Faith and Trust and Pixie Dust...

Ever since Honey first saw the advert for My Fairy Garden on kids TV a couple of years ago, she has spoken about them constantly (ok, I exaggerate, but sometimes it feels like that's the case). I knew she would be over the moon to receive one of her very own, so I held on to it for a few days after the parcel arrived, to make sure we had the time to put it all together there and then!

Needless to say, Honey couldn't believe her luck and was ecstatic to receive such a fabulous gift. I explained that we would have to test the Fairy Garden and let other children know all about it, which she took very seriously and nattered the whole time about ideas for this post. Honey and I spent a (mostly) happy hour putting it all together, she definitely needed some adult help as some parts feel a bit brittle and Honey can be heavy handed so would have broken them without intervention.

As a primary school teacher, it's hard to let go of searching out the educational value of a toy coming into the house, but when I was offered the chance to review the Fairy Light Garden, I googled Interplay and the first thing I read was 'STEM toys' which was positive! While we put the garden together, lots of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) chat naturally occurred. We discussed 2D and 3D shapes, symmetry and the seed growing process. Honey commented that the soil pilfered from our solitary plant in the garden was cold and probably needed some water to soften it so the seeds would be able to bed in. She also reminded me when we needed to water the seeds (I needed reminding, I cannot keep plants or flowers alive to save my life). After a few days, the grass hadn't started to grow, so we had another conversation about why that might be and what we could do to encourage growth and together, we decided to move the garden to a sunnier location. Bingo, grass shoots!

Growth Mindset is a huge deal in education at the moment and putting the kit together required plenty of perseverance and resilience on Honey's part. She was keen to get on, so didn't read the instructions at first and accidentally connected a couple of pieces incorrectly. This annoyed her, but after a little pep talk, she went back to the drawing board (instruction booklet) and tried again. She also put her fine motor skills to the test by tying knots, peeling stickers and folding the bunting. The age guide states 'for ages 4+'. Honey turned 5 in May and has just started year 1, so I'd say the the age advice is accurate, if your children will be supported by an adult. 

Once she had finished laying the gravel path, assembling and attaching the bridge and sprinkling the fairy dust, Honey was really chuffed with what she had created. She loved the sounds and once she got the hang of how to turn it on and off (blow like a candle), the light was a hit too. 

What you will need to be able to put together the Fairy Light Garden:
A pair of scissors to aid unpacking.
A small cross head screwdriver.
2AAA batteries.
Some soil or compost.
Roughly a tablespoon of water.

The Fairy Garden would be even better if...
The toadstool house was secured on top of decking. At the moment, it is really easy to take off and play with separately but it slides around if they try to play with it in place. Perhaps velcro or a clip could be used so you still have the option of removing the house.

The manufacturers used less packaging. The kit came packaged in lots of different plastic bags, most of which could have been avoided, as the first thing Honey wanted to do was spread all the pieces out on the table so they ended up jumbled together anyway! 

Overall, the Fairy Light Garden is a hit in this house. I am happy with the balance of traditionally educational and free play opportunities the garden opens up and Honey is thrilled to own a much longed for toy. Even Ace asks to put the nightlight on when I put him to bed, which is super cute! The Fairy Light Garden is available from Interplay UK Ltd and while its not exactly a pocket money toy (this set retails at £29.99), I would definitely purchase it as a Christmas or birthday present. 

Honey wears... Rainbow sweatshirt from Next 

*Although we were kindly gifted this product in order to write a review, all thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are my own.

Shop 'til you drop...

The Gallagher Shopping Park is one of the most popular shopping destinations in Cheltenham and we are lucky enough to live just a 5 minute drive away from it. It has over 500 free parking spaces, which includes both disabled and parent and child spaces. They have also been recognised with a Park Mark award under the Safer Parking Scheme, designed to reduce crime in car parks. Easily accessible by bus, the shopping park is situated less than 2 miles away from the town centre and is also on bus routes leaving from the train station.

We arrived on Saturday afternoon when the park was at its busiest, finding a parking space took a while, but eventually we spotted one. When we have Ace with us, it's really useful to park in one of the parent and child spaces so I can easily get down the side of the car to help him out, but he wasn't with us today so any space would do. Navigating the car park with a young child is made easier by the zebra crossings and there are also designated lanes for bikes, so everyone knows where they should be. 

