DaisychainBaby

Cloth Nappy? Or Not Cloth Nappy? That was the question.

Lins — Sun, 02 May 2010 20:30:17 +0000

As I’m sure most of you are aware, today marks the end of Real Nappy Week and organisations up and down the country have been working even harder than normal to promote the benefits of cloth (or “real” nappies) over disposables (do we take it to mean “fake”?)

When we’re out and about with our stall, we often get asked whether we stock real nappies, or whether we can recommend anywhere that does. The answer is, somewhat ashamedly, no. Not because we’re not interested, but because we simply don’t have the knowledge to be able to offer authoritative advice on a subject which provides so many different solutions.

Last weekend I put a shout-out on Facebook and Twitter for people to provide their opinions on real nappies, who wouln’t mind being quoted in a blog post. The responses were a little overwhelming, and it’s clearly something that people who use them feel very passionate about. I found myself on a 48 hour instant education crash course, and have learned an awful lot…

Mum of 2 Emma Perks used Bambino Mio nappies in an effort to be more eco-friendly and also to save cost. What I found from people’s responses were that often real nappies are viewed as a big expense, because the initial outlay is more than using disposables straight away. However, if the cost of using disposables versus real is averaged out for the time nappies are needed, real nappies always came out as a far greater cost saving.

Ally is a childminder, and owner of website Teenymunchkins.co.uk. She first used cloth nappies 20 years ago with her children, and has definitely noticed how they have changed. “I guess that using them 20 years ago was very different to how they are used now. There were various different ways of folding the old terry nappies but I used to stick my fingers so many times with the so called ‘safety’ pins. I now deal with parents (being a childminder) that use cloth nappies. They have advanced so much in their fit and how they are folded/put on. I know for my parents, that cost is the main factor for buying them and I believe there are schemes with some councils that do give out a free batch of cloth nappies to encourage pepole to use them”. Follow Ally on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/teenymunchkins

Lesley from Littlewideworld.co.uk explains how she came to use real nappies with her second child: “With my first child I didn’t even consider cloth nappies as getting to grips with a baby was enough for me without worrying about wash-days and nappy buckets. As it turned out the cloth nappies were only a little more hassle than disposables. I used cloth nappies for my second baby except when she had a really bad nappy rash flair up, when I switched to disposables at night for a short while, and when were on holiday – camping with a nappy bucket was just too grim to contemplate. I used the MotherEase nappies and they were so easy to get on and off – and were available in our local Waitrose which meant I could get extra nappies or waterproof over-pants without having to go far. Iwas lucky enough to give bither in a small midwife led unit that promoted cloth nappy use, they even had a nappy loan scheme where you could try cloth nappies for a couple of weeks without any expense. Our county council also offers grants for cloth nappies so I was able to claim £50 back on the initial cost of stocking up.”

Mum of one Flossie bought different types and brands of cloth nappy after another mum advised her on their benefits whilst she was pregnant. Flossie gave me a wealth of advice on just about every brand going, but unfortunately her son suffered from eczema which made it hard for Flossie to find her perfect match for him: “I bought a load of cloth nappies while pregnant on the advice of another Mum and started using them with Taylor when he was about 8-10 weeks old – before then they were massive on him and when you’re going through so many nappies in a day, disposables for that time were a lot easier. As I said, with his eczema now, I just cannot find a brand that doesnt irritate his skin which is a shame as I loved using cloth. In my experience I’ve found what suits one baby/family definitely does not suit another. I think the initial outlay can put people off, but the cost long term is much lower.”

Flossie also kindly put me in touch with her friend Lisa Jones, who runs TheNappyGarden.co.uk along with her Mum. Lisa describes what inspired her to start up in business: “We started the Nappy Garden because when I began my research into cloth nappying my son, I soon came to realise online shopping for cloth nappies was not exactly easy! Lots of jargon and very little understandable info. I decided, along with my mum, to partner up and start a place people could come for simple information. Not over complicated and with access to contact us 24/7, should they need too. At the end of the day, its not exactly rocket science, yet you needed a degree to understand all the net info!”

