Oh for the flowers.

It is wonderful to be sharing here this week. It is wonderful to know I am missed. 

Life has been busy, if not overwhelming. Work is busy, home life is busy, with kids and all the other things that happen, like swimming lessons, haircuts, helping number one son.

Mother hen has gone to the cup, and it has been empty pretty well. Without much of a chance to replenish, I have been making an effort to be selfish and do things for me. Take time out for the things I need, to make me feel like me again.

I coached my first school group at gymnastics. It was a small town school so a whole school group under 15 kids, was a good way to cut my teeth. I was nervous as hell, but it went well! Always the way, stressing for nothing. I also had a kindy group of 26 this week, which seemed hectic but turned out all good. That many four and five year olds is like organising a heard of cats! 

Amongst all the things, the garden keeps on giving me gems, something to cut through the coldness of winter. I planted anemone corms a couple of months ago, and now they are giving me most beautiful flowers and colour.

It's coming around that time when winter wares out it's welcome. The cold antarctic wind can bugger off now. Moral is low, we all need a dose of sunshine and some defrosting northern winds.

I went out yesterday to capture the plover babies that roam around our cul-de-sac. The most gorgeous fluffy little things, that huddle in warmth under their mothers. I didn't see them out, but was reminded that spring is moments away, with two wattle birds courting in the gums trees above me.

Foggy mornings usually bring the sunny winter days, two more weeks and I look forward to the sun coming into it's own and basking in it's warmth. I look forward to the garden in all it's glory. 

An InLinkz Link-up

Somewhere I visit every day

My place in time #59

Being a stay at home mum does have it's pros, like not having to leave the house some days. Days like these for me usually result in me not being dressed properly until lunch time, easy and relaxed. It would be good if this was the case everyday, as there are two people who try their best to see that it is not easy and not relaxed! Somedays we don't go anywhere, and depending on the weather, the kids don't even get outside the house.

One place I do go everyday is the loo. Somedays it is my refuge, and the sound of that doorknob lock clicking is pure relief, besides the other kind of relief that goes on in those tiny four walls. But I'm not taking photos of my loo, that would be too easy, plus I can't be bothered cleaning it.

Somedays the letter box doesn't even get a visit, not from me anyway. This is Izzys new favourite thing to do on her own. I am sure it is so she can be closer or catch the view of her best friend next door, which her wanting to play with is a constant nagging point during the day.

The laundry gets a visit from me everyday, whether it's packing the machine, turning it on, or emptying it. The broom and the vacuum cleaner live in there too. So I go in there for something, every. day. Again it is not spotless. Which is really ironic, because I have taken photos of the place that is the most crappiest at my place, chook poo crappiest.

The place I visit every day without fail is the chook house. Every morning I take our food scraps out to the two girls and let them out for a wander, which always means land mines everywhere.

Occasionally we get an egg, it's that time of year, a bit cold for laying eggs. The little brown chook has been an egg machine. The black one hasn't laid one for a while. I'm hoping to get a couple more chooks, I can see them not being let out as much, I'd have poo everywhere! They have a fair run around two sides of our big shed. 

You can read more about the My place in time project at Blackcurrant photography

Kiddlywinks and a few chooks ;)

Playing on Summers new bed

Dare devil Izzy

while I take selfies

These two have taken a liking to this seat in the garden

Wordless Wednesday

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.

Cake, tea cups and feathers

Not the best of days, Isabel was naughty central ALL day, mainly giving her sister the shits, which in turn gave me the shits. I did get a fair bit done, despite her pushing me just about every second of my day, the naughty chair got a work out. I had tears at one point, and the little bugger brought me a tissue, redeemed herself with a  heart melt moment.

I baked.

Complete with finger holes, Isabel climbed onto the bench while I was hanging out washing

 Boiled Chocolate Cake

 120gr butter
   3/4 cup sugar 

1 cup water 

   1/2 tsp bicarb soda

3 Tbsp cocoa
 1 1/2 cups SR Flour
2 eggs, beaten

Boil butter, sugar, bicarb, water and cocoa for 2 minutes. Let cool.

Add flour, then egg.

Bake in a moderate oven for 45 mins.

I fixed up an old chook house.

My dad got it at a clearance sale, he frequents them a lot since he retired a couple of years ago. He bought it for mum, she didn't want it, along with half the crap stuff he comes home with. Most of it is actually good, I love this picture he got with a bulk lot, it's hanging in my kitchen, I like tea cups.

I'd been thinking about chooks for a while, so after I finished patching up holes in the wire, we went and picked up two chooks from this old fella round the corner. Isabel was very excited, and has exclaimed since to everyone we have seen, "We got CHOOKS!". Funny. She loves to feed her uncles chooks and collect the eggs, now we have our own, yet to be named girls. I'm thinking Henny Penny and Chicken Licken.

Look what I found in the morning!!!