{Spring Cleaning : ZONE 1 Master Wardrobes}

Well spring has finally sprung!
For those that know me, the fact that I loathe clutter and love organising MAY surprise you ;)
Last night I finally sat down at midnight after (what was meant to be) simply putting away the folding. However my crazy wardrobe inspired me to cull, cut and cleanse!

For the next few weeks, I am choosing 1-2 areas of the house each week and spring cleaning the house!

ZONE 1: Master Wardrobe
Spend some time going through the clothes in your wardrobe and get ready to make a donation to your local vinnies/ salvos.
Get rid of
-any winter clothes you didn't wear last season.
-any summer clothes you haven't warn in a year
-anything with holes
-those 'inspiration jeans' that are 3 sizes to small and you are keeping in hope (we all do it!)
-colours / styles that don't suit your body shape or your age...time to be really honest here or get a best friend to help you 'evaluate' lol
If you have a few items that are 'sentimental' and you can't part with them, can you keep them? My answer is KNOW YOUR LIMITS.
*If you want to keep your whole wardrobe from highschool to remind you of your highschool body : NO! Move on and maybe keep your jersey or A uniform etc..., but get it out of the wardrobe & put it in a 'memory box' or similar.
Make sure sentimental / inspirational pieces are few and are proportional to your wardrobe size also.

So, are you a hoarder? Do you spring clean? If you are like me and love the clean out, hate it or somewhere in between, take the challenge and choose 1 or 2 areas a week to organise yourself. You may just find extra space and time in your world!!! ;)

Lauren x

{Smoked Salmon Bites : Bring a Plate Idea}

Well, Spring is here! I have already seen some of the blooms around Sydney streets. It wont be long till we all start sunning our selves and being social again as the daylight stays around for longer. This time of year is great, kitchen teas, baby showers and lunches with family and friends keep our BBQ's and Aussie decks very busy.

Have you ever been invited somewhere for a morning tea or something where it's 'bring-a-plate' and you aren't sure what to bring?

This is the simplest thing to make and it looks VERY impressive. 

Smoked Salmon Bites

1. Make up a basic pikelet batter and I usually omit the sugar from recipe and add a pinch of salt. You can get fancy and make buckwheat pikelets, or add garlic to the mixture etc... I just keep it simple. 

2. Once you have cooked the batch of pikelets, let them cool and then spread with cream cheese.

3. Find a small round cookie cutter to make the shapes bite-sized and uniform in shape. 

4. Top with a ribbon of smoked salmon, sprig of dill, lemon zest and salt&pepper.

5. VOILA!!! So simple and easy to create that WOW factor for your next BBQ or afternoon tea. 

Lauren x

{Meet our 3 Ladies}

Rewind a few months and it was a sunny Monday morning after Easter Sunday 2012. We decided to hit our local pet shop and start researching the idea of hens as pets.
Hubby was very excited and had to convince me to be so spontaneous and get everything we needed for our 'mini farm' on the spot. I loved the idea, but wasn't sure how we would go. It was new. And the idea of handling chickens wasn't familiar. The look on my 3 boys (big and small) was one of excitement and one of longing for our dream. Our one day property!
I jumped on board and we went home squished inside the car with a box of 3 chickens and the flat packed chicken coup. It was hilarious fitting it all in.

{The Number Car Game : Sneaky Learning}

Well, yesterday I had one of those days with my 3 year old where I bet grey hairs were getting ready to sprout and I wanted to tear every one of them out!
So. Today. New Day.
There are a tonne of things I could have done this morning, but I made the choice to focus on him today. I made up a game that he absolutely loved! Better than that, it cost me nothing and took minutes to create!

Whilst we used cars, you could use whatever you like for this (stuffed toys, dolls, a button collection, little toy farm animals etc). I am focusing on 1-20 numbers here, but again, do what your child is comfortable with (1-5, 1-10).

{A Left Overs Make Over : Black Forrest Bites}

Well, as my last post "The Lorax Party" shows, I had made a mega cake for the party. Afterwards I had about half of the three layer cake left over. I was keen to get these calories off my kitchen counter and share them around. So, this was my plan: