No more knock, knock, who's there!

This is a S3 post: I received a complimentary Ring doorbell.

#C2 for full details please see my disclosure policy

It's no secret that I live in a bit of a dodgy area. It's more likely to be mentioned in the news for a stabbing than for the accomplishments of its schools. But as high as it is on the crime-o-meter (that's a thing, right?), I still love my lil house and this street. It just means we take a few extra security measures.

The latest we've adopted is the Ring video doorbell which I had been eyeing off in the catalogues for a while. I thought it would be pretty good, which is why I said yes to a review, but it has actually been even better than predicted, and in unexpected ways!

What does it do?

Well, it's a doorbell that has a camera and microphone inbuilt. When someone presses the button you get the usual ding-dong of a standard bell, but you also get an alert immediately via the app on your Android or Apple phone - open it and voila, you can see and hear who is at your door, and they can hear you, but can't see you (or your pyjamas).

You can also set it up to record whenever it senses movement so it becomes a security camera even when noone presses the bell. Super handy when you're going away and want to keep an eye on your property or, if you do happen to be broken in to, you might actually catch the bugger on video! Alternatively you might just get cool vision of a child patting a dog and go viral. Whatever works for you. It's quite sensitive so I'll reserve the motion sensor function for when we're on holidays.

A great bonus is that you can have it professionally wired to your house, but you don't have to., The internal battery lasts for months and the app actually lets you know how much battery life is left. If you have it turning on all the time with the security sensor, then you might want to think about putting it on the mains, but as a standard video door bell, it hasn't used much of the juice at all. Ours is still running on battery and won't need to be charged for another month or so yet.

So that's all great, and it does what it says it will do, using secure wifi. The kids think it is the bee's knees, I think it's fabulous, and the cop who came to my door the other day because my neighbour had a break in thought it was a great additional step to security, too. But it doesn't stop there...

Unexpected perks

1. Because you can see who it is before you press the answer button, you can choose to not answer. Pretend you're not home if it is someone trying to force their religion down your throat, sell you encyclopedias, or even a family member, up to you. You'll never have to close the door on Aunt Beryl again, because you never have to open it in the first place. Aunt Beryl aside, this is also fabulous for those of us with anxiety who are flooded with a sense of dread whenever the bell rings, not knowing who it is. When you see it's a friend with a box of chocolates, you know to let them in.

2. As the app works wherever you have coverage, I answered the door when I was in Kmart the other day and ACCEPTED A PARCEL! Oh lordy, is there anything worse than finding you've been carded two minutes before you got home? I was able to tell the delivery dude that I couldn't come to the door, but he could leave the parcel. I may have looked like a tool in Kmart, but that's OK, I'm used to that. I could have been on the other side of the door with an infectious illness for all he knew, but no, I was looking at storage solutions.

3, Again, because it is app based and you don't have to be on the other side of the door to use it, I was able to let a friend know I was only a few minutes away when she got to my house before me. I'd popped to the shops for milk thinking I could get back before our visitors arrived, but she was early. Rather than her standing around waiting and repeatedly knocking or having to phone me, straight away she knew I was five minutes away.

Only once did the video get a bit laggy, making the image pixelated (see above) and the audio was crackly, but on further investigation it appeared to be because we were maxing out the wifi with streaming and downloading at the same time. But even with it coming through at a lower quality, I could still see who it was and hear everything that was said.

However, there is one thing I'd like to change if I could. The time it takes for the app to load when the doorbell is pressed. It seems really slooooow. I feel some people might walk away before I've even had the chance to see who it is. The app is 'asleep' to save battery power, and if someone was in a hurry or a courier was ready to card, I reckon you'd end up seeing them getting back in to their van rather than waiting at your door by the time it was up and going.

Overall, I'm quite happy with the Ring. The camera gives a sharp picture, even at night with no external light source (see below), the audio is clear, and the app is very easy to navigate and control. You do have to purchase a subscription to view saved videos (including missed rings), but at $4 per month, that's less than a cup of English Breakfast at the local cafe, so that's OK by me.

The Ring video doorbell is available from stores such as Bunnings, Harvey Norman, and JB Hi-Fi.

Strawberry and Rhubarb Pie in the Cuisine Companion

This is a S3 post - I received a Cuisine Companion for review purposes

For full details please see my disclosure policy

The Cuisine Companion bloggers were challenged to bake on the theme of Spring this month, which is perfect because a) it's spring here, and b) I'm all for seasonal eating, so Strawberry and Rhubarb Pie it is!

There's a few reasons I like to eat with the seasons:

• It's better quality (i.e. more delish)
• It's cheaper (and I'm all about saving money)
• I'm supporting local businesses
• There is a lower carbon footprint getting it to my door

I'm not against buying produce from overseas or out of state if needed (hello, Valencia oranges in Winter), but I do prefer my fruit and veg to have less frequent flier points than me.

I got a whole stack of beautiful fresh, local ingredients delivered to my door for the challenge, and as soon as I saw rhubarb I couldn't go past a pie. Plus we'd just been strawberry picking in Gnangara, and the two are a match made in taste bud heaven.

My family are rather obsessed with rhubarb, and we were even hoping to plant some to harvest in a few years because we go through so much of it.

Strawberry and Rhubarb Pie

Base
240g plain flour
120g soft butter (you can use Nuttelex to create a vegan base)
70ml water
pinch salt

Filling
A bunch of rhubarb, chopped
500g of strawberries, chopped
1 teaspoon of gelatin (you can use agar agar to make a vegan filling)
Optional: 1 tablespoon of sugar/honey/sweetener of your choice (or more if you like - my lot like it really tart!)

