November 2011 Monthly Challenge

This month's challenge is to purchase bleach, disinfectant and vinegar.

Bleach
For hard core cleaning.  Here are some ideas, found on the Reader's Digest website: http://www.rd.com/home/12-smart-ways-to-use-bleach/

I have heard that it definitely comes in handy in extremely humid weather, or to assist in cleaning up after a flood.  It kills lots of nasties.

Disinfectant
There are a few different types of disinfectant, so store the type that you would use.  There are the cream types for First Aid for topical use, or there are the bottles of disinfectant concentrate you would use e.g. to clean your toilet with, or your kitchen benches.  So depending on your need, is what you would store.

Vinegar
This one is an interesting one.  It also can be used as a cleaner.  I listed some uses, and some links in a previous post: http://denleydiaries.blogspot.com/2011/09/week-37-of-2011-food-storage-challenge.html  

Week 45 of the 2011 Food Storage Challenge

$10 Challenge
Replenish the Kitty Tin

$20 Challenge
Replenish the Kitty Tin

If you have been using a jar or tin to put your leftover money in, you get to top it up this week, as we have another vitamin week coming up.  Vitamins are rather expensive.

If you don't want to store those, think of something else useful you would like to store instead.

Week 44 of the 2011 Food Storage Challenge

$10 Challenge

Store 2 cans fruit and 2 packets of jelly.

$20 Challenge

Store 4 cans fruit and 4 packets of jelly

 A great Summer storage food, and easy to make dessert.  If you get the canned fruit in natural juice, you can drink it as well.

Make sure you store extra water if you store Jelly crystals in order to make it up.

The Slug Fight Continues...

This was the sight that greeted me this morning when I went out to check on the bunnies.  *Shudders*.  I have been trying to get rid of a family of mice living in this corner near my rabbit hutch, but I couldnt' catch the mice in the trap, because slugs kept trying to eat the choc bit I would place in it.  I decided to do something different...surround the mouse trap with slug pellets.  Well, I did catch a mouse.  And I killed off a whole heap of ping-pong ball sized slugs.  So that is what was getting to my lettuce.

 The mouse trap you see is about the size of my hand.  Can you imagine how big these slugs are?

Another camera shot after I had pulled out the mouse trap and discovered a deceased mouse.  I didn't want to gross you out too much though! (So the trap is not in the photo).

Week 43 of the 2011 Food Storage Challenge

$10 Challenge
Purchase 1 packet mixed dried fruit and 1 packet dates/prunes.

$20 Challenge
Purchase 2 packets mixed dried fruit and 2 packets dates/prunes

A bit of an odd challenge this one.  Depending on why you require your food storage, fruit may not be easy to get.  I mean...we're just starting to see bananas come down in price. 

Prunes are great for...keeping you regular.  I'm not going to go into that in any more detail!

There are many types of mixed dried fruit out there as well.  I like one that has dried halves.  It includes apple, pear, peach, prunes and apricots.  I'm not keen on sultanas for some reason.

You can dry your own fruit with a food dryer, as I sometimes do, if I get a great haul of fruit cheaply.

Some ideas on what you can do with your dried fruit:-

• Make muffins
• Make your own muesli
• Add to your breakfast cereal
• Hydrate in syrup and serve with ice cream
• Make coconut/condensed milk/dried fruit balls
• Make fruit cakes
• Make scones
• Eat right out of the packet
• Combine with seeds/nuts and something like Nutri-grain or puffed wheat to make a trail mix.

If you want to store glace fruit instead, go right ahead.  I love to keep glace cherries handy, and typing this, I realised I haven't replenished my store of them. *Gasp*.

Holiday Hideouts #2 Freshwater Point Resort

This place was just lovely!  It is the Freshwater Point Resort Holiday Apartments. I have stayed there before, but with my in-laws.  This time Hubby and I got to be 'grown ups' and stayed there on our own.  In a big bed.  Without having to move the two single beds together.  I loved it!!

