Pumpkin and Piglet

It's moving time!

2011-02-25T19:58:00.000Z

So we're off!

I'd love it if you came with me. Pumpkin and Piglet has been a wonderful home for the past (nearly!) year but it's on to pastures new. Thank you to those who have joined me on the way, I've made some lovely friends and had a great time.

So, everybody got everything?

Then let's go to Fishfingers for tea!

See you on the other side :-)

Changes and a new blog.

2011-02-24T19:46:00.000Z

Just a very quick post to let you know that there will be a few changes over the next couple of days. I will be shipping Pumpkin and Piglet to a new blog, with a new name!

As much as I love Pumpkin and Piglet, the name hasn't sat very well with me for a while now. Though it is Miss P and I, it has felt too restrictive, as if I should only limit myself to certain subjects.

I've imported most of the posts over there already and over the next few days I will finish tinkering with it and then we'll be ready to move in properly! It kind of feels like we're camping out at the moment, our things are there but not in the right place. There will also be a new Facebook page and I will probably change my twitter name to match as well. I'll let everyone know when the change has happened.

I hope you will be able to come with us!

Living by lists.

2011-02-22T18:43:00.000Z

I live my life by lists and I'm sure I'm not the only one. I get a lot of satisfaction from crossing things off, though I have to admit that sometimes I cheat. On a day where Twitter has proved more alluring than the laundry pile I occasionally write something on there that I've already done, just so I can cross it off.

I have to-do lists, must-do lists, should-do lists, would like to-do lists and Help! I should have done this 2 weeks ago lists. In an ideal world lists, lusted after object lists, blogging lists, work lists, they go on and on. Some are written down neatly in one of my many notebooks, some are scrawled on the back of an envelope (usually the shopping list!) and some are stored in my head.

This may be a completely boring post to some people but for those of you who, like me have a love of lists and are basically quite nosy, here's a little snapshot of some of the things on my must, should and would like to do lists this week.

Sort out the garden. I've had to re-pot the tomato seedlings already, before their time I think but they weren't happy in their little start off tray. I don't hold out much hope for them but they may surprise me yet. I also need to sort out a space for the dustbin I'll be growing potatoes in. They are chitting away nicely so it won't be long until they're ready.
Miss P proof the hallway! Now that she has learnt how to open the stair gate in the living room (!!!), we've had to buy more to block off the stairs and the kitchen. It will give her more room to play as well but before I can let her loose out there I'm going to have to move things that may prove just a little bit too tempting!
Bring The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society to the top of the reading pile next to my bed. It comes highly recommended by both my Mum and a very good bloggy friend so I'm looking forward to it. It will probably still take me a while to get round to reading it though, considering it takes me most of the week to get through the weekend papers due to my tendency to fall asleep half way through a sentence!
Buy a couple of tickets for Mum and I for the Ladies Pamper Night at the village hall next month! Not the normal choice for a night out for either of us but it's all in a good cause to raise money for the village's First Responders (who support paramedics and are often first on the scene) and you never know, it may be a giggle!

So, there you have it. A glimpse into my ~~glamorous~~ to-do list for this week. How about you? What should you be doing?

Silent Sunday - Life in unexpected places.

2011-02-20T08:02:00.000Z

Space

2011-02-18T10:38:00.000Z

Sometimes, just sometimes, I crave space.

Wide open spaces where I can shout and scream and laugh and run and just...

Breathe,

Be,

For 5 minutes.

So I can let it all out.

All of the frustration and tension that builds up.

So I can unknot my shoulders.

So I can release the worry.

So I can go home to the two people I love more than anything in the world

And greet them with a hug.

A kiss.

A smile.

Beware the walking sticks!

2011-02-15T13:22:00.000Z

We are known as a nation of queuers. Despite most of our lives being conducted on-line there are still times when we need to physically go somewhere and do something. This usually involves a queue. We wait, more or less patiently. Sometimes mumbling and grumbling under our breath but on the whole happy to wait our turn. Pushers in are either glared and tutted at or, depending on your level of bravery, admonished with a "Excuse me. There is a queue!"

All of this flies out of the window at my bus stop. Not the one from the village but the one back from town. It's a rural bus service so it runs once every two hours. You have to get on it or else you're stuck.

The village bus stop - no queues here just fields and the occasional cow!

The passengers are mainly elderly. But don't be fooled, these are not your run of the mill, sweet, grey haired, little old ladies. These are vicious, ninja style grannies with well-honed skills!

Firstly they work as a pack. Crowding around the front of the bus stop they form an impenetrable barrier, excluding the young-un's from the inner circle. It doesn't matter if you get there before them, they will slowly but surely edge you out.

Oh, and to clarify, to them a young-un is anyone under 50 or with their own teeth. I may be a 30 year old wife and mother but to them I am knee high to a grasshopper.

But when the bus comes it's every man for themselves! Boarding is not a sedate, polite affair. Manners are thrown out of the window, toes are stepped on and shopping bags used as missiles. A well positioned walking stick can fell the opposition for the prized seat with both a pole and a bell!

I have learnt to stand back and wait. As much as it annoys me and I don't really think it's fair, I don't particularly want to have to explain away the bruises. No one would believe me!

Silent Sunday - February sparkle

2011-02-13T09:44:00.000Z

I'm published!

2011-02-12T06:14:00.000Z

If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook then you may have seen my excitement yesterday when I opened the local paper and saw they had published my article on blogging!

The first I knew of it was when Miss P and I nipped to the shop and were greeted by "Oh, we've just been reading your article!". So I duly picked up a couple of copies, raced home and let everyone know that I was now famous! Ahem.

As it isn't on-line I can't link to it I thought I'd reproduce it here so if you fancy a read you can. If not then feel free to give this one a miss and I'll see you tomorrow for Silent Sunday.

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Blogging has entered the mainstream

By Sian Reynolds

When you hear the term ‘Mummy Blogger’ what comes to mind? Stay at home mum wittering on about nappies, baking cakes and not having enough ‘me’ time? Do you imagine endless boring entries about her day? Would you imagine that there is a community of thousands of women (and men!) out there writing interesting, thought provoking articles about current affairs, media, mental health and yes, their children and occasionally cake!

Blogging is not a new thing but it has certainly increased in popularity over the last year or so. Mummy Blogging (though many bloggers shy away from that term) has seen a massive growth recently, with the British Mummy Bloggers community (www.britishmummybloggers.ning.com) passing its 2000 members mark. BBC Radio 4 recently aired a programme about its growth and Sarah Brown has been confirmed as a keynote speaker at Cybermummy (an annual blogging conference). Blogging is certainly becoming more mainstream.

The days of the blogger being seen as the isolated male, tapping away at his keyboard into the night are long gone. There is no such thing as a ‘typical blogger’ - your next door neighbour, the mum on the school run, the business woman you see running for the train, all could be bloggers.

So why do people choose to blog? For many it is to keep a record of their children’s early years, to air their opinions on whatever interests them and to make friends. The blogging community is huge and generally very welcoming. I have made friends from all over the world through blogging, which may sound a little odd but really it’s no different from internet dating!

Companies are realising how much influence bloggers, and especially parent bloggers, have. New products and advertising campaigns are often tested through the blogging community. Bloggers can sometimes be invited to events to give their opinions. And those opinions affect the end product that you buy. Charities are also realising this and are getting involved. Last year Save The Children UK sent a small group of bloggers to

Bangladesh

to promote the work that is being done out there.

With our belts growing ever tighter and less money being available for outside interests, many people are turning to the internet for their entertainment and social life. Blogging combines the two. The whole world is at your finger tips and it’s your chance to dive in.

Taking your work home with you.

2011-02-11T09:30:00.000Z

Rich has always been prone to sleep talking and acting out his dreams. Since we got together he's woken me at least once a week, either trying to drag me out of bed to save me from some danger (the most recent being a conveyor belt above our heads!), turning the light on to find some mysterious object or he's brought his work home with him. Being woken from a deep sleep by your child calling for you is not pleasant but it goes with the territory, being woken by your husband who is actually still asleep is a different matter all together.

Rich: Wake up, wake up. Get down there, it needs finishing.

Me: Gurrghhaarggh bla.

Rich: Are you going to do it or not?

Me: Blurgh?

Rich: The pallets! The pallets! We must finish stacking the pallets.

Me: !*^%&;$*%;^"$£%(&;*&;$^£;££^"*

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Did you know that Pumpkin and Piglet is now on Facebook? We'd love for you to like us!

Why the man who makes you tea is a winner.

2011-02-08T08:44:00.000Z

Let's face it, February can be a bit of downer of a month. The weather's generally terrible, everything's a bit grey and most of us are still in hibernation mode.

Plus the shops are full of cards, teddies and red, fluffy things. And have been since Christmas (along with the Easter eggs but that's a rant for another day).

Ah, yes, Valentines Day.

The day for love, lust, flowers and broken hearts. Yes, broken hearts.

I don't really like Valentines Day and tend to subscribe to the why do you need a specific day to say 'I love you' (or I want to get you into bed!) school of thought. It's not that I don't get the warm fuzzies, I do. I'm not against cards or presents at all but I'd rather have a cup of tea made for me on a random day than get a heart shaped box of chocs on the 14th because a supermarket convinced Rich they were a good idea. To be fair he is quite good at the present side of things. And the tea making as well.

I can pinpoint the day that my dislike for the whole commercial side of things started.

It was the year my heart was broken.

1990.

I was 10 and my heart was shattered.

I had a massive crush on a boy at school. He was funny and popular and I wanted him to be my boyfriend so we could play tag and sit together at lunch. I had a lot of competition and knew that I had to pull out all the stops to get his attention. I thought and thought and decided that my best chance was to bake him a biscuit. Somehow I had already subscribed to the notion that the way to a man's (boy's) heart was through his stomach.

So, I was to bake the biggest, tastiest, prettiest biscuit I could. I baked my bestest baking and produced a crunchy heart, iced and lovingly (wonkily) packaged in a box. Oh, I carried that special treat to school so carefully. I bided my time and waited until lunchtime, thinking my biscuit would round off the dinner of sausages and lumpy mash perfectly.

With my heart in my mouth but brimming with hope, I found the courage to go up to him in the playground and held out my offering. He took it and...

laughed

and ran off with his friends.

I felt the humiliation in the way that only a 10 year old girl can but managed to make it to the toilets before I allowed the tears to flow and mopped them up with the tracing paper that passed for loo roll. I have no idea how I got through the rest of the day but it seemed like a lifetime until I could get home to the sanctity of my bedroom and my teddies.

So girls. Let my humiliation be a lesson to you. A boy who laughs at you but takes your bestest baking anyway is not worth it. Wait for the one who makes you cups of tea instead.

Silent Sunday - Drifting

2011-02-06T10:07:00.000Z

Chocolate Digestive Biscuits

2011-02-04T05:32:00.001Z

Biscuit choice can divide people. I have witnessed arguments over what constitutes a 'proper' biscuit and seen people being teased for their rather frugal choice of a malted milk. There's even been a recent debate on the Blogger.Ed forums about it!

As much as I'll snatch your hand off for an Extremely Chocolatey Cookie there's something quite comforting about a good old fashioned plain biscuit. Perfect for dunking in a cuppa or convincing yourself you're not actually eating a biscuit at all, they're handy things to have around. And also useful for those moments of nausea whether self-inflicted or from morning (noon and night!) sickness!

Rich Tea and Digestives are my plain biscuits of choice, closely followed by Hobnobs. Rich Tea always remind me of my Gran, who had tin permanently beside her bed ready to have with her first cup of tea from the delightful bedside Teasmade! It was a real treat to sneak along to her bedroom when I was staying there, curl up in her bed and share a milky cup of tea and a biscuit first thing in the morning.

The humble digestive is lifted slightly out of the plain category when it's smothered in melted chocolate. Though still a rather basic biscuit and a good all rounder, the presence of chocolate can help convince yourself it's a little bit of a treat, even if just sneakily scoffed from the biscuit tin whilst waiting for the kettle to boil! The ever faithful biscuit friend who has usually been found on a plate in pretty much every meeting I've ever been to, it gives a reassuring feeling that all is well with the world.

Whilst homemade chocolate digestives look and taste nothing like McVitie's finest, they have the same comforting feel to them. Right, time to put the kettle on...

Chocolate Digestives

It took me a few minutes to realise there isn't any egg in the recipe. It's not a mistake!

100g wholemeal flour

40g plain flour

1/2tsp baking powder

120 g butter, softened

100g light brown sugar

4 tbsp milk

200g chocolate, milk or plain, it's up to you.

Preheat the oven to 190oC and line 2 baking trays

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Sift in the flours and baking powder.

Mix in and add the milk a little at a time until you have a thick dough (if it seems too sticky add a little more flour but only a bit at a time)

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently until it's smooth.

Roll out to approx 3mm thickness and stamp out circles. Place the biscuits on the baking trays and prick all over with a fork. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden.

Transfer to a cooling rack and melt the chocolate. Once the biscuits are cold, smother the tops with chocolate and leave on the rack for the chocolate to harden.

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I am linking this up to Friday Club Cooking Carnival held over at Notes From Home.

Here are the other recipes in this Cakes and Cookies Carnival:

Nova at Cherished by Me gives us her Cherry, Coconut and Marshmallow Traybake.
Kelly at Domestic Goddesque posts her recipe for heart-shaped jammy-dodger-style biscuits in Baking with a heart!
Heather at SAHMLovingIt gives us her Scrumptious Beetroot Seed Cake Recipe.
Jules at I Need Curtains for the Window in my Head posts her recipe for Almond Macaroons.
Helen at Cheeky Wipes gives us her recipe for Coffee Cake.
Gemma at HelloitsGemma's Blog posts her (easiest) Banana Cake (ever).
Jax at Making It Up gives us her recipe for gingerbread.
Cass at The Diary of a Frugal Family posts her Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Clare at Seasider in the City gives us her Mars Bar Cake.
Bod for Tea shows us how she makes Iced Animal Biscuits.
Maggy at Red Ted Art has a guest post from Maison Cupcake's Sarah showing us how to make Love Heart Cookies.
Rebecca at twobecomefour gives us her recipe for Beck's Banana Bread. Jenny at Gingerbread House gives us her Gingerbread cupcakes.
Tiddlyompompom shares the fun she has making cakes with her daughter in Have your cake and eat it.

Things don't really change

2011-02-01T20:28:00.000Z

Teenagers. We've all been one at some point and some of us still occasionally act like one. Ahem. A funny breed of people who more often than not either bemuse the people around them or instil a level of fear if they seem to be one of the hoodie lot.

If you follow me on twitter you'll know that Saturday morning is my time. I may be in town running errands but you can guarentee to find me in Costa at some point, with a gingerbread latte and chocolate twist. Last week, I ended up there twice, out of necessity of course. It was too cold to hang about for long and it was either there or spend money I really shouldn't on things I don't need so I was, in fact, being virtuous.

The later crowd at Costa is very different to the early morning one. I'm usually there with people rushing to work or other mummies ~~on day release~~ running errands and trying to get the shopping done. This time I was faced with lots of couples out shopping and teenagers. Lots of teenagers.

There was one group who were being particularly melodramatic and loud. Lots of squealing, "Oh. My. God"'s and a smattering of hysterical laughter. They were on the receiving end of a fair few disapproving looks. But as I watched I realised I was slightly envious.

They seemed so polished! Glossy hair, smart clothes, latest iwhat-sit. An air of confidence surrounded them, though I'm sure they had their fair share of insecurities.

When I was their age, our hangout was MacDonald's. The only place that could cope with the whole town's population of teenagers whilst we sniggered at More! magazine's position of the fortnight, planned our ~~attack~~ seduction of whichever boy we were in ~~love~~ lust with that week and informed our friends we were on a diet whilst gobbling down a cheeseburger and fries.

It was then on to buy the shortest, tightest thing we could find so we could either go to the pub (convinced that the landlord thought we were 18. Yeah, right!) or to the park. Either way, to get drunk on Taboo and lemonade, Diamond White or whatever we had been able to sneak out of one of parents drinks cabinet! Such class.

As I finished daydreaming I looked across again to see two of the girls pouring over the latest copy of Cosmo and another flirting with a terrified looking lad. And I realised, the clothes and hangouts may change but the heart of the teenager remains the same.

Silent Sunday - Playing is tiring when you've been poorly

2011-01-30T18:47:00.000Z

The Little Black Dress of cakes

2011-01-28T09:06:00.000Z

One of the most useful recipes I think you can have in your repertoire is a chocolate sponge cake. One that's quick and easy and can be dressed up or down.

A cake that can you can whip up when required, can do for lunch boxes or for those times you need to impress but have no time because you've been ~~messing about on twitter~~ attending to other domestic goddess duties.

