Duck Dinner

Well it turned out quite nice, although I wouldn't do it again in a hurry as there wasn't much meat on there. After all that time to cook there was enough for two moderate portions of duck and then Shane had the remaining remnants with his lunch. So I guess it qualifies as a success, just not a thrilling one.

Rub a dub duck

Oh my goodness! I am roasting a duck! How gourmet is that?! I just gave it a good rub down with sea salt and its in the oven for 3.5 hours. Thankfully we have leftovers we can eat in the mean time since it is already 6pm. Shane looked quite astonished when I shoved Mr. Duck in the oven and told him how long til we would be eating. 'That's 9:30' he said with a look of shock and amusement. Indeed it is rather late for dinner but good food is worth waiting for right? I must say it is quite weird to see the long neck bobbing around I really don't like my meat to resemble too much the animal that I am eating...but sacrifices must be made (literal and otherwise) because the Rayners MUST eat duck. Hey it was $8.38 down from $16! I will let you know how it goes.

I can do all things...

The last couple of hours have seen me busily tidying up. It is always great having visitors as the house gets looking fantastic as I prepare to wow and delight whoever is coming to stay. Okay, perhaps that is a slight exaggeration. But at any rate, I am wowed and excited at how great my house is looking at the end of the cleaning frenzy I put myself through. I do enjoy it though. There is such a sense of satisfaction in getting into all those usually forgotten corners. I find once I get into my cleaning 'groove' there really is no stopping me. I always end up doing random extra things that really don't need to be done, or at least they only contribute minutely to the overall untidyness and yet take up extraordinary amounts of time (but when you are killing time til a 1.55am pick up time is of no great importance)... e.g. cleaning and emptying out my bag and wallet, sorting out any little junk 'pots' I can get my hands on, gathering together all my takeaway menus and putting them into a 'doculope' (gosh I love those things!), cleaning on top of the fridge, sorting out the CD wallet and hunting out any that are missing... get the picture? But its those small and not really needing to be done jobs that I find the most satisfying, not quite sure why. I think knowing that even those out of the way and hidden spots are organised gives me a sense of calm. Its funny how the state of the house can reflect the state of one's mind. How 'on top' of the house work I am at any given moment is usually a good indication of my mental health. I might add that being 'on top' of the housework doesn't necessarily mean it has been done or is being done for that matter. What it means is that I can at least picture it being done without any mammoth effort. It really is all about how you see things. Some days even doing the dishes is a battle in itself, well on other days I can tackle every room and every cluttered corner and be ready for more. Its funny isn't it? How easily I can slide from domestic goddess, queen of my domain to slovenly houswife on the verge of a breakdown. I know it is God who provides me the strength I need, without him I can do nothing, but with him?... Nothing is impossible (even enjoying housework!).

PANtastic!

This blog is a thank you dedicated to my mum. I joyfully received a Stanley Rogers set of 3 pots and 2 pans plus 3 baking trays and 2 pairs of track pants! Harris Scarfe was having a big sale and I am the benefactor! :) The pots were quite the bargain originally $300 mum bought them for $100! AWESOME. The pots and pans have a 25 year guarantee and are cast iron with stainless steel handles. There are matching clear lids to all of them as well (except the griddle pan). Oh joy! I made stir fry last night and it was bliss swishing the veggies around in the pan, they didn't even THINK about sticking! Mum, you would be happy to know I have followed the care instructions to the letter, washing in warm water first and heating with veggie oil for a few minutes before first use- to ensure the optimum non stick lastability. I so appreciate the change to something high quality and am determined to take good care of it. So... anyone need some second rate, second hand pots and pans? You know where to come. Thanks again Mum! (ps. the pun in the title is for your enjoyment)

Pizza and the Potty

We had some very exciting potty training success this weekend! (note: Esther is wearing knickers in this picture!) Somewhere a light has gone in her head and I think the whole potty think has just 'clicked'. She asked for the potty on Saturday, this is not an uncommon thing for her to do, but what happened next was: she sat on the potty and actually wee'd! Yay! Time for 'marshals' (marshmallow rewards). In the last two days since, this has happened many times now. This morning she even woke up with a perfectly dry nappy. She asked for the potty as soon as I went in, and received yet another 'marshal' for her success. I am starting to wonder how many times we have to clap our hands and jump up and down after she does it... but hey, I am not complaining! We are very proud! However all this new found potty success is not completely without its hiccups. On Saturday after Esther had done her first self-initaited wee, I was feeding Charlotte on the bed and she came in asking for the potty.

