I’m a huge fan of Jamie Oliver, whether it’s because of his apparent love for Mediterranean-infused dishes, or his simplistic approach to elaborate meals that can be replicated by many. But, his mantra towards advocating a healthy food education for kids was what touched my heart more than anything. As a father of four children, it’s clear that he has a strong intention to involve his children in his cookery, in order to set them up with strong, lasting knowledge of good and bad food. And, he’s extended those expertise towards parents, so they can, in turn, teach their children the value of nutritious and tasty food – yes, children, healthy food can, indeed, taste good!
So, of course, I was extremely excited to review Jamie’s Italian restaurant, situated in Westfield’s Stratford City, a bustling pace full of multi-culture, and see whether his passion for great, simple and healthy food had translated to his many restaurants.
Who’s Jamie Oliver?
Born on 27 May 1975, Jamie took an early interest in food. He grew up in Essex, where his parents, Trevor and Sally, still run their own highly respected pub/restaurant, The Cricketers, in Clavering. Jamie was frequently found helping out in the kitchens where his fascination for food grew and at 16 he left school to complete his training at Westminster Catering College. After spending some time working in France, followed by a stint at Antonio Carluccio’s Neal Street Restaurant (where he first met mentor Gennaro Contaldo), Jamie joined the acclaimed River Café where he worked for three and a half years alongside Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers.
In 1997, Jamie was featured in a television documentary about the River Café. Soon after the documentary was aired, Jamie was offered his own television show and The Naked Chef was born. By the end of 2001, Jamie wanted to ‘give something back’ to the catering industry and decided to open a training restaurant for young people who were not in full time education or employment.
In 2004, motivated by the poor state of school dinners in UK schools, Jamie embarked on one of his most ambitious ventures to date. He went back to school with the aim of educating and motivating the kids and dinner ladies to enjoy cooking and eating healthy, nutritious lunches rather than processed foods that they were used to. Jamie launched a national campaign called ‘Feed Me Better’ (www.feedmebetter.com) and launched an online petition for better school meals. As a result of the 271,677 signatures on the petition, which Jamie took to 10 Downing Street on 30th March 2004, the government pledged an extra £280 million to improve the standard of school meals, to provide training for dinner ladies and equipment for schools.
Jamie Oliver is a phenomenon in the world of food and one of the world’s best-loved television personalities, as well as one of Britain’s most famous exports. Jamie has inspired people to spend more time enjoying cooking delicious food from fresh ingredients.
And, so Jamie’s Italian was born
Jamie’s Italian was founded in Oxford in 2008. Since then it has grown to more than 30 restaurants worldwide, and there are plans to build more in towns, counties and countries around the world.
Jamie’s Italian is inspired by Jamie’s passion for the Italian way of life:
“Since I was a teenager I’ve been totally besotted by the love, passion and verve for food, family and life itself that just about all Italian people have, no matter where they’re from or how rich or poor they might be. And that’s what I’m passionate about – good food for everyone, no matter what… but the thing I love most about the Italians is that somehow, although they have some of the best fashion designers and cars in the world, they’ve managed to retain a unique sense of tradition and village spirit.”
Jamie’s Italian’s menu contains authentic, rustic dishes created using tried and tested recipes. Jamie’s friend and mentor, Gennaro Contaldo, has added substance to what is now the essence of Jamie’s Italian – tradition combined with current, innovative ideas and a Jamie twist.
The ingredients used are sourced from producers, both in Italy and around the UK, and the staff are trained to have a thorough knowledge of all the dishes served at Jamie’s Italian. The restaurant is designed to be accessible and affordable, where everyone feels welcomed and comfortable, no matter the time of day. Each restaurant is uniquely designed to incorporate the history of the building and personality of the city, as well as creating an environment where the focus is on exceptional food, good company and the relaxed conviviality of the “Italian table.”
Jamie’s Italian’s Website and Social Networking Sites:
Considering we live at the other end of London (North West), we figured it was going to be a long drive to Stratford City, but it was only a 50 minute journey by car, despite the heavy traffic. We initially struggled to find Jamie’s Italian restaurant, which was actually situated outside of Westfield’s centre, in the food court, and we had to walk around a little bit before we found the restaurant tucked away in the corner, opposite John Lewis’ large store.
As soon as we entered Jamie’s Italian restaurant, the rustic Mediterranean atmosphere was overcoming. The building is decorated with authentic Italian hams and other various condiments and the wooden flooring and glass frontage of the restaurant allows you to get away from the hustle and bustle of Westfield and relax by the window or alfresco in the Four Dials square in front of the restaurant. We were directed to sit in the middle of the restaurant downstairs, with easy access to the disabled toilet.
After a few hiccups with the booking reservation, which was quickly sorted out, we were handed our menus, including two 3D Image Binoculars for the kids that displayed the kids’ menu inside and some crayons, complete with colouring in sheets of paper (which hubby took a particular interest in).
We had lots of fun choosing the kids’ meals and we ended up ordering the following:
For the Kids
Nutritional and Meal Information
Price
For the Parents
Nutritional Information
Price
Starters
Artisan Italian Breads
308.6 Calories –Suitable for Vegetarians and Vegans
Homemade rosemary focaccia, sourdough, music bread & grissini with olive oil, balsamic & sun-dried tomato & olive tapenade.
£3.85
Main Meal
Spaghetti Bolognese
The old-school sauce made with beef and pork, tossed in homemade spaghetti.
£5.95
Superfood Salad with grilled chicken
367.7 / 502.1 calories – suitable for vegetarians and Gluten free.Avocado, fennel, garden leaves, shredded asparagus & courgettes with candied beets, cime di rapa & a mix of grains, shoots, nuts & seeds. Served with smashed cannellini bean, hummus, cottage cheese & fennel blossom harissa.
£13.95
Mini Sliders
Organic chicken & beef patties with soft lettuce and a tomato, served in a seeded bun with baked crinkle-cut wedges.
£5.95
The Jamie’s Italian Burger with chips
1033 calories – contains sesame, Milk, Egg, Gluten, Wheat, Lactose and Chilli. Suitable for gluten free if served without the burger bun.Prime British chuck & flank steak with smoked mozzarella, mortadella, balsamic onions, tomato, pickles & chillies.
£13.45
Chicken Lollipops
Three free-range organic chicken fillets, chargrilled & served with a lemony yoghurt, crunchy mixed seeds & baked crinkle-cut wedges.
The boys were apparently very hungry, so we decided to order three kids’ meals (the Spaghetti Bolognese, Mini Sliders and Chicken Lollipops) and share the third amongst ourselves in case the boys couldn’t eat it. The waiter was fantastic, offering healthy and attractive options for the boys and even adding on a little extra service, kindly informing us that the apple juices were free and that the boys would love the selection of breads – and so we went for that. The drinks were brought on first and the boys downed their apple juices, not listening to us parents warning them that they’d be full before dinner or that they’d have nothing to drink during their meal. The apple juice tasted fresh, but sweet and we considered ordering them another, but we thought better of it. I tucked my Limonata away, knowing full well the boys would drink it anyway, and enjoyed my Prosecco with a raspberry inside – it was quite strong!
Artisan Italian Breads, £3.85 (Starters)
We opted for the Artisan Italian Breads selection for starters, which were fresh and delicious and garnished with lemon juice, garlic and rosemary. There were a wide variety of breads displayed next to our table and Aron kept calling on the waiter to have him deliver the ’round’ bread on show. The waiter was very patient and calmly explained that they were just on display and that the Artisan Italian Breads they had ordered were much tastier. Six points to the waiter who had managed to steer Aron away, so that he could concentrate on his own starter, which he thoroughly enjoyed. I managed to try out a little bit of all of them and the soft bread went perfectly with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar, a pair that I’ve always lovingly complemented with my toasted bread in the mornings.
We had about a fifteen minute wait before the main meals arrived, which all came at once, and we were pleasantly surprised at the amount of food that we were provided on the dishes. I thought to myself that there was no way the boys could finish all of their three meals, but, boy, was I wrong!
