A day at Legoland

Legoland, the world of plastic bricks' magic, brings a lot of memories and emotions.
I remember the first time we discovered Legoland with little Sasha who was about 4 and a half years old. I look at the old photos from the days when photos were still regularly printed and not just stored digitally, and his beaming smile tugs my heartstrings. He was such a cutie.

Sash in Legoland

Our lovely boy was entranced with the Miniland and enjoyed the rides for younger kids. He was small and portable then.
We returned there two more times, the last time, when he was 8 years old, growing more and more autistic and having sensory issues, and I was pregnant. That trip was so stressful, with Sash getting a sensory overload, and becoming frustrated with the queues, that I vouched never to step there again.

Until last Monday, when we took Eddie to Legoland for the very first time. He's been talking about it for years, but I just couldn't see how we could make it a fun event if we went as a family of four.

This week Sasha's class went on a residential trip to Butlins Minehead, and we decided to take Eddie out of school for several days to do things with him, which we cannot do otherwise.

The school trip ended for Sasha earlier than planned, as unfortunately his anxiety went through the roof. We had to change plans, but Monday was all about Eddie and Legoland.

The tickets are £47 per person, which is a total racket. I had a voucher for one free ticket (you can find these vouchers on boxes of cereals or chocolate - look for them in Poundland for the best value).

And they are making money out of everything. You would expect them to have some discounts on LEGO sets and minifigures, but no, the prices are not competitive at all. 

And I totally resent paying £2.20 for a small bottle of water. That is a rip off. We had a bottle of water with us, but it happened to be a very hot day, and the water didn't last long. 

Maybe because it was Monday, many food stalls and ice cream booths were closed, and the choice of food was very limited. 

We visited most of the areas, but as we had to travel by bus, train, taxi to Legoland, we arrived at 12.30pm, and that didn't leave us much time until 5pm, when the park closed. We couldn't leave home earlier, as we needed to get Sasha to school first for his trip.

We started with the Land of the Vikings and the Vikings' River Splash, which thankfully didn't last long, as it made me utterly queasy. While I moaned, Eddie enjoyed the ride and deemed it too short.

Eddie loves Ninjago characters, and the second area we visited was Lego Ninjago World. He admired all the statues around the Ninjago pavillion.

The Ninjago ride was quite entertaining, with digital interactive screens.
We moved on to the Kingdom of the Pharaohs, and the fun Laser Raiders ride. Am I being too childish to rejoice at the fact that my score of shooting the baddies was the highest?!

By then we were a bit on the hungry side, and hoped to get something to eat at the Heartflake City area. We have picked the wrong time, as there was a singing performance going on the stage in front of the cafes, with music blasting at the top level, and the most talentless singing from the crew who, I presume, were supposed to be the Lego Friends characters.
We had a quick peek at the Heartflake cafe, but all the pastries and donuts seemed to be covered with half a pound of sugar each.

Adventure Land has a cool boat ride called SQUID Surfer. We queued for about 20 minutes in the heat. The boy in front of us was too short to be allowed on the ride, even with his father, and he was inconsolable. While I appreciate the safety reasons, I still think there should have been someone measuring children at the entrance to the ride, so that people didn't waste their time or have their hopes dashed.

Eddie went on his own, and had a fabulous time.

Someone at the church told Eddie about the young drivers' course, and he was intent to drive a car.

While they were queuing and driving, I did a bit of plane-spotting. The planes were crossing the sky, one after another.

I thought we'd run through the Duplo Valley, but Eddie begged me to let him into the Drench Towers.
There is a shop next to it, where you can buy towels and swimming trunks. We got the trunks, and off he went to splash in the cold water and going down the slides. He was wet from head to toes, but so-so happy. A pity we couldn't stay longer there, as we had half an hour left til the closing time, and he wanted to build a minifigure at the Imagination Centre and have another look at the shop.

We walked through the Miniland, which is the most creative and beautiful area of Legoland, with the famous landmarks from around the world built from Lego bricks.

There were scenes from picturesque Italian towns...

Italian piazza in all its glory

I loved how the Dutch homes got colourful reflections in the water.

Magnificent Belgian architecture... I believe this is Leuven.

I loved the ruins of the abbey in Scotland (does anyone know what is it? We were running by then and I had no chance to read all the plates).

We found St Basil's Cathedral, representing Russia (and looking at that photo, I realise I so need to go on a diet).

London's landmarks took a whole big area.

And it being less than a month after the Royal wedding, you couldn't escape it in Legoland either.
Having arrived at the train station in Windsor, we saw this rather excellent piece of Lego art.

Meghan and Harry appear as Lego characters, leaving the Windsor after the ceremony.

I wish we had another couple of hours to see more of the Miniland, and also visit the Knights' Kingdom, but it was time to leave.
Eddie did build his minifigures and bought a set of Lego Minecraft figures as well.
He's been talking about it all the week, and says he wants to go back there.

Have you recently visited Legoland? What was your favourite part? 

