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in the bag....

I was lucky enough to have a day wandering around Surry Hills with Damian...we were able to spend time  browsing in the many design and homewears shops that are normally off limits with two small children in tow.

One of my favourites was Koskela where I picked up a few early Christmas gifts- I couldn't resist the bag they came packaged in ( usually I pull out one of my own reusable ones). The bag is made from recycled broadsheet by young adults and village women at 'Karm Marg"- a center and initiative set up to help children and young adults living on the streets in New Delhi. This paper craft is one of the many projects used to help the center become self sustained as well as teach skills to help the children survive.The bag is surprisingly sturdy and lasted a day of being lugged around filled with bits and pieces.Every where I went  it attracted attention - not bad for a bag made out of someone's discarded newspaper!

By the way, if you're in Surry Hills,it's worth the effort to stop in for a quick( or not so quick) look at Koskela- inspiring homewears, textiles and furniture and warm friendly service as well. Other enjoyable places of note were David met Nicole, Planet Commonwealth and of course Chee Soon & Fitzgerald.

first time taggee.....

after a year of blogging I have been tagged! Not as a thinking blog ( thank goodness, way too much pressure there!) but by the lovely Julie to do a nice simple one.

The rules:
• Start with 7 random facts/habits about yourself
• People who are tagged have to write their 7 things on their blog
• Then choose another 7 people to get tagged and list their names
Here goes ( hey you there, yes you! Wake up, this is important )

1.I don't eat bananas.
I love banana cake, banana smoothies & banana Paddle Pops but I cannot bring myself to eat an actual banana - it's  the texture that gets me. For the same reason I do not eat sultanas. An oyster however is an entirely different kettle of fish. Can't get enough oysters.

2. I once appeared on national daytime TV dressed as the Mrs Fields Bear ( you go, Deb!) with Kerri Anne Kennerly.

3.I can go to sleep anytime ,anywhere- a very handy trick I  learned at uni. It's the waking up bit that I'm not so good at.

4. I can quite happily reread a favourite book - I'm not talking once or twice or three times. More like 50 or 60 or more....I have lost track of the times I have read Pride and Prejudice or the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Alice and Wonderland is another well worn book in my house.

5. I drink water constantly, all day, through the night - I am never without a bottle or two by my side. I think I must dehydrate easily. That or I'm just very thirsty.

6.Bono from U2 and I share the same birthday( not year though, he's a wee bit older than I am)...unfortunately we do not share the same vocal abilities, vast fortune or fleet of private jets.....

7.I am quite fond of drinking dandelion tea...with skim evaporated milk...a habit that most people around me find:

a) slightly weird

b) slightly distasteful

c).both of the above. I must say I can understand why they feel that way...it really is quite a disgusting brew and does embarrass me somewhat ......

Now I'm meant to tag seven people

Tash, Belinda,Di,Penny,Tamara,Cathy, and Jennifer....

In case you're wondering,the lovely peg dolls were made by Rose and Charlie as a very special present....not for Bono though.....

a very wholesome lunch....

One of my clearest memories from kindergarten has to do with food.
At lunchtime we would all pull out our sandwiches- peanut butter ( not on the forbidden list then!), Vegemite, devon and tomato sauce (not my favourite by a long shot) or baked beans ( I can hear quite a few groans out there..)
Pretty stock standard across the whole class except for Effie, the daughter of a Greek couple who owned the local milkbar. Twenty two pairs of eyes would be glued on her brown paper bag to see what would emerge. And more often than not , out would come the two pieces of white bread with a half a family block of Cadbury's milk chocolate sandwiched in between.

Oh-my-goodness......

Can you imagine what the teachers would say today if you ever dared to send your child off to school with a chocolate sandwich for lunch? Maybe if you made it with wholemeal, wholegrain bread you just might get away with it!
Or not.
So, as a chocolate sandwich is not high on the list of nutritionally sound lunches, I have been searching around for recipes and ideas for Rose's morning tea and lunch. What does everyone out in craft blog land send their children off with? Any ideas would be most welcome indeed.

Otherwise, I might have a weak moment and pack one of those much coveted chocolate sandwiches....

Just because I love a competition I decided to enter this post into scribbit's march' write away" contest -you just never know....

comfort food

what to do when everyone's feeling a little down?......make something sweet of course!
Baking biscuits always brings me great satisfaction - there is something kind of  wholesome about a homemade biscuit even if it is filled with butter and sugar. Probably because it's my butter and sugar and there are no extra numbers thrown in for good measure.No colours, fake flavours, preservatives or anti-caking agents - just a lot of sugar ( good for energy) and butter ( good for the soul).

