Blanche's

New Resolve

2012-01-31T04:14:00.003-05:00

This year I will blog more! Thanks Simone :)

First things first...

2011-11-01T23:58:00.000-04:00

AGES ago (like in August 2010) you might remember Reuben had the most awesome Masterchef Birthday Party ever. Well a few people asked for the recipes and I did promise to post them. There's good and bad news...I'll start with the bad: I don't have all the recipes anymore BUT I do have the two best ones and here they are:

The satay chicken can be found here (this is what we are having for dinner tonight and what prompted my memory)

And the Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding is an old one from mum's ancient cookbook (you know the old photo album Bride?) and I have to say that if anyone has ever perfected a recipe it is me and this one. Ask anybody!
It's not the ingredients that make a difference it's how you do it and I'm sorry folks but you either have it or you don't :)

1C SR flour
60g butter
1/2 C caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1/2 C milk
2tsp cocoa
1 1/4 C boiled water
1/2 C brown sugar
1Tb cocoa

cream butter & sugar, add vanilla and egg.
add sifted flour and cocoa alternately with milk.
Spread this mix into a greased pudding dish.
mix brown sugar and cocoa together and sprinkle over the top of pudding
carefully pour boiling water over the top.
bake for 30-40 min moderate oven.
Delicious with ice cream or king Island cream.

yippee

2011-10-20T00:32:00.001-04:00

Don't keel over...I'm blogging...because I've finished uni for the year!

It feels so good to have some time for other things. Over the last month I have been compiling a list of things to do once uni finishes. Some are just for me, some are things that need to be done because they've simply been neglected for a while, and others are things I never seem to find time for. I can't wait to work my way through it all.

It has taken almost a week for me to get out of study mode. I would wake with that feeling of (almost) panic. That horrible feeling when you know you have much more on your plate for the day than time could possibly allow. Yesterday the feeling was gone...

I'm really happy with how this year has panned out. Yes, it was a little crazy at times and I did have to burn the candle at both ends but only for a little while. I'm happy that I decided to study part-time because it has allowed me to enjoy what I'm learning, have time for study, reading, assignments and all that and still be a mum and wife and relief society president and do a few hours of 'real' work a week! My results have been really pleasing. I've done so much better than I expected and I don't take that lightly at all. Each time I opened a marked assignment my heart would be in my throat and I'd be talking to myself saying something like, "If I haven't passed this one then that's it, I'm just gonna get a job somewhere." Then I'd scream with excitement to see that all was fine and that my hard work had paid off far more that expected.

I will probably do a bit of a catch up blog at a later stage but for now I'm enjoying my garden, sorting through the kids cupboards, painting, and best of all I now have time for a little bit of photo taking.

Two down...

2011-05-20T06:26:00.002-04:00

...only 14 to go! At this rate I might just finish before I need the aid of a walker!

I am really loving this course (Master of Teaching). I am half way through my first PE (professional experience) and it has been lots of fun. The kids in the 5/6 class I am in are exceptional. They're all so well behaved and respectful and very capable. I think this would be the 'dream school' for any teacher. It is very similar to the school our kids attend, so it feels very familiar. I have also realised that I have an advantage over the childless students who are all very tired after a busy week in the classroom. I, on the other hand, feel as if I'm on a break!

All of my assignments are done, just one exam, on June 6th, and that's first semester in the bag. Feels good to know that I still have what it takes.

Easter

2011-04-24T21:14:00.004-04:00

This Easter was spent at "The Farm" aka mum and dad's place. After the excitement of an easter egg hunt and a pleasant morning attending Glen Huon ward Matt took the kids for a walk to my grandparents' place and I decided to wander around mum's garden. For the past 34 years mum and dad have worked in this garden creating something magical and mysterious. I have to say that it has paid off. Mum has a real talent with landscape. She is able to see it in her mind just the way it will be and then is able to make it all happen. Dad is a very willing and capable (and I might just add patient) side kick who helps to make it more than just an image in mum's mind. They make a great combination.
As I lazily strolled in and out of the many corners of the garden I remembered my happy childhood playing here - although it wasn't as established then as it is now, it was a fun place to be a kid. I began to notice all the little things mum has added that give the garden its magic. Then I began to think about the entire world and all the little things God has given us that make this life magical. This earth is an amazing thing. God truly wants us to be happy. Why else would he give the one thing he cherished above all else - His Son? I must have been in the garden for at least a couple of hours, just meandering and taking photos. When I looked over them all last night I felt extremely grateful to be living in such a beautiful and peaceful corner of the earth. I reflected on those who have gone before particularly the ANZACs and others who have sacrificed their life to help make our country the extraordinary place it is. I am feeling very thankful and grateful for my life and my place in this world. Sometimes it is easy to feel insignificant in this world but having the opportunity to reflect on the Saviour and his Atonement and to remember the ANZACs and those who have gone before all at the same time has made me feel very significant. I feel an overwhelming sense that God knows me personally and that he blesses me so abundantly that I cannot comprehend it all. None of these events in our history have just happened. They have been for a reason and God has had a hand in it. I believe that it was very much for my benefit (and yours) and I am so grateful.

what the?

2011-03-31T04:56:00.000-04:00

I've never laughed so hard in all my life.
Trying out the cyberlink youcam on Reuben's new laptop was so much fun.

Gee I'm glad it wasn't windy!

Confidential, secret, personal, special

2011-03-30T01:23:00.000-04:00

That's what it says in the Collins Pocket Thesaurus under Private.
I'm following suit of many who have gone before. If you want to stay tuned send me your email.

Blanche x

Horray!

2011-03-22T22:31:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow I get my goofy husband back.

Boy I've missed him.

It's so much better when we are goofy together.

