19
Dec
2010
Getting even more traditional – could yum cha be the key?
possibly my favourite tradition. I know, I'm shallow like that.
I saw this great post the other day on a website. It was all about the traditions this mother is starting with her family. Some of them were a bit ummm full on (compulsory family hikes are not really going to cut it in our family) but some of them got me thinking about what we’re doing in our house. I’ve covered some of these in earlier posts but for those of you who don’t immediately memorise and take notes (what is WRONG with you people? Don’t you know this stuff is gold?), here are some ideas we are planning on taking up in our little family. (OK, not so little our family as we currently stand at four and are soon to be five but DON’T REMIND ME, I HAVE THE FEAR.)
- Sunday family roasts – as per last week’s post, I am loving this new tradition. Granted, following the first week’s massive success, we can only go backwards from there (witness tonight’s event where daughter refused to eat anything but individual peas. One at a time. Very slowly. Until you wanted to throw each and every pea at the wall), but I am still loving it. Perhaps in warmer times it will become Sunday barbeque night. I love any excuse to break out the tomato sauce.
12
Dec
2010
New family tradition and a shameful confession
I have a shameful confession to make. Although I am boastful and annoyingly proud of my children’s eating regime, we *whispers* never eat as a family. I KNOW. HORRIFYING. I bang on and on about their table manners, I make them eat copious amounts of vegies, I supervise their eating at their little table, I am smug about their love of plain yoghurt.
But it’s not at the big table. It’s not with me and the Captain eating beside them (well, except for obvious shameful stealing of anything that looks good and doesn’t involve broccoli).
It suddenly struck me when we were discussing Christmas lunch – this will be the first year that son will be allowed to sit at the table with us all rather than banished to naptime in his cot – we never ever eat together as a family. Well, except for yum cha/dim sum, where getting food in as fast as you can, drinking juith with a bendy straw and spilling food at the table, is all positively encouraged. Not something I think aunt and uncle will appreciate at carefully laid Christmas feast table.
28
Mar
2010
Even though we are rich and famous, I still think about the small things. Like why I love London.
So, in case you missed it, we recently became very famous and embarrassingly wealthy after a guest post on Mia Freedman’s wonderful blog, http://www.mamamia.com.au/ . The post was about making friends in a new place and was fairly cynical in tone. I know – shocking. Anyway, in the subsequent comments amongst all the lovely and amusing ones, someone suggested we had very bad attitudes and we should be more positive and we’d probably have more luck finding friends. Frankly, I’m not sure – I’m quite bossy and Jacqui is mildly annoying – but there’s always hope I spose. In the same vein someone else suggested that maybe we should be more appreciative of the life we are leading. Basically everyone hated us. Or maybe that was just our husbands commenting.
13
Dec
2009
For the slack Christmas shoppers – last minute ideas
I was going to do a long post on Christmas present ideas. Then I started getting them come in thick and fast from my favourite blogs and I decided that:
a) I had left it too late
b) I couldn’t possibly outdo the lists I have already been sent and
c) Why on earth would I rewrite a whole post that I was clearly going to shamelessly copy from other sources anyway (ah, Internet, bless your cotton socks)?
So I thought I would highlight a few fun ideas/gifts and then give you the links to my favourite present lists for you to peruse at your leisure (or not – Christmas is only 12 days away. If you haven’t finished yet you’re absolutely buggered).
Nice traditions for book-loving parents
- See Jacqui’s post on passing down books. What a gorgeous idea.
- Stolen from Babyology – think about starting a tradition where you give each child a special book – like a special hardcover or vintage book. Do books come in vintage? We’ve bought the Mouse a hardcover set of Beatrix Potter. I hope she doesn’t read this and find out. She is 14 weeks and VERY advanced.
9
Dec
2009
An Expat Christmas
Christmas time is when expats often miss home the most. Australians at home might take this opportunity to count their blessings and appreciate being home with family. Or perhaps not. Perhaps you are filled with envy and wish that you too were separated from your family by a 22 hour flight and thousands of miles of ocean on Christmas Day.
For Kate and me, Christmas abroad and with our husbands’ families, the festive season, as for everyone, has its highs and lows. Here we each share ours with you.
Kate’s London Christmas:
Brussel sprouts – those horrible green balls that feature on every mother’s threat list, pretty much sum up Christmas in England for me. They have these on Christmas Day. On purpose. They also have weird mini sausages wrapped in bacon. Not on the barbecue as some homage to their colonial cousins – no, just because well, it’s Christmas. And then there is the hideous sounding three bird roast. Chicken, goose and turkey. All in one. Yes, I realise that conjures up odd visions of a freakish looking giant bird with three heads (is that just me?) but it’s actually a supermarket creation – quelle surprise.
