Category: Adventures

CCChhh Chh Chh Ch Changes

Published on by The Domesticated Ms HemsworthLeave a comment

Since my last blog update I have come to the realisation that I am actually closer to 5o than I am to 40 now and Ive been blogging for close to 10 years.

Yesterday on her sometimes weekly Wine and Whine Live at 5 update Mrs Woog stated that she had attended a Bloggers Brunch and that the landscape of Bloggery has changed. Now out there, Bloggers are no longer Bloggers, and its not the written word that sells the blog but the ability to be STUNNING and take an exceptional photo of your food, your home, your immaculately dressed person your IMMACULATE EVERYTHING, and post it on INSTA for all to see.

Well Im not the best Insta person. And I still enjoy a good sit down and write and Ive noticed in the last few weeks, that I gain followers daily, and Ive not done a bloody thing!

So Im not immaculate, I am a 46 year old suburban mum of two teens and I navigate the world somedays in my PJs. I do love a decent pair of Peter Alexanders ( THEY HAVE POCKETS) and I still wouldn’t be seen dead in them on a dash down the street to grab the forgotten milk, but I have been known to don the dressing gown and do the last minute dash to chase the bus of a morning ( purely because I can not be arsed doing the hour round trip to get one child across the other side of the lake knowing the other child will sleep through it all and I will have to chase him once the first drop off is done).

Im messy, I have a messy mind at times, I have two titanium knees now, that I didn’t have when I first started blogging and I don’t have small children anymore, Ive got children who are bigger than me. I am now the short fat one in the family. me at 46 2

So the last two and a bit years have been fairly horrific really . Probably why I haven’t written much because if you whinge about it on the web then its real. And the reality has been sucky. Certainly nothing that you want to see on the beautiful feeds in the Insta world.

It began with a reluctant business explosion basically on the dawn of my first knee replacement that IMPLODED with such gravity that it threw me into an horrific head space that wasn’t helpful at all for a  major surgery recovery and the waves they just kept crashing.

My Dad had a stroke and was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer, my mother in law entered end stage dementia and languished in pain and somewhere in between reality and death for over two weeks in hospital and once we thought the world was starting to spin on its correct axis again my Aunty was diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer and we had to say our goodbyes. So yeah. Blogging wasn’t really up there on my radar as I didn’t have much pretty to add to the world. I might add that MOST of this occurred while I was myself in hospital with my first knee replacement.

Im now entering approximately my 8th month with my second knee replacement and life is kind of sort of maybe starting to achieve some sort of balance. The fog of pain has lifted. the grief from the sadness and loss is still there some days and raw. Im now dealing with my sister and her mess but Ive managed to successfully distance myself emotionally from this as far as I can as its something that I really don’t know if at this stage I have the strength to deal with effectively. My priorities have changed with my perspective.

My priorities are my immediate family.  My husband and my two children and ME. I am a priority and I DO COUNT. And Im ready to show my voice again.

So people in the blogosphere.. what is it you need. Life reality and all its bits? Recipes and daily anecdotes of how to navigate the world successfully, how to fall and get back up?

Are you the same as me? Closer to half a century now ( I had a meltdown when I turned 25..Im trying to build myself up that 50 is going to be great) . The reality of me is this. I have found far too much weight has discovered my bottom during my surgical recovery. Life is slow, and forcefully so as I may have two titanium knees, but I also now have feet and ankles full of Osteoarthritis and this slows me down most days.

I still love a good coffee and Ive finally convinced the OH to bend and get me a Nespresso Creatista ( and before you jump on me for adding pods to the world I DO RECYCLE THEM SO THERE). We now own 6 wonderful chickens, who Im am convinced have SAVED me just as much as we saved them. They are funny, courageous and loving. They are a joy to watch and provide me with gifts of eggs for my breakfast. And every day with them is a gift. They have taught me I can do things I thought previously incapable and for that I am grateful. They have made me tackle our back steps and yard. They boss about the dog and they do think they run the place and I love them. If you are in a mental fog – my best advice if grab yourself a couple of chickens. Rescue some girls and the love will enter your hearts.

