Friday, September 28, 2012

Cocktail Friday double (with completely unrelated accompanying photo)...


Hi friends!  Sorry for the unannounced absence.  I used up all my internet quota for the month and was cut off for a while.  Anyway, we're back in business and there's lots to catch up on.  I can't believe we missed out sharing last week's cocktail Friday!  To make up for it, we'll have twice as much fun with two cocktail recipes this week (both from my trusty cocktail companion)…

HULA HOOP
60ml gin
30ml orange juice
15ml pineapple juice
cherry to garnish

Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a cherry.

CHI-CHI
45ml vodka
120ml pineapple juice
30ml coconut cream
slice of pineapple and cherry to garnish

Mix vodka, pineapple juice and coconut cream with a cup of ice in an electric blender on high.  Pour into a wine glass and garnish with a pineapple slice and cherry.

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

In which we use the fire hose!



We visited our local fire station yesterday.  Minty has decided she would like to be a fire fighter when she grows up so she can drive the fire truck and be called "fire-fighter Minty"!

Friday, September 14, 2012

Cocktail Friday...


Happy Cocktail Friday Everyone!  Tonight we are drinking a Tom Collins.

60ml gin
45ml lemon juice
10ml sugar syrup
splash of soda water

Combine gin, juice and sugar syrup in a highball glass.  Stir, add ice and fill with soda water.


Hope you all have a fantastic weekend…

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Liquid watercolours...



Turi is a reluctant little artist.  He is easily frustrated and currently has an aversion to drawing (apart from an occasional desire to draw on the walls!!)  I thought perhaps some new paints might inspire him.  Personally I find it really frustrating trying to create with substandard materials (really there is nothing worse than a cheap crayon!)  So I took a trip to Zart (my favourite art store!) to pick up some supplies.  While Minty has the patience to enjoy watercolour painting with a dry palette, Turi struggles to get enough paint on his brush.  I decided liquid watercolours might be the solution.  I bought these ones by micador and I am seriously in love!  The colours are so vibrant and dreamy to apply.  I also got the kids some nice brushes and watercolour paper and it made all the difference.  Turi actually enjoyed himself and did two paintings!  I would highly recommend these if you're looking for some paint for little ones.  They're not quite as messy as poster paint since the kids aren't tempted to try and finger paint.  I would suggest using a higher gsm paper even if you don't stretch to the expense of water-colour paper.  Regular A4 paper just gets so wrinkly and tears too easily when the page gets wet.  Do any of you have any favourite art supplies you use with kids?

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

House update...



Here is a long overdue house update...

This is our lounge room.  We still haven't settled on a carpet choice.  I fell in love with some sisal but as installation isn't included am going back to the drawing board.  Yes that is a dryer next to the couch.  This is of course temporary until the laundry is finished.  I like to think of it as installation art!!



This is the kitchen before the island bench was installed.  The white bench top is temporary and will most likely end up being stainless steel.  That is the bath tub for the master bathroom.  It doesn't fit through the door so it is living in the kitchen until we come up with a solution!!

Check out my vintage pendant lights.  These were a bargain score on bay.  They are suspended from the very high ceiling with black cloth cord.



A little look inside the walk in pantry.  Those drawers are temporary and will be replaced with more shelving.



Left: Kids playing in the bathtub!!  
Right: We still don't have a washing line so there is typically a lot of laundry strewn around the place!



This is the kids' bedroom.  It feels a bit like a white padded insane asylum cell.  I painted the floor as a stop gap until the carpet goes in.  I was planning on painting a hopscotch and some other fun things on the floor but can't find where I put the paint.  I also haven't hung anything on the walls yet so the space is very white.  I'm feeling totally uninspired about this space since all the furniture from their two old rooms is crushed into this room and there are some major colour clashes going on.  The hydronic heating panel hasn't been installed in their room yet so they've got an ugly little temporary space heater. Watch this space as it's sure to evolve quite drastically from this point!!



Left: This is the dining room.  The dining table and chairs are being replaced with a timber table and more practical chairs.  While I love the aesthetics of the tree stump legs, the glass table top is driving me crazy with the kids bumping into the corners and it is impossible to keep clean. Still planning to eventually put in a drop ceiling and probably a comfy cushion filled window seat.

Right: This is the study, currently known as 'the room of requirement'.  Basically it is being used as a storage space and construction area.


Sunday, September 9, 2012

In which we have a domestic and get domestic...



The Mr. and I had a fight this morning.  Nothing serious just a little marital spat.  You know the kind that results in you trying to out-martyr each other for the rest of the day, each trying to prove that really you are the one who works the hardest in the relationship? (everyone does this right?  Or is it just us, with our uber competitive personalities!?)  Of course this was bad because really I just wanted to sit down and waste some time on pinterest with a cup of coffee, not have a chore marathon, but at the same time it was kind of awesome because I finally got around to fishing out all those tiny bits of lego from between the couch cushions and wiping the crumbs up from that bemuda triangle space behind the toaster.  And for his part the Mr. finally put together our island bench!!  …Not to be outdone I then cleaned out the fridge, dug a compost hole and baked chocolate cookies.

If we argued more often I'm pretty sure our house would start looking like something out of a Martha Stewart magazine… although maybe that's why Martha ended up divorced?

I've got a proper house update planned for tomorrow...

Friday, September 7, 2012

In which there are chocolate martinis and the dinner conversation degenerates...



The Mr. is working late tonight and I'm flying solo.  I made a rando lentil dish and a silverbeet gratin.  You know when everyone is really enjoying their meal and a contented hush falls over the room because everyone is too busy chewing to talk?  Well tonight the kids spent the entire meal giggling hysterically and poking each other with their forks while calling each other 'penis'.  Oh well more gratin for me.

Thank god it's cocktail Friday.  Tonight's cocktail is a chocolate martini (from my trusty cocktail bible)

3 chocolate drops
cocoa to garnish
30ml vodka
30ml white creme de cacoa

Place chocolate drops in the bottom of a martini glass and dust the tim with cocoa.  Shake vodka and creme de cacoa with ice, and strain into a martini glass.  

Happy Friday Everyone!!

And for those who have been asking for a house update, here is a little sneak peek.  This is what the laundry currently looks like.  I promise I'll do a proper house update next week.

Oh and if anyone is interested I blogged a kale pizza recipe over at food fanatics earlier this week.