I'm sure I don't need to tell you that the recent floods across much of eastern Australia have devastated many food crops and that consequently many farmers are doing it tough. Have you thought about what you can do to help? Here's four simple things you can do to help flood affected Aussie farmers: 1. Buy only Australian grown fruit and vegetables It's now more important than ever to buy Australian-grown produce. I'm guessing many of you already buy local and Australian grown fruit and vegetables. If not, now is a good time to start. Do you really need to... Read more →

You might remember one of my new years resolutions was to encourage unstructured outdoor play for Little Eco. I want to make sure she doesn't miss out on all the wonderful benefits of unstructured play. I identified four tools to help me keep this resolution: camping, a daily Green Hour, going screen free, and providing a backyard natural playground. So far, I'm failing on all points, except the camping. Little Eco and I went camping last weekend with Marita, a friend i've seen far too little of over the past decade, and her three kids. No dads. Just the mums... Read more →

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Inspired by Soule Mama. Read more →

Wandering through a local park a few days ago I spotted a mass of Purlsane (Portulaca oleracea) growing amongst the flowers. This cosmopolitan edible plant occurs across Australia (and numerous other countries) and is also cultivated for its tasty and nutritious leaves. Purslane loves disturbed areas, so you are most likely to see it in your local park, along road verges, in footpath cracks, or even, if you are lucky, popping up in your garden. You may have even been pulling it out and composting it. What a waste! The leaves and stems of Purslane are edible They can be... Read more →

Check out my new toy. It’s a solar cooker. She turned up on Monday and I had her sitting in the sun cooking our lunch within minutes. I’m IN LOVE. So far I’ve heated up soup, cooked chickpeas, and boiled eggs. All cooked solely with sunshine. I think the term ‘solar cooking’ is too boring a term to describe the magic. I think ‘sunshine cooking’ is more apt. Sun Cook Solar Ovens We purchased our Sun Cook solar oven from Sun Cooking Australia. Heather, who founded Sun Cooking Australia, was so impressed with her own Sun Cook oven that she... Read more →