Home made Shortbreads and gift bag

It's hard to buy gifts for people that you don't see very often. Knowing their likes, dislikes etc. And just wanting to give them a token gift with good wishes of the season, without over doing it. Home made is always good in these instances I believe, and shortbreads are always a winner for Christmas gifts.

I also love to put lots of thought in to how I wrap my presents, so I made a cute little bag, complete with clear cello window so that the shortbreads could be seen. I finished it off with a border punch, ribbon and a little gift tag.

I used my thermomix to make the shortbread, it's very quick and easy. It's not as nice as a true shortbread I don't think, but everyone I have given these to seems to rave about how nice they are, and seems to really appreciate them. I put pistachios and cranberries through these as well for some festive flair.

I used this Christmas Shortbread recipe from the Thermomix forum.

Gingerbread House 2016

I was lucky enough to be purchased a cooking class as a gift, so decided I would use it on a Gingerbread House class. I had a great day baking, and I'm really happy with the result. Great to put in the centre of the table on Christmas Day! It even has windows, and has lights inside that can be turned on and off.

Doughboy - our wandering bull

Our bull, Doughboy, has been a bit naughty over the last few months, and has started testing the fences and going on to neighbouring properties. We got a call from the stock squad a couple of weeks ago to say he had wandered on to another property, which ended up being a neighbours property.

They have been using molasses traps to catch the steers on their property, and Doughy can smell molasses from miles away. So he has broken through our fences to get over to the molasses, and keeps getting caught in their yards - which then means they can't catch their own cattle! They dropped him back for us, but he quickly disappeared again.

After looking for him for a few days while we have been up at the farm, I rang them to see if they had him again, and they did, so we arranged to go to the property they have taken him to, to keep him out of their molasses traps, about 30 klms from here. So yesterday Damian headed out to pick him up. In the meantime, the owners of the other property were rounding him up for us, Hugh...the owner, who is 73, has ended up having an accident on his quad bike, coming off, passing out and having to be choppered in to the local hospital! Nothing is bloody quiet around here! He has ended up having a few broken ribs, punctured a lung and bruising. He was actually very lucky. Quad bikes can be so dangerous, even if you know how to ride them.

Apparently, the news has been in contact with them today, and their grand-daughter has been giving interviews about children ringing 000, as she is 9 years old, and the one who rang the ambulance.

(Hugh being loaded in to the chopper for the ride to hospital)

We are so glad he is ok,  He has left hopsital today, and is managing well.  We have been up at the farm since the Thursday before Easter, and I was due to head back today, but I have been sick since last Friday, waves of headaches and nausea, and ended up going to bed at 4pm yesterday and was not up to the 4 hour drive back to Brisbane today.  Not sure when I will head back yet, probably will spend another day or 2 up here and then head back. I want to do some painting in the kitchen here, and we have been having a big clean out here, and clearing out bits and pieces from the shed while we have been here. Well, I better go and make sure the bull is behaving himself and hasn't wandered off again!

Stella.... my little mate....

Had to say goodbye to my little mate on Saturday....unfortunately Stella has never been 100% since we got her when she was 5 months old, and we found out after she started staggering that she was in liver failure which had started affecting her brain with toxins - it was called hepatic ensepalopathy.  Her blood was also not clotting, which meant she was very sick. It was going to take days of very intensive hospital care to even get her to the point of surgery, and even if she made it to surgery her chances of making it through were fair at best.  We had to basically be prepared to lose $10,000 and the odds were against her.  She would have been subjected to needle after needle, plasma infusions, and continue poking and prodding and intensive surgery that she probably wouldn't have made it out of because she was so sick, and I didn't want that for her. The very, very hard and absolutely heartbreaking decision was made to put her to sleep, and let her go peacefully. She was only 3, and my little best friend. She was sooo tiny, only weighed 2.7 kgs at her heaviest, and had dropped down to 2.1 kgs in the last week.

We brought her home and she is buried in the garden, which is my favourite place. I am looking for the most perfect, beautiful standard rose to plant over her, as she was so beautiful.

I miss her terribly, and I am so sad. This would have to be the most affected I have been about losing a pet, as I really considered her my tiny baby, and she was my little shadow.   Rest in peace my little Stella Bella xx