Aldi Ski Range (Review)

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Regular readers of this blog are used to seeing The Boy kitted out in his bright blue all-in-one ski-suit during Winter months. Wrapped up warmly inside this, he will happily play for hours outside on the beach, in a forest or in the snow. Never on a ski-slope though, which goes to show the adaptability of the outfit.

Just before Christmas we were sent some of the ski-wear range from Aldi which was launched in December as a part of their Special Buys selections. Unfortunately, the set that we were sent was for 7-8 year old boys which obviously doesn't fit my four and half year old son. However, I was so impressed with the salopettes and ski jacket that I immediately went out to buy the snow boots that went with it. If I'd been clever then I'd have tried to predict the size he would be when he is indeed 7-8 years old, but that's a tricky job when he has only gone up once size in a year.

The salopettes and ski jacket are excellent quality and in a really nice design and colourway.

Aldi ski-suit

It's nice to see boys' clothing that isn't bright blue or a garish neon green or orange, but a more subdued shade of green and classic grey. The salopettes have thick elastic braces to them which will ensure they don't fall down and as the straps are so wide then they won't dig in to his shoulders either. At the bottom of each leg there is an inner boot snow-flap with slip-resistant tape and an outer leg which fits over the top of the boot. Very conveniently, this is zipped to provide easy access when putting boots on or taking them off; something his current snowsuit doesn't have. The jacket has elasticated snow protection at the waist and cuff to prevent snow slipping in. There is also a zipped pocket in the arm, designed for a ski pass but perfect for other important things when playing outdoors.

While the stock on these products is obviously limited to what is left in store still, I nipped into Aldi yesterday (actually to buy their sweetener as it is the only non-aspartame based one in any supermarkets) and spotted that there were still plenty of boots and salopettes, along with merino wool thermals.

Priced at only £14.99 each for the jacket and salopettes, they are £10.00 cheaper than those I've seen in Matalan, and actually better quality.

I was sent these products for the purpose of this review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Days 356 – 365 of Project 365

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Days 356-365 of Project 365

356. Twist and… SNAP! (I enlisted his help to prepare the Brussel sprouts ready for Christmas Day. Buying them on the stalk was a complete indulgence, but it was good for him to see how they actually grow.)

357. Wrapping (The Boy had some help from me to wrap Daddy's present, and then wrote who it was for and from on it. I love seeing him writing independently.)

358. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care… (Our traditional Christmas Eve was great fun this year: making and decorating the gingerbread house, watching Polar Express in the pyjamas that Edward the Elf left as a present when he returned to the North Pole, making reindeer food and sprinkling it, hanging up our stockings from the mantelpiece. We always finish with 'The Night Before Christmas' as a bedtime story.)

359. I Got It Right (Showing a photo of The Boy opening a present with a gleeful face would have been too obvious. This is Mr. TBaM opening up his present; a scooter which he has wanted for 18 months.)

360. Cheese (Mum took us out to a beachside Italian restaurant for lunch on Boxing Day rather than her standing in the kitchen cooking for two hours! It was great to have something different and to sit as a family, thoroughly enjoying each other's company.)

361. Builder (The Boy and I have very excitedly been constructing a castle from the Teifoc brick set that we gave him for Christmas. We've made a few errors – like forgetting to put the doorframe in – but have really had good fun doing it together.)

362. Crashed Out (My final week wouldn't be complete without a sleeping Boy photo!)

363. Tiger, Tiger (Father Christmas brought The Boy face paints and he asked me if I'd paint his face. He's never had it done before and I was amazed at how well he sat while I did it, then he spent ten minutes roaring at himself in the mirror. However, I've just discovered how hard it is to get off; he still has yellow in his eyebrows two days later!)

364. Little Chef (We've been having major issues with The Boy's eating ever since he was sick at his aunt's wedding seven weeks ago. It's almost psychosomatic in a way. On Sunday he'd refused to eat his scrambled eggs because of the colour – it's one of his favourite meals – and had made himself vomit as a result. On Monday we went shopping for his choice of tea and he helped me prepare it; result as he ate it all!)

