tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73879191736179483532012-01-30T16:26:36.666-08:00Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.comBlogger1751100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-10583306284283749382012-01-29T04:29:00.000-08:002012-01-29T04:30:13.261-08:00

The chooks are getting bigger and braver and just tonight I saw Miss Dangermouse (the black silkie) actually attempting to go UP the ramp.  She has of late been managing to get down it in the mornings but still would not go up.  Until tonight. But she was nearly thwarted by her mates, who sat at the top of the ramp watching her and would not move their feathery butts out of the way so she could

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-12348994247116580002012-01-17T04:09:00.000-08:002012-01-17T04:09:31.281-08:00

Ya know those odd days when ya just wanna indulge your weepy mood?Let me help you out. And The Band Played Waltzing MatildaThe Pogues Cat's In The CradleHarry Chapin This one not weepy perhaps, but still... I Was Only 19Redgum Feel free to indulge with me, if ye be in the mood....

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-24834983298950561912012-01-10T02:55:00.000-08:002012-01-10T02:55:45.161-08:00

See who arrived at our place for Christmas...duly named by their proud owners... Dangermouse Penfold Anakin Skywalker Shuttle All a little bigger and braver now, the wyandottes are bantams and the silkies just stay small.....I think. I didn't do much research, beyond looking up the council rules and regs.  So now, as well as putting my boys to bed, I put these darn chooks to bed too. The

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-69273951227887626932011-11-05T03:06:00.000-07:002012-01-10T02:56:49.455-08:00

I came across this idea on some cool blog (that I now can't find or remember) and thought my kids would love it.  A potion lab, just the thing for a bit of magic, or maybe some scientific experimentation if you prefer. I saved up any plastic containers I came across for a couple of weeks, then on a sunny but cold Saturday morning away we went. We did this in that time of year when Saturday

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-80112024053203511042011-10-30T03:28:00.000-07:002011-11-16T02:00:17.312-08:00

The boys and I went to a Halloween party last night, the boys dressed as ninjas and me in my regular duds, as per the invite. It was fun, lots of kids and as the night wore on, Mr 6 stuck closer and closer by me, eventually saying "it's just a little bit too scary for me mum".  Think life-sized skeleton bride standing in one corner, massive spiders and webs everywhere and a 

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-80393433011269856362011-10-27T03:39:00.000-07:002011-10-27T03:39:00.367-07:00

Life has been a bit off-kilter here because my dear hubby was away for a month....yes, a month!....including the two weeks of school holidays. Ai yi yi!  We survived, obviously. The school hols we spent at The Farm which was just fabulous, joined at different times by one of my sisters and one of my brothers. The boys were in heaven, and so was I most of the time.  Photographing a

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-66066045346165383612011-09-21T04:09:00.000-07:002011-09-21T04:15:45.655-07:00

I gotta get these boys to sleep all night for a few nights in a row to recharge myself I think. The boys have had a run of colds, unusually for them, and the last one has left them both with a fairly chesty cough. Fun. Last night at about 8.30pm Mr 3 woke up in a tizz, which very quickly degenerated into an all out screaming meltdown, that went on so long it actually woke up big brother. 

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-65805449610718684732011-09-17T03:51:00.000-07:002011-11-16T02:36:39.106-08:00

My little monsters today.... As soon as the temperature rises above 12c, they are ready to get their gear off and race round like mad things outside. It didn't actually reach 25c I'm sure, but that did not deter them one little bit. Do ya like their matching shorts? Haaaahaha, yup, I've turned into one of 'those' mums, but I just couldn't help myself when I found them in Mr 3's size. The boys

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-1498925605890362182011-09-16T03:45:00.000-07:002011-09-16T19:42:18.931-07:00

Look at this.....This piece of dirt is the garden bed that runs down the side of our shared driveway. The lady we now share the driveway with recently suggested we should clear it out of the random trees and ugly box hedging and use it for a veggie garden. Brainwave!So we promptly did just that. Actually, she and hubby did it as I was heading out just as she came and suggested we make a start

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-64891780429903155832011-08-19T04:18:00.001-07:002011-08-20T18:06:39.750-07:00

The little guy wanted to clean the car. An old sauce bottle full of water and Dad's golf-club-cleaning brush, and he was happy. Hehe, he even managed to leave most of the paint on our aged and venerable car.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-43712086613621592902011-08-15T05:09:00.000-07:002011-08-15T05:22:29.221-07:00

Oh my, I was in quite the funk yesterday. Baby L.T's due date, should he have made it to a full 40 weeks. Thing is, his birth was to have been a scheduled c-section, so technically he would have arrived at least a week ago. I didn't think the date would affect me all that much, but boo ya, who am I to dictate what my mind is going to do? At the same time as my body gives me a definite 'not

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-64797553435014870062011-08-09T04:18:00.001-07:002011-08-09T04:34:56.568-07:00

When your family eats as many eggs as we do, you can end up with a lot of egg shells. When you have two small boys, as we do, you need to come up with activities for those freezing, grey days of winter when they're bouncing off the walls. Enter, the eggshells. Ok, this was not my genius, I saw it somewhere on the blogosphere, but aren't they cute? Hello Eggbert 1, Eggbert 2, Eggbert 3 and

