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Keeping our cool through popsicle plan

Snack attack: Chloe delivering snacks to Amlin’s offices last summer (Photograph supplied)

Naughty Nana is back and arrived with four huge bars of chocolate for the girls … and so the naughtiness begins.

School is officially out for the summer and it’s parties galore. Everywhere I look it’s pizza, popcorn, ice-cream and candy.

In an effort to curb the sugar madness, I volunteered to bake healthy cookies for school. Of course, my best laid plans went awry and I screeched in through the gates with a shop-bought offering instead.

I was caught completely red-handed by one of the mummies who thought it was hysterical that the nutritionist’s contribution was six packets of Fox’s party rings — they use natural colours and flavours I’ll have you know! Oh dear, completely busted. Did I mention that I have lost the plot this term? I am so ready for a break.

Of course, a holiday wouldn’t be a holiday in our house without some sort of big idea from Chloe. This girl can’t do anything low-key. It has to be as big as she can possibly make it (I have no idea where she gets it from).

She’s not going to stand up and sing you one song, she’s going to put on a whole production. That sounds like it should keep her entertained for hours, doesn’t it? The only problem is there’s always a level of parental facilitation, ie, manual labour from me.

Two years ago, Chloe asked me if she could have a bake sale in the summer holidays to raise money for Open Airways and the SPCA. It morphed into a pop-up snack stand that appeared every day for a week in different areas around Hamilton.

She decorated bags and baked and threw things round the kitchen and caused total and utter chaos. At night she asked me to keep on baking and, because I had working mum’s guilt, I said yes. I said yes last year, too, and we did a Snack Attack, baking more than 1,000 items for surprise deliveries around town.

We raised $1, 400 and nearly died from heat exhaustion in our tiny kitchen.

This year, after going back and forth in my mind for a few days, I suggested we take a break. Things were packed at work and I couldn’t see how we could pull it off. The answer from the children was a resounding ‘no’.

Belle reminded me it was her first chance to join in completely and gave me the puppiest of puppy dog eyes. There were tears (mine) and persuasion (theirs) and I said yes. We did, however, come up with a genius way of escaping the heat of the oven. We’ll be making healthy popsicles that require a blender and a freezer and that is it. Hurrah!

We’ll bake a few things, too, but popsicles are going to be the main event. In fact, after much discussion, it’s going to be called Chloe and Belle’s Popsicle Party. We’ll have four days of prep and just one day of sales, so mark your diaries for Friday, July 8, from noon until 2pm.

I’m sure there will be some kind of blender explosion to mar this plan, but fingers crossed. All profits will go to Open Airways and the SPCA. For location and other details, check the Facebook page next week. We would love to see you and be really grateful for your support. The popsicles are delicious, too.

The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns BA Hons, Dip ION is the managing director of Natural Ltd and a fully qualified nutritional therapist trained by the Institute for Optimum Nutrition in the UK. Please note that she is not a registered dietitian. For details, please go to www.natural.bm or call 236-7511. Join Catherine on Facebook: www.facebook.com/nutrifit andnaturalnutritionbermuda