Thats a bit rich

The last hmm rant for 2008?The whole world vision tom costello going on about how paris $120 or so a minute spending spree grand total of $5000 could have fed a whole village.. has me cranky. Im no paris wannabe (clearly im no size 0, 6 or whatever size it is that should you eat a cheeseburger, the tabloids instantly think you have a baby bump) and Im no paris fan. I own 0 perfumes and 0 of everything else paris sells or sold out too..
Yes its great when charities get publicity but instantly creating hype, publicity... Charities may be doing it tough as we all are??!! (apparently) but isnt that because some would be richer people have just lost a ton of money (in stocks or currency).. i read that elle macphersons sister declared herself bankrupt with $8 in the bank just the last week.. that and we have big companies closing e.g starbucks closed 50 stores this year ahead of the wall st/big us banks crash.. but then theres local factories like truck makers, car makers... but im getting off track. Yes its horrendous that kids die much 2 often from "preventable" diseases, from bad water & sanitation, from starvation.. much would be easier if certain continents got off their backsides and say outed mugabe (like stage some sort of harrold holt disapearance. no offence 2 holt family) if they could figure out the fianances, if the governements had gr8 people, with gr8 aids & advisers... getting off track. yes poor countries can help their people, yes they need money to do it.. yes people should be given free medicine (why dont they set something up that part of the money the doctor gets for aussie imms goes towards the drug companies immunisating others in poor countries for free?) Why can't all charities globally work together? in some sort of way place by place systematically immunise and give clean water and so forth? Why dont all charities disclose how the money is spent each year? I know compassion does.. but what of other charities say salvos, red cross etc etc..
anyways..
Paris spending money and getting a nice 50% off her clothes (due to working with the designer a few yrs back) is good for our economy.. she would have paid gst even! A dollar spent in australia is a good dollar!

next on my list... lol
the new mayor of melbourne *groans* how i miss the old dude! This new one.. "bogan it up at home" implying that only bad dressed and groomed people get drunk in public places in the city?! Yes i hate hate hate hate drunk people walking my street. In newcastle we lived down the street of a pub.. i also hate drunks on the road, train or nearby....
I know some people think new years is a "piss up"... honestly why would u want the first day of the year to be spent with a hangover? or waking up in a place you dont remember? or being one of those weirdo's who crashed on the beach usually filmed by a news crew?(LOL!) 2 say something like bogan it up at home and then say bogans are welcome? umm??? which foot is he standing on? i for one am glad im not spending NY staying in the formula 1 hotel in the city where the walls are paper thin..... its worse enough when people decide to take phone calls out in the hallway?!!

next...

i was in the carpark at the shopping centre on my way home walking with tia and alyssa in the pram. When this female driver hooned around the corner like being a nutjob.. how much noise and how fast can i go around a 90deg corner?! like should i be impressed of the power steering?! if that wasnt enough.. there was a secruity officer (female) who stoped and talked to the woman (in 30s) driving with a lollipop i may add.. and the driver denied doing anything wrong!! she didnt do anything unsensible.. the secruity officer couldnt believe it and wrote down the number plate.. i dont know what she plans 2 do with that but yeah.. i mean come on.. yes she didnt hurt anyone but still denying it.. gah x.x

the ugly..
the latest in the israel war.. i have 2 admit i had been away from the news to know when they got serious straight up. I support israel, i hate that innocents and civillians have died.. however for many it is a stubborn choice 2 live there in the first place and to have "voted" hamas in (i do understand that leaving after it was locked in would be tough) I do feel for the women and children and the families anyone innocent.. i do believe that a day will come when the USA stops backing israel. I think its numbers 33 i always think of when something palestine vs israel comes to mind..

anyways enough of my rants and israel biggotry(i am flawed)

Everyone have a great new years, a safe, happy, healthy, debt free new year!! :)
(sounds good dont it!)

hugs
tiffany

Kettle

Christmas tree with the lights on (8 AA batteries needed) in the dark..

