Katsuma Unleashed DS game review

Normally when the kids help with reviews, we usually edit their posts slightly correcting typos and perhaps adding or removing bits to make sure it makes sense, but I was SO impressed with J's review of Katsuma Unleashed, that here it is exactly as he wrote it! Turns out he couldn't wait until Christmas to get a copy of his own to review so has based his review on when he played it on our visit to Moshi HQ.

Over to J:


My brother and me playing Katsuma Unleashed at Moshi HQ

When we went to Moshi Monsters HQ, I played Katsuma unleashed. There are 6 places where you have to battle your way through the levels defeating Glumps and  Robo-moshlings and rescue monsters and moshlings.

The controls are: press the A button to jump, the B button to do a spin attack, the left and right buttons to go left and right. When you are in the air press B and DOWN together to do a ground pound. If you are going down a slope press DOWN to slide down the slope knocking off any baddies on the slope. If you do a ground pound on wooden crates you can destroy them. If you find a cage use a spin attack on it to open the cage and rescue the moshling inside it. You rescue a monster if you defeat a boss.

I managed to defeat the first two bosses and rescue the first two monsters. the first boss is Sweet tooth where you rescue Zommer and get the ability to throw eyeballs and destroy special eyeball blocks.

The second boss is big chief tiny head where you rescue Furi and get the ability to smash special smash blocks. I also think that with the furi ability you can punch the baddies. I played in two places. One was the wobbly woods and the other I can't remember. The trickier bits were the moving platforms, falling platforms and the sinking sand. I really enjoyed playing the game.

Love J x

Christmas is Cancelled - My Perfect Christmas Day

Sounds easy enough doesn't it. Just describe your perfect Christmas Day. A bunch of presents, beautifully wrapped. A terrific feast of turkey and trimmings. A big box of chocolates to share. And if we're truly lucky, maybe even a little sprinkling of snow.

But not for me I'm afraid. I'm the one renowned in the family for absolutely hating this time of year. Bah humbug just doesn't describe it. I am totally bah bah bah and double humbug too!

Am I worse than Scrooge? Image adapted from the Nebraska Theatre Caravan.

So to have to describe my perfect Christmas Day is challenge of the century stuff for me! Is there even such a thing as a perfect Christmas? Everyone seems stressy to some extent this time of year, frantically rushing around with so many things that supposedly 'have' to be done by Christmas Day. I mean does it really matter if the living room doesn't get that new coat of paint by Christmas? Why put the pressure on by ordering the new sofa 'in time for Christmas' then find yourself with a few more grey hairs arguing with the suppliers who can't get it scheduled in because of all the Christmas deliveries.
 
I think we've all at some point stood in the supermarket scrabbling for those last few grapes, a piece of Stilton and a pack of smoked salmon. Foods that we could happily do without the rest of the year, but without them at Christmas just wouldn't do; Christmas would surely be spoilt. Oh and don't even get me stared on the supermarket queues. By the time you make it to the checkout you find your frozen items in a puddle and hear the ice cream sloshing about in the tub. Knowing you've got beyond the 3 hour record of standing in the queue you dread to even try to calculate what time you actually entered the store.

I queued for an hour last year at the post Office Depot amongst all the other punters picking up their missed deliveries of Christmas presents that, you guessed it, they needed to have 'in time for Christmas'. My parcel? Oh that turned out to be a box of cereal I had won. Yep, cereal. Had I known I would have left it until after Christmas to pick it up but of course, I was worried that it might be something I needed 'in time for Christmas' too.

I'm currently sat on the train coming home from London as I write this.  A train packed with people returning from a days Christmas shopping. They are struggling under bags of shopping. I look out the window and I see this billboard. For a moment, my heart lifts and I get a buzz of excitement to find someone who agrees with me, then I realise, I've misread the sign, it actually says Christmas is here (I'd read it as Christmas is hell).

Christmas is hell? or Christmas is here? You decide.

So for me the perfect Christmas would be one where Christmas is cancelled! But the odds of that happening are highly unlikely (more unlikely than even a white Christmas), so let's see if a visit from Scrooge's Three ghosts of Christmas will help me find my perfect Christmas day...