Similarly to Flossie, Lisa says that it’s far from a one-size-fits-all scenario, and so tries to stock a variety of brands and types to cater for each individual need. At DCB, we’ve found that there is now so much choice, and as cloth nappies see somewhat of a renaissance, manufacturers of babies clothing are in some cases designing their clothes in a way which allows more space for real nappies (which can be a little bigger than disposables, depending on the type and brand).

A huge thank you to all the contributors who’ve really opened my eyes to a vast new world and should Mr DCB and I ever be blessed with babies, I’ve got a sneaky suspicion I could be a real nappy convert!

1 Man. 3 Women: Our Week One Update

Lins — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 14:44:24 +0000

So this is coming a little later than planned – I was hoping to get the chance to post our weigh in updates yesterday but I spend every other Friday morning out of the office doing some charity stuff and then have to go straight into work, so our weigh in happened at lunchtime and then the Day Job commenced.

I can be a fanatical weigher when I’m purposefully trying to lose some, so to not step on the scales for a WHOLE week was really hard…especially when I suspected that I may not have lost anything. And how right I was. Feeling a little too scared to reveal my weight last week, it’s now at a point of “not caring”…so last week I was 66kg, which is about 10st 4lb. I’m 5’8, a size 10-12, and 30 years old. I spent a great deal of my 20s being fat (weighing around 13 stone!! and a size 14-16) and no matter what my lovely friends say (“you weren’t fat, just curvaceous”) there’s no denying that a combination of this size and this weight is FAT. Fact.

I’d like to be 62kg, which is about 9st 11lb and which I reached very briefly last autumn through a really rather manic, frantic time in my life when I truly felt as though I was teetering on the edge of a precipice. So knowing that this is an achievable weight for me, I want to do it in a safe and healthy way over a few weeks, rather than being so stressed I resembled a Mexican jumping bean!! Sadly it was not a great start to our competition as I lost the grand total of 100grams. IE, I am now 65.9kg. Appalled at the evilness of it all. (I genuinely have been trying REALLY hard and my clothes feel much much looser, shame the scales don’t reflect it!)

The scuba diver faired least well after me, losing 400 grams but she said she wasn’t expecting any better and to be fair, she is the smallest of us by a country mile, so really (in my opinion!) has nothing to lose!! The Fonz achieved a very admirable loss of nearly 1kg (2.2 lbs) which is a great and healthy way to go – they say that losing between 1 and 2 lbs each week is sensible if you want to keep it off.

Finally – Charles. Certainly the healthiest of us all and most in tune with her eating/body/everything else, lost a whopping 1.6kg…although interestingly she says she can’t feel it all on her clothes!! She is also quite into exercising unlike the rest of us, so I think she has an unfair advantage ;o)

So another 4 weeks to go and I can honestly feel that it’s going to be tough – not to reach my target but to keep up with everything that means I can reach it. I’m missing my daily junk food fix although I know it’s much better for me to change my eating habits if I can. Mr DCB and I are going to go on a long walk tomorrow as he gears up for his 3 Peaks challenge in May, and I’ll be looking to walk off the food I ate last night feeling p*ssed off that I hadn’t lost anything ;o)

Next Friday – Weigh In Week Two!

1 Man. 3 Women. Our work weight-loss challenge.

Lins — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 20:18:11 +0000

Motivation is a strange thing. It tends to rear it’s head at the most inopportune moment (3.30am when weary minds should be sleeping) and then desert us when we need it most. When it comes to eating however, and eating all the wrong things, I, like most normal adults, do not need any motivation whatsoever. It just happens. It starts with 20 biscuits in a pack and finishes with no biscuits in a pack – in the space of 10 minutes. Willpower is a sod which can only be achieved by not being faced with temptation in the first place. How frequently I’ve mentioned to Mr DCB that if there is junk in the cupboards I will eat it and cannot put it out of my mind, therefore it’s better if there is no junk there at all.

