Schools Out

Well for those of you who do not know as yet, Zak has finished with his school adventure. He quite enjoyed the first few days, finding everything highly amusing and strange. Then he started to lose interest and by Monday I had to give him that push out the door. He came home that afternoon after being pelted with rocks by another kid, feeling unwell (Six days at school and he gets sick already! He tells me kids were coughing all over him and each other so it was no surprise.) Monday night he slept downstairs as he felt really sick and he wanted to be closer to us.





Tuesday morning he got up and although he did not feel well came out and asked if he could homeschool today. He then admitted that he had had enough. I tried not to look excited and questioned him carefully as to his reasons before agreeing. You see I had said he had to go for at least two weeks and then make up his mind for good. He thought he was stuck there and was getting a bit sad. He was not having fun anymore and to top it off was not feeling well.

As soon as I said okay, he immediately got out his maths and spelling workbooks, did his work then ran for his precious craft cupboard. The next hour was spent creating a rocket ship with floating pom poms which he attached with cotton and then made fly by blowing through a straw. He tried many different lengths of string and angles before declaring it just right! We then headed down to the beach and swam, played ball games and Z found a grasshopper which he played with for ages. He also gave his mama an in depth lesson on grasshoppers, and we had quite the argument of whether or not we should bring it home. Thankfully he took pity and left it in the grass where it was meant to be. In the afternoon his school friends still turned up as usual to call him out to play. They are currently building a tree house together and having a great time with it. It has been an ongoing project all week.



For those who think he came back to homeschooling because we were going to the beach the other day, you are quite mistaken. The beach to my kids is like saying go play outside. There is no novelty involved in it. They take it for granted and often whinge when we suggest we should go there. The thing is other than his maths and English, he has a choice is what he learns at home. We practice child led learning where he is allowed to choose and follow up on his own interests. He is so used to this that sitting in a classroom and being told what to do all day really does not suit him. It may be hard to understand for those who have never experienced this type of learning environment, indeed it took me a good couple of years to come around to this way of thinking myself. You could compare it to a butterfly being held around the wings, if we don't let it spread its wings it won't be able to fly!

This child needs to fly, he spent yesterday on the go all day. I was looking after a four year old who wanted to paint a caterpillar, so I pulled out all the bits and pieces and we painted, Zak went as far to paint it green, cover it in glitter then instead of sticking on its eyes he attached two straws first and then the eyes on the end, he announced it was not a caterpillar but an alien snail, he plans to make it a shell today. And then make another rocket ship with reflecting bits to test the way light works on different surfaces. (See even craft is a learning experience!) After keeping busy all day and going out to work on his tree house in the afternoon. I had just sat down outside for a bit of quiet when he waltzes on in and grabs some wood and starts hammering right there next to me!


"What are you doing Zak?" " I am building a Space Ship" Indeed he was he even had a little help from his brother who he soon banished with a look of disgust and announcing to me as he pulled off the bit his brother had hammered on. "I don't know how he is going to build himself a house one day mum, he is hopeless!" He then proceeded to build one very amazing looking spaceship, all in proportion with guns, turbo boosters and cabins for the people. (He patiently explained to mama what turbo boosters were for as well). I went inside for a bit and came back and he had pulled it all apart saying it was not good enough???????? How disappointing, it looked like a master piece to me!

The tide is high but he's holding on.......

So you see apart from the constant rough behaviour at school, not to mention the germs my main concern for this boy was the fact that he would not be able to spread his wings the way he is used to doing! I am so happy he is back to his normal busy, annoying little self. He is currently singing Sponge Bob Square Pants very loudly whilst tackling his math book! (A bit of an improvement on the Yowling he was doing a few minutes ago, which he informs me was Opera!) Hmmm he would not be able to do that in school!

Wake up Zak!

Weighing up the differences..

