I've posted before about the beauty of menu planning in cuisines. Buying the same ingredients in bulk, being able to do components (like sauces) ahead because you are already in the head space for the following meals and having leftover ingredients that lend themselves to amazing combinations.

Plus, in the day in/day out rhythm of motherhood, the thought of cooking the same meals over and over makes me feel a little stir crazy.  This approach forces me to find (or create) new recipes fortnightly that I may never otherwise have had the motivation to try.

We are nearing the end of Greek fortnight and most of the dinners have been successful- Slow-cooker Lamb Salad with Yoghurt-Mint Sauce, Lamb Pizza, Jamie's Spinach and Feta Pie, Moussaka, Greek Meatballs, Souvlaki, Greek Burgers and Stuffed Eggplants still to come. I keep putting off doing the Chickpea Soup as this current heatwave doesn't lend itself to the consumption of hearty soup.

The upside is that all these meals have left us with a myriad of surplus ingredients just waiting to be created into a new and exciting meal. Slow cooked lamb, roasted eggplant, spinach, haloumi cheese, lemon and oregano. What better than a Lamb and Eggplant Risotto?

Greek Lamb and Eggplant Risotto
Serves 5

Ingredients
Olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cubes frozen spinach (approx 50 g), defrosted (or more- to your tastes)
1 eggplant, chopped into bite sized pieces
Large handful leftover lamb*
100 grams haloumi cheese
5 cups vegetable stock
1/2 lemon, squeezed (or use rind of a whole lemon for a more subtle taste)
90g Parmesan cheese
Fresh oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

Method
1. (If eggplant not roasted) Turn oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Place eggplant pieces in bag along with tablespoon of olive oil and salt to taste. Roast until browned.
2. Cook onion in pan until soft on low heat in approx 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add garlic when onion almost ready. Be careful not to brown.
3. Add rice into pan, stir for a few minutes until oil coats rice.
4. Pour in wine and stir until evaporated.
5. Turn heat up to medium. Gradually add stock in small batches, stirring until almost absorbed.
6. Add in spinach and lemon juice/rind and stir. 
7. When almost all absorbed and rice is soft with a slightly hard center, add in Parmesan cheese and stir to incorporate.
8. Toss in lamb, eggplant, haloumi cheese and oregano and heat through.
9. Season to taste.
10. Serve with crusty bread and a garden salad.

*For the slow cooked Greek lamb I use a lamb leg or shoulder- sear on all sides, then add to slow cooker with sliced garlic, rosemary, oregano, juice of two lemons, and some red wine. Season with salt and leave to cook on low for at least six hours. After it cools, I divide the lamb into handful sized portions and place in small zip-lock bags in the freezer for future meals. We have used it in salads, on pizzas and now in a risotto!

Let me preface this post by admitting that I've never really been very good with vegetables.

I have vivid memories of dramatically dry retching when my parents would insist that a hideous and slimy piece of mushroom be ingested. A charming habit which I have now apparently passed down to my eldest son, who is equally theatrical with his reactions to vegetables.

And then there was the forced stint in Veganism during my teen years which well and truly cured me of any lingering attachment to a plant-based diet (as well as instilling an utter distaste of Nutmeat, tofu... and let's just say 'falsified' food of any kind!)

Then I had kids.

Homemade baby food became a bit of a thing for me, and I relished in boiling, steaming and mashing fruits and vegetables of every colour... filling an entire freezer drawer with options for Eli's dining pleasure.

All of my kids loved vegetables... until they tasted the rest of the food spectrum, and it became all but impossible for anything green or leafy to pass 'Go'.

Case in point: Last night at the Open House BBQ I put on each of the boy's plates one sausage, one lone cherry tomato and a side of potato chips. Because I'm realistic like that.

Nevertheless, I still have one super meal left in the arsenal that I silently giggle with glee when serving, because it contains no less than NINE different vegetables... and they have absolutely no idea. The boys even list it as one of their favourite meals.

Spaghetti Bolognese.

It isn't your most traditional recipe, but I've found it to be the most versatile meal in my repertoire.

