Rapping About Wraps! Lunch Less Ordinary - Week 2

This week's task in the Lunch Less Ordinary Bloggers Challenge with Mission Deli Wraps really appealed to us:

"Mini ‘wrappers’ - get the kids to make up the lyrics to a ‘wrap’ about their lunch."

This was perfect for 11 year old Kizzy, who was set the challenge to become a rapper...Li'l Kiz...and compose and rap a song dedicated to everyone's favourite lunchtime treat - Mission Deli Wraps!

Kizzy went with the challenge 100%, writing a rap, dressing like a rapper complete with bling rings, big necklace, headphones and cap, making a backing track on Freddy's electronic piano, gathering props and performing her rap.  She was fabulous!

Take a look at Kizzy's performance in this video!  


                        

Lyrics

Listen up here's a rap for you,
Lunch Less Ordinary challenge 2.
Brought to you by Mission wraps so yummy,
They taste so good in my tummy.
Wrapping up with chilli and spicy cheese.
Wrapping up curry with potatoes and peas.
How about making an enchilada?
Pop in soft cheese or Cheddar it's harder.
Salad is good and healthy to eat,
Or try a  pizza for an Italian treat?
Even a banana with chocolate sauce,
Wraps are so versatile for any course.
So if you want something less ordinary for lunch,
Try Mission deli wraps, they pack a punch!!

Mission Deli Wraps is committed to inspiring people to enjoy A Lunch Less Ordinary; whether it’s leaving your desk for an extra half an hour over lunch, swapping your usual packed lunch for a tasty Mission Deli Wrap, getting covered in tomatoes at La Tomatina in Valencia or partying at the Mardi Gras with their new on pack competition.  Pick up a promotional pack in store!  See missionwraps.co.uk for more information.

Join in the fun at www.facebook.com/MissionWrapsUK and enjoy a lunch less ordinary!

Kizzy's Arty Photos

I thought I'd share these arty macro pics that 10 year old Kizzy took, which I think are really fabulous.  I love her composition and the thought that she has put into them.  I think she shows real promise! She recently entered the Moneysupermarket.com Kids Capture the Colour competition which really inspired her photography.  She used the colour prompts to take some close up photos of things she loves: Skittles, make-up and clothes! I love the access to technology that our children have.  The opportunities available can have a really positive influence, giving them exciting hobbies to pursue.  Kizzy used my Lumix DSLR and is getting to grips with the settings, not relying on the automatic functionality of the camera.

For Kezia x

2nd October 2002.

My newborn baby girl.

My ray of sunshine.

My gift to the world.

My blessing.

Eleven years later.
My beautiful girl with empathy in bucket loads, a beautiful spirit and a heart of gold.
She makes me proud everyday.
A loving sibling, a wonderful auntie, a brilliant granddaughter and an adorable daughter.
Still my ray of sunshine.
Still my gift to the world.
Still my blessing.

Happy Birthday Kizzy xxx

Kids Capture the Colour

Travelsupermarket.com's Kids Capture the Colour competition allows children to get creative with photography, taking pictures that capture the colours green, blue, red, yellow and white.  10 year old Kizzy is developing a real love for photography (enjoying being both sides of the camera) and embarked on the project with some very creative ideas.  Throughout the summer she used the camera, which she was sent to use, (as well as occasionally pinching my DLR!) to record precious memories and try out some arty shots.  Here are her favourite summer photos and the story behind each image in her own words.

Green

"This is taken at Beeston Castle and is in the woodland walk.  It is a really magical place to walk through.  I loved this tree which looks green because it is covered in mossy stuff.  I think it could be a place where fairies lived.  I love the roots."

Blue

"This is taken in Salford after we went to The Lowry.  Freddy was enjoying running and climbing on all the play equipment and on the walls.  He jumped off this bench loads of times and I caught this action shot of him mid air.  I love how his bright blue outfit stands out against the grey path. He's like Little Boy Blue."

Red

"This plant is outside our house and I love the red leaves and the flower-type thing which feels furry.  I love the colours of nature.  The red is really pretty."

Yellow

"I grew sunflowers this year from seed.  I was really excited when they grew into big yellow flowers.  Bees kept coming to visit them which made me really happy.  I was so happy to capture a picture of a bee on one of the sunflowers.  I tried lots of times but this is the best because you can actually see its eyes and the details on its wings. I cropped it down to get a good close-up and it's my favourite shot."

White

"We've had some lovely blue skies this summer with fluffy white clouds. I really liked this photo because it looks like a scan photo with a baby sucking his thumb.  Can you see it?"

This is Kizzy's entry into the Kids Capture the Colour Photography competition.

