mid week happy

D. made these yummy Anzacs on Anzac Day (der..) Look how uniform they are. Scary isn't it? D's pride & joy; little soldiers? They were from the recipe in Good Weekend and sadly were a bit on the chewy/soggy side. Couldn't have been my fault in any way shape or form. Did I stick them in the container too early? No surely not. It was well and truly after dinner, many wines and Carcassonne and this other lovely bit of delish..the apple and berry tart. Shown here in it's par-cooked state, before a blast in the oven. We were very busy eating barbequed pork sausage on spiced lentils.






Funny that most of my photos for today are of or about food, because this week we have been watching MASTER CHEF. I love food. I love watching those poor stressed out folk trying to get it together. Tonight's episode, the second chance cook-off was heart wrenching.
I have a new favourite cookbook. Usually I only use cookbooks as a rough guide, something from which to derive inspiration. I am a big fan of substitution. I bought myself this one; Every Day In The Kitchen by Allan Campion & Michele Curtis.
It is based on their family home cooking & in the past few weeks, everything I have tried to cook from it has worked beautifully. Every time I think to investigate a recipe, it's there waiting! And as an added bonus, they have anticipated my desire to create variations on the basic recipe and included lots of their own tried & true ones.

This week has been pretty good. It's May new releases time in the bookshop, so the work days have been incredibly busy.
I missed Tuesday and stayed home with Mackie who was feeling poorly. He dashed off this very cute picture of a frog on the whiteboard when he discovered I had bought some new markers. Who can resist stationery?
I find it so very hard to make the call to stay at home. Of course with kids there is nearly always some element of bullshit in the pre-school performance. "cough cough, sniff sniff"
I feel that since I only work 3 days a week & I'm not sick, then the kid has to be at death's door to make me miss a day. I actually enjoy going to work. I also feel a sense of responsibility to turn up when my name is on the roster. I don't like to let people down.
One surprisingly great thing that has happened is that I have now switched from a 10 til 6 shift on Thursdays; to 9 til 5. For the first time ever I have instituted a 6 o'clock homework time. While I'm cooking dinner, they're beavering away on their homework. It's really helped to cement some regularity into the scheme of things. As a believer in kids needing to do whatever work is set by the teachers, I can't believe how long it has taken to find a proper spot for it in the day. I guess it's only now, Years 5 and 7, that so much has been required of them. Anyway, the 5pm finish is a major bonus.