Zuru Smashers Dino Epic Egg - Review

[AD/Gifted - We received these items for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This post also contains affiliate links meaning that I will earn a few pennies if you purchase through my link.]

C loved Zuru Smashers when the first series came out so he was beyond excited to see that the new addition to the range were dinosaur themed!

He was absolutely thrilled to get some goodies to test out - the Dino Epic Egg and two Dino 8 packs.

C was instantly drawn to the huge Dino Epic Egg and couldn't wait to see what was inside. Once you've taken the packaging off, you do as the name suggests and smash it! The "shell" will then come apart so you can take out the contents.

Inside we found an egg-shaped pouch filled with goodies, six Smashers dino eggs and a scratch map. The pouch contains Dino Dirt, Fizzy Lava, Glowing Slime, Fossil Rock, Ice Age putty as well as some tools.

This is where the scratch map comes in. You scratch the first panel to see what to open first, right up to panel 5. We started with the Dino Dirt. Inside the resealable pouch (very handy!) you have a type of kinetic sand with two dinosaur skull bones hidden inside so you have to dig through it.

Next up we did the Fizzy Lava. I was expecting this to react like a bath bomb so I filled a bowl of water and C happily dunked it in. They weren't lying when they call it lava - we thought it was going to overflow! It fizzed and bubbled up and the kids thought it was great! When the bubbles had subsided we found four dino feet bones.

The Glowing Slime was next and C was a bit grossed out by this. He doesn't really like the feel of slime! I dug through it for him and found yet more dino bones! We then are able to keep the slime to play with another time (well, E will!) in the resealable bag.

The Fossil Rock was probably C's favourite as he could get hammering away at the fossil. This one took quite a bit of time but he was determined to find whatever was hidden inside. Guess what? More dinosaur bones!

The Ice Age Putty was my favourite for sure. It, again, comes inside a resealable egg so can be played with again at a later date. It is very sticky and I loved the addition of the glitter. After finding our last bones, we could then refer to the instruction manual and get building our dinosaur skeleton using the eleven pieces that we discovered.

I am massively impressed with the Zuru Smashers Dino Epic Egg as it is packed full of fun activities and I know that any dino fan will love it. It is fab from a sensory point of view too as you have a lot of different textures to work with and it isn't just doing the same thing, like opening a blind bag, over and over again. For the price of £24.99 (currently £19.99 at the time of writing) it feels like such a bargain!

The Dino 8 Packs are reminiscent of the Smashers that we had a couple of years back. You get a collector's guide so you can see the name of the dinosaur that you hatch from your egg and you can also see if they are common or rare. We also were lucky enough to find some fossils that needed dug out too, adding a little bit of extra excitement!

Once you've smashed your egg, there is no need to throw the pieces out and have a lot of waste. The six pieces slot back together to create the egg shape again. This takes a little bit of practice though!

The kids love collecting these types of toy and use them after to create little scenarios together. The Dino 8 Packs are £7.99 each.

You can find the Zuru Smashers Dino range at Smyths Toys and if you head over to my Facebook page, I have a giveaway running for a £25 Smyths voucher so that you can buy some of your own! 

You can keep up to date with Zuru on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and Smyths on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter too.

Schleich Dino Set with Cave - Review

My son C has always been interested in dinosaurs, ever since the age of 2 when he became obsessed with Andy's Dinosaur Adventures on CBeebies and proudly told me that his favourite was a parasaurolophus (which I promptly had to Google - how could a 2 year old outsmart me?) Four years on, his love of dinosaurs is still there so he was very excited to get his hands on the Schleich Dino Set with Cave (recommended for age 5+).

I love the Schleich range and you can tell just by looking and holding them that they are a great value, well made and will stand the test of time. We reviewed some Schleich animal figures two years ago and they are still going strong, have been borrowed by C's nursery for a while and now enjoyed by both of my children with not a breakage in sight.

The Dino Set with cave comes with four pieces to build the cave (cave, column, stone and stone slab), a Herrerasaurus with a moveable lower jaw, a Psittacosaurus, a Microraptor and a fossil head. Upon opening, the first thing I noticed was the sheer weight of each piece, you know that this is a fantastic quality toy. The cave itself was simple enough for 6 year old C to build alone and he loved that you can transform the front part into a catapult when the stone column is moved.

The dinosaur figures themselves have been crafted with exceptional attention to detail. The colouring on each is second to none and I was surprised to see that they are all handpainted because they look so incredible. The size of the cave and figures are decent too.

C, although a lover of dinosaurs, wasn't actually aware of these types so we had a quick Google about their backgrounds, what they ate and he was very interested in learning more. Watching C's imagination come to life when he is playing with this set is wonderful. He will have them fight each other, try to run or fly away, have one dinosaur remove the stone trying to crush another, all while roaring as loud as he can and you can just feel his excitement.

We love the Schleich Dino with Cave Set as it combines two of my favourite things; playing and learning. I even learned a bit more about dinosaurs too! This set retails at £44.99 but for handpainted, high quality toys that encourage creativity and imagination, it's definitely worth it. You can purchase your own at the Schleich website.

