Risk

A couple of weeks ago I watched a bloke put his daughter / granddaughter, who is the same age as Isabel, in the front passenger seat of his car & drive off. No booster seat, no car seat. I think he only put the seatbelt on her because I was staring in disbelief (he didn’t put his own on). Anyway, this got me thinking about risk, perceived risk, and why parents choose to take some risks whilst ignoring others.

I’m not completely risk-averse. I stick the kids in the garden while I nip in and out of the house to do chores. They could feasibly eat something unsavoury, sting themselves on nettles, fall down the stupid steps we have that separate our two lawns (this sounds more posh than it is). But I figure they could do all these things while I’m in the garden too.

The other day I went to put some washing in the machine which is in our lean-to utility, and when I came back I discovered Oliver halfway up the stairs. (We’ve reinstated the stairgate.)

But… I have car seats worth more than the car(s) they’re driven around in. I always walk down pavements with my children on the inside, away from the road. I still cut up grapes for Isabel, even though she’s 3 and a half and has been eating other whole foods since the day we started weaning. Breastfeeding, too, could be considered risk-reducing, although my motivation there is more laziness and freedom (from cost, ties to the supplies & clutter of bottlefeeding)

I don’t understand why some parents will spend £300+ on a special “anti-SIDs mattress” only to put baby in their own room; £130 on a special video monitor only to turn it off so baby’s noises don’t wake them; buy a huge Volvo to drive the kids around in but turn babies forward facing at the first opportunity. (These are just common examples, not thinking of any one person or people in particular…)

What if my kids ate something poisonous in the garden or if Oliver had fallen down the stairs? How do we choose which risks are the important ones? It’s all a bit odd really.

Posted on: May 7, 2013 · Category: Parenting 6

Under the Sofa

I didn’t think it had been that long since I cleaned under the sofa last. And yet, having just done so, I found…

  • teething toy
  • rattle
  • pair of pants (Isabel’s)
  • 2 socks (1 x Isabel’s, 1 x Oliver’s)
  • large Lego wheel
  • 8 mega bloks
  • 1 bulldog clip
  • number 3, number 8
  • 1 hairclip
  • 2 hair bobbles
  • 1 hair elastic
  • 1 mussel shell
  • 4 crayons
  • 2 wax crayons
  • 1 HB pencil
  • 1 fabric watermelon piece
  • 1 flip video camera
  • 1 cork
  • 87 pence
  • 1 piece of chalk
  • 1 mobile telephone (old)
  • a whooooole lot of dust & cat hair!

Ooops.

Posted on: January 10, 2013 · Category: Home & Garden 5

December Meal Plans

A wee bit late typing this up but here’s this month’s meal plan…

  • 1st: Chicken & chips
  • 2nd: Lamb chops & mash
  • 3rd: Chicken soup
  • 4th: Toad in the hole
  • 5th: Spaghetti bolognese
  • 6th: Mince & tatties
  • 7th: Homemade pizza
  • 8th: Corned beef hash
  • 9th: Roast chicken
  • 10th: Baked spuds & homemade coleslaw
  • 11th: Leek & potato soup
  • 12th: Ham, leek & potato pie
  • 13th: Chicken curry
  • 14th: Freezer leftovers
  • 15th: Steak & chips
  • 16th: Belly pork
  • 17th: Veggie stir fry
  • 18th: Cottage pie
  • 19th: Meatloaf (I still haven’t been able to make this – keep forgetting to get the mince out of the freezer!)
  • 20th: Veggie curry
  • 21st: Fish fingers & sweet potato chips
  • 22nd: Cheese & tomato toasties
  • 23rd: Sausage & broccoli carbonara
  • 24th: Baked salmon & mash
  • 25th: MEGA FEAST (Slow roast lamb shoulder, sprouts, mash, roast potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, cherry bacon rolls, stuffing, yorkshire puddings.. you name it, it’ll be served!)
  • 26th: Leftovers / mum’s boxing day buffet
  • 27th: More leftovers
  • 28th: Leftovers pie
  • 29th: Sausage casserole
  • 30th: Pork shoulder(? not 100% decided on this one)

Burp.

Posted on: December 11, 2012 · Category: Budgeting 12

Cleaning Scraggy Old Carpets

Is scraggy a word? Firefox isn’t flashing me the wiggly red line of doom…

When we moved into this house (the ‘omg mega debt’ house) there were carpets throughout. We made the decision to rip out the carpet in the front room and replace it with cheap vinyl; we did this for two reasons: 1) because the previous owners had a dog and the carpet was thick with dog fluff and 2) because with small children, the idea of scrubbing bodily fluids out of the carpet on a regular basis left me feeling a little nauseous.

