July 2009: Only &*%$ days till Christmas!

[alibobble]

hey all! Thought I'd start.

Ali I spent ages on the bakerella website last night and just dont get it. How do you make those pop cake things, what is cream cheese frosting and where do you get the lolly pop sticks!!! Answers on a postcard please! xxxxx

Patchy - cream cheese frosting can be substituted with regular icing that is pre-bought. After you mix the icing and the cake together it becomes soft. Roll bits into balls and put in the sticks and freeze. Very easy! Dipping the balls into melted chocolate is the hard part.

Longer post later as I am refereeing for the babies, typing on my ipod, and getting pummeled by Marco as he tries to steal the tv remote (typical male!!)

Thanks Baby, now how about the sticks, where do they come from??

I got some from hobbycraft. Not cheap there but easier than alot of places. Prob able ot get them on the iterweb too I should imagine. I made mine from mix of christmas cake crumbled up and christmas pud witha tub of pre made icing (betty crocker or whatever tesco sold. Leave overnight and it becomes like truffle mix. Mine wouldn't stay on sticks when they were in the melted choc coating but they did make excellent cake balls (also on bakerelle) so like giant truffles. Was greeted at school as "the cake lady!! Might be getting a reputation.

Plastic lolly sticks available on line from ebay. Can get on american amazon site but not from UK one.

If trying for first time I'd make "cake balls/truffles and practice making the mix and save expense of sticks till you're confident of the method. Saves some money and still make great pressies though only keep for about 3 days in the fridge.

Thanks Ali sounds fab. I got some sticks on ebay so I will make some next week. Very exciting.

My lovely friend has taken the big kids off me for a couple of hours to play with her kids, max is in bed so I am having a quick tidy up. Lovely, peace and quiet!

I took them all pottery painting this am, carnage is the only word I could use when it came to Max!! He did love it, ate loads of paint and made a huge mess. Very high stress levels for me and all that breakable stuff!

Have a fab weekend everyone. DH back from his travels tonight so lovely famiy day tomorrow xxxx

Hi everyone! x

Hope you had a nice family day, Patchy :)

Snow has been a bit mad here, so no work so far this week (I'm a teacher and our schools are all closed).

Wee man is being a pain with naps - he's been waking after half-an-hour and refusing to go back down for longer. Cracking me up! Oh well... can't complain really as he sleeps well at night. I'm hoping it's just a wee phase!

Hello :o

Are we all enjoying the snow?

Noah's baptism went great on Sunday. There are photos on facebook and i've put a couple on my profile :)

Aww - glad baptism went well Phoenix

Beaucoup de snow here - at least 14 inches. Nursery has been shut for two days, so I've had to take some leave to stay at home with HRH. Just have to hope she doesn't get sick between now & the end of the year. It's still snowing now. DP has set off in the car but not sure how far he'll get to be honest. I've been trying to do a little bit of work to help out, since hardly anyone can get into the office but its just impossible whilst she is awake.

I don't think I'm going to risk going to work today. I don't start til 1.30 but it snowed most of last night and has been snowing the majority of this morning too so I really don't want to risk it. I'm going to ring work in a bit to tell them. Not sure it will go down well especially as we are in the big Christmas rush at royal mail. But what can I do? I live 20 mins away from work so I can't even walk in. Dh was on nights last night and just about made it home this morning but he's thinking about not going in tonight too. Ds1's school is shut again as well so hopefully if work are ok about me not going in then we're having a cosy day in :)

Snow? What snow?!

Ali

Haven't left the house in 3 sodding days

Actually haven't bothered getting dressed in 3 days. The covering is about 14 inches & there is more to come. The main roads are just about passabe, but I can't even get off the sodding drive!

On the plus side, I am working my way through the freezer again need some space for some Cannon Hall party pies. DD is nored senseless & I am sick to death of Cbeebies.
Might have to resort to salt dough tomorrow

bored obviously - no idea what nored is !

Will I regret the salt dough?

Jetli: Nah, make christmas decorations for your tree. I've still got some that me and beth made when she was little and I had more time and energy to try and do interesting and fun things with my child rather than shout at her for being a defiant little diva

Becca has suddenly started refusing to go to sleep properly. Screams and scremas on and off for ages. Cut back day time sleep but tonight still wailing. Off for a meal out on sat so resorting to controlled crying tonight to try and get it sorted. Can't go out and leave a 15yr old to look after them if she's not asleep. What a pain. Have shut the door but can still hear her. Used to do this to beth. Think my record was ignoring her for 20 mins before she fell asleep. but i think she may give up well before then. Seems to be quietening doen. I've been way more permissive with becca and less strict... and I'm reaping the rewards. Doh!

a covering of snow here but doing the school run in -8 is not good
Fins being a right whinger at the mo is driving me mad. Alfies chest infection turned out to be bronchiolitis which has left him with a cough which can apparently last weeks. He keeps coughing and thats making him sick. I am sick of the extra washing. Fin has also decided he is now not wearing a night nappy. He is doing great and going through the night but keeps forgetting when he wakes up that he is in pantsand weeing in his bed. More washing! I am glad he wants to do it but bad timing.
Alfie is refusing his cot as of tuesday, so have started a bit of cc which goes against all my principles but with him not eating because of the cough he has been drinking much more milk and i have got to the point where my boobs need a rest and I need some space.
Sorry for the rant.
My pastors little girl had the first op yesterday and is already off high dependancy she is amazing. Bless her she apparently said to the surgeon, can I have a photo of my brain? Arn't i lucky most people won't get to see their brains i could cry.
Sorry crap typing feeding and on phone
Hi all!

