Made up baking and two good books

I love to follow recipes exactly, maybe because there's so much to learn about good cooking. But lately I feel totally fine winging it in the kitchen, which is how we ended up with this apple galette one Sunday night. I found some leftover shortcrust pastry in the freezer (maybe from this summer pie), had half a jar of butterscotch sauce and we always have apples (and lately, ice cream).

We're trying a weekly produce box again, in an attempt to go to the shops less and eat what's in season. It's been the best excuse to consult my cookbooks and make some meals that aren't work related! I've also learnt that this is potato and pumpkin season. I have so many potatoes and am going to make gnocchi tomorrow night.

Normally I try to read books on my Kindle or get them from the library to save money and shelf space but this period (pandemic + job stress) seemed like the very best time to buy Kevin Kwan's new book Sex & Vanity. I remember reading the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy during periods of disruption. I listened to the first book while driving between Wagga Wagga and Canberra when Tony was doing an artist residency here and I was waiting out a restructure at work. I carried the final book of the series, Rich People Problems, to solo dinners in Adelaide, while travelling for work. It kept me company all the way home from Darwin to Canberra. 

I managed to make his latest book last a little over a week and loved how escapist and funny it was. I really hope to watch it as a movie one day. I'm now reading Big Friendship by Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman, who also host the Call Your Girlfriend podcast. I've never wanted to hold books more than I do in this mostly stay at home time, when it feels like there's very little time spent off screens.

Today has been especially nice because I took the day off work. It still feels strange to take a day off when there's no where to go but I'm really glad I did. This past month has been intense and I needed a day to decompress and not be accountable to anyone. So I slept in, made my own teriyaki sauce (I'm suddenly addicted to Adam Liaw videos and highly recommend this chicken and egg oyakodon) and listened to Michelle Obama's new podcast. 

A couple of other things to share:

We loved watching Indian Matchmaker on Netflix and maybe got through it too quickly.

Julia Ostro's Italian-inspired sausage tray bake is so comforting. Slightly spicy sausages bake on top of potatoes and a lemony tomato sauce. Here's a video of me demo-ing the recipe! 

I've been listening to Coronacast most days, it's a 10 minute podcast from the ABC that helps me understand the latest coronavirus news. After listening to a few episodes about masks, I reckon these look good because they have three layers, including one water resistant one. 

We rented Greed last weekend, which stars Steve Coogan and Isla Fisher. It's funny and a bit dark. 

John Lewis wrote this beautiful essay before he died and it was published in the NY Times on the day of his funeral. "Though I am gone, I urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe."

Also in US politics, AOC's notes that shaped her viral speech this week. "What is there to say to a man who isn't listening?" Her caption on being accountable to herself (and for yourself) stayed with me. 

Have a lovely weekend.

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Good habits return

I ate a lot of chips at the start of isolation, afternoon tea too. And now I'm suddenly remembering... vegetables 😂 It's like everything's happening in reverse - more and more of my good habits are returning as the city starts to open up. There were a couple of weeks where I'd forget to leave the apartment, maybe because I was so nervous about being outside. Now we're going for walks most days and starting to visit some of our favourite cafes and ice cream shops again. It's small stuff but really nice.

I'm super excited about Movie Night, a way to rent and stream films from my favourite Sydney cinema. Even though I live in Canberra, I often look at what's playing because the curation is always great with a nice mix of indie films, cult classics and docos. I reckon I'll start with either the Ryuichi Sakamoto documentary or Yellow Is Forbidden, which is about a Chinese couture designer.

Being at home for so long has helped me improve little corners of the house. My bedside table no longer has books on, in and under it. Instead it's just a few special-to-me things, some from my time in Wagga Wagga and newer things like a bunch of flowers my sister-in-law dried. It's a nice reminder that things can look good without spending a lot of money.

Most nights I read a couple of instalments of 44 Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith before bed. I've never read any of his books before (and only realised he was a dude a couple of weeks ago!) and the concept for this book is so unique. Originally the novel was a serialised column in a Scottish newspaper. A new one came out every day, which means you can read a bit of the story every day without too much effort. It's been the nicest way to ease back into reading after a long break.

My friend Irini recommended the book after reading the first instalment of a comic series I've been involved with at work. She's also the reason Tony and I became obsessed with High Fidelity on iView. We watched the first ep after hearing about it on a podcast but didn't love it right away - and I'm so glad we went back and kept watching.

