Dear Soulmate...

I want tell you how much I love you,

I want to show you how much I appreciate everything you do,

I want to thank you for being there for me,

I want you to know how important you are to us, your family.

I want to convey all these things to you, but I look at you and my words are lost,

You look into my eyes and I melt,

I just smile.

You hold me and I snuggle into you, 

Into my special place in your arms, 

Into the feeling of safety and warmth, 

Where no harm can come, 

No bad thoughts can enter this private sanctuary.

I wish the words that float around my head would come together and make more sense,

I would paint the walls with prose If I thought it would help me express my feelings for you.

Yet I look at you and I am quiet, I verbalise menial chit chat, gossip and tales of cheeky children, 

Yet the words I want to say do not pass my lips,

I hope you hear them anyway...

You are my all, you are my strength, you are the father of my beautiful children, you are my Soulmate....

I love you.

Happy Birthday 

xxx

Family Happiness is...

Family Happiness for me is watching my children create together and share laughter...

This is my entry into the Happiness is.... contest with Limetree

A Mile In Memory of Matilda Mae

Yesterday we joined many other bloggers and their families from across the North West in Clifton park to walk a mile in memory of a special little girl who was taken from her family too soon and without warning by SIDS. In February of this year at just 9 months old Matilda Mae was found sleeping. Since that point her mummy Jennie has worked tirelessly through her grief to help raise awareness of SIDS. Read more about this over at Edspire.

 Yesterday we walked through the beautiful Clifton Country Park in the rain with our families, we chatted and I reflected on how lucky am to have my two beautiful healthy children. At just two and five I found it hard to explain to my children why we were there...

I told them that we were there to remember a beautiful little girl who now lived in the sky,

I told them that she was a shining star looking down on her family,

I told them that Matilda Mae loved the colours purple and pink and they hunted for any hints of these colours in the trees...

They  shouted out when they spotted pink and purple flowers, a purple balloon and the pink and purple umbrellas and coats of other families walking around the park.

At the end of the walk we stood together and blew bubbles which floated up towards the sky for Matilda Mae. I felt that these bubbles contained our children smiles and laughter and I hope that some of them reached her.

Although we had packed a picnic, we were all quite cold and wet so decided to leave and have our picnic on a blanket in the living room instead once we were all dried off and warmed up.

While my children ate, I sat watching them and thought about the walk and the families who had come together in the rain to remember a little girl that some of us had never actually met, but like me had followed her life on line through Jennie's beautiful words and pictures. It is heartwarming the sense of community that can be found online, Since I started blogging two years ago I have found friendship and support from women who I have never met in person, together we share the highs and lows of life through our blogs and facebook and twitter communities.

I would like to thank Susannne from Ghostwritermummy for organising this walk and inviting us all to come together and remember.

There were walks arranged throughout the country yesterday to remember this little girl who is now a star shining bright in the sky looking down on us all. As well as spending time together thinking about Matilda Mae and her family the walks aimed to raise money for The Lullaby Trust (formally FSID) who provide specialist support for families bereaved through sudden infant death; support research and promote expert advice on safer baby sleep. Quite simply they can help save lives. You can donate here. There is also an auction running with lovely products donated by a variety of companies and all funds raised go direct to The Lullaby Trust, click on the image below to take a look, please bid generously...

I have linked this post up with Country Kids over at Coombe Mill...

Win tickets to the Tatton Park Foodies Festival!

The UK’s largest celebration of food and drink The Foodies Festival returns for the third consecutive year to the beautiful Tatton Park next weekend, 17th - 19th May.   

Top chefs, including David Mooney of the New Moon Pub Company, star of the BBC’s Great British Menu Mary-Ellen McTague of Aumbry, Thai restaurant Chaophraya’s executive chef Kim Kaewkraikhot, celebrity chef Rachel Green, Brent Hulena from Hipping Hall, Malaysian chef Norman Musa of Ning, and brownie queen Justine Forrest will cook their signature dishes live in the Chefs’ Theatre and explain how amateur cooks can prepare the same dishes at home. 

The theatre will be compered by Blue Peter presenter and Celebrity Masterchef star Zoe Salmon, she commented: “I have a passion for all things food so I am absolutely thrilled to be involved with Foodies Festival and can't wait to see what's cooking up a storm in 2013".