Unfortunately we couldn’t afford to replace the carpets house-wide (see above: omg mega debt) so settled for cleaning those upstairs. Except that even borrowing Karl’s mum’s mega expensive Vax didn’t do much for the ancient, crusty carpet in Izzy’s room:

Mega stainage

Ominous stain of unidentified origin

(Clearly I have no shame, sharing these with you…)

So anyway, when I was asked if I wanted some Vanish spray for carpets & upholstery to review I figured I could give it a shot. Worst case scenario I have to do some cleaning (shudder) but best case I get rid of the dodgy stains for free (and free is my favourite price).

Back to the stains… I tried to use the stain removal advice that they’ve got on site (trying to do this properly, right?) but because I am not entirely sure of the origins of the stains I wasn’t sure what to pick (and for the record, I think they’re missing a trick not listing wee / poo / vomit on the guide as that’s what I spend most of my time cleaning up, I swear. ETA: they do! Under ‘body fluids’. Nice.) Enough brackets, where am I? Oh yes, stains.

So I don the rubber gloves and equip myself with the big squirty bottle & at this point I’m feeling all Kim and Aggie but I can’t find any feather boas to stick to my gloves :(

I applied the spray, waited about 1 minute (you’re supposed to wait 5 but I don’t have all day) and gave it a quick scrub:

No more carpet grot, no more ominous stain. Of course now the only problem is that the rest of the carpet is shown up by the clean patch. I’ll just have to make Karl finish it off, and then he can use the coffee stains guide to tackle the old sofa…

Posted on: November 14, 2012 · Category: Home & Garden, Review 10

November Meal Planning

A lot more meat than usual in this month’s. I got an offer on a meat box a while back and it’s all sat in the freezer waiting to be used. Figured I should get it cleared out in time for Christmas (uh oh, the C word)

  • Thu 1st: Creamy chicken and leek pasta
  • Fri 2nd: Bangers & mash w/roast veg
  • Sat 3rd: Sweet potato and butternut squash soup
  • Sun 4th: Slow roast lamb shoulder w/trimmings
  • Mon 5th: Lamb casserole
  • Tue 6th: Lamb curry (how far can I stretch the lamb?!)
  • Wed 7th: Veg soup
  • Thu 8th: Veg + potato pie
  • Fri 9th: Salmon fish cakes
  • Sat 10th: Isabel’s birthday tea! :)
  • Sun 11th: Roast chicken
  • Mon 12th: Chicken noodle soup
  • Tue 13th: Toad in the hole
  • Wed 14th: King prawn curry
  • Thu 15th: Corned beef hash
  • Fri 16th: Macaroni cheese
  • Sat 17th: Meatloaf (didn’t make it yesterday because I forgot to take the mince out of the freezer)
  • Sun 18th: Quiche
  • Mon 19th: Spaghetti bolognese
  • Tue 20th: Sweet potato mash ‘n’ meatballs
  • Wed 21st: Chips w/fried eggs & peas
  • Thu 22nd: Homemade coleslaw & baked spuds
  • Fri 23rd: Quick ‘n’ easy pizza (homemade)
  • Sat 24th: Pork chops
  • Sun 25th: Loaded mash with bacon & cheese
  • Mon 26th: Bubble & squeak
  • Tue 27th: Fish pie
  • Wed 28th: Sausage, Potato & Spinach Bake
  • Thu 29th: Chicken strips & chips
  • Fri 30th: Homemade burgers

B. mentioned on my previous meal plan that she noticed the lack of veg on my meal plans. I’ve said it before but it’s worth repeating.. I do eat at least 2 portions of veg with every main meal – either as an ingredient or on the side.

I add ‘hidden’ veg, not just to get it past my fussy consumers (aka Karl and Isabel) but because it boosts the veg content without being visually overwhelming. E.g. with my spag bol I will start by softening 2 onions, loads of mushrooms, and a leek:

That’s what.. 2 portions of veg right there? I often grate in courgette (as seen above) or cabbage too. Tinned tomatoes, that’s more veg. I’ll serve it with spaghetti (pasta) and broccoli = more veg. :) Definitely no lack of veg here!

Posted on: November 1, 2012 · Category: Budgeting 2