Iti te kupu,nui te whakaaro
This whakataukī or proverb means ‘a small thing can mean a lot’, is something I believe in. The bus driver greeting us with a cheery ‘morena’ (good morning) as we get onto the bus, biting into the first nectarine of the season, the potential that a new book holds as you turn to the first page and listening to the dawn chorus are all small things that mean a lot in daily life. These roses spotted on a nearby street also made me smile – what a gorgeous bright pink and just so pretty.
Wednesday lunch
I made it to one of my favourite cafés in town Squirrel, enjoying the Maude’s chicken sandwich, complete with capers and other good things, and named after the owner’s dog.
In the basket
Our fridge is overflowing with vegetables…a mix of left over ones (the other half of the cabbage finally made a second coleslaw at the weekend) and new ones. In the Wonky Box this week were some welcome courgettes, purple caulilini, choy sum (help…..), a leek, red skin potatoes, a bunch of basil, a lettuce and I added on aubergines (eggplants) and apricots (which I made into a crumble with 2 leftover nectarines). I added two ears of sweetcorn, grapefruit, lemons, a bunch of mini carrots, a small tin of tuna (for lunch boxes), peaches, tomatoes, asparagus, broad beans, peas and a large jar of Pickle and Pie’s bread and butter pickle.
Sunday sunshine
After being woken by a 3.9 earthquake (the sound actually woke me up before the shaking), Sunday turned out to be a lovely sunny day. While Karl went off Christmas shopping, I walked along the waterfront to the market. Not that I needed any fruit or vegetables, but there were other stalls to browse and I was heading to a particular destination for a bit of seasonal shopping.
Simple things
- Enjoying stone fruit season
- Watching the Lucia morning in Sweden, this year from Sala – you can watch it here.
- Meeting the neighbours for drinks and nibbles.
- Realising it is very close to the summer holidays.
- Feeling the warmth of summer sun.
- Walking along the waterfront on Sunday.
What were your small pleasures this week? Here are some other blog posts from a few fellow bloggers looking at the good things in life.
- Anne of Something Over Tea shares lovely pictures of jacaranda.
- Natalie continues her tour of Scotland.
- Deb of Deb’s World celebrates her birthday.
- The Glasgow Gallivanter takes us to North Uist.
- Trent of Trent’s World offers us some good coffee.
- Platypus Man goes to a museum…I am sure many of you can relate to this post!
- and anyways
- Mr Tootlepedal had a little stress and a lot of pride.
- Jude of Cornwall in Colours shares her Saturday sketches.
- Sue shares festive fashion.
- Enjoy Paris thanks to Travels Through My Lens.
- Fred shares six things in his garden.
- And Lisa of Southern Patches shares fascinating frost flowers.
- Maria of Green Dreams also enjoys Lucia
- The Travelsketcher finds frames, furniture, a bookshop and friends.
- ..…and all the other lovely bloggers out there. Sorry if I have missed anyone…..
Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer, good food and pretends to garden.
You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram @thistlesandkiwis.
Thistles and Kiwis 
looked up caulilini not seen that in the UK. Looks nice.
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It tastes very like cauliflower.
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I love the idea of the small things that matter: the odd rose hanging on in there at the darkest time of the year, the hellebores, and the daffodils starting to show promise. The picture of the fruit and veg stall against the blue sky, the week’s small pleasure dropping into my mail box first thing on a Monday.
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Oh thank you! I do think on a gloomy day when all isn’t going well, just spotting that flower or a smile from a stranger can make all the difference.
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The simplest things bring so much joy, don’t they Barbara. The flowers are stunning and the fresh vege looks delicious. Thanks for starting my week with small pleasures. x
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Thank you Sue! Your posts always brighten up my days.
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You make some lovely dishes with the fresh fruits and vegetables from your wonky box!
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I try!
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Another week to be thankful for (apart from the earthquake!) and thank you for Santa Lucia. I will watch it properly when I have some quiet time this evening. Happy Holidays!
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I hope you enjoy the Lucia. Happy holidays to you as well.
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Lots of small pleasures Barbara. The veggies look so fresh! And such beautiful roses. No wonder they made you smile.
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The roses are stunning, just sitting next to our local deli. Such a joy.
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I love reading these posts from you – the earthquake sounds a little alarming though! It is blissfully cooler here today, so easier to round to more tasks than usual. I would like to lift that sandwich off the screen for it looks delicious!
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Oh thank you Anne! The quake wasn’t the nicest thing this week but at least it wasn’t a big one. The sandwich was good!
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Sounds like a lovely week. Thanks for the shoutout!
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Thank you! It was good.
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Sometimes I think that a good life is really made up of many small blessings…a lovely post. ❤️
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I think you are right.
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It’s nice to think of you having summer when we are mired in French weather! Our turn will come – sort of. Thanks for linking.
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I have just noticed autocorrect has changed dreich to French!! That’s a new one. It usually goes for drench which is at least relevant.
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I wondered if it was a euphemism for something 🙂 Dreich is such a perfect word.
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It is! Suits the circumstances really well.
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Lots of small pleasures except the earthquake of course. I’ll bet that was really scary. The colorful veggies in the wonky box make me drool. And those roses are just beautiful. Thank you for sharing my post.
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The earthquake wasn’t fun…and we had a bigger one yesterday. I love the colours and shapes of vegetables. Thanks for stopping by!
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oh yes i need that chicken sandwich!
sherry https://sherryspickings.blogspot.com/
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Happy Christmas to you. That rose is lovely. #WeekendCoffeeShare
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And Merry Christmas to you as well!
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It’s feeling very chilly here in the central valley of California today, so I envy you being near to summer and all those beautiful fresh fruits and vegetables. 🙂
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We have had such strange weather this week….winds from Antarctica one minute, sun the next, then some rain and humid weather.
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That would give you some strange weather. It would naturally be summer, but Antarctica would never be super warm. When I was in Australia, the temperature change between Melbourne and Brisbane was palpable. It was much more temperate and comfortable for me in Melbourne in December than Brisbane was.
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The cold winds from Antarctica can be really chilly!
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I’ll bet! A friend of blogging mine just got back from there.
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Over here It’s winter solstice on Dec 21 and this weekend is cold and sunny with windchill so I love seeing your roses and fresh fruit and veggies. I hope the earthquake didn’t cause any damage. Thank you for the mention and your weekend coffee share. Happy Christmas to you and Karl.
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It wasn’t that bad a shake, and we had another one on Tuesday with the epicentre in a different place, and there were two more we didn’t feel them further north. WIihing you and your family a very Merry Christmas!
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This post embraces the opening proverb, and the farmers market and a produce box are always full of wonderful small things. Thanks for sharing!
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Thank you!
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How does it feel to celebrate Lucia in the summer? All the flowers look amazing and I get a warm feeling reading your post.
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A bit strange but we can watch it in the evening instead of getting up early!
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That is a bonus!
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What wonderful basket!!! I love that saying and I think it is so true!! Yet so often we overlook the small things. Earthquakes are no fun. It’s been a few years since we’ve felt one here in my area of Washington state.
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Earthquakes are not fun I agree!
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