Building Blocks

The little man is very creative, he wants to be doing something creative most of the time.

My parents bought these new building blocks for him for christmas and he LOVES them.

This is one of his latest creations that he put together, with the funny face to boot.

Photo of the Week - Wk26

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This weeks You Capture is Faces. This is an easy one for me as I LOVE taking pictures of faces.

So here are a couple that I took of the Little People, and one that the Little Man took of me, yes a photo of me amazing.

I thought that this was a pretty good photo taken by a 3 and half year old. Well done!

Some fun in the park, there was a crown cut out of the side of the play equipment. I thought that I would see what I could capture through it.

Thanks again to Beth at I should be folding laundry for a great topic. Will have to head over there now to see what other faces pictures there are.

Glycemic Index

Many people talk about “low GI foods” but I am sure, like I was when I first heard the term, most people have no idea what Glycemic Index means.

Well lets see, when you think of a carbohydrate food you could think of it by its glycemic index (GI). This is a rating of how long it takes for the body to break the carbohydrate down, and release them into the body as glucose. It is based on their immediate effect on your blood sugar level.  Not all carbohydrates are the same, that is why a lot of people don’t do well on low carb diets, as they tend to cut out all carbohydrates, when we don’t need to, and our bodies need some carbohydrate foods. It is just knowing which ones are good and which ones are not so good.

High Glycemic Index

Carbohydrate foods that break down quickly during digestion have a high GI - after eating high GI foods you will get a burst of energy but it won’t last long before you hit a slump again, which will leave you feeling hungry and tired.  High GI foods are starchy veggies like potatoes and refined products such as breads, cakes, biscuits and sweets and other sugary foods.

Low Glycemic Index

Carbohydrate foods that break down slowly however are a much better option as they have a low GI, the low GI carbohydrate will release glucose gradually into the blood stream, which will give you a slow energy release, giving you a more sustained energy source. You will feel full for a lot longer. Legumes are a great option along with most grains and vegetables.

So really you could say that a low GI food is much better for your metabolism than a high GI food, as the low GI will get your metabolism working for a longer period of time than the high GI.

However when you are looking at low GI food during weight loss, it is also important to keep an eye on your portion sizes. You will read that pasta has a low GI but obviously if you eat too much you are not going to lose the weight. You need to make sure that you have plenty of vegetables, because remember GI ratings relate to foods that contain carbohydrates. If the food has little or no carbohydrates it will not have a GI rating, such as meat, fish, eggs, avocados and most vegetables.

Not only is low GI food great for weight loss, it can also be an influence on lowering your cholesterol and lowering blood sugar levels for a diabetic.

While doing my research I found a great web site with some further information if you want to know more. Glycemic Index

I must start by saying that I really hate moving, I know hate it such a harsh word, but I have to use it in this instance. The little man will tell you that you are not allowed to hate anything, you just don’t like it very much.

I thought that I didn’t really mind moving, but last week I changed my mind. Actually I think the part that I really don’t is the packing up part, but I don’t mind the unpacking part.

I have had fun moving things around and finding new homes for all our bits and pieces, this is not an easy task when there is NO room to put all the bits and pieces. I have had to be very ruthless this move, but I have actually enjoyed it to a certain extent, I have thrown things out that I haven’t used for years but just seem to keep moving. Why is that we do that? some things have a sentimental attachment but a lot of it you think you will need it at a later date, so you have to keep it for some reason, well not this time.

Finally we have finished moving and now we are just concentrating on the unpacking. This takes time, certainly when you have two small people that like to “help”, but I am slowly getting there. I have had fun shopping for storage solutions to fill the small spaces, without making the house look over crowded. I will share in due course, I have to make it look tidy before displaying to the world.

I won’t mention that I still have two, yes two, storage units full of furniture and boxes that I don’t really know what to do with. As we are paying for this storage, I have set a task for myself. Every time I drive past the storage units I have to pick up one or two boxes to unpack. The furniture on the other hand I am going to try and sell or give to charity.

