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Hunter Valley Gardens Mega Creatures 2016 Giveaway

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Hunter Valley Gardens Mega Creatures 2016

As you have come to expect from the Hunter Valley Gardens, they get bigger and better every year. This year is no exception. The Christmas Lights Spectacular and Mega Creatures 2016 edition are an event not to be missed!!

Like I have mentioned previously on the blog, we attend the Christmas Lights Spectacular every year. It has become a family tradition and the kids love it. If your kids are anything like mine; they will absolutely love the Mega Creatures as well. You can take a journey through the gardens and see some amazing works of art (botanical art obviously), different themes/gardens and the Story Book area. This is one of my kids favourite parts of the whole Hunter Valley Gardens.

The Mega Creatures 2016 include all of the incredible giant bugs from last year. These include beetles, tarantula, bee, snail and so many more – see here for last years Mega Bugs review.

Much to the excitement of my kids; this year the Hunter Valley Gardens have added Dinosaurs to their Mega Creatures display. See favourites including: T-Rex, Triceratops, Stegosaurus and many more! The giant animatronic creatures will have you and your children in awe and provide hours of discussions.

It was great watching the dinosaurs move and make noises. It really gave the kids a sense of what they were like before they became extinct. Each one had a different call and it was amazing seeing the kids get excited over learning. This experience is not only heaps of fun, it is also educational.

You can find out more here or enter below to win yourself 1 of 2 family passes!

2x WINNERS!! 

Each prize includes: 1x Hunter Valley Gardens Mega Creatures family pass. RRP $134.00. Total prize pool: $268.00.

**As the winners are chosen based on skill and not chance; you will be sharing for 0 extra entries however I’d love you to share the giveaway with friends and family. Sharing is caring and karma loves kind people. **

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Terms & Conditions: 
1. Australian residents only.
2. Judges decisions is final.
3. Winners must make contact within 72 hours.
4. This is a game of skill. Chance plays no part!
Therefore no extra points are given for sharing however it is good karma!!
5. All Mum Said is not responsible for delivery of prize.
NOT endorsed by or have anything to do with facebook.

If you want to enter more giveaways click over here.

Disclosure: I received a family pass to review this experience. All opinions are my own.

Thermos® Back To School Giveaway

By 95 Comments

Back to school can be a stressful time for parents. There is so much to consider, so much to buy and so many options!

I have teamed up with Thermos® for an incredible giveaway that will take the worry out of narrowing down your child’s lunch accessories and storage goods for the upcoming school season. Australian summers can be ridiculously hot and winters can be absurdly cold; this is what makes it so difficult for parents to choose a lunch box that will be suitable for these altering conditions.

Thermos® back to school

Thermos has the answer! The Thermos FUNtainer™ food jars and drink bottles have the well-known and trusted Thermos™ vacuum insulation technology that everyone loves. This technology allows food and drink to remain cold and fresh for up to 7 hours or alternatively hot for up to 5 hours. Parents and children can now experiment and keep lunches exciting; it doesn’t have to be the same boring sandwiches every day. Take a salad, homemade yoghurt, smoothies, dips, soup, noodles, fried rice, etc. to work and school without having the concern it will go off or require heating/cooling.

FIY: Food must be kept below 5°C and above 60°C to reduce the risk of food poisoning. The temperatures in between are what is classed as the danger zone for bacteria to grow rapidly in food.

For more information on food safety click here.

Not only are these products safe, they are convenient because they eliminate the need for icepacks and/or limiting lunch options for your child. To make them just little bit more special, the Thermos FUNtainer™ are available in a range of fun characters. These include (but are not limited to): Mickey Mouse, Tinker Bell, Frozen, Fire Truck, Thomas the Tank Engine and more. *There are also plain options available for the older children and adults.

Many people don’t realise that Thermos is a brand and not a product category. There are so many cheap imitations on the market and while they claim to be just as efficient, will just never stand up to the quality and reliability of real genuine Thermos products. With 110 years of experience and proven excellence, it is no surprise they are trusted by generations of Australians. To put their money where their mouths are, all Thermos FUNtainer™ products carry a 5-year warranty!

