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How to made this decadent Reader favourite: 5 Minute Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie (with Easy Homemade Chocolate Chips!)

Bars and cookies | Desserts | Recipes

How to made this decadent Reader favourite: 5 Minute Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie (with Easy Homemade Chocolate Chips!)

Hi there!

I'm Kezia

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Mum, wife, bee keeper and 5am coffee drinker based in West Sussex, England. I'm also a blogger who doesn't really love the internet. But I love the power of community for bringing change, and I'm here to help you make sustainable choices feel easier and more manageable. From reducing food waste to embracing second-hand treasures, I want to navigate this journey together. Join me for budget-friendly food tips, ethical fashion, and building a whole home that loves people, planet, and personal health. Step by step, with no judgement along the way! Read more...

the.whole.home

Somehow I started a birthday tradition with our ki

Somehow I started a birthday tradition with our kids where I spend their birthday week cutting and sticking together our recycling bin. 🤷🏻‍♀️😅 But I love it. I LOVE any time we can celebrate and be festive and create memories each year without huge spending or consuming. I love showing our kids that celebration isn’t about a ton of new stuff - that so much joy can come from humble things and creating traditions around that. I hope that’s a value they’ll carry for life - that we can celebrate people hugely without it negatively impacting the planet, or the people creating what we consume or living around the landfill that holds the remains of our celebration.

So each year I take a box and create the number they’re turning. We fill it with chocolates or little things, and it’s been a favourite moment of every party so far. And then it gets recycled or goes in compost for a new life. Note: this is not how to actually make a piñata 🥴 - this is how I take what we already have and turn it into our own scrappy version of something far more beautiful. But given I’m now seeing mass produced, chain store, non recyclable ones with virgin resources pop up more and more… I wanted to throw out our scrappy DIY version that brings no less joy (and maybe more all aspects considered) but is a lot more sustainable. ❤️

Originally some say piñatas have Aztec roots, others that they’re a seed filled harvest tradition from China brought back to Europe from Marco Polo. They have many associations and meanings to different cultures along the way. Recently people have expressed concern about the violence of children hitting a character…. we always shape them as a number (not least, it’s within my creative abilities and time constraints!) and not a character and it takes some managing in a party setting 😆but I don’t think it instills violence.

Do you have favourite humble and sustainable traditions to buck the trend of consumerism and spending and stuff for celebration moments?

Tis the season… to make an impact. 👏 Truth is

Tis the season… to make an impact. 👏 Truth is we all make an impact each day of our lives with what we consume - we get to choose what that impact is.
.
I know doing better with sourcing can be challenging. For me treats and luxury items are a great place to start - cos we can easily say no if/when/until we have a better option. And thanks for brands like @tonyschocolonely_uk_ire - and so many others doing better through business, we have options.
.
This is our third year with the advent calendar - stop reading if you don’t want spoilers - and I love the mix of a chunky fair trade chocolate, but also a mini bite of education about the industry and it’s impact. And what we can do. 🙌 On one day, you’ll find no chocolate. It’s to highlight the unfair and unequal industry. That while we enjoy a luxury, and companies enjoy huge profits, others experience slavery, unfair pay and working conditions no one should. It shouldn’t be that way. And Tony’s exist to show and change that. I love that kind of business. My kids were able to understand the important lesson last year at 5 and 7 but *parent tip* if you want to avoid that - you can open it up from behind and move the additional one they put on the next day, so there’s a chocolate each day!
.
#prgift - this product was gifted (not in exchange for money or posting) but it’s my joy to post about something I care about and matters! #fairtrade #plasticfree #tonyschocolonely #fairtradechocolate #slavefreechocolate #slavefree #adventcalendar #ethicallymade #ethicalshopping #ethicalbrand

Oh Black Friday! My challenge: be honest with ours

Oh Black Friday! My challenge: be honest with ourselves and USE IT to live more diligently in light of people and planet, which is ultimately people again too. We can fight the marketing and social norms and do it! ❤️
.
If we can avoid shopping. YES! Choose that! If we can only shop things already in circulation (second hand) EPIC. Let’s choose that. (Gifting ideas on the blog for both of those!)
.
But if we’re shopping. If. Then lets PLEASE use lower prices to do better. We who get to! Few people are swanning around able to make the most sustainable, healthy, ethical choices without noticing the price… so let’s USE lower prices to make better choices. To be honest with ourselves and accountable to do better with what we have.
.
And also, lets use sales to be diligent with our money. So we can put it where it most needs to go in this season. Small businesses need our money, I’m not suggesting we should shop sales cos they don’t need it. But also, let’s be the most diligent where we can - so we can use our money and have the most to give and put in many places in this world where it’s so needed this holiday season! - or just to know we’ve been diligent with what we have. That’s always the goal. ❤️
.
Gift guides with non-gifting and non-purchasing options on the blog thewholehome.co.uk

