November 2023 - PLAYWORKEATREPEAT

How We Holiday

Hello! Welcome to the November edition of Monthly Musings with Holly and Patty. This month we are exploring How We Holiday and sharing some favourite holiday traditions, recipes, treats, holiday fashion tips and a whole lot more. Thanks so much for being here. How We Holiday FAVOURITE HOLIDAY TRADITION I love putting the Christmas tree up with my family on the first weekend in December. My kids are all grown up and one flew the nest a few years ago. So it’s just the three of us now. I can’t say that we still have that childhood excitement about decorating these days. I wish I could go back and bottle up all the excitement from when my kids were little and all living under one roof. Those days go by way too fast! But I do love that my husband and son are happy to decorate with me. Sam gets the honour of putting the star on the tree and these days I don’t even have to lift him up to reach. FAVOURITE HOLIDAY FASHION ITEMS OR ACCESSORIES I can’t say that I have favourite fashion items or accessories. We don’t do ugly Christmas sweaters or matching flannel PJs because it’s summertime over here. Although I don’t have any particular favourite holiday fashion items. I do love that this is the time of year when I get to dress up the most. We have a few holiday parties during this season so it’s the perfect opportunity to wear some of the things from my wardrobe that I don’t normally wear during the year. If I don’t shop my wardrobe then the holiday season is also the perfect excuse to go clothes shopping! FAVOURITE HOLIDAY RECIPES My favourite holiday recipe is my fall-apart roasted pork leg as it’s super easy to make and tastes delicious. I usually make it for Christmas Eve and if I am entertaining a crowd any time during the year then it’s also the perfect recipe. I like to make some festive drinks to share on Christmas Eve and this year I will be making some pretty-looking White Christmas Margaritas! HOW WE CELEBRATE THE HOLIDAYS We celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve. The whole Cousin Connect crew get together for a night of feasting. We have a big turkey, ham, and pork with all the delicious trimmings. Then after we eat so much that we can hardly move we get into some hilarious minute-to-win-it-style Christmas games. HOLIDAY LIGHTS We usually go out and see the Christmas lights. It’s a bit of a hunt when it comes to finding suburbs in Sydney where homes are decorated with lights. You don’t really find entire streets filled with light displays. But there are some pockets of neighbourhoods and suburbs in Sydney that are very impressive. You just have to find them! There is a house near where we live that has an amazing light display so we usually stop there for a look. HOW I DECORATE MY HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS Some years I like to go all out and add decorations to every room of the house. Other years I keep it low-key, it depends on my mood and energy levels. I’m not feeling the decoration vibe this year so I will probably keep things minimal. That’s the plan at the moment but I may change my mind and get enthusiastic. Here is a 2021 Christmas home tour. CHRISTMAS TREE – REAL OR FAKE Definitely fake all the way! The only time we ever got a real tree was when we were first married and living in a tiny unit. Once Christmas was over we didn’t know what to do with the depressing dead tree. I think we had to wait for ages until the next council clean up and I vowed that I would never get a real one ever again. FAVOURITE HOLIDAY TREATS Definitely nougat, egg nog and shortbread biscuits! GIFTS FOR PETS Ummm no……sorry Mochi and Sushi. BEST TIPS TO MAKE THE HOLIDAYS LESS STRESSFUL I think my number one tip is to try not to get caught up in making everything perfect. Instead, enjoy the time with your family and friends because life is too short to stress over the small stuff. Hosting Christmas Eve in our small home used to stress me out as trying to squeeze everyone in was a challenge. But with a few adjustments and following some tips for entertaining in a small space, we made it work. When I think back on those gatherings, I highly doubt any of us remember the nitty-gritty details. We just remember the joy, fun and laughing until our stomachs hurt playing those crazy Christmas games. Happy Holidays!

