A Mothers Ramblings

Win a Valentines Day Prize

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 08:00:04 PST

How fantastic would it be to turn around to your beloved on Valentines Day and tell them;

"Go to the Experience Days UK website and chose an experience you'd like.

It's my gift to you."

I would be rather pleased with such a gift, and with my £50 gift voucher give away (with thanks to Experience Days) that could be you!

Of course you could pay more towards a more expensive experience day (for just £10 there is a Spa Day), but with selections such as Make Your Own Perfume, Skydiving, A Model Portfolio Photoshoot and a Chocolate Workshop there is bound to be something that will be the ultimate gift.

All you have to do to enter this Romance inducing give away is to tell me what your favourite Love film is. Mine has to be Mamma Mia as it is such a feel good film and all about love of different kinds!

Please make sure when you leave your comment that you fill in a valid email address, or follow me on Twitter so I can email you or DM you if you win. This is for residents of the UK only, my say is final and if you haven't left a comment by 5pm on the 13th February 2012 then you haven't entered. If I don't get a response from you within twenty four hours of my contact then I will redraw until someone responds and they get the prize.

Sort Out your Finances this Year

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 05:00:18 PST

Working through finances sometimes becomes a never ending cycle. One bill gets paid off and another crops up. It does not have to always be that way. People who are having financial difficulty can make their dream New Year’s resolution to sort out their finances and see it through to completion a reality. There are surefire ways to get finances in order and keep them that way, even with emergency credit card use.

How to Sort Out your Finances this Year

CreditCards Comparison - Credit card can add a great deal to the total monthly debt a person has incurred. The first thing to do is a credit cards comparison. This can easily be done online. This allows the credit cardholder to compare the interest rates of various credit card companies. The difference in interest rates charged can make a huge difference in the monthly payment as well as the overall amount spent on a product.

Find the best credit card interest rates available, apply for an account if you do not already have one and then transfer balances of your other credit cards to the lowest interest rate card. Once you have done that, you will have credit card balances open in case of emergency. Only use the credit card if there is a true emergency. This will help keep the total debt down to a minimum as well.

Budget - In order to sort out finances, all debt must be budgeted. This will have a two-fold benefit. A written budget serves to organize debts in order to better take control of finances. It also allows you to see the progress you have made. Seeing the progress is a great motivator in continuing with paying down the debt.

Good budget plans include all household debt, such as electric and water. It should also include all other debts. Remember to budget reasonably. Do not cut yourself short on anything through the month, such as food in order to save more money. A good budget allows you to live comfortably, but wisely.

Spending Habits - People often do not realize the amount of spending they incur on unnecessary items each month. Instead of buying a cup of coffee on the way to work in the morning, make a cup of coffee before leaving the house. Use coupons at the grocery store to save a huge amount of cash. When people do not use all the money savings opportunities they have, they throw money out the window.

Sorting out your finances can be difficult to get accustomed to. It takes a great deal of discipline, but it sets in motion a lifetime of good financial decisions that will give you more financial freedom than you could have ever imagined. Take advantage of situations that allow you to save money, do a credit cards comparison and act, spend wisely and budget well to get started on repairing a bad financial situation.

This is an advertorial post, because Top Ender needs some new shoes.

Morphy Richards Vacuum Cleaner - A Review

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 04:00:13 PST

With being part of the Morphy Richards House Proud Innovators I get various items to review which I will sometimes pass on to friends or family. Normally what happens is someone will ask me if I've read any reviews of an item they are looking to replace or if I am aware of any discount codes or special sale days coming up and then before the end of the week someone else will offer me that very item to review. It happened just like that when my Mum was looking to buy a new Vacuum Cleaner and Morphy Richards asked if I'd like to review the Never Loses Suction Lift Away Bagless Upright Vacuum Cleaner.

When the vacuum cleaner arrived I put it together so I could put it through its paces. I was surprised at how powerful it was. It really did have great suction and was great for cleaning underneath my TV unit, it even sucked up a ball which had accidentally been rolled under the unit and wedged itself at the back! I took a little bit of video of me using the cleaner so take a look!

With my Mum moving house we ended up keeping the vacuum cleaner here for over a month, and we kept using it to see how practical it was. I loved the way that it looks, it makes me think of the Weasleys house in Harry Potter because I don't think it looks like it can stand up on it's own! I liked that it was easy to empty too because you can just press one button and the dirt collected in the canister just empties out the bottom, so handy to do whilst holding it over the bin.

