Life At Number 10

Fig and Raspberry slice

2012-02-15T13:23:00.002+11:00

I've posted the recipe for this over here.

It's an old Weight Watchers recipe that's nice and easy and isn't too sweet. It goes nicely with a cuppa in the afternoon, or even a small piece for breakfast with a good coffee, if you are so inclined

Fig and Raspberry Slice. Enjoy

Valentines Day?

2012-02-14T16:13:00.000+11:00

We don't do Valentines Day at Number 10

MONT refuses to get caught up in the commercialisation of it all, but he's just as likely to come home with a gorgeous bunch of flowers next week...and the week after, so I can't complain

So no pretty pictures of red hearts today...

Or red roses or other so called romantic things

Instead, I give you one of our girls, in all her glory

I don't know what it is about her but she just seems to think sleeping on her back is the way to go.

Health

2012-02-12T11:54:00.000+11:00

I've been feeling a bit "sluggish" over the past couple of months. I haven't been exercising as much as usual - read: at all - and I've been eating a bit too much

Then the other night I got motivated. On late night TV, there was a documentary called "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead". It was a film made by Australian, Joe Cross, who decided it was time he got healthy, so started a trek across America drinking nothing but vegetable and fruit juice. For 60 days. You can read about him here

I was impressed with his determination, not to mention his ability to have nothing but juice for that 2 months. But by the end of the journey he'd not only inspired many others to join him, but had regained his health. His illnesses had disappeared, he was off medication, he had the energy to start exercising again and he'd lost a lot of weight.

...so I thought great idea!

Not for 60 days, but for 5 to start off with. So that's what today is. Day one of my juicing mission.

I've got an old juicer that I've had for about 20 years and it still works fine. I bought some extra fruit and veggies and I started juicing.

My first concoction consisted of: carrot, celery, apple and cucumber . It was a rainbow and it was delicious

There's a lot of the pulp left over...

So that all went to the chooks.

This afternoon I'm adding some orange and cantaloupe to the mix ...and tonight for dinner, I'm making a pumpkin and cauliflower soup. Yes, I'll be cooking that one, pumpkin juice just doesn't do it for me

There's nothing hard about this because the juice is really delicious. We'll see how I go after five days though. Hopefully the spring in my step will be back and I'll be motivated to start exercising again.

This post is my own opinion and is not sponsored

Tomatoes - slow roasted

2012-02-08T09:24:00.000+11:00

Remember these from a few days ago?

Well, I turned them into these beauties...

Preheat oven to 100 degrees, cut tomatoes in half, place on a lined baking tray, season with freshly ground pepper and salt, drizzle with olive oil and place in the oven for about 2 and a half hours.

That's it

Delicious

They still turn out very moist and juicy, so if you want them to be a little "drier" then turn up the heat to about 150 degrees, but remember to check on them every hour, just to make sure they're OK.

I've also posted the recipe over here

You want me to do what?

2012-02-06T11:00:00.002+11:00

I've become a little puzzled over the past few years about the way some organisations go about raising money

A few years back, the football club MONT follows engaged an organisation to help it raise funds...they had people approach you while walking into the stadium to sell you a raffle ticket....but when I asked what the money was going towards I was told it was the players' end of season football trip! Now I don't mind helping people out...but many of them earn more than 10 times what I do, so that was a NO.

Then a little while back I answered a knock on the door to a really nice girl raising money for Medisan Sans Frontier (Doctors Without Borders) It's a wonderful organisation and so I went to get my purse, but was stopped short and told she couldn't take cash, but that I had to "sign up" and give them my credit card details to have money deducted from my account each month. Ummm that would be a no, thank you

The other day, another person came to the door looking for a similar style of "giving". I had to hand over my credit card details to not just donate, but become a "sponsor"... At the supermarket recently, the Paralympic movement won't take small change donations, they have a system where it's a minimum amount and yes, they'd like you to hand over your card details.

I was telling a work colleague about these incidents and he relayed a similar experience. He was approached, outside a supermarket by people raising funds for Surf Life Savers...again, another great organisation, but when he offered them $5, they said no, it was a $10 minimum!

The other day I took a phone call for MONT while he was driving, it was the football club again...wanting us to help out "our boys". Thanks but no-thanks.

Is it just me or is this the way of the world now? Organisations dictationg how much and how often you "give"

Apricot Walnut Shortcake Slice

2012-02-04T11:24:00.000+11:00

Time for a recipe.....using one of my favourite stone fruits - Apricots.

When I was working, I had apricots with yogurt, every morning at my desk. It was my breakfast ritual....Having them that way at home isn't the same, so this is a good alternative

I haven't made this for ages but thought it was time this weekend.
I first saw the recipe on the back of a can of apricots and gave it a go...and loved it

You need
----------

1 x 410gr can bakers apricot halves (no added sugar)
125gr softened butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
slurp of vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups self raising flour
1 cup walnuts
extra 2 tablespoons sugar

Grease a 20cm square cake pan and line it with baking paper. Preheat oven to 180 deg (fan forced)

Cream the butter and sugar and vanilla till light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the flour, half a cup at a time. The mix will be quite dry. Spoon it into the cake tin and smooth the top. Spoon the apricots on top and then sprinkle with the extra sugar and the walnuts. Unfortunately, I didn't have a full cup of walnuts. Pity because they make it extra delicious....but if you don't like nuts you don't have to use them.

Bake for 30 minutes, then cover with foil and bake for another 25 minutes.

Let it cool and eat....even for breakfast, which I did this morning with a cup of coffee.

The recipe's also on the back of the can

Easy and delicious

Relaxed

2012-02-03T11:05:00.000+11:00

Have you ever seen a critter so comfy and relaxed?

He took exactly 1 minute to get back into the swing of things when I returned home from the beach

She was right behind him...

But he really just kicks back and goes for broke

They that go down to the sea in ships

2012-02-01T09:37:00.000+11:00

...well, boats in our neck of the woods...

MONT's still away for a few days....and he's not looking forward to coming home. He loves his annual holiday and the chance to fish.

We really are close to the beach

You have to be careful though...these guys are always hovering, looking for a feed.

Maybe it's squidding today

I can't think of a better lunch or dinner than freshly caught squid cooked in a little oil with garlic and a squeeze of lemon.

Freeloaders.

From the Garden

2012-01-31T16:10:00.000+11:00

Look what I found when I got home...

These luscious red beauties!

MONT put in three tomato plants around the rose bushes in December and they haven't stopped delivering!

I know what's for dinner tonight

Home

2012-01-30T15:54:00.000+11:00

I'm home now...but I really love my annual holidays at the beach..

We get to eat lots of fresh fish

MONT and his mate often go out to catch some squid if the weather's right

It's really a beautiful part of the world

Sometimes though, it's just nice watching the world float by

Hope your January's been good to you...make the most of the good weather, February's almost here and then...autumn!

Very lucky

2012-01-21T14:53:00.000+11:00

It's been relaxing down here, to say the least

The banana lounge has been in use and the books I brought with me have been really interesting. In fact I've already finished three and have just started another.

We've been able to catch up with friends, share some good food and wine as well as lots of laughs ....and MONT's caught some fish

It's been perfect and I consider myself extremely lucky!

Hope your weekend's going well...enjoy...Summer won't be with us forever

Summer Break

2012-01-15T20:37:00.000+11:00

Time for a little bloggy break...we're heading to the beach. I've got the bathers and books packed and am ready for some R&R

MONT will do some fishing....

... the kidlets will do some hunting and collecting.

...and I'll be keeping the banana lounge company with some reading and sleeping ...not necessarily in that order...

Chat soon....

Winter coats

2012-01-12T08:51:00.001+11:00

Winter may be a long way off down here in the Southern Hemisphere, but that doesn't stop me looking at coat patterns so I have something warm and comfortable for the football. In fact, this is probably the best time to be checking out what's on offer in the Northern Hemisphere.

I've been sticking to my Dottie Angel Challenge ethos and buying second hand items and some vintage patterns have been on my list.

I saw this on Etsy ages ago and decided to buy it in November. It arrived from the US the other day

It's a 1960's Vogue original.

I don't have to buy any fabric. I already have plenty to choose from in my "stash" so I have quite a few options to play around with. I really like the blue version with some navy velvet on the collar as a contrast, but I also have some lovely camel wool in the cupboard and that may be what I lean towards

The back view has some nice detail and I really like the way the pocket is incorporated in a slot in the front...the little hat's not bad either, although I can't see myself wearing that too often

I wouldn't mind the little dog as well...

Very stylish

Which white is white and which white isn't?

2012-01-09T11:49:00.000+11:00

As you may know, I don't mind throwing a bit of paint on the walls...but getting the colour just right can take a long time

Number 10 is the fourth house I've painted/renovated and I've always played it safe as far as colour goes. That's mainly because I'm not good with colour. I find choosing colour can be hit and miss because it's difficult making the right choice from a small colour card you get from the paint store. In fact, that's been the experience of a friend who's had a couple of rooms painted grey and who hates them because they're so dark now, but her husband says they're only getting painted once and he's not paying the painter to do it again.

There are so many darn "whites" out there that paint companies produce brochures dedicated to them...but you really have to ask yourself if there's a hint of tint in it, is it still white?

I started off, many years ago in a former life, painting the walls of my home at Number 3 a Bristol colour called "Clay". It was what I thought at the time was fairly neutral, because it was light... but at different times of the day you could see it taking on a real pinky/mushroomy tinge.

The exterior was always White though. Can't go past it for weatherboards.

Then I started having "Clay" toned down to half strength...it still had that pink undertone, but it wasn't too bad

Much better

Then at Number 10, I moved on to Antique White USA, which looks lovely with just about anything: linen, white, darker tones like black and brown...even blue. I loved it.

In fact I loved it so much, I even used it for some of the old chest of drawers I rejuvenated so they blended in with the walls and made the rooms look bigger.

Then I started half strength on that.....less creamy, more just a hint of colour.

The main bedroom drawers and walls - all A-W USA half strength

Now though, I'm leaning towards another white that has really caught my eye. It's been used in a truly gorgeous, just-renovated home I saw recently and I have to say it makes everything "pop" and complements the dark stained timber floors in the hall and living areas and the almost-latte brown carpet in the bedrooms.

It's "Builders White" and all it has is a drop of black in it to take away the "starkness of that straight-out-of-the-tin-white

That's what I'm after. A non-colour that doesn't bring out the undertones of the things around it.

