Loving... Grateful...

My Monday night ritual to reset and start the week in a good place.

Loving...

~ online grocery shopping and fresh veges from the local green grocer.

Grateful...

~ for not having to leave my warm house on this freezing night to do the grocery shopping.

~ for a tidy, reorganised conservatory which allows extra space and a bit of sunlight for me and the little man during winter.

~ for holidays

~ and excited to be celebrating my little man's first year soon.

~ for family and unexpected visits.

I hope where ever you are tonight is warm and toasty, brrrrr it's cold here.

xxx

Cheese in progress

Among the many other things we decided to do on holiday we thought it was time to try our hand at cheesemaking. My partner and i have been talking about trying it for ages but had never got around to it. As we hiked the hills of marlborough in the first week of the holidays and planned for the second half the idea of cheesemaking came back to us.
So on our return home we decided to pick up a cheesemaking kit and give it a go. The decision of what type to make lead to the decision to buy a kit that could be added to, to make a variety of fresh and aged cheeses.
First up we made some camembert.

Heating the milk and adding the cultures

Let the milk sit in a warm spot to make the curd.

Just after cutting and stirring the curd.

Scoop the curd into the moulds and leave to settle.

After an hour the camembert is ready for flipping to help the whey drain evenly.

So now we just have to wait for the cheese to mature, flipping it every few days while it matures and in a few weeks we will hopefully have some beautiful camembert to eat.
I also made some ricotta from the leftover whey and we also have some feta on the go too. Hopefully in a few days we will be having some feta salads with our dinner. Yum.

xxx

Stitches

I am ridiculously pleased with myself about my first crochet project. I've only ever made practice squares, which occasionally mysteriously became triangles. So for my first project i could have made a scarf, a peggy square blanket or a hat but why would i make those when i could make this.

Ah the adorableness. And ever so practical, or at least it will be once i make it into a brooch. I came across this amazing website skip to my lou, a craft lovers haven it had an article featuring the 10 most beautiful crochet flower patterns and i just couldn't resist. The instructions were super easy and this was my second attempt, the first wasn't too bad either but the shape wasn't quite right. It was also my first time reading a crochet pattern and thanks to my friend Laura giving me impromptu instructions as i went and crochet kittens easy stitch library instructions filling in the gaps, it actually turned into a flower, miracle!! So quick and so much fun, i'll be making a lot more of these and some of the other patterns soon.

I seem to be in the middle of a craft boom at the moment, i have so much on the go - i'm knitted a vest, finishing a quilt top, unpicking and altering another quilt top ready for quilting, making some bunting for the little boy's 1st birthday, and finishing up a few presents. So there will hopefully be a lot of new finished things to see here soon.
Heres a snippet of a gift in progress that has kept me busy tonight.

And i couldn't resist sharing a photo of my little helper.

Have a great weekend everyone, may your days be filled with loved ones and crafts!

xxx

Holiday in pictures - part 2

Images from the winery tour in the coromandel.
Spy valley
A beautiful stopover in Havelock and a walk above pelorus sounds.
Lamb feeding was a highlight for the little man, as was a visit to the chickens.
A very frosty morning in Havelock makes for beautiful pictures.

xxx

Holiday in pictures -part one

From Nelson to Blenheim.
~ Packing, my little helper
~ A trip to the world of wearable arts museum ( unfortunately you can't take photos inside but google it, it's worth a look)
~ Mists on the hills above Nelson
~ On route
~ The beautiful B and B we stayed at
~ The beginning of our winery tour - Wither hills

xxx

Housekeeping

Please excuse the half finished layout at the moment. I'm having a few weird problems with editing and hope to have it fixed soon.

Slow living 2012 - Month 6

Joining in again with Christine from Slow living essentials - Welcome to Month 6 of the 2012 Slow Living diary - a record to help me keep track of my personal achievements over the past month. 


Well it has definately been a better month here. Still illness lingering around but things seem to have flowed a bit better generally. Always a good feeling! So onto the coldest month of the year.

{Nourish} - Homemade baking galore - muffins, biscuits and loaves a plenty have kept family and friends well fed and content when visiting. My favourite new recipe this month was definately ginger kisses, although they needed a lot more ginger for my taste they were certainly popular here. Along with salads and home cooked dinners we continue to enjoy good food in this house.

{Prepare] - A slower month on the preserving front. Some more vegetables, including the last of the capsicums were prepared and frozen for winter use. I'm loving Christine's idea of making regular stock and think i might start making some stock of my own.

{Reduce} - This month i used some old high chair cushions and repurposed them into padding for the stroller. I was very pleased with the result and even more happy to find a good use for this adorable owl fabric.

{Green} - One of my weaker areas i currently don't use many homemade cleaners. It is something i want to work on though. I did however purchase some beautiful handmade soaps from a local producer while on holiday. Homemade soap is such a treat and so much nicer than the shop stuff.

{Grow} - Only a few things are surviving the winter here. Silverbeet and kale continue to grow well and our mystery brassica's have turned out to be broccoli, i am so happy about that, i love love broccoli. We also got to try a few new vegetables thanks to my partners love of the weird and wonderful - Salsify and Celeriac both made an appearance on our plates this month. I also have some coriander growing on the windowsill which is starting to do quite well and the garlic has gone in the ground.

{Create} - I've been busy sewing up sleeping sacks for my little man as well as overcoming my aversion to knitting. Yep the knitting is still happening and i'm actually starting to enjoy it.

{Enhance} - This month was filled with visits to old friends which was wonderful and nourishing for the soul. Threaded ( my craft group) continues to grow and it feels so wonderful to have everyone come together regularly and relax.

{Discover} - I'm currently reading Buddhism for mothers by Sarah Napthali, a fascinating book about being a calm, present mother. It has been very interesting so far and very thought provoking.

{Enjoy} - Well there has been so much to enjoy this month with a holiday away - craft shops, good food, beautiful walks, wineries, friends and lambs! The coromandel is just stunning and i'll be sure to share some photos of our trip in the next few days once i've sorted through them.

Hmmm feeling refreshed and grounded. It's good to be home.

Take care people xxx