Dressing as The Demon Dentist for World Book Day

World Book day is almost upon us for another year and this time I had the challenge of finding a costume that met the approval of my rather fussy nine year old. Although he wanted to join in with the day and demonstrate his love of reading, he sees himself as too 'grown up' for the supermarket dress up costumes that his younger sister loves. The contents of his wardrobe don't exactly lend itself to adaptation either, unless of course he decided to go as a football player!

So when the lovely folks at Pretend to Bee  offered to send us their Mad Scientist Lab Coat to create a World Book Day costume with, Ben had an idea that involved a head torch and a bottle of ketchup...

Ben is a big David Walliams fan and you may remember his extreme reading challenge last Autumn when he had to read in an interesting location. His book of choice was The Demon Dentist and it was this that had given him an idea...

Reflective reading... Ben's half term homework was to read in an unusual place! Here he is reading David Walliam's Demon Dentist in the hall of mirrors at @mtblackpool #extremereading #explorerkids

A post shared by Jen Dixon (@mymummyspennies) on Nov 2, 2016 at 1:31am PDT

The Mad Scientist lab coat from Pretend to Bee arrived quickly and was a good fit for my tall 9 year old, with it's simple and unisex design with pull apart velcro fastening at the front. I could see it being a fantastic base for a multitude of costume ideas from Crazy Scientists, to Doctors and of course Dentists...

Although the The Demon Dentist herself, Miss Root is a women, that doesn't mean that Ben couldn't be his own version of the terrifying tooth tackler!

So we teamed the lab coat with a disposable dust mask (available from most DIY stores- a surgical mask would be a good replacement but we couldn't get hold of one of these) and his camping head touch then got out a bottle of Ketchup!

I've got to say that I did have fun standing in our yard squirting my 9 year old with ketchup, although my neighbours probably think i'm nuts! (If they didn't already!)

Here is the finished result ready for tomorrow, he's really pleased with it, what do you think?

What's more is the ketchup should easily wash off the lab coat so it can be used again for different costumes and role play which makes it great value.

What are your children dressing as for World Book Day tomorrow? I'd love to see some pictures, do tweet me to share them at @mymummyspennies.

Celebrate Roald Dahl Day in Manchester this Weekend

'A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men.' Roald Dahl

I loved reading as a child, and although he wasn't my favourite author, Roald Dahl was definitely in my top five. His books filled part of my childhood bookshelves and have always stayed with me. My favourites were George's Marvelous Medicine and Danny, Champion of the World!

2016 marks 100 years since the birth of one of the greatest Children's authors and 13th September was his birthday. There are events happening all over the world to celebrate and plenty happening in Manchester over the weekend. My children will be dressing up as their favourite characters for school on Tuesday to mark the occasion (Fantastic Mr Fox and either Matilda or a witch - she's not decided yet!) before before that we'll be heading in to Manchester City Centre on Sunday to have some fantastic fun!

Glittering Eyes pop up cinema

On Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th there will be a fantastical  Glittering Eyes pop up cinema at New Bailey near Spinningfields. There will be showings of James and the Giant Peach,  Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,  Matilda and The Witches. It's not just about the movie showings though as there will be a wonderland of Dahl themed activities from a walk through Willy Wonka's garden to a giant peach pop-up library and loads of Children’s entertainment as well as lots of tasty street food traders to tempt your tastebuds! 
New Bailey Street, Salford, M3 5AX (tickets from £7.50 available at www.eventbrite.co.uk).  

