Some days you just have to smile (and shout hooray!) 😊💖
Tenderness
Tenderness in action – and lessons in love. That’s what today’s post is all about.
This Post Was Baked Yesterday But It Still Tastes Good
Hopefully while you are reading this I am sleeping…
A Visit From The Designer
Art must not be concentrated in dead shrines called museums. It must be spread everywhere — on the streets, in the trams, factories, workshops, and in the workers’ homes. — Vladimir Mayakovsky Hey, Lovelies. Ben and I have been at the Treehouse for nearly 2 years now. The first year we were still moving […]
Nana Bev’s Corned Beef With White Onion Sauce Recipe
A delicious and simple recipe I acquired from a friend’s grandmother during my University days when I was in a share-house with a big group of country boys. Nana Bev got me sorted – she even made me write notes. Sadly, she had a poor opinion of me as wife material. Read on to find out why!
Massive Excitement!
It never pays to count your chickens before they are hatched or your barbeques before they are fully operational. A positive tale, with a side of caution…
Wild Life
The wild life where I live is not really disco balls and pool tables. It’s more crazy than that…
An odd assortment of updates
Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself. ― George Bernard Shaw Hey, Lovelies! Here’s my odd assortment of updates for you this early Friday morning, with a heatwave bearing down on us… Our new stove has been installed. Finally. Sort of. It is connected to gas and electricity, but the cabinetmaker still needs […]
Sleeping in, or trying to!
A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor’s book. – Irish Proverb Hey, Lovelies. I had really hoped to nap yesterday, after my night of zero sleep, but it just didn’t happen. By day’s end I was so full of adrenalin that I knew it would be late before […]
Lovely New Traditions
The human soul can always use a new tradition. Sometimes we require them. ― Pat Conroy Hey, Lovelies. A friend and I have started this thing, when we go to each other’s houses for a meal. It’s happened frequently enough now that I can confidently call it the beginning of a new tradition. That tradition […]
It’s A BIG Day Here At The Treehouse
I cooked dinner! ~ Ben Phillips * Note from Nicole: Ben did not actually buy the food, prep the food, or prepare all of the sides. But he did light the barbeque, add the prepared food to barbeque, and turn that food once or twice. Hey, Lovelies! There is great excitement at the Treehouse today. […]
Day Spa For Birds
Everyone needs a little pamper time. Like my feathered friends this morning…
My Secret Garden Update
If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need. ~ Marcus Tullius Cicero Hey, Lovelies! Another happy update today – my secret garden on the laundry deck is thriving, and tonight I will be using fistfuls of fresh basil for our dinner. We already have tiny tomatoes forming, our first […]
The Case of The Curious Red Flowers
Life is so full of unpredictable beauty and strange surprises. Sometimes that beauty is too much for me to handle. Do you know that feeling? When something is just too beautiful? When someone says something or writes something or plays something that moves you to the point of tears, maybe even changes you. ― Mark […]
Touching The Wall
Sometimes it is the meaning we give something that makes it special. For me, it was touching the wall. A symbolic victory, a sign of progress, a reason to celebrate…
My Secret Garden
My secret garden is hidden from the world, and it’s right at my door.
Our Favourite Mandarin Gin Cocktail or Mocktail Recipe 😊🧡
Fair thoughts and happy hours attend on you. ~ William Shakespeare Hey, Lovelies. As you will know, it’s become a tradition here at the Treehouse to celebrate Friday night with a Happy Hour. Our neighbours often join us, or perhaps we’ll go to their place for Friday night drinks, but last night it was […]
Random Happy Things From My Week
If you have any young friends who aspire to become writers, the second greatest favor you can do them is to present them with copies of The Elements of Style. The first greatest, of course, is to shoot them now, while they’re happy. ― Dorothy Parker Hey, Lovelies. It’s been quite the week. Lots of […]
Owning Our HeART Space
…and then, I have nature and art and poetry, and if that is not enough, what is enough? ~ Vincent Willem van Gogh Hey, Lovelies. Yesterday, art happened. Ever since we moved to the treehouse, our walls have been mostly bare. We own art, but it was not on the walls. We wanted to […]
The Things We Talk About In Book Club
I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library. ― Jorge Luis Borges Hey, Lovelies. We are discussing the book Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer in our Inner Circle Book Club right now. It’s a beautiful book that blends science, botany, Native American mythology, ancestral wisdom and natural history. In between […]
When It Finally Felt Like Home
The home should be the treasure chest of living. ~ Le Corbusier Hey, Lovelies. Something shifted for me in the past two weeks. Finally, the treehouse feels like home. It’s hard to define, but the shift is so strong. I am settled here. Peaceful in a way I haven’t been since early childhood. Perhaps […]
And then the rain came…
Rainy days should be spent at home with a cup of tea and a good book. Bill Watterson Hey, Lovelies. When we moved to the treehouse I thought my days of being flooded in were over. At the farm we were cut off from the world by flood waters a couple of times a year, […]
Monsoon Weather
Jungle rain had no beginning or end; it grew like foliage from the sky, branching and arching to the earth, sometimes in solid thickets entangling the islands, and other times, in tendrils of blue mist curling out of coastal clouds. The jungle breathed an eternal green that fevered men until they dripped sweat the way […]
Distracted By Visitors This Morning
They say good things come in threes. I am not sure if that’s an accurate description of my morning so far…
I Need To Hire A Detective!
