My 5 top tips to get your kids to eat everything in their lunchbox (and for you to avoid lunchbox anxiety!)

Coming to that time of the year here in Australia when attentions turn to getting back to school.  Hairdressers are booking out, getting school shoes is like entering a war-zone of over-frustrated parents and their kids and countdown timers start to appear on desktops (XX days until school starts).  

My Hubby has done most of the school holidays solo this year, he's very ready for the frills to return, but me, I love having them at home - and like to have the break from the rush of getting to school, the million lists of things that have to be in the bag on certain days.. 

I've just started up my lunchbox baking for stashing, (check out my lunchbox legends category with over 60 posts for ideas) and went to a GLAD Sandwich masterclass this week for some ideas.  I don't have trouble getting my frills to eat their lunches but it does seem to be a common problem for a lot of people - I'm guessing my kids are either not picky or prioritise food over playtime.. but I do have a little bit of a system I think does help.

1.  Keep it varied

Even though your kid's favourite sandwich might be vegemite on white bread, it's good to mix it up.  It doesn't need to be a sandwich for one.   It could be sushi, or summer rolls, mini quiches, macaroni slice or even some savoury rice, boiled eggs - try this once a week... variety keeps the whole lunchbox opening a surprise and a little bit of anticipation 'what have I got today?!' happening.

2.  Keep it simple

You don't need to spend 2 hours assembling lunchboxes.  Kids don't need 24 different varieties of things just in case they don't feel like something.  I keep it to 4 things in the lunchbox.  

1 main thing (like the sandwich, sushi, quiche etc.) to have at lunch

3 small things (to give them a choice of when to have it - 2 for recess, one for lunch is what I encourage my girls to do)

Some examples of small things:

1. - dried mixed fruit bags - like sultanas, raisins, dried apples, apricot balls, banana chips
2. - yoghurt (I usually give plain yoghurt and dress it up with a dash of vanilla or stir through a blob of jam)
3. - boiled egg
4. - baked goodies (muffins, slices, muesli bars)
5. - Piece of fruit or some loose small fruits like grapes, blueberries, cut up strawberries, some cherry tomatoes
6. - crackers & diced cheese
7. - Popcorn (this way it's ready in 3 minutes - don't by the microwave popcorn!)
8. - some veges to dip, I find my kids will eat more carrot sticks if I give them something to dip it into (tzatziki is Olivia's favourite and hoummus is Laura and Eloise's!)

3. Stash, stash stash - get organised!

Bake and stash muffins, slices, muesli bars.   I am having a big bake up this week and will make 5 varieties and put them in my deep freeze in week lots.  3 of each thing in a zip lock bag = 15 things.   I take this out of the freezer on a Sunday night and we pop it in the lunchbox from the bag each day.  Easy.

You can also make up the mini-zip lock bags with dried fruit as above in lots - don't buy boxes of sultanas/dried fruit, as I learned - a big waster of money when you can make loads of bags with variety.  I do the mini-bags with rice crackers, water crackers, popcorn or just plain cheerios.  I put them all in a big storage container already made up in my pantry... then you can just pull them out when needed, great for emergency car snacks too.

For the fridge you can cut up cubes of cheese, put carrot/celery sticks in them and keep them in the crisper ready to go. 

4.  Get a decent lunchbox and drink bottle

Make sure they will last AND that your kids can actually open them.  If your child is prone to losing things, don't buy expensive ones.  I like compartmentalised lunchboxes - these ones are a bit on the larger side but they fit everything and we've been using them for 2 years and I've only had to replace one.  I have had to buy some more of the inner compartment - due to being lost but love them, they're liquid type.

For the drink bottle, do not recommend a spout that can be chewed.  You're asking for leaking drink bottles on homework, artwork, lunch and your car.  Learn from my heartaches.. please!

