Mars Bar Muffins

(makes 6)

You will need:

100g caster sugar

100ml olive oil (but you could use 100g unsalted butter)

2 eggs

100g self raising flour, sifted
2 std size mars bars cut into thick chunks (6 per bar)

Then you need to:

pre-heat your oven to 180oC / 160oC fan
beat the oil (or butter) with the sugar for a few minutes until pale and creamy
add the flour and eggs and mix well
divide the cake batter between the paper cases
then place 2 mars bar chunks into the top of each muffin and press down slightly so they are halfway in and half way out
cook in the oven for about 25 minutes or until cooked all the way through

The mars bar chunks will have bubbled up and look a bit like sticky molten lava over the top of the muffins, which is why I don't think the muffins needed any further enhancement decorating wise!

I didn't actually sample any of the muffins as I gave them away to a fellow blogger at a tweet up.
I can only assume that they tasted as good as they looked!!

Time Waits For No Mummy

Time.

Its a funny old thing.

I always thought time went by quickly before I had children, but since becoming a Mummy it seems to have flown by. I mean Burton turned three this month - where the ruddy hell has the last 36 months gone?

One of the topics I found myself discussing at the recent Britmumslive event, aswell as on twitter recently, is time and how I for one am constantly wondering how to keep on top of everything. 

When I say everything, let me explain:

I guess I lead two lives (at least!!) 

1. Jenny the SAH Mummy 

I don't have a 'show' home. I keep it as clean and tidy as I possibly can. My children are clean as are their clothes, I cook meals and although I find it hard to keep on top of my house work, which has been especially more tricky since having more than one child, my home is not a complete dump. The main rooms are cleaned thoroughly on a regular basis. if I kept on top of it religiously, I would never spend any time with my boys and thats not why I became a full time SAHM.

2. Jenny The Blogger

Ok so I have this blog.
 A small piece of cypher space which I can call my own. A haven where I can waffle on to my hearts content and be me, myself and my mummy self. 


I enjoy joining in with linkies and reading other blogs (not as many as I would like to, mind you!), commenting on other blogs and when I remember commenting on the comments I get too. Oh and of course twitter (love twitter). Then there's project 366, Pinterest, Google + , Instagram, Facebook etc..

Basically there are a lot of commitments with blogging and social networking  - at least I think so anyway. I think there is a certain etiquette if you like, and I believe that if you enter a linky you should spend some time visiting and commenting on other linked up posts. If someone visits your blog you should try (although I am guilty of not always doing this) and reply especially, I feel, if the comments ask a question or are in response to the subject I have written about and people have gone to the trouble of offering advice or sharing an experience themselves. If someone comments on a linked up post of mine, and I haven't yet visited their blog and left a comment, I do my best to do so. 

Then there are blogs I visit on a regular basis which I try to keep on top of and interact with as much as I am able to.


 But what about new blogs? 
I rarely find the time to seek out new blogs. 


But then what about blogs I used to read but haven't done for ages?? I realised from attending Britmumslive that there were several blogs mentioned in the keynote session, the BIB awards and just from speaking to people outside of the workshops, that I either had never heard of and now want to discover more of. It also dawned on me that I used to visit some blog lots when I first started blogging and don't so much anymore (sorry if this is you!). 

And - yes, sorry there is still some more waffle words I need to express about this - asides from all of this I have posts of my own to write, to think up to magically find time to compose. Reviews to trial and write up. Cakes to make and blog about. Photos to be taken each day for my project 366. You know, the usual work involved with being a blogger.

This is where I am foxed. How do I fit it all in??? 
How does anyone fit it all in to their already busy lives??

How can I tweet, write, read and comment all at the same time?? Yes, I am a woman and I can multi task up to a point, but it does result with me rarely getting into bed before midnight each night!! And thats not including being kept up with children related incidents.

When I think about time management and how I can best plan my blogger commitments, aswell as all my SAHM tasks, it reminds me of the scene from the brilliant 'About A Boy' film where Will (Hugh Grant) is explaining how he plans his time each day:

I find the key is to think of a day as units of time, each unit consisting of no more than thirty minutes. Full hours can be a little bit intimidating and most activities take about half an hour. Taking a bath: one unit, watching countdown: one unit, web-based research: two units, exercising: three units, having my hair carefully disheveled: four units. It's amazing how the day fills up, and I often wonder, to be absolutely honest, if I'd ever have time for a job; how do people cram them in? 