Well it looks like the novelty side of going back to school has worn a bit think with Zak. Today I had to encourage him out the door! He slept in, he did not remember to put his clothes in the wash (his first excuse), he has a bit of a cold and laid around until prompted to eat breakfast, get dressed, pack his bag (well I did it) and have a gentle shove out the front door.

By Friday last week he had said he was enjoying school despite the way everyone behaves and thought he would probably like to stay at it. (There were big stories everyday and for those of you who thought he may be exaggerating or making them up, you are wrong, I have been involved down there a lot before and saw it all myself, if anything he is toning it down a bit.) In all during the week, he was kicked, hit, elbowed, poked in the eye with a pencil and witnessed much much more of the same towards others. He has looked upon it all with amazement, not fear of shock, he finds it all quite amusing but sometimes annoying.

Over the weekend he still had lots of playtime and a sleepover with a friend so he started to realise that he still gets to see his friends either way. I went out and bought all his exercise books that he needed and he is refusing to take them to school till next week so I guess he is still quite undecided. He has been watching with interest what we have been getting up to each day and I think weighing up the differences. Not that we got up to a terrible lot last week as the school took up a bit of our time. We did start sport, go to the library and out for lunch one day.

Today I packed the picnic basket and we are headed down the beach, looks like a nice day outside and I don't feel like being cooped up. On Wednesday I am taking on a new little student for one day a week. He is my SIL's little brother and will be joining us in our learning adventures! I hear he likes craft so am rather excited to gain a crafting buddy. Gameboy is not really into craft at all like the rest of my bunch.

Anyway must run, will try and catch up with everyone this afternoon! Have a great day!

Lemonade Award

I have been lucky enough to receive this award three times in the past week or so! Wow! Thanx for the love guys! Much appreciated! I thought perhaps I had better hurry up and pass it on to others before I get hyperactive from all the sugary sweetness! The lovely ladies who gave it to me were Amber, Genie and AOTE.

This award is for bloggers who show great attitude and or gratitude to others ! And should be passed on to ten other bloggers. As I think all my bloggy friends show great attitude, if you are reading this I would like you to help yourself to some lemonade from me!

Cheers! Have a great day everyone!

School and updates.....

Zak went off to school yesterday, very excited and happy to be going! He came home all by himself, although he dawdled along the way and stopped for a play in the park! His big sister is going to pick him up and walk with him in future, she told him she wants his company!

His initial reaction on arriving home was he had a good day, but he would like to stay home tomorrow as there is a swimming carnival and he would prefer not to stay at school. The principal had informed me that only the highly competitive kids would go and everyone else would have class as normal. So I thought he should go along anyway! (Its still raining!).

So last night, after he came home and then went out to play with his friends and came home covered in mud in his only school shirt, I started to inquire as to what he got up to all day...............

What did you do honey? Was it fun?

We did so much writing mum! And???? Just writing! Oh and spelling words, they made me write them THREE times (haha! They also want him to write them again for homework!) It was harder than homeschool! Is that ALL you did all day? Yep! (And he did manage to sit in his chair without walking off! Amazing! Way to go Zak!)

Was it fun? Yes! It was "funny". The teacher yelled a lot and he made the boys sit with the girls if they were naughty! So Jye was naughty on purpose because he "wanted" to sit with the girls! And Takoda talked all day, mum he does not shut up! I could not concentrate! Some other girl spent the day hitting everyone, including a boy who stuck his head out the window! "Hey mum thats a bit rude isn't it, she could have at least asked him nicely to put his head back in first!" Then another girl got into trouble for talking so the teacher wrote a funny poem about her on the board, everyone laughed and she was embarrassed (Is it just me or does anyone else think thats a bit tough? Its bad enough that other kids pick on each other, should the adults be doing it as well? I understand he is trying to be funny but really its not very nice, Zak would have found it hilarious as we joke around a bit at home but not everyone does and it could be terrible for a sensitive kid).

