These balls are the easiest, simplest lunch box treats. They take about 15 minutes to make, store beautifully in the fridge and double as an awesome travel snack too.  And if your kid’s allergic to almonds, you can use sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, macadamias, cashews or walnuts as replacements.

Last night my kids and I sat on the living room floor, bent over colouring books, singing to ’80s music playing on the radio. Well, I was singing. They were asking me if various singers were dead yet, because clearly anyone alive in the ’80s must be so old now that they are practically knocking […]

PENNE WITH SPINACH PESTO AND BAKED CHERRY TOMATOES. For the pesto: • 200g / 7oz spinach leaves • 3/4 cup cashews • 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated • 2 garlic cloves, diced • 1/2 cup olive oil  • salt and pepper, to season For the tomatoes: • 1 punnet cherry tomatoes • olive oil  • […]

We all know Band-Aids. They’re one of those rare brand name things that transcended from regular grocery item to become synonymous for an entire category of product–in this case, what’s technically known as an adhesive bandage.  People all over the world, from Kempsey to Kentucky, yell for a Band-Aid when they have a minor accident, […]

We live in a tidy age. It’s an age of algorithms and systems, rules and regulations. An age where everything has its right place and there’s always someone to tell you what to do and how best to do it. Organisation has become a de facto religion, both at large and in the home. If […]

“Why are my beautiful kids SO worried? Is it me? My first port of call is to blame myself. With three different fathers to my four kids, it’s clear that I am the common denominator. Damn! I really wanted to blame their fathers.” My four kids all have various presentations of anxiety. My eldest has […]

Q + A with smoothie artist Sabine Timm When did you start making cute stuff with food? It began in my childhood. I wasn’t a “good eater” and preferred playing with the things on my plate instead of eating them. Professionally I started creating art with food in 2008, when my son was little. What […]

PUMPKIN + FETA BURGERS WITH MINT PESTO + CRISPY BAKED ONIONSMakes 6 patties • 3 cups pumpkin, grated • 1 egg • 1/3 cup buckwheat flour (or flour of your choice) • 1 tsp salt • 1 tbsp sweet paprika • 100g / 3.5oz feta, crumbled Mint pesto Makes around 1 1/2 cups • 80g […]

My first child was born. And it turned out that I was an amazing parent. So good, in fact, that my baby ate and slept and had lie-ins. We took him everywhere: the beach, the pub, on planes. He smiled at everyone, and was settled and happy and delightful. I was “BORN TO DO THIS. […]

WHAT YOU NEED • plaster of Paris  • water • disposable mixing containers (try paper cups) • disposable mixing utensils (try icy-pole sticks, plastic spoons or thick bamboo skewers) • powdered tempera paint  • baking paper  • masking tape (not washi)  • 5–8 toilet paper rolls  • scissors WHAT YOU NEED TO DO 1. Tape […]

1. Avoid reassurance: Our first instinct is to tell our child that there’s nothing to worry about; meanwhile, their brain is telling them that it’s a life-or-death situation. Saying “don’t worry, it’s going to be okay” simply tells our child that we don’t understand what they’re feeling. Validate their anxiety and then set about solving […]

Soggy sandwiches end here. Righting the wrongs of the lunch-makers before us. Sandwich ideas this way. SANDWICH RECIPE 1.PLEASE SIR, I WANT SOME SLAW  Ingredients:• 1/2 small red cabbage, shredded• 2 medium carrots, grated• 1 fennel bulb, finely sliced• 2 spring onions, finely sliced• juice of 1 lemon• 1/4 cup mayonnaise * Stick the slaw […]

The following bedtime meditation for kids combines relaxation and visualisation techniques to encourage kids to calm themselves before sleep. Before you try it, carry out your usual bedtime routine, tuck them in and turn out the light. Meditation can literally make your brain bigger. A study by Harvard neuroscientists found that just eight weeks of […]