I think if I , and I am sure most parents who may or may not blog would agree, added up all my jobs that I do each day and put them into units, I wouldn't have any spare for sleeping, let alone anything else!!

Blogging is my hobby. I enjoy it. It means a lot to me now. I care about it and other blogs. I wouldn't want to give it up as it is mine - my 'me' time I guess.

I am also a mummy: this is my life and my priority. My boys are my life now and I wouldn't change this for anything.

BUT I really want to combine my mummy and blogging roles successfully, and not have them overlap (which I don't allow to happen, well maybe the housework in the evening has suffered slightly since I got addicted interested in blogging and twitter!).

How the dickens does anyone squeeze it all in????

Do you have the answer??


I would love to know how you manage your time/roles.

Hello Fresh : A Review

A few weeks ago I commented on my blog that I was worried that my weekly meal planner was looking a bit samey and not very adventurous. In response to this remark, I was approached by 

Hello Fresh to try out their mail order meal recipe and ingredient service. 

Hello Fresh chefs create recipes that are balanced and varied; the Hello Fresh team go out and buy every ingredient required to make the meals and then deliver everything you need to cook a tasty meal right to your door each Tuesday. Typically the meals which require cooking only take 30 minutes and have a step by step instruction leaflet, with photographs, for you to follow - so even the most reluctant cooks cant go wrong!

I was sent a big box of goodies, the 3 meal box, which was very well insulated and kept all the ingredients fresh and cool, one Tuesday morning. I received enough meat, veg, seasonings and condiments to prepare and cook three meals. 

Here is an example of one of the meals I received and cooked:

XO Chinese Chicken With Stir Fried Sweetheart Cabbage

(serves 2)

you will need

2 chicken breasts

1 nest of noodles

120g sweetheart cabbage

1 orange

1/2 cup of coriander 

(I didnt use this because both my OH and I cant stand it!)

2 cloves of garlic

50g banana shallot

10g fresh ginger

1 red chilli

1 tbsp honey

2 tsp of XO sauce

(if like me you dont know what XO sauce is, its a concoction made from shellfish, garlic & chilli)

1 tsp Chinese 5 spice

 Then you need to:

peel and finely dice the garlic and shallot

dice up as much chilli as you can stand (I did half)

coursely chop the coriander (if you use it of course!)

grate a 1/4 of a tsp of the orange zest, squeeze out the orange juice and finely shred the cabbage

bring a small saucepan of water to the boil ready for your noodles

turn your grill onto a medium setting

dice your ginger (the guide explains how you can peel ginger)

mix together the orange juice and zest and add a tsp of chinese 5 spice and a good grind of black pepper and stir

butterfly your chicken breasts (again the guide explains how you do this) and coat both sides of each breast with the XO sauce and drizzle some of the orange marinade on each side too (keep the rest back for later)

grill each chicken breast for about 6 minutes on each side, drizzling with more of the marinade when you turn them over

then simply

simmer noodles until 'al dente' and 

when you add the noodles to the wok, add the remainder of your zesty marinade too and cook for 1 more minute to allow the marinade to thicken into a sticky sauce

then simply slice the cooked chicken and serve on top of the noodles and veg and its ready!

My Thoughts Of Hello Fresh

I think that if you lead a busy life and find it hard to do a regular grocery shop, let alone think up meal ideas, then Hello Fresh is a fantastic concept. Rather than grab a meal deal/convenience meal from the local supermarket or have a take away, to have fresh, good quality ingredients delivered to your home once a week would, I think, be a help to many professional working people.

The costs to have this service is as follows:

 Current Available Boxes From Hello Fresh:

3-Meal Box for 2 - £39 (Vegetarian option available)

3-Meal Box for 4 - £59 (Vegetarian option available)

3-Meal Box for 6 - £89 (Vegetarian option available)

5-Meal Box for 2 - £49

5-Meal Box for 4 - £89

5-Meal Box for 6 - £129

Which when you consider that all your meals are planned, all the shopping has been done for each meal and everything will be used - ie no wastage - then I think if you can afford this meal delivery service then its brilliant! I think the prices are quite reasonable eg. the 5 meals for 4 people at £89 works out at just £4.45 per person per day. If you tend to rely on ready made meals or take aways, then the food boxes would be a cheaper and healthier alternative I would imagine.

