Holiday Activities - on the Gold Coast

The great thing about living on the Gold Coast is not only the great range of things we have to do locally, but the easy access we have to Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast.  There's so many things I "keep meaning" to do with the kids, that I decided to put together a list...cause you know how some days, no matter how hard you try, you just can't think of anything to do?

Hoping you find my little list of school holiday activities helpful too!

Things we plan to do these holidays...
1. Queensland Museum at Southbank - I wanted to take the kids here over Christmas but it was closed for refurbishments. So this is first on the list for these holidays.  I love Southbank too, nice to have a walk with the kids through the grounds - last time we were there we even went on the Brisbane Eye!

Sitting up top on the Brisbane Eye

2. Ride on a Ferry - might sound silly, but riding a boat is something my kids don't get to do, and they were so excited to do it last time we went to Brisbane. Makes for nice and cheap entertainment :)

3. Railway Museum - we took the kids there when Alex was only 3 and Jasper was just a bub, and the Thomas exhibition was on. They loved it, and with my boys being train fanatics, we thought it worth another visit.  Hoping they won't be too disappointed Thomas isn't there?

4 Scooter & Bike riding - being 3 and 6 they both have a handle on wheeled sports now, Alex got his first "big boy" bike for his birthday last week (with trainers) and Jasper is a gun on the scooter. So there'll be a few trips to the Broadwater (lovely long flat pathways for riding).

Jasper on his scooter

5.  See the "Mummies" - I'm so looking forward to seeing this exhibition! I remember seeing the King Tut exhibition as a child in Melbourne (many moons ago); it sparked a life-long love of ancient history.  As Alex tells me he'll be an archeologist when he grows up, he's keen too! 

Credit for this image

6. Make the most of our VIP Passes before they expire.   Twice to Seaworld this week, and we're well on the way to that goal.  Check out this awesome shot I got on my dodgy/somewhat busted iphone...

7. Take a train ride - boys will be boys, and mine love trains. We've been promising them for ages that we'd take them for a ride on the train to Brisbane, so we'll do that when we go to Southbank.  They're very much looking forward to their train ride :)

8.  Get creative! Both my boys have recently taken a liking to being creative & crafty, which suits the crafter in me!  We've done some "$2 shop shopping", stocking up on crafting supplies on the cheap so we can get stuck into it.  I've got an old tablecloth I plan to lay on the grass in the yard tomorrow, set everything up, and just let them go nuts! Much better outdoors than in I think...

Playdoh monsters we made last week - creative doesn't HAVE to be messy

And that is about the end of my school holiday activities list for now! I think that will be more than enough to tick off, especially considering my kids are home-bodies at heart (when I asked what they'd like to do tomorrow I got told "trampoline" and "sandpit"..lol).

Night all, sweet dreams to your own little school holidaying munchskins x

Cass xo

Planting a bromeliad garden...

we built out house two years ago and found out upon moving in that the $20k landscaping package we "added-on"...didn't actually include plants - doh!

what we have instead is a backyard 19m across, with two layers of retaining walls, so a total of almost 40m wide garden beds that need planting out. it's pretty barren at the moment...(excuse the lattice, it was part of our Side Show Alley for Alex's circus party last weekend).

2 layers of retaining wall, needing planting out

after a few failed attempts at planting it out (we tend to just get the whole area weed-free before the rain starts again, and the weeds pop back), we now decided to stage the process. we've decided to work on little sections at a time, filling it with low maintenance tropical plants.  the first area is my "bromeliad station" I started on today.  as these plants can be expensive, and we have quite a large area to fill, a little call to mum & dad was in order (they have quite a few bromeliads).  next day dad arrived with a carton of "pups" from their plants, that I've been growing in pots for the last couple of months.

Bromeliad pups growing, with some rhoeo (I also got from my parents garden)

today was the day to start putting these guys in the ground. the weather was awesome, the kids were happily playing on the trampoline - perfect! so in they went...

I've planted a row of red/green ones at the front, with some pink/green ones behind. once they grow up and bulk out they should look good. behind I'm popping in some xanadu and cordyline, with a majestic palm in the back corner.  i think next time though I need a longer pair of garden gloves, cause this is what my arms look like this afternoon....

OUCH!!! (when bromeliads attack, lol)

Wishing you well with your gardening efforts this weekend!


Cass xo

When the scales go up...

Are you like me and seem to have added some weight post having kiddies that just doesn't seem to want to shift?  After being around 50kgs all my life, I started this year at almost 65kgs - which is heavier than I was pregnant (not a good confession!).

