Itti Bitti Holiday

I love routine and I love order. They make me feel as though I am in control of my life. But I’m sick and tired of the same old. It’s getting really boring. Even being busy with works, home, friends and family, I’m still bored. Just exhausted and bored!

We used to put itti bitti holiday days into our calendar. We’d pack the car with a picnic and rug, swimmers, a ball and drive to the end of our street. We’d decide north, south or west and get away from the Gold Coast for the day. Our days were spent bushwalking, or rediscovering little towns we hadn’t been to since we were children, swimming, discovering markets, coffee shops, pubs, antique shops and parks.

Those days somehow have slipped out of our ‘routine’. This week (while Pappa Duck worked), the Little Duckling and I headed 45 minutes south to the beautiful Tweed Coast region to spend the day with friends holidaying. It was heavenly. The little ones ‘fished’ and a good explore by the creek, we found a nice spot in the sun for a good chat, had a BBQ, a swim and then finished the day with a scrumptious raw chocolate avocado mousse made by my gorgeous friend. I drove home feeling relaxed and recharged. It was exactly what I needed to do (instead of the planned cleaning and washing day). It made me realise that itti bitti holidays were missing from our life right now.

                                          

I’m adding itti bitti holidays back into our routine, what do you do to relax and reconnect with your little family?

Sweet Dreams,

Duck Egg Blue Mamma xx

Cooking with Toddlers

For as long as I can remember I have been in the kitchen cooking with my mum. When my sister came along, who is 9 years younger than I, she joined us sitting up on the bench in her bouncer. When our little duckling came along he naturally joined me in the kitchen cooking. First in the bouncer, then later sitting on the bench and now he cooks with me. So I thought I would share some tips on cooking with toddlers…..well what I have learnt so far!

1. Choose an easy recipe 

Toddlers have short attention spans, make it easier for yourself. Choose a recipe with only a handful of ingredients and a few steps.

2. The Mess

Yes there will be flour everywhere, fingers in the butter, spilt milk, and mouths full of cookie dough – embrace the mess, its lots of fun.

3. Cooking = Playtime

Once hands are clean and apron is on, our little duckling sits on the bench and plays. Let them play and explore. He explores how different ingredients taste (only if he wants to, there is no pressure), how ingredients feel, he pours, sprinkles, rolls and kneads, scoops and stirs. 

4. Give them space

I let him roll his own cookies. Yes this is hard for me as I like to be in control! So I give him a small amount of dough and I show him how to roll it into balls and press on the tray. Last time we cooked he rolled a few and then ate the majority of them. A few made the tray – they had big finger holes through them, all different shapes and sizes but who cares. He made them himself, while I rolled the rest out. While I am happy to eat his cookies with him, I wouldn’t serve them up to guests! I can’t be certain that they weren’t licked on the way to the tray!

5. No force

Sometimes I’ll set up to cook with him and he gets on the bench and either doesn’t want to cook or is just ‘hard work’ for me. In those cases I give him two options depending on how much cleaning I want to do afterwards.

1. Playdough and a whole heap of cookie cutters etc

2. Mixing bowls, measuring cups and spoons and flour (or uncooked rice or pasta) and he pours and stirs and plays. Big mess but lots of fun and he enjoys pretending while I get stuck in cooking.

Final words…have fun and don’t stress. Once the food is in the oven I sit our little duckling in front of a favourite DVD while I clean up the mess. Afterwards we get to sit down and enjoy what we have cooked. What a rewarding activity to do.

Labour Day Weekend

I had an amazing weekend. We had perfect weather on the Gold Coast for the long weekend and enjoyed it very much! It was lovely to have no plans after such a busy April. Thought I’d share some of what we got up to this weekend.

Watched Pappa Duck play baseball, and got dirty in the mud

Early morning craft

Went on a date with Pappa Duck – 

 Lazy lunch on the deck at Mt Tambourine Brewery, browsing through antique shops, then laying in the sun eating fudge watching the hang gliders take off. Simple things you don’t have the pleasure of doing while hanging out with a 2 year old!

 Home to our Little Duckling and some Tonka truck fun in the backyard.

 Monday morning beach action

 Little Duck cried when he couldn’t go surfing with Pappa Duck & Uncle A!

 Home for naptime and some baking

 White chocolate and coconut spelt muffins for Mamma and Pappa Duck

Some allergy friendly ‘cake’ for our Little Duckling – 

Coconut, banana and rice flake slice. I think it tastes very bland but he likes it. It is wheat, dairy, egg, nut, sugar free!

Duck Egg Blue Mamma xx

Feeling grateful

My best friend and I caught up yesterday. We don’t get to see each other as much as we’d like and I always feel so great after seeing her. I think we inspired each other to do big things in 2012, and have a feeling that it will be a very busy and rewarding year. She has decided to do the 365 project this year, which I’d love to do but have lots of projects planned for the year I know I can’t fit it in, but here are some things I am grateful for today…

 The rain

 my new veggie patch is just loving it!

 makes for a perfect day for craft, 

especially since our little duckling decided to have a good daytime nap for a change 

 cuddles with the little duckling after naptime

 duplo on a rainy afternoon.

 

At 21months old, our little duckling is obsessed with my point and shoot camera. You can’t get it out without him saying ‘roro’ and wanting to take photos himself. I have lots of pics from him playing with the camera this afternoon, mainly of the carpet and the ceiling but out of those found a couple of gems, a budding photographer in the making perhaps?

 

 self portrait

 

 Hoot, one of my favourite friends

 my books and toys

 my little toes

Duck Egg Blue Mamma xx