I don’t know about you, but mornings in our house are a chaotic rush – getting the kids motivated to get ready on time, and then getting them to eat a good breakfast is a pretty tough call. A new year called for a new method, so we called in the big gun – negotiation! After a family meeting we discovered 2 things – 1. the kids don’t like surprises for breakfast (they like to know what they are getting in advance) 2. we all agree that a hearty breakfast is a good thing and we don’t want to ditch that.

So with those 2 things in mind we designed a breakfast menu for the week, and agreed that 1. the parents would get up early to get breakfast prepared and 2. the kids would get up and dressed and get ready for school in time without fussing. One week and it is working so far. We lapsed one day and we (the parents) slept in and so the kids got cereal for breakfast and everyone was late.

Here is our breakfast menu:
Monday:eggs how you like it (some like them scrambled some like them fried)
Tuesday: sushi (not such a big deal – just have to get up early to prepare the rice – and its great to have some left over to send to school) [here is a recipe - but we use a sushi flavoured vinegar + then fill with leftover chicken breast marinated in soy+mirin for 5 minutes, sometimes we do a quick omelette, and sometimes its avocado + cucumber - whatever you have available - the only essentials are the sushi rice, sushi flavoured vinegar and nori sheets]
Wednesday: Muffins (2 kinds – berry and double chocolate – see recipe below – and again these are great to take leftovers to work and school)
Thursday: eggs how you like it (yes again – we have chooks so having eggs on the menu is a must)
Friday: French Toast (again sounds fancy but it actually super easy – served with cinnamon sugar or maple syrup) [here is a recipe, but you don't need fancy bread - just any day old thick sliced farm break will do]
Saturday: Crepes (again these are easy to make – take a bit of practice but are yummy served with lemon and sugar or even filled with fruit and yogurt) [here is a recipe - you can even make the batter the night before and cover and keep in the fridge]
Sunday: lazy day - get your own breakfast – I am sleeping in.

Other breakfast menu options include: pancakes, rice pudding, toast with tomato/ham/cream cheese/avocado/, toasted cheese sandwich, fruit smoothies (add frozen fruit, banana, LSA, yogurt, egg, honey, nuts), oatmeal (porridge), omelette etc… [our parameter are - 20-25 minutes max to cook/prepare, healthy - high in fibre + protein + energy to get us through the day]

Recipe for easy no-need-to-weigh-anything muffins

1 cup regular cake flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
4 tablespoons of powdered milk (could substitute coconut or soy powdered milk)
4 tablespoons of LSA (finely ground linseeds, sunflower seeds and almonds, is full of fibre, magnesium, omega-3 fats, vitamins E, D, B1 (Thiamin), B2 (Riboflavin), B5 (Pantothenic acid), biotin, calcium, phosphorous, potassium, zinc and numerous other micronutrients.) You could substitute ground almonds as it has a similar texture.
4 tablespoons of quick cook oats (not instant – these are finely sliced oats and cook quicker than regular ones – if you use regular ones – let them soak in warm water for 20 minutes before using them so they break down a bit)
1/2 cup of white sugar (you could also use a combination of brown sugar + honey for a different flavour)
1/2 cup of melted butter
3 eggs (or 2 is fine but I like to add extra eggs where I can for added nutrients)
1 cup of water
pinch of salt if you like

Mix all the dry ingredients together
Whisk the wet ingredients together
Mix them both together (should be a medium batter – not to runny not too stiff)

This makes 12 good sized muffins – take a 12 muffin pan try and line with paper muffin cups – spray with spray oil. Spoon in the muffin mix and sprinkle with brown sugar – bake for 15 mins on medium/high heat.

Because some people in our house like berries and others don’t, I make 6 with berries and then add some extra ingredients to the other half of the batter for a different version:
Version 1 with berries: Spoon these 1/4 full of muffin mix and then spoon in a few frozen berries into each one – then fill the muffin pans 3/4 full of the mix and bake (top with a sprinkle of sugar if desired).
Version 2: chocolate muffins – add 4 tablespoons of milo powder or other powdered chocolate, and a few spoonfuls of choc chips to the mix.
Version 3: add dried cranberries and flaked coconut to the mix
Version 4: add mashed banana and peanut butter to the mix (substitute for some of the liquid)
Version 5: (if you are not a sweet person then omit the sugar first) then add grated cheese and chopped fresh herbs (like parsely).
Version 6: add a cup of muesli instead of oats to the dry batter.

