KID'S PARTIES ON A BUDGET!

oki doki, so for a while now, i have been reading on other people's pages about what to do when you have a big heart but a small wallet...and then i just got a bucket full of ideas chucked straight at me this morning! So this one is for all the mom's with kiddies who would like to throw a million buck splash for a R1000 !! Enjoy!

Okay so first things first Theme!

Choose a theme that won't break the bank, if your baby is turning one, this will be easy, as they cannot voice their opinion as strong as a ben 10 crazy 6 year old lol!

then decide on the colour, normally pastels are always a winner with little one's, now if you could find a R5 store in your town, and i think most of you can, go on and buy the small paper plates they are about R14, in a plain colour, then place a themed serviete on top of it and place the " party pack " on top of that!
In the middle of the table you place one bowl of cheese curls, an empty coffee tin with a coloured ribbon tied in a bow, in the coffee tin you place marshmallows on a stick, marie biscuits with a half a marshmallow melted inbetween with decorated icing on top can also be placed in a plate, you can also put mini pizza slices on a plate for the kids party table and then you can make cupcakes and tower that on the table as well, this is MORE than enough!.

Inside the party bag you put 1 packet of cheese curls, 1 oros bottle juice, 1 marshmallow string, and a packet of jelly babies or you can just have a "thank you table with sweets in bowls and the mom can choose a few "goodbey" treats to take home.

all along the middle between the bowls with treats you place more decorated tins and inside of them you put balloon stick with balloons on them just to brighten up the table!
If you do not have table cloths in reds or blues or pinks or even whites, use a single bed sheet:-)

streamers are a mess to clean up and you can never really reuse them, so buy cheap ribbon and hang balloons from them:-)

you can make an activity table with colouring pictures and crayons, another table with clay and another with puzzles! these are things that i think most kids already have so you don't need to go buy it!

If you choose to have  the party bag you can do the following:
* Get brown paperbags and decorate them with a single picture of your theme and with a Permanent marker write each kids name on it

* go to spar and ask them if they can sell you 10 of their little cake boxes and decorate it when you   
   get home.

* Go to the R5 store and if you can get small gift bags, get those and place the thingies in there!


For the adults it is Very easy if you feel you HAVE to cater to the adults bake a chocolate cake for dessert, and serve hotdogs or hamburgers that you make yourself! It's not about the parent but the kids, i had 8 years to learn that the adults are normally the expensive part of a party and therefore i let them know that there won't be a big buffet for them!

And last but not least Use the internet for ideas, just because ideas look expensive it doen't mean it has to be, most of the things you see on the party ideas websites can be made by yourself!

here's a few pic's to help you with ideas!

Happy planning, happy party'ing and enjoy!

Till next time xx

p

the life of a secretbloggingmom

the life of a secretbloggingmom

So After almost a month of very bad bronchitis and a good dose of self pity i am back to finish what i started :-)

Today i just want to do a quick reality check post, while i was sick this month or so, i realised how much i actually do have to be thankful for, yet when we go through our everyday routines those blessings seem so far away and it isn't that difficult to forget how much we have, i read something the other day and it hit me in the face like a 3 ton brick i would like to share it with you and hopefully it would have the same effect on anyone who like myself, tend to go through a phase where gratefulness sometimes go on the back burner.

" What if you woke up tomorrow, and all you had left was what you thanked the Lord for Last Night"

WOW, powerful words, and yet so very very true, don't you think?

We live in a time where if  a mom  has the gift of giving her hungry child a warm plate of food, she is blessed.

I mean we see so many times on TV mom's that looks like life has given them a beating, it looks as if they themselves have not had anything to eat in days, images of a mom holding on to her starving baby giving them the only comfort that a mom with no food,money or ability to care for her child can. It is easy for us to point a finger and judge, it is easy for us to say if you can't afford a child then don't have one, but we do not have any idea of the situations in other areas of the world, other believes, other ways of doing things around the world.

We live in a country where we as mothers have rights. we have the right to work, we have the right to be loved by one man only if we choose to do so, there are countries in the world were children of 12 become mothers and wives and it is acceptable?

Blessed is a mother that can tuck her child in with a warm blanket, protected from the cold, harsh elements that is held within cold dark winter's  night. because we see so many mothers in countries where disasters struck, tsunami's , hurricanes and although donations are made world wide, these mothers has to somehow keep their children warm until those donations arrive.

Blessed is a mother that has the joy of holding her child in her arms, protecting, loving, reading stories, spending time, laughing, cuddling LOVING that bundle of joy, because there's mom's that has to say goodbye to a baby that has never had the chance to be held, loved or kissed before passing away, there are mothers that has to say goodbye to a child that she had so many dreams for, so many plans for, yet we have the privilege of saying goodnight to our kids.

