Our Halloween Traditions

Halloween always brings back many fond memories of great childhood fun. Now that Im a Mom I try recreate some of the fun and spook! Here are some of our favouite family fun Halloween traditions.



Making a barn brac!

I currently have mixed fruit (mostly raisins and sultanas) soaking in tea (Barry's of course!) and tomorrow or the following day I will make two barn brac's. Carrying on the tradtion my mam had, I always wrap a €2 and 2 €1 coins in shiney tin foil and mix them through the mixture. Theres nothing more exciting than biting into a hard coin and unwrapping the foil. Its the little things that always have the best reaction. The recipe I use can be found under the 'Country Cooking' Tab.


Pumpkin carving.

Like most families this is an activity we get great fun from in the days leading up to Halloween. As a child we used to grow our own pumkins so lots of experimenting of faces was done. Next Halloween I hope we too will have a smal harvest of our pumkins. Luckily there is a farm near us that grows pumpkins and we will go and pick and cut out our own pumkins. This year we are going to embrace an americian (i think!) idea of the blue pumpkin. As our DS is Dairy free we thought it might be nice to let others that may come to our house 'trick or treating' know that we have some dairy free halloween treats! We have in fact decided to make all our 'trick or treating' treats dairy free.

Halloween Games.

We LOVE halloween games.

Our top 3:

Coming in a No 1 everyones favourite: Apple Bobbing.

We like to spook it up a little and add some green food colouring to the water, we also add some monkey nuts and €2 coins to the dish with the apples. This way there is a different difficulty rating and makes the game enjoyable and competitive for every age! The nuts float on top so make them nice and easy for the little one, the apples add that bit of difficulty due to needing to bite in and the coins sink to the bottom making them the ideal target for the hard core bobbers!


No2 : Snap Apple.

We drive a nail (new and sterilised) through an apple, attach string to the top of the nail and hang from a door frame. We usually hang from the double doors to make sure there is lots of room. Hands are tied behind your back and each person gets 30 seconds to try take a bite for the apple. Its so much fun and by having an adult in charge of the varying height of the string this game is suitable for all the family, mam and dad too!

No3: Cutting the Cake.

But its a flour cake! Yes this a messy one but super fun. You pile up flour on a plate, in a much of a 'cake' shape as possible an place a cherry on top. Each person takes a turn at cutting a slice, any shape or size they desire. They gently seperate the cut slice from the rest of the cake, but leaving the flour on the cake. The person who cuts the slice whereby the cherry falls form the top is the loser and must put their face into flour! So simple yet so fun!

'Trick or Treating'

Yes, we are mean and do give some of the older kids 'tricks'. Ah isn't that what it's all about!!

This years favourite dairy free treat: A plastic glove, place a jelly at the tip of each finger and fill the rest with popcorn! Simple, effective and budget friendly!

Our favourite treat: This one was a roaring success when we discovered it as kids! A hard boiled egg, dipped in melted chocolatae! I know I know, how mean your thinking! But come on....all treats would be no fun!!


So while we have lots more Halloween ideas, including decorating and costume ideas I tried to keep this post as concise as possible. But do keep an eye on our  facebook and instagram pages for constant updates! This year we dont have a family theme for our costumes but should be fun none the less.

Hope you got some ideas from here, or reminded you of some of the childhood halloween games you too may have played and had forgotten.


Have a spooktacular Halloween everyone,

Stay safe,

Kerri and Orla xx

(Images are courtesy of google images)

Want a Safe and Comfortable Sleep for your Baby?

Recently I received a great parcel in the post from Slumbersac.  I was gifted a baby sleeping bag for Georgia aged 20months.  The first thing I and my little girl noticed was how gorgeous and cute it was.  Georgia was given the Pink Fairy design sleeping bag and she just loved it.  The shooting star and fairy illustrations really attracts the eye and is very pleasing to look at in the girls bedroom.  It certainly matches the pink explosion we have going on at present! From looking at the website http://slumbersac.ie/category-slumbersac.html there are many great boy and girl designs for the sleeping bags to pick from.  What I love is that there are gender neutral designs also.  Well done Slumbersac!

