Cross country finals

Briar Rose made it through to the state finals for cross country. She was sick with a cough and cold the night before the race (sick enough to skip dinner at a favourite restaurant), so I didn't think we'd make it there - but she was determined!

She was the only girl from her school in her race, and we were a bit unsure about warming up (at the zone carnival the teachers warmed them up), but Ginger Rose kept her company and we did our best.

And they're off!

It was a fast race, and Briar Rose was well back but still ran well. Unfortunately, Ginger Rose distracted me so I forgot my camera for the finish.

Cross country

Briar Rose made it onto the school cross country team this year, and spent this morning at her first zone carnival.

The girls took their pre-run briefing very seriously. It's just a shame somebody forgot to pack the Size S athletic tops! As you can see, Briar Rose's top is pretty much knee-length.

Warm ups were absolutely essential as it was ridiculously cold down by the lake. The children were quite happy in their athletics gear, but the watching parents were wearing serious winter clothing!

I'm missing my camera, but was so excited to see Briar Rose in the first bunch of runners home that I probably would have forgotten to point and shoot anyway! She came a very respectable 5th place, so we'll be off to the State Cross Country sometime later in the season. To my embarrassment, I didn't think she would be running so well and couldn't quite believe it was her until she was almost past me!

I've been tagged...

The Crone and One Busy Mama have tagged me :).

The rules of the game get posted at the beginning. Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.
Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?

Ten years ago I was an elected member of local government and facilitating a regional communications initiative, living in a small country city with just two children and a third on the way.

2. What were five things on my "to-do" list today?

Take a child to the chiropractor then the zone cross country carnival.
Dig a bit more of the lemon tree hole.
Change the sheets on the girls' bunk bed.
Declutter a bit more of the kitchen.
Make a really nice afternoon tea for the children.

3. Snacks I enjoy

Fruit salad, avocado, almost anything with dark chocolate

4. Things I would do if I were a billionaire

I'd invest in sustainable technologies, particularly permaculture and solar technologies. I'd also invest in a whole lot of domestic help, and would pack up the family for a round-the-world exploration (homeschooling all the way!).

5. Places I have lived

I've not yet succumbed to wanderlust, so it's a small list! Sydney (NSW), Port Lincoln (SA) and Canberra (ACT).

6. People I've tagged

Mrs T
Little Aussie Husker
Caring is not for Wimps
Going Feral
The Wild Backyard

A picnic without Dad

Dh is in Fiji for another five days, so couldn't join us on a trip to Uriarra Crossing. Sadly, my camera is also Fiji, but it's given me the incentive to learn how to use my phone-camera. The photos aren't as crisp, but I think they get the general idea across...

Possum practiced skipping stones, while Ginger Rose drew in the sand.

Ginger Ninja plotted a cunning path across the river, and was very disappointed to hear that wet feet would result in instant removal to the car.

Can you spot Possum skulking in the trees?

Briar Rose hanging out with The Little Prince while I had a quick walk down to the river. As you can see, we had the entire picnic area to ourselves. We built a very respectable fire to keep us warm while we ate bananas and sandwiches, drank hot chocolate and toasted duck-shaped marshmallows. Unanimously voted a really good picnic!

Seven months old

The Little Prince is a whole seven months old! He's such a merry little thing, sometimes smiling even when he's crying. He has two sharp bottom teeth, eats three solid meals a day (interspersed with numerous breastfeeds), and is surprisingly mobile for a baby who can only crawl backwards!

Scottish Oat Cakes

Inspired by the crone, I decided to deprive the hens of the leftover porridge and try my hand at porridge pancakes. My first batch were too sticky, but the second achieved a real "bready" consistency.

Scottish Oat Cakes
Take the pot of leftover porridge.
To every cup of leftovers add 1 egg, 2 tablespoons of oil, 1/2 cup of flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder.
Stir to mix the ingredients. It will be quite stiff.
Heat and grease a skillet or griddle.
Shape into thick pancakes on the griddle, as big or as little as you like.
Turn when browned on the one side.
Continue to cook until second side is browned and the inside is not sticky.
Serve with butter as a bread or spread with syrup or jam and serve as a desert.

From WikiHow

Banana Sourdough Spelt Pancakes

We were given a whole box of lovely bananas, so I've been experimenting with new ways of using them up!

1 cup sourdough starter mixed with 1 cup spelt flour and left to rise

In the mixer toss:
risen flour mixture
1 cup well mashed banana
1 cup flour
2 tbs oil
1 tbs sugar
1 tsp salt
water as needed to provide a thick batter consistency

At the last minute, toss through 1 tsp bicarb soda mixed with a little water.

Allow to stand for a few minutes then cook in melted butter.

This was a BIG success served with a choice of maple syrup or apricot jam.

Brothers in arms

Possum and The Little Prince have a special bond. When it was time to say goodbye I wasn't sure Possum was actually going to hand the baby back to me!

They're going to miss each other!

Off to the farm

The adventurous Grandad D is taking the three older children up to the farm for some outdoor fun. We were all scheduled to visit, but Ginger Rose and The Little Prince have croup so we've rearranged our schedules.

The park in Taralga is one of my favourites. The combination of a skate park, playground, tall trees and cows in the adjoining paddock are irrestible to me.

Unfortunately it was a little cold and damp, and within five minutes of exposure to the cold Taralga air the two littlies were rattling and coughing away, so we headed off all too soon.