365. Splat! (The day started in the same way that everyday has for the past week; torrential rain and drab, grey skies. I felt a bit down in the dumps but resolved to don our waterproofs and go to the beach. However by the time we got there, the sun was shining, the sky was azure, and it was actually quite warm. As the tide was far out beyond the end of the pier, we ventured down onto the beach and trotted down to the water's edge; over pebbled, fine golden sand, rockpools and squelchy mud. This is where we had a great time making huge footprints and gloopy noises. I turned around to take a picture of the pier, heard an "uh-oh" and whipped back around to see this. Thank God I'd put his waterproof trousers on him!)

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The Best Playground (Country Kids)

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Considering what an advocate of outdoor play I am, I've found it increasingly difficult since The Boy started school to get out and about more than once or twice a week on a school day. When he comes home from school he's utterly exhausted and collapses on the sofa for half an hour or so, vegetating in front of the television while chomping down on a snack. Invariably by the time he's recovered enough to do anything it's pitch-black outside.

I must try harder next half-term.

However, while we have managed to get down to the nature reserve to feed the swans once a week or popped to a park, we seem to have neglected the best playground around; our back garden. With a climbing frame and slide set, plus a swing, there's really not much more he needs to create some fun and games in his own time. Therefore on Christmas Eve morning, when things were becoming a little fraught in the house, I sent The Boy out with Mr. TBaM to rediscover how easy it is to get 15 minutes outdoors a day.

The Best Playground

Watching him through the kitchen window as I made our Christmas cake, it struck me how more physically aware and confident he is than six months ago when he first had the climbing frame. The Boy now scampers up the side of the frame easily and balances at the top with no problem. The swing seems to have become a challenge for him; how many acrobatic moves can he perform on it? Standing on it gave me a few palpitations, and then I saw him jump off the seat…

He ended the play with an attempt at flying. Because he's four and if he wants to believe he can then I'm not one to stop him!

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country kidsOutdoor play party

Days 342 – 348 of Project 365

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Days 342-348 of Project 365

342. Reach For The Stars (We ventured over to Cardiff Bay to the Christmas Food Market set out in the old dock basin. There were a few small, fairground rides there and The Boy relished the opportunity to try out this jumping trampoline ride thingy. I love the silhouette against the stormy sky.)

343. Burp (Reviewing a game sent to us from Orchard Toys, The Boy found it very amusing that the gorilla burps after feeding it junk food!)

344. My Little Star (This is The Boy performing in his first Christmas concert. I took photographs of him walking up and down onto the stage that showed off his costume better, but this is the picture that I love because of the sincerity on his face, filled with the effort of getting it right. I'm so proud of him for fully taking part as he was so petrified during the Harvest service he could only cope with standing on the stage.)

345. Homemade Gifts (I've written in the past about the significance of giving teachers presents to acknowledge their hard work, I decided that we'd make some lovely ornaments for The Boy's teachers and LSAs. With four teachers to buy for, and additional Reception staff, it would never have been cheap and I don't know enough about them to buy a worthwhile present. I thought Christmas tree decorations would be a good idea as they're resuable and show care and attention on his part.)

346. RUDE! (Our weekly trip to feed the swans saw an extremely cheeky seagull swoop in to grab a stray piece of bread lying on the boardwalk. The Boy was incensed!)

347. Wriggler (A busy day Christmas shopping with my mum in Cardiff, taking The Boy to a classmate's house for tea and then me swanning off to Cardiff Bay saw me sneaking a last minute photograph of a wriggling Boy in his sleep.)

348. Family Days Out (On a day when the blogging world is remembering a special blogger and her legacy of Family Frolics, it seemed very fitting to me that we spent the day with extended family; my brother and his family. I'd bought Mr. TBaM a segway driving experience for his birthday and we finally redeemed it with my sister-in-law joining him on a device which I would be useless on. My brother, niece, The Boy and I explored the other adventure activities possible in the centre and made a vow to come back and try the zip wire out when the children are a little bit older. We finished off the day with a lovely meal in a newly-opened restaurant nearby. A wonderful family day out.)

