So This is Sixty ...... !!

Last week I celebrated my 60th birthday by taking a week away with my husband..... we travelled to Berry NSW and spent a joyful 4 days in a gorgeous old cottage soaking up the beautiful weather and all the fabulous heritage sights and buildings in and about the area...then we spent a couple of nights in an eco adobe villa in Mallacoota.... my first time returning there in about 13 or 14 years...after having holidayed there annually since I was 15, then when married returned each Christmas with my children...it was lovely to return and take time to reacquaint ourselves with all the magic that is Mallacoota...took the fluffy girls along for the trip with us..they loved it too.

Lovely card from my main man.

The view from the cafe  at Bermagui ....brunch stop on the road trip.

A lovely restaurant in Berry for dinner on my Birthday....staff produced a scoop of sorbet with a candle !!

You can never eat too much cheese or drink too much sav blanc on holidays !! 

Daisy out for the count after a hard day at the beach 

A day trip to Kangaroo Valley ----absolutely amazing part of NSW....loved it !

A street full of beautiful old heritage buildings in Kangaroo Valley

Can't go past a community garden without a visit.... Kangaroo Valley

Loved the half drums .... want to make a couple of these for my garden.

The Hampden Bridge ..only surviving suspension bridge from the colonial period of NSW 

The cute little  Gelato shop in Berry ....scrumptious gelato

Berry is full of wonderful old buildings .... so much character in this beautiful town.

This awesome carved post is in Mogo .... great little stopover for lunch and a cuppa

It was so intricately carved...amazing

Unbelievable amount of native birds in the garden of Adobe Units Mallacoota....so tame...this tree was on our patio !!

Whiling away the time relaxing at the beach.... stacking stones !!

Betka beach at Mallacoota.....almost deserted and perfect beach weather....fabulous.

Lots of interesting rock formations along the beach

Sunrise on the lake at Mallacoota ....view  from our balcony on our last day 

We had a really lovely break....celebrated a milestone that I wasn't particularly looking forward to but   have come to the realisation that any birthday is a good one.... and this holiday was something special and memorable that I shared with my husband.....a reminder to enjoy everyday........you just never know !!

Home only one day and we were confronted by the devastating Bunyip State forest fire.....pictures from the back and front yard of our home....we were on watch and act alert on Sunday with thick smoke and ash everywhere....thankfully it never got this far but my heart goes out to those who lost homes.... reminder to never take anything for granted.

Jumping Into January...........Slowly !!

It's my first post for 2019.....it's been a slow start to the year...after all the excitement of weddings and baby announcements...followed by Christmas...the New Year went of with a tiny little POP.....no Big Bang ...... and started with just a slow trickle, which isn't really a bad thing.  I've been trying to spend some time in the vegie garden....but this last week has been so Hot !!!....then we had very strong winds which knocked the fruit trees around... lost most of the apples and pears on our trees and also the poor old tomato plants took a beating....It should be a much cooler day tomorrow so I will try to repair the damage.......!!

I spend most days at the desk in my office and my window looked out onto a pretty barren courtyard which is alongside the house.....I recently gave it a spruce up with some plants and a little tweak .... set under the kiwi fruit vines (which unfortunately had lots of blossom but no fruit developed!!).  .... I'm a lot happier daydreaming out the office window now.

The New View.

The year has clearly started off pretty slowly for Daisy as well..... this is one of her favourite sleeping positions ....she loves to sun-bake along the back of the couch.....this picture was last week , not this week , as the blinds have been closed and sun-blinds down keeping windows shaded for most of the time......it's been way too hot for me.

Daisy taking it easy.

 My new years resolution to walk the dogs more often got off to a very slow start.....I'm not that good in the heat....I have managed a couple of walks to the lake and loved this annual sunflower display.... (which grow wild along a vacant block opposite the lake).....they were all turning their fabulous yellow heads skyward....there is just something so joyous about sunflowers. 

I might have to try growing some of these in my garden

On another note...I have a big milestone coming up in February......

