We have been playing with salt dough. It is rather lovely stuff. I like it a lot. I don’t know why but I have always been a bit frightened of it. I needn’t have been. Easy to make, easy to … Continue reading
I am really struggling with Christmas coming up. It hurts so much that Tilda is not here. She would have adored Christmas this year. Having my daughter ripped from my life Has for me ripped the heart out of everything … Continue reading
If you are a regular visitor to our playroom or to this blog it cannot escape your notice that Esther and William are both train mad. Totally and utterly, absolutely and completely obsessed with engines, track, coaches and carriages. Everything … Continue reading
On Monday 18th November I was asked to speak about Prematurity at The House of Commons
And so I did
(Please excuse the poor sound quality and editing)
Full post coming soon
I am really struggling today. Just sat here in rivers of tears Laboured breathing Heavy heart Aching limbs Total hopelessness . I am not sleeping very well. We are still sleeping on a mattress on the floor in the lounge. … Continue reading
Today see’s the official launch of the Karisma Kidz online game and app on the Kurio tablet. Karisma Kidz is a safe, engaging online platform designed to help children understand and manage their moods and fulfil their potential. Developed by … Continue reading
Esther and William love a hat! Last Christmas I bought all three children a crochet character hat. Last year I did not know my lovely friend Michele who is behind the amazing handmade hats and toys at Minnie’s Macaroon. Last … Continue reading
This year I want to make Christmas magical for Esther and William. It is the only way I am going to get through. I either have to ignore it all together or make it the best it can possibly be. … Continue reading
Finding stocking fillers this year has been incredibly hard. I love the tradition of having a stocking filler first thing on Christmas morning. Last Christmas I had a magical hour with Tilda and her sensory box before anyone else got … Continue reading
We take our duties as Toad Testers very seriously.
Esther and William like to put trains and tracks through their paces.
We have had the Brio Mono Rail for two weeks now and it is being used every single day.
This has very much become Esther’s railway. She likes the aeroplane and the pilot and the air traffic control man.
When we first set up the mono rail we just had a simple loop of track and the airport building with the tower.
This was enough to set the scene of an airport and travelling on holiday.
Together we acted out people arriving at the airport, taking one loop on the mono rail before boarding the aeroplane and jetting off to the sun.
It was not very long at all before the aeroplane became Jeremy and the train became Spencer.
Thomas The Tank Engine has a lot to answer for!
This is a lovely set for children who travel or have parents who travel as you can really role play going on a journey. The attention to detail Brio give their train sets is wonderful and lends itself to storytelling and recreating real life.
Esther and William have not been on an aeroplane recently so have no experience to relate to. But they know ALOT about going on holiday, packing bags with special things to take with you and they know more than most about trains, planes and automobiles. They also understand the concept of a journey. They have got a lot from this set on it’s own and will get so much more when we begin to connect it to the rest of our track and accessories.
This is a mixed wooden and plastic set but it works. The combination of materials works to make an exquisite play set.
The aeroplane has a wooden body that is encased in plastic. It allows for the plane to open and close smoothly and gives the sleek finish we would expect a jet plane to have.
The control tower and airport have plastic elements to make the set useable and look authentic.
The track is classic Brio track. The train is a battery powered engine with a carriage that connects with a magnet. The mobile staircase can be attached to either the train or the aeroplane with the magnets.
The poseable characters that come with this set are great. They can come in to the airport through the opening plastic doors, wait on the platform for the train, they can sit inside the carriage before climbing the steps to board the plane and take their seat for take off.
There are hours and hours of play in this alone before you even have to think about adding the raised track to the mix.
The raised track makes the train route more interesting. Esther and William play very enthusiastically with their train tracks so for any raised pieces we tend to use the glue gun to hold the track to the support pillars. The glue dries clear and is easy to remove when you want to change the track or pack it away.
The support pillars with this Brio set are plastic. I actually think the contrast in material and in colour make this a striking set.
The best thing about a Brio set such as this one is the potential for exploring narrative and telling tales. Children can really lose themselves in their imaginations.
Esther and William have enjoyed playing with this mono rail set individually and side by side.
You can buy this Brio Mono Rail Set and other Brio toys from The Toadstool.
We have also been playing with the metro rail and for a simple addition to any track we recommend the Brio Bell.
We were sent one mono rail set for the purpose of this review.