Be A Knight, Do It Right DVD Review

MIKE THE KNIGHT™ SET FOR MORE AMAZING ADVENTURES IN

BRAND NEW DVD ‘MIKE THE KNIGHT™: BE A KNIGHT, DO IT RIGHT!’

"Saddle-up and explore the enchanted realm of Glendragon with CBeebies favourite Mike the Knight! Join his companions Sparkie and Squirt and trusty steed Galahad, as the young knight-in-training embarks on more marvellous missions. Available from Monday 29^th July with an RRP of £12.99, Mike the Knight: Be a Knight, Do it Right! includes seven exciting episodes from the popular pre-school series."

We were very excited to review this DVD as we have recently enjoyed meeting Mike the Knight at Warwick Castle, and my own little knight in training Freddy is a big fan!

In this brand-new DVD, Mike sets out to be the best knight he can be.  In one episode,The Triple Trophy Triumph,  Mike discovers that winning isn't everything when he attempts to win three trophies in one day.  Other episodes include The New Castle, The Big Parade, The Knightly Welcome, The Wild Boar, The Great Rescue and Peace and Quiet.  Plenty of fun for little Mike the Knight fans this summer.

I really do like the life lessons that little ones learn as they watch Mike the Knight.  They learn all about things such as fairness, helpfulness, friendship and kindness through watching Mike doing his best to do it right. 

Little ones can learn to do it right, just like Mike, with a host of chivalrous DVD extras. This includes a modern-day version of the chivalrous code, a reward chart and a host of other downloadable activities. For more information on Mike the Knight visit www.miketheknight.com or connect with Mike online through Facebook and Twitter:

https://www.facebook.com/miketheknightofficial

 

https://twitter.com/MiketheKnightUK

                  Mike the Knight™: Be a Knight, Do it Right!

     Release Date:                        29 July 2013

     RRP:                                     £12.99

     Running Time:                        84 minutes (approx)

               

     Format:                                  DVD

                 Certificate:                             U

     Available from:                      All good retailers and www.amazon.co.uk

                

LEAPFROG: LEARN NUMBERS AND SHAPES! DVD Review

Learn Numbers and Shapes is a great value 3 in 1 bumper pack DVD special from the renowned children's learning series, LeapFrog. The DVD includes three fun lessons on number recognition, counting and shapes. 

Children will love joining Scout & friends as they navigate their way through an exciting undersea adventure and visits to Numberland and Shapeville Park. They get to meet friendly characters such as Edison and Max who help them with enjoyable new games to improve their numeracy skills.  The cartoon action is fun, colourful and appealing to little ones.  Freddy who is almost four, really enjoyed this DVD and was learning essential pre-school skills as he joined in with the onscreen adventures.  The stories are really interactive and little ones will have fun as they learn numeracy skills.

The episodes included in the set are: Numbers Ahoy, Numberland and Adventures in Shapeville Park. 

The special bumper-pack LEAPFROG: LEARN NUMBERS AND SHAPES! is released on DVD on 17th June 2013. Available at all major retailers at £9.99 RRP.

Today's A Tree Fu Tom Day!!

At last, after a long few weeks at school, the half term holidays are here.  Today we are celebrating with a day of Tree Fu Tom related fun here Inside the Wendy House.

To begin with and to get us into the mood, we are watching the new Tree Fu Tom DVD: Tree Fu Magic 6 Adventures in Treetopolis.

The action packed adventures encourage kids to get up and active as they help Tom create spectacular Big World Magic by performing Tree Fu moves to help save the day.  With his best friend Twigs, Tree Fu Tom encounters the naughty Mushas, a colony of hungry bees and takes part in an epic underground rolling race in the magical land of Treetopolis in these six exciting episodes.

The Tree Fu Tom : Tree Fu Magic DVD is available now for £9.99 RRP. (Certificate U).