It's been super nice to grow stuff again! A friend at work says it's just nice to care for something and I'm finding that to be very true. I'm also loving chef Roy Choi's posts on Instagram this week from his funny pep talks ("Be the turtle") to dreams of becoming a florist.

Finally, some recipes to share. I made Julia Ostro's pasta e fagioli this week and had forgotten how magical it is. It's super flavoursome for something with a couple of simple ingredients. I also spent Monday testing her newest recipe for ABC Life, peanut butter and chocolate blondies with salted peanuts. It's super delicious.

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Presents and projects

I sent an email to myself while working last week, a clear sign I'd hit a wall. It was easily my most restless week to date. But things turned around. There were tiny nice moments, like listening to music while driving in the rain and seeing bright autumn leaves on my way to get groceries and remembering that seasons still change, even though we're inside.

This is going to sound strange but there's something about seeing packets upon packets of toilet paper at the shops that brings a great sense of relief. Like we're at a turning point where things will continue to get better (I'm really hoping for this!).

I've ticked three funny things off my stay-at-home to-do list, growing spring onions from their roots (extremely satisfying), a Zoom yoga class with my favourite Sydney studio, and a pear and blueberry crumble. I've also been working on a lovely project that I've been busting to write about.

I've been making a podcast for two! Or a mini morning radio show. Every morning, I send my brother and sister-in-law a song introduced by a friend or family member to help brighten their hotel-quarantine stay. They moved back from America at short notice and while they were packing and preparing to leave, I hatched a plan to make their hotel stay a bit warmer.

Each morning there's a different host, from high school friends to siblings, new buds from their time in London, and one very special guest - a lead singer from a fave band! I asked everyone to record a voice memo sharing where they are, what they can see and hear, plus one thing they're looking forward to. I also asked them to choose a song and introduce it. The idea was to bring the outside world into their Sydney hotel room.

The morning messages and songs were inspired by this episode of the Soul Music podcast, which opens with an astronaut talking about the songs that were piped into his shuttle each morning, chosen by family members back on earth. The song he remembers was Can't Take My Eyes Off You, chosen by his wife to mark their wedding anniversary apart.

During this time at home, I haven't been too good at reading or doing anything other than working, cooking and being on Instagram - until this project came alone. I started working on it over the Anzac Day long weekend and woke up with a real sense of purpose and excitement each day, as new audio recordings popped into my inbox. It was so good to be editing audio again, I'd forgotten what a wonderfully intimate medium it is. And it's been so much fun to sample all the chosen songs - from K-pop hits to Mozart. There are only three episodes to go and I'll so miss this joyful little project.

In Canberra, you're now allowed to visit one other household, so on Sunday when Tony was busy painting I went to my sister's house to deliver a belated birthday present. It was a short visit but a very uplifting one! We gave my nephew a mini golf set and he took to it immediately. I also got to see my niece's wobbly tooth IRL and see their hermit crabs in action.

At the moment I'm watching Mindy Kaling's Never Have I Ever on Netflix and loving it. I'm strangely into teen dramas at the moment and also caught up on All The Boys I've Loved Before. I'm excited to watch the sequel and another movie with a Asian main character, The Half of It. I'm totally going to watch the Netflix adaptation of Michelle Obama's Becoming too.

And I must've turned a corner because I'm reading a book again and really enjoying it. After listening to Gabrielle Hamilton's much talked about NY Times essay, I downloaded her memoir Blood, Bones & Butter. It's a wonderful read, full of adventure and action.

I hope you're going ok wherever this finds you. Things that've helped me this week - exercise and fresh air for energy and good sleep, and salad. I'd completely forgotten about salad, even though I used to eat some version of it for lunch every day at work. On that note, this is a lovely dinner that isn't pasta. A tofu, brown rice and brussels sprout salad from Hetty McKinnon. And good relaxing music, complied by my brother.

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Standing in the warmest light

Years and years ago, my friend Matt wrote me an email that included the line 'standing in the warmest light'. I can't remember the context but that line and its sentiment stood out to me. I remembered it again this week as found myself warming my feet in the sun. It seems like a lovely way to try and make it through this period at home.

Today we welcomed my brother Derrick and his wife home from New York. They're in hotel quarantine in Sydney and getting a video call from them once they'd checked in was nothing short of thrilling. It's such a relief to have my whole family back in Australia, especially at this time.

It's a long weekend here in Canberra, so I've been making Anzac biscuits, chicken stock and an eggplant melanzane, which was our special Saturday meal. I followed my friend Angie's advice and oven roasted the eggplant to skip the frying and breading stage and used smoked mozzarella too.

