The cover says that this book will teach you “How to thrive in a world of lying, backstabbing and dirty tricks.”
My utterly Hi-5 obsessed 3 yo daughter thought all her dreams had come true when I took her to the movies to see Hi-5 – Some Kind Of…
We all know that the folk at phil&teds are clever clogs. I’m constantly amazed at what they come up with and the Universal Travel Bag is no exception.…
The Cat’s Pyjamas was a finalist in the NZ Post Book Awards 2012 – Children’s fiction. It’s a simply structured story about a cat that wears different pyjamas each…
Sometimes it’s just plain hard to think of new things to do at home with toddlers and/or preschoolers. You don’t really have the time or energy to search…
Yo ho Maties! In this super-fun book you can go on daring raids, follow treasure maps, unearth buried chests brimful of stolen booty — but beware of ghostly…
If you’re looking for a new bag for your child, you’re going to want to check out Madpax bags. Brand new to New Zealand, Madpax bags are fun…
MADPAX is so trendy and funky – I am loving the colours!
In this lift-the-flap book, the loveable and mischievous Hairy Maclary is hiding from the neighbourhood cats. But then he comes nose-to-nose with Scarface Claw, the toughest tom in…
Hairy Maclary turns 30(!!) this year and Bolinda Publishing has put together two glorious collections of audio books, which will keep your children entranced for hours.
The Three Bears (Sort Of) is a revision of that classic family favourite, Goldilocks and The Three Bears. In Yvonne Morrison’s rewrite, a woman reads the story to…
Goodness me, is there anything more difficult to write about than a book about sleep related to babies? As this is a topic fraught with conflict, I have…
A novel of honey, love and manners. The Wedding Bees tells the tale of Sugar Wallace, who moves around the US taking care of her bees and her…
Dart of Castle Hill is a New Zealand sheep dog working on a beautiful high country farm called Castle Hill. He has lost his sheep and needs to…
Kids’ Party Cakes is a one-stop-shop for children’s birthday cakes from birth upwards. If I were to sum up the book in one word, I would use ‘uncomplicated’.…
Phil&teds have brought out a stylish new high chair that doubles as a toddler chair as well. The Poppy system is designed for 6 month olds to 5…
You may already know the phil&teds traveller portacot… if so, you’ll know that they are light-weight and easy to use. Recently, the traveller has had a facelift and…
Giraffes can’t Dance is a young children’s book about Gerald the Giraffe who can’t dance at the annual dance party
Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to lead is a brave book and an important one. Sheryl Sandberg has led a challenging career and a successful one.…
Adventures in Vintage Needlecraft In With Bold Needle and Thread, Rosemary McLeod takes the reader through the 1920s to the 1950s with projects, a bit of history and…
Easy Rider aims to encourages everyone into cycling, remembering that ease and enthusiasm of being on two wheels. It’s sprinkled with fun and good humour, breaking down barriers…
The Silly Goat Gruff is a new twist on the classic tale of The Billy Goat Gruff and is written by kiwi Scott Tulloch. As an adult I…
The Cosmopolitan is a new style of buggy for Mountain Buggy. It’s got (gasp!) 4 wheels not the traditional 3 and a different profile from the Mountain Buggy…
Paddy and Flynn’s dog Coco is outside when she is suddenly swooped off by a dragon! The boys mount a rescue mission to the dragon’s lair, making sure…
Things We Love to Do is the eighth album by Wellington music-man Kelvin Roy and aims to offer “enhanced educational experiences for Kids & Teachers”.
I took my three kids (3, 5 and 7) for some school holiday fun to see “Dr Brown and His Singing Tiger” at the Herald Theatre in Auckland’s…
“Love Your Hair” promises 24 easy-to-follow “recipes” for effortlessly sexy hair. I put my name down to review this book in November and when it arrived in March,…
I took my 7yo daughter and 5yo son (plus my son’s best mate) for a school holiday trip to the movies – the choice was “Escape From Planet…
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Capital E is a national treasure. Every school holidays and plenty of time in-between, Capital E serves up awesome…
At the Beach is a delightful introduction to the natural history of the New Zealand seashore. The stage is set with beautiful, factually correct illustrations (including detailed cross-sections)…
I bought 3 rarpz characters (two were seconds for cosmetic reasons so I got these at an awesome price). They were very cute to look at.