Then at lunch time some crazy boy who likes to attack everyone saw me and started to elbow me! (Ah! Here we go the expected typical rough behaviour! ) Oh! And what did you do? I called him a weirdo! He did it again! Weirdo! Again! Weirdo! Weirdo! Weirdo! Zak thats not nice! You should not have provoked him. Mum! Seriously he WAS a weirdo!

Thankfully Zak refrained from hitting him back but could not help telling him what he thought of his behaviour! Oh dear! Karisma is "hating" school already! What a surprise! Today Zak laughs at him but the amusement will wear off and he will turn around and belt him up! Indeed by last night he was fractious and had a go at belting his brother up!

I am still not coming around to him being in school full time! I had to enrol him but I am thinking I will give him a couple of weeks and then make a final decision as whether or not to leave him there. I think its going to be hard both homeschooling and having a younger child in school. We have activities to attend in the afternoons which means Im not home at school home time. Last night it was 9 O'clock before we finished homework. He wanted to play after school which is fair enough and then had dinner and shower before we could get started.

So far he finds school highly amusing! Bring on that writing teachers, hopefully the amusement of crazy behaviour will wear off by next week!

Also this week at Karismas house.....

Cameragirl has started her fashion design course and although tired is absolutely loving it! She is still managing to sew up a storm at night and on the weekend and has been trying to keep up with orders for her etsy shop which is going great!

Ninjaboy finally got a decent car, a Toyota Echo (same as Cameragirls, they look like twins, except his has three doors instead of five).

TBF is working and has a sore leg, she is off to Melbourne soon for the Comedy festival. (She went a couple of years ago with Blossom (my sister) and loved it! She can't wait to go again, now the she is old enough to party as well! LOL!

TC is studying hard and working at night, she is saving up to go to SuperNova in Sydney (some sort of nerd fest, she tells me! Where one gets dressed up as their favourite anime characters and hangs out with fellow nerds! Hmmm! Sounds like fun!)

Gameboy and Karisma are hanging out together, Gameboy however gets to sleep in while Karisma runs around sending everyone else off! LOL This morning Miko thought she would help out by going upstairs and waking him up with a big sloppy doggy kiss! She came back down with one sleep boy in tow, he is still not quite with it yet. Karismas garden is getting neglected as she has not had time to see to it with all the extra running around and cleaning with no-one else home to help now! No time thus far for craft either, although I have some things already made up to show you, just need to take pic's!

Surferboy is working hard and has not been surfing since Mark's accident! I hope its just because the surf is not good right now!!!

Mark is doing much better! Slowly getting back on his feet, although it will be a bit of a slow process!

Miko and Bella are destroying Karismas back yard! Karisma hopes to implement some sort of routine around here so she can keep up with everyting but does not really see it happening! LOL!

The Big Day.....

"The Eager Beaver, waiting to go!"

Well its official, Dinoboy has taken the plunge and gone back to school. Today he was up at the crack of dawn, had his breakfast, shower, packed his lunch and bag and was ready to leave before it was even time! (Hey, I was a bit offended at his enthusiasm to leave, geez does he have to be so obvious!)

As most of you would probably guess, Im not too thrilled about the whole idea, he has forgotten what he went through when he was little, but I have not! Quite frankly I do not like the school system and the way they do things! He however feels that he would like to try it out! Today we met his teacher Mr Cooper, who Im told is strict but fair! He questioned me in detail about academics etc and asked what I felt would be the hardest part for my boy to deal with........"Well, sitting in his chair! He has a tendency to up and walk away if he feels what you are teaching is boring!" The teacher thought that was funny and said he would just have to "learn"! Good luck with that mate! Hehe! (He also has a habit of choosing what he wants to learn and his "teacher" going with it! Going outside when he wants to, eating whenever he wants to, raiding the craft cupboard when he feels creative! And basically having full control over his learning choices!) Yep, he is going to learn a lot at school! Maybe not everything that he was quite expecting!

He was so excited to go though and immediately recognized some of his old classmates who were all calling out to him to sit with them. I left him there with a big smile on his face and very strict instructions.......for me, not him.....ahem...."MUM, don't you dare come down and pick me up this afternoon, I am a big boy now and I will walk myself home!"