Something with a screwtop lid is your best bet - easy to wash too

5.  Get your kids involved!

And by this, I don't mean ask them what they want.  At 5 they can learn to butter bread, by 7 they should be able to make a sandwich, even little ones at preschool can help get all the stashed stuff together and put it in their lunchbox.  Get your kids to help in the baking, choosing the crackers.  They are much more likely to eat something they associate fun or something of their choosing with.

Anything you'd like to add?  What's your experience with lunchboxes? Do they come home full or empty?

What happened last weekend....

My life has never been so much like a game of tetris.  Squeezing in everything rushing, rushing rushing.  Last weekend was no exception.

Some things we got up to:
Spent some time in the garden:

We re-planted the opera house garden - celery, tomatoes, chillies, cucumber, lettuce, carrots and zucchini - plus of course nasturtiums to keep the snails out...

Cut back the passionfruit a little...

bought some lattice for $1 a length from Bunnings, it was obviously not perfect, but it will be covered within a year with this lovely little lonely passionfruit...

We did a lot of driving, and as my hubby drove, I got some cooking inspiration from Martha Stewart and Super Food Ideas magazines online...love this! 

And on Saturday night hubby and I got dressed up for the school's trivia night... our table drew the short straw and we were the 'Pimps and Pros' table.  Hubby won a best dressed award as a pimp!

And I went as 'John, the customer'

Dodgy right?  We did raise just under $14,000 for our school, and had a great night, so worthwhile!

And of course.... waaaaaaaaaaaafffffles.  Love my new waffle maker!

Did you do anything out of the usual last weekend?

What I am loving about having an iPhone....

I'm usually one of the first to take up new technology but when it comes to Apple products I'm a bit of a Johnny come lately.   I only got my first iPod 3 years ago (and still use it almost daily) and around the same time I opted not to get a first generation iPhone because at the time, it didn't have any MS project capabilities which I needed professionally - so I got a windows phone... and that served me very well until it's sudden and complete demise about a month ago.

So now I have an iPhone I'm wondering how the heck I've lived without it! Well OK, that's an exaggeration but more accurately how I could live without one now..

The apps that I'm loving
For the OCD in me 
I've just downloaded Things.  Things costs money ($13) but for a compulsive list maker who has a tendency to take on too much it is worth it.

You tap in your tasks, due date, when you want a reminder and then you can categorise it with tags - so if I have a recipe which I'm doing for say KleenexMums - I tap in the recipe and then categorise it as KleenexMums and then tap in the ingredients I need to buy to make it and then tag it as shopping too.   Then I can bring up the tag shopping whilst I'm out and pick up those things.

It then groups your 'things' or to-do list on the landing page into 'due', 'next' etc.  You can also tap in future projects that are on your radar when you have a brainwave like I do on occasion and feel the need to jot it down.  Loving this app already!


For the foodie in me
I'm loving KitchenUnits - it's free and will translate ingredients from metric to imperial, mass to weight etc.  Great to have on hand.  Also has a kitchen timer.

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For my frugal/financial side
How good is it to have your banking on the iPhone? I love the ANZ app, it's so easy and where-ever I am I can find out how much is in the bank, make a quick transfer between accounts - love it. (I so wish that account was mine..!)

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Scan2List
Well this is a bit pre-emptive but this shopping app you can plug in your list, or the barcode and then where you shop and will tell you where in the shop to find it, so you don't miss an aisle (totally OCD!) but in the future they are looking to have pricing in there too and compare where your shopping list will cost less - I am SO looking forward to that! Hope it's not too far away

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For Convenience
Facebook and Twitter apps are so convenient and although it's useful I love the maps app too - the GPS component (for those of us who don't own one) is really useful when plotting directions - UNLESS you are in a remote area without 3G access.  I wouldn't be throwing away those street directories yet..  The Flashlight app is fun too.  All of those are free.  I am using echofon for twitter and previously used the generic twitter app but if anyone any other social media app that would be great.

