A Weekend of Birthdays

Last weekend was definitely a weekend for birthdays, despite the rain and the little bit of renovating we got done. I celebrated my 20 something birthday and a friend celebrated her 30th birthday on the Saturday and then my mum celebrated her 60th birthday with family on Sunday night. I was indeed spoilt by family and friends between receiving maternity clothes, Tupperware, money and cabin bags for travel. I also managed to purchase the mattress I had been wanting for my Boori cot.

 The cot is finally set up

I went out with my immediate family Saturday night to celebrate and really should have booked somewhere but we were happy to stumble upon the Craft Restaurant and Bar, who thankfully weren't booked out. The Craft Restaurant and Bar is located on the corner of Park Rd. and Railway Tce., Milton and whilst it may appear as if it's just your ordinary pub from the street, it is much more on the inside. The food was also amazing. I had this delicious pasta and pork belly meal for dinner and a Rhubarb Tarte Tatin for dessert. This place was a real find! 

mmm pasta with Pork Belly

Sunday night was a planned surprise event for my mum that was to include all the family but unfortunately some of the family members had to cancel that afternoon, due to the birth of my cousin's little girl that day. So it was happy tidings but unfortunate timing. Nonetheless, we still had 10 people in attendance to the Mud Dessert Bar in Bulimba, on Oxford Street. Their desserts were to die for and hats off to the chef. My dessert was definitely in my top 10 list. Here's just a couple of their desserts that were on our table...

 Death Row
(amazingly everyone got through their dessert)

 Rocky Road Sundae

   Ferrero
(complete with hazelnut floss)

A surprise party wouldn't be complete without a few balloons, so I'd like to thank Spartys (at Spotlight) for putting these together for me. 

Testing my cooking skills

With darling husband working late nights recently, I have taken to cooking and trying different things at home to have ready on the table. Last night I cooked with Dukkah and Quinoa for the first time.

Whilst quinoa is probably an acquired taste, I did like it. I made Dukkah coated chicken with a quinoa salad.

Quinoa, available from some supermarkets and delis

 

Dukkah - I used the Pistachio one but you can get a spicier Dukkah

 Salad before adding in the quinoa

Quinoa salad

 The finished product

A Week for Family

As our lives become increasingly busy and stressful, it is sometimes difficult to make time for the ones we love. This week, I have taken time out to ensure I spend some quality time with my loved ones. This included seeing my mother, grandmother and mother-in-law for mother's day, a night away with my husband and taking part in the Million Paws Walk with my beautiful labrador.

Our room at Royal on the Park

My husband and I celebrated three amazing years of marriage this week and I decided a couple of months ago that I wanted to do something special for it and keep it a surprise to him. With thanks to Wotif's $12 birthday sale, I was able to find an amazing deal for a room in the city and book dinner at Moda restaurant, which was right around the corner. Hubby unfortunately doesn't like surprises much and was initially very confused when I took a different turn to our usual drive home. 

He initially thought I was taking him to the movies but then I drove past there, then he thought he was going to a musical with me but then I drove past there and it wasn't until I entered the hotel district that he started to worry that he wasn't dressed for the occasion. Little did he know, I had a bag packed in the boot and a dogsitter on hand. I'm surprised he didn't pick up on my cleaning activity at home, as it was moreso than usual.

Moda was amazing for dinner and dessert. We had a very courteous waiter and mouthwatering food. Here's a sample of what I had...

White Chocolate Mousse with a Passionfruit top and Raspberries

I woke up this morning to a very excitable labrador licking my face. It's funny how animals pick up on things sometimes - it was almost as if she knew something different was going to happen today. It was a nice start to the day and I felt great for helping the RSPCA raise some much needed funds.

A friend with her dog and hubby with our chocolate lab

Tomorrow is Pancake Day!!!

I was excited to learn this afternoon that tomorrow is Shrove Tuesday and worldwide Pancake Day!!! I am now trying to work out if I make pancakes for dessert tomorrow evening, as I'm totally unprepared presently i.e. the pantry does not have the correct ingredients. These images look delicious...

The Traditional Maple Syrup Look
(Photo from http://groupon.com.au)

Pancakes with Berries
(Photo from http://kidspot.com.au)

Nutella and Banana - sooo want to try this!
(Photo from http://photogrinder.com)

In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy the beautiful fish curry I just made for dinner...


March's photo challenge was posted today but I feel I can't keep this up, so February was definitely the month to try this challenge and I can't believe I haven't missed a day to date. Speaking of which, here's today photo challenge.

Day 20 (of 29) Challenge - Handwriting


This is one of my favourites quotes of late.