Thursday, February 28, 2013

Cashew Pesto....♥

Ok here we go...

It's easy, it's nutritious and it pretty much kicks your store bought pesto in the face

Ingredients

3 big bunches of the freshest Basil you can find
(wash, and break off leaves) 
1 cup of raw cashew nuts
Juice of a small lemon
1 small clove of garlic
A generous pinch of sea salt
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Wazz it up in a blender adding oil to create your desired consistency.
There are no rules peoples ... add chilli if you like, more salt, lemon, pepper?

Now... 

Stir it through hot pasta
Melt it on a steamy spud
Spread it on a fresh Baguette ... or better yet THIS bread
Use it in a wrap instead of mayo... you can thank me later
Lavish it on freshly grilled fish 
Dollop it on a salad
Create the perfect base for poached eggs on toast
Boring steamed veg? Not anymore.

A bit of extra motivation...

In just TWO teaspoons of Basil you can get 60% of your daily Vitamin K needs
(read more about how crazy good basil is HERE)
Cashews are a very rich source of essential minerals - more info HERE
Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a natural anti-inflammatory - more HERE
Garlic is nature's anti-biotic - more HERE
Lemons are very alkalising to our blood (a good thing!) more HERE

I'm astonished at what a powerhouse of goodness this simple spread can be.
I hope you get a chance to make some and enjoy the green deliciousness.
Be aware though that, being fresh, this pesto does not have all the nasty preservatives
that the store bought kind contains..... so....

 Keep it refrigerated and use it promptly.
(and believe me... you will....)

♥♥♥

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Longing, Missing and Wishing....


I've been cleaning. 
Not my home (although that needs some attention today for sure)
My other home. 
The great temple that is my body. 
The sacred space that houses this heart, this mind and these hopes and dreams. 
I am not a fan (at all) of commercial detox products and "get super healthy super quickly" schemes. Let's face it - as long as it takes you to get messy is usually as long as it will take you to get clean, right? 

All I'm doing is avoiding (not forever) the cooked, the processed and the chemical 
(caffeine to be precise)
whilst embracing raw, natural, liquified, blended and smoothied goodness. 

I feel amazing. I feel light, I feel clear. I wont go into specifics, suffice it so say there are many websites and blogs dedicated to this sort of topic and it really does get boring when people preach.

No I only wanted to tell you this because I have a very simple list of things I am craving like crazy.
So simple in fact there's only item on the list....

Can you guess what it is? 

♥♥♥





Wednesday, February 20, 2013

We have lift off....


Yes ladies and gentleman, I am proud to announce that I have (finally)
launched my rocket of creativity into the dark and uncharted space that is 
my future. I'm petrified.

But in a good, excited and adrenalin pumping kinda way

I keep hearing Martin Luther King in my head
"I have a dream..." and then I'm embarrassed to admit it 
bandies about floral notions that do not compare at all to the 
monumental importance of the civil rights movement.
Still it is my dream...and it's coming true.

There are so many wonderful people out there who have inspired me to
follow a dream and just dive in... flail if you have to but try... at least try!

Ladies like Kate, Eleni, and Rebekka ... (to name only a few)
All very different dreams but dreams coming true nonetheless


Do you have dream? A desire burning quietly? A fire in the pit of your 
belly that you neglect to stoke because ... (fill in the blanks)
Do you long to try something but you are afraid of failing, or you are 
putting it off until .... until ... (fill in the blanks)

I'm pretty sure that there are NO GUARANTEES WHAT SO EVER where I'm
heading - but I woke up this morning with just a little less regret. 
Boy did that feel good

*********

PS -the above image is of my first ever attempt at a 
"Symmetrical, Formal and Compact Design"
Whilst I'm not a fan of the style I know I need to learn all facets 
before I can "go crazy daisies on my own" 
Cool huh?





Monday, February 18, 2013

Giddy - /'gid´e/ Verb: to make someone feel excited to the point of distraction....


I'm giddy. I'm so so giddy.
Only one more sleep and I begin my course
(permission to use exclamation profanity)
My Floral Design Course!!!!!!!!!!!

I've always loved studying, being a student, attending lectures, writing essays
(I'm a consummate nerd)
I've always studied what I thought I SHOULD - never what I really WANT.
You know how life tells you that you need to get a job and be responsible and make money
and have a go at a successful career and balance it with family and do the right thing?

