Back in our wee home again...

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 actually.

So hardly any internetting was happening at all, just as well there were many other things to occupy my time with.
Although I think I substituted watching tv instead of logging on (they have foxtel: America's hardest prisons, anyone?) hardly productive but fun nonetheless.

So, we....

dressed up

went swimming

had friends over

ate at somewhere other than our small wooden kids table

bounced

hung around outside in the altogether (well, one of us did)

created (think star wars battle droid, come on, use your imaginations!)

buried and dug up dinosaur fossils

made some fabulously coloured playdough....like how it matches the cutting boards? Ha!

and were very glad the dogs didn't have fleas.

Now we're back home it's kindergarten, gymnastics, swimming lessons and NO daycare....yes, I've given up my one free day a week, watch me stay sane.........

Welcome to my humble abode

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 huge. Think renovated mansion type of thing.

Oh the hardship!

Just a quick couple of photos of my boys outside, there actually is an outside here, as opposed to our place where there's barely even an out. 

I took the above photo, then spun around on the spot and took this one:

Can you see the scale of the place? 

Ooh, it will be hard going home!

(Just a note: I'm using my laptop for the two weeks, so if my photos look weird/bright/dark, blame that ;b)

I'm sewing...

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?

Ahh, the peace and quiet.

 I can feel my batteries charging.

Oh la la la, it's luverly!

2 weeks condensed

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 set which I have taken a totally crappy photo of, so you get to see the dragon, knight and his horse instead.

Which are all pretty cool too.

We've had the most disgusting looking water in Australia...

which required the water company to come out and flush the pipes up the street.

We've made voodoo dolls, or boodoo dolls as Mr nearly-5 calls them.
(Don't ask, just blame watching Scooby Doo again.)

There's been a lot going on in the kitchen but very little of it to do with me...

Including this 'potion' which was served at the table and which hubby and I were required to eat. I managed to escape close scrutiny and thus the eating of  aforementioned potion, however hubby did not.
It was  made of all edible ingredients, just not perhaps ingredients you or I would generally put  together.

My kitchen contribution has been to try out Artisan bread in 5 minutes a day.
Check out the results:

I wrote it up here and there is a link there to the recipe and method.
I'm having much more success with this than with sourdough, though I do let it sit out of the fridge overnight instead of the recommended 2 hours to work on the phytic acid.

The next two weeks should be fun as we are house sitting a 5 bedroom, 4 bathroom house (mansion!)

with a commercially outfitted kitchen. Our entire house and property would fit into about 1/3 of the downstairs space of this house. Or possibly into 1/4 of it.

I don't even need to bring my thermomix as here is one already in residence.

Oh life will be difficult...

Sugar - tell me it's not addictive

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 time, and it starts again.

So instead of going to the freezer, I'll put this scrummy looking pic here and retire to bed.

More book woes

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 library?

How to give your child hysterics at bedtime

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 lion sprang,
And hungrily began to eat The Boy:
Beginning at his feet.


NOW, just imagine how it feels when first your toes and then your heels

(This is the fold out flap from above)

And then by gradual degrees your shins and ankles,

 calves and knees are slowly EATEN bit by bit,

No wonder Jim detested it!

The Honest Keeper heard his cry,
Though very fat he almost ran
To help the little gentleman.
"Ponto!" he ordered as he came
(For Ponto was the lion's name)
"Ponto!" he cried, with angry frown,
"Let go, Sir! Down, Sir! Put it down!"

The lion made a sudden stop,
He let the dainty morsel drop,
And slunk reluctant to his cage,
Snarling with disappointed rage.

But when he bent him over Jim,
The Honest Keeper's eyes were dim.
The lion having reached his head,
The miserable boy was dead!

(missed some more pages here, about the odious Jim's not-too-distraught parents)

ending with.....And always keep a-hold of Nurse

For fear of finding something WORSE.



This book is now looooong overdue back at the library, because since it's first reading it has been hidden from apparently sensitive eyes in the small cupboard beside my bed.

Where I leave it every time I go to the library.

Around the traps

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. 

(You work with what you've got, right?)

 

And here we have poor Spiderman, about to be hoisted unsuspectingly towards the ceiling.

 

Prior to making these traps, I commented on how fun it was to be making booby traps. 

Mr 4 said "but can't we make leg traps mummy?"

Uh, poor kid.......