Magic of the Faraway Tree

Posted on August 26, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

My father read these Enid Blyton books to me when I was a young girl and now I am reading “Magic of the Faraway Tree” to Georgia. She loves it a lot. I am so pleased that she is enjoying the lovely book about Bessie, Fanny, Jo and Dick and their adventures with Saucepan Man, Moonface and Silky. Not to mention Whatsizname and Dame Washalot.

Do you remember the lands of Topsy Turvy and Do As You Please? Well, Georgia is thoroughly enjoying the tales and I am very much enjoying reading about them with her.

To celebrate Book Week, Georgia dressed up as one of her favourite characters from one of her favourite books: Bessie from “Magic of the Faraway Tree.”

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Banana choc chip muffins

Posted on August 25, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

Indeed. This is what I am thinking about… it is 5 minutes until the home bell and I am sitting at my desk at work, watching the wind blow the branches of the trees in all directions; the birds flitting around the Dahlias and the clouds trying to decide whether to stay or to go. Mostly, the clouds decide to stay.

Today has been one of those days. It started off with the lovely feeling that yes, of course Spring will come. The sun shone and the sky was a beautiful Tasmanian blue… and just after sending off and email to my beloved to remind him to get up from his desk to suspend the fresh washing from the line under the carport, it began to rain. Yes, I take the blame. It is my fault the weather turned foul. I jinxed it by nagging the husband. I learned the lesson. And the washing wasn’t hung out, btw.

I have been hungry all day. After being awake for just 3 hours, I had eaten a bowl of porrige and an apple, and consumed a glass of juice, two glasses of water, two coffees and a cup of tea. And from there, the hunger continued. This is rare for me, despite the pregnancy bit, because I have been feeling so nauseous I have not really wanted to eat and I never really feel like food, apart from jelly beans, which are not really food at all. Depending on who you consult.

And now the hometime bell has sounded. Children are running to car parks and bus stops, shrieking as they do so. I love my job and I will miss it next term when I am on leave (just 3 working days until maternity leave…).

But I digress. We were talking about banana choc chip muffins. They were on my mind because I was feeling hungry.

Cooking is one thing I love to do, especially with my children. They are the best type of helpers. I also love cooking in the evening, when the said children are asleep on their beds and the husband is working away at his computer. Between the hour of their bed time and when my television shows start is a marvellous time to clean up the kitchen and then mess it up again with pots and pans and baking dishes and mixing bowls and measuring spoons and wooden spoons and dustings of sugar and flour on benches, floor and clothing.

The last time I did this kind of cooking was a few nights ago and I got a sudden impulse to be a domestic goddess. I made banana muffins. I didn’t put the choc-chips in because I wanted something that childcare would actually allow my son to eat, but chocolate is such a great partner to banana that it really should not be skipped from this recipe.

Banana choc-chip muffins

2 cups SRF (wholemeal would be nice)
1 loosely packed cup of brown sugar
1 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbsp oil
2 large mashed bananas
1 handful of choc-chips (or more if you’re greedy, like me).

Combine the flour and the sugar.

In a separate bowl, mix the egg, milk and oil. Add to the flour but do not mix yet. Add the mashed bananas and the choc-chips.

Stir everything together, but never overmix the muffin mixture. I only stir it a little bit, just to cover everything with everything else a little.

Add heaped Tbsp of mixture into the muffin trays. You could make small muffins (24) or medium muffins (12) or large muffins (6). If making choc-chipless muffins, sprinkle some cinnamon on the muffin tops for extra bite (or add it to your muffin mixture).

I cook my muffins when the Esse is on “Very hot,” which is somewhere between 220-250C.

Last week the fire had died down too much to bake, but I wanted to take some muffins to take to a friend. I had to cook with the electric oven! The muffins were nowhere near as nice. They were smooth on the tops, whereas I think muffins are best when they have rough, almost ugly tops. They were also drier than Esse-made muffins and, had we not consumed them so quickly, they would have gone staler sooner. They were also uneven, with assymetrical muffin tops. When I bake the muffins in the Esse, they usually have lovely even tops, rising to a lumpy peak.

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All is great on baby-front!

Posted on August 18, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

We went for another check-up (31 weeks) at the High Risk Clinic (the third week in a row) and this week was much more pleasing. Whereas the baby’s anaemia levels have been up a bit recently, today they were perfect. I’m really happy about this, as you can imagine. We talked a bit about what the MCA doppler actually shows. The doctor’s understanding was that the more anaemic the baby is is, the faster the blood flows because it is thinner (less red blood cells). The doctors still don’t fully understand how antibodies impact on an unborn baby. I think the most common reaction of the antibodies is that the baby can get jaundiced, caused by extra production of billirubin in response to reduction of red blood cells. Georgia was a bit jaundiced; with her, my antibodies rose to a high titre of 128. I don’t know what my titres are now.