What it also means though is apart from the walls, I'll have to paint all the chest of drawers...but at least I have the time on my hands to do it now

January

2012-01-07T09:03:00.000+11:00

Christmas is over. New Years is just a memory...and it's time for a tidy up.

The Christmas decorations have been put away.

... and the Twiggy Christmas tree is now reduced to kindling to be used in the fire in the backyard.

So now it's all systems go to get ready for our annual trek to the caravan at the beach. That won't be happening for a little while yet, but I like to get organised and have some basics packed so there's no last minute panic....at least that's the plan.

Breakfast

2012-01-05T08:38:00.000+11:00

This is delicious with a cup of good coffee...

Not too sweet

Just right...

Love it!

There are lots of other things you can do with it, but simple is best for me

MONT and I went to a pre-Christmas drinks function recently and they had a scrumptious panettone as the sweet finish to the night
It was just torn apart and some were dunking it in their liquors and coffee... Delicious!

Another year older, a new one just begun...and a challenge continues

2012-01-04T10:20:00.000+11:00

So, I celebrated my birthday just before New Year chimed in and as always, I had a bit of a think about the year just gone and what the new year will bring

It's also at this time each year that I set up my new diary. I go through the previous years almanac, make sure I put down everyone's birthday. Note the little anniversaries that come up each year like when we got our dogs or when someone had a significant event...and about the people we lost.

Mont's Dad passed away last year. He was 97 and a lovely bloke. His Mum is still with us and, since going into care, has really blossomed. Thank Goodness!!

This is also the time of year I try to set myself a little challenge...I'm not really into "resolutions" but challenges? Yes.

It's almost a year since I set myself the challenge to not waste money on "stuff" and only spend on important, necessary things...and I think I achieved my goal...mostly.

The Dottie Angel Challenge, which I blogged about here last January, was to see how much I could do "without"....to see if I could shop the closet and the cupboards, so to speak, and not rely on retail therapy.

The Challenge was started by Tiff at Dottie Angel in 2009 and is a great way to think about our over consumption of goods.

Now I have to admit I did buy myself a few things...but none were impulse buys and many are second hand or hand made.

One of those handmade items was a new pair of slippers. I got them from Inga on Etsy. Inga is from Lithuania and she felts the wool then molds it into these gorgeous slippers. I have to say they are beautiful and will last me right through the year.

Other items I purchased were some second hand sewing patterns and some new fabric...I also bought a new fry-pan, some new underwear and a few cook books. Most of the books were for gifts though

I haven't kept a tally on the dollars I've spent, but I know I have saved a lot this past year and my bank balance is looking (a little) healthier

Now bring on the 2012 Dottie Angel Challenge...

I'm in!!

A New Year - a new start

2012-01-02T09:51:00.000+11:00

Happy New Year. I hope it brings you everything you wish for

We spent our New Year's Eve here, where MONT and three mates have been working on their house for the past, oh, it seems like forever.

It's at Bonnie Doon and this is the view from the front of the property. The last time I was here, there was no water and cows were grazing on the lake bed and you could see cars going across it

It was just us...and the dogs...

MONT cooked us dinner and we had a couple of glasses of champers, as you do.

It was hot and because there's only a generator for power, we had no fans or air con through the night. Just too noisy to run it while you're trying to sleep...there was a nice breeze coming through the open door though and it did cool down a little. It was glorious watching the sun come up welcoming not only a new day but a New Year!.

I feel extremely lucky

This is the view from our bedroom....gorgeous!

Thank you for all your support and kindness over the past 12 months...it really has been appreciated!

I think there are a lot of us who are glad to see the back of 2011 and are hoping 2012 is a little kinder and gentler. Let's hope that's the case.

Happy New Year everyone... make it a safe one!!

Number 10 garden update

2011-12-30T14:42:00.000+11:00

The garden's looking a lot better than it did on Christmas day!

MONT worked like a Trojan to get it cleaned up so all the off cuts could go into the green-waste bin.

We went from this...

To this ...

and this.....

...to this...

and this....

to this....

All the hedges and shrubs had to be trimmed because they'd been so badly broken and shredded and the trees also took a hammering, the hail was so strong I watched as large lemons were knocked from the tree and hurled to the ground. Now I just have to get onto the Insurance Company to see about getting my car assessed for the hail damage and for someone to come and look at the damaged plaster and cornice in the living room...

Still, there are a lot of people who fared much worse than we did, so I guess we can be thankful we still have drive-able cars and a (relatively) weather proof house

In between anger and something else

2011-12-29T08:23:00.000+11:00

It's almost 2 weeks since I lost my job and getting used to being home indefinitely, or at least with no foreseeable conclusion to this hiatus, is taking some getting used to. Part of the reason it feels so strange is that I've been working pretty much non-stop since I was 18. But it's something I'm going to have to adjust to

My last day at work was uneventful but interesting. There was no big send off. No card that the staff had signed. No morning cake and coffee. No drinks after work. Nothing. In fact, just four people came to say goodbye. That's it. The people I worked most closely with were nowhere to be seen. They left the building before I finished. Gone.

The really interesting part was unfortunate. When I was handed my final documents to sign it appeared that even after 12 years, they still hadn't learned to spell my name correctly....not to mention the smile on the person's face who handed them to me, sort of like he was giving me a lovely present.

I guess everyone goes through a range of emotions when this sort of thing happens. When I was told about my impending departure I was a little numb...when I was handed the miss spelt documents I got angry and gave them back to be corrected.

Now, I'm in between anger and something else. Bewilderment, resignation maybe?

Not sure exactly but while I know I have a lot of time on my hands right now, I still feel like I'm just taking a break so need to get a lot of things done. Quickly.

I'll start looking for a new job in February, probably when everyone else is looking as well, but I have a feeling I'll be going in a whole new direction...what that direction is I'm yet to work out. What do they say about destination and journey? ...well, I think the journey's going to be interesting.

At least I hope it is.

Right, well that's the last I'll be saying on this subject. I'm sure you don't want me bleating on and on about my job-loss...so there you have it. Time to move on wards and upwards and time for new beginnings

We fared OK

2011-12-27T09:15:00.000+11:00

Like so many people around Melbourne, Boxing Day was spent cleaning up

Fortunately we didn't have a lot of damage, not like some who lost cars and who had rivers of water flowing through their homes.

While we had a little bit of water inside, our damage was mostly confined to the garden

It just looked like MONT had gone through the yard with a large whipper-snipper and trimmed all the plants

Not too bad I guess

A couple of days of sunshine and then a couple of soft showers to freshen things up and it'll look like nothing happened...so we were very lucky!

Shredded

2011-12-26T15:54:00.000+11:00

Well that was a Christmas day that won't be forgotten in a long time.

Late in the afternoon, the skies opened and we were drenched.

Then, it started to hail

Massive hail stones, some as big as golf balls

People in some suburbs reported them as big as tennis balls.

Here at Number 10, they weren't quite that big but they were loud

As they hit the roof they sounded like machine gun fire. Rapid machine gun fire. ... and it just kept coming.

When I went inside I noticed there was water all over the floor. It had hailed so badly that it had clogged up the gutters and the water had nowhere else to go, so in it came

...all down the walls between the lounge and dining room and onto my sofa.

Not good.

The garden was the worst affected though. The ornamental grapevine and all of my lovely violets that i had been nurturing for months, all flattened and shredded...the fig tree had a lot of it's leaves ripped off and the silver birches in the front yard also hit quite badly.

Then it started all over again!

Fortunately that's about all the damage, apart from a few "dings" on the car...but if that's the worst thing that happens to us this Christmas, then I guess we're doing OK.

Some of the residents at Number 10 just didn't know what was going on

Just another Christmas in Melbourne huh?

Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T14:12:00.001+11:00

Not long now before the "big fella" takes to the skies and starts checking out all the chimneys...
It's hot here in Melbourne with the sun shining and the flies buzzing....and even though it's going to be warm again tomorrow, like so many Australian families, we'll be having the usual hot Christmas lunch

I really do hope you have a wonderful Christmas that brings you peace, happiness and joy... and I hope 2012 is an even better year for you than 2011.

Love lots. Laugh lots. ...and cherish those around you and think about those who couldn't be with you this year

Thanks for all your kind thoughts and comments over the past year. It's been an absolute pleasure meeting everyone in this very special "bloggy world" of ours.

Have a great Christmas!!

Peacock

2011-12-23T11:50:00.000+11:00

This little guy was a gift from my brother this year

My brother and I only get to see each other maybe once or twice a year seeing he lives in Queensland and I'm down here in Melbourne, but he knows me well. Very well.

I think she/he looks pretty good on the twiggy tree.

Christmas tipple

2011-12-22T13:36:00.000+11:00

I love a nice chilled glass of champagne. I also like a nice chilled glass of white wine. But I also like something a little special sometimes...like a cocktail or martini. Not your dry, gin and vermouth type, but a slightly sweeter one.

So I introduce to you a Green Apple Martini....and I have to tell ya', it's FANTABULOUS!!!

I saw the recipe for it in the November edition of Delicious magazine (pg 104)

So off I toddled to the shops to buy the ingredients. I had to hunt for the Monin apple syrup, but the liquor is readily available at many of the larger liquor outlets, best to check first though

I eventually found the Monin syrup at Cedar Hospitality supplies in Brunswick Road Brunswick here in Melbourne. Now this is a great place and worthy of a dedicated post all on it's own. It sells anything and everything related to kitchens and cooking. More on it later.....

Now to the Martini:

You'll need:

30 ml shot of vodka
30 ml shot of sour apple liquor
3 teaspoons apple syrup

Place the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with lots of ice, shake it up and strain it into a nice glass, then place a wafer thin slice of green apple in the glass and you're good to go.

Easy huh?

Because we had four drinks to make at a time, MONT made it up in a jug, just to make it easier, naturally.

Hope you like it...we all sure did

Please note: This is not a sponsored post. I paid for all of these ingredients and have not been reimbursed for any of these items.

Christmas x 2 and a deliciously wicked recipe

2011-12-21T10:42:00.002+11:00

We have two Christmas celebrations at Number 10 each year.

The first is the Saturday before Christmas Day when Monts' girls and their husbands and all the kids arrive to have a nice meal and exchange gifts

I call it the "Festival of Meat" because I seem to cook just about every beast there is... all the food groups are represented.

This year I did my usual glazed ham, a rack of beef and roast chicken, with seafood on the side, as well as vegetables and salad.

