The Reward Box takes 'star charts' to a new level, with 3D wooden stars to collect in order to achieve your treat. Your child personalises their own box, using the enclosed stickers if they wish, and they can keep charge of it and count their stars themselves to keep track of how well they are doing.


I'm a big fan of positive reinforcement and I like to be able to encourage my young people to act with care for themselves and others, so we've long been fans of star stickers and reward charts.

My youngest child has had sleep issues, can be a bit boisterous and gets carried away easily, which results in breakages, injuries and annoyed cats. He rarely ever has bad intention, and has an immense sense of pride when he feels he's pleased us, so we have regularly had reward charts for him in the past. He was an obvious candidate for review.

I love looking at new books with my children, and sometimes a different sort of book comes along that really makes us pay attention. The What On Earth? Wallbook Of British History is definitely very different - and very impressive.


From outside the hardback cover the Wallbook Timeline Of British History looks like a regular large format book, but open it out and inside is a pocket magnifier, a 2 metre long pullout wallbook, and an 18 page copy of The Chronicle - a brilliant mock up of an imaginary newspaper.

Fruit Salad is an incredibly quick to grasp family game which is played using a set of 60 circular playing cards and 2 special dice. My 7 year old really likes this one, and as each game needs barely a corner of the table, takes 2-4 players and lasts only around 15 minutes, it's a great game for playing when you have an odd half hour to fill.


Fruit Salad is recommended for children aged around 6+ and I think that's right because it is fast and competitive, and if I played with any commitment I'd still frustrate my newly 6 year old as he simply wouldn't be as fast as me. My 7 year old though plays on a pretty even par, and can beat me regularly.

Over Easter Wilko sent me and my children a gorgeous bundle of goodies from their baking range to have a play with. Annoyingly people in my house were ill, so my plans for Easter cooking were a little delayed. We're all back on track and so I spent most of the weekend in the kitchen with help from my 2 young assistants...


Wilko's sent us some truly gorgeous equipment to help with our baking. The Mason Cash ceramic Mixing Bowl (£15) and Measuring Jug (£10) are absolutely gorgeous, I've taken a very possessive stance over them.

It pains me to hear clanking metal on ceramics, so I'm pleased to say Wilko's also sent us some plastic pig tools (£1 each), plus a Beech Wooden Rolling Pin (£3.50), a 9 inch spring form cake tin, silicone whisk (£1.25), heart cookie cutters and a mini kitchen scale (£2.50).

My family are big fans of the Cartoon Network show Adventure Time. The older children introduced us to it several years ago and it was a pleasure to have them watch something that the adults could appreciate too. The tragic backstories (poor, poor Marceline) and the fact these characters were each left alone, in a world where little makes sense, give Adventure Time a depth unusual to a largely children's TV Show.


Adventure Time is the first to arrive. There are 13 issues a year delivered to your home address by Magazine.com, so you don't need to remember to pick it up from the newsagent.

The Gtech Multi is a hand-held vacuum which combines the familiarity of an upright cleaner and the cleaning performance of the AirRam. Designed to complement your regular vacuum cleaner, the Multi can get into all those hard-to-reach places and edges, and give you a finish that makes all the difference, and makes the perfect partner for the Gtech AirRam.


The Gtech Multi arrives in a neat easy-open storage box which is not very big or heavy, and is pretty good for being minimal packaging. Inside are the Multi and the 3 attachments, plus charging cable/adapter. 

Coloured sand can make striking and beautiful pictures, but it's not easy to use without spills and mess, and you waste more than you have on the paper. Revell have created the MyArts Sand Shaker to make all of that a thing of the past, and keep your beautiful coloured sands separate while you work.


I'm not precious about mess, but I still get annoyed when I find craft materials all over my living room and lots of tidying is needed. Because the MyArts Sand Shaker contains all of the sand it's incredibly easy for even younger children to control and create something wonderful.


Everything you need is in the box, including a double ended glue spreader which works really well for pushing sand that's escaped back into line, as well as spreading glue!

The Beets BLU Key Finder Bluetooth 4.0 Wireless Pager Tag with Audio Alarm may have a hefty title, but at 9g it's light as a feather. Paired to your phone it can tell you where you left your keys and when your child has wandered too far away, and it can let you take a family photo by remote control.


My partner has lost quite a bit of his memory since having Meningitis, so now he has the super-power to lose the car keys within 3 seconds of entering the house or arriving at work. It's a bit frustrating and annoying, and so reviewing the Beets Blu Key Finder may just save my sanity. Irony notwithstanding, it took us 40 minutes to find the keys to attach the key fob. It was the happiest 40 minutes searching I've spent in years.

Hermann Bahlsen first sold his biscuits to the public in Hannover in 1889, and his descendents have carried on his work ever since. In the UK Bahlsen Choco Leibniz are now well-recognised as one of the more decadent snacks to have with your cuppa, and along with PiCK UP! chocolate bars are regulars in our house.


Bahlsen have expanded their ranges with new flavour combinations for both Leibniz and PiCK UP! and we were lucky enough to be asked to try them out...no-one here complained!

The Blackpool Tower is massive, in fact the base of the 158m tower is so huge that it plays host to several attractions. We visited last weekend with our 2 young children and 3 of our teenagers to review The Blackpool Tower Dungeon, Jungle Jim's Children's Indoor Play and The Blackpool Tower Circus.


We parked nearby not far behind Blackpool Sealife and paid £9 for 8 hours parking (6ft3 barrier), which for only a flat 5 minute walk to The Blackpool Tower I thought was fair.