However, over the last 4 days, I can feel my attitude starting to change – faced with the opportunity to eat my entire bodyweight in chocolate (eek!), my resolve is not faltering. The reason? Comradeship!!

My colleague (we’ll call him “the Fonz”) is getting married in July and bless him, is a bit of a girl when it comes to eating. He is extremely partial to a bar of choccie and easily eats one every day. It probably has a lot to do with the fact that he is the only male in our small but all-powerful office environment. Surrounded by the scurroulous ways of 5 gossipy ladies, I’m sure he seeks solace in his choccie, trying to block out our idle chitchat. He wants, and to be fair, needs to lose weight.

Then there is Charles, our newest recruit who in my mind is as fit as the proverbial butcher’s dog but worries about the bain of all women – her thighs. Happily for us, sadly for our waistlines, Charles is a dab hand in the kitchen and since her introduction last October, has been slowly but surely fattening us up with endless culinary delights like a never-ending preparation for the slaughterhouse (seriously hoping she doesn’t have an ulterior motive to her generosity!!)

Thirdly, the scuba diver. You wouldn’t think SHE has anything to worry about, and the rest of us don’t see it, but according to her she has cellulite on her arms (a scuba diver no less!!) and wants to be lighter and/or slimmer. She says her weakness is the nighttime meal and must-have puddings that she shares with her boyfriend, although between you and me she did once eat nearly an entire pack of Oreo cookies in one afternoon at the office!

Finally, bringing up the rear (in a situation all too familiar to school sports day) is me. I’m not sure I’ll ever be entirely happy with my weight/size/wobbly bits but am delighted that at 30, I weigh about 3 stone less than I did at 25. One day I’ll scan in what I lovingly refer to as my “fat pictures” so you can see the proof. It’s not immediately evident how big I was because I’m one of these odd people that carry it everywhere (as I’ve lost weight over the years I’ve even had to have a ring resized, because even my fingers got thinner!) but the doctor scared me once telling me that I really should shift the pounds, and even though I knew this to be true, there’s nothing like hearing it from someone official.

So on Thursday afternoon, Charles and The Fonz decided they would have a friendly weight loss competition, to “encourage” and use each other as motivation. Definitely in a school report “could do better” frame of my mind, the scuba diver and I decided to join in. She brought in weighing scales on Friday morning, and we had a public weigh-in at the office to all confront our fears. Our current weights and target weights have all gone up on the whiteboard, along with a grid to chart our progress over the next 5 weeks.

We’ve all set hopefully fairly realistic and healthy targets that can be reached and should see all of us a lot happier with ourselves and living healthier lifestyles more long term. It’s amazing what having the support of someone else can do – the last time I consciously attempted to eat less was before Mr DCB and I got married 3 years ago, and although I weigh slightly less than I did then, the passage of time marches relentlessly on and it becomes ever harder to keep in some kind of shape. But somehow I feel that this time it could be different – the motivation of not wanting to let anyone down is really overwhelming and whilst we haven’t yet set a prize for our competition, hopefully the final weigh-in on May 21st will see us all winners. Watch this space for our first weigh-in update on Friday!

Going Back to my Roots

Lins — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 17:40:06 +0000

It’s not very often that it comes up in conversation, but I am, albeit a little tenuously, Welsh. By birthplace alone…and once in a blue moon when they happen to have a half decent result in rugby and/or football. It’s reflected in my middle name (Megan) and although I really hate leeks, I do like having the opportunity to distance myself from the English at times, even though England is where I’ve lived since age 3!!

