8 months later...

Shit a lot has changed.

Its been 8 months since i wrote anything. and EVERYTHING is different.

I'm still trying to eat ethically, and have discovered a nice name for it - Ethicurean. It was on a blog called Taurus Rising, so i cant take credit for it.

We have 6 chickens, 4 adult ducks, 7 ducklings, 1 cocker spaniel, 49 rainbow trout, 2 sheep and 1 GROWING BABY!!!

Yes, I'm in the family way. Quite a bit to be honest. Due in 6-8 weeks. Starting to get nervous and so need my doula a lot (just when she's really busy) but hopefully i can settle myself, perhaps some meditation.

I'd like to be able to blame the baby for the lack of posting but i cant.

I've felt fine for most of the last 7 months. I just didn't have anything interesting to write I thought. and of course, Facebook took over when i had a soapbox moment. Captive audience on facebook.

Hmmmmm, complete mental blank..... I did have something to let you know......

Anyhoo, the pregnancy has been straightforward, until the last few weeks. Quite difficult to turn a posterior baby when your really tired, have nausea if you haven't eaten and reflux once you have eaten. Sleeping is a joke. Hungry nausea woke me after a loo trip at 4 am , ignored until 5am but baby moves a LOT when i'm hungry so no success. Got up, OJ and porridge, Stargate episodes........ gee what i riveting post Mel.............. and kneeling over a pile of pillows and a quilt trying to get baby into anterior possie. Voila! Reflux.

I'm sooo tired. Not doing anything today, daytime tv, cross stitch and knitting, perhaps.

Although, I have a cocktail party tonight and only one dress fits. Its Glamour Black Tie formal. Its that or sparly top and black elastic plants. Bleh. I hate elastic.

I wanna look great! Sigh.

Surprise Vegan

We've done this a few times now, walked into a restaurant without a booking and asked for Vegan food. Routinely having wedges and sweet chilli, beer, coffee, fruit crushes, salad etc. BUT one place so far has stood out above all others.

Whilst on the way to Meadows for Aquaponic supplies, we stopped at the Macclesfield markets (???dont bother!) setting aside a bundle of cash for frivolous food, drinks, produce, crafts and spontaneity. No such enetertainment to be found and 2 hours to kill until Meadows appt. Wandered the streets of Maccy.

As we walked we found The Three Brothers Arms hotel and thought "lunch?"
The place comes highly recommended by family and friends but with dietary guidelines, that often counts for nothing. "They do the best Snitzel/Steak/Seafood Basket/Chicken parcel" but an absolutely ratshit salad.

We marched in and said "Can you do a vegan lunch?" the front of shop guy flipped out. "We ask that people book for vegan food, i'll ask the chef, no promises" . fine by me chips and salad again.

Ordered wedges, beer and water. Waited 20 minutes, chef ruffled through her books, menu and ingredients, waiter tells us she's freaking out. and finally we're told the chef can do a salad roll. fine. bleh. (better not charge us too much ).


Oh MY God. you would not believe what came out it was GORGEOUS.

A coleslaw style salad but with a wonderful vinegarette, balsamic i think. Topped with a parcel of spinach and mushroom wrapped in an odd flexible filo thing. dusted with nuts, herbs. Like a deep fried papadaum but flexible and AMAZING. It was one of the best Vegan foods i've ever had! nope scratch that THE BEST.

I can highly recommend this restaurant to anyone who has dietary restrictions or is just plain vegan/vegetarian! I think the chef may appreiciate people calling ahead but they have at least one option that excells.

We tipped the chef the money we'd set aside for the market and left VERY happy chappies. (maybe the beer had someting to do with it...??)


i'm so going back!

Breakfast - its a funny meal

i realised about a year ago i was skipping breakfast so i went all goody goody and started having low carb high protein breakfasts. Read: eggs, tomato, mushroom fry up. That got too hard, so i switched to the diet shakes we sell at work. you know, just add water, shake and go. i ended up sipping them all morning and while they are low calorie, simple and packed with vitamins (even Chromium for combating sugar cravings) i feel that they cant be good for me long term. They probably have tonnes of flavours, sweetners, anti-caking agents, preservatives. Totally artificial.

