Bircher baby

Bircher Muesli. It has become the breakfast of the moment in this house. Yogurt and homemade blueberry mash for princess squirmy and yogurt and honey baked nuts for mum. 

I'm not at my best first thing in the morning, I'm not one of those fabulous 'morning hens' (as my mother calls them). You know those annoying people who at the first glint of sunshine leap out bed full of excitement and gusto and are complete fumbling zombies by 9 pm. I on the other hand emerge looking somewhat like ogre who has just had a lobotomy around 9 am and then somewhere around 11 pm decide its the perfect time to bake something or reorganize the office. 

Therefore rolling out of bed and blindly stumbling into the kitchen first thing in the morning, I really need there to be something very easy- I don't want to have to think and I certainly don't want to have to come up with two different breakfasts. But DO want to like what goes into my mouth and Bircher is an easy fix to my problems. 

The great thing about Bircher is you can be as lazy or creative as you feel or more honestly as time allows. 

You start with 1 cup of rolled oats (or quick oats) 1 cup of milk (or yogurt) 1/2 cup of juice (I use fresh orange juice) and you just build up from there. 

Grated apple, a pinch of cinnamon and some chia seeds for example. 

LSA (linseed, sesame and almond mix) is great too. Chopped sultanas or pumpkin seeds perhaps. What ever you do, you throw it all in a tub, soak it over night and its there ready for you in the morning. 

Fresh berries, nuts and/or honey are great on some extra yogurt on top if you are feeling up to it and you're done. 

Breakfast worthy for both mum and bub sorted.

1 year old!

Today I woke up to my phone buzzing in congratulations. It has buzzed at me monthly since I was first pregnant. 

Being a mum was never on my horizon and when I wound up in the position I was clueless as what to do. Similar to say, if you have never desired being an accountant then you find yourself one day sitting in a cubicle at HRBlock with your first customer sitting in front of you, you'd have a mild panic. 'Wait! I don't know anything about tax!', of course you know you need to pay tax and you've seen your accountant do it in front of you before so you have a vague idea but its a far cry from where you have found yourself. 

I feel the same way about motherhood. 

I just learnt a few weeks ago I was meant to stop the night feeds at 4-6 months....... Oops :/

All I can say is thank God for google! And baby/pregnancy apps. My phone has been giving me daily tips and reassurance for the last 17 months. Today is the last day- because apparently, I am now 'a pro' and no longer need their help. So it tells me anyway and so far it's been pretty on the mark. 

Our little kitten, our little Edie-Pie, our little...... (Is 13kg considered little?.....note to self: google baby weights later) baby girl is a whole year old today! 

Adulthood

When I was younger, I think may be 19, I attempted to throw a dinner party and I learnt many valuable things. 

Firstly, as a Caucasian, don't serve stir fry to Asians. Not matter how good it is- it will fail in a comparison. Especially if you are new to cooking stir gets and definitely(!) if its your first stir fry. Secondly, 19 is a little to young to pull off a successful dinner party. I was trying to be much more grown up than I actually was and I don't think I pulled it off. 

Recently over coffee and tarts a friend gently broached the idea of throwing her first real dinner party- and of course, I was on board. A beautiful Thai pumpkin soup, ChimiChurried roast beef and 5, no wait, 7(!) chocolate pear ramekins later I'd say it was a smashing success. Which has left me wondering- are we finally old enough to throw dinner parties? I'm not sure I feel like a teenager anymore but as we all start turning the corner into our 30's one by one I can definitely say adulthood suits me more and more. I can also say I think I'm really starting to feel like I'm making that leap from young adult to just plain adult. Bring it on, dinner parties and all.

Star cake

I made this cake last night for a friend. Her sons birthday party was this morning. Honestly it's not an overly clever cake- three layers, green, blue and red inside, matching stars on the outside...store bought fondant, a cookie cutter and a couple of spare hours. Not in itself really a blog worthy event, however, there is one element that has had an effect on me. It was the kids. 

The mums were impressed enough, some of them anyway, but the children just stood there silently reaching out and touching the stars one by one. I watched another girl sit quietly eating her layers completely focused on the different colours on her plate. A simple enough cake but still managed to catch their curiosity. That is the best compliment! 

Creative gratification

I'm beginning to wonder how long this will last....this cake phase. I expect it to end sooner or later. I suppose more than anything it's easy. By that I mean, dinner, where I used to have most of my creative fun is now mixed in with feeding the baby, bathing the baby and bedding the baby, so we are lucky to have more than tomatoes on toast some nights. 

                

Cake however, can be thrown together relatively easily, baked and then left to be assembled after the baby is down. It 'fits in' easier I should say. And let's face it, you ice the thing, throw some coconut on the sides, some fruit or flowers on top, and 'boom', your creativity bone is satisfied........ As long as you stay off Pinterest and don't continue to feed your creative side with more ideas. Oops. 