(From top left to bottom right – The Jamie’s Italian Burger with Chips, Superfood Salad with Grilled Chicken, Posh Chips, Side Salad, Aidan tucking into his Mini Sliders, Grilled Chicken from the Chicken Lollipops Kids’ Meal, Mini Sliders, Mini Sliders Pattie, Aron enjoying Spaghetti Bolognese).
The Superfood Salad with Grilled Chicken, £13.95 (Main Dish)
Being Mediterranean myself, the food suited me to a T. The Superfood Salad was simply amazing and actually filled me up completely. The grilled chicken complemented the zesty salad and the avocado balanced the overall taste of the dish perfectly. I even struggled to complete the meal as I was quite comfortably stuffed. I don’t think I’ve ever been ‘full’ on a salad at a restaurant before. If I could feel this satisfied after a meal like the Superfood Salad – the healthiest main meal on the menu – then Jamie’s Superfood Salad is real nutritional value for money in my eyes.
The Jamie’s Italian Burger with Chips, £13.45 (Main Dish)
Hubby really tucked into his burger and chips and commented that the meal had a real home-made feel to it. The burger contained less salt and the meat was juicy. But, hubby mentioned that he struggled to understand why the burger was sitting on a paper napkin, which he cut into and almost ate a few times. I mentioned that it was probably the restaurant’s way of minimising the cleaning job afterwards and that the napkin kept the wooden platter clean. Hubby was unimpressed with this notion…
Aron’s Spaghetti Bolognese, £5.95 (Kids Meal)
Aron has always been a huge fan of Spaghetti Bolognese, despite not being a meat eater. It’s been the only way I can get meat into his diet at home, so I thought it was the safest option on the menu. I pictured a small dish with a few bits of spaghetti and a little bit of meat being brought out, so ordering the third kids meal was originally meant for Aron in mind. But, when the waiter brought over a large bowl of spaghetti, I thought that it was the perfect size for Aron’s large appetite. I snuck in a taste of the Spaghetti Bolognese and I found it to be slightly bland, but Aron polished the whole meal and even asked for seconds (see!) I offered him some of Aidan’s Chicken Lollipops, but he insisted on eating hubby’s leftover bread and the buns left on Aidan’s Mini Slider patties. Jamie’s Spag Bol had passed the ‘Aron Taste Test’ and scored a huge thumbs up from hubby and I.
Aidan’s Mini Sliders, £5.95 (Kids Meal)
Aidan took great enjoyment in tucking into the meat inside the patties. He left the buns to Aron as he’s not much of a bread eater (sometimes I wish I could marry the two boys’ protein and carbs preference to create one perfect appetite). The dish was presented really well with a cute ‘Jamie’s Italian’ flag skewing the patties to keep them upright. The meat was well cooked and the chips were gorgeous – soft and not greasy. Aidan even tried the Balsamic/olive oil sauce and enjoyed it – he is a true Mediterranean.
Aidan’s Chicken Lollipops, £5.95 (Kids Meal)
When I say Aidan is a chicken fiend, I mean that Aidan would choose chicken over chocolate (perhaps not ice cream). Aidan would meticulously pick out all the chicken bits in some of the meals I make at home and give the rest of the meal to Aron. So, it is but a mere understatement that Chicken Lollipops were the perfect choice for Aidan on the menu.
True to form, Aidan took his time carefully nibbling at the skewers to ensure none went to waste and when asked if I could try some, he pushed his patties at me. So, unfortunately I never got the chance to try the chicken, which did look tender, but cooked well. However, if Aidan had managed to easily polish off his four skewers of chicken, then the Chicken Lollipops were, no doubt, a success, even if they were being lovingly received by a loyal chicken fan. Four thumbs up from Hubby and I.
Dessert
After the meals were devoured, I thought that there was no way the boys had the stomach for dessert, but as soon as the waiter asked whether we wanted to see the dessert menu, the boys shouted in unison, ‘yes’. So, we were going to get dessert. We all chose quite quickly (I’m a sucker for Tiramisu, hubby loves the indulgent Epic Brownie and the boys always pick ice cream (chocolate for Aron and vanilla for Aidan). We waited quite a while for the dessert, so the boys decided to entertain themselves with a Uri Gellar trick – balancing a metal spoon on their nose. We were surprised that Aron could actually do this and wondered whether he had Uri Gellar’s magical touch.
The desserts finally came and we tucked into our sweet dishes.
Tiramisu, £5.25 (Dessert)
I absolutely loved the Tiramisu, although it wasn’t presented as beautifully – just a slice of cake thrown onto the plate. The coffee flavour complemented the alcoholic twist and the dessert tasted authentic. Tiramisu has always been my chosen dessert at restaurants and, although, the Tiramisu had a lovely rich flavour, it wasn’t the best I’d ever tasted. The dessert could afford a little more softness to the sponge and the other flavours were masked by the strong coffee and alcohol. But, still a nice dessert to enjoy with a creamy Cappuccino.
Epic Homemade Brownie, £5.25 (Dessert)
Hubby mentioned that his Epic Brownie was super rich, but he still managed to eat some before the boys took over and ate the rest. I managed to catch a taste too and I did really like the addition of the caramelised amaretti popcorn that offered a lovely crunch to the pudding. But, it was also too rich for me, the sweetness of the chocolate was too much for hubby and I. I couldn’t offer any of my Tiramisu to the boys because of its alcohol content, so hubby had kindly donated the rest of his dessert to the boys and they welcomed it after their unenthusiastic approaches to their ice creams.
Chocolate and Vanilla Ice Cream, £0.50p each (Kids’ Dessert)
I was a little disappointed with the boys’ ice cream and for 50p I shouldn’t have expected much more. I couldn’t understand why the one scoop of ice cream was offered with a large tablespoon in an ugly metallic bowl. They looked so second rate to our lovely adult desserts. Nevertheless, it’s ice cream and the boys did their best to enjoy every morsel. Naturally, they asked for more, but seeing how they demolished hubby’s Brownie, we thought that was quite enough sugar for them in one afternoon.
With all the dishes cleaned off the plate, hubby and I thought Jamie’s food was a raging success. Not only did we manage to get the boys to eat all of their food, but they shared three whole kids’ meals and felt satisfied, with nicely stuffed tummies full of healthy goodness. I was very impressed that they liked Jamie’s food and I was sure that we would be returning again as a treat for the kids.
What did I like most about Jamie’s Italian Restaurant?
The wait service was friendly and efficient, and the waiting staff were easily accessible. Our personal waiter was particularly attentive and helpful, offering us alternative options and advice on the menu that he believed the boys would like and we had a lovely chat after the meal about blogging and healthy food in general.
The restaurant’s main toilets are upstairs and round the back, which is quite far away. But, we were seated opposite the disabled toilet, which was only a few yards away. This was perfect for the boys and I wondered whether it was a conscious decision to seat us by the disabled toilet, so that we had easy access. It definitely came in handy after the copious amounts of liquid Aron had consumed during that lunch.
What to watch out for:
Ingesting paper napkins during your meal and choosing your dessert because if you’re going to order your children the 50p ice cream, they will certainly be tucking into your dessert too. On the flipside, it is probably the amount of ice cream I would offer to my boys at home too because you don’t want them to take so much sugar in. So, either hide your dessert or be prepared to give some of it away.
Other points to note:
We gave the boys a hearty breakfast and then no snacks at all until we got to Jamie’s Italian at 2.30pm. So, perhaps, the trick is to stave off food for just a few extra hours to ensure children eat most, if not, all of their food in order to increase chances of happy, full tummies after a great meal.
Rating:
5 out of 5 – Even though there were a few minor grievances, both hubby and I found Jamie’s Italian to be a huge success for the boys, who happily ate all three of their meals. The dishes were healthy, simple and delicious and the restaurant managed to emit a lovely calm and homely atmosphere, as we didn’t experience any complaints or tantrums from the boys. A very lovely and healthy day out with the kids – we will definitely come back for more.
*Motherhood Diaries was offered a £50 voucher to review Jamie’s Italian restaurant in Westfield’s Stratford City, whilst the children ate for free. The post about the restaurant has been 100% written by Motherhood Diaries and the opinions and statements are 100% our own.*
PhotoBox Canvas Product Review
Personalising my home with wall décor is one of my favourite pastimes, having recently gotten into wall decals and bunting to decorate the walls in our flat. But, an all-time favourite are canvas prints and being able to showcase my husband’s unique photography talent at home is an added bonus. So, when PhotoBox generously gifted Motherhood Diaries one of their great quality canvas prints to enjoy in the comfort of our home, I felt compelled to provide a review on PhotoBox and our finished canvas.
