We found out on a Friday, the day before our Lego Simpson's House arrived, so that weekend while we were building we were even more happy in the knowledge that for the next 12 months we'll be sent Lego to review. It really is our dream job, and not something I could have imagined 12 months ago. It's so exciting, there has already been much discussion about what they might send us, and everyone has their own favourites, so I can't wait to open that first box and get stuck in.

I have my shiny new badge over there in my side bar >>> and later today I''ll publish our first review as official Lego Family Bloggers with some exciting news about a new pocket money priced Lego product that's out this weekend. If this was a social media status there would be soooooo many grinning faces!

I've got more Lego posts in the pipeline already, including a review of one of the latest DVD's and some amazing custom Lego modular builds which were brought around to our house last week for us to take a look at.

Job is a goodun! 

I was recently given the opportunity to try a couple of items from the Pidy Pastry Cases range. I was sent the Zakouskis and Spoonettes.


Pidy Pastry Cases are a store cupboard item that don't need to be refrigerated or frozen. They're available in bulk and work out very cheaply per item, so they're ideal for catering for parties or get togethers.

 I decided to use my Zakouskis to make a savoury mini vol au vent with a filling I use very often when entertaining, usually in filo pastry parcels.



Ingredients

I'm suggesting quantities for 12 cases, but adapt them to taste. If you really like one of the ingredients then increase the quantity.

12 Pidy Zakouskis (mini vol au vent cases)
Spinach, 1 handful fresh or 1 cube frozen, chopped
1/2 Red Onion, chopped finely
1 clove Garlic, crushed
50g Feta Cheese, cut into small cubes
Pinch of Nutmeg
Salt and pepper to season
A little oil

Method

Fry the garlic and red onion in the oil over a low heat until slightly soft.
Add the spinach and heat for a few minutes to remove excess water (or the pastry cases will go soggy). Keep the mixture moving so that it doesn't burn.


Remove from the heat and add the seasonings and finely cubed Feta cheese.
Spoon the mixture into the cases.
Place in a warm oven for 6 minutes to heat through.
Eat.




They worked very well and although the pastry was a little dry, they went well with the sweet and savoury fillings and made a nice bite sized snack or canape. 

The spoons I thought would be best suited to a sweet filling.


As I had the fruit already I added a little chocolate sauce.


I'll be honest, I actually don't think this worked as well as I'd hoped. I should have tried a spoon beforehand as they have a very slightly savoury taste, so I think they'd have been better suited to the vol au vent filling or a nice creamy mushroom filling. If you wanted a sweet, the texture is very much a wafer, and I think that they'd perhaps go very well with a strongly flavoured ice cream or mousse with a nutty, mint or dark chocolate taste.

I was however impressed with the fact that even after 30 minutes wait because I'd been distracted by a child and their emergency, the spoons hadn't gone soft at all and were still incredibly crisp. I didn't like the taste so much as the pastries, but my family ate them all, so they weren't a failure.





Thanks to food PR and marketing agency CLIP Creative and PR for the samples.

When Tots 100 asked for people to take part in a game of Taboo live online I didn't apply at first because I thought maybe asking someone recovering from a brain injury to participate may be a weeny bit unfair on my partner, but as they had a severe shortage of male victims, sorry, volunteers, I asked him and he was happy to do it, so let battle commence....

I think we did really well! We aren't going to win a prize but we put up an effort we can be proud of. It was loads of fun and this sort of game is brilliant for exercising your brain, we should probably play it more often. Only maybe not on camera next time....

The point of the exercise is to highlight the fact that in a survey of 2000 British folk by Andrex, 47% of people shy away from talking about difficult subjects, with women more likely to discuss difficult or embarrassing topics, and everyone happier to talk about mental health and sex than toilet habits.

It often seems with small children that we discuss what comes out of their bodies as often as we talk about what goes in, but as soon as they aren't toddlers any more it becomes far more embarrassing and is left in private behind the toilet door.

