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There are three questions I am frequently asked in emails.
  1. Why do you have those upturned flower pots on the posts in your garden?
  2. How can I start living simply and start to save money?
  3. Do you have any more recipes I can try?
I have two from scratch recipes for you today. Spicy lentils and fruit cup cordial.

SPICY LENTILS
This is a variation of the spinach dhal recipe in the fabulous Women's Weekly Slow Cooker recipe book. This recipe is very tasty and could be suitable for vegans and vegetarians if you substituted the butter for olive oil and used vegetable stock or water.   It's not hot, although it does have chilli, pepper and curry powder in it, it just gives it a good spicy note.  Served with crusty bread, it makes a delicious winter meal.


INGREDIENTS
  • 500 g/1 pound yellow spilt peas (or green) or split orange or red lentils
  • 45 g/1 ½ oz butter
  • 2 medium onions - chopped
  • 4cm piece (1 ½ inch) fresh ginger
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 fresh chilli - as hot as you want it to be
  • 3 tablespoons curry powder
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 800 g/28 oz tinned tomatoes
  • 1 litre/quart of water OR half and half water and homemade stock 
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • bunch silverbeet or a pack of frozen spinach
METHOD
  1. Rinse the peas well until they are clean and the water running off is clear.  Drain them.
  2. Heat the butter in a large frying pan, cook the onions, ginger, garlic, chilli and curry powder until the onions are soft.
  3. Add the onion mixture to a slow cooker.
  4. Stir in the tomatoes, water/stock, sugar and peas and mix well.
  5. Cover and cook for about 10 hours on low.
  6. About 30 minutes before serving, add the chopped silverbeet or defrosted spinach. 
FRUIT CUP CORDIAL
Pick whatever juicy fruit you have in the backyard, or buy oranges, lemons and passionfruit.

INGREDIENTS
  • Sugar syrup - one cup sugar boiled in one cup of water until the sugar is dissolved.  Or use whatever sweetener you usually use
  • Juice of four oranges
  • Juice of one lemon
  • Juice from about 10 passionfruit - sieve to keep the seeds out, but reserve about a tablespoon of seeds
  • Zest of two oranges
  • Zest of one lemon

METHOD
  1. Combine all the ingredients in a large jug, then add the tablespoon of passionfruit seeds.
  2. Pour into a clean bottle, seal and store in the fridge for up to three weeks.
  3. Make up the cordial with tap water or sparkling mineral water and ice to your taste.  It's not as strong as commercial cordial so we use about ⅕ cordial to ⅘ water.
I went back to the neighbourhood centre yesterday and worked on getting a solar grant so we can cut down on their $1,200 per quarter electricity bill. Finished that and will start writing notes for workshops today. I loved being back there with the other volunteers and workers, and seeing the Flexi students; some of whom were doing the Naplan tests.  There are 28 students there now!  I feel like I've gone back to my real life.  

Tomorrow we are driving south to see Jamie, Sunny, Kerry, Sandra and Shane.  All is well in my world.

Over the past few months our worm farm has gone from bad to worse. The farm was in an old bath tub (see above) that we bought cheaply at the recycle shop. I set it up a few years ago in the bush-house and since then we've been regularly harvesting worm castings and worm liquid. Then the rats discovered it. They found they could get in under the lid so Hanno attached a more secure lid for me. That worked for a while but they chewed a hole in the side of the tub where it had started to rust. There was no stopping them, and not only did they eat the food put in there for the worms, they ate the worms too! Has anyone else had that problem?

Eventually there were several points of entry.

When you have backyard livestock, whether it be worms, chickens, goats or a house cow, the feeds bins always have to be tight and secure, otherwise the rats and mice take over. We’ve always been mindful of this but nevertheless, the rats set up shop under the chook house and now that our old cat Hettie is no longer an active mouser, they’ve made themselves at home. We have a couple of pythons hanging around the neighbourhood but even they seem to have deserted this lost cause.

So I bought a smaller plastic worm farm. It’s made from recycled plastic, has four trays and best of all, it’s rat-proof. I set it up yesterday, following the simple instructions that came with it. The few worms the rats didn’t find and a new box full of worms have been installed to do their thing.

I love using worm castings and liquid in the garden and in pots. It’s the most gentle, but effective, fertiliser and adds beneficial microbes to the soil, another big bonus. We also use a lot of comfrey and now rarely have to buy any commercial fertiliser. This is a big saving when you garden almost year round and to have natural fertilisers like these means we can boost plant growth without adding anything we don’t want.

If you haven’t yet discovered how wonderful worm castings are, I encourage you to try them. One of the tricks to long term backyard vegetable production is to produce good quality organic food at the lowest possible cost. Saving seeds every year (as long as they're open pollinated/heirloom seeds) and making your own fertiliser will help you do that.

The new farm takes up a lot less room so I can use the extra space to sit more seedling trays.

