What Came First? Game Review (Age 10+) Sent by Big Potato Games

What Came First? is a light-hearted game where opponents wager tokens on their ability to correctly identify when things happened. If you are also someone who struggles to remember what you had for tea 2 days ago, believe me, it's trickier than you'd think..

As ever with Big Potato games, it is beautifully presented in a modern looking box which is useful for storage for the lifetime of the game, and you can play instantly. No tricky rules and everything is fairly obvious.

Inside the box are the Game Board, Question Cards and plastic Chips, and cardboard Playing Pieces, Time Tokens and a Starter Token.

You'll need 2 minutes before first play to press them out and then you're good to go.

Zuru Smashers Epic Dino Egg Review (with giveaway) Age 5+Sent by Zuru Toys and Smyths Toy Superstores

The newest release from Zuru Toys is the Smashers Epic Dino Egg. This gigantic surprise-filled dinosaur egg has been flying off the shelves in Smyths Toy Superstores and is bound to be a huge hit this Christmas.

We've teamed up with Smyths and Zuru, who have sent us a Smashers Epic Dino Egg plus some of the regular series 3 Dino Smashers to review - and if you are reading this before midnight Friday 27th September, I'm giving away a £25 Smyths voucher on my Facebook page so that one of my readers can buy their own Zuru Smashers Dino Egg goodies in store (the Epic Dino Egg is currently reduced to £19.99 at Smyths Toy Superstore as I am typing this).

Dino are the 3rd series after Sport and Gross. The Smashers Epic Dino Egg is MASSIVE. It really looks an impressive present and the images on the back of the packaging just add to the excitement.

It says it has over 25 surprises inside, which is a huge number and we were keen to see what was included. Not as heavy as you might expect and no giveaway noises coming from inside...

Crazy Eggz Family Game Review (Age 7+) Sent by Asmodee

Crazy Eggz is an active family game for 2-4 players which involves holding colourful rubber eggs without using your hands. Fast-paced and at times a little contentious, you have to hold up to 5 eggs without dropping them in order to be able to win the game...

The packaging is excellently designed - a cardboard egg box! Inside are 9 bright orange rubber eggs and 1 heavier blue egg, as well as a red Action Dice, white Body Dice, egg stand and instructions.

September #TBCSmiles 61 Months.

It's time for this month's smiles and I imagine anyone with kids is probably really glad it's the weekend. Back to school is hard work and they'll have been shattered by Friday. We had lots of photos of first day front doors - along with an equal number of scared or excited looking children. I hope that it's going well for them so far.

We also had lots of photos of your Summer holidays, and just about everyone sorry that it was ending. It's only about 3 months until Christmas and Autumn is a really beautiful month, if that helps...

We did also have World Suicide Prevention Day and I wrote a post especially. The reason I started collecting our smiles was because we lost someone to suicide. Every smile is a win. It reminds us we can still be happy, and that is the reason we carry on. When you boil it down, 'happy' is all that matters. Smiles are free and contagious, and sometimes you have to look out for them, but they are always there...

Huge thank you to everyone who shared their smiles this month - as ever I had about 56 photos picked out for the collage and then forced one of my family members to take responsibility for choosing 9. You can find them all, and add in your own smiles, by using the hashtag #TBCSmiles on Instagram. ANYONE can join in, and we don't even care if it's a bit blurry or the top of your head is chopped off. Just as long as it has a smile...

Capocci's Pop Up Restaurant Review - Manchester Media City

We were invited along to be among the first people to try out the food at Carpocci's. This unique pop-up restaurant opened it's doors to Media City customers in Manchester on Wednesday and will be here until September 22nd, before it moves off around the country.

I wasn't really sure exactly how a pop up restaurant might work in September in Manchester, but I knew we all like Italian food, and Capocci's promised traditional Italian food full of flavour and a warm family dining experience.

My first fear was quashed, Capocci's was very easy to find, right next to the Media City Metrolink. Seating is outdoor, but I my second fear was also quashed - there is a roof and you are actually snugly tucked in, so you really aren't sat in the wind and weather.

