Colours of the Sea Ariel - Review #jakksbathtime

I have spoken numerous times on the blog about how I don't believe in gender specific toys. My children are close in age and both play with the same toys despite being different genders. C loves dolls and princesses, E loves dinosaurs and cars. E has even dressed up as Buzz Lightyear whereas C has worn a Princess Anna dress up costume. I will let them play with whatever they like for as along as they like.

Speaking of princesses, I put C's name forward to review the Colours of the Sea Ariel doll from Jakks Pacific because of his love of princesses and I was pleasantly surprised to be chosen. It's quite sad that I expected him not to be chosen just because he's a boy but I love that it wasn't an issue. When she arrived, he was literally bouncing up and down and couldn't wait to get her opened out. 

 
Colours of the Sea Ariel is a bath toy but can also be used out of the bath. She comes with a little Flounder squirt toy for bathtime use too. The doll itself is made of sturdy plastic with the lifelike red hair - it is amazing! She says 14 different phrases that can be activated by pressing her shell necklace. She only says a set amount of phrases but once you submerge her tail in water, it activates the rest so you have two different sets depending on where you're playing with her. There is a little button on the back of her neck which makes it easy to switch the language from English to Spanish. 

C loved the fact that her tail lights up and especially thinks it's great when we turn the lights off in the bath and let her light the water up. He loves clicking through all the phrases so he can get to the part where she sings 'Part of Your World." We dug out our Little Mermaid DVD when she first arrived and he had to press it to make her sing at the point where she sings in the film. 

I've included a little video below of her lighting up in the water:



I have to admit that I was a little worried about taking a battery operated toy into the water but of course, it's meant to be a bath toy so I trusted Jakks Pacific! I also didn't want her beautiful red hair to get ruined so I was a bit apprehensive about that too. I remember taking my own Barbie dolls in when I was little and they'd get all matted. I needn't have worried though. We had no problems with the batteries and although I probably don't need to, I've been brushing her hair whilst wet then leaving it to dry and it hasn't gone horrible - success! 

The doll is recommended for children aged 3+ but C's younger sister has just turned 2 and loves it and can use it just as well. Both of the kids are utterly in love with her and I truly believe that she would make a fantastic Christmas present. I can see lots of little ones being very happy!

Colours of the Sea Ariel retails at £34.99 (but at the time of publishing, is currently on sale at Amazon) and is available from all good stockists. 

(We received this item for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)

 

Munchkin Scooper Hooper

C loves having baths and I think it's down to the fact that he likes to play with different toys. Ones that he doesn't play with day in, day out. 

As part of being a Munchkin Blogger we received the Scooper Hooper. 

The Scooper Hooper is two toys in one. You get the 'scooper' and three rubber balls. Firstly, you can play by letting the balls float in the water and trying to scoop them with the 'scooper'. The handle is easy grip so it's perfect for C's little hands to hold. He had lots of fun trying to catch the balls as they floated by him. It's great for hand-eye coordination too!

Alternatively, the 'scooper' has a suction pad at the end of the handle so it can be stuck onto the side of the bath. Your child can then use the balls as basketballs and try to get them in the net of the scooper. C preferred this game better. 

The colourfulness of the scooper and balls combined with the different textures and game that can be played makes it the perfect bath toy for children. 

The Scooper Hooper is suitable for children aged 12 months + and it retails at £5.99. 

You can find out more at the Munchkin website. You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

(Disclaimer: We received this item as part of our role as Munchkin/Lindam Bloggers. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)

TOMY Winnie the Pooh Stack, Pour, Post & Play Review

On a dull and drab Monday that was composed of a doctors visit in the morning, I got home to find that my lovely neighbour had taken in a fabulous review item for us and it instantly perked me up - TOMY's Winnie the Pooh Stack, Pour, Post & Play! 

On opening, I thought that this toy looks so bright and colourful. Definitely appealing to a child. I love how there is more than one way to play, ensuring that your child doesn't get bored. 

I showed C how to play with the stackers in the bath. He didn't really grasp how to do it himself but he loves watching the water come through when I do it for him. He claps and puts his hands under (adorable!). 

I have also been trying to teach him which small shape goes in which hole. He is a quick learner so he understands but he forgets to let go of them to put them in! I'm sure he'll catch on eventually but it is teaching him very well. 

The stackers are a bit tougher for him. He will let me stack them and he likes to knock them down and wait for me to put them back up again. He does try to put the smaller shapes on top though! Again, this is something that I think he will pick up on with more practice. 

They pack away easily too - which is great and C's second toy box is filling up thick and fast and it also ensures that we don't lose any little pieces. 

The Winnie the Pooh Stack, Pour, Post & Play is suitable for children aged 6-24 months and would make a great Christmas present. It is one of the first toys C wants out of his toy box now and he will definitely the use out of it. 

You can find out more about TOMY at their website, Facebook or Twitter.

(Disclaimer: I received this item free of charge in exchange for an open and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own).