I will be turning 60.... It's quite a significant number I think...

and while it does seem a little daunting I am reminded of two beautiful

woman who I sadly lost in their 40's, both to cancer....

 and I am simply grateful to be here.

Autumnal April - Bliss.....!!!

There comes a time when you have to take a serious look at how much you are actually spending in the supermarkets and shops on food...  we have been spending an inordinate amount of money recently without any idea of how much is too much.....So we are trying to track our food money spending... I thought I would start with one weeks groceries and see if I could avoid return trips over the next seven days....I took a picture to remind myself what I had bought and was shocked to see (for someone who thinks she is conscious about not using plastics !!) the huge amount of plastic contained in one supermarket visit.  While I never use plastic bags to put fruit and veg in (usually not purchased from the supermarket but this was a test) the plastic wrapped meats ( I usually buy at the butcher), cheeses, pasta and roast chicken etc...... WOW all that plastic !!! While the menu planning did work and I didn't return to the supermarket for 7 days, the truth is I want to avoid the supermarkets all together...easier said than done but my meat and vegies will continue to be sourced from the butcher and organic store, need to find unwrapped cheeses etc..  Food for thought.

Supermarket shopping for one week.....SO MUCH PLASTIC.

The unseasonal autumn heat has thankfully settled down and beautiful mild days have been the norm....I love autumn..long shadows and falling leaves......planting out the vegie beds and growing our own seedlings and getting into the garden...I didn't like the shrub that sits alongside the deck and contemplated pulling it out, but decided to trim it into a love- heart.....'corny' right but I really like how it looks now and happy to not have to remove it.

Practicing topiary in my yard 

 It was a glorious day on Sunday so we took a drive to Noojee.....it was a beautiful trip...we had a picnic on the lawns behind the Noojee hotel....live music was playing as we sat by the river, we then took the dogs for a stroll on the Loch Valley tramway walk...followed up with afternoon tea (thermos and home made fruit cake..very 'old school') and enjoyed it alongside the old trestle bridge.

Trestle bridge in Noojee... amazing.

I posted recently about my wonderful Auntie who passed away from an unexpected stroke .... my cousin was very chuffed to see that they have made a memorial gate in her honour at the football club....so nice that the community remembered her in this way, for all her help and support of the sporting groups over many years....RIP darling Joyce  xx

The sign on the memorial gate in honour of my Auntie.

I've recently joined a fabulous yoga and mediation studio in Warragul....finally found the right teacher who resonates with me and what I hope to achieve through Yoga and daily practice..... so far it's been a really great experience and I think I've learnt quite a lot about myself....I love it....Namaste !

All About the Boy....!!!

My G-boy turns 7 next week....it's hard to believe how quickly time goes and how fast they grow up.  He's currently into bugs, insects and all assorted creepy crawlies.....I caught up for an after school date so he could see me on my birthday....took his GG (great grandma) along for the trip.

My gorgeous grandson and his new friend......

Milkshakes and iced coffee after school...
and a catch up with my favourite little guy.

I couldn't resist sharing the pictures of his cubby house reno.....my daughter has moved to their new home and the old cubby in the yard was in need of some TLC.....amazing what a bit of elbow grease and a huge slice of imagination can produce !!!....

Poor tired old cubby that hasn't been played in for quite a long time....

His cubby house post renovation.......amazing what a few old bits and bobs can do..

Travelling from Joy to Heartbreak........!!

A very busy time this past week......a wonderful celebration on Saturday at the engagement BBQ of my daughter and the lovely  man in her life...a beautiful day that they had both spent so much time and energy preparing and everything... even the weather...was perfect. They now live up country so we stayed the weekend at a lovely guest house in Benloch with my eldest daughter and her family...such a nice break.

Check out the bride to be's new blog here ..hopefully she learns to cook..!!

The engagement sign my eldest daughter and I created....she did the fab lettering and I did the chalk flowers...
made to match her engagement invitations..

The oh so cute cake and a snippet of the pink DONUT wall....delicious !!

