tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77684314634271243912024-03-19T12:41:10.053-07:00Live Free and Bakebaking, travel and other thoughts from an American expat in SydneyKellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-47872368344670427462013-12-10T13:34:00.000-08:002013-12-10T13:34:44.590-08:00Australia Day and Lamingtons!Okay. So I have a confession. I don't really remember too much about Australia Day last year. We didn't really do much. I think that's why. All I remember is we did watch the ferrys race by from our place (yeah we were wicked spoiled with the view). Here they go...<br />
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Then we went to Kirribilli club, ate meat pies and had schooners and called it a day.<br />
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This year was much more eventful. We headed out after a morning run to a BBQ in one of the inner west suburbs. We took a ferry to get there... always a nice way to travel. <br />
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Dinner at our favorite Japanese place. <br />
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And I made these. As mentioned in my last post, I have a love hate relationship with the lamington. Actually, up to this point, it was more a hate relationship. I just had never had one I really liked... until this recipe friends. Oh yes, it is that good. <br />
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In theory, all lamingtons should be delicious. A piece of cake that is rolled in chocolate then rolled in coconut... um yes please. However, like a good chocolate chip cookie in the states, it is hard to find a good one. They have the packaged stuff at all the markets and most bakeries do them as well... just with very mixed results.<br />
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When I got my new issue of Delicious Magazine (think Aussie Bon Appetite) and there was a recipe for strawberry swirl lamingtons, I knew I had to try it. Better yet... the recipe is from Curtis Stone. Who is that you may ask... let me tell you. 1. He has a show (or had?) in the states called Take Home Chef where he would ambush (usually women cooking dinner for their hubbies/partners) an unsuspecting shopper in the market and offer to help cook dinner. Yes, most of the women freaked out... understandable. 2. He hosts Top Chef Masters. And I love anything Top Chef. 3. His partner is Lindsay Price... she was on Beverly Hills, 90210 and really I shouldn't need to say anything else about that awesomeness. <br />
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Therefore, I concluded, he must have a good lamington recipe. I was right. Here it is with a few minor changes. <br />
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Enjoy!<br />
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Strawberry Swirl Lamingtons<br />
<br />Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-53768726278538264162013-01-24T03:14:00.001-08:002013-01-24T03:14:46.498-08:00New Zealand Adventures Part 2- South Island<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The South Island is what you picture when thinking of New Zealand. Vast open spaces with stunning mountain ranges, turquoise water, green hills... really it felt like every five feet we were stopping for photos. It was that beautiful. Not that the North Island wasn't very scenic as well... it to me just seemed to remind me of many of the places I have been to... a strange mix of Ireland and Hawaii maybe? The South Island was unlike any place I have ever been. Per our usual vacations- it was action packed.<br />
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We left Wellington on the ferry that takes a bit over 3 1/2 hours. Fantastic views of Wellington as you are leaving and then of the Sounds when getting to the South Island. <br />
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Just as we were leaving the North Island on the ferry.</div>
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It was cold, windy and the water was a bit choppy... this is the only picture where my hair wasn't completely out of control.</div>
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Once arriving, we spent a few nights in the Marlborough region. There are lots of wineries there, so we spent a day doing some tastings and relaxing. The Queen Charlotte Sound is also close by and we did a half day trek there. This is one of the longer treks you can do (for days) but they do shorter portions as well that you can either walk or take a water taxi to. </div>
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Here was one of the busier and more picturesque wineries- Cloudy Bay. </div>
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I could have stayed in that chair for hours.</div>
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Another view of the vineyard.</div>
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The hubby on the day of our trek along Queen Charlotte Sound. There were a ton of showers around, but luckily the weather held out for most of the day.</div>
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Just several pictures snapped along the way.</div>
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This was the view from behind the bed and breakfast where we stayed. Sunset on the last night.</div>
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They had this pizza oven. We didn't have a chance to use it as we just grilled while there.</div>
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I needed a picture though since this is my dream to have an outdoor pizza oven.</div>
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From there we headed to Hanmer Springs where we spent New Years. It was (besides Queenstown) my favorite part of the trip. So quiet and peaceful... it reminded me of the White Mountains in NH in a lot of ways. It helped the place we stayed was super nice. This pic of the hubby was during one of the walks we did in the area.</div>
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This is what happens when the hubby has the camera... lots of pictures of me walking down paths.</div>
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View from the hotel room. Yes. Awesome. And there was a private hot tub outside too. </div>
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Ahh I want to go back.</div>
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Little cafe in town- since I'm all Aussie and drink my hot cappuccinos on hot days now. </div>
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We liked this because they stole the Harley logo.</div>
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We found a mini-golf (or putt putt) place. Fun times, although I was really rusty and wanted to throw my club several times.</div>
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Dinner at the lodge on New Years Eve. Very low key compared to our time in Sydney the year before... but just the perfect way to cap off the year.</div>
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New Years Day after breakfast from the lodge. </div>
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After leaving Hanmer Springs, we headed to Christchurch... it has been several years since the earthquakes, but you see it everywhere. There is a huge red zone still in the city center with building either gone or with pieces sitting next to the building itself. It was a strange place to visit while on holiday as you really did feel a sense of sadness while walking around. The city itself has some truly amazing architecture and garden areas with a small river running through the city. I think it really will be a beautiful city again in the future.</div>
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Just a couple of the buildings... I think these illustrate the point I made about the architecture being stunning. It was difficult to see the large pieces that fell during the quakes, but there are signs of rebuilding all around. I had read about Addington, an area just outside the CBD that has been developing a lot of new cafes and restaurants. This is where we headed for diner (and brekkie) the next day, and it was one of the best meals of the trip!</div>
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This is at the place we went for dinner- The Pedal Pusher- the hubby was happy to </div>
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have some proper ketchup.</div>
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Fun signs on the walls...</div>
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Then came the epic day of driving. From Christchurch the plan was to head to the West Coast to Fox Glacier for 2 nights. Everything was all booked and ready. Trouble came with one road to get there and bad weather. When we started on our way it was a bit rainy, but nothing terrible. About 1 hour into the 5 hour trip we saw a road sign stating the road was closed a few hours ahead. We thought to ourselves, eh, when we get there I'm sure it will be fine... and continued on the journey (I believe listening to lord of the rings music in the car, because we are cool like that).</div>
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This is pretty much what we were driving into. Maybe it is that New England attitude of being able to drive in anything that kept us going?</div>
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Whatever the case, we make it to the point where the road was closed and it was pretty much monsoon of sorts with sheets of rain spraying you sideways as we ran into the cafe to check for updates. After a nice cappuccino, I asked one of the staff when we should hear about the road opening. Her response, "Oh dear, the road won't open today. It is flooded 3 meters deep just a few kilometers down the road." Right.</div>
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And back we drove. 10 hours later ended up in a random little town of Geraldine. We stayed at a motel, did a few walks, had a nice brekkie at a cute cafe and were on our way the next morning. Lesson learned. If a sign says a road is closed in New Zealand... it really is. </div>
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That was a ridiculous driving day... but in general there was a lot of driving around both islands. Most of the time was fun with loads of amazing views...</div>
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You see a lot of these signs.</div>
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And then a lot of cows.</div>
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Some crazy sheep that always seemed to be terrified of me.</div>
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And if you are lucky, some Alpacas.</div>
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Then the dreaded one way bridge. Did not realize what these signs were at first... but tells you which person should be yielding... and the other just goes through. A bit scary actually.</div>
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When driving to our next stop we drove through Kaikoura. A beautiful town. There were also John Deere tractors that we needed pictures with.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDCW_gMieILcKdsN0kreStyk1kWiiahC5xpdFpMhKDu5dOhx9TR-enCrnR6FCx7A26BkA6nqKjQ0kH_P3Jmbx20drzAZ-FguYkbUBN8BvkPcVBk2rKRg1TLSYP94rZfCSy500RW6HHPx4a/s1600/kaikora.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDCW_gMieILcKdsN0kreStyk1kWiiahC5xpdFpMhKDu5dOhx9TR-enCrnR6FCx7A26BkA6nqKjQ0kH_P3Jmbx20drzAZ-FguYkbUBN8BvkPcVBk2rKRg1TLSYP94rZfCSy500RW6HHPx4a/s320/kaikora.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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And here are the amazing views.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUherOa-kIPyqjQWSBcFSykrfTkGlxqGmzciRbSLrfa-WOTQD6g8fuQSAbWHKx8jJ6c4Y1L09uNQOf8PrsH7Mu3h2BJtB7CgzziOt1cNeq0KQ8qoX0VLmUi85q4uszGGx9mERBS_s3HNdj/s1600/irds.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUherOa-kIPyqjQWSBcFSykrfTkGlxqGmzciRbSLrfa-WOTQD6g8fuQSAbWHKx8jJ6c4Y1L09uNQOf8PrsH7Mu3h2BJtB7CgzziOt1cNeq0KQ8qoX0VLmUi85q4uszGGx9mERBS_s3HNdj/s320/irds.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3jomgAt0zSFsquqq7WbhvwSocJ_iYLA7K8jhnfOQs70P3o3z_4azyFgWmRt7gST5AgrRHQMTmlg4N73plmJkNwf-vMpn1PR6aKFKuGaPL0kPonYnBQDtB-f62tXO97i7im-7v-ys0MaXj/s1600/rikhavkaikora.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3jomgAt0zSFsquqq7WbhvwSocJ_iYLA7K8jhnfOQs70P3o3z_4azyFgWmRt7gST5AgrRHQMTmlg4N73plmJkNwf-vMpn1PR6aKFKuGaPL0kPonYnBQDtB-f62tXO97i7im-7v-ys0MaXj/s320/rikhavkaikora.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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There were a lot of seagulls there... this picture doesn't really do it justice.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_web_h7dEUQNjgQMRYSi3Sjo000rJuvege20VZOswTzKYUcp8lnBygI5_EMxrWu9Hz4Wkj-jBVipNRW-VTxrkQH7TcevxBQkA-9KUYx8B7b-PHQF6G9Mis-Fh7TwQd0Kx9SzwkVbCFJ-/s1600/seal.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR_web_h7dEUQNjgQMRYSi3Sjo000rJuvege20VZOswTzKYUcp8lnBygI5_EMxrWu9Hz4Wkj-jBVipNRW-VTxrkQH7TcevxBQkA-9KUYx8B7b-PHQF6G9Mis-Fh7TwQd0Kx9SzwkVbCFJ-/s320/seal.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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And a seal colony.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDzreCf18YNBdzSZP_DBfhRep2xmi6BwLOgw6ffGiafQy7p0b_zozOBdSRTavD2CichSNJvVK-KZrnuw2VQlymHzTFQs1YOn4nP1_AAYxb9vMHlKFCP0K3wWq8DoLN8n8mvsUDlGa9zCJ/s1600/tekapo3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDzreCf18YNBdzSZP_DBfhRep2xmi6BwLOgw6ffGiafQy7p0b_zozOBdSRTavD2CichSNJvVK-KZrnuw2VQlymHzTFQs1YOn4nP1_AAYxb9vMHlKFCP0K3wWq8DoLN8n8mvsUDlGa9zCJ/s320/tekapo3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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One of the positives about our bad weather re-routing of the trip is we got to stop off at Lake Tekapo... these pictures look fake I think... but the water really was that amazing turquoise color.</div>
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The next place we stopped off for several nights was Lake Wanaka. Also very beautiful... but very crowded too.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBazoWypwrxnR6SxTwfhcfTKnqV_Hhb7ACFBx8Ebekxg2E85MSUK6KFN5ApOyQSYyV8dbShPS3tEa12zxfWKoSrwpmhMg3XSzsddSsM_EflvN83tufWEGRc_HGyd3zaAt-doVgZIVvEumE/s1600/wanaka.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBazoWypwrxnR6SxTwfhcfTKnqV_Hhb7ACFBx8Ebekxg2E85MSUK6KFN5ApOyQSYyV8dbShPS3tEa12zxfWKoSrwpmhMg3XSzsddSsM_EflvN83tufWEGRc_HGyd3zaAt-doVgZIVvEumE/s320/wanaka.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div>
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From Wanaka we did a day trip to Milford Sound on our way to Queenstown.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEionWSJFSvxhcAtmAkBmZf1bcgOA6mC-IIf184z0WLMXBu2V-RgplGOR5GEcuY5ysyBiMpic1TMCPSpWAmculx6xwOD9XEprv_pwAvEdPVubzHHZ5dq7AhKdIOPobdCPYXMQWcgp2glZcZ8/s1600/sunrisedrive.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEionWSJFSvxhcAtmAkBmZf1bcgOA6mC-IIf184z0WLMXBu2V-RgplGOR5GEcuY5ysyBiMpic1TMCPSpWAmculx6xwOD9XEprv_pwAvEdPVubzHHZ5dq7AhKdIOPobdCPYXMQWcgp2glZcZ8/s320/sunrisedrive.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Sunrise during the drive out.</div>
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Views from short walks we did on the drive out...</div>
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Mirror Lake. It was really that clear.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2D-A3Mvc696Mvknrddx0k1sXWVY1NciuqosYEwoiB5xYIQVRku-AhYKOuYByAYEE3q6zPTLHHTglpphsP6vdHQmrIu9Y9RH4QyhqiFL4aNAYVZrO-eV_3RJYbcYEI4A622P4A9_WRHF4V/s1600/waterfall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2D-A3Mvc696Mvknrddx0k1sXWVY1NciuqosYEwoiB5xYIQVRku-AhYKOuYByAYEE3q6zPTLHHTglpphsP6vdHQmrIu9Y9RH4QyhqiFL4aNAYVZrO-eV_3RJYbcYEI4A622P4A9_WRHF4V/s320/waterfall.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Random waterfall walk we did... not sure which one this is actually.</div>
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This and the following are actually at Milford Sound. It was beautiful, even though it was a bit chilly and rainy that day.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpdv3SVeeipGjzGELMOXg9pTswzsqzUh-JutnR1bAUMHD6bRV9Gt22E97ajufLUgdpiMsP-LhqmNXKEUy_jbwYt5PR_If89xLXtlp6q2jysGVMjwG_qq0xit4IjTZkpvB0hyphenhyphenDQrtOAJA00/s1600/milford3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpdv3SVeeipGjzGELMOXg9pTswzsqzUh-JutnR1bAUMHD6bRV9Gt22E97ajufLUgdpiMsP-LhqmNXKEUy_jbwYt5PR_If89xLXtlp6q2jysGVMjwG_qq0xit4IjTZkpvB0hyphenhyphenDQrtOAJA00/s320/milford3.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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From here we headed to our last stop- Queenstown. I didn't get the hype about this place before. Now I definitely do... the best part of the trip I think.</div>
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Even the drive over was pretty.</div>
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We got to take water taxis each night from the hotel to get into Queenstown... great way to travel!</div>
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View from walking around.</div>
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Short (kind of short) walk along the lake/river to get back to the hotel. </div>
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Really just a beautiful part of New Zealand.</div>
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Yeah that's right. Then this happened. For real.</div>
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Really real... 134 meters real.</div>
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Why do I look so happy getting my legs strapped together to jump into a ravine? Not sure...</div>
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There I go.</div>
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View from taking the cable car out to the "station" of sorts... that is really just suspended by cables across this gorge itself.</div>
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As with everything in New Zealand... beautiful views.</div>
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We all look pretty happy... and I think this is before the jump! There is our friend who convinced us to bungy on the trip :)</div>
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As a reward for being scared out of our minds... we got some epic burgers for lunch that day.</div>
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Epic, like US size burger epic. </div>
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Ziplining the following day!</div>
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View from ziplining.</div>
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You take the gondola to get to the top of the hill/mountain for the ziplining tour.</div>
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This was just a pic of one of the restaurants we stopped at one night. This had really nice wood fire going and really relaxed vibe... great place to relax after a day of thrills... </div>
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Wow that was a lot of pictures and rambling on my part... Getting back to a normal schedule has been not too fun the past few weeks. But lots of fun stuff including Australia day festivities this weekend and a bunch of visitors over the next few months. For the many BBQs we have on this weekend, I'm going to try and master the Lamington... recipe to follow next week (as long as all goes well!).</div>
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Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-65089263832148110752013-01-23T19:18:00.003-08:002013-01-23T20:42:58.589-08:00New Zealand Adventures Part 1- North Island<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Happy New Year everyone! (a few weeks late!)</div>
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After a previously discussed rough patch leading up to the holiday season, things took a turn for the better. The hubby and I spent the holidays traveling all around New Zealand for a few weeks. It was truly an amazing trip. I'm going to have to split up the posts because of all the pictures. Easiest way to get that done is having the first post be about the North Island... where we started the trip for the first 6 days or so.</div>
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Started the trip seeing this in the airport when we arrived bright and early for our flight. </div>
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I love Australia.</div>
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We flew from Sydney to Auckland and stayed north of the city in a town called Devonport. Super cute with lots of nice cafes, shops and views of the city.</div>
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View from walkway along the water.</div>
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Buildings in Devonport.</div>
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View from morning run up to a lookout point.</div>
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The following day we drove through Auckland on our way to our first destinations... really just to pick up some Dunkin' Donuts coffee. Not the same as at home, and not really as exciting as in Bali... but still pretty good.</div>
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Also, let us take a moment to reflect on the prices here. </div>
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The hubby was excited to see an actual Burger King and Wendys all on the same road. Kind of like being back home :)</div>
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We drove all along the crazy winding roads to get to Cathedral Cove. A short 45 minute walk down along a path gets you to a lovely beach area with beautiful rock formations. </div>
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One of the few pictures we were able to get without hoards of people... it was super crowded!</div>
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From there we drove to Rotorua. Land of sulfur hot springs. Yes it smells bad when you drive into town... a bit like rotten eggs. But an interesting place to visit. </div>
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There are thermal springs all around town where you can walk around. Lots of danger and warning signs, which clearly I like. It was pretty amazing to see parts where the water and sometimes mud was actually boiling. The pictures just don't do it justice.</div>
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The hubby and I taking in the lovely smells of the hot springs.</div>
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This is where they do a lot of Maori cultural activities. That night we did a show/dinner... similar to the luau we went to in Hawaii... it was a lot of fun and these guys taught the Haka to the hubby.</div>
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Next we were on our way to Waitomo. Just for the night to spend time at an area where there are caves with glow worms. Awesome I know. First on our way we stopped off at a berry farm... yet another one of my newfound obsessions.</div>
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I got some homemade berry ice cream and made some friends with these two cute donkeys. </div>
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Although, I believe they may have just wanted the ice cream.</div>
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The area where the caves are have walking paths you can do during the day and at night. We did both... I still have not mastered night shots with the camera, so no fun pictures of the glow worms.<br />
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We also did an actual cave tubing tour. In doing so, got to wear these cool wet suits. It was fun, and a bit claustrophobic for the hubby to be in the caves. It was more intense than a similar cave tubing thing we did in Belize. This one had us jumping backwards off small waterfalls into our tubes, climbing around in the dark... we also learned what glow worms actually are. However, despite this new knowledge, I choose to think of them as the cute toys I had growing up.</div>
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This picture is just sunset from dinner at the place across from our hotel.</div>
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Next up we made the drive over to Lake Taupo... this is where we spent Christmas Eve and Christmas. The area was quite nice, but the weather was a bit off for part of the time.<br />
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They had some trees at the lake decorated with baubles. </div>
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The hubby was impressed by the McDonalds plane in town.</div>
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Sunset over the lake.</div>
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So here is the fun part... I am crazy and planned to do the Tongariro crossing walk on Christmas day. It is a well known day trek that takes you over volcanic craters and such... the second half has been closed due to volcanic activity, but you still do the first part to the emerald lakes and then back. In total around 6-8hrs. The morning of the walk we left the hotel around 4:30am (I'm surprised the hubby didn't kill me with this plan) to get to the shuttle location for 5:45am. It was a cool and raining morning and they gave us the option to not do the walk when we arrived at the National Park. It wasn't too bad at that point where we were, but you could tell once we started up the trail to the mountains it would be rough. Alas, it was our only day to do it and off we went.</div>
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The start of the day. In our Santa hats, smiling and ready for a fun filled day of adventure!</div>
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And a few hours later...</div>
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In between this there were some pretty cool sites.</div>
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This is pretty much where I tucked my camera away the rain was coming down so bad. Overall, it was indeed an adventure. A wet and sometimes scary adventure. At one point it seemed we were walking through a cloud on top of the crater and couldn't really see a few meters in front of us. <br />
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On our way back down the weather of course started to improve slightly and we saw a few rainbows.</div>
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Well, the weather back there was still not so great.</div>
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The day would not have been complete without an intense danger sign.</div>
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Mount Doom.</div>
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Happy post trek despite the weather... next years Christmas card?</div>
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A well earned drink later that night before an epic Indian feast in town for our Christmas dinner.</div>
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Last stop on the North Island was Wellington for the night...<br />
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Some nice scenery while driving.</div>
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They are a bit obsessed with Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit there.</div>
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Pretty busy sounding trip... and this was the more relaxed part of the trip! I will try and get the South Island post up in the next day...</div>
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<br /></div>
Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-8068843860057375512013-01-12T22:55:00.000-08:002013-01-12T22:55:40.758-08:00When being an expat stinks
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I’ve talked about the stupid things that really were not
easy for us when moving overseas… all the really trivial stuff that just takes
time to get over and adjust to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Up
until now the only really crap stuff we have dealt with was missing out on life
event such as weddings and births back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This has been hard, but really nothing compared to what we
had to cope with before Christmas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Before the move to Sydney, we both were aware (maybe more so me) there would
likely be a time while away we need to deal with more serious stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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The week before Christmas and us leaving for holiday, I got
an early morning message from my sister saying my grandfather wasn’t doing
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not a good way to start my
Monday morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did my usual run
to get to the train station on my way to my nanny job… sobbing most of the
way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few difficult days later,
he passed away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Like I said before, I knew there was a good chance something like this would
happen while away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being “aware”
did not make it any easier at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is no way to explain these types of situations except that they
suck.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being away from family,
feeling helpless, being on the otherside of the world and the sense that you
are not “there” even though everyone knows you are going through the same emotions
is a terrible situation for anyone to be in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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We talked a lot about going back for the funeral, but after
discussions with family were encouraged to stay in Sydney. I still feel
slightly torn about the decision- even through I know Grampa would have not
wanted me to fly back for it (I can hear his voice yelling at the hubby and I
for spending money on such things), and the last time I saw him I think I knew
it was a last goodbye.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My parents
in particular have the thought that life is about the time we spend and
memories we make together, not about what happens after that matter most.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were very fortunate to have him in
our lives for the time we did and for him to be involved in so many of our
major life events is priceless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Here are a few of my favorite pictures from our wedding day with Grampa…</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEs6WyNDsF-gWqOYW0YrtRJuD9-z5lFQvGxtODMCS5W2KXBiz4b8jIgP09vw947lM-kCm9YIiw1amIVZQu6Ng39NO6yWKUh4qJwJmY21-E8jJgvqiuDqN4xP7iucILWSjEGpaZdpZSrmxA/s1600/0463_RKWed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEs6WyNDsF-gWqOYW0YrtRJuD9-z5lFQvGxtODMCS5W2KXBiz4b8jIgP09vw947lM-kCm9YIiw1amIVZQu6Ng39NO6yWKUh4qJwJmY21-E8jJgvqiuDqN4xP7iucILWSjEGpaZdpZSrmxA/s320/0463_RKWed.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I wrote a short reading for the funeral.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not an easy thing for me, as I am
terrible with putting feelings down on paper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also not very easy to share with people, but I figure if I am going to be
open about the happy things in life and living an expat life, I should also be
open to sharing the tough times as well. Here it is...</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Grampa was a great man and a wonderful grandfather.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was quick to joke, always had a
comment about Boston sport teams, supportive of all we did and loved us
unconditionally.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I grew up very close to my Grampa, due in part to spending
many long summer days at his house during my childhood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have memories of him at every major
event in my life, be it dance recitals, graduations and my wedding day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am not very good at putting my
feelings down on paper, but I have tried my best to put together my thoughts on
what I will remember about Grampa and those memories I am thankful for.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Thank you for the support you offered throughout my life:
whether it was encouraging my early baking skills and always saying it was
delicious, providing me with confidence to get through my many years of nursing
school, or cheering Rikhav and I on when we decided on one of our big life
moves to Australia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course
being sure to warn us of the dangers of sharks, crocs and poisonous
snakes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you for teaching me
to be a compassionate, self-aware and caring person by living your own life in
this way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you for always
being there during the good times and supporting me through the bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you for sharing your amazing life
stories with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will cherish
all the tales you told us about growing up, experiences during the war, and all
the life and travels tales with Nana.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Rikhav and I promise to make our way over to all those islands you were
always telling us about. Thank you for the support you have always given to all
of us over the years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you
for helping to shape our lives down the many different paths we have chosen.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I also thought this reading puts it into words much better
than I ever could, how I feel Grampa encouraged us to live our lives.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Live a Life that Matters by Michael Josephson <o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days.
