Tag Archives: holidays

“Wherever you fly, you’ll be the best of the best!”

This is it. After 7 years, and more schools than I care to think about, my beloved firstborn, the beautiful G, is finishing Year 6 and heading off into the next adventure of her school career. We’ve cheered at her last Sports Day, been entranced by the Year 6 production of The Lion King and enjoyed all aspects of the Year 6 camp. We survived the stresses and tears of SATs week (just) and this week celebrated an amazing set of results that we’re so very proud she achieved. Tomorrow is her Leavers service and I’ve no doubt emotions will be high, amongst the parents, even if not with the children themselves. It’s hard to believe that this little munchkin is old enough to go to “big school” in September, but she is and I can’t wait to see what the next steps on her journey will bring:

The quote in the title is from “Oh the places you’ll go!” by Dr Seuss.

Year 6 camp – the final verdict

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Last week was a quiet week in our household as G was away at camp and M struggled without his big sister around. With only one child under my feet, it’s undeniable that the everyday tasks were a ~~little~~…ok, a lot easier to achieve in a reasonable time scale and there was a noticeable lack of temper-driven disagreements and raised voices, but there was no mistaking the achingly big G-shaped hole in our family that nothing else could fill.

By bedtime on Monday, we had finally tracked down and ticked off the last remaining items on the list, the bag of food and snacks had been delivered to the safe-keeping of Miss K and I was certain that clothes were named…bags were named…in fact, water bottles, plastic mugs, wash-kits, you name it, everything was named and the all-important, precious piece of her blanket was safely tucked away amongst her things. G was feeling happier as she now knew she was in the same activity group as one of her best friends and was equally delighted about the teacher who’d be looking after them for the week. We convinced them into a relatively early night as Tuesday was an early start for us all in order to get to school for 8am, and even M managed to pull himself from his pit and eat some breakfast before we headed on our way. Those last few moments before G boarded the coach and left for her week at camp were emotionally charged as M stood beside her, with his arms wrapped tightly around her waist and just hugged her quietly, barely admitting to himself, let alone to the rest of us, what was glaringly obvious to see – that he was really going to miss her whilst she was away. He was by my side as we waved them off and then disappeared into the school playground with his friends, ready for the day ahead.

News took a little time to trickle back to those of us waiting at home to hear what our adventurers were up to, but when the reports finally arrived, everything sounded positive. The kids were having a marvellous time and challenging themselves with lots of new experiences. From clambering over and under logs to wading through deep mud, the activity week was everything they expected it to be. To my delight, G tried her hand at everything, even the dreaded caving and whilst she didn’t venture as far as some of the others, I am thrilled that she conquered her fears and made her way through 2 of the 3 caves they explored, an amazing achievement for someone who had been adamant she wasn’t stepping foot into a cave, no matter what. She enjoyed almost everything they did and was quick to regale us with tales from the week. Her favourite activity was the Woodland Scramble, which involved donning a wetsuit and rolling head-first into a Welsh river as well as dunking her head under a waterfall. Their evenings were filled with headland walks, evenings on the beach, BBQs and a disco before the obligatory mug of hot chocolate and a good night’s sleep.

The week was a resounding success from an activity point-of-view and G chattered for hours once she was home about all she’d done. Sadly though, it didn’t quite meet my expectations on the food front. Despite providing a bag full of safe foods to get G through the week, it was returned to me on Friday with very little missing from it. I gently quizzed her about what she had eaten and was disappointed to learn that whilst the dairy-free aspect of her diet has been well-managed, there were some significant failings from a gluten-free point of view. G had been assured that the Kelloggs cereal was definitely GF (it’s not), had been given crisps that were covered with “May contains” and her hot chocolate was soya milk laden with cocoa powder and very little sugar to sweeten it: a taste so bitter that she struggled to drink it and after her friends had tentatively taken a sip, they understood why she was so reluctant. There was a definite lack of inspiration in preparing her meals as GF pasta with tomato and basil sauce appeared to be the go-to alternative for any meal that wasn’t G-friendly and her only dessert was from the snack box I had sent along with her. Fortunately for all concerned, G doesn’t suffer extreme reactions to either gluten or dairy, but she was left feeling less than 100% by the time she got home and not just because of the lack of sleep.