Daddy loved it because it was so easy to use as with its swivel head it was easy to manoeuvre around the house and kept its suction on all the different floor surfaces in our house.At first I couldn't get used to it because along with the strong suction the swivel head made me need to vacuum in a different way too normal, but it was something that I got used to and I loved the suction strength. In fact it was so powerful on a couple of surfaces that Daddy was worried that the vacuum cleaner was too strong and that my Mum wouldn't be able to move it to vacuum around her home. My Mum and I were convinced that this was just a rouse because Daddy had got so used to the new vacuum cleaner that he wanted to keep it, so when we took the cleaner round my Mum gave it a quick go and it was really easy for her to use so Daddy lost out!

The Morphy Richards Never Loses Suction Lift Away Bagless Upright Vacuum Cleaner is £199.99 and comes with a standard two year guarantee or five years if you register it with Morphy Richards.

I was given the Vacuum Cleaner for free as part of the Morphy Richards House Proud Innovators.

Plum's Oaty Chomps - Good For Pudding!

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:00:17 PST

I was asked by Plum if Big Boy might like to try some new Oaty Chomps and I said yes thinking that not only would Big Boy like them but Top Ender would like them in her Friday lunch box too! I included one in Top Ender's lunch a couple of times and they came back uneaten, Top Ender was worried that she wouldn't like and so it was only once I opened one and ate it to prove that she would like them that she tried them.

Big Boy ate them without question, but he likes all food and it doesn't matter to him what it tastes of as long as it is filling! The other thing about Big Boy is that if he doesn't like it he won't eat it again and Big Boy has continued to ask for the Plum bars, with the pumpkin pie ones living in my handbag for emergency snacks when we are out and about. Top Ender wasn't so keen, she ate one but she said that she thought them to be heavy and dry. I could understand what she meant but I thought that they were nice and as Big Boy thinks quite filling. I used some of the chomps all crushed up as the base for a fake cheesecake pudding which Top Ender really did like!

In case you want to make the fake cheesecake all I did was crush up the Strawberry Cheescake Oaty Chomps and mix with a crushed digestive or two and some melted butter and let set before adding some angel delight that I made up with condensed milk instead of milk. It was really lovely and I wish I had taken a photo before it was all eaten.

Plum's Oaty Chomps are £1.99 and great to keep in your handbag for feeding yourself or your children when you are out and about.

Plum sent me two packs of Oaty Chomps to review.

Warm and Comfortable Hotter Boots

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:00:02 PST

For me shoes have one purpose and that is to keep my feet covered when I am outside. If they look pretty then that is all well and good but for me the shoes which are the best are the ones that I can put on at 8am before the School Run and take off at about 9pm before I go to bed. I guess that is why I live in my trainers! The one downside to wearing trainers is that they don't exactly go well with anything other than jeans. If I am wearing trousers or a skirt I look scruffy, and so when Hotter Shoes asked if I might like to have a pair of Sheepskin Charisma boots I was eager to give them a try.

The boots are fantastic. The sheepskin lining is soft and warm and fantastic for these cold days and Big Boy has been loving wearing them when I haven't! He has been making me giggle pretending to be me and walking around the living room but he likes to feel the soft lining so he takes off his socks and trousers! They are made of suede but they come with a free protector spray and I haven't noticed any damage with me walking on what is left of the snow when doing the School Run.

The boots are really comfortable and I've been able to wear them all day without any discomfort. They have kept my feet really warm which has been handy as during the day we don't keep the heating on and I don't like to get cold! I've found that the boots are great looking with Jeans and with "formal" trousers and my sister has threatened to steal them to wear with her leggings. The only thing I need to do now is wear them with a skirt to see how they look.

Just in case it wasn't clear I got these boots free from Hotter Shoes.

Changes At A Mothers Ramblings

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:59:53 PST

Hello Everybody!

I'm doing some housekeeping here at A Mothers Ramblings and making everything pretty so keep looking out for the changes in the next few weeks and if you spot one let me know what you think! There is one task that you can help me out with and that is by changing your RSS subscription by clicking on the nice shiny badge below.

There are some great projects coming up in the next few months, so make sure you do update your RSS reader or you might miss out on the projects and some secret things that I am really excited about and I hope you will be too!

Don't forget that you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook, just by clicking the links below.

Five Things My Children Have Learnt From Computer Games

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 04:38:50 PST

Top Ender and Big Boy love to play computer games. They play on the PC's, the Wii, the Xbox, my ipod and on Top Enders Nintendo DS and boy does that sound like a lot! They don't play for long (we have a thirty minute rule) but they play a variety of games some are educational, some are physical, some are just plain old fun but the thing that they all have in common is that they are teaching my children things I never would have thought they would teach them.

1) You have to eat when you are low on energy.