This is that cake.

The little black dress of cakes that, with the right accessories, will cover pretty much any occasion.

Fill it with a simple vanilla butter cream frosting for an easy cake fix. If you need to be a bit fancier then try filling with some lightly whipped cream and whatever berries are in season (or defrost some frozen ones).

Basic Chocolate Sponge Cake

150g self-raising flour

25g cocoa powder

175g caster sugar

175g butter, softened

3 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling of your choice

Icing sugar to dust.

Preheat the oven to 180oC and grease and line 2 20cm cake tins.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating each in well before adding the vanilla extract. Fold in the flour and cocoa powder.

Divide between the 2 tins and bake for 25 minutes or until the cake springs back to the touch or a skewer comes out clean.

Cool on wire racks and fill when completely cold.

Dust with icing sugar.

Learning to stand back

2011-01-25T19:18:00.000Z

I'm a Mummy, I worry. I worry about a million and one things to do with Piglet, all perfectly normal and it just goes with the territory, it's in the job description. I worried about her before she was even born and I know I will worry about her for the rest of my life.

Miss P is sociable. She makes friends wherever she goes and loves nothing more than to 'chat' to whoever is around. During our recent trip to the Doctors for her MMR jab she had the whole waiting room amused and made friends with a little boy about her age. She even attempted a little smooch with him when he shared his cars with her. I must work on getting her to at least find out their name first before she tries anything like that in future. I swear I heard Rich muttering something along the lines of 'Like Mother, like daughter' but I must have been wrong. Ahem.

We recently had friends come to visit, with their 2 boys aged 5 and 7. Miss P was in her element, not only were there visitors, there were older boys present. With some excited squeals, a few happy feet stamps and a massive grin she set off, following them around and loving the fact that they were playing with her toys. They're good boys and happily tolerated her for a bit but, boys being boys, they soon got caught up in their own games and Miss P was left on the sidelines.

She made several valiant attempts to join in and looked a bit bemused each time she was brushed aside. It was hard to watch, my little girl wasn't wanted, she didn't understand why and there was little that I could do about it. I couldn't make them play with her, I couldn't explain to her that they were just being boys, all I could do was pick her up when she came toddling over to sit on my lap and sing another round of 'Row, row, row your boat'.

And now I'm worrying. She's only 13 months but the time for her to learn that not everyone will want to be her friend isn't far off. She'll realise that, unlike now, not everyone will dote on her, be willing to let her join with whatever is going on or even want her around and I have to let her get on with it. I can be there with love and comfort, mop up any tears and give her a place where she feels safe and secure but that's it.

Looks like I've got as much learning to do as she has!

Silent Sunday - Through the coffee shop window

2011-01-23T18:16:00.000Z

Through the generations.

2011-01-21T20:56:00.000Z

I've never been good at seeing family resemblances unless it's, well, staring me in the face.

Other people seem to be able to spot family traits really easily. Eyes, nose, face shape, little things that run through the generations.

It was different with Piglet. I could see us in her straight away.

At first I could see Rich in those blue eyes.

Then her little chubby cheeks filled out and there was a mini me.

Then her hair got curlier and curlier and all of a sudden...there's my Mum!

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Did you know that Pumpkin and Piglet is now on Facebook too?

You probably don't need to know this...

2011-01-18T20:43:00.000Z

Firstly I must apologise!

The very delightful Polly from A Working Mother's Chatter tagged me with the stylish blogger award a little while ago and it's taken me until now to post it. Very remiss of me!

Polly - thank you so much and I'm sorry it's taken me so long. I told you at the time and you really did make my day!

As with all of these awards, there are conditions attached and for this one I must tell you 7 things you might not know about me. I've done a couple of these lists before so I will rack my brains.

I used to be a Brownie. I loved it and wanted to be a Guide. I never did. Mainly because I was too scared to jump over the toadstool on the last day!

I often hide in the kitchen eating chocolate biscuits once a day. It's 5 stolen minutes that make me smile.

I may be 30 but farts still make me laugh.

I'm scared of Turkish Delight. It's horrible stuff and I have to leave the room when Rich is eating it.

It's rare my socks match. And they're usually inside out. It drives Rich potty but I just don't see what the problem is!

When I was younger I was terrified of escalators. My parents had to either find a lift or hold my hand very tightly. Once I didn't step on in time and Mum went sailing off leaving me in tears at the top. I can't remember when I stopped being so scared of them but I can use them now.

When I was 11, Dad and I went on holiday to Belgium for the weekend. I managed to get myself locked in a toilet cubicle in a museum. It was very quiet and he couldn't find anyone to help so ended up climbing over from the next stall to rescue me!

So there you go, 7 things you might not know (and could probably live without knowing!) about me. Now it's my turn to pass this on. I'm meant to be tagging 15 other bloggers but I think I would like to pass this on to just three people.

These ladies are all stylish bloggers in different ways, good friends of mine and with very different blogs. Please go and check them out

Katie at Feeding Boys and a Firefighter

Kara at Innocent Charms Chats

Paula at My Beautiful Blog

If you're still reading, well done! I just wanted to let you know that I'm having a little bit of a bloggy makeover. I've made a nice, new header which is now gracing the top of the blog and I've also (finally!) created a Facebook page! If you like me please could you go and like me?! I'm feeling a little bit lonely over there! Thank you!

Crustless Pizza

2011-01-16T20:39:00.000Z

I think this is the first time I've ever blogged anything savoury here. I'm been busy these last few days, putting together my first edition of the village newsletter. It's fun but a lot of hard work, especially as I'm using a computer program I've never had to use before and articles have been arriving in my inbox like there's no tomorrow.

So for the past few days I've been looking for quick and easy dinner ideas and even quicker lunch ideas for Piglet and I. There may or may not have been a few slummy mummy lunches served as well! It's been a good excuse to have a closer look at Nigella Lawson's new book Kitchen. This was my present to myself at Christmas and I've only managed to make two things out of it so far, including this one.

The Crustless Pizza seemed to be quick and easy and it really was. I'm slightly confused why she's decided to call it a pizza as the base is much more like a Yorkshire Pudding than a pizza. Still, it was quick, tasty and filled a gap for Miss P and I one lunchtime.

I adapted the recipe slightly and added some herbs to the base as well as the cheese. I think if I was making this for a proper dinner rather than a lunchtime hole-filler I would be tempted to add some finely chpped garlic as well. The recipe called for slices of chorizo but I didn't have any so ham and tomato it was! You could top this with pretty much whatever you felt like (or happen to have in the fridge!), just slice it up and throw it on.

Crustless pizza (or Yorkshire pudding in fancy dress!)

Adapted from Nigella Lawson's Kitchen

1 egg

100g plain flour

Pinch of salt

250ml milk

1tsp dried mixed herbs

100g cheese, grated

Topping(s) of your choice

Preheat the oven to 200oC and grease a round pie dish (approx 20cm).

Beat the egg with the flour, salt (if using), milk and herbs to make a smooth batter.

Stir in half the grated cheese and pour into the pie dish.

Bake for 30 minutes. Scatter the remaining cheese and the toppings of your choice on top of the cooked batter and return to the oven for another 2 or 3 minutes, until the cheese has melted and is golden.

For you

2011-01-07T20:30:00.000Z

Two little words that can make me so happy.

I made this cup of tea...for you.

I bought these flowers...for you.

I saved the last bit of chocolate...for you.

Yes, I know. I took a picture of the washing up, something only a blogger could understand!

Two little words that can make me give Rich 'that' look and turn into a ranting woman!

I've done the washing up...for you.

I've hoovered...for you.

I've tided the toys away...for you.

Um, no. You haven't.

Monday to Friday all of the housework falls to me. Rich works 12 hour shifts and is exhausted by the time he gets home. Dinner is ready for him when he gets in and I don't expect him to do anything around the house. I really don't mind, though the whole sensation of being a 1950's housewife feels a little odd at times. Something I never thought I'd be more or less okay with!

Weekends are a completely different ball game though. Or at least I assumed they were.

Somehow there seems to be the assumption that all housework is my responsibility, no matter what day it is. That's when I hear "I did (take your pick from the long, long list of housework chores)...for you".

No.

NO!

You didn't do them 'for me'.

You did them for our family.

For our home.

It's your bloody mess too!

Christmas's last hurrah

2011-01-03T20:28:00.000Z

Tomorrow everything returns to normal. Rich goes back to work, Mum goes back to work, everything's back on normal office hours, Christmas is done, dusted and packed away for another 11 months or so.

It's time to focus on 2011. New year, new start and all of that. I've never really been one for resolutions, I tend to break them within the first day so I write a list of goals for the year; things I would like to do, things I hope to achieve, things I wish for me and my family. No pressure, if I do them then great, if not, well, there's always another time. I add to it throughout the year and see where I end up.

I try and have a real mix of goals, big and small and this year is no different. They range from sorting out the kitchen junk drawer to (finally!) getting my driving licence. There are ones for me, for Rich and Piglet, ones to do with work, with blogging, with...well, lots of things really. There are some that are entirely in my hands and others that I have no real control over but feel a little positive thought couldn't do them any harm.

This year I also decided to try having a overall word to my year. I chose 'Home'. Our house is lovely and we're incredibly happy here but I need to focus on turning it into a proper family home. Not just with decorating but establishing family traditions and creating a nurturing environment for all of us.

That's tomorrow though. Today there was time for Christmas to have one last hurrah in the form of a mincemeat cheesecake! Mum saw this recipe in one of the Sunday papers and wanted me to make it for her. It's a Nigel Slater recipe so I was confident it would be yummy. A baked cheesecake, rippled through with mincemeat. It hints at Christmas but isn't a full on Christmas only pudding. I have to admit that I didn't adapt the recipe at all so it's not fair that I recreate it here, instead I'll send you his article here (scroll down, it's about half way down the page). I have to admit that it hasn't lasted long here and is definitely going to be made again!

PS I've started on one of my goals already. To start a Blipfoto journal as a way of trying to develop my photography skills and to have a place for those things I want to record but don't make it as a blog post. If you fancy a look then feel free, I've called it Me, Her and Him.

Extremely Chocolatey Cookies

2011-01-02T20:43:00.000Z

I have been on the search for the perfect chocolate cookie for a while now. For me the perfect cookie has a crisp outside and a soft, chewy middle, almost undercooked.

I've tried so many recipes that I've lost count (yes, it's been hard work, poor me) but I think I've found it. A perfect crispy, chewy, chocolatey cookie discovered in one of my books whilst snowed in just before Christmas.

Please excuse the poor photo. Very bad light really cannot do justice to how rich and laden with chocolate this are.

These are huge! I could make them smaller but I have to admit that when it comes to chocolate I'm just plain greedy and the more the better. Saying that though, one at a time of these is enough.

Extremely Chocolatey Cookies

Adapted from Baking Magic by Kate Shirazi

125g plain flour

1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

25g cocoa powder

125g dark chocolate, melted

85g butter, softened

175g light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

200g chocolate, bashed into pieces with a rolling pin! (I use milk but dark is fine, it's up to you)

Preheat the oven to 180oC and line 3 baking trays.

Place the flour, bicarb and cocoa in a bowl and set aside.

Melt the 125g chocolate.

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla extract (Tip: As with cakes, add a spoonful or two of flour with the eggs, it helps them blend well with the butter/sugar mix).

Stir in the melted chocolate and then fold in the flour/cocoa mix.

Bash the hell out of the 200g of chocolate with a rolling pin. Leave it in it's wrapper whilst you're doing this, it can get messy otherwise! You should end up with different sized chunks of chocolate, some a little nuggets and some a bit more like little bits of gravel. Stir into the rest of the ingredients.

Drop dessert-spoonful's onto the baking trays, well spaced apart and flatten slightly.

Bake for 10 minutes. Take them out but leave them on the trays for 5 minutes or so to harden slightly then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

And it's done!

2010-12-30T20:19:00.000Z

So here we are in the no-man's land between Christmas and New Year. It always seems like a kind of 'nothing' time to me, the main excitement of Christmas has passed but everything's still waiting for New Years Eve. I find myself longing for the return of normality, especially as we don't tend to do New Years Eve. Tomorrow night you're more likely to find me tucked up in bed by 11pm, snoozing away into next year!

Christmas this year was very different from last. Last year Piglet was 12 days old so Christmas passed in a funny blur of shock, amazement and wondering why nobody had stopped us from leaving the hospital with such a tiny baby!

This year felt like our first proper family Christmas. Piglet was excited, she had no idea what about but loved the lights, wrapping paper and being allowed more goodies than normal! She also gave us the best present ever and started walking properly on Christmas Eve. Extremely pleased with herself and spurred on by the ridiculous amount of clapping from me and Rich, she marched round and round the living room!

Despite it only being a small family Christmas, with it being just us and my parents, I still seemed to spend most of the time in the kitchen. A never ending round of baking sausage rolls, extremely chocolatey cookies (recipe soon) and huge meals that have created enough leftovers to see us through until summer! My proudest (and most nerve racking!) moment though was making my own giant meringues for a Mont Blanc.

So this is it really. My last post of 2010. I'm writing my goals for 2011 and wondering what the next 12 months has in store for us all. This year was a busy one with moving and getting the first year of parenthood under our belts. It's been hectic, stressful and worrying but so much fun with a lot of laughter along the way.

See you on the other side!

So here it is, Merry Christmas...

2010-12-23T20:53:00.001Z

So here we are, Christmas Eve Eve! I'm kidding myself that I'm ready, trying to forget the fact that in the morning I have to go and do battle in town for a couple of last minute presents and to do a huge Christmas food shop.

Yes.

I know.

My parents have got the meat covered for Christmas Day (beef in case you're interested, we never do turkey, can't stand the stuff!) but the rest is up to me. With Rich working 12 hour shifts and an intense horror at the thought of taking Piglet to the supermarket this close to Christmas it's been left until tomorrow. Rich finished work tonight so is on hand to look after Piglet in the morning whilst I go and do battle over a bag of Brussels, if I can find any, I've been hearing rumours of a sprout shortage due to the appalling weather!

When I get back I have meringues to bake for Christmas Day pud, a last minute flurry of wrapping and then a date with the sofa and the largest mug of Hot Chocolate that I can make! The last few days have flown by in a blur of baking, cleaning and singing along to Christmas songs. This will be our first Christmas in our new home and the first Christmas that Piglet will have an idea that something exciting is happening. Well, at least she knows there is twinkly lights and pretty paper to eat!

So, that just leaves me to wish each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas. I hope you have a fab one, whatever you are doing and wherever you are.

Take care, have fun and lots of love xxx

Brrr!

2010-12-19T19:37:00.000Z

365 days

2010-12-10T14:29:00.000Z

A year ago today I had been in labour for 2 days. I had another 2 and a half days to go. Let's gloss over what was a pretty horrendous time made up of 4 and half days, a hospital that didn't believe I was in labour, Piglet's heart rate dropping, an emergency c-section as they finally said she was stuck after over an hour of pushing and then a haemorrhage! Oh, and one of the nurses knocking a freshly made cup of tea all over me on the labour ward. Like I say, a pretty horrendous time.

But all completely worth it.

Nearly 365 days ago my beautiful baby girl was finally pulled into this world, screaming the place down and has been making her presence felt ever since.

It's been a hell of a year where I've learnt a lot, laughed a lot, cried a fair bit, and eaten pretty much double my body weight in cake and chocolate!

I've learnt I have much, much more patience than I ever thought was possible, that after a while you can change a nappy in the dark, that I love being a stay at home mum and am quite old fashioned about a lot of things, that a mum's instincts are usually right no matter what so called 'professionals' say, that it is possible to survive on 4 hours broken sleep a night and that mashed banana makes black threads appear in poo!

So, my darling girl. You are loved more than you will ever know. You have made me and your Daddy so happy that I cannot put into words exactly how much. Though it seems like only yesterday you arrived, it also feels like you have been with us forever. You have learnt so much yourself and are learning something new every day. You prefer playing with the baby wipes to your toys, love TV, music and dance like a rock star! You love your fruit and veg but don't say no to a bit of cake or a choccy button. You're a thug at playgroup and love going out for a coffee. You make friends wherever you go and adore the bus. You have your Daddy's eyes and temper and my chubby cheeks and stubbornness. You have a wicked sense of humour and know when you're doing something naughty because you turn round and grin at me. You love to cuddle up when you're sleepy and look at a book. You are one in a million my gorgeous girlie. Love you always xxx

Black Forest Trifle

2010-12-09T13:12:00.000Z

So both Black Forest Gateau and trifle are generally considered to be uncool and either a throw back to bad 70's dinner parties or forever linked to memories of childhood parties. But, you know what, I love them both and much prefer to think of them as retro.

