Have you made A Beautiful Mess?

I am a just little bit obsessed with this new smartphone App from A beautiful Mess.  Have you tried it yet??

Linking up for Wordless Wednesday with My Little Drummer Boys

A Mothers Day off and a yoghurt cake

Master J insits that EVERY day is Mothers Day! "Mums are SOOOO lucky!" he says "They can do whatever they want, whenever they want and they NEVER have any rules!!!!!"

Wouldn't it just be AWESOME if that was true??  What would you do if you could do Whatever you wanted, whenever you wanted??

Photo designed by Miss H xx

I really had the loveliest day on Sunday.  Mr D and the kids gave me the BEST present a mum could want........ A DAY OFF!!!  As much as I love my three little munchkins (to the moon and back), a day of blissful silence can never be underestimated.

It all started with a lie in.  I have NO idea how Mr D managed to keep the kids from waking me up, but I didn't hear anything until war broke out between Master J and Miss H about who had got dressed the quickest, and when I looked at the time it was 8:37!!!!!  A few years ago that would still have seemed  like the middle of the night not a Sunday morning, but these day anything later than 6:30 is heaven.

I came downstairs and Miss threw her arms around me and shouted "Happy Mothers Day Mummy! but don't forget you already had your presents!!!!!"  They had both been too excited coming home from Kindy and school on Thursday with all their beautiful home made gifts that I had no choice but to open them there and then!!!  "I know sweetie" I told her, "I haven't forgotten and I still l LOVE them"  She responded with a big beaming smile, so she was happy!  "You haven't got your present from Daddy yet" she told me....."He's got you a REAL coffee.  One from the shop and not from the kitchen!

Mr D had actually organised with another dad friend of his to take ALL six kids between them out for the day so that us mums could REALLY do whatever we wanted.

Once they had left I didn't quite know what to do with myself!  Where to start.......should I go for a walk, read my book, write a blog, go to the mall, go to the gym?????????  I actually found it really hard not to do all the boring household stuff, but I make a conscious effort not too and it was amazing how great it felt to just relax and not feel guilty about it.

I did however do some baking, which I find kind of therapeutic, so it fitted perfectly into my Day off activities.  I found the recipe for this raspberry yoghurt cake on the internet somewhere (a while ago now) and I copied into 'Word' so that I wouldn't loose it, and I foolishly didn't take note of the source.  So if you're reading this and it's your recipe - THANK YOU it was delicious!! xx

Orange, Raspberry and Yoghurt Cake

Ingredients

400g plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
250g unsalted butter (room temperature)
300g raw sugar
juice of 1/2 orange
1 tsp almond extract
Peel from half and orange
3 eggs
240g greek yoghurt
250g fresh or frozen rasberries

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and line a 10 inch cake tin or large loaf tin with baking paper.

• Place the orange peel into the thermomix and whizz on speed 9 for 30 seconds.  Scrape down the sides and whizz for a further 10 seconds on speed 9.  Set aside in a separate bowl.
• Add the butter and sugar to the thermomix bowl and mix for 40 seconds on speed 7.  Scrape down the sides.
• Add the peel, almond extract and the orange juice and beat for 20 seconds on speed 7.  (Tip: squeeze the orange onto the thermomix lid with the MC in place.  That way any pips or pulp will not fall into the mixture).

• Add the eggs one at a time.  Beat each one in for 10 seconds on speed 7 before adding the next one.
• Add the yoghurt and mix into for 5 seconds on speed 3-4.

• Add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and salt) and mix in on speed 5-6 for 1 minute or until well combined.  Scrape down the sides.
• Add the raspberries and mix in on reverse speed plus 3 for 20 seconds or until well combined.

• Pour into your lined tin and bake for around an hour.  Check with a knife or a skewer and if it comes out clean, then it's ready.
• Dust with some icing sugar and serve with fresh cream (or ice cream).

ENJOY!!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Mothers Day too and I'm just going to take this opportunity (because I can) to tell the world that my family rocks!!

