On Thursday we took boy no.3 and boy no.4 to the Legoland Discovery Centre at Manchester Trafford Centre to see a preview screening of the new Lego 4D movie which is officially released this weekend.


We've been to the Lego Discovery Centre many times, we bought Annual Passes last year and used to go in and have a coffee while the little ones and boy no.2 played and the girls went shopping - something for everyone. We have never been at night though, and we've never been on a school day. Boy no.3 knew all about it, and was incredibly excited, he had even explained everything in great detail to his pre-school teacher and the rest of the Foundation Stage (age 3-5) children.

When we got upstairs I was delighted to see that not only was Pippa aka Red Rose Mummy there, but I also got to meet two other bloggers who I've harassed with inane comments several times - Jen from mymummiespennies, and Laura who doubles up as Tired Mummy Of Two and Blogs Up North.

My boys are very used to the 3D glasses, and because of our prior knowledge we knew where to sit in order to get full benefit from the 4D special effects (i.e. we sat at the front because we don't mind getting a bit wet!).


The film was brilliant. We've been waiting for a new film for a long while now, and it didn't let us down. The story was fairly basic and straightforward enough for boy no.4 to follow easily, but interesting enough to hold an adult's attention. It features a tour of Chima by 4 young animals and their guide which starts out as a normal tour but they become increasingly involved with other characters in the land. There was action and there were jokes (watch out for the skunk) and the 12 minute film introduced a lot of the Legends of Chima characters and Lego sets, including a great Speedor race between Cragger the Crocodile King and Laval the Lion Prince.

This time the film seems to have made much more use of the lighting on the walls at either side of the room, using it to enhance what is happening on screen, depicting water, greenery and the special powers that the Chi Orbs have. The 'snow' 4D effect seemed much better done than before, it covered the crowd much more thoroughly and floated down really effectively.  Be warned there is a lot more water than in the previous movie and although you will still be dry after 5 minutes you might find tiny children aren't impressed and it's better to sit further back than the first 5 rows!

We had a great time and I have no doubt it won't be long before we're back again....

The Legoland Discovery Centre is at Barton Square, Trafford Centre, Manchester. It is open daily from 10am all year round and is entirely under cover. Until 2nd June there is a special Star Wars miniland display and special events include a Star Wars weekend May 18th & 19th.

I have hundreds of 7" and 12" vinyl records, I even have far more than my fair share of 10" vinyl.I have picture discs and shaped discs and discs made from paper and recycled bottles. I have a big collection of CD's and tapes (tapes, for goodness sake, the kids would think we were insane).

I used to work 3 part time jobs when I was at College, and if I didn't spend it on booze and fags, I spent it on music.
I used to buy a new CD each time I did the weekly shopping, now I order online for delivery and rarely even venture into music shops in town.



I'm actually quite annoyed at myself for the lack of interest I pay in the new music. Maybe it's just the natural way of things, but I'd rather fancied myself as still giving more of a damn about the charts when I'm 60 than most people do when they're 30 and I am beginning to realise that just isn't going to be. In some ways I've 'passed the baton', my older kids all grew up going to Glastonbury and other festivals and have really eclectic musical taste, my eldest now works part time at a big music venue and hopes to do Event Management at University. The children have all dabbled with instruments and we have a budding bass player in my 15 year old. There is music played in my house all of the time, but it's usually not my choice!

Sadly I haven't had anything that plays vinyl out where it can be used for the last 6 years, I only play CD's, so mostly I don't play any of my old favourite music. I may not be using it, but it's occurred to me several times that maybe I'm storing my pension in the loft (or maybe I'm fooling myself and it only has sentimental value). I know there are a few rare ones in there but I wouldn't ever sell any of them unless I had to. Vinyl really does have a special something, it's sexy and sleek and it's huge, so the cover artwork is poster-sized. You have to care for it or you break it. It has a special feel and the ritual of removal from the sleeve and putting it onto the turntable is one that CD's have never managed to replicate.

