All Blacks Wellington parade

Not to be smug, but I did call it, that is winning the RWC 2011!

It was a close one, but in the end victory is ours.

We attended the All Blacks supporters parade in Wellington to a rapturous crowd.

Andrew Hore

Jerome Kaino & Hosea Gear

Jerome Kaino, Hosea Gear, Ali Williams

Keven Mealamu

Brad Thorn

Richard Kahui

Steve Hansen

Stephen Donald 

Brad Thorn, Wayne Smith, Richie McCaw & The Webb Ellis Cup

Well done our All Blacks.

Halloween Treats

We were never really into celebrating Halloween.  Then, when we moved into our home we were inundated with trick or treaters for the first Halloween.  At that stage we didn't have children and didn't really know what to do with all these trick or treaters arriving at our door.  We soon ran out of treats and still the treaters came.  So, in desperation we started to give them money, just small coins, but still the precedent was set.

So, the next year we got more organised and had treats aplenty.  And every year after that we have got more and more into the Halloween celebrations.

This year the DH has refused to carve anymore pumpkins.  So, sadly this will be our last carved pumpkin:

This was our treats tray from last year:

These are our treats for this years little Halloween monsters:

Ginger Bread Ghosts

The idea for these ghosts came from the Chelsea website.  See below for the recipe:

Ginger Bread Ghosts
Ingredients:

125g butter, at room temperature
½ cup (100g) firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup (125ml) golden syrup
1 egg yolk
2½ cups (375g) plain flour
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
Plain flour, to dust

Royal icing:
1 egg white
1 cup (150g) icing sugar, sifted
½ teaspoon lemon juice

Method:

Preheat oven to 180°C conventional (160°C fan forced).

Line 2 oven trays with baking paper.

Use an electric beater to beat the butter and brown sugar in a bowl until pale and creamy.

Add golden syrup and egg yolk and beat until combined.

Sift the flour, ginger, mixed spice and bicarbonate of soda and mix to a dough.

Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth.

Roll dough between two sheets of baking paper to 5mm thickness.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes (not entirely necessary).

Use a 9cm gingerbread man or angel cutter to cut out shapes.

Place on trays about 5cm apart.

Repeat with any excess dough.

Bake in oven for 10 minutes or until brown. Cool on oven tray.



Royal Icing Method:

Place egg white in a clean, dry bowl. Use an electric beater to beat until soft peaks form.

Add lemon juice (which makes the icing glossy and less sickly sweet) and gradually add icing sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form.

Place Royal Icing into small plastic bag. Cut a small hole in a corner of bag. Pipe icing over gingerbread men or angels* to create mummies or ghosts.

* I used a Christmas cookie cutter I already had, that is an angel.  But, I thought they passed for ghosts quite nicely.  I used silver cachous for the eyes.


Other good websites to get ideas for Halloween are:
Martha Stewart 

and

Nigella Lawson

Happy trick or treating.

And, if you aren't into Halloween and don't want to be trick or treated, then put a sign on your door or gate saying "No trick or treats here please".

Will your post arrive in time?

Christmas is coming.  There is no point denying it any longer.  Kirkcaldie & Stains Christmas shop is open and it won't be long before we will hear Christmas carols in the shops.

If you have family and friends overseas, then you may like to know about the changes for posting Christmas cards to arrive in time.

NZ Post no longer gives the option of sending cards by International Economy.  International Economy is only available for parcels.  Your only option to send cards overseas is by International Par Avion Air.  Of course, all mail gets sent by air these days.  It has been a long time since you had the option of post by sea or air.

So, what does this mean for the cost of sending a medium sized card overseas:
To Australia & South Pacific is $1.90
The rest of the world is $2.40

For posting Christmas cards it is worthwhile to keep in mind, it is the size of the envelope that determines the price of the postage, not the weight of the envelope.  This is different from how the postal prices works in the UK, for example.  In the UK you can choose between first and second class posting, and then postal costs are determined on the weight.

So, before you buy a pack of Christmas cards,  you may like to consider the size of the envelope and maybe buy the charity packs.  The charity pack of Christmas cards donate a portion of the sale proceeds to a named charity.

Another point to note, is the dates the NZPO advise for posting Christmas cards to arrive in time for Christmas in the UK, Europe & North America is 2nd December.  Of course, NZPO cannot guarantee your post will reach its destination within the delivery target.  Last Christmas the postal delivery for the UK was brought to a stand still as the heavy snow stopped deliveries.  In previous years, postal strikes by UK Postal Union saw sacks of mail undelivered by Christmas.

So, the good news is that you don't need to get organised for sending Christmas cards quite so early this year.

But don't leave it too long, I understand that next week will be the last delivery most retail shops will receive before Christmas.  And if you go shopping in the weekend, be prepared for driving, parking and shopping in general to take a bit longer.  Of course, you could choose to shop online, but that is another blog to come!

Below are outlines for the letter/card rates from NZPO:

The cost to send by International Air depends on the destination, weight and size of documents.

Size	Max dimensions per letter (height x length)	Max weight per letter	Max thickness per letter	Required postage per letter for Australia and South Pacific	Required postage per letter for Rest of the World
Aerogrammes and postcards	130mm x 235mm	10g	-	$1.90	$1.90
Medium	130mm x 235mm	200g	10mm	$1.90	$2.40
Large	165mm x 235mm	200g	10mm	$2.40	$2.90
Extra large	230mm x 325mm	200g	10mm	$2.90	$3.40
Oversize	260mm x 385mm	200g	10mm	$3.60	$5.10

All prices include GST. Items larger than 260mm x 385mm, thicker than 10mm or heavier than 200g are classified as parcels

Below are outlines for the mailing dates for Christmas letter and parcels from NZPO:

Make sure you send your mail by the dates below so your cards and gifts arrive in time for Christmas!