All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten will pass to
someone else. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to
irrelevance. It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Your grudges, resentments, frustrations and jealousies will
finally disappear. So too, your hopes, ambitions, plans and to do lists will
expire. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade
away. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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It won't matter where you came from or what side of the tracks
you lived on at the end. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It won't matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant.
Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So what will matter? How will the value of your days be
measured? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What will matter is not what you bought but what you built,
not what you got but what you gave. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What will matter is not your success but your significance. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What will matter is not what you learned but what you
taught. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion,
courage, or sacrifice that enriched, empowered or encouraged others to emulate
your example. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What will matter is not your competence but your character. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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What will matter is not how many people you knew, but how
many will feel a lasting loss when you're gone. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What will matter is not your memories but the memories that
live in those who loved you. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom
and for what. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident. It's
not a matter of circumstance but of choice. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Choose to live a life that matters. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-79248924288838234032013-01-12T21:58:00.001-08:002013-01-12T21:58:55.277-08:00Thanksgiving Down UnderWay behind on posting per usual.... this has just been sitting on my desktop since the first week in December. Life got a bit crazy mid-December (more of that in a bit) and then we have been traveling on holiday. So here we go...<br />
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Thanksgiving.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
think I’m having flashbacks to last year when times were tough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although, when I really think about it,
I think being away at Thanksgiving is the hardest time of year for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, more so than Christmas, Easter,
birthdays… I have always loved the big family dinner, no stress to buy all
sorts of gifts like with Christmas, pumpkin desserts… It is really difficult
being out of the US for this holiday as well because NOONE else knows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is like any other day for all our
Aussie and other expat friends here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Pretty much on Thursday, the hubby and I woke up, smiled and said happy
Thanksgiving to each other, then had to go about the day as usual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With the time difference, it really
wasn’t til our Friday that we knew everyone back home was all happy in their
little food comas… and it was just another day for us again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It sucks… sorry no other way to put it
really.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now, per usual with things that were and probably will
continue to be difficult while living here (ie Thanksgiving) I feel it best to
take a comic look at it all… because really it is all a bit funny in the
end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Last year was truly a hot mess.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was sad about being away for the holidays, poorly adjusted
and pretty much a miserable person to be around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite this, I decided to take on cooking a full
Thanksgiving meal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah, I did
that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first issue was finding a turkey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I said, noone is looking to roast a
turkey in November here in Australia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is getting hot, and they may have that for Christmas, but they are
not readily available in most stores.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I ended up getting a frozen turkey from Aldi- Oh the horror!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t get me wrong… I love Aldi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the first semi-affordable
market chain I found here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But,
frozen turkey!?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I should explain
myself and my family are what you may call turkey snobs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyone who grew up in Southern NH or
even North of Boston has options for good turkey farms… ours was Raymonds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They actually slap on stickers to the turkeys and turkey
pies that say “Fresh Killed Turkey” (sorry to all my vegetarian friends out
there!).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are massive and oh
so good… and I’m not sure what they put in their pie crust (I’m assuming just
lots of Crisco) but it is amazing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Needless to say, going from some fresh killed turkey to frozen from Aldi
I felt a bit Australia’d.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dandaninc/8200566533/<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The other ridiculous moment from last year was not very
funny at the time (at all actually!) but now is a bit comical.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyone who has lived away from home
knows it can be very difficult at times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not only that, but random things bring up all sorts of
emotions… it can be a song you here, smells of certain foods, taking out
certain holiday decorations…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Anyways, I had never cooked an entire Thanksgiving meal on my own and
had never been in charge of many of the family recipes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I took on my nana’s pork stuffing
that we have every year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Holy
mother, all I remember was adding all the different spices to the mixture as it
cooked over the stove and starting to sob.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sorry to those who came to Thanksgiving dinner last year, I
think some of my tears were in that sutffuing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is still so crazy to me that just smelling that cook was
able to bring back so many memories and emotions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So there I was, by myself, cooking this out of control meal
in 85 degree weather with the harbour bridge just outside the window.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah I know, life is hard… but at the
time, I really couldn’t get past any of these emotions to enjoy the awesome
experience yet.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the end, our dinner ended up being wonderful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We ran our first 5k together that
Sunday morning (dressed as Santa) and had a couple of friends join us for
dinner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One other American and a
South African who now lives in Sydney.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was lovely and really does go to show you that although holidays are
very different when living as an expat, can be great.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here we are a year later ready to do it all again (Santa fun
run included)!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know I keep
stating how much difference a year makes, but it truly has been a different
experience this time around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No
tears in the stuffing (thankfully), a few more friends to share the meal with
(now that I know I can manage it), and a new outlook on life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not to get overly sentimental, but I am
very thankful to have this opportunity to live overseas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am thankful for the overall life
experience this has given me over the past year… helping me to grow as an
individual, understand myself and the world in a new way, and for me and the
hubby to develop an even stronger relationship. More than that, I am thankful
for new friends I am able to share this experience with and old friends and
family who put up with our crazy life/travels and always make us feel they are
still there for us and ready to welcome us home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of all I’m thankful for the hubby… being patient with
my crying, occasional yelling, irrational anger regarding Mexican food, and
buying me $12 pints of Ben & Jerry’s as needed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Okay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe I
just shed a tear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But definitely
not into any of the food this time around.</div>
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<br /></div>
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This is what happens when I put the hubby in charge of taking food pics while I finish cooking... he gets it done, just after it has been devoured :)</div>
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Pumpkin cheesecake before being all plated up...</div>
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Our Thanksgiving table set up in our living room!</div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-12409441119019551862012-11-21T21:11:00.000-08:002012-11-21T21:11:00.983-08:00Sister bonding time in Australia!
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Per usual, it has been a crazy couple of weeks for us
here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My sister came to visit for
2 weeks and we have been just running around like crazy!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Meghan is our first family member to
visit and as a result we got a little carried away with planning out the time (well, I did
anyways).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will give a quick
recap of the time because we did travel a bit while she was here as well.</div>
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I have mastered getting overseas visitors adjusted to the
time difference and over jetlag.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They don’t like me much the first day, but it works.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pretty much after over a full day of
traveling through airports and sitting on a plane, I make them stay up the
whole day exploring parts of the city and then keep them up past 8pm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not fun for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But in the end it makes the rest of
their trip better.</div>
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So on my sister’s first day, we hung out around Mosman,
walked around Balmoral and went to dinner and a show at the opera house at
night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah, I told you it was
crazy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The show was pretty epic…
the Sydney Symphony was playing music from Pixar movies with movie clips to go
along with the arrangements.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was magical (my go to descriptor for anything exciting involving Disney). </div>
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We dragged her on a fun run. </div>
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Here she is with the hubby and his stache.</div>
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Then there was the Melbourne Cup.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is hard to explain to Americans (or any non-Australian
for that matter) what this day is like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I feel the closest we have is the Kentucky Derby… but it would be as if
the entire country shut down to watch it and then just eat and drink the rest
of the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Last year, as I was
still in my “negotiation phase” and not really enjoying/accepting life
here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember thinking at the
time the whole idea of getting dressed up to watch a horse race (and paying a
lot for tickets for lunch somewhere) was just crazy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fast forward one year and here I am all dressed up with my
fascinator.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Life is crazy.</div>
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If you look closely, you can see our hair pieces. I should have done a better job snapping pics of some of the really impressive ones other women were wearing... epic fail.</div>
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We also took a trip up to the Byron Bay area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was mine and the hubby’s first time
there and we really enjoyed it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Byron itself is kind of a mecca for backpackers and old school
hippies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My high school wanna-be
hippy self approved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, we
stayed just south in Lennox Head, which was a bit more low key and our speed
now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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Here are some highlights from the trip including surf
lessons, bush walks and beach time.</div>
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Walking around Lennox Head...</div>
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On one of the bushwalks we did near Minyon Falls. </div>
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Lennox Head</div>
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Pre-surf lesson. Crazy surf instructor who kept talking to us about the curse of the bambino in a super heavy aussie accent. Then we were surrounded by backpackers the whole time. Quite the experience. Meghan and I both managed to stand up. Mission accomplished. </div>
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To close out my sister’s Aussie trip, we went to Hunter
Valley for a girls night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had
the bright idea to hire out bicycles for the day to get around the
wineries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It ended up working out
okay, but I will say that there are quite a few decent sized hills in the
area!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think every other time I
have been carted around by the hubby and really paid no attention to
hills.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was fun and definitely
built up our appetite for some nice cheeses with our tastings and a lovely
dinner at night.</div>
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The bicycle hire was through Grapemobile Bicycle Hire in Pokolbin. They were great and I would highly suggest booking through them if you are planning a trip to Hunter and want to bike around (and not have to worry about someone driving!). They also run Pokolbin Brothers Wines, so you can start the day with a tasting (they have wonderful Chardonnay)! Here is the link to their website for anyone interested... http://www.grapemobile.com.au/</div>
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After making it to Peterson Champagne House. It was a bit longer a ride than I thought. </div>
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And up some of those hills.</div>
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Sorry Meghan.</div>
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Some small grapes on the vines.</div>
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View from the ride.</div>
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Sunset from the B&B.</div>
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It was strange and exciting having one of our family members
finally come visit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is so
different to have them in our element here versus us just going home to
visit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me, it was nice to have
her see what our lives are like here first hand instead of just listening to me
talk about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure I will
have more thoughts on this as I have time to process it all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Until then, I am off to gather up some
fixins for our belated Thanksgiving meal this weekend<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Wingdings;">!</span></div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-89089162420681999752012-11-04T13:19:00.001-08:002012-11-20T21:45:45.872-08:00MOVEMBERI forgot to add this to my last post, but big news... the hubby is doing Movember. What is that you ask? A charity event (pretty popular here in Australia) where guys grow out mustaches throughout the month of November to raise money for men's health. <br />
<br />
Anything to raise money for charities, particularly ones that don't typically get as much publicity such as men's health is a great thing. <br />
<br />
However, I will be suffering through his mustache growing for the month. I am a bit scared, being that we are only 5 days in and he has a pretty good shadow of a stache already! The hubby knows I have never been a fan of facial hair on him and was nice enough to have a discussion with me before he decided to do it. I told him as long as he worked really hard at fundraising, I was all for it.<br />
<br />
That being said, it is gonna be ridiculous looking in about, oh I don't know, a day.<br />
He (and myself!) would appreciate any help raising funds! As with any charity, any little bit helps!<br />
<br />
Here is the link to his fundraising page... I will add some pictures later. Prepare yourselves.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://au.movember.com/mospace/3096789">The Hubby Does Movember</a><br />
<br />
A bit overdue... Here is a pic of me with the hubby. We were seeing Coldplay here in Sydney. I'm still not happy with the stache. Luckily, the fundraising is going well!<br />
<br />
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<br />Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-53335436841534014832012-11-03T21:05:00.001-07:002012-11-03T21:05:09.203-07:00Halloween Down Under<br />
So Halloween is not a big deal many other places outside the US. It is starting to get bigger here now, but they still need to send out neighborhood reminders about trick-or-treating and putting out special signs if you want kids to stop by.<br />
<br />
Doesn't stop my love of Halloween and treats with it. I mentioned before the hubby and I planned a housewarming/halloween get together for last weekend. The initial plan was to barbeque... this was a fail as we didn't get our act together to get a grill in time (oh but don't worry, we bought it the next day).<br />
<br />
This meant a bit less picture taking for me as I reverted to plan B of food ideas and made a bunch of small appetizers and finger foods to go along with baked treats.<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">As promised: Pumpkin Cookies! I was originally planning on decorating them with maple icing to look like pumpkins, but time did not allow for such things. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><b>Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Cookies</b></i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Recipe from Susie (not sure of original source, but I have changed some stuff...)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Yield: 3-4 dozen cookies</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: Times-Roman;"><i>Ingredients</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: Times-Roman;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">2 ¼
cup all-purpose flour<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
</span>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">1 ½
tsp pumpkin pie spice<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">(or
if you are down under like me... ½ tsp ground cinnamon, ¼ tsp ground ginger,
1/8 tsp nutmeg, 1/8 tsp all spice)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">1
tsp baking powder<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">½ tsp
baking soda<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">½ tsp
sea salt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">¾ cup
butter softened<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">1
cup granulated sugar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">1
can (15 oz) 100% pumpkin (you can also use fresh made pumpkin puree... since
canned pumpkin is a bit hard to come by in Australia)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">2
large eggs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">2
tsp vanilla extract<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">2
cups of mini dark chocolate chips<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;"><i>Directions</i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Preheat
oven to 375ºF (190º C)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Combing
all dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Beat
butter and sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Beat
in the pumpkin, eggs and vanilla extract until smooth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Gradually
add in the flour mixture at low speed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Stir
in chocolate chips.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Drop
by rounded 1-2 tablespoons (I usually make them closer to 2 tablespoons with my
cookie scoop!) spacing about 1 ½ inches in between cookies on the cookie sheet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Bake
for 15-18 minutes until the edges are lightly brown.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;">- Cool
on baking sheets 3-5 minutes before removing to cool on wire rack.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times-Roman;"><br /></span></div>
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Mmm there they are on the left. My favorite cookies ever :) The candy corn ones on the right looked fun (and were many friends first taste of candy corn!) but really wasn't the best recipe, thus does not deserve a post!</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">One more yummy recipe from my baking extravaganza... I wanted something apple flavored (again going with the New England fall stuff despite the warming weather here...) and decided to do a combination of recipes to make some caramel apple cupcakes. Umm yeah... they really are that awesome.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><i>Caramel Apple Cupcakes</i></b></span><br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Cinnamon Spice Cake</i><em>Adapted from <a href="http://annies-eats.net/2008/11/25/cinnamon-cupcakes/" style="text-decoration: none;">Annie’s Eats</a></em></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Yield: 24 cupcakes</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><br />Ingredients</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature<br />2 cups all purpose flour<br />1 1/2 tsp baking powder<br />2 tsp ground cinnamon</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1/2 tsp ground nutmeg</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1/2 tsp ground ginger<br />1/4 teaspoon sea salt<br />4 large eggs<br />1 3/4 cups sugar<br />1 teaspoon vanilla extract</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"></span><br />
<div style="color: #333333; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Preheat oven to 350°F (177ºC).</span></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Times;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Prepare muffin tins with cupcake liners or oil spray. </span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Times; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Heat milk and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until butter melts. Remove from heat to cool slightly.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Beat eggs and sugar with mixer until thick ribbons form, about 5-7 minutes. Add flour mixture and beat on low just until incorporated. Add milk mixture and vanilla, and beat until blended.</span></div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Times; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Divide the batter evenly amongst prepared baking tins. </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Bake for 16-18 minutes and cool in pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.</span></span></div>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /><i><b>Apple Filling (my own recipe for applesauce slightly adapted for filling)</b></i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Yield: 2 cups</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Ingredients</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">4-5 medium sized apples, peeled, cored, and finely diced (I used pink lady)<br />1 tablespoon granulated sugar<br />2 tablespoons dark brown sugar<br />1 tsp fresh lemon juice<br />1/2 tsp cinnamon<br />1/2 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 1 Tbs warm water</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<i>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">D</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">irections</span></i><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Mix apples with sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon in saucepan.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Cook over low- medium heat for 10-15 minutes until liquid is absorbed but apples are still holding their shape. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Remove from heat and stir in cornstarch mixture.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Cool until room temperature.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><b>Vanilla Bean Buttercream Frosting (slightly adapted from my Mom's recipe)</b></i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Ingredients</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2 sticks of butter softened<br />2 1/2 cups powdered sugar<br />1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise<br />2 tsp vanilla extract<br />2-4 tablespoons of milk or cream</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />- Beat Butter and scraped out vanilla bean with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy (about 3-6 minutes depending on mixer)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Add the powdered sugar and beat well until mixture is thick and paste like. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Add extract and 1 tablespoon of milk/cream. Beat well. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Slowly add more milk 1 tablespoon at a time to get proper consistency. Frost cooled cupcakes as desired.</span><br />