Dessert this year was: cheese cake and fresh raspberries with home made ice-cream and a rich chocolate mousse cake that can be frozen!.

Now, by all accounts, this recipe shouldn't work, or at least not work as well as it does.

It's simple. So simple that if you can turn on your oven, work the microwave and open the door to the freezer then you can make this rich dessert.

A friend at work passed it on to me. I'm so glad he did.

These are the things you need

20cm round cake tin

450 grams dark chocolate
4 eggs
145 grams unsalted butter
1 tablespoon caster sugar
1 tablespoon plain flour

First off, line the cake tin with baking paper (do not grease it) or silver foil, with enough hanging over so it can cover it later. Just note, this will not work out as well if you use a larger cake tin. A smaller one will be OK, but using a larger one means you'll end up with a rather flat and solid cake.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

Melt the butter and choclate together in a bowl in the microwave then let cool to room temperature.
Using an electric mixer, beat together the eggs and sugar until pale and creamy and fluffy
Fold in the sifted flour, then the room temperature chocolate mixture
Pour into the lined cake tin and put in a 180 degree oven for 20 minutes until the top cracks and it's still a bit wobbly. Do not leave this in the oven thinking it's undercooked because it's wobbly. It's not.

Let it cool in the tin then cover it with the foil and put it in the freezer overnight

To serve the next day, take it out of the freezer at least an hour before serving, then invert it onto a plate, cover the top with berries and serve with cream or ice-cream. Or both!

Now, it's pretty darn rich so you only need a small sliver on your plate, but you can always have more than one. That's what I did.
Perfect

What's also good about this dessert is that it's the perfect thing to take to a party because it travels so well!

You can make it the night/day before, pop it in the freezer and while you're driving to your celebrations it's thawing out in the back of the car.

Told you it was easy

It's not you... it's me...

2011-12-16T08:42:00.000+11:00

It hasn't been an easy week.

While foofing around finalising the Christmas celebrations, I got called into my bosses office and was told that, after almost 12 years, I no longer had a job.

Nothing wrong with my work, no, it's fine and dandy, in fact glowing references all round...sorry to have to do this, it's not nice and we really would like to keep you because you've been so reliable and capable, etc etc etc...but at the end of the day, we have to let you go due to cost cutting

New management will do that to ya. The business has been humming along for years without any major hassles, but then someone thinks they can do better, come in and make changes that impact on peoples' lives

The thing is though I didn't hear this from "new management". It's not interested in passing on the bad news....they get someone else to do it. That way they avoid any "unpleasantness".

One thing that's always intrigued me. Why is it that the people doing the cost cutting always earn more than the workers they're sacrificing?

It will be interesting to see just how it goes under this new regime....my guess, not as well as they predict. Shame really because I have some terrific and very talented friends still there.

Easy Christmas Cake

2011-12-11T12:10:00.096+11:00

I like my recipes to be easy, but I also like them to pack a bit of a visual punch...and this delivers on both counts.

It's an easy Christmas cake recipe that I first got from New Idea...and adapted it just a little.

The first thing you do, preferably the night before you plan to make the cake, is soak 1 kg of mixed dried fruit, with half a cup of brandy. Actually, you can use whatever alcohol you like. It's basically to help preserve the cake so you can make it well in advance and store it in the lead up to Christmas

The next day, line your cake tin with at least two layers of baking paper. This helps to protect the cake from burning

Then in the bottom of the tin, place in 1 cup of brazil nuts, a good sprinkling of almonds and I also added some chopped fruit medley and some halved macadamias

Easy peasy

Now.... cream together 250 gr butter and 1 cup dark brown sugar

Then add 4 eggs and a large glob of marmalade. I used some Rose's lime marmalade I had in the fridge. Now if the mix starts to separate, don't worry, just add a tablespoon of flour to bring it together..

Next, mix in the fruit and liquid

...and then add 2 1/2 cups of plain flour and a teaspoon of mixed spice. I used cinnamon and Nutmeg....and fold it all through

Spoon it into the cake tin and smooth down the top

It's going to take about 2 1/2 hours in a slow oven, about 150 degrees,(fan forced)

Always make sure you test it with a skewer or sharp bladed knife to make sure it's cooked right through the centre though

Once it's cool, invert the cake onto a nice plate or cake stand...and there you have it

Mine was a little overcooked on the bottom, I think I'll put three layers of paper on the bottom of the cake pan in future, just to give it a little more protection

Hope you like it. I know we're going to enjoy it next weekend when the family's here for the annual
"Festival of Meat".
More on that later in the week.

Ingredients:

1kg mixed dried fruit

1/2 cup brandy (or other alcohol)

250gr butter

2 1/2 cups plain flour

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon mixed spice

1 cup brazil nuts

1/2 cup macadamia nuts

half a cup of almonds

half a cup of fruit salad medley (optional)

Christmas-just around the corner

2011-12-11T11:51:00.020+11:00

Welcome to Christmas 2011....come on in

It's been pretty busy around here.

I spent the weekend planning and foofing

I put up our Christmas tree...or should I say our "twiggy tree"

I also put a smaller, simpler version on the front deck...just for a change

...and even had room for another small one in the hallway

The main one isn't quite as symmetrical as last years, but I like it

and who said things had to be perfect, right?

I like the pale green for a change out the front. Adds a bit of a contrast albeit a soft and pale one

Only one strand of lights this year...I thought it was enough.

...and my beautiful bird is back. All is right with the world, or at least at Number 10

Christmas stockings

2011-12-06T08:29:00.000+11:00

The sewing machine's been getting a bit of a run these past couple of weeks...

I've been making a couple of Christmas stockings for the kidlets

I was inspired by this...

...and this, from Crate and Barrel last year...or was it the year before?

So I thought I'd give it a go... with my version

I think they'll look cute hanging up along the mantle

I've hung this on a kitchen cupboard just to see how it looks. I think it'll be terrific with a few sprigs of rosemary and a nice gift in the top

I like it. Amazing what you can do with a painters drop cloth!

Sunday Morning...

2011-12-04T08:51:00.000+11:00

It's a nice and cool Sunday morning here at Number 10, but you just know it won't be long before the days are really hot

The girls have been busy... these are still warm

These two? Still in bed, listening to ABC Classic FM.

Who's peeling the lemons?

Must be possums I think. They get in the tree and peel and suck. I think they must be doing Tequila up there.

The fig tree harvest is going to be a beaut this year, if the birds don't get to them first

...and me?

I'm on the back deck checking out Country Style and Home Beautiful....extra special editions because a fellow bloggers' gorgeous clay tags are featured not just on the cover, but in the magazine. Well done Ness, from Marley and Lockyer...and the front door and entrance of A-M's former home is featured in Home Beautiful.

Just relax...

It's Sunday

I love this time of year

Happy Days

Bright and Shiny Party Frocks

2011-11-28T08:52:00.000+11:00

I'll have one of each please...thanks very much

What a great party dress!

...and this one too...

This is like a bright and shiny t-shirt.....I showed you this some time ago and I still love it.

...or what about this one...with some bows?

I've got a couple of Chrissy things to go to, unfortunately, none will require me to "frock up" to this degree, but I can dream on can't I?

It's beginning to look a lot like........

2011-11-24T07:45:00.001+11:00

How's your Christmas shopping going?

Me?

I've been saving my shoe leather and getting on-line to do a lot of my Christmas purchases.

Not everyone likes the on-line shopping experience but I have to admit I love it!

I have ventured out to check what's available...but I've done most of my gift buying on eBay and Etsy and so far so good. Don't get me wrong, G and I still wander and browse and get all touchy feely with some of the items in store...but when I'm not 100% sure what I'm looking for, sometimes it's just nice to surf to give you some ideas. There is a drawback with that method though...you can find you've lost a couple of hours just sitting in front of the computer...anyway...

I've bought children's clothes, personalised Christmas decorations and a few toys on-line. Strangely, I've purchased books in-store this year.

One of the Chrissy decos I bought is from the same person I purchased some personalised ID tags a couple of years ago.

Tessa from HattieRex on Etsy has some lovely items that I'm sure everyone would love to receive.

These are like the tags I bought for "G" 2 years ago...

This year I've bought a couple of large discs that will have the names of each family member on them

Here's hoping everyone likes them

You can check out Tessa's Etsy shop here

Happy shopping everyone. Just remember, don't get too stressed about it all. It's just not worth it.

I Love Lucy

2011-11-21T14:22:00.001+11:00

I had a wonderful weekend. Sewing. I got the machine out, put on a good CD and just went for it. I thought I'd get one of my vintage patterns sewn up...and went straight to the 1950's Lucy House Coat

It's a cross between a housecoat and dust jacket I guess.

I suppose it was even worn as a maternity jacket by Lucy herself.

I mentioned it back here... two years ago!!! Why did I wait so darn long?

My plan was to do a trial run with it first in a navy and white gingham...I try to make a sample first when I'm using a new pattern, just in case it doesn't suit or is sized in such a way that it doesn't fit me. But having said that I always do this trial run in a fabric that I'm still happy to wear, just in case it turns out OK

...and it did!

The pattern came without instructions so I had to play around and try to remember what order each pattern piece went in, but I'm really happy with it. I'm also happy becayse it was marked a size 14, with a 32 inch bust? What's with that?

Anyway, the only thing I'd change is to make the sleeves a little longer, maybe an inch or also....and I'd also make them a little narrower.

Apart from that....success!!

Thanks Lucy.

Shoe Lasts

2011-11-17T08:23:00.000+11:00

MONT bought these for me for Christmas a few years back ... I love them

They're old and smooth and lovely to touch

Saturday flower...inspired by Sarah

2011-11-12T09:05:00.000+11:00

WHERE DID THAT WEEK GO???

Saturday's here already and the past 6 days are just a blur

It's been a bit of a crazy week...and it doesn't look like settling down any time soon....

Anyway, here are a couple of flowers that always make me smile and calm me down a little. (Thanks Sarah, your Friday flowers always make me feel good)

They started out as a large bunch....

But ended up in my small little milk bottles as they started to get past their best

A couple were put on top of that old chest of drawers that I rejuvenated after a neighbour discarded them.... and the rest were placed on top of the drawers I found by the side of the road that started out as old yucky yellow ones and have ended up being sparkly white. I think they're a great addition to Number 10

Thanks for dropping by.... I'm off for a quick Christmas "power-shop" with my friend "G"...we've both started our Christmas shopping and today we plan to continue with just one gift each. We figure if we can concentrate on one gift per outing we should be able to avoid the craziness that grips us each year and have much more pleasurable shopping experiences. Haa... That's the plan anyway. No guarantees it's going to work, but hey, everyone needs a plan.... and a list! Where did I put my list?