I found Slumbersac baby sleeping bag great to ensure that my baby remained at a constant temperature all night.  I felt confident that no matter how much she moved during the night, she remained covered evenly across her body. Slumbersac sleeping bags also eliminate the need for any other top covers. This ensures safety. Check out Slumbersac sleep safety guidelines here; http://www.slumbersac.co.uk/sleep-safety.  Knowing that Georgia will be warm, safe and comfortable helps to take the worry out of sleep times. This is great for making sure Mum and Dad get that well deserved all night sleep too!

I found the sleeping bag material to be of exceptional quality. The Shell of the sleeping bag is 100% cotton.  The Lining is 100% cotton and the filling is 100% polyester. This means that it is breathability and comfortable. The filling is made from soft polyester fleece to prevent allergies and movement of the materials within the bag.
The sleeping bags are available in four different sizes.  (0 - 3 months, 0 - 6 months, 6 - 18 months, and 12 - 36 months). Georgia was gifted the 12-36 months and it is just perfect, she has room to grow also.  It is a great product and value for money as it lasts for two years. Check out the size guide here; http://www.slumbersac.co.uk/sizes

There are four weights to pick from to suit your home and climate; (light, summer, standard, and winter).  Check out their tog ratings for more information about sleeping bag weights. I received the 2.5 tog and it is warm and cosy for Georgia in the current Irish weather.

We received the centre zip sleeping bag and it is easy to get a baby/toddler in and out from.

I have washed this product numerous times and it came out perfect from each wash.  It is a durable product.  Colour stayed bright and vibrant.  It is machine washable and can be tumble dried also.

I would certainly recommend this product to parents. In my experience with conventional bedding, babies tend to get too cold or too warm. This is because as a baby wriggles about, his sheets and blankets no longer cover him evenly. A Slumbersac baby sleeping bag eliminates this problem.  I find this product keeps baby safe and therefore mummy and baby are happy, cosy and comfortable.
I have found that the Slumbersac sleeping bag has helped Georgia settle when I use it as part of the bedtime routine. I just put her into her sleep sack half an hour or so before bed time, and she'll be calm and ready to sleep when I turn on her lullabies and put her down in her cot. She now receives her bedtime story while she gets cosy and warm in her Slumbersac sleeping bag.

Quality sleep is vital for ones health and well being at any age. I am all for any product that helps my toddler sleep, encourages her to thrive and lets Mum and Dad sleep also!

Although I was gifted this product free of charge; all opinions are my own.

Checkout Slumbersac on facebook https://www.facebook.com/slumbersacuk

& on Instagram:https://instagram.com/slumbersac/


If you want to purchase The Pink Fairy Slumbersac Sleeping Bag follow this link:
http://www.slumbersac.co.uk/baby-sleeping-bags-pink-fairy-2405.html


Don't forget you can keep up to date with Countryside Mumsie on our social media accounts facebook and instagram.

Have you tried Slumbersac Sleeping Bags or any of their products?  We would love to hear?

Thanks for reading!

Orla & Kerri Xx

2nd Free Preschool Year Explained.

Is your son or daughter due to start primary school next September? 

If so think again! Its not often our government gives us opportunities but the addition of a second free pre school year is an opportunity not to be missed.

The age at which to start primary school has played over and over in our heads with a couple of years. My gut feeling is as Seán’s birthday is January I would rather he starts school at 5 and 9 months rather than 4 and 9 months. We had every kind of pro and con listed for our preference and eventually decided yes 5 and 9 months is the option that we felt would most benefit Seán in the long run. While his is not the norm in our area, I know it is very much in keeping with the norm in other parts of Europe. It is also the norm in some very built up areas of Ireland where demand on school places requires a minimum age of 5 before starting school. So that was our decision made. Pre School however, was a whole other ball game. Reed our full choosing pre school post here. 