I do play CD's though, and when I came to live with my partner we had a lot of musical taste in common, so we have a few duplicate copies of albums, mainly from the last 15 years. We also have a lot of CD's that were bought on a whim and we've played once and won't play again. I do not have the same sentimental attachment to CD's as I do to vinyl at all, so I've been meaning to have a look through and sell some on for the last 6 years, it's just one of those things you never get around to - until today. I had a look on Music Magpie to see what my haul might be worth. It was really easy and took seconds, it even totals it up so that you can see at a glance what reward your unwanted duplicate or rashly bought CD's can realise in total. It's not going to make me rich in a hurry, but I'm not doing anything else with these discs and they're just sitting gathering dust, so it really is better to clear it out a bit - everyone keeps telling me that if you haven't used it for over a year then you don't need it, and while I wouldn't ever agree about vinyl, I think they may be right about CD's!


Come to think of it, I can also trade in some of those old Wii games.....

Boy no.4 is only 2, but he has excellent speech and can hold a conversation with anyone, so it's a rare one for us for him to not be able to explain himself.

One whole hour of crying and sobbing and asking me where his sta-danger was and I felt like a failed parent. 

Later we picked up 4 year old boy no.3 from pre-school, brought him home and I asked if he could try and work it out. "Can you tell what your brother is saying, because I can't?"

Boy no.3 says "I'll try Mummy".

Boy no.4 pipes up "Yes, I've been looking for the blue power ranger everywhere and I can't find it. Do you know where it is?"

Way to make Mummy look stupid....

I've spent the majority of my Mother's Days over the last 20 years feeling a bit conned. You got your 'day off', but the fallout is all a bit hard work....

On 'Mothering Monday' as you're sweeping, washing pots, washing 3 extra loads of clothes, finding a hidden broken plate and picking up 27 different bits from jigsaws and box games, it's hard not to wonder why you didn't actually do a bit more on Mothering Sunday in order to protect yourself...... I think that's why we get all the chocolates and flowers, it's to distract our attention - and gives us something to nibble on while we sit in a corner sobbing for 2 hours.

My lot tried this year, they tried really hard and I had a lovely lazy day (well, after being woken at 7.20am because the little ones were so excited to open my chocolates). I got a lovely pile of gifts, certificates and cards. I had chocolate brownies cooked for me, takeaway for tea, pots were washed, toys were picked up. I got 3 coffees without even asking. No-one argued. It was a very good day.

Today I got everyone off to school and came home ready to face my task, prepared for a long day. It actually wasn't so bad, in fact it wasn't really any worse than a regular Monday morning. Apparently it really does get better as they get older. To all of you with only young children ~ do not give up hope.


To my children (and my partner) ~ thank you xx

I am terrible for shoes - and not in the way you'd expect. I don't have any! I have a selection of wellies and flip flops and my trusty 12 year old boots, but no shoes. I'm terribly lazy where footwear is concerned and am happy to be barefoot whenever I'm at home. I've not bought any actual new shoes for years and I've always made do or worn a really long skirt to hide my feet. I have been invited to a wedding this summer and really want to find something special and dressy that I like. As I'll be spending a fair amount I want to be able to wear them again later with a selection of different outfits for different occasions. One place I've never bought clothes or shoes from before is John Lewis. I've never really browsed the clothes in store or online, and I can't think why it didn't occur to me because their range is huge and has everything you could need for any purpose or occasion.

There are heaps of brands represented, but it was really the LK Bennett shoes which took my fancy on this occasion.


These Sally suede scalloped leather trim ballerina pumps in black are on offer at £75, are lovely and pretty without being too girlie and will work with a skirt, dress or trousers. They'll be appropriate for any meetings I might have to go to and will add  little touch of femininity without losing any of the sophistication.

The Linn leather Mary Jane flat pumps in brown snake finish are on offer at £95. They are a bit quirky and add a textured element to any outfit. I love the variety in the shades of brown and tan. They would allow me to choose from any length of skirt and an outfit in any of the earthy or neutral shades.


 If I was feeling brave and daring I could even go for heels. I've never really worn them, but these Freda suede point toe kitten heel court shoes at £95 are subtle and small, and will suit me as I am not tall. The shoes are classic, yet have detail on the toe which adds a little interest and makes them more special.