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November

3 Comments / Family Life

Hey, friends welcome to the November edition of ‘What’s Up Wednesday’. Wow, it’s the last Wednesday of November. Can you believe how fast the year has gone by? I’m excited to be here today linking up with Shay to share a little bit of what’s been going on for us in November. Let’s go! WHAT WE’RE EATING THIS WEEK It’s nearly the end of the school year and I feel as if I’m running a bit low on inspiration. So I’m keeping my meal planning simple and mainly sticking to old favourites. This is what this week’s menu looks like. Monday – Turkey burgers and chips Tuesday – Spinach, fetta and ricotta rolls Wednesday – Barramundi, baby potatoes and salad Thursday – Chicken pie, mashed potatoes and peas Friday – Steak sandwiches Saturday – Roast chicken, rice and salad WHAT I’M REMINISCING ABOUT I can’t think of anything that I’m reminiscing about at the moment because this is my favourite time of the year. I’m too busy thinking about all the fun events that are on the horizon! WHAT I’M LOVING My new reading glasses! Ha, I didn’t think that this would be something I would be loving but I sure am! When I saw the optometrist earlier this month she confirmed what I already knew – my vision had changed. I have always worn glasses for distance but when the food on my plate started to look blurry and I lost my superpower ability to read the teeniest tiniest writing. I knew something had shifted. Now that I have been wearing my new glasses for a few weeks. I have been loving the frames that I chose because they are so light. The glasses came in a bright yellow case I will never lose because you can spot them instantly. But best of all now I can see so much better when I’m reading and working on the computer. I hadn’t even realised how almost without noticing I was getting closer and closer to the screen so I could see better. Now I can sit in a much more comfortable position without having my nose practically touch the screen. Winning! WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO We’ve had a great November and we’ve done quite a few fun things. First of all, in early November the weather was so good! It was sunny and the temps were on the way up. I really enjoyed seeing all the pretty gardens blooming and the Jacaranda trees on my walks. I have been eating this nougat almost nonstop. But I’ve stopped now because Aldi has run out of them. We enjoyed some nice meals out. As well as many cozy evenings at home in front of the TV eating sweet treats. I went to the city with my lovely friend and we enjoyed looking at the beautiful David Jones Christmas windows. They have done a great job this year and I think they are the most festive and colourful ones I have seen in a while. If you are in Sydney then you should definitely go and have a look. I think you’ll really like them. I hosted a fun Miss Universe watch party and now we have decided to make this a yearly tradition. We visited the Danish Christmas markets and I saw my cousin perform in the NSW School Spectacular. November was a great month! WHAT I’M DREADING I’m not dreading anything and that always makes me happy! WHAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT I’m off from work tomorrow and Friday. I have some time owing for attending after-work staff meetings and I accumulated enough hours to have two whole days off. So I’m going Christmas shopping in the city on Thursday and I’ve got a lunch date with my husband on Friday. With my two days off this week, it means that I only have twelve more work days to go until we break up for the summer holidays! Yee-ha! WHAT I’M LISTENING TO Mochi was jumping all over me as I was trying to type. I got her off me as her little nails are kind of sharp so she plonked herself on top of my keyboard. I figured that the only way I was going to be able to keep typing was to turn on her automatic laser cat toy. So now I’m listening to the gentle hum of her toy and mochi pouncing around trying to catch the red laser light. Good luck with that Mochi! WHAT I’M WATCHING I started watching part I season 6 of ‘The Crown’. I didn’t like season 5 and now I can’t say that I’m totally enjoying season 6 as it’s so sad. But I do think that it’s better than the previous season. Part II of season 6 comes out on the 12th of December. We are up to season 12 of Blue Bloods and still loving it so much. Did you hear that season 14 will be the final season ever? I’ll miss watching the Reagans having family dinner and I’m sad that this amazing show is coming to an end. WHAT I’M WEARING I always forget to take pics of what I’m wearing. These are the only two photos that I took of what I wore in November. My favourite soft flared jeans with front pockets. I have also been wearing my favourite canvas shoes that I bought when The Gap store opened up in Sydney for about 5 minutes many years ago. Sadly Gap didn’t take off over here and all their stores closed down. But at least I have these nice canvas slip-ons that are super comfortable and have lasted forever! WHAT I’M DOING THIS WEEKEND It’s time for Cousin Connect on Saturday and I’m hosting. I always look forward to our monthly family catch-ups! Then on Sunday, we are putting our Christmas tree up. I always wait until the first weekend in December to put the tree up. We usually play some Christmas music, drink egg