I think a downside is that you don't know what meals you will be making each week which means that if, like me, you cannot stand coriander, to have that as a prominent ingredient and flavour is not one I would choose to have. However, the quality of food is fab, I was also sent prawns and duck breast for my other 2 meals, and it is exciting to receive a box that you have no idea what will be contained inside. A food lucky dip if you will.

My only other slight criticism, is that the portions are not that big - healthy size yes, but as my OH said he would have liked a bit more on his plate!!

Personally, with a family of four and as a Mummy who cooks from scratch for the majority of the time, Hello Fresh is probably a tad expensive as I can create meals for less than £17.80 a day. However, I can totally see how this concept is great for many people, and if my two boys were ever away for a few days then maybe I will use Hello Fresh for my OH and I.

If this kind of meals-to-be-on-wheels delivery service sounds of interest to you, then check out their website

http:///www.hellofresh.co.uk

I was sent a food box from Hello Fresh for the purpose of this review. The recipe is theirs, but all opinions and remarks are my own.

My Week That Was - Sun, More Sun & Outdoors Fun

What a hot and sunny filled week it has been! I only need to look at my home and see the lack of housework that has been done, to know that the boys and I have made the most of the glorious weather while it lasts! 

Here is my week that was.......

Burton went to Ladybirds so Jenson and I stayed indoors because it was very hot outside. Burton ended up staying at his Granma's tonight because his cousins were all having a sleepover so he was invited to go along too.

Jenson and I headed into town late this afternoon to get a few bits and grapes were shared on the way home to help cool us both down!

Burton was dropped back home after breakfast and I took him and Jenson to the park early before it got too hot and it was quite busy for 9.30am!

At lunchtime my Mum, Uncle and his wife came and after we ate lunch we took the boys to Instow beach which was lovely. We purposely didn't head over until after 3pm so that it wouldn't too hot. It was just lovely and we all the boys loved building sandcastles and collecting shells. Jenson did complain about having to wear his hat though!

The bath was full of sand when I bathed the boys at bedtime!

The boys and I headed over to Granma's this morning for some paddling pool fun! It was Jenson's first time in one and he loved it although he kept getting in and out, in and out and so on! Fidget boy! Daddy collected us after tea to take us home.

I made some mars bar muffins this morning to take with me to Ella's this afternoon for a tweet up. Jenson didn't come with us as he went to my Mum's for a couple of hours (I collected him on the way home)  but Burton did and he played with Ella's children mostly in the sandpit and paddling pool. It was lovely to meet properly as although I have met her twice before (Blogcamp Bristol and a SW Mums tweet up last year), we have never actually chatted. She (and her children) is very lovely. 

The boys and I didn't get home until gone 6.30pm, so once we had eaten and I had bathed them and got them into bed it was 8pm and they both fell straight to sleep.

The boys and I went into town to buy some bits for our picnic lunch. When we got home and I got everything packed up, my Mum turned up to join us on our al fresco lunch. we had so much fun, playing with the ball, hiding under the weeping willow tree and the boys were making each other laugh!! 

Afterwards, my Mum went and then the boys other Granma arrived to take the boys to hers for the night as Daddy and I are attending a 40th birthday bash tonight. The party was great and we were dirty stop outs as we didn't arrive home until nearly 2am!!!

We went to collect the boys and were treated to a bacon butty by Granma - yum! Then we went to view a farmhouse which is up for sale - it would be an amazing place to live BUT needs a LOT of work doing to it (and money!) to make it suitable to live in.

After lunch Daddy and I took the boys to the park and took Burton's car which he loved and lots of people commented on it and waved at him !!

We haven't done much so far today, generally stayed indoors for some baking and cleaning (me), ironing and gaming (Daddy) and playing (boys). We are going to see some friends for a slice of birthday cake later on this afternoon. Still after a busy week and a day of sunshine and showers so far today, I don't think it really matters.

And that concludes my week that was!


I am linking this up to

and

Saturday Is Caption Day 28th July 2012

Hellooooooo!!

I wasn't around last weekend which is why I didn't join in BUT I am here now so here is my photo for you to caption






Then pop over here and check out some other entries

Paddling Pool Fun

Paddling pools are such fun, aren't they?