So my friends, please say goodbye to our baby Dinoboy and welcome our new "big school boy", the very grown up and confident.....ZAK, and please send happy vibes to his school, they really do not know whats hit them! Haha!

Enjoy school cheeky boy!........

Another day........

With all the terrible news this week and hearing all the individual stories of those who did not make it, it seems hard to go on with normal every day life mundane things. Keeping ones mind on the job can be hard, keeping focus can be impossible, nerves can often fray and patience can run out. I am finding my patience with the boys is starting to suffer. They are children, the whole thing hardly effects them at all. To them fighting over games and who wins or not is a big deal, to me it is so insignificant right now that I just feel like gagging them.

Today we have an appointment at the local school to discuss trialing them for a week or so to see if they like it. This was not my idea, Dinoboy wants to go. Gameboy says he not so sure but will give it a go. When I was down there yesterday the principal said he would not mind them visiting occasionally for other activities if this is what we prefer. I will let you know how it goes once we make a decision. Today the thought of them going to school does not seem so bad after all!

Tonight we are off to Gosford to the art gallery there for the launch of the Central Vision art exhibition. This is held once a year and they choose the top artwork from all the highschools on the Central Coast. Its not easy to get into and we are very proud to have The Captain chosen for the fourth year in a row (last year she had two pieces of work chosen). This year she is quite excited herself as they chose a piece that she is particularly proud of. I will take some photo's if they let us. Otherwise will have to wait till she brings it home.

PS: Fellow Aussies, Please support our fire victims by shopping at Coles supermarkets this Friday! They are donating ALL profits from the day to the Victims funds.

Mark Update

Hi everyone, just wanted to let you know that Mark is doing well. He has regained all feeling and although suffers some strain to his spine it is not broken. He was able to sit up by late last night and they say today he is even better and can probably come home this afternoon. Wonderful news!

Thank you once again for all the happy healing thoughts and prayers, much appreciated. Hugs to all!

I want, I need.....nah just joking.. more dancing please???

Karisma would be so so grateful if her bloggy buddies would lend a little more of their prayers and dancing feet????? Oh, go on you know you want to! You all did such a wonderful job yesterday of praying and dancing that today we have been blessed and surrounded with rain! Yes you did it! You are wonderful! I love you all!

Now today we have more drama's! Today SB's mate Mark dropped round in the morning and helped himself to coffee and made me one too! The next I heard of him was he was in an ambulance! Now I had gone off to play at a local playcentre with the kids. SB and Mark went surfing! I arrived home at exactly 1.47pm, SB came running in the door soaking wet in a pair of Speedo's at 1.55pm yelling "Why doesn't anyone answer the damn phone?"

Now this is not usual around here! We just got here! But.... A) He was not dressed B) He was in a strange car!...... SHIT Whats wrong????..... "Mark has had an accident, he is in an ambulance, he can't move his arms or legs go get Meagan from school quick (Meagan has just started kindy at our local school and her mum works) I ran out the door, my heart thumping, SIL drove me down as close as we could get and then I RAN, (Yes Sayre., I RAN, wonders will never cease) I bolted through the door and the office lady said "Whats wrong?" I explained the situation and she ran for the deputy, who actually remembered me and was extremely helpful! I asked them to please ring Meagans mum who is separated from her dad and explain who I was as I have not seen her for two years! I would take Meagan to my house if that was okay. (No really it was not as simple as that they would NOT let me have her, even though both they and she knew me! Good School! I heartily agree but this is an emergency! I waited till her mama finally turned up at 3.05 and we decided that I would pick her up for the rest of the week and be added as a contact so I am a safe haven in future, my main concern was she would be scared that daddy did not turn up! Hence the reason I waited for mummy to show in the person!)

