It's Going To Be A Big Weekend!

It is exciting.

One of our closest friends, whom my husband has known for many, many years, is getting married!

They are such a lovely couple, and great friends.

We love going out on dinner dates, not often enough, but when we do, we always have a great time.

Not long ago I went out for a big day/evening adventure for the lovely bride-to-be's hens party.

I got to meet some of her friends, and catch up with someone I haven't seen for years. It was a fun day.

Of course my hubby went to the bucks party and the boys had a blast!

They went to Jamberoo (water recreation park kinda all round fun place) for the day and did what boys do best, they had so much fun and all ended up with bruises, scrapes and cuts.

That night they went out for dinner and drinks and were picked up in an amazing car.....

A complete surprise for the groom-to-be!

So now, the wedding date has finally arrived.

The weather is horrible, raining and cold.

But that can't dampen our excitement!

I went out shopping for a dress for the occasion and stumbled upon a 50% off dresses sale at Crossroads (it's still on by the way!)

I had seen this before and wanted so desperately to try it on, but the $50 price tag turned me off. The second I saw it marked down, I leapt into the nearest store!

I love it.

I really do.

It's fire engine red, and sexy without showing off a tonne of flesh.

I was even happier when I found some lovely black shoes to match...

For $5!!!

Yippee!

They are so huge, so tall, I am towering up so high, even a little taller than my hubby!

So now, as the excitement builds, all we can do is wait....

Maybe a little pampering, but mostly just waiting!

Cheesey Vegetable Risotto {Recipe}

I LOVE risotto.

But I am fussy.

I don't like the stuff that tastes like strong white wine.

I like flavour.

I like a bit of texture.

I like to be able to cook one meal that the whole family will enjoy.

I have to say, this one is a raging success.

Years ago I found a recipe for broccoli risotto. I tried it, my first ever risotto.

I loved it.

My husband loved it.

I can tell if my husband likes a meal when he asks for it again.

We had it three nights in a row.

Since having kids, and fussy eater little miss, I like to tweak my recipes to add as much veg as possible.

So this recipe changed.

It had onion and broccoli as it's only veg but now it boasts spinach and carrot as well.

So if you are looking for something easy to cook for the whole family, give it a go!

Tell me if you like it too!

Cheesey Vegetable Risotto

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup arborio rice

3/4 cup parmesan cheese (I always have a packet or two of the long life stuff in the pantry, it is a must!)

1 head of broccoli, chopped and steamed/boiled until soft

1 onion, diced

1 carrot, grated

3 cubes frozen spinach, thawed

Vegetable stock, about 4 cups, 1L.

Method:

Saute onion in a large saucepan in a tablespoon of olive oil until soft.

Add rice and stir.

Slowly add a half a cup of stock and stir, keep the heat at medium-low, enough for small bubbles.

Stir regularly until stock has been absorbed.

Add another half-one cup of stock and stir until absorbed. Continue with the rest of the stock until rice is plump and soft, but not mushy. You may need less or more stock than I used.

Leave it a little sloppy, not too solid, as the cheese will help bind it all together.

Add carrot, broccoli and spinach and stir.

Add parmesan cheese and stir it in.

Serve nice and hot or can be eaten cold for lunch the next day (if there is any left!)

Late Night Photoshopping

I can't help myself.

There is just something that pulls me towards Photoshop.

I know I am not terribly skilled in the fine art of editing, but I love to play around and create pretty things.

I just can't help myself.

I lie in bed at night, thinking to myself "You should be sleeping!"

And shooting back "I'll just finish this one!"

Anyway, here are some of the things I made this week, hope you like them.

My Absence, Explained

It's been really busy around here lately.

I have been party planning, cooking, crafting and dealing with the challenges thrown at me every step of the way.

Update on my sewing machine: I got it back from the shop again, and still it was not repaired properly. I took it back and FINALLY was given my refund.

But still, this leaves me without a sewing machine, and not enough money to buy a brand new one.

I promised myself that the next machine would be more of an investment, not a cheap machine that will last me a year and break down.

Yesterday we started the big task of fixing our broken driveway. Over the years, the roots from neighbouring trees have grown up underneath and cracked the concrete, pushing it up and out and everywhere. My husband & I started in the morning before his father came along to help. We smashed out the sections of concrete we needed to replace and hauled them up to the truck for disposal. It was sweaty, hard work. The worst part, was the disgusting discovery we made.

These disgusting little things..... THOUSANDS of them came spilling up from the ground with every chunk of concrete we pulled up. The concrete had a layer of broken bricks and tiles in the bottom of it, and the roaches had nestled themselves in there to make a home. Only one ventured close to our front door and I showed Eve how we deal with them... A swift flick of my shoe and it was taken care of.

While I slipped inside to put of food shopping delivery away (talk about bad timing!), Eve had grabbed my shoe and run around swatting it at the nasty roaches. That's my girl!

Eve was a good little helper.

She saw us carrying concrete up to the truck and went inside, put her boots on and came out to help.

We were at the truck, throwing our loads in and turned around to see her walking up towards us with a little piece of concrete in her hands. She brushed past us, plopped in on the truck bed and dusted her hands off "There we go!" And off she went for more!

It was a long, exhausting day.

I finally got to cut up and freeze the chocolate cake I had baked for Eli's birthday the day before...

And then in the evening, when the kids were finally asleep, we had our date night. Pizza, red wine and snuggling in front of the tv.

So I have to say, posting on here will be sporadic, I rarely have a moment to myself, and when I do, it's usually dedicated to the art of sleeping. One I wish to perfect!

:)