I think for most of us we have just had bad experiences with them. Synthetic cream, dry sponge and (in my case) so much sherry in the trifle that you get drunk just standing near it! Done well, both can be an excellent pudding. Both have flavours and textures that just beg to be put together (though there is the age old jelly or no jelly trifle debate. I think a trifle should usually have jelly but not too much, it's a balance thing) and you certainly know you've had pudding when you've wolfed down a bowl of either!

A few weeks ago I saw a recipe for Black Forest Trifle and immediately put it on my 'Must make this' list (it's very long by the way and I don't think I'll ever see the day when I've made everything on it at least once). Now, bear with me. I know you're probably not overly keen on the idea but I have to say that it was delicious, even my mother approved and she's really not that much of a pudding person.

You could go to the extent of making your own sponge and custard but let's face it, at this time of year we all need a bit of help in the kitchen and I'm no exception. So my version is pretty much made from things out of the store cupboard, with melting the chocolate and whipping the cream being the most exerting things to do!

Black Forest Trifle

Chocolate Swiss roll

Jar of Morello cherries in syrup

100g dark chocolate

Tin of custard

500ml whipping cream

Chocolate sprinkles (optional)

Melt the chocolate. It's up to you how you do it, either in the microwave or over a bowl of barely simmering water. Once it's all melted, smooth and glossy leave on the side to cool slightly.

Slice the Swiss roll and arrange in the bottom of a suitable bowl.

Drain the cherries and place on top of the Swiss roll.

Pour the custard into another bowl and mix in the now cooled chocolate. Stir well until it's all combined. Pour on top of the cherries

Whip the cream and spread on top of the custard. Cover with sprinkles if you like.

Ginger and Chocolate Chewies

2010-12-03T20:39:00.000Z

One of the combinations I love is chocolate and ginger, they just seem to go together really well. Combine that with a chewy biscuit and you've got a winner.

To be honest, the dough started out destined to be gingerbread men but when I looked in the cupboard I didn't have the colours I wanted for decorating them so it ended up becoming these instead. I decided to coat half the biscuits with chocolate and leave some plain, both worked well but I preferred the chocolate ones. They seemed to be more of a treat so maybe an idea for a Christmas present?

I much prefer a chewy biscuit to a crunchy one and these are deliciously so, with a firm outside and a soft middle. Rich reliably informs me that they dunk very well in a cuppa too, I wouldn't know because I'm not a dunker. There's nothing worse than getting to the bottom of your drink to find a sludgy pile of biscuit crumbs!

Oh, these need to be spread out well on the baking tray, they grow at an alarming rate. I'm afraid I was in a rush and did the typical 'Oh, they'll be alright...'. They weren't and I ended up cutting them apart so some of my biscuits ended up with straight edges!

Ginger and Chocolate Chewies

350g plain flour (you may need more though so don't put it away!)

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 tsp ground ginger (they aren't overly gingery so you could add more if you wanted to)

100g butter, chilled

175g light brown sugar

1 large egg

4 tbsp golden syrup

100 g plain chocolate (for coating)

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ginger into a bowl. Rub in the butter until it resembles fine breadcrumbs and then stir in the sugar.

Whisk the egg and golden syrup together and add to the flour mix. It may be easier to use your hands at this point. If you think it's too sticky then keep sprinkling on a little more flour at a time and kneading it in until you have a smooth, easy to work dough.

Wrap in clingfilm and chill for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 190oC and line two baking trays.

Lightly flour the surface and roll out the dough to a 4mm thickness. Cut out your desired shape and place on the baking trays with room to spread.

Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden. Leave to cool slightly on the trays and then place on a cooling rack until cold.

Melt the chocolate and spread over half of each biscuit using a teaspoon. Place back on the rack until the chocolate has set.

Let it snow!

2010-12-01T06:44:00.000Z

Sturdy

2010-11-26T21:04:00.000Z

Sturdy.

Sturdy means strong, well built, stable and built to last. A good word. Excellent for when describing furniture. I like sturdy things.

But I don't particularly like the word sturdy when it's used to describe Piglet!

We had the new patient check from the Health Visitor this week. All went well, she was weighed, praised for her progression and generally given good marks all round. And then it came...

"She's a sturdy girl!"

I have to admit that at the time my hackles rose slightly. I know Piglet is a good size (25lbs at a couple of weeks off turning 1 and in the 91st percentile) but she's in proportion. Both Rich and I are tall and quite broad shouldered so I think it's down to genetics. She was born on the smaller side so I have rejoiced in every little ounce she has put on.

I was slightly put out on Piglet's behalf. There seems to be some kind of expectation that little girls should be delicate, dainty things. Little wisps that sit and play quietly with dolls. That don't shout or like to play rough and tumble. Piglet is the opposite of all of these.

We went to a new baby group today and I watched the other little girls playing nicely next to their mummies. I watched my little girl thundering around the room, shaking rattles, banging tins and shouting with the sheer joy of playing. I did however have to stop her more thuggish side when she sat on a baby that she clearly thought was in her way!

At home I watched her play with her Daddy, laughing at being tickled and turned upside down. I watched her dance to the music on Cbeebies and I watched my beautiful, noisy, tomboy of a baby girl take her very first unaided step. It turns out she is sturdy and I wouldn't want her any other way.

Chocolate Truffles

2010-11-24T20:32:00.000Z

Like with most people, money is tight this year and with Christmas just round the corner I'm thinking about making as many presents as I can. I've seen some fab ideas, including this cookie mix in a jar from Katie over at Feeding boys and a firefighter.

Most people know that I am something of a chocoholic and luckily a lot of the people in my life are too. Chocolate truffles seem to be the way to go then. I have to admit that I haven't made these in years so thought I'd better have a bit of a practice before I need to make the real things. Not that I took any pleasure from this you understand, I just wanted to make sure I'm giving my nearest and dearest the best possible truffles I can *ahem*.

The beauty of home-made truffles is that you can really tailor the flavour to your recipient (or you!) - rum, brandy, orange, coffee - the options are endless. Most flavourings are added to the liquid ganache but for a coffee flavoured truffle, I'd recommend adding espresso powder to the cream as it's warming. You can of course just keep them plain.

They can be rolled in pretty much anything too - icing sugar, chopped nuts, cocoa powder, coconut or how about dipping the set truffles in melted chocolate and then chilling to form a crisp chocolate shell? Use your imagination, think of the combinations that you know work and have a play! I just dusted these with icing sugar, experimenting with a snowy look.

The only thing I'd advise is to keep your hands as cold as possible or dust them with cocoa powder to minimise the truffles melting as you roll.

Chocolate Truffles

(Makes approx 24)

300g chocolate ( I use 200g of dark and 100g of milk as I find all dark slightly too bitter)

284ml double cream

Flavouring of your choice (optional)

Whatever you are using to roll the finished truffles in.

Make a ganache. You can do this one of two ways - either:

Break the chocolate into small pieces. Pour the cream into a saucepan, add the chocolate and warm very slowly over a low heat. Keep stirring until the chocolate has melted and they are combined. Or:

Break to chocolate into small pieces. Pour the cream into a saucepan and warm slowly. Once it's warm, pour over the chocolate and stir until the chocolate has melted and they are combined.

Add the flavourings you have chosen (if any) a little at a time and keep tasting until it's strong enough. Go slowly, you can always add more but you can't take it out if you add too much!

Pour the ganache into a bowl, the shallower the better and chill in the fridge until it's at a spooning/rolling consistency. This will probably take about 3 - 4 hours.

Prepare a plate with whatever you are using to roll your truffles in. Also cover a baking tray with greaseproof paper to put the rolled truffles on.

Once the ganache has chilled, take teaspoons of the mixture and roll into balls as quickly as possible in the palms of your hands. Roll in the coating and place on the baking tray.

Once they are all done, store in the fridge.

You can package them in pretty boxes or bags if you're giving them as gifts or just serve on a pretty plate if they are for at home.

These need to be stored in the fridge so make sure you tell whoever you're giving them to and will keep for about 3 to 4 days. Take out a few minutes before eating to bring up to room temperature.

Fudgy Chocolate Pudding

2010-11-21T20:49:00.000Z

I've had to miss the last couple of recipes for Bake It! but now things have calmed down slightly I've been able to take part again this month. And, oh boy, was I a happy bunny! When Amy posted the recipe my mouth started watering straight away. On a cold, rainy day what more could a girl want than a big bowl of fudgy chocolate pudding with cream?

I loved this and it went down very well with Rich too. Piglet had a small taste and I took her massive grin as a sign of approval! This is one of those magic cakes that creates its own sauce at the bottom. There is that heart stopping moment when you pour boiling water over the top, stand back and think "What the hell is that? It's gone wrong, there's no way that is going to taste good!".

Have some faith, stick it in the oven, then take it out an hour later and indulge in some cakey, saucy, fudgy goodness. Just the thing to chase those winter blues away.

We had ours with cream but it would also be yummy with ice cream or custard. I'm going to send you over to Amy's for the recipe. Whilst you're there, why not have a look at some of her other gorgeous recipes and see what she's been making with her daughters.

Review: Belgian Chocolate Panettone

2010-11-18T21:13:00.000Z

I love this time of year; the lights, the decorations and all of the yummy food! It gives me an excuse to bake even more than I normally do but there just isn't enough time to bake everything I want to, so I cheat with a few things. Sometimes it's hard to know what to buy ready made though and what would be nicer if I made it myself.

So I jumped at the chance when I was asked to review Sainsbury's Taste The Difference Belgian Chocolate Panettone. Anything with chocolate is usually a hit with me and this was no different.

When it arrived I was very impressed with the packaging. It comes in a very elegant purple and dull gold box with a ribbon for a handle, almost like a square hat box. I liked it so much that I've kept it and it's currently sat in my kitchen whilst I decide what to do with it!

Being from the 'Taste The Difference' range, I was confident that it would live up to it's blurb and I wasn't disappointed. Despite being described as having "the intense flavour of Belgian dark chocolate pieces" it wasn't overwhelming but gave a definite chocolate hit. It was moist and fluffy which Sainsbury's say is down to the "Corsini family's unique mother dough.".

The ultimate test came from my parents. As a rule they much prefer a traditional panettone with fruit but both Mum and Dad enjoyed it and said they would be happy to have a slice of this over Christmas with a cup of tea. High praise from them indeed!

You can buy the 750g Taste The Difference Belgian Chocolate Panettone from Sainsbury's for £8.99. As it serves 9 - 10 people I think this is quite a reasonable price and would be happy for this to be one of my Christmas cheats this year!

*Disclaimer: I was sent this free of charge by Sainsbury's for review purposes*

Stem Ginger and Treacle Tart

2010-11-13T11:08:00.000Z

I'm a massive fan of the BBC Good Food magazine and buy the new edition as soon as I can each month. I was even more excited this time as it was the Christmas (yes, I know, I said the C word!) issue which means it's time to start planning what I'm going to be cooking over the festive period. By January my copy is slightly battered and bruised!

This time though, it's been put to use early. It was my Dad's birthday this week and even though I had already baked him his birthday cake, when I saw the recipe for Stem Ginger and Treacle Tart I had to bake it for him as a little extra something. A tart combining two of his favourite things was just too good to pass by.

I was initially slightly concerned about the amount of golden syrup in it, pretty much a jar and a third! But oh, it was good! Very moist, very, very sweet with a hint of ginger running through it. Definitely one to bake again.

Stem Ginger and Treacle Tart (Good Food magazine, December 2010 issue)

Serves 8 - 10

375g pack sweet shortcrust pastry

750g golden syrup

225g breadcrumbs

zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 1/2 tsp ground ginger

3 eggs

6 - 8 balls stem ginger, thinly sliced

Roll out pastry and line a 23cm fluted tart case with it. Chill for 30 mins (I have to admit I was seriously short on time and didn't chill the pastry, I really didn't notice any difference).

Heat the oven to 200oC. Line the tart with greaseproof pastry and baking beans. Blind bake for 20 mins. Remove the beans and paper and bake for a further 10 mins until the pastry is a golden brown.

Meanwhile, mix the golden syrup, breadcrumbs, lemon zest and juice, ground ginger and eggs together. Once the pastry is ready, lower the oven temperature to 160oC.

Tip the treacle mixture into the tart and bake for 55 mins to 1 hour, until the filling is golden, crisp and feels set to the touch.

Arrange the stem ginger slices on top and drizzle with a little syrup from the ginger jar. Lift from the tin to a serving plate and serve warm with ice cream or custard.

Just call me Lois...

2010-11-11T20:24:00.001Z

...or not, because she was a journalist and I'm not, I just like the sound of it!

You may or may not have seen me tweet yesterday that I got the position of editor for the village newsletter! I'm so excited. It may not seem like a big deal but it is to me, it's something different to focus on, something to stretch the brain cells and something that means my life doesn't just revolve around nappies!

It's only a small publication but I've been told I can make it my own as long as certain things are included each month. I officially take over in January, ready for the February issue so I have time to come up with some ideas and maybe think about a different approach.

So with that and the website I'm redesigning for the bookshop where my Mum works, I'm getting busy. Add in normal wife/mummy duties plus planning an exciting new project with a friend, I think I need a diary!

Life and Biscotti

2010-11-07T20:37:00.000Z

Life has been busy recently and, to be honest, there are times it's nice not to be so plugged in and to get out and live life! It's meant an unexpected blog break but it's also meant a lot of fun!

We had Halloween and a (very!) little party for Piglet. I'm afraid we did the typical parent thing and dressed her up. As a cat, not very scary but seriously cute. We had Bonfire night (explanation here for anyone who has no idea what I'm talking about!) and went to the village firework display - our first night out alone for nearly a year!

I'm helping out revamping and maintaining the website for the bookshop where my Mum works (unpaid but good experience!) and finally put in the application to edit the village newsletter. The village is thinking about buying land for allotments so we're now on the list and there have been discussions about getting chickens and a dog!

On a more serious note we had some sad bits too; my Dad had a bad fall and hurt himself quite badly and Rich's aunt was seriously unwell. I'm pleased to be able to say though that both are recovering now but it was a worrying time and we are so relived the worst is over.

So, no blogging but there has been baking! It doesn't matter what else is going on, you will still be able to find me in the kitchen.

I love Biscotti but have never made it. For some reason I have always thought it would be hard to bake, I'm not sure why I thought that but it turned out to be incredibly easy. This recipe made about 20 slices, a decent amount when things seem to have a habit of disappearing very quickly in this house! If you don't have a bottomless pit for a husband and family who pop in daily to raid your goodie tin then they do keep for quite a while in an air tight container.

Chocolate and Almond Biscotti

125g whole almonds, roughly chopped

100g plain chocolate, chopped

250g plain flour

2 tbsp cocoa powder

150g caster sugar

1 tsp baking powder

3 larger eggs

Preheat the oven to 180oC and line 2 baking sheets with silicone liners.

Mix all of the ingredients, apart from the eggs, in a large bowl. Lightly beat the eggs and stir them into the dry ingredients until you have a ball of dough (It may be easier to do this with your hands. If the dough is too sticky, add slightly more flour)

Halve the ball of dough and form into two flat loaf shapes. Place on to the baking sheets and bake for approx 20 minutes. Remove the loaves and leave to cool. Do NOT turn off the oven.

Once the loaves are cool, slice into 1/4 inch slices and put back onto the baking sheets. Return to the oven for 10 minutes, then flip them over and bake for another 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, leave to cool and store in an airtight tin.

From Baking Magic by Kate Shirazi with Susannah Blake

Please excuse the mess!

2010-10-27T15:17:00.000+01:00

Dear unexpected visitors

Yes, it's lovely to see you and what a surprise! I had no idea you were visiting but come in, come in. I'd better warn you first though...

I have a 10 month old and a husband. My house is not normally tidy. You will have to pick your way across the ~~obstacle course~~ living room floor avoiding various bricks, books and stray, noisy plastic things. Try not to stand on a brick, it hurts and be on the look out for the odd biscuit that may be lurking around.

It's not a good idea to leave your bag on the floor, it will get chewed and I'm not sure that's the look you're going for. Still, it will add something to the crumbs that will attach themselves to your clothes after you've sat on the sofa. Piglet loves to hide her biscuit between the cushions. I try to hoover them up but they appear to be stuck on with glue. Sorry.

I can't guarantee an uninterrupted conversation. Piglet is now a formula one crawling baby and needs rescuing from some tight spot or other every few minutes. I also have to keep an eye out to make sure she's not trying to chew the electric cables, climb the coffee table or pull the TV onto her head. I'm rather fond of her you see and would hate for her to hurt herself.

The bathroom is not the sanctuary that you are used to. The bath is full of more brightly coloured plastic things and there may be a stray sock or two in there. More 'How to find the laundry basket' training is required for a certain adult in the house.