International	Zone  A (Australia)	Zone B (South Pacific),  Zone C (East Asia and North America), Zone D (UK and Europe)	Zone E (Rest of the world)
International Economy*	Fri 2 December	Fri 25 November	Mon 21 November
International Air	Fri 9 December	Fri 2 December	Mon 28 November
International Economy Courier**	Wed 14 December	Fri 9 December	N/A
International Express Courier	Fri 16 December	Wed 14 December	Mon 12 December

*International Economy is only available for parcels.
**International Economy Courier is available to 32 key locations.

Wellington Waterfront

Wellington on a good day:

We headed into town today to enjoy the wonderful Wellington waterfront.  First stop was Social Cooking charity event for the Wheel Blacks www.wheelblacks.co.nz.  This rooster below has been auctioned on Trade Me, with the handsome proceeds going to the Wheel Blacks (the NZ Wheelchair Rubgy team).  Social Cooking along with the team from Museum Hotel cooked up French chicken pie treats for all the kids (and big kids) down at the waterfront for the live TV3 & More FM broadcasting.

Le Coq

From the Social Cooking site at 22 Herd St, we could hear the bagpipes.  Hmm, we must investigate.  Found him, all the way beside Frank Kitts Park:

 And opposite the bagpiper was the She Chocolat bus, maybe just a little look inside.

 I'm not sure it was that warm outside for the need for a dip in the harbour.  But these kids thought so.  They must be the same kids who walk about in the middle of winter in a t-shirt.

oh, too cute

And now, back around to Empire Cafe, Herd St for a well deserved sorbet and coffee

Roast Vegetables

prepared dish ready for the oven

My brother in law has asked me to post this blog about my favourite roast vege dish.  It is very easy to make, and can be moderated for any veges you have to hand.  I find it a cunning way to use up the unused veges I get with my weekly organic vege box delivery.  

When I was at the Food Show this year, I came across the Blue Coconut people - who had a hard sell, it has to be said, as they were stationed right next to the fascinating Lighthouse Gin exhibit.  I like to use the coconut cooking oil for roasting or cooking at a high heat.

My Roast Vege dish:

Peel, core, chop and prepare the veges to all the same size and place in an oven dish:

beetroot

pumpkin
kumara
potato
onion or a leek
garlic
whole cherry or chunks of tomato
carrots

Add:
salt & pepper
avocado oil or Blue Coconut cooking oil (cold pressed - solid, so I scrape using a zester)
pine nuts or walnuts

And, yes, I do know that tomatoes are technically a fruit.

I put a silicone sheet or reusable baking sheet in the bottom of a deep oven dish, so the veges don't stick or burn on the bottom of the oven dish.  This also makes cleaning up much easier.

Place veges in the oven tray in a pre-heated oven at 180C for an hour or until all the veges are tender and cooked.

Toss all the veges a couple of times during cooking to ensure even cooking.

Add feta for the last 5-10 minutes of cooking, so the feta just starts to melt.

Delicious

TV, modeling & maxis

I can now say that I am an experienced model on Good Morning TV (GMTV). Well, I've been on twice, but it does officially tick the box of appearing on TV.

It all started when my good friend Trudi Bennett of Wardrobe Flair was asked to do a segment on jeans on GMTV.  Trudi was sent pictures of models to use for the 'live' models on GMTV.  She felt they were too young for her demographic and while they were classed as officially 'curvy' they still only wore a size 8!

No, this would not do.  Trudi wanted realistic models who have curves to emphasise the difference between a pair of jeans that flatter and a pair that do not.  This is where I came into the picture.  

We decided on the outfits,  we'd have the least flattering style for me first, a pair of straight cut jeans and then follow with my most flattering style, a pair of boot cut jeans. 

Goodness, the grooming required had to be commenced days beforehand.  I can see why top models say they won't get out of bed for less than $10,000.  

On the morning of the recording, I resorted to Weleda relaxing drops in place of my normal morning routine, coffee and plenty of it (only after the show) and getting up late and staying in PJ's as long as possible (up and dressed by 7am).  

The jeans modelling on GMTV went down well with the viewers, and was thoroughly exhilarating for the models.  All credit to Trudi for using realistic proportioned 'live' models.  It's not a huge challenge to make a teen aged size 8 model look good in jeans.  But you do need to know what you are talking about when using non-sized 8 models.  
To watch the GMTV jeans video, here is the link:
Good Morning TVNZ jeans by Trudi Bennett

A couple of months later, I was back in hair and makeup for another GMTV slot, this time for Maxi dresses as a 'live' model.  Who can wear Maxi dresses, what to look out for when buying them and where to find them.
To find out more, see the Maxi video from GMTV:
Good Morning TVNZ maxi dresses by Trudi Bennett

It is a shame that Avalon Studios are to close before the end of the year and all live recording of GMTV to be lost to Auckland.  I feel aggrieved that my modelling career has been cut short, before I could demand the sort of fees I was talking about earlier (joke).

Should you have any queries about jeans, maxi dresses or to find out what colours and shape are best for you, you are welcome to contact Trudi (contact details below).  I say from personal experience,  it will transform your wardrobe confidence in more ways than one.

Trudi Bennett
Wardrobe Flair
www.wardrobeflair.com
Phone:  (04) 977 1247 or 021 236 4738
www.facebook.com/WardrobeFlair