A new Pantry!

I've just had a nice couple of days with my girls, my eldest had another appointment with her obstetrician so I got to see her and baby again. She is now23 weeks and is truly showing a belly. We went to a spotlight store and bought some fabric to make baby wraps and cot sheets, it was a lovely time spent together. I can't believe how fast time has flown but I suppose when there is so much going on around you time does fly.

The first slab for the church has been poured and the next slab will be Friday and the last next Wednesday. We are pleased how things are going, apart from the tragic news we had from the supplier of the shed we will be getting, his two brothers were killed in a helicopter accident last week. They rang to tell us the sheds want be ready until January 2010, we truly understand
their situation and are willing to wait until they were ready.

This below is Tony, he is our friend who is staying with us until we can catch up with our orders. Do you think he likes our animal and visa -versa. For a person who hasn't really had any animals in his life he is totally wrapped in these characters. That is scooby sitting on his lap, he was the kitten that wandered lost into my shop and who was nearly put down. The little one on the right is his favourite, Jatzie, she doesn't usually like males, and goes absolutely crazy with barking and snapping when one arrives (very unsocial) but with Tony she loves him, weird.

This is my now tidied pantry, it took me about 4 hours to get in their and tidy it up, throw out of date stuff, put my containers in order and just a general rearrange and clean up.

I have had a lot of problem with ants lately, but I think it is the weather because everyone I ask are having the same problem. So every thing went into containers and jars. I wrote out a list of stuff I am low in and that needs to be stocked up in. I usually like to have a well supplied pantry because we are so far from town and I do a lot of cooking from scratch, I like it to have as much as possible. When we moved here we found the neighbours were always lending to each other something they had run out of, its great.

My preserving stock is running low and I don't think my veggie patch is going to be as good as last years. The heat and dryness is taking its toll on our land and the farmers. I have noticed many farmers are getting rid a lot of their stock. We are just not getting any rain, the dams are drying up and there is no feed in the paddocks.

I store a lot of my bowl, jugs, Tupperware and stuff in my pantry because it is fairly large.

Dave made the shelves adjustable so I can make the shelve spaces any sized to fit what ever I want to put on them.

I tried to cull some of my cook books but found it a bit hard, above my books is my yogurt maker, which i love.

This shelf has my oils, sauces and vinegars and the shelves below has my condiments, spices & herbs and all my cake making stuff and the top shelf has my preserving lids, seal, rings etc.

The little cupboard my son made years ago, I keep my potatoes, onions etc in. Then the microwave sits on top then a bread box on top of that. Well thats it the pantry is done!

My Pantry

Don't be horrified by this chaos, I do intend to get in there to clean and sort my pantry and it is on my To-Do List. With such a big pantry I still seem to fill it up, the box on the floor contains my empty preserving jars. I do have a system but it needs re-organizing as things have gotten a little out of hand. After last harvest season I was looking for more space for my jars of jams, pickles and preserves etc. My stockpile is very low at the moment so I need to clean it out and restock. I was hoping to start making more whole grain breads because I usually just make white and I think it is about time my family started eating more grains. I also like to start using more pulses and more herbs and spices, the family have been playing it safe but I think it is about time I introduce a bit more substances and flavour.

These are the pantry doors Dave made for me, they have mesh on the inserts and a rubber seal to prevent any crawlies or moths from getting in.

This is how they looked closed, we still have to put on the architrave and skirting plus handles.

I am really happy with the look! In the picture you can see that we haven't painted yet that is because we still haven't finished gyprocking, but in time it will all come together and look fantastic.

The little brown hen standing behind the rooster is the one we were given by one of Jess's friends. She seems to be settling in ok, I was going to let her gradually get to know the other hens to make sure she fitted in but because I wasn't home at the time Dave just put her straight in with the rest of them and hoped for the best, thank goodness they are all getting along.