Four Foods on Friday

Four Foods on Friday #19 questions
Here are this week’s four questions.
#1. Do you ever use scissors to cut any foods? Which? Raw or cooked?
Yes- I cut Roast Chicken with scissors- much easier than carving it.

#2. Popcorn. Homemade, microwave, bagged, hot, cold. How do you like it?
Homemade if four parties. Microwave for movie nights at home. Just with butter- no salt

#3. Sushi. Love it or hate it?
LOVE IT!!

#4. Share a dessert recipe.
I've been itching lately to dip bananas or strawberries into chocolate and serve it with icecream- I think I should do it this weekend!!

Booking Through Thursday

Heroine February 28, 2008
Filed under: Wordpress — --Deb @ 1:32 am

Who is your favorite female lead character? And why? (And yes, of course, you can name more than one . . . I always have trouble narrowing down these things to one name, why should I force you to?)

I dont think I really have a favourite from the fiction I have read lately. I always like the women in Anne Tyler's books- not beacuse they are particularly strong- but because they are mothers,lovers, fighters, bitches,friends - human in other words.

Now I can still remember vividly my favourite children's book Heroine. It has to be Kobie from the Maasdorp series by Stella Blakemore. It is a uniquely South African storie about girls in a Girl's only school. Kobie was the naughtiest,but also the most personable.It's written in Afrikaans though- and I'm not sure if they have ever translated it.

Caribbean tan

No I haven't lost it - but I think one of the gyms on my way to work has. Their advertising board for their gym is just PRICELESS

First of all they advertise the CARWASH at their gym before they advertise anything else

HUH? is it a Gym or a garage?

Then - and this was the cherry on the cake- they proclaim to have a KAROEBA TAN

WTF?

Eventually I figured out it was a Caribbean tan- but I laughed all the way to work!!

Someone didn't proof read.

Quotes

I visited this site today and found the following qoutes
Selected from Michael Moncur's Collection of Quotations - February 26, 2008

As you journey through life take a minute every now and then to give a thought for the other fellow. He could be plotting something.
Hagar the Horrible

Man is a clever animal who behaves like an imbecile.
Albert Schweitzer (1875 - 1965)

I think the two ties in nicely- and brought a smile to my face

Manic Monday

I've decided to try this meme out
Manic Monday for February 25, 2008
How did you celebrate your last birthday?
I had some friends over. We were 7 adults and 9 kids in a not so big space- it was FUN

What's the last thing you bought yourself, just for fun?
Books!!

What would the child you once were think of the adult you have become?
She would wonder why I have so little holidays :))

My children

was absolutely impossible today. I think it was a combination of them being bored and me feeling under the weather today. The fact that we were at my mom disdn't seem to deter them either. They were in everything they shouldn't be doing things they shouldn't be doing.
I'm going mad...

O my word

Note to self- never ever attempt a business meeting after a late night out. I think I could have fallen asleep at the desk.
Having said that the venue where we had this meetings' decor was a bit "off" to me. Afrochic with disco accents- HUH?? Am I just getting old fashioned or was this some decoraters experiment?

Anyways- it was fun and I was very early in bed Saturday night.

Four Foods on Friday

Four Foods on Friday #18 questions
This week’s meme is sponsored by Gevalia.
Here are this week’s four questions.
#1. Steak. Plain, steak sauce, hot sauce, ketchup or something else?
Plain with HP sauce

#2. Water. Flavored, plain, carbonated. How do you like it?
Sometimes plain,sometimes flavoured

#3. What’s your favorite kind of waffle?
Waffle with icecream and syrup

#4. If you could have any one new small appliance for your kitchen what would it be and why?
Ok this is not small - but I'm really starting to covet a pastamaker or breadmachine. The big question is will I have time to use it?

Booking Through Thursday

Format

All other things (like price and storage space) being equal, given a choice in a perfect world, would you rather have paperbacks in your library? Or hardcovers? And why?

Paperback- cause I like sharing the joy of a book and that way I dont worry too much if a book doesn't come back home. Hardbacks are for keeps!!

123

Jenty tagged me for this ‘123′ meme.
I'm only getting to it now- Sorry Jeanette!! :)
Here are the instructions:1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages).2. Open the book to page 123.3. Find the fifth sentence.4. Post the next three sentences.5. Tag five people and post a comment here once you post it to your blog, so I can come see.