<div style="color: #333333; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Putting it all together....</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- After cupcakes have cooled, use a paring knife to cut a small cone opening out of the top.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT0UVA_nvwKZf9cacjEfP_m0zesyyJwkBqYsQCMt3nnYEoPHaXbcfFrZcUqVshZyUAe3ZSdGOwMNwBuzjD484CLbLufcNXNdXmvX8HsBjyzhXts_86_kjSQ2sxC59dEdoO3OeOdQgSk7sX/s1600/IMG_1752.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT0UVA_nvwKZf9cacjEfP_m0zesyyJwkBqYsQCMt3nnYEoPHaXbcfFrZcUqVshZyUAe3ZSdGOwMNwBuzjD484CLbLufcNXNdXmvX8HsBjyzhXts_86_kjSQ2sxC59dEdoO3OeOdQgSk7sX/s320/IMG_1752.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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And there you have it.... super yummy... although this picture does not really do them justice!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9ttu3aWf1PRduEmIOGy_NxS9DLkwcztV9sATVSUAqqEZFO99Zhr16LVNY7G8629_x1-tCP5qRwT897gQBe6OUPszVq4c2-r3ehtsv_AlhYUeWwfeWVV_YbXF4ja6A3NimG8V4Pmwy1ymT/s1600/IMG_1758.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9ttu3aWf1PRduEmIOGy_NxS9DLkwcztV9sATVSUAqqEZFO99Zhr16LVNY7G8629_x1-tCP5qRwT897gQBe6OUPszVq4c2-r3ehtsv_AlhYUeWwfeWVV_YbXF4ja6A3NimG8V4Pmwy1ymT/s320/IMG_1758.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Random pic from the week... with the warming weather, we can now enjoy coffee and other more exciting drinks on our patio. Good times!</div>
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I'm off, but will have some fun posts from Sydney activities soon. My sister just arrived from the states 2 days ago and we have been running around like crazy! Show at the opera house, sightseeing, fun run... she is going to need a vacation from this vacation!</div>
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Enjoy the weekend!</div>
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Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-57812858258542949372012-10-22T22:46:00.003-07:002012-10-22T22:54:12.271-07:00Outback Adventure Time! (otherwise known as trip to Uluru)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So we finally made it to the "outback" after living in Sydney for close to 15 months! We planned this trip when we first got back from traveling back to the states in June and realized how quick our time here was going by. We left on Friday morning and came back to Sydney Monday evening. I think it was the perfect amount of time to spend in the Uluru area. Although a lot of people do a mini-road trip from Alice Springs, which would mean more time is needed. </div>
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Really the only consensus we had from people was that the trip would be expensive. The set up just makes it that way... it is in the middle of nowhere and there is one "town" that has all the different levels of resorts. However, they are all owned and run by the same company, keeping costs pretty high for everything. I will say I did not have as much "sticker shock" as I thought I would. I guess because Sydney prices are so high, I really was not phased by the cost of food in the Uluru area. Anyways, we knew it was going to be a costly trip, but it was completely worth it! </div>
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We spent most of the time exploring the national park areas- we did I think all the walks that could be done. We also spent some down time at the hotel just relaxing and reading. You can fly direct from Sydney to Uluru, which is what we did due to limited time. The airport is what you would expect on a small island- one tiny landing strip and a very tiny terminal. It is nice how quick you can get in and out of airports of this size though. Then a 10 minute (if that) drive to the hotel and you are all set!</div>
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The first day we landed and were at the hotel by a little after noon. We went to pick up food supplies for the next few days (you know important stuff like peanut butter, nutella and bread). After check in we drove over to Kata Tjuta (formerly called the Olgas). </div>
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Quick little observation/commentary here. So for those of you not in Australia and don't know a whole lot about the history here, there has been and in many ways still seems to be a lot of tension between Aboriginal people and other Australians. This particular area is not Aboriginal land again. However, this is all relatively recent when the land was "handed back" to them in 1985. When white settlers first came they had renamed Uluru to Ayers Rock and Kata Tjuta to the Olgas. Many people still refer to them by these names and have still not transitioned to calling them by their traditional names. There is part of your history lesson for the day!</div>
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Okay, so we went over to Kata Tjuta and did a short walk called the Walpa Gorge Walk. My pictures don't really do any of this justice, so you will just have to take my word that the land here is special. I have never seen any landscape that looked anything like this anywhere. It really was amazing. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYrV1LLwFaRmi_9_ZCCbzs32dU1zDJRk_68-zwOD3yRFbk7QMWpLM4QZ0Fz35HTBCL9roW9TN_E0v50j-SvW1ZvCJXombkOyW7FyOai6nF_Cbd-o3S5tZ-pYCxMLmAY3YCKpoQ0KT2Lnr0/s1600/IMG_1327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYrV1LLwFaRmi_9_ZCCbzs32dU1zDJRk_68-zwOD3yRFbk7QMWpLM4QZ0Fz35HTBCL9roW9TN_E0v50j-SvW1ZvCJXombkOyW7FyOai6nF_Cbd-o3S5tZ-pYCxMLmAY3YCKpoQ0KT2Lnr0/s320/IMG_1327.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6IfEYCYhP4-E7mRhivHs_XipQFOg_nEID7AcrcdkCCrb55nhwl0lVZAhQiCN2arQ83TLUbbGueWvNq-Y8kLlX5K_l2gAWmDyZj-NVMiIftcZn97JbkOx8jjFMpleWCd4tKDE9-nyTifIN/s1600/gorge.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6IfEYCYhP4-E7mRhivHs_XipQFOg_nEID7AcrcdkCCrb55nhwl0lVZAhQiCN2arQ83TLUbbGueWvNq-Y8kLlX5K_l2gAWmDyZj-NVMiIftcZn97JbkOx8jjFMpleWCd4tKDE9-nyTifIN/s320/gorge.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div>
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The Gorge.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmVi_XtvGEeh7NsJTnIiJL1blEWDfw7A6RgBN4PNZ0OeYsJe790U8g7T7qqQm4jIn3GO3aa25ooLE7sZ5ZTyP9sn9H6Vyy4G0gS8WIe8BtbhVNRDTPMbbtO5Yohpww-eeB5xlyQXqfsNgF/s1600/IMG_1341.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmVi_XtvGEeh7NsJTnIiJL1blEWDfw7A6RgBN4PNZ0OeYsJe790U8g7T7qqQm4jIn3GO3aa25ooLE7sZ5ZTyP9sn9H6Vyy4G0gS8WIe8BtbhVNRDTPMbbtO5Yohpww-eeB5xlyQXqfsNgF/s320/IMG_1341.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I added this more as a reminder to myself when I look back... but any time you stopped to take photos or just look around, you were attacked by flies. Not the type that will bite you, but super aggressive ones that just will not leave you alone! I stopped for the hubby to take my picture and they swarmed. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiELCqeziBKbE0wbuo9gCPXzpALdP316Ex1cb2OEHnUYabPORCxjHI4mITE0x-8uklY36YKQ1aTmTEWJN-n7Xjk9jH20JWoughcpO8BZwNU0UGACP6cC7lZm5yS1zypDGfOPYKvKPXcLmII/s1600/IMG_1366.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiELCqeziBKbE0wbuo9gCPXzpALdP316Ex1cb2OEHnUYabPORCxjHI4mITE0x-8uklY36YKQ1aTmTEWJN-n7Xjk9jH20JWoughcpO8BZwNU0UGACP6cC7lZm5yS1zypDGfOPYKvKPXcLmII/s320/IMG_1366.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This photo was from the hotel the next day as we were heading out. These are early days here as it does get hot. Even though it is just spring time now, temperatures were over 100 each day. They suggest being done with any bush walks by mid-day. Some of the longer walks, like the Valley of the Winds that we were doing this day will even close at 11am when the temperatures are too high.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Ej7tkZr9FzsAi6GBkUWd8hLDCTLbZEy5morK0J8v-gFKQpx0mc_4BJzsJI-ECITzLxUgqwNh5SCYS5RWQE1FOZSuJix-MhbJSuVARSX180NuYPHUFgHuQdZCQvjn7O0l7UzP-8yFVs7C/s1600/IMG_1375.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Ej7tkZr9FzsAi6GBkUWd8hLDCTLbZEy5morK0J8v-gFKQpx0mc_4BJzsJI-ECITzLxUgqwNh5SCYS5RWQE1FOZSuJix-MhbJSuVARSX180NuYPHUFgHuQdZCQvjn7O0l7UzP-8yFVs7C/s320/IMG_1375.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here we are on our way! This was the first lookout point on the Valley of the Winds and where it closes later in the morning on hot days.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3S8Xd9dO3mT7s-jcZG5Ao26WXA82q1PRaSRDlqkUS9Zqf8_PrMokkAz2TG4_6F8RTRzgFSHCxqQuerwd1nFIsmdRnlYvbBLSLhyuJurZXBDfKQ9DvJeM4mxyrEVx02CPhccAaGnSGcVSr/s1600/IMG_1390.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3S8Xd9dO3mT7s-jcZG5Ao26WXA82q1PRaSRDlqkUS9Zqf8_PrMokkAz2TG4_6F8RTRzgFSHCxqQuerwd1nFIsmdRnlYvbBLSLhyuJurZXBDfKQ9DvJeM4mxyrEVx02CPhccAaGnSGcVSr/s320/IMG_1390.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Random bird.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsYTI5Nxe7XgXpxKX5_0L0kfA0c03bjKWSlN3FayQ_LLfIxOg3Ztx-7K4MfThwyaoGwn35V-m5LXpPmI6U7Zxh-Uhl4F6WiTIcEgH0hIA8FTgnI-3JTv93rvgBqtBnCxd_cBOMhnzv288M/s1600/IMG_1404.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsYTI5Nxe7XgXpxKX5_0L0kfA0c03bjKWSlN3FayQ_LLfIxOg3Ztx-7K4MfThwyaoGwn35V-m5LXpPmI6U7Zxh-Uhl4F6WiTIcEgH0hIA8FTgnI-3JTv93rvgBqtBnCxd_cBOMhnzv288M/s320/IMG_1404.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here was the second lookout point of the walk. This isn't a really challenging walk by any means, but there are a couple tricky parts where you are just walking up steep parts of rock. This was at the top of one of those slightly tricky parts of the walk. Worth the effort.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc74UqUdnuGxNO1_EQhp7wRAFr1XXgKJY_c9EuXamcSqhqaoezUmXottAsV9kkl55Xb17IDh2_qqVP_t5v6PnuGBNqRy5pH86bGGZJ2fXGnev3OH9_GwpbKRpAULaxt1d1chv4Z5nn8Rft/s1600/day1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc74UqUdnuGxNO1_EQhp7wRAFr1XXgKJY_c9EuXamcSqhqaoezUmXottAsV9kkl55Xb17IDh2_qqVP_t5v6PnuGBNqRy5pH86bGGZJ2fXGnev3OH9_GwpbKRpAULaxt1d1chv4Z5nn8Rft/s320/day1.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div>
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The hubby- ready for a day of hiking in the heat.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFBzlnLf-jfMUKVsQrhTajq8wHAIYrWHzKTCAgmH-nsosvj_xSmJ7cqhfzdbY26CAD1xrRw8QyoeZsx6qgBqtLFOcFkM6zVBNcP3D60kCWXmDNUuKjnf4jxiMmMRI8yxNaQJRmwrD3KvVJ/s1600/IMG_1420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFBzlnLf-jfMUKVsQrhTajq8wHAIYrWHzKTCAgmH-nsosvj_xSmJ7cqhfzdbY26CAD1xrRw8QyoeZsx6qgBqtLFOcFkM6zVBNcP3D60kCWXmDNUuKjnf4jxiMmMRI8yxNaQJRmwrD3KvVJ/s320/IMG_1420.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3lToeKEh4b04v02kzEEL2N_b1ol4GoMAMVTHtFleuky3a-30PNnhurGR9Wp8kV319S-Tdg4s-hbnQOOG4PDDOKTE9lxeokri3Xk1LdOc5IhugKWRWJqsjGB4PYCLf2MuZH-P8Jb0pswyE/s1600/IMG_1421.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3lToeKEh4b04v02kzEEL2N_b1ol4GoMAMVTHtFleuky3a-30PNnhurGR9Wp8kV319S-Tdg4s-hbnQOOG4PDDOKTE9lxeokri3Xk1LdOc5IhugKWRWJqsjGB4PYCLf2MuZH-P8Jb0pswyE/s320/IMG_1421.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Oh. Hi kangaroos.</div>
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Sunset at Uluru. There were bushfires all around while we were there and it made the sky look really hazy. </div>
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The second full day we spent at Uluru. We started with the Mala Walk where if you go early in the morning, there is a free guided tour by one of the park rangers. It was great to have a bit more of a discussion about the importance of the land and history (besides what we had read about at the cultural center).</div>
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One comment about pictures of Uluru... because it is a sacred site, there are many parts of the rock that you are not allowed to photograph. None of these pictures are from those areas.</div>
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The hubby contemplating life.</div>
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Another soap box commentary by yours truly. The picture above shows the climb up Uluru. This has been open for years and due to many reasons remains open today. It is incredibly disrespectful to the Aboriginal land owners for this climb to be done. This land is considered sacred and it is just in bad taste to climb it. We discussed it during the morning tour and because of pollution from people making the climb up the rock, all the watering holes in the area are now contaminated with ecoli and many of the animals that had lived here are now gone. The government is planning on closing the walk I believe she said in 2015, but they are trying to get this expedited. Part of this is by proving less than 20% of visitors to the park actually climb. By not climbing, you are in fact helping to get this closed sooner. Okay off the soap box now :)</div>
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Sunset at Uluru- better than yesterday.</div>
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Our last night we did stargazing, which was incredible. It ended up being a private tour because they initially thought it would be too hazy from the smoke. It was hard to see along the horizon, but otherwise beautiful clear sky. I am not skilled enough to have good night pics with the camera yet :( I'm working on it.</div>
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The following morning we woke super early to drive out and watch sunrise. Really pretty spectacular with all the smoky haze.</div>
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Yay! Outback adventure accomplished. This will be a busy week for me. Prep for our late housewarming/halloween party (which means if I am not too rushed while baking, several recipes) and then my sister is visiting the following week! So much fun stuff going on I can hardly contain myself! </div>
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Hope everyone has a great week and check back soon for some more updates on life and fun halloween recipes.</div>
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Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-52310082233610812412012-10-22T20:49:00.000-07:002012-10-22T20:49:50.920-07:00Jervis Bay weekend and other Sydney adventuresA bit behind as usual...<br />
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I have had this entry all set to post for a couple weeks and just did not get around to it! <br />
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Here is the quick recap on Jervis Bay... Monday was Labour Day here in Australia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This meant road tripping it down to
Jervis Bay with some friends for the long weekend. It was a great time relaxing and enjoying some time outdoors with friends. </div>
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The hubby and I had never been to the Jervis Bay area and we were very excited. It is only a few hours south of Sydney, but is one of those places that just feels worlds away. </div>
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Here is a speedy view of the weekend via pictures!</div>
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We left after everyone finished work on Friday night and wanted to get on the road. So we stopped about half-way there to get some food and look what we found. Thats right. The Outback in Australia. And yes to answer your questions, we got the blooming onion and they have free refills. Awesome.</div>
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This is the beach next to Hyams Beach (can't remember the name) these supposedly have the whitest sand in the world. We all debated how they can actually establish this fact and did not come to any real conclusions. There is a high amount of quartz in the sand that makes it so white. It was in fact a very white sand, but I couldn't tell the difference between that and other "white sand" beaches I have been to on islands and such. Still very beautiful though.</div>
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Another beach picture while I was wandering around.</div>
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We all did a nice long bush walk through the national park area on the first day. These are a couple pictures I took along the way...</div>
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My obsession with all sorts of signs continues...</div>
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Oh, hey dolphins... no big deal just swimming along near the beach.</div>
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Another shot of the dolphins passing by...</div>
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Flower on the beach</div>
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We got a bit Australia'd here... we drove over to see a lighthouse thinking we would see a nice old lighthouse perched on a cliff. Nope we got ruins of a creepy lighthouse with some old stories of a cursed family who used to live there. Yeah, scary.</div>
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Pre-kayaking in the bay. I didn't take my camera with me. But we did see some more dolphins while we were kayaking... until a site seeing boat scared them away from us. </div>
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Last stop before heading home was a place called Sanctuary Point. It was more of a nature reserve type area than a beach. I really liked it... kinda felt like I was in the White Mountains of NH or something. Just very peaceful...</div>
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Sunset as the weekend came to an end...</div>
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A few other random things from this quick getaway to this past weekend we spent in Uluru (that's coming up in the next post!)...</div>
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MasterChef Live- Took a cooking class on Ricotta Hotcakes and Pears. Super Yummy.</div>
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These are from Maroon 5... Not very good pictures of my trying to zoom from my iphone... alas. This was my second time seeing them live and it was awesome. I think the hubby is a fan now.</div>
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Here is our friendly neighborhood bat. He has moved into the wires across the street. I like him. I think he scares the possums and loud birds away :)</div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-24124918956262694602012-09-27T19:21:00.000-07:002012-09-27T19:24:56.953-07:00Change of Seasons, oh yeah and some new recipes<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ah yes the change of seasons. Still throws me off living in Sydney being that it is
backwards! Although I will say
this spring feels much more like spring-time to me… maybe I am doing a much
better job of just accepting and going with the flow. Thinking back to last year, I was a hot mess around this
time. To be fair, I was in the
midst of the culture shock/wallowing in self-pity phase of my life. During this time I cried over lack of
pumpkin treats, foliage and BC football games. It did not feel right to be in September/October and not be
taking out cozy sweaters and putting away summer dresses. I was angry that it was so different
here.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">What a difference a year makes my friends… right now life is
good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Must have something to do
with being at the beach as the weather gets better!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> We have a long weekend coming up and are heading to Jervis Bay with some friends. The hubby and I have never been, even though it is just a couple hours south of Sydney. Should be a lot of fun... even if the weather is a bit cool like they are predicting we will still do some bush walks and kayaking. One of the beaches there apparently has the whitest sand in the world. </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Like I said, life has gotten really good here in Australia with all our crazy adventures and good friends. Not to say that I don't get homesick or miss things about the US, but I feel like I am much better able to appreciate things here. I was too busy this week to get a lot of good pictures around the house and new area, but I will do a quick post of that next week sometime. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Anyways, I don’t want to go on and on about all that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As promised (umm months ago) I will try
to be better about recipes and such.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I think I mentioned that a friend had bought me a cookbook by Bill
Granger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For those who don’t know
the name, he is one of the big name chefs here in Australia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Sydney he has several nice
restaurants known particularly for the breakfast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The cookbook is great.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Filled with lots of traditional/modern Australian cuisine type
stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have tried a bunch of
them over the past few months and will be posting several over time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First up oat, pear and raspberry
loaf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brace yourselves for this
one, because I completely adapted the recipe to my taste.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The original is amazing, but not
necessarily what I would be eating on a daily basis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have made it with raspberries, blueberries and
strawberries and have used all different apples and pears (pretty much whatever
I have on hand).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It works well
with pretty much everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
version is a bit healthier with less sugar, butter and using wholemeal
flours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Strawberries are in season
now and have been on sale so that is what I used today along with some pink
lady apples. This is good timing for baking to bring stuff along on the road trip (which may be a bit of a long drive with holiday traffic).</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Okay here we go...</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6IWvXWgqzEkO8m-wrc8A84eSz7QuJ9IPZBKUmsOdHD-d_hxxsvZ5R7bh3FyQSjnM3kkqqjp2mav2ppSawpvETe23vvyhOxQ7jKcgFkHZSoQYCIMU-TTfGdmx-4sag5sVcNaARGAPFFBd/s1600/IMG_0902.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6IWvXWgqzEkO8m-wrc8A84eSz7QuJ9IPZBKUmsOdHD-d_hxxsvZ5R7bh3FyQSjnM3kkqqjp2mav2ppSawpvETe23vvyhOxQ7jKcgFkHZSoQYCIMU-TTfGdmx-4sag5sVcNaARGAPFFBd/s320/IMG_0902.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Most of the yummy ingredients- missing honey though oops.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5TMunLSBighXUQRi3qFUykcuDefCBMBCvQsjg_9dch3M8ih9pNqrMWKMHJEFEiuwKM2_MhoQf1feICCnw_VGkILdLl6fWsY0RFsxRiKTBnd0rNrTO_v6WRV-DiKFiDgo8z0VwLL4NF0Or/s1600/IMG_0905.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5TMunLSBighXUQRi3qFUykcuDefCBMBCvQsjg_9dch3M8ih9pNqrMWKMHJEFEiuwKM2_MhoQf1feICCnw_VGkILdLl6fWsY0RFsxRiKTBnd0rNrTO_v6WRV-DiKFiDgo8z0VwLL4NF0Or/s320/IMG_0905.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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All the ingredients for the crumble ready to be mixed up.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAItPjZ0qqJhz2tUSV5SDX2VFPD6b9yTuFCnCvvtuEa_mEDlk-_kJg9Cn45yzsMCe9Hv7Xzvs03h7qZ7ptHW1mCqin2km_KVaAsYBYQtjIAB0oIofOJ8st307B1QObOUx5eXa4vgVhZ8q/s1600/IMG_0906.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoAItPjZ0qqJhz2tUSV5SDX2VFPD6b9yTuFCnCvvtuEa_mEDlk-_kJg9Cn45yzsMCe9Hv7Xzvs03h7qZ7ptHW1mCqin2km_KVaAsYBYQtjIAB0oIofOJ8st307B1QObOUx5eXa4vgVhZ8q/s320/IMG_0906.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div>
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Perfectly mixed and crumbled!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaqE6XeybX-6C7FxOQ8wWttcso2bonfJ4xFowL-9kk7xp1GB8ya6ccKJ2qGKkm-tFMWIQU2yKo9ny_xONhmdda45yN7AmEQhCFIep2xeh42s7Ah1efAR49EQytzv7srFdAd_zftdJlIEQN/s1600/IMG_0909.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaqE6XeybX-6C7FxOQ8wWttcso2bonfJ4xFowL-9kk7xp1GB8ya6ccKJ2qGKkm-tFMWIQU2yKo9ny_xONhmdda45yN7AmEQhCFIep2xeh42s7Ah1efAR49EQytzv7srFdAd_zftdJlIEQN/s320/IMG_0909.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div>
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The oats getting all ready to go... these make this recipe taste like a delicious bowl of </div>
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oatmeal in bread form.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq30ZLlbYPP4CnVrEiZvtz_9Yv8KNX51d14uSuFQHsmnRYsYfOwIWDzCOscc73u_EYU2xkx4ggEOloDDUjoTQGpnfKato2ziFRBIkeQi0952WYSzpCmTcyZd0CKHvmPIbD-_mXUCpkYSg1/s1600/IMG_0915.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq30ZLlbYPP4CnVrEiZvtz_9Yv8KNX51d14uSuFQHsmnRYsYfOwIWDzCOscc73u_EYU2xkx4ggEOloDDUjoTQGpnfKato2ziFRBIkeQi0952WYSzpCmTcyZd0CKHvmPIbD-_mXUCpkYSg1/s320/IMG_0915.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></div>
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Mixing up all the ingredients for the batter.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj19xkokc3QZuiLVCzka5L13fA-9EJSmIIiR9Z5KzW2gaE_0pAFWrgvSjWw0_8_dQnN1p0S2XPOaosdu3ptuYgcOieytu5igjgc_ACZ3Ur2C7FpqAbayYlsprI2XqbJrlVyjIcM9B0O-GVT/s1600/IMG_0921.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj19xkokc3QZuiLVCzka5L13fA-9EJSmIIiR9Z5KzW2gaE_0pAFWrgvSjWw0_8_dQnN1p0S2XPOaosdu3ptuYgcOieytu5igjgc_ACZ3Ur2C7FpqAbayYlsprI2XqbJrlVyjIcM9B0O-GVT/s320/IMG_0921.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Half the batter already in the pan topped with all the chopped fresh fruit... now ready to top off with remaining batter and crumb topping.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI_NulhiX5nKKrtkWzawy1pbRUsMUWL4ARgLjJ50cS_KqK-DMsDcFeOPQAEs2HFrKVAm9p5tSn0-x7KmmRy_VbeZh3IaVm4eGlno8c5uyK-jN-nTnJfk7RacgBhCoXWCHLDO37LQqJOjDs/s1600/IMG_0927.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI_NulhiX5nKKrtkWzawy1pbRUsMUWL4ARgLjJ50cS_KqK-DMsDcFeOPQAEs2HFrKVAm9p5tSn0-x7KmmRy_VbeZh3IaVm4eGlno8c5uyK-jN-nTnJfk7RacgBhCoXWCHLDO37LQqJOjDs/s320/IMG_0927.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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One of the muffins straight from the oven... I need to make sure they tasted okay before bringing them on our road trip! Okay fine... I had a couple... but just to make sure they came out fine. And they did :)</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><i>Oat, Apple and Strawberry Loaf </i></b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">(or muffins depending on your mood)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Yield: 2 loafs or 2 dozen muffins</i></span></div>
