Wordless Wednesday

Our 18th Wedding Anniversary meal in pictures

Lupin Girl 

Chicken Mayo Pasta (GF)

Because it was mine and J's wedding anniversary on Sunday, only the children has eaten the roast chicken and so for dinner yesterday I made chicken, mayo pasta with sweet corn, it went down a storm and was really easy to make. 

Ingredients: 

           GF pasta

           Leftover roast chicken

          Sweet corn (approximately a tin, I used frozen though)

          Mayonnaise 

          Salad to serve (optional)

Method: 

           Cook your pasta according to the instructions. 

           Pick all of the meat off of the chicken carcas. 

           Cook your sweet corn (if using frozen) 

           Drain your pasta and rinse with cold water. 

           Do the same with your sweet corn. 

           Mix mayonnaise into your chicken.

 

           Add it to the cold pasta, add the cold sweet corn, stir well and serve with the salad. 

Hey presto, dinner!

Lupin Girl x 

Eleven Things

I have been tagged by Amy of The Smallest of Things to take part in the Eleven Things challenge.

So here goes!

1. What is your favourite thing about blogging?

I am loving *meeting* new people on lots of different social media sites and I look forward to hopefully being able to meet some of them in real life one day.

 2. If you could be anything in the world what would it be?

I would love to be a lot of things, which I think is why I've ended up not being any of them!  Nurse, midwife, teaching assistant, phlebotomist, author to name but a few!

 3. What are you currently doing other than writing this post?

Cooking dinner, half watching Dr Who as C is watching it in the living room and worrying that L is coming down with yet another cold, she's only just got over the cough she had for about 2 1/2 weeks and now is complaining of a sore throat and earache.

 4. What is your favourite time of the day?

Around 2pm, I've finished work and have an hour before I need to go and collect the children from school.  I love to read and have a coffee, or if I'm studying then I try and get another hour in.

5. What is your least favourite household chore? *cough* washing and drying up *cough*

 

Ironing. 

 

6. What is your best feature?

 

 My eyes, I love them

 

7. Tell us something not many people know about you!

 I won a colouring competition that Tesco ran when I was about 9.  I won a Rainbow Bright doll.

 

8. Where is your dream holiday destination?

Florida or New Zealand

 

9. Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings?

Harry Potter!

 

10. What was your favourite part of your childhood?

I loved all of it really, I had a happy and fun childhood. 

 

11. If you could change one thing about your life what would it be?

I would love  for us to have a bit more money, otherwise I'm happy as we are.

I am tagging Gem from Imagination within  and Amanda from Amanda Bootes

Here are your questions:

1. Why did you start blogging?
2. Coffee or Tea?
3. Where was your best holiday?
4. What was your favourite T.V show as a child?
5. Who is your favourite singer/band?
6. Beach holiday or pool holiday?
7. What's your must have beauty product?
8. What is your favourite book?
9. Have you been to a blogging event?
10. What was the last thing you ate?
11. Who is your celebrity crush?

Lupin Girl x

GF Wrap-Based Pizza

Today we made pizzas using wraps because the GF pitta breads are still recalled. L (who used an ordinary wrap) declared them the BEST PIZZAS EVER.

Ingredients:

          GF wrap

          Passata

          BBQ sauce (GF)

          Mozzarella cheese (or lactofree cheese for B)

          Cooked chicken

          Cooked bacon pieces

          Peperoni

          Pepper

          Tomatoes

          Mushrooms

          Olives

          Pineapple pieces

         Sweet corn

Method:

            Put your wrap on an oven tray

         Squeeze some passata and BBQ sauce onto your wrap

         And squish it about with the back of a spoon so you cover the wrap

          Add any topping you fancy

          Cook on gas mark 5 for 10-15 minutes you need it to be hot and the cheese needs to be melted and gooey

          Serve with chips and salad

Enjoy!

Lupin Girl x 

Money Saving Tip, Jelly

Jelly, my kids love to have it in their lunch boxes now and again. The ready made tubs are quite expensive, on offer recently they were 4 for £1 (in Tesco)That would only go me one day. Usually they are 0.49p each (in Tesco)

You can buy a block of jelly to make up for 0.54p (in Tesco) and it is very easy to make. 

You just need a jug with 1/2 pint boiling water. Break the jelly into the squares add to the water and stir until dissolved. Add cold water to the 1 pint mark, stir and pour into pots. 

Pop your pots into the fridge with the lids off until they've cooled. Hey presto jelly pots for lunches. 

I made 8 pots out of one block of jelly (0.54p) which will last me two days and it only took me about 5 minutes. 

Lupin Girl x 

Paper Logs

Whilst having fun with the fire pit on Father's Day we tried out my Father-in-Law's Christmas pressie out. We had bought him a paper log maker, he had some ready made which we used on of, but he made some more with the children.

First get some shredded paper, put it in a tub add water and then get messy squishing it all up

Then squeeze extra water out and put it in the log maker 

Squish it then tip the brick out onto a couple of sheets of paper

Wrap the brick up, them you need to leave to dry for a few months before you can use. 

