Free Junk

Saturday after a visit to the farmer's market, I spotted these rolls of retro vintage wallpaper amongst a pile of free junk outside someones house.  Immediately I thought "score!".  Now I am thinking, what the hell can I do with them?  Anyone have any suggestions?  Nothing too fiddly or time-consuming please!

15 months and 4 years

I woke up a few nights ago and couldn't get back to sleep.  I somehow got thinking that my girls are almost 4 years old and almost 15 months old which are two milestones when it comes to immunization shots.  Realizing that in the very near future I would have to take both of them in to have their immunizations updated, I lay in bed stressing out and wondering how to make this happen without a huge drama.  Can you even comprehend what a daunting task this is?  It is horrible to watch your baby get a large needle in her thigh, on both sides actually, but to have to convince your 4 year old that it would be ok for the nurse to stick her as well!!!  When I took Rita in for her 15 month shot I remember the nurse saying to me "this is the last time she won't know what's happening".  That seemed like not that long ago and now all of a sudden here I am with my daughter who will know what's happening.  Gut wrenching for me to say the least.  And of course the mom gets stuck with these jobs because dad is "at work".  Well, the sooner the better I suppose so off I go to schedule an appointment with the nurses for tomorrow morning.  Wish me luck.

A Budding Chef

My mom recently sent me some things she had found when she was cleaning out her office at home.  One of them was this little treasure: a recipe written by me when I was probably about 8 years old. I remember being in the kitchen of our house on Loma Alta whizzing things up in the blender and serving them to my family in special glasses with little umbrellas and garnishes.  It was serious business to me back then, the whole cooking and serving thing.  And I suppose not much has changed!

Just like Christmas

Yesterday Peter and I drove down to Auckland.  Pete had an appointment with an eye specialist and I had to pick up my new double sport buggy.  All week I have been so excited about this dumb buggy.  It was as if I were going to get a 2 hour massage and full on pamper day or something.  But no, just a new twin stroller to push my kids around in.  I couldn't wait to see it in real life.  It was purchase on trade me so it is new to me but it is second hand.  I bought one about 6 months ago that Rita is now too heavy for and as we walk down the street we are nearly tipping over with the kids side by side, Gigi's side almost in the air with Rita so heavy next to her.  It was cheap and that's why I bought it but I really did want the double sport buggy.  So for the past few months and especially with number 3 on the way, I've been watching them being sold and bought on trade me.  And finally I found one that was in excellent condition and a good price.  Yippee!  We had our first stroll this morning and it was such a delight to push, honestly, as stupid as it sounds, I was having the happiest walk to preschool that I've ever had! 
Sorry for going on about it but it did feel like Christmas.  Since we were in the big smoke, I managed to drag Pete and poor little Gigi along to some shops where I convinced Pete that yes, we did need 3 very large terracotta pots and some bougainvillea and another test pot of paint for our house.  There was barely enough room, seriously, in the car for Rita when we picked her up at Bill and Noelene's on the way home.  Pete had a miserable time no doubt but for me the day was absolutely delightful.  It didn't end when we got home either because then the buggy had to be reassembled and tested, the pots had to be put into different locations and admired and the children were bathed and we all needed some sort of meal sorted out for dinner.  Hectic day for some, satisfying for others.

and alas Dad can rest....well, sort of

Dinner Party

Last night we had some friends over for a mid week dinner party to help us eat up the snapper that I caught on Sunday.  A bit of a late night for the kids but well worth it.  Peter had scored some scallops at work yesterday, as you do, so we had some nice nibbles on offer as well.  Sauteed scallops with ginger and garlic.

For the main course, we baked the snapper whole in a salt crust, leaving the scales on to provide a barrier from getting too salty.  40 minutes in the oven and out came deliciously moist snapper.  Emma made a very nice potato salad and a mixed bean salad; perfect accompaniments to the fish.  Unfortunately I was so busy sitting on the sofa chatting with Emma that I didn't get a photo of the fish!  La piece de resistance was my special dessert.  Well, actually I got the recipe out of the Sunday paper and had to give it a go.  It was a mix between pavlova and tiramisu.  3 layers of cocoa dusted pavlova meringue sandwiched with Kahlua and marscapone cream and sprinkled with chocolate chips.

Rob and Pete went back in for seconds and after licking her plate we just couldn't keep Tessa away!

Delightful evening indeed.

Family Day

Yesterday we had a much needed family day of relaxation out on the boat with Nana and Pa. Probably not so relaxing for Nana who was busy entertaining the girls the entire day! After a few bum fishing spots with no luck whatsoever, we finally found a winner spot by the afternoon and I caught a whopper snapper. Catch of the day. The day ended even better than we could have imagined when we spotted orcas frolicking in the Mahurangi just near the mooring!

strapped to a bunk and crashed out

another one bites the dust; napping on Nana

Little Things

We've been in our house for about 6 months now and although we've definitely made it "home", I always have an idea of what I want to change next.  This week I was lucky enough to make 2 changes that have been bothering me for some time.  The first one was to replace all the handles in the kitchen so they match the appliances and make it look a bit more modern (disregarding the hideous lino of course).  The second change was to cover my grandmother's table with a sensible oilcloth tablecloth.  Wipeable surfaces are a must with my 2 messy kids.  The finish on the original table has taken a beating and it is almost in disrepair.  Instead of investing in getting it professionally refinished which is something that makes sense once our children are grown, I decided to cover it up!
What do you think?



echino fabric by etsuko furuya from fabricworm.com

 Next up....painting the exterior of the house; that is, once we can decide on a color.

Lately I've Noticed....

So, I've been doing a lot of pondering lately as I step back and take a look at our lives...

When did my 1 year old become that WT (pardon the expression) baby that walks around dragging her bottle everywhere and having little "snack" drinks of formula.?
Did my 3 year old really just say to me 3 times when I told her she lost her bedtime story for being naughty "I don't really care mom, I don't really care, I just don't care"?
When did I become that fussy eater mummy who cuts the crusts off of sandwiches and buys little pots of sweetened starchy crappy yogurts for my 1 year old?
How did I get so blase to allow my baby to smash food all over the house and not care or to let my daughter sit on the couch when I can see her feet are crusted in dirt?
Speaking of feet, when did my kids become the typical Kiwi children who never wear shoes, ever, no matter where they are, even at school?

I guess with one more on the way I've given in to the fact that Peter and I will be the minority and our children will and already do rule the roost.