Glitterlife

Luke's B-day at the Beach!

2011-03-11T04:09:00.000+11:00

Oh my this blog is sooo neglected! Its been pretty hard to get the time to write anything at the moment. I have started my own business!!! Yes, you heard me right. It took a lot of courage and work and its all set but it takes most of the little free time I have so hence the neglect of my personal blog! I have opened an online shop for handmade toys and gifts for children. The shop and blog are called Little Wooden Shoe. You can check the blog here. You can check the shop here. I hope you pass by and check it for yourself.

Any way, my little boy turned two last month!!! Can you believe how fast it all went, it feels like it was last month I had this little newborn in my arms. So we decided to do a nice breakfast birthday on the beach. Because of the extreme hot weather we have been having over here we had to make it early in the morning, that is why the breakfast birthday. Everyone loved the idea of having it early seeing most of the parents are all awake at dawn by there little angels. So we made a cooked breakfast in the barbecue and we had cake, popcorn and other snacks for the kids. It was really an amazing day and Luke just loved it. I made his cake as his favourite cartoon character Ponyo . Naturally I did a crap job, I am no birthday cake baker but he seemed to recognise it immediately and the kids at the party seemed to love it, so mission accomplished! See trailer of the film bellow.

Very cute film!!! So bellow are some cool pictures of the party I hope you all enjoy and I am sooo sorry for the long silence.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

2011-01-03T18:35:00.000+11:00

What a year this has been!!! Full of challenges at every corner and delightful new experiences. My blogging has become less frequent but time for blogging has been hard to find with Luke becoming a toddler and needing more entertainment from me. I have opened an online shop in the end of November too, after so many comments from blog readers, friends and family always telling me that I should have a go in selling my craft. So I took the plunge and this is why we had no posts for two months. So you can find a link to the shop on the side bar of this blog or you can try going to Little Wooden Shoe blog. I already had 8 orders since opening the shop and with all the Christmas holidays it was a pretty full on month for me. But not to worry I will still keep this blog and will update as regularly as possible. Well, here are some photos of Luke during Christmas. The first set of photos is at our local shops, were they have organised something for the kids. The next set of photos is at our family Christmas. I hope all of you have a wonderful 2011!!!!

How to make a play kitchen for your kids!

2010-10-29T01:25:00.005+11:00

Every time we go visit friends or our playgroup and there is a little play kitchen, Luke spends most of the time role playing. So I have been for the past month looking into buying a little play kitchen for him, one who won't break the bank. They can range from $130 to $400! I really loved the wooden kitchens but of course they were the most expensive of the range. Ikea has a really cute wooden kitchen on display at the moment but still our budget just doesn't allow us to buy it. After a lot of looking around I have decided to make one for Luke from an old empty packing box we had left from our move. After just one hour putting the kitchen together I was surprised by how great it looks. It was also a great activity to make together even if he is just 20months old, he was very excited by the process. So here is how you make a play kitchen for your kids for less than $10.

Supplies:
1 large empty packing box
4 roles of contact paper (any colour u like)
1 stainless steel bowl
2 felt sheets (black and red)
1 empty paper towel role tube
1 kitchen tap- optional
play food
play pots and pans
Stanley knife
ruler
pen

Instructions:

Find a packing box that will be a good hight for your child. A tall box could be used for a refrigerator or laid on its side for a sink and counter. I decided to use mine on its side because I wanted to use it as a sink and stove top. Tape the box shut in all its sides.
Cover all the box with contact paper of your choice.
For the oven, on the front side of the box, cut across the top and ½ way down on both sides, to form the oven door. Place tin foil on this pull down door to represent the window to look through.
Mark area beside the oven door to make a cupboard and cut so you have two doors so your child can put all their pans/pots and play food away when done playing.
Cut three sections of the paper towel tube to make three handles. I made one wider for the oven handle. Glue these on the top oven door and cupboard doors with craft glue.
Glue the black felt on the top counter area above the oven and make two red circles with your red felt. Glue the two red circles on top of the black felt to make the stove top. You can also glue some milk bottle covers on the side to make the stove top controls.
For the sink get your stainless steel bowl and cut a smaller circle to insert the sink.
I had an old kitchen tap which I used as a sink tap, this of course is optional.

Home Made Pumpkin Bread & Strawberry Jam!!!

2010-10-13T16:46:00.001+11:00

Here in Oz we are on a tight budget at the moment. This gave me a chance to look around the web and find ways to reduce my monthly food bill. I already started a small veggie patch here in our garden and I am happy to say that my zucchini seeds are already little plants soaking the sun. The orange tree is blooming very happily and I already can see the fruits forming so we will have a great crop this year. The poor tree when we got the house was almost dead so I am very pleased by her happy recovery. We have mature almonds at the moment which the black cockatoo's are munching on, they are beautiful big birds and Luke is delighted to see them in the afternoon. Not bad for a city girl who didn't know anything about gardens!

Last week Luke and I went to the farmer's market near our home and they had strawberries on special, so I bought 1,5 kg for less then 4 dollars. Too much for our house hold so I decided to make jam out of 1kg of strawberries. I used Jamie's Oliver's recipe and I am sad to say this but, it didn't work too well. I used the special jam sugar but it is still was runny even though I left it to boil much longer than in the recipe requested. It is still yummy, don't get me wrong you can still eat it but it is more like a strawberry sauce than jam. Well I guess next time I will make it with normal white sugar, I think it would set better and also be less acidic.

Grandma bought for me a huge pumpkin so I also had more than a kilo of pumpkin in the fridge which I didn't know what to do with, so I decided to make pumpkin bread. I used this great recipe from FRESH LOAF. It turned out perfect so I have two small loafs which I will bring one to grandma when Luke wakes up from his nap. She is has the flu so I can am sure she will enjoy the bread. I changed the recipe a bit I added more spices than the recipe and also used a little less flower (just 3 cups), also I added soaked raisins in orange liquor and walnuts. Like Luke says when he smells something nice hmmmmmmmmmmmm!! Enjoy the pictures of the garden and the loafs!

I love this video!!! Enjoy

2010-10-06T01:17:00.004+11:00

I love Spring!

2010-09-26T23:44:00.001+10:00

We had a lovely weekend, the weather was just perfect! Rob and I were cleaning the gutters and eaves through out the week to get them ready to paint. So today we started painting the eaves and downpipes all white, we decided the gutters looked good enough once cleaned up. It's amazing how some paint can make such a difference, we are not done yet but it is already looking like a different house.

Yesterday Aline came by to visit us, I was very happy to see her and Nina because we haven't seen each other for over 5 months. It was a nice surprise when she left me a message in facebook saying she was coming to Perth for the long weekend. She spent the afternoon with us, Nina and Luke were all hugs and kisses; very cute! Tania, Glen and the boys came by in the end of the afternoon also for some hot-dogs, it was great to see them because we also needed to catch up. So our Saturday was a day with good friends, simple food and great weather, I couldn't ask for anything better!

Today while Rob was finishing painting, I took Luke to Lansdale Farm (petting farm) so he could work in peace and Luke could be entertained for a couple of hours. We had some great news also form Kel, she had a beautiful, healthy baby boy, so in the end of the afternoon Luke and I went to visit her in the hospital (which is three blocks away from my house, handy or what?). I got a little teary when I was holding the little bundle of joy, I must admit that I miss the baby phase even with the sleeping deprivation. It was so great to see Kel and Harley so happy with their little angel. Well that's all the news for now, enjoy all the photos from the farm and Kings Park. Take everyone!

REDWORK REDWORK REDWORK!!!!

2010-09-21T22:10:00.001+10:00

Its been pretty hectic around here in the land of OZ. Luke is growing so fast, he is a little boy running around the house and outside in the garden in the spring sun. It seems like it was just last month he was crawling around the house. Its crazy how time passes so fast once you have kids! So not only Luke keeps me on my toes throughout the day, renovations have begun here too. Which means, money is tight, trades man coming and going and chaos rains in my little kingdom. Our bathroom renovations have come to a halt because of lack of fund and of tiles due to no more funds to buy more tiles but most of Luke's bathroom is done. Renovation in Luke's bathroom will commence again in November but our roof and ceiling will be fixed next month because May's freak storm damaged both.

Spring has finally arrived here in OZ and all the flowers are blooming, magpies are starting to swoop and the days are becoming warmer. Most of you know that we have a big back yard which has been neglected for years from the previous owners, so with spring here, there is a lot of work to be done in the garden. Rob took this week off, so we could do a so needed spring cleaning in and outside our house. So since Saturday we have been busy outside picking weeds with Luke and trimming back some of the bushes. Also I have been busy with my herb and veggie patch, adding some compost to the ground and planting some seedlings. Hopefully my zucchini seedlings with flourish and all my flower seedlings too.

So you must be wondering why my post reads Redwork instead of gardening galore? Because I finally started on Kim's wall quilt, she just had her third baby girl a couple of weeks ago!!! So I am making for all three little ones a Redwork wall hanging. Its coming along great, considering I have never done any embroidery before, but pretty much its all straight stitch in red embroidery cotton thread, a no brainer really. If you would like to know more about the history of Redwork go here.So as you all can see, its been pretty busy around here. I will post some photos once the quilt is finished because I don't want to spoil the surprise for Kim, this also goes for the photos of the renovations seeing its not ready yet. Here are some more photo of Redwork but not made from me.Well take care everyone.

Life at Rosemary Hill

Bunny Tales

Agulhas da Meri

Stitching Cow

Feeling Stitchy

A cup and a catch up...

Handmade SHORT FILM by Dennis Kamioka

2010-07-19T16:43:00.000+10:00

DENIS KAMIOKA - Handmade from nkcrida on Vimeo.

Denis Kamioka is a Brazilian Japanese director who made the following 6-minute short in 2006. It’s hard to describe but it has some neat effects. Check out the official site. Enjoy!!!

1st Family Holidays

2010-07-04T02:58:00.002+10:00

Rob had to go to Singapore for a work convention and so we decided that Luke and I should join him. His parents are living in Singapore at the moment and are staying till November for work. We all left Perth excited to start our first family holidays. Luke was very good in the plane and he was so excited by everything that he just manged to sleep when we were landing in Singapore.

So while Rob was at the convention for the first week, Luke and I enjoyed Tiiu's (Rob's mom) company and the pool facilities of the Caribbean condominium where his parents are staying. The weather was very warm and humid and sometimes it was a bit too much for Luke and I, but we managed well. Tiiu is truly a great tourist guide, she took us too all the places that one should go while in Singapore. Rob and I are just horrible tourists, if it was up to us poor Luke wouldn't have seen nothing but the pool of the condo! But Luke, Tiiu and I had a great first week together while Rob did his networking in the convention for work. Rob and I had also a chance to go out together a couple of evenings which was great while grandma and granddad took care of Luke for us.

We took Luke to the Night Safari but forgot to take the camera!!! Luke loved it and was pointing at the animals, he didn't know where to look by the end of it. He managed to stay up till we got in the bus back to the city! Tiiu and I managed to get a few hours to explore Arab Street and buy some fabric, they also had some beautiful Persian Rugs that I would love to own. Also we all went during our first weekend to the Singapore Botanic Gardens which was the most beautiful park I have ever seen and been to in all my travels, specially their Orchid Garden. The weather didn't help us at the Botanic Gardens it was too hot and we didn't manage to stay longer and explore the gardens a little further.

Orchard Road was a place which I was amazed by all the beautiful malls and I had never seen so many designer shops in one street but what I enjoyed most in Orchard Road was the Japanese department store (Takashimaya). I just love Japanese fashion, food and life style so that store and the 2 dollar Japanese shop in Vivo Mall in Harbor Front were both, my favorite places to go shopping. While we are in the subject of shopping I bought two very cute pair of shoes for Luke for a bargain price, both pairs are real leather. One is a pair of boots and the other a pair of trainers for $20 dollars Singapore each, if I would have bought these shoes here I would have paid around 60 dollars each. I think the shopping experience in Singapore is just amazing!!!

One would not go all the way to Singapore and forget to have a refreshment in Raffles Hotel. So that is what Rob, Tiiu , Luke and I did, but I was shocked that three coffees cost us $35 dollars!!! But you are not paying for the coffee but for the experience, still that was a very expensive 15 minutes of my life which left me with a bit of a bitter sweet after taste. One cant ignore though what a beautiful Hotel it is, colonial in style and very well maintained so it is a must see if in Singapore even if the coffee is expensive.

We also spend an afternoon in Sintoza Island which was very hot but very nice for Luke to swim in the sea even though it was as warm as a hot bath, still we had a wonderful time and I had the best dumpling noddle soup of my life in the food hall. Luke through out the trip was like a celebrity baby, all Asian family's wanting to take picture with him. Every where we went people would stop us and want pictures with Luke by the end of the trip Rob and I were almost charging for pictures with Luke hahaha...

On our way back to Perth Luke slept for two full hours. Everyone was amazed of how good he was but I also did bring loads of toys for him so he was busy with something for most of the time. Once we got home all three of us were popped beyond belief. We were all in bed by 8:30pm. The next day Luke didnt want to leave the cot in morning and is still doing this oday, he just stays there playing with the light on (he found out how to switch the lights on in his bedroom). So I have had a great week waking up at 10:00 am! So life is good even though we miss Singapore maybe we need more holidays so Luke can miss his cot and I can have a sleep in every morning.

Perth 2010 Quilting Show!

2010-05-25T01:08:00.005+10:00

My poor blog is so neglected that its not funny anymore. But its been a very busy beginning of the year and I am really trying to update it as much as I can; its just that during the day Luke wont let me near the computer. If I am at the computer just to check my email very quickly I get a little demanding boy crying by my side wanting to play with my keyboard. Not only that, Rob got me the new Samsung mobile with the touch screen, which I was happy but when we installed the software in my laptop it just crashed my windows explorer! Thank god I have a smart husband because he managed to save all my documents, photos and songs but we will need to re-install windows again! I was so peeved that every time I look at the phone I get upset, not only that; the bloody thing doesn't work properly so I cant send any email just receive, apparently I am not the only one with all these problems!!! We are at the moment seeing if we can return the bloody thing and get an iphone for me instead.

