If you haven't heard of Smiggle then somewhat unusually I'm well ahead of you. The Australian-based stationery company have recently opened a branch in the Manchester Arndale, and now they're spreading out further with branches in Bury, Bolton and Bradford opening in early June.


Smiggle is dedicated to creating original, fun and affordable stationery. The products are focused on bold colour, quirky graphics, good value, innovation and most of all – giving fans the tools they need to have fun. A pencil at Smiggle is not 'just a pencil'. It might be smelly or furry or liquid chalk or disguised as a wild animal, but it isn't 'just' anything.

Today we were up bright and early to go to the Trafford Centre to LEGOLAND Discovery Centre and be among the first people to see the brand new LEGO NEXO Knights 4D movie, The Book Of Creativity, which launched this weekend.


It was a great opportunity for me to complete the photos for my post showing what's inside LEGOLAND Discovery Centre, and if you haven't been before, then it should give you a good idea of what you will find when you arrive.

If you are looking for a book to share with your child that is a bit different and will engage both of you equally, then Race Point Publishing may have just the thing. On May 1st they released 2 new books for you to 'Draw, Colour and Connect' with your child.

In today's busy life it's too easy to rush around and not spend time with your child, and when you do, it can be hard to get them to put down their screen and actually have a conversation. Draw With Me, Dad! and Colour With Me, Mum! hope to solve that problem by giving you something calm and active to do while you chat.


Draw With Me, Dad! by Jasmine Narayan and Chad Geren takes adult and children's colouring books and mashes them together with a surprisingly effective and beautiful result.

Simbrix are fairly new, so you may not have heard of them before. A very different sort of toy for children aged around 5+, they describe themselves as a 'Craft Toy', but that doesn't begin to cover it. We've been sent some Simbrix to review, and if you follow me on social media you've probably already spotted them in my photos because they are constantly covering my table...


All Simbrix kits come in a cloth bag - this is genius. They're tiny and arrive in multiples of 850. A cotton drawstring bag in which to store them is perfect. It's beautifully made and a really nice size too, so can store partially made models as well as loose Simbrix.

The full title of today's cookery book review is Let's Cook Spanish, A Family Cookbook: Vamos a Cocinar Espanol, Recetas Para Toda la Familia by Gabriella Llamas. I think the title is a pretty good description. This is a book of Spanish recipes ideal for cooking with your children.


This is a  hardbacked cookbook which is written in English and Spanish, with introductions for the children in the family, and the grown ups. It takes the stance that cooking should be a fun, participatory event. I can't disagree with that. It also introduces Spanish into the English pages of the text, and my boys liked trying to pronounce the foreign words.

My 2 young boys love Alvin And The Chipmunks,  and were more than happy to preview the upcoming DVD release of their computer animated Nick Jr TV series Alvinnn!!! And The Chipmunks. Volume 1, Summer Of Sport, will be released on DVD on June 13th and contains the first 14 episodes from the show.


Summer Of Sport features all of the regular characters, including the guys - Alvin, Simon and Theodore, the Chipettes - Brittany, Jeanette and Eleanor, and their long-suffering carer David Seville.  The total runtime for the 14 episodes is over 2 1/2 hours, making this a pretty hefty DVD, but it is broken into short bites and universally rated, so it works for any child, whatever their attention span.

Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the Peanuts gang have been entertaining children and adults since 1950. 20th Century Fox's computer animated 'The Peanuts Movie' is the first full length film featuring Charles M Shultz's world famous characters, and it's available to buy from 30th May 2016 on digital download, Blu-ray and DVD.


I watched the movie with my 6 and 7 year old boys and we all enjoyed it. The storyline is easy to follow for younger viewers, but there is enough going on to interest the more mature film fans - and their parents.

In the movie Charlie Brown and his friends cope with the arrival of a new girl in class, they manage to score a win over the kite-eating tree, and they generally just have fun being kids and playing with their friends. Snoopy meanwhile battles his arch-nemesis The Red Baron, including some great aerial action in his biplane and goggles.

Whit week half term holiday is somewhat unreliable, so here is a list of special events and activities running over the week for families in the North West. As usual I've kept it to events and activities that don't cost any more than £12 each

Don't forget your local museum and library, they nearly always offer holiday activities and clubs for a small charge, and entry is usually free - here is a great post by Jollies And Jaunts with 10 quirky items you can find in Manchester Musems..

LEGOLAND Discovery Centre, Trafford Centre has a second new 4D movie arriving - LEGO NEXO KNIGHTS! The LEGO NEXO KNIGHTS have to defeat the evil Jestro, the Book of Monsters and all their Lava Monsters - think wind, water and smoke - bringing the battle to life all around the cinema. Visitors can also see The LEGO Movie 4D A New Adventure. Both movies will be on rotation with two to three showings every hour.
There is also the new play area, City Builder, where visitors can create cities and buildings in the most unique city that can be imagined, including everything from huge skyscrapers to cosy family houses, all from LEGO. From £9.95 per person booked in advance.

CAPTURE THE FLAG is a brand new animated movie release from Universal Pictures. Available from Tomorrow 23rd May on Digital Download, and from 30th May on DVD and Blu-ray, it is an all-action thriller of a movie. It tells the story of a boy, his father and his grandfather, and how they ended up protecting the legacy of the original moon landing.


At the beginning of the movie our young hero isn't a future Astronaut, he's a kite-surfer, and his surfer mates help him when they discover a wealthy and egocentric billionaire has decided to wipe away any signs of the original moon landing, discrediting the astronauts and everyone else involved.

We've had the most awesome day today reviewing a special event at The Blackpool Tower, so I am anxious to spread the word because it would be a shame if they didn't sell out! Only for the next 3 Saturday mornings can you experience Tall Tales at The Blackpool Tower - and what you get is exactly the same as what we experienced...and it's a fantastic morning out...


For Tall Tales you have to arrive at 9am, an hour before The Blackpool Tower opens to the general public. This in itself is really special. Being inside when this amazing old building is virtually empty is something else...my youngest certainly felt it.