Summer Harvesting Fun

Welcome to my Blog



What can I say , Thanks God for all the glorious rain that has made my garden spring to life.

It also flooded out our chook shed , which we had to clean out. I almost fell over several times in the slimy and smelly mud and my partner had to dig a drain in a room 2/3 his size. I am not going to complain as it was great to get so much - our rain water tank is full and the garden is blooming.





I am having so much fun reaping what I have sown over the last 2 months or so . So far on my 1000 tonne challenge I have harvested 31 kg. I am not entiurely sure thatI am going to make it to 1000 kg, but I am sure it will be well arround the half way mark. I am having fun and that is the main point. It is all in the journey and that is also so true of life.



Accross is a picture of what I have been harvesting on a daily basis for a few weeks now. The beans are a dwarf bean that are so prolific , from 5 plants I picked 108 beans in one sitting. This produce was harvested from our aquaponics system. The Cherry Tomatoes and Strawberries are so sweet.



I left some old stumps of tomato plants in the grow beads and as soon as the conditions were right they sprouted. We haven't staked them well so next time, we will build better climbing apparatus, you learn as you go. We are getting more than enough fo us.



Capsicans

I have also been picking Capsicans. I also left 2 old plants in the grow beds and they also sprouted when the conditions were right. They are even more healthy than the year before.

Last year they were riddled with Aphids and I was forever spraying some home made galic spray almost every day. This time around we dont have the aphid problem and it makes a huge difference. On one of the plants there are about 6 capsicans. I just love looking at it and the new flowers that are developing.



I also saved about 4 plants at the end of summer in pot plants and then replanted in the garden once the risk of frost was over. These are also going well and I have picked one or 2 capsicans, well ahead of the new seedlings I have also planted.



TIP

Save a few capsican plants at the end of summer and pot them up in pot plants. water over winter ( will have minimal growth) and replant the next spring.



Eggplants

Once again i saved a plant in the aquaponic grow bed and it is going ok with lots of new growth- hopefully will result in some fruit. i planted some new seedlings and there are 2 eggplants growing well. Once again doing much better since there are no aphids to stunt the growth.



Cucumbers

I am anxiously waiting to harvest my first cucumber and I have planted a few more seeds to ensure I dont miss out. Last year we harvested heaps of crunching Lebanese cucumbers that were so sweet.



Zuchinni

I have picked a few Zuchinni and looking forward to making stuffed zuchinni when I get a huge one. I also have a great recipe for Zuchinni Bread as well as a vegie juice . Will publish these as soon a I start to make them again and the recipe is fresh in my head.



I have also planted pumkins and water melons. These should helpm me achieve my outrageous and fun target.



Keep you posted and over the next few weeks my one tonne challenge harvest weight will skyrocket as the vegies start to be prolific.

Maltese Bread Pudding

Merry Christmas to all.

Today I made a Maltese Bread Pudding for Christmas . I made a few changes to the ingredients to make it more like a traditional Christmas pudding.

I have tasted it and it's yummy. This recipe uses day old bread , so if you have a lot of bread left over it is a good way to use up the bread so there is no waste.

Ingredients.

800 grm bread.
3 eggs
50 gr butter melted
100 grams sugar
1 table spoon Vanila essence
2 table spoons cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon mixed spice
grated rind of 1 orange
50 grams mixed peel
200grams sultanas
1 1/2 cups milk

Optional extras
Walnuts
glazed cherries
mixed fruit instead of sultanas

Method

Soak bread until all moist and soft - about 1 hour. Drain bread until alomst dry. In another bowl
combine othr ingredients together and add bread graduallt mixing well. Add Walnuts last.
pour into greased and dusted tins ( makes 2 meduim sized puddings) and cook for 1 hour in 180 degree C.

check if cooked by testign with a knife. Insert knife and if it coems out clean then it is cooked.

I decorated the top with walnuts and cherries prior to cooking.

New Baby Chickens

Welcome to my contented life blog .

About 10 days ago we hatched 10 new baby chickens. New life is such a miracle. Baby chickens are so cute. We hatched 3 black , 5 white and 1 brown speckled chick. It is amazing to watch them and how mother hen looks after them and teached them how to find food. She also is very protective of them and will peck you if you come near.

All nine fit under her and she keep them warm under her wings.

If you have a rooster you could hatch your own too.

Hatching your own

Keep fertilized eggs at room temprature. Once you have enough ,about 7 eggs, place them under a broody chicken that has been made comfortable in a cage or another area away from the other chickens. Make sure she has water and food.

After 21 days you should have some baby chicks.

Atfter 10 days we already have lost one. I suppose nine chicks may be too much for one mother hen, or perhaps a cat come and got one.

I hope we end up with a few more hens , loving the free range eggs and making lots of yummy food with them.

cheers happy hatching

Lina

You Win Some and Loose Some

Welcome again.

Today we had a major problem with one of the pumps in our aquaponic system in that it stopped working due to a capacitor breakdown. The water could not be pumped and aerated and as a result not enough oxygen was being generated for the poor fish that subsequently died, 36 in total. Needless to say that we were pretty annoyed .

