LUNCH BOXES WITH LOVE


Just found this great lunch box company called Lunch Boxes with Love. They have all these little gadgets for making a lunch box more fun.

 
...such as these cute-to-boot cutters


and these boiled egg molds! I never realised you could mold an egg, but apparently you can, if you put it into a mold when warm, after removing the shell.
 
Lots of lovely ideas.

LITTLE BALLERINAS

 
my nieces, 2 & 3, started ballet this week. they look so cute in their matching tutus! i can't wait to sneak into a lesson sometime.



SUMMER SHOWERS

... cleaning up my blog yesterday and found a post that I'd written in the summer of 2011 but had never posted. While we're experiencing a little mid-summer drenching here on the east coast of Australia, I thought I'd post it... but first, a few cheery bits of wet-weather gear...


1. Style Snap from Sportsgirl 2. French Stripe Umbrella from The Brolly Dollys 3. Peta Pink Shine Boots from Pipduck (I have these boots in black and they are FANTASTIC) 4. Cloudy Day iPhone 4/4S case from The Dairy sold online at The Iconic 5. Whale Slouch Pant from Peter Alexander

...SUMMER 2011...

I really don't mind the rain. Sure, if I had a preference either way, I would of course opt for a traditional Australian summer  those filled with day after day of sunshine and clear skies, hot nights, blow flies. Night after night of barbequed dinners, Aeroguard at the outdoor dinner table. Beach days, heat haze on a sizzling bitumen. Lingering bushfire smells, late night pool dips to bring down the heat. Sleeping on top of your bed; memories of once dragging a foam mattress outside to slumber on the balcony, on one of those exceptionally humid nights.

Usually, a good few months of summer and we start to welcome the cooling reprise of Autumn. This year in Sydney, summer has all but been withheld from us, we've been teased with only a few sunny days here and there which we've eagerly snatched up; they call out, causing us to abandon the air-conditioned confines of our icebox work stations to bask in a magnetic patch of sunlight on our lunch breaks.

I am missing our usual hot season season, but I don't see much point in endlessly complaining about the weather. I enjoy a good spot of rain. I got up this morning and threw open my blinds to be greeted with rain falling upon the leafy tree whose upper branches swing outside my window. I pressed my nose against the window to breath in that heady scent of fresh rain.

I think that having lived in London for a while has probably given me a more relaxed attitude about the weather and the coming and going of the seasons. The summers over there are short and sweet. Sure, the sun that doesn't set until 10pm is amazing, and makes for a magical summer of pub hopping, late shopping and impromptu rooftop parties. But the winters are long, and dark, with the sun rising late, and the dark sky closing in as early as 3pm. I suppose that is why I am willing to accept a little bit of an iffy summer season with a pinch of gratitude.

THE CUBAN


This post is a little late coming, but better late than never. Over the summer holidays, me and Lindsay [27/M/Boyfriend][hello Lindsay...][first and last blog intro] went on a road trip up north, from Sydney to Broadbeach, stopping at a couple of locations in between. We stayed at Broadbeach for four nights (not far from Surfer's Paradise... a little away from the hustle bustle). Last night I found myself raving on about one of the dinners we'd had while on holidays, so I thought I would come and post a recommendation, should you happen to find yourself venturing around the area...

The Cuban
Cnr Surf Parade & Elizabeth Ave,
The Oracle, Broadbeach QLD

Great sevice, al fresco dining, delicious cocktails [I had the Mai Cuban] and food that makes your mouth water one month after the fact [SEAFOOD PAELLA!]




MAG IN MY BAG

This week I was in the need for a little bit of health inspo. Usually a trip to the newsagent can satisfy my needs, and this time, the summer special from The Australian Women's Weekly caught my eye.


It's crammed full of relevant articles... everything from the childhood obesity epidemic to losing weight while you sleep (my kind of diet) to expert DIY pedicures and choosing the perfect workout shoe... as well as delicious looking recipes. It was worth every cent of the $9.95!

I'm continuing my anti-sugar crusade with renewed vigour, in light of all the emerging literature telling me that sugar is, well, evil... it's a major contributor to all things from weight gain to tooth decay, diabetes, premature ageing, depression and yada yada yada. Not a pretty list, and once you do a little bit of reading you can clearly see the direct correlation between the beginning of mass-manufacturing of sugar and the rise in obesity, heart disease and so forth. Heart disease and obesity are relatively new problems for humans, and it's not hard to see why. Back before the food industry figured out how to cheaply mass produce sugar, the white stuff was consumed only as a rare treat, and before that still, humans' saccharine supply came primarily from the odd piece of fruit and a bit of honey. Our bodies are so 'unprogrammed' to consume sugar that, when you do, your brain doesn't even recognise it as food. I KNOW! The reason you can sit and drink a litre of apple juice or put away a whole Family Block in one sitting without batting your lids is because sugar doesn't cause your body to flick on the 'full' switch, like it does when we eat fats, carbs and proteins (by squirting out a hormone to tell us we're full).

It's all very interesting really. I've chosen not to adopt a super strict NO SUGAR AT ALL EVER policy, because I don't think it's doable for me. But I'm definitely making an effort to cut back, not only the obvious culprits... for me, that's fruit juices, the never-rending supply of work birthday cakes that are always wheeled out at 3pm when you're at your most vulnerable, and sweet, delicious chocolate... but also the hidden nasties such as those in supermarket muesli bars and condiments.

That brings me back to the mag, which has a tidy little article on beating the sugar addiction (the experts say it traps you in an addictive pattern, and is as powerful a drug as cocaine).



If you're interested in reading more on the topic, I've read all of David Gillespie's Sweet Poison series, and highly recommend them! This article recommends a book called 'I Quit Sugar' by Sarah Wilson, which I'm putting on my reading list. Also super stoked that Sarah has an I Quit Sugar blog.


I LOVE PILLOW


 




How dreamy are these cushions from Ourlieu? The Australian-owned company uses 100% organic cotton, recycled plastics for the cushion inserts, and even prints their swing tags using recycled stock and soy based inks. So you can have your nanna nap, and feel pretty darn good about it, too. They also happen to have a pretty cool newsletter.

BOOKED: OH DEAR SILVIA

 
 
Oh Dear Silvia is set in hospital Suite 5, where Silvia lies, enveloped in a coma. Each chapter introduces a new individual from Silvia's life, as they visit and try to come to terms with this predicament and with their complex relationships with Silvia, which become all the more complex as the story unfolds. And that's about all I can say without giving it away!
 
I enjoyed Oh Dear Silvia and I do recommend it, except, like A Tiny Bit Marvellous (also by Dawn French) it took me a while to get into the book; almost half way through. That puts a bit of a dampener on the recommendation, but persevere through, and I'm sure you'll enjoy the novel's twists and turns and vivid characters, just like I did.

MOUSE IN A HOUSE

 
So excited to come across these little mouse people in matchboxes, from Nordichouse Living. I loved these types of things when I was a little girl; tiny toys in tiny packages, something cute and precious to look after. I've had my eye out for something like this for my nieces... now crossing my fingers that there's a stockist near me!
 
...pretty close...
 
Stockists near Sydney:
 

Jess and Jem - Warhoonga p (02) 9487 4104 or 0438 822 981.
Nordicfusion - Manly p (02) 9907 1717.