Any way this weekend was really great! We had our annual WA quilt show. I spend the whole Sunday from 9-5 buzzzy like a bee around wonderful creative quilts and also beautiful fabrics, gadgets and quilt notions. Bought some really neat tools, like the adjustable quilting rulers. It is an Ozzy invention check out the video...its pretty neat. It was pricey but will make my live easier when quilting. Got two nice books with Jelly Roles patterns which of course I got one Jelly Role fabric pack also so I can make a quilt for my bed. I found some cheap $1 wooden buttons which was a bargain. Got some cute Christmas embroidery to make cute tree hangings. Got a wonderful Bias making tool from clover. I could go on and on but the rest was just small things nothing too flashy. Rob took care of Luke and called me around 13:00 pm to see how everything was going and asking how much longer I would stay...hahaha I told till it closed. Luke is teething at the moment, his molars are all coming out at once so he is very cranky. Poor Rob was completely exhausted when I got home at 17:00pm. So I made a nice dinner for my two special guys and cuddle up with them in front of the telly.

Well I hope you all enjoy the pictures of the quilt show and have fun with Lukes walking video...its pretty funny. Big hugs to all.

DIY- How to re-upholster dinning chairs!

2010-02-25T13:44:00.014+11:00

As promised here is my first DIY post. I have 4 dinning chairs that were in urgent need of an update. We have had these chairs for more than 9 years. The base had still the linen cover which we kept saying,"we will upholster them soon" but just never did get to it. So this weekend I had enough of the dirty, dingy look and got Rob to get me to Bunnings (its like a home-depot store) so I could buy a staple gun. Yesterday while Luke had his afternoon nap, I got busy. I went to my fabric stash and choose a nice printed fabric that I bought while in the US. It is a cotton fabric for quilting but I think that doesn't really matter. So choose a fabric that you love and get busy. I used this video as a guide. Sure enough, it took me one hour to do all 4 chairs, its so easy that I felt really stupid for letting 8 years pass by before changing the base fabric of the chairs. So here are the pictures of before and after:

BEFORE

AFTER

It looks great!!! I am very happy with the results. So get busy people and don't worry its so easy that you will wonder why you didn't do this sooner. Take care!

Busy as a Bee!!!

2010-02-23T15:28:00.005+11:00

Hi Everyone sorry yet again for the long silence but it really seems that there are not enough hours in a day to get all things done, specially updating my blog!! We FINALLY moved in to the "new" house. Of course like any renovation we had more costs involved then we thought at the purchase of the house. As mentioned in my previous post we were going to renovate the kitchen but unfortunately that did not happen seeing we found leaks in both bathrooms in the house. The leaks were so bad that we had mold all over, underneath the carpets on the walls, so we naturally had to replace the whole floors with new timber floating boards, which the costs of this and the repairs to the bathroom showers had us scraping at our budget. So kitchen is not done and looks like a war zone. At the moment I have no cook top or oven, been cooking with our microwave oven (which is on its last legs:meaning we will need to replace the bloody thing soon enough) and the barbecue. I was very fortunate to have my mother in lay give me a electric frying pan, it really saved the day!!! I have no pantry so cant really take anything out of the boxes just the essential stuff that I use everyday. My dishwasher is a storage area for all the plates, cups and cutlery.

Now enough ranting....Luke is doing very well. He is almost crawling properly all his little teeth are coming out and he is just an adorable little man. My mom left back to Holland on the 5th of Feb and we do miss her so. Luke specially, was very cranking for a week! I have been pretty busy getting our garden looking descent after many years of neglect of the previous owner. But we can see the light on the end of the tunnel. I have planted a little herb garden which is looking pretty good for some one who never had a chance to do any gardening in her life! Unfortunately I have no pictures for all of you because I have no clue where my cables are to be able to upload pictures on to the computer, this is another item on my to do list for this weekend. We also managed to start of our compost bin last weekend so all the veggie scarps and bread scraps are being put for a good use. We also have a recycle bin now which is a great relief because in the previous house there was none and every time I had to throw out glass, paper and plastic my heart filled with guilt! We also had insulation put in, in the nick of time before the government rebates were scrapped because of government scandal regarding it. So we only paid $120 to insulate the whole roof. We can really feel the difference now, its not as hot as it was when we moved in, seeing we had no insulation and no air-con, it was blood hot in here!! But all in all the house does look much better, we had everything painted and new showers. Once I find the cables I will put pictures up of before and after. Its far from done but its getting there slowly.

In the crafty front I have started a little sweater for Luke. Its a free pattern from Lion Brand. Also two weekends ago had a great Saturday with my mother in law. We took grandma to these really nice fabric shops for patchwork and also had a coffee with some cake at Wolly Latte's (its a yarn shop that has a really nice little cafe inside with some great coffee and wonderful cakes). Also when we went to get Tiiu's things as patchwork workshop that she organised, there was this lady who gave the workshop who takes care of little orphan Joey's (Baby Kangaroo). She had one with her and it really was the sweetest thing ever, Luke was so impressed and he even stroked it a couple of times. So so sweet, I have the pictures but yet again no cable grrrrr... Well that is all the update I have time for today. Hope all of you are well. Take care!

Merry Christmas and happy New Year 2010!!!

2009-12-31T11:30:00.005+11:00

My poor blog has been neglected for a while but with the house renovations I have been too busy to write anything. My mother has come to OZ and is staying with us till Feb which has been a wonderful Christmas gift for me. She has been a tremendous help with Luke while we are off to the house to get it all done before we move in on the 10th of Jan. We had a wonderful first Christmas together as a family and I was glad my mom was here to share this special time with us. We all went to my mother in law's house for Christmas and Luke just got so excited by all the wrapped boxes which he found out later on the day that inside the boxes there were toys too. We had a wonderful Christmas lunch and after that unwrapped all the gifts, it really was a special day. So tonight we are going to go to friends house for the passing of the New Year and enjoy our selves a bit before the big move. Slowly we are already packing and I am having a chance to get rid of some clutter on the way. Also I am going through all my wardrobes and giving away all the clothes that don't fit me anymore, which I have been clinging to with the hope that some day I will fit them again. I guess I need to be realistic and just give them to someone who can actually wear them instead of them just sitting in the closets year after year. So my new year resolutions are:

1) Get rid of clutter

2) Not buying things I don't need

3) Stop smoking again

4)Get more active and exercise

5) Eat healthy

I wish all of you a wonderful New Year and that all of you can reach your New Year resolutions! Enjoy a great Christams song!

Home Sweet Home!!!

2009-10-30T19:47:00.003+11:00

Its been really busy around here in Oz. So many big events going on that I don't even no were to start. First, a month ago we received notice that the owner of the house we are living at the moment was having issues with the tax department. Because of this he will be needing to move back into the house in January 2010, so we found our selves homeless! So we started at full gear looking for a new rental place and re-thinking the whole, "lets wait another year to buy a house". So we started looking into sale properties and rental. After some search in the past two weeks we found an affordable 4 by 2 in a good neighbourhood, just walking distance from my mother in law. Its a great location, the neighbourhood is very green with loads of beautiful parks. The schools in the area are one of the best in Perth so for Luke this will be very good. The house is only a short walk to the shops and almost in front of the house there is a small park with huge gumtrees and a little playground for Luke. It is also in a cul-de-sac which means no big traffic so if Luke wants to play on the street he can. The house itself is on a big land 736 square meters (for Brazilian standards this is not very big but for Dutch standards this is huge!). It has an awesome big back yard with two peach trees, one mandarin tree and one lime tree so loads of "caipirinhas or margaritas" in the future. The house inside is very tiered, it needs a good scrub and a good paint job. A new kitchen is also a must in the house and floors too. All in all its a great house with so much potential, so we bought the house!!! I am very excited because its my first property and its all mine which makes a big difference from renting all the time. We got a good price for it and because we need to gut the inside we can change and do what ever we want. So very very exciting times to come ahead, I made some pictures of the inside and as you can see there are still tenants in the house but they will be gone by next week. So we probably will get the keys in December. So will start a DIY section on my blog with all the before and after photos to inspire anyone doing some renovations or thinking of renovating.

Second big event around here was Luke today, he started crawling backwards or pushing himself backwards. So he is mobile now, which means for me more work in getting the house baby prof, so I guess in a couple weeks to come he will be crawling.

Third big event was my brother in laws first photographic exposition in an art gallery. He was in the newspapers and all. That was last night, Rob and I were very proud of him and already ordered our Christmas presents (just kidding)!!

Yesterday was Halloween and we spent it at Tania's and Glen's place. It was so funny Tania had dressed up as Princess Leia from star wars, she looked awesome!!! Glen was Count Dracula, rob and I just didn't have the time to really dress up though, but we had a great time. The boys smashed a pinhata and had a blast with the treasure hunt. Unfortunately forgot to take my camera so no pictures...naughty Alex. So very busy weekend, now we are leaving to have brunch with Rob's uncle and the rest of the family. We all are going to say goodbye to one of Rob's cousins who is leaving to South of France to work as a wine expert in a winery. Have fun with all the new videos and pictures of Luke and the new house.

First time at the beach!

2009-09-29T13:48:00.004+10:00

Here in Oz we had a long weekend which was pretty full on. On Saturday we spent the afternoon with Tania, Glen and the kids. We went to the park near their house and Glen and Rob entertained the kids with a bottle rocket launcher. It was great and all the kids in the park were very intrigued by the rocket. Glen made a video and its on facebook (don't know if the link will work) for those of you who want to check it out. Luke had his first time on a swing and he just loved it.

It was a wonderful sunny day on Saturday and on the Sunday the weather was even better. Around midday on Sunday we met Aline, Paco and Nina for lunch at the beach. We had lunch at Trigg beach cafe and the food was the best I had since arriving in Perth. The weather was just wonderful, 26 degrees Celsius!!! So after a long winter we finally manged to go to the beach and soak up the sun a bit. Nina and Luke saw the beach for the first time and cried when we put them on the water, I guess the water was still too cold for them. Luke was just mesmerised by the beach with its birds , sand and sea. The sun was pretty strong so I had to slime Luke with sun protection and keep him in the shade for most of it, but still it was just wonderful day.

Monday Luke and Rob spend the day at Grandma's and I stayed at home having some time for myself, unfortunately didn't get to do any crafts because the house was a mess and it needed some good cleaning. Managed to do so much, I forgot how easy it can be to clean the house when you don't have a baby interrupting you every 10 minutes!

I also started a scrapblog a while ago and thought it would be great to share it with all of you. I am doing this for my family so I can print it out when Luke turns one, so they can have a photobook of Luke's first year. Its turning out nicely, would recommend the site to any one wanting to do a scarpblog-book. Its a free site and very user friendly, check it out! Well will leave you all here and hope all is well. Enjoy the photos and the scrapblog.

Its Fun to Play and Dance!

2009-09-22T21:53:00.004+10:00

Luke is getting funnier by the minute. I had to share the video below with all of you because this little man keeps making me laugh all day long! He is truly a happy baby who loves to play and have fun but it leaves me with no time at all to be crafty and I am starting to miss my machine! Oh, you might be wondering why I have a picture of ducks here but these two little fellows decided to just hang around on our roof one afternoon. I just hope they don't make a nest up there, also Luke was finding this very funny and kept yelling at the ducks!My mom and dad are arriving in Perth on the 10th of October so I just cant wait for them to be here with us and share with us our special moments. My mom will see Luke for the first time,she has seen him through photos and video calls but not in person so he will be a very spoiled little man in a couple of weeks time. I hope you enjoy the video and photos! The photos you just click on it and will take you to my web album. Will hopefully be able to post some crafty things soon!

Funny faces

Bath Time!

Having fun with Grandma

Its Play time!

2009-09-11T22:01:00.010+10:00

Luke is growing so fast that it seems like ever day he is learning something new. His grandmother found some old toys that where from my husband when he was a bub! So Luke got some exciting vintage toys to explore. His favorite is the ball with shapes which he still cant find the corresponding shape to fit into the ball. But he has manged to get a few in when mummy helps him. He just loves it when the shape fits and disappears inside the ball, he goes on and on giggling in delight of his achievement. Luke is also starting to sit on his own but I still keep some cushions around him just in case he loses balance and falls over. After two weeks of the whole family being ill and Luke having to have a trip to the emergency room, its great to see him feeling like himself again. I haven't had the time to do any crafts lately because I was also ill and feeling very run down but hopefully this weekend I can continue to work on Luca's quilt. As you all can see I have changed the look of my blog and I think I am finally satisfied with it. I also added snapshot, which means; in places with links you can see a snapshot of the website, its a pretty cool tool. I hope all of you are well and enjoy the videos and pictures below.

Just Keep Swimming!!!

2009-08-20T16:51:00.008+10:00

Swimming is a big part of OZ life so we decided to enroll Luke early for swimming lessons. I think is a great way also for bub and daddy to have some quality time together during the weekend. Also I can go swimming and do some sauna while they are busy with the lesson, so on the end everyone is happy. Luke didn't know what to make of his first swimming and cried a little, his instructor told us that it is normal and by the third time he will start to really enjoy it. By the second lesson he was enjoying it more and cried less. When the lesson is over we change Luke and give him his bottle and before we reach the car he is in a very deep sleep. Its funny because he doesn't even wake up when we strap him in the baby seat in the car and usually he is very light sleeper. So now during bath time Luke starts kicking the same way he does during his swimming lesson and he just laughs away while mommy gets completely wet. So here are videos and pictures of my little swimmer. Also I added the pictures of the little elephant Eli that I made, its my design also which is the first for me. Hope you all enjoy!!!!

Winter = crafty projects!!!