Have a great weekend

Tasty reading matter

2011-11-10T14:50:00.000+11:00

I love reading and love nothing more than getting into bed and opening a good book. But unfortunately trying to read a novel is just too hard during the week because I tend to fall asleep before I get to the bottom of the first page.... so I turn to a nice "picture book".

I love recipe books and these two are among those I have beside the bed.

My French Vue by Shannon Bennett is terrific and the photos are lovely...not to mention the food...oh the food!

The one underneath is Gary Mehigans Comfort Food. It's picture perfect too.

Party Frocks

2011-11-07T17:15:00.000+11:00

It's coming up to party season in this neck of the woods...

How about this ...I really like it. Just perfect for that after work break-up shin-dig

Armani Prive

Or something a little less formal perhaps?

How about this one...

Or this...

or my fav...

Tommy Hilfiger

Oh my!

Not sure which designer's responsible for a couple of the dresses...if you know, please set me straight

Let's Partay!

A little birdy told me.....

2011-11-03T17:21:00.000+11:00

I found this little bird tile at a discount outlet a while back.

It's supposed to hang on the wall, but the little metal bracket on the back has been placed in the wrong spot.
That's probably why it was just a dollar I guess.

It's had a few spots around the house, but right now sits on my kitchen bench so I see it every day.

A good innings...but I still miss her

2011-10-31T15:17:00.003+11:00

I had to say goodbye to my old girl at the weekend.

She'd been with me for years... I found her early one morning in 1991 on the way to work and she couldn't jump into my car quick enough. She was a lovely girl and very tolerant, even when I brought other cats and dogs into her life

She travelled around the country with me...in fact my friends used to joke that she had more frequent flyer points than me

I miss her. A lot.

Friday Flower...on Saturday

2011-10-29T10:00:00.001+11:00

I'm a bit late with this little beauty

It's Blue Bijou and I bought it with a couple of Blue Moon roses last year

It's such a gorgeous colour...subtle at first, then the shade deepens

It's planted at the back of the house at the moment, right near the tap. It's another one I thought I'd lost but it seems to be thriving there in it's little patch.

Have a great weekend, whatever you have planned.

Secret Garden?

2011-10-24T08:39:00.000+11:00

We have great neighbours!

It's a fact. Lots of people never get to know who lives next door to them, or who's across the street...but we're lucky to know a lot of our neighbours, to the degree we all get together a few times a year for casserole nights, BBQ's, a quick Friday night pizza or a trip down to the local RSL for a meal...our table can get rather large though because we usually have to book for up to 14 + kids, depending on who can make it.

Our neighbours are so good, a few years back we decided to "get connected"

This photo isn't of a gate leading to a Number 10 secret garden...It's better than that.

It's a gate MONT and his mate, Man of Number 12 put in to connect us.. It makes so much sense when we want to have a quick catch-up drink on a Sunday afternoon or if one of us needs something like an egg or milk or whatever. It's also been terrific because when the kids next door were getting to an age where they could stay home alone, but still needed/wanted the security of someone close by, we'd just wedge the gate open so they could come straight through to get either me or Mont if they needed us.

We all find it pretty amazing that the occupants of 7 houses in our street all get on so darn well. Some go fishing together, other's play golf...most of us just get together for drinks and food...

How many of your neighbours do you know... and do you get together much?

Friday flower - Dioressence

2011-10-21T10:39:00.001+11:00

I thought I'd follow Sarah's lead and do a Friday flower this week.

Sarah always has lovely Friday flowers and when I saw this little beauty starting to bud I thought I'd get the camera out and join in

This is my Dior Essence rose that I bought last year...I think it was last year. Most of the flowers at Number 10 are white and I wanted something to "pop" in the garden. My original plan was to have a few pinkish coloured roses growing along the front fence so they look nice against the white pickets, but that hasn't happened yet.

Actually I thought I'd lost her when she got a bit neglected last Summer...but she's back with a vengeance! She's been sitting behind the shed near our water tank, and just started blooming...thank goodness

I put her in the white planter on the back deck so I could watch each little bud emerge...I'm so happy she's still with me

Blogging Your Way

2011-10-19T08:22:00.001+11:00

I was reading A-M's blog, as I do each day, about when you blog and what you blog about. ...whether you prepare blog posts en masse to post through the week, or just write what pops into your head whenever you think of something.

I've loved The House that A-M Built for a long time now, even after said house was completed and lived in and then sold. Blogging is about life, the everyday happenings, if that's what you want it to be that is. I mean it's your blog and it can be about any darn thing you want, that's the beauty of it

It got me thinking about another blog I pop into occasionally...where it was giving advice on how to get more comments on your blog posts. Apparently the person imparting the advice said she didn't leave comments if the blog had the comment verification thingy...and she also disliked too many links in a blog post. Too busy and confusing I think...and I thought gee, that's a bit harsh. I mean if you like someones blog then why can't you just enjoy it and go with it?

Some people use their blogs to show you how they make things, others use them to help them sell things, while others just use them as a way of detailing their lives with their kids/husbands/renovations etc...others see them as a business opportunity by allowing ads or taking on sponsors...I mean, it's your blog, do what you want with it

It's interesting though when other bloggers try to impart their wisdom on how you should or shouldn't do this or that and why they won't comment on your blog because they don't like something about it.

Well, the only advice I'll give is this: blog any darn way you like... if it's interesting, I'll read it and leave a comment, no matter what hoops I have to jump through.

Lucky?

2011-10-18T09:14:00.000+11:00

Is it true they're only lucky if their trunks are in the air?

Two out of three aint bad then huh?

I've had these little beauties for a long time now. All of them bought in different places but they all go together so well....they look like a family

Just Chillin' at home

2011-10-11T09:22:00.000+11:00

The weekend was pretty "BIG", what with MONT's birthday shindig etc. It was a very late night with a couple of our guests kicking on till 5am...too much for me I must admit.

The dogs were sent away for the night so they didn't get underfoot...but it looks like they part-ayed the night away too.

It was hard to get them going on Sunday...

...or Monday.

They made sure they were around for dinner though.

This one stayed at home and welcomed everyone at the front door.

Then spent Sunday in front of the heater dozing.

This appears to be her favourite position at the moment

Baking again

2011-10-10T09:36:00.001+11:00

I seem to be posting more about cooking/baking lately, but that's what I've been doing at Number 10 more than anything else

It was MONT's birthday at the weekend (a milestone number) so we had a bit of a shindig with some friends on Saturday night. I offered to make his birthday cake and while he's not a fan of candles and the whole "happy birthday" thing, he agreed, as long as it wasn't chocolate...so this is the one I turned to.

If you like things a little tart, then you'll love this.

It's wonderful as afternoon tea with a cuppa...or as dessert.

Or as a birthday cake....It's as easy as pie and you can check the recipe here

Hope you like it

I knead you...or not

2011-10-07T07:57:00.000+11:00

Another post about baking bread again, but this is one of those easy, no fuss recipes where you go..."wow, how did I achieve that?"

It's a good one if you've never made bread before because you really don't have to do anything except mix four ingredients together and let it sit on the bench for a few hours.

...and this is what you can end up with

I think that's a great return for very little effort

Oh...and it tastes pretty darn good too!

The recipe's here

Perspective

2011-10-05T08:16:00.001+11:00

I was getting a bit hot under the collar the other day about something that, in the big scheme of things, was pretty insignificant. I can get carried away sometimes but I usually snap out of it and quickly return to reality

...and that's just what happened to me while watching the ABC's Four Corners program this week.

For those of you not in Australia, "Four Corners" is a long running investigative/current affairs show that is very highly regarded here. It's broadcast on a Monday night at 8.30 and this week it was about poverty, from the perspective of a child, specifically, three British children.

While watching it I found myself smiling broadly, listening in disbelief and shedding a few tears. My heart ached for them all.

The children involved were wise beyond their years...all were down to earth and amazingly, remained "hopeful" for their futures.

It gave me a BIG reality check

The link to the program is here. Not sure if you can see it if you're not in Australia, but I encourage you to try, it's well worth a look.

11 year old Sam is particularly wonderful. His delight at having something as simple as a "real" haircut is simply delicious.

Planter - spruced up

2011-10-04T07:56:00.000+11:00

MONT and I bought this planter a couple of years ago so it could hold a plant next to the front door, but I have to admit the colour never really did it for me

It was a pinkish/mushroomy colour and didn't really match anything we had. It also had a terrible mark on it, left by a price sticker from the nursery and a water mark around the bottom from it's days of sitting in a large saucer in the rain

So it was time for a coat of paint

Out came the roller and undercoat

...and yes, I had some help with the top coats...

One good undercoat and two top coats of exterior acrylic in white and it was good as gold.

Another little job done

Tidying up...

2011-10-03T08:40:00.002+11:00

I can't take credit for coming up with this, I think I first saw it on the "Making it Lovely" blog...but am happy to be corrected. It was some time ago so my memory is a little blurred

It's a brilliant idea...simple but brilliant

I was getting tired of seeing cords and phones right near the electric kettle, especially when I need the bench space.

If you have a spot in the kitchen or study where you charge your phones and have cords and chargers lying around everywhere, then why not try this...a nice little jar or canister to hide them away

I don't have a lot of bench space in the kitchen and this area was always looking cluttered and messy

Not any more.

You can go from this...

To this.

I bought my little ceramic canister from a bathroom place for about $2. It had a stone/latte coloured section around the middle, so I got the spray paint out and gave it a couple of squirts to make it the same as the body of the canister.

What do you think?

It certainly tidies up the little bench next to the sink

UPDATE: It was Nicole's idea over at "Making it Lovely" and you can find it here as well,where she did a guest post

Tweaked

2011-09-27T08:29:00.000+10:00

I got the tape and the drapery weight for the new and improved IKEA fly screen and it's looking pretty good.

I sewed the tape along the bottom

Threaded the weight through the bottom seam...

...and this is the result...

So far so good in keeping out the flies...and it appears the dogs are able to negotiate their way through it too, although I may have to lift it a couple of inches as they keep getting their paws caught on a couple of spots where I haven't cut it too straight. No problem though...looking good.

The IKEA solution....

