Our house was a pretty noisy place on that day. It was very hectic but also full of fun and laughter.
A week or so before the party we received a huge haul of Ravensburger puzzles, it was like Christmas in August. The party box included a set of party invitations, goodie bags for all guests, a wrapped up Pass the parcel packet, colouring sheets and felt tips, A6 Printed puzzle card, rulers, scissors for the puzzle making activity, and 14 (yes, 14!) boxes of Ravensburger puzzles to suit several age groups and abilities.
Eddie couldn't wait for the day of the party.
The activities were timed, and as agreed, we didn't do all the puzzles in two hours. To start with we had four different puzzles to choose from - Farmyard Friends, Thomas & Friends, In the Night Garden and Alphablocks. As all our guests (except one) were the same age as Eddie (i.e. 5 year olds) they have chosen puzzles which were more suitable to their age.
We have a couple of Thomas the tank engine-themed puzzles, they have been much loved and played with. The boxes are pretty battered, but all the pieces are still in good shape.
Thomas Night Work, Glow in the Dark is a 60-piece jigsaw puzzle.
The design shows Thomas working alongside Skarloye and Sir Handel. Once finished, the puzzle measures 36x26cm. Like all Ravensburger puzzles, the pieces are made of durable recycled card.
Another puzzle which is a great fun to assemble was Alphablocks Giant Floor Puzzle. It is a bright, colourful puzzle which depicts all the well known characters from the much loved children's TV show. Earlier this year, Eddie has been working with the Alphablocks magazines set and enjoyed it very much. The show introduces the pre-schoolers and Reception year children to the alphabet and teaches them how to read and spell. The puzzle features all the funky letters, doing different activities.
As Eddie and his friends were assembling the puzzle, they were reading the words aloud.
This is a super puzzle for younger kids, and we will give ours to Eddie's old nursery for the other children to enjoy it.
It is a big size puzzle, perfect for the floor.
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| Alphablocks puzzle completed |
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| Alphablocks puzzle close-up |
Both of these puzzles were a big hit.
The next slot in the busy schedule was dedicated to two biggest phenomena in the recent animation - Minions and Frozen. Both have fans worldwide, and both movies broke records. The spin-off merchandise is flying off the shelves.
We have split into two teams - Minions vs Frozen. Team Frozen had to complete one of the three puzzles from the set Frozen Fever.
Frozen Fever comes with three puzzles showing Elsa and Anna, adorable Olaf and the girls again.
It was a hoot. I was asking the teams questions relating to the films, but each time I asked a question, everyone was trying to outdo each other. So, it was a very boisterous activity.
Team Frozen was faster, but their puzzle was easier to complete. Minion 3d puzzle is more tricky. We have several Minions 3d puzzles in our collection, they are all on display among the children's books. Our guests haven't had a chance to try a 3d puzzle before, but were quick to grasp the idea, looking for the numbers on the back of each plastic piece. 54 pieces are made of durable curved plastic and once assembled, make a great gift for any Minions' fan. The puzzle is about 12cm in height, and will look lovely on the window or shelf in children's bedroom.
After an hour of frenetic puzzle building and tough competition (and oh my, some of our Mummies were as competitive as the kids, if not more. We don't name names, but you know who you are - insert a lol here), we were all ready for a tea time.
That is, Mummies had tea and coffee, while kids enjoyed a variety ofjunk food snacks. To be frank, I offered a wide choice of healthy and not so healthy snacks including veggie crudites with dips, crisps, ice lollies and sweets. Knowing that there would be a Frozen puzzle to assemble, Eddie insisted on buying a tin of Frozen-themed cookies for the party which we spotted in 99p shop.
The next activity - colouring -was a quieter one. The party pack included a lot of colouring sheets with the images from Inside Out and Shopkins. I probably live on a different planet, as I haven't heard of Shopkins before, and our guests have "educated" me on the matter. We added our own crayons and even paints to the arty stash so that everyone could join in at the same time.
I think all our kids did a great job, but one of them was particularly creative.
The bigger Shopkins colouring sheet had lines for cutting it into a jigsaw puzzle. But we also made our own puzzles. Using the rulers, we drew lines on the back of each coloured card before cutting it into pieces. Every guest put their own puzzle in the small plastic bag to take home together with their goodie bags and puzzles.
