Bake it for Babies - Changing the World One Cupcake at a Time

It's amazing what a few bloggers can do in a short space of time.

We were inspired by a Save the Children blogging conference. We had thrown around fundraising ideas and in addition to the Blog it for Babies campaign and tour, some bloggers decided to create a cook book. Jenny created a Save the Children cupcake based on the peanut paste that is given to malnourished children by Save the Children.

A few of us submitted recipes and ta da, the result is the beautifully illustrated Bake it for Babies Cook Book. I'm delighted to have a recipe published. I made these cakes, from my recipe, for the boys' birthday, for the children to take home from the party at our local farm centre.

The best indictment of how wonderful this book is, is that when I lent it to my mum she didn't realise that I was showing her because I had a recipe published (her noisy grandchildren had just arrived). When she returned the book a week later she said she'd copied down four of the recipes to try.

It would make a lovely xmas present....

Bake it for Babies is available from Lulu. All proceeds to Save the Children.

Bake it for Babies - Changing the World One Cupcake at a Time

What is #blogitforbabies?

Blog it for babies is to raise awareness and funds for Save the Children's Build it for Babies campaign.

Annie from Mammasaurus is travelling around the country this week attending blog events. Today she was in St Albans, just down the motorway from me.

Helen  from Actually Mummy organised a free marquee at the Noke Thistle Hotel in Chiswell Green. Local businesses made donations to set up stalls. Jenny from Bake Yummy and Cheetahs in my Shoes created the official #blogitforbabies cupcake. Peanut and chocolate. Seriously delicious. There was also a bring and buy cake sale and a raffle. I got to meet some lovely people and catch up with a few old friends. We raised hundreds of pounds towards building a clinic in Bangladesh.

My highlight was taking part in the hour long Rock Choir session run by Abigail Smith. We learnt to sing, in three part harmony, 'Aint No Mountain High Enough' with actions. I LOVED IT.

Here's me, hiding unsuccessfully behind Annie, singing 'stop' with appropriate hand gestures.

And this is me chatting to Abigail afterwards.

I've since signed up for a taster session with the Milton Keynes Rock Choir. Exciting.

I had to leave before Annie was transformed into Justin Bieber. Can't wait to see the photographs from that makeover.

For details of how to make a donation please visit the Just Giving page.



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What is #blogitforbabies?

100 Words to Save the Children

The NHS in the UK is free at the point of need. Think about any time your child has seen a health worker. Perhaps it was a midwife or doctor at their birth. Maybe a health visitor checking their weight and offering advice when you were a worried new mum. They may have had their immunisations. Possibly they had something more serious and needed to go to hospital. Now imagine you live in East Africa and have no access to a health worker. None. No one at your birth, no one to to help you with your newborn, no one to immunise your baby against fatal diseases, no one. Imagine your child is ill and there is no one to help them. Heartbreaking.

These are my 100ish words.

I wasn't able to attend the Save the Children blogging conference yesterday, but I attended the last one in February. It was an inspirational day. I can see from my Twitter stream and Google Reader that this one was just as powerful.

I have been tagged by Ruth at Geekmummy to take some action, to echo the rallying cry. I have heard first hand from Chris Mosler about her experiences in Mozambique. She is currently in New York telling her story, making a difference.

What can we do? Make some noise for the Save the Children Health Workers campaign, write 100 words and sign the petition.

I am going to ask a few other bloggers to join in...
Not Supermum
Babyrambles
Being a Mummy
Me, the Man & the Baby
And one more...
The 5 F's
Sticky Fingers
Flower Fairies and Fairy Cakes

If you haven't been tagged, but would like to join in, please join in. Let me know and I'll tag you too.




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100 Words to Save the Children

Save the Children - No Child is Born to Die #passiton

My friend, the fabulous @ChristineMosler from Thinly Spread, flies to Mozambique today with Save the Children. She is travelling with @tchee (who I know from Twitter) and @liliesarelike. Chris will be vlogging daily at In The Powder Room.

They are following the progress of a live vaccine from its source to its recipient, a child being raised in poverty.

I was lucky enough to attend a blogging conference at the Save the Children headquarters earlier this year. I heard first hand of the work they do and how they help children in the UK and around the world. We discussed blogger activism and tried to answer the big question, what can I do?

The answer is, simply, something.

You can sign this petition.

