Diva Sleeping Bag

The sleeping bag...

1. Packaging
With girls, especially 'diva's' as the product name indicates, it's all about the wrapping and appearance. The plain black bag wasn't appealing and the small pink tag at the bottom wasn't enough to catch the eye. Michaela thought it was for a boy until she opened it up.

2. Sleeping bag appearance
Michaela loved the colors and the white fur trim.
She asked if there were different patterns. She also asked if it was reversible. I think both were great ideas. it might have been nice to have a bold floral pattern on one side and the solid pink on the other.

3. Sleep tested
To be continued. Michaela was eager to try out the new sleeping bag. we've set it up on top of her bed. I thought it would be too hard and uncomfortable on the hardwood floor... I won't be able to comment on how warm it keeps her as it it pretty warm in the house, but will contribute whatever feedback she has later.

Reviewer: Jilly - Wife and Mother
of 3.

Coleman Air Bed

The coleman's play air mattress is great. joshua (9) loves it as does michaela (6). they initially argued over it, but it is josh's now. connor also enjoyed crawling all over it. i think the colors attracted him. it didn't hurt that his big brother and sister were playing with it. mary's kids also enjoyed playing with it. caitlyn (nearly 2) was bouncing on it and matthew (maybe around 12?) had a go moving the ball around. only negative comment was that it's hard to get the ball back to the top layer. maybe there could be a bigger hole separating the top from the bottom in one of the corners?

Reviewer: Unknown

Brita Aqua Fountain

I found the Brita Water Filter very easy to set up and began using straight away.

The water filter has a built in chilling system which I intially used, but found I didn't really like the taste of the water. The water didn't seem to have a clean fresh taste. I decided to turn the chiller off, and once cooled down the water tasted much better.

Now, I am really enjoying using the Brita Filter, and as I live in a flat, and have a small baby it has made things much easier not having to carry big bottles of mineral water up the stairs when I do my weekly shop. It also saves me a trip to the recycling bank.

Reviewer: Collette H

Tefal Toast-N-Egg Combo

Greetings from the Smokies Mountains in Tennessee! Here is the review for the toaster.

I thought the toaster egg combo was a great product for us, especially as we had 2 toddlers who love egg and soldiers. We would purchase the product and recommend the product to a friend.

If you are a true poached egg fan, you will not like the way the white part toughens up due to the high heat. A good poached egg is actually cooked below the boiling point in order to ensure a tender white. Here the water is heated to boiling and when it is evaporated the egg is done. The whole thing is done in about three minutes so the water really heats up. If you want a soft egg, you will actually need to reduce the water slightly as it overcooks it. The round shape of the egg after cooking makes it a perfect fit for a muffin sandwich for lunch too.

We also tried boiling eggs in the Tefal and the result was good. Again, for a true egg fan, the high heat toughens up the white but the whole thing is done in a few minutes and so makes it worthwhile to have, escpecially if you are short on time and have hungry kids.

We loved it for the convenience and minimum washing up. It is a product we will use often as it is so quick.

Scoring (5 stars maximum)
Appearance
4 stars (it is only 4 because it is a bit cumbersome on counter)

Ease of use
4 stars

Value for money
4 stars

Reviewer: Mary (Wife and Mother of 2 ).

Children's Books

I don't want a posh dog - Author: Emma Dodd

Nice book with a simple message. The book has lots of energy and lovely, big, colourful pictures. It says £10.99 on the reverse. I wouldn't pay that for it as you don't get much mileage out of it - as opposed to a collection of stories you could buy for the same price - but would get it out of the library.

First time parent - Author: Lucy Atkins

Lucy's outlook really struck a chord with me. It felt like a good friend sitting you down and telling you all about what to expect about parenthood: labour, the first few weeks and months. Unlike a lot of similar books - which can be quite 'textbooky' I found it really engaging and easy to read (which is so important when you're in the early months and sooo tired!)

Reviewer: Tara