Bircher baby

Bircher Muesli. It has become the breakfast of the moment in this house. Yogurt and homemade blueberry mash for princess squirmy and yogurt and honey baked nuts for mum. 

I'm not at my best first thing in the morning, I'm not one of those fabulous 'morning hens' (as my mother calls them). You know those annoying people who at the first glint of sunshine leap out bed full of excitement and gusto and are complete fumbling zombies by 9 pm. I on the other hand emerge looking somewhat like ogre who has just had a lobotomy around 9 am and then somewhere around 11 pm decide its the perfect time to bake something or reorganize the office. 

Therefore rolling out of bed and blindly stumbling into the kitchen first thing in the morning, I really need there to be something very easy- I don't want to have to think and I certainly don't want to have to come up with two different breakfasts. But DO want to like what goes into my mouth and Bircher is an easy fix to my problems. 

The great thing about Bircher is you can be as lazy or creative as you feel or more honestly as time allows. 

You start with 1 cup of rolled oats (or quick oats) 1 cup of milk (or yogurt) 1/2 cup of juice (I use fresh orange juice) and you just build up from there. 

Grated apple, a pinch of cinnamon and some chia seeds for example. 

LSA (linseed, sesame and almond mix) is great too. Chopped sultanas or pumpkin seeds perhaps. What ever you do, you throw it all in a tub, soak it over night and its there ready for you in the morning. 

Fresh berries, nuts and/or honey are great on some extra yogurt on top if you are feeling up to it and you're done. 

Breakfast worthy for both mum and bub sorted.

1 year old!

Today I woke up to my phone buzzing in congratulations. It has buzzed at me monthly since I was first pregnant. 

Being a mum was never on my horizon and when I wound up in the position I was clueless as what to do. Similar to say, if you have never desired being an accountant then you find yourself one day sitting in a cubicle at HRBlock with your first customer sitting in front of you, you'd have a mild panic. 'Wait! I don't know anything about tax!', of course you know you need to pay tax and you've seen your accountant do it in front of you before so you have a vague idea but its a far cry from where you have found yourself. 

I feel the same way about motherhood. 

I just learnt a few weeks ago I was meant to stop the night feeds at 4-6 months....... Oops :/

All I can say is thank God for google! And baby/pregnancy apps. My phone has been giving me daily tips and reassurance for the last 17 months. Today is the last day- because apparently, I am now 'a pro' and no longer need their help. So it tells me anyway and so far it's been pretty on the mark. 

Our little kitten, our little Edie-Pie, our little...... (Is 13kg considered little?.....note to self: google baby weights later) baby girl is a whole year old today! 

Adulthood

When I was younger, I think may be 19, I attempted to throw a dinner party and I learnt many valuable things. 

Firstly, as a Caucasian, don't serve stir fry to Asians. Not matter how good it is- it will fail in a comparison. Especially if you are new to cooking stir gets and definitely(!) if its your first stir fry. Secondly, 19 is a little to young to pull off a successful dinner party. I was trying to be much more grown up than I actually was and I don't think I pulled it off. 

Recently over coffee and tarts a friend gently broached the idea of throwing her first real dinner party- and of course, I was on board. A beautiful Thai pumpkin soup, ChimiChurried roast beef and 5, no wait, 7(!) chocolate pear ramekins later I'd say it was a smashing success. Which has left me wondering- are we finally old enough to throw dinner parties? I'm not sure I feel like a teenager anymore but as we all start turning the corner into our 30's one by one I can definitely say adulthood suits me more and more. I can also say I think I'm really starting to feel like I'm making that leap from young adult to just plain adult. Bring it on, dinner parties and all.

Star cake

I made this cake last night for a friend. Her sons birthday party was this morning. Honestly it's not an overly clever cake- three layers, green, blue and red inside, matching stars on the outside...store bought fondant, a cookie cutter and a couple of spare hours. Not in itself really a blog worthy event, however, there is one element that has had an effect on me. It was the kids. 

The mums were impressed enough, some of them anyway, but the children just stood there silently reaching out and touching the stars one by one. I watched another girl sit quietly eating her layers completely focused on the different colours on her plate. A simple enough cake but still managed to catch their curiosity. That is the best compliment! 

Creative gratification

I'm beginning to wonder how long this will last....this cake phase. I expect it to end sooner or later. I suppose more than anything it's easy. By that I mean, dinner, where I used to have most of my creative fun is now mixed in with feeding the baby, bathing the baby and bedding the baby, so we are lucky to have more than tomatoes on toast some nights. 

                

Cake however, can be thrown together relatively easily, baked and then left to be assembled after the baby is down. It 'fits in' easier I should say. And let's face it, you ice the thing, throw some coconut on the sides, some fruit or flowers on top, and 'boom', your creativity bone is satisfied........ As long as you stay off Pinterest and don't continue to feed your creative side with more ideas. Oops. 

Cakey Dreams

            

So I'm having this thing where I think about cake an unusual amount recently. Okay, more than unusual amount. I go to sleep thinking about cake, I dream about cake and I wake up with cake on my mind. It's happening far too often. 

           

I've had a couple of good excuses to have such thoughts but I doubt these excuses cover me to the level of cake dreaming I've been doing...

              

              

I guess I've just discovered that there is more than just chocolate and carrot. Even more than red velvet...... My cake mind is being blown. Mostly thanks to 'MasterChef' and those Adriano Zumbo cakes....... Lets just say, I see cake in a whole new light now. 

Winter breakfast

             

Winter is here. Porridge has become a normal event- mainly because we can both eat it and I don't have to make two breakfasts. Learning, slowly, the tricks of the mother-trade. And anyway, who doesn't love a big bowl of porridge and berries to feed not only a chilly body in the morning but a beloved sense of nostalgia?