These Florrie Leather Cut-Out Ballerina Pumps at £165 are my absolute favourite. Although they aren't very formal and wouldn't match with every outfit, they are pretty and they really are very 'me'. They'd be perfect for every event I might wish to go to during the Summer and I have a gorgeous 'oyster' coloured skirt with a cutaway pattern down the centre which would match perfectly. These would be absolutely ideal for completely spoiling myself!


John Lewis has department stores all over the UK. They offer delivery on most items for only £3 and free delivery for orders over £50. There is a Click and Collect service whereby you can collect the next working day from any of a list of 234 John Lewis Department stores and branches of Waitrose, and they are expanding this service in the near future by working with ConnectPlus, which will allow customers to collect from a network of 5000 local shops at a time convenient to them at a cost of around £3.

We did it! With RedRoseMummy in 6.9 degree temperatures we raised over £100 for comic relief. Thank you to everyone who sponsored us, and everyone who made it possible. The children had the best day ever.....although none of them fancied getting in with us....hmmmm


And if you wish to donate -   Our Red Nose Day giving page

Thank You!

Well, it's getting close, the huge box of Gelli Baff is here and on the kitchen table. This time tomorrow I'll be staring at a paddling pool in my back garden and willing the sun to come out.

For those of you who don't know, on Saturday along with my friend Pippa aka RedRoseMummy I will be in my garden getting into a paddling pool full of jelly, in the (no doubt) rain and cold, in the name of Comic Relief. The kids will be able to pay us to throw jelly at us, Pippa's going to read a book 'The Jelly That Wouldn't Wobble' by Angela Mitchell and we're going to try and stay in the pool until she's finished. My partner will be filming the event for posterity and mass humiliation.

However it goes, what it'll definitely be is cold. It'll be blinking freezing. There was a thick fog this morning, and it's barely gone now. We've had a frost the last 3 nights and the weather forecast is not being very kind to us after last weekend's beautiful sunshine and positively balmy 11degree temperatures. If you haven't yet sponsored anyone for this years Comic Relief, we'd love to beat our target, and as I type this, we're nearly there... if you've already sponsored or given your kids half your purse to wear their own clothes at school for a day, just send us some warmth. Blow hot air over towards North Manchester, we'll be very grateful....thank you

You can sponsor us on our Red Nose Day Giving Page

We have two teenage girls. I have spent plenty of hours in New Look, mainly watching the girls drool over potential outfits and listening to their carefully worded arguments as to why they absolutely need two new tops rather than one. They can both shop for hours (days?) and thankfully at their age we can leave them to it and come back when they've whittled their choices down to less than half the shop, or at home we can direct them to the PC and they can browse in comfort and leave all 47 windows open ready for the negotiations when they're done.

 Both of our girls are very slim and fair, but have gone in different directions where clothes are concerned, so our 'girly' girl would choose a pretty Teens Pink Ditsy Floral Hudson Button Front Dress costing £17.99, and our 'rock chick skater' girl  would be more likely to opt for something like the Teens Stone Nerd Pug T-shirt at £6.99.

New Look isn't just for teens though, and for me they stock loads of pretty plus size tops which (to my delight) are not based on tents or huge prints. I'm short with a large chest and a tummy that's still suffering from 2 years with a hernia (and the aftermath of 5 pregnancies) so need big tops and smaller skirts. I have always been able to find something suitable in New Look that is within my budget.


I love this years loose tops with the feminine touches around the neckline and sleeves, and the baggy lower half which helps hide my tummy. This Inspire 2 pack of Red and Black Frill Sleeve Gypsy Tops is also incredibly reasonable at £12.99 for the pair, or the plum version (which is my real favourite) is £7.99.

I'd team it with a maxi skirt such as the Brown Ditsy Floral Print Maxi Skirt at £16.99 for casual wear and relaxed evenings, or a pencil skirt such as the Black Scuba Pencil Skirt at an amazing £7.99 for smarter or more formal occasions.

New Look also have ranges of maternity wear, clothes for younger children, designer labels and a menswear range - which includes the Black Nirvana Band T-shirt which would be ideal for either of my teenage boys, and the Khaki Zip Up Hoodie at £14.99 which will be a perfect gift for my partner for Fathers Day!