There is a bit of cost in setting up a worm farm. You'll need a suitable container and worms, the rest of the farm can be set up with bits and pieces you have around the place. There are step-by-step instructions for setting up a bathtub farm from my original worm farm here. Here is some very good information and excellent photos about the value of worm castings and liquid. When you're set up, it will be one of the ways you can dispose of your organic waste and kitchen scraps instead of sending them to land fill.

If you're in the first year of your vegetable garden, it's best to grow the herb comfrey for your fertilising. Plant it on the edge of your garden where you don't want to plant anything else - it doesn't multiple out but it's difficult to remove if you want to move it. It will grow in almost any type of soil and likes a fair bit of water while it's establishing itself. Comfrey will grow quite rapidly from root cuttings that you can buy for a small cost or have given to you by another vegie gardener. Here is an old post about worm farm maintenance and making comfrey fertiliser. There is no other cost, except for your time and effort to grow it, and if you don't go ahead with your garden again next year, you haven't wasted too much.


I am happy that everyone has contacted their swap buddy now. I have five ladies who didn't get swap buddies-either their e mails got lost in the cloud or they were a bit late and I would love to match them up; that said if Vanessa, Gumbo Soul, Alice D., ,Maryann Lea, and Nicole would please e mail me I will get everyone a buddy!!
As you probably know, and may be tired of hearing, I have been writing a book recently. Yesterday I finished it. We still have photos and a few odds and ends to sort out, but the bulk of my book work is over. I am so relieved, even though I enjoyed the entire process and felt quite privileged to be doing it. This signals not only the end of the writing but also my whole-hearted return to my blog. I have kept it going to the best of my ability but because I was writing and not doing what I usually do, had few opportunities to bring you new posts about our work here at home or new discoveries made.


I have also been refreshed by my trip down to the Blue Mountains with my sister, Tricia. It gave me a lot of time to think  about myself, my life in Queensland and how I fit into the scheme of things. I am coming back here knowing with no doubts that my home is where I want to be, my family is the most important thing in my life and that now my role is to carry on here living this wonderful life and to encourage and support our children and grandchildren to become the best they can be. If I can be a role model for others as well, that's the icing on the cake for me.


Since November last year I've spent most days writing and have missed the ordinary domestic activities that are now so familiar to me. I kept making the bed, and dinner at night, but instead of baking bread every day, we've been buying the Aldi rye loaf. There have been no days just pottering around, no spare time for reading or experimenting; it's been just the bare necessities, then back to the computer.  But today we are back to hot bread straight from the oven for lunch, working on new recipes, and looking for simpler ways of doing what we do. I'll be planting seeds later in the week, doing some work on the worm farm, reorganising the bush house, researching cheese making (again), sewing, knitting and cleaning. I have new books to read and a desk to tidy. Many would think it's some kind of madness to look forward to those things, but I'm back doing what I enjoy. It feels right.


Making our bed every morning helps us both sleep well, so we're able to get the full measure of the following day. Pottering around my home satisfies me; my work has a purpose. I feel content when I work here using simple methods and at the end of such a day, I look back on the work, knowing it has given us this interesting and comfortable home, and I can't help it, I am made happy by it. Having just come back from Sydney, a city of five million people, I know for sure that being here in this quiet little one lane street is where I want to be. We are surrounded by rainforest and trees, a few friendly neighbours, and we can work at our own pace making from scratch as much as possible and doing all we can to make our lives productive, useful and enriching. There is nothing fancy here but we live well and we're happy. At the end of the day, you can't ask for much more than that. I'm sure many of you feel the same way.

I never want to be someone who wakes up and wonders what on earth I can do to fill in the hours. There is so much to be done here. None of it has to be done right now, but it's there, waiting its turn. Living simply has given us a gentle way of living a full and rich life, although many of our contemporaries wonder why such a life satisfies us. They don't get it. That's okay, I don't get bowling clubs, botox, endless miles in caravans or shopping either. Let me plunge my hands into warm soapy washing up water or into the worm farm or garden soil or my knitting basket and I'm smiling. It doesn't take much.  I'm so pleased to be back.

I've just finished checking the line edit in the final chapter of my book. Phew!  The following quote is for my editor, Jo Rosenberg, who has been a wonderful guide and friend to me all through this process.  Thank you Jo!  I am going to celebrate now by washing up the lunch dishes. ;- )

"Great Rules of Writing" ~ William Safire

Do not put statements in the negative form.
And don't start sentences with a conjunction.
If you reread your work, you will find on rereading that a
great deal of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing.
Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.
Unqualified superlatives are the worst of all.
De-accession euphemisms.
If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is.
Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.
Last, but not least, avoid cliches like the plague.


This is a Friday photo feature that anyone with a blog can join. It opens the door to us sharing our lives through these photos and gives us all a new way to discover each other, and maybe form new friendships. Your photo should show something at home that you're thinking about TODAY. If you're in another country you should join in when you read this, even if it's still Thursday.

