I took Skeggy and I raised you: Walking with Dinosaurs

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Mama & Baby T with Huxley Credit David Schienmann

Mama & Baby T with Huxley Credit: David Schienmann

Mr A is at a stag do this weekend, the stakes back at the Alexander Residence are high. I am taking the kids to Walking with Dinosaurs.  I can’t wait. Let me explain…

I’ve had three weekends away in the last couple of months for hen dos and a wedding, This means the kids have had loads of Daddy time and they all seem thick as thieves. Don’t get me wrong, this is great, I’m all for them having extra time to bond, after all they don’t see as much of him as they do me.

But then my daughter reeled off the list of treats they got while I was away. The treats I ration carefully, fight daily battles over and say no to over and over. It started with my Dad who had the kids one Friday when I needed to leave early for a hen do, he bought them sweets, cakes and dinosaur excavation kits. Then, before he left, he gave Mr A £20 and challenged the kids to eat candy floss, chips and ice creams and go on a ride. A grandfatherly recipe for seaside fun or disaster, depends which way you look at it. Anyway, they went to our nearest coastal resort, Skegness, and they did it.

So, much as I know money and sweets are not the way to buy your child’s love, I feel I should relax the rules a little too and throw caution to the wind. So, I am taking them to see Walking with Dinosaurs. Be warned Mr A, I took Skeggy and I raised you.

Mahoosive, blooming great dinosaurs that need 3 people to operate them.

I first read a review on Jennifer’s Little World which convinced me my 4 year old would also love it. You can also see what Becky from Baby Budgeting thought here.

Oh, and on the way home from school I bought them biscuits, crisps and sweets in co-op. And a bottle of wine and chocs for me. Just my luck Miss L’s teacher was behind me in the queue.

The Walking with Dinosaurs Arena Show is in Nottingham this weekend 18th/19th May and in Liverpool from the 22-26th May. More info here. Nottingham Ticket Hotline: 0843 373 3000 or you can call into the Capital FM Arena Nottingham Box Office, Bolero Square, The Lace Market Nottingham, NG1 1LA, open 9am – 9pm, seven days a week.

Disclosure – 2 of our 3 tickets are press tickets. My children get 5 a day and eat a balanced diet, except on stag and hen weekends.

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Make a little birdhouse in your soul

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Baker Ross, the amazing online craft emporium, sent us some rather sweet cardboard birdhouses to decorate. We were inspired by the birdhouses decorating the walls of a local National Trust place we love, The Ride cafe and indoor play area at Belton House, near Grantham:

A long while back I contributed to the design of The Ride, from a parent’s perspective, so it was great to see it in action. Belton is an incredible place for kids, both the indoor and outdoor play areas are really imaginative.

Back to our birdhouses…we had great fun painting them using really bright acrylics by Giotto, from Baker Ross. I love that they come in a handy cardboard carry case:

The paints are so bright and funky and go on beautifully. I even got involved, so here is Mr G’s, birdhouse, mine and Miss L’s, all lined up to welcome us home, in the porch. We’ve moved on to decorating wooden picture frames with crystals, sewing passport covers and making gifts for father’s day next, so I will keep you posted!  The Summer range from Baker Ross is out now, loads of lovely new projects and plenty of time to stock up before half term!

Check out some of our other Baker Ross adventures!

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What do the images in your home mean to you?

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I read a list of decluttering tips that made me rather sad recently. It suggested going back to the Victorian trend of reserving photo frames in your home only for people who are dead. For me images in my home are about capturing life: adventures, moments, people and feelings you want to remember.

When I was asked to review a next day delivery canvas service from Your Image 2 Canvas, I immediately knew I wanted pictures that would remind me of our outdoor adventures. Pictures that would bring the outdoors inside and encourage us to continue to get out. I haven’t quite decided where to put them up yet as we are in the midst of a huge reorganisation, so I thought it was appropriate to photograph them outdoors.

