Christmas Chow Mein

They taste better than they look in this photo

Yes, I was planning to publish (and to be honest- just write) this post before Christmas. 

But you no what- it's okay. You know why? I'll tell you.

I decided to make these noodles cause I was envious of all those noodles/noodle soup recipes that you see for using up turkey leftovers. Wasn't envious of the bits of turkey floating in them at all- but the rest of the dish? NOODLES!!! (Yeah- I'm going though a noodle phase again/still). 

So I decided to make my own definitely veggie noodle dish. Christmas Chow Mein anyone? 

And you know why I deem it to be still acceptable to publish (and yeah, write) this? Cause I know people who are still eating turkey leftovers. Like, almost a week after the event! So, if they're still eating turkey- I can post me veggie Christmas noodle recipe- and this one doesn't use up leftovers from ages ago. 

I tried to stick with the Christmassy theme. I added an easy peeler/satsuma/clementine/mandarin orange cause it's Christmassy, and juicy, and a nice change of texture, and they are so intense when they're warmed up slightly! 

And the turkey noodle dishes all seem to include a sliced red chili. Now, I don't want that much heat in my noodles (baby when it comes to heat over here), and to be honest, the thought of chopping up a fresh chili TERRIFIES me. (which I think is perfectly acceptable- they're scary). So I added a chopped mini red sweet/bell pepper instead. One from this bag. See- having only three red peppers in that bag was a massive major problem! 

I went with ginger (cause I love ginger and it's a warming flavor) and you can go on all you like, but I get my ginger from a squeezy tube. Or a jar, depending which shop we're in at the time. On that note, Sainsbury's does lemongrass in a squeezy tube now. So expect some lemongrass recipes coming up. Lemongrass miso soup anyone? And I know that the freshly grated stuff is better, but a) I'm the only one who uses it and so it usually ends up shrivelled up and blugh looking, and b) it's just easier and c) I can't be bothered washing up the greater if I don't have to. 

One day, people, I will graduate to grating my own ginger. Till that day, hello squeezy toothpaste like tube!

And the five spice paste. I would have, to be honest, used five spice 'powder', but we had five spice paste and not 'powder'. Use whatever you have- but you may need to adjust the quantities accordingly. But don't leave it out completely, it adds a level of flavor, and it's warming and what you need at Christmas. 

So while people are still (STILL) eating Christmas leftovers, if you have no leftovers to eat, make Christmas Chow Mein. Or just eat it any time and think of another name for it. I place the power of naming it in your hands!

Christmas Chow Mein

Serves 1

Ingredients

• 1, sliced, spring onion. Include a bit of the green but not all of it. (unless you really want to)
• 1 handful (about 7) mange tout/snow peas/sugar snaps. Trimmed if they need trimming.
• 1 mini red (sweet) pepper. De seeded and sliced to make mini pepper rings
• 1 small orange citrus fruit (of choice), peeled and as much of the white stuff removed as possible. 
• 1 serving of cooked noodles. Whichever noodles are your favorite or whichever noodles you have closest to hand. I used straight to wok fine wheat noodles. 
• 1/2 T grated ginger. Or sqeezy minced ginger
• Scant 1 T soya sauce. Enough to make the noodles go a darker color but not to much that it's overly salty
• 1/2 t five spice paste/'powder', or to taste
• Tiny bit of oil, if needed (mine didn't)

Method

• Wash and prepare the vegetables, keeping them separate. 

• Add the noodles and flavourings to the pan, along with the spring onion. Add a bit of oil if necessary. 

• Cook the noodles until the flavourings are cooked - about 3 minutes. Stir to coat the noodles. 
• Add the rest of the vegetables, and stir to coat. Keep cooking till everything is heated through, but there is no need to 'cook' the vegetables, about one minute.

Do You Believe In Santa Clause?

I believe in Santa Clause.

I believe in a man who gives a present to every child.

I believe in a man who's always jolly and smiling.

I believe in a man who works hard to put a smile on faces across the world.

I believe in a man who isn't afraid to go out, no matter how bad the weather is, cause he's got a job to do.

I believe in a man who travels the world, and appreciates it's beauty. 

A man who uses Christmas cheer to pull his slay, not fossil fuels. 