To take part, all you have to do is post a photo, write a short caption explaining it, and link it back to here. Please write a new post, don't link to an older one. When your photo is published, come back and add a comment below, with a link to your blog photo. Please visit all the blogs that appeal to you and leave a comment. If you are wondering why no one has commented on your On my mind post, maybe it's because you haven't commented on anyone else's. Slow down, take the time to cruise around and enjoy your cyber visits.


It's Mother's Day this Sunday so I'm thinking about my mum - Jean St Claire McGrath. Jean was born in 1919 and died in 1993. In this photo she is only 19 years old; isn't she beautiful! I'm also thinking about my girls - Sunny and Sarndra.  This is Sunny's first year as a mother and Sarndra will become a mother in July.  Happy mother's day, Sunny and Sarndra! We'll see you next week.  And happy mother's day to all the mothers who read here. I hope you enjoy yourself on Sunday and spend the day with your family. You deserve the day off so let the kids spoil you.


I'm sure it is no surprise to most of you to know I took knitting with me when I went to the Blue Mountains. There is nothing quite like a knitting project and a book in your bag when you travel.  Either of them will get your through long train trips, very talkative fellow travellers, and those moments of boredom when you feel you can sit still no longer. Both of them combined make a long journey treasured time to create and reflect. I am knitting with Vivian's beautiful yarns from Eco Yarns now and every time I pick up the needles and feel the quality of the organic cotton she sent, I fall in love with knitting all over again. I am knitting for my grandson Jamie at the moment so only the best will do. While I was away I finished a pure cotton kimono top for him. It will be soft on his delicate skin and I won't be concerned about introducing him to any harmful chemicals in the yarn or dye because I know it is organic, whisper soft and completely safe. I used the pattern in this Cute and Easy Baby Knits book and a fine set of Clover bamboo needles.


Baby clothes need frequent washing so using quality yarn that will stand up to all that washing is essential. When you knit something as a gift, it is a very good idea to include some information about the yarn and how to care for it. I always give washing instructions for that particular yarn to the person who will do the washing, in this case, Jamie's wonderful mum, Sunny. It makes the task easier and will keep the garment wearable for many long years, and possibly for other babies who come along.


This is the label from the cotton used in the kimono top.  I'll pin it to the top when I give it to Sunny and hope that she reads this post on caring for cotton. She usally reads the blog, so she may have already seen the top and read the instructions before I give it to her.  Hello Sunny! 

I believe hand washing is best for this type of garment.

HAND WASHING COTTON OR WOOL
Fill an enamel dish or plastic bucket with warm water.  Don't use hot water because untreated organic cotton can shrink in heat. There are chemicals in ordinary cotton to stop shrinkage.

Place the garment in the water and completely soak it.  Add either homemade liquid soap or bar soap, or dissolved Lux flakes and move the garment through the water gently squeezing it while it's under the water to allow the warm water to swish through the fibres. Natural fibres are much better washed with pure soap than anything else, and handwash if you can, the washing machine will weaken the fibres over time.

When you know the garment is clean, pour the water down the sink and fill the basin with clean water for rinsing.  Never wring out natural fibres - it will stretch and weaken them. When the garment is thoroughly rinsed (at least two changes of water), squeeze as much water as possible out of it(without wringing), support it with both hands and place it on a clean dry towel. Roll it in the towel into a cigar shape, and press down to remove the water again.  Do this a couple of times and replace the towel if it gets too wet.  When most of the water is gone, lay the garment on a clean dry towel in the shade and allow to dry. Do not hang the garment because it will stretch. I have to admit, I like the ritual of hand washing special items of clothing - it's like paying respect to something special.  I know many of you don't have the time for such things though so ...

Alternatively, when the garment has been hand washed, you can use the gentle spin cycle on your washing machine to remove most of the water.  When it's finished spinning, place it flat on a towel and place in the shade to dry.

TREATING FOOD STAINS
If there is a food spill, remove the garment and treat it before the stain dries. If there are dry stains on the garment, plunge it into a basin of cold/warm water, apply soap to the stain and rub gently. If this doesn't remove the stain, add the garment to a half bucket of warm water with a lid full of powdered oxygen bleach added.  Leave overnight and wash as above. This bleach is peroxide-based, not chlorine, so it won't harm the fibres.


The day after I finished Jamie's top, I started a new project, this time using Vivian's baby alpaca (see above). I'm knitting a rolled edge beanie from the Simple Knits for Cherished Babies book. It will be a soft and cosy winter hat for Jamie.  When I've finished that, I'll start on a few things for our other grandson who be be along soon - in mid July. I always think it's impossible, but life keeps getting better.

