It's knitting and Soup weather.

The weather certainly is getting much cooler, not yet cold enough to crack the gas heater out, just adding extra layers of clothing.

I got to thinking I don't have any winter hats, so I went on a virtual search for one I could knit. Didn't want a beanie so searched for a beret, couldn't find one I liked so I tried the word Tam. Found a great pattern, Tam Topper. I'm not a fast knitter but this knitted up quickly, I'm sure a quick knitter could pop it out in less than a day. I'm happy with how the Tam looks but not sure about it on me, looked better on my daughter but she said it was too loose. The band is a little loose I think I'll add elastic but I think on me it looks like I'm wearing a snood. Cassie thought it looked ok, maybe it's just me I'm not used to wearing this sort of cap. I have it on right now, my head is feeling very warm which is very nice. I used Panda Magnum Soft 8ply to make this one, used the needle size recommended in the pattern. I usually am a tight knitter so the tension has seemed to work out well - thinking next time I may go for the next size down for the band to tighten it a touch.

Tonight for dinner we had the remainder of a Pumpkin soup I made earlier in the week. My Pumpkin soup is a simple very basic one, I cook the pumpkin in a stock - sometimes chicken but this time I used a powdered vegetable stock with water. Once the pumpkin is cooked I mash it with a potato masher then decided it had too much liquid, I let it reduce for a while before pureeing enough for 3 bowls. Last night I cooked pasta, used some of the unpureed soup to coat it and added some bought pasta sauce, it was delicous. I had made the rest of the family a meat sauce (sneakily added some leftover oatmeal from breakfast to add extra fibre - no one noticed a thing) after my son ate his first serving he came back for seconds so tried my pasta - he ate all my leftovers.

I made bread during the week in the bread machine, I haven't been happy with how the bread has been turning out of it lately looks like I need to get a new one. The bread tastes great but falls in on it's self. I thought it was because I've been using US measurements in recipes I've found on the net but finally found my bread recipes and even with metric measurements it did the same thing. I ended up with a heavy but very delicious bread. I was looking at a machine at Auldi today, it makes a long loaf as opposed to a tall loaf but I'm not sure about the brandname.

Wholemeal Bread

Ingredients

290 ml cold tap water
420g/3 cups wholemeal flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons oil (or butter)
2 teaspoons dry yeast


Place ingredients into bread machine in the order listed. Try not to let the yeast touch any liquid just yet. Set your machine to large wholemeal and just sit back and wait for the machine to do it's thing.

Anzac Day

I just finished writing my last post when I realised I had neglected to mention Anzac Day, it is so important that I didn't want to just tack it on the end, it deserves it's own posting.


Today is the the anniversary of the day that The Australian And New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) landed in Gallipoli. 0ver 8000 Australian and 2700 New Zealand troops lost their lives in a disasterous 8 month seige. We commemorate all our lost and returned soldiers from all wars on this day.

My family didn't attend any of the official ceremonies but stood at a Memorial on Observatory Hill at sunset remembering those who didn't return. My maternal Grandfather fought in New Guinea during the WWII, my Paternal Grandfather was also in the Army but he was stationed in Sydney to defend our homeland - I don't know if he went further afield. He had a trade so was a valuable asset during wartime. One of his brothers passed away in a POW camp in WW1, I've always felt close to Uncle Harry and will always think of him on this day, as well as many many times during the year.

Lest we forget.

There has been talk in the past that Anzac Day was dying out along with the Servicemen who returned from that campaign but I don't think it ever will while we still send young Australians to battle and the ultimate sacrifice. Friends of my father lost their son in Afghanistan in 2007, he was only 26.

Lest we forget.

Luna Park

Image from Visit NSW

My husband, son and I went to Luna Park today, I haven't been there for so long - sometime in the 80's I think. Cost us $30 each for ride all day tickets. Our first ride was on the Wild Mouse roller coaster. It was a terrifying ride, I am so glad I was in a car on my own, David and Thomas were in their own one, I don't scream when I'm scared on a ride I giggle hysterically with a few swear words tossed in. I like bigger coasters much better, this one had a lot of tight u turns where it felt like the car was going to get tossed off the track. We then decided to have lunch, surprisingly the cost of which was very reasonable especially for an amusement park. After that we went into Coney Island, unfortunately the fact that I wore open shoes meant I couldn't go on most of the things in there. We did go into the hall of mirrors twice. The park started getting very busy and the lines were getting longer, Thomas and I went on the ferris wheel, I enjoyed that, Thomas told me he doesn't like heights and kept a good grip on the bars. The veiws from up there are nothing short of amazing, great views of the harbour and city.





While the boys lined up for a ride I decided to take a walk along the harbour foreshore to a little sandy beach.
I really enjoyed that and was turning back when I noticed David and Thomas coming along the path, they said the line was huge so didn't bother. We decided not to go back the park but walked along the shore then up to the harbour bridge and across it. Ended up on Observatory Hill, took a walk around the Observatory grounds, the building itself was closed, then walked back over the bridge back to the Park. David and Thomas had taken off their wristbands by then, I had accidently made mine too loose so would have been able to get it back on but we decided to head home instead of spending more time.

Next time I go I will either remember to wear closed in shoes or not buy a ticket at all. The park is free if you aren't riding. There weren't many rides that I would go on, I refuse to go on anything that spins, last time I did that was Australia Day 2 years ago - one ride had me green and I had to lay down for an hour til I felt remotely right, never again. Even watching the Rotor today had me feeling dizzy. I did give myself a sweet treat, had fairy floss on a stick. Actually the stick turned out to be joined wooden chopsticks - my frugal self wouldn't let myself throw them out - they weren't the normal rough cut ones these were nice and smooth with rounded tips. I just washed them and popped them in my bag.

