The Last Few Months....Part 1: My Huddo

Well I guess you could say alot has been happening with my Huddo... he turned 2 last month. His talking is coming along and I've become well acquainted with how busy life is with a two year old and keeping him amused.

 This mummy now has a schedule board with all my Huddo activities, housework and exercise training mapped out so I can keep on top of things and have plenty of time for fun stuff with my Huddo.

Huddo also turned 2 and even though he didn't have a party this really turned out to be quite a celebration over a couple of weeks catching up with most of the family and yes I got a little crazy in the cake department...He has gone into a 'Big Boy Bed' so far without drama. I really love our new night routine of laying in bed with him before he goes to sleep reading multiple stories.

And I have been attempting to find a balance between educational activities that are done both with and without Apple Technology! (Children these days are born with a programmed knowledge from Apple for iPads, iPods and iPhones...I swear!) But I have found these to be great tools at expanding his intelligence for games like Memory, mazes (I reckon I didn't understand the concept of navigating a maze until primary school...my 2 year old now solves them quicker than me) and just general recognition and learning the good old problem solving of process of elimination. Huddo has also found a love of Troy's passion for computer games and does the odd stint a couple of times a week sitting on Dad's lap observing...Troy asked him how old he was going to be before he could play games with Dad....Huddo replied "2!".... hmmmm .. lol.
But with old school games jig saw puzzles are definitely Hudson's forte. In May I started him with 9 piece puzzles, educating him in the basics of 'corner pieces', 'edge pieces'... and then the middle. It is now the end of the September and my 25 month old can confidently finish 30 pieces on his own. He loves the challenge and fun if I assist and we take an hour or so on 48 and 50 piece puzzles. Recently my friend Mel gave him a 28 piece puzzle of the alphabet. He can finish the puzzle in just under 10 minutes but now I am trying to incorporate his love of puzzles to teach him the alphabet. He has had this puzzle for almost a week and when asked knows 8 of the 26 letters. .....progress! And he thinks it to be quite fun when in the middle of a story and I stop and go "Oh there is a H in that word....where is it?" :) I think with everyone constantly asking if the 'terrible twos' have kicked in I find myself acknowledging yes there are definitely some changes and boundaries being tested but I think there is a lot to be said for not treating them like babies any longer and not writing off 'oh he/she won't have the attention span to learn that she/he is too young' and just giving something a go like a jigsaw puzzle or teaching them 'memory'. I'm not by any means one of those parents that thinks my child is 'gifted' I do think he is being assisted with capitalising on his potential and find that these activities are making for transitions with his 'turning 2' a lot easier as he is being challenged and well occupied. Like anything I put on this blog, I am no expert and have only one child. I simply love this blog for sharing 'what works' for me and it just may assist you. :)

So to give you the highlights of late in awesome 'picframe'
glory (yep I'm still a photo junkie...love all these multipic apps. And I recently finished Huddo's 2nd Year Photobook....70 pages and over 650 photos...I'm a dork)

Yep life is definitely great for our little family of 3!

3 Breakfast Recipes...

So to continue along my post from last night, I thought I would post 3 recipes that I've been making lately for breakfast. I've always been an egg lover and from previous posts you may have seen different ways I've served eggs to Huddo and to myself and Troy but in adapting the '6 Meals A Day' lifestyle I've switched things up accordingly and now do eggs in my 'meal 2' and this generally falls around Huddo's morning tea time so he has 2 hard boiled eggs for his morning tea with his cup of milk.

RECIPE 1: IMMUNITY BOOSTING MUSELI (for grown ups)
Most days Troy and I are having oats with a cup of berries, tablespoon of flaxseed oil and 50mL of Almond milk (Troy has Trim Milk and no flaxseed oil) But once a week as you saw in the previous post I make up a batch of 'Immunity Boosting Museli'. This was a recipe I got from Oxygen Magazine (April/May 2012 Issue) and I now just interchange different ingredients in it from week to week.

