Rollin' on the river....

Awaiting Amazon...

I hopped on line today and ordered my copy of Ree Drummond's 'The Pioneer Woman Cooks' - it comes out at the end of this month in the USA so my copy may take a while to arrive.
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Now, some may think I am wasting my money, but I also ordered the 4 seasons of Alf - remember back in the 80's when Alf came into our living rooms? Gordon Shumway from Melmac - he was a Phlegm car salesman with a penchant for all things feline (as long as they were served on a plate, with fur on the side!). I've never seen this available in Australia so I just had to order it. It was a firm favourite way back then.
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A lazy day spent here today, tidying, laundering, making bread rolls and salads for dinner tonight. Beer can chicken is on the menu. Angus' mum (Nana Mac) is joining us for dinner and has bought out her famous never fail chocolate sponge cream cake for dessert. I've got strawberries marinating in sugar and brandy to go with it.
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Hope you had a nice weekend too,
Joolz

Happy Birthday, Brianna!

Sixteen years ago, Angus & I welcomed our second daughter, Brianna, into the world. Our family was complete. A sunny natured child, she has grown into a beautiful young lady - a bright spark in our lives.

Happy Birthday, baby!
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She passed her Learners driving test and drove us home from Mt.G - I will probably develop a few grey hairs in the coming months! Aaargh!
(She did really well for her first time on the open road)
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We had a birthday tea for her in Mt.G and she had about 16 friends (mostly boys!) join her.
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Dessert - Chocolate sponge layered with fresh cream and jam. Very nice.
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We had told Brianna that Kirby could not make it home for her birthday because there are only a few weeks left on Uni and she had 3 assignments to complete. But Kirby didn't want to miss Bri's 16th so she drove 400kms to surprise her - and surprise her she did! I got Brianna away from the house for a while and Kirby parked in our garage and then when we came home, I lifted the door and there was Kirby's car! The look on Brianna's face was priceless! Kirby had bought helium balloons and some cute PJ's for her so she was over the moon!
(Thanks for coming home, Kirbz (and for all your washing too!)
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The smile that lights up our lives! Love ya, Breeza!
Mwah!
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Tired and happy, Joolz

Tomato seedlings...

This is my mini greenhouse that I have planted some tomato seeds in. This is my first attempt at growing something from seed. I usually just buy seedlings from the nursery.
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I planted the seeds on October 10th and I saw the first shoot emerge on the 19th. They are popping up really quickly now. I checked on them yesterday at 9am and could see perhaps 3 tiny seedlings and by 10.30am I think there were probably 10 more!
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This pic was taken this morning and I think I will have a 95-100% strike rate. I bought the Burke's Backyard magazine a few months ago and there was a free packet of rare heritage tomatoes in it - Prosperity, Yellow Oxheart, Yellow Stuffing and College Challenger. I can see that nearly all of these are poking their heads through the seed raising mix now. I have also planted many Roma tomato seeds. I can see that if these seedlings really take off , I'll have to gift some of them to my friends and family to plant out and I only have very limited space. Quite exciting really.
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Having nice chilly mornings followed by sunny days here so the living is easy. Have a nice day,
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Cheers - Joolz

Blogger what are you doing to me????????

I am having trouble with blogger. I changed to the updated editor version in my setting on Sunday and things have gone haywire since. I've now changed it back to old editor.

When I log onto my blog, I don't see my profile or anything at all (!) down the right side margin. Eeek!

It has something to do with my Sunday post and half way down it says ...read more> (I never asked it to do this or display the comments on the front page. The font won't stay the same either. As soon as I click on 'read more' everything appears down the right hand side again. Wierd!

Palms are sweaty, brow is furrowed, all is now how it should be!

I think I've solved the problem - using the new editor, I used page breaks (jump breaks) and I think this caused all the trouble. I deleted them in the Sunday post and all seems to be back to normal - phew! I've gone back to the old editor as with the new one, you have to choose font and picture placement each time - too hard for me.

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Frantically (now calmly) , Joolz

Safe travels, Jessica Watson...

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 Sixteen yearold, Jessica Watson sailed out from Sydney harbour on Sunday 18th October, 2009 at 9.49  to sail around the world in a 22,000 nautical mile journey that should take about 8 months.

