Portuguese Isle

In need of a little dinner inspiration I took a stroll down the Portuguese isle at the local grocery store.  To my surprise  there were actually some cool things.  I didn't find anything for dinner but check out my buys:

 

MILO!!! Not as sweet as hot chocolate and just in time for our sub zero temperatures!

Its the caramel at the bottom of your flan pudim.  Need to test it out but thought it would be easier than melted sugar (that I always seem to burn!)

2 minutes of fame

Any one seen the Alien movies

I'm specifically referring to the part where they impregnate the humans and are then subsequently born via a gruesome scene where the alien rips the hosts abdomen open with a gaping mouth and screech. 

Doesn't this remind you of the moments just before the rupturing abdomen??? 

Just asking.....

 

Never had movement like this with Jaime, its all strange and weird for us, exciting to don't get me wrong.  Glad I finally got to record a short clip of it.

Recycling one bottle at a time

As part of our responsibility here on earth, I think at least, is to protect our planet as much as possible by making small insignificant changes.  Its really hard these days especially with our busy schedules but with the over population, lack of trees, uncontrollable garbage dumps, global warming etc etc etc I could go on and on. 

 

So besides recycling we also try and keep our 2 L coke bottles and take them to the bottle eating machine.   

 

This machine is literally down the road, so not completely out the way which is cool.  And since Ili drinks coke like there is no tomorrow, its worth the trip.  With a boot full of bottles Jaime and I fed the machine.  31 bottles at 5c a pop means $1.55 refund (I told you it was an insignificant change).  We could have earned an extra 20c if the machine wasn't full.

I know storing all these bottles and our other recycling is a pain in the rear end but I really do hope that it helps, even if it is insignificant.

The train table project

All the buzz in the house the past week is trains trains, Thomas, trains you get the feel.  So as I mentioned last time Jaime inspired Ili to a new project..a revamp of the train table.

 

The original:

 

 

The destruction:

 

The planning:

 

The final product:

 

The bedroom project

 

The  bedroom project that has been on the plan since we moved in has finally been finished.  Granted, we have had alot happening since we moved in and some more urgent projects but yes this big one means we finally moved out of the baby room, means our bed is finally on its base so getting up during the night is alot easier especially now, and it means the "gorgeous" Salmon pink walls are now a neutral coffee brown (much more calming) 

 

The new painted cupboards and built up edging

Our newly painted walls

Handy Ili continues to expand his list of experience and never fails to impress!

The cranberry harvest celebration

Another fantastic thing about living in the woods far far away is that we locals enjoy the pleasures of harvest time.  We've done the town fair, apples, pumpkins and this glorious long weekend we did the cranberries! 

 

 

After checking out directions and FAQ on the website I planned my route, said goodbye to Ili (who unfortunately had to work, and left.  I thought on my way I'd call the folks, good idea yes, bonus idea got to speak to in-laws, bad idea no garmin so I got lost

My round about route to the festival

Finally after a few twists and turns we finally found it!  This festival was huge, with tons of things to do. The best part of it all was that entrance was cheap, Jaime was free, and alot of the activities for the kids were free...awesome cheap day for us parents *big grin*

First thing we did was take a school bus to the cranberry bogs, with the intention of learning how the cranberries were harvested, watch the process and gain some new found knowledge.  Except we encounted this:



The HUGEST sand pit we have ever seen! 

standing in this line to see the cranberry harvest was just not an option when...

 running up and down the hugest pile of sand with my cuzzies was just so much fun

What we did manage to do was get them off the pile of sand to watch I think 5 minutes of the Owl show.  The one thing I actually made a mental note of not missing.  Guess Jaime and I had were not prioritising the same things.

The owls...the only ones we got to see

While waiting for the bus to take us back to the village we did get to see some harvesting..from a distance but we saw it!

At the village Peter took the boys and Laura and I went wandering through the craft stores.



The boys adventures:

A train ride

A pony ride

A face paint... oh dear spiderman face it is

Our  adventures:

We walked around the artisan tents, looking at some really talented crafts and other not so talented crafts.  Managed to find this great find:

Its custom made to what ever you like, I chose our surname.  Basically you work though tons of pictures choosing random pictures that make up letters.  The pictures are inspiring, and the effect I think is really creative.  This just inspired my next "when I'm bored" moment ie a photography course! 

Other cool buys: local made honey (yummy!) and cranberries.  Boy, from spice mixes to fruit tarts, cranberry to pumpkin flavour, the choices were unlimited.  Wish I had more money and I wish I knew how to use all the ingredients!  Maybe next year I'll experiment a little more, for now we try the cranberries.

Back to the meet the boys...  be prepared, cause this is what happens when you leave your child with their uncle...



"Its a monster Mom, so I can scare people" NICE!

demonstrating the scary face

At the marine life tent

Check out my shark cap and cheetah aka tiger shark

The boys flashing their tattoos

And after all the fun..

my monster sleeps

And after an hour in the bath...

the face is clean and he sleeps.