When I'm Tired

Yesterday I felt deflated, tired and run down. No everyday is a rosy day and sometimes it all seems hard. And it is hard... to be a grown up, managing a home, organising a child and going to work everyday. Especially when you want to lead a life with minimal take out meals and a reduced ecological footprint - it takes a little bit more of an effort to not be wasteful.

Due to feeling blah and overwhelmed I decided to make a healthy dinner of salad only, instead of following my menu plan. So with a Lebanese cucumber from my garden and a green cucumber from Lesley's garden plot as a salad base, I chopped away and made a scrummy super healthy mood enhancing salad. I included with the 2 cucumbers:

• half an apple, 
• 1 large tomato, 
• 1 carrot, 
• 2 snake beans and
• a tiny bit of grated cheddar heese. 

From my fridge I used some tasty left over olive oil from a jar of feta cheese and a little left over vinegar from a jar of pickled onions. (Don't throw these out when the contents are finished - the oils and vinegars can be tasty and handy to use). The 3 of us really enjoyed the refreshing scrunchy salad and it's a great way to get raw veggies into my family.

Fresh, Quick and Healthy.

Lesley had kindly given me one of her green cucumbers because someone had taken one from my garden plot. It's frustrating and disappointing to have my limited produced taken by botanical garden visitors but that's what happens with gardens in public areas and I knew this would happen so will just need to try and grow more. And hopefully people who visit the gardens will be inspired to grow their own too just as I was.

My Lebanese Cucumber

Here's Dolly's lunch box number 2 for preschools morning tea. Butterfly sandwich with cheddar cheese and vegemite, a snake bean, a bit of chopped up carrot and 2 strawberries gifted from our neighbour Mr T. This term her class will be joining the main school for assemblies to get them into the habit of sitting and listening and integrating. My girl is growing so so so fast. I can't wait for next year where I will cut back my work hours by 2 hours per day so I can spend more time with her. At present she has been fighting me on nearly everything. It's exhausting and makes me feel sad. I never had any trouble or terrible 2's with her but boy-oh-boy is 4 turning her into a rebel (just with me)! I need to see it as her testing her own voice and hopefully she will turn into a leader and not a push over with others.

Morning Tea.

Oh and by the way, the snake was back on my eggplant again!!! He likes me and seems to want to stay living at my plot. I have found out from The Rambling Expats Snake Expert friend that he is definitely a tree snake and non venomous.

Snake in my eggplant. Here to stay?

Are some days hard for you too? What do you do if it's all just too hard?