Place all the base ingredients in to the Cuisine Companion with the kneading/crushing blade, press pastry program and start. Yep, that's it. When it's finished, ball up the dough in cling film and leave it to firm in the fridge for 15 minutes, clean the bowl, but don't panic about being super thorough.

Chop your rhubarb and strawberries in to 1-2cm pieces and whack them in the bowl with the stirring blade. Set on speed 4, 100C, for 8 minutes. Your kitchen will start smelling amazeballs.

While that's happening, grab your dough out of the fridge and divide it. If you'd like a fully topped pie then use half the mixture, or if you'd like a lattice style pie with a bit of the ol' peekaboo happening, take out 3/4. This will become your base.

Roll out your pastry portion on a floured surface until it's big enough to cover a lightly floured 24cm/9.5inch pie dish. Gently lift the pastry on to the dish and push in to the edges, trimming any overflow. You can put the excess back with the rest of the pastry if you need to, but the more your work the pastry, the less forgiving it becomes.

Blind bake the base using baking paper and ceramic stones or uncooked rice in your oven for 15 minutes at 190C. When done, remove the stones and put aside until it is cooled slightly. If the Great British Bake Off taught me one thing, it's that blind baking helps minimise the chances of a "soggy bottom". Nobody likes a soggy bottom!

When your Cuisine Companion beeps, add your sweetener and the gelatin, set on speed 4, 100C for a further 4 minutes. When finished, pour the mix on to your base.

Roll out your remaining pastry on a floured surface and shape or cut how you'd like it. If you are covering the entire pie make sure to leave a steam hole somewhere or your pie will explode in the oven. It's not pretty. Trying to keep with the spring theme, and also because I'm a bit of a wanker, I used a flower cutter and arranged the blossoms around the edges and worked my way in.

Place in the oven for 20-30 minutes at 190C or until golden.

Allow to cool slightly before serving because the pie filling will be like molten lava at first. Serve with a dollop of vanilla bean icecream and enjoy!

Don't get the Book Week blues

This is a C1 post

For full details please see my disclosure policy

I freakin' LOVE Book Week.

Because my love of all things literature, (particularly children's books and reading with kids), and my love of costumes can triumphantly combine to ensure adorable children get dressed up and get excited about reading. BOOYAH!!!

Seriously, it's my favourite time of the school year.

The peeps at Costume Box sent some costumes for Tricks and Bobbin to play in, and because we're well in to our costumes and have a few already, they made sure to send me some that weren't just for this week, but forever. Because costumes are not just for Book Week. You have to love them, and take care of them, and clean up after them, and oops, I've gone off on a tangent.

Tricks is lovin' his Batman costume. It lights up, so he is well chuffed. He went in to MapGuy's work for a few hours the other day and insisted on wearing it. "Mum, do you think people will think I'm the real Batman?". Yeah, dude, you've got the Christian Bale voice going on, they'll all think you're him.

A video posted by glow (@glowless) on Aug 17, 2015 at 2:16am PDT

It's a smidge too big for him right now because he's at the beginning of that size range, but it means he will get a good two years out of it and for now I just roll up the legs. It's all built in muscles or "boobies" as he'll tell you, utility belt, and a freakin' sweet mask cape combo with ears that actually stay up! Because there is nothing worse than Batman with sad, droopy ears.

Bobbin was sent a monster costume, and it could not be more appropriate. Because she's cute, and growly, and has fangs. Or something like that. She adores it and keeps picking up a little monster puppet we have and saying it's her baby. TOTES ADORBS! It makes me think of Boo from Monster's Inc and she keeps saying "Raaaar" at everyone when she wears it.

168 photos and these two of Bobbin were the best. Kid doesn't stop moving.

If the idea of dressing your kids up fills you with dread, check out the Costume Box blog for Book Week costume ideas (it's quite gendered, but you can ignore that - I do) or head straight to the store and get a cool costume with free express delivery for orders over $75 (or $5.99 for orders under $75) - yes, even to WA!! I couldn't believe it when I got my order the next business day, I'm used to waiting 7-10 days even for "rush" mail.

What are your kids dressing up as? I'm gonna dress up at school pick up time :) 

Choc chip cookie dough protein balls

This is a S3 post - I received a Cuisine Companion for review purposes

For full details please see my disclosure policy

I've been playing with some recipes for protein balls lately. Bliss Balls. Amaze Balls. Whatever you want to call them, it's just fun to be able to say balls a lot, right? Balls.

Most of my recipe creations invovle me throwing random seeds and nuts in, whizzing it up and hoping for the best. This has resulted in me having some very sad balls. Over processed balls. Powdery balls. Even cardboard tasting balls. When you're including these in your diet to replace delicious Mars bars then cardboard balls just ain't gonna cut it.

I've been working on this one for a while now. I could have googled someone else's recipe but I really wanted to see if I could translate what was in my head (and what my taste buds were calling out for) in to a recipe. I think I've done it. Because these Amaze Balls really are amazeballs.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almonds
• 1/3 cup cashews (I use roasted unsalted)
• 16 dried dates
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
• 1 tablespoon protein powder (vanilla flavour preferably)
• 1/3 cup choc chips

Method:

•  Soak your dates in the boiling water for a few minutes
• While they're soaking, place almonds, cashews, vanilla and protein in the Cuisine Companion and blitz on speed 12 for 10 seconds. If you're using a different food processor, you want it to be small chunks after this stage
• When your dates are a bit soft, add them to the bowl and blitz again on speed 12 for 10 seconds. Don't discard the water just yet
• If the mix is not coming together, add a few teaspoons of the date water to help it combine
• When it's at your desired consistency (don't over process, it will be like nut butter and won't form) take a teaspoon of the mixture out, add two or three choc chips to it and roll it in to a small ball. It's easier if your hands are slightly damp but not wet
• Repeat until you've done it all, I usually get about 25 from this recipe
• Refrigerate until set, try not to eat them all at once!

