A WEDDING

My younger daughter R was married yesterday morning. It was a very small ceremony with 5 guests in the registry office in Wollongong.

Afterwards we had lunch for 10 at Litani's, a local Lebanese restaurant. We decorated simply with a few balloons....

...and a carrot cake which I made with a pair of felt mice for toppers.

 

 I will give the recipe for the cake and the link for the mice pattern in my next post.

Daughter R had  beautiful engagement and wedding rings designed and made by a family member  Penny at Meakins Jewellery.

The groom also had his ring designed and made by Penny.

The wedding and celebration were just as they wanted them - low key and very simple.The groom made a special effort and wore closed shoes. It was a very special day.




Interesting sites


1.

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 To build this house in Japan 2 trees that had stood for many years needed to be removed. They were used as part of the house interior.  Click here to read more.

2.

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Here are some great octopus cakes. Click here if you would like to see them. I came across these at Gleeful .

3.

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I have terrible trouble with clutter. I am wading through it and getting rid of lots of it as I get my house ready to sell. I thought this was an interesting article by someone with a similar problem. Click here to read it. 

ALL YOU NEED IS LESS

This is my new adage - all you need is less.

Until this year I was a teacher at a small school for students with behaviour problems. But our school closed and I was made redundant. I am 58 and don't see much prospect of another job. I am not entitled to an old age pension for another 8 years and the welfare payments I am entitled to will not be enough to live on. So I am selling my house and at this stage plan to move in with my mother and brother - for a while at least.

The problem is that I have a four bedroom house and lots of stuff. So I must cull, cull, cull! Much of my excess stuff to date has gone to the Salvation Army. It is actually quite liberating divesting myself of a lot of unneeded stuff put away for a rainy day.

My House

My lovely P:-) has been putting plasterboard on my back room and my wonderful brother G spent a day helping him do the ceiling. My daughter R came to help as well..

Here are some photos to give you the idea of how the room is looking.

The new walls frame the trees outside very nicely.

Meanwhile I made another couple of practice cakes  for daughter R's wedding which is only 10 days away. I made a vegan carrot cake which was a bit dry and then this non-vegan carrot cake which worked out well.

This is Curtis Stone's carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. It is made as per the recipe except that I used dark brown sugar instead of raw sugar and cooked it in a round tin instead of a loaf tin. It was really good so I shall practise making a double layer one.


Interesting sites

1.

Unusual Buildings

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 This article has photos of 50 unusual buildings. It is worth a look. Click here to see them.

2.

The American Woods

 

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These are photos from the American woods. They are absolutely beautiful. Click here  to see them. 

3. 

Macula Degeneration Implant

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 Macular degeneration is quite common in people in the 70s and 80s. This article is about a new implant consisting of a tiny telescope which can be used to reverse the effects of macular degeneration. Click here to read more. 

A FULL MOON

People come and go in your life but they never leave your dreams. Once they are in your subconscious, they are immortal.

Patricia Hampl

  To begin with I couldn't resist a couple of photos of the full moon from my front yard.

 

 

I cooked a baked dinner last night - a leg of lamb. It turned out very well. I usually cook large cuts of meat as a pot roast or in the slow cooker, but I found myself a recipe, baked the leg in the oven and even made proper gravy.

I warned P:-) that this is a one off. He is on a low cholesterol diet which does not include gravy made from pan drippings. I even put the potatoes and pumpkin in the same baking tray as the meat. In actual fact there were few pan drippings from the meat and the vegetables were tossed in olive oil first.

It all turned out very well. Tender juicy lamb. Baked pumpkin and potatoes. Baby peas, and carrots with a honey glaze. 

My leg of lamb turned out somewhat better than my practice wedding cake.

My daughter R is being married in 2 weeks. She and her partner B want a very small wedding with only 4 guests followed by an early lunch with 7 guests. R and B plan to have a few small celebrations with various groups of friends rather than one big party.

I am making the wedding cake for the lunch. I decided a nice, moist chocolate cake would be ideal. I found a vegan recipe as my other daughter J is vegan and thought it would be nice for her to be able to eat the cake too. The cake I made was very nice but a lot lighter than I planned. As it turned out R decided that she really wants a carrot cake.

But the vegan chocolate is a lovely light cake. Here is the recipe. No one you give it to will know it is vegan. Vinegar and baking powder react to make it light, in place of eggs.

 Vegan Chocolate Cake 

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C and prepare a 9 inch round baking tin. 

2. Sift into bowl:

•  1 1/2  cups wholemeal self raising flour 

• 1/3 cup cocoa powder

• 1 teaspoon baking powder 

• 1/2 teaspoon salt 

• 1 cup sugar 

3. In a separate bowl mix:

• 1/2 cup olive oil

• 1 cup cold water

• 2 teaspoons vanilla paste

4. Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and mix until smooth.

