Sulphur dioxide is not/should not be in Organic Dried Fruit,it is available at Woolies and health shops,make sure you check the labels though.

Dried fruit is a great snack to pop into lunchboxes , or is it ? The awful news for me is that there is this awful ingredient that they sneak in that can cause all sorts of problems.

SULPHUR DIOXIDE E220

Can provoke gastric irritation, nausea, diarrhoea,skin rash,asthma attacks,difficult to metabolise for those with impaired kidney function. Also destroys vitamin B1,and should be avoided by anyone suffering from conjunctivitis , bronchitis, emphysems, bronchial asthma or cardiovascular disease !!!!

I will only buy the dried fruit that does not contain this ingredient, and quite honestly I will give it a miss all together if I cannot find any - fresh fruit will be the replacement.

I bought this amazing book called “Whats in this stuff” by Pat Thomas-an essential guide. I bought mine from the WELLNESS WAREHOUSE in Cape Town - a must visit for all Capetonians. You can get all your natural products there as well as a healthy lunch - check it out.They will be opening new stores in JHB soon.

My Sister in Law Pia sent this to me this morning from the Sunday Times in the UK.

Mosquitos

Vitamin B1 makes your blood bitter and stops mosquitos from biting, ( they can smell it)which could be a good malaria preventative as well

TRAVEL KIT

Ginger: stops nausea and travel sickness. The easiest way to take it is in tincture form. Take 1-2 drops directly under the tongue.
Aloe vera: Aloe Max is a gel from New Zealand that contains chlorophyll to help the skin repair itself after sun damage (£9.99 from the NutriCentre; 0800 587 2290).
Probiotics: will help prevent and treat the dreaded traveller’s tummy. If you buy capsules, make sure they have an enteric coating: this will protect the good bacteria as they pass through your acidic stomach.
Nettle tea: an excellent liver tonic, this simple brew will not only help your recovery when you’ve overindulged, but is also effective against allergies such as hay fever.
5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP): beats jet lag by boosting levels of serotonin, the mood-controlling hormone produced in the brain that is a precursor to the manufacture of melatonin, which regulates the body clock. It won’t work straightaway, so start taking it two weeks before your departure date.
Echinacea cream: accelerates wound-healing and is excellent for serious sunburn.
Arnica 3c: if you take nothing else, makes sure you pack this homeopathic remedy. It can reduce bleeding, inflammation and bruising. It is also effective against jet lag.
Citronella, eucalyptus or lavender oils: stop insects biting: dilute 10-20 drops in an egg cup of almond base oil and apply

For all those mothers that are completely exhausted on Sunday night but still have to feed everyone here is the simplest dish in the world and everyone will tuck in including the old Husband all you need is 3 ingredients and one of them is water !!

Ingredients for 4

8-10 Large Organic Eggs

2 Handfuls of Gruyere cheese

A few splashes of sparkling water

Preheat a grill on high, break all the eggs in a large bowl and whisk, add the water and whisk again. Set aside.In 2 Medium non stick frying pans over a medium flame melt some butter (enough to cover the base of the pan) pour the egg mixture into the pans, dividing the egg mixture up equally.Cook for about 5 minutes until the egg mixture is cooked at the bottom , remove from heat sprinkle the cheese on both of the frittatas and place under the hot grill until the eggs are cooked through.Serve immediately.

They said it would happen but I thought we had a wunderkind on our hands, but Jules finally crumbled on Fri night, sobbed and sobbed. She missed her special friends Lexi and Bellsy. I spent many hours playingthe psychologist as she doesn’t find it easy to express her feelings. So I do a lot of reading between the lines and guessing until suddenly it feels right for her then it all comes tumbling out….then she feels great.

But shes back at school today and once again no fuss and skipped ahead.

Hugo turned 10 today and is all of a sudden very grown up. He went to school and told the class about all the naughty things he has done over the last few years (it’s a tradition) and then left them 100’s of Chocolate Muffins to add to the general hyperactivity in the classroom.

We took a few of his friends to the farm for the weekend. They had a great time completely exhausting themselves by cycling , riding horses (The bucking broncos) we will give that a miss next time, and shooting cross bows….

We will be having a nice homemade cake for tea !!!!

We have just moved Julia to a new school mid year, and she started on Tuesday.

For the last 3 years we have felt that things were just not right with Jules. She has always been a confident bright kid , but things just started to change slowly.

In grade 1 in the mornings before school she would moan about her uniform not fitting properly or her hair would not look right, or she didn’t have the right crayons in her pencil case. It would be one thing after the other,she was also not showing any interest in all the wonderful extramurals she could do at school like ballet , music ,drama, swimming the list was endless which was strange for a kid that was great at singing , ballet and swimming.

