I have said it before and I will say it again, I have fabulous neighbours.
Before moving here neither my husband nor I had purchased a property. This was our first. We saw it online while living on the other side of the country. We decided to check it out when we came for his job interview. We walked into the empty rooms and saw our home. It felt perfect. We looked no further.
What I didn’t realise on that day was that this purchase was going to be about so much more than four walls. That buying this property would also lead to meeting a beautiful family and a lady I would soon call one of my closest friends.
I met her husband first. He saved me when I was stranded outside, in the sun, with a huge pregnant belly, a three year old, no keys to my locked home or my car and no phone to call my husband or anybody else.
He lent me his phone and invited me to wait at their place, my husband would be several hours away.
He opened his door and introduced me to his wife.
I sat on her playroom floor. I relayed my story, she relayed hers. I knew straight away that I liked her a lot. I hoped she liked me too, in a nervous, new kid on the block kind of way.
From that day on we have been regulars at their place. Together they have raised four beautiful children and my kids love nothing more than hanging out at their house.
This lady constantly amazes me. She juggles so much; work, four children, her immaculate home, after school activities, and well, life. Yet she is always offering to help, genuinely, not just saying the words. She is always bringing my kids toys and is much better at this birthday thing than I will ever be. She is gorgeous, real and honestly just too lovely for words.
She is my little, little friend with a big, big heart. I admire her as a person; I learn from her as a parent, I love her as a friend. I feel blessed that she has stumbled into my world, or rather, that I stumbled into hers.
Grain Free Muesli Bars
1/2 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup desiccated coconut
1/4 cup flax seeds
1/2 teaspoon concentrated natural vanilla extract
Preheat your oven to 175 degrees Celsius or 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Line a 20cm x 20cm tin with baking paper.
Place the apricots and raisins into your blender or food processor and blend until well combined and sticking together. Add in the remaining ingredients and pulse to combine, leaving some texture. Using damp hands press the mixture firmly into your tin bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool and cut into squares.
If you would like them to be thicker you could use a loaf tin.