In contrast, the only thing of note that happened in our household last week was a complete overhaul of G’s bedroom and whilst there’s still a little more work to do, it’s a room to last her through her teenage years. And so the week ended as it had begun: with M and I waiting on the grass bank outside the school for the coach to appear and deliver G back into our arms.

Year 6 Camp, here G comes!

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This weekend has been a busy one, perhaps busier than expected for me given that Mike and the kids have been away on their “Dads and kids” camping trip. Instead of taking time to spoil myself in peace whilst they enjoyed the glorious sunshine and camp activities, I sorted, washed, shopped and ticked things off a list, all in preparation for G’s Year 6 camp next week. She’s there for 4 days of adventure: from archery to rock climbing and caving to kayaking, and it’s promising to be an adrenalin-filled time away from home. It will be the first time she’s stayed away for any length of time, apart from during school holidays with my Mum, and I know she’s been feeling a little apprehensive about it all. The strain of not knowing in advance who she’d be sharing a room with took a bit of the shine off her excitement and she was anxious to confirm that she could opt out of the caving, the one activity she has said she doesn’t want to do since we first heard about camp back at the start of the year.

The one part of her week away that has not been of concern for her has been the one that I’ve been able to contribute to: her food. I’ve met with her teacher, Miss K, and the Head throughout the year to discuss the catering arrangements at camp and had an unprecedented 3 meetings the week after half-term as well as multiple e-mail exchanges to ensure the final plans were watertight. Miss K spoke to the camp cook to discuss G’s dietary needs and was reassured that they are well-used to catering for children with food allergies. We had talked about the types of food that would need to be considered for G – GF bread (Genius brown), DF spread (Vitalite Dairy-free) and DF milk (Rice dream) amongst others – and armed with brand names, Miss K has been able to confirm with the camp that these will be available for G.

I am confident that breakfast and lunch will be okay, but it is still the dinner arrangements that are causing me mild moments of suppressed panic. If G was “just” gluten-free, I’d have fewer concerns; if she was “just” dairy-free, I’d be only mildly worried, but the combination of both, whilst so much easier to manage that the multitude of allergies of others in our household, requires a little more forethought. When discussing the menu with Miss K, I realised just how much planning is needed to make G’s meals safe, something that probably seems strikingly obvious to everyone else, but is so second nature to me that I’ve had to learn how to effectively micro-manage these finer details. It’s not as simple as ensuring that GF pasta is cooked for lasagne or GF sausages provided for sausages and mash as she can’t have cheese or white sauce, mashed potato needs to be made with both DF milk and butter and there’s the hidden use of flour to thicken sauces. Those are the little things that sometimes slip under the radar.

So, the school and I have reached a sensible arrangement. I am providing some safe foods for the week for G for those “just in case” moments – cartons of rice milk, safe drinking chocolate, GF breakfast cereal and a loaf of GF bread. There will also be a packet of GF pasta and a GF/DF curry sauce tucked in that will take up little space, but will give me some invaluable peace of mind. I’m also packing a special camp “swap box” as an alternative to the lure of the vending machines that her friends will undoubtedly be pillaging at all times of the day and night. In there will be safe biscuits, snacks and a few bars of our ever-favourite Moo-free chocolate to ensure that she has the opportunity to gorge herself at midnight alongside her room-mates.

Today I handed over that precious bag of food and, tomorrow morning, as M and I wave her off on her adventures, I know that she’ll enjoy a mostly worry-free fantastic week away with her friends and my concerns need only be small.

An unexpected day off!