These are a great little hit of sweetness to help with cravings and they're not terrible for you. You can use cacao nibs or sugar free choc chips if you'd like to make them healthier, and if you're using fresh dates, start with half the amount and add more if necessary.

Enjoy your balls!

A his and hers review of the XC60 R-Design

This is a S3 post. I drove the Volvo for a week.

For full details please see my disclosure policy

Driving a car for the specific purpose of reviewing it made it glaringly obvious that MG and I look for very different features in a vehicle. I'm all about the dashboard and ease of use, while he is all about handling, and whatever it is that is under the hood. Engine thingies?

We took this role very seriously so we could present a his and hers review. And oh look, I am such a blatant stereotype it makes me sick. Also, MG writes like he's about to start working for an auto mag, and I'm all conversation and swearing. Dude makes me look bad.

HIS REVIEW - Map Guy takes the XC60 for a country drive

Volvo is a European marque with a history of making premium cars for over 80 years. The XC60 is the company’s second foray into the SUV market and a 2014 update means this car is dripping with the latest in automotive technologies.

Volvo conjures visions of comfort, safety and practicality and more recently - speed. The model I tested was the XC60 D5 R-Design; which means Volvo finished a perfectly good D5 Luxury model and handed it over to the mad racing scientists at Polestar.

What they do with this car is find an extra 11kW of power and 30Nm of torque over the standard D5 and knock the 0-100km/h time down to 8.1 seconds. The twin turbo 2.4L 5 cylinder diesel isn’t silky smooth like others in the luxury SUV class and it’s raspy note is something Polestar have done a great job of enhancing with an excellent dual exhaust set up. While not winning ¼ mile drags, the roll-on acceleration is certainly addictive and many times I found myself having to rein in a speedy right boot.

Don’t get thinking the extra tuning made this diesel thirsty either, its 70L tank is more than capable of returning over 800km and we averaged 7.8L/100km on a hilly highway drive.

I’ve never heard a Volvo owner complain after a long drive and I can attest that the R-Design seats are the most comfortable I’ve tested in a car. The leather is of a high quality and the dash and interior fit and finish are up with the best. The back seats offer a unique Volvo feature with two-stage temporary booster cushions and a centre armrest that contains cup holders and a fold out storage area. This proved invaluable on a country drive with Tricky arranging his lunch box and colouring materials in the middle for easy access.

When you need to get work done the XC60’s rear bench folds completely flat making it ideal for hauling large items. Made even easier with a high opening button activated tailgate. It’s no slouch with a trailer either; 2000kg tow rating making it an ideal family solution. The full height taillights are a handy feature in the car park with a light button on the key fob illuminating these and the day-time running lights to help me find my way back with a full trolley.

The XC60 R-Design tops the XC60 range and as such features many of Volvo’s state of the art active and passive safety technology. City safety technology prevents the car colliding in low-speed traffic, two rear parking cameras made it so easy to reverse park and bi-xenon headlights use GPS and steering inputs to turn up to 15° to help see around the next bend. Combining this with state-of-the-art ABS, Traction Control and optional extras like lane departure warning and blind-spot information systems you will make no mistake, this is a 5 star safety rated car.

Unfortunately not all R-Design extras impressed. Like the flappy paddles – well placed and beautiful they don’t work particularly well with a diesel engine and I found myself instead using ‘S+’ with the gear leaver rather than manually working through the 6 gears. The tachometer is entirely digital which means you can change the display to suit your tastes; I’d have liked to see more than the 3 options and was amused by an “Eco” mode that showed a speedo reaching 260km/h!

Infotainment systems have quickly become a make or break item for new car buyers. The XC60 R-Design comes equipped standard with a 5 inch LCD screen and is controlled by a dial in the central binnacle. Reaching over to adjust settings became an occasional frustration as this was one of 4 dials arranged around no less than 31 buttons! The voice and steering wheel controls however are very handy options (have a car reading you a shorthand text message is hilarious).

All in all the Volvo XC60 R-Design impressed all who came near it. Stunning looks (it really is handsome with the optional 20 inch wheels), a quick and economical diesel engine and some of the most comfortable surroundings a travelling family could ask for. I would have liked the entertainment system to join the Android Auto or Apple CarPlay revolution, probably a victim of timing rather than any other constraints during the latest update.

This is the type of model a small family should shop for when opting for a single car. Sporty, luxurious, practical; plenty here for everyone to enjoy.

(MG has entered his half of the review in a competition, if you'd like to vote for him click on over here - it's not related to this in any way)

HER REVIEW - Glow does the school run and heads to the shops. Over and over again. When I jumped in to the XC60 and inhaled that new car smell deep in to my lungs, I felt a sensation somewhere between exhilaration - were they really going to let me just drive out of here? Didn't they hear me say "the faster the better" during my hot lap? - and sheer terror. An expensive car that I have to give back in one piece? Bring on the granny driving and jokes about being a "bloody Volvo driver".

I headed out of the Cannington Volvo lot and by the time I was on the highway I'd already turned the wipers on three times attempting to indicate, and fallen in love with the leather seats. With the hug like hold of a racing seat (but with support and padding) and seat warmers cranked, my tooshie was loving it.

