Lemon and Poppyseed Shortbread

This recipe is easy and tastes great. I have a lemon tree that produces excessively so I'm always looking for recipes to use lemons. I love poppyseeds too!

Lemon and Poppyseed Shortbread

200g butter, chpped
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
3/4 cup icing sugar mixture
1 1/2 tablesoons poppyseeds
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Beat butter, rind and sugar in a medium bowl until light and fluffy. Add flour, seeds and juice. Press into slice tray. Bake in oven for 35 minutes at about 180degrees.

cut in pan, cool, dust with icing sugar if you like.

Yum!

Feng Shui Courses

I began my study of Feng Shui with Roger Green in the 90's. He is one of the most engaging teachers I have ever had and I thought some readers may be interested in studying Feng Shui, or any number of the courses Roger conducts. He has learning centres all over the world now. I'm not surprised as he is a knowledgeable person who has much to share.

Feng Shui Seminars with Roger Green are life changing. I am not alone in my high opinion of him. There is a page of testimonies and as I read them, I couldn't have said it better myself.

Inspiring Simplicity

I read this remarkable story today on Newsvine. The headline reads Woman content living in 84-sq. ft. dream home. When you go to the story, be sure to watch the video of her home. This kind of simplicity is inspiring. I know, with my current family situation, it is impossible to live like that, yet know we as a family could do better at simplifying.
This woman has built her home from recycled materials as well, adding to the environmental saving. Her heating and cooling costs are minimal. Most of all it seems she would have more abundance in other areas.

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

This is one of my favourite recipes, given to me by an awesome mother of 6 children. She is an elegant woman who lives her life fully. She is one of my role models. I first met her as a student in secondary school when she was my teacher. When I began teaching, she was there and we have become friends. Her friendship is one I treasure as it is enriching. She has created an excellent life for herself and her family. I think it's really valuable to have women in your life, who live the kind of life you aspire to. She has a beautiful home and is a great entertainer. She travels and dresses beautifully. Anyway, back to the soup......

Creamy Pumpkin Soup (serves 6)
1 onion chopped
1 potato chopped
1 red capsicum shopped
700 g pumpkin chopped
2 chicken stock cubes
4 cups of water
tblsp sherry (optional)
250g cream cheese
butter and cream if so desired

Cook onion in saucepan with butter until soft, add potato, pumpkin, stock cubes and water. Cook 40 minutes. Puree. Add cheese and sherry. Don't boil. Add a dollop of cream when serving.

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This recipe works. Last time I used it was when I had to take a dish to feed a mob of teenagers. I don't feel too confident cooking, by the time I organised what I was going to bring, all the dishes I have confidence with, were already taken. This soup popped into my head and it was a surprising hit with everyone.

I didn't stick to the recipe because I didn't have some of the things I needed. I rarely use potato as the others in my home loathe and despise it, so I just put more pumpkin in it. I never add the cream, I find the cheese does enough, yet it could perhaps tone down the richness. I use vegetable stock powder. It has an extra golden colour from the red capsicum. It tastes divine. Add some crusty bread and you have a delicious meal.

Soup:Creamy Broccoli Soup

I am not a big cook, but winter makes life easier when you can chop up a pile of veggies and have some great full flavoured warming soup. My work mate Maureen, gave me these fantastic recipes which I will share with you. I've tried them all and they are great.

Creamy Broccoli Soup (serves 4)
1 tablespoon butter
1 onion chopped
clove garlic crushed
2 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon rice
375g broccoli, trimmed and chopped
1 tbsp parsley
1/2 cup milk
1 tbsp lemon juice
4 tbsps cream

Method
Place onion, butter and garlic in a saucepan and stir for 5 minutes. Add stock, rice, broccoli and parsley. Simmer until veges are tender. Puree. Reheat and blind in milk, lemon juice, cream and season.

This is yummy and contains a lot of healthy ingredients plus some decadent ones.

Dipping into the Blogpond

The last couple of weeks I have been focusing on Australian blogs for my research and reading. Perhaps in the coldness of winter, even with my new heater :-), its hard to read about picnics and sunshine. A great resource 'Dipping into the Blogpond' has highlighted a couple of interesting links for homemakers.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
e-Cycled isn't really a blog, but rather more like a forum where you can list stuff you don't want, yet may be useful to others. It's like a free ebay. The listings are organised into states.
We really need to get better and more organised as a society, at this.

Do it Yourself Community
Refurber is a do it yourself online group. Community members post advice about their experiences in wide variety of projects. You can join and ask for advice and give it.

