Harry Potter Tween Clothing in action

I have walked to every shop that sells clothes for kids over eight and stalked too many websites. Ask any parent of a kid aged 8-12 about buying clothes and most will tell you the same story, there is barely anything decent.  Finding clothes that suit the tween aged kid is tough. Finding clothes they want to wear that also allow them to be kids is close to impossible.

Thankfully, right now, Warner Bros. Consumer Products and Big W have released a new range, which has a few pieces that my kids couldn’t wait to get their hands on. We’ve been Harry Potter fans for a few years – We even had the best Harry Potter birthday party a couple of years ago so I was hoping they’d be happy to see these.  But to be honest, they are so fussy with clothing I wasn’t sure what they would think.

We were gifted a package of clothing from Warner Bros. Consumer Products, containing tees and track suits which arrived when we had visitors, so I let them all grab a few pieces and try them on. Not only did they love each item, they kept talking about how comfortable they all were.  

Because this is Melbourne we get the pleasure and pain of dealing with multiple weather situations every day. Luckily for us, this meant that we got to try out all the options in one day.

“They’re so comfortable” was the comment they repeated every time I asked for an opinion.

Miss 8 prefers the Harry Potter Raglan Tee teamed with her denim shorts, which is pretty much her summer uniform.

Miss 10 is often found lounging around in an armchair with a book or her iPad and likes to snuggle into her hoodie. Both of them have been grabbing the Harry Potter Track Pants each evening when they come in from playing outside.

These are a lightweight tracksuit material, perfect for the summer/autumn. For our friends in the lovely northern states they could be great for your winter (just don’t wear them in Melbourne in July!)  I also found the items very true to size/age range.  My kids are on the taller side, Miss 11 wears the size 12 and Miss 8 is wearing the size 8 in each item.

Finding something for your kids to wear is much tougher than it should be, but the Harry Potter tween range at Big W makes finding an outfit easier, and it’s also priced at a level that’s affordable.

The items we tried out include:

Harry Potter Track Pants - $19

Harry Potter Raglan Tee $15

Harry Potter Hoodie $25

Harry Potter Long-Sleeve Tee $15

The girls loved these items so much that I’d like to give some away, and the Warner Bros. Consumer Products team agreed that it would be great to share the love further.

If you’d like to win some for your own kids, pop over to my Instagram page, leave a comment and you’ll be in the draw to win.  Check out #WBPromotion for other chances to win some goodies too.

*Please note: I received the Harry Potter Tween clothing items to try and decided to write about them because I think my readers would be interested in them. The giveaway will be held on my Instagram page, items will be sent directly to the winner from Warner Bros. Consumer Products.  

On our Book Shelf: Tweens and Kids

What did ya get for Christmas?

I hope you got a book.

One of the best bits of every Christmas in this house includes the new books that we all get to read.

This year the presents were a great success.

For Tweens and Teens: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Forget the movie, this book was rated 'THE BEST BOOK I'VE EVER READ' by Miss 10. It even got rated better than Harry Potter, which was something we didn't think would ever happen. This is the book that dragged her from her iPad, left her begging to not get ready for just five more minutes so she could read a few more pages.

Initially, we had suggested that it was a book best read in the day time as it might get a bit scary. However, while she admitted the thought of watching the movie could be a bit scary, the book does not provide the fearful, anxious inducing worry that some movies do.

This is just the first in this trilogy by Ransom Riggs, and we are heading straight to the shops with our Christmas money to buy the next ones.


For Primary School Kids: Hot Dog, by Anh Do

From the creator of Weirdo, we have a new series, starting with Hot Dog. As expected Miss 8 read it super quickly and then read it again. Then her cousin read it, then another kid and another, all in three day. Kids have become confident that books by Anh Do will provide them with an instant laugh, and an easy read that has some comic illustrations to entertain them. The newest book continues to provide exactly what they want.

Miss 8's review was 'it's a wonderful book, it's not very long, it could be longer, there are no people in it, but the cat dresses up a lot because his humans dress him up all the time. I think other kids will love this.'




 What's your favourite read this summer? 

Circus 1903

Things have changed at the circus over the last century. Well, just a little bit, but really not all that much, Circus 1903 shows a bit of a glimpse of circus life in 1903, with costumes, acts and entertainings similar to the old days.

But the circus will always be filled with people who do things with their bodies that the rest of us just will never ever manage to do. They bend, stretch, balance, throw, flip, twirl and bounce.

Our circus acts are now minus the animals, but that didn't stop the team at Circus 1903 from having an elephant on stage. With the clever clogs who make enormous puppets, they built a life-size elephant and the cutest baby elephant to run about on the stage with them.

Circus 1903 is filled with great acts that you expect the circus to have, with performers from all over the world. There aren't any clowns, which is a good thing for most of us, but there are lots of laughs.

A major highlight for me is just the Regent Theatre in Melbourne, rather than a big tent out in the middle of nowhere, instead you get to enjoy one of the most beautiful locations in Melbourne.

Your kids will love it, grown-ups will enjoy all the acts and it doesn't go for too long so the small ones are not out all night long.

The backdrop at the front of the theatre also makes for a really great photo shoot location, so make sure you snap a few pics of yourselves before you go in.

Strawberry forests forever

Last week the girls and I took a little drive just out of Melbourne to a place called the Strawberry Forest.

It's a new way to pick your own strawberries that doesn't include crawling around in the dirt to find them. Instead, they are grown vertically. Really, this just all seems so simple and normal that I am not sure why no one has been doing this for the last gazillion years. Or maybe they have, they just didn't invite the rest of us to come and pick them.

At the Strawberry Forest the berries are all organic and they look fantastic. There is a big sign begging people not to eat them as they pick them and I have to admit I was very very close to just testing them a few times. It was only my fear of being caught that stopped me!

The Strawberry Forest is located along one of the most beautiful roads I know, the Avenue of Honour in Bacchus Marsh. There are other fruit growing places along the road where you can stop and pick or purchase fruits depending on the season, one place also had an ice cream van which is a pretty good match to go with all those lovely strawberries.

If you're driving from Melbourne you might want to plan a lunch stop in Bacchus after you've picked your strawberries, as it doesn't take more than 10 minutes for three of you to pick 3kgs worth.

Prices per kilo change throughout the year, but currently they are $15 per kg. Check their Facebook page for details on open days, as the farmer closes to keep the farm looking spic and span.

New App for Kids 2017: Toca Life Vacation

Holiday time equals downtime for everyone and that means the kids might be using their devices more.

I much prefer my kids to be creating not consuming while the use their iPads, it's way too easy for them to just sit and watch rubbish that other people have uploaded.

Toca Life is the latest in the Toca Boca line of apps. I've been a fan of their stuff for awhile now. They are well known for making things gender and cultural neutral without resorting to animals.

With Toca Life Vacation kids can 'play' by moving things around and being the owner of their own vacation creation. Dress your characters, head to the airport, go to the beach or the hotel, check into your room, go to the ATM, head out for a meal. Whatever you end up doing, the child is in charge.

This is not a 'game'. You can't go out for mucking up, and you're not aiming for different levels, you just play.

You can also just reset and start all over again if you want to.

You will need to pay a few dollars for this one, it was AU$3.38 on 1 January, I prefer to pay for the apps and know that there are not going to be any adverts or in-app purchases to worry about. Once you have downloaded this one, you have everything you need.

You can get Toca Life Vacation from the app store.