It's been an excellent weekend for recipe testing too. In the coming weeks I'm planning to make this mushroom stroganoff again (it's so creamy) and a childhood favourite - beef rendang!

The weirdest things make me teary these days, including songs on this playlist, this video of a dad watching his baby being born over Zoom, and my workmates in Sydney offering to drop a hotel care package to my brother. People are so nice.

I remembered the documentary podcast Soul Music this week and listened to the Toto's Africa episode which is excellent. It's a wonderfully distracting podcast because it doesn't refer to the world at present, making it truly escapist. And I made my first ever Dutch Baby, inspired by Jessica. I used the NY Times recipe, which was crazy easy and so much faster than making individual pancakes.

And that is me for another week!

Stay well,

S

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Peak iso

How are you going at home? I vacuumed a lampshade this weekend and felt a real sense of achievement, which tells me I've hit peak isolation.

Podcasts make me feel connected to the outside world, mainly The High Low, Sugar Calling and Highly Enthused - I loved their at-home facial tips. Listening to them reminds me of our years in Wagga Wagga, when I'd listen to RN on the radio at night to find out what was happening beyond our town.

Saturday's become our day for nice dinners and video calls with friends. This week I roasted a chicken (and smoked out the entire apartment, prompting an oven clean on Sunday 😑), made some potato wedges and opened a bottle of orange wine. I've also been eating a lot of chocolate. My friend Irini sent us a box of Easter eggs that's as big as a board game and has the most delicious hazelnut praline filled chocolate bunnies inside.

I'm trying to be less fearful as the numbers in Australia continue to improve, while still being sensible. It helps me enjoy this time at home a little more. I'm also trying to let go of a scarcity mindset when it comes to cooking and shopping. It's small thoughts, like when I catch myself wondering/worrying if I should use two eggs in some muffins or save them, just in case.

I have two tiny hopes for the week ahead - to eat more veggies and move a little more. That's it!

If you're after any food inspo for the week, this tomatoey soup with chickpeas, pasta and spinach is delicious and great for days when you're feeling under the weather. I've also been baking out of this beautiful zine - the PDF version has just gone online. I made peanut butter granola and ginger and chocolate muffins and feel somewhat ready for the week ahead.

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Easter 2020

How has your Easter been? Ours was pasta-filled and relaxing, with a couple of long walks when the rain and icy winds made way for the sun. We ate homemade hot cross buns, listened to podcasts and took turns making pasta dinners.

A highlight was a Monopoly game played with my brothers in Sydney and New York. We stumbled across the Monopoly app a couple of weekends ago, when we were considering driving to Big W to buy a board, before deciding it wasn't essential.

The app is fun because you can add remote players and don't have to do any maths! Plus, the sound effects are very cute. We were on a video call too, for chatting and sledging and I ended up winning the whole thing! My aim going into it was not to come last.

I bought a bunch of dairy products before lockdown and had been saving the creme fraiche for weeks, so I could make Julia Turshen's lasagne over Easter. I've seen so many times on Heidi's Instagram and decided it was worth four tins of tomatoes (life these days) and made it with some minced beef we'd stashed in the freezer. The ingredients alone felt extravagant. 

Lasagne is Tony's most favourite food and I've tried so many different recipes, including Smitten Kitchen's "Mount Everest" lasagne. Out of all of them, this was the easiest by far (no chopping onions, celery, carrot etc, no bechamel sauce) and we agreed, the most delicious too.

So far, we haven't ordered any takeaway because we're both enjoying cooking and love it as a way to pass the time. But for Easter we have ordered nice wine from a cafe we used to visit every Saturday.

Other lovely things - Tony's busy making tortellini from his Pasta Grannies cookbook 😋 And I'm typing away at the new desk we bought for the spare room. It's a sit/stand desk from IKEA that magically came back into stock last week. Going to the store and actually finding it on the shelf felt like a small triumph (it was my third attempt). 

We've been trying our best to get by with what we have but I was starting to feel a little restless at the dining table, which wasn't the right height for a whole work day. We built the desk that night and it's already improved my WFH situation. I really appreciate being able to go to a different room for work or to blog, given we now spend so much of our time in the lounge/dining room.

Finally, here are some things you might like too.... 

Good Vibes Yoga has released a bunch of new classes, including a Yin practice and a lovely mellow flow. This is my favourite online yoga so far - it's Australian, made for these very strange times, and many of the classes are under 60 minutes. The instructors are excellent. 