Tickets can be purchased here and are priced as below...

1 Day Adult Ticket £12 (£10 concs)
3 Day Adult Ticket £18 (£15 concs)
1 Day VIP Ticket £38

I'm really excited to be visiting the festival with my family to meet up with other lovely bloggers from Blogs Up North. And I'm even more excited to be able to offer you, my lovely readers the chance to win 2 pairs of tickets for your choice of Day! But be quick to enter as it's only running for a few days! Follow the instructions below to enter...

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Celebrating Cinco De Mayo with a twist - Cinco De Mayo Risotto in tortilla bowls

We love Mexican food so when we were offered some Discovery products to celebrate Cinco De Mayo on Sunday I was delighted! But that was not all, we were also challenged to create a recipe using the ingredients we were sent....

As you know I love a challenge, so while I thought about what to make, I got out the ingredients  which included; a 'perfect fajita kit', a jar of  Cajun season & sauce and a squeezy tub of Discovery's all new garlic and herb soured cream... Yum!

So what could I make? The obvious choice was fajitas, a quick, tasty and easy meal pefect for making both a vegetarian option for me and a meaty one for my other half. We've used the Discovery kits before and they  contain great tasting ingredients and easy to follow instructions. However, I'm never one for the obvious choice so I decided to be creative....

I routed though the cupboards and fridge and found some more ingredients...

What could I make from this?! Then I had an idea, last time we ate Mexican food out we we served in an edible bowl made from a baked tortilla wrap! I thought it was a fabulous concept and have been meaning to try it ever since. So here was my chance.


Making edible bowls...

What you need: some medium ovenproof bowls, flour tortillas and some spray oil.

What to do: spray the inside of the bowl with the oil then place the fajita wrap inside the bowl, lighty spray again and pop in the oven on a low heat for 15 minutes...

The result should look something like this, a solid bowl ready to fill with yummyness...

I decided to fill these tortilla bowls with a Mexican take on my favourite dish, risotto!

What I used for the Risotto

1 tablespoon of  Olive Oil
2 small peppers (1 red , 1 green)
1 medium butternut squash (peeled and chopped in small squareish pieces)
1 Large Onion (diced)
1 litre of vegetable stock (hot)
1 glass of  white wine (if making it for the whole family I use Shloer instead!)
400g of Arborio rice 

fajita spice mix
fresh corriander
salt and black pepper

What I did

Heat the Oil in a large pan and add the onion. Fry until softened and then add the the peppers, stir for a few minutes before adding the rice.

Fry for about a minute continuously stirring, add the fajita spice mix, stir again, then add the wine.

Once wine has been absorbed start adding the stock a little at a time, waiting until it has absorbed before adding the next amount.

After adding about half the stock add the butternut squash and fresh corriander, then continue to add the stock, remembering to keep stirring.

When all stock has absorbed remove from heat then season.

So I filled the tortilla bowls with the yummy smelling risotto and topped with a dollop of the garlic and herb soured cream, serving with salad and salsa!

Optional - Meat
For my other half I marinated some cubed braising steak in the cajun spices and lightly fried to seal it. After cooking for a few minutes I added the cajun sauce and stirred, 
I found the Cajun season and sauce to be a really easy way of adding meat to the meal without making too much more work! Ideal when cooking for a mixture of vegetarians and meat eaters!!

So there we have it, Cinco De Mayo Risotto in tortilla bowls, A Mexican take on an Italian classic!

I have to admit it was an experiment but one that turned out very well and was thoroughly enjoyed! The texture of the risotto really complemented the fajita spices and the garlic and herb soured cream on top gave it a fresh and creamy finish. This definitely be a meal that I will be cooking again, and not just for Cinco De Mayo!

As I mentioned we have used Discovery products before and have always been pleased with them, the Garlic and Herb Soured Cream is new so this was our first time of tasting it and I was really impressed. It has a strong but not overpowering flavour that really complements the rest of the range. I like the squeezy tub too, reduces mess and makes it easy to store!

Disclaimer: We were sent some of the Discovery range to try free of charge and this post will be entered in to a competition to win prizes including a centerparcs break all opinions and recipes are my own.