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<br />
<i>Ingredients</i><br />
<i><br /></i></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Topping</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">½ cup rolled oats</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2/3 cup brown sugar</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">¼ cup whole meal flout</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 oz chilled butter cut to small pieces</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Batter</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2 cups rolled oats</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3 cups boiling water</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 tablespoon canola oil</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">½ cup brown sugar</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">½ cup honey</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2 eggs</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 tablespoon vanilla extract</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 ½<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>tsp ground
cinnamon</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3 cups whole meal flour </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 tsp sea salt</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3 ripe apples (or pears) finely dices</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 ¼ cups berries fresh or frozen (thaw and drain frozen
berries and chop up larger berries such as strawberries)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Grease muffin or loaf tins with cooking spray</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Make Topping</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Combine
all ingredients in a bowl and mix together with hands until well incorporated
and small clumps begin to form.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Set aside.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Make batter</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Place
oats in a bowl and top with boiling water.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Let sit until luke warm in temperature.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Mix
the oil, sugar, and honey in a bowl.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">With
an electric mixer add the eggs one at a time, beating well until mixture
slightly thickens.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Add
the vanilla.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Sift
flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon to bowl and fold to combine.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Drain
any excess water from the oats and fold them into mixture until just combined.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Spread about ½ to 2/3 of the mixtures into prepared muffin
tins or loaf pans. Top with fruit/berries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Top with the remaining batter and then sprkingle the topping
over as evenly as possible.</span></div>
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- <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Bake loafs approximately 1 hour 10 minutes.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Bake muffins approximately 35-40
minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.</span></div>
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Recipe adapted from Bill Granger's book Best of Bill<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I also baked these beauties today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Recipe for them is below as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not sure where I got this one initially… it was in my recipe
box and I remember making them probably in high school and college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most likely something from my mom… but
no source to quote on where it is from exactly! Typically recipes similar to this are called Monster Cookies. You can switch out the chocolate chips for anything else... butterscotch or peanut butter chips, other small candy etc. Options for that stuff are kinda limited here down under so I stuck with the M&Ms and mini chocolate chips.</span><br />
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And yes, I had to taste test these too. Don't worry, they are delicious as well.</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><i>Monster Cookies</i></b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Yield</i>: 24 large cookies</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Ingredients</i></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 stick
butter (softened)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 1/2 cup brown sugar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1/2 cup sugar <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2 cups
of creamy peanut butter <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3 eggs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1/2
tsp vanilla <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2 tsp baking soda<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1/2
tsp salt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">4 1/2
cup quick oatmeal<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 cup M&Ms<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 cup mini chocolate chips<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Preheat oven to 375ºF and prep cookie sheets with parchment paper or cooking spray.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Cream
together the butter, sugars and peanut butter with an electric mixer until
fluffy and creamy. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Add the eggs one at a time and vanilla mix until just combined. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Add the
baking soda and mix well. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Fold in the oats and then the chocolate chips and
M&Ms. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Use a cookie scoop or large spoon to make rounded balls
of dough. Press down slightly on dough to flatten.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Bake for 10-12 minutes until slightly brown on outside.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Cool on parchment paper.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Wow that was a lot of recipe posting for one day. I am off to pack up for the weekend away. Hopefully the weather is good and I am back next week with lots of fun pictures and such. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Until next time, I leave you with this gem of a picture of me and Uncle Glenn from our trip back to Boston in June. Uncle Glenn knows all too well my love of all things pumpkin (and how much I miss all the pumpkin spice goodness being away) and picked up some canned pumpkin for me. Have I mentioned before you can't get that here?! Anyways, here is the ridiculous picture of us with a can of pumpkin. I have perfected some pumpkin recipes coming up next week :)</span><br />
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<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-74110707800110513042012-09-17T01:25:00.001-07:002012-09-17T16:18:12.387-07:00Disney World Awesomeness and 1/2 Marathon Take 2So, even though we were just in the states in June and have been crazy busy since then, we went back. Long story short, the hubby had a work training seminar they wanted him to go to and last minute we planned a trip back. Because of the ridiculously long travel time, I normally would not have wanted to go myself. Really, there was only one thing that would get me to do the trip... yes that's right, a trip to Disney World (oh and also Harry Potter land at Universal). <br />
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Indeed I am like a child that has never grown up. I still love all things Disney... I am especially partial to Disney World. Because of this obsession, we packed up yet again and did the close to 20 hours flying to get to Orlando. It was ridiculously hot and humid while we were there (an almost welcome break from the cooler weather here... although it is warming up now). Typical Florida weather... although not very conducive to my 1/2 marathon training. It resulted in some pretty early morning runs... even then at 6am it was still close to 80 degrees and felt like I was swimming after about 30 seconds outside due to the humidity. Really Florida, you are killing me. Although, being up early has its benefits... that peacefulness when there is really no one else out and about, less cars on the road to worry about and best of all no lines when I go to get pumpkin lattes or ice coffee at DD or Starbucks post run! Side note, I got my full fill of all things pumpkin including my favorite coffee drinks, pumpkin scones and bagels with pumpkin cream cheese (I don't even remember Dunkin' Donuts having this before, but it was amazing). Sorry for the pumpkin tangent. I also wouldn't have seen this if I didn't get up early... so it's all good.<br />
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Overall, it was a great stress free trip. The hubby had a few training days, but we arrived early to do some days at the parks, meet up with friends and enjoy a bit of a mini-vacation.<br />
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Here are some photo highlights from the trip. I will warn you now, brace yourselves for the amazing t-shirt display throughout the trip. Yeah, I am that awesome.<br />
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We started out spending the weekend at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. It has been a while since we have been to either park, and the whole Harry Potter area was new for us. <br />
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Umm... the hubby just likes this place. We didn't actually eat here or anything... just a picture out front.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPoYQ-ziCH6v9AGlTDHHSANwYM5eWY2ylAXY_cgiKvhOIxljBgNdpyDHoR_rW7mTge66NuGPtbNXW2NMmX3OK3y1ZywOpb6WBooEGDBl1r-8fVh6IqwR8o9eFfBDN82bezwmd9_C4u7ogq/s1600/harry.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPoYQ-ziCH6v9AGlTDHHSANwYM5eWY2ylAXY_cgiKvhOIxljBgNdpyDHoR_rW7mTge66NuGPtbNXW2NMmX3OK3y1ZywOpb6WBooEGDBl1r-8fVh6IqwR8o9eFfBDN82bezwmd9_C4u7ogq/s320/harry.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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First look at the Harry Potter area... exciting!</div>
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More Hogsmead stuff...</div>
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And Hogwarts...</div>
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We decided we liked these little guys from Despicable Me. They were all over the place... apparently we are late jumping on that bandwagon. </div>
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A random Popeye statue. </div>
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Next up we had all the Disney parks... here are a few fun pictures from that part of the trip...</div>
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And here my obsession with pumpkins continues! I had never been to the parks this time of year so I was a bit excited...</div>
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It was also an excuse to practice with all the different camera settings...</div>
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Okay last one...</div>
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Woo group photo with Donald at the Mexican pavilion at EPCOT.</div>
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Yeah, we are that awesome.</div>
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Oh yeah, even better.</div>
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The hubby snapped this picture. I thought it came out good... even though I hate this ride with a passion.</div>
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Last night... belated anniversary dinner and drinks at Jiko. Good times.</div>
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That brings me up to speed to this past weekend. Woo! The blog is finally up to date again. So, this past weekend I ran my second 1/2 marathon. Who knew I would become such an avid runner here down under! Anyways, it went really well. I knew what to expect this time, so I had an idea of how hard to push myself and still make it through. I cut off more than 6 minutes from my first half... not bad if I do say so myself. It was a great run overall as well... fantastic sunny 60 degree morning, the run pretty much started going over the harbour bridge and finishes up at the opera house. Pretty cool experience. Highlights: Bruce happened to start playing on my playlist while running the bridge and the finish line at the opera house. Legs are super sore today, but well worth it!</div>
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Okay... everyone is up to date on our lives now. This is good because there is a ton of stuff coming up in the next few months with travels and visitors! Per usual, I will try to be better about keeping this more current :)</div>
Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-28065777192771117322012-09-16T19:20:00.003-07:002012-09-16T19:20:54.689-07:00Post-US Trip Recap and "Winter" in Sydney<br />
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Delayed yet again- I feel like all my posts should start this way :/ <br />
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Here is the quick recap of life in Sydney in the weeks after our first trip back to the states…<br />
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First we had some visitors from the states stay with us for a few weeks in July. It is really nice to have good friends visiting Australia… it gives us a chance to experience things again with them and appreciate how amazing it is here. As with anything, you start to forget how great things are when it is just your day to day life. We did lots of fun outings to the zoo, wine country, all around Sydney and drove around to spot some kangaroos in the wild. Good times indeed.<br />
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A bit blurry, but you can kind of make out the kangaroo there. </div>
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Sorry about the poor picture quality (iphone from a distance), we have our new camera that I have been </div>
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playing around with. This will remedy the issue of bad pictures!</div>
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Lovely picture of the girls during our wine tasting adventure.</div>
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Next up, we spent a weekend in the Blue Mountains for Christmas in July- Woo! It actually was quite chilly out at night and in the mornings… actual freezing temperatures cold! I don’t think we have experienced those temps for a while, except for a short time while in Tasmania. It really did make it feel a bit like Christmas. We had a proper Christmas dinner, a tree and a fire going at night! Those who know me well, know that I am obsessed with baking Christmas cookies. Since I didn’t do too much baking last Christmas here (80 degree heat with no AC does not mix well with baking!) I went a bit crazy for this weekend. Sorry no recipes to go with these yet, things were a bit too hectic at the time to take pictures of the process.<br />
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Some pictures with the new camera. This was at Wentworth Falls.</div>
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Not sure where we were exactly here... But a pretty picture anyways.</div>
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The hubby and I in front of the Three Sisters.</div>
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Gingerbread biscotti. These were ridiculously good. I will be making them again and will definitely post the recipe.</div>
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The required Christmas Sugar Cookies.</div>
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Just some of the other cookies I made... I'm telling you I went baking crazy! Yes, those on the right are peanut butter kisses that a lot of people back home make for the holidays. Long story with these ones, but pretty much no one besides Americans like Hershey's Chocolate. </div>
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So even though I have a stash here, I filled it with homemade chocolate-peanut butter ganache instead, as to keep all our friends from the UK happy :)</div>
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The other reason things have been slow with blogging was our move (I know, excuses and more excuses!). We have relocated to our new home for the next year. This move was big and super time consuming. We are in a house right by one of the nice beaches in the Sydney area. It makes me feel like a real adult living in a house versus an apartment! So, the move was crazy in part because it is an old home that was in somewhat of disrepair from the prior owners. I repainted pretty much the whole interior (except for our “junk room”- yeah we are obnoxious and have that much space now). This process took over 3 weeks pretty much full time for me. Completely worth it though. It really made the place look much better. Then we had to fill up the space with more furniture than we had… this of course meant quality time (eeks) at Ikea and searching gumtree for finds. This is still a work in progress. <br />
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This doesn't really show the space well, but this was about half way</div>
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through painting the living room area.</div>
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I will say that I have been feeling over the past 6 months or so that life here is really good. However, since moving, life here is amazing!!! I don’t know if it is just being right at the beach and walking there, having a space that feels more like “home”, or just liking the area… but the hubby and I can not stop talking about how great life is. Clearly this is a good thing ☺<br />
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Weekend bushwalk from the new place.</div>
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View when finishing our morning run on the new route along the beach. </div>
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Pretty great way to start the day!</div>
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Next up for big accomplishments was City2Surf. This was the longest run for the hubby to date. The run goes from the CBD out to Bondi… 14km with a good uphill portion in there. I pushed him for training for this one… he was a really good sport, but I don’t think he was very happy with me (especially dragging him out on cold mornings while in the Blue Mountains!). The race day itself was a lot of fun… it is the biggest run in Australia in terms of numbers of people running (they claim it is the world’s largest run) so there is a really good atmosphere throughout the run. I was super proud of the hubby for training for this one, since distance runs are not his favorite… this was one of the big checks off the Australia “To Do” list for us. Probably going to stick with the shorter fun runs now though… next up, repeat of the Santa Fun Run in November!<br />
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View from running with the crowds down towards Kings Cross.</div>
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Pre-run picture...<br />
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Post-run. Still standing :)<br />
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Okay, those were the highlights of those few months. Here are a couple other pictures we took with the new camera over the past few months...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MMYRpAWiDZsnB-NbDlUaXWbwfRrp_FPK4mjgqF-tY_jqsb76p97rmZFUnAaks9OeGt-kfkyPxTUSGiHGPZM9HP1CsEayicbTQ30yk6AP1b087ez9CiccBwYsLXh78oGhE-zjwtWa7s8E/s1600/flower.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MMYRpAWiDZsnB-NbDlUaXWbwfRrp_FPK4mjgqF-tY_jqsb76p97rmZFUnAaks9OeGt-kfkyPxTUSGiHGPZM9HP1CsEayicbTQ30yk6AP1b087ez9CiccBwYsLXh78oGhE-zjwtWa7s8E/s320/flower.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I was trying to be all artistic with flower photos.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtkV8xImNEXueIUtkm_FXKFxQHamkZg8aywpQp34vPzk9Zmklmlq9MqoLNO5pYK0lo67zCgTIohYiPpyYWrl59fiZ3qbYsIHE2hJB0DrwjuyvwrA0mkLOKMb-JKWNQ235tv7LaYG_ZA9ds/s1600/newcamera2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtkV8xImNEXueIUtkm_FXKFxQHamkZg8aywpQp34vPzk9Zmklmlq9MqoLNO5pYK0lo67zCgTIohYiPpyYWrl59fiZ3qbYsIHE2hJB0DrwjuyvwrA0mkLOKMb-JKWNQ235tv7LaYG_ZA9ds/s320/newcamera2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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On a walk along Lavender Bay<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZkEKoj4N9Ytf2_mjOAzcM6ozKudPv1pxgjl3yvFa5tP7TvXOamEsz6ua-gJuVBQBv9OkYAAJdriPLxMxhHUp7t-wwqlmbMA52dg5YBRq6zB3sh4e6vD5FN-Z6EWSjKNjTdl_ZTeeaZgZ/s1600/sunsetnewcamera1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVZkEKoj4N9Ytf2_mjOAzcM6ozKudPv1pxgjl3yvFa5tP7TvXOamEsz6ua-gJuVBQBv9OkYAAJdriPLxMxhHUp7t-wwqlmbMA52dg5YBRq6zB3sh4e6vD5FN-Z6EWSjKNjTdl_ZTeeaZgZ/s320/sunsetnewcamera1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Sunset<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLLYhZUqx1NlXf3UvF5xlI2a2NaNwgK-eZW1g4_ZMeR9EmKPSmE7IvF6t8Ge7KV1-fQo2GS_xW4fQcy8swX-hKEoMspcRI7ODGUB_n-dYv4beZbp7559ca3g6gtEPm3CdesI01vTch17bH/s1600/comeonman.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLLYhZUqx1NlXf3UvF5xlI2a2NaNwgK-eZW1g4_ZMeR9EmKPSmE7IvF6t8Ge7KV1-fQo2GS_xW4fQcy8swX-hKEoMspcRI7ODGUB_n-dYv4beZbp7559ca3g6gtEPm3CdesI01vTch17bH/s320/comeonman.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This one is my favorite. The end of a day at the Taronga Zoo and this poor guy had clearly had enough... The hubby has called it "Come on Mate" :)</div>
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Next up, a recap of trip #2 to the states…</div>
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<br /></div>
Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-76511355614938480702012-08-26T04:25:00.001-07:002012-08-26T04:25:19.687-07:00Blogging fail.<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<i><b>First trip home…</b></i></div>
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So yeah… I have come to the conclusion I am a failure at
blogging… not for long though!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
am finally back on track with some form of a schedule and hope to get back in
to the habit of 2 blog posts a week!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(That is the goal anyways!)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had an epic trip home and then were
Australia’d with busted internet when we got back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Followed by visitors for 2 weeks, moving to a new house for
our second year (that I spent 3 weeks of full time painting and cleaning prior
to the move) and then internet was turned off for 3 weeks to “transfer” from
the apartment to the house (Australia’s). Thankfully we are up and running
again <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span>
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It is hard to fully recap the trip home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was, as expected full of ups and
downs and very emotional.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had
prepped myself to be more overwhelmed than I actually was which was to my
benefit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although, the things that
really stuck out in my mind and got me thinking were much different than I
thought would effect me… lets just get to the quick recap and hopefully my
ramblings will start to make a bit more sense <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span></div>
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We arrived at LAX after our long direct flight from Sydney
to find ourselves with a flight delay to Boston.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not a huge deal, as it gave us more time to grab a quick
bite to eat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What better way to
welcome ourselves back to the States than lunch/dinner (whatever time our
bodies thought it was at the moment) than Chili’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Woo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brings me
back to my high school days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I
digress… </div>
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I can’t exactly remember the last time we had gone to
Chili’s, as the one in Natick/Framingham had closed years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do however fondly remember the south
west egg rolls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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So we go and quickly get seated for our sampling of fried
appetizer goodness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then something
crazy happened… we were re-introduced to American service.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Holy crap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I swear to you all, I thought this was the most amazing
service we have had at a restaurant in months (and yes I am aware it was at an
airport Chilis).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A waitress
checking in to make sure everything is okay,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>free refills on my iced tea, the waitress just getting me
more iced tea without having to ask?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yup, it was good to be back.</div>
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<i>Back in Boston/The 603</i></div>
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We got to my parents much later than anticipated due to the