Matt

2011-03-06T22:39:00.000-05:00

This is really for family and close friends who might be interested. Matt is keeping a blog of his time in Turkey. Check it out by clicking on the link.

Matt's blog

'sup?

2011-03-05T04:54:00.000-05:00

Just a little deposit for the blog bank:

2011 so far is going pretty well for us.

Four kids back at school.

one hubby back at work

Me back at Uni (arrrggghhh)

One meltdown day.

One husband gone for 3 weeks (I hate it)

One major assignment due this week

LOTS of adjustments.

Zero time for much else :)

Seeya

2011-02-20T04:03:00.000-05:00

I'm finally attempting to get my blog up to date. This post will be a quick catch up dating back to last year (oh dear).

The highlight of the past few months are:

Bella achieving fantastic results with her swimming. She performed really well at the school swimming carnival in October which gave her the opportunity to participate in the inter-school swimming carnival in the same month. When you attend a small school (Mt Nelson has about 150 kids) it is relatively easy to stand out at the thing you are good at but once you enter a larger pool (pardon the pun) of talent you can quickly get taken down peg or two. It is much more difficult to get the same results. With that said Isabella also shone at the inter-school swimming carnival. Placing in all of her races. She was ecstatic to discover she was invited to attend the Champions Carnival – a competition of the best of the best! You can imagine the smile on her face when she walked away with a place in each of her races! We had considered not doing swimming lessons again this year but I think we'll stick with it for a little bit longer!

A trip to the temple with Reuben (first time)

The traditional maccas on the way home!

Another trip to the temple with Chels and Bridey

Reuben finished Primary School!

His final year at Mt Nelson was fabulous. He had a starring role (ok I might be exaggerating a little bit) as the caterpillar in 'Alice the Musical' (Alice in Wonderland). His costume was awesome and his singing matched. Reuben has a lovely singing voice. We usually wake every morning to him belting out a tune however, he doesn't like to sing with an audience so watching and listening to him on stage was a real treat for me.

Reubs also had the opportunity to go on a year 6 trip to Canberra and Sydney. We did a lot of fund-raising for this and everyone enjoyed a fun-filled and educational trip.

Charlotte's end of year dance concert was so gorgeous. Plus it was our LAST dance concert for a while. And that means no more making and painting of props – FANTASTIC. I enjoy the creative outlet but it is very time consuming.

The Huon Show has become a family tradition and once again a fun time was had by all -but boy it was cold at the top of the Ferris Wheel.

Christmas was busy! Christmas eve with my family having fun, being silly, eating too much. Christmas day was pressies and breakfast at mum and dad's, lunch at Matt's parents with the whole Sayers family (minus Lou, Dan, Zeek + Ollie), more pressies and fun there and then back to the Huon for dinner with the extended family (mum's side). It was a terrific day and as we headed back to the Huon we passed the cemetery where we saw a couple putting flowers on their child's grave and I felt so overwhelmingly grateful for all the family I am surrounded with. I gave my kids a great big hug and kiss and told them how fortunate we are to have each other, that the presents don't really matter...”yeah mum, we get it” they said and off they ran to play with their cousins.

I think all the travelling got to Charli just a tad!

New Years Eve was mum's 60^th birthday party. During the day Bridey and I and our hard working hubbies and kids decorated mum's garden ready for a wonderful, nostalgic evening. Letters from absent friends and family, meeting up with old friends not seen for 40? years, beautiful words from loved ones, a most memorable tribute song to the tune of 'You Are My Sunshine', a 'funny photo booth', great food, the best company, fireworks even! All made for a wonderful night. The weather was perfect and so was the entire night. The only thing I would change is the 3am bed time!

School's back!

I've now got kids in years 9,7,4 and Prep.

After 15 years as a SAHM all of my kids are in school full time. Kinda weird but kinda nice.

I'm finally going back to uni (part-time). I'm studying a Master of Teaching and tomorrow I have my first tutorial. Exciting.

That's all folks, don't know when I will return but take care, you hear x

2011-01-05T00:48:00.001-05:00

I have really good intentions of updating this blog...later :)

Preview

2010-12-20T17:33:00.000-05:00

These are for my cousin Chelsea. She came to visit with her gorgeous little family a couple of months ago and we had planned to do some photos outside but just as they arrived it rained...a lot! so we were confined to the veranda which was a huge pain in the butt. Thankfully they are such a beautiful family it wasn't too hard to get some lovely photos. Here's a sneak peak for you Chels. xx

us

2010-12-06T20:55:00.001-05:00

We have a Family Christmas tradition called 'The Twelve Weeks of Christmas'. We plan ahead - usually in September - and make a list of 12 things we can do for others once a week for 12 weeks leading up to Christmas. We usually do these activities for FHE but sometimes more time is needed or it just suits a different time better. Our list is made up of serious, fun, silly and nice to do things and includes car washes, cookie drops, choosing someone to be a secret santa for and leaving them a well thought out gift, having friends over for dinner, TP-ing someone's car (sorry but it's so much fun he he he) roadside rubbish pick up, cleaning our local park equipment, filling shoe boxes with gifts for the Samaritans Purse appeal, caroling and so on. Last night we did something for ourselves (or maybe it was just for me!) and we took some family photos. We went into the city after everything was closed and took a few shots. It was really cold and the kids were getting on each others (and my) nerves, and what was supposed to be a fun activity...wasn't! Anyway we managed to get a few photos and this is my favourite. It says it all about everyone; Isaac's 'I don't want to be here' attitude, Bella happy to be posing in front of the camera, Reub's with his 'whatever' stance and Charlotte sticky beaking (she's obsessed with Matt and I kissing - a hopeless romantic I think!) And of course I love it when my man plants one on me!! So this one will be going in a frame because I think it's perfect for us xx

photos

2010-11-15T20:16:00.000-05:00

Took some photos for some friends... I'm happy with them, they're happy with them. Was fun.

