Limited Edition Carousel Pony Zelf

23:22 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

Zelfs are one of the biggest collectable crazes of recent years with the cute little hairy figures which look so similar to the trolls I remember from my childhood. With five series of Zelfs already released the brand new sixth series is due on sale from the end of July.
Limited Edition Carousel Pony Zelf Blog Review

To celebrate the new series a brand new limited edition Zelf has been released. This is a real money can't buy Zelf as the only way to get your hands on one is to spend £30 on the rest of the Zelfs range. Only 10000 of the Carousel Pony Zelf have been produced and the UK only has 400 of these so owning one is very special!
Limited Edition Carousel Pony Zelf Blog Review

LM doesn't actually own any Zelfs at the moment but she does love anything with hair to style, and if it looks like a horse or a unicorn, so much the better! The Carousel Pony Zelf is a lovely unicorn Zelf in a pretty pink and turquoise colourway, she has fluffy pale pink hair and curly long tail and LM is completely delighted by her!
Limited Edition Carousel Pony Zelf Blog Review

Carousel Pony Zelf arrives with three hair bands and a comb (great for styling her hair and tail), a sparkly purple horseshoe charm and a disc showing which number of the edition your Zelf is. LM quickly asked for the horseshoe charm to be placed on her backpack and it was really simple to just loop this through the zip. 

Although she's only small the Carousel Pony Zelf is really lovely to play with. Her head and arms move and she has some really pretty flowers and saddle details. She and LM have been inseperable since she arrived and I can often find her combing the Zelf's hair and tail. 
Limited Edition Carousel Pony Zelf Blog Review

If you'd like your own Carousel Pony Zelf then you can claim one for free from here with £30 of 2016 receipts showing Zelfs purchases. 

To keep up to date with all of the Zelfs news, why not join the Zelfs Club?

#EnjoyMoreWater with Robinsons

22:26 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

Water is a funny old thing, while I drink a good few glasses most days, trying to get Bud and LM to drink a glass of water can be difficult. Both of them claim to find the taste of water a bit boring so I tend to reach for a dash of fruit squash to make sure they stay hydrated and keep drinking. Robinsons is a real favourite in our house and their range of drinks which are free from artificial colours and preservatives with no added sugar means that I can jazz up their water in confidence.
Robinsons Squash'd #EnjoyMoreWater Enjoy More Water

We've always used the litre sized bottles of Robinsons in the past and they have some really great flavours (mine is Pink Grapefruit) and you'll usually find a bottle or two in the cupboard in our kitchen. I had spotted that they had expanded the range to include their super-concentrated Squash'd which comes in convenient, flip-top squeezy bottles that make it perfect for juice on the go.

In a recent survey it emerged that 64% of parents don't know how much water their children should be drinking each day, with 42% saying that their children, like mine, find water boring, Robinsons have launched their 'Enjoy More Water' campaign to help everyone to drink more water. To help with this I've been asked to share my tips to help keep your kids hydrated this Summer.

1. Use Squash - this is an obvious one given that Robinsons are behind this campaign but it really works for us. We all drink squash in our house and I always choose the 'no added sugar' varieties to help to limit sugar intake. There are some fantastic flavours in the range, including the new additions - Orange and Peach, and Lemon and Pink Grapefruit.

2. Choice of cup or bottle - my children will always fight for their particular special cup or bottle. Colour and design is very important when you're 3 and 6 so we've got a small collection of drinking vessels that Bud and LM have chosen for themselves, this makes pouring a drink, and keeping it nearby is less of a battle from the very start.

3. Bottles of Water and Robinsons Squash's - the convenient packaging for Robinson's Squash'd means that it's really easy to pop them into my changing bag, handbag or picnic basket ready to be used on the go. We sometimes buy a big bottle of water and pop in a couple of bottles of Squash'd when we're out for the day so everyone can have their favourite flavour on our picnic.

4. Lollies! - on hot days every one loves an ice lolly. Make up some Robinsons squash and pour into lolly moulds and place them in the freezer. In a couple of hours you'll have homemade ice lollies, perfect to cool down and rehydrate.

5. Fruit - add sliced fruit to a jug of squash and chill. The fruit will infuse and add to the flavour of the drink and your kids will feel really grown up drinking a tall glass of squash with pretty fruit floating in it.

6. Rewards - if you are really struggling to encourage your children to drink enough then you could consider a reward chart. Give them a sticker for every drink they have with an agreed reward if they drink a certain number of drinks every day for a week.