But in short: 

 In accordance with the ECCE scheme Sean would qualify for his either September 2014 or September 2015!! Am I don’t what it until 2016!!! So on the phone I got, and after approximately 300 phone calls, letters and emails I got the system over ridded and Seán would have his free pre school year in 2016! Sorted! But wait: what about this year? We wanted him to go to playschool 3 days a week this year so this we have been doing and paying for it ourselves. We didn’t mind. We feel very strongly about being the correct age starting primary school and if we had to literally pay this price we would. BUT then…..the Government agreed with us!!!!! Not that I actually went to any minister over this, although God know I rang so many people last summer one very well may been a minister!!!! I never pay much attention to the budget on budget day but this year I was glued!!! A second free preschool year!!! And the age limit is extended!!! This could only mean one thing: the government have finally read all the research stacked in favor of starting school at a later age!! Yippee!! For once in my life I felt we made a good, well informed, well researched decision. So what this means for us is: Sean has now been registered to the free ECCE year this year as a late applicant (closing day is TODAY people!!! Get on it!!) So this year is free for us and then he will be registered next year also under the new additional year! Another bonus: we get a refund of the money paid to date this year!! To say I’m thrilled the whole thing worked in our favor is an understatement! So that’s our ecce story!   What’s yours?

If your still undecided as to what to do here are the main points you need to know, (keeping in mind I’m no expert and this is just my understanding of things)

1: The new additional free pre school year comes into play from next September.

2: If your son or daughter is hoping to start school in 2017 make sure they are registered under the current ecce scheme by TODAY!!! (Friday Oct 22nd)

3: In case above you can then get your new free additional year next September.

4.If your son or daughter is currently enrolled in the ECCE year and planning on starting school next September you now may have an option of the new additional year next year. If your son or daughter’s birthday falls AFTER Jan 1^st they will be eligible for the new additional year next year. This is Orla’s story. Farrah, currently enrolled in the ecce year, was due to start school next September will now instead do the additional year in Pre School and school the following year.

5: If your son or daughter s hoping to start school in 2018, make sure to speak to your pre school provider a.s.a.p. They may not now have enough room!

6: If your little one is starting school in 2019, then sit back and relax, next September will be plenty time to think about your two free years in 2018 and 2017. While it sounds like AGES away, you do need to think about it when you can.

Please do act on this now, as far as I’m aware the closing date to resister for this year’s ECCE scheme is today.

If you would like to read more about the new additional ECCE year these are the websites I found helpful:

Early Childhood Ireland here

Department of Children and Youth affairs here

Hope this post helps. Any questions/concerns you have Ill try my best to answer, however the first link above is super. 

Thanks for reading,

Kerri and Orla. 

Don't forget you can keep up to date with Countryside Mumsie on our social media accounts facebook and instagram.

Quality Time - Easy Arts & Crafts @ Home

                                                                                                            

Today I am blogging about a recent arts & craft project I did with Farrah at home.  It was really simple and we both enjoyed creating it together.  We did a paper mache cat.  It was easy, cheap and fun to make.  It took a few hours on different days to create, which was great to keep Farrah busy while Georgia had her afternoon nap.

What we needed to start:
4 toilet rolls for cats legs.
2 Balloons. One for head and one for the body.
Cello-tape to stick the legs to the balloons and the two balloons together.
Newspaper.
Flour and water to make the paste.

 

Instructions:

 

1: Blow up one balloon the size you want the body to be. Then blow up the other balloon in proportion to look like the cats head. 

2: Stick the head to the body using cello tape. 

3: Stick the toilet roll legs to the body also using cello tape.

It should look like this;

 



 

 

 

4: Make the paper mache paste by mixing plain white flour with water. 

5: Tear the newspaper into strips.

6: We used a paint brush to paint the paste onto the balloons then stuck the newspaper to it, then added another layer of paste on top to ensure it would stick.

7: Using newspaper I made the cats ears and tail which I secured using the paste and more newspaper.  You just cant beat flour and water! :)

8: Cover the whole cat with at least three/four layers of newspaper.

9: Let it dry over night.

 

It should look like this;

Cat when wet;

 

 

Cat when dry;

 

 



10: When it is all dry, talk to your child and decide what colour cat you want. We went for a black and white cat. Farrah had a great time painting it.