Whilst waiting I bumped into many old friends etc and they were wondering why I was there! "Oh I'm hanging with my friend Meagan!!!!" "Okay!" The principal and deputy both stopped for a chat, we discussed meeting up for integration with my homeschool kids! (Zak wants to go to school! I know I have not told you all about it but intended to, seriously I did!) What a bloody week!

Finally Meagan went with mummy, Karisma came home and saw SB and he told her what happened. Mark had wanted to catch one more wave, so SB headed for the showers at the surf club! He turned and saw Mark catch that one wave, dive forward and then turned away and kept walking! Turned once again, (no idea why) and noted he was "floating" WTF he looked and realised he was only floating! "SHIT" and ran! (He says he did not think he could run that fast!) Into the water, swims to Mark, grabs him and tries to get him to shore! He could not feel his arms or legs (thank god he was floating on his back not his face!)...finally other surfers came, then eventually the lifeguards, who SB says were wonderful when they "finally" got there! He even borrowed one of their cars to come home and get keys for his car, (His went missing with Mark!), which is when we bumped into him!

Anyway, Mark ended up being airlifted by helicopter to North Sydney Hospital. He had a little movement in his fingers which was a wonderful sign! A big gash on his head but talking and worrying about Meagan (Another good sign!) Relatives were contacted and went out to meet and follow him down to Sydney! We will help this end by looking out for little Meagan and sending out happy healing thoughts! Lots of stress and worry today but good news as far as the wiggly fingers are concerned!

We finally got inside ready to have a very late lunch when I get a phone call....."Hello, I live in the next street, next door to.......Your son just had a stack on his bike and hit his head! Grrrrrrr!!!! We drove around expecting to find a child in bits only to find our boy strutting his stuff with no elbows left spouting " I did NOT hit my head, I hurt my arms!" Enough already! I need a hot shower and a sleep! C'mon share the love guy's..........happy, healing thoughts and prayers, much needed!

And thanks so much for yesterdays happy thoughts and prayers, you guys are fantastic! I love you all!

Fun Monday - NOT TODAY

Today I had full intentions of joining in on Fun Monday, Pamela asks....

Show me in pictures or tell me in words what defines the place where you live.

I wanted to share pictures I took on our way home last year when I went away with the girls. Contrary to the belief of many that the beach would be what defines this place as home to me, its actually not, for me its the trees. We are surrounded by trees! No matter which way you approach our home on the freeway, you are greeted with lush green farms, bushland, rolling hills of green. This is the picture that gives me a sense of security, a coming home feeling, joy and contentment. In fact the only thing that could make me any happier would to be to move just a little further into that green!

You will all know by now that we have suffered a couple of very hot, dry weeks, first in Victoria and then up here. For those in Victoria, that has now proven fatal in the worst possible way. Bushfires! Sure I posted a couple of weeks ago about a fire coming quite close to our house. Did it scare me? No, not really, we are so used to it and we are now quite built up around here. Lots of houses, indeed the farms that used to be across the highway have now turned into one massive big suburb practically devoid of trees.

Sure there is a huge fire raging down the road at Peats Ridge, we have had two other big fires even closer this weekend, but they were dealt with and contained, all we had to deal with was a blanket of smoke. which was gone the same day. This is normal for us, this is what we expect will happen.

For those in Victoria though, they are left in shock and devastation. Yesterday we watched with horror as whole communities were wiped out. You have to see it to believe it. And worse still the fires are still raging. Today watching the news is breaking my heart. People have not only lost their homes, their beloved pets, their livelihoods, people have lost their loved ones. There was simply no time to get away. Some stayed to try and save their homes, others tried to get away in their cars and did not make it! Its terrible!

As I write this the death toll stands at 108, so many people are hurt and suffering, god knows how many more are yet to be found. Over 1,000 people are homeless. there are still 10 major fires burning down there. The pictures are horrific! As I watched people crying over their lost possessions, all I could think was, thank god, at least your alive, you will recover, it will be hard but your cannot replace your life, then came the news of those who did not make it. Worst of all was seeing the firemen crying today, that was what really got to me. They are exhausted, traumatized and some of them will also return to no family, no home! Its awful. Its not fair that they have to deal with this, especially as they probably know a lot of the people they are finding. So many are still missing! As I cry with them, I wish that my tears were rain, I wish that I could make it stop!

