Friday Fences #26

 Found this little plant poking through a neighbours fence while out for a walk..

There's a change in the air...

While all my Northern Hemisphere blogging friends are starting to enjoy some warmer weather, and the first signs of Spring are starting to begin, here in New Zealand things are starting to cool down.
There are no more warm, balmy breezes or nights sitting out on the verandah watching the sunset.

The mornings are dark, and the evenings are closing in. The next few weeks will mean weekends spent getting the garden ready for Winter, and getting firewood stacked.

Autumn is officially here, and the signs are everywhere. Here are a few photos from our neighbourhood.

Leaves are changing colour and falling...

Trees are already bare..

And all sorts of mushrooms and toadstools are popping up..

Even the new growth is changing..

 Have a great weekend everyone ...

Angela xx

Textures Tuesday - Autumn Leaf

 This week Kim's challenge was our own black & white image with any texture or textures from her range.

 I have used Ugg Love black & white on my Autumn leaf image..

 Check out the other participants at the link below.

                                                            http://www.kimklassencafe.com/

Shadow Shot Sunday..

 Water Lily

Taken a few weeks ago at a local garden that is open to the public. Huge ponds full of Water lilies and Lotus blossoms.... 
 Join the rest of the Shadow Chasers from around the globe at the link below...

                        http://shadowshotsunday2.blogspot.co.nz/

Friday Fences #25...

 I found this cute wrought iron fence while driving home from work the other day, after I took the shot I looked up and the owner of the house was staring at me out of his window. What did I do, gave him a big smile, and a wave jumped in my car and drove off. I wonder what he was thinking when I left??

Check out the link below to see what everyone else has posted...
                 http://lifeaccordingtojanandjer.blogspot.co.nz/

Easy Peasy Cooking...

Quince is a member of the pear family

Now, I am the first to admit that I am no Rachel Ray or Nigella Lawson, Julia Childs would certainly not call on me to help her in the kitchen.

No, I am more your "Easy Peasy" cook, choosing tasty , quick and easy, over slaving for hours in the kitchen.

One thing I do enjoy is using fresh "in season" fruit and vegetables when I can. If someone offers me fruit or veges from their garden I never say "no".  So imagine my delight when I was offered a bag of Quinces, a fruit that I have never even seen in the flesh let alone cooked with. I have had Quince jam and jelly from the supermarket, but that was about it.

So, armed with my bag of Quinces, which I must say smell divine I set about finding an "easy peasy" recipe.  Here it is..


                                  Quince Crumble
5 Quince peeled and chooped into chunks
4-5 cloves            3 Cinnamon sticks - snapped
75g sugar


Crumble Topping:
225g plain flour
115g butter
100g sugar
pinch of ground cinnamon


Preheat oven to 190C  ( sorry not sure what that is in Farenheit)
Method:
Place the quince, cloves and cinnamon sticks in heavy based saucepan
Add enough water to cover the quinces
Bring to the boil and mix in the sugar
Cover & simmer for 5mins - uncover and increase the heat ( at this stage  your kitchen is starting to smell amazing)
Simmer the Quince uncovered until the liquid thickens into a syrup - abt 15 - 20mins
Using a slotted spoon put the cooked quince into a buttered ovenproof dish - remove cloves, cinnamon sticks  allow to cool


Place flour into mixing bowl, rub in butter until crumbles, add 75g sugar- spread onto Quince, I pressed it down firmly. Mixtogether the balance of the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle on top  Bake 30mins. Serve warm with fresh whipped cream....... YUM!!

What is your favourite seasonal fruit or vege recipe? If you would like to share how about posting it on your blog and share it with us all...

Into Every Life a Little Rain Must Fall...

My friend at Life in Red Shoes has just posted on her blog here  and included the quote below..

Red has such a great sense of humour, and always manages to bring a smile to my lips...

So, these images are for you Red, life is all about cute as gumboots  and even cuter umbrellas...

Gumboots, oh so cute, I want the red ones...

And wouldn't you just love to be standing under one of these when you start dancing....


Angela xx


Images from Google images

Shadow Shot Sunday..

 Shadows and reflection, taken a few weeks ago at the Auckland Domain..

Join the rest of the Shadow chasers on the link below:

                                   http://shadowshotsunday2.blogspot.com

Have a great week everyone xx

Friday Fences - #24

 Not so much a fence, but a gate, I took this a few weeks ago, before I sprained my ankle. Haven't been for a walk for three weeks now and am really looking forward to getting out and about again.
 Check out the link below for more Friday Fences..

                    http://lifeaccordingtojanandjer.blogspot.com

The Words of Your Life...

