How to handle a tween /teeenager

While eating our dinner in town I had this conservation with J... he's 12 going on 40.

"Have you ever sworn at school?" I asked.

Stunned silence.

"Well? There is no point in lying to me!" I added.

More stunned silence.

"I know enough people to tell me" I quipped.

J just sat there with a look of amazement and bewilderment.

"Yes " said J.

"Which words?" I adventured to ask.

"The F word is one of them...." said J now looking towards the door.

"Well DON"T do it again because..." and before I had even finished J chimed:

"Because you know enough people"

So there you are a investigating technique that actually works , now my child is not one of those who hangs on street corners and riots. He is a all out academic that plays every sport going and is the teachers model pupil. It is however social pressures around him that makes things change so I will be with him every step of the way to gently guide him in the right way. The next social hurdle is when he is 13 he wants to go on facebook.

And you must read this hilarious post about swearing ( Caution contains a swear word ) Thanks to In the Powder room for the link.

E Cloths review

Whilst I was away in Cornwall I got to review the e-towel . I wasn't going to use the dishwasher in the cottage as, I would have had to fed the electricity meter more £1 coins! So I set Mr T the task of looking happy while doing the drying up......

e-towel.

A happy Mr T using the e-towel.

A wet glass before using the E towel.

The glass after using the e-towel

They might strike you as a bit pricey but it this day and age you get what you pay for. Cheap T- towel don't absorb much water , and just push the water around as you try to dry the dishes . And they don't absorb much dirt either but the E - Cloth T towel does and as they are machine washable they come up looking as good as new a defiant worthwhile investment . It is a simple item that will add pleasure to mine or more likely Mr T's washing up and save electricity as I will be using the dishwasher less. This product makes washing up less of a chore for all those use it. The e - towel is £4.99

The other product I got to test was the

E-Cloth Washing Up Pad

Contains one Washing Up Pad.

This e-cloth is fantastic for general washing up.

The special E-Cloth fibre side (yellow) cuts through grease and grime, while the scrubbing side (green) makes light work of stuck on food residue and stains.

And it was very good no more buying those packs of Non stick scourers from supermarkets for me!. The price of this item is £2.99

The special E-Cloth fibre side (yellow) cuts through grease and grime, while the scrubbing side (green) makes light work of stuck on food residue and stains.

Also there was the

Kitchen Pack

The great advantage to e-cloths is that they attract dirt which means you do not need to use any form of detergent, liquid cleaner, or whatever to get a great result. So you don't have to rinse off lots of suds and can save time and money on expensive cleaners.

Use a damp e-cloth to wipe over any surface and it pulls most of the grime away on one pass - if very dirty then you need to make the cloth more wet, and it's best to use a thicker weave for long-term dirt followed by one of the fine-weave polishing cloths to get the best finish.

You can then just rinse out the cloth under the tap and it's ready to use again. When they get very grubby you can machine wash them (don't use fabric softener though, because this interferes with how the cloth works).

It will take a bit of practice to get a really crisp finish on very shiny surfaces (especially glass or mirrors) I do have a lot of windows!.

This pack contains our two essential cloths at a small saving – our General Purpose and our Glass & Polishing cloths.

General Purpose Cloth

Ideal for the kitchen, this cloth will clean all hard surfaces, including thick grease. It is the ideal workhorse cloth for the kitchen and its versatility also makes it suitable for all household cleaning.

The thicker fibres and their wedge-shape construction give the cloth its extraordinary cleaning power. They also gives the cloth high and rapid absorbency.

Perfect when used in combination with the Glass & Polishing Cloth, which is ideal for taps, kettles, toasters, stainless steel and the final polish of worktops.

32cm x 32cm

Glass & Polishing Cloth

The Glass & Polishing cloth is our most versatile cloth. It will perform well on all light cleaning. It is exceptional on shiny surfaces and will leave taps, kettles, toasters and stainless steel completely smear-free. It will easily outperform specialist liquid cleaners on mirrors and glass.

The cloth has a different fibre construction and a different weave to the General Purpose cloth. This reduces overall absorbency and makes it less effective on heavy dirt. However, it increases the speed at which moisture is absorbed and its performance on light grease and dirt is excellent. This is what enables it to leave surfaces so shiny.

40 x 50cm

£9.49

These items can be purchased from

http://www.e-cloth.com/products/kitchen/

or any other good retailer.

(Disclosure I was sent these items for the purposes of review)

I've caught crabs a simple pleasure.....