Excuses, excuses

2010-10-11T21:50:00.000-04:00

I'm just far too busy...
Too busy to clean out my pantry
Too busy to weed my garden
Too busy to go for a swim
Too busy to colour my hair
Too busy to watch tv
Too busy to sew stuff
Too busy to shop
Too busy to update my blog
Just far too busy...doing other stuff that matters more :)

60

2010-10-04T02:34:00.001-04:00

My dad has always loved cars

My dad could have been a male model

My dad loves my mum

My dad loves his kids

My dad loves his grandkids

My dad

In July my dad turned 60! and we (Bridey & I) decided we should organise a pary. Somewhere in the mix of things we decided it should be a surprise. I can't quite remember how or who came up with that idea but it proved to be quite a difficult thing to pull off...but we did it and it was monumental!

We thought it best to have mum do nothing (seeing as though she's married to dad and they live together). So I then found myself to be extra busy. Bridey and I planned everything down to the finest detail but because no one else in my family lives here, I did find myself run off my feet getting things done. The guest list alone was a nightmare. Mum compiled a list of names and sneakily sussed out dad for the names of a few of his childhood/teenage friends. I don't think the list was ever complete, mum was inviting people right up to a few hours before blast off!
You should have heard mine and mum's conversations on the phone. I think mum's code didn't match mine and vise versa! It went something like this...
Me: "So I know dad has a friend called Powder, but that's not his real name is it? I can't put 'To Powder' on the invitation"
mum: "cough, cough, no"
me: "so what is his real name?"
mum: silence... then, "when I was at Bridey's the other week, Mia would go, (singing) a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p..."
me: "oh that's cute, is that as far as she knows?"
mum: " no, it's just what she does...a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p.... cough"
me: "oh does Powder's real name start with P?"
mum: "mmm"
me: "well that doesn't really help much cause I still don't know what his flippin name is!"...is it Peter?"
mum: "no"
me: "philip?"
mum: "no"
Me: "I thought his name was Brian", is it P or B?"
mum: "(frustrated voice) a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p!!"
me: "OK, is it Paul?"
mum: "it might be"
me: "what? it either is or it isn't",
mum: "yeah that sounds about right"
me: "it is Paul?"
mum: "hang on i just have to go to the loo"
me: waiting..."are you there?"
mum: long pause..."I can't believe this, every time I start to talk to you your father appears! he even followed me to the toilet!!", "yes it's Paul, his real name is Paul!"
Me: ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

So Paul got his invitation and in the end he couldn't even come!
This happened so many times. Can you imagine what it was like trying to figure out (in code) the name 'Fenton Downham'?...not so easy, believe me.

In the end I sent out about 150 invitations...finding the addresses for all of these could be another whole blog post but it wont be!!!!

I had a blast going through old slides and photos to put a slide show together but just getting those out of mum and dad's house was like mission impossible. Needless to say a few 'white lies' had to be told!

Well the time arrived and Bridey and the kids came over from Melbourne and Bridey and I spent two entire days running (or driving) from pillar to post getting all of the last minute stuff done. And an entire day decorating our venue. Right up until the very moment before dad walked in we were going over things making sure everything was organised properly.

It all paid off though because dad had no idea ( he thought he was going to a friends party) and almost didn't come...he wanted to go to the movies instead! when the lights came on and everyone shouted "SURPRISE", you should have seen his face. It was so worth it!

The programme for the night was 'This is Your Life' fashioned after the television show. Once again this was a 'little' idea that began as something that would be part of the night and eventually grew to become the entire night. It was fabulous though and everything just fit together perfectly. I managed to find dad's old mates from his teenage years and even his primary school buddy who used to live near him (he now lives near me...imagine that!) I also found his favourite teacher, who taught him in grade 1!!! I know, pretty cool huh?
We did the whole thing where the special guests stayed hidden until their turn. They uttered a few words over a microphone and then out they came. There was a lot of reminiscing and walks down memory lane, lots of laughs, and a few revelations that have been waiting a long time to surface.
We all had a turn up the front, along with many of dad's workmates, and other close friends, to say a few things to dad and wish him a happy birthday. Unfortunately Declan, Justine and their kids had to delay their trip home by a couple of week so that meant they weren't able to be there but they sent a beautiful video message and we played it on the night.
A lovely song was performed by Gabby Lovell and accompanied by Matt on the guitar. Our awesome MC (Bridey's hubby, Anthony) handed dad the book to dad and uttered those well known words "Denis Page, this is your life"...
Then Anthony explained that it wouldn't be a real 'this is your life' without a mega surprise and out came Declan, Justine, Gus, Tilly and Felix! Yes there were tears, but they were good tears.
The entire night was a huge success and was so worth all the many hours it took to get it organised.

Mum turns 60 this year as well...one thing is for sure...she aint getting a 'This is Your Life' surprise party!!!

masterchef...eat your heart out!

2010-08-04T19:34:00.001-04:00

Reuben had an idea that a Masterchef party would be a fun thing to do...turns out he was right!
We have been waiting a looooooong time for this (the idea came after the first masterchef series) and Friday night the time finally arrived!
6 friends + 1 brother + self = 8 eager (testosterone filled) boys!

isaac, blake, taka, connor,jozef, reuben, reuben, masa

Armed with bowl, spoon and apron the boys were paired up and out of a hat pulled a little piece of torn paper. On the paper was written 'appetizer', 'entree', 'main', and of course, 'dessert'. Once each couple had chosen their task they were given a green bag containing a recipe and ingredients and told they were free to express artistic license and to ask for extra ingredients if needed !!! There were no time limits -within reason - just didn't want them to feel like they had to rush.

