50 Dangerous Things : #2 Lick a 9-volt Battery.

Number two - Lick a 9-volt battery! Eeep. This one got some of us feeling very nervous, indeed.
On the face of it, it seems pretty simple. Tongue plus battery, done. Right? But trying to get your brain to allow your hand to physically put that battery onto something as sensitive as your tongue is a a big hurdle!

As I expected, Otto (aged 4) took upon the task with gusto. He was very keen to go first, he stuck his tongue out and did it without much of a reaction at all. He wasn't keen to do it again, but he did it. He described the feeling as 'yuck'.
Abraham had a bit of a struggle to get his brain to cooperate, but did it pretty quickly. He described the feeling more like a bitter taste than an actual buzz.

Aesop, our nearly-nine year old, is a bright spark. He also struggles to do things that he is not 100% certain about. His brain works overtime and he struggles to overcome it. In a lot of ways, he is the main driving force behind us doing this 50 Dangerous Things challenge.
It took about 20 minutes of talking him into it,  but he felt so much better once he had done it. I knew the feeling of not being included in the challenge, and not having his picture in the book would be far worse than any discomfort from the battery!

I found this surprisingly easy. I had the initial panic and then decided that I needed to tough it out if there was any chance of Aesop having a turn. It was a really strange feeling, a buzzing, almost pinching sensation and a bitter metallic after taste.
Strange, but not truly shocking ; )

That makes 2/50 complete! Whoop!

June Themed Dinners #1 - Easy peasy picnic

When Abraham and I first met, as teenagers, we spent a lot of time having picnics.
We would head to the supermarket and load up on super cheap shaved ham, cheese rolls, orange Deep Spring (remember that stuff? Favourite drink ever!) Willy Wonka Chocolate (remember that, too?) - and head to one of the local schools' playgrounds. We would sit there for hours, talking and just hanging out. It was there that we got to know each other (and fell pretty head-over-heels).

Picnicing has been a theme throughout the entire time we've known each other.
It just makes sense that we'd share this with our kids.

We kept this theme night very simple - almost a 'night off', but not quite.
We laid out our fave picnic blanket, a beautiful hexagon quilt I found at the op shop for $5. Some of the hexies have seen better days, which makes it perfect - I don't feel bad about putting it on the ground, but I'm so pleased we can give it regular use!
We made some hot chicken and salad rolls (I coated strips of chicken in breadcrumbs and chicken stock. Nyum) and filled bowls with mixed nuts, bbq kettles and peanut M&Ms. We made soda stream with Barkers cordial (closest thing we can find to Deep Spring!).
We popped on some Ben Harper. This album is definitely the main feature on the soundtrack of our first six months together. I still adore it just as much, 13 years later.

This was our first theme night with one family member absent, which was really strange. Even stranger than I expected it to be.
Aesop chose, at the last minute, to go and stay at his friends place, instead of hang out with us. I must say, there was a twinge of sadness when he made his choice - though I didn't let him see that. He is getting to an age now, where he is beginning to go out and do things on his own. He is scooting to and from school alone, and spending more time with friends etc. Growing up so fast!
It makes me feel even better about doing these theme nights - before Aesop is too old to want to get involved in them!

Ideas For Dads!

‘Ideas For Dads’ is a website for modern fathers. It is a resource for busy dads to make the most of their time with their children. Each episode features an easy, affordable and enjoyable idea for men to try with their children. Each week a new idea will be described, with easy-to-follow instructions, suggestions on expanding the ideas and discussion about this weeks activity.'


Soooo, my husband is not just good looking, kind, funny, and generally lovely - he is also a brilliant Dad.
My children adore the way he parents, and I do too. I love how different it is to my way of parenting, how it compliments my style so wonderfully.

Abraham is passionate about fathering. And he has decided to share his passion (and creativity) with the wider world. Yay!  I'm so excited about this, for you, and also for our family. These weekly posts will give us the perfect excuse to spend dedicated time doing activities with our boys (and Mollie will take part as she grows, of course) and will also, hopefully, inspire other families to do the same.