With clothing and accessories from Next, Outfit and Sports Direct, food from Subway, Greggs and Patisserie Valerie and homeware from HomeSense, DFS and Oak Furniture land, there isn't much you won't find at the Gallagher Shopping Park.

 

The reason for this trip was because we had been invited to check out what's in the shops for Autumn/Winter 2018, which was exciting but a little daunting for me as I am a huge fan of 'summer brights' and often feel drab in darker, more wintery colours (apart from a LBD, who feels drab in a LBD?). I needn't have worried though, because what Honey and I found across the stores was actually a sea of colour! Sure there was some terracotta and mustard in the mix (both lovely, classic Autumn colours, they're just not normally what I look for), but overwhelmingly, the trends seemed to be all about colour. 

Boots is my favourite, child friendly place to shop on the park. There are parent and child spaces right out side the doors, tiny trollies to keep little ones occupied while you shop, plus a baby room for those emergency feeding or changing moments. There are also loads of fab offers in store if you're part of the Boots Parenting Club (which is free to join online and gives you benefits such as free gifts, extra points on kids items and money off vouchers). For the grown ups, there are some fab new nail and lip colours hitting the shelves and the current trend for face masks doesn't seem to be diminishing, which is great news for people like me who like to pamper themselves at home when the budget doesn't stretch to anything more professional!

I hear a lot about HomeSense on Instagram, but rarely visit as we have a relatively minimalist home (apart from the kids' toys) and I don't want to be tempted into buying all the pretty trinkets! Honey LOVED all the pretty trinkets and I was rather taken by the range of colourful cushions available, but it was upstairs that really surprised me. Honey was in awe of the toy section and I could see her point! It's a great place to pick up quirky yet inexpensive birthday presents and there are some fab gifts for new babies too. There's even a food emporium up there, which I had no idea about!

Now on to my favourite bit of shopping, clothes! Since becoming a Mum in 2013, then again in 2016, most of my clothes purchasing has been for my children, which is why they most definitely have way better wardrobes than I do! I wouldn't have it any other way, but sometimes a treat for me is needed and appreciated.

Outfit was our first stop and Honey and I were overjoyed to see so much red on the rails (she's obsessed with PJ Masks and Owlet is her favourite, I just think it's a fun colour)! I also loved the metallic trainers, fun, slogan t-shirts and bright hoodies. I love this shop because you can buy for yourself and your children and choose from a range of brands all under one roof.

In Sports Direct, the great choice of colourful, practical outerwear caught my eye. Proper outdoor clothing is a must for our family. Honey and Ace love to go out in most weather conditions (Ace isn't overly keen on snow) and the school run needs doing whether it's pouring with rain or not, so being able to buy great quality, outdoor brands at reasonable prices is ideal. I also loved their range of colourful footwear, I am definitely motivated by pretty things, so a cute pair of trainers I've found in there will be the perfect 'carrot' to dangle to encourage me to exercise more often!

Finally, in Next, we loved their fun twists on animal print, their rainbow themed kids range and their colourful adult styles too. Perennial favourites, dinosaurs and unicorns continue to play a big part in the children's and homeware departments, much to Honey's delight. We also loved that after a tiring couple of hours shopping, we could relax with a juice and a babychino at their in store cafe, Patisserie Valerie.

To summarise, The Gallagher Shopping Park is a great, family friendly shopping destination. From the parent and child spaces, walkways and zebra crossings in the car park, to the super useful baby rooms and toilets in Boots and Next, they have tried hard to make life just that little bit easier. On top of that if you need to get back home for the school run or only have half an hour to shop before a toddler meltdown ensues, Gallagher Shopping Park's Click and Collect service can help make sure you get what you came for. Oh, and one last thing, how useful is it to have a supermarket on site too? With Sainsbury's across the road from the main park and another supermarket due to open in the old Whole Foods building, you can even do the weekly shop while you're there!

So, I'm off to do an online shop for some of the rainbow clothing we didn't purchase yesterday but if you fancy seeing some of the other bits we liked the look of while we were shopping, why not have a browse of our Pinterest board to give you some inspiration? Happy shopping everyone!

*Although this blog post is a paid collaboration with The Gallagher Shopping Park, all images, thoughts and opinions within are my own.

Honey wears... Leopard print dress by Next
Mummy and Honey wear... Autumn/Winter brights by Next and Sports Direct