winter sun and a slow day . . .

 today we took things slow . . . 

slow play in the gorgeous winter sun ~ role playing pirates and sailors  ~ 

and

 slow nesting . . . washing soft baby blankets and making

 little lavender bags to keep baby clothes scented and fresh. 

i drank copious of amounts of fresh ginger and lemon tea ~ helping to sooth my sore throat. 

i am thankful for a long weekend  . . . and the pear and raspberry crumble i am about to pull out of the oven x

just for fun on a warm winter morning . . . 

ps. and they taste delicious in our salad wraps x

local charm and produce . . .

 . . . sunday . . .

 just the 2 of us and of course the "big belly" slowly exploring and negotiating our way around our

local organic markets.

our recent farm visit has inspired our little family to enjoy more of the 

fresh produce at our city farm. 

a basket or oranges, banana's and a bunch of kale purchased.

 herbs and fruit trees inspected and of course chickens to visit and chat with.

home to bake apple and cinnamon muffins . . . 

snuggled in for books and we slept the afternoon away . . . just what we needed really!

we made these with our fresh kale. you can't just stop at one, two or three. yum!

little hearts to love...

...we had fun threading a little pasta heart garland ... 

counted and sorted into little piles, added some to our little home corner kitchen play space and created a garland with love... hope your day has been filled with precious little moments!

I will be back with some images for a perfect weekend away by the beach ... x

fresh and tasty...

I had a big bunch of fragrant basil that needed using up today...after rest time we grated 1/3 cup of parmesan, chopped a large bunch of basil, crushed some garlic, opened a packed of raw cashew nuts and placed it all in my new mini blender.

Slowly whizzed...added olive oil and together we stood at the kitchen bench munching away on

 crackers and crunchy cashew, parmesan and basil dip.

No preservative or anything nasty added - just fresh and tasty ingredients for the 2 of us and my growing baby bump...

a little snack...

With apron on and clean little hands i let him choose a recipe from his cookbook...we prepared and had fun making spicy cheese and potato sticks.

...together we mashed, chatted, grated, tasted, rolled, dipped and ate...

Ingredients

mashed potato (400g)

tasty cheese (125g)

sprinkle or more of ground coriander

1 egg yolk, beaten

a little floor for dusting on a wooden board

a little beaten egg or milk for brushing

mixed seeds to coat the fingers - i used mixed sesame

 (fennel, caraway or sunflower would also be tasty and healthy)

Preheat the oven to 200c

Mix the mashed potato, cheese, coriander and egg yolk in a bowl

Lightly flour the board. roll out the potato mixture until 2.5cm thick, cut into finger lengths

Brush the sticks with beaten egg or milk and roll in the seeds

Place on a lightly oiled baking sheet and bake in the oven for 10 minutes until crispy and golden

serve with chutney

quick, easy and tasty....happy weekend to you all!

x

(recipe found in organic baby and toddler cookbook - easy recipes for natural food)

...we are trying to keep cool...drinking and playing in water...cool showers before day time naps...

enjoying fruity ice blocks...

keep cool if you can...and stay safe!

colours of summer...

The beauty of water colour....and gorgeous rainbows captured by a very inquisitive little toddler.

Bright and happy colours, and the rainbow that took our breath away! 

Displaying these little creations around the home....they are little masterpieces, that together we hung with care.

Wishing you all a weekend filled with colour and love x

smile...

Expect wonderful things to happen...and it will!

A chalk drawing of a surfboard

 {no assistance, no prompting, no aids to follow} 

just Daddy saying 

"draw whatever you want little mate"

This morning we baked, we used this delicious recipe by the lovely and
very creative Cathie over at m.e. 

These tasty little muffins have become our favourite...we only add 1/2 a cup of brown sugar and today we added a handful of sultana's and for a bit of fun we sprinkled pepita's onto the top of the mini muffins {this become a fun counting activity} 1 pepita, 2 pepita's, 3 pepita's ... also gave my little one a job to do while I  spooned the mixture into the cases {apart from trying to lick the spoon}!
The carrot and zucchini looks fresh and these mini muffins are a healthy way of getting vegetables into little ones...even at morning tea!

..happy baking..
&
...eating...

Water...

We have had so much rain this past month...the dams are now overflowing. 

Thank goodness, this week we used our far share...

 It really is nice watching this little one play about in the back garden with his buckets, spades, watering cans, hose splashing about and little dolphin in hand.

" Dolph" he likes to call him. He is the favourite of all the marine creatures! 

And speaking of water...more...found in the park today!

The beautiful view from my bedroom window....today was hot and we had old friends over for the day.

 Old..... as in dear old friends who I have know for what feels like a lifetime. We had so much fun chatting and catching up, so I forgot to really capture the lovely moments. And the one's I took of the boys playing in the water, under the hose and in the sandpit are a little to bare for display!

These photos captured late in the afternoon....just the two of us playing with water and trying to keep a very tired little boy awake until dinner.

Our sandpit....

The sandpit boat was put together 

by very eager parents last Thursday night.

 Daddy was up until late, very late!

 Friday morning we woke to rain, we had assembled it in the lounge room so

 it quickly became a book corner filled with soft pillows and our favorite pirate books.

Sunday it was still raining....daddy decided to move it under the carport and paint it.

 (we needed the lounge room back)!

Monday afternoon daddy did a second coat and purchased the sand..... 

10.30pm after the second coat had dried....daddy was outside in the dark lining the base.

I was praying for sun.... we could not wait to move it into the back garden, set sail and build sandy forts......

6.30am the sandpit was filled, the sail was floating in a light breeze and he played......

Thank you daddy....you truly are so loving and kind x

Little glass bottles filled with silver glitter...we called it pirate treasure. 

It rained all day...playdough was made and little dough scissors added to the playdough box. We enjoyed sleep, baking and painting our latest find white...a wooden sandpit in the shape of a boat. 

Oh, and a morning with the girls...Mum and my sister. 

Valentino Retrospective - Past/Present/Future at the Gallery of Modern Art

One hundred exquisite haute couture garments

I loved it...the collection was sophisticated, stylish, timeless and very glamorous.