I think in our house the grown ups have gone way past being embarrassed, and the teenagers have had to put up with the two little ones pooing on the carpet and sharing every detail of their last visit, so we're probably a bit less bothered than most families. In fact the males and females are all pretty unflustered, but even so, I'm not certain I could rely on them to tell me if they thought there was an issue.

Gut health is an indicator of a huge range of problems, from the commonplace food poisoning, dehydration or Threadworms to Appendicitis, Crohn's and Bowel Cancer. It is something we shouldn't be afraid or embarrassed to talk about - we do all have to go to the loo after all...

Thanks to Andrex Washlets and Tots 100 for giving us the laugh! 

It can be a nightmare deciding what to do for an older child's birthday, but for our younger ones we usually have a party at home with pass-the-parcel and musical bumps and all those other old favourites.

The youngest member of our family is 4 in March and Perfect Party UK have given me the opportunity to review some items for his birthday party. He's a huge fan of Star Wars (he even named his Build-A-Bear 'Star Wars'), so it was an obvious choice for the theme.


I didn't know what I was going to be sent, and I must say I was really surprised when the postman handed me a huge cardboard envelope and a smaller parcel. I had no idea what was going to be in it...







Perfect Party UK have also put together a great Pinterest board full of inspiration for our Star Wars party - which can be found here.

Perfect Party UK sent me my items, but if I'd paid then they would have cost the following prices:

Star Wars 23cm plate x 8 = £2.40 (£4.80 for 16)
Star Wars Cups x 8 = £1.78 (£3.56 for 16)
Star Wars Napkins x 16 = £2.39
Star Wars Table Cover = £3.01
Yoda = £13.79

I was asked by Warburtons if I would like to receive a Magic Pancake Kit and obviously I accepted, not having a clue what was going to be in it....but it sounded great.


When the kit arrived I felt like the Pied Piper carrying a huge colourful box, all of my children were intrigued to see the contents. We weren't disappointed, it was amazing...


Warburtons have developed a full sensory fun packed pancake kit to give us some new ideas ahead of Pancake Day. It even had Maple Syrup room mist spray...Mmmm....


Tummies rumbling, we thought we'd give some of their ideas a try. The Pancake Possibilities Wheel has 7 possible outcomes and all of the ingredients necessary to try them were included in the box.

1. Chilli Jam & Lime
2. Granola & Shaved Coconut
3. Dried Banana & Cinnamon 
4. Chocolate & Popping Candy
5. Feta Cheese and Mint Leaves
6. Marmite & Mascarpone
7. Pancetta & Pistachio

The first spin was for my partner - Pancetta & Pistachio. I chopped the nuts and stirred them into the frying pan with pancetta just before it was ready to serve.


It was a hit! And it was my turn... Feta Cheese & Mint Leaves. I chopped the mint and added it to the Feta.


It was gorgeous! It had a lovely fresh taste and went really well with the slightly sweet taste of the Warburtons Pancakes.

Next up was Chilli Jam and Lime. I wasn't sure what to make of this one at all...


Again, it was gorgeous. It had a Thai feel to it and actually was my favourite. Very different to anything I've ever tried with pancakes before.

The last we tried today wasn't actually picked by the spinner, but it totally had to be done. Chocolate and Popping Candy - Willy Wonka would be proud.


This was great. The popping candy was a brilliant touch, and delighted everyone - I melted the chocolate and heated enough pancakes so that we could all have a try.

With only a couple of pancakes left and everyone satisfied we left the Dried Banana & Cinnamon and Granola & Shaved Coconut for another day - and I didn't have any requests to try the Marmite & Mascarpone - no-one was brave enough!


My 5 and 3 year olds had a request for supper before bed though....the last 2 Warburtons Pancakes.....with butter.....

We did it, we finally managed to get everyone together who wanted to go and see the Lego Movie and we went! Yeeay! We even managed to get my sister and her kids over to come with us. And it really was awesome....