Playing catch up here!! So bare with me!!
Hubby and i recieved a lovely gift this year of a kettle bbq just before christmas. A great suprise being that well, we had been thinking and planning on getting one... probably would have settled for some cheap one from k-mart had we found one.. But instead we were blessed with a big Weber kettle bbq! It meant christmas cooking would be smooth and the heat outdoors (not that it matter we had a very mild christmas day may have reached 25deg cel?The meat on the test run was a lovely bolar blade from the butchers. The woolworths roasts i found had to little fat on the top than i wanted.. I am learning that my butcher has far superior quality of meats than the supermarket/safeway woolies. And i love my butchers diet mince for $9.95 a kg or 2kgs for $16? It truly is diet mince, none of this stuffing around with star ratings that coles and woolworths offer.. anyways getting off track.
hubby out the back with the kettle.. the meat is inside.. and he is pretty much "are you quite alright taking photos of me?!!" (notice the awful amount of cardboard rubbish we have.. with expansion comes rapid carboard.. my recycling bin is always full.. we have more carboard in the laundry too..)
The end product, was delish!!!!! I requested more! (that is more frequent roasts. Not more on my plate) hhehehehe!!!

Tough holidays

Most christmas movies are filled with that good cheer, joy and coming together thats uplifting. E.g We watched Eloise at christmas? movie last night. It was awesome, i at 26 enjoy her cartoon so i liked the movie too.. (which is rare having such a good match from cartoon to real life) Tia enjoyed the movie also. And lately what the last 10-15years the majority of christmas movies now revolve around comedy, the what else could possibly go wrong now?! theme.. what weird in-law thing will they do next?

And then there's life.... i dont think ive seen a movie and gone yup that's what uncle marty did last christmas (i dont have a uncle marty) i remember the long car trips to visit my grandparents, in the back with my brother and sister "are we there yet?" will come back to haunt me.. lol.. and i can't say anything went wrong.. no missing presents/luggage, hitch hikers, not even a stop to get food.. maybe my parents got lost but i wouldnt know..

I am thankful that my family has stayed safe at christmas. I have no compassion for those caught drink/drugged driving at any time of the year.. and i deeply feel for anyone who as a bumper sticker i see on my walk to tia's kinder and now school says "ive been touched by the road toll" it just makes you stop and think! While everyone is getting upset at burning some food, dropping a bottle of wine or destroying a ornate metre long ceiling light with the champayne cork and having the shards rain down on the table full of christmas lunch (my dad did that, sure ive mentioned it b4. The kids got fed, the adults sat down and well.. christmas lunch was thrown out, vaccummed and mopped up. ) We all have each other and can think and pray for that someone who is spending a christmas without their loved one.

have u seen the andrew o'keefe vid yet? i cannot imagine how mad his wife is!!!! Everyone is busy concerned bout how seven tried to buy it out or something.. yet what about his wife?
another bummer christmas goes to the Johnston & Palin families... Sarah palins daughter (18) is due to give birth in a week and her mother in law has just been charged with 6 counts of producing, distributing narcotics! I dont think any of us saw that coming! imagine if mccain did win what then would happen now?

I suppose you only have to watch the news on any given week to hear that a family will be missing someone for christmas, birthdays and other holidays.
Ive only lost my great gran, 1 cat, 1 dog, 1 bird, 3 fish, 50+ mice, 1 rabbit and i do miss them, i do think back and remember them fondly, the good times, the letters, cards and visits.
Ive been blessed that my children are safe and healthy, that they arent in/out of hospital, on a transplant waiting list.. and that they are still here with us on earth.

This christmas amongst all the sweets im making, the nice food and company i will take time out to pray for those finding christmas difficult & thank God that this christmas all my family have one another (even if they all dont get along)

God bless and have a awesome time with the family you do have close by.

random pics

All the bubs taking a nap on the office floor today. Alyssa just woke up!



My cheap shoes that broke :) Yes happy, have new shoes!!

The naughty kittens caught in the pram.. NOT HAPPY SAM! (sam.. pram.. get it.. ugh..)
If its not the pram its the cot?! If its not those 2 places its the rocker?!

The christmas list

Tia has gone into bratz. We have avoided the barbie/bratz thing for awhile now and now she is old enough that she is influenced heavily by her friends, tv advertising and what she sees in the toy section whether its k-mart or the tiny toy section at safeway/woolworths. Our next door neighbour has bratz everything... and to Tia she is a bratz and every other girl is a bratz and sometimes even her mum is a bratz.. lol! I did want to get her a 6-7 pack of disney princesses (made by mattel?) this year they even had a mulan doll? i missed out last year as target sold out.. and ive probably missed out this year too.. considering b4 they went on special there was just 3 left! They were $45 on special and $59 not on special. I know that she is getting a Yasmin doll today, but considering how every bratz comes in glamour, skii, etc themes... ah well i'll find out soon enough which yasmin it is..

James is buying himself a bigger remote controlled helicopter. he has checked them out and says they wont fly around in circles like his mini ones!