Baby was hiccupping during the scan and it was very interesting to see the diaphragm moving up and down. During the hiccupping, the baby’s torso was wriggling a lot. The sonographer had to try to do some measurements elsewhere whilst the hiccupping was going on. Before the scan, the baby started moving and kicking most actively, so I took a walk up three flights of stairs and down again, trying to settle it. It’s a very good baby and settled quickly, although the hiccupping began. I didn’t tell anybody about the jelly bean I had consumed in the waiting room!

One jelly bean! Imagine what happens when I have a handful (which is not that infrequently! They help with the morning sickness, which I am annoyed to still be having!). Or coffee! I really like my doctor. She says that coffee is “absolutely fine” for me, as long as I am not having 16 cups a day. Today I had an extra coffee before my appointment. I was on a wonderful caffeine high. She thought I was hilarious. She said the baby loves it. My blood pressure and the baby’s heart rate were fabulous.

So the baby’s heart and stomach and lungs look good. It’s practicing breathing, which is great! The sonographer showed us an almost-3D shot of our baby’s face. I immediately thought that it looks just like our other babies. How gorgeous. I’m besotted already! I haven’t even heard that first cry yet!

Our baby is a good size – right on the line of average growth. I think the baby weighs around 2kg now. That’s 2kg in my belly, wriggling around a lot. No wonder my belly shudders and wriggles around so much. The doctor says I have a wonderful belly to feel. I think she means that she can really feel where the baby is lying. She says funny things, my doctor, like, “I am no good at sex,” (on talking about seeing baby’s sex on the ultrasound, I presume).

Seven (or less) weeks to go! We are very excited! Baby’s head is engaged now, which the doctor says is great, but it’s also uncomfortable. I can feel the head in my pelvis and it makes me waddle, which makes Monte look at me endearingly. Or maybe that is pity. To think the baby is getting ready for birth… makes me think I should be getting ready for the delivery. My other labours have been 3 and 2 hours long. I wonder how long this one will be? I have plans to make it go slower, like resting on the bed or having a bath. I know that ice chips are good pain relief/distraction for me. Other than that, I don’t really have a birth plan. I do, however, have some tiny little clothes all washed and packed away in baby’s room. Isn’t that enough preparation?

err… no, not really.

Today, I feel great. Tomorrow, watch out.

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Knitting – baby hats

Posted on August 10, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

A month ago I had some time off work because of high blood pressure. It was good to have a rest; it was great to get back into knitting.

And I’m happy to report that since having a week in bed, and getting back into my yarn crafts, my blood pressure has been “excellent!”

Among other things, I’ve been making baby hats. I love making baby hats because I can knit one up in a day. I like projects that are over and done with quickly (hats, bootees, headbands, anything crocheted). I’ll work on that though; my plan is to make some jumpers and blankets for my family members.

Here are some hats that I’ve made:

These hats were made with straight needles. I’ve recently learned how to use a set of needles but there are no photos of those yet.

For a 4 ply baby hat (blue and red), basically cast on 90 stitches with 2.75mm needles and work the brim for 5 cm. Then work in stocking stitch with 3.25mm needles, until work measures 13cm. Then decrease for the crown by k2tog, k8 | purl, k2tog, k7 | purl, k2tog, k6 | purl etc until you have k2tog for an entire row. Purl the last row, then cut yarn so there is 15cm for sewing up. Thread needle through the stitches, draw up and secure. Sew up.

For sewing up baby items I tend to use whip stitch rather than mattress stitch, which can be bulky. Catch the last stitch from each end of the knitted fabric and the seam will be quite flat. I learned that from my mum. She’s a rockstar of a knitter.

For an 8 ply beanie (green and striped), cast on 62 stitches with 3.25mm needles. Work the brim for 5cm, then change to 4mm needles and work in stocking stitch until work measures 10-13 cm. Decrease for the crown as above, starting with k2tog, k7 etc.

If you’d like more detailed copies of the 4 ply hats (blue and red) and the 8 ply hats (green and striped), contact me.

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Sourdough

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

Monte recently went to a sourdough and cheesemaking workshop at the local community centre.

