So many changes, in so little time.

So here I am again, after another big break from blogging....
So much has happened!
We moved down to Sydney into a little 2 bedroom unit my in laws own. Cheap rent but not quite the house we were hoping for.
We will get there though!

Of course I have already made a few crafty alterations to the place..... Hanging giant paintings done by my daughter down the plain white hallway and giving the balcony a touch of bamboo screening and pretty plants. Am eagerly awaiting our next trip to my parents place to pick up our final load of stuff (including the all important baby stuff!) and my polystyrene boxes full of veggies. I definitely miss having my own veggies to pick at whim!



While the hubby is at work the day can go slow and trying to entertain Eve can get rather difficult..... It is much too hard for me to take her out by myself as we live on the top floor (two flights of stairs with a pram!!) and since my baby belly is rapidly expanding I am much more limited by what I can do.

The not so little bump is growing so fast, and the urge to get everything set up is nagging at me. We have kept the sex of the baby a surprise and names we have chosen a secret. This does make it a little bit more difficult not knowing if we can keep all the girly baby clothes we already have or if we need to buy more!

Since we moved into such a small place, I had to be brutal and not bring any of my crafty stuff with me :( Very sad and hard to do but we just don't have the space for it here and I doubt I will even have the time with a little baby on the way and an already demanding toddler. I am ever so grateful that my mother has taken a heap of fabric off my hands and is letting me store some things there. It has taken me years and years to build up this stash, not easy to let it all go.
But I do let my creativity out with my cooking. Our kitchen is probably the best we have had for years and years so I have been giving it a big workout! It isn't huge but with the numerous cupboards and massive pantry we manage with everything.
I guess my favorite has been baking and doing the meal planning. Meal planning is such a great help with food shopping and cutting down on waste I don't think I could ever not do it. Of course I do allow room in the weekly shop for some baking to be done, lately I have been trying new recipes with some very yummy results. I will definitely be sharing recipes with you and even post the utter disasters if they happen (I hope not!). The latest yummy new recipes I have tried have been:

Low fat blueberry muffins (a recipe from an app I have on my new iPad that looked a little different to the traditional.....tastes great too!)



Polka dot cookies (very yummy but very crumbly and messy)



Key lime pie (So rich but so good. Will be making it again!)



Parmesan and parsley crusted fish fillets (I have never cooked much with fresh fish but wanted to try it out. Big hit with everyone! Will be doing this again!)

I have also decided that we need to finally do a budget and stick to it and organize ourselves a lot better. Since the hubby's has bills come out of his account he has been a little less than organized when it comes to when things come out and how much it will be. Let's just say we have had bills come out while we have been food shopping and had our cards declined at the register.... Not very nice at all!
So I have drawn up a budget of what comes in and what comes out and we were both shocked at how much we are left with. WHERE DOES IT ALL GO!?
I have printed up monthly calendars for on the fridge and put when things will be coming out and how much, so we are a little more prepared.
Am hoping these changes will help us in that never ending struggle to pay off debt :)

Anyway so my blog will probably be a bit less crafting, a bit more cooking and budgeting and a bit of anything else in-between.
:)



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Just A Little Update

Hello!
I am here, back again!
So much has happened these last few months, all starting with a very sudden and rushed moving of house.
A very long and terribly boring story of why we moved....
I won't bore you, I'll keep it short.
My poor husband was working hard and getting paid a very low wage. Not enough to cover our bills, so we gradually slipped further backwards.
Not good at all. (Especially with another little one on the way!)
So we decided drastic actions must be taken.
He made numerous phone calls, and I made one.
He got a better job, with much higher pay. It was in Sydney (a mere 5hr drive away).
So we decided on the tough decision on him staying with his parents in Sydney and Eve & I staying with my parents in a small country town 8hrs drive away.
Not an easy decision, but we knew we had to do it.
There was no way Eve & I could fit in his parents house and my parents happen to have a lovely little converted honey shed where we have been living.
So we went for the cheapest living arrangemennts possible and made a vow to really throw everything at our debt.
So far we have done quite well, it hasn't been easy though.
The distance is too far, but it makes his visits even more special.