Her journey will take her toward northern New Zealand then to Fiji, Samoa, South America then South Africa.  The final leg will be a 4,000 n/mile trip across the Indian Ocean  back to Australia.

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"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do.  So throw off the bowlines.  Sail away from the safe harbour.  Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore.  Dream.  Discover."  -  Mark Twain

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Joolz

Sunday, I am...

...watching Lost in Austen (up early, I have watched all four episodes) and absolutely loved it. Oh, Mr Darcy! *blushing*

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Then I am washing windows and doing some weeding...

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Yes, there is glass in those windows, it's just so sparkling clean!

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Our front porch - it all got a wash down today, to get rid of dust and cobwebs. I gave the white table and chairs a sudsy bath and found an intruder underneath it!

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This is a Redback Spider - an Aussie icon - commonly found under out-house dunny seats! At this point, I will say that I am an arachnaphobic (scared shitless by spiders) but these little buggers don't scare me too much (even thought they are deadly poisonous), it's more your Huntsmen type spideys that give me goosebumps and hot flushes all at once. I'll save a picture of a hunty for another day. *shivers*
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This pic was taken out of my lounge room window (did I tell you how clean they are?), the rose on the far left has produced my first rose of spring.

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My violas are loving the sunshine today.

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Tired and happy - my right arm and shoulder feel like they will drop off and my back's aching but it is a good job done (they day was so nice for pottering around) . Angus is barbecuing a lump of steak and roasting some baby potatoes and carrots to have with some peas. He's even made some horseradish mayonnaise from scratch! Bless.
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Cheers - Joolz

I'm off to see...

Can't wait to see this movie tonight - off with a friend to see the 6.30pm showing then coffee and cake  after....a skim latte and low fat cake, maybe?  I promise I'll be good!

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Cheers - Joolz
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Edited to say - The definition of FRUSTRATION - driving 50 kms with 2 friends to see this movie.  Arrive at the cinema to be told that the projector has broken down and the film will not be shown.   Nearly threw a tanty right there and then but calmed down enough to be polite to the ticket staff, smile graciously and leave the cinema - NOT HAPPY!

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Anyway, we then went to a Thai restaurant and had dinner with a glass of wine (nice) then off to another bistro for a  latte' (mine was skinny) and a piece of ... frosted banana cake with whipped cream (mine was not skinny)!!

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As mothers of teenage girls going through Yr 12 and Uni, we solved the problems of the world, sharing stories of frustration, exam nerves etc etc.  It ended up being a great night and we'll try and see the movie next week.  This time we will ring the cinema first!

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Joolz   :D

Lamb & courgette koftas ...

LAMB & COURGETTE KOFTAS

2 courgettes (small zucchini), grated finely and squeezed of liquid

2 tblspns sesame seeds, toasted

250 gms minced lamb

2 spring onions (I used red spanish onion)

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 tblspn fresh mint, chopped

1/2 teaspoon ground mixed spice

2 tblspns dry breadcrumbs

1 egg, lightly beaten

salt and pepper, to taste

vegetable oil, for shallow frying

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Add all ingredients except oil and mix well. Form into small balls or patties, shallow fry in oil until golden and cooked through.  Serve with crisp salad and to with tahini sauce.

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TAHINI SAUCE

250 mls Greek style yoghurt

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tblspn tahini paste

2 tspns lemon juice and a little rind

salt and pepper 

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Very yummy!

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Cheers - Joolz

New Moon coming...

We have tickets to see a midnight screening of New Moon!  Excited we are!

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30 Day Throw Down....an interview....

1. How did you hear about the 30 Day Throw Down? I think you commented on one of my posts or on another blog and then I went to Robynn’s Ravings for a look-see. I was hooked!
2. What made you want to jump in with us? I think because it was going to be the first day of Spring on Sept 1, it seemed like the ideal time to start a healthy eating plan. I referred to it as my LIVEit not my DIEt. Everything that you said made perfect sense to me and it was empowering and encouraging. I chose to go the low fat/sugar healthy eating road where others may have just embraced eating whole foods, grains, nuts, organic vegetables. Market fresh produce is not hugely available in our area so I had to rely on our stupid-markets. Don’t get me wrong, we still have fresh fruit and veg but the apples may have been picked 6 months ago and have been in cold storage and the carrots, well they probably can’t remember that dirty brown stuff they grew in. We have always used low fat, skim milk and low fat cheese so I didn’t start eating whole milk and full fat cheese. I ‘threw down’ cheese that was processed and wrapped in single plastic wrappers, stuff like that.
   