Tricks thought the in-built booster in the XC60 was the bomb. It was his first experience without a five point harness and the thought of being a "big boy" was very appealing to him. A fabulous concept which worked great for us, though I'd be concerned that on long journeys a child could fall asleep and lean in to the wrong position affording them little protection in the event of a collision. Though this is a concern with any child in a booster without a five point harness and isn't specific to the Volvo.

I used the car mainly for school pick ups and grocery shopping, and I tell ya, I felt a bit posh! Sleek lines and the throaty rumble of a diesel, the XC60 definitely turned heads. Shopping was a breeze with the automated tailgate and I found myself wanting to show it off "Oh, you have a handbag? Let me open the boot for you" *press* "You want to keep it on your lap? No problem, I'll just close it" *press*. Speaking of the boot, it's pretty massive and passed my gigantic-pram-the-size-of-a-boat test with flying colours. I'm disappointed they didn't keep the cool opening and closing function going on all the way around and have keyless entry - that is a godsend when you've got your hands full with kids and groceries in the middle of a busy car park.

Just look at that boot space

But I'm afraid the XC60 didn't make me fall in love with it the way it won over MG. I found the dashboard to be way too busy with OMG SO MANY BUTTONS. The interface didn't seem very intuitive to me and even using the steering wheel mounted control wheel it felt almost like a clunky afterthought. The voice activation alleviated some of the issues at times, but there was still a lot of looking down to figure things out and twiddling of dials to enter information, effectively taking my eyes off the road for longer than I felt was safe.

I felt it could have been much improved by a touchscreen (which would get rid of about two thirds of those bloody buttons to start with) and a better GPS system. As it stands it would beep if there was an upcoming speed camera but had no information on current speed limits or if you're exceeding them - I'm quite used to my current car telling me "You are over the speed limit" if my speed starts to creep up and it even adjusts for school zones and road works, so there was a high benchmark to meet there and it just didn't stack up like I expected it to.

The XC60 was a joy to drive (S+ mode is brilliant!), and it really is absolutely beautiful to look at, but it fell short for me. As someone who is in and out of the car a lot throughout the day, keyless entry and a more sophisticated console would be needed before I could consider shelling out for it to be my main ride, no matter how pretty it is.

How to make sure your white wine is at the right temperature

This is a S3 post - I scored some wine! HUZZAH!!!

For full details please see my disclosure policy

I'm rather partial to a glass of wine. Or two. *ahem*

With dinner, with a cheese platter, in the bath, or even in my study when I'm hiding from my children. There is something about it, possibly the alcohol content, that just makes me relax. Even just holding the glass signals to my brain that it's time to chill out, which is why, through my pregnancies, I was known for drinking water out of a wine glass. Classy!

It is still bloody hot in Perth, to the point where my Dad wants to start a petition for March to be included in summer - yes, let's change the seasons, just for you, dude - and that means people everywhere are still struggling with sub-optimal wine temperatures. It might be a first world problem, but that doesn't make it right to ignore it. Don't be wine-ist.

Did you even know that wine was meant to be drunk at a certain temperature? Me neither, until recently. If it's too cold, then it tastes more acidic and if it's too warm, the lower notes dominate and change the flavour completely. So your favourite Pinot Gris won't taste like your trusty go-to bottle if the temperature is wrong.

WHO KNEW?

So how do you make sure your white wine is being served at the right temperature?

DO:

See the little rectangle? It changes colour!

1. Buy a bottle of award winning Taylors Estate Sauvingnon Blanc or Pinot Gris from Taylors Wines - they have a little temperature sensitive panel printed directly on the label that lets you know when it's perfect to serve! Nifty, huh? But a fancy pants panel means nothing if it isn't good wine... and I'm happy to let you know that after extensive testing - for review purposes, because I take this reviewing stuff totally seriously - that this is goooood wine.

2. Pour a standard glass at a time, even if you have a giant wine glass the size of your head. That way it won't get warm by the time you get to the last sip. If you know you're going to sip it slowly (savouring your only glass for the evening, perhaps), pour less. It goes against my whole being, and possibly my religion, to pour half a drink, but it's better that way.

3. If it's a super hot day, pop a few frozen grapes in to your glass. They won't change the flavour too much, and they won't dilute the wine when they defrost. Also eating them afterwards is nice.

4. Store your wine in the fridge if you can. If it's too far from where you're sitting (I feel your pain, my couch is five metres away and sometimes that is MILES), grab an ice bucket, look fancy and Instagram that shit. If you don't care about looking fancy, grab an esky. 

DON'T:

1. Put ice blocks in your wine. Watery melty wine? Blergh, no thank you! I don't understand why you intentionally dilute your wine, people? Mother, I'm looking at you.

2. Show the colour change panel to your child who will then insist on pouring water over it or sticking his finger over it "just like the change colour cars, mum!". This way you can play with it yourself. 

For more details on the fancy pants temperature indicator check out the YouTube video below.

Cheers!

I went to Sydney and all I got was this AWESOME KITCHEN MACHINE

This is a S3 post - I received a Cuisine Companion for review purposes

For full details please see my disclosure policy

Recently I was asked if I'd like to be one of the first in Australia to try out a new whizz bang kitchen machine. Who me? The one obsessed with kitchen appliances? Sure! Oh, the launch event is in Sydney? Hells yeah, I'll be up for that! An event, a mini holiday, a catch up with friends, and a night in bed without children kicking me in the back? How could I possibly refuse?

And so it came to pass that little ol' me got up at an ungodly hour to catch a flight to the other side of the country. But excited tired and exhausted tired are not one and the same, so I was up and at 'em.

