Dear Mummy, finding exciting things do after school (without plonking myself in front of the telly) can be challenging. When I’m not outside playing with my friends in my street, I love nothing more than helping my mummy with unboxing videos … Continue reading
Dear mummy, we’ve just seen the most amazing thing! Like a magical crystal ball revealing a secret inside. We were asked to review some Orbeez Wow World Wowzers *that’s a tongue twister*. They come with a figure hidden in a globe filled … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, you were lucky enough to visit Oxford recently for a special TV screening and book signing of A Discovery of Witches. It is a brand new supernatural drama that’s due to start on Sky One this autumn (14.09.18 at … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, we’ve been a bit lapse with our weekly photos on the blog recently BUT we’re making amends this week. We’re joining in with Darren at photalife by selecting one of our favourite snaps taken over the summer. This is … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, our summer has been a season of festivals and over the August bank holiday we finished with a big one – CarFest South.CarFest South is held at Jody Scheckter’s Laverstoke Farm near Basingstoke and organised by radio DJ … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, it’s no secret that we love a good festival. With six under our belt already this year, we’re always looking for items to make our festival life easier, especially when it comes to camping at an event. We love … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, I love crafting especially when I can create personalised items myself. We’re always on the lookout for new toys to help keep me entertained and when we were sent a Fuzzikins Cozy Cats set to review it seemed the … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, we love watching Dreamworks Madagascar at home and we have all of the films on DVD, some which have been on repeat this summer already! So when we were invited to watch Madagascar the Musical at the Kings Theatre in Portsmouth … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, it’s been a whirlwind of a summer and we’ve had lots of awesome adventures out and about. Some of our best moments have been sharing quality time with family and friends while sat round our camping picnic table. … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, we’re squeezing the last of the sunshine out of the summer. It’s been balmy recently and over the holidays I’ve lost dozen of my cheap plastic sunglasses from the high street, at festivals and on our adventures. I’m … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, we’ve really enjoyed all the summer sun we’ve recently had in the UK and we’ve had many trips to the coast so far during the school holidays. One of the best days was a local visit to Lepe … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, in a sleepy part of Hampshire, on the fringes of the South Downs near Winchester, a makeshift city has risen. Constructed and built from tents, temporary buildings and travelling caravans. Out of the ground it emerges each year, … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, British cherry season is upon us and boxes of cherries line supermarket shelves like little red jewels glistening like rubies ready to be eaten. I’m participating in the #LoveFreshCherries Challenge this summer sponsored by Love Fresh Cherries, and I … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, I’m a big fan of the spooktacular show Vampirina on Disney Junior which is based on the Vampirina Ballerina book series, which celebrates friendship and difference. The animated series features a young vampire named Vampirina Hauntley who’s recently … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, life on the ocean wave is never easy and at this years Camp Bestival we certainly had everything thrown at us. From basking in a heatwave to camping in a yellow weather warning with high winds, it certainly … Continue reading
Dear Mummy, we were lucky enough to be invited to Marwell Zoo to see Father Christmas. It’s our second time enjoying Marwell’s Christmas Experience and the perfect opportunity to feel festive and see the animals.
We walked up to the lovely Marwell House and were ushered inside right on time and took a seat to enjoy the atmosphere. With a mince-pie and shortbread Christmas tree biscuits plus a glass of mulled wine for mummy and daddy and squash for us kids, it really was a lovely start to our adventure. This year the theme was Peter Pan, so the entrance room had been transformed with a London backdrop and a Peter Pan shadow flying above our heads, lots of trees and sign posts plus a big interactive screen showing the names of those on the naughty and nice lists, there were lots of panto-type baddies including Simon Cowell!
After a short wait and being well looked after by Mother Christmas and the helpers we were taken to another room full of Peter Pan props and characters, including Tick-Tock the crocodile! We were greeted by Tinkerbell and Mrs Claus in Pirate Cove. Once we were all settled (along benches for adults and tree stump cushions for us little ones) we were treated to some of the story of Peter Pan, with some puppets, songs, lighting and some awesome audience interaction too.
Once the story was finished Tinkerbell knocked on the magic door and a Pirate appeared to usher us through into the craft room, where we were given a printed cloth sack and lots of fabric pens and stickers so that they could decorate them. The room had been decorated with a big christmas tree with big Candy Canes (which daddy tried to eat) and a big warm fire backdrop. I had lots of fun colouring in my bag with help from my grandma, mummy and daddy. It really was a family effort though I think the adults got more carried away than I did. Once I was done I wrote a letter to Father Christmas and posted it with the help of a friendly elf called Tinsel who played games with me until it was time for me to see Santa.
When it was time for us to go through to see Father Christmas I were SO excited, I ran in to see him and he knew my name already I had no problem settling down on the stool and chatting to him about what I would like for Christmas though I was worried that he might not come if I woke to go to the bathroom. He said he would let me off as long as I went straight back to sleep. It was lovely to see him and even though he said he was busy he made lots of time for me. Even better still, I was given a beautifully wrapped gift which he helped me fit in the sack I had just made so I felt like Father Christmas too (it also made it easier to carry the present as I didn’t want to give it to mummy or daddy.
Flicker, the elf photographer, was on hand to snap some pictures and once we were done we went though to Father Christmas’s temporary control centre where we could see his route, plans and our pictures. There were a couple of options but Daddy opted for the £15 selection where we received prints of our favourite 3 pictures as well as a high-resolution photo sent to my daddy’s email address so we can share them with friends or family.
Once we had finished with Father Christmas we went for a walk around some of the enclosures on route for a lovely bit of lunch. Mummy and Daddy carried on our festive day with a roast turkey dinner at Cafe Graze, which looked tasty and I tucked into my favourite kids snack box with Sandwich, drink, crisps and fruit (mainly because I like the animal boxes they come in). After lunch I took daddy outside to play in the 2 play areas and then on to see the tropical house (I think because the adults were getting cold!) It was lovely to see the different animals there but even more so to see my favourite animals the Leopard and Cheetahs.
The Christmas at Marwell experience gives you full access to the zoo and play areas as well as meeting Father Christmas and his elves, but be quick, dates are selling out fast and there are various slots right up to the 21st December 2018! The experience lasts around 60-80 minutes and is well worth the ticket price of £25 per adult, £28.50 for children (3-16yrs) while toddlers and babies have cheaper entrance tickets.
Love Bella x
Disclosure: We were invited to Marwell Zoo in order to review their Christmas Experience, all thoughts and festive carol renditions are our own! (see the vlog)