Multistripe organic cotton T-Shirt

Despite the vaguest of links to the “homeland” we’re so pleased to introduce our latest brand Pili Pala (meaning “butterfly” in Welsh), made in Wales. Mr DCB and I were at a show in November 2009 when another exhibitor mentioned Pili Pala to us and that she knew owner/designer Berith Lochery. It was added to my long list of “mental notes” to look into, so when Berith got in touch with me, we arranged to meet at Bubble earlier this year (far and away one of my favourite ways of spending a day!) where Berith was exhibiting Pili Pala and I knew that it was a range that had to be added to DaisychainBaby!

Using a mixture of organic cotton and bamboo for the garments, Berith has produced a capsule collection designed to be trans-seasonsal (ie lasting one from season to the next) and also predominantly unisex – both factors which mean the range is developed with a strong environmentally friendly focus, as well being excellent value for money AND kind to delicate skin. Phew – does it get any better?? The colours are vibrant and strong, the designs modern and stylish (we’ll credit Berith’s Scandinavian heritage for that one!) and it’s easy to see why the clothes would be kept and passed to younger siblings as they come along

We’re stocking a mixture of the current range, and all items are available from 6-12 months all the way up to 4-5 years! Look out for other bits to be added to the collection over the coming months.

FEATURE: Louise Gibbs on being a Baby Signing Mummy

Lins — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 08:00:15 +0000

It’s been a little while since we’ve had a guest post feature on our blog, so we’re really delighted to welcome Louise Gibbs from baby signing mummy to explain how she channelled early difficulties in getting her gorgeous girl to sleep through the night, into an exciting new business:

“I’m new to this blogging lark, but I am really getting into it; since starting my own site and business at the start of the year I have seen the wonders of technology used in ways I just would not have thought possible! I am sure that three years ago when I was on maternity leave with my beautiful daughter this mumprenuer culture was just not about – either that or I was so overwhelmed with motherhood that anything that was not my screaming baby was well off my radar. So now three years on, although I never wanted to head back to work (I am a paediatric nurse in a London hospital), I have been working full time always wondering how other mummies manage to stay at home…

"My dream is to make babysigning a reality for as many parents as possible"

So yes, my daughter as a newborn did not sleep, screamed all day and most of the night too. I breastfed her exclusively for six months and continued until she was ten months old. The first night that she slept through was when she was eleven and a half months old – I did not know what to do with myself all night! I still, to this day, speak with new mum’s and get a pang of jealously when they tell me their little one is sleeping through the night at six weeks of age – me, a paediatric nurse of over 10 years experience could not get my own daughter to sleep or stop crying?!

It was this that prompted me to research signing. I had used makaton through my work with children with autism, down’s syndrome and special needs and had seen first hand how a world of communication could be opened up with these children. I discovered babysigning and felt it was the answer to my problems! The glossy, all singing website told me it was – my baby who screamed all day was just wanting to communicate with me. Great, I thought, where do I sign up? A way to understand my daughter better just had to be the perfect answer! What the site did not tell me was that it’s not a magical overnight result. Babysigning takes time, patience, repetition, commitment.

Now don’t misunderstand me, I am a huge advocate for babysigning, not least because it most certainly helped my situation with my daughter. I became so much more patient with her, I wanted to engage with her, make her smile, giggle, and interact with me. We both found the signs were easy to fit into our daily life and relatively easy to pick up too. Sadly though, at the time there was a lack of information on how, why and where to sign. I continued signing with my daughter by myself though and quickly became hooked; the benefits really are amazing! I am quite sure that my daughter’s language skills today are all down to the babysigning I did with her, her sentence structure is beyond her years and I often have people comment on how grown up she sounds. Finally this year, whilst laid up in bed with pneumonia, I decided working full time in London had taken it’s toll on me. The one thing I had wanted to do since I discovered babysigning was to teach it to other parents and help others make this wonderful journey, thus babysigningmummy was born!

