september.

is almost here... i'm a day early with this post, but tomorrow is monday, which means it's meal plan day.
being early is ok though ha ha!

after the last couple of sunny weekends, i feel like i've kicked goals outside in my little garden, and am well and truly ready for spring!
i've also managed all of the knitting plans i set myself for august, which i'm pretty happy about! i've even blogged about those finishes ha ha!



crafty plans for this month? i'm hoping to finish up the couple of projects i posted about starting last night, as well as making a start on some leg-warmers for ballet... and hopefully turning the massive cardboard box in the back seat of my car into a little light box, for taking photos of little projects and things. i'm definitely posting about it here for accountability as the box has been in my car for well over a month now! oops!!

on the gardening side of things, i'm hoping to get some summery vegie seeds started in the green house. my tomatoes were really late starting last year, and i'm not making that mistake again!

i'm also hoping to get right back into taking my lunch to work again. in the week just gone, i bought my lunch almost every day and it was the PITS! not only was it super costly, the food wasn't great and most annoyingly, i had to THINK about what i actually wanted to eat. with a half hour break, it's much easier to not have a choice ha ha!
i'm also hoping to make full use of my birthday present from bb...



and get to 10k steps every day in september! lots of walking for this little black duck!

what are your plans for september? do you have a fitbit too? what are your favourite things to take for lunch?

endings and beginnings.

last weekend was a pretty productive one for me.
saturday i got outside and got a whole HEAP of gardening done (more about that on wednesday of course) and when i was done outside, i got busy inside too, finishing up a couple of knitting projects.



i've been working on this baby blankie for a wee while, starting the planning back in july!
the knitting has probably only taken me a few weeks though.
i've knit baby blankies in these colours a couple of times now, and i love the combination! i feel it's super playful and fun!

this one is heading to my sister-in-law as she requested a knitted blankie to give to a friend who is expecting, but i've already got plans for the leftovers for a blankie for the shop.

my other finish was a beanie. for ME! i've knitted tonnes of beanies for everyone else, but never one for myself, so this one is all mine!



it knit up relatively quickly, i cast it on on the monday, and had it cast off on the saturday night before heading to bed! not a bad effort at all!

after my couple of finishes on saturday, i thought i'd better cast on something new... or maybe a few somethings...



this little skinny number is a scarf!
i'm knitting it lengthwise in a herringbone stitch. the rows are slooooooooow going... but the thickness is coming along. though i am nearly out of wool! oops! should be ok for the coming seasons ha ha!
this one was requested by one of bb's brothers over the weekend.

i also cast on (and finished woo!) a tension square for a cutesy little project that a family friend has requested...



i'll reveal a bit more about this project as it comes together, but i'm thinking about a tension square blankie everytime i finish one... now i just need to locate my other tension squares.

and last but not least, i've FINALLY cast on the second, too-small sock!



even though they won't fit my cousin, who they were intended for, i've found a willing co-worker with small feet!
as they're super simple, i think they'll be my mindless knitting project for the next month or so... or maybe longer... so much to knit, so little time!

what are you making at the moment? finished any projects recently? what's your finish-to-start ratio?

meal planning monday.

the week just gone, bb and i were mostly kicking goals with our sticking to the meal plan, then it all fell apart over the weekend with 3 straight nights of takeaway!
as a result, i'm feeling pretty bleurgh this morning... best stick with simple easy ideas for the week ahead...



today, i'm feeling a bit lazy so i'll grab some bolognaise out of the freezer before work and reheat it to go with some pasta. simples.

tomorrow night, i'm heading into the city for a writer's festival event. i'll most definitely be grabbing something in town with this guy!

wednesday night, i think i'll grab some lamb chops out of the freezer. cook up some vegies. easy. done.

thursday night, i'm off to ballet, but later again this week. i think i might grill up some fish and whip up a wee salad before hand.

friday night, i'm working late. slow-cookering will (hopefully) be happening. chicken curry? sounds fab!

over the weekend, i'm hoping to get down to the country for a farm visit, though i have no idea what mum is doing at this stage! it may end up being another slow weekend at home, which i am totally ok with!

what are you eating this week? have you got your weekend plans set yet?

daily bread.

over the past week, i've been thinking of ways to improve my bread baking skills...
practice is the obvious answer, but practice means baking lots of bread, and having lots of bread to eat. being that it's just bb and i, we don't actually eat a huge amount of bread...
so kept thinking i did...

then, i asked around at work, who would be interested in some freshly baked sourdough bread to take home? lots of people!!



this was my stash of dough resting overnight last night.
enough for two loaves and a chocolate sourdough cake!

i was up super early this morning to get everything happening... and i'm about to pull loaf number two and the cake out.
i'm a bit worried about the cake as i chucked it in with the loaf at full whack in the oven, when it should have gone in at about 180 degrees instead... oops!