2009-08-02T01:34:00.006+10:00

Winter for me was always cold, wet and windy when living for 12 years in Holland and as any one in Holland I was always complaining about the cold, the wind and the darkness that engulfed the land during the 6 months of Autumn and Winter. Snuggling under a warm wool blanket with woolly socks with a nice hot cuppa tea watching movies was something that I used to love to do in the cold dark winter months. This has long changed since we moved to OZ. Mind you, it is still cold for us here, Rob and I even bought a gas heater to warm up our little house in the evenings but nothing at all like the winter's in Europe. My red winter coat has been left in the dark closet and has not been worn at all this winter in OZ. I guess I am still not completely acclimatized to the weather because when I go out for walks with Luke everyone seems to be wearing their winter coats and scarves. But for me its just a nice sunny day and only a light jacket is needed to keep me warm. It has rained a bit, which meant that Luke and I stayed inside most of these wet days, giving me a chance to finish a couple of projects that have been sitting beside my sewing machine. I also went for a workshop and made Luke a very cute bean bag to sit, when he gets older. The shop that gives these workshops has become my favorite fabric shop in Perth. Its called Hot Possum, it is such a wonderful little shop with a great selection of fabrics. They also have a lovely blog where you can see all their quilts and other designs. So I have been busy while Luke sleeps or has his naps during the day. I managed to finish a little pram quilt for Kim's new baby boy. Also made some baby pants and a little elephant (which I forgot to take pictures) for Isobel. I think Kim must be receiving the parcel next week, I hope everything fits the baby because they do grow so fast. I also am working on Luca's quilt which I hope to finish for him for Christmas and my latest project is a cute cover for my sewing machine. I am still getting used to the mild winter here in OZ and still feel a thrill that most days the sun is out and the weather is around 20 degrees Celsius. I wake up to see the sun shinning outside, the blue skies greeting me and there are no clouds to be seen threw most of our winter days in OZ. But secretly I wish I could use my red coat again and walk on snow to hear my footsteps on the white silence and feel my red cheeks become numb from the cold wind blowing on my face on winter mornings.

So here are some of the pictures of the little projects that I have finished. Hope you all like it.

Grated Apple &Potato Crepe

2009-06-21T15:48:00.007+10:00

Now that Luke is having his afternoon nap I thought it would be a good time to update my blog. I just made these beautiful yummy apple and potato crepes that I thought I'd share the recipe with you. They are not something you can eat everyday because of the calories(610 kcal per 40 g) but they are a wonderful Sunday brunch treat. I love to have them with smoked Tasmanian salmon but my hubby doesn't eat fish so I buy a good quality smoked ham for him. Its a fairly easy recipe and the results are really impressive, light and with that wonderful sweet and sour hint. It is a great recipe to do when your apples are starting to have a sorry look, here at home we always have apples but they tend to linger too long sometimes. So here it goes:

Ingredients: (this will make about 6 crepes)

1 onion (medium size)

2 potatoes (medium sized)

3 granny smith apples (I think they are the best ones for this recipe but if you don't have them in the house, any apple will do)

1 egg

2tbsp plain flour

Chives

Horseradish cream

Dill

Sour Cream or Cream Fresh

Salt

Pepper

Preparation: (45 minutes)

1. Peel 1 onion and grate on a hand-grater. Put it in a bowl. Peel and wash the two potatoes and grate them coarsely on the grater. Wash and peel the three granny smith apples(if you have large ones use only two apples). Grate them coarsely as far as the core and add to the bowl with the grated onion and potatoes.

2. Stir one egg into the mixture and add salt (1tsp), pepper and the flour, mixing well. Add the chopped chives and mix again. The mixture should not be dry, if its too runny add a little more flour.

3. Heat a good quality oil ( I use rice bran oil because of it's high heat point) in a non-stick frying pan and add a little butter if you like. With a spoon add the batter and press it a little till its flat. The best, so far for me is three crepes at a time, cooking them for about 4 to 5 minutes in each side. Set aside in plate with some paper towel to drain any oil.

4. Put a generous amount of smoked ham (triple smoked is the one I usually use) on top of the crepe. Add 1tsp of sour cream to the top. Sprinkle some chives over the sour cream and serve. For the salmon crepe: Add a nice generous slice of smoked Tasmanian salmon on top of the crepe. Add 1 tsp of sour cream, 1/2 a tsp of horseradish cream on top of the sour cream and sprinkle with fresh Dill. Its ready to serve and devour!!!

Hello hello from OZ... anyone out there!!!!

2009-06-11T03:10:00.007+10:00

Hello my fellow bloggers.....I have missed my little blog very much!!! Sorry again for the strong case of disappearance that has been keeping me away form my beloved little blog. Can't stress enough how being a mom has truly changed my life. Gone are the spare hours that I had to add nice pictures of holidays to the blog or great recipes that I tried one afternoon or even better yet, the little craft projects that I used to do. But don't worry I might be less frequent on my posts but they still will be added with great pleasure, just not as frequent!!! So much has happened, cant believe that it has only been 2 months since my last post (it feels like 6 months!!).

OK... update on the baby front. Luke is growing so fast, he is not a newborn anymore, each day he discovers something new in this big wide world of ours. He is such a good baby, cant complain at all. He sleeps through the night and always wakes up with such a big beautiful smile in his little face. I wish I could wake up with such a smile in my face every morning, it truly makes you appreciate your life more, he is only 4 months old and already he is giving me life lessons. He is a very content little boy who always smiles and giggles, I'm in love...really! Motherhood has been one of the best decision of my life, really cant complain at all ....I am loving it!

On the craft front... I have been busy making baby pants which I got a tutorial made by a great fellow blogger Jessica who created it just for me (isn't she awesome!!!). Here is the link to her tutorial (http://balancingeverything.com/2009/04/21/how-to-make-easy-baby-and-kid-pants/), check out her blog is just great! Will post pictures of the baby pants that I made for Luke and some for Kim's new baby boy that I made but it will have to be another time cause didn't have the time to take the pictures of it yet...sorry guys. Also I made a baby blanket/quilt for Kim's little baby boy which also I have no pictures....naughty Alex!!!

A couple of weeks ago I took the day of from Luke, it was a Sunday and the Quilt show was in town here in Perth. So my mother in law and I spend the day with wonderful quilts and wonderful fabrics to buy. It was great but cant say I didn't miss my little guy...it was the first time we were apart and it was a little weired. I kept calling Rob to check if everything was under control. But apart from that, I just had a great time. All the beautiful quilts gave me so much inspiration to make new quilts and new little projects. Oh and I bought such fantastic Japanese fabrics, they are so cute but also have not had the chance to take some pictures of the fabrics so all of you could have a look. But I did already upload the pictures from the quilts in the show so I hope you all enjoy it. Really Australian quilters are so incredibly creative and artistic, I'm so lucky to be able to see there work.

In another note my brother is getting married tomorrow but sadly we had to cancel our trip to go back to Holland because we could only get really crappy flights which would mean that we would have a 32 hour trip in total to get there and also a 32 hours trip on the way back and I just could not do such a long trip alone back with Luke. So sadly we wont be able to share on his happy day with Vivianne but we will be there in spirit! My father has come to us for 10 days and I can really say I was proud of him, he is 75 and managed a long trip to see his grandson. It was very nice to have him here with me. Now my mom has to come and visit also hopefully in September she will be able to come for a visit. We are also planning to go to Holland next year in Spring.

Well that is all the news that I can think of at the moment so till the next post hopefully it wont be too long. Enjoy the slide show of Perth's Quilt Show.

Luke Gabriel was born!!!

2009-03-18T12:20:00.007+11:00

I am so sorry for my very long silence but I have great news for those who don't already know. Luke Gabriel was born on the 3rd of February at 10:16 pm at the Birth Center. I had a natural labour and it was about 7 hours. For the most part of it I stayed at home and around 6:30 pm Rob took me to the Birthing Center, were I stayed in the hot tube till minutes before pushing my little angel to the world. I had only one shot of morphine for pain relief which was enough for me, I was very lucky; my labour was very fast and I could handle the pain well. Rob took two weeks off from work and they gave him one week paternal leave. It was great, cause I really needed the help in the first month. Now Luke and I are trying to get into a routine. He suffered from colic and also my milk supply is low so at the moment we are working to get my supply up. I never thought one would have this problem, I just thought milk would come poring out, like non-stop! For the rest we are all doing really well, the weather is starting to cool down which for me is a relief. Also I am already planning my holidays in Holland for June cause my brother is getting married. So very busy, as all of you can see, I hope I will be able to update the blog more frequently I will try my best to at least do one post a month. I have done a video of Luke Gabriel, I hope you all enjoy. It's a funny one, he is doing his business and he makes some funny faces, well enjoy. Hugs to all of you!

Brazilian Pudding (Pudim de Leite Condesado)

2009-01-09T18:42:00.010+11:00

I have noticed that this particular post is very popular, so welcome to my blog, please feel free to also see other posts and features in my blog. It would be great if you would come back now then and see whats new. Well enjoy!!! For all of you who want a very nice dessert with no fuss, you should try this classic Brazilian pudding. It has a lot of sugar so its not something you should make every week. This dessert can make any occasion special and it will hit all the right places. But please be warned that this dessert is addictive, once you start eating you cant stop! It needs to be cold so take that in consideration when making it. I usually make it on the end of the day and eat it the next day. Like any pudding there are a lot of variations to this traditional recipe out there, I have altered the recipe as well just because I like an extra hint of orange to my pudding but they are all basically the same. The big secret of this recipe is how to make the pudding have the little bubbles in it, don't worry this recipe guarantees the bubbles in your pudding. The method seems very difficult and complex but when you do start you cant believe how easy it is! I will write this recipe in English and Portuguese so bare with me OK. Lets start....

Ingredients (Ingredientes):

2 cans of condensed milk (2 latas de leite condesado)

2 cans of milk -use the same cans from the condensed milk for mesaurments. (a mesma medida de leite comum)

5 eggs (5 ovos)

1 orange zest (1 raspa de laranja)

Vanila extract (estrato de baunilha)

sauce (calda):

1 cup of castor sugar (1 xicara de acucar)

1/2 cup of water (1/2 xicara de agua)

*You will need a bunt baking pan; the one that is round with the tube in the middle.

Methode (modo de fazer):

1. Start with the sauce. Please be extra careful with this step specially if you have small childeren at home because the caramel can be very hot and make a lot of damage on little or adult fingers. Bring the sugar and the water together in a small sauce pan. Let it boil in medium heat on the stove. You have to keep an eye on this all the time because it can burn and then your pudding will become bitter. When the sauce is becoming a lighter brown keep steering so it wont burn and turn the heat down a little. Let it get a little darker, you will know when its ready when it reaches a medium caramel color. In a bunt baking pan pore the caramel and make circular movements so the caramel covers the sides of the baking pan (be careful with this because the pan becomes hot so use cooking gloves). Set aside to cool completely (this is very important because if you don't let it cool completely it will make scramble eggs of you pudding). While its cooling get a deep backing pan in which the bunt baking pan will fit inside. Poor warm water in it and stick it in the oven and pre heat your oven 200 Celsius. This will insure that the water will be warm when you put the pudding in the water in the deep baking pan. This is the secret for the little bubbles in your pudding!

Misture o açúcar refinado com a água e leve no fogo sem mexer no comeco e depois quando comecar a escurecer mexa até ficar com cor de guaraná. Coloque em forma de buraco no meio e mexa a forma até caramelizá-la por igual. Espere a calda ficar em temperatura ambiente. Caso contrario a temperatura da calda poderá talhar o pudim.

2. When the caramel is cool you can start making the pudding. Put all the ingredients together the eggs, milk, condensed milk, orange zest and vanilla extract (its up to you how much you want from the vanilla) in a blender. Blend it on high for 5 minutes. Pore the liquid into the bunt baking pan. Put the bunt pan on the water in the deep baking pan, who is already hot in the oven. Let it bake uncovered for about ten minutes or till you see the top becoming a nice golden colour. When this happens just cover the pudding with aluminum foil and let it bake for 1 hour, keep an eye on the water and be sure to top it up, you need the water so it wont burn the pudding.

Bata todos os ingredientes no liquidificador por cinco minutos. Despeje o pudim na forma já caramelizada. Para você conseguir um pudim com bastantes furinhos, leve ao forno em banho-maria com a água já quente. O forno deve estar pre-aquecido 200 graus. Deixe o pudim discoberto ate ele comecar a ter uma cor de caramelo ai voce pode ccobri-lo com papel aluminio. Deixe em fogo alto por uma hora.

3. You should be able to see if the pudding is ready if it has risen like a souffle and if you prick the middle with a tooth pick and no liquid comes out than you can take it out of the oven. Let it cool completely before bringing it to the fridge; please leave the aluminum foil on or your pudding will take the flavour of your fridge and that is yuck.

Voce vai poder saber se o pudim esta pronto quando ele crescer como um souffle. Ele quase dobra de tamanho. So pra ter certeza faca o teste do palitinho. Retire do forno e deixe esfriar completamente antes de coloca-lo na geladeira.

4. The next day you can take it out of the fridge and in the same deep baking pan add hot water and let the pudding sit on it for a while, this insures that the caramel will melt and make it easier for you to turn the pudding on a plate. I leave it in the water till the water cools down.

No dia seguinte ou depois que o puddim esteja bem gelado coloque em banho maria novamente so para a calda degrudar da forma. Voce nao presica colocar ele no forno!!!! Deixe ele de banho maria ate a agua esfriar.

5. Now this is the moment of truth!! With a knife cut the pudding from the side of the baking pan. Put a nice big plate on top of the bunt backing pan and turn it upside-down and leave it for a while. Don't mess with it, just let the pudding slowly on its own fall down to the plate. If you mess with it it will brake and you will have an ugly pudding. It will fall, trust me and then there it is you beautiful delicious traditional Brazilian pudding. Very very yummy....specially very cold!

Agora e o momento da verdade. Com um faca descole as laterais da panela. Num prato grande coloque-o em cima da panela do pudim e vir-o de cabeca para baixo para desformar. Deixe ele cair sozinho, nao bata na panela pois vc pode quebraro pudim e ai vc tem uma meleca de caramelo. Deixe o pudim cair sozinho. E quando ele cair vc tera um lindo pudim com furrinhos que e uma delicia!

Happy New Year!!!!

