A couple of smarties and an icing pen, finishes off these Halloween Mummies. They are both a trick and a treat!

Surprise Inside Halloween Mummy Cupcakes  Cupcakes

• 4oz butter
• 4oz caster sugar Sugar
• 4oz self raising flour
• 2 medium eggs

For The Mummy Decoration 


• 150g Butter
• 300g Icing Sugar
• Smarties
• A chocolate icing pen
• White ready made icing
• Strawberry jam

If video is more your thing then I have made a short one here shoeing you how I decorated them,

Becoming a parent changes you in so many ways. Life is no longer just about you. It is about the future generation. Building a better world for your little bundle of joy. As we have three rather huge growing bundles then there is lots to do!

I moaned when recycling boxes were introduced. But now I happily gather my paper and plastic and separate it from my rubbish.

I moaned about the 5p charge for plastic bags. However, I now carry some pretty reusuable bags with me where ever I go.

I moaned when my husband spent forever looking at new cars. But now he has chosen a hybrid with low emissions it is good for our wallet and the environment.

Whilst it is probably coming across that I spend my life moaning, it isn't really the case. (Well not always.) I like many people am just not that good with change. However, when you see how it is improving the environment and in turn the life that your children will lead, change becomes easier.

Something I have learned from my children is how important it is to help others too. It is important that we all do our little bit to make our world a better place. It can be as simple as buying shower gel! Unilever are helping make a brighter future with a number of projects supported by their leading brands. Persil has partnered with UNICEF on a Learning For Tomorrow initiative. Enabling quality education for some of the world's toughest areas. Domestos is committing to helping 25million people gain improved access to a toilet by 2020. Dove has a self esteem project helping young people have a positive relationship with their appearance.

There are so many ways we can help make the future brighter for our children. My recent decluttering efforts have seen bags full of clothes go to the charity shops. Now I just have one more challenge to get through. Convincing my boys to say goodbye to some of their old toys. I know that they will be happier if they know they will go to a good home. If it will help someone else. And if they are told that there will be less Christmas presents if they don't have a clear out soon.

What steps are you taking to make the future brighter for your children?

Who would like to win a £500 Pizza Express gift card? *Jumps up and down with hand in the air* Well you have to be quick! This fun competition ends 19th October. All you need to do is create a spooky face pizza. You can make it, draw it or write about it. Your choice, but it does need ingredients that pizza express use.

Crackling Cupcakes

• 4oz butter
• 4oz caster sugar Sugar
• 4oz self raising flour
• 2 medium eggs

For The Bonfire Decoration 


• 150g Butter
• 300g Icing Sugar
• orange food colouring gel
• 1tbsp cocoa powder
• Popping candy
• Honeycomb Matchmakers

This chicken and chorizo pie recipe is rich and tasty. Not one to try if you are on a diet. I chose to make a lattice as I am not keen on loads of pastry and it also cuts down on a few of the calories. I chose to serves it with a mix of green beans, peas and sweetcorn.


Again this recipe is easily adaptable. As my boys aren't keen on anything too spicy I just made them plain chicken ones.

Chicken And Chorizo Lattice Pie 

For the Pastry


• 100g Butter
• 225g Plain pastry
• Pinch of salt
• egg to wash

For the filling 


• 500g diced chicken.
• 175g diced chorizo
• 300ml double cream
• 1dsp mild chilli powder
• 1 chicken oxo cube

This is a real treat and perfect for a winters evening.

Photo Credit: Loic Djim from Unsplash

So here is the deal. Yesterday at school pick up I heard some other Mum's chatting.

"Well it's Harvest Festival next week." one exclaimed.

I smugly laughed to myself as they were clearly confused. Harvest festival isn't until the middle of October. Right by half term. Oh crap!

I am not sure how it is nearly half term. I mean it was only Christmas a couple of months ago.

I am not ready. My baby has only just started school. I am supposed to be getting organised. I feel less organised now he is at school than when he was at home. I haven't even had time for the daytime TV binge fest I had planned.

Where is time going? Will it ever slow down? Am I now on a constant sprint to the grave?

Part of me wants a time turner and the other part just wants to stop time. To take a breath and appreciate my not so little boys. They are changing so fast. I can hardly keep up.

I want to remember the little things.

Little man and his skipping. "When I am happy I skip Mummy. When I am really happy I skip really fast."

Middle man contemplating "who I will be married to in 20 years?"

Big man and his loom bands. Yes you have read that correctly. The craze that ended 2 years ago is still alive in this house. Mainly thanks to big man's entrepreneurial skills of managing to get my sisters friend to give him a pound for the one he made her so that he could make more.