Last Thursday, I, along with 15 other bloggers from all niches all around Australia, walked in to the Sydney Seafood School for our first glimpse of the Tefal Cuisine Companion. I'd Googled it because I am terribly impatient, but I was pumped to see what it could do in front of me. It was so new and shiny that I couldn't resist taking a reflection picture.

Champagne on arrival and through to a lecture theatre with a sleek test kitchen in front of us and screens on the top that showed close ups of the cooking - I felt like I was in the audience of a cooking show. After a demonstration, a taste test (thank you!), and a bit of a question and answer session, it was time to get hands on.

We moved through to the school kitchen... It was like being in Masterchef. Stainless steel appliances, freezer drawers, amazing ingredients, super sharp knives and the best bit, a Tefal Cuisine Companion each to play with.

And play we did. In teams of two we created a main and a dessert - I was with Karen from Yellow Dandy - she made a cheesecake while I made a summer risotto. I'm a hands on learner, so for me it was great to be able to press buttons, insert blades and take the lid on and off for real.
The machine was amazing and it surpassed my (very high) expectations and blew me away. An all-in-one kitchen wonder that lets you prepare meals easily - sometimes with just one touch!

Bloggers clockwise from left: Me, Kristyn from Mummy K, Jules from Zippy Zappy Life, Jess from Essentially Jess, Karen from Yellow Dandy.

We "slaved away over a hot stove" or, more accurately, laughed and joked while we pressed buttons, let the machine do the hard work, and generally pretended we were chefs on a cooking show. When our gourmet meals were cooked, I thought we might go back to the first room to eat them. I was wrong...

We moved to the banquet hall. A flippin' BANQUET HALL! Together we sat down to enjoy our meal in comfort with a glass of wine, friendly chatter, and quite a few Instagrams. We are bloggers, after all.

The awesome table and Jess from Essentially Jess having a taste of cheese cake

I'm very impressed with the machine. I own a competitor product, so of course I can't help but compare, but this has won me over, it's brilliant! I'll be doing a full review post very soon, pointing out my favourite features.

The Tefal Cuisine Companion is available at major electrical stores (think Harvey Norman) for $1699 and comes with scales, a recipe book with one million meal combinations, four blades in a storage container, an apron, a cleaning tool, a silicone spatula and a two year warranty.

If you have any specific questions about the Cuisine Companion or a recipe you'd like me to make in it, please let me know in a comment below as I'll be doing a full twelve month review.

Gro-egg Review and Giveaway

It's been bloody hot in WA, lately. I'm talking record breaking hot. The temperature soared to a brain frying 44.4 degrees a couple of weeks ago. That's Celsius for my USA readers... because y'all are the only ones who would be thinking that was chilly.

The temperature has dipped slightly now, but it is still sweltering and the nights don't bring much relief at all.

I worry about the kids overheating on these hot nights so we leave windows open if there is a breeze, keep fans on and strip them down to thin PJs.

Which then makes me wonder if they will be too cold.

So I'll sneeeeak in and put a thin blanket on each of them before I go to bed.

Then I'll get in bed, put my blanket on, immediately overheat and walk down to the kids rooms to remove their blankets only to find they've kicked them off already, as both my children are averse to bed linen.

When The Gro Company contacted me I was really interested in putting their Gro-eggs in the kids rooms to see how they'd go. They are designed to give "peace of mind at a glance" by glowing blue when it's cold, yellow when it's perfect and red when it's too hot. Hot = Red glow. I can remember that because hot = red Glow, too.

They also tell you the temperature, but I can't actually read in the middle of the night when I'm bleary eyed and forgot to put my glasses on. But hey, it promised "at a glance" and even blind as a bat me can see the colour in the dark.

What colour did they glow here?

RED.

Bobbin's room after 10pm

All the damn time.

It even had a little frowny face.

So a Perth summer is perhaps not the best testing environment, but at least now I know I wasn't going overboard and turning their rooms in to ice boxes just because I feel the heat a lot.

Tricky's room after 10:15pm - I covered him for the pic because MODESTY

They are a great little night light, whether you're temperature checking or not, though. Combine a hot room with a GroClock and your kid will think they're in a police car. Bonus!

I have FOUR of these eggcellent (see what I did there?) Gro-eggs to give away, valued at $49.95 each. You can enter as many times as you like by answering this question in the area provided below: What should you never go to bed without?




This is a game of skill; the most creative/funny/weird/memorable/silly/eyerolly answer wins. Entries close 2nd March. For full terms and conditions see here.

Related: don't try to sneak around in your childrens' rooms taking photos, you'll wake them up. Ask me how I know.

How to make sure your partner gets wood this Valentine's Day

This is a C1 post

For full details please see my disclosure policy

Oh, behave, you lot! Get your mind out of the gutter, because I'm not talking about that wood, I'm talking about getting them one of the coolest watches I've seen in a long time, JORD wooden watches.

I have never seen anything like them before, they're a bit hipster, a bit cool, a bit funky and certainly a talking point. I mean, a watch made out of wood?

I chose a 'Sully' in Black and Maple for MapGuy as an early Valentine's present and he loves it. There have been many puns and bad jokes about getting wood ever since, hence the totally classy title of this post.

I bought him a watch for his birthday years ago and after it being sequestered away from the night stand by little fingers and dropped on multiple occasions, it was looking worse for wear. Half the numbers had come off and would rattle around when he moved. 

But not any more.

Would you look at that spunk! Thick rimmed glasses, ginger beard and a wood watch, posing like a pro hand model. Oh and soft focus flowers. My hipster dude. 

It's a generous sized watch but weighs next to nothing because, duh, wood. It's "splash proof" but to keep it looking good it shouldn't be submerged in water. You can use oils and waxes to keep it looking tip top if you want, though I'm pretty sure we'll do it once and forget. 

