Books (and Pieces) for Beasties

If childhood were to be split into time periods, like history, it would be fair to say that this year we are in 2017 BC....K. That is, Biff, Chip, Kipper, oh and Floppy! Yes, with a 5 year old in the midst of learning to read, we are painstakingly making our way through the 'exciting' adventures that befall Biff, Chip, Kipper, their parents and their dog. Many of these were published before I was born and some versions that come home in the book bag are looking a little dog eared! At a time when reading should be fun for children, encouraging them to find a love for stories, I've been on a mission to create an exciting collection of titles for the girls.

I came across Books and Pieces through Babease, a range of organic food. Amanda, founder of Books and Pieces sent through a wonderful collection of first books for Florence including a buggy book, bath book, flaps book and even an indestructible book! (if you have young children, you NEED one of these!).

When Amanda announced she was creating a Parent Panel, I got in touch. Not only was this a chance to review books, encouraging the girls to explore some new titles but also help a small business to grow. I was so pleased to hear I had been chosen amongst some other great ladies. You can read all about the members of the Parent Panel here  A few months ago, we received an exciting parcel from Books and Pieces with some great titles in. This is our round up of the books we received and why you should give them a go. Don't miss the discount code at the bottom!

Usborne Look Inside Your Body

I'd mentioned to Amanda that Isabella had a growing interest in facts and we were starting to think about what happens in our body. It is also important to keep learning fun and Amanda absolutely came up trumps with this one.

There's flap books...and then there's flap books!! This non fiction book contains over 100 flaps and makes learning about your body so much fun.

Isabella went straight for this one and has already started repeating facts about the body to us. Her interest in non fiction spans from dinosaurs, under the sea and now your skeleton and and where food goes.

Where's my teddy? by Jez Alborough

I actually remember this story from my childhood so there was something a little nostalgic about seeing this book as we opened the parcel. With nice short phrasing, this book is also perfect for younger ones with incredibly short attention spans! The rhyme makes it an easy read and the story is just a little heartwarming. It has the type of ending that makes you go 'ahhh' (happy sigh).

The Princess and the Wizard by Julia Donaldson

In this house, we are big fans of Julia Donaldson books. I'm pretty sure there's no such thing as a bad Julia Donaldson book. One of the first of her books that Isabella and I read was Stickman and it has remained a firm favourite. We had not yet come across The Princess and the Wizard so it was really nice to find a new JD story.

This story takes elements of classic fairytales and turns it into a modern day Princess story. Also, refreshing to see a lead female character who is capable of saving the day without the help of a handsome prince. After all, we are trying to raise strong girls!

Sharing a shell by Julia Donaldson

Hmm, sharing. Interesting word. One that we're currently using quite a lot. Florence is now at the age where she is very interested in what Isabella is doing and what she has. However, surprisingly, she isn't the one we are telling to share! No! It turns out, Happyland characters and Duplo, toys for babies, are actually incredibly enticing to five year olds!

Sharing a Shell not only helps children to understand the principle of sharing in rhyme (this is another fantastic Julia Donaldson read, by the way) but also satisfied Isabella's hunger for learning about under the sea. A big hit!

The Goggle-Eyed Goats by Stephen Davies

In our selection of books to review was this title. Amanda mentioned on her note she had added something a little different to our selection! I had never heard of this book but it really stood out with its bright colours and quirky title.

I really like this book as it is a great introduction to the idea of other cultures. Old Al Haji Amadu, the owner of the goggle-eyed goats has 3 wives! I'm expecting some interesting questions from Isabella at some point when we read this again. The story is fun and entertaining. Perhaps just flick through in advance to brush up on your pronunciations!

The Beautiful Patterns Colouring Book

Amongst our selection of books was this amazing colouring book! It's packed with so many different scenes and patterns to colour. A vegetable patch, different breeds of dog, Russian dolls- so many to choose from! I'm very particular when it comes to colouring so for example, things need to be as they are supposed to be and should match what they are in reality. However, having children that is never going to happen and Isabella and I have enjoyed working on our colouring in this book together (purple and green stripey dogs!)- although I've even done some on my own after bedtime! This book is jam packed and great value for money.

It's been great fun reading some brand new stories and I'm already eyeing up some new titles for stocking fillers- yes, sorry, the C word is upon us!