Birthday tradition, wake-up to a surprise cake. 🥳🍰
.
This year’s request was Pokémon, and Arcanine is his favourite so ⬆️🥰 (Pre birthday mum tradition: stay up to way too late and panic that you can’t remember how to ice a cake anymore. 🤣)
.
The cake is a quick and simple vanilla sponge, the recipes on the blog and swipe for it in the carousel. I used buttercream and “natural” food colour and cocoa for the frosting then piped the hits on top with a fine nozzle. I make it in the blender: just blend icing sugar, butter, vanilla and water.
.
And then the real life clean up 😆
.
It’s a family tradition I love most about birthdays, and they’re so fun to look back on and remember the moments and what the kids (and us as and kids!) were loving at each stage!
.

A quick guide: How to filter the people you’re s

A quick guide: How to filter the people you’re shopping for, for more sustainable and ethical holiday gifting! ➡️
.
Shopping consciously for people who don’t always share that value can be hard. Or even if they do, it can be hard! 😅Not to mention pricey. So here are some practical steps for walking through with your list of people to shop for so that you have have the most positive footprint possible this holiday season. We can rethink without losing the joy… maybe it could bring even more. ❤️
.
Maybe as we watch the world this season, we choose mutual gifts to charity in place of shopping, or maybe we choose all second hand and to celebrate what’s already in circulation, or maybe we carefully choose the companies having the most positive impact on the planet. Those are all wins on this journey! 👏
.
In all honesty, I both love and hate talking about the gifting and ideas in this season. 🎁 I want to do everything I can to help people choose away from the consumerism and “buy buy buy” mentality and social norms of this season. Because the fast production, and waste it creates is so detrimental to people and planet.
.
And then also… I know that shopping is what we do! Currently, it’s the norm and how we celebrate. And actually the stepping stones of doing it BETTER are more useful than telling people not to shop. So this is how we take our list of people and go through to see how we can be the most conscious without losing the celebration and joy!
.
#slowliving #slowshopping

PSA: you still have time to NOT be a part of the s $PSA: you still have time to NOT be a part of the statistics about the waste or Halloween, and it’s detrimental impact on humans and the planet. . This only touches on a fraction of why stopping the waste matters and the impact - but more importantly, how to do it: . Make a plan while there’s still time! Plan outfit(s) that uses what you already have. If that really doesn’t work, plan now while there’s time to get something second hand. Look at EBay used, Vinted, Facebook marketplace, Oxfam online in the UK, or local charity shops. There is SO MUCH already in circulation no one ever needs to buy new. If you have something you’re not wearing, bows the moment to sell it on or loan it out! Help someone else. And if you have a plan that means you “have” to buy something new… try to hold it loosely and be open to a new plan that can use something already in circulation. No party or outfit or evening theme is worth the cost of clothes done badly. If you’re worried about kids having fun, or their expectations… remember there’s also an important lesson in adjusting our fun and luxuries for the good of other people! That conversation is as valuable as getting to be what they want for a night! ❤️ . You can do it and have fun! 🎃 . #waste #fastfashion #$

I don’t like talking where I’m not an expert… and I don’t feel like an expert here. But I wanted to break this down a little!
.
If you want to take action but feel a little confused or overwhelmed… you’re not alone 😆 The website stopcambo.co.uk/act gives a helpful breakdown and easy ways to take action if you want to!
.
It’s complicated. It always is. It’s nuanced. It always is in some way. But we can start by understanding and feeling empowered to communicate and take action if we want to!

I suited up to feed the bees today in their new ho

I suited up to feed the bees today in their new home at our house! 🐝 After being stung in the face, I’m a hit nervy around then and I’m having to breathe and find my confidence again. I’m getting there. Kind of.
.
We feed them at this time of year to ensure they have sufficient stores for the winter when they’re not foraging. We don’t want to get into a pattern where feed them cos we took too much honey. This year we took nothing from one hive and only a little broken piece from the other. But we can just feel the hives (one especially) isn’t heavy enough to have enough stores in to last winter. So we want to help them - that’s why they’re being fed! 🐝
.
I’m a m novice still at bees, learning as I go. But I love getting to do something to help the bees!

Final family day in Kassel and a day off together!

