Do you remember the first apartment tour that I took you on? Back when it was empty and there was basically no furniture? Well, I finally got around to taking some more photos now that our gear has arrived. It’s still not finished, but I wanted to show you our work-in-progress. Over the next year,… Read More Apartment Tour
This month’s selection is a book entitled, “Two Brides Too Many”, by Mona Hodgson. {ISBN 0307458903, Waterbrook Press, May 2010, 320 pages} “Two Brides Too Many” is the story of sisters Kat and Nell Sinclair. Recently arrived in Cripple Creek, CO to marry men that they’ve only met through letters, their world is thrown for… Read More “Two Brides Too Many” – August Book Review
Hey everyone – hope you had a great weekend. Mine was fun on Friday but went downhill from there: sore throat, runny nose, cough, bloodshot eyes… the works. I slept cradling a Kleenex box instead of my husband, and each morning, the floor looked like it had snowed 2 ply lotion tissues. Yuck. I loaded… Read More Menu Monday
We’ve been in New Zealand for over 3 months. A lot has changed since then, and I’m not just talking about the weather. I’ve realized that I can live and make a home in a foreign country. That some things will always be the same. That there are friends who keep in touch with you… Read More A 3 Month Retrospective
Hello, my lovely readers! Hope you’re having a fabulous day 🙂 Today, I’m going to share some photos that I took while touring the Winter Gardens in Auckland Domain with my friend B and her two daughters, S and Z. The Winter Gardens are located within Auckland’s largest park – the Auckland Domain. It’s about… Read More The Beautiful Winter Gardens
I’ve mentioned before that since moving to New Zealand, I’ve started branching out in some of our recipes. One particular ingredient that I’ve been using a lot of is squash {or pumpkin, as it’s called over here}. I’ve turned to Cooking Light many times for meal ideas and recipes, and they were the source for… Read More Cheesy Pasta with Roasted Squash and Bacon
Hey everyone – hope you had a great weekend. Ours was busy. I went to a cute cafe in Ponsonby called “Agnes Curran”, stopped in at Milly’s Kitchen Shop, checked out a store called “The Mad Butcher”, went to Mitre 10 for some things {the equivalent of a Lowe’s in NZ}, and looked at furniture. … Read More Menu Monday!
One of my favorite stores in Auckland is “The Vault”, a design home-store located on High Street. Other than this sign, there isn’t much to indicate that there’s a store here! This is the shop window… It’s definitely tucked in there! This is the entry way. You truly feel as though you’re walking down into… Read More Shopping at “The Vault”
I’m glad that you guys enjoyed seeing the photos from yesterday’s post! Sometimes, I wonder if people are all that interested in knowing what life is like in Auckland, New Zealand. Posting pictures of my shopping excursion in the rain seems a little silly, but I know that a big reason why I read other… Read More Continuing with our Rainy Day Shopping…
It’s a rare thing for me to post a photo of myself on this blog! But, I decided that I should show you what I look like when I’m all kitted out to go walking in the Auckland winter rain… Gosh, my hair’s getting long! And please, pay no mind to the bedroom – we’re… Read More Shopping in the Rain… Complete with Photos
Hey everyone – hope you had a great weekend and that you’re week ahead doesn’t look too stressful. Last week, I mentioned that I would be making Paula Deen’s Corn Chive Pudding. Here’s a photo of the finished product… It was good, but we both agreed that it wasn’t great. I think that I’ll stick… Read More Menu Monday
You may remember me writing about purchasing a set of 5 Envirosax bags. I’d never used them before, but given that we don’t have a car and are often walking to do our own shopping, I thought it worthwhile to purchase some reusable grocery bags. Not to mention the fact that it’s better for the… Read More Envirosax Review
I have an irrational fear of public transportation. I don’t have any qualms about riding trains or subways – I’ve done that before in Boston, in NYC, in Chicago… it’s just buses that freak me out. I haven’t regularly ridden a bus since the early days of grade school when I had to trudge down… Read More On Public Transportation
Check out this National Graphic video clip about “adventure tourism” in New Zealand. In case you didn’t know, New Zealand is where bungy-jumping was invented, and they have all sorts of crazy, adrenaline filled activities out here. Considering the fact that I’m scared to death of heights and don’t even like to go down some… Read More New Zealand – Adventure Tourism
Hello, my lovely readers 🙂 I hope that you all had a great weekend! Here’s what’s on our plates this week… Monday Paula Deen’s Broccoli Casserole – I like many of Paula Deen’s recipes {Perfectly Imperfect, don’t hate me!}. And I was feeling the need for some Southern Cooking this week, so this menu relies… Read More Menu Monday!
New Zealand, believe it or not, isn’t exactly known for it’s Mexican food. I know, I know – hard to believe! Tortilla chips here taste a bit differently, and for the most part, we’ve seen only 1 – 2 brands of salsa on the store shelves. There are smaller specialty stores, but gone are the… Read More Homemade Salsa in New Zealand
Thank you so much to all of you who left sweet comments and sent me well wishes after yesterday’s post. It made me feel so much better! I felt like Eeyore – all glum and depressing and bringing everyone down! I am feeling much better. Chris and I made a decision (I’ll tell you about… Read More Thank You
I miss Target And while we’re at it, I miss Walmart, Meijer, Sam’s Club, and Costco I miss being able to buy a new-release paperback book off the shelf for less than $40.00 {thank goodness for my Kindle!} I miss Trader Joe’s and Penzeys Spices I miss my SUV I miss cheap gasoline I miss… Read More A mild, utterly unserious, and completely non-contagious case of homesickness blues
Hello, my lovely readers, and welcome to July’s book review. To read more about my book review approach, giveaways, and previous book selections, click here. This month, I’ve selected the novel “Broken”, by Travis Thrasher… {ISBN 0446505552, FaithWords Publishing, May 2010, 288 pages} Broken tells the story of Laila, a young woman who left Small… Read More “Broken: A Novel” – July Book Review
I had my first online grocery shopping experience this weekend, and I’m hooked! It was so cool to shop in my pajamas while watching “Friends” on Friday night. That’s right – I just admitted that I was watching re-runs in my PJs on a Friday night. In my defense, it was rainy, I was tired,… Read More Menu Monday
