Australian Garden Show

Happy weekend everyone!

I hope you’ve all had a marvelously relaxing time, I know I have! I’ve been back in Sydney to celebrate Fathers Day. Honestly my dad isn’t a big believer in such commercially directed celebratory days so we didn’t do too much in the way of worshiping him (haha). The morning began with a long family walk, followed by a wonderful roast dinner planned and cooked by my lovely mum, and then this afternoon we made a spontaneous trip to the Australian Garden Show which was being held in Centennial Gardens.

Of course being a last minute decision I really had no idea what we were going to and how large scale it would be. I am so glad that we made the trip in though because all up it was fabulous to see all the amazing landscape design projects that were on display as well as the plethora of passionate gardeners, designers, horticulturalists, stall owners & foodies braving the cold & wet weather to display their produce & provide creative solutions for a variety of gardening dilemmas.

Below are a few photos that I thought I’d share from the quick snaps I took whilst walking around. Honestly with so many people around it wasn’t particularly easy to take nice photos, but these are some of the ones I thought I’d share…

What did you get up to this weekend?

xxo Ariane

Pictures: (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6)

What do you want to be when you grow up?

For years now I’ve been asked by various people what I want to do with myself… when I grow up; when I finish school; and now when I finish uni. Over these years I’ve developed a variety of responses to these questions. When I was in primary school I was convinced that I would become a Marine Biologist & spend my days swimming with Whale Sharks off the coast of Western Australia. It was a very specific fantasy that seemed to please adults who would ask me and so, for a number of years I stuck with the same story.

As I developed into a teen and I learnt more about myself & my interests I realised that perhaps Marine Biology wasn’t the right career choice for me. I spent years thinking that I was the only one of my age who didn’t know what they wanted to do at uni & then for the rest of my life. All my friends seemed to know exactly what they wanted to do, how they were going to do it, & how the rest of their lives would turn out. It’s funny looking back on these final years of high school where I spent a lot of time worrying about why I hadn’t figured out what to do with my life and in reality no one really knows what they want and everyone is constantly changing their minds!

Now that I’ve left school I’ve come to terms with the idea that there are many different pathways to deciding what career choice to make. One of the only disappointing things I experienced at school was that we were always told how the next stages of our lives would turn out, following a pretty standard routine of finishing school, heading straight to uni, and then after successfully completing the degree, traveling, entering the workforce and doing something that you enjoy for the rest of your working life.

In actual fact there aren’t many people from my year group who are following that plan. Some people decided that they didn’t like their course and have since changed and others have decided that perhaps uni isn’t the right place for them. It’s nice to know that I’m not alone in having difficulties making up my mind!

I have always considered myself to be rather a pragmatic person. I tried not to get too caught up in sticking to plans and instead doing something that makes me happy. Since leaving school I have experienced a number of things that I never thought I’d be exposed to and I have certainly learnt a lot. There are many changes that I have made in the last 3 years & I’m grateful for the support I’ve had from my family.

Since moving universities at the beginning of the year I have decided that the current course I am in, whilst I’ve completed 2.5 years of it, it’s not quite right for me. Many people would consider this a waste, that I have spent a lot of time at uni and haven’t really got anywhere. I, on the other hand see it as growth. Without experiencing student life and the Speech Pathology course I would never have been able to make up my mind on what really suits me the best. I can say with a fair amount of conviction that my new chosen direction could just be what I’ve been looking for. I’ve settled for studying Secondary Teaching. I’ll be staying in Newcastle and I’m excited that I’ve finally been able to make a decision. I hope that once I complete my course and become a teacher I’ll be able to channel all the positive experiences I had as a student to create positive relationships with students and hopefully help them understand that life isn’t straight forward. It’s hard, but ultimately if you do what makes you happy it’s possible to make a difference in the lives of others.

I’m still young and whilst I currently feel like I’m heading in the right direction I don’t really know if anyone can realistically tell you what they want to be when they grow up.

xxo Ariane

Picture: (1)

Zucchini & Blueberry Loaf

Since moving into the new place I’ve become considerably more conscious of what I eat. I’ve been experimenting with a variety of baked goods that are not only super healthy but also absolutely delish! The recipe for my zucchini & blueberry loaf has been adapted from a recipe I found on Instagram. I modified it based on what I had in the kitchen at the time so there have been a few variations and to be honest I’ll probably change elements next time I give it a go! Technically it’s considered a breakfast loaf and it can be enjoyed warm (I toasted slices in the sandwich press) with yogurt or on it’s own whenever the sweet cravings start.

Alright, here’s the recipe!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups wholemeal plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp nativia (or similar sweetener)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
• 1 large zucchini, grated
• pinch of salt
• 2 egg whites, quickly whisked with a fork
• 2 tbsp natural maple syrup
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup frozen blueberries
• 12 almonds, roughly chopped
• Optional: Yogurt to serve; extra defrosted blueberries to serve

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees (celsius)
2. Line a loaf tin with baking paper
3. Sift flour; baking powder; nativia; salt; nutmeg; & cinnamon into a large mixing bowl. Mix to combine.
4. In a smaller bowl combine apple sauce; egg whites; & maple syrup.
5. Pour wet ingredients into the larger bowl and mix until ingredients are well combined.
6. Mix in zucchini & blueberries and pour into loaf tin.
7. Sprinkle almonds on top of the loaf mixture.
8. Cook the loaf for 20 minutes in preheated oven. If after 10 minutes the top begins to burn, cover with foil and continue cooking process. Check loaf after 35 minutes. Use skewer to test, if it comes out clean the loaf is ready!

I hope that recipe was clear! It’s rather yummy and lasts for about 5 days in the fridge – that’s if it lasts that long!!

Let me know how yours turns out if you do give it a go!

xxo Ariane

All pictures were taken by me & can be found on my Instagram page.