The day was a rare extravangance for us, we did this instead of going to the Easter show, this was the cheaper option.

I nodded off in the car on the way home and then fell asleep while watching Mythbusters, missing all the good bits.

BUY FREE RANGE CHICKEN!!!!!

I've been watching Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's show Chicken Run. Hugh's aim in the show is to educate the public on how meat chickens are kept before they hit the stores and our plates.




Hugh set up a barn with 2 sides, one is for barn chickens and the other for free range and is running both sides to industry standards. The barn chickens never ever see daylight, a typical shed holds 40,000 birds with the space of an A4 piece of paper per bird, lights can be on for as long as 23 hours per day - read more on the Chicken Out website. Free range live in a similar barn but are able to venture outside to sun and fresh air, they are able to live happy chicken lives scratching in soil. Barn chickens grow very quickly due to being able to feed constantly - all they can do is eat, sleep and poop - the barn smells terrible because of that, if they aren't eating they just sit in their own filth. Free range chickens have a natural growth, taking twice as long to reach size and subsequently cost more to raise which is why they cost more in the stores.

The show has made both my husband and I think about our chicken eating, no longer will we be buying cheap chickens that have no explaination on the package as to how they were raised. Usually we don't buy fresh chicken, it seemed easier to buy ready cooked but no longer wil we be doing that either.

David bought our first fresh chicken in ages last week, he told me it was the only chicken that had anything about it's raising on the package, problem was that it came from the wrong side of the shed. I will admit it was a delicious plump bird and I was able to make it stretch for 3 meals. First was a roast dinner for 4 people, a similar meal again for 4 was made by heating the meat up in gravy and then I made stock from the carcass. Used the stock and remaining meat to make a Chicken and Vegetable Soup that made 4 servings. The chicken cost just over $10, which is what we pay for a much smaller cooked one, we usually get 2 because they don't have much meat on them.

A couple of days later I found an organic free range chicken at another supermarket for around the same price, it's a smaller bird which only will do one meal plus soup. I was so happy to find it that we have had chicken meals 4 times this week, from now on all our chicken will be free range and home cooked.

I just noticed that Hugh is a whole 8 days older than I am.

No Buy Birthday Gift

Today was my Great Niece's 2nd Birthday party, as usual I left the gift buying til almost the last moment. Had thought I would take a run into Big W and buy either clothes or toys. Yesterday afternoon I had a change of heart, I decided I wanted to make something for her instead so headed into the sewing room to see what I could find. Decided on a teddy bear, I already had the patterns traced out onto to green chenille fabric. The bear went together very well seeing as I winged it, couldn't find the magazine I got it out of. I did have trouble getting the nose right, after so many goes and subsequent unpickings I was sort of happy with it. After I got the bear made it was a matter of finding the right fabric to dress it with, found a pretty rose fabric and some lace. I also used the fabric to make a little bag just the right size for a 2 year old. I think the results are pretty good, even if they did get tossed aside because Dora's Napsack was the next gift out. Later she played with the bear.

I also added something else to her gift, a Barbie doll that I bought on special for $3 about 3 Christmas' ago, I gave it to her about half an hour after the first part of the gift. She loved it and wanted the box opened right away. Barbie had her hair brushed, got fed chocolate cake and covered in the same in the first 10 minutes. I had to wash her under the garden tap. I spent no extra money on anything, I made the card and used one of the free 300 gift bags - a paper heart shaped doiley covering the company name.

Happy Easter!

Having a well earned break, don't have to go back to work until Tuesday and am enjoying the time off.


I've spent time this weekend making more Japanese Knot Bags, both my mum and daughter wanted one. Mum told me to choose the fabric, while Cassie had her own definite idea of what she wanted. She doesn't like prints only plain. She found a cardigan of mine, first told me it smelt nice and then that she wanted the bag to be the same colour. Just happened that I had the exact colour Onasberg fabric. Then she chose one of my cherished fabrics that I was hoping to make a weekender bag out of, but hadn't bought enough. I think I was more shocked that it was a print, so cut into it with a just a twinge of regret. She also asked if I could make the bag reversable, funnily enough that is what the pattern is for. I made up both bags and was very pleased with them, as were the recipients. I then decided to make one for my sister in the same fabric but in a different colour range, couldn't decide which colour I liked best, navy or purple so I used both. I love the results so much I have to make myself one.

When my husband saw the fourth bag I made he asked me if we will be having a squillion of these bags all around the house, hmm could be LOL.



Sewing has really put me into a good mood, my fingers are tingling to do more. Have been searching the net to find other things to do.

Japanese Knot Bag

After being away from my sewing machine for ages I spent an hour or so whipping up this cute bag. I found the pattern at
Show us your Workings. It's a very easy pattern and sewed up in no time. As soon as Mum and my daughter saw it they asked for one each. They are going to the Easter Show on Tuesday and would like to use them. We decided it would be extremely hard to pickpocket, my son thought he'd have a go and put his hand where he thought the opening was only to find his fingers popped out under the small handle on the outside of the bag. I am thinking of using demin to make my daughter's bag out of demin, instead of sewing the handle seams on the inside I am thinking of doing it on the outside and fraying the seams. Think it will look good. Photos to come.

I've been using mine to carry my knitting on the train, I'm back to knitting socks. The bag is almost perfect size, just need another 1 or 2 cm length in the bag section so that the needles fit in perfectly.