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My Fun Weekend

11 Comments / Family Life

Hi there friends, welcome to this week’s edition of Hello Monday! I can hardly believe we’re already heading into December. I mean seriously. What happened to November?? I’m torn between wanting time to speed up because the summer break can’t come fast enough for me. But at the same time, I want things to slow down because there is so much to do! Anyway, I’m so glad you have stopped by today to join me as I share a bit about my fun weekend. The Danish Christmas Markets Saturday was just so much fun! I had been looking forward to the Danish Christmas markets for weeks and finally, Saturday was the day. My friends picked me up and we drove an hour to get there. It’s such a long way! In the car, we were talking about the possibility of next year making it a mini Christmas getaway and staying somewhere overnight. Because driving so far made us all feel like we were going on a holiday. So we thought why not make it one next year? The weather was just so gloomy and rainy. I was a bit worried the whole event might get cancelled because it rained quite heavily overnight. But luckily the rain held off and it only drizzled very lightly. All the cheery red and white Danish flags and beautiful Christmas decorations more than made up for the grey skies. The Danish Church in Australia hosted the Christmas market. I thought they did an amazing job organising this big event, considering how small the church grounds are. The whole venue was packed full when we arrived! There were people everywhere and I was so happy to be there. We missed going last year because we went to a beautiful wedding instead. Then the two years before COVID took away all the fun Christmas events. Christmas Decorations There were so many beautiful handmade Christmas decorations. I didn’t want to buy anything as I’m being more intentional with how I spend and I really don’t need any more Christmas ornaments. But it wasn’t easy and I did give in and I bought one small decoration. These advent candles are great. I’m sure that I have one stored away from last year. Hopefully, I’ll find it when I get my tree and Christmas decor out on the weekend. More cute decorations! I love these simple white Christmas tree ornaments. They’d go great on a minimalist-style tree. I bought some three years ago and I liked to hang them on some decorative sticks I had in a big pot in the dining room. Except I recently changed things up a bit and I replaced the sticks with a plant. I’ll have to find a new place to hang these cute white ornaments this year. A Danish Lunch After wandering around for a bit we were all starving so we stopped at the church hall for some Danish fare. We had a choice of different types of open sandwiches. I ended up choosing the sandwich with the prawns because it came with Danish brown bread (I can’t remember the name). I figured that if I wanted the full Danish experience then I should eat the traditional bread instead of the usual white bread. The sweet almond pastry I got on the side for dessert was delicious. I could have easily eaten another of everything it was so good! I had a Danish beer even though I don’t often drink beer. The real Santa came and said hello. Hehe. It felt great to be there enjoying the tradition of going along to the Christmas markets. Now I can tick this off my mental bucket list. I haven’t written my December bucket list yet. So I better hop on it because it will be January before I know it! 2023 School Spectacular On Saturday evening I went to the Qudos Bank Arena in Olympic Park to see my little cousin perform in the 2023 School Spectacular. I was quite literally blown away by the amazing talented kids who performed. Oh my goodness, there were so many kids!! The NSW School Spectacular is a huge annual event. It features students from various schools near and far performing dance, music and drama. Friends, it was absolutely amazing!! The whole arena was packed once everyone was seated. There were so many colourful costumes and the dance routines were amazing. It was the 40th anniversary of the School Spectacular which began in 1983. To celebrate they did a whole medley of 80s songs and I wanted to jump out of my seat and dance because I think 80s music is the best! The kids wore 80s-style wigs to celebrate the decade with the most interesting and iconic hairstyles. We got these light-up wristbands that we could wave around during the show. Look at all those kids! We Found Our Girl! There was a sea of kids everywhere and while we were trying to find my cousin. We all joked that it was like playing a big game of ‘Where’s Wally’. But we managed to spot her when she came onto the stage to perform and miraculously she spotted us after she scanned the crowd. It helped that we were waving and practically jumping out of our seats like crazy. When she saw us she was in the middle of her song and dance routine. She gave us a huge smile and a little wave and then she couldn’t help herself. She paused her performance and jumped up and down waving back big time. It was just the cutest moment! After the show, we walked along with the masses to find my little cousin who was waiting at a designated spot. There were big hugs and huge congratulations on a fabulous performance. We battled the crazy traffic home and everyone came back to my place for a cup of tea. I had such a fun time and I was so proud of my little cousin. She’s eleven

