2013!

I love the start of a new year - it's arbitrary but really does feel like an opportunity to improve, change, hone, grow!

This year is going to be a big challenge for us - together with our adorable four-month old, we're navigating two new jobs and will be in different parts of the country come July. Plus, we're moving in a week! Nevertheless - my resolutions:

1/  Yoga
2/  Run - give those new shoes some work to do!
3/  Study - anaesthetic primary exam in 2014!
4/  Cook more fast easy and delicious stir-fries
5/  Create
6/  Try a new cuisine every week, either at home or out
7/  Nurture - my family, my friends, my garden, my self
8/  Keep in touch - letters, emails, cards to the people I love

Grace in small things

1/ My bouncing, dancing, somersaulting Peanut
2/ My gorgeous man
3/ Upcoming trip to winter wonderland!
4/ Cupcakes on the weekend
5/ Opportunities

Grace in small things

1. Surprises
2. Old friends
3. Worlds of possibility
4. New life!
5. Love

The new rules

There was a great article in the weekend Sydney Morning Herald about the cloud of guilt that many mothers carry around with them.

I must say that as a woman in her first trimester, I'm already familiar with multiple expectations, Dos and Don'ts... And I'm behaving accordingly. The "Don't" list for pregnant ladies these days is pretty extensive:

1/ ham, prosciutto, salami
2/ pâté
3/ mayo
4/ blue cheese, goat cheese, feta, ricotta
5/ alcohol (hard to argue with that one)
6/ leftovers more than 1 day old
7/ salad leaves not scrupulously washed
8/ hot baths
9/ fish more than once a week
10/ oysters
11/ sushi and sashimi
12/ peeled prawns
13/ caffeine (allowable, but frowned upon by the books)

And Dos:
1/ pregnancy vitamins, esp folate
2/ sleep (I wish)
3/ exercise
4/ lots calcium
5/ etc etc

So far I've given up caffeine - unbelievable for me! Even managed to get through emergency night shifts on peppermint (not too much! Might be dangerous!) and rooibos (jury still out) tea. So even though I'm trying to be virtuous, am I an inadvertent badass?

I'm also on the vitamins, eating well, yada yada yada. But the lady's not a saint. Last night I had a few tablespoons of the world's most delicious dip, Italian olive dip (Yumi brand) that's made from olives and mayonnaise. Oh the humanity! Listeria here we come!! But you know what? I loved every single morsel. And so did Peanut!

Intricacies

So in a day or two, peanut will be 10 weeks old!
And all, still, is smooth. A little nausea, aversion to pasta, incredible exhaustion. But overall, small fry.

What's not though is what on earth I'm going to do with my life. I want to do paediatric surgery. And I'm just racking (wracking? I think the 'W' adds weight to my angst) my brain to figure out how it's going to work.
Pros:
1/ fascinating
2/ rewarding
3/ challenging
4/ utility! The opportunity to change lives
5/ burns surgery - my passion
6/ great communication aspect
7/ nothing else even comes close

Cons:
1/ rough training program - moving city every year
2/ hard/ impossible to do flexible training
3/ Lover wants to do it too
4/ we'd need to train in different places
5/ I'm already 35 this year
6/ and we have a baby on the way

... just for a start!

This had been just driving! me! crazy! for the past few weeks. I just can't figure out how this is going to work. And it's not a baby-specific problem - we both want this, it's the right time, and the issues with my career plans would exist without our blossoming peanut.

I know I can do this job. What I don't know is how two people in a happy relationship can make two careers in paediatric surgery work. Of course two surgeons could work - but two mid-30s surgeons starting a family, and training in a very small and competitive field?

And then - this is the crux of it - why is it ME who needs to consider other options? Why do I need to sacrifice my aspirations? Because there is no question that Lover will feel the need to have these conversations with himself.

Why after 50 years of modern feminism do I still feel the need to choose between career and family??