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-22094710536164320492011-08-04T04:10:00.000-07:002011-08-04T19:34:17.706-07:00

First up, check out the colour of the pumpkins we grew! All two of them, albeit, one giant one. I picked up this passionfruit vine at the farmer's market a couple of weeks back, it's still looking for a home though.And in the seed tray, can you spot the two baby apple trees? Might need to enlarge it to actually see them...the boys and I saved the seeds from any apples that got eaten for a couple

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-62288927782093577852011-07-12T03:29:00.000-07:002011-07-24T02:42:23.196-07:00

Back from the mansion as of yesterday. I must say, I didn't realise the weather was so miserable when we stayed there, must be the central heating and massive fireplaces. Or maybe today was actually worse, freezing and grey the entire day. Ho hum.But we had a lovely time as usual.We....tried rollerblades for the first time....tooled around on the world's most impressive tricycle...watched movies

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-35055309970000879992011-07-08T04:10:00.000-07:002011-07-08T04:49:38.802-07:00

My hubby has a few friends round tonight and one of them quietly told me that his girlfriend is 12 weeks pregnant. He told me privately, before the others arrived and that was such a thoughtful thing for him to do. I congratulated him, then cried on his shoulder for a minute. I didn't realise it would hurt so much to hear that someone in our circle is pregnant.I am very happy for them, and yet it

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-52312571150671758012011-07-05T04:27:00.000-07:002011-07-05T04:37:05.156-07:00

What's better than one thermomix? Two, of course!Oh yeah, looooove staying at the mansion!

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-34462730392634957482011-06-26T03:14:00.000-07:002011-06-26T19:05:18.873-07:00

Making potions...Collecting hail...and eating it...Playing outdoors...Making bread.....whoops(that hole was big enough to fit my fist in!)Brewing some lemon-ginger water kefir....Squeezing a bazillion lemons...Playing a bit of air guitar...And isn't he cute?Where's Mr 6? He's around, but I'm finding when I have both of them here, my camera comes out less 'cos I'm busy mediating. Or Mummypolice,

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-52090720747862682512011-06-17T03:26:00.000-07:002011-06-17T05:42:21.623-07:00

Another few days spent making stuff, more baking and cooking going on though that's calming down a bit.My six year old's teacher had her last day teaching yesterday, before she's on maternity leave. Her baby is due six weeks before mine was. I had bought this fabric to make a baby blanket gift for her a while before we found out about our baby, though I didn't get round to sewing it up right away

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-42473667601695580842011-06-12T03:41:00.000-07:002011-06-13T02:54:36.784-07:00

I found this poem today, it fits perfectly right now.My Stillborn Baby Son I once had a son who now lives with God above, I never got to know him and I never knew his love, I once had a son whose heart beat close to mine, I never knew his beauty for I never got the time, For my son he was taken before the dawn could break, He's now sleeping in my heart where his share of love he takes.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-36163531638251953412011-06-09T16:43:00.000-07:002011-06-10T03:07:03.390-07:00

I had one of those moments last night when I just futilely wished that things were different. That things were not what they were right then. Followed by a feeling of hopelessness that things will ever be 'right' again. It's not great, knowing that time is the only thing that will lessen that feeling.And in the rational corner of my mind, I do realise that things will be 'right' again sometime..

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-63821297580746371002011-06-05T02:25:00.000-07:002011-06-05T03:21:04.155-07:00

Thank you to all those who have given words of support, encouragement and love, in person, as well as through this blog, through emails, cards and phone calls. While emotionally I'm still up and down, physically I'm doing well. But it seems my body, or maybe my brain, doesn't realise I don't need to nest. Which is what I would have been be doing in these next weeks if our baby was still alive.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-48517655153735168272011-05-31T04:29:00.000-07:002011-05-31T04:40:59.618-07:00

Today we said goodbye for the last time, and it felt so final. We had a wee service, not even that actually, just a priest there to give a blessing and say a few words. That tiny, white casket is the saddest thing I have ever, ever seen. Something I never thought we'd see in our little family. We each laid a flower on top and Mr 3 a drawing also. It was a drawing of inventions, he said, and he

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-91740394031598417612011-05-28T00:32:00.001-07:002011-05-28T00:44:00.738-07:00

I had envisaged three little boys going off to Auskick and the under nine's. Three little boys heading off to cricket on Saturday morning in the summer. Three boys driving us crazy with their noise and mess.Three big strapping boys crashing home after school or footy training and rummaging for food.I saw me being The Queen of the Kitchen, feeding them and their mates really good food. Teenage

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-20218429171518264632011-05-27T01:11:00.000-07:002011-05-27T15:20:00.977-07:00

This time last week I was in labour. It seems so hard to believe, it wasn't meant to happen that way at all. I woke up that morning with the slow realisation coming over me that it hadn't all been just an upsetting dream. Labour was about 7 1/2 hours long, my shortest by a long way. Drug free.....do two panadol count? Baby L.T. was born, with a tiny bit of that 'oh wow' factor I've heard about in

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-37683072764679447262011-05-25T19:35:00.000-07:002011-05-27T15:19:46.919-07:00

