Hello Sunshine!

A little farewell to this blog. One that I havent written because I wasn't sure what to write.

Let's just say the past year or so has brought with it lots of ups and downs as well as some new adventures.

Thank you to anyone still reading this for all the comments, love and wishes I have received on this little bluebird blogging journey. It has been a beautiful ride and I feel so blessed when I look back at all of my posts. It is a beautiful life I have been given.

Whilst I am leaving this nest, I have started another. A more professionally based one.

In the twelve months since I have been gone, I have become a Thermomix consulant. It was love at first site for me and Thermomix. I just knew I had to find a way to get my hands on one. The Thermomix is an amzing product and being a consultant, sharing the love, it lots of fun! I love cooking, I love talking, I love talking about cooking: a match made in heaven.

I have started a blog with all my Thermomix adventures. My Melbourne Thermomix.

So, with that news, I sign off and wish you all happiness.
With love
Tamara xxoxx

Play

There seems to be an awful lot written about the importance of play these days. Implying, it is a forgotten skill. A skill that has been replaced by tightly run parenting schedules and a multitude of screen entertainment. For us, play is something that my chicks have always been good at, especially the self-guided type.

The weather this summer, has been the most beautiful I can remember since moving to Melbourne and has provided lots of time for outdoor play. Seeing all three of them playing together in our backyard, using their imagination, makes this mama bird very happy.

I am always torn, during the school year, to provide them with opportunities of extra-curricular classes and lessons, whilst balancing the opportunity to play. Especially because they do the free play so well.



This morning, I woke up to see Ella and Kate painting each other's faces on the back deck. Later, Eddie and I did this jigsaw together.



I love to capture these scenes, they make my heart swell.

Happy Australia Day

To all fellow Aussies. Have a great day and enjoy this most beautiful country.



Today we also celebrate my sister and husband's birthday. We are off for a bike ride along the bay followed by a picnic and fireworks in the city.

Our school holidays are coming to a close and I will be sad to see them end. They have been the most relaxing holidays so far. I will savour these last few days.

School Bows

Getting ready for back to school?
20% off all School Bows at Ella and Kate.



Our School Bows and Satin Bows make getting ready in the morning just that little bit simpler. Our bows never come undone and they are available in almost every school colour.

Spread the word!

Tools vs Skills

I recently bought a new lens for my Cannon DSLR. An EF 50mm 1.8, and for around $130, it was worth every cent. If you have a DSLR and don't have a prime lens, I thoroughly recommend it. It gives that lovely blurry background (bokeh). You can read more about it in Jo's great post on her camera equipment and accessories.

When it comes to photography though, it can be tempting to think that a better lens or accessory will make you a great photographer. To an extent this is true. However, I am always amazed at the photos my youngest brother takes, and he has the same camera and lens as me! He is self-taught, but really very talented. He is always there to answer my questions and has passed on a lot of knowledge to me. I am amazed when we both take our cameras to a family event, his photos are always so much better. I guess this proves, it isn't so much the camera, but the photographer. So this holidays I decided to work on my skills. I spent a little more time exploring my camera and it's capabilities. I took hundreds of photos, was happy with quite a few but absolutely thrilled with one or two.





One day on our holiday we went on the Mornington Steam Railway. Inside the carriages was the most beautiful light. I went a little crazy snapping away, but I got some good ones. That was an interesting lesson. Taking the time to pay attention to light is something I still need to master. I found this post very helpful as well.

Of all the photos I took, this one is my favourite.


So of course, still lots to learn. But really, what a fun thing it is to practice.

Little French Girl

The minute I saw this Paris Street Scene fabric on tuttifruiti's blog blog I was in love. I managed to find some at Kelani and have enjoyed planning and sewing this dress for Kate.

It is no secret I love dressing up my girls.

When we were travelling around France the girls always looked lovely, wearing skirts and pretty tops. I remember as we were walking through Paris one day, hearing a couple say ooh, les petite filles as they passed the by. It put a smile on my face.

The fabric reminded me of that wonderful trip. I thought the dress should be very simple, very 1950's, a classic sundress.




I used a pattern that my mum had used to sew me a dress when I was little, which felt nice to do. I love the shaping at the top and the binding breaks up the colour, just perfectly.



And, she absolutely loves it!



When I was posting these photos I remembered this dress that I made for Kate when my blog has just begun. How she has grown!

Summer Holidays

Every year our little clan heads to the Mornington Peninsula for our summer holidays. We have collected a few traditions along the way. Little things, that we always do. I hope that my children will look back on these times with very fond memories. Here are a few:

Fish and chips on the beach. No beach holiday is complete without this. This year we ate on the Dromana foreshore on a very hot night and followed it with a swim in the ocean, all five of us.