A man who's factory doesn't produce toxic waste (the elves use magic, not chemicals).

I believe in a man who doesn't make profits, and who just isn't bothered by it. 

I believe in a man who if he did, would use them to do good. 

And not just because if was a good publicity stunt.

I believe in a man who's kind to his animals. 

Who makes sure that they're well fed. 

Who makes sure that they're warm.

Who makes sure that they're safe. 

Who makes sure that they're happy. 

I know- it's a very radical concept. 

I believe in a man who's happily married. 

I believe in a couple who talk out their differences, instead of shouting. 

I believe in a couple who share the housework evenly. 

I believe in a wife who supports her husband on his most stressful day at work each year. 

I believe in a husband who says thank you the next day.

I believe in a couple who don't abuse each other.

I believe in a man who treats his workers fairly. 

I believe in a man who stands up for children's rights.

I believe in a man who knows all his charges names. 

And can spell them right. 

I believe in a man who doesn't take his bad days out on other people. 

I believe in a man who listens to what people are saying to him.
A man who's always there for you when you need him.
Who doesn't need you to tell him.
Who can be relied upon year after year.

I believe in a man who eats way to many Christmas pies.

I believe in a man who will brave the cold to see his friends.

I believe in a man who doesn't mind getting dirty going down chimneys.

I believe in a man who doesn't lie.

I believe in a man who doesn't discriminate.
A man who visits black and white.
Who visits the Far East and Latin America.
Who doesn't care if you are a millionaire or can't afford a sack of potatoes.
Who doesn't care if you get straight A's or scrape F's.
Who doesn't care if you live in a mansion or a shelter.
Who doesn't care what religion you follow.

I believe in a man who chairs a democracy.

I believe in a man who gives everyone a fair trial.

I believe in a man who doesn't force anyone to do anything, so say anything, to believe anything.

I believe in a man who fights against slavery.

I believe in a man who's never bore arms.

I believe in a man who dresses in what makes him feel good, not what society wants him to.

I believe in a man who is a much better singer than me.

I believe in a man who understands everyone.

I believe in a man who helps to bring families together.

I believe in a man who symbolises generosity.

I believe in a man who gives what he can.

I believe in a man who stands up for what he believes in.

I believe in Santa Claus.

Even when I know he isn't real, I believe. Because it's better than having no hope.
Because for one day a year, I can pretend that every things okay.

Gingerbread Oatmeal

Cake and me don't mix. I don't like it. I used to like it- (I mean- who doesn't like cake?) (Except me). But that is no longer. I just don't like cake. It's a sad a sorry truth. 

That doesn't mean that I don't like gingerbread. But because I don't like cake- gingerbread cake is out. Gingerbread biscuits just don't have the correct richness. Gingerbread latte? Would be great- except that me and coffee aren't that great buds either at the moment. Sad, I know. I've tried gingerbread hot chocolate (apparently Dad gets some weird looks asking for Gingerbread soy hot chocolate in a mug not a glass please)- but the chocolate means it's not as gingerbready as I want it to be.

So lets think outside the box here people. 

Are you thinking? 

Cause you don't have to. I've already done the thinking for you. 

Gingerbread oatmeal. Rich gingerbread flavors, no cake. 

Solves every body's problems. Unless you are my friend who doesn't like oatmeal. Then it just creates more problems.

Gingerbread Oatmeal

Serves 1

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup oats. (Mine were labelled as porridge oats)
• 1 cup liquid. I used a whole cup of almond milk. You can use any combination of any type of milk and water you like.
• 1/2 t. ground ginger
• Scant 1/4 t. of mixed spice (pumpkin pie spice/apple pie spice)
• 3 dried dates. (or three medjool dates if you have any to spare)
• Treacle (molasses). I didn't measure this. Just add as much as you like. But it's sticky and a nightmare to get of deep measuring spoons, so just go for it. You know your own tastes. You want a rich taste though, so don't scimp on it too much. It's in there for the taste as well as the sweet.
• 1/4 cup pecan nuts

Method

• Measure out the oats and liquid into a small pan (unless your multiplying this recipe up to serve more people- which this recipe will easily do) - the smallest pan you own should be the right size (unless you've got one of those 3 inch decorative pans) (also- if I'm not taking pictures and making it look nice- I'd use the 1/2 cup for the oats, then use it twice for the liquid)

• Add the spices 

• Chop up the dates into small dice, then add to the pan

• Make a mess with the treacle and then add it to the pan. Okay- the making a mess with it is optional.

