BABY Secrets Activity Packs - Review & Competition

Last month I introduced the kids to the newest collectable on the block, BABY Secrets! As soon as we got our hands on them we were hooked! They've quickly become our favourite collectable and that's not easy as we collect so many different toys and figures! You can read our first BABY Secrets review here.

As you can see BABY Secrets are collectable baby figures, they are utterly adorable. Each baby is themed and has a big personality to match. There are over 50 different babies to collect and each has their own look and persona. From a party baby wearing a party hat and sash through to painter baby, splattered in paint with a paint brush in hand. The surprises don't end there as each baby has a big secret and they are just waiting for you to discover it. To find out their secret simply place them in water and watch their nappy change colour. If the nappy turns blue then the baby is a boy, if it's pink then it's a girl. This is a surprise that they can enjoy time and time again as the nappies change back to white once they are dry.

As I mentioned earlier we reviewed the BABY Secrets single packs last month but today we are reviewing the BABY Secrets Activity packs. The BABY Secrets Activity Packs currently come in four different varieties; the Pram Pack, Bassinet Pack, High Chair Pack and Rocking Horse Pack. Each pack comes with two exclusive babies and one surprise baby! Also included are three birth certificates, a collectors guide and either a bath tub and either a high chair, rocking horse, pram or bassinet. We were sent the High Chair Pack, Rocking Horse Pack and six BABY Secrets blind bags to review.

The High Chair Activity Pack comes with a high chair and two exclusive babies, Chef Baby and Messy Baby! I then discovered Breakfast Baby in the blind bag bathtub! How cute are these three? The combination of food themed babies and the high chair are great for encouraging role play.

Next we have the Rocking Horse Activity pack which is a favourite of mine. Included in the pack are two exclusive babies, Sheriff Baby and Pacifier Baby. How cute is Sheriff Baby on the rocking horse? Though I have to admit, I think Pacifier Baby is my favourite baby yet! Within the blind bag included in this pack we found Baker Baby but we didn't get the baker vibe right away. Maybe if he had a load of bread in his hand or a cake on his bib it would have made it a bit more obvious.

The BABY Secrets Activity Packs retail at £12.99 each which I think is excellent value for money. They are a great addition to the BABY Secrets range and add a whole new element of play. Noah and Ava both adore their babies (much to my delight as I now have an excuse to buy more!) They play with them every day without fail. Ava toddles around he house with them in her hand and likes to give them cuddles and kisses. Noah on the other hand likes to make them play fight and fly! I'm such a big fan of the range and I like how they are decent sized because it means that Ava is able to play with them without me having to worry about her putting them in her mouth. It also means they don't get lost easily like the majority of other collectables on the market.

BABY Secrets are suitable for children aged 4+ and are available from The Entertainer, Smyths, Argos and Toymaster. To find out more about the range visit BABY Secrets HQ or follow them on facebook. I've teamed up with BABY Secrets to give away a BABY Secrets Activity Pack to one lucky winner! To enter simply use the Gleam form below! Good luck and don't forget to enter my other blog competitions!

BABY Secrets Activity Pack

Terms & Conditions.         
1. There will be 1 winner who will the prize mentioned above.
2. Prize sent directly by the PR. 
3. Competition ends 18/03/18.
4. Incomplete entries with be disqualified.
5. UK entries only.

BABY Secrets Pets - Review

BABY Secrets took the world by storm last year and have been such a big hit with both Noah and Ava. They both love collecting all the different babies and they play with them often, most days actually. With this in mind, we were delighted when we heard the news that they are extending their range with not only a BABY Secrets series 2 range but also a line of BABY Secrets Pets and BABY Secrets Merbabies too!

Recently, we were sent a couple of the BABY Secrets Pets blind bags to start off our new collection. With 32 different pets to collect it’s sure to keep the kids busy and keep the love of BABY Secrets live. There are also 24 Merbabies to collect and 50 new BABY Secrets babies to discover. That means there are now a whopping 100 babies in the series 1 and series 2 collection!

