Well it’s nearly time for the kids to go back to school and that means that they’ll need new supplies. I’m going to write a few posts this week about back to school. My first post is about Staedtler Colouring Pens. I’ll be buying these pens for myself and I don’t usually recommend things that I’m not 100% confident about. I’ve had Staedtler Colouring Pens before and they’ve never let me down.

The Staedtler Colouring Pens come in packs of 10, so that means that you have a choice of 10 vibrant colours. Being water based is also a bonus as they’ll wash out of your childrens’ clothes quite easily. Being Staedtler, you know that you’re buying good quality pens and these colouring pens are no different. They come in an attractive box which also acts as a stand when you’re using them. You can even leave the cap off for several days before they’ll begin to dry up. Which is good for busy students.

The Staedtler Colouring Pens have a triangular shape to them which makes them a joy to use over a long period of time. Also having pressure resistant tips is a great bonus if you’re a bit heavy handed like myself.

I can’t praise these pens enough, the Staedtler Colouring Pens are essential for any serious student to have. Forget the rest, these really are top of the class.

I’m going to take time out from blogging about gadgets because I’d like to bring Twitter to your attention. I discovered this website some time ago from Leanda Ryan who’s a graphic designer based in Manchester.

The tagline for Twitter is “What are you doing?” and that’s it. You have 140 characters and it’s no coincidence that it’s the same amount of characters that you can fit into one text message, because you can send “Tweets” via text. Twitter is a micro-blogging site where thousands of people post about what they’re doing throughout the day. But in my opinion it’s more than just people blogging. It’s a social networking site too and I have made many friends through it. You can follow me on Twitter by following this link. I personally follow quite a few designers and web developers, not to mention a whole host of fellow gadget nerds. It’s a list that’s growing on a daily basis. I dare say that I’m hooked on the site and not a day goes past when I don’t visit.

If I was to mention a gadget that tied in with Twitter it would have to be the iPod Touch. I have an application on mine that allows me to post to Twitter, it’s called Twinkle and you can get it from the iTunes app store.

Twitter is the next big thing in the evolution of the internet and I won’t be surprised that we’ll see a whole host of copycat sites popping up.

I look forward to greeting you as a friend.

The weather we’re having at the moment is terrible. We should be out enjoying the sun, but its hardly to be seen.
My guess is that it will be hot in September when all the children are back at school.
So how do you keep the kids entertained when it’s too wet for them to go outside?

There are some great indoor games that they can play. I’m not talking about sitting infront of an XBOX360 or PS3 here. I mean the games that involve more than moving just your thumbs. A favourite in my household was Twister - we could play that for hours on end. Then there’s Lego. If you don’t know what Lego is let me explain. Lego are building blocks that you can piece together to create a huge number of things from houses to cars, boats to planes and even animals or spaceships. And, provided you have the right kind of block or accessory you can let your imagination run riot. I’ve spent many a rainy day playing with Lego.

Or what about a play tent? Set it up indoors, make a picnic and let your kids pretend they are camping in the safety of the house? They can even sleep in it, while you relax in the knowledge that they are safe. And when the rain eventually stops, you can take it outside and continue with the adventure.

So just because it’s raining outside doesn’t mean that you can’t have fun. There are a whole lot of things you can do, as I’ve pointed out, that don’t involve a television and control pad. So next time it rains reach for a board game, the hours will fly past.

OK so Euro 2008 may be over and all you football fans will be sad to see the back of it but don’t fear, the new Premier League season is on the way and we have the best little product to get you right in the mood for it, as long as you are an Arsenal or Manchester United fan that is. It could be the wackiest product to ever feature on the GottaHave blog but for the football fan it is an instant classic!

Believe it or not it is a Grow Your Own Pitch kit in the form of a mini little Emirates or Old Trafford. Now straight off the bat i thought “Grow your pitch? Doesn’t this make it just grass in a tin?” Well technically it is but this is no mere grass. Apparently, the grass used for top flight Premier League games is grown using special special seeds that can take up to 15 years to develop. Who knew huh? So i suppose this makes them sort of the “Magic Beans” of football. Whatever these wonder seeds are the same ones that are used by top flight teams are supplied in the Grow Your Own Pitch kit so you really will have a little piece of the Emirates or Old Trafford in your front room.

As well as coming with “Magic Beans” the Grow Your Own Pitch kit comes with soil, full instructions on how to be a miniature groundsman, plastic pitch and an image of your chosen stadium to put behind the goal. What a completely barmy but equally genius little gift!