The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes. Arthur Conan Doyle Hey, Lovelies. The strangest thing has happened. Just over a fortnight ago I bought quite a selection of (mostly) high quality chocolate bars. The reason? I intended to make chocolate truffles this week. I thought I’d make some […]
The Perfect Christmas Gift for You Or A Loved One
When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed. Maya Angelou Hey, Lovelies. I was sitting in my packing room last night. The packing room is a spare bedroom that has been turned into a workspace, with shelving against every wall, a big table for wrapping, and everything at my fingertips to pack and […]
The Pleasure Of Working Out What To Bake
“Oh, you smell delicious! What’ve you been baking today?” “Roasted strawberries and rhubarb for a mascarpone ice cream. Lemon tart pastry, mint meringues, sun-dried tomato rolls, honey cake.” Brianne Moore Hey, Lovelies. A friend has her birthday on Sunday. I’ve invited her over to share a meal and, of course, because it is her birthday […]
Wearing My Best Perfume
Odors have a power of persuasion stronger than that of words, appearances, emotions, or will. The persuasive power of an odor cannot be fended off, it enters into us like breath into our lungs, it fills us up, imbues us totally. There is no remedy for it. Patrick Süskind Hey, Lovelies. You know, I don’t […]
Date Night At Home
I guess sometimes the greatest memories are made in the most unlikely of places, further proof that spontaneity is more rewarding than a meticulously planned life. J.A. Redmerski Hey, Lovelies. I planned a beautiful meal for Sunday night. A pasta dish, with carefully selected wine (just a glass cos Monday is a work day), a […]
The Best Thing About Unpacking Boxes
People tend to find books when they are ready for them. Neil Gaiman Hey, Lovelies. So, it’s started. The big unpacking and putting away process that will be my new writing room (I refuse to call it an office!), and the rest of our belongings that need to find a place in our new home. […]
My Sneaky Loyal Little Friend
Opening up your life to a dog who needs a home is one of the most fulfilling things you can do. Emma Kenney Hey, Lovelies. I was sitting quietly at my desk late last night, finishing up a few little things. I still get so fatigued, and I’d needed to nap during the day, and […]
Cooking Crack in my Home Kitchen
Crack – it’s addictive, it’s delicious and you can cook it up at home!