Sourdough Pancakes

1 cup sourdough
2 cups wholemeal flour
1 egg
1 tsp salt
1 cup water
1 tbs sugar
2 tbs olive oil
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda dissolved in a little water

Mix the sourdough with 1 cup of the flour and leave to stand overnight. In the morning mix in the remaining flour together with the egg, salt, water, sugar and oil, and finally blend in the bicarb soda dissolved in a little water. Let the mixture stand for a few minutes until light and bubly. Cook the pancakes in a non-stick pan that has been brushed with a little butter and serve with butter and honey, or cream and apricot jam.
From: The Sourdough Cookbook by Jenny Wagner

This produced a decent sized batch of very wholesome tasting pancakes. We ate them with butter, maple syrup and apricot jam (home made by Grandad B).

Next time I'll try adding the water as well as the cup of flour the night before because the dough was too stiff to be doing anything much. There was also a little taste of the bicarb soda, so I might reduce the quantity a little next time.

Brand new woolies

We found some gorgeous fluffy mail from Grandma L in the mailbox this week! As the photos show there's a generous rise and length (the cuffs are rolled up twice) and a gorgeous warm colour.

The photos don't show just how deliciously soft and snuggly the wool is!

Sourdough phases

I've been trying to grow a sourdough starter, and hope I have the hang of it! I've used a wholemeal spelt flour, but the real improvement seems to have come from adding six seedless grapes for the first three days.

Here is it shortly after feeding. It's supposed to bubble after half and hour of feeding, but mine is still a little slow. Last night I transferred it to a new jar after feeding and there was no sign of life after half an hour, which was a concern.

But it seems to be bubbling away nicely this morning! I hope to try using it for the first time tomorrow in a batter recipe.

Autumn woollies

The cold autumn mornings are making me glad the Little Prince has some warm woollen clothing to wear. The size 9 month side buttoning cardigan I knitted has a little too much length in the arms, and the buttons aren't positioned very practically! Next time I'll be happy to just button down the front - but it's nice and warm and the colour suits him nicely.

Unfortunately the leggings that I thought had plenty of length have shrunk up since knitting - and his legs have grown. By the time I knitted to the bottom of the legs I was just so thrilled to be close to finishing the project that the thought of knitting a spare inch or two just in case seemed a silly idea. Next time I will be more generous with the leg length because I can always roll them up.

This morning we're wearing Grandma L's hand-spun, dyed and knitted jumper and the too-short leggings over a wondersuit. The little jumper has just the perfect arm length and the length will just see it htrough winter.

Playing ball

And to say a big welcome back to my camera, here's the Ginger Ninja teaching the Little Prince how to play ball.

Leftover lamb bake

I baked an enormous shoulder of lamb last week, and still have leftovers. Today I invented a bake that seems popular so worth recording:

Saute a finely chopped onion and 2 cloves garlic in olive oil
Mince about 3 cups of leftover lamb roast and add to saute pan
Add 1 1/2c cooked peas, 1c of gravy and enough water to make a pie consistency.
Smooth mixture into a baking dish and top with a mix of grated cheese and crumbs (I used crust from a spelt loaf).
Bake in a hot oven until topping is golden and crisp.

This blog has been unattended for a while as Possum misplaced my memory card and camera charger while in Hawaii. I now have the camera working but still can't move the photos onto my computer - so frustrating!

Hen update

"Sick chook" is doing very well! When I am next able to recharge my camera I'll take a photo, but suffice it to say that she appears fully recovered! The above photo shows her in her early recovery when she was just starting to regain the use of her eyes.

All the hens are looking considerably better, and are laying as well as they usually do when the cold weather begins (which is to say, we're buying eggs because a couple of eggs a day don't go far in a family of seven!).

I attribute sick chook's recovery to Ginger Ninja, who was incredibly patient and dedicated, hand-feeding her at least three times a day. I thought the best we could hope for was a blind hen who would be comfortable enough feeling her way around the hen yard, and anticipated just allowing her to die with a little dignity. The total recovery has been a very welcome surprise to me.

A visit from Uncle Mat!

My brother was visiting from the UK, and flew over to visit us for the day! His latest nephew gave him a gummy seal of approval and we had a great time catching up.

Of course, everybody pulls their weight around here, so Uncle Mat was put to work with the boys stretching out the new shadecloth that's covering our verandah railings until the new hedge grows in.

And poor Uncle Mat was dragged reluctantly into cyberspace where he claims to have outmanouevered his nephews (they claim otherwise). Judging by the exclamations from various computers around the house, a good time was had by all.

Boys bonding

After his extended choir tour, Possum was feeling desperately deprived of electronic stimulation (despite taking an iPod and Gameboy with him) so while I took care of his dirty laundry, he took care of his little brother. Isn't it nice to see them sharing a common bond.

Briar Rose scolded me for being a neglectful mother after noticing that the Little Prince was gnawing his controller cable, but I was quite happy to sacrifice a controller for a few minutes of peace :).

Aloha!

My camera has returned safely from Hawaii - hooray! Sadly, my neat little camera case and memory card appear to be lost forever, and the charger is yet to be found...but the camera's the main thing!

Grandma E was with us as we said good-bye to Possum. He was quite unwell two nights before they left, and we were anticipating him missing the trip, but he recovered well!

Here he is, hanging out at some airport somewhere, with his snazzy tour jacket.

And displaying a touch of Hawaiian culture outside the hotel.

They had a great tour, with the choir picking up a silver award, and nobody being left behind (much to their disappointment) but it is so wonderful to have Possum home!