Alyssa gets??? well lol, she has been spoilt plently already... but ive bought her a dress for christmas day, and goodness knows maybe she will get the matching mummy dummy set to her current "daddys little girl", "i love my daddy" dummies... however much it makes me wince that the 2 cost $13-$15! (for dummies???!!! that get lost all the time.. lol well not that these ones have!)

I will get??? ummm.... perhaps some new jeans and another pair of shoes??

the end of challenge

:) The No takeaway challenge is complete! Hiccups 3/21 is not bad... one being a anniversary pizza dinner. (hubbys back was thrown out the day b4)
Thank you to Maria for joining on with me! :) That was some great support!
and thank you also to my hubby for reminding me that i was on a challenge when i really wanted something deep fried or home delivered! :)

Christmas is here..

Our christmas tree went up on the 2nd of december.. so ive been meaning to post for awhile now! ^^

We have the tree up and decorated (well there are some more decorations around somewhere along where the stockings are hiding)

Only enough batteries for one string of lights! >< We have i think 3 or 4 strings of LED battery powered lights. I have been tempted to buy some cheap plug in lights, as they have come down in price heaps this year! But no... its bit dangerous with the kids, the kittens and the battery ones mean the tree can be anywhere and not somewhere near a power point!

This christmas i do intend on getting a battery recharger, but finding the right one that is good enough (the come with numbers now 2550, 2650 etc) to recharge batteries for the digital camera & wii remote is a must!

James put the star on top of the tree, he enjoys doing his little contribution..
that portrait photo of us on the wall was taken when we were engaged! We were both so young & skinny back then! hehehe

Oddities, Solids, Poo & biting..

I realized something odd, peculiar today... on the usual walk to pick tia up from kinder, something i do 2 days a week.. and i never thought about this before until today. Its no biggie.. no "scoop".. (so if i talk it down will it then be more interesting?) err.. anyways..
Ive said before that the suburb in which i live has a macdonalds on a main road (just like back in newcastle it too had a jenny craig office next to it for a bit, until they pulled out. Right next to maccas, across the road from korean food, henny penny, subway, dominos and the cheesecake shop! LOL! ) anyways this maccas in my current 'burb, opposite it is ww office and on its other opposite is jenny craig. ww has the better spot as its neighbour is subway and more in the hub (some of us are just to lazy to cross one more set of traffic lights away from the hub?)

and as i was walking.. (no biggie.. like dont be disapointed..) i thought it was odd that right next to a "all you can eat" resturant was a gym! I immediately thought, you know had any of the health junkies thought or dreamed on binge eating and then going back to a spin class? lol.. had anyone looked at their reflection in the tinted windows of the resturant and then hurried over for a gym membership. I also thought, well they have cardio tv... do you feel odd walking or running on the treadmil while watching a hungry jacks commercial? or feel the need for drive thru kfc or red rooster to feed the family?

I hate walking past the gym when theres a spin cycle class on... you can see right in on the 2nd floor.. all these people sweating away and I just swear that their sweaty faces and tired legs just get a sudden burst of energy as they watch all that wobbles on this body of mine as i walk into their view! lol.

When walking past a gym i always try to see if anyone rode a bike... i dont know if that screams louder gym monkey or health freak.. or whether it makes those who drive to and from the gym lazy? Very judgemental i know... something i will have to break. Inconsiderate too, i mean what if their shedules dont allow even watching the news? or what if they live 3 suburbs away.. or what if they spend all their disposable income on gym they can't afford a bike, or what if they have some medical condition? or what if they dont want to risk their lives riding on the same road with bad drivers? There are no airbags on bikes.. no 'safety cage'...

Yes i am on a roll with ranting tonight!!!!!! and i thought i was tired? or maybe im overtired and cranky! lol!

to the subject of poo...
(nah this isn't going as down hill as you think....)
Alyssa occasionally has a bottle, altho its once a day.. if that! If i need to be leaving the house in 5mins and she is screaming.. a bottle! If i will be out during her next feed and have no option for privacy then i will take a bottle (not yet, but i think for tia's kinder concert last day party where i will be staying, i guess...) and if ive had enough of biting, tender and fearful that im going to be nibbled on again.. BOTTLE! Ive long had the "if you bite YOU WILL BE WEANED!" thing going on.. Tia bit me a few times around 7 months and that was it! But this time around i wanted to get past the biting, had i known Alyssa would be teething at 3months old!!!!??!!! I might have changed my mind bout that!!!..

Alyssa has also started solids (2 weeks now? off/on 1/2 a little jar at 6pm after a feed. She has moved that screaming down the house time from 8pm to 6pm! Feeding at 10-12, 2-3, 5-6 and cranky wanting out of bed & cuddles by 6.40-7am right when we are trying to get the last minutes of sleep!