i feel that after even just a few days, my bread loaves are coming up nicer and nicer. and my starter is getting happier as it's not in and out of the fridge all the time, i'm just leaving it on the kitchen bench and using it as i need it. oh and keeping it well fed!

i'm also finding it quite rewarding to be creating something different with my hands. baking bread is a super quick gratification too.
why did i get up so early again? oh that's right *slathers butter onto a still warm from the oven slice of bread* yummmmm!

are you a bread baker? have you tried a sourdough cake before?

meal planning monday.

phew! this week ahead will be a biggie! i will be out EVERY night this week, as well as working all week too!
lots of pre-planning and pre-preparing happened yesterday, so i THINK it'll be ok. maybe check in with my sanity on friday evening though ha ha!



tonight, i've got a staff meeting after work, so i've got some pre-crumbed chicken breast, and some pre-made tomato-ey sauce ready to go for chicken parmas for dinner. will just be a matter of cooking up the schnitty's, dressing them and then popping them in the oven to melt the delicious cheese. i'll throw together some salad too. simple, easy and quick. perfect!

tomorrow night, we've got one of those pre-prepared oven meals to have... not normally my scene AT all, but bb was gifted them from a new potential client at work... we'll see how it goes i guess...
i'll also be heading off to an exhibition opening, so bb can have it ready for me when i get home! potentially wishful thinking there ha ha!

wednesday night, i'm off to ncb! i'll grab something there, woo! looking forward to catching up with everyone as i wasn't well last time and couldn't go!

thursday night, i'm off to ballet. though a bit later than usual... so i'll cook up some lamb chops and vegies before i head off.

friday night, i'll be working! slow cooking will be key... i'm thinking a fish curry. haven't tried a fish curry in the slow cooker before so hopefully it goes ok!

saturday i'm hoping to do as little as humanly possible... slug day for sure. maybe i'll whip up a slow cooked ragu. and some fresh bread. or pasta. or both...
just as long as i don't have to leave the house or my pyjamas ha ha!

sunday, i'm sure i'll be wanting to get myself (and no doubt, the house) into some sort of order... i'm thinking a roast chicken might be nice. and i'll make up some stock in the slow cooker afterwards. perfection!

what are you eating this week? do you have a mammoth week ahead?

sunday - day of finishing.

i could rest, but finishing things that are aaaaaaalmost finished is way more fun!



first up, my socks!

i'm so happy that they're done, i LOVE the colour of these babies and have been swooning for the entire month and a bit that i've been knitting them. oh and the month that i was knitting the 3/4 of the first, way too small sock i knit too. seriously.

the wool is beaaaaaautiful! and they (now!!) fit like an absolute glove!



good luck getting these bad boys off my feet at any point tonight. partly because i love them, but mostly because i think it'll be a little chilly tonight in melbourne town!
i nearly froze my butt off taking these pictures. bare legs in august are NOT a great idea!

ravelled.



and now, while i wait for my sourdough muffins to finish their rising, i'll work on finishing the baby blankie i've been working on.
it's not too far off either, woohoo!!

is it wrong that i'm already starting to think of at least another 3 projects i want to cast on, immediately? always thinking of knitting projects ha ha!

what projects are you working on finishing up at the moment? have you made sourdough muffins before?

my creative space.

i've had a couple of projects on the go for a little while now...

a bamboo blankie...



it's coming along nicely, and i'm kind of loving the random assortment of colours that are coming through. i'm using a random number generator to help me choose...
i think there'll be a LOT of pink leftover ha ha!

i've also been working away on these beauties...



they're getting quite close to being finished, and i'm super excited because the one that is done, FITS! well fitting socks are cause for celebration ha ha!

what's happening in your creative space this week?

green love.

shhhhh! if you're very quiet and you look closely, you can see some signs that spring isn't far away...



little leaves unfurling slowly, on my grape plant.

and on my strawberry plant...



some new leaves are popping through the soil too.

and then, there are some not so subtle signs of spring...



hello beautiful daffodils!

and for my cousin,



my pineapple plant! it's sloooooooowly getting a bit taller... only a good couple of years before i'm picking pineapples ha ha!

what's growing in your patch this week?

le cape.

the cape i've been test-knitting for tracey, is finally done!
well to be honest, it's been done for quite a few weeks now, it's just taken me a while to get it photographed and up on here!



i guess technically it's still not finished... i'd like to put some buttons on there one day, but at the moment, this lovely brooch is doing the trick.

i'm super happy with how this beauty has turned out and have been wearing it pretty much non-stop!

ravelled.

what have you been knitting lately?

meal planning monday.

monday again! last week's meal plan went a little better than the week before, here's hoping we keep the ball rolling...



