Project Life: Week 23

I’m back again with the next weeks update.  This time it’s Week 23 which was June 1st to June 7th.  Since it was a long weekend we start off up in Whangarei at my Dad’s place.   Here’s an overview of the week:

Before we had arrived, Dad and Jan had put a few things aside for me to look at in case I wanted to keep them and hidden within the box were some wonderful things including my grandparents marriage certificate and a copy of both of their birth certificates written in fountain pen!  There were a few photos of me and my sisters when we were little and some of my girls… and then I found a real treasure!

There was a wonderful photo of my Dad and his siblings.  Apparently none of them like the photo but I totally love it!  My Auntie Shirley looks EXACTLY like my cousin Gillian did when she was a little girl and if I didn’t know better I’d have sworn that Auntie Alice was actually my cousin Jennifer!

I have seen photos of my Dad when we was young… I’m pretty sure I’ve seen a few photos of him in his teens but I’ve NEVER seen a photo of him when he was a little boy so this was pretty wonderful for me.  Here’s a closer look at the photo:

I had to leave the original photo with Dad since we were on the bike but I’m planning a road trip in October to go and see him and then I’ll definitely be looking at getting this photo framed.  In the meantime I took a photo of the photo and it hasn’t turned out too badly.

Moving on now… Mike and I got our stuff packed and got on the road to head home again.  On the way we did a few stops including a couple of cheese factories - I love visiting all these little places that I’ve always wondered about but never actually stopped to visit.

As we were heading towards Auckland we spotted the satellites at Warkworth and Mike decided to take a little detour so I could get some photos.  I wasn’t sure if the satellites were for TV, radio or telecommunications so I asked Mike and as quick as a flash he said: Don’t you know that they’re DEATH RAYS for blowing up aliens before they reach the Earth and they’re our LAST LINE OF DEFENCE? 

Honestly!!  This man just cracks me up!  He’s so funny… and he says things like this all the time!  While we were standing there a vehicle turned up with a father and his little boy.  They were obviously doing the same thing we were and Mike and the Dad said hello. The next thing I know the Dad is telling his son that the satellites were DEATH RAYS!  Mike hadn’t even mentioned Death Rays to him but they were clearly reading the same book LOL  To his credit the son just rolled his eyes and said ‘Really Dad’… clever kid!

We got back on the bike with Mike feeling quite pleased with himself over being ‘proved right’ and we headed off to Auckland to have lunch with my Auntie and Uncle.  It was a great trip back although it took quite a lot longer then we had anticipated. 

Here’s a closer look at the start of the week:

My kitchen mixer had a good workout this week.  I also used my lovely new Mothers Day cookbook and tried a new recipe: Ginger Treacle Spice Loaf… and oh my goodness it’s GOOD!  It tastes like old fashioned gingerbread and I’ve now made about six of them so it’s definitely a favourite in our household.

I also made a lemon syrup cake and somehow Krystal, Chris and Julie must have known I was baking because there was a knock on the door just as the baking was cooling… talk about good timing!  They’re all very willing taste testers and everything got a big thumbs up.

This week I finally opened my new Big Shot machine.  I bought it just as I was moving back to Rotorua in December.  Spotlight were having a big sale and since there was no Spotlight in Gisborne Mum very kindly picked it up for me… and it’s been sitting in the box ever since.  I still haven’t unpacked my craft room!  I needed some die cut trees for the kids Autumn poetry so it has officially been open and used now and it’s a fabulous machine!

This week saw the birth of Chris and Sue’s precious wee girl.  I haven’t met her yet but Mum has had cuddles and Auntie Daphne hasn’t stopped smiling since she was born… actually I don’t think Auntie Daphne has stopped smiling since she found out she was going to be a Grandma!  Chris and Sue are both completely besotted with their daughter and I know they’ll be wonderful parents.

Here’s a closer look at the rest of the week: 

I found a really neat card for Chris and Sue… loved the photo on the front and when I read the inside it said Congratulations on your new feet… I knew it was the card to get.