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As a parent of a child with a chronic illness, one of the unexpected challenges you have to cope with is finding people you trust to take on their care, even for a short while. It can be difficult to entrust your child and their needs to anyone other than immediate family and, for Mums in particular I suspect, that may mean you end up doing almost all of their care by yourself. The opportunities to have that much-talked about and desired “me-time” are often few and far between and, to be frank, if you do manage to grab some, it’s usually at the cost of not spending it with your significant other at a point when time together is most needed. In the 6 months since M had his tube, Mike and I have become like those proverbial “ships that pass in the night” as we juggle work commitments, school timetables, extra-curricular activities and those few social events that have helped keep us sane. Any time we have managed to spend together has revolved around appointments or meetings about M and the constraints of school hours.

We are extremely blessed that we do have an amazing support network surrounding us, which pulls together to ensure that we are able to keep going to work and can even occasionally both be out on the same evening, albeit often at separate events. My days are made easier by the fact that M’s school have so willingly shared my burden and responsibility by ensuring there are members of staff who know how to take care of his feeding pump and tube, meaning that I don’t have to be there every minute of every day. Without a doubt, their decision was made easier by the fact that I work less than 5 minutes away and they know they can call whenever they need to, but those phone-calls have been few and far between. My Mum lives close enough that she has been able to continue the routine of picking G and M up from school a couple of times a week, allowing me to work my hours and has been willing to provide some invaluable school holiday care for us too. We even have a babysitter who was willing to learn about the tube and whose GP parents, less than 5 minutes away, were an added bonus for the couple of hours we’ve needed once or twice.

Last week, we had an amazing offer from good friends – in fact, those GP parents I’ve just mentioned – which astounded us and gave us a break from routine that we haven’t enjoyed since last December. It all started at the beginning of half-term, when an unexpected text arrived on my phone as I was in the middle of convincing M to help me clear out and clean the pit he calls his bedroom:

“Hi, we wondered if we could look after the kids for you on Bank Holiday Monday so that you can have a bit of time for yourselves. Let us know what you think. O x”

Then there was a flurry of messages between us as I sat on M’s floor, overwhelmed and close to tears at the kindness of these friends. Not only were they offering to take G and M for a couple of hours, as I originally thought, but in fact wanted to look after them for the whole day and take them to a local wildlife park that I knew my 2 would love. They sorted out food, were not phased by the pump and tube and even claimed to be excited at the prospect of having G and M as their guests for the day. What was even better was that the children were as thrilled as their hosts at having a day out too; and what a day they had! For the rest of the week, it’s been endless tales of marble-run competitions, playing in the hay barn, seeing the animals and the zip-wire in their back garden.

As for Mike and me, well, we had our day together and enjoyed every moment. It may not have been the adrenalin-filled adventure experienced by our children, but we had time to buy some much-needed bits and pieces for the house, enjoy coffee and cake mid-shopping trip and lingered over a late lunch not constrained by complex food allergies and a restaurant of our choice. We didn’t get to the cinema as we had originally hoped we might, but thanks to my Mum, we got our night out at the theatre the following weekend instead – I know, two dates in one week, unheard of! Most importantly, we were able to spend precious time with each other without worrying what G and M were up to and without waiting anxiously for my phone to ring.

#ICan – Diabetes Blog week

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This week is Diabetes Blog Week and a chance to take some time out from the unending whirlwind that is life with M and instead focus my attention on the story that is my very own journey with T1D. Today’s title is #ICan and, taking inspiration from lifelong friend and fellow blogger, The Understudy Pancreas, I thought I’d take a quick look at some of the #ICan moments from the past 29 years:

Survived the trauma of teenage rebellion (and my parents did too!) against my T1D, even though I suspect my parents wondered if the end was ever going to be in sight; and have learned that that experience has now given me a unique perspective on how M feels about his own chronic illness;

Didn’t think twice about going away to University and learned that I could manage on my own, though there might have been a few lessons along the way about managing things well;

