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Missed having Shaun the Sheep in your life?

Well, fear not, the lovable woolly character is back with a new friend this October.

Returning to the big screen, this time around havoc is caused when a mystery visitor from another galaxy crash lands near Mossy Bottom Farm. And it’s left to Shaun and his pals to ensure the fun-loving alien Lu-La makes it back home.

Obviously their quest is not without mishaps along the way, especially with an overly keen Men In Black style agent hot on their heels.

It’s actually amazing how much fun you can have watching a feature length film with no actual proper words but I guess that’s part of its appeal to all the family.

We were lucky enough to be treated to a preview screening and my biggest fear was that my two-year-old toddler would not want to stay sitting in one place for the duration of the film.

But in the end – after a slightly rocky start when he got a tad anxious about the rather ominous music in the first five minutes – I was only forced to step out once to go and buy some popcorn!

To round up, I think when it comes to productions by Aardman Animations we as viewers expect a certain quality and type of humour – thankfully their latest offering does not disappoint.

Farmageddon hits cinemas October 18. Watch the trailer here.

                                          

Yes, that momentous time in a toddler’s life and their parent’s has arrived…I’ve finally had to bite the bullet and get serious about potty training my two year old.

Using the long bank holiday as an opportunity to do the deed, I prepared for what could only be described as a damp, smelly and frustrating version of hell.

A quick bit of online research gives you all sorts of ideas –  from training your little one to use the toilet in one day, to weeing dolls and even a potty training celebration dance endorsed by celebrities like Tori Spelling and Alyson Hannigan (Buffy/How I Met Your Mother). And so with this wealth of knowledge, I decided to face the task ahead…with my eyes firmly shut and praying for the best!

The first couple of hours was spent dealing with six – yes, six – changes, mopping up spillages and telling my daughter numerous times, ‘You must tell mummy when you need to do wee wee, you say ‘mummy wee wee’. To which she’d reply each time ‘Yes, mummy wee wee’, giving me the (false) impression that she completely understood.

And as I wondered why it seemed potty training is the job of the mother, my other half made his fairly timid attempts at encouraging our little girl – from the comfort of our bed, chilling in front of the TV. So when our daughter had a little accident on the duvet cover, I couldn’t help but smile…

So here I am, at the end of the fourth day – several machine loads and too many outfit changes (both her and me) later and I can proudly say my daughter’s getting the hang of it (virtual high five!)!

So back to work in the morning and over to the nursery – fingers crossed they help keep up the good work…

Trying to remain just as cool, calm and collected as the man himself, I recently had a one to one with Hollywood superstar Samuel L Jackson (silent scream).

Fresh from celebrating Django Unchained’s win at the BAFTAs, presenting an award on the night and hosting another charity event two days before that – phew! – this was a man on total form, friendly and animatedly talking about his latest fundraiser.

Launching the Affinity Real Estate Shooting Stars Benefit 2013 at the Moet and Chandon offices in London, over a glass of bubbly (what else?), Jackson spoke enthusiastically about the golfing event in June where those prepared to part with a certain amount of cash can putt holes alongside celebrity players.

Pushing Jackson to say which A-list players he’d like to get on board – Luke Wilson and Alice Cooper have taken part in the past – he replied: “People like golf and people tend to open their pockets to play with, I guess, famous people… and they have a good time and it’s a great way to engage with people in the community and to help raise awareness among certain charities.

“We’re talking to a lot of people – so we’ll see what happens. We don’t really bring people onboard because they’re good golfers, we bring them because they’re good people. You have to be social, people come to have a laugh, make friends and take photographs, so we try to chose people who are personable and wanna come and have a good time.”

Jackson’s mother passed away last year after battling with Alzheimer’s, so funds raised from this year’s event will go towards the Samuel L Jackson Foundation and fund research into Dementia and Alzheimer’s, as Jackson added ‘that could be me one day’.

The Affinity Real Estate Shooting Stars Benefit takes place June 14-15. www.shootingstarsbenefit.com

Do you have a daughter who at times struggles with loving her curls wholeheartedly?

I would definitely recommend this lovely little book called Curly Kids Rock 👌🏾

Written by Lemoy Majen, it’s full of simple affirmations even the youngest of children can relate to.

And the book, complete with joyfully bright illustrations by Ann Pomelova, is not just specifically about afro hair either 😊

It’s a big thing for me to make sure my daughter loves her hair and she told me that the words were ‘great to hear if I’m ever feeling down about myself’.

Head over to Amazon where you can pick up a copy.