Well what if the right thing is to forget all that and just do what makes your heart sing?
It's risky. It's scary. It does not promise big bucks... oh no no.

Yet... I am giddy. Ready and giddy.

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Thoughts in point form....




































We have a saying* here in Oz.... it's not a particularly civilised, dignified or elegant saying but I have heard it uttered by people of all ... um.... how shall I put this.... backgrounds? It's a simile that I believe accurately describes the Summer of 2013 thus far. 

The garden is looking awful and there is simply no point in planting anything, what with the water restrictions and all. The temperatures are extreme and my chickens spend the entire day under the apricot tree with their wings spread slightly and their mouths ajar. 

My pooch lies around the house looking forlorn....he knows I'm not one to venture out into this heat and is quite sulky about the lack of visits to the park. 

On the upside my whites have never looked brighter. 

I'm waiting patiently to begin my course. 

I get so excited thinking about the prospect of playing with flowers... seriously can there be a better pastime? 

My son has settled into the new school year and, although I'm happy for him, I do miss him. I will never understand the parents who long for vacations to end... then again I do only have one bub. 

I've been trying to set aside time for meditation every day... but the mind keeps drifting to dahlias, roses, eucalypts and ... dare I say it... Winter. 

* apologies for the teaser but I can't bring myself to type the words you'll just have to look it up.

Mr Darcy....


Mr Darcy: Miss Elizabeth. I have struggled in vain and I can bear it no longer. These past months have been a torment. I came to Rosings with the single object of seeing you... I had to see you. I have fought against my better judgment, my family's expectations, the inferiority of your birth by rank and circumstance. All these things I am willing to put aside and ask you to end my agony. 
Elizabeth Bennett: I don't understand. 
Mr Darcy: I love you 

Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice



I'm such a sucker for a happy ending. 

I hope this commercially drowned day of love and flowers and cards and romance and disappointment (let's face it there are a lot of puffy eyed teenagers out there tonight*) and proposals and dinners and gifts and chocolates and... and ... have I forgotten anything? 

Well anyhoo .. I hope it was what you wanted it to be♥♥

* and if you are a puffy eyed teenager then know this - it gets better... I PROMISE!

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

My Valentine....



My Valentine really did sweep me off my feet, rescue me and whisk me away to a faraway land
(He can pick me up and we moved from Melbourne to Perth... semantics baby, semantics)
My Valentine really is tall dark and handsome
My Valentine can cook!
My Valentine ALWAYS puts the seat down
My Valentine knows where we keep the vacuum cleaner, the iron and how to use them
My Valentine knows my shoe size as well as that of my brassier
My Valentine makes a perfect cup of tea 
(and bakes the best Flourless Orange cake I've ever tasted)
My Valentine can sing and play guitar (swoon)
My Valentine thinks nothing of waking up in the middle of the night and going to an all hours pharmacy for "ladies bits" and then considers grabbing a hot water bottle ... just in case ♥
My Valentine is the most devoted father I know (and we all know how attractive that is)
My Valentine is... MINE.

For you my love .....
.....to the moon and back baby
♥♥♥







Monday, February 4, 2013

Lilies for Kashy...

I have a bestest buddy who lives just around the corner from me.
Her name is Jax. Coincidentally she has a bestest Mum who also lives just around the corner
from me. Her name is Jill. Do I love living near two rather fabulous ladies? 


Well of course I do.... BUT... (there's always a but isn't there?) Jax has a sister you see. Which means (obviously) that Jill has another daughter. 
A bestest sister. 
A bestest daughter. 

Her name is Kashy and she does not live just around the corner from me. 
She lives in the green and verdant county of Devon, in England.

Kashy has been over to visit with her husband Richard. They love Australia and they've had a marvellous vacation. Sadly though they return today. I'm off in an hour to say good bye.
I'm pretty crap with farewells. I want Kashy to live around the corner from me.
Then all our goodbye's would be temporary.


Lovely lady
I miss you already
We miss you already
Australia misses you already

As we discussed Lilies are traditionally given to mark birth and death.
Well I love them and I know you do too. 

So here's to the death of one vacation and the birth of
planning for the next one! 

Blessings, Light and Love... to you and yours.

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