Sydney Opera House

Another one of the most recognizable and photographed images of the modern world must be the Sydney Opera House.

Not only is it recognizable, it has come to represent Australia.  The Opera House with a roof reminiscent of a ship at full sail, was designed by renowned Danish architect - Jorn Utzon (1918-2008).

Sydney Harbour Bridge

This bridge is one of Australia's most well known and photographed landmarks. With the top of the bridge standing 440 feet above the harbour, it is the largest steel arched bridge in the world.  Fondly known by locals as the "coathanger", the Sydney Harbour Bridge celebrated its 80th birthday on Monday, March 19th, the same day that we arrived to Australia.

Welcome to Sydney, Australia

Our adventure began with a 20 hour (total flying time) flight to Sydney, Australia. We departed Dulles Airport @ 5:30 Saturday evening and arrived into Los Angeles at 8:30pm.  From there we boarded Qantas Airlines at 10:30pm and arrived in Sydney, Australia at 7:30am Monday morning. This trip gives new meaning to the concept of time travel.

The flight to Sydney was amazing!  The aircraft had 2 levels and was able to accommodate 450 passengers comfortably.  It was definitely the largest airplane I had ever seen with the best service I had ever experienced.

Australia ~ the land down under

Australia, located in the southern hemisphere, is the world's sixth largest country after Russia, Canada, China, USA and Brazil.  It is the only one of the largest six nations that is completely surrounded by water, making it the largest island in the world.  It is also one of the six continents and the only one that is governed as a single country.

Divided into three separate time zones, it is comprised of six states and two major mainland territories, each with it's own parliamentarian government.

Iced Coffee

I LOVE coffee!!!  In fact, my day I typically starts just after my morning caffeine kick. If I appear to be cranky in the morning, my husband thinks "hurry get the coffee pot" LOL.  Despite what others say, I'm not addicted!! Coffee and I are just in a very, very committed relationship. :)

Along with my two cups in the morning, I love to enjoy a refreshing glass of iced coffee throughout the day.  But who can afford $4 a pop for just one glass of heaven?  So I have learned to make it myself.

Life is the Coffee

A group of alumni, who were highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor.  The conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and in life.  Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, paper, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive and some exquisite, - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.

Grilled Pizza Sandwiches

When my youngest daughter was much younger, her to-die-for food was a grilled cheese sandwich.  She could have had it for breakfast, lunch and dinner if I had let her.  Which I did sometimes. :)

Here's a spin that we put on this classic food ~ A Grilled Pizza Sandwich.

Vanilla Extract

Did you know that vanilla is the second most expensive spice in the world after saffron?

It comes from the vanilla orchid which grows as a vine, and although it originated in Mexico, it is now widely grown throughout the tropics.  In order to produce a vanilla bean pod, each orchid flower must be hand pollinated; one flower produces one fruit.  It is because of this labour intensive process that vanilla is so expensive.

A few months ago I decided to buy a package of vanilla beans for no other reason but to have on hand for whenever a recipe called for it.

So today, I've decided to make my own Vanilla Extract.

Fels-Naptha

I came across this amazing product when I made my first batch of homemade laundry detergent and have  been using it ever since to pre-treat stains.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

On Fridays after a hectic week, my family loves to hang out with a movie, enjoying appetizers for dinner. One of our favorite appetizer combos is inspired by Chili's Triple Dipper.  This is my version of the Spinach Artichoke Dip and Perfect Buffalo Wings that we would usually order.  I use low fat ingredients to make this delicious dip as healthy as possible, but you can substitute full fat if you prefer.  We bake and serve them in individual ramekins, so that everyone has their own while watching the movie.

Try this recipe the next time you have dinner and a movie night.