Christmas Shopping

Yes, you read the title correctly.

I did some Christmas shopping yesterday.  Belle and I had previously discussed the possibility of taking the girls to see ‘The Lion King’ when it comes to Sydney at the end of the year.

I received an email advising of the pre-sale release of tickets for ‘The Lion King’ so I have bought tickets to the show for Miss O and Izz for Christmas.  Belle and I will take them to Sydney to see the matinee session on New Year’s Day.

By being organised I was able to take advantage of the pre-sale offer and have managed to get excellent seats at reasonable prices.

This is a perfect solution as we will not see the children on Christmas Day this year, nor do they need any more ‘stuff’.  Experiences such as attending live theatre and musicals provide so much joy and the benefits are immeasurable.   Miss O is still talking about when she saw ‘Mary Poppins’ 18 months ago.  How many toys have that sort of longevity?

My Day

Most of what I post is about a particular project or activity but tonight I thought I would share my Saturday with you.  Our weekends are precious and we try to make the most of the time.

I work full-time and have a lengthy commute, so during the week it is usually all I can manage to prepare and eat dinner and make our packed lunches.  Sometimes I do the ironing but that is about the limit.

The Duke and I are the only ones at home and many things have been simplified and streamlined.

I woke at 5.30am so I quickly hopped up and put a load of washing on.  I am trying to be more diligent about using power before sunrise and after sunset.  This means we maximise the benefit of the solar panels by exporting to the grid at 50c/kWh and using it (at night) for 28c/kWh.

Once the washing was on I crawled back into bed and read my book for an hour.  Then it was time to be up and going.

Breakfast eaten, dishes done and washing hung out.  The Duke put a loaf of bread on to bake in the breadmaker.  The bed stripped and remade.  A second load of washing sorted and ready to wash this evening.  Handwashing done.

Floors swept, vanity and mirror cleaned.  While I am doing these jobs, The Duke is sorting out finances and adjusting the budget.

That is enough housework for the day so it is time to head outdoors on this gorgeous autumn day to work on some of our projects.  It is not quite 9am.

At least one of the chickens has been doing a fine imitation of Houdini recently so we need to make some repairs to the chicken run to make sure they are contained.  We use some tent pegs to anchor some of the wire to the ground so hopefully that problem is sorted.

In January The Duke and my brother-in-law replaced a large portion of our front boundary fence.  We also put new wire along the front of the house below the verandah.  This was not finished off and tensioned and it has been a source of much debate as to exactly how we would do it.  A few weeks ago, The Duke painted some timber which he attached to the metal posts at each end so that we could secure the wire.  Today we tensioned the wire and attached it to the posts.

Time for a break and lunch.

We also needed to find a solution to securing from the end of the wire to the wall of the workshop and had decided that we would construct a concrete block wall and then top it with a piece of timber lattice.

The Duke painted the lattice last weekend.  We had also poured the first part of the concrete footing for the block wall.

Today we laid the first few blocks.  It is quite a challenge working in a confined space so we will be very glad when it is done.  We are certainly not giving up our day jobs but I am very happy with what we have achieved so far.  Once the wall is built to level at the left-hand end in the photo, we will place the lattice on top of the wall and secure it at both ends.

Even though almost everything we have constructed recently has come from second-hand or salvaged materials I am mindful that I do to not want it looking like Steptoe & Son.

I have been working on the design and plans for our vegetable garden fencing and a new chicken run adjacent to the garden.  This afternoon we marked out the position of the corner posts and discussed the location of the hen house.  We also checked how many posts we already have and it looks as though we will only have to buy a few more.  These are mostly the longer ones which we need for the higher fencing around the chicken run.

Once the sun had set I put on the load of washing I sorted this morning.  Then it was time for a shower, prepare dinner and watch Gardening Australia (my inspiration).  I checked the solar inverter – the panels generated 19kWh today.  That is pretty good when it is only a little over 6 weeks until the shortest day of the year.

Dinner was eaten, washing hung out and the final load put in the machine.

The last load of washing is finished and once I finish this post I will hang it out.  I use the clothesline under the verandah so it is safe and easy to access at night.

It has been a full and productive day.  I am happily exhausted and will enjoy a good night’s sleep.

I hope you had a good day and I am looking forward to doing it all again tomorrow.

 

Slow Living – April

Here we are with another month ended and it is time to for a review in the spirit of Slow Living Essentials

I must say that a do feel like a bit of a fraud as there does not seem be anything slow about our lives.

Here are the Slow Living categories:

{Nourish}  We have continued to be very diligent with making our packed lunches every day.  It is now 9 months since I changed my diet to one which is gluten and mostly grain free.  I am feeling much better and as an added bonus have lost 8kg.  My main focus has been ensuring that we do not waste any food.  This makes for some interesting but nourishing meals.  This was made from some leftover bits in the fridge last week.  You can read more about it here

{Green}  We are starting to reap the benefits of SAM – our Solar Air Modules.  It is essentially solar airconditioning and we are using it to very effectively keep the bathroom and bedroom warm and dry.  I can reduce the humidity from 90% to 65% in the matter of a few hours.  You can read more about it here

{Grow}  It is well into autumn but I have still been picking cherry tomatoes and cucumbers.