Had a rough afternoon yesterday, too many tears, cranky at the kids, tired, short tempered. I've still got to get back to doing the school run, which hubby has been doing for me up till now. I dropped off this morning, but managed to escape without really speaking to anyone significant. Got to go back this afternoon. I'm just hanging out with my 3 year old for now and following his lead, he's

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-65437979197085564672011-05-24T02:46:00.000-07:002011-05-27T15:19:29.121-07:00

We lost our baby boy last week, stillborn at 27 weeks. I'm not ready to say more than that right now.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-45573327739235494502011-05-08T02:35:00.000-07:002011-05-24T03:12:43.394-07:00

The organisation bug has spread to the kitchen. Yay for that, although we do luckily have a rather large kitchen, despite the overall smallness of the house. In it's previous life, the kitchen was done in pink and included a built in booth and seats, which are now looooooong gone, thankfully.So, see this wee corner?It was housing two recipe folders, two fruit bowls, the bread, the butter dish, my

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-36604739699704173232011-03-26T03:44:00.000-07:002011-05-29T02:32:44.786-07:00

Thank you to those who have been enquiring both here and behind the scenes whether I am in fact still alive....Blogging has been on the backburner for a while now as life has felt just too darn busy, partly due to the fact that we're unexpectedly expecting baby number three. Yup, number three. Make that BOY number three.Eeeek!!So I'm trying to enjoy the quiet life, or what passes for that in our

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-47292629141506264902010-12-05T01:05:00.000-08:002010-12-05T01:38:08.729-08:00

I have lots of things (successfully) growing in the garden this season.Two of these little guys, pumpkins, bought from my lovely farmer's market for $2 a piece. I can't remember what sort they are, something stripy I think. I stopped to talk to their grower today, he was full of good tips.My orange tree, with exactly one baby orange, thanks to an enthusiastic 2 year old.Lots of tomatoes, most

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-64598241005185040872010-11-29T02:21:00.000-08:002010-11-29T02:28:01.599-08:00

Mmmm, fresh vanilla pods, they smell SOOOO GOOD!Grown for the first time in Australia (apparently, I'd need to research that to verify it as fact) and sold at my local framer's market by the Spice Lady.I'm going to give making my own vanilla essence a go.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-26529062545220039572010-11-24T01:37:00.000-08:002010-11-27T00:42:16.961-08:00

I have a fabulous cake recipe that I really should share, it's more of a mud-type cake than a regular cake, flourless, chocolately, squidegy and delicious.It happens to be gluten free too, by virtue of being flourless, and is fabulous for any fancy or not-so-fancy occasion.I have however, misplaced the recipe. I know, clever aren't I?I pulled it out of my file folder to write up a couple of days

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-86599222010246417762010-11-18T02:52:00.000-08:002010-11-18T02:58:16.158-08:00

So, just a few days ago I was celebrating the return of hot weather, but we are in Melbourne after all and hot on the heels of that hot day was a really, really wet one. Just in time for the weekend.Fabulous.Four people in a small house on a wet day. One of whom is tired and crabby. And wants to watch the golf on tv. And actually hear the commentary.Two of whom are small children. Boys, at that.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-63627516154544303502010-11-01T02:55:00.000-07:002010-11-01T03:03:04.355-07:00

so we managed to get planting!As well as what was shown in my previous post, we picked up two of these today...They should be ok in pots for the first year, beyond that, not sure what we'll do.And the beans that Mr 5 brought home from pre-school found a home too.I also noticed a miniature nectarine, a dwarf lemon, boysenberries and blackcurrants that I wouldn't mind bringing home, but I do need

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-13300194998155940772010-10-30T23:12:00.000-07:002010-10-31T01:08:32.352-07:00

Baby plants that is. Seeing as how we'll be staying put here longer than we'd (I'd) planned, I thought I'd try and get as much use out of our small piece of land as I can. While it doesn't need to look pretty......it will need to when we sell it....I'll have it looking functional instead. The boys and I have a variety of seedlings to plant out and we have made a start. But seeing as how this has

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-39280707054876954402010-10-16T01:45:00.000-07:002010-10-23T03:18:01.041-07:00

We're back home and settling in nicely, suddenly two kids and a husband feels soooo easy!Although there are no nine and eleven year old girls to take my boys off my hands here, darn it.Soooooooo, wemade hedgehog ( a joint effort of scrunching and munching)decided it was too cold for swimming so we'd rather stand on our heads(well, who wouldn't?)not too cold for us thoughtried to squirt the dogs (

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-45459042462108359682010-10-12T03:22:00.001-07:002010-10-12T03:27:45.679-07:00

We made cookies today...like 'em?Back home tomorrow. Phew!

