The ghost of Christmas creative disasters past...

A couple of years ago gingerbread houses seemed to be all the rage. Some of the other mothers at my child's school were buying beautiful ones from the local delicatessen, either for their own tables or as gifts, and for some inexplicable reason I decided I would have a go at making one. I have never been an "arty" or particularly creative person and I really admire people who are, so I thought I would take the easy way out and get a gingerbread house kit. How hard could that be?

I couldn't believe my eyes when I opened the kit and saw how many pieces were involved. Then came the fiddly part of actually sticking it all together with icing that seemed to be rapidly drying. I splashed icing on each piece as fast as I could and squished them together, while grabbing another bit and lathering that in icing so that I would have something to hold the first two pieces together. So, it went on until I had the basic shape of a house (and I do mean "basic").

From there it just needed decorating. Simple, right? Wrong! Not only did all of the little baubles, candy canes and wreaths need to be glued on with icing, but I also had to drizzle the roof with icing to make it look like snow.

Finally, stressed to the max and in a state of exhaustion, it was finished. I felt a wonderful sense of achievement and savoured the moment ..... for about 30 seconds until I noticed everything was starting to slide! The carefully drawn windows on each side were just weird looking smudges of icing, the walls were starting to splay, the roof was coming apart and the wreath was slipping!

I quickly fixed what I could and whisked the whole thing downstairs to the laundry (the coolest room in the house) where it sat in shame, waiting for Christmas Day. Over the next 24 hours (when I wasn't shopping or wrapping presents), each time I went downstairs for something I had to "redecorate" my gingerbread house.

Of course it went down a treat on Christmas Day and my family, who realised what an achievement this creation (despite its flaws) was for me, were very supportive. However the ghost of Christmas gingerbread houses past still haunts me and I can't see us having a homemade gingerbread house again in our house for a very long time!

I have seen a great meringue and strawberry Santa cake around this year - hmmm, maybe..... how hard could it be??

The team at nestling.

Prince George

Photo: Michael Middleton

Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge is to be christened this week and his parents, William and Kate, are expected to again break with tradition in the choice of godparents for the royal nestling. While the identities of the godparents is a closely guarded secret, it is believed that instead of choosing older, titled acquaintances to fill these roles William and Kate will ask untitled, close friends to be George's godparents. There is much speculation about who the godparents will be with some expecting that either Pippa Middleton or Prince Harry, or possibly both, will also be named as godparents. Other royals in the running include William's cousins, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.

The baptism of Prince George, who will be three months and one day old, will be performed by the Archbishop of Canterbury at the Chapel Royal in St James's Palace. This venue was chosen by the young royals over Buckingham Palace, where most senior royal babies have been christened in past decades. The Chapel Royal holds particular sentimental value to Prince William as it is where the coffin of Diana, Princess of Wales was held prior to her funeral.

Prince George will be christened in a replica of the lace and satin christening gown made for Queen Victoria's eldest daughter, Victoria in 1841.  Only close family members and friends will attend the intimate service, with some senior royals such as Princess Anne, Princes Andrew and Edward, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex rumoured to have been left off the guest list.

It is believed that after the christening a photo of the Queen and Princes Charles, William and George (the three future monarchs) will be released. The Royal Mint has also made a range of special coins to mark the christening and this is the first time that commemorative coins have been produced for such an event. One of the new coins is made of one kilogram of solid gold and is worth £50,000! It is one of the largest and most expensive coins the Royal Mint has ever produced.

Whoever is on the guest list and no matter who they choose as godparents, the christening of Prince George is sure to be a day to remember and one which will be well documented. We wish them all the very best for the future.

The team at nestling.

Generosity in children

Original photo courtesy of Tup Wanders

According to Yale University research published in 2012, children are more likely to be generous when others can see them or when they can see the recipient of their generosity.

It has previously been shown that adults are more charitable when they are being watched or when their actions will become public, and this study demonstrates that children as young as five also modify their behaviour in the same circumstances.

In the study the researchers gave their five year old subjects stickers and the option of sharing one or four stickers with another five year old child. They found that the children were more generous when they could see the person they were giving the stickers to, and also when the stickers were handed over in a transparent container, rather than an opaque one. These behaviours were independent of how many stickers the children got to keep for themselves.

The researchers concluded that children as young as five can make strategic decisions about whether to be generous, based on whether the recipient will be aware of their generosity. The children demonstrated much more sophisticated processes for determining behaviour than had been expected. This led the researchers to conclude that adults and children alike will behave more generously when the results of their actions are visible or publicised to others. The donation tendencies of both are driven by the amount of information available to others about their actions.

I find the results of this research to be quite sobering (almost depressing) in terms of what they demonstrate about human nature. There must be exceptions to this rule - think of those wonderful souls who dedicate their lives to helping others with little or no reward or recognition, and those who leave large anonymous donations to charity in their wills. However, it would appear that the norm for the rest of us is to only be generous when 'someone is watching'. 

What does this mean for us as parents? Most of us try to ensure our children are good sharers. Do we need to go further and reinforce that sharing should be done happily, without any need for reward or reinforcement?

Food for thought, from the team at nestling.

Public Library of Science (2012, October 31). Five year olds are generous only when they're watched. ScienceDaily. Retrieved October 12, 2013, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­/releases/2012/10/121031214138.htm

Mizzle

Born out of a desire to create a range of baby "must haves", Mizzle started by producing a variety of baby basics and essentials, and are constantly adding new products to their range.

Launched from Hobart in time for Summer 2010, Mizzle has gone from strength to strength and is highly regarded for the quality and comfort of their products, as well as their practicality in the everyday life of a baby.

nestling is proud to partner with Mizzle to provide a wide selection of baby basics - from bibs, feeding cloths, hooded towels, face washers, gorgeous blankets, sheets, sleeping sacks and toys through to clothing options such as rompers, onesies and hats.

As the Mizzle family have watched their own family grow, they have continued to grow the business that is Mizzle. Their innovation in design means that every Mizzle item is produced to meet a specific baby need.

Never ones to keep still, the team at Mizzle has moved twice to accommodate the need for larger warehouses in line with the expanding business. With a number of Australian stockists and now an agent in New Zealand we expect even bigger things from Mizzle over the coming months and years.

In case you're wondering the word "mizzle" means a mist-like rain!

The team at nestling.