Thank you for visiting... a little bit about me...

I'm Melissa, but everyone calls me Liss.

Well that's unless you're one of my kids (aka 'The Frills') they call me Mama or Mummy.


I don't do things by halves
One week after I got married to my GSH (Gorgeous Sexy Husband) we discovered we were going to be parents.



At our first anniversary lunch, 3 month old Eloise came along!
She helped me understand what life was all about.

We didn't go out for our second anniversary, because I was too tired - that happens when you have a 15 month old and are 6 months pregnant with twins doesn't it?

Our (very) spontaneous fraternal twins Laura and Olivia arrived 18 months after their big sister.



So, needless to say, parenthood has been a little intense. 3 babies under 2 is enough to well and truly break your spirit but I'm pleased (and proud!) to say it made us stronger as a couple and although a little intense at the beginning, it is now starting to pay off dividends - meaning the frills share similar interests from an early age and we are not waiting for the 'baby to grow up'. It gives us much more freedom these days.

Today our frills are almost seven and five.  Eloise started school in 2010, and I've just farewelled my 'bebes' to school this year. (whaaah!)  They are all our pride and joy.








I love to cook - I used to hold regular dinner parties, social barbeques, gatherings. Dinner parties are not so frequent but I do still love to cook for people. It's an extension of who I am. I love great produce. I love experimenting. I involve my kids in my cooking and hope they grow up with the love of food like I have. Largely due to both my parents being amazing cooks themselves and exposing us to all types of cuisine and eating experiences.

I love trying new things. Luckily, so does my family because I they don't get a choice. I'm a self-confessed cookbook JUNKIE. I buy all the cooking magazines. It's not a problem..... (unless you ask my hubby)

and to that end.... I love to eat. I love that we grow our own vegetables and that our kids have a firm understanding about where food comes from. We shop directly at farmgate for produce and abbatoir for our meat, and other than that try to buy all Australian produce. It's not always possible, but where there's a choice, there's no choice.

Hubby and I love to eat out, we used to do it alllllot.  We're slowly reintroducing ourselves to restaurant and 'grown up' outings... it's been a long time coming!

I cook where I can from scratch - I have an innate need to know what I'm eating, what's in it, where it comes from and find much joy in creating something I'd usually buy and not only save money doing so, I can then make it when I feel like it!

Why 'Frills in the Hills'?..
In June 2007 we moved here to Terrey Hills. We needed some room to grow with three little girls and hubby was a country boy yearning to get out of the 'Big Smoke'. Terrey Hills was a great compromise as I am the 'city girl' and was still close-ish to the city and work opportunities and we now have a country-town atmosphere for the kids to grow up in. It's a wonderful community.

My blog is my outlet
My blog started as a new year's resolution in early 2009 - one year earlier I had experienced a near death situation.   I realised that had I died, my frills probably wouldn't remember me. Bit sad right?  I wanted to record the things that I wanted them to know about me - what I thought, how I spoke, my favourite recipes. I never expected it to become to mean so much to me - it's grown into not only my legacy, but my community (facebook and twitter is an extension of that).

I have also have been able to experience some amazing things and meet wonderful people because of this blog - I am so grateful.  It is my personal cookbook, my nostalgia and also a place in cyberspace to have a 'brain dump'. I hope you don't mind!

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