7. Lead by example -we all have those days where we know we haven't drunk enough. I sometiimes end up with a bit of a headache which can be cured by a couple of glasses of water. I try to always have a glass or bottle of water on the go now, my children will often help themselves to mine or it will prompt them to ask me to get them a drink of their own.

How do you encourage your children to drink more water?

This post is an entry for Britmums #EnjoyMoreWater Challenge, sponsored by Robinson.

Kinetic Sand Crash 'Em Cars - Review

10:04 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

We've been familiar with Kinetic Sand for some time in out house and both Bud and LM love playing and moulding with the creative substance that feels like sand but behaves more like mouldable dough. It's special mixture of sand and silica oil means that it stays together, is easy to clean up and it's so tactile that it's difficult to keep your hands off it when it is nearby.
Kinetic Sand Crash 'Em Cars - Blog Review

We've had the basic Kinetic Sand playset for a while so Bud was delighted to see that they had added new sets to the range recently, and even more delighted when we were sent the Kinetic Sand Crash 'Em Cars for review.
Kinetic Sand Crash 'Em Cars - Blog  Review

When you open the box you find two bags of kinetic sand (one blue, one red) and the moulds to create two different cars to race and crash. The box itself opens up to find a raceway and there are also two ramps and a scoreboard to decorate it.
Kinetic Sand Crash 'Em Cars - Blog  Review

Making the cars is quite simple, especially if you're familiar with Kinetic Sand already. Simply choose base, car body, spoiler, engine and driver, fill them with the sand, tip them out with a gentle tap and put your car together. There is lots of detail on the mould, you can even fill in the wheels on the car's body. You can also build sand cones to provide some obstacles.
Kinetic Sand Crash 'Em Cars - Blog  Review

Once complete your cars are ready to race and then the only limit is your imagination. You can race them, smash them into each other, the box or the cones, LM got involved and the children have returned to this set again and again since it arrived. It's a really fun way to combine the creativity of building and moulding with a toy that you can properly play with, rather than just showing people what you have made. You will find the blue and red start to mix colours but, luckily, when well mixed this gives a deep purple instead of the sludge brown you get with other craft substances. I hate mixing colours like this but the purple really is fine and didn't put me off too much!
Kinetic Sand Crash 'Em Cars - Blog  Review

If you're anything like me you may well find yourself playing with the Kinetic Sand after the children in bed, just as they love it, I find it's tactile nature quite relaxing to play with too. I can see the expanded range of Kinetic Sand being incredibly popular this year. This set is available from all good toy shops at around £14:99. For more information visit Spinmaster Toys.

We were provided with the toy for review purposes.

Get Festival Ready with Bratz Festival Vibes

17:31 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

With a long Summer of music festivals ahead the thoughts of people all over the country will be turning towards their forthcoming festival experience. I've always loved attending them but haven't made it for a good few years as I've never been brave enough to take the children! Bratz thought LM might enjoy a little festival chic so they have sent her one of their brand new Bratz Festival Vibes dolls, and some funky flowers to make her own festival headband.
Get Festival Ready with Bratz Festival Vibes Jade Blog Review

Get Festival Ready with Bratz Festival Vibes Jade Blog Review

Bratz Festival Vibes are the newest edition of the fashion dolls and we were sent Jade. LM was super excited to see her as she doesn't have a Jade doll in her growing collection. Jade arrives with a really funky outfit, it's far more Creamfields than Download but her funky vinyl skirt, dinosaur hoodie and stripy leggings delighted LM. She has a second outfit ready for the next day of the festival too, with flourescent green alien top and ruffled skirt. Jade's bright blue boots are really cool, with a platform sole good enough to give her an excellent view in the mosh pit. LM especially loves Jade's long black and blue hair and has started asking if she can have blue hair too, I may need to invest in some hair chalks! Including in the box are several accessories - a wristband so your child can match Jade's tiny yellow band (this very cleverly forms the hanging loop for the whole package), and a brush to style Jade's hair. Some glo-stick glasses, a mobile phone (complete with funky dinosaur cover), earrings and backpack.
Get Festival Ready with Bratz Festival Vibes Jade Blog Review

Get Festival Ready with Bratz Festival Vibes Jade Blog Review

If Jade's Electro Pop look isn't for you then one of the other Bratz dolls might be! Cloe loves American country rock, Jade loves electro-pop, Sasha shakes it to top 40 dance music, Yasmin loves the 70s sound, and Raya loves to take it back even more with retro jazz!
Get Festival Ready with Bratz Festival Vibes Jade Blog Review