If you'd like to order some books for your beasties in time for Christmas, Books and Pieces do some great deals with 3 for £10.

Amanda has also very kindly provided a discount code- enter Beasties10 at the checkout for 10% off! 

Happy reading!

Spinning plates and smashing others

It's hard to believe that in just over two months, the youngest beasty, Flo Flo will be 1! Easily the quickest year of our lives so far, Florence is doing new things everyday with an excellent big sister to teach her. Crawling is imminent so growing eyes in the back of my head would be a great human evolutionary feature right now! I've been back in work nearly two months (with a holiday slotted in) and quite honestly, it's been really tough. Whilst it's nice to not have to ask for pocket money anymore and gain some adult interaction, there is a lot more to think about and less time to do it all. Unfortunately, there's only so many plates you can spin and some of mine have broken slightly and others have shattered. Despite this, you have to celebrate the ones that are still spinning, even the small wins.

The Smashed Ones

Social life

I miss drinking coffee and eating cake after swimming on a Wednesday. Florence and I enjoyed many Mummy-baby social gatherings during maternity leave. Mummy friends kept me sane as we compared sleep deprivation, sick stains and parenting wins and fails.

March 2017

Texting

I'm so sorry! I probably haven't text you back! I will, soon.

Running

Running has always been a form of therapy for me. It just clears my head and keeps me sane when, as a parent there is so little time to do that. With broken sleep, 10 hours a day away from my beasties and a boob-hunting baby, running has been put on the back burner.

Blogging

This makes me sad! Writing my blog is also another escape. It's something that is mine. I don't have to share it like my chocolate bar. I'm working on getting this one back up, starting with some work as part of a Parent Panel, encouraging children to read.

Housework

I hate that this plate is looking a little chipped but housework has definitely taken a knock. I'm trying to stress less about this one, it just gets done when we have time.

The Spinning Ones

The children are alive!

Hurrah! They're fed, clothed and mostly clean- don't ask after a mealtime!

My relationship is alive

We're like passing ships with going to work so, our time together has recently taken a huge knock. Despite this, between us, we're working out everything together as we go. Communication is a hundred percent key and the bickering is minimal!

Mama Guilt

I can't stop spinning this one! I wish I could drop it but it's there, all the time. Guilty about going to work, guilty about making sandwiches for dinner sometimes, guilty about wanting time on your own, afterall I've been at work all day, every other minute should be devoted to the girls, right?

Doing my job

After 9 months away from work, it's nice to go back and have a purpose other than mummy. I can work and drink HOT coffee whilst doing it!

Staying sane

I feel this plate has wobbled occasionally but I've let others smash in order to keep this one going. You can't do everything.

Staying sane, having a holiday!

That is important; it's best to do some things well, instead of more, not so well. My social life light is flickering back into life and my trainers aren't at the very bottom of the shoe pile any more, so the plates don't stay broken forever. Here's to the Greeks, who at least smash theirs in style!

The side-effects of parenting

When I was deciding what to write about this week, I was close to going down the route of being a working parent and the whole lack of sleep thing. In all honesty, it was just going to end up as a massive whinge about how exhausting this all is and really, who wants to read about that? Feeling sorry for myself isn't going to get me anywhere! So, I've decided to be a little more light hearted about the whole situation and laugh about it instead! Feels strange to say I've been a parent for over 5 years now and these are some of the main unfortunate side effects. Basically, annoying parenting things made to sound like illnesses...although some could be dinosaurs... 

Washing-all-the-time-irus

Clothes, dishes, the floor in the restaurant you took the kids to, after most of the meal ended up on the floor. Yep, if your washing machine isn't constantly spinning and you haven't wiped up your baby's regurgitated crusty tomato puff from the highchair, are you even a parent though? 

Pick-out-the-bits-osis 

Requirements: magnifying glass, rag to mop sweat from brow, patience of a Saint. 

Blackcurrants in the blackcurrant jam, rosemary on the roasties, peas in the risotto. After a good 20 minutes of searching and dispatching of bits then proudly presenting bit-less meal, expect your eagle eyed beasty to shout 'I found a bit! Can you get it?'. Stay strong- you're not alone! 

Plastic Crap-itus 

Potentially the most audible side effect. Sounds of annoyance range in pitch and frequency but are ultimately expressed when treading on plastic crap, finding plastic crap in your footwear or the crescendo- screaming that you've had enough of the plastic crap and throwing it all the bin... Only to buy more to appease the beasties on your next outing. 