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Happy Friday

3 Comments / Friday Favorites

Hey there friends welcome to Friday Favourites and happy Thanksgiving to all my friends who celebrated yesterday. I hope you had a wonderful time with your family. Now it’s time to share a few favourites from the week, thanks so much for being here today. On Monday I shared with you guys all about the fun time I had with my girl cousins on Sunday. We got together for a high tea-style lunch, bubbly drinks and a Miss Universe watch party. I had plans to make my own cupcakes and other sweet treats and then realised that I clearly must have rocks in my head. Because first of all, I’m not really much of a baker and secondly, I am always running low on time! So instead of stressing myself out trying to make everything from scratch. I gave myself a break and bought cupcakes, macarons and chocolate hazelnut tarts from the supermarket. The tarts that I bought came in the form of this amazing kit from Woolworths. The kit came complete with the tart shells already made, a piping bag full of chocolate hazelnut filling and crushed walnuts to sprinkle over the top of the tarts. Ha! It was so easy to put together and I almost felt like I had made them myself. They were so delicious! I love the chocolate and hazelnut combo because it tasted like Nutella. So I will definitely be buying this kit again. I found this lovely candle at TK Maxx the other day and it smells amazing! My favourite candles are from Ecoya but they are so darn expensive so I haven’t bought one in a while. I can’t justify paying nearly $50 for a candle even if it smells divine! This one was only $12.00 and if I see it again I will buy another one for sure. That’s the thing with TK Maxx, you can usually find a great bargain. But there’s never a guarantee that you’ll find the same gem more than once! I used my small battery-operated milk frother and made myself a delicious matcha latte the other night. I love this frother because it whips up creamy foam in seconds and makes my homemade drinks feel like a fancy café treat. It was a cozy drink for a cool night. We have a blueberry bush that we planted over five years ago and this is the first time we have had so many blueberries. It’s so exciting when you have things growing in your garden especially when you have a brown thumb like me. One of the lovely preschool families gave us the most incredible gift box full of chocolates as an early Christmas present to the staff. This big box is now sitting in the staff kitchen calling at us every time we walk in! Although I tend to prefer savoury snacks to sweet snacks, this chocolate is truly delicious and worth every single calorie! I have tried a piece of everything and it’s all been so good – so far my favourite has been the coconut roughs, YUM! I usually buy the frozen shortcrust pastry for when I make quiche. But they didn’t have any at the supermarket so I bought the flaky pastry instead. The other night I made quiche for dinner and it turned out to be a nice change. The flaky pastry was so crispy and crunchy and I think I preferred it to the shortcrust. This gravy is my favourite because it tastes homemade. It’s rich, savoury and velvety – everything you want in a gravy! We had it with our chicken schnitzel that I made earlier in the week. I have been waiting for eggnog to hit the supermarket and I finally found some on Wednesday. Christmas is coming! I think most of my favourites this week are all food-related! Three weeks and two days until the end of the school year friends and this pretty much sums up how I feel! Yep, I am really looking forward to the summer holidays! We don’t have any plans to go away anywhere but at this stage, I just want to sleep for three days straight! For now, I am just so incredibly happy that it’s the weekend! It’s been such a busy week at preschool with concert practice and end-of-year craft activities. Next week looks like it’s going to be even busier as we seem to be running out of time to get everything done. I have a mash-up of concert songs going around and around in my head. It’s kind of driving me crazy! ” I know a chicken. I know a chicken….and she laid an egg and she laid an egg………..” Happy Friday! Linking up with Andrea and Erika

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David Jones Christmas Windows

