Vegetarian and Vegan Treats from Aldi this Christmas

Today I popped to Aldi to check out their festive offerings suitable for vegans.  There are lots of  items labelled as being suitable for vegetarians in Aldi, and with a bit of label reading you can find many of those things are accidentally vegan. From confectionery to frozen foods to alcohol to baked goods, Aldi has an extensive range. Allergens are clearly labelled in the ingredients so if it is vegetarian product made without milk or eggs, I'm happy to consider it suitable for my family.

For festive buffets, the Let's Party 60 piece Oriental Snack Selection is great value at just £3.69 and contains veggie wontons, money bags and spring rolls.

I think everything just tastes so much better when it's Christmas tree shaped!  This six pack of Christmas Tree Crumpets will make a lovely festive family breakfast for just 79p. They also do a Bake and Break Seeded Roll Christmas Tree which is £1.79. I love the idea of serving it at the table with a bowl of freshly made vegetable soup.

I loved this gift box of speciality Single Malt Whisky Jam and Marmalade. It's a great gift idea and looks very fancy. It's only £2.99, which is an excellent price. Dads and grandads would love to find this in their Christmas stocking on Christmas morning.

More Christmas Tree shaped goodies! These Lightly Salted Tortilla Chips and Salted Pretzels are great for snacking on over Christmas. The tortilla chips are 85p and the pretzels are £1.29 for a family size sharing bag. We'll enjoy munching through these while watching Christmas movies. There is also Turkey and Stuffing flavour Tortilla Chips which are vegetarian and dairy free.

The Moser Roth chocolate range looks really premium, but at £1.29 does not have a premium price tag. A number of the flavours including the single origin dark chocolate bars (62%, 70% and 80% cocoa), the orange and almond, chilli and the sea salt bars are all dairy free. Also, the Choceur Mint Waves and the Mint Creme bars are dairy free. Priced at £1.29 and 89p respectively, they are perfect as stocking fillers this Christmas. Aldi also do a dark chocolate reindeer that is dairy free, but they had all sold out. This would have been a lovely stocking filler for my vegan kids.

Another great little gift idea is the Kevin the Carrot pouch shopping bag, priced at just 99p. This reusable bag folds back into the carrot shaped case for convenience. And what can be more vegan than a carrot!

Other highlights of my shop included the Deck the Halls Picks found with the flowers in store. At just £2.09 they add some festive fun to flower arrangements or can be popped in a narrow necked vase to make a pretty addition to your festive decor. Featuring baubles, pine cones and cinnamon sticks, they are really cute!

Aldi also has a great range of fruit and vegetables in store at great prices. I particularly liked the Brussel sprout stalks for just 99p. I'll definitely be getting some of them for Christmas dinner. And I love the little crates of clementines for £2.79 for healthy Christmas snacking.

With their Specialbuys also in store, it's definitely worth checking out your local Aldi for some Christmas bargains this year!

Elves Behavin' Badly are Getting Ready for Advent

December 1st is just over a week away! That means that my friendly resident elves will soon be getting up to some naughty antics to celebrate the countdown to Christmas. This alternate advent idea promises to be a lot of fun and will definitely entertain Freddy, as he discovers what the elves have been up to the night before.

The Elves Behavin' Badly are getting a bit excited about the prospect of their stay with us here Inside the Wendy House. They are already starting to get up to mischief and are planning their exploits for month ahead.

They've being busy checking out the catalogues choosing Christmas Presents for their list to Santa.

And Elfie has been taking Selfies, getting ready for her social media debut on December 1st!

We're going to have so much fun with our elf house guests this year. They will make the countdown to Christmas more creative and inject some laughter into our mornings. Find out more about the Elves Behavin' Badly at www.elvesbehavinbadly.com.

A Magical Start to Christmas at the Intu Trafford Centre

Today we were invited to the Intu Trafford Centre to watch their Magical Christmas Parade. Arriving before the parade began, we had the chance to meet the stars of the show in a private meet and greet. Freddy loved seeing Peppa Pig, Bing & Flop, Shimmer & Shine, Marshall & Skye, the Minions, PJ Masks and Branch & Poppy. There is something so magical about seeing the children interact with their favourite TV stars in real life! We had a really nice breakfast, juice and coffee supplied by Leon, which was much appreciated after our early start.

We were then lucky enough to be able to watch the parade from the VIP enclosure at the side of the stage in the Orient. There was a procession of the characters alongside dancing princes and princesses, jugglers, drumming soldiers, stilt walkers, ballerinas, dancers, Father Christmas and his elves.

The all singing, all dancing performance ended with a magical blizzard of snowflake confetti, which was really lovely.  We left feeling very festive after our wonderful morning at the intu Trafford Centre.

Afterwards we got to do some Christmas shopping and get some lunch. The Christmas lights made the experience very sparkly and festive.

Check out what is happening at the intu Trafford Centre this Christmas at intu.co.uk/traffordcentre.

A Magical Christmas Parade is coming to Intu Trafford Centre

A Magical Christmas Parade is coming to intu Trafford Centre on November 18th 2017. 