Big Boy loves playing Kirby and whilst playing is always on the look out for the little bits of food that replenish his Characters health bar. It has become a little annoying as Big Boy will often sit down in the middle of the room and claim he doesn't have enough energy to carry out a simple task (like putting away his toys) and that he needs some food to top up his energy. Luckily Big Boy has also discovered that fruits and vegetables are the best way to top up his energy levels. I just wish like the characters in computer games we had a handy visual measure to tell us when we need a top up!

2) Sometimes you have to save your money.

Top Ender loves to play games where the characters can buy new costumes or things for their houses and she loves to buy everything as quickly as possible. The problem being that sometimes you have to save your money to buy crops or storage or a magic hat... Top Ender has realised that this is the same in real life too. At Christmas (and for her birthday) Top Ender she received a lot of vouchers from various family members for her to chose what she wanted to buy. Top Ender thought long and hard about what she wanted to buy and in the end only spent a small proportion of her vouchers, saving the rest for later in the year when she might have other needs or wants.

3) If at first you don't succeed you should try, try and then try again.

One of the great things about modern games is that it saves your progress and so if you get to a bit that you can't do you can you can just keep having a go at it until you succeed. And that translates well into everything new too. If you want to learn to ride a bike without stabilisers? Try, try and try again. Eventually you will get it. Although you should remember if you really get stuck you can use number 4...

4) If you get stuck it's okay to ask for help.

After trying several times to do a certain part of a game or to work out a tricky puzzle the children will complain that they can't do it, but rather than give up they will ask for help. This is perfect because there are times in life where everybody finds there is something that they can't do. It's okay though because there are people around you who have more experience or expertise and so asking them for help is okay. Although right when I have my hand up a chicken's bum isn't that good a time.

5) There are Cheat Codes.

I'm the worst for this. Having completed some games by being good and doing it step by step I sometimes go back and play the game again but this time I cheat. I might use a code to get more life or more money or to simply cut out a huge boring bit of the game and it's okay to do this. In real life I might not make every meal from scratch but "cheat" and use a pre-made pie crust or I might only hoover the middle of a room instead of under the furniture if a guest is coming round. It's not that I can't do the whole thing, it's just that sometimes a short cut is available and it makes more sense to take it.

What have you or your children learnt from computer games that wasn't intentional? Surely I'm not the only person fluent in Simlish?

Snow Babies - Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:00:53 PST

The Best Gift Ever

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:17:03 PST

Today the postman brought me what could possibly be described as the BEST GIFT EVER!

Thanks Vic, I guess my love of Dr Pepper is as big as your love of shoes!

A Lazy Morning Breakfast

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 22:00:05 PST

On Friday afternoon the Fish Is The Dish twitter account tweeted a link to the Smoked Haddock Rarebit which as soon as I saw thought would be a fantastic Valentines breakfast or lazy day breakfast. Daddy wouldn't be able to eat it (his egg allergy) and as Daddy will be going to work early on Valentines Day I knew if I wanted to eat it I would have to make it myself. So I did. It was really easy to make and for my lazy Saturday morning it was the perfect treat.

Saturday mornings for me are lazy. They are the day that I get up with the children and they graze on fruit or pastries, we don't get dressed until Daddy gets up (sometime after nine but always before ten) and if I'm feeling particularly energetic I might clean the kitchen or do some baking but it's okay if all we do is sit on the sofa and watch cartoons or play computer games together.

On Sundays I get to sleep in and Daddy gets up with the children. I'm not sure what happens, as I'm upstairs sleeping, but I think from the overheard conversations and excitement that it's pretty much the same as what happens on a Saturday. There is cartoon watching, computer game playing and Daddy too gets to decide if he wants to clean the kitchen, do some baking or something else entirely!

This system works well for us and we wouldn't swap our lazy mornings for anything. Although I wouldn't day No if Daddy brought me the Smoked Haddock Rarebit for breakfast in bed today!

How I Mastered Time Travel (With No Tardis In Sight)

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:00:07 PST

In trying to help Top Ender with her school work I found out that I had mastered Time Travel as a child. When I was around six or seven years old, I travelled back in time to 1939, (that's forty years before I was born). Whilst I was in 1939 I didn't warn everybody about Hitler or buy Ice Cream but I had my picture taken and then time travelled back to the future and somehow lost all memory of how to master time travel and that I had actually managed it. In fact I would still be none the wiser if I hadn't seen the picture of me and it's the only logical reason.*

Let me take you back in time to just a few weeks ago to explain this.