My Weekend

12 Comments / Family Life

Hey everyone! Welcome to Hello Monday, I hope you all had an amazing weekend and are ready for a fresh start to the week. We’re now in week seven of term four. Friends, I’m on the countdown to the end of the school year because this girl needs a holiday!! I’m so glad that you have stopped by. Today I’m sharing some highlights from our weekend so let’s get to it! Saturday The best thing about Saturday morning is not having to wake up to the alarm! But having said that these days I have a different kind of alarm-our cats! They haven’t gotten the memo that Saturday morning breakfast for them doesn’t need to happen at 5.45 am! I fed them and went back to bed but couldn’t sleep, so I got up to do a few things. As I have shared before I try super hard to get my chores all done during the week so that the weekends are mainly chore-free. But of course, as I’m sure you ladies know, there are always things to be done! Like emptying the dishwasher. But at least I’m not handwashing dishes anymore like we used to before we got a whole kitchen renovation about three years ago. Now every time I open the dishwasher and see shiny clean dishes, glassware, pots, pans and baking trays. I am extremely thankful!! I also used the Dr Beckmann washing machine cleaner and ran the drum cycle on my washing machine. When the cycle finished my machine smelled clean and fresh. Then it was time to go to the shops to get a few things that I needed for Sunday. I decided to invite my girl cousins over for lunch and to watch the live broadcast of the Miss Universe final on the Miss Universe YouTube channel. It took me a little while for my brain to kick into action and remember what I needed to buy. So I sat there and stared at the notepad for a while before I put together a thorough list. I have learned that I absolutely need a list otherwise I forget things. Ironically, there have been times when I have reached the shops only to realise that I left my detailed list behind on the kitchen counter…grrrr!! So this time I wrote my list and put it in my handbag straightaway. Sunday One of my fondest memories as a kid and teenager was watching the Miss Universe pageant with my mum. She loved this beauty pageant so much, and together we would sit, admiring all the stunning outfits and cheering for our favourite contestants. Who of course were Miss Australia and Miss Peru! Surprisingly, when I compiled my mum’s tribute video for her funeral ( I wasn’t brave enough to get up and speak, so I spoke on the video) this is one of the cherished memories I shared. Astonishingly, when my brave cousin got up to speak she also said that it was one of her fondest memories of spending time with my mum! We hadn’t coordinated what we were going to say at my mum’s funeral, yet we both shared this significant memory. This is why the Miss Universe pageant holds such special meaning for us and why I decided to host a watch party this year. We had such a fun time and we kept wondering what my mum would have thought of some of the gowns (she was very cheeky, so we had a good laugh imagining some of her possible commentaries). Now we have decided that the Miss Universe pageant watch party will be a yearly event. It seems that we have started another tradition in memory of my mum. Miss Universe 2023 Watch Party I bought some crowns for us to wear. They were only $2.00 each from the dollar shop. I found some really nice decorations at Kmart, they have such good and affordable stuff for any occasion! I hung these paper decorations on my wire thingy that I have on the wall in the lounge room. For lunch, I decided to opt for finger foods. That way we could eat and watch at the same time. I went for a high tea vibe and served dainty snacks and treats. I made chicken sandwiches and they were so delicious! I’ve had much less successful attempts in the past, but this time was different. The secret is to use a mix of half mayonnaise and half sour cream. This combination really elevated the flavour and the texture of the sandwiches. They were much lighter and tastier. So good! Boconcini, grape tomatoes and salami skewers. Mini quiches – I bought them frozen from the supermarket and then heated them in the oven. I’m so glad that I bought this cute stand for the sweet treats, another great find from Kmart. It’s made from strong shiny cardboard and it was easy to put together too. I also love it because I can dismantle it until I need to use it again another time. So it doesn’t take up any storage space. We got super excited when Miss Australia made the top three. But the Miss Universe 2023 title went to Miss Nicaragua. We had a fantastic time and after everyone left I texted my husband who had gone to hang out at the local pool. He didn’t want to be in the way of our girls-only event. By the time he got home, I had cleared everything away and we sat down to eat some of the leftover sweet treats with a cup of coffee and watch TV. It was a really lovely weekend! I know that I have shared this photo before but I have to share it again. Here is my favourite Miss Universe, we took this pic back in 2021 when we had a family Halloween party. It was a perfect costume for our number-one Miss Universe fan! I hope you had a wonderful weekend too! Linking up with

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Friday Favourites: 17th November 2023

