Kate Hodges

By Kate Hodges

11th May 2022

Celebrate Vegetarian Week, meet other breastfeeding parents, create natural mosaics, make a seaweed whistle! Plus start a kids band and forage on the beach!

Kate Hodges

By Kate Hodges

11th May 2022

Kate Hodges

By Kate Hodges

11th May 2022

RECIPE, FORAGE, MAKE IN THE WEEDS
Sunny, but not too hot, this is an excellent time of year to start seaweed foraging.Find out more here and our recipes for seaweed and citrus cordial and seaweed and chocolate cookies here, or find a guide and great suggestions for recipes here. However, you don’t have to eat your finds. There are so many beautiful types of seaweed, from delicate red blooms to thick brown ribbons. In Victorian times, it was fashionable to collect them. You might like to make a mobile, or why not try pressing your favourites? There’s a guide here and we love this dinky art book made from a seashell. Alternatively, why not try making a whistle out of bladder wrack (you KNOW you want to try that!)?
National Vegetarian Week runs from May 16–22, and makes a great opportunity to try cutting out meat from your diet, or, if you’re already veggie, discovering some enticing new recipes, or hosting a veggie-themed event for friends, family or colleagues. If you want to join in, head online to download posters, stickers and flyers, and find delicious-tasting recipes.

EVENT AND RECIPE VEGGIE GOOD
To celebrate, we’re revisiting some of our favourite veggie blogs for inspiration - try our archive of Friday Feasts, which include ideas for first meals for babies, smoothies, snacks and dinners on a budget.

Green Kitchen Stories is great for easy-to-cook, family-friendly recipes, With Food and Love for gorgeously simple, seasonal ideas and Cookie + Kate for mouthwatering, clever dishes. Alternatively, bang-for-budget Jack Monroe’s Vegan Recipes are cheap, costed and delicious, while Jamie Oliver has a great selection of vegan recipes on his site.

EVENT, MAKE WELL GOOD
The Well Dressing season has started in Derbyshire. Most towns and villages in the county Peak District display a natural mosaic creation next to their wells and water features over spring and summer, each dedicated with a carnival or mini festival. It’s a tradition thought to have been started either by the Romans or Celts – find out more about it here. There’s a handy calendar of events across Derbyshire here, but if you’re not in the area, perhaps you could try creating your own mosaic made out of natural materials next to your pond, hosepipe or paddling pool? There are some ideas for methods here and here.

DO AND MAKE ROCK THE HOUSE

There’s nothing more fun than forming your own band, making some noise, and putting on a show. Even the tiniest rocker can bang a drum or shake a maraca. Making your own instruments is easy – there are some great basic ideas here or you can get a bit more fancy and try these more grown-up noisemakers. Tech-savvy teenagers can try these more complex and crazy ideas for stringed or electronic instruments - the banana keyboard and theremin are out of this world!

EVENT FEED AND CHAT
A survey completed by over 1,400 mums, found that 50% of those questioned believe the most helpful breastfeeding advice and support they received came from local breastfeeding support groups, and family and friends. Find out more here and join with other mothers tomorrow (Thursday 12) at Medela’s Big Breastfeeding Cafe, as parents across the UK host meetings in homes, coffee shops or halls to celebrate and talk about all things breastfeeding-related, share experiences, find new friends and support each other.

The diabolical genius of the baby advice industry “Every baffled new parent goes searching for answers in baby manuals. But what they really offer is the reassuring fantasy that life’s most difficult questions have one right answer.”

Read more here

loading