Raspberry

Eight weeks today! It's passing so slowly ... And uneventfully, really! Aren't I supposed to be feeling sick and horrible? My appetite is great, I'm tired but feeling so good. And I still feel like drinking wine! Not that I am, of course... but I was expecting for this to be so much harder! Instead it's easy ... simple ... so fine.

I feel incredibly fortunate that it's all falling into place ... and I know so many folk don't have this kind of luck. And I feel for all those people who try for years. Really I though we might be joining them.

Blessed.

Blueberry surprise

Greetings, 2012! And welcome- we're glad you're here! Lover and I agree that 2011 has been the happiest year ever. We were so blessed!

Highlights were a wintry Chicago, with a dreamy wedding, beluga whales, Mexican food and fantastic music. Then there was our gorgeous new home - we have been just so happy here. It's truly a house of joy. We've had so many great parties and dinners and just moments. And the garden has flourished! And then there was Ethiopia, and Israel... unforgettable. We postulated that it might be our last great big adventure before kids came along... and I think we were right! And now, 2012, let's see what's in store for you.

My priorities - and this is just for January!
1. Find a new house, plan our move and execute said plan in a calm and stress-free manner! (eek)
2. Move city!
3. Find a new car
4. Start my new paeds job!
5. Organise teaching work
6. Celebrate Lover's birthday!
7. Grow our blueberry into a lychee

And as for the rest of the year - so much to look forward to.
 - Fantastic jobs
 - New neighbourhoods
 - New friends and old friends!
 - Fabulous music - Beirut and Fleet Foxes this week!
 - A new little person, in late August. We can't wait to meet you!

Apple seed

According to various sources, we now are in possession of one apple seed, or a sweet pea. It's the craziest feeling! And the biggest surprise. We had intended to do this - starting now. So we're really only one month early. But who could have anticipated this! We hadn't even started!

Green thumb

So, in addition to being a whiz with basil and marigolds, it appears we are also growing a sesame seed!! That will soon be a peanut...

Love for Sale...

I'm spending a week working at a small town emergency department. Away from my man and feeling lonely and a bit isolated... A bit pathetic really as it's just a week and I see him in 2 days! I'm working evenings, the least sociable hours, and staying in a circa 1958 motel. For someone who I thought tended toward solitude - this is a lesson indeed! Maybe I like to have the option for some 'me' time but a whole enforced week does not a happy girl make.

Anyway am keeping busy with big dreams of gorgeous places to live next year, arranging my work terms, planning holidays.

Next year I'm taking lover on a sneaky trip to beautiful Queenstown for a weekend! We'll snuggle up, throw snowballs and stroll the beautiful wintry streets. Can't wait!

And speaking of Sale, it's actually a beautiful place! I'm walking round the lake each day before work. So there are worse places to be.

Grace in small things

1. Love

2. Family

3. Babies

4. Kindred spirits

5. Smooches

Christmas party

An Arabian Christmas Party is the reason why I was not super-keen to get out of bed this morning! That and perhaps a leedle too much red wine.
Our menu:
Olive oil flatbreads
Hummous
Olives
Prosciutto and asparagus filo cigars

Then for dinner:
Cold roasted eggplant with tahini, buttermilk and pomegranate
Lamb schwarma
Spicy chicken wings
Green couscous with herbs and pistachio
Watermelon and feta salad
Herb-stuffed tomatoes

Dessert
Homemade baklava with vanilla-orange syrup

Delicious! Merry Christmas!

The happiest year

Somehow our happiest year yet has coincided with the garden becoming lush and full of fruit! Maybe it senses happiness and this provides extra inspiration to climb towards the sun? The real mystery is the basil which is popping up everywhere - next to the chili, under the Tahitian lime... metastatic basil. Divine!

In my hometown hanging out with gorgeous old friends and my increasingly doddery Dad. It's going to be a good week. Good.

