A Spot Of Fishing

The Mr has celebrated a birthday.

The look on his face when he unwrapped his present was very special.  

A mixture of confusion, "my wife is nuts" and "smile in front of the kids" who were quite excited.

Why does a mid 40's chap need stuffed toy fish???

The expression changed to happiness and "my wife is truly nuts" when under the fish he found a voucher to go on a deep sea fishing trip.  

Our little fishy friends were inspired by some much better looking and less wonky fish found here on Pinterest.

I like the fish.

We will now call them ART.

I am nuts.

(More creative, less nutty types here.)

Photo Safari

Our assignment for this week (at Blog With Pip) is a Photo Safari of our weekend.
Here in the land of Ohjoh it was a quiet, at home type of weekend


We spent a lot of time either in, or watching the kids in the pool

We tried a new tea that arrived as a Christmas gift.

We moved this little guy's kennel to help him cope with the heat.  

He prefers to be inside under the air conditioner.

We did lots of laundry.  There is always LOTS of laundry.  It is endless.

We went on a de-spider frenzy after a Redback Spider casually walked across the lounge room floor.  The second one we have found inside.   

Eeeeewwww! 

They are everywhere here.  I have never seen anything like it.  

Spiders and I are not friends but we seem to agree to keep away from each other.  

The understanding is that outside you can be free but inside the house you will probably be dead.

Poisonous spiders with red stripes on their backs, however, are DEFINITELY not friends inside or outside.  

We will probably squeal in fear and squash them … or have the Mr do it.

Hopefully they will tell their red-backed friends and move next door.

And that is our weekend photo sarafi.

Hope yours was great too (and spider free)

Cheers

Jenny x

Loving a bit of Matt

Matt with the Cravat (think Masterchef attire) we are very fond of you in my house!


More precisely we are very fond of your cookbook.

Thank you for breaking up the previous fatty fortnight from The 1984 Women's weekly.

And I believe you, Matt!



You say on the cover that these are "Fast, fresh and unbelievably delicious 204 recipes you'll want to cook again and again".
You are correct!
We have and we will!

To date we have made (or done versions of, as it does depend on what is in the fridge sometimes at our place):
Lamb Burgers with Feta & Yoghurt Dressing p64 (twice because they were such a hit with the kidlets the first time)

Bun Cha With Noodles p69

Corn Fritters p104

Peaches and Cream Soft Serve p211 (made this twice!!! so easy and so yum on a hot summers night)

Jennifer's Flapjacks p184

There are many other sticky notes inside the book which flag promising recipes that we or may not get to this week.

I only wish I was paid to give this book praise but I'm not.
It was a christmas gift from the Mr and the kids.
I probably would not have purchased it myself but we are loving a bit of Matt.

Have you chosen a cook book to dust off and use at your place?

Taking Stock

Our little group of Blog with Pip people have been given a little assignment - do a "taking stock list".  

It was a fun little exercise.  Here is what is happening in my world today …..

Making : lots of lists - I do that.
Cooking : snapper for tea (1 out of 3 kids will be happy, the other 2 will be horrified)
Drinking : not enough water
Reading: "The Daughters Of Mars" by Tom Keneally
Wanting: to read more of my book, and not cry at the horror of Gallipoli
Looking: at the screen a lot lately
Playing: chasey with a blow fly in my kitchen
Deciding: whether to go back to work
Wishing: my Melbourne friends would move to Perth too
Enjoying: the swimming pool
Waiting: for the weather to cool a bit
Liking: that I am getting to know my way around Perth and don't need a map as often.
Wondering: if I can go another day without scrubbing the shower - it is disgusting
Loving: that my kids have settled in so well
Pondering: what to do on a holiday later in the year
Considering: basket weaving
Watching: the clock
Hoping: to be more organised
Marvelling: at those that appear/are organised!
Needing: a new lawn mower
Smelling: coriander (yum)
Wearing: a skirt and bare feet
Noticing: the thick dust in our house - was that there yesterday?
Knowing: how sad it is that I am still excited about a new vacuum cleaner
Thinking: about (and missing) my Mum
Admiring: people who work in Palliative Care
Sorting: through school notices
Buying: fruit & veg - can't keep up with the kids!
Getting: excited that a Melbourne friend may be coming to visit
Bookmarking: lots of blogs found at Blog With Pip
Disliking: manufacturing job losses
Opening: my mind to the blog world through Pip
Giggling: at my 7yr old - she is a funny little chicken
Feeling: guilty sitting at the PC when I have heaps I should be doing instead
Snacking: usually on Savoys - must be the salt
Coveting: a new couch
Helping: kids with homework
Hearing: a warm breeze rattle the blind

Join in too if you like…Pop over to Pip's and have a go - she has  a list waiting just for you!

Cheers

Jenny x

Playing

There has been some playing around these bloggy parts today.
Some changing, some tweaking, some adding and some removing.
A lot of fence sitting and a bit of panicking.
There has been talk of templates, designs, pod casts and buttons.
There is a lot of bewildered head spinning, a little head scratching and lots of re-reading.
I've joined Pip to do a bit of blogging and to drag myself out of the techno darkness that I live in.
Despite my empty brain it is very interesting - slow going for me but interesting.

So if you notice things changing around here, don't worry I'm just playing.

Dusty Cookbook Number 2

Our arteries need a break after Women's Weekly 1984 so this fortnight (even though I think I am a week late already) we are using a not so dusty book.
In fact it is the latest addition to the collection that arrived at Christmas - is that cheating???
Mr Matt with the Cravat - and we're loving him just a little bit.
He has a bit of a joke, keeps things real and the food we've made so far have been really good.

So even though it is not so dusty & almost cheating we're happy with Matt.  I needed something fresh and modern to cut through the heavy, fatty goodness of the last book.
Ok Matt with the Cravat - it is your turn!
What have you chosen?
Pick up a book that is feeling neglected and give it a go.
Happy cooking
Jenny x

New to the shop

I've been playing with tea-towels as I sometimes do.

Many have been given away as gifts but a couple have made it into the shop.