We saw it in 3D at the request of the teenagers, and aside from one of ours who wanted to go shopping instead and our biggest who's moved out now, we were all there. I booked all the tickets including my sister's and her children, so 10 in total and oh my crikey, this is why we only take them all to the cinema a couple of times a year. £73 lighter....Frankly upgrading to 3D didn't even make a blip and the seats were very luxurious....

My little boys are very used to movies because I'm a very cruel Mother and don't let them watch kids TV (after 20 years of having young children you'd be fed up with it too). Everyone sat still through the movie and we didn't have any toilet visits!!! Yeeay!

I cried at the end, I'm not ashamed to admit it. It's nice to know that Lego have the same ideals as us, the ending was a great surprise (thank you to everyone who's seen it and didn't let on). The grown ups cried and the kids just sang, but everyone thought it was brilliant.

When we got home it's not really a stunner that when I went into the kitchen this is what greeted me...


And I can't really complain too much about finding this at an unbelievable 10.20pm when they'd been 'in bed' for 2 hours!!


At least we should get a lie in tomorrow....Everything IS awesome....

It's now just over 7 months since my partner developed Viral Meningitis, and he's still in a lot of pain.

We're lucky that it's mainly in one leg, the other leg and his arms are now relatively pain free, but the one leg makes up for it.

Because of the ongoing pain he visited his Doctor and last Monday had a referral with a Spinal Consultant. We're not certain that is what he needs, but it's definitely something to look at.

When the Consultant examined him it was clear to all that he has reduced sensation and strength in his right leg. His right knee didn't respond at all to the test where they bash you with the little hammer. It was a bit disturbing to watch, I knew he had issues, but the extent did surprise me.

After a lot of pulling him about the Consultant decided it's definitely worth looking to see if it's anything to do with nerves in my partner's back, so he's booked in for an MRI in 2 weeks. If it finds nothing then the Consultant suggested physiotherapy might be the next thing to try.

When we were in there the Consultant asked several times if he had any back pain and my partner was adamant he didn't. As we left my partner said "I feel like I have pain now". By evening my partner's back was really bothering him, and he hardly slept that night. He went to work the next day and was in agony by teatime. The following day he couldn't go to work, and he couldn't drive. We went to the Doctor and he's now on strong painkillers which knock him out, so he's been asleep most of the time since!

Apparently it's normal to be in such pain when you've seen a Spinal Consultant, but I wish they'd warned us! At least it should go within a few days, and it's nice for him to take a break because he's been absolutely shattered working 5 (or more) days a week since Christmas.

Don't think we're really negative, we aren't, we still feel really lucky. We're just quietly resigned and if any good comes of this then that's all the better!

I've always loved pancakes, they're so naughty! Fortunately my family love them too, so I make piles of them each year and it pleases everyone.

Making pancakes is really very simple, but requires a couple of easy techniques to make them right every time.

Basic Pancakes 

The batter is a standard batter which is incredibly cheap and easy to make. It's what you'd use toad-in-the-hole or Yorkshire puddings, but works slightly better when it's a little runnier, so has an extra 150ml of water added.

Ingredients

175g Plain Flour
2 Free Range Eggs
300ml Milk
150ml Water
Pinch of Salt

Method

Put the flour in a bowl and add the eggs, give it a mix and add the milk 1/3 at a time, mixing well with a whisk after each addition. Add the water and a pinch of salt.

Heat a frying pan and add cooking oil of your choice. Give the pan a good shake so that the oil covers the whole base of the pan and then pour out any all the excess into a heatproof container (such as a small saucepan). Your pan is now perfect for your pancake mix.

Add enough pancake mix that it covers the base of the pan when you again give it a good shake. Then leave it on a medium heat and watch. Don't fuss with it, you need to leave it alone until the bottom side is cooked. You can tell when it's done because when you shake it (again!), the pancake won't be stuck to the pan, it'll be free to move about, and the edges will have a lacy effect.


Flip it over and do the other side for  few seconds.