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For fun
My most favourite app at the moment is Pocketbooth - it's like an old fashioned photobooth and I get the girls to pose in it - you can change the developing settings to be sepia, black and white etc.  At $1.19 I think it's great fun!

And I obviously love retro because Hipstamatic ($2.49) reminds me of the old Kodak Brownie camera pics.  (showing my age there....) you can choose film, lens, flash etc to get the look you want:

For the kids
Now I'm going all out and planning to buy my kids iPod Touch because I want my phone back!  But really if you weigh up the cost of a console game with the $ amount of the cartridges/games it's actually quite cost effective.  I love the fact that they can be educated whilst 'playing'.  It's great for car/bus trips and also as a reward for good behaviour (that's what we use it for now)

For fun - they love Barbie Fashionista - you can swap heads, headwear, jewelry, handbags, shoes and importantly hairstyles and outfits and then let the kids take numerous pics to your photoroll (oh I am deleting these often ;) ) it's free and literally a the easiest way to play Barbie without having to step on and finding those little Barbie shoes all over the house...

For education - we're loving Clockmaster because there is a huge push at our school to learn to tell time.  It's great reinforcement - it does analogue and digital on three competency levels.

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For Kindy and first grade kids I have downloaded both version of TeachMe: Kindergarten and TeachMe: First Grade - both focus on sight word as well as mathematics - the first grade one requires writing also.  Each three questions they get right they are rewarded with 'coins' to 'buy' stickers (or stamps) to place on blank scenes - also learning the value of money- subtraction etc.  Love these. Both are $1.19

So tell me what are YOU loving iPhone app-wise.. is there something you can't live without?

Chapter Two: The school yard romance has now got a little complicated...

{my little minx}

Remember last week how I told you about Laura and her 'boyfriend' Z?  It's a cute and amusing story if you haven't caught up, recommended.

This past week has been a little more amusing if that's possible.  It seems Laura has more than one admirer.  Apparently Master E declared at his family dinner last Friday night: 'I love Laura in my class and I'm going to marry her'.  His father obviously a bit shocked to hear this from his five year old who never expressed any interest in girls at all, let alone marriage asked him why:

'Because she smiles at me Dad, and I want to marry a girl who smiles at me'.

Good point.

Anyways, when Laura arrived at school on Monday, in her locker she found some drawings, of her and Master E under a rainbow with some flowers.  She said thanks and put them in her bag. Master E asked Laura if Z was still her boyfriend.   To her credit she said 'Yes, Z is a nice boy'.

At lunchtime that day Master E thought he might see if he could try his luck another way and asked Eloise, my eldest some advice:

'Can you tell Laura to be my girlfriend, I think I love her more than Z does'  Eloise's quite astute response was:

'E, I can't get my sister to do anything, I don't think it's going to work'.

Aaah, young love... here's the cute something I found hanging in the classroom:

In other related news, apparently the class has been spoken to about 'the germs we spread when kissing'.  Perhaps I'm raising the class hussy? hehe.

School yard romance

Yes, I know it's a bit early but I just have to share this with you.   It all started almost a week ago.  He let her get in front of him in the lines.  He thought he was sweet so gave him a kiss on the cheek.

That's all it took my friends.  

That night he went home and declared Laura was his girlfriend.  He asked his Mum to invite her over and drew pictures of them both with hearts and flowers.

Laura was oblivious but was very excited to see him on Monday.   Even more excited on Tuesday when it came time for the playdate.  Tuesday afternoon they walked out of school hand-in-hand.  Other kids pointed and giggled.  They did not care.

Laura returned home with a big smile and a token of Z's affection - a kite he made her from paper and masking tape.  She won't let us touch it - it's HERS.   

A few hours later, a picture comes up on my facebook wall - it's a photo of Z who is missing Laura so has made a life-size replica, in paper.   How ADORABLE is that?

It's all so sweet and innocent.  Two little people who are special friends. Awww.  Melts my heart!

Did you have a school yard romance or have your kids?

How my frills are growing up!