Grace in small things #6

1. A FANTASTIC dinner party last night (thanks to great friends)
2. Garden inspiration - radishes, strawberries, Thai basil, Italian parsley, garlic chives, and sweet peas
3. Homemade muesli bars
4. A new generation of gingerbread denizens
5. Sliders for dinner tonight (thanks to the Pioneer Woman!)

Grace in small things #5

1. The best job in the world
2. A day full of barbecue-hopping!
3. The beach! - and on the flipside: the bikini ;-(
4. Sufjan Stevens at the Sydney Opera House tomorrow night!!
5. New home - to buy a little nest for us, or to rent a big and beautiful apartment?

Gingerbread peeps!

A guest post over at Bright Yellow World (thanks to Abby)

Moroccan Christmas Feast 2: Dessert

So given that Moroccan food isn't entirely traditional for Christmas I figured that cheesecake would be perfect for dessert. Logical, no?

Plus, one of my best friends absolutely loves cheesecake, and well, I absolutely love him, so there you go!

This is the best cheesecake I've ever tasted. It's adapted from a recipe from Good Taste Magazine.

What you need:

1 x 250g packet of sweet biscuits (I used Arnott's Nice biscuits but I think gingernuts would be divine too)
125g unsalted butter, melted
750g cream cheese at room temperature (3 blocks! Ok go for a run around the block then resume reading)
1 cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Finely grated lemon, orange or lime rind (I used a microplane)
2 tablespoons of plain flour (if you forget to add this, your cheesecake will still be delicious, I promise)
4 eggs
300ml of sour cream
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries, or strawberries, or bluebies... mangoes... peach slices


What to do:

Preheat your oven to 160°C.
Line the base of a 23cm springform pan with non-stick baking paper.

Place the biscuits in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely crushed. Add the butter and mix.

Transfer to the lined pan. Use a straight-sided glass to spread and press the biscuit mixture firmly over the base and up the sides of pan, leaving 1cm bare at the top of the pan. Cover with cling wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill.

Meanwhile, use an electric beater to beat the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and citrus rind in a large bowl until just combined. Beat in the flour. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition until combined. Stir in the sour cream until just combined.

Pour the cream cheese mixture into the base. Place the pan on a baking tray and bake for 1 1/4-1 1/2 hours or so. Don't worry if it's still looking a bit shaky in the middle when you turn the oven off - a moist cheesecake is much better than a dry one! Turn oven off. Leave the cheesecake in oven, with the door ajar, for 2 hours or until cooled completely (this is supposed to prevent your cheesecake from cracking; in my experience, it will crack if it wants to crack. So don't worry!) Place in the fridge for 4 hours to chill.

Top the cheesecake with the raspberries, or you could use blueberries, strawberries, mixed berries... you get the idea. Most delicious!

Grace in small things #4

1. It's Christmas time
2. I have a WHOLE WEEK OFF from midnight tonight!!!
3. Champagne
4. Gingerbread and rocky road... just to make sure I can't fit into my bikini
5. Sufjan Stevens' Christmas carols. I love you Sufjan

Cake school

Seven hours of cake decorating... this was my tax return present to myself this year.

I got up at the crack of dawn, not a small feat as I've had the man flu this week (like the normal flu but so, so much worse... you know how much sicker men get when they get colds, right? That was me). Anyway, I took my cold and flu tablets, jumped in Wendy, drove to Sydney and spent seven long hours slicing, brushing with syrup, ganaching, reganaching, and ganaching once again. Then chiselling my cake into a perfect three layer cylinder. Then a bit more ganache. Then the icing! Then applying the icing and smoothing and polishing! Then colouring! Then applying the decorations! And icing the board! But it was just so much fun. And lo! The exploding stars cake!

We hosted the last station of a moveable tapas party on the same night, so it was perfect! Lots of people, lots of music, lots of dancing, and serious chocolate cake...

Grace in small things #3

1. Family!
2. Old and wonderful friends!
3. Sunshine!
4. Weddings!
5. My night shifts are finally over!!!