Hanging with our besties

Yay for Nandoes dates with our best man and maid of honour. Last time the four of us shared a meal, Will was in a suit, I was in a white dress, Kate was sharing the pros and cons of us getting married and PC was drumming up the best best man's speech.

We love these two.

The Food Files: Mid-week roast

We started our four day weekend with pork-crackling. Is there any better way?







We use a Nigella-inspired recipe for pork that involves rosemary, salt and a bottle of dark ale poured into the baking dish. Tonight I added roast veggies and whipped up a pea puree (two cups of peas, a dollop of mint jelly and a few squirts of mayonnaise, all blended).

I don't mean to make ya'll jealous, but oh was it good.

West End Coffee House

Our epic quest to eat our way around West End was progressing very nicely until we tried this place, West End Coffee House. They serve food (Thai Isaan) and coffee (Campos) so good we don't dare go anywhere else anymore. If you're ever in the 'hood, let us know and we'll most definitely take you there.












Will was dreaming about sticky rice all evening, and I was up all night after my yearly coffee.

If you're new to Isaan cuisine, we recommend the thai beef salad or the larb. If you want to try something a little new, go the som tam. Seriously.

The honeymoon - to be continued...

So Part Three and Part Four of our honeymoon adventure have been temporarily delayed due to an incident involving Will's laptop and a cheeky glass of water. There was a horrible 24 hours waiting to see if the honeymoon photos made it out alive, but alas, all's well with the hard drive and Will's new laptop should arrive this week. Here's Part One and Part Two again.

In the meantime, here are a couple of photos from Lake Ohau (Part 3) and Mt Cook (Part 4). Let's call it 'The Honeymoon, Part 2.5'.

The first three photos are essentially taken from the same spot - the first, looking into our holiday house, the second, looking out to the left, and the third, turning 180 degrees to the beautiful mountains down yonder. It was absolutely spectacular and I spent a lot of time on that couch, taking in the view.







And this below is the official photographer in action. We spent our second last afternoon tramping (Kiwi for hiking/walking) through Hooker Valley. There were suspension bridges and rushing rivers and bunny rabbits - something for everyone!

Just around the corner from where Will is standing, is the glorious Mt Cook. Again, it was spectacular - just wait until you see my husband's* photos!



*Wowee! I have a husband!!

Bribie beach trip

Our long-awaited beach trip nearly didn't happen after a series of unfortunate car-related events that ended with Will sitting in the BiLo carpark waiting for RACQ. But we got there in the end, and oh it was good.

Ocean breeze, fresh prawns, a new picnic rug (thanks Paul + Lauren!) and lots of puppy-stalking. The best way to spend a summer's holiday.

















We did our usual star-jump session...













...and finished the day with pirouettes and high kicks.

Blessed

And now to take a moment to pause and count our blessings.

After the breakdown of our gifted second-hand washing machine, and a call out on Facebook to friends who might be selling one, we are now the proud custodians of a beautiful brand new washing machine, kindly lent to us for free from a very lovely and generous couple.



We did two loads the first night we got it and spent the whole time saying 'It's a real washing machine!' I think we both had visions of months of either hand-washing or carting our clothes basket to our parents every couple of days. Thank you very lovely and generous couple!

And on the topic of things around the house, I wanted to make a joke about ‘How long does it take two intelligent newlyweds with four university degrees between them to clip the toilet freshener in the toilet bowl?’ but we spent waaaaaaay too long trying to figure it out the other night that I had no energy left for being witty.

first day of school

We are off to French school tomorrow! We've signed up for a summer intensive at IML, two nights per week for the next seven weeks, and we're looking forward to the challenge. I've been practicing all the French words I know, things like 'baugette' and 'ooh la la' and 'pas de chat' (which means 'step of the cat' - an old ballet term I'm sure will be absolutely no use in class).

We'd both love to speak a second language and there are handful of French-speaking countries we'd like to work in sometime in the future. And secretly, I'm hoping the more French I speak, the more likely Will will take me to Paris. A girl can dream, no?

Byebye holidays

After a marvelous honeymoon adventure in New Zealand, we enjoyed our summer holiday at home in Smurf Haus. We spent a lot of time sleeping, eating and lounging around, with the odd burst of energy to hang out with some of our favourite people.
Being married and on holidays? Bliss.

- smurf haus sketch on our new blackboard -
- byebye christmas tree / car selfies / pot plants -
- brunch at peter's / new years with friends / flat tyres -
- supermarket sunflowers / thank you cards / more dahlia love -
- dinner and movie with kate / the double rainbow -
- yellow love / billy buttons from the wedding -