Swelling

Side effect has a number of causes. Swelling may be caused mostly by pride or overeating. Side effect will continue throughout your children's childhood and is at its peak during events such as first smile, first word spoken, sports day and continuing to exercise your right to two breakfasts. 

Cooking-meals-no-one-likes-rsym

A frustrating side effect that is difficult to avoid. Tends to rear its ugly head when children have learnt to say 'no' and continue until they leave home. Condition is incredibly subjective but safe options (for when there's no wine around) tend to be cheese or carbohydrate based. Perfect for encouraging aforementioned swelling! 

Mess allergy

Do you break into a sweat as the toy box lid opens? Do you clench your teeth when the box of crayons is tipped upside down to find the pink one that isn't even there? Do you itch as food is hurtled from the highchair (but your forced to just observe- you have to let them explore, it's a good sensory experience they said)? No antihistamine to cure this one, I'm afraid. 

Let's-walk-even-slower-injury

Expect to become a professional motivational speaker within a couple of trips after deciding to go cold turkey with the pushchair.

Outloud: 'yes! You can do it, we're nearly there! Just around the corner, well done!' 

Inside: come on, is it even possible to walk any slower. I think we should just give up and sit here on the pavement forever.

A scooter actually makes things slower...

Hiding-my-treats-ache

Having children means sharing treats but sometimes, just sometimes working out how to split that chocolate bar into 'fair' portion sizes is just one sum too far. Perfectly acceptable side effect: your own personal stash of 'it was a hard day, I deserve this!' 

Repetitive-pick-it-up-again-syndrome

Side effect most commonly identified by bending down again, and again, and again to retrieve a dummy, maraca, soft toy or favourite household item moonlighting as a plaything. Often met by heckling, laughing and screams of excitement at this wonderful new game of parenting torture. 

By no means a definitive list but feel safe in the knowledge that your side effects are a perfectly normal result of parenthood. Prescribed coping methods include deep breathing (large sighs), forced enthusiasm for PVA glue and glitter and referring to mess as abstract art. 

8 wonderful things about a heatwave when you have children

It is inevitable; in the UK, after a few days of soaring temperatures, we seem to forget we live in a country of unpredictable weather and grow a little overconfident that the heat is here to stay. Clearly a typical Brit I was brave enough (and stupid) to leave the house this morning without an umbrella and souwester, brazenly strolling into town in palazzo pants, sandals and a T-shirt.
I was punished for my brash behaviour with a downpour on the way home. I hurriedly made a makeshift cover for Florence with a blanket whilst watching other unsuitably clothed people dashing for cover. However, for once the rain has been welcome! The last few days have been on the warm side. Great for improving the tan, not as much fun with babies or children to keep cool when as a country, we're so unprepared for any type of extreme weather. These are the best bits about a heatwave when you have children:

1. Applying suncream 

We know why we apply suncream, I'm more than grateful for its existence but WHY does it need to be so sticky and awkward? The morning suncream application is left until a few minutes before we leave for the school run to avoid greasy marks on the doors. After a day outside, running around, making dens, playing hide and seek, you are guaranteed to find the suncream you applied has gathered in creases. Neck creases, arm creases, along with perhaps some stray hair, residual food and dirt. Just lovely.

2. Sweat 

Adding to the lovely layer of sticky suncream, just what you need is sweat. Clammy, wet hands clutching yours to cross the road and wet hair clinging to the nape of your baby's neck make cool baths before bed essential!

3. Cuddles 

Why does hot weather make children more clingy?! I love cuddling my girls but a heatwave makes it difficult to hold your children and not perspire furiously. Florence is especially clingy wanting to feed more frequently. I've actually had to wipe my arm with a towel as if I had spilled water there!

4. Fighting for the fan 

The hot weather can bring out the irritable side in all of us and petty bickering can be brought about when deciding who is the hottest person and should have the fan first.

5. Pram parasols 

Bane of my life! You get the shade at just the right angle as you go out, excellent. Walking along and you take a turn, left or right; bam, full on sunshine right into the pram! Argh! Time to stop and twist and turn the parasol, tracking the sun to work out where it should go. It ends up sticking out of the side of the pram taking up the whole pavement.