If you mix up the dry ingredients the night before then this takes only a few minutes to get in the oven and you have a good breakfast in 20 minutes.

Homemade Muesli:

Lately I have been making a big batch of homemade muesli too – sometimes we have our hot breakfast then a bowl of muesli with yogurt to follow – sometimes I take a plastic container filled with muesli to work and add milk for a very nice lunch. Often the kids will have muesli for an after school snack – again this is such a versatile recipe and so easy to switch up and mix up to suit your own personal tastes.

Bag of organic 5-grain (rolled whole whoatseat, rye, oats, flaxseed, barley, and triticale) if you can’t get 5-grain – regular oats are fine too
Handful of dried cranberries
Handful of chopped dried peaches and pears
Just a few chopped dried strawberries (just a few of these luxurious treats chopped up make for a tasty hit)
Other dried fruits of your choice (we are not big on sultanas so we leave them out – but other dried fruits could include dried blueberries, dates, figs, apples, apricots etc)
Cup of mixed seeds – (pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds)
Cup of puffed rice (we added sweetened puffed rice to ours for a sweet hit every now and again)
Cup of whole almonds

other options to add include:
coarse LSA (ground linseeds, sunflower seeds and almond), coconut flakes, Wheatgerm, soy grits

Mix all this up and store in an airtight container – serve up with milk (we like with rice milk) or yoghurt – try adding some fresh fruit too.

mmm… enjoy

Razor A Kick Scooter (Blue)

Razor, Sports, $27.97

I recently bought myself and Liam (my now 4 year old son) scooters. I got a Razor Pro, and he got a Razor A. They are so much fun.

Previously he had a three wheel scooter, which he was quite happy with, and hadn’t asked for a new scooter. But I thought it would be a great idea for us both to get one so that we could scoot together. I bought them both at the same time, and started using mine immediately and kept his a secret to be given at Christmas. It was his BIG present. You know, the one that they are supposed to be completely impressed by.

So on Christmas morning we did the big reveal and he opened up the wrapping on the big scooter box and looked at the picture on the outside and said “oh, I already have a scooter Dad.” So I tried to convince him that it actually was a very cool present. But he was much more interested in the other presents that we had given him and Henry. I have to say that I was a little disappointed.

It turns out that the scooter was more of a slow burn present for him. By the end of the day he was scooting all around the house and having a blast. He had even commented to Henry ‘This is the best thing EVER!’

Since then, we have been going on regular scoots around the neighbourhood, and his scooting stamina has increased dramatically. One of the adventures that we do sometimes on a weekend is to scoot parallel to the trams on some quiet suburban streets until Liam gets tired, and then catch the tram back to our house for lunch. His balance has improved really quickly and now he is doing long glides on downhill stretches and has figured out how to use the back foot brake too.

Lots of fun. I recommend you get one.

Razor A Kick Scooter (Blue)

Razor, Sports, $27.97

The Big Big Big Book of Tashi (Tashi series)

Kim Gamble (Illustrator). Allen & Unwin 2002, Paperback, 448 pages, $10.33

Anna Fienberg (Author), Barbara Fienberg (Author), Kim Gamble (Illustrator)

We have a love/hate thing going on in our house with the Tashi books. Have you read them – do your kids enjoy them? I am on the hate side of these books – they seem inane and very very boring to read aloud (for grown-ups). However as an early reading book for kids they are a big winner – the kids are on the love side (and that’s the important thing). The simple language, repetitive themes, bit of magic and mystery and strange characters are enough to allow the kids to keep on reading. The pics are lovely too. They are pitched at early readers – the 6-8 age group – older than that and the kids get a bit bored.

The Amazing Tashi Activity Book (Tashi series)

Kim Gamble (Illustrator). Allen & Unwin 2010, Paperback, 44 pages, $10.19

Anna Fienberg (Author), Barbara Fienberg (Author), Kim Gamble (Illustrator)

So as a house with most of the Tashi series, we were quite interested in the Tashi activity book, the kids saw it in the bookshops and liked the look of it. Also it helps that we love activity books too. They extend the story and put some fun into reading – always a good thing. The Tashi activity book has mazes, a pull out board game, word puzzles and craft activities and how-to draw the characters + there is a story that runs through the book as well. Gets a thumbs up from me as well as the kids.