The washing up hasn't been done because Piglet woke up from her nap just as I finished baking so we played and then I found the cup of tea I started drinking over an hour ago. We thought we'd sit down to watch a bit of Cbeebies and I'd finish my tea when you arrived, so please excuse the mess in there.

However, I can offer you a piece of cake, a lot of fun and laughter all topped off by snuggles with Piglet. Okay?

Love

Me xx

PS If you could ring and give me 5 minutes warning next time, that would be great!

The cows are coming!

2010-10-20T06:38:00.000+01:00

I know I've said it before but Rich had lived in the city we moved from for nearly all of his life. He has never lived in a village or in the countryside.

He is slowly adjusting and enjoying it but sometimes he really does show his 'townie' side.

Cows seem to be a problem.

A couple of weeks after we moved up, Rich suggested we went for a walk and took Piglet to go and look at the cows again...

Rich: "Should we take something to feed them? You know, like when we go and feed the ducks"

Me: (a couple of seconds of stunned silence) "And what do you think we would take?"

Rich: "Um...carrots?"

Having established that the farmer really wouldn't be happy if he tried to feed the cows a carrot off we went. A nice walk down to the village shop and back with a stop off at the cow field just for ~~Rich~~ Piglet. I pointed out the bull to Rich and he seemed a little wary but I assured him that as long as he didn't go into the field he had nothing to worry about.

We wandered home and just as we reached the front door we heard the bull give an almighty bellow.

My big, brave husband's response?

"Quick! Get in! The cows are coming!"

Caramelised Apple Cake

2010-10-17T19:59:00.000+01:00

I seem to have ended up with a surplus of apples, some from Mum and Dad's garden and some left over from the Harvest Festival auction. A real mix of cooking and eating apples. Lovely but there's only so much apple crumble and pie you can make!

I wanted something different and apple cake has been a firm favourite for years. I was looking for a slightly diffeent recipe though and happened to go to Tesco's in one of the nearby towns. There I picked up a recipe card for Caramelised Apple Cake.

Made one wet and windy afternoon and served with cream it really hit the spot. This isn't a light cake by any means, rather it's a good old fashioned 'pudding' cake, meant for autumnal days, served warm with cream or custard!

Caramelised Apple Cake (Tesco)

4-5 Bramley apples (I used a mix of bramley's and various eating apples as that's what I had, it made no difference)

Juice of 1/2 lemon

275g light brown sugar

5 medium eggs

100g butter, melted

pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

215g plain flour

3/4 tsp baking powder

100g ground almonds

Preheat the oven to 180oC. Grease a 23cm springform cake tin and line the base with non-stick baking parchment.

Peel, halve and core the apples. Slice into 1/2cm thick slices and place in a bowl, sprinkled with the lemon juice and 50g of the sugar. Set aside.

Scatter a further 50g of the sugar over the base of the tin and cover with a layer of the apple slices, overlapping them slightly so they sit in concentric circles.

Beat the eggs, melted butter, remaining sugar, salt and vanilla extract together. Sift the flour and baking powder over the mixture, followed by the ground almonds. Add the remaining apple slices, including any juice, and fold together quickly.

Pour into the tin and bake for 50 minutes. Check it at 30 mins and if it's browning too quickly, cover with a layer of foil for the remainder of the cooking time.

Once baked, leave to cool for 10 minutes, then carefully turn out onto a plate so that the base is uppermost and you can see your apple slices. Serve warm.

Things we get to see now

2010-10-16T06:15:00.000+01:00

We were lucky that the city we moved from had a lot of parks and green spaces but since we moved it's just so much easier to see more of nature and other pretty places. I grew up seeing things like these on a daily basis so I'm glad Piglet has the same opportunity.

Fruity Flapjack

2010-10-12T20:26:00.000+01:00

Flapjack is popular in our house and rarely lasts long. It's something I've always made and it seemed to be the one thing made pretty much constantly in Home Economics in school, that and rock cakes for some reason! I have various versions that I make, all using the same basic recipe and then I just chuck things in or on top of it.

I blogged a couple of days ago about the harvest festival auction and how I ended up having to quickly knock something else up following a baking disaster the day before. Fruity flapjacks are quick, easy and always taste good.

Fruity Flapjacks

It's hard to give exact measurements for the dried fruit, I tend to just sling in handfuls of whatever I've got in the cupboard. In this version I used mixed peel, sultanas and dried dates but you could use any combination you like. How about dried apricots, sour cherries or even throwing some chocolate chips in there too.

These quantities make a large amount, you could half the recipe if you don't ~~have a family of human dustbins~~ need to make so much!

450g rolled oats

75g light brown sugar

300g butter

50g golden sugar

1 small handful of mixed peel

2 handfuls sultanas

1 handful dried dates, chopped

Preheat the oven to 190oC / gas mark 5 and grease and line a large tin (I use a brownie pan).

Melt the butter and golden syrup together slowly in a pan over a low heat.

Combine all of the dry ingredients in a bowl and then when the butter and syrup has melted together, pour over and mix well.

Press the mixture into the tin and bake for approx 25-30 minutes.

Place on a wire rack to cool and cut into squares whilst still slightly warm.

Lovely with a cup of tea in the afternoon!

Just because...

2010-10-11T20:11:00.000+01:00

We have been continuing with the 'Show Rich around the area' mission and went off to another nearby town today. This isn't the town that we normally go to to do our shopping but a much smaller, quainter place with some beautiful buildings a lot of history. I love going but like to make sure I have a bit of spare cash on me as I see so many things that I must have immediately! It's full of little shops and boutiques selling all of the things that I fall in love with on the spot and drool over in the glossy home magazines.

Today was no exception. Since the last time I was there, they have opened up a shop full of Emma Bridgewater and Cath Kidston stuff. Oh, I was in heaven! All of the usual CK range and some things I haven't seen before, including Cath Kidston pocket tissues and baby bottom balm!! Who knew?

Whilst I was hypnotised by all of the loveliness, Rich bought me this beautiful Cath Kidston mug as a 'Just because I love you' present. It certainly put a smile on my face and I've been drinking out of it ever since we got back!

Harvest Festival and an auction.

2010-10-10T22:04:00.000+01:00

I somehow got roped in to baking for the church Harvest festival auction today. Yesterday I baked a very disastrous cherry and almond cake. I still have no idea what went wrong, just one of those unexplained baking mysteries I think. It's a cake I've made several times before but I've never ended up with a cherry and almond brick before! So this morning you would have found me frantically making fruity flapjacks that were still cooling 2 minutes before we had to leave for church.

I'm not a massive fan of organised religion and am certainly not a church goer (I stopped going with my parents when I was about 13) but I do like the sense of community you get in a congregation. Sadly the congregation in the village is dwindling rapidly (as it is in all the villages around here) and there is a real danger that the vicar will be forced to cover a much larger parish. This would mean that the village would lose it's 'live-in' vicar and only have services in the village church on a rota basis!

The new vicar is fighting this and I do hope he's successful. I have a feeling he may be, he looks completely insane and there were a few moments in the service that I thought we had entered some kind of Carry On film but underneath that exterior there is a steely focus and determination to achieve his goals for the parish.

Anyway, Piglet was very well behaved for her very first outing to a church. She seemed to enjoy the hymns, tried to join in when the choir were singing and made her voice heard during the reading! Luckily all of this was met by understanding smiles and the odd laugh when she threatened to drown out the odd prayer here and there. She very much enjoyed the harvest lunch afterwards, sampling a bit of everything that was on offer.

The auction was a success and I think the church raised a fair bit of money. There was an embarrassing moment when I thought no one would bid for my flapjack but it raised £4 (one of the top earners!) in the end. We came away with 2 massive boxes of veg and a couple of jars of chutney, bargains for us and all in a good cause.

All in all, it was a lovely day. The sun was shining, friendly people and some good food. Sounds like a good combination to me!

Ripples

2010-10-07T05:34:00.000+01:00

The very lovely Liz from A Belle, A Bean and a Chicago Dog left this comment on my last post:

I'm so, so happy for you! Isn't it amazing how 1 life change can impact so much! Cheers to you being near family, with more space, a baby who sleeps much better and you getting some sleep yourself!

And it only really hit me last night how true it is. One life change has rippled out and changed so many things.

The depression I feared was coming back has lifted and I feel so much more relaxed. I feel like I can breathe again, though we still have some problems (mainly financial) we're trying to sort out, I know we can find a solution.

Piglet is thriving with more space. In the space of a week she has perfected her hands and knees crawl and is now pulling herself up to her feet using anything and everything as a support. She has taken her first (very!) wobbly steps holding tightly on to my hands and the pride on her face was one of the most amazing things I have seen. Her sleep is improving all of the time and she even took a 45 minute nap in her cot yesterday. This is unheard of, not only a nap of more than 20 minutes but a nap in her cot!!!

Rich and I have our evenings together again as Piglet is happy to go down in her cot and finally getting more than 4 hours broken sleep a night means that I'm not nearly so much of a grumpy cow at times! Rest and space has meant that I can feel my brain stretching again, I have a few plans floating about in my head that I am excited about. Our local newsletter is asking for a volunteer editor and I'm considering applying. It feels as if I'm waking up from a long sleep.

So, yes Liz, one life change has impacted on so many things and it's fantastic!

House to home.

2010-10-02T19:56:00.000+01:00

So here we are. Nearly a week after we finally made the big move and the house is starting to feel like home. I'm still tripping over unpacked boxes but all of the essentials are out and the kitchen is pretty much done. I don't know about you but the kitchen is the place I like to get sorted first. It's where I spend a large amount of time and it has to be just right for me to feel relaxed. Next comes the decorating, which I'm really looking forward to. My parents are in their element and love being able to see Piglet every day. Mum has taken to popping across every morning before she goes to work.

Flowers sent to us by a friend to welcome us to our new home.

Piglet is really enjoying all of the extra space and in the last couple of days her crawl has gone from commando style drag to a full on hands and knees crawl! You may have also seen on Twitter that her sleep has improved so much. She's now going down in her cot (with a bit of a battle) at about 6pm and is sleeping through until 5 or 6am. She wakes very briefly a couple of times a night but is settled and asleep again in less than 5 minutes so I can't even call them proper wake ups! This has been such a massive turn around, I'm so happy and slowly beginning to feel more human with a decent amount of sleep each night. I'm not sure whether it's having her own room, more space to wear herself out in or just good old fashioned country air that's helped but I'm not going to question it!

The view from the end of our road

So now comes the adjustment to village life. Well, for me it's just getting used to it again but for Rich it's a massive culture shock! He had lived in the city we moved from for 28 years and has never lived in a village. He's enjoying it but still feels a little overwhelmed with things I don't even take much notice of; hearing the cows in the field at the end of the road, seeing a tractor drive past and noticing the stars. Oh, the stars! It's completely amazed him exactly how much the light pollution in a city disguises the stars. On our first night I made him go out into the garden and look up. He stood there for ages just looking!

The view from the other side of the track

The one thing that's going to take me a while to get used to again is the bus service. Neither Rich or I drive so it's public transport for us. We're used to a bus coming along every 15 minutes but now it's every two hours. And if you miss that one, you have to wait another two hours! The nearest town is 12 miles away but it's 50 minute journey once the bus has gone around all of the villages! I used to do this twice a day, every day and remember the need for music or a book!

The village church

So now it's just time. Time to settle in, surround ourselves with out bits and bobs and time to truly make this our home. I know we made the right decision and I'm so glad we did!

Some of our new neighbours!

I'm still here...

2010-09-15T06:25:00.000+01:00

...just slowly disappearing under a massive pile of boxes!

I think posts from me will be few and far between until we're up in the new house. Packing seems to be dominating my life, how on earth did we manage to collect so much crap?! The flat now has that 'We're moving' look and there are boxes everywhere I turn. Two weeks. Two weeks today and we'll be loading up the van and driving up there for good. I'm really excited but also very aware that two weeks is not a lot of time to fit in everything I need to do. Never mind, one day at a time and we'll get there.

I know I haven't been commenting anywhere near as much as I normally do. I'm still reading but in snatched moments, so commenting has gone out of the window. Once we're up there, I'll be back to my normal commenting self!

When I'm not packing, I'm chasing Piglet around the flat as she has developed a very fetching commando type crawl to get herself about. Combine that with rolling and this kid can get herself anywhere. A larger space cannot come soon enough! I take my eyes off her for one second and wham, she's get herself under the coffee table, the sofa or in any seemingly too small a space and then needs rescuing. It's all fun though and she's very pleased with herself.

So, please bear with me. Normal service will resume shortly!

Boxes, boxes and even more boxes.

2010-09-05T06:30:00.000+01:00

(Image credit)

So if you saw my tweets on Friday you'll already know that we got the house. If not...we got the house! We move at the end of this month. I am incredibly happy and excited, even if I'm starting to feel a little overwhelmed with exactly how much there is to do in a short space of time.

The house was lovely. No photos this time but we are going up again this coming weekend to do some decorating so I will take some then. The bedrooms aren't massive but they are big enough and there is masses of storage space. The living room is gorgeous with a lovely dark wood floor and beams on the ceiling! Though the kitchen isn't that much bigger than the one in our flat now, it's laid out differently so I have about double the cupboard space and worktop. The garden isn't huge either but I wasn't expecting it to be, there's enough room for Piglet to play though and for a little table and chair set.

As soon as Rich and I walked in on Thursday we knew it was right. It's one of those houses that has a very friendly, happy feeling. It felt like home. Our landlady is lovely and it helps that she is a friend of Mum's. She has said that we can decorate it however we want which is amazing considering that our current landlady won't even let us hang pictures on the wall.

The packing has started and the flat is already beginning to get that empty feeling. I have a list that runs to 5 pages long and there is a massive amount to do but it doesn't matter, we're on our way to our new home.

On the move (I hope!)

2010-08-30T07:27:00.000+01:00

So I explained that part of the reason why I was feeling so down at the moment is that we had been hoping to move nearer to my family but that it just wasn't possible at the minute. Well, it looks like fate has decided to step in.

On Friday night my Mum phoned to say that there is a house for rent in the village where her and Dad live. On the same street as them! It's a 3 bedroom house with a garden for Piglet. Lots more space than we have now (we're currently in a one bedroom flat with a garden that I can just squeeze a washing line into) and for about a third less rent!

(This is actually part of Mum's garden but as it's literally across the street, I think Piglet will be able to play in it!)

It's funny how things work out. I've always been a great believer in things happening for a reason and that everything does work out eventually if you just hold on. Sometimes when I get down though, it's hard to keep hold of those thoughts.

The village is where we moved to when I was 16. My Grandparents needed nursing and Mum was worried that if something happened she wouldn't be able to get to them in time so we moved out there. At the time I hated it. We'd lived in the town since I was 3 so it was far too quiet for me, I was restricted by the buses as to when I could see my friends and all of the village kids had grown up together so I was a bit of an outsider.

It's perfect for us now though. There are 2 shops, a doctors surgery, the primary school gets excellent OFSTED reports (even though we won't be needing that for a while!), the mother and baby group is active and it's surrounded by beautiful countryside. Oh, and don't forget built in babysitters!

We're going to look at it on Thursday but it's likely that we will take it. Mum has described it to us and it sounds perfect for what we need at the moment. It needs a few things doing but nothing we can't sort out. I'm so happy. Even though it means a move of 80 miles, leaving Rich's family and our first home together it also means that we can provide Piglet with the home and lifestyle we can't here. Or at least we can't here within our budget.

It looks like things will work out, just as I should have trusted that they would in the first place!

Friday Flip-Offs! 27/08 edition

2010-08-27T07:23:00.000+01:00

It's Friday, so it must be FlipOff time! The fabulously cathartic meme brought to us by Gigi over at Kludgy Mom.

Before I start Flipping, I'd like to thank everyone who commented on yesterdays post. I was so nervous once I'd hit publish but I received some really lovely comments of support. Just writing about how I am feeling has helped a little and knowing that there are people reading who understand and support me has been amazing. Thank you, it's meant so much to me.

Secondly, I would like to thank Gigi for letting me host last weeks Flips for her. If you didn't see it, she was busy being the Featured Blogger over at Theta Mom - go and check it out! Thanks to everyone who linked up here, I hope you enjoyed your little visit to the UK!

Ok, let's get on with the flips!

To drying laundry indoors - It's August, I shouldn't have to be trying to get all of the washing dry indoors, you should be hanging out on the line, drying nicely in the sun. All of the rain has meant that I've had to hang you up around the house and it takes you double the amount of time to dry. You annoy me, look messy and I keep walking into the overhead airer - Flip Off!