Luckily it was Melbourne cup day and my partner was home to go to the shop to get another part to fix the pump.

Oh well you win some and loose some and in the end it all evens out.

This lovely rain has made the garden come alive. Today I noticed that we have hundresd of self sown Tomato plants in the patch where we dunped the Chicken manure. I just cant wait till harvest time.

So far I have harvests 8.7kg in my one tonne Challenge. I am going to have lots of fun in achieving this milestone.

good bye for now- worn out from all the landscaping and gardening I have been doing.

The One Tonne Challenge

Welcome to my Contented life blog.

Spring weather is finally here although we did get some cold weather accompanied by some much welcomed rain, just after planting some seeds and seedlings. So thank you God for sending the rain at the right time.

Yesterday , I picked some young Broad beans and had them with our dinner lightly steamed. They were so nice. Broadbeans can be eaten straight from the pod. I am going to make some broad bean pies and my favourite Broad beans , garlic and parsley salad.

So far this season I have harvested some lemons and strawberries which I have made into Lemon curd and Strawberry jam. I am stockpiling it for my up coming exhibition to provide some yummy treats for people to buy.

You are probably wondering what the one tonne challenge is. Well I have set my self a challenge this season to harvest 1000kg of fruit and vegetables from our garden. Well I hope I can do it, but the gain and joy is in the ride and journey. So wish me luck and I am going to try my hardest to get there. I haven't been measuring much so far, but will start.

Last year We harvested close to 300 kg of fruit and vegetables.

To measure my progress I will update the total list on the right had side of my posts.

Send me a comment Would love to hear from you. What do you think. Am I mad, do you think I will be able to achieve it?

This weekend I am planting out all my capsicums and tomatoes. I have planted out all the Eggplants and sowed Watermelon and Zucchini seeds.

Happy gardening. May you reap what you sow.

Lina

Another Good Reason to Grow your own Produce

Welcome to my Contented Life Blog.

I have spent the weekend in the garden and it has been lovely weather, the first nice weather this spring. It was perfect for being out door and getting your hands dirty and reconnecting with nature.



I planted some Egg plant, Baby Spinach, Capsican , Artichoke and
Zuchinni Seeds. I hope we dont get a frost. I have saved some seedlings incase we do.


We have been getting lots of beautiful strawberries from our green house. Slugs have been a problem and some of the best big juicy ones have been attacked. Why can't they choose the little ones? We have found this great organic pest control gadget to get them under some sort of control. It is a container ( will get picture soon) that you can pour beer into and the slugs are attracted to it and when they fall in they die.



I was reading an article about another reason to buy organic or grow your own . Apart form the pleasure of seeing the lovely fruit and vegetable develop and the wonderful flavour ,there is a lot of pesticides and chemicals that are used in commercially grown crops. Read the article here.


Perhaps if you can't grow much, you could grow the fruit and Vegies you eat then most of .


I made some wonderful strawberry jam with our own strawberries and lemons ( for pectin). I had some on my pancakes this morning it was delicious. I am going to make some lemon curd with our lemons soon.

Cheers and happy gardening

Lina

Medicine for the Mind and Soul

Connecting with Nature

Welcome once again to my posts.

These lovely photos have been taken at the Tulip Top Gardens in Sutton , Canberra. I have been working there for the last week and for the next week or so.

It is such a beautiful garden that I have spent some time after work just walking and sitting and admiring the miracle and beauty of nature. The blossom trees are a sight to behold and some blossom trees have two different colours.

The 500,000 bulbs have all been planted by the owners and the garden have been laid out beautifully. I am so glad that I have been able to work there. I am working in the cafe and you get to meet so many different people. My team members and owners are a great team to work with.

After work today, I came home to do a little bit of gardening myself as the weather is just perfect and the days are a little longer that you are able to potter in the garden till late afternoon. I was just thinking how blest I am to connect with nature when I am planting a cultivating vegetables and flowers. I just feel an inner peace and contentment when I am in the garden. It's a feeling that you have all that you need and there is no desire to be anything or be anywhere else, a feeling that you can do anything if you wanted to. It made me think that if we could feel this way more often , then it just might be this connection to nature that is the perfect medicine for your mind and your soul.

To be creative is my other passion and I also feel that anything is possible when I am in the middle of designing and creating when all my creative ideas come together. It is no wonder that I have become additcted. Nature and colours in nature have inspired some of my creations.

My advice is to find your connection, it may be that you love animals , or that you love walking through rain forests, or watching birds. Take the time to find your connection and I garantee that you will be happier and feel you have more time to spend with your family, friends and in general be more relaxed. Forget the endless to do list, it will always be there and the items on the list will get done, more so if you are relaxed about it. If we are constantly busy then we have not time to stop and take stock of the direction our lives are taking and to even get to know ourselves. When we know ourselves , we will know what we need to make our selve happy.

Please comment on this post- would love to read what you think.

