review | A Mummy Too

Hotel Chocolat Sleekster Caramel Selection – reviewing perfection

23 May, 2013 By Emily Leary 4 Comments

The only place you’ll find a Billionaire and a Trillionaire covered in delicious chocolate – and it’s all completely legal.

I’ve got a confession to make. Last night I took a break from my no-dairy diet for one special reason: Hotel Chocolat.

If you haven’t heard of Hotel Chocolat before, it’s a luxury chocolate brand that focuses on ethically sourced chocolate, as well as authenticity and innovation – and it shows.

The Sleekster Caramel Selection we’ve been sampling is absolutely divine, perhaps even perfect. Each chocolate is like a little, gourmet dessert in its own right. Rich flavours, incredible textures – the shortbread is crumbly and fresh, the caramel is smooth and creamy.

Oh yes, these are wonderful chocolates and well worth £22. Get them for someone you love – I can’t imagine anyone being disappointed.

Disclosure: we were sent Hotel Chocolat’s Sleekster Caramel Selection free of charge for review. No payment was received for this post. All posts are 100% honest.

Filed Under: Food and drink Tagged With: chocolate, hotel chocolat, review

Talking Tom Superstar – a love/hate review

23 May, 2013 By Emily Leary Leave a Comment

Look into my eye, cats they have nine lives, so live life todaaaaaaaay – JD, 5 (singing along to Tom)

We’ve had Talking Tom Superstar for a while now. We accepted him for review because JD likes playing with the Talking Tom app on the iPhone. You know the one. It repeats what you say in a high pitched voice, and you can press buttons to make a dog appear and fart in the background, among other things. It’s juvenile, often irritating stuff, but JD likes it, so who am I to judge?

Now, what the soft toy version of Tom promises to do is bring that character to life – there are buttons on his tummy that make him sing songs, tell jokes and so on, and if you leave him unattended, he starts snoring, which is a pretty good cue to get the kids playing with him again.

Talking Tom Superstar is also supposed to interact with the app version of himself, but this didn’t work at all for us on the iPhone, which is one reason I’ve held off publishing a review. However, I recently reviewed the Samsung Galaxy S4 and with that phone, the promised interaction magically started to happen. Suddenly a fart from the app caused the cuddly version to express his disapproval. Success!

It doesn’t interact perfectly and is often hit and miss, but a toy that has conversations with an app is quite an original idea and the kids so seem to really like it, so if your little one already likes the Talking Tom app, and you think you can put up with the annoying songs and jokes, Talking Tom Superstar is probably a worthwhile purchase.

Talking Tom Superstar is available on Amazon with an RRP £24.95.

Disclosure : We were sent a Talking Tom Superstar toy free of charge. No payment was received for this post. All reviews are 100% honest.

Filed Under: Parenting Tagged With: interactive, review, talking tom, Talking Tom Superstar, toy

The Babyzen YOYO pushchair – a review

20 May, 2013 By Emily Leary 2 Comments

Weeeeeeeeeee – Miss J, 19 months

This week we’ve been roadtesting the Babyzen YOYO pushchair – billed as “a featherweight buggy has a one of a kind folding mechanism.”

So what did we make of it? Well, straight out of the box, it’s clear that the Babyzen Yoyo is indeed very, very small (52 x 44 x 18 cm) and exceptionally light (5,8kg). It’s so compact and light, in fact, that Miss J can pick it up!

There’s also a shoulder strap, so you can pick it up and go, and the strap then disappears safely into the under-basket when unfolded – amazing. Apparently the folded buggy falls within carry-on luggage requirements, so you could even take it on a plane in the overhead locker.

Unfolding is super simple – I didn’t even need to read the instructions. You just release a little catch near the foot plate, then grab the handle, lift it upwards with a flick and it unfolds completely. It’s very easy to do one handed.

Once unfolded, there’s a reasonable sized basket area for a small amount of shopping or baby supplies.

Up top, the handle is padded and slim. It’s lower than I’m used to with our Stokke Xplory, but comfortable enough to hold.