I began to think that we really had a problem child .We started play therapy and tried to understand what the issues were, was she just a difficult kid, were we the problem, how could we change?

After 6 months of therapy and Julia resisting it every step of the way, the therapist recommended we change schools. I thought that was a bit drastic and didn’t want to even contemplate that and the school she was at was so nurturing. She had some nice friends and the other consideration was that it was so convenient around the corner from Hugo’s school . So we continued to look at Jules and wondered where we had gone wrong.

In grade 2 learning became a problem for her. She began to fall behind and this from a kid who started to read at nursery school! But, she loved her new teacher which was a big thing as she was completely terrified of her grade 1 teacher - things were not looking good.

After doing assessments and taking her to remedial and OT it became clear that a whole chunk of learning was missing . I was in shock …..this was really hard for me to comprehend - She had always been a bright kid I never thought she had learning problems.

But you know what I think it is a lot more complicated than that- I believe the environment was not right for her. The problems we were encountering every morning was a symptom , the cause was that she had lost her confidence and self esteem she was anxious and stressed and when you are in that state of mind you cannot learn anything .

I’m sorry we didn’t do it sooner. We moved her and you cannot believe this is the same child! She skips into school every morning , she hasn’t complained about her hair or uniform. It’s early days but the signs are good….every kid is different and I have learnt that it is really important to match your child to the right school - they all require different things and to learn they need to feel supported

Maybe some mothers would call me irresponsible when I tell you what happened to Jules on Sunday.

But the reason this happened, and in my defence, I think it’s really important that kids get outside and get dirty, build a mud pie, climb a tree, dig a hole, plant some herbs whatever it takes really. Kids today are often found behind TV or computer screens, which in my opinion sends them off into cyber space, and I would rather send them of into the garden which is great for grounding kids, brings them down to earth gets them to let off some steam.

We have a dusty plot of land in the bush. Nothing fancy - making it a great environment for me to get grounded (because parents need it too!).  Anyway on Sunday Jules, who loves cycling,  chose the smallest bike to ride around the farm on, the one she had when she was about 4 yrs old. It doesnt have brakes and is really not suitable for cycling on sandy stoney roads but you know how it is with kids - they want their own way.

So, off we went together. Rupert and I were walking and she was cycling and off she went down a dusty steep road. She really got into the swing of things picked up speed and was amazingly brave. Then she hit a large stone,  skidded,  wasn’t able to stop in time and tumbled all the way down the hill on her face….she looked like she had been in a war zone.

I felt really negligent as I had encouraged her to head off and that we would catch her up. But, she was really ok about the fall and in fact,  I think she was quite proud of herself.

She didn’t brake any bones - but she had hurt herself  and bruised her knee which are really just normal bumps and bruises.

Anyway, I got to thinking that falling off  your bike is actually a good thing for children and that despite it being hard as a mother, we mustn’t be overprotective parents all the time as kids learn so much from these experiences.

27th August

The big question then is are we doing the great trek to London ????

I will keep you posted

25th August

We are on our way home I feel quite sad that it has come to an end really , although at times I have felt quite anxious I do feel well rested and have slept really well even when I was in a tent or in the back of my car !

We ended up blasting through Maputo and went straight on to JHB , ending our holiday with a very harrowing 12 hr drive, we arrived completely exhausted and should have stayed in Maputo to rest up C’est la vie.

Our route 

21st August

View from Cassita

It seemed like every building we passed on our way through Mozambique was painted yellow and had been sponsored by MCell , someone had done a really good job…

What strikes me most about Mozambique is the sophistication of the country even the smallest little cafe served expresso,chicken pregos, smoothies, the kids felt more relaxed as the abundance was obvious to them.

We checked into Barra lodge (20 mins from Inhambane) got a great cassitta looking onto the beach and the sea it was what we all needed , the lodge is very basic and low key nothing luxurious here but good value for money.We met a great couple and the kids made some friends feeling relaxed

I would like to travel to Mozambique again and explore the country a little more , get up to Bazaruto and onto a dow.

If you are in Inhambane area , you should look for the place they manufacture Organic Coconut Oil for, its a great ingredient for cooking .I believe the manufacturing plant belongs to Millbrook a SA company and the product is available in SA.  

“Off the beaten track, journeying into the hinterland from Inhambane in Mozambique, you’ll find a small factory set in the coconut groves, where Millbrook produces its coconut oil. Here, the local people deliver their freshly picked coconuts to the factory by oxcart. They are then opened, grated and pressed on the same day. In buying certified Organic Millbrook Virgin Coconut Oil, you are not only just getting a premium product, but also supporting the livelihoods of communal growers and their environment.”
Janine Ford (3rd September 2007)