Easter

May as well say this is an 'annual Easter catch up' since I technically did the same thing last year {about 10 posts ago} 

My beautiful little nieces are moving away interstate and my kids wanted to do a movie night and sleepover with them so we {I} set the playroom up with all the mattresses and a little treat station. We stayed up late, watched the movie HOP and I fed them a huge amount of sugar, you know typical auntie stuff.  

I have a small kids table in the corner of the playroom that I covered with fabric and hung a strand of lights over. If you look up when your in my house you can see quite a few clear 3M hooks, I use them for everything {but rarely take them down}. The kids thought it looked a bit special. 

Fyn and I made these little cookie pops, but other than that it was just popcorn and store bought treats in pretty bowls. We did try to make ice-cream pops {small balls of ice-cream frozen hard and then dipped in chocolate} Total disaster. Ice-cream melting all over the place, so I found a few things in my pantry and threw them in the food processor {milk arrowroot biscuits, pre made frosting, cocoa} rolled them up and dipped them in chocolate and sprinkles. I was in a bit of a rush so they could have looked better but very delicious and a big hit. 

This year we {I} had to make 2 little easter hats for the girls kindy parade. They were my first 'girl' hats, so I got a bit carried away with the flowers and the glue gun.

The girls were very happy with the hats and thought they were absolutely beautiful. Until they saw the other kids and realised they were the only ones with meadows on their heads. After that they were a bit um ... apprehensive. 

This is the table set for Easter dinner. The flowers are in ramekins and are from a neighbouring tree, can't be sure but they may be weeds. Each person got a little chocolate chicken, $3 for a whole bag and surprisingly yum. 

Now I'm just showing off my view.

The Big Sleep

When it comes to sleeping my children range from 'Perfect' all the way down to 'Paige'. For years I've had it easy, babies in bed by 7pm big kids by 7.30 followed by hours of peace and quiet. {Generally speaking} But a few weeks ago I finally had to move Paige from her cell cot to the big girls room.

I planned the room around this fabric I found online.
Aloha by Alexander Henry

When I designed it I imagined the girls whispering in the dark and sleeping with their dolls. Ha, the naive dreams of the inexperienced! Instead she has disrupted the entire system so that by the time everyone is asleep it's more like 9pm. I even have enough rooms that I have threatened to move her away from the other kids.

One of the problems was that both girls were scared of the dark and I was leaving lights on everywhere until I finally decided to make a night light. I had this lantern in the room already as well as a small set of fairy lights. I tried to put the lights in evenly but in the end it was too hard so they're all just shoved in there. Luckily they are white so you can't even really see them in the day time. It's the perfect amount of light and the lattice shape casts lovely patterns, the girls think it's so pretty.

Now I just have to solve all the other problems. Soft music, warm milk? If you have ever had a spunky toddler with bedtime issues then please help!

First Birthday

Falling pregnant with Lochie was a total surprise, so when he was born I was relieved that he was healthy and gorgeous a good sleeper and a good feeder. {Better than the girls, thank goodness} As an added bonus it turns out he has a sweet disposition an endlessly happy nature and a smile that can light up the world. He beams at everyone he sees and people coo over him constantly. He is a complete ray of sunshine.

So fittingly when I found this cake I knew it was the one.

jessicakesblog.blogspot.com

Isn't it adorable. Boyish, babyish and very sunny! Unfortunately I have a strict policy about fondant icing. {I'm too chicken to use it!} Add to that the fact that I only started to make it at 8pm the night before and well ... lets just say the whole thing turned out incredibly average! The weather was cool and overcast and the birthday boy had a cold so it wasn't the perfectly sunny affair I had in mind but true to form Lochie was still incredibly happy about the whole thing.

Here is my half finished version. I ran out of yellow icing, couldn't find my little toy aeroplane and the orange chocolate rays didn't even make it to the cake they're still in the fridge!

But Lochie loved it. 

Cake Musing

Although I have 4 kiddies Lochie is the first one to have a birthday at the beginning of the year. I have only just realised it's a few weeks away and I've done nothing! {I usually happily muse over birthdays for ages before the day.} But with Christmas and holidays and back to school it kind of slipped my mind. I know shock horror.

Traditionally they don't start having little parties until their older, the first birthday is just a family BBQ. I come from a small family of 37 {19 of them are kids} and they're just the ones who live close by. Exactly. 