BABY Secrets Pets are very similar to the babies but instead of coming in a white bath, they come hidden in bright wood-effect barrels, with a birth certificate and collectors sheets. The 32 characters include lots of animals that kids know and love, from cats and dogs, to unicorns, koalas, and pandas!

We were so excited to open up our pets and did so right away. Each character is revealed as soon as it's unboxed, each one adorable, with its own unique personality, and a hidden surprise! The surprise being, the gender of each pet. To discover the secret, simply place them into the water and their nappies change colours, pink for a girl, blue for a boy. We had cats in our packs, but a mix of genders. Our two favourites are in the photo's below; Stylish Scottish Fold and Royal Ragdoll Cat, both of which are rare!

The BABY Secrets Pets Single Pack are a great way to start a BABY Secrets Pets collection and retailing at just £2.99 each. Each pack comes complete with one pet, one barrel, birth certificate, and collectors sheet. Find out more of the range, over on the Baby Secrets official website.

- We were sent these products for the purpose of this review, however, all opinions are my own.

BABY Secrets - Review & Competition

Both Noah and I are huge fans of collectables and have so many different collections on the go. As soon as a new collectable range has been released we are so excited and can't wait to see what they are all about! I don't know who enjoys collecting them more!

Speaking of new ranges a brand new collectable has just hit the market. Introducing BABY Secrets! As the name suggests, these are babies and they are so cute! I can't wait to tell you all about them! Each baby has a big character or personality, from a painter baby equipped with paintbrush through to a party baby wearing a party sash and hat. Not only that but each baby comes with their own little birth certificate which you can fill in yourself.

We were sent seven BABY Secrets Single Packs for the purpose of this review and we couldn't wait to open them up to see which babies we'd find. On opening our first pack I discovered the baby checklist, which is great for marking down all the babies you have and keeping track of the ones that you still need to collect. I then took out the birth certificate and underneath was our first baby, Breakfast Baby! This baby is so adorable, wearing a diaper and a bib with a bowl on her head and spoon in hand.

In the next two packs we found, Snorkle Baby who's ultra rare and Koala Baby which is limited edition. Snorkle Baby is equipped for swimming with his snorkle and flippers and Koala Baby is wearing a furry hat and a diaper. They are so cute!

Once we'd opened up all our babies (we only got one dupe out of seven) it was time to discover their big secret! It was time to find out if our babies were boys or girls. To do this you simply fill up their little baths with water and place them in it. Once they are wet their diaper changes colour, pink for a girl and blue for a boy! Noah really enjoys dipping them in the water to watch their diaper change colour and has even taken them in the bath with him to do so. He has also named them all and likes to act out different scenarios depending on what accessories the baby has. They are great toys for imaginative play.

All in all we absolutely adore BABY Secrets, I think we've started a brand new collection. I love how all the babies have different hair colour, eye colour and skin tone as well as all the different accessories. They are also generously sized, they fit nicely on the palm of your hand. I prefer this because they aren't too fiddly or easy to lose. I also don't have to worry about Ava getting her hands on them as she's took a shining to them too. She holds them and gives them a kiss, it's very sweet to see!

The BABY Secrets single packs cost £2.99 each which I think is a very fair price, they are quite a substantial toy and one which is very well made. The range also has four different activity packs; the pram pack, bassinet pack, high chair pack and rocking horse pack. These cost £12.99 each and great for endless hours of play.

The BABY Secrets toys are suitable for children aged 4+ and are available from The Entertainer, Smyths, Argos and Toymaster. To find out more about the range visit BABY Secrets HQ or follow them on facebook. I've teamed up with BABY Secrets to give away FIVE single packs to one lucky winner! To enter simply use the Gleam form below! Good luck and don't forget to enter my other blog competitions!

x5 BABY Secrets Single Packs

Terms & Conditions.         
1. There will be 1 winner who will the prize mentioned above.
2. Prize sent directly by the PR. 
3. Competition ends 25/02/18.
4. Incomplete entries with be disqualified.
5. UK entries only. 

