I love nothing more than unravelling our little man from his swaddle after a sleep and seeing his hands shoot up for a big stretch … and his funny squashed ear. Bless Xx
Baby Animal ♥
Today I am loving these baby animal images from The Animal Print Shop photographed by Sharon Montrose. Perfect for the nursery!
Sneaky Peek : Mountains
As I am currently cocooned in newborn baby mania, I have been yearning a meander through the mountains.
For life to be stripped back to utter simplicity – eating, walking, sleeping. To feel connected to a world that has been left ‘untouched’ and in its natural form. To feel rough dolerite on your hands as you scramble across the scree. To feel the wind and rain whip against your face. To feel the ache in your legs as you get summit fever and to reflect on your life from a vastly different perspective.
Yum : Spinach & Sage Blue Cheese Soup
I haven’t made this soup yet, but I came across the recipe in the latest Est Magazine. It would be a delicious soup for a dinner party (for all that entertaining that we are doing at the moment! Ha..ha!)
Spinach & Sage Blue Cheese Soup
- Bag of Spinach
- 1 Leek
- 1 Fennel
- 1 Broccoli
- 1 Sweet Potato
- Olive oil
- Butter
- Bunch of Sage
- Blue Cheese
- 250 ml Chicken bone broth (Purchased or homemade, see this recipe)
- 1 Garlic clove
- 1 Tbsp Anise seed
- Brown Onion
- Salt & Pepper
- Greek yoghurt
Method
- Wash vegetables. Bring a large pot of water to the boil, chop broccoli and sweet potato and cook for 5 minutes, remove broccoli, continue to cook sweet potato for a further 10-15 minutes until soft
- Slice leek, fennel bulb and herb, garlic, and onion and simmer with butter in a pan on low to medium heat until translucent
- Strain sweet potato and place all ingredients in a blender including a good drizzle of olive oil (may have to do 2 batches in blender) add a dollop of yogurt and blue cheese as desired
- Blend on high until rich and creamy
- Serve with warm crusty sourdough and a dollop of both yoghurt and blue cheese on top
- Serves 4
Source: Est Magazine – Velvet Virtues
Offspring
Not the TV show but a couple of photos of our offspring – Poppy and James.
James is growing by the minute and now weighs a healthy 3.520 kgs, which is just slightly over Poppy’s birth weight of 3.456 kgs. He is feeding three times during the night still which is exhausting, but we will get there. I am such a Nanna as I go to bed between 8.30 – 9.00 pm each night to have a power nap before he wakes for his ‘dream feed’ at 11 ish.
When I have a moment of despair from being so tired, I just think to myself how blessed we are to have this little man, and before long he will be running around and sleeping through the night! You really do have to saviour these precious moments when they are so little and so dependant.
I hope you all have a lovely weekend. Xx
V Neck ♥
Today I am loving my new Vaille Cashmere jumper that I bought when I was pregnant and unable to wear it.
When I was in Melbourne in May with Melissa, she took me to her favourite jaunt, Grace Boutique in Hawkesburn Village. The whole shop has ‘Melissa‘ all over it, and is totally her style with lots of beautiful floral prints, crazy cat jeans, silk shirts and beautiful jewellery. There was one piece that sang to me though and that was this little beauty.
I have pulled the jumper out of my drawer post baby and it is almost too warm to wear it at the moment, but I won’t be holding my breath – I am sure Tassie won’t let me down and provide another cold snap for me!
VAILLE means “worth” in French and this knitwear label is certainly worth falling in love with! Utilising soft, long-wearing, pure cashmere we love the unique designs created by Vaille for a modern update on the classic yarn. Luxurious and suitable all year round, whether worn with your favourite jeans or layered over a silk dress, this cashmere brand has become our firm favourite.
We think there’s something so sexy about a super soft low v-neck jumper. This cashmere knit is our favourite of the season! This style features a beige base with a mottled multicoloured fabrication, divine paired with light denim and a silk shirt.
Here is one of the gorgeous ‘Grace’ girls super stylin’ the V Neck which featured in a recent Est article:
Sneaky Peek : Canada
Ok, are you ready for more nostalgia … and questionable fashion, chubbiness and bad hair?
In 1993 I ventured out into the big wide world and moved to Canada for a year. It was an amazing experience and one that I will always remember. My trip was the perfect combination of new experiences, new travel destinations, a new career direction and most importantly, new friends.
I landed a job in Vancouver as a Tour Guide on the Grouse Mountain Sky Ride. An engineering feat, the cable car carries 100 people and ferries the skiing/touring public from the base of the mountain to the summit. My role included operating this beast, plus giving a commentary of the views over Vancouver and in winter, the current ski report. I absolutely loved this job and felt so blessed to be working in such beautiful surrounds.
The other perks of the job included a free ski pass for the season where I learnt to snowboard, and of course meeting an amazing bunch of young Canadians and other travellers. We worked hard, skied hard and partied hard!
One day at work I was introduced to a fellow Australian lass called Jana Bayliss (who was Troy Bayliss‘ sister) and with her bubbly persona and infectious smile, I just knew we would be fine friends … and we still are, twenty years on.
Jana and I had many adventures whilst in Canada which included road trips away in my old VW Golf. On one trip we drove north to Whistler and Pemberton and naively decided to sleep in the car as we didn’t have any money to pay for a youth hostel. Unfortunately we neglected to take into consideration the plummeting temperature gauge to a chilly -15C. I have never been so cold and so uncomfortable. I distinctly remember a thick layer of ice inside the car. We even lit our gas lantern in the hope of procuring some heat. To top it off, the Golf didn’t start the next morning and we relied on some friendly locals to help two ‘Australian damsels in distress’. The locals did help us, but only after they gave us a dressing down for being so foolish and sleeping in a car in those conditions!
Our adventures continued to South East Asia, where we travelled through Malaysia and Thailand on our way home to Australia. We warded off curious local gangs in rat infested alleyways, ventured to idyllic islands and soaked up the South-East Asian sun, culture and food.
On return to Australia, I moved to Sydney to work for a couple of years where Jana was also living, and our adventures continued. She now lives in Noosa and has two beautiful boys. We haven’t seen each other for quite a few years but when we do, I know that we will pick up from where we left off. We will relive our travels and hopefully make new memories with more adventures … as Mums!
Spring has Sprung
Wow – what glorious weather, spring has certainly sprung! We had such a great weekend as my sister Rob and her husband Paul were visiting us from Castlemaine. I love hanging out with my sisters and this weekend was no exception.
Nick and Poppy had organised a father/daughter boat trip to Bruny Island for Saturday night and were joined by James and his daughter Meg in their boat! Pirate Poppy packed her wheely bag full of books and toys and apparently had a fantastic time away with her Dad!
I, on the other hand, had a lovely weekend with little James. I can’t believe how quiet the house is without a two-year old tearing around.
I met my lovely sisters for a picnic at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens for lunch on Saturday, where we unfurled in the warmth of the sun, ate beautiful food and chatted for hours (as James slept soundly in his pram). It was so delightful!
The next morning my pirates returned from their adventures and we all met up with Rob, Paul, Cath and Bronte at the Botanical Gardens again for more food, sun and chats. Xx
Hi Top ♥
Today I am loving Poppy’s new ‘Carmen Floral‘ Hi Top from Cotton On. So groovy!
Ps: I’ve just realised my Thursday’s ♥ post often revolve around shoes?!
Social Butterfly
The Poppy Files 