Im getting into cooking and weekly I have decided to produce little muffins for my little muffin ( well she’s not so little she’s on the edge of 17 and has to dash to early starts at school two days a week with her Chai to go and a nourishing Mummy Muffin). Do you want me to post my weekly muffin recipe? No mixing appliances involved as a muffin needs to be wooden spooned ?

Tell me.. give me feedback. Let me know you’re listening..

Yours Always

Ms Hemsworth

 

Not a sad post

Published on by The Domesticated Ms HemsworthLeave a comment

marktwain1

Grief. Its a sneaky bitch. You can be cruising along thinking that everything is ok – and then BAM you have a moment – sometimes you have a whole bloody day where anything and everything just jumps up smacks you down and makes you a weeping mess.

All over our social media feeds there is negativity – violence – confusion – sadness and anger. One friend even wanted to know today is 2016 was simply a big joke on all of us?

Im sitting here wondering about this year – and what is it that has made it seem like we’ve been on a permanent retrograde ride?

So Im going to try now to focus on some positives – because surely if we focus on the positive and beauty then overwhelmingly – things can all start to move upward.

A friend of a friend today won an award – recognising her strength in the face of great adversity. This woman has chosen to take her grief and turn it into a massive positive. Through her grief she makes a difference. Through her pain she touches and changes so many lives. I couldn’t think of a more deserving winner for this award. Ive never met her but I know of her and her story and Ive witness how she touches and inspires through my dear friend. If you want to read her story its here.

Ive been so lost in my own grief and tragedy lately that I have forgotten to look about me and see how others are shining and turning adversity around. I have a dear friend who has turned her life around and she inspires me regularly. Ive just been so busy in my grief bubble that I haven’t allowed it in you can read about her here.

As we near the season of goodwill and giving – I guess its time to reassess what we have been through and what we are focussed on this year and into next. This morning at the supermarket – I was popping my token into the trolley and it wouldn’t work. A gorgeous elderly gentleman offered me a hand – I could see he was struggling himself, and I said to him no – but thank you, I had a coin Id try that instead ( he even offered me a coin). Its been so long since I actually shopped in this particular supermarket I didn’t realise they have taken away the need for tokens and coins and bunged up the coin holes. He had worked this out and pulled out my trolley for me. I thanked him and went on my way.

But it made me think. Last weekend I was at another supermarket and could see an elderly gentleman struggling in the wind putting away his trolley. I thought do I offer him my coin ( I needed a trolley too) and take his trolley for him? But Im so used to rudeness – and I guess simply so involved in my grief bubble at the moment that I walked on. I regret that I walked on.  But my grief bubble has been somewhat impenetrable lately.

Another friend posted on her social media page today about Kindness. And how kindness costs nothing. This is true – it really does cost nothing to smile, to offer assistance, to simply say thank you and mean it.

So I guess – its time. To say thank you, to stop tearing each other down and to start with kindness. And as my friend so eloquently put it – SPRINKLE THAT SHIT EVERYWHERE.

“Kindness In Words Creates Confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in Giving Creates LOVE.” Lao Tzu

“Beginning today , treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness and understanding you can muster and do it with no thought of any reward. Your life will never be the same again.” Og Mandino

Today and from here on – I choose kindness. What do you choose?

 

 

Breakfast In The Sun – Review Crinitis Italian The Roof Top Kotara

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Since last Sunday the need to have a time out and a decent breakfast in the sun has been huge. We haven’t had much time out lately and the last time we went to breakfast it was the middle of winter – freezing cold and I was only about 3 weeks out of surgery. Wasn’t fun. At that stage we needed to do groceries after a particularly gruelling physio/torture session so we chose Crinitis on the Rooftop at Kotara.

At this time I was struggling – still taking mighty pain killers and I couldn’t sit on those chairs – NO I COULD NOT. The breakfast menu was amazing and of biblical proportion as is the norm with Crinitis menu ( so much choice so little time) but the service was crap – the coffee was cold and the waitress tripped over me even though I chose to sit as far out of the way as I could. It wasn’t fun.. ( and the meals were so huge and served on planks of wood and I couldn’t get through mine).