I'm hoping that you'll all head over and have a nosey - subscribe to the blog, and follow along for the journey. Tell the menfolk in your lives, share it on your FB page/put it in your school newsletter/shout it from the rooftops.
This project is only just starting out, but I have a feeling it is going to grow into a wonderful resource that has a great impact on the lives on many kids (and on their Dads/granddads/uncles etc, let's not kid ourselves that positive play and time together only benefits the children!)

May Themed Dinner #3 - Fast Food!

Our third theme for this month was 'Fast Food'.

My boys are big McDonalds fans. Aren't all kids?

I have no idea what the attraction is - well, I have an idea.. but I, personally, can't stand the stuff. The food tastes like nothing, and I always still feel hungry after eating something so... fake.

Aesop inhales a quarter-pounder, a shake and fries, and Abraham is a big fan, while Otto enjoys the thought of it far more than the actual food - he rarely even eats half of a happy meal (and then asks for different food!). I guess the toy might be the winning point for him.

Seemed a great plan to see if we could recreate a (slightly healthier and much tastier) Maccas meal.

   Since fast food is mostly of the takeaway variety (for us, anyway.. our kids have never 'eaten in', I don't think!) I didn't feel like we needed to do much in the way of decorating. I popped a red table cloth on the table, popped all of our 'American' style sauces (mustard, mayo, ketchup and bbq sauce) in the centre, chucked on a Beastie Boys album (with a take out menu on the front..) and voila!

The food speaks for itself, really.

Abraham whipped up some boxes for our fries and chicken nuggets (if I did this again I would make chicken tenders myself, rather than serve ones from a bag!) and I used a few sewn, recycled book, bags I had around the studio to put everything in (stamped with an 'L' for Larsen Burger, naturally! Heh). I wrapped the burgers in greaseproof paper, and we used the leftover cups and straws from Pop Roc Parties for our soy choc shakes.

My burger had a touch of greenery, but the boys had Quarter-pounder knock-offs. Meat, plastic cheese, onions, pickles, sauces.. all on a sesame seed bun. It got the seal of approval, too. Phew.

Mollie discovered a new love for chicken nuggets and Aesop inhaled the meal as if it were the real McCoy. Otto, well, he wasn't anymore enthused than he usually it. Guess it's just not his type of food (he is more of an antipasto type guy. I kid you not!), fair play.

 The biggest hit, of course, was the toy.
You didn't think I could make homemade Happy Meals without a toy, did you?
I hmmed and uhhed about what sort of toy to put in. I wanted something quality, that would not just get played with one day and then forgotten about, or broken. I also didn't want to spend more than $5. A difficult combination.
The choice was obvious in the end, though - Lego minifigures.
I was lucky enough to find them half price at Kmart, making them just $3 each.
(We even got 4 we didn't already have! Always a bonus!)

LOVING these nights. Already so excited for next weeks. Pretty sure we will be doing it all again next month. Are you tempted to join us?

May Themed Dinners #1 - Breakfast!

Generally, our household has takeaways once a week. It's meant to be once a fortnight, but since Mollie has been with us we have indulged a lot more often. It's a matter convenience, but also a treat (especially for the boys.)
Unfortunately though, our wee town lacks any really awesome takeout food. We, nearly always, end up with something pretty ho-hum, and it feels like such a waste of money.
I had the idea that we could have themed dinners instead. Obviously, it won't be a convenience thing, but it will certainly be more of a treat! Good food AND a bit of fun - all that takeaways should be, but never are.
We sat down and had a brainstorm about possible themes, coming up with such brilliant suggestions as 'Butcher', 'Minecraft' and 'Puns'. We then each voted for our favourite five, and narrowed it down to the most popular five themes. We wrote lists of ideas for both food and decor, it was heaps of fun!

We decided to start with the easiest one first - Breakfast.

We donned our PJs, decked the table out with a checkered table cloth and a vase of flowers, and indulged in a 'big breakfast' type feast. We had bacon, little breakfast sausages, hashbrowns, mushrooms, tomato and scrambled egg. Nyum!



We scoffed down some mixed berry pancakes for dessert - with a side of ice cream/soy yogurt and chocolate sauce, of course. So good.



The evening concluded with a husband, and all his children, in front of a rugby game. Cosy.

I'm really excited for next Fridays theme. Watch this space!

Ashore thing.