Once every so often, I cook up a hearty batch of the meat sauce, serve it for that evening's meal as Bolognese, and then divide up the rest of the contents of the pot into ziplock bags to be frozen.  The sauce is so versatile, it can be re-imagined as Chili Con Carne (just add a can each of tomatoes and white beans, cumin, paprika and chili flakes), Shepherd's Pie (add some red wine, worsterchire sauce, peas and corn and top with potato), filling for Meat Pie, Lasagna, Burritos... The list can be as long as your imagination.

The thrift angle of the meal thrills me as well. For a 2kg package of minced beef (for around $16.00 at Aldi), whatever seasonal vegetables you have growing or taking up fridge space you can churn out around six meals for a family of five. I'm no expert at maths, but that's a damn good deal.

The only catch is, you need a food processor of some kind, unless you want to drive yourself to insanity by chopping up all the vegetables into miniscule pieces. And then the thrill of the meal will have well and truly worn off.

It's a good one to get the kids involved in making too, as mine are always more than eager to push the button and watch the vegetables become obliterated. Or just get one to peel an onion. It will take them twenty minutes of intense concentration. I tried it on Hudson today.

You can also do it in a slow cooker, which is a double win for crazy hour!

I present:

Bolognese Sauce
Ingredients
2 Tbsp olive oil
3 onions
5 cloves of garlic
2 leeks*
4 peeled carrots
3 sticks of celery
4 rashers of bacon (rind removed)
3 capsicums
2 zucchinis*
3 eggplants*
Handful of mushrooms*
2kg beef mince
3 Tbsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp sweet paprika
1 Tsp hot paprika
3 Tsp stock powder
1 Tsp chili flakes
2 bay leaves
2 cups water (1/2 cup ONLY if using slow cooker)
Salt and pepper to taste

*Feel free to substitute whatever vegetables you have on hand instead of these, and as many as you wish to add. The sauce reduces substantially even if it initially feels as if it is three quarters filled with veggies.

Method
1. Process onions and leeks to tiny pieces and toss into pot with oil. Cook on low heat until soft.
2. Process bacon, celery and carrot. Add to pot. Cook on medium-high heat until browning.
3. Mince garlic and add to pot. Cook for one minute.
4. Process remaining vegetables and add to pot. Ensure excess water from vegetables is cooked out.
5. Add the meat to the mix and stir in well. Cook until brown.
6. Add spices, salt and pepper, bay leaves and tomato paste. Stir well
7. Allow to bubble away on stove on low heat for at least an hour or more, stirring occasionally (or in slow cooker until dinner time). You will need to skim the surface of oil during the cooking period.
8. If using slow cooker, return pot to stove top prior to serving to reduce the sauce.
9. After serving, divide up remainder into ziplock bags to be frozen. I find the gallon ones from Costco are the best because they can be frozen flat in the freezer and stacked high to take up less room. 

Happy cooking!

(Sorry about my poor photographic skills with the recipe. I'm far too lazy to rearrange things when taking photos, so this is an 'as is' shoot of the meal in all its messy glory!)

I think I may have gone a little overboard on the theme for this month.

Having two January babies and an incessant need to throw a party for every birthday made for a busy few weeks in itself. Then we went and invited guests to numerous 'crazy hour dinners', I signed up for baking for Matt's meals night in Upwey and just for fun, ended the month with a Cocktail Party.

I also had the pleasure of being on the receiving end of hospitality a number of times, and appreciated the little touches- like the thoughtful pajamas Baba laid out on each of our beds, the platter of seasonal fruit in easy reach on the dining table, the gourmet Connisseur ice-cream and wafers in cones on the deck at the Johnson residence, the laid-back 'any time is good for a shared meal' approach that Alex and Monica practice, and the surprise hearty meatball feast for lunch that Jamee whipped up for us.

Hospitality. It's a word brimming with magic and excitement for me.

I remember spending hours pouring over my mother's glossy cookbooks, reading through her handwritten notes of dinner parties thrown, the courses she had served and created. Mum had trained as a Home Economist and used her acquired knowledge to deftly craft impeccable meals for guests and family. The joy and satisfaction of inviting people into one's home and feeding them well somehow transposed onto my soul and has become a significant part of the way I love to operate.