The Ghost of Christmas Past

Without sounding too pyschoanalytical, I think the true reason behind my hate of all things Christmas does stem back to childhood memories of Christmas. I struggle to find even one memory of a happy Christmas as a kid. Sure I had presents. Lots of presents. But the one thing I wanted more than anything was to have a happy Christmas day, one where neither mum nor dad would walk out. But it wasn't to be, so I realised then that no amount of Christmas presents would make Christmas be a happy one and that's why, even now, I have an aversion to receiving Christmas presents. I get extremely upset when people buy me Christmas presents and they don't have a clue why.

 

But as I'm thinking about this now, I realise that I may not be able to change what's past, but I can change my attitude to the present (in both senses of the word, if you'll pardon the pun).

 

The Ghost of Christmas Present(s)

So there are a few things I need to do to make things as easy as possible on myself. Set some ground rules. Set a budget. No traipsing round the high street - just get everyone to pick out what they want from the Argos catalogue as they have a great selection for house, home, beauty and kids, (daddy might even finally get that new pillow that he's been asking for all year), then just click and collect or even get it delivered. No wasteful unwanted presents - just fab gifts for all the family. And that's 'Christmas Present' sorted.

'Finding the perfect gift has never been easier' with our Christmas shopping done at Argos.

The Ghost of Christmas yet to come.
Then when the big day arrives, it won't be as bad as I imagine it will be (it never is). In fact, I end up enjoying the day after all. I smile at the wonder on the kids faces as they discover Santa's sparkling footprints by the fireplace, I absorb their excitement as they tear open the wrapping paper, I love snuggling up and watching Christmas Doctor Who together. And we can finally relax and have a few days off.

A few days where there are no routines to stick to, no school runs to do, where you can lounge about in your pyjamas all day if you want to. The experience it most reminds me of is having a new baby, when everything else doesn't matter for a while - just spending time with your family is the most important thing. Just being together.

Christmas time reminds me of when there's a new baby in the house - nothing else matters for a while.

And I suppose ultimately Christmas is about a new baby, ok I admit, a particularly special baby without whom there would be no Christmas. My favourite version of the nativity story is Nicholas Allan's Jesus Christmas Party, where one look at the new baby and the grouchy innkeeper's rage, anger, and bitterness totally melts away. And one look at my babies on Christmas day and that's when I'll realise that perhaps I don't want Christmas cancelled after all. And perhaps I do already have the perfect Christmas. I just didn't realise it until now.



 Merry Christmas! This post is my entry into the Tots100/Argos 12 Days of Christmas competition.

 

The Croods DVD review

It seems this is the week for film reviews for us, what with our special trip to the West End on Sunday to see the preview of Moshi Monsters: The Movie and then being sent a copy of The Croods on DVD to review before it is released (on blu-ray and DVD) on Monday 9th December.

It arrived through the letterbox yesterday which was perfect timing. D was off school feeling poorly with a cold and a cough and so snuggling under a blanket to watch The Croods helped to cheer him up.

Suitable for all the family (as it is U rated), The Croods is a funny film but with a deeper message running through it too. 

The characters were all funny in their own special ways. We loved Belt's 'dum,dum,dums' which our youngest copied each time she heard it. And some of our fave moments in the film were the invention of snapshots and when Guy made shoes for all The Croods. 

The kids tell you about their favourite bits here:

There are a few extras on the DVD like Belt's cave journal, the movie trailer and 'Crood's Cut (lost scenes)' where we get a little glimpse at a few scenes that didn't quite make it into the final version. I love how the directors explain the reasons why these scenes weren't in the final film.
 

Ultimately there was a message of hope running through the film. When The Croods home and life as they knew it was threatened, they had to leave behind the methods of survival they had relied upon and step out into the unknown, being prepared to adapt (or not in the case of Dad Grug) and move forward hoping for a better tomorrow. Will The Croods be able to hope for tomorrow, risk making the changes necessary to do so, or will they cling to their past and have their very existence threatened?

