This local produce market has been one of the highlights of my 2012 Australian holiday so far. My mum has been coming here for years, but after all the times I’ve visited back home, this is the first time I made the effort to go myself.

It has made me so envious of the availability of delicious produce. Not only is there fresh local fruits and vegetables, but potted herbs, eggs, at least three different bakeries, flowers, and many stalls just selling the one thing they’ve got – local avocados, mushrooms or tomatoes.

Alongside the produce there’s a mini United Nations of vendors with easy to eat snacks. Last Saturday I tried Japanese Nikumaki, these funny little meat rice balls (amazing, especially with fresh green chillies and coriander sprinkled on top), and this week I watched a guy stretch out the dough by hand to make me a grilled Lebanese pancake, filled with spinach, feta, mushroom and pork mince. It was like a Lebanese quesadilla and it was delicious!

So, if you ever find yourself in this part of the world (southern end of the Gold Coast of Australia), check out the Palm Beach food & farmers’ market on a Saturday morning. Your taste buds will thank you!

How cool is this nursery? Spotted in Susanna Salk’s Room for Children book (Xmas present, thanks Katie).

It looks functional and comfortable, as well as beautiful. I love the mix of pictures on the wall, as well as the bright gender-neutral colors.

Perhaps now, 6 months after her birth, I should get started on Cleo’s?

OK, so no points for my woeful iPhone photography on this one, but trust me it was rather delicious, and took under 30 minutes to make. Weeknight dinner score!

Lemon Chicken

1. Take 2-3 chicken breasts and cut into thirds
2. whisk an egg in a bowl, coat chicken with egg
3. cover chicken in flour after the egg
4. put oil in a pan, wait until it’s really hot, drop in all the chicken at once
5. brown both sides while keeping the heat high
6. after brown, pour out any excess oil (leave a little) and then add 1 glass water with chicken stock cube
7. squeeze 3 or 4 lemons into the pan
8. put lid on, simmer on medium for about 10 minutes
9. turn down heat and turn chicken over. Let sauce reduce and thicken

Serve with cous cous and quickly sauteed broccoli, zucchini and peppers.

Idris Elba has just won Best Actor for a miniseries at the 2012 Golden Globes, and coincidentally, we started watching the series on Netflix just the day before. Watch it – even if cop series aren’t your thing, you will enjoy this!

It’s addictive, and even though it delves into the darkest side of human behavior (blood-sucking murderers, creepy cabbies, marital affairs – you get the idea); Luther strangely enough, is the first thing to make me miss London since leaving there. Props to the three cinematographers – Julian Court, Giulio Biccari, and Tim Fleming (credited on IMDB). It makes the city look positively wonderful.

Our household at the moment is undergoing what I like to call the ‘Age of Austerity’. Completely separate from these economically challenging times, we’re having a somewhat expensive year so I’ve enforced a bit of a temporary spendthrift approach. After moving from London to New York, furnishing a two-bedroom apartment with new furniture, having a baby, taking said baby to Australia to meet the family, we needed to – shock horror – actually, you know, BUDGET our finances. Or at least I was forcing ACT to do so until I am working again and we are a happy double-income household again.

So, getting back to the topic at hand – I wanted a sunshine break for my Christmas present, but I didn’t want it to cost a lot. So we bought some cheap flights to Miami for a long weekend (missing the January snowstorm, hurrah!) and I booked us in to the very average, albeit Tablet-endorsed Townhouse Hotel. The hotel, as anticipated, was rather dull, but thankfully it was just a few doors up from The Raleigh.

Our genius idea? Spend $200-ish an night at the Townhouse and pay the $25 charge to sit by the pool at The Raleigh all day! The Raleigh poolside was an exceptional hotel experience – the staff were friendly but not overly chipper or intrusive, the poolside menu was delicious (get thee a chicken club sandwich and those amazing fries), and the poolside ambiance just right – clever choice of music; Adele, Amy Winehouse, Rafael Saadiq, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings and so forth, at just the right volume. Warm enough water in the pool for the baby to have a happy splash. Enough loungers to satisfy all who wanted full sunlight, partial sunlight and full shade (the latter us from about 11am onwards!). It was a good mix of posers, families, couples, young, old, pretty, not-so-pretty…

The Raleigh just got it right on so many levels, and that is really what makes a luxury hotel stand out. It really was just perfect for us, especially so as our days come to an abrupt halt at 6:30pm when the babe goes to sleep. So for this time, it worked out really well. Next time? The Raleigh all the way!

