Here at the Great Toy Guide, we’ve brought together some of the finest parent bloggers and their kids to thoroughly test a wide range of toys and games for babies and children aged 8 and under.

The guide is edited by journalist and blogger Sally Whittle. Sally blogs about parenting at Who’s the Mummy, or you can find out more about her journalism at this website. Sally and her four-year-old daughter Flea live in Lancashire, where they mostly play games involving pirates, monsters and burglars. Sally is an experienced media spokesperson able to talk about play, toys and blogging. She’s also your first point of contact for advertising and sponsorship enquiries.

Our deputy editor is Josie George, Mum to Kai, author of Sleep is for the Weak and founder of the Judith’s Room online community for women writers. Josie does all the things Sally forgets or can’t quite manage, is a Wordpress whizz, and is the best person to talk to about the website.

Eleanor Holmes is assistant editor of the Great Toy Guide, and author of a great blog at Insomniac Mummy. Eleanor lives in Yorkshire with her long-suffering husband and two boisterous children, Ethan and Elodie. She moderates a parenting forum in her spare time and is hoping that sometime in the near future, with a bit of luck, she might get a full night’s sleep.

Our parent blogging contributors are:

Carol is the author of the New Mummy blog, and is a busy Mum to a one-year old daughter. Apparently she likes cheesy rock music, but we’re not ones to judge.

Claire T lives in St Albans and is a Mum of two (2 and a bit boy and 6 month old girl). She has been writing the Being a Mummy blog for two years, covering every aspect of having children and returning to work. Claire is better known as Zooarchaeologist – a nickname acquired because she’s an archaeologist and museum curator, and has been working in the field for 20 years. She specialises in the analysis of bones, you know.

Clare W is better known as the author of the wonderful Babbling Mummy blog, where she makes us all laugh with stories of Little S, aged 3  and Baby B, aged 11 months.

Debbie is the mother of five children aged from three to 13. When she’s not tackling the laundry mountain or restocking the fridge she writes at Carrots and Kids and at Parentdish.  If she has a spare minute she can be found gardening at home, on her allotment or at school where she runs a gardening club.

Karin blogs at Cafe Bebe, and lives in a teeny town somewhere in between Peterborough and Stamford. She has a gorgeous 14 month old daughter and is always looking for new toys that will keep her entertained!

Laura D blogs at Are We Nearly There Yet Mummy, and is a mother of two (boy aged 3 and girl aged 4 and a half), stepmother to 1 (aged 13) … and a dog …. and the husband. Most she is trying not to lose her marbles, but is  aware she has already mislaid some of them … one is stuck under the sofa, one in the Lego box and the 3 year old may have inadvertently swallowed the other.

Lindy is a SAHM to a 3 year old daughter, and also works part-time as a photographer.  She moved to the UK in 2005 from the US, after falling in love with a Brit, and started blogging at Squidgyboo to keep family and friends updated with her travels and adventures. She now blogs about a combination of photography, life and her little girl, the Squidge.

Nadine blogs at Time Management Mum, and is a busy Mum of two with a little girl aged 6 and a half (the half is VERY important) and a boy of two. They live in Yorkshire, where Nadine provides inspirational tips and posts on how to juggle life, work and little ones!

Sandy is a former financial controller turned full-time Mum who blogs at the wonderful Baby Baby blog, all about her life as a happily married Mum of two. With two baby boys born within a year of each other, you’d think Sandy wouldn’t have time for anything else, but she is a talented singer and songwriter, too!

Sonny is just eight and the youngest member of our team. He lives in a small village in the Midlands with his two sisters, Mum, Dad, dog and cat. He loves owls, Dr Who, dinosaurs and LEGO. In his spare time he can be found as gym club or earning money (as a child model) to fund his Pokemon habit! He has his own blog at TotallySonny.

Susanna is another American who moved to the UK because of the weather. Either that, or it was a man, she forgets. She writes the wildly popular Modern Mother blog, and is the founder of the British Mummy Bloggers social network. She has three daughters aged 7, 5 and 4 and now spends her free time herding cats.

Tasha blogs at WAHM-BAM as Coding Mamma, and is Mum to a three year old. Baby number two is scheduled to make an appearance in October!

Tim is a former assistant head teacher, but resigned last year to write full-time and look after his eighteen-month old son, Charlie. Tim combines writing and domestic duties, and charts his progress changing nappies and keeping his young son entertained on his blog, Bringing up Charlie.