Clean Sheets

Don't pay tax on Christmas, give books

I am filling in my Christmas Gift List blank by blank and without giving away any surprises, books have filled some spaces.

I like giving books as gifts for a number of reasons but this year I have a brand new one. If you, like me are feeling that you are being levied and taxed from every angle and you just don't want to give any more just now, console yourself with the fact that since 1982 the VAT rate on books is 0%.

The town I grew up in didn't have a bookshop (it does now, thankfully - hello to all in Bandon Books) so I don't take it for granted and if we don't use them we risk losing them. As browsing time is limited with 2 little people in tow I often do my research online, and bring the ISBN number, title, author and publisher with me to the shop, if it's not in stock it can almost certainly be ordered.

So that's: no VAT, no shipping charges, no traipsing through endless shops, and supporting local retailers - it almost makes Christmas shopping sound easy! 

   

Toy control

The kitchen seemed eternally untidy of late (even more so than usual!) I tackled the root cause on Tuesday afternoon. A recent birthday brought with it many chunky playworthy toys and the only disadvantage is the space they take up. The shelves and boxes could no longer accommodate all their colourful tenants so several toys have retired to storage temporarily for some rest and relaxation. They will be greeted like old friends on a wet afternoon in the future, their entertainment value restored to that of brand new toys.

A case of out of sight, out of mind and absence makes the heart grow fonder.

I am once again able to restore some semblance of order at bedtime now, if I have the energy.

Spinach not just for Popeye, good for omelettes and soup too.

Spinach is one of those things that's so good for you it's hard to believe it's delicious as well. As a plain cooked vegetable its wilted mass is less than appetising but baby leaf spinach which is readily available makes a lovely addition to a green salad or filling for a sandwich.

We had spinach soup at the weekend but the recipe didn't require the entire 450g bag so the rest went into an omelette.  

No Bake Train Birthday Cake

My aunt in Wexford has to be given credit for this design. This is so simple and so effective, and kids love it, no trouble with them just eating the icing.

You will need :

1 litre block of vanilla ice cream (longer than the regular block)

A packet of midget gem sweets

A packet of giant chocolate buttons

A packet of Liqourice Allsorts

Dessicated Coconut

Green food colouring  

Sun shining, clothes drying, energy saving...

The world is instantly a better place when the sun is shining, apart from the incomparable unmistakable warmth it brings to my skin and through my bones I absolutely love line drying clothes. I get enormous satisfaction from it, it's free, not as hard on the clothes, environmentally friendly, and makes clothes easier to iron. We have a south facing garden which is very rarely wind free so as long as it's not raining it's a prime clothes drying location.

I am not a fan of the rotary clothes line. If it's fully laden I think the clothes are hanging too close together to dry quickly. What does work well in a suburban garden is the retractable clothesline, fixed to a wall or shed with a hook opposite to secure the line when it's in use. You can even put up a second hook opposite if distances allow and pull the line even further. When not in use they are discrete and don't interfere with lawn mowing etc.

Des Bishop's new venture with the ESB is a blog detailing his energy saving efforts. He has only briefly mentioned clothes drying so far, but it's early days. His focus has been lighting and predictably hot water heating (he brought the Irish obsession with the immersion to our own attention with a brilliant sketch several years ago).

It's worth a look and it's good to see Jim Curran from the ESB contributing as I am skeptical about armchair energy consultants!

B & B - too broad a term.

A bad horrific B & B experience in Doolin several years ago scared me off that whole sector of accommodation providers but my faith has been restored. In fact I am wholly restored after four nights sans famille in Connemara with the Rugby Player, Congratulations to Emer and Shane who got married and gave us the excuse for the break!

Feel much better despite your cold!

The Rugby Player and I had a really lovely weekend catching up with old friends and Evie stayed out late despite a cold, this is for her!

As an alternative to sachet lemon drinks with paracetomol. Try this, tasty and full of vitamin C, the honey soothes sore throats too.

Ingredients:

Half a lemon

An orange

3 slices of root ginger as thick as a 2 euro coin

A teaspoon of honey

Boiling hot water

Squeeze the juice of half a lemon and a whole orange into a large mug, add the slices of ginger and a teaspoon of honey, fill the mug with boiling water.

If you can drink it with the ginger in it so much the better, but remove it if it's too annoying.  

Take paracetomol alongside it and you have the same effect but much a more pleasant taste and the advantage of knowing exactly what is in your cold remedy. You can also have another drink if you feel like it (without the paracetomol) without risking any ill effects.

Recipe: Sage Roast Pork Steak with Roasted Vegetables

A seasonal roast that is quick , even possible midweek or on a busy weekend. The veg cook in the roasting tray so it's lighter on washing up, and there's less elements to time together.  

Download September_2009 Recipe sheet

Give a little thought to Christmas...

Stop, don't close this window - I promise not to condone presents being bought and wrapped by Hallowe'en. I was a little reluctant to confess how early I start thinking about Christmas until I came across a family who made their Kris Kindle draw on August 15th (I won't name you this year but, you know who you are!) This puts me in the positively "slow off the mark" category so I am now happy to tell you my Christmas preparations start in September but all I do is start a list, I don't even complete it.

I have made a list of all the presents I need to buy. Family, friends, colleagues, creche staff, presents for regular charity appeals etc. with a space for a gift idea for each. Now there's a place for all the fleeting gift ideas which if not written down are nowhere to be found in early December, when you're standing in a crowded shop resorting to an unoriginal idea which isn't really personal.

I don't need to pluck these ideas from thin air, you'd be amazed the hints people drop unconciously, telling you about something they saw in the shops or an item that they're dying to replace. Book reviews on the radio (I heard one last week that will be perfect for someone) are a useful source of ideas and gorgeous gifts I received myself during the year can be an inspiration too, (not re-gifting, I do buy another one!) Ideal Home magazine and similar will publish their Christmas specials nice and early and they're worth keeping an eye out for. Once the daily papers are doing stocking filler features it's all a bit last minute.

Try it, find an A4 sheet names down one side and present ideas down the other - it really does make life easier.

Word of warning: if you do make an early purchase mark it clearly on the list and write down where you've put it. Nothing more annoying than hiding something successfully from yourself - been there, done that and it's an expensive mistake!

Eye make up advice from the young.

I am lucky enough to have cousins in their teens and very early twenties. I exploit this in a number of ways from the obvious babysitting to the not so obvious brutally honest wardrobe weeding and frugal fashion tips.

The latest knowledge I garnered form the ladies was an introduction to Benefit make up. I am generally low maintenance, I enjoy getting dressed up with the best of them but on a day to day basis my grooming is limited to tinted moisturiser and mascara. For the past month or so I have taken a few extra minutes with a self contained step by step quartet from Benefit called Big Beautiful Eyes . There's an under eye concealer, a base shadow, a contour shadow and a liner along with brushes to apply all four products. It may seem a expensive at 33.50 euro but even the budget brands would struggle to offer 4 products, applicators and step by step instructions for the price.

I do wonder if the products are sized proportionally and if one will run out before the other but only time will tell, in the meantime I am delighted that cousin H (affectionately known as the "screaming sheep") offered to do my eye make up one evening and I can't imagine any other way that I would have added 4 products to my morning routine without any stress.