Category Archives: Cooking

On the fifth day of christmas – I made toffee fudge

Today was prob always a bit of a push! We are well behind schedule – does that surprise anyone? However, the aim of the game is to have a great family Christmas, so top of my list of to dos were some yoghurt pot bells for the christmas tree, and decorating some mugs for the grandparents, and some family baking.

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BB was ecstatic about the bell making – which was good as the craft was pitched for her. Sb also enjoyed it, so they painted and glittered together, with a bit of sticking. I threaded the bells in [well, its more fun if they actually jingle!] when they had dried. Much singing of jingle bells [still usually to the bring me back theme by BB] and other Christmas carols.

SB moved on to decorating the mugs using ceramic pens in her own inimitable freestyle way. One was made up of a drawing of computer wires, one an exploding comet, the other a trajectory of a golf ball… BB carried on with the painting and sticking.

They both did some christmas sticker book before lunch, and general play – with all the noisy things BB could find [a lot!] including that ELC footpath thing. Chris went out, so we took the opportunity to wrap his present from the girls. Carefully chosen by SB, its the first pressie she has wanted to buy either of us!
After lunch we made choc/banana porridge muffins. yummy. SB and BB worked together very cooperatively [well mostly with a Christmas eye of faith!] and with a wing and a prayer were cooked and worked out. So one for them to eat, and the rest in the freezer for Christmas morning. I am making some marmalade ones for the grown ups. [mum is bringing gammon for the traditionalists!]. I quickly made the brandy butter with them too. SB doesn’t like it – good!

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SO there we were, all achieved with lots of fun by 3! So we tidied and sorted SB’s bedroom – well overdue. Now my sister and family can sleep in their quite safely. SOme general playing, but BB in particular was getting fractious as we didn’t allow her a nap today as she has been being a nightmare. So we put on another episode of the great britain series with allen titchmarsh – the ice age [SB choice] and quickly gave BB a tea. bath and she perked up, so a latish bedtime after all, and will hopefully stay asleep.

I am waiting to see what my fudge has done, but early impressions are of toffee. i don’t get fudge right ever! in fact last time i gave up [edited aside, SB down as her egyptian and world war 2 now finished, so I’ve suggeted she goes for a longer cd!] and made fudge with soft cheese, but didn’t like it – I’m more of a tablet person. this time have used this recipe for the first [and probably last] time. Anyone with any surefire recipes! [i have a jam thermometer, so know the temps]

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Chris now making soup. watched the battlestar galactica on mon – nice cliffhanger – and getting into bones as I forget the books! Must do some wrapping up, but feel can’t start anything till I ‘know the worst’ with the fudge! We have taken loads of photos btw, just haven’t yet flickred!

On the 3rd day of christmas

we went to CHEF Christmas party. SO lots of fun and making things, singing carols, [playing, eating – all in no particular order!

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Got home late and adjusted SB’s character skirt for her to twirl about in, then had roaring fire and watched some History of Britan [or whatever its called] with Alan Titchmarsh – SB really enjoyed it.

Read some of the cutaway transport book to SB, and then mostly chilled and wrapped a few presents, listened to chtismas songs etc.

dundee cake in

a day earlier than last year!
now to write Xmas cards

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Hama Deeds/ on the second day of christmas

well, we did quite a lot of hama deeds. SB had to do hers twice, as B ‘helped’ her. The first version was better, and so never mind to the receiver of the gift! I also did 2 hama stars as presents, so will remember to flickr them to Merry’s group. i have now run out of christmas green though.

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A bit of general mayhem, and book reading and the BB went to sleep. SB and I had been going to do something fiddley then, but she prefered to get stuck in on the baking, so we made Delias chees and olive scones [where she tipped out approx half the egg, so we made up with milk and it is fine]

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and then some choc choc chip cookies for CHEF tomorrow. I didn’t get them out of the oven earlier enough though. I just am no good at cookies – they are either biscuits or soggy. Anyway, they are edible. Bb helped with the end of the cookies, having woken up. She mostly ate the choc chips, but did wodge some of them in. We have been using the great big solid balance scales, which are rather lovely, in oz! SO SB adding, doubling etc like mad all by herself.

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We have posted out the early years HE cards at last – sorry everyone. I still have my own cards to do.

bit of relaxing with the yoga DVD, SB definitely getting much better at it, and then more general mayhem. lots of singing carols – i quite liked BB’s jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle bells my legions [to the bring me back tune - rofl] Bit of ad hoc talking around the chinese calendar from the restaurant, and the years of thing. Chris and I are apparently totally incompatible! I have promised to celebrate the chinese new year.

