New52 - Bye-bye Oven

One thing that we were looking forward to at our new home was a double oven. After using 900mm ovens all our married life, I was a bit cautious of going back to a 600mm oven.
Then once it was installed the oven never worked. Or rather the timer never worked – the click never lit up and the big oven wouldn’t turn on. Fortunately the top oven used an old school dial system so we can still use it. But as we speak I’m cooking a roast and it is a little squeezy. And muffins, well I had to cook them over 2 days as they grew to tall to have 2 trays at once. In general though I’m enjoying having a speedy little oven for garlic bread and the like.
So after 2 visits from a tech and nearly 2 months waiting, we now have to have to WHOLE OVEN replaced. Oh well, it will be exciting to try my new oven in June!
Being without an oven is nothing new, as we have incidents with gas bottles running out in Kalgoorlie, and then no oven during the renovation of our kitchen at Tindals Cres that took over a month, as Bunnings took ages to get our cupboards in. Phill did his bit in 1 long weekend, then were sitting around waiting for trades and those Flat pack cupboards.
I seem to have a bad record with ovens though. The gas oven at Lewis St never liked lighting for me, the small oven at Tindals Cres set my pizzas alight twice, and the whole door fell off and the built in oven almost followed (yes, we bought the house to renovate)

Our new oven at Tindals Cres had it’s clock die (Technika were brilliant and had it fixed in no time), and the clock on our parents oven at Foss St gave up the ghost while we were living there (admittedly it was already on the way out, probably the same power surge that messed up the dishwasher finally killed it!)
Enough with the negativity though, we are loving our new house, and enjoying making it a home. Oh and we finally bought a lounge suite. Everyone in Kal will be amazed, there is life after Stu’s couches! But that story is for a whole other New 52.
Curious about New 52? Learn more about the New 52 challenge here. I’m finding that looking out for new experiences is helping me appreciate that my life is full of variety.
Melissa

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New52–Week 3

Image via Wikipedia

• I watched Twenty20 cricket via Foxtel on Michael’s Xbox – lo and behold Australia acutally won a game! My last time watching Fox was a couple years ago at my cousin’s place and involved some show about people dressing up their pets and generally treating them like children. (Just a random memory for you there people!)
• I also tried Reese’s peanut butter cups – they seem salty to me. I could eat more. I thought of my brother’s quote upon eating another goodie from the US… Just ate a pop tart. I may feel like I sold my soul to america but it did taste good… I think it would apply to my feeling about the peanut butter cups too!

Next week’s post will no doubt be huge as we are house-sitting for friends, a lot of new stuff coming up this week!

New52–Change is good

Peppermint Granberg (One Little Bird) and Christine Newman (List Girl) have inspire me to join their New52 Challenge, to help keep feeling young and vibrant. I hope to document them here on my blog. I’m more out to look for new things as they appear in my daily life than to tick off my Bucket List or whatever.

Kermani Gaz

This week I tried some new food. OK not all new to me as I have had nougat before, and not all that healthy, but it was from Iraq. The nougat was choc full of macadamias and a lot less sugary than others I’ve tried. I was a fun morning tea with some tea. Thanks Phill!
Other new to me experiences this week:

• Monopoly with Shanhun family rules. Who knew that when you only have the normal amount of houses, you have to wait for others to upgrade to hotels before you can put houses on your property. We Okelys inherited I pile of houses from old Monopoly sets over the years, so we always had plenty. Also, another ‘normal’ rule I didn’t know was going the whole way around the board before buying.
• Making my own iced tea.
• Playing Rat-a-tat-cat, a card game. As it turns out it’s basically like a game called Kings that my Grandma taught us.

Have you tried anything new so far this year? I’d love to hear about it.
Melissa

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Recipe for a family tradition

One tradition for the Kerr family at Christmas (and for my family throughout the year) is roast sausagemeat. I’ve not really come across many people who’ve heard of it, outside my extended family, so I thought I’d share the recipe. I enjoy the tasty crust it forms on the outside and at only $2 per 500g it is a meal that won’t break the budget.

 

 

Roast Stuffed Sausagemeat

500g sausagemeat
A few crusts of bread or breadcrumbs if you prefer
1 tablespoon of flaked dried onion or one diced fresh onion
1 tablespoon of mixed herbs

Roll out beef sausagemeat onto a floured cutting board

Sprinkle with bread pieces, onion and mixed herbs – Grandma even used to leave out the hearbs at times  for some more fussy cousins on Christmas day!)

Bake in oven 180°C for 2 hours ( based on 500 grams of sausagemeat) with dripping (or olive oil) for basting.

Serve with roast vegies and enjoy with some good old Gravox gravy

Recipe thanks to my Grandma, Barbara Kerr

Do you have a family meal no-one else seems to have even heard of? I’d like to see it! Can you comment with a link to your recipe?

Melissa

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14 December 2010–Phill’s birthday

I’m still not quite used to the Christmas/birthday season around here. It makes for some busy days!

We celebrated Phill’s birthday with the traditional steak diane thanks to Mum S and I made the ever popular strawberry hazelnut gateau. In the afternoon I’d had the brilliant idea to made dinner rolls using the breadmaker and they were very popular. Les (and Asha) and Steve joined us to celebrate! Phill’s presents were a hit all round with Bunnings vouchers, flying monkey (which has been adopted by Emily) and the sibling’s Lego Starwars Wii game, shirts and more. Emily had a late sleep so was able to stay up for the 7pm dinner but wasn’t too sure about the sparklers.
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Madame Wing and Sugarplum Paperie Candy Christmas
Syrin Stitched Christmas
Tangie Vintage Christmas Flashcards 

Melissa

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Small Business Saturday–Little Stove

Thanks to American Express for sponsoring my writing today about small businesses.  American Express is presenting Small Business Saturday, a way to honor the local merchants who are the backbone of the economy, this Saturday, November 27.  They're offering statement credits to people who shop at small businesses, advertising for small-business owners, and donations to Girls Inc. for "Likes" of the Small Business Saturday page on Facebook.  Join the celebration by clicking the "Like" button and then visiting the Facebook page to learn more about the program and read the terms and conditions that apply.

One of our family’s favourite spots is a coffee shop named Little Stove just around the corner, on Harris St.

Little Stove

Shop 97, 103 Harris St, Bicton 

99319 9811 Open Mon-Sun, 7am-5pm

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Emily enjoying a family tradition -
froth from Grandma's cappuccino

The decor makes for a lovely homey, old world atmosphere and plenty of space enjoy a quiet conversation.
We’ve enjoyed some lovely drinks, from a berry and honey smoothie, to a iced chocoate, to a well made cappuccino, The drinks menu has a lot of variety, not just the usual cafe fare. The food is lovely and home made – last time Emily and I indulged in a sumptuous vanilla slice, made with real vanilla beans and puff pastry! Divine. However, Emily didn’t eat much as she was busy playing with the toys thoughtfully provided and making some new friends.
It’s a nice touch to see not only a wide selection of homemade treats, but also free range eggs and where possible organic and local produce is used also.
The first Sunday of every month marks Little Stove High Tea, with vintage fine bone china and freshly made morsels I hear that its an afternoon tea not to be missed! 
You can take the Little Stove experience home with a selection of teas and coffees for sale, and a number of other gifts for sale (and adding to the decor at the same time.
It is well worth a visit if you are in the area. But don’t take my word for it, take a look at some of the reviews over at WOMOW, Google, Perth Coffee Scene and PerthNow and then try it for yourself.
What’s your favourite haunt in your local area?

I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.