I'm excited to be able to give away one of these amazing watches to one lucky winner anywhere in the world.

L- R: Ely in Black, Delmar in Green, Sully in Cherry and Maple, 94A in Cherry, Fieldcrest in Maple

The winner can choose from five styles; Ely $129, Delmar $149, Sully $139, 94A $159 and Fieldcrest $120, in range of different colours and wood finishes. To check out the entire range head to woodwatches.com 

To enter, leave a comment below telling me which glorious watch you'd choose (example: Fieldcrest in Zebrawood and Maple) for yourself or for a loved one and why. Enter as many times as you like across the blog, Facebook and Instagram. The best answer across all platforms will be the winner. For full terms and conditions check the disclosure policy here. 

Nescafe Dolce Gusto Circolo Review

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What on earth is a chick who doesn't drink coffee doing reviewing a coffee machine?

Well, it's pretty simple. I have friends over a lot. Mothers require play dates for sanity, and play dates require caffeine. Again, for the mothers' sanity. Whenever I previously had friends over and offered them a cup of tea, they would inwardly scream that they'd kill for a coffee, force a smile and say a glass of water would be fine. 

Nescafe Dolce Gusto Circolo - try saying that three times fast

Over the years I've bought a couple of jars of the instant stuff and it's usually begrudging accepted by guests, not because it is necessarily a bad product, but because it has been there so long it's now fused in to one gigantic cylinder of coffee that requires a pick axe to break up. The only ones that are happy to see that bronze boulder in a jar are the ones holding their eyelids open with toothpicks after a particularly rough night.

So I thought I'd try out the Nescafe Dolce Gusto Circolo so I could (a) give my guests a nice drink, (b) stop keeping a pick axe in the kitchen (totes unsafe) and (c) try the Hot Chocolate capsules.

For a household that doesn't generally drink cawwwfee, we've gone through boxes and boxes of the Dolce Gusto capsules because people have figured out that I now have good coffee and keep coming over. 

There has been a mixed reaction:

My aunty was not a fan of the Cappucino capsules; but she is more of a latte gal and I didn't have any of those at the time. Try as she may, she didn't finish the cup. 

My SIL was drinking the Cafe Au Lait every morning while she stayed with us. When it ran out she made do with the Espresso capsules and added some warm milk. She was jet lagged and suddenly living with two screamy children. She worshipped that machine.

My mum and dad both thought it was nice; they have a Nescafe Dolce Gusto Piccolini so they have the same capsules at home. It tasted better at my house apparently! I've got no idea if it was our local water or the fancier machine though. Or maybe because when someone makes something for you it automatically tastes better.

My neighbour was just happy she didn't have to BYO coffee any more when she pops over for our kids to play together. This way she won't leave her cup behind. Win!

I liked the way the machine, which is manufactured by long time coffee folks De'Longhi, was ready to go within a few seconds of turning on, that it held enough water that you don't have to refill it after every single cup, and that the amount of water coming through was variable. 

What I wasn't particularly fond of was the size of it. It's bloody huge for a machine that just heats up water. It looks awesome because FUNKY and RED, but it takes up a lot of really valuable bench space. You'd want to have a stack of room to get something this big. Other big machines that I looked at - because I actually did research for this! - had milk frothers and the like. This baby is slightly taller and wider than my Thermomix, though not as deep (intellectual?) - for something that makes one cup at a time, that seems bloody excessive.

That's it sitting next to my Thermomix for size comparison

My only other issue is that it is sooooo hard to find the Hot Chocolate capsules. Everywhere sells all the different coffee varieties but I'm hanging out for more of the choc goodness! I have tried so many stores, I guess it just isn't as popular as the coffee so they don't stock it - it can be bought online, but I'm not a fan of paying postage that costs almost as much as the product.

The Nescafe Dolce Gusto Circolo retails for $229 and can be bought in most department stores. Capsules (except for the hard to find Hot Chocolate!) are approximately $8.50 per box and hold between 8 and 16 serves.

I'm trying my hand at printable art lately, so I had a play just for more practice and made a coffee printable for you. Here's a free printable "but first, coffee" chalkboard. I'm just a beginner, but this should print as a 4x6. I'm not even sure I'm meant to just whack it in here or link it or what?!

Do you drink cawwfee? What is your favourite type?

The Little Death - Australian film review and giveaway

This is a #S1 sponsored post for Entertainment One and Digital Parents Collective

For full details please see my disclosure policy

This movie opens on a scene of a foot fetish. ABORT! ABORT! NoooOOOoooooo! Panic stations! How was someone like me with a major and completely irrational fear of feet, chosen to review this?

Well, I was told "it's witty and a little bit naughty, and it made me think of you". Little ol' me? Naughty? *ahem* Never! *shifty eyes*

But I pushed through the toe licking because I'd seen the trailer and thought it looked bloody brilliant. You have to check it out below, it is most definitely NSFW in the best possible ways; you've been warned! 

I had never heard of The Little Death before this despite it being released late last year, but it ticked a lot of boxes for me. Australian. Check. Dark humour? Check. Stars Damon Herriman? Check! I love him as an actor, one of my faves for sure, and he doesn't disappoint in this, nominated for the AACTA for Best Lead Actor for his role as Dan. 

The title is explained in the opening credits, which, phew, because I'd never heard of the term before. Spoiler: it's from the French 'la petite mort' and it means orgasm! 

With relationships, love, romance, desperation, taboo and fetishism, it might not be one for a Sunday arvo at Nanna's house - although maybe Gran is in to that sort of thing, who am I to judge? - but I thought it was great and found myself laughing out loud at parts, cringing at some deliciously awkward scenes and empathizing with some of the characters. 

The interpreter scene is hilarious - though it did feel like it was randomly slotted in until a few scenes later when a (somewhat weak) link between the characters is revealed. But I can forgive that because it was so well done. I've signed Auslan for years and I always get a buzz out of seeing it portrayed on screen, so I was a little disappointed to find that the actor who plays Sam is not Deaf. There are Deaf actors out there, it would have been great to see one of them fill the role. But in saying that, kudos to actor T.J. Power because his signs and even the noises he made were so spot on that I believed he was.

I was a little put off by the sexual assault references, and found myself cringing at times, hoping like hell what I thought was about to happen didn't actually happen. Writer and director, Josh Lawson, managed to bring humour to such a serious subject without it being crass, however the scenes could easily be triggering for people who have felt the trauma of sexual assault, so consider that before watching.  

I really enjoyed this film and learned a few things too, like "Dacryphilia", which is achieving arousal when someone is crying. Chopping onions just got sexy.

The Little Death is available to own on DVD and BluRay from JB HiFi or digital download on iTunes. Watch it and realize, in the words of Patrick Brammall (who plays Richard) that "no one's normal. And if you're normal, that's not normal. So just be weird and embrace that."

...GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED...

I have 15 copies of The Little Death to give away! To enter, tell me in a comment below (or on this Facebook post) what you or someone you know has done/would do to spice up a relationship! The most creative/funny/unusual/surprising answers will win. Full terms and conditions can be found here.

...GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED...

Les Miserables Perth Review

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Look dooooooooooooooown, look doooooooooooown. Oh. My. Theatre. Gods.

I went to a preview of Les Miserables with Aunty Penny last week and we were absolutely blown away. I'm still listening to the soundtrack on repeat in my car every day, fantasizing that I'm in the chorus. A lot of people pretend they're the leading roles, but not me. The chorus has such ripper songs in Les Mis.

If you've always thought about going to a musical, stop thinking and book tickets to this now. NOW!

This is one of those shows where it is definitely worth reading a synopsis first because it makes it a lot easier to follow. So what happens?

There's criminals, breaking parole, fake identities, illegitimate children, prostitution, arrests, death, abuse, street gangs, love triangles and more death. That's just act one. Act two has insurgents, spies, a huge battle, a suicide, an estrangement, a wedding, blackmail, a reunion and more death.

It is riveting stuff and I was mesmerized by absolutely everything. For starters, the sets were amazing. After being part of my school's crew for the Rock Eisteddfod in the early 90s and painting about three pieces of canvas, I have a real appreciation for set work. *cough* In all honesty though, I do check out sets and love how multifaceted they can be.

This version of Les Mis used projection on to the back of the set to change locations and to show movement, and many of the images were actually paintings by the main man himself, Victor Hugo. I think the projection could have easily been over done, but it was understated and I really loved the extra dimension it created. The march? Oooooh. The suicide? Woah.

The entire cast was outstanding, but the Thenardiers stole the show. And I'm pretty sure they, um, simulated oral sex at one stage! I KNOW! I was so surprised, as were quite a few people who saw it judging by the laughs and squeals. Such hilarious characters that you love and hate at the same time. Aunty Penny is a huge fan of Lara Mulcahy who played Madame Thenardier, and almost fainted when woman herself tweeted her.

Towards the end of act one the singing gave me goosebumps and I very nearly cried. Yes, I'm one of those people who get so emotional during momentous musical numbers that I blubber. The score is just so moving, so not gonna apologize for that.

If you get the chance to see it, you absolutely must. It's showing in Perth until the end of March and then moves on to Sydney. I'm seriously considering going again because I loved it so much. You can find more information here.

Have you seen Les Mis? Are you a musical theatre fan?

Thriller Live: not so thrilling {review}

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Photo of previous cast member

Aunty Penny and I were invited to see the preview night of Thriller Live last night. It's a bit of a treat to go out mid-week so I wore heels and lipstick. Fancy, no? 

I was excited to see the show because I'd heard a bit about it; it's been going for six years, five of those in the West End before heading on tour and meant to be jam packed with awesome tunes celebrating the career of Michael Jackson.

Now, I'm not a die hard fan of MJ, but I do know a lot of his songs and figured a show that condensed his best bits in to a few hours would be something an ordinary fan could really get in to, in the same way I actually enjoy 20/20 cricket but would sooner swallow razor blades than watch a test match. I don't want the whole back catalogue, but the iconic songs? Yes please.

It didn't get off to a good start with a cursor visible on the screens for a while and flashes of another program running. I work with duplicated desktops for presentations so I understand how one false move can spell disaster, and I know how much the lighting peeps would have been kicking themselves.

Opening the show was MiG Ayesa. He's a bloody talented dude. Sings. Dances. Probably can cook, too. However, he kinda sucks at an American accent. He spoke alone on stage at the very beginning and his accent kept changing every few words. American one second, Australian the next, then that weird inbetween "I grew up in multiple countries" accent. I don't understand why he had to put on an accent anyway. Just be you, man, you're freakin' awesome. 

Watching the first half it was evident all the singers were amazing. Samantha Johnson (I think?) blew me away. I'd pay to just watch her alone on stage, she was outstanding. But on the whole, something was definitely lacking. 

At intermission I turned to Penny and said "I know you can be overwhelmed, and you can be underwhelmed, but can you ever just be whelmed?" to which she replied, of course, "I think you can in Europe?". We were both just "whelmed". 