The Mum to Mum project

TODAY Johnson's baby Australia and the Murdock Childrens Research Institute released it's

The project is inspired by the shared bond of motherhood that all us mums have in common.  The idea behind it is that from time to time EVERY mum needs a little reassurance that we're 'doing ok'.  It really doesn't matter if you're a brand new mum with your first precious bundle or an experienced mum with a growing family.  NO two children are the same and every child brings it's own set of surprises that can send even the most experienced mum into a bit of a panic!!  Being a mum is not just the most rewarding job in the world but it can also be the toughest, and sometimes a simple 'reassuring' word from a fellow mum can do us the world of good.

Johnson's Baby Australia conducted a survey which showed that 79% of mums turn to other mums or their own mums when things get a little tough and they need some advice, support or encouragement.  The Mum to Mum project has been set up so that we can all share our little pearls of motherhood wisdom and encouragement with each other.

It can be anything from 'it's ok to cry' or 'bribery works' to 'You won't give your baby third degree burns by putting a bottle in the microwave - all you need to do is give it a little shake to disperse the hot spots!!' (can you tell this one comes from experience???)  I remember when Master J was still a baby and having several bottles a day.  He would literally scream the house down whilst the bottle either sat in a cup of water in the fridge to cool down or in a cup of boiling water to heat up!  I would be glaring at it, literally willing it to get to the right temperature IMMEDIATELY, whilst trying to soothe a baby who quite clearly was not at all interested in my (trying to be) calming voice, telling him 'any minute now bubs, any minute!" I'm sure if he could talk he would have said "For god's sake - you know I have my bottle at 10:30 EVERY morning and not a second later!  Why do we have to go through the same process at every feed?????"  It wasn't until a few months later, whilst visiting my sister-in-law (who is a mum of three), that I discovered that I could just pop the bottle into the microwave for 30 seconds, give it a good shake and voile!  Just like that, it was ready!!  She said to me (over the top of Master J's desperate screams) "Why are you heating it like that, just use the microwave???" I was sooo sure (as a first time mum) that using a microwave to heat a bottle was the WORST thing to do and that I could burn his mouth causing permanent damage!

I'm sure I'm not the only mum out there who just WISHES someone had given them some honest and practical advice whilst they were struggling with something - be it birth, post birth, sheer exhaustion,  breast feeding, swaddling, teething, fussy eaters, first day of school.........the list is endless.

This is Sarah Murdoch's (Ambassador for the Murdoch Children's Research Institue's) patch of advice.

If you would like to join in the MUM TO MUM PROJECT, then all you have to do is:

1. Like the Johnson's Baby Australia Facebook Page (using your personal account and not a Facebook page)
2. Click on the "mum to mum' App at the top of the page and follow the instructions.

Screen grab from the Johnson's Baby Australia Facebook page

Each piece of motherly wisdom entered will be stitched together to form a giant and beautiful 'virtual patchwork of collected wisdom' for all mums to log into and just have a read.  Hopefully it will put a smile on someones face, give someone a well needed giggle, ease someones anxiety, put someones mind at ease and touch hundreds and thousands of mums with messages of positivity and inspiration.

You can also vote on what you believe to be some of the 'best' pieces of advice and these patches will be printed onto 2,000 baby wraps and donated to the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute to give to some real mums who are involved in research being carried out to improve children's health in Australia and around the world.

With 99% of Australian and New Zealand mums on Facebook, we really have the power to make a difference - so log in and add your piece of motherly wisdom.  I really wish this was around when I was a first time mum.

The beautiful Ada Nicodemou, a new mum, and the gorgeous Sarah Murdoch, a mum of three.  Both Ambassadors for Johnson's baby Australia and the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute 

A Little bit about the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute:

I was so lucky to be invited to the launch of the Mum to Mum project yesterday at the Muma Club in Bondi Junction, Sydney.  

Johnson's Baby Australia has joined up with the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute to help them with all the fantastic research they are doing to improve the health of children and their mums.  We heard some really inspiring personal stories of motherhood from both Ada Nicodemou (who you may recognise form the Aussie soap Home & Away) and Sarah Murdoch (who you may again recognise as Australia's Next Top Model presenter), who is a mum of three.  It is so refreshing to hear that no matter who you are, as mums, we are all in the same boat.

We also heard from Associate Professor Stephanie Brown who has done some amazing research on maternal health during post pregnancy.  She was such a warm and inspiring woman and started off by telling us a little about her own family and how she has recently become a grandmother to a beautiful little girl who was born blind. 