'Shane!' I yelled,

'Quick, Esther wants to go potty!!' came my urgent request.

'I am indisposed!' Came shane's echo-ey reply from the loo...

Uh oh.

I quickly hopped up from the bed leaving poor Charlotte squirming and ran into Esther's room.

'Wet' said Esther pointing to the wee on the floor... There were two puddles, not one though. Yes, Esther had not only wee'd on the floor but also tipped out her earlier success that I had (neglectfully) failed to empty as yet...

So our training has expanded from not only getting her to 'go' on the potty but also not to pick it up and dump it out in her excitement. We are making plenty of progress on both counts and all feeling generally very proud and pleased with ourselves! :)

Now you will notice the title to this blog says 'Pizza and potty' now we have the potty talk out of the way I will get on with the exciting tales of Christy in the kitchen. Last night I decided I wanted to make Pizza. I had to make a run to the shop to get a few things so bought all the needed toppings. I had found a delightful looking pizza base recipe in my 'How to be a domestic goddess' cook book. Thank you once again Nigella, this was a winner! I was most pleasantly surprised at how easy the dough was to make, I am always a bit frightened of donig things with yeast, afraid after all the work and time to let it rise that it won't work out and be so disappointing. Which, I might add, has happened in the past. But this recipe was simple, chuck the ingredients together (flour, yeast, oil, warm water) mix and then knead, then let rise in a bowl for an hour. The dough was rising while I went to the shops and was ready to go when I returned. It smelled and felt delicious! A bit more kneading and then I rolled it out on the tray, spread a few tinned chopped tomatoes across the base, sprinkled on salt and italian herbs and then popped it in the oven for twenty minutes. I had my ingredients all ready to go (picture)

Then I pulled it out of the hot oven and covered it with all those yummy things that make pizza so divine. My favourites; salami, ham, mushrooms, olives and cheese! 10 more minutes in the oven and wa lah!

The perfect pizza! The base was so crunchy and yummy (it smelt fantastic while it was cooking too!). Have you ever had those 'veri deli' sea salt and rosemary crackers? Yummy. The base tasted a bit like that thanks to the herbs that I had sprinkled on. Sooo good, you must ask me for the recipe if you are inspired and have been too nervous to do the base yourself in the past. It really is that easy! I enjoyed my delicious pizza with a glass of Cabernet. Delightful.

Coupons, vouchers and discounts

Coupons, vouchers and discounts. Who doesn't love these? I for one, am a big fan. Heck I will down two bad coffees if it means getting two for one, even if I didn't want the first! You will understand better if you know I have a mother who will ALWAYS get large or upsize just because it is better value.Good for the hip pocket, not so good for the hip...

Tonight I had a lovely visit with a good friend at cafe Maccas (haven for mum's and those with an undiscerning palate). This lovely visit was made more lovely by the fact that all we had to do was 'mention' the ad in the 'qikfind' to receive two for one capuccinos (perhaps the caffeine is the reason i am bloggin rather than sleepin right now). It was also lovely not to have this discount questioned.

Last year Macca's Darwin (and there is only one maccas cafe in Darwin) put an ad in the 'qikfind' which entitled the mentioner of the ad a two for one frappe. I certainly made the most of that deal , let me tell you. Everyone in my acquaintance knew about it too, if they weren't getting cheap frappes it wasn't for lack of being told, (thats for darn sure). This deal was made sweeter still by the fact that you didn't need to produce an ad, only 'mention' it. And did I say it was unlimited? Woo hoo! Trouble is Macca's hadn't bothered to 'mention' this to the majority of their staff, so I was left to inform and explain my request many a time (you think with one cafe in Darwin that it wouldn't take too much effort to let their employees in on this fact). Over time I had all the staff educated and my requests became trouble free. So 2007 was 2-for-1 Frappes, this year it is 2-for-1 capuccinos. Not nearly as exciting I know, but better than a poke in the eye right?