Blessed is a mother who knows exactly where her kids are today, there are so many mothers who's children has been kidnapped,murdered,sold as child prostitutes and the eternal search of a mother for her child will never fade, they will always wonder with absolute fear where is my child, is she/he hungry, cold, alive?

Blessed is a woman, who has a husband that Love's her, cares for her, looks after the household financially the best he can, because somewhere tonight is a woman who is being raped,battered, emotionally abused and treated as possession with no rights and she has no where to go, no one to turn to.

My point with this whole blog is not to upset anyone, but to make just 1 person realise what i realised, that life is short, it's a blessing, it comes with ups and downs, but at the end of all trials and tribulations your family and kids are what pulls us through gives us purpose, keeps us alive, what a privilege it is!

From today i will hug my child 3 seconds longer, say i love you 2 times more, protect him 4 times harder and appreciate him infinity time infinity and back!

xx

7 Day lunchbox ideas!

Okay so we all know that the dreaded lunchbox dilemma give's us an extre few grey hair, it just upsets us terribly when that lunchbox comes back and that little sucker aint empty!
So what to do what to do? well how bout mixing it up every week?
I will be sharing with you each week for the next 4 weeks a little menu that you can try out, just to make those grey hair appear a little slooower!
Here Goes!
Week 1:

Monday:
mini pita filled with bacon & cheese
A fruit kebab with pear,melon and strawberry
Mini cheddar biscuits with a melrose cheese block
Marie biscuit with a melted marshmallow centre ( because we all need a little something sweet!)
Manny's melon juice

Tuesday:
French toast with honey and cheese
Handfull of dried mango, raisens and cocnut
Little cheese and vienna toothpicks
muffin
Carin cranberry juice

Wenesday:

mini cheeseburger ( woolies)
mini cheddars with kirri cheese
banana kebab with the tip dipped in chocolate
2 x dinasour eggs Boil eggs, place in a bowl of coloured water leave for 5 minutes break off the shell and ta da!
yoghurt
gilbert's grape juice

Thursday:
mini pancake filled with favourite filling
apple with a little bit of honey and cinamon
mini cheddar with cheese
yoghurt
2 pieces of mini nougats
Peter Pear Juice

Friday Pieday:-)

homemade mini chicken pie
cucumber and cheese toothpicks
handfull of dried fruit
yoghurt
mini marshmallows
Annie Apple Juice

If you don't have a juicer, moms get one! i don't know how i survived so long without one! absolutely awesome and money well spent!
with half a sweet melon you can make the most awesome juice for school, add a bit of crushed ice, and yummy all the way!
the same with the rest of the juices just add them in the juicer and whhhhhaaalaaa no easier way to get that fruit in!

That's all for now folks until next time!
xxx

NATURAL BIRTH VS C-SECTION

Today i am writing about a subject more serious, It's about c-sections, natural birth and the judgement and labels that goes with it.
i am a c-section mommy and if i could i would go the natural way BUT childbirth in general has it's risks whether you go c-section or natural , now the reason for my sudden upset is because i was reading a fb discussion about a mom asking a question about whether she should go c or labour after the doctor advised her to rather have a c-section, my opinion was that she should use the advise of her doctor and this was trashed by the moms that went the natural route saying that it is a cop out, now this post and the opinions are directed directly to these types of moms...Now trust me c-section is no cop out at all, and the pains that goes with childbirth is there no matter what route you go..
the fact is if you want to do finger pointing and accuse moms that has c-sections of being bad moms and selfish for not thinking of the effects of anaesthetic to the baby you might want to read these 

STUDIED FACTS about epidurals:

• They may increase the risk of cesarean section by 2.5 times.
• They triple the occurrence of induction with synthetic oxytocin (Pitocin).
• They quadruple the chances a baby will be persistently posterior (POP, face up) in the final stages of labour, which in turn decreases the chances of spontaneous vaginal birth
• They decrease the chances of spontaneous vaginal delivery. In 6 of 9 studies reviewed in one analysis, less than half of women who received an epidural had a spontaneous vaginal delivery.
• They increase the risk of pelvic floor problems (urinary, anal and sexual disorders) in mothers after birth, which rarely resolve spontaneously.

One important thing to note about these studies: in most of them, the women in the “control” groups were given opiate painkillers, which are also known to disrupt the natural hormonal processes of birth. We can assume, then, that a comparison of women using no drugs during labour would have revealed even more substantial differences.

Now i can go on and copy and paste of the Internet thousands of side - effects of births and epidurals etc. i can forever go on about the risk factors, but that is not my point so do yourself a favour and go have a good read about all the risks of childbirths...it will scare anyone out of having a child at all..