Cakey Dreams

            

So I'm having this thing where I think about cake an unusual amount recently. Okay, more than unusual amount. I go to sleep thinking about cake, I dream about cake and I wake up with cake on my mind. It's happening far too often. 

           

I've had a couple of good excuses to have such thoughts but I doubt these excuses cover me to the level of cake dreaming I've been doing...

              

              

I guess I've just discovered that there is more than just chocolate and carrot. Even more than red velvet...... My cake mind is being blown. Mostly thanks to 'MasterChef' and those Adriano Zumbo cakes....... Lets just say, I see cake in a whole new light now. 

Winter breakfast

             

Winter is here. Porridge has become a normal event- mainly because we can both eat it and I don't have to make two breakfasts. Learning, slowly, the tricks of the mother-trade. And anyway, who doesn't love a big bowl of porridge and berries to feed not only a chilly body in the morning but a beloved sense of nostalgia? 

Consistent house guests (CAKE!)

   

Pear and Nutella tarte tartin. 

It's the small things like these that dot throughout my meal making that bring me so much joy. These simple pleasures that, whilst lack the grandure of my great cooking quests, have been walking through my kitchen as if regular guests. 

I realise my cooking style has been changing. From elaborate, to simple. From great discovery to gentle consistency. Healthier to some degree- that is, mostly healthier....except for all the cakes. 

And chocolates. 

And tarte tartines..... 

Just discovered blogger has an app. I guess if the blogging was to continue, it would have to change style too..... 

lilac wine and a new season

So there is this moment, a significant moment that happens once a year. Every year. It happens when you are doing something trivial like hanging out the washing or retrieving the mail or, like in this instance, driving.

A few days before I officially became a mum I was out doing an errand run and admiring the Jacaranda tree's. Having recently burst into in full bloom, the suburban streets were wearing the brilliant lilac like a jewel necklace. I wound down my window and let the warm breeze surge into the car as I sped along. I even remember the song on the radio - ('Nueclar season' by Charli XCX) I hadn't heard the song before but it got me bopping along whilst enjoying the warm air flood in and defrost my skin. Then, just like that, there it was. 'That' moment. The moment when you realise that winter had stepped out the door and summer had arrived with a gusto!  

(I must note, in Perth we really only have two seasons; summer and winter. Spring and autumn kind of disappear in the sharp season changes)


The new season was here and I can tell you I was very VERY ready for a new season.

New song, new bloom, new season, new adventures.

So obviously that was a while ago. Its February now. My little Baby is now just over 4 months old. (4 months! where did that go??) It has been a wonderful 4 months though. My husband is wonderful and works like a horse in the 40+ degrees so that I can stay home and play mum to this wonderful little girl. Yep, girl. Her name is Eden. She was 4.2 pounds and 52cm long. That's right, big and healthy despite my sickness in the pregnancy (It lasted right up until I gave birth!)

And she is wonderful. she smiles and makes a beautiful satisfied 'ahhhh' noise when shes finishing a feed. She giggles when I drum on her full belly and she sings along when she hears music. She loves snuggles and quite to my surprise, so do I. Though this new season isn't always easy, it is definitely a real delight. There is so much I want to do, to cook, to achieve and though I feel bound within strict limits, there is so much here to explore that I don't think boredom or cabin fever is likely. At least not yet.

Its true I do have a lot of 'new' to get used to. There has been (as expected) a lot of change, and the one thing I've realised is that the old ways are not working in this new season. For starters, I've all but shelved my camera. Instagram will have to do for now (have you ever tried to hold a wriggly baby and take a photo? It's nuts!) Cooking of course has taken a whole new route. Enough time for a shower is a rare gift, so quick easy meals it is. My husband has also joined a gym in a new effort to loose weight and get fit (amazing how becoming a dad can motivate you) so there is a weight loss diet to get my head around (not as easy as I thought....what the heck is a kilojoule anyway? - plus I have to hide my chocolate and eat cake in secret!) Baby Eden is slowly starting on solids (I know nothing about baby food!)

Despite all the change, slowly slowly, I am getting the hang of things around here. I am also the proud owner of a new Thermomix, which is going to help more than a lot....that and my husband was given a Webber for his birthday (woohoo! man-kitchen!) Once a week I still try and wrangle myself a few extra minutes in the kitchen to 'play' a little longer on making dinner. I read recipe books in the toilet. I plan dinner parties in my head. I watch TV chefs whilst breastfeeding. And I eat cake at EVERY opportunity.

Nope, the plot might have taken a sharp turn, but this story is definitely not over.