Yes, this is my own 2 year old on the Playstation.



If you watch the video, as he moves the characters around he moves his whole body, walking from side to side mirroring the characters on screen. This is because he has to, he can't make the action small enough to just move his fingers.
He uses both hands separately to do different jobs, but he hasn't developed the control to use both hands individually all the time, he usually has to stop moving one in order to move the other, so he can't control the 'aim' and grapple/fire/lasso at the same time.  
He can't read yet, so onscreen instructions are a loss to him and he does need rescuing - a lot.

But still he's getting very good and actually I'm quite proud of him.

We're a family of gamers, my partner and I were already gamers when we met, our teenagers all play games and we've insisted that the games consoles (but not necessarily the screens) are in the living room where we can have overriding control over who plays and what they're playing.

Gaming can be a brilliant thing. Using a games console develops hand-eye co-ordination and the concepts and physical skills necessary to use a mouse. It tells stories and encourages puzzle solving. Playing together helps a child learn patience, tolerance, co-operation and turn-taking, and it promotes language skills and expands vocabulary. It stops you watching so much mindless telly.

If it's all so good then, why do I feel a bit naughty and like I'm going to have people think worse of me? Why is it that if he asks to play I am reluctant?

Maybe because we never see that side of console games. What we see is the fact that so many males send themselves into a trance and enter another world when they play, wherein they cannot hear babies crying or squabbles breaking out, but need people to be quiet and for no-one to walk in front of the screen for the next 3 hours.
We see young women and Mummies wearing something they wouldn't answer the door in and leaping about their living rooms in a bid to look like Davina McCall or the previously unknown female member of One Direction.
Teenage boys and men who should know better especially are lost in their rooms every evening for weeks on end shouting into headsets and firing off a bazillion rounds into Nazi zombies and other enemies from countries and worlds previously unknown, or building increasingly intricate houses and forging their own armour to sell for Simoleons or something.
Grown men spending 2 hours driving a real time Formula 1 race in a car on which they spent a thankfully imaginary £14.2k for uprated suspension, blue neons and a magic tree.


Gaming has mainly been taken over by exercise routines and war games, with a side order of racing and a large dash of weird. It doesn't have to be like that.

I stand by my pride in my son for mastering the art of walking round and carrying a treasure chest. I shall continue to say 'well done' when he and his 4 year old brother solve a tricky puzzle and make a mermaid scream so that Jack Sparrow can collect a chalice. I won't however let him play anything other than Lego Playstation games for a long while yet, and it'll be 10 years before I let him play anything with 'War' in the title or shooting people in the gameplay. He'll always be limited to how much time he can spend playing, the consoles will always be in the living room, and I'll always be there to do the tricky bits for him.....

.......maybe in 2 or 3 years I'll introduce him to Portal....

It would be just wrong to have a lie in on a Sunday once you have children. In fact what usually happens is that Sunday is that special day when your children are very careful about making sure we don't miss the dawn (best part of the day, right?). Late Saturday night entertainment is the 9pm movie, and if you have a drink past 10pm you really are living on the edge....

What makes me feel better about sitting watching 'The Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists' for the 15th time at 6.15am is that I know I'm not alone. Millions of people are in the same position.

Car boot sales were invented by a couple who's children woke at 7am each weekday, and 5am on Sunday (maybe).
The people on the TV early Sunday morning are specially trained in being supportive and sincere. That's why there are so many David Attenborough repeats and showings of Frasier.
Sunday morning family swimming and under 10's football are a ploy by the local authority to lower the mental health bill by providing a support group where parents can get together and moan about how early it is.
Facebook actually has an alarm system that recognises the word 'knackered' before 6am on Sundays and then posts a few random updates from people in the same boat, featuring a few supportive words, 8 mentions of 'coffee' and a big hug at the end - these disappear by 7am leaving you entirely unsure as to whether you just dreamt it.


Of course by far the worst thing about these early mornings is that all too soon they stop. Although a 9am lie in is divine, it doesn't leave quite such a lasting memory as being snuggled up on the sofa half asleep under a blanket, or going to the park before everyone else, or watching the early morning snow through the window together....

Good morning.... *yawn*