Travelled abroad with school and university several times and not only survived to tell the tale, but thoroughly enjoyed every moment spent with good friends and experiencing new cultures, blissfully ignorant of any worries that my parents and teachers undoubtedly had;

Continued that travelling in my 20s and 30s, accompanied by ample supplies of insulin, needles and blood-testing equipment and the requisite letter from my GP stating why I needed to carry all this kit. Mike and I have been lucky to be able to visit China, Hong Kong, Thailand and Australia as well as Canada, USA and throughout Europe. I’ve walked along part of the Great Wall, seen Shakespeare at the Sydney Opera House and walked behind Niagara Falls, and my T1D hasn’t stopped me doing any of them;

Had 2 successful pregnancies and brought 2 gorgeous children into the world, having found that giving them the best start I could was all the motivation needed to have tight control of my T1D during those critical 9 months;

Do anything I set my mind to – with the small exceptions of flying an airplane or donating blood as my T1D makes me persona non grata as far as those things are concerned;

Survive whatever life throws me – believe me there’s been a lot – and, what’s more, survive it with a smile on my face and a steadfast determination to keep going along the path I’m following.

And the most important thing of all: that T1D does not define who I am, though it has unquestionably shaped my attitude and approach to life. This is something that I hope I’ve instilled in both G and M and #ICan and I will continue to show them, as best I’m able, that chronic illness is only a very tiny part of the amazing people they are growing up to be.

Working hard to keep the magic alive

You can read more from other T1D bloggers around the world, including:

The Understudy Pancreas: “Diabetes Blog Week 2015 – Day 1 #ICan“

Diabetogenic: “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can“

six until me: “Diabetes Blog Week: I can.“

Type ONEderful: “2015 Diabetes blog week Day 1 – I can“

London: our whistle-stop tour

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With our appointment at GOSH over, we then focussed our attention on the activities we’d chosen for the rest of our London stay. We had narrowed down our choices from the lengthy starting point created by G and M and suggested that each child chose 1 activity each that they really wanted to do on this trip: be that museum, park, art gallery or tourist attraction. G quickly settled on the Imperial War Museum, M picked the London Eye and Mike and I agreed on booking tickets for a show as well as attempting to complete the amazing “Shaun in the City” sculpture trail. It was, without question, an ambitious plan, but with some careful planning and the agreement of both children that the amount of walking required would far outweigh the maximum moaning I was prepared to accept, I was confident we might just be able to squeeze it all in.

Imperial War Museum

This has been on our “hit list” for quite some time, but our previous 2 attempts to visit had both been scuppered by an extended closure to prepare the exhibits marking the centenary of the start of WWI last year. With nothing to stop our visit this time, we travelled across London via tube and finally convinced our pair to head inside after the requisite ~~hundreds~~ tens of photos had been taken of the impressive naval guns at the front entrance. G was keen to work her way through the WWI exhibits, whilst M had a yearning for learning more about being a spy and Mike was intent on seeing the Holocaust display. I had allowed a full day for our visit and we certainly needed it. There was an incredible mix of posters, photos, short films, interactive displays, war memorabilia and oodles of facts to work our way through and the children were able to dip in and out of the information as they wanted. We lasted until mid-afternoon before G and M started to flag, interest was lost and we made our way back to the apartment for a little downtime before we headed out for dinner.

The Railway Children – near Waterloo Station

In the run up to our visit, M had spotted an advert for “The Railway Children” and was keen to see the show. As this was a perfect opportunity to watch a play, rather than the musicals or pantomimes we usually attend, we agreed to get some tickets and had great seats near to the front of the seating area. M and G loved that the characters came out to talk to the audience before the play started and were enthralled throughout. I won’t spoil the experience – but it does include a real steam train and the most amazing staging I’ve seen in a long time – and would definitely recommend going to see this fabulous classic if you have the chance.

