Frugal Friday – Cinema Trips

As a parent, one of the most expensive areas, are family days out.
In the past, like many others, we have spent a small fortune on a day out.

I remember taking the Mini Man and Little Lady,  along with Mr N, to the cinema.
It was their first experience there, so we wanted to go the whole hog – 3D, popcorn, sweeties. 
We done this when Finding Nemo was brought back out, as the pair love this film.

So for 2 x adult tickets, 2 x children tickets, not forgetting it was in 3D, 2 x popcorn, 2 x large juice and 2 x bags of sweets, anyone want to hazard a guess??
It cost me £87 odds!
I nearly choked and that was before anyone popcorn went into my mouth.
There and then I decided that would be the last time I would pay full price for the cinema.

What do I do then?
We go to Movies for Juniors/Kids AM, whatever one is showing a film we would love to see.
The beauty of these sessions?  It only costs £1.35 each for a ticket.   Suits me fine, thank you very much.
They are on at weekends during term time, and most days during school holidays. (Your best bet is to check online and see if the sessions are on and what is showing)

Sweets.  What about the goodies? I hear you all say.
Well, it’s simple really,  and it was Aunt Kaak, who told me to do it.
We hit the shops such as,  B&M, poundies, etc and grab lots of goodies.  Rarely does it cost us more than a fiver.
Bargain!

So we have went down from £87 to £10.40

Do you go to the cinema? What are your cinema saving tips?
We would love to know.

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Lets Go To Primary!

This year we have had quite a big year involving changes,  and we still have a couple more to come.
One if these changes is , my Mini Man starting Primary School.

I, naturally, am quite emotional about this,  and I am sure most mums would agree, that it’s a big deal.
My Mini Man however,  is ecstatic and cannot wait to start.
So much so, that he has placed a sticker in his calendar on the day he starts and is ticking the days off as we go.

The next paragraph is from the Primary 1 himself.
I am a bit scared, because I will nursery.
I am happy too, because I am a big boy now.
My teacher is Miss Hendry and I like her and my class.
I wonder what we will do in class?

We are lucky that we stay a 5 minute walk from the school and nursery.   Maybe not so lucky when its pouring it down!

The Mini Mans big choice, according to him, is whether to have packed lunches or school dinners.
When I was at primary, I always had a packed lunch.  It was in the rare occasion I had a school dinner.
We have decided between myself and the Mini Man, that 1 day a week, if he wants to, he can have a school dinner.
He is happy with this, and that suits me.

Do your children have school dinners or packed lunches? Or both?
We like comments here, so comment away 🙂

X

Meal Planning Monday 24/02/14

Welcome to my Monday Meal Plan!
With a big thanks to Mrs M for hosting this linky.

I am getting back in the swing with my meal plans, and cannot believe that I let them slide for so long.
They are helping me stick to my healthy eating and keeping shopping costs down,  which we all love, don’t we?

Here goes:

M  Chicken cordon bleu – low fat version
T   Homemade Lentil soup
W   Creamy Haddock
T   Pann Haggerty light
F   Mince & vegetable pie
S   Turkey Burgers
S   Roast dinner

We are taking inspiration from The Hairy Dieters this week.

We get out fresh fish from John and the gang at Delishfish.  Pop along and have a look, the fish is the tastiest we have had in a while.

Don’t forget to pop along to Mrs M’s to see what else is cooking 🙂

X

Calling All Adventurers (and mummies/daddies)

Here at Follow my Line HQ, we have been invited to a Top secret event, hosted by the wonderful Ella’s Kitchen.
Alas, we cannot go, as this event is being held in London (hopefully you will have one in Edinburgh at some point)
I bet you can imagine how sad we are to miss this 😦

I can let you into a little secret though!
Are you in London on Wednesday 26th February?
Are you free between 10.30am and 1pm?

Well if you answered yes to these 2 questions,  read on my little Adventurers,  and don’t miss out!

Calling all adventurous little ones…

Baby and toddler food experts, Ella’s Kitchen, is creating a totally incredible, edible experience for little taste explorers to enjoy.

Created to celebrate the launch of the ‘my little BIG meals’ range, the super-secret taste adventure is designed to introduce little ones to a world of scrummy fruit and delicious veg, and features a whole host of fun things for little explorers to taste, touch, smell and discover.

 
The incredible edible event opens to the public at The Horniman Museum and Gardens, London on Wednesday 26th February from 10.30am – 1pm and is free of charge for parents and little ones to explore.

 
WHEN? Wednesday 26th February, 10.30am – 1pm

WHERE? The Horniman Museum and Gardens, Victorian Conservatory

ADDRESS: 100 London Road, Forest Hill, SE23 3PQ

CLOSEST TUBE: Forest Hill

Sounds exciting right?
Get along there and join in the fun.

Let us know how it is and be sure to have some fun for us.

X
 

It’s The Little Things

Sometimes in life I am easily pleased, and right now it is the little things in life,  that are making a big impact on me.
And 9 times out of 10, theses things come from my Mini Man and Little Lady,  and occasionally Mr N.

Take for example,  today, the Mini Man came home from nursery and handed me a piece of paper.  On it was his name, a heart, and I am not going to lie, something else that I had no idea what it was.
And naturally when I asked him, he looked at me as if I had no brain.
“Mummy, you’re just stupid.   Its your heart and our home. I put the 2 of them together becsuse you fill our house with love”
Once he had said that, I forgot all about being called stupid, but felt , my heart swell snd my eyes well up.
I thanked him for his amazing oicture and gave him a cuddle, his response?
“Calm down mummy, it’s just a picture”
He has such a way with words!