As a family, we really enjoy our annual Christmas shopping trips to intu Trafford Centre. There is always something exciting going on and the decorations really put us in a festive mood. We love the Santa's Grotto in Barton Square, which is always so innovative and exciting! So we are really looking forward to experiencing the new Magical Christmas Parade this year.

This brand new event is bringing the magic of Christmas to families with a parade featuring the stars of Paw Patrol, Peppa Pig, Shimmer and Shine, Trolls, Bing and the Minions. Little ones will love seeing the stars of TV and the big screen brought to life in a show stopping parade.

Filled with music, dance and festive fun, this captivating Christmas carnival takes place in the Orient with two  parades starting at 11.30am and 2.30pm. The enchanting experience will give families a chance to see their favourite children’s characters alongside a dazzling array of princesses, princes, nutcracker dancers and traditional toy soldiers. Even Father Christmas himself will be taking a break from his festive grotto in Barton Square to appear in the procession and welcome the crowds to the Christmas event.

The full Magical Christmas Parade cast will feature:

Chase, Marshall and Skye from Nickelodeon’s PAW Patrol

DreamWorks Animation Trolls lead characters Princess Poppy and Branch

Bing and Flop from Emmy-award winning CBeebies cartoon Bing

Mini superheroes PJ Masks in their trademark pyjamas

Family-favourite Peppa Pig

Nickelodeon’s twin-sister genies-in-training Shimmer and Shine

Fresh from Despicable Me 3 - the Minions

A cast of magical fairy-tale princes and princesses

Traditional, festive nutcracker dancers and traditional marching toy soldiers

Father Christmas leading the way as the star of the show

Alison Niven, regional centre director at intu Trafford Centre, said: “The Magical Christmas Parade is the perfect festive, family day out – the Orient will come alive with music, dancing and wide-eyed little ones looking out for their favourite stars.... it’s really beginning to feel like the magic of Christmas has started.”

For all the festive, family events at intu Trafford Centre, visit: intu.co.uk/traffordcentre/events.

Planning my Christmas Countdown with Elves Behavin' Badly

It's that time of year again, when the first thoughts of seriously having to prepare for Christmas really begin to niggle at the edge of your mind. We know from experience that the last few months of the year quite literally fly by, so being prepared is the key to getting through the festive season without too much undue stress. So, now the kids are back at school, I'm doing my best to make lists and make plans in readiness for Christmas.

Usually I buy advent calendars for my children to countdown the days to Christmas, but this year I have other plans and am going to be trying something new and exciting thanks to Elves Behavin' Badly inviting me to be an official blogger for the 2017 season. They sent us some lovely Elves Behavin' Badly goodies to try out so we can join in with the fun world of the mischievous Christmas elves. This is perfect timing for us as we have become fully vegan this year, so the usual cheap chocolate confectionery is being taken off the menu. This new Christmas countdown idea will be a great alternative this advent.

The elf phenomena has been going for a few years now, but this will be my first committed foray into sharing some inventive elf adventures in the run up to Christmas, to entertain and amuse my children. Each day in December I will be getting creative with the elf goodies I have received, pulling pranks, playing games and having interactive fun with the cheeky elves. Every morning there will be a new scenario for the kids to discover. Much more exciting than opening a cardboard window for a morsel of chocolate! 

Elves Behavin' Badly has an unbelievable range of elves and accessories, to make Christmas 2017 the most exciting yet! The original 12" dolls are being joined by a jumbo 26" version and a teeny 5" baby elf. They have original elves with velcro hands as well as fully poseable, bendable deluxe figures.Twin elves, Elfie and Elvie are available as a boy and girl pair for double trouble. Plush elves are joining the vinyl faced elves this year for little ones who prefer their elves more cuddly and a cuddly reindeer friend Rudie has also joined the team. There is even a risque black and grey dressed elf for some naughty adult elf frolics! The scope for some fun filled elfcapades just keeps growing.

The range of accessories is huge with an elf sleigh, advent counter, bed, blanket, swing, elf door, post box and even a dummy security camera among the offerings. There are art sets, decorations, stationery and novelty items available so we can immerse ourselves in the Elves Behavin' Badly phenomena throughout December.

The beauty of the Elves Behavin' Badly as an advent idea, is that it encourages children to be good. Although the elves themselves may get up to some mischief overnight, children know that the elves report back to Santa with news on how they are behaving in the run up to Christmas. All children want to be on the 'Nice' list, so hopefully the arrival of the elves will encourage best behaviour all round.

The Elves Behavin' Badly website has some great inspiration with lots of ideas for elf antics. Also check out elvesbehavinbadly on Facebook and Instagram. I'll be sharing some of my favourite elf escapades throughout December, so keep an eye out for my Elves Behavin' Badly Christmas Countdown!

Do You Want to Build a Primula Snowman?

I am a mum of five, auntie of eight, great auntie of one and nana of two, so over the Christmas period I am expecting to see plenty of little people coming to visit. Children, generally speaking, are happy if they have full bellies and have something fun to do, so I have combined both of these things and come up with an edible festive activity! 