2009-01-01T13:56:00.002+11:00

We had such a great time last night at Paul's house. It was strange but wonderful to have the passage of the New Year outside having a barbecue in a warm summer night. The memories of when we had our New Year parties in Brazil was present throughout the evening for me. I had very nice fish with some very yummy salad and lots and lots of water and soda. The picture posted on the blog is just for fun....Rob and Paul were smoking cigars and we thought it would be fun to take picture with me with the cigar and beer ... so for all of you out there I did not smoke a cigar or drank beer this New Year!!! It was great to be among friends and family and everyone really had a wonderful time. Alice was really enjoying the warm weather and the great food. It really was a perfect evening for all of us! I wish all of you a great 2009 and that this year will bring peace, joy and happiness for all of you who read my blog. Enjoy the slide show...

More photos!!

2008-12-14T23:39:00.004+11:00

So here are some more photos of OZ...we had a busy couple of days but we are almost done unpacking!!! Rob and I are very happy with the progress and I will take some pictures soon from the house so all of you can see our place. But for now I have uploaded photos of the baby shower and 3 pictures taken today this late afternoon at the beach. It is very warm here 35 C and after a day organising Rob and I went to the beach at the end of the day to cool off a little, we met his brother and Jasmin (Rob's niece). It was great but the sea was a little rough but very refreshing! You all can see that Greenpeace was almost coming and dragging me back to the sea, I look like a whale with my big belly. The baby is healthy and growing how you all can notice. Not long now I am on week 33 so just a couple more weeks and the baby will be with us. Hope you all are well and miss all of you! Enjoy...

Eggplant Lasagna (glutenfree!!!)

2008-12-08T18:10:00.017+11:00

Here is my favorite lasagna recipe; even though it takes some time to prepare, it is just worth all the trouble. This recipe is great because it's full of veggies (you can also make it a vegetarian lasagna just don't add the minced meat). There is no pasta in it, so for the ones who might be on a diet or have gluten allergies this is a great alternative.

Preparation time: 1 1/2 hours

Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:

1 good sized eggplant (for a lasagna dish 33 x 22cm. If you have a bigger dish just use two eggplants.)

2 carrots chopped in cubs

1 zucchini chopped in cubs

1 yellow pepper chopped in cubs

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable stock

1 bottle of tomato puree

1 onion chopped in cubes

3 garlic cloves chopped or minced

400 grams of good quality minced beef (I like to use the one that has the least fat.)
1 big bag of grated cheese (I use mozzarella light but you can use whatever cheese you prefer.) breadcrumbs
Fresh Basil
salt
pepper

*You can use whatever veggies you have in the fridge for this recipe; the only must have is the eggplant.

Preparation:

Step 1: Start by cutting the eggplant length wise in thin slices. Don't worry if slices are not perfect it will work anyway and no one will see because it will be used for layers.

Step 2: Dip the eggplant slices in the eggs and then in the breadcrumbs. Put some butter in a frying pan and fry them still they are golden brown set them aside in a dish. Do this till all the eggplant is fried.

Step 3: Pre-heat the oven to 190 C. In a medium pan add some olive oil and saute the onion and garlic till soft. Then add the minced meat let it cook till all the juices of the meat are gone. Then add the zucchini, yellow peppers, carrots and any other veggies you want. Let it fry for a little while. Add the tomato sauce (leave some sauce in the bottle so you can use this for the bottom of the lasagna dish), vegetable stock, salt, pepper (I like to add some vegetable stock to the sauce but it is not a must but if you do this be more careful with the salt.) Let it simmer till the sauce thickens a bit. At the end add the fresh basil (I love to use a lot of fresh basil but its up to you how much you put in it...if you don't have fresh basil just use dry oregano.)

Step 4: In the lasagna dish use the left over tomato puree for the bottom (I do this so the eggplant doesn't burn and it gets the taste of the tomatoes too.) Add a layer of eggplant then a layer of the minced meat sauce then a layer of grated mozzarella cheese. Continue till all the eggplant and sauce is gone. Now be sure to leave some mozzarella cheese for the top, its the best part!

Step 5: Stick it in the pre-heated oven till you see the top become golden and the sauce bubbly. Take out of the oven and serve. There it is, a beautiful healthy dish which will comfort you, your friends and family without breaking the budget. Enjoy!!!

Great little animation videos!!!

2008-11-15T20:52:00.001+11:00

I usually don't add any videos to my posts by these are just so funny and simplistic that I could not keep myself from sharing it with all of you! Enjoy the show:

I have not forgotten my Blog!!

2008-11-06T15:48:00.003+11:00

Sorry everyone for the long silence, but things are just hectic at the moment. Finally managed to download some pictures to the web. As you can see here I am and I am getting bigger and bigger by the minute! So we finally have are own house and how I missed my own things and my bed and my space after two years on the road. We are still unpacking boxes and the house still looks like we just moved in but we are slowly getting there. I have not started to arrange the baby room yet so it will probably be ready when the baby is 15 years old or something hahaha!!

For the rest I am healthy and the little one too, he is so strong that he kicks and leaves me sore for a couple of days but I am not complaining the midwife said is a very good sign that he is active. Rob and I are starting our labour and parent classes on the end of the month and I cant believe there is only 13 weeks to go it is sooooo scary. I am learning how to drive and that is scary too not only for me but everyone else on the road! It took sometime for the Internet to get connected that is why the long silence and also with the new house, learning how to drive and having some social life there were not enough hours on the day to update my blog. Will put more pictures up soon don't worry...the four slide shows that I have added bellow are of The Move, Zoo Trip with Tania and the kids, Making Proggy With Grandma and Belly Pics. I hope you enjoy...the proggy one and the belly picture were taken today. I miss everyone very much and I promise not to neglect my blog for so long!!!! Have fun...

Luca's Quilt in Progress

2008-09-21T19:38:00.006+10:00

I was waiting till I moved to my new home to start Luca's quilt which I promised him he would receive for Christmas but my mother in law just gave me the extra push I needed to start. I reached for the stars for inspiration on this one and I already had all the fabric tones that I wanted to use, just got some extra material from my mother in law. I started by washing all the fabric that I was going to use seeing it was kept in boxes for half a year. When I hanged all the fat quarters outside to dry I realised that this quilt will be very very special. I am sure Luca's will love it and use well in his new home in France. After some color matching and some cutting I kept all pieces separate for each star. It does make the whole process easier and I am thankful for Tiiu's tip on this one. So I hope you all enjoy the small slide show of the progress so far and hopefully soon I will be able to post the end result! Enjoy.

Craving for Eclairs!!!

2008-08-30T22:29:00.009+10:00

I was really craving for Eclairs for a couple of days so I went in search of an easy and good recipe so I could make them at home. Eclairs are a french chocolate pastry that are light in texture but very rich in flavour. Eclair actually means lightning in french and it was given this name because of its beautiful glaze. Not much is known about the origins of this famous pastry but its birth place is France. There are some who speculate that Eclairs were first made by a famous royal pastry chef called Marie-Antoine Carême (royal life must have been sweet with this chef around the royal kitchen!). Also oxford English Dictionary traces the term "eclair" in the English language to 1861. The first known recipe for eclairs appeared in the Boston Cooking School Cook Book by Mrs. D.A. Lincoln, published in 1884.

Well that was a bit of culinary history for all of you who actually are interested but of course eating the eclairs is more important and fun! After some research and changing the recipe to suit what I wanted, I managed to make them and they were delicious! Very decadent dessert that takes some time to make but it is sure to impress your guests and your tummy. Here is the recipe with pictures so you can try it at home! Enjoy...I am sure you will!

Preparation Time: 1 hour Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Eclair Dough:
2/3 cup Milk
2/3 cup Water
4 oz (113 grams) Butter
1 cup Flour
5 Eggs
2 tsp.Granulated Sugar
Pinch of Salt

Chocolate Cream Filling:
6 oz.(170 grams) Unsweetened dark chocolate powder (cocoa)
1 cup Milk
4 Egg Yolks
1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
1/4 cup Flour

3 tbs. Tia Maria or Amaretto liquor
2 tbs brewed coffee

Chocolate Icing:
5 oz.(141 grams) Dark Chocolate Bar
2 oz.(56 grams) Butter
1/4 cup Water

How to make Eclair Dough:

Preheat oven to 425°F (218 C).
1. In a pot, mix water, milk, butter, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil.
2. Once butter has completely melted, take off flame, and slowly pour in flour, stirring constantly (sometimes this will be enough to make the dough drier and start to unstick to the sides of the pot if that happens you wont need to put it back on the flame as step 3 tells you).
3. Put pot back on flame and continue to work it with a wooden spoon. Continue stirring and kneading with spoon until the dough dries out and stops sticking to the sides of the pot.
4. Take off flame and wait a little till dough cools down (if you put the eggs when the dough is too hot it will make the eggs cook too fast and you will have some scramble eggs in your eclair dough!). Add eggs, one at a time, stirring energetically.
5. Fill a icing piping bag with the eclair batter. Butter a baking sheet. Squeeze out "finger-sized eclairs" onto baking sheet, well-spaced. This will make 20 small eclairs but if you like making them bigger please take into account that you probably will get 12 eclairs or even less.
6. Bake for 10 minutes. Then turn oven down to 385°F (196 C) and bake another 10-12 minutes with the oven door open. Now this bit is up to you to keep an eye on the progress of your eclairs, I left the oven closed for a little longer and on the last 5 minutes I opened the oven door. This is all up to your judgment and how hot your oven gets. But the oven needs to be hot so the eclairs can rise.
7. When they are done take them out of the oven and let them cool while you make the filling.

Chocolate Filling:
1. Add the cocoa powder and milk in a pot, and bring to light boil, remove and let it cool.
2. In a bowl, whisk yolks and sugar until it whitens.
3. Slowly add flour, stirring.
4. Slowly add chocolate milk and the coffee stirring until homogeneous.
5. Put back in pot, bring to light boil, stirring constantly, until cream thickens and becomes smooth. If your cream becomes lumpy don't panic, just add some more coffee or milk whisk it till it gets smooth again.
6. Add the liquor and while waiting it too cool off place a piece if glad rap on the top of the filling so it doesn't get a crusty.
7. When cream cools off (and eclairs have cooled off as well), you can begin filling the eclairs: Use your icing piping bag to inject the filling into the eclairs.

Icing:
Now be careful not to eat all of them before you put the chocolate icing on them it really pays off to wait till they are done!
1. Finely chop chocolate and place in a heatproof bowl that fits snuggly in a saucepan.
2. Once melted add butter.
3.Remove from heat and remove bowl from saucepan . Add the water and whisk thoroughly. It should look shiny and creamy!
3. Now dip the top of your eclairs (face down of course) into the chocolate icing and place them on a tray to cool. Voilà your eclairs are ready to eat! I love to eat them cold that is why I put mine in the fridge to be nice and cool. Enjoy!

Two Days in Canberra

2008-08-30T20:35:00.005+10:00

Rob and I had an unexpected little outing to Canberra. He was called in for an interview and I tagged along to see if I would like to live in Canberra. For those of you who don't know, Canberra is the Capital of Australia . It was a planned city built with the purpose to become the capital just like Brasilia was built to be the capital of Brazil. I thought both cities had a lot in common even though I have not been physically to Brasilia and only know it through TV and pictures.

Canberra has new architecture and is very spacious place. It has beautiful parks, natural life and the shopping is great! We had dinner in a very nice Italian restaurant which I enjoyed the chicken pasta with white wine sauce and Rob got the veal a parmigiana. For dessert we had tiramisu who was nothing else but sponge cake with cream, no hint of coffee or amaretto a real disappointment.

It was very cold in Canberra (it has a ski resort near by so you can imagine that it is cold there), I was all dressed up like winter which was strange. I never expected to be so cold here in Australia for some ignorant reason I thought the whole country was warm and hot! By the way we are not moving to Canberra, it wasnt that we did not like the place but with the baby on the way I wanted to be near family and friends seeing that most of my family is in Holland. Well hope you guys enjoy the slide show with the few pictures we took while in Canberra.

Spring in Perth!!!

2008-08-21T14:43:00.006+10:00

First of all I want to say that I am sorry for my silence regarding my blog posts. Its been a very hectic August, not only were we looking for a house (which by the way turned to be a very exhausting experience) but also Rob is looking for work. We did find a house which we liked and we are now waiting for all the paper work to be accepted.

On the baby front everything is going very well. I will have my next ultrasound in a couple of weeks which of course I will post the pictures for all of you to see the little jumping bean growing into a real size baby. I still cant feel the little bugger move, even though everyone is asking me, "Have you felt it yet???". It is just a weired concept that I can feel my child move inside of me, I don't know why but I always get images of the film Alien when the thing explodes out of the chest of its host (hahahah). Oh well it is one of my favorite films...another thing that is becoming increasingly annoying is everyone turning to me and saying, "Enjoy your life now because it will be over soon." Talk about positive attitude towards starting a family, than they are surprised why women get post natal depression. Wouldn't you get depressed if the only thing you hear is that you life will be over when your child is born and when you finally popped it out, not only you need to deal with the fact that you have a tinny life to take care but also all those words of "wisdom" of people around you come to hunt you? I wish that there was a kind of law against being negative around pregnant women. Well sorry guys for all the rant on pregnancy ordeals but I needed to get it out of my chest. I am finally experiencing the happy hormones which they talk so much about. I do feel much better and also it feels like I can take the world, its a nice feeling.

For the rest Perth is getting warmer and all the wild flowers are coming out to greet us. I do love spring I think its my favorite season, not too hot and all that fresh air with flowers everywhere. Last weekend was our birthday (Rob and I have birthdays on the same day) so we gathered his family and went to Kings Park for a picnic. It was a warm sunny day and all the flowers were out. I took some very nice pictures of the park and all the flowers. I hope you enjoy them. I also added in my web album pictures of the Rugby game which Rob, Julia and I went to watch. It was so fun to cheer with all the Australians and it was my first Rugby game so I had a blast! Also in the same album there is pictures of the car that we bought which Rob and I love. So I will only add the pictures of our birthday on the blog and for the other pictures please go to my web album. I will soon update the blog again, please be aware that if the house goes through we will be arranging everything to move so it might take some time for all the updates to come through. Oh I am also working on a little overalls for the baby, I already started knitting it and I already done 50% of it, will post pictures when its done. Well I hope all of you are well and enjoy the slide show.