This summer has been a summer of books for us. A couple of beach weeks, then weeks and weeks of lazy reading, swimming and more reading. The kids especially have been enjoying their christmas books.

Finding books that I think my kids would enjoy is not easy though. My daughter – an average reader for her nearly 10 years is not interested in those girly pre-teen books about giggling school girls – instead she enjoys fantasy and make believe, and lots of silly naughty books.

Meanwhile my 7 year old son is quite the precocious speed reader and has a vast range of books he loves. Lots of adventure, some fantasy and of course silly fun.

Here is my list of books for 7-10 year olds – you won’t find any angst ridden pre-teen books on this list though – its all about fantasy and silliness.

1. Diary of a wimpy kid by Jeff Kinney – has been a favourite of both kids – so side splittingly funny and un-putdownable – with lots of late night reading and then reading aloud at the table so everyone can share the jokes. Its very visual – a so good for slow readers – and even though the main character is a boy – it has universal appeal. This is the most angst ridden of all the books the kids are into – but without that ’seriousness’ and that saves it.

2. The trilogy of bum books by Andy Griffiths – I know how dreadful – but serously these books are apparently hilarious – everyone loves a good fart and bum joke (in America the title of these has been changed from bum to butt). My 7 year old boy loves LOVES these books – bad taste or not – they are perfect for this age group.

3. Continuing on the Andy Griffiths theme – we love this author – he really hits the nail on the head when it comes to early readers. His Just series – Just shocking, Just tricking, Just annoying etc contain short stories all about this one practical joking kid – the books are written using a variety of styles – cartoons, lists, choose your own adventure etc – so really mix it up – especially good for reluctant readers – but also for kids who like a bit of joking around.

4. Really we can’t get enough of Andy Griffiths – and his latest book was on our kids christmas list – The bad book - this is a such an easy read and the kids swallowed it whole in a day, then spent the next 3 weeks reading aloud various funny and silly bits to anyone and everyone who would listen.

5. Lovely old Enid Blyton is a firm favourite – not the mystery series though – our kids find them just a bit too serious and can’t quite get transported to another world – not like the Faraway tree series or the wishing chair series, where they are so entranced by the magical characters and mysterious lands. A must have for both boys and girls.

6. Pippi Longstocking – is amazing character – strong independent, funny and smart. With superhuman strength, a chest of gold, her own house with her horse living with her, and not going to school – instead she has adventures with two plain children who live next door and who are entranced with this incredible girl. My kids were also entranced – both of them – the main character is a strong female role model – but boys will also love the adventures she gets up to.

7. The Spiderwick Chronicles – We fell in love with the movie before we read the books – (we haven’t yet read the second series – beyond spiderwick). My 7 year old boy is the main one who loved this series – although he didn’t want to read it at night because it was a bit scary.

8. We still go back to Roald Dahl time after time. James and the Giant Peach,the BFG, The fantastic Mr Fox and Georges marvelous medicine are just a couple of our favourites – certainly the ones that the kids enjoy to read by themselves.

9. Paul Jennings in another author that has just the right amount of grossness, silliness and adventure to keep our kids interested. We have some of his collected stories – including Weirdest, Trickiest and Funniest stories ever. These are short stories and are also a joy for adults to read aloud – we took them camping one year and while I read aloud to the kids in the heat of the day I always had a gaggle of interested kids sitting around listening.

10. The captain underpants series is also a long time favourite – again lots of poo and bum jokes, naughty boys doing silly things, and a very unlikely hero – whats not to love.

