Here's what is on our menu this week:

MONDAY - Chicken fajitas

TUESDAY - Mushroom + pancetta tagliatelle

WEDNESDAY - Pesto tortelloni + green vegetables

THURSDAY - Vegetable chilli, rice + avocado

FRIDAY - Burgers, sweet potato wedges + baked beans

This weekend we headed to the pumpkin patch for the first time, which is something that I am sure will become an annual activity. It was Sunday afternoon, and after a week of sickness and being stuck at home, we needed to get outside and get some fresh air, and I couldn't resist dragging the boys to the most autumnal activity I could think of.

I have to say, it wasn't what I was expecting, and I guess, where we went wasn't really what you would call a pumpkin patch. It wasn't a field where the pumpkins were growing, but rather a section of land covered in bark and then scattered with pumpkins. What you can't tell from the photos is that is was so busy, but you know what we still had a great time and Zach loved running around and trying to pick up the biggest pumpkins he could find.

After lots of deliberating we picked two beauties to bring home with us; one big pumpkin that we will carve for halloween, and a smaller one that has lots of cute blobs all over it that I just couldn't resist. Our fire place is now adorned with them, as well as a couple of smaller munchkin pumpkins, and it couldn't look more festive! And I have to say, I'm already excited about going back next year!

All of the gins were absolutely delicious, and if I had to pick a favourite it would be the Willem Barentsz Premium Gin - so crisp and refreshing! I think that these boxes would be an absolutely lovely gift for a gin lover like me, and definitely something to consider when it comes to Christmas shopping this year.

They're £24.99 for one box, which I think is really good considering it contains eight measures of gin, and it works out as an even better deal when you sign up for a longer amount of time. There are the options to subscribe for three months, or even a year. Just imagine how amazing it would be to have a box of gin delivered to your door every month for a year!

The Gin Explorer team also asked me to put my baking skills to the test, and so I attempted to make a delicious looking Gin and Tonic Bundt Cake recipe which I spotted on the Sainsbury's website. I have to say it didn't quite work as well as I had hoped, although I think this is partly to do with the fact that I didn't quite have enough self raising flour, so tried to top it up with plain flour and some raising agents.


You will need:

For the cake:

275g unsalted butter
3 tbsp milk
15 juniper berries, crushed
275g caster sugar
4 large eggs
zest of 2 limes, plus zest of 1/2 lime to decorate
275g self raising flour

For the syrup:

150ml gin
150ml tonic water
100g caster sugar
15 juniper berries, crushed

For the icing:
150g icing sugar
2 tbsp gin

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees, 160 degrees fan or to gas mark 4 and grease your chosen bundt tin.

2. Gently heat your milk and crushed juniper berries in a small saucepan until warm, and then set aside.

3. Cream together your sugar and butter until light and fluffy, and then add in each egg one at a time, followed by the lime zest.

4. Mix in the flour and then strain the milk into the mixture, discarding the juniper berries.

5. Spoon into your bundt team, and then bake for 45 minutes, until it is golden and risen (hopefully more than mine did), and a skewer comes out clean.

6. Whilst the cake is in the oven make your syrup. Combine all of the ingredients in a small saucepan and set over a low heat until the sugar melts. Then increase the heat to high, and simmer for 7-10 minutes until the mixture has reduced by half. Strain into a jug, discarding the juniper berries.

7. This is the step where the recipe and I differ in opinions. The original recipe suggests taking the cake out of the oven, immediately poking holes into it and then pouring the syrup over before letting it sit for ten minutes. I would suggest that you loosen your cake from the mould first, as I found that the syrup made the cake stick to the mould which made it really difficult to get out. Then, turn onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.

8. Finally, to make the icing mix your icing sugar and gin together, and then pour over your cake. You can adjust the icing sugar/gin quantities to suit your preference. Finish it off my topping with the last of your lime zest. Leave to set, and then serve! Preferably with a gin and tonic ;)

Here's what is on our menu this week:

MONDAY - Harissa roasted root veg with quinoa + zesty yoghurt

TUESDAY - Turkish meatballs with tabbouleh + houmous

WEDNESDAY - I'm out for dinner, so it's fish fingers, chips + peas for the boys!

THURSDAY - Pesto tortellini + veg

FRIDAY - Homemade pizza

LUNCHES - Mexican chilli bean soup + Thai green chicken soup with seeded rolls

The first page in this month's section of my bullet journal is a quote from Anne of Green Gables, "I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers". I feel like this is quite fitting for me as October is by far my favourite month of the year. I really like to start each month with a title page so I can clearly see where one ends and the next begins.


I then have a double page spread for my highlights, goals and to do list for the month. I've been tracking my highlights, which are my favourite moments of each day, for the past couple of months and it's really nice to look back at the little things that made me happy. I've never had a monthly goal section or to do list before, so I thought I would try it out this month and see if I actually used it.


Next I have my meal plan for the month, which I will fill out week by week. Again this is a new system, as normally I just write them as and when, but I thought it would be fun to see the whole month at a glance. Alongside that I have a page called Little Loves for my #LittleLoves posts which I write each week and link up with Coffee Work Sleep Repeat. I actually got the idea for this from Hayley from Home who has recently shared her Bullet Journal set-up, and has something similar in it.


I've then got my weekly spreads, which I've stripped down and taken back to basics. I used to track so many things, such as my meals, my five a day, my reading and so on, but I felt like I needed a little break from all of that this month. Instead I have a simple grid for my to do list, my blog planner, and a space to jot down my plans for the next week. There's also one blank spot that I actually haven't actually got a use for yet; I will just use trial and error throughout the month and figure out what I need. That is the beauty of a bullet journal, you can make it fit your needs at all times.


And that's everything I've got at the moment! Very stripped back from what I'm used to, but I'm excited to go back to basics, and find out what works for me again. I think that has to be my favourite thing about having a Bullet Journal as opposed to a regular diary; the flexibility just makes the world of difference to me.

For reference I use a dotted Leuchtturm 1917 notebook with a white cover, but there are so many colours to choose from (next time I want the turquoise one!) + Staedler Triplus Fineliners which are brilliant as they don't go through the paper. I also love using Mildliners which are a type of highlighter, but come in unsual, more muted shades - my favourite one is grey! To decorate the pages I often use washi tape, all of which I buy on eBay as they are so cheap and there are thousands of colours and patterns to choose from. I also use a good old fashioned pencil, along with a ruler and rubber, when I'm planning out my spreads so I don't make any mistakes.

Please follow my Instagram board for more inspiration:

Overall, we've been really impressed with the Messy Me tunic bib, and I now have my eye on the splash mat which would be perfect to go under the highchair and protect my beige carpet from any more stains!

Here's what is on our menu this week:

MONDAY - Sausage, mash, sauerkraut + veg

TUESDAY - Leek, pea + pancetta tagliatelle

WEDNESDAY - Spaghetti bolognese

THURSDAY - Broccoli and tomato quiche + veg

FRIDAY - Halloumi + vegetable curry

LUNCHES - Homemade curried carrot, butternut squash and lentil soup