Good Food Made Simple is all about cooking food that brings warmth to a kitchen, laughter and pleasure to a home. It’s about new twists on old standbys…
A stage show performance of the Margaret Mahy classic childrens story, at the Pumphouse Theatre, Takapuna. I took my just-turned-3-year-old for her first ever show for her birthday,…
What if you had the chance to live your life again and again, until you finally got it right? That’s the premise of Life After Life – the…
1,2,3 Little Donkey is a simple, early counting book. Mother Donkey has been shopping and bought 1, 2, 3… different items. Little Donkey and and Bobby investigate!
Paper is something we both take for granted and appreciate. Every day we make use of, or come across, paper in a multitude of ways. I never knew…
In an era where we are increasingly aware of the need to limit refined sugars and grains in our diet, Amber Rose’s Love, Bake, Nourish offers a range of delicious…
Last year’s New Zealand Masterchef Winner Chelsea Winter has released her debut title, At My Table. If I’m honest, when I first flicked through the book I would…
Q&A a day for kids is 365 questions to ask your child with 3 spaces for their answers so you can record their answers over three years and see…
Information is Beautiful is over 200 pages of beautiful infographics; data displayed in creative image format. Topics include pop-culture, the internet, food, the environment, politics, health, science and…
The TomTom GPS app for iphone is a nifty little app that will help make your travelling easier.
This bright, colourful and comprehensive book contains “not only our favourite recipes from Meals Without Meat, Meals Without Red Meat, and Very Easy Vegetarian, but also…. recipes from…
The Comfy Bebe merino swaddle wrap is a 3 in 1 wrap, made and designed in New Zealand. It also converts to a sleep bag and is used…
Mountain Buggy is best known for awesome buggies but recently, they’ve been breaking out some new products (you might have seen our review of the peppy car seat).…
Big, hard-cover book with lots of pictures, all about “How our planet was formed, shaped and continuously changes”. This is a Geology and Weather book for primary-to-intermediate kids.…
A fantastic, colourful, visual extravaganza – taking you on a global tour of different habitats and the creatures that live there. A great book for primary-to-intermediate aged kids…
Forget old-fashioned colouring books! Let the world of New Zealand art unleash children’s imaginations. Lateral thinking and creativity truly blossom when combined with robust technical skills – and…
The Man the That the Sea Saw is a part of the Capital E National Arts Festival for Children. I didn’t know anything about what I was going…
This monitor is amazing! Imagine being able to see what your little one is up to; check on them without the risk of waking them up prematurely. Seeing…
Lyn Webster got herself in a financial pickle a few years ago and had to slash her spending considerably. She managed to do so really successfully and has…
Sky Dancer is a beautiful collaboration between Capital E National Theatre for Children and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, this performance has been especially created for young people.…
The Mumanu pregnancy pillow is a self-inflating velvety bolster which supports you in bed to help relieve the lower back and hip pain associated with pregnancy.
Capital E presents NZ’S biggest arts festival for children from the 11 – 23 MARCH 2013. My 4 year old grand-daughter and I were lucky enough to see…
Like most of de Goldi’s characters, 9 year old Perry in The ABC with Honora Lee is a quirky girl with an odd way of looking at the…
A Necklace of Souls is a fantasy novel by a New Zealand author, R.L. Stedman. You can find out more about her at http://rlstedman.com This is a story…
Annie Bell’s Baking Bible is a beautiful, heavy book spilling over with glossy pictures of carefully catalogued baking treats.
Granny Chic: Crafy Recipes and Inspiration for the Handmade Home is an inspiring little book that will have you itching for your sewing machine and thinking of projects. Think Make…
Marathons of the World explores 50 marathons of the world, each with honest descriptions and tales. It is so well done that it serves as both a travel book…
Inspire and entertain your kids with fun with letters, numbers, colours, shapes, music and science. Smart Crazy! encourages children to start exploring the world with more than 70 fun…
My adventures with the Nokia 920 continue and I used the phone quite extensively while away on holiday as we were away from our normal phones and Internet…
A big and brightly coloured picture book about the ladybirds’ hunt for the perfect house—led by a tenacious yet clueless real estate agent. The Great House Hunt is another beautiful…
Nokia has recently released its first Windows 8 OS phone and I’ve had the good fortune to try out the Nokia Lumia 920. It’s a bit bigger than…
Anton and Luke are competitive. They do battle over everything. Anton and the Battle tells the tale of one of their encounters.
Pipimoomoo loves her jeans. Until her friend lends her a skirt. And then Pipimoomoo is desperate for a skirt of her own. Luckily, she has an awesome mum…
That’s not my…Pony, Train, Robot etc – Touch and feel book for babies
Kinect Nat Geo TV blends world-renowned Nat Geo WILD TV show episodes with Kinect for Xbox 360, transporting kids and their families around the world, expanding knowledge and…
With Kinect Sesame Street TV, children are invited to experience the world of Sesame Street alongside their favorite characters such as Big Bird, Grover, Cookie Monster and Elmo…
A European product which are compostable and biodegradable. They are a better choice should you want to use a disposable nappy than other brands as they are better…
LA’BONIC Natural Sun Block is an organic sunblock with no nasties (chemical free) that is SPF30.
