182 Sleeps.

Ok, so I thought you should all know....

There's less that six months until Christmas!!

(182 sleeps to be exact)

June 25th is a great day for me.  It means that we're on the downward slope to Christmas.  I LOVE Christmas.  It's one of my most favourite things.  Not that it really counts as a 'thing,' but still.  It is.

I made the rule a few years ago (I may, or may not have gone slightly overboard that Christmas) that I am not allowed to shop for, think about, plan for, talk about or countdown to Christmas until it is less than 6 months away.

So, today is June 26th and I have already decided where the Christmas tree is going (in the corner of the lounge, next to my favourite frame, which I will peg all kinds of Christmassy things to).  
 
I'm wondering whether I should make Mike a new Christmas stocking and what kind I should make (I would make me one, too - but a special friend of mine made me one a few years ago and I love it too much to replace it.).

I've browsed the Christmas cookbook I gave myself for Christmas a couple of years ago for recipe ideas.  I'm liking the look of Hot Schnocolate.  

I've made a mental list of all the friends I want to make gingerbread houses for, and who I want to have around for a Christmas party.  Which reminds me - my elf costume needs fixing.

Ahh, Christmas.  I've missed you.

Two Years.

Today, Mike and I have been together for two years.  Two whole years!  How crazy is that?  I can't decide if it feels like less or more...  Less because time is flying so fast and seems like just yesterday he was asking me out.  And more because it feels like he has been a part of my life, of me, forever. 

What I do know is that is that (besides Jesus) he is the best thing that's ever happened to me and that he makes my life richer.  I am beyond grateful - and blessed - to have him as my best friend and husband. 

He hasn't fixed me or completed me like they say in movies, but he's helped me to fix myself; he's been my cheer team and made me feel strong enough and worth enough to work on things and be a better person.  He inspires me every day just because of who he is.  And with his dreams and plans and passion for life.  He makes me happier and more content than words can describe.  



Mike, I love you.  Thank you.  For everything.

xoxox

Queenstown.

Queenstown was awesome!

It was a miracle we actually got to go – there’s a volcano billowing ash in Chile and a big cloud of it has drifted down over Australia and New Zealand and it’s been causing major disruption to flights for a couple of weeks now.  We were the first flight to Queenstown that actually went ahead.  We flew back into Auckland on Monday night and flights were cancelled again on Tuesday afternoon.  Big ups to The Man Upstairs who cleared the cloud just long enough for us to have a weekend away. 

Tiki touring up mountains, walking the waterfront, riding bikes, luge-ing, exploring,  wearing furry hats, taking silly photos and of course, lots of relaxing.  And lots of cuddles with this guy...

Oh yeah, and throwing eggs off the deck… Shh...

The weather was pretty gloomy the day we flew down, so for most of the flight all we saw were clouds, apart from a misty glimpse of the mountains as we came in to land.

After arriving, we spent the rest of the day unpacking and settling into our cliff top mansion.  Ok, I don’t know if it would technically be classed as a mansion, but it was definitely cliff top and it was beautiful.  Check out the view from the deck…

On Saturday morning we did the Shotover Jet; both fun and terrifying.  Mostly terrifying.  Just when I was thinking I liked it, the driver would throw us ridiculously close to the rocks and I’d be screaming my face off.  I look petrified in the photos, it’s quite hilarious. 

After the Shotover, we watched Matt do a bungy jump. 

Watching your brother in law jump off a bridge is much less scary than you’d expect - it was over before we knew it and thankfully, he made it safely to the bottom. 

We used up the rest of the daylight tiki touring up a mountain and visiting Arrowtown (a cute historic town just outside Queenstown) and then headed back to the house for dinner, a movie and a spa – all seven of us.  In a four-person spa.  Yep, that’s how we roll.  

Sunday we wandered around town for most of the morning.  In the afternoon, Mom, Dad, Mike and I hired bikes and rode around the lakefront.  Dad picked a chopper, Mom picked one that was the right height and I picked the only one with a basket.  Mike picked the one with the newest tyres and got told off for doing skids before we’d even left.  On our way around the lake, I did an unintentional stoppie (which is when you stop suddenly using only the front brakes and the back wheel lifts up) which stoppied me from riding off the path and into the lake (and earned me mad street cred with the gangster kids out riding that day).

