Walkers Mighty Lights Review!

Walkers Mighty LightsChildren love crisps. Parents love healthy snacks. Can you see the obvious problem with those two statements? Crisps are not traditionally thought of as a healthy alternative, sure they’re made of potatoes but they’re smothered in coatings, fried and salted. It doesn’t exactly scream ‘eat me, I’m good for you!’ Walkers have done their best to try and create a snack that is both low in fat, full on flavour and appealing to kids with new Mighty Lights, but have they managed it? I was so inspired by these snacks that I made this short/silly animation with my husband, kids and musically inclined brother (we’re a creative family) all about this most heroic of nibbles!

As you can probably tell from the video we are now firm fans, but make sure to read the review to find out why. This is appropriately timed given that this is the last week of Summer holidays for children across the land (not in Scotland though, they’re already back at school) lunchbox fillers are being carefully considered during the mad dash to buy shoes and uniform.

First up here’s the stats on Mighty Lights:

  • They contain 30% less fat than standard crisps
  • They are available in three flavours – Roast Chicken, Cheese and Onion, Lightly Salted
  • All the flavours are suitable for vegetarians
  • Made from real potatoes
  • No artificial colours or preservatives
  • A source of fibre
  • Available nationwide now!

That’s enough to satisfy most of us parents, but if they don’t stack up on taste and appeal I think their healthy credentials will fall flat with the little ones.

First up Taste

I’m actually eating a bag of Lightly Salted while writing this review so I can accurately describe the taste. They don’t taste immediately healthy (perhaps a good thing as far as kids are concerned) but your fingers aren’t left with a salty oily slick or burn that traditional crisps can cause.

Lightly salted – the flavour is gentle but by no means lacking, I’m not a huge fan of Salt & Vinegar but I can happily eat these.

Cheese & Onion – I am a long time admirer of Walkers Cheese & Onion crisps, these have the same flavour but less fat… I’m sold!

Roast Chicken – Again these taste very similar to normal Walkers chicken crisps, the flavour has not been sacrificed at all.

Texture

Crunchy, ridged and in no way inferior to traditional crisps, just less greasy.

Value for Money

I found a 6 pack of Mighty Lights on sale for between £1 – £1.79 in various supermarkets, this seems in line with other brands. Some healthy crisps contain hardly anything when you look inside the bag (it’s no wonder they’re healthy, you’re barely eating them!) These contain a decent amount and are enough for one snack.

Will kids enjoy them in their lunchboxes?

I asked mine and the responses were:

Crispy G – Yes, because they’re really healthy and they are tasty and they’re the greatest crisps in the world!

Snacky I – Yes, because they are really nice and you can find different shapes (she’s referring to the heart shaped one she found below) and they’re mighty!

Munchy N – Yes, because they’re tasty!

A parents view

I’ll admit it, I don’t overly worry about the fat content of the food my kids eat, they’re all so active and skinny it’s not really an issue. However additives, preservatives and colourings are things I worry about, with so many horror stories it’s easy to get confused and concerned about the health implications. Therefore I’ll avoid them when I can and I particularly like products that make this choice easy for me. For this reason alone I like Mighty Lights, they’re also incredibly convenient for days out and picnics.

Heart Shaped CrispWould I recommend Mighty Lights

I’d be happy to, they are one simple change without sacrifice to a healthier lifestyle.

Could they be improved at all?

Most definitely, they will not be perfect until Walkers make them in Bacon flavour! 🙂

Details

Mighty Lights are available nationwide now!

For more info visit their website www.walkersmightylights.co.uk

Lego Castle Launches At Warwick Castle

Lego Castle

Through the mists of time and the world of legend springs forth the brand new Lego Castle range! Whether you have knightly aspirations or long to be rescued from a dragon’s keep, this is sure to be the Lego set for you. It certainly appealed to my family as we traversed the ancient grounds of Warwick Castle to see its launch this weekend past.

Lego Warwick Castle

We began our journey with a treasure trail about the grounds, hunting high and low for dragon eggs. The clues led us around and about until finally we reached the fabled Lego flag and claimed our prize: chocolate coins! Lego Warwick Castle

Next we rode invisible horses to the Lego tent situated just outside the magnificent Warwick Castle gatehouse. Here we built castles, stables and buildings inspired by our surroundings.Lego Building

We met the beautiful Lego Princess who came to thank us for joining her quest.

The event is not just intended for us writerly types though. If you would like to join in, Lego Castle is hosting two weeks of castle-building capers from 12 to 26 August including costumed characters, build a castle play area and a treasure trail. Plus you have the bonus of being able to explore historic Warwick Castle and pretend you are a character from the current TV program The White Queen. Or is that just me?

