Home made always tastes better...

We hear that a lot.  Home made always tastes better than shop bought...  But do we really believe it?  Or do we think, deep down, that shop bought, because it's shop bought, has to be better?  I know that kids have a hard time accepting that something that's home made is actually superior to anything shop bought.

I think it's because we say it tastes better.  It doesn't necessarily taste better, but it certainly will taste different. 

For me, home made is always better, because I know what's gone into it.  How much sugar, butter, cream, eggs etc.  I know the eggs are home laid, from the girls out the side.  Most of the time whatever I make is cheaper, although if I factored in electricity and make time, it wouldn't be... 

So - why am I rambling on like this???  I know I'm sick, but no, I'm not running a fever (I think anyway).  Last weekend, my brother showed me how to make home made apple pie, and gosh it was good!  Pastry from scratch, pie apples (ok, it was all we had) and some spices & sugar.  55 minutes, from start of process through to taking the pie out of the oven.  And it was great!

Did it TASTE like the store bought ones?  Nope - it didn't.  I like their pastry better, but I'll also bet that the pastry we made was an awful lot better for our waistlines than the store bought pies. 

My brother, Mick, feverishly working on destroying my kitchen while Ken looks on in the background with a drink (onya!!) and the gorgeous Lorraine is cleaning as fast as Mick's messing...

He did make a mess, but the pie was good!

Here it is - sprinkled with some caster sugar, decorated with leaves & some cinnamon.  Mmmmmm...

High Top Apple Pie

1 cup self raising flour
1 cup plain flour
2 tablespoons of sugar
Milk
125 g of butter
Custard powder
Cinnamon



Rub the butter into the flour untill it looks like sand.  Add milk to the flour until you have a dough that doesn’t stick to the sides of the bowl.

Knead till smooth (< 5 minutes)

Combine 1 large and 1 small can of pie apples together in a bowl with sugar to taste and dried fruit (if you like it)

AND - here is the secret to the difference between a good pie and fantastic pie - add custard powder to thicken around the apple as it cooks

Roll out the pastry till thin, either put it into a deep pie dish, or onto an oven proof plate, fill with apple mix, cover with pastry. 

Make an egg wash (egg & dash of milk) and wash the top of the pastry. Sprinkle top of pastry with some caster sugar and cinnamon. Bake on 220 degrees for about 40 minutes. bake in a moderate oven untill its golden brown (aprox 45 min to 1 hr)
serve with thickened cream

Kids!!!!

A couple of weekends ago, we went to the Gold Coast to celebrate Ken's Niece's 40th birthday, which was held at a hotel at Broadbeach.  We had such a fun time!!! 

It was most interesting to see who was there though - I'd even go so far as to use the term bloody amazing!!!  I won't go into too much detail, but let's leave it as one person's ex husband and new girlfriend turn up together...  How's about that!!!  I don't have a problem with someone having a new girlfriend, but to take them to a party where ex wife is going to be, when the split is actually quite new?  Bad taste in my view...  (there's more to it but I don't want to go into too much detail...)

Henrik came to me this morning asking where his long sleeved jumper was - the one he had worn when he came here to Australia.  I have a feeling it's gotten mixed up with other stuff down the coast.  Kids!  There were 6 of them staying the night, so it turned into a large slumber party for all the boys in the lounge/dining room.  When I got up on Sunday, I had to go and take a picture - check this out!!!

The beds.  None of them made, or even thinking about being made...

All on computers, phones or other electronic equipment. 
Note the piles of clothes in the back left hand corner of the room....

So - is it really any wonder that clothes are missing???  No, I don't think so either!

I've not been well the past week, and I came home from Melbourne on Thursday afternoon last week and drove immediately to the doctors.  I have a severely infected throat, and it has inflamed my whole face.  Antibiotics, panadol, asprin forte later, I felt much better, but it's not budging yet.  Grrr.... I've drank enough lemon & honey drinks to turn into a lemon!!!

A minute's silence...

Norway  held a minute's silence yesterday at 12.00 noon for the slain victims of the terrorist attacks on Friday. 