Using Primula Cheese, I have made a DIY sandwich-making activity for kids to enjoy, which I've called "Do you want to build a Primula snowman?"  Bento lunches have increased hugely in popularity and children love to see favourite characters recreated using food, but I thought making it an activity for the children to do themselves added to the enjoyment. The fact that the children get to use the bits and bobs to create their own snowman, makes this a lot of fun and it uses their creativity. 

It is so quick and easy to prepare everything and you can use up any odds and ends of salad, fruits, vegetables, veggie meats or cheeses that you have. At Christmas, I always have lots of stuff in the fridge so it's easy to find enough goodies to use. Even the fussiest of little eaters will want to get involved! It's a great way to entertain and feed children at the same time - perfect for when you have unexpected visitors with children and want a few seconds peace and quiet!

I let 7 year old Freddy make his own Primula snowman and he loved creating it and then eating it. I think he did a great job and he said it was nice to be able to make his own snack and he thought the snowman looked really cute. He gave it a big thumbs up.

Ingredients

sliced bread

Primula cheese

raisins

carrot

cucumber

vegetarian sliced ham

To prepare:

Using two different sized circular cookie cutters, cut out rounds of bread.

Spread each circle generously with Primula cheese.

Prepare cucumber sticks, strips of veggie ham, carrot triangles and raisin pieces.

Arrange on a big plate.
Give each child their own plate and let them make their own snowmen with raisin eyes and buttons, cucumber arms, a veggie ham scarf and a carrot noise.
Enjoy having happy children!

Merry Christmas

I am a member of the Primula Blogger Club, which is a paid partnership.

A Festive Breakfast with Santa at Selfridges

This weekend, we started our Christmas activities off in style with a visit to the intu Trafford Centre, where Freddy was invited to enjoy breakfast with Santa at Selfridges. Dressed in his best Christmas sweater, Freddy joined the other boys and girls on a beautifully decorated table nestled in a corner of the shop floor, and began his morning with some festive colouring while awaiting the arrival of the special guest!

With a Ho-Ho-Ho, Santa Claus arrived looking resplendent in his red fur suit and hat. He took a seat at the table with the children and chatted to them about his reindeer, the elves, life in Lapland, magic dust and other Santa-y things. The children were all so engaged and delighted, it was magical. Freddy remarked at how much he enjoyed having a real conversation with Santa and not just being asked what he wanted for Christmas and whether he'd been good or not. So this experience was really special to him.

The children were each given a box filled with a selection of amazing looking breakfast goodies including blueberries, a sparkly topped boiled egg, toast soldiers, a rainbow cereal bar, a raspberry mousse, a muffin and star shaped pancakes with syrup. Freddy's favourite was a white chocolate and sprinkles covered apple! Everything was so colourful and fun. Apparently, this is what the elves have for breakfast in the North Pole. It certainly made a change from Freddy's usual bowl of Shreddies!!

Once the food was eaten, Santa lead the group of children to an area where they had a Christmas sing song. Santa then gave out some really nice presents to all the children and posed for photographs with them. It really was a lovely way to spend the morning, leaving us feeling very festive indeed!

We followed Santa's breakfast with a good mooch around Selfridges, looking at all their festive things and getting some gift inspiration. Who knew there was a Primark concession in store? So neat and tidy and with a very good range of clothes and accessories. Amazing! And the food hall is the perfect place for picking up some exciting Christmassy foodie bits.

A visit to Selfridges at Christmas promises to be fun, as Santa will be making appearances throughout the store at designated Santa Stops on Saturdays from 12 - 6 pm until the 18th December. Families can share some magical moments or even grab a Santa selfie.

There is lots going on at the intu Trafford Centre over Christmas including The Polar Expedition, a festive fair at Barton Square and the intu Christmas Wheel as well as holiday happenings, pop-up stalls and other exciting things going on in stores. And the whole place is decorated and looking gorgeous. You can't help but get into the Christmas spirit.

Find out more at intu.co.uk/traffordcentre.

Personalised Videos from Santa from Portable North Pole

The 2016 Christmas countdown is on and what better way to celebrate than with a message from Santa himself. Dedicated to bringing the magic of Santa into homes at Christmastime, The Portable North Pole (PNP) website and mobile app is back once again to delight families, with personalised video and call messages. There are some amazing brand new features and content, with exciting new videos to create and calls to organise. 

Each message is carefully crafted to engage children of all ages, creating excitement in the lead up to Christmas Day. With personalisation including the child's name, each video and call is unique and magical.

The Magic Pass for 2016 is £9.99, which includes lots of unlimited premium content.

With the Magic Pass you will get: 

• Unlimited Premium Videos featuring Santa and his elves, including one for Christmas Eve. Santa will be giving his naughty or nice verdict to encourage little ones to do their best in the hope of making the nice list!
• The brand new Reaction Recorder to capture your child's look of wonder as they watch the video for the first time (only with the mobile app). 
• Unlimited Santa Calls with lots of fun call scenarios including some to encourage good behaviour!
• HD downloads of all your videos. 
• Storytime with Santa with a new personalised story video for each week in December to keep the magic alive throughout the month.
• A Santa-Approved Certificate to print for each of your videos.
• Birthday videos for children's birthdays throughout the year.

