Life in the new house!!!

So here I am confessing again that its been a long time between blog posts.

So now I have so so much to tell, but most importantly we have moved into our new but very old home.

You can check out my previous post full of the real estate pics here

The real estate wrapped our front door in a bow, it was so nice to turn up with our keys for the first time & be greeted like this.

Thank you Ray White Maitland.

They also left a lovely gift basket full of goodies but the kids raided it before I could snap a pic.

We only have a single garage here so have temporarily put a shipping container in the back yard until my dream Guy can build his man cave.

We  have a narrow driveway so the crane driver lifted this big thing over the roof of our house.

I'm pretty happy he is good at what he does, no damage any where...pheww!!!

We used Tom Lawler Cranes for this job & I highly recommend them. Tom is a precision driver that's for sure.

Our lovely old home needs re peering, the floors slope off in all different directions.

As you can see by the above photo of just one of the peers, they are in a pretty bad way, this all all that is left of this one, it should be almost a metre long but has been eaten out by termites.

The termite damage is old & there are no active termites in the house now.

All of this is being replaced by adjustable steel peers, we only have to do about 48 of them....eeek!!!!

We knew this when we purchased the home.

Do you like how I say we... I don't really get my hands very dirty, I feed the worker, help with the clean up, sometimes I have to assist when it comes to lifting heavy things & most importantly take photos.

Doesn't everyone keep a wheel barrow in the laundry.

So the renovating has begun.

We are just taking it one step at a time but this part of the re peering process will allow us to build a much needed ensuite & set up the plumbing for a new main bath & laundry.

We currently have no water tanks for that all important water catchment from the roof to run the toilets & washing machine from & the way the house is set up at the moment it runs off two electric hot water systems , so it is a bit of a priority to address these issues as we go along, so we can be a little more energy & water efficient.

Its also a huge pain, if you flush the toilet while someone is showering as they lose their water & you cant run the washing machine & any other taps at the same time for the same reason.

Its time to make this 108 year old home a little more efficient!!

Stay tuned for my next installment, I have so much more to tell!!

CHEERS

Trish xx

Fit bodies are built in the winter

I have just embarked on what I believe will be an annual event for me

Maxines Challenge

I participated in this challenge last year & one of my girl friends actually won the event so I can say without a doubt that the results you see are real.

I thoroughly enjoyed the experience  & whilst I have regained a small amount of what I lost in last years challenge it only happened recently when I got sick & was unable to exercise for 3 months.

So this year I have bigger goals to kick .

I am aiming for ABS, I haven't seen them since my late 20's so its time to rid them of 15 yrs of padding....eeek!!!

I am going to post the occasional recipe or update on how I am going with it all, from time to time to share with my challenge buddies & anyone else that likes to follow a clean eating lifestyle.

Don't worry, there will still be plenty of the usual stuff as well.

I try to be a little thrifty on the challenge & still follow the nutrition plan as close as possible, after all its a system that works so why mess with it.

This is my version of a protein ball recipe that I use to replace protein bars

Enjoy!!!

Choc Chia Protein Balls

¾ cup Protein Powder(Vanilla or Choc)

½ cup Almond meal

½ cup Coconut

1 heaped tablespoon of Tahini Paste or Organic Peanut butter

3 tablespoons of Cacao Powder

2 tablespoons of Stevia or Natvia

3 tablespoons of Chia Seeds

Cold Water

Mix all dry ingredients, then peanut butter. Slowly add water until you make a sticky  paste. Be careful not to add to much water or you wont be able to roll it into a ball.

Roll into balls just like you would a rum ball & roll in some extra coconut, it makes approx. 20 balls

I sometimes add peppermint essence or even 3 tablespoons of goji berries to change up the flavour.

Macro breakdown is approx. depending on how many you make

Calories.per ball 64

Protein 5.5g

Carbs 1.5g

Fat 4g

Feel free to follow the challenge over on the Maxines Facebook page.

CHEERS

Trish xxx

We bought a house!

So its been a while since I did an update on the Dream House.

You may remember I did a post a while back explaining why we had decided NOT to build,

 if not you can catch up on all of the details here

Well the good news is,

 WE SOLD THE LAND

The better news is...

 we have purchased a new home or should I say a 108 year old home.

Meet St Elmo, Circa 1906

Isn't she pretty!!

There are a lot of great original features left in this house which I will share with you more when I can get my photo's to stop loading sideways

We have a LOT of work to do to make her shine again, which I am grateful for, as we still get to make it our own

There is still one of the  fireplaces left out of the three the house originally had & we actually intend on making this room the Master bedroom...ooh la la, it sounds so romantic, I cant wait!

We have met the current owners who are such lovely people & filled us in on lots of the homes history. 

They are the 3rd owners of this home, having lived there for 35 years.

Sheesh, I haven't lived any where for longer than 6 years, perhaps I will settle down this time.

The house was originally built as Maitland's maternity hospital, so if the walls could talk, there would be some amazing stories to tell, I'm sure.

Don't worry, I did ask if it was haunted & they  said they had never seen or heard anything in their 35 years living there but one of their grand daughters had said she kept hearing babies crying when she had a sleep over one night.

I was hoping for  something a little  more exciting than that, he he he!!!

I cant wait to move in & start decorating, renovations will have to wait until we build the shed so my dream guy has somewhere to be a tradie from again. But there will be tonnes of things to blog about at long last.

I cant wait to also take you on a bit of a tour around the suburb we will be living in.

Lorn is a Heritage conservation area, so the homes are all gorgeous old heritage homes, some beautifully restored & some in need of some love.

The streets are lined with beautiful old tree's & its all situated on the banks of the Hunter River.

Eeek , I have so much to share!!!

WATCH THIS SPACE 

CHEERS

Trish xxx