{Create}  We have made 2 more raised garden beds.

{Discover}  I have made a start on putting all of the family history research into a computer program and getting rid of a pile of paper in the process.  I am discovering new facts and remembering some previous discoveries as I do it.

{Enhance}  I have gifted 2 pairs of boots via Freecycle.

{Enjoy}  I have celebrated my birthday, met a friend for lunch and spent a morning with another friend – morning tea and then window shopping.

Now I am off to check out some of the other slow living blogs.

Til next month………..

Deep Clean & Dressed For Winter

Today I had a deep clean in our bedroom.  I took the mattress and base off the bed so that I could vacuum properly underneath it.  I turned the mattress when I replaced it.

I cleaned the windowsills, cornices and skirting boards.

The valance on the base was washed.

The valance was replaced and the bed remade with fresh linen.  I have swapped the light coloured doona cover that we use during the summer months for this one.

It changes the look of the room.  Although it is the same fabric, the darker colour  feels right for the cooler weather.  I have not yet put the feather doona on the bed – we have a cotton blanket and lightweight polyfill doona at the moment.

The weather is still quite warm at the moment but we will make gradual changes as needed.

 

Getting Back on Track

I have had 2 weeks back at work since my holidays and I still feel as though I am chasing my tail at home.  Somehow everything has been done but the smooth process seems to have flown the coop.  In fact, last Friday morning I had to iron a shirt for The Duke as there were no business shirts in his cupboard.  That was not good.

This weekend has been pretty busy as Miss O and Izz came to stay and that certainly limits what I get done.  However, I have managed to finish the washing and ironing, written a menu plan and have the meals prepared for Monday and Tuesday.

Do you plan your meals?  What is your process?

I have have also decided what I will wear to work tomorrow so I feel as though I am ready to start the week.  How about you?

A Man’s Got to Have a Hobby

Or so runs the title of William McInnes’ book which was published several year ago.  ‘Autobiography’ is far too staid a title for this gem of literature which is a memoir of his youth.  The title comes from his father’s enduring, but seemingly useless efforts at standing for public office.  When asked why he continued to involve himself in this way, his eternal answer was, “A man’s got to have a hobby”.  Politics was his passion.

Do you have a lifelong passion or interest?  My interests tend to wax and wane depending on what else is going on in my life.  Not on a week to week basis but for years at a time.  The passion never really leaves but can be hidden or set aside if it does not fit with my current lifestyle.

I tend not to do craft for the simple sake of doing it – there needs to be a purpose.  I can remember a friend trying to entice me to join a patchwork group when my daughters were at primary school.  I was working part-time and was busy with many activities relating to the children as well as running a household.  Yes, I loved to sew but my skills were used to make clothes for the family.  My somewhat pithy response to her invitation was, “Why would you waste time cutting up bits of perfectly material to sew them back together?”

Patchwork is a very old craft and I understand the value of patchwork and quilting to create warm rugs from material salvaged from old garments or scraps of new fabric.  However, what I was seeing was women, some of whom could ill-afford it, buying expensive new fabric and gadgets in order to create what was essentially artwork.  So what happens to these when they are completed?

This is not to say that I have never used the principles of patchwork.  Here are a couple of examples of things I have made.

This jacket evolved because I had piles of offcuts of fleecy fabric from making tracksuits for the girls.  None of them were of any use by themselves but I could not bring myself to throw them out.

New fabric was bought specifically for the doona cover.  The cover was required so it was a matter of buying one or making it and using fabric that incorporated Miss O’s favourite character was appealing.  A cover made using only the Dora fabric would have been much too overwhelming.  Additionally, the use of some plain colours reduced the overall cost.

In time gone by, I spent a number of years doing some family history research.  I achieved one particular goal with the research but always felt that there was more that I could do – if I had some spare time.  The paperwork and notes were carefully set aside and had not been touched for the best part of 15 years.  That is, until recently, when I decided to bite the bullet and join ancestry.com.au  I am still finding my way around the site and gradually transferring all of my records and notes into my custom-designed family tree.  As well as the records I plan to also add copies of some historical photos so that they will all be preserved and accessible in one place.

I had a large file in the filing cabinet but I am slowly and systematically going through the information and once it is saved I am discarding the sheets of paper.  So as well as rekindling my interest in one of my hobbies I am decluttering yet more of the filing cabinet.  I am looking forward to having all of my information together in this new (to me) format and then delving once again into finding out more about our ancestors.

