Summer is.....

• Backyard cricket
• Paddling pools
• Melting ice-cream
• Sandy bottoms
• Beach treasures
• Shady walks
• Lamb chops on the Barbie
• Sun-kissed shoulders
• Sprinkler runs
• Chins sticky from Summer fruits
• Hot seat belts
• Cottees cordial
• Salty hair
• Flip flops
• Longer days
• Lemonade icy-poles
• Straw hats
• Fresh air
• Bare legs

Happy Australia Day everyone!

 

xox

10 things

In preparation for when (or if) I manage to attract any readers to this little blog of mine I thought I'd divulge 10 random (and kind of strange) things you may not know about me:

1. I have a pretty intense dislike of Sunflowers.  I don't mind the smallish ones too much but the ones that grow so large with the big fleshy middles.....Urgh!  I'm screwing my face up just thinking about them!  My revulsion is so great I crossed the road to avoid having to look at a bunch which were creepily peering over someone's fence on my way to work once.
2. I used to be a Contortionist.
3. I am probably one of the most laid-back people you'll come across, not much ruffles my feathers and it takes a fair bit to upset me but my easy-going nature is unfortunately marred by my occasional bursts of red-headed rage.  Almost always, my temper is directed at myself, mostly in frustration when I fail at something.  It is never usually directed at another person, so don't stress, you're spared from my inner psycho behaviour!  Unfortunately I can't say the same for my Christmas Eve shortbread dough which wasn't turning out as planned.  This ended up stuck to the wall on the opposite side of the kitchen........
4. I am a little superstitious at times with certain things.  I never leave the radio or television volume on "13" as I feel it's bad luck.  And whenever I hear a siren I have to hold my belly-button and find a piece of wood to touch.  It's ridiculous I know, I don't why or how this began to be honest.
5. I travelled around Europe for 6 weeks on my own in my early 20s.  Well I spent my first 3 weeks in Paris as a Nanny for a family who was (and still is) very dear to me.  The next 3 weeks I ventured off completely on my own to do a Contiki style trip around other parts of Europe.  This was an amazing experience which I am so grateful to have had.
6. My above-mentioned trip spurred on a slight travel addiction however I never seem to have enough time or money to do and see as much as I'd like.  My current tally of countries visited to date stands at 12 but there are still a million other places in the world I'd love to see.
7. Growing up I had an extremely odd obsession with chicken pellets.  The full story is probably best left for another day, when you know me a little better and realise that I'm not a complete weirdo!
8. One day I'd like to have 3 pet chickens which will be named Primrose, Daphne and La-Fawnduh.
9. My Husband and I were together 12 years before we were married and he proposed on my 30th Birthday which was the 12th December 2012. 
10. I have a thing for numbers.  8 and 12 seem to pop up a fair bit in our lives, 12 obviously from our engagement date (12/12/12).  My Dad's lucky number is 8 and it was the number of my family home growing up.  8 is also the number of our current house, my car-park at work and the day in which we were married.

So there you go, 10 completely bizarre facts about me you may not have known.

I hope we can still be friends......

Oh, and just because there are no pretty photos in this post, here's a picture of a little muffin I made over the weekend.

You can find the recipe here if you're interested.  I used brown sugar, because brown sugar makes everything taste better!

xox

Jammin

 

I had a lovely day today, pottering around home completing tasks I'd been meaning to do for a while.  After enjoying a leisurely late-ish brekky, the morning was spent spring cleaning and catching up on some washing and in the afternoon I made jam.  Having run out last week, it was on my grocery list so instead of traipsing to the supermarket I thought I'd just make some.

Making jam is easy, especially if your ratio of fruit and sugar is the same.  I thought I'd play around with the flavours this time and threw together a concoction of blueberry and peach.

Given the interesting flavour combo I was a little unsure what it would taste like but it was surprisingly good.  Even better on crumpets.

 

It feels good to complete a task from this list.

Hopefully your weekend was fab.

xox

Lunch date

Today a couple of friends and I wandered down to Dumpling Express for lunch.  We've been here a few times now and always order a variety of the pan fried dumplings which are delicious.

This place is perfect for a quick lunch date.  The food is cheap and cooked quickly which is great if you've got to get back to work.  Be warned though, you may not end up with what you ordered.  We've previously been delivered a few surprise meals but none of us have ever really minded as it's let us try something new.

If you're in the mood for a quick bite to eat, give them a try.

Dumpling Express

3/138 Collins Street, Hobart.

xox

Soup for supper

Tonight I had a hankering for chicken noodle soup.  I still had the leftover chicken from last night's roast so it took no time at all to whip up.

 

Chicken Noodle Soup

Roast chicken carcass/leftovers

1 large carrot

1 large stick of celery

1 small onion

A smidge of crushed garlic

A handful of noodles (I used rice noodles)

Salt and pepper

Fill your pot with enough water to just cover your chicken and throw in all of your veggies.  Season to taste.

Simmer until your veggies are almost cooked.

Remove your chicken from the soup and chop up the meat.

Return the meat along with the noodles to the soup and simmer until the noodles are cooked.

Serves 3ish.

 

This soup really couldn't be simpler!  Perfect for tea after a busy work day.

xox

Sunday snippets

Today was all about blue skies, tea in my little red teapot and roast chicken.

xox

Dreamtime

Following yesterday’s post, I thought I’d make a list of things I’d like to achieve this year:

• Expand our garden – It’s been 3 years since Ash and I purchased our house and we’ve only just created our first garden bed.  Life kind of gets in the way doesn’t it?  I’d like to fill it with an abundance of cottage style plants such as roses, hydrangeas, lillies, daffodils and jasmine.
• Plant a veggie patch – Again, we’ve had the makings of a patch (two large apple crates) for a couple of years, we just need to fill them.  Did I mention I am a skilled procrastinator?
• Paint our Bentwood bar stools – Maybe aqua?
• Make jam – Something yummy you can’t find at the supermarket.
• Attempt the 52 week money challenge – I've been terrible with money lately but surely I can do this??
• Bake bread – I’ve made bread before but I’d really like to find a good recipe I can use regularly.
• Spend the night at Pumphouse Point, Lake St Clair – This boutique accommodation opened their doors to the public in January this year.  It’s exciting that I’m halfway towards crossing this one off my list.  I've booked a room for our anniversary in March.

I’ll update this list  throughout the year as I complete my goals.

xox