Camping at Sykeside, Brothers' Water

When a friend from Buckinghamshire said they were coming up to the Lakes this summer I knew it was a good opportunity to show off my adopted county. I suggested camping for the night and then sent a few potential sites to her from pitchup.com. From these she chose Sykeside near Brothers Water. It was a wet and misty drive up into the mountains from Kendal and I was beginning to think camping had been a bad option! Then as we descended Kirkstone Pass the vista opened up and it just looked stunning:

Before pitching our tent we fortified ourselves with chips at the Brotherswater Inn. It was a good job we did as pitching the big tent in strong winds and drizzles was a testing experience... probably didn't help that I hadn't remembered to bring all the pegs so I had to buy more. The ones from the shop were more up to scratch for the hard ground any way! It was worth it for a view like this:

Once we were set up we headed across the fields for the short walk to Brothers Water:

Schleich Eldrador Creatures

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My son was sent one of the new Schleich Eldrador Creatures to review. These are a new range of lava, stone, ice and water creatures for ages 7-12:

From the four worlds of Eldrador, the lava world has managed to get hold of the super weapon. This provides the hot-headed creatures with an evil power that they can use to rule the other worlds of water, stone and ice. Only by seizing the super weapon can the others manage to save their own worlds. But this is not so easy! The weapon is stuck in lava rock deep inside the lava world and is being watched over by the red-hot fire lion! So they can possess this power themselves and put a stop to the lava world, the best and strongest warriors from the water, stone and ice worlds are entering the battle to regain their worlds. A fiery pursuit of the super weapon ignites – and grips all of Eldrador. The frost monster – not generally a fan of hot temperatures – is the first to make it into the depths of the lava temple. Will he manage to knock the fire lion out cold?

The one he was sent was the Monster Kraken (£13.99):

He blinds enemies with jet-black ink, fights them with his long harpoon, and with his strong tentacles, can even hold several opponents at bay at the same time: the kraken is a real super fighter! He is not only as quick as lightning under water, but is also super quiet when attacking on land – as he is practically walking on tiptoes. This makes him more dangerous as he is more unpredictable. 

The kraken is a real super fighter – he has several tricks up his sleeve to hold back his opponents. With his strong tentacles, he can take on several opponents at once, he can squirt jet-black ink into their faces, and using his harpoon, he can keep uninvited guests at bay – even those from the air! But anyone who thinks that he is only as quick as lightning under water is most definitely wrong. The kraken can also fight his opponents on land! But how does he do this? He can not only move extremely fast on his tentacles, but is also super quiet – as if on tiptoes – and hardly leaves a trace. No one is safe from him anywhere...His only weakness is that the monster kraken needs water after an hour at the latest, otherwise he is at risk of drying out.

We have reviewed plenty of Schleich models including dinosaurs, Smurfs, elves and knights. The common theme with all of them is the high quality and attention to detail. They are definitely not a toy that breaks after a couple of plays!

The Monster Kraken definitely matched previous toys for the paintwork and small details:

My son is now 11 and he is into action and adventure so these creatures are perfect for him. The fact that the arms move and the weapon can be switched around was a winner with him:

He may say he is too old for toys but playing with the Kraken and creating sets turned out to be a lot of fun. Schleich are brilliant at developing these playsets to spark the imagination and add to the play.

My son now has his eye on the Hellhound (£9.99) to make the story telling more fun! When he does grow out of them they are good enough to look at to keep as part of our model collection too.

Toy Review: Schleich Knights

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When I was offered the chance to review the new range of Schleich Knights I knew they would be a big hit with my children! They were in a huge hurry to get them out of the packaging and have a play:

We were sent 6 different knights and each one has a different weapon and costume. As usual with Schleich its the little details that the grown ups love whilst the children are happy with the fact that they can properly play with them without worrying about them breaking!

The series is based on having Dragon knights and Griffin knights so there are no clear bad guys and good guys. Each has a distinct livery so that you can easily have a fight between knights of opposing forces:

As you can see each knight stands up on its own as the figures are well designed to balance or have an extra bit of ground cleverly attached to their foot to keep them upright. This makes it easy to set up your battle scene and you can have your archers and crossbow men all lined up:

As you can see the details going in the characters is pretty impressive and they look properly battle hardened! The favourite characters for my children were the knights on horseback:

Again the horses are perfectly balanced to stand up and the knights sit quite firmly in the saddles. The knights can be dismounted too:

My children have certainly given these the thumbs up being big knights fans. I think they are really good quality toys that we should get many years of play out of and are great to look at too. With prices from just under £5 to around £20 for a dragon rider (don't tell my children about dragons!) they are good value too.

Easter Gift Ideas

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I have been sent some lovely ideas for Easter Gifts instead of a too big a pile of chocolate eggs! They would also be nice for birthday presents as well. There is something in this selection for all ages.

Nici - Jolly Sleepy Sheep

My children are big soft toy fans so this was a big hit Mummy can I have the rest of the set? It looks dead cute and it feels really soft. I am sure it would become a big favourite with  small child that would have to be taken every where! The sheep have an RRP of £10.95 for this smallest size (10cm) this seems a lot for a cuddly toy but it does seem to be very well made.

Schleich Baby Bunnies

We love Schleich animals in our house and we are amassing quite a collection so these little bunnies will feel right at home:

As usual they have lovely little details and are good quality. At just over £5 they make a longer lasting Easter egg!

