Posie Limp Bits Challenge - Week 2: craft & winners announced!!

Greetings all,

First up, some giveaway winners to announce . . .

my 600th post $200 crafty giveaway goes to random pick entry 99 Rachel from Blossom Possum &

the copy of Birth Stories by Leonie MacDonald goes to Mother Down Under who discussed hypnobirthing!!  Congratulations ladies, please email me a delivery address!!

Welcome to Week 2: Craft of the Posie Limp Bits Challenge.  Play the anthem!!

Link up your post of something you have challenged yourself to . . .

knit, sew, applique, stitch, crochet, macrame, spin, create . . . over the next 7 days.

My background is pharmacology & psychology, however, i often wonder if i should have done architecture or engineering at University.  Now our beloved Khaki Campbell ducks, Bugle, Calliope & Bongo have been muddy-ing-up the chicken run with their love for  spraying water everywhere, it's smelly, so i had to get creative to dry things up.  I guessed a fenced in water feeder might do the trick & it worked immediately.  The ducks now fill their bills & swallow here, rather than saturate everything in water.  They still have a large pot of water to wash themselves & i'll take a 'portable pond' in for them to swim every other day too.  Everyone is happy.

It's at the 'German Shepherd' end of the coop, so some crates protect them from each other, as unattractive as it is.  As an added bonus, the little fence (left over from last year's pumpkin patch,) lattice from an industrial site, wire from coop construction, a branch & old garden stakes - cost me nothing!!  It also acts as a neat wind break - there are 4 hens nesting on the other side - they love nooks & crannies!! 

Now i had promised myself i'd master crochet for my Limp Bits Craft Challenge, however, i've only done a little sewing for Aussie Hero Quilts when Jan-Maree came to Canberra last week, then i've spent the rest of the week blowing my nose.  Also had my final hand surgeon check up on Monday, thrilled with the results, yet still getting my hands back to their nimble best.  

Thank you to last week's Limp Bits Cooking Challenge participants, we have 

Becky from Becky et al's cheesecake winning GOLD; 

Rachel from Blossom Possum's porcini with SILVER & 

Shelley from Jelly Shane's pea & ham soup taking BRONZE.  

Special mention to Becky who managed to dirty every kitchen appliance & mixing bowl to create her cheesecake, Rachel is a sweet teenager who cooked the porcini for her family & Shelley used a recipe from a dear elderly gentleman.  Congratulations, cooking with heart & soul!!  

Grab the badge & have fun.  Week 3/ Closing Ceremony: Photography - challenge yourself to photograph something with a different lens, off auto, at night, on water, flying . . . a skill you haven't tried before.  Thanks for joining in, cyber medals will be awarded!!  Love Posie

Posie Limp Bits Challenge - Week 1: cooking

Greetings all,

Welcome to Week 1: Cooking of the Posie Limp Bits Challenge.  Sound the trumpets!!  

Link up your post of something you have challenged yourself to . . . 

bake, cook, roast, sauté, BBQ, grill, smoke, poach . . . over the next 7 days.

My lame confession . . . after 15 years of marriage & spending literally years home alone preparing dinner for my children while my handsome soldier takes all his culinary skills to war zones, i had never cooked a roast.  Oh the shame.  So last night, i made this, mmmm, Roast Pork.  I kept the vegetables simple (carrots, potato, broccoli) as my eldest daughter had a volleyball match at 6p.m. so i had to whip this in & out of the oven in under 2 hours.  Nothing says success like crispy crunchy crackling!!  My children gobbled it down (like they do at Christmas) & came back for thirds!!

My awesome tip . . . pour boiling water over the uncooked pork, pat dry with paper towel then dry thoroughly with a hair dryer.  Rub liberally with vegetable oil & salt for crackling heaven.  

 I cooked it over a foil tray, no washing up (i actually couldn't find the rack for the roasting pan so had to improvise & use an old cake cooler, worked just as well!!)

 Please include what your willing taste testers thought too!!  My children gave me the thumbs up & asked if we could have pigs on the farm, mmmm, homegrown bacon, ribs & roast pork, hell yeah.  

Grab the badge & have fun.  Week 2: Craft - challenge yourself to a new skill or pick up an old favourite you haven't utilised for a while.  I've had 3 crochet lessons & i still struggle, yet continue to try.  Thanks for joining in, medals will be awarded!!  Love Posie