Take lunch limitations away and consider Thermos FUNtainer™ products this year for back to school purchases. ENTER BELOW to WIN yourself and your family one of the two amazing Thermos® prize pack with a combined valued of $843.64!! Or if you cannot wait until the giveaway ends, you can purchase these products from specialist children’s retailers such as Toys R Us and Baby Bunting.

2x WINNERS!! Each prize pack is retailed at: $421.82. Total prize pool: $843.64.

Each prize includes:

  • 1x 355mL Stainless Steel FUNtainer™ Vacuum Insulated Drink Bottle – Disney’s Frozen (RRP $29.99)
  • 1x 290mL Stainless Steel FUNtainer™ Vacuum Insulated Food Jar – Disney’s Frozen (RRP $29.99)
  • 1x 355mL Stainless Steel FUNtainer™ Vacuum Insulated Drink Bottle – Fire Truck (RRP $21.99)
  • 1x 290mL Stainless Steel FUNtainer™ Vacuum Insulated Food Jar – Fire Truck (RRP $23.99)
  • 1x 470mL Stainless Steel FUNtainer™ Vacuum Insulated Drink Bottle – Purple (RRP $34.99)
  • 1x 470mL Stainless Steel FUNtainer™ Vacuum Insulated Drink Bottle – Charcoal (RRP $34.99)
  • 1x FUNtainer™ Insulated Lunch Case – Fire Truck (RRP $14.99)
  • 1x Thermos® Cooler Backpack (RRP $44.99)
  • 1x Book – Best Lunch Box Ever: Ideas and Recipes for School Lunches Kids Will Love by Katie Sullivan Morford ($34.00)
  • 1x $50 Officeworks Voucher for Back To School supplies ($50.00)
  • 1x Discover The Awesome World – kids science book ($29.95)
  • 1x Crayola Super Tips 20 Pack Washable Markers ($12.00)
  • 1x Minions Googly-Eyed Colouring Pad
  • 1x Snap Circuits Beginner Electronics Kit ($34.95)

**As the winners are chosen based on skill and not chance; you will be sharing for 0 extra entries however I’d love you to share the giveaway with friends and family. Sharing is caring and karma loves kind people. **

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Terms & Conditions: 
1. Australian residents only.
2. Judges decisions is final.
3. Winners must make contact within 72 hours.
4. This is a game of skill. Chance plays no part!
Therefore no extra points are given for sharing however it is good karma!!
5. All Mum Said is not responsible for delivery of prize.
NOT endorsed by or have anything to do with facebook.

If you want to enter more giveaways click over here.

Disclosure: I received the above products for sharing this amazing giveaway with All Mum Said fans. All opinions are my own.

High Tea At Home With Tea Infused Jelly + Giveaway

By 92 Comments

The school holidays are a great time for things a little extra special for the kids. The latest craze seems to be mothers enjoying high tea with their daughters however I have two boys that I know would love to attend one. Then of course my two year old tea party mad daughter would not miss it for the world. I cannot take all of them, my husband and my newborn baby to a fancy pantsy high tea.

High Tea At Home With Tea Infused Jelly

So instead we have improvised! High tea at home is just as special and without the added stress of my children being loud, animal like or fretting over something being broken.

Aeroplane Jelly sent me an amazing pack of tea infused jelly, gorgeous tea cups and a cake stand to share the experience with my family. We have definitely enjoyed it. In all honesty, we have now attended several high teas (at home) and the kids have helped prepare the food.

We have enjoyed: croissants, scones, brandy snaps, fresh fruit, raspberry licorice jelly cheesecake, mini trifles, melted snowman and vanilla mudcake cupcakes. Beverages have included: tea, coffee and juice.

We used some of the new tea infused Aeroplane Jelly to create a mixed berry trifle, unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to photograph it before the kids got into it. Take my word for it though, it was delicious! The fragrant new jellies are low in sugar and calories but do not lack in taste. They are full of flavour and there is a range to suit every taste. My favourite is the raspberry licorice, which really surprised me as I am not the biggest licorice fan. Other flavours include: Peach tea, lemon tea, orange blossom, raspberry licorice and mixed berry tea.

I have included below the recipe for the Mixed Berry Breakfast Trifle.