Warwick Castle

At the launch we were lucky enough to be able to view and play with all the new playsets. We instantly fell in love with the bright red dragon from the Dragon Mountain set (70403, RRP: £34.99) and I have already been told about 100 times how my kids ‘need’ (not want need) the huge new King’s Castle (70404, RRP: £79.99).

King's Castle

As a family we are self confessed Lego nuts, my kids have Lego shoes, Lego clothes, Lego clocks, Lego watches and a copious amount of the bricky stuff itself. I suppose this could be due to my husband and me being a bit overly Lego mad from childhood. It’s wonderful to see the kids share our passion. We are also quite keen on history and mythological tales, so it’s easy to see how Lego Castle might appeal to us.King's Castle

We were fortunate to be given a few boxes of the smallest playset ‘Forest Ambush’ (70400, RRP: £7.99) to take home and try out. In comparison to the licensed ranges of Lego, the Castle range seems far better value (a small box of LOTR Lego will normally set you back £12-£13 as a comparison). The set contains two good knights, two bad, a dog, a cart with treasure chest and disguised forest ambush. The kids (and adults) had a lot of fun playing with these sets, but I think you really need more to fully appreciate the range.

Lego Castle

We were so taken with the characters that we hurried out to buy the Dragon playset the very next day 🙂 and our lounge has become chivalric beyond belief!

I took plenty of photos of the play in action but in the end I thought a video might better illustrate the fun we had, so without further ado I give you a little family animation we call….

The Princess’s Rescue!

The Princess has been kidnapped by the Dark Wizard, can the Knight save her and defeat the dragon?

Lego At Warwick Castle Details

Lego Castle are hosting the activities above between 12 to 26 August 2013.

Book online in advance for the best value entrance fees: adults from £17.10 and children from £11.70. Check www.warwick-castle.com for prices and latest attraction schedule.

Lego Castle Details

LEGO Castle is suitable for children aged 5+ and is available in toy shops nationwide from August 2013.

For further information log on to LEGO.com/CASTLE

Hue Animation Studio Review

I have long been fascinated by the skill required to make stop motion animations. Most of which I can probably attribute to watching the Wallace & Gromit films from Aardman animation every Christmas as a child. I vividly remember my attempts at animating my jointed teddy bears and other toys, they weren’t all that amazing 🙁 So when I was asked to review the Hue Animation Studio with my kids I was more than enthusiastic to agree 🙂

Here’s the official product blurb:

The Hue Animation Studio contains everything a budding animator needs to begin creating stop motion animation videos.  Children can discover, imagine and create stop-motion animation through powerful, easy-to-use, animation software complete with Hue’s market leading Plug ‘n’ Play HD camera with built-in microphone and a unique flexible neck for unlimited positioning options.

The software (used in schools and at home) helps children to create simple visual adaptations using toys, modelling clay, play figures and stop-frame animation techniques.  The process of animating with the Hue Animation Studio encourages children to learn a diverse range of skills in both a fun and stimulating way.  They can create a story, create characters, make them from clay or plasticine, design and make sets, compose soundtracks or select appropriate recorded music to enhance a film.

Whether you’re five or 95, you can’t go wrong with Hue’s full feature animation suite!

Excited… just a little bit! We received a red camera, I know that has nothing to do with the performance of the product but I always appreciate an attempt to be aesthetically pleasing.

My twins wrote a story together and set about building props from Lego. Their film also included a Mollie Makes hedgehog and a Sylvanian Family rabbit. They did need a little help and direction, but the included software suite  is very straightforward and easy to use. Within minutes they were animating.

The camera takes still pictures which then appear on your computer screen, when you are ready to take the next still you see a ghost of your previous image which makes it easy to place your model(s) in slightly different poses while making sure they don’t jump about. I love love love this feature, especially when our youngest kept stealing the props and running away with them! Once the film was complete my husband read out their story to lay over the video.

Here is their completed film, I feel immensely proud of them! Plus I think the whole process was extremely educational. They used:

Teamwork and cooperation to compose their story

Penmanship and English to write their script

Dexterity and Imagination in prop building

Concentration and Patience to animate

All very valuable life skills I think.

The animation studio isn’t just for kids though, here’s my husband’s first little animation of a Sylvanian Family wedding dance. It’s such good fun it’s hard to stop animating! The program also has an option to upload your videos, we chose to host ours on YouTube.

I should also point out that we didn’t have the best lighting on the day we made these films, with a nicer background image and better lighting I think we could have produced even crisper films!

Would I recommend this product?

Definitely! No longer do you need prohibitively expensive equipment or even great skill to animate. This product helps you to make genuine animations in minutes!

Could it be improved in anyway?

I’m struggling to think how. Maybe an option to upgrade the camera to a higher spec if you really find yourself hooked, but otherwise no, it’s great!

For More Information

Hue Animation Studio website www.hueanimation.com

Facebook page www.facebook.com/HueAnimation

Twitter account twitter.com/HueAnimation