On the weekend we were very domesticated.  There was more cooking and household chores plus Mike and Toby went to the landfill to do ‘manly things’.  Toby ALWAYS goes with Mike to the landfill but this time Mike had the work ute and Toby really wasn’t sure about it.  He kept looking and sniffing but he definitely didn’t want to get into it.  In the end Mike had to lift him in!  Super funny to watch!  I don’t know if Toby’s pride was dented to much or if he was just pleased to be going with Mike.

Mike also got busy reinforcing the gate.  It’s a REALLY heavy gate and it’s been putting lots of pressure on the rock wall.  Unfortunately the bolts holding the gate onto the wall seemed to be pulling away so Mike dug a hole for a new post and concreted it in.  Then when the concrete had set he bolted the two posts together and now the gate is as good as new.

We also spotted a sale at Briscoes (strange but true!).  Mike and I bought ourselves a new casserole dish and a ribbed pan for cooking our steaks.  They’ve turned out to be a great buy and out steaks taste even better now.

So that was our week.  I hope you’re all having a good week and keeping warm xx

Project Life: Week 22

I’m back again with Week 22 - May 25th to May 31st

This was a pretty good week for us… especially since we were able to head off on a weekend away on Saturday morning thanks to Queens Birthday weekend.  Here’s an overview of our week:

It was a busy week at school this week and we were lucky enough to have the Matariki Cosmodome at our school complete with an astronomer to talk to the kids.  You wouldn’t think that such a small area could fit all the kids but it was actually quite large inside.  The astronomer showed us through the whole galaxy and gave us lots of interesting tips and info along the way.

Mike also took a few photos for me this week… one of the dinner he cooked (which was delicious!) and one of his view from the top of the scissor lift!  It’s certainly not something that I would enjoy… I like to keep my feet planted firmly on the ground!

On Friday we had a Teacher Only Day and spent quite a lot of it sitting in a bus visiting various sites around Rotorua and learning the history and Maori ancestry to do with the area. We started off the day meeting the bus at the lakefront and I took a few photos and didn’t think too much of it but when I saw the photos on my computer there was one that I was super pleased with.  I’m even thinking that I might make an enlargement of it and frame it for the lounge.

Here’s a close up of the first page for this week:

After all the sitting around on the bus my back was feeling pretty achy and one of my teacher friends mentioned the massages down at the Queen Elizabeth health spa.  Since we finished a little earlier than I had expected I decided to treat myself to 30 minutes of pampering before heading home… and it was FANTASTIC!!  I’ll definitely go again!

On Saturday morning Mike and I had the bike all packed up and we headed out on the bike at 4.30am!!!  Yes that’s right… half past four in the morning!  Not only that but it was FREEZING!  By the time we got to Matamata my legs were numb with the cold and it was a mere 3 degrees outside although I suspect it was heading closer to zero when we were going over the Mamaku hills!

After a hot chocolate and toilet stop we headed off to the Bombay hills and my legs were actually in pain… it was like having needles coming in my knees and up into my thighs and I was very grateful to stop for breakfast.  While we had a delicious (and HOT) breakfast, Mike got onto Google and found a bike shop on the Northern side of Auckland that was having a sale so we stopped in there and bought some bike pants… SO GRATEFUL for feeling warmer!

Here’s a closer look at the second part of our week:

We had a few more stops along the way but I have to say it was lovely to get to the top of the Brynderwyn hills and look out at the view.  Just in case you were wondering where we were off to… Dad and Jan had invited us up to Whangarei for the long weekend.

Rotorua to Whangarei 380km each way

We spent most of Saturday afternoon hanging out with Dad and Jan chatting and catching up on life.  It was so nice to be able to talk face to face and just spend time together.

On Sunday, Dad took us out to Tutukaka for a drive and we spotted the Marina Pizzeria… of course we HAD to stop for lunch!  Dad and Mike both ordered the blue cod and Jan and I both had pizzas.  I decided to try the chefs special… the blue cod pizza and it was DELICIOUS!  I highly recommend this place… great service, great food and I would imagine in the summer months it’s pretty busy.