The theme for this term at Top Ender's school is World War Two, which means she has been coming out with little facts (Did you know Neville Chamberlain was Prime Minister at the start of the war Mum?) and is generally developing an understanding of the period in general. The children seem to be focusing on evacuees and what it was like to be evacuated. This prompted a memory of Daddy's as there is a picture in a book of Daddy's Grandmother who was evacuated in the war. The first logical step was to ask my Father In Law if he knew what the book was called. He didn't. So I did what any parent would do. I went to the local library and looked at every single book on Evacuees and the Second World War that had pictures.

So there I am with a mountain of books and I find a picture of me.

I'm in the back row second from the right.

Now you will have to take my word that this is me because somehow all pictures of me prior to 1990 are missing. Which is odd because I know I have them somewhere and also it's from 1990 onwards that I start sporting some really bad hair do's and some really odd clothing mistakes. Honest though I look exactly like that girl having her dinner in 1939.

I've stopped looking for the picture of Daddy's Grandma now and instead I'm focusing on reading books set during the war. Which is handy seeing as the Imperial War Museum North sent Top Ender some books (we've donated them to Top Ender's School so all her classmates can read them too) to promote their Once Upon a Wartime exhibition that is being launched on the 12th February. I'm just glad none of these fiction books have pictures of me in.

*Okay so the most logical reason is that it is a distant relation of mine (a quick check of my family tree has no children being evacuated and no girls of a similar age in 1939) or maybe I'm an early Cryonics experiment or a Vardøger but I prefer the mastering time travel answer.

Rose Bouquet Valentines Cakes

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 07:56:37 PST

In my quest for making Valentines really sweet this year I am baking, baking baking! I decided that making a lot of little treats would be best, as that way everybody that I love can get something. I'm not just limiting Valentines to my Husband and Children, but I'm including my Mum, my Sister and her family, my Nan, my Neighbours, my Friends and you the readers! That's right there is going to be a special Valentines gift and competition for you all.

Since making the Rose Bouquet Cupcakes for mine and my Mum's birthday I've been thinking about how to make them more easily and maybe a little less calorific. I mean I love icing and it's obviously one of my best skills (ROFL) but there has to be another way. I just needed to get thinking, or rather get my family thinking.

I tell my Mum all the problems that I have, so she can help me solve them! I wasn't surprised when inspiration came to her to solve the Rose Bouquet cupcake problem and she managed to combine it with a Christmas present for my Sister and I. My Mum was looking through the Betterware catalogue and saw the Rose Shaped Silicone Cupcake Mould and decided that this was the answer. As soon as I saw them I knew she was right and I couldn't wait to make some for Top Ender and Big Boy and because everybody likes red roses, I used some red food colouring too tint the cake batter.

They have gone down really well with both Big Boy and Top Ender and I'm pretty sure that when I give these to my Neighbours for Valentines that they will be gratefully received!

Love Heart Cupcakes, Egg Free Cakes And Another Hint

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:42:45 PST

We have recently worked out that Daddy, as well as being unable to eat things containing wheat and gluten is now also unable to eat things containing egg. Cue much gnashing of the teeth and cursing from me and Daddy suddenly feeling a lot better after removing eggs and egg products from his diet. It has meant that Daddy and I are learning to bake again and so we've been practising on the children! Well, I have and funny enough they don't seem to mind being given cake after cake to try!

I'm slowly getting the hang of making light and fluffy cakes without using eggs but with Valentines Day coming up I wanted to perfect it so I could create some lovely cakes for Daddy. Standing in Wilkinsons I spotted some rolls of Love Hearts by the till and was thinking how cute they would be on a cake, either nestled in icing on cupcakes or if I could work it out covering a large cake completely. And this is how I came up with the idea of making Love Heart Cupcakes.

These ones are actually a bit of me cheating as they aren't egg free as I'm made them for Top Ender's Friday lunch (well one of them the other two BB can eat!) and didn't want to be worrying about them not rising. I think that one thing that is really apparent is that I'm really rusty using a piping bag!

There is a lot of synchronicity going on around me at the moment, and just as I had finished icing these cupcakes I received an email from Swizzles Matlow the makers of Love Hearts about their new Valentines range! I love the look of the Retro Heart Shaped Tin and when I saw it in store the other day I dropped lots of hints to Daddy about how great it would be to have a few of them to store cookie cutters and cake wrappers in...

He's going to get the hint right?

Me Right Now... Well Last Night - The Gallery

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:00:05 PST

Tara is a tricky one isn't she? The gallery theme this week was Me Right Now, as in wherever you were when you read the prompt that's what Tara wanted you to take a picture of. So I asked Daddy to take a picture for me and here it is.