• Put the pan onto a lowish heat and cook, stirring regularly as you do so. Just cook it until it looks to be very slightly less than the consistency that you want it to be. Cause it will thicken as it stands and becomes an eatable temperature (unless you can eat boiling hot oatmeal). (And if you're going to spend ages trying to photograph it- make sure it's quite a bit runnier than you want it). 

• While it's cooking (though don't leave it too long or it will stick) cut up all but a few of the pecan nuts. 

• At some point- you may want to tidy up this-

• Mix the chopped pecan nuts into the oatmeal, transfer to a bowl, and garnish with the remaining whole (half) pecan nuts. And then it will look and taste fabulous! (Hopefully)

The One Where I Sat With Friends (Plural)

Which could also be called- at last! The end is in sight! 

Or, wow- it is really easy to get distracted on Casabento. 

Or any number of other titles. But it's not. It's called "The One Where I Sat with Friends", cause hey, guess what? I sat with friends. And note friendS. The 's' on there is very important. Because there was more than one of them. I know, I mean, MORE THAN ONE. I mean, it's not like I am a complete and utter social recluse or anything- it's just that I started in a different year, and you no... It felt like I was starting college again in a completely new school. Except I already knew my way around. And that I knew there would be a queue of teachers waiting for the photocopier in the Math study area. You know those American high school dramas? My life has been like that - but without the supernatural aspects. (Well...)

So, back to the main subject, which is that I SAT WITH FRIENDS TO EAT THIS LUNCH. Or was it that it is a Christmas bento and that I'm tired and that I need to post this before I go to bed?

Can't remember.

This is a satsuma orange (or was it an easy peeler) (or a mandarin) (or a clementine) (or are you really bothered?), some dates (cause we didn't have any suitable veggies), a stuffin' muffin (although it took a while get Dad to make it in the muffin cups), some Quorn slices curled up (in a desperate attempt to make it a tiny little bit cute) and a FROZEN YOGURT TUBE. You can't see it properly, but it's there. And it has Elsa on it. And yes, I only bought them cause they have Frozen characters on it. Cause I am just that awesome. (How about we play lets pretend for a bit right now?). And look, there's a little snowman flag and a snowman cupcake wrapper turned inside out so it looks more colourful!

3. RECORDING Your getting the idea, loose a star and move on.

6. PACKAGING We'll stay neutral- it only has one individually packaged item. And if I'd just put a spoon of  yogurt in there it would have made a mess. And it wouldn't of had Elsa on the front.

7. CUTENESS It's kinda cute. I used a lot of colourful, Christmas themed accessories. And an Elsa yogurt. I'll add a star.

8. PLANNING I made sure that we had the Quorn in. And I convinced Dad to make the stuffing in the muffin pan so it looked slightly better than this attempt. And I ate this bento two days on the row because we had all the stuff in so, ya know. 

9. EATING I ate it with friends people. Another star for me. 

That makes 2 stars. Any suggestions on colours people? 

And friends who I ate lunch with- you're fab :) 

Do You Want To Eat a Snowman?

I really need to get some food safe markers- cause I don't like the taste of writing icing. 

This bento contains 2 half size Quorn pepperoni and cucumber snowman sandwiches (I am so loving the pepperoni and cucumber combination), a bit of extra cucumber, a cut up cheese string, a cut up apple pie Nakd  bar and some mint humbugs to fill the gaps. 

So...

2. LEFTOVERS As usual- I lose a point here. I might have done something constructive with the leftovers- but to be honest- I just don't remember what I did with them. Which probably meant that I ate them with my breakfast. 

3. RECORDING Loose another star and move on

4. BALANCE Because I have a feeling I'm going to need every star I can get on this one- so I'm going to reward myself a star for balance. It has everything there- so it's justified. You might not be able to see it all- but it's there. 