Keeping Entertained This Summer With Baby Secrets - Review

We are no strangers when it comes to BABY Secrets having reviewed them before, but with being such big fans that we just couldn't resist agreeing to work with them again! For the purpose of this review we were sent a BABY Secrets activity pack, 5 BABY Secrets surprise baths, a chocolate chip cookie mix, cookie cutter and paint your own duck money box. The perfect goodies to keep the kids busy during the summer holidays.

In case you didn't know, BABY Secrets are the cutest, collectable baby figures, each one with its own theme and full of personality! There are over 50 different babies to collect, each has their own look and persona. From a sheriff baby wearing a cowboy hat and bandana through to a diver baby, with snorkel and goggles! We have so many favourites, including the limited edition rain baby, wearing glitter wellies and rain hat!

The surprises don't end there though as each baby has a big secret, just waiting for you to discover. The secret is to find out whether each one is a boy or a girl baby! To find out simply place them in water and watch their nappy change colour. If the nappy turns blue then the baby is a boy, if it's pink then it's a girl. This is a surprise that can be enjoyed time after time as the nappies change back to white once they've dried.

As mentioned above in our pack was a cookie mix, cookie cutter and paint your own money box! This is activities that we plan on doing during the six week holidays and I'll make sure to share the results of the activities over on Instagram!

The BABY Secrets toys are suitable for children aged 4+ and are available from The Entertainer, Smyths, Argos and Toymaster. To find out more about the range visit BABY Secrets HQ or follow them on facebook.

- We were sent these products for the purpose of this review, however, all opinions are my own.

Christmas Gift Guide - For Children

Can you believe that there are just three weeks to go now until Christmas? Where did the year go? With Christmas creeping up on us fast I've started to publish my Christmas gift guides, something that I really enjoy doing every year because they always leave me feeling inspired. I think the Children's gift guide is always a favourite, it's so much fun to put together! 

Animagic Woofles My Playful Pup - £29.99

Woofles My Playful Pup is a great gift to go for if your children really want a pup, or is an animal lover like my children. He’s the most realistic pup toy that you’ve ever seen, and super cute too. Stroke his head and he'll make cute puppy sounds as he gets ready to play. You can even talk to him or use his squeaky bone toy and he'll react to you, moving around and barking along happily.

Classic Tiny Tears Doll - £25.00
This classic Tiny Tears Doll is just how I remember her, with moveable arms, legs, and lovely blonde hair. She comes with a bottle, potty, hairbrush, pull up knickers, a dress and headband. Children can feed her using her bottle, sit her up, and watch her cry real tears. When sitting her on the potty she will even do a wee! She also closes her eyes when she is led down in bed. Tiny Tears is bound to keep children entertained and engaged this Christmas.

Ready2Robot Bot Blaster - £14.99

Ready2Robot are the only collectible brand that lets you build, mix & match your own custom ‘bots, and battle your friends in a robot-brawl inside the Fightanium Arena. Unbox more bots, build your ultimate brawler and blast your way to becoming champion! Last bot standing gets the glory and the bragging rights. Each Bot Blaster pack includes extra weapons and accessories to build and customize your mechbots and Pilots Asst for battle. Includes 1 blind packed Ready2Robot pod and 5 accessories.

Paddington Bear Spot The Difference Game - £8.00

Follow the adventures of Paddington, the most loveable bear, in two seemingly identical images. But just like his adventures all is not what it seems. Can you find the 5 or 10 differences and beat your opponent to find the pot of marmalade! I can imagine so many children enjoying this Paddington Bear Spot The Difference game on Christmas day.

Spider-Man Marvel Illumi-Mate Colour Changing Light - £8.99
Bring a bit of superhero fun to bedtime with the colour-changing Spider-Man Illumi-Mate comfort light. When switched on, this brightly coloured character light will gently glow and change colour from red to blue to green, white and purple. The LED light inside stays cool to the touch, making the light ideal for night time trips to the bathroom or for use during sleepovers. In a handy portable size, the Spider-Man Illumi-Mate makes the perfect night-time companion for comic book fans. View more characters and styles on the Spearmark website.