She also went on to tell us about some of the research she has done and I was really interested to hear about her findings.  One that really surprised me was that the there is a higher number of mums struggling with some form of post natal depression or anxiety when their first born is around 4 years old, than there is when they are 3 months old!!  Post natal depression is something that really strikes a cord with me after my own personal struggle with it, so I would LOVE for all mums to know that it's OK TO ASK FOR HELP!!!

Something that was not so surprising to find out was that almost ALL mums suffer from some kind of extreme exhaustion!!

Click here if you'd like to find out more about Professor Stephanie's research, and if you'd like to help too - then do head over to 'add your patch of motherly wisdom'.

Miss L had the best time at the launch and was a very lucky little lady to have such wonderful babysitters (provided very generously by Platinum Media & Communications) whilst mummy was busy listening to those inspiring women.

Happy Mothers Day (on Sunday) to all you wonderful mummies out there xxxx

*Disclaimer:  I was not paid or gifted to write this post and it was 100% written by me, with no external influences.  Unless otherwise stated all the images were provided to me by Platinum Media & communications.  

A chat with my girl

(Not so) Wordless Wednesday!  Well, technically she doesn't have any real words yet, so maybe it is Wordless Wednesday??

Linking up with the lovely Trish at  My Little Drummer Boys and Twinkle in the eye for Wordless Wednesday

Jamie Oliver's 'Pukka' Jalfrezi - converted for the thermomix

Before I got my thermomix I really was a hopeless cook!!  Not through lack of trying though, I might add.  However, every time I set out to cook something I envisaged this beautiful dish at the end - perfectly presented and amazingly delicious, but somehow they just NEVER turned out that way.  My end result was always some dodgy looking just-about-recognisable version of what the picture in the recipe book showed!!  Which is why I just LOVED LOVED Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food series.  He says that 'anyone could learn to cook in just 24hrs'.

"Well, Jamie, that could be true if I were to have one of one lessons with you!!"

But he did prove (to me anyway)  that cooking doesn't always have to be so complicated!!

My VERY well used copy of "Ministry of Food"

All of the recipes in this book are fabulous and really hard to 'mess up'. (said from experience)

Since I've had my thermomix, it has revolutionised my kitchen!!  This is seriously not a plug for thermomix, I promise!!  But honestly, I have gone from being hopeless to being totally empowered in the kitchen.  Sometimes I even think to myself "Mrs D, you are a kitchen goddess", which is actually quite hilarious if you knew me!!

I love the colours in this dish and it's PERFECT for winter!

Anyway, without sidetracking (and waffling any further on my new found genius cooking abilities), I recently concerted one of my all time favourite Jamie Oliver Ministry of Food curry recipes for the Thermomix and it was SO delicious that I thought I would share it.  So here it is (and it will happily serve 8 people):

Chicken Jalfrezi (found of page 77 under the easy curries section in the "Ministry of Food" book by Jamie Oliver.)  It's actually a vegetarian recipe but I added chicken to stop Mr D from complaining.

Ingredients for the Jalfrezi paste:

2 cloves of garlic
a thumb sized piece of fresh ginger
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbs ground nut oil
2 tbs tomato puree
1 fresh green chilli
a small bunch of fresh coriander
2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds

To make the paste:

• Toast/dry roast the cumin, mustard, fenugreek and coriander seeds but placing them in the thermomix on varoma temperature for 5 minutes on speed 1.  The smell is amazing!
• Once roasted blitz them for 1 minute on speed 9 until they become a fine powder.
• Place all other ingredients into the thermomix except the oil and tomato paste and whizz for 15-20 seconds on speed 9 (or until they have formed a paste).  Don't forget to peel the garlic and ginger first!!!
• Add the oil and tomato paste and mix on speed 6 for 5 seconds.
• Transfer the paste to a separate bowl.

There is no need to wash out the thermomix between making the paste and the curry!

