from somewhere in my imagination

The Bedhopper

Our smallest person has an aversion to falling asleep in her own bed.

Lilli's bed is her favourite place to snuggle up and go to sleep.  Sometimes she'll ditch Lil in favour of a cuddle with Charlotte.  Although she seems to go to sleep much faster in Charlotte's bed than Lil's.  She only creeps into Sebastian's bed so that they can continue with whatever they were doing before bedtime, so usually I find them reading more books.

It's actually pretty cute and I love that they like each other enough to want to cuddle up in bed together or have a 'sleepover' in someone else's room.  These are the kinds of memories of their childhoods I will treasure.  I've seen the four of them through enough ages and stages to have learned that things work best if we just go with the flow and work within guidelines rather than hard and fast rules.

Some things are just not worth a battle.

On nights when J has fallen asleep in someone else's bed we untangle her from them (she's a close sleeper) and pop her back in her own bed before we climb into bed ourselves.

We regularly find her in our bed by morning.  Did I mention she's a close sleeper?  She usually wakes me up when my head falls off the side of the bed because she's pushed me off my pillow.

We've never done the co-sleeping thing but we have never been opposed to the kids sleeping in our bed.  We upgraded from a double to a Queen after Sebastian was born and we were regularly waking up with both Lillian and Charlotte in the bed. 

Nights where the kids have fallen asleep beside us have been few and far between but I value my sleep too much to have a no kids allowed rule.  I rarely wake up if one crawls in and they usually only get taken back to bed if they are taking up too much room.

We wake up with one or more kids in the bed about 3 times a week, sometimes more in winter and less in summer.  I love that they like 'sleeping over' in one another's rooms.  It makes me happy to find one curled up with another.  It doesn't make me happy to wake up to Sebastian and Jasmine fighting in my bed over who woke up first.  Thank heavens they can turn on the TV themselves!

A sleepy Miss J is sitting here next to me as I type, it's nearly 10pm.  She had a sleep at daycare today so she wont sleep now and will probably fall asleep at some inconvenient time tomorrow, but I'll roll with it.  Because chances are I'll wake up with these little arms wrapped around me and I'll look at her.  If she wakes up she'll put her hands on the sides of my face and say I love you mummy.  Or I'll have to wake her up and she'll squeal at me about not wanting to be awake yet.  Because that's how she rolls.

I'm ready for bed myself so I'm going to tuck her in between us because I suspect that is the only way she is going to close those big blue eyes anytime soon.

Do you let the kids crawl in with you or do you take them straight back to their own beds?  Or, are you like me and you don't even wake up when they climb over you?

Tatum xx

What's For Dinner? - Meatloaf Everyone Will Love

I have fallen in love with the butcher section at the chinese supermarket I go to.  They have the most amazing american pork ribs that are at least $2/kg cheaper than I can find them anywhere else in the central market.

Last weekend when I was in there stocking up on ribs for a Fette Sau inspired meal, I spied some nice looking pork mince and grabbed a kilo.  I had plenty of ideas on what to do with it but it ended up turned into Sunday night meatloaf.

I mixed in apple and fennel to give it good flavour and used quinoa in place of breadcrumbs.

It was good.  Served up with some veg it was a perfect make ahead alternative to roast with easily enough for 2 meals for a family of 4 or enough left for lunches.

Pork, Fennel & Apple Meatloaf - Serves 8-10

Ingredients

1kg Good Quality Pork Mince

1 Smallish Fennel bulb

1 Large Apple (I used a Pink Lady, A Granny would be a good choice too)

2/3 Cup Quinoa

1 Tbs Fresh Sage or Thyme

3 Eggs

1/2 tsp Fennel Seeds

Freshly Ground Pepper & Salt to Taste

Method

Rinse and cook the quinoa then spread it out and leave it to cool.  You will have about 2 cups.

Preheat your oven to 180C

Grate the fennel and apple and pop it in a large mixing bowl.

Add the pork mince, cooked and cooled quinoa, fresh and dried herbs and eggs.  Season with salt and pepper.

Mix everything together and tip into 1 large or 2 smaller loaf tins that you have brushed with some olive oil.

Pop into the oven and cook until cooked through.  Your cooking time will vary depending on the size and shape of your loaf tin.  Make sure you time things to give yourself a bit of extra time to slice the meatloaf and lay the slices on a tray for a last blast of cooking if needed.