To people who prefer to make underhand little comments rather than say what they mean - For Gods sake, grow some balls and get on with saying what you mean. I can't be doing with snippy little comments that I can't really call you on. Stop being so childish, you're 63, you should be above this. Say what you really want to, let me respond and then let's move on, it will be so much easier for both of us!

I could go on and on this week so I think I'll leave it at that, the two things that have annoyed me the most this week! So what's been annoying you? Why not join in, Flip things off and link up, you'll feel better!

Is it back?

2010-08-26T06:24:00.000+01:00

I have fought a battle on and off since I was 16. I have won each time but sometimes it was taken a hell of a lot to win the battle. I fear I may have another fight on my hands.

I battle with depression. I know I'm not the only one and I've noticed several posts popping up in recent weeks about it. I've debated blogging about this for several days now and even as I type I'm not sure if I will hit the Publish Post button, but it's becoming more and more obvious that something's not quite right.

I'm hoping that I'm wrong, that it's just a combination of being over tired and stressed. Life isn't easy at the moment, we have some money problems and Piglet's sleeping even less than normal due to teething and a growth spurt. We had been talking about moving up to my home town to be nearer to my family but it's just not possible and I'm really disappointed. There are some other things going on as well that I can't write about at the moment out of respect for the people involved.

It's as if I can feel it hovering in the background, debating whether to come in and land. I'm losing interest in the things I enjoy (which is why there have been fewer posts here recently), everything seems like a lot of hard work and I just want to sleep. All my warning signs are there but I'm still hoping that it's circumstances rather than depression.

I still have good days where the threat seems to have receded, I still laugh and play and take joy in Piglet's antics. I can still get fired up and try to find another solution to our problems.

I've been off medication for four years now. I survived a rough patch a couple of years ago without them but if I think this is more than a wobble I will go back on them. I have to make sure I'm ok for Piglet, I don't want her to ever look back at her childhood and remember a 'Sad Mummy', as I do with mine.

I have given myself a week. A week to figure out what's going on. A week to dig deep and find the energy to chase it away. If it's back I will fight in every way I can and I will win.

Who makes your birthday cake?

2010-08-25T06:39:00.000+01:00

I have been tagged by the lovely Amy over at Cooking, Cakes and Children with the meme 'Who makes your Birthday cake?'

Um...the short answer is no-one, Mr Supermarket baker or me.

To be honest I could only remember one birthday cake from when I was a little girl - a glorious pink affair with a picture of a My Little Pony on the top. I asked my Mum and she said that as she is such a terrible sponge baker she always bought my birthday cakes from the supermarket and stuck candles on the top.

A few years ago a friend took to buying me one from Thorntons, which they sadly don't seem to do any more. It was a chocoholics dream; chocolate sponge layered with chocolate buttercream, covered with more chocolate and then decorated with chocolate shavings and truffles to pick off!

Last year Rich and I got married on my birthday so now the cake is more of an anniversary cake than birthday cake. For our wedding a friend made our cake as our present. It had a tier of iced fruit cake and then two tiers of individual chocolate and vanilla sponges. Thinking about it, that was the first time anyone had actually made a cake on my birthday, even if it wasn't actually for my birthday!

Rhubarb and Ginger Cake

2010-08-23T07:23:00.000+01:00

When I was a little girl I spent a lot of time at my Grandparents house. My Mum was a single parent until I was 3 and had to work so I stayed with them a lot and once she met my Dad it carried on. I loved going there and they were so used to it that it just seemed natural.

My Grandparents had two gardens. A small lawn near the front of the house and then a large sprawling plot at the back that was more allotment than garden! Granny had a space to grow her roses, her absolute favourite flower. I never knew what types they were but remember a sea of different colours. Grandpa grew fruit and veg. It seemed at the time that there was pretty much every type going. All the basics plus beetroot, gooseberries and rhubarb. They also shared several apple and plum trees with their neighbour.

I used to spend hours there with Grandpa and his dogs. He'd be weeding or digging up veg. I'd be either playing amongst the bushes or looking after my own little patch. Granny would pop out mid-morning, have a look at her roses and collect whatever vegetables she needed for dinner. Over time both Granny and Grandpa got ill and eventually they had to move to sheltered accomadation. Mum helped them tend their new, much smaller garden but I know Grandpa missed his plot dreadfully.

I long for a garden where I could grow some of our own food but our current garden is so small there just isn't any room. My mother-in-law has been growing runner beans this year and we've had some of those but her neighbours have managed to cram a tremendous amount into their garden. Last week we were given the last of their Rhubarb with a request to make something and bring it across at the weekend.

(Please excuse the photo's. A combination of a very dark cake and an overcast day didn't make ideal conditions!)

I eventually decided on a Rhubarb and Ginger cake given we have eaten our own bodyweight in crumble already! There was so much rhubarb that I made two, one for us to keep and one to take over. I settled on this recipe from the BBC Good Food website. It doubled well and once everything was chopped was very easy.

It's very moist and sunk slightly when it came out of the oven. As with most ginger cakes it's best made a day or two beforehand so it can turn into a deliciously sticky cake, though it is very tasty on the day. The recipe calls for crystallised ginger but I only had a jar of stem ginger which still worked well. I will be baking this again but next time I think I will substitute some, if not all, of the light brown sugar with dark muscovado.

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-08-20T02:30:00.000+01:00

It's Friday so it's Flip Off time! This week I have the honour of hosting FFO for Gigi at Kludgy Mom, I hope everyone has found their way over here to the UK ok. Oh, and have you seen Gigi's exciting announcement?

So, without further ado, let's get flipping

To teething - I know you need to happen, I know you will end but you are making poor Piglet so unhappy. She's in pain, has a poorly tummy and is sleeping even less than normal. That means I have even less sleep which does not make me happy. You're also making Piglet suffer by having two teeth come through at the same time. Just hurry up, do your thing and then Flip Off!

To our mattress - You used to be so comfy but in the last couple of weeks you've decided to get all lumpy. Sleep is very precious to me at the moment, you are not making it a very comfortable experience! You are annoying me now so Flip Off!

To the weird clicking noise in my shoulder - you may be there because of the mattress. You may be there because Piglet is getting heavier and carrying her about is hard work. Whatever. You're annoying and slightly painful. I could really do without you so Flip Off!

So there we go, it's been a pretty good week for me. The linky is below as normal. I hope it works, if not give me a shout and I'll try and sort it out. Please try and visit a few people whilst you're here, FFO's are always a fun way to meet new people and find some great new blogs. I'm looking forward to getting round to you all to say Hi. Thanks for coming!

Toffee Pecan Ring

2010-08-19T06:56:00.000+01:00

This months challenge for Bake It! was a Toffee Pecan Ring. I loved the look of it and was fairly certain that it would be a hit in our house.

A doughy ring filled with brown sugar, pecans, chocolate chips and Rolo's, baked and then drizzled with chocolate. What's not to like?!

This was quite easy to do but looks impressive. Make the dough, fill it, roll it up, cut and bake but it produced a few 'Oooo's' which are always appreciated! There was also the advantage that I had to buy the Rolo's in a pack of 5 so there were 4 packs left over for late night nibbling!

I'm going to send you over to Amy's blog for the recipe so you can also see the other amazing recipes she has, as well as some fab ideas for things to do to entertain the kids!

Autumn is on the way

2010-08-18T06:49:00.000+01:00

Apple and Blackberry Crumble Tart

2010-08-14T07:19:00.000+01:00

*I think there's actually a proper name for this but for the life of me I can't remember it! If you know please tell me!*

I've said before that I think life is too short to make your own puff pastry, so now I have to confess that I do keep in a supply of sweet pastry and crumble topping. They are used rarely but are perfect for the days where I need to bake but only have the minimum time. As an aside I never use cake mixes, not because there is anything wrong with them but because I don't think they are that much quicker than mixing a sponge from scratch.

Anyway, back to the tart. I love the combination of Apple and Blackberry, it just seems to sum up late summer so well. My Granny used to make an Apple and Blackberry pie which was just so good, she usually served it with ice cream but as a special treat we would occasionally have it with cream.

Despite it being August the weather here has been distinctly autumnal, windy and rainy with a definite chill in the air. Perfect weather for a slice of tart and cream or custard for pudding. A serious lack of time meant that my emergency supplies had to be put to good use. This was the result and it certainly went down well.

It's hard to give precise measurements because when I'm adding to shop bought ingredients I tend to use a sprinkle of this and a handful of that to our own personal tastes.

Apple and Blackberry Crumble Tart

1 pack of sweet pastry

Ground almonds

2 Bramley apples

3 good handfuls of blackberries

Light brown sugar

1 pack of crumble topping

Preheat oven to 190oC. Grease and line the bottom of a 22inch springform tin.

Peel, core and slice the apples.

Roll out the pastry and line the tin with it. Cover the bottom with a handful of ground almonds.

Mix the apples and blackberries with a good sprinkle of light brown sugar and pour into the pie case.

In a bowl mix the crumble topping with another handful of ground almonds and some more sugar.

Cover the top of the pie with the mix and bake for approx 50 mins to 1 hour. Check it after 45 minutes and if it looks like it's going too brown then cover loosely with foil. It's done when the apples are softened.

Take out of oven and leave to cool in the tin. Serve with cream, ice cream or custard.

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-08-13T07:38:00.000+01:00

It's Friday so it's Flip Off time. The meme brought to us by Gigi from Kludgy Mom, a cathartic means to getting rid of those stresses before the weekend. I could have a very long list this week but I think I'll stick to my normal three!

To the electric company - I had to flip you off before when you raised our bill by 50% so why did I get another statement from you this week saying that you are going to raise the bill again by a further 25%?!? There is no way we can afford it, you're crippling us already. It's amazing that when I rang you and complained that you are hiking the price within a 2 month period that you backed down and kept it the same as it was! You advertise yourself as the company that cares but all you care about is money - Flip Off!

To the freezer - You are essential to our lives so why the hell have you died?! I've now had to throw away a whole pile of food that I can't save, there's only so much we can eat. At least you had the grace to die within warranty so hopefully you will be replaced by a nice shiny new model - Flip Off!

To this week - You started off really well with Piglet having her first overnight stay at Granny's but you've rapidly gone downhill. You've thrown one thing at me after the other and not let anything go to plan. You've not been nice and I'll be glad when you're over - double Flip Off!!

So there you go, that feels better. If you don't normally join in then why not give it a go this week, you'll feel better! Link up or go and read other Flip Off's here.

Piglet's off to the pub!

2010-08-11T06:58:00.000+01:00

Thank you to everyone who commented on my last post about Piglet going to her Granny's overnight for the first time. It helped to know that other people had felt the same and that I wasn't just being daft!

Well, I'm happy to report that it was a major success! Piglet went off quite happily (I however cried for about an hour!) and had a fabulous time. She was taken to the pub where she got to sit in the pub garden, people watching and being fed highly inappropriate food for an 8 month old. Luckily I didn't have to deal with the results of it!

She was entertained for hours watching my parents cats and trying to grab chunks of their fur, was hardly put down and somehow managed to convince my Mum that the best place for her to sleep was in the big spare bed with her! She came home exhausted but clearly very happy and even cried when they left.

And me? After the tears, I had a long soak in a hot bath with a book, even managing to top the hot water up twice, napped, baked and read the weekend papers (including the ones from the weekend before!). We relaxed, rested, watched TV and ate a massive Indian takeaway.

Even though I missed her terribly, the break showed me exactly how tired I have been and much we needed a break. Though I didn't catch up on nearly enough sleep, not having to run around from one job to the other helped. I now feel much more relaxed and able to deal with the early starts (though oddly, Piglet has slept until 5.30/6am for the last two mornings!).

Piglet will be going to stay with them again. My parents are talking about making it a semi regular thing which I think can only be a good thing. I get a chance to rest, they get to increase their bond with her and Piglet gets to go to the pub!

Your first time.

2010-08-06T06:32:00.000+01:00

I want to know what your first time was like.

Was it hard? Did you worry about it? What did you do?

Tell me about the first time that your baby stayed away over night without you?

I know it's Friday and I usually Flip Off with Gigi over at Kludgy Mom but I need to ask you about this instead. I'll be Flipping Off again next week.

Piglet is going to stay at my parents on Sunday. She is being picked up Sunday morning and coming back Monday lunchtime. I am completely divided by this. Part of me is looking forward to the chance to rest and relax. The other part is upset at the thought of being without my baby girl.

My Mum rang at the beginning of this week to say that she and my Dad had been talking and wanted to offer to have Piglet for the night. She said they have been worried about me recently. Worried about the constant lack of sleep (usually 4 hours a night if I'm lucky), that I'm getting run down, taking on too much and never really had a chance to recover from Piglet's birth (a rough time, future blog post maybe?). Mum said that I often sound down when she speaks to me (exhaustion will do that!).

I didn't really know what to think. Rich and I have agreed because we know it needs to happen. We know I need a break, that I need a chance to rest, relax and gather some energy. We also know that we need some time to be together, just us. It sometimes feels like we have lost sight of 'us'. Lost sight of our marriage through the tired haze, the constant onslaught of sleepless nights and napless days with a very energetic, active nearly 8 month old.

The thought of her being away scares me. I've been in tears a few times already just thinking about it but I know it's for the best. I know she will be fine, will be safe and will have a great deal of fun being spoilt by Granny and Grandpa (who she has wrapped around her chubby little fingers!). I worry. I worry that she will hurt herself somehow, that she will be confused, that she will miss me, that she won't miss me...Stupid huh?

So I'm trying to turn this on its head. From Sunday morning I have 24 hours. 24 hours of peace. 24 hours to do whatever I like, with no interruptions, no leaping up to make bottles, no nappies to change. 24 hours to read, rest, have fun with Rich, take a long bath and fall asleep knowing I won't be woken at 4am. All the things I've been fantasising about for months!

So please tell me. What was it like the first time your kids went away for the night? Did you find it easy to relax once they had gone? Am I just being silly or is it normal to feel like I do?

Chocolate and Almond Whirls

2010-08-03T07:23:00.000+01:00

Often time is tight in our house and I need something that is quick to bake but still tastes great. I have no idea where I originally got the idea for these from but I've been baking them for a while now.

I have to confess that I think life is far too short to make my own puff pastry. I use shop bought and always have a couple of blocks in the fridge. I also have to confess that chocolate spread is a staple in our house, whether it's a jar of milk chocolate spread or Nutella. There's something ridiculously comforting about a slice of toast covered with chocolate!

These little chocolaty, almondy pastries are lovely. Just right with a cup of coffee or a for a sneaky breakfast chocolate hit! They don't keep well so it's best to eat them on the day they are baked, not that it's hard to do so!

Chocolate and Almond Whirls

1 x 500g block of Puff Pastry

Chocolate Spread (it's hard to give precise measurements as it's down to personal taste but I tend to use about 6 good tbsps)

Ground almonds

Light brown sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 200oC and grease 2 baking trays.

Roll out the pastry in a rectangle to a depth of about 4mm.

Spread the pastry with the chocolate spread right to the edges and sprinkle with the ground almonds until the chocolate is covered.

Roll the pastry up from the long side, so it resembles a Swiss Roll.

Cut into rings of about a width of 1cm and place on the baking trays.

Sprinkle with sugar and bake for approx 20 mins but please keep an eye on them as everyone's oven is different and you don't want burnt whirls!

Cool on a wire rack. Can be eaten warm or cold.

You could also use Nutella and chopped, toasted hazelnuts for a slightly different whirl.

A sweet torture

2010-08-02T06:40:00.000+01:00

Tick, Tick, Tick.

It's 4am and I've already been up with Piglet for an hour. The lamp is on low and News24 is quietly keeping me company. Piglet is on her play mat playing with her lion and 'reading' her book. She has had her milk and is wide awake, ready to start the day.

The sky is starting to lighten, the birds are beginning their dawn chorus. I can hear a car starting, someone is on an early shift. I can see the light on in the house over the road. I know other people are awake; other mums with their sleepless babies and Twitter shows me that my American friends are still enjoying their evenings.

It just feels like me and my baby girl though. Piglet and sleep are not friends, they never have been. She finds the world too exciting and wants to be up and doing, no matter how little sleep she has had. She doesn't like naps because she may miss something exciting.

As Piglet doesn't sleep it means I don't sleep either. As much as I am exhausted and crave sleep there is something special about the hours when it is just her and I alone in the world. A sweet torture of a special time with my baby but at the cost of my own need to rest.

5am and I decide to join the online world. 5.30am and other mums come on, other mums with a need for the #badnightcoffeeclub. Coffee in hand, Piglet being entertained by Cbeebies, I finally begin to wake up and feel more alert. I chat with friends on line, we swap stories of our bad nights and plans for the day ahead.

