Author Archive
Sweetcheeks Cakes and Cookies.
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Do you remember your birthdays as a child?
Mum whipped out her trusty ‘Woman’s Weekly Birthday Cake’ book, and you were absolutely mesmerised by that pink butterfly or cricket ground cake she made just for you, on your special day.
Well, birthday cakes are still a huge part and cause of putting smiles on faces and sparkles in those little eyes; however now the smile is a little bigger and that sparkle a little brighter – and the possibilities even greater.
My sister Renee and I make up the Sydney and Melbourne branches (respectively) of Sweetcheeks Cookies and Cakes.
We create custom cakes, cupcakes and cookies for all occasions, birthdays, weddings, engagements, showers, gifts, and much more. But I’d have to say our most common orders are for children’s birthday cakes; which is lucky, as this is our favourite reason for creating our famous sweet stuff!
The themes and design ideas truly are endless. We get a lot of requests for Pirates, Princess Castles, Cars, Tinkerbell, and Elmo is another very popular request. But it doesn’t end there.
The great part with children’s novelty cakes is that you can get as creative and unique as you like. Some of our cakes are designed to tie in with the invitation and theme of the party; for others we’re asked to create a replica of the child’s favourite stuffed toy. We create cakes that include our hand crafter sugar figurines, such as Elmo or farm and jungle animals; then there are also those cakes that are hand sculpted into the shape of your chosen character. No matter what design we create, our most popular flavours – amongst both out new and our returning customers – are our light, fluffy, moist vanilla cake followed very closely by our egg/nut/dairy free chocolate cake; which now means that all children, even those with allergies, can have their cake and eat it too!
We’re seeing a huge trend evolving at the moment with dessert tables, where the cake takes pride of place as always, but is now surrounded by plates and trays of cupcakes, cookies, jars of lollies, marshmallows as well as bottles of drink. A lot of our customers ask for our package deals which include decorated cupcakes and novelty cookies to coordinate with the custom cake that we create for their child.
All of this takes me back to the days of those pink butterfly and cricket ground cakes – and that feeling we all had as children on our special day. Friends, family, fun and games – and then the cake came out and took pride of place on the table and pride of place in the day. The difference now is that the creative possibilities are endless and the ability to personalise the day, even greater.
Guest post by Danielle Emeny of Sweetcheeks Cakes and Cookies.
By Tegan Benfell, Co-Author of Additive Free Kids Parties
Yesterday I told you about the ingredients in prepackaged foods and what they can do to your children’s health. Every child wants a fun birthday party full of all the foods they love so here are a few tips on how they can have their fun and no one will suffer for it.
A few hints and tips:
1: Instead of purchasing pre-popped or microwave popcorn, you can avoid a few very nasty additives by simply purchasing the popping popcorn and popping it the day before the party. Even the “natural flavoured” microwave popcorns tend to have nastys in them, so are best to just be avoided all together. Save yourself some money and pop it yourself. To add some flavour to it you can sprinkle over some icing sugar or some salt and butter, but most children will eat it plain too.
2: Frankfurt sausages and most shop bought sausages are little chemical cocktails. The Frankfurt sausages are known to contain a combination of the worst kind of artificial colours and preservatives, these chemicals have been linked with causing asthma, learning difficulties, behavioural issues and much more. “normal Sausages” are also commonly found to contain more fillers than meat, as well as artificial colour, preservatives and MSG. My advice when purchasing sausages in to find your local wholesaler and purchase gluten free and organic, this can be a little more expensive, but if you buy in bulk you will save lots of money and they are much healthier.
2: At every single party I create, I always make sure there is either a fruit platter or some fruit skewers. These are so bright, colourful and healthy and are always the first thing to be eaten off the table.
3: Fairy bread can either be a relatively safe food, or one of the most toxic items on the table, depending on which ingredients you purchase for it. Your fairy bread will be perfectly safe as long as you buy preservative free bread, butter NOT MARGARINE and instead of buying the brands of sprinkles which are coloured with coal tar dyes that are derived from petrol, choose the brands of sprinkles that are coloured with natural ingredients, from food. Or simply grate some organic chocolate over the top. Yummy!!
4: Instead of purchasing cordials and soft drinks which are generally coloured with coal tar dyes and have artificial preservatives added, why not purchase preservative free fruit juice and natural mineral water? You can create your own fizzy drinks by simply pouring two drinks into a jug. I also always serve water at my parties, children can get dehydrated very easily while running around at parties so they should be encouraged to drink as much water as possible.