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Days 321 – 327 of Project 365

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321-327 of 365

321. Catch A Leaf (We went into the garden to rake up some of the leaves that have fallen from the cherry tree, which of course led to throwing and catching them! Mr. TBaM and I decided to try and stage the perfect falling leaf photo, it didn't quite pan out how I wanted to as The Boy kept sticking his tongue out, scunching his neck, closing his eyes and everything else in between. In the end this photo actually is perfect to me as I like Mr. TBaM's hand and foot in it, it adds to the moment.)

322. Taking A Break (The Boy threw up in the bathroom at 8.30 this morning which meant he had to stay home from school. Of course he wasn't sick afterwards, he'd just forced his breakfast down and has a strong gag reflex! I'll admit that I lied to the secretary and said he had a temperature, because if I'd said about the sickness she'd have made him stay off for two days, and I'm already in the amber category for attendance! I made sure he did plenty of reading, writing and learning through play to make up for being off school, this was a silly moment we were having in the kitchen when he was pretending to be a baby crawling!)

323. Pinner (I nipped up to town to buy some sausages for dinner, and perused the seven charity shops while I was there. This pin-art-thingy was in one for £1.25 and is one of the best toys he's got at the moment!)

324. Relaxing (All these play activities on other blogs featuring a tuff-spot, and I bet none have them used as chill-out and t.v. watching zone!)

325. Petrol Head (We've been sent some marvellous and limited edition Lego cars to highlight a promotion in Shell garages at the moment, The Boy has never tried proper Lego before and after a fraught first attempt we managed to make the cars together, he now adores them and now we just need to race them!)

326. Scareswan (We went to feed the swans at the local nature reserve and it was obvious they were very hungry as they all came flocking. Once we'd gone through out half a bag, they decided to investigate The Boy's pockets so he stood still like a scarecrow to scare them away.)

327. Who's There? (This morning I set up The Boy's magic elf door from The Magic Door Store, scraped the ice from the back of the freezer and sprinkled some elf dust. When he came into the living room and discovered it, he was completely captivated and we proceeded to watch it for twenty minutes in silence to see if anyone would come through. During that time he saw a hedgehog poke his prickles through, and a Christmas Mouse, but hasn't remembered Edward the Elf will be visiting. We're going to have great fun leading up to 1st December when Edward will make his appearance!)

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Days 307 – 313 of Project 365

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307-313 of 365

307. Closed (We took The Boy to Legoland as a treat for the end of half-term. This sign is not indicative of the day as it was taken at 5.15 at the time and the park was shut. We had been on every single ride that we'd wanted to, and indeed I even managed to go on a rollercoaster for the first time ever. We actually went on it five times, four of them in a row without even getting off!)

308. Splosh (Jumping up and down in muddy puddles, true Peppa Pig style.)

309. Captivated (Fireworks Night! The display at the local rec was far superior than I ever thought it would be, and it made us realise that we won't be heading to Cardiff Castle again to waste a ridiculous amount of money on an over the top display.)

310. Dapper (The Boy was trying on his suit for his aunt's wedding on Saturday. He kept asking how long he'd have to wear it for! Eeeek!)

311. Sparkler (His face isn't in focus as he was too animated, but I love the delight on his face with these delayed sparklers.)

312. Wading (A trip to the local nature reserve after school to feed the swans and check out how much the lake had risen with all the rain of the week.)

313. My Pride & Joy (Here he is, my dapper little man, all dressed up for his aunt's wedding. He behaved beautifully and completely stole the show.)

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TheBoyandMe's 365 Linky

Days 300 – 306 of Project 365

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300-306 of 365

2nd November 2013 (Saturday)

300. Glee (Pure joy as The Boy flings Autumn leaves into the air at the National Trust site of Tyntesfield.)

301. Town Planner (The start of our half-term craft and play project.)

302. It's High Up Here! (Standing aloft a bale of hay at Yeo Valley with Burton and Jenson from Mummy Mishaps.)

303. Landscape Architect (Continuing our craft and play project where The Boy initiated his first ever written word without any prompting; bottom left he wrote a label on the cardboard.)