The happy couple....can't wait for November 

Sadly my man and I then had to travel to Sea Lake for the funeral of my much loved auntie who passed away unexpectedly from a stroke....she was an integral part of the small community there and it was so wonderful to see well over 300 people at the service in the community hall...she was an avid supporter of all the town activities but the sporting clubs in particular..she sold the tickets on game day, volunteered behind the club bar and prepared meals for the teams after training..at 81 she was fiercely independent..spent most of her time maintaining her beautiful lush garden..a rarity in the dust bowl that is Sea Lake..and visiting and taking care of 'elderly' town residents...the funeral cortege drove down main street to the cemetery and shop keepers lined the street......to know her was to love her and the town will sorely miss her vibrant personality. 

Rest in peace darling Joyce...the world shines a little less brightly with out your amazing sparkle .

This poignant wreath in club colours hung in the ticket shed where she sold tickets every game day.

I always like to finish on a positive note so I thought I would include a picture of the basket of goodies delivered to Aimee yesterday....includes a jar of my man's beetroot... I have finally gotten him interested in getting involved with the produce !!!

Eggplant, celery, rhubarb, cherry toms, passionfruit, spring onions, zucchini, pears & Bonza Beetroot !!

When Things Stop Being Simple.....!!

The simple things in life are often taken for granted, especially when circumstances prevent you from doing what you want to do.....After losing dad last year, mum's cancer returned and we also found out that she has Alzheimer's.  The diagnosis was missed for a long time because we were putting her memory issues down to stress and tiredness from taking care of my father.   The crunch came in April when she was no longer able to live by herself in the Retirement Village that had been home to her and dad for the past 10 years..... Ssssoooo she moved in with my husband and I until we figured out what else to do.. She has been with us for six months, which had been challenging for everyone...then she finally agreed that aged care would be OK...There is a facility within walking distance from my home..who knew??.... after filling out a dozen forms and answering a million questions, we sold her property and 2 weeks ago got her a bed in the local aged home...

All the walkers liked up as the ladies do lunch in the dining room at the nursing home.

Happy to report she is going amazingly well and has taken to it like a duck to water...after 6 months with us where we could get her to do little more than sit in a chair and watch TV all day...she has a new lease on life and getting on like a house on fire, made new friends and joining in loads of activities... they even got her to take up knitting again which I couldn't get her interested in at all.......and I have my life back!!.  It's a win, win. ...  so back to the blog and my "Simple Life".

A Belated Blog .....!!

Christmas has come and gone and January is already half over ....  my blog is always the last thing on the list of must do's.... so today is finally the day to catch up.  It was our first Christmas without dad and my eldest daughter had an old photo of him restored, enlarged and reframed for me as a gift ...that's him on the right, about 17 when he played football....I love this photo .....  I got quite emotional when I unwrapped it...so good to try and remember him this way.... a young man with his life still ahead of him.

Beautifully framed restored photo of my dad...

 My younger daughter also spoilt me with a beautiful new set of gardening tools and something that I had never seen before...... "Swags"  for keeping vegies fresh in the fridge...have to say they are amazing...I've used them for carrots and zucchini's so far and have to say they have kept things very fresh...you just dampen the 'swags' and put in the veg and keep the bags dampened in the crisper...easy !

The "Swags" all dampened and into the crisper....excellent idea.

 We took my mum to see her brother in Ballarat for a day trip late December and were amazed at the gorgeous Christmas decorations that the town had on display....they were absolutely beautiful and mostly made of flowers ....my best friend has family in Ballarat and she agreed to take a night time snap of the floral reindeers in all their glory.....very festive indeed.

One of the many beautiful Christmas decorations in Ballarat ...they do a great job !!

