seaside salve...

i've been feeling a little fragile

missing my love

missing his warmth, smell and voice

life's chaos is the same while he is away

but there is no one at the end of the long day 

to work out its kinks and knots with

today i felt drained and in need of some joy

so i decided a visit to the sea was in order

fremantle

a lovely place far away enough to feel like we are escaping

but close enough to home so its do-able in a couple of hours

we took in the roundhouse

a tunnel underneath led to a beach

fossicking through tumbles of seaweed for cuttlefish bones

watching the waves lap in and out

breathing in the salty fresh air

stumbling across a gallery featuring lovely local art

with two artists in residence painting away while we watched

grumbling tummies led us on to our dinner

familiar smells led us to a nearby chippie where we got our squid rings, chips and 

battered barramundi

more exploring afterwards

climbing pylons on the beach, following old railway tracks

finishing with over-the-top sundaes

the sun had just set

and the rain clouds rolled in before we could find shelter

we ran through the rain

shivering, ducking and weaving

laughing

 in the dark through ancient norfolk pines

till we found our way back to the train station

they are tucked up now

warm and dry in their beds

little smiles on their faces

and the sunshine is back in my soul

those wings are growing...

Miss 7.5 & Mstr 5

how the heck did that happen?

i've been getting glimpses of what my

little people will be like as

BIG people

i want a 'freeze' button

to stop time

and relish who they are now

strings and poetry

there are so many superlatives swirling in my head

about this man that i don't know what to say first

lyrical genius, gifted with strings, the humblest performer, and just a gorgeous creature

it was his music that first inspired me to learn the ukelele

although he plays the guitar

(its much easier for me to learn the uke!)

but the songs I play are all his

i took three friends with me this week to listen to him play

i could barely contain my excitement

when he finally appeared, he worked his magic

charmed the crowd and made us laugh and cry

all at once

it was heavenly

my friends were instantly smitten

(see? its not just me!)

the day before, i took the children to watch him perform for fans under 18

lily is a chip off the old block

she spent the whole time grinning at him from the front row

and afterwards

brought him a note with a big cut-out heart and a declaration

of love for his music

we'd previously had discussions

about whether i should bring my uke for him to sign

he insisted i bring it with me to the grown-up's gig

so i did

felt a bit sheepish

fussed about what I should wear

silly me

after the show 

we were the last to see him

gracious and sweet he was to me

thanking me for my support 

i threw my arms around him and planted a big one on his bearded cheek - 

an uncontrollable impulse!

before signing my uke he started strumming it

unfamiliar with it 

he asked me what to do

and when he began strumming the very first song I ever learned

i was almost in tears

do yourself a favour

look him up -

Passenger

what is it about the people that we admire

that moves us in such extreme ways?

tranquil and calm...

simple things make me happy
i picked this branch of native shrub (some variety of gum, i think)
outside my local gym
but when i got home
there was nothing suitably splendid to put it in
so i went thrifting and found this gorgeous green apothecary style bottle
i have been making special trips to my bedroom
just to look at it

what makes you smile on the inside?

food for the temple...

forrest gump (aka my husband) was out again this morning.

he's been training for his first ever, marathon.

every sunday morning he heads out and runs for hours, and recently

its been for hours AND hours.

when he gets back he's not interested immediately in solid food

as his body is still dealing with resting muscles, decreasing heart rates and generally just being still.

so, i make him this when he gets in. 

easy to digest

dairy free

packed with carbs and protein

and delicious

bananas, medjool dates, coconut oil, blackstrap molasses,
chia seeds, blueberries and oat milk




after a while he'll be ravenous but still looking for something
WHOLEsome.

then he gets this
heck, we all get it!