Reuben & Reuben - Dessert

Masa & Blake - entree

Connor & Isaac - appetizer

Taka & Jozef - Main Course

They all set to work, and did so well together in their chosen pairs. I was amazed to see how 'professional' they were.

About an hour and a half later Matt (Sayers) Preston showed up and we were ready to start the courses.

Beginning with a mexican inspired layered dip, corn chips & crackers. This was delicious and was devoured in record time!

Entree was (my favourite) absolutely mouthwatering Chicken Satay Skewers. I can say without doubt the best satay I've ever tasted! TRUE.

Main Course was Stuffed Jacket Potatoes and Salad...really tasty. These boys took so much care with their method and presentation, I was really impressed.

Dessert was Individual Chocolate Self Sauce Puddings...need I say a thing? sooooo good.

Clean up was a mammoth effort no one was exempt from. After all, "Clean up is part of the process"

Present opening followed by little bit of 'Spotlight' in the backyard and a little bit of 'X-Box' in the living room got rid of any residual 'boy energy' and the night was finished with a scrummy piece of Reuben's Birthday Mud Cake.

All the photos and video taken throughout the night will be made into a dvd this week for each of the boys to keep.

This was by far the best birthday party we have ever hosted...so much fun. We'll definitely do it again.

P.S If anyone is interested in any of these recipes, especially the satay, just let me know and I'll post them

~ Young Man~

2010-07-29T22:28:00.001-04:00

photo by chelsea

Happy 12th Birthday Reuben

What a great kid...oops, I mean Young Man (officially) you are.

Hope tonight's 'masterchef party' is divinely delicious.

Love you xxxxxxxxxxxxoooooooooooo

Good Advice?

2010-07-27T23:35:00.000-04:00

So I'm thinking about taking the advice of my little sis...and going private with my blog. I do get a few annoying comments from random people and sometimes I choose not to blog about stuff because it's not private and sometimes I worry about my photos being out there in cyberspace for all and sundry to do what they want with. So I think maybe I will. What say ye?

eurgh

2010-07-14T07:40:00.000-04:00

I'm sick!

I don't like it

It hurts

I'm getting worse

I'm getting bored

I'm wondering whether you can overdose on butter menthols

I'm wondering if there is a limit to the number of sneezes you can do before permanent brain damage occurs?

I hope not

And I wish everyone else would stop turning the heater down...I'm cold ok

blessed

2010-06-28T08:18:00.000-04:00

Summers as a kid were so perfect...

So many great memories came flooding back when I found this. Don't you love it?

Outings

2010-06-14T02:17:00.001-04:00

A few days ago we were all going a little stir crazy so we piled in the car and went for a drive. We ended up at South Arm and Opossum Bay.

We stopped at all the beaches along the way for a play and a bit of an explore. Had fish and chips for lunch. Called in to see Nanny and Joe on our way home then at Amy's and the boys to meet their new dog Coco.
It was a beautiful day for photos. I wish I was better at it! I have ideas in my head but they don't always translate to the actual thing so well. I think that it all boils down to not quite knowing enough.

That said I do quite like these fun jumping photos I snapped. The I love how the colours everyone was wearing all blend so well with the landscape.

And my personal favourite - Matt's Fonzie Pose!

Getting nice photos of my boys is EXTREMELY difficult. So I told them I'll just use the silly ones then!

(does anyone else think Reuben looks like Brendan Fevola here? either that or just plain possessed!)

I love the outdoors and sharing it with my family is the best.

It's out!

2010-06-14T00:55:00.001-04:00

Dropped out on Sunday (a week ago) while she was running about at a friends house. Don't know where it went but gee that tooth fairy is a clever guy (yep he's a boy I've been informed). Apparently he found it with no problems at all and kindly left a donation for Charlotte's 'toothbrush fund'. Teeth are worth so much more these days. I wish I could cash a few of mine in!

Forgot

2010-06-04T04:31:00.000-04:00

to add that the money that was in Matt's wallet when he lost it had miraculously disappeared! We reckon someone nicked the money when the wallet was first lost then tossed it and it was just found again by someone else. I think this because I don't know that someone who is good enough to take it to our bank would be dishonest enough to take the money out of it first. Maybe I'm wrong but I guess we'll never know!

LOST and FOUND

2010-06-03T08:38:00.000-04:00

While we were on the Gold Coast at Christmas time Matt lost his wallet...somewhere between Coles and our accommodation. We retraced our steps, asked in every business along the strip, called the police (on the off chance someone had found it) and tore apart our room and car in the hope of uncovering it - No luck! . It was so inconvenient to have to cancel our cards and organise replacements and all that that entails while travelling. We really needed to be able to use our 'plastic'! Despite being cardless we managed to survive and once we got home everything was quickly sorted. We have lived the last 6 months without giving this experience a second thought...until today when Matt collected our mail. Tucked away between the bills, birthday invitations, and mountains of catalogues was a plump little package from ANZ. Yep, someone found Matt's wallet in Miami on the Gold Coast just last month and handed it in to our bank!! we couldn't stop laughing because despite the finders' obvious honesty and good intentions, Matt doesn't need it anymore. He has a nice new wallet and nice, shiney new cards to match.
If you are the person who found it and returned it...thanks though because we have learnt a valuable lesson; never give up hope when something is supposedly lost, it may come home one day.

Now, I wonder where my engagement ring is...

Got One!

2010-05-26T22:16:00.000-04:00

I had fun Guys...can't wait to see you again soon. x

Benetton

2010-05-26T21:19:00.005-04:00

As in 'all the colours of...'