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-1619774765465996542010-10-09T04:09:00.000-07:002010-10-09T04:55:43.643-07:00

Life has been NON STOP since last Sunday.The owners of the mansion are away and asked me if I would like to take charge of their delightful offspring and the two resident dogs. The scheduled gal broke her foot, so I said yes, and the owners arranged the Grandparents to act as support. The scheduled gal has no kids of her own, whereas the mansion owners knew I'd be bringing my two and they figured

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-18489160361258597052010-10-05T19:26:00.000-07:002010-10-05T19:36:45.413-07:00

Hehe, I am house/kid/dog sitting for ten days, with my two kids in tow as well. Right now, the older three kids are at school and my two are parked in front of the tv for a bit. Well, a storm just came over, thunder, lightening and all. And the big, soppy, chocolate brown labrador has suddenly cuddled himself up at my feet as I sit here at the computer. I was in the kitchen and he sidled over

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-61489421706462604402010-09-30T03:32:00.000-07:002010-09-30T04:17:00.627-07:00

I decided to risk the dodgy weather today and take the kids down to the foreshore, which is about a twenty minute drive away.It truly was freezing, I was in long pants, boots, and four layers on top, including a woolly jumper/jersey/sweater (whatever your lingo is, hehe), a windproof jacket and a scarf.The little guy seems to feel the cold more than his older brother, so as soon as we hit the

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-73036361889383878482010-09-24T04:27:00.000-07:002010-09-24T04:27:31.533-07:00

It's that time of year again, the last Saturday in September, and two small boys have footy on the brain. Now, being a Kiwi by birth and upbringing, I could care less about tomorrow's big game, but I am somewhat outnumbered when it comes to gender in this house and my hubby has done a grand brainwashing on the kids. A successful brainwashing, I should add. Helped along by football day at

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-85136467367876194352010-09-14T20:59:00.001-07:002010-09-14T21:06:56.728-07:00

After a pediatric ophthalmologist appointment, followed a few days later by an appointment with a pediatrician at our local hospital, the diagnosis is...............a simple motor tic.  Nothing to be concerned about, don't bring attention to it, should disappear and/or morph into something else by about 6 weeks - 3 months. So, we move on. I think this is just one more in a series of odd little

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-82842983270060853982010-08-30T04:59:00.000-07:002010-08-30T05:01:41.595-07:00

Thanks to everyone for your concern regarding my last post. I'm not freaking out too much right now, maybe because I've gotten used to Mr 5 rolling his eyes back, but also I think the .....intensity, for lack of a better word, may have decreased just a little. The eye rolling was at first being accompanied by a very slight head movement too, which I think is partly why it seemd so odd and scary

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-38473421482074305202010-08-28T04:23:00.000-07:002010-08-28T04:23:29.394-07:00

Ok, this is a weird one. On Tuesday evening my husband pointed out that our five year old was regularly rolling his eyes right back in his head and off to the left. I think it came on suddenly because pre-school had not mentioned anything and I had not really noticed. I'd seen him do it once and hadn't thought anything of it. It increased in frequency until his bedtime, eyes flicking up and to

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-2586863617699076032010-08-20T04:05:00.000-07:002010-08-20T05:56:44.951-07:00

Phew, so I've fiiiinally put a new template in.  Wow, it's like drawing blood, it takes me ages to find something that suits me, I don't go for bright ones, except on other people's blogs haha, I don't really want graphics, I want two columns, one of them being wider than average, I want a white background for posting, I want decent size headings on my sidebar and I 'spose I'm just extra fussy.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-68679708696754583612010-08-03T23:11:00.000-07:002010-08-03T23:11:11.281-07:00

Umm, I didn't put a new background up in time and my old one, true to the message posted, disappeared.  Better get searching for a new one...

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-30497705197883521022010-07-28T04:57:00.000-07:002010-07-28T04:57:43.270-07:00

...is more comfortable if the cushions sit on YOU, rather than if YOU sit on the cushions.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-56665236548101171762010-07-22T03:34:00.000-07:002010-07-22T03:35:51.657-07:00

The sweetest little hat in the entire world! Well, technically it's for one of my boys, as you can see: (Isn't he CUTE?) This is a pilot hat, from the lovely Cadi over at MaeheGirl. One more, because I love the way this hat makes my 2 1/4 yr old look like the baby he still really is, at barely 2 years old.  And another...not sure what that pout was over, but see, he really is just a baby. At

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-21371882391216843012010-07-15T05:06:00.000-07:002010-07-15T17:53:58.610-07:00

Oh yeah, a good trampoline... How did I let the kids hog this last time we stayed here? Guess who hogged it this time? Woohoo, I'm still on a high! Ha, bad pun intended.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-48409153056719752562010-07-04T03:22:00.000-07:002010-07-04T03:24:22.991-07:00

Two weeks of school holidays and oh boy, I now see why many parents breathe a sigh of relief when school goes back. Not that my kids are even in school yet, so what hope do I have when they are?? Mr 5 has 12 hours of preschool a week, not a heck of a lot, but just enough to give us some breathing room. Add to that a weekly gymnastics class and swimming lessons and the week starts to actually seem

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-15010434053312575482010-06-17T05:45:00.000-07:002010-07-16T03:20:20.305-07:00

Here it is in pictures: Making butter with Spiderman and sidekick... Water balloons when its 12 degrees C out...  Lunch in a tree... A much bigger tree.. The coolest gloves in the world... (ask my sis for the pattern) Adventures in paint... Scootering sans helmets... (the lack of helmets has since been remedied) And two little monsters monkeying around. Add to that lot losing my 2

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-32171809480733788562010-06-09T03:30:00.000-07:002010-06-09T03:32:04.760-07:00