Buckling Miss J in was straightforward. The seat is nice and deep so she was well supported, and the five-point harness is easily clipped together, with wide shoulder straps. The only downside is that Miss J quickly worked out how to wriggle her arms free, but to be fair she can do that in most of the buggies and carseats we’ve tried.

To recline, you simply loosen a strap at the back, which Miss J seemed perfectly happy with, although it doesn’t go completely flat (140°), so wouldn’t be suitable for a newborn. The manual says it’s suitable from 6 months.

Round the front, the buggy has a small footplate, but at 19 months, Miss J’s legs aren’t yet long enough to reach it, which is fine as it means there’s room to grow.

Overall, the buggy has a small footprint, even when unfolded. It’s narrow (44cm), so great for pushing around supermarket aisles, and it turns very easily with its pivoting front and rear wheels, which means it can be steered with one hand without fuss.

On the downside, the pushchair is front-facing and low, which means we can’t interact in the way I’ve become used to with our current rear-facing buggy, and I did worry that she was more exposed to swinging shopping bags than I was used to. However, as an occasional travel solution, it suits us just fine.

For a pushchair that folds so small, I was pleased with the hood, which is generously sized and kept the sun off Miss J during our road test. There’s also a lightweight, easily fitted rain cover that seems effective, although it didn’t rain during our test.

Collapsing the buggy again is really simple and can be one one handed with a baby on your hip. Before you take your baby out, you push the buttons on either inside edge of the handle and collapse the handle down. Then, you take your little one out, reach underneath and grab a little catch to release. Then you just pick up by the silver bar and the whole thing folds straight back up and click-locks into place. It takes seconds.

Check out the video – it really is as easy as this lady makes it look.

Price-wise, £309 is a fair bit more than you’d pay for a standard umbrella-type buggy, but if you travel around a lot and have to collapse/carry/pack away your buggy often, the price is well worth it for the convenience the Yoyo offers.

Overall, our verdict is very positive. This is a superb travel buggy, and with a few adventures chalked in for our family this Summer, I wish we didn’t have to give the Babyzen Yoyo back.

Disclosure: we were loaned the Babyzen Yoyo for the purposes of this review. No payment was received for this post. All posts are 100% honest.

Filed Under: Parenting Tagged With: baby, babyzen, collapsible, lightweight, pushcair, review, yoyo

Here’s what’s been keeping my tea breaks interesting in May

19 May, 2013 By Emily Leary 1 Comment

I think Daddy would like a cup of tea – JD, 5

Look how funky my kitchen is looking! As well as the lovely Brabantia textiles that grace my kitchen these days, I’ve also been loving this super funky Koziol Audrey Murano tea strainer from Red Candy (£13.00). It’s cool and functional. Aces.

Tea-wise, I love a bit of loose green tea, but I’ve also been trying out the highly unusual Higher Living Sweet Chilli Tea (£1.99 for 15 bags), which is flavoured with chilli (obviously), cocoa, licorice, ginger, cinnamon, fennel, anise, black pepper, bourbon vanilla, cardamom, cloves. It’s an acquired taste, but certainly makes a change from my usual brew.

If you’re more a fan of traditional tea, I highly recommend Tetley’s newest tea, Estate Selection (£2.99 for 80 bags). Apparently the leaves in this really clean and full tasting black tea are “handpicked at altitude from tea estates in the foothills of Mount Kenya, where leaves are famed for their more intense and concentrated flavour”. It’s so lovely that we’ve switched over to this from our usual brands – it’s worth the extra 50p-£1 per pack.

And finally, when I fancy a sweetened brew, I’ve been squeezing in a dash of Sweet Freedom (£2.98 for 350g), a natural syrup made from 100% fruit. It’s lovely on toast too and apparently healthier and lower in calories than sugar.

What tea break treats have you been enjoying this month?

Disclosure: we were sent all of the items featured in this post free of charge for review. No payment was recieved or this post. All posts are 100% honest.