12 WBT - Michelle Bridges

That's why when I saw the Michelle Bridges 12 week body transformation was about to launch Round 2 for 2012 I decided, why not give it a go?  At only $199 it's not a big investment, plus I could pay it off too. So I signed up!

For me it's nice and easy - each week the program is posted for me, including a complete meal plan (with shopping list I just print off), and an exercise plan. I have to admit to not following the exercise plan as yet, instead doing some light walking and a little time on the cross trainer here at home. But it seems to be enough.  I dropped quite quickly in the first two weeks, almost 4kgs.

Problem is, this week my weight went up....eeeck!

After Alex's birthday and party on the weekend, then I got the flu on Sunday night, well I honestly lost the vibe.  Not that I started binging or anything, but a bit of soft-drink and a curry for dinner saw me up 700gms for today's "Weigh In Wednesday".

So it's with new motivation I hoped back on the horse today, flu and all!  If you have some weight to shift I can really recommend the program so far though; it's nice and easy, the meals have been yummy and easy to make...couldn't ask for more really! (check out the meal below, last nights dinner - super yum!!!).

Low cal Thai Chicken Laksa with noodles

So Mish, when you read my blog this week know that I'm back, with a vengeance! I plan to make the the ONLY week the scales go up :)  Come check out my facebook page for more pics of the delicious meals we get to eat too.

If anyone is keen to join in the journey, let me know, I'll email you a signup link. It's well worth it!  Check out my progress at the bottom of the blog homepage, with the "progress tracker".  Can't hide it anymore ;)

Cheers,

Cass xo

Can speech therapy help my toddler learn to eat?

My 3 year old talks like a champion! He knows all his letters, strings together very complex sentences, can count to almost 50 and knows his 2 times tables.  So why, you may ask, are we going to speech therapy?

Because he doesn't eat :(

Now I know from experience that many mums complain their child "doesn't eat". But when I say Jasper doesn't eat, I actually mean it.  He turned 3 back in March and this is the meager list of foods he will eat:
- strawberries
- dry crackers (premiums, watercrackers)
- sliced cheese (only Mainland brand for some reason)
- rice cakes

And that is it! He's never eaten a piece of meat, weaned himself off milk/formula/other dairy at about 10mths and chokes on anything else he tries to chew or swallow (even lollies).  I've tried all manner of "interesting" things to get him eating (it's a heck of a list!). For instance, here's one of his lunch boxes...

Jasper's lunch box for speech therapy -
I try to mix in the things he will eat with some "testing" foods

Funnily enough though, as a mum, I always knew something wasn't right. As a baby he couldn't breastfeed (I was told it was a yield issue, me not producing enough, although I could express 250mls a go).  On the bottle he'd take 1ml per minute, so 45mins to feed 45mls to him....I spent most of my day feeding him as you can imagine.

At 5mths our pediatrician suggested starting solids stating "kids like him often turn around on solids". So solids began.  It took 3 months before he could swallow a spoonful of pureed food without choking, and even then half of it would still be stuck to the roof of his mouth.

So that is where we are today....for some reason, that no specialist person can detail for me, Jasper can't, or doesn't want to, eat.  Every specialist we've ever seen has a theory:
1. our allergist believes it allergy related
2. our nutritionist says it's oral hypersensitivity
3. the head nurse at the hospital says it's purely behavioral
4. the dentist said it's teeth misaligned
5. our GP said we're abusing him through starvation (thus, we've changed doctors)
6. our pediatrician said I was a hypochondriac

But at least the speech therapist is being more helpful and positive. Mary says it's a strange & complex case, and she's pulling together various modalities to get to the bottom of it.  Plus she doesn't think we're plain crazy!

So I'll keep you in the loop as we progress and here's hoping we finally get some answers - and some food into my little man :(

Cass x

Fell of the wagon..wonder if I broke something?

As you know I joined the Michelle Bridges 12wbt program all of 2 weeks ago. You also know that this weekend was my eldest son's 6th birthday. You also know I LOVE to bake, decorate cakes & be totally extravagant with kids parties. Sooooo, what does this mean?  Well, it means Mish will be mad at me!!!

Now I'm not unrealistic, I didn't expect to get through the weekend sticking to the program & had decided it was OK to be a little lax, have a little fun, within reason.  But we had a party full of sherbet cones, cupcakes, whoopie pies & fairy floss.  What's a girl to do???

Let's start with the fun bit....check out these pics of some of the circus themed treats from the party...