5. BOXABILITY It all fits in- and I made sure that I filled all the gaps. With humbugs if necessary (bah humbug.... it's seasonal!) So- another star (wohoo- I am officially on no stars!) 

6. PACKAGING Way too much packaging. The Nakd bar, the cheese string, and the humbugs all came individually wrapped. :( Loose another star. 

7. CUTENESS It contains snowmen. Hell-o. Gain another star. (kinda- therefore I am on a grand total of no stars.)

So- I hate finishing no where. I HAVE TO GET BETTER

Only one more Christmas bento left to go!

Winter Wonderland

You know, to be honest, the name has not much to do with bento itself- but more to do with the event I ate this Bento at. The Rainbow's Frozen Winter Wonderland event. Oh boy, that was fun. However, many leader's have since complained that they can't get the song Let It Go out their heads. Really- I don't know what they're complaining about!

Okay- I knew 7 posts in one day was way too ambitious. So- I'm going to try and get all the bento posts finished off today. And the Christmas Chow Mein thrown in there if I can.

So- fingers crossed- yeah?

And I couldn't start early. I was meeting a friend. And it is official- I have received my first Christmas present!!!!!

Thanks dear friend!

So- to business.

Isn't it pretty? I'm proud of this one. I'm good. I'm amazing. I'm awesome! :P 

Felafel's, a Nakd Christmas Pudding bar (cause they're sooo good), some snow peas made into Christmas trees, a mini Babybel (do they actually even do non mini versions?), some mini tomatoes, and a cereal bar decorated to look like a snowman. Sorta. Kinda. Maybe. Use your imagination, 'kay?

I am soooo proud of this one. Hopefully- it will get a few stars. Cause the last one got none. :( 

so...

1. TIME If it wasn't for the fact that I spent about 10 minutes trying to work out if it was possible to make the snowman, and more, well.... snowman-y. So- without the dithering, it would have taken about 5 minutes. With the dithering- about quarter of an hour. While I ate my breakfast. So I could have done it in five minutes. But I didn't. So I propose I stay were I am. 

2. LEFTOVERS I ate them. With my porridge. 

3. RECORDING Loose a star and MOVE ON

5. BOXABILITY I (finally) gain a star here. Its all in one box- about the right size for bento. There isn't any left over space so things couldn't rattle around. So- happy face. 

6. PACKAGING Lose that star. The Babybel, the Nakd Bar and the cereal bar all came individually wrapped. This one can be hard at times. :( 

7. CUTENESS Can I get two stars for cuteness? No? Oh well. I will just award myself one then. But look at it- it so deserves more! There are several 'cute' aspects in this lunch. Okay- I've seen cuter bento's - but this one is one of my best so far!

8. PLANNING I used the snow peas that I also used for the chow mien. I also used some of the tomatoes that I got for... bentos in general. I used the rest of the felafel's that I used in another bento. I bought the Babybel so that I could use them for bentos. So, all in all, mostly things that I had bought for bentos. Or things that I had used up from other dishes. So- planning right? And I planned to make the snowman a few days before. And I planned to make the Santa Babybel after I saw it here at cute food for kids. So- one more star. 

So that ends on one star. It was a pretty good bento. Except that someone thought my Santa Claus belly was actually a pirate belly. Maybe I'll do a pirate bento one day then. 

The One with the Pepper Hats

For those keeping a tally- this is no. 4. 

However, I strongly suspect the only one keeping a tally is me. 

Is there a record for the most posts in one day? 

Now, do you ever ask your Dad for a bag of the mixed color mini peppers that you saw in the fruit and veggie shop only to look at the bag and think: wow that is very monochrome. 

Then look at your bento the next day, and think: wow that is very monochrome.

I need to remember the food/color laws. 

And you know, the monochrome pepper bag wouldn't be half bad- except that I wanted the red ones for Christmas. If they had a bag of just red ones- I'd of got that! But no- I'm stuck with a load of yellowy-orangy ones. And no, I didn't just hide all the red ones. That is an accurate representation. 

>blasting the Christmas songs up<

It's some felafel's (great veggie lunchbox filler- must get round to making my own one day) some M & S Christmas pudding bread cut into Christmas trees (and boy, is that stuff hard to cut into shapes), some (rare) red pepper and mini Babybel cheese Santa Claus hats, and some cherry tomatoes to fill in the gaps. And add a bit of color. 

