Marmite Pies

Marmite 'n Mince 'n Baked Beans 'n Cheese Pies

 

 

500g Mince
1 Chopped onion
1tsp Marmite
1tbsp Worcester sauce
1 420g tin Baked beans

Cook altogether in pan and stir in about 1/2 C grated cheese

Use pie maker to cook pies, with mince and a little grated cheese on top.

The recipe was supposed to include 1 tin chopped tomatoes too but I didn't have any and I think for the kids it would make them too saucy so I wouldn't bother including it in the future.

When I put them in front of the girls I asked them what they thought was inside. Ella sniffed it and said 'marmite'. I couldn't believe she could actually pick out there was marmite in there! And she hadn't been in the house while I was cooking them so it must have been from the smell. In saying that, they had a hint of marmite taste, but it was fairly mild.

It's nice to have a new mince dinner because we're a little over lasagne, nachoes, cottage pie, meatballs and rice.

My Shark Navigator dream

When we got married I can't remember if Daddy Joe asked me what I didn't like doing with regards to housework or if I just offered it up.....but I remember declaring that out of all household jobs, I disliked vacuuming the most.

Boy have I done a 180 on that one. And it's all due to my amazingly cool and practical 30th birthday present. It deserves it's own special blog post because I love it!!!!! Thanks Dad and family for the brilliant present. Will probably be the most used present I could ever receive.

With Faith (and now Seth too) having Eczema that's flared up by dustmites, we've always tried to keep on top of vacuuming, but now that I see what gets picked up with the Shark, I wonder how much we were ever sucking up in the past. We've got new carpet here, and every 2-3 times of using the shark, we need to empty it.....it sucks up that much dust and stuff!!!!

And it leaves cool tracks on the carpet. Sometimes Daddy Joe purposely won't walk on the carpet after doing it because he doesn't want to unsettle the vacuum tracks he's just made by cleaning :)

My new bestie!

No more crying windows....and mouldy curtains

One of the best things we've done to/for our home so far....

Since re-painting and getting new curtains at the beginning of the year, we were both discouraged to see black mould spots on the window sills and curtains. I tried to resist the whole HRV/DVS thing because of the cost, but now that we've done it, I wish we'd done it earlier.

The house is so much warmer and drier!!! We used to use the heatpump in the lounge in the evenings and close off the hallway so the warm air didn't escape down the un-used passage. (The kids have wall heaters in their rooms so they're always cozy, just the hallway was like a freezer). Now with the HRV, the hallway door it still closed, but now when we go down there to bed it's not like we've entered an ice-box, it's a bit cooler, but still so much warmer than it used to be. It's cool to see what the temperature is on the roof, and what it is inside, and no more crying windows in the morning means no mould so I'm stoked.

I never felt like this was a damp house, but even some clothes in the wardrobes had started to get a bit mouldy so there was definitely moisture in the air and in the walls.

No more though!!!

Presents from Grandma Ormsby....Yay!

As I did some tidying up around the house this morning I realised we've got a few precious 'presents' from Grandma Ormsby.....treasured and well loved, all of them.

She made these books from pics from old Ensigns. I think they were for us to look at on Sundays to keep us occupied doing something worthwhile. Thanks Mum, now my children can use them! 

A well loved and frequently worn top that Grandma bought when she was sick. Ella would wear it every day if I let her

Search and find book....we've used it so much most of the pages are taped back together

A duvet cover that she also bought when she was sick I think.....she did quite a bit of shopping in those last days!

My most special and last birthday present that I got from Mum. It was cool then and now it's a family heirloom. It sits in the girls room and sometimes gets snuggled tight just like Mum is doing below. She always knew I loved the Forever Friends bear and when she saw it she knew I'd like it so I got it as a present....thanks Mumma xoxo

Ella Sings Latter Day Prophets

We've sung this song every night for the past month or so and Ella usually points at the pictures but never sings....until tonight that is. She totally surprised me by singing the whole thing. I guess it goes to show that even when children are mucking around or playing up, they are still listening and learning.

Well done Ella, you clever big 3 (not 5) year old!!!

Life is fragile

Just after my post a few days ago about how I know I'll be able to live with Mum again, I'm once again being confronted with the fact that life is fragile....and I love my Dad!