Find your connection to nature and find an inner peace that is priceless.

Cheers,

Lina Z

CEO

ZaniL Design

Lina's Water Saving tips for the Summer Months Ahead

Welcome

I hope you are living a Hajja Kuntenta in every way. The aim of my blog is to share my experiences and hopefully inspire you in some way.




This weeks blog is about water saving tips and you have probably read lots about this very important topic. I will not try to reinvent the wheel, but as we live on tank water I think I have some interesting ways of saving water. I also feel great that when we do save a precious resource like water we are achieving a very worthwhile goal. We lived on a 5000 gallon tank for ten years and through some really bad summers of low rain fall. In all that time we only had to buy water about 4 times. So here are my tips, perhaps there may be one you did not know about and perhaps if you have a few minutes you could comment and and share your tips. That way we all learn from each other.

In Canberra we have a population of approx 350, 000 people ( check government website for a more accurate figure). Our daily water target for example on a given day is 105 mega litres i.e 105, 000, 000 litres. At the end of this article you will see how each person by making very minimal , but dedicated changes to how you live and approach reusing and saving water will save at least 10,000, 000 litres per day. Read on if this interests you.


You do not need to immediately spend any money at all to start or begin this very import way of living and thinking about a resource that is going to become more precious as our population increases and almost doubles at smaller intervals of time ( eg.bacteria in a petrie dish ).


At the end of this blog post there will a simple rule to remember that if followed religiously will save thousands of litres every year and keep river levels above critical levels.


Lina's Tips on how to save thousands ( of litres)


1. Toilets use up a huge amount of water and a Friend of mine advised me of a little rhyme.

If it's yellow, let it mellow , if it's brown , flush it down. Each flush uses anywhere from 3 litres( very efficient to 10 litres). Lets do a little calculation.

Say you have a family of 4 and each of you saves 2 flushes each assuming a efficient toilet,
that's
2X3X4= 24 litres of water per day for 365 days a year = 7760 litres per year.


2. Cut Shower times to less than 4 minutes - my advice it to get a timer - sand timer will suffice.I have one that takes 4 minutes for all sand to run out, with a suction on the shower door.
4 minutes in a shower is an eternity and I still have the occasional shower that last 4 minutes.
Efficient shower heads use 6 litres per minute to the non efficient of up to 15 liters per minute.

Lets do another calculation - cutting your shower from an average of 7 minutes to 4 minutes saves 18 litres if you have a efficient shower head - so for 4 people

4 peopleX3minX6litres = 72 litres every day for 365 days = 26, 280 liters per year.


3. Washing machine- you will probably not take this one up as no -one wants to spend hours doing the washing - but I just love it as I find doing these mundane tasks really are a time for me to think and plan and perhaps even just take time out from a busy schedule.




Here's what I do. I have a front loader ( I do a full load) and I wash the whites first- once they are washed first cycle I save the suds. Then allow clothes to rinse and have another large basin ready to save the rinse water. Next load simply reuse the suds and discard after second use. when rinsing second load , simply reuse the saved rinse water from previous load. just be careful when lifting water , use a smaller bucket . This way you have only used 2 loads of water instead of 4. Now if you don't particularly like this tip you could just save the rinse water after each wash ( does not save as much but better than nothing) - another calculation.


Each load most like uses 80 litres- so if you only save 2 loads per week of 160lites per week for 52 weeks -that's an amazing 8320 litres.

You do have to be close by near the machine for this tip , but why not schedule some ironing the same time.


4. You could use the washing machine water for some gardening plants - just remember to use vegetation safe products , there are plenty at the supermarket. Potential to save lots. You could also use some of the washing water to flush the toilet occasionally.- remember even if you only do this 3-4 times a week ( saves 12 litres ) every week these small savings add up. You could also use the suds to wash tile floors - depending how often you do your floors- potential to save up to 3o litres per week- 1500 litres per year.

5. While waiting for warm water to come out of the shower nozzles why not fill up bucket to use on the garden or to flush the toilet - saves 5 -10 litres per day. Also applies to sink taps - why not fill up a bottle or a kettle or jug- for drinking water or boiling water - saves up to 5 litres per day.

6. Reusing the water is off course better than saving it as it is used twice or 3 times and you are getting better use of the resource without using anymore if it. To do this permanently perhaps you could look into installing a grey water system.

7. Most important tip- make 2-3 of these tips on saving water a habit and that way they become part of your daily routines and then it becomes a way of life and then it becomes easy to do. Perhaps start out with a month long target to get the habit started, record the before changes water usage and then make a few changes that you are willing to adopt and then record the after changes water usage. The result will make you want to do more.