The other day I sent my almost 10 year old daughter in to clean her room – an hour of quiet later and it was still a mess – however she had achieved a very good list – here it is… [pic is the same girl - different day - industriously making a cubby house at the front door]

Plan
1. clean my room
2. get shortbread if I can
3. asc if I can go to Ellie’s house
4. go to Ellie’s house
5. or not go to Ellie’s house
6. spy on orlando

Plan to clean my room
1. put my douty clothes in the bascet
2. put the dress upps in the dres up box
3. put milo’s [cat] things in a sepet [separate] area
4. make the beds / put the toys away
5. put the shoos away
6. pick up the rubish
7. get a broom – use the broom
8. pick up the books
9. sort out the soft and the hard toys
10. sort the clothes out / hang the dresses
11. clean the cuberds
12. get all of the xtra things out of my room

plan for spying
1. camera
2. camera batteries
3. spi bag
4. diracshens [directions]
5. magnifying glass
6. food
7. xtra shortbread

Summer is here – the school holidays are about to begin – endless days are ahead. If you are lucky enough to be by the beach then your summer is already planned – days swimming, fishing, building sand castles and finding treasure are at hand. You might be planning on spending a week or 2 at the beach (like us – can’t wait) but what about the rest of the time? what will you do with the kids over the summer?

Here are 10 things I have planned for me and the kids (school age kiddos) (after we get back from the beach) over the summer break…

1. bike riding in the pine forest – taking our bikes and a picnic and heading into the forest for some adventure.
2. another bike adventure closer to home – doing a bike tour of all the parks and play areas in our neighborhood – and there are few – again snacks are essential – as is a trip to the shops for icecreams on the way home.
3. speaking of icecream – we will be doing our share of making some these holidays – a new icecream machine will make this even easier than ever. The kids love to spend time in the kitchen – so I will be letting them have it with minimal supervision.
4. the kitchen is a great place for experimentation but so is the outdoors – and after reading George’s marvelous medicine (by Roald Dahl) recently the kids have been making a few concoctions of their own – just stay out of my perfume please!
5. reading naturally is big on our list - the fave books of the moment are: the classics – Faraway tree and the enchanted forest by Enid Blyton are going through a revival in our house, but the kids are both obsessed with Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton’s books – ‘the bad book’ is on the christmas list and ‘the just’ series of books which are hilarious and terrible all at the same time.
6. bug collection is pretty big in our house at the moment too – the kids both have a pet spider they feed occasionally by catching flys for them – we have a worm farm we need to repopulate and an ant farm which might get another go as well.
7. you may have noticed there are not many outings on this list – I am a bit of a homebody and like to stay put in the holidays especially if its just me and the kids – we will visit some friends of course – but the only outings are likely to be to the pool or to the adventure park – we might even make it to the museum – but more than likely its into the city for a ride on the merry-go-round and a giant iced chocolate.
8. this one is for the dads – I am not big on fishing but the kids love it – and it does have its meditative and exciting moments – so rob is planning on taking the kids fishing to the river or lake a couple of times – might even put the canoe out and make a day of it with the family.
9. a girls weekend in the city and a boys weekend in the country. Yup thats right – separate excursions for some quality time – I am going to take my girl for some shopping, sightseeing and gallery going for the weekend to Sydney and Rob is going to take the boy camping in the bush – some rabbit snaring, fire lighting and star gazing is on their agenda.
10. Crafts, boardgames and drawing are also on our agenda – we love to play cards, do jigsaw puzzles and play blokus (our new favourite game) – then there is lego and science and electronic kits (we love to make fake blood and dress up), and play cluedo. We also have an ever growing craft box filled with glue, glitter, recycled cardboard boxes and toilet rolls, paints, sticky tape, beads, string, wool, scissors, fancy scissors, icypole sticks, wire … the list goes on – we get this huge box out and just get making – it usually ends up in some sort of puppet show at the end – lots of fun. And drawing too – this can be quite meditative and personal or can turn into a huge group project – we have rolls of butchers paper which we sometimes unravel on the floor or kitchen table and make a huge mural piece all together.

Try some of our ideas or tell us what you will be doing – we would love some new ideas too.

The cherry association of Australia is promoting the healthy lovely aspects of cherries and the aussie summer obsession with everything cherry. Here is the event guide for local cherry seasonal events near you – including cherry spitting competitions and cherry picking and more – the cherry growers website also has a few recipes - and there is a chance to win an ipod. I was offered a box of cherries to help with my summer celebrations – but because I am away on hols I couldn’t take them up on the offer – but I will be eating cherries where I am going anyway – and will no doubt be visiting a cherry farm to pick our own – the kids love doing that – you should try it with your kids if you can.