Circus Clown cake I made for the party

Vanilla cupcakes with frosting in gorgeous Robert Gordon cases

Ice cream cone style cake pops in mini cones

Now, I'm going to stop there, as I'm quite sure Mish will be having a fit right about now! (I did try to balance the party food with some ham/cheese pinwheels & cute fruit skewers...just so you know ;).

And as for the wagon and falling of....well, I couldn't just MAKE all of these treats & just HOPE they tasted good for our guests...could I???  Ok, I could have, but I didn't, now I'm feeling guilty.  But after thinking about it today I've decided two things:

1. tomorrow is a new day - time to get back on the wagon in ernest!
2. the kids all had a GREAT time at the party, so I figure that was worth it

So when you see a woman pounding the pavement tomorrow like her life depends on it....that's me x

The Birthday Olympics

This time, 6 years ago, I was VERY pregnant and eagerly awaiting our first addition! Actually, if I'm being honest, I was terrified of going into labour...that's why I did my first ante-natal class when I was only 4 months pregnant..lol!  And at that class I met someone who has become one of my closest friends, Tash.

We got chatting at the class and discovered our bubs were due only days apart, which lead to catch-ups and coffee mornings whist waiting for the bubs to arrive.  It was nice to have a friend in exactly the same situation as me.  Funnily enough, we didn't realize how similar we would become...

June 17th 2006, we BOTH had our bubs! 

It started June 16th......I sent Tash a text saying "I'm in labour!!!" and got a response of "yay for you, nothing happening here :( ".  A few hours later I got another text saying "Me too!".  And a few hours after that, whilst I was STILL going, I got another text which read "All done!".  It was a few hours after that message (about 12hrs to be exact...) that I was finally able to send Tash my very own "All Done!!!" message.  So both our baby bundles now celebrate their birthday on the same day, June 17th.

Here I am with Alex the day he was born - gee, I really look like I've had 24hrs of labour too!

And so the Birthday Olympics where born.  We coined the phrase to sum up the crazy, obsessive, enjoyably creative process we both undertake in an effort to throw great parties for our kids.  It's fun having someone to do this process with every year who loves it as much as me!

Alex's first birthday cake - luckily my skills have improved since then

 This year Tash threw a fantastic Disco inspired party for her daughter, which was held last weekend.  I am organising my son's Circus Carnival party to be held this Saturday.  I'm still in the throws of fondant clowns, side show alley games & cake baking! I'll be posting throughout the week showing you all the party prep, and fun things like cake pop making and how to make fondant clowns.  Here's the inspiration for this years party...

I've designed a two tiered version of this cake under special direction to "add more clowns mummy".  So let's see how we go....

Till next time, have a great day x
Cass

Drinks anyone???

Ah, the funny things the kidlets get up to in the midnight hours! I swear my two are vampires, all wrapped up in cuteness and blue-eyes.  And let me tell you something, if you want a baby who's a GOOD sleeper...don't name them after a vampire in Twilight ;)  (yep, my youngest is Jasper...namesake taken from movie in question).

But back to the drinks...

It's 9.30pm when I hear little feet stalking up the hallway just now.  I wander out of my study to find Mr 6 standing in the hallway, bleary eyed and yawning.  I ask, "what's up honey", to which he replies, "well, I just wanna know, are you making drinks?".

Huh???
As my mind drifts to thoughts of Bailey's and a wee midnight-cap, Mr 6 details how he'd like a drink of water "as soon as you can mummy", in his favourite blue drink bottle, "you know, the one with the press button?".  He then turn tails and wanders back to his room & into bed!

Photo Credit

The joys of motherhood and the 24-7 a-la-carte kitchen my friends!

Wishing you all a good night x
Cass

Cake Pops - how to make them - easy!

Cake pops are no longer fussy & hard to make, now the new Bake Pops tray has arrived! I was so excited to find this in my local Target store just recently, with Alex's 6th birthday party (Circus Carnivale themed) coming up, I knew I needed this!  At only $30 I knew I'd use it again, and again...so well worth grabbing.

This tray (called Bake Pops) is a two sectioned setup, with a top and a base that clip together for baking with a couple of silicone clips.  You just use any cake mix or recipe, fill the base tray, clip on the top tray and bake. EASY!
Here's a pic of my first batch of chocolate cake pops....

A few pointers...
- the instructions say to fill the bottom tray, I found that a bit too much.  Although the excess just comes through the top hole, easily removed & doesn't effect the pops at all (plus you get 18 mini muffin tops to eat..lol)
- the cooking time on box instructions is WAY too much.  I baked for only 10-15mins, checking regularly and using a skewer to test them
- the instructions recommend adding 1 extra egg to make the cake mix denser. This works for chocolate pops but for vanilla it ends up tasting like scrambled eggs.
- for vanilla pops I found it best to halve the liquid, using milk instead of water as suggested in the instructions, but instead of adding an extra egg I simply over-beat the mixture. Worked well, without the "eggy" taste.
Here's my vanilla pops...