BUT – we decided to give it another go the other day. Again we needed to grab a few groceries and do a little retail therapy and TRUST me .. Breakfast in the Sun at Crinitis mid week was a JOY!

Firstly – the menu has changed – FOR THE GREATER GOOD. Its still of biblical proportions but there is an all day breakfast choice on there as well as divine twists on the usual suspects.

Now I love an Eggs Benne – and will go out of my way to enjoy this particular meal – and I love nothing more than a twist on the original. Crinitis serves this up with perfection. You have a choice of your two poached eggs with hollandaise served with lashings of gently wilted baby spinach on toasted Italian bread – you can have bacon, prosciutto, porchetta or smoked salmon. I chose porchetta.

eggs-bennedetto

Melt in the mouth and gorgeously flavoured this rich rolled slow cooked pork is perfect for a delightful twist on my all time favourite breakfast. Next time I go Im going to ask for a side of the crumbed eggplant that came with my husbands Italiano Breakfast. As I could have stolen the lot of that from him!

Again – perfectly cooked and melt in your mouth – the only thing missing from this was the chilli on the side he forgot to order! The Italiano Plate  has house made Salame, Mortadella, Lashings of Crispy Crispy Bacon, Provolone , Italian Sausage and the Crumbed Eggplant plus two eggs done your way… AND MORE. Its like the Italian equivalent of a mixed grill but with cured meats. My hubby loved it. The only complaint that we had was that the eggs were overcooked for our usual liking. We both love a good runny yolk – but poached eggs can be tricky ( they were not busy – maybe chef got momentarily distracted? – maybe we should have specified runny yolks?)

italian-breakfast-plate

We had our coffees and pineapple juice and water was served to the table – so well hydrated and fed and at just under $60 this breakfast wasn’t an everyday treat – but it certainly was a delightful one that we will be back for again and again and again.

If you’re going on the weekend I would suggest booking a table as this restaurant really has to be the best choice to date on The Rooftop and they get excruciatingly busy and NOISY! Breakfast through the week is lovely and relaxing and with the weather changing – this will prove to be one of the places that the Husband and I frequent.

If you want to look at the menu before you go ( the choice can be overwhelming) you can find it here , the online menu seems to have little differences I’ve noticed – but the coffee was great and it was HOT this time! So Buon Appetito!

 

 

A Brief Interlude

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knee

So if you are a regular follower of this page and group – you will know by now that this time last week – I was officially DAY ONE after surgery – Total Knee Replacement of my Right Knee. Which if you don’t understand or don’t know anyone who has had this kind of surgeries is possibly one of the most agonisingly painful things that you can have done. So much so they say if you need two done – get them done together. AND I was lined up for that and IM SO GLAD my surgeon suggested we see how this goes and wait to do the left ( which was misbehaving badly due to the superior misbehaviour of the right).

Now I don’t like to be uninformed when I do homework in regard to such things so I researched this surgery very carefully and have been through 12 months of drug trials and painful injections, meniscal removal and physio before I lined myself up for this. I also chatted to people who had been through this and similar surgeries who assured me the outcome is worth it and that they suffered pain controllable by panadols.  Ive joined Facebook support groups and I THOUGHT I WAS PREPARED.

Well short and sweet HELL NO. Nothing – but NOTHING could prepare me for the pain but euphoria of night one ( knowing it was done finally) and then day one after surgery. Appetite vanished and the physio came to visit with various instruments of torture. And we discovered my Femoral Block – inserted to allow me to be up and walking by that day was not working as it should. Which was why I was pushing my pain button like a …. I could not even stand the sheets to be on my skin. They ice packed me – I begged for it to be removed after about 2 minutes, they moved me to bathe me – I screamed in agony. The started to feed me pain killers and Nurofen on an empty tummy – the nausea and the wind started to build. Wednesday morning I was in agony and attached to a little plastic bag every five seconds. Incredibly hard to do – as I had eaten nothing. And it hurt it hurt so badly..

They managed to get pain killers into me via injection. I managed to hobble to the shower sit on a shower chair and cry my eyes out while I washed off the vomit. It settled when they gave me an injection to stop the nausea and then the great wind commenced. So they gave me a laxative. To cure the wind.

