Colourful Lights.

A treat in these humid Summer evenings is to sit in the dark of the living room and look at these colourful lights.

T Party

On Monday, a few mothers and a sister from our local school gathered here for a T party:  Tea/not Tea, Tic Tacs, Tiny Teddies, Tart, Tim Tams, Taco chips, Tsaziki, Tea bun etc....  They came to try my tricycle.

Crystal Anniversary.

It is our anniversary today; 15 years-crystal....

Towards 2012.

I had too many scraps of paper stuck on to the bottom of December 2011, so I have started putting details into the calendar for 2012.  I bought a super duper organised calendar with a space for each of our names.  This year's calendar has country scenes from my favourite magazine Country Style.  The organised calendar for next year also has stupid phrases at the top.  Guess which one I prefer???  I am going to miss the lovely pictures and I am not that confident that I will be any more organised with the new calendar.

Healthy Muesli Bars.

With the cooler weather, I baked muesli bars this afternoon.  Inside the 'healthy' mixture is 250g rolled oats, 75g coconut, 250g choc bits, 75g sunflower seeds and a 395g can of condensed milk.  Mix and place in 2 slice tins and bake for 20minutes. Wait till cooled and slice.

I like knowing what is inside these muesli bars.  

PS:  the oven temperature is 180C... also once you have the oats and the coconut in, you can choose what else to put into the slice.  Just make sure that the balance of dry ingredients as a total  is 325g.  We like dried cranberries and sultanas....

Nectarines

Summer is heralded by nectarines, peaches and mangoes.  13 year old son tried a nectarine and declared that they were a tad premature.  Well it certainly does not feel like Summer this week!

Strange, but it Works.

The weight that holds the cord for the blinds has disappeared.  A cube takes its place.
The daily hair brushing takes place in the laundry.....strange but it works.

Hessian Bags at Work.

As I am enjoying the warmth of inside, I am looking around the house and have noticed that hessian ish bags are in a few places.  The two above are actually on top of the fridge and hold small chip packets and pretzels. The one under the table holds cereal.  The lavender one waits in the laundry for its job.  A present from L.

A Little Desk and a Little Chair.

I love this desk and chair; the desk was found on the side of the road and the chair was from our old Sunday school classroom.
There are still children little enough to use this little desk.

Essential Jesus.

We have adopted a lovely new routine this week.  After the little ones have gone to bed, the older two and I have been reading "Essential Jesus"  together.  We are enjoying this time together as the narrative that is Christmas unfolds.  The children were interested to think that Jesus was once a boy!

Some Reading.

With these lovely cooler days, I have caught up with my reading pile.  I am slowly making my way through "Past Imperfect-A Novel".  It is set in London and I am enjoying the escape.  Thanks to P (oink oink) for lending it to me.

Slow Cooker

Last weekend when it was so very hot, I decided to revert back to my crockpot to prepare the evening meal.  The sauce was lovely, but the meat tasted ordinary.  I found this recipe book for $5 and I am hoping that there will be some inspiration within these pages.

Cosy Inside.

It has been very cold and rainy after a very hot weekend.  I am thankful as I love the cooler weather and I enjoy cosy days at home.

Bags.

I love these handbags; the top one was husband E's Aunt's.  It opens wide and then closes tight like an umbrella.  The bottom bag was a gift from Japan when our exchange student stayed with us in August.

On and On and On.

13 year old son's good mate N. gave him this loooong toblerone for his birthday!  It is his favourite chocolate.  I do hope that he will share!

13 Year Old Gift.

As there are presently 20 grandchildren on husband E's side, we have developed a 'present plan' for teenage birthdays.

13 year olds receive an engraved pen... Our first born embarks on his teenage journey tomorrow.

Basketball Birthday Cake.

As we gathered with the cousins yesterday, we celebrated an Aunt and soon to be 13 year old son's birthdays.  Can you tell that this is a basketball?  Husband E was patient with my requests for cake decorating again.

Promise of Pudding.

The "Promise of Pudding", as I have boiled it already in November, and saving it till December.
The message at the church where this pudding making event was held:  The Promise of Jesus, spoken of by Isaiah in the Old Testament and born, marking the beginning of the New Testament....  His crucifixion and then his resurrection.  With us for eternity.

Shoe Rack.

A few weeks ago I had looked for a shoe rack to hold the school shoes etc that get kicked off at the front door.  To no avail.  However, on a recent council cleanup, I spotted this... I brought it home, cleaned it with lavender polish and voila.  It even has six shelves for the six of us.

Cactus

This cactus belongs to our son, who is fascinated by them.  I loved how this cactus was crowned with a strand of flowers.

13th Birthday Party at the Lakehouse.

Soon to turn 13 year old son opted for a sleepover party at the lakehouse to celebrate his birthday.  It went really well and I still had time to enjoy my favourite spot, with a coffee watching the waves and a chat with the children.

Riding a Bicycle.

It is our 7 year old daughter's turn to start learning to ride a two wheeled bike.

Name Puzzles.

Husband E had made name puzzles for each of his nieces and nephews, God children and our children when they turn two.

LEGO

Our younger two have recently rediscovered the LEGO stash.


Look at 'these two'  that I found as a placemat at IKEA recently.  

Tamari Almonds.

A recipe from the groovy Aunt:  Mix some tamari sauce with raw almonds; spread them out onto a baking tray and bake for at least 30minutes on a low heat.  They should have that nice, roasted flavour.

Wednesday Weekend.

12 year old son, husband E and I are loving "The Number One Ladies' Detective Agency"  series on TV.  I have read the books...
It is such a lovely show with characters of integrity and the beauty and uniqueness of Africa at its best.

We watched it last night (even though we only started the episode at 9:30pm).  When 12 year old son asked if we could watch it, I almost said "No, it is too late..."  However in the spirit of Wednesday Weekend, I thought we should and it was an enjoyable time together.

Wednesday Weekend is an attempt to break the busyness of the week; a simple dinner (last night a store bought BBQ chicken with freshly baked baguette and salad, followed by toblerones which 12 year old son gave to his sisters and fathers for their company at his party on the weekend).... Also husband E and I sat chatting till 7:30pm, me with a nice cup of coffee.  This was before dinner had been assembled.  Homework had been done and it was so hot.... It was nice to try and not watch the clock too closely for a weeknight.

Dinner was enjoyed by everyone, did not need extra heat to prepare and was quick to assemble.  The cleanup was easy as there were no pots/pans and the dishwasher took care of the plates.

Everyone needed fans to be able to sleep last night.  This has been our first hot week.  Today it has broken and the wind has picked up and we have rain.  The house is breathing again.

Cheeky Little Monkey.

This morning, 5 year old daughter, said that her favourite animal is now a monkey, because it is cheeky like her!
I have been looking at older photo's and found this photo.... I really struggled to remember whose cake it was...I thought that it was hers, but I think actually it was her sister's whose birthday is a week after hers.   Luckily her sister knew what's what!