The words spoken by The Croods daughter, Eep, when she says 'Dad, this isn't living, this is just not dying' ring true at many points in our own lives. Sometimes I think we all need to examine ourselves to see if we are hiding in caves of our own or whether we are prepared to be stepping out of our comfort zone in order to move forward. 

A great film on so many levels, this would make a great Christmas gift for both adults and children alike.

Disclosure: Mumsnet and 20th Century Fox very kindly sent us a copy of The Croods on DVD to watch for the purposes of review before its general release on DVD and Blu-Ray on 9 December 2013. All opinions are our own. For more information about The Croods, visit their website.

 

Moshi Monsters: The Movie - The must-see movie for Moshi fans!

Meeting Mr Moshi - our all time hero!

After our amazing few days in Copenhagen (which D has managed to blog about but we haven't found time to yet) we found ourselves at another exciting event - a preview screening of Moshi Monsters: The Movie in London's West End.

Having had an impromptu stay overnight at Novotel Heathrow (the taxi due to bring us home didn't bring Miss T's car seat to get home with), we had to rummage through our suitcases to find any clothes that could get a second wear. The boys were gutted not to be able to wear one of their many Moshi tops and Miss T didn't get to wear her little Poppet dress that she had worn to our trip to Moshi HQ, but they all understood that it was far more important to be able to get to the movie screening rather than get home to get their Moshi tops.

As usual Moshi had pulled out all the stops with food, fun and face paints. The boys arrived to a photo opportunity with their all time biggest hero, Mr Moshi!
There was a fantastic spread of foodie treats from pastries to cupcakes to cookies to fruit pots. Having had a big breakfast at the hotel, we were a bit full to enjoy the lovely food, but D managed a candy floss and we all got to taste the fabulously unusual flavours of Moshlings Magic Water. 

Toffee Apple Delight and Banana Surprise Moshlings Magic Water

It's so tricky to write a film review without giving away any spoilers but we'll try:

It had everything that a good film should have; An arch villain, an adventure, a hero or two, and some very catchy songs. We were delighted to see some of our favourite songs from the Moshi Music Rox album appearing in the movie.

The movie was also packed full of Moshlings, had appearances from a few other familiar faces from Monstro City like Roary Scrawl and Buster Bumblechops and of course, the much loved monsters themselves - none other than the karate-chopping Katsuma, pretty pink Poppet, fabulous Furi, devilishly hot Diavlo, ludicrously lovely Luvli, and zany Zommer!

Our kids loved the film. It is rated a U so is suitable for all ages. Before the start of the film, Mr Moshi took the stage to introduce the film and explained how the film was very much a UK effort. As with everything that Moshi turn their hand to, we just sense the passion, excitement and efforts of those behind it and that's something they should really be proud of.


Mr Moshi and his Mind Candy team should be truly proud of what they've acheived

Whilst the kids were excited at seeing the movie, I got excited to bump into a few blogger friends; a brief hello to Steph from Steph's two girls and Monika from Mum on the Brink, then a quick chat with Helen from Kiddicharts and Mum of Three Boys - the three muskateers, and it was great to meet the adorable Grace and her mum Victoria from Vevivos. 

Victoria and Grace who blog at Vevivos

Other special guests there on the day were Mr Moshi's mum, his niece Gracie, who pink ice skating moshling Gracie was named after (how cool is that!) and the real McNulty who the Moshling McNulty was based on. Last time Miss T got to see McNulty she was just a bump in my belly.


Meeting the real McNulty

Miss T also got to meet her two favourite Monsters, Poppet and Katsuma.

My favourite monsters: Poppet and Katsuma

And of course, she got to meet Mr Moshi too.

Miss T meets Mr Moshi

Not content with just meeting Mr Moshi, we also spotted ourselves unexpectedly appear in this video on The Daily Growl yesterday (at 1 min 29 secs through the video to be precise).

 And if that's not enough to whet your appetite, here's the official movie trailer for the film:

When we finally arrived home on Sunday evening after a long and exciting weekend, there was one last Moshi treat in store for the kids...Well it was 1st December after all...

