What exactly can you do with the collection of take out coffee cups in your car?

It was only a matter of time before I blogged about coffee. But this is a slightly different approach to it than even I thought I’d be taking.

Almost a year ago my favourite coffee lounge, No92, opened a new shop in our local park. A much needed addition to the old facilities and part of a lottery funded scheme that has seen Mary Stevens Park updated and improved. This park is special to me, I grew up right alongside it and spent most weekends there and now I get to share this beautiful place with my own children.

Anyway back on topic, at the end of 2015 there was a News article about the huge amount of waste that comes from using take out coffee cups, I remember it well because I was one of those people adding to the problem.

I recycle as much as I possibly can at home, but when it came to the ever growing collection of paper coffee cups I had tucked in all spare spaces in my car, I just took them out and binned them…

….until now.

I started by recycling them with my cardboard, but Mary Stevens Coffee Lounge over the last month have now made their coffee cups one step better and now they are compostable too! That’s when my brain really started whirring.

Our youngest son came home last term with two plants he started growing at school. We haven’t a clue what they are, one might be a marigold and the other might be a radish? We’ll see.

They have been busy growing on the windowsill very happily but really they need planting outside. So I thought I’d try something out. Two of my collection of cups had the remains of coffee in them and as coffee is good for plants, I just left it in there.

As you can see from the picture, I took my cups, filled them with soil, poked holes in the bottom for drainage.

Then I popped the plants in, planted them in the borders of my garden and buried  the cups in surrounding soil.

I am far from a gardener, I would much prefer to be drinking coffee from those cups, but what a brilliant way to recycle them. You can’t get much better for the environment, all these new inventions have already started proving they work because this week it was broadcast that the Hole in the ozone layer is shrinking!

I’m looking forward to seeing if they grow and also to nipping down to the park for more cups and maybe a piece of cake 

Xxx 

We need a new menu!

I love cooking from scratch and try really hard to make sure we all have homemade food more than convenience food, but sometimes there’s only so much chilli or bolognaise you can serve.

Our menu needs a change and I needed to try out a few new recipes to see what everyone would eat, the first to be tried this week is 

Corned Beef Hash 

When I was growing up this was a quick and simple meal that my mom would make when we were away for weekends. We’d be collected from school on a Friday afternoon and as soon as dad was back from work we’d head down the M5 to Devon in our fab VW Camper

I used a recipe from BBC Good Food website and it is so quick and easy.

Recipe: 

• 500g of potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 2tbsp of vegetable oil
• 1 onion roughly chopped
• 1 X 340g tin of corned beef, cut into 1cm cubes

Method:

• Place your potatoes into a pan of cold water and bring to the boil, boil for 6-7 minutes.
• Heat the oil in another pan and cook the onion for 3-4 minutes.
• Add the corned beef and potatoes, mixing carefully together and heating through until piping hot.

I had varying reactions from the boys to the new addition to the menu. I always ask them if they would have it again and make a note on the recipe, the date we made it and what they thought.

So our 9yr old loved it and would definitely have it again. Apparently 

It’s better than pizza!

Our 8 yr old wanted to know what he could add to it to make it taste better?! And he would try it again if I added BBQ sauce through it and made the potatoes smaller.

Our 7 yr old didn’t like it and spat out all 3 mouthfuls that he tried. Not abnormal for him, he would live off toast.

So we came to the conclusion that I would try it again and they could add their own variations

Possible variations include:

• Melting cheese on the top under the grill
• Worcestershire sauce, we left this out of our recipe although it is listed on the good food website
• Accompany it with beans
• Possibly some passata 

Now what can I tempt them with next….

It’s ok to not be ok

I think parents these days put immense pressure on themselves, to be perfect beings in the eyes of our children. But we shouldn’t want our children to strive to be perfect, it’s an impossible goal and totally unrealistic.

For me being a mother is a constant juggling act to be efficient and ready for anything and keep up with the roles of everyday life.

This morning was no exception:

I have spent the last week out in the sun every day with the boys, keeping them busy and providing them with a brilliant fun school holiday that they wouldn’t want to end.

Yesterday after a few hours at Birmingham airport plane spotting we made sure all the homework was done. Pump bags were filled, school bags sorted, uniform out and ready for the morning.

Then the morning came and that feeling of organisation was totally changed. The boys were back to their usual “selective hearing selves” and our eldest was acting up because he was worried.

He’d remembered this morning that he “might” have to have his assembly costume for today. He hadn’t written it down and he was over thinking it all and we were all in the firing line, especially me, for not reading his mind and knowing the answers to everything. 

I wished I was perfect, I wished I was a mind reader. I could see his face changing from angry, to worried, to the brink of crying.

I tried to solve his problems, but he wasn’t in a clear enough headspace to even listen, that’s when I could feel myself going through the same emotions as him. I turned my back on him and silently cried into the lunches I was packing for them.

Once they’d finished breakfast, and the younger two were lounging on the sofa, our perceptive 9 yr old came back to me and asked me to help him and burst into tears, we both stood there crying into each other. 

You see nobody’s perfect, it’s ok for our children to see, that life isn’t easy for us either and that we have the same feelings as them. 

It’s in those moments of comforting that our bonds grow stronger.

Needless to say I have spent the morning making sure tomorrow the assembly costume is ready.

I am doing a good job after all…

As a parent we always find reasons to beat ourselves up about our success, or lack of it when it comes to creating beautifully well rounded kind children.

Having had 3 boys within the space of just under 3 years, as soon as they were toddling and gaining character they also realised they had some sort of superpower, where if they stuck together their opinions as a three could be stronger than mine….. Or at least that’s what I let them think sometimes. 

Now they are getting a little older and they have their own minds I spend much of my weeks reminding them not to fight with each other, not to wind each other up on purpose and be careful and gentle with each other and one another’s feelings. It feels all too often like I am invisible and they can’t actually hear me at all. I felt like I was fighting a losing battle and they were going to be become delinquents (slightly dramatic I know)

Until this week….

It’s been the school holidays and we have been out every day, National Trust is our face (that’s another blog post) so whilst playing football in the middle of a gorgeous field at Attingham Park when a very little boy came and joined them. My first thought was “I hope they’re gentle and include him”

To my amazement they were brilliant, the little boy was only 2 1/2 and my eldest (9yrs) went round with him showing him all the big boys things to play with and keeping him safe. His mom was grilled as she was feeding her new baby and couldn’t  follow him everywhere. All three of my boys were very gentle and affectionate and kind with their new little  friend, so apparently they do listen after all. 

My work is done! For now 😀

Where should i start with Blogging?

Well I absolutely love reading other peoples blogs and have a head full of thoughts that keep popping up in my head every time I do anything or go anywhere!
From what I’ve cooked for tea to where we’ve spent the day as a family.
I follow many other bloggers, my particular favourites at the moment are www.abeautifulmess.com and www.englishmum.com I find them totally inspiring.

So whilst typing this I’m already thinking of at least 3 more blogs I can start, I’d better get started.
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Give every day the chance, to become the most beautiful day of your life