toothbrush

Hello, here is my toothbrush stored beside co-ordinated toothpaste.

Also today I used another brush today....

to clean some potatoes for tomorrow's dinner. I realise I prepared them a day ahead, but there is a reason for it.

whoops, I must have moved, looks like the brush is on the 'get away'. I need to put the potatoes on early in the morning so they are ready for dinner. I will share the recipe when we have tried them.

Hope you have had a great day for the end of the month...Dot

calm

I left a little later this morning for my walk. The river was calm, not a ripple except for three small ducks taking off from the bank. I wanted to take a pic, but the sun was not quite out and all I had was my ipod which would not do it justice. I may have to think about taking my camera.
We have just returned home from our monthly trip to the chiropractor. This always has a calming effect on us. Even Mr Chiro himself has a soothing voice! We follow this appointment by going out for dinner. Tonight we had a change; we selected take-away from different venues of choice and sat in the car down by the sea.

Until tomorrow, sleep tight, I know I will....Dot

last thing I bought

Hello!! The last thing I bought were a few supplies from our local IGA to make a yummy dinner.

No not chicken or turkey. The turkey went into the fridge for another dinner and the chicken drumsticks went into the freezer. They were both good buys. I picked up some sun-dried tomato pesto and packet of mixed pizza cheese to try. The sun was shining in the window so I left the dough rising there why we went for our Sunday afternoon drive to visit my inlaws.

And so we served pizza with salad. Yummy.
The toppings were pesto, onion, green capsicum, mushroom, corn, pineapple, cheese and fresh coriander. I had also put dried oregano in the dough. I made 2 large pizzas enough for leftovers tomorrow. Cold pizza, mmm....goodnight Dot

cup

As soon as the alarm went off at 6.30 I jumped out of bed. It was consistent all day but in a good way. Our first lot of visitors arrived a little before 11am and all were here by 12. We had lunch at 12.30 and we had a wonderful time together. Good food, lots of laughter and banter makes for a great family get together.
When everyone had gone I poured myself a cup of fizzy, and then got to work to clean up what mess remained.

it does look fizzy, the whole photo does. I think I might need to take photos with my camera which is better quality.

Georgeous great nephew and neices who enjoyed the time together with us all today.

Putting the feet up now....Dot

on the road

Below is a pic taken of me about to get out 'on the road' in my new car. My hubby loves to drive it too at the weekend when he gets the chance.

Have a great weekend. We have a huge family get together here tomorrow. More about that tomorrow....Dot

sunshine

Today I was first awakened by the room filling up with light. I kept my eyes shut. Then I heard loud rumbling and released we were having some thunder and lightening. It was beautiful. Of course, I could not venture outside for my walk so settled for the walker downstairs. Not long after this we had heavy rain for quite a while. Most of the morning the sun found it hard to appear but then....

And now I have just popped into the office to do this blog and look what is out the office window.

The room is cosy and lit up. Need to make the most of it before sundown.

Highlight: Our book keeper came and had lunch with us as well as bring our books up to date for the tax man.

(Sing) Sunshine, on my window, makes me happy....Dot

heart

My daughter in WA sent me these lovely hearts which she had crocheted in different colours. I found a nifty branch in the back yard, placed it in a green pot and hung the hearts. It has found a home in different spots in the room but now sits on my sewing table.

Highlight: Today it would have to be that I crossed a few more things off my list that needed doing. Going out for Life Group tonight.

Thought:  CREATE IN ME A CLEAN HEART, OH GOD
                  AND RENEW A RIGHT SPIRIT WITHIN ME
                  CAST ME NOT AWAY FROM THY PRESENCE, OH GOD
                  TAKE NOT THY HOLY SPIRIT FROM ME
                  RESTORE UNTO ME THE JOY OF YOUR SALVATION
                  AND RENEW A RIGHT SPIRIT WITHIN ME

a stranger

Today I was asked to be brave or sneaky to take a photo of a stranger. I couldn't do it, sort of. I was sitting waiting to have my hair trimmed today and looked down on the table beside me and took this....

I thought this thick head of hair looked lovely, but how would you look after it? I am happy with my short cut. It took hubby a little while to get used to it when I first had it done, but now he loves it.

