Another Christmas over

Christmas day arrived

My grandson received lots of presents.

Family gathered...




Seasonal photos were taken.







My four and my grandson. Back L-R Eldest to youngest girls, Sarah, Kyla, Talia. Front L-R Blake and Jack.

Add to this mix my Mum and Dad.

Yes, mum is very little.

Add a little more, Me and SIL Jarrad.

Middle daughter Kyla with one of her sisters Chihauhua puppies.

A closer look. These will find homes in the next couple of weeks.

They are four weeks old now.

Two girls and a boy.

Some new baby chicks, hatched three days before Christmas.

Four of them wandering with mumma hen.

Hope your CHRISTmas was an enjoyable one.

xx Tania

This week's progress

This Huntsman spider scared the life out of me last night. The laptop was sitting on the table and when I went to pick it up to put it away there was the 'spider'. When my heart rate settled down, I gingerly picked up the case and very carefully took it outside to the garden and brushed him off. I really didn't want the spider to run otherwise, I would have dropped the laptop.


Onwards with the cleanout. The nice clean and tidy linen cupboards.

The pile of rubbish that came out of the cupboard. Shame on me.

This is what I pulled out of our son's messy cupboards. Most of this has gone out.

And now the new room.

This year we decided to buy ourselves an early Christmas present. On the left, a new fridge that is badly needed this time of year as Christmas is always at our house. I have put the upright freezer that was in this space out in the rumpus/family room.

These recipes are taken from Debt free, Cashed Up and Laughing. I have only tried the Cappuccino one so far.

CAPPUCCINO MIX

1/2 cup good-quality instant coffee

1/2-3/4 cup castor sugar9depends on the strength of coffee)

1 cup instant non-fat powdered milk

1teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine ingredients in a food processor or blender and blitz well. Wait for dust to settle and transfer to an airtight container. Use two tablespoons per cup hot water (I use 1 heaped tblspn and I add milk so it is not too hot).

CAFE AU LAIT MIX

1/2 cup good-quality instant coffee

1/2 cup castor sugar

2 cups instant non-fat powdered milk

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine ingredients in a food processor or blender and blitz well.

Wait for dust to settle and store in an airtight container.

Use 1/4 cup for each 2/3 cup of hot water.

SWISS MOCHA

1/2 cup good-quality instant coffee

1/2 cup castor sugar

1 cup instant non-fat powdered milk

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Combine ingredients in a food processor or blender and blitz well.

Wait for the dust to settle and store in an airtight container. Use 1 tablespoon for each 3/4 cup of hot water.

As I may not get time to blog leading up until Christmas, I want to wish my friends that kindly visit my blog a Very Merry CHRISTmas. I have made lots of friends over the past year and I want you to know that I appreciate your friendships. I look forward to reading over your blogs whenever I get a chance. (I think I am addicted actually! Could this be true?)

I will be back soon,

Please stay healthy and safe over this holiday break.

Tania xx

Happy Birthday to my Mother

Today is my mum's birthday.

Here she is pictured as a young lady.

And with my Dad at his 21st birthday party.

Lots of love today and always, mum.

Tania xx

At Last

I just realised this is my 100th post!

Well I have had a very industrious day, I've been flat out like a lizard drinking as the saying goes.

First off today I had to work starting at 8am and finished early at 12pm. So I decided that I would spend the afternoon out with my son, taking him to lunch, to the beach nearby and finish off some Christmas shopping. Off we go in the car, grabbed some take away and the car coughed and died. I managed to get it started and headed for home avoiding traffic lights and bridges in case it did it again. It is going to the car doctor tomorrow to find out what is wrong. This car has been playing up for a while now, and had been serviced so I pressumed it to be alright.

Needless to say I decided to stay home. So....it was time that Christmas tree patiently waiting out in the shed for me, was put up. I said to ds that we will put the tree up instead and he was all for it. I dragged all the stuff from the shed, and guess what he disappeared onto the computer and left me to it.

I should have taken a picture with the lights on.

I have set up a small table with a Christmas display near the fireplace.





I did manage to get this photo of the Port Augusta Power Station when we were out.

The salt lake behind us is now fairly full of water from all the rain. We have live here eight years and have never seen it this high. The photo in a recent post shows the lake with a only a little bit of water.

Sideways view of my first pickings from the garden. Since the rain I have been picking some everyday.

Ain't I cute. My grand-dog Bailey, I had the pleasure of looking after him again on the weekend. Lucky me! This dog is so full of energy and fun. He is due for a hair cut soon.

The little precious one I cared for today, happily playing. Such a good baby, easy to look after. I have been caring for her since she was 3 1/2 months old, she is now 6 months.