On our last day, we packed our bags and headed into town for breakfast, then headed up the gondola, which was a m a z i n g.  Mom, Dad and the boys went luge-ing at the top, while us girls had coffee, admired the view and browsed the souvenir shop. 

We gondola-ed back down and got burgers for lunch from Fergburger.  It’s kind of famous in Queenstown; there are always queues of people out the door.  They gave us our order in a paper bag – like, a shopping bag sized paper bag – I thought that was a bit strange until I got my burger out.  It was literally the size of my face.  See the look on my face?  Yeah.  That’s intimidation. 

After our burgers we headed to the airport, the boys returned the rental cars and then we ran for our plane.  If you’ve never been so late for a flight that you’ve had to run for it, you should definitely try it.  Makes the whole experience so much more exciting.  Of course, if you do, you can guarantee that at least half of you will get stopped for an extra scan and one of you will lose their boarding pass at the gate.  True.  Story.

 

The sky was pretty clear over the South Island on the way home, so it was a much prettier flight. 

Back in cloudy Auckland now and I’m already planning our next trip there… I’m gonna go paragliding next time.  Dang.  I said it on the internet, now I have to do it.  Hopefully it will be snowing and *hint, hint, husband* I’ll have a new camera.  

Thanks for having us, Queenstown.  And thanks family for an awesome weekend away – where to next?!

The Weekend.

Most of our weekend was centred around this little guy.

I love him to bits and I can’t get over how much he has changed in the few weeks since we saw him last.  He arrived last Thursday with his mama (Mike and I are loving having them two  minutes away instead of the usual five hour drive!).  We are making the most of them while they’re here, so we spent much of the weekend at my parents’ house loving on our nephew and just soaking up some family time.

Besides cuddling and playing with the baby, I also managed to snuggle up on the couch and watch a movie with my lovely hubby, explore the markets, have my mom and sister over for lunch, pop in on our favourite friends, go to an engagement party, go to church, visit more family and friends… And somehow, in between all that, I also cleaned the house, got the washing done and baked some cookies.  Which were delicious, might I add.  And so, so simple.  I’ll post the recipe for y’all sometime next week ;)

All that to say the weekend was a busy one and this week will be, too.  We are packing our bags and heading down to Queenstown this weekend and I can’t wait!  I have been looking forward to this trip away for so long and it’s finally here, yay! 

I’m sure there will be lots to post about next week, but until then… Ciao friends x

An Epiphany of the Metaphor Variety.

This is my friend Neva.  She is one of my favourite people and it’s her birthday today.

She has almost known me forever – the first time she met me was just after she and Dave got engaged.  Mom and Dad invited them over for dinner and I talked to her non-stop.  So much so that my mom sent me to my room.  Neva says she remembers me stomping away from the table and Mom saying “…and don’t slam that-” *SLAM* “-door.” 

About ten years later, Dave, Neva and their first gorgeous baby moved in just up the road and I became more than a frequent visitor at their house.  Another three gorgeous babies later, I was still hanging around their house and eventually, Neva asked if I wanted to move in and be their boarder.  Some of my favourite memories were made there.  Like the time we saw a mouse in the kitchen, or the time we somehow got talking about what a rocking horse would sound like going down the stairs and spent about half an hour laughing hysterically (you definitely had to be there to fully appreciate the hilarity).

We have talked and laughed and cried and folded a lot of laundry together over the years.  And we’ve had a gajillion cups of tea.  Maybe more.  She has encouraged me, comforted me, motivated me, inspired me and given me many a good wakeup call over the years.  And the best part?  She still does.  She teaches me so much and lots of time, she does it without having to say anything at all.

That photo up there is from my wedding day (the white dress and the flowers may have been a giveaway).  She was ‘Queen of the Bridesmaids’ at our wedding and yes, she chose that title herself.  During my speech at our reception, I said that she was so many things to me and I didn’t know exactly what title to give her.  But the other day, while I was washing my face, I had an epiphany.  And I thought of the perfect way to describe her. 

She is like a chameleon.  Though not cold-blooded or scaly and her tongue is not blue.  She’s whatever it is that you need, right when you need it.  Like a word in season… and she almost always has one, whether she knows it or not (though I have a sneaking suspicion she does).

