www.albertonicolau.com/ (amendment)

I have just discovered my link on the last post is not correct

Sorry if you tried to use it.

I have to type it in for it to come up. 

Type in www.albertonicolau.com/

It is well worth it , the site is playing beautiful music 

while you peruse over his gallery of wonderful paintings.

How I would love to own one of these.

It is a journey of the senses......

Karyn x

'My French Country Home' a must follow blog......

I found you today

what joy you bring to my day

from the amazing paintings

of Alberto Nicolau

www.albertonicolau.com/

to the postings of your life in France

art , gardens, chateaus , history , seasons, chocolates

and a wonderfully written thankyou to your readers.

I enjoyed every minute of reading through all your posts from the beginning.

Merci  Sharon for sharing

My French Country Home

'A Reflection of the way we like to live' 

Out & About- Diva Tea & Coffee House, Marina Mirage

Enter Diva Tea & Coffee House

But Beware !!!!

The cakes are made on site & are on display,

to hard to refuse. I was just going in to order a latte'

While I was waiting to order , I decided I was going to have a 

orange & fig shortbread but then in the display case was the .... 

Raspberry Sauce Cake

Large

Very fresh sponge cake with layers of

custard cream & rivers

of raspberry sauce 

running through.

With a side of cream

All for moi !

Fluffy buttermilk pancakes

served with creamy vanilla ice cream

maple syrup & strawberries

mmmm

(3 year old devoured these)

Lovely gold mirrors & pendant lights

Notice the ceiling is painted the same dark colour as the walls.

Gives a cosy ambiance.

Inside looking out

I love to sit in the booth but there is also seating outside

 Did I say the cake was large ?

Delicous but , it beat me 

(I may of had a couple more tiny spoons after this pic was taken)

They do have a great breakfast & lunch menu also

& each time I have been in (3 times in the last 3 weeks , I have just discovered it)

they always have a selection of different cakes & biscuits.

Last week it was the most delicous pop in the mouth size melting moments.

Enjoy !

Autumn Please !

Its still summer here in Queensland

And its been a long one , enough for me to contemplate

a 'sea change' move somewhere still warm but not sooo

humid , preferably in the hinterland but still close enough to go to the beach.

But how do you uproot your daughter from school, when their school (so far )has been great

I dont think I could ever do it. So maybe in 13 years we will do it , when the youngest is done ( he dosent even start until 2012). We are minutes away from theme parks , beaches ,mountains & when we want some culture head off to Brisbane for a day at the art gallery , museum , see a ballet or play.

We really shouldnt complain , there is nothing to complain about.

Its just the heat talking !  

Oh how I wish we had the crisp cool Autumn mornings

the beautiful colours of the leaves changing.

Well thats mummys thoughts

but the kids have other ideas !

Swimming still......

Gifts from the sea...

Love the use of shells with the candles

in this display of different

size & shape lanterns

I would love these in white or chrome.

The timber , the shells & smooth stones

Nature gives as the best textures & shapes !

Coral off the beach at Daydream Island , Whitsundays.

I know its not a good picture

it was taken in a home wares shop on The Mornington Peninsula, Vic

I also saw a larger version in Bowral , N.SW a few weeks earlier.

I would have bought it except I had to get it back to Qld.

I loved the use of driftwood for the lamp base.

If any one has seen these in Qld I would love to know.

Image 1 & 2 -Pottery Barn,  Image 3 & 4 Me (cant you tell)

Laundry Renovation Before Pics.....well kind of

Hubby beat me to it ! (bless his heart ). I didnt get the true before pics,

 apparently last night the reno fairy came in

& started moving everything & plastering until the wee hours.

So at 5.30 this morning when I went in to take the before pics & empty out the cupboard

 this is what I saw.

The shelves along the back used to have sliding doors on them.

Do you love how he left the delicates hanging on the clothes airer while sanding the wall & has put everything up on the top shelf in the cupboard taken off the one below he pulled out.

You have to laugh !!

He is having the day off work today to do some of the laundry fit out.

Lets see the progress photos tommorow !

Karyn x 

Sunday Treat !

 Chocolate Ricotta Cannoli

Whipped these up on Sunday 

Since I came home from cupcake classes last week

with my new nozzle , I can pipe everything !

Please dont tell my daughter that the chololate 

'mousse' is really fresh ricotta cheese mixed with

dutch cocoa & a little castor sugar .

You see she is "extremley fussy" eater

so any way I can make a slightly healthier version 

for a treat, I try.

Although I think anything remotely healthy went out the door

when I drizzled lindt chocolate over the top

just to make sure she wouldnt taste the ricotta.

Karyn x

P.S Working on the laundry renovation this week , will post before photos tommorow.

Cupcake Classes

This week I took a cupcake decorating class

using buttercream

here are just a few that I did in the class.

I cant wait to make some more

trouble is who is going to 

eat them !

This is the box I came home with

The kids loved them , my husband thought I had bought them 

and I loved creating them.