Next on my to-do list is something to feed my new babies with. I bought this beautiful set up from my local council and put it up in a dim corner of my front yard. I thought the kids might enjoy it but I'm the one obsessively checking my new pets, they are fascinating little guys. Peel back the circle of carpet I've cut to fit on top of them and see them run for cover! Well, squirm and heave

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-34514425283364225092010-06-04T04:14:00.000-07:002010-06-04T04:19:56.729-07:00

I know a mum on the other side of the world to me, who's 3rd baby is due in August. She, Cadi, is a single mum with 2 boys and she's a second grade teacher to boot.  Earlier this year, this mum's partner passed away, just three weeks after they found out they were expecting a baby. I found Cadi through my sister, when she put a call out to the blogosphere for an Aussie to please send a 20c coin

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-20654374573998256092010-05-26T05:44:00.000-07:002010-05-26T05:46:14.010-07:00

When the heater turned itself off and would not come back on yesterday, brrrrr, I went looking for the cause. Only to discover that the fridge was off, the dishwasher had stopped, the computers were off and the washing machine had stopped too. And various lights would not come on through out the house. First up it made me realise how much power I was drawing, eek, and then I went looking for the

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-79744041738544734702010-05-22T03:34:00.000-07:002010-05-22T03:34:08.501-07:00

Ok, well I'm somewhat over my conniption fit and am managing to ignore the fact that we're supposed to be in house-buying mode. Instead, I tackled one of the things I've been wanting to do at our 'new' house..... I bought these two little guys: Baby blueberry trees, already with little nubs that will apparently turn into real blueberries, if I can keep the birds off them. They should grow to

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-65240538426798067322010-05-19T04:21:00.000-07:002010-07-03T04:33:07.781-07:00

I've been having some 'moments' lately.  Moments when I need to take a great big breath, roll my eyes (inwardly), bite my tongue and Let. It. Go. And it doesn't even involve the kids. It involves house buying....or more to the point, NOT house buying despite being offered the more than perfect opportunity house wise, price wise and location wise. And it involves my nearest and dearest. We have a

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-90672260027666127482010-05-05T04:29:00.000-07:002010-05-05T20:38:29.318-07:00

Today has been one of those days.  You know, one of THOSE days. The boys were at it before breakfast, as my eldest just seemed to have climbed out of the wrong side of bed. But eventually I got everyone sorted, hubby off to work with a packed lunch, kids happy doing DIFFERENT activities at OPPOSITE ends of our very small house and it seemed the perfect time to jump quickly in the shower. OK, now

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-65791217956267997882010-04-29T19:36:00.000-07:002010-04-29T20:54:05.002-07:00

Life has continued to be maniacally busy lately, with Mr H turning the big 5.  That coincided with several family members arriving from out-of-state so it was the perfect opportunity to throw together a family only party.  Hot on the heels of that was a late night cupcake baking blitz for pre-school, and coming up this weekend  is a combined birthday party with some of the kids in our Mother's

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-21542424410062975022010-04-17T03:32:00.000-07:002010-04-17T03:32:28.053-07:00

We had a fabulous 2 weeks house sitting at the mansion, we've been home nearly a week now but since I left my camera cable there, I've waited until I got it back before posting. Well, I had been planning to get all up to date on my blogs while I was there, but despite having every convenience known to man (and woman), the internet connection at said mansion was..........well, completely crap

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-28631543330443057292010-03-30T03:55:00.000-07:002010-03-30T03:55:12.382-07:00

So, we're house-sitting at the moment, for two weeks total. My boys are in love with the place, they know it well already and seeing as the usual inhabitants aren't around, they have the complete and total devotion of the two delightful canines that reside here. I'm enjoying it too, although I am considering getting a pedometer to see how much actual mileage I am putting in per day. This place is

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-58433086088081410832010-03-26T20:39:00.000-07:002010-03-26T20:39:54.319-07:00

Well, cutting out at the moment really.  But I'm doing it ALL BY MYSELF. With no one else around at all. Woohoo! Hubby and his brother have taken themselves and the boys off to the Melbourne Grand Prix for the afternoon. I get a whole 5 hours to myself! So I am making upon request.... A Great White Shark. Well two of them of course, how could I POSSIBLY make something for only ONE of my boys?

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-47666077955993134632010-03-25T04:12:00.000-07:002010-03-25T04:12:08.749-07:00

It's been a busy week, as I've been working evenings again, some with the kids in tow, some not. What that translates to is money in my pocket and the house in a shambles, as it turns out it's evenings when I get things done. Well, the 'lil guy has turned 2 now, so I can officially call it the terrible twos, instead of just thinking it. For his birthday he received a totally cool duplo castle

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-83922325478208965092010-03-13T03:32:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:30:07.306-07:00

It's 10pm and I am dying to get up and raid the freezer for my homemade-with-coconut oil-and-really-dark-choc cookies. I have discovered that when I have some sugar (or rapadura), I really, really, really, really, really want more. But when I manage to abstain for 2-3 days, the insane must-have feeling dies right back and I can by-pass sugar no problem. Until I decide to indulge again next

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-78720534905517023382010-03-11T17:28:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:22:26.840-07:00