6.30am and I hear next door leave for work, there are more cars on the road now and the sky is light. I see the man from down the road pass by with his dog and the reluctant jogger make his way towards the park.

7am and it is what most people consider morning. I can hear more and more people out on the street, people leaving for work, calling reminders about packed lunches and late meetings.

7.30am and it's time to start Piglet's breakfast. My sweet torture is over for another night, it's time to get on with the day.

Chocolate and Beetroot Cake

2010-07-31T07:00:00.000+01:00

I think beetroot is one of those things that you either love or hate. I love it and am always transported back to my childhood when I eat it. My Grandpa used to grow it in his garden, along with a hundred other types of fruit and veg.

These ugly things are nothing to look at from the outside but cut them open and you find their secret. A fabulous deep purpley red jewel like flesh with a distinctive earthy taste. My Granny used to serve it boiled or grated raw in salads and my Mum roasts it to perfection with balsamic vinegar. It's also fantastic pickled in a cheese sandwich.

The first time I heard of Chocolate and Beetroot cake I really wasn't sure about it. I couldn't quite imagine how it would taste but I was also intrigued and finally got round to baking it this week. And I am so glad I did, I think this has taken one of the top places on my favourite cake list! The beetroot keeps it incredibly moist and it has an almost fudge brownie quality to it. Everyone says you can't taste the beetroot and it's true but it does give the cake a fruity undertone, which I loved. The cake I baked has a sour cream chocolate icing which helps to cut through the richness.

I'm not normally a plate and fork kind of girl when it come to eating cake but in this case there is little choice, a combination of the moistness and the icing make it very messy to eat but it is so worth it. If you do make it, please remember to wear gloves when you're peeling and grating the beetroot, the stains are hard to get off your fingers!

The recipe I used was this one from the delicious magazine website. When I bake this again this is the recipe I'll use and unusually I don't feel the need to make any changes.

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-07-30T06:24:00.000+01:00

It's Friday so it's Flip Off time! The cathartic weekly meme brought to us by Gigi over at Kludgy Mom. I look forward to this every week as I know I'll feel so much better afterwards!

Only one thing to Flip Off this week, so let's get started...

To Bloggers Block - or whatever the hell you are. I have ideas for posts, I have a few skeleton drafts but that's it. You won't let the words come properly and I'm starting to get really annoyed with you. I sit down at the laptop trying to write but then, wham, you put up some kind of wall in my brain and I can't get the words past it! I enjoy blogging, I enjoy writing and I miss it. But I know the more I try and fight you, the more you're going to dig your heels in. So I'm just going to relax and wait until you Flip Off!

That's it! Apart from this it's been a pretty good week. If you've got things that have been annoying you this week, then why not join us and get rid of them before the weekend!

WW - A little treat for me.

2010-07-28T07:08:00.000+01:00

A little treat for myself whilst out shopping!

Bake It! Lemon Squares

2010-07-27T06:46:00.000+01:00

The fabulous Amy over at Cooking, Cakes & Children has started a group for us bakers and I'm so excited! Bake It! baking club looks like it's going to be fun. Each month Amy will post a recipe for us and then at the end of the month we can link up and see how we all got on, there's also a Flickr group.

This month the recipe was Lemon Squares, a light lemony topping on a crumbly shortbread base. I've never made these before but they are delicious. I can see these being popular on a picnic or just with a nice cup of tea in the afternoon. Lemons always seem such summery things to me, even though my first love is chocolate, I hanker after a sharper taste as it gets hotter so I can see these making a reappearance in my kitchen.

Lemon Squares

For the base

250g plain flour

75g icing sugar

175g butter, chilled and diced

pinch of salt

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

For the topping

Juice and zest of 2 unwaxed lemons

4 eggs, beaten

225g caster sugar

50g plain flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

Icing sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 180oC and grease a baking tray (approx 24cm x 24cm x 4cm)

Place all of the shortbread ingredients into a food processor and combine until it looks like fine breadcrumbs. I rubbed the butter into the flour and icing sugar by hand as the processor is lurking at the back of the cupboard!

Tip the mixture into the tin and press down.

Bake for approx 15 minutes until golden brown. Take out but leave the oven on.

Whilst the shortbread is baking, prepare the lemon topping.

Combine all of the topping ingredients in a food processor until a thin batter is achieved. I whisked mine by hand and it still took very little time.

Pour the mixture onto the shortbread and return to the oven.

Bake for approx 15 minutes until the topping is just set.

Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Once cold, cut into squares and dust with icing sugar.

Makes about 20 squares.

The first month of Bake It! was fun and I'm looking forward to next month. This time there's also a little prize so good luck everyone!

It's just like riding a bike!

2010-07-24T05:47:00.000+01:00

Only I can't.

Yes, this is me confessing to you that at the grand old age of 30, I cannot ride a bike.

I know, I know. Everyone can ride a bike. Kids can ride bikes. It's just one of those things that everyone can do. Well I can't.

Or at least I can't at the minute. I being ~~forced~~ encouraged to learn by Rich. We've just had to get him a bike as in a few weeks he'll no longer be able to get a lift to work. No buses go near his workplace in time for the start of his shift and a taxi will cost far too much, so that kind of left a bike. He hasn't ridden a bike in years but assures me that he'll be fine and it's not something you forget. I know that but I'm slightly worried he's overestimating his fitness level!

My parents tried to teach me when I was little and it started off really well. They bought me a lovely, shiny pale blue bike I called Betty (What? Betty is a great name for a bike! As an aside, my sewing machine is called Betty as well). I was perfectly happy with my stabilisers, zooming around the park. But the day came for them to come off.

My parents were excited and did the whole running along behind me, holding the seat thing. It worked well for a while until I had to turn the corner. I hadn't realised Dad had let go. As I saw him in the distance, I panicked, wobbled and hit the kerb. I went flying over the handlebars, hitting the pavement with a thump. Blood and tears followed and I refused to get back on. Ever.

So here we are, 20 plus years later and I've never got back on a bike. Rich has dreams of family bike rides and really wants me to learn, so I'll give it a try. I don't want Piglet to think it's ok to give up on something just because it didn't quite work out the first time so I have little choice really. I'm really not sure how this will go, I have no sense of balance and am so clumsy I can fall over nothing and I'm not sure that's a good combination for learning to balance and move on two wheels!

So if you see a strange woman in the park this weekend, attempting to ride a bike whilst padded up like a Michelin Man then come and say Hi because it will be me!

If only they did this in an adult size!

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-07-23T06:29:00.000+01:00

It's Friday therefore it must be Flip Off time! The fabulous weekly meme brought to us by Gigi at Kludgy Mom. A very cathartic way to get rid of those annoyances before the weekend.

To the downstairs neighbours - You appear to have a problem with Piglet waking up at 4am. Tough shit, she's 7 months old and doesn't know any better. All she knows is she's awake, would like some milk and needs her Mummy. You on the other hand are adults who should know that coming in at 3.30am and playing your crap music so loud that I can feel it vibrating through the floor is not acceptable. I don't care whose birthday it is, you're idiots. Flip Off!

To the spot on my chin - I am 30, you do not belong here. As for arriving and then showing no signs of leaving a week later, it's just not on. You're seriously annoying me and you hurt, Flip Off!

To the electric company - I know we had a harsh winter but putting up our monthly bill by 50% is rough. Money's tight and it's hard to find extra. The only reason we had the heating on more was because there was inches of snow on the ground for weeks and we had a newborn baby, what else was I supposed to do. You're money-grabbing leaches but I have no choice but to use you. Flip Off!

And breathe. That feels so much better! If you've got things that have been annoying you this week then why not join in and link up? It's fun.

Coconut Ice

2010-07-22T05:48:00.000+01:00

Rich and I both remember this from our childhood but haven't had it in years. It was seen as a real treat and could always be found for sale at the school fete! I remember thinking it was so pretty and having made it now, I still think so. I can imagine making this for a Christmas present for someone with a sweet tooth, it would look lovely all wrapped up in a Kilner jar or a pretty box.

Although this is tooth-achingly sweet, the coconut stops it from being sickly. I don't know many people that could eat more than a couple of squares though!

It's best to leave this in the fridge overnight to set and dry out or else you don't get that crumbly texture you will remember so well.

Coconut Ice

12 level tbsp sweetened condensed milk (It's pretty much a whole 397g tin!)

350g (12oz) icing sugar

175g (6oz) desiccated coconut

A couple of drops of pink food colouring

Method

Line a 7 inch square tin.

Put the condensed milk, icing sugar and coconut in a bowl and mix thoroughly. The mixture should come together after a few minutes and you should be able to knead it lightly into a smooth ball.

Press half of the mixture into the tin and level the top.

Add a couple of drops of the pink colouring to the rest of the mixture and work it through. If you feel you need more colouring then add one drop at a time, working each addition in until you have the desired colour.

Press the mixture flat on top of the white layer.

Leave in the fridge to set, preferably overnight.

Cut into 36 (approx) squares and store in an airtight tin.

Wordless Wednesday - More Please!

2010-07-21T06:05:00.000+01:00

Then, Now and One Day.

2010-07-20T05:42:00.000+01:00

Then

There was time for long, lazy lay-ins with breakfast in bed.

We could watch a film without one of us falling asleep.

There were sweet nothings whispered in the dark.

There was romance and flowers.

There was time to play.

We would wake up in bed together.

We didn't snap and argue with tiredness.

It was just us.

Now

We are three.

We have made something that is just ours.

We have a completely different type of fun.

There are snatched kisses and more I Love You's.

There is a stronger, unbreakable bond.

I look into your eyes through the tired haze and still see the man I love.

You are still my heart, my world.

One Day

It will be just us again and we will miss this.

Hands Free Raspberry Jam

2010-07-19T06:23:00.000+01:00

One of the things that I have never tried to do before now is make jam. I have to be honest, the thought terrifies me! All of that thermometers and setting points, it just doesn't sound like something I'd do well at. I really want to try though. My Gran used to make her own jam and my mum still makes chutney every year. I love the finished product so much more than anything you can buy in the shop. Plus, there's something about making your own jam that screams Domestic Goddess at me!

So I decided to turn to Nigella and her recipe for Hands Free Raspberry Jam (from How to be a Domestic Goddess). With no temperatures and no setting points, it seemed like a good place to start. I wasn't sure it was right at first and tweeted that it might end up as a sauce for ice cream instead. It just seemed so runny!

I decided to put in the fridge and leave it until morning to see what happened. Well, it turned into jam! It's incredibly sweet and the taste is very intense but it's lovely. I used some to fill a chocolate sponge with vanilla buttercream and it was gone by the end of the weekend.

Hands Free Raspberry Jam

250g Raspberries

250g Caster Sugar

1 x 250 ml jar

Preheat the oven to 180oC / Gas 4

Place the raspberries and sugar in two separate bowls, so the fruit is spread out rather than piled up.

Place in the oven for 20 - 25 minutes until really hot.

Take the bowls out carefully and add the sugar to the raspberries. As you do so, it will liquefy and turn into a raspberry river.

Pour into the clean jar, cover and cool before storing in the fridge.

An embarrassing teenage moment

2010-07-17T07:18:00.000+01:00

Rich and I were talking about our most embarrassing moments the other night. I have so many but there's one that stands out above the rest.

When I was 16 I had a pretty steady group of friends. We'd spend most of our time together, shopping, going out, sleepovers, all the normal teenage girl things. I was particularly close to one girl - Debbie. We used to stay at each others houses a lot but there was one problem. Her parents didn't really like me. They thought I was a bad influence on her (oh, if only they knew what she got up to, she needed no encouragement from me!) and classed me as the 'wild' one in the group.

I don't think it was that I did anything worse than the others but looking back I think I just came across as much more streetwise. I met them when I changed schools (I was being bullied at the school I had been at, so my Mum took me out), they had all grown up in villages and I had been raised in a largish town since I was 3, I think it makes a difference.

Anyway. One evening I had gone over to Debbie's. We were going to a party at another friends house and Debbie's Mum had said she would drive us there and pick us up. Debbie, her Dad, brother and I were sat in the living room waiting for her Mum. The small talk was painful and we tried to watch the episode of The Simpsons that was on TV. After a few minutes, her Mum came in to say she was ready and we stood up to go. I bent down to pick up by bag and it happened.

I farted.

Right in her Dad's face.

Yep, I farted in her Dad's face. The man that already disapproved of me and I did that!

Silence. Tense, shocked silence broken only by her brother bursting into laughter, shouting "You farted! You farted! You farted!".

I have a habit of laughing whenever I'm nervous or embarrassed so my apology really didn't come across as sincere, though I did mean it. It wasn't long after that that school ended, Debbie stayed on for Sixth Form and I went to college, so we lost touch. We got back in touch recently on Facebook. Unsurprisingly, her Dad still remembers me.

(Image source)

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-07-16T06:24:00.000+01:00

This week has gone so quickly, I can't believe it's Friday already! So, if it's Friday, it must be Flip Off time! The weekly cathartic meme brought to us by Gigi over at Kludgy Mom. I love this, my favourite way to get rid of those things that have been bugging you before the weekend.

Whatever it was that made Piglet sick the other night - I don't know what you were but you made my baby girl wake up in pain and throwing up. Not only did it mean that Piglet was poorly, it meant I was covered from head to foot in vomit at 1am! I don't like that! Flip Off and don't come back. Ever!

To the space in our flat - Why are you shrinking?!?! I know we have a lot of stuff and Piglet's things take up a lot of room but you seem to get smaller every day. Flip Off, I need more room!

To my landlady, again - If I phone you there is obviously a problem. Turning your phone off and not getting back to me will not make it go away! Flip Off, I can't wait until the day we can hand our notice in to you!

There! So much better. If you got things that have been annoying you this week why not join in?

Berry Shortbread Cheesecake Slice

2010-07-15T02:45:00.000+01:00

As soon as I saw the cover of this months BBC GoodFood magazine, I knew what the first thing I would be making would be - Berry Shortbread Cheesecake Slice!

Given how hot it has been recently (despite the fact that it's pouring with rain at the moment!) this seemed like a lovely, summery thing to bake. Though it's not the quickest thing in the world to make, it's so nice it really is worth it. It's very easy, just involves a bit of waiting around!

Berry Shortbread Cheesecake Slice

For the base

200g pack of shortbread biscuits

50g butter, melted

For the cheesecake

2 x 300g tubs soft cheese

1 x 200g tub crème fraiche

1 tsp vanilla extract

175g golden caster sugar

2 tbsp plain flour

2 eggs

For the topping

5 tbsp seedless raspberry jam

300g mixed summer berries of your choice

Pre-heat oven to 180oC. Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin.

Blitz shortbread in a food processor until the biscuits are fine crumbs (or place in a bag and bash with a rolling pin!)

Add the melted butter and mix well. Press the mix into the base of the tin.

Beat the cream cheese, crème fraiche, vanilla and sugar until smooth, then mix in the flour and eggs until smooth again.

Pour the mix into the tin and level the top with a knife. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes, then turn the oven down to 120oC and bake for 1hr 20 mins or until set with a slight wobble in the centre. Turn off the heat and leave to cool in the oven. Once cool, refrigerate until chilled.

To make the topping, melt the jam in a small pan over a low heat with enough water to make a pouring consistency, then allow to cool completely. To serve, top the cake with the berries, drizzle with jam and serve in slices.

Serves 8

It's lovely and just the kind of dessert you want on a hot day. I had mine as it is but Rich had his served with a dollop of double cream!! I think this is going to be one of those things that I bake time and time again, especially if I need something that's easy but looks good!

I don't think this is allowed

2010-07-14T07:01:00.000+01:00

Nappy changes have turned into a fight with a wriggling baby now. Piglet is on the move in her own special rolling, leg thrusting way and it's great to see. But not so great when I'm faced with a monster nappy! Trying to control both baby and poop is not proving easy at times. I need more hands but until extra arm transplants become available I may have found a solution...

*I'm joking before anyone thinks about calling social services!*

Food for a little tum.

2010-07-13T06:18:00.000+01:00

Piglet may have issues with sleeping but one thing she's always been good at is eating! Right from when she was born she's had a healthy appetite. I started off breastfeeding but had to stop for many reasons. I was disappointed but I knew we had both done our best so had no real qualms about moving over to a bottle.

All I was concerned about was she put on weight quickly. She was born weighing less than expected (6lb 11oz rather than the predicted 8lb 14oz) and no one could tell me why. I really had no need to worry. She dropped very little of her birth weight and put on steadily each week. She's now 7 months and weighs a very healthy 20lb's!

We had to start weaning early, milk just wasn't satisfying her any more so at 4 and a half months we started introducing her to food. The health visitor agreed but to be honest I think I would have gone ahead anyway, all the signs were there and I very much believe you should be led by your baby, not necessarily the 'expert' guidelines.