3. How did the first phase - leaving fast food and highly processed food behind - work for you? We are not huge junk food eaters in our house anyway. Living in a small town of 5,000 people, we have a Red Rooster chicken takeaway (blech! don't go there, girlfriend!), a locally owned Chicken takeaway (hmmm, yep, yummy!), 2 pizza bars and a Chinese/Thai take-way and a couple of fish and chip shops but we don’t have McDonalds, Burger King, Taco Bell, etc. etc. McDonalds, KFC and Hungry Jacks are 50kms away.
4. Did your family join you or did you do it on your own? Neither Angus or Brianna need to lose weight but they certainly ate what I cooked. Angus likes to eat healthy anyway and Brianna has to have what we have or she doesn’t get fed. Breakfast is a personal choice and Angus always has cereal and fruit, juice, tea and toast. Always! Bri is more likely to eat a muffin heated up, or a …. chocolate cup cake heated up…. or a chocolate fudge brownie heated up…there’s a bit of work for me to do there! I always make/take Angus his lunch so usually it is a bread roll with meat (ham, beef, or turkey) and salad in it, a tub of yoghurt and an apple or banana. He is a healthy boy and only drinks water, no soft drinks (soda). In Australia we have things called meat pies and meat and vegetable pasties – very convenient food that you buy at the bakery in a paper bag. You push it to the top of the paper bag (hopefully it has tomato sauce (ketchup) on it and you can eat it – while walking, driving your car, watching the footy etc. Angus would not consider having a pie or pasty for lunch. I, on the other hand, love to do this. I also love small goods – salami, hot dogs, cabanossi, pepperoni. Junk food alert!! Please pass the carrot sticks! Where are my prunes?
5. What were your challenges? The biggest challenge was being prepared and organized all the time. It’s easy to make a healthy lunch if there is the right food in the fridge. If there isn’t, that’s where bad alternatives sneak in. Into the 3^rd week, I started to forget to cut up my fruit for fruit salad(melons, strawberries, apples, banana) so by the fourth week, I was only eating 1 banana a day instead of about 3 serves of fruit. I still haven’t had any real junk food (purchased) but I did have some ‘naughty’ food at the engagement party we went to. Not much, but some.
6. Do you think this has made you think more about caring for your body and your health? Definitely! I am 45 years old and the kilos are creeping on and I have proved that they are very hard to budge at this age. Low fat, simple whole food is almost a necessity to maintain good health at this age. Exercise is harder because we are not as nimble as those 20 year olds, bouncing around at the gym. My joints creak and ache now so I probably have arthritis to look forward to later in life – I need to keep the weight off and keep my body moving to help in that area. I walk 5 kms, 5 days a week, rain, hail or shine and this definitely keeps my knees joints strong (I wear elastic knee braces on both for support) plus it’s good to get some fresh air in your lungs, feel the rain on your face (?) and feel the sun on your back (at 6am....pffft!). I have just bought a pedometer and some hand weights to strengthen my upper body.
7. Did you feel any better or are you noticing differences? I do feel better. Although the scales said I only lost 1.5 kgs in the 30 days, I could notice a difference around my under-arms, my thighs and I lost a bit of my double-chin...I think! I need to do some tummy tightening exercises to tone up but, yup, I hate doing crunches etc. But I NEED to!
8. What tips would you offer that were helpful to you? * Planning is key – have good food on hand otherwise it is too easy to grab takeaway. At the same time, make sure you have a variety of options for lunches – I found salad rolls etc get very boring after about 2 weeks. Look for other things to have as a light meal. Take healthy snacks with you – a small zip-lock bag of pretzels or 10 rice crackers to munch on while your waiting to pick the kids up (better than a chocolate bar), bananas and apples are very portable for snacking, keep a bottle of water always on hand. * Find time to think about and prepare your food – I let half a pineapple and half a watermelon go to waste in the fridge because I couldn’t be bothered cutting them up, but I ate bananas because they are convenient and ready to go.  *Find recipes that you know you will like. Don’t try and eat foods you don’t like, just because they are healthy. I will not touch cottage cheese even if you tell me it is good for me! Yuck! * The internet is a fantastic resource for low fat recipes, go buy some cook books and ask you friends what they like to eat when they are weight watching.   * Try to modify your favourite recipes by cutting down on the fat and sugar content. You can do a stir fry in a wok with 2 teaspoons of oil instead of 2 tablespoons – you won’t notice the difference when you are eating it. If a cake says to use 1 cup of sugar, try using ½ or ¾ of a cup instead. The kids will never know!   * Get into a routine that suits you and your family. I usually walk at 6am, home at 7am, pack Bri’s lunch box then Brianna is on the bus at 7.30am. I do a bit of housework then eat my breakfast at 8.30 and read the paper, after Angus has gone to work. My morning is then my own for other chores, then I shower and get ready for work by 10.30am. Any variation to this and I find I don’t eat breakfast then I’m hungry mid morning etc.  * It’s okay to use some processed foods – tinned tomatoes, tomato paste, stock powder.

