Toddler-proof baking & a Flora baking set giveaway

We’ve waited for today for weeks now. A whole day off. I’m not at work, and they’re not at school. It was going to be the best one-day mid-term EVER. We made no plans – we were going to take it easy – see where the day might take us. And that worked out just as well as you might expect.

The first hour or so was great – the kids played, while I drank coffee, did laundry and read Twitter. Everyone still in pyjamas. My kind of mid-term.

Coffee cup Office Mum

Then the three-year-old decided to help me do the dishes, which meant dragging a chair to the sink, and firing the already clean dishes back into the water. Soaking himself and the floor in the process. Distraction time.

“Oh, I don’t need you to do that – why don’t you help me fill the dishwasher instead?” I said.

“Yippee!” he said, because he’s easily pleased.

Then he picked up a cup, and still standing on the chair, he flung it into the dishwasher.

“No!” I yelled. “That’s not how you do it – you put the cups in the dishwasher – you don’t throw them!”

“This is how me do it,” he said. “Me throw them, and then they putted themselves in the dishwasher.”

Time to go out, I thought.

So we went to Dun Laoghaire for bagels, which was mostly lovely, except for when I was trying to order and pay, and the three-year-old walked out of the restaurant, crying because he had no seat, and the girls came up to tell me to change their orders, and nobody stayed at the table like they had all promised they would.

Then we went to the playground, which was mostly lovely except for being absolutely freezing and both girls falling and the three-year-old annoying all the other kids by going up the slide the wrong way eight thousand times.

Then I got a takeaway cappuccino, which was truly delicious, only slightly marred by the scuffle that broke out when all three kids tried to open the door for me, and when I spilled half the coffee on myself trying to break up the fight.

Time to go home, I thought.

Our afternoon plan was to bake. Doing so without any fighting or throwing or spilling seemed a tall order, but I took a deep breath, threw in some empty threats, and got to work.

What I did have, was a gorgeous baking set sent out by Flora earlier this week – the kids couldn’t wait to try it out, and it was enough of a carrot to keep them on their middle-best behaviour.
Flora baking kit Office Mum

We decided to try the Lemon Drizzle cake from the lovely Flora Family Fun Guide that came with the baking set – you can see recipe here in the online Flora Family Fun guide or here on the Flora website.

Baking Flora Office MumBaking Flora Office MumLemon Drizzle Cake Flora Office Mum

Our end result was possibly a little flat in shape, because I didn’t have the right size tin, but the kids thought it was AMAZING and actually, it did taste really good. I had to have two slices…

Lemon Drizzle Cake Flora office mum

I’m not a baker – I like simple recipes – and this was fabulously simple. The kids did most of it, with me just chaperoning, and preventing the toddler from throwing in six extra eggs, shells and all. Which means all in all, our one-day mid-term will be remembered (in a rose-tinted glasses kind of way) as being the best one-day mid-term ever.

Competition time! **this competition is now closed**

Would you like to win this gorgeous baking set from Flora?

Flora baking set Office Mum

To be in with a chance, just comment below, or like and comment on Facebook, or share on Twitter. And for more great recipes that are easy to do with kids, check out this gorgeous Flora Family Fun Guide

Good luck!

Baking Flora Office Mu

Draw will take place on Friday February 27th. Part of this competition is hosted on Facebook but is not associated with Facebook.

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30 thoughts on “Toddler-proof baking & a Flora baking set giveaway”

  1. I have a 19 month old who eyes me up before throwing everything. He loves to help out in the kitchen too. Last week he melted a plastic tub in the toaster while “helping” me cook.
    I would love to win the baking set. Friday is my parental leave day too and if it is raining we bake.

    1. Your midterm Friday bore more than a passing resemblance to my midterm Monday, then far from perfect but mostly lovely and seeming all the more so with every passing day since.

  2. All ahead of me (we’ve only an almost 8 month old), but already I can start to relate… At this stage I can’t imagine how people manage more than 1 kid, so it’s great to get an insight!

  3. Oh I hear you! My idea of a nice day off is always spoiled by something! This time it was headlice. So I spent it shampooing heads and boiling clothes! I could do with. Nice slice of lemon drizzle cake!

  4. That is so sweet my kids would get so much enjoyment out of this kit, & we would all spend quality time together, & have something yummie to eat after all the fun , its winner winner, chicken dinner or yummie yummie cake of love

  5. Sounds like a nice day all in! My 18 month old loves the dishwasher too & all interested in what I’m cooking, won’t necessarily eat it though. Would love the baking set

  6. I have an excitable two year old who loves to help me out with often enthusiastic but disastrous consequences :). The Flora Toddler Baking kit sounds perfect for us…we would love to win it.and bake some cakes 😉

  7. I have a helper same age at home, drags the blue chair across the kitchen to “help” , we would love this set for more helping…

  8. Thank you everyone for entering – the winner as drawn on Friday February 27th is Yvonne Fahy, who entered via Facebook. New competition coming soon!

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