One step at a time

So not off to the best of starts after my 2 months away... and as much as I procrastinate telling myself that I can't post a blog without photos, as my mobile phone/camera is in at the shop getting repairs done (complete with all my photos of our Sunday banana-choccie-almond-crunch-chia-layered-parfait-brekkie, my tranquil trip away to Bowral last week with my step-mum's home grown vegies in the back yard, the massive green salads Brock and I had post yoga, and more)!!

NOTE: since typing this draft yesterday I've had an AHA moment and 2 of the pics I posted straight from my phone last week onto FB, have now been posted below. Blonde moment yes, but we've got some piccies!! :) And my photo-shopping program has been updated so I have a bucket load of new designs and effects to play with! Happy days :)

Mid-morning snack on the front balcony over looking the lake

Besides the lack of a good mobile phone at present (although my old cute little flip top Sony I bought in Italy years ago brings back such happy memories), things are pretty much the same as usual.

Actually no - you know what, they're not the same! They're BETTER than usual! Yep! BETTER! I'm forever telling people I'm the "same as usual - never ending study, work, etc, you know" when this past week has been so much more than just that! The past few weeks infact.

- I took 3 weeks off work to really knuckle down some college modules and I have done just that, and feel great for it! Sure it's a challenge getting my head around Biology and the deepening ins and outs of nutritional studies but when I understand it I LOVE IT and it's FASCINATING!

- I spent 5 days down in Bowral at my dad's place to really chill out, focus, drink tea (I say that like I don't otherwise drink copious amounts), eat lightly, and rest. I got a bunch of assessments done there, and since being back I've got a bunch more done.

- I'm trying new bits n pieces for my skin issues and am finding small improvements (yippee!). I'll let you know how things are going a bit later.

- Brock and I have been spending the best time ever together - even if that was one whole day driving from one mobile phone shop to the next, back home for contracts and receipts and back again. He is due to head off to Thailand on Sunday so intentionally or not, we've been glued to one another hip. I quite like that ;)

- I've also been doing a few gentle -but powerful- online workouts as well as rebounding and find I'm feeling a lot better from them both. I've always been a fitness and gym junkie but after a shoulder injury, followed by a sciatic injury (both for reason's still unknown to me), I was off the gym and have been for probably 3months now. Soooo unlike me! But you know what? I am so surprised at how my body has held up! My mind was trying to convince me that without my 4-6 gym classes a week I would surely balloon out, get fat and feel yuck! Well, my body looks very close to exactly the same as it was when I was up early every second day to work out. I know there's no way I could lift the weights I was 3 months ago now which is a bit of a bummer, but Brock mentioned to me yesterday that some of the world's top athlete's take 6 months off every year to really rest and recover, which was a huge boost to my self esteem, and a real joy to hear after beating myself up for not working out. My step-dad has also said each time I've popped over to say hello, that I'm looking better than ever! I laugh and say I'm doing absolutely nothing! It doesn't really surprise me though. My body has been feeling too tired and sore and exhausted to do much of anything that all I muster up is a 20minute walk most days, and even that brings on minor pain. But it's good to get out of the house.

So with that, I've been on my rebounder more and that has given me loads of energy, lymphatic boosts, and with minimal impact, and I'm feeling so-far-so-good coz of it! Really good infact. Yay :)

But I best get going again coz my aim is to finish one big Nutrition assessment today, and a Biology one too if I can squeeze it in! I'm off to a comedy gig tonight and very much looking forward to surprising Brock with that! I only just got given free tickets - ten minutes ago!

Quick and easy (minimal pantry ingredients) dessert or brekkie parfait

But before I jet I'll spill the beans on a super easy-use-whatever-you've-got-dessert-or-brekkie-recipe you can try this weekend.I made this at dad's down in Bowral the night before I left to use up my last few bananas, and coconut. I've tried to guess the quantities I used but adjust to taste coz I never measure anything myself.

Recipe (quite literally):

Step 1

Young coconut flesh from one coconut

1 banana

1 tsp vanilla

Coconut water as needed... blend all until smooth then pour into a small bowl and set aside

Step 2

2 bananas

1-2 tsp cacao... blend together then pour into a small bowl

Step 3

Handful of chopped dates

Handful of nuts

Pinch of salt...blend until crumbly and set aside

Pull out 3 little glass cups, bowls or jars and start layering your 3 mixtures. Eat straight away, or set in fridge or freezer. If you're like we were and too full from dinner, save these for brekkie!