This is our first attempt at sourdough. We tested it with South Australian olive oil and some balsamic vinegar.

The bread is heavy and dense. The crust is crisp and crunchy, but not too crunchy (that’s because we have a brilliant stove ;]). I like the sweetness of the bread; the vinegar and the olive oil give it a tang, so it’s a spicy, sweet, tangy sensation when you bite in!

The bread is based on our new ‘pet.’ The pet is sourdough yeast, which we feed 2 Tbsp of flour and 2 Tbsp of water each day. We keep the pet in the fridge.

To make the bread, add a few more cups of flour and warm water to the starter. Cover it and leave it somewhere warm to prove (we left ours on the fridge, where it is lovely and warm). It is supposed to prove overnight – ours took a few hours in the temperature of our kitchen.

The dough is runny; add more flour (we used wholemeal bread flour) and some olive oil until it feels like a ‘normal’ dough. Place into loaf tins and cook in a hot oven for a while. “Until it’s cooked,” says Monte. Once cooked, Monte took the bread out of the trays and put back into the oven. This made the entire crusts more crusty.

Delicious. I’ve had a few slices and feel as though I have had dinner. It’s our regular homemade pizza night tonight and I don’t think I’ll be having much pizza, even though that is also delicious (more on that in another post).

Anyway, gives a new meaning to eating your pet.

To find out more about Geco (the local community centre), look it up on facebook or contact us.

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29 weeks

Posted on August 5, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

I like going for the regular ultrasounds. It’s interesting seeing the development of the baby, such as the brain getting bigger in the skull, and more brainy looking. Baby is looking rather roly-poly and cute, with chunky thighs and a round tummy. I can’t wait to hold that little baby in my arms. The lips are full ones and baby practices sucking. The lungs are developing and bubs practises breathing. The head is down and the feet are pressing into my guts, making my nausea even crapper, but I still won’t complain about feeling the kicks and prods (which are now painful!). Bubs is running out of room in my belly (tough luck for the next few months then!).

Here is bubs at 29 weeks:

I am itrigued with the rate of growth of this little one. Bubs is now slightly bigger than most babies at this stage of development. I love statistics, and seeing the growth rate plotted on the graph is good.

The whole reason I am having such regular detailed scans is to measure and check baby for anemia because of my antibodies. My most recent appointment showed that baby is borderline anemic. I have to go in again next week to have another scan. If the rate of anemia gets too high, baby will either need to be born or have blood transfusions. Knowing that the baby is a good size with a good growth rate makes it easier for me to contemplate an early delivery; I have been told the baby will be induced early. You’d think I’d be stressed – although I am concerned for the bubba I know that I am in good hands. The hospital staff at the RHH are great. The doctors have been excellent and the ultrasound staff have been excellent.

Here is a pic of me at 29 weeks. Not very flattering, I’m afraid. Well beyond the flattering stage now, with all the waddling and exclamations of “Ow!” when baby kicks me too hard in the ribs.

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Kitchen

Posted on August 2, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

I’ve been spending a lot of time in our kitchen lately. Just to have a lovely kitchen is such a special treat for me, after living in the cabin, without power, for over two years. To have big benches and electricity and a beautiful stove and handy appliances (eg toaster, coffee machine) is just such a joy that I will never again take for granted. Most of the time I am cooking or cleaning in the kitchen (surprise) but I also tend to potter about in my enormous pantry, making labels for jars of things or rearranging pots and bottles and tins and herbs etc. (Nesting. Moving in etc.)

Our Fangorn Kitchen is the third kitchen that we’ve made ourselves, after renovating two houses. Over the years we came to understand our needs for the kitchen. Here are some of our requirements, built on over the years:

  • large temperature-controlled pantry room
  • lots of natural light
  • benches and cupboards that are easy to clean
  • light colours to reflect light and look clean
  • kitchen decor that can be changed and upgraded without too much cost
  • limited colour scheme, so that we can “add splashes of colour with furnishings and decorations”
  • big benches, primarily the main bench, which can be used as a multi-purpose ‘table’
  • a good view from a large sink
  • large drawers, where possible, not cupboards, so we do not have to get to low to get things out
  • limited corner-cupboards (we managed to only have one)
  • a dishwasher that is no more than a step away from any part of the kitchen, to make stacking and unpacking easier (great time-saver)

What I love to do is gaze out at the view from the sink, whether I am washing dishes or having a drink. I lose myself in the view of the valley. It is ever-changing and I always appreciate it. I also love to work on the large bench, overlooking the children playing in the living room; or checking what is on tv;  or watching the sunshine bathe the dining table that was once my great-grandmother’s. I suppose I am doing a lot of gazing at the moment; a kind of pregnant lady stupour that comes with kneading scone dough or beating the hell out of a teacake mixture.