2011-09-20T08:39:00.000+10:00

Summer's just around the corner for us here in the Southern Hemisphere and with that comes the flies!

We've had a flyscreen in the past that was long strips of clear PVC, like you see in some shops, but unfortunately it was still letting in the darn critters, so I thought this might do the trick.

I took myself off to IKEA and spent $5.99 on a pair of LILL net curtains and $4.99 on a curtain rod.

Voila...instant fly screen that also looks pretty good.

I trimmed the bottom so it wouldn't drag too much on the deck and have also bought some tape and a few metres of drapery weight to sew along the bottom just to "toughen" it up a bit so it doesn't fly open in the lightest of breezes. I remember people putting coins in the bottom of their drapes to make sure they hang nicely, but you can buy the weight by the metre now. It's just lots of little weights inside a white cotton sausage...a very small sausage but it should do the trick nicely.

Job done!
Hello Summer, Goodbye flies

Sourdough Bread

2011-09-19T09:43:00.000+10:00

I tried making my first ever loaf of sourdough bread and the result was OK...not brilliant, but OK

We love good, gutsy bread, so I thought it was time I tried making some
It was edible, but needed more salt and I'll use a tin to bake it in in future, not just let it spread on a tray in the oven

If you'd like the recipe...or at least some hint as to what I did, then you can read more here

Sunday afternoon tea

2011-09-18T14:56:00.000+10:00

Time for a cuppa on the back deck...

I love afternoon tea so thought we'd indulge a little and bring out some of my Mum's old cups and saucers that she gave me years ago

There's nothing like a nice, fine cup to drink from....now all I have to do is put the kettle on and bring out the cupcakes...

From the "stash"

2011-09-14T08:38:00.000+10:00

Over the past few months my desire to sew has been missing, but things have changed....and the over locker and sewing machine have been getting as bit of a workout of late

I've had these patterns in my collection for some time now and all, bar the Vogue, have been used before. The Simplicity pattern was purchased at an op-shop a couple of years back. I made a dress from it last Summer.

The Quick sew is a terrific, versatile pattern that I've used to make 4 polar fleece tops for the past couple of Winters. I also used it for a stretch cotton dress last Summer. The McCalls is one from the 80's or 90's I think. The little sleeveless top is a terrirfic design. I've made tops and a couple of dresses from it. Very versatile. In fact, whenever I look at patterns I always look for interesting tops rather than dresses because I can always make a top patern into a dress.

All of these fabrics have been in my "stash" for some time too.

This is a blue and cream spun rayon. It has a gorgeous weight and falls really nicely. Whenever I see spun rayon I've always tried to buy a couple of metres. I think it's one of my favourite fabrics to work with, apart from linen

This is a stretch fabric and while it looks very black and grey, it's actually a whole range of blues.

Another stretchy fabric....it's going to be a t-shirt dress I think...haven't made a final decision on it yet...but half the fun is deciding what pattern to choose and then seeing how it turns out. IF it turns out that is. I often have complete disasters that end up being put in a special "to fix later" bag.

Full time vs Part time

2011-09-12T05:45:00.000+10:00

For the past couple of years I've been working part time and I've loved it.

I went down to three days a week after becoming just too tired and irritable. I work funny hours and thought the extra couple of days off would help. Boy, did they help! Just ask MONT. I got to sleep in, shop and potter about at my leisure...and I was a much nicer and happier person.

But from this week I'm back full-time again and possibly back to being irritable all over again

The girl who worked the other two days for me is also heading back to full-time employment and that left two days to fill, so I stepped into the breach. Again. My employer and I will reassess things again in the New Year to see how I'm "travelling".

What it also means though is that I need a couple of new things to wear to work because I've been relying on jeans and t-shirts and polar fleece tops through Winter. I need a few things to layer...to see me through the cool mornings until our heating/air-con kicks in at work...and now that Spring is here, I thought it was a good opportunity to get the over-locker and sewing machine out to give them a workout.

This doesn't help though.

I feel some new, colourful t-shirts and long tunic tops coming on.....

Bling

2011-09-10T16:43:00.001+10:00

Sometimes, I just can't go past a bit of "bright and shiny"... and when it's combined with a nice shoe, well.....SNAP!

Whenever I shop I'm mostly attracted to three things:

Grey. Pockets. Bling...and if all three are in one item

Heaven

I bought these a while back, possibly last year from Target would you believe.

Love 'em

Luscious cake

2011-09-01T09:01:00.000+10:00

This is a lovely cake from Stacey Snacks...I've used her recipes before and they have NEVER disappointed

This is like a strawberry shortcake, but I didn't have strawberries it being Winter and all...so I used some jarred cherries I had...it was delish! Really delish!

I've posted the recipe over here

Hope you like it, we sure did.

Cafe Blind

2011-08-29T07:18:00.001+10:00

The Cafe Blind has been installed and it looks terrific.

What's that, you can't see it?

That's the whole idea.

This shot shows the bottom rail of the blind as I was winding it down

...and here it is in all it's glory.
Still a little difficult to see?
Excellent! That's exactly what I was hoping.

I couldn't be happier with it. Not only is it almost invisible, it makes the deck feel (almost) like a room.
It's an ingenious design. there are two long brackets on each post that each edge of the blind slide in to. That means it doesn't need to be secured with clips or ties at the bottom....and it doesn't flap around in the breeze as it's securely held in those brackets.

When we don't need it, we simply wind it up and you'd never know it was there.

Yep...very happy.

Thank you to all who sent kind wishes about MONT's dad....he was very touched.

Some sadness

2011-08-26T08:10:00.000+10:00

First of all...I'm sorry that I've been MIA for quite a long time, but we've been dealing with some sad family news these past couple of weeks.

MONT's elderly dad passed away. He was 97, a former POW and a really lovely man.

MONT's OK, but emotions are still a little raw as he spent the past few months making sure he was at the nursing home to help feed his Dad most nights.

So there you have it. I'll be back soon with some better news

Take care everyone

Time to bake

2011-08-02T15:13:00.001+10:00

If you like fruit cake, then head over here to check out my Boiled Pineapple Fruit Cake.

How easy is it?

Well, if you can boil water, you can make this cake.

I knew it!

2011-08-02T08:50:00.000+10:00

Do you have one of those supermarket loyalty cards that you swipe to get a fuel discount?

Yes?

Well, there's a story in the Sunday Age that has just confirmed what I've suspected (known) for some time. Those organisations use those cards to keep tabs on our buying habits.

Every time you swipe your loyalty card a little bit of you is gobbled up by the Supermarket. It not only tells them what you're buying, it also allows them to compile a profile on you so thay can then specifically market their goods to you.

That's why I never use one of those cards. The less info they have about me and my buying habits, the better.

White with one

2011-07-31T10:24:00.000+10:00

Sunday morning's are pretty low key at Number 10, especially when Mont's at Bonnie Doon with "the lodger" and it's just me and "the girls" at home

This is when I break out my favourite cup and saucer

Make a cuppa in one of my little pots

Pop a piece of sour dough into the toaster

Put on some soothing music....

... and open the Paper to check out the latest news (and sport of course) Yes, the Cats had a rather convincing win yesterday

I love Sundays!

My ship appears to have come in...

2011-07-07T19:42:00.000+10:00

BIG TIME BABY.....BIG TIME ! !

Look at the email that arrived in my inbox today. Actually, I've received a few of these in the past week, so maybe I'm a multi gazillionaire by now. Who would've thought, huh?

The British National Lottery

P O Box 1010
3b Olympic Way, Sefton Business Park,
Aintree, Liverpool , L30 1RD
(Customer Services)

Ref: UK/9420X2/68
Batch: 074/05/ZY369
Ticket number:56475600545 188
Lucky Numbers: 05,06,17,20,28,42(Bonus33)

WINNING NOTIFICATION:

We wish to congratulate and inform you on the selection of cash prize
£1,000,000.00 (British Pounds) held on the 24th June 2011
in London Uk.The selection process was carried out through random
selection in Our computerized email selection system (ess) from a
database of over 250,000 email addresses drawn from which you were
selected. And Your e-mail address attached to ticket number:
56475600545 188 with Serial number 5368/02 drew the lucky numbers:
05, 06, 17, 20, 28, 42 (Bonus 33) ,which subsequently won you the
lottery in the 1st category i.e match 5 plus bonus.

You have therefore been approved to claim a total sum of 1 Million
Pounds,(One Million Pounds) in cash credited to fileKTU/ 9023118308/03.
This is from a total cash prize of £1,000,000 Million Pounds,shared
amongst the (4)lucky winners in this category i.e Match 6 plus bonus.

For due processing of your winning claim,please contact the
FIDUCIARY AGENT Information Officer Mr. Fred Peters who has been
assigned to assist you. You are to contact him with the following
details for the release of your winnings.

Agent Name: Mr. Fred Peters
Tel: +447024051534
+447024013832
Email: mr.fredpeters10@yahoo.ie

Contact him, please provide him with the following Requirements below:
Claims Requirements:

1.Name in full----------------------
2.Address---------------------------
3.Nationality-----------------------
4.Age-------------------------------
5.Occupation------------------------
6.Sex ------------------------------
7.Phone/Fax-------------------------
8.Present Country-------------------

If you do not contact your claims agent within 5 working days of this
Notification, your winnings would be revoked. Winners are advised to
keep their winning details/information from the public to avoid
Fraudulent claim (IMPORTANT) pending the prize claim by Winner.

*Winner under the age of 18 are automatically disqualified. *Staff of
the British Lottery are not to partake in this Lottery.

Accept my hearty congratulations once again!

Regards

Mrs. Stella Ellis
(Group Coordinator
Note that you are not to reply to this E-mail,please contact your
claims officer directly to start the processing of your claims
application form.

Now...what to buy with my winnings....

HMMMMMM... decisions, decisions

Life really is fantastic isn't it?

A new day dawns

2011-07-04T09:13:00.000+10:00

I want to move away from quotes and blinds and silly salesmen for a little while with a little shot of nature at Number 10

Welcome to July. We're a couple of days into the new financial year here in this great brown land of OZ...and here's what the new day looked like

This is the view from the infamous Number 10 back deck

What's the old saying....Red sky at night, shepherds delight, red sky at morning, shepherds warning...

It was a nice day all the same

Have a wonderful day... heck have a wonderful July wherever you are in the world!

A tale of 2 quotes...

2011-07-02T13:17:00.000+10:00

...and two selling approaches.