8. Simply put and easy to remember by using simple maths=

• Each person saving 2 flushes a day saves 6 litres per day
• Each person reducing shower time to 3-4 min - saves 6 litres per minute - say you only save 2 minutes off your shower time - remember use a timer - saves approx 12 litres per day.
• saving cold shower water (waiting for warm )in a bucket saves 6 litres per day
• saving tap water before it comes out hot in a bottle or jug ( handy to have a bottle or jug near tap) saves 1-2 litres per day.
• use a cup when washing teeth - save 1 litre per day
• add up all the large bold numbers - 6 + 12 + 6 +2 +1 = 27 litres per day per person with very simple and easy to implement changes.
• Multiply savings per person by the number of people- 27Lt X 350,000 people

= 9, 750, 000 litres per day saving

Remember more savings achieved if you do save some of your washing water ( perhaps you have a front loader which are the most efficient). I prefer the top loaders as the front loaders take forever to complete a cycle. I don't mind spending a little extra time saving the water, but this suits me and may not suit you.

My earliest memory of washing clothes wash helping my mum with when we had an old fashioned machine with exposed ringer like two rolling pins on top of each other. Once I got my hand caught and my arm proceeded to be fed into the ringer to get rung out- very scary for a 12 year old. If I could get my hands on one of these I would love it.

So what do you think - have you any tips that I could use as I am so passionate about reusing , recycling and generally minimising my impact on the environment.

Make time to do the important things and the rest will look after it self.cheers for now- check out my jewellery blog if you have time.

Lina

Spring is in the Air

Welcome to my blog.

Spring is almost here and there are already early signs that it won't be long before our natural enviroment is bursting with new life.

Spring is my favourite time of year, filled with promise of a garden of beautiful flowers and vegtables for the next few months.

Spring is definitely a great time to start thinking of what you would you like to grow and start planning so that once the frosts stop ( Canberra) you can press ahead to ensure you get a full growing season.

My tip is to make gardening a normal part of your life to enjoy it and to make time for it and that way you won't feel that you have not got the time to invest in it. Also another tip is to add 1 or 2 new things to grow each year and make them part of what you normally grow ( depending on how successful you have been in growing the new plant). this way it won't be long before you are growing quite a large array of what you need to prepare fresh, healthy and tasty food full of flavour all from your own back yard. The hardest part about gardening is in the planning and the sowing of the seeds and seedlings. Once this is done, all you need to do is water and weed, mulch and basically watch the plants grow. The results ( hopefully good ones) will make you want to succeed and do more.

Growing your own fruit and vegetable helps in reducing carbon emissions as the food we buy from supermarkets are very high in food miles and energy per kilo joules of food. Not only do we use fuel to drive there to get it, fuel and energy has been used to grow it as well as transport it to the market place. Buying from a local producer is also a great way to reduce your carbon foot print, if you are unable to grow your own , due to health and space restrictions.

Benefits of growing your own.

• You have more flavoursome and vine ripened vegetables. It is healthier to eat fruit and vegetables that have been sun ripened- have more vitamins.
• Freshness- pick when you need.
• sharing- swaping with friends for things you can't grow.
• sense of satifaction
• saves money
• healthy past time - gardening is a form of excercise
• relaxing when you look at the beautiful fruit forming.
• educational - learn about plant/bugs/ pruning etc
• reduce your carbon foot print.

Disadvantages

• hard work - but who said life was meant to be easy - you reap what you sow in more ways than one.
• time consuming
• plant failure - always learn form mistakes - that's a positive as long as you don't keep making the same mistake.
  
  

Tips to get you started on your very own veggie patch

• Start out small - only grow 4 -5 things and grow them well- your success will feed further successes.

These plants are a good starting point

• Zucchinni's - these are fast growers- you will be amazed.
• Parsley- very useful herb.
• Garlic- plant bulbs in winter .
• Lettuce also very easy to grow
• Beans
• Potatoes - these can be grown in old tyres , just keep adding dirt as the palnt matures.
• sun flowers to attract bees
• Pumpkin vine

Happy gardening, I am sure you will not look back once you have decided to grow a few things.

best regards

from the Bejewelled Gardener

Lina of ZaniL Design Jewellery

How to slow time down

Welcome to my Contented Life Blog

Do you think the pace of life is speeding up? Are you constantly busy with no spare time for your self? Do you want to know how to get more time for your self.? Do you find your self looking to the future at the next holiday or next job that needs to be done.?

I remember as a child, time did pass so slow and it was a long time between birthdays. As I got older time did seem to go faster and faster. We all seem to think that as we approach retirement we will have more time to do the things we want. I think this is a fallacy as many retired people I speak to seem to be very busy with grand children, and the usual things in life. I also thought that when I left my full time job, I would have all the time inn the world and I would be drinking cups of tea everyday. I quickly found that the reality was quite different.

How to make time Slow down.

When we think of the way we spend our days, we are constantly looking into the future at the next job , next holiday, next whatever. This does tend to make us live in the future and we do not fully appreciate the here and now. If we only had a few months to live, I think our focus would be to enjoy the moments we have and to live them in the present .We would not be looking too far in the future ( as in reality we know that the future is never ours).

My advice on how to make time go slower is to simply slow down, what is all the rush about. Why do we want to cram so much in to our every day activities, are we afraid that we won't get them done ? Make time for important things like friends and family.

cheers

Lina

Only what's Done with Love With Last

Welcome to my Contented Life Blog.