Mixed Berry Breakfast Trifle 

Number of Serves: 8 Prep Time: 15 minutes Set Time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

1 x 9g sachet Aeroplane Jelly Light Tea Infusions Mixed Berry Tea, made to pack instructions.
1 apple or pear, grated
½ cup quick oats
½ cup almonds, chopped
¼ cup sunflower seeds
¼ cup flax seeds
1 cup yoghurt, natural

Method: 

  1. Pour jelly into 4 small bowls with the grated apple or pear and refrigerate until set.
  2. Mix together oats, almonds, sunflower seeds and flax seeds and divide between bowls.
  3. Top with a good dollop of yoghurt and serve.

For more recipes and ideas on All Mum Said click here or to see what else Aeroplane Jelly has to offer click here.

5x WINNERS!!

Each Prize includes: tea cup shaped patty pans, and the complete range of the new Aeroplane Jelly Lite tea Infusions range.

**As the winners are chosen based on skill and not chance; you will be sharing for 0 extra entries however I’d love you to share the giveaway with friends and family. Sharing is caring and karma loves kind people. **

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Terms & Conditions: 
1. Australian residents only.
2. Judges decisions is final.
3. Winners must make contact within 72 hours.
4. This is a game of skill. Chance plays no part!
Therefore no extra points are given for sharing however it is good karma!!
5. All Mum Said is not responsible for delivery of prize.
NOT endorsed by or have anything to do with facebook.

If you want to enter more giveaways click over here.

Disclosure: I received the above products for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own.

How To Prepare For Baby When You Don’t Know The Gender

By 2 Comments

How to prepare for baby when you don’t know the gender

So you’ve decided you’re going to wait until bubs arrives so you can have that traditional ‘It’s a [insert gender here]!’ moment. Maybe you’re happy about it or maybe you just lost the argument with your partner over the issue. Either way, you have yourself a dilemma – how on earth do you prepare for a baby when you don’t know the gender?

A quick scan of any of baby stores awash with pink and blue will tell you that manufacturers are assuming you asked that all-important question at your 20-week ultrasound!
Don’t panic, you can still make sure you’re prepared without buying double of everything, just in case.

Choose a gender-neutral theme for the nursery

There are some really gorgeous gender-neutral prints out there – jungle scenes with impossibly sweet giraffes and monkeys; circus clowns with brightly-coloured beach balls balancing on the nose of happy seals.
The beauty of this approach is you’ll be able to use the same sheets and sleeping bags for any future little brothers or sisters!

Leave space for pink and blue

It can be as simple as a delaying the purchase of a throw rug to draper over the chair and keep you warm during the midnight feeds; or leaving a space on the wall for a beautiful pink butterfly picture or a montage of dump trucks.
These final touches can easily be added in the days or weeks following the birth of your precious bundle.

Buy gender-neutral coloured baby clothes

Let’s face it, nobody likes lemon. It makes babies look jaundiced even if they’re not. Unless you’ve found a lovely pattern which combines lemon with other colours (crimson or navy make great contrasts), steer clear of pale yellow onesies!
White, green and red are great options, and good for staples like onesies and singlets, but they’re not particularly exciting on their own.
If you’re really looking for something that will really brighten up your baby preparations, consider opting for patterned clothing. The availability of gender-neutral patterned clothing is limited, but you’re certain to find a few lovely items that you can feel proud to bring baby home in.

Delay buying clothes and bedding

Obviously you need to make sure you’ve got something to pop bubs in when he or she is first born, and the last thing you want to be doing is hitting the shops when you get home from hospital!
However, there’s nothing wrong with waiting a little while to buy some really pretty pink or handsome blue outfits. What you may not realise is those first few weeks are often such a blur of highs and lows you probably won’t much care what baby is wearing – as long as they don’t cover them in poo and let you get some sleep!
And remember – there’s always online shopping, which you can do from home… on your phone… during the 3am feed if you like!

Gift-free baby shower

Baby showers are great fun, but if your friends and family don’t know the gender of the baby, you may end up with piles and piles of grey and white clothing and wraps that they didn’t really want to buy. You’ll be miserable and so will they.
Consider gently suggesting to your guests that they spend the baby shower having fun with you and celebrating your pregnancy. Point out to them how much more fun they’ll have shopping for your baby when he or she is born – they’ll be able to happily fling their way through racks of frilly pink dresses or robot-encrusted rompers!

Rebecca Bowyer is a Melbourne mum of two preschool boys. You can find her writing about all things parenting at Seeing the Lighter Side.

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