Monday afternoon as my family and I left Bunnings we found ourselves forced to turn left onto bagot road rather than right and so nearing Macdonalds we decided to go through drive thru to pick up icecreams for all of us (Charlotte was banned from this small pleasure). As we were going through Shane remembered his two 'free big Mac' vouchers he received for participating in the red shield appeal. Cool, free lunch. Thank God for the salvos! As we were paying for the cones and a cheeseburger for Esther the cashier apologetically told us we couldn't use both vouchers at once. Ok, fair enough it DOES say only one per customer per day and although there were two of us, technically Shane was the only customer. Not one to be difficult, I hopped out and took my voucher in to the front counter and waited my turn. 5 mins later I handed my card to the manager who was serving.

' You have to buy somethign with that' she told me uncooperatively.

What? I carefully read the 'free big Mac' card, there was NO mention of 'buy one get one free' or a 'with any other purchase'. I mean, after all, it was supposed to be a REWARD for those who participated in the Red Shield, I didn't expect a debate over fine print I expected a 'thank you so much for your service to the community, would you like some free fries with that?' (ok, i know I didn't ACTUALLY do the Red Shield appeal myself, but i let my husband do it while i was preparing for Esther's second birthday party, heck i think i deserve at least 2 big Mac's for that!!).

'It doesn't say that ANYWHERE, look!' I told her confidently. She reads through the freebie card and points out, with triumph

'see, "when ordering"'.

'What? That doesn't mean anything!! I AM ordering! I am ordering a FREE BIG MAC lady! Sheesh!'
Ok I didn't say that. At that point I actually walked out without saying anything more. Golly! Like its going to hurt them to actually give something away for free. Gosh its frustrating. I felt a tad like a spoilt kid, throwing a tantrum for not getting their own way, but heck, I was HUNGRY for goodness sake. I haven't given up, I will take it in another day and find a trainee that I can intimidate with my confidence and startling good looks... :)

well I am having a bit of a voucher rant, let me tell you how I feel about most vouchers that come out these days. You think some businesses are actually trying to put off people from coming to their store and using them. They are getting so complex in their stinginess...
'When purchasing an item from the breakfast menu, Receive 28% off Your second drink when you buy a drink of the same or greater value'
?!? What?! I want a buy-one-get-one-free not a maths problem!!
Is it really going to break the bank to allow patrons to have something for free. Double or nothing, thats my motto. Anything else in the letter box just ticks me off. Really, the only place that seem to do decent voucher books these days is Hungrys. They still believe in the buy one get one free. None of this 'buy 3 and get your third one half price' rubbish! You actually get some decent deals. Not that we've seen the booklet for awhile. They used to come out every season it seemed. I have heard of others receiving them of late, but somehow we have been left out. Maybe they targeted us as people who actually use their vouchers. I must say that the scissors get a good work out when we do get it and our diets take a bit of a thrashing... maybe it is a good thing. The things is, all vouchers do is bring the price down to what it should normally be anyway... I think 3.95 is a ridiculous amount to pay for a macca's capuccino don't you? But if you get two...well, its ok isn't it.

Well that freebie coffee I had early this evening is starting to wear off...

(June 13th: I took my 'free big mac' card to Casuarina Maccas today. Not only did they give it to me for free without making me purchase anything, they also allowed me to switch it to a chicken burger! Sweet justice...)