Musician Bill Withers was Anna Sales' very first guest on Death Sex and Money. They have re-aired the episode to commemorate his death. It's a very beautiful listen.

Tonight I'm making mini chocolate fondants (aka molten chocolate puddings) because our Easter egg delivery didn't arrive in time, and we're out of chocolate! I'm going to add some salted caramel sauce we have in the pantry :) 

The Strokes have a new album and it's super great.

The Margaret Atwood episode of Sugar Calling is cheery. I listened to the Rebecca Solnit episode of On Being immediately afterwards and needed to hear her definition of hope in uncertain times (it's not straight-up optimism). 

And I've been loving Jenny's series Project Pantry Purpose. There's a new post almost every day, with notes on what she's cooking, noticing and doing during the stay home period.

S

Life at home

Like so many people around the world, we're adjusting to spending our days and nights at home. For us that's a two bedroom apartment with a balcony that looks out onto mountains :) We're making a special effort to keep it tidy, making the bed most mornings and clearing the dining table of laptops and notepads when the work day is done. I've never swept the kitchen floor so frequently in my life.

Tony and I are both able to work from home, something we're extremely grateful for. These first few days have been a bit of a dance, especially when multiple video meetings are underway. Sometimes the internet can't handle it. It's been the biggest nudge to tidy our spare room, which is now our 'meeting room' and Tony's impromptu studio. He's working on a small painting and it's nice to have him properly home.

I'm working out a simple morning routine - a yoga video, shower, breakfast and coffee before I open up my laptop. There are so many great live streams and yoga videos at the moment, many of them free. This 30 minute mellow flow from Melbourne studio Good Vibes is especially lovely and a favourite Canberra teacher is live streaming soon. I love Sky Ting videos and their live stream, especially when I'm in the mood for something fun and slightly more challenging.

Sometimes it feels like I live at my dining table. But I'm learning to move around a bit more throughout the day, taking phone calls on our balcony, longer meetings on the couch and using the kitchen bench as a standing desk to keep things interesting and my body moving. And I'm thinking about end-of-day activities to help me switch off and wind down. A few days ago it was opening a parcel my brother sent me from NYC!

Giving me hope right now are photos of friends and their brand new babies, professional photos from Zachary's wedding, video chats with most of the family. My brother Zac left me a voice memo the other day about his honeymoon and new home, and it was the nicest thing to listen to in the morning. Simple things like sunlight, a cool breeze and baking are helping too. Sourdough is in high production and I've made some choc chip cookies too.

We have a good amount of supplies for now and no real plans to head out for anything soon. We are very lucky in this way. But when the time comes, I've been bookmarking a bunch of local businesses who are offering pre-ordered produce boxes along with coffee, milk and eggs. If you're in Canberra, High Road, Choku Bai Jo and Rita's Farm are three offering pick up and delivery. We'll probably mix it up to share the love! 

On Sunday night, I also made this very cheery creamy corn pasta, a recipe test for work. It's another Heidi special and it is sunny in both appearance and flavour thanks to some lime zest. The recipe makes a decent amount too, so we've been happily munching on it after a tense half hour of watching the news.

I'm trying to get out for walks at quiet times and it always feels so nice to be outside! I am hoping that everyone will be able to stay safe and well and keep up the social distancing for the good of ourselves and the whole community.

Something I've thought about recently is the fact that this transition, while challenging, has been a little easier for us because of our experience with the smoke haze. We were indoors for weeks over summer but felt more confined with the doors and windows shut and the air-con running 24/7. Being able to see the sunset, hear birds outside is something we're still excited by and grateful for.

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Settling in

Here's a tiny glimpse into our new place. We're starting to feel settled and at home after our first few week here. A couple things have helped, mainly unpacking, getting the internet sorted and...

Homemade meals. Right after our old apartment was inspected and we returned the keys, I went to a lovely book launch where my friend Sarah presented me with a giant bag of food. Inside, a homemade taco kit featuring this very delicious pulled brisket and a box of almond brownies.

It was perfectly timed - we'd eaten out a lot by that point, out of necessity and exhaustion - and I knew we wouldn't get to unpack the kitchen until the weekend. Plus, tacos are the perfect moving meal because they require almost no cutlery :)

And then on Saturday morning, we received a delivery from my parents. A very exciting box, filled with more than a week's worth of dinners (and a large strawberry and rhubarb crumble!) from The Dinner Ladies. They'd chosen all of our favourites (meatballs for me, lasagne for Tony, plus some warming curries and soups), and I love seeing them lined up in the freezer. Food truly is the best gift!