Filed Under: Food and drink Tagged With: kitchen, lifestyle, review, tea

Children’s Book Round Up (May)

17 May, 2013 By Emily Leary 1 Comment

What do you want to read tonight? – me

Now that JD can read independently, reading has become even more exciting as he can now choose not only which story to have, but who’ll read it. Here’s what we’ve been reading this month…

Tim, Ted & the Pirates

A short rhyming read by Ian Whybrow that takes you from the story carpet off on a journey of fantasy and back with a splash. It’s packed full of bright, rich illustrations and perfect for preschool pirate fans.

Published by HarperCollins Children’s Books.

The Hueys in It Wasn’t Me

Another piece of genius from Oliver Jeffers, the writer of The Hueys in The New Jumper. I’d class this book as alternative comedy for kids. JD absolutely loves it.

Published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, it’s available in hardback for £12.99.

Mabel and Me Best of Friends

A tale of friendship, misunderstandings and pliéing rodents, this is a lovely book with gorgeous, scribbly illustrations, a touch of metropolitan chic and an underlying plot that helped me talk about feelings and kindness with my two.

Written by by Mark Sperring and Sarah Warburton and published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, it’s available for £12.99 in hardback, or £6.99 when it’s released in softback in July 2013.

Splat Says Thank You!

A simple story of friendship by Rob Scotton, this book allows you to talk with your little ones about what makes a friend a friend. Quirky, fun and a little bit silly, the illustrations should engage little ones well.

Published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, it’s available in softback for £6.99.

I Heart Bedtime

A cute book about sibling fun and all the faff and excitement that goes with what should be a simple bedtime routine. It all sounds very familiar to us – the characters are likeable and the illustrations are friendly and distinctive, if (dare I say it?) a touch ‘girly’ for JD’s tastes.

Written and illustrated by Clara Vulliamy and published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, it’s available in softback for £6.99.

Disclosure: we were sent all of the books featured free of charge for review. No payment was received for this post. All posts are 100% honest.

Filed Under: Parenting Tagged With: books, children, kids, picture book, reading, review

Why I love the new Lavender Textiles from Brabantia

15 May, 2013 By Emily Leary 1 Comment

Don’t spill any jam!! – me

If you’re a regular reader of amummytoo.co.uk, you may have noticed a theme in recent posts; a certain lavender-blue, chequered pattern. That, my friends, is the gorgeous new Lavender Textiles range from Brabantia.

From table clothes, to placemats to tea towels, these are great quality, thick and above all, gorgeous to look at. Oh, and they wash and press well, which is handy when you have a family as messy as ours!

If you love the textiles, you could team them up with the other lavender items in Brabantia’s Get Together range such as beautiful porcelain dinner plates, bowls and cake plates, as well as practical accessories like pan coasters, egg cups and coasters. I’ve reviewed the lavender T4ONE set before, and it goes beautifully with the textiles to create a really bright, fresh feel at breakfast.

Have a look at the whole range on the Brabantia website - I challenge you not to be tempted!

Disclosure: we were sent some textiles free of charge for review. All posts are 100% honest. No payment was received for this post.

Filed Under: Food and drink Tagged With: brabantia, kitchenware, review, tea towel, textiles

Taste testing Five Valley’s Cordials (review)

7 May, 2013 By Emily Leary 2 Comments

Ooh, posh cordial – me

Are you guilty of not drinking enough water? I most definitely am. I drink tea, sometimes cola, but overall I know I don’t take in enough fluids. Unless, that is, I have a really good cordial in the house. The new range from Five Valleys is just the ticket

The Peach and Lychee flavour is deliciously subtle with a pleasant aftertaste and no bitterness, the Pomegranate and Rose variety is clean and sweet with notes of red wine, while the Lemon and Mint has a strong, tart flavour that would be perfect with crushed ice and a shot of vodka (just for the grown ups, obviously).

As well as being unusual and yummy, Five Valleys Cordials are made from natural ingredients and free from artificial flavours, sweeteners, colourings or preservatives. You can really taste the difference.

If you want to try them for yourself, they’re available in Waitrose & Ocado, priced at £3.50 per bottle. You might also want to try Apricot & Ginger, Sloe & Raspberry and Coconut & Kaffir Lime.