flight delay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that didn’t stop
us from eating some Tripoli pizza, having wine and a long catch up chat with my
parents and brother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good
times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even though over 10 months
had gone by at that point, it felt like no time had past since we were last
sitting in the kitchen talking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Very strange.</div>
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Part of the reason for the timing of our trip was to see my
brother graduate from high school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was supposed to be the following day, but was delayed due to
rain/thunderstorms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We took
advantage of the extra time by running some errands to pick up stuff on our “to
buy in the states” list.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Really a
modge podge of food stuff we can’t easily/cheaply get in Sydney (ie peanut
butter M&Ms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know, the
important stuff).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did a quick
Target run with my sister.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reverse
culture shock #2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How did I forget
about the size of stores like Target/Walmart?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not to mention the sheer magnitude of options for
everything… You would have thought I had never lived in the States based on how
I was reacting to my excessive options for cereals, candy, sunscreens…
everything really.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">All of these observations led to one of my internal debates which I will get to in more detail at a later time… but really as Americans we do have the luxury of excess in most aspects of life. There is a part of me, which loves having so many options when I am at a store. It certainly makes things easier than it can be in Australia where I have trouble finding things I need sometimes. But walking around Target that day, I questioned myself a bit regarding the need for quite so many choices.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzantwx5ec_FesCOgo2A0i4dX0bnORR0WW2aYy_YdsgIB6NdnSTj2cU0xu88ZuyhIOQiHb7YdLVaNbmgjBk5rG2z6rXobGDNdF-aeHsign7uy3xipqmVjj9BxM8-SeTkPvWK7bQ0_jBTHR/s1600/darrell+lea+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzantwx5ec_FesCOgo2A0i4dX0bnORR0WW2aYy_YdsgIB6NdnSTj2cU0xu88ZuyhIOQiHb7YdLVaNbmgjBk5rG2z6rXobGDNdF-aeHsign7uy3xipqmVjj9BxM8-SeTkPvWK7bQ0_jBTHR/s320/darrell+lea+.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> Kind of random photo, but this is liquorice made here in Sydney and it is</div>
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cheaper at Target in Salem, NH... go figure.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <i>Run with Katelyn/Graduation</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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Quick back track now to the brother’s graduation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because they pushed it back a day, it
was a bit chaotic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my quest to
get other’s in my life more into running, I had conned one of my sisters into
doing a 10K with me up in Portsmouth, NH.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This was her longest run and she did awesome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a pretty fun atmosphere for the run as it was during
the Market Day festivities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Running through certain parts of neighborhoods there was almost a block
party vibe with people out cheering and drinking… good times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is a picture of us pre-race looking
good… yes, we did coordinate outfits. <br />
<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCzRUHQuieeNWXq6kfMMJySYZT4lUA4tYHVDTeJwK0DixVl_PUXBE09bD-42pYa-HtZOJ3l8BFYZMzNGtS1YzHu9ctbQV5UKtFU5Z5xwN-E6Hjkn_GSl0R82Sy99xlzcGp7-6WkgJVX_5G/s1600/meandkatelynportsmouth10k-6:12.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCzRUHQuieeNWXq6kfMMJySYZT4lUA4tYHVDTeJwK0DixVl_PUXBE09bD-42pYa-HtZOJ3l8BFYZMzNGtS1YzHu9ctbQV5UKtFU5Z5xwN-E6Hjkn_GSl0R82Sy99xlzcGp7-6WkgJVX_5G/s320/meandkatelynportsmouth10k-6:12.bmp" width="239" /></a></div>
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Post-race we went off to the graduation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was really nice to be home for this
as we have missed so many important life events over the past year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmZ-kYBZCLIsRZLS8Sc1IY5eqvnXZtsubsaMBXCgTnQXRXzQnO3WLQGs9LabPV4yePmTOcTsCLFBkEd2zKV3HpaiQzt6w8tEtIkDI6yAqNi43NvGpMyJK8okMSOIsGLZgQTYx2zeeI3gG7/s1600/graduation.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmZ-kYBZCLIsRZLS8Sc1IY5eqvnXZtsubsaMBXCgTnQXRXzQnO3WLQGs9LabPV4yePmTOcTsCLFBkEd2zKV3HpaiQzt6w8tEtIkDI6yAqNi43NvGpMyJK8okMSOIsGLZgQTYx2zeeI3gG7/s320/graduation.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> Nice picture of the family after graduation. Katelyn and I were looking </div>
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very festive in our running gear.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Touring around Boston</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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The following week was spent running around like crazy
people. I did in fact feel I needed a vacation from this vacation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is hard being back for such a short
time and feeling like there are so many people to see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think I was a bit worried that I
would feel like a tourist coming back and not at home anymore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That thought disappeared the first day
we drove into Boston for appointments and meeting up with friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It still feels like home.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfSTzxEBMBl-jgUuxdQQ6nRbhTOVoanXI3p58nYlocH97mKLfd2g07Yw4tje0mxct0NIc3SepEVgi2pEJbL7XCItrHruln0tb7IY8L_l21VE18fY9AfcYFW5ELx4-OFajFY7tp9up07P1b/s1600/out+with+sisters.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfSTzxEBMBl-jgUuxdQQ6nRbhTOVoanXI3p58nYlocH97mKLfd2g07Yw4tje0mxct0NIc3SepEVgi2pEJbL7XCItrHruln0tb7IY8L_l21VE18fY9AfcYFW5ELx4-OFajFY7tp9up07P1b/s320/out+with+sisters.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Meghan took Katelyn and I out for a birthday dinner at the Melting Pot. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">Fun sister bonding time :)</span></div>
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<i>Jackson</i></div>
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<i><br /></i>
There were several “happy places” on the trip home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This area of New Hampshire is really special… I spent
holidays here when I was young, we got married at an inn there… it was really
relaxing and great to get away for a few days here.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnVGxap_UnvXJ-5hDQgHN1k8_1KZG7nkNDPUcl_YgcgNr5D1w1PLsVCbIkaoZDdpakmLz0joQJP44bnC01aGzneIpWxBqbT5iRJma4zczhV26WRpmSYywWv-YkSLwgLb65wqokcRqq2cEu/s1600/hike.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnVGxap_UnvXJ-5hDQgHN1k8_1KZG7nkNDPUcl_YgcgNr5D1w1PLsVCbIkaoZDdpakmLz0joQJP44bnC01aGzneIpWxBqbT5iRJma4zczhV26WRpmSYywWv-YkSLwgLb65wqokcRqq2cEu/s320/hike.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
<br />
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A little bit of a nature walk in the White Mountains. </div>
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<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
This is a picture using our new camera from Jackson Falls. </div>
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<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> Oh Jackson Bridge. Makes me think of our wedding weekend.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Random thoughts post trip</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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Things have really changed in my views of life and the world
(not to get too deep here).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
didn’t realize how different I am now after living overseas for a year until I
was dropped back into our “old life”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Sometimes it just felt strange to be there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was like really nothing has changed for people at home
since we left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know that is not
entirely true… friends have gotten married, people have kids, moves to new
homes, new jobs, etc… but something seemed stagnant in a way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not to say it was a bad thing
entirely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think it will be easy
to jump back to life as we knew it next year, but I am realizing now there are
A LOT of things I love about my life in Sydney.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I suppose there will be more talk of all this throughout the
year as I have more time to process it all.</div>
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<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> My obsession with road signs continues. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Wedding/Disneyland</i></div>
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The trip capped off with our good friends wedding and a stop
over in LA (side trip to Disneyland!) to see the brother-in-law.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both super fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Seeing that</span> this post is so long, I will just show some fun pics (not to mention there will be more Disney soon…)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo75WNBjNqnQQpXdxnuWbYgXfQYxJEvnNQmgeUpCyvv17kfjZvjTp8yvZn2pjGE29HgB5gm5dVuCDlpbGEeGcvhHZARDEOPgcgpsvXNsw8bqnP9c9i5WcAWtnQ8htA8umM8raxoVEsjbMa/s1600/raajik+view.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo75WNBjNqnQQpXdxnuWbYgXfQYxJEvnNQmgeUpCyvv17kfjZvjTp8yvZn2pjGE29HgB5gm5dVuCDlpbGEeGcvhHZARDEOPgcgpsvXNsw8bqnP9c9i5WcAWtnQ8htA8umM8raxoVEsjbMa/s320/raajik+view.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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My brother-in-law is trying to rival our views in Sydney from his apartment :)</div>
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Alright... one more post to come to update on life in Sydney since returning... should be up in the next 2 days. Then my goal is one quick recipe post before we head back to the states next Friday. Yeah, you read right... back to the states. Hubby has a work training session. Lucky for me it is in Orlando. That means Disney World. And yes, that is enough reason to do the epic flight again. More to come on that next time!</div>
<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-23090710093453457622012-06-06T06:05:00.002-07:002012-06-06T06:05:59.326-07:00Birthday Weekend Recap<br />
<b><i>Birthday Weekend Recap</i></b><br />
<br />
Well, it has been a super busy week for us… we leave tomorrow for our first visit back to Boston! It is surreal that the time is finally here after talking about it for months. The whole trip is a jumble of emotions, for me especially. I am really excited to see everyone again, but it is a bit nerve wracking to be going back for the first time. It is hard to put into words unless you have lived overseas for any length of time. But it changes you. In ways that are hard to explain and put into words unless you have gone through the experience yourself. I feel like the hubby and I are different people than when we left home in many ways… with a much different view of people and the world. I’m not sure how this will impact relationships and my outlook on my “old life” back home… I suppose we will find out soon!<br />
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Needless to say, there will be no recipes this week. Hopefully in the future once I have a better “blogging” routine, I will have a stockpile of recipes to post. But for now, there is nothing due to my lack of organization- Sorry!<br />
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As a quick recap of the past week, I have ushered in the final year of my 20s in Sydney. What a great weekend and way to start it off! We have been recently spoiled here with fantastic weather… at least in my mind ☺ Others seem to find the high 50s/low 60s and sunny to be very “chilly” and are bundled up like we would be if it was below freezing. This however, is perfect weather to be out and about enjoying this beautiful city. The weather was like this til this weekend… where sadly, it was a bit of a washout. The only downside was not being able to do as much outdoorsy things that the hubby initially planned… but that is just something to look forward to when we are back from the states. <br />
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<i>Some highlights from the weekend...</i><br />
<br />
Cappello. My favorite pizza place. So good I can’t even handle it. Those who know me well are aware of my obsession with good pizza. This did not work out well the first 4 months in Sydney when we couldn’t seem to find many good restaurants at all. Luckily, I found this one day while on my way to nanny and things are right with the world again! Here is their website for those in the Sydney area: http://www.cappellopizzeria.com.au/index.html Just don't go telling <i>everyone</i> about my hidden gem :)<br />
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Confession... this picture isn't actually from Cappello, but the pub across the street. I thought they deserved some attention too after making an amazing cocktail for me. You know it is going to be good when the bartender spends 10 minutes just mixing everything up for you!</div>
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Adapting to life here was really hard for the first 6 months or so. Now we have a great support network of friends that are really just amazing people. That’s what made my actual birthday so great. I thought we were just getting together for a low key day of relaxing with another couple we are friends with, but it was actually a surprise get together the hubby set up. It was pretty amazing to think that after just 10 months in Sydney we were able to form some great friendships and feel so comfortable and adjusted with our new life here.<br />
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Becky baked me a cake. It was awesome. Chocolaty awesomeness.</div>
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Flowers from the hubby ☺</div>
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The last highlight of the weekend: A new cookbook (courtesy of Becky and Craig)… along with a new mission. So, I had already been thinking to myself , I should have a bit more structure to the recipes I post. I was thinking that I would cook my way through one of my cookbooks (I know this is not exactly original in the blog world). My initial plan was to do a lot of baking and finally get through more of the recipes in Flour by Joanne Chang. This book is amazing! She is the owner of several bakeries in the Boston area and they have the most amazing pastries (the sticky buns are unbelievable!). Now there is a change of plans… I have Bill’s cookbook with tons of amazing looking Aussie recipes! It also has other stuff besides just baking. There we have it- at least one of these recipes each week along with one other recipe of my own! That is the goal- we will see how it pans out. <br />
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One last fun site this week included this full moon rising over the city. Not the best picture. However, have no fear, when I am back from the states I will have my new camera which hopefully means better pictures of the city/travels and baking!<br />
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My last full day here in Sydney was definitely bitter
sweet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you had told me when we
were 3 months into our time here (possibly the lowest point for the hubby and
I) that I would be sad in anyway to be leaving for an extended period of time,
I would have laughed in your face.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Yet here we are and I am a little sad to leave, even for a short
time!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lucky for me I spent the day
with Zacharoo<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(the little guy I
nanny for) and even got to take him to story/song time at a local library.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Think lots of parents (or other
caregivers like me) singing all sorts of nursery rhymes and babies flying all
over the place to the different moves that go along with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, this was super awesome <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Wingdings;">:)</span></div>
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I am off to get a hopefully sound sleep in preparation of our almost 21 hours of flying starting tomorrow morning. Plenty more stories of our adventures back in the New England area to come. See you in a few weeks Sydney!<br />
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<br /></div>Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-2483221673793142702012-05-31T17:03:00.001-07:002012-06-01T23:02:36.997-07:00Time for change... and some baked doughnuts<br />
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<i><b>Time for change... and some baked doughnuts</b></i></div>
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Well this week has flown by as usual... It seems there have been a lot of
exciting changes this week for some reason. Exciting piece of news #1: officially accepted into the
doctorate program at UMass. #2: We
are officially moving to the beach this August! It was not our original plan to have to uproot after a year,
but due to some changes in how taxes impact expats in Australia it makes the
most sense. The more we have
talked about moving, the more exciting it is becoming (and yes, I am aware most
would love to “have” to move and be living near a beach). #3 the hubby signed us up for City to
Surf- Woo! Time to get him into
running form for August. For those
not in Sydney, City to Surf is a fun run they do here each year from the CBD to
Bondi Beach. I am super excited
because we did not have the chance to do it last year since it was right after
we arrived in Sydney. #4 took my
first zumba class (courtesy of Liz) and it was awesome. I’m sure I looked a bit ridiculous but
it was awesome none the less.</div>
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Future view from the new house... I will get some better pictures after the move.</div>
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Well, writing that all down makes me jam packed with change
the week has been. Life’s changes seem to always make me think of seasons (I
know that sounds cheesy). This is
still a source of confusion for me here with the backwards seasons from what we
are used to in New England. It is
currently getting dark by 5pm and cool… think Octoberesque weather. Since it is currently going into June,
this just doesn’t seem right.
Although, this weather is quite condusive to baking and making all sorts
of comfort food stuff in my crockpot… always a good time. <br />
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As I mentioned before, I am obsessed with my mini-doughnut pan I bought at
Kmart of all places (Kmart is a story for another post I believe). I think I am a bit behind on this
trend, but I love it anyways. I’m
not going to lie and say these taste anything like an actual fried doughnut-
they don’t. But they can be a
really good baked treat anyways.
Because it is feeling so much like fall I’ve been having cravings for
all those typical autumn flavors. </div>
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I’m thinking pumpkin, ginger and strong spices… and of
course, maple. Well, let me tell
you maple will win in my mind most of the time! Spiced “doughnuts” with maple glaze it is! Hmm… but the downside is the hubby does
not share my obsessive love of all things maple. Because I am such a good wife, triple chocolate “doughnuts”
for him. First up, the chocolate
batch!</div>
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<b><i>Triple Chocolate “Doughnuts”</i></b></div>
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Since I only have one of these cute little doughnut trays
(and essentially we are making slightly dense muffins in the shape of
doughnuts) extra batter can be made into either muffins or baked in a loaf pan.</div>
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<i>Yield</i>: 12 mini doughnuts and approx 6 muffins or small loaf
with remainder of mixture</div>
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<i>Ingredients</i></div>
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2 cups flour (plain or whole wheat would work well)</div>
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½ cup sugar</div>
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½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder </div>
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1 tsp baking powder</div>
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1 tsp baking soda</div>
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¼ tsp nutmeg (optional)</div>
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1 cup milk</div>
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¼ cup honey</div>
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2 eggs</div>
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1 ½ tsp vanilla extract</div>
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2 ½ tablespoons canola oil or melted butter</div>
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½ cup mini chocolate chips</div>
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<i>Glaze</i></div>
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3 tablespoons cocoa</div>
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2 tablespoons butter</div>
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1 cup powder sugar</div>
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2-3 tablespoons milk</div>
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Sprinkles for decorating</div>
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- Preheat oven to 325º F (160º C)</div>
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- Mix all dry ingredients together in medium bowl</div>
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- Beat with a whisk all wet ingredients in large bowl.</div>
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- Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture in 2 batches. Mix until just combined.</div>
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- Stir in chocolate chips.</div>
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- Here is the fun part.
Fill a ziplock bag with mixture and cut a small opening in the
corner. Pipe filling into greased
doughnut and muffin pans. Fill
approximately ¾.</div>
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- Bake 10-12 minutes for mini-doughnut pan, 14-16 for muffins.</div>
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- Let cool completely.</div>
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- For the glaze: melt butter and mix with all other
ingredients well. Dip doughnuts
into glaze and let cool to set. If
you want to put sprinkles on top, do so right away before the glaze hardens.</div>
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The line up of ingredients</div>
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Get the dry and wet ingredients ready...</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Mix it all well.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Ready to bake...<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i><b>Spiced “doughnuts” with Maple Glaze</b></i></div>
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<i><b><br /></b></i></div>
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This is a combination of an old gingerbread recipe and apple bread that I had from my grandmother's recipe box, with a slightly healthier twist.</div>
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<i><b><br /></b></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Ingredients</i></div>
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1 cup whole wheat flour</div>
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¼ cup brown sugar</div>
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½ tsp baking powder </div>
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½ tsp baking soda</div>
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1 tsp cinnamon</div>
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1 tsp ginger</div>
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½ tsp nutmeg</div>
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½ tsp allspice</div>
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1/3 cup applesauce</div>
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¼ cup molasses</div>
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1 egg</div>
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3 tablespoons milk</div>
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1 tablespoon canola oil or melted butter</div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Maple Glaze</i></div>
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2 tablespoons maple syrup</div>
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2-3 tablespoons milk</div>
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1 ½ cups powder sugar</div>
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1 tsp maple extract (for a stronger maple flavor, but
vanilla would work as well)</div>
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Sprinkles for decorating</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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- Preheat oven to 350º F (175º C)</div>
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- Mix all dry ingredients together in medium bowl</div>
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- Beat with a whisk all wet ingredients in large bowl.</div>
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- Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture in 2 batches. Mix until just combined.</div>
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- Fill a ziplock bag with mixture and cut a small opening in
the corner. Pipe filling into
greased doughnut and muffin pans.