Photo of previous cast member

I was having trouble concentrating on the whole of the stage for parts of it because one of the dancers just seemed so out of place. Now, granted, she is at least eleventy billion times better at dancing than yours truly, but yet still it was just... awkward. I felt like she was an understudy, or that she had trained in classical ballet and came over to this style recently or something. Because she stood out from the others and not in a good way. I thought I must have been being unfair but after chatting with Penny plus bloggers Raychael from Agent Mystery Case and Jules from Zippy Zappy Life, I realized I wasn't the only one who felt that way.

I tried concentrating on the dancers that were my favourites; MiG Ayesa, a little pocket rocket chick with an awesome booty, and an afro-sporting dude that was a little easy on the eye. I leaned over to Penny and said I'd like to take him home and eat him on a crumpet. Tasty. 

There were definitely good bits. Moonwalks, crotch grabbing, the lean (I love the lean!), some cool outfit changes, and even pyrotechnics. Still just whelmed. I began to think that maybe I was missing the point, but Penny, who knew all the songs, was also a bit meh.

I felt the audience participation was a bit naff, though perhaps the die hard fans would be all in for it. I got my groove on towards the end of the second half and bopped along in my seat to Billy Jean. It finished and the lights stayed down in the annoying tradition of encores. Just play your show. Don't pretend to finish and then come back when the crowd cheers. We all know it's rehearsed so it takes away the true "screaming for more". I think this of every single concert I go to, not just for Thriller Live. Having said that, the encore was the only bit I found thrilling. If the whole show had been like that, it would have been brilliant.

Photo of previous cast member

For over $100 a ticket, even for the matinee shows, I don't really think I could recommend it as is. To only clap properly in the last fifteen minutes of the show is kinda disappointing. I can only hope the screen issues (which popped up again at the end) lack of flow and the dodgy dancer were just first night jitters. 

Do you like Michael Jackson? What is your favourite song of his?

Win a robot vacuum cleaner!

This giveaway has now closed. Thanks for entering 

This is a C1 post

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Cast your mind waaaay back to when we were renovating this time last year. It was fabulous because we had great local builders, but horrid because we had a newborn, no sleep, a shed load of crazy leaking out and lots of fucking sand inside and out.

The outside of the house is still very much a work in progress because, like so many who have renovated before us, we have run out of money. Meaning the front yard is comprised of a 4m pile of dirt that then grew weeds. It's affectionately known as "the mound" by our neighbours. The  backyard is slooooowly being done, bit by bit. There is now tufts of grass! There would be more but the bastard doves keep eating the grass seeds.

Despite the results taking forever to show, I'm really getting in to the gardening side of things and we have basil, parsley, rosemary, citrus trees, olive trees, an apricot tree, peas, carrots, lettuce, onions, chillies, strawberries and cherry tomatoes all growing, nay, THRIVING! I can't believe it! There are a few snails, too, but we can't be awesome at everything.

Being out there a lot with means I'm constantly back and forth to the shed to get my bits and pieces - I can't leave them out, secateurs and children apparently don't mix. I was lucky enough to receive a Garden Cart from crazysales.com.au to help me out.

I'm normally pretty good at putting together flat pack stuff, and I'm a master with an Allen key, but it took me a while to assemble this thing. The instructions were a bit hard to follow, my two enthusiastic helpers kept trying to spin the wheels, and there were a few washers missing; but it didn't change the way it worked so I just pushed through without them (I'm not an engineer, could you guess?).

It can hold up to 300kg and it's not a toy, there's even a warning on it. So of course the first thing my kids do is take it for a spin. I supervised, they got their jollies and now they leave it alone because things aren't half as fun when mum lets you do them.

I wheel it around then back to the shed and I don't have to lug everything. There is heaps of room and it steers really well. I like to pretend I'm at a garden centre when I wheel it around. 

While the outside slowly comes together, I'm trying desperately to keep the inside clean. New floors throughout the whole house mean I'm a bit narky when it comes to sweeping - I can handle toys strewn everywhere throughout the day, but the sand that is tracked in, the millions of goddamn crumbs in every room, and the few dog hairs shit me to tears. I like to walk around bare foot and feeling the grit makes me cranky.

When crazysales.com.au sent me a robot vacuum cleaner to try out, I was over the moon because it can clean while I DO NOTHING! Or, as the case is usually, while I clean something else, prepare snacks, stop children touching dog poo etc. 

The robot came fully assembled and even had a charge so I could use it straight away. To be honest, I wasn't expecting it to be brilliant. The manual was a little lost in translation and it gave the impression it would be a cheap knock off, but I was actually really impressed by it.

It senses obstacles and drops, comes with a virtual wall and remote control, and goes back to the recharging base by itself when it needs to. It doesn't go completely in to the corners, but it gets pretty close - closer than I had imagined. I've been putting it on every few days in different rooms to gather all that damn sand, and it has been doing a great job and emptying out the bagless chamber shows me that it really is picking up lots of sand, dog hair, crumbs and dust but NO TOYS! It easily goes from the wooden floors to Tricky's carpet play mat without getting stuck, but I'd say it wouldn't cope well on shag pile.

In terms of volume, it is quieter than a standard vacuum cleaner and it didn't freak out the dog or the kids, so that's good! Check it out:

A video posted by glow (@glowless) on Oct 10, 2014 at 6:39pm PDT

If you have filthy carpet then this little machine probably won't get it all out, but as a maintenance machine every few days it is a gem. Plus you can put a toy or a cat on it, film it, and become a YouTube sensation.

So, you wanna win one, don't ya? Right well there are three ways and you can enter as many times as you like with different answers.

::COMPETITION CLOSED::