The original recipe is (in brackets are some substitutes/variations I've used)
These quantities make 2 serves. (adjust accordingly to how many serves you'd like, I make enough for 4-5 generally)

Ingredients:
1/2 cup oats
1 cup of non-fat plain greek yoghurt
1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds (I've been using Pura Veda for something different the last couple of weeks, have used Chia seeds)
1 tablespoon crushed/chopped almonds
1 tsp cinnamon (I also use 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger and 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg)
1 cup fresh mixed berries
1 tablespoon 100% maple syrup (I don't use maple syrup to avoid the sugar I use Xylitol)

Method:
1. Stir oats into yoghurt
2. Mix in ground flaxseeds and crushed almonds.
3. Stir in cinnamon and mix.
4. Toss berries and stir in syrup. Refrigerate overnight.

Some info on this recipe when made with original ingredients-
Cals: 242, Total fats: 5g, Saturated fat: 0.5g, Trans fat: 0g, Sodium 36mg, Carbs: 36g, Sugar: 18g (by switching in the xylitol you lower this big time) Protein 16g, Iron: 1mg.

RECIPE 2: BANANA RICE (for little people....and grown ups too if you like the sound of it :) )
For my Huddo...well he has decided he's not into porridge this winter so for a nice warm carby brekky for him I have been making him

1 cup of cooked brown rice, 1 banana mashed and splash of full cream milk and heated in the microwave (I have a massive bowl of brown rice on the go in the fridge these days so even tho the rice is cooked it's generally cold) for 25 seconds. It's currently his favourite breakfast.

RECIPE 3: PROTEIN PANCAKES (for grown ups)
for a kiddy version please see my post from earlier in the year. (I use a different protein powder for Hudson)

Ingredients:
150g Gluten-free self raising flour (yep I go with the better tummy options these days)
pinch of salt
300ml of Almond milk
1 egg
2 scoops of your protein powder of choice
1/4 flaxseed meal

Method:
1) Sift flour into a bowl and add remaining ingredients and whisk well.
2) Cook in a fry pan on high heat. I cook these using Nuttelex Olive Lite. Remember best time to flip a pancake is when there are some serious bubbles occurring.

This mix should give you about 8-11 pancakes.

For anyone who suffers with a bit of a funny tummy, something that I've personally been doing first thing when I get up is having a glass (250ml) of warm-hot water with the juice of half a lemon squeezed into it. By drinking this it assists with clearing the mucus in the digestive tract that can build up through the night so that by the time you have your first meal for the day things are bit clearer through there and function a bit better. (Anyone who is a fan of the Blood Type Diet this is particularly beneficial for Type A's.) The difference I've found with this is amazing.

Hope you all had a great start to the week. :)

What stuff this Mummy has been up to lately...

The days just seems to be flying by and what do you know.....I'm now only 2 months away from celebrating my Huddo's 2nd birthday. Even though we aren't having a party this year I'm already deep in research for making him an extra special birthday cake and today Troy and I scoped out the Target Toy Sale to get ideas as to what we will get him for pressies. Decisions decisions.

I've been staying well and truly on track with my fitness goals and hitting new highs each week, whether it is running a distance in a better time, lifting heavier weights in a strength training session or being able to run at a faster pace on the treadmill for my sprint intervals. (got up to 17km/hr for 1 minute on Friday on my 5th sprint interval....I nearly died, cried and squealed all at the same time!)

The saying generally is with fitness and transformations that 20% of the result is from training, 80% is from nutrition. Troy has been working really hard also and we have well and truly adapted the '6 Meals a day' lifestyle. The organisational skills I've had to step up have been huge to keep on top of the food for this little family of three and as well as keeping on track with the health side as always I'm mindful of waste and being economical. I'm actually in the process of a little experiment and planning to share tips into the costs of planning of how all three of us are eating our own catered meal plans but keeping cost and time effective.

