The Hobbit book giveaway.

Later this year The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will be released in to cinemas.

To mark this the book has been relaunched and I am giving away 3 copies of new paperback.

All you need to do to enter is leave a comment below talking about your experiences of the book or of reading alongside your children. I will choose three winning comments 25th June 2012.

Personally I cannot wait until I can read stories like this to Tabitha at bedtime. As a child I loved to read, to immerse myself in tales of far off places and characters. I know she will too, she already spends hours looking at books and shows vivid imagination in her role play.

Being able to sit and read aloud to her while she hangs on my every word and begs me for 'one more page' is one of those parenting moments I have longed for. I love that I will be able to roll out my GCSE Drama 'A' and finally use my  scary voices and dramatic pauses.

I read The Hobbit as an adult when I was backpacking around Asia. In those days I could read several books a day lazing in a hammock, smoking, eating mango and drinking Milo. Rushing back and forth to the tiny rental bookshop on the island, I stormed my way through the whole set of books until it was complete, I was trapped in a world of Tolkien for about three weeks.

A few months later the Lord of the Rings movies were launched and I vowed never to watch them. I don't think I could handle my visions of the characters being ruined and as hazy as my backpacking memories are, I like it that way. However the character of Bilbo Baggins being played by Martin Freeman is I think genius.

Anyway for Tabitha I shall re visit those characters again, I will enjoy recreating them for her and I hope she enjoys them as much as I did.

Skillz

Look what she did!

Cybher 2012

This time last week we were in the mists of Cybher and for me it was a day I had been looking forward to since the day it was announced.

I was very kindly offered a free ticket to attend and give a helping hand to Sian on the day.

You might have seen me handing out badges at registration, which was very handy for working out who everyone was. 

I was the one rocking my huge Tatty Devine necklace. In case you didn't get a flash of my name  badge.

The speakers were fantastic on the day and although it was physically imposssible to see everyone I wanted to, what I did see was truely inspiring. 

My highlights and lessons learnt from the day are a mixed bunch of events and they go something like this:

300 odd leather satchels smell amazing

Listening to Jennifer Begg (@livefreerange) talking about her fundraising in memory of her mother and the result - Janies School. Just awesome stuff and once I have read Half the Sky I am set on changing the world peice by peice.

Having my photo taken for SOTM by Mario Cacciottioi

Too many bloggers in a hotel lift setting off the alarm and the bar mangers face as he said 

'Did they all try and get in there together?'

Discovering online personalities are sometimes exactly what you expect in real life and sometimes really just....not. (in a good way and a bad way)

That if you leave a  gaggle of drunk female bloggers in a bar with too much free fizz there will be noise complaints and plants will get eaten.

So in a nutshell thats my low down on Cybher 2012. 

See you at Cybher 2013.

She can sing a rainbow!

I wrote this post nearly two years ago about our 'settling song' and tonight after two long years of me singing to Tabitha-Lo she gave me a wonderful surprise.

Tonight as I sung to her like always, she joined in and sung every single word with me.

I might have shed a tear.

Feather and Black Kids Range: Nightwear.

I have been so lucky being involved in the Feather and Black bloggers reviews and their latest items did not let me down.

Tabitha was sent an item from their nightwear range. 

We chose the Betty Bow Nightdress, it being the only one available in her size. I was initially a bit gutted that the Cherry Print Pj's were for older girls as I have a real soft spot for anything with cherries on.

Generally I don't dress Tabitha in anything too girly but I have to admit I adore the Betty Bow Nightdress on her. It is a true classic and reminds me of nighties I used to wear as a child. She now calls it her 'Princess Dress' and I think I will have to eventually address her need for pastel pink in her life....

Along with the nightdress Feather and Black also sent us the first childrens book written by Adam Black 'David the Dinosaur'

The story of a dinosaur with a taste for plump little boys!

I love the book, the story is proper old school. It reminded me of a classic fairy tale full of bits of gore, drama and lots of laughs. Tabitha flicks through the pages now reading it aloud to herself we have read it so many times, although her version goes 

'David the dinosaur...Raaah boys......David the dinosaur... Hello.....Raaaah...Oh no.... David the dinosaur .....The end.'

Adam Black has also launched a range of items for David the Dinosaur including Pj's and cushions.

I continue to love Feather and Black all of the items we have reviewed and the items I have purchased are fantastic, I cannot recommend them enough.