 The new year has started out with quite a big commitment to the local CWA...we have a lot going on for Australia Day...7:30am free breakfast for 120 locals  !!...then Australia Day in the Park commencing at 4pm..serving tea and coffee to all the locals for free !!.  We also have the Ficifolia Festival in Drouin Feb 11th & 12th..... this year we are holding a garage sale at the CWA hall called "Grandma's Attic"...selling second hand items and serving (you guessed it) tea/coffee and a homemade biscuit for a gold coin donation... It's fundraising for the CWA so I suggested we also do Recipe in a Jar to raise additional funds.....I have put together jar's containing oatmeal cookie ingredients using recycled & thoroughly washed Moccona Coffee jars from the Op Shop Warehouse in Drouin... taste tested the recipe I found on line ..they are tasty and economical to make ..... hopefully they should raise some extra $$ for the CWA.

Recipe in a jar for our CWA fundraiser...hopefully we will sell a few of these.

Each jar will make 12 biscuits...they require very little effort to make.

  What would a blog be without a photo of my latest cup of green tea.....

Another addition to the green tea collection....so many creative ways to serve it.

Being January the garden is going well even though the several really hot days have been tough..... zucchinis have gone crazy and a big batch are pickling away as we speak... more of that next time.

Trying To Catch Up......

So much has happened over the past few months and so much of my life wasn't my own......the responsibility of looking after elderly parent's is often overwhelming and can become all consuming.  Things are slowly getting back to normal and I am starting to relax and get back into the swing of things.....the things that form the simple life that I want to lead....I'm getting the Spring garden planting going so next post will hopefully be a garden update. 

 

Over the last two months I tried my hand at making Kombucha....I purchased the mother scoby at the Warragul Farmers Market and followed the instructions and made Kombucha tea and produced a "son of scoby".  I passed the "mother" onto my daughter and then started a second bottle with "SOS".  Next time will try a second ferment process by adding fruit which will give the Kombucha a fizz. 

My homemade kombucha tea....mother scoby in the bag to give away... the gift that goes on giving.

After Dad's funeral my husband took me away to Lakes Entrance for the weekend. ..... It was a wonderful break...so relaxing.  .... The weather was ordinary but everything else was lovely.  Lots of delicious food and great cafe's.... Boat trip to Metung in the morning and AFL Grand final on Saturday afternoon and lovely market on the marina on Sunday morning.

Always a great surprise to see how cafe's serve up the green tea.....although milk was an odd accompaniment .

The boat trip to Metung was a real surprise...... it's a great spot and the pub had a fantastic outlook over the water and great food.  They also have a pet pelican in the yard who was incredibly tame.  .

 

This guy was so tame he walked right up to you...could have watched him all day.

 End of September saw us having our usual "monthly" luncheon with friends.  It was at our place this time and the theme was casual and bring a one pot dish to share....we had some fabulous food and Janine's chicken was absolutely amazing.

Dinner in our al-fresco with the gang....a great afternoon of delicious dining as always.

My man and I went shopping in Warragul to get goodies for the luncheon as we provided a starter (crumbed flat head fillets) and a cheese platter.  .......off to Stella's Pantry for some amazing cheeses and also stopped in at the Bean Scene to get some freshly ground coffee. ......  we stayed for morning tea and I ordered green tea (no surprise there as I don't drink coffee)...and it was served in the most amazing tea device......I love how serving tea has come back to being the pleasurable experience it once was....call me old fashioned but for me it's all in the presentation....although nothing beats a fine bone china cup .

 

Have to admit I had to be shown how to work this gadget ....but what a great idea.

 Most importantly .....this month my GBoy lost his first tooth.....so much excitement....the other kids at school told him you get $5 from the tooth fairy....Wow when did that happen ??

My gorgeous little guy...so excited because 4 more teeth are wobbly... !!

On the subject of teeth....the fluffy girls had a trip to the vet's for their injections and the vet advised they both needed their teeth cleaned....Daphne has been the first to go and have a clean....which turned into "13 teeth needing to be removed"....she is only 7 years old ....poor girl...thankfully dogs have 42 teeth so she still has some left... Maltese x are prone to tooth decay...Daisy is going next week...she is only 4 so fingers crossed not too much damage already done.

 

Daphne giving me a look....I already feel guilty !!.....she is still cute
...even though in front she has one tooth up top and two at the bottom