This is what Charlotte wanted.

We are celebrating her first wobbly tooth.

Stay tuned!

Mohawk

2010-05-23T21:35:00.002-04:00

Last Saturday Reuben asked me to buzz his hair. He likes it like that and he's fortunate that it suits him - I know he's gonna have the girls after him in a few years. Yes, I'm a bit biased but with his beautiful olive complexion, deep brown eyes, and the most kissable lips I know (Charlotte has them too!) I think it's a fair bet.
Reubs decided he wanted to express a bit of individuality with a little mohawk. I was ok with it.

So it lasted two days...he decided he'd rather blend in than run the risk of being labeled a 'bogan'.
Fair call, so now it's gone!

Found...

2010-05-23T11:06:00.002-04:00

Just having a look through some photo folders on my desk top and realised I hadn't blogged the rest of our trip we took at the end of the year. So here is a little bit more.

We stayed in Coffs Harbour for several days and had a wonderful time. The weather was perfect.
We did all the touristy things and checked out the BIG BANANA.

They have some new attractions there since we saw it last (that was almost 16 years ago so I guess a bit of progress is to be expected!) The attraction loved by us the most was definitely the water park!
Heaps of blow up water slides, jumping castles and mazes. FUN!

We stayed in a little resort that was in the process of 'changing hands'. It had everything you would need but really was in need of a bit of a face lift. The outlook was beautiful, the chalet was comfortable, our bed was HUGE but I go a bit of a bad vibe here. I never felt 100% relaxed when we were at the accommodation.
Don't know why, just did. I kind of felt like something sinister had happened there or that this place was haunted, you know a kind of eerie feeling was hanging around there. No one else felt it, just me. It was here though that the kids got eaten by mozzies. This would prove to be a VERY BAD thing - maybe that was the source of the vibe?

Among the other touristy things we did was visit the botanical gardens. When we were here last (on our honeymoon) the gardens were just getting underway. Now they are very well established and quite beautiful (but not a patch on ours). This place actually added to the weird vibe I had lingering about me. I remember getting ticked off with Matt when we arrived here and I was quite grumpy to him...but I didn't really know why! (no, not PMS) I think I was just out of sorts and couldn't shake the feeling. Reuben decided to hang out with me and we took turns with the camera. He has a good eye so I think I have a kindred spirit in him when it comes to photography, actually he could probably teach me a thing or two!

Check out these knotted limbs. Good pic Reubs :)

we were surprised to turn a corner and be faced with what looked like a crop circle in the middle of a field. Reuben stood there shouting "beam me up..." but nothing happened. Finally we came to the conclusion it was the markings for a maze.

Over this bridge we found ourselves in a mangrove...spooky. And it only got spookier when I spied this doll lying in the mud amongst the debris. By this stage my mind was working overtime! It just looked like a shot from one of those awful horror movies. The kind that have little kids hauntingly singing some children's song over and over again .

Needless to say this did nothing for the way I was feeling.

Coffs Harbour does have a lot to offer though. It really is quite beautiful.

I reckon we'll go back...but we'll stay somewhere else next time!

Ho Hum

2010-05-01T08:22:00.000-04:00

I do actually have quite a few things to blog about but it's just not happening at the moment. My calling as RS president is requiring quite a lot of my time at the moment and I've gone and stuffed my back again. I think this is the worst it has been and it's making me feel quite miserable, not to mention not being able to sit or find a comfortable position when I lay in bed. And to top it all off this cold and windy weather is doing nothing for my motivation to get on with things. Blah Blah Blah Blah...
On a more positive note I do feel like maybe the uncomfortableness (is that a word? who cares?) and pain may have peaked today so I'm very hopeful of a 'good' day tomorrow. I am really hoping that come Tuesday afternoon I am 'good as new' for I will be boarding a plane bound for the big smoke!
Anyway... it always feels good to have a bit of a complain but finish on a high note.
catcha

Five, 5, V,

2010-04-18T21:20:00.001-04:00

That's what my little baby turned on Friday.

She invited all of her cutzie friends to put on their favourite dress up clothes and come for a party on Friday afternoon. It was a glorious day and a the sun shone for the entire afternoon. Thank goodness because outside parties are so much better.

They decorated their own party bags, hunted for treasure, played pass the parcel, 'crocodile, crocodile', and plum pudding.

I was so pleased when Charlotte said she wanted a "pretty heart cake" - easy peasy!

And "fluffy pink cupcakes" - also easy peasy!

Charlotte was even allowed to break the rules and ride her new Scooter inside.

She's such a happy girl who loves nothing more than a story on the walk home from school and some good music to dance to.

Love you sweetie xxx

And then there were four...

2010-04-11T08:59:00.001-04:00

Friday was Matt's turn to help out at convention. We dropped him off at around midday then Reubs, Bella, Charlotte and I decided a trip to the park was in order. It was a glorious day so we thought a BBQ was in order too. We were totally unprepared for a BBQ but after a quick trip to the market we were set!

We had 'cardboard burgers' with sauce and bread! hmmm...

We jumped, swung, and climbed until we almost chucked!

We had running races and did cartwheels!

We threw stones and hunted for mini crabs.

We walked along the foreshore and took photos of interesting things.

Was a fun 3 hours we spent there but you can't tell from this photo!
How similar to Reuben & Charlotte look in this one?