I will never forget , at Just So festival, when Mr G emerged Jack Sparrow like from a rhodedendrum bush. Miss L fell in love with the beaches around Harlech, in Wales, just as I did as a child. The picture above is her on the magical Shell Island, collecting shells and dabbling in rock pools. Behind you can just see a lone caravan, which she likes to believe is ours, and I don’t like to spoil it by telling her it isn’t, ours wasn’t far away.

My cousin sent me this picture of Mum shortly after she died. It captures her smile beautifully and it reminds me of the journey I have been on since she died, rediscovering the love of outdoors and nature mum carefully planted in my imagination. Realising I’m not just an athiest, but an outdoorsist. There are pictures of mum around the house, but having a canvas felt like a bigger step, choosing one image wasn’t easy, but I feel like I can hang this on my office wall and talk to her daily.

My brother and his girlfriend and their beautiful boy feel so far away sometimes, even though it is only London. I haven’t managed to capture a decent shot of all three of them yet, but for now the family wall collection starts with this one. It was taken in the pub in London, and I love the sense of conversation between father and son. I still have to pinch myself to believe my little brother is a dad, this makes it concrete.

As you can see from the images above, each canvas reproduced beautifully. I knew this next one was a bit fuzzy, it was taken on my phone and was a little out of focus, but I was prepared to take the risk as it is such an important photo to me. Here is my Dad, on the armchair in the snug, reading books to his grandchildren, something he has always championed. I want to hang this over the chair.

With Father’s Day approaching a next day delivery canvas from Your Image 2 Canvas would make an excellent present. Ordering was easy and so quick. Although it did take me ages to decide which photos to go for! The canvasses arrived next day, which was incredible and were very carefully wrapped.  Prices start at £7.99 for a 7″x5″ canvas, the largest size I ordered was of the kids, 16″x20″ canvasses at £30.99 each.

The price, high quality and fast delivery would definitely encourage me to use Your Image 2 Canvas as a gift service or to add to our collection, as and when an inspiring image crops up. Mr A wants to replace all the Klimt canvasses we’ve got from Ikea, with pictures of our family, and yes I did get in huge trouble for failing to represent his side of the family. But in my defence, that’s our next project, plus, I think I did very well for £100, don’t you?

@AResidence

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Guest Post: Great rainy day activities for kids

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With half term on the horizon, the prospect of coping with kids cooped up at home might seem daunting. However, even if the weather man is forecasting rain and cloud, there’s no reason why you can’t still enjoy a fun family bank holiday weekend.

Take matters into your own hands with these rainy day activities for kids: Continue reading →

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Top Tips for Parents of Gap Year Volunteers

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Did you take a gap year? I never did, but I wish I had done something like it sooner. My trip to Ghana with Comic Relief to do some overseas volunteer work earlier this year was three days, but in the sense that it involved months of planning: for the trip itself and around social media and fundraising, I felt as if I had taken a sabbatical from my everyday life and it gave me a whole new perspective on life.

I would really like my children to experience what I did, I talk to them about it all the time. Original Volunteer, organiser of overseas volunteer work gap years around the world asked me what my tips for parents of gap year volunteers would be, I have to admit the beforehand the thought of them travelling made me feel a bit wobbly, but the research has made me feel a whole lot better about it, plus, we still have at least 10 years to go! Continue reading →

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Little Legacy – A kitchen garden and vegetarian kebabs

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I am loving our garden at the moment. I owe that to my Dad, who over the last seven years has filled it with herbs and plants that attract wildlife. It has a wild messiness about it I love. The oregano is nestling under flash but tragic peonies that always flower and flop around my birthday. There are beautiful wild primroses and bluebells next to chives and marjoram. Alpine strawberries clambering under a buddleia, borage bursting up next to brambles.

Dad is really inspiring, hence this post is one of my little legacies, but ultimately I want to master gardening myself. Last weekend I finally stopped procrastinating and dug a veg patch, more on that in another post. For now, at long last, all those green shoots are springing up, a wonderful gift from Dad, and they had got me thinking about what to use all those wonderful herbs for.