today, it's my birthday! mum and dad came down to visit and we went out for lunch to celebrate, and i think i'll request delicious thai takeaway for dinner.

tomorrow night, i'll be off to ballet straight from work. so i'm hoping to throw some satay chicken in the slow cooker to come home to. maybe i should get some chicken out of the freezer now actually...

wednesday night, i'll whip up some carbonara. lots of bacon in the fridge that needs using, as well as loooooooots of eggs!

thursday night, i'll grab some pork out of the freezer and throw together a stir-fry. meat, vegies, noodles, some kind of sauce. too easy.

friday night, i'll be working late. osso bucco in the slow cooker should be nice to come home to. yep!

saturday night, i'm working during the day so i think i'll leave bb in charge of the cooking. i feel like all i'll want is a glass of wine ha ha!

sunday, i have my fingers crossed that bb and i will get some cooking and preparation down for the week ahead. the next week will be a major one for me that's for sure!

what are you eating this week?

green love.

another sunny sunday the weekend just gone means a little bit more time outside, pottering about and getting stuff done and tidied.

the plants that i took down to the farm while i was house-sitting, i brought home with me on sunday.



they all needed new pots, with a bit more room. and now they're quite desperate for a fertilise.
i meant to get out and do that today, but it wasn't the best day healthwise, mentally or physically. all i managed was a tray of these babies, chocolate and achieving something easy and tangible definitely helped things on both counts ha ha!

i managed to kill the fern i had happening in this pot. a combination of getting too hot from the heater, and not enough water were it's downfall i think.



i propagated some ivy from the masses growing on the fence in the backyard though, so i'm hoping that'll get lovely and drapy and tangly and look amazing in this pot.
fingers crossed!

while i was outside, i got to staking my broad beans.



with all of those flowers happening, i feel that there might be a fair bit of weight coming along soon...
again, fingers crossed!

and lastly, some of the seeds i planted last weekend have already started to pop up.



i'm not sure whether these little guys are spinach, or rocket... but it won't be long until it should be clear! now to keep the damned possums away!

what's popping up in your patch at the moment? how do you go keeping ferns alive?

meal planning monday.

last week's meal plan, in truth, never came about. an absolute shambles of a week in terms of our dinner's going to plan! of the 5 meals i had planned out, we managed one. ONE!
terrible!

hopefully this meal plan sticks a little better! wish me luck!



tonight, i threw together a meal from what i had around. pork steak from the freezer, marinated in some soy, ginger, chilli, garlic and lime zest. some noodles from the pantry. and some pak choy from the garden. fresh, easy, delicious.

tomorrow night, i've got ballet. but i've also got the day off. i think i'll let bb off the hook and have something prepared by the time i have to leave. meatballs will do the trick.

wednesday is ncb night. easy cooking wise, as i'll grab something while i'm out, and bb can cook himself up some noodles or something.

thursday night will need an easy meal. pesto pasta. done.

friday, i'm working late. i think i'll definitely put something in the slow cooker as coming home to no dinner the last few weeks after work has been no fun! satay chicken is pretty easy to throw together so i think that'll be a winner.

over the weekend, i'm working, so i'm hoping bb gets his cooking mojo happening and whips me up some delicious meals to eat!

what are you eating this week? do you ever have weeks where some things just don't go to plan?

august.

whew. the year is well over half over now, and i still feel like it's only just begun!
wasn't january just yesterday? seriously?

my goals for july, were a little more realistic than my goals for june... and i pretty much got everything done!

my cousins socks are all done! my cape is done (i'll share that next week hopefully)! one of the two blankies i was swatching is done (and i'm hoping to get some photos taken this weekend, and in the shop early next week), and the other is well on it's way now! i took my lunch to work every day (bar two, towards the end of the month...) and as a result, bb and i have saved a bit more than normal this month. and THAT always puts a smile on my face!
and as i posted on wednesday, there are some spinach and rocket seeds over where my onions WERE growing...

amazing!



the above picture is one i snapped today, the first day of august and the coldest of the year. it hailed like crazy while mum and i were heading home from visiting ma, and the roads were SUPER icy!
we were super grateful to get home safely as we saw a couple of crashes, bit scary!

anywho, plans for august...

i'm aaaaaaaalmost finished up one of the green socks i've been knitting for myself, so i'd love to get both of those finished by the end of the month. as well as finish up the other baby blankie i'm working on... i think that'll keep me pretty busy, but in case i run out of thing to knit, i've got a ball of wool to knit myself up a beanie with. i've lost my one and only beanie! big oops at this time of the year!

i'm hoping to get outside and plant out the onion seedlings i left at mum and dad's in the next couple of days. And i'm also hoping to keep things neat and tidy in the garden at my place, getting some mulch down and getting everything organised for spring's arrival next month! woohoo!

what are you up to this month? do you have ambitious plans?