Later on today our Tree Fu Tom day will continue with a Twitter Party between 4 and 6 pm where a posse of Tiny Testers will descend upon our home to test out the latest Tree Fu Tom toys and take part in some fun competitions.  Everyone can join in via Twitter by following @Tree-Fu-Go and #treefutomtoys and there are some great prizes to be won!

The Tree Fu Tom toys are brand new for Spring 2013 and are from Flair plc.  There are figures and playsets along with some great role play toys like the Super Holaplax and Magic Moves Rap Mat.  The foam Flying Squizzles are great for throwing in your own game of Treetopolis Squizzle.  Tree Fu Tom fans will love this range which brings their favourite show to life!

We are excited to be taking part in the Twitter party tonight along with other bloggers up and down the UK where we will be sharing news and photographs of our own parties.  But for now I have Twigs pizzas, Tree Fu Tom cupcakes and Ariela's veg and dips to prepare.  We have quizzes and colouring in activities to sort out and are ready for our own Tree-Fu-Fun!!

Little Charley Bear on DVD

Little Charley Bear Goes on Safari

On May 7th, Little Charley Bear comes to DVD, and what's more, it comes complete with a free Charley toy!  The 50 minute DVD features eight exciting episodes which will delight fans of the CBeebies pre-school series that is narrated by James Corden (star of Gavin & Stacey).

Charley and his friends embark on a voyage of discovery as they set off on a series of magical adventures.  In these latest imaginative journeys, Charley pretends to be different animals but doesn't know what noises they make.  To find out, he sets off on a safari expedition with his friends.  Charley ends up acting like a crazy monkey, gets chased by a snappy shark, tries not to wake up a grumpy tiger and discovers a Charleysaurus dinosaur in the jungle!

Episodes

• Charley on Safari
• The Charleysaurus
• Monkeying With Midge
• Charley Snaps
• Castaway Charley
• Sandcastle For Caramel 
• Bear At Sea
• Under Water Explorer Charley

Little Charley Bear unleashes a child's imagination as they join Charley in his adventures.  After all it does tell us:  "It's amazing what you can do with your imagination!"

Pre-schoolers will love exploring their own imagination, inspiring discovery and creativity.  Just as Charley uses his imagination to go on exciting make believe adventures, so can his fans, engaging in active role play.

Corden's narration provides guidance and advice to Charley, while he keeps a watchful eye over his friend.  Although Charley doesn't speak, he conveys his feelings and thoughts through his actions and little ones will enjoy the gentle comedy and understand his emotions.

We love Little Charley Bear!  Add this title to your toddlers' DVD collection...available in store and online on May 7th, priced at £12.99 which includes the little toddler size plastic Charley Bear toy!

For more information visit www.littlecharleybear.com

Welcome to The Jungle With Raa Raa The Noisy Lion

"Welcome to the Jingly Jangly Jungle" is the name of the brand new BBC DVD starring CBeebies favourite Raa Raa the Noisy Lion.  It is released today...March 26th.

Welcome To The Jingle Jangle Jungle

The DVD comes complete with a Raa Raa figure that Freddy could not wait to get his hands on!  I love Raa Raa's afro-esque mane and shiny black nose!

Raa Raa's debut DVD is bursting with lots of noisy adventures and helps little ones learn all about language and communication skills.

 Each episode follows Raa Raa and his wonderful gang of friends: Topsy the giraffe, Huffty the elephant,   Crocky the crocodile, Zebby the zebra and Ooo Ooo, the cheeky little monkey, in eight fantastic episodes. 

·         Topsy’s Musical Stones

·         Ooo Ooo Slips Up

·         The Right Sound

·         Zebby’s Snack Time

·         Raa Raa’s Big Roar

·         Raa Raa’s Favourite Things

·         Two’s Company

·         No Sleep Till Bedtime

Raa Raa

Sounds, gestures, facial expressions and words are used to solve problems and add fun to their adventures. The episodes are loud and full of fun.  Lorraine Kelly narrates the stories which are really appealing to pre-schoolers.  Freddy loves Raa Raa, he laughs along to the episodes (especially when Raa Raa tries to find 'the right sound' and blows a raspberry noise through a hollow stick!)  and sings along to the catchy theme tune.  I love the animation which is very friendly, cute and colourful.  The Jungle is a lovely setting and the giggly jungle pals really make a feel good show.