This is great value for money and the quality of the videos and calls will delight kids of any age. I love PNP, it is a lovely family tradition to send messages and organise calls to my loved ones. Last year my grandson Ted was excited to get a phone call from Santa on Christmas Eve and my 7 year old son loved receiving personalised videos in the run up to the big day! They really are very special, magical and bring a lot of joy to homes across the world at this time of year.

New for 2016, there is a PNP toy and gift collection, which is exclusive to John Lewis, which includes lovely items such as elf toys, a storybook and a good deeds jar.

Find out more at: www.portablenorthpole.com.

Celebrating those Little Moments of Christmas Chaos

Christmas is a wonderful time of year and I spend hours making lists, researching recipes, buying thoughtful gifts and getting myself organised to ensure my family have the best day ever...but that doesn't necessarily mean that things always go to plan!

However well organised you are, sometimes fate just comes along and tramples all over your best laid plans. It's at times like this that you either crumble and burst into tears or you pull up your festive socks and initiate Plan B!

Two years ago I had my house full with all the family joining us for Christmas Day. Making Christmas dinner for twelve people is always a juggling act, swapping things around in the oven to try and get everything cooked evenly and on time. Packing the shelves with nut roasts, stuffing, roast veg, potatoes, parsnips, Yorkies and veggie pigs in blankets is a test for any oven at the best of times. But this year, my oven decided enough was enough. It took me a while to realise that things were not cooking very well and then it dawned on me that everything was in fact getting colder. The heating element had lost the will to live. The oven was stone cold dead!

With twelve people hungry for their festive fayre, panic began to set in. Visions of feeding them Primula cheese spread sandwiches and a bag of crisps went through my mind. (That might be a yummy emergency lunch at other times of the year but not on Christmas Day!) What a disaster to happen on this day of all days!

 However, the spirit of Christmas was with us that day. My next door neighbours, who were away visiting family, saw my pitiful social media updates and came to the rescue. We had a spare key to their house to use in case of emergencies and this was definitely deemed as one of those times. We were told to go ahead and use their kitchen - their double oven was ours for the day. It was a Christmas miracle!

To add to the drama, it was raining. I gathered my troops to help, and clad in their festive jumpers and new slippers, we paired up. One of us carried a partially cooked tray of food while the other held an umbrella over head. There was lots of to-ing and fro-ing as we kept popping back and forth to check on potato roastiness and stuffing crispiness. Goodness knows what our other neighbours must have thought! Eventually, through top teamwork, our dinner was cooked. We carried it all back to our house and we were able to sit down together and eat Christmas dinner as a family. Only slightly later than planned and slightly chilled from being carried down the street in the rain.

When things go wrong, you have to find the humour in the situation. You've got to pull together and laugh about the broken oven or the smashed Christmas baubles or the inappropriately drunk auntie or the bout of ill timed gastroenteritis or the embarrassing moment when you realise you have forgotten to buy a present for one of your guests (yes all these things have happened to me.)

You can't avoid the unavoidable, but there are things you can do to help the day go smoothly. One of my top tips is to do all your food preparation on Christmas Eve. It's a family tradition for us to don our Christmas jumpers, whack on our favourite Christmas tunes and get peeling, chopping and prepping whatever we can in advance. This leaves Christmas morning free for the fun stuff like opening presents.  Speaking of presents - always keep a couple of extra wrapped gifts under the tree, just in case of unexpected visitors. Boxes of biscuits or bottles of wine are perfect choices, because if you don't need to gift them, you can enjoy them yourself. And don't forget to have plenty of batteries and a screwdriver available, so any new toys found under the tree can be powered up or assembled. There's not much worse to a child than having a new toy that can't be played with!

Even if the day does end up going completely pear shaped, remember that the 25th of December is just one day out of 365. Do a re-run on another day if need be. In the future, it's the laughs, the smiles and the fun that comes from being a family that will be remembered. We don't need everything to be perfect to have a great time. Embrace the chaos, keep a laid back approach and enjoy every moment.

Primula have a campaign this Christmas to encourage us to celebrate the big day in all its chaotic glory. They have teamed up with bloggers to share their own tales of Christmas woe alongside some top Christmas hacks to help you survive the day.

You can view or download the 'Primula Little Moments of  Christmas Chaos' booklet for free at https://issuu.com/primulacheese. Inside you can also find recipes, ideas for games and hints and tips for surviving and embracing the little moments of Christmas chaos!

You can join in and share your own moments of chaos or some of your own Christmas survival plans using the hashtag #LittleMomentsOfChristmasChaos on social media. Together we can celebrate Christmas 2016 without the stress!