Rosie and Josie both tagged me in the world changing meme. If you would like to join in you can check out their wonderful blogs. Tag, you're it.

If we all blog about this campaign and talk about it on Twitter, using the hashtag #passiton, we will create a buzz. We will raise awareness of the issues facing those who are in need. Eight million children die from preventable diseases every year. Please join the campaign.

#passiton




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Save the Children - No Child is Born to Die #passiton

Bubblegum

The crocuses bloom year after year. They keep coming back, pushing their way through the dead leaves. You can't keep us down they say. 

You can't keep me down for long either, but at the moment my emotions are being stretched to breaking point. I'm tired and I feel like there's always something going on that's keeping me from smiling.

Remember Anglo Bubbly bubblegum? It tasted pink. It was hard to begin with but as you worked it with your aching jaw it relaxed. You could blow large airy bubbles. As you blew gently the bubble would become bigger and the gum thinner. The bubble would teeter on the brink of bursting. You would hold your hands out ready to catch it, you didn't want it in your hair. A tiny final puff of air would make the gum see-through, then it would tear apart into wisps - fine pink wisps.

Each time Presley cries and asks me to take away his horrendous chicken pox blisters I can feel the fine threads that are holding my emotions in check stretch into fragile wisps. 

Each time I speak to my Mum in Christchurch or watch the news about the aftermath of the earthquake more emotions fill my bubblegum head.

Each time I try to speak about the inspirational Born To Write event at Save the Children I have to stop, just to keep the gum from tearing. I will write about this amazing day. First I need time to suck a little air out of the bubble, just enough so I can lower my hands.

Bubblegum

Bloggers For Pakistan and Blogladesh

I haven't had a great week.

My husband, Andy, wrote a song recently called 'Middle Class Blues'. This tongue-in-cheek ditty includes the lines:
It's far too hot
In our conservatory
Which cuts its usage
Considerably

Andy probably could have drawn inspiration for another few verses from the events of this week:

We both had upset stomachs from eating dodgy king prawns, we wasted Andy's day off by sitting around - close to the loo.

We're changing estate agents. The outgoing shower infuriated me so much I had steam coming out of my ears.  I called them and asked for the email address of their Managing Director so that I could make a complaint. They said they didn't understand the question.

Presley had the mother of all tantrums because Daddy had to go back to work. He didn't want to spend the day with Mummy.

Due to the aforementioned tantrum we turned up at a teddy bears picnic with no picnic and had to go home.

I had a nightmare and fell out of bed. My hip now aches a bit.

I punched myself in the face when I was tightening the straps on Presley's car seat.

I became one of those mothers who shouts at her children in the supermarket as they play with the food in our over-loaded trolley.

I ordered some shoes from the Debenhams sale. They're hideous, I have to go to the trouble of sending them back.

I complained that my inbox is overflowing with approaches from PRs and I can't keep up with them all. I haven't replied to some emails from 6 weeks ago. The blogger I complained to has only ever received two emails from PRs. Yes, I know how crass this makes me sound.

I finished reading 'Her Fearful Symmetry' by Audrey Niffenegger and was a little confused and disappointed by the ending.

I also complained to my friend, who has cancer, that I had a bad experience at the dentist. I whined about the filling that hurt a little. Then I remembered that she has cancer, is in the middle of chemo and I apologised, but she said not to worry, it's all relative.

It is. It's all relative.

I haven't got anything to complain about really, but it doesn't stop little things getting me down. Then I feel guilty, but I know I can't solve the problems of the world on my own. How do we deal with greed, the imbalance of wealth, hunger, poverty, disease, war?

There is no magic wand.

I can do something though, it's better than doing nothing and waiting for someone else to take some action.

So tonight instead of spending £20 on a takeaway I'm making a donation to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC). They're coordinating aid for those affected by the devastating floods in Pakistan.

If you're on Twitter you can follow the hashtag #BloggersForPakistan to see what else is going on.

For example, Nick at My Daddy Cooks is auctioning himself on Ebay. Seriously, check it out!

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I'm also following with interest Josie, Eva and Sian as they prepare to go to Bangladesh with Save the Children

If you're on Twitter you can follow the hashtag #blogladesh

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I'm now going back to my middle class life and have to clean gloopy glue off the dining table.



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Bloggers For Pakistan and Blogladesh