Country Kids: National Trust

After a manic few weeks I can join in again with Fionas lovely linky over at Coombe Mill So this weekend Chartwell run by National Trust were having at 1940's weekend so as its one of ours and the boys favourite over we headed!

Must get to the chickens!

The Chickens!!

Wonder what they're growing here....



Boat races



Telling them about his Papa

Hide & Seek time

Now for dinner....

and finishing off with a roll down the hills....

Tartare Sauce & Fish Cakes

 I was very kindly sent a jar of English Provinder Tartare sauce (funky and stylish design, no?) a few weeks ago to review and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I’m not a huge fan of tartare sauce often finding it a bit bland or too synthetic but nothing like that here. The taste is light and fresh and just melts in your mouth! Tangy with a hint of lemon it bears a striking resemblance to fresh version of the sauce we have had at a rather well-known fish chef in Cornwall.

My husband chucked some more of it the following day into a baby potato salad and it worked there to despite it taking a fair while to convince me to try it! However here is a recommendation and recipe that they suggest as well. We’re planning on trying it out this week and I’ll let you know.

Fish Cakes

Serves: 6

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

• 170g haddock fillets, skinned and finely cubed
• 170g smoked cod fillets, skinned and finely cubed
• 340g potatoes, cooked and mashed
• 4 spring onions, finely chopped
• flour, for dusting
• 6 tbsp English Provender Tartare Sauce plus extra to serve
• 1 egg, beaten
• 125g breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp sunflower oil

Method:

In a large bowl mix the fish, potatoes and spring onions together.
Divide the mixture into 12 portions. Dust hands well with flour and shape the portions into flattish cakes.

Place a spoonful of tartare sauce in the middle of 6 of the cakes, top with another cake, shape and mould both halves to form one large fish cake.

Coat the fish cakes in the egg and breadcrumb mixture.

Grill the cakes under a moderate heat for 15-20 minutes, turning once, basting lightly with the oil until browned.

Serve with minted peas and rocket and an additional dollop of tartare sauce.

Mike The Knight Clothing Review

If you have little ones in the house you’re sure to know the stories of Mike The Knight! The gorgeous new cartoon from HIT entertainment.  Determined to do it right Mike The Knight is a story of a young knight who looks after the Kingdom of Glen dragon while his father the King is away exploring. With the help of his sister Eve a young wizard in training and his two pet dragons Mike learns through adventure and fun responsibility. He has his own personal battle cry of “be a Knight and do it right!”

We were sent a lovely Tshirt from the new Mike the Knight range at Tesco and immediately Jack saw it we had a big grin and a demand to wear it! Its short sleeved as you can see and 100% cotton and lovely quality – incredibly soft! It also fits my giant perfectly although we have a 5-6 and he is 4. Due to the rain he’s been wearing it over a plain long sleeve and it looks incredibly funky. Perfect for any knights in training! It was great apart from the labels at the back. They had to be cut out as very stiff and itchy however the quality’s great. We’ve climbed trees and skidded around in the mud and it still holds it shape and looks fresh. I think this will very quickly become a firm favourite not just with my eldest! My youngest has been demanding his own now!  

 

“ Bringing the excitement and enchantment of medieval times into life this t-shirt is a must for budding knights in training. Finished in an all over stripe the t-shirt is detailed by Mike The Knight artwork across the chest and his best friends Squirt and Sparkle. Be a Knight, Do it right!”

 

Tune in to watch our brave knight-in-training and his
best friends on their adventures to serve and protect
the kingdom of Glendragon! Huzzah!

Only on CBeebies, Weekdays at 4.05pm*

For CBeebies broadcast information visit: http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/

Books for dads!

Being the mum of two boys I was rather interested in the two books I’ve been sent to review “The Art of Rough Housing” and “Stuff every Dad should know”

“Stuff every dad should know” written by Brett Cohen is a fun and entertaining pocket size book perfect for all new dads, dads to be and grandparents! Not patronising at all it’s incredibly well written. I think our favourite part was how to rid a room of monsters! Who hasn’t been woken by this! And then have had to spend the night with a wriggler in the bed! This is a great book for learning to bond with your kid and all the other bits you ever wanted or needed to know right from how to hold your baby and change its diaper right up to marrying them off. A wonderful book full of short simple tips and advice. A perfect gift for all new dads or grandparents (after all I think they do tend to get left out!)

The second book we received was the “Art of rough housing” as I said we have two boys and needless to say we rough house! How many children are reverting to a world where even at 3 and 4 children are playing on digital objects or watching tv? I think if you do have boys it’s a great book (to be taken with a huge dose of common sense though!) Its perfect for teaching parents and reassuring them that as long as they play careful they can rough house safely with their kids and what it will teach them. 

Easily laid out with great how to pictures at the start of each play are age guidelines, skill levels and essential skills. I can’t say I’m likely to give stair mattress surfing a go but we had a fair few pillow fights and tumble spins so far!

Wise wisdom from their site:

• Pay attention to joints, like elbows and wrists.
• Roughhouse on grass, a tumbling mat, or soft carpeting.
• No headlocks, eye gouges, or kidney punches!
• Stay close by so you can “spot” your children as they explore what their bodies can do, and so you can step in right away if things get too rough.

So get out there and enjoy playing with your kids!