It is all work in progress. It has been a busy couple of weeks, and it was probably a blessing that I didn’t have the internet connected, or I probably would still be surrounded by boxes today. But I am back now and looking forward to a great 2010. I hope that you will join me.

Happy Australia Day

I know it is a bit late as it was Australia Day on the 26th, but it is better late than never.

I bought the little people some Australian flags and shirts, they had a great time as you can see.

Photo of the Week - Wk25

Very Stylish

It has been a very very hot weekend. We have spent alot of time in the pool.

Little Miss was so cute, Pops hat, Mummy’s shoes and enjoying a nice fruit bar in her swimmers.

Photo of the Week - Wk24

Oh no we have no internet connection in our new house for a couple of weeks. Not sure how I am going to survive, I will miss you all, and I hope that you will all miss me.

I can’t believe that it takes the phone companies that long to organise the connection.

I will try and post when I can get internet to let you know how we are going and what we are all up to.

Moving House

The Little Man was checking out the wardrobes in the new house.

We are in the process of moving in at the moment. Fun Fun Fun!

Photo of the Week - Wk23

Grass Head - watch his hair grow

We made these before Christmas, the Little Man had a great time helping me with it, and even more fun watering and watching his hair grow. An easy and fun craft project that everyone will get a laugh out of.

What you will need

- Old Stocking
- 3x elastic bands - small ones
- Cotton balls
- Grass seed - handful
- Paper cup
- Wobbly eyes
- Pipe cleaners
- Glue

What you need to do to put it all together

- Cut the stocking at about the thigh, you can cut more off later when you are finished if you need to.

- Place a handful of the grass seed in the toe of the stocking

- On top of the seed, push the cotton balls in to the stocking so it is reasonably firm, and in the shape of a head.

- Now you need to shape the face, make a nose shape and then put the elastic band around it to hold in place. Then do the same for the ears.

- Tighten the stocking at the bottom and tie into a knot, leave a bit of stocking hanging as it helps to soak the water up when watering it, but if it is too long then chop it shorter.

- Glue on his eyes ( a good craft glue is better, or his eyes will keep falling off), and his pipe cleaner mouth.

- Place in a paper cup in a sunny spot on the window.

- Water him every day and you should start to see him sprout in 7 days or sooner.

- Cut his hair how ever you like.

TIP - Wait for the glue to dry before you water him.

We had so much fun with making the first one we had to make another, the second one we put a bit of grass seed just under his nose to make a mustache, very funny.

I am glad that this is not how mustaches grow in real life, men wouldn’t be able to see where they were going.

A couple of pictures taken a week after making, after having a hair cut. They are just fun!.

Other projects that we have done -

- Paper Flowers
- Cardboard Flip Flops
- Elephant Photo Holder

You Capture - Summer (for me)

This weeks you capture is Winter, but that is a little bit difficult for me as it is Summer here in Australia,  so I am doing Summer, I hope that is ok.

What a summer it has been here, it has been really hot, so we have spent a lot of time in the pool, our pool, and Nan & Pops pool. The little Mans swimming has improved dramatically, which is fantastic, I am so proud of him.

This Little Man would NOT jump in the pool October last year, we couldn’t get him to put his head in the water, now look at him.

Then to the garden, I love the garden in Summer, we have a lovely Crepe Myrtle in the garden, I know it is summer when it starts to flower. It is just beautiful.

I love the sun on the grass in the summer, you just feel like you want to go and lie there and relax, but who really has time for that, I will just have to enjoy looking at it for a few minutes a day.

Last but not least, the blue sky, while you are lying on the grass you can look up at the wonderful blue sky, not a cloud to be seen, framed by the lovely green trees.

I am glad that Winter/Summer was the capture for this week, it made me take a good look at my surroundings and take it all in before moving away from it all.  Thanks Beth!

I will also really enjoying going to Beths at I should be folding laundry this week as I love Winter, so I am looking forward to seeing all the other peoples pictures of Winter. See you there.