If you are a praying person, please pray for gentle rain (I say gentle as at the other end of our country, they are suffering a different fate! Floods!) A 5 year old boy is missing, it is feared he was taken by a crocodile. Several have been spotted in the flood waters. While the fires make the floods seem menial, these people are also suffering. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers too.

Yes my friends, today is not fun for us, today is a very sad day!

Update: Cazzie has links to several stories and links to places where you can help if you are able, please drop by and visit her too! Thanx Please click here.....

Looking up #4

Just so you know Im not "always" sitting under a tree or swinging in the hammock.........

Looking up from the car, North Sydney..................

Hmmmm! At least there is a bit of sky!

How much can a Koala "bear"?

Okay, just to distract you from the serious stuff around here! This is floating around the aussies email systems today! (Not that this is not serious! Its damn hot out there!)

From an unknown aussie (blogger?) source........

At home in Victoria the temperature has been above 4 4 degrees all week and they are forecasting another week of 40+ temperatures. Power is failing, trains have stopped running because tracks are buckling under the heat . It’s just scorching. and it seems that the people are not the only ones suffering. Check out these photos of a little Koala which just walked onto a back porch looking for a bit of heat relief. The woman filled up a bucket for it and this is what happened!

(Indeed they copped a 45.7 degree heat! And here I was melting at 40 degrees! What a whinger!)

Hmmmm! What is this stuff you offer me humans?

"Ahhhh, tasty! Not bad, nice and cool"

"Oh this is quite lovely! I shall have a little soak!"

"Okay! A little privacy please! Clearly, I am trying to take a bath!"

Many thanks to the lovely lady who posted these pictures somewhere in Oz! We hear you and also feel your heat! Muchas Gracious

OH Happy Day!

Today we had our first meet up for the year for our homeschool group! How lovely it was to see each other, finally after two long months! We went along to Chipmunks play centre where the kids ran amok and had a lovely time, while us mums caught up on holiday fun and planned activities for the rest of the term. It was unanimously decided that we would keep Wednesday group aimed at Play and fun activities only! Plenty of time for sport and other learning activities on other days!

One of our lovely mama's has arranged for some organised sport activities once a fortnight on a Thursday, we will go on with our craft days once a month as well (these are quite laid back) we generally arrange a particular craft and the kids are free to join in or just play on the day, whatever they feel like. Like I said, we are rather laid back!

Now having said this, DB announced the other day that he would like to go back to "school", you know "that" school that I removed him from for various reasons nearly three years ago. I was a little suspicious of his reasoning, you see he has been playing with a few boys over the holidays who attend the school and last week when they all went back he suddenly wanted to go too! He has forgotten what he went through when he was little but mama has not!

Now while we were out today we bumped into his old Kindergarten teacher, who I knew quite well. We stopped for a quick chat and I told her how he felt! She informed me that she still teaches at the school 2 days a week and that this year, the year 4 teachers are all really great teachers! One of them, Mr B taught my sister and my girls! I like him, he is strict but great! Emphasis on the word strict! No seriously, he is a great teacher! However, my children are now in a natural learning environment! While I do teach them maths and English, they have a lot of say in what goes on and everything else is child led learning! They choose, we explore and learn together! And quite frankly if the surfs up, we are at the beach! Do you get the drift? We have no timeline or set rules, we go with the flow, do what we want, when we want!

Call me narky! But my plan here is to approach the school and ask if DB can join Mr B's class for a week or two to see if he can adjust to "school learning" environment! Quite frankly I can't see him sitting there and doing what he is "told" for any length of time! He is too set in his ways! (Having said that the little bugger will probably conform just to spite me! haha!). I am hoping he will lose interest anyway!