Your first one will often be a bit of a failure, the pan always seems to perform better for the second one onwards.

I've was challenged to come up with an interesting and different pancake recipe. I'm not the most adventurous cook, and I like to share recipes that anyone can make and my teenagers will find useful, so here are a couple of ideas...

Pancakes are very much a 'bread', with a high percentage of egg. They're a breakfast food, so surely they're ideal to have with an English breakfast....

All Day Veggie Breakfast Pancakes

 
 Ingredients

Bacon
Sausage
Mushroom
Red Onion
Tomato

Pancake batter mix (shown above)
Thyme
Black Pepper

Method

Cook bacon and sausage and cut into slices - I'm using vegetarian options as I'll be eating some myself.
Lightly fry sliced mushroom and red onion.
Add grilled sliced tomato  if you wish.

Keep everything warm.

Add a little thyme and black pepper to your pancake batter and cook.

Roll the cooked breakfast ingredients into your pancake...



If you want to get a little more adventurous then you can add more ingredients to your batter itself before cooking. Cocoa or a little cinnamon are good, but my favourite is apple.

Apple, Banana and Cinnamon Pancakes 

Ingredients

 Batter mix (shown above)
Apple

Banana
Cinnamon Sugar (3 parts granulated sugar to 1 part ground cinnamon)
Whipped Double Cream

 Method 

Stew some apple or cheat and chop it into small pieces, add a tablespoon of water and microwave covered for a minute.
Let it cool and then add it directly to your pancake batter before cooking.

Top with sliced banana and whipped cream, and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.



And of course pancakes can always be cut or stacked for another special effect...here with Duerr's strawberry jam and whipped cream....

The Dragon's Dentist is an Early Reader from Orion Books. It's in the Blue Band, so it's designed for reading together with your child with lots of repetition and short sentences. Written by John McLay, it's illustrated by Martin Brown, who also illustrates Horrible Histories books.


This is a proper book with chapters and 76 full colour pages. The illustrations are great with plenty of facial expression.


It tells the story of Harry, who is the smallest in his family and the only one who isn't a knight. He wants to be a knight and prove himself, so he sets off with his horse 'Oats' to slay a dragon.


The story really appeals to youngsters because they feel they can relate to the characters. It's a great little tale and my boys really enjoyed it. My 5 year old really did 'read it with me'. He also read it in bed to himself  for a while and the next day when we read at bedtime he proudly told me all the words he'd been able to work out for himself.

 

Over 150 top brands and products will be at the Baby And Toddler Show for you to discover and get to know better. It's the perfect opportunity to try before you buy and get a good look at what you might be spending your money on to see if it's really going to suit your needs.

You'll be able to make all the big purchases for your baby from lots of the really big names like Mamas & Papas, Bugaboo, Quinny, Silver Cross and Cosatto, as well as smaller and newer companies you may never have even heard of. Prices on pushchairs, buggies, car seats and furniture bought at the show are guaranteed to be the best, so your baby budget can stretch further and you can get all your big purchases under one roof


As well as brands and products there will also be experts on hand to give advice about every aspect of your child's first years, with workshops throughout the weekend including Sleeping, Feeding and First Aid.

Sadly I won't be there, but you can be. If you want to book tickets then you can do so via the Baby & Toddler Show website. They have kindly given me discount codes that you can use for the Manchester and Kent shows.

North West - Event City in Manchester - NWB31
South East - Bluewater in Kent - BWB31

The Baby & Toddler Show have also given me a pair of tickets for the Manchester show to give away to my readers. There will be 1 winner and they will get 1 pair of tickets. I will be giving away a pair of tickets to the Bluewater show nearer the time. Entry is by rafflecopter form below. The first question is mandatory and will open up extra tasks which will give you additional entries. Because the Manchester show is only 3 weeks away, entry will close at midnight on 2nd March and the winner needs to respond as soon as possible in order to organise your tickets in time.

a Rafflecopter giveaway