I have been wanting solar panels for the longest time. In 1985 we moved into a house with solar hot water and used it happily for many years. When we moved into our current home in 1997, we had solar hot water installed, along with our first water tank, two skylights and whirlybirds and we put in a vegetable and fruit garden and bought another flock of hens. We dived head first into green living then but the one thing I wanted to add when we had the money was more solar power.  Finally, they're here. Seven panels were installed while I was staying at Tricia's. We are still connected to the grid and we're currently sending power we don't use to the grid that we are paid for.  The current rate for that is 44 cents to sell to the grid and 19 cents to buy back.

The solar panels on the roof.

I'm not sure how well our panels will work but I'm hopeful that we won't need to take any electricity from the grid from now on.  Our electricity consumption is pretty low and we already have solar hot water, so I hope that by working with the patterns of daylight here and slight modifications on how we work with electricity, we'll reach our goal.

We did a lot of research before we decided on which company to buy from. There are a lot of advertisements by companies we'd never heard of before promoting cheap prices but on investigation, there were added costs. It was important to us that we deal with an established company that would be around to service the 25 year warranty. We also wanted to deal with an experienced green business, who knew their product and provided excellent service.  We got that with Origin.  The panels they installed are Sharp from Japan and they were installed on our roof in a few short hours. Hanno watched them like a hawk and he said they did very well.

The meter box in the garage.

The price quoted on our panels after the government rebate was $3,240 and we were going to pay that from our savings, however, when we signed up, we found they had an interest-free loan so we decided to go that way instead and leave our money in the bank longer, earning interest.  We paid $180 on installation and pay the rest off over the next 12 months in $255 instalments.  The government rebate will decrease on June 30 this year so I encourage you to act now if you're thinking of installing the panels on your roof. Our experience with Origin has been very good and we're happy to recommend them to you. The more of us doing this, the better.

Do you have solar panels?  If so, I'd be very interested to know how well they've worked for you. Did you have to modify your housework to get the maximum efficiency?  What difference did they make to your electricity costs?  Whatever you can share with me about them, I'd love to know.  I wonder if other countries have their government's support to buy solar technology.

ADDITION:  Here is a booklet about the system we bought.    And for Iris, here is info about the feed in tariffs.  We sell our excess for 44 cents and buy it back if we need it at 19 cents.  These prices change all the time and I'm sure will eventually go down.

I had a wonderful time in the Blue Mountains. It was very cold for this sub-tropical girl but the only times I found it really uncomfortable was when I was going to bed or getting up again. Oh, and getting out of the hot shower. I thought I could live there but I doubt I'd be happy to, the traffic is too dense and mad and the people don't look at you. That is no way to live - I want to smile and say hello to complete strangers and not have them think I'm a nutcase; you can do that in Queensland. 

This is where I set myself up during my stay - Tricia's loungeroom.  I worked on the book almost every day, hence the computer. It was warm there with plenty of light.
I had to take this photo for our international friends.  We found these little fellows out at Rydal, in the show grounds. It was raining slightly, which is why the photo is hazy. There was a family of about 12 kangaroos grazing on the grass and they were a type I'd never seen before, with longer ears and a black tail tip.

Erecting the shed.

I am really pleased that Tricia has found her dream home. It's ideal for her - a small cottage that is interesting and charming with not too much upkeep. She has been really busy painting and fixing things, and two of her sons, David and Danny, have been helping her with the bigger things like erecting a shed and the heavier garden work.  I will be very pleased to visit there in the midst of Winter in years to come but I'll always be happy to come home again.

On the train, coming home, there were only eight other people in my carriage so we could all stretch out.

And speaking of coming home, just before I got on the train, Tricia, David, Danny and I went to visit the house Tricia and I grew up in, then we visited mum and dad's graves at Rookwood. It was a good way to end my visit. It was a fine train trip, with plenty of interesting people to watch and listen to, even though I was pretending to be busy with my knitting. I left Sydney at 4.30pm and arrived in Brisbane 14 hours later at 6.30am and there, waiting on the platform was, you guessed it, Mr Hetzel. We talked on the way home and I looked around the garden at my seedlings as soon as I got in, everything was fine, even the housework had been done. And Hanno had made the bed, although I shouldn't be surprised at that.He phoned me while I was away and said he left it the first day but didn't like getting into an unmade bed at night so he made sure to make the bed each morning. So not much had changed in that short two weeks, except ...

We had solar panels installed!  I'll write about this tomorrow, as I want to tell you about the ins and outs of it, but I'm really happy we have them after wanting them for so long.

So now I'm back - I'll be busy with the last bit of the book editing this week and then, even though there will be book work to do, it will ease off and I can get back to my simple life and all the bits and pieces I like to include in each day.  I have new books to tell you about, some new knitting and of course there will be updates on my favourite baby boy, Jamie and the soon to arrive Sarndra and Shane baby.

The view from the train, at 6.30 am, as we crossed over the Brisbane River - home again.