So the other day I was talking to my friend Jen about her birthday, and what was on her birthday wish list. Jen ashamedly said that on top of her list was a butter dish, and how it officially made her sound like her mother (i.e. OLD)

Well… All I want for my birthday (it’s September, but I can start wishing now, right?) is a couple of filing cabinets !!!

Our paperwork is currently in manila folders in an old suitcase. And it’s visible to anyone who comes to our apartment. It’s horrible. But I did some online research and most filing cabinets out there look like they’re from a tired old DMV last furnished sometime in the ’80s.  But look! I found these! Bisley make cute, colorful filing cabinets that I would be very happy to have visible in my living room.

Now I just have to choose a color…

Bisley 5 drawer filing cabinets – on sale at The Container Store for $79

Top news for New York City – the RBMA massive are heading to town! Expect exceptional gigs across town every night, local radio broadcasts, and an influx of creative, talented people from around the world. Read more about it on the RBMA website.

Born 28 July, 2011.

Taking a break from the blog to spend some quality time with this gorgeous little lady!

Another Etsy purchase. It’s gorgeous!

I have started bookmarking all the things I like over at Pinterest more so now than this blog, so check it out!

We have two bedrooms and roughly 1000sq feet to furnish.

The wish/shopping list taking form….

BEDROOM

Ethan Allen Alison Queen Bed – in natural cream fabric. $1800

** update – we got this. they took a few weeks longer than planned to deliver. but we love it! **

Lamps Plus Blue Martini Glass Table Lamp $135 each

** update – we didn’t buy this. instead I visited the Jonathan Adler warehouse sale and got some amazing lamps there. **

Pier 1 Hayworth Nightstand $229 each

** update – we did not buy this. the quality was HORRIBLE. Won’t ever go near Pier 1 again, it’s junk **

West Elm Pebble Rug (in Winter Sky) 8×10 $549

** update – we got this. it looks beautiful and soft but it has worn badly, the little puff balls have flattened and we get loose strands everywhere. I wouldn’t recommend. **

LIVING ROOM

Herman Miller Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman $4499

** update – we got this. it’s as amazing as you’d imagine. buy it during the annual Herman Miller sale at 15% off **

Gus Modern Spencer Sofa in Urban Tweed Ink $2000

** update – we got this. it’s nice enough but starting to sag in the center of the seat cushion. **

Industry West Marais side table – $199

** update – we ordered this but ended up receiving a refund directly from PayPal. The company never responded to our emails **

* and we have a lovely made.com Chrome Tilt Floor Lamp coming in our shipment from the UK – like this:

Somewhere else in the living room we’ll find the space for our lovely chandelier lamp

Modani Black Medusa Table Lamp $290 (on sale)

** update – we got this. it’s OK but very big. will probably look better in our next apartment (which of course, will be bigger!) **

DINING ROOM

Crate & Barrel District Dining Table $800

** update – we got this. Our expectation would be that the tabletop would get scratched up and stained over time, but it’s happening quite quickly! the surface veneer is very thin. OK if you like a beaten up look immediately! **

* We’re hoping it’ll work with our Eames Eiffel chairs in light blue, white, black and yellow (like below)

GUEST BEDROOM & NURSERY

West Elm Narrow Leg Wood Bed Frame (Full size, white) $199

** update – never ended up getting this. In fact, the nursery/guest room is still largely unfinished! **

Still to be found are:

• Console table for entry hall
• Rug for living area
• Guest bedroom nightstand and lamp
• Living room side tables, coffee table
• Curtains
• Dresser for master bedroom