A DAD-OF-12 has revealed the “10 out of 10” mystery box he got delivered for his kids that kept them amused all day.
Ben Sullivan, 49, wife Zoe, 45, and their dozen children make up one of the country’s biggest families.
The couple are parents to Elisabeth, 19, Olivia, 17, Noah, 14, Evangeline, 12, Tobias, 11, Agnes, seven, Joseph, five, Florence, two, and two sets of twins – Charlotte and Isabelle, 16, and Leah and Erin, eight.
The bumper brood live in a six-bedroom house in Burghead, Moray, where they regularly document their hectic lives on their YouTube channel.
And they’ve already been enjoying extra family time since kicking off their summer holidays last week.
Zoe admits they spent the first week “chilling” due to the bad weather.
She added: “I always find that it takes at least a week for everyone to chill out and calm down from the hecticness of everyday life at the beginning of the holidays, and I think we are at the chilled point now thankfully!”
And with so many children to keep amused during the day over summer, they have to think outside the box.
Dad Ben revealed this week that they got sent a £116 ($150) surprise box filled with toys to entertain the family.
He said: “We have been sent in the post two boxes of toys from a company called Yagee.
“They do things like home decor, they do toys, mostly like remote control toys and things like that.
“We looked them up online they sent us these two boxes.
“They’re surprise boxes so we don’t know what’s inside them. They’re all toys.
“All I know is they’re all toys. It works well with the whole summer holidays thing.”
The box was rammed full of 11 remote control toys that all come with rechargeable batteries.
It was so full, that son Toby admitted: “Everything’s a bit squashed because there’s a lot of stuff in this box.”
The family were treated to a remote control shark, mini drone, three remote control UFO flying saucers, three remote control waterproof speedboats, and three remote control fighter jets.
Watching the kids playing with them in the garden, Ben said: “So obviously they’re a bit crazy.
“[The toys] did work they’re good fun.
“Considering the price of these how much fun was that? That was lots of fun.”
And they got the seal of approval from the children too, who hailed the mystery box as “super fun” and “10 out of 10”.
Bosses at the online toy retailer say: “Provide us with the recipient’s gender, age, and specific likes, and we’ll curate a box that perfectly aligns with their preferences.
“With at least 6 surprise toys, each box is a carefully crafted collection that aims to surprise, delight, and entertain, based on your provided details.”
And social media users have been loving watching the Sullivan children enjoy their surprises.
One gushed: “This is what having fun with your children looks like.”
A second wrote: “For the price they work very well, it’s given the children a fun time. Love seeing their excitement!”
A third added: “All children love a parcel to open but when it’s full of toys it’s well exciting.”
Meanwhile, a fourth said: “What great toys think the children loved them, and they will have so much fun with them this holidays.”
MYSTERY boxes are becoming more and more popular, with people keen to take a gamble in buying one. But where can you get one from?
Charity shops
Lots of charity shops have started putting together mystery boxes as a way to get rid of stock that they’ve been otherwise unable to sell. While you can never guarantee what you’re going to get, these boxes are usually cheaper than ones bought elsewhere.
eBay
Many retailers use eBay to sell their stock, with options on the auction site including unclaimed luggage or parcel returns, all put together in a mystery box. It’s not like a normal ‘auction’ though – there will usually be a buy it now price so it’s just like any other internet transaction.
Online retailers
As the popularity of mystery boxes increases, other retailers have started selling them in the hope that they will be a hit among customers. Have a look on sites such as Amazon, Etsy and Wowcher, and you’ll often find the mystery boxes are listed by genre too.
If there’s a particular niche mystery box you’re looking for, it’s always worth searching for it. There are so many websites out there selling mystery boxes, you’ll undoubtedly find what you’re after.
As with buying anything online, make sure you are purchasing from a trusted retailer and a secure website.
We told earlier how Sullivan matriarch Zoe only gets four hours of sleep each night – but would still never say never to baby number 13.
The supermum gets up every morning at 4.45am after only settling down the night before at around midnight.
She said: “I like to get some of the chores in as well before the kids go to school, so I might do two loads of washing and those sorts of things. It does let me get more done.
“I don’t get to bed until around midnight, so I probably average four or five hours’ sleep – on a good night.”
But she still “would never say no” to having another baby, and added: “I think the more we had, the more we realised how much we love having a big family.
“And to be honest, the more you have, the easier it gets, in a weird sort of way.”