On Sunday afternoon Mike and I headed down to the town basin for a look around.  We found a little fudge shop and a place that did great juice.  We also came across a very ‘exclusive’ little art gallery.  It was the kind of place where if you have to ask how much something costs you already know you can’t afford it.  It was also the kind of place that has big NO PHOTOS ALLOWED signs… but apparently Mike didn’t see those signs and walked out with about a dozen photos!

On Sunday night we went to a steak house with Dad and Jan for dinner and then Mike and I headed to Auntie Daphne’s for dessert.  She made the yummiest bread and butter pudding and it was also my cousin Chris’s birthday!  He and his wife were expecting their first baby to arrive any day so it was nice to catch up with them.

After that we headed back to Dad’s and on the way spotted the Whangarei War Memorial and we were so impressed.  We took quite a lot of photos and it was very special to be there late at night when it was really quiet.

So that was our week… I’ll share the rest of our trip in the next update xx

Project Life: Week 21

Hello again - Today I’ve got my album pages from Week 21 - May 18th to May 24th

This week when I took my class to the school library I discovered a really lovely little story book about a ‘big bad wolf’ wanting to eat a ‘poor innocent little duck’ but by the end of the book we were all feeling just a little bit sorry for the wolf… it’s definitely a book worth adding to my collection.

While we’re on the subject of books, my last math book arrived this week.  I’d ordered it (along with three others) at the end of Term 1 but this one was in the process of being reprinted.  I did have a little bit of a giggle of it having a ‘fragile’ sticker on it though!

Remember how I took Mike to Vetro on the weekend?  Well we totally forgot to take a photo of our goodies so we got out the camera and took it this week before we’d eaten too much of what we bought…those salamis are super tasty!

Here’s a closer look at the start of the week:

It must have been my week to receive parcels because along with my math book I also received my brand new Butter Bell crock.  I was really impressed with the one Carey’s mum had so I finally got around to ordering one of my own… and it works brilliantly!

Mike and I have both been in the kitchen this week… I’ve been making cupcakes and Mike has been ‘perfecting’ his baked potatoes.  The kids at school were really happy to see my cupcake containers arrive at school and they definitely enjoyed being able to taste them!

This week at school we had Bernie and Harold visiting from Life Education.  The kids loved their visits to the caravan and they learnt quite a lot about reading food labels.  It’s quite surprising how many of our ‘healthy’ food are actually loaded up with sugar!

After a busy week at work it was so nice to sit down with some cheese and crackers on Friday night and simply relax. The weekends have been getting really busy, especially with hockey taking over Saturday mornings so it’s nice to take some time out together and just chat about the week.

On Saturday morning we took the Harley down to the bike shop to get a new front tyre fitted.  While we were there the rain came bucketing down… not so great for going home on the bike… but it was so heavy that hockey was cancelled which helped free up the rest of the morning!

In the end we went into town and I bought myself a Kitchen Aid mixer… just like the one Nigella uses!  I’ve wanted one of those mixers for years but could never quite bring myself to get one but now that I’m doing plenty of baking it seemed a lot more worthwhile!

Here’s a closer look at the second half of the week:

As soon as we got home from town I got stuck into the baking… I made a really yummy carrot cake loaf and then I found a recipe for a spicy chocolate torte that I wanted to try.  Both things turned out brilliantly and I even made the icing using the Kitchen Aid.  I know I’ll be using it LOTS!

On Sunday Mike had to do some work over in Tauranga with Mark so I went along for the ride.  I managed to find myself a quiet little space to do my school work on my laptop which kept me busy for a few hours while the guys got down to business.  At one point Mike asked me if I’d like to come and take some photos of the work they were doing and of course he just HAD to pose for the camera! 

By lunchtime they were finished painting so they got themselves cleaned up and then they took Rattaya and myself out for lunch.  We decided Mexican would be nice for a change and we headed into town.  The food was absolutely fabulous and we even had a couple of margaritas… super great way to spend time with friends!

After lunch we headed home, went to the launderette to get the washing dry, did a few chores and then headed out to pub quiz night with Krystal and Chris.  We got off to a great start with me winning us a free dessert and then we ended up coming THIRD!  It was a fabulous way to end the weekend.