Mushrooms, creamy scrambled egg and rye sourdough

we make our scrambled eggs with cream

in fact, we've been having quite a fling with fat

it would seem that the idea of fat being bad for you is being revisited and questioned.

read more about it here

food for thought.

more and more our pantry is being detoxed

and my recipes are being re-written to include more wholesome, less refined ingredients

and we are all feeling the benefits of it

i dread sounding all holier-than-thou but all i know is that as the cook of our house

i have the responsibilty for making sure my people

are eating foods that give them VITALity

so they can live happily and healthily.

worship your body like its the Taj Mahal

and it will gleam from the inside, out.

thats a promise.

the sisterhood...

i had been looking forward to it all week.

six women, coming together for a long lunch of laughter and conversation. 

i washed the house and tried to make things pretty so my friends would think I was an impeccable housekeeper (ha!). 

when it was all done i had time to spare, and fidgeted nervously - i so enjoy the company of these wonderful women.

some people come into your life at different times and, unexpectedly plant themselves right in the middle, and it feels as though they've ALWAYS been there.

know what i mean?

For CW, DW, KM, SR and LY

I quit sugar...

well, sort of.

all my DAILY cake and biscuit scoffing had me worried

especially after i read about my friend rachel's efforts to 
quit sugar 

inspired, I decided to embark on a similar journey

my version of this 'diet' was quite simple, really. 

as much about reducing my sugar intake as my craving for anything that tasted sweet. 

no cakes, biscuits, lollies, processed cereals, honey, jam, dried fruit, juice and anything else containing refined sugar for 

37 days

spot the difference!

Before: MindLESS scoffing of cake!                              After: MindFUL indulging

yesterday was the 37th day - yay!

how did it go?

truthfully, the first week was difficult

i discovered just how frequently my need for a sweet hit punctuated my day
hourly, i reckon

i ate up to seven pieces of fruit a day at first
reducing it eventually back to two but allowing myself a medjool date or persian fig here and there

in the second and third weeks
it got easier as my tastebuds got 're-trained'
its hard to explain but the lovely french patisserie i could never seem to walk past without buying a sweet morsel from, didn't even register in my consciousness as their cabinets laden with macarons, eclairs, madeleines and petit fours beckoned to others
(i'm still a little freaked out by that)

I DO miss baking 

i just have to learn to bake without wanting to consume it all as it comes out of the oven

maybe i could bake and share with the neighbours 

meanwhile, my mummy tummy deflated!

its so nice to get back into jeans that I haven't been able to wear for years. 

i have more energy and don't have to snack constantly. 

the persistent, desperate craving for something sweet is almost gone, much to my surprise.

i have not mentioned exercise
somewhere in the 37 days were two weeks of school holidays so i did not get to my twice weekly group fitness sessions but i did kick the footy around a fair bit with the kids and got out to the park or beach

i think its important to remember that its not all about having to get to the gym
rather finding opportunities in our 
everyday comings and goings
just MOVE


not having scales was liberating
instead of waiting for the numbers to drop
i waited for the previously snug pants to drop
and i'm almost there

did i ever slip up?
sure i did

 i had a Bliss Bomb or five, and a slice of dessert at my cooking club dinner the other night 

i was aware of and savoured each mouthful 

i think I had forgotten how to do that

my take home message to anyone thinking about doing something like this would be
to forget the word 'diet'
its not about depriving or punishing yourself
its about finding alternatives

my 37 days may be up
but i'm thinking this is how i want to live the next
37 years

ok, i'm a bit excited about it
i have never felt this good
why don't you give it a try?

Sunny Days...

You wouldn't know it was winter here 

Unbelievably blue skies

crisp and clear

Quite often I find I have to stop right where I am

 wherever that may be

to look up and around me 

taking in all the splendour

 colour and life around us

With all my senses

They love it too

The sun and fresh air gives them an extra spring in their step

Just try and stop them!

The ocean today

 teeming with life and colour

These shells are actually under the water 

but you can't tell - it was so clear and clean

I wanted to dive right in there

I wonder how many of us take the time to notice the simple beauty that surrounds us? 

Whats been cooking in my kitchen...

I'm part of a lovely group of ladies who get together once a month to cook. 

We are united by a common passion for eating and trying out new foods and ways of cooking. 

Its been 7 years since we started out, some of us armed with basic cooking skills, others more advanced but all of us eager to learn, cook and eat.

This month we each had to create dishes using two 'mystery ingredients'. Mine were puree of chestnuts and glace ginger. My head still hurts from all the inventing!

Come see what we made here.