Highlight: Crossed some things off the list, hoorah!! Repotted some indoor plants, cleaned inside of my car, part-way through getting next lot of birthday gifts ready.

Thought: For I was hungry, and you fed me, I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. (Matthew 25:35)
How am I at asking strangers into my home. Ok, if my hubby is with me as we both work as a team. It does the 'soul' good to welcome others into our home. My dad was terrific at this. We never knew who was coming home for dinner or to stay the night. Over the years I spent as a child at home I met a lot of lovely people from all walks of life.

Until another day, don't be a stranger, make yourself known to me....Dot

mirror

Do you like what you see when you look into the mirror? I love my 10x little mirror that sticks to the main tile mirror in our en suite. It soon brings to sight any unwanted facial hair. Out come the tweezers and the job is simple.

This lovely mirror hangs in our foyer. Our daughter made it at school a few years back now, and one day it will most likely find a spot in her home. It is well made and very pretty.

Highlight: Tried Lamb Steaks which I had marinated in a mix of oil, lemon juice, diced onion and salt. We all loved them and will buy them again.

Thought: James 1:22-25  But don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don't obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what is says and don't forget what you have heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

upside down

Ok, so to get my shot for today, I laid down on the office floor while my hubby was doing some admin on pc. He always has something to do there, bless him.

We are now relaxing in family room watching a dvd.

Highlight: Sunday afternoon family drive out around the country, detour via takaway for hot chips, home to share.

9 o'clock

Hi, trust your weekend is going well. I decided to get a photo at 9am and at this time of the day I was doing this....

...hubby helped out by taking the pic for me.

As you can see the day was foggy, but it soon cleared. Hubby and I got a lot done in the garden today. Transferred mulch from the backyard to the front garden. He got his little chainsaw out and we took a load to the tip. We will certainly sleep tonight, we are very weary. Feels good to have so much done today.

Highlight:  Time spent with my hubby

Thought: I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:16

Eyes

These days I try to get ahead a bit when I can, and take photos of things I need for future blogs. I started doing this a few weeks ago and have found it to be very helpful. When I find myself having a full day and I still need to do my blog, if I find I already have a photo in my archive, it makes me feel relieved. And so, a few days ago, I was looking for some eyes and there were a nice set sitting right beside me. These eyes were made up ready to put in a long day at work.

Highlight: A sweet little girl we know successfully had a metal heart (she had swallowed it from her bracelet) removed from her stomach.

Weekend is here again, have a great one....Dot

animal/insect/pet

This is my pet dog. Her name is Molly. She is 9 years old. She is on the move all the time and so it is very hard to take a photo of her, although, while she is eating, no probs. She is a skipperke.

plate

This is what is served up most Saturday mornings here at home. Homemade Thermi crepes with banana, blueberries, natural greek yoghurt and a little maple syrup.

The family have been happy to have poached eggs on toast this week. In fact, we have had them 2 mornings. Egg supply is up again. Yippee!!!

your addiction

My addiction would have to be sugar. I have been slowly cutting my sugar intake down over the last few years. This year, my goal is to become sugar free. I started out ok, but have ups and downs. I have cut my sugar down to 1 teaspoon in my coffee but if it is accompanied by a yummy piece of homemade cake I have my coffee sugar-free. Once upon a time I used to have sugar in black tea and I have never added sugar to green tea.

Highlight: I finally tidied and relined 2 drawers in my kitchen that were long overdue.

Thought: Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always. Remember the wonders He has done.

sign

This sign hangs on one of our dining room walls and gets read every once in a while. I bought it quite a few years ago at a craft fair.

The finger you saw in yesterday's post now has a bandaid on it. It got severely bumped on a door jam as I was running through it. I certainly have nice red blood.

Few things on the go here at the moment, until next time, keep smiling....Dot

finger

My left index finger, what more can I say!!!
Hope you have a great and relaxing weekend. I spent most of the day yesterday at a '9 to 9 Super Day' with my local patchwork group. We raised funds for Cancer Research by each bringing along a fat quarter in yellow or blue or a mixture of both. This was raffled and the winner is asked to produce something by this time next year. We had a yummy afternoon tea and during the day we were thrilled to see lots of beautiful creations that the ladies were working on or had completed recently. There was plenty of patchwork, stitching and knitting. Of course we enjoyed lots of laughs together too.