That's right I'm knitting (a pink scarf for Top Ender, the green one for Big Boy is just behind my head), drinking a milkshake (strawberry because my microwave disintegrated and I couldn't have a hot chocolate), watching TV (Suits on Dave in HD. It's a great show), reading a book (I've just got up to how to make Chutney), on the telephone (to my Mum) and of course surfing the web.

What does it show? I guess it shows that I'm a bit of a multi-tasker and I shouldn't start something before finishing the other!

Pure Love - Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:17:24 PST

This was the first time that Top Ender met Baby Chicken. I think it shows pure love.

Youngs Seafood and Fish Balls - Fish Is The Dish

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 12:02:18 PST

Just before Christmas Youngs Seafood and the lovely people behind Fish Is The Dish arranged to send some frozen fish fillets, fish cakes, fish fingers, fish pie and easy cook fish pieces to fill up my freezer. Normally the only fish that I have in my freezer are a few Salmon fillets, some gluten free fish fingers that Daddy takes to work and some prawns (I don't think I ever buy prawns yet they are always in the freezer, I think my Cats put them there) so this was a new experience for me. If I am making something with fish I will either use the fish that is sent or will buy something from a fishmonger to use, just because I'm not used to having fish you can cook from frozen.

I quickly figured out the fish pieces are great to have in the freezer as they can quickly be turned into something tasty and filling as they don't have to be defrosted. Jo at Mummys Knee suggested that I fry some with sweet chilli sauce they would be perfect for a late night snack and wouldn't you know it but she was right! Big Boy and I have been making fish balls (method a bit further down) for lunch and I've had enough of the fish pieces to make some more Pippa made up fish dishes some of which haven't been as successful as I would have liked but I will keep trying as the fish pieces are £2.99 so affordable on my budget.

The fish fillets are good to keep for the nights when Daddy isn't here and we are after a quick last minute dinner, they are also great to use when Top Ender and I have the late night Friday munchies as Daddy just throws them in the oven and they are cooked and ready for Tops and I to share. Daddy of course can't eat them as they aren't gluten free, so it's a nice treat for me and Tops. Big Boy prefers the fish cakes to the fish fillets and only in part because of the Jamie Oliver adverts on TV where Jamie gets frozen into a big lump of ice!

The fish fingers were a favourite of course and were made in to fish finger sandwiches and our much debated over fish finger pizza. The hands down winners though were the fish pies which BB and Tops split between them. I was surprised as I didn't think that the children would eat Pollock as they aren't too keen on it as they think it tastes too strong but apparently not if it has a creamy sauce.

The fish cakes are really lovely. I found them to be quite big and they were fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside which is better than fish cakes I have brought in the past and ones that I have made too. I'm going to be adding them to my shopping lists in the future and persuade Daddy to do a few more late nights at work...

Right Fish Balls. So BB and I love fish and potato and we don't always want to eat them separate or with fish as a topping on a jacket potato and so we came up with the idea of combining them, rather like I do with rice (fish in rice balls is great I'll blog about it they are easy to make). Now our potato fish balls are dead simple you take one of the frozen fish chunks and a handful of cold mashed potato which you have stirred some Tomato Ketchup and you wrap the potato in a circle around the fish. BB loves this as he says it is like play-doh. I then roll them in breadcrumbs and gently fry them for just a couple of minutes to give some colour before putting them into the oven to bake. I tend to do them at gas mark 4 for 10-15 minutes, just to make sure that they are cooked.

I guess I will buying more frozen fish to keep in my freezer for last minute fish dishes!

Cod Bobotie - Fish Is The Dish!

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 22:00:01 PST

One of the first things I said to the team behind Fish is The Dish was that I didn't have the confidence to cook different fish dishes. I knew how to make oven baked fish and I knew how to make fish pie and that was all I made. I didn't have the confidence to buy fresh fish, I didn't have the confidence to buy different types of fish and I might have filleted a whole Salmon once but it certainly wasn't a skill I was ready to add to my Food CV. Once in Scotland and given a master class in preparing fish, selecting fish, the different types of fish and winning the fish filleting competition between the bloggers at the event I had more confidence but I was still waiting for that break through that meant I had confidence with cooking fish.

This week we had Cod Bobotie. It's an egg based dish and so because of Daddy's recently discovered allergy to eggs it was just for Top Ender, Big Boy and I. I was stuck with what to make for Daddy and was considering making him something non-fish related when suddenly I thought why? I can cook fish, I know how to cook fish I can cook fish for him so that we can all share a meal together. And so after jumping on to the Fish is the dish website for some tips on when the fish would be cooked I served the children and I Cod Bobotie and Daddy got some dry pan fried Cod. I think that was my break through moment.