Warmth Makes Winter Bearable

Why didn't I get the warm maker 4 years ago when I moved here. I knew it was inevitable. It has made such a difference. The home seems more hospitable and friendly and I am not walking around with 10 layers of clothing on, yet still a cold nose.

The split system is doing a great job and all is warm and well in my world. My home is tidy. I threw a few things out this weekend. I am getting better and better at this.

Melbourne Mind Spirit and Body Festival

This long weekend is the Melbourne Mind, Spirit and Body Festival. It will be held at the Exhibition Centre in Melbourne and offers free events and seminars as well as a wide range of exhibitors. From past experience, I have found the festival to offer a wide range from nurturing and pampering products and services for the body and home to latest nutritional information and products.

Check out the extensive list of products on show. Something for everyone!

I have spent time at this festival when I was learning about aromatherapy. The aromatherapist I was working with at the time had a stall there and I totally enjoyed the experience.

Magical Bird

One of the new readers of this blog, has just introduced me to a beautiful bird and an interesting blog. The Kerala Articles:Lady Gouldian Finch. Colourful birds are great feng shui for your home and this article talks about how to keep one in captivity. I am not really a lover of birds in cages, yet reading this article and the dangers to this bird in the wild, has given me a reason to question my belief. Better in cages in loving homes, than extinct!
The symbol of this blog is the wheel of life, a buddhist symbol. Enjoy and thanks Biby Cletus for dropping by.

A Warm Home

Tomorrow I get my reverse cycle air conditioner installed and not before time. It has been so cold lately. I have had to light a fire each night and if I get home late, it's almost time to go to bed before the house warms up to be comfortable enough to exist in. I am not a cold person. I think I must be like a reptile and if I don't have warmth, I can't move. So I am looking forward to the luxury of push button warmth!

Most Unusual Buildings

How bizarre are these buildings on this site. I'm particularly baffled by the Dancing House. How on earth must the rooms look inside?

Domestic Appreciation

My sister cooked risotto for me and I came home from work to a house smelling of food and it was divine. I love domestic surprises like that. My son had taken the clothes off the line for me and it was raining and as I drove home from work I wondered what to cook and dismayed that my washing was getting wet.

Tonight I feel especially blessed because I went to a 'Courage to Care' talk today. The man who spoke to us talked about his early childhood hiding out in the homes of people who were courageous and caring enough to hide a Jewish family in world war 2 Europe. I felt an enormous appreciation for my home and the freedom I have. I felt blessed by the security I feel in knowing my family can be home each night in the relative luxury we enjoy. Not every person on the planet has this abundance so we who do, can at least appreciate it.

Split System

I have purchased the split system air conditioner. We have had fires every summer around here and the air quality has been poor. One of the people who live in our home is susceptible to asthma, so I felt the air cleaning qualities of the reverse cycle air conditioner, worth the difference. I guess gas heating feels stifling to me sometimes. I just want to get the chill off the air.

I found the airwell reverse cycle air conditioner met the most of my criteria. So it's purchased and awaiting installation. I can't wait!

Energy Labelling

In my quest to find the best rating I have come across this site:
Energy Labelling. What I find frustrating is that it links to the company site, rather than to the product specs. I guess it would take a lot more time to set up, but wouldn't that be great.

It would also be great to save me more time, if it then linked to retailers so I could shop for price as well. Maybe one day, in a perfect world.

De-clutter - so I did!

My favourite column in The Weekend Australian is written by Ruth Ostrow. This weeks article The de-clutter bug really describes the process well. I was surprised to read there are full time businesses out there doing this now.
When I had a business in the 90's I had a client who paid me to declutter. I enjoyed it.
I have spent this weekend cleaning out a linen cupboard. It was a big mess and now it is restored to order. The blankets are in plastic zip up cubes I bought for a bargain at Aldi, the spare mattresses are rolled up and the sheet sets are matched with doona covers and contained in there own cubes. I feel quite pleased with this improvement. I also had to release quite a few threadbare sheets to the rag cupboard and other assorted shabby linen items to the bin. I have given some things too good to throw out or recycle as rags, but too ugly to ever dream of using again, to the op-shop. It always feels good.

Gas Vs Split Cycle Heating

I had in mind to buy a reverse cycle electric heater. The Rinnai Australia website has this handy study: Heating ...the real facts. It asks 9 questions and makes comparisons. It seems quite fair and reasonable.