Have a great weekend

Karyn x

Island Bench Lights , where are you ?

I have been carrying around this pic for a few months now 

going into every lighting store with it

no one has these except Restoration Hardware in America.

The new kitchen has also been in  for a few months now

with no lights except a single bulb hanging down !

This is my last attempt to find them here in oz before  I 

move on & settle for something else.

Has anyone seen these exact lights in a store ?

Im going to show a pic of part of my kitchen , before it is finished

just to show where I need them. Here goes......

See the bulb and the wires hanging down  ! 

Thats where the led lights are going.

Although looking at it now on here , I dont think my bench is long enough to

fit three across . Opinions appreciated please  ?

Also in this pic can you see the tiled splashback , should the tiles continue over the window?

I thought the tiler was going to but when I got home he hadnt done it.

Still have a roman blind to be made for above the window.

I just need a little help

Karyn

Courtyard / Kitchen Garden Renovation Part 2

The wall for the courtyard & the kitchen vegie garden edging has been built for 3 months now

when we were just about to start the concrete slabs

it hasnt stopped raining long enough to dry out.

(Im am not complaining about the rain)

 It was filled up with water when the rain was heavy,

we called it little venice. )This was taken when the water had gone down)

Window out, new French doors in. They still have to be painted white.

The vegie garden is going to have netting for climbing plants to cover the paling fence

So we have come to a standstill on the courtyard & vegie /herb gardens.

Its going to be my little slice of France. 

Still deciding on what to put on the slab , but Im thinking some rustic ramdon stone & the lights on the wall ,well havent seen anything suitable yet.

Im not exposed to, too much european influence on the Gold Coast

Any suggestions would be most welcome 

Courtyard / Kitchen Garden Renovation Part 1

Before 

The window near our meals area (after the grass came up & before the french doors went in )

This has always been the unseen side of our house. It was grassed with a clothes line down the other end of the house, off the laundry . I used to say when getting the clothes off the line that a lovely breeze was always blowing through there. And from the inside from the day we moved in , I always said there should be a door where that window is.  

During

New slab for clothes line (love that I have the room for a full clothes line)

What a mess ! 

This is part 1

I tried to load more photos but it wont take anymore. Im still trying to work out this bloggy thing.

I have a vision of how I would like my blog to look

unfortunately I just cant seem to make the 

computer do what I want it to do , no matter how much I beat it talk to it !!

Part 2 Tommorow

Karyn x

Goodbye August Forster.............

Our old piano was sold on ebay today. Why is it sad to say goodbye to her ? The keys dont  all work , she is a bit battered & bruised (like that when we got it) . But she has been part of our lives for 6 years , my brother bought it for me from the trading post to learn on (which I did start when I had my first baby) and since they were able  my 7 & 3 year old sit at it a play most days. 

As we are renovating its time to make way for new carpet & a piano that is in tune with ALL the keys working. I went to a piano shop last week & the sales person played a piece for me on a brand new shiny Kawai !
 Bliss

I knew then it was time to say goodbye old girl....... 

Baby Chino anyone ?

Oh my what have I done ?

Do I go out to coffee to often ?

My children have become baby chino connoisseurs 

They are 3 & 7 and when we are ordering at a restaurant , its always "excuse me may I have a baby chino"

Really I think its the marshmallows , they have found a way around the rules of , no lollies unless your at a party. Mmmm ..........clever my children.

This was one of there all time favourites on a recent holiday St.Kilda , Melbourne

Have A Nice Weekend !

Birthday Love......

Yesterday was my birthday 

 do you ever get to blow out the candles

 when children are around ?

My 3 year old said

  " mummy I  looove chopolit cake"

   Dont you love it !! 

They made it up to me with these beautiful earings.

Thankyou my angels for making my day special

xxxx

Little Matisse Art Classes

My seven year old went to her first art class yesterday.

She does art at school but when I saw these classes that are designed to inspire children to be creative , explore & discover their creativity in an authentic atmosphere of an artists Galerie.

She was so excited about going but when we got there she looked a little apprehensive, but when I took a peek half way through the class an hour later this is what I saw, a relaxed & happy girl.

So off I went for another hour , very difficult to amuse one self at Marina Mirage for 2 hours , all those beautiful shops & a bonus of the farmers markets on that day as well......mmmm maybe not that hard.

The highlight for me was on the way home when she said "mummy I loved going there it made me feel I had gone to Paris and was doing art there with my french hat & that painty thing (paint palette) "
I love all things french so when she said that I knew Im 'rubbing' off on her.

She cant wait until next week

And neither can I !

They are held at the HunterCorbu Galerie at Marina Mirage 

(www.littlematisse.com.au)

Sunrise at Hope Island

Image by me

 Early morning walk 

so quite

so calm

so beautiful

so new

so

what do we have to complain about ?

nothing

what more could we want ?

another day

like 

this

Blogging for Dummies required here !

                                            

Trying to centre image and text on my blog header  for a few days now, just cant seem to work it out , think it is time for a nap .............. X