We're all going on a spring holiday...

Ok we are off to camp and waterski and braai, and fly kites, and skurf and play boule and drink wine watching the sun go down.... we will be back in a couple of weeks.

Perfecto Pasta!

Ok this is so easy , it is scary! And takes 20 minutes. While your water is boiling....

Chop a few big tomatoes (like about 6-7) or just dump a big punnet of baby tomatoes into the wok or fry pan

with 3-4 teaspoons of crushed garlic

(in this one) I chopped up some baby marrows - one punnet (he he.. you don't see them - kids don't know dem in there!)

1 teaspoon of Himalayan rock salt (from health shop - it has every trace mineral your body needs)

1 teaspoon of italian herbs (oregano, basil, majoram) - any combination

cook up till tomatoes skins peel back a little , doesnt matter if under cooked.

blend this concoction and serve over wheat free pasta, in this pic I am using Orgran Animal pasta - kids love the animal shapes and we have spaghetti (buckwheat or rice) -by the way buckwheat is gluten free and has a silly name, but is no relative to wheat!

ENJOY

A little birdie...

Well we found this little birdie quite stiff on our trampoline this morning. I think he either died of old age, cold or fright as Pablo our cat came around the corner. Anyway we think from our bird book he is a European Starling. What beautiful green feathers. This is truly the best type of nature study right in our own garden and hands-on!

Dairy-Free Pineapple Yoghurt

This is so so delicious.

1. Peel, core and chop your pineapple

2. A big handful of cashew nuts ( I buy mine from Yellow Submarine in Ottery - wholesale)

3. A dollop of organic honey or Agave Nectar

4. Optional - a handful of pitted dated (either fresh or soaked)

5. Blend till smooth

6. Enjoy this exquisite yoghurt!

Dairy-Free Hot Chocolate

Well, this is so easy and so delicious.
1/2 a teaspoon of organic cocoa powder
2 teaspoons rice milk powder
1 Table spoon of honey
Half full cup of boiling filtered water
Half full cup of cold filtered (or mountain spring) water
Mix together and enjoy!

Ben's Artwork

Well...this is one of the recent proud artworks of our Benjamin at 6 years of age. Inspired by a living book in our Little Footprints curriculum. I love it so and wish I could make it into wrapping paper - I just love the colours.

Last night I had some special girl friends come over for a craft evening.

Well we felted and embroidered and sewed and cut and stuffed and spooned and this is what we ended up with .... an assortment of the cutest christmas trees ever. I love the one with the cross, to remember Jesus - the reason for the season.... and yes we do know it is not Christmas yet, but we are getting ready and crafting away. My personal aim is to make my own christmas gifts for family members this christmas. It is a big time commitment, but it is worth it!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SPECIAL K !
20 Years Old....

We love you and are proud of your achievements

and the man you are becoming.

We enjoyed a fish braai to celebrate with the

Mnende family, and a good time was had by all.

Thank you for the fresh yellow tail Masi, we loved it!

Shell Boxes - Crafts.

Well , as you know we LOVE Little Footprints. Just love, love, love it! Anyway 2 weeks ago one of the crafts for the week was to make a shell box , inspired by the beautiful story about a box. Anyway we collected and hunted the coastlines and this is what we made. I bought the boxes at the local craft shop and I am so proud of my boys. They created these by themselves.

Quick lunch

Ok so this is also really simple we bake a normal or sweet potato for each of us ( I buy the organic ones from Woolies). I bake them on 180 for 1 hour. If they are organic I dont even wash them. Then I cut them up , dribble some olive oil on with Himalayan rock salt, chop up some avo, baby tomotoes or cucumber and here we added some organic dry Wors. Now this sausage is pure organic beef (I sometimes get Kudu) with NO cereals or preservatives! Amazing to find we order from alicia in Somerset West each month and courier it to us (infact I get a 2 or 3 month supply to save on bringing it here) I also have shared lifts with friends to collect. You can get the meat prices emailed to you from www.gonatural.co.za I have been ordering organic meat from them for 4 years and trust them implicitly. We also use the mince and boerewors (all totally gluten free and organic!)

Simple Cereal

Ok sometimes when I run out of time I buy these organic cornflakes.

Just incase you don't know in South Africa corn is genetically modified. There are studies that show due to the nature of the corn there are genetically modified substances which stay in the gut and release substances into the gut. PLEASE dont buy any corn products unless they are organic or non -GMO (genetically modified). For more info you can google this. In South Africa it is a real problem as maize is a big industry.

Anyway I buy this cereal from www.ethical.org.za You can find it as some health shops too. We serve it with rice milk or chocolate rice milk (where I put a teaspoon of organic cocoa powder in with a teaspoon of honey. Quick, easy and a treat for the boys.

Salmon Rice Cakes.

For lunch on the weekend with the whole family one of our favourites is

Rice Cakes or Corn Thins with some Woolies organic mayonnaise spread ontop with smoked salmon trout and slivers of avo and a slice of cucumber or tomato. We top this with a pinch of himalayan rock salt (a pink'ish salt that has every trace element that the body needs) you can get this from any health shop. Enjoy......

Chicken Tacos - GFCF

Well as you all know (well you do if you are on this Gluten Free, Dairy free, preservative free, sugar free, chemical free diet) finding new things to eat with children with special needs and special diets can be challenging on a good day. Luckily I love the challenge, so I will be sharing with you over time some of our "goodie" recipes that the kids love .... hopefully they can inspire and help you.

Step 1 :

Cut up a packet of Free range chicken breasts

Stir fry with one grated onion and a packet of chopped mushrooms

When cooked add a tin of organic tinned tomatoes (I use Woolies again)

Step 2:

Take a box of Orley Whip or Instant Whip Non dairy cream

Step 3:

I have willing workers for beating the cream

Step 4:

Put your tacos (woolies ones aswell) into the oven at 18o for 4 minutes

Step 5:

Serve Chicken into warm tacos with chopped lettuce, sliced avo, and top with whipped cream.

Voila! This is a fabulous meal that we all enjoy.

Necklaces and ragdolls

Ok so when we made these ragdolls for the one story in Little Footprints, I had no idea how much work it would be for me. Luckily we planned to make them at Granmas house who is an expert seamstress. Nonetheless, the boys love them and remember the story with them as they play.

You will also see the necklaces they made for their next story from paperclips. We also made paper chains, they so love showing off their handiwork to their proud dad on his arrival home.

Ostrich lapbook

We have just finished the story Fly Eagle Fly by Ken Brown, as we work through the Little Footprints Curriculum. Here is some photos of our ostrich lapbook