Mothers group spread

September was my turn to host our monthly mothers group. With sickness in our house this month and various Mums having other engagements, I squeezed it in right at the end. There was no playgroup being school holidays, so a get together at my place fit in well. With 6 adults and 9 kids, the table and the house was a shambles, but a good shambles.

I noticed that others always had nibblies, so I did my usual spread. I didn't think it was that special and really wasn't expecting the gushing comments or any of it really being eaten. I plonked it all in the middle of our big square table and hoped for the best. There is something especially satisfying when I've managed to successfully cater and please people with food. The mums and kids had a great time. 

It's all getting rehashed for our visitors for the grand final today. I may be the first person to ever serve scones (there were some left that I didn't put out) for footy nibbles. Bravely going where no woman has been before!! ;P 

What's for brunch?

1. Warnambool vintage cheddar, Mum and dads chorizo, Always Fresh - Deli Style mixed olives, Always Fresh - Sundried tomato Strips mixed with Woolies Select Chargrilled vegetables.
2. Doritos - Nachos Cheese
3. Whipped cream
4. Boysenberry jam
5. Scones
6. Watermelon, Pineapple, cucumber, carrot, celery
7. Captains Table -Cracked Pepper water crackers, Veri Deli - Fig and mixed grain crackers
8. South Cape Spring onion and chive cream cheese

Banana Bickies

It's not very often bananas get to this stage in our house, all soft and gooey inside. They were cheap, there was ripe or green as, I bought ripe and these ones didn't get eaten in time. There was half a chocolate cake sitting on the bench we hadn't finished, so cake was out of the question. I could have frozen them for later, instead I went looking for something on the net. I found a biscuit recipe at Kidspot and thought this would be best because the bickie barrel was low. It's not now!!! This recipe made about 60!!!!!! I was rolling my eyes in pure bliss when I tasted the first one three. This recipe is not the original one, you can click on the link above for that, this is the one I used.

Banana Bickies

2 large ripe bananas, mashed

125 gr butter

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups SR flour

1/2 cup coconut

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/3 cup choc bits

Preheat oven to 230 deg.

Cream the butter and sugar, stir in the banana until combined

Add the flour, oats , coconut and choc bits and stir to combine

Place teaspoons full on to a baking tray, leaving room to spread

Turn the oven down to 200 deg when you put the biscuits in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.

Spring garden colour

Wordless Wednesday :)

Cold mornings suck right now

Here I sit, having my first coffee of the day, sitting at my computer (this is one of the few times of the day I sit here), freezing my tits off. It sucks. I have become way too accustomed to waking to a preheated house, thanks to the reverse cycle air conditioner. This morning, no thanks to the piece of crap wasting space on the wall, I have gotten up and turned on the little fan heater(kindly provided my mum), to try to at least take the chill off. Yesterday I baked cake, and purposefully roasted a chook for tea to warm the house. Today looks like it's going to be sunny, so the afternoon sun will warm the house.

Izzy licking the cake bowl

I really shouldn't be so harsh, our air conditioner has served us well the last 10 years, well 9. It packed up during the last summer, we had no cooling for 5 weeks through the hottest time of the year. We spent a lot of time at Mums last summer. We built on nearly two years ago and our poor system just couldn't keep up with the extended open plan. By early afternoon our home was a saunatious hot box. It made me miserably cranky, not to mention the kids. 

We really should have replaced it then, but now we are without any heating for the next two weeks. I can't win a trick. Our cash jobbie sparky is busy over the weekend, grand finals and all, and with a week job, he can't put our bigger and better system until the following weekend. Woo hoo! I can't bloody wait it will be nice to be cool as cucumbers this summer. 

When Izzy was born my car had buggered air conditioning, poor mite sweltered. When Summer was born we had no air conditioning in the house, poor mite sweltered. I am looking forward to living luxuriosly in coolness this year, and waking up to warm as toast next winter. I am over having to cope with things stuffing up. But you know if our heating/cooling system is all I have to whinge about, then compared to most, really, I'm one lucky broad. 

Impossible Pie - Open Slather

Black chook, Red chook and Brown chook -  this is what Izzy calls them and it's stuck

I originally bought two chooks, black chook and brown chook. When I mentioned to Brett that I wanted to get chooks, he said everything in the negative, but I had made my mind up, and as usual I ignored him and did it anyway. Low and behold a month later he sneakily went and bought another one! I think he was impressed that we were getting eggs and he wanted more. I had to explain to him that chooks only lay one egg a day, I think he thought we should be getting more eggs from two chooks. Idiot. So now we are getting three eggs a day, and with at least a dozen eggs in the fridge, sometimes more at any given time, I'm always looking to use them up. 

Ann from Help!! I'm Stuck!! stole provided a recipe for mini muffins in last weeks link up, and we had them for lunch during the week. I also made a recipe from her blog too, for impossible pie. I had my own recipe I'd found somewhere that I'd been making for ages, but I gave hers a go. I used silverbeet instead of the zucchini and used up bits and pieces of three different cheese that were in the fridge. It turned out beautifully, and my husband even went as far as to say that he liked it better than mine! O. K.  then.......I have to admit I'll be using it from now on and throwing my old recipe away.

Parmesan pastry straws

I had a couple of sheets of puff pastry in the fridge, I had full intentions of making something out of it for Izzys playgroup for the end of term party, like the pizza scroll thingys.  I put it off and left it too late, so I took popcorn, easy. I took it last time too. I think I may become known for the one that always takes popcorn, what can I say, the kids love it.