This recipe never fails - it's easy and quick to make and very,very good to eat. It will earn you the title of Best Mama in the Whole Wide World and the respect of all the neighbourhood if you choose to share the love around. (If these types of accolades aren't forthcoming, make a cup of tea and scoff the rest yourself! )

Incidentally, any recipe you can make with two pairs of little hands helping is a winner in my books. I let them do the fun bits like licking the beaters and making the holes for the jam.

Jam Drops

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C ( 350 F)

Place 180g of softened butter and 1 cup of caster ( superfine) sugar in a mixing bowl and beat until light and creamy. Rescue the rest of the butter from your now greasy fingered helpers and put it back into the fridge. Hopefully nobody will notice the finger prints.

Add one egg and beat well. ( put the rest of the eggs away).
Stir through 2 cups of sifted plain ( all purpose) flour and 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder.
Mix to a dough - you may need to get your hands in here to bring it all together.
Roll two teaspoonfuls of the mixture into balls ( a heaped teaspoon makes perfect child sized ones). Place onto a baking tray lined with non stick baking paper, allowing room for the biscuits to spread.


Flatten slightly then press your finger into dough to make an indent. Fill hole with jam and bake for 10 minutes or until golden. Add a little more jam to the holes if necessary while the biscuits are hot.
Cool on wire racks. Makes 40-60 depending on size.

Eat,enjoy and allow yourself to feel a tiny bit smug. After all you could have just nipped out and bought some at the supermarket!

day one, 2007....(be warned this is a rather boring post)

(This post is really just for my benefit- this way I have all of my resolutions down on paper so to speak....)

When it comes to New Years Eve, I have to admit I'm a bit of a bore: I love a party as much as the next girl but New Years Eve has never seemed to live up to all of my expectations. The past few years I have been content to have a fairly quiet and uneventful one - some good food , possibly a catch up with a few friends and a glass or two of festive cheer fits the bill nicely.Maybe I'm just getting old......

However,I always love the first day of the New Year - fresh,full of possibility and unknown challenges.
No matter what else is planned for the day, I always ,always find the time to go for a run. I'm not superstitious but I feel as though if I miss a run on this day in particular, it doesn't look good for my running prospects for the rest of the year. So, despite the fact that it was really quite hot and humid, I hit the road for a good hour long run. Thankfully it started to rain about 15 minutes into the run which was just perfect.

(Fairy Bower pool ,along the Manly foreshore walk)

Great music, fresh air and a birds eye view out over the ocean. Perfect.

During this time I had a bit of a think about my resolutions for 2007....

• Spend more time dancing with my girls

• Spend more time dancing with my husband

• Spend more time dancing by myself (but with the blinds down so the neighbours don't talk about that weird woman next door)

• Go to bed early at least two nights a week......Repeat. Go To Bed Early At Least Two Nights A Week

• Run a marathon or half marathon at least which leads to.....

• Get up earlier two mornings a week( groan, I already know that this will be my biggest challenge!)

• Empty and sort through every closet, drawer, etc in my house and give away/get rid of anything that we don't need or use (this could take all year and will involve great willpower on my part when I drop things off to the op shop, as I generally tend to come home with more than I left the house with)

• Use less water and energy

• Plant a herb garden

• Be a little more focused when it comes to my artistic/creative pursuits - spend a little more time improving and building upon my skills in things I already know how to do, instead of madly trying out every new thing that I happen upon.

• Draw something everyday - even just a doodle

• Finish or get rid of UFO's

• Be more selective in the projects that I take on/sign up for

• Eat more chocolate ( but only the best quality stuff .....)

I think that about does it for this year....I have danced twice today ( with and without my girls) , clocked up about 10kms and just printed out the entry form for the Canberra marathon.....so I'm off to a good start.Missed the early bedtime due to writing this post but I'll work on that one tomorrow.

Wish you all a year filled with new challenges, loved ones and laughter.

Oh, and chocolate ( but only the best quality stuff of course!)

first day of summer....

and naturally my mind turns to..... pumpkin soup and these knitted mitts!

Obviously something rather amiss in the wiring of my brain...not sure why but I can't get enough of this pumpkin soup spiced with ginger and coriander. Possibly because its so simple and definitely because it tastes so good with a big piece of toasted sour dough!

And for all of those in cooler climates ( or with an out of season brain like mine) here's the recipe...