Get Festival Ready with Bratz Festival Vibes Jade Blog Review

LM and I got to work creating her very own festival accessory using the flowers we were sent and LM chose the roses. I created the floral circlet by twisting each rose stem around the other to create the circle shape. Once this was done I fastened the loop together and we decided to cover it in blue ribbon to finish it off nicely. Three trailing blue and gold ribbons added a bit more boho style. The headband was a huge success with LM who has barely taken it off since I completed it. She's definitely festival ready!
Get Festival Ready with Bratz Festival Vibes Jade Blog Review

For more information and to check out the rest of the Bratz range visit www.bratz.com

Toy supplied for review purposes.


Summer Wedding Style

12:35 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

We have two big Summer weddings to attend in the next couple of months so I've been thinking hard about what to wear. A few years of either being pregnant or breastfeeding has left me relying on my 'mum uniform' way too much so I'm relishing the chance to buy a lovely new dress so Ian and I can enjoy some child-free time, celebrating with friends.

I've been doing some searching online prior to a shopping trip with friends so I know exactly which shops I want to visit, that should leave more time for coffee and cake.

I'm loving this gorgeous Tobago print shift dress from Coast at Debenhams. I've been a fan of Coast for so many years and I know I can always rely on their clothes to make me look and feel great. I think the bold print on this dress will make it perfect for a Summer wedding.


When you're wearing a close fitting dress like this you need to get the right underwear in place and I've been looking at Skimmies, which are brand new to the UK from Jockey. They promise to feel like a slip with the comfort of shorts, perfect to help with your shift dress silhouette. The non restrictive material makes them perfect for any occasion, from a day at the office to a summer garden party which means I'll be comfortable wearing them under my 'mum uniform' too.

Summer Wedding Style with Jockey Skimmies

I think I'm going to go for a classic neutral for shoes and bag. I've been a fan of Hotter shoes for a couple of years ago and they have the perfect pair to match. Weddings can be tough on the feet so I always prefer a low heel, a great option when you're on your feet for most of the day. I've spotted some pretty T-bar shoes with a bag that should go very well. The bag has a handle but I'll probably use it as a clutch.
Summer wedding style with Hotter Shoes
Do you have any exciting events planned for the Summer? What will you be wearing?

In Collaboration with Jockey

Watching New Teletubbies With LM and Little E

15:45 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

I've been aware of the Teletubbies since they launched almost 20 years ago and, while I wasn't exactly target audience for the children's television show, it was hard to miss the global phenomenon of the programme. Who can forget the parents fighting to secure the Teletubbies which were in short supply one Christmas? My two older children have been familiar with Dipsy, Tinky-Winky, Laa Laa and Po for quite a while, through watching the original episodes on Netflix so we were really excited to see that Teletubbies was undergoing a revival with a brand new series on cBeebies.
Teletubbies in 2016

LM is my big Teletubbies fan. It's a show that she asks for regularly and, while he TV doesn't go on in the morning in our house as we'd never get to school on time, we often catch up with recent episodes on our post-nursery wind down, using the BBC iPlayer. Her favourite is Laa Laa (because she's a girl, of course) but she also has a soft spot for Po because she loves his scooter).

The new Teletubbies series features a mix of the characters playing and a real life segment. I found that LM really enjoyed this part but Little E just got very excited whenever he saw the baby in the sun, The mixture works really well and there's a real educational element to the video segment which got LM chatting about taking photos, she's never been in a photo booth before so had lots of questions to ask about how it worked. She loved the Teletubbies taking photos with the Tubby Phone as she's always asking for a selfie! I think she'd love it to be as easy as the Tubby Phone makes it.

Watching New Teletubbies With LM and Little E

This is clearly Teletubbies for the new generation, The use of the Tubby Phone is something that's familiar for today's pre-schoolers who can often navigate a tablet better than a lot of adults, but it's still very true to the original show. The characters are still people dressed up and I'm so pleased that's the case rather than choosing a CGI route. The values which appeal to young children, of friendship, kindness, music, movement and discovery are clearly represented.

Teletubbies Dipsy plush toy

LM and Little E have been watching Teletubbies on video, watch below to find out what they thought.


To find out more about Teletubbies including the series and the new range of toys, visit www.teletubbies.com.  We reviewed the toys a few months ago and you can see what we thought here - Teletubbies Toys.

I am a member of the Mumsnet Bloggers Panel, a group of parent bloggers who have volunteered to review products, services, events and brands for Mumsnet. I have been paid to bring you this review. I have editorial control and retain full editorial integrity.