I have been dreaming of barbecues all week since we missed the chance last weekend. Mum often made vegetarian kebabs marinated in garlic and herbs, and her barbecued bananas with rum and cinnamon and ice cream were amazing. Then Schwartz, a global leader in herb and spices, asked me what I would do with two of their herbs, oregano and paprika.These veggie kebabs and Greek salad seemed like a great idea.

 Ingredients

  • 400g quorn or tofu pieces/cubes.
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 2 tbs olive oil
  • 1 tbs dried oregano
  • 1 tbs sweet paprika
  • 1 tbs lemon juice
  • Lebanese bread
  • Greek yoghurt
  • Lemon wedges

Greek salad

  • 2 green peppers, thinly sliced widthways
  • 1 cucumber cut into chunks
  • 200g cherry tomatoes, quartered
  • 100g small black olives
  • 100g feta, crumbled
  • Extra virgin olive oil, to serve
  • I have left out the red onion, I can’t stand it, but use it if you like it!
  1. Mix the tofu or quorn with the garlic, oil, oregano, paprika and lemon juice in a glass or ceramic bowl. Cover with cling film and leave to marinate in the fridge for 3 hours.
  2. Thread the tofu/quorn evenly onto 12 bamboo skewers. Preheat a barbecue or grill pan on high. Cook, turning occasionally, for 6-8 minutes until cooked to your liking.
  3. To make the Greek salad mix, cucumber, tomato, onion, olives and feta in a large bowl. Drizzle with oil.
  4. Divide tofu/quorn among serving plates. Serve with Greek salad, bread, yoghurt and lemon wedges.
Wondering if it is BBQ weather? Check the weather forecast here!

What do you like to cook with oregano and paprika?

@AResidence

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Chocolate Soreen Baked Alaska

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I have been wanting to make Baked Alaska since I got chatting to Emma at Science Sparks about science in cooking. I’ve been meaning to follow lovely Kerry of Science Spark’s recipe, the picture of her holding beaten egg whites over her head makes me smile. Then I found this recipe for Chocolate Soreen baked Alaska, I had to give it a go. But do check out Science Sparks for the Science bit, as this is such a genius recipe to cook with kids!

Chocolate Soreen is only available for a limited time. Chocolate Loaf is in Asda now, in Morrisons from 20th May for 3 weeks and Sainsbury’s from 23rd May for 3 weeks. You can always tweet (@SoreenHQ) check in with Soreen on facebook, or email Soreen who will let you know the nearest store it is in (feedback@soreen.com). Continue reading →

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Three hot ways to celebrate Cinco de Mayo

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Discovery offered us the chance to try some Mexican food and have our own Cinco de Mayo celebrations. They kindly sent us a Fajita dinner kit, some of their new garlic and herb sour cream and a Cajun Season and Sauce. So I present three ways to enjoy a Mexican feast, each with entertainment ideas…

The fifth of May is Cinco de Mayo, a commemoration of the Mexican army’s unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. In the United States nowadays Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride.

One – A family dinner

For us it was all about the tortilla. Miss L made a mask, Mr G played how many things can you make from a tortilla.telescope, light sabre, beard, mask and finally dinner!

Of course although playing with your food is great fun, Cinco de Mayo is really about celebrating all things Mexican, so onto what we put in the tortillas, beyond our imagination. The dinner kit included fajita spice mix, salsa and tortillas, plus a tube of the garlic and herb sour cream sauce, we added a tin of Discovery refried beans, grated cheese, Quorn, veggies and salad. Recipe below.

Miss L and I like ours wrapped up, so we put a bit of everything in the middle, fold the bottom edge and then wrap up the sides. Mr A likes his rolled and eaten with a knife and fork. Mr G likes to eat the tortilla and then the beans and then the cheese.

