What’s Up Wednesday

Hey there friends it’s time for What’s Up Wednesday! It’s a little of this and that as we hang out and recap the month that just flew by. That’s right October has well and truly passed by in a blink! I can hardly believe that we are heading into the second last month of the year. HOW?? That’s right this time next week we will be welcoming November and I better get with the program because I am losing track of time!!

Thanks so much for being here! Let’s get straight into having a look at…….

WHAT WE’RE EATING THIS WEEK

I came across something interesting on my Facebook news feed the other day – the incredible benefits of following a Mediterranean diet. Apparently, it can actually help you live longer or at least improve your overall health by enjoying fresh fruit, veggies, legumes, whole grains, healthy fats, fish and even red wine (in moderation of course)

Inspired by this and the fact that I love all of these foods. I made my own version of shakshuka. In case you don’t know Shakshuka is a Middle Eastern dish packed with fresh vegetables, olive oil, and spices. All of which align perfectly with the Mediterranean diet. It’s essentially poached eggs in a flavourful tomato sauce and you can get creative by adding any ingredients that take your fancy. In my case, I raided my fridge and pantry and added – mushrooms, chickpeas and baby spinach.

I was so excited to serve health on a plate to Steve who basically said that if he had to eat chickpeas to live longer he’d rather not live longer! What a party pooper!! He did concede that it tasted good and Sam and I both loved it. Ha!

Monday – I made chicken satay stir fry, while it’s not Mediterranean it’s still packed with lots of vegetables.

Tuesday – Meatballs in a rich tomato sauce with mashed potato and green beans.

Wednesday – We were meant to be going out for dinner but we have decided to enjoy a stay-at-home date night. On the menu, we have mussels in a white wine sauce served with crusty bread as well as fresh prawns.

Thursday – Mango spiced chicken from Aldi (my favourite), roast potatoes and bean salad

Friday – Roast lamb with vegetables and hummus on the side.

Saturday- leftovers!

WHAT I’M REMINISCING ABOUT

Luke and Sam both celebrated their birthdays in October with Luke turning the big 3-0 and Sam turning 19. I just can’t believe how quickly the years went by. To me, it feels as if it were only yesterday when they were tiny tots. Waaahhhh!!!!

Here’s Luke

and Sam.

WHAT I’M LOVING

The warmer weather! Yes, we still have some days when the temps drop and it feels like it’s still winter. But generally speaking, we have had many warm and sunny spring days and I’m there for it! I also love that daylight saving kicked in this month so now our days are longer and it makes me so happy!

WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO

October has been a great month! My family came back from their fun overseas holiday with lots of fun stories to tell. We got together for our cousin connect gathering enjoyed amazing food and had lots of good laughs.

As I mentioned earlier we celebrated Luke and Sam’s birthdays. They don’t really like to have their picture taken so I don’t have a good one of them celebrating but I got good shots of their cakes!

We welcomed a new addition to our family in the form of a kitten who came to our door and would not leave. She was terrified every time any of us would go near her. But it’s almost as if she was begging to live with us. Eventually, Sam worked his calm magic and gained her trust. She let him pick her up and I don’t think she’s stopped purring ever since. We named her Mochi and she’s full of cuddles and a good dose of spunk.

Our poor cat Sushi is scared of her and although we made progress the other day and they seemed relaxed enough to be in the same room. Mochi is still feisty so we can’t trust them to be together unsupervised. Fun times!

I have also been out exploring The Sydney Opera House with my sweet friend.

It’s been a great October!

WHAT I’M DREADING

Poor Steve has an appointment with a specialist tomorrow. He has been dealing with incredibly painful osteoarthritis in his foot and he may need a bone fusion….shudder. He has been an amazingly good sport and never lets the pain get him down even though he walks with a limp and constantly flinches.

I don’t think that I would handle living with this kind of pain. As I always dread anything medically related I will have to put on my big girl pants tomorrow when I accompany him to his appointment.

WHAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT

I’m excited about Halloween and I’m hoping to go trick-or-treating with my two youngest cousins again this year. My aunt gets back from overseas this Friday and I’m excited to see her and hear all about her trip.

WHAT I’M WATCHING

I have been working my way through my cozy solo movie night list and I watched ‘Interstellar’ the other night. It was interesting but I can’t say I loved it. I have also started watching ‘The King of Queens’ from episode one and now I know why Carries dad ends up living with them. It’s a very funny show!

We are up to Season 11 of Blue Bloods and Binge doesn’t have any more seasons. I will have to find the remaining seasons ASAP because we love this show so much!

WHAT I’M LISTENING TO

I’m currently on my lunch break at work, and all around me, I can hear the kids finishing off their lunches and preparing for relaxation time. In the background, there’s soft music playing and a general buzz of children’s chatter and teachers’ voices. It will take a while before anyone is truly settled and ‘relaxing’.

WHAT I’M WORKING ON

I’m working on organising my diary. November is shaping up to be quite busy, and it looks like the pace will only increase as we head into December. I love my diary and really enjoy using different coloured pens and stickers to decorate and highlight the events I jot down. It almost makes me reminisce about my high school days. If there was a subject called ‘Folder and Workbook Decorating’. I’m pretty sure that I would have aced it!

WHAT I’M WEARING

Some days I’m wearing spring clothes and other days it’s back to wearing jackets because it’s that cold!

WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH

I’m generally excited about all of November. We have quite a few fun family things happening in addition to our monthly catch-up.

Then of course November means that it’s officially okay to start talking about Christmas and start playing Christmas music….right??

And that wraps up this month’s edition of What’s Up Wednesday! I hope you have a wonderful rest of the week and I look forward to being back here on Friday for Friday Favourites.

See ya!

Linking up with Shay