Ptolemy Toys trip to Giffords Circus 2011

Just browsing through our photos and came across a set from our favourite summertime treat - the wonderful Giffords Circus!


We have been inspired by our visits to Giffords to seek out circus toys and love our range of circus animals and sets for little ones.

If you have never been then definitely look out for the next Giffords production - you enter a magical world, full of song, music, awe, costume and fun.

Terra Kids Range from Haba

Whatever you get up to these summer holidays I doubt it could possibly be as exciting as any of the adventures of George, Julian, Dick, Ann and, of course, Timmy the dog. Not a school holiday ever passed in which the Famous Five didn’t have a life risking, crime busting and incredibly dangerous escapade of some sort or another.

You might have thought their parents would have cottoned on to the propensity of their children for trouble and kept a closer eye on them but apparently not. Although treasure islands and mystery moors are definitely not places I’d recommend a group of children pop off to for a few days, there is something very appealing about the excitement of the Famous Fives adventures. The rural settings and beaches are great places for (more moderate) summer time adventures and of course some scrumptious picnics (with lashings of ginger beer). However, as any of the five would tell you , even the most intrepid young adventurer is nothing without their kit.

Our Terra Kids range has everything that could possibly be needed for a summer adventure: a wrist compass, flask, snap on case and a telescope. The most of impressive piece of kit though is the Camping Light. In the design of an old fashioned lamp, this light doesn’t require batteries or electricity as it is powered by a crank. Although the picture on the front shows two boys in some sort of rocky hollow in broad daylight, I think this light would be great for the night time during camping trips or even just as a night light in a bedroom. Not many night lights have an in built compass and alarm whistle!

For older children who want to create that authentic camp -the Haba bandit camp fire is a perfect solution. They can grill sausages or toast marshmallows and feel every bit one of the famous five!

The Haba BBQ range

Hot days, warm evenings = Barbecue weather!!


We have to tell you all about the wonderful BBQ range from Haba - its good looking, easy to clean, brilliantly designed and offers so much more than just grilling!

We have been enjoying local organic BBQ's from Rachel's Farm Shop in Brackley for the last few days. Sausages, kebabs, steaks and on Sunday a roast chicken - cooked to perfection!

One of our favourite evenings was a delicious paella cooked in the pan/lid - ours was almost as delicious as the one in this picture!

We love the simplicity and beauty of the Haba Barbecue, the outer ring never gets hot - one of the design features to make it as family friendly as possible, so you can pick it up and move it if you need to.

In the evening when the temperature is falling we often add a few logs and move the BBQ to the middle of our group to act as a little extra warmth!

For the more adventurous cooks there is a fantastic range of accessories to add to the basic start up set. One we love is the Barbecue Wok (next on our wish list) - just imagine all those lovely Wagamama style recipes we will be able to sizzle up! The range also includes a smoker - so if you live by the sea and have a plentiful supply of delicious fresh fish then this will add a new dimension to your menus!

And this BBQ is also fun to use in the winter - cook a delicious

soup or stew in the pot or perhaps some mulled wine???

Almost makes you wish for winter!!

A record of a childhood in your Travel Journal

Childhood memories and summer holidays go together - keeping a travel journal is a fun way to record memories. A journey could just be a sleep over with a friend or a stay at granny's house it does not have to be a fortnight on safari!! Memories of a sunny beach will bring a ray of sunshine into the home any time of the year!

This camper van travel journal is one of our favourites, and its printed on recycled paper too! With places to write, draw and keep souvenirs your children can be creative and record their trip in a way that suits them.

A wonderful travel journal is a great memory to read back, not only for you as a proud parent but also for your kids to look back on when they grow up. Keep a travel journal for a year or over a number of years and see how your trips compared - what a child observes and records is often a joy and a surprise to an adult!

It's a great way to get your children to keep writing during the school holidays - they will not even notice it's work! A great birthday gift idea from 7 or 8 years - something that will be treasured!

If you kept a travel journal when you were young do you still have it? Here at Ptolemy Toys we'd love to hear about your trips or special memories your kids have of journeys they have taken.

.... if only we were brave enough to pack up and go adventuring what fun we'd have!!

Childhood Memories Top Ten

Childhood memories might be a good or a bad! As parents we all want to give our children good memories so that when they look back they remember growing up with a happy smile!

Some children will go through life without any real trauma, my husbands idyllic childhood is only blighted by the memory of his granny chasing him with a frying pan while on a caravanning holiday in Devon and I suspect the story has been exaggerated over the years!

Life being what it is others will experience loss or tragedy at an early age, but hopefully the balance will tip in the favour of good memories and fortunately memory does a great job of blocking out the bad and pushing the positive to the fore - so make hay and harvest as many good memories as you can with your children!

Creating happy memories sounds like a great job title to me - and the good news is that all parents have been recruited to the role!

Top Ten Happy Childhood Memories.....

1. Long Summer holidays



2. Spending the whole day with friends on a bike ride or pony ride



3. Enjoying your first series of books (eg The Famous Five)



4. Buying Ice creams from the ice cream van



5. Building your first Lego kit on your own



6. Opening your Christmas presents before it's light on Christmas morning



7. Getting your first pet



8. Camping in the garden



9. Messing about in water - sailing, fishing, swimming, diving, building a raft



10. Fish and chips on the way home on a long journey

Most happy memories involve others (even if they are just characters in a story book), doing stuff together with friends and family has been and will always be special to children. Many memories involve grandparents taking the time to pass on a skill or knowledge, and this is no surprise because Grandparents normally have more time to spare than parents.

As a modern family with no full time stay at home parent its hard to make the time to be together, to play together, to have fun especially with the ever present internet and pull of social media that is always on 24/7/365. But it is important to remember the rewards of investing this time with your children - create the right moment and time spent with children will help you build memories that you will all be able to look back on with a smile long after you've made and lost your first fortune!

Must go - have promised to play tennis in the garden with my son tonight so lots to do today - Wimbledon fever hits Ptolemy Toys! Our garden tennis set is great fun, and having a net makes a big difference to the kids - available online £19.99