Dinner at Flinders. (The park near the pier) We always take a drive to Flinders and have either fish and chips or a BBQ. This year it was lamb chops, yum, followed by a walk on the pier.

Sailing. Of course, with Steve's little sabre. This year we decided Eddie was old enough to go out with him. How long he has waited for this time and how he enjoyed it!

Another little boat. This year we bought the kids an inflatable raft, $29 from Ray's! The best $29 we have spent. Many hours were spent this summer lazing about this super-comfortable boat. Ella would tie it to an anchor in the bay and we would lie out there, licking icy poles, reading magazines and falling asleep. Bliss.


Sorento back beach at low tide. Perfect for exploring rock pools, a favourite memory of my childhood. This year Ella went snorkeling in those beautiful deep pools.


Beach braids. I always braid the girls hair for the beach. It lies perfectly flat under a hat and keeps it as knot free as possible.

Standard beach fare. As we are regular beach go-ers I have the whole beach routine down pat. My chicks always seem super-hungry at the beach and so I always make sure the esky is full. I make most of it the night before and then freeze it all. By the time we eat, it is perfectly defrosted. It is simple, but here is what we pack; peanut butter sandwiches (still partially frozen in how I like to eat them!) watermelon and grapes, a frozen juice each and jam drop biscuits.


It is nice to document all of these memories. I know I will enjoy reading back on them next year.

Beautiful Belle

One of my closest friends has two gorgeous kids. They are both older than mine (12 and 14 years) but have always been the most lovely friends to my children. I treasure our friendship with their whole family.

This week was Isabelle's grade six valedictory. After much searching for a dress that was just right for a twelve year old, and without any luck, Heather asked me if I could make it. Given that the design was so simple, I agreed. Heather chose the fabric, a beautiful beaded silk voile from the Cloth Shop in Ivanhoe (if you live in Melbourne and have never been to this shop, you MUST go). It was just perfect.


With much trepidation of my sewing and pattern alteration skills, and the help from another dear friend (Charlotte's mum), I began. I was very nervous throughout the dressmaking for three reasons: It was such beautiful fabric, I was sewing for someone else and my gorgeous girlfriend is a little, ahem, particular, shall we say!

But in the end it all turned out and Isabelle look like a Grecian beauty. I made a flower to match which was beaded with orange beads, subtle but pretty.

Doesn't she look beautiful.

Food at Our House

Things have been pretty good at our dinner table, of late: Here is a little taste of what we have been eating:

BERRIES
We skipped school on Friday and went berry picking. It's becoming a bit of a summer ritual in our home and we usually do it on my birthday, but as I was a little pre-occupied this year, we went a week later. We came home exhausted with full bellies, and heads ready for the pillow.

PIECE DE RESISTANCE
Whenever I have an abundance of berries I cook this dessert, an impressive favourite from an old delicious. Three layers of meringues (in graduating sizes), piled up with berries and a mix of whipped cream, greek yoghurt and rosewater. So good!

MY OWN
And with all of those egg yolks leftover from the meringues, what to make, but mayonnaise. I put this in the same category as homemade chicken stock; so simple (at least with a Kitchenaid it is), ten times better when homemade and just why has it taken me so long to make my own? Last night it was mixed into boiled dutch creams and puy lentils and served with roast chicken . Oh man!

ALL HEART
Also, our own. We have loads of beautiful cabbages ready for picking. Steve planted our winter vege garden this year and went a little overboard on the cabbages. By spring they had grown some lovely leaves, but no heart. Doubting that they were going to heart at all, I pulled out quite a few to make way for our spring/summer plantings. Boy, am I glad I didn't pull them all out! So with our own cabbages, and our own mayonnaise, tonight's salad, which was coleslaw meets Waldorf, was out of this world.

The Icing on My Cake

I have been blessed with some beautiful girlfriends in my life. Girlfriends who I can share almost anything with, who help out in time of need and add so much depth to my life. They bring me many happy moments and add a bit of sparkle to my days. They are the icing on my cake.


My cake, of course being my husband (he actually said he is the cake tin, holding me together), my children and my faith, but those girls are the sweetness on top. Their laughs and love mean so much to me. This year I decided that on my birthday I would give back to them. Hence, my little morning tea.



I have never really done anything like this before, a party to say thank you to all of them. But it has been so enjoyable and I do recommend it. I have made lots of special treats, filled the house with flowers and written a card for each of them. I also have a little present for each of them to take home.


It is going to be a fun day.