I pondered a lot about the concept of hospitality this month. What makes it work, the elements that cause the most stress, things to avoid... and I came up with this (slightly random) list of thoughts and tips:

1. Planning is Key

A few years ago Dave converted me to the idea of menu planning and I can honestly say I will never go back.

Each fortnight, I sit down with our Meals Plan to set out the next fourteen meals and the ingredients needed to create them. I think forward to nights that we have invited guests along and decide what we will be serving them.

This works with party planning too. If I know we have a party coming up, I will add the extra ingredients into the normal shopping list so that I don't have to do an extra trip. Interestingly, it often seems that the total cost is not outlandishly more than normal.

For normal meals, if I'm feeling particularly inspired, I plan in cuisines, as this method has proven beneficial in utilising all of the spices or vegetables that might otherwise have gone to waste if bought in bulk. Last fortnight was Spanish themed, though I can resolutely declare I will not be making Gazpacho again. If recreating the essence of pureed salad with soggy bread was the aim of that recipe, it certainly delivered.

2. Set Up Rhythms of Hospitality

Life can get crazy, and the thought of adding one more thing into the calendar can sometimes seem overwhelming.

One of the most valuable things we have done is set up a fortnightly dinner with our friends Nick and Laura. We have the system down pat now- they bring a (spectacular) dessert and a bottle of wine and we provide the location and dinner. The kids get to hang out with their beloved Nick and Laura over dinner, have stories read to them by more interesting people than Mum and Dad, and then after they go to bed, we get time to chat, play Jay's Balls and drink wine. It is such a winning solution!

3. Hospitality Doesn't Have to Cost the Earth

Dave works part-time as a Teacher and part-time as the Community Organiser for our Open House community. Neither role floods us with cash, however we have more than enough to live a comfortable and enjoyable life.

By planning the menus in advance and taking the time to consider home-cooked options for parties/dinners, I find that I can create generous servings in bulk for a fraction of the cost that store bought food requires. Platters of Sushi, Burek, Meringue Cookies, Berry Trifle, Marscapone Brownies... just a few of the recent options that (mostly) utilised ingredients I already had on hand (or could acquire cheaply) yet produced a sizeable batch for serving.
 
That being said, I couldn't quite bring myself to cater for the Cocktail Party less than a week after Ivy's Safari Jungle Bash so I went with the pre-prepared options instead- Potato Wedges, Spring Rolls, Pork Dumplings, Spinach and Ricotta Triangles... with Antipasto options as well, and it didn't break the bank. Plus, if time is money, and I saved myself all those extra nights of cooking, it has to work out somehow in the end,...right?!

4. Have the Breakdown, Then Move On

There was a moment before Ivy's party when I looked at the time we had left, the amount I still had to prepare, the kids that were needing me outside every few minutes while I was desperately trying to churn out dozens of sausage rolls (for the party and for dinner) and I panicked. After arriving back late on Sunday night from Sydney, going out to another family's house for dinner Monday, having dinner guests on Tuesday and the Thursday of that week, it was all looking a bit like the world was closing in,... but we rearranged some things, Dave took all the kids on multiple adventures and it all magically got done in the end.

I don't know about you, but it is easy for me to start seeing tasks and events as 'heaping up', one after the other, which then just stresses me out. If I can stop that freak out process before it gets too far, however, I often find that I had more than enough time to get everything done, and that you can do a lot if you just put your mind to it!

5. Take Everything Step by Step

Every process can be broken down into little steps. In the past, my big event planning failures occurred when I tried to leave things to the last minute- icing cakes that were still warm, forging forward without reading the instructions for the cake mould and watching it collapse and drip out onto the base of the oven. Now, I make the cakes two days in advance, doing the frosting and assembling the night before the party, and try to pair preparation of the party food with the normal dinner menu for that week so that the work I was planning to do anyway is put to good use.

This works for dinner parties too. If I can do a slow cooker meal, or the bulk of the chopping while the kids are having rest time, the craziness of the witching hour dissipates slightly, as I have more time and mental energy to set up activities or games while I prepare the final touches.

6. Everything is Better When Everyone Contributes

If someone offers to help- LET THEM!

This has been a journey of sorts for me, but I am getting so much better at saying, 'Yes! How do you feel about making chocolate dip or bringing along some ice/drinks?'