5: When purchasing lollies it is very easy to source the natural options, most supermarkets now sell the natural coloured and flavoured options, many shops even sell organic lollies and chocolate too and they are very affordable.
6: If you are buying corn chips, there is no doubt that the better tasting ones are the ones coated in MSG, but you need to remember that MSG and all other forms of MSG are like a magical powder, they are colourless, odourless and flavourless. They are simply a chemical that has been created in a lab to make your taste buds believe that what you are eating is yummy. Food manufacturers choose to use MSG instead of real flavour because it is cheaper and highly addictive. You will notice that if your children eat a lot of products with MSG in them, they will start to refuse to eat “blander” foods, as their taste buds are no longer being satisfied with the chemical they are used to. When purchasing corn chips, I always choose the plain ones, or the certified organic brands, they are a little blander but they are safe and they are what real corn chips taste like.
7: For over 150 fun, colourful and yummy additive free recipes, including hints on where to purchase foods, you can purchase a copy of Additive Free Kids Parties. Head to www.healthyshelf.com.au or www.naturalnewborn.com.au.
I wish you many, many fun, loving and joyous parties to come!
By Tegan Benfell, Co-Author of Additive Free Kids Parties
Preparing for the special big day:
During the planning and preparation of your parties for your little ones, it can be so easy to let most of the focus go into sorting the decorations, games, gifts, invitations and all of the other gorgeous themed items that will make the party look amazing and set the atmosphere for the big day. This can sometimes mean that the food is then left til just a few days before the party, leaving that dreaded, rushed run to the shops, where you are hoping you can get all of the items you need without having to visit too many shops or shell out too much money, because lets be honest, there are so many gorgeous decorations and gifts that we would rather be spending our birthday budget on.
When choosing the prepackaged foods and the recipes to make for your little ones party’s, do you often go for the cheapest and quickest? Or are you a label reader? Does the brightest option appeal to you, or will the more natural seeming option always win over anything else?
Keeping the kids happy:
When discussing additive free foods and healthy options it can be easy to fall into the trap of thinking that since birthday parties and special occasions don’t happen very often, we should be “lenient” or “let the kids off” for just one day and not worry about what they are consuming. Thanks to all of the clever marketing and misleading labelling it can be very easy to even feel that we are being “mean” or depriving our children of fun if we don’t purchase the more colourful or more popular brands. After seeing so many children becoming aggressive, violent, whiny, irrational, upset and having melt downs at parties, I am convinced that letting them eat a concoction of chemicals for the duration of a party is perhaps not the nicest thing a parent can do.
Unfortunately in Australia food manufacturers are permitted to put toxic chemicals into our foods, many of these substances are banned in other countries all around the world, yet are still permitted in Australia. It has been scientifically proven on a number of occasions that many of these toxic additives are known to cause symptoms such as head banging, tantrums, asthma, eczema, insomnia, migraines, behavioural issues, learning difficulties and many other awful side effects, even cancer! The scariest thing about all of this is that those toxic chemicals have never ever been tested in combination with each other, meaning there is absolutely no way of knowing what may happen inside our children’s bodies when they eat more than one of these chemicals at a time.
How many additives would be found in the foods at your party?
While compiling some information for the release of my recently co-authored book, Additive Free Kids Parties” my co-author and I did some research on just how many chemicals would be found at the average healthy seeming children’s birthday party and we were totally shocked! In just one sitting, at just one party, children are consuming over 65 chemicals that are either suspected or known to cause unwanted side effects, and what’s even scarier, over ½ of those are known to be so bad that they are not permitted in many other countries and are known to cause serious health problems. Keep in mind; this was a “healthy party” many children are easily eating over 200 toxic chemicals at birthday parties, 3 or 4 times a term.
As parents, we don’t want our children to have to miss out, or to have boring parties because we are committed to healthy living and I totally agree 100% with that, just because we want our children to eat healthy and avoid consuming toxic chemicals, doesn’t mean that they should have to miss out ever! And it also shouldn’t ever mean that they have to eat food which tastes bland or looks boring.
So what can we do to make our party’s less toxic, but still fun?
My goal of this article is to show you some quick and easy hints that will help you lower the amounts of additives consumed at birthday parties, leaving the guests far better behaved and in much better moods, and making a much easier party for you to deal with on the day. Check back here tomorrow and I will give you a list of clever and fun alternatives for you. Let’s make your life easier!
(You can purchase a copy of Additive Free Kids Parties. Head to www.healthyshelf.com.au or www.naturalnewborn.com.au.)