Shoulder Buddies

We first came across these last Easter and my daughter loved hers. She was glad to have a second one to boost her collection:

These have a magic coin to make them sit on your child's shoulder. Again at just under £5 from retailers a great alternative to a chocolate egg! There is a whole series to collect and each has its own unique characteristics.

Sylvanian Sheep Family

My daughter was very pleased to see that we had this new family to add to her collection:

These can be found from £10.99 so a bit more pricey than some of the other gifts but if you have a Sylvanian family fan then they would make a cute addition. These have already gone off for an adventure in the camper van! I love the cute little outfits and my 9 year old has great fun making up stories to go with these toys.

Star Wars Angry Birds

My 6 year old discovered the Star Wars version of Angry Birds at Christmas and loves playing it on my iPad so he was delighted to find Princess Leia in our parcel:

She is rather adorable and my son has had lots of fun throwing her around! This would be a fun present for fans of Star Wars and Angry Birds whether child or grown up. They are available from just under £9 and its part of a series to tie in with the game so you could end up with quite a collection...

Ravensburger Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit Jigsaw

This is a puzzle with over 100 cuddly rabbits on the picture:

I started working on this yesterday and found that yes its a bit tricky but the details of each bunny make it not too hard:

My 6 year old sat and helped me for 45 minutes and granny had a go too so its something for all the family. This was the state of play by tea time:

I haven't managed to finish it yet as its on my parents' kitchen table but hopefully between us we will get it done! Like all Ravensburger puzzles it is well made and with an RRP of £7.99 its a reasonable price for something that fills so much time. I will let you know when I've finished it!

Wednesday Review: Schleich Bayala Elves

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We were sent a set of the new Bayala Elves and mystical character from Schleich for my daughter to review. They are aimed at girls aged 4-8 so perfect for her. We have previously enjoyed several Schleich models and these lived up to their expected standards of detail and quality.

These are the characters we were sent:

Magnolia Elf (around £5)

The magnolia elf loves dancing across the lovely summer meadows with their wonderful blossoms. She knows every flower in the meadow and forest. She likes to gather them up into beautiful bouquets. Her soft wings gleam in the sunlight when she flies around her flower house.

Feya (from £2.40)

When she laughs, the whole world beams around her. The flowers bend their blossoms towards her and the birds excitedly sing their loveliest songs. When, with her best friend, the proud princess Eyela, she flies across the sun-drenched expanses of their realm, the pair appear more graceful than the loveliest butterflies. Feya’s golden hair and pink dress merge in flight with her wonderful laughter. When she strolls across the meadows in front of House Summergreen, she captures the hearts of all.

A Magical Asian Being (from £7.99)

The world of Bayala is full of magical and mysterious creatures. The magical Asian being can only be seen on clear, moonlit nights in the white forests of the Dragon Mountains. Sometimes, on very rare occasions, it shows itself to the elf children. Just how it gets to the elves' meadows unseen will likely remain a mystery for ever.

She instantly loved them and she and her brother were inspired to build a magical forest for the characters to play in:

This gave a real outlet for imaginative play.

It was great that it allowed them to use their creative skills to make the little fantasy world using a surplus floorboard and nature items they collected on a walk.

If you look closely the elves appear very lifelike when seen through the various plants!

These three are just a small part of the fantasy world of Bayala that a child could easily build up saving up their pocket money or as presents. Definitely a hit in our house and I'm sure they will be asking for new additions to the collection for birthday and Christmas.

Monday Review: Schleich Smurfs

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My children were pleased to get a bunch of Schleich Smurfs in the post. We somehow managed to miss the film but my children knew what they were.

To get in the spirit of an Olympic year the Smurfs are all doing a different sport:

We had a weight lifter, a beach volley ball player, a swimmer and a relay runner. Each character has its little details to bring it to life. They really appealed to me but my children were happier with other toys.

This maybe because they are more of a looking at model than a playing with one. They also aren't major Smurf fans and so weren't as enthusiastic as me!

Altogether there are 10 sporty smurfs to collect. They are available in box sets of 5 from £16.75. As individual items they are around £4.

I definitely think these are heading for my collection rather than the childrens'!

Friday review: Schleich Dinosaurs

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There was much excitement from my 5 year old son when I told him we were being sent dinosaurs to review. Every day he would ask have my dinosaurs arrived yet mummy?. So when they did come in the post he was very keen to get them out and start playing with them.


My son is a mini expert so he informed me that we had been sent a brachiosaurus, a spinosaurus and a parasaurolophus! Amazing how toys can stretch a child's vocabulary...

He briefly let me photograph him playing with them before scooping them up to take outside to show his friends. Since then we have taken dinosaurs to various places and he loves having adventures with them.

Schleich's attention to detail really comes across with the dinosaurs and the spinosaurus even has a jaw that opens and closes. This makes role play even more exciting.

If you have a dinosaur fan in the family then these would be an excellent edition to their collection. The range starts at £2 but the ones we were sent were £4 (brachiosaurus), £8 (parasaurolophus) and £10 (spinosaurus).

Easter Gifts Review

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We were sent some gifts to try out that would make lovely Easter gift ideas. There was a good mix of ideas which meant there was something for both my 8 year daughter and my 5 year old son to try.

Ravensburger Rabbit Jigsaw

I haven't done many big jigsaws with my children as flat surfaces in our house seem to be a rare occurrence! I have managed to clear off some coffee table space to accommodate this one though..

With 200 pieces this should keep us out of mischief if the weather takes a turn for the worse. Ravensburger jigsaws are always such good quality that I don't mind it being out taking up room for as long as it takes us to complete it... which could be a while as the grass all looks very similar to me. These have an RRP of £7.99