As I wrote the other day, I've been in the market for a cafe blind for our back deck and as you know, I had a rather interesting conversation with one of the companies about getting someone out to Number 10 to provide a quote.

Well Wednesday was the day...two quotes, two very different approaches.

#1. At midday, the first person arrived armed with a working (sample size) model of the cafe blind we'd like. He had brochures, tape measure, samples of other material used in blinds and lots of information. I asked questions he answered them in a friendly manner. We had a discussion; a conversation about the pros and cons of the various methods used to raise and lower the blind. He told me we'd have to put a piece of timber down one of the posts to make it even with the other end. No problem. He knew what he was talking about

He measured the area, asked me if I was happy with it, wrote up the quote, we shook hands and he left
He was friendly without trying to be my friend.

Here's the side wall of the deck where the blind will be ... excuse the chaotic mess. My painting and refurbishment projects are there and everything's been moved closer to the French doors because of the rain and wind...It's an area approx 3.6 metres across, by 2.6 metres high.

#2. I got a call at 3pm to (yet again) confirm that a person would be here at 4pm. He turned up on time and carried a metal pelmet, (that covers the top of the blind) and a couple of pieces of different quality PVC. He also had a white metal thing but didn't really explain what that was used for.

He started his spiel....started explaining the virtues of the better quality PVC, told me about the different ways the blind could be hung and be secured. He wasn't rude or really pushy... he was simply doing what he'd been trained to do. We weren't having a conversation, I was simply there to hear about the virtues of his companys' products.

At one point he told me that if I ordered today he would "bump" me ahead of some other orders to make sure I got it installed quickly. I looked at him incredulously and stated he had to be kidding, that if he was saying that to me he was certainly telling other potential customers the same thing. He back tracked

He then told me that as he was leaving his office to come to Number 10, his boss had authorised him to offer me free installation (and something else, but I can't remember what it was).

That's when I asked him to please not "bullshit" me! He back tracked again

He gave me a price then tried to call his office to get it discounted, but apparently couldn't get through...so gave me the discount anyway. The so-called quote he wrote was simply written on the back of a brochure. No measurements, no signature, no official quote/order sheet, just the price and the colour of the pelmet and trim on the back of the brochure

When I told him I was getting another quote and wouldn't be committing myself that day, he couldn't get out of here fast enough.

There were some other things said during his 35 minutes at Number 10...but he never did explain what that white metal thing was. It turns out it's the metal bracket the crank handle slips into so we can raise and lower the blind. I discovered that when I went to the store (from quote #1) to order and put a deposit on the blind.

So there you have it. Two very different methods. I guess there are some people out there who warm to method #2, but not me.

The new cafe blind will be here in a few weeks...can't wait!

It is 2011 isn't it?

2011-06-27T13:06:00.000+10:00

...we haven't gone back to the ~~good ol'~~ days when we mere females needed the permission of our husbands or fathers to make decisions have we?

I ask because I had a rather interesting and amusing thing happen to me this morning that made me think we had.

To explain:

MONT and I are thinking of getting one of those clear PVC blinds on the side of our back deck to minimise the wind and give us a bit of protection against the rain...so I rang a company on their 1300 number to organise someone to come out and give me a quote.

After the consultant had been rather nice to me on the phone and got most of my details, she then asked if I was married and what my husband's name was

The following conversation went something like this:

Why do you need my husband's name seeing he won't be here?

We like to meet with both the husband and wife for the consultation and can arrange to be at your home in the evenings or even the weekends. We find it works better that way

No, that's OK...I'm quite capable of looking over and deciding on a quote seeing I'm the one who'll be paying for it so it'll just be me

Yes, I understand, but we like to have both people there for the 45 minute consultation.

45 minute consultation? I just want a measure and quote for one side of the back deck of the house and if it's going to take 45 minutes for the salesman to measure the height and width of the wall, then maybe I could measure it myself and you could give me an estimate over the phone.

Now, there's no need to get defensive, we just like to meet with both people and can arrange to be there when you're both home

(now this is the point where I realised that whoever turned up on Wednesday at 3pm wasn't just going to be here to give me a quote...no. He was going to try to not leave here without a signature)

I don't need my husband here to help me make a decision. I've never needed my husband with me when I've purchased a house or a car, so I'm sure I'm quite capable of choosing and paying for a Cafe blind.

We can be there on Saturday or even Sunday if that suits you both better, we don't mind at all and it does work better that way.

(She was persistent, I'll give her that)

No, Wednesday afternoon suits me better

(This is when she gave in and realised I wasn't going to budge, so we arranged for someone to come out at 3pm...she didn't even say goodbye, just "have a nice day" and hung up)

I had this conversation at work and my colleague couldn't believe what he was hearing!

I've heard of this sort of selling shtick before, but thought the old "get them together to play one off against the other and pressure them into signing on the dotted line" was well and truly in the past. Obviously not.

I've got someone else coming to give me a quote on Wednesday as well. It should be interesting to compare the different selling styles.

Number 10 Visitor of the feathered variety

2011-06-19T10:57:00.000+10:00

Look at this little guy

He flew in yesterday and stayed around for a little while

Something must've tickled his fancy because he couldn't stop laughing

More Winter Food....

2011-06-12T13:13:00.001+10:00

Winter's a time to stay indoors and tuck into some warming casseroles and stews...and that's mostly what's been on the menu at Number 10 these past couple of weeks.

If you like rich, tasty dishes then this is the one for you.

Oh...and it's really darn simple too.

It's a lamb, walnut and pineapple casserole and it's delicious and no, not too sweet, despite the use of pineapple juice.

If you'd like the recipe it's over here

Winners!

2011-06-10T07:30:00.000+10:00

I'm so glad to announce I have finally chosen the winners of the gorgeous Cavania card sets..

Congratulations Tracey from Romi and Bob....and Sarah from Molly's Maison.

If you email me your details I'll get the cards in the post for you.

I know you're going to love them because they really are beautiful!

Thanks again to Karen from Cavania for giving me these beautiful cards to giveaway.

New Resident at Number 10

2011-06-09T09:06:00.000+10:00

I'd like to introduce you to the newest member of our menagerie here at Number 10

MONT's elderly Mum and Dad have had to leave their home and go into care...so their pets have come to live ~~the high life~~ with us

As you can see, we're trying to toughen him up a bit.

Yep...this boy is doing it tough...

Being part of the tribe at Number 10 is no life on easy street. Just look at these two "living rough". It's tough I tell you. Tough !

Pizza ...and giveaway reminder

2011-06-04T10:37:00.000+10:00

If you like pizza I've just posted a great recipe for a pizza dough over here

It's easy and delicious... great for Friday night dinner in front of the TV.

....and don't forget my Cavania giveaway...it's still on and well worth entering because the cards are simply gorgeous!

Just lovely!

Cavania - Giveaway

2011-05-29T13:33:00.002+10:00

I'm sure if you looked up the word gorgeous in the dictionary, you would find the word CAVANIA

Yep...Cavania = Gorgeousness

Cavania is a blog I came across ages ago...can't remember where I first saw it but as soon as I did I was hooked.

Karen Sanders and her team design gorgeous cards and gifts. Did I say they are all GORGEOUS?!

She was based in London...but has recently moved her family to Western Australia and is now settling in and waiting for all her beautiful things to arrive from the UK

I was fortunate, a couple of Christmas's ago, to win a giveaway on Cavania and now, Karen and Paul have kindly offered some of their beautiful cards as a giveaway here.

I have two sets of 9 of these wonderful cards and envelopes.

All you have to do is:

a. leave a comment and tell me why you love them
b. become a follower of Number 10
and ...
c. link back to here.

That's it. Easy peasy really.

Thank you for your emails asking about where I've been hiding of late. I'm afraid life just got in the way of blogging but I'm back now (at least I think I'm back for good) and hope to catch up with what everyone's been up to these past few weeks.

Another little restoration...

2011-04-28T09:45:00.000+10:00

I'm almost completely over the "bug" I had and am back into painting and restoring a few bits and pieces that have been sitting around and getting in the way

I bought this on eBay for a song a few weeks back and thought I'd paint it and add some new knobs and either sell it or use it.

As you can see, it has a nice little feature on the back

At the moment, I'm leaning towards using it as a bedside cabinet but will have to wait and see how it looks in the space. I don't want our new bedroom to look too crowded, if you know what I mean.

If it does fit in it'll be terrific because it'll give me a little more storage space and we can't have too much of that can we?

Actually, I bought two chests of drawers on eBay. (both were very cheap and in keeping with my Dottie Angel Challenge). They're similar but not identical and I think will look rather nice all painted and spruced up. This one might be for MONT if it looks OK beside the bed

I haven't touched this one yet...but I'll get around to him eventually

Ooh....I just got a delivery in the post and that means a great giveaway coming soon...and of course it's gorgeous!!!

An easy chicken recipe

2011-04-26T08:55:00.000+10:00

Poached chicken with a home made tuna mayonnaise and potato salad may not sound too inviting, but believe me, it is!

You can find the recipe over here

It's a great dish for a lazy Sunday lunch....and it's also pretty healthy.

Hope you like it

Life as a newspaper editor

2011-04-19T09:35:00.000+10:00

Hi all...I'm slowly on the mend. Still not 100% but feeling a little better each day.

I mentioned that I was going to read Bruce Guthrie's book, Man Bites Murdoch...

It's all about his life as a reporter, international correspondent and editor and his time at the Age Newspaper and the Herald Sun.

I'm no book reviewer but I will say it was an extremely entertaining read.

Bruce grew up in the housing commission homes of Broadmeadows in Melbourne and eventually went on to work for Time Inc.....editing the Herald Sun, Age newspaper and Who Weekly, the Australian equivalent of People magazine

He details his life with the various employers and his falling out with News Limited and the hatred directed towards him by former Victorian premier, Jeff Kennett. That little episode is extremely interesting.

If you get a chance, have a look at this very entertaining account of Bruce's professional life in the newspaper game

I really enjoyed it.

Poorly

2011-04-14T09:14:00.000+10:00

Hi all.

I'll be back in a few days. I've got a dreaded bug. AGAIN!!!

Can't believe I've caught something else after last year's swine flu and whooping cough

UGGHH!!!

So darn annoying!!

So. I'll be spending a lot of time in bed with my new book. Man Bites Murdoch.

It's a great read actually. It's by Bruce Guthrie, the former Editor of Melbourne's Herald Sun newspaper who got sacked and took them to court for unfair dismissal.