London Eye

This has quickly become an instantly recognisable icon on the London skyline and is actually something the family has done before. Every time we head to GOSH for an appointment, M begs for a trip on the Eye and every time I say no, not least because it’s actually nowhere near the hospital and our regular visits are almost always somewhat tight on time. Having given them free rein to choose one thing they each really wanted to do, it was no surprise that this was M’s selection. The 30-minute revolution offers spectacular views across London and both children were fascinated with trying to pick out various buildings they knew from the pod. I was also impressed with the thoughtfulness of the member of staff directing people into the waiting lines. You can easily end up queuing for around 20-30 minutes, which is never ideal when you have children in tow and definitely not when one of them is sporting a litre feeding bottle and pump on his back. This lovely lady spotted us in the queue with M and invited us to enter via the fast-track system instead, stating it was “.,just too chilly..” to be standing around waiting. Of course we all realised that M and his tube were the real reason behind her kind offer, but appreciated her not making a fuss about it and simply offering us an alternative that would make life a lot easier and our experience a lot more fun.

Shaun in the City sculpture trail

Just one of the many Shauns we found

Yet another sculpture trail to echo a multitude that have been seen across the UK over the past few years, including the Paddington Bear one we dipped into whilst visiting the poppies at the Tower of London last November. This year’s trail was based on Nick Park’s popular character, “Shaun the Sheep” and featured 50 sculptures, each individually decorated by a host of celebrities, found at strategic locations around the capital. The sculptures were split into 5 groups – 4 distinct trails and then 5 “lost sheep”, who were not particularly close to any of the other ones – and most were close enough together to allow us to attempt to find nearly 40 of them in one day. G and M’s aim was to find and be photographed with all 50 before our trip was over and we managed it, though with very little time to spare before we needed to catch our train home. These London sculptures are only in place until 25th May and then there will be 70 Bristol counterparts during July and August. Later in 2015, all 120 will be auctioned to raise much-needed funds for children’s hospitals across the UK through Wallace and Gromit’s Children’s charity. We loved following the map before finding ourselves in parts of London we wouldn’t normally visit and there’s a real camaraderie between fellow Shaun-spotters you come across along the way. You can find out more about the “Shaun in the City” trail here.

Stomp – Ambassadors Theatre

Courtesy of http://www.ticketmaster.com

Our final treat was unplanned, but was definitely a winner. Every time we travel up, or down, the escalators at tube stations, G and M love to look at the advertising posters that adorn the walls. If you ever hear cries of “Seen that one…and that one…but we haven’t seen that,..yet!“, then it’s a fairly safe bet that we are somewhere in the vicinity. Stomp is one of those productions that they’ve been longing to see for quite some time, but we’ve been reluctant to go because G, in particular, doesn’t cope well with loud noises. Our search for Shaun led us into Leicester Square and the hordes of theatre ticket booths that can be found there. For those not in the know, these sell last-minute tickets for many of the numerous shows being performed in London at any given time and often represent great value for money due to the discounts they give. We decided to see if we could get some discounted seats for Stomp and were delighted to have the choice of 4 prime seats on the second row of the circle. The children were a little shocked to learn that there was no interval in the performance, but were even more surprised at how quickly that 1.5 hours passed notably as they were left wanting more. The skill of the performers is phenomenal, especially when you realise that you hear no words and no music for the duration of the show, but are totally absorbed by the percussive masterpieces they produce. Another fantastic show that we’d highly recommend.

We even managed a trek across Tower Bridge on our travels

So, it was definitely something of a whistle-stop tour of the capital for us this April, but a great break that we won’t forget for a while.

Dinner Plans

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The beauty of staying in the amazing Applause apartments in East Aldgate was the ease with which we could accommodate M’s current dietary requirements at mealtimes. Every morning, he and G enjoyed a bowl of safe cereal and rice milk for breakfast, whilst Mike and I had coffee and brioche before we headed out for the day. Once breakfast was done, the children and I would finish getting ourselves ready and Mike would make and pack lunches for us all. The ability to prepare packed lunches was just what we needed as not only were we able to meet M’s extreme food requirements, but also the dairy- and gluten-free needs of G.

