembered that, a) a hot water bottle isn't practical to carry around for hours and b) it takes less than a minute to heat up the cherry stone pillow again, so it wasn't really much of an issue after all.  The pillow and belt could also be used afterwards to ease period pains, and the inserts can be used as part of a first aid kit for dealing with aches and pains in general.

All in all, I found the belt easy to use and it did ease the soreness and pain but I feel that at almost £20 it is a little expensive.  However, as I've pointed out you can continue to use it after your caesarean scar has healed as part of your first aid kit so if you are looking for something to offer a little help with your recovery it might be worth considering.  If money is an issue though you'd do just as well with purchasing a cooling/heating pad alone and tucking it into your waistband.

The Theraline Caesarean Belt can be bought from the Theraline Shop for £19.90.

(Disclaimer: I was sent a Theraline Caesarean Belt for the purpose of this review).



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B.Sensible 2-in-1 Fitted Sheet & Protector Review

If you've been following us lately you'll know that we're nearing the end of a bug which has been making its way around the family. It hasn't really affected me too much - cleaning up wise that is, because it's been poor Mike who has been up in the middle of the night dealing with the vomiting children, scrubbing carpets and beds, over and over and over again.

It's a good time to have had bed protectors on all the beds really.  So it's a great time to have a 2-in-1 Fitted Sheet and Bed Protector from B Sensible waiting to be reviewed.  I'll say!

Mike was putting new sheets on the bed and brought down the 2-in-1.  We couldn't work it out.  It's supposed to be waterproof, which makes me think of macs and rainhats type material yet this was all soft and smooth and completely not mac and rainhatty-like at all.  But then, surely if it truly is waterproof we'd still need another sheet over it, wouldn't we?  Yes, something so small confused us so greatly, it's true.

The fabric that the sheet is made up of is called TENCEL nanofibre which is 100% natural resulting in a softer, smoother feel than cotton.  It didn't feel at all waterproof, or what waterproof should feel like but it actually is.  Not only do you have the advantage of only having to use one sheet on a mattress, rather than the usual one protector plus one fitted sheet over the top, so saving on laundry but it's also... wait for it... non-iron!

Now that fact alone is enough to have me sold but B Sensible still goes further.  The sheets are hypo-allergenic, recommended for sensitive skins and help to control humidity and body temperature.  They are washable up to 90 degrees and can be thrown in the dryer up to a temperature of 70 degrees and are available in a range of sizes suitable for anything from moses basket size all the way up to double beds in a choice of 24 colours.

The only downside would be the price, as the crib sizes start from £17.99 and the single bed sizes start from around £31 which is quite a lot for one sheet.  Having said that, you do have to factor in that one disadvantage to the advantages it presents, such as less laundry, the need for one single sheet rather than protector+sheet and no ironing.  Plus the fact that all in all, I can't say anything bad about it as a product.  It works!  It's comfy and it's soft and it is functional.  In my opinion it would be a worthwhile investment to make to have a quality product which I personally believe will have a long, effective and useful lifespan.

For more information please see B Sensible's website here.

(Disclaimer: I was sent a single sized 2-in-1 Fitted Protector and Sheet for the purpose of this review).

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Benji - My best friend by Animagic - Review

Benji - My best friend.  Or is he?

It's been over a year since I blogged about how unfair life is according to my children.  They had been begging for a puppy.  We had refused.  They trained their then youngest brother to crawl around panting and barking like a dog.  

is now over 2 years old and still crawls around panting and barking like a dog, waiting to be petted and tickled under the chin.  He is beyond saving.  Joseph, being the present crawling baby, needs protecting from the same fate.  

Animagic have brought out a new puppy named Benji.  He's white, fluffy, and doesn't make a mess.  He plays tug'o'war, barks, sits and lies down.  If you tickle him under the chin he even waggles his ears.  Oliver doesn't do that, being a boy and all that.

Oliver isn't the biggest animal lover so out of all the children I expected his reaction to Benji's arrival to be understated.

As everyone else edged in for a closer look, Oliver hung back a little. 

He left his older brothers to investigate...

And became seemingly more reassured when Eddie wasn't bitten.

A few minutes of watching everyone else have a play and stroke and fuss of the barking creature who wouldn't sit still and...

... a tentative stroke followed by...

The problem then was getting him to allow the others to have a hug too...

... because everybody wanted to be Benji's best friend...

... but it looked like Oliver was the best friend of all.

And Joseph (in the background) counted himself lucky that he was now free from being trained as the puppy his brothers didn't have.  

Or is he?

("Benji - My best friend" is part of the Animagic range and available at all good toy retailers for the £69.99 rrp.  We were sent one free of charge to review).  

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Lego is a mum's best friend - Review

I was asked if I had any boys who might like Lego.

Like that was a hard question to answer, I don't think.

So when Lego sent over a box each from their new Alien Conquest collection the boys couldn't wait to get started.

Eddie set up his workstation at the kitchen table and looked over the plans for the Tripod Invader...

Harry and Sid broke away into the playroom and started work on the UFO Abduction set...

#

They worked for the best part of the morning...

... and well into the afternoon...

... diligently making progress...

... until the task was done...

They loved it.  In fact, they loved it so much they took everything apart again as soon as they'd shown their handywork off to dad when he came home from work, and started all over again.

Eddie has done that for four days in a row now.  

So while they wanted to say "thank you" to Lego and wanted to tell them that they think Alien Conquest is "brilliant!" and "cool!"  I would like to add a thank you of my own for the otherwise unusual peace and quiet that has descended on this house for the last few days.  It is very, very much appreciated!

We were sent the Lego Tripod Invader (srp. £18.99) and the Lego UFO Abduction (srp. £25.99) free of charge for the purpose of this review.

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