Trust your week ahead is going to be a good one.....Dot

building

This little building houses my pet (you will get to see her in a few days). It is lined out with a piece of old carpet to make it nice and snug. You cant miss the debris on the lawn. Have to seriously get into the back yard cleaning this week.

open

When the coffee container was open today, I had just filled it with freshly ground beans and the excitement starts as soon there will be a hot brewed coffee to enjoy. I sat down today with my daughter while we caught up on things, especially our iphone/ipod games. Our favourite at the moment is Matching. I am slowly getting the hang of it and getting a better score.

Highlight: Got hold of some bargains downtown at our annual July Frenzy.

Thought: Open our eyes Lord, we want to see Jesus. This should be on our hearts as we start each day. As he takes us through the day, he will open up opportunities and experiences we would have missed if we didn't ask him to open our eyes.

texture

I thought this made a nice photo of texture. This mat is underfoot most of the day.
Today here on our little patch of land, we have had some more trees taken down, an excavator started cleaning up, they will be back tomorrow. The main access (only access) to our property was blocked for a couple of hours, so my daughter had to find another access through rocky terraine. It made it an interesting walk home for lunch. Ideas are coming fast for ways to set up our new back yard. Idea for today was a type of gazebo barbecue area. The thinking caps are on.
My oven element stopped working today, good thing it was able to cook dinner last night for guests.

Highlight: My sister called around for her usual weekly catchup over coffee. (She has been away for 3 weeks)

Thought: What do you do when the oven is out? I have a Thermomix, need I go on? The challenge in 'meal planning' is on: slow cooker, steamer, frypan, stovetop....we have electricity to be thankful for. I don't mind a challenge, what about you? ..... Dot

letter

Today's mail contained some interesting letters. Often when we get letters we wonder are the contents going to be good, exciting or disturbing. The letter from the water company, we already received the same one last week. The Telstra letter was for my iphone which I am happy to be  paying muchless for now and the other letter was from my health doctor offering me an interesting test to undertake should I wish to. So the letters I received today were not disturbing but interesting in their own right.

Highlight: Had our Life Group around for a shared meal tonight.

Until tomorrow, hope you had good mail today....Dot

Your favourite colour

My favourite colour at the moment would have to be green. This lovely shade of green is around me each day as I use the 'things' that it applies to.

I know that the tomato knife is orange, but these colourful knives are used often to cut fruit and vegies. They are nifty and perform very well.

This lovely metal colander was given to me from my daughter recently and I use it to house our fresh lemons. We love lemon in our green tea, salad dressing etc. Also, whats nicer that crepes with freshly squeezed lemon juice and sugar, yum!!

And of course my new usb cable is green. It lives near my laptop in the office to download pics from my iphone.

Highlight: Helped cater with friends for a funeral and caught up with lots of family and friends in the meantime. It always happens that way, doesn't it?

big

My God is so big,
So strong and so mighty,
There's nothing my God cannot do.

Thinking about BIG today, my first thoughts were of how BIG my God is. He can do anything!!! It won't be long now and we will be studying our bibles more in our church family. We are starting a series next week and daily we will be reading certain verses and even learning a verse each week. I am really looking forward to it and will no doubt find just how big and great my God is.
Today I had a huge task ahead of me and that was to get the washing done. It now only needs airing off (some still need to dry and bit more) and is hanging about inside.

As you can see I hung it 'spaced out' to aid in the drying process. It had a light shower on it  and it did not get to blow about much; but I will be able to put some away tomorrow, turn the rest and put the remainder away the next day. This is called 'chasing washing'. I choose to do it this way to save energy and I have the time to do so.

Highlight: Very productive day, baked, washed, quilted, administration etc. The joys of being a homemaker.

