To Boost or Not to Boost? - Day Seven

Sundays, eh? Who else has been ironing? Who else has been Tot-watching? Who else has done an amalgamation of both plus many, many other household tasks you have cunningly avoided during the week? Join the club.

Circus act

Poor Big Tot. He loves his weekends, chiefly (although he may not always admit it) because he gets long stretches of mummy time uninterrupted by inconvenient events like school. But if I haven't been very on-task during the week, then he has to share me with the demands of the house when it comes to Sunday.

My failure to fulfill all my tasks this week has been down to the detox to end all detoxes. Eating 'clean' as my nutrition guru, Helen McCrea calls it, commands immense skills in organisation and planning. Whipping up a veggie soup here, defrosting a fish there . . . and bearing in mind that the Tots and the hubby refuse to eat my detox food, I have, at times, had to create three separate meals three times a day. Madness.

So Big Tot has followed me round the house all day (Little Tot is happy dissecting Buzz Lightyear and sucking felt tips) asking me questions and forcing me to face unfavourable topics of discussion. Let me give you an example:

Big Tot: Will you be forty one day?

Me: Yes sweetheart, I will.

Big Tot: What will happen?

Me: Nothing.

Big Tot: I asked . . . What.Will. Happen?!

Me: (sigh) Nothing will happen. I'll just be forty.

Big Tot: I'll tell you what will happen. You will need help with everything.

Me: Will I?

Big Tot: Yes, because everything will be too hard for you.

Me: Just because I'm forty?

Big Tot: Yes. Forty is very, very old.

Me: What kind of help will I need?

Big Tot: You'll need help with everything. Washing the dishes, getting your pyjamas on, doing your hair, driving the car . . .

Me: Oh. I didn't realise being forty was going to be so hard.

Big Tot: Yes it will be. Do you know why? Because it's very oooold.

And bearing in mind that I turn thirty-five in a couple of weeks, the extreme oldness which Big Tot so eloquently describes is closing in fast. So what can I do about it?

Well, as far as I'm aware, some of the best foods for anti-aging are: berries, salmon, kale, spinach, avacado, green tea, coconut oil, almonds, tomatoes, garlic . . . now stop me if I'm wrong, but doesn't that sounds suspiciously like a detox?

Breakfast: Eggs, cucumber, tomato & olives, Lunch: Mackerel, homemade houmus, mushrooms, salad & boiled egg, Dinner: Brown rice, charred aubergine slices & Menemen (Turkish egg dish)

Does that mean I'm on the right track then? If I continue to eat well, do you think I'll be able to do my own hair when I'm forty? I hope so. I don't fancy giving Big Tot free reign with the hairspray.

Luckily, once this 10-day Body Boost programme is finished, Helen will be giving us ladies a maintenance plan to send us off into non-detox land safely and happily. She's even started to advise on the 'cleanest' alcoholic drinks if we feel we must indulge. Champagne was top of the list. So guess what I'll be doing on my thirty-fifth birthday?

Go well,

Abi


Sort discipline with your toddler the fun and positive way, visit: www.thecoolrulecompany.co.uk

Find out all about Helen's fab detox plans and fitness schemes at www.femalefitness.co

To Boost or Not To Boost?

Recently, the morning school run has become something of an anticipated event for me. Not just because Big Tot is still, thank the lord, young enough to give me goodbye smooches before he skips off to join his class queue. And not just because I get to palm him off on somebody else for the day either. I am loving the morning school run at the moment because I get to pick the brains of a very clever lady, a health and fitness guru no less.

Helen McCrea is a busy full-time mum (just like me) running her own business (just like me) and is an expert in women's health, nutrition and fitness (ok, not like me at all). We've been at a few of the same local business courses so I was kind of aware of what she was up to, but it wasn't until we got chatting at the school gates that I realised her guru-like status. This woman really knows her stuff. Forget your faddy diets and health-fuelled media frenzies . . . Helen helps women really understand what's going on in their bodies and change their thinking about nutrition forever.

The lady herself

Now I know I'm not really overweight, and I'm genuinely grateful for a fully functioning, healthy body. But we've all got our hang-ups, right? And it is widely known that I am more than partial to a custard cream. And that my best mates (who take up permanent residence in the freezer) are named Ben and Jerry.

And, like the rest of us, I am guilty of choosing the 'low-fat', 'fat-free' or 'no added sugar' options at the supermarket without really knowing what, exactly, they've replaced the fat or sugar with. Lord knows what I'm putting my body through under the guise of a 'healthy' option.

So with the intention of learning more about what my body really needs, and maybe having a crack at losing some of the jelly belly, I've gone and signed up to Helen's online ten day body boost programme. It's educational. It's physical, It's communal. It's got 100% success rates. Get in.