The best example of this outlook is the Cocktail Party we threw last night. The deal was that everyone would bring one spirit and one mixer, and concoct a cocktail for the rest of us. The enthusiasm and excitement was priceless as everyone dreamed up their drink creations in anticipation! I could have invested a hell of a lot of money in booze and mixers, stressed myself out coming up with numerous options, but the ownership factor of each guest (and the money everyone saved as a result) was so much more rewarding.

7. Set the Tone

One of the things I love about entertaining is fashioning the entire mood of the event. Spotify is so amazing for discovering genres of music and creating applicable playlists for every occasion. For Ivy's party, I drew together vintage adventure tracks, Disney jungle themed scores (Tarzan, Jungle Book), safari and African-style music to create the 'jungle vibe' I was going for. For the Cocktail Party, I was lucky enough to discover a 'Vintage Cocktails, Crooners and Champagne' playlist that fit the tone perfectly.

You don't have to go overboard to decorate, but a few key touches go a long way. I use and reuse brown paper liberally, having cut paper bags into bunting, to the butcher's paper that adorns the bench to save on dishes create the inviting spread. I also use tissue paper, streamers or balloons (sparingly) along with the transformation of all our chalkboards to reflect the applicable theme. I'm getting back into candles as well, particularly for evening entertaining.

This may not be for everyone, but dressing for the occasion helps set the tone and increase MY excitement for the theme! Not that I go all out, but I selected a leopard print dress for Ivy's party and seized the occasion to wear a cocktail dress last night (both options already part of my wardrobe, I should add).

 

8. The Person Looking After the Kids Deserves At Least As Much of the Glory

One of the reasons I love parties so much is the time I get to spend, just me in my kitchen, dancing along to soundtracks, creating food for friends and family to enjoy. The alternative to this picture- having to squeeze in cooking time alongside of dashing in and out of the playroom to break up fights- is just a touch more stressful....

Dave's valiant efforts in kid-wrangling while I cook up a storm are so much appreciated, and I feel quite recharged when he returns, usually with a 'how the hell do you do this everyday?' look on his face.

9. When in Doubt, Throw a Cocktail Party

Have I mentioned how much I love Cocktail Parties!? When this article made the rounds on Facebook, I was hooked. I pretty much booked the date in our calendar on the spot.

I provided the food, the simple syrup, ice, mint syrup and soda water (as well as the alcohol and mixers for my own concoction) and everyone else brought the rest!

We sampled Mango Mojitos, Minty Toblerone Mudslides, Cosmopolitans, Espresso Martinis, Pisco Sours, a Dark and Stormy variation, a Tequila Sunrise and a White Russian... I loved watching all the crafting of the drinks, and the exclamations of delight at the different options. Plus, cocktail party conversation is priceless- where else would you have random conversations about being pickled in red wine after death (I'm looking at you, Dan Gray!).

We let the boys stay up way past their bedtime to greet the guests (and stuff as many chips and chocolate into their mouths as they thought they could get away with)! The sense of awe and wonder in their eyes as they peered at all the goodies laid out on the table and danced to the music brought me back to my own childhood- sneaking out to join the adults as they held their own parties, joining Mum and Dad at a Nautical Themed Murder Mystery night at the Hulls house and listening in on all the conversations and shrieks of laughter as we made our own fun jumping off bunk beds and playing Murder in the Dark.

10. Leftovers

Party leftovers are awesome! Until the second or third day and you hope you never, ever see another bowl of Banana Pudding again...

Getting the kids back to bed after their foray into the Cocktail Party proved a little more difficult, until we bribed them with a party of their own the next day with the (non-alcoholic) leftovers. It worked a treat.

....

I love the lifestyle that hospitality encourages- open-handed, celebratory and just plain fun! Even if we have been having a rough time with the kids and feeling a little fried, there is something magical about that moment the guests arrive- perspective accompanies them and you instantly feel less caught up in the mundane/whirlwind.

Life is meant to be celebrated, to be shared with friends and family, and the simple act of sitting down to eat can be made into an occasion to remember. The connections made, the joy and suffering shared, the experiences for our own children that I hope they remember with fondness. I want our house to be a zone for all of these things- a place where people can come, be fed, relax and enjoy the magic of life together. That's the essence of hospitality to me.