This activity has taught us how to make our own puzzles, and I think we'll be doing something similar again. A perfect activity for a rainy day.
Believe it or not this Shopkins puzzle sheet was coloured in by a 5-year-old girl (with a teeny weeny help from her Mummy).
Pass the parcel is everyone's favourite. Little gift in each layer included sweets and Shopkins mini-bags, with the final winner receiving a Disney Pixar Inside Out puzzle.
Our last puzzle of the day was Inside Out puzzle. It is aimed at children aged 6+ and consists of 100 pieces. It was deemed a little bit tricky, and needed some adult help.
And of course, everyone was eagerly awaiting for a goodie bag, which didn't disappoint. Each bag had more colouring, sweets, Shopkins and Ugglys (apparently another must-have toy, which I haven't been aware of).
I have been tweeting along with the party, offering a prize for my Twitter followers. It was a great success on all levels. We had fun at home, our guests left very happy with the activities and the gifts.
Many thanks to Ravensburger and UKMumsTV for sending us the gifts and the instructions for the fun Twitter party. Our guests had a puzzle each to take home, and I have already promised Eddie's old nursery to bring in all the puzzles which we have solved at the party for the children at nursery to enjoy. The only puzzle which Eddie asked to keep is a Minions 3d puzzle. It will go on the shelf with the other 3d Minions puzzles.
Frozen Fever comes with three puzzles showing Elsa and Anna, adorable Olaf and the girls again.
It was a hoot. I was asking the teams questions relating to the films, but each time I asked a question, everyone was trying to outdo each other. So, it was a very boisterous activity.
Team Frozen was faster, but their puzzle was easier to complete. Minion 3d puzzle is more tricky. We have several Minions 3d puzzles in our collection, they are all on display among the children's books. Our guests haven't had a chance to try a 3d puzzle before, but were quick to grasp the idea, looking for the numbers on the back of each plastic piece. 54 pieces are made of durable curved plastic and once assembled, make a great gift for any Minions' fan. The puzzle is about 12cm in height, and will look lovely on the window or shelf in children's bedroom.
After an hour of frenetic puzzle building and tough competition (and oh my, some of our Mummies were as competitive as the kids, if not more. We don't name names, but you know who you are - insert a lol here), we were all ready for a tea time.
That is, Mummies had tea and coffee, while kids enjoyed a variety of
The next activity - colouring -was a quieter one. The party pack included a lot of colouring sheets with the images from Inside Out and Shopkins. I probably live on a different planet, as I haven't heard of Shopkins before, and our guests have "educated" me on the matter. We added our own crayons and even paints to the arty stash so that everyone could join in at the same time.
I think all our kids did a great job, but one of them was particularly creative.
The bigger Shopkins colouring sheet had lines for cutting it into a jigsaw puzzle. But we also made our own puzzles. Using the rulers, we drew lines on the back of each coloured card before cutting it into pieces. Every guest put their own puzzle in the small plastic bag to take home together with their goodie bags and puzzles.
This activity has taught us how to make our own puzzles, and I think we'll be doing something similar again. A perfect activity for a rainy day.
Believe it or not this Shopkins puzzle sheet was coloured in by a 5-year-old girl (with a teeny weeny help from her Mummy).
Pass the parcel is everyone's favourite. Little gift in each layer included sweets and Shopkins mini-bags, with the final winner receiving a Disney Pixar Inside Out puzzle.
Our last puzzle of the day was Inside Out puzzle. It is aimed at children aged 6+ and consists of 100 pieces. It was deemed a little bit tricky, and needed some adult help.
And of course, everyone was eagerly awaiting for a goodie bag, which didn't disappoint. Each bag had more colouring, sweets, Shopkins and Ugglys (apparently another must-have toy, which I haven't been aware of).
I have been tweeting along with the party, offering a prize for my Twitter followers. It was a great success on all levels. We had fun at home, our guests left very happy with the activities and the gifts.
Many thanks to Ravensburger and UKMumsTV for sending us the gifts and the instructions for the fun Twitter party. Our guests had a puzzle each to take home, and I have already promised Eddie's old nursery to bring in all the puzzles which we have solved at the party for the children at nursery to enjoy. The only puzzle which Eddie asked to keep is a Minions 3d puzzle. It will go on the shelf with the other 3d Minions puzzles.
Looks like you all had a fanbtastic time :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Cheryl! Eddie had a whale of a time.
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