In My Neighbourhood - the central market

A series of posts about my adventures in Adelaide, just because I know you'd love to be here with me 

The first week we arrived here I had a tour of the central markets. The Atlas had bought a voucher for me and made the booking for my birthday gift just after he got the job.

I was treated to a personalised tour because I was the only one who had booked and they couldn't get hold of me to reschedule, clearly I didn't mind!

The Central Markets are basically a huge produce market that run 5ish days a week - everything is definitely open Tuesday to Saturday and some are open other days too. Friday is the big day 7am to 9pm.Wednesday is an optional day for the stall holders, but many are open then too.

The market itself has been running 140 years and still has some of the original stalls operated by family members of original sellers.

If it's food you want, this is the place to come. Meats, cured meats, cheeses, bakery items, oils, honeys, nuts, yoghurts, gelato, dried fruits, ... and of course fresh fruit and veges.

The markets are gorgeous - just what I like in produce markets. Lots of colour, variety (I'm going to get some crocodile mince and make crocodile burgers for the boys one night), locals and random shopping 'trolleys'.

The locals shop here and there is a lot of life and variety going on. On Friday nights there is often live music playing too and during Fridays a number of stalls have tastings. During school holidays they also seem to have some children's activities and I may try to book the boys in to do a 'little chefs' class next time around.

Alongside the market there is also a busy, predominantly Asian, food hall that offers good, fast, reasonable and authentic street and takeaway style food.

If you like food and you are visiting Adelaide this is a good place to while away some hours, money and calories.

Love you more than a tub of gelato on a hot day xxx

Lazy Fashion

so pretty much I am kind of (a lot) lazy....

I never take my make-up off at night, if I bothered to put it on in the first place

there are quite a few days that I only brush my teeth once (I know, the shame of it!)

and don't even ask about how often I shave my legs and remove chipped nail polish..

and I just realised today another reason I'm a dress and skirt wearer - toilet laziness.

who would have thought it?

usually I tell people that dresses are the best choice because you put one on and the outfit is finished. No agonising over what to put with it -it's an outfit all by itself.

and then today when I was wearing shorts and I went to the toilet for at least the 20th time... (or not quite).... I realised another reason I need to wear dresses....

I often wait until I am about to burst before I go because, you guessed, too lazy to go when I thought about it in the first place.

and there I am, kinda busting (plus 2 births if you know what I am saying, and how I am still trying to work out what the heck sucking up your pelvic floors is supposed to feel like) and I have to undo - belt, button, claspy-hook-thing-a-me and a fly.... seriously? If I was wearing a dress I'd already be finished by now.

...and I would be washing my hands because even though I am lazy I am not completely feral....

so there you have it, a sordid confession that may make you respect me less but look at dresses (and skirts) with a whole new level of admiration.

dresses people - they are the lazy ladies choice.

love you more than a clean public toilet xxxx

six

See this hair - no gel just sweat waiting for the bus in 42 degree heat or some such thing. Apparently we're back to 43 degrees on Wednesday.

  * as a side note do not trust Wikipedia when it says the average summer temperature in Adelaide is 29 degrees, whatever crack pot meteorologist who said that never lived here. We've had maybe 3 or 4 days lower than 30 degrees since we have been here. 3 or 4 days people!!! It's too hot *

I fear that I am also becoming one of those awful people who only ever complains about the weather and has nothing else to talk about, I should probably change that or I'll never make any friends.

ahem...  and here is my big one. We had a lot of fun playing on this abacus at a cafe on Saturday afternoon. He's also holding UNO cards which were in the toy box too. His kind of cafe!

Joining in with Jodi

Make My Week - Yellow

** We interrupt this yet-to-be started post with breaking news that my new sewing machine has arrived!! ** 

I know you need some tissues right? So exciting.

Anyway... before I left NZ (over the Christmas holidays to be exact) I sewed up some new tops. I wanted some fun fabric, easy to wear, not too fitting options for the days when I don't wear a dress.

I self-drafted (ha! read: traced around a t-shirt) to make this simple kimono-style top and then completed the neck and arm holes with binding (not on the bias) made from the scraps. If you want to make something like this, they are super simple because there are no set-in sleeves, there is a great tutorial here.

All 4 of them have contrast backs and fronts and due to the nature of the fabric sit quite differently. I added the contrast band to the back of this because I didn't have enough blue fabric. All the fabric for all the projects came from stash.

Please excuse the back photo I thought I would pull it in a little so as to give myself some shape instead of looking like a big blue tv box - unfortunately I ended up looking a little like a blue worm being strangled by an invisible rubber band.... but you get the general concept.

So what's on your sewing table? Any worm costumes?

Joining in with the delightful and perfectly put together Leonie


love you more than a brand new box of sewing machine xxx

You Know You're New to a Place

... when you get excited about the soy sauce fish in your sushi because it means you now have some to take home and put in your empty cupboards!

love you more than a pantry filled with the essentials xxx

five of fifty two

My wee car lover

this beautiful child who always, always has something on his face (except when he doesn't)

and these 3 perfect men/boys who I cherish

and The Atlas' latest acquisitions - we are living here car free and this is my 'shopping trolley' - watch out op-shops here I come! (My bike arrives this week - oh yes!)

joining in with jodi

Love you more than excitement xxx

10 Resolutions I Plan on Keeping

Now I know all about the usual – eat well exercise more - types that last until about the 3^rd of January but these are 10 resolutions I think we all need to make a commitment to this year.

1. Do not sniff underwear – yes I know you do the lion’s share of laundry and the tidy-your-room-by-throwing-all-the-clothes-in-the-laundry-hamper breaks your heart, but it is time to give up and stop sniffing those undies on the floor as you tidy. You will always regret it. Stop. Just wash the darn things.

2. If you must run do it with wet wipes tucked into your bra – at some point you will be caught out. You can thank me later.

3. Write it down as soon as you think about it – you will not remember it 5 minutes time and it will make you mad.

4. Keep your library receipts – it will happen, you will lose one under the couch and you won’t remember until you get a letter from the library. Keep the docket and tick them off – it’s geeky but (I hope) it works.

5. Throw out your threadbare underwear – at some point some family member or friend (probably your Father or Mother in law) will bring in your washing from the line and you will regret your tardiness at underwear maintenance. This also applies to anything with questionable staining – enough said.

6. Drink more water – yawn, yawn I know but if you have a big drink right now you might not be self medicating that dehydration headache this afternoon with dark chocolate and panadol – on second thoughts just keep the cupboard stocked with dark (fair trade) chocolate.

7. Buy a lingerie bag for your washing machine – or just keep cursing and yanking as you try to get your washing out and bra hooks are snagged in everything and making ladders in your stockings. Also I think maybe do up the bra hooks before you wash them…. Is that something I should be doing? I blame my mother for not teaching me these things.

8. Learn your own mobile number – are you not ashamed of having to look this up every time someone asks you? Think of it as brain gym and feel smug later.

9. When you answer the phone and there is a click/dialing noise and silence hang up – in 5 seconds time you will be talking to a tele-marketer, every time. It is not a relative from overseas or first prize in that lottery you never entered. Just hang up.

10. Buy a decent pillow – it continues to surprise me why I sleep on a pillow that is not perfect. Every single night. 

Here’s to a successful 2014 I think these are resolutions we can all manage and none of us will regret. Now grab a glass of water and get into that undi draw.

What's your number one resolution?

Love you more than an avoided tele-marketer call xxx