I hope you are not really needing my advice and that you are leading and happy and fulfilled life. If nothing else I hope I am striking a chord with you and that you can relate to what I am writing about. After all we are all the same when it comes down to our feelings and what is really important.

I like to begin with a statement that was the last thing I read in my book of Maximum Achievement , by Brian Tracey, found in the last chapter tittled 'The power of Love'.



Only one life, that is soon Past

Only what's done with love will last


or another way


Life that is too soon ended,
Only what's done in love will be remembered.

I happen to read this about the same time of Micheal Jackson's Death and when you think about it, the above is so true, he has left some good things behind( not his money) but his wonderful gift of music for all to continue to enjoy. He will long be remembered for his music than anything else.

When you get to a certain age ( usually about 40) you start to reflect on your life, on your achievements, on your goals and usually on the meaning of life itself. You may decide to change direction with a new job , new ambitions , new dreams. It seems once you have decided to do something new, everything seems to come by happenstance that re-enforces the new idea or decision that you have made. Sometimes this change of direction comes as a result of a life changing experience such as a serious accident, death of a loved one and so on.

When you look back on all the things you thought were important before the life changing experience , you suddenly realize that they were not so important. Living life in the moment and letting the little things go become more a way of life. This is harder than it sounds and needs constant practice. I find I am always brought back to earth when I hear of others misfortune and I re- analyse my situation and all of a sudden I don't feel quite so bad, and I have a different perspective on it.

Brian Tracey advises that " if you truly want to be successful and happy in everything you do, in every part of your life, you must learn and practice love on every occasion, at every opportunity. The expression of love and kindness must be as natural to you as breathing in and breathing out.".

I must say that I have to agree. I feel great when I have done an act of kindness especially towards someone obviously needing it to the point that I get a swelling of emotion rising through my body that I am moved to tears ( happy tears). Every time we do something nice for someone else, we make that person happy and we enhance the quality of their life. You are also enriching your life as what you give always comes back. You are making the world a better place to be. You make you life a blessing to others.

I have some Helen Steiner Rice poems and was at St Vincent's De Paul store recently and came across another volume. These poems are wonderful. I had forgotten how timeless they are and how well written that you can find solace in the simple words.

Tips on giving the simple things in life and being happy.

1. Be thankful for all you have, especially your health. List all the good things you have in your life.

2. Smile at a complete stranger- it's free. You will always get a smile back.

3.Do something nice for someone without expecting anything in return. The key to living is in Giving.

4.Tell someone that you love them- always nice to hear these words.

5.Be genuine- always follow through with your promises- you will love yourself for it.

6.Decide to be happy, its a mind game. Do things that make you happy. Did you know , happy people have less health problems and live longer.

7.Create your own future by listening to your inner voice.

8.Be kind and compassionate as you never know when you will need someone to do the same for you.

9. Don't be afraid to say sorry- we all make mistakes.

10. What could be more important that being here and knowing you are making a difference to someone and that you are loved.

To end this post I have found a poem by Helen Steiner Rice , titled 'the Magic of Love'.

Here are the last two verses that say what I want to say to you all.

Love is the answer

That everyone seeks-

Love is the Language

That every heart speaks-

Love can't be bought,

It is priceless and free,

Love like pure magic

Is a sweet Mystery!

It seems that in life the simple things are free and if you have these things in your life, you will be rich in happiness, health, love. These things are available to rich and poor alike, there is no discrimination.

cheers all, don't forget to comment- love to hear what you say or think.

Lina

Keep on - keeping on

Welcome to my blog.

I have just read and been inspired by a article on a blog by Yaro Starak, a blog guru. Here is the link if you want to read something inspiring about keeping your mind on the task and not giving in to self doubt.



Link: http://www.entrepreneurs-journey.com/891/how-to-remain-productive-when-you-feel-like-giving-up/


I am oftem asking my self this question am I really getting any where? Why am I doing this?

I often look to others for approval and I think that is not a good way to keep your mind on track. We should not need input from others to reaffirm why we are doing something, we only need to follow what is in our heart and know that we will succeed.

I have experienced a feeling of being at peace at where I am going in my life and a feeling of knowing that everything will work out and this feeling comes from believing in your self and casting out feeling s of self doubt.

I once heard a story about a film producer who wrote a story about his life and the struggles he was facing with depression and suicide. He decided that he would tell noone about what he was going to to do ( about making a film) as he felt that when he told someone, his energy and desire to complete the task dissapated in the process of revealing to someone else what his plans were. He went on to make a very successful film ( I am not good with details of names , but good with actual facts about what happened) and hence his interview on national radio.


So the moral of the story - be true to your self and don't let go of your dreams, keep following them as you will be the only one who feels regret at the end of lifes wonderful and colourful journey.

I have now a new slogan for my ZaniL Design Brand

Be Elegant, Be Stylish and Be Distinctive and feel confident in a ZaniL Design.