 As our party is still 5 days away I've sealed these up in bags & popped them in the freezer.  When it comes time to make & decorate the pops later this week I'll take some pics and post the "how to's" for you.
Thanks for reading, please share my new blog, give it a like on facebook and a "follow".
Thanks heaps, Cass x

Launched - The NEW Cass...!

You know me from Living Eco Direct & Zapp Consulting, as well as the scholarship student from Endeavour 2011, a mum of two little people and the wife of a "work overseas" husband. I have my fingers in WAY too many pies, so this is my new blog! Moving away from things I've done in the past, to make my life easier whilst sharing all the things I love, with you :)

So what's going on right now? Well....

- I'm in the midst of Michelle Bridges 12 week body transformation, Round 2 2012....(you can check my progress at the bottom of this blog page with my Progress Tracker. Currently 3.1kg down, another 6.9kg to go!)

- Birthday Olympics are underway, with organization for my son's 6th birthday in full swing...I'll tell you more about the Birthday Olympics in my next post but here's a sneak peak ;)

Super Cute Clown Cake Pops - LOVE!

 - Study load getting a little bit brutal (about 6 hours behind in lectures, with a full-time uni course load..ouch!)

- Designing a "bug" inspired quilt for my 3yr old (my elder son got his handmade Curious George quilt when he was 3, so I'm playing catchup now with my youngest)

- Working on ways to make the money stretch each week, as hubby's job goes from "not so good" to "oh crap, how will we pay THAT bill"....

- Home detox is underway, clearing out the nasties that seem to have "appeared" in my previously eco-conscious and allergy-friendly home

And that's it in a nutshell! Posts on the way on all of these things and more...


In the meantime, come meet me on facebook and say hi, as the NEW, IMPROVED Cass comes to be, on my new blog all about LIFE....In Perspective.

Time for a home detox...

Yes, it’s time for a home detox!

Last week we chatted on the facebook page about my current desire to do a home detox.  You see, as much as I try to “do the right things” it’s gotten easier over time to cheat on things that didn’t seem to matter too much, like buying toothpaste from the supermarket instead of ordering the natural one; using chemical cleaners around the home on occasions (after helping a friend clean her house to move, I accidentally “adopted” some of the chemical cleaners); or grabbing the occasional loaf of “plastic bread” from the supermarket.

Yes, on their own these things are little I guess, but they do add up…let me tell you the story…
A little under 2 years ago we moved into a brand new house. We built it, selecting all the bits & bobs, decorating it how we wanted. But our budget didn’t extend to some of the low-allergen & eco friendly options we would have liked (like low allergen paints, carpets, solid timber cabinets etc).   So , we compromised & got what we could afford, now two years on we’re wondering why we did that.  Our little family now has a raft of health issues, that seem to be getting worse.  That’s why I think it’s time for a home detox.

Let me tell you a little of what’s going on…
1. My kids have developed asthma.  My youngest has an immune deficiency, so this is a BIG concern

2. Both my kids are more reactive these days, every little thing sets off their allergies, plus their allergies are increasing

3. Sleeping is a nightmare! Both my kids are unsettled at night (they’re 3 and 6)and get up multiple times each a night, due everything from night terrors & breathing issues, to overactive hypnagogic reflex

4. And although I’m exhausted, I have insomnia and can’t sleep

5. My youngest son isn’t growing. He’s the size and weight of an 18mth old…and he’s 3yrs….

6. Personally, I feel sick and tired all the time, literally. I have constant headaches, migraines, dizzy spells, vertigo and all sorts of weird and wonderful things going on.  An MRI, catscan & blood tests failed to find reasons for it.

7. My family’s immunity seems to have completely deteriorated.  My youngest get’s sick every couple of weeks, each time now it’s very croupy, and the rest of us get it too.  We just get over one thing, when another hits us.

Generally, we just don’t feel “right”, and feel like we are never getting past the sickness.  I think, among other things, we are dealing with MCS (mulitiple chemical sensitivity disorder), VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) and off-gassing issues (house paints, carpets, furniture etc) which is why I’m setting a course for a total home detox!

So I’ll be clearing out, cleaning up and fixing up everything I can to get my family’s health back in shape! Moving out isn’t an option for us, as I”m sure it’s not for many of you, so follow me as I take you step by step through things we can all do to make our homes healthier places for our families.
So, who’s with me????  Why not visit our facebook page to introduce yourself too, we’d love to get to know you all better!