HiPP Organic Porridge Pouches - Review

13:27 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

Breakfast can be a hectic time in our house. With three young children to get ready and out of the door I can find myself running around all over the house! Little E loves a good breakfast and porridge has been a favourite of his since weaning started. Obviously it can take a little time to make up a bowl of porridge, this means that sometimes Little E has to wait for his breakfast until after the school run, and it can make porridge for breakfast a difficult option if you're away from home. HiPP Organic have launched a brand new range of organic pouches which mean that porridge can be a convenient and quick option in future. Perfect for Little E!

HiPP Organic Fruit Porridge Pouches - Blog Review

The new range includes three different flavours of fruity, organic porridge, suitable for children aged 6 months and over. They are presented in a convenient pouch,, which makes them just as perfect for travel as for serving at home. The three flavours are Fruity, Apple & Pears and Pear, Apple & Apricot. Little E has loved every flavour and polished them off in no time. We recently discovered that he can eat a pouch by squeezing it into his own mouth, nothing stands between my little boy and food! Generally I feed it to him by squeezing it into a bowl and then using a spoon though!

HiPP Organic Fruit Porridge Pouches - Blog Review

HiPP select special varieties of fruits and vegetables which are naturally low in acidity whilst high in nutrients. Then to ensure their optimum flavour they are given time to ripen naturally and harvested when at their plumpest and sweetest. This means that the fruit contained in the porridge is really tasty and perfect for a healthy breakfast.

HiPP Organic Fruit Porridge Pouches - Blog Review

Our pouches arrived just before we went on holiday and we took them with us. They were the perfect breakfast on our early morning ferry crossing and meant that I knew Little E would be happy and I didn't have to worry about trying unfamiliar food with a tired baby! We've bought the pouches since and I will definitely be keeping a good stock of them at home for when he needs a speedy breakfast in future.

HiPP Organic Fruit Porridge Pouches - Blog Review

HiPP Organic porridge pouches are available in Tesco and Waitrose stores now.

The porridge pouches were supplied for review purposes.

Play-Doh Town Fire Truck - Review

23:08 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

Play-Doh has always been a popular toy in our house and LM, especially, can often be found with a few pots making some interesting creation. She really loves the opportunity to get her hands on new cutters or stamps for her Play-Doh so she was delighted to receive the Play-Doh Town Fire Truck to try out recently.

Play-Doh Town Fire Truck Hasbro - Blog Review

Play-Doh Town is a new range from the iconic Hasbro brand which has a range of sets which can be used individually or together to create a world of imaginative play for children age 3 and upwards. Lots of the concepts will be familiar to children as there are sets like this fire truck and fire station  a doctor, ice cream truck and hairdresser.

Play-Doh Town Fire Truck Hasbro - Blog Review

The Fire Truck set arrives complete with firefighter (with helmet and axe), the fire truck itself, and three pots of Play-Doh, one of these has a fire stamper on top of the lid. The three colours of Play-Doh supplied are orange and red (for the fire) and blue (for the water) and the tubs can be stacked so that they can be used to resemble a building on fire. The firefighter's helmet can be removed and he can hold the axe in his hand.

Play-Doh Town Fire Truck Hasbro - Blog Review

The set is packed with detail and ways to play with the set. The firefighter's helmet can be used to mould a bell, then his head can be filled with Play-Doh and the helmet used as a plunger to squeeze out a beard on him. His feet can be used to make a badge and moustache too. The flame stamper can be used to create a fire for your firefighter and truck to extinguish.

Play-Doh Town Fire Truck Hasbro - Blog Review

The fire truck is the focus of the set and rolls well. Great to play with before you even get the Play-Doh out. It's an open air truck with a friendly, smiley face and has a fully rotating water cannon on the back. Your firefighter can 'drive' the truck or stand on the platform at the rear. The truck is packed with detail and there are lots of different spaces to fill in or use to stamp detail into your Play-Doh. The water cannon is the perfect way to fight fires and this works well, place the Play-Doh into it and use the plunger to send out streams of water.

Play-Doh Town Fire Truck Hasbro - Blog Review

LM loved this set, and Bud even played with it for a while (even though he says he's too big for Play-Doh now!) She spent a couple of hours playing with it outside in the sunshine on the afternoon it arrived and then she was out with it again straight away the next morning too. She has loved exploring each element of the set and the intricacies of the Play-Doh modelling are great for encouraging creative play and fine motor skills.