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Dinner and now bath. How does the day go so quickly? we were supposed to be making yoghurt pot bells for the Xmas tree? AH, wailing from upstairs – shall I see what Chris is doing?? [it sounds like SB is saying BB bit her nipple? def one for chris to handle]

On the first day of christmas

well, it is for me OK, as off until thurs after xmas! So, got home from work and huggled the girls with great relief. We got stuck straight in with reading, snuggling and playing together. Lots of drawing – BB loves her etch a sketch, the wacky wigglers are still a huge hit. SB has begun to be more imaginative herself, working out how things might join and what might not work. Both girls are rather sweet at making up imaginative stories with the christmas tree decs in the playroom. Even BB has got the hang of making them kiss and fall asleep. 2 trees may be a frip, but it seem to be money well spent. Straight into Xmas crafts and we made coconut ice. SB and BB – so the mixutres may not be exact! SB is quite able to do it herself, but we still do it together as fun. BB made a huge mess but enjoyed it!

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After lunch, we did some making stained glass windows with black paper and tissue paper – glue city! i cut out a snowman shape for BB who stuck bits on it, and then demanded I did it! SB liked the snowman idea, so she did one too.

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We read the hannukah section of while the bear sleeps and then watched Disney’s Aladdin, strictly come dancing and Planet Earth ['cos I was steamless at this point!]

i fell asleep, but BB woke me up, so now I have insomnia!!

A lovely first day of the hols though.

A breather

for me anyway. I have been working hard. I have my yearly appraisal tomorrow, so have been busy finding excellence in everything I do – always a hideous prospect – and filling in huge pointless forms – even worse. I guess the forms are pointful to SOMEone to say I have been duly processed for another year. I still have about 4 hours of finishing some online learning module, and somemore form to do.

Our local hospital is still up for grabs. Due to politics, they aren’t likely to shut it, but are doing the death by a thousand cuts option – i guess oping we all leave without being paid redundancy money. Think again! I have earmarked that money.

Anyway, in case chris doesn’t blog, they went to CHEF sports and played on Monday. We have done loads more Cnristmas cards monday eve and lots of education city, read the usboune starting point science under the earth.

Not entirely sure what they did on Tues as I got home at nearly 11.

SO today I had a lie in. When I got up, SB was helping Chris with the washing, and BB and I did painting – she is very keen on painting. I will pop here before I forget that one of her newer tunes is the Hallelujah chorus from the Messiah. very funny. She loves painting and her talking is getting more and more obvious – except when she has a strop. SHe has rather enjoyed the whole idea of advent calendars – she has a chocolate one and a sticker one. She’s not so keen on the waiting for it idea though.

SB also joined us painting, then we did an usbourne puzzle book – school before she moved onto general playing and building things with BB. BB and I read all the red nose readers as she is very fond of them. Ahe has obviously remembered her birthday as sang the first line of happy birthday fairly interminably when she saw the birthday cake.
SB did some more education city – definitely something that she is much more keen on this year, whilst BB and I looked at pictures and messed around. Some lunch was had, and I was rung 3 times by work – sigh.

After lunch we did one of those science test-tubes you can uy in tescos. we did the gravity one which was fun. SB had a good memory for gravity and its effects, and we talked about defying gravity and ways to do it. thrust/lift/ energy etc. the popper was fun, though BB lost it. Our staircase was perfect for throwing the parachutist down the gap and seeing it work. Also good for the experiment was seeing what might happen if BB packed your parachute. The extra boingy ball kept all 4 of us amused. A quick revision of the key ideas and how flight worked and then we went to the next activity prepared fby chris

Which was mincemeat making. Lots of raisins scattered across the kitchen. BB mostly played games scooping the nutmeg around in a bowl. Smelled gorgeous. has to settle overnight [a delia recipe] and then jarred ready for when we make mince pies.

A calm down reading roman gods in story of the world leading into a discussion of the planets again, and ranking them to likely gravity. The a day late we started the barefoot books while the bear sleeps. Chris also picked up something called christmas soup for the soul, with a small story for each day of advent, and we started to catch up.

The girls had a wild bath with the jacuzzi bit on and then have done a dancing show, eaten curry for tea [tea was running late] and now BB has done some more sticking Xmas cards. SB is still eating – she is very slow at eating! Bed any second now. Am contemplating reading The Hobbit as a bedtime story now she has finished Charlie and the chocolate factory. [BB shrieking that she 'Hadding a bath' - as in she has already had it] . yep bedtime. just finished in time!

raterh cutely BB has been singing a Josie song – as in for josie i think! SB said we were supposed to be sharing pomegranates, so that is what all 3 of us are doing before bed. really juicy pomegranate too

An Arctic day

Whilst you read this blog, you really should be listening to this. SB and I have been humming along to this all day [and others I have found] much to Chris’s horror! I think its a bit Pingu like, but it reminds Chris of the smurfs.

