It's that time of the month again and I think most of us in the UK can just about manage a smile, in spite of the weather, Brexit and the whole state of the UK. Politics eh, maybe we should just focus on the weather - and the smiles!

We've reached a really special milestone today and I'd like to thank every person who has ever added the hashtag #TBCSmiles to a photo. The hashtag has been going for a while now and when I started I never anticipated I'd ever be able to say we'd reached 6000 of your grins, laughter and happy moments, but as I looked this morning, that's where we are! It's got to be one of the best and happiest hashtag collections on Instagram and it really does make my face sore from grinning.

It's often a great idea to come back to a review item later on for a really informed opinion. You're unlikely to find anything we bored of quickly here, or anything which broke 3 minutes after the review went live, because I'd be a fool to remind you about it, but you will find some of the true gems we have looked at over the past 5 years....

Here's a look back at things we reviewed in the the first half of March 2013-2018...


In March 2014 The LEGO Movie was the biggest hit in the cinemas and in our house. Everything was awesome and that included the LEGO Storage Blocks, Lunchbox and flask we were sent by local shop and online retailer Store. Still in use, as good as they were 5 years ago and in fact our collection of LEGO Storage Boxes has even grown since then (please excuse the photo quality, it was the olden days)...

Our latest book review for Carlton Kids Books is the Ultimate Minecraft Master Builder. This is a mighty book with 320 pages detailing 30 awesome builds that you can create within Minecraft. Suitable for anyone who plays, there are also hundreds of tips and examples of additions to builds that you can try. Plenty of inspiration whatever your level...


The contents pages immediately tell you there's a lot in this book, and everything is split into different sections - Ride The Waves, Awesome Asia, Sky's The Limit etc. There's a 'welcome to Minecraft' section and then lots of explanation and hints for the reader, to give them a good grounding before they start.

It's Spring and the new Nerf are out! Hasbro have sent us their latest Nerf Rukkus ICS-8 Nerf N-Strike Elite blaster for review and we made the most of it by organising a Nerf War at Heaton Park with one of our favourite local families - Jane and the gang from Hodgepodgedays.

Because we've only got 2 Nerf Rukkus ICS-8 Nerf N-Strike Elite blasters and 7 people, we took other Nerf blasters for support - and fairness...


This is a mid-sized manually powered pump action blaster which has an integrated cartridge and is built for accuracy. Packaging is the now standard minimal with hardly any plastic at all - I love this Earth-friendly boxing and it's easy to get into. No batteries and 8 Nerf Elite darts are included, so you are ready to go immediately. Christmas morning-friendly.

I was gutted when I heard this morning that Keith Flint had died. He was 2 years older than me. Something I loved to remind our big kids when they were teenage rebels listening to The Prodigy in their bedrooms.

I really hoped that we'd hear his previous excesses had taken their toll on his body and he'd quietly suffered a heart attack or other organ failure in his sleep. I hoped he'd worn himself out prematurely but at least he'd had fun doing it.

The news that he'd taken his own life made me very sad.

Keith Flint (1969 - 2019) @allontheboard. The jilted generation thank you for the music. Rest in Peace. Love and Prayers to your family and friends.#TheProdigy pic.twitter.com/H3sat9m6j0

— All on the board (@allontheboard) March 4, 2019

I used to feel so disappointed when a celebrity died from suicide. Celebrities have all of those young people hanging onto their words. Vulnerable, confused and impressionable youngsters who will be devastated to hear that they've lost a hero. Now I know there's no point in disappointment, it changes nothing and it's not the right emotion. A person dies from suicide just as surely as they die from cancer. They don't have a choice at the end, because they don't see any possible way forward. It isn't about giving up. They lose the fight.

Last November we were invited back as guests to review the Digital Kids Show at Manchester Central. We adore it and I've used loads of information and photos from our visit in all kinds of posts since. Full of everything our family love, this really is a fantastic day out for children who are into all things digital.


We arrived 5 minutes after opening, so were able to get some photos of the hall before other people's children were everywhere. By 11.30am it was full, but never packed, and it felt very safe to let our almost 9 and 10 year old boys wander ahead or go and play while we sat nearby with a coffee.


Arriving early meant we got to play in the amazingly lit dinosaur kingdom without anyone else, and the boys could have been first to be superheroes, but said it was their day off. The ice rink was comfortably busy right from the start though.

Legend Of The Lost is Ian P Buckingham's debut children's book and it's a fantasy adventure story which is suitable for confident young readers aged around 9+ to teen. Set in a crossover world which is part Cornwall, part enchanted forest and part seashore, it pulls together all kinds of mystical folk in a way makes them seem highly likely to actually exist.

The book focusses on two families. One family live in local woodland and the others are staying at their holiday cottage. The holidaymakers discover a beautiful Moonstone and once it's no longer hidden they are thrown into a world of magic and mystery, with a more than a little mild peril.


The writing style is clear and easy enough for a 9 year old, but the first 1/3 of the book introduces a lot of new characters and darts to and fro between them, so to follow the events as they unfold, you need to be a fairly confident reader. Once the two families are established, as well as the friends and cohort they team up with, the real story flows well and has an increasing pace as everything, or everyone, begins to come closer together.

Next Month Carlton Books release Space Race by Ben Hubbard. A fascinating fact book with augmented reality, which tells the story of man's obsession to reach the stars, from the very first satellite launch up to the present day. We've been sent a copy to review and Carlton Books have kindly offered a copy for one of my UK readers...


Space Race is supported by a free app. which you can download on Android or IOS and you need it to really get the most from the book, although there is still plenty to see and learn without using a screen.

StickerYou is a website offering all kinds of personalised stickers. They sell custom printed die-cut vinyl stickers, labels, iron-on transfers, patches, badges, temporary tattoos, magnets and loads more, in any size, shape and quantity you need. They've offered a £40 voucher for one of my readers, so that you can create a whole load of stickers for yourself....


We've tried and tested many stickers over the years and StickerYou's stickers are made from vinyl which is waterproof, microwave and dishwasher safe, can be written on with permanent marker and removed without leaving a residue. They're super handy and I use these kind of stickers for all sorts of labelling, including my children's lunchboxes, shoes, glasses cases, school bags and jumpers...


A full page of vinyl stickers costs up to £7.54, which can be a lot of stickers for your money. They aren't only useful for parents of schoolchildren. With thousands of designs to choose from or your own designs and photos to upload, you can create photo stickers, bumper stickers, home produce and address labels amongst a bazillion other uses.


There aren't only regular vinyl stickers. StickerYou make customised window clings, tamperproof labels, iron on stickers, patches, badges and temporary tattoos - all with the design, shape and size of your choice.

National Geographic make a huge range of STEM sets which allow your child to explore, create and discover something amazing about the natural world. Crystal growing, archaeology digs, sharks teeth, bugs, stones and my favourite - geodes. There's so much out there for us to discover and learn about. I'm proud to announce we've been chosen as Bandai STEM Ambassadors for the next few months and for our first job they've sent us the National Geographic Real Bug Dig Kit and the Dino Fossil Dig Kit for review.


Any regular readers will probably be well aware that I'm no stranger to the National Geographic STEM activity sets. I love them and so do all of my family. I can't tell you how many of these sets we've bought and completed over the years with all of our children, but it's easily 50. They're a brilliant tool to get kids thinking about their world from a different angle, and they teach us all so much.