For some reason the Cod Bobotie that I cooked didn't work out all that well and there was a lot of moisture underneath the solid top part of the dish. I think after having made it again that this moisture the first time was a combination of needing to be cooked longer, the fish being quite moist and my general crapness at cooking something new. When I made it again I drew the moisture out of the fish by placing the fish onto a piece of folded kitchen roll and just baked it a little higher and a little longer. It tasted great but as the children didn't like it and Daddy can't eat it I probably won't be making it again.

The good thing that I got from this is that I can cook fish, that I can comfortably decide to make an alternative fish dish and as the fish comes in individual portions it's not that hard to make something different for everyone... not that I'm planning on doing that too often!

Win £100 Tesco Voucher

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:23:21 PST

Thanks to Tesco I have a £100 Tesco Voucher to give away before 2pm on the 2nd February 2012 for one lucky follower of this blog. The winner can then spend the voucher in store to make the most of the Tesco Baby Event which ends on February 5th.

All you have to do to enter (apart from being in the UK) is let me know in the comments on this post who your favourite cartoon family is or what your favourite baby product is! Don't forget to leave a way that I can contact you so I can arrange delivery of your voucher before the Baby Event ends.

EDIT - This competition is now closed, but I do love to hear about cartoons and baby products so don't feel you can't leave a comment still!

Tell Me About Your Packed Lunch

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:38:16 PST

Hello Everyone!

A conversation over the weekend has my creative lunch idea juices flowing, but I need your help.

Can you please let me know of restrictions that the School your child goes to puts on what goes in your children's lunch boxes?

Are you allowed chocolate biscuits or Crisps?

Do you have to have a portion of fruit or vegetables?

Do they limit the amount of dairy?

Are they not allowed things like peanuts because of other children's allergies?

I'd also really love to know how long your child gets to eat lunch and what sort of provisions are made for storing packed lunches until lunch time.

Do they have a cold area to store them in or an area they can heat up food?

What kind of lunch box do you use?

Do you use cold packs or Thermos packs?

And the last area that I would really love to have some feedback on is you (and other grown ups) and the packed lunch.

How long do you spend making a packed lunch?

Do you make packed lunches the night before or in the morning before School?

Do you make a packed lunch for more than one person and if so who? Eg you or your partner?

Do you make yourself a packed lunch and do you have the same as your children?

Do you pack leftovers for anyone?

Feel free to leave a comment here about anything you think relevant or you can email me or talk to me on Twitter if you wish!

New Year, New Coats

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:00:07 PST

Normally during the January sales I take a look through websites and shops for things for the children for the next year. One of the bargains that I normally like to hunt down are winter coats and when just before Christmas I was looking through the Vertbaudet website as part of the Blogging Club I found a couple of coats for the Children that I knew I had to order.

The coat for Big Boy that I ordered was a Boys Duffle Coat and I chose to get a Grey with Dark Checks pattern. I decided this would be a smart coat for him and thought with an size 4 he would get this Winter's use and it would still fit him when he starts School this September. Big Boy declared that if the new coat had a hood that he would be happy because it would keep his ears warm and stop his head getting wet in the rain! Smart cookie this one I tell ya.

Big Boy's coat starts from £18 and is Machine washable and it looks fantastic on him. Even Daddy said that he looks really smart in it and he was busy telling his friends about it when we went up to pick Top Ender up from School.

The coat I ordered for Top Ender was a Girls Woolcloth Cape and as soon as it came she was in love with it and immediately put it on. She was really unsure if this was supposed to be a "For Good" coat or if this was something that she could wear to School. As I knew it was Machine Washable and agreed that she could wear it to School she was over the moon!

Picking Top Ender up from School was amazing. As soon as Top Ender came out of her classroom the other playground Mums and Grannies were all complimenting Top Enders coat and saying how adorable Top Ender looked. Even Top Ender's Teacher claimed she was hoping to be able to squeeze into Top Ender's new coat! Walking through the School we bumped into several teachers and teaching assistants all of who stopped us to compliment Top Ender on her new coat. I was amazed at two things, firstly that every teacher knows Top Ender by name and secondly that every teacher also knew that Top Ender had a new coat!

The Grey woolcloth cape is on sale and starts at £11.7 (the pink is more expensive) which I think is a great bargain and I'm quite tempted to buy the pink one too...

As part of the Vertbaudet Blogging Club I got to choose these coats which were then sent free of charge.