I am on a mission at the moment continuing to declutter. I have finished the linen cupboard in the passageway and the linen cupboard and drawers in the laundry. I went right through ds's room today as well, pulling everything out of the cupboards and putting on his bed and floor. I sorted out all his clothes, as a lot of them are too small for him now. He is up there sorting through the 'stuff' now, it's like Christmas going through all the 'stuff 'he had forgotten about.

I proceded to pull all hubby's t-shirts out of his drawer as it was barely shutting and threw out half of them for grease rags. I get in trouble when I throw his 'stuff' out, he gets all sentimental about holely, frayed clothes. He has been very politely told that he has a month to tidy and sort his 'stuff' out that is thrown in my cupboard, or it may just disappear.

I am quite choofed tonight (and exhausted) with what I have started so far and achieved, may it continue on....I am being quite ruthless and throwing a lot away.

Well I had better feed my poor starving son,

x Tania

Shine Jesus shine

My eldest daughter Sarah pictured above in red, used to sing this song in church at Ceduna when she was younger. She has a lovely voice, unfortunately when we moved to Port Augusta, her music fell by the wayside.

Shine Jesus Shine

Wishing you all a truly Blessed Sunday.

x Tania

Cleaning Tips

These are my cleaning friends, trusty old vinegar and bi carb soda

I use these two things the most when I clean. I started cleaning the windows with vinegar and water in a spray bottle a few days ago. It takes me forever to finish them because there are too many and they are those annoying little squares. They look nice but are painful to clean. By the time I am finished it is time to start again at the beginning.

Vinegar has so many uses. I do my shower screens, tiles, basins, mirrors, windows, stoves, benches, toilets, and occasionally in the mop bucket. I have been known to use it as a final rinse for my hair. Vinegar cleans kettles, just add and let sit for a while before rinsing. It is also good for neutralising smells including urine. Vinegar is a natural disinfectant. Apparently a stocking can be used as a gentle scourer to clean tiles, I haven't tried this method though.

If you visit Rhonda Jean's site she has more information about natural cleaning.

I thought I might do some searching on the web for some more uses and I came up with these:

http://www.versatilevinegar.org/usesandtips.html#1

http://www.vinegartips.com/

Bicarb is just as useful and combined with vinegar make good cleaners. I recently sprinkled bicarb down my kitchen sink drains and then poured some vinegar on top and left it to sit. When I came to wash it away I could see the nice whiteness of the drainpipe instead of a yucky dark colour. I sprinkle inside the toilet bowl and then spray vinegar over and let sit for a while. I give a brush and flush and it is all clean.

Bicarb is good for cleaning sinks and making them shine brilliantly. Added to the laundry water, it softens the water and no fabric softener is needed. Can even be used to clean teeth although the taste isn't so pleasant.

A website listing uses of bicarb soda alphabetically:

http://www.angelofoz.com/bicarbsoda_hints/index.htm

There is no need to spend a fortune on those nice smelling cleaners. Yes they do make the house smell lovely but are full of chemicals that shouldn't be floating around in the air that we breathe. And most importantly you will have more money in your pocket.

x Tania

Awards

This Marie Antionette - A real person award

was given to me back in November by Caroline over at The Simple Things

The rules for this award are to display the icon and send it on to 7 other bloggers I feel are real in who they are.

I nominate 6:

Grace at Beyond the Black Stump

Sarah at xo.sorcha.ox

Pink Blower Buttons

Simply Joolz

Tatersmama

Therese at Aussie Coffee Shop

And

Thank you Tatersmama and Simply Joolz for this award. Go and visit their blogs if you haven't already.

The rules for this blog are:

1. Put the logo on your blog

2. Add a link to the person who awarded you

3. Nominate 10 other blogs for this award

4. Add links to those blogs

5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs

6. Give a reason why you consider their blogs cool.

I pass this award on to the following cool blogs:

Aussie Coffee Shop

A Vision Splendid

The Simple Things

I find these blogs a pleasure to visit and enjoy their posts. I appreciate that they share a portion of their lives with me and I sometimes take something to ponder with me when I leave.

Gumboots and Raincoats

A very rare sight in Port Augusta, occured today.

Last night rain started falling at around 10pm.

By 9am this morning we had received 80 mm (320 points) in the rain gauge.

By 10am we had received another 36mm (144pts).

Cobwebs needed to be blown off the wet weather gear.

Millie enjoying the rain.

9am this morning taking Jack to school.



Water, water, water.


Full to overflowing tank.



Out the front of our place.



Poor drowned chookies.

Our road flooded by the little creek I showed in a previous post. At the moment we are flooded in with water over both ends of the road. We have a four wheel drive so we are able to get through.

The car yard.

Stirling North floodway.

Saltia Creek is a flowing.

Well and truly

We picked our son up from school to go and see this.

Although the rain has now eased, there is still a lot of flooding water flowing from the near by hills of the Flinders Ranges.

There has not been this much rain for 30 years.

All those in the eastern states may be in for some of this.

Have a wonderul day,

x Tania