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I will be posting some more of Kizzy's photos on my blog shortly as she has some lovely arty, close up shots of the colour themes featuring sweets, clothing and make-up (some of her favorite things!)

My Double Digit Daughter!

Flashback Friday 

My little Kizzy is just a few days away from her tenth birthday.  My little ray of sunshine is turning into a real young lady.  I watched her walk into school this morning.  She is a good 6-12" taller than the majority of her peers with an inner confidence that allows her to stand tall.  

As ever, when a birthday is imminent, I can't help but reminisce about the years gone by and I've enjoyed pouring over the photographs of Kezia taken since her birth in October 2002.

Kizzy was the willful little baby that came into the world so fast that her dad missed her being born.  While she was making her appearance, Ian was on a motorbike from Birmingham oblivious to his daughter's arrival! She was a dream baby.  Calm and content.

At 2 she was an adventurous little soul with a zest for life and a cheeky sense of humour.  Shortly after this photo was taken on the London Eye, she squeezed an entire tube of suntan cream all over herself after sneaking it out of my handbag.

When she was 3 she used to tell me elaborate stories about her life before she was born!  She used to say that she missed her old family.  She told me that she lived before in 'French-Africa' where she ate Crocodile Soup.  She also said that she and  her parents were killed by a friend they owed money to and that she went up into the sky where she searched for the right family to be born into.  When she found me she flew into my tummy because I was just right.  Her stories were so descriptive and detailed I did wonder if my baby girl's soul had previously existed in another person.  It was pretty spooky for a toddler to be telling these tales of a past life.  Whether there was a paranormal element to her past life memories, or whether my little girl had an extraordinary imagination, I'm very, very glad that I got to be her new mummy!

At 4 she was developing her own sense of style and loved her hair clips, pretty clothes and her floral  afghan coat.  Her Great Grandma called Kizzy her "little star" as her personality shone so brightly.  She was such a loving little girl with an empathy beyond her years.

At 5, my little school girl became a popular member of her class at her new school and wowed the teachers with her imagination when it came to story writing.  She looked so cute in her school uniform. 

My 8 year old was growing up fast and taking her new Junior School by storm. Her confidence increased and her sense of humour developed, making her one of the most entertaining kids I've ever known.  She took to her role as big sister to Freddy beautifully and their relationship has blossomed over the years so that Freddy adores her.  She is like another 'little mummy' to him.

Now almost ten, Kizzy is a fabulous young lady.  A great big sister to Freddy and a brilliant little sister to her older siblings who all love her to bits.  She is an amazing daughter and we marvel at how mature she is and enjoy how much fun she is.  She is always so helpful and so eager to involve herself in everything we do.  She's a joy.  She might be messy and she might procrastinate at bedtime, but other than that she is no trouble at all.  She has been a model daughter...long may it continue.  She talks to me about everything and I hope that this openness and honesty lasts so I can help her through the years to come.  I count myself extremely blessed to have all my children.  They are my world.

This weekend we are off for a girlie shopping day with lunch at Costa.  She wants clothes for her birthday and we'll be picking out some lovely things for her Winter wardrobe.  She also wants pierced ears but I'm holding out on that one (due to my extreme allergy to metals).  

Happy Birthday to my awesome ten year old daughter!  You make me proud every single day.

Kizzy's Cup Cakes Hit Asda!

My adorable mini-baker Kizzy has had her Jungle Jumble Cupcakes officially launched in Asda stores.  She is thrilled with the packaging that shows a photo of her on the front and back alongside a host of cute animal characters   It is brilliant seeing her face on a product on the supermarket shelf!

She entered and won the Fabulous Baking Boys Mini Baker competition earlier this year and went on to enjoy a VIP visit to the factory where she oversaw the development of her cakes and enjoyed a tour around the production plant.  She has been kept informed with every stage of the process and now her cakes are on sale at Asda stores.

Last week Kizzy visited our local Asda store as a mini-celebrity!  She was joined by a Tiger and Elephant who were giving out her cakes to the children.  The press were there and Kizzy was photographed with her cakes.  Kizzy received lots of lovely comments from local shoppers and a few friends and family turned up to offer their support too.

I am so proud of my Mini-Baker and we have loads of supplies of Jungle Jumble cupcakes for her to give to her friends.  Keep an eye out in an Asda near you for my little girl's face on the cake box!  Just £1 a box.

Kizzy is a Mini-Baker!

Kizzy has won the Fabulous Bakin' Boys Mini- Baker Competition!

Last year the Fabulous Bakin' Boys launched a competition to find a Mini-Baker to help them design a brand new flavour of cupcake.  Kizzy, who is a big cake fan, came up with a tasty tropical treat and we entered the contest.  Whilst we were away on holiday we found out that she had made the regional finals and today it was announced that she has won the coveted title of Mini-Baker!