To Serve

I made an apple cider reduction to serve with the meatloaf.  I finely chopped a small onion and cooked it in a small saucepan with a knob of butter until caramelised.  Next, I added 2 cups of apple cider and reduced it by half before serving with the meatloaf.

I served the meatloaf with some simple vegetables.  We had baked sweet potato mash together with roasted broccoli and parsnips but feel free to cook up whatever vegetables work for you.

It was a winner all around.

Tatum xx

Really? Did You Really Say That Sonia Kruger?

There are many things in this world I do not understand.  This double page glossy magazine advertisement is one of them.

I do not understand why Sonia Kruger, as brand ambassador for Swisse, was happy to be paid money to pose for a National print media advertising campaign and be quoted as having said:

"When friends tell me they are having trouble controlling their appetite, I recommend they try Swisse Ultiboost Appetite Suppresant."

Did she really, seriously say that?

She was recently referred to as a 'highly intelligent woman' on Mamamia with reference to a recent story about her still being open to having kids at 48.  I honestly have to question the intelligence of any high profile person who would allow themselves to be quoted as having said such a thing.

I do not understand why Australian Gourmet Traveller was happy to take Swisse's advertising dollars and actually print such bullshit.  The irony of which magazine I found the ad in is not lost on me.

I do not understand what kind of society we live in when a company makes these 'magic pills' and gets a celebrity to promote them with such a bullshit statement.  It all leaves a very bad taste in my mouth.  Enough to not bother renewing my subscription to AGT next year.  Enough to choose a different brand when I replenish my supply or Magnesium this week.

When did it become okay to advertise implying that it is okay not to eat?  Here take this supplement instead and you won't feel hungry. 

Have these people visited a hospital paediatric ward recently?  I have a few times this year and one constant, aside from the nurses and crying babies, were the young skeletal girls perched like baby birds on their beds being tube fed through their noses.  Refusing to eat from their trays.  Being told they can go home because they have gained 800g. The images are burned in my brain.  With 3 girls of my own they are images that haunt me.

Young girls, who through some twist of fate starve themselves in an act of control.  Starving themselves to be skinny.  Young girls who are influenced by this sort of shit in the media.

As a mother of 3 girls I can tell you I was quietly terrified seeing these shadows of girls with their bones sticking out and tubes up their noses.  As a mother of 3 girls I am very careful about the words I choose when talking about food and diet.  As a mother of 3 girls I try to be the best role model that I can be in the food and fitness department.  Food is one of my passions and I want to share that with them without ever making them feel guilty about food.

Despite my best attempts to educate them, my girls will undoubtedly be exposed to media bullshit like this.  They will still spend time with other girls who may come from homes where certain foods are considered 'naughty' or 'bad' or are told 'that such and such food will make them fat', or worse. 

I can't even begin to imagine why any woman, let along a high profile one, would feel comfortable promoting an appetite suppressant essentially saying 'here girls, take these you won't feel like eating, they will help make you skinny'. As a parent I don't even know how to explain to my young girls why a person might want to take such a thing and why this lady they see on the TV says it's okay.

Get your act together media.  I know that you need your advertising dollars to survive but surely you can be a little more selective about what you put in front of your audience.

Swisse, you need to get some morals, why do you make these magic pills anyway?  A magic pill with the made up chemical Slimaluma, so made up you've registered it as your own.  A pill that I doubt is much more than a placebo making a person think they arent hungry because they took a magic pill. 

You do of course disclaim your ad for the magic pill with the statement 'best used as part of a balanced diet and combined with regular exercise'.  Of course it does because that is generally accepted as being the best way to achieve and maintain a healthy weight range.  Not by suppressing your freaking appetite and not eating properly.  Long term that will do your body more harm than good.

My next bottle of Magnesium will be Blackmores.  They have a far more sensible take on the subject of appetite suppression

"Foods that can help with appetite control are low GI carbohydrates, high fibre foods and good quality protein. If you would like some personalised suggestions on how to include these types of food in your diet you can speak to one of Blackmores naturopaths by phoning 1800 803 760"

Far Out.

Does this ad get your goat as much as it got mine?  How do you tackle the slippery slope of weight and weight management with teenage girls?  I know I am going to need some serious hand holding when the time comes.

Tatum xx