Are you thinking about investing in wheels for your little one? We’ve reviewed two of the most popular vehicles for little ones. Read on to find out whether you should get a Smart Trike or a Micro Scooter.

We loved Tipover from Thinkfun, and Rush Hour is another great game from the same company. With lots of cards with suggested layouts you can set yourself challenges, or challenge a friend. Manoeuvre the red car out of the traffic jam: the cards are graded from easy to hard so this is a good game for age 8 to adult. It comes in a neat bag and makes a great game to travel with too.
The Rush Hour Game costs £12.99 and is also available in a junior version.

Have you seen the ads for Kung Zhu fighting hamsters? My crew had and were very taken with what they saw on TV, and we’ve had fun testing the toys out. I suspected the major danger with this would be the chance to buy more and more gear for your hamster: armour, tanks, additional training and battle grounds.  In fact, the hamsters were the most popular part and, while J enjoyed using the training ground, they both wanted to take their hamsters to school, to bed etc.
Kung zhu hamsters cost …

Here is a children’s book review for a change after a spate of toy reviews.
Justin Thyme by Panama Oxridge is an excellent book. Packed with detail it certainly gave D, 8, a challenging read. It follows the adventures of brilliant boy millionaire Justin Thyme who lives with his eccentric family in the north of Scotland. Together with a cast of servants including a suspicious gardener, a tame ape and a nanny who thinks and communicates in clichés, Justin is challenged both by his desire to understand time and by the …

D, 8, is not an exceptionally girly girl. She moved on from Disney princesses years ago, and scorns pretty dresses.   I didn’t think that the Harumika Bridal Collection would be a particular hit with her but she enjoyed using it the first time and has brought it out time and again.  Ignoring the big box it comes in, it is a simple but clever concept.  You create dresses on tiny mannequins and slot the fabric into a silicone slit in the back which, using a special tool.  This takes …

In some ways we’re not big games players in our family, but we do like puzzles, and this is a great one.
It is testing enough to get D, 8, thinking … and it challenges DH and I too. J, 5 just likes playing with the shapes.
It comes with a handy carry case so we took it when we went on the train over half term and it helped amuse the kids over a long journey. A great present for an older child who still likes to play, or a …

Playskool step start walk and ride

K, 18months, is keen on anything with wheels. When he swiped a storage box on wheels to site in and use as a car I knew it was time to get him a little ride on for indoors. We were pleased, therefore, to test the Playskool step start walk and ride for the Toylogists programme.
It was easy to set up, despite K helping, and he was keen to get on and ride as soon as he could. He likes the little ‘trunk’ at the front …

This is an attractive little kit for a girl. D described it as ‘exciting’. It took a little while and my help to set it up, and weaving was 50% d, 50% mum! We were able to complete the first project within a couple of evenings, although it took me longer to get round to sewing it up.
D, 8, says, “Cool, I like the phone-bag I made.” This is for age 8+ and is available from Toys R Us. The Weaving-Loom costs £9.99.

Galt Cute Cupcakes
Another winning craft kit from Galt for a very reasonable price. D and I got very carried away making cupcakes: there is enough plaster in the pack to make 4 cupcakes and one stand. We went freestyle and just used all the plaster (plus some from another kit) to make millions of cupcakes. They are going to be part of D’s Christmas gifts to her friends. Decorated with pretty colours and sparkles they look good enough to eat. (Actually, next door’s 2 year old had a wobbly when …

This is a cute ‘paintpot’ that talks! You ‘tip’ plastic pots of paint into the pot and it tells you which colours are which, and what you get when you add a combination of two colours. K really likes this one, and is passionately attached to the yellow paint pot. For me, I think it is quite alot of money for not an enormous amount of function. OK, it is cleaner and less messy to let your child learn about colours using Mr Colour Maker than real paint, but any …