On our first day there, we stumbled across a fantastic shop called “Planet Organic“, where we were able to pick up some previously undiscovered M-friendly bits and pieces, including mini rice-cakes, which are perfect for his lunchbox. Of course, with the packet now nearly empty, the race to find them closer to home is on before he finishes them off. The brown rice noodles have also been a massive hit and make mealtimes just that little bit more interesting than they have been over the last 3 months. Sadly, the one thing we had been hoping to find, rice pasta, was sold out and so my search for that alternative continues.

The more interesting task was that of our evening meal. One of the things we have always loved to do is eat out as a family and it is one of the things that M in particular has found hardest about having his tube. We have had a wealth of experience over the last decade of finding restaurants that will accommodate the ever-changing dietary needs of G, M and even me and we had settled on a few firm favourites that we knew would almost always meet our requirements. Of course, the option to cook dinner where we were staying was great to have, but Mike and I were both looking forward to having a break from the monotony of 3-ingredient dinners and decided to do some focussed research before we even left the comfort of our own home. We spent hours one evening trawling the internet, finding restaurants in the areas of London we were likely to be near at meal-times, looking at their menus and investigating whether they had allergen information readily available to read then and there. To our delight, we found a few where we knew we could cater for G and where it seemed probable we would also be able to order safe food for M, and we couldn’t wait to put our selection to the test.

Our first was Giraffe, which is just round the corner from GOSH and a popular choice for our post-appointment dinners. When we got to the restaurant, I asked the waitress at the door whether they would be able to cook safe food for M before she had time to find us a table and the response was fantastic. She turned out to be the restaurant manager and headed off in the direction of the kitchen to talk to their chef and find out exactly what our options were. The chef assured us he could cook plain, boiled rice and grill a chicken breast for M without using any oil, so, feeling hopeful that this could prove a success, we found a table to enjoy our first family meal out for 5 months. M was delighted with the plate of food that arrived for him and had no allergic reaction to any of it, reassuring us that Giraffe is a safe choice for the future.

As it turns out, Giraffe was the only restaurant we ate at that was able to cook plain rice for M, but we enjoyed 2 other great meals out and both restaurants were more than happy for M to munch away on his own rice-cakes to accompany his chicken and cucumber. The second restaurant was Bella Italia, a popular restaurant chain found across the UK and we had dinner at their St Martins Lane branch. Again, our waiter worked with the chef to ascertain exactly what could be prepared for M and this amazing plate of food arrived – M joked that he thought they had cut him up a whole cucumber to make up for the lack of variety on his plate. We were also impressed with how much their gluten-free offerings had improved since the last time we ate there as G was able to enjoy some GF garlic pizza bread alongside her GF margherita pizza with pancetta and ham with goats cheese.

My final recommendation is Jamie’s Italian and I can’t begin to tell you how impressed we were with the excellent service provided at their Canary Wharf restaurant. From the greeter who listened to our initial needs to the manager who came to answer our questions before we even got to the table, they were keen to reassure us that they could meet all our requirements. As for our amazing waiter, Tom H, he listened carefully and patiently to what we needed, made sensible suggestions based on M’s safe foods, checked with the chef that everything could be prepared safely and treated M just like any other child eating in the restaurant. He was delighted with the plate of food that arrived at the table as it was presented in the exact same way as G’s dinner and his unparalleled attempt to eat almost all of the food served earned him the same prize that G was awarded for eating her salad – an achievement that we rarely manage at home.

All in all, our trip to London proved to be a fantastic and unexpected success when it came to our dinner plans for our stay. We found 3 restaurants who were prepared to go the extra mile, make the effort and help us enjoy some great meals out. Even better, M had the opportunity to feel more “normal” than he has done in a long time, which, for us, was absolutely priceless.

Home or away?