A one stop place to discover and explore the world of baby signing from a mummy who has been, and still is, babysigning; who adores motherhood and all that it offers and who has seen the wonders of babysigning and how it can have long term benefits for your child. Stop by for real life stories, the research behind signing, an overview of the gurus of signing and more. My ethos is to not endorse any one particular company, what is important is that parents are able to obtain the information they require to start their babysigning journey. My long term goal is to work with Sure Start Centers and Children’s Centers across the country to help offer babysigning to all parents no matter their financial background. My dream is to make babysigning a reality for as many parents as possible – so why not let me join you on your magical journey?

Recommended starter book on signing

My highest recommendation for a book to start signing with is the gorgeous Child’s Play book by Annie Kubler, “My First Signs”. It’s colourful, easy to read and your baby will love looking at the pictures. I always give parents on my courses a free copy of this book as I think it is just a marvelous resource.”

A huge thanks to Louise for this really inciteful post, and for being so honest about the feelings which can accompany early baby years! If you’d like more information on baby signing, please feel free to contact louise directly: louiseatbabysigningmummydotcom or visit her website. For regular updates, catch up with baby signing mummy on Twitter!

Click here to visit the DaisychainBaby boutique

Lights…Camera….ACTION!!

Lins — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 13:56:09 +0000

Aside from the really rubbish football results today, it was a good day because I got an exciting letter through the post. Not exciting in a you’ve-won-100-million-pounds exciting (and I wouldn’t have believed that anyway!) but in my own little world, it made me very happy. It was a letter from the insurance company to tell me that they’ve finally coughed up the beans to replace my camera which was stolen over Christmas…and was a brand new pressie from Mr DCB for me…pinched whilst we were on holiday in Prague…along with my passport….and a beautiful handbag which was a birthday present years ago from my Mum

I loved that bag so much I used to hold it with 2 hands and pull stupid faces

REWIND…I wasn’t blogging a great deal last year and still undecided whether to mix business with pleasure (keeping it clean folks!) but as I’ve now resolved all these trite dilemmas, I can tell you what happened. So we decided to go away for Christmas this last year as I had a mini meltdown last autumn, which involved a bit of swearing from me and plenty of tears to boot, and poor Mr DCB being his ever calm and placid self, desperate to make me smile. You see, whilst we don’t have a little DaisychainBaby family to run us ragged, we do both work full time (and these are not 9-5 hours but ridiculous manic London type mega hours) as well as working all spare time on our still fledgling business. I’m also a Samaritan in my spare time …plus there’s the small matter of trying to find some time for us. This left no option other than to flee the country and get away, the first holiday since our honeymoon 3 years ago.

Prague was BEAUTIFUL, if not really rather freezing but we got lucky with the sunshine and it was a nice long week so that we could combine relaxing with properly seeing all the sights and not have to rush round cramming it into 48 hours. The day before we were due to come home, we went to a shopping mall as Mr DCB wanted to look at football shirts. Tired and cold we stopped off at a cafe, and around 45 minutes later when we came to leave I had that heart-sinking moment when I realised that my bag had gone. It was literally taken from under my feet, as hubs sat opposite me, looking at me the whole time. THIS is how clever sneaky nasty scummy thieves are (there were many more choice words that came out of my mouth but I won’t repeat them here!) So then I thought: “s*it, we’re going home tomorrow and my passport was in the bag” and then I thought “f*ck, how do I tell hubs that the camera he bought for me for Christmas was also in the bag”.

Thankfully I believe honesty is the best policy and it all came tumbling out of my mouth in amongst rudities, tears and shouting at the cruel, cruel injustice of it all. Fortunately there was a police station nearby so we reported it, I spent about 4 hours sitting in there whilst they wrote their crime report and Mr DCB went back to the hotel and cancelled my cards. We then defiantly went out to dinner – our last night and there was no way I was going to let them ruin it, and got up at the crack of dawn to head to the embassy so I could get my temporary passport and get home. It’s so funny how small and meek you feel when it’s anything to do with anyone who could potentially prevent you from leaving a country/entering your own!

