Caitriona Redmond: Deals on suncream and easy snacks for children

Summery stew: hearty fare that suits the temperature

Now that secondary schools are finished for the school year (unless you’ve an exam student) I’ve welcomed a space invader to the home. This 6-foot still-a-child has the run of the house and the kitchen is his personal snack pantry. Despite his height, he likes to eat like a hobbit; this morning the first breakfast started at 6am because he woke early hungry, then there’s elevenses, lunch, afternoon snacks, and dinner. At least when the secondary students were in school eating was more structured but now I need to budget more so that there are healthy snacks available and he doesn’t go hungry. It’s a proven fact that my working space will get invaded more frequently if he’s feeling peckish.

A whole sliced pan is a liability because it’s delectable toast material and if I leave it unattended half a loaf will disappear like a Turlough in the middle of summer. In the warmer weather sliced bread tends to go off much quicker so I half each loaf once bought and freeze them. At least that way the bread lasts a little longer and hungry teenagers have to wait for the bread to defrost, by which time they might have eaten a banana instead.