Photo diary: week 24, project 365

This was one rollercoaster of a week for us. Sash was leaving on Monday to stay for five days at Butlins, Minehead, and we took Eddie out of school to do things together which we cannot do as a family of four any longer. It didn't work out as planned. Sasha couldn't cope with a new place and everything being out of his normal routine, and was too distressed, so he came home earlier.
Disappointing, yes, very much so, as we were looking forward to having a little break and devote all our attention to Eddie, but life is life, and that's what it means having a family member with a serious disability - life usually revolves around their needs.

At the weekend I made one last dash to the shops to get ready for the next days' trips. Walking through the flood fields, we saw this pretty skyline with clouds which looked like dinosaur ribs.

On Monday we waved Sasha good bye, and jumped on the bus to Oxford. Three train changes later and a taxi ride, and we were in Legoland at 12.30pm, which didn't leave us much time.
We managed to cram as much as possible, but still didn't quite make all the rides.
Eddie's absolute favourites were the Splash park and the Squid surfer ride at Adventure Land.
His smile really says it all.

On Tuesday morning we packed our bags for a two nights-stay in Brighton. We booked a family room at Jurys Inn Waterfront hotel. When we arrived, we got the keys to the room which overlooked the back, with a smelly fish shop. Eddie was so disappointed, that we went to the front desk and asked if we could be moved somewhere else. We explained that two years earlier we stayed in a family room on the side, with a partial view of the sea.
They offered us a room with a view at the front, but we'd have to pay more for the pleasure. We agreed. Eddie thought it was the best view in the world. We could see the beach and the Brighton Pier from our window.
Here is Eddie, chillaxing after a walk on the beach, eating breadsticks.

The next day I got a phone call from Sasha's teacher that he was too distressed and they were bringing him back home. They knew we were staying away, so asked when I could possibly be back.
There was not much I could do but grab my bag, and say Good bye to Eddie and Federico who stayed for another day/night. Eddie was pretty upset, as we had big plans for the day, including having fish and chips on the pier and long walks on the beach, and playing in the arcade. Alas, it was not meant to be.
On top of that, while on the train, I got messages and calls from Witney friends that there was a huge fire in our area, and our street was closed, and some of the houses were evacuated. I was worried that we won't be able to stay at home that night, and if Sasha were distressed after his trip, staying another night elsewhere would have been a nightmare.
But the angels were listening and took pity on me. The fire was put out by the time I came home, and when Sasha arrived later, his transport was let through the cordoned area.
When I went out in the garden, there was a muntjac deer, jumping around in panic. I managed to take one shot of it, and it scaled over to the neighbours' garden, first on the compost frame, then over the wall. Don't know how he would manage to get out of there, as their garden is on a much lower level than ours, and is surrounded by high walls on all sides.

Tomatoes in the greenhouse are just beginning to take shape. These are the yellow plum tomatoes.

Walking into town, we met this cat. It must be living locally, as we see it often enough.
I liked the silhouette of his head's shadow. Looks totally like a  Batman. So, it must have been a Catman.

There is a photo booth frame in the Co-Op. I guess there is some comp going on. Of course, Eddie had to poke his head through and giggle.

LEGO Minecraft The Nether Fight

Eddie has been begging me for over a year to buy an XBox for him so that he could play Minecraft. Apparently all his friends were into Minecraft. I kept saying No until the Black Friday last year, when I saw a good price on an XBox Minecraft package at Sainsbury's, and I failed to resist the pressure.
I tell myself it was a moment of madness, and I do regret buying it.

This was the one and only Christmas gift for Eddie, and I told him he should not expect anything else. He was deliriously happy with the gift.
The problem is, of course, that he doesn't get tired of playing Minecraft, so I have to limit his gaming time. He also enjoys watching his favourite Youtubers who do nothing but play Minecraft. You'd have to pay me big money to watch any of their videos, I find them excruciatingly boring and irritating. But it appears, I'm totally behind the times because that's what he wants to be, when he grows up. A Youtuber. Sigh.

LEGO is another passion of my son. Combine LEGO with Minecraft, and he's on cloud nine.
Last week I bought him a LEGO Minecraft The Nether Fight set.
He has been good, practicing playing on his guitar, and I wanted to reward him.

There are three minifigures in the set: Alex, a zombie pigman and a wither skeleton, plus there is a small magma cube. I don't know its significance, but if I ask Eddie, I'm sure he'd be giving me a long lecture on the merits of it.
I did ask him recently a question on Minecraft, he went into such detail, that my eyes started to glaze over.

This set could be easily combined with any other LEGO Minecraft sets, or admired on its own.
You build a Minecraft Nether setting with buildable mushrooms and flames, and a TNT blasting action.

The TNT function is meant to blast out the netherrack and magma blocks. Does it mean anything to me? Neh, to me neither.

The set includes over 80 pieces, and is suitable for ages 6-14 and older.

This set would be a great gift for any LEGO or Minecraft fan.

LEGO The Capture of Sophie Jones play set

If I mention Barblin, Tufflin, Roblin, Beiblin and Dukelin, would you know what or who I am talking about?! If you know exactly who they are, it means you have fans of LEGO Elves in your family.