I exited the shower this morning wondering why it was so quiet.  Usually when I try and grab a shower I park my little darlings in front of Playschool, where it's mostly guaranteed they'll stay put for the required amount of time and not get up to any wickedness. Well, this time I didn't do that and Mr I'll-be-2-next-week got up to said wickedness. How am I going to explain that one away at the

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-65790809362966640522010-03-10T02:08:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:20:32.527-07:00

By reading them this.... A Cautionary Tale... Jim, who ran away from his nurse and was eaten by a lion. There was a boy, his name was Jim, his friends were very good to him. (blah, blah, blah missed some pages in here) Now this was Jim's especial foible, he ran away when he was able And on this inauspicious day, He slipped his hand and ran away! He hadn't gone a yard when BANG! With open jaws a

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-67902464251593314042010-03-08T02:25:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:23:10.752-07:00

Just a quick funny while I think of it... Master 4 (nearly 5) is obsessed with traps. Trapping people - bad guys mostly.I blame the watching of Scooby Doo reruns. So following are a couple of simple-to-rig-up-in-the-house traps: This one's the old rabbit under a box type trap. Very effective for capturing soldiers who have come to investigate the roll of sticky tape that's been left for bait. (

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-34788796087994670242010-03-06T23:34:00.000-08:002010-03-06T23:35:49.705-08:00

After this much hail in the storm yesterday, Look what's on the weather radar on the edge of the city...

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-79831698093541512262010-03-05T03:23:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:24:10.233-07:00

An interesting day with just my youngest today.  He's about to turn two, so I suspect today was just a sneak preview of what might be round the corner... While I was packing the dishwasher, he drew on the wall. The white wall. With a 4b grey lead pencil. He was outraged when I confiscated said pencil but quite happy to join me with an eraser frantically trying to bring my white wall back to white

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-71550026800223459082010-03-02T02:26:00.000-08:002010-10-23T03:19:15.632-07:00

Ok, I've decided to keep my blog mostly as is, there is just too much out there and I know most of it I'll get sick of shortly after I've changed it. I'm a bit of a Plain Jane when it comes to decorating. If you could see my house, ALL of the wall decorations are pics from the kids. So before that, it was just a tad bare. From a trained photographer, that is dismal I know...to be remedied one day

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-48663887370391644462010-02-18T03:48:00.000-08:002010-02-18T03:48:22.442-08:00

I'll be fiddling with backgrounds and templates for while, so you may see things looking a bit odd here and there.There's too many choices out there....

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-1755621012782979112010-02-14T01:24:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:27:35.291-07:00

My kitchen is an interesting place of late as there are quite a few living things in it. Other than myself of course. I received a sourdough culture from a friend in exchange for some of my excess kefir grains, and I now keep two starters going; one is rye, the other spelt. Read about the benefits of sourdough here. A batch of kefir is always fermenting on top of the fridge. Kefir is

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-77539215818655269952010-02-12T03:46:00.000-08:002010-06-03T05:04:38.791-07:00

This was the weather, accompanied by thunder, lightening and a black-out.... And here are my little streakers enjoying the conditions.....as only kids can. Or maybe I should have been out there too.....

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-62505083706873382072010-02-11T04:17:00.000-08:002010-02-11T17:41:17.895-08:00

I've been working a few evenings this week with kidlets in tow, which keeps us all a tad tired and the kids just a wee bit grumpy the next day. Add to that Master H starting 4 year old Kinder this week (yes, I was one of those mums that had to stay the WHOLE first session) plus the usual gymnastics and swimming lessons, and the weather being hot and humid which is a bit unusual for Melbourne, oh

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-61631567637505579132010-02-02T04:01:00.001-08:002010-03-23T23:06:32.173-07:00

The only thing to do on a hot day is sit in a bucket of water with an icypole. Then squint for the photo because you put your sunglasses in the bucket. Then poop in the bucket. Then watch while mum tips the whole poopy mess into the toilet. And flushes it. Including the sunglasses. Whoops.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-69104161031570867002010-01-31T00:52:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:26:42.144-07:00

The real milk.... The fruit... And vegies... And more fruit... Now, if I had a decent vegie garden, a few fruit trees, the odd vine and a cow, I could produce all this from our back yard. Well, with the cow's help of course. But a fabulous farmer's market has to be the next best thing, right? Right!

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-84527101033880152302010-01-26T03:03:00.000-08:002010-01-26T03:08:52.844-08:00

A house we're interested in is taking offers tomorrow night. The house was under-quoted for the area (you get to know these things after house hunting in the same area for over a year) and it's going to go where we're not prepared to. So, we've decided to look at acreage a little further out. Not all that much further out, only about 10 minutes. But SQUEEEEEEEEEEE, I'm so excited! Except, that

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-16635905832421475342010-01-23T01:24:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:29:35.876-07:00

We've had a house guest for nearly a week much to the boy's delight, my sis-in-law has no kids of her own and is endlessly patient with my two. Despite the fact that she spent the week sleeping on the top bunk and being woken up early (by her standards, hehehe) by enthusiastically loud small children. And, she spent a large amount of time with Master 4 putting together her Christmas gift to him,

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-87775878673941799132010-01-17T03:46:00.001-08:002010-06-03T03:27:58.452-07:00

I've been meaning to try this for a while, seeing as I can get raw, organic milk and cream at my local farmer's market. I did try it once with raw goat's cream, but it did not work. The goat's cream was so thick I had to cut open the bottle and scrape it out, I probably should have spread it on bread just as it was. Anyway, if you want to read about the benefits of raw milk check out this link

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-37563416127767408812010-01-17T01:22:00.001-08:002010-01-17T01:35:00.509-08:00

I just had to put this one out there....my hubby sent me a link to Sleep Talkin' Man and I have just about cacked myself laughing at this guy a few times now.Please check it out and read the FAQs page which is linked to on the left, Sleep Talkin' Man's lovely wife tells what it's all about.Tell me it's funny and it's not just me...?