I realised recently, that although myself and my sisters are only second generation Australians, my children will have next to no knowledge about my Dad's Serbian/Croatian culture and background due to his perfect assimilation into Australia.

Upon arriving in this rugged land, he quickly found it was better to adopt the practices of the students around him if he was to ever advance or fit in. His birth name 'Branislav' became the more colloquial 'Barney' and he threw himself into mastering the language- even to the point of being escorted home by an outwardly stern policeman when he and his brother were found in the empty school library 'illegally' reading one weekend. To this day, Dad describes how perplexed and annoyed he was at being thwarted from his noble pursuit of learning!

Now, just over 50 years later, he is a successful Electrical Engineer with a perfect Australian accent and is even about to publish a book later this year. Any hint of the doe-eyed Slavic boy who wanted to be a woodcutter has now vanished.

When we visit my Baba and Deda in Sydney, I'm always fascinated by the meals that she prepares and the cooking style that she employs in her hospitality. From my limited exposure, Serbian food seems to involve either a lot of frying- schnitzels, rissoles, potatoes, eggplants or a layering cooking method for casseroles- beef goulash and chicken stew. The desserts and sweets on the other hand, are unlike any Australian type of confection- sour cherry cake, crepes, rolled pastry with walnut filling (kiflice), walnut cake, jelly and apple cake... the list goes on!

Recently, I've been trying to incorporate a lot more of Baba's style of cooking into my repertoire, reminiscing with the kids about my memories of eating these meals when I was a child. I find the method of cooking so therapeutic in its' comfortable, flowing rhythms and when you add the nostalgia of a buried culture, the experience becomes almost mystical.

As the savoury flavours waft into the air and I stand over the bubbling pot, I imagine my grandmother when she was my age, and wonder about her mother and the mothers before that, each cooking a similar dish.

Last night it was Serbian Chicken Stew with Dumplings. It is such a simple recipe, but the hearty flavours of the sauce are so warming and complex, and incredible when absorbed into crusty fresh bread.

Serbian Chicken Stew with Dumplings

Stew
1 onion
5 potatoes
400gm chicken thighs
1 tbsp Canola oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Vegeta
1 tbsp sweet Paprika
Pinch hot Paprika/chilli
1 cup water
Fresh parsley

Dumplings
3/4 cup plain flour
1 egg
100 ml water

For Dumplings
Place flour in bowl, stir in egg and slowly pour in water until dough comes together. Mix until well combined and dough is elastic. Leave to rest while you prepare the stew.

For Stew
Chop onion and place in pan on low heat with the oil.
While onion is cooking, peel and chop potatoes into bite sized pieces and place on top of onions.
Cut up chicken in pieces and place on top of potatoes.
Sprinkle salt, Vegeta and paprika over chicken.
Pour over water and cook on low heat for 1 hour.
When potatoes are cooked, drop teaspoons of dumpling mixture into the broth. Leave cooking for a further 15 minutes.
Let stand for a few minutes before serving. Sprinkle with fresh parsley.
Serve with crusty bread to soak up the juices.

This recipe is based upon this recipe and slightly modified and translated for metric measurements.

Apologies for my amateur food photography- I'm trying to learn and practice in the brief period of time before a hungry family demands it to be plated up and on the table!

We moved five cubic meters of dirt today from the nature strip into four newly constructed veggie planter boxes in the backyard. 

Some of the family very kindly came over to help out and the insurmountable mound was diminished to a level field in a remarkable space of time. Even Hudson got into it, taking his job very seriously... until he couldn't be bothered walking all the way and ended up dumping tiny piles of dirt in random places along the driveway. 

 

When the cold had seeped from our bones and we had discarded muddy gumboots and jackets and substituted them for dressing gowns and snuggly onesies (or in Eli's case- a rashie- don't ask me why), it felt like the perfect time to bake.

 

My baking secret is pretty much this: type into Google 'best -insert relevant food- recipe' and choose the one with the best and most reviews. This infallible path has led me to my basic cookie recipe that I then get creative with, depending on what ingredients in the cupboard are lending the most inspiration at the time. 

Today it was marshmallows and macadamia nuts. Nothing says warm and cozy like the toasty smell of marshmallows and these cookies became gooey parcels of crunchy sweetness best consumed piping hot out of the oven. 