Well worth a read

Searching searching....

2011-04-06T13:05:00.000+10:00

OK, I've been hunting something out for ages and now concede I need your help

A little while ago, maybe a couple of months, I was checking out how an extremely talented person was painting an old brown basket in a greyish colour, like the Ikea Boholma baskets below

They had a browny tan basket, sort of this colour

...and they painted it to look like this

I thought I saved all the info...but I didn't.

Anyone with any idea who that person/blog may be?

Measure twice, cut once

2011-04-04T11:18:00.000+10:00

I was reading with some amusement, April's blog post about her husband's apparent inability to measure something accurately and therefore causing more work for her in their new nursery

It got me thinking about the couple of times MONT and I have had bitter debate (read tantrums on my part) when he failed to measure something accurately.

Case 1: Our bedroom window.

Number 10 was built back in the 1950s and still had the original windows when I bought it in the late 90's. The front bedroom window was in three parts, with a large pane of glass in the centre. I had bought pale grey awnings for outside and had custom made blockout holland blinds for inside. The actual windows on each end were hard to open so we decided to replace it. My stipulation was, make sure all the measurements are the same so I don't have to buy new blinds, which were NOT CHEAP!
I don't know what happened but, not only is the window a different size to the original but the three sections are also different, which meant I had to buy a new window awning and a new internal blind.

When the new window was delivered I rang MONT to tell him they'd delivered the wrong one as it was the wrong size. He mentioned that they thought the measurement's were a bit strange, but he said they were right and go ahead and make it.

GRRRR!

Case 2: MONT has a boat so we decided to build a carport/boatshed to house it.

He measured the boat to make sure it would fit. The carport was built. He put the boat in there and lo and behold, it was about a metre short! The trouble? He only measured the boat and NOT the outboard motor of the back.

He's been at me to extend the carport but I've dug my heels in. If you can't measure correctly in the first place, bad luck

But it's not just MONT or April's husband who have problems finding their way around a tape measure

I recently bought a chest of drawers on eBay and had asked the seller for the measurements as they weren't mentioned in the listing. It sounded good, but when I went to collect it, the measurements were way out!! It's so darn big it won't fit where I had planned to put it, so will have to be sold on...oh and this guy was a builder!

Take heart April, we've all been there.

Project Finito

2011-03-29T08:15:00.001+11:00

I've linked up with Sarah's Good Life Wednesday over at Beach Cottage, why not come on over and have a look see.

You can find it here

Happy Tuesday everyone. I was having some big problemos yesterday downloading photos, so here is the result of my very productive weekend.

While MONT was at Bonnie Doon, I thought I'd get stuck into my little drawer/cabinet unit

It now looks like this

After starting out like this.

This is how it looked "during" the refurbishment

I've trialled two sorts of knobs. I got some lovely glass knobs from Schots Emporium in Clifton Hill

...and some of my tried and tested standard fare from IKEA

I mixed up some paint to get the colour I wanted. It's sort of half strength Antique White USA. I had some full strength that I toned down.

I put this little unit in the front hallway just to see how it looks, but I think it's the wrong size for that spot, so I'm thinking the dining room will be it's new home.

What do you think?

...and which little knobs look best? I think the glass ones would look better in a bedroom, but that's just me.

I'll take some better photos when I get an honest to goodness camera again

Problems?

2011-03-28T13:50:00.000+11:00

Anyone else having problems loading photos into Blogger today?

I was going to show you my little project that's all finished, but the pics just won't load.

Maybe tomorrow.

Nice place to visit...wouldn't want to live there

2011-03-25T15:10:00.000+11:00

Over the years, I've been fortunate to live and work right up the east coast of this great brown land of ours and even ventured south to Hobart for a year. But that was a long time ago.

Naturally, some places I liked more than others. Brisbane? Loved it. I felt right at home and even bought a house there, but eventually, I got transferred back to Melbourne.

Sydney? Not the place for me. I lived there for 2 years, and didn't really take to the city at all. Nice place to visit, etc....

...and so it is with some decor styles. I like to visit them but I really don't want to live with them.

Take Shabby Chic.

I like looking at it, visiting it at other people's homes/blogs, even like seeing how people put it all together and just "go with the flow" of all that deliberately distressed paint work. But living with it 24/7 would drive me bonkers. I'd want to get out there and start sanding and painting again. I like pre-loved, but not scraped and distressed.

I like all of these little cabinets, but I'm afraid I'd want to paint them because to me, they don't look finished.

Sure Number 10 has more than it's fair share of "footpath finds" and other second hand bits and pieces...but I just haven't been able to bring myself to "distress" them after spending all that time painting and restoring the darn things.

It's the same with modern minimalism

It's stark and just doesn't look inviting - or warm. To me anyway. Too much emphasis on the style and not enough on the living.

I know everyone's different. My friend "G" doesn't like the idea of second hand furniture at all and she's is definitely not a fan of white. Her home is filled with new furniture and lots of colour...not a splinter of white wood to be seen.....

Is there a decor style you like visiting but wouldn't want to live with?

Good Life over at Beach Cottage

2011-03-24T11:02:00.000+11:00

I've joined Good Life Wednesdays over at Sarah's blog a Beach Cottage here

Image by Sarah @ Beach Cottage

Come on over and join in ... I think you might like it

The 30 minute rule

2011-03-23T07:16:00.000+11:00

I do not like housework and I know I'm not alone in that department.

I dread getting the vacuum cleaner out, setting it up and then dragging it through the house, because I know once I'm finished I'll only have to do it all over again next week....and don't get me started on ironing. I told MONT when we met that I do not iron (except when I'm sewing) so any clothing he needs to be ironed is his responsibility.

Anyway, I digress...I've taken the advice of someone (can't remember who) on a blog I read ages ago, to impose a housework time limit. They actually impose a five minute rule because they had little kids and that's all they could manage at a time, but I've got a bit more time to devote to this dreaded task, so I'm now imposing a 30 minutes rule.

I embraced this because, when I was working full time, I used to spend just about all of Saturday trying to psych myself into cleaning the house, then I'd take ages vacuuming and tidying and washing because I was so fed up and so easily distracted that I'd stop what I was doing and go an have a cuppa, or a sit down or...well, nothing. I'd just stop and then feel like my entire day had been chewed up by housework.

The trick to this "rule" is to only do what you can in that 30 minute period then stop. Whatever you've missed can be done the following day when you set yourself another 30 minutes.

Now, you don't have to set yourself a strict 30 minutes, you can apply the 15 minute rule, or the 20 minute rule if that suits you better....or even longer. Totally up to you

Maybe a quick 5 minute tidy up is what you'd prefer. Easy, just stick to that then. The thing is not to let the chores eat up your entire day.

A friend of mine, who hates housework even more then I do, was sceptical about this, but then tried it and reports back that it's terrific so she's now embracing it... Whatever works for you I say.

I'm cookin'

2011-03-21T07:47:00.000+11:00

Still no camera and no contact from the Insurance company as to the status of our claim.

But that hasn't stopped me....Instead I've enlisted the services of my mobile phone to take some shots. Not as good as my beloved Canon, but they'll do for now

I got to baking this weekend and thought I'd try a recipe from my girlfriend "G"...it's a carrot cake and I have to say it was easy and delicious.

You can get the recipe here

Happy baking...this cake really is super easy. Enjoy

Ryobi workout

2011-03-18T14:44:00.000+11:00

I've been doing a bit of bargain hunting...on eBay....and I've found a couple of beauties that I plan to refurbish for Number 10.

This little cupboard really took my fancy because it 's a little like the other yellow chest of drawers I found on the nature strip last year. You can see them here. This cupboard had been stencilled with a gold paint and had old fashioned china knobs that had also been detailed with gold craft paint.

...and on the sides, they'd placed sheets of wrapping paper for detail, then covered the edges with gold edged gift ribbon.

Well...the knobs have been removed and cleaned, ready for another project.

The two drawers have been sanded

The body of the cupboard has also been given the once over.

...And the ribbon and some of the paper's been removed so I can sand it all back and give it the "Number 10 treatment"

I'm not sure what was used to stick the paper down and then seal it, but when I tried to remove it by scraping, then wetting it, it went all gooey and sticky...maybe PVC glue? Not sure, but I plan to get some paint stripper to get all of it off so I can get it all nice and smooth and paint it....white or off white of course.

I also purchased another chest of old drawers. They can wait for another day though.

Design

2011-03-17T18:23:00.001+11:00

You know, architects have always amused me.

I know they do some wonderful work. Great designs, innovative features, cutting edge stuff.... but really, do some of them think that it's all about "looks" and not function? What about the small stuff?

What's amused me I guess is that they don't seem to be really good with the "livable" aspects of a house...you know, the little things that you just expect would be a "given" in a home.

MONT's worked with quite a few and he tells me some of their expectations have been unrealistic because they sometimes want things that are not possible, they overlook things that should be a priority...and some don't consult with the tradespeople who have to implement their designs.

I have a friend who's had her home renovation designed by an architect. It's all quite beautiful. Really gorgeous in fact. Even her bathroom is top class! Only thing is, she doesn't have a power point for her hairdryer/shave etc....

Actually, I'm wrong, she does have a power point, but it's tucked away in the back of the cupboard. You know, the one under the basin.

What's with that?

She said the architect didn't want a power point on the wall because it broke the clean lines and distracted from the "look" of the room.

Sorry, but I don't get it.

You can bet your bottom dollar he'd have a power point on the wall in his bathroom.

Dottie Angel Challenge - Progress

2011-03-03T13:09:00.001+11:00

It's been a while since I gave you an update of the Dottie Angel Challenge I've embarked upon and I have to say I'm doing a bit better than I thought I would.

I've found some bargains...scoured the op-shops and had a lovely time saving some money

As I mentioned in my original post here, I wouldn't be resorting to pre-loved underwear and I was in the market for some new bras this past week....but as usual, I waited for the sales and found a real bargain. Instead of paying almost $200 for new intimate apparel in the style I usually buy, I got 4 pairs for just under $90....and they'll last me for ages!

I've also been haunting the op-shops and picked up some pretty nice little pieces of linen, doilies and cotton napkins etc. I think I've paid about $11 in all and many of them are quite beautiful. I have plans for them and will let you know about that later.

One other thing I have bought though, (and at full price) is a new pair of slippers for around the house.

I bought these.

I can't bring myself to wear second hand shoes or slippers but these will last a long time and I know they're going to be as comfy as anything because I already have another pair of Haflinger's and they're wonderful!

I can't wait for them to arrive from the UK...

Sure I've been tempted when I've been out and about, but I have refrained. I figure it'll be there tomorrow or the next day and if I truly "want or need" it then I can always go back and get it. So far though that hasn't happened.

So, onward and upward with the challenge...so far so good.

May I have the envelope please...

2011-02-26T14:28:00.002+11:00

It is with great pleasure that I announce the winner of the Whiteport giveaway!

Drum roll please... and the winner is:

Alison...

Well done ! !

I usually put all the names on pieces of paper and draw the winner out of my little Chinese style urn. This time was no different...I just wasn't able to photograph the results.

Congratulations Alison. I know you'll love your little gift...Whiteport is full of truly wonderful stuff.

I'll pass your details onto Jennifer at Whiteport and she can arrange to have your goodies shipped to you.
Thanks for all your comments everyone...I'm so glad you all liked Whiteport.

Me?

I love everything on the site...my favourites are...

Hemstitch table linen

The monogrammed pillowslips

The Avignon Linen Ottoman...and...

The dragonfly sheets...

*sigh*
They're all so gorgeous!

A WINNER

2011-02-25T16:23:00.001+11:00

Yes, I am a little late I know...but as they say, better late than never.

I feel like a fish out of water without my beloved camera...I'm not able to take any photos of my projects or our new bedroom and I have to say it's a real bummer!

Oh well, hopefully the insurance company gets back to us soon so it can all be finalised and I can get my mojo back

Now...onto the real reason for this post. My giveaway.

We have a winner of the CSN Stores gift voucher

It's: Katrina from Wakeboarding Mama...

Congratulations Katrina, I'll pass your email address to CSN Stores and they can contact you about your prize.

Thanks for joining in an commenting everyone...funny though, most of you appear to have blogs that detail blogs that have giveaways. Something I've never really seen before.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy your prize Katrina....or I hope your daughter does.

Another giveaway - in white

2011-02-17T13:01:00.001+11:00

I mentioned a little while ago that I'd have a lovely giveaway from an Australian company that specialises in absolutely gorgeous things...

Now you all know how much I love white, so this giveaway gives me a lot of pleasure.

The name of the company is: Whiteport...and you guessed it. It specialises in everything white!

Jennifer emailed me while we were still on holidays to make a very generous offer of a lovely item from her beautiful store for my Aussie readers.

So here we go...three beautiful pure cotton t-towels in perfect white!

Apart from kitchen items, Jennifer also has quilts and sheet sets.

Glorious furniture, like this linen armchair.

This lovely little linen shopping bag

...and monogrammed pillow slips. These are really gorgeous!

So....all you have to do to go in the draw for these is: become a follower of Life at Number 10, check out Whiteport, subscribe to the site and leave me a comment to tell me what other items take your fancy.

Don't worry, subscribing to Whiteport doesn't cost a thing. It just means they'll send you an email every now and then to let you know about the new items they have on offer.

Get to it... it's lovely looking at all the beautiful things in there...

My other giveaway for the CSN Stores voucher is still up for grabs too....I'll draw that next Monday. Keep the comments coming

My absence...and A Giveaway

2011-02-12T09:40:00.000+11:00

I've been very remiss in my blogging duties of late. Busy at home after our holiday at the beach ended...busy dealing with the insurance company over our recent break-in. Busy at work...yup, busy!

But I'm now back iun the swing of things and raring to go...and I have a lovely giveaway for my Canadian and US visitors. There'll be another giveaway for all you Aussies next week.

CSN Stores has once again been extremely generous in offering a lovely gift voucher

CSN has a lot of things for sale. Not only furniture, cookware, lighting and outdoor living sets they also have swingsets. Yes I had to mention that in this post. But they do... and they're happy to give one of my visitors a gift voucher to the the value of $35.00 to spend at any of their stores, including a swingset if that' what takes your fancy.

Yep, they even have clocks...hundreds of them...like this Postema Wall clock

and ....this rather nice little Vogue make-up mirror by Lite Source

Want a vase instead? No problem. Hundreds of them, like this Waterford with a candle included.

Cutlery...or flat ware? Yep...that too

All you have to do is check out CSN stores, tell me what you'd put your $35 voucher towards and why...

So get commenting everyone, as many times as you like. Tell your friends and everyone you can think of.

All images from CSN Stores

Australia Day...and boy am I grateful!

2011-01-26T10:48:00.000+11:00

Yes I really am grateful for so much..

Australia Day means different things to lots of different people...to some it's a chance to fly the flag, have a BBQ and generally enjoy the day off work

For me, it's a chance to enjoy and appreciate the people around me and consider myself extremely lucky to be able to call this place home

These guys think it's a pretty good place too, especially when MONT and his mates come in after a day of fishing and they get all the left overs.

No wonder they all look so content.

Congratulations also to the 2011 Australian of the Year, Simon McKeon. A deserving recipient of the award

This is him, pictured with his wife and son...congratulations!

You can read a story about him here

Beach

2011-01-25T12:35:00.001+11:00

MONT and I are at the beach for another week...it's our annual two week break to a small caravan park where we get to catch up with friends and MONT gets to head out in his small boat to fish just about every night, weather permitting.

This photo was not taken this year...it's a couple of years old but we camp in the same spot near the same people each year and love it. Happy hour usually stretches to 2 hours each afternoon!

Our old caravan is probably one of the oldest in the park, certainly the oldest in our little "street" but that's OK. I'd like to get rid of all the brown and cream in it, but the cost would be prohibitive and it's just not worth it, so instead I make sure I have cotton throws on the seats and a nice doona cover and crisp white sheets on the bed to make me feel a little better and to freshen things up a bit.

Today for lunch we're having fresh whiting that MONT caught two nights ago...can't get much better than that. I just have to wait for him to get back from squidding...that means (hopefully) there'll be fresh calamari for dinner tonight.

YAY!

I forgot to mention...... I've had a couple of emails from organisations offering some giveaways and discounts, so when I get home there'll be some goodies on offer...stay tuned!

Resolutions?

2011-01-24T12:38:00.000+11:00

I'm not a New Year Resolutions type of girl. Instead, what I like to do is set myself tasks...not to lose weight or get fit etc. I like to give myself projects to achieve and my projects this year are more renovations and refurbishments of some old furniture.

So on that note, I'd like to introduce you to my latest footpath find.....

Taa Daa.....

It was sitting all by it's lonesome a few houses down from Number 10, so MONT went and got it for me.

Not sure how I plan to tackle it yet because the top is a laminate and after peeling a bit of it off, it was pretty rough underneath...even too rough (methinks) for a heavy sand and a coat of white paint.

Anyhooo we'll see. It will be sanded back, given a good undercoat and maybe the top will have to be replaced, which should be pretty easy seeing those curly corner thingies are screwed on.

It's a strange little piece, but will look better with a nice coat of paint... or three...

Luckily I took the photos of this a couple of days before our cameras were "pinched".

We're still on holidays, so Amanda, I have not forgotten that you gave me an award a few days back ... I've just been a bit distracted with our episode at home and now being at the beach.

Sincere apologies - A Winner!!

2011-01-20T14:58:00.000+11:00

Finally.....Time to announce the winner of my little giveaway

I have to apologise for the delay in the announcement, but I had to travel interstate for work and then as soon as I got home, we had to pack up for our annual holiday to the beach....

... also throwing a spanner in the works... we got burgled last week which means I am no longer able to photograph anything as my precious canon camera and all of it's bits and pieces were taken. Basically, we were cleaned out of all of our "small"stuff. Not pleasant I can tell you!

So, here we go...

Thank you for all of your comments...and your patience....I put all the names in a little jar down here in our old trusty caravan, got MONT to draw out the winner...and that is:

BRISMOD

Please email me your address and I'll post of your lovely prize, which was one of the first things I packed in the car...

Thanks again for all of your comments...I'm hoping to have another little giveaway on a similar theme again soon.

Take care everyone

Apology

2011-01-12T15:50:00.000+11:00

Sorry everyone...I won't be drawing the winner of the little creamer and sugar bowl set tomorrow. I have to go out of town for a couple of days so will leave it till Saturday.

Gives you more chances to comment though

Back deck table

2011-01-11T15:30:00.000+11:00

As you know by now I definitely have a thing about WHITE! and I seem to be painting everything that gets in my way at the moment

Here's our back deck last year. Hard to see but the little slat table was all uneven. If you click on the photograph you can see a little better

I've had the table for years but the slats had bowed and buckled and it wasn't safe to put your drink on and we can't have that!

Hard to see it in this pic under and among all the "projects" I had on the deck after the weather "turned".

But I bought a sheet of MDF, MONT cut it down to size and attached it to the table, and I gave it about four coats of paint to make it waterproof.

It's much better and much more functional now, although once this top goes to God, I won't be putting MDF on it again...I think I'll get a piece of marine ply or something a little more sturdy seeing it'll be sitting outside all the time.

Still pretty happy with it though.

To everyone suffering from the devastating floods in Queensland...my thoughts are with you. I once lived in Brisbane and watched as my backyard filled with water from the swollen creek that runs past my back fence...

It's been heartbreaking watching the tragedy unfold on television and my heart goes out to everyone affected..

Dottie Angel Challenge - Week 1

2011-01-09T09:54:00.002+11:00

I've got through the first week of the retail challenge relatively unscathed. I plan to keep a little running tally on what I spend and while I won't be boring you with all the details every week, I thought I'd post about my first week just to document what I'd done and to help keep me on track.

Shopping wasn't a big priority this past week because we've had other things happening at Number 10. I've been preparing the front hallway for painting and although it's not a huge job it is fiddly with lots of corners and architrave to paint around....anyway, week one of the challenge and I spent the princely sum of $6.00

Of course there'll be weeks when I don't spend anything at all...and there'll be some when I spend a lot more than $6, but I guess it's also about THINKING about what I'm spending my hard earned on.

I got a lovely email from Tif at Dottie Angel wishing me luck through the challenge...but as she said, you still have to have fun and if you fall off the wagon, don't beat yourself up about it, just try a little harder the next time. So that's what I plan to do. Try my hardest but not get too upset if I fall off the wagon.

Righto then, it's back to painting the hallway

Image from Dottie Angel
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Don't forget my little giveaway this week of the lovely creamer and sugar bowl. Just leave a comment any day this week and the winner will be drawn next Thursday (Jan 13th)