UYC

2010-04-08T05:31:00.001-04:00

So this week has been busy and tiring. Isaac has been attending his first youth convention. I have been helping out with food and kitchen stuff and first aid and since Tuesday I have spent a grand total (so far) of 320 minutes driving between our house and the Stake Centre. By the end of tomorrow that will rise to approximately 400! But it is all worth it. Isaac (and the rest of the youth as well) have had the BEST time. Matthew Pawson and his UYC10 team have organised a FANTASTIC convention for these guys- and I've only seen some of it! Tonight they are having a formal dinner and dance. Here's some pics of Isaac and our four billets just before they left for the stake centre tonight. Don't they look so handsome all dressed up?

Pretty

2010-04-08T04:52:00.000-04:00

The other day were strolling around in the city when the girls and I noticed a sign advertising free face painting in the upper level of Cat 'n' Fiddle Arcade. So up we went.

Charlotte is "Pink swirls and purple love hearts..."

You guessed it; Bella is a flower.

'Twas fun - and a timely distraction (how long does a chocolate high last for anyway???)

All the colours of the rainbow

2010-03-28T20:36:00.002-04:00

Bella had a rainbow party on Saturday.

She is a vibrant girl so a rainbow party was a perfect idea for her.

9 of her gorgeous little friends came over (because she's 9!)
Reuben was the only boy here (Isaac took off to a friends house - there's no way he was hanging around while they played their girl games and played their girl music!) but he didn't seem to care at all.

They made their own party bags and hats, pinned the pot of gold on the end of the rainbow, hunted for lost gold in the garden, played pass the parcel and had their faces painted.

I love how they all sat in a circle around her when she opened her pressies.

Check out the look on the girls faces in this photo - must have been smiggle stuff. My girls LOVE it.

It was a fun afternoon.

Some of my photos are a bit blurry though. Chels is lending me her 50mm lens (thanks) and I'm still getting the hang of manual focus. I'll get there...eventually.

For Mia

2010-03-24T20:19:00.004-04:00

I made this for you yesterday Mia.

And Charlotte just had to try it on!

It's in the post and on it's way to you.

Inspiration came from some dresses Bridey and I came across at the Surfers Paradise Night Market.

Cute huh?

HAVE A HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY MISS MIA XX

Loved this place

2010-03-24T07:49:00.000-04:00

Kiama was one of my favourite places on our recent roadtrip. I definitely want to go back here.

Kiama is about 120km south of Sydney

I love that it is a large beach side town but has a very 'country' feel due to the

close proximity of the rural parts of this area.

So beautiful.

There are some awesome beaches here. The grass grows right up to the sand in some parts - the best of both worlds exists here, for me anyway; lots of space, sprawling pasture and beautiful white beaches.

We took some dinner to the local park for a lovely balmy evening of playing and chillin' and just soaking up the wonderful feeling in this place.

Beautiful

2010-03-23T07:13:00.000-04:00

is our Bella.

Today she turned 9

and she's getting more beautiful by the day.

Happy Birthday Beautiful Bella

We love you xx

My Guy...

2010-03-15T06:54:00.008-04:00

On Saturday Matt and I spent the day at Tahune Airwalk to see Guy Sebastian live. It was a great day out; perfect weather, relaxing picnic lunch beautiful surroundings and great entertainment. It was quite an intimate concert (only something like 250 tickets) which really contributed to the feeling there. It kinda felt like a big family reunion (and with half the Huon Valley population there it nearly was!!) I know Guy Sebastian isn't everyone's cup of tea but I have to admit I became an instant fan when I heard him sing for his audition in the very first Australian Idol Competition. He is great on stage and surprisingly funny.

I loved all of the songs he performed, which was a selection from all of his albums.

Support act was Tassie boy DeWayne Everettsmith who was an Idol contestant in 2007.

Check out this photo! I was standing at the side of the stage snapping a few pics

when he noticed and gave me a little Guy Smile - he he

Matt appreciates the excellent musician Guy Sebastian is but R&B isn't really his style - not typically mine either - but he tagged along because he didn't want me to go alone. I'm glad we went together but I really should have taken the girls with me, there were so many mothers and daughters there and they would have loved it. Maybe next year we can have a girls day out.

My Big Boy

2010-03-14T06:44:00.006-04:00

Isaac turned 14 on Friday.

Fourteen

F O U R T E E N...

He had some friends from school over

They played backyard soccer

Halo 3 on the x-box (whatever!!)

Made their own Pizza's

Enjoyed each other's company

(L-R Angus, Conner, Isaac, Ayde, Haki & Gabriel)

Shared a yummy birthday cake (very delicious mud cake)

We delivered everyone to their homes around 10pm.

Isaac has a great bunch of friends, really nice kids. I'm happy.

(I just can't believe I have a 14 year old!!)

Good bye training wheels

2010-03-09T16:41:00.003-05:00

The week school went back Charlotte decided she was big enough to learn to ride her bike. Turns out she was right! I've thought for a while now that her balance was pretty good and that the training wheels were not really necessary. We had a couple of successful goes in the driveway without them then up to the oval for the real test (with the soft landing just in case). She passed with flying colours and didn't even need a soft landing.

Now there's no stopping her!!

As requested...Slow Cooked Butter Chicken

2010-03-08T01:17:00.007-05:00

This is the one of the BEST home made butter chicken recipes I have ever made, and I have made a few in my time! I came across it a couple of years ago and we love it. We actually have two favorites but I can't find the other recipe. They are both delicious but also have different flavours. I'll post it when I find it!