I find that the more crumbly and barely held together the mixture is, the better the cookie, as pockets of butter and brown sugar burst forth while baking and bubble out to create a dark caramel. 

Without further ado, here is the recipe:

Chocolate Marshmallow Macadamia Cookies
(Makes approximately 30 cookies)

Ingredients
250g unsalted butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon bicarbonate soda dissolved in 2 teaspoons hot water
1/2 cup of cocoa
2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
1 cup chocolate chunks
1/2 cup marshmallows, chopped
1/2 cup macadamias, chopped

Method
Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

Cream together butter and sugars.

Mix in eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla.

Add salt and then bicarbonate of soda mixture. Stir together.

Combine sifted flour and cocoa and mix until just together. Add in chunky ingredients. Mixture should be still crumbly. 

Grab small handfuls and shape into rough balls. Place on baking paper on a baking tray. 

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until edges are slightly browned. 

Enjoy with a piping hot coffee...or smeared all over your face alongside a glass of warm milk. 

This recipe is adapted from this very popular chocolate chip cookie recipe over at www.allrecipes.com.

I think we peaked a little early for Christmas this year! Tree up in November, Christmas playlists on repeat prior to that and light display tours completed in early December. Due to our weekend away plans, I rushed to finish the fudge/rum ball/rocky road goodie jars for the neighbours, so by the time Christmas rolled around we weren't even turning on the tree and house fairy lights anymore! 

That isn't to say we didn't have some memorable moments. We had an awesome time at the Road to  Bethlehem production with family from both sides, though Hudson found the stern Roman guards a little too realistic, prompting them to come out of character and reassure him they were really just nice people in costume! 

We had initially planned to have a Christmas Eve slumber party at Mum and Dad's new three story apartment, but the lack of beds and bedrooms and the thought of already hyped kids not sleeping made us reconsider. We hosted the dinner at our place and it was really fun! As usual, the spread from the family was incredible, with turkey, roast vegetables, apricot and chicken salad; beetroot, roast pumpkin and feta salad; Moroccan couscous salad, garlic bread and ham. I was ordered out of the kitchen on many occasions by Mum and Hali and forced to relax on the chair and watch (not my forte by any means!)

The kids did really well with the chaos and craziness of Christmas. They both got to open one present before dinner and I suspect they would have been satisfied with that gift, particularly Eli who had been saving up for Cabbie from Planes Fire & Rescue for a few months now. After dinner we gathered around to open the presents together and there were many presents for the new baby which was a little exciting for me! Hudson was in his element pick pocketing unsuspecting Uncle Artur's iphone, and doing crazy laps of the living room. The rest of the night was filled with games, pudding, laughter, carols mocking and reminiscing. 

Loren and Artur crashed at our place and we awoke the next morning probably more excited than the kids! We broke the golden rule of never waking a sleeping child and brought Eli and Hudson into our room for opening stockings. Ever since our weekend away, Dave had been hanging out to give the remote control helicopter to Eli. We spent the morning immersed in the organized chaos of discarded wrapping and new toys before heading to bring at Mum and Dad's. 

 

Brunch was beautifully put together, with Bircher muesli, Burek, pancakes, berries, summer fruit and the last of the freshly squeezed orange juice from the Tinarra Court fruit trees. It was very refreshing having a meal that didn't focus on presents to start off Christmas Day. After an excursion to visit the ducks at the nearby lake, we all piled into the car to head off to lunch. 

Pat and John always put on an amazing spread of a traditional hot Christmas lunch. The rapidly growing family only just fit around the long table with the help of no less than four high chairs! Present time went smoothly after lunch and Eli and Hudson had heaps of fun with cousin Isaac playing on his electronic drum set. After sampling Kelly's baked goods all afternoon, we barely had enough room to fit in the cold meat and salad dinner and following desserts. Eli and Hudson were struggling by this point and being very wingey and trying, so we eventually gave up and headed home for much needed bed time.

All in all, through the exhaustion of third trimester pregnancy and the fragile emotions of overstimulated children, we had a meaningful, memorable and enjoyable Christmas. Hard to believe that for the next one we will have an 11 month old in tow as well!