Personalised Books as Gifts
Posted by: | CommentsThis week I am happy to welcome Chris from JellyBean Books as our guest blogger.
My daughter Julia is nearly four. She loves books, but especially personalised 
books. She loves being the main character in a story with fairy tale characters that she knows, as well as new characters that instantly form a place in a young imagination.
Julia has quite a few personalised books which we read together. These are her special books. She received “Santa” for her first Christmas, “Teddy Bear Land” for her first Easter, and “God Loves Me” for her baptism. She also received “Little Mermaid” from her first birthday, “Beauty and the Beast” for her second birthday, and “Batman” for her third birthday. Each book commemorates a milestone in her life (and perhaps says something about her developing personality!)
Now that she can read her own name and is starting to read other words, it has become a great game to read a personalised book together.
To further personalise Julia’s books I have pasted a photograph of her taken at each of the milestones in the front of each book. Hopefully these books will be treasured for years to come.
Julia tells me that she wants “When I Grow Up” for her next book. As she has already decided that she wants to be a builder, a poet, a magician and a princess when she grows up, I think that this book will be perfect for her fourth birthday!
Book Themed Parties.
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Books are where imaginations begin and a book-themed party is an easy and fun way to create a birthday memory that will last a lifetime.
Tips for a Book Themed Party:
1. Choosing a Book Theme: Pick a book that allows for simple to make costume options for parents. Princesses, the circus, super heroes and animals are always popular choices.
2. Invitations and Decorations: If you’re not the crafty type don’t worry! Our collection of goodies makes it easy to put together complete sets of pre-made party invitations and decorations.
3. Games: It’s easy to put a twist on traditional birthday party games to incorporate your book theme. Here’s a few ideas based on some of our books:
- The Chocolate Game: This classic game is one where even the grown ups will want to join in! To tie in with your book theme choose a related costume e.g. a cape and mask for a Super Hero party
- Musical Chairs: Rather than just walk around the chairs have the children act as the character they are dressed as e.g. ballerinas would twirl
- Reading the Story: Practice reading the story before hand to pick up key areas where you can interact with your young audience. Let the birthday boy or girl have a seat at the front next to you. After all with a personalised book, especially on their birthday, it’s all about them.
- ‘Hunt for the Cake’ will see the children following clues to find the birthday cake. Try to incorporate the theme in your clues e.g. “The circus master has hidden the cake!”
4. Food and Cake: You don’t need to exhaust yourself with making sure every piece of food is themed. Arranging fruit on a platter or icing plain biscuits into a character shape are quick and easy ways of bringing the theme to the table. Then just add in the Birthday cake and your child’s favourite party foods.
Let’s Have a Sleepover Party
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For most 10 to 17 year olds slumber parties hold some of the best childhood memories. And for most parents the thought of hosting one has them reaching for the nearest glass of Merlot. We’ve put together our top 10 tips to ease the fears and make sure your child and their guests have a night to treasure for a lifetime.
1. For first time sleep overs talk to the other parents, before you send the invitations, and let them know exactly what the night will entail. Addressing any concerns before hand may prevent one of the guests not being able to attend. This may mean agreeing not to watch certain movies or to listen to certain types of music.
2. Make sure you have a list of parent’s phone numbers and ask about any allergies the child may have.
3. Include ‘your favourite stuffed toy’ on the list of things to bring so no one will feel silly bringing their special comforter.
4. Have your child play host and show their friends where everything in the house is.
5. Build the atmosphere of a ‘sleepover party’ by having guests arrive in their pyjamas.
6. Make sure an even number of guests are invited so no one has to feel like the ‘third wheel’.
7. Avoid midnight hyper activity by serving sugary snacks earlier in the evening and savoury ones closer to bedtime. Similarly plan games for earlier on and use a movie to settle them down.
8. Give an appearance of privacy but make your presence known by restocking food and asking guests if they are having fun. This lets them develop their independence while feeling safe knowing you are nearby.
9. Bed time should be at least an hour before you actually want them to go to sleep. Half the fun of a sleep over is giggling under the sleeping bags and being told at least once to ‘go to sleep’ and then giggling some more.
10. Around 10am is the perfect time for pick up. This will give them time to have breakfast before they go but enough time at home to settle back into their routine.
.What are your top tips for a fun sleepover?
Halloween Party Food Ideas
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Would you like to try some boo-tiful Halloween treats? Witch ghoulish recipes do you like the best?
