Posted on June 16, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
The trouble with having a day off is that you don’t always have someone to spend it with. Sometimes it is bliss to be alone but other days you just want to cuddle up with someone, don’t you?
I found my perfect someone. Here he is.
Meet Edward Bear. He is a soft, warm bear who is 28cms long. He just loves to cuddle and snuggle up in front of a good movie. In his opinion, a little hot chocolate make the moment perfect.
Good cuddlers are hard to find and Edward is perfect for the role.
He and his friends are available from I Love Gifts (a division of I Love Sport)
Posted on June 9, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
Today, take time out to read some poetry and think about the beauty of our language. There is something about poetry that slows the mind and the heart so that you can ’stop amd smell the daisies.”
There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.
Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.
Yes we’ll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we’ll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.
Posted on June 2, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
Today is my day off so the last thing I want to be doing is cooking dinner for the family. If only they all had the same tastes!
I found this clip which is called “How to cook a chicken curry in 10 minutes’ and it caught my attention straight away. 10 minutes to cook dinner? Perfect.
After watching it I know it will take a little longer. The 10 minutes applies to the cooking time, but the preparation is simple, especially if you already have your spices. This one could be handy. I hope it is helpful for you, too. Why waste the day off slaving over a hot stove?
Posted on May 26, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
What a smooth dance move the Moon Walk is. It is something that I could never figure out how to do. Oh, you either? Have a look at this video clip and it will show you step by step how to do it. Guess what I will be doing today? This is more my kind of exercise than running!
If dancing is your idea of fun but your husband is a continual dancefloor embarassment then he must watch this next funny clip. It is worth a chuckle but it does get the message across. Just think, if we could persuade men to watch this we could halve the number of clips sent in to Funniest Home Videos!
Posted on May 19, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
My desk looks like a battleground, which I guess it is in a way. I am not one of these super tidy people and there are papers strewn around but I know where everything is. Today, though, it is a little out of control. Why is it that what is mine belongs to everyone? I think I need a lock on the drawers! Time to do some serious organising.
Posted on May 12, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
The day after Mothers Day. I think there are a few mums who need a break after that! Time for some classic movies, I think. I love the classic Hollywood movies so today I thought that I would share with you a clip from YouTube which shows some of my favourite actresses.
As you watch this, and listen to the lovely music which accompanies it, think of me sitting with my feet up watching Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
Warm me up, it is winter! Ok, it isn’t really, but we are having a wonderful taste of it right now. I just want to curl up and stay warm. Traditionally, for us, winter was full of comfort foods like soups and stews. These were full of vegies and very healthy. These days stews and casseroles seem to be looked down upon, which is really sad. A few more of those and our diets would be better off.
This is a soup recipe that my mother always made. The quantities are up to you, really, and depend on your tastes. Mum always made a huge pot that lasted us (a family of 7) for 2-3 days. This is my version of Mums soup.
Lamb Shank and Barley Soup
4 lamb shanks
1 tbsp olive oil
2 onions chopped
3 carrots chopped
2 parsnips chopped
½ bunch celery chopped
4 handfuls pearl barley
2 bay leaves
A couple of sprigs thyme
1 tbsp vegemite
Put tablespoon oil into a large pot on high heat. Fry onions until they soften. Place trimmed lamb shanks on the top and cover with water until shanks are just covered. Bring to the boil and add your vegetables, barley and thyme. Add the vegemite, which takes the place of salt. Put a well fitting lid on and leave to simmer for a couple of hours. After it has simmered for a 2-3 hours you can take out the shanks. The meat will flake from the bone and you can add the meat back into the soup. If you are not a Vegemite kid, you might prefer to add salt and pepper now.
We ate these in huge bowls with hot toast, and our night was perfect.
The soup can be made ahead as the flavours develop over time. It always tasted even better the day after it was made.
Posted on April 28, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
I wish I was a florist. Imagine smelling the heady scent of all those blooms all day? I would love to be able to arrange flowers so that they look great instead of just shoving them in whichever vase I can find. I love the look of Ikebana, the Japanese style of flower arranging. It is so elegant and serene. My arrangements are higgledy piggledy.
The Floral Art School of Australia offers floristry diploma’s online. How good is that? The course is quite affordable, too. Imagine being able to play with flowers and make money as well? That is my kind of hobby.
My Monday’s off might be spent learning a new skill.
Posted on April 21, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
I really hate having to thing every night “What will I cook for dinner tonight?” I used to love cooking, but now that it is down to the mundane variety I am really bored. I also hate the last minute trip to the supermarket because I don’t have everything in they pantry that I need for that meal.
Today I want to start all over again. Back to the beginning. I am a big believer in menu planning but I seem to be off the wagon more often than I am on. Yesterday I found The Canny Cook and I am hoping that this will help me out.
The Canny Cook looks like a great little service. It is a smart meal planning solution that provides shopping lists and innovative meal planning in a couple of easy steps.
The Canny Cook isn’t just another recipe database , although there are recipes there. It’s a time management tool that saves you time, energy and money as shrivelled ingredients lurking at the back of the fridge become a thing of the past.
Customers can create exciting menus from a range of healthy recipes that are rated by qualified, practicing dieticians as heart friendly, weight friendly and low GI. They can even enter their own family favourites.
The shopping lists can even be customised so that it is sorted according to the aisles of the supermarket. How easy will that make the shopping? (If there is one thing I hate it is trotting up and down supermarket aisles with my dodgy-wheeled trolley looking for missing ingredients!)
The best part is that it only costs AUD $19.95. It is a one-off fee. If this small amount of money can save me some cooking stress then I am all for it!
Posted on April 14, 2008 by Ms Feet Up in Monday Off
Driven by the need for more jewellery I have been drooling over silver. These items are soon to arrive at Beauty Banquet. In the meantime shopping for jewellery at Beauty Banquet is the nicest way to spend a day. Go and look out for the free jewellery giveaway!
Meet Edward Bear. He is a soft, warm bear who is 28cms long. He just loves to cuddle and snuggle up in front of a good movie. In his opinion, a little hot chocolate make the moment perfect. 
just want to curl up and stay warm. Traditionally, for us, winter was full of comfort foods like soups and stews. These were full of vegies and very healthy. These days stews and casseroles seem to be looked down upon, which is really sad. A few more of those and our diets would be better off.