PhotoBox is Europe’s leading online digital photo service with over 30 million members.
PhotoBox are market leaders, driven by their passion for photography and artistic keepsakes. They currently offer cards, wall art, mugs, and t-shirts, which are just a few of the options available from their service, and host an extensive online community that sparks much of their innovation and drive to engage with customers and their unique art.
Products for Review:
Premium Canvas 101.6cm x 76.2cm – £84.99
Additional format, ‘Premium Thickness’ is usually £25.00.
It took a long time to figure out which photo to print onto our large canvas and we finally whittled it down to two very different styles of art, both photographed by hubby. We finally went with our gut and decided to go with a very retro style photo of a busker playing the saxophone in London, but with the colours touched up by hubby to make the picture red and black. As we have dark red blinds in our lounge, we thought it would be the perfect option to blend in with the red tones that surrounded the room.
Picking the picture and ordering the canvas on PhotoBox’s website:
Choosing the image was the hard part, the easy part was actually uploading the picture onto PhotoBox’s website and choosing the size and feel of the canvas we wanted.
Click on ‘Canvas & Décor’ in the main navigation bar, at the top of the website’s homepage. You can also hover on the link and a dropdown menu will appear, showcasing all the different types of wall décor PhotoBox offers. I selected ‘Premium Canvas’.
You will be asked to choose the size of the canvas you want by clicking on ‘View Sizes’.
Here, you will then be shown all the different sizes available, plus the format you wish to have the canvas. I opted for ‘100cm x 76cm (39″ x 30″), the largest canvas available, and ‘Premium Thickness’. The largest canvas size you can have costs £84.99 and Premium Thickness (4.7cm) costs an extra £25.00. You are, helpfully, provided with the provisional cost of your option. Mine came to £109.99.
You will then be given the option to drag a photo from your files to a designated box on the website, or upload a file. Your photo will be uploaded to a new album or an existing album in your PhotoBox account. You can change the orientation of the canvas from portrait to landscape, and vice versa, and whether you would like the photo to wrap around the edges of the canvas (or not wrap the photo and have a white border.)
Once you have picked your picture, size and format (you can change the size of the canvas at this stage, if you need to), you head over to the top right-hand corner of the page and, either click on ‘Save’, to save your settings, or ‘Order’ to order the canvas to be printed. If your chosen image is of low quality, PhotoBox will warn you to check your image and confirm that the image you’ve chosen is your desired photo.
You’ll be then taken to your basket to check over your order and proceed to checkout where you pay for the canvas to be printed.
You will receive a notification email of your order and a further email to let you know that the canvas has been dispatched.
We received our canvas exactly a week later and got to work straight away putting up our work of art.
We also ordered some 3M Command Strips in Medium, to affix our canvas to the wall. These strips promise to protect your wall and your canvas, and since we have quite weak plaster walls, we thought that the Command Strips would be a much better option than drilling a hole into our wall.
The packaging that came with the delivery of the canvas was very strong, sandwiched between two hard pieces of cardboard to protect the print.
Below is the back of the canvas print. You can see the picture hanging strips that we secured to the canvas, with the counterpart strips already affixed to the wall.
Securing the canvas to the wall was tricky, even hubby struggled to keep the canvas straight. We didn’t have a wall leveller to hand, so it was up to our untrained eyes to ensure the canvas was in the right position. The finished product wasn’t straight…
When we saw the canvas and the red saxophonist on the wall, we both agreed that we should have gone with the other image we had in mind, a picture of London Bridge and some warships on Thames River (below).
This was our canvas:
I was so impressed with the print quality of the canvas that I know the picture of London would have been a much better option, simply because the print would have been able to capture all the minute detail in the picture. Having said that, I’m still happy with the choice we’ve gone with and I will definitely look to buy a canvas from PhotoBox again.
What did I like most about PhotoBox’s Service and Canvas?
PhotoBox’s website is very easy to navigate, but they are missing a search button, which may help in finding a particular item you already have in mind. Although we picked the wrong image for our wall, the print quality is excellent. I think you’d be hard pushed to find a better quality print for such a large canvas, unless you’re willing to pay well within the hundreds to get it.
What to watch out for:
Use a wall leveller before you put up your canvas. Ours is not straight and it’s driving me mad!
Other points to note:
There are other canvas sizes available. Check out http://www.photobox.co.uk for a full selection of what PhotoBox can offer. The 3M Command Strips are a useful tool to couple the canvases too as they’re strong, sturdy and safe for use on weak walls like ours.
Rating:
5 out of 5 – It was our fault for not choosing the right image, but that’s it. There is nothing bad to say about PhotoBox. The online service is easy to follow and quick to use, with regular updates on when your canvas will arrive and swift delivery afterwards. I will definitely look to buy from PhotoBox again.
*I was gifted a canvas from PhotoBox, but the review and my opinions are 100% my own.*
My 1st Years Xylophones Product Review
Personalised, timeless gifts are always a fantastic way to show someone you love them and personalising your children’s gifts will mean that they can treasure these gifts for life. When Motherhood Diaries was offered the chance to review some products from the ‘My 1st Years’ range, as a bona fide musician, I decided to review the Personalised Wooden Xylophone for my two boys. Here is how we got on:
My 1st Years was founded in January 2010, when the founders realised that they couldn’t find anything unique enough as the perfect baby gift. They found a gap in the huge baby market for a new company that could provide lovely baby giftsthat were unique, fashionable and affordable.
Personalisation became the key to My 1st Years, whose aim was to become the No. 1 Baby personalisation brand, retaining their core brand values and focusing on providing the highest quality personalised products.
The stock a whole range of personalised baby essentials, but at the heart of their array of products are outfits for newborn babies and products that built the brand – My 1st Shoe, My 1st Outfit, My 1st Bear and My 1st Accessory.
Nearly all of the products on their site can be personalised online and sent straight to the customer or directly to that special someone. Every order will arrive gift wrapped inside their complimentary luxury gift boxes, with a large white bow.
“Introduce baby to the beautiful sounds of this gorgeous pine wood personalised xylophone. This lovely instrument makes a gorgeous decorative accessory for baby’s bedroom until he/she is old enough to play it (36 months). And what’s better than a tuneful colourful xylophone made from pine wood? One with baby’s own name on it! Indeed, our colourful personalised xylophone can be customised with your little one’s name for a unique gift. Simply let us know what the lucky baby is called and we’ll engrave the xylophone using your chosen font style.”
Features of the Xylophone:
Measurements: 32cm x 22cm x 3.5cm
Can be personalised with up to 12 characters
Made from Pinewood
Suitable from 3+ years
When we received our personalised wooden xylophones, I was immediately impressed by the beautiful packaging, which was a lovely baby blue, dressed with a cute white bow.
It’s clear that My 1st Years understands how important the packaging is as well as the product itself, as these personalised gifts are given to that special someone, so it’s worth making the effort to present the product I think.
The boys were very eager to open their magical gift boxes and were a little perplexed at this colourful wooden instrument that was waiting for them inside the box.
Unsure of what to do, I took the wooden xylophones, personalised with their names and showed them how to ‘play’ the xylophones using the two sticks provided. Even though it is clearly stated that these items are not musical instruments intended for educational use, it would have been nice for them to be tuned in order to play them. The boys had a great time bashing their high quality wooden instruments, but I was secretly miffed that I couldn’t show off my musical skills on the xylophone. 🙁
The personalised xylophone is the perfect gift for a special birthday and the gorgeous pine wood and colourful bars looks so beautiful on display in the bedroom. I had both xylophones personalised with the boys’ names, ‘Aron’ and ‘Aidan’, so they will get to treasure their xylophones for life.
And they really enjoyed bashing the xylophones and making very wonderful music in the Preston household! 🙂
Here is a video of the boys getting quite inventive with their new xylophones!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2vyDKESSTg
What did we like most about the My 1st Years Personalised Wooden Xylophones?