Fill approximately ¾ full.</div>
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- Bake 10-12 minutes for mini-doughnut pan.</div>
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- Let cool completely.</div>
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- For the glaze: combine all ingredients well. Dip doughnuts into glaze and let cool
to set. If you want to put
sprinkles on top, do so right away before the glaze hardens.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3dWMdoEOl01iEv9ACHZYMD2GMtyYgLQrA6E9BXIRi-trWu0jGebz0SOOsvEefEssjjD_VwJlXxiAQriFosk2s1DhZEKkDLhZ83H3XmLOOthOUMR4v5fgYToqhs8NuSc98QBVg9Azubrrs/s1600/final.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3dWMdoEOl01iEv9ACHZYMD2GMtyYgLQrA6E9BXIRi-trWu0jGebz0SOOsvEefEssjjD_VwJlXxiAQriFosk2s1DhZEKkDLhZ83H3XmLOOthOUMR4v5fgYToqhs8NuSc98QBVg9Azubrrs/s320/final.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Ah the final products. Much to my dismay (and my stubborn love of all things autumn and maple) </div>
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I actually enjoyed the chocolate best.</div>Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-996594830499895662012-05-27T19:55:00.001-07:002012-05-27T19:55:47.199-07:00Vivid Sydney<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<i><b>Another lovely weekend</b></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Eeks! Sorry about the delay of the last post...<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> it is now one day later and I have my new weekend update. </span>I will try and be more on top of
things!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Last week was just a bit
strange.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was great to have a
bit of a break from running after all the training leading up to the half-
marathon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You would think it would
have given me a lot more free time to catch up on things, but I don’t think I
was really that productive!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Although, I did finally have time to catch up with a bunch of friends
over lunches and coffee dates, which was quite nice particularly with the nice
weather we are having.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi37NqD2pbvL2Ptzs0LgvT5zMQjfLFIgxHf1PFJufdkpeUK0xLr0ys7T0wWq57abA7zsPYbbtDbhJejhCWV9y8rr6l8JuZiQkbPAvFC2No5npRDMUvfKPNlQ2aaz1Gi58zuX1_t6vYhgdkp/s1600/waiting.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi37NqD2pbvL2Ptzs0LgvT5zMQjfLFIgxHf1PFJufdkpeUK0xLr0ys7T0wWq57abA7zsPYbbtDbhJejhCWV9y8rr6l8JuZiQkbPAvFC2No5npRDMUvfKPNlQ2aaz1Gi58zuX1_t6vYhgdkp/s320/waiting.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Nice days around the harbour waiting for the ferry.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I did manage to finally make it to Paddy’s Market in
preparation for the trip back to the states and stocked up on all sorts of
random souvenir things to give to people back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hopefully I have a bit more structure to life this week
since there actually is a bunch of stuff I need to get ready before we fly
back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will also try to put up a
few new recipes… I used my fun little doughnut pan last week to try some new
recipes out and the hubby approved so get ready!</div>
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<br /></div>
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Thankfully, this weekend was much more relaxed and stress
free than the previous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Friday we
had a low key date night at a Thai restaurant we had never been to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thai in general here in Sydney is
pretty awesome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Completely
different than what I thought was Thai food in the US… that I think was more
“Americanized” and this (usually) is the authentic stuff here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyways, we have one of these
Entertainment Books that you buy through charities and then saves you money at
a bunch of restaurants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The place
was called The Tall Lemongrass in Crows Nest, and I highly recommend it if you
are in the area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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Saturday we spent with friends at their place for a birthday
celebration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I have mentioned,
living here we have become close with a lot of other expats from all over the
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This particular group was 3
other French couples, a Belgian and us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Good times!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has been
wonderful throughout our time in Sydney to spend time and learn about other
cultures and what their Australian experience is like in comparison to our
own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have found it has given me
a different perspective on life to see so much commonality with people who come
from different backgrounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
typical French fashion, the day included lovely breads, pastries, champagne and
foie gras (which, much to my dismay, I realized through our French friends
serving it to us on several occasions, I do in fact love).</div>
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<br /></div>
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On Sunday night we had a Living Social voucher for a harbour
cruise it at night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is a
festival of sorts going on in Sydney for the next few weeks called Vivid where
they have all sorts of interactive light exhibits along with other
shows/events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The highlight for a
lot of people is the light displays on the Opera House and other
buildings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We figured it would be
a good way to see everything (and an excuse to be on a boat!).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since we have been disappointed many
times with the Living Social and Groupon vouchers in Australia, we didn’t have
high hopes for the boat and dinner itself.</div>
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We ended up being pleasantly surprised!<span> </span>It was a really nice boat with large windows and pretty solid buffet style food.<span> </span>Our friends who took the same cruise on Friday night gave us the inside scoop to get there early to get a table to eat at- so us and another couple started up the que at the pier and it worked out well.<span> </span>We even met the owner while waiting!</div>
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<br /></div>
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The cruise itself was fantastic and spent most of the 2 ½ hours in and around Circular Quay so we could enjoy all the lights.<span> </span>Here are some of the nicer pics I took… although it is hard to fully appreciate without seeing all the different moving projections.<span> </span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
View of the skyline. A lot of the buildings had different images moving with the lights.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCVlS8kvvB-Q1oaXeWLAXysZdO8L2O8p0t5i1bTUuvzWea-6kqWphCamDJfm1tDrBNKPR1U4jFMwIj_TnpkqAhQyOQIKXkw_xcn3yOoIBIv0-D7r7JlTPSj35IJpT38k2_0jEEK-G75tjJ/s1600/operahouse.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCVlS8kvvB-Q1oaXeWLAXysZdO8L2O8p0t5i1bTUuvzWea-6kqWphCamDJfm1tDrBNKPR1U4jFMwIj_TnpkqAhQyOQIKXkw_xcn3yOoIBIv0-D7r7JlTPSj35IJpT38k2_0jEEK-G75tjJ/s320/operahouse.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
The Opera House with light projection. I was hoping for a bunch of really bright colors... it was a bit more modern art style this year than last apparently. Still pretty exciting to see like this though.</div>
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Me and the hubby enjoying the views from the top deck of the cruise.</div>
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<br /></div>
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When the cruise was done, we got out and walked around Circular Quay. It was kind of a mad house with huge crowds everywhere. However, it was completely worth weaving our way around everyone to see a lot of the exhibits.</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
This was my favorite! Angler fish mini cars that drove around... so fun. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Me and all the hoards of kids seemed to love it :)</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg5wKswoNc0IsjhTajLdxOu4yIH_GRETGd3VAl1_fnp5TDLMj9khxhnD1gkk6s_1y3TqPf1BR4Zyw3dPFijklyVPCrROlkRy5fsPCdzZ8cSHZTgdhGh5m4VaPsnNETvMykawFZfcYTdyc5/s1600/chandelier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg5wKswoNc0IsjhTajLdxOu4yIH_GRETGd3VAl1_fnp5TDLMj9khxhnD1gkk6s_1y3TqPf1BR4Zyw3dPFijklyVPCrROlkRy5fsPCdzZ8cSHZTgdhGh5m4VaPsnNETvMykawFZfcYTdyc5/s320/chandelier.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Really pretty chandelier suspended over the harbour.</div>
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<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Yes, this is in fact a giant tick-tack-toe game.</div>
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Not sure what this is... I just thought it looked nice with the buildings lit up in the back.</div>
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This was one of the best displays on the the Museum of Contemporary Art building. </div>
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Now we are on to our last full week before our first trip
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m starting off right:
first, by staying on top of posts for the blog (not a repeat of last weeks
delay!).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second, sitting here
writing said blog post, with a free smoothie (excellent promotion: free
smoothie at Boost today just for being named Kelly- woo!) and looking at this
view.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga7ZZbdqoYIuogrZs4ORGBqGGbpqo27bEB03p_5R-cXgLg33o70OeWcpTEMhtxpRhkOrtxHucWlTe5hh2EdC5_C7ALE2DRIZ_I17jNvfHfb2fGLUj4HvWIJATz-gTBHlhHmjTn6eXhmlUZ/s1600/boost.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga7ZZbdqoYIuogrZs4ORGBqGGbpqo27bEB03p_5R-cXgLg33o70OeWcpTEMhtxpRhkOrtxHucWlTe5hh2EdC5_C7ALE2DRIZ_I17jNvfHfb2fGLUj4HvWIJATz-gTBHlhHmjTn6eXhmlUZ/s320/boost.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Not a bad start to the week :)</div>
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<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-54506923499662485762012-05-26T22:19:00.000-07:002012-05-26T22:19:08.635-07:00Gelato, Star Wars and Half Marathons Oh My!<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Gelato, Star Wars and Half Marathons Oh My! (A weekend recap
a week late- a second )</div>
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I insisted on a low-key start to the weekend to be as
mentally and physically prepared as I could be for the half-marathon on Sunday
(a VERY patient and understanding hubby went along with my demands).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We cooked dinner in Friday and Saturday
night and had a pretty relaxing day on Saturday spent running some errands (fun
times as always) and at the Maritime Museum here in Sydney.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The museum was surprisingly good with
lots of different exhibits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
have been on a bit of a museum kick so to speak lately and have a new obsession
with free tours that they all seem to have (who knew).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The few free tours we have done have
been great- usually volunteers who take you around the exhibits explaining and
telling stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Much more
entertaining having someone explain everything to you!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
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Yes. This was a highlight of the tour. A boat made entirely of beer cans. And yes, it is mostly VB.</div>
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We capped Saturday night off watching
Star Wars Episode 1, as we have decided to re-watch them all in order (yeah, we
really are that awesome). The hubby kept falling asleep... so I guess it was actually just me watching Star Wars :)</div>
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Moving onto Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I did not sleep well at all… due mostly to the stress and anticipation of the
run I imagine, and was up bright and early at 4:55am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Made our way down to the CBD for a 6:45am start time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was crazy how many people were
there… even waiting for the train to get to Town Hall was very crowded.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Something like over 13,000 were
registered, which was a new record number for this half marathon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Crazy pants indeed.</div>
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<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> Here is where I was before the start of the race. The yellow group was the last to go, so there is a good view of the masses of people in front of us.<o:p></o:p></div>
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To be honest the whole morning went by in a blur.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not sure if it was just being in “the
zone”, being very tired or a combination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was nervous about not pacing myself well so I started off pretty slow,
which worked out well as I didn’t really get tired the whole time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a really nice run through the
city starting and ending at Hyde Park.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Pretty much you run down towards the Opera House, under the Harbour
Bridge, through Pyrmont and loop back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was a cool start to the morning (good for me!) and the rain held off
until after the run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My only
complaint was because there were so many runners, it was hard at times to get
around people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There seemed to
really be no rhyme or reason to where people were running in the streets (ie
slow runners were not to one side, there was no side really to pass on
either).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This of course is a minor
complaint. The hubby surprised me about 1/2 way through the race. It was fun/exciting to see him at that point and gave me a boost of energy for the rest of the run!</div>
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It was a crazy feeling to actually finish the run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Partly due to it being the first long
race I have done, partly because it seemed like such a crazy goal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you had told me a year ago I was
going to be living in Australia and running a half marathon I would have
thought you were crazy!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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The day continue<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">d with Brekkie with some good friends, wine tastings in the
rain, and gelato (at the casino, much to the delight of the hubby).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It worked out quite well where the boys
went to play craps and the girls got to avoid this by going for Gelato Messina
(the best gelato in Sydney as they always have peanut butter based options!).</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We capped the weekend off with Thai food and Star Wars
Episode II.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is by far the
worst of all 6 movies and I am glad to be done with it!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now that the run is complete, I actually
have time to think/plan for our US trip in less than 2 weeks!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure it will be a busy week with
minimal if any posts… until next weekend anyways :)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Oh and in case anyone was curious about my time:</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
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Net time (actual running time start-finish) 1 hr 48 minutes
26 seconds (not too shabby for my first one if I do say so myself)</div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<!--EndFragment--></span><br />
<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-6382625739426361012012-05-18T01:30:00.001-07:002012-05-18T01:30:07.427-07:00Homemade Granola<br />
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Adventures in homemade granola</div>
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That sounds more exciting than the tale of my granola making
trials actually has been. I had
tried to make granola several times years ago and failed (miserably). Overcooked, soggy tasting, not crunchy
and overly sweet… you name it and I had an issue with it. I guess there are a lot of really bad
recipes for granola out there. I
started trying again in Australia due to the lack of granola options here. They seem to favor muesli instead. I should switch since this is probably
a healthier version (just oats, nuts, dried fruit- usually not toasted and no
sugar). However, I cannot give up
my delicious morning granola and yogurt.</div>
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As a result of my stubbornness, I pretty much ended up
combining ideas from several recipes to come up with my own. I did not want too much sugar or oil,
but still wanted the granola crunchy with some sweetness to it. I think I have the perfect base now for
all the different types of granola I make! This recipe is super easy and you really can’t mess it
up. Just give it a go and you
won’t be disappointed. (For those
who didn’t catch that, “give it a go” is one of my adopted Aussie phrases!)</div>
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Today I made 2 batches... feeling highly motivated! One of the Maple Almond and one Tropical Mix (see after the basic recipe for more details about specific ingredients in these).<span id="goog_1689404019"></span><span id="goog_1689404020"></span></div>
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At some point I promise to get better about taking pictures as I am baking/cooking. For now these will have to do :)</div>
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Ready to go into the oven! </div>
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Yum a couple of batches of granola (they look slightly empty because I packed some up for people).</div>
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<i><b>Basic Granola Recipe</b></i></div>
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You can adapt most of this to use whatever types of nuts,
dried fruits and extract for flavor.
You can add in seeds or shredded coconut as well. The possibilities are endless
really. You will save a ton of
money by not buying the pre-made stuff from the supermarket and have a tastier
and healthier version to boot!<br />
<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /></div>
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<i>Ingredients</i></div>
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2 cups rolled oats </div>
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¾ cup chopped nuts</div>
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½ cup chopped dried fruit</div>
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3 tablespoons pure maple syrup OR honey</div>
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3 tablespoons brown sugar</div>
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2 tablespoons canola or other vegetable oil</div>
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½ teaspoon vanilla extract</div>
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<br /></div>
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~ Preheat oven to 275°F (135°C) and spray a large baking sheet
with oil</div>
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~ Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl (oats, rice
cereal, nuts and fruit)</div>
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~ Combine all wet ingredients in a small bowl (maple syrup,
brown sugar, canola oil and extract)</div>
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~ Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to
mix well</div>
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~ Spread mixture evenly over baking sheet and put in oven</div>
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~ Bake 60 minutes, stirring mixture every 10-15 minutes to
make sure it cooks evenly. </div>
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~ Cool on baking sheet and store in an airtight container
for up to 2 weeks. </div>
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<br /></div>
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* You can also incorporate ½ cup puffed rice cereal for
added crunch and/or ½ cup oat bran, which will make it, form more
“clusters”. Make sure when adding
these they get mixed with the dry ingredients.</div>
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Here are some of my favorite combinations for homemade granola…</div>
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<i>Maple Almond (My favorite! Tastes like fall in New England)</i></div>
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~ Maple extract, almonds and a mixture of dried blueberries
and cherries</div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Tropical Granola</i></div>
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~ Vanilla extract, macadamia nuts, mix of dried mango and
banana (I use dried bananas, not the “banana chips” you can get at most
supermarkets, but I would imagine those would be tasty as well) along with 3
Tablespoons unsweetened coconut flakes.</div>
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~ This one is pretty amazing with Chobani pineapple yogurt!</div>
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<i>Cherry Almond</i></div>
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- Almond extract, almonds, with a mix of dried cherries and
dates</div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Fall Pumpkin Granola</i></div>
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~ Vanilla extract, almonds, and raisins</div>
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~ You will also add 2 tablespoons of canned pumpkin to the
wet mixture and ½ tsp each of ground cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger to the dry
mixture</div>
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Enjoy!</div>
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<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Sunset while on a little late afternoon stroll with the little guy I nanny for. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Not a bad way to end the day.</div>
</div>Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-65912375765255485652012-05-18T00:11:00.002-07:002012-05-18T00:12:05.160-07:00The coffee story<br />
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It has been a pretty hectic week here! Lots of last minute stressing about the run on Sunday along with my usual stuff has kept me pretty busy. However, I feel like I need to be sort of on top of doing these posts since I have so much to catch up on! I have been thinking of how to best recap some of our early
Sydney memories… I just figured I would start off some of my posts with these
little gems of stories for everyone’s entertainment <span style="font-family: Wingdings;">J</span>
(Also with some random photos, like my little/quite large spider friend here)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0o57JvDXba0X3SnldeY9-4sE2PlHPbLWDjiCkgOhttzPMzmplIhu3THmLiD1jOwWK5jnnVCDaH9Tl_DU3HPt1B6YEbuAHlnx8dZpLORmjm4v_n9KNm2WOV_lAZ3eTG6Otgn3WuQX_pnV/s1600/IMG_1561.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0o57JvDXba0X3SnldeY9-4sE2PlHPbLWDjiCkgOhttzPMzmplIhu3THmLiD1jOwWK5jnnVCDaH9Tl_DU3HPt1B6YEbuAHlnx8dZpLORmjm4v_n9KNm2WOV_lAZ3eTG6Otgn3WuQX_pnV/s320/IMG_1561.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Moving on to my random story. Those who know me understand my coffee obsession… change
that… coffee addiction. Really
though, it is the first thing I grab in the morning. I don’t do anything before I have a cup of coffee… sad, but
true. I have also converted the hubby to a coffee lover.</div>
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In Australia, I feel that I am viewed as a lowly American
when it comes to coffee. One of
our first “Australia’d” moments came our first morning in Sydney. We were dropped off at the hotel we were
staying at for the first 2 weeks and promptly needed coffee. Both the hubby and I are big coffee
drinkers back home. We have this
amazing Bunn coffee maker we use in the states that brews essentially the full
pot in like 3 minutes or something crazy.
Anyways, we were in need of our caffeine fix. <br />
<br />
Our driver had suggested the café just outside our hotel… how convenient for us
we thought! In hind site, we
should have been prepared for the shock of everything as soon as I saw that a
bowl of fruit with yogurt was something ridiculous like $14. But, we were tired and didn’t really
care at that point. So the
waitress comes over (probably just because we looked like tourists, as we know
now most cafes are not full service like that) to take our order. We order our food and both ask for a
coffee. The conversation continued
a bit like this…</div>
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Waitress: What kind of coffee?</div>
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Me: Just a regular coffee is fine.</div>
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Waitress: But what kind of coffee do you want?</div>
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Me: Ummm… a black coffee with some milk?</div>
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Waitress: A short black or a long black?</div>
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Me: A long black?</div>
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It was far to early for this conversation. We really had no idea what was going on
at this point, so just went with it.
As soon as it came out and I tried it, I knew it was what we would call
an Americano back in the states (espresso and hot water). Very good, but a cup of coffee it is
not. So they do not do “brewed coffee” as it is called it in Australia. Only
lattes, cappuccinos, flat whites, long blacks etc. </div>
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Lesson learned.