Slow cooked Butter Chicken

1/2 cup cashews (125 mL)
2 tsp garam masala (10 mL)
2 tsp coriander powder (10 mL)
1/2 tsp chili powder (2 mL)
8 x boneless skinless chicken thighs, quartered
1 tsp sesame or peanut oil (5 mL)
1/4 cup butter, melted (60 mL)
2 tsp paprika (10 mL)
2 tsp prepared garlic (10 mL)
2 tsp prepared ginger (10 mL)
Pinch of cinnamon and cardamom powder
1 x small onion
3/4 cup chicken stock (175 mL)
1/2 cup tomato paste (125 mL)
1/2 cup yogurt (or sour cream) (125 mL)
1 cup milk (250 mL)
1/4 cup cream (60 mL)
2 tbsp vinegar (30 mL)
1 tbsp sweet Thai chili sauce (15 mL)
1/2 tsp salt (2 mL)

Smash cashews with a hammer and add to large nonstick fry pan.

Add garam masala, corriander and chilli, stir and brown nuts and spices until you see a little smoke.

Immediately remove from heat.

Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

In the same pan, heat oil at med-high and sear chicken on both sides.

Place in the bottom of a slow cooker.

Add the following ingredients:

melted butter, the toasted cashew mixture, paprika, garlic, ginger and spices.

Finely chop onion and add to pan

Add chicken stock, tomato paste and yogurt, then stir to combine.

Stir in milk and cream.

Add vinegar, chili sauce and salt.

Stir then leave center crock in fridge overnight.

Turn slow cooker on to low in the morning. Cook for 6/7 hours on low.

Serve with Basmati Rice and maybe some Roti or pappadams

This looks long and involved but it's not at all. It's very easy.

You can skip leaving it in the fridge and cook it immediately but it is that little bit nicer if you have time to leave it.

Don't be tempted to use breast meat, thighs are far more tender in the slow cooker.

This makes plenty for our family of 6.

I always thought multitasking was a good thing...

2010-03-05T17:21:00.006-05:00

that was until last night. I was in the kitchen, doing the usual 'mum' thing - a hundred things at once when a pot of oil caught alight and did quite a bit of damage!

The funny thing is that I thought I was super organised yesterday but I still found myself busy as a bee in the kitchen last evening. I had butter chicken all ready to go in the slow cooker (really yummy recipe by the way, have to post that some time) rice cooking in the microwave, and golden syrup dumplings almost ready to pop in the saucepan for desert - I had promised the kids earlier I'd make desert on Friday night. I decided to turn on a pot of oil to make the pappadams we always have with butter chicken and while the oil was heating turned to finish mixing the dumplings. A short time later I noticed a flicker of light on a packet sitting beside me on the bench and turned to see where it came from. I was confronted with large flames leaping from the pot of oil and lapping at the range hood. Immediately I grabbed the lid to suffocate the flames - didn't work, the flames just squeezed out from under the lid! and were getting taller by the second. Isaac, by this stage had heard me utter a 'swear word' (yeah I know I'm the RS President but there's no perfection prerequisite for that or I wouldn't be there!!) and was going mental (he's not that good with emergencies). I yelled for Matt who was reading in another room and had heard a bit of a commotion but didn't think much of it until he too heard the 'swear word'. He came running in like a super-hero and totally saved the day. He did accidentally burn himself though so obviously he's not a real super-hero!

So the damage is: totally stuffed range hood, gas cook top, cupboard doors, floor damage where hot oil spilled over and blistered the timber finish, the pot and two lids are cactus, the whole house has smoke damage, the laminex above the oven is all melted.

The insurance company sent two guys around last night to clean up a bit and assess what else would need to be done. So now we have this dirty great 'air filter' machine in our kitchen which has to run continuously until they come back on Tuesday. It is LOUD but everything is starting to smell cleaner. On Tuesday they will come and do something called a smoke sponge (or something like that) they have special sponges they wipe over walls and ceilings and they can tell just how far the tiny particles of soot have traveled. On just looking last night they are certain the kitchen, lounge room, family room and hall way will all have to be washed.

I can't believe how much damage occurred in what was about 30-40 seconds. Anyway here are a few photos taken by my neighbour ('coz I still don't have a camera!!)

P.S We still got to eat the butter chicken - 'twas delicious and I even managed to finish the dumplings. I'm glad we decided to get the BBQ with the hot plate, I think it will come in very handy over the next week.

P.P.S I like to think of myself as a fairly positive person and I like to think that something good comes from everything, saying that I figure there are a few 'goods' from this; I'll never turn my back on cooking oil ever again, I'll get some new kitchen items, there's no excess and insurance covers everything, I'll get my ceilings and walls washed and best of all I wont have to cook for a while :)

Tathra

2010-03-04T18:37:00.004-05:00

Just outside of Merimbula is a little seaside town called Tathra. We really only stopped to take some photos but found out a couple of tidbits of information - even good ol' Tassie gets a mention!

This is the view from a place called 'Pig & Whistle Lookout'. It was named by Morgan Smith from Tathra Primary school in a competition. The name was chosen based on this bit of Tathra's history; Between 1862 and 1954 sailing and steam ships docking at the nearby Tathra Warf were commonly known as vessels of the 'Pig & Whistle Fleet'. The ship carried many live pigs as cargo, who always burst into a wild screaming frenzy, every time the ships piercing whistle was sounded. Thus the name 'Pig & Whistle Fleet' was born.

This part of the coastline is also home to another lookout and plaque entitled ' A DESPERATE WALK TO SAFETY', which was laid in 1997 to recognise 17 brave sailors from 'The Sydney Cove' who, in April 1797, walked this coastline as part of their epic 640km trek from Victoria's Gippsland coast to Botany Bay Sydney to seek help for their companions. The Syndey Cove was shipwrecked on what is now known as Preservation Island situated off the coast of North Eastern Tasmania. The 17 sailors set out in a long boat, which was cast ashore, and began their long trek. Of the 17 that set out, 3 made it to Botany Bay.

I couldn't help but stop and ponder the actions and fate of these brave men (probably just boys really) and the irony of our beautiful coastline. For me it is simply majestic, one of God's greatest creations but for them it was probably their greatest challenges and ultimately, for most, their place of death. I bet they hated it!