 This is where the kids got to sleep.  Notice their sheets not touched?  They decided to sleep on top of the sheets again.  Strange children! (No idea where they get that from).

 The children's bathroom and the built-in laundry complete with washing machine, dryer, sink and cupboard.  Children's bathroom is equipped with toilet, shower and sink with cupboard underneath.  All tiled.  AND a door!

 One side of the room, with a view of the kitchen and dining area.  I don't think I got a picture of the other side of this room.  Shame, because the views of the giant floor to ceiling windows were amazing.

 A King Size big people's bed.  YAAAAAY!  Check out those amazing views!  We were on the 9th floor.  We could see right out to the mountains.  Was awesome with the clouds rolled in.  We had a fairly large wall-mounted tv in our room.

 The view of the bathroom and built-in wardrobes.  All with mirrored doors.  Note the lack of a door on the en suite.  Keep that in mind...

 A view of the shower and toilet in our en suite.

 Hello!  So I totally should have taken a photo of me pretending to sit on the toilet.  You can see the bed from the toilet via all the mirrors in the place.  Which means you can also see the toilet from the bed. Hmmm...not so attractive, but hey!  My husband has seen me give birth twice.  Nothing to hide here.  We did discover that the trick was to keep the end door of the mirrored cupboard open.  Problem generally solved.  There was the children's bathroom with the door if required.

A nice big, deep bath to relax in.  Which I did.  With the roller blind down thank you very much!  Hubby decided to have a bath in it with the blind open.  Not for my amusement, but to watch tv.  Of course!!

The well equipped and very functional kitchen.  Oh how I loved this kitchen.  It was modern, clean and looks a little cluttered with all my gear on it ready to head back to the car.  This was taken on the last day just before we left.  I wanted to remember this kitchen!

I love that this apartment made me feel like I was in a home away from home.  I usually get homesick being away from my home for any length of time, but I didn't here.  You have to keep it clean yourself - you get charged extra if you leave the place dirty so we left it cleaner than it was when we arrived.  So they'll have me back again!

Holiday Hideouts #1 Ballina Island Motor Inn

Recently returned from a trip to the Gold Coast, bringing the lovely sunshine down with us.  We stayed in Ballina on the way up at a lovely place called the Ballina Island Motor Inn.  Here are some of the pictures I took.  I was meaning to race in armed with my camera and take some photos before we brought in all our junk, but that didn't happen.  Apparently the kids wanted to go swimming first, so that took priority.

 We had a spa bath in the bathroom.  After being advised that there was a spa bath in the place we would be staying next in, I decided after everyone else had jumped in, that I would wait until our next destination.  Needless to say, there was NOT a spa bath at our next accommodation.  Note to self: Jump in at every opportunity!

 My 'serious' photo taking face!  This was of the mini bar.  Fridge below, bathroom sink and cupboards to the right and the front door, bathroom entry directly behind me and cupboard opposite the sink.  I thought it odd that they would have a sink outside the bathroom, but it worked.  It's not like we were having to cook there!

 The sink view.  They didn't hand out small bottles of shampoo or conditioner.  They had dispensable wall mounted containers.  I thought that was a great idea.

 One happy child with a bed to himself.  Next to a power point that didn't work.  Very handy when he wanted to plug in his DVD player at night ;D  Meant we all got some sleep instead!

Another child looking rather content.  My children are odd.  Neither of them wanted to actually get under the covers.  They continued this the entire holiday.  Wierd, I tell you!

 Another corner of the room.  Nice and cosy

Someone found another tv in our bedroom and was exhausted from all the driving.  I'll leave him be.  I especially loved the fact that in this Motel, the switch to turn the tv off was on my side of the bed (stage left). No getting up to have to turn everything off.  Always a bonus when you're drop dead tired.

Is this somewhere I would stay again?  Definitely!!!