Raven's Diary

The painters have finally left! 1 day job turned into FOUR! Eish. But now the fun begins….for me. Putting everything back AND acquiring a little something new here and there. But I’ve had some brilliant brainwaves I’d like to share….yes to show off a bit *blush* I’m just so chuffed with myself. My previous theme was red and chocolate and I have these cute little red glass candle holders I just did not want to throw away. On a trip to a marvelous all sorts store I found some sticks which has the most gorgeous green and sand hue to it, matching perfectly with my new theme! So I immediately knew I could rescue my cute little candle holders and voila it worked out beautifully. See pic….before in front – after behind. And don’t you just LOVE my new table runner. I’ve seen it in pictures before and then I finally found one for myself. Gorgeous! Then I was sad to put away my silver placemats. BUT….yes indeedy somehow by some miracle another brilliant idea popped into this pretty little head of mine and voila….some more creative magic appears. More simple you cannot get. I took black paper, a compass, drew a circle then cut it out with a patterned scissors. Glued the paper to the placemat and for extra bling glued a glass bead to the centre. I absolutely love it, can’t believe how WOW it is and fits in perfectly with the entrance hall theme. That pillow is also so awesome! Could not resist! Another idea I’ve had for years I have finally implemented! The simplest DIY project ever. Buy a tin of blackboard paint and paint any surface and voila you have an instant blackboard you can chalk messages or your shopping list on. I’ve called it my Doodle Door! I think it’s FAB. I still have a way to go to add more finishing touches; I’m having so much fun!

…oh heavens what a mission. I knew it was going to be a big inconvenience that’s mostly the reason for delay but I didn’t quite fully understand the extent.

So for this year so far we’ve been slowly working our way around the house diy’ng anything and everything. The garden got most attention and it finally came together nicely a few weeks back. So the lounge was my next big itch and I quote a painting quote which we were happy with but delayed it to at least enjoy the holidays. So today they started. Oh gosh what a mess. Firstly I couldn’t have realised how light the colour of paint I actually chose so I was so shocked when I saw it on the wall. Then apparently I didn’t get a primer so now instead of primer plus 2 coats, they having to do 4 or 5 coats, meaning I’m off to our second home again, Builders Warehouse, for more paint. I’m no praying they actually have the flipping colour in stock otherwise goodness knows what I will have to do. Which also now means instead of one days work, they coming back tomorrow. I’m praying even harder they really do get done.

The entire day we were basically trapped upstairs, starving to say the least. I was stressed out of my mind leaving 3 guys control over my walls. I kept going back to say ooops I forgot to tell you about this…. I think they must think I’m crazy or don’t trust them… well actually they would be right. Then you should have heard them yack and yack and yack. Gosh they can talk non stop, literally,  no jokes. It also happens to be a foreign language which sounds like turkey’s gobbling and gargling.

Shame at least they working for their money and it looks like it might turn out neat and pretty. Thanks heavens though I didn’t tackle this job alone like I did a few years back. I may like to believe I’m a perfectionist but these guys are putting my paint work to shame. Actually they are probably swearing at having to cover up my mess. LOL! Poor chaps.

Anyways, I cannot wait to get cracking on the real fun stuff – interior decorating. I have been eyeing out some gorgeous cushions. Oh and our sleeper couch finally arrived after a 4 month wait, so I am so excited to get that packed out. There’s nothing like a good lick of paint to freshen up a space and make a huge visual change. Now I’m worried it’s going to put the rest of the house to shame….

This quaint and fresh (lime green and stark white decor) eatery has become our go-to quick dinner venue. We absolutely love that it hasn’t been extra busy once yet which means we get that extra special attention. But I hope being so quiet doesn’t mean yet another great establishment is on its way out in this town. Also you don’t have to wait until after 6pm for a decent healthy piece of meat with vegetables, which has now become part of our new lifestyle. So anytime we don’t feel like our own meat and veg creation at really reasonable price…Mint is on top of our list. It has a beautiful view over the harbour, stunning day or night. Seating inside or out on comfortable chairs. Great parking, usually right at entrance for us (we feel like VIP’s)

Totally recommended menu items:

chicken schnitzel

chicken kebab

butternut soup

spargo fillet

Oh and a word of warning….go hungry…the price may be small but the meals aren’t ! After lavishly devouring a bowl of decadent butternut soup and toasty ciabatta…there was no room for anything else!

So I finally got to try this recipe and it worked out nicely! Credit goes to an Afrikaans magazine I unfortunately cannot remember name of, sorry, I took mobile snapshots of it.

Makes: more or less 30 biscuits

Preparation time: 15 mintues

Baking time: 50 minutes

Oven temp: 160 degrees

Ingredients:

65ml or 65g margarine

10ml marmite

75g milk powder

1 large egg beaten

500g whole wheat flour

125ml biltong powder

Steps:

1. Mix margarine and marmite in big bowl with 220ml warm water.

2. Add milk powder until smooth

3. Add the flour and biltong and egg little by little.

4. Kneed the doughy mixture til ingredients stick together

5. Roll out to about 1cm thickness

6. Use cookie cutter and press out the forms

7. Place onto greased baking sheet and place into oven

8. Once done let it cool to harden

9. Store in airtight container

10. Voila…furchild has healthy homemade snack!