Henrik, our Norwegian exchange student had three friends who were attending the youth camp, and if he hadn't been in Australia, he and his girlfriend would have also been there. 

Thankfully, all of his friends and family are safe and unhurt by the tragedy. 

12.00 noon Norwegian time was 8.00 pm in Queensland, so we lit three candles & had our own minutes' silence. 

There are times I truly don't understand mankind, and this is another example of it.

When life gives you lemons.....

Beware!  It may also give you a cold to go with it!!!

For years, I've wondered why people raved on about honey and lemon drinks.  Having never really tried one, I obviously didn't get it.  Even now, I'm not sure if I've even got the recipe right, but it tastes good, I'm on my third cup for the past few hours, and it does actually seem to relieve my sore throat....

So - for other non believers, give it a go... 

Honey (about 2 teaspoons)
Freshly squeezed Lemon (I love lemon, so I've been putting in about 2 tablespoons I guess)
Pour over boiling water & mix well

That's it.  I was tempted to put a shot of Irish Whiskey in it too but the sad thing about being sick is that I didn't have the energy to get up and go find it!!!

I have been given so many lemons lately by all our neighbours, who's trees are absolutely bursting with their fruit.  They are so much nicer than store bought lemons too - they are just FULL of juice - one lemon is worth two of the shop ones.  I have frozen a lot of their juice in ice cube trays, and then I popped them all together in a large ziplock bag & stuffed them into the deep freeze.  Hopefully I'll have enough for the whole year!!!

On other news, the oven blew up today.  I was chatting to my girlfriend Gai, who lives in Mt Isa.  I put the oven on to cook the vegetarian lasagne, and after about 3 minutes there was a loud POP and the whole thing stopped working.  :(

Ken came home from work, we had dinner, and then he got his tools out and went to work on it.  First he pulled out the element, thinking that was it.  Nope.  Then he unscrewed the light bulb cover & it was full of the exploded light bulb... AHA!!!  No, we don't have a new one - bugger.  BUT - the oven will work without it if you take it out, even though there'll be no light in it.  Better than no oven though!!!

ESPECIALLY with our Christmas in July dinner party on Saturday night with the Curry Nighters!!!

So far we have:
-  Mulled Wine
-  Devils on horseback
-  Mini Quiches (cheese & chive)
-  Roast stuffed leg of lamb
-  Roast Turkey
-  Baked Ham
-  Baked Veggies
-  Fresh bread rolls
-  Home made apple pie
-  Steamed plum pudding
-  Chocolate Coffee Truffles

Mmmm.... can't wait!  There's 11 of us, which is a really good number - two tables and I actually have that many chairs, plates & knives & forks!

Kittens!

Grrrr.....  kittens!  Who'd have them.

As you know, I'm crocheting a dishcloth for the DTE dishcloth swap.  I already have a couple done, but I was trying a new pattern.  (I was almost going to write recipe!!!)

Last night I did another few rounds of the dishcloth - this one is different from the others because it's worked round, not across like all the others I've done. 

Anyway, I finished what I was doing, and popped it into the basket & sat it on my bed to do some more of when I got into bed last night, before I went to sleep.  I hopped into bed (I used the electric blanket for the first time last night - mmmmm!!!) and picked up the dishcloth and hook, and thought "gee, it's a bit light" and then I found it. 

Dishcloth  no longer attached to ball of cotton.  Nibbled off.  Chewed through. 

Grrrrr..... 

Now I have to join it, so I really don't want that one to be my gift - "here's your half chewed dishcloth".  Great. 

I don't even have a culprit, although I think it'd be Stripe as she was at the top end of the bed, and Spot was at the foot end of the bed.  But I don't know. 

Lesson:  don't leave yarn lying around where kittens might see it.....

**sigh**

The world didn’t open up and swallow me!!!

So – this past week, I’ve been concentrating on putting and chucking stuff away.  Lots of stuff.... 

I have completed the spare bedroom – put all my craft things away etc.  I’m still not overly happy with how I have them organised, but it’s a lot better than it was, and at least you can now also move in that room!