9. Would you mind sharing a few recipes or meal ideas? I think there are quite a few recipes in my Throw Down posts. I really liked the cannelloni and Rippa Rissoles are good. I have a low fat Bolognese recipe that I will post later in the coming week.
10. You have a phenomenal talent for making your food look delicious. I wanted to eat at your house many times during that first 30 days! What makes that important to you? Thank you! None of my photos are really staged, I just have it in my head that I will photograph what I am cooking and I always try to plate up a meal nicely. Angus and I love watching cooking shows (probably too much!) and we have lots of cook books so I guess it just sticks in your mind how things should/could look when plated up.
11. What would you like to see covered in a 30 day period? I think you are on the right track with Eating Healthy and Move It! Perhaps we could discuss family hobbies and things to do together as a couple or family (although my chickens have basically flown the coop), grief and coping with death (why is it such a taboo subject when it happens to all of us eventually?), womens health in general, coping with stress, PMT etc.
    
12. Any advice for someone just starting out to think about healthy changes? Say NO to HI (Human Interference) and say YES to FRESH! I didn’t really touch much on this during my 30 days but it is a good philosophy. If a human has interfered with a product to change it from it’s natural form – don’t touch it. Eg. Say NO to cheese wrapped in individual plastic portions – say YES and choose to eat a chunk of cheese of a bigger chunk of cheese (you can still choose low fat). Say no to chicken nuggets that have been minced with fat and cereal and extenders and preservatives then deep fried – say YES to a whole free range chicken breast, cut into chunks, dipped in egg, flour and bread crumbs then oven baked. Yum! Fresh squeezed juices have so many more benefits than fake reconstituted, concentrated fruit juice ‘drinks’ – cut up 2-3 chilled oranges and squeeze the juice and try for yourself. Hey, that's what orange juice should taste like! Buy a juicer and give my 2 Fruit/3 veg drink a go. Your kids will thank you!
13. Did you ever swear at me during that first month? No, how could I swear at someone with such a sweet, smiley face....though I thought about bludgeoning you in your sleep, maybe! Just kidding! Lol! No, you really did inspire me and perhaps I’ve relaxed my eating a bit in the last week or so – but I am still not eating processed foods, my snacks are healthy (like carrot sticks and salsa, prunes, cranberry ‘craisins’, etc)and drinking water too.
    

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These interview questions (above) were supplied by Robynn via email.

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Something to think about - Why are we being forced to read ridiculous labels that nobody can understand, when the best foods in the world don’t have any labels? – Dr. John Tickell, author of The Great Australian Diet…the Atkins Alternative.

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Thank you so much Robynn, it’s been fun and rewarding to do the September 30 Day Throw Down and I look forward to new, fun and interesting topics to discuss in the coming months.

Bathurst 1000 V8 Supercars....