She rejected baby rice (I can't say I blame her, have you tasted that stuff?! Wallpaper paste has more flavour!) but fell in love with mashed bananas and pretty much every type of vegetable we offered. She loves fresh fruit and now she's starting to feed herself, she loves nothing more than a bowl of raspberries and strawberries. She had her first blueberry over the weekend and they have rapidly become a firm favourite.

I think it's quite obvious that Rich and I both love food and it's something I really want to bring out in Piglet. Apart from the obvious no-no's I encourage her to try pretty much everything and haven't come across anything yet that she hasn't liked. I'm hoping that by giving her a wide range now it will limit the possibility of her being a fussy eater but we'll just have to wait and see!

Banana bread with a twist.

2010-07-11T08:15:00.000+01:00

Bananas are a staple in our house. We all like them and they were Piglet's first taste of 'real' food. I'll only eat them when they are still yellow, a little bit of black on them and I won't go near them. Rich and Piglet love them any way but there's only so many they can eat. So often there are a few really ripe ones kicking about the fruit bowl.

So with a few lost and lonely bananas there's only one thing to do - Banana Bread! A childhood staple of both mine and Rich's, there is something quite comforting about it. Quick, easy and fills the kitchen with a warm fug that just feels like home.

This time I baked one that was slightly different. A Banana and Malteser cake. Maltesers have teamed up with MyDish and Ella's Bakehouse to run a competition. You have to submit a recipe featuring Maltesers and as I love Maltesers it was relatively easy to come up with a few ideas! The prize is amazing. Not only will the winners recipe be baked and sold for one day at Ella's Bakehouse in Covent Garden (proceeds go to the charity of your choice!), they will also receive one of these...

...a limited edition KitchenAid Artisan in Candy Apple Red. I have lusted after these for so long now and that colour is gorgeous. I've never entered a competition like this before, I don't expect to win, there are some great entries already but it's been fun and a girl can dream! The competition closes at the end of this month so wish me luck.

Banana and Malteser Cake

175g butter, softened (plus extra for greasing)

175g golden caster sugar (plus extra for sprinkling on top)

3 eggs

3 medium ripe bananas, mashed

135g grab bag of Maltesers

175g self raising flour

Method

Preheat the oven to 160oC / gas 3 and grease and line a 2lb loaf tin

Mash the bananas, set aside. Blitz the Maltesers in a food processor until they are in little chunks. Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and beat.

Add both the bananas and Maltesers, mix until combined.

Add the flour and beat well.

Scrape into the prepared tin and bake for 45 minutes until golden brown and a tooth pick comes out clean.

Cool for 10 minutes in the tin and then finish cooling on a wire rack.

Supermarket hell.

2010-07-10T08:04:00.000+01:00

I've been doing my food shopping online since Piglet was born. She arrived in the middle of our coldest winter in 30 years and for the first 3 weeks of her life we were kind of snowed in. People could get about but with a newborn and a fresh c-section wound, I really wasn't going to risk it. Online was the only way to go. I love it, I sit down with a cup of coffee, order the food and a day or so later it arrives! Lovely.

I always forget something though and end up having to go to the supermarket anyway. And I hate the supermarket. I usually end up with trolley rage, muttering under my breath and issuing the occasional growl. It's a shame because I love food and could spend hours looking at it, dreaming of the things that I could make but something about the supermarket seems to bring out the inner idiot in everyone.

The wonky trolley, the tantrum throwing toddler and the badly thought through layout, all of that I can cope with. But the people. Oh God, the people!

Firstly there is the confused bloke. Sent by his wife (usually!) with a list. A list that makes perfect sense to everyone but the poor bloke, whose normal extent of food shopping is picking up a crate of beer and bumper bag of Doritos. The list reading bread, milk, eggs and nappies might as well be a list of rare items that would take days trawling the internet to find the one specialist shop carrying it. He stands there, usually right in front of where I need to be, picking things up and putting them down again. Sighing pitifully until a kindly shop assistant takes him under her wing.

Having got past him, I go on my way heading for the next item on my 'forgotten' list. Only to be brought to a sudden halt by the two women apparently holding some kind of meeting. Slap bang in the middle of the aisle, trolley's askew, there's no way past. They're gossiping so much about what Mrs Jones from number 32 has done now that they don't hear the polite 'excuse me'. They don't see me standing there. I wait a few seconds. No, no change. Right, nothing for it but to use my trolley as battering ram and plough a path through. Oh, now they notice! I get tutted and harrumphed as I go sailing past, throwing things into my trolley.

Ok, nearly done! I've got everything and head to the checkout. I stop and weigh up the best one to queue at, the longest might not necessarily be the slowest. No, too many items to go through the basket only till. Not that one, the 'I have a coupon for everything I'm buying' lady is there, taking forever. Ah ha, there! One person, big trolley but loading the belt quickly, looks like my best shot.

I get in line and wait. And wait. And wait. Turns out the cashier and her are good friends. Who only saw each other last night and therefore have a whole 12 hours to catch up on, plus the gossip from last girly night and the pros and cons of every single purchase. I wonder why I can never remember to order everything and I watch as Coupon Lady finishes and leaves.

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-07-09T06:52:00.000+01:00

It's Friday so it must be Flip Off time! The fabulously cathartic meme brought to us by Gigi from Kludgy Mom, that helps get rid of the things that have driven you mad this week!

So, without further ado, let's get flipping!

To the dentist that I flipped off last week, you are on my list again! I saw another dentist yesterday. He removed the bit you left behind but couldn't tell me if it was tooth or bone you had left sticking out of my gum. Because you're an idiot I've now had to go through two extractions, a course of antibiotics and a considerable amount of pain! I won't be back. Flip Off!

To the doctor I had to visit this week. You are condescending and unhelpful. You really need to work on both your bedside manner and your communication skills. I came to see you about changing my pill, not to talk about Piglet's sleep issues. For you to talk to me like you did, dismiss everything I said and completely ignore what I was trying to explain made me feel like a crap Mum. You have no right to make me feel like that and I'm not going to let you bug me. I know my daughter, you don't and you cannot form an opinion on a 2 minute meeting when I hadn't even come to you about that in the first place. Triple Flip Off!

To the weather. Please make up your mind. For the last few days you have been hot and humid but overcast and threatening rain all of the time. I can't keep having a wardrobe crisis every morning, it's hard enough finding something to wear without you adding to it. One or the other please. Flip Off!

Deep breath...exhale...that's better! So what's been bugging you this week? Come and join us, I promise you'll feel better!

Cherry Victoria Sponge

2010-07-08T07:09:00.000+01:00

Rich's favourite cake is a Victoria Sponge. It's the one he will choose time and time again, no matter what else is on offer.

A classic cake, with a lot of versatility. Generally the one we all learnt how to bake in Home Economics at school (do they still do that?) along with Rock Cakes and a Swiss Roll! It took me a long time to find the Victoria Sponge recipe that never fails but I did.

Nigella Lawson's recipe is fantastic, easy to remember, light and always a winner. Traditionally it should be filled with jam and cream but I needed one that had a bit more 'Oooo' to it. This is the version I made for a family afternoon tea at my mother-in-law's. Filled with vanilla buttercream and cherries, it certainly went down well.

Victoria Sponge

225g butter, softened
225g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 large eggs
225g self-raising flour
3-4 tbsp milk

Pre-heat oven to 170oC and grease and line two 9 inch sandwich tins.

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then add the eggs one at a time and the vanilla extract. Beat.

Add the flour and combine. If the mixture is stiff add the milk, it should be at a dropping consistency.

Divide the mixture between the two tins and bake for approx 25 minutes. They are done when golden brown and springy to the touch.

Cool on a rack until completely cold before filling.

Once filled, dust the top with icing sugar.

Like I said earlier, traditionally this should be filled with strawberry jam and whipped cream but you can fill it with pretty much anything you can think of. This is the same recipe that I use for a basic cupcake and the one I use if I'm trying out new combinations. It's fool-proof and stands up well to a bit of messing about.

I'm not really here!

2010-07-06T06:35:00.001+01:00

Today I'm over at the fabulous MummyinaHurry doing my very first guest post! I've got a recipe for Raspberry and White Chocolate Muffins so pop over and have a look. Natalie writes a great blog with some fantastic recipes so please take some time to have a look around too if you can.

Thank you to everyone who commented on yesterdays post, it was great to hear whether you thought you were happier now than before kids or if you felt you had changed as a person.

For those of you who were asking my whether my dentist will charge for another visit following his complete and utter mess up, here in the UK we get free prescriptions and free dental treatment whilst you are pregnant and for the first year after the birth. Not bad eh? It's one of the things that I love about this country, when it comes to public healthcare we are lucky.

*Edit: I know this isn't a post that you really need to comment on but I'm just editing to let you know that there is a problem with Blogger's comments. When you try and comment it looks like it's gone through but they aren't showing up on the post. This is way beyond my ability to sort out so we'll just have to hold on tight until Blogger sorts itself out! If you want to comment then go ahead, I get email notification when someone comments so I will be able to respond. You never know, they may show up at some point!!*

Do your children make you unhappy?

2010-07-05T07:52:00.000+01:00

"I've never been happier"

"My life is complete"

"It's made me a better person"

We've all heard (and probably said) these about having children but are we telling the truth?

I was reading an article yesterday, which suggests that new research has shown that having children makes us unhappy, we just won't admit it. One of the ultimate parenting taboos; "admitting that life might have been better before you had children"

I have to admit that it made for uncomfortable reading but was very thought provoking at the same time. I think as parents (especially as Mothers) we find it very hard to admit that being a parent may not be the best thing since sliced bread all of the time. We fear scorn and judgement if we occasionally admit that it can be difficult and ensure that we follow any negative comment with "I wouldn't change it for the world".

Before Piglet arrived I was never maternal, never wanted children and none of my family or friends ever expected me to have any. I once had a conversation with a friend who told me I was too "selfish" to be a Mum. That one comment haunted me throughout my pregnancy, I was terrified that she was right and that I would be the worst mother ever. I thought of all of the things that I would have to give up or put on hold and wondered if I would be able to do it.

Turns out I could. Easily. I know that the time in which Piglet will need so much of me is short lived, that soon I will be able to take up some the things I've had to put on hold for a while. I've been able to keep up with some of my interests, I just can't do them as often as I did before. I sometimes miss the freedom to go off and do something at the drop of a hat and I really miss being able to finish a cup of coffee whilst it's hot. I miss going to bed knowing that I won't have to get out until morning and I miss wallowing in the bath for hours. The rest? Not really, it'll all still be there in a few years time.

That doesn't mean that I don't find it hard though. A bad day following yet another sleepless night can leave me in tears. The frustration of a crying baby when you have no idea what's wrong and have tried every possible thing that you can think of has got to be one of the most frustrating things in the world. Realising that I have no clothes that don't sport at least one milk/sick/poo stain can make me feel like the least yummy mummy in the world. Maternal guilt follows me around constantly and I do everything through an exhausted fog. It's bloody hard work and that's without taking the daily household chores and other responsibilities into account!

The article also discusses the sociological view that today's parental pressures are caused by the quest for parental perfection, that "Children are at the centre of their parents' lives...our parents wouldn't have dreamed of spending so much time with their kids.". It's true that there is now a culture for Little Johnny to be taken to every class going to try and give him a head start in life, we see article after article talking about how childhood now is not like our childhoods where we were sent out to play and not expected back until dinner. We do spend a lot of time with our children and I don't think that's a bad thing but it is important to have a level of independence too, both for the child and the parent!!

So was life before children better? Was I happier? No, I don't think so, it was just different and I was different. My life is now a combination of endless worry, guilt and sleepless nights. But it is also full of love, toothy smiles and fun and I wouldn't change it for the world!

Friendship

2010-07-04T07:49:00.000+01:00

About 3 months ago I was feeling a little lonely. I love being a SAHM but sometimes it can be frustrating and I crave adult company. I was going to a baby group but, because I'm quite shy in real life, was finding it hard to make many friends.

The one close friendship I did have ended badly, resulting in me having to report her to the police for harassment and intimidation (I'll tell you another day, it still makes me sad at the moment). So pretty much the only people I saw on a regular basis were Rich, my mother-in-law and the mummy mafia. Yes, I know how sad that makes me sound but it was the reality.

Then I decided to start blogging again. I wanted a space to write, to have a record of Piglet's babyhood and to keep track at my attempts to improve my baking. Over a few weeks I reached out into the blogosphere and started to meet people. I signed up to communities, joined Twitter and suddenly realised that I was making friends.

A lot of people really don't get blogging or understand how you can count people you've never 'met' as friends, but I do. I have friends all over the world not just here in the UK. People that I have fun with, laugh and joke and share both the good and bad times. I know details about their lives as they do mine. That's the definition of friendship to me.

So whether you are a bloggy friend, a Twitter friend or both, I'm glad we've met and I'm proud to call you all my friends!

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-07-02T06:23:00.000+01:00

It's Friday so it's Flip Off time! The weekly stress reliever brought to us by Gigi over at Kludgy Mom. This is a fantastic way to get rid of all those annoyances before the weekend!

I've had a really good week this week so only have one thing to flip but it deserves a triple Flip Off!

To the Dentist

It took me a long time to build up the courage to go and see you, let alone for you to remove the tooth, so why did you have to mess up? Do you think it's acceptable to leave a bit of tooth behind? I don't. Plus it still hurts! Everyone said you were a fantastic dentist and I'm sure you normally are but this is not good. I know it was hard to get the tooth out in the first place but if I can see it (and feel it!) then surely you could too?!?! I now have to come back and see you again and I really, really don't want to do that - Flip Off, Flip Off, Flip Off!!

Oh, and an extra one for asking me questions and expecting a reply despite the sedative and a mouth full of scalpels, pliers and a drill! Idiot.

So that's it! I know I normally have a longer list but it's been a good week! Why don't you join in, it's fun and it helps. Pop over to link up your Flip's and see what everyone else is saying.

Socks, snow and swimming.

2010-07-01T07:20:00.000+01:00

We all have 'those' days, the days where you're not happy, nothing seems to go right and the only solution seems to be to eat your own body weight in chocolate!

For those days I have a list. A list in my head of the things that make me smile. Obviously there are the normal things that make me smile; Rich, Piglet, family, friends...but they're not on the list, they're a given.

1. Socks. Especially new socks. I don't know why but there is something about socks that makes me happy. It drives Rich mad because my socks rarely match but as very few people see them I don't think it matters. Besides, I like mis-matched socks!

2. Toast. Dripping with butter. Maybe with Marmite or jam. Or lemon curd. Toast always strikes me as such as a happy thing. Warm, comforting and always there, just waiting for you to make it.

3. Baking. I guess this one kind of goes without saying really but all of that measuring, mixing and waiting calms me. It gives me time to think or switch off, whichever I need. Plus there's something good to eat at the end!

4. Those 'Based on a true story' films. The acting's always shocking and someone usually dies but I love them. Bad day or crap weather, I love curling up on the sofa with a cuppa and a piece of cake ready to watch one of these little beauties.

5. Snow. As long as I'm in the warm and don't have to go out in it. Which leads on to...

6. Christmas. I'm one of those people that loves Christmas. The lead up to it, the lights, decorations, making presents. I'm also one of those sad people that keeps Christmas issues of magazines and will get them out and flick through in July! Christmas makes me happy.

7. Cake. Any kind of cake. Or biscuits. Or chocolate. Or ice-cream. As long as it's sweet and bad for you it will make me smile.

8. Having my hair brushed. Rich would kill me if I told you that he is happy to oblige me with this one. But he is. So calming, so relaxing and it usually makes me fall asleep.

9. Books. New books, second hand books or library books, it doesn't matter. I love them and the possibilities they contain. Fiction or non, any kind of book is great and I love just looking at them all lined up on our bookshelves.

10. Swimming. I don't get to go often now but, despite the obvious swimming costume traumas, I love it. I didn't learn until I was 9 but once I could, I found the only sport I could do.

So there's my list. 10 things that will put a smile on my face when it's been one of those days.

This was my first attempt at Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop. I picked the prompt "Write a list of ten things that are sure to put a smile on your face when you are not happy.".

Why don't you have a go too, it was fun. Pop over, choose a prompt and link up!

A plethora of choice!

2010-06-29T07:05:00.000+01:00

I love magazines.

Don't get me wrong, I adore books and always have one on the go but there's just something about magazines. Before Piglet arrived I'd read so many, mainly the glossies and I'd been a Cosmo girl for as long as I can remember.