Valentine Hearts Pie - Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 03:01:22 PST

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Cake Batter Rainbow Rice Krispies Treats

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 13:46:02 PST

We make a lot of Rice Crispy Treats, sometimes we add chocolate and make them into Nest Cakes, sometimes I melt a load of Marshmallows and sometimes if I have left over bits of biscuits and raisins I will add those in with some chocolate and have our very own version of Tiffin. When on Pinterest I saw Cake Batter Rice Krispies Treats I was really excited because it looked delicious. Only problem being it was in American measurements and so I had to use my special skills to turn it back in to English measurements and of course I couldn't not add my own special touches!

Pippa's English Measurements Cake Batter Rainbow Rice Krispies Treats Recipe

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3 Tablespoons Butter

280g Marshmallows (I used mini ones and medium sized ones as that's what I had)

4oz Sponge Cake Mix

100g Rice Krispies

50g Rainbow Drops (I may have over sprinkled and used closer to 60g)

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Cake Sprinkles

Method

Grease a 9inch Square Pan and Mix the Rice Krispies and Rainbow Drops.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over a low heat and add the marshmallows.

Let the marshmallows melt and add in the cake mix a spoonful or two at the time.

Add the Vanilla Extract and then mix in the Rice Krispies and Rainbow Drops until it is all covered in the melted butter/marshmallow/vanilla mix

Sprinkle in some sprinkles and mix it around before pressing into the baking tray and scattering some more sprinkles on top. I found it was better to leave more for the top than sprinkling in as they seemed to melt. Maybe English Sprinkles aren't as good as American ones?!

Leave the mixture and tray to set for at least thirty minutes. I put mine in the fridge, but I don't think that you have to do that.

Once set cut into squares and store in an air tight container with heavy noisy things on top so that everyone will know you are sneaking a piece because they are really addictive and you might not be able to stop at one.

The original recipe that I adapted mine from is at Gimme Some Oven.

The Baby Shoe Company - Cuteez Shoes

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:00:10 PST

Just a couple of weeks ago my sister and I were online together and talking about Baby Shoes. My sister sometimes rivals The Shoe Blogger for her love of shoes and all of her daughters are developing the same trait and we thought that Chicken (her newest baby) would be no different. Just a couple of days later and I was offered some Baby shoes from The Baby Shoe Company to review and as my Sister loves shoes and I had some plans about ditching the Nappy Cake I thought that some of the Leather Cuteez shoes would be just the thing to welcome the new baby.

This weekend we finally got our chance to go and visit with my Sister and her family and to meet Chicken, who was born last Wednesday evening.

Chicken is adorable and seeing as she pooped in her nappy when Daddy was holding her, I take it to mean that she likes me best...

Everyone loved the various gifts I had for the family (My sister love her "Wine", her partner loved his "Pint" and the eldest three Cousins loved the personalised mugs I *made* for them) and my sister adored the shoes that had been sent for us to review. They are the smallest size made for Babies between 0 and 6 months and so next to Chicken look enormous but are oh so sweet!

My sister loved that they were only £8.99 and were made with a Suede sole and leather uppers. Soft Flexible Leather shoes are good for babies feet as whilst keeping them warm they also allow the feet to "breathe". I loved that they come in a lot of different styles so I can help Chicken to have more shoes than Imelda Marcos.

We were send two pairs of Cuteez Baby Shoes from The Baby Shoe Company.

Helping your Children with social and emotional skills

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 22:00:08 PST

Before Daddy and I made the choice that Big Boy wasn't going to go to a Nursery before he started School we weighed up the pro's and cons of the situation. We knew that one of the hardest things for us to do wasn't helping him develop his reading skills or math skills or his creative skills but it was going to be helping him develop his social and emotional skills to the same level as his peers because he wasn't going to have as much interaction with people his age as he would if he went to a Nursery or playgroup. A lot of what I am talking about in the rest of this post comes from the research I made into the subject when Top Ender was small and Daddy and I wanted to help her to develop into a well rounded little girl... she is pretty well rounded so I think that they work!

I love paper plates for a variety of reasons and paper plates with drawn on emotions are great fun to play with. I sat at work one lunch time and drew as many faces as I could, there was happy, sad, angry, tired. ill, confused, worried, amused, and shy amongst others. The plates could be used as flash cards with the emotion having to be named before we moved on to the next one, they were used so that we too could pull the same face and we used them as springboards to talk about events that made us feel a certain emotion. We have found that these paper plates helped prepare for big events, and when our children have been unable to articulate how they are feeling they have been able to use the faces to show us what they can't say.

Being aware of different emotions is great, as it is part of having self awareness. Knowing that you are an individual, that you have feelings and needs is something which children learn in different stages and it is something which I feel children do need help with. For small babies playing with a mirror where they can see themselves and learn that it isn't another baby is the simplest step, but for toddlers it is harder as they identify themselves as part of a unit (and quite rightly too as they are part of a family). Having some responsibility for themselves (even if it is collecting their shoes) helps them to realise that they are a unit on their own too.