Yay, I can go home - thanks Embassy!

So now this whole horrible thing is finally over. Mr DCB being the funny old bod that he is still took piccies with our old camera even though I was mocking him for doing it, so we thankfully lost no memories. I have a new passport, and my lovely Day Job colleagues who knew how attached I was to my purple handbag clubbed together to buy me a new one for my birthday which was so sweet of them. I love my new bag which is so huge that I can actually fit inside it! We’re going to get the replacement camera ASAP and use it to get on with introducing our lovely new products by video and take lots of film when we’re out and about on our DaisychainBaby roadshows, cos it’s kinda fun and gives us something to do when it’s quiet. So watch this space – soon we’ll be coming to a screen near you ;o)

NEW: Fabric Party Bags from Charlie Moo’s

Lins — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 11:31:27 +0000

I’ve been harping on for ages on our Facebook fan page about the imminent arrival of gorgeous handmade fabric party bags from Charlie Moo’s, and they are now finally here!! We wanted to write a little bit about the bags, explaining their benefits and why they’re ideal for parties but on seeing Joanne’s post on her own blog, I cheekily asked if we could steal it, as she puts it better than we could:

“After reading an article about how the average spend per child for a party bag was a whooping £7.48, and from my experience its mostly what we affectionately term ‘landfill’. It made me realise I don’t shout enough about our gorgeous pre-filled bags.

At Charlie Moo’s we believe in tradition not necessity. We do not believe that party bags are essential but as parents our self we do think its a lovely way to say ‘Thank You’. Charlie Moo’s allows you to budget buy without compromising on quality, our pre-filled paper bags contain 5 wooden or traditional fillers, balloons and a box of raisins for a mere £4 each, the handmade pre-filled fabric party bags are just £5 each.

Party Bags can easily be done on a budget. At Charlie Moo’s we concentrate on bringing quality products at reasonable prices to mums. Why not buy quality bags, like our handmade fabric ones, which children can love and cherish months after the party. Or fill your Party Bags with one or two quality wooden toys, that will stand the test of time. Plus a balloon, raisins and a slice of cake is more than enough to keep both mum and child happy. There is no need to over-fill them, as the child will forget easily what was in. We live in such a throw away society that isn’t it better to give high quality, using very little plastic a more eco friendly option is sure to last. Charlie Moo’s bags are unique and handmade in the UK, with a rustic appeal they can be tailored to a theme, parents and children will be delighted with.

A party bag from Charlie Moo’s will certainly make a lovely addition to any party and are sure to make your child’s party stand out from the crowd the talk of every playground.”

We’re currently stocking 6 different designs, each of which come complete with a “Thank You” seed tag and cost £2.50.

Sometimes, Only Your Girlfriends Will Do

Lins — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 19:24:21 +0000

I’ve just spent a lovely Saturday night in the company of two of my closest female friends and on the train on the way home yesterday, as tired as I was, I thought contentedly about our friendship and everything we’ve been through together as we approach a decade of knowing each other.

We first met on a freezing January day in 2002, all recent University graduates and all stepping tentatively into the big wide world, which for us was journalism school. Determined to forge our paths in this highly competitive and driven industry, I’m thrilled to say that both my friends are well-established in different journalistic fields now whereas I’m the black sheep of the group who decided fairly early on that it wasn’t for me. Least of all, I didn’t fancy working for free when I had already moved to London by myself and had mounting bills to pay, quickly followed by supporting my then-BF for a while until he found work. So I got The Day Job that I still do now, all these years later.