As part of the prize she will be going to their factory in the heart of Oxfordshire to help bake the cakes which will be going on sale nationwide.  What a wonderful experience for her!  

I am very proud of my own little cupcake Kizzy!   She loves baking and often helps in the kitchen.  She has made Big Foot Cookies, Cornish Ginger Fairings and Betty Crocker Cupcakes for posts here on the blog.  She really is a budding Nigella!

Having Fun! #Project 366 Day 18

I may be having the worst start to the New Year with illness, doctor's appointments, Ian's surgery and its aftermath, fences falling down and my tumble over the stair gate to contend with, but I just have to look at this cheeky duo to brighten my day.  

They have such fun together.  I can't help but smile.

Having Fun Together

What's In a name?

I'm sat here on my laptop...my respite from the poorliness that has descended Inside the Wendy House.  The two youngest are struck down by this nasty bug that sets up home in the ears and throat rendering them into husky, grumpy and moany versions of themselves.  Bless them.   :(  Sleep has not been forthcoming for the last 48 hours and I am at that slightly spaced out stage of sleep deprivation where I feel certain that Tyler Durden will appear at any moment and try to sell me hand made soap made from the by-product of liposuction ( a little Fight Club reference there...in case you're not a fan and think I've actually gone completely mad).


So, I'm sat here wondering what to do, to help my poor addled brain cling on to its last scrap of sanity before it shuts down and gives up the will to think!


My idea for this post has arisen from my daughter Kizzy who recently googled her name.  She approached me and said " Mum, am I a Hebrew?"  This, unexpected question that came from seemingly nowhere struck me dumb for a moment, until she continued "...because Kezia is Hebrew and it means tree bark."  It then made perfect sense and I was relieved that she wasn't intending to join the Kabbalah and wanted to check her credentials first.  But then she wanted to know why I named her after the outer coating of a deciduous tree.  This got me to thinking do name meanings actually influence our decisions as to what we call our baby?  Or is the process far more complex.


We've all read about celebrities naming offspring after the place where their child was conceived, started by the Beckhams and their little Brooklyn.  This trend has spread out across the class system with the birth of little Number 16 Bus Shelter in 2008!  Classy!  Sometimes, we give our precious baby the name of something special to us, which holds great meaning and affection...sad then that twins were given the name Benson and Hedges recently.  Poor creatures blighted to a life of social handicap in a world that is hard enough without being   named after a 20 pack of fags!


My own children's names were all deliberated over from the moment those pink lines appeared on the pregnancy test.  With a mix of excitement and a sense of enormity for the responsibility, I came up with five perfect names!!


Joseph
Anyone who watched Blue Peter in the early 80's will remember the amazing man Joey Deacon.  Born with severe cerebral palsy and institutionalised as a child, he was virtually written off by society.  However, despite this, with the help of his friends, he wrote his memoirs "Tongue Tied" and went on to be quite a celebrity.  His influence on my life was immense...his triumph over adversity was inspirational.  So much so, that when I went to a fair and won a goldfish, I called it Joey!   Seven years later, my first born son was born.  What else could I call him...
                                                           

Megan
At the time Megan was quite a rare name in the UK.  People would comment on it and ask if I was Welsh.  Since then it hasn't dropped out of the top ten baby names for girls, much to my daughter's disgust.  She wanted a name as rare and beautiful as an exotic flower...instead she wound up common!  Her name was a bolt out of the blue decision that came to me whilst watching Jamie Lee Curtis in Blue Steel.  

Ella
The amazing Ella Fitzgerald was the inspiration behind our daughter's name.  How did we know she was destined to be the musical one!!!  Coincidentally, when we were first together, me and Ian liked the group The The and their song Love is Stronger than Death was played at our wedding.  El...is the in Spanish and La...is the in French.  So there you have it!!  Cosmic powers at work!!

Kezia
She was not named after tree bark, she was named after the main character from the book The Diddakoi and its TV adaptation, about a little Gypsy girl....Kizzy.  Shown in 1976, the drama about a little outsider who found it difficult to conform, really resonated with me.    The lonely, sullen girl was someone I related to.  Thankfully, my Kizzy is the antithesis of this.  She is gregarious, funny, friendly and adventurous...reality did not imitate art.  I am most pleased!  Kizzy was delighted to meet a fellow Kezia in the Sea Life Centre at Chessington who was also named after the Diddakoi.  I am not the only one!

Freddy
My baby boy, my late life gift who made my family complete could have only been honoured with a name that truly meant something to us.  He had to have the name of the best nightmare, dream stalking, knife gloved, stripy jumpered, fedora wearing horror icon.  My beautiful baby's namesake is indeed Freddy Krueger.  

So where did your children's names come from?