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-65948321017853862662010-01-16T00:00:00.000-08:002010-06-04T04:06:45.596-07:00

My youngest sister, who masquerades as The Slightly Mad Quilt Lady has posted a cute giveaway on her blog. Except she managed to post the actual giveaway post of the 15th December, even though it's meant for now. Make sense? No? Yes? Well here is the actual post of the giveaway and here is her recent post pointing you in direction of said giveaway. If you have a wee girl you may want to hop

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-4259848441295493762010-01-12T19:14:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:39:32.690-07:00

I've been taking a short, unintentional hiatus from this blog, as I try to enact my New Years resolution of organisation. Organisation is going to mean NOT wiling away so many hours on the net, so I have been staying away from my computer in an effort to get some small unfinished projects finished. Well, Christmas was crazy and fun, the crazy part was thinking we should drive from Melbourne to

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-47740288884199344552009-12-11T03:52:00.000-08:002010-06-03T04:41:53.510-07:00

Check out my jar of CHOCOLATE. 70% cocoa, delicious and healthy. Haha, well, apparently a SMALL amount a day is healthy. My plan is to only ever use the good stuff so my kids get used to eating that and will hopefully reject the crap stuff. Is it wrong of me to request of family at Easter that they only give the kids dark chocolate? It doesn't need to be the highest quality, just not the sort

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-77116681978184956592009-12-07T18:14:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:47:28.846-07:00

We have a very basic Christmas Crib (is it called that here, that's what we called it growing up in Kiwiland...) and it consists of just a few figures that remain from a much larger set. So the kids and I made a couple of new ones: This snazzy looking guy is Joseph And this bright little fellow is the Drummer Boy Er, without his arms and his drum, which was to be made from a gum nut.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-47980221593954449012009-12-05T02:12:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:36:04.907-07:00

Gee, I let hubby out into the back yard to shave his head.....he gives himself a no' 4 in the summer (I DO NOT cut his hair, scarred from the one and only time I DID do it...) And this is what happens: Ok, Mr 4 was due for his buzz cut, but my blonde fluffy haired baby!!! Check out his hair in my previous playdough post, (20 months old but still my baby...) Oh my gosh, he does look cute, his

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-81692435786020609572009-11-27T01:10:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:36:58.478-07:00

I went to my 4 year old's kinder AGM last night....yahoo I hear you say and yes, you'd be right. (I also brought my knitting so it wasn't all bad.) But one thing I do remember the kinder teacher talking about was the value of playdough. As in it's value as a play material, rather than it's monetary value of course. She said you could take a cranky, out of sorts, having a bad day child, sit them

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-54221562919535600302009-11-24T02:45:00.000-08:002010-06-03T03:49:00.114-07:00

I've been doing some interesting reading and research of late on eating and health, and I wanted to share a couple of sites. Kelly the Kitchen Kop writes about - Healthy cooking, Traditional food, Vibrant health - Busting "Politically Correct" Health and nutrition information. Ann Marie is the Cheeseslave All about cheese, butter, bacon, raw milk and all those other things we're not supposed to

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-76515527966796484292009-11-18T04:00:00.000-08:002010-06-04T04:06:02.081-07:00

This Food Fetish Meme (about Me, a MeMe got it? right) was thrown my way by the deliciously chocolatey Kath at Blurb from the Burbs fame. Yes, it was a while ago, I'm just catching up... So here you go, more than ever wanted to know about my dietary predilections: 1. What's your #1 comfort food? Custard. Thick, creamy, high in sugar, out of a tub....NOT made by me. Or smarties, good old

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-89092647500807845662009-11-15T03:22:00.000-08:002010-10-23T03:19:23.791-07:00

Here it is, and this is where I found the recipe, from Jo at Quirky cooking.It was soooo good I cannot do it again any time soon as I just couldn't help eating way too much of it!Self control, where are you?Ah that's right, you do not reside in my kitchen...

