Weekend Bites: Cheese please 

Let's get a few things straight. We're very good at lots of things in this country but not so good at acknowledging them.

My guinea pig broke his leg playing in my back garden 

Emma's family have two pet cats, but this springtime, she decided that she wanted a pet of her own. The family's cats are independent creatures who only allow themselves to be petted when it suits them. Emma wanted a pet that she could spend time with whenever she feels like it.

INGREDIENTS 

INGREDIENTS

INGREDIENTS 

INGREDIENTS

Fruit that acts like veg 

INGREDIENTS

If I had to become a castaway on a desert island, the one food I'd miss most is tomatoes. I can't imagine life without them. 

If I had to become a castaway on a desert island, the one food I'd miss most is tomatoes. I can't imagine life without them. Round, juicy and sweet, these glorious orbs of flavour have the ability to add a vibrancy and freshness to dishes that nothing else can achieve. Served fresh and raw, they truly are the taste of summer.

The Parent Zone: 'Slapping does not teach a child anything' 

David Carey

Advice for parents from expert David Carey

'Two of my cats have vanished' - where do missing cats go? 

Massimiliano and his family love cats: they see their four pet cats as part of the family. The cats are allowed to come and go as they please, via a cat flap. They are normally creatures of habit, and they are always home in the evening for supper.

Dear Rosanna: 'I'm worried my pregnant partner is putting on too much weight...' 

A pregnant partner who is putting on a lot of weight, a friend whose support seems to wane and a clingy younger sister

Are we over protecting our children? 

Carol Hunt

Climbing trees has got to be one of the great joys of childhood. It certainly was one of mine. Yet, as Irish counselling psychologist and family therapist Fergus Heffernan notes, the vast majority of children today have never, ever, enjoyed that simple pleasure.