The no fail birthday cake - ideal for blokes who don't bake

So you think you can't make a birthday or celebration cake, think again! It seems inevitable that at some time or another there will be a request from one of your children that you make them a birthday cake for school, kindy or for a home party. I've got a fail proof way for you to master this task.

First of all: don't panic. Making a cake will earn you big brownie points with everyone - and this one is REAL EASY. There's no cooking, if you are able to melt some butter you can do this. The other great thing about this cake is you can add any type of biscuits or lollies to suit to customise it for the birthday recipient.

So give it a go, you don't even need a birthday as an excuse and it's a great recipe for the kids to help choose the ingridients and then help with the mixing.

This makes one Cake serves 6-8 - you will need:
* 18 Arnott's Choc Ripple biscuits or biscuit of your choice
* 8 1/4 cup Cookies & Cream Ice-cream or your choice

Easter and Dads

Dads have the power to enchant the kids when they can indulge in simple activities and celebrations along with the kids, and Easter provides an excellent opportunity for this. In addition to Easter decorations for the home, here are a few creative activities that will excite the kids immeasurably if dad can join them:

1. Baking an Easter Bunny Cake: If dad does not do much cooking, it is still possible to bake a bunny cake using a cake mix and readymade frosting that makes the job simple. But it will simply amaze the kids to see their dad baking a cake, and the Bunny Cake is going to be something too special for any kid in the world anyway.

2. Decorating Easter Eggs: All you need to do is to poke a small hole delicately in an egg, and drain it out till the shell becomes empty. Clean it, dry it, and now it is ready for funny decorations. Let your imagination run a riot, and encourage the kids to let their creative juices flow on the eggshells to create some wonderful decorations.

Time Management: Barely Sufficient is Enough

Time, just like money, is a resource that must be managed properly. Time is the great equalizer. While there is no limit to the amount of money you can amass, there is a limit to the amount of time we have. We each have the same 24 hours each day, yet why do some people accomplish more?

When you start plugging the holes in your budget, you start to see the holes in your day.”Oh, I’ll just run to the store and pick it up,” turns into “I didn’t realize it takes 40 minutes just to buy a stick of butter!”

Getting In to a Scrum
One way I plug the leaks in my schedule is to employ the principle of “barely sufficient.” It’s a term I came to know while spending time with some software developers using Scrum at their workplace.

Things I wish I had taught my son... And still can #98: start, stop and keep doing

Start, stop and keep on doing...

About 12 years ago, I learned a helpful technique that can be used to improve friendships, romantic relationships, work environments, business practices, and accountability in clubs and organizations. This three sentence exercise can be used anywhere a person expects some type of positive behavior from the other member or members of a group and vice versa. When consulting, I have used this potent little communication device to work the kinks out of a stagnant team.

The three simple little sentences that had the power to transform the group were the following:

I want you to start ___________.

I want you to stop ____________.

I want you to keep on __________.

Yes... It's that simple.

Intelligent Self Defense Karate

Being a father of 4 children, their safety is always on my mind especially as my 3 teenagers become more independent, to me the streets don’t seem as safe as they used to be, and it’s not just the streets, social events and parties can quickly get out of control.

Having done a level of security work myself as a night club bouncer I have seen my fair number of fights just appear out of nowhere, so I do worry about my kids.

However I know my kids are not going to want to me to follow them everywhere, so they are just going to have to learn to recognise potential risks and avoid them, but in the event that they are caught up in a situation, they need to know what to do as safely and quickly as possible.

I found this great self defence video, which as the title says is the most intelligent form of self defence I have seen.

Simple breakfast swaps for children

This week the NZ Heart Foundation released a statement about encouraging children to eat a healthier breakfast. The media release contains the usual sobering stats on the state of children's diets. What I really liked about the second part of the media release was the idea of simple breakfast swaps. I.e. swapping a less healthy option for a healthier one. To make it easy for parents, the Heart Foundation have launched their "TICK" programme which provides an easy system to identify healthy choices in the supermarket (just look out for the "tick" from the Heart Foundation). Swapping standard breakfast options with the ones that fit the "Tick" Programme can remove more than a teaspoon of saturated fat and about as much salt as found in a packet of potato chips from your child’s breakfast every day, according to the Heart Foundation.

Top 10 things to use baby wipes for

Baby-wipes have GOT TO be one of the most useful, usable and versatile products of all times. Don't you think? I've become a real baby-wipes fan since I became a dad. They are just so easy to use and have saved my reputation as fully involved and skilled-up father many times (look mum - no mess!). They have also saved just about every surface in the house from permanent stains ...

So over time I've started using them for all sorts of things that are nothing to do with the baby. The final triumph came the other day when I pretty much cleaned the whole interior of my car with baby wipes. So I thought a quick top 10 list of what you can use baby wipes for is appropriate. Here it goes:

1) Car interior (especially seats and hard to reach places)
2) Office desk and furniture
3) Door frames
4) Greasy tools
5) Computer keyboard and screen (no marks!)
6) Bike

Dads and Study

I do think we are missing a gem when it comes to helping our teenagers study and pass exams. That gem is the fathers and the important role they can play. In my experience, Dads tend only to get wheeled in if things are going wrong or some kind of reward/punishment needs to be issued. Now I know that is not the same in every house and I am speaking in generalist terms here. However, over and over again in the many families I have worked with, we are not using fathers to their full potential. And I know some of these statements are very stereotypical and they may put the feminine and masculine movement back years, however I think sometimes you just need to say what is – make of it what you will.

Dads, you have important skills your teenagers need. The biggest reason most children fail at exams is simply that they cannot get themselves organised in a logical way and I think that this is where Dads can really shine.

Resolutions Revisited

In 2009 I resolve to stop yelling at my kids.

That is precisely the New Year’s pledge that Marion Budnick broke the first week of the new year. It wasn’t that she didn’t have positive intentions. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to end the yelling. It wasn’t even that she wasn’t sincere about her goal. All of those were firmly in place. Yet something else was missing.

Marion Budnick sincerely wanted to stop yelling at her children, but she had no idea of what to do instead. She knew what she wanted to stop, but she didn’t have an appropriate replacement behavior in mind for when she felt like yelling.

Reading With Your Kids

One sociologist, looking over 8,000 years of human history, writes that the measure of wealth is the ability to own a book and be able to read it. Literacy is the ultimate luxury. And yet, in that regard, our country is becoming poorer and poorer.

Instill a love of reading into your children by reading books with them and discussing them as you go along. This could include novels they’re reading in school or supplementary reading. Make your children truly rich in spirit – read with them!

Warmly,

Mark Brandenburg

Mark Brandenburg MA, CPCC
mark@eqnow.org
www.markbrandenburg.com
www.eqnow.org
Phone (+1) 651-766-9976
"Helping Men Succeed"