They really do look lovely and the pine wood is very strong and sturdy against the boys’ beating of the bars with the two sticks provided. I love the fact they both have their names on the xylophones too.
What to watch out for:
Unfortunately, this xylophone is not tuned perfectly, so if you wanted to play music with it, it wouldn’t come out very well.
Rating:
4.5 out of 5 – I’m going to be a little harsh with the 0.5 I didn’t award the wooden xylophones because they don’t play properly. But, 4.5 goes to the great quality and lovely packaging provided by My 1st Years, which will guarantee these products to be timeless, sentimental gifts
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Postman Pat lovers, young and old(er), lend me your ears and take heed. As part of the Postman Pat movie, Motherhood Diaries got to review one of the Postman Pat toys, this time Showbiz Pat!
I have fond memories of growing up to Postman Pat and his black and white cat (I still remember the Postman Pat theme), and it’s nice to see that he’s still going strong after all this time so that my boys get the chance to grow up with him too.
To celebrate Postman Pat: The Movie, Character Options released Showbiz Pat, the Postman Pat soft toy. In the movie, Pat was seduced by the bright lights of the big city and auditioned for an X-Factor style singing competition, but found that in his absence the post did not run smoothly.
Postman Pat is a British stop-motion animated children’s television series that is aimed at preschool-aged children. The series follows the adventures of Pat Clifton, who is a postman in the fictional village of Greendale.
Who is Showbiz Pat?
Showbiz Pat is a Postman Pat soft toy, which sings, dances and grooves to the music in his glitzy new stage outfit, which is a glittery blue suit. The cuddly animated soft toy features:
The SDS Postman Pat Theme Tune from the TV series
Please Mr. Postman song
You can always count on Postman Pat!
Press Pat’s left hand to hear a sample of the music. Here is Showbiz Pat in action! The boys loved playing Postman Pat games with each other!
Eye See a Dragon in the Glen (Includes 3D Glasses and Child’s Vision Test) Product Review
Optical Express recently supported children’s charity, Children 1st, to produce a book called, ‘Eye See a Dragon in the Glen,’ which is aimed at detecting early visual problems. Motherhood Diaries was offered the chance to review the visionary book and this is how we got on:
Review:
Optical Express/Children 1st Website and Social Media Links:
Eye See a Dragon in the Glen (Includes 3D Glasses and Child’s Vision Test) Product Review:
A brief insight into my family’s eye history. My dad wears very strong glasses (he’s short-sighted (where you can see things closer to you, but your sight struggles as the object moves further away. The technical term for short-sightedness is Myopia)). My mum is also short-sighted and wears very weak glasses, so she’s not too bad. This has resulted in all 4 of us siblings needing to wear glasses/contact lenses for Myopia, ranging from very weak (my brother) to very strong (my sister).
My husband’s dad is very short-sighted but has recently had laser surgery (which was successful), and his mum has perfect 20/20 vision. This has resulted in my husband and his brother being blessed with perfect vision (lucky them!). However, my husband may suffer slightly from colour blindness, which is the inability or decreased ability to perceive colour differences under normal lighting conditions.
Therefore, it may be inevitable that at least one of our kids will suffer from either myopia (most likely) or long sightedness (where you struggle to see things near to you, but the sight gets better as you look at the object from further away. The technical term for long-sightedness is Hyperopia)). Just to add to the mix, all of my immediate family also suffer from Astigmatism, which is a minor optical defect where our vision is blurred due to the shape of the eye resembling a rugby ball or a doughnut. This means that we end up with two focal points to focus the object’s image on the retina (those who do not suffer from Astigmatism should only have one focal point.)
So, to say that I was glad to receive Eye See a Dragon in the Glen to review is an understatement. It has been weighing heavily on my mind for a while now that Aron may be short-sighted. He holds my phone up very close to his face when he’s watching something, or he stands right in front of the TV (something I am later told is quite normal for kids his age). Also, his eye sometimes turns inwards after he has been focussing on something for too long. Optical Express were very generous in offering me, my husband and two boys an eye test (with an appointment made for my contact lens fittings), which I will be reviewing shortly. But, for now, I felt reassured that I was doing something about my sons’ eyes, even if it was in the form of a book for now.
Eye See a Dragon in the Glen tells the story of a troll hunting in The Highlands and was designed with two visual eye checks to detect vision issues in children from an early age. The checks include a Visual Acuity Test (VAT) to check that both eyes see clearly, and a Suppression Test (ST) with 3D glasses to check both eyes are working well together. The tests were designed, developed and validated by Vision Sciences at Glasgow Caledonian University.
Optical Express jumped at the opportunity of supporting the book, which was introduced as a unique charity initiative by Anne-Marie Cairns, Vice President of Clinical at Optos, and Ken Lewandowski of the Scottish Business Challenge.
“The idea to create a fun and interactive book for children to enjoy that will also help to detect any vision issues early on is a stroke of genius, which is completely aligned with our own mission to improve the standard of eye care across the UK.” John Morgan, Optical Express’ Business Development Director.
Optical Express is supporting the overall aims of the book by funding a large-scale print run and all proceeds from the sale of the book go to Children 1st.
When I first cast my eye over this book, it immediately took me back to a book I used to read as a child, but its name escapes me. It was about a friendly dragon in the forest and I thought this book would be about the same. But, when I turned the pages, I was very impressed with the clever graphics on display, expertly illustrated by one Holly Jameson.
Immediately Aron got to work, trying to phonetically read the title, but not quite understanding why ‘Eye’ was used instead of ‘I’.
Aron followed the wavy pattern of the words on the first page as I read them out slowly. I wondered whether the wavy pattern was designed to test whether the child can follow words that are not in a straight line.
The story starts with a red dragon, Mirren, whose eyes work best in the light and dawn is the time when dragons fly high and the sun is never too bright.
But, Trolls’ eyes are made for the shade as they live deep underground. Lochy the Brave decides to come up to the surface to play, but the light is too bright for his eyes, so he panics and can’t move away.
Aron was very intrigued as to why the light bothered Lochy’s eyes, and asked a series of questions related to the sensitivity of eyes:
‘Why did Lochy’s eyes hurt when he looked at the light?”
“Why did he cover his eyes?”
“Why is the sun so bright?”
“Why do Trolls live underground?”
Ok, maybe not the last question, but a perfectly acceptable question! Aron was actually quite empathetic towards Lochy, explaining that Lochy’s eyes hurt and that he needs to see a doctor. “Ah,” I said, “Well that’s what we need opticians for, to test our eyes so that we can check whether our eyes are hurt. They are doctors for the eyes.”
That sparked off a whole series of questions about opticians… we talked about testing eyes for about 5 minutes before I was able to get Aron to turn the next page, but I was secretly proud that I had sparked Aron’s interest about the health of his eyes and how he needed to look after them. On to the next page!
Mirren the dragon hears Lochy’s’ sad cry and, concerned that Lochy is in trouble, she ushers Lochy to the Eye Clinic at once for his eyes to be seen.
Aron agreed.
“Yes, he needs to go to the Eye Clinic!”
“Why?” I ask.
“Because he needs to check his eyes are not broken!”
That’s one way of putting it…
Mirren assures that even though Lochy can’t see her, help is at hand by a friend that lives far away. Mirren wants to take Lochy away from this glen and count to ten.
I asked Aron to point out the numbers as he counted to ten, which he completed correctly on the page. However, Aron is very proficient with numbers, so whether he can see the print or not is inconclusive. Nevertheless, he enjoyed counting to ten many times over!
Swoosh whoosh POP! Mirren and Lochy arrive at the Eye Clinic and EyeRon gets to work explaining the fun eye exams available. Lochy is still covering his eyes and Aidan is still fixated on the word, ‘POP!’ which he repeats over and over again with a huge grin on his face.
“What makes you happy…?” EyeRon asks.
“Hunting Dragons!” Lochy exclaims, which sends Mirren into a state of terror.
Nevertheless, the tests commence, starting with a fun game counting some broken rings on Mirren’s tummy, complete with some instructions to the parent/carer on how to administer the test to the child.
VAT Instructions to Parent/Carer:
Hold the book normally (30 – 40cm in front of your child).