Now sure I could have six spare hours a day to have to myself! Catch up on all the crafty endevours I can't find time for now, blah blah blah! But I love the watching my kids learn naturally! No stress, no fuss, lots of fun and games! LOTS of natural learning! I really do not like the way in school kids are rushed and made to learn things that are of no interest to them personally, which they stress over and then forget anyway! Waste of time and effort! I also
loathe the fact that kids are made to feel that they are dumb when they are not supposedly where they should be at a certain age! Having worked with so many kids over the years, it is my opinion that they all learn at different levels, each and everyone having their own special talents! (And I am not talking of my own, my kids have actually been in the top percentile in school). I managed to get through to quite a few kids that the teachers saw as a waste of time! GRRRRRR! (Yes a teacher actually said that to me once, when I was teaching kids in her class to read, I sure showed her, he read beautifully for me! A little respect and compassion lady!) . NO CHILD IS A WASTE OF TIME! They all have amazing potential!

So this week I decided to try a little "social experiment" (I love doing these! haha) I decided we would revert to classical homeschooling for a couple of hours each day! "DB sit down and complete this page of Math right now please" "Its too hard, I don't want to!" "Its NOT too hard, you just don't want to! You cannot do that in school honey! You have to do what the teacher says!" "Okay mum!" He completes another couple of sums and then hops up, walks off and starts playing toys! "Ahem, DB, back to the table my dear! You can't do that in school" "I don't go to school mum!" "Excuse me?" (God help him! And he CAN do the math, he just chooses not to at that moment, it was too hot! He did complete it but made a few mistakes because he was busy thinking about something else at the time and not his math! Its all about focus, when he is in the right mood he learns because, He wants to!)

I am not totally anti school! If you like school and enjoy that type of environment then I say Go for it! I loved school when I was a kid. And because I respect my childs right as a human being I will let him go if he must! Of course I am going to worry! He's my baby! But its his choice! His life! His learning experience! So I will support him whatever he decides!

Now I would ask you all to pray that he decides in my favour, but I won't, coz that would be wrong! I will pray myself that he see the light and realises what he is in for! Providing of course that they will let him visit for a week! I will keep you all posted!

Cooking with Karisma - Pumpkin Soup

So I thought it was about time I gave you another recipe Karisma style, you know, no measuring etc etc. Slip, slop, slap......So here we go, this is my version of pumpkin soup.

First of all you need to plant a pumpkin seed and then ask the faeries to make it grow you a pumpkin! (Because Karisma never normally has any luck this time she did ask the fairies and look what she got!) Only one pumpkin but hey thats better than last time!


Having never actually succeeded in growing a pumpkin before, I then consulted my brother, the gardener as to when I should pick it. He said when the vine died off would be fine! So I went outside the next day and the vine had dropped dead in the heat! Oh goodie, its time! The pumpkin was a little resistant but came along peacefully in the end!

Next we chop up the pumpkin into pieces, put it in a pot with two onions (chopped as well), cover with vegetable stock (if you don't have any fresh you can use boiling water and stock cubes about 4 will do). Bring it to the boil, then turn down and let it simmer till the pumpkin is nice and soft.


Next you strain the pumpkin, saving the stock and put it through your food processor (if you don't have one you can mash it). Placing the pureed pumpkin back in the pot with the stock. I then add a good shake of Nutmeg and let it simmer for about five minutes stirring occasionally!
NO I don't add any cream or milk! Why? Because its fattening and we like it better this way! To serve those who like it can add a dollop of sour cream and lots of black pepper!


Bon apetite! It certainly goes down well around here! And may my beautiful pumpkin rest in peace! Thank you to the faeries for helping out! Much obliged! Next time I shall teach you how to make vegetarian Moussakka!


PS: I got my camera back! Yippee!


Dinoboys question for the day: "Mum why is it that when the camera flashes in a dogs eyes, its eyes go blue and when it flashes in a humans eyes they go red?"