Win a Nick Jr Goodie Bag with Nick Jr Carol-oke

There is a great opportunity for little ones to appear on TV this Christmas with Nick Jr's Carol-oke. Imagine seeing your pride and joy on the screen in the run up to the big day, as part of a festive Carol-oke version of the classic Christmas song Deck the Halls! How magical would it be, watching your child fa-la-la-la-la-ing on Nick Jr?

To enter, upload a video of your little one (aged between 2 and 7) singing Deck the Halls and fill out the entry form for a chance to see your video appear on TV.  Entries need to be received between 21/11/2016 and 09/12/16. Five lucky winners will be selected every week and the winning entries will then be shown throughout November and December on Nick Jr. The first Carol-oke, featuring the first five winners, will be broadcast on Monday 28th November on Nick Jr.

Competition entry rules state that videos must be more than 10 seconds and under 30 seconds long. They must feature just one child per video and must not show any branding (such as on toys or clothing).  There can also be no background music playing. Entries will be judged on how funny, imaginative or creative they are, so have fun with your entry! 

 Click the button below to take you through to the Nick Jr Carol-oke competition page.

As an extra special treat, Nick Jr are offering one of my readers the chance to win a Nick Jr goody bag,which includes a bag, umbrella, colouring book, crayons and a Ready Steady dough kit . It will make a lovely little gift for a child this Christmas. To win one, simply click through the Carol-oke link using the button above to check out the competition. 

Then answer this question using the Rafflecopter entry form below...

What is the missing word? 

DECK THE HALLS WITH BOUGHS OF - - - - -.

a Rafflecopter giveaway



One winner picked at random from all correct entries will win the goody bag. Winner's details must be provided and will be sent to the PR company in order for the prize to be dispatched. UK entrants only. Winner will be drawn after closing date of 12am on Monday 28th November 2016.

Wrapping Awkward Gifts - The Wrap Challenge with Musicroom

Wrapping the perfect present is not always easy! Especially if the present is something notoriously difficult to wrap, such as a football, a teddy bear or a musical instrument! Musicroom have made a series of funny videos highlighting just how difficult it is to wrap up instruments - such as the one below where a ukelele is the gift to be wrapped. Their message is that it's what's on the inside that counts, but a beautifully presented gift would definitely look better under the Christmas tree!


       


To test my gift wrapping ability, Musicroom have sent me my own Pure Tone ukelele and wrapping paper to see how well I can do. Now, I'm not the best wrapper in the world, but I think I can do better than the guy in the video!

The Pure Tone ukelele is a great first instrument for a child, and it comes complete with its own carry bag and tuition book. Ukeleles are really popular at the moment, with lots of artists using them. The 21 Pilots do a fantastic cover of Can't Help Falling In Love played on a uke. The ukelele has certainly come a long way since the days of George Formby. Priced at just £22.95, the Pure Tone ukelele is a great little investment and a lovely Christmas present.

So, armed with the gift wrap and the ukelele, I set about making a presentable job of my gift wrapping, to disguise the gift inside.

This is the technique I used:

Take a large sheet of quality gift wrap, long enough and wide enough for the ukelele.

Fold in both edges to the centre and tape together.

Fold up the bottom (making sure it'll still be long enough for the gift to go in.)

Open up the folded over end and fold in the two outer sides towards the centre.

Fold in the two other edges to close up the bottom.

Tape all edges together securely.

Slide the gift into the open top.

Fold over the top and punch holes through it with a hole punch.

Secure with ribbon.

This technique results in a securely packaged and good looking parcel that cleverly disguises the gift within. So now not only is this the perfect gift, it's perfectly wrapped too. Both the inside and the outside count!


You can find lots of great gift ideas for music lovers at musicroom.com who are currently offering free delivery or you can click and collect from any of their stores nationwide.

What Santa does on the other 364 days of the year

It's nearly Santa’s busiest day of the year, but have you ever wondered how he spends the other 364 days?  

A fun festive poll has been commissioned by photo gifting service PhotoBox, who asked children aged 5-8 to describe what they think Santa does when he’s finished delivering their presents, and the results were quite magical. According to the children, Santa’s January is spent fast asleep next to a cosy log fire, cuddling a teddy bear (69%).  He does deserve a well earned rest after all the hard work.

By February, Santa is ready for Valentine's Day and is romancing his one and only Mrs Claus with love letters (72%). 36% of children think Santa celebrates his birthday enjoying ice cream (36%) but his favourite meal, according to 21% of kids, is fish and chips. However only 3% said he'd enjoy eating broccoli! Santa's favourite tipple is a chilled beer (26%) so maybe we should leave him a frosty lager instead of a glass of port on Christmas Eve?

For Halloween, Santa dresses up as a pumpkin (16%) and he loves the pretty coloured sparklers on Bonfire Night (25%). Santa's best friend for sharing Sunday Dinner with is apparently the Tooth Fairy, according to a quarter of the children asked. (Hope Mrs Claus is OK with that!)

In his downtime, when he’s not ‘chilling out with the elves’, Santa has some interesting hobbies including singing (42%), colouring in (27%), baking (25%), shopping (20%), skateboarding (12%) and bungee jumping (6%). 