The following photos were taken when Tricia and I visited the Peppergreen antique and collectables shop in Berrima. I have to say this is, by far, the most interesting and fabulous antiques place I have ever been in. It is mainly antique and collectable fabrics, trims, old night gowns, aprons, quilts, table cloths and kitchenware of all sorts, including cutters, metalware, pots, glass, crockery and cutlery. I was so impressed by the clean and ordered shop. Unlike many antique shops, each category was grouped together so you could compare apples with apples. It was like an Aladdin's cave where the first large room opened up to another equally large space, then another and another; all of it was catalogued, labelled and beautifully presented.  The staff were friendly and didn't pressure us to buy but we did - I bought a vintage lifter-beater utensil and an old English washing stick - for poking clothes into the boiling water.  I'm going to use it as a small pastry rolling pin.  There were linen nightgowns there for five dollars that would be excellent for patchwork, we were tempted but didn't buy them.  If you're ever near Berrima, please go to this amazing shop, you won't regret it.

 A wall full of rolled up vintage and antique quilts.
 Glassware and crockery.
 Cups and saucers, ribbons and plates.

 Authentic vintage fabric and batting.
 Bottles and enamelware.


 Glasses, canisters, buttons and metalware.
Jewellery, ribbons and cake tins.

I've included the last of the photos taken during my holiday, I hope you enjoy them.  Each photo can be enlarged by double clicking on it.

Many thanks to everyone who sent emails and messages about missing me. I had a wonderful, and much needed break, but I'm really pleased to be back. I feel like I'm just starting out on the blog again and I have so much to share with you.

Hello all,
134 ladies from four different continents sent me their e-mails and entered the swap. I am so happy there were so many of you who joined in the fun.

Please contact your swap buddy as soon as possible and no later than May 5, 2011. If any problem develops in contacting your swap buddy, please contact me immediately at cdetroyesatyahoodotcom and use swap problem as you title.

I have converted your emails so that the spammers can be kept at bay but it should not be difficult to figure out the accurate email of your swap buddy.
Please mail your dish cloth by May 15, 2011. Do not forget that international shipping will take longer so please do not panic if your parcel does not arrive for a bit.

If you do not receive your parcel by June 1, 2011, please contact me.

As some ladies have asked, it is quite alright to include a little surprise with your dish cloth if you so desire.

I tried to match everybody according to their preferences and I hope that you enjoy meeting your swap buddy.