Baby Secrets Series 2 Activity Packs - £12.99
Baby Secrets are the cutest collectable on the market, fact! Each baby has its own character, theme, name, birth certificate and they all have a secret. To discover the secret you simply place them in water and watch their nappies change colour! Blue for a boy, pink for a girl and this can be done over and over again. Baby Secrets are back, with series 2 which means there are another 50 babies to collect! These activity packs would make a great gift this Christmas.

Num Noms Starter Pack - £6.99

Num Noms have been ever so popular since their launch in 2016. Two years later and they are such as fantastic as ever, and they are back with series 5. Included in the Num Noms Starter Pack are 3 scented Nums and 1 flavoured lip gloss Nom. Mix and match Num Noms to create sweet, scented recipes! Scented Nums are adorable, squishy characters with tons of personality. Noms are flavored glitter lip gloss! Stack the Nums on top of the Noms to make 3,000+ sweet-scented combinations.

Poopsie Slime Surprise - £9.99

The world is currently going mad for slime, the kids can’t get enough of the stuff. Poopsie Slime Surprise allows children to create their own magical unicorn slime. With a little unicorn magic and sparkle, they can customize unicorn poop and transform it multiple times! Ten magical surprises included! There are 18 Poopsie’s to collect!

L.O.L Surprise! Eye Spy Under Wraps - £14.99

L.O.L. Surprise! Eye Spy Series Under Wraps packs have 15 new surprises inside, ready and waiting to be discovered! Unbox the spy glass to find codes and unlock all the different surprises and find a L.O.L doll is dressed in a mystery disguise! Once the L.O.L has been discovered beneath the disguise, it then becomes multiple fashion accessories which you can and match outfits for tons of new looks.

Orchard Toys What A Performance - £16.50
Games are fun for all the family, especially at Christmas time! What A Performance from Orchard Toys allows kids and grown-ups to be a star and rise to the challenge! Race your way around the performance board to be the first player or team to reach the finish, with lots of fun noises, actions, and activities along the way! Can you pretend to be a monkey, make a noise like a firework or wiggle your ears? If you can't, use the magic decoder and reveal your hidden forfeit on the back of the cards!

Adventures in Petlandia - from £17.99

This Christmas, give pet lovers a paw-fect present with Adventures in Petlandia and PetlandiaRoadtrip, hand illustrated storybooks featuring impossibly cute caricatures of their pets. Set in the wonderful world of Petlandia, dog, cat and rabbit fans can see their furry friends in beautifully written and illustrated tails of friendship, fame, loneliness and love, all fully personalised.

Playfoam Pals Snowy Friends - £6.00

I think Playfoam Pals Snowy Friends will make the perfect stocking filler this year, kids are bound to love them. Each pod is filled with Playfoam and inside the Playfoam is an animal toy just waiting to be discovered. The Playfoam itself is non-toxic and reusable, so it’s ideal for sensory play and for encouraging children to be creative, and imaginative. There are 13 Playfoam Pals Snowy friends to collect, including a rare snowman.

Haribo Fairyland Sweets - £3.99

Delivering a sprinkling of magic this Christmas, the Haribo Fairyland gift box includes an enchanting mix of unicorns and fairies in strawberries & cream and strawberry candy floss flavours. Making the perfect stocking-filler or surprise from Santa, this fairy-tale treat is for believers only.

Tangle Cherub - £9.95
Tangle Cherub is a detangling brush which is designed for children. It’s great for use on both wet and dry hair, but also great for in handbags, sports bags, travel and on-the-go detangling. It’s suitable for all hair types and an everyday essential which would make a great stocking filler.

Moj Moj - £3.99 each

Moj Moj Squishy's are perfect for those avid collections out there, especially those who like things which are squishy! These blind bags feature an assortment of soft and squishy, rare and ultra-rare characters with fun, collectible themes. There are currently 95+ to collect and trade.