Play-Doh Town Fire Truck Hasbro - Blog Review

We've loved this set and I definitely think we will add to the collection on her forthcoming birthday. Play-Doh Town is a big hit here!

Play-Doh Town Fire Truck Hasbro - Blog Review

The Play-Doh Fire Truck Playset can be purchased in all usual stockists including Argos, with an RRP of £14:99.

We received the toy for review purposes.

Messy play with JOHNSON'S® Baby Wipes

10:01 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

Messy play is such a fun part of being a child. The opportunity to get your hands dirty, exploring different substances or making art is an essential element of childhood. We really try to embrace the mess with our three but having a quick and easy way to clean up afterwards is essential. 

Messy play with new  JOHNSON'S® Baby Wipes

We were invited to an event at the Trafford Centre today to celebrate the new JOHNSON’S® Baby Wipes, which now dispense one wipe at a time. The new dispensing system ensures one wipe per pull, cutting down on waste so the packs last longer. Another new feature is the rigid lid which allows for one-handed easy opening, making it easier for those on-the-go moments when your hands are full and all you need is one wipe. These newly designed compact packs fit perfectly into a changing bag or handbag!

Messy play with new  JOHNSON'S® Baby Wipes

Bud, LM and Little E were invited to go and get creative with JOHNSON'S® in a special art zone at the shopping centre. Bud and LM loved painting their pictures and chalking on the huge blackboard which made up part of the wall of the stand. Can you guess what he drew?

Messy play with new  JOHNSON'S® Baby Wipes chalk dinosaur

With so many children around with paintbrushes in hand it was essential that everyone could clean up easily and JOHNSON'S® had packs of their new wipes on standby to assist with this. I have a bit of a horror of paint on my hands, something that's unavoidable when the art supplies come out, so it was great to be able to open the one handed packs and wipe away the paint quickly! The wipes were very popular with all of the parents, with the added bonus of a pack to take home too.

Messy play with new  JOHNSON'S® Baby Wipes

Messy play with new  JOHNSON'S® Baby Wipes

As we left we were invited to vote as to whether we thought the JOHNSON'S® baby wipes were a hit or a miss. Of course, we voted hit and Bud was pleased to post the blue ball into the tube to share our opinion.

Messy play with new  JOHNSON'S® Baby Wipes

JOHNSON'S® baby wipes are available in two different varieties - Gentle All Over and Extra Sensitive - so there's a wipe for most children. We've used both today and they've both done their clean up job brilliantly, with no scrubbing or tearing, and have left all three children's skin smooth and clean.

Messy play with new  JOHNSON'S® Baby Wipes

We had a lovely time with JOHNSON'S® today and would definitely recommend their wipes for your next messy play session!

Educational Play the Schleich Way

17:33 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

We first discovered Schleich when Bud was toddling and someone passed on a model gorilla to our animal-loving little boy. I was so impressed by the quality and detail and, since then, our collection has grown considerably! They've been played with in so many different ways in our house and their solid construction lends itself to this which is why it's great news that Schleich have teamed up with Dr Amanda Gummer to produce a booklet to help parents and children to explore four main areas of play - Active, Creative, Social and Free.

Educational Play the Schleich Way

The brochure is packed with different tips to help encourage your children to play. Schleich figures lend themselves so well to imaginative and small world play and there are games to use the animals in this way. Games like Zoo Keeper (make a habitat for one of the animal figures and talk about their lifestyle, what they eat etc) and Animal Restaurant (think of the type of restaurant that each animal would like, what they would serve, what would it be called) were great entertainment, the second of which would be perfect on car journeys especially as Bud usually has an animal figure in his pocket or bag!  What's the animal was super fun and the children found it hilarious when their Daddy and I pretended to be various animals, for their entertainment!

Educational Play the Schleich Way

Included in the booklet are other games to play with your children. These include parachute play, group songs and the idea to construct a box maze. We already do the first two but the maze was an interesting idea, especially as Bud and LM both enjoy maze puzzles. Taking the concept into 3D then trying to solve the maze with a marble or toy is definitely going to be a future rainy day activity here.

Educational Play the Schleich Way Tiger

Two pages address developing language skills through play and this is of particular interest for me following LM's speech delay. She is rapidly improving but I'm still on the look out for ways to help her with this. The importance of talking to your children about what they are doing and being present in their play, rather than distracted by phones or TVs is crucial.