Just had to share this with you (and record this for me) just how much my little frills are growing up!

Eloise, who hasn't had much of a mention this year due it being her second year at school and her little sisters starting school - has had a lot going on herself.  She has started in year one in a 1/2 composite class.  Although she was one of only three of her class from last year she's settled in brilliantly peer-wise.  Last year she had some ups and downs in this area due some clashing with and instability of another student last year - it kind of tainted her school yard relationships somewhat.

But I'm happy to report that this year has been much more positive.  I'm sure it has something to do with that student no longer being at the school but also she's just that bit older and enjoys playing with lots of different people rather than just one or two.

Eloise at school friends birthday party

She's taken up recorder as part of her composite class and all parents who have a new recorder player in their family will be nodding as they read this:  it has been getting on our nerves a little. But actually she's doing less squeaking and more playing and she takes herself off to the backyard to torture the neighbours practice, it's all good.  She's loving it - it's a positive thing. really.

Having learned last year how important it is to nurture and encourage healthy and positive friendships in the first year of school - most weeks everyone has had a playdate.  If they have behaved, they may invite (or go on if they are invited) one friend home for an hour and a half after school.  Eloise totally surprised me when she wanted to invite a boy...!  But the boy had been in her class last year and was into Zhu Zhu pets like her so didn't really seem like a stretch - and I have to say - the best playdate ever - they just had so much in common.  I used to have male friends even in primary school so I guess it wasn't so out of the norm...!

Some days we've had two of the frills bring someone home for a playdate on the same afternoon and that's been a little crazy!  I let them run around like mad in our garden (Luckily it's enormous) and then chill out time before they go home (Thank you Barbie movies!)

And this next week - Laura is off to a boy's house for a playdate.  He apparently is drawing pictures of her and him with love hearts so I'm guessing he's a little smitten with the unsuspecting Laura who thinks of him as 'a very nice boy from my class'.  (Don't worry Laura I was always clueless in the same situations even as an adult) Laura also has her first school party on tomorrow.  There was a little tantrum when Olivia realised she didn't get an invite but that's life!  When I explain that they don't get invites to all Eloise's classmates party I think the penny dropped.  Olivia's time will come.

In fact, she's quite a popular lass herself, another playdate invite has been accepted for Monday and she's off to a playdate at a classmate's house for the second week in a row.  She's settled in beautifully and she's the only one of my three daughters that can remember to bring all her lunchbox containers home every day.

Laura, who unlike Olivia who was writing her name at 3 years old - had been very reluctant to learn how to write her name, learn the alphabet etc before school.  Her teacher is such a great fit for her personality wise because she is very structured and presses on.  Laura, 6 weeks into school is an ACE at her sounds and has improved in all areas - writes her name well now and even insisted on writing in and on the card for her classmates birthday party.. how CUTE is this?

So suffice to say, I'm a super proud (and busy) mama of three girls.  The weekends are shorter than ever - but it's thrilling to see them develop, grow and blossom.  It really is.

Tools to help your child learn the alphabet sounds (phonetics)and making words from them

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It's a really interesting year for me this year - last year with Eloise starting school I still had 2x4 year olds with me every day - and so that limited the amount of volunteering and class involvement I had at school.  I really felt sad for Eloise because she kept asking me in particular to be a 'reading mum' I suspect because she's quite naturally gifted in the reading area, she wanted an opportunity for me to watch her shine.

So this year I am doing 'reading mums'.  Both with Laura's and Eloise's classes.  I'm a 'Maths Mum' for Olivia's class.  So needless to say, I am at school three mornings a week and that promise of 'personal time' isn't looking as plentiful as I first thought.

I'm loving it though - it's really helping me help my girls at home and I'm more in touch with what they are learning in the classroom.

I have two girls in two different kindergarten classes and so the teachers approach things differently.  I'm noticing one of my girls is getting the concept of sounds and 'glue-ing' sounds together to make words than the other - and this could be down to learning style - but I've noticed since I made the same tool at home that one uses at school - she's improved a lot.