It did not cure the wind for the next 48 hours. Sheer explosive hell. I swear if you noticed an earthquake again in Newcastle it was me. Im sorry. But I tell you – the quickest way to get a knee surgery patient out of bed – is to feed them a laxative. By the next morning – I was quite mobile and they made me walk to the patient lounge for a cup of tea (  I was dehydrated, I was in agony, I had bruised my hands on the Zimmer Frame and my ass on the toilet seat but I was walking)

Then the bad news began to infiltrate my protective bubble – bad news I can not currently extend on but lets just say – IT WAS NO FUN. The feelings of uselessness are overwhelming when you are hit with wave upon wave of bad news and there is NOTHING – NOTHING at all you can do.

So I am home now, I am getting back into good eating habits. Ive let a few old comforts in – but I kinda figure with my intense fast for about 5 days I can allow a few treats at the moment. And I have in the archives a few recipes and in the freezer many meals pre prepared ( thank god)..

Eventually I will share everything else that happened last week – but its stuff Im dealing with and others are dealing with so for privacy I will remain silent at this stage. I will have some recipes up soon. So thank you all for your support and love and sharing on the group page xoxo

 

 

The Night before the Night Before

Published on by The Domesticated Ms Hemsworth1 Comment
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An arctic blast has hit the East Coast of Australia – last year when this happened we went South down Canberra way to go a visiting with good friends and to culturalise the children ( I know thats not a word – I made it up and its mine now). We went to the National Gallery and Questacon and The Australian War Memorial and had an amazing time staying right in the heart of Canberra.

We discovered on our last night there that we happened to be just around the corner from the BEST STEAKS I have ever eaten and also discovered that if you are a keen foodie that The Berra is a great place to visit and enjoy.

This year however – with school holidays one week away I find myself preparing for a total replacement of my right knee. So we will not be going anywhere to enjoy the Wintery-ness that the country is currently serving up. Instead Im at home with A Rich Lamb Shank Curry slow roasting in the oven and my dressing gown on with the fire roaring and the air conditioner set to heat because its so BLOODY COLD!!!

I met Ms N Corner at Speers Point Farmers Markets today – as we have gotten into the habit of doing every second Saturday. Me with my granny trolley in tow, her freshly sweaty from the gym. But today she made a BIG MISTAKE – because Sweaty and ICY COLD WIND BLASTING OFF THE LAKE – was not wise. So we did what we needed and popped back to my place for a nice hot coffee and she gave me some of her delicious NON PEANUT BUTTER CUPS – Which Im sure if I convince her she will guest blog or at least link us up. They are refined sugar free – but they do contain Rice Malt Syrup – so they are not essentially Keto but they will suit the Low Fodmaps and intolerants out there and they PASSED the Peanut Butter Cup Radar of Little Miss M. Who scoffed one down and pronounced them DELICIOUS… Now to hide them so they are still here when I get home from hospital or – do I take them in my bag?? What to do??

I guess the point of this long winded post is to say – that Monday – I will be out of contact for a while – possibly till Tuesday. Surgery is set – Im third on the list and apparently they will have my new knee up and out of bed by Monday afternoon.

I have a stash of recipes for you to keep you entertained – Im trying to pop them into the draft section because obviously scheduling doesn’t work and will get them off too you one a week.

Over my convalescence I wont be in the kitchen much instead I will bring you some handy hints and tips and some link backs to where I’ve found the best purchases in the last 12 months since my kitchen exploded and we started renovating. We have discovered that we are quite exceptional making the best of small spaces and limited budgets.

So until tomorrow when you get your shank recipe.. Thats me…

Off to wallow in probably what will be my last bath in my new tub for the next 12 weeks ( the weather will be warm again by then)..

Much Love and Warm Hugs xoxo Ms H

Blue Door Cafe – Review

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This week pre knee replacement ,  has been a week filled with appointments, car servicing and catching up. We’ve barley had time to breathe trying to complete renovations, chase children, work and stay on top of things lately so this week we have indulged a little and enjoyed each others company while we can ( and while Im still mobile) The Big Bad Pathfinder needed its service yesterday so off she went Big Blue and we walked back from down the street. Was good, but a little knee hurty later. Today it is Sophia the Little Red Alfas turn, apparently like her owner she’s worn out two of her shoes and they both need replacing.  So OUCH.