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

 

UNTAMED Raptor by Fingerlings - Review

Last year, you might remember the craze around the Fingerlings monkeys. They were being advertised everywhere and parents were stressing to find one before Christmas as everywhere was selling out. Now, WowWee have developed a new style - Raptors! My five year old son C wasn't too interested in the regular Fingerlings but anything dinosaur related and he is on it like a shot. I have to admit, I was never too sure how Fingerlings worked and thought they didn't really do much but sit on your finger and look cute.

The UNTAMED Raptors come in four different characters with their own unique name and personality; Stealth (which we have received), Blaze, Fury and Razor. They sit on your finger and are fierce and unpredictable - not exactly like their cute Fingerlings cousins. They will either become a friend or a foe, all depending on how you interact with it. C is exactly the type to wind you up so I knew he'd try his best to anger it.

If you shake or poke him, he will roar, hiss or chomp at you. Alternatively, if you act kindly by petting his nose, he will hum, coo or purr. The UNTAMED Raptors have blinking eyes, snapping jaws and gripping claws and they react to touch, motion and sound and make over 40 different sounds - C especially like when he farts and will be in fits of giggles. Typical boy!

Upon opening, I did think that perhaps C would play with him for a short while and get bored but it does take a little while to get used to what actions or sounds to make around it and figure out what will make it react - it's all a learning curve! He would sit for ages just testing different things out. I love that it's so easy to play with independently.

They are made from sturdy plastic with a little on/off switch on the back so you don't need to worry about hearing it hiss or roar at silly o'clock, scaring the living daylights out of you. They fit perfectly onto his finger and although it's battery operated, it isn't too heavy. I am a sucker for anything interactive that responds to something that you do so I think these are perfect for little dinosaur fans!

The UNTAMED Raptors are suitable for children aged 5+ and retail at £16.99. You can find them at Smyths Toys, Argos and The Entertainer.

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

Having Fun with Sticker & Activity Books from Little Tiger Press

C has always been a fan of books. He loves being read to and loves to learn. As he has gotten older, he likes to challenge himself by doing activity books and his ultimate favourite is sticking stickers. We were lucky enough to receive two fabulous books from Little Tiger Press that I knew C would love. 

Firstly, the 'My Little World' series by Jonathan Litton and illustrated by Fhiona Galloway has two new additions; 'I Spy Learn and Go' and 'I Spy on the Farm'. C received Learn and Go. He also received Little Snappers Dinosaurs Funtime Sticker Activity Book.

C was very excited about the dinosaur book firstly. He is a typical boy and loves all things dino related. Sticking stickers is one of his favourite things to do so when you combine those two together, he is one happy boy. 

The first half of the book has the sticker scenes. Each page has a scene and is titled then when you go to the middle of the book you can find all the stickers for each page under the title. I love this as you do have free rein to stick your stickers anywhere but you have a little guidance as to which stickers go on each page. There are also little questions such as 'Can you find xyz?' in the scene. 

The second half of the book has activities such as dot-to-dot, colouring, find the odd one out and lots of fun things to get your child excited and interested in. The answers are at the back of the book to check how your little ones get on with the task. 

C really enjoyed this book and because it has so much packed into it, he has used it multiple times of the past few weeks and it's been great for keeping him occupied. 

The I Spy On The Go book is a similar book to the dino one. The pages are laminated in this one so you can stick, unstick then stick again until your hearts content. 

You can visit four different scenes and at each one you are asked to spot different objects, use your stickers to put the missing objects in place and you can also trace words and dress up characters. The answers to each page can be found at the back too. Erasable markets can be used with this book. 

This book really got C's brain working and because there is such much going on in each scene, he loved pointing everything out and telling me what they were. 

Both of these books are available from Little Tiger Press both retailing at £5.99 each. 

You can find out more at the Little Tiger Press website and you can follow them on Facebook and Twitter. 

(Disclaimer: We received these books for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)

Noisy Dinosaurs by Jonathan Litton

C is very much your typical little boy. He loves playing with building blocks, cars and most importantly, dinosaurs! The only thing he probably loves as equally as dinosaurs are books. 

Imagine his delight when he received a copy of Noisy Dinosaurs by Jonathan Litton. 

This book, as the name suggests, in a sound book which I think are great for sucking a child in. They make reading much more fun. 

C is well aware that there are different types of dinosaurs. This book has pages about the Tyrannosaurus Rex, Stegosaurus, Pterodactyl, Diplodocus and Triceratops. On each page, there are facts about that particular dinosaur and on its image, you are able to push a button to hear how that dinosaur sounded. The buttons each have a different texture which is a lovely touch - pardon the pun! Jonathan Litton has touched on his scientific background to give your child accurate information and I like that C is having fun and being educated at the same time. Your child is asked if they can make the same sound so they are encouraged to join in and interact with the book. 

Noisy Dinosaurs is published by Little Tiger Press and it is available to buy now at a price of £8.99. It is suitable for children aged 3-5 years old. 

You can have a browse of the full range of books at the Little Tiger Press website or you can follow them on Facebook and Twitter. 

(Disclaimer: We received a copy of Noisy Dinosaurs for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)