The girls love doing it and I feel like I'm really contributing to their reading skills.  I've always been a reader (and a writer!)

So what you do:

1. Print out all the pages (4 in total) from here (PDF file - 60.71kb)
2. Laminate the pages if you have access to a laminator - if you don't - don't worry - you just may need to reprint at a later date.
3. Cut out all the letters so they are individual squares

Then you have a kit!

Then you start with your sounds!  We started with a, s, t, m and then have built on them each week by adding f, i, d, e and this week we've added l, h, b and o.  I'm pretty sure after that comes n, c, p, u  and then g, k, r, w and then j, v, y with q, x an z last.

If you're not sure on how you should be sounding out words phonetically - i.e. as sounds not letters - example: pronounce the letter 'i' like a sharp 'i' as in 'igloo' not 'i' like 'eye'.  Here's a chart which you can print to help with the right pronunciations.

You start off your time with the two sound board.  And using the first week - you can use a,s,t m to ask your child how many sounds they hear in the words at, am, at - and then ask them if they can show you the letters and then place them on the tiles.  Then placing their finger on the dot, they move across whilst saying the sounds out loud to glue the letters together.

Then you can move on to 3 letter words like sat, tam, mat. 

Introduce the new letters each week and reinforce the previous letters by adding them in to make more works like sit, set, fed, etc.

Later on down the track you may want to make your own 4 letter mat too!

We are loving this and now my girls are after 4 weeks of school and not really knowing their phonetics at all - identifying words of their own!  They are amazing me!  I store them in a big ziplock bag - it's a great way to spend one-on-one time with your kids whilst helping their reading skills!

The 'other stuff' we're learning at school - as twins

When people learned we've made the decision to put our twins in separate classes at the start of school there's about a 50/50 split:  Those who think it's a great idea and those who pause then tell me it's a great idea.  I'm guessing that last 50 percent aren't exactly sure why I'd do it.

I mean it is more work for me and I do feel torn at times about who I watch line up or when I'm detained at one classroom trying to get one out whilst the other is looking for me.   There are two teachers, two routines and two lots of friends and two lots of settling into school.  But I've never regretted this decision we made.

We made this decision even before they were born - I was so relieved to hear they were fraternal twins and even more overjoyed when I noticed how visibly different they were - over time they have developed of course very differently - as they are individuals - they have very different likes/dislikes/temperament and of course learning styles.

We really did want them especially in their first year to have the opportunity to be just themselves.  Not 'the twins' as they are often called by new friends or compared which is inevitable when you have twins.

When I did canteen duty the other day I noticed that they play separately, quite happily.  They have found their own group of peers and have settled in nicely.

What we have been dealing with last week is a few things:

- Sharing friends - each of the little frills has had a play date this week at our house - they have invited someone home from their respective classes and whilst it was intended to be the same day - due to the one child's schedule we spread it out over two days.  

There was initial excitement when we walked home with our new friends - but within the first hour on both dates the twin who was not hosting the playdate was upset because they felt that the playdate had somehow replaced them.  'Laura's not my best friend anymore' and then only two days later the same from Laura's mouth 'Olivia only loves Emma, she doesn't love me anymore'.   This will only continue as they get older but I do expect it, and I have explained to them that they can have friends outside the family (they have had for a long time anyways) but it doesn't mean their special relationship has changed.  I encouraged them all to play together and that helped that the 'other' twin was reassured.

We also have an amazing week with praise in school.   Eloise received 2 respect cards on the same day Laura received a responsibility card (one-off praise cards) Olivia was gutted.  The next day she got a Learner card and then the day after that (on Friday) she received a Merit award at assembly as Student of the Week whilst Laura received a respect card.  Pretty exciting stuff..   Laura asked why she didn't get one - because we are a house of equality I can understand why she would feel that way.  I just explained that she was especially good in class and I'm sure she'll have a Merit Award before long - and reinforced how she had been fabulous she had been this week.

