Weekend.

At House on a Hill, we have many creepy crawlies. More often than not, they are huntsman spiders. On this particular occasion, we were graced with this huge huntsman spider (spider-phobics hold onto your seats!). It was bigger than my outspread hand for sure. To soften the blow, you'll see some cute little flowers I picked from a big bushy weed outside the front gate. 

On Saturday we headed to Ballina in northern NSW for a little getaway. Ballina is such a sleepy, quiet and not-much-to-do kind of town. Suits me just great I say - I've been flat out lately. The view was of the river which I thought was nice. A little different to the typical.

Much to J's dismay, I insisted we go for a walk to have a look around at what was going on around Ballina. This is Ballina Manor, a heritage listed property which plays host to a boutique hotel. I thought it was just gorgeous - it seems it has been restored very well.

On Sunday after devouring a nice hearty breakfast at one of the local cafes, we set out for the Gold Coast via Lennox Head and Byron Bay. Fell in love with Lennox Head along the way.

Finished off the weekend by watching Flight. I think it is a good movie and worth a watch. It just so happens that I will be flying tomorrow. Perhaps a good idea you don't follow suit - watch it on another day.

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Friday Flowers 1/2/13.

Snacks.

Paleo Carrot Cake

1 1/2 cups almond meal

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon 

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp nutmeg

3 free range eggs

1/4 cup raw honey

1/8 cup coconut oil

1/2 cup seeds/nuts 

1/2 cup dried fruit

1 1/2 cups grated carrot

1. In first bowl, combine dry ingredients

2. In second bowl, combine wet ingredients 

3. Add carrot, seeds/nuts and dried fruit to the wet mixture

4. Stir wet mixture into dry mixture and scoop into loaf pan

5. Bake at cake cooking temperature until golden brown and knife springs back

Mountain Bread "Chips"

1. Cut desired amount of Mountain Bread into squares

2. In a bowl, drizzle a small amount of olive oil (or oil of your choice) around and add salt and pepper

3. Coat Mountain Bread squares in oil mixture and place on baking paper

4. Grill/bake until golden brown - beware! - watch this step closely

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Bonds Wideband Bra Tanks.

My Mum gave me one of these Bonds Wideband Bra Tanks when she visited in December. I hadn't tried it on until today - I was looking for something light and comfy to wear in this torrential Brisbane weather going on at the moment. Fell in love immediately. Soooo good!

Jumped on google straight away to see what they retail for. There is an offer through the Bonds website at the moment: 2 for $40. I remember seeing them at Trade Secret a few months ago, picking them up, 'uhhhhming and ahhhing' and putting them back on the rack. Kicking myself now.

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DIY Cleaning Products.

For Drains

There was a slight smell to the drains in my bathroom floor. To be perfectly frank, I have never thought to clean the drains before so I took the opportunity to do all of them. To start, I poured boiling water down each drain. Then, I sprinkled a few spoonfuls of Baking Soda (Bi-Carb Soda), followed by about 1 cup of white vinegar. The mixture bubbled up over the drain cover and I left it to sit for 5-10 minutes. Following that, I poured some more boiling water down the drain to make sure everything washed away. And what do you know... no smell!

With this success, I phoned J and told him of the news. He then proclaimed it was because of my hair and shampoo... 

For Underarm Stains

Recently I have been using Garnier Mineral Anti-Perspirant 'InvisiMax'. Designed for heat, sport and stress - I guess that's me during a "good week", haha! I think it is really great toiletry companies have developed these 'anti-white marks' sprays. Fantastic, in fact. What is not so fantastic, is that my white/light coloured shirts now have grey-ish and brown marks on them in the pits. I've done some research and it seems that aluminium is the culprit, so I am going to switch back to my Rexona Clinical Protection stick and see how I go.

To try and fix the problem, I made a paste using Baking Soda and water. Applied it to the shirts using a toothbrush for about 20 minutes, rinsed in cold water and then put through the washing using a Napi-san like product. Of course I added an extra rinse to the cycle because of my stupid sensitive skin. Unfortunately, there was no such success this time around. All of my shirts still have the same marks on them.

I guess in the mean time the next logical step is to keep my underarms shaved and search for another solution.

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Friday Flowers 25/1/13.

Time For Tea.

I have spent the last three days at my family home in Darwin. There was an immediate cessation of employment - I left my job of two (and a bit) years to take 2 weeks off before I start my new (real) career as an accountant. Since arriving in Darwin, I have done nothing. Bad tense? Either way, I haven't been up to much. Fortunately the weather has been quite pleasant, although today I had to have a midday shower as I was too sticky and had too many fly-aways and thought it was the only logical step for me to take. 

What is the point of this post? I am not exactly sure to be honest. I felt like I was about to 'give birth' to a giant bubble of excitement/anxiety/joy and I didn't know what to do. I will try to explore what is buzzing inside me.

• I have stumbled across some lovely blogs, one being In Spaces Between - go and visit - you won't regret it. I think this discovery triggered the bubble. 
• I have been reconsidering my "physical state" and how I have been enjoying life over the past month rather than planning my dietary habits and working out till I have to flop myself down onto the toilet. Don't get me wrong, I will revert to this come Friday 25th Jan. 
• I have thought about what makes me happy at the moment and what I hope to experience throughout 2013. 
• Despite waves of excitement surging above pangs of brute fear, I figure sitting in a car for 5 days travelling back to Brisbane with one of my best friends will be good for me.
• Learning to deal with a great deal of uncertainty which is now imminent, has become paramount for me: I will start a new job, in the city and will travel via train. I will finally decide whether a small/medium SUV (in black of course) or a motorbike will better suit my travel needs. I will come to a conclusion about how to tackle health and fitness alongside my new job. It is ok that I am not sure what I will do at this very moment. Also, it is fine that I've gone off eggs in the morning and quiche at morning tea. After all, I know I get bored easily. 
• In order of priority/induced level of comfort, I want to spend time working on our home at House on a Hill and explore things like stainless steel ceiling fans, white walls, chalkboard paint, silver baroque frames and maybe even a split system AC in the lounge/dining/shed area, amongst many other things (please don't be reading this J... bye bye "man chi"). 
• Finally, it is ok that I have a few lumps and bumps on my skin at the moment. I will see a dermal therapist to sort it out.

Now that I feel like I have given birth to said bubble, it is time for Tea. Green tea with lemon, in fact. Before I nip off, here are some snippits of the last few days.

Skinny Cap at Java Spice Cafe in Darwin. If you get the chance, visit! It really is beautiful.

Gave Almond Meal pancakes a go this morning. They are low carb/high protein/wheat free so they are a good breakfast option for me. I will admit I do need to tweak the recipe a little! 

On my first night in Darwin, I made an Indian mince curry (from scratch) for my family. And yes I did eat white rice AND pappadums!

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Note: I am yet to work out how to rotate the photos (shame on me).