One of the features of the reverse-cycle air conditioners I was quite interested in was the ionizer. My partner gets asthma and what I have read about ionization sounds good. I love that feel of fresh air near a waterfall, so I know it would be good to have in your home.

Sustainability Victoria is giving rebates for people switching from wood, electric, LPG or oil as their main form of heating to high efficiency gas heaters. This made me reconsider whether I should get a gas heater.

To Heat My Home - The Dilema

I'm currently researching heating for my home.

I have a wood heater right now. I have discussed this with the environmental person who came to our school from CERES and he said that as long as I burned the wood at a high temperature and didn't let it slowly burn, it wouldn't pollute the atmosphere so much. I do this, yet still feel the smoke can't be good. It is quite effective way to warm up the house though and I recommend it to others if your home is insulated and if everything is in good working order.


The issues I have though are getting wood, which I am always concerned about where it has come from and the time it takes to get the fire going.

I am searching for an economical and environmentally friendly way to heat my home.

Paisley

I like spirals and I love Paisley(wikipedia link). According to wikipedia, the tear shaped motif with lacey intricate patterns coming from it originated in Persia, yet takes it's name from a town in Scotland, Paisley(wikipedia link).
There are lots of beautiful examples on Google images for Paisley pattern.

I really love Paisleys that are intricate and complex. I prefer blues and purples and pastel colours. I have a faded paisley doona cover that I will not part with. It improves as it fades. I just hope it doesn't become threadbare.

I have lots of paisley cushions and some paisley clothes.

Herb Spirals

How to Make a Herb Spiral:Gardening Tips and Ideas
I love spirals and what better than a herbal spiral. Check out this awesome website, showing how to make a spiral garden containing herbs.

Simple Abundance

This book by Sarah Ban Breathnach is one of the best books that I've read about homemaking. The author celebrates the many facets of becoming authentic. It is a joy to read and probably best enjoyed by women as it speaks to the feminine.
The idea of simplicity and a less material focus is appealing to me.

Peeling the Paper

Off to the Shed's post yesterday talked about the joys of removing wallpaper. I have been in my home for 4 years. The first year I took the paper, a washed out regency stripe in white and floral pastels from my bedroom walls. When I finished the job I removed the vinyl layer of paper from the upstairs bedrooms and now, almost 3 years later I am getting back to it to get the paper and glue off to paint these rooms.

It is not working out as easy as I had hoped. I didn't get the kettle type wallpaper remover that Owen mentions in his post. I think I will go looking for one.

Dishwasher Less

Life without my dishwasher is different. I am sure it is sucking time from my life, yet can't seem to see what is paying for that. Perhaps my sanity! My dishwasher stopped working over a week ago. The error tune kept playing and I kept rearranging things for a few days. I then took out all the filters and cleaned them. Next was checking UNDER THE SINK (Blah!) that all the plugs and tubes were doing their things. It all looked ok.

I listened to a mechanical whirring sound at a certain stage of the cycle several times and then just emptied it and Handwashed the damn dishes.

I have continued to do this since then. I guess I'll have to get someone to look at it or replace it eventually.

The dishes are much cleaner though and I think I use less. Maybe I'll just live without it for a while.

My Rate and Me

I am advertising for MyRate and will get affiliate fee for doing so. I wouldn't do this unless I was totally satisfied with this company. I got my home loan with MyRate over the Christmas period and I found the process easy and stress free. I was delighted at the lack of hidden costs and sneaky practices that I have experienced in the past. I can recommend this loan to anyone with a free conscience that I am genuinely doing you a favour.

The other thing I love about this loan, is that it is carbon neutral. See the website for details.

It has saved me a lot of interest and I am way ahead with my payments already. I hope for the same for you. Interest is such a frustration and the high cost of housing wherever you are purchasing your home, worries me about the likelihood of my children ever being able to afford their own home. Save where you can.

Effective Homes Channel

There's a whole new selection of DIY video's on the new look Effective Homes channel. Check them out today and remember to check out any new projects for some advice.

Feedback to Save Energy

Information Asthetics:(free)energy monitoring device reports of a new tool being freely distributed to households in the UK to give them information about their energy consumption. This is a great tool.

If users can have accurate feedback about their consumption and the costs associated with it, I believe this would be a very effective tool at cutting back. We use power, water and things generally without thinking about the costs in most circumstances. Many people respond to accurate feedback. Think of dieting, many diets recommend keeping a journal of everything you eat so you can become more conscious about your total consumption. I hope more feedback can be created for homes.