Moshi Monsters: The Movie is released in cinemas on 20th December 2013. If you are a Moshi fan - make sure you go to see it!

 

Disclosure: As official Moshi bloggers we were invited to this fabulous event free of charge. No payment was received for writing this post and all opinions are our own.

Wot So Funee - Practising my Autograph!

We've been jet setting around over the past few days with hotel stays in Copenhagen and then in London (more about that in a future blog post).

Whilst unpacking, we found a series of notes, which really brought a smile to our face.

The first one was done on a scrap of paper in Copenhagen (a bit more about our trip can be found on D's blog here). On one side, D has signed it. I've just shown the other side to show it must have been done whilst we were at the Adina Hotel in Copenhagen.

Nothing funny about that you may be thinking. A 7 year old child just practicing writing their name, right? Wrong.

Back in London, we had an impromptu stay at Novotel Heathrow (again more about that in another blog post soon) and there we found D's signature again. And on the back of the piece of paper he had written: "I'm the one who keeps on COOKinG! and you might too! xxx Love Daniel."

That's when we realised what he'd been up to. He'd been practising his autograph for when he becomes a famous chef. It seems not content with being a chef, he wants to be a celebrity chef. And we loved how he'd come up with his own little slogan too!

We also found another piece of paper with a scribble on and when we turned it over, D had written "Trin's signiture" on the other side. So it looks like he's planning on having a famous little sister too as he's got her practising her signature at only 19 months old!

Linking up with Actually Mummy's Wot so funee.

Draw with me linky - December

Once again we are joining in with one of our favourite linkys, Draw with me, over at This Mummy Loves. This months theme is...Christmas!

There are lots of amazing prizes this month too - when D saw the design your own Pyjamas, he set to work straight away on his Christmassy picture.

Last month, you may remember me describing how the kids seem to prefer to do their black and white drawings whenever they join in with this linky (I have no idea why - it is just what they seem to do each month).

So you will be pleased to see that this month, D has added some colour, not a lot, but a few bits to highlight the Christmas lights, baubles and some of the bows on the Christmas presents.

by D, aged 7

It is a picture of a Christmas tree with gifts under it and santa's footprints coming through the doorway (which has a piece of mistletoe above it!).

D's big brother, J, has had to give it a miss this month as he slammed his thumb in the car door a week ago and it is still very bruised and painful and with the dressings and bandages on there he's struggling to write or draw. Even the basics of getting dressed and feeding himself have been a challenge too, so he decided to sit this one out and join in next month when his thumb is fully recovered.

Catching up!

After a whistle stop weekend, At the moment I feel like I'm just chasing my tail trying to catch up with myself!

By writing this down I will make sure I get around to doing it! Blogging kind of keeps me accountable to myself...

We had an amazing weekend in Copenhagen which D will want to write about over at The Brilliant Chef, and he still wants to write up about his visit to the Tate Modern a couple of weeks ago too.

I've been delaying writing up about meeting one of the loveliest families I've ever met, Pauly, Laura, Seth and Opie from Gifts from the Pirates. I wanted to be able to write an amazing post that does it justice just how great it was to meet up with them...I toyed with the idea of attempting to write a comic strip or do something superhero themed to describe our weekend with them because of their interest in that. But alas, I'm just going to have to write a plain blog post as I don't think I'm clever enough to be able to pull off anything more artistic. 

Upon our return from Copenhagen, We headed straight to a Moshi movie screening in Leicester Square without having headed home first. We just had to rummage through our cases and find any clothes that were clean enough to get a second wearing. Well there was no way we were going to miss the movie so what else were we to do!

Then straight onto 'Ripley's Believe it or not' museum from there.  

Still haven't caught up on washing or getting organised for this week. And still have the duck tape giveaway to get posted too.

Today D has been busy drawing a picture for this months Christmas themed draw with me linky.

So a flurry of blogs posts to come this week! Our attempts to be a slow blogger seem to be out the window for this week.