Then there is the Little Lady, she is a bit more forward with her compliments.   And they range in size, depending kn what mood the little devil angel is in.
“I can’t see the telly mummy”, when I am giving, or rather trying to give, her a cuddle.
All the way to – “I love you more than macaroni and cake” and believe me thats a whole lot of love. 
Her latest one is, I don’t like you….. I love you.  But beware the signs  as she only does this on the now and again, or, dum dum dum, when she is after something, more than often something sweet.

I remember, way back in the day, when Mr N and I first met,  we used to leave little love notes dotted sbout, in bags, sandwich tubs, you name it.  

Aaaa young love!

What are the Little Thkngs that make you smile?

X

The Boy is Going to School

As I am writing this, I am in deep shock!
Last Wednesday I enrolled my mini man into our local primary school. Such an emotional day for a soppy mummy like me.

Will someone please tell me where the time has went to?? Who stole it?
I demand to have my bouncing baby boy back.

In all honesty though, and as much as I hate to admit it, he is ready, bless his wee socks.
Bias, of course not (well, maybe a teeny, tiny bit) but I have one smart cookie on my hands. And in these last few months, he has been soaking up more and more, is more willing to learn than this time last year.

Do you know how hard it was to finally decide on what school to send him to? Unbelievable! But you have to think carefully, as it’s their future in your hands. Scary biscuits or what?!
In the end we picked our chosen school for various reasons. Including some help from the nursery, thoughts from the teachers etc.

I am nervous and excited for my mini man to start a new chapter in his life and he is more than ready to.
Question is, am I?

How did you pick your little ones school? Were you anxious?
I’d love to hear about your school stories, maybe put my mind at ease.

S x

Little Chefs – Cornflake Crunch

Makes 8 pieces

225g milk or plain chocolate
3 tablespoons golden syrup
50g margarine
100g cornflakes

20cm shallow round tin

Grease your tin with a little margarine on a paper towel.
Grease inside well, but don’t leave a lot of butter on tin.

Break your chocolate into pieces in a large pan.
Add in the margarine and syrup.
Heat the pan on a low heat, stirring the mixture all the time.

Once the chocolate has melted, add in the cornflakes and stir well.
Making sure that the cornflakes are coated well with chocolate.

Spoon the mixture into your tin.
Smooth the top with the back of a metal.

Put the tin in the fridge so that the mixture sets. Should roughly take 2 hours.

Once set, get a grown up to use a sharp knife and cut into pieces.

Keep in an airtight container and eat within four days

Little Chefs – Marshmallow Crispies

Makes roughly 12 pieces

100g toffee
100g butter or margarine
100g marshmallows
100g rice Crispies

We used our square tin from pampered chef to set the mixture in.

Grease your tin with some butter or margarine on a paper towel.
Place your toffee in a plastic bag and break up with a rolling pin.

Put the toffee and butter into a pan.
Add marshmallows and melt them gently over a low heat.
Making sure you stir all the time.

When everything has melted and blended together, take pan off the heat and add in the rice Crispies.
Make sure they are evenly covered.

Spoon mixture into your tray and peas down gently with the back of a metal spoon.

Set mixture aside to set.

Once set cut into pieces.

keep these in an airtight container and eat within four days

Little Chefs – Choc Chip Cookies

Makes 12 cookies

100g caster sugar
100g butter
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
175g plain flour
175g milk, white or plain Chocolate chips (we used a mixture of milk and white)

Heat oven to 180oc/gas 4.

Grease 2 baking trays. Turn on your oven.
Place caster sugar and butter into a large mixing bowl. Stir well with a wooden spoon.
Keep on stirring, quite briskly. You need to get the mixture as smooth and creamy as you can.
Break the egg in a small bowl and beat.
Pour in the vanilla and mix in with the egg.
Pour your egg mix into the bowl and stir well. Sift in the flour and combine.
Once the mix is smooth, stir in the chocolate chips.
Place heaped tablespoons of the mix into the baking sheets.
Flatten each cookie slightly with the back of a fork.
Bake the cookies for 10-15 until they are golden brown.
They should be slightly soft in the middle.
Leave cookies for a few minutes, then place on a cooling rack to cool.

Enjoy 🙂

These biscuits will keep for 5 days in an airtight container

Little Chefs – Apple Crumble

The monsters had a great time making this crumble.
They chose the recipe, and we headed to the shops to get all our ingredients. They seemed to feel more important as they marched around the supermarket with their list in hand, bless their wee aprons.
We hope you enjoy this simple, tasty recipe.

Serves 6

500g eating apples
6 tablespoons of water
Ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon caster sugar

For the crumble
100g plain flour
100g whole meal flour
100g butter
75g light brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 180oc/gas mark 4.

Cut the apples into quarters, peel them and cut out the cores.
Place them in a pie dish.
Add the water to the apples. Sprinkle them with a large pinch of cinnamon and the caster sugar.
Mix together both flours.
Cube the butter and add into flour mix.
Mix the butter and flour together with a blunt knife, stir and cut into flour again, until the butter is fully coated with flour.
Wash your hands and dry them well.
Rub the butter into the flour. Lift the mixture as your rubbing and let it fall into bowl.
When the mixture is of breadcrumb consistency, mix in the soft brown sugar.
Sprinkle the topping over the apple mix and spread out evenly.
Place pie dish on a baking tray in the oven.
Bake for 45 minutes until the top has went a golden brown colour.
Once cooked let the crumble cool for 5 mins and then serve with ice cream or custard.

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