Now, it was mentioned by one of these "perfect" moms that she had 3 water births at home , only picked up 12 kg, jumped back to her pre-pregnancy weight in a month and she ate candy floss and pooped rainbows happily ever after..and that doctors are the enemies who forces down c-sections on innocent moms and that she should not listen to her doctor.. now i have this to say about that comment, if you are becoming a mom you should not be an innocent being not being able to question when needed and go for second opinions if you are unsure, you should perhaps also be sure that you choose a doctor that you respect and trust, because what is the point of having one then, i you will not listen or trust your doctor's OPINION ( because that is what it is) then maybe you should rather buy a GP degree on line and manage the birth yourself? ha how'z that for a good idea?

My point is i have friends who went through normal births who are extremely happy and content with that and when they mention it, it is not with judgement, i have had a friend who went the vaginal way with an epidural  and so on , the FACT is any mom knows her changing body, they know what they are capable of, they have the Internet and blogs to their disposal we are living in a time where all of these info are readily available to us all to help us make informed choices and judging each other by the choices we make is pointless, it serves no positive building up purposes, it has absolutely no good reason to be done, no judging ever has, so why not be a good friend and person and keep judgements to one self?
Why is there this pressure to not tell the truth about childbirth experiences the good and the bad, why is it normal to scare the living goodness out of a first time mom by saying things that is upsetting? why is it normal in today's time to sit in a conversation and make each other feel bad about the decisions we make for our unborn babies? and why is it acceptable for us to sit there and witness it?
 not having the birth that is socially acceptable does not make you a bad person or a bad mom it makes you normal, and it makes you ,you So unless your child is being abused, starved, broken, and beaten, not getting love, not taught to love and respect,  you are a good mom, and that's it,  that's all there is to it, just like there is no manual on parenthood , there is also no manual on making the right choices for you, there is guidelines and opinions and it should be treated that way..
MY OPINION:
it does not matter how your child comes into this world, it is about how he leaves it, and being a good mom is teaching your child the Good in this world, about morals,  love, hurt,  being strong, about being true, about dignity, about respect, about Loving life , appreciating it, about living it, so that the day your golden thread is clipped you can go out KNOWING that your child is the good of this world and t that would be the way he will be leaving it too....

xx

the life of a secretbloggingmom: Me VS supermom and the world!

the life of a secretbloggingmom: Me VS supermom and the world!

Me VS supermom and the world!

Okay so here i am baking cupcakes at 01:14 in the morning, decorating, baking making it look all pretty, all 90 of them!! school bake sale, entrepeneurs day you might ask? ( because if you are a mom then these are perfect excuses right?) WELL i am baking them for no apparent reason, giving them to the church kids, packing extra-ordinary lunches for tommorow, ironing the clothes for work,school,karate and then clothes for after karate, prepping for tommorow's breakfast, signing of homework books, checking homework etc...if youre a mom...then you'll get where i am coming from right..because i am trying my butt of to be supermom , over compensating and feeling extra bad when my sense of humour or patience runs dry!
 in one second i can go from angelic temptress and lover to a black widow, a sugary sweet mommy to a dracula ready to ...well you get what i mean!  so why do we put so much pressure on ourselves to be perfect?And most of all why is it socially unacceptable to admit that you're not? and what exactly is perfect and to who's standards?

Well as you very well know..i love writing about my life's experiences so here goes..the day i found out i was supermom...!

We all have these competative thorns in our sides..the dreaded perfect mom at school...she's perfect at baking, needlework, art projects for school, and just about everything else, she is  one of the class representatives at school, she helps on sport days and any other event happening, she has the perfect husband, perfect daughter and perfect little boy..they have perfect family holidays and off course all of this while she still holds down a perfect full time job!!!
So here i was this one monday morning dropping of my Dash Light year at school and here walks mrs perfect, for all records let's call her Villan X, ( i like the ring to that VILLAN X lol)!
You know when someone just knows how to push them buttons...

It all started the monday morning..for some reason i just did not hear the alarm, and disaster managemnet 1 for the week struck!
It's 07:00 i have a child with adhd and suddenly getting it all done in 30 minutes looks like... well....you know!
So here follows a brief description of how the week went!
Monday over slept, fell when i came in the kitchen, (think i will need a hip replacement, but i'll live)got up in record speed and stuuupid looked if someone saw me...wth?
almost grabbed the cupboard door off it's hinges while getting the cereal box ( as if this is going to spare me some time?)
Chuck in milk go down the passage make a u turn forgot the honey, add honey start powerwalk down the passage, sigh of relief, D is awake...just spared 3 minutes!!!
Lady time is on my side this morning because he is starving and races through his cereal....
aaaah start dressing him, he gets irritated by this gesture and demands on doing it himself...stop arguing and start delegating!!
School starts at 07:45 it is now 07:40 thank heavens we live so close and he dashes into the gates like dash from the incredibles and makes it in a nick of time!!!phew!!!No detention slip today YEAH!