 

 

                       Farrah enjoying painting the cat by herself.

11: The whole cat was first painted black.  Then when that was dry we painted on white detailing to the cat.  When that was dry, Farrah painted on the face.

                       Here is the cat after being painted black.



The finished pussy cat looks like this;

 

He now lives in Farrah and Georgia's cubby house outside!

It was great fun to make with Farrah and there were different stages to creating it, so we got loads of quality time doing arts and crafts at home that week.

Give it go, let me know how you get on?

Have you made any paper mache arts and crafts projects with your kids?

I am thinking I might try a paper mache pumpkin next to store the sweets in for Halloween!

Would love to see some photos if you do try it!

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Thanks for reading!

Orla & Kerri xx

 

 

 

 

"Is dinner ready?" NO! "But Im starving......"

This pretty much sums it up!

Always running, getting lots of fresh air, no wonder
he's constantly hungry I suppose! 

So as I said in the last post September was a very busy month and I completely failed to notice the amount of food Seán eats theses days! His appetite has really come on. Maybe it’s a growth spurt, or him just being a boy but what ever it is its great! He’s eating everything! (well….most things!!) We have Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner sorted- we have loads of dishes to make that we all enjoy etc. Snacks are my problem! You know that time between breakfast and lunch, lunch and dinner and dinner and tea- well the growing boy eats at all these intervals! He’s great on fruit, so lots of novelty ways of eating fruit are tried and tested. Nuts and raisins are also good. But then what else can I give him to keep him ticking over? It needs to be lunch box friendly, that can be picked up running out the door to the playground, Granny’s etc...?? It also needs to be dairy free! I welcome all ideas. I’m on a mission to find and make healthy snacks to keep Seánie (and
Daddy and I) ticking over! Any ideas I try will be posted in the ‘Country Cooking’ tab!

Yesterday we tried Granny Jane’s Muesli Bars. Any time we go to Granny Jane’s in Kilkenny she has lovely baking done. These Muesli bars are always delish so I gave them a go (recipe in ‘Country cooking Tab’). They turned out lovely, not as nice as Granny Jane’s so must ask her for tips at the weekend. Seán and I  had one with a cup of tea and honestly I was stuffed! They are a bit crumbly so maybe next time ill put more coconut oil. I’m not convinced about the ‘healthiness’ part however. There is a lot of sugar and honey, and there are also coconut flakes, which a friend said could be high in fat! Eek!!! There is some goodness in them though as they are packed with seeds and nuts! Look it ,it’s better than a bar of chocolate, keeps up ticking over until dinner, recipe makes a good patch that are easy to grab and go, so for my first day of the healthy snack mission, its not a bad start at all!

Ill try again and let you know how it goes. Would love any ideas for other recipes.

MUSELI BARS

Makes approx. 28 little bars/squares

350g (12oz/3 ½ cups) rolled oats

30g (1 oz./ ½ cup)   shredded coconuts

50g (1 ¾ oz./ ½ cups) flaked almonds

45g  (1 ¾ oz. / ½ cup) wheatgerm

30g (1 oz./ ¼ cups) sesame seeds

35g (1 ¼ oz./ ¼ cups) sunflower seeds

55g (2oz/ 1/3 cup) copped dried apricots (I didn’t have so just left out)

185 ml (6fl oz./ ¾ cups) honey (I only had Manuka honey so used that)

55g (2 oz./ ¼ cups) soft brown sugar

125 ml (4fl oz./ ½ cup) vegetable oil (I used coconut oil instead)

* I added 4 tablespoons of flaxseed & goji berries also

Preheat over to 130oC (250oF/Gas 1) and lightly grease and line a 35x25cm (14 x10 inch) tin.

Put all the dry ingredients into a bowel, minus the sugar, and mix lightly together.

Put the honey, sugar and oil into a small pan and stir over medium heat until sugar has dissolved. Pour this over the dry ingredients in the bowl and stir until everything is well combined, mixing with your hands if necessary.