I chose A saucerfull of secrets by Jane Yardley. I've just finished reading this book.
This scene the words come from must be one of the best- and most hilarious- in the whole book.


"This is foul. We can share the job.You scrape them into the bag for the night,the next evening I spoon them back into the bowl for the performance."

Urgh

So not what I need. My hormones have been out of whack for a bit, so I trotted of the my gynae on Friday. Al very normal apparently, but she will run some bloodtests before she prescribes something. The bloodtests came back normal- wtf? She has stil given me a script to treat the symptoms but now I need to go for a mammogram. If she hadn't done a detailed scan- I would have been convinced I'm pregnant- I have all those symptoms- How suckie is that?

Durban

So I flew down to Durban by the sea today for work. It was a very hot and humid day.But the view from our Durban offices must be one of the best in the country. The sea to one side, the sports grounds of a private school to the other.

Although the traffic in Durbs doesn't have to stand back for Sandton's- it was a nightmare!!

It was a very long day though- up at 3:30 only back home at 8:00 - Phew!!

Another one

So Andrew had another birthday party of one of his friends at school at Tres Jolie today. It is a very nice venue and I think we should take the kids one day just for lunch.

But hows this for confusion- The invite came for Luvuyo's party. When I asked Andrew who this is- he didn't know. Had the invite not had his name and surname on- I would have thought someone got it wrong. After chatting to a collague at work he assures me the Luvuyo is a Xhosa name for a boy. Right so it turned out to be a girl. They call her Vuyo at home. No wonder Andrew didn't know her- he doesn't play with the girls.lol

Luckily I bought a unisex present. Thank goodness.

Party,Party,Party

We had two kiddies parties today- and only made one in the end. We were just having so much fun at the one that I ended up sms'ing the other mom to apologise.

Before that in the morning it was running around for groceries, getting my aircon gas filled- I sent Pierre and Andrew to do that- and then a quick visit to the beauty parlour for a pedi and a massage.

So it was run run run. But on the upside I managed to get the kids in bed by six (shock horror-lol) and me and Pierre ended up having a leausurely dinner.

Four Foods on Friday

Four Foods on Friday #17 questions
This week’s meme is sponsored by Starbucks .Any regular participant of FFOF, that has played 6x or more is eligible to receive a link in my sidebar if they want one, all they need do is ask.
Here are this week’s four questions.
#1. What’s your favorite potato chip?
mmm Like the corn chips better
#2. Do you use butter, margarine, both or neither?
Both

#3. What’s your favorite mixed alcoholic (or virgin) drink?
Gin,passionfruit,lemonade

#4. What’s your favorite vegetable and how do you prepare it?
mmmm-mushrooms

Grill it in the oven with olive oil drizzeled over and mozzarella cheese Njam!!

Booking Through Thursday

After the Honeymoon

Here’s something for Valentine’s Day.
Have you ever fallen out of love with a favorite author? Was the last book you read by the author so bad, you broke up with them and haven’t read their work since? Could they ever lure you back?

Two writers actually

Colin Forbes- his books are soo predicatble- I can guess page for page what the plot is going to be like.

Mary Higgins Clark- by page two I normally have the murderer figured- and I dont like murder mysteries where I can figure it out.

Wedding Anniversary

Today is a very special day for our family.It is my mom and dad's wedding anniversary. In the days they got married there was no such thing as Valentines day so they got married on the 13th of Feb.

So a huge congrats to my mom and dad on their 43'rd Wedding Anniversary

Travelling and food channels

They are advertising some Travelling expo next to the roads and it made me realise I cant go to that even if I wanted to. Why? because travelling expo's,pragrammes,magazines etc makes me want to pack my bags and GO. I have a terrible wanderlust- one that is only curbed by my pocket :)) and possibly the kids.

Ditto for food channels- I just want to eat all that food- but not necessarily make it :))

Bee Sting

Poor Carmen stepped on a bee this weekend. It didn't swell up too bad- so I think she didn't get the full force of the sting. She very petulantly told everyone that the fly bit her. Daddie wasn't even halfway through the door on Saturday when she told him- fly bit me, fly bit me.

Poor munckin. She seems to be fine now though and walking on the foot again.