Moving Right Along...

2010-03-04T18:07:00.005-05:00

We set off from Merimbula and by the end of the day (the very end of the day) we were in Wadalba where Lou and Dan live. Wadalba is near Gosford, North of Sydney. We made lots of stops along the way and saw some of the most beautiful coast line. Some more posts to come with those pics. We also stopped by the Sydney Temple to look at the Christmas lights and dioramas set up there. There was also a carpark choir rehearsal going on at the same time so it was lovely to wander the temple grounds and have beautiful Christmas carols being sung in the background. It really helped us to feel the Christmas spirit. I was a little concerned that with all the traveling and sightseeing we would be doing over the time we are usually gearing up for Christmas it would overshadow this special time of year and that it wouldn't feel like Christmas at all. It was VERY late by the time we got to bed down that night but it was worth it just to be reminded of what Christmas is all about and to reflect on the birth, life, and death of the Savior.

We stayed with Dan and Lou for three nights (unfortunately these are some of the photos that were in my stolen camera bag!) and while we were there it was roasting hot so we spent two days on the beach and a day in a shopping centre and at the movies

Terrigal Beach - this is the place Matt really wanted to show us. It is a beautiful beach. By the end of the day though, I think Matt really wanted to forget this place. He got VERY sunburned. Having a fabulous time surfing with the boys and forgot to 'reapply'. I tried to tell him! Oh well a couple of sleepless nights did the trick and he became the Sunscreen Nazi (Second in command...I was the General)

Charlotte, Bella and I went to see 'Where The Wild Things Are'. We all laughed and cried and absolutely loved it. It is one of our favourite books so we were really excited when we heard it was being made into a movie. Being a book with mostly subtext I was interested to see how the movie would translate. It was fantastic.
Of course Matt, Isaac and Reuben went to see Avatar. No need to say anything really. Doesn't everyone love this movie? I can't speak from experience though. Despite the fact that nearly everyone I know has seen it twice, I missed out somehow!!

Just us...

2010-02-17T00:23:00.003-05:00

Well today was epic! All four kids were at school for the very first time EVER! So what to do? Visiting Teaching of course!!!!!!!! When I organised to go visiting teaching I didn't realize it was going to be THIS day. Oh well...it was a great day nonetheless. Great because Matt is home (long service leave) and he kept me company this morning. When the VT was all finished we celebrated this monumental day with a spontaneous, delicious lunch at Dukkah in the city. I don't know whether Matt and I have ever 'done lunch' before. It was wonderful to spend the day together and over lunch we made plans for our other 'child-free days' (I know what you're thinking and yes Matt was thinking it too!!!!!!!!!!)

Life can get so hectic and busy without you knowing it and finding time for each other can sometimes be quite difficult. I am so looking forward to being able to be together without needing a babysitter or having to organise everything first. I'm quite excited to have my hubby around. Everyone has been making comments about how quickly I will wish he was back at work but you know what? I don't think that will happen, I'm grateful I'll have him under my feet.

.road trip part 1.

2010-02-14T01:57:00.013-05:00

It all began on December 10th. Matt left home with the 'Trusty Tarago' packed to the rafters (when is that starting again??) and Isaac for company and headed for 'The Spirit'. While they sailed across the Tasman, the other three kids and I flew across and stayed with the Lawlesses in Melbourne. Matt and Isaac arrived safely the next morning.

On December 12th we repacked the car and set off for Merimbula. It's a bit over 500km from Melbourne to Merimbula so with several stops along the way (mostly of the toilet variety) we pretty much traveled all day and didn't get to our accommodation until 7.30pm. It was great though. I've never traveled along the Pacific Highway before. It was awesome. The drive up does have some pretty boring patches but also some amazing coastline. The terrain was very familiar -stands to reason - just like driving the East Coast of Tassie only a bit more stretched out! But it is BEAUTIFUL.

We stopped in Lakes Entrance for a bit. We had a bit of a look around, bought icecreams and hung out at the beach for a while.

The younger kids were keen to see the 'Welcome to NSW' and 'Welcome to Victoria' signs along the way. They were hoping to have the opportunity to stand in two states at once but unfortunately the signs are on opposite sides of the road!!

Matt and the kids were very patient with me throughout the entire first leg of the trip. If I wasn't yelling out "Stop...I need to take some photos of this", it was, "do you reckon we could find a toilet?" I have a limited bladder capacity at the best of times but it was hot and the a/c was blearing and I must have drank 3 litres of water!! Anyway I'm pleased to say that all of the public amenities were very clean and tidy - even the ones in the middle of nowhere! And for those of you wondering...yes I did squat behind a tree sometimes! When you've gotta go you've gotta go!

We stayed in a BIG4 caravan park in Merimbula and it was the best! Everything you could possibly want was either supplied or available. Apart from our awesome place on the Goldcoast it was by far the best place we stayed in.

The kids (especially Reuben) were very taken with the friendliness of these birds. I think they're Rainbow Lorikeets. They were obviously used to human contact and it was ok to feed them. You can get bags of feed for 20c at the office. So off went the last of the big spenders to buy up big!! Once the food came out so did the rest of the birds! I think we counted at least 50 of them all gathered around in a feeding frenzie. You can see from the photo that wherever you put the seed the birds would go!

Our last night in Merimbula was warm and still so we took a stroll along the boardwalk. We had fun climbing trees, taking photos, getting in the path of rushing cyclists, getting growled at by grumpy runners, and finding freaky fish!!

If you've never been to Merimbula you probably don't know that they have a family friendly theme park there called Magic Mountain. It is set on a hill behind the