  Jeanne over at Collage of Life posed a question a few posts ago here  
if your life was a game of Scrabble what would the words of your life be
It has taken me a few days, but here they are , in no particular order

                                    Family Present and Past
                                             Phil
                                    Freshly roasted coffee beans
                                             Photography
                                   Summer fruit, especially berries
                                   Pineapple Lumps ( A New Zealand chocolate treat)
                                   Smell of the road in  Summer after it has rained
                                             Sewing
                                   Laughter and giggles
                                    Emma and Lucca        
                                   Bland Bay, Northland
                                   Beaches in any season
                                          Art Galleries
                                          Auckland Museum
                                          Road Trips
                                 Salt Lake City, Utah
                                         Walking
                                          Max
                                 Evette, Stephen andSamantha
                                 Sunsets from our front verandah
                                 Open fire in the Winter
                                          Reading
                                Roast Lamb and fresh minted peas
                                          Gee Gee's Restaurant
                               Live, Love, Laugh.....
        
 And of course I haven't finished yet, this is a list that will never be finished...
                                   
What would the words of your life be?

Moments with Max....

Hi everyone, it's been awhile, so I thought it was about time I let you know what has been going on here at home.

Firstly, I would like to say "Thank you" to all of you who have commented on my cute photo on the header of our Blog. It was taken a few days after I first arrived here at my new home, Dad had decided to roll up some newspaper for me to play with, and I had a great time tearing it apart, I think Mum did a great  job capturing me at the right moment.

Things over the past few weeks have been a bit different, with my routine changing because Mum sprained her ankle while we were out walking. She is getting better, but I can't go for walks at the moment,  so we have lots of play time before she goes to work and when she gets home.

One of my favourite things to do is to play with this amazing squeaky toy that I have, it makes the best noise ever, it just squeaks and squeaks and drives everyone crazy. After a few minutes of playing with the squeaky I like to 'chill' and relax....

Have a great rest of the week everyone  Max   xx

Shadow Shot Sunday..

It is now officially Autumn here 'down-under', it is definitely a little cooler and darker in the mornings, I love Autumn and look forward to posting some gold/red shadows when Autumn starts to show it's beauty..
In the meantime, I found this leaf in the lane outside the Physiotherapists this week... I sprained my ankle a few weeks ago and am having treatment, poor Max no early morning walks for him for at least another two weeks..  :(

 

Join us over at Shadow Shot Sunday and check out the worldwide Shadowchasers, click on the link below

                                  http://shadowshotsunday2.blogspot.com

Time Traveller...

So, this morning, after I left a comment about Time Travelling on a friends Facebook page,  I got to thinking about who I would like to meet if I was a Time Traveller....

 Would I only choose to meet happy people,who lived in far away places, with a romantic feel, with warm weather and where there would be  no pain and suffering? Not possible, I decided, because pain and suffering is all part of life.

Of course I could have a hugely long list, but I have chosen a few.

MICHELANGELO - The Sistine Chapel Ceiling: Michelangelo was a sculptor, and had to learn how to paint in the technique required to paint the Sistine Chapel Ceiling. Although he had many assistants to help him, he did the bulk of the work himself, taking  over four years to paint the over 5,000 feet of frescoes and 300 painted figures. I can't imagine what damage he would have done to his body, and how his back and arms must have ached. I would love to have just been there, looking up watching all that amazing work being done, and being part of that atmosphere with all the noise and smell of paint and plaster.  I'm sure there was a lot of yelling coming from the Master as he worked on the ceiling.

MAHATMA GHANDI - 1869 - 1948   He played an integral part in India gaining independence from Britain. He was a believer in passive resistance, believing that acts of violence only provoked negative reaction.  What would it have been like, travelling around India in the 1940's, watching him as he talked to the people,  with all the hardship he would have endured , being imprisoned for his beliefs,
A great and humble man..

AMELIA EARHART - 1897 - 1937   The first female pilot to fly across the Atlantic in 1928 and the first person to have flown both oceans. In 1937 she mysteriously disappeared while trying to circumnavigate the globe from the equator.
What an amazing person to be around, she was passionate about flying and about women being able to do anything. An inspiration.

Famous Quote:    The woman who can create her own job is the woman who will win fame and fortune......  Amelia Earhart


An Artist, a Humanitarian and an Adventurer......
Who would you choose to go back in time and meet if you were a Time Traveller?

Friday Fences #23

 Not so much a fence, but a gate, found on a recent walk....

 I love the wood and the interesting metal handle, it looks like a piece of farm equipment.

 Go to the link below to see what the other fences from around the world.

http://lifeaccordingtojanandjer.blogspot.co.nz/