LEGO recently expanded their Elves range by adding five more new sets, which follow Part 3 of the LEGO Elves webisodes.
Emily Jones' little sister Sophie - like all younger siblings - thinks she can do the same things as her big sis. She is delighted to discover the magical kingdom: "What could possibly go wrong?!"
Of course, she gets into lots of trouble.

New sets invite you to defeat the evil goblins and save Emily's little sister. Each play set could be enjoyed on its own, or assembled together in different combinations.

"The magical world of Elvendale where the LEGO Elves Azari, Farran, Naida and Aira live faces dark times now the King Goblin and his goblins have hatched an evil plan.
Emily Jones' little sister Sophie has followed Emily through the portal to the magical kingdom Elvendale, however, without her big sister and her elf friends, Sophie gets capture by the evil Goblin King and his mischievous goblins.
The LEGO Elves must unite the magic and go on a dangerous mission to search for Sophie and also recover Emily's precious Amulet which has been stolen."

It is aimed at age group 8-11, but at 6, my younger son Eddie is a LEGO pro, and found it very easy to build the set.

The Capture of Sophie Jones 41182 (RRP £17.99) includes some crucial details from the story, with lots of accessories.
There is a magical portal that took Sophie to Elvendale.

You may visit Mr Spry's grocery store and discover all the items for sale.

It even has a price list

We love all the little goodies.

Mr Spry the squirrel has quite cosy quarters above the shop too, with a little couch to sleep on and a family picture on the wall.

Barblin the goblin rides a capture-mobile with a big butterfly net which moves up and down.

He looks kind of cute, but don't be deceived by his appearance. He is in with the nasty Goblin King.

And there is Sophie Jones herself. This mischievous trouble-maker is pretty and cheerful, with big blue eyes and a cheeky smile.

LEGO Elves sets are colourful and creative. If you haven't followed the story, you might like to watch the trailer, which captures the essence of the latest Elves adventures, to get an idea on who all the characters are.



After Eddie built the set, we have spotted the latest issue of LEGO Elves in the supermarket. It comes with a minifigure of Mr Spry and a juice bar with tiny cherries and watermelon slice.
There is also a competition to win all five new LEGO Elves sets.

For more information about the range, visit LEGO Elves.

Disclosure: We received a LEGO set for the purposes of reviewing. All opinions are our own.

LEGO Disney Moana's Ocean Voyage

You have probably seen the meme doing rounds on social media which says "It's been a long three years but I'm glad "Let it go" is finally out of my head. - You're Welcome". I'm sure many parents nodded their heads in agreement. You're Welcome is one of the most popular earworms these days (I'm humming it as I'm writing this post. Sigh.)
Eddie and I enjoyed the film, we've seen it both in the cinema and on DVD at home (don't ask how many times). We love the plot and the main characters. The animation is wonderful, and there are a couple of "really cool" songs. Apart from "You're welcome", there's a catchy tune "I'm so shiny".
To coincide with the release of the latest Disney blockbuster, LEGO has produced two Moana sets.

Just before Easter I saw that LEGO Disney Moana's Ocean Voyage was offered at 40% off. There is no way I would have paid the full price of £39.99, but the offer looked very tempting, and knowing how much my son loves LEGO, I couldn't resist buying it.

This play set includes a big outrigger sailing canoe with minifigures of Moana, Maui and chicken Heihei, an island of Te Fiti and a little raft with two aggressive coconut warriors.
Moana holds a little printed tile with a fish hook constellation map.
Chicken Heihei looks grumpy, according to my son. Don't know if it's a slightly "off" chicken that we got, or whether that was an original design, but it does look cross rather than just silly.

Maui is pretty huge for a minifigure. He doesn't have as many tattoos as the character in the animation, so that's a bit of a disappointment. He holds his magic hook, which is plain white and again not quite the same as you see in the film. Perhaps a couple of stickers would have helped.

The canoe is well-designed, with two parts. I don't know any sailing lingo, so won't offend you by naming its parts. There is a small trapdoor with space for food storage and hiding Heihei.

You will find the "kind of cute" and scary Kakamora, nasty coconuts whom Moana and Maui encounter during their voyage. Their raft is tiny, it might be the remains of their big vessels. The Kakamora's raft has a small catapult to launch the attack.

I think a Kakamora ship could make a splendid separate LEGO set.

Te Fiti is a goddess who has powers to create life. When Maui has stolen her heart, she turned into a demon Te Ka, a creature of fire and magma, a symbol of destruction, the opposite of what she used to be. To take revenge on Maui, she is seeking to punish the humans by turning their world into a dark and inhabitable place.

The island of Te Fiti is smaller in size than the canoe, but it is well designed. It is easy to build, with bits of greenery and tiles for the beach.
The main part of the island has two faces to spin around. One is the dark side - Te Ka, the other is Te Fiti with a green heart and pure soul. The heart of Te Fiti is a small printed round tile.

This colourful creative playset will amuse all the fans of Moana. Eddie now asks me to buy the second set in the range. Well, we'll have to see...