39% of children thought that Santa was eco-friendly, using a traditional pen and recycled paper to make his naughty and nice list of all the boys and girls at Christmas.

Inspired by the findings, PhotoBox has captured some wonderful photographs of Santa throughout the year, and has made the beautiful images available to download online. You can even make your own Santa calendar using their photos and enjoy the secret life of Santa Claus throughout 2016.

To download Santa’s photos for the year ahead and get started on your own personalised calendar, visit: www.photobox.co.uk or download the PhotoBox apps from the App Store, GooglePlay or Amazon.

Christmas Pudding Sundae with Carte D'Or Ice Cream

Christmas pudding is such a traditional festive dessert, but if you are looking for a twist on this old favourite, why not try a Christmas Pudding Sundae instead?

Made using creamy, vanilla Carte D'Or ice cream, rich Christmas pudding and a fruity, spiced cranberry and mulled wine sauce, this dessert combines some wonderful seasonal flavours to create something new and exciting. Carte D'Or sent me the ingredients to have a go myself.

Christmas Pudding Sundae Recipe

Ingredients

Serves four

8 scoops Carte D'Or Vanilla Ice Cream

200g Christmas pudding

100g cranberry sauce

2 tbspn mulled wine

2 tsp sugar

2 tbspn flaked toasted almonds

1 tbspn chocolate shavings

Method

Crumble the Christmas pudding into a pan over a low heat and warm through (or microwave according to instructions).

Mix the cranberry sauce, mulled wine and sugar in a separate pan. Bring to boil and stir to combine. Reduce slightly.

Spoon half of the Christmas pudding between four sundae dishes.

Drizzle a spoonful of the hot cranberry sauce onto the pudding, then top with a scoop of ice cream.

Repeat the layers, finishing with ice cream on top.

Drizzle over some more of the cranberry sauce and decorate with almonds and chocolate shavings.

Serve straight away.

Ian, who loves Christmas pudding, really enjoyed this dessert. It looked impressive and made something new and innovative from something very traditional. It will make an excellent pudding over the holidays. The warm Christmas pudding, the hot, tangy sauce and the cold ice cream worked really well together.

A Silly Family Photo and a Wonderful Celebratory Weekend

Four generations of the Jones-McDonald family gathered together to celebrate my parents' sixtieth wedding anniversary this weekend. We were joined by my sister, who has recently relocated down south, who returned along with her husband and two little ones, and her four grown-up daughters with assorted fiances, who helped make a day that my mum and dad will remember forever. There were 22 of us in all, including eleven grandchildren and one great grandchild. Unfortunately, my niece Kate and her little boy couldn't make it and my nephew Tom lives in America - but it was almost a full house! A wonderful time was had by all, including a lovely three course Sunday lunch at The Hind's Head, a gastro-pub in a village three miles away from my home. It was so nice to catch up with everyone, and Freddy was overjoyed to be reunited with his cousins Addy and Dylan again.

I took a lot of photos as it is quite a rarity to have all five of my children home at once, and to get all four generations of our family together. I was pleased to get some new family pictures, but my favourite of the day was this one of my family, (soon to be) daughter-in-law, grandson and parents pulling silly faces...you can only stay serious for so long!

Days spent like this, surrounded by loved ones, laughing, chatting and having fun, makes me realise just how blessed I am. I've got a family that brings me love and joy and makes me so very proud everyday. I couldn't really wish for more.

#JustWrite this Christmas with Bic

According to research conducted on behalf of Bic, it has been found that almost half of 13-19 year olds have never written a thank you letter, 83% have not written a love letter and just over a quarter have never even written out a birthday card.

In the world of social media, instant messaging and texting, it seems that writing has taken a backseat with 1 in 5 youngsters failing to pick up a pen, more than once every couple of months, outside of school hours. Writing is a skill that is creative, helping to unlock an individual’s potential. It is so sad to see it being overlooked in favour of tapping away on a keyboard or touchscreen.

Handwritten letters are so personal and heartfelt, and can be treasured long after any words on a screen have been deleted. 65% of youngsters admitted that they knew that recipients of a handwritten letter, rather than an electronic equivalent, would be delighted by such a thoughtful gesture. Yet they still choose to text rather than write.

The #JustWrite campaign was launched by Bic UK and ROI to try to encourage people of all ages to pick up a pen and get writing. Bic sent us some of their kids' range to help get Freddy writing, and to nurture this important life skill, making handwriting a pleasure and not a chore.

Whether they are writing out cards for their classmates; making a wishlist for Santa or writing a thank you note to the grandparents, there are lots of opportunities for getting the kids practicing their penmanship this Christmas. Keeping a Christmas diary to record all the fun, festive things that they get up to, is a lovely idea to get children putting pen to paper during the holidays. A good way to get children enthusiastic about writing is to pop some lovely stationery items into their Christmas stockings. Who can resist the lure of brand new pens and pencils? The Bic Kids Evolution colouring pencils would be a wonderful gift for a child with their bright colours and extra resistant leads. All forms of mark making help with the fine motor skills needed for writing.