Baby on board: Jumping Bean

2008-07-23T13:17:00.004+10:00

I am aware that many of you had no idea of the great news that I am about to tell you! After a year of trying and with some sad results along the year; we are finally pregnant!!!! Yes I am 12 weeks pregnant and just had my first ultrasound yesterday! For some reason I didn't believe it was true till yesterday, after seeing my little peanut I was sure enough that he/she is here to stay. I changed its name from peanut to jumping bean because throughout the ultrasound it kept jumping around and having fun while we were watching. Jumping bean is about 5 cm at the moment, it has all its limbs and is healthy. Rob and I were so surprised because we expected not see much with the ultrasound (we thought we would just see a little blob hahaha) but than there it was a perfect mini baby with its little hands waving at us! We found out that I was pregnant a couple of days before leaving to our honeymoon in Brazil. So I didn't even go see the doctor because I was just scared that something would go wrong again so I decided to wait. I just enjoyed my honeymoon and just when I arrived here in Perth Australia did I go to the doctor. They did all the tests and everything is fine, which gives me an immense relief. For the rest everything is fine over here DOWN UNDER. The first week we just slept a lot and since then ts been non-stop with all the immigration papers. We bought a new car last week, a Subaru outback 2008. We are also at the moment looking for houses because we are staying with Rob's parents at the moment. Rob is looking for employment too. So everything is slowly arranging itself. Well this is all the news I have to give you all. Rob and I are very happy with the baby, I am sure all of you are too! Well enjoy the pictures of jumping bean bellow:

The photo above is from Kim Mallroy photographer.

Honeymoon in Brazil!

2008-07-12T23:21:00.006+10:00

There are not enough words to describe how wonderful our trip to Brazil was for Rob and I. Not only it was a great honeymoon but for me it was special because I haven't gone back home in 11 years. I had a chance to meet up with some of my old friends and also to meet with my two sisters who I had missed so much. We started our trip in Sao Paulo, (were I was born and were one of my sister's lives) we stayed there for 7 days. It was great to meet Henrique after 11 years, he hasn't changed much, just that know he works very hard and has a wonderful sweet girlfriend (soon to be wife I hope!). Carolina also went to Brazil at the same time as us so we caught up with her and her sisters, which was great! My neighbourhood has changed so much that I almost didn't recognise it. The school which I used to go to high school has been demolished and now its a car park. Although the neighbourhood has changed and grown, it has also become a very trendy area with all the best bars and nightclubs. It was very strange to be there with everyone because it was the same but at the same time very different. I felt like a tourist which made me a little sad. Also I had a chance to have some great pizza (my city really has the best pizza in the world) and great steaks. I had a chance to spend some time with Regina (my oldest sister) and it was very nice to see her and my nephew Alexandre. I was happy to find them well and it was great to catch up with them after 4 years. Rob had a chance to go fly a helicopter in Sao Paulo and he absolutely loved it! The 7 days flew by so fast and before we knew it, it was time to move on to Buzios. We took a bus to Buzios (8 hour drive) and arrived in the morning. My sister Rulla picked us up at the very small bus station of the town. It was so nice to see her because I hadn't seen her in 14 years!!! We talked over some breakfast and after I had to have a nap because I didn't sleep in the bus over the excitement of seeing her after so many years. We truly loved Buzios its such a pretty town and the beaches are just like paradise. The food was very good and everything about it was just perfect for our honeymoon. I had enough chances to meet up with my sister and catch up. We stayed in Brigitta's a bed&breakfast in the center of town. The rooms were perfect and every morning we had breakfast with a sea view (what more do you want!). We had some great pizza's also at the Pizzaria Dolce Vita where the chef/owner was a very nice and funny Italian man (who by the way was a very well known tennis instructor in his younger years in Italy). Almost every day we had some pizza or some pasta there because it was one of the only restaurants which the price was fair and the food was just amazing. We went out occasionally to some bars at night with my sister but Rob and I were always so sleepy that we weren't much fun, I think the whole wedding and move was finally catching up to us. We also did a day tour through Rio de Janeiro, were we went to the Maracana, Sambodromo and The Christ. I loved the big statue of the Christ it was just very impressive. The days flew by and before we knew it we had to go. I said sad goodbyes to my sister and promised that it would not take another 14 years for me to go visit her again. I hope you enjoy the slide show!

Wedding Netherlands

2008-06-06T23:01:00.005+10:00

So here they are just a fraction of all the pictures that were taken. But I hope everyone will enjoy them as much as Rob and I enjoyed our happy day. Thank you for all of you who could made it to our wedding and for the one's who could not make it due to the fact that it was all very short notice, please be sure that you were in our hearts throughout our happy day. Enjoy the slide show bellow, if you would like a full screen slide show use the link bellow:
http://picasaweb.google.com/glitterlife.nl/WeddingNetherlands/photo#s5208748963226611346

Short Trip to Luxenbourg

2008-05-29T18:47:00.004+10:00

Our religious wedding was just beautiful and wonderful. Everyone we invited came to the wedding and even people who were not living in Holland. Uta, Lance and the kids came from France. Erica, the girls and Adam came from the US. Also Claire and Owen came from Irland to see us and I was very pleased because I haven't seen here since Washington. It was truly a wonderful day but a little sad because it was also a kind of farewell. Rob and I missed his mother and father who were not able to attend because it was too short notice for them to come from Australia. But we know in our hearts they were there with us in spirit. I will post the pictures when the photographer send us the pictures. I will post some pictures we managed to take on the day but the really nice ones you all have to wait. On the Monday we left in the morning to Luxenbourg. Rob had to go there for work so I thought it would be nice to join him and explore Luxembourg. We arrived there at 14:00pm, Rob went to work and I went to the city center. All shops were closed so I decided to explore the old part of town. It is truly a beautiful city and the old part is medieval which makes you wonder how many battles were won and lost. There was only one museum open, The Museum of Modern Art. It was great because they had an expo on Emily Bates photographs (Love Scenes). It was great to be able to see her photos. After I went to have some lunch in a very nice little pastry cafe, I had a wonderful grilled veggie salad and a really really yummy strawberry pie. I kept strolling at the old part of town till I met Rob in town for dinner after his work. We went to a nice restaurant and had German food. Rob had veal Schnitzel and I had Sauerkraut with very nice sausages from Luxembourg. The next day after Rob went to work I went to the city again. this time the shops and all the museums were open. I went to the City museum which is mainly the history of Luxembourg. It was a very beautiful building and I had no idea Luxembourg had so much history. When I was done I went to have another coffee with some strawberry pie which were really lovely. I did some shopping (I bought a kilo of sausages from Luxembourg haha) and before I knew it I had to meet Rob for dinner and than leave back to Holland. It was a very nice short trip. Rob and I are leaving to our honeymoon in Brasil on the 7th of June. So I will not be updating the blog next month only in July with the Brazil trip. Well everyone enjoy the slide show of the wedding and of Luxembourg.

Bachlorett's Party The Hague

2008-05-19T06:52:00.004+10:00

Alice organised a great Hen's night for me. I was truly surprised because I had no idea what we were going to do, the only thing I knew was that we where going out for dinner. We all had a nice dinner at The Concierge and we also cracked a bubbly to mark the event. Alice, Kim, Viviane, Maya, Jessica, Mike and Rodrigo were all invited to have a good time at the hen's night. I know you are not suppose to bring boys on the Hen's night but Rodrigo and Mike are my friends for so long that to go party with out them just didn't seem right. So after dinner, Alice took everyone to the surprise which everyone knew but I had no clue what to expect. When we got there I couldn't believe it, she got for me to the Karaoke bus!! I just loved it....a Karaoke on wheels. So we all took our place in the bus, opened a couple of beers and started singing. First we sang Dutch songs than we switched to English songs. After an hour we stopped and I thought the ride was over but before I could figure what was going on, a man in a strange mask and a cape came in the bus. Yes girls, it was a male stripper!! I never laughed and had so much fun, it was the most strange 15 minutes of my life! I have added the video to the blog but please be aware that there is some indecent contents. You can't see his front bits but you can see his bum so parents please be sure the minors are not watching this with you. After the stripper was done we just enjoyed the ride in the bus singing Frank Sinatra and Madonna. When the ride was over we took some more pictures and headed to the Karaoke bar, yes we did a lot of singing that night. We stayed there and than moved again to a gay bar to have more drinks. This bar is a small bar with very nice owner who was just so happy for me that he kept filling my drinks and all the guy men were having fun with us for the happy occasion. So by the time we left the gay bar I was already very tipsy hahahaha. We moved on to a normal bar to have just a couple more drinks and dance a little. We left the bar scene at 04:30 in the morning I could barely walk and we were all laughing so much with all the pictures and the events of the day. I got home had a shower cause all these bars in Holland everyone just smokes like a chimney and there is not very good ventilation so you smell like cigarettes and sweat. Got into bed and cuddled with Rob. The next morning I had such a bad hangover that I slept till 18:00 hahahah...it was worth it though! Enjoy the video and slide show.

Zaanstreek Trip with Kim & Isobel

2008-05-09T07:59:00.003+10:00

I haven't felt like a tourist in Holland for a long time but I certainly feel like one now. I guess its because I am leaving soon for good that I am more keen to go see all the touristic sights that I haven't seen before while living here. Two weeks ago I went to visit Kim, Keith and Isobel again. It was real fun, Kim took me to see the Zanstreek. Apparently there used to be over a thousand industrial windmills in that area. I never new that Zandaam was a big part of the Dutch history. Its a beautiful area that any tourist should go see if coming to Holland for the holidays. Zandaam is not far from Amsterdam (15minutes by train) so if your holiday includes staying in Amsterdam be sure not to miss it! I thought the windmills were great but what I really enjoyed was the clog shop. I never saw how they make clogs so it was interesting to see how they are made. Kim and I had some dutch pancakes which where yummy and then when we were in the cheese shop when Isobel became the main touristic attraction to the Japanese tourists. Really it felt like we were in the red carpet and we had all these camera's flashing at us. Isobel was an instant hit with the Japanese tourists they even posed by her buggy to take pictures, and they kept saying Dutch baby, Dutch baby!!! Kim and I laughed so hard, really. But Isobel did look cute with her pink hat and the sweater that I made for her. So here are the pictures, enjoy the Dutch scenery.

Queens Night in The Hague

2008-05-01T00:07:00.003+10:00

Today here in Holland is Queens Day, its a celebration of the Queens birthday. Yesterday night was Queens Night, which was fun but because of all the holidays at the same time, everyone just left for vacation so the city was not as crowded as usual. We spent most of the night in Okers which is a nice restaurant/bar. We met with Rob's colleagues there and stayed most of the night there having fun. Around 12:30 am Rob and I left and headed home, on our way we passed by the fairgrounds which was nice and busy with everyone going on rides or trying to win prizes. Close to our apartment it was crowded around all the bars and it took us 1 hour to get through everyone to get home. Today we are just staying home and relaxing from Queens night. Enjoy the slide show.

Little Baby Isobel

2008-04-18T23:32:00.003+10:00

It is nice to be back and visit everyone I missed so much. Yesterday I visited Kim and Isobel. She is so cute and such a good baby. Kim is doing very well and she has adapted to the mother role extremely well. I was happy to see her again and also very happy to see her so radiant with happiness! We met on the center of Zaandam and had some coffee in a cafe. After that we went to her house were I really enjoyed spending some time with Isobel. She is four months old and she is just a gorgeous baby!!! I am going again to see her next week and spend a couple more days with Kim and Kieth. I am looking forward in seeing Isobel again. Enjoy the video & slide show with her and mommy Kim.

Goodbye Luna (sniff, sniff...)

2008-04-06T15:28:00.012+10:00

Today we took Luna to her new family. It was a sad morning for me and I spend sometime cuddling with her. When we were on our way to Rita's house I cried a little but I didn't let Luna see me cry once through out the morning or this last week. I wanted her to have the idea that this is not a dramatic situation but a happy one. But inside, my heart was very tight and sad to see her go. We got there and Rita let Luna out and she really felt at home at once. She sniffed every corner and inch of Rita's house, she even ventured upstairs in Matthew's room and Lydia's too. She played with the kids and went to eat some food in her cage. I was surprised and even a little sad because she seemed not to mind at all the move, but at the same time very relieved that it went so well. We stayed and talked with Rita and Dave, I played with the kids and they really are wonderful children. Luna is lucky to be part of such a wonderful family. This will be a new home but as loving as what she had with Rob and I. When Rob and I got home, the house seemed so empty and sad without her, even if she was a small ferret, her presence was huge in the house and in our lives. She will leave a void in our lives but she will fill Rita's home with her presence and love. Goodbye my pet....I love you and we will miss you very much!

Leo's Quilt is Ninshed

2008-03-30T07:44:00.006+11:00

Wow, I have not been posting for a while now, sorry everyone! Just MY HUSBAND (hahahah I still cant get used to that word) and I are again on the move so things have been busy, busy, busy!!! We are leaving Fredrick Maryland USA on the 8th of April -sniff sniff. We are going back to Holland for two months just to finalize everything and then we are heading to BRAZIL for our honeymoon!!!! Oh I cant wait! For the ones who don't know I was born in Brazil and lived there till I was 20 years old than I moved to Holland were I stayed for 10 years and also where I met my HUSBAND Rob.

We met great people and made very good friends while living here in the USA this year, we will miss everyone very much. Not only that, but we will leave one family member behind: LUNA our pet ferret. I am very sad but she wont be able to go to Australia (they are forbidden to enter the country) with us, which is our final destination. So this goodbye will be very painful to me indeed. But for all it 's worth we found Luna a very good foster mom (Rita) who will take care of her very very well. Luna already met her and loves her place so it makes me a little less sad knowing my little girl is in good hands.