Naty Nappies, eco brand using eco materials: 100% chlorine free Based on biodegradable materials Biodegradable back sheet film based on corn 100% GMO free 100% biodegradable high loft
A glimpse into a bygone era, ‘A Woman’s Place’ presents a collection of sometimes adorable, sometimes outrageous, often thought-provoking snippets from the media of the 1940s, 50s and…
I was fortunate to be chosen to review the Nature Babycare Diapers.
Become a superspy in Cars, save the day as a robot in Toy Story, adventure through Paris as a clever rat in Ratatouille, stop the Omnidroid as a…
New to the Mountain Buggy Family, the peppy™ is a brilliant car capsule for little bubbas. This capsule is designed for birth – 13kg so will last your…
One of my favourite things to do is try new buggies. A bit sad, I know, but I use my buggy a lot and I’m fascinated by how…
Family Adventures is the perfect name for this activity. An adventure for the whole family (3 years and up) into Skippers, Queenstown and out again. Snacks, gentle splashing…
Sophie Gray is a bit of a legend around here and you’ll probably know her brand – Destitute Gourmet. With a focus on delicious food that is both…
There’s nothing unusual about the Brockets. Normal, respectable, and proud of it, they turn up their noses at anyone strange or different. But from the moment Barnaby Brocket…
Little Penguins (that is actually their correct name) or blue penguins as we commonly know them, have to be one of life’s treasures. Unfortunately, something most of us…
The Chalktrail brings the joy of riding a bike or scooter together with the fun of decorating the neighbourhood streets and sidewalks with bright and colourful chalk. It’s…
Lives We Leave Behind is a novel by Maxine Alterio about New Zealand nurses in World War I.
Even in this day of search engines and symptom finders, there is probably still a place for the family first aid manual. Emergency!: Family First Aid is bound…
Thank you for the opportunity to review these! We loved them! The CalciYum Poptops are still the great tasting CalciYum milk but now in a convenient pop top…
A collection of stories and poems written by a stunning line up of New Zealand authors, for children of all ages. Margaret Mahy, Joy Cowley, Michael King, Tessa…
Anchor CalciYum Dairy Snack is a great snack and comes in different flavours and has 40% of your daily calcium in it
NW is the latest novel from Zadie Smith, author of Autograph Man, White Teeth and On Beauty.
Oliver Jeffers has put out yet another gorgeously illustrated and rather whimsical picture book. If you haven’t discovered his books already, go check out “Stuck” and “How to…
A compliation of the very successful New Zealand baking books: Ladies, A Plate and A Second Helping, Ladies, a Plate: The Collection is Alexa Johnston’s treasure trove of…
Anchor CalciYum flavoured milk in plastic pop top bottles
A bamboo trifold nappy which can be adjusted to fit.
Sometimes my job is awesome and the day a gorgeous package of Kokoleka Hot Chocolate arrived on my door was one of those days. A delicious, rich range…
The Kapu Forest app is a cute wee game where you click and drag objects for animals in the forest.
Introducing Little Baa Baa, Quirky Turkey and Silly Billy. This delightful story of trickery driven by boredom is a fun read for children and adults alike. Best of…
Calci Yum Dairy food comes in a range of flavours including chocolate, strawberry, caramel, Triple Delicious, Tripalicious, Wicked Chocolate and Cars.
I’m not sure whether to call Easy Party Treats for Children a cook book for adults or non-fiction for children! The layout is very child-friendly with super pictures of each…
My four kids have just had the pleasure of reviewing Anchor CalciYum Dairy Food and Anchor CalciYum Pop Tops. They sampled banana, caramel and chocolate dairy food and…
Well known New Zealand Baby Whisperer, Sharlene Poole, has compiled her hints for raising happy, contented babies in this comprehensive guide to baby’s first year- Baby Whispering.
Kinect Adventures! is a full-featured Kinect game where you and your friends will explore the world – and beyond – through 20 active adventures to achieve the ultimate…
Anchor Calciyum Pop Tops is a Flavoured milk in a bottle that has a top on it that you can pull up and down. It comes in 3…
The Templeton Twins Have an Idea, Book One is about twins, aged 12, whose dad’s an inventor. However, when the D.Dean twins want all the credit for his…