I find it doesn't take much to entertain my two boys, especially Burton, on a warm day than to fill up a pool with some water and let them get wet!! 

As many of you will know, Burton has always been a water baby - he is like a fish and will sit in a pool for hours until his lips turn blue from the cold! 

BUT the first time he sat in a paddling pool was back in June 2010 when he would have been 11 months old, and we attended a birthday party where there was one in the garden and after watching with interest for a while I decided to put him in the water. He wasn't too sure that first time but after a few minutes he soon realised what splashing fun he could have! 

So I bought a small paddling pool for our backyard and let him have another go a few weeks later, he took it in his stride much more then!

By the following summer he was a fully fledged member of the paddling pool club and couldn't wait to get in and get splashing, despite the water not being that warm!! 

This year he has been allowed a deeper paddling pool which means more water, which means even longer staying in!!! Plus of course being able to go under the water and hold his breath, which means him drinking the pool water  more despite his protests he isn't but I know he has by the number of wees he has to have!

This summer has seen Jenson try out a paddling pool for the first time too - another fish in the making me thinks! 

I am linking this up to flashback friday - why don't you link up a post today?

and also 

 

and

Malteser Muffins

To make them you will need:

(makes 9)

150g caster sugar

150g unsalted butter

3 eggs

150g self raising flour, sifted 

grab bag of maltesers

Then you need to

Pre heat the oven to 180 oC/160 oC fan

Beat together the butter and sugar until soft and creamy

Add the beaten egg and flour and mix well

Remove about 40 maltesers from the bag and place in a bowl for later 

Carefully while holding the end of the bag shut, bash it with a rolling pin to roughly crush the malteasers

Add the crushed maltesers to the cake batter and stir through

Divide the cake mixture between your muffin cases

Place in the oven and cook for approx 20-25 minutes or until cooked (insert a knife into cakes, if it comes out clean the cakes are cooked, if not then return to oven for a couple more minutes)

Once cooked allow to cool thoroughly

Then make the chocolate buttercream 

50g unsalted butter at room temperature

100g icing sugar, sifted

25g milk chocolate melted and allowed to cool

1 tsp milk

Beat the butter and sugar together until smooth

Then add the wet ingredients and mix well

Place into a piping bag and swirl onto each muffin

Decorate with the leftover Maltesers (I placed 4 onto each muffin)

Thats it! 

Then simply enjoy :)

The Gallery - Street Photography

I was looking through my mobile phone tonight and I noticed that Burton had taken several photos while we walked home from the park this morning. He took snapshots of the main road which runs along the top of our street whilst sat in the buggy.

Funnily enough I was wondering what photo/photos to use for this weeks Gallery theme of STREET PHOTOGRAPHY, but it appears that Burton has done all the hard work for me! I had no idea he had been so busy snapping away!

In these photos, Burton has captured :

the Vauxhall Garage

the SEAT Garage

cars parked outside a house and an Argos delivery lorry approaching in the distance

the Argos lorry getting closer

Newport Church

shadows cast across the pavement

cars driving along the road

the curve in the road

but no people!!

Burton's street photography was taken in Newport, Barnstaple, North Devon

Getting Personal - Great Gift Ideas

Sometimes it can be hard trying to find presents for people which are a bit different and unique from the norm. My partner is especially hard to buy things for as he is the type of person who purchases himself what he wants when he sees something he likes, which means that by the time his birthday or Christmas approaches there isn't anything he really needs or want!!

I end up trawling the internet trying to find gifts that are unusual or ones that I can personalise for him to guarantee that I will be getting him something he won't already have, expect or think of himself!!  

Getting Personal.co.uk is a website which specialises in selling more unique and quirky items that I think even my OH would enjoy receiving. 

Gettingpersonal.co.uk have so much to offer from gifts for  kids, mums, dads, grandparents, friends and teachers! Such a vast array of ideas, more than 6,000 in fact, to give anyone and everyone inspiration for a present for someone special.

I have already selected a few ideas for people myself. 

For my OH I think this 

personalised formula 1 book would make a great gift seeing as though he is a big fan of the sport

Burton would love this personalised Toy Story 3 adventure book  because I can have the text altered to have his name written into the story, so he would share in the adventures with Woody, Buzz and the gang by starring in his own book!