But enough of sad stories this post is actually to share with all of you Leos quilt which I finally finished and its on its way to France with Uta, Lance, Leo, Lucas and Colin (Miss them all so much too!) I really was happy with the end result. My mother in law helped me finish it which I really appreciate it because if it wasn't for her the quilt would have not been ready before Uta left the US. Leo really loved it and immediately wrapped himself around it! And as he would say "Leo's quilt is NINSHED!!!!" Have a look and let me know what u think. Please keep in mind, that it is a very simple pattern and this is only my second quilt ever made! Well everyone take care and will post again when I am in Holland! As the dutch would say Doeiiiii (bye bye)

Our Civil Wedding

2008-02-19T17:46:00.009+11:00

I could not believe how nervous I got when I arrived at the Tarara Winery for our civil ceremony. I was not expecting to get nervous so it was strange to get there and feel over whelmed. We arrived late so all our guests were there already, Carolina and Uta helped me get dressed in the bathroom. Bless both of them because my nerves were not allowing me to think straight, let alone getting dressed without damaging my hair. So I greeted all my guests and had some wine to relax my nerves, Rob was as nervous as me so we kept having these frozen smiles all time (hahaha). The only thing I remember is that people tried to chat with me but my mind was just not there, so I just kept nodding and having the frozen smile. So after half an hour I could not take it anymore and Rob too so we just decided to have the ceremony so we could relax after it. Uta was playing the piano ("Dawn" from the soundtrack of Pride and Prejudice movie) and Rob and I walked together to the wedding officiant. All our guests were seated near us. The ceremony only lasted about 7 minutes but Rob and I had a feeling it took at least 1/2 hour. I messed up at the vows because I was nervous but it all went very relaxed and funny which is all we wanted really. We didn't want a stiff ceremony so it was just perfect; small cozy and relaxed. After the ceremony we had some snack food and Uta played a little more piano for all of us. After that Lance gave a speech that was so beautiful it made me tear a little. He gave us a beautiful wooden bowl that he made for us. After that it was time for the cake, which the children so looked forward to and were starting to become inpatient. My friend Wendy made the cake for us and it was just really beautiful and delicious. We opened some gifts and in the evening we went for dinner at Firstone's a local restaurant/bar. It was very nice to have good friends with us on this special day, the only thing we missed was our families but we will have our religious ceremony on the end of the year so all the family can come together. It was truly a lovely day and we are very pleased on how everything went. We are very happy that we are married and that we could share our love with some close friends in such an intimate way. Thank you again for all of you who came to our civil ceremony and for the ones who could not make it, we will see you at our religious ceremony. Please check our ceremony on the video below (unfourtently we had camera problems so only my vows were recorded) and check the pictures on the below links:

http://picasaweb.google.com/glitterlife.nl/CivilWedding170208/photo#s5168577412267485490

http://picasaweb.google.com/glitterlife.nl/CivilCeremony170208Part1/photo#s5168574586179002914

Knitted baby Sweater for Isobel (Kim&Kieth's Daughter)

2008-01-27T09:02:00.000+11:00

After such a long time, I am finally having some time to actually update my blog. I also have finished three projects so I am very happy to be able to add them here. I've also updated my photo album with pictures from Christmas, New Year and some of my projects so if you have some time to waste, check it out.

Its been a crazy end of the year and a crazy beginning of year. Rob and I still have no idea if we are staying here in the US or leaving and if we are leaving, were are we going; Holland, Australia or China! So we are trying very hard not to panic and just take it day by day. I am busy at the moment organising my civil wedding that will be on mid Feb. So busy busy busy, I also started 2 new projects and still have to start with Lucas quilt but I need to take my machine to be checked first. I am at the moment going to some knitting classes to learn how to make socks with circular needles. Its great fun and they look really cozy. These socks will be for me cause I always give my projects away and I decided this year (years resolution) to make more stuff for me hahaha! The other project that I started is a bolero sweater(also for me!) which you can get the pattern for free at Lion Brand.

But this post is actually for the very very cute baby sweater that I made for Isobel. Kim gave birth to her first beautiful daughter on mid December and I was working on a baby sweater for her since summer. It is finally finished and Isobel received the gift on her mom's b-day (it was not intentional because I am really crappy with b-day dates of my friends)! I was very happy with the end result and it really looks darling. Its a little too big for her at the moment so hopefully in two months she will be able to wear it. Well enjoy the pictures! Big hugs to everyone!

Miami Trip part I

2007-12-23T10:44:00.000+11:00

When we left Frederick the weather was miserable...raining, cloudy and cold. We packed up the car (and I mean literally packed the car so much that I was scared for Rob who was going to drive!) and left Frederick around mid-day. We didn't manage to go too far and stopped in Williamsburg for lunch. It is a lovely town, mainly with old English buildings and very much in the holiday spirit. We went to the cheese shop where I could not believe my eyes, there they were, all stacked up and waiting for me. Dutch cheese!!!! So I got some Emental (Swiss) for Rob and Old Amsterdam for me!!! We ordered some sandwiches and drinks and sat outside to eat. The weather was good in Williamsburg (its about 3 hours from Frederick) not as cold as the weather back home. We left and did another 3 hour drive and stopped at a truckers stop for dinner and then stopped in a Motel by the road to sleep and have an early start the next day. The motel was not bad at all, simple and clean. The next morning we had an early start, we left the motel at 7:00 am we traveled as much as we could without stopping, we had only a long stop when we reached Florida for dinner. We traveled a total of 14 hours in one day, we were knackered, to put it mildly. We arrived in Miami at 12:30 am and the apartment we are renting is just perfect. Simon (Rob's brother) came to greet us and stayed a couple of hours. He left at 2:00 am and Rob and I went for a quick beer. We went to sleep at 3:30 am, tired but happy we managed to arrive! Miami is great, the weather has been kind, some showers but nothing that wont stop you from walking around. Rob and I managed to go the the beach for a couple of hours but the water was cold and it was not so hot to go in. Hopefully tomorrow we can go to the beach and enjoy the weather. Today I went with Jakie (Simon's wife) to Yoga, it was just great, I haven't done any Yoga since I arrived in the US so it was just great to loosen all my muscles. Jackie is in her spare time a Pilate's teacher so she took me to the fitness center were she works. Very nice place, the Yoga teacher was awesome! I was very very stiff so many of the moves I was not able to accomplish, but it made me realise how much I missed Yoga. I might start it again in Frederick. Well, will upload some more pictures of Christmas when I am back home. We are staying here till the 26th of Dec but I hope we can get home on the 27th. Well I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas! Have a happy holiday's !!!! Enjoy the slide show:

Engagement Dinner & Morning After

2007-12-10T04:45:00.000+11:00

I organised our engagement dinner at the "Tasting Room". Its a really nice restaurant down town and the food is something to die for. Its a small restaurant but we were only 9 people so I booked the small private room for us. We arrived and I asked for my cosmopolitan and Rob ordered a bottle of Champagne. Peter (Rob's dad) gave the toast. We all talked about how many times everyone in New Skies (Rob's job) had made bets on when Rob would pop the question and also everyone agreed that we took our time! Everyone was very happy for us and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. The food was great, I ordered a beef tartar as a starter and a file Mignon steak for the main. I had a chocolate martini for dessert. We stayed at the restaurant till 12:00 and than we went for drinks at the local pub (Firestone) next to the restaurant. Rob and I had a great time but we missed everyone who was not here with us; we wished everyone could have been here with us. The next morning Rob woke me up and everything was white, it snowed! It was really beautiful, everything was covered with 5 inches of snow. I made blueberry pancakes and than I went for a walk to take some pictures. Well everyone hope you enjoy both slide shows. I miss everyone!

Harper's Ferry Trip II

2007-12-05T11:04:00.001+11:00

I have been in Harper's Ferry in Summer but in Autumn is beautiful with all the warm colours. We went down only to have lunch and see some parts that Rob and I hadn't seen yet. There is a big rock on the cliff with loads of engravings and some date back to the time of the civil war! I was also attacked by loads of lady bugs hahah on my way up the hill to the rock, they were everywhere on my hair, coat, camera, etc... We had a nice lunch in one of the restaurants and kept exploring the village. We saw a house with two little kittens sitting and playing on the porch it was so cute. It was a very nice afternoon outing. I also bought a recipe book from the civil war which I already tried a recipe for pie crust which was very nice. Well everyone, hope you enjoy the pictures, I need to go cause I have my engagement dinner tonight. Will take pictures of course and put it on the blog for all of you to see. Miss all of you!

I Have a Dream

2007-11-30T11:56:00.000+11:00

Another beautiful day in Maryland. Although its cold and crisp the sun is shinning! The weather was so nice that we decided to go down to Washington DC and do some sight seeing. We arrived at 12:00pm, we had some well deserved Starbucks to start before heading to our very long walk. Our first stop was the National Archives were you can see the original documents of the Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights, The Constitution, The Amendment to abolish slavery and all the letters and other info from all the other documents. All this is located at the main chamber called Rotunda -Charters of Freedom, its a big room with very little light so the old documents don't get damaged (you can take pictures but no flash). The documents are all on display in a round fashion, hence the name Rotunda. It was great to see, specially when you can see all the drafts of the Constitution before the final one was signed. I saw Benjamin's Franklin's signature he had a beautiful penmanship, it was really cool. We left after that because we still wanted to go see the Washington Monument, World War II memorial and the Lincoln Memorial.

We headed to the Washington Monument and on the way passed through a nice botanical sculpture garden and walked all the way to the monument. The thing is so big that you can see it from miles and you think," Its right there after that street..." few blocks later and you're still not there yet. We finally got there and the big spear (or big phallus) is very impressive, it is huge. You cant stop thinking if the person who thought of this had something to compensate (hahaha). After taking some more pictures we decided not to go up because we needed to get tickets half a mile away where we walked before, so we thought we just carry on to the World War II memorial. Oh by the way all the museums and monuments are all free, even going up to the Washington monument or entering the archives is free of charge, I thought this was the coolest!

The World War II memorial is relatively new it was opened in 2004. It's name says it all , it honors all the people who served and died on the war. I was really impressed by the copper sculptures of different war images (sculptor Ray Kaskey). There were several with the women who were working in the factories during the war. I thought that was great to see. Also there was a quote about women and the war, I think it's great that we are finally being recognised and printed in stone to show our contribution in history! The monument has several pillars in a oval circle which represent all the states in the US. A big fountain in the middle and two pavilions in opposites sides of each other, one saying Pacific and the other Atlantic. Its really beautifully made, and there are quotes and significant dates set in stones. But the best was yet to come and you could already see him sitting there, looking from a far; almost like he is watching your every move. Like Big Brother.

We walked through this beautiful passage way with trees set one after each other. The wild geese where having their feeding break before heading again south for the winter and they were everywhere, I think at least a hundred of them eating grass. But finally we arrived at the Lincoln Memorial. Its a big white building with pillars. Its beautiful, the marmor from the steps and pillars are stunning. When you get to the top there is a huge stone sculpture of Lincoln sitting on a chair. Just to think that at the bottom of the steps in August 28, 1963, under a nearly cloudless sky, more than 250,000 people, a fifth of them white, gathered to demonstrate for "jobs and freedom." Martin Luther King gave his famous speech "I have a dream" that day. That place truly has so much history that you can almost feel it in the air.

After all this we cached a cab to go back to the parking garage so we could park the car on the street and go for dinner. By the time we got to the car it was 17:15pm, and we were really dead from all the walking, I think we walked 3 miles in total. So we parked and went to the brewery were they had very nice food and the place had great jazzy music. We ate and had some drinks and headed back home to Fredrick. I snoozed all the way home dreaming of the 1963 and how cool it would have been if I could have been there in the crowd, listening to the words of wisdom of Mr Luther! Well hope you all enjoy the slide show, all the pics are in the order of the post. If you have any questions or just something nice to say just leave a comment. Have a good one!

Christmas Market & East Side

2007-11-28T05:59:00.000+11:00

Christmas is really hear. Ferderick is full of lights and the fair grounds are now showing the Maryland Christmas Show. So Peter, Tiiu and me went to the show to check it out. It was nice collection of different crafts booths where the main focus was Christmas. I got a nice door ornament, some beautiful tea, herbs (lavender) and so much more. I will give the link of the Tea because it is truly a great tea and an African American woman(the same age as me)grows them and puts the flavours together(you can buy her teas online). I really was enjoying myself that is why I only have three pictures, sorry guys! It was a beautiful crisp sunny afternoon and on the walk back I took some pictures of Frederick but of the East side of town. Well I hope you guys enjoy.

http://www.notjusttea.com/

Butternut Pumpkin Roast

2007-11-25T15:45:00.001+11:00

This recipe is super easy and simple and it is gorgeous for the pallet. The recipe bellow makes two serving (2 people). It also can be made on the barbecue instead of in the oven but u still will need to use aluminum foil. Prep time: 1 hour . Check it out!

Ingredients are:
1 Butter Pumpkin medium size
2 tablespoons of Castor Sugar
Butter as much as you like ( I love putting loads)

Pre-heat oven 180C

Peel the pumpkin and cut them in halves and than in big chunky cubs.

In a medium size roasting pan cover the bottom with aluminum foil that it creates a bed for the pumpkin and all its juices. Put all the chunky cubed pumpkin in the roasting pan and sprinkle sugar all over them and than add the small pieces of butter all over the pumpkins. Cover the roasting pan with another sheet (big enough to cover all the roasting pan!) of aluminum foil.

When the oven is heated put the roasting pan in and leave it for about 20 minutes. Be careful not to over cook it or you'll have pumpkin puree instead of pumpkin roast. So after 15 minutes check if the chunks are tender with a fork. Take the top foil and than grill it for another 5 to 10 minutes just to make it a little crisp (keep an eye on the roast at this point so it doesn't burn). Take out of the oven and vuala! You have a delicious chunky sweet goodness to make your meal perfect. Enjoy everyone.