Alyssa dislikes rice cereal.. and so the odd thing is she is completely on bought pureed carrot baby food(i dont have a blender). She loves it! Not into apple (like Tia) but carrots and it must have been on special as i have a ton of carrot baby food in the pantry! I think i'll start to add a bit of carrot to rice cereal (is meant to be more digestible) and freeze the rest of the jar in ice cube trays (as it says keep for 48hrs)

Her poo went from a odd smelling baby breast bub yellow poo (which i really like AS its a newborn, young baby thing i suppose.. it only lasts awhile & then its brown and being used as a art tool or in a nappy left on the floor by a bare bum toilet training toddler) to a brown, with occasional runny patches of watery carrot (gee i hope no 1 is eating this.. i mean lol. i hope no 1 is eating while reading this.. lol..) and the last 2 days she has had little hard stools.. so i think she is constipated! x.x Surely she can't have poo with any sort of form/hardness yet?!

Christmas Pudding Trial

Christmas is 23 days away! No longer months, but weeks and days! Im trying to be organized (if you call leaving it to late nov/early dec) before the mad rush of christmas sales, the crowds and being in lovely company of friends & family. Finding table stuff e.g servingware (since i have very little), more wine glasses, placemats, bon bons, probably another dinner set?!, cheese knife) At least this year! Being that we are usually guests and do the mad shopping on christmas eve or the days before as prezzies dont normally fit in suitcases (altho theres always room for a xbox 360 and laptops?!!) This year we will be at home with family visiting! Whoot!

Ive got all the sweets sorted; Pistachio & cherry macaroons but will change to almonds & cherry?, gingerbread men, white christmas version of choc crackles, little choc balls that look like puddings, gingerbread house, shortbread, christmas bark (white choc and smashed candy canes), stained glass effect cookies, rum balls, perhaps a hedgehog slice), the pudding & cake worked out. (might settle for bought custard?! lol!)

I have one smoked salmon on a herb frittata (i dont eat fish but others do) little appetizier recipe(recipes+ dec 08 mag), a jar of semi dried tomatoes, 3 jars red, white, green of cocktail onions (gee i hope someone likes cocktail onions lol!) so im working on a deli meat/cheese/antipasto? platter.

Some sort of roast meat, gravy, potatoes, carrots, green salad.
Some sort of undecided cocktail? Punch, Wine(not in charge of) & soft drink..

BHG Issue Dec2004 The pudding above
(my modified recipe for a 5cup pudding tin)
530g of mixed dried fruits (currants, sultanas, minus the peel)
100g of extra glace cherries chopped
3/4 cup of brandy (not halved like rest of ingredients! if u dont like do orange juice?)
1tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup of brown sugar (meant to be dark brown)
1 tsp of golden syrup (meant to be treacle)
2 eggs
125g soft butter
3/4 cup plain flour
1/3 cup self raising flour
bit of cinnamon, mixed spice n nutmeg

grease tin/basin/bowl with butter & line.
Add fruit to bowl (look for sultana stalks) add brandy & let sit for 20mins
add cherries, vanilla, gsyrup & mix.
add sugar, butter, eggs & stir.
Sift flours & spices. Stir well.
Spoon into basin/bowl/tin.
place basin/bowl/tin in a larger pot/pan so the water comes up half way. place in oven 160deg cel for 3hrs.

*Very nice pudding. Hubby says its very sugary, i think thats due to all the sultannas/fruit etc! As i dont remember even adding the sugar?! I somewhat wanted more 'pudding' and less fruit in this! The pudding is lovely and soft when warmed!(not rubbery or crumbly) Obviously the pudding would have been darker if i used the dark brown sugar and treacle (both i didnt have) Also if you add the cherries in with the alcohol and leave to soak the colour will bleed out, which doesnt effect the end result at all.. just weird seeing red coloured brandy!

The thing is i dont want the cake & pudding to be basically the same e.g both dark or both light. I am a fan of store bought light fruitcake over the dark... perhaps coz its not so strong and i can eat more of it?! lol! (oh thats sad!)

My kitchen was in such a mess with ingrediants everywhere on this day.. or night rather these pics were taken at 11pm. (with one downlight working in the kitchen!)

I dont think it needed the greaseproof paper. And if your a dill like me and try to up-end it on a plate after spending hours in the fridge.. let it come to room temperature as the 'greasing' kinda chills it into place! ROFL!