#FoodieseekerFriday - Seuss at Sea and Fun for the Kids

For this weeks Foodieseeker Friday post I thought I would tell you all about the children's activities. As I am sat writing this I have two excited twins telling me to click here and there! To prepare the children for the Dr Seuss adventure on board Carnival Vista they already have Dr Seuss teddies and books so they are already familiar characters. In true Carnival style there are so many Dr Seuss themed activities, including the legendary Green Eggs and Ham!

The Green Eggs and Ham Breakfast with the cat in the hat and friends is going to be a breakfast like no other. The dining area will be brightly decorated and filled with all of the fun of Dr Seuss.

The menu makes this a truly unique breakfast. The menu is full of classic Dr Seuss style poems to describe the culinary delights that await, such as...

• Do You Like Green Eggs and Ham? "Would you, could you, on a boat? Try them while you float. Try them and you may, I say."
• Scrambled Super-Dee Dooper-dee-Booper, Special de luxe a-la Peter T Hooper Omelette's "We'll crack'em and shuck'em and chuck'em in pans. We'll mix in some beans and use fifty five cans. We'll mix in whatever you wish; feel free to create your own stupendous egg dish."
• Truffula Tree Pancakes "Those pancakes! Those pancakes! Stacked high as the trees. I've been searching my whole life for stacks such as these!"
• From There to Here, From Here to There, Funny Belgian Waffles are Everywhere "One berry, two berry, red berry, blue berry. Waffles with whipped cream, waffles without. Just tell us which one; no need to shout."
• Fox in Socks Steak and Eggs "Don't blab such blibber blubber! Try to say filet mignon topped with two fried eggs, Bearnaise sauce, chopped potatoes and grilled tomatoes. Now is your tongue numb?" 

Finding The Perfect Car For A Growing Family!

Once the twins arrived we knew that we would need a larger car. As soon as we knew that they were on their way we had to say goodbye to the sporty car and say hello to the practical larger car. Since the twins arrival, four years ago we are now on our third car! How have we got through so many cars you may wonder. This is simply down to poor choice, until the car we have now. The second car that we bought, we thought that it was going to be bigger, but in hindsight we rushed the purchase and really did not make the right decision.

We underestimated how much room three growing children would need especially when it comes to going on holiday! As the children grew, so did our need for a larger car. It got to the point where our boot would be jam packed and we would need to put other things in a second car. Be it my parents or my mother in laws car. This was fine, but we were not always going to have people in a second car going on holiday with us!

Summer Berry, Mint and Arbikie Kirsty's Gin Jam

Over the last few weeks berries have been a huge part of our daily diets. This is all thanks to the bumper harvest of soft fruits that we are having. So far we have enjoyed fresh strawberry and mint porridge, homemade cordial, berries with meringues and plenty of berry topped cakes! Having the extra berries this year has even got me making preserves again so as to not waste any.

I recently made a softer jam to what I usually make. This was inspired by a River Cottage Fridge Jam recipe that I had found in my trusty River Cottage Handbook about Preserves. These are a treasured collection of books that I have found to be full of information about preserving foods, growing vegetables, using herbs, keeping chickens and of course contain some fantastic recipes!

I decided to make a fridge jam as they contain about half the sugar of regular, thick set jam. So it is simply a healthier option for a jam. But fridge jams are also fantastic additions to bakes and desserts like trifle! Yes, I will be using some in a cake, so keep an eye out for a future fridge jam cake recipe!

This jam also has an optional added extra. This recipe made three jars of jam. I made two plain summer berry and mint jam but with the final jar I added something special to give the jam an added kick of flavour. I added some of the deliciously floral Arbikie Kirsty's Gin that we found while on our last holiday in Aviemore, Scotland.

On one of our journeys we discovered a quaint little shop that has whiskey and gin from floor to ceiling. The Whiskey Castle at Tomintoul became a favourite shop to stop by. It is like no other shop, you immediately feel at home and in the company of friends it is so welcoming. While you are there if there are any drinks that you would like to taste, and they have a bottle open, you are welcomed to try it. It was here that I spotted Kirsty's Gin from Arbikie. It was a new distillery to me and as it had my name I just had to taste it. I immediately fell in love with the floral notes of lavender that come through. All of the botanics that are used in Arbikie Kirsty's Gin have been grown on the estate. It is grown, distilled and bottled on the one estate and is a true farm to bottle product. Even the water that they used is mountain filtered water that has come directly from their underground lagoon! We love finding products that are more unique and away from the mass produced products that you can find anywhere and everywhere and Arbikie is just that. Arbikie also produce Potato Vodka which is Scotland's first potato vodka, Chilli Vodka and they even have some Arbikie Whiskey that is currently sleeping in a variety of bourbon, sherry and red wine casks!

Back to my jam recipe with an added kick. The gin goes perfectly with the soft, summer fruits and makes this homegrown jam extra special!

This is what I did...

Introducing Organix Punk'd!

Now that the summer holidays are here I know that my kids will be saying"I'm hungry!" even more than usual. I am sure that I will not be the only parent hearing this. My kids never seem to be full, they always seem to be hungry so finding a snack that will fill them up, give them the energy that they need for lots of play but they need to be healthy too.

Thankfully my children are not too fussy and will quite happily snack on fruit but sometimes they want something more. So when I discovered that Organix are bringing out a new snack bar for older children I was excited to find out more.

Introducing Organix Punk'd!

Soy, Chilli and Ginger Pork Loin Steaks

At this time of year we all prefer lighter meals. Today I am sharing with you a great and easy way to marinade and add flavour to your pork loin steaks. These can either be grilled or placed on a barbecue and have a real summer feel to them.

Aldi have a great selection of summer dressings which are a quick and easy way to flavour salads but also meats and fish. Three of their Specially Selected sauces caught my eye:

• Bloody Mary Ketchup
• Blue Cheese Dressing
• Soy, Chilli and Ginger

This got me thinking about how I could incorporate the sauces into a meal and do something different with them. Now that it is summer we are enjoying being able to get in the garden, having barbecues and eating al fresco. Today's meal is perfect for that!

I decided to go for the spicy and fragrant Soy, Chilli and Ginger Dressing. This dressing is a warm combination of ginger and chilli in a dark soy sauce.

This is what I did...

Interior Design Trends For 2016 - How To Increase Your Property Value

You may remember that recently I have been talking about how to save money. Sometimes spending money can also have huge benefits. One benefit is increasing your property value. This is a great way to make a long term investment. So when I was asked if I would share a great infographic with you I thought it would be a great idea. I love all of these tips so thought that you would to!

Here are the top interior design trend for 2016 and how you can increase the value of your property...