A Creepy Crawly made from Cereals

According to a survey by Nestle, 47% of children have munched on a creepy crawly from the garden. Thankfully, my own five have never succumbed to the urge to chow down on a caterpillar, worm or heaven forbid, a slug! I would have officially freaked out if my kids had ever indulged in an insectoid treat. Just the thought of it makes me shudder.

Although almost half of the children of the parents surveyed would have happily gobbled up a bug or two, over two thirds would refuse to eat a plate full of greens. I know what I would prefer!

Despite some children's strange dietary habits, it's easy to get some wholegrain goodness and added vitamins and minerals in their diet by giving them a bowl of fortified cereals.

To celebrate how nutritious cereals can be and to show kids there are better things to eat than bugs, Nestle have joined forces with food artist Prudence Staite to create a giant caterpillar made from cereals.

Nestle have also challenged us to have a go at making our own cereal creepy crawly creation. So the children set to work to make their own cereal butterfly! I think that for every one piece of cereal stuck on to the butterfly, the kids ate at least two!

They cut the body from the cereal box and using PVA glue stuck the Cheerios all over it. While it dried they made the wings by splodging paint on one half of a piece of A3 paper then folding it in half to make a matching pattern on each wing. Once dried they cut it into wing shapes and attached the Cheerio covered body. The finishing touches included more Nestle Nesquik cereals, sequins, pompoms, pipe cleaner antennae, a smiley foam mouth and googly eyes. I loved the finished result. So colourful and bright - a really cheerful Cheerio Butterfly!

The butterfly had a photo shoot in its natural habitat, the garden! It looked so bright and cute among the bushes and plants. Who knew that cereals could inspire such creativity - while still tasting so delicious!

What's Hot, What's Not - January Edition

What's Hot

TV  The new year heralds the start of a lot of great new TV shows and the return of many favourites that disappeared over the festive period.  American Horror Story - Asylum is one of the best things I've seen on TV for a while.  I love the bravery of the producers to use the same cast from the first series, throwing them into different roles and settings.  Genius!  It's very scary with great special effects and incredibly creepy music.  Other favourites include Pram Face, Revenge, Glee, Dancing on Ice (don't judge me) and the imminent return of series 7 of Dexter!  I know I am a bit of a telly addict but I love sitting on my sofa with the kids being entertained.  I am so easily pleased :)

My Crock Pot Slow Cooker this has been a bit of an under used product in my kitchen until recently.  I don't know why it has taken me so long to appreciate the benefit of chucking in the ingredients in the morning and having a warming dinner ready to serve up in the evening.  I guess Freddy being at nursery has made this easier as prior to that I would have a demanding toddler trying to 'help' (or attempting to wield knives and throw vegetables).  Warming stews with dumplings are the perfect antidote to this cold weather.

JooMo It may only be a face wash but it has been quite life changing!  This is the first winter that my face hasn't flared up with an attack of red, inflamed and itchy dry skin.  I put that down to using JooMo which is made of all natural ingredients.  It's all I use now and it works.

Being A Grandma I get to have cuddles and feel all the love in the world, but I have none of the responsibility.  Holding newborn Ted I wondered how I ever coped with a baby.  It suddenly felt like an enormous task to have to look after an infant.  I knew at that moment that my own baby producing days are over.  Plus I know the joy of welcoming the next generation into our family and it's wonderful.

What's Not

This Weather It's cold...but not impressively so.  It is still wet and the waterlogged fields and high rivers are not subsiding giving rise to a lingering degree of worry and concern.  We are told it will snow but then it doesn't.  A few weeks ago it was unseasonably mild and many flowers started to make a tentative appearance. They have all died.  I guess this is typical UK weather with its non-distinct seasons, where our little island is at the mercy of the weather fronts that come in from around the planet.  But it is still suckish not knowing what will happen from one week to the next.

Bugs The kids have only been back at school for 5 minutes and both Ella and Kizzy have got poorly.  Ella was off yesterday and Kizzy was sent home today.  The post Christmas spread of germs is always a problem and is a reminder of how easily serious epidemics can occur.  I don't feel right, but I just have to get on with things whilst feeling slightly sick, slightly coldy and slightly dizzy.  Oh the joys!

Sponsored NSPCC Event I am all for helping out charitable causes when I can.  Yesterday Kizzy came home really excited about the assembly she had had at school that morning.  A woman from the NSPCC had come to their school to talk about the work of the charity.  It included some very emotive material which pulled at Kizzy's heart strings.  Her school is taking part in some sponsored sporting events on behalf of the charity.  I usually sponsor her for a few pounds as do her grandparents. However, the NSPCC encourage kids to get as many sponsors as they can by offering a reward system.  A green badge for up to three sponsors, escalating to a gold medal for those who fill the whole sheet with sponsors.  The kids were told to get their parents to take the form to work to ask colleagues to sponsor them to get as many names on the form as they could to get the gold medal.  When I said to Kizzy that this wasn't happening she was disappointed. Am I just mean or is this method of fundraising just fundamentally flawed?  How much of the much needed funds are spent producing badges and medals (which will probably wind up in the bin eventually anyway)?  Why should children be made to feel like they have let the charity down if they don't get a gold medal?  Why do the children contributing need a reward at all?  This is to raise much needed cash for underprivileged and at risk children. Knowing you have contributed in any way should be reward enough.  Do we live in a society where nobody will do anything unless they are personally rewarded?  I just think it is all wrong and don't understand that in an economical situation where every penny counts why this charity is wasting our donated cash unnecessarily and turning the fundraising into a competition which causes division and disappointment.  Shame.