Afternoon Tea at Cup Aberdeen: Review

One of my favourite things ever is afternoon tea with the girls and boy am I lucky that my home town of Aberdeen seems to have no shortage of afternoon tea offerings. They seem to be popping up all over the place and I'm certainly not complaining. No doubt, the 'review' pages of my blog will soon catch up as I aim to try as many different afternoon teas as possible - I'll use any excuse! 

My sister, my mum and I decided on a recent Saturday morning that we had a hankering for some sweet treats and caffeine and we promptly booked a table for three at Cup. The short and sweet name does the trick as my brain regularly triggers for a 'cup' of tea and a cake when I'm in the nearby vicinity and I have to fight my cravings and keep on walking. 

Where: Cup, 9 Little Belmont St, Aberdeen

When: Saturday Afternoon

What: Luxury Afternoon Tea

Cost: £15 per person

Dream A Vivid Dream

Most of us have heard of the infamous 'vivid dreams' pregnancy brings. The getting up to the loo multiple times a night, the discomfort of an expanding stomach, all those ligaments loosening to jerk you awake with a stab of pain if you turn too quickly, and an ample surge in hormones all add to the likelihood we'll experience vivid and frequent dreams while pregnant. 

This is my first pregnancy and already I've had some cracking dreams that had those who I've told laughing at my utter ridiculousness. I wouldn't like to cause alarm with the craziness of my pregnant subconscious mind so I'll disclose one of my more milder dreams... I decided to go rogue and rob a bakery where I decided to eat ALL the cake... just before I took that first bite, the world apocalypse started and I had to scarper (I interpreted this as, if I don't get my craving for cake, it's the end of my world).

However, it's not always craziness and nonsense that I dream because last night I had the most amazing dream of all...

Slow Cooker Parsnip Soup

As a busy full time working mummy-to-be who just so happens to be completely refurbishing her whole house ahead of baby's arrival, I have no choice but to have my motto for cooking as, "throw it all in the slow cooker!"

We've just had our first flurry of snow and I was desperate to get into the Christmas spirit so rustled up a delicious festive parsnip soup... courtesy of the slow cooker of course. See my full recipe below. Try it, I know you'll love it just as much as we did!

Gender Reveal Cake: Boy or Girl?

I admire the patience of mummy's to be who can wait through their whole pregnancy to find out the gender of their baby. I can imagine the ever mounting anticipation through your 40-week mummy-to-be stint and the final reveal when you get to meet your baby face to face for the first time. The moment made even more special when you finally find out if you have a little daughter or a little son. 

I on the other hand, caved to the anticipation as soon as I hit that 16 week mark. I couldn't wait to find out whether my little angel was a boy or a girl. I booked myself into a gender scan as soon as I could and attended with my mum and Michael. I stared at the screen as the sonographer went over and over the baby to check the gender... I remember thinking I could see on the screen what the baby was before he announced it - and I was right! 

'Spooking' Up A Halloween Buffet

I love Halloween... it genuinely is one of my favourite times of year. Dressing up, decorating the house, sweeties, chocolate, and lots of spooktacular fun! I usually find myself dressing up and hitting the town or throwing huge themed parties. This year however, I was of course pregnant. I was determined not to be left out of the fun so I found myself spending a day, a night and a morning creating a big Halloween themed buffet with my sister to serve up to the children. 

We came up with a range of spookylicious Halloween food ideas, and I'll be posting some of the recipes soon. Stay tuned!

Announcing Your Pregnancy

It was something I never thought twice about before falling pregnant... how I would tell my family, friends and everyone else in my life. My preciously naive fantasies had always had me from finding out I was pregnant in a rush of joyous bliss, to the big 'event' of labour (ouch), to snuggling my own little bundle of joy and beyond. The little details in between would fly by and I wouldn't have to think twice about it. 

Finding Out Isn't Always Easy

I hear all the time of mummy's who find out they are expecting and instantly know that they want their baby and will love and cherish them forever. It's a moment they have always imagined and finally it has arrived. Instant images flood them and their head fills with plans and fantasies all surrounding the happy news. 

But what about the many mums who have that moment of hesitation, of doubt? I often wrack myself with guilt because I am one of those ladies...