I have put all the things away in the second China Cabinet.  It was fun putting things on the shelf and thinking about how they came to be in my life.  A whole shelf wound up being dubbed the “family” shelf – it has all the things that remind me of my family on it.  A setting from my late Grandma’s everyday dinner set, a couple of tiny little cups & saucers that were in her pantry, some glasses from the 1991 family reunion held in Ceduna... 

The booze got put back into a cabinet – and it’s ALL IN ONE PLACE now!!!  How good is that!!!

Last night I tackled the “to leave” pile.  It was really interesting.  I had become a little detached from the pile because it had been sitting on the table for nearly a month now.  I looked at it every day, several times a day – it was right “in my face”...  maybe that made it easier.  Anyway...  it wasn’t that hard.

I started at one end with butchers’ paper and simply started putting the stuff into boxes.  I took a couple of glasses that I got before I was married (1993) and wrapped them and put them in the bin – time for them to depart completely!!!  Everything else was boxed up.  About 6 boxes later, all with “to leave” written on them so that there’s absolutely no confusion. 

I was chatting to my gorgeous friend Miss Michelle later on last night and we were talking about how it hadn’t hurt, it hadn’t been that hard, and maybe it was even “cleansing” – you know, like “out with the old, in with the new” sort of stuff.  I think she’s right...  (have you still got the graduation glass there Miss Michelle or have you tossed too???!!!)

Surprisingly, the world didn’t end.  I wasn’t struck down by lightening.  The earth didn’t shake or swallow me up, and here I sit this morning, proof that I survived.   Cleansed. 

I don’t fathom why we feel the need to keep this stuff that has no meaning, had no good memories or just clutters up our lives.  I don’t get it.  I certainly do have the habit of keeping stuff like that, which is exactly what this whole journey is all about, but I still don’t get it. 

My strategy at the moment is bursts of 15 minutes, and JUST DO IT.  The tick principle – get on with it.

Big week this week – Auditors at work, and we’re planning for the Curry Nighters next function, Christmas in July which will be on Saturday night at our place.  It’s shaping up well so far, 11 or 12 people and lots of great food and wine to be had.  Can’t wait!!!

Is there something that you’ve been hanging onto that isn’t doing your life any good?  Maybe it’s a person or a habit...  Is it time for it to depart???

Finally I feel like I might be getting somewhere!!!

It's been a busy old time the past few days!

Our Norwegian student, Henrik, arrived safe and well on Saturday.  Unfortunately his luggage didn't!  Everyone who came from Paris on the Etihad flight had no luggage.  No worries they say - it'll be here tomorrow...  So I rang Sunday afternoon - it was arriving in Brisbane that night but "we'll have it to you first thing tomorrow morning"...  Hmmmm - then it was promised at 7.00 pm.  It arrived at 8.00 pm.  Is there no wonder that people get frustrated with customer service?  If we had been told the truth in the first place, all would have been SO much better!

We went on Sunday to an outing with my work colleagues.  I wound up sitting in one of the trees for a photo - everyone was joking about how it would be if I, the Safety Manager, fell out of the tree... Gotta tell you - it was a bit scarey up there, but I survived!!! 

I'm in the yellow shirt...

Then last night I got stuck into the china cabinet in the formal dining room.  I emptied out the box that had what was left of those items, and put it all out on the dining table.  I then washed a few things and cleaned a few others, and put them away.  I have enough space now in that cabinet that I have been able to put some things that are in boxes on the bottom shelf, so they are off the top of the cupboard, which makes it look so much more streamlined!

I had a wonderful time with one shelf that is designated "family" - so my Grandmothers place setting from her everyday dinner set, a vase Uncle Jim & Nancy gave me, some other bits from Grandma's house etc...  It's become my favourite shelf!!!

I have to go back and revisit the spare room as my friend Belinda stayed on Saturday night, so I had to pack everything up so she could get into the bed.  I need to go and lay it all out and resort it and put it all away now.  That needs to be done soon, so that Chris & Lorraine can sleep in the bed on Saturday week!!!

So - just a quick post from me today.  All is well, but I am keeping very busy just putting away and tidying.