So, I am grateful for my kitchen. I like the benchtops, which we managed to choose even when I couldn’t concentrate well because I felt so sick with morning sickness. I like the glossy cupboards because their modernness juxtaposes with the rustic charm of the fat strawbale walls. I like the pot drawers, which save breaking my back. But my favourite part is the pantry. It is wonderful to have visual access to our foodstuff and other stuff. And I recently noticed a new purpose for the cooled pantry room: one can hide in there, nibbling away at their secret stash of lollies without feeling like one has to share. Hee hee.

Not very recent pics of the kitchen (above), and also ones I’ve already posted (apologies).

Still very very grateful for my lovely house. It makes me happy. Thank you Monte.

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Family News

Posted on July 29, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

Thought I’d update what we’re doing, mostly for our family and friends “back home.”

Monte is very busy working. We have organised his home office a bit more and he is settled there, where he works full-time. An influx of work at this time, just before I go on leave, is convenient, but things are very busy for him and he has not had much time to work on the house. He has been moving lots of baby stuff into the house so I can immerse myself in a slow nesting process. Monte is great. He makes coffees in the mornings; he makes the lunches and he often cooks dinner. Mont is busy with meetings and internet conferences with clients and all sorts of things. It’s good.

I am pooped. I do not feel that great with morning sickness (still lasting all day) and insomnia making daily things a little more difficult. I feel big and baby feels big (is big) and I am having strong practice contractions that don’t really feel like practice contractions at all. I’m happy to move slowly and waddle around. Being tired and vague and slow at work makes it hard to feel professional. Students sometimes notice my tummy bumping and moving about, which is entertaining for them, but obviously a distraction they do not need! I find solace in knitting. The rhythm of knitting helps me to relax and unwind. It is fun to make stuff and I have a few friends having babies over the next few months, so I am making things for them. And baking is something I enjoy too much. I’m 28 weeks and have put on 3-4kgs this pregnancy. I think this is because chocolate makes me feel sick, so I don’t eat it. Most unhealthy foods make me feel like vomiting. It must be the body’s natural way to keep healthy (would very much like this to carry on past pregnancy and beyond!). Pink-iced donuts, however, are awesome. So are lollies. And orange juice. Cannot get enough of that stuff.

Georgia has settled into the new term very well. She moved back to her previous school and is very happy there. She has regular homework, which she loves doing each night and we have a lovely routine of reading together after school. She is performing well in school and complained to me yesterday about getting a word wrong in her spelling test. I just laughed it away; she need not worry about that sort of thing, yet (should she?). Deep down I want to find out which word it was so I can help her learn it! G loves computers. We have prettied up her bedroom and she finds an oasis there under her “princess canopy.” She loves getting dressed up and I am so delighted by her beautiful nature. She is also a lot like me: hot-tempered! We can clash for a moment, and then fall into a mother-daughter embrace that makes everything ok. With jui-jitsu, soccer and Girl Guides, Georgia is busy during the week. She loves her activities. She would love to do ballet but we are yet to find a ballet school that is both closer to home and running sessions at a time that we can actually get to without taking her out of school early.

Matthew is an awesome little dude. His hair has got a bit longer and is all curly. It is a gorgeous auburn colour. He is very handsome. He loves having his own room, still mentioning it to anybody who comes to visit. He often says: “I like our new house and my room and all the toys in my own room!” Wow. We put some shelves up in his room over the weekend and he delights in having his “special things” on display, “like Georgia!” Matty is writing his name and his drawings have recently taken on a new development. Instead of arms and legs sprouting from one round head/body, he is drawing figures with separate bodies and legs and even clothes! He draws cars with wheels and roads. I find the development of children’s drawings fascinating. He is looking forward to school (kindy) next year but the idea of him being such a big boy is daunting. Surely he is not that grown up already?

The drawings below were done by Matty on the iPad.

Baby is growing well and doing all the right things, like practising breathing (very cool to see on ultrasound!), sucking its thumb and doing somersaults in my belly (feels like an octopus is in there). I have come to look forward to the regular ultrasounds; having the reassurance of regular testing puts my mind at ease. All things look good and we get full points in the scans, whatever that means. I read: “Grossly and neurologically normal” on the reports and am satisfied, yet deep down I do experience the normal concern re the health of the baby. We’re getting the room ready, slowly. I have kept everything from my babies. This is great, because we don’t need to buy much stuff, but it is a big mess in the nursery at the moment and I am hopeless at lifting! We’re almost settled on names, but we’ll probably wait to meet the baby before we finally settle on the name.

