I made French Bread yesterday. That’s right – I made French Bread. The kind of bread that you want to eat warm and fresh from the oven. With lots of butter. Or by itself, if butter isn’t your thing. Butter is definitely my thing. That’s why my mom bought me my own little butter crock. … Read More One-Bowl French Bread
I wasn’t sure if I’d be doing MMM this week. Then I caught a look at myself in the mirror this evening and thought, “Yeah – definitely posting this on Messy Mom Monday!” Yes, I realize that it’s a blurry image of me. That’s because the lens focused on the dust particles on my mirror. … Read More Messy Mom Monday
Joe loves sitting his toy bin… Something about being surrounded by toys just thrills him! Don’t worry – the bin has a safety latch so it won’t slam down on him or pinch his little fingers. And he’s never in there without me right beside him. It’s so cute to watch him “talk” to his… Read More Joe in the Toy Bin
If you’re like me, then you’re often on the lookout for recipes that are filling, nutritious, easy to make, and easy on the pocketbook. Here’s one that satisfies all of those criteria, and it’s a cinch to modify based on taste. It can function as a side dish or, if you’re like us, work as… Read More Lentil Rice Supper
Let me preface this post by saying a few things: I don’t think that a woman is a better mother because she stays at home with her children or because she works outside of the home. I think that it’s entirely a case-by-case sort of thing. There are some women who would be much better… Read More Working Postpartum
I’m loving these MMM posts. Why? Because after I take the photos of our apartment, I think, “Hmm… I’d better clean that up!” and start to do chores. It’s motivation, but in a strange sort of way… In the meantime, here’s a look around our home: Dishes in the sink and by the sink. I’d… Read More Messy Mom Monday!
I sometimes struggle with having an adequate balance of busyness and quiet time. Does anyone else deal with that? Surely I’m not the only one. Why is it so hard to unwind and simply “be”? The sermon on Sunday brought this to the forefront. Travis, the pastor, was talking about rest. More specifically, where or… Read More Rest
The first time I saw New Zealand was when we moved here nearly 2 years past. There was no pre-visit for me – I just got on a plane and followed Chris, all while hoping that the country was as lovely as it seemed in pictures. My view from the plane window that early morning… Read More The First Time I Saw New Zealand
Yes, I realize that this post is supposed to be “Messy Mom Monday”. However, by the time I saw Brittney’s post, it was already Tuesday here in New Zealand. Oh well! It’s so easy to for me to line my life up to someone else’s and think that I’m not doing enough or that I… Read More Messy Mom… Tuesday?
This was a good weekend. We went to the farmer’s market on Saturday. Bought some things that were fresh and yummy and all at good prices. Got back home just before the downpour began. Always a good feeling to know that you narrowly missed getting soaked! I worked Saturday evening. It was good, but I’m… Read More The Weekend
Joe loves his solid foods. Avocados, parsnip, carrots, chicken, spinach, beef… and so on and so forth. However… I’m worried about having a picky eater. I don’t think that Chris or I were particularly picky eaters {though Chris did have a reputation for gagging and making himself throw up whenever they went out to eat… Read More Octopus? Really?
According to some recent surveys, New Zealand is, hands-down, the friendliest country on earth {click on image to go to report}. NZ is Friendliest Country on Earth according to HSBC Expat Explorer Auckland – where we live – was also recently ranked as “The World’s 10th Most Liveable City”. Wellington – the capital – was… Read More Friendly. Liveable. Expensive.
Dear Joseph, You are 7 months old, baby! You are so precious to us. Every day, I marvel at how much you’ve grown and developed. It’s hard for me to grasp how quickly time has flown since your birth – 7 whole months! We started you on solid foods when you were about 6 months… Read More 7 Months
I’d like to vacation here: Queenstown (image via) Fjordland National Park (image via) Fox National Glacier (image via) Arrowtown (image via) Dunedin (image via) Stewart Island (image via) Marlborough Wine Region (image via) Abel Tasman National Park (image via) In other words, I want to visit the South Island (of New Zealand)! Now, all I… Read More The South Island
Two ingredients can get you this: That’s right, ladies and gentlemen and it was so easy. Want to know how I did it? It took 5 steps… Step 1. Open a can of cheap beer (12 oz/330mL) Step 2. Measure out 2 2/3 C of self-rising flour Step 3. Mix flour and beer together till… Read More Flour + Beer = Bread {Only 2 Ingredients and No Kneading!}
Did I ever tell you about the time I let my sister take a spanking for me? No? Well, maybe that’s because I never “let” her take one for me. More like I made her. And all because of a goldfish. Let’s back it up a bit and give you some more information. You see,… Read More They Always Find Out
One of the perks of coming from a big family: there’s plenty of hand-me-downs and things that are saved for future use. Case in point: the seemingly unending supply of toys available to Joe during our holiday. We have photos of Joe seated in bins with playthings spilling out around him – he was so… Read More Going Retro
Back in November, Carole from ExpatFocus.com approached me about coming onboard as a columnist. I’ve just had my first article published and would love for you to stop by and check it out. Click the image below to be redirected to my post on the Expat Focus website. Thanks in advance for stopping by to… Read More Columnist at ExpatFocus.com
Chris and I decided to stop subscribing to TV channels about 4+ years ago. Notice that I didn’t say we decided to go TV-free – we decided to go without any TV channels. Bit of a difference there. We love to watch movies and there are some shows that we have on DVD {“Friends”, “NCIS”,… Read More Too Much Television
Apparently, New Zealand has some really great coffee, but don’t ask me for any recommendations. I, my lovely readers, am a tea drinker. Having a “quick cuppa” with some bikkies {biscuits, aka, cookies} is part of the culture over here. My staff break room at work is fully equipped with hundreds of tea bags, a… Read More Daily
