I've been a fan of Weleda for many years. I even visited their premises in Heanor for a funday about 20 years ago. The company started out as a pharmaceutical laboratory in 1921, and this medical background underpins their Organic, natural, sustainable and holistic products which care for your body, mind and soul, and your environment.


Back 20 years ago I had some joint problems and the Arnica Massage Balm was invaluable. Over the years I have made good use of Weleda hayfever and sleep (Nux Vom) homeopathic medicines, and their Bath And Body Oils are truly relaxing. Although I'm kind of beyond 'baby products' now, the Weleda Calendula Nappy Change Cream is still the household favourite 'sore cream' for underarms, rubbing wellies, chafed feet or anywhere else it might be useful.

Architect Academy is written by Steve Martin and illustrated by Essi Kimpimaki. It is a very different kind of children's fact book in that it teaches you the basics of architecture and building design. As you travel through the book, the activities work as a 'course', but aren't just like school work, this is more 'lessons with that supply teacher you really liked'.


Inside the front cover you get the first clues that Architect Academy is different, as half a press-out model bridge cut from card greets you before you even start to read.


The contents page was a bit daunting, with topics such as Construction Maths, and Drawing To Scale, but they are presented in a fun and personal way, and your child won't necessarily even view them as learning. Designing a floor plan for your own imaginary house was the kind of thing I loved when I was young.

I'm not well known for wearing make up, but I am well-known for being super-busy and never having enough time. These two things do sometimes go together. My routine to get ready for the day pretty much involves dampening may hair and putting some clothes on, maybe flapping a bit of powder at my face. I am a woman though, and actually I do like to look as good as I can, so getting into the habit of a 5 minute make up routine sounded right up my street.


ReCover founder Annabel Jardella was a Hollywood make up artist for 25 years, and has also worked extensively on camouflage make up.

"Using colour theory Annabel has created a carefully edited range of targeted colour corrective products to neutralise a range of skin challenges. The pigment packed formulations ensure complete colour correction yet with a super fine layer."

I haven't used foundation in years, and my concealer is mainly used to hide the suitcases I have under my eyes, so I've been trying out ReCover: Correct And Conceal Red and really enjoying the results.

Blog On MSI is a blogging conference held in Manchester, and this year for the first time as well as the Spring Blog On, there was a special edition last weekend bringing Christmas to September.

We're very lucky in that we get to hold the conference in the top floor of the brilliant Museum Of Science and Industry - my kids love it there, and they have some amazing events - for anyone visiting Manchester they have a Science Festival running all through half term 20-30 October.

I said beforehand that I was there for the people - and it was the people that made it what it was. The atmosphere was awesome. I did actually speak to more to brands though than ever before too though, and met 3 people I've been speaking to online for over 3 years, as well as the inventor of one of the products I reviewed a few months ago - Simbrix.


Christmas was with us from the start with the gorgeous decoration - and we were met by the person who puts tons of work to make Blog On happen - Alice from Life As Alice Blog. 


Sim and I had a job to do on the check-in desk, but Steph was able to sneak in with us (she'd stayed overnight at my house and it would have been rude to dump her outside by the door in a strange town).

One of the newest toys from Hasbro is the Transformers: Robots In Disguise Power Surge Optimus Prime and Aerobolt. Suitable for children aged 5+, this is a big toy which does actually transform really well from robot to vehicle in 5 memorable and fairly intuitive steps.


Our box was a bit crumpled from it's journey, but the Transformer itself is fine. Made almost entirely from strong plastic, it's a sturdy model, only the 'bonnet' which hooks on as a backpack lets it down by falling off sometimes.

My youngest child is absolutely obsessed with Minecraft, and we have 5 players in the house, so I was intrigued by the idea of a fiction book for children. Diary Of A Minecraft Zombie Steve 3: The Lost Temple by MC Steve is a book for independent readers aged around 8+, so it's stretching my 6 1/2 year old, but he's been very determined to read it himself.


The book is set out as you would expect a diary, day after day, and each date has 2-4 pages. This breaks up the text and makes it seem less intimidating for newer independent readers.

The story is that of a Zombie named Steve from the game Minecraft. He works as an architect and wins a huge contract to develop the Isle Of Mists. When he sets off to carry out his work, his boat goes astray and he finds himself thrown into an adventure.

We've all played with a Rubik's Cube. They were first introduced in 1974 and have remained incredibly popular and possibly frustrating ever since. Brand new for this Autumn is the Rubik's Spark, an electronic version with 6 different games to play, either alone or competitively against someone else.


The first thing you spot is that this cube doesn't move or twist in sections, you turn the whole thing to control where the flashing light travels. It's very different and takes a bit of getting used to at first.


You start the games by tilting the cube - and it's noisy - so expect it to go off if you move it unless you are very careful - it arrives cable tied to it's packaging and is set to a 'Try Me' demo mode. Something to remember if Santa will be carrying wrapped presents around the house on Christmas eve night!

We love a good dinosaur book, and our latest review for Ivy Kids is a good dinosaur book. Written by Sean Callery and illustrated by Sam Hubbard, and released on October 6th, the full title is Dinosaurs In 30 Seconds: 30 Fascinating Topics For Dinosaur Detectives Explained In Half A Minute.


This is a book written in a style which really appeals to young independent readers. All of the text is in small snappy paragraphs which aren't too intimidating, and the whole book is broken into five segments each with it's own glossary, so even new words are introduced a few at a time, and nicely explained.

A couple of weeks ago we visited Specsavers Opticians to review. As I couldn't really take my own photos, I let my 8 year old loose with my camera. This is a real 'child's eye-view', and he did a great job.

I was given a £150 budget and this paid for everything I received, including my eye test, Glasses with coated lenses and Sunglasses...


Specsavers is actually our regular family Opticians. The prices, range of glasses and service have always been great, and we've been using this branch for the last 9 years. It's familiar to our 6 and 8 year old boys, who have had their eyes tested regularly since they each started school.


My 8 year old was quite excited when I suggested he take the photos, but it was nothing compared to his 6 year old super-charged sensory-seeking brother, who was meanwhile bouncing off the walls. I have to credit all of the staff for ignoring him to the best of their ability and for not making me feel like a bad Mum. All bribes and even a screen ban threat were not getting him to stand or sit still.

Coconutgrass are a small company who sell interesting and often quirky printed gifts for all the family. Some items can be personalised, and my 6 and 8 year old boys have each been sent a Personalised Children's School Book Bag/Luggage Tag.


Using the website and ordering was really simple, and less than a week later the tags arrived beautifully wrapped, which is excellent if you are giving items as gifts. Obviously it also protects them from damage during their journey, although the finish is a nice high gloss which doesn't seem as if it will scratch or chip easily - ours certainly haven't so far.