Visit raaraathenoisylion.com for games, activities, music, clips, downloads and more.  

Happy Feet Two

On March 26th, everyone's favourite penguin is back on DVD and Blu-Ray with the release of Happy Feet 2!  This time it is Mumbles's son Erik causing the drama!

To celebrate its release, Warner Bros have sent us a wonderful box of goodies including Haapy Feet 1 and 2 and March of The Penguins on Blu-Ray, and some fabulous film merchandise.

The story of Happy Feet Two introduces us to cute little Erik who can not dance.  His father may be choreographically gifted, but Erik is seriously rhythmically challenged!  In fact his first try results in a very embarrassing mishap where he ends up with his head in the snow!  He runs away and encounters the god-like Mighty Sven, a 'flying penguin' who isn't all he seems to be!  Mumbles heads off to bring back his son who now dreams of flying, much to his dad's frustration. Meanwhile, trouble is afoot in the Antarctic as an iceberg threatens  Emperor-land, trapping the penguins below a wall of ice.  Will the animals of the South Pole, from the tiny and very funny Krill to the huge Elephant Seals be able to save the penguins?  Will Erik and Mumbles be able to work together to save the day? Through the power of friendship, song and dance anything is possible!

This film is visually amazing.  The stunning landscape and the animals are portrayed in eye-popping animation that is beautiful to behold.  Films like this are what Blu-Ray was made for.  The detail, the colours and the sheer spectacle are breathtaking.

In terms of the story itself, the narrative is a bit complicated and chaotic in parts.  And the sub-text of  conformity over acceptance is possibly at odds with the sentiment of the original. The film goes bigger and bolder than its predecessor, but some of the charm and originality are lost because of it.   However, the visual feast, the fabulous all singing, all dancing performances and the voice talents of a host of stars more than make up for any plot flaws.  Matt Damon and Brad Pitt as the ambitious Krill Will and his long suffering friend Bill are fabulous were the stars of the show for me!  

The visual jokes and gags make the kids giggle and the songs are truly entertaining.  There are even some scenes of peril that have you on the edge of your seat (Bryan the Elephant Seal's predicament had me holding my breath!) . Happy Feet Two is an enjoyable watch for all the family which will have everyone tapping their toes and singing along.  Perfect for a family movie night over the Easter holidays!

Happy Feet Two is available to buy now at Amazon.

                   

Half-Term Film Fun with Warner Bros

My children are very, very lucky!  A parcel arrived from Warner Bros Kids to keep them entertained over half term, and what a lot of lovely things it contained!

Two Scooby Doo Mystery Incoporated DVD's arrived along with an activity book, some sweets and an alien head.  Scooby, Shaggy and the gang are extremely loved in our household.  Me and Ian feel nostalgic as we enjoy Scooby Doo with our little ones.  These titles are updated animations full of paranormal events and monsters centred around Crystal Cove.  I love how Scooby Doo spans the generations.  These two volumes include eight full episodes of spook hunting antics!

We also received a fabulous Warner Bros Kids Bumper Box of Toons, ten full length DVDs in a Big Faces Box Set!  Including favourites from Road Runner, Tom & Jerry, Tweetie Pie, Taz, Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, Speedy Gonzales, Porky Pig  and Wile E. Coyote, this set introduces the classic characters from my childhood to a whole new generation.

Ian was extremely excited to rediscover the cartoons from his youth and took huge delight sharing his favourites with Freddy.  He used to enjoy watching them with his own dad as a child, now he gets to do it with his youngest son!   I was surprised how much my toddler enjoyed watching the episodes of the classic toons and giggled his way through the DVDs.  They contain scenes of cartoon comedy violence which really tickled him.  As Wile E. Coyote got buried alive by falling rocks, Freddy chuckled away!  It never did me any harm watching them, so I have no qualms about him doing so.  He loved the characters, proving that they are ageless and appeal to old and young alike.