The children now have a brick each drying in Grandad's shed ready to use in his fire in the winter. They all had a great time, Grandad included. 

Lupin Girl x

GF, SyF, NF, DF, Lemon Swiss Roll

I needed a quick pudding, and as I had a batch of freshly made lemon curd in the fridge I thought I'd make a Swiss roll with a zingy twist.

Ingredients: 

           75g gluten free self raising flour

           40g honey

           3 eggs

Method:

          Beat your eggs. 

           Add the honey and flour and beat well. 

        Grease a shallow tin, line if you can, I appear to be out of baking paper. 

       Pour your mix onto the tray and bake at gas mark 6 for 7-10 minutes. Keep an eye on it as it is so thin it catches easy. 

       Allow to cool for a few minutes then turn out onto some cling film. 

       Spread lemon curd over the top and roll, don't be scared, it's not that hard, although too tricky to manage to take a picture at the same time!

Yummy!

Lupin Girl x

I have linked this post to #FoodPornThursdays

 

Wordless Wednesday

Truly beautiful!

Lupin Girl x 

Lactose Free, Sugar Free Lemon Curd

Whilst fumbling through the fridge and cupboards trying to find something to have for lunch I decided I really fancied lemon curd. We didn't have any, but I did have lemons and remembered seeing a recipe for lemon curd in Davina's 5 Weeks To Sugar Free so I thought I'd give it a go.  I've made lemon curd before, but not sugar or lactose free.

Ingredients: 

             150g honey or maple syrup (I used honey)

             100g lactofree spread

             Zest of 1 lemon

            Juice of 4 lemons

           4 eggs 

Method: 

           Melt the butter and honey together in a saucepan. Then take off of the heat to cool down so that you don't scramble your eggs. 

          Zest one of the lemons, then juice 4 Davina says you need about 100ml but I didn't measure mine out (might be why it's a little runny!)

         Lightly beat your eggs. 

        Add everything to the honey/butter mix, return to the heat and stir continuously. 

       Keep sitting. The mixture will suddenly thicken and coat the back of a metal spoon. 

        Pass the mixture through a sieve to catch any zest or eggy bits. 

       Put in a sterilised jar and enjoy. 

I know what I'll be having for breakfast and lunch for a while!

Lupin Girl x

I have linked this post to #FoodPornThursdays

 

 

and to FreeFromFridays

 





Adventuring

We visited J's Dad for Father's Day and went off for an adventure to see the horses.

The children climbed trees 

and we waded through thigh high grass, which with hindsight, wasn't the best of things to do with a very high pollen count.  We had all taken anti-histamines, however most of us suffered with sneezing and itchy eyes. 

Deciding upon which track to follow until we came across the horses.  We eventually persuaded them to come over to the fence, but they wouldn't take the grass being waved at them by all of the children, can't blame them really when they had plenty of lovely grass in their paddock.

The walk reminded me of the Arthur Ransome books Swallows and Amazons, I'm currently listening to the second book in the series Swallowdale and I was reminded of the Walker children going off exploring their new campsite as my children ran about enjoying themselves, although it's hard to believe that they were doing it alone without adult supervision and just shows how times have changed. 

Then we came back to a lovely fire in J's Father's Day fire pit 

And a glass of wine 

I think C & I came off worse with hayfever sneezing our heads off and having red itchy eyes. R was ok on the walk so the early use of antihistamines definitely works, although he did start to suffer in the evening, but this may have been because his 7.30pm dose was late as we were still out and I had forgotten to take it with us. 

I hope you all had such a good day as we did. 

Lupin Girl x 

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day J! 

You are an amazing Dad and we hope you enjoy your day. 

Happy Father's Day also to my Dad, we hope you're having a fantastic holiday, and to J's Dad who we are off to see in a minute, and to all of the Dad's everywhere, keep doing what you're doing. 

Lupin Girl x

Free From Curry

Today we're having curry. I'm not making the sauce from scratch because Tesco do a value jar for about 50p. I don't think I could make a curry sauce for much less, and it's nice to be able to have a jar of something in the cupboard that we can all eat! (Even if the girls won't actually eat it)

Ingredients: 

           1 packet of chicken fillets

           1 red onion

           Brown rice

          2 sweet potatoes

          A couple of handfuls of frozen sweet corn

         A couple of handfuls of sultanas (optional)

Method:

            Chop the chicken fillets up and fry until white on the outside. 

            Chop the onion and add to the chicken. 

            Put your rice on to cook. 

            Pour the jar of curry sauce into the pan with you chicken and onions. 

            Add sultanas, if using, and sweet corn. 

            Chop up and boil your sweet potatoes. 

            When your sweet potatoes are soft, add them to your curry. 

           Serve when the rice is cooked. 

I haven't left the girls out. L is having lemon, herb chicken with a rice meal, 

and B is having lemon and herb chicken with sweet potatoes and tomatoes and pitta bread. 