Educational Play the Schleich Way

I think it's really easy for parents to dismiss play as quite meaningless and to 'let the children play' while they get on with different things. This booklet is an excellent reminder of just how important it is in helping young children to develop physically, emotionally and intellectually. While it didn't really tell me anything I didn't know already some of the suggestions were very good, and we especially loved the maze idea. It's always useful to get new ideas for those 'I'm bored' moments and I'm certain we will be putting them to good use.

Educational Play the Schleich Way

I know that our Schleich animals will continue to be played with by all three of my children for many years to come. Their reassuring quality means that they stay in excellent condition and can withstand play whether outdoors, water, messy or indoors.

To find out more about the Schleich range visit www.schleich-s.co.uk

We were sent a selection of animals for review purposes

7 Ways to Watch a Summer of TV Sport with the Kids

23:47 Pippa Ainsworth 0 Comments

I've been a Sport fan since childhood and I'm always so excited to see the Olympic Games roll around every four years. I've always wanted to attend the Olympics in person but I was heavily pregnant with LM during London 2012 so that's still on the bucket list for now. Like the rest of the world I've watched the Olympics and Paralympics on television since I was small but, with three children at home, two of whom have quite strong ideas on what we view, I know it's going to be harder this Summer. Add the football European Championships, Wimbledon, Tour de France and Athletics European Championships into the mix and I've been thinking of a few ways to make keeping up with a Summer of Sport easier when you have children who want to watch Peppa Pig or Andy's Prehistoric Adventures.

7 Ways to Watch a Summer of TV Sport with the Kids Olympics Euro 2016

1. Make it a learning opportunity

If your children are anything like Bud then they're sponges with a million questions to ask everyday so I know that I'll be facing lots of these about the various events ahead. Obviously international competition has all of the flags, national anthems, coloured kits and personalities which, hopefully, will be of interest to Bud and his interest will be piqued. I'm fully prepared to need Google to answer some of his questions, but that's an almost daily occurrence in our house! We've stuck a Euro 2016 wallchart on the wall in the kitchen and it's going to be Bud's job to write the scores in after each game.

2. Get them cheering

One of my biggest sporting loves is Track and Field and I've been known to get a little... animated... when watching it. LM knows that when people are running we shout 'come on' quite a bit and then we cheer when our favourite wins. Bud has been studying Great Britain in school this year so I know he'll be really keen to follow them on TV. I'll be stressing the 'Team GB' angle and getting him to watch out for the familiar flag. I think they'll both love getting involved in the excitement.

7 Ways to Watch a Summer of TV Sport with the Kids

3. Dress them up

Whether it''s a football shirt for Euro 2016 or just wearing red, white and blue to support Team GB during the Olympics, my children love dressing up. LM is rather keen on having her face painted at the moment so I think that those will be making an appearance in support too.

4. Get out and try the sports

We're looking for a sports activity for Bud at the moment but neither he nor us know what so I'm hoping that the Olympics, especially, might inspire him to give one or two a go. If he's interested we'll book a few taster sessions for him to try them out in the hope that he might find an activity he loves. I have a feeling LM will be entranced by the gymnastics and will want to try that too. Alternatively we'll be getting the balls, bats and out on the trampoline for a mini Olympics in our garden.

7 Ways to Watch a Summer of TV Sport with the Kids

5. Adopt a country

As mentioned in the first point, a tournament like Euro 2016 or the Olympic Games can inspire real learning opportunities so why not pick a country and theme a day around them? You can eat food, look at videos or photos from their and find out a few facts about your chosen land, it's only fair to support their sportsmen and women in their endeavours that day too!

6. Divide and conquer

I'm a bigger Olympics fan than Ian but I know he'll want to have a couple of nights out watching the football in the pub with his friends. If he takes the kids while I watch the All Around Women's Gymnastics final, he's more than welcome to a couple of matches with the lads!

7. If all else fails, TV On Demand and highlights programmes

All of the main TV channels will be covering at least some of the sport this Summer and they all have effective highlights packages in the evenings and sometimes in the morning too. Record them for post-bedtime viewing if you're out for the day or the kids really can't stand anymore. Rio de Janeiro is four hours behind us so late evenings will be prime time for some of the blue riband events there, perfect for when the kids are in bed.

I'm not suggesting that we'll be watching sport all day, every day over the Summer but I'm really looking forward to seeing the action. I'm hoping that, ultimately, our children will become active participants and fans of a wide range of sports and being exposed to them at an early age may well help with this. If you would like a calendar of forthcoming events check out the BBC Sport 2016 Calendar.

Will you be watching this Summer, which event are you most excited about?