As a parent, I believe that I play a big role in passing on a love and respect of handwriting to my children. Encouraging them to pick up a pen to help me write a shopping list for Christmas supplies or getting them to enjoy some role play, such as pretending to be a waiter taking orders for dinner, makes it a fun activity rather than a chore.

Freddy is 6 and is just getting to grips with hand writing. He finds it a bit difficult to keep his letters neat, well formed and on the line, but practice makes perfect. Using the Bic Kids handwriting goodies, Freddy was keen to write out some family Christmas cards as well as a special birthday card for his nephew Ted, who turns three this month. Making writing fun is definitely the way to go when it comes to getting children to write for their own enjoyment. Freddy loved sitting down and independently using his new stationery to get writing.

Having the child friendly Bic Kids stationery really helped with the physical process of writing. The stationery is designed to encourage correct finger positioning and is comfortable for little hands to hold. The refillable mechanical pencil was Freddy's favourite item from the Bic Kids range. The neat little mechanical pencil comes with a thick HB lead and six refills. It also includes handy sticker name tags to personalise it. Suitable for both left and right handers, it has visual guiding lines for correct finger positioning. The Graphite Learners Pencil is a chunky, wooden pencil with an ultra resistant 2HB lead. The pencil itself is triangular for easy grip and won't splinter if it breaks. It is also made to resist pencil chewing. It is great to see stationery designed with kids in mind!

Freddy's next writing project will be his letter to Santa, which he'll do once he breaks up from school, ready to leave out for the Big Man himself on Christmas Eve!

Breakfast with Father Christmas at Wyevale Garden Centre

One of the highlights of my calendar is having breakfast or tea with Father Christmas at Wyevale Garden Centre. It marks the start of the festive season and gives Freddy his first taste of Christmas festivities with the family. We were invited to breakfast on November 28th, starting at nine in the morning, and so myself, Ian, Freddy and Kezia headed off bright and early to the garden centre at Bridgemere.

A section of the restaurant is reserved for the breakfast and tea experiences and is decorated beautifully, complete with Santa's grotto surrounded by hundreds of quality gifts for the children to pick from. It looks really inviting!

We arrived to see the long tables laid with activity placemats, name stickers, crackers and a bag of chocolate coins for the children. We were able to help ourselves to hot drinks or juice, before having hot toast brought to the table. A counter allowed us to collect our cooked breakfasts, freshly served up by friendly staff wearing Christmas hats and jumpers. Other members of staff dressed as elves were on hand to help children back to their seats and to assist in any way they could. Christmas songs played and the atmosphere in the room was great!

We tucked into our veggie breakfasts: scrambled egg, hash browns and beans for the kids and fried egg, fried bread, mushrooms, tomatoes and beans for the adults. The food was good, hot and filling. The helpful elves were on hand to collect rubbish and dirty plates, keeping everything tidy on the tables.

After the food was eaten, the children were greeted by Dorothy, the green witch and Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz who mingled with the guests. Children were given a Christmas tree gingerbread biscuit, a bag of icing and three little pots containing marshmallows, hundreds and thousands and chocolate buttons. Freddy had loads of fun decorating his biscuit and even more fun eating it! 

Before Santa's arrival, the staff got everyone singing a host of Christmas carols together, which was really nice. Then the children had to shout for Santa, who burst into the room much to everyone's delight.

Children were taken up to Santa one family at a time and given the opportunity to have a chat and pose for photographs. He was a kindly, traditional Santa who put the children at ease and was very accommodating posing for numerous photos. He encouraged Kezia to come for a chat, which she secretly loved! After reminding the children to leave out a mince pie and carrot on Christmas Eve, the children were invited to pick a gift. Getting to choose what they want is a really nice touch. Freddy had his eye on a geology set, where you get to dig crystal gems from a lump of 'rock'. Kezia picked a cuddly toy cow, who she named Larry. 

The experience lasts for around an hour and a quarter and is priced at £7.99 for adults and £9.99 for children. This includes the hot breakfasts, drinks, gifts for the kids plus the gingerbread decorating. An adult lighter option of  a baked pastry with coffee is £3.99. The constant attention and entertainment from the staff was really enthusiastic and kept a party atmosphere going. The organisation was excellent.

I really recommend this as a festive family treat. Afterwards you can explore the garden centre, which at this time of year is resplendent in wonderful Christmasness!

In addition to the Breakfast with Santa experience, there is a tea with Santa option. Children can have a hot tea with squash or a cold 'My Picnic' tea for £9.99, while adults have a festive sandwich, a mince pie and a sweet treat with tea or coffee for £7.99 or a slice of cake and a hot drink for £3.99.

Breakfast and Tea with Father Christmas is available until Christmas Eve.

Visit the website for dates and availability and book tickets for your nearest Wyevale Garden Centre. Book before December 6th and get £1 off all kids' tickets. www.wyevalegardencentres.co.uk/breakfast-or-tea-with-father-christmas.