Above is my tutorial on how to make your own homemade laundry detergent. For a few bucks you can have a huge bucket of homemade laundry detergent. It does save money – also takes time to make it – but the real reason I do it is the utter satisfaction in helping to save the planet in a small way – also it really does clean your clothes well and by adding your own essential oils you can make your clothes smell the way you want – lemon fresh – eucalyptus clean – lavender lovely – oh the possibilities.

Nathan left a comment here the other day – and when I visited his blog this morning I found a great tutorial on how to make this exact laundry detergent recipe – so head over there for a more pictorial tutorial.

When I first found this recipe – (on youtube I think) – I had heard of borax, but never used it as a regular household ingredient – what is it though? It is a naturally occurring alkaline mineral called ’sodium borate’ and has been used for over 4000 years in various capacities. It has many household uses: a natural laundry booster (add spoonful to your wash to help whiten whites), multipurpose cleaner (dissolve in water and add a drop of lemon essence for a great spray cleaner and excellent for deodorising and cleaning the fridge), stain remover (make a paste with warm water for a pre-wash stain remover), soaker (used as a pre-wash soaker for nappies/diapers – removes odors and makes washing easier), deodoriser (sprinkle in your garbage bin, on smelly carpet or use a paste on urine soaked mattresses) – or pour a little down smelly sink drains – leave for a bit before vacuuming or rinsing to remove odors), fungicide, preservative, insecticide, herbicide and disinfectant.

The great thing about borax is that although quite refined now – it is still a natural compound with no toxic fumes and is safe for the environment (although too much is never a good thing – and is a good insecticide too), however it should not be ingested and can irritate the skin – so use with common sense.

The other main ingredient in this laundry detergent is Washing soda – this is different from Bi-carb/baking soda – although baking soda is also an excellent natural cleanser. Washing soda sodium carbonate sometimes also known as soda ash – it has a high alkaline chemical component and while it is relatively harmless to the environment – it can cause skin irritation and should not be ingested – wear gloves while using.

The high alkalinity helps it act as a solvent to remove stains – it is also used as a water softener, use it remove mineral deposits from your bathroom tiles and coffee machine, a paste or liquid concentrate can be used for scrubbing the stove and removing tough stains from clothing.

Movie reviews are not generally my specialty – however I was asked to review this aussie drama about family and thought that this was the best location for the review.

The boys are back is a bit of a heart wrenching tear jerker, if you do like a bit of a cry at the movies then this one might just fit the bill. A sentimental journey of fatherhood, a love story, and the aussie bush as a gorgeous backdrop – with these three elements you might just think its a good girly flick. There are some challenging grim moments, lots of humour, and of course there is a moral to the story. While the general rise and fall of the drama is predictable, and some of the storylines don’t always make sense, the convincing acting, and the fact that it is based on a true story, along with the fantastic scenery and photography, make it convincing – enough to wreak havoc on your mascara – bring tissues (its rated pg – but is not a kids movie). Check out a trailer here.

Hopscotch are offering 5 Australian movie goers a double in-season passes to see this flick at your local cinema. Leave a comment here – you have 48 hours – telling me your fave aussie movie of all time.

Martha Stewart’s Dinner at Home

Martha Stewart. Clarkson Potter 2009, Hardcover, 272 pages, $9.64

As usual Martha Stewart’s impeccable taste and style win through with a very useful book for dinner parties. The recipes are broken into menus – each with a starter, sides + dessert. We (the family + but mainly me) love the preparation schedule at the beginning of each menu – what you can make in advance – what order to make it all it – how long it will take.

I haven’t made anything from this book yet – it is too perfect and I just am not quite sure where to start – I am content at the moment just to look and wait for the perfect combination of ingredients and inspiration to hit me.

The recipes all seem very achievable – lots of hearty home style cooking – nothing seems too fancy or overdone – the book is dedicated to hardworking families. With a seasonal chapter breakdown you can prepare your menus according to what is in season and the weather. Right now I am thinking spring/summer — baby lamb chops + asparagus with aioli + Quinoa, pea and mint salad + vanilla poached rhubarb – but all of you going into fall/winter how does this sound — Roast pumpkin soup + cheese flautas (deep fried wrap) with cilantro pesto + black eyed pea salad with baby green beans + apple cranberry crumble.