Hugs, Sharon

Pair 1:
Bev Parker bevdotparker1atskydotcom
Jacquelyn Dickie prairiehomesoaperatyahoodotcom
Pair 2:
Pauline Turner paulinexyzathotmaildotcodotuk
Gail Schau gmacthomattelusplanetdotnet
Pair 3:
Sandra Bennett thistlecovefarmsatgmaildotcom
Debbie Webber spottyskyatgooglemaildotcom
Pair 4:
Cheryl Stefan johnstefanatsympaticodotca
Elizabeth Livesey emliveseyatgmaildotcom
Pair 5:
jeN GrAz penofjenatyahoodotcom
Jenni Brooks jenniferdotcdotbrooksatgooglemaildotcom
Pair 6:
Linda Borthwick lindabwick22atyahoodotcom
Sharon Robinson ausgirl74athotmaildotcom
Pair 7:
Heidi hebelsatgmaildotcom
Karen Waldron abbyk_49athotmaildotcom
Pair 8:
Karen Pelkey mskarenofhayfieldatgmaildotcom
Anna Johnson dillpickle76atoptusnetdotcomdotau
Pair 9:
Shanie Emmons bsemmonsathrecndotnet
Gail skimomatshawdotca
Pair 10:
Claire Giovannitti fwppchefatyahoodotcom
Lisa Thirlway lisathirlwayathotmaildotcom
Pair 11:
Sandra Collins skc240atgmaildotcom
Christiane Portron bluesparrowfairyatyahoodotcom
Pair 12:
Nanette Gilbert belleg9atgmaildotcom
Sylviane Arent jldotarentatwanadoodotfr
Pair 13:
Chasity L. Burrell burrellybunchatgmaildotcom
Cathy windyhill11atbigponddotcom
Pair 14:
Jan Smith amishsjsmithatgmaildotcom
Elizabeth Barratt izzydotbee3030atvirgindotnet
Pair 15:
Kathie Bartlett kathieb111athotmaildotcom
Maria Goodwin mariapgoodwinathotmaildotcom
Pair 16:
Denise Nichols shllwbrkatmsndotcom
Eileen Hall emh1atbtinternetdotcom
Pair 17:
Wendy Shipley rwshipleyathotmaildotcom
Eileen Philp etlannonatgmaildotcom
Pair 18:
Sharon sharonlt55ataoldotcom
Rita RenataBauer feelthefeltatgmaildotcom
Pair 19:
Carmen Laidley laidleyatonlinkdotnet
Sharynne Durbidge sharynnedathotmaildotcom
Pair 20:
Kim Smith courtlykimatyahoodotcom
Gerry de Vries gerdotdevriesatorangedotfr
Pair 21:
Beth Snider beth_snideratmsndotcom
Cindy Prentice cindyprenticeathotmaildotcom
Pair 22:
Wendie Williams wennoewilatgmaildotcom
Jo O'Callaghan mornerattiscalidotcodotuk
Pair 23:
Crete Walker cretedotwalkeratyahoodotcom
Erin Harris elpharrisatgmaildotcom
Pair 24:
Judith Claudi-Magnussen jcm1227atgmaildotcom
Joolz Benner joolzbenneratyahoodotcodotuk
Pair 25:
Lenahan, Esther estherdotlenahanatwellsfargoadvisorsdotcom
Simone Dilkara simonedilkaraatgmaildotcom
Pair 26:
Amy Mead amymeadatgmaildotcom
Linzi Brooks linzi_42athotmaildotcom
Pair 27:
Sandra Giraud olivierdotgiraud488atorangedotfr
Carolyn Smith cncsmith2atyahoodotcom
Pair 28:
Hilde Siebke hdotsiebkeatgmxdotnet
Vicky Garrett vickyg54atgmaildotcom
Pair 29:
Karin Senerchia khsds2atyahoodotcom
Jennifer Richards jenniferatlivingvoicedotcomdotau
Pair 30:
Maria Seda msplainandsimpleatgmaildotcom
Kate Lovell kattipatgmaildotcom
Pair 31:
Carolyne Carrick cecarrickatgmaildotcom
Amy Howard aahoward2atbellsouthdotnet
Pair 32:
Amy Bean mamabeanof4atverizondotnet
Julia Whitby jdotwhitbyatwestnetdotcomdotau
Pair 33:
Elizabeth Vargas valexissatyahoodotcom
Vicki Moore vickiamooreatgmaildotcom
Pair 34:
Anna Hitchcock annarose75athotmaildotcom
Amy Pfeiffer mamyschmamyatgmaildotcom
Pair 35:
Dora Vandenberg peppylady_60atyahoodotcom
Paula Moss mrsdotpauladotmossatgmaildotcom
Pair 36:
Barbara MacKenzie barbann3584atyahoodotcomdotau
Kelly Martin earthdrummeratgmaildotcom
Pair 37:
Samantha bruisemouseatgmaildotcom
Debbie Proceck yarnfreakatoptimumdotnet
Pair 38:
Dee Dearing DeedotDearingatchisholmdotedudotau
Hyde, Frances FdotHydeatshudotacdotuk
Pair 39:
Sara saalmcatgmaildotcom
Maryann Lea mlea_7177atwestnetdotcomdotau
Pair 40:
Catherine Emerson greyhoundgirl29atyahoodotcom
Jessica Lundberg jessicadotbunnehatgmaildotcom
Pair 41:
Dhilma Atapattu dhilmaaatyahoodotcom
Helen Wilson heleninsheffieldatgmaildotcom
Pair 42:
Karen Beyer pkktbeyeratgmaildotcom
Margaretha typshiatbigponddotcom
Pair 43:
Becky McAuley playsinsoil1atyahoodotcom
Nicola Simmons nickymattathotmaildotcom
Pair 44:
Melanie Bourque melanie_sykesathotmaildotcom
Ann Magnusson anniemagsatbigppnddotcom
Pair 45:
Claudia De La Cruz delacruzc15atgmaildotcom
Donna Ivany wdbayleaathotmaildotcom
Pair 46:
Diane Black dianemblackatgmaildotcom
Misty Edgar mistyedgarathotmaildotcom
Pair 47:
Janis Gunes janis347atgmaildotcom
Vickie LeBlanc VickiedotLeBlancatusainteannedotca
Pair 48:
Annette Lanniee wardhouseatyahoodotcom
Angela angeladothatpurposefulwomanhooddotnet
Pair 49:
Hatheway, Pamela(ED18) PameladotHathewayatNBEDdotNBdotCA
Lynette Lusk lusksatskydotcom
Pair 50:
Jennifer Appleby thewoollenearthatuniservedotcom
Elizabeth Yule elizabethyuleathotmaildotcodotuk
Pair 51:
Robyn Kyle countrydotchicdot01atgmaildotcom
Miriam Hammonds mad_mimathotmaildotcom
Pair 52:
Lynn lynandedwardatoptusnetdotcomdotau
Marian Galpin mariandotgalpinatgmaildotcom
Pair 53:
Lynda Robinson lyndaatdomino-oaksdotcomdotau
Inge ingelotte49atgmaildotcom
Pair 54:
Rosie Gibbs rose_bear41athotmaildotcom
Jan Renwick janrnwck5atgmaildotcom
Pair 55:
Tammie Stiltner pocketaposiesatgmaildotcom
CodyJo Cosper cjcosperatlivedotcom
Pair 56:
Theresa Wade sundotmoondotearthdotanddotstarsatgmaildotcom
Patti Seawright palynseaatyahoodotcom
Pair 57:
Lucy Galgano farmersatticatfarmersatticdotcom
Linda Schneidewind lindagail63atyahoodotcom
Pair 58:
Cathy McClintick sillyoldmeatyahoodotcom
April Harrison greymountain30atyahoodotcom
Pair 59:
Kay Richardson krichard72atmsndotcom
Marsh billnmarshathotmaildotcom
Pair 60:
Roberta Gowin robertagowinatmsndotcom
Jackie French southernmomma4ataoldotcom
Pair 61:
Yvette mtnchildatcharterdotnet
Helena Sznurkowski Berg helenaksbergatgmaildotcom
Pair 62:
Mary Dugan pbyrd1959atgmaildotcom
Teri Hallock terihallockataustindotrrdotcom
Pair 63:
Ashley Ash ashleyatfrugalmommadotorg
Maria Cherry quiltingpenguinatmariacherrydotcom
Pair 64:
Kristi McArdle kdirkinatyahoodotcom
Heather J vikingjobatyahoodotcom
Pair 65:
Jana Miyamura janadotmiyamuraatcomcastdotnet
Kristi Stone fivesmoothestonesatverizondotnet
Pair 66:
Anna Robinson robinsondotanna01atgmaildotcom
Holly Finesilver silverilexatyahoodotcom
Pair 67:
Karin Farnworth kfarnworth2002atyahoodotcodotuk
Denise Fox denisedotfatvirgindotnet
Hello all. It so wonderful to see the beautiful photos Rhonda is posting and great to know what fun she is having with her sister. The sign up for the dish cloth swap is now closed (it is Monday evening in the USA). I am busy trying to make my buddy lists and will spend a few days doing that. I will then be posting the list here on the blog so keep checking in. I am amazed at what a wonderful blog family we have here. I usually ask for swap angels in case we have a problem or two , but this time I had people e mailing me saying they were making extras without my asking. I will be posting their names with the buddy list. I am so very lucky to be a part of this blog family.
Dear Everyone,
I'm having a wonderful time here in the mountains with Tricia.  It's been cold and raining the past two days and although I'm cold, I'm really enjoying it. I have gloves on while typing.  I have a few photos to show you where we've been.