Disclosure: we were sent three bottles of Five Valleys Cordials free of charge for review. No payment was received for this post. All posts are 100% honest.

Filed Under: Food and drink Tagged With: cordial, drink, review, taste test

Taste testing Walkers Hoops and Crosses (sponsored review)

6 May, 2013 By Emily Leary 1 Comment

Are there any more? – JD, 5

This week, we were sent a pack of Roast Beef Hoops and Crosses – the new type of crisp from Walkers.

So what makes them different? Well they’re baked, which the makers say means they contain 30% less fat than standard crisps and according to the packaging, “Walkers baked Hoops and Crosses are a tasty new way to boost kids’ wholegrain”.

Here’s the nutritional information:

Walkers Roast Beef Hoops and Crosses	Per 18g Pack	Per 100g
Energy	358kg / 85kcal	1987kg / 474kcal
Fat	3.8g (0.3g saturates)	20.9g (1.9g saturates)
Carbohydrate	11.0g (1.0g sugar)	61.3g (5.8g sugar)
Fibre	1.1g	5.9g
Protein	1.3g	7.4g
Salt	0.27g	1.49g

And here’s the nutritional information for a typical pack of crisps:

Walkers Smokey Bacon Crisps	Per 25g Pack	Per 100g
Energy	542kg / 130kcal	2168kg / 520kcal
Fat	7.6g (0.6g saturates)	30.5g (2.5g saturates)
Carbohydrate	13.4g (1.1g sugar)	53.4g (4.4g sugar)
Fibre	1.0g	4.1g
Protein	1.5g	5.9g
Salt	0.32g	1.30g

Clearly Hoops and Crosses compare favourably pack for pack, but it’s worth noting that gram for gram, Hoops and Crosses are saltier and more sugary than a standard packet of crisps.

Turning then to the wholegrain claim, it seems that the crisps are made from every part of the grain kernel (the outer fibre-rich bran, the inner micronutrient-rich germ and the starchy main ‘body’ of the kernel), which is thought to be good for protecting against diabetes and heart conditions, among other things.

It’s unclear how much wholegrain a pack provides, but assuming it contributes to the majority of the carbohydrate content, let’s say 10g. I struggled to find data on recommended wholegrain intake in the same way you would expect for standard nutrition like fat and salt, but it does appear that over 8g is considered a good source, so the claim on the pack seems valid.

As the packet doesn’t say they’re suitable for vegetarians (update: they are suitable for vegetarians!), I passed the taste testing job to JD. He didn’t seem to notice the fun shapes, but was quite impressed with the taste:

They are delicious. They taste like they’re made by crisp specialists. They’re meaty, crunchy and no ‘bits’.

And husband Mark’s verdict?

Really tasty. Perfect for eating with a sandwich. They don’t taste wholegrain at all.

Overall, Hoops and Crosses seem like a slightly healthier option than standard crisps, without any compromise on taste. We’d recommend them – in moderation, of course.

Disclosure: we were sent a pack of Hoops and Crosses free of charge for review. A payment was also received for this post. All posts are 100% honest.

Filed Under: Food and drink Tagged With: baked crisps, crisps, health, review, snacks for kids, walkers, wholegrain

Roadtesting the Samsung Galaxy S4 at The National Space Centre

5 May, 2013 By Emily Leary 9 Comments

*sung in the style of the Power Rangers song* We’re going to The National Space Centrrrrrrrrrrrrrrre – JD, 5

Last week, Carphone Warehouse got in touch and asked us if we wanted to test out the just-released Samsung Galaxy S4 – naturally we agreed, especially as we were challenged to give it a really decent road test on a family day out. Cue a trip to The National Space Centre in Leicester…

Our journey started with a trip into Nottingham city centre, where a nice man called Michael at Carphone Warehouse helped fit my SIM into the new phone, by way of a converter pack (£4.99).

Next, we stopped to stock up on lunchtime treats and then headed for the train – hurrah! Which we missed – boo!

Cue some waiting…

And more waiting…

Until finally…

Even though it was only 11am, we tucked into lunch as soon as we sat down.

