Reliving a childhood breakfast

I'm a weetbix girl. 2 every morning, soaked in milk so they are nice and mushy (I know people eat them crunchy, but I think they are saliva suckers if you leave them like that) and they keep me going till my mid morning cup of tea and piece of fruit.

But a couple of weeks ago I had to make chocolate crackles, so this morning I had the leftover rice bubbles for breakfast. They definitely didn't fill me up for hours like the weetbix, but boy was it an entertaining breakfast!

It has been so many years since I had a bowl, I had forgotten just how loud that snap, crackle, pop really is! I kept stiring them under the milk to keep it going. And the texture sensation that is a rice bubble - honestly, they are food brilliance.

So while I was more than ready for the staff morning tea, it was a fun breakfast and trip down memory lane.

Scent of a ... tree?

At lunch today I ducked out of the office for a breath of fresh air and some time away from the computer screen. It is easy to head into the office in the morning, then look up and discover the day has slipped away, so whenever possible I like to sneak at least a 10 minute walk around the block into my day.

Today, as I rounded one corner, I was suddenly overwhelmed with a fantastic perfume. It took me a moment to identify the source because the blossoms on this tree aren't nearly as spectacular in appearance as many of the other trees or flowers around, but boy is that perfume something to behold.

The tree is huge, packed with clusters of little white flowers and the air is absolutely heady with the scent of them - it must be wonderful in the owners house which sits nestled under the branches. I wasn't the only one whose attention had been attracted, the tree was literally buzzing with hard working bees.

It is just another one of those moments when I love living in the "garden city".

The fluff is flying

Once, many years ago, a large number of cottonwood trees were planted in Canberra. They are lovely trees, members of the poplar family if I'm correct but can be pests because they spread so easily, so only female trees were planted. The thing is, female trees produce this light fluffy (cotton like, hence the name) seed. When it isn't fertilised, it is extremely light and blows around in the wind, in massive quantities. For weeks every year, large parts of inner Canberra are covered with white fluff from the cottonwoods.

For students, the cottonwoods hold special significance as the general consensus is that if you haven't started studying for final exams when the fluff starts flying you are in deep ****. As a result, the sight of that first piece of fluff in the air causes nerves and apprehension for students.

For those whose student days are past them however, the sight of fluff reminds one that while some of the freedom of those times might be gone, so too is exam stress. Every year as I pass through drifts of white I feel a deep sense of relief that I no longer have that pressure on me.

Today, I glanced out the window and against the blue I spotted a small white object. Seconds later I noticed another, then another. That is right, today is the day the fluff has started to fly. Within days there will be great drifts of it caught in the grass or swept on any breeze into our building, but even those first few pieces are enough to make me revel in the joy of not having to do exams!

My productive garden

My little garden gives me such pleasure. I love getting out there and working in it to be rewarded by beautiful flowers and even better, by homegrown produce.

Winter has been a quiet time in the garden, however the herbs have held their own over the cold months. The warm weather has now reinvigorated them and the sage is just about to flower with its gorgeous purple blooms.

Also sitting quietly over winter have been my broccoli plants, but today I noticed the first tiny little broccoli heads forming. A week or two and broccoli will be on the menu.

I may only have a few square meters but it is immensely what you can produce in that space.

Automating tasks

Hand washing - that small print on a clothing label that causes one to reconsider purchase, except that it always seems to appear on everything that I want to buy. It used to be that I would allow said items of clothing to pile up in the dirty clothes basket till my cupboard was bear and then spend hours, my hands turning into prunes as I wrestled with buckets of cold water and Martha Gardener's Wool Mix.

However those days are past - I have a washing machine that handwashes. But I hear you say, all washing machines have an illusionary delicates setting which lures you in once only to ruin a perfectly good outfit. No, my washing machine has that setting, but it also has a handwash setting and it is so gentle that I will trust it with silk, delicate knits, even embroidery and sequins! Owing to the wonder that is my washing machine, my delicate hands have not been immersed in the laundry sink for 4 years now and my wardrobe of handwash only items is larger than ever.

So why is the marvelousness of my washing machine particularly pleasing me today? Well frocktober is providing me with a disproportionately large amount of said handwashing - but I'm doing it right now, as I type. And who doesn't love that!

Super dooper pampering

A couple of months ago I bought a voucher to a local day spa at a fundraising event. Given it was basically a donation, I didn't pay too much attention to it and it was just sitting in my desk drawer. This week I suddenly realised it was going to expire, so I booked myself in and went off for a "body" treatment with no idea of what it included.

I am now a puddle of relaxation. I've been scrubbed, oiled, massaged and moisturised to a point where I had to think carefully before standing up. It was FANTASTIC.

I love pampering treatments, but they are definitely at the luxury end of the scale, so they don't fit into my budget very often. Today I was treated to a foot spa, a body scrub, hot oil treatment, head massage, spa and finished off with an all over body relaxation massage. I feel sooooo good.

If I win lotto one day, this will definitely be at the top of my list of life improvements!

P.S. Picture isn't me, just illustrates how great I feel about today's treatment.

Surprises

Do you like a surprise? I know many people have a morbid fear of them, they like to live life in a planned orderly manner. I however, love a surprise and they come in all shapes and sizes just like the couple I have had in the last day.

Last night I arrived home to a surprise, a beautifully wrapped present on my doorstep! Attached to it was the most lovely card filled with the wonderful wishes of a very special friend. The devine Ms N, is one of the sweetest people you could ever hope to meet and she had delivered me a gift to give me a little extra lift when she thought I could use it. Honestly, it just made my day.

This morning I went to a breakfast which I regularly attend, however due to a full carpark came in a different entrance. As I walked out into the courtyard I was surprised with a beautiful vista. A normally plain walkway has been transformed by vigorously flowering wisteria. It was so unexpected it quite literally stopped me in my tracks. After yesterday's rain it all just looked so fresh and gorgeous, I couldn't help but take a photo.

I hope something wonderful has surprised you today!