Thanksgiving Dinner

2007-11-25T14:32:00.000+11:00

After so much preparation finally the day arrived. Although I didn't cook the turkey, I still needed to prepare my butternut pumpkin roast and my apple pie for the big day. Rob, his mother, father and I went to Uta and Lance's for Thanksgiving. I prepared my roast pumpkin the day before so Tiu and I could share the kitchen for the apple pie and sauerkraut. The house had all these different food smells in one day, it was lovely. We arrived at Uta's at 4:30 pm and the weather was typical for the season; lots of wind but clear and crisp. The leaves seemed to be running along the car to follow us to join us on Thanksgiving dinner. A beautiful orange pinky sun set made the setting just perfect. We arrived and greeted everyone including Lucas and Leo. Everyone was very cheery seeing its our first Thanksgiving in America. We opened a couple of beers and wine. Tiu gave the boys the top toys and they were thrilled. I also played a little with the boys and join the adults later for more drinks. The turkey was ready so we put all the food on the table and it was crowded. The smells of all the different dishes really made your mouth water. We gave a quick thanks and digged in. Silence fell upon the table expect for Luca's and Leo's chatter hahaha but after a couple of minutes everyone was talking and paying praise for Lance's culinary skills. After we were done we needed a couple of hours so we could fit the apple pie in our enlarged stomachs. We drank some shnapps to speed the digestion and later had some Kahlua cocktails with the apple pie. Leo rushed to me later that night and wanted to show me how grown up he is by using the potty...it was the sweetest thing I ever saw. The boys went to bed and we had a couple of more drinks and we had to leave because Rob had to work morning shift the next day. It was truly a wonderful evening. Frederick is already all decorated for Christmas and the day after Thanksgiving the Christmas sales start, so down town was all festive. Free hot coco, Santa arriving in his carriage, Christmas carols and all. It was really pretty but I didn't take any pics, forgot my camera =0(

Well everyone enjoy the slide show and check my post for the pumpkin recipe ok. Holiday greeting for all!

Meeting with Claire in Washington DC

2007-11-22T12:45:00.001+11:00

It was just great when Claire called last week and told me she was scheduled to fly to Washington DC (its about 40 min from Frederick). I was very happy because I haven't seen her since our graduation in 2004. All of us from Uni still keep in touch but everyone just seems to be caring on with their lives and most of us moved to other countries. Claire was one, she went back home (Ireland). I haven't had a chance to go visit her yet so you can imagine how thrilled I was she was coming to the USA! So we planned that we would meet up in Washington, down town. Her Hotel was on the same street as the Brazilian Grill House. We needed to head off to Washington any way because Rob's Dad was arriving from Australia that night at 12:00 am. It was almost like everything was arranged for us to meet! So we met at the Brazilian restaurant at 19:30 pm. I was very happy in seeing her and she hasn't changed a bit, she is more fit than when we were at Uni. We had a lovely dinner with all the Brazilian goodness to make any gathering a special one. We had also some great wine and wonderful deserts. By the end of the meal I was in pain because, I of course, over did it! We went down to her hotel and had some more drinks. We talked about how is everything in Dublin and I updated her on how everyone else was doing. She talked about her wedding arrangments (for those who don't know , Claire is engaged too). We laughed about Uni times in Walsall and before we knew it I had to go because we still had to pick up Rob's dad. It was a sad goodbye but we promised to do this again and I told her I would go to Dublin for her wedding! Ohh I really missed her and I miss the crazy days at Walsall campus. Well enjoy the slide show!

Project from Hell: Bitch Bag

2007-11-22T11:31:00.000+11:00

My GOD when I subscribed for the class to make this bag in my local quilt shop I had no idea what hell I was getting myself into. Everything went wrong! First the pattern was not available, it only became available two days before the class. So Tiu and I had one night to cut all the fabric and the iron on interface. We stayed till 2:00 am cutting everything and than we found out we needed to iron all the interfacing too for the class puffffff!!!!! So we went to bed and decided to do the ironing in the morning before our 10:00 am class. We woke up at 7:00 am to start ironing all the fabric parts with the interfacing. We managed to do it all in the nick of time and hopped in a cab to the quilt shop. After an hour of waiting in the class we were told that the tutor was ill and had cancelled. So one of the shop assistants was going to give the class she had made this bag before but some time ago. You can imagine what a mess. She forgot some parts, so my front pocket is missing a lining. Than we went home with loads of homework because, of course its a hard bag to put together and the assistant could not really give a lesson from someone else. So off we went and not looking forward to all the work we had awaiting us. The next lesson I had two doctors appointments and was only in class for an hour. When I got there everyone seemed in a gloom and I could see we would have much work again to do at home. Tiu invited Linda to meet us at home and work on the bag before our next class. So we met at my house and worked like labour workers in a Chinese sweatshop. Lisa was very upset because her Singer machine was giving her problems through out the whole project (I was secretly thinking to myself "thanks god I have my bernina!" I felt very sorry for her.) and she thought the tutor didn't like her very much. So on the third lesson we worked very hard but the tutor had to go see the doctor and left 2 hours early. So finally I manged to finish the damn bag. It looks ok but there is some mistakes but for someone who just started sewing 5 months ago I think I did well. I did have help; if it wasn't for Tiu I think I would never have finished it. After so much grief and bitching I don't think I am trying to make this bitch oppps I mean bag again! But please feel free to leave me any comments and have a look at the end result. Well hope you all enjoy the slide show. Take care.

Quilt Show Houston 2007

2007-11-10T13:45:00.001+11:00

Wow....it was truly a humbling experience. All those great quilts made me see how much I still need to learn. I got to Houston Texas on Friday with a terrible cold. My ears popped when the plane was descending. It was really painful I felt like my eyes were going to pop out of their sockets and that my brain was turning to puree hahaha. I got to the Hilton to meet up with Tiiu (Robs mom)and than go and see some of the quilt show before they closed at 19:00. These quilts are truly works of art. There was some amazing stuff that you would think it needed a special place in a museum. The convention center was huge, really, we needed to high light which sections we already walked to be sure we didn't do the same section twice. It was good that the quilt show was for three days but even so Tiiu and I did not see all the quilts and only managed to go through half of the vendors. They had more than 1000 vendor stands at the convention, seriously! The fun of it all was how many people came from all over the world for this event, I didn't know that there are so many quilters. You could see Japanese, Brazilian, Dutch, Australians, Italians...well you get the picture. Of course most of them are older but you could still spot some blue or green haired youngsters (hahaha). But even though the crowed was a little older it was so fun because quilters can be really funny when your not taking the fat quarter that they want. But you could get some cat fights in there too. This woman who was with one of these motorised wheel chairs was shoving it on peoples' feet, till one woman turned around and told her to stop being such a bitch....well the two women were really bitching at each other and than I passed by them and made like cat fight sounds...all the women around us were laughing like crazy. The woman on the wheel chair left really fast gruffing hahahaha. But the best one was when I was buying some fabric (fat quarters) in one of the stands and I commented that I had lost my mother in law yet again, this woman past behind me and said, " Gezzz, I wish I would lose my mother in law!".I was amazed by the mood in there, if you were eating something or just getting some coffee you always stopped and talked for hours with complete strangers. But its like this sisterhood that you never thought existed anymore, like a secret society. I am not kidding it really felt great to be connected with so many women from different countries and ages. The three days really flied by and before we knew it Tiiu and I were running through the quilts to try to see everything before they closed the show on Sunday. I learned loads, got great tips and bought great notions, my wallet was much lighter by the end of it. But as always good things must end and that was good too cause I dont think my wallet would manage another day! The next day we spent the day going on a tour through the underground connection between all the big building in town. My feet were killing me after so much walking all those days. But the tour was great, the guide was a retired man who new so much history of Houston and the architecture of all the buildings, it really was impressive. Than on the end of the day we went to the butterfly center in the Natural Science Museum. It was beautiful to see them all flying around you. On Tuesday we left to come back to Frederick. It was really warm in Texas so we had a shock by the cold over here in Maryland. Well that was my trip to Houston. Hope you guys like the pictures. I added also the link to the butterfly museum. Enjoy!

http://www.hmns.org/see_do/butterfly_center.asp

Happy Halloween!!!!

2007-11-01T14:01:00.000+11:00

Wow how I had fun, its great to be here for the Halloween season! I went to Erica to trick or treat with the kids. I dressed up and all the kids of course were dressed too... I am with the cold at the moment but that did not stop me hahahah. I arrived and brought a pumpkin to carve. Emilia helped me carve it (its the first picture on the slide). It was not that hard as I imagined. With the tools that you can get at any shop it sure made it easy. It was great fun too. We went trick or treating at 6:30 pm with Luca, Leo, Emilia and Jessica. Adults: ME, Uta and Erica. Some of the houses were so elaborately decorated...the Americana's take this holiday very seriously. Jessica and Emilia were scared off there witts with some houses...refusing to go ring the door for some candy hahahah....it was great! With all the gools and goblins walking around it really was surreal. All kids had great costumes and most adults walking the kids also were dressed up. Really fun and really sweet...check out the pictures to have a look how much candy the kids managed to collect. I got some candy too of course, the kids had to pay me for the protection that I provided while they were too scared to get candy...hahah I wish life worked like that! Well I leave all of you with happy wishes for the Halloween. I am off to Houston Texas tomorrow afternoon for 6 days. I will update blog with pictures of the International quilt show, so you all can see what I have been up too in Texas. Have a good one!

Vegas Baby!!!

2007-09-13T03:00:00.000+10:00

Wow...Vegas was awesome. Its not called sin city for nothing. Rob and I arrived in Vegas and the first thing you notice at the airport is the gambling slots. So you want to do some last minute gambling no worries the airport is your place. That was my first impression of Vegas and I had seen nothing yet! We waited till Carol and Mark's plane arrived, it had a delay. When I saw Carol I couldn't believe that it felt like I had just seen her yesterday. We hugged and screamed like two loonies and everyone was looking at us. Well, we haven't seen each other in 12 years so give us a break, we were allowed to be a "little" girly. Rob and I met Mark, Carol's Husband and we all got along great! We headed to the Rio Hotel (we had to stay there seeing we are Brazilians, it fitted us well to meet there after so many years), we checked in and went strait to the bar. Had some caipirinhas (Brazilian drink) and catched up on how the flight went for both of us. Carol and Mark didn't enjoy there flight so much because of the turbulence and the women behind them puking her guts out(with no bag...yep, on the floor). So we had some drinks and headed to the rooms. We had a good room (which needs to be refurbished...70's style going on strong in the room) but we had an amazing view. We freshened up and headed to the Strip to see all the other Hotels/Casinos. Wow, Vegas is so over the top that it overwhelms you just by looking at the streets. We gambled a little at the New York casino and went for dinner at the Brazilian Grill restaurant. Carolina was disappointed by the quality of meat but I thought it was ok. I was just happy to have some pao de quijo (cheese bread) and some feijoada. It was pricey but like everything in Vegas drinks and food are really expensive. We headed back to the hotel and had some more drinks at the bar and went to our rooms, which we found out,there was no water (it really reminded me of my beach holidays in Guaruja-Brazil when water was cut off because of high demand, the hotel really lived up to its name).

The next morning we went to have breakfast at the big buffet at the Hotel. Cant stress enough how awful it was....really bad! We ate what we could and I cant remember if we went to the strip again to check out more of Vegas or not (talking about hazy holidays). I know that around 14:00 we headed to the pool. The pool was great waterfalls, salty water pools really really nice. I would only stay at the Rio again for the pool facilities which were great. We stayed at the pool drinking mojitos and having a blast. Around five they started shutting everything down at the pool because of a wedding, Carol and I were really upset and a "little" drunk so we decided to go and talk to the guest manager to get some kind of compensation. Rob and Mark went to gamble. Carol and I got a 60 dollar compensation because of the water failure the night before and the pool inconvenience, thinking about it now we should had "bitched" a little longer to get at least a day discount on our rooms. Oh well cant change it now. We met the boys and Rob lost 300 dollars but Mark won 500. So Carol and Mark were happy, Rob in the other hand was upset and said he would not gamble anymore. Both of us had no luck gambling in Vegas. We went to freshen up and met down at the bar again. The plan was to go out and see Vegas a little more but Carol and I started talking and Rob and Mark too, that we ended staying at the bar drinking most of night. We had a burger in one of the restaurants of the Hotel (it was a good burger) and went to the bowling alley in the Hotel to bowl a bit. I won (it was the only thing I won in Vegas) and Rob stayed second. We headed back to the rooms around 4:00 am!

The next morning Carol and Mark had a bad hangover so they slept in but Rob and I went early to the pool to enjoy the weather (it was extremely hot all three days we where there, very very dry heat-hey we were in the middle of the desert!). Carol and Mark joined us later in the day. We sat at the pool a little longer and went to make reservations for one of the shows of Cirque du Soleil, KA. We freshened up and headed to Cesar's Palace to have lunch/dinner. We had a very very nice meal and some great desserts. The shops in the Hotel where all designer shops...really impressive. Carol and I were having a cigarette outside after our meal and we saw mother and daughter sitting outside waiting for there car. God, the mother was plastic fantastic trying to be the same age as her daughter and both women had all these bags from Gucci to Prada. The poor husband was an ugly little bald man and both women treated him like trash. I felt sorry for the guy. But that's Vegas baby you find all kinds of people...weirdos most of time. We went also to the Vencian it has this water channel like in Venice with the boats and all. The guys who run the boats start singing really really badly its so funny and I don't think they are singing like that on purpose! Mark and I were really taking the piss out of them. We headed back to the hotel to get ready for the show KA at MGM Casino. The show was really amazing, I really recommend to anyone going to Vegas to go and watch all the shows of the Cirque du Soleil...it was just fantastic (check out the video: http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/CirqueDuSoleil/en/KALow/video.htm?v=3499F68D34F14DB38DC59BD5DD6D15C1MH

We headed to the Bellagio Hotel (the 5 star hotel were they shot Oceans eleven) and had some drinks at the bar. We checked the hotel out and really its the most beautiful hotel in the Strip. We waited to see if the water show was going to happen but we were too late for it. We than headed back to the hotel again at 4:00 am.