But a good thing is that we got to go have brunch after we made our way through the Newcastle morning traffic and we decided after seeing a couple of fairly positive reviews on Lets Talk Food that Blue Door in Newcastle was the go!

Being a fan of any cafe with an all day menu ( especially one that caters to food intolerances and the like) it was wonderful to discover this gem in the heart of town just down from the Courthouse and across from the Civic Theatre. Imagine my surprise on finding the infamous and ever smily Nitin in the drivers seat. Chatting charmingly and ensuring comfortable patrons as only Nitin can. It was like coming home.

The food was incredible, the choice was incredible the coffee – and I HATE TO PAY FOR A DUD COFFEE was simply incredible – no wonder the take away section had a line up out the door. But then again this is

something the owner has always done well ( ever since inception as Juicy Beans Cafe) .

I had the Pumpkin and Ricotta Fritters – and I chose to have it served with bacon as an extra. AND BOY HOW … the bacon was sky high and cooked to perfection. The spicy salsa on top was just the right amount of heat and the Tahini Yoghurt was perfection to meld this dish of deliciousness all together. We had started with a medium cappuccino which came out at just the right temperature to not have to wait for it to cool. A little too cool for my hubby – but perfect for me who is used to forgotten coffees consumed cool.

Hubby had the Breakfast plank. This one is not for the faint hearted. As plank of hearty carnivore’ism it is. Lashings of crispy bacon, chipolatas, mushrooms, poached eggs and a side dish of their own signature baked beans plus a potato rosti!  This one had my eyes aching and wishing my tummy was bigger. It also came with two hearty slices of multigrain sour dough. Which being deprived of bread at home hubby devoured with gusto. He washed his back with pineapple juice and me being the adventurous greedy guts I am – I had to have the Cocogato.. A concoction of a super strong espresso shot topped with Cocowhip, the vegan ice cream delight of choice. That I’ve coveted from afar for ages.

Oh if only I could have one of these every day my life would be complete.

I highly recommend this cafe – you couldn’t eat there every day – but you could certainly try. I do intend to go back and sample the deconstructed Sushi Bowl along with other menu delights and I look forward to the day they are open longer hours and provide a night time Theatre dining experience.

Its wonderful to see buildings in Newcastle being renovated to maintain integrity and pay homage to their humble beginnings and its fantastic to find such a cosy place to bunker down and enjoy simple real good food in a positive warm environment.

Bravo Team Blue Door. We will be back!

 

 

If you don’t eat Carbs – What do you eat?

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Life does not revolve around carbs. Especially int he amount consumed in todays society. Sure the body needs them to generate energy – but excessive over consumption and not enough movement can only lead to one thing. Your body will store it as FAT around your organs. And that is the fat that causes disease. That is what is slowly killing us.

One of the questions I get now days ( along with OH MY GOSH Look at how much weight you’ve lost  – how ?) when people find out I eat all the bacon is YOU DON’T EAT CARBS?? What do you eat…

Today I thought Id tell you my day on a plate. Ive been on the hop since 6.30am when I got up and chased my children out of bed to go to school ( one stayed home sick – the other lost his sports shirt and caused chaos.) So

6.30am Cup Of Tea with a couple of drops of milk ( sorry can’t drink it without milk can’t do it with cream)  Apparently is ZERO carbs. ( remember I wave the milk bottle over it)

8.15am and children are usually out the door. Sometimes Im hungry – today I was on the hop and wasn’t hungry – but hubby knew I would eat bad things if left to my own devices

He made me my BPC to go – while I knocked us up a bacon and egg omelette to share .

Consisting of 1 rasher of streaky bacon and 3 eggs – with 30 grams of colby cheese.

BPC -Zero Carbs

My half of an omelette  0.6 g Carb

At 12.30pm I had a hard boiled egg and a cup of lavender and mint tea  – again zero carbs

I then had 30 grams of Colby Cheese – Zero carbs.