Fajitas

Two – A Hen do feast At the weekend I was lucky enough to attend a hen do in an amazing cottage in Rye. Thirteen fantastic ladies, loads of fun. We had a Mexican feast and the best use of a cardboard Fajita box for after dinner entertainment I ever saw (more on that later).

There is our beautiful bride to be A. in the middle, surrounded by friends, Discovery Mild Fajita kit fillings, salsa, guacomole, sour cream and lashings of Prosecco. Eating Mexican is so sociable, lots of passing plates, perfect for getting to know the other hens! After dinner fun – the Discovery fajita box game I am forever indebted to the lovely Brighton hens for introducing this game to me! Starting with an empty box with an open top, each participant must attempt to pick up the box with their teeth without hands, knees or elbows touching the floor.

Each round a little more box is cut off, first the top tabs, then an inch from around the top of the box, until only the flat bottom of the box remains. If you fail to pick up the box you are out. I haven’t laughed so much in ages, especially at everyone’s unique yogatastic approaches and ahem, when heads hit the deck.

Highly competitive too.

Three – Hot date in Discovery also sent us a Cajun Spice and Sauce mix. We love spicy food, but often the kids don’t, so this was a very quick and tasty way to achieve dinner for two, with plenty of spice. Mr A loves chicken but I am veggie, so we had Quorn. It was really easy to make, just mix the Quorn with the spice mix and some oil, fry til cooked and then add the sauce for a minute to heat through. Serve with rice and coriander. It would be lovely with veggies beans or tofu too.

Sizzling.  A huge hit…I will leave you to cook up your own after dinner entertainment ;)

Cooking up a Mexican feast – recipe

Lots happens in a short space of time cooking this feast, so it is a good one to make with someone else, that or prep everything and lay the table before you start sizzling.

Veggie fajitas Quorn strips (defrosted if frozen) or you could use tofu and large mushrooms, courgette and/or carrot. strips, along with the traditional red pepper and onion.

Mix the Quorn with the spices form the Fajita pack and oil.

Grate some cheese, set out the plates, put the salsa, guacomole, sour cream and a can of refried beans in a bowl

Slice the veggies into long thin similar sized strips.

Make a salad.

Get the wok super hot, and fry the quorn til cooked through, whack it up even higher and fry the veggies.

Heat the tortillas and the refried beans in the microwave. Serve.

How do you eat yours?

The verdict?

I liked the garlic and herb soured cream sauce in a squeezy tube, because although I’d prefer fresh soured cream we never use a whole pot so with a longer shelf life, so with a tube it doesn’t go to waste. This way you know you always have it in stock as the dinner kit can be kept in the cupboard and the soured cream in the fridge, for whenever you fancy a quick feast . You could use Quorn from the freezer and whatever veggies you had to hand, so a really easy way to make a special dinner quickly.

I love Mexican as a family meal, but, my kids still find it all a bit too spicy. However, I think we need to check out the milder kits we had on the hen do, or with some baked beans and salad everyone is happy: a spicy weekend treat for grown ups, with all the fun of tortillas for kids.
The Spice and Sauce kit made a really lovely meal, really quickly.
More recipes, ideas and inspiration over at the Discovery site.
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The Kite Runner at Nottingham Playhouse, and touring

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After I went to see the European stage premier of The Kite Runner at Nottingham Playhouse last week my friends and followers had a few questions. Hopefully I have answered them…and given you a little insight into why it is worth going to the theatre on a Friday night.

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Cars I have loved.

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When I was little we had a Renault 5…

How many years have you been driving? asks Mr A, busy trying to sort out our car insurance.

‘Er how old am I again?’ I have to ask these days as I realised I was telling people I was a year older than I am earlier this year. ’35. Right, so 17…nearly 18 years.’

Mr A carries on working out how much the insurance will cost on the new car he has his eye on and I start thinking back over the cars I have loved and driven. I wrote a post a while back about seeing a Mini Metro like my mum drove, it is funny how many memories cars evoke when you see them. Continue reading →

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