Wednesday Morning

It is Wednesday morning, which means craft group! I do love craft group as it means I have 3 hours with Esther in creche and time to focus on my arty projects uninterrupted (well, almost; Charlotte is in the rocker next to me but she sleeps most of the time). I like to get there right on time to make the most of the morning. Things started on track, I had a bit of a sleep in (8am, nice!) and then both girls were ready to start the day. I got Esther changed (we had a brief stint on the potty which yielded no fruit) then she was strapped in to her chair for breakfast. Charlotte was a little fussy about eating so I put her in the rocker while I ate my muesli. It was about 8:15. I finished breakfast, as did Esther who was let out of her chair and sat in front of sesame street. Ok, back to Charlotte who must be hungry by now as her last feed was 5am. I try and get her on for a drink and all she will do is cry and cry! Ok, I have dinner to get ready so, back in the rocker. I get out the slow cooker, chopping board, onions, meat. Chop the onion and chuck it in the pan with oil and curry paste. Chop up the meat (with an inappropriate and ill sharpened knife) and throw it in too. Browning the meat and releasing the spices in the paste. Done. Ok, that all goes in the slow cooker with a big tin of chopped tomatoes, a can of coconut cream and some veggie stock. Lid on, set to low for 7-8 hours! Dinner is done, but Charlotte still hasn't fed. it is now 8:36. I pick up Charlotte as she is still crying. About to go feed her when I remember... I need snacks for Esther while she is in creche! With Char on my shoulder I grab some bread and peanut butter and whip together a sandwhich, into the glad bag it goes with a couple of mandarins now into the handbag. Charlotte is still crying. Into the bedroom trying a lying down feed. She is still crying, and gets more hysterical every time I try and shove the source of nourishment into her mouth! What to do? I could just leave and hope she feeds better when we get to creche, though if she doesn't it will be even more awkward. What is wrong? She is never like this in the morning... its 8:55. I am not going to make it on time. Maybe if i try the other side... Bam! She goes on like a charm and sucks happily for 15mins! Phew. Definitely going to be late now but Charlotte should sleep through now that she has been well fed. Esther comes in and out climbing over my shoulder having a look 'drink Charlotte'. Then I get a 'see yah mummy' as she shuts the door behind her... Hmmm I don't really like being shut into my bedroom with a toddler on the loose on the other side... No time to stress about it, gotta get this baby fed! 9:15, I reckon she has had enough so lets go! Now, to get everything and everyone into the car. Logistics! I need; Charlotte, her blanket, my handbag and my painting to work on plus a free hand for Esther... Tricky, but I work it out (thanks to my sling/strap for Char) Ok, lets go girls!

'Mummy poos, mummy, poos!'

Are you serious? 'Ok Esther'.

Charlotte, handbag and painting go down onto the couch, Charlotte starts crying. Stinky pants and I go to the bedroom to change. Better here then there I guess. 9:20. Right, smelling sweet again I pick up Charlotte, blanket, handbag and painting (no free hand for Esther, too bad!) out the door and to the car. Esther opens the door to let herself in and climbs into the middle seat (note: not her car seat) I strap Charlotte in and put the painting in the boot, handbag on the front seat and come round to Esther's door.

'Esther, you have to sit in your seat'

'no'

'Esther, we can't go until you sit in your seat, c'mon' I turn to look away and fain patience.

'Esther, hop into your seat!' She doesn't budge.

Esther receives chastisement and is deposited into her seat. 9:28. Alright! 'Lets go!'

Well, we can't be on time every week now can we? Once we got to creche things went smoothly and I was able to finish the painting I was working on, and thoroughly enjoyed the uninterrupted peace I had to do it in.

I love Wednesday mornings!

And so it begins...

Here my journey begins. Or rather the online account of my journey. It all started some many months ago when I became pregnant with my first child... well, to cut a long story short, I am now full time at 'home' with my two young girls. Esther who is two and Charlotte who is 2 months! I have recently decided that I am going to absolutely and utterly embrace the 'stay at home mum' life, love it and live it to the full! Which includes; combatting clutter and discovering space saving solutions, creating culinary delights, handcrafting masterpieces to adorn my home and most importantly; becoming the (increasingly) loving wife and wise mother God has created me to be! Thus will follow; my adventures to achieve these lofty goals. I hope you enjoy my adventures. And remember, choose life!