Green Thumb Sunday

We went to the botanical gardens and saw this huge Red and Black Grasshopper. Yes I'm crooking and took a pic of Google as I didn't have my camera with me. :))

What am I reading this week?

I finished A Saucerfull of secrets by Jane Yardley. A very good read about an adopted girl who sets out looking for her birth mom when her mom dies. And in the process unearths a whole can of worms. Quite entertaining.

Four Foods on Friday

Four Foods on Friday #16 questions
Here are this week’s four questions.
#1. What is your favorite kind of juice to drink?

We have some fantastic fruitjuice in SA. My favourite is the Ceres Cloudy Apple and Pear juice. Njam!!
#2. Pizza. What’s your favorite?

Margaritha with extra cheese and Avocado
#3. Mustard. Yellow, brown, depends.

The grainy Dijon seed mustard
#4. Share a side dish recipe that uses rice or pasta.

Not a great fan- if I do make rice as a side dish I serve it plain. I have never served pasta as a side dish.

Booking Through Thursday

But, enough about books…
Okay, even I can’t read ALL the time, so I’m guessing that you folks might voluntarily shut the covers from time to time as well… What else do you do with your leisure to pass the time? Walk the dog? Knit? Run marathons? Construct grandfather clocks? Collect eggshells?

There's actually a bit of a story here- as things have definately evolved from BK(before kids) to AK (after kids)

BK - I used to have HOBBIES- said with reverence here as I used to be able to read, do embroidery, make clothes, go to gym,go out with hubbie etc

AK- well I catch up on lost sleep- I reckon by the rate I'm going I will be back on schedule with regards to sleeping by about the time I'm a grandma- and I prepare dinners- as it is the worst thing to come home with two screaming kids and prepare dinner as well- ok I exaggerate- but I'm tired in the evenings and dont want to stand cooking when I could be playing with the kids.

I've recently taken up digiscrapping- but have also run out of time for that - LOL.

New world atlas

So according to Andrew,one of his friends is moving to South America and South America is next to Germany.

Ok- so that's how it works now. LOL

Digiscrap Tuesday

is Scrapped for now. Pun intended- lol. I just cant find enough time to do it.

Instead I will post a pic of my three loves. Cause this is after all what this blog is about.

Pic by Natasha Whiteley

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Dinner is Roast Chicken with Butternut and Ratatouille

What a morning..

Sjoeweee...what a mess. My car didn't want to start this morning and since it went in for a service on Friday both Pierre and I was convinced that the service centre did "something" wrong.

So I phoned them. They are convinced it's the battery. So Pierre takes it out the car for me and of I trundle to our local battery joint. Battery fine.

Back home phone service centre again.grrr. Now we have to tow the car in. Phone the AA. Told they are extremely busy and I will have to wait 2 hours fo them. Wait impatiently. After 3 hours they pitch.

Friendly AA man scratches around in engine. Car starts. Whoohoo. It was some loose wire in the engine.

Thank goodness.

Get to work at 2.

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Carmen has started to cut her top left back molar. Just as I was convinced she would end up with no back molars :)

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Dinner post

jip- we are taking this up again

Dinner tonight is Lasagne with a green salad.

Green Thumb Sunday

This is a fuchia in our garden.The always look like dancing fairies to me.

Space saving furniture

Every now and again I look at space saving furniture. Just because I like to.
These few things have caught my eye


Ottoman Shift around and has a bed in it's storage capacity



Sofa Wall Bed

A Wall bed with a sofa attached. I love wall-beds



















Fold Away Desk
I think this is pretty nifty. Like a desk in a cupboard.














Desk
Just a small desk for a small space.

Four Foods on Friday

Here are this week’s four questions.
#1. What is your favorite kind of cheese for snacking?

Cheddar cheese
#2. What is your favorite kind of jelly?

Not a huge jelly fan- Strawberry mostly though
#3. Yogurt. Regular or custard style?

Regular- what is custard style?
#4. Share a recipe for a stew or soup.

A very easy chicken stew/bake I made

about 500g of Chicken pieces

Carrots

Sweetpotatoes

Green beans

A packet of your favourite tomato base pasta sauce- I like to use the All Gold Sauces

Put all in ovenproof pot

Stuff in oven . Roast (yes roast) at 180 C for about 1 hour and a half.

Serve with rice

Njam!!

This is a lovely recipe to make ahead and freeze