Final family day in Kassel and a day off together! We went to the bank, got coffee at @sattundgluecklich.kassel, stocked up on food and organic @bioland_official wine at @lidlde, and went by @nachfuellbar_kassel a bulk plastic free store to pick up some house staples.
.
When we first looked at this job, we planned to all come out and live here. Everything changed so many times 🤪 and a massive admin screw up at the end of his PhD (uni’s, but his 😬) meant that just didn’t work anymore with the kids school etc. I got over it quickly but now seeing this beautiful town and it’s people… I’m a little sad to have missed the chance to live here for a moment! (And no, he’s on a visiting professor contract and visa… there’s no chance it’s being extended and we move! 😉) I keep thinking about what it would be like to live here longer and have the kids learn the language and really soak it all up and have this homeschooling on the road adventure together... but that ship sailed for us. So we head home!
.
And I’m also a total homebody who loves home (I just forget that for the first few days of any trip!) and I know I’m excited to drive tomorrow and be back home again. 😍

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the.whole.home

Somehow I started a birthday tradition with our ki

Somehow I started a birthday tradition with our kids where I spend their birthday week cutting and sticking together our recycling bin. 🤷🏻‍♀️😅 But I love it. I LOVE any time we can celebrate and be festive and create memories each year without huge spending or consuming. I love showing our kids that celebration isn’t about a ton of new stuff - that so much joy can come from humble things and creating traditions around that. I hope that’s a value they’ll carry for life - that we can celebrate people hugely without it negatively impacting the planet, or the people creating what we consume or living around the landfill that holds the remains of our celebration.

So each year I take a box and create the number they’re turning. We fill it with chocolates or little things, and it’s been a favourite moment of every party so far. And then it gets recycled or goes in compost for a new life. Note: this is not how to actually make a piñata 🥴 - this is how I take what we already have and turn it into our own scrappy version of something far more beautiful. But given I’m now seeing mass produced, chain store, non recyclable ones with virgin resources pop up more and more… I wanted to throw out our scrappy DIY version that brings no less joy (and maybe more all aspects considered) but is a lot more sustainable. ❤️

Originally some say piñatas have Aztec roots, others that they’re a seed filled harvest tradition from China brought back to Europe from Marco Polo. They have many associations and meanings to different cultures along the way. Recently people have expressed concern about the violence of children hitting a character…. we always shape them as a number (not least, it’s within my creative abilities and time constraints!) and not a character and it takes some managing in a party setting 😆but I don’t think it instills violence.

Do you have favourite humble and sustainable traditions to buck the trend of consumerism and spending and stuff for celebration moments?

Tis the season… to make an impact. 👏 Truth is

Tis the season… to make an impact. 👏 Truth is we all make an impact each day of our lives with what we consume - we get to choose what that impact is.
.
I know doing better with sourcing can be challenging. For me treats and luxury items are a great place to start - cos we can easily say no if/when/until we have a better option. And thanks for brands like @tonyschocolonely_uk_ire - and so many others doing better through business, we have options.
.
This is our third year with the advent calendar - stop reading if you don’t want spoilers - and I love the mix of a chunky fair trade chocolate, but also a mini bite of education about the industry and it’s impact. And what we can do. 🙌 On one day, you’ll find no chocolate. It’s to highlight the unfair and unequal industry. That while we enjoy a luxury, and companies enjoy huge profits, others experience slavery, unfair pay and working conditions no one should. It shouldn’t be that way. And Tony’s exist to show and change that. I love that kind of business. My kids were able to understand the important lesson last year at 5 and 7 but *parent tip* if you want to avoid that - you can open it up from behind and move the additional one they put on the next day, so there’s a chocolate each day!
.
#prgift - this product was gifted (not in exchange for money or posting) but it’s my joy to post about something I care about and matters! #fairtrade #plasticfree #tonyschocolonely #fairtradechocolate #slavefreechocolate #slavefree #adventcalendar #ethicallymade #ethicalshopping #ethicalbrand

Oh Black Friday! My challenge: be honest with ours

Oh Black Friday! My challenge: be honest with ourselves and USE IT to live more diligently in light of people and planet, which is ultimately people again too. We can fight the marketing and social norms and do it! ❤️
.
If we can avoid shopping. YES! Choose that! If we can only shop things already in circulation (second hand) EPIC. Let’s choose that. (Gifting ideas on the blog for both of those!)
.
But if we’re shopping. If. Then lets PLEASE use lower prices to do better. We who get to! Few people are swanning around able to make the most sustainable, healthy, ethical choices without noticing the price… so let’s USE lower prices to make better choices. To be honest with ourselves and accountable to do better with what we have.
.
And also, lets use sales to be diligent with our money. So we can put it where it most needs to go in this season. Small businesses need our money, I’m not suggesting we should shop sales cos they don’t need it. But also, let’s be the most diligent where we can - so we can use our money and have the most to give and put in many places in this world where it’s so needed this holiday season! - or just to know we’ve been diligent with what we have. That’s always the goal. ❤️
.
Gift guides with non-gifting and non-purchasing options on the blog thewholehome.co.uk

