Eve exploring Arnos Vale Cemetery
It was supposed to be heavy rain on Saturday, so we were lucky when it didn't arrive until late afternoon. Laura, Emma and I managed a walk into the cemetery with the kids and then did a quick stint in the park before returning back to my house. Eve slept in the pram for the duration of our short outdoor trip, and woke up when we entered the house as a bit of a loud rabble.
Elodie, Eve, Hannah and Agnes happily playing with Playdoh
The kids were so good together. Eve loved playing with Hannah, Elodie, Agnes, Matthew, Thomas and Lamorna. Eve watched the older girls intently; she was also pushed around the kitchen on her trike by Hannah and Elodie which was amusing. She was very happy when she went to bed on Saturday night and loved talking about the children (Hannah, Matthew and Thomas) that she had met that day.
Elodie and Eve
On Sunday we were supposed to be going to a birthday party at midday but the heavens opened shortly beforehand and I was a bit worried about getting caught in a heavy downpour with Eve in the pram, so unfortunately we had to cancel. Instead, we chilled out at home, and I took Eve to the woods and the park in the afternoon when the sun started shining.
'It's all about the confidence!'
On Saturday evening Eve helped Daddy make gravy (or 'grave' as Eve calls it) to go with our roast chicken. Unfortunately it didn't do much to make her want to eat dinner, but there we are - we tried!
Whilst the sun was shining on Sunday afternoon I made the first batch of summery ice creams for Eve. I've been using up random mixtures that I've been finding in the freezer over the past couple of weekends and turning them into ice cream in the Nutribullet.
I find that giving Eve a yogurt for pudding each day is a bit boring. I basically chucked in what we had - some frozen blueberries, fresh raspberries, full fat milk and a frozen banana which I snapped into pieces. (Good tip - whenever I give a banana to Eve and she doesn't eat the whole thing, I cut it into pieces - or put it in whole depending on the amount - and freeze it. The frozen properties of banana turn into incredible ice cream).
As you can see in the picture, the ice cream had raspberry seeds in it, and I didn't add any refined sugar. I wasn't completely sure how they would be received. But, Eve loved sitting on the sofa on Monday night when she got home from nursery, slowly eating her ice cream whilst she watched 'In the night garden'.
Somehow I bought brilliant ice lolly moulds without even realising it. I'm pretty sure I got them either from the Range or Wilkinson's so they were cheap - they have plastic domes which catch all the drips. Genius.
Eve is such a big girl now; it shocks me most days when I collect her from nursery, just how much she has grown. When we arrived at the park together she said that she wanted to go on the slide and ran over to it. For the first time in ages she whizzed straight down the slide with ease and confidence and kept going on it over and over again. She had some big bumps to her head at the weekend at home whilst running about, so it was good to see that those little accidents hadn't done anything to deter her enthusiasm.
First time on a bigger swing
After the small slide she asked me to go on the big slide with her. About a year ago I took her on it, which almost ended in disaster when my shiny puffa coat took off at an alarming rate. Since that point I've not wanted to take her on it. But when she asked me, I didn't think twice, the timing felt right. I lifted her up to the top of the slide which is over 6ft high. She waited whilst I climbed up and then excitedly sat on my lap. She screamed with delight as we went down it - so we did it a few more times, which was great fun.
Found a car to play with
On Saturday evening Eve helped Daddy make gravy (or 'grave' as Eve calls it) to go with our roast chicken. Unfortunately it didn't do much to make her want to eat dinner, but there we are - we tried!
Gravy time
Whilst the sun was shining on Sunday afternoon I made the first batch of summery ice creams for Eve. I've been using up random mixtures that I've been finding in the freezer over the past couple of weekends and turning them into ice cream in the Nutribullet.
I find that giving Eve a yogurt for pudding each day is a bit boring. I basically chucked in what we had - some frozen blueberries, fresh raspberries, full fat milk and a frozen banana which I snapped into pieces. (Good tip - whenever I give a banana to Eve and she doesn't eat the whole thing, I cut it into pieces - or put it in whole depending on the amount - and freeze it. The frozen properties of banana turn into incredible ice cream).
Making healthy ice cream
As you can see in the picture, the ice cream had raspberry seeds in it, and I didn't add any refined sugar. I wasn't completely sure how they would be received. But, Eve loved sitting on the sofa on Monday night when she got home from nursery, slowly eating her ice cream whilst she watched 'In the night garden'.
Somehow I bought brilliant ice lolly moulds without even realising it. I'm pretty sure I got them either from the Range or Wilkinson's so they were cheap - they have plastic domes which catch all the drips. Genius.
Eve with her first bubble beard - she is slowly getting more confident with water
Whilst manically cleaning last weekend I knocked into one of my Elderflower champagne bottles from the stash that I made last spring. It sounded very bubbly, so I dusted the bottles off and put them in the fridge. Sam and I cracked one open each night this weekend - and they were completely incredible - I was over the moon, after years of perfecting my recipe!
It seems that the secret to making Elderflower champagne is to leave it far longer than you're supposed to. All recipes that I've read online say that it keeps for about 4 months. The bottles that we opened this weekend were a year old and the best ever.
It's now Elderflower season, and the tree by our house started to bloom at the weekend. I am feeling very enthusiastic at the prospect of making a new batch over the coming Bank holiday weekend.
Click the link below to see my recipe from last year:
Generic image - not one of mine ;-)
It seems that the secret to making Elderflower champagne is to leave it far longer than you're supposed to. All recipes that I've read online say that it keeps for about 4 months. The bottles that we opened this weekend were a year old and the best ever.
Harry Potter and the Elder wand - we all know the powers of the Elder tree!
Click the link below to see my recipe from last year:
No comments:
Post a Comment