So I suppose with all the learning done in the classroom there's just that little bit more of a learning curve socially as a twin.  And a Mama of twins too.

We're growing up!

A budding novellist perhaps?

And before you're thinking it's me - the newest blogger with a book deal... think again!

Last week her teacher waved at me at home-time asking me for a minute.  'Sure'  I waited.   'Does Laura wear glasses?' she asked.

I was confused: 'No... she doesn't...' and suspiciously: 'Why?'

'Oh she mentioned today she couldn't concentrate because she left her glasses at home'..

Hmmmm.  Her eyesight is fine.  Little trickster!  She has has always had an active imagination...

Then last night at parent information night 'I don't suppose Laura is going to Dreamland with her Nanny without you and the other girls right?'

'Yes, that's right, nothing planned like that'  we laughed - Laura's teacher is in for an entertaining year - that's for sure - this talent for 'story-telling' may bring her fame and riches - for the time being it's giving me giggles and some thinking to do on how to allow her to have her imagination without 'stretching the truth'.

Can't wait 'til she can write - she's going to write amazing stories!  I think I might even take dictation from her.....?  If only for posterity!

Do or did any of your little ones have a hilarious or runaway imagination? Or was it you?

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It's Marvellous Monday today (for monkeys and mice that is...)

Hello!

Just had to share these cute photos of my twins - today it's Marvellous Monday at school.  Where it's all about the letter 'm' and they'll be eating milo, marshmallows and M&M's apparently...!  Very exciting.  We also had to dress up as something starting with 'm' just using 'something you have at home' which in our case was a little difficult given I had no masks and my girls did not want to sport moustaches to school.

So I got hot glue-gunning last night and made headbands with felt.  I used Eloise's possum tail from last year and curled it into a monkey tail and then quickly sewed up some grey fleece for a mouse tail.... 

May I introduce:

My Marvellous Miss Mouse:

And my Mischievous Miss Monkey!

They were SO excited to get to school and BEGGED me for face paint but you know, I didn't think they needed it.  

Aren't they cute?

Party Palooza or school fete: The toffee/candy apple!

These are so cute!  I haven't made these for a good twenty five years so when a friend asked me if I could make her some for her gorgeous rosey-cheeked-baby-girl for her first birthday how could I say no?  Well I just couldn't and of course I didn't!

I have grand memories of eating toffee apples at school fetes and I figure we could all use a good recipe because with P&C/P&F and PTA's all ready to reconvene here at schools around the country (ours convenes tonight) there's bound to be a fundraising stall - be it cake stall or full blown carnival... so here's an idea for you!

Some extra tips:  don't make these if it's humid - toffee is temperamental in humidity.  Secondly as soon as you've covered your toffee apples, have a patty-pan or two on standby, fill those and then put your saucepan straight in hot soapy water to avoid sticky-toffee-saucepan :)


Ingredients:
12 small to medium red apples (I used gala)
3 cups white sugar
3 tb glucose syrup
1 cup water
1 tsp red food colouring


Method:
Mix your sugar, glucose syrup, water and food colouring in a saucepan - with a sugar thermometer (only about $5-6 at homeware stores) stir it to combine.

Whilst that simmers away - grease a baking tray and also put some chilled water (I used a mini-freezer block to keep it cold) on an assembly line somewhere you can put your hot saucepan (so if you can't put it on your surface find a trivet or wooden chopping board etc)

Put your sticks in your apples and set up in your assembly line.    Also fill your sink with hot soapy water.

When it starts to boil, don't stir anymore, just watch it boil - and when it gets to 295 degrees c - remove from the heat and put on your assembly line.

Then dip your apples - if you need to tilt your apple to make sure it gets covered well,  twist to distribute the toffee evenly.

Then dip it in your cold water saucepan/bowl - and then rest on your greased tray.

Wait until completely set before wrapping in cellophane and ribbon!