What I’ll Be Doing When Australia Begins To Open Up Again
You cannot control the behavior of others, but you can always choose how you respond to it. Roy T. Bennett Hey, Lovelies. I live in Queensland – a state of Australia that has had few COVID cases, and which has maintained strict border closures since the pandemic began. We’ve had a relative amount of freedom […]
What happened after I opened the book…
A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly exhausted at the end. You live several lives while reading. William Styron Hey, Lovelies. Has this ever happened to you? Ben brought my mail in to me at my desk late yesterday afternoon, and in a haze of distraction and fatigue I opened it, […]
My Need For Quiet
“Smile, breathe and go slowly.” Thich Nhat Hanh So, Lovelies, I am sure some of you will relate to what I am about to share. I’m a Highly Sensitive Soul. I am sure you may be one too. Because of my sensitivity, my intuitive and psychic abilities, I am able to connect deeply with people. […]
Managing My Unrealistic Expectations
A wonderful gift may not be wrapped as you expect. Jonathan Lockwood Huie Hey, Lovelies. So, here I am, back at my desk. (For those of you not sure what this is about read this.) Not back at work. Not yet. Just back at my desk for a short visit, to write an update for […]
We Need New Art…
A fine work of art – music, dance, painting, story – has the power to silence the chatter in the mind and lift us to another place. Robert McKee Hey, Lovelies. It’s been a long time since I bought any art. Our little farmhouse was so small. Our city home was so established. We had […]
True Love In The Shape Of A Star Trek Toy
It’s not safe out here. It’s wondrous, with treasures to satiate desires both subtle and gross; but it’s not for the timid. Q – Star Trek Hey, Lovelies.I’ll be honest. It’s been a little rough here on the health front. Nothing catastrophic, but I’m experiencing some old Lyme symptoms that haven’t shown themselves for a […]
Funny How Quickly Things Can Change
Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like. Lao Tzu Hey, Lovelies. I needed to go back down to the city for some medical appointments, and I stayed the night in our Brisbane […]
It was nearly 5pm on Friday afternoon…
May today be the Fridayest Friday that ever Fridayed. Anonymous Hello, Lovelies! It was late on Friday afternoon. I was sitting in my new office in our treehouse, surrounded by work, boxes that needed unpacking, and a massive to-do list that has been neglected this week while I have supported clients through emergencies and held […]
Things I Saw Outside My Window Yesterday
Set wide the window. Let me drink the day. Edith Wharton Hey, Lovelies. I am working from a temporary office in our treehouse – one that looks over a little garden, our long driveway, and the winding path to our front door. All the big views are from other rooms, but oh, the things I […]
Nana’s Baked Rice Pudding Recipe
Some foods are so comforting, so nourishing of body and soul, that to eat them is to be home again after a long journey. To eat such a meal is to remember that, though the world is full of knives and storms, the body is built for kindness. Eli Brown Hey, Lovelies. My Nana, Joyce […]
My Urgent Need To Bake
That thing where you are baking instead of doing the other thing? It’s called procrasti-baking. You’re welcome! Nicole Cavalchini Strickland Hey, Lovelies. I feel the need to bake. It’s one of the foundations on which I created my blog. Being in the kitchen is what makes me happy. It’s also how I manage stress. I’m […]
Salt Water (and food) Is The Cure For Everything
if the ocean can calm itself, so can you. we are both salt water mixed with air. Nayyirah Waheed Hey, Lovelies. I had one of those days yesterday. My laptop decided to freeze up and stop co-operating. It’s about to die, but I need to make it last until I can get a new one. […]
The Life Giving Properties Of Cheese
I’d had no idea that cheese was a miracle. Jennifer L. Holm Poor Harry Dog. We took him back to the vet yesterday, because he was still not eating or drinking after his surgery. Ben had tried to tempt him with food for two days. Barbequed chicken. Fresh beef mince. Dog snacks. Puppy treats. Nup. […]
Is Your Child Psychic?
What does it mean to be psychic? Essentially it means to feel, rather than think all the time. Rama Hello, Lovelies! ‘Is my child psychic?’ It’s a question I am asked often. I am also often asked if people’s pets might be psychic, and my answer in almost every case, whether it’s a child […]
Our First Day Off
Most of the things we need to be most fully alive never come in busyness. They grow in rest. Mark Buchanan Hey, Lovelies. Today, Ben and I are taking a day off. I’ll be working all weekend on the 2022 Journeymaker’s Planner, and that’s a total labour of love and devotion! And from next week […]
A Beginner’s Observations From Living In Our Treehouse
A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one’s neighbor — such […]
If I didn’t have a new bed I’d probably be writing a longer blog post!
Don’t you simply love going to bed. To curl up warmly in a nice warm bed, in the lovely darkness. That is so restful and then gradually drift away into sleep… C.S. Lewis Hi, Lovelies. Well, we finally did it. Yesterday we graduated from yoga mats on the floor to a proper bed. Suddenly our […]
Lockdown Workarounds
Sometimes you just have to pee in the sink. Charles Bukowski Ah, Bukowski – I just love the way you tell it how it is… Hey, Lovelies! We’re in lockdown again here in our part of the world. Greater Brisbane went into a 3 day COVID lockdown at 5pm on Monday. Ben and I had […]
Room With A View
She could see all of Ferenwood from here: the rolling hills, the endless explosion of color cascading down and across the lush landscape. Reds and blues: maroon and ceruleans. Yellow and tangerine and violet and aquamarine. Every hue held a flavor, a heartbeat, a life. She took a deep breath and drew it all in. […]