6 Comments / Friday Favorites

Hey there friends! Welcome to Friday favourites, it’s time to share some highlights and best moments from the week. It’s Jacaranda season in Sydney! From late spring to early summer we have the most beautiful blooming Jacaranda trees everywhere. I needed to go to the fruit shop last Saturday and instead of driving, I decided to walk because the weather was so amazing. It was a perfect spring morning and I loved soaking up the sun while spotting the gorgeous Jacaranda trees. Look I found a jar of ginger, lemon and lime marmalade at the fruit shop! I was so excited because I thought I would have to buy it online as I hadn’t been able to find it in the supermarket where I shop. I need this key ingredient for my lime and macadamia glazed ham recipe that I’m excited to make for Christmas. Winning! I bought some toys for Mochi to chew on as she’s teething and had a great time chewing through one of Sam’s charging cords! Mochi loves this Wiggle Worm Catnip Toy and Fresh Breath Mint Stick. The wiggle worm and mint stick have stopped her from chewing through cords and kept her entertained for ages. She chomps on them, flings them around and then pounces on them. So if you have a kitten who is teething then these inexpensive toys are a must-have. They will save your cords and keep your kitty happy. Our older cat Sushi likes them too so it’s a good thing that she and Mochi are now buddies and can share. Speaking of buddies…here they are together on the sofa. I didn’t think I’d see the day when they would be comfortable enough to lay around next to each other. Yay! I bought our first mango of the season and my husband asked if we had won the lottery. Ha! Sometimes the simplest foods are just the best. Banana slices on sourdough slathered with peanut butter and drizzled with honey totally hit the spot! We all love this crunchy peanut butter! On Monday we shared our favourite comfort foods on the “Not Just a Mom” link-up and I couldn’t stop craving a big dish of cottage pie. So I made one on Tuesday. I included the usual frozen corn, peas and carrots but this time I got a bit more creative and I threw in a can of chickpeas and a handful of red lentils to thicken up the sauce. It was very hearty and it tasted great. That’s the beauty of this dish-it’s so versatile that you can add almost anything! On Thursday afternoon I did something totally out of the ordinary and I went to the city after work to catch up with my lovely friend. Normally I keep these adventures for the weekend but we decided to be spontaneous and it felt so good! I left work at 3.45 and was in the city by around 4.30. We were both starving so we had an early dinner at the Westfield food court. We had burrito bowls and a small side of chips. The burrito bowls from Guzman and Gomez looked a bit bland but tasted great. It was funny because we didn’t have a plan or reason for going into the city. Following dinner, we had a good long chat and then went for a wander around the shops. We went to David Jones and on the seventh floor, there was some kind of private event going on in the Christian Louboutin section. With a DJ playing some disco music, the place was buzzing with a whole lot of people dressed up all fancy trying on Louboutin shoes and waiters were serving drinks. I said to my friend ‘Let’s just wander around and try and blend in, fingers crossed we won’t get thrown out.’ Well, we didn’t get thrown out but we didn’t get offered any drinks either (insert sad face). Afterwards, we went to the Christmas section which was way more budget-friendly than the high-end Louboutin area and had fun exploring all the pretty and festive decorations. So many quirky food-related decorations this year. I loved them! As well as some Christmas tree decorating inspiration. That wraps up a few of this week’s favourites! I hope you guys had a great week and are ready for some downtime this weekend. I know that I sure am! Thanks so much for stopping by today. Happy Friday and happy weekend, I look forward to being back here on Monday! *This post may contain affiliate links which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase through these links, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support!

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Christmas Tree Decorating Ideas

6 Comments / Christmas

Hey there festive friends! It’s the most wonderful time of the year again and Christmas is just around the corner! So that means it’s time to get decorating! Whether you are ahead of the game and already have your tree up or, like me, prefer to wait until the first week of December. It’s finally time to sprinkle some Christmas cheer and bring those decorations out. Let’s dive into the world of Christmas tree decorating, explore some amazing styles and find some inspiration to make our trees sparkle! Let’s go! Classic Elegance Timeless classic Christmas decor is all about rich reds and deep greens with shimmering gold or silver accents. Classic never goes out of style and is a perfect choice for a traditional holiday feel. Winter Wonderland If you want to turn your living space into a magical winter wonderland. Then go for a cool colour palette of whites, icy blues and silver. Decorate your Christmas tree with big white frosted ornaments and silver and blue ribbons. Boho Bliss Let your Christmas tree reflect your carefree spirit of boho chic and decorate your tree your way! Mix and match vibrant non-traditional colours and decorate with unique and quirky ornaments. This style of Christmas tree decorating allows you to express your personality big time! Minimalist Rustic Charm Create warmth and coziness using a minimalist rustic style. Use natural elements such as burlap, wood and pinecones. Earthy tones and soft lights bring a calm cabin feel. For a fun nostalgic touch, you can add some plaid ribbon. This is a simple, minimal, cozy and clutter-free Christmas tree look. Candyland Delight Christmas is all about enjoying sweet seasonal treats such as gingerbread and candy canes. The Candyland delight theme is a mix of classic elegance with sugary sweetness. To achieve this fun look for your Christmas tree, decorate with traditional reds, rich greens and gold. Then add some whimsical candies and playful decorations to turn your tree into a scrumptious feast for the eyes. DIY Extravaganza If you are a sentimental soul with a creative touch then now is your time to sparkle! Craft personalised ornaments, and string popcorn garlands. Add one-of-a-kind touches to your tree that reflect your personality and tell your story. Decorate with hand-painted ornaments, handmade beaded treasures, family photos in festive frames, and those adorable decorations your kids made in primary school. The DIY Christmas tree is a canvas for your precious memories. When it comes to Christmas tree decorating, there are no strict rules. Only endless possibilities waiting to be explored! Each style brings its own magic turning your tree into a fun holiday masterpiece. Happy Christmas tree decorating!

