A perfect Summer's Day.

Sheesh two posts in one day - that's a record for me! 

Today was one of those wonderfully perfect days..........the days i wish for almost all year long, the kind i dream about on a chilly winter's day.  The Bloke had heard about a fantastic swimming hole just out of Briagolong, Gippsland a few years ago & we had intended to go check it out one day.

 Finally today was the day.

 Yesterday i baked yummy bread rolls & brownies for a picnic lunch & we did a bit of research to find out where this place was. It took us an hour to get there...........a u-turn for a missed road & a stop  at tiny general store for directions.........but we found it - Blue Pool it's called.

It was so relaxing & the water was lovely. Such a beautiful spot in basically the middle of nowhere - a huge swimming hole provided for us by mother nature. We will definitely go back.

Then it was home for more swimming in our pool & some harvesting from our vegie patch to make dinner. We spotted these couple of possums on the chook house roof pilfering nectarines from the tree that hangs over the back fence.

I hope there's many, many more of these awesome days.

Treasure.

I'm a sucker for a bit of floral cross-stitch goodness, i have a box full in my linen closet that i've collected from oppys. Usually i just can't bear to cut up & create something that someone has put so much hard work into, but i love this new find so much that i don't like the idea of it hiding away in a box - so i think this one will be turned into a pretty cushion for our bed. Good old country town thrifting, always comes up trumps! Once again i'm linking up with Her Library Adventures..........pop on over to see some more thrifting loveliness & all the usual awesomeness that Sophie shares with us.

C is for Jack.

So the other  night while i was whipping up this map covered C for Chas, he informs me he longer wants to be known as Chas. He is now Jack. So i tell him the C will be going in my room then & i will now be known as Colleen. Apparently only i can call him Chas, but only sometimes so that means the C can still be for his room.

It's been a while since i've played with paper &it was fun! I bought the C from a cheapo shop for a couple of bucks & found an old school atlas at an op-shop. I covered the C in mod podge then stuck on the maps, when the mod podge dried i sand papered the edges smooth. To finish i then coated the whole lot in mod podge. I'm not sure whether to cover the inside in map or not, what do you think?
I'm feeling very creative at the moment & have some delicious new fabrics to play with as soon as i have a bit of precious time.........

And here's my three little Aussies celebrating Australia day yesterday, we had a fun day - hope yours was great too! xxx

Jam Drops. (This one's for you Mrs Rhone).

I enjoy good old fashioned baking, stuff my gran would've made & are still just as yummy today. The other day Amity & i made these (and Scarlett ate the cookie dough).

I found a recipe & then tweaked it a bit to suit us better, we used Blackcurrant jam & Apple, Rhubarb & Cinnamon conserve to fill them. Still eating them to decide which flavour is my favourite............but i think they'll taste really good with homemade plum jam. (wink wink Mrs Rhone). Here's the recipe:

Jam Drops

3/4 cup SR flour

3 tbsps rice flour

70g butter, softened

4 tbsps caster sugar

1 egg, beaten

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

jam

Method:

Preheat oven to 180c. Line trays with baking paper. Cream together butter & sugar until light & fluffy, then beat in egg & vanilla. Fold in the flours until just combined. Roll one teaspoon of the mixture into a ball & put on a tray. Repeat with all the mixture. Press an indent into the centre of each cookie & fill with a little jam. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes or until golden.

Makes about 30.

Enjoy!  I am planning a new & very exciting baking adventure soon, finger's crossed it turns out & i'll share it with you.

From the Patch - Peas.

Oh my goodness there's nothing better than fresh peas straight from the garden! So sweet & yummy. Peas from our patch rarely make into our house............three little munckins go to The Patch when they're hungry & eat them fresh (and One Bloke!). But occasionally when no one is looking i'll sneak out & pick a handful & then smuggle them into the kitchen to make the yummiest salad ever. I saw Jamie Oliver making this on one of his very first cooking shows (back in the early days of lusting after him), it is so simple & soooooo good. Do yourself a favour - try it.

Baby Spinach, Fresh Pea & Fetta Salad.


2 large handfuls baby spinach
1 large handful fresh peas
firm fetta cheese
Method:
Blanch the peas in boiling water. Allow peas to cool & toss with the spinach. Crumble fetta over the top, then dress with olive oil & white wine vinegar or lemon juice.

This recipe may seem a tad vague, but really it's that simple you don't even need a recipe - just toss the ingredients together. I prefer to use an Australian fetta, i've tried a Danish one before & found it smooshed too much, so a firmer one works better. Thanks Jamie - you're an inspiration in my kitchen! (And yes i'm still lusting after you..........)

Instagram..............Instant Addiction.

I downloaded the Instagram app onto my phone the day i bought it & became instantly addicted. I love being able to take photos anytime, anywhere & editing them instantly & then sharing them. I love seeing new photos in my feed of people who i follow - especially their 'photo a day' photos & their interpretations on the daily theme.

A scenic drive with my sister.

I guess it's a good 'sign' they've been in business for a long time?

Prettiest little church ever.

My little Scarlett peeking at the boys next door through a hole in the fence.

If you're on Instagram you'll find me under Franklymydear_malea, & i'd love to see your photos too -  if not download the app & join the addiction!

School holiday fun.

I love the school holidays, i really enjoy the lack of routine and the carefree time we have. I have, however found that as the kids are getting older i need to keep them busy or they become bored very quickly. One thing i had promised them to do was to go to Melbourne and visit the museum, this had been something i had intended to do for the last few years. So yesterday the two big kids and i finally boarded a train bound for the city.....






The museum was pretty awesome, i just went with the flow and let the kids look at whatever they liked and just followed them as they ran from display to display. And of course, there was the few occassions when they went in opposite directions and i lost them for a little while.......whoops! After the museum we headed to the Treasury Gardens - what a beautiful place! Captain Cook's cottage, the fairy tree, The mini Tudor Village & the pretty, pretty Conservatory garden.




We had a good cheap day out & arrived home a little weary! I think we will definitely make it a tradtition to take a train trip to the city every school holidays, it's a whole other world to my country bumpkin kids!