Press the mixture into the tin and bake for 50 minutes or until golden.

Cut into bars while still warm.

Enjoy!

Thanks for reading. 

Kerri and Orla xx

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Go to sleep my little baby! PLEASE!!!!!!

Establishing a good bedtime routine

Go to sleep my little baby  boy  PLEASE!!!! PLEASE, PLEEEASSSSEEE!!!!!

September is always a tricky month for us. We have both had the summer off  so late evening strolls, trips to the beach after tea, playing outside until dark and staying late at Granny and Grandads all results in our summer routine being: no routine! And we LOVE it! But getting back to business in Septemeber is always tricky. This September we moved house and I started a new job, so getting into a good bedtime routine and quickly was vital.  Thankfully those great people at the groCompany sent us a Gro clock at the most perfect time. While it did take us a full month to settle back into a good routine, I'm glad we have now nailed it! (for now!)

And the gro Clock played a mojor part. This updated version of the Gro-clock uses fun images of the stars and sun to communicate when to go back to sleep and when it's time to get up, and was a tremendous success. The gro clock comes with a story book explaining the benefits (and consequences) of not following the stars to sleep. The book worked so well the first night: our DS was so afraid to run to the toilet!!!! Note to self: don’t stress the consequences so much! But it's a really nice addition to the gro clock and fits perfectly into our bedtime routine.

So here's our routine....not over complicated.....but works everytime! 

We try to make our evenings screen free, from 4.30 onwards (until little boy is fast asleep), but always from 5pm onwards. I believe there is just no need to have such a little mind racing when calm down and sleep time is so close.

Our bedtime routine begins at 6.30pm on no bath nights and 6pm on bath or shower nights. No drinks or food are given after this time.

Pajamas are put on and bedroom and/or playroom toys are tidied with curtains drawn. This sets the ‘calm down’ tone of the next 30 mins.

We try not to rush or get too excited before bedtime. Seán is bursting with energy all day and with only an ounce of encouragement would be bouncing off the walls! While the slow pace is super
annoying we calmly tidy away the toys.

Teeth are brushed, I wont lie… there is a bribe of a new book at the end of the week if teeth are brushed with my help each night. It work's though! 

After teeth, face and hands are washed and then its good night kisses to Dad/Mom.

Two stories are picked out and into bed he hops. Prayers are said and two stories are read. Tucked into bed and a kiss on the head and Seán and teddy are ready.

Seán then gets 5 minutes with the nightlight on to read his own stories. He usually throws the book out of bed himself and turns over to sleep.

Obviously the above is the good night. There are bad nights (even ugly ones!) but these nights are usually when the routine hasn’t been followed and we think were back in July! This lovely fresh evenings at the moment are killing us! But the gro clock is really great to kick us back into action. On the gro company website there is downloadable reward chart that I now plan on introducing. Just to ensure the routine is maintained and the sense of excitement and fun is still a part of the routine. (download groclock reward chart here).

So whats more to say  only GO OUT AND GET A GROCLOCK!!! Its another brilliant product from the amazing gro company. Simply click here to purchase today. We were very kindly gifted this groclock but they retail at approx. €30.00. Which I personally think its great value for such a great product. I, like Orla loved the gro bags for the baby years, we have other gro products also such as the gro anywhere blind and the gro chair harness and Im so thrilled to see this company never rest when it comes to making life a little easier with a growing boy! The gro light will be my next purchase. What will be yours? Have a look here to shop products by season, age and gender. 

Hope this post may be of some help to you getting into a bed time routine, and remember thats all it is:routine. You can do it and you will. Before you know it you will be wondering what to do come 7.30pm (other than clean, tidy, make lunches, wash clothes, iron, plan for tomorrow etc etc etc!).

And now its off to bed for me, Good night all.

Night Night, Sleep Tight, Dont Let the bed bugs bite xxx

Thanks for reading. 

Kerri and Orla xx

Don't forget you can keep up to date with Countryside Mumsie on our social media accounts facebook and instagram.

We were kindly gifted this groclock, however all opinions are our own.