Birthday tradition, wake-up to a surprise cake. 🥳🍰
.
This year’s request was Pokémon, and Arcanine is his favourite so ⬆️🥰 (Pre birthday mum tradition: stay up to way too late and panic that you can’t remember how to ice a cake anymore. 🤣)
.
The cake is a quick and simple vanilla sponge, the recipes on the blog and swipe for it in the carousel. I used buttercream and “natural” food colour and cocoa for the frosting then piped the hits on top with a fine nozzle. I make it in the blender: just blend icing sugar, butter, vanilla and water.
.
And then the real life clean up 😆
.
It’s a family tradition I love most about birthdays, and they’re so fun to look back on and remember the moments and what the kids (and us as and kids!) were loving at each stage!
.

A quick guide: How to filter the people you’re s

A quick guide: How to filter the people you’re shopping for, for more sustainable and ethical holiday gifting! ➡️
.
Shopping consciously for people who don’t always share that value can be hard. Or even if they do, it can be hard! 😅Not to mention pricey. So here are some practical steps for walking through with your list of people to shop for so that you have have the most positive footprint possible this holiday season. We can rethink without losing the joy… maybe it could bring even more. ❤️
.
Maybe as we watch the world this season, we choose mutual gifts to charity in place of shopping, or maybe we choose all second hand and to celebrate what’s already in circulation, or maybe we carefully choose the companies having the most positive impact on the planet. Those are all wins on this journey! 👏
.
In all honesty, I both love and hate talking about the gifting and ideas in this season. 🎁 I want to do everything I can to help people choose away from the consumerism and “buy buy buy” mentality and social norms of this season. Because the fast production, and waste it creates is so detrimental to people and planet.
.
And then also… I know that shopping is what we do! Currently, it’s the norm and how we celebrate. And actually the stepping stones of doing it BETTER are more useful than telling people not to shop. So this is how we take our list of people and go through to see how we can be the most conscious without losing the celebration and joy!
.
#slowliving #slowshopping

PSA: you still have time to NOT be a part of the s $PSA: you still have time to NOT be a part of the statistics about the waste or Halloween, and it’s detrimental impact on humans and the planet. . This only touches on a fraction of why stopping the waste matters and the impact - but more importantly, how to do it: . Make a plan while there’s still time! Plan outfit(s) that uses what you already have. If that really doesn’t work, plan now while there’s time to get something second hand. Look at EBay used, Vinted, Facebook marketplace, Oxfam online in the UK, or local charity shops. There is SO MUCH already in circulation no one ever needs to buy new. If you have something you’re not wearing, bows the moment to sell it on or loan it out! Help someone else. And if you have a plan that means you “have” to buy something new… try to hold it loosely and be open to a new plan that can use something already in circulation. No party or outfit or evening theme is worth the cost of clothes done badly. If you’re worried about kids having fun, or their expectations… remember there’s also an important lesson in adjusting our fun and luxuries for the good of other people! That conversation is as valuable as getting to be what they want for a night! ❤️ . You can do it and have fun! 🎃 . #waste #fastfashion #$

I don’t like talking where I’m not an expert… and I don’t feel like an expert here. But I wanted to break this down a little!
.
If you want to take action but feel a little confused or overwhelmed… you’re not alone 😆 The website stopcambo.co.uk/act gives a helpful breakdown and easy ways to take action if you want to!
.
It’s complicated. It always is. It’s nuanced. It always is in some way. But we can start by understanding and feeling empowered to communicate and take action if we want to!

I suited up to feed the bees today in their new ho

I suited up to feed the bees today in their new home at our house! 🐝 After being stung in the face, I’m a hit nervy around then and I’m having to breathe and find my confidence again. I’m getting there. Kind of.
.
We feed them at this time of year to ensure they have sufficient stores for the winter when they’re not foraging. We don’t want to get into a pattern where feed them cos we took too much honey. This year we took nothing from one hive and only a little broken piece from the other. But we can just feel the hives (one especially) isn’t heavy enough to have enough stores in to last winter. So we want to help them - that’s why they’re being fed! 🐝
.
I’m a m novice still at bees, learning as I go. But I love getting to do something to help the bees!

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