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Comfort Food Delights To Warm Your Soul

14 Comments / Recipes

Hey, there everyone it’s great to be back for the November edition of “Not Just A Mom”. Hosted by Adrienne, Dara, Jen, Joanne, Lauren and Sarah. Today, we’re diving right into one of my all-time favourite subjects: FOOD! Not just any food, no sir, today it’s all about cozy and nostalgic comfort food! It’s the best kind, isn’t it? Comfort Food Why I Love Comfort Food First things first, why do I absolutely adore comfort food so much? Well for me it’s all about the cozy buzz I get when I tuck into a plate of my favourite home-cooked carb-laden deliciousness. Comfort food also evokes nostalgia remembering all the wonderful times in my mum’s kitchen (she was an amazing cook!) or eating at family gatherings. Comfort food is almost like culinary therapy because it can turn a mediocre or bad day into a great one. You don’t need gourmet skills to create amazingly satisfying dishes because comfort food is all about keeping things simple. In a nutshell, comfort food is like eating a plate of happiness. Here Is a List of My Favourite Comfort Food Spaghetti Bolognese This is my favourite food and it’s number one on my list of favourite comfort foods. I love bolognese made from beef mince but lately, I have also been making it with turkey mince and it’s a real winner! Pumpkin Soup With its warm, velvety texture and the rich earthy flavour of pumpkin. A bowl of pumpkin soup topped with a rich dollop of sour cream is simply divine. It’s perfect on a chilly day and it’s the only soup that my family enjoy. They aren’t big soup eaters at all. But there are no complaints when I serve them pumpkin soup, provided of course that there are other courses to follow. Soup is not a satisfying meal for these big guys I live with! Quiche Anything with pastry is considered comfort food in my book! The warm, creamy filling encased in a buttery crust is so satisfying. Quiche is so versatile and you can add various ingredients like vegetables, meat, herbs and of course the star ingredient – cheese! Stews A hearty and simmering pot of stew is a classic example of comfort food. The slow cooking process makes everything taste amazing. There’s nothing better than a pot bubbling away with tender meat, and vegetables, in a rich flavourful broth. Chicken Pie I love chicken and leek pies, chicken and mushroom pies or the divine combination of chicken, leek and mushroom pies! A golden crust filled with delicious thick creamy chicken pie filling is just the best! Lasagna With layers of pasta, rich meat sauce and gooey melted cheese. Lasagna is a total comfort food! Fluffy Mashed Potatoes My family are huge rice eaters but I prefer creamy, buttery clouds of mashed potato. Lamb Shanks In Red Wine Sauce I think that there is nothing better than lamb shanks in red wine sauce on a cold night. The slow-cooked lamb becomes super tender, soaking up all the goodness from the rich red wine sauce. It’s delicious, hearty and makes you feel all good inside. Serve it with creamy mashed potatoes and you will be in comfort heaven! Risotto Risotto with its rich, creamy texture is a soothing and satisfying and filling dish. The best part? You can make it in so many tasty ways! If you’re into veggies, try mushroom or pumpkin risotto. If you fancy seafood or chicken, these are delicious options too! Italian Meatballs Meatballs are total comfort food when made in a rich tomato-based sauce. They are savoury and hearty and you can enjoy them with spaghetti, mashed potato or rice. Meatballs in a bread roll with a good sprinkle of cheese is just perfection! Pancakes Warm fluffy pancakes are a classic and comforting breakfast or brunch option. Serve them with syrup, fruit, ice cream or whipped cream and you have nostalgia on a plate. Pancakes are simple to make and they have that special homey appeal. I can’t help feeling like a kid when I have a stack of pancakes in front of me! Please pass the maple syrup!! Cookies Whether it’s chocolate chip, peanut butter and M&M cookies, jam drops or buttery shortbread. Cookies are the classic treat that makes you feel good. Biting into a warm fresh out-of-the-oven cookie with a cup of tea, coffee or hot chocolate is the ultimate comfort. Cottage Pie Cottage pie is made with mince and vegetables all tucked under a layer of fluffy creamy mashed potato with cheese sprinkled over the top. When I put it in the oven to bake my whole kitchen fills with an irresistable aroma promising a hearty and satisfying meal. Pasta With Butter And Parmesan Cheese Sometimes I crave this very simple dish of pasta, butter and parmesan cheese because it’s so easy to make and very satisfying. It reminds me of when I was a kid because my mum would make it for me. No wonder I love it so much! I know that comfort food is associated with cold weather but I can’t resist it all year round! If you ever feel guilty about tucking into comfort food during the summertime. Then do what I do, throw in a side salad and you’ll have guilt-free comfort!!