If you are having Halloween party (and let’s admit it, dressing up and going all out does sound like a lot of fun!) set the scene with some yummy and fun foods with a scary twist! Whether for kids or adults, these ideas will suit all ages and your guests will think they are truly gruesome goodies.
- Toffee Apples – Apples are a traditional Halloween food, and the old-fashioned game of bobbing for apples is still popular now. Buy or make bright red toffee apples for an eye-catching terrifying treat.
- Halloween Spider Cupcakes – make cupcakes and allow to cool. Cover with black icing and use liquorice straps to make the legs then add green smarties for eyes.
- Bat wings – simply oven bake or BBQ chicken wings marinated in soy or other sauce.
- Eyeballs – a healthy treat, but they look truly scary! Get a dried apple ring (a bit wrinkly gives a good effect), a piece of dried apricot and a sultana or dried cranberry in the middle.
- Marshmallow Ghosts and Monsters – stick some marshmallows on some lollypop sticks and freeze for 15 minutes. Dip them in white melted chocolate (white for ghosts or mummies, add green colouring for Frankenstein and orange for jack-o-lanterns), then stick them in a Styrofoam block to set. As they are hardening, use black decorating gel to draw on some spooky faces.
- Halloween themed biscuits – use a basic biscuit recipe, but use Halloween–inspired cookie cutters, such as bats or ghosts, witches hats etc.
Use your imagination and you can re-create any of your favourite party foods into monstrous munchies
Halloween – where did it come from?
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It is estimated Americans spend around $6.9billion each year on Halloween, making it the country’s 2nd biggest commercial holiday. An astounding one quarter of all candy sold in the US each year is purchased for Halloween!
When we think of Halloween we think of costumes, parties, Jack O Lanterns, ‘candy’ and trick or treating – but the origins of Halloween are much less ‘fun’ than what we celebrate in modern times.
Halloween is one of the world’s oldest holidays, dating back 2000 years to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in) which was celebrated on October 31st. On this night it was thought the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred, and ghosts would return to the earth causing trouble and damaging crops. During this celebration the Celts built huge bonfires and wore costumes to attempt to scare the evil sprits away.
By the 800s, after the Celts were conquered, Christianity began to spread and the Pope designated November 1st All Saint’s Day, or All-hallows. The night before, called All Hallows Eve, eventually became known as Halloween.
Halloween came to America in the 1800s with the European and Irish immigrants. Throughout the years Halloween has changed meaning and become quite distorted from its original celebrations. In the late 1800s there was a move to change Halloween into a holiday focused on community and neighbourhood celebration rather than ghosts and evil sprits. Halloween further evolved in the late 1920s into a secular, community centred holiday, with parades, parties and trick or treating. These days it is celebrated with elaborate costumes and house decorations.
Thanks to the influence of American culture (especially TV) we seeing customs such as Halloween celebrated here in Australia. However, we have a long way to go to reach the popularity it has in US, but it is still a fun celebration and another excuse to eat “candy”. (Just make sure you leave some for those random trick or treaters that might come knocking on your door!)
Picnic Parties
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Having a picnic party outdoors can be a refreshing change from the traditional indoors party. Kids love being outdoors and having space to run around and have fun together. And it’s good for you too, no messy footprints, hand prints or spilled drinks.
You can hold the picnic party at a park, reserve, playground or even in your backyard. But remember, you will need to have a back-up plan in case of bad weather.
Set up beside a large tree for shade, or claim some covered picnic tables. You won’t need many decorations, as the outdoors is your decoration! Keep it simple: some gingham tablecloths, picnic blankets and perhaps a few balloons.
Here are a few ideas on the picnic party theme:
- Teddy bears picnic – a great little party idea for younger kids or toddlers (make sure you ask your guests to bring their favourite teddy bear along!)
- Tea party picnic – have a cute little plastic or enamel tea set so all the guests can sit around and drink “tea” (cordial or juice), eat cupcakes and other party food.
- “Outdoor critters” theme party such as ladybugs, ants or other bugs.
- Kite picnic party – fly kites and play “musical kites”.
- Playground party – this is probably the easiest party to host for kids, the playground equipment will keep them entertained and you will only need a couple of party games.
For your picnic party, you can have games like good old pass the parcel, bring a Frisbee to throw, or sack races. A fantastic game for an outdoor picnic is a piñata – here is a great video on how to make one.
If you are going to be outdoors, remember the kids will need hats – and you will also need to pack things like water, garbage bags, sunscreen and insect spray to protect you from those real outdoor critters!