Cover one of your child’s eyes with your hand.
Ask your child to point (or count) all of the broken rings (Alternatively, point to the rings and ask if they are broken).
Now cover the other eye and repeat the test.
Vision Test Results
“Searching for the Broken Rings.”
This will test the ability to see fine detail. Your child should be encouraged to find the smallest “broken ring” and should do equally well with the right and left eyes. A 3-year-old child should accurately identify 5 or more rings. From 4 – 5 years of age they should see all 7 correctly.
Aron had great fun counting and pointing to the broken rings, which he completed very successfully. He refused point blank for me to cover his eye, so he covered his left eye and then his right eye, following all the instructions I relayed to him. Aidan’s ears pricked up at the sound of Aron’s counting and decided to have a go himself. It was virtually impossible getting him to listen to me explain that I needed to cover one of his eyes before he started counting, so I just left him to it… This lasted for about 5 minutes before we could turn the page.
The next page was by far the most enjoyable page for the boys as they got to use the 3D Glasses supplied at the back of the book to test their colour vision.
ST Instructions
Make sure to put on your 3D Glasses.
Now point to or count the dragons on the test card.
Vision Test Results
“3D Glasses Find the Dragons.”
This test checks that both of your child’s eyes are working well together. All 3 dragons should be visible with the glasses on. (Your child will see only two if his/her eyes are not working as well together).
I wasn’t surprised that the boys had the most fun trying out the 3D Glasses, but I did manage to get them to take the test properly. Aron successfully saw all 3 dragons and I even added a bonus game where if he covered the blue lens the blue dragon would disappear and if he covered the red lens the red dragon would disappear and there would be only two dragons left. Aron was intrigued! So, he took the test over and over and over and over again, even demanding Aidan take the test and yelling orders at him to “Cover the glasses!”
Aidan walked off to test other parts of the flat with the 3D Glasses…
EyeRon was happy that Lochy had completed all the tests and diagnosed that sunglasses were the best option to protect his eyes from the bright light, “to keep your eyes working their best!”
I repeated to Aron that wearing sunglasses during the day when the sun is out will protect his eyes from the bright light and I was happy that the book had delivered that message very well through fantastic illustration and easy to understand sentences.
The book concludes with Lochy realising that his rescuer was Mirren the dragon and he vowed to never go hunting for dragons with the trolls again. So off they went to play together as best of friends now that Lochy’s eyes were protected from the bright light.
What did I like most about Eye See the Dragon in the Glen?
I liked the clear message the book sends to parents and children about the importance of testing vision from an early age. Each page illustrates this message and respective tests beautifully, whilst maintaining that fun factor to keep the child focussed and entertained. The book also offers some very insightful information and guidance on testing your child’s vision at home and what the results may mean.
What to watch out for:
The book offers a caveat that, although its mission is to promote the importance of early vision testing in young children, it should never be used as a substitute for a comprehensive eye examination. Nevertheless, all of us thoroughly enjoyed the book and the lessons we learned were invaluable.
Other points to note:
If you have any concerns regarding your child’s vision you should contact your local optometrist straight away.
Rating:
5 out of 5 for so many reasons, one of which is that the book offers a fantastic way of educating your child on vision testing and invites an interest into looking after their eyes to set them up for the future.
I’d like to thank Children 1st, OneVision and Optical Express for coming up with such a fantastic book to support children’s eye health and I will be supporting them wholeheartedly from now on – well done!
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Motherhood Diaries recently received a £30 voucher, which couldn’t have come at a better time as my youngest, Aidan, goes through shoes like his dinners, quickly and with no remorse. So, I decided to use them to buy some Clarks my first shoes for Aidan and this is how we got on:
In the Somerset village of Street in 1825, James Clark was busy working at the tannery owned by his brother, Cyrus. Among the sheepskin rugs, the off-cuts and cast-offs were piling up when James had a brainwave: “Slippers!”
And the rest, as they say, is history. A few stitches here and a few years later, the sheepskin slipper was born.
The sheepskin slipper was the very first Clarks shoe and Clarks have been going strong ever since. Clarks stock all kind of shoes, from court shoes and winklepickers to wedge heels, sandals and sneakers.
Clarks rebranded in the noughties to keep up with competition and moved their manufacturing to overseas to maintain their stance in today’s high street.
New technology, state-of-the-art facilities and love of shoes means they’re not only the number one shoe brand in the UK, but they’re also the world’s largest casual and smart shoe company, and the fourth largest footwear company on the planet!
The shoes you can get from Clarks are:
Women’s shoes
Men’s shoes
Kid’s shoes
School shoes
Baby walking shoes and boots
Babies pre-walking shoes and cruising shoes
Reviewer:
Aidan (2 years old)
Which shoes did we pick from the Clarks range and how much did it cost?
Minnow FST Clarks Boys Shoes in Brown Leather. I couldn’t find the shoes on Clarks’ website, most likely because they have been discontinued, but we got the pair for half price and on sale at £17.99! We really liked the Clarks Roamer Craft* and Clarks Converse Crocs shoes, but we ended up going for the Minnow FST Clarks Baby Shoes.
Where can you buy Clarks baby shoes?
In all Clarks* and participating shoe stores in the UK.
The Clarks ‘First Shoes’ range offers different shoes to fit the rapidly growing feet of a baby/toddler.
The ‘Pre-walking’ Range
Clarks’ Pre-walking range* offer shoes for non-walkers, with a firm but gentle heel stiffener to cradle unstable feet. The shoes offer ultra-soft lining, which is easy on a baby’s feet and skin, and fully adjustable rip-tape fastenings to provide a secure fit to allow parents to remove and put on shoes – even with constant motion!
The pre-walker shoes are made of breathable premium leather to ensure the baby’s feet never get too hot or cold. A built-in toe protector combines with soft and squidgy leather for comfort, flexibility, and allowing the baby’s feet room to wriggle and grow.
The sole has strong gripping rubber which helps give confidence with every movement and a strong yet super-flexible sole provides all the support baby will need. Whole and half sizes are available with a range of widths to ensure the perfect fit.
The First Shoes Walking Collection
The First Walkers Collection* offers shoes for the baby who is taking their first wobbly steps. The heel is specially designed for babies learning to walk and features a firm, but gentle heel stiffener to cradle unstable feet. The shoes offer an ultra-soft leather lining, which is easy on baby’s feet and gentle on baby’s skin.
Fully adjustable fastenings provide great security and ensure the best fit and the design that enables parents to open up the shoes easily, putting them on and taking them off with no problems. These first shoes offer contrasting materials, stitched details, on-trend colour and colour combinations to mix and match with the baby’s wardrobe.
The shoes offer breathable, premium leather uppers which mean little feet are never too hot or cold. The toe is soft and squidgy for comfort and flexibility, yet with growing room built-in, allowing baby’s feet to wriggle, wiggle and grow naturally.
The sole is developed to be super flexible while giving all the support wobbly walkers need. Soles also feature strong gripping rubber, giving confidence with every step. Shoes are available in whole and half sizes and a range of widths to ensure the best fit for growing feet.
Both of my boys go through shoes so quickly because they are very active and play outside on multiple terrains every day. So, when I was offered the chance to review Clarks shoes for Aidan, 2 years old, it was very important to find a pair that not only withstood the test of time, but as spring/summer was coming up and there would be days when it could still get cold, I wanted to find a pair that was versatile enough to withstand the test of UK weather too.
It was coming up to that time to measure Aidan’s feet* again, so we ventured to Elephant & Castle’s Clarks outlet store, hoping there would be more variety of shoes on offer than our local store in Stanmore, which is tiny.
It was a bit of a trek to get there, but we had to be at London Bridge for Aidan’s dental appointment anyway, so it was only a 25-minute walk to Elephant & Castle Shopping Centre, where we found the surprisingly big Clarks outlet store quickly.
A very helpful staff member ushered us to sit down by the kids’ shoes and, as Aidan was fast asleep and snoring away after our long journey, the lady quickly measured his feet before he woke up. I was surprised at how much his feet had grown! His left foot was 6 ½F and his right foot was a 6G, so the lady advised us to find a 6 ½F to accommodate both of his feet.