To use the pastry I decided to make pastry straws. I only made them once before and I used curry paste, coconut and coconut cream that time, that was choice. 

I finely diced and squashed some garlic and mixed it with some margarine and herbs. Then spread the margarine out on the pastry and sprinkled the parmesan over the top and cut it into strips. Twisted them up and baked them for 10 - 15 minutes, I think, I really forgot to look at the clock. I would advise you to check on them and take them out when they are nice and golden brown.

Luckily I had people coming over, so I didn't eat them all. Izzy loved them and ate quite a few. They make great nibbles.

Home made pasta

  

Short bursts of madness

It's short bursts of madness, when everything happens at once, that has me running around like a chook with it's head cut off. I remind myself I'm not the only one, every parent has times like this. 

Izzy pulled the tent down I had set up between the kitchen bench and the table. Down came my water bottle, the salt and pepper shakers and a earthenware jug that was holding down the sheet on the bench. I was sitting in the lounge room feeding a tired Summer. When she was done I put her on the floor, and went to clean up the tent, the water bottle was open and everywhere and the jug broken. On my way past the table, Izzy looked at me while pouring her painting water all over the glue she had tipped on to paper, sending water running all over the floor. Summer sat crying on the floor, while I quickly cleaned up the mess. I've never been one for controlled crying, but I just needed two minutes of catch up time. I laid Summer tummy down in her cot. 

I was in the kitchen and doing some dishes. Izzy asked "What are you doing Mummy?". "Losing my marbles, is what I am doing!". She sat on the floor with some textas and I thought she was happily drawing. As I went to wipe down the benches and the table,  I noticed a line of texta on the floor. It circled the table, and led to where she was drawing in the lounge room. 

By the time I had dealt with that, Summer had gone off to sleep. Bless her cotton socks. Izzy was deciding it was time for a change of clothes with half the contents of her drawers on the floor of her bedroom. I turned back down the hallway and forgot I saw it. It can wait until later, they can't fall any further and I needed a coffee!

Besides the madness the day wasn't too bad, photos on the tramp, playlists on YouTube, dancing, two Toy Story movies, Izzy helping me vacuum, Summer hovering around in her walker. I have never seen a kid so fascinated by the vacuum cleaner. 

These bursts of madness are shortlived, but they seem to go on forever when I'm in the middle of one. Moments of gold surpass them, like when Summer follows me down the hallway, only to greet me with a beaming smile when she finds me sitting on the toilet with the door open. Then rolls past only to come back with the same beaming smile, because she found me again, like roller derby peek-a-boo.

Last night Brett had a pinching nerve in his glutimus, this morning while I made toast Izzy came out with "Daddy has got a sore arse!". It had me in fits of giggles. A few days ago while I fed Summer, she sat with her dolly propped up on a pillow, feeding with her shirt up. She put dolly on the pillow, looked at her and announced "Udder tit!" and promptly swapped sides. More gold that had me laughing. Monkey see, monkey do, she's a little parrot. I'm so glad she hasn't picked up on my FFS and F*** me's, when I'm having a moment. The time will come! I should really kerb my language, but a well pronounced and vocal FFS always makes me feel better.

Coloured Rice - Open Slather

Last week, Rebecca from Four little piglets added a post about coloured rice. I always see posts about sensory bins, I never get around to doing them. So I gave this one a go. I didn't make much rice, I just used what I had left in the pantry, it was enough just for Izzy. I only had blue and yellow food colouring, and put some plain brown rice in for a different colour.

She loved it and played with it for over an hour, so I loved it too. My prediction was right, I thought at some point she would start to eat it!

A sick Summer again



Third day in hospital, this room is getting smaller and smaller.

Bloods have been taken again to make sure the infection has gone.

Improvement and a smiley girl on Wednesday

I turn 40  tomorrow, the last thing I want is to wake up in this hospital room. I hope to god whatever it was, besides the urinary tract infection, has gone and we can go home. Meanwhile we are waiting for lunch to arrive for another day.

Summer is back to her normal self, she is very wary of the nurses and doctors now though. She is still choosy who she gives her smiles to,  as much as the nurses all try.

Last night was the worst, she had an antibiotic injection and had her canula line taken out. It took me three hours to get her to sleep before they had to give her the injection, so I was trying again after that. I eventually laid down to get some sleep at nearly midnight.

A severely depressed teen ran down the hallway crying and burst through the doors and escaped. I heard the nurse ring the cops to go looking for him. And not long after, I’m across the hall from the emergency ward, heard them bring him back and then heard them talking about suicide watch. My heart went out to him, especially as it was the end of  Are u ok? Day.

The nurse asked me in the morning if I was woken up by the drama, I wasn’t even asleep yet. I wasn’t too concerned about our safety but more worried about what he was going through. She just answered “Life is just sad for some people”. I hope he gets through his sad period and goes on to a happy life.

I am getting  so behind in my photo a day challenge, I can’t wait to get home and catch up.

                                                                        ---------------------

We made it home in the afternoon, bloods were all clear, but she is low in iron. I am so glad to be home, I’m so glad she is over it. We can move on.

It's 12 past midnight, Happy Birthday to me!!! Time I got some sleep.

We have a third birthday to attend tomorrow, I still haven't had time to buy a present. Then family and friends are helping me commiserate celebrate my 40th for dinner out.

We took silly photos on the computer to pass the time

  

Our Sunny Sunday in September