Santa's Secret Workshop Grotto at the Intu Trafford Centre #review

One of the most magical parts of the Christmas celebrations is taking your little ones to see Santa. Freddy is six and is so caught up in all the excitement of the season. He is old enough to question the whole Santa Claus thing, asking why there are so many grottos with Father Christmases in them all at the same time, but totally accepts my explanation that Old St Nick has a cloning machine and makes replicas of himself to keep on top of everything. So visiting numerous Santas throughout December does not detract from his unswerving belief in the wonders of Christmas and the knowledge that on Christmas Eve it will be the original one that pops down our chimney.

We were really excited to be invited along to the Santa's Secret Workshop Grotto at the Trafford Centre in Manchester at the weekend. The specially built attraction is located in Barton Square, right near to SeaLife and the Legoland Discovery Centre and next to a mini Christmas market with food and gift stalls. So you can really make a whole festive family day of it.

The experience lets families discover the secrets of Santa's workshop, inviting in children to help Santa prepare for the big day.  Santa's special helpers get to take part in a range of activities, each one earning them a stamp in their special Christmas passport. Once they have all the stamps, it's time to meet Santa himself in his special cosy room, for a friendly chat and to receive a present.

On entering the experience, you walk through a mirrored maze to discover the secret entrance to Santa's workshop. Here, you are greeted by an elf and let loose inside an area where you can make Christmas cards, do crayon rubbings of Santa and make paper lanterns. Other activities include helping Santa to sort out and weigh the huge pile of presents in the sorting office; making buckets of food for Santa's reindeer by finding the right combination of healthy food and treats and preparing a special portion of magic reindeer food to take home and leave out for Rudolph on Christmas Eve. Stamps are collected in the passport for each activity.

Each passport is numbered and when your number is called by the head elf, it's time to go through to visit Santa. Santa was awesome!  He was engaging, funny and convincing. He was lovely to Freddy taking the time to chat to him, but was equally lovely to my two older girls. He spoke to them about being the generation who can make a difference in the world to make it a better place. We never felt rushed and he took his time to make sure the experience was a memorable one. In one magical moment, Santa even said that he recognised Ian from when he was a child and remembered that he had wanted a guitar as a present when he was thirteen...spookily accurate! This Santa was the real deal.

We had our photos taken with Santa, one serious and one silly, pulling funny faces!  I was impressed that Santa didn't take himself too seriously and the resulting photo is a great memento of a lovely visit.

The experience lasts about half an hour and you have a timed slot for your visit. Children's tickets are £6 each and adults cost £3 each. Kids get a small gift from Santa (Freddy got a stationery set and Kezia got a puzzle book) plus they can take home the reindeer food and the arts and crafts bits they make. You can book in advance online (£2.50 transaction fee applies) or pay on the day (but if it's busy it may get fully booked).

Photos cost extra, but there is no hard sell to purchase them. We bought a snow globe frame for £10, which we thought was a reasonable price. Photos cost £6, fridge magnets and Christmas tree decorations cost £5 each. There is a 25% discount if you buy three items.

The grotto is open everyday until December 24th.

Visit intu.co.uk/traffordcentre/events for more details and to book tickets.

Counting Down to Christmas with a Playmobil Advent Calendar

The countdown to Christmas is always made so much more exciting with an advent calendar. Opening the windows everyday, adds to the build up and excitement of the season. One of our favourite advent calendar choices from the last few years is a PLAYMOBIL Advent Calendar. Each window reveals a PLAYMOBIL figure or accessory, which when displayed together, create an attractive festive scene that looks great and can be played with. The best thing is that the toys can also be played with long after advent is over and for years to come, making this a great value advent calendar idea.

As part of the 2015 PLAYMOBIL Playologist team, Freddy has been sent a Christmas Room Advent Calendar featuring a rather elegant PLAYMOBIL family preparing for Christmas, enjoying the festivities, eating luxury food and trimming the tree in their rather fancy living room. It's suitable for both boys and girls, encouraging role play and inspiring imagination, providing a familiar setting for children to explore.

The advent calendar includes a 3D cardboard room backdrop, on which to display the pieces, adding one piece each day. It is easy to put together with slots and tabs. There is also a booklet included, which gives full instructions on the pieces and on any assembly that may be needed.

The PLAYMOBIL family of mum, dad, and two children, along with their family pets, look very happy opening their presents from around the light up Christmas tree in their decorated room.  (The light up tree requires two AAA batteries, which are not included.)

The advent calendar itself consists of a large sealed box with 24 cut out numbered windows of various sizes. There is a push out section on the back that allows it to be wall mounted if required. The windows are relatively easy to open to reveal that day's surprise, although a little adult help may be needed for little hands to open them neatly. Some pieces in the advent calendar require assembly,which can prove a bit fiddly for children and may require a grown-up's help. The collection grows throughout December, until the full scene is completed on Christmas Eve. The excellent quality of the product is exactly what you would expect from the PLAYMOBIL brand.

Find this advent calendar and the full range of toys on the  PLAYMOBIL website. You will find so many great Christmas gift ideas for the little people in your life!

                         


The PLAYMOBIL Christmas Room Advent Calendar is £19.99 and recommended for children aged 4+ .