Having a look at the variety of shoes on display, we only found one pair of shoes in a 6 ½ F and I actually really liked them. They were half price at £17.99, so I tried them on Aidan’s feet, they seemed to fit, and I bought them with the vouchers.
So, what are the Minnow FST Clarks Boys Shoes in Brown Leatherlike?
The brown leather Minnow summer shoes have adjustable Velcro fastenings, complete with a full heel cup to easily place the shoes on Aidan’s feet. The shoes’ leather material upper felt strong and sturdy, with attractive stitching detail to add to the quality. The casual summer shoes have open panels and padding to the collar and insole.
These Clarks shoes are very versatile with a lovely brown colour to suit most outfits. Aidan could run about quite easily in these shoes and didn’t seem at all uncomfortable when wearing them.
Sadly Clarks don’t make the Clarks Brown Leather Minnow First Shoes.
What did I like most about Clarks Brown Leather Minnow First Shoes?
The great quality of the leather material on these baby walkers shoes and the open panels ensure the feet breathe inside the shoes. The Velcro fastening made it really easy to slip the shoes on and off my busy boy.
What to watch out for:
I haven’t noticed anything negative about these shoes yet, as they are still quite new. Aidan has been out to the playground, the shops, and in the garden with these shoes and they still look remarkable. There is definitely a great range of quality Clarks shoes for toddlers at a great price, and if you can catch them at half price like we did, you’re onto a winner!
Clarks’ website offers a bank of information* on how baby’s feet grow and the different styles of shoes available, so it’s worth looking and educating yourself on the shoes that are ideal for your baby’s feet.
Rating:
5 out of 5
Great quality shoes from Clarks who seem to be very knowledgeable on how to look after babies’/toddlers’ feet, so I would feel reassured to go back to them and buy the next stage shoes for both of my boys. I am now on the lookout for baby girl Clarks shoes for my daughter!
If you are still struggling with measuring your toddler’s feet, you can contact Clarks’ customer service*. I couldn’t find an email address but they have a live chat service you could use. Prewalker shoes should be correctly fitted and the right size for baby’s feet to grow.
You could go into the store too and have a proper fitting done for free.
*We were gifted the Clarks shoes as part of a 100% honest review – all thoughts and opinions are our own
*Links marked with a ‘*’ are affiliate links which means I may earn a small commission on qualifying purchases
Olly the White Van Book Series Product Review
Olly the Little White Van’s Website:
http://www.ollythelittlewhitevan.co.uk
What is Olly the Little White Van all about?
Olly the Little White Van is a pre-school TV show that currently airs on Milkshake and is 100% written, designed and animated in the UK. Olly and his friends have brought out a number of books, which are suitable for children aged 1 year plus and cater towards pre-school children’s practical, logic and problem solving skills.
How much does each book cost?
Chunky Story Books – RRP £3.99
Story Books – RRP £3.99
Press-out Sticker & Activity Fun Books – RRP £4.99
Sticker & Colouring Fun Books – RRP £3.99
Where can you buy Olly and the Little White Van books?
All of us were very excited to receive all of the Olly and the Little White Van’s books in the series and we couldn’t wait to get stuck in and try them all out.
Chunky Story Books – RRP £3.99
The chunky story books were the boys’ favourite from the get go, simply because they are small, sturdy and easy to handle. Each of the chunky board books of Olly and his friends have painted edges and are perfect for little hands from 1 year old and up.
There are 4 books in the Chunky Story Books series, all related to Olly and his friends, who are Bazza, Royston and Jethro. Aron’s favourite was Olly, the main character, and Aidan’s favourite was Bazza, Olly’s best friend.
Olly
Olly, the main character in the whole series, is a friendly white van who loves to help whenever he can. He likes to have fun with his driver, Stan, and his favourite game is football. When he scores, the crowd cheers Olly’s name. When Olly is with his best friend, Bazza, everything is always ok in the end, no matter what happens. Olly is a keen racer and loves to drive very fast, so that he can come first, or at least second place.
Bazza
Bazza, the orange van, likes to get into trouble whenever he can. But, sometimes his cheeky tricks can land him into trouble. At the Bumpton Rally, Bazza ends up in squelchy mud, but Olly, his best friend, never lets him down and manages to break him free. (I can see why Aidan loves Bazza the best – their personalities are very similar!)
Royston
When Bumpton needs help, they always call Royston the fire engine because no job is too small for him. Royston is happy to meet a familiar face on a familiar street and if there’s a fire to put out or a cat up a tree, Royston is at the rescue! He likes to turn on his siren really loud when he’s racing around Bumpton town and even at the end of a long, busy day, Royston still wants to have fun and play.
Jethro
Jethro the tractor likes to take everything slow because, ‘Speed isn’t everything, you know!’ Jethro is big, blue and strong and always helps his friends when things go wrong. Jethro likes to look at art and he is just as smart as he is friendly. He also likes to watch birds fly and hear the crowd roar as he lines up his football, so he’s sure he can score.
Each chunky book has an easily digestible poem that the boys really loved. The words are simple, yet effective because the story behind each book gets to the point very quickly and paints a great picture of each character in the series. When reading these books again and again to the boys, they remembered the words that came next. Even Aidan, who is one month shy of 2, remembered which word came next before I read them. It’s a very clever way to engage the kids and get a feel of the character’s personality. I can easily understand why these books were the boys’ favourite.
Story Books
The Chauffer
In the story books, you get to delve deeper into the character’s lives and meet all the secondary characters in the series, like Stan, who is Olly’s driver, and Lisa the Limousine. The book talks about a very special day, Alice’s birthday (Stan’s wife), and Stan has booked Lisa the Limousine to take them out for a special birthday dinner. Olly is very excited to see Lisa drive up to the house, but Lisa’s car phone rings and Sir Ronald Grump informs her that she has been double-booked that day. She is supposed to pick up Sir Ronald Grump at the station and drive him to an important meeting. Olly is always around to lend a helping hand and offers to take Sir Ronald Grump to the meeting, so that Lisa can drive Stan and Alice to the restaurant as planned.
Sir Ronald Grump is a real grump and is waits impatiently for Lisa the Limousine to arrive, instead he finds Olly coming to pick him up.
‘He’s very cross!’ Aron exclaims. (Aidan at this point, loses interest and reaches out for his trains on our dining table!)
Olly works hard to impress Sir Ronald Grump, but Sir Ronald is only interested in getting to the Grump Tower in twenty minutes. So Olly drives as fast as he can, but they are stopped by a traffic jam.
Do they make it to the meeting on time? It’s up to you to find out!
Aron really enjoyed ‘The Chauffer’ book. He was eagerly waiting to find out whether Sir Ronald Grump made it to his meeting on time and impatiently turned the pages as I was reading them to find out. The illustrations in the book tell a lot of the story, so Aron understood what was going on very well. He even had a go at reading some of the words. Aidan, on the other hand, knew what was going to happen and lost interest. One step ahead…
The Bumpton Rally
The Bumpton Rally talks about the annual town race in Bumpton. Olly and his driver, Stan, are preparing to take part. Olly’s friend, Bazza, is also taking part and doesn’t hide the fact that he’s there to win the race, even though the annual Bumpton Rally is really just a bit of fun. Bazza and Olly banter with each other at who’s faster than who whilst all the vehicles make their way to the start line to get ready to start the race. Other drivers taking part are Tasha, Dirk and, surprisingly Jethro, who believes his slow and steady pace will win the race. The race starts and there are a lot of bumps on the road for the drivers. A sudden twist in the story causes some of the drivers to run into problems.
But, who comes first?
The Bumpton Rally was Aidan’s favourite story book because it involved a lot of fast cars racing against each other. Aron enjoyed the book too, but I could tell he was just biding his time, so that he could get me to read the 4 chunky story books again.
Again, the illustrations tell the story as much as the words, so both boys really enjoyed flicking through the pages and studying the pictures as I was reading to them. It’s a really fun story and it contains a lot of hidden morals, which teach the boys that being fast and strong may not always be the answer, but to think with your head and keep at a steady pace, can win you the race in the long run. (Did I just give the story away?)