I'd usually use a few other ingredients in something like this but at my dad's the pantry is not stocked for a raw vegan and so I use what I can. Something like this can be made with any fruit, and nuts, and any dried fruit. Be creative. Experiment with your favourite flavours and let me know how you go!

Have an awesome weekend!!

Christie :)

A (biased) wedding meal to die for

I feel like I've soooooo much to play catch up on it's like I'm talking to a girlfriend who I havn't seen in MONTHS!

So, the reasons for my absense from blogging in a week and a half... there's the moving out of ONE home, BACK home to mums for a week then into the NEW home with Brock. All in 2 weeks. It's been stressful, busy, EXCITING, fun, and we're still unpacking and getting everything in order. I'll be sure to post some pics up when it's all pretty and complete but here's one of our sunny backyard -


Then there's work - at the health food shop I love - my boss came back from her 2 month honeymoon so I got a well deserved break last week (which beautifully coincided with moving house so not really a break), but back to work this week - 7days straight too! But I can't complain; if I wasnt working I'd probably be visiting the girls to say hi :)

College is back so I've been trying to organise myself there. I've got clients, assignments, presentations and weekly work to keep up with. Seeing the girls again is awlays nice. I LOVE our class - we've become a sisterhood who know one another upside down and inside out. Like family :)


And then last Friday, Brock, Berry, and my sisters Nikki and Lisa all piled into the car for a 6hr ROADTRIP out to Narromine in north west NSW for our step-sisters wedding. It was out at our step-dads pub/hotel which meant we were the ones organising it all. GREAT FUN but alot of work. Although it was kinda cool laying out table settings and blowing up balloons knowing you were the ones who would be appreciating it all a few hours later.
The same with the food. I was preparing the meals for Brock and I. Which meant we could have anything we wanted and that it was gonna taste UNREAL!

And so, my creative juices were flowing for a few weeks prior. What to make? Of course DESSERT got me the most excited but let's start at the beginning...

Mum was the one to come up with an entree idea as she made me a quick, easy, delicious one for Xmas in July. And so she replicated it -

Sliced cucumbers topped with an avocado mash, tomato and onion relish and alfalfa, garnished with zucchini strips, black pepper and drizzled with olive oil.


Our main dish was an Asian-inspired salad. Brock and I wanted something different to what we would normally have and after discussing ingredients, I came up with this -

Shredded cabbage, carrot, corn, cauliflower, snow pea sprouts, alfalfa sprouts, cashew nuts, coriander, and chilli flakes mixed with a dressing of olive oil, soy sauce, fresh lime juice, salt, and pepper.


Perfect textures and contrasts of salty and tangy with sweet corn and carrots.

And then DESSERT... usually my speciality if I do say so, and even this time, I impressed myself. I kept it simple so I didnt have to take too many ingredients away with me, and made a DELICIOUS, smooth, creamy, SOFT, sweet layered parfait pudding I'd like to call...

Choco-Coco-Nana Pudding.


I began with sliced bananas, then a banana and cacao blend. Topped with a date and almond crumble, then a coconut layer (made from coconut flesh, coconut water, soaked cashews and coconut oil). Ontop of that I layered more banana slices and fresh blueberries, then a chia-coconut water mix. More banana-cacao mix, more coconut mix, more bananas, blueberries, and cacao nibs.


It was AMAZING! Brock and I did get a few looks from other guests as to what we were so thoroughly enjoying. Wedding fruit cake was dessert for the rest of the troops. Not so exciting.

The wedding was alot of fun; after a black out and disappearance of photos from the photographers memory stick... we all danced the night away singing and laughing before happily hitting the hay after a very long day.

Ooh, one last thing, the buckwheat pizza Brock and I had almost 2 weeks ago that I promised to show you guys photos of...


Topped with fresh rocket and avo, with side salads to boot! We ate it on the carpet in front of the fire watching a move on TV.



Next post - who knows what I'll write about but I promise it wont be far off!