Thought:  For some encouragement and assurance, read Psalm 104. I read it in the New Living Translation. Find yourself in a quiet spot and as you read let God show you how BIG he is.

lunch

Oh boy, I was asked to take a pic of lunch before I ate it but I forgot to check this morning as we were on vocals at church. Nevermind, I took a pic of dinner. Lunch was leftover from dinner last night which was Thermi Rissotto and Quick Quiche cooked in the oven. It was SO yummo.
Here is Dinner today instead after I had had a mouthful and remembered to take a pic.

sorry no hightlight or thought please tune in tomorrow. xx

garden

Between yesterday and today I have been out in the garden a little bit. Today hubby got outside too only he ran into a bit of trouble. Last week the tree fallers cut into our main line. It was no drama as we did not need it where is was cut. Hubby needed to just put in an elbow fitting. In doing this he found the main stop tap would not budge and so we are back on tank water (thank goodness we have that option now, it has only been in place a few months) and I need to call the Water Corporation on Monday to report the fault. The afternoons have been lovely to get outside.

Trust your weekend is going extremely well....Dot

Highlight: Cooking tea (Quick Quiche and Thermi Risotto) with Shania Twain blaring!!!

chair

We purchased a couple of these chairs a few months back to sidle up to our servery. Occasionally they get used, especially when there are more people around. Sometimes my daughter and I sit up there and enjoy a cuppa together. To sit on a chair you need to have faith to do so. Someone sat on one of these chairs and the little handle you can see came out and fell on the floor. Thankfully the chair did not collapse, it just was a little scare. It was soon fixed. A few of our timber chairs at our dining table are getting a little loose, but hubby is a wonderful 'fix it' guy and will get to them soon I am sure.

Have a great weekend......Dot

Highlight: Tidied up the drive at back of house, looks great.

Thought: God is good, all the time. We have had lovely weather this week. Give God the glory for everything he provides us with.

on the floor

Hi! Just a quick blog today. I love the floor in the girls bathroom. Their bathroom has need of more renovations, but has had more done to it than ours. The 'to do' list is always there.

Highlight: This morning helping out with the local MOPS group. (Mother of Preschool Siblings)...Dot

fun

.....something fun or something you enjoy doing....

I really enjoy providing healthy meals for this household. To help me out I fill out a weekly planner which stays in view of everyone to know what is coming up. I love to find new recipes in books, mags or online to help make the best use of what I have at my disposal. Of course, I have a pile of favourites that I return to repeatly. One family member was over the fact that last week chickpeas popped up in the meals too many times, so this week I am making sure that they do not venture out of pantry; going well so far. Tonights dinner: Tuna Empanadas with salad....Dot

Highlight: Hung washing outside on the line and it dried. (the rain tumbles down in July, not today)

Thought: Proverbs 24:3 A house is built by wisdom and becomes strong through good sense.

best part of your day

The best part of my day today would have to be the sunshine. It has been a glorious day and I have been able to enjoy it inside and out. I walked about town to do a few things and was able to take in a bit of Vitamin D and add fresh air to my lungs. Inside today the house was filled with warmth from the sunny day and I did some baking, administation and general household duties.



Sunny kitchen

BRIGHT!!!

Thought: Proverbs 31 came up in my devotion this morning. I was inspired yet again.

Trust your day has been as good as mine.....Dot

busy

Well another busy day. Today was our monthly trip to the chiropractor and so we left town about 2pm and had lists to get through, out for tea, home, unpack and ready for bed. Yesterday when we visited my in-laws, mum wanted to give us a piece of a huge pumpkin she had received. It was not long before I noticed they were all busily deciding on which knife to use, how best to cut through it etc etc, so out came my iphone for the pic for today. Today I baked the pumpkin in the oven to use for meals over the next couple days (Chicken Curry, Hummus, etc)
If you would like the recipes, let me know and I will send them to you. They have been 'triple ticked' in our home and guests love the Hummus with crackers.

Highlight: Today it would have to be the hour I spent in the supermarket and finding most items on my list were a bargain. 

Thought: Proverbs 2:11 Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe.

All the best for the week ahead.....Dot

self portrait

Fancy being asked to do a self portrait at the start of a new month. We had a busy weekend and I did not have the time to put much effort into it, so I asked my daughter to take a pic for me and you will find it below.
I want to start adding something more this month. Most of the time my words are short and hopefully sweet; other times I might get a real boost and it will just flow, but hopefully not overflow.
Hope you all had a great weekend....Dot

Highlight: Enjoyed a wonderful weekend with family and friends, at church, on skype, at home.

Thought: As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend (Proverbs 27:17)