Bathurst 1000 V8 Supercars race is on today. We'll be following James Courtney and Steven Johnson (Cars #17 & #18) in the big race today. Best of luck, guys!
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Angus will be glued to the TV, I have some baking to do and the garden is crying out for some weeding. A glorious spring day here, hope it's nice in your part of the world too!
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Cheers - Joolz

Friday at sunset...

You might have seen this tree before in my Chasing Skies post. I dropped Brianna into her waitressing job in town and on my way home I could tell the sunset was going to be a beauty. I flew inside the house, grabbed my camera and off I shot, chasing skies once again...
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... same tree, different backdrop of dreamy clouds against a rusty sunset...
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... I've come to love this tree - it's only about 2 kms from where I live on the outskirts of town, down a road called Plunkett Terrace - Lol!
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... and finally, as the sun was disappearing for another day, I got this shot, out near our racecourse. Clear skies today with just a few clouds around this afternoon - the weathers shaping up for a good weekend. Hope yours is a good one,
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Cheers - Joolz

Whistling while I work....

Our cleaner at work told me today that her foster daughter had told her that I whistle beautifully. Lexie had been sitting in our waiting room and heard me whistling away to my mixpod music. I tend to whistle instead of sing (and that's a good thing!). This made me smile, you see, as I whistle because my Dad used to whistle, so it reminds me of him when I do.

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Cheers - Joolz *smiling and whistling*

What's up today...

Eating: for dinner - Corned Beef Silverside, mashed potatoes, carrots, peas & beans with a white parsley, mustard and cheese sauce.
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Watching: Lost in Austen (DVD) - quite enjoying it too. Better get back to it!
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Reading: When the Heart Cries - Niki from Rural Writings has been reading this book so I thought I would get it. I ordered it through Amazon because it is not available in Australia yet. Ordered on the 27th of Sept. and it arrived today - 10 days! A pricey exercise, freight wise, but I think if you order more than one book, the freight stays the same. I have my $100 Amazon voucher from Robynn to spend so will take my time and get the best value.
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On TV tonight - looking forward to: River Cottage Spring (ABC), Celebrity MasterChef (Ten) and taping Spick n Specks (ABC) to watch later.
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A chilly day here - lovely sunshine but a really chill wind, cuts you to the bone.
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What did you get up t today?
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Cheers - Joolz

Labour Day long weekend...

The finished article. Well done, Breeza!
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After a lovely sleep-in this morning (up at 11.30am) , Brianna has been busy this afternoon, making a pair of flannelette pyjama pants (yes, wrong end of the season but better late then never). She is up to the hems now and they are looking good. Best $200 I ever spent on this simple Janome machine. My mind boggles when you start putting pieces of material, right sides together etc. My brain cannot compute what the finished product will turn out like and I cannot fathom patterns at all. Bri has no trouble and is just finishing the pj's off now. Go Bri! :D
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Bonnie (cat on a pole) is looking very unamused - "Love me, feed me, never leave me!"
(...to quote Garfield the Cat)
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A fresh sprinkle of rain on this carpet rose - it's lush and green and there are lots of buds forming...
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I have 2 large clumps of these two plants that have intertwined, in my back garden. The Seaside Daisy (Erigeron) and Ground Morning Glory (Convolvulus mauritanicus)
make a pretty combination as they sprawl over my terraced garden wall.
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It's a public holiday here in SA today - Labour Day - it is celebrated around Australia on varying days - this was implemented in 1856 when workers lobbied for shorter working hours (instead of long 12 hours days). A 48 hour working week was agreed apon and now, well over a century later, we have a standard 38 hour working week (7.6 hours per day, 5 days a week).
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A lazy day here apart from bed stripping, washing, remaking (Kirby has gone back to Adelaide for the final part of the 2nd semester, armed with some mince & macaron bake home cooked frozen meals and sausage rolls), room spring cleaning, vacuuming behind and under some furniture (don't ya hate finding dead, BIG, spiders and flies under furniture?). One funny thing I did today was get all of my and Bri's Havaiana thongs (footwear) and gave them a good scrub then chucked them in the washing machine for a good sudsy wash. They came out gleaming and ready for another summer. Do I have too much time on my hands? Together (we are the same size) , we have pale pink, aqua, purple, metallic dark blue, dark blue with white lettering, grey metallic skinnies and black skinnies with diamontes (bling!). Ya gotta have clean Havvies!
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As I write this we are having a real heavy shower of rain which will keep those lawns green, green, green and soak the garden again. God's Country for sure.
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We started Day Light Saving early on Sunday morning (we turned out clocks forward one hour) so it is 7 pm and still light outside. This will continue until the early April, 2010 when we will then turn out clocks back one hour again in readiness for autumn and the shorter days of winter.
(A good way to remember it is: Spring Forward and Fall Back)
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Question: Do you have Day Light Saving in the United States??