‘Crabbing’ in Padstow has been the pastime of youngsters in the town for a million generations, one of life's simplease pleasures.I did this when I was 7 and I recreated this scene with my 12 year old. Next to Padstow Harbour when the tide is in  is a designated harbour fishing area where 99% of those ‘fishing’ are trying to catch crabs on simple hand-held lines. this simple activity comprises of a single fishing line, small weight to sink the bait, a juicy piece of bait (bacon rind, tinned mackerel in oil or, highly recommended – a fish head), no hook needed There are also large net bags available and these are humane as well. Our preferred bait was 'Every Little helps value bacon' mm I wonder which shop that was from?. Mums and dads a more than your average amount of patience  will be needed (and a camping stool is a god send for this)……….. but the children will love it !  

 1 : The kids will want to check their crabbing line every 60 seconds ….. leave the line for 5 minutes, which should give time for the crabs to come out, sniff around and then decide on whether to dine on your offerings or scuttle back under the seaweed……. 

A huge crab

 2 : Despite what others say, don’t be in a hurry to bring up your fishing line …..slowly and gently is the key …. Harbour crabs are very quick to sense excessive or unusual  movement and will go into defensive mode and let go of the bait if alarmed.

Care of the harbour crabs :

Harbour crabs are only small and are not edible. ‘Fishing’ for them provides endless enjoyment for youngsters who are keen to ‘catch..’ Treat these crabs carefully and gently. If you wish to keep any ‘captives’ in a bucket for an hour or more, please put some seaweed in as well because our little friends live at the darkened bottom of the harbour and are not comfortable with sunlight. When your ‘fishing’ is over, please return the harbour crabs to their home, gently and carefully.

bottlegreen green tea & elderflower sparkling Presse review

When you are in the wilds of Cornwall ( or any where) with the rolling hills, sheep and the cream teas you need a light refreshing drink. bottle green has selected the finest handpicked elder flowers and combined them with infused green tea and lightly sparkling water to create the prefect summertime drink. Made with only natural ingredients with no added preservatives or sweeteners, bottlegreen green tea & elderflower sparkling presse brings together two traditional summer flavours in an unusual but tasty combination that provides instant refreshment on lazy days in the sunshine or at alfresco parties or from me and my family in a cottage in Cornwall.

Green tea and elderflower have well known benefits such as improved metabolism,healthy skin and a stronger immune system. Pour bottlegreen  & elderflower sparkling presse over ice and it makes the prefect accompaniment to summer feasts such as barbeque's or when sharing tapas with your closest friends and family. Alertantively for something with a little more kick,add a few shots of gin to a jug,add freshly cut limes and top up with the presse to create a delicious refreshing drink.

bottlegreen uses traditional win making methods of production to ensure the new bottlegreen green tea  & elderflower sprakling presse, along with its popular range of cordials and sparkling presses, are clean crisp with the flavours of natural ingredients retained.

bottlegreen green tea & elderflower sprakling presse contains no artifical colours ,flavours  or sweetners and is  available from supermarkets priced from £2.30

This is a pleasant alertnative to wine and its looks as expensive as the £48 bottle of wine I had on holiday !

bottlegreen green tea & elderflower sparkling  presse 

Follow bottlegreen drinks on twitter @bottlegreen and become a fan on facebook http://www.facebook.com/bottlegreen

Patak's Masala Paste Review

So you have the Patak's Tikka Masala Paste:

I then chopped the onions

I measured 70g of Patk's Tikka Masala Paste.

I fried the onion in a little oil.

I added the Pataks Tikka Masala Paste

Then I should of added the chopped tomatoes but guess what Mr T had blooming well forget to buy them. I had left him clear instructions on what do do, when I went to the Post Office while he went to the supermarket to buy.....




1.Chicken.
2.Nan Bread
3. Single cream


I discovered at a crucial stage of my cooking he had not come back with what I had sent him in for...
He came back with the Chicken, Nan Bread, Creme freche ?? and Indian snacks ( I had not asked for Indian snacks)

So I made do with Organic baby plum tomatoes and a squirt of tomato sauce. The tinned tomatoes are made to reduce down and you add the water but as  Mr T had forgotten these I had to make do !

Patkak's pastes are easy to use and adapt as you can well see. So why not make them part of your cupboard's stock items and see what you can create.

Best Indian recipe in the country?

Are you a whizz in the kitchen with a flair for Indian flavours and cooking up outstanding curries?

Patak’s, official sponsor of National Curry Week, is searching the UK for perfect culinary candidates to take part in this year’s Signature Dish awards. The awards, judged by a panel of experts including Patak’s brand ambassador Anjali Pathak, will be split into two categories – traditional and innovative – to search the country for perfect Indian inspired recipes.

So, whether your Indian speciality is a brilliant balti, terrific tikka or something altogether more unexpected, get cooking and enter now!

Entries (full working recipe with a photo of the finished dish) to: National Curry Week, 33 Beresford Avenue, Surbiton, Surrey, KT5 9LH or by email togroveint@aol.com no later than 23 September.