5.  Add 2 tablespoons of vinegar. Stir just until vinegar is evenly distributed through batter.

6. Bake 25 - 30 minutes. 

Vanilla cream frosting

1. Beat 1/2 cup dairy free margarine (such as Nuttelex) at room temperature for a few minutes.

2. Add 1 1/2 cups icing sugar and beat for several minutes until smooth and creamy.

3. Add 2 teaspoons vanilla paste and beat until fully mixed. 

   Interesting sites

1.

Entire clocks, including workings, made from wood

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 This is just a small article about a man who makes entire clocks, including the workings, from wood.  His work is really intricate. Click here to read more.

2.

Caravan is a work of art

 

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 This little caravan is a beautiful piece of art. Wait till you see the inside. You will be surprised. Click here to read more. 

SOMETHING WONDERFUL

Something wonderful happened to me today.  My antique bible (see my last post) sold on Ebay for $49 plus $20 postage.  I bought it for $6 so this is a good profit.

This is pretty exciting. I had it listed for 7 days and only got any bids on the last day. I wasn't expecting a single bid. I was so excited I couldn't sleep!

In some ways I shall be sad to see it go as I have a small collection of old books procured over the years, but parting with these is going to be part of my downsizing.
This first success will spur me on to sell some other old books.


On Wednesday I went to a new friend's place for morning tea. I wasn't sure what to take. I didn't want to buy food as I knew the others, like myself, were watching their diets. I didn't have any flowers in my garden and buying a bunch was going to be over the top. So I decided to take her a few  toadstools I had made  to put in a pot plant or in the garden.

 

These are small polymer clay toadstools set on  wooden skewers so they can be stuck into the dirt. At one stage I made hundreds of these but now have limited colours left. My friend was very pleased with them.

But the best thing that happened during the week was my wonderful brother returning from Canada where he had been for 4 months. We went to Mascot airport on Thursday morning to pick him up. It is lovely having him home although he has had some difficulty readjusting to the climate after the freezing weather in Canada.

On Sunday we enjoyed a picnic for P:-)'s granddaughter's 1st birthday. The drive up to Engadine was about 40 minutes and it was beautiful driving weather.

F6 Freeway

 
The birthday picnic was held at the Cooper Street Reserve in Engadine, one of the outer Southern suburbs of Sydney.

Cooper Street Reserve

 Today I went to Centrelink, taking my Separation from Employment Certificate finally received from my employer. I found out that I will be entitled to some welfare benefits in October. I shall have to watch my pennies but I am just enjoying not working so much that I don't care.

I am kept very busy pottering around the house with so many things that had been let go before. I have much more time to spend with my daughters and mother, as well as P:-) which is great. I am very grateful for the way things are turning out. It is something wonderful.


Interesting sites

 1.

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House Hafner is a beautiful light filled residence. It has a living green garage. Click here to see more aspects of this house.



2.

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Tree frogs are fascinating as well as cute. Click here to see 25 great tree frog pictures taken by different photographers.

3.

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According to Lesley Alderman there are 9 secrets of motivated people. Click here 
if you would like to find out what they are. 

FALLING INTO PLACE

Daylight Saving finished. It was lovely to have an extra hour in bed and to get up in the light. It will also mean the evenings are darker sooner and then it really seems as if winter is on the way.

Here is a photo from my back window this morning.

Having the greenery so close makes me feel as if I live in the trees.

Today is slightly overcast and there is the rumble of thunder in the distance

P:-) has put all the plasterboard on the walls of my backroom, with the help of little Jasper. The ceiling still has to be done.

It will certainly be a relief when this room is finished. 

I will call an estate agent in to value the house and to advise me what should be done in order to make selling it the most profitable. I have been happy living in it as it is but prospective owners may expect more.

Things are falling into place. My past employers finally sent me a Separation From Employment certificate. This means I can take it to Centrelink and find out my exact entitlements.

I have a few old books that I won't be able to keep so I am going to try selling them on Ebay.
The first one is on old Bible published 1879.

 

 I love old books and I bought this old Bible for a few dollars at the Salvation Army some years ago. 

It does not appear to be the King James version, but something very similar.

This is only the second time I have sold something on Ebay and I didn't do a very good ad, so I shall probably relist it after a week with some more details and better written.

If you would like to see the listing click here.


  Interesting sites


1.

Modular research station moved on skis

Photo source

Halley VI is the world's first modular research station that can be moved on skis. These modules are found at the Brunt Ice Shelf in Antarctica. These ski based modules were designed to respond to the rising snow and ice levels which have encased the last 5 research labs, the first of which was built in 1956. Click here to read more and see more photos. The interiors are especially fascinating.