So how did it do?

Well...

1. TIME It would have taken about a quarter of the time if the bread hadn't been so hard to cut up. 

2. LEFTOVERS After spending so much time trying to cut that bread into shapes (and the one underneath doesn't look nearly as good) - I was in no mood to do something creative with the leftovers. So, I'll loose a star here. 

3. RECORDING Sensing a theme here? Loose a star and move on. 

5. BOXABILITY I thing everything fitted in quite nicely. And it stood up to the ultimate test- it still looked like that at lunchtime. So we'll go all the way up to minus one. (Yes, that was sarcastic) 

8. PLANNING I made sure that I had everything I needed. That counts as planning. So we'll finish this bento on no stars. (Aw, sad face :( ) 

See you in a bit. Is it just me who is really tired right now? 

Veggie Hotdog's Don't Curl

Veggie hot dogs don't curl. Apparently. However- it may be that the lack of curling incurred was actually due to the fact that I cooked then cut- whereas now I realise that it is supposed to be cut then cook. I learnt this while I got very distracted on the site Casabento. I mean, come on! Bento supplies galore! And I get very easily distracted by Bento stuff. I mean ITS SO CUTE!!!!!!! However, I got distracted from bento-ing by bento-ing. Not so good. 

Also, when will blogger/my laptop ever recognise that bento is a word? Hi spell check, I appreciate that you're right, like, 100% of the rest of the time, but sometimes I'm right too! Like now...

SO, this isn't actually a bento. I mean, it ain't in a box. Big barrier in the way of counting as a bento- so... 

This is what I based my reindeer on this one from Cute Food for Kids. 

And here is what mine looked like:

Not quite as spectacular as the real deal, however, not bad. I confess myself that I thought it would end up a lot worse. Although Dad said he thought the antlers looked more like donkey ears, than, well, antlers. 

Although I used the idea, I executed it differently. To make it into more of a complete meal, I put a layer of very basic guacamole into the bottom of the bowl. Then, instead of using fried rice, I used cous cous (which spell check keeps trying to change to cows cows)- which for me is easier and quicker. And cheap. I just added a bit of stock powder for flavor- but we're talking a tiny bit here! I used a Quorn hot dog instead of a turkey one (obviously), two black olives for eyes and a big spoon of  salsa for the nose- I thought I'd continue with the Mexican-y theme. So actually, not one single aspect is exactly the same. But I did use the idea. 

And here's what it looked like while I was eating it! A but of a mess, but yummy. 

And to be honest, there's no reason why, if you had a circular box, you couldn't have it cold for lunch! 

So, shall we mark it? (No, no, let's not!) (You know, I can't wait till I've finished my challenge and don't have to mark it) (I'm trying to remember when I stopped adding that link to every bento post. I thought I'd add it for a bit of fun!) 

1. TIME It takes as long as it does to cook your hot dog and then a minute. So for a Quorn dog 10 minutes. Not bad for a warm lunch. And it was easy too. Lots of components but every component is relatively easy. One star (red for Christmas I think)

3. RECORDING Loose that star and move on. I've been revising!

4. BALANCE. To be honest, not enough fruit/veggies. And no calcium. But you can (and I did) add a  yogurt/some milk and a piece of fruit/some veggies. So we'll stay on no stars for the time being. 

5. BOXABILITY It isn't in a box. That kinda actually means that it isn't kinda actually a bento. But, if I didn't want something warm and I had a suitable container, I could of had it as a cold bento. We'll lose a star, but only one for it not being in a box. 

6. PACKAGING Nothing here, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING was individually packaged. I am doing a little happy dance at the thought. You should join in. Gain a star. (If you're counting, that means I have none.)

7. CUTENESS. Hello (Kitty) Its cute. What more can I say? So I'm on one star now!

8. PLANNING I'll stay neutral again here. It wasn't actually my idea- I didn't plan such cuteness- but I did make sure we had hot dogs in ahead of time, and I used up the avocado. So- neutral. 

9. EATING I ate it all up like a big girl. 

So we'll end on two stars. 