Press-out Sticker & Activity Fun Book
The Press-out Sticker & Activity Fun Book is a fantastic educational book catered towards pre-school children, so Aron was the perfect age to give everything a go in the book.
There are a number of activities in the book, such as:
Odd one out (Spot which picture is the odd one out)
Let’s count! (where you have to count how many pictures of each character are on the page and find the answer stickers (Aron preferred to write the numbers instead, as you can see from the picture below)
Sticker Fun! (Find the stickers appended to the book and place them on the correct images to complete the picture (Aron got all of these right straight away, but it was a lot of fun helping him go through every sticker and eliminating the incorrect ones first).
Double Trouble! (Spot how many different pairs of pictures you can see, for which there is an answer sticker for. Aron, again, preferred to write the number instead and I didn’t want to stop him, as he has only just started using a pen and I wanted him to practice writing his numbers.)
Colouring fun! (A double page of characters in the series for you to have fun colouring in.)
Jolly Olly! (Perfect for practicing motor skills – join all the dots around the pictures and then find the stickers to match.)
A board game and pieces to press out (Aron wasn’t at all interested in trying this out, but I assume it’s because he is too young and didn’t understand the point of the game.)
Spot the difference (where you have to find all five differences between two almost identical pictures)
Who is who? (Find the name stickers for each vehicle (I was really surprised and impressed that Aron could spot the correct word for each picture. The activities in this book forced him to have to read the character’s names in order to complete the activity and he remembered the names for this particular activity.)
Where is Olly? (This is a blank page where you can choose to draw Olly at the beach, in the town or on the farm. Aron didn’t attempt this at all, but he hasn’t started drawing yet, so I will patiently wait until he’s more confident in his drawing skills and attempt this activity with him again).
Who wins the race? (Where you need to follow the lines to match the driver to the correct place they came in the race and find the stickers that correspond to the number. Aron correctly used his pen to follow the lines to the drivers’ correct places, but, again, refused to find the stickers and instead write the numbers down with his pen. Not complaining!)
Copy and colour (Use the grid below the picture of Olly, which is drawn on an identical grid, as a guide to draw your own picture of the character. Aron didn’t attempt this at all, but I believe he will arrive at this drawing stage in his own time.)
Wordsearch! (Find all the names listed in the wordsearch grid given. I had to help Aron with this as he’s only just started reading and found it very difficult to distinguish words from the jumble of letters in the grid. Admittedly, I ended up completing the wordsearch myself because it was fun, but I made sure Aron watched me do the whole thing and point out where the words were).
Sticker Fun! (More sticker fun where you need to find the correct stickers to complete the pictures given. This activity turned out to be Aron’s favourite and I quickly realised how much fun Aron has with stickers in general, so I made a mental note to buy more sticker books in the future).
Answer page (Where you will find all the answers to the activities in the book. We didn’t use it as I am a walking answer page!)
I was very impressed with the amount of diverse activities that you could find in one book. Each activity caters to so many developing skills which are vital for a pre-schooler of Aron’s age. I immediately saw an improvement in Aron’s writing skills and reasoning ability and definitely believe that the Sticker & Activity Fun book had a lot to do with Aron’s progress.
Sticker & Colouring Fun Book
The Sticker & Colouring Fun Book contains a lot of very simple pictures for the boys to colour in and a double page full of tiny stickers of all the characters in the series. The boys didn’t attempt this book at all, but only because they were so interested in the other books in the series that I decided not to push them to complete this particular book.
Left to their own devices, however, the boys ended up adding a lot of the stickers to our fridge…
What did I like most about Olly and the Little White Van Books Series?
I liked how diverse and educational the Press-out Sticker & Activity Fun Book was for Aron and, in the future, Aidan. The book really honed in on Aron’s writing skills and the ability to think logically about the problems posed in the book.
I would imagine the boys liked the chunky story books the most because they are easy to handle, the storylines are simple to digest, and the boys related to each main character’s personality, which was so well portrayed in the story.
What to watch out for:
After a lot of handling from both boys, one of the chunky story books started to pull apart in the middle. I don’t think that this is a fault in the book, but down to my boys’ heavy handling.
Other points to note:
The boys have not watched the TV show yet, and I will make sure I record a couple of episodes on Sky, so they can sit down and understand the characters and the story lines before reading the books and attempting the activities again. They really enjoyed the characters and I think the TV show will cement their interest indefinitely.
Rating:
5 out of 5, simply for the versatility of the book series. You have an easily digestible chunky story book series for 1 year old plus, activity and sticker books for pre-schoolers, and story books for children of all ages to enjoy.
Fantastic and very educational!
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Research shows that reading with children for just ten minutes per day can make a dramatic difference in how they perform at school. But, finding enough interesting reading material at the right level for your child can be difficult, with few schools changing books daily and few libraries providing a solid selection of reading scheme books.
However, now you can encourage children to develop their love of reading with Reading Chest, an innovative book rental service for primary-aged children learning to read.
Reading Chest offered three months of free access to the Bronze Level Membership as part of our review on Reading Chest, and here are our findings:
Reading Chest, founded by Liz Walker, a former primary school teacher and mother of three, is the UK’s only through-the-post book rental service for reading scheme books aimed at children aged 4 – 9. For a monthly membership fee, children receive regular deliveries of books from Reading Chest’s extensive selection of reading schemes, including Oxford Reading Tree, Project X, Rigby Star and Collins Big Cat. These include both fiction and non-fiction titles.
There is a great selection of reading schemes for children and each delivery comes complete with a pre-paid return envelope, making it easy for even the busiest of parents to provide their children with some great choices for their daily dose of reading.
Monthly membership starts from £9.95 and all new members receive a book bag, a bookmark, a reward chart and stickers. Certificates are available to download from the Reading Chest website and budding literary critics can even see their own book Reading Chest reviews published online! Check to see if you can find a Reading Chest discount code or Reading Chest vouchers online before you subscribe.
Reviewers:
Aron (3 years old)
Review:
I was very excited to receive an offer to review Reading Chest’s service as Aron is a very keen reader, and even though he’s only 3 years old and this service caters for children from 4 years plus, Aron has in fact begun to read. He learned phonics when he was just shy of 3 and can read a lot of the two to four-letter words in the English language. So, I am very keen to build on his reading skills.
To get started, I visited Reading Chest’s website, www.readingchest.co.uk, to sign up. Here is a screenshot of their home page:
Step 1 – Prices & Packages:
When you click on ‘Sign up’, you are taken to a page that shows you the membership offers available – ‘Step 1: Prices & Packages’:
The packages available are:
Bronze Package
Silver Package
Gold Package
You receive an initial delivery of:
4 books
4 books
6 books
How many swaps per month?
2
4
Unlimited Swaps
Based on returning 3 books at a time this will give you up to:
6 books each month
12 books each month
Unlimited amount of books each month
How many book lists can you make?
1
1 or 2
1, 2, or 3
A good supply of books for 1 reader. All books selected will be at the same reading level.
A great supply of books for 1 reader or good to share between siblings at different reading levels.
Unlimited books for 1 reader or good to share between two or three siblings at different reading levels.
Price
£9.95
£12.95
£15.95
I was offered 3 months free for the Bronze Package, so I signed up to the Bronze Package.
Step 2 – Choose a Book Band:
You are then taken to a page where you can choose Reading Chest Book Bands.
As Aron is at the very beginning of his reading journey, I picked ‘Stage 1’, which is the ‘Pink book band’ and then clicked on, ‘Go to the next step!’.
The recommended reading age is 4 – 5 years old. If you are unsure of which band to pick, the page below offers you the chance to look through the sample pages to see if the selected book band is right for your child.
Step 3 – Reading Scheme Selection:
You are given further options to tailor the package to meet your child’s interests.
01 – You can select whether you would prefer to read fiction, non-fiction or both. I selected ‘Both’.
02 – You can tell Reading Chest the reading schemes you would like. All the schemes are selected by default, but you can exclude particular schemes by unchecking the boxes. I just left it on, ‘all schemes selected’.
03 – Your choices above will determine how many books you will be given. The selection I picked will give me 137 books. Sounds like more than enough to me!
Step 4 – Your Details:
Here you’ll get the chance to input all of your details..