The next morning we packed and Carol , Mark , Rob and I said our goodbyes and promised to see each other again before Rob and I leave the USA. It was sad saying goodbye to Carol because we only had three days to catch up and that was not enough. We went to the airport and no we did not do any last minute gamble, after loosing 400 dollars Rob and I want to stay clear from any slots for at least another 10 years! We got back to Frederick and I needed a holiday from the Vegas trip. I think I slept for three days to be able to recover from all the booze and late nights but I had a blast. I would definitely go back to Vegas but I would like to stay in a resort away from the strip so Rob and I could go enjoy the beauty of the desert and the beautiful lagoons that they have there, which we didn't have a chance to see. I would definitely not go gambling again though! Enjoy the slide show!

A Day at the Park

2007-09-13T02:02:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone,
I have two new posts this week. One for the day at the park and another for Vegas! Utah, Rob and I had a great day at the Park two weeks ago. The GreenBriar State Park is beautiful. It has a huge lake with two small beaches. We headed off on labour day but I think half of Maryland thought the same, it was crowded. We brought with us some food in the eski, like cheeses, crackers and drinks. It was a great Sunny day, like so many around here. While we were enjoying ourselves there, the park had to close its gates because of too many people, can you guys believe that! I had a blast swam with Lucas and Leo, made a big castle on the sand. Lucas took many pics for us...he officially has become my other man...hahahaha! He took some sweet pics. Well hope you guys enjoy the slide show. Just another 4 days and I will be seeing some of you. Can waite cause my heart misses all of you sooo much! xxxx Oh check out the little video of Lucas and Leo its funny:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6560603356914996472

New York...Neeeew Yoooork!

2007-08-31T17:11:00.000+10:00

God, I love New York! Sorry guys for the delay on the pics. Been busy organising all the trips and all. Rob and I decided to go to New York for our Birthday as most of you already now. We stayed at the Londoner near to times square. It was a very fancy hotel 4 stars...we had a blast. We booked the modern romance pack which included a signature Martini from Gordon Ramsey and some canapes from him too!!! Also included in the pack was a massage for both of us for 60 minutes (talking about being pampered). We arrived and they put us in the wrong room which we didn't realise! But after we came back from lunch the guest manager called and explain everything and came up to greet us. He didn't stop apologising for the mistake hahahah 1st class joint! They moved us to this great suite with french doors dividing the bedroom from the living room. Huge room for a New York hotel!!! Beautiful bathroom with marmore everywhere!

We walked and walked everywhere that by the end of the trip my legs and my feet were killing me. Because it was my second visit and Rob's 5th visit, we went to specific locations this time. So the first day we went shopping and had a nice sushi dinner at this restaurant who seems to be the "it" place to go. We went back to the hotel around 11:45 pm and went to the hotel bar were we ordered champagne and exchanged gifts at 12:00 am ...very romantic but Rob and I were knackered and ozzzy by the time we went back to our suite! The next day we left early to have breakfast at Tiffanie's hahahah and from there we went to have a nice walk through Central Park. We had a look at the apartment of John Lennon were he was shot and from there walked to the Museum of Natural History. The Museum was amazing, specially all the Dino stuff....we really enjoyed it. We headed back to the hotel at 17:00 to have a nap and get ready to go for dinner. We went to this little place in Soho which had good reviews but I was not very impressed. We headed back to the hotel and I was so tired that I just jumped in bed and went to ZZZzzzzzzz. We woke up early and had breakfast in the hotel, on the house because of the room mix up earlier. We had our massages before we checked out. It really was all I needed because I was in pain from all the walking for two days! We checked out and went to catch our train back to Baltimore to pick up the car and head back home to Frederick. Oh, my flights are booked I am leaving the USA on the 15th of September and arriving at Schipol at 7:00 am on the 16th. I will be staying till the 14th of October! Well Enjoy the slide show and also you can check my web album, I added some more pics there and I fixed the link which apparently was not working before. There is also a little video check it out:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2401829504501544849&pr=goog-sl

American Pie!

2007-08-26T01:30:00.000+10:00

For some reason I am fixated in becoming a crack jack in all house-proud crafts. I started to bake pies like there is no tomorrow. I was doing groceries the other day and could not stop looking at the apples..they looked great for baking. So I bought 12 of them and some fresh pie crust and went home. I looked in the Internet for some recipes but all of them seemed too complicated and boring. So I just got pots and pan out and just improvised. My first pie was nice but a little too sweet, but it over two days!!! Rob really enjoyed it, plus I gave a couple of pieces to Utah. So I went again to the supermarket and bought more apples. So here is how it went.

Ingredients:
12 apples
1 pack of yellow custard
fresh pie crust (I got the safeways one, which was ok-but a little thin)
butter
milk(1/2 a cup)
cinnamon
nutmeg
cloves
ginger
lemon
sugar(if needed)
vanilla extract
obs: as you can see I have no amounts for the spices because I think it depends on your own pallet.

Ok, how to put everything together:

1 .Peel all the apples: 2.Cut them in wedges and than in cubs:

3. In a medium to large size sauce pan add 1 cup of water, butter,1 spoon of sugar(if you like-but custard already is sweet), cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves(about 10) and lemon (about two tea spoons). Bring it to boil and than simmer for 15 minutes or so when you see that apples are almost cooked (not mushy though)!

4. Than in a small container beat very well 1 egg yolk (only if you want a rich custard) and add 1/2 a cup of milk and stir. Add the vanilla extract plus the custard powder and stir well. The apples should be boiling by know so throw the mixture in and stir carefully not too much than you will end with something too soft (its important not to over cook the apples or you will end with apple puree). The consistency will thicken than its up to you to see if you like a thick apple filling for you pie.

5. Now its time to put the crust in place. The fresh crust should be room temperature. Unroll the dough and place it in a pie pan. Be sure to add some pressure to the sides so the dough is well placed in the pan. With a fork make some holes so the pie crust wont be too soft. Than when apple filling has cooled down you add it to the pie. Unroll the 2nd dough again and place it over the top of the pie. With your fingers pull the sides towards the inner pie and use a fork to make nice edge. With a knife make some 3 cuts on top so the steam is able to escape. If you want your pie to shine just brush it with some egg yolk. Place it in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. When the edges become brown you know its done. Oven Heat 425 F. And tataaaaaa...you have delicious home made apple pie!!!!! Enjoy!

Leo's Quilt in Progress (Oh new online album)

2007-07-29T06:11:00.000+10:00

I have started another quilt for a little guy I know who is very very sweet. I decided to make two quilts, one for Leo which you can see the progress bellow, and the other for Lucas his brother. I chose very simple patterns so I wont get lost. This time I am making it all by myself(that's why the simple pattern). So I hope it will work out! Leo passed by the other day to monitor my progress and be sure I am using the fabrics that he liked. Talking about pressure! We had sushi which he enjoyed but Lucas didn't like it at all...too sea weedy...hahhaha Well have a look at the slide show bellow. Oh by the way if you would like to check out my new photo album just click the link or the title of this post. I am changing album websites because the other one is giving me grief! Ok hope you guys like it.

"Oh, of course," said Ron, clapping a hand to his forehead. "I forgot we'll be hunting down Voldemort in a mobile library."

2007-07-29T03:25:00.000+10:00

It has finally arrived!!! After waiting so long, its here and I feel a little sad that this will be the last Harry Potter book. At down town Frederick you would have thought it was Halloween. All the kids and even ADULTS were dressed up to go get a copy of the Harry's last adventure. The public library made a real special event of the launch of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows. They decorated the entire building and the staff was dressed as there favorite characters. Everyone was waiting outside anxiously for the staff to open the doors so they could get there goody bags and watch a Potter movie, while waiting till midnight to buy there fresh copies! They had the theme songs playing really loud outside the library and Rob and I could hear the music from our apartment and see all the kids dressed like Hogart's students. I of course bought a copy but I waited for the next day. I had reserved a copy and Barn's and Noble. I am reading the book at the moment but only small doses so I don't read it all in one day haha! Well enjoy the pictures. You can click on the title of this post or see the slide show bellow.

Sneak Peak of the book:

"Death's got an Invisibility Cloak?" Harry interrupted again.
"So he can sneak up on people," said Ron. "Sometimes he gets bored running at them, flapping his arms and shrieking ..." (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows)

Don Cove weekend!

2007-07-11T06:31:00.000+10:00

When Jim and Ann told us they rented a place in Don Cove and invited us for the weekend, Rob and I were thrilled! What a beautiful peaceful place. If your looking for a busy weekend in bars and with people do not go there because this place is the opposite. Beautiful scenery and the only thing you can here is the birds. The house was over looking the bay. It had a big patio and its own dock area. We arrived and freshened up a little. We took the wine and some beers to the dock area. We stayed there the whole afternoon drinking and fishing...it was heaven. The next day we woke up early and headed to the main docks to rent a fishing boat. Ann and Jim took the boat back to the house and rob and I brought the car back. We made lunch and took off with the boat to have a ride around the bay and do some serious fishing! I caught 2 fishes and Rob also caught 2. It was great but very very hot. I forgot to bring my bikini so I had to take my shirt off and stay with my bra. The heat was almost unbearable. We went back to the house had nice cold showers and packed because Rob needed to work the next morning. We headed to the little restaurant at the docks and had a really nice dinner. We headed back home at 21:00 pm to beat the traffic but I guess everyone thought the same. We were back home at 12:00am. Life is hard over here....What a great weekend! Check out the pictures on my photo album by clicking on the title of this post or see the slide show bellow, enjoy!

4th of July in Frederick

2007-07-11T03:42:00.000+10:00

I always wanted to be in America to experience the 4th of July first hand. This year had the chance to be here is America for it. Frederick down town was all dressed up for the event. Little and huge American flags were dancing around the wind. The weather was nice and warm but it rained a couple of times. Leaving me, Utah, Lance and the kids drenched by the time we went home. They had a boat competition at the creek beside our building on the 3rd and on the 4th Baker Park was like a festival ground. I was a little disappointed by the lack of parades but overall it was nice experience. They had live bands at the park area and a lot of entertainment for the kids. Lucas and Leo had a blast. I missed the fireworks cause I was too tiered to leave the apartment to go have a look at it in the evening but we did hear them. It kept raining buckets through the night so I also didn't want to get all drenched again! Have a look at the photo's so you can see Frederick's 4th of July experience. Click on the title of this post to go to my photo album or check the slide show bellow. Enjoy!

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My First Baby Quilt is Done!

2007-07-01T03:04:00.001+10:00

If I look at it I still can't believe that I have actually made this quilt. I had help, of course, from Sue from the quilting studio...she showed me all the steps. It looks so cute and its very fluffy because its flannel material. I think Kim and Keith are going to love it. I am really happy with the colour scheme and also with the pattern. Now I am scared to start my next quilt alone and be disappointed by the results...silly! What do you all think?

Evolution of the 'F' word

2007-06-27T05:04:00.000+10:00

Not only did the word Feminism become a symbol (for our generation) of angry and butch women but now it also brings generations of sisters to argue! Maybe most of you are not aware but there is a war between generations at hand. This for me, defies all rules of our sisterhood. In the article 'Lipstick Feminists' (you can find link bellow) it points clearly that there is much commotion between the 3rd and 2nd generation of women around the topic of what is a feminist. Our older sisters are pist off at us for not appreciating all the work they have done and putting it lightly, for our moronic and degrading 'girlie culture'. Now sometimes, even I get a little concerned by the objectification that the media portrays of women but on the other hand I believe that the women who are being objectified are in control of there bodies. This shows to our older sisters that our generation has been empowered enough by them and that if we choose to be objectified, we are in control of our bodies portrayals. Further more, we are not trapped only in the objectification of male desire but actually we portray women with the desire to be acknowledge in all our traits (beauty, spirit, mind and body). Not only does this show to our older sister's that they have done a wonderful job in passing on the potential and freedom to be ourselves (no matter our sexual orientation, social status or colour). But also this empowers future generations of women not to fear their sexuality or their femininity but to embrace this famine power as part of who we are as women without prejudice of dishonoring ourselves.

Now, there will always be women or men who still don't get it and will be objectified with no power over there image (Paris Hilton for one!). But that is life, some people get it, some don't; you can’t expect the whole world to be enlightened. Our older sisters might be generalising all women because of few rotten apples. Which saddens me immensely!

There is no doubt that our generation is a little spoiled and most of us have no idea what our older sister's had to go through to give us such freedoms. We do take it for granted but also our older sisters are sometimes hard on us. They forget that we live in a very different world and that we might know more of what women are all about today than they do. Not only that, but also we are more in contact with women issues of our generation than they will ever be.

In conclusion to all of this and the article, no matter if you are a feminist or girl power or geek; at the end of the road we are all women. Women need other women to share there feelings and experiences no matter what generation you are. Every woman has there own agenda of issues that they think are priority and that is what feminism is all about. I do agree with Jennifer Baumgardner (she was interviewed in the article) that feminism is something individual to each woman. So instead of creating this communication gap and these walls between each other, why not try to find a common ground. Because at the end, we are all sisters and we all share the same road.

Article: Lipstick Feministas. Jennifer Baumgardner and Amy Richards create a manifesto for Third Wave feminism by Tamara Straus.
http://www.metroactive.com/papers/cruz/11.29.00/feminism-0048.html

Want to find more about 2nd and 3rd generation of the F word check the link bellow: http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/920/context/cover

Bernina, Bernina, Bernina!!!!

2007-06-23T08:40:00.000+10:00

Great news... I bought my very first sewing machine 2 weeks ago!! I'm so excited about all the good stuff that I can make now. I have to leave the machine at the sewing shop though because I don't have much space in our new apartment in the US. All the girls at the shop keep asking me how I can do that..seeing its a new machine and its the only one I have...I guess I will have to manage just for a while. Its a very fancy Bernina 440 QE (quilter edition). It really feels like having a Rolls Royce hihihi...

I really enjoyed working on my first quilt with it. Its a great machine it has so many features that I got lost at the bernina class. I was amazed of what I can do with it. Its costly but its a machine for life.

My baby quilt is almost done. I am finishing the binding at the moment by hand. I am doing this quilt for a good friend of mine who is having her first baby. I think I will have a hard time parting with it, cause it looks soooooo cute. I will upload some pictures when its finished. Cheers