6. Insects 

"Mummy, get the moth! I don't like moths!" "Mummy, I saw a flying spider by the window" Having all the windows and doors open in the hope a non existent breeze floats through comes a price. That price is bugs! Sometimes I have to remind myself I'm the adult and I'm responsible for the reassurance and capturing- even though I hate moths too!

7. Mealtimes

Seriously, who wants to cook during a heatwave?! Without children, it doesn't matter so much. You can eat what you like, when you want. However, children need meals and trying to come up with nutritious, minimal effort/no cooker dinners in hot weather is hard! We seem to end up grazing and snacking throughout the day and eating a lot of Isabella's favourite thing, sandwiches- horray!

8. Bedtime 

"But it's hot and sunny still!" Yes, yes it is but it's still bedtime!! Once we've bartered and finally agreed on an additional half an hour of playtime, it's into (or onto- who wants a quilt on in the heat?!) bed with the fan full on. After managing to stay relatively cool, the fan is sacrificed to of course, keep our darling children cool whilst mummy and daddy sit downstairs staying as still as possible to avoid overheating!


And then just like that, summer ends with a downpour. After moaning about the heat, we lament its passing and wish the rain would stop again after once agreeing "oh yes, it's good for the garden". Thanks summer 2017, it's been a blast- now, where's my woolley jumper?

Back to work & the 'b' word

It's Tuesday morning and I've left the house; notepad, lunch (I WILL pre-prepare and not spend a fortune), water bottle (a posh one with built in straw as that's what makes you drink more water, right?), breastpump (always tell everyone in the house when you sterilise the night before- the peanut butter knife is not welcome in the washing up bowl!) and a minor case of nerves. The kind I imagine you get the second night of performing a stage show. Not as bad as the first night because you've done it before but you know it won't be exactly the same this time around.

My first full day back at work! 

We've never exactly done things the conventional way. Lee and I aren't married (scandalous!) and after having Isabella, I was the one to return to work full time whilst Lee worked weekends. At the end of the day, you have to do what works best for your family. So, closing the front door after double checking I had everything, I knew that he would have everything relatively under control. This time around, it will be a little different as we'll both be working in the week but different hours in the hope to avoid having to fork out for childcare for as long as possible and, as an unintentional side effect, avoid each other! {insert whinge about ridiculous childcare costs for working families here}.

Look forward to receiving these again!

I'd say I was fairly lucky to enjoy what I do. It'd be a lie to say everyday was sunshine and rainbows but what job is? I'm not officially back until mid July but hoping that by doing a few days here and there in the lead up to it will make it easier to get back into the swing of things!

And how did it go? Like I'd never been away. The usual phone calls, the occasional swear word, and the same arguments over the office playlist. The only added hurdle was subtly trying to excuse myself from my desk to pump. Working in an office with predominantly male colleagues made this great fun and after my strategically long pause "I just need to go and errr......" was met only with a raised eyebrow, I got straight to the point "use my breastpump". Cue mutual feelings of awkwardness and embarrassment at a mention of the 'b' word!

I met Lee after work at the swimming pool for Isabella's lesson to find that his day had in fact been, quote, 'easy'.

Now, I absolutely did not want the day to go badly for anyone. The thought of Florence being upset without me is heartbreaking but equally, is it bad that I at least hoped he'd find the day challenging?! Two school runs (on time), quite a few dirty nappies, messy mushy veg dinner, some crying and the logistics of holding a baby whilst changing a 5 year old into a swimming costume. I mean really, thats some feat! Definitely not to be sniffed at.

We all finally made it home just before 7 after a few moans of 'I'm too tired to walk, my legs don't work'- and that was just me! After 8 months away from work, I was sooo tired. Granted, Florence is still up every 2 hours or so. This back to work business is going to take some adjusting but I can go back safe in the knowledge that everything is ok. (Until they get ill, I mean, that's a whole different kettle of fish. Jokes- he'll be fine...)

How to bake an election cake

The ingredients

- 2oz of questionable manifestos
- 5oz taxation
- 150ml budget cuts
- 4oz privatisation
- Pinch of strong and stable
- Drop of we're all in this together
- Whole load of mud slinging

It's essential to add glugs of bias reporting throughout the stirring process. Continue to add to taste.