For dinner at 6.15pm I had a bowl of my De-carbed Minestrone Soup 11.1 g Carb

Fat Head Pizza with cheese topping  x 2 slices   2 g Net Carbs in total.

A cup of RicoCoco a little later and maybe sliver of chocolate (85%).

TOTAL CARBS FOR THE DAY 13.16 G OF CARBS

Am I full – yes I am. Have I starved myself today – NO I HAVEN’T.  Do I feel amazing? Yes I do. Will I have that chocolate later – more than likely.

And that my friends is today on a plate.

Cheers, Lyndal

Sunday bloody Sunday

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7am on a  Sunday morning – I guess at least its not 4am. The Dog decided that he was going to eat a bone last night that I GAVE HIM – Big mistake as Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman would say  “Huge Mistake”. The furry little beggar  has been rolling around with it on the back deck all night he even used it to door knock me this morning – which is why I am awake. I did my market shopping yesterday, I don’t want to be awake this early on a Sunday. Its a long weekend – and he’s not getting another bone today!

Ok market haul. I also co-run a group and another blog called Sugarblitzers  you can read about it if you click the word. Its got all sorts of recipes we’ve been creating in an attempt to highlight the sometimes dangerous and always stupid amounts of sugar hidden in modern foods. We are not Sugar Nazis – but we are carb aware over there and we do realise our bodies do not need the massive amounts of carbs in modern foods – because frankly even though we are a busy society we are also a convenient society that likes to shove fast , easy and crap filled into our faces to fill our bellies. Oh and this way of Low Carb or Carb Aware eating – it has a side effect. You feel great and you may lose weight! Hows that?

So yesterday I ventured to the Speers Point Farmers Market with my Mate Ms N Corner if you click on that link you will find her often hilarious, heartwarming and wonderful blog. ( She’s worth a follow) . She arrived a little late – because she’s a GYM JUNKIE and LOVING IT and while I completed my purchase and called back TURDBOY who was at a sleepover – she got her bucket of delicious apples. We wandered, we chatted and she bought me a much needed coffee as I had forgotten to eat. I remembered this later when my children found my sourdough still in the toaster – defrosted but not toasted. We also had a conversation about crochet – you see my friend is a talented crochet person artiste indeed and is having her first ever market stall today ( and I am going to visit her again with a bag of oranges and a disc for her dog Scout). I have been inspired by her crochet and not having one crafty or patient bone in my body with looming knee surgery – I have taken it upon myself to teach me how to crochet. ( and Ms N Corner gave me my first hook and wool for my birthday). I am creating a lap rug I think. Its more like a really long rainbow worm. And late last night we decided what I do is FREESTYLE CROCHET and its not craft its art as Ive made my own rules and my own stitch – which I call finger knitting stylishly. (with pretty wool that the cats like to chase).

I also purchased at the markets Meat from the Muswellbrook Meat man – who had lovely juicy Beef Spare Ribs in the back of his truck ( and the can not live without for my children Lamb Cheese and Chive Filler Free Sausages). I visited the Over The Moon Dairy stand where I purchased my latest addiction to go with one of my latest creations – Jersey Milk Yoghurt ( which goes with my Refined Sugar Free Passionfruit Curd and Toasted Almonds – oh god thats good),  and then I found Tar10 , who Ive found before but on my mission of sugar reduction have always dismissed any pre packaged sauces. Well guess what? They are local, they are fresh and they are gluten and refined sugar free – so in my Tar10 bag – I have Roasted Garlic Aioli – we had on my Chicken Schnitzels from the SB Blog last night ( delicious ) and some watermelon and chilli vinegar which the dude at the stall assures me is a great sub for sweet chilli sauce and that with Coconut Aminos is making me a marinade for my spare ribs tonight for dinner! ALL THE NOMS.. Check out Tar10 here . And the deliciousness that is everything Over the Moon Dairy here .

I also bought some lovely roses and plenty of vegetables and my fridge is full of green and goodness and I can’t wait to play in the kitchen later.

Note all of my purchases were paid for and this is not a sponsored post. 

Have a great Sunday xoxo Mrs Cuppy