One of the many advantages of staying with my parents (apart from their lovely company) is that Eve absolutely LOVES it here.
She chases chickens, but the ducks get the most attention. They can waddle pretty fast when they need to!
She "Mooooo"s at the cows and calls them by name now.
She "BAAAAAAA"s at the sheep.
She loves all the birds and tries to mimmick their tweeting.
But I think most of all she loves having her grandma so close.
She loves to go down to the house every morning to steal some breakfast.
She loves helping grandma getting the bucket ready for milking time, and even keeps grandma in line by reminding her that it's milking time NOW!
She helps in the vege garden while we plant and weed, she digs with her spoon, chases our dog or picks flowers for us.
She has grown so much and her vocabulary is expanding almost daily! Of course she is very fluent in her own little yabbering language and not afraid to chew your ear off!

The not so little baby bump is going well, a little wriggler who is already being picked on by his (not sure if its a boy but we all think so) big sister. I am so blessed to have such an easy pregnancy so far, the only difficult thing is being so exhausted but having to run around after a toddler and keep her entertained too!

The next steps seem very uncertain right now, all I know is that I promised my husband we would live in Sydney for one year but before we can even think of doing that we need to find somewhere to live down there! Most importantly somewhere we can afford! Renting is not cheap down there, the frugal lifestyle will be back in full force! First step: VEGE GARDEN!!

Here are just a few photos of our journey so far......



A new found love for Babar...



Enjoying her grandma cuddles...



The "BAAA"s



The lovely surrounds...



Modelling the pants I made for her from an old shirt..



They started so small...







And these were taken a week or two ago, already much bigger now!







Here's the new little edition to the family....



He'll probably be just as helpful as his sister in cleaning up....



When there's a sweet reward!!

Plenty more photos to come soon!
:)

A Very Sick Household... Again!

I have been hit with a nasty flu.
As I am still struggling to get over it my poor husband got it too.
Even worse than me. Poor thing was rugged up in layers and still felt freezing but his skin was burning to touch.
He is much better today and returned to work, the house was quiet without him!
Eve has had a runny nose but hasn't turned any worse......Yet!
But then again she appears to be teething!

So things may be a bit quiet around here..... For a little while.
:)

Saturday Is For Sharing.... Cheese Souffle!

I have had some cravings....
Cheese souffle cravings.
My mother got me addicted.
She makes the best cheese souffle.

So on Thursday night I pulled out my trusty Vegetarian Cookbook and flicked over to the souffle recipe.
Just ignore the unhealthy statistics underneath and you'll be fine.
I love this recipe, it is easy and doesn't take as long as it may seem.
To make things easier though I like to get everything measured out and ready.
If you do try this recipe I have one tip:
Leave your cheese out to get to room temperature as it will melt a lot easier. And try not to pack it down when measuring, I use the scales instead of cup measurements.

So here it is, in a horrible fuzzy photo as soon as it came out of the oven.....



.....Please don't look at my filthy stovetop!

It was perfect. Light and fluffy with a slightly crisp top.



So here's the recipe...

Ingredients:

60g Butter
45g Plain Flour
1 1/4 cups (315mL) milk, warmed.
1 1/2 cups (185g) grated cheddar, firmly packed (Easier to weigh so it doesn't form a brick which won't want to melt for you!)
1 tsp dijon mustard (I omitted this because I have none, still super tasty)
4 Eggs, seperated
1 Tablespoon freshly grated parmesan cheese (I also did not have any of this but it turned out perfect anyway)

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C (400F). Grease a 1.5 Litre souffle dish. (I did not have one big enough so I used an oval baking dish I have)
• Melt the butter in a large pan then add the flour. Stir over low heat for 2mins or until the flour is lightly golden and bubbling. Remove from the heat and gradually add the milk, stirring until the mixture is smooth. Return the pan to the heat and stir constantly until the mixture boils and thickens. Simmer for 1min, then remove from heat.
• Add the grated cheese, dijon mustard and egg yolks and stir until the cheese has melted. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming.
• Put the egg whites in a clean dry bowl and whisk until stiff peaks form. Using a metal spoon, fold one third of the egg whites into the sauce, then gently fold in the remaining egg whites, being careful not to lose any volume.
• Gently pour into the prepared dish and sprinkle with the parmesan cheese.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until well risen and cooked through.
• Serve Immediately