So what do you think. I think it sounds pretty snazzy.

Do leave me a comment. I love to hear from my customers.

Can anyone one else think of a slogan- win a free pair of earrings valued $30.00.




Cheers

Lina - ZaniL Design CEO

Garden's Last Harvest before the Frost

Welcome to my Contented Life Blog.

The aim of my blog is to inspire others with some simple ideas that I have found along lifes wonderful journey. We are all trying to find a balance that works for us and hopefully my tips can help you find some things that will help you achieve this.

As I am aiming to inspire others, I am inspired by others like wise, so if you have any interesting ideas or you think I am way off the mark, please feel free to contructively comment.

A little about myself, I love to garden as you have probably worked out from reading some of my early blogs and from the pictures of some of our produce. We have our own eggs and vegetables and some fruit. We have an aquaponics system ( built by my husband). I love to make my own things and I am often wearing my own hand made jewellery or item of clothing or bags. I love to reuse and recycle anything from egg cartons to water bottles and preloved clothing.

That's enough about me, the point I am trying to make is if I can do it, so can you. You need only to decide to do it. The rest will be history. With gardening you can start by only growning a few herbs and the success of this will make you thirsty for more successes with other vegetables.

If you do not have the space , grown your vegetables in polystyrene boxes (reusing). Join the Diggers Club ( Australia) as it has some great Heirloom vegtables /fruit and great articles that really keep you abreast of what is happening in the world of Gardening and Genetically modified food and its affect on us.

The picture about was harvested on the 1st of June - the first day of winter. I was so pleased with this last harvest. When you grow your own, not only will you be eating more healthy produce, but it will have more flavour. It will also have less food miles ( the amount of energy used to produce food). You will also save some money , but more importantly you are in control of your food , not the supermarket.

Another tip on saving money and the planet- refuse to buy vegtables that are not in season. These vegetables/fruit have travelled long food miles to get to your super market and are generally more expensive.

Now that Winter is here ( Australia)- you should already have Brocolli, Cauliflowers, Cabage, Spinach, lettuce, Broad beans,garlic in your garden.

Until next time happy Gardening- remember you reap what you sow and not only in your garden , but also in your life. Be kind and compassionate - you never know when you will need someone to be kind and compassionate towards you. Do unto others as you will have done unto you.

Please feel free to comment- would love to hear what you you think good or bad- it only takes a minute.

Cheers

Lina

ZaniL Design CEO

Believe and Achieve

The Law of Attraction - from "The Secret"


I first came accross this phrase about 12 months ago
"Imagination is everything it is the preview of lifes coming attraction". Albert Einstien.

I was so taken by the simplicity of it's meaning and how it rang true for what I was trying to do with my life and my passion for creating beaded jewels. I somehow starting finding lots of literature about living your dreams. My sister recommended a book about living your destiny - forgotten the author now( S.Gwain I think)

I went to the book shop to find the book recomended, but it was not in stock, but stumbled upon "The Secret" and bought it. I also stumbled upon a few other books like "Maximum Potential" by Brian Tracey. I feel that I have attracted these books into my life as I have needed them and they have come at exactly the right time, just as I came accross the phrase above at exactly the right moment that it was to have maximum impact on my thoughts.

I have just watched the first 20minutes of the video on "The Secret"-here is the link if you are interested. http://manifestmastermindblog.com/self-development/the-secret-is-the-law-of-attraction-bob-proctor-the-secret

The basic thread on the secret is that you are attracting into your life everything you are thinking about. Whether it is bad or good, you have attracted these things , simply by thinking of these things most of the time. If we apply this simple law, and focus on the things that we do really want, like happiness, wealth, joy, health then by simply thinking on the ways to have these things , they will be attracted to us.

You will most likely already be aware I have already written a few posts on channelling your thoughts on positive emotions and this is what The Secret is all about. You need to be constantly thinking ( and actively pursuing) on the things you want to happen and eventually it will happened ( no it won't happen overnight).

Positive emotions and thoughts give us energy to believe that we can achieve and attract more positive energy to keep our dreams and aspirations alive. Negative emotions cast doubt and halt us in our tracks. I know this for a fact as the minute I stop believing in my dream I lose momentum.

Here is another link that may help you stay on course.
http://manifestmastermindblog.com/self-development/being-powerful

That is what I am trying to do with my design and label. ZaniL Design will become a brand name one day. It doesn not matter to me if anyone else believes this , as long as I do that is all that matters.

So if you do want a ZaniL Design piece before I become famous, just click add to cart on the piece you would like.

My latest earring designs are designed to impart some of this postive energy and I have called them my "Infinite" possibilities, abundance, love, joy , happiness or whatever you are desiring to have. I want my customers to feel joy and look good my ZaniL Designs so that you have lots of positive energy.

So I leave you now , go and do what makes you happy as this is great for your confidence and will only attract more good things into your life.

cheers

Lina

Save 1/3 Spend 1/3 and Enjoy 1/3 of your Money

Welcome all ,

This month I aim to give some tips on how to make the tough time ahead not seem so bad.