As I am finishing up this blog, Monte is informing Matthew that the reason he calls the ironing board his ‘surfing board’ is that he has never seen mummy iron so naturally he does not know what an ironing board is. It’s true. I rarely iron and the fact that we even have the iron and ironing board in the pantry is just weird.

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26 weeks

Posted on July 20, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

The last week of the 2nd trimester – just a few days to go and I’ll well and truly be in the ‘huffnpuff’ stage. The second trimester is my favourite part of pregnancy. Usually, I am not too big and not too sick, and have more energy to do stuff. The last few weeks, however, have been a bit more difficult, with morning sickness returning, headaches and insomnia annoying me, and my blood pressure rising a bit. I feel very tired and quite crappy, but I am not going to complain, because I also feel *really* blessed by the little baby growing in me. I am even getting excited, and we are starting to get baby’s room ready!

I don’t know what my antibodies are doing because I’m not having regular blood tests, but I am having fortnightly ultrasounds to check bubs for anaemia. So far, everything looks good and lately the baby’s growth has consistently measured with an EDD of October 20th (Georgia’s birthday!). Baby is moving around a lot. Sometimes it’s rather uncomfortable. Hiccups feel very weird! I can often feel a boney little foot, about 5-6cm long, pressing up around my belly button. This fascinates the children and they poke and prod a bit as if playing with their new sibling already.

Baby likes Beethoven more than Mozart and baths more than showers. Fair enough. Baby moves around a lot when its older siblings talk and sing to it. Baby is very well behaved, letting me sleep at night. It wakes me up just before 6am each morning with a little kicking and prodding. It makes me smile (or whince, if it is hard kicking!). Baby weighs just over 1kg.

People, mostly women, are very curious about the sex of my baby and they give me all sorts of theories on how to work out what I am having. Here are some (totally unscientific and inaccurate) theories. You can easily tell that I am having a child of both sexes! You are having a boy if: baby’s heart rate is below 140; your tummy is low and narrow; you look better than usual; you did not have morning sickness; your age and month of conception adds to an odd number; you crave salty foods etc . You are having a girl if: your hair is redder; you look worse than usual; your tummy is high and wide; baby’s heart rate is above 140; you have bad morning sickness; you crave sweet things.  Of course, the Chinese gender calendar is most useful; it takes your age and month of conception to determine the child’s sex (boy). People ask me what my gut feeling is and I don’t tell them because I’ve only ever been ‘right’ 50% of the time (go figure!). It’s a bit of fun trying to guess baby’s sex, but I much prefer knowing in advance!

All in all, things are going well with baby and we are excited! I am knitting little things for my baby, which is very relaxing, but also mandatory, as I’ve been resting for a week in an attempt to get my bp right (it’s up a bit, but not badly). We’re arguing over middle names, but we’ve mostly agreed on first names.

Very hormonally waddlingly happy.

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Morning tea

Posted on July 16, 2010 by Rebecca Goulding

I’ve just had some lovely friends over for morning tea. The sun shone through the big windows in my living room (they really need to be cleaned: weekend job) and the children played relatively quietly with some trains, blocks and lego. It was great having a cuppa and a chat with some girlfriends; I’ve really been missing my old mothers’ group from Adelaide. I’m going to try to meet more regularly with my ‘mum friends.’ We were all saying that we’ve been craving that sort of socialisation – not just for the kids, but for us.

I made blueberry muffins for morning tea. Matthew was ultra helpful. I got the recipe from a free cookbook and have changed it to suit me and the ingredients I had in my pantry:

Blueberry Muffins (12)

2 cups SRF
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup milk
2 Tbsp vege oil
1 egg
1 tin blueberries

Preheat the oven to about 180 (or ‘Hot’ on the Esse). Mix flour and sugar in a bowl. In a separate jug, mix egg, milk and oil. Add the milk mixture to the flour mixture and mix a bit. Add the blueberries (you could use fresh or frozen too – I just had a tin in the pantry [very handy]). Don’t over mix the mixture.

Plop spoonfuls of mixture into a 12-hole muffin pan (or the size that suits you). I use silicone patty pans because then I don’t need to do any greasing and the tray doesn’t need a big scrub at the end.

Bake in a mod oven for 20-25 minutes.

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