Loving this week {June 2013}

I am linking this into cityhippyfarmgirl's 'loving this week' post for June.

The 'loving'this week' posts are all about the little moments in your days and weeks that have tickled your heart.

After skipping over a 'loving this week' post for May (I was in pre-holiday work chaos, and just didn't get to doing one), I'm delighted to be back with a snapshot of what I'm loving at the moment.

This week, I'm loving vegan orange cake with (soy) cream cheese frosting. It's the same recipe as the orange cake I made earlier in the year, but with the addition of the orange zest. It tastes like orange this time. It's possible I liked the other one more (orange and I aren't super friendly in baked goods), but I'm still loving the simplicity of homemade cake with tea on a weekend afternoon.

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Raspberry carob mousse

First, thank you to those of you who shared your thoughts on my last post. I really valued your comments and perspectives on what is an incredibly complex topic. It certainly seems like we can all agree there's no easy fix!

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Inviting debate - what do we do about overweight and obesity?

Recently, I received an email from Run Stop Shop who are promoting the 'infographic' (a new term for me) below. You can also see it on their site here. It's the sort of thing I am happy to share, because it presents facts and figures in an easy to grasp way, drawing on the published literature rather than anything more subjective or biased.


Source: Run Stop Shop

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Northern Territory travels - Mataranka, Tennant Creek, and campervan fun

Darwin was just the start of our Northern Territory travels. After three nights in the N.T. capital we were off and away in our camper van!

We actually had the van for the entirety of the trip, despite not sleeping in it the whole time. It was easier (and cheaper) to hire a camper van for 2 weeks than to mess around with a hire car some of the time and a van the rest. In fact, it was the same price to hire a camper van for 2 weeks, with the one way surcharge from Darwin to Cairns, as it would have been to hire a car.

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Amazing satay tofu (coconut milk free)

I have never thought of myself as someone who likes satay dishes. In fact, I would go so far as to say I actively dislike most satay dishes. Except, that is, for this one. I'm pleased to have found an exception.

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Celebrations and food

Can you believe that it's been a year since my sister's cupcake-filled 21st birthday? No, me neither.

Somehow, though, it is.

This year, my sister's birthday fell the day before her last university exam. Not her last exam for this semester, or even last exam for this year, but the very last exam for her degree. She is officially (or unofficially, I suppose, seeing as exams need to be marked) finished with university - at least for the time being. We celebrated her birthday a day late, and it felt like an occasion for lots of celebration.

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Northern Territory travels - Darwin and Kakadu

For me, visiting the Northern Territory was a bit like slotting the last piece into a jigsaw puzzle. It is rewarding to know that I have seen every state and territory in the country I grew up in. It is also easier to grasp Australia, with all its variations and features, when I have seen it from top to bottom as well as east to west (and with the acknowledgement that there's still a bit right in the middle that I haven't seen!).

Darwin esplanade.

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Product review and give away: AntiOx chocolate bars

Much as I'm looking forward to sharing travel news, I am also delighted to bring you this Product Talk by Nuffnang post today, courtesy of Nuffnang and AntiOx. 

As most of you know, almost all of my product review posts feature products that I have found and bought myself. Today is slightly different, as the AntiOx products I'm reviewing were sent to me (by the company that owns the brand, Vitality Brands) for free. A significant benefit of this arrangement is that I not only get to review the products, but also host a give away so that you can try them too!

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Northern Australia reflections

What a two weeks we have had. I'm looking forward to summarising our travels properly in due course, but for today, I thought I would share some photo highlights and some general thoughts on the trip.

Darwin waterfront - sunset markets, Sunday evening.

First, Australia is a big place. Oh, I knew that in theory, and I'm sure you know it too. However, I found that I didn't fully appreciate how big until I was out in the middle of it. It is BIG!

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Blogging from the Great Barrier Reef

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Holidaying in northern Australia

As this goes out, I will be up the tippity top of Australia!

Yes, our long awaited northern Australia trip is here, and all being well, we flew from Perth to Darwin yesterday (the red stretches in the above picture are flying; we are just going via Melbourne airport on the way home).

Later in the week, we'll be starting our campervan journey across from A to B to C to D to E and then up to F (Cairns, Queensland) and G (the Daintree, Queensland). I am very excited. I will be completely unplugged. Stay tuned for some Facebook photos and updates, but otherwise...I shall update in 2 weeks, hopefully refreshed and renewed and recovered from a last week of work that was more than a little brutal.

See you then!

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