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So anyone planning on a trip to Australia, be prepared for
this more European attitude towards coffee… and stick with the flat white.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9xAcYskpcwTGzjnEWQT39Hmyl5Qoyji-Bg2Hxpu4M3CvWydgueZHFUB4YoxsjI_QjywUnLCfbrg68ThzYGkPiretrmuHPRMn42bChB66LMOSwKQ_rYGA55j3jFSpxyV8ioxK0pOTI5tKj/s1600/flat+whites.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9xAcYskpcwTGzjnEWQT39Hmyl5Qoyji-Bg2Hxpu4M3CvWydgueZHFUB4YoxsjI_QjywUnLCfbrg68ThzYGkPiretrmuHPRMn42bChB66LMOSwKQ_rYGA55j3jFSpxyV8ioxK0pOTI5tKj/s320/flat+whites.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Mmm the flat white. <o:p></o:p></div>Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-38856358677163131932012-05-13T21:02:00.000-07:002012-05-13T21:14:55.575-07:00Running and energy bars<br />
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Happy Monday everyone! Hope everyone had a nice weekend! Mine was great… relaxing night on Friday, dinner with friends on Saturday and a bush-walk (otherwise known as a hike) on Sunday. Good times. It was a beautiful day to be out and about yesterday… here are a couple pics from the walk.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi05u5hYfcfvAw_frvHdEtwkKjCss-dweJBMbN7JCEX83VCvr91TXDkslbzzYfXSc6BH_UWajA75IeC5y8WECpMp6_lys_t0wC6K0Q71A9-u60XMaxtWUomtqqclCOSTcKh2wgaPUOeQXMk/s1600/IMG_1575.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi05u5hYfcfvAw_frvHdEtwkKjCss-dweJBMbN7JCEX83VCvr91TXDkslbzzYfXSc6BH_UWajA75IeC5y8WECpMp6_lys_t0wC6K0Q71A9-u60XMaxtWUomtqqclCOSTcKh2wgaPUOeQXMk/s320/IMG_1575.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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A little walk through the gum trees... we had a random guy walking past us give us a tutorial on all the different trees. Good times.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8UuGzaiQOmF2ygFFlX0yrlcYvZLHNTfU22GZPMPlGV3C_iTQAaWhXk91Tizx_YB6U8lMp4K6b19S5e0K1ABkNk8c3eKpNngaFDkDw_W5QIeof-OI7CXBkdzjNsQVUgQ_iHcT3JuSkZayQ/s1600/IMG_1581.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8UuGzaiQOmF2ygFFlX0yrlcYvZLHNTfU22GZPMPlGV3C_iTQAaWhXk91Tizx_YB6U8lMp4K6b19S5e0K1ABkNk8c3eKpNngaFDkDw_W5QIeof-OI7CXBkdzjNsQVUgQ_iHcT3JuSkZayQ/s320/IMG_1581.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Just a nice view. It is actually a crazy location for a bush-walk. We took the train out to the suburbs, walked through a bunch of residential neighborhoods and then ended up in this park area. A bit of a natural paradise in suburbia! The view from these rocks here was almost spoiled by crazy kids running around pretending to shoot at everyone with sticks. I was forced to practice my deep breathing.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhlZ13Rxpv6Pnk3a3MApRo0E5CQxHk9GHxx7T56ucSm9eGStmGOCPGIuxF6X3AjLDRcsMq6dX1rpPe9OEjR3Z2-q7qCJz4hsC2OEURb5Uwu6gYRl3zVdCiqxmn1CO5ibvIzaGy-ZnLeOZy/s1600/IMG_1582.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhlZ13Rxpv6Pnk3a3MApRo0E5CQxHk9GHxx7T56ucSm9eGStmGOCPGIuxF6X3AjLDRcsMq6dX1rpPe9OEjR3Z2-q7qCJz4hsC2OEURb5Uwu6gYRl3zVdCiqxmn1CO5ibvIzaGy-ZnLeOZy/s320/IMG_1582.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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The hubby was less than happy with the uphill climb to end the trek. </div>
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Overall a good day of outdoor fun!</div>
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For those who don’t know, I am running a half-marathon in
Sydney. Now that I am thinking
about it, most probably did not know about this I have been keeping it on the
down low… due mostly to my own fears of backing out! No longer an option…it is in less than a week- yikes! </div>
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Running has become a huge part of my routine. Particularly
since moving overseas it has been one of the best things for me to stay
centered. I truly love it. Running gives me time to clear my head. It really helped a lot when I was
adjusting to living in Sydney in terms of stress relief and having some sort of
schedule/structure to my day. </div>
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It is pretty funny to talk about how much I enjoy running
now. I used to HATE it. Every time I tried to start it up, it
would last a max of 2 weeks before I was over it. Not that I have ever minded exercise, I just always
preferred going on walks, the elliptical or taking a spin class to running. I did a 5 mile run in Boston last
spring and for whatever reason stuck with it. I’m not sure what was different this time around except
maybe an increase in stress due to the move? I think that I somehow finally got past that old point of
cursing every minute I spent running and started to just enjoy. There just seems to be that point you
get to when running that causes that shift in thinking and I just never pushed
myself long enough to get there before.
Maybe the combination of being in an amazing locale for running and the
fact that it is free and I can do it whenever helps here. Who knows if this is
something that will last when we move back home, but I really enjoy it now. </div>
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With all the extra free time I have- relatively speaking
without working full time- I decided to run the ½ marathon. Not sure what brought it on… maybe just
setting a goal for myself, a new challenge… but here we are less than a week
away. A bunch of people have asked
me my goal time… umm to finish? To
enjoy myself? Yup I'm pretty sure those are my only goals at this point. </div>
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I have no idea really what to expect despite trying to
prepare well. I have been pretty good about sticking to a “beginners training
schedule” recommended by the group that puts the ½ marathon together. Let me tell you, this is a lot of work
and takes up a ton of time! Hats
off to people who are disciplined enough to train with full time jobs/children
etc. I don’t think if I was
working full time right now I would have been able to prepare for my first
longer run… maybe after you get more experience things are a bit different.</div>
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With all the running I do here and especially with the
increased miles due to training, I am constantly eating. Seriously, I am always hungry. There is the usual healthy pre and
post-run snacks of bananas with nut butters, toast, oatmeal, yogurt etc. But what I really like to have on hand
are energy bars. Yes I know they
are glorified candy bars, but they are so convenient when in a rush! I used to buy all sorts back in the
states (as long as they were on sale or Trader Joes prices). My favorites were Luna Bars, Larabars
and Zone Bars. I can’t buy either
here in Australia and the energy/protein bars they sell are usually around $4
each! No thanks… that doesn’t really
work with my frugal mentality. So what is a girl to do? Right then, just make my own.</div>
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You can find a fair amount of recipes for protein and energy
bars online. Some are pretty
terrible and it took quite a bit of trial and error find some that were easy, tasty and actually healthy. The easiest by far are
imitation Larabars… the reason?
Only a few key ingredients, dried fruits, nuts, flavoring and in some
cases some oats. The binding
ingredient in the recipe is dates (you could also use raisins). You just need some sort of food
processor/blender to mix and there is no need to bake them. It is super easy and way cheaper to make your own. </div>
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<i><b>Homemade Larabars</b></i></div>
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<i>Almond Chocolate (not actually a Larabar variety as far as I know... but very tasty anyways!)</i></div>
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<i>As I mentioned, I did a lot of trials based off many different recipes online. The closest that I based mine off of was from<b> http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com</b></i></div>
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<i>This is a super cute blog with lots of different healthy versions of baked treats... definitely worth looking through her site if you have the time!)</i></div>
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½ cup dates</div>
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¼ cup almonds</div>
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2 Tbs almond butter</div>
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½ cup rolled oats </div>
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1 tsp vanilla extract</div>
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2 Tbs mini-chocolate chips</div>
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~ Combine the dates, almonds and almond butter into food
processor and process until smooth.
This process will take several minutes.</div>
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~ Add rolled oats and vanilla and process another 1-2 minutes.</div>
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~ Add chocolate chips and pulse several times.</div>
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~ Shape the dough into bars. I get 5 bars out of this recipe. Wrap each well and store in fridge until ready to eat. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMHDsx5o6Ddb4cNzdKcC7ITYlXtGRtCfIZNqCKvSXLBibGSbU6mCs8-Ztk6geDkmGXBQz6Bk4uIggaY1kbAAa2VUFBT1j4i1hEjhbm-v8z1dr7vevh95WPirVgnIziQTR1rK-K7AIM8Lxo/s1600/IMG_1583.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMHDsx5o6Ddb4cNzdKcC7ITYlXtGRtCfIZNqCKvSXLBibGSbU6mCs8-Ztk6geDkmGXBQz6Bk4uIggaY1kbAAa2VUFBT1j4i1hEjhbm-v8z1dr7vevh95WPirVgnIziQTR1rK-K7AIM8Lxo/s320/IMG_1583.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Easiest recipe there is. Blend it all together in food processor....</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOCJOzxSB-wJC9apubZvxfaG2x7MjpcGq3wvrpMDtr8zeiO07i8UrYrTdp35s_4SYRflJthI2ofZPdvH1m-SIyBpc98o4cqMFK7abalfOj9oGwq8aaCuroUque7JjrczjE4H6OeT1ASRng/s1600/IMG_1587.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOCJOzxSB-wJC9apubZvxfaG2x7MjpcGq3wvrpMDtr8zeiO07i8UrYrTdp35s_4SYRflJthI2ofZPdvH1m-SIyBpc98o4cqMFK7abalfOj9oGwq8aaCuroUque7JjrczjE4H6OeT1ASRng/s320/IMG_1587.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Shape into yummy bars and eat. Done.</div>
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The great thing about these bars, is there are so many different flavor options. Your base of ingredients always remains the same (the dates and nuts) but you can change the type of nuts, and nut butter you use, omit the oats, add different dried fruits to the mix and take the chocolate chips out. Here are some other examples of tasty varieties...</div>
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<i>Oatmeal Raisin</i></div>
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½ cup raisins</div>
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¼ cup walnuts</div>
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2 Tbs peanut butter</div>
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½ cup rolled oats</div>
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1 tsp vanilla extract</div>
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<i>Key Lime Pie</i></div>
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½ cup dates</div>
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¼ cup almonds</div>
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¼ cup cashews</div>
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3 tablespoons shredded coconut</div>
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1 tsp vanilla extract</div>
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1 tsp lime zest</div>
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1 tablespoon lime juice</div>
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<i>Peanut Butter and Jelly</i></div>
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½ cup dates</div>
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¼ cup peanuts</div>
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2 Tbs peanut butter</div>
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1/4 cup dried cherries</div>
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1 tsp vanilla extract</div>
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I am still working on the other more "protein bar" recipes that would be similar to a Luna Bar or even a Clif Bar. All the ones that I have tried are just not coming out properly... mostly a texture issue. I will keep you all posted and hopefully will have a good version soon!</div>
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Now that I have spent the whole morning writing, snacking on all things almond butter and making a batch of Larabars I need to head out for one of my last runs before the 1/2 marathon... woohoo! </div>
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Hope everyone has a good start to the week :)</div>
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<br />Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-20046531958885846532012-05-11T02:03:00.001-07:002012-05-11T02:03:18.585-07:00Banana Bread and Almond-Maple Butter<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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* Quick side note: I have been thinking about how to divide
up my recipes I post: particularly baked goods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I will separate out the “everyday” stuff that I have modified to fit
into a healthy lifestyle from my more “traditional” baked goods.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are more once in a while treats,
you know for game night or whatever… they are the recipes way too good to change around and
really it is completely necessary to have a good cookie or cake every now and then.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><i>The Banana Bread Saga</i></b><br />
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When we first arrived in Sydney the cost of everything,
especially food was shocking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
really do not know how good we have it back in the states.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everything is so cheap!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyways, we (meaning me) are super
frugal with the stuff we buy here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To the extent that I think I have maybe bought 2 shirts on sale (for
about $5 each) the entire time we have lived here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The stores that sell things I would wear easily cost double
what I would usually pay back home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It has turned out to be a good way to save money I suppose.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I order in bulk from JCrew online and
pick it up when we are in the states.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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This money saving scheme however does not work well with
food… you know since we need to eat and we both have hearty appetites and
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Therefore, we have adjusted
and just don’t think too much about it anymore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can’t compare to how cheap you get stuff in the states
because it will drive anyone crazy!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Because of my frugal nature, a lot of the recipes I will post I started
making as a way to save money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
the end, you save money and end up with healthier (with less preservatives) and
most of the time much tastier versions than the store bought stuff.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Along this whole idea of crazy food costs, my favorite story
is that of the humble banana. Before coming to Sydney, the poor banana was just
added to the grocery cart every week as an afterthought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes they turn brown quickly and bruise
easily, yes if I don’t eat them in the first 2 days they will have brown spots
and I no longer want them… but they are cheap!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And whatever I don’t eat turns into yummy banana bread!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Fast forward to the move to Sydney last August.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Imagine our surprise to see bananas in
the store selling for over $17/kilo… umm yeah that is close to $8/pound.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>WHAT!?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the humble banana?!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Apparently this was blamed on cyclones that had wiped out
the crops.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />
I was sad thinking I was just not going to eat bananas while we were here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Luckily, bananas now are back to a normal price.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This means pre-run bananas with almond
butter and fresh baked banana bread...<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_G-jj5uvr-S9VkEMhH-091VNqnr0tq8nSWg2qTJtMyKXpyYNFOxol36V3Uf7SzSU9NXSRzxZD3_RI2hYe-RKRFfR3m_B5WYNuYkcZ5uuUsvgXbocvME9A6KpctS6Ud50AWpQxROpPZlrM/s1600/IMG_1567.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_G-jj5uvr-S9VkEMhH-091VNqnr0tq8nSWg2qTJtMyKXpyYNFOxol36V3Uf7SzSU9NXSRzxZD3_RI2hYe-RKRFfR3m_B5WYNuYkcZ5uuUsvgXbocvME9A6KpctS6Ud50AWpQxROpPZlrM/s320/IMG_1567.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I have been baking banana bread since college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had always used my mom’s old recipe,
which is great.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over the years
however, I have adapted it to make it easier and healthier.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This banana bread is good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Really good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It does have a “healthy” taste to it with the oat bran
and is not overly sweet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the
chocolate chips make it taste like a treat! This is a quick and easy breakfast
we always have on hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Often
times I will double the recipe and put half the batch in the freezer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is really good with a bit of
homemade almond butter…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSE1CakcWEw0dsaBBeG0mcANSpDYkpDEd8eMMtjh9jvsUr_9oec7vHqsEQfERwmgyIYqrfWIVU-h5Olx8bRBe5yeduTto0-OyhwZpHpxn4GPkLDQp9gBTco5cmh9ICTIAYTd_R3FsCLFud/s1600/IMG_1543.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSE1CakcWEw0dsaBBeG0mcANSpDYkpDEd8eMMtjh9jvsUr_9oec7vHqsEQfERwmgyIYqrfWIVU-h5Olx8bRBe5yeduTto0-OyhwZpHpxn4GPkLDQp9gBTco5cmh9ICTIAYTd_R3FsCLFud/s320/IMG_1543.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Start by mixing the honey and eggs together like so...</div>
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Whisk all the dry ingredients together...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnmN13TTRw9RpYxcJm2ZONov0H0KfaBkhBEqokpLcVI4M9H_XaeFEqEsNKPp0f4vgs1SvsPcepPlvBLHKP0AcCU_wJyzl5BUsUrfCGgJnEIajDVSNEPqOtNgjQ9VGAxbOisogKdl6M4Y_r/s1600/IMG_1546.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnmN13TTRw9RpYxcJm2ZONov0H0KfaBkhBEqokpLcVI4M9H_XaeFEqEsNKPp0f4vgs1SvsPcepPlvBLHKP0AcCU_wJyzl5BUsUrfCGgJnEIajDVSNEPqOtNgjQ9VGAxbOisogKdl6M4Y_r/s320/IMG_1546.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Combine the honey mixture with the dry ingredients. The batter will be thick.</div>
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Mash up all your bananas...</div>
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Add milk and vanilla to the mashed bananas...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJn2U9SlUJKry1exkAXixV_mSbRMXX2UNBwt5-dDhi3zZIWsvlYnZnnB1DFxwgMiJ65E_XUapoFffBBA4QlHpVF1k5V6D5HdVdBY0_QE8kBWk3D6EtWuQWQmpkpJiMNbRkp1ujX5GBrKL-/s1600/IMG_1551.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJn2U9SlUJKry1exkAXixV_mSbRMXX2UNBwt5-dDhi3zZIWsvlYnZnnB1DFxwgMiJ65E_XUapoFffBBA4QlHpVF1k5V6D5HdVdBY0_QE8kBWk3D6EtWuQWQmpkpJiMNbRkp1ujX5GBrKL-/s320/IMG_1551.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Mix it all together until just combined... don't over-mix the batter!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjey2YLHEZYgMdk8n4azQzUj-S07sO2BKJqqr5Zvel-TqBECKHxJWiAnO10S8M3Ka8Oi6oT_Ce7laK6XZU6wYN27s7c6OucjpY5-4JXjOu4q4oMerXteYhyphenhyphenn8tOQTGu1L9V_K7su_8hnh9B/s1600/IMG_1553.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjey2YLHEZYgMdk8n4azQzUj-S07sO2BKJqqr5Zvel-TqBECKHxJWiAnO10S8M3Ka8Oi6oT_Ce7laK6XZU6wYN27s7c6OucjpY5-4JXjOu4q4oMerXteYhyphenhyphenn8tOQTGu1L9V_K7su_8hnh9B/s320/IMG_1553.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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At this point you can add in nuts, dried fruit or in my case mini chocolate chips- yum!</div>
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Pour it into your greased pan and it's ready to bake- easy :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnS36E0ao5PI4QSUDQS5kyq-i8TUWhrt7E3FoMt2q3GAxN09z3qc2YxuKR23X7DLDp0KRj_NFdAyh4Y25VZhxugEk2B5tSoYjLzv9GDdvFFthvFmCpKWA6wVIygC_sUtmM9-psZ46GVTs5/s1600/IMG_1557.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnS36E0ao5PI4QSUDQS5kyq-i8TUWhrt7E3FoMt2q3GAxN09z3qc2YxuKR23X7DLDp0KRj_NFdAyh4Y25VZhxugEk2B5tSoYjLzv9GDdvFFthvFmCpKWA6wVIygC_sUtmM9-psZ46GVTs5/s320/IMG_1557.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I usually have a bit extra batter... which I usually turn into a couple muffins. I wanted to try out my new mini "doughnut" tin this time. How cute are these?! I'm gonna work on some baked doughnut recipes and get back to you with those (although these were delicious and gone right </div>
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after I took the picture!)</div>
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<b><i>Healthy Banana Bread<o:p></o:p></i></b></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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<i>Ingredients</i><o:p></o:p></div>
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2 cups whole-wheat flour<o:p></o:p></div>
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¾ cup oat bran<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 tsp baking soda<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 tsp baking powder<o:p></o:p></div>
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½ cup honey<o:p></o:p></div>
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3 large eggs<o:p></o:p></div>
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3 large or 4 small bananas, mashed<o:p></o:p></div>
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½ cup skim milk (you could also use whatever milk or non-dairy milk you have on hand)<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 tsp vanilla extract<o:p></o:p></div>
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½ cup mini-chocolate chips or chopped nuts (both optional)<o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C)<o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Spray a loaf or muffin pans with cooking spray.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I use a 9” x 4” loaf pan and usually
have a bit extra batter for a few muffins.<o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Whisk together the honey and eggs in a small bowl.<o:p></o:p></div>
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~ In a separate large bowl and whisk together the flour, oat
bran, baking powder and baking soda.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Mix the honey mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well.<o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Mix together the mashed banana, milk and vanilla.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Add the banana mixture to the batter and mix until just
incorporated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
~ Add chocolate chips or chopped nuts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Pour into greased pan and bake until top is brown and a
toothpick comes out clean from the center.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Baking time approximately 20 minutes for muffins and 55-60
minutes for a loaf pan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Cool and enjoy!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> Since I mentioned having this with almond butter, I figured I would add the recipe I use. No pictures of the actual process right now because I have a lot on hand already, but this is the finished product. Yes, with Mickey.<o:p></o:p></div>
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You can get good nut butters from natural food stores, but
they can be really expensive.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
is much more cost effective to buy large bags of nuts (often times the raw
variety are the least expensive) and make your own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is really simple and the only thing that takes any time
is the actual grinding in the food processor… so no real effort is needed!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I usually can find decent quality
natural peanut butter at a good price, but not so much almond butter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the one I usually make on my
own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The especially yummy part
about this recipe is the maple flavor! Clearly growing up in New Hampshire left me with an unhealthy obsession with all things maple.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i><b>Homemade Almond-Maple Butter<o:p></o:p></b></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Ingredients</i><o:p></o:p></div>
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2 cups almonds<o:p></o:p></div>
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½ tsp maple extract<o:p></o:p></div>
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½ tsp sea salt<o:p></o:p></div>
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1 tsp maple syrup (optional and can be omitted)<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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~ Pre-heat oven to 325°F (160°C)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
~ Spread almonds over a baking sheet and roast approximately
10 minutes, stirring every couple minutes to roast evenly.<o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Cool slightly on baking sheet for 10-15 minutes.<o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Process in food processor until smooth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This process may take some time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It will look like sand at first, then
appears clumpy before starting to get creamy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Scrape down the sides several times during the process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once it actually gets creamy, add the
extract, syrup and salt and process an additional 2-3 minutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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~ Store in an airtight container in the fridge. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Phew, this has been a lot of posting the past few days. It's really just to get all my early thoughts out there since I procrastinated so much in starting the blog. I think I will probably aim for 2-3 posts/week though. We are also going to be getting a new camera, so hopefully this will motivate me to practice my photography skills and improve (there clearly is plenty of room for improvement). </div>
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Hope everyone has a lovely weekend!</div>
<!--EndFragment-->Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-73710526377764242642012-05-09T19:43:00.002-07:002012-05-10T18:09:11.501-07:00The Transition<br />
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Culture shock?
No way will that happen in Australia! Isn’t it just a more laid back version of America where
everyone is just relaxing by the beach and drinking all the time? (gotta love stereotypes!) No way it takes me six months to adjust…
I’m so easy going, so open to new people and situations, excited for the
adventure of it all… </div>
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I’m not sure how many times I had that conversation with
people just before moving and when we first arrived. Umm yeah, it does take that long. If I could slap my former self and make it so I was more
prepared for the crazy range of emotions you feel I would. As I have mentioned before, it is a
very good thing I did not start a blog when we first arrived. I was a hot mess! </div>
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I was definitely NOT prepared for the stages of culture
shock. Yes, you can find sites
that describe actual stages similar to stages of grief. Lets go through a quick recap shall we…</div>
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<i>1. The Honeymoon Phase</i></div>
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I would say this lasted for us for the first 1 ½ weeks
before the hubby started work.