One of my favourite things about our new place is the view of the mountains, which is so very Canberra to me. Being higher up also means we get the nicest views of the sky. The other day I went out onto the balcony to stare at the sunset and realised we had a view of the iconic Telstra tower and Parliament house (just).

March is a big month of festivals in the city, and on Saturday night we discovered that we had an excellent view of the whole city when the fireworks festival kicked off. We're already excited about New Year's here :)

And something kind of silly... one of my favourite bakeries started making hot cross buns a few weeks ago. I waited til we were moved in to buy our first box, as a mini celebration.

We got through a lot of unpacking this weekend, and will are planning to return to normal life tonight with Netflix and couch time. And we'll welcome our first guest tomorrow night. My friend Sean is in town for work, and we'll have a simple dinner with flatbreads, grilled veggies and falafel. I'll share the recipe soon, I'm testing it this weekend for work.

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Spring things

In the last fortnight, like clockwork, the plants on our balcony started coming back to life. It caught me by surprise because I was sure I'd killed them all. Even the parsley. So is the magic of spring, and with it the temptation to change it up in small and simple ways.

In our little home it's meant some spur of the moment spring cleaning. Over the weekend I sorted through the thirty-odd books that'd been stashed under my bedside table and put them away. Now there's a smaller stack of things I'm reading now and am planning to read soon. Makes me happy just looking at it.

I'm waiting til October to bring my spring/summer clothes out of storage but I got a little head start this weekend, folding up heavy coats and bagging a few things up to give away. 

And I actually put some effort into food prep this weekend, after I edited this story about meal planning. The point that stuck? Scheduling regular days and times to do it each week, and making it part of your routine. I make time most days to exercise, but had never thought about food prep in the same way. I always assumed it'd somehow get done.

Over two days I made a half-day rye bread for our lunches this week, a batch of veggie stock, curried coconut lentils for the freezer, plus and a banana, coconut and pineapple loaf. It felt surprisingly easy... possibly because I've been listening to Dispatch to a Friend non-stop since last Thursday and it's all about finding pleasure in cooking. Also, I only planned to make two things (the bread and the stock). Everything else was a because-I-felt-like-it bonus :)

And on Sunday night, the perfect spring meal that's part winter and part summer. I made a roast chicken with potatoes (I love Nadine Redzepi's recipe). Then there was takeaway Gelato Messina for dessert and Flavours of Youth on Netflix. 

Night time rituals

Do you have any after work rituals? My morning routine has been pretty solid for the last six months - I go to yoga most mornings, have coffee at the studio and then head to work with a clearer-than-usual head. Evenings are far more haphazard, and I've been experimenting with a few different ways of winding down:

If I'm getting the bus, I walk to the city after work to get a dose of fresh air, which is always a refreshing shock after sitting in heating all day. It's a half hour walk and I'll listen to a podcast or some music and get on a bus that's more direct than the one I can catch right outside my office. The commute puts a nice gap between my work day and the night.

If it's been an especially busy day and I'm driving home,  I'll listen to Spotify's daily mixes after work, saving new podcast episodes for the weekend.

I'm easily distracted by my phone at night, so I've been setting a timer for some dedicated reading time, so I don't accidentally check the time on my phone and end up scrolling through Instagram.

And if I'm wrestling with a few things in my head, I'll write them down in a notebook. Sometimes it helps me identify exactly what I'm feeling, other times it just feels like I'm putting thoughts somewhere else, and which stops me from turning them over in my head or trying to remember them.

P.S How crazy is it that we're more than halfway through the year?!

Dropping the ball

When things get busy, I cling to the weirdest things. Lately, it's been cooking and trying to make most things from scratch. It's one of my favourite things to do when I have time but when there other things on, it can be pretty draining.

The other weekend we were going to my sister's place for an early dinner and to play with the kids. I'd planned to make her these peanut butter cups but as the afternoon ticked on, I realised that the whole week had been a little crazy. So instead of trying to make a slightly messy dessert at short notice, I walked down to the shops and bought a box of chocolates and a fancy fizzy drink instead.

Since then, I've been looking for tiny ways to drop the ball and not fuss so much about the little things. Even if they sound really nice in theory :) I'm not the greatest at relaxing but finding little things to miss - like a Saturday morning yoga class - means more time for other important things like sitting in the sun reading my book.

P.S - My cousin is reading Drop the Ball, and I'm curious to give it a try. It's all about expecting a little less from yourself, which sounds pretty good to me.