Step 5 – Correspondence Details:
You are then asked to fill out your address details, your child’s name (as it will appear on the envelope) and whether you’d like to receive an occasional email newsletter from readingchest.co.uk.
Step 6 – Payment Details:
You get the chance to review your choices here and confirm your selections are correct. You will be asked to enter your credit card details.
Step 7 – You’re done!
Our first delivery should be with us within 2 -3 working days. So, now we wait!
Step 8: We receive our package!
We were very excited when a package came through the post and Aron anxiously ripped open the white envelope (above) to go through all the items in his red book bag.
So, what did we get?
One super cute red book bag for Aron to carry his books in;
One A4 pre-paid envelope;
One bookmark;
One set of stickers;
One reward chart;
Leaflet on Reading Chest, welcoming you to the service; and
4 x books in the pink band. These are:
Tiger’s Family
My Cushion!
Who is it?
Got It!
I placed all of the items in the red book bag provided for Aron, so that he could pick out his lucky first book to read. He brought out the book, ‘Who is it?’
Who is it? – Series created by Roderick Hunt and Alex Brychta – Oxford Reading Tree Scheme
‘Who is it?’ is a very thin book, 8 pages in length, but at this early stage of reading, I can imagine a four-year-olds’ concentration span lasts about five minutes when they’re reading. So, I knew the length of the book wouldn’t bother Aron. At the back of the book, a label was added to let you know what book you are reading, the book band, the scheme and the book’s stock code.
Inside the front cover, there is an address label for ‘Reading Chest’ to remind you this book belongs to Reading Chest and it is not a keepsake. The inside cover very helpfully tells you what to do with your child before reading the book, during reading, and a little bit about the words in the book. More specifically, it talks about how to read the book to your child, ensuring they gain maximum benefit from reading through the scheme, i.e. talk about the words you see and help your child sound out some of the words in the book.
Each of the pages in the book only contains one to three words, with large illustrations above each sentence. This helped Aron grasp what the words meant in relation to the pictures and what the book was about as a whole. ‘Who is it?’ is set at a family and friends gathering, under a lit marquee, and friends and family make shadows using the light and themselves, so the others have to guess what they are. Everyone has a go, including dad, who dresses up as a spaceman.
There is an ‘After Reading’ instruction from Reading Chest to prompt me to ask Aron about what he thought of the shadow game and how dad made himself into a spaceman using household items, such as a colander and some bedding.
We dived into a deep conversation about shadows and throughout the day Aron pointed out his shadows to me whenever he noticed them. He even learned some words in the process!
Tiger’s Family – by Shoo Rayner and illustrated by Jon Stuart – Project X Scheme
Tiger’s Family is another short book, containing twelve pages in total, and the concept is pretty much the same as ‘Who is it?’ The book, helpfully, tells me what I should be doing with Aron before, during and after reading the book and warns me of some tricky words Aron might find during this reading.
Tiger’s Family is about a boy called Tiger and a typical day with his family, who are all aptly named at the beginning of the book. Mum has made some cakes, which all get hurled to the floor as Tiger and his brother runs through the kitchen door. The book very cleverly talks about the varying emotions each member of the family are faced with, i.e. ‘Mum is sad,’ ‘Dad is mad’, and I am instructed to talk with Aron about why mum was sad and whether Aron liked the book. I believe this is to get him to talk about his own emotions and teach him to express himself through words.
Again, each page only has one – four words, to not overwhelm the child during reading, and a lot of the words are repeated to help imprint that word onto the child’s brain.
I was very impressed that Aron already knew how to read the word, ‘Tiger’, but I had to help him with the tricky words that were forewarned in the front of the book. Aron enjoyed sounding out ‘sad’ and ‘mad’ and even acted a little angry when the cakes fell onto the floor.
Got it! – By Charlotte Guillain and Ley Honor Roberts – C. Collins Big Cat Phonics Scheme
Got it! Has 15 pages in total and uses three to six words in a sentence. There are no instructions at the front of the book, but a more detailed instruction sheet at the back entitled, ‘Ideas for reading’, which goes into more detail about how to read to the child and what to discuss with them during and after reading.
Got it! Is about a father and daughter at the beach, trying to catch a crab using a net and tipping the crab into a pot. The daughter then tips the crab back into the pond it came from, with an illustrative final two pages showing the process of how she caught the crab.
I was instructed to read the title and blurb with Aron, focusing on blending the individual words together. I also discussed rock pooling and what we need it for. I asked Aron what he could see in the pictures and he intelligently pointed out the beach, the net, the pot and the crab. He even explained what the daughter was doing, ‘She is catching that crab in the net’.
I wasn’t able to challenge Aron to suggest other words that ended in ck, for example, or to draw a picture of equipment needed for rock pooling, as he isn’t at that stage yet. But, if I keep on with this reading activity at least once every day, it won’t take long for him to widen his vocabulary enough to complete these stages at a later date.
My Cushion! By Alison Hawes and Tania Hurt-Newton – Rigby Star Scheme
My Cushion! Has eight pages in total and uses very simple wording, mainly repeating, ‘My Cushion!’ in various contexts. It contains only two keywords, ‘my’ and ‘no’, which I felt was just enough to help Aron understand and memorise the words properly before moving on.
The book is all about a brother and sister fighting over a cushion, which finally breaks, and mum comes in and exclaims, ‘Oh no! My cushion!’
My Cushion! Was Aron’s favourite book. He wanted to read it about five times before putting it down. I think he related to fighting over something with his brother.
I was instructed to ask Aron why mum was upset at the end of the story and how the children felt during the book. Aron said it was everyone’s cushion, which was actually right, so I couldn’t argue with him on that point. Although, I did mention that too much fighting over something could lead that object to break and then no one could play with it afterwards.
Towards the end of the day, I noticed Aron offer his trains to his brother. Perhaps, the book had left a mark on him to not fight over his toys with his brother? Well, perhaps, just for now…
Sticker chart
I emphasised to Aron that because he had read all four books so beautifully, he was allowed to place four stickers on his reward chart to progress his journey through the reading map. I asked him about which colour stickers we should add to the reward chart when he had successfully completed four pink band books. He answered correctly, ‘pink’, but decided it was more fun to take out all of the stickers and add them to the fridge.
I helped him pick out four pink stickers instead and he took great pride in adding them to his reading map.
After sampling Reading Chest’s first book session, I felt very proud of my son that he had read four books so well, and, most importantly, I felt like Aron had progressed in his reading. I decided to hold onto the books for a couple more days so I could get Aron to read them again before placing three of them back in the pre-paid envelope and sending them back to Reading Chest to swap for three more books.
I really enjoyed the whole service. I felt like I had learned how to be a teacher and not just a parent, and I want to carry this on every day with both of my boys. I believe Reading Chest will make up a valuable part of both of my sons’ reading education and help them expand on their already growing love for books as well as their reading levels, even up to Oxford Reading Tree Level 7 books or Oxford Owl Readers before they get to that stage at school!
The great thing is you can help them to read by yourself and you don’t need to be a teacher to do that. I may even get some alone time if I could leave the kids to read by themselves. One can dream…
What did I like most about Reading Chest’s service?
I liked how simple it was to set up the service and how much I learned about teaching my son to read.
Other books that are great are:
Barney 1 2 3 4 5 Senses
Barney I Love Bugs
Sail Back Dinosaur Bug
What to watch out for:
One book came with a huge fold down the front. Make sure you make a point of this in the sections provided at the back of the pre-paid envelope so you are not charged for the damage. The back of the pre-paid envelope offers you three options when returning the books, i.e.
‘Received the wrong book(s)’
‘Book(s) damaged – sorry!’
‘Book(s) received already damaged’ – This is where I pointed out that the front of ‘My Cushion!’ had a fold down the middle.
Other points to note:
As these books are not yours and they will need to be returned at some point, you have to make an extra effort to not let any little people get their hands all over it. I felt very bad for Aidan, who is only two, because every time he wanted to handle the book, I had to snatch it back off him and take control over his interest.
Rating:
5 out of 5
Reading Chest is a fantastic service and it will not just help Aron to progress with his reading, but also build on our strong mother/son relationship. I just wished Aidan was old enough to join us too.