Ingredients for the curry:

1 medium onion
1 fresh red chilli
a thumb size piece of fresh ginger
2 cloves of garlic
a small bunch of fresh coriander
500g fresh chicken breast cut into chunks (optional)
1 red peppers (capsicum)
1/2 cauliflower
2 ripe tomatos (cut into quarters)
1/4 butternut squash
1 x 400g tin of chickpeas
1 tbs groundnut oil
Jalfrezi curry paste (previously made - see above) or 1/2 283g jar of ready made jalfrezi paste.
1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
400g water
4 tbs balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
1 lemon

Make sure all the ingredients are coated

Method:

• Place the onion, garlic (peeled), ginger (peeled), chilli and coriander STALKS ONLY into the thermomix bowl and blitz on speed 7 for 5-8 seconds until everything is finely diced.
• Saute/cook on varoma temperature for 4-5 minutes on speed 1.
• Dice the peppers (capsicum) and and the butternut squash (peeled) into bite sized chunks and add to the thermomix with the drained chickpeas, chicken and the jalfrezi curry paste.
• Mix well for 1 minute on reverse speed 2-3.
• Dice the cauliflower in bite size pieces and add into the thermomix with the tinned tomatos, fresh tomatos, balsamic vinegar and water.
• Cook for 10 minutes on varoma temperature plus reverse speed 1.
• Cook for a further 30 minutes on 90 degrees plus reverse speed soft.

Honestly the smells coming from the kitchen are just fabulous!!!

Once the veggies and chicken are cooked to tender, transfer your curry to a large serving bowl (I used a dutch oven), add salt and pepper to taste and squeeze in some lemon juice.  Finally garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with rice (whichever you prefer - I used brown), poppadums and natural yoghurt.  It is surprisingly a very mild curry, so it is absolutely perfect to serve the kids too!  Mine loved it - although Mr D did add a little extra 'heat'!!

What is your fail safe recipe book that you keep on going back to??

Or a favourite recipe that works every time??

You can also follow Mrs D plus 3 on facebook - twitter - instagram - Pinterest or sign up to my newsletter

May the fourth be with you!!

I saw this on a friends Facebook and it made me chuckle!!  Anyway it really is May the fourth and time to post my last couple of weeks in pictures - love Instagram of course!!  I'm still just as addicted to Instagram as ever (although Candy Crush is coming in at a close second I'm ashamed to tell you).  I do love my Instagram update posts as it forces me to go back and look through the photos that I've taken over the last few weeks and they always make me smile!!  No matter how busy we get, there are always 'moments'!!

So here they are:

A visit to Customs House in Sydney.   He was literally 'walking' over the city!

A rare 'selfie'!  I still feel like such a twit taking pictures of myself, but you know...if I'm going to jump on this social media bandwagon I might as well do it properly!!! 

Such cutie's.  I love seeing my 'baby' starting to interact with other kids!  It still amazes me how quickly they develop.

This is my view on the drive to and from Master J's school every day (I know, right!!!!).  This particular morning my dad, who's visiting us from England,  wanted to stop and have a look.

Miss H having a milkshake with Grandpa!  I SO wish they lived closer!!!

For once I didn't mind pushing her on the swing!!  With a view like that, how could I say no?

Another rare pic - me and Mr D!  You can tell my parents are visiting, as normal one of us is behind the lens. 

Such a happy little beach baby :)

One of my favourite lunches - home made quiche (in my thermomix) and salad.  Let me know if you want me to blog the recipe??

Matching necklaces - these two are cuter than cute!!

I don't mean to boast but LOOK how awesome our Autumn has been so far!!!!

I got caught out at the beach the other day and had no swimmers or towels (didn't realise how warm it would turn out to be).  These two little monkeys didn't care and were straight in.......

Play-dates in the school holidays are SO great!! (for me too - as the kids are entertained)

Check out my sunnie's!! 

Spending some quality time with Grandpa, learning how to fish.

It's moments like these that make EVERYTHING worth while!!

A sneaky afternoon nap! 

Spending the day with my mum and my girls x

Anyhoooo, that's it for now.  I'm now off to enjoy my last glass of wine (or two) with my lovely mum and dad before they head back to London tomorrow (*sobs*).

Mrs D xxx

My interview with one of Australia's leading dieticians, Melanie McGrice, on 'Nutrition for children under 5'

A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to get the chance to meet and interview the very lovely Melanie McGrice.  Melanie is one of Australia's leading dietician and runs her own practice, based in Melbourne, called Nutrition Plus.  She has over 10 years experience in the industry since completing her Master in Nutrition and Dietetics, including working in one of Melbournes leading teaching hospitals.  She is also in the midst of writing a book which is due to be released later this year - EXCITING!!