Buff Wear Lasse Knitted Hats - £24.00 each

I like to buy Noah and Ava a couple of new winter hats every year, they can never have too many hats in Winter. I also think they make excellent Christmas gifts. These Lasse Knitted children's hats are from Buff Wear and are our new favourite. As you can see come in two different colour ways, a blue mix, and a pink mix. They are made from a 100% acrylic material and have a super snuggly fleece lining, perfect for the freezing cold weather that we have on the way. They fit children from 4 years old, through to 12 years of age so the kids will hopefully get lots of wear out of them. 

Spode Christmas Tree Mug Set - £56.00
This stoneware Christmas Tree Mug from Spode actually come as a set of 4 and is the perfect accompaniment to a warming cup of tea on Christmas morning, or for putting in children's Christmas Eve Boxes. Designed in 1938, Christmas Tree is a unique Christmas dinnerware pattern that's loved the world over. Taking centre stage is a beautiful Christmas tree with colourful baubles hanging from the branches and a mound of presents underneath. What could be more perfect for Christmas than a Christmas tree mug? Wooden Balance Hedgehog - £13.00

Wooden toys are a fantastic way to encourage imaginative, learning play, all while choosing something that's a little more eco-friendly! Teach little ones balancing skills with this fun and engaging balancing hedgehog game. Watch the hedgehog rock back and forth as you add weighted wooden shapes between his spikes. I think this is an activity that Noah and Ava will enjoy together, which is why I've added it to my Children's gift guide rather than the Toddler edition. You can purchase this and other inexpensive gifts online at Reroom.

Would you consider any of these gifts for Christmas?

- We were sent these products for the purpose of this gift guide, however, all opinions are my own.

Baby Born Interactive Sister Doll - #NationalSisterDay

To celebrate National Sister Day I have some rather exciting news to share with you! Meet Baby Born's new sibling, the Interactive Sister Doll! Baby Born got her wish with a new big sister who she can snuggle and talk to, share secrets with and even share and swap clothes with! 

With beautiful long hair and a stylish little outfit she is the perfect doll for any child's collection. She has a host of lifelike functions from crying through to drinking and she comes with a wide range of different accessories too. You can style her long locks with the different clips, bands and brush with are included and my favourite feature are the two friendship bracelets which are for her and for her proud new Mummy! 

She is able to stand on her own to present the dresses to her friends. BABY born's Sister's joints are super flexible, because she absolutely loves going to her gym lessons. And of course, doing a lot of exercise is thirsty work. That's why she brings her bottle along with her. She also likes to go swimming with BABY born. If she hurts her knee during gymnastics or playing about, she can cry real tears.

Features:
• BABY born® Sister Doll
• With six lifelike functions for even greater fun
• No batteries required
• Lots of accessories: 1 shirt, 1 pair of leggings, 1 pair of shoes, 1 bottle, 1 hair brush, 3 hair clips, 2 scrunchies and 1 friendship bracelet for both the girl and her doll
• The Baby Born Interactive Sister Doll retails at around £44.99 and can be purchased at most reputable toy stores both in store and online. 


What's your favourite feature of the new Baby Born Interactive Sister Doll?

Ava - 11 Months Old

Ava is now 11 months old and I'm struggling to comprehend that in just a matter of days she will be one year old! It's crazy and makes me feel so emotional! I've already started prepping for all the things I want to do before her big day and for her birthday party too! Where has the time gone?

Let me tell you, those milestone card photo's have gotten more and more difficult to take as the months have gone by! Now she's either playing peekaboo behind it, throwing it to the other side of the room or she's gnawing on it. We recently got a carpet in our living room where we take the photo every month so I made sure to keep a patch of the old carpet so then the photo's will be exactly the same! It would have looked so strange if the last two milestone cards were taken on black carpet! Yes, I'm crazy!

Character
She has the most endearing little personality, she's so lovely. There's nothing she likes more than being with her family and smothering us with lots of kisses and cuddles (and the occasional cheeky smack to the chops!) She's affectionate, inquisitive, comical, excitable, independent and cheeky. She also feisty when she wants to be and will tell you off if she isn't happy! I love watching her character develop every month, she is a total mini me. God help us!