Happy Holidays. 

Alliteration. Better than Merry Christmas. 

The One Where I Used a Shop Bought Sandwich

Okay, so way longer that half an hour, cause I learnt more danish than I planned, had lunch and then watched some anime. As ya do. 

So ya know. 

So ya know. 

On the subject of so ya know, ya know when you see a new sandwich in M & S and you really want to try it but it's Wednesday and it is best before Thursday and it's not like ya go to M & S everyday and ya know...

Ya know?

So, here is a sandwich which I have tried very unsuccessfully to turn into a bento. 

Lets just take away like, 2 stars and move on. How bout that? And you can wonder why I ever bothered to post this and I can get on with the next five. Cause it really doesn't deserve to be labelled a bento. It isn't. 

P.S. And for those of you who are wondering- The sandwich is quite good. A little to mayonnaise-y for me tho. 

Practice Christmas

The Christmas holidays have started. I have enough homework so that if I stacked it up- it would probably be about a foot. Which is fine. Except that I am not exaggerating. Trouble is- I also have a whole load of blog posts to do. 

I will count, one moment.

Okay, so I have:

• 7 Christmas Bento's
• 2 Christmas Oatmeal's
• A Christmas Chow Mein
• A 'In Other, Less Interesting News' 

to do. 

Before we get onto new years, and ignoring the fall bento and the tea shop review and a few more bentos and a polenta recipe and ...

Yeah- like I said. I need to get going. And as I stood there in my pyjamas faced with like, 20 blog posts to get done- my Mom said better to have them all done BEFORE Christmas even if they're not brilliant than to have them all done perfectly in February. 

Today's challenge: get all the bento's done. That means that by midnight today- I should have 7 more posts than I did by midnight yesterday. In all seriousness, I may not survive. So they are not going to be perfect. It may just be picture, description, marking. But hey, nobodies perfect. And I have Christmas songs to keep me company. Every things okay. 

So, without further ado, cause we really don't have time for any, here's my practise Christmas bento:

A Christmas Pud Nakd bar (they are SO GOOD- one of my favorite flavours), a mini Babybel, some mini corn, some stuffing and some Quorn roast chicken style pieces. 

You wanna know why the mini corn is in there? Cause I had this bento around Halloween. But I had stuffing, I had the chicken, I had the Nakd bar cause they'd just come out and Dad suggested that I try  one before Christmas so I wasn't disappointed at Christmas if I didn't like them. He used the same logic to get a packet of mince pies. Because never, in his fifty something years, had he had a mince pie. (I'm holding up a sarcastic sine, for those of you who hadn't already guessed). 

And I mean, I had all that. I might as well just go with the flow, chuck it all together, and add a Rudolph nose Babybel. And some mini corn. AND SOME PANDA BEAR BENTO PICKS CAUSE I HAD JUST GOT SOME AND OH MY HOW CUTE!!!! *so kawaii*. 

My friends grandchild had a brilliant idea a few years back. He decided that they needed to have a practise Christmas. Cause last year was a long time ago. They might have forgotten how to do it. Practise presents, practise Christmas dinner, practise crackers with stupid hats, practise the works. He is going to grow up to be a Boy Scout I'm sure. (cause he was definitely prepared once Christmas came around!). 

I don't need to have a fully blown practise Christmas, I know what I'm doing, but if he can have a practise Christmas, I can have a Christmas Bento. Cause that's just how it goes. We're going with the flow guys. 

And hey, when I had this Bento, I WAS ACTUALLY SITTING EATING MY LUNCH WITH SOMEONE. FOR THE FIRST TIME THAT YEAR (don't say it, I know it's sad.) It was also the first time I didn't eat my lunch in the math's study area. Little victories, people, little victories. 

So... Now to assess (cause I've got like, 6 more to go after this.)

1. TIME This one didn't take long. Like, 2 minutes maybe. While I was making breakfast. But it really isn't much as far as bento cuteness go's, so we'll keep it at neutral. (A bit like the gear- have I told you that I'm learning to drive yet?) (But I'm in an automatic, you know, without the gears)

2. LEFTOVERS There were no leftovers produced from this bento. But you know what? Because I used up leftovers, (the stuffing and the mini corn) I will give myself a star here. Cause either way, I still reduced food waste. 