Thinking about our friendship sometimes makes me very tearful. In a good way, because we have outrageous fun and spend most of our time cackling most unattractively like a pack of hyenas; in a bad way, because between the 3 of us we’ve been through the lowest, most awful times that are best forgotten. All of us went from relationships to being single in one chaotic week in 2002, and then supported each other as we all went on to meet other boyfriends…thought we were going to live happily ever after with said men…and none of it working out for any of us. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but it’s hard to grasp hold of when you’re in the thick of it. They were there when my Dad left out of the blue to marry his 4-year fling-floosy leaving me to question what was the point, to being there on my own wedding day 5 years later as I said “I do” to Mr DCB.

Saturday was a catch up as regrettably we hadn’t seen each other for over 6 months. It seems harder these days, which is a crime to admit, but life takes a new path as we get older and time is even more precious. The Mr said before I left “I know what’s in store. You’re going to sit around and moan about us men, as per usual”. Well, a) that’s our prerogative, and b) I am very lucky and he gives me nothing to moan about. Yet 6 hours of dinner and 4 bottles of wine later, we very much felt that we had put the world to rights, cackled, swore a lot (in my case anyway!) and were generally shoulders to cry on for one of us who is having a real old unfortunate time of it lately and really needs her girls.

My friends are my world and I would, without hesitation, lay down my life for them. I am fiercely protective of them and will be there until the end of time. You realise that life is a b*tch sometimes and can be outrageously unfair. The hardest times, whilst temporarily behind us, will simply be waiting to rear their ugly heads again because it’s inevitable and that’s life. And for the bad and the good, as much as partners and family are fantastic, sometimes only your girlfriends will do.

The Best Fishfinger Sandwich in the World – FACT!

Lins — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:53:07 +0000

I’m not even sure how Mr DCB and I came to be talking about fishfinger sandwiches one day, or why I even thought that the internet may better the offerings of my culinary skills and provide some kind of gourmet fishfinger sandwich recipe that I had never seen the like of before. But in one of those moments where you give thanks to the good lord that internet exists, I rubbed my hands with glee when I came across this. The one and only definitive fishfinger sandwich recipe. We have made it many times and I guarantee there is nothing better out there.

As the author says: “Too posh for fishfingers? Leave now”. Otherwise, read on, enjoy, and get to the supermarket pronto…

“I’m making pizza and Carol’s having a fishfinger sandwich” uttered my bestest ever friend down the telephone in answer to my query over her supper repast plans.
“I’m having a fishfinger sandwich too” I replied, “but it won’t be like Carol’s”.

Ah. Sort of got myself into that one, didn’t I. Although there was no danger of Carol ever finding out that my creation wasn’t just several of the good Cap’n's finest slapped between two slices of Hovis and a goodly smear of HP over the top, I felt morally obliged to actually create The Finest Fishfinger Sandwich Known To Mankind. So I did. I feel the secret receipt, jealously guarded for at least half an hour now, is ready to be shared with you.

Many hours of testing, tasting and refining have gone into creating this assault on the tastebuds but feel free to alter, substitute and change anything at all which doesn’t suit your preference. Why not go out and get a Chinese even and save me the bother of telling you how to make The Finest Fishfinger Sandwich Known To Mankind? But to appreciate it in all its magnificent piscene glory, it ought to remain unedited. Actually, to be honest, I kind of made it up strolling along the aisles in Sainsbury’s towards the fresh bread counter which is at the far end of the store. Had the bread been at the entrance (which it never is because they want you to follow the lovely fresh bread smell like som
e demented Hannah Barbera creation sniffing those supposedly invisible doughy wisps right to their source which is quite naturally, past everything else in the store) the resultant creation would have been much much simpler. Again I lie, I’m spinning this out to make it interesting. I got everything I needed for this in the veg section next to the door. It was the other fourteen quid I unnecessarily spent getting to the bread that I’m annoyed about.

As ever with my things, amounts are based on one man eating ALONE. Instead of at some cheap hotel in Leicester or wherever. So multiply if you have children or partners or both.
You will require:

5 fishfingers. Don’t skimp. Get the best, this is gourmet food after all. None of that minced white fish rubbish which is probably pouting or ratfish or something else outside the cod quota. Get cod. Lovely flaky cod. With lovely crispy breadcrumbs coating it. Too posh for fishfingers? Leave now.