All photos can be enlarged by double clicking on them.

This first place is Brown's Siding Store and Cafe. It's owned by a friend of Tricia's, Kerry, who used to work for Martha Stewart.  We had lunch there, the food was delicious - I had a Ruben sandwich and hot chocolate, Tricia had the smoked salmon and potato cakes.  Apparently the cafe is packed to the rafters on the weekends - we arrived late for lunch so there weren't so many other diners there. Afterwards I had a look around and found wonderful stock like German scrubbing brushes, goats hair dusting brushes, pure soap, liquid soap, jams, tea, packs of trail mix, cake and brownie mix and many beautiful bags, cups and odds and ends.  The goods for sale are beautifully presented and excellent quality. If you're in the mountains, this place is in Medlow Bath, right next to the railway station and just off the highway.  It's well worth a visit, especially for the hot chocolate. : - )

One of the delights of being here over Easter was that I was able to spend time with two of my four nephews - David and Daniel. Danny came up a couple of times to help Tricia with various jobs around the house and David arrived Easter Sunday armed with Easter eggs and chocolates for everyone. David stayed that night after he and Danny erected a small shed for Tricia to store her garden tools and mower in. We had lunch at David's home on Easter Saturday where he cooked us a lamb roast and Tricia and I made cabbage rolls and up-side-down plum cake. Daniel is back again today to fix an original 1919 Singer treadle sewing machine he bought for Tricia recently.  He brought fresh croissants with him!



Yesterday, Tricia and I went to the Megalong Valley Tearooms which is about 10km from Tricia's home at Blackheath. What a wonderful place that is! The tea room has been run by grandma, mother, and now, daughter since the 1930s.  It used to serve tea with scones, blackberry jam and cream from the dairy cows out there, now they serve breakfasts, tea and coffee all day and lunch. Blackberries grow wild there and blackberry jam and cream scones are still on the menu - naturally we had some.  The tea is still made using the old cast iron urn grandma set up way back then.
 When we left the tearoom, we came across a heritage centre with many interesting carts and old wagons.
Further along, we stopped to let a trail ride pass by. It was quite a sight to see all the people, single file on their trained horses, wandering along through the bush.
The photo below shows the drive back to Tricia's. It was cold and bleak and definately the perfect time for knitting and the heater.