Helen's successful business

I figure, it's only ten days. Ten days of eating nothing but 'clean' food. Of learning why oh why I get insane sugar cravings. Of giving Ben and Jerry the silent treatment. I can do it, can't I? (Insert your own cooing, encouraging phrase here please . . . )

There may be a couple of complications along the way in the form of my undeniable faddiness (vegetarian, allergic to cheese, will eat fish but not seafood) and my medically-certified dodgy knees with complicated baby-related ligament damage. Factor in my daily commitments as super-mummy to demanding Tots, full-on housewife and crazed Mumpreneur and Helen McCrea just may have her work cut out for her.

Goodbye faithful friend

So tonight, the night before my ten day Body Boost programme commences, I am raising a spoon of Cookie Dough in a pledge to write a daily blog about my experiences. Now are you in or are you out?

Let's see . . .

Go well,

Abi


Find out all about what Helen offers at www.femalefitness.co

Transform the life you share with your toddler and start happy living today with www.thecoolrulecompany.co.uk

Bring on the Whys

I'm finally there. I thought I might have bypassed it. I thought I might have tiptoed quietly enough past it. I thought that perhaps, with a focused, concentrated, maniacal determination I might have defied the very thing that all other parents in the history of parenting have been unable to defy. I thought I might have escaped that infamous, infantile stage of  . . . "Why?".

And, ironically, I ask myself why? Why did I think I might get away without having to answer all of the questions my child might have about the world? And more importantly, why would I want to?

To be honest, I thought Big Tot was so fascinated and consumed in his own existence that asking why wouldn't ever occur to him. He rules the world you see. Oh, didn't you know? Yes, my son is in charge of everything. From what direction we should be walking down the street to which colour spoon he (and everyone else) should eat their yoghurt with. He seems so sure of his position as Almighty Ruler and King of the Cosmos that I couldn't imagine him asking how something works or - God forbid - for somebody else's opinion.

But nope. Today he has wanted to know why over and over again. (NB: This is a heavily edited version of events)

Why No. 1
Why are men coming to our house today? Why do they need to put special material in the loft? Why does the house need to be warm? Why is it one of our needs as a human being?

Why No. 2
Why should I eat all my lunch? Why do I need to be strong? Why do I need to be a big man? Why do I need to live a long, happy life?

Why No. 3
Why was it mini-olympics at nursery today? Why did I do really well? Why did we all get medals? Why do we need to feel special?

Why No. 4 (my personal favourite)
Why are you coming in the bathroom? Why do you need to wipe my bottom? Why did I only need two wipes when I've done such a big poo poo?

The parenting experts tell us toddlers ask why because their minds are expanding quickly, they're starting to understand cause and effect, and want to engage you in conversation. That's all fantastic stuff. They also recommend that you note down their more challenging questions and go and research the answer together. So does that mean that after the toilet incident we should have dashed to the laptop and Googled 'Two Wipe Poos'?

Maybe not. I must admit though, I do love this stage. It can be tedious and sometimes exhausting. But it can also be energising, fascinating and massively amusing. Who else, other than your own child, could take you through all of those feelings in one day? In one hour? Or sometimes in just a few minutes?

Who else could ask me, just the other day with eyes as big as saucers, as blue and clear as a spring sky, "Why are you taking me to a Mummies' Business Club? Why are you being a Tronapenur?"?

So in my head I'm saying this: "Why? So I can safely pop you into the conveniently provided toddler play session, have a chat with other entrepreneurs who are mums, network, share ideas, progress my business, discover new avenues (not to mention have a cup of tea in peace) whilst taking steps towards building a successful, international, web-based business which will potentially finance an overseas property and secure the future of you and your brother as well as your dad's and my retirement."

In real life I'm saying this: "Why? Because there are cakes there. Because being a Tronapenur is fun." Oh lordy. What would the parenting experts say?


Oh who bloody cares? Big Tot and I are having fun with this one. Bring on the whys, that's what I say. My answers aren't always sensible or even credible. Sometimes I turn the why round on him and get the most amazing answers which inevitably lift my day and my spirit (e.g. "because that's why my poo poo was a clean one because Spongebob Squarepants was in my belly and cleaned it first. That's why.").

My hubby and I are getting into it too. We've had late-night philosophical discussions about why asking why is so controversial, so fascinating, such a potentially enlightening thing to do. Think about your average conversation. How much would it change if you asked 'why'? How much more would you find about the person you're engaging with and how would it change their view of you?

Of course, it's probably best done with a smile on your face and a genuinely interested tone. Try to avoid looks of disgust and incredulous gasps if you can. Don't take your cue from a toddler here. A whining 'why?' does not invite an interesting answer from anyone. Including a parent.

And I'm fully aware the whys will get more challenging. More difficult. And perhaps sometimes upsetting for Big Tot. But I'm armed with an open mind and a full heart and I will do my best to answer him. And failing that, I've always got the other Mummy Tronapenurs to give me their expert advice over a cake and a cuppa.

Go well everyone (and don't forget to sometimes ask 'why?')

Abi


Anyone interested in the 'Mumpreneur' sessions, based at Steel House in Consett, call Anne or Gillian on 01207 585802 or visit www.dida.co.uk