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Favourite Things From The Week

7 Comments / Friday Favorites

Hi friends, it’s that time of the week again – Friday favourites! I hope you have had an amazing week and are all ready.. set..go for a wonderful weekend! Today I’m sharing my top favourite things from the past week. So let’s get going and dive into some Friday fun! On Monday night we got together with our friends for dinner at our local RSL club. We met these friends when my husband was involved in a campaign to have our local pool rebuilt many years ago. The council wanted to sell the land where the old run-down pool was. Then turn the site into a block of apartments. After years and years of dedicated effort, persistence and endless meetings the council eventually gave in to community pressure and agreed to rebuild a brand-new pool. Fast forward to today and we are still friends with this lovely group of pool supporters. We meet once a month for dinner and I am a firm believer that if you want to keep in contact with friends or loved ones. Then organising a once-a-month date and sticking to it is a must! Otherwise, life gets in the way and catch-ups never seem to happen. For dinner, I ordered my usual favourite steamed barramundi with broccoli and rice. One of my friends from the group also orders this same meal every month. We always say we are going to order something different and then we don’t. It’s just too good! This jacket from Zara is a big favourite and so are my silver hoop earrings that match the zipper, ha! It’s been a strange spring so far with the temps being all over the place. So this is the perfect jacket for those nights when it’s a bit on the cool side. I wore it to dinner on Monday night. We still had leftover pork and southwest salad from our cousin Connect dinner on Sunday night. So I used these mission wraps and made lunch on Tuesday for Sam and I. That’s the beauty of having leftovers for days…you can turn them into amazing lunches! Another big favourite was walking to work in the sunshine instead of the gloomy cloudy days we’ve been having lately. This battery-powered automatic spray with essential oils was a favourite for about five minutes. I love my home to smell amazing and so I am always looking for ways to do so. I burn candles, make stovetop potpourri from time to time and like to use room sprays. When I saw this automatic room spray on sale at half-price while I was doing my online grocery order, I snapped it up. I put the contraption in my living room and expected to be dazzled by the gorgeous scent that would spray out automatically every half hour or so. Well, the darn thing scared me to death over and over!! It has the worst sound you can imagine. It’s not subtle at all, instead, it cranks up this deep creaking sound and then it makes a loud SWOOSH noise and it’s not a dainty swoosh, it’s an almighty SWOOSH! It scared the cats, me and the rest of the family. So I put it in the bathroom thinking that we wouldn’t be able to hear it anymore. But now when it goes off it still scares me because I think someone is trying to break in through the bathroom window. I’m not winning with this one and I think that I’ll either be dead soon because my heart has stopped or I’ll eventually get used to it. Stay tuned. I treated myself to my favourite Christmas nougat. This is the nougat that I love to find in my Christmas stocking. But before Christmas, I need to make sure that I have sampled a bar every week just to make sure that I still love it when I open my stocking on Christmas Day hehe. I bought this Huskee coffee cup from Amazon a couple of weeks ago and I’ve been meaning to share it with you guys. It’s my favourite reusable coffee cup ever. Last year I got a cute Frank Green cup in pink which was very pretty. But after a while, I discovered that it was not practical. It was difficult to keep clean as you had to pull the inside of the lid apart to give it a proper wash. Then do you think that I could ever manage to put it back together again easily…nope! The Huskee coffee cup is the best! The reason is – it’s just simple! With a snug lid that is so easy to wash, it has great insulation that maintains the temperature of your coffee and it’s comfortable to hold. These cups are made from repurposed coffee husks, reusable and dishwasher safe. I also love its sleek minimal design and with Christmas just around the corner, it’s the ideal gift for any coffee-loving friends! I made it to date night! Despite feeling sick with sore glands and congestion around my eyes and forehead on Wednesday. I managed to plough on and get through a busy day at work. Then in the evening, we enjoyed a lovely dinner out even though I could feel that I was going downhill fast. I took Thursday and today off from work because I ended up getting a throat infection as well as conjunctivitis in my right eye. Now I’m on antibiotics and eye drops. I’m not surprised that I ended up sick as all sorts of bugs have been going around at preschool. The joys of educator life! I installed some updates on my computer (took hours!) and now I have an amazing new moving screen saver. It’s so cool! I feel congested and my eye keeps weeping which is super annoying. But I don’t feel sick enough to stay in bed all day. So it’s been really lovely to have had a couple of days off from work. It’s been great to be

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