3. RECORDING Well loose a star and move on

5. BOXABILITY Everything fits in nicely. I'm proud of it. I mean, everything I wanted in there fits in, and there isn't any spare space for stuff to rattle around in and get all messed up. That would be :( But as it is, it's :) . So I'll give myself a star. 

7. CUTENESS Okay, so the lunch itself isn't that cute, but the picks? Instant cuteness!!!! But the lunch... we'll stay neutral. 

8. PLANNING I did not plan this one at all. It was more of a case of 'lets go with the flow'. So let's loose one star. 

9. EATING I ate most of it, but more importantly, I ate it with somebody, a friend. So hey, lets totally get a star for that. Well done Ana. 

So that is. Lets see. That's one star. Now, I'm gonna learn a bit of Danish (cause why not) then I'm going to move onto the next one (cause why not). 

See ya in, like, half an hour. 

How to Decorate a Hospital

Basically, THIS is how you decorate a hospital...

(Me, Mom and Dad did everything apart from the Christmas tree)

The pictures are from last year, (I am, thank fully, at home this year) from ROH in Brimingham. I'm kind of in a Christmassy mood, and I found this half finished post from last year, and thought I'd post it today, it being Advent Sunday an all. (And yes, I did have two advent calendars, one my parents bought me, and one the hospital gave me)

Mini Paper Chains

Hey, here's another post I wrote last year for you. No, I have absolutely no idea why it didn't get posted last year. 

 

I sat at home one afternoon and made this paper chain. (The red and white one below.)

Ah yes I do, I was waiting for someone to take a picture of the paper chain, but no one would. Just imagine it. 

It was very easy to do, they came in pre-cut strips, and you slotted the end with a tab into the end with a slit. (It took me about 30 minutes). When my brother came home, he very kindly pointed out that the paper chain (which was actually more of a card chain, and so even heavier) was too big to fit on our tree. 

I don't know why he said it, we'd never put our paper chains on our tree before. 

Just in case you couldn't tell from that picture, here is a photo of the tree, adding a bit of scale for you. 

Our tree this year is tiny. It's a real live Christmas tree, but it's tiny. It means that I don't trip over anything, and it also solves the problem of who's going to put up the tree this year as I can't, but it's too tiny to put presents under, which I must admit is my main worry. But apparently my brother's main worry is that the paper chain is too big. And so I decided to make him a mini paper chain. (It took me about 2 hours)

Mini Paper Chains

 I must say, it is pretty easy, if a bit fiddly. 

What You Need

2 Colors of Paper (you don't need a lot)

Glue Stick

Scissors

How to Do It

1. Cut strips out the colored paper. They were too small a strip for me to be bothered using a ruler, but feel free. Mine were about 1/8" by 1". So small. (Yes, you'll need more than 6)

2. Glue the first ring. Then, loop the second strip through the ring, and glue the second ring. Keep on going. 

3. And going

4. And going until you have the desired length of chain. It is really that simple. 

5. Use your paper chain to decorate whatever you want. We decorated our tree, but this chain would be perfectly at home decorating a dolls house. Or adding a 3D effect to a Christmas card. 

How my Dad Makes a Bento

This, people, is how my Dad makes a bento. Let's ignore the fact that I don't like mint clubs. 

It's not bad all things considered (we'll also ignore the fact that the apple crisps are not in the box.) I mean, I have a strong feeling that he was poking fun at me and my bento-ing, but ho hey. He cut my sandwiches into shapes. He was a bit annoyed when I text him to double check what he'd put on my sandwich, but he actually cut my sandwich into shapes!

And I can't complain. On the day I asked him to please make me a packed lunch, he did. With only a lot of complaining :P

Now shall we get onto some Halloween bentos that I made?

Yes, lets.

Actually, to be honest, this bento isn't much better than the one Dad gave me! I cut a tortilla into pumpkin shapes and then stacked them on top of each other, then there's Quorn cocktail sausages, dried apricots (with a jack o lantern face), an Alpro chocolate soy pudding (renamed 'Dirt Pudding') and some baby corn (who needs candy corn when you have the veggie equivalent?) It was meant to look a lot better than it actually ended up looking!

