Elf on The Shelf Week Four

The last week of Ralph hi-jinks has been and gone- here is what he got up to in week four!

On Monday morning we found Ralph chilling in the fridge, although he did have a blanket on too.



Ralph sent a subtle reminder to the boys to brush their teeth after all the Christmas lollies.



The boys put the tree up with minimal help this year, and so Ralph did some adjusting on Wednesday with the help of a toy fire engine.



Thursday found Ralph helping me with domestic duties!



On Friday, Ralph brought some DIY ornaments for the boys to do as part of their Christmas Craft Day.



Ralph said goodbye on Christmas Eve, and left us with a Santa key and a book to read.



The boys have had so much fun waking up every morning to find Ralph, and even my husband got into the spirit of things and helped out. I know that people are very divided in their opinions of the Elf on the Shelf, but for our family it was a great chance to connect and have fun.

Elf on The Shelf Week Three

I am a bit late catching up on Ralph's antics this week as I have been busy teaching cupcake classes and dealing with the first week of school holidays!

Ralph has been busy too, and it seems like he needed a caffeine fix on Monday morning.



Tuesday was our Polar Express themed day, so Ralph decided to create a train track to ride on.



The boys were delighted to wake up on Wednesday morning and find Ralph reading in their bedroom.



On Thursday, Ralph brought a new book with him to prepare for an upcoming celebration!



Friday was our family movie night, and Ralph provided the popcorn!



The boys took a while to find Ralph on Saturday morning- they had been playing with the Duplo and so Ralph borrowed the Batmobile and dressed up as Batman.



Sunday was a very special day in our household, as Lucas turned 7. Ralph decorated a special birthday chair for Lucas to sit on, and even had a cupcake outfit on to join in with the celebrations.



The next week will be the last week of Ralph's antics as he will return to the North Pole on Christmas Eve, but he still has some great tricks up his sleeve!

Elf on The Shelf Week Two

Ralph the Elf has been up to more shenanigans this week, and the boys have been laughing every morning when they see what Ralph is up to.

On Monday, Ralph was photocopying himself- maybe he wants to be a twin?



Tuesday was our gingerbread themed day, and so Ralph helped out by providing a gingerbread house kit for the boys to make.



We caught Ralph having a hot chocolate bath on Wednesday!



Thanks to some free printables from the Elf on the Shelf official website, the boys found Ralph colouring in a picture of himself when they got up on Thursday morning.



Friday is my personal favourite, which my husband set up- didn't he do well? Hulk against Ralph at Connect Four.



On Saturday we went shopping for Christmas ornaments for the tree. This is an annual tradition for our family and so our tree is a real mish-mash of items! Ralph was glad to help out financially for the boys to purchase an ornament each.



Sunday was another Elf antic care of my husband- climbing our lamp for a better view of what the boys were up to for his report back to Santa.



I can't wait to show you what Ralph has planned for next week, as there are definitely going to be some props and more goodies courtesy of Ralph.

Summer Style during DAREcember Week One

This December, I am taking part in two of my favourite Style Dares- DAREcember by Fox in Flats and Summer Style File by Kimba Likes.

Somehow I missed the first two days and so I then combined the first four prompts together! I wore a Red Lip, a striped and pleated skirt, and added a shoulder shrug to my outfit.

 

On Saturday I relaxed in the sunshine with my denim cuffed shorts and a loose fit t-shirt from Ezibuy.

Sunday was my scrapbooking workshop so I wore a half bun in my hair and put on a maxi dress! The weather as a bit chilly so I threw on my trusty Boohoo zip jersey and some matching blue flats from Farmers.

Monday was a bright wrap dress from Ezibuy paired with my black sparkly heels.

Tuesday's prompt of stripes was the perfect excuse to wear my navy and white striped top, and I layered three blue bracelets on my arm.

Wednesday was all about black- I added some texture with my black lace skirt and added a gold tassel necklace.

Next week I will be sharing my week two outfits-a few prompts are out of my comfort zone and so it will be a fun experiment to see what I come up with!

WCW- Beetroot and Citrus Salad

I love summer weather, and with it comes a lot of picnics and potlucks as well as BBQs. This Beetroot and Citrus Salad is great for making and chilling in advance.

The ingredients all work well together and include goat's cheese, beetroot, baby peas, pecan nuts and quinoa.



I love creating homemade dressings for my salads, and this one is simple and delicious!



Layering all of the flavours together, you get some subtle sweetness from the beetroot, tang from the citrus, creaminess from the cheese and a crunch from the nuts.



This salad is a great side dish for grilled meats and looks festive enough for any Christmas potluck events.




Beetroot and Citrus Salad
1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa and brown rice mix
1 cup frozen peas
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon sesame oil
450 gram can baby beetroot, drained and quartered
1 orange, segmented
4 tablespoons chopped pecan nuts
150 grams goat's cheese, crumbled

Cook quinoa in rice cooker with peas.
Whisk mustard, lemon juice and oil in a large serving bowl.
Add quinoa, peas, beetroot, orange segments, pecans and goat's cheese. Toss to combine and serve,

Elf on The Shelf Week One

An Elf on the Shelf was welcomed into our family on December 1st- here is what he has been up to for the first week of December!

When the boys came out to breakfast on Thursday morning, an elf was waiting for them! We read the book while waiting on breakfast, and the boys had a think about what to call our elf. The decision was made to call him Ralph the Elf, and so we made it official and then talked about why Ralph was here. Ralph will be in a different position each day, but he also has our advent activity tags.



When the boys woke up on day two, they found Ralph snuggled up on the couch wearing his pajamas as it was Pajama Day at school. Lucas thought this was pretty hilarious!



The boys caught Ralph sending emails to his elf friends on Saturday morning!



Ralph gave us a hint about what to make for Sunday morning breakfast, so we all enjoyed some delicious pancakes before a busy day.



My two can't wait to see what Ralph the Elf will get up to next week!

WCW- White Chocolate and Salted Caramel Mousse

Sometimes you need a delicious dessert that you can make, leave in the fridge, and then serve and still feel like a domestic goddess. This recipe does it for me!

A white chocolate mousse with salted caramel and buttermilk undertones- this dessert is guaranteed compliments but it is deceivingly easy.

Sugar, cream, eggs and white chocolate make the basis of this recipe, and my two special ingredients of Whittaker's West Coast Buttermilk Caramelised White Chocolate and Dollop Salted Caramel Sauce take this dessert to the next level.



After beating the eggs and sugar, melted white chocolate and whipped cream is folded in to create a light and fluffy mousse.



The magic happens when you drizzle salted caramel sauce on top of the mousse, then add shavings and squares of the buttermilk chocolate.



This mousse is all about decadence! Perfect for potlucks and this will definitely be on my table for Christmas Day dessert.

print recipe

White Chocolate and Salted Caramel Mousse

Ingredients

• 400 grams white chocolate melts
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 600ml cream
• 1 bottle Dollop Salted Caramel Sauce
• 1/2 block Whittaker's Buttermilk White Chocolate

Instructions

Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and melt, then set aside to cool. Beat the eggs and sugar together with a hand held electric mixer until thick and pale and the sugar has dissolved. Fold through the cooled melted white chocolate until well combined. Whisk the cream in a seperate bowl until slightly thick and soft peaks form. Fold gently into the mousse. Place the mousse in a serving bow, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours. Serve with salted caramel sauce poured over top and sprinkle with chopped chocolate.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 2 hour Total time: 2 hour 10 mins