Tuesday...

This is really begining to pull at my patience because once again i did not hear the alarm!!!!!!!!

Same Routine as yesterday with a little more drama off course but, once again my little booba dashes through the school gates this time like Mr Buzz light year himself!!!
Much to Villan X's Ammusement, and just there it feels like someone just threw me with an ice cold bucket of in your face!!!i have no make-up on, my green pick'npay slippers boots ( wich by the way is much warmer than those nine west..uhm i mean nine inch heels!) (and i can run faster!) standing out like a neon sign under my track pants and jersey!! and yes you guessed it, she looks as if she just stepped out of a magazine...who looks like that this time of the am?
THAT IS IT!!! I will wake up on time tommrow..make b/fast,have clothes ready...I am going to be SUPERMOM!!!!!
wednesday..
04:30 how the hec did i hear the alarm this morning? but i get up , make breakfast, bacon, toast,eggs,danish,juice,coffee,tea the works!
Wake up my little superdude, get him into a tracksuit and those takkies and we are goign for a walk!!
he's excited, we enjoy the walk, but i need my fix..i'll do anything for the fix..you know what i am talking about, we all need one,wheter it's decaf or caff we can't survive without it..and i need a hardcore shot of espresso (or 2), so we make the walk a bit fatser so that we can get home, go through the morning perfect, drop little superdude off at school, even before  VILLAN X and her little Pozzie arrives at school!
Thursday Repeated as Wednesday!
And friday meets me with a smile......not really.. but i grab the rest of my body out of bed, and drag myself to the kitchen..feels like a train or 6 of them chanllenged me and i lost!
but here we go same as wednesday and thursday...
Now you can just imagine this laid back, chilled out family, who does weird things, who's always late, and seemingly always  relaxed but also a bit crazy ...one day i might reveal my identity and treat you with a clip of saturday night fun....i am sure i will cause somone somewhere much laughter for many years to come!! but anyways i am drifting off again..the point is we should actually be living next to the coast cause we are just chill like that!
The weekend came..and so did the 100's of biscuits etc. i baked, my superdude felt like a decorated bicuit by the end of the weekend.and i could tell that this perfect little family of mine is on the edge...and then Sunday evening the bomb bursts!!!!!

My alarm clock is gone.....i can't find superdude's lunchbox, i forgot to buy yoghurt and the coffee is finished... and then my hubby (as if this is normal) ag but you can just quickly pop in at the shop tommorow like you always do when you forget something......
WHAT???
and then, superdude says very cautiously...and mommy can i sleep a little later tommorow, because i am reallly tired...and hubby says and can i please just have cereal in the morning because all this eating is making me feel ill, and superdude just have to slip in there with a " i think it's better for mommy too, because your hip needs to rest( HE SAW ME) humiliation just swallowed me in...supermom without wings!  HA so jumping up and looking if anyone saw me isn't as dumb as i thought!!
Ungratefull suckers!
No we just like you the way you are, yes mommy i have the coolest mom in the world, and now you you are like a crazy robot Mom!
Aww really?  My husbands reply" Yes babe, i love you the way you are, unorganised but always getting it done, we like how you roll" and superdude says " YES You are my Supermom!!"

SUPERMOM...ME...SUPERMOM? i am tearing up here.....

Now there you have it! Nothing was wrong but i tried to fix it! Every Family has it's own way of making things work..sometimes it goes smooth and sometimes...well sometimes you almost break a hip because of an alarm clock malfunction... but All families has hiccups wheter you do it woman alone or Like Villan X with 2 nanny's and a butler's helping you out with the morning routines..but don't change the way you manage your household...because your man married you and is inlove with you because you and your ways are what he fell in love with,( Men are not nearly as stupid as we think...when they are younger they hang with all the little floozies,party with the partychicks, go after the skinny,sexy,model types Drink till they pass out but as they mature,( and i have to warn you a few of them never matures!) But those who do, they start to look at THEIR WIVES and the woman they choose are ladies with different standards and suddenly the wife material they are looking for gets chosen with different criteria's, someone they can love forever, who can bare their children, who can manage their households,who can plan the family vacations that they work so hard to provide, rolemodels that their kids can look up to and a woman that's gonna have his back as much as he will have hers! and that's how we became the good wife's and mom's that we are)  we were chosen of the A list! And your kids , your adoarable, sometimes driving mom up the walls -kids, just adore you no matter how crazy you are, how angry you get, how much or how little you give, how imperfect or perfect you are! We are their SUPERMOMS and SUPERWIVES even if we sometime's feel the need to compare ourselves to other's who seemingly has such a perfect Life,  sometimes.just sometimes the grass is not greener on the other side...

So don't ever second guess yourself You are a super in your own right and those who matter don't care and those who cares don't matter!

xxx