30 August 2011

Yummy lamb mince and hummus flatbreads!



This is a super quick and very delicious dinner that I've invented recently, using a recipe in the Moro Cookbook as inspiration. If you do not like lamb mince you can use beef mince too or a Vegetarian faux-mince! 

You could also make the hummus yourself but I didn't - for the sake of speediness. Plus I reckon the hummus we get from the market is pretty delicious anyways.

what you need to make 4 serves
1 onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
250g minced lamb - or more if you like it meaty
hummus (about a 250g tub will be enough)
4-6 flatbreads
pinenuts
olive oil
black pepper
sea salt
2 tbs sweet paprika
chopped fresh parsley
chopped fresh mint
Serve with fresh lettuce leaves or make a salad with lettuce, red peppers and feta cheese! 

how to make
Pop the flatbreads in the oven for about 10 minutes at 180 degrees to heat them.
Meanwhile heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a small frying pan and fry the onions and garlic until tender. Add the lamb mince, season with salt, pepper and sweet paprika (also some dried coriander if you like it).
Use a fork to break the lamb up as it cooks. Take your flatbreads out of the oven and spread hummus on generously. Then sprinkle the cooked lamb mince mix over the hummus. Sprinkle pine nuts and a generous serving of parsley and mint over the top. Finish off with a bit of sweet paprika and serve with a lovely fresh salad! 

Flatbread

23 August 2011

18 August 2011

Summer...

I am a huge fan of UK fairtrade clothes company PeopleTree and I would totally like to buy all of these dresses immediately. Not that I could fit into them right now, but with the right lottery win, size reduction due to birth, and fake tan these would be a winner for summer don't you think! It's amazing the time you can waste online when you're on the couch with a huge baby belly... I think the phone rang three times and I am just too sleepy to answer, let alone have a conversation of the sense-making kind!







from Peopletree

16 August 2011

Nursery Craft






Here are some shots of the nursery! We did not really need to spend much money on the baby's room. We got the change table and crib as family hand me downs, and the cabinet I picked up second hand, same with the chair (it's an Ikea chair that was recommended to me for breastfeeding).
I made all the blankets and wraps. I also made the cute little fabric circles above the crib. I also made the curtains from Ikea fabric. All in all we spent about 200 dollars on the room I think. I am really in love with it and so happy how it turned out!

08 August 2011

35 Weeks


Yup, that's us.

I am totally out of sorts this week. Last week I went to hospital every single day. It was exhausting.
I finally got a diagnosis for my heart issue and it consists of fancy Latin words that essentially mean I have a form of tachicardia which can potentially be fixed after pregnancy with a small procedure. On my heart.
I do find that a bit frightening. I found it frightening to sit in a hospital so far away from home and be told in words I barely understand (I don't really get medical English) what they were going to potentially do, or not. It made me want to jump on a plane. I was just worried about the baby to be honest, but this condition I have is not that bad, and I have been assured by my sister I don't need to worry about it.

I am also increasingly irritable because I am now so huge and uncomfortable and the larger the size of the belly the more stupid advice I get and I really just don't want to have to listen...  I am taking time out on the couch as a result of all of this. I don't even want to call anybody, I just want to sit on the couch and wait till the world spins at a very very slow speed, just like me. 

03 August 2011

I'm weaved out




Weaved in all the ends. I do really, really hate weaving in ends.

I am loving this now it's finished. Based on the Super Easy Baby Blanket. Knitted in superwash Merino (very soft) from Morris&Sons. The colours may be crazy. But I like it a bit crazy.

01 August 2011

34 Weeks



Feeling ready. In the next weeks we will find out if there will be an early induction. Since the baby is on the 96 percentile in terms of her growth, I don't have a problem with coaxing her out early. She seems quite eager to emerge, I think the frantic kicking is her trying to find the exit. If she is like me, she will box her way out impatiently. If she is like her dad, she will hang on in there and just chill, induction hormones or not. 

I have been reading parenting books and been thinking about what our baby needs and what it doesn't need. I have been discussing some things with other mothers and looking for parenting inspiration everywhere. I have found it disappointing that people who are already parents will delight in telling you that all your parenting ideals are snotty, unachievable and pretentious. I don't want to discuss my ideals and goals with anyone who is just waiting for me to fail so I can join them on the parental bottom of the pit with a glass of bourbon. So I have stuck to friends who will be celebrating our smaller and bigger successes and be kind about our failures without that "in your face" sentiment. I have really made a point to avoid people who give me that "just you wait" attitude, rather than support me in my decisions. 

Pregnancy and having children is a minefield of opinion - I don't think I've ever even discussed any topic that people are so passionately opinionated about. That may be a good thing but it also means you have to stick to your guns and ideas even though you don't know what you're doing - yet and feel overwhelmed by so much advice and warnings and raised eyebrows. A friend of mine emailed me the the other day and said "all they need is food and nappies and lots of love in the beginning" and I felt tempted to reply "yes but do they also need a Sophie Le Giraffe teething toy?". That's when I realised I really have to stop worrying and start trusting my instincts. My instincts tell me that the baby needs me to chill the heck out. So I am. And also eat biscuits. Which I am also doing.