We spent a lovely afternoon watching cartoons with the children.  It is a lovely way to spend a few hours during a grey, wet and windy half term holiday.  It is great to have some classic titles in the DVD collection, especially ones that appeal to both us parents and our little ones.  When it comes to Scooby Doo and Looney Toons there is no such thing as a generation gap.

Tractor Ted

One thing that is as sure as night following day is that little children will love tractors!  Whenever they spot a tractor working in a field they are spellbound.  Something about the oversized vehicles is mesmerising to toddlers who can watch them for hours.  It is from this that Tractor Ted was born.  Using real life footage and photos, the first DVD Tractor Ted in Tractorland, was made.  Not only do children enjoy watching the tractors in action, they learn about where healthy food comes from, caring for the environment and the fun of the outdoors.

Tractor Ted combines real life facts and fun to create an entertaining and educational brand that children will love.  The range has expanded to include DVDs, books, clothing, toys and gifts.  We were delighted to receive some lovely Tractor Ted products to try for ourselves.

My first impressions were that I loved the branding.  The photography is lovely and colourful and Tractor Ted is a very appealing character.  The logo gives all the products a strong identity making them instantly recognisable as being part of the Tractor Ted range.

We received the Mighty Maize Machine DVD.  Tractor Ted visits two farms, a cow and a sheep dairy, where he meets the amazing forage harvester that is busy making silage from the maize and grass.  The film is packed with machines such as mowers, feed wagons, rakes and JCBs. The running time is 40 minutes.  Tractor Ted's narration is very informative (sometimes to the point of being quite technical).  It's a bit like a mini-guide to farming in parts, which older farm fanatics will enjoy, but it was a bit too grown up to hold 2 year old Fred's attention.  There are catchy, original songs alongside the imagery of life at the farm, and they did capture Fred's imagination. Don't expect a fictional story, this is educational, packed full of farming facts and the real life day to day work of farmers. This is the latest DVD in the range that now has fifteen titles to choose from.  They are compatible with the Early Years Foundation Stage.

Tractor Ted Meets the Animals is a lovely 32 page picture book featuring farm animals.  It explores cows, pigs and sheep, where they live and what they eat.  It also shows you all the machinery used in the care of the animals including feed wagons and muck spreaders.  The photography is lovely and the paper is thick and glossy.  It is a really great quality book.  The wording is simple but really factual and educational.  There are some activities at the back of the book for little ones to do.  Freddy really liked the pictures of the animals and machines. There are seven titles for your little bookworm!

The plate, bowl and cup Breakfast Set would make a lovely gift that any tractor mad tot will adore.  Made of solid melamine the pieces are really robust and practical.  The striking machinery design is eyecatching with the Tractor Ted logo in a central position smiling at you while you eat!

I love the idea of having Tractor Ted in the bottom of the cup encouraging children to drink up!  The three piece set comes in a gift box making it a lovely present for any young child.  The range of gifts includes a rucksack, jigsaw, placemat, toys and plenty more tractor related goodies!  There is even a Tractor Ted Chocolate!!  The merchandise is definitely suitable for even the youngest tractor fans.

The website www.tractorland.co.uk is wonderful for both kids and adults.  As well as the online shop, the Tractor Ted site has fun games, pictures and video clips.  There is a blog keeping readers up to date with news from the farm.  Ted's even got his own fan club!

The DVDs are £9.99, Books are £4.99 and the Breakfast Set is £19.99.  There are often special offers on the site so check back regularly!

Although the DVD was a bit old for Freddy, he loved the book and the Breakfast Set.  Older children with a passion for farming and tractors will love the DVDs, and they do offer something quite unique and educational.