To give you a peek into the world of 'food prep' in my house...things look a little like this:

This is an example of a breakfast that I make for Troy and I and there was 5 portions there for 3 days worth for Troy and 2 days for me. I have been doing this will so many meals because ultimately everything I do I aim to be so efficient as my favourite thing to do is play with my Huddo. He's really getting into puzzles and so many activities that I pretty much am his main play mate. Things aren't all sunshine and rainbows by any means though, we are starting to see glimpses of the 'terrible twos' and tantrums seem to be getting more frequent. But all the more reason to be organised so that I have the time to be with my little man and keep him busy and well distracted. :)

Mega-Veg Slice.....with Mediterranean Couscous

If there is one thing I find a bit of a challenge to set myself some weeks it's assessing what is in the panty and the fridge that may be in need of 'being used' before it's too late and becoming waste.....which is seriously my pet hate. So last Sunday I was meal planning and cleaning out the pantry and the fridge and got myself a pile of things together to make Huddo's savoury snack of the week. (I like to have one savoury and one sweet on hand).

This is what eventuated...

Ingredients:
1 Cup of cooked Continental Mediterranean Cous Cous (pictured below)
1 cup of freshly grated beetroot
2 Zucchinis peeled and grated
1 Carrot peeled and grated
1 Celery stalks chopped finely
1 Cup of baby spinach leaves.
2 cups of Oats (blended through the food processor to make 'oat flour')
2 eggs
1/2 cup of milk of choice (I use full cream cow's milk or almond milk for 'Huddo things')
1 teaspoon of bicarb soda
1 tablespoon of linseed meal
1/2 cup of grated cheese
salt and pepper to taste.

Method:
1)Chop and prepare veggies as pictured above and preheat oven to 190oC
2)Get Cous Cous cooking as directed on the box
3)Combine all ingredients except beetroot, and cheese. (Once cous cous is cooked measure out one cup and add in) Stir thoroughly.
4) Place into baking tray and spread out evenly. Sprinkle beetroot and cheese on top.

Note: you can put the beetroot through the mix however, just note that obviously your mix will turn red/purplish and just a silly thing with Huddo but I've noticed he's not to keen these days on his food being dominated by this colour. .......don't ask me why! :/ So I chose to sprinkle on top as I love the nutrients in beetroot.

5)Place in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes until cooked (will go golden around the edges).

Slice into 8-12 pieces and store in the fridge. (I sliced into 10 pieces and put 6 in the freezer and 4 in the fridge).

Happy Monday!! :) 

The 100th...

Today I give you my 100th post into the blogisphere.
This week also marked the 1st Birthday of this blog and only 120 clicks away from the 10 000 page view mark which hey I realize that in blog terms I'm very very small potatoes but there is definitely a sense of achievement in myself that I've stuck to this and watched it grow..

I really feel that this blog has gone down the path of anything this mummy encounters and to be honest as I click back over the previous 99 posts there is just so much more. I truly love being a mum and embrace the fact that I have so many moments in a day where I look at Huddo and just take in the stage he is at as he is growing so quickly and I can't believe he is less than 4 months away from the milestone of his 2nd Birthday.

I feel that I have been lucky to stay at home with him and in that time find hobbies and interests that I always thought about but just never took the time to really learn and expand on when I was working. Watching our routine change and incorporate different activities means there is just never a dull moment and I like that we are always keeping busy and not taking for granted our time home together. I've also been very lucky that as much as I call myself a 'Stay-at-home' mum I still work 2 days a week at Eumundi Markets. One of those days Huddo stays home with his daddy, the other he comes to work with me and watching his confidence grow in that awesome environment I have no words for.

I just all round feel like a lucky girl with both my Huddo and my Troy and at this moment really proud of my most recent personal achievement which is that I have now lost a total of 13.2kg and truly am the fittest and healthiest I've been in my entire life. I haven't latched on to the latest fad diet but just simply eaten awesomely healthy food while still have the occasional indulgence, kept up breastfeeding and found fitness in that old expression of 'stepping out of your comfort zone'. 