So, how did it stack up (you know, I feel like I haven't done this in ages!)

1. TIME I made this while eating my breakfast. An effective use of time that would otherwise just be used to, well... Eat breakfast! One star. 

2. LEFTOVERS From the tortilla pumpkins. Well, "The best laid plan of mice and men" and all that. Basically what I am trying to say is that I just lost that star. 

7. CUTENESS  The dried apricot has a face on it, and the tortillas are cut into shapes. I will give myself that star back, thank you very much!

8. PLANNING I made sure that we had (not candy) corn in, and I did a lot of work trying to find that cutter. (Preston seem to be having a pumpkin shaped cookie cutter shortage- I got it in Hobbycraft eventually but it isn't listed on their website!) So.... that totally counts as a star, cause I knew I wanted a pumpkin shaped cookie cutter, and I found one. 

So that ends on 2 stars for me. (Happy dance) 

And yeah... 3 bentos in one post- aren't you lucky!

So, this one is still using cocktail sausages, but that's it as far as cross over between the two boxes go! There is a mini open top sandwich (okay, it's just a piece of bread spread with cream cheese and cut into a pumpkin shape), "beetles" on a log (i.e. olives on cream cheese) and an orange that has been attacked by aSharpie, cause you know, it's Halloween and all! And then got cut in half cause it was too big to fit into my box otherwise. 

1. TIME Again, I did this box whilst I was eating breakfast. I mean, I really should be making these bentos before I go to sleep at night, but as for using my time wisely, this is currently working for me. Sometimes. But this box took about five minutes, which on the scale of things, really isn't that bad. So a green star to me! (Green seems a Halloween-y colour!)

2. LEFTOVERS Lets move on

5. BOXABILITY My Dad took one look at my lunch in the morning and declared that it would just end up a royal mess by lunchtime. He was wrong, of course! Because everything fitted so awesomely into my box, nothing moved around and so everything was precisely where I wanted it! Told you so Dad. 

7. CUTENESS I have beetles on a log (mark one) jack o lantern faces on an orange (mark two) and a jack o lantern face made out of veggie cocktail sausages on a cut out of a pumpkin. Well call it our ghostly pumpkin. And decide that oh yeah, we are so getting a star!

8. PLANNING Like the last one, I made very sure that I had everything that I wanted in so that I could make my bento in the morning (in five minutes). Good planning = a good number of stars. 

And that gives me a result of 4 stars! 

I definitely come out treat this Halloween, hope you do too! 

Nice Nails # 11: The Spooktacular Version!

Hi guys, 

I am still here, honest. I'm just doing a good impression of someone who's comatosed. Well, I'm a teenager- what do you expect? (Although my brother has an uncanny ability to start practicing his guitar the moment I put my head on the pillow. Seriously, uncanny.) And on top of being uber tired, I have a shed full (okay, but it's a considerable pile) of college work, a lot of typing and finding the write documents and just generally getting organised with my Leadership Qualification for GGUK. Then, when I have spare time, I'm trying to get the hang of balancing writing books and writing blog posts. I'm getting better at it, but we're not there yet. 

However, I'm learning better how to handle my new laptop so this is improving. 

And I've set reminders and deadlines for blogposts and chapters of my stories. 

And I spent WAY too long on the John Lewis site making a collage of the clothes that one of my characters wears. Though she is currently in a First Holy Communion dress (if in doubt, just don't ask!)

Seriously, I so want to ask Izy from Top with Cinnamon how she balanced A levels and blogging! (But she's too amazing brilliant for me to bother her with such silliness!)

But here are (Okay, so they are last years) Halloween nails (I was ill, and I didn't think that you'd want to see Halloween nails in December!)

(Although maybe you do, tell me)

I used Barry M's Gelly High Shine Nail Paint in Mango.  Cause, you know, gotta get a bit of Halloween colour in there somewhere!

The bat stickers came in a nails kit I got several years ago. It seemed to be a bit of a waste using all the bats in one go, but it's Halloween. Let's go with a bang people!

Plus, they seem a bit out of place with my normal style for the rest of year.

And my toes were glittery and black. 

So... Happy Halloween!