I’d love to share this little journey with you! Please share this post so we can get as many involved as possible   Add a little comment below & tell me about your situation and why you’re joining the Home Detox Journey!  The first post in our detox journey will be Mon June 4th so be sure to keep a look out. I’ll post a link on the fb page too…


Cass x

Studying to become a naturopath...

Studying natural health has always been a goal of mine, after a lifetime of allergies, intolerances, IBS, coeliac disease and other health issues that seemed to defy conventional medicine.  Add my two little people, one with a severe vaccine reaction, allergies & eczema; the other born with an immune deficiency and none-specific growth delays; you have a recipe for a naturopath with tons of first-hand experience!
2011 was a huge year and a great leap towards my goal.  This mum, with 2 kids under 5 and a husband that works overseas, decided to go back to uni and study a BA Health Science in Naturopathy. Not only did I go back to uni, I luckily received a scholarship - how thrilled was I!   Only catch….I had to study full-time…argh!

So after some thought, a little foot tapping and a few sleepless nights I decided to accept the scholarship and give it a go. “What the heck” I thought…I have two kids that sleep poorly, haven’t clocked up a full 8 hours sleep in 5 years, but yeah, I can study full time


Fast-forward to 2012 – I completed my first year studying natural health, scoring mostly D’s and HD’s (very pleased with that) and have 10 out of 36 subjects under my belt.  Problem was, going back to uni this year, the timetable really wasn’t made for a mum in my situation.  Lots of 3pm & 6pm lectures (nope, can’t do that), a few 8.30am lectures (nope, can’t do that either) and here I was…unable to attend any of my classes with any sort of regularity.  Not happy!!!!

The Gold Coast is not an easy place to study natural medicine.  There is only one uni that offers the BA in Natural Health Science I want to study – where I studied last year, Endeavour, but can’t make the lecture times this semester.  Local uni’s like Griffith (where I did my Business Degree)  & Bond don’t offer natural health degrees yet, and the local TAFE that used to offer Adv. Diplomas in Naturopathy no longer does (I thought I was studying a growth industry? Go figure….).

That left me with only distance study options that frankly I wasn’t keen to pursue.  However, with no other option, I researched the available courses and decided to give the AIAS a try.  At this point I have 6 AIAS subjects to complete, have just finished one, and am finding the motivation hard.   I miss the interactive class environment and really don’t think the education is as good when you’re teaching yourself from a workbook.  Plus, being an Advanced Diploma, I’m finding the content below my abilities and frankly, I’m bored.

For those of you looking to study natural health too, let’s quickly talk the pro’s & con’s of AIAS…
Pro’s of AIAS

• cost – the subjects are about half the price of Endeavour, plus they include all set textbooks, saving me $500+ a semester. Nice!
• content – the Advanced Diploma Naturopathy includes Iridology and Flower Essences, where Endeavour no longer does, you can choose either Homeopathic or Massage streams
• less stress – the subjects are self-paced & you have up to 9 months to complete them.  The schedule at Endeavour was intense and I actually came close to a break-down back in November, from the pressure.

Con’s of AIAS

• inconsistencies – there are many errors in the workbooks, inconsistent information from admin staff, difficulty accessing help & support…the list goes on.  However for me, the frustration is definitely offset by the cost savings plus AIAS seem to be working hard to fix the issues.
• exam co-ordinators – it’s hard to find someone to sit your exams with. It has to be someone you aren’t good friends with (so you can’t cheat) but that you know well enough to feel comfortable asking to oversee your 3hour exams…huh????  oxymoron…
• support – it is a VERY lonely way to study and I wouldn’t recommend it.  However AIAS is launching an online version of study, so hopefully that will overcome some of the loneliness & lack of information issues.

Overall, looking at $$$ alone, my degree at Endeavour is about $50k (my scholarship was only for the first year), but the Adv Dip at AIAS is about $25k. Half the price, can’t be overlooked….so what does it mean for my study????

Overall, the cost saving, lack of interaction with other students and easier level of content are not big enough ++++ for me, so next semester I plan to continue studying natural health back at Endeavour.  Although it will take me a number of years to complete in a piece-meal,  part-time fashion, it’s back to Endeavour I go…one subject by measly subject at a time..lol!

As the ultimate goal for me is to become a top quality natural health practitioner, I feel the only place that can offer me that is on-campus at Endeavour.  So I'm doing a little of both courses & hoping to finish them both...one day!!!

Cheers, Cass x