Pretty short period of time I know. This just felt like we were here on vacation. Taking on Sydney by storm! New restaurants each night, exploring
the city, taking those big red double-decker sightseeing buses all around… it
was exciting and scary all at once.
I especially loved at this time because it was “winter” here everyone
was in full length puffer jackets, hats and gloves. Umm it was 65°F and sunny. We were in shorts and t-shirts. Ah yes. These
were good days.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfTS8RDJUUPgdPcHGrutQ5X-QEBgDzdGwr5dZFF7rSg67YfI9CpKkek1OVcGYX_5njggxwAtRBA7k2cmqx9pCTlKaobMCcPxAFuPdExiE-t-q3cQJEEd4DKshyphenhyphenTwF4bNRn7v3wlmvI74-H/s1600/early+on.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfTS8RDJUUPgdPcHGrutQ5X-QEBgDzdGwr5dZFF7rSg67YfI9CpKkek1OVcGYX_5njggxwAtRBA7k2cmqx9pCTlKaobMCcPxAFuPdExiE-t-q3cQJEEd4DKshyphenhyphenTwF4bNRn7v3wlmvI74-H/s320/early+on.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<i>2. The Negotiation Phase</i></div>
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Here is where “anxiety becomes apparent” (oh no!) and one
starts to notice the cultural differences no longer in a romantic light. You are living here after all and not
just visiting! Thank goodness
there was no full on language barrier as many experience moving to other
countries. I will comment that
sometimes we did have trouble understanding Aussie accents and slang and vice
versa. Here are some examples </div>
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</div>
<ul>
<li>What
do you mean arvo? (Translation: Afternoon)</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>A
fortnight? (Translation: Sounds like we are in 19<sup>th</sup>
century England, but that just means every other week)</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Want
to meet for brekkie? (Translation: Breakfast… I have adopted this and I love
it)</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Good
on you! (Translation: Good for you! I also love this one)</li>
</ul>
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The food issues are considered a big thing during this
“phase” as well. More of that to
come later, but suffice it to say we are spoiled with options in the states and
the available choices for food in the supermarkets here is much less. It is also super expensive compared to
what we are used to (what, no Walmart?! Ugh).</div>
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I am usually a pretty positive person, but this was a trying
period for me. I guess it lasted
about 3 months or so and I couldn’t get past constantly comparing life here to
back home. And it really was
never in a good way. I would try
and be really positive, but fail.
Clearly not trying hard enough.
Little things like making a doctor’s appointment, finding an apartment,
buying stuff for the apartment… all eerily similar to the states but different
enough that it was a challenge. Christmas time was a challenge. It was warm out. There was no snow. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXeY-Au5J8U4nqqzthABLSsT_GeXzmNoPWawvic2PdB1THJ7ygOwK51JeFz1B5Pg6Zv5p54DUcDI1zYH_5d3LUqLbLsv73Y4opjzZa2u402x1f91uS6E6a1nu7YjBql89aydTP-9NdPArE/s1600/christmas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXeY-Au5J8U4nqqzthABLSsT_GeXzmNoPWawvic2PdB1THJ7ygOwK51JeFz1B5Pg6Zv5p54DUcDI1zYH_5d3LUqLbLsv73Y4opjzZa2u402x1f91uS6E6a1nu7YjBql89aydTP-9NdPArE/s320/christmas.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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One more example before I move on. We shipped most of our furniture from the states here. It was a great moving package through
the hubbies work and it was paid for, so we figured why buy all new stuff? The shipment was crazy pants. It took
close to 3 months to get from our condo near Boston to Sydney (although it did
travel by boat so I suppose I understand). That is a long time to go without our things! I’m getting off track though. The point of the story is because we
shipped most of the furniture, we were only looking at unfurnished
apartments. Very interesting point
to note that no one bothered to tell us until we were with an agent looking at
apartments… unfurnished really means unfurnished. No fridge, no microwave, no washer/drier and no
dishwasher. Ummm…. What?! We need
to buy all that stuff for just 2 years?!
We got really lucky and found a place where all we needed was a fridge. It is interesting when talking to a lot
of Aussies, they do not realize all that stuff is included in rentals in the
States… their reactions are pretty funny because they think it is gross that we
would use the same fridge as someone before us!</div>
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And just like that, we got Australia'd. This term I coined myself to describe
these ridiculous situations, which really come down to cultural differences
(that often are surprising). These
are situations which clearly are stressful at the time, but make for
entertaining stories after the fact <span style="font-family: Wingdings;">J</span> I really could go on and on with
stories about this phase, but there is always more time for that later. Keep reading the blog and there will be
many more mentions of getting Australia-ed in the future! </div>
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<i>3. Adjustment Phase</i></div>
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<br /></div>
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Here you become accustomed to the new culture and start to
have your own routines. For those who are moving or recently moved to a new
country, or even a new state in some regards, this was the best thing for
me. I have always been a creature
of habit and really struggled being away from supports back home and
surprisingly more of a struggle was not working. I went from having my career be a big part of how I
identified myself to not having it at all. It was hard.
Really hard.</div>
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Developing interests here and things that I could do to have
a routine during the week made such a huge difference in my overall attitude
towards life here. Taking online
courses, nannying, and other interests like running and baking really take up a
big part of my time and it is great!
</div>
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Instead of crying and being upset about missing friends and
family, I look forward to skyping and visiting home (really soon in June!).</div>
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I have stopped comparing in a negative way and try and see
the good things that are different.
We certainly did not have these views back home nor would we be able to
travel to places we have. </div>
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I laugh about getting “Australia'd” now. The differences are what make things
interesting and make us grow and learn more about ourselves along with other
cultures. I think the key is to be
able to take it all in, process it, and still maintain your own sense of
identity from your home country as well. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9EYXBsj9ZK_8LvmQDjfyotZh8XXWV4T3Pjcpgi9HkLnytLXL1jiiXd3-o8NdyN2_W74VaGkYvi2JfExfTBzVf7FLXGeJm2uyWvs8PL2hZWzhS844VXVP5jkIki2o6gRA7DWY1xW27Gm3Y/s1600/koala.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9EYXBsj9ZK_8LvmQDjfyotZh8XXWV4T3Pjcpgi9HkLnytLXL1jiiXd3-o8NdyN2_W74VaGkYvi2JfExfTBzVf7FLXGeJm2uyWvs8PL2hZWzhS844VXVP5jkIki2o6gRA7DWY1xW27Gm3Y/s320/koala.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixZjaUeI3ZOPZ8PzPCNBBtWp-jH18hAER_nm_1gS0vaAUjjAB-5FwwxVc7oJCwjyRgYlR3iRJOC0PdR2fmvl8RUV7VNQ4vEy42FpLa-p9NxQEwC4pmttuXsQBftPnn1_2UViFW4LZrkoc9/s1600/IMG_1442.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixZjaUeI3ZOPZ8PzPCNBBtWp-jH18hAER_nm_1gS0vaAUjjAB-5FwwxVc7oJCwjyRgYlR3iRJOC0PdR2fmvl8RUV7VNQ4vEy42FpLa-p9NxQEwC4pmttuXsQBftPnn1_2UViFW4LZrkoc9/s320/IMG_1442.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Ah yes, look at us all well adjusted now. These are some photos from our recent trip down to Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road. Good times.</div>
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<i>4. Mastery Phase</i></div>
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These are persons who were able to participate fully in the
culture, while keeping traits from their earlier culture as well. Not quite sure I am at this point… but I
would like to think I am close.</div>
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That’s it for the phases. Those who have lived away from home I’m sure can relate. I
can look back at the first few months we were in Sydney and laugh at everything
because it is so ridiculous. Not
that your emotions seem crazy at the time… of course it is logical to have a
breakdown about not being able to buy peanut butter M&Ms at a reasonable
price…</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOoB3a3bXtK6V1aYiZdHCciU3_gbP9QlfPDrVU4sqFvl8PWBir2_j0M76lDLrFc4BwywEnGBZ0sCsZ_zBfUjwub-0Y75xef1KIKj4BB6BEKkoZCAi3c3h7HnLO2EQbRItGycygD3OBlcIu/s1600/mms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOoB3a3bXtK6V1aYiZdHCciU3_gbP9QlfPDrVU4sqFvl8PWBir2_j0M76lDLrFc4BwywEnGBZ0sCsZ_zBfUjwub-0Y75xef1KIKj4BB6BEKkoZCAi3c3h7HnLO2EQbRItGycygD3OBlcIu/s320/mms.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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I couldn't find my picture of the expensive peanut butter variety, but here is the $10 bag of Christmas M&Ms. And no I did not buy them.</div>Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-3172166504558842262012-05-09T02:23:00.000-07:002012-05-09T02:57:22.644-07:00Better late then never...<br />
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<b><i>Past Travel Adventures</i></b></div>
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<b><i><br /></i></b></div>
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Since I was slow to start this blog after moving here, I
missed out writing about a couple trips we have done. Here is a quick recap.</div>
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<i>Christmas in Bali December 2011</i></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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This was the hubby trying to be all artistic and what not... good attempt. I believe this was the day I was a bit "under the weather". Really no trip to Asia is complete without some gastro issues... or you are not being adventurous enough with eating!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh29xnTxLF3ZF9iChfJvTZzvqbCwCW2P4Iez9BqYMTtRB9VpfylhGxBvW_sOWVUmZ6kc0ISsLzGxg4hicC0yTtzTwkRDLdf-8DDu__O52oNvHeduD6_-zRfZpsDuOv73SwpL0uZkfz7aeCB/s1600/india+lite.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh29xnTxLF3ZF9iChfJvTZzvqbCwCW2P4Iez9BqYMTtRB9VpfylhGxBvW_sOWVUmZ6kc0ISsLzGxg4hicC0yTtzTwkRDLdf-8DDu__O52oNvHeduD6_-zRfZpsDuOv73SwpL0uZkfz7aeCB/s320/india+lite.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Ahh yes, like a mild form of India... Bali was like India-lite. Not quite as crowded or polluted, but the same kind of feel to it. Lots of people, lots of energy when you are out, great food and lots of people trying to sell you stuff. </div>
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We did a ton of sightseeing while in Bali. Here are some of the temples...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2DjWaAIK2EuovQpn0qAoVN0FhdNbNyRkn6DXH6cGt79c1Li5nGtrfOsIdJD0YezGl6cWaDmMXcVjublg3HSc89AGWhXJJQcsvu5Tmaq08hDdOhb_K7yO3oAbFEztF8wfyN9zeIS2Qgfu/s1600/temple.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2DjWaAIK2EuovQpn0qAoVN0FhdNbNyRkn6DXH6cGt79c1Li5nGtrfOsIdJD0YezGl6cWaDmMXcVjublg3HSc89AGWhXJJQcsvu5Tmaq08hDdOhb_K7yO3oAbFEztF8wfyN9zeIS2Qgfu/s320/temple.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7HQi9Zvn-qqR8C_1unU_R5ZkBfRv46ikPrY-jIJDU1BbN5SHEt8tgI0OEL6C00smTNjnZJ9aSkdGsXBg_5qFhoZWj4_LfEPoOzLsmfGCfJMhcBxg4mhM9XrhUUKNVwS2Hk0KVUe3PY2-n/s1600/temple+on+a+cliff.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7HQi9Zvn-qqR8C_1unU_R5ZkBfRv46ikPrY-jIJDU1BbN5SHEt8tgI0OEL6C00smTNjnZJ9aSkdGsXBg_5qFhoZWj4_LfEPoOzLsmfGCfJMhcBxg4mhM9XrhUUKNVwS2Hk0KVUe3PY2-n/s320/temple+on+a+cliff.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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We hung out with some wild life like elephants...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7IWyMuFMqTYCIuS8ZH0CwBIUOVHy6iyTOAxhfD6lh2uG2CEb6JWNwYST6iFT_vo4d6lKdmB4da_pLDqP0KwzNGpHa0D27lvRd4uz3Zh6GE0Sq0LCtkOhblyAFDLxP2lfCScV2XyulPfNN/s1600/elephant.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7IWyMuFMqTYCIuS8ZH0CwBIUOVHy6iyTOAxhfD6lh2uG2CEb6JWNwYST6iFT_vo4d6lKdmB4da_pLDqP0KwzNGpHa0D27lvRd4uz3Zh6GE0Sq0LCtkOhblyAFDLxP2lfCScV2XyulPfNN/s320/elephant.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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This one was a bit hungry and did not enjoy when I ran out of food.</div>
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We also went to "Monkey Forrest" in Ubud...</div>
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Ever since taking a course called Primates in Psychology while an undergraduate, I have been a bit obsessed with monkeys and other primates. However, these little guys are a bit too used to human interaction and quite aggressive... this was as close as I wanted to get.</div>
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We did an amazing bike tour as well... it was pretty much the entire day spent with the guides who took us to the middle part of the island and biked our way back through villages and rice fields. It was really an amazing experience to see and interact with villagers, especially children, who were so happy and welcoming. At one point during the ride it started to pour and really did not let up for the rest of the time, but somehow made it seem even more magical (Yes, I said magical. It is my love for all things Disney coming out).</div>
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And did I mention the amazing food? Since moving to Sydney I have a new appreciation of all asian cuisines, but really had not tried much Indonesian prior to this trip. Like in most other asian countries, you can get really amazing food for very little money. </div>
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Take for example this massive plate of chicken sate with rice and vegetables. I think the whole thing was under $5. And it was amazing.</div>
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Although I don't watch nearly as much television here, I was obsessed with No Reservations back in the states and would pretty much listen to anything Anthony Bourdain said in terms of food while traveling. We hit up most of his suggestions in Bali, but the best by far was Ibu Oka for some Babi Guling (roast suckling pig). Oh my, this was good. Almost worth traveling to Bali just for this... </div>
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Not as amazing, but just as exciting was finding a Dunkin' Donuts- Woo! None of these in Australia let me tell you. It was <i>very</i> different than those in the states. No "brewed coffee" as we know it and no ice coffee, except for the premixed stuff. However, they did have peanut butter filled doughnuts, so all was forgiven (hence the 3 trips we made in our 10 day trip).</div>
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To round off the trip we did some cooking classes. Fun times touring around the local markets, learning about ingredients I have never heard of and how to cook some traditional Balinese food. The hubby also put in a good effort with the Nasi Goreng...</div>
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<i>Hunter Valley January 2012</i></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This area is the closest “wine country” if you will to
Sydney. It was pretty much our
first trip more than 40 minutes outside of the Sydney area in Australia. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The hubby braved driving on the left
and handled the 2+ hours of driving quite well. I drove to and from dinner one night and that was all I was
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The area is really beautiful and quiet. It is really amazing how close you are to Sydney, yet feel like you are in another world.<br />
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We did our fair share of wine tastings. And ended up bringing back more wine than I care to mention.</div>
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We stayed at a brewhouse while in the Hunter. It is pretty different than in the states how the accommodations work here. Although there are always some hotels/motels, many stay at the wineries/breweries as they have their own accommodations as well. <br />
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Yeah. We are this awesome.</div>
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We saw our first kangaroos in the wild while on this trip. A women we met working at one of the cellar doors had suggested an area to drive around at dusk to look for the kangaroos and it worked!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Tasmania April 2012</i></div>
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Okay last big trip to update since the move was to Tassie. For those who don't know, Tasmania is a state in Australia that also happens to be an island located South of the main continent. It is known for outdoorsy type activities and has pretty much all different climates from rainforest to mountains to beautiful beaches. We encountered pretty much all seasons while on our trip as well from hot summery days when we first arrived, to comfortable autumn weather (perfect for hiking) and then even had some snow!
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We spent the first few days exploring Hobart, a fun little city on the southern coast. Not sure what is going on with this ship, but it made for a fun picture. </div>
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I saw this while we were walking by and loved it. We ate dinner here one night as well... good food and crazy pirate decorations. Very Disney-esque and I loved it.<br />
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View from the top of Mount Wellington looking down to Hobart.<br />
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Sadly, we did not actually see any Tasmanian Devils on the trip. Just these signs. Everywhere.<br />
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I was a bit excited to see some foliage. Although nothing in comparison to New England, it was still nice :)<br />
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One of the highlights of the trip was a place called Kate's Berry Farm. Oh my goodness. We stopped in for ice cream (all homemade with different berry flavors) after a hike one afternoon. We ended up there again for breakfast the next day before we drove to our next location. Nothing beats pie and ice cream for brekkie!<br />
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View of Port Arthur. This was one of the convict settlements in Australia and now a big tourist stop.<br />
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View from a lookout point down to Wineglass Bay. It looks much cloudier than it actually was that day... it was much sunnier when we were down on the beach as well.<br />
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We saw this little wallaby on the hike. So cute!</div>
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Bay of Fires</div>
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We all loved this sign. I'm pretty sure it is supposed to be showing you wrecking your car by hitting a kangaroo... but I like to think that it is just a really angry kangaroo flipping the car over.<br />
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View of Cradle Mountain. This was the surprise day of snow. We were pretty excited at first, but then it was a bit much doing the walk around the lake at the national park. <br />
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On the drive to the mountain, we saw some snow on the side of the road. Of course a couple from Boston and another from Britain would need to pull over and make a snowman. <br />
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And then move him to the side of the road for others to enjoy.</div>
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I also found the promised land on a morning walk. Oh Bruce why are you not touring in Australia?</div>
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Our last day was at Bruny Island. Back to warmer weather and sun. Not to mention some amazing views to cap off the trip. </div>
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Phew. So those were our big Aussie trips thus far. Hopefully I will stay on top of posts now so I don't need to to a massive one like this again! Thanks for visiting the blog and check back soon for some fun recipes and stories of living in Sydney!</div>
<br />Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7768431463427124391.post-34229716501935153982012-05-09T00:41:00.001-07:002012-05-11T21:43:25.589-07:00First official post- woo hoo!<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Here we go... my first official post, how exciting! Like my little "about me" intro says, I love travel, baking and food and decided to
start a blog to document my adventures. Yes, I know this is what everyone else and their mother does, but it will help me to keep track of life and all our adventures while living abroad.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My husband was transferred to Sydney for work for 2 years. We are about 1/2 of our way through our
time here already and loving it. Before the move neither of us had ever lived outside the Boston area... so it was a pretty big move!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My job pretty much does not exist here (at least in the
capacity it does in the states) and they would not transfer over my credentialing
(blah). Most think it would be
amazing to not have to work for 2 years, but I am a bit too high strung for
that. It took a while, but I have
finally filled up most of my week with activities…</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">~ Part time Nanny-Extraodinarre! Cutest little guy ever, and I spend part of the week playing with him :)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">~ </span>Running… because what else to do with my free time really. Yes,
this is a picture of the hubby and I dressed as Santa for a 5k fun run in
Sydney. Yes, it was hot in a ill
fitted polyester suit… but pretty ridiculous and fun. I will have ½ marathon
pictures coming soon! Really soon actually... May 20th is sneaking up on me real quick!</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Then I end my run stretching in the park at the end of the street with this view... not a bad start to a day.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">~ Baking ah yes my stress relief</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">~ Volunteer work. No pictures of this. Hopefully by the time I
leave I will have helped to spread awareness of Operation Smile Australia.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">~ Online Courses – you know, just in case I didn’t have enough
stuff to do</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Clearly I am keeping myself busy now. Initially I was feeling a bit selfish doing so much stuff for myself while here, but I have been starting to like it more each day! Living overseas has been a fantastic life experience thus far, and I
feel very fortunate to have this type of opportunity. We are feeling pretty settled after the rocky first 6 months
or so. Besides feeling like I am
living a double life, things are good :) But really how bad can they be with this as a view...</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I had all the intentions of starting a blog when I first got
to Sydney to document what we are up to (in part to save myself from writing
the same email 20 times!). I will
post some pictures and stories from our adventures so far, then hopefully be
able to keep up with everything starting now as well!<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Food has become a big part of helping with feeling
homesick. There is something about
making one of my mom’s recipes for dinner that makes everything seem good… a
“no worries” moment if you will.
You also can’t get a lot of foods we eat back in the states here, so I
have started to come up with my own versions of these foods as well.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Alright, now that I have actually motivated myself to start this blog, I will be on top of making posts. First up will be some quick recipes and recaps of travel adventures this year... </span></div>Kellyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08229413279076391699noreply@blogger.com0