Since the arrival of kids and despite trying to fill our house with wooden toys and all the stylish stuff, the reality is that if you’re parent, your house WILL consist of 90% tut.

Let’s begin with the first born.

Much to his embarrassment – especially now as a moody ‘I know everything’ teenager – when he was little (and looked like an absolute cherub) he loved EVERYTHING to do with Thomas the frickin’ Tank Engine!

GAAAHHH!

We owned every single DVD (even a dodgy Cantonese version, but he still didn’t mind!) and we had rail tracks on the floor in every room!

OK, I hyperbolise, but it sure felt like we lived on the island of Sodor!

And now, it’s the turn of the second born…

Despite buying her a wooden dolls house for her 1st birthday – which she does still love and Sylvannian Families, too (which is basically me reliving the childhood toys I would have wanted, ha!) we’ve since had Shopkins, Num Noms, Hatchimals and more recently, like many other seven year old girls… it’s now the turn of the LOL Suprise Doll invasion.

Of course, I loathe the amount of unnecessary plastic they use in the packaging.

Yes, I’m gobsmacked at why she finds someone else opening up LOL Dolls on YouTube sooooo fascinating!

And you should see the look on my face when she asks “Where are Centre Stage’s shoes! Can you help me find them, please?”

FML! Have you seen the micro size of the accessories these dolls come with?!

However, I geddit – she’s not buying this stuff all by herself, is she now?

I’ll admit, I’ve spent over £30 bidding on ebay for an already-opened but-new Unicorn LOL doll that she really, really wanted!

And do you know what? I must admit, I’m weirdly excited about which doll she’s getting next, too.

But when you tot up that you’ve already spent close to £200 on these plastic mini dolls that wee and cry, not including the frantic ebay bid – you’ve got to draw the LOL line.

Which is why when my mates at Matalan got in contact to see if I’d like to further fuel her latest, lairy obsession, I hesitated.

I was about to politely decline their offer to gift but then I remembered how my eldest LOVED his Thomas duvet – even though I may not have quite appreciated its aesthetics.

And then, I got to thinking about how my big brother LOVED his Superman duvet when he was younger and how I always coveted my Pierrot clown duvet.

So yes,  I let her have it and guess what – she frickin’ LOVES it!

In years to come, she may remember that duvet with fondness like I do my crying Pierrot clown.

And I’m sure that once the teen exits The Satan Years, he’ll say the same about his Thomas the Tank Engine quilt, too.

In a world where we are becoming so obsessed with Instagram interior perfection – don’t get me wrong, I’m mega guilty of this, too – even I can admit that they win when it comes to the tut-wars.

Plus, the look on her face when she wakes up, surrounded by Miss Baby, Leading Baby & co and all their mahoosive eyes, is definitely worth the ocassional style surrender.

LOL Suprise Duvet set | £18-24 | Matalan