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With a trip to London for M’s GOSH appointment an unavoidable part of the Easter holidays, we decided to make the best of it and spend a few days there on our very own mini city-break. In preparation we spent one Sunday afternoon leafing through the pages of Mike’s “501 Days Out” book, looking for inspiration for what we could do during our stay and G and M quickly filled a sheet of A4 with their suggestions. It was left to Mike and me to make the final cut and hone our plans and, despite desperate requests for Legoland Windsor and Chessington World of Adventures, we decided to stick to those attractions within a reasonable distance of where we’d be staying and drew up a list that felt exhausting just looking at it.

This epic event was our first overnight stay away from home since M had his tube back in December and I drew up ~~thousands~~…~~hundreds~~…well one very long list of everything I needed to do in preparation. My first job, once our trains were booked, was to find somewhere to stay that would meet all of our requirements. Usually we choose to stay in one of the Premier Inn hotels on the south-side of the Thames, be it near the London Eye or closer to Southwark Cathedral and find them a great base for walking, or using the underground, to almost anywhere we’re intending to visit. Unfortunately, leaving the actual booking to a little late in the day meant that none of our usual suspects of hotels was available for the 3 nights we were planning to stay and instead I had to search for a suitable alternative. Whilst browsing frantically looking for a room at ~~the~~….an….any inn, I came across the option of a serviced apartment and things suddenly started to fall into place.

We chose a one-bed apartment in East Aldgate, not too far from the Tower of London and easy walking distance from the nearest tube station. The benefits seemed huge:

with a separate bedroom and pull-out bed in the living area, G would be able to go to sleep at a reasonable time, whilst M played his usual night-owl games
there would be plenty of space to store all of M’s medical gear as well as the supply of safe foods for both him and G that we would take with us
having a kitchen meant we could easily prepare M’s feeds, make packed lunches and even cook dinner, thereby covering every possible meal-time option we might face
it also meant we would have a fridge to keep cooked meats, cheese for G and M’s feeds in overnight without the need to request one beforehand and then keeping our fingers crossed it would be available when we checked in
finally, we would have a quiet place to retreat to when things got too much or the children needed some down time in the middle of the day

So it was an easy decision to get that apartment booked. The days flew past until finally I had no choice but to tackle the task of packing for our trip. By the time I had everything I needed for M in the case, plus our supply of safe foods for both G and M, I was beginning to wonder whether I’d have room for any of the clothes the 4 of us would need for 4 days in London. With some canny packing and careful choices about exactly what was necessary, I just about squeezed everything in and we were ready for our next big adventure.

Back to work for a rest

A tri-umph of rice-themed goodies!

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Recently I’ve been spending my time baking and cooking up a whirlwind as the days ahead have been looking busy. With a day for G and M at the holiday club run at Mike’s work, an appointment with M’s consultant and dietitian at GOSH to review his progress 4 months post-tube and a planned short stay in London to see the sights and to dip our toes into the world of being away from home with NG-tube in tow, a plethora of safe snacks and treats for M were much in need. I prepared rice pudding, rice-flour sugar cookies and rice krispie cakes to satisfy the appetite of my youngest and to reassure myself that we would have some things with us to feed him whilst the rest of us enjoyed some much-missed meals out. I also used the opportunity whilst trialling banana to add some to the mix and made some banana sugar cookies too.

The recipes can be found in the everything-free recipes section and are so easy to follow that next time round, my plan is to be sitting back with a cup of tea, whilst G and M get on with the task of creating their own delicious masterpieces!

Who knew you could make so much from rice, sugar, rice milk and canola oil? Any other suggestions for simple recipes will be very gratefully received!

7 years to diagnosis

Searching for an answer

Tag Archives: holidays

“Wherever you fly, you’ll be the best of the best!”

Year 6 camp – the final verdict

Year 6 Camp, here G comes!

An unexpected day off!

#ICan – Diabetes Blog week

London: our whistle-stop tour

Dinner Plans

Home or away?

Back to work for a rest

A tri-umph of rice-themed goodies!