Hi QF - thats good news about the pastor's daughter - kids are amazing aren't they? Thinking of you xx

Has it got warmer round anyone else? There was a def thaw going on today. Pavements mental now as a result but def heading in the right direction.

Gosh isn't it quiet on here. I guess everyone's very busy.

Becca got (inevitably as she's had every other virus going) the cough and cold that's doing the rounds. Poor thing coughed so much she made herself sick the other night but seems to be getting a bit better now though the cough seems worse if anything. Never mind. Who'd have thought one child could make so much snot!

Hope everyone ok.

Hi all

Due to get warmer here on Friday - if it doesn't, then I'm going to buy a fecking flame thrower. At 31 weeks I'm like a sodding weeble at the moment & petrified that I'll fall & damage me/baby/toddler on all the bloody ice!

Had D&V at the beginning of the week - just me this time thank goodness as opposed to the whole family coming down with it. Gosh it was wretched. With every heave I was sure my ruddy waters would POP! and I seem to be taking ages to come around properly from it. Bleurrrrrgh

Sorry about Becca ali - Hetty is green nosed & bleary eyed. The whole nursery is snotty & coughing this week.

How's everyone? Anyone got their shopping done? We've done bugger all and panic is beginning to set in.

it's a bit warmer here. Warmer being around freezing
I only have 2 more pressies to get before christmas and one of those is socks and a book so no big deal!
Bad news is DH is probaby going to loose his job again. Someone else in the co has lost a massive account so last in first out. I feel sorry for him as he has brought in 3/4 million pounds worth of business for next year yet they are still getting rid of them. Seems so unfair. I on the other hand am not looking forward to filling i all those forms again 3rd time this yr

oh and meant to say Alfie managed to launch himself out of his cot on monday so I guess it's time to put him in a bed. It's cotbed as well so quite high! I know he's a big lad but I was hoping to keep him in there for ages yet.

Hey all
It has been crazy here.

The snow or shall say ice threw me off all of last week. I even fell and couldn't grip with my right hand for a few days! ARGH

QF we are on the same rock and roll boat. DH finishes contract tomorrow. The last 3 Christmas have been the same!!! Sigh.

Jetli you only have 9weeks left. How exciting. Be careful on the ice.

Ali it is still cold here. Brrrr. I fear my gas bill.

I think I have all but one of my Xmas presents sorted. Phew.

Hope everyone is well - just a quick post before story time

Phoenix love the pics

Sorry about the jobs MissP & QF so hard especially at this time of year. Hope neither of them are long out of work.

Am also fearing the gas bill here. Might do an interim reading & see how it looks. It has had some hammer the last couple of weeks. I guess we'll soo know if this new boiler has been a good investment or not!

Almost all the snow is gone - hurray. But my sis is like The Voice Of Doom. She reckons it is due to come back, starting on the Wednesday/Thursday before Christmas & this time there will be 2 or 3 feet of the stuff Please noooooo. Have been googling home birth just in case. I have deliveries of stuff missing all over the northern hemisphere - mostly Christmas presents that were due to be delivered before the bad weather. Chaos.

Hi all

Still loads of stuff missing in Delivery Land. Royal Mail stuff has been fine - it's the other clowns causing me grief. And I wanted to go & deliver stuff this weekend as well.

So is everyone OK out there in Internet land? We're all awfully quiet Hope everyone is well & getting sorted for Christmas.

Off to Phoenix's neck of the woods tomorrow, to Wentworth Castle to see Father Christmas. Should be a good day out I think. Hopefully the snow will hold off until then

Wow JetLi that's a first, praise for Royal Mail. All I hear is people moaning about us. I haven't done any online shopping this year really although I'm waiting for some Bart Simpson slippers from Next for ds1. Next dispatched them a week ago but they haven't made it to me yet. Have fun tomorrow :)

All shopping, most wrapping and bike building done here and supermarket shop done today. Need a few more bits but just about ready for Christmas :)

hi
Yeah this time of year is mad with things on at school church and playgroup etc! I wonder when I will have time to do the last couple of bits of shopping
I have only just got the tree up tonight
I haven't been getting much sleep either which doesn't help. I think the boys are waking each other. I have put Alfie back in our room and it has been a bit better the last few nights. I have got rid of fins bed today as it was really creaky and put him in the toddler bed so need to try and get hold of another one for Alfie as when he saw his cot made into a bed he got all excited!
Hope you are all ok and that the silence is due to christmas prep!