Tuesday Happenings

The knitting is coming along nicely. I have decided to make Rhianna a full sized single bed blanket. I guesstimate that it's going to take about 64 squares and so far I have done 3. But I am really enjoying it and an added bonus is that it stops me picking at food late at night. If I'm lucky enough to still be awake after everybody else then I just pick up my knitting while I watch T.V. And you can't knit and nibble - it's just not possible.

The squares start to pile up

Well, I have finally accepted it. I am not a camper. I have tried to camp - many times. I have been in tents and caravans and then we bought this camper. I have hated camping, I have endured camping and sometimes I even tolerated camping but I never came close to liking it.

So, in a massive declutter we are selling our camper. Hopefully we'll make enough to enjoy some 5 star hotels sometime soon. Now, that's what I call a holiday.

And this is my Op shop find of the year so far. I found it at an op shop up at Mum's on the Central Coast (Toukley, if you know the area). Being a teacher and having had to buy these for various pre-schools I have worked at, I know they cost about $40-$50. I got this in mint condition for $2. Rhianna is using it in her room for motivation. As you can see motivation is low when you have a slave, I mean, mother like me.

Have a great day everybody.

Cheesy Mustard Turnovers

3 sheets puff pastry - defrosted

Half cup dijon mustard

2 cups chopped sun dried tomatoes

asparagus spears - fresh

210gms of tasty cheese - grated

1 egg - beaten (add a pinch of salt)

Preheat oven to 220 degrees.

Line baking trays with baking paper. Place one sheet of pastry on each tray. Leave a 2cm border and spread the pastry with the mustard.

Cover half the pastry with a third of the grated cheese, a third of the sun dried tomatoes and one third of the apsparagus spears.

Fold the pastry over to enclose the contents and use a fork to press the edges of the pastry together. Cut two slits in the top of each pastry for ventilation. Brush the top with beaten egg. Repeat with the other pastry and ingredients.

Bake turnovers in the oven for 25-30 minutes until puffed and golden. Allow to stand for 5 minutes and serve with salad.

Bon Appetit

Spring Cleaning (in Autumn!)

Yesterday Bill and I devoted the whole day to doing those yucky household jobs that you put off for weeks and weeks because, well... they're yucky.

The pool area was a mess. Because we have limited storage area in this house, the pool area and our outdoor entertaining area tend to be a dumping ground for large useless items such as art easels and old chairs and pool toys.

So my first job of the morning was to clean up the pool area and get the plants around it looking a bit better.

Then onto the entertaining area. This was a mess and I forgot to take a before photo but here is the end result. I said to Bill, it's crazy us having that huge BBQ now that we are vegetarian. I suppose we could still do BBQ fish and vegies but I prefer to do fish on my healthy grill as it doesn't dry the fish out.

That black torture rack looking thing is a back stretcher. You strap yourself in and then it inverts you and you hang upside down for a while. It's fabulous if you have a back problem.

Here's my good friend Julie, having a turn on Friday night. She's a hairdresser and has a bit of a bad back herself. She sure looks like she's not feeling any pain at the moment or maybe it was that Tia Maria she had just before she hopped on. In any case, she's having a fine old time now.

I just wanted to show you the windows I cleaned - with vinegar and on old towel. It's such a satisfying job to complete as the whole house sparkles.

Although I won't miss the hot weather, its kinda sad when Summer comes to an end and you realise that days spent in the pool are over, friends over for all night BBQ's are finished and little swimmers have to be packed away for the Winter. But I do love Autumn. And now it's time to get to work on my Winter activities.

You win some, you lose some....

Week 2 into my crochet class, the teacher thought it might be better if I tried my hand at knitting. Yes, I was a complete failure.

After getting me some knitting needles, she thought I should start on the sort of projects she teaches the dementia patients at the local nursing home. Am I really that tragic????

Luckily, I have a wonderful friend named Michelle who thinks I've just had the wrong teacher and has offered to teach me to crochet herself. Once I get over the embarrassment of failure I will take her up on the offer.

In the meantime I am knitting a blanket - patchwork style for Rhianna's bed. The photo has altered the colours a lot. It is actually a lovely pink square and the next lot on the needles is white. I figure I will have to knit at least 30 squares to make a blanket big enough for her bed so that should keep me busy (and warm) during the winter months.




