Long weekend, market, back to back wool challenge.

Parents are away. On Friday night JK and I had an AMAZING dinner at an italian restaurant on the honeysuckle boardwalk in Newcastle, using Ent book voucher. AMAZING amazing steak. Then we watched I wanna marry Harry on tv.

On Saturday I had brunch with two local friends. A girl from school and a girl from uni, who are friends with each other. They are really nice people. I freaked one of them about when I started ranting about the low cost per wear on wedding dresses.

Then I went to meet JK again at the Olive Tree Markets which were really good. Art and design markets. Much better and cheaper than Paddington, and nicer stuff I think than Glebe. I plan on returning to buy a chicken tea cosy.

Then I went home and Denise came up from Sydney for the weekend. We did a grocery shop and I cooked dinner and also we made about a hundred+ dumplings and put them in the freezer. Then I fell asleep in front of the TV, which I never do but I was trying to stay awake after 10pm because D is a night owl. BTW dinner was amazing too, I adapted a Nigella italian recipe which was easy. Didn't look great but it had tomato, runny egg, seasoned mince on the side (my addition) and afghan bread (from the supermarket, flatter than turkish bread). I am obsessed with runny egg yolk.

On Sunday JK joined us at 8am and we went to Tocal for the Back to Back Wool Challenge.

Shearing at 9am.

Then spinning and knitting until a jumper is finished.

There are also craft stalls and cheap tea and slices and demonstrations of spindles and lace making and things. And a lovely bush band, which I have posted a video on fb. I thought we would stay a couple of hours but it was too comfortable we just didn't feel like leaving. I am now obsessed with small square weaving looms and have asked a colleague to make me it.

There was also a blacksmith.

And then church.

D and I went to Morpeth for breakfast, see another runny egg delight.

And she left at lunchtime to beat the traffic back to Sydney. Then I vacuumed the whole house, which is a large endeavor, I only gave up on the hall room with all my boxes in it. Then I did Jillian. Then I was pretty pooped. Leftovers for dinner and another brilliant episode of the Mentalist. There have been like 10 superb episodes in a row. My favourite show again now.

Frugal, life stages, hope, sandwich.

One big way my life has changed in the move is that I'm starting to make life-stage changes. I've always said that singleness doesn't have the milestones that married life has. Going from flat sharing to owning your own home is the big one, really.  A few months ago I anticipated a future of just more flatting with flatmates, probably forever lol. I was steadily saving for a place to buy but had no clear way to buy anything: Sydney out of my price range except for the far west and that wasn't an exciting option. Anyway, I remember a time Elsie and I were with Felix for some reason and queueing for free icecream, and it sank in then when I said we were better off saving even if it seems hopeless, because we don't know what will change. Houses drop in price, or you leave Sydney, or you get married and pool your savings, and then you are in a position to buy. How prophetic, because in Gods timing suddenly I'm in an affordable housing market planning to buy a house eventually with the results of my frugal flatting years! If I'd waited till houses were cheaper or I was earning more, ie waited til it LOOKED realistic, I'd be starting from scratch now. It's probably wrong to quote a bible vs to drive it home, but it's like hope in things unseen. We plug away with no end in sight until suddenly we will see the end and it will be worth it. Delayed gratification. 

It's easier to be frugal when young, too. Friends still studying so you're not comparing your standard of living to yuppies. Haven't discovered favourite expensive shops yet. Got the energy to walk and PT. No gourmet cooking or eating requirements. No shame! Cos actually I like how we always got leftovers as takeaway and reported the 99 cent bananas with excitement. Now I want to transition into minimalism as a way to be frugal and unworldly. 

Life stage change. Flatting to home ownership, I hope. 

Here are some pretty lunchtime pics again. Speaking of frugal, I bring bread to work and buy a box of salad to make a sandwich for two days.