Roald Dahl Big Picnic Day at Tatton Park

To celebrate this special birthday Tatton Park are opening their Gardens to picnickers for the first time on Sunday 11th September 2016, so you can bring a picnic and settle down in their gorgeous formal Gardens! And what's more, they will be free to enter for everyone! During your picnic enjoy exploring the 50-acre garden. There’s a fabulous Danny the Champion of the World Trail to follow full-of-fun obstacles. James and the Giant Peach and the Twits provide further fun! A great afternoon entertainment programme includes a mini disco, Roald Dahl inspired performances and the young ones can settle down and listen in to storytelling. On the day you’ll be able to give a little by treating yourself to a slice of the most humungous, yummy birthday cake baked by our very own baker …..the proceeds go to Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity caring for seriously ill children. Go dressed up as your favourite Roald Dahl character and you could win a superlicious surprise! Gardens open from 10am. Activities take place between 12pm and 3pm. Ice cream, beers and hot and cold refreshments are available to purchase. Car parking is £6 per car. Find out more here

Go Jetters Magazine from Cbeebies ‪#‎GoJettersGo‬

Elizabeth is coming to the end of her first year in school and she has developed a real love of reading during her time in reception. As well as enjoying the vast and varied library of children's books we have collected over the last few years, she loves being able to choose a magazine as a treat when we go to the supermarket, and I love that she no longer makes her choice purely based on the plastic toy that is taped to the front!

As most parents of young children will know, there are multiple shelves full of colourful magazines to catch the eye of little ones in most supermarkets and newsagents, but not all of them are offering the same value. Some I find have pages upon pages filled with adverts for the latest toys or TV shows and not a lot to hold a child's attention. An exception to this is the growing range of kid's magazines from Cbeebies magazines, including Swashbuckle, The Furchester Hotel and more...

Today another fabulous Cbeebies show has it's own magazine out in the shops an I can already tell it's going to be a firm favourite!

The new Go Jetters magazine follows on from the popular Cbeebies show that takes viewers on a fun but educational adventure around the world. If you've not seen it yet you'll soon have Last night a GJ saved my life stuck in your head on repeat! (Sorry!)  

In the magazine you can meet the Go Jetters gang an find out all about Xuli, the pilot, Kyan, the gymnast, Lars who can fix anything, Foz, the problem solver and of course Ubercorn who guides the Go Jetters and shares lots of interesting facts! There is even a Blippar app that parents can download to their phone so little ones can get even more  fun out of the magazine!

The magazine, like the show, is aimed at both boys and girls aged three to five, and is an ideal way for little ones to learn about geography and famous landmarks as it introduces children to places they may not have experienced before.

Issue one is out today (Wednesay 28th June) priced at just £2.99 and is packed full of fun, including an exciting free Vroomster launcher toy plus Xuli figurine, a funky Ubercorn workbook, a colourful Go Jetters poster and sticker reward chart and much more!

Editors Quote

With Go Jetters magazine readers can travel anywhere in the world and be part of the amazing Go
Jetter Academy. The exciting editorial encourages children to problem solve and to find out about
famous landmarks all over the world.
Whether it’s Niagra Falls, the Sahara Desert or the Eiffel Tower, Go Jetters engages children’s
imaginations so they can learn about geography in a way that is gripping and meaningful to them.
The editorial sparks children’s curiosity and encourages them to ask questions and have conversations about places. It provides opportunities for them to discover more about where they live as well as places far away.
There’s plenty of humour with Grandmaster Glitch, plus incredible facts to learn from disco-dancing Ubercorn along with thrilling Go Jetter adventures for our readers to enjoy. The gifts include the most amazing vehicles, awesome gadgets as well as fun toy figurines to play with!
Go Jetters magazine really is a global adventure for little learners!

  Elizabeth enjoyed colouring, stickering, spotting the difference, reading, problem solving and of course leaning lots of interesting facts about landmarks around the world, but her favourite part was definitely making her very own Eiffel Tower to fly her Vroomster around! It was a simple but engaging craft activity that kept her focus for at least fifteen minutes, she then used the free Vroomster and Xuli toys along with her paper cut outs to become involved in imaginative play, chatting to herself all about Niagara Falls and the Eiffel Tower! I'd love to know all about the adventures she was having!

As if that isn't enough value packed in to one magazine, there is a final treat in store! Inside the magazine is an exclusive voucher for one free child admission to Alton Towers, Sealife, Madame Tussauds, Coca Cola London eye and other Merlin attractions. See voucher on page 16 for more details and full terms and conditions!

We were sent the magazine for the purposes of this review.

63/365

63/365 - says it all...