 

Abraham is working on a very exciting project at the moment, and it involves us doing cool stuff as a family - pretty much the best plan ever.
This past weekend, it involved an afternoon visit to the beach. The boys had a fabulous time running about the place, completing the activity (all a little bit hush hush, but more will be revealed in good time..) and finding beachy treasures.
I took along my zoom lens and had a great time mucking around with my camera.
And the trip ended with a big ice cream. Can't beat that! A great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

A great way to spend a birthday afternoon too. I hope the birthday boy agreed.
(Happy birthday, Abraham! Love you!)

(Don't you just love Otto's 'dog' in the last picture? He dragged it along for ages, stopping to pat him and inviting us to give him a pat, too! Love the imagination at this age.)

Check The List: #17 Go Camping.

Last weekend, we headed back over to our fave camping spot - Ohiwa Holiday Park.
We headed over after Abraham finished work on the Friday and my parents met us there, in their campervan. It was shaping up to be a lovely weekend already, and even the stress of putting the tent up for the second time ever (without the instructions that somehow disappeared..) didn't put a damper on things.

The nights were verrrrry testing of my happy-holiday mood, but the days were most lovely. The picture above, quite accurately, shows what my kids all did instead of sleep each night. One would think that running around all day in the fresh sea air would have them out like lights.. but, no. Mollie was even worse!

The days and evenings were filled with beach, bbq and beer. As all good holidays should be.
The boys quickly found a few mates (both ones they knew from home and some newbies) and we often didn't see them for hours at a time (this is less neglectful than it sounds, I promise.) it was quite delightful.

We managed to get out and do some crabbing, which is my personal favourite Ohiwa activity. There's something so enjoyable about the squelching mud and the thrill of the chase (and the dares to see who is brave enough to big up the big 'uns!). And then watching all of the crabs disappear back into the mud at the end. Mollie slept through the entire thing, but it was very cool to see Otto getting braver and braver.

That's not to say that Mollie didn't work on mastering more of her own tricks that weekend, though. Mol has finally taken a real liking to food - LOTS of it. We are doing baby led weaning, so the lass is eating much of what we eat. While we were packing up our campsite on the last morning, Mollie managed to get into a whole loaf of bread. We were, admittedly, so zonked (and needing two sets of hands to take down the tent..) that we let her go for it. It's so nice to see her really getting amongst it. (Fear not, she didn't actually eat a whole loaf of bread, just half a piece.. and soggied the rest of it. Hah)

So, another sucessful tick off the list. And another camping trip under our belt.
I must say that I hope camping gets easier as the kids get older... surely?
(I'll let you know next Summer.. we've already booked in for Christmas!)

Christmas: Round three.

The festive season has been extra good to us this year. We've had three rounds of Christmas.
We had the first, on Christmas Day, with just us and the kids. They had their presents and we all enjoyed some amazing food. Then, we had a beautiful evening at my parents house last week. The kids had their gifts from them, and Aesop handed out the gifts he had chosen for us all. We had a beautiful butterflied lamb and salad, with rhubarb cake and fruit salad for afters. Divine.

On Saturday, Abraham and I had our own wee celebration. The boys went to Mum and Dad's for the night, so we cooked another delicious meal, and exchanged our gifts.
LOVE this whole 'dragging out' of Christmas - totally doing it again next year.

The gifts were wrapped lovingly, and very carefully chosen.

We took turns, undoing bows and revealing treasures. And, oh my, what treasures to be had!

Abraham gifted me the two Adele albums on vinyl, some new knickers, a julienne peeler (I requested this one... he's not making suggestions about getting into the kitchen.. haha), an incredible colouring book annnnd a Lego dress designer set! So perfect.
Can you see that Lego laptop and Canon-esque camera? So good.

My gifts to Abraham were: A stunning robot cushion by a super clever (and lovely) crafter I was lucky enough to meet down in Masterton, Geek Dad book (this review was the reason for this..) and a Razorwyre record.
Razorwyre is a metal band (think Iron Maiden styles.. big hair, skintight jeans..) and Abraham went to high school with the lead singer.

We chowed down on perfectly cooked eye fillet, fresh coleslaw and spicy wedges for tea, and fruit salad with soy icecream for sweets. And it was sweeeeet. Might have been my favourite Christmas so far : )

(Love you, Abraham. Thanks for a choice Christmas!)