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-76278575089627570712009-11-13T01:19:00.000-08:002010-10-23T03:19:29.486-07:00

A short while ago I mentioned rapadura, which is a sweetener made from evaporated sugar cane juice.I managed to order some online, funnily enough it was cheaper for four 250 gram bags than for one 1 kilo bag so I went with the four.This is what Jo at Quirky Cooking has to say about rapadura..."Rapadura is evaporated cane juice - it's also known as Sucanat. It is just the juice extracted from the

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-7842095813936493492009-11-03T15:56:00.001-08:002010-06-03T03:55:14.324-07:00

Life is busy. Busy busy. Adding to my usual routine I worked three afternoon/evening nanny shifts with my kids in tow.....that included the school run to a VERY swanky school......but I have been driving their (the family I sometimes nanny for) Range rover so didn't feel as out of place as I would have pulling up outside that swanky school in my paint peeling ford........ It's a great job,

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-91006003875908868612009-10-26T16:02:00.000-07:002010-03-05T03:27:42.994-08:00

Well first up let me confess I forgot my camera....... in my defense, the market is 1 1/2 hrs away and we had to be leaving home at 7.30am with both kids and their supplies for the day, lots of cupcakes and ourselves. We being hubby and I. The whole market-stall-for-a-day thing came about because my hubby is a good friend of the Nut Bloke, who asked hubby and me if we could mind his stall for

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-13330019976235635322009-10-22T18:19:00.000-07:002010-06-03T05:05:23.598-07:00

Ok, so today/tonight I need to make a largish amount of different sorts of gorgeous looking and tasting cupcakes for the market tomorrow, where I'm crashing on The Nut Blokes stall. But....... I worked last night until 1am (no kids in tow this time) so am feeling a little challenged. Add to that Mr 4 has been in CONSTANT question mode, Mr 18 months bashed his head against the brick wall while

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-30466475649768243052009-10-18T04:51:00.000-07:002010-06-03T04:59:13.318-07:00

I know, I know, I can't seem to make myself stop going on about food and what's in it these days. And I recently found out, through an innocuous tv show on food followed by a little research, that commercially made bread is being fortified with extra folate, as of September just gone. Here in Australia anyway; seems like NZ is managing to put it off for the moment pending further investigation.

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-48939739717562395332009-10-18T02:10:00.000-07:002010-06-03T04:52:55.729-07:00

When I was at the farmer's market this morning (after the baby market and before the supermarket....yep, and I wonder where my weekend went??) I quizzed the holder of each stall I went to about their growing/producing methods. Results: The delicious apples I buy are sprayed to control codling moth, as are most apples. Ok, I will continue to peel them , much to my four year old's delight. (

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-63814085978775922592009-10-14T04:41:00.000-07:002011-02-08T13:23:32.590-08:00

With Billy's vanilla vanilla cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting...This is quite a good recipe, but reading through the comments a few people managed to get it wrong. If you've ever made cupcakes you'll find the way the recipe is put together a little odd......so I used my own tried and true method instead.And tweaked the ingredients just a tiny bit too.Yes, once again I cannot just

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-41376134809235436382009-10-12T02:58:00.000-07:002010-03-05T00:56:28.913-08:00

Ok, not a great picture but here they are... The 3 large boxes are cupcake couriers, which I finally received on the weekend. (Not the company's fault, I was waiting on my sis-in-law to fly them down with her when she came) And on top of those is a cupcake stand that I recieved from my mother-in-law on the same day....hehehe, I'm easy to think of gifts for at the moment, yeah?! I have another

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-82364591870659801182009-10-07T01:48:00.000-07:002010-06-03T04:13:11.890-07:00

We had some hail yesterday, real live freezing cold hail. Good 'ole Melbourne, throwing her best spring weather at us. Yes, our minuscule backyard has fake grass as well as hail, you can probably tell what hubby's turned it into, do the golf balls give it away? When I first arrived in Australia (following my hunky snowboarding Aussie boyfriend, now hubby, oh how long ago THAT seems!) I was

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-90624963154525696862009-10-03T18:42:00.000-07:002010-03-05T00:50:57.557-08:00

Hubby's birthday late last week so of course we needed a cake. To my kids, birthdays are all about the cake (apart from the presents of course) and "what cake should I have for my next birthday" is a topic brought up all too often. So having exhausted my favourites due to father's day, mother-in-law's birthday and MY birthday, I was keeping my eyes open for something new. What I came across on

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-62552756018506861502009-09-26T04:06:00.001-07:002010-06-04T04:08:59.149-07:00

Not my personal opinion but a line from the Geelong team song, Geelong being the team that won the AFL Grand Final on Saturday. I know, it's not relevant to most outside Victoria and really, I have to say it's not that relevant to me either. But hubby being an avid AFL fan and having no tv at the moment (due to using media center and an upgrade to windows 7 means an upgrade is needed for the

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-69164867931039335632009-09-23T16:39:00.001-07:002010-06-03T04:10:42.439-07:00

The lil' fella is under the weather, waaay under it seems, eyes running, nose running and an awful sounding chesty cough. But I have to share these photos from a couple of days ago when he was definitely feeling more like his usual self. From the child who eats chalk, crayons (though not since I found out crayons have petroleum in them) and anything else he can pick up off the floor and out of

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7387919173617948353.post-56383876174822951672009-09-18T03:39:00.000-07:002010-06-03T03:44:45.829-07:00

I decorated my latest cupcakes in the ever popular chocolate ganache and don't they look drool worthy? They tasted impressive too, mmm mmmmmmmm. Never made ganache? It's extremely simple: Chocolate ganache 400 grams cooking chocolate, chopped 1 1/2 cups cream Bring the cream to boil in a heavy based saucepan. Place choc in a bowl and pour the hot cream over. Leave for 1 minute to

Cat J Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392607219027350143noreply@blogger.com3