Project 333 – One Year On

Today I wanted to share with you how I choose what to wear each day.  My inspiration is Courtney Carver and Project 333 although I do not precisely follow the principle of 33 items for 3 months.  We live in a mild climate and many items can be worn almost year-round so I have chosen to have a simple selection of clothes which can be worn in a variety of ways and most importantly, that suit my lifestyle.  I have never had a huge selection of clothes but since discovering the concept of Project 333 nearly 12 months ago I have streamlined my wardrobe and made the items I have really work for me.

Since going back to work last Tuesday I set myself a mini-challenge.  I wanted to see how many outfits I could create that I had not previously worn before.  It can be something as simple as a different cardigan/jacket or a skirt/top combination that I have not tried before.

Today is the 6th day and here is what I am wearing.

This dress is a relatively recent acquisition and I love the fact that it includes my 2 favourite colours – red and pink.  I have worn it with a red jacket but today it is a different look with a fine cotton cardigan in pink.

I am wearing sandals as it is still quite warm here (about 25C) during the day but mornings and evenings are cooler and the cardigan is also useful in the air-conditioned office.

I have streamlined my wardrobe to the extent that I do not need to trawl through it to see what I have or what goes with what.  I know exactly what I own and can plan my outfits a day or 2 in advance in my head and then simply grab the required items in the morning.

We live in a mild climate and it is officially autumn (fall).  It is hard to believe but it will get cooler over the coming months.  I need to buy some new trousers to wear to work as the one pair that I owned were discarded at the end of last winter as I had lost weight and I could have nearly ‘lost’ my trousers!  I hope to buy 2 pairs – black and charcoal grey in the same style if possible, so wish me luck!

No Frills Friday

This is not a new series of posts but simply the best title I could come up with.

The power was interrupted briefly yesterday evening so I reset the clock radio alarm for 5am before I went to bed.

The Duke usually takes care of this but he was out of town.  I re-checked that I had set it correctly then hopped into bed.  It was actually much earlier than 12.03.  That is the only picture I could find.

I am not sure whether it was the cool night, the bed to myself or just sheer exhaustion but I slept soundly and the first thing I knew was it was 5.23am.  The music was playing but the volume was quite low.

We generally leave between 5.36am and 5.40am to catch a train at 5.53am and drive almost 8km to get to the station.  I had 30 minutes to achieve the impossible!

Out of bed and showered
Teeth cleaned, medication taken
Dressed, hair brushed, face moisturised
Grab prepared breakfast and lunch
Grab my bag
Let dog out
Lock door
In the car at 5.38am and standing on the station platform at 5.48am – exactly 25 minutes from when I opened my eyes.

I am a no-frills kind of girl at the best of times so I really managed to do everything I would normally achieve in my morning routine – just at super speed.  Being organised certainly helped as I had already decided on my outfit and did  not have to trawl through a cluttered wardrobe wondering what I might wear.

I have one handbag which contains the essentials and it is ready to go.  My essentials for going to work are – rail pass, access pass for office, purse and car keys.  There are other things in the bag but that is what I need to easily navigate the day.

What is your routine?  Can you pare it down further if the need arises?

Project 333 – Goodbye Summer

We are now into March and it is officially autumn here in the Southern Hemisphere.

I was reading this post over at Extra Organised where Kim posed the question, “Have you worn all of your summer clothes yet?  If not, why not?”

This was just the reminder I needed.  My wardrobe is now sufficiently streamlined, that when I read this I could confidently answer to myself that everything had been worn except one item.

These board shorts.

I had previously identified that they probably would not survive as a long-term addition to my wardrobe but the thing that finally prompted me to move them to the op shop bag is the fact that they are much too big for me now.  So, out they go.

My summer collection will continue to be curated and upgraded but it is a good feeling to know that the number and type of clothes that I have suits my current lifestyle.

I wonder if I will be able to say the same about my winter clothes at the beginning of spring?

The Great Giveaway

I do not usually do 2 blog posts back-to-back but while I was writing my previous one Sarah posted a comment with this link about the giveaway that she received.

I had not previously had a giveaway on this blog as I did not feel that giving away more ‘stuff’ was necessarily in the spirit of what I write.  However, I thought that the milestone of 500 posts was worth celebrating and the my readers (or at least one lucky one) would be the winner.

The bag is modelled on this one and can be used for a variety of purposes – pegs, cleaning rags, dirty laundry or even children’s toys.  I would love to hear of other creative ways you could put a bag like this to use.

The giveaway, as Sarah correctly surmised is made from the remains of a doona cover and pillowcase which I bought a couple of years ago from the op shop.  While they did not have tags on, everything pointed to them being unused and they were made from a strong cotton fabric.  I have made a tablecloth, ironing board cover and now the giveaway from this fabric.

I am glad that Sarah is pleased with her surprise and as an added bonus, it matches her decor!

What do you think of giveaways on blogs?  Surprise or not?  Conditions applied?  Items supplied by sponsors /product endorsements?

I am in the process of creating a pattern and instructions to make this bag yourself so if you would like a copy please let me know in the comments and I will work out how best to share this information.  Granny, I have not forgotten you – just a bit busy these past couple of weeks.