One tiny little hot chilli. I used a Thai one. I was going to get Zimbabwean but that Robert Mugabe eh? He’s Norman Tebbit in disguise isn’t he. Boycott! I dunno, food and socio-political comment all in one. Bet you can’t do that eh, Jamie?

A spring onion.

A clove of garlic.

Black pepper (preferably Wynand which is the finest, this is gourmet remember but any old stuff will do. At a push).

A very large table spoonful of mayonnaise. Fresh of course. Straight out of the jar.

A squirt of something citrus. I used the juice of half a lemon which is a cop out I know but I had one to hand.

A demi-baguette of French origin. Not Hovis, it has to be crusty white bread in finger form.

A bottle of Fuller’s London Pride

This is how you now combine these delicate and sought after ingredients to create The Finest Fishfinger Sandwich Known To Mankind.
Before you start, turn off your mobile. Numerous text messa
ges can drastically alter preparation time. This should take no longer than 15 minutes to create rather than the 30 it took me.
Put the frying pan on and place the five fishfingers on a medium heat as per instructions on the packet. Not difficult.
Now, slice up the garlic, the spring onion (all of it except the roots) and the chilli into very small pieces. Very very small. Be aware that your eyes will hurt if you poke your fingers into them after handling chillis and you may not wish to continue with the recipe. This is a public service announcement.
Take the fishfingers off the heat and place them in a bowl. They will be partly cooked. Mash them up and add the the other things you’ve just cut up and the pepper and mix them in. Get the pan really hot again and then throw the lot in to finish cooking.
Meanwhile, rinse out the bowl and prime it with the dollop of mayonnaise. Just before you remove the fishfingers, add the lemon juice, stir again and then into the mayo with it all. Mix!

Slice your baguette in half and coat each liberally with butter. Or Golden Churn if you’re a tight wad. Spread the fishfinger mixture onto the lower half of the baguette and replace the top half. Failure to follow this procedure will result in a great deal of mess due to the effects of gravity.

That’s it. Finished. You have successfully created The Finest Fishfinger Sandwich Known To Mankind. If you’re lucky, the breadcrumbs will still be crispy too. I served mine up with thinly sliced and lightly oven roasted potatoes (or oven chips to give them their correct name) but you may care to have it unaccompanied.

Switch your mobile back on again and drink the beer.

Are you considering Real Nappies?

Lins — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 22:43:10 +0000

Then look no further than Go Real – The Real Nappy Information Service! I met their marketing manager Rebecca Rapson at The Designer Baby Show in November 2009 and was really impressed with the concept of this social enterprise, run by (mainly) parents.

Bright and colourful prefold nappy at Go Real

Trying to find the right real (or natural) nappy for your baby can be a bit of a minefield, and it almost seems that as there are now so many wonderful products on the market, the choices become more complicated and the decisions tougher to make. Flat nappy (of which there are 3 main types!) or shaped nappy? All-in-one or separates? Where is the support, the reviews, the instructions? And why are we reverting en masse to natural nappies when previous generations would have been desperate to escape the tedium of endless nappy washing? The answers to all these questions as well as every question you didn’t know you wanted to ask can be found at Go Real.

They take you through the benefits of real nappies, as well as all the different types and where to find them. You can read reviews, learn top tips and sign up to their forum to share your experiences with other real nappy parents. Go Real also end up on the road at different events where you can meet them in person and ask advice, and they offer great company discounts AND fab competitions!!

For the month of March, you can enter their current competition to win a DaisychainBaby prize of: PacMan playsuit, Raw Gaia moisturising salve and organic baby wipes, packed up in one of our organic cotton bags for life! To find out how to enter, click here.

If you want to keep up with Go Real, join their Facebook fan page and follow them on Twitter!