Who does what in your house?

Did you see the comic about the mental load last year? It really made me think. I am a worrier and a planner, which means I'm right across the tiny goings on of our little household from how much money we have in the bank, to what's running low in the fruit basket.

After the mental load comic, I wanted to reclaim some of that brain space. It sparked a long conversation with Tony about all the things that need to be done in our home each week, and how we were divvying them up.

And then we came up with a solution that we've managed to stick to. We thought about the two biggest and most time consuming jobs and split them. He does all of the laundry, and I do all of the shopping. It's helped me stop thinking about a whole chunk of house stuff and best of all - it works.

It's not super strict - every now and then Tony will join me at the markets or I'll help hang out a load of washing if it's late at night. But it's really nice knowing who's responsible for what. If the washing basket is looking full, or I need a particular item washed - I just ask. Same goes for Tony if he needs something from the shops a bit more urgently. I also love being the food person - and I've always had a strange love of grocery shopping :)

And here's a little confession... we also have a cleaner who comes once a fortnight to do the big stuff - the kitchen, bathroom and floors. I initially resisted the idea, thinking we didn't need it but that kind of cleaning, and getting it done on weekends, was something that we'd struggled with and fought over in the past. Having some help has also made bursts of travel and intense work periods so much easier, created pockets for things like blogging, and made weekly cleaning not a big deal.

Weekend scenes

I spent a few hours of Sunday at work, which made me savour the time I had at home. The days were sunny and bright and I pottered around the house catching up on podcasts and making sourdough and yoghurt. Tony jokingly calls this my happy little melon time.

I also started work on a small gardening project. A little while ago, I noticed a raised garden bed in our apartment complex. It was bare but also quite big. Over Easter, I showed my friend Sabine and she came up with a plan.

She suggested using bricks to section off a third, so I didn't have to take on the whole bed. She even gave me the bricks, lent me some tools and showed me how to turn the soil and make a brick fence. I added some new soil, came face to face with some worms and eventually planted kale, pak choy and rocket. I'm excited to see how it grows.

By Sunday night I was spent. I'd made a lot of messes and cleaned them all up, and then Tony came home and made Philly Cheese Steak pasta for dinner :)

P.S Is anyone else listening to Pregnant Pause? The last episode was so unexpected and nuanced.

Found flowers + what I'm reading

On Sunday, after we'd finally straightened out the house, I picked a few flowers from the gardens that are part of our apartment complex. Everything is in bloom at the moment and even though I felt a little sneaky taking some cuttings, I'm so glad I did.

Right now I'm reading A Year Between Friends: 3191 Miles Apart: Craft, Recipes, Letters and Stories. Every day I'm busting to get home to read a little bit more, even if it's a couple of pages before bed.

The book is based on the 3191 Miles Apart blog, which I discovered a few years ago through a recipe for coconut choc chip cookies. It's a shared blog between two Internet friends, who found each other on Flickr and have been collaborating through photographs for years. They're real life friends now, and the book chronicles a year of their everyday lives and their friendship too.

Inspired by their beautiful photos of everyday life, I snapped these shots late yesterday. I baked a batch of peanut butter granola in between loaves of bread and spent some quiet time reading after a busy few days of catch ups and errands. If you like their blog too, make sure you sign up for their newsletter, it's always a highlight of my Sunday.

P.S I'm also reading The Guest Cat, which I picked up on our Sydney trip. I'm drawn to Japanese fiction but am yet to properly get into this novel. It could be to do with the translation or that fact that I'm only a tiny way in.

Spring garden update

Over the last month, I've been slowly adding new plants to our balcony in preparation for spring. The new additions include baby spinach, spring onions, coriander, thyme, basil and flowers too. We're also growing parsley, mint, strawberries and one determined radicchio.

I'm a novice when it comes to gardening. When we left Wagga Wagga, my friend Sophie gave us a few starter plants, which has helped me build my confidence and work out where the sunniest spots are.

I've had a lot of help from friends. Dave recommended repotting our mint, to give it more room to grow and it's really taken off. And Sam's told me where to buy the strongest veggie seedlings in town (here if you're interested!).

I planted my basil a little early - it's still very cold in the mornings - so these guys will be staying inside for the next little while.

Aside from herbs and veggies, I'm growing flowers for the very first time. Here are my seaside daises :)

And now that the days are getting that tiny bit brighter and warmer, I'm getting back into the habit of earthing down after a day's work.