We all hear the news and it seems to contain endless stream of bad and negative energy.

You still need to keep abreast of what is going on, but to remember not to keep thinking of all the bad news. Bad news is what sells so it is always going to grab the head lines.

This post is going to concentrate on how to make ends meet and to save a little more for a rainy day. I am always telling my kids a golden rule that I follow, save 1/3 , spend 1/3 ( bills/rent), enjoy a 1/3 ( entertainment, presents etc)

Tip on How to Save More Money( you will be glad you did)


1. First make the decision that you do want to save a little more and commit.
2. Pay your self first i.e. put the amount you have decided that you can comfortable save away in another account or if you prefer in an evelop at home ( but be sure not to dip into it).
3. Set your self a achieveable goal , perhap you are saving for a deposit on a house, new car , rainy day, set a target and visualise that you have already achieved it.
4. Imagine what it would be like to have that deposit for your house, money for your car, money for that dreamed of family holiday. Keep this dream alive as this will motivate you to save and keep your commitment to your self and goal.

Next tips on on how to save some money as the tips above are about you deciding and goal setting.
5. work out how much you your income (after tax) and expenses and note down the difference.
This is the amount you have left for entertainment and saving.
6. work out your current entertainment expenses. Is this amount more or less than the amount left in step 5? Can you cut down on some things ?.
Ways to save more

7. Can you take your lunch to work. there is a potential to save at least $10.00 - $15.00 per day if you pack your own. Allow yourself a treat every now and then especially if you are achieving your goal.
8. Do you really need to buy expensive brand names when shopping for food. Can you do your shopping at times when there are more specials on? (e.g reduced meat prices).
9.Are you crafty, can you make some of your gifts/cards? It's nicer to give a hand made item.
Do you reuse your present bags and wrapping ? potential to save lots of $$$, just by reusing wrapping paper and bags while saving on resourses.
10. Can you plan your trips so you are not making un neccessary trips to the shops.
11. If paying a mortgage off , pay weekly, compound interest saving adds up over the years and can save you years of payments. Pay more than you have to and reap the rewards in early repyment.
12. Do you recycle your clothes? Do you look in recycled cloths stores when you need something?
This is the latest growing trend, people are turning to these kinds of stores for more and more items from furniture, toys and clothing. Not only do you save money, but you are recyling and saving resourses.
13. Last tip- Teach your kids to save from a young age- the early the better - they will thank you for it.

In the end it is up to you to make the decision and to commit and follow through with it. It will be you who benefits the most and you may even find it leads you to other paths.

There is nothing better than to be free to make your own decisions and you can only do this if you have no pressure from being under to much debt and the only way to minimise your debt is to decide to save more. This does not mean you will become a miser, but a wiser shopper and in control of your financial future.

Here to your financial success and hopefully i have provided some useful tips. Keep posted for more tips as I think of them.

What do you think? Have you got any money saving tips that will help other people. Please comment.

A Wheel Barrow Full of Pumpkins

Welcome to my " Hajja Kuntenta" Site.

I aim to impart and inspire my readers with lots of simple and easy ideas that will enable you to be able to get from your time and lead a fulfilled life.

This week we harvested our pumpkins.

At the beginning of the season, I thought we would not get many pumpkins. I actually went and hand pollinated a few just to make sure I would 2 or 3. Well I am so pleased that we harvested a wheel barrow full and a few more. Through out the season , I would count them almost every week or so and I would water more so if there were a few more new flowers. I have got a few people on my list to share with and I am saving some for my family. I feel so fortunate to be blessed with all this food.

Did you know if you plant a fruit tree like a lemon near your front door, that you will feel like you have abundance in your life when you walk past it I see my lemon tree with fruit on it. It is near our verandah where we sit when we are relaxing and sipping wine or coffee. It gives us a feeling that we have all that we need.

I have 2 great easy recipes that use Pumpkins so I will share these with you.

Maltese Pumpkin & Bacon Bone Soup

1 good Bacon bone

1/2 cup Barley

1/2 cup Green split peas

1/2 cup yellow split peas

1 large potato chopped into medium pieces

2 cups thinly shredded cabbage

1 good sized pumpkin wedge chopped into 3cm pieces

1 carrot chopped

2 tbsp tomato paste.

1 tsp curry

pepper

2 tbsp oil.

I large pot.

Method

In a large pot place bacon bone and enough water to cover. Bring to the boil and boil for about 20 minutes. Add all the other ingredients except the cabbage. Allow to boil and then simmer for 1 hour. Add cabbage about 20 minutes before serving.

Remove bone from soup- meat should almost fall off bone. Squeeze lemon juice over meat. Serve with the soup.

Serve with garlic bread or other bread.

Moist Pumpkin Scones

3 tbsp butter

1 cup warm mashed pumpkin

2 cups SR flour.

3 tbsp sugar

Mix butter and sugar together to make a paste. Add the warm pumpkin and mix well.

