The Nest Home Design Handbook

Hi everyone! Hope all you fellow Aussies had an enjoyable Australia Day yesterday. After an early morning walk, ours was spent mostly pottering around the house and ended with a quiet barbecue for tea.

Today I thought I'd share with you the book in the photo above which I am reading at the moment. This one is another loan from my local library and it is packed with gorgeous images of interiors along with decorating principles and ideas to help you in creating stylish and comfortable living spaces in your own home. Carly Roney, the author of this book, is also the editor in chief of the website TheNest.com which you can check out here. Below is a lovely office space from the book...

Visit Vic's blog here to see what other people have been reading lately.

Lovely Sunday Morning

This morning the three of us enjoyed a nice Sunday morning together. First we hit the road bright and early and headed to Zepher Cafe in East Fremantle where we had breakfast (the photo above was taken from where we were sitting). This cafe is literally right on the water and we enjoyed the lovely view and all that was happening on the river from our table. Then we headed to a fishing store Paul has recently discovered in Nedlands where he bought a new rod. Grace had fallen asleep by this stage so I was more than happy to stay with her in the comfort of the air-conditioned car with my Ideal Home magazine. Finally, we drove into the city to the State Library where there is currently an exhibition called 'Thanks Dad'. A cute photo of Paul and Grace that I submitted has been included in the collection so we went to see the display. It was titled 'Morning Cuddle'. Go here to see some of the beautiful photos from the 2009 entries.

Now I am catching up on all my favourite blogs while Grace naps and Paul watches the cricket. Then I'm hoping to tackle a bit more of the sewing projects I started during the week. Hope you have all had wonderful weekends too.

Sydney Holidays

Hope you are all having a lovely week. Last night, while watching the Australian Open, Paul and I were discussing how apart from last January when I was pregnant, for the past few years, we have been in Sydney, watching the tennis from our lovely hotel room. We were thinking about doing another visit there again this year but have decided to hold off until Grace is a little bit older.

Aside from the usual touristy things and wonderful markets, whenever we visit Sydney, we are sure to set aside some time to simply wander around the streets in our favourite suburb of Paddington and its surrounding areas. It's lovely to admire the gorgeous terrace houses, trying to picture what the interiors are like and to browse in the quaint little shops I drag Paul into. When we next go to Sydney, I have a new list of shops I hope to visit including Donna Hay's General Store in Woollhara. What's your 'must see' Sydney shop that you love to browse around or are yet to visit?

Weekend Heatwave

Hope you have all had lovely, productive (and relaxing) weekends. Here we did our best to stay cool in the 40 degree heat and therefore aside from a few splashes in Grace's paddle pool, spent most of our time under the airconditioning doing 'inside tasks'. I managed to make a start on some cushion covers that have been on my 'to-do list' for some time now and made a Raspberry and Coconut Loaf cake to enjoy whilst sewing. I also gave a coat of paint to a cheap Ikea tray I had bought, although I discovered that weather as hot as we were experiencing was not the best for this task as the paint was drying faster than I could brush it on!

However, this weekend's biggest project I accomplished whilst watching a movie with Paul on Saturday night. I have a huge pile of recipes that I have either torn from magazines or that have been written out for me by friends and whenever I hunt through this pile, it is an almost impossible task. So, during ad breaks, I sorted all these recipes into folders such as 'Cakes', 'Meat', 'Salad' and so on to make it easier the next time I am searching for something. What did you all get up to on the weekend? Was it as hot where you were as it was here?

Last Week's New Recipe

Each week I try and choose a recipe we haven't used before in ourweekly meals. I have a huge pile of recipes that have been torn out of magazines and this is a good way of making a dent in that pile. Last week's new recipe was a Donna Hay recipe - Lemon Thyme and Feta Chicken Patties. Served with a fresh salad, it made a nice light summer meal. Here is the recipe...

Lemon Thyme and Feta Chicken Patties

500g chicken mince

2 tbsp chopped lemon thyme leaves

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 egg white, lightly beaten

100g feta, roughly chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

4 vine-ripened tomatoes, sliced

2 lebanese cucumbers, sliced

1 cup basil leaves

red wine vinegar and olive oil, extra, for drizzling

cracked black pepper and lemon wedges, to serve

Place the chicken, lemon thyme, garlic, egg white and feta in a bowl and mix to combine. Using damp hands, divide the mixture into 12 patties. Heat oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Cook the patties for 3-4 minutes each side or until cooked through and golden. Place the tomato, cucumber and basil in a bowl, drizzle with vinegar and extra oil and toss to combine. Top salad with patties, sprinkle with pepper and serve with lemon. Serves 4.