Thank you lovely Neva for being everything that you are to me.  I am so grateful that God put you in my life xx

Speaking of chameleons, but on a completely different subject… One of the very few things I remember from French class at school is this song.  Strangely enough, about a chameleon called Leon.  Go on, you know you want to listen to it.  This one’s for you, Neva.  Happy birthday xox

P.S.  For those of you who are wondering, a rocking horse would sound like this going down the stairs – Ree, ree, plonk.  Ree, ree, plonk.

Triple-Layer Red Velvet Cake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Icing.

Drool.  This is the birthday cake I made for my sister.  I was a tad hesitant.  I’ve never made red velvet cake before and I’ve heard that it’s ok, but not amazing.  Anyhoo, I know Rach has always wanted to try one, so I decided to surprise her with one for her birthday.

I would have to say that the cake itself it’s not the most amazing cake I’ve ever tasted, but the divine icing and the colour make up for that.  It was definitely a crowd pleaser and I would make it again.

Before you start, make sure you have a LARGE mixing bowl to use.  I used my large one, but I once I’d added the eggs in, I realised you really do need a LARGE one.  Mine was only just big enough and I spent 20 minutes wiping all the red splatters off the bench and walls and floor and myself while the cakes baked.  What fun.

Ingredients:

 250 grams butter (softened)

3 cups sugar

6 eggs

30ml red food colouring

3 tablespoons cocoa

3 cups flour

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon white vinegar

Method:

Preheat oven to 165 degrees.

In a LARGE bowl, cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Mix food colouring with cocoa and add to the mixture, mix well.

This is where I strayed from the recipe slightly.  I didn’t think three tablespoons was enough, so I put in about five… and then I had to add more food colouring to even it out.  I don’t think it made much difference to be honest, apart from making it slightly more chocolatey.

Add flour and buttermilk alternately, then vanilla and salt.  In a small bowl, combine vinegar and baking soda and gently fold into the mixture, being careful not to over mix.

If you are like me and you only have one 20 cm cake tin, pour a third of the mixture into your lined/greased tin and bake for 25 minutes.  Leave the cake in the tin and cool for about half an hour, remove the cake and set aside to cool.  Repeat x2.

White Chocolate Cream Cheese Icing

Ingredients:

500 grams cream cheese (softened)

375 grams white chocolate

250 grams butter (softened)

Method:

Melt white chocolate and allow it to cool to lukewarm.  In a large bowl, beat softened cream cheese until light and fluffy.  Gradually beat in white chocolate and softened butter.  Continue to beat until it is the consistency of whipped cream.

Once all three cakes have cooled completely, use equal quantities of icing to layer the cakes up (mine was a lot more even than it looks in the photos!).  Put enough icing to cover the top of the bottom cake of each layer, but not so much that it squeezes out the sides - it’s much easier to ice the outside without squishy-outy bits. 

Once your cakes are layered, make sure the sides are lined up nice and straight and ice the outside (I did the sides first and it worked a charm).

Top with candles and present with a song.

The end pictures are not the greatest, but I will blame the lighting at my parents’ house for that. The red was a nice rich red, rather than the pinky red it looks in the photo, and the icing was much whiter.  But hey… at least I remembered to take a picture this time!

xo

Two-Oh.

I love this picture.

That’s me holding my little sister, Rachel.  As you can see, she’s pretty stoked about it. 

She is actually one of my earliest memories, well, her belly button is anyway.  I was only 22 months when she was born, but I remember that fresh-from-hospital belly button as clear as anything.

Today is her 20^th birthday and I can’t believe it.  It’s crazy how time flies and things change. 

I’m so proud of the person Rach has grown into.  She’s smart and funny and kind and creative and I love having her around.  It seems like yesterday we were losing her in the ball pit at Georgie Pie, ‘painting’ the bricks at Granma’s house and arguing in the backseat over who had to be Isaac while we sung along to Sarah’s Hanson cassette tapes.

Happy 20^th birthday, Rach.  I guess we can’t call you our little sister anymore, but you’ll always be our baby sister.  I love you to bits, you’re so special to me and I am blessed to have you not only as my sister, but one of my best friends too.  I hope you have an awesome day today and that you are spoiled, spoiled, spoiled.  You deserve it.

 xox