Add the flour and knead out. If mixture is too wet add more flour, or if too dry add a little water.

cut and roll into prepare board.

cook in a oven 180C for about 15 minute.

That's it for now.

Keep posted for some more tips and great handmade jewellery designs on my ZaniL Design Blog.

What do you think? What makes you happy, would you like to share your ideas?

Anyway until next time.

Lina

How to be Content

Welcome all once again.

I have been giving some thought as to what makes me feel content. I also googled "contented life" and there are so many articles on the subject.

Here are a few tips on the things that make me "Kuntenta". I believe in the KISS principle - Keep it simple , it works for me.

Lina's Tips on a "Living a contented Life"

1. Accepting and loving your self for who you are. Looking into your self and listening to your inner voice and going with your instincts. Don't be too critical of your self.

2. Living life in the moment- have you noticed that you are always thinking of the next item on the the to do list to be accomplished. I now focus on the task at hand and enjoy the moment for what it is, even it is doing the dishes. This way we are focusing and giving our full attention to the task at hand. I find I can get it done quicker and feel more satisfied.When we constantly focus on the future we are not enjoying the present. The present moment is all we have, yesterday has passed and tomorrow is not yet ours.

3.I am working on not putting things off for too long. If I think of something I try to do it straight away, an example is when I think of family or friends, I try to call them right there and then ( if it is the correct time of the day).

4.Try not to cram too much into your day. If you have less on your to do list and accomplish 3/5 things , you will feel great as you will have done most of the things.

5. Be generous. This does not mean you have to spend all of your hard earned money on buying lots of gifts. Being generous can mean you are generous with your time volunteering, donating goods that you no longer want, making your own gifts, donating vegetables, lending a helping hand or shoulder. What you give always comes back to you one hundred fold and "the smell of a rose always stays with the giver". You will find it has a good effect on you as you have a good feeling that you have helped or made a difference.

6. Be grateful and thankful. When we are grateful with what we have , we appreciate all the things in our life and sometime more things come into our life because of this. When we feel grateful we are not always wanting to have more which puts less pressure on us to work to obtain more things.

7.Be connected with nature and kind to all things in nature. I love gardening and when I am gardening I am constantly amazed at how beautiful and wonderful all life is, how a simple seed can turn into a beautiful tree or flower or vegetable.We are all part of nature and the more we surround ourselves with nature , the more simple we realise our lives are. Grow your own vegetables, feel more in control of what you are eating and lessen your food miles and reduce your foot print.

8. Take some time out to make time for the things you really want to do. Cut out the things that are not that important and commit to less , say no to the less important things. How often do you use the excuse that you are too busy?. Be creative , go visit someone you haven't seen for a while, spend more time with your kids.

9. Set some achieveable goals with realistic time lines. Picture your self achieving these goals.

10. Slow down. Rushing from place to place and job to job can become a way of life. Allow for some free time where you simply do nothing, but enjoy the moment and relax. When we are rushing there is no time to stand still and take stock of what you have achieved and where you are going. Look into your self and ask " if I had a second chance, what would I do differently or what would I be doing now".

Thats about it for now. Here is a link I found through google - Live a life of contententment

So what do you think , Have you got any tips you can share.?

Cheers for now
Lina



Lina

Happy Thoughts - Become your Reality

Welcome to my Contented Life blog.

This Blog has just been set up. I hope you will find it interesting and inspiring. I hope to give lots of insightful tips on a range of topics from gardening, saving for a house, healthy body and mind tips.

I am no expert or have no answers on how to get rich quick , just simple ideas that I have found really work in my life that I thought if I could only make a difference to one more person , than I have served a good purpose.

Where to start.

I can recommend a really good book if you want to read something that will really empower you to change your life ( if you are feeling like you are lost). It is called Maximum Achievement by Brian Tracey.

I found this book whilst browsing in one of the second hand stores where I live. You know when you are not particularly looking for anything, the exact thing that you are subconsciously looking for just happens to fall into your hands. Well this is how I came to find this book. It was just there and since beginning my jewellery business I am always looking for ways to improve my business and what I am offering. I got more than I bargained for in this book. It really made me see that anything is achievable.

I will be writing about some of the things I have learned from this book as I feel I really need to share what has made me feel really confident and made me believe that I am the driver and in control of my life.

Above are some pictures of our Aquaponics system ( more on this later) and our chickens.

Here is a little verse I found many years ago, that I really loved and Have kept it for something special. Well this is first time I am using it and thought that it was really appropriate.

Thoughts

Keep your thoughts positive because your

thoughts become your words

Keep your words Positive because your

words become your actions

Keep your actions positive because your

actions become your habits

Keep your habits positive because your

habits become your values

Keep your values positive because your

values become your destiny

That's about it for my first blog post . If you are looking for some fantastic Australian handmade gifts and jewellery, please look at my other blog ZaniL Design Jewellery . I am an award winning jewellery designer. I can custom design and can do repairs.

What are you waiting for - decide to follow your dream and just go for it.

Until next time

Cheers

Lina