The process 

All a bit messy really! It's best to add the ingredients slowly and mix as you go but hell, we only have 7 weeks. Chuck everything in together and mix as fast as possible. The aim is to make everything a blur and create as much chaos and confusion as possible. Don't worry if bits splash out, it tends to be bits of manifesto. Hopefully when it's baked, people will forget those parts were included in the first place. If you change your mind about any of the ingredients throughtout the mixing process, it's best to wait until the mix is baked. You can then easily remove the parts you don't like anymore. However, you should be prepared that some people liked those ingredients you then take away and they'll be angry that the finished product tastes different.

The bake 

The bake must start at 7am and finish at 10pm. Everyone, if they're old enough, gets a say in how your cake bakes. Some turn the temperature up, others turn it down, some change the shape. Others like to just observe and not contribute to how the cake bakes. If the non contributors don't like the cake at the end, others will be annoyed with them for not expressing how they'd like it.

The finished product 

There's a feeling of anticipation about the finished cake. Although lots of people contributed, it can't turn out how everyone wants it. There may be some burnt bits that leave a bitter taste but other parts might taste good. What tastes good for one person, might not be so good for others. After all, we're all different. Once everyone has tasted and expressed their views, some louder than others, it's time to clear up. A lot of people forget about the cake for another 5 years but every now and then we're reminded about the cake and ultimately, it will affect everyone in one way or another. Someone is bound to notice that part of the manifesto that splashed up the wall during the mixing, only to be hastily wiped away was actually missing from the cake!

Whether we enjoy the finished cake or not, we all had the chance to contribute to it. Whichever way it comes out, I'm sure Mary Berry would agree, it's unlikely to rise evenly and will contain occasional distasteful laairs (layers).

Five and fussy: The poem

Last week, Isabella came home and announced "I ate some cress!" Say what?! To ensure we were talking about the same thing, I asked her what cress was. "It's got leaves, it's green". OK, sounds like she did eat cress! Up until this point, anything remotely green coloured has not passed Isabella's lips (unless it contains gelatin and colouring has been added to make it that way).

When it's just the two of you, wondering what to eat for tea (dinner, whatever you call it) can be a challenge but easily resolved by ordering a takeaway. 2011BK (before kids), Lee and I lived in a flat in the centre of town and ordered in, A LOT. When you have children, it isn't so straightforward. Can you imagine the teacher pulling you to one side to ask if Papa John is a relative?! (other pizza brands are available) We try our best, especially during the week to cook varied meals and try to encourage Isabella to try things other than ham sandwiches with tomato sauce. It's not easy and more often than not, we're faced with sheer dogged determination not to give into the pleas to give it a try. I've put together a little piece about the daily challenge of having a fussy child; nothing more fulfilling than scraping a untouched plate into the bin!

It begins with determination 

We'll all eat together today 

Just one meal I will cook

3 different ones? No way! 

We'll all sit around the table 

Get excited about our dinner 

This one is sooo yummy

You'll love it, it's a winner 

The plate goes down in front of you

All our breath we hold 

It's clear to see by your wrinkled nose

You're most definitely not sold

We exchange a quick glance

Determined we must be

"Try this little bit here

You'll love, you will see!" 

We pick up our forks, resilient 

Being sure to comment "oh yes

This is so delicious 

Definitely Mummy's biggest success"

The meal goes untouched

"I don't like it" you say

"Can I have something else

I'll try this one another day"

Compromise is the next stage

Bargain with you, we try

"Just 2 mouthfuls please"

Speaking gently, we don't want you to cry

Alas, your bottom lip wobbles

Your eyes begin to fill with tears 

Suddenly, terrible parents we feel 

We hope this doesn't go on for years 

I let out an audible sigh 

Another meal goes in the bin 

Right now this feels hard 

Strength we must find from within! 

Making something nutritious

But a meal you will eat

Is something a lot of parents battle

A mutual agreement we try to meet 

We tell you "it's ok"

And give you a big cuddle 

Something else we'll make you

Let's not get in a muddle 

We've been here before 

It's not worth getting stressed

It's all part of parenting

Yet another test 

We won't force her to eat

In her own time, we know she'll try

Broccoli, sprouts, green beans

I used to hate them all, I can't lie

From being understanding

Progress we have seen

A little empathy and encouragement goes a long way

Remember, children we have all been