It's very hard to have empathy for others when you are small. You might know that another child is upset or angry because you recognise the emotions but being able to identify with other people and what they are feeling is something which takes great skill. I'm sure we all know some adults who still haven't mastered the skill! The best way I have found is by talking about feelings and sharing them, I tell Top Ender and Big Boy when I am upset and why if it is relevant. They know when I am angry and I explain why and I expect them to to the same too and I am often heard asking them to "use their words" to let me know how they are feeling.

The talking about feelings leads nicely on to managing feelings. I expect it is true of all children that at times they can't contain the frustration or anger they are experiencing and will try to lash out as they feel instinctively that this will help them feel better. I find if the child can voice what they are feeling (or use the paper plates to show what they are feeling) and can explain what has happened to make them feel this that they are a step closer to managing these feelings.

All children love simple motivation, it might be a race to see who can get dressed the quickest or who can put the most toys away in a period of time and these are great as they help the child to understand that there is a "reward" and find that motivation is everywhere. Self motivation however is something that you can't teach and will just have to encourage!

Social skills come under a lot of headers, for example understanding another person's feelings and trying to comfort them is a social skill as is talking to others, playing with others and just being around other people. Whilst we decided not to take Big Boy to a Nursery or play school, we haven't denied him the chance to socialise and interact with other children around his age taking him to plenty of parks, story sessions and activity groups. Whilst you can't force a child to interact with others, being supportive and keeping taking them to the situations will allow them to feel comfortable and to interact freely.

Every child develops a sense of self-reliance and independence best when the adults in their lives give them the support and encouragement that they need. One to one interaction is key for children to realise that they can do things, it might be that you have several children and you give them each an individual chore and help each child one at a time. A praising word said at this time helps their confidence to sky-rocket and this leads to the independence we know they need in the world.

I have found that one of the best ways to allow my children to develop independence is to allow them to take on responsibility, but none to far ahead of what they are ready for. If this means that Big Boy goes to the fridge to pour a drink himself and then has to find a cloth to clean up a spill then so be it, it is only a little spilt juice not the end of the world. It is the giving of the permission that makes the child realise that you are there to support them, that they are able to take a little more control of their life and that they are growing up that is important.

This Is My Son

noreply@blogger.com (PippaD AKA Mummy of A Mothers Ramblings) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 22:00:00 PST

Big Boy has changed so much in the last few weeks I keep having to look at him to check if he is the same child. Suddenly all the baby parts of him seem to have vanished and I have a little boy ready for School standing in front of me. I know of course that he is going to be going to school, I am trying to make the most of our time together with a Starting School To Do list but it just seems that it is coming round so quickly.

Big Boy has a wicked sense of humour and always has. If something in the past tickled him you would know about it with his giggle being heard loud and clear Now his sense of humour has developed to be more sophisticated. Yes, he still tells the same rubbish made up Knock Knock jokes and they still delight him and of course even the remotest suggestion of slapstick has him rolling in the aisle but he has taken to reciting whole passages of films or cartoons that he has enjoyed and will often come out with the most obscure quotes or details. In a few years I think that he might be quite the film trivia buff!

Then there are the video games that are making me feel that Big Boy has morphed into a teenager when I wasn't looking. He likes to play on Top Enders DS, on the Wii, on the Xbox, on the PC or even on my ipod touch. As long as it is a game it doesn't matter to him! There are fights over how long we let him play, when he can play, who will play with him and even over how the game is played. I can't get over how good he is at the games he plays, he knows the key combinations to press and where to find hidden power ups and when his character dies you can often hear him exclaim "Oh Man!"

Big Boy keeps growing, his hair keeps growing. I mean I know that it is supposed to, but it feels like we get his hair cut and then I blink and he is suddenly sporting a hairstyle longer than his sisters! He is huge now, a proper little boy running round getting taller by the second. I love looking at him, he looks so tall and grown up but if I look for too long he stops what he is doing and questions "What are you looking at? Why are you staring at me?"

I love how even though he is getting older and more independent he is still very loving and wants to kiss and cuddle and sit with me or Daddy or Tops. He loves to kiss Top Ender goodbye before she goes to School in the morning and he can't wait to go back to school in the evening to pick her up. As soon as Daddy comes home in the evening Big Boy will jump up to kiss him hello and normally he will start to tell him the most important information of the day, what he had for lunch or how long he played on his computer game. You know all the important stuff.

This is my boy. I love him so much and I can't wait to see what he gets up to next.