I loved to stand in front of the rack in the newsagents, looking at the plethora of choice on offer and trying to pick. I had my regulars but could often be persuaded to buy another as well by a free gift or a catchy headline. I loved nothing more than curling up on the sofa with a cuppa and piece of cake, ready to pour over the pages. Fashion, beauty, recipes, reviews, all there for me to pick and choose from - the grown up (and calorie free!) literary version of kiddies pick and mix.

When I was pregnant with Piglet a whole new world of magazines opened up to me. Pregnancy and parenting magazines only fuelled the plethora of questions and choices I had to make. This or that pram? Should I have a birthing ball? Fashion was replaced with maternity clothes, changing bags and gorgeous baby-grows for Piglet.

Now money's tighter so magazines are a luxury that have had to more or less go. The occasional trashy mag, Mother and Baby or sewing magazine are a rare treat but still met with the same joy. It doesn't matter though because I've found a replacement. Blogs.

The plethora of choice here far outweighs the range of magazines and there is still something for whatever mood I'm in. Fashion, beauty, gossip, recipes, crafts, parenting advice or just good writing. All here at my fingertips. And, like magazines, some I dip in and out of and some I devour every 'issue'. What's better though is I can interact with the author and other readers, it's hard to leave a comment on a glossy page!

I'm linking this up to Word Up, Yo!, the very cool vocabulary meme brought to us by the Nerd Mafia aka Liz, Natalie and KLZ. This is different from a lot of meme's out there and a LOT of fun. They choose a new word each week for us to work into a post (can you guess what it was this time?!?) any time between Sunday and Friday. If you're very lucky you may be chosen to become a Nerd Mafia Made Man! So why not pop over, have a go and link up!

Food, Glorious Food.

2010-06-28T07:08:00.000+01:00

"The influence of the cook is immense upon the happiness of a household"

Mrs Beeton

Food has always been a really important aspect in my life. Some of my earliest memories are of helping my Granny prepare breakfast in the morning and my Grandpa cooking his special scrambled eggs on a Sunday morning.

My parents used to cook massive Sunday dinners, plates piled high with chicken, roast potatoes, stuffing and veg. When I was a little girl, they used to host amazing dinner parties. I remember laying in bed listening to the music playing quietly, them chatting and laughing with their friends and the scrape of knives on plates. I remember that I always felt happy and safe and wanting to have parties like them when I was older.

In my family, food has always been something to celebrate, something to welcome and something that makes things better. Everyday life, good or bad news, a time to comfort or celebrate, food was important. It's never just been viewed as something with a functional use, it's so much more than that and I think the quote from Mrs Beeton above is very true.

My parents really believed that food could help your emotions and so do I. A bad day would be soothed with comfort food; piles of mashed potatoes, toast dripping with butter or a bowl of warm, chunky soup. A good day or achievement was celebrated with favourite meals or a special treat. I remember having the Chicken Pox when I was 5 and my Mum bringing me bowls of warm bread and milk, vegetable soup and an ice-cream to try and tempt me to eat.

I carry on the tradition now. If there is something to celebrate, I will bake. If there is something to commiserate, I will bake. If you're happy, sad, annoyed, fed up or deliriously excited, I will bake. I was chatting on Twitter with my friend Katie from Sluiter Nation about this yesterday. It seems that food, especially baking, is one of the few things that covers pretty much every event there is and can usually put a smile on someone's face.

What about you? How is food viewed in your family?

Apricot and Marzipan Muffins

2010-06-27T07:33:00.001+01:00

So I treated myself to a new baking book, as if I don't have enough already! This one was on offer though and I've been looking at it for a while so I was obviously meant to get it, right?

Baking Magic by Kate Shirazi

There are some really yummy looking things in here and she's very keen on decorating her cupcakes so there are some lovely photo's to drool over. Oh, and for anyone who's gluten free there are a few recipes in here too so no one is left out!

I finally decided on the apricot and marzipan muffins. Mine didn't rise as much as they should but I realised afterwards I put in the wrong amount of baking powder! They're lovely and tasty though and just the thing with a cup of tea!

Makes 12

300g plain flour

1 tbsp baking powder

100g caster sugar

85g marzipan, finely grated

2 eggs, beaten

175ml milk

85g butter, melted

85g ready to eat dried apricots, chopped

Preheat oven to 200oC and line a 12 hole muffin pan.

Combine the flour, baking powder and sugar and sift into a large bowl. Sprinkle the grated marzipan on top.

In a separate bowl combine the eggs, milk and butter and then stir in the apricots. Mix with the dry ingredients until just combined (will still look lumpy) and spoon dollops into the prepared muffin tin.

Bake for 20 minutes until golden. Cool on a wire rack and dust with icing sugar to serve if desired.

I'm linking this up to Tasty Tuesday over with Alicia at A Beautiful Mess. Why not pop over and see some other yummy creations!

The one where Piglet auditions for Star Trek.

2010-06-26T07:42:00.000+01:00

This is Worf, he's a Klingon.

Over the last few days Piglet has become a Cling-on. She's always been a bit of a Mummy's girl but it's now getting ridiculous!

The problem mainly seems to be at night. When it comes to bedtime she just won't settle until she's beyond exhausted. She only seems to be happy if I put her on the sofa next to me and doesn't like me to get up and do anything that takes me away from her.

It gets so frustrating. Rich works until 8.30pm and Piglet generally goes to bed at 6.30pm. It may be selfish, well I know it's selfish, but those 2 hours are so precious to me. Yes, I do things like the washing up and getting dinner ready but it's also 'my' time. I get uninterrupted computer time and just a space where no one is wanting my attention or asking me for something. Is it wrong that I want that?

She is clingy during the day but it's more manageable. She's happy to go to pretty much anyone for a cuddle and a play as long as she knows I'm nearby. When she decides that it's only me that she wants, she seems to settle quickly and is happy to go back to whatever she was doing. I know in the day she just wants a bit of reassurance that I'm still there and I'm happy to give it to her. I want her to have the confidence to go and explore and make new friends, whilst knowing that I'll still be here when she gets back.

I just have no idea why this has started happening at bedtime. Any advice? Any ideas? Could it be teething even though it wasn't like this last time? She's with me all day and even though we don't do many groups, we do a lot of things at home together so I don't think she's trying to get attention she doesn't get in the day. I'm running out of ideas...

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-06-25T06:44:00.000+01:00

This is week has gone so quickly, I can't believe it's Flip Off time again! The fabulous way to get rid of those frustrations before the weekend, brought to us by Gigi over at Kludgy Mom. If you don't flip already, you should really give it a go!

So let's get started...

To Twitter - I love you, I really do. In fact I prefer you to your cousin, Facebook, but what has been up with you this week?!?! Far too much of the FailWhale, lost tweets and mentions not showing up for ages. It's so annoying when I'm in the middle of a conversation and you decide you can't cope - Flip Off!

To the Cleaning Fairy - I had heard rumours of your existence but have decided they are false. Not once have you visited me, despite my pleas and the lovely things I have left out for you to see when you get here. Don't you like piles of toys, undone washing up and a mountain of laundry? No? - Flip Off and stop teasing me with your possible existence!

To my landlady - It's just cruel to dangle the possibility of a 2 bedroom house in front of us and then take it away. You shouldn't have mentioned it if you weren't sure it was going to come free. We were so disappointed - Triple Flip Off!

So there you go, that feels a lot better. It's your turn now. Get rid of those frustrations and then link up. You'll feel better, I promise!

Life is good award

2010-06-24T06:04:00.000+01:00

I woke up on Monday to a lovely surprise. Maureen over at Tatter Scoops had left me a tweet saying she was passing on an award to me! Thank you Maureen, it was a lovely surprise and certainly brightened up my Monday! You really need to check her out; mummy to Lil' A, she blogs about toddlerhood, her travel adventures and life in general. She's very sweet and one of my Twitter friends too!

As usual there are things attached to this. I have to answer a few questions (which at least saves me from thinking up more random facts!) and pass it on.

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Originally a vet, until I realised it would be more than playing with puppies and kittens all day! Then a nanny and then a nurse! It changed a lot.

What is your most prized material possession?

Um, I guess that would be my laptop. It's not a fancy, super dooper one but it's the one material thing I'd be totally lost without. It connects me to the outside world and my friends scattered across the globe. Oh and my phone, a LG Viewty.

Do you have an iGadgetofsomedescription?

No but I want one! I'm not fussed if it's an iphone, ipod or ipad - I have ienvy!

What is your poison - hot shower or warm bath?

It changes. Before Piglet arrived my idea of heaven was wallowing in a bath for hours, reading and topping up the water. Now 5 minutes to myself in either is bliss!

What is the best decision you ever made?

That's a tough one! I think it has to be deciding to give Rich a chance. We were neighbours for 3 years and I never really paid much attention to him. We became friends when I was going through a really rough time and it quickly developed into more. If I hadn't taken a chance and invited him in for a cuppa I wouldn't have the fantastic husband and beautiful daughter I have today.

So there you go. Now it's time to pass this on to some lovely people. Please go and check them out, they're all fantastic.

Chana at Mamma Town
Emma at Me, The Man & The Baby
Amy at Cooking, Cakes & Children
Mummyinahurry at Mummyinahurry's Blog

Stuffed Monkey

2010-06-22T06:58:00.000+01:00

My Dad requested Stuffed Monkey for his Father's Day treat. Yep, Stuffed Monkey. It's one of his favourites and something he tends to ask me to make on special occasions.

Stuffed Monkey is a pie of sweet pastry filled with a almond and candied peel mixture. I've searched on-line and there are very few recipes for it out there, Sophie Grigson has one and there are a couple of others but that's about it. There's also very little information about it, though it seems to be a Jewish recipe.

If you like Bakewell Tart then you'll like this. The pastry is very sweet, almost like shortbread. If you leave it in the oven for a few minutes longer, the pastry will turn more biscuity. You can eat it as it is, though my Dad does like a dollop of extra thick cream with it! I personally think it's sweet enough and you only need small pieces.

I have no idea where Dad originally got the recipe from and he can't remember either. It doesn't match up with any of the ones I found on-line. I know there is a version in Jane Grigson's English Food but I don't have a copy so can't check if it's the same. So here we go, the recipe I use. Oh, I use a square tin, though other versions state a round one, just a matter of personal preference

Ingredients

For pastry

225g plain flour
150g butter
125g soft brown sugar
1 small egg
1 tsp cinnamon

For filling

75g butter (softened)
125g ground almonds
50g cater sugar
125g candied peel
1 egg yolk
A few drops vanilla essence
Zest of half a lemon

For topping
1 egg white
Golden caster sugar

Preheat oven to 190oC and line a square tin.

Make the pastry. Sift the flour with the cinnamon and rub into the butter until it resembles breadcrumbs.

Add the sugar and mix in with a knife.

Beat the egg lightly and add just enough to form a soft dough. Do this a little at a time, you may not need all the egg.

Divide in two and roll out half to line the tin.

Make the filling. Put all of the filling ingredients in a bowl and beat until creamy. It will be quite stiff but still spreadable.

Spread over the pastry base and top with the remaining pastry, rolled out to fit.

Beat the egg white until frothy and paint over the dough. Sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for approx 30 mins until firm to touch.

Serve cold, cut into squares.

Father's Day

2010-06-21T07:43:00.000+01:00

Yesterday was Father's Day but also the day we celebrated Mum's birthday too! It's been a busy week for me, finishing presents and baking cakes but it was all worth it in the end.

This was Piglet's and Rich's first Father's Day. Rich is a fantastic Daddy, he's very hands on and does his fair share of nappy changes. Piglet adores him and her face lights up whenever he walks into the room. I couldn't ask for a better daddy for her. They play together a lot and I'm sure she sees him as some kind of toy!

It was lovely to be able to celebrate the day with my parents too. My Dad wouldn't hold Piglet when she was born, she was small and he was terrified of hurting her. But I finally got the much longed for photo...

Everyone had a great day. I didn't take as many photo's as I wanted to, I was having too much fun! Mum liked her birthday present - a brooch I made for her...

As well as cake we had our favourite takeaway so no washing up!

I'm going to keep this short and sweet, you've probably seen so many Father's day posts by now. Piglet had a lot of fun with the two men in her life and I'm glad they're both there for her.

Danger

2010-06-19T06:50:00.000+01:00

Yesterday I flipped off the weird guy in the shop queue who was staring at Piglet. I've been thinking about this since it happened and about that feeling you get in your gut that screams 'danger'.

As parents I think we are hyper-vigilant about our surroundings and the people in them, we're on the alert for any hint of danger to our children.

Last week Piglet and I had gone to the local shop, just to pick up bread and milk. In the queue the man a couple of people down was just standing there staring at Piglet. I'm used to people talking to Piglet, mainly because she's a little charmer and sits in her buggy smiling at anyone within a few feet of her. And if someone talks to her...she's in heaven! They normally have a quick chat with me (or at least smile) and then carry on falling under her spell but this guy didn't do any of that, not once did he make eye contact with me or say Hi, smile or any of the normal things that I'm used to people doing when they see her.

He just stood and stared.

And my gut clenched, sending a million signals around my body.

I turned Piglet's buggy round so he couldn't see her. It happened that it was his turn to be served so he paid and left. And that was it. Nothing concrete and I may be doing the guy a huge mis-service but all I know is that my instincts were telling me that there was potentially danger for Piglet. Rich happened to be at home so I phoned him to get him to come and meet us and there was no sign of the guy. Nothing happened but I have to admit that I felt a bit off for the rest of the day. I'm guessing because it's the first time anything like that has happened directly towards Piglet.

I'm sure half the time people (especially people without kids) just don't think about how their actions may be perceived by parents. When we went to my Mum's and took Piglet to the paddling pool, there was a young couple there, taking photo's. They didn't have a child with them. We only became aware (they were at the other end of the pool) when one Mum ran after them, confronted then and made them show her the photo's they had taken. Everything must have been fine because she apologised and walked back, but you can't be too careful.

These are our children, our babies and we are all aware of the potential danger out there. We can't protect them from it all and we can't wrap them in cotton wool but we can do our best. And listen to our instincts.

Friday Flip-Offs!

2010-06-18T06:39:00.000+01:00

It's Friday so it must be Flip Off time again! The weekly meme hosted by Gigi over at KludgyMom which lets us get rid of those niggly annoyances and stressful things before the weekend.

So without further ado, lets get started!

To time - Why do you always insist on speeding up when I really need you to slow down. Or at least go at your normal pace. I know it's my fault that I agreed to make so many things for this weekend but you're really not co-operating. I'm sure you've doubled the speed at which you normal pass - Flip Off!

To the weird man in the shop queue - If you stand there just staring at Piglet and not even making eye contact with me let alone speaking to me then do not be surprised when I move Piglet's buggy so you can't see her. You were creepy and weird and it's my job to protect her, she's my baby. Any Mum would have had the same reaction, some would have had a stronger reaction than me. You may have been looking at her completely innocently but you may not have been, how am I supposed to know. You really need to think about how you come across to other people - double Flip Off!

To the vuvuzela horns at the world cup - The constant drone of you when Rich is watching a match is driving me insane. I know you can be quite tuneful, I saw a news piece about you being played properly but that's not you're being used for at a match. You give me a headache - Flip Off!

That's it!

It's fun and makes you feel better before the weekend, so why don't you join in. Hop over to link up and see what everyone else is Flipping Off this week!

Lesson learnt.

2010-06-17T07:15:00.000+01:00

So I wasn't around much in Blogospere or Twitter-world last night. My laptop was poorly and I'm not sure why. It had been fine for most of the day. I'd had a short twitter break, went to finish dinner, came back and...nothing.

Panic!

It shows how much I have come to rely on the internet and the feeling that I'm actually connected to the outside world. My first thought was 'My blog!', swiftly followed by 'Twitter!'. I have to admit that I had actually felt slightly panicked at thought of being without the internet.

Somehow (and I have no idea how!) I managed to get it to start and windows kept telling me that it was looking for the problem and would try and solve it. It seems that my laptop is good at self-medicating because it sorted itself out and appears to be working fine now.

Whilst it was doing it's thing, I suddenly realised that if I ended up having to restore it back to factory settings, I would probably lose everything that was on there. I wasn't worried about the programmes and documents - I can retype and reinstall but my photo's! Like most parents we have 1000's of photos of Piglet. There are photo's of our wedding, of family and old photo's that I've scanned in. Most have been taken on either a camera phone or digital camera and then downloaded to the laptop. And then the memory card wiped.

If I lose the photo's on here, I have lost the photo's forever. That thought scared me even more than the thought of being internet-less. So last night was spent burning all of the photo's onto a disc and I'm going to make sure that I back them up on a regular basis.

I guess that's the one downside of the digital world, there are no negatives, there are fewer actual printed photo's. Everything lives in either a computer or memory card and we don't really think something will go wrong. I've learnt my lesson, I won't rely on just computer storage again.