Sort of Summer pumpkin soup

Peel and chop up a whole pumpkin removing and discarding seeds.(You can use a half if that's all you have or need but it never lasts long in my house so I always make a big batch!).

Place in a big saucepan and add enough stock ( I use vegetable but you can use chicken instead) to barely cover the pieces. Homemade is great but the good quality tetra pack stuff works just as well .

Add some slices of peeled fresh ginger - this is to taste and as a guide I use  about a 2cm knob of ginger for a medium size pumpkin). Sometimes more if I need a good hit of ginger.

Bring to the boil and then simmer until pumpkin pieces are tender.

Optional bit: Remove and reserve  some of the stock - 1/2 to 1 cup

then ( and this is not optional or else you will just have lumps of boiled pumpkin instead of soup!) puree the rest of the stock,pumpkin and ginger until smooth.Use some of the reserved stock if the soup is too thick for your liking ( it really depends on the type of pumpkin you use as some varieties are more watery than others. I guess it also depends on how thick/thin you like your soup!)

Season to taste  and add a good handful of coarsely chopped coriander (cilantro). Taste and add more coriander if needed.I always need more.

I sprinkle the sourdough with olive oil (so good for you !) and use a flat toaster - be warned one piece is never enough!

enjoy!

Enough of the domestic goddess for now - here's a pattern from a vintage crochet book I picked up recently. I thought immediately of this lovely lady who is currently working through her obsession with granny squares ( someone should tell her that you never really get over it!...). If you want the pattern, Alex just let me know....

And here's the back cover feature...

Actually, I am very tempted to give this a try...I think it would be great with jeans ( but I'd probably be ditching the snood!)

Another flower coming up tomorrow to add to the crochet collection!

my rant on a little slice of utopia...

When you have a moment pop over to  Making time and have a look at Heather's post on ""craft blogs as a domestic fantasy." Then read the comments! Interesting reading indeed.
Craft mafia, ouch!

oh. oh. oh.
I'm a SAHM
I had an 'arts/design related career 'before choosing to stay at home.

Two big black crosses there already!

(Oh, and did I mention that I am a domestic goddess, with two perfect children,a house that runs like a finely tuned machine ,a dream marriage and I always find just a little time for myself to just be me. Hey,want to be my best friend??????)

My life is not picture perfect nor would I want it to be. I like to share some parts of my life through my blog - just not the "messy parts". I mean, we all know that they are there but do you really want to hear about the gritty details, those tissues in the black wash type days?
And I don't want to talk about them! Apart from the ones that make for a bit of a laugh or explain why something has turned out the way it has, I would rather as Eireann so succinctly put it, keep the "dignity of having my separate, ‘real’ life".

My blog is about my art/craft and that is inextricably linked with my life. Whatever is happening there, the good, the bad and the ugly, is generally is reflected in my work or sometimes in the lack of it!

I have no issues with the so called"popular blogs" - they are popular for a reason and it's not because they are giving away large sums of money.I don't believe for one moment that they have perfect lives and I'm sure that most of them would laugh at the idea that others imagine they do.
It was suggested ,more than once in the comment section of Heather's post,that the women behind these blogs must only be able to create all the things they do by having 'someone" to help out or by putting the kids in front of the TV for hours. Does it seem more reasonable to think that maybe,,just maybe they might do it the same way the rest of us do- in snatched moments while the baby is asleep or while waiting in the car at kindy pick up time. Then there are the wee hours when everyone else is asleep and at last you have a few hours to yourself...bliss! Of course you pay for it the next day, but hey, you got that new crocheted golf club cover finished! ( no offence to those of you who make golf club covers....they just make me laugh!)

Where do they find the time, you ask? Answer: like us,wherever they can. (Oh but having a maid really does make that little bit of a difference.Must ask D about getting me one of those...surely not too much to ask, is it?)

I love to read other craft blogs for inspiration . It is also a way for me to interact with other like minded people out in the world that I would otherwise not have access to.I get support,encouragement and feedback on my work,that I find invaluable. Let's face it, it's good to know that someone else besides your family, thinks that your two headed doll is a marvel. (And honey, believe me it is!)

I have met many amazing people since I started blogging, some whom I now proudly and happily refer to as friends.Lucky me! If I stop blogging tomorrow I will still keep in contact with them.Yes, there is a competitive undercurrent in the craft blog world - but that's just part of human nature. I found the few mother's group meetings that I went to far more competitive than the blog world!

Anyway that's my two cents worth on the topic!
Your blog, do what you want! And if someone else doesn't like it, do you really give a toss? ( lovely expression that one........)

Enjoy the long weekend.....