When we got back home again, the oil heater was on, I got out my knitting, Tricia was hand stitching her quilt and we watched Kirsty's Handmade Home. I had never seen that program before and enjoyed it very much.  It was the perfect end to a brisk Autumn day in the mountains.  I promise you that we are doing a lot of things that don't involve eating. LOL It seems that's all I've been writing about.  I have been working on my book almost every day and will keep at it because the typesetter's deadline is looming. Tricia is pottering around her home fixing this and that and making patchwork cushion for her rattan sofa on the back verandah.  The gas man is coming to connect the stove tomorrow, we're going for a drive through the highlands on Thursday and on Friday, the chimney sweep arrives.  I doubt I'll move an inch when there is a fire glowing brightly here.  Never fear, I have plenty of Vivian's beautiful eco yarns with me which I think make the perfect partnership the warming fire.

BTW, Sharon will post an update about the swap.  It's closed now and soon your swapping buddy list will show who you will be swapping with.  I hope you're enjoying your knitting.


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I'm Rhonda Hetzel and I've been writing my Down to Earth blog since 2007. Although I write the occasional philosophical post, my main topics include home cooking, happiness and gardening as well as budgeting, baking, ageing, generosity, mending and handmade crafts. I hope you enjoy your time here.

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Popular posts last year

Making ginger beer from scratch

We had a nice supply of ginger beer going over Christmas. It's a delicious soft drink for young and old, although there is an alcoholic version that can be made with a slight variation on the recipe. Ginger beer is a naturally fermented drink that is easy to make - with ginger beer you make a starter called a ginger beer plant and after it has fermented, you add that to sweet water and lemon juice. Like sourdough, it must ferment to give it that sharp fizz. To make a ginger beer plant you'll need ginger - either the powdered dry variety or fresh ginger, sugar, rainwater or tap water that has stood for 24 hours to allow the chlorine to evaporate off. You'll also need clean plastic bottles that have been scrubbed with soap, hot water and a bottle brush and then rinsed with hot water. I never sterilise my bottles and I haven't had any problems. If you intend to keep the ginger beer for a long time, I'd suggest you sterilise your bottles. MAKING THE STARTER In a...
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This is my last post.

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What is the role of the homemaker in later years?

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Trending Articles

NOT the last post

This will be my last post here.  I've been writing my blog for 18 years and now is the time to step back. I’ve stopped writing the blog and come back a couple of times because so many people wanted it, but that won’t happen again, I won’t be back.  I’ll continue on instagram to remain connected but I don’t know how frequent that will be. I know some of you will be interested to know the blog's statistics. 
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Every morning at home

Every morning when I walk into my kitchen it looks tidy and ready for a day's work. Not so on this morning (above), I saw this when I walked in. Late the previous afternoon when I was looking for something, I came across my rolled up Zwilling vacuum bags and decided they had to be washed and dried. So I did that and although I usually put them outside on the verandah to dry it was dark by then. I turned the just-washed bags inside out and left them like this on a towel. It worked well and now the bags are ready to use when I bring home root vegetables, cabbages or whatever I buy that I want to last four or five weeks.
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You’ll save money by going back to basics

When I was doing the workshops and solo sessions, I had a couple of people whose main focus was on creating the fastest way to set up a simple life. You can't create a simple life fast, it's the opposite of that It's not one single thing either - it's a number of smaller, simpler activities that combine to create a life that reflects your values; and that takes a long to come together. When I first started living simply I took an entire year to work out our food - buying it, storing it, cooking it, preserving, baking, freezing, and growing it in the backyard. This is change that will transform how you live and it can't be rushed.  
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It's the old ways I love the most

I'm a practical woman who lives in a 1980’s brick slab house. There are verandahs front and back so I have places to sit outside when it's hot or cold. Those verandahs tend to make the house darker than it would be but they're been a great investment over time because they made the house more liveable. My home is not a romantic cottage, nor a minimalist modern home, it's a 1980’s brick slab house. And yet when people visit me here they tell me how warm and cosy my home is and that they feel comforted by being here. I've thought about that over the years and I'm convinced now that the style of a home isn't what appeals to people. What they love is the feeling within that home and whether it's nurturing the people who live there.
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Back where we belong

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Making ginger beer from scratch

We had a nice supply of ginger beer going over Christmas. It's a delicious soft drink for young and old, although there is an alcoholic version that can be made with a slight variation on the recipe. Ginger beer is a naturally fermented drink that is easy to make - with ginger beer you make a starter called a ginger beer plant and after it has fermented, you add that to sweet water and lemon juice. Like sourdough, it must ferment to give it that sharp fizz. To make a ginger beer plant you'll need ginger - either the powdered dry variety or fresh ginger, sugar, rainwater or tap water that has stood for 24 hours to allow the chlorine to evaporate off. You'll also need clean plastic bottles that have been scrubbed with soap, hot water and a bottle brush and then rinsed with hot water. I never sterilise my bottles and I haven't had any problems. If you intend to keep the ginger beer for a long time, I'd suggest you sterilise your bottles. MAKING THE STARTER In a...
Image