2.

Canada Geese

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If you like birds you will really enjoy these photos of Canada geese. Click here to see a range of interesting photos. Being from Australia I knew nothing about Canada Geese so found some interesting  information here.


3.

Food we throw away

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In his blog, The Flying Tortoise discusses the amount of food we throw away while people are starving. He makes some interesting points. Click here to read his short article. 

A LITTLE VISITOR

 When one bases their life on principle, 99 percent of their decisions are already made.

Unknown 

April already!
This is my favourite time of the year weather wise. My thoughts turn to camping but I don't think P:-) and I will get away for a while.

The herb garden is growing. My mother potted up some more herbs for me.

The first is lemon thyme.

Lemon thyme

The second is garlic chives.

Garlic chives

It is lovely being able to pick fresh herbs from my garden.

My herb garden

I now have basil, mint, thyme, lemon thyme and garlic chives.  I would still like rosemary, coriander, oregano, parsely and dill ... at least

P:-) continues working on my back room. Most of the leaking has been eliminated and P:-) has been continuing the gyprocking.

 

 

My back room

My little visitor is my granddog Jasper. My daughter R has gone away for a week and her dog Jasper has come to stay.

Jasper

He is a cute little Miniature Foxie aged 5.

Jasper investigating

My house is a bit untidy. I am sorting lots of stuff out as I downsize and have just cleared out some wall units for the Salvation Army to take. So when I took the photos of Jasper there was a bit of stuff sitting around. Jasper and I get on very well together.





Interesting sites

1.

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 Click here to see more views of this great holiday house at Seal Rocks, Australia.

2.

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These tree house beds for kids are great but you need a very big bedroom. Click here to read more.

3.

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  Click here to see a beautiful Romany style gypsy home on the back of a truck.

GOOD FRIDAY

Only one thing has to change for us to know happiness in our lives:

where we focus our attention.

Greg Anderson

It is so important to focus our attention on the positive. The type of life we lead depends on whether we see the glass half empty or full. 

The fact of the matter is that each and every moment presents us with an opportunity to choose to see the perfection in our current circumstances. We might not be exactly where we WANT to be, but we are precisely where we’re SUPPOSED to be.

Bethany Butzer

I love writing my blog. I love the fact that people are interested enough to read it. I began writing for one main reason. I wanted to look at the good things that happened to me each day. I wanted to appreciate the small things - flowers, sunsets, the birds in my garden.

I write with my friends and family in mind. Some live in Australia and others don't. I like to think I have made a few friends through my blog as well - very sweet people from other blogs who take the time to leave comments. 

Life is presenting a few challenges for me at the moment but underlying these are the great positives I have in my life.

I am lucky to have a strong belief and faith in God. This underpins everything I do and gives purpose to life when sometimes there would seem to be little purpose. I don't see myself as particularly religious and I can mix with all types of people. Some of the closest people to me think I am crazy believing in God but I just do.

Today is Good Friday. P:-) and I went to church this morning.

 

In the back yard

P:-) spent quite a bit of time in my back yard this afternoon doing some clearing while I slept. I have had a bit of a stressful week and had some difficulty sleeping at night and it all seemed to catch up with me this afternoon.

Below are some Birds Nest ferns in my back yard.

I am enjoying my yard while I am still living here. Below is a tree fern down the side of my house.

'

Favourite rocks

When I was cutting back my front garden I unearthed a couple of rocks that I must take with me when I leave. I can't remember where they came from.


One is a large piece of petrified wood. 

If you look closely you can see the growth rings of the tree. 

The second rock is a piece of quartz with visible crystals.

Yummy Salad  

Once or twice during the week I make this salad. It is a meal in itself and very healthy. Sometimes I will cook some meat for P:-) and just have a big bowl of this salad for my dinner.

Ingredients

• Half a small iceberg lettuce finely chopped

• 2 cups of baby rocket chopped

• 2 green onions chopped

• 1 grated carrot

• 1 425 gm can  chopped champignons

• 1 diced avocado

• Splosh of extra virgin olive oil to taste

• Splosh of balsamic vinegar to taste.

Method

Mix all vegetables then add oil and vinegar.

Interesting sites
1.

Photo source

 This house in Texas has been dug into the earth and then covered in thick green sods on the roof. According to the architects the house is a modern interpretation of a Native American pit house. Click here to view a slide show showing aspects of this house. 


2.

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New Zealand is a beautiful country. Harvey Jones travels around the South Island and writes a blog. Click here to see some beautiful scenery from the South Island of New Zealand.

3.

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 During the year I donated a small amount to Wikipedia as I use it a lot. I was sent an email with a video about some of the people who have written for Wikipedia. Click here if you would like to see it. It only takes 4 minutes.