7 things you know to be true if your kids have inherited your love for Harry Potter.

I was going to start by saying my Muggles are obsessed with all things Harry Potter. The films, the books, the theatre shows, the toys, the dress-ups. But it’s more than that: they’re simply spellbound.

I admit I might have had something (okay, everything) to do with encouraging this obsession. The good guys win in the end of an epic good versus evil battle, and it reinforces the message that the nice guys do not finish last (also not ashamed that my parenting style uses pop culture references help to drum that life lesson in).

But it's when the kids try to use “expelliarmus!” on me while I chase them down the hallway with a hairbrush/incomplete homework/uneaten vegetables that I realise that I only have myself to blame.

There’s no denying I have raised a couple of Potterheads, but I’m secretly loving we have a shared interest (that should keep me in ‘cool mum’ territory for a few years yet).

How many of these do you recognise?

Going to bed early just to read the next chapter.

My daughter goes to bed at the same time as her younger brother, but I always allow her at least 30 minutes of reading time – and that time is spent with Harry Potter paperbacks in her hands. 

She pores over the series and is transported into the Wizarding World every time she opens the cover, just as I was when I read the books for the first time. Hiding under doona with a torch just to get in a few more minutes of reading? That’s my girl.

The adventure continues at home.

They have the branded merch, the doona covers, the books and the dress-ups. Lucky kids. But it’s some of the new products to join the range of Harry Potter toys that are delivering magical adventures to my two – and they’re playing nicely together for once!

They treasure their collection of Harry Potter Magical Minis figures and now cannot get enough of the Harry Potter Diagon Alley 3-in-1 Playset

The playset is the ultimate setting for Harry Potter adventures, with three Diagon Alley shops (Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, Eeylops Owl Emporium and Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour), lots of little accessories and exclusive Hermione Granger and Fred Weasley poseable dolls.

Image: Supplied.

It all connects and has lights and sounds that ensures I can get things done while my kids pretend play – very happily – for huge chunks of the day.

They have discovered Diagon Alley’s special details, like doors that open and close and shopfronts just like the movies. The compact figures are a good size to take with you if you’re going out for a family dinner but need something quiet for them to play while you eat. Just sayin’.

They're desperate to go to school at Hogwarts.

Not content with a packed lunch and a kick of the footy on the oval at school anymore, your kids are trying with all their might to be accepted to the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Admittedly spell practise and Quidditch will make the day go faster so there’s plenty of appeal – but not just anyone can enrol on a whim. 

Taking matters into their own hands (or wands), my kids are perfecting their spell making with Harry Potter Patronus Feature Wands – and convinced that their skill in making the Patronus figures respond to their movements is a ticket to a Hogwarts scholarship.

My daughter has the Hermione wand that comes with an otter Patronus, while my son is super keen on playing with the Harry version that has a stag.

Correctly performing a spell rewards diligent students with a glow and enchanting sounds – then casts weary eyes to sleep with a nightlight mode that will guard their rooms until they wake for the next day’s lesson.

Pet names for pets.

Our house is small, so a larger, noisy pet isn’t an option. Even though I’ve told them pets are a no for now, they’ve come up with the idea to ask Santa for some fish instead. I like their optimism. Top marks for trying, kiddos. 

But what might get Santa over the line is their wish to name any new goldfish pets Ron, Ginny, Fred and George. This is all their idea, but actually, it’s perfect.

They’re SO Gryffindor in real life.

Nothing gets the chest puffed out like wearing your colours and taking pride in your House. Now while my two were stoked to do an online quiz to find out they were Gryffindor, I’m pleased to say that they are working hard to display the traits of their House for real.

Daring swings from the monkey bars at school are a perfect example of some of that Gryffindor fearlessness. Can’t be a dreadful thing to try to be braver, more determined, and chivalrous, right? The Sorting Hat knows what’s what.

Image: Supplied.

Seeing the stage show once isn’t enough. It just isn’t.

It made my children’s’ year to get tickets to see Harry Potter and The Cursed Child, playing now in our hometown of Melbourne. It made mine to accompany the kids to the matinee recently, and boy, what a spectacle. Eyes were agog (both the kids and me) and the love for the tale reignited.

They had just one question once we had shuffled out of our seats: “When can we go again?”

Party on.

Book Week? The Harry Potter costumes get a solid workout. Birthday parties? For years now there’s been Harry Potter-themed magic on invites and cakes. 

On Halloween, one of the kids in a Snape cape or a Dobby mask might get to trick or treat. It’s a given that all the Harry Potter merch will pay for itself after a couple of months in the playroom, so my tip is to say yes to the dress (up).

As for me, I'll be over here resisting the urge to join in on the fun. 

Shop the new Harry Potter Diagon Alley 3-in-1 Playset and Harry Potter Patronus Feature Wands at your local toy store, Big W, Kmart or Target.

Feature Image: Supplied.