So here is where I share with you a couple of photos....ok.

This was a photo taken of me at Christmas. I was 70kg and a size 14.

This is me and my Huddo 3 weeks ago. I've lost another 1.2kg since this pic I'm most proud of the fact that in this pic I'm wearing size 8 skinny leg jeans. (they are starting to feel a little loose). So now comes into the great mission of toning up and maintaining my new weight (1.8kg until I'm at my 55kg goal weight) . ....Let the mission begin.

Last September I set myself a goal of running at 10km running event....well better late than never but for the last 4 weeks on Sunday afternoons I've been running 10.5kms and last Sunday ran 12kms....in 1 hour and 17 minutes. So not only am I getting the endurance I'm actually starting to get some good pace which I'm so proud of. I love running and plan to keep it up but this coming Monday I start the "Jamie Eason LiveFit Program" which is more weights and strength based to help tone up this mummy......mainly so I don't jiggle when I run. :) 

Hope you are all having a great week.

Ginger & Soy Mince Stirfry

I got a little experimental....as I tend to do....the other night and created a dish that incorporated all the things that particularly Troy and I are after at the moment with exercising daily. And I knew it would also be beneficial for Huddo and something that he would love.

I'm calling it Ginger & Soy Mince Stirfry..

Ingredients:
500g Organic Chicken Mince
1/2 a large sweet potato diced
1/2 a sugarloaf cabbage chopped into thin strips
2 cups of baby spinach
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 teaspoon of ground ginger.
1 teaspoon of extra virgin coconut oil

Method:
1)Cook mince on its own in the coconut oil. Once cooked take out and place on a plate.
2)Cook sweet potato until moderately soft with a lid over the fry pan to try and trap and some steaming effect on the potato.  
3)Add chicken back into the pan as well as adding cabbage, spinach, soy and ginger.
4)Cook for 5-10 minutes on med-high heat.

For the serving suggestion on this one for the calorie conscious....measure out 2 cups full of the mix.
This gives you 204 calories. 27g carbs, 4g fat, 16g protein and 3g fibre.

Recent Cakes.....

At the beginning of the month I had two cakes to make within 30 hours. Trust me when you are a mummy and doing parts of a cake in stages fitting in amongst keeping your house clean and organised and still doing your day to day activities with your toddler........let's just say as much as I love cake decorating as a hobby I stand by the theory that I don't think I could handle it as an 'at home' business.
However with a bit of sleep deprivation I managed to get these 2 cakes done and the recipients were very happy! :)

First up was my little cousin Charlie whose top 5 favourite colours are red, pink, purple, aqua and blue. So I made her a butterfly with all her favourites on it....

The camera alters the colour of the pink slightly. But if you are wondering "Where is the red?"....inside is red velvet cake. For the shape I simply hired the 'Wilton Butterfly' cake tin.

And you would think I would of learned from the 'Bejeweled Cake' disaster but no. I was getting ready to go to a barbeque for Charlie's birthday and had the cake in a large container ready to go when ....thud....yep you guessed it, a certain little person was very curious about what was inside the container. Thank god for the cake board fitting very snuggly into the container as the cake only dislodged slightly but I did have to redo the writing on the board and repipe some of the pink edge...hmmmmmm.....I was not impressed. More so with myself than Huddo.


Next up was a cake for my brother Thomas. He turned 12 this month and is an incredible young rugby league player. He is also a keen supporter of the Gold Coast Titans. So like the 'North Queensland Cowboys' cake I did for my cousin Harley. I hired the 'Wilton Football' tin and attempted to free hand the Gold Coast Titans logo and do a custom footy just for Tommy.

I was quite happy with both of these and more importantly that I actually got them both completed in the time I had!