Size
I've not had her weighed this month but I'm guessing she is around the 22lb mark. She is quite tall and now that she's more mobile she is slimming down a little, which I'm sad about. I love her plump, there's nothing better than a chunky baby! She still has the sweetest little hamster cheeks though, I hope they stick around a while longer. She wears 9-12m in pretty much everything now and they all have plenty of space. We recently had her feet measured and she was a 3G.

Health

She's not been so well this month. She's had a cold which seems to have lasted forever. She's not unwell in herself but has a cough which is on and off and a constant runny nose. She's also cutting her 7th and 8th tooth which I think have been bothering her, the others didn't seem to do. They've given her a temperature and she's quite touchy and off her food a little.

Feeding

We still breastfeed and have no intention of stopping anytime soon. With her being unwell and teething she has been feeding more than usual but I'm glad I'm able to offer that comfort to her. She also drinks a cup of water a day, she's not just drinking milk. She loves to eat but with her being unwell I've noticed she hasn't had her usual appetite. Her favourite foods are; pasta, carrots, baby corn, sweet potato, scrambled eggs, ham, chicken, cheese, tomato, yogurts, raspberries, blueberries, grapes, banana, cereal. She enjoyed her first ever nutella pancake on pancake day, yum!

Sleep

Her sleep was terrible last month as she was going through sleep regression and a leap at the same time but this month it's picked back up again. She's still not sleeping through but she's started to settle easier at night and she is waking less. When she does wake she quickly goes back to sleep with a feed or with a cuddle. She's very hit and miss when it comes to sleeping in her cot, she of course prefers to be cuddled up to me. I don't mind this. We sleep safely and although I don't get much sleep when she's tucked up beside me, they aren't babies for long so I'm soaking it up. When it comes to naps she prefers to sleep in her pram in the kitchen. She'll nap in her pram for a good hour, sometimes two. If I put her in her cot upstairs she will only have 20/40 minutes. I think it's because our bedroom is at the front of the house so it's quite noisy around the time she naps.

Milestones and new tricks
* We have a walker! She's not 100% confident yet but she can walk from one piece of furniture to the next without holding onto anything. She can also take around 10 steps before dropping to her bottom. She's very steady when standing up and can balance for long periods of time. She never stops and she even tries to climb!
* She's not saying any new words this month but she can say; mama, dada, daddy, hiya, aww, cat, ta.
* She very independent and likes to try to do things herself, like putting on a hat or attempting to put socks on. She also tries to brush her hair and is getting quite good at feeding herself with a spoon.
* She copies everything that Noah does and follows him everywhere. Whenever he's playing with his toys she will sit or lay beside him (depending on if he's sitting or laying down) and joins in. It's so cute watching an 11 month old baby trying to play fight with superhero figures, she makes little sound effects!
* She has a snug seat from Mamas and Papas which is a lot like a bumbo. She can take off the tray and climb right out of it! She's a little Houdini.
* She nods her head for yes and shakes her head for no.
* Daddy has taught her how to head bang!

Likes and dislikes
Mummy mummy mummy! She would be clung to be 24/7 if she had the chance, I love it! She loves it when Daddy comes home from work and she see's him walk through the door. Playing with Noah and being smothered in big brother cuddles first thing in the morning. Kisses, cuddles, clapping, dancing and singing. She loves to read books, especially touchy feely ones. Mummy's make up bag and the hair brush. Being on the move. Rummaging through things she shouldn't be! Being mischievous! Playing with Noah's toys and the Baby Secrets dolls. CATS! Guitars and rock music. Wooden blocks and balls. Going for walks in the pram and swinging on the swings at the park. Looking for trees and birds. Walking! Putting toys onto tables. Exploring the house. Nursery rhymes on YouTube. Playing with the Xbox remote and headset. She doesn't like having her teeth brushed, sleeping alone or men with beards!