304. Pumpkin Driller (Little boys who are four aren't old enough to carve a pumpkin, so we drilled holes in it instead.)

305. Five Dec-car (He wanted to make a five decker car. Because he's four and he can.)

306. Hold On (We were in Reading for the Matilda Mae Welly Walk in Beale Park, and went off exploring with Laura from Tired Mummy of Two and her family. This is The Boy and Elizabeth squealing with laughter while Tired Daddy of Two pushed them.)

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TheBoyandMe's 365 Linky

50 Things To Do Before You're 11&¾ At Yeo Valley

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Earlier this week, The Boy and I were invited to the wonderful Yeo Valley in the Mendips to work with the National Trust on their 50 Things To Do Before You're 11&¾ campaign. This was perfect for us as I've spent much of this year promoting the campaign through this blog and my outdoor play posts, and I also thoroughly enjoy visiting Holt Farm as it is a beautiful site.

Yeo Valley have partnered with the National Trust to help promote the outdoor play campaign, and during the course of the day we were given the opportunity to complete several of the 50 Things which The Boy thoroughly enjoyed. Many of these The Boy had already completed, however the one we haven't managed to tick off yet is 'hold a scary beast'; we did complete it when I placed a worm on his hand. It may not seem very scary to you or I, but to a four year old who doesn't like slime, it was a terrifying creature!

50 Things at Yeo Valley

We had a great day in a wonderful setting with good friends. And what better proof is there of the fresh air being good for you than The Boy falling asleep on the way home?

From October to January this year, Yeo Valley fans can win one of ten fantastic holidays each worth £1,000 on special packs of its natural and fruity yogurts. Simply pick up a big pot or one of its 4-pack varieties from any major supermarket, visit the Yeo Valley website and enter the code on the pack for the chance to win one of ten unique breaks to a magical National Trust cottage, for a tranquil ‘staycation’ in spectacular locations across the country. In addition to this fabulous offer, Yeo Valley is giving away 250 family passes every day, giving families the chance to experience the National Trust’s enchanting places absolutely free of charge.

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Days 286 – 292 of Project 365

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286-292 of 365

286. Bubble Catcher (Blowing and catching bubbles in Leigh Woods with Capture by Lucy and her family. The graininess of the background might give a little hint as to just how torrential the rain was. )

287. Angels (Boy Cousin and Girl Cousin came over for tea tonight, and The Boy played for around an hour outside with them. The two boys play so nicely together and really adore each other.)

288. Proud Moment #1 (Tonight was parents' evening and while we were waiting, we read through the book of work bound together from when they went to the church for a Harvest festival the week before. Of the 18 children who each coloured in a sheet and 'wrote' something underneath, The Boy's was the only one which wasn't translated by the teacher; that's a 'd' not a 'b' by the way. Can you read what it says? Apparently he didn't copy the words out, he sounded them out with the teacher and wrote each letter independently. Words failed me.)

289. Proud Moment #2 (This is at the Harvest Assembly where each year group took a 'turn' on stage. Reception sang 'Big Red Combine Harvester' and it's fair to say that the teacher and I were both concerned that he'd refuse to get on stage due to fear. He did and, while he didn't sing, he did all the actions whilst fighting off the urge to cry. I was so proud of him for being so brave.)

290. Proud Moment #3 (The Boy came home with a certificate of achievement having featured in the Golden Book during the school's praise assembly. He was picked out for always being a kind friend at playtime.)

291. I Am A Shape (I bought The Boy a Melissa & Doug pattern board set which has pictures made up from different coloured shapes, and he has to match the picture from spare blocks. He loves it and it's just the ideal activity for after school.)

292. Determination (We went to Roath Park late this afternoon and fed the geese and ducks. The Boy was determined to climb this wall, and after working out how to reposition himself, he managed to find a foothold and pulled himself all the way up. Children are amazing!)

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TheBoyandMe's 365 Linky

Why Our Children Need Outdoor Play

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I'm not going to bombard you with words or images in this post, just please spare the two minutes that you might normally sifting through all of that to watch this video.


PROJECT WILD THING – official trailer from Green Lions on Vimeo. David will be touring nationwide with the film, dates available here.

This is the man that made me realise why I have to ensure that we get plenty of outdoor play time in a week; because I can't have The Boy be one of those statistics.

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Linking with Country Kids

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