16 years after a terrible heart attack that he miraculously survived, he's now having heart trouble. Serious enough to be having a triple bypass tomorrow afternoon :( For him it's been creeping up for the last fortnight, but for us we found out two days ago. He kept his concerns to himself and only told me on Tuesday that he was going to be tested at the Cardiologist because he felt uncomfortable.

That finished and he came straight to our place to get a priesthood blessing. He was scared and talked us through what would happen the following day. To cut a long story short, the news wasn't as good as we'd hoped, there's been further testing and a triple bypass is the only option.

We were saying when he came over to our place that a heart must be such a strong muscle because it NEVER gets a rest, from the moment it starts in the womb. And now because of how the past 2 days have played out, Dad's heart will have a rest....not ideal, that's not supposed to happen!!!

I was there when the surgeon met with him last night and I'm so glad. He sounded very experienced and confident of a good outcome and that's exactly what we needed to hear.

I love Dad so much, and if there was one positive to come out of not having Mum here for the past 7 years (that sounds silly I know), but it would definitely be that I've become so close with Dad. We talk every day, sometimes about important things, sometimes just catching up on what we're both doing. Sometimes even 2 or 3 times! The thought of losing him tomorrow, or any time, breaks my heart (how ironic!!!). But I know he's in good hands and what is meant to happen will happen. We've fasted and prayed that it will go well and I know the Lord has heard our pleas.

He's got the nurses wrapped around his little finger.....wonderful service, private room...

I feel like doing 5 things I love about Dad, just because, cause I don't do it for his birthday like with the kids.

1. He's got a great sense of humor....everyone loves him. When we have friends over for things, they always want to know if Dad's coming or why he's not there. He's the life of the party! (which is kind of ironic because he's a bit of a party pooper at the same time...go figure??!?!?!)

2. He's good to go to for advice, about so many things. And he likes to get his point across about whatever the question/topic is by repeating himself numerous times.

3. Dad is strong, he's lived through the death of his Dad as a young teenager, the deaths of 3 sons and the death of his wife. Through all of that, he remains faithful and devoted to his beliefs.

4. For all his grumpiness and toughness he's a big softie. And he gives his kids the best of whatever he has....a truly selfless Dad

5. He's got great legs....and he knows it.


 A few pics from our last trip down to Dad's old stomping ground!

Sunday Afternoon Bushwalk through the Waitakeres

On Sunday I didn't feel well. After a big & fun saturday at Jordy's party (Aunty Nae's blog about it here), I came home feeling seedy with a headache.

So my wonderful husband, the capable father of my children went off to church with all 3 kiddies in tow so I could sleep in and convalesce at home in peace.

By the time the afternoon came around I was still lazing on the couch while he went to a church meeting and the girls were sleeping/watching a movie. I couldn't think of anything to make for dinner but I'd put some potatoes in the oven. That's as far as my effort and energy stretched.

By the time we went to bed last night, we'd had 4 angels from our ward come over to see how I was and drop off food.....yes that's right.....4! Each time there was a knock on the door I couldn't believe it. And that was after getting a delicious pudding dropped off last sunday. I think it's fair to say that people 'observe and serve' in our ward. What an example!!!!

By the time 4:30pm came around, we decided to take an easy going  stroll through the Waitakere Ranges. We've almost lived here for 2 years, 15 minutes away from well known hiking tracks and we've never been. I'm so glad we went on an adventure with our children. It did me good to be out in the fresh air and they loved it (for most of the time....just a little bit of whinging from Faith about being tired and hungry!)

Seffy thought he was the man up in his big seat, taller than everyone else!

We had turns being the leader which the girls loved.

It was a totally new experience for the kids and they had wide eyes open the whole time. There were so many things to talk about, bridges, rivers, trees, birds, pests, survival in the bush...

Ella thought the shoe cleaning brushes were really fun

'Mum can I have these special things on my next birthday cake?' That's seriously what she came up and asked me while holding this little pile of rocks

And we came home to this for dinner, provided by 2 lovely sisters in our ward. 5 loaves of bread and 3 boxes of chocolate/coconut rice crackers were dropped off later!

Ella wanted this to be her dinner.....nice try my love!