christmas moments

some moments from christmas eve and christmas day.

1. dancing to the nutcracker suite

2. crafting a rosemary garland

3 & 4. twas the night before...

5. watching jessica's message via PNP. oh my goodness was she enchanted!

6. opening presents

7. on the new balance board

17

my beautiful girl turned 17 today.

oh how time flies. it seems like yesterday that she was just a little girl. how could 17 years have gone by so fast?

happy birthday eloise

x

christmas rumballs

it is no secret that i love christmas food.

i love pudding, christmas cake, fruit mince pies, gingerbread, rumballs... 

oh how i love rumballs! it just wouldn't be christmas without them.

i have been trying to avoid sugar for a while now, not completely, i still quite like a bit of raw honey and i do love maple syrup but i have eliminated processed sugar from our diets for most of this year. so i had been wondering how i was going to enjoy some of the foods i love at christmas without the usual sugar content.

our pudding has no sugar (i just left it out of the recipe and i am sure it will taste just fine with the fruit giving it the sweetness). the fruit mince pies recipe i use has no sugar in the filling and only a small amount of honey in the pastry. i used a fantastic gingerbread recipe from here (yes a small amount of sugar but nothing like the amount in the recipe i used last year). 

and so how to make delicious rumballs without sugar (condensed milk). i have adapted natalie's lovely coconut butter ball recipe and given it a seasonal twist. it is truly so good that i wanted to share it.

ingredients

200g coconut oil

200g butter

200g raisins

6 dates

rum

250g coconut or a bit more (depending on consistency)

2 tablespoons of raw cacao powder

slosh a good splash of rum over the raisins, just enough to coat them nicely, leave to soak for a few hours.

place dates and raisins in a food processor and blitz a few times

add coconut oil, butter, coconut and cacao and process until mixed thoroughly

at this point i put the mix into the fridge to firm up (depends on the weather)

then roll into small balls and roll them in extra coconut 

place in glass jars to firm up again

best stored in the fridge if its warm

enjoy

merry christmas!

lately

lately...

i have spent much time away from the computer and have totally neglected this space. we have spent time away from home and the days have been so full and hectic that there was just no time for technology (and i must say i haven't missed it). today was the first time in three weeks that i have loaded photos onto the computer and i realised how few photos i have taken in that time. i think i can say that i have failed my first attempt at project 366. 

the break from home was a welcome one. we spent five lovely days in the west of australia with alistair in between jobs, while seeing a new part of australia for the first time. i liked what i saw... a lot.

time was also spent in adelaide visiting friends and family. my littlest seems to have grown so much during our time away, becoming braver everyday. it was lovely to see her so relaxed with family that she doesn't see too often. i am so proud of how jessica has coped with all the impromptu changes her parents regrettably force upon her. (poor love thought she was going to tasmania and ended up in perth!) 

lately...

jessica has been drawing and painting up a storm. she thought it may be a nice idea to experiment with some face printing while my back was turned.

lately... 

the little one has been taking the gift giving very seriously and is always up for some wrapping and sticky taping. meanwhile, i have many projects in the works for christmas. some will be completed, some won't (and that doesn't matter). 

lately...

the house has been decorated, the tree trimmed, a wreath made for the door. i can hardly believe what has been achieved since arriving home five days ago. and now christmas is right upon us. it has come around so quick (as it always does!)

time to relax and enjoy!

summer time is here

its official, summer has begun!

to celebrate we added a new candle to our table in a delicious shade of green and i made jessica two little bendy doll people.

they are really sweet and are completed with backpacks to carry their babies in. these little people love to gather flowers i am told ('just like me' says jessica, who doesn't come in from the garden empty handed at the moment).

have a go!

a few photos of jess's first attempt at sewing. 

i was amazed at how quickly she picked it up, totally amazed! i didn't give her much help at all. of course this activity didn't last long but thats not the point at this stage.

it is all wrapped up, gift tag attached ready to put under the tree for a very special person. that part took a lot longer than the actual sewing. jess was so excited to wrap it up and draw on the tag and is even more excited to give this gift that i don't know if she will be able to wait until christmas!

harvest

there's not a lot growing in our garden at the moment.

the wind is ferocious most days, it hasn't rained for months (literally), the sun is harsh and at times there are so many flies that gardening isn't a pleasant experience.

i have been trying to get seedlings growing but either they wilt in the sun or their leaves burn to a crisp or the birds peck the leaves until they are full of holes or they scratch at the ground around the plants and cover them with a layer of mulch. if thats not enough to kill them then they are sure to be eaten by any six legged insect that comes along.

yesterday we planted out some more lettuce seedlings, along with basil and parsley and planted bean and corn seeds. i have bits of string tied all around with little bits of tin foil wrapped around the string to hopefully deter the hungry birds. so far it seems to be working.

we do have some nice tomato plants going though and we picked our first tomato a few days ago so that was exciting. we are picking some delicious strawberries but the plants are looking a little grim so i think some shade over them might help.

and the garlic harvest was fantastic this year. the best i have ever grown i do believe. over sixty big fat bulbs of perfect garlic. hopefully it will be enough to last a good part of the year ahead. i have cleaned up all the bulbs and had a go at plaiting them back they don't look right so they will probably just hang in bundles... when i work out where to store them.

summer's nearly here so the good news is there is only a few more months of this harsh weather to go... and then ahhhh! autumn!