And after a short ride, we arrived in Leicester, to be greeted by the exceptionally talented Red Leicester Choir, singing in aid of The Red Cross.

Next we took a brief bus journey (number 54) and finally arrived!

The underwhelming exterior luckily hid a rather fun interior, full of pieces of rocket, satellite and explorer, many of which had actually been in space (as JD kept telling me in amazement).

As well as some cool mini-models…

JD then persuaded me it was a good idea to go up 4 floors inside a plastic bubble to see the very top of the rocket hidden within. Looking back, it really was quite high.

Once up there, each floor had its own activities to explore. JD was rather keen on the moon.

And we did a spot of art.

Back on the ground floor, JD played spaceman.

Before we hit the cafe, and Miss J squealed with panic as she thought JD was caught under a real rocket’s thrusters.

All in all, a good day and we’d definitely recommend visiting the National Space Centre.

Thoughts on the Samsung Galaxy S4

For those who regularly follow this blog, you’ll know I’m an Apple fan girl at heart, and that I’m also very attached to my Canon DSLR, so photographing and filming entirely on a Samsung for this post was something of a departure.

Here are my thoughts…

The look and feel

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is light, slick and shiny. At just 7.9mm thick, it sits easily in my pocket and doesn’t feel too large overall as there’s very little bevel around the 5 inch screen.

I have had black iPhones continuously since 2009, and really dislike the white models, but it works for the S4 and compliments the fresh feel of the interface.

The interface

It’s a good phone. A great phone, actually. Reception was good throughout the trip, Facebook and Twitter worked like a charm and I’m smitten with the big, bright screen, responsive buttons and intuitive home display.

The touch screen is fast to react, though feels a tad less swift and precise than the iPhone, especially when switching between activities. The ‘air gesture’ function which is supposed to allow you to control certain actions without physically touching the screen is inconsistent. Sometimes it works great, other times you’re left wafting madly at the air to no avail.

Samsung seemed to have nailed their aim of making a phone into a ‘life companion’ – the Android interface with multiple home screens just works great and now that I’ve customised it with the apps and widgets I need, it feels hard to imagine ever going back to an iPhone.

The display

The 5inch Full HD screen (1920 x 1080) is breathtaking and watching videos is a dream, although I found the eye recognition that causes it to pause when it thinks you’re not looking to be insanely annoying and soon deactivated it.

The camera

There are two cameras on board. The main (rear) camera is a generous 13 Mega pixels, with Auto Focus and a built in flash, while the front-facing camera is 2 Mega pixels. Both respond immediately when the shutter is pressed.

In bright light, the rear camera is as good as you’d expect – better, even – but I was disappointed with the quality of the shots in low light. The focus seems to struggle and the shots often came out blurred and over saturated. If you’ve got an iPhone 5 (8 mega pixels), you’ll be expecting a lot more than you get from the S4 in low light.

That said, I’ve since discovered a multitude of manual settings (including metering, ISO and anti-shake) so perhaps that will improve as I learn to use the camera to its full potential.

The video camera

The video camera has a lot of features to love. It records in HD and at the same quality, as far as I can tell, as in photograph mode. The digital zoom is smooth and you can jump straight into video from photo mode at the touch of a button, there’s no delay as it switches over.

The battery

It was 60% charged when we left the house and lasted through 180 photos, 6 videos, 3 phone calls, 6 SMS, 1 MMS, some Facebook and Twittering before finally running out after 6.5 hours on the journey home. Not bad, I’d say.

Verdict

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is a great phone. Thin, light, intuitive and fun to use. The camera needs some work in low light, but unless you’re a budding photographer, it probably isn’t a deal breaker.

If you want to order one for yourself, they’re in stock now at Carphone Warehouse.

Disclosure: Carphone Warehouse sent us the Samsung Galaxy free-of-charge to test out. The image of the phone is an official one from the Carphone Warehouse website. No payment was received for this post. All posts are 100% honest.

Filed Under: Parenting Tagged With: national space centre, review, samsung galaxy s4