I have a wedding later in the year and I think this name a star gift box would make a really special and unique present for the happy couple

Another fab idea to mark any special occasion like a wedding, engagement, christening or a milestone birthday or anniversary is to have a bottle of vintage champagne personalised with a label with the person/persons names on

And for the chocaholics I know, a chocolate pizza would be a gift come true I would imagine! Yum!

And for me? Well, seeing as thought I am trying to lose some pounds now that there sun has finally made an appearance, maybe this fun magnet would encourage me not to eat too much! 

There really is a gift to suit everyone with a budget to suit all pockets too! 

Free delivery on all orders over £30, fast delivery and a guaranteed secured shopping experience.

Why not check out www.gettingpersonal.co.uk for yourself? 

This is a featured post. All opinions expressed about the site are my own though, and the items I have mentioned within this post were chosen by me, as I actually feel that these would make great gifts.

My Week That Was - Rain, Sunshine & A Family Wedding

Here is what we got up to in my week that was.

Daddy left very early this morning for work again and won't return until Wednesday night.

As usual Burton went to Ladybirds and Granma kindly gave him a lift there and back for me. Jenson and I stayed in all day as it rained, and rained and rained some more!

My mum and grandparents came over for the day which was lovely and Burton had great fun showing them all his new birthday toys (again!). 

Late in the afternoon Burton's other Grandma collected him as he stayed at her house tonight with his cousin Ben again, which has become a weekly treat now.

When they left, my mum, grandparents and I took Jenson to the park as it stopped raining, as he put his shoes and coat on after his brother left and kept pointing to the door and shouting!

It was relatively dry this morning, so Jenson and I popped in to town as I wanted to pop to the post office and change a top in Next, where I picked up a pair of £3 crocs for him as I can't resist a bargain!  Afterwards I took Jenson to a cafe where we shared a flapjack and he enjoyed people watching.

On the way home it started to rain and we both got quite wet as I hadn't taken the rain cover for the buggy with us (which is bit stupid considering the wet weather we have been experiencing!). 

Daddy arrived home at 5pm and Granma dropped Burton off about half an hour later. 

I took the boys to the beach at 9am this morning and we were the only ones there asides from people walking their dogs! We only stayed for just over an hour but we had such fun and it was just nice for it to be dry and for us to enjoy the fresh air!

When we got home I gave the boys a bath to wash away half the beach that we managed to bring hone with us! We spent the remainder of the day playing with new toys.

Today was a beautiful day :)

I managed to get Burton to try on his racing suit which was a birthday present form my mum and step dad. Daddy was pleased !!

Granma came over mid morning with an older cousin of the boys (Ben's sister, Charlotte who is almost 8) and she and Burton played together. They stayed for lunch and then afterwards we all went over to Granma's so that the children could play outside in the sunshine.

Back home, after I gave the boys their tea I left daddy in charge so I could pop to the hairdressers to get my hair washed and straightened ready for the wedding we are attending tomorrow.

We left home just after 8.30am and travelled up to where I originally come from, Newbury in Berkshire for a family wedding. We enjoyed a lovely day and the boys were both so good and really made me and their daddy very proud. They had new little outfits each which my Mum bought for them from Next and they looked so smart and cute. During the church service we sat at the back, but Burton made people laugh as he started singing Happy Birthday and howling like a wolf very loudly a few times during the ceremony!!

We stayed at the hotel where the wedding reception was held. Daddy and Burton rolled in to our room at 10pm as I had gone there at 7.30pm with a tired and ready for bed Jenson, while I was suffering with a migraine so I was feeling a bit rough really :(

We stayed at the hotel until 11.30am as Daddy and Burton went swimming with Grandad. 

Then we went to see my grandparents (my dad's parents) as I haven't send them since I was pregnant with Jenson!! I didn't tell them we would be popping in as we couldn't stay long and I didn't want them to go to any trouble for our visit. I think they were very surprised and pleased to see us and the boys especially. Sadly I didn't manage to get a photo of them and the boys together which I had wanted to do, but I am just glad we were able to see them at long last. I wish we could do it more often.

Then we travelled home and the boys pretty much slept the entire journey. We called in to see Granma and Grampy as it was such a glorious day and it seemed a shame to just go home and be stuck indoors. The boys were allowed a bowl of water and they enjoyed splashing themselves and standing in it and getting VERY wet!!

And that concludes our week that was.

I am linking this up to

mummydaddyandmemakesthree