Sooooo..... i was browsing the cereal isle and Woolworths and its all crap! mostly. Its either sugar disguised as food, highly processes grains until "thankfully" they dont resemble grains, or its HUGELY overpriced. for something that you eat almost everday (Pancakes on sundays) i dont want to be paying $6-8 a box.
I guess i should be eating porridge, its down home goodness. BUT all carbs, especially when you need as much brown sugar and cream as i do, to get it down my gob.

SO i ended up making a batch of home made muesli (which in hindsight is probably really expensive, made of nuts, sesame oil, golden syrup and dried fruit) but the plus side is, the portions are controlled at 1/3 cup.
I cant eat much more than that anyway as its so rich.

In the end I'm just wondering what people do for their first, often rushed, meal of the day AND WHY?????

Yay camera!

back in business

also in other news,

our sheep escaped last night.

took until 11.30 this morning to get them back. thankfully a lady 3-4 blocks away called the council to say they were in her driveway. they crossed a railway, princes highway and a creek to get there. stupid sheep.

Mount Barker council considers itself a rural council so i did have the help of a council officer usually involved in dog and cat catching. he was on his own though - friday before a long weekend. usually a team of three should do this stuff but he had himself, me and max a very old very tired retired border collie who i'm dog-sitting and who i thought could "sit, stay" at any gateways if we needed an extra "man"

we found a house that had a secure yard and the lady said she'd tolerate them until i came with a trailer. they didn't go in there, they ran across the creek footbridge instead. then across the main street. then across the rail line. sigh. pack into the 4wd and track them down. by now they are on Burns st and Gary (council dog catcher) reckons they are smarter than i give them credit for.

they prove him wrong pretty quick by nipping up a side street and racing down a long driveway. turns out the guy who lives there kept sheep, had them penned in a little raceway and had a trailer with cage!! awesomeness.

by this time i've been standing in the rain for at least half an hour. but we get them home, Gary does the manly trailer thing down the drive and farewells me and max.

i bought a bottle of wine for both Gary and sheep-guy-with-trailer.

Note: dont share sheep in two neighbourly backyards when your neighbour has kids that

a). chase sheep until its gonna taste like leather and

b). leave gates open.

MARKETS! YEAH!!

I F***IN' Love the Central Markets

I found pine nuts for $35 a kilo - so i bought a kilo. Beat that price anyone and i'll buy another!

Every item at the markets has a story attached to it. i love that the produce is described right down to who grew it, where and what variety it is. Rather than Coles - Pears $xx/kg. These all have "Packham Pearsm, D.Smith of Lenswood Adelaide Hills $xx/kg"
i love that. the cheeses have descriptions of style and taste

I love the fact that if you walk around long enough trying samples, you dont really need lunch or dinner! Haha. Apples, yoghurt, nuts, cheese, salami, pears, grapes, choc coated coffee beans everything!

I love that that if you are around late in the day - last half hour - EVERYTHING seems to be $2.

I love that i can take a trolley and go nuts with bulk purchases from Goodies and Grains.
I like the little tiny Nana Buns stall tucked away in the alley that do Custard, Vanilla, Red bean and coconut flavoured buns. I like bubble tea. I like the buns with streusel on top sold at the Grote St end for $7.50.

I like buying clothes from Global Village and smelling like incense that i cant quite pin point when i wear them.

in short. I F***KING LOVE THE CENTRAL MARKETS

Camera issues

As you can see there have been a lot less photo's lately. Thats because of flat camera batteries and renovations BUT i finally found the charger and soon we'll be up and running again.

"Interesting" Names that I see daily.

Heres a selection for you....

Harleigh, Tarhlia, Darcy, Tallara, Anezka, Caitlyn, Cheyenne, Levi, Sienna, Brock, Alanah, Briony, Seth, Tiahna, Zahavah, Ieuan, Jye, Tania, Jorja, Saphiah, Kiara, Petria, Xander, Anjali, Zaine, Veloneika, Staskia

I'd like to name my child a traditional family name that has meaning to me. I see names like this in the next generation CONSTANTLY! and i think these poor kids are going to be spelling their names 3-4 times to people for the rest of their life.

I understand some of these are lovely and just novel whereas others are simply "Epiy'nnee-Raii" type names. This is a very controversial and personal topic - i'd be interested in what people have to say about it.