So although it's nothing big It's always big, if you get my drift and unbelievably I cant even think of a birthday cake I would like to make him. Hence the late musing.

Lochie is very happy so I want it to be something ... sunny. Like Mias garden party pot plant cake.

Only more boyish.

Like Fyns Australia Zoo crocodile cake.

Only more babyish {and simple!}

Like Paiges chocolate honey beehive cake.

Only bigger, something that can feed a crowd.





 Like Mias strawberry ice-cream and vanilla cake.

Only less meltable because working with ice-cream in summer is tricky!

So something sunny, boyish, babyish, simple, large and of course something absolutely delicious {that wont melt.} Should be a piece of cake. Yep, I really just typed that. 

Baking Weather

First, Happy New Year!

I considered ditching the blog this year, it was last years resolution and this year I want to move on to other things. However as I wrote a total of 15 posts I can't really say it took up a huge amount of my time and everything is always so pretty and clean in blog land. So hear I am again.

Second, what is up with this rain?
If you don't have to work and your not too busy trying to entertain your kiddies who are mad with 'it's raining I'm suddenly whinny' fever then this here is baking weather y'all!

Cubbies: good for 'whiney' fever

Baked Pumpkin Cheesecake
I love pumpkin pie and this has the same flavours so I thought it was gorgeous. After starting I realised I didn't actually have enough cream cheese, in fact I was a whole block and a half short luckily it turned out anyway. Considering that and the fact it has pumpkin in it some would say {me} that this is quite healthy.

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup digestive biscuit crumbs

1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

60g butter, melted

{I just blitzed 3/4 a packet gingernut biscuits and 60g butter}

750g block PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, cubed and softened

{or almost 500g in my case}

1/2 cup caster sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 eggs

2 tablespoons thickened cream

1 1/2 cups mashed cooked pumpkin

1 tablespoon cornflour

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups sour cream

2 tablespoons caster sugar

Pecan nuts, to garnish

Maple syrup to serve

COMBINE biscuit crumbs, pecans, brown sugar and butter. Press into a greased 24cm (9”) springform pan. Chill.

BEAT the Philly, sugars and vanilla using an electric mixer, until smooth. Beat in the eggs and cream until well combined. Add the pumpkin, sifted cornflour, spices and salt and mix on a low speed until well mixed.

POUR filling into crust and bake at 160°C for 50 minutes until just set. Allow to cool 5 minutes. Whisk together the sour cream and sugar then pour over the top. Bake for a further 10 minutes then allow to cool completely in oven with door ajar. Refrigerate 3-4 hours before serving. Serve garnished with pecan nuts and drizzled with maple syrup.

Stage Three

I have officially reached all requirements for stage three on my Christmas scale.

Stage 1. Believe in Santa, everything is magic, its all about the presents!
Stage 2. Pretend to believe in Santa, everything is relaxing, it's all about the presents!
Stage 3. Become Santa, everything magic requires your hard work, its all about the food!

This year I am making the Christmas dinner for the extended family. Me. Turkey, gravy, potatoes the whole deal. I am wishing for a perfect juicy turkey {I know it can be done!} golden crunchy potatoes and perfectly done roast vegetables. No need to panic.

Buffet all dressed for deserts. {Although that's a bit of joke as it's woefully inadequate to hold all the deserts my family will have.}

Now thats a party table! Looks like way more fun ... maybe I'll sit with the kids this year.

Joy Joy Joy

What party planning, decorator loving, holiday worshiping, baking mamma doesn't LOVE Christmas? Even in my house where I adore matt finishes and washed out neutral colours everything is a bit glittery and bright. I love the music {though my family thinks October is too early to start playing it, as if} I love the food {I have usually eaten about 2 packs of mince pies by December, no judging} I love the decorations, the family time, the weather, the craft, the treats, the kindess, the cards and being a Christian I love celebrating the birth of Jesus. Love it, love it, love it. 

Featuring my 'new' cake stand

Sadly our Christmas DVD collection had exceeded the Christmas book collection. Will have to fix that.

All these family photos were taken by Deep Grey

That's were the 'sentimental' ornaments hang.

Here is what I used that painted frame for in my playroom to showcase the kids Christmas art and cards. I got these pegs in a Christmas sale last year for $4 they are just stuck to the wall with blutak and the frame with some 3M velcro tabs. 

Is this not the most Australian Christmas picture, mango anyone?