There were 5 in the bed....

This blog started as a way to record and remember precious memories and sometimes I need to take a moment to notice what is special about a certain stage of his life.  This is Noah's current collection of bedtime toys.  Goodness knows how many it will be by next week but as of today this is the favoured group.  For nearly two years it has just been 'raffy' the blanket up front with a giraffe head then a few weeks ago monkey joined the group and slowly it has grown to this little menagerie. Hop (large bunny) Little Hop (small bunny), Monkey, Frog and 'Raffy' (we like to keep our names pretty simple around here.)

Even as I finally publish this a new bear has joined the gang - reminding me how quickly things change when you're two.

Bunny Cupcakes

How cute are these little guys??  This morning I let Noah do almost all of the work in the kitchen.  He's graduated from chief egg cracker to mixer, cake batter spooner and even iced these ones. (Just two because then he started eating more than he was spreading)

We downloaded the bunny ears from here and then just used whatever we could rustle up around the house.  These ones had fluffy cotton ball tails but we didn't have any little ones for paws at the front (next time). I'd also rather pipe the icing nice and high to give the face a more 3D look and perhaps smaller cupcakes next time so the ears are more in proportion.

They are still pretty adorable and Noah was thrilled.  Check him out - watch out Masterchef.

His apron and hat were Christmas presents and they were one of the gifts that did not get opened on the day because we had such an excess.  How fun is random gift opening on a Friday morning though.

Reality Bites

Image from We Heart It

I'm just gonna blurt it out - I am really sick to death of political correctness (is it even politically correct to say politically correct anymore??)

I mean for god's sake apparently we're not even allowed to say Baa Baa BLACK sheep anymore it's supposed to be 'coloured' sheep.  Forgive me for saying so but that's just bullshit and also I'm pretty sure we went through a whole period of history where 'coloured' was an insulting term for black people so how flipping confusing is that.  There really are black sheep people get over it - it's not racism.

There are so many more examples like this one but the one that's really got my blood boiling lately is the party circuit.  There are so many rules it's out of control.

If your kid is school age and you want to hand out party invites at school you are 'advised' to invite the whole class.  When I was at school people invited who they wanted to their birthday party and everyone else had to put their big kid panties on and get over it.  In real life you can't be friends with everyone - not everyone will like you either and that's OK.

Once you've negotiated that minefield and you've got 40 kids at your house there's the party games.  To be specific pass-the-parcel.  Nowadays the host (ie a frantic mum half an hour before the party) is expected to wrap enough layers for everyone to get a chance to unwrap one.  Then this farce is strictly controlled by some seriously excellent timing on the stereo by a very stressed out dad.  Each layer must also have a prize in it.  C'mon people life isn't fair, this is the time we are supposed to be teaching our kids about sportsmanship - It's not whether you win or lose it's how you play the game etc etc

It's everywhere I turn.  At my nephew's junior footy - no score keeping in case someone gets upset at losing.  Easter Bonnet parade no prize for best hat - just a pat on the back for participating.

I don't want any kids to feel left out or excluded or made to feel inferior - absolutely not.  What I want is for them to be educated honestly.  I want them to learn that in life there are winners and losers.  I want them to understand you don't always get absolutely everything that everyone else does. When they succeed or do well I want them to be able to revel in that accomplishment. I want them to be practised in the art of being both a good winner and a good loser.  I want them to lose or fail and feel disappointed and know how to pick themselves up and try again.

What do you think - am I being too tough?  Should we continue to protect our children from reality?  Do you do the 'everyone's a winner' version of pass the parcel or are you old school like me?

We're off to see the Wizard......

The wonderful Wizard of Oz...........

On the big screen under the stars, finally a cool enough Perth night for snuggly clothes and ugg boots (pj's for a certain small person).  All three of us snuggled under the doona watching one of the best movies ever made - perfect.

Etiquette - FAIL

There is a golden rule everyone should know - unless you see a baby coming out of a woman's vagina DO NOT ask if she is pregnant.  I know this better than anyone - I have a tummy that could easily be taken for 5 months  pregnant. (OK so I'm being a bit kind on myself but hey it's my blog and my fat!!).

On the weekend I was at a child's birthday party and there was a guest there that looked pregnant.  I mean to me she looked absolutely undeniably, indisputably pregnant.  It didn't even for a second occur to me that she wasn't.  She didn't just have a wobbly belly like mine it was hard and round and perfectly placed and she was wearing one of those strapless maxi dresses - I mean c'mon.  Still I should have remembered 'the rule'.

The whole situation was made worse by the fact that I overheard the following conversation.

Random Person 'How long now?'
Fat not pregnant person '5 weeks'

Seemed pretty self explanatory to me so later when we were having a friendly chat I blurt out ' Do you know if you're having a boy or a girl' ?  She very politely told me she was not pregnant and then I died.  I have never been so mortally embarrassed in my life.  It's not like it was in the supermarket and I could just runaway,  I was sitting right next to her. I think I turned bright red then  apologised profusely - it's all a bit of a blur. I was desperately praying for a crater in the earth to open up and swallow me.

Turns out something else in happening to her in 5 weeks - I never did find out what!!



 

Alert - Calorie Overload Ahead

When Baker's Delight contacted me about taste-testing their Hot Cross Buns one of their friendly suggestions was coming up with a recipe involving HXB's.  I love to eat, I love to bake but a recipe creator I am not.  

So naturally I did what anyone in my shoes would do and looked for someone to copy.

In my search I found the amazing Kitchen Wench who created this fab recipe last Easter.  With full credit to her for all of the fabulous deliciousness of this creation as well as some really sexy photos I share it with you.

Chocolate-Stuffed Easter French toast

Ingredients (serves 4)
4 hot cross buns (preferably mocha-flavoured)
2 medium-sized eggs
1/4 cup milk 
2 tbsp caster sugar
2 tsp pure vanilla extract (not Vanilla Essence)
Approx. 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup thickened or double cream, chilled
Approx. 4 tbsp shaved dark chocolate

1. Firstly, slice your buns horizontally into about 4-5 layers.  The buns are easier to slice if you leave them to get a little stale first.

2. Press a few chocolate chips in between each layer (I went with 5), then when you’re finished layering it, use your hand to squish the bun together firmly.

3. Lightly beat together the egg, milk, sugar and vanilla, then dip each hot cross bin in the mixture. Remember to flip it at least once but not to let it soak – you want the egg to coat it, not turn it into a soggy mess. Once you’ve done that, heat up a little oil in a non-stick frying pan over a low flame, then fry the buns one at a time.

Leave each bun to cook for about 4-5 minutes on each side, only flipping once so the side that has been cooking is crispy and the sugars have caramelized nicely.

4. Just before serving, whip the cream till it holds soft peaks, then use a metal spoon to gently fold in the chocolate flakes. Whack a dollop of this on top of each bun as it’s being served, and watch the cream and the chocolate melt together and drip everywhere into a gorgeously calorific MESS!

If you love this recipe you should absolutely hop on over to her Blog and check out so many more amazing recipes plus at the moment there is an opportunity to win a 2L Cuisinart Stainless Steel Ice cream Maker.