So there’s another week in our lives… thanks for stopping by xx

Project Life: Week 20

It’s definitely time for an update.  The end of Term 2 is upon us and I’m so looking forward to having some time to re-charge the batteries and do some things on my ‘to do list’… including getting my art room sorted out!

Meanwhile, here is Week 20 - May 11th to May 17th

The week after school camp was filled with post camp activities, lots of talking about camp and viewing the hundreds of photos taken on cameras and ipads.  In my class we also painted the backgrounds for our Autumn poetry.  We were also the proud winners of ‘Class of the Week’ at school.  The kids were really proud of the trophy!

On the home front, Mike has taken it upon himself to master the art of making mango lassie’s.  We had one at an Indian restaurant during Easter weekend while Mum was staying with us and Mike kept mentioning how nice it was.  Several weeks later he was still going on about it so I suggested he have a go at making one.

Keep in mind that it was a ‘suggestion’ and not a ‘challenge’!  Mike quickly jumped onto Google to find out how to make a good mango lassie and he went ahead and bought fresh mango as well as canned mango, yoghurt, cream and milk.  He’s in his element experimenting with ratios and quantities… and meanwhile I get to be the taste tester… not a bad job at all in my opinion!

Meanwhile, I was doing a bit of Googling of my own and stumbled across a blog that I really enjoy… it’s full of great recipes and wonderful photography and the woman who writes the blog is down to earth. ‘Little Box Brownie’ is exactly the sort of blog you can spend hours reading and I might just have to keep an eye out for her book as well!

In my own kitchen I’ve been adding some more magnets to my collection by Suzy Toronto.  I love her uplifting quotes and the artwork is fabulous.  They really do brighten up the fridge!

The cold weather really hit this week and we had a few frosts.  I didn’t think there was any chance of the tomatoes to ripen so Mike and I got stuck in and picked them all before they got spoilt.  We ended up with several kilos of green tomatoes and thankfully Google provided me with a fantastic Green Tomato Chutney to try!

I’d never made this particular recipe before but it worked brilliantly… I followed it pretty strictly since it was my first attempt and the resulting chutney is extremely moreish! Just right to go with cheese and crackers… or on a ploughman's platter.

First thing on Saturday morning we went down to the local market.  We hadn’t been for ages due to hockey but this weekend we made a real effort to get there.  There was one man selling guavas… the little ones just like my grandmother and great grandmother used to grow. 

When I was a little girl I would pick as many as I could reach and then I’d have to rely on someone helping me get the ones that were up higher.  I absolutely adored them although it’s probably good that I only got to have them once a week.  Anyway back to the market… I spotted the guavas and bought a bag to share with Mike.  He tried one and wasn’t keen at all so I got to have the whole lot… lucky me!  One bite of the little fruit and I was instantly transported back to my childhood memories.

After going to the market I took Mike to Vetro.  He’d never been before and there were a few spices I wanted to get for my chutney.  While we were there they mentioned that a ‘salami tasting’ was due to start at 11am… exactly the sort of thing Mike likes!

Since we had to wait a little while we bought a little tub of chocolate gelato to share and my oh my was it good!!  The salami was also delicious and we bought a few home with us.

On Sunday we decided to go for a ride on the Harley.  I mentioned to Mike that I’d always wanted to go to the cheese factory at Waharoa and he was keen so off we went.  We had a wonderful ride over and did a couple of stops along the way. 

Every time I’ve gone past this cheese factory it’s either been closed or I’ve been on a time frame to get somewhere so I’ve never stopped but it really was worth it.  We shared a cheese platter and I was really impressed… great value for money!  I also loved the atmosphere! Here’s what it looks like inside (photos from the internet):

Of course we HAD to bring some cheese home with us!  As we headed home on the bike I was thinking about what a great life I have… it was definitely one of those ‘feel good’ days.

To end the weekend we joined in with Krystal, Chris and Julie (Chris’s sister) for pub quiz night.  We had an absolute blast!  There were lots of questions we just had to guess at but there was also quite a few we got right.  It was a wonderful way to finish the weekend!

I’m planning on getting myself all caught up during the term break so keep an eye out for the updates.