Life goes on.... World Suicide Prevention Day 2019 #WSPD

Today I got up and had a wash, got dressed and made a brew. I checked my two boys were dressed and were at least thinking about having breakfast.
I had the radio on, Radio X with Toby Tarrant because Chris Moyles is on holiday again. It was one of those mornings you end up running up and down stairs loads of times because you've forgotten something, and when you get there you can't remember what it was, so you go back down and instantly remember.
I made the kids sandwiches (we've only got cheese, so no choices today) and packed their lunchboxes into their bags. Then a moment's peace. I sat down for 20 minutes with Facebook, coffee and a slice of toast.
Time for school. We spent a good 5 minutes trying to get everyone out of the door with the correct footwear, coat and bags, and then had to turn back for a forgotten pair of glasses when we were 200 yards up the road. Dropped the kids off, came home, fed the pets.

It was entirely mundane.

So Slime DIY Slimelicious Station Review and UK Giveaway Age 6+ (Sent by Canal Toys)

We recently reviewed the So MAGIC DIY Wonder Magic Garden for Canal Toys and now they've sent us the So Slime DIY Slimelicious Station for review. Suitable for age 6+, this is a scented-slime making kit with enough ingredients and decorations to make 16 little pots of imitation ice cream slime...

Everything is housed in a sturdy box, which can easily be used for storage if you don't make all of your slimes at once. It's an exciting parcel to open.

Included in the kit are a lot of parts, which are easy to distinguish:
Slime Station
4 Mini shakers
Scented Slime powder
2 Tools
Stickers
3 Tubes of colour
Instructions
6 bags of decorations
3 decorative straws

Vanilla Underground Review - Merchandise For All The Family (sent for review)

Vanilla Underground call themselves the home of officially licensed merchandise for all the family and to prove it have sent us a big bundle of items - including something for everyone here. Favourite TV, movie, book, music and game characters on pyjamas, t-shirts, stationery, backpacks, lunchboxes and more...

I gave Vanilla Underground a rough idea of what sort of things we like, plus some sizes, and so our package was mainly a surprise parcel. It was a pleasant surprise too - we were delighted! First up, our 9 and 10 year old boys. Minecraft Pyjamas for the pair of them.

A big hit - I've already washed both pairs twice. No runs, loose threads or shrinkage, I'm pleased with the quality. My 10 year old's pyjamas are quite thick too, ideal for Winter despite the short sleeves. The same goes for the 5 Nights At Freddy's pyjamas in the photo below - great cold weather lounging pyjamas.

Modelling so that you can actually see the pictures on the pyjamas isn't their strong point...

OKIDO Which Way? Coding Game Review (for age 4-8+) Sent by OKIDO

I really like OKIDO. My boys have enjoyed their magazines for many years and now they are branching out with a range of kits and games. We've been sent the OKIDO Which Way? Coding Board Game to review. Everything OKIDO do brings together creativity with science, making it not only rewarding and fun, but educational and really accessible to all children - whatever their ability or gender.

Which Way? Coding Board Game is a bit young for my own children, so I enlisted help from some of the children who play in my garden all Summer, but they don't appear in the photos or video.

I'm really impressed right from the start. This is a game which teaches young children to think 'like a coder' and prepares them for genuine computer programming and use. The design is simple genius, a line-following robot car with a magnetic board and track pieces, which are designed to replicate blocks of computer code.

Angry Birds New Toy Range Review (Sent by Jazwares).

This Summer toy manufacturer Jazwares have released a brand new range of Angry Birds toys to tie in with recent Angry Birds 2 movie release, and we've been sent a bundle for review. We've been sent 1 x Feature Plush, 1 x Game Pack and 1 x Catablind (Splat Ball)...

Excuse the pyjamas! Summer holidays are for relaxing... and throwing things at the door! I will start with the Splat Ball, or Catablind. We've been sent a green Angry Bird Piggy and he's proven very popular with my youngest.

I always discourage my children from throwing these at the ceiling, but somehow they always 'accidentally' end up there. At least we are in no doubts that it sticks well!