I am having some success with the vegetarian thing though. My son has not cottoned on to the fact that he hasn't eaten red meat this week and some of the new recipes are turning out very nicely. Last night, I made this - which is a cheeesy mustard turnover. Everyone, even Miss R though this was a keeper.

And finally some recycled craft from Rhianna. Here she has made a texta container from half a cereal box, paddlepop sticks, some old bits of leftover scrapbook ribbon and some apple pictures cut from a magazine. She's so proud of it.

Have a great green weekend everybody.

The Others

You might be forgiven when reading this blog to think there are only two people in this family - myself and my daughter Rhianna. But no, there are two others who I love dearly and share this home with. Although they are not nearly as interested as Rhianna in being in my blog life.

So, I dedicate this one post to them.

My husband, William.

We have been married 12 years this year and he is without doubt the love of my life. I met him when I was on my own with a small child, my son Broc. He was courageous enough to date a woman who already had a child. He took on the challenge of raising another man's son both financially and emotionally. In all the years I have known him, he has never done anything dishonourable to another person. He is the very essence of the word "good". He makes me laugh out loud daily and I thank God every day for giving me this beautiful person to share my life with.

Bill and Rhianna

Then there is my son Broc. He is 19 this year. It's hard to describe the relationship I have with my son. We were on our own together for 5 years before I met Bill and during that time I went to University full time while Broc went to day care. I sat through many lecturers balancing a sick baby on one leg and a notepad on the other. I remember finishing an assignment on bilingualism while sititng next to Broc in a hospital bed (asthma). So when I finally got my degee, it felt like we'd both earnt it.

I feel so proud of the young man he has become. He has embraced Bill fully as his dad, loves his little sister Rhianna without question and is just a genuinely nice person to be around. He has completed a diploma at TAFE and now has a good job in IT at a local high school. I love him more than words can say. In fact, these may be the only words I ever type about him as he hates to be mentioned on my blog. But I wanted to honour both the men in my life with at least one mention here.

Broc and Rhianna

Now back to our regular programming.......

Wacky Wednesday

I didn't post a Meatless Monday recipe this week because....drum roll please... we have decided to give up red meat and chicken. I don't think this qualifies us as vegetarian as we will continue to eat fish and animal products such as eggs but I can't continue to keep eating red meat knowing how livestock is treated in an abattoir and everybody not living in Siberia knows how battery chickens are farmed.

It just weighed on my mind so much and finally after discussing it with my wonderful husband we decided to become semi-veg. I have not however told my 18 year old son but honestly he is so vague, I'm sure it'll be 6 months before he even notices the change.

Last night we had some turkish bread and dakkhua and this beautiful organic salad. So yummy.



This week I'm in Rhianna's room again. I can't actually believe the junk I am hauling out of there as I only decluttered just before Xmas. But I have managed to reorganise 2 cupboards into one in her room. It involved much purging but it has left me with.....

....one whole spare, empty cupboard. Oh the joy, the excitement at having SPACE where formally there was clutter. I have been going in there during the day just to gaze at the vastness of it and to imagine the possibilities of that cupboard. The blankets and throws will be out soon on beds and lounges for Winter and then it will be mine, all mine.......



Here's hoping your day was a little bit more exciting than mine.

A Bunch of Nothings

Here are some random things happening around here lately:

Going to the library (also doubles as my SS tip of the day) Don't buy books if you can get them from the library. This week's reading pictured below.

I got this craft idea off the net. It's my Dad's birthday on the weekend so I made him some "special" tea bags - except they're coffee bags cause he doesn't drink tea and he gets to see his grandaughter jiggle with every cup he has.
We got rid of the microwave. We rarely used it and Bill and I both have some real issues with how the heating process changes the molecular structure of the food. Plus I just wanted the extra bench space.

Rhianna can't believe we would just give something away for no good reason (as she sees it).
Nooooooooo...............


But Bill takes it to work as someone there is sure to grab it.

Also loving my friend Bec's new baby. 11 week old Erin is just adorable and so cuddly to hold.
Thanks for lunch Bec and letting me cuddle and kiss your gorgeous new baby

And there you have it, a whole bunch of nothings happening here today.