Lupin Girl x 

Stranger Danger

Whilst getting ready for school yesterday we, L, R and I got onto the topic of having names printed upon clothing.  It was because L was dressed up in her evacuee outfit and had filled in her tag.  B had apparently said that she hoped L didn't get kidnapped as the kidnapper would know all of her details.  Not the most encouraging thing to say to her little sister, but as L pointed out she was walking to and from school with me, and I was helping out all day so she would be safe.

I reassured L that in this instance it was fine, but that keeping our names away from strangers is a way of keeping safe and the reason I do not allow them to buy football shirts, hats, hairbands etc with their names on.  This allowed me to remind them of the stranger danger and how just because somebody knows your name, it does not make them a safe person, or somebody you know.

R asked how having his name on a T-shirt would be dangerous, so I said that if he was out playing with his friends and somebody shouted out
                    
                     'R....(L....) Quick, there's been an accident and Mum has asked me to rush you to her, quick R...(L....) lets go' 

The stranger would sound convincing because he/she knew their name, and then it would be easier for the stranger to convince R/L to go with him/her.  They wouldn't necessarily wonder how this person knew their name, and they would be an easier target than somebody who didn't have their name printed upon them, but that even if they haven't got their name on them the stranger may have overheard it.

I reassured them that it is rare, but that if anyone they didn't know shouts their name and tries to get them to follow them, that they are to run away from and not towards them, and head for a safe place.  We discussed safe places, such as shop counters, leisure centres, back into school, or home or a friends house if near by, and told them that this would be an O.K time to be making a big fuss, shouting and hollering, as the person who was trying to convince them to go with them wouldn't want anyone to pay them any attention and that would most likely be enough to get them to leave them alone.

I followed this up with the few people I would ever send to them in a real emergency, and that if at all possible I would always 'phone them, or text them first anyway, that at the moment they are not out on their own either playing or walking to and from school (when they are old enough to do this, this is when they get a phone), and school will only let them go with somebody other than me or J if I ring them beforehand.

This conversation was had whilst I was plaiting L's hair and R was sorting out his school bag, it didn't take long and we soon moved on to other things.  I didn't make a huge deal out of it, I didn't want to scare them, just remind them to be cautious.

Have you discussed stranger danger with your children? 

Lupin Girl x

I've linked this post to #TwinklyTuesday



A Busy Day

This should have been my Wordless Wednesday post, but for some reason it didn't publish. 

I had a busier day than usual as I had volunteered to help at L's school for their World WR II day which meant I was all day. L & R helped out in the morning by unloading the dishwasher and helping with their lunches so that I could get dinner in the slow cooker. 

One pot chilli. 

L was very excited about dressing up as an evacuee.

 

Her year all went to school dressed as evacuee's with gas mask boxes.  They had to line up and be 'picked' at the station, just like the real evacuee's would have been, then in their groups they got to experience several different activities. 

 

They got to make do and mend (the children made bunting for the VE Day celebration), make jam and spam sandwiches and had to be mindful of how much butter they used as it was rationed. They made rock buns using lard and apple sauce instead of butter and eggs, made jelly and iced a biscuit for the street party.  They wrote a letter home to their parents telling them of their experiences and they learnt some songs and a dance and went in an Anderson shelter and had to hide under the tables when the air raid siren went off. 

 

Then they went outside for a street party, they listened to the radio broadcast from Sir Winston Churchill announcing the victory in Europe and then celebrated with the sandwiches, rock cakes, jelly and decorated biscuits, and their was singing and dancing.

L loved every minute and discovered that she likes spam, I have been asked to buy some! 

I had a great time helping out as well but was glad I'd been prepared in the morning as it meant I didn't have to cook when we got home!

L's World War II Day outfit

Lupin Girl x 

Playing

My youngest two seem quite obsessed with Minecraft at the moment, if they're not playing it, they're watching you tube videos on it. 

I have got a bit fed up of the amount of time they are sitting in front of a screen and so when R asked if he could put the T.V on before school yesterday (he was all ready) I said no. 

After a bit of sulking about how bored he was and how unfair it was he started to play with the magnetix which was still out from when he used it to make his game for homework. 

He and L then played so nicely until it was time to leave that I was glad I had held my ground and not let him put the telly on. 

They even played with it for a bit after school too. Although as I had a migraine I did allow them to have the T.V on in the kitchen as it was quieter than them rummaging through the box (think Lego!) 

I think I am going to return to my old rule of no electronics before school and get them going more creative things with the half hour or so. 

Lupin Girl x

Homework

After a relaxing day yesterday, spent reading, watching films and being with friends. We decided to get some of L and R's homework done.

They have to choose three pieces out of the nine given in three different subject areas. 

L is learning about World War 2 at the moment, and one of her pieces was to make do and mend. 

She decided to make a bag out of a mans old shirt. J helped her with the sewing machine, I think it's pretty cool. 

R has managed to complete two pieces. He is learning about Ancient Greece and has made a crown of leaves

He also made a game which used magnets. He has made a finger football game, using the magnets as the goals, the centre spot and the corners and a ball bearing as the ball. He has even made finger protectors out of cardboard so you don't hurt yourself whilst playing. 

Overall a fairly productive day. 

Lupin Girl x

I've linked this post to #TwinklyTuesday