Day 28 Helping out.

Over the last few weeks we have been popping in and out of Rowena and Trevor’s new house helping out with their makeover type renovations. As their painter starts tomorrow, I asked Rowena if there were any last minute things that needed to be done before the painters arrive. In response we got a request to come over Saturday night, bring dessert and help out with the last few jobs. Hopefully sometime in the not too distant future Rowena and Trev’s house will be somewhere they can relax and enjoy as to this point the poor buggers have been doing the hard yards on it and not getting much time off at all! As it turned out, there were not many things left to do as they had done most of it. The above pic is of Trev and Sean carrying the single bed out to the garage and Declan carrying the old underlay out to the truck to go to the dump sometime in the future.

Day 17 Tastes peppery!

Today I went to Rowena’s and she asked if I knew of any recipes using kiwifruit as she had some she needed to use. I couldn’t think of any off hand so I Googled. I found a recipe for coconut kiwi and something else muffins but as she had no coconut, that wasn’t possible. I thought though, I wonder if they could be used as a substitute for lemons in lemon butter, thus making kiwi butter. I pureed the kiwifruit to directly substitute the lemon juice and zest for the same quantity of pureed kiwifruit. It behaved as it should and went custard-like on cooling, the only thing is that as it cooked it developed a peppery taste! We made a pie crust and filled it with the kiwi-butter and then made a meringue top separately to then sit on the pie (as I was unsure how the kiwi-butter would go in the oven if we put the meringue on top to bake) making it a lemon meringue style pie but using kiwifruit instead! While I wouldn’t make it again, it was a very unusual combination of flavours. I must say a drizzle of the original, uncooked pureed kiwifruit on top made it taste a little more like the original ingredient. (BTW today’s pic is of a slice of the aforementioned pie)

Day 15 Dinner's ready!

This morning I arranged to take Rowena to Belconnen markets as she had never been. I picked her up at 10 (ish) and we headed to Belconnen. I also wanted to pop into Belconnen Westfield to look for a pair of trousers I was unable to find at Tuggeranong. The quick visit turned into nearly an hour, after which we then went to the markets. I then dropped Rowena back home and she asked me to stay for lunch, so I popped the meat I had bought in the fridge and stayed…..one thing lead to another and I was helping with Trev and Rowie’s renovations when Sean messaged me at 7 (ish) to ask if I had anything planned for dinner! I arrived home and contributed my supplies from my earlier “hunter/gatherer” impersonation, and Sean cooked dinner.

The above pic is of Sean toiling over the hot stove to cook a lovely dinner of tender/juicy lamb chops with market fresh veges….VERY YUMMY!

Day 7 When the boys are away....

Today Declan went to the coast with a friend and his family (and came home sunburnt…but that is another story). Sean went out with Trevor on a mission to get a free clothesline for Rowena (…again, another story). While they were out, I decided to dye Illi’s hair with a dye we bought yesterday. It is a really nice dark brown, a shinier more even version of her natural colour, AND it covers the remnants of the colour she got in October. The pic above is of the paraphernalia on the bench after she went to rinse the conditioner out in the shower.

Day 3 Canberra....Cold country???

Most people, when they hear that we live in Canberra, comment about the low temperatures, and usually they are making correct assumptions. Today, however, would have to be one of the hotter days we have had here. Currently it is 7.40pm and as shown in the above pic, it is STILL quite warm.
Rowena and Trevor have recently moved here from Alice Springs and can’t understand why we are complaining about the heat, but I reckon, if the inside temp (top reading) is 28(ish) and the outside temp (bottom reading) is 30(ish) and the air con has been on all day, then that means the air con isn’t coping thus I am not! Pardon me while I go back and sit under and air con duct!