These things wont last forever. But sometimes I wish they would. I get all melancholy. Then out of the blue I am reminded that them growing up isn't all bad. Little man comes home with 5 cereal packets hanging together by sellotape.

"It's a robot Mummy"

I smile and say "Oh Wow! How great!" whilst thinking how can I get that in the recycling without him noticing.

Maybe time can slow down once he has left the junk modelling world of reception.



So is it just me or does time really go faster the older you get?

These Slow Cooked Meatballs with chilli cheese are a great weekday meal. If like me, you have children that aren't keen on too much flavour you can make mozzarella or leave them plain. You can either make the dish in two stages or just put it all in at once. If you do the later I suggest that you use a low fat mince as otherwise there will be lots of fat in your sauce.

Slow Cooked Meatballs With Chilli Cheese Centre 

• Scotch Bonnet And Red Pepper Cheese
• 500g beef mince
• 1 slice of bread 
• 1 medium egg
• 2 tins of chopped tomatoes
• 1 oxo cube
• 1tbsp caster sugar
• 1tbsp balsamic vinegar

1. Set your slow cooker to low.
2. Cut the cheese into small cubes. It is quite a soft cheese so you should then be able to roll these into little balls.
3. Blitz the slice of bread in a food processor so that you make breadcrumbs.
4. Combine the breadcrumbs with the mince, bread and egg.
5. Use this mixture to wrap the meat around the cheese and place in the slow cooker for a few hours.
6. Remove any excess fat and then add the tomatoes, sugar, vinegar and oxo cube.
7. Cook for a further 30 minutes and serve of pasta of your choice.

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So all was ready for our outdoor picnic. I called the boys to wash their hands. And with that dark black rain clouds appeared. Fear not. A few blankets were bought downstairs and we had a picnic there instead.


The boys loved the Little Yeos, and with all natural ingredients, so did I. Sometimes it is the simple pleasures in life that are the best. My plans hadn't quite gone as I had hoped but the boys enjoyed their walk outside and the indoor picnic.

As little man had collected some leaves and sticks on our walk we then made some autumn themed pictures. He loves crafting at the best of times but when nature is involved it is even better!



What do you do to make the most of autumn? Have your little ones discovered Little Yeos yet?

When I saw that this month's Bostik bloggers challenge was bonfire themed I knew exactly what craft little man would  like to make. He loves collecting sticks and often insists on bringing them home, so I thought I would combine this into a crafting opportunity.


Whether you like it or not, autumn is well and truly here. I find it a hard time to entertain the boys. If the weather is nice after school then we need to make the most of being outside. Whether it is a trip to the park or a walk in the woods. Last week we went on a woodland walk and little man was in his elements. Any Mum of boys (and probably a lot of girls) will know that they love sticks. Well little man loves sticks, pinecones, dead leaves. You name it, he picks it up and wants to bring it home. On this occasion he was in luck as I said yes! We could use his hoard in some crafting.

STUDIOCANAL is pleased to announce that the final volume in Season One of the popular Cbeebies show Bing is coming to DVD on 17 October and to celebrate they have given me 2 copies of the DVD to giveaway to my lucky readers.


Bing: Show… And Other Episodes is the eighth and final volume in Season One, following Swing, Storytime, Paddling Pool, Fireworks, Surprise Machine, Music and Cat. The DVD comes with paper cut-outs of the characters where families can enjoy creating a scene, prefect for a night in this Halloween! Or if you are being organised you could always put it away for Christmas.

There are also some lovely activity sheets I have been given to share with you and your Bing fans.




Round the corner, not far away, Bing and Flop (voiced by OSCAR-winning Mark Rylance) are ready to play!

Celebrating the noisy, joyful, messy reality of pre-school life, Bing stories may be small, but they are full of everyday dramas that all young children and the grown-ups in their lives will recognise!

You can pre order your copy of Bing: Show...and other episodes from Amazon.





To be in with a chance of winning, just complete the Gleam entry below making sure that you answer the mandatory question: Which Oscar-winning actor plays the voice of Flop? Good Luck!

Bing DVD

Raspberry mousse cake was a bit of a risk for this week's Great Bloggers Bake Off. Firstly, I had never made a raspberry mousse cake before. Secondly, I had never made a genoise sponge before. And thirdly I had only ever made a cheats orange mousse before.