Its not cold in the house, as we put on the heating for the first time in Honour of Nic and Ady [and it was really cold on fri!], but SB wanted to make the Igloo from the 120 history projects book. not only craft, but lots of measuring and multiplying in 4′s skills.

We listened to lots of inuit throat singing – and joined in to Chris’s bemusement – whilst building it. A brief run around who the inuit are and a brief run about what lives in the arctic, using her first animal picture atlas. But mostly throat singing – LOL. We have been trying ourselves, and doing interpretative dance [LOLLOLLOLLOL!!!]

SB built a lovely track for her and BB to play with the trains. She also read BB a book - woohoo! – and has done a lot of weighing today in the maths ‘match and sort’. Both children are now sat infront of another wildlife DVD eating popcorn. Unfortunately I can’t get our home grown popcorn to pop, so this is bought corn.

BB has mostly payed with trains, skipped, had books read to hr and done a few jigsaws – oh, also played with playdough and done her ”maths’ [she draws over a preK book of maths that SB started with.] listened to both her version and Terry deary’s bring me back – a lot! and also various u-tube throat singing videos [more LOL]. TBH i never knew much about throat singing, and now feel quite an expert.

invaded by the monster teenies

its just a good b movie title! we had a lovely drop by on their way back from hallowween camp. SB had insited on making chocolate spread cake, and it didn’t work at all this time. Nic and Ady manfully ate it though and i don’t think the children cared as it was ‘cake’.

lots of running about by the children, playing will all sorts of bits – the wacky wigglers still a favourite – and a brief slow down with a film. they wet to bed far to late as were being very happy an not disturbing our natter!. A chippery supper and final collapse.

A VERY late start in the morning for the adults, though children up with the larks. A bad start for me since was woken by BB infrming me there was poo in her nappy, and proving it by showing me a handful – lovely! After a sluice down we went downstairs. What I hadn’t realised, was that there were a few other places in the house where she had investigated the contents of her nappy. This came to light when Teeny asked what was on her foot…. SO a trawl around cleaning the house and we were ready for the day [if slightly mortified]. Pancakes and play. A very tired monster! After lunch we said goodbye and settled down for a relaxing afternoon, as SB also needing a chill out in front of a david attenbrorough film [mammals]

BB was a total pest going to sleep. I had had a lovely [very long!] phone call, and BB woke up 3 secs after we got cut off [for exceeding the allowable length of phone calls - 2 hours] and then wouldn’t go to sleep.

my system adminstrator has for once done something useful, and attached the old computer stack to the television [somehow - too technical for me] so we could watch battlestar galactica downloads directly rather than putting tehm on DVD. fantastic. Since BB would nOT sleep, we did this till 2 – oops. She was a pain even when we had gone to bed, so me and Chris tired today.

Jax and co and catchup – edited!

came to visit for the weekend. we will flickr, but I was a bit lax with my photography. the children disapperaed, BB is desperate to be one of the gang. Sb and Small took a few adjustments as she had him pegged as a BB game wrecker. Big and SB raced around having fun and very late nights! Jax taught us to make the heat little wool dolls. And we nattered. lovely weekend!

will stuff in a flickr photo when I get it though

before her arrival, some friends from leeds popped by on their way past, which was lovely. We all used to be in choir together. Their son is similar in age to BB. Much fun was had with bubbles.

forgot to blog that I had played some lovely games of set and scrabble with SB, baked with BB and done a fair bit of ‘normals’ with SB.

from the garden we have even harvested a pumpkin! Loads of brocolli is ready now as well, as a bonus

Mushroom risotto aka ‘The Curse of Quorn’

I made a gorgeous mushroom risotto with dried wild mushrooms and chestnuts [not dried!] and parmesan cheese.

It smelled and tasted delicious.

unfortunately, when I became pregnant with BB I had to stop eating quorn as it brought on the most amazingly hideous stomach cramps that felt like labour of the stomach and lasted 4 hours [note to people we might be visiting - no quorn please!]. Had it 2ce and stopped then realising the common ingredient.

Now, last night almost as soon as I had finished the delicious repast, the same happend. Initially i presumed I had eaten a deadly mushroom [I don't ever overreact!], but as CHris seemed fine and stayed fine, and I had the 4 hour stomah labour, eased marginally by maximal doses of all the various antacids/proton pump inhibitors and gavisocn I could find, I presume the curse of quorn.

Aaarrgh I love wild mushrooms. hmmm. Can’t be the porcini ones though as I have them alot