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Angus is cooking lamb chops with fresh rosemary, mashed potatoes, honey carrots and baby peas. Yum! He trimmed the chops and gave the bits to Bonnie - and he says he hates her!
Then light the gas fire and a bit of telly then I think an early night might be in order ready for the working week tomorrow and beyond.
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Cheers - Joolz

Seriously...

... is there a better sight or smell than freshly mown lawn?
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Delicious!
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Happy Sunday to you - Joolz

Back from a blogging break...and I'm a WINNER!

Hi there - sorry I've been absent for the past week. Don't really know what happened. I just had other things to do this week, I guess. This is my lovely lucky bamboo plant. I saw it at the plant nursery and had to have it. The last one I owned, lasted about 4 years until it grew too big and gangly. It makes a nice addition to my kitchen counter.
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This was my weight on Monday, 28th September - still 72 kgs! I was not very impressed - I hadn't lost any more weight since the previous week even though I thought I was very good. Maybe I've been sulking since then, I don't know. The last week of the 30 Day Throw Down was harder than the previous three. On a happier note, I AM THE WINNER of Robynn's September Throw Down prize. I have won a $100 Amazon voucher - (Yay, me!) so I can shop till I drop and buy some books online. Thank you so much, Robynn! Robynn is going to interview me and that may let me explain some things. I've been mulling things over in my head a bit, you know, deep and meaninful etc, etc.! Aaagh, thats a bit intense isn't it?
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I've had a busy week, working in the office, cooking, cleaning, laundering, picking up, putting away, tidying, wiping, laundering, picking up, putting away, did I mention laundering??? It's been nice to have Kirby home for Uni holidays so Kirby and I took off to Mt. G on Thursday, did some shopping and went to the movies and saw UP! Yes, I know it's a G rated kids movies, but it was cute and fun and I'll be getting it on DVD when it comes out. I also had a quick trip to Mt. G on Friday - Brianna's retainer wire on her top 4 teeth came loose and I got the dentist to slot us in 4.30pm Friday arvo. She had to leave the hospital work placement a bit early then we choofed off the Mt. G for a 4.30 appointment. Her next appointment is on Oct. 22 and she couldn't bear the wire flapping around her mouth and tongue. Lovely Dr. Castle had it secured and glued in 10 minutes flat and $55 later we were outa there! Bless! I had her back
home and only 5 minutes late to her waitressing job at 6.05pm!
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School broke up on Friday 26th Sept for 2 weeks but Brianna has been doing a work placement at our hospital, getting a feel for nursing and midwifery. She has foregone a week of her holidays to do this - I am proud of her. She has enjoyed many facets of 'hospital life' including general nursing on the ward, aged care, radiology, administration and nurse training day. She had to work at her waitressing job last night after working 7 hours at the hospital so she was pretty pooped when she finally got home last night. She's working tonight too so she'll be up for a sleep in, in the morning. Onya, sweetie!
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I finished my Kokeshi Doll stuffie this afternoon. Me being a fantastic seam(stress), I nearly had a Nervie B (nervous breakdown) after stuffing her then trying to sew her up, on the curve, just under her pigtails. Sweaty palms, sweaty brow, cursing and swearing that I'd throw her in the bin, I rallied and got her sewn up. She's a bit lumpy and bumpy but she is cute and I made her and I am happy. *Note to self* - cute little stuffies are useless time wasters and serve no purpose in this world! Lol! Angus asked me why I made it and I said "to prove that I can!". I'm going to move on now - maybe I'll make a chocolate cake - the whole family will appreciate that! (lol!)
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Have a good weekend, won't you. Not much on our calender this weekend, just pottering around.
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Cheers - Joolz