I specifically wanted to 'pick' Melanie's brain with some burning questions that I have on children's diet and nutrition.  Specifically under 5's - as I have three of them (well almost, Master J would kill me for saying that he is 5 when he is in fact 6!!!).  I have one kid that is really not that fussed about food AT ALL and will literally eat to survive.  He is FAR too busy with other important 6 year old stuff, that worrying about food is really not at the top of his agenda.  I then have a rather fussy middle child who says "I don't like that!" to EVERYTHING that isn't sweet!!!  Finally I have my little bubs who started off brilliantly but now either spits everything out or just throws it on the floor or across the kitchen (or at me!!).  Any of this sound familiar????  Please say yes!!

So I put together a few questions for Melanie that I thought us mums (and dads) would find useful.

Me:
There is a lot of 'buzz' around at the moment about the amount of salt or sodium found in kids foods.  What is the maximum amount that we should look out for per serving when reading the back of food packaging?  What is your take on how much salt our kids should be having in their daily food intake?
Melanie:
On food labels there is two columns, a 'per serve'  column and a 'per 100g' column.  Look for foods with less than 500mg per 100g.  Salt is used to add flavour to foods, and like many things in life, the more you have, the more you need.  Unprocessed foods such as fruit, vegetables, meat, rice and milk don't have any salt - so try to make sure that unprocessed foods make up the bulk of your family's dietary intake.

Me:
Would you say it's better for kids to eat little and often or to stick to three main meals a day?
Melanie:
Definitely little and often.  Kids have smaller stomachs than adults so they should be eating every 3-5 hours to provide them with plenty of energy and nutrition for play and brain food.

Me:
What are you top 5 healthy snacks for children under 5?
Melanie:

1. Veggie sticks - these are great to keep in a container and take out with you to the shops, appointments or errands.
2. Milk - calcium is really important for children's teeth and bones.
3. Fruit salad - kid's love fresh, cut up fruit.  Get them to tell you all the colours of the differnt pieces of fruit.
4. Toast soldiers - Wholegrain bread is a great source of fibre and energy.  Cut into fingers or 'soldiers' for little fingers.
5. Yoghurt - yoghurt contains good bacteria which is important for a healthy digestive system.

Me:

How long should children be offered a high fat diet and what 'fats' do you consider essential in their diet?

Melanie:

The Australian Dietary Guidelines changed a few years ago to recommend that children can start using reduced fats or skim dairy products from the age of two.  If your children are older than two it is better to use low fat products where possible, however, you will also need to include a small amount of 'good fats' in their diet such as olive oil, canola oil or avocado.  They only need a teaspoon of these good fats on sandwiches or in cooking each day, so don't use too much.

Me:

What are your top 5 tips to encourage fussy eaters to eat?

Melanie:

1. Role modelling - if you aren't eating a wide range of foods, don't expect your kids to.
2. Start early - research suggests that a lot of your children's palate is developed while they are still in your womb, so make sure that you eat a wide range of healthy foods while you are pregnant and breast feeding.
3. Taste testing - children need to develop a taste and mouth-feel for foods - which is why toddlers put everything into their mouth and then spit things out again.  Dont force them to eat large amount of foods that they don't like, but DO persuade them to try it.
4. Don't give up - ask your child to try the food repeatedly   Sometimes children (and adults) need to try a food over 20 times before they develop an acceptance for a food.
5. Rewards - when your child tries a new food, reward them using your voice tone, words of affirmation and a big hug.

Me:

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  Which cereals would you consider best for children?

Melanie:

Porridge is the best choice.  Make it more tasty by adding fruit and yoghurt.

Me:

What would be your top piece of advice for parents regarding nutrition for their kids?

Melanie:

Always eat at at the table so that you can see what they are eating and share meals as a family.

xxxxxxx

Melanie and her wonderful team do a lot of work with mum's who have children with allergies, food intolerances, eating disorders or are just plain fussy eaters.  They also work with mum’s to help them improve their nutrition too!  If this is something that might interest you, then please do get in touch with them.

You can find them on Facebook at NutritionPlusNews or go directly to their website at Nutrition Plus.

Lastly I would really just like to thank Melanie for taking the time to chat to me and for sharing her knowledge and advice.