However, knowing that my orange mousse sets well I decided it would probably work in raspberry and therefore as long as the sponge went ok, it should stand up. I am pleased to say that it did. Again to make my life easier I made an 8 inch sponge and then cut it into smaller squares. The raspberries I used sunk to the bottom, creating a thing layer between the sponge and mousse. I would love to say that I had planned it this way, but I hadn't. It was more due to my impatience of waiting for the jelly to set. But it seemed to turn out as an added bonus.

Raspberry Mousse Cake

For The Genoise Sponge 

• 65g Plain Flour
• 65g Golden Caster Sugar
• 12g Melted Butter 
• 2 medium eggs

For The Raspberry Mousse 


• 1/2 packet raspberry Jelly
• 1/4 boiling water plus 1/4 pint cold water
• A Handful Of Raspberries 
• 100ml evaporated milk

1. Preheat the oven to 180C.
2. Whisk the eggs and sugar for 10mins.
3. Fold in the flour and melted butter.
4. Pour into a square 8inch cake tin.
5. Bake at 180C until golden brown and a skewer comes out clean
6. Allow to cool. Then add foil to the cake tin and put the cake back inside. This is so you can easily remove the cake with mousse once it is set.
7. To make the mousse, make up 1/2 packet of raspberry jelly. Pour the evaporated milk, raspberries and jelly into a mixer and whisk until light and frothy.
8. Place the cake into the freezer for 10 minutes to get cold and place the mousse mixture into the fridge to start setting.
9. After 10 minutes place the mousse on top of the cake and place back into the fridge to set.
10. Cut into smaller cakes and enjoy.

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Dear Merlin Customer Services

We have loved our Merlin passes. Yes they are expensive but also great value. I have given you loads of free exposure from our days out. I guess that's why I am so annoyed. I have been loyal to you. Spreading the word that Merlin passes are great. Like many pass holders do.

Today, however, you have made me feel worthless. Just a number and not a person. You see I am by myself this weekend with my 3 young boys. We had arranged to meet a friend at Chessington. We were about to leave when I realised my husband had taken 2 of their passes. But hey, they have serial numbers on them. We queue at annual pass booths for hours to get their picture put on. In this day and age you must be able to check that we have them on your computer.

No.

No pass, no entry.

"You can get a friends and family rate."

It might say it in the terms and conditions Merlin, but that doesn't mean it is right.

What is the point of the card with a photo and all the details if there isn't any help when a mistake happens? Why can't you say pay full price entry. Then once you have confirmed that we aren't the lying thieving scum that you thought we were, you would offer a refund?

You have disappointed my boys today, but me even more.

A company I once raved about is now a company that has reduced me to tears of frustration. One that is unwilling to help. One that would rather charge me twice for entry than look into the pass numbers and confirm that we do have passes.

It is lazy and it is bad customer service.

Regards

One disappointed premium annual pass holder.

For the very first time BBC Children in Need, and Abbey Home Media are bringing together all your favourite CBeebies shows on DVD to help disadvantaged children and young people throughout the UK. Dontaions from the purchasing of the DVD will go towards, helping children and young people across the UK have a safe, happy and secure childhood and the chance to reach their potential. This donation has been made possible through the generosity of the many companies and individuals involved who have either contributed their shows or services to this unique project with no charge.


Pudsey and Friends DVD has 15 episodes for your little ones to enjoy including Octonauts, Bing, In the night garden and The Furchester hotel. The DVD goes on sale on Monday 10th October and can be pre ordered from Amazon.
Pudsey and Friends

The sugarcraft icing can be made in advance and for more information on the products I use, you can visit my English Rose Cupcakes post. Silicon moulds are so easy to use and can be picked up at a good price on ebay or a cake shop.

I can see myself making good use of this little beauty, and as I am a big baker, I am not sure why I have waited so long to get one!

Caramel Apple Cake

• 300g Self Raising Flour
• 250g Light Brown Sugar
• 200ml Vegetable Oil
• 3 medium eggs
• 300g grated eating apples
• 1tbsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1tsp Ground Ginger

For the Caramel Butter Cream


• 150g Butter
• 300g Icing Sugar
• 150g Carnation Caramel

For the Toffee Apple Decoration


• 4 tbsp Golden Caster Sugar
• A Drop Of Vinegar
• 1 tbsp Golden Syrup
• 1 apple sliced

1. Whisk the flour and sugar together.
2. Fold in the rest of the cake ingredients.
3. Line and grease 3 x 20cm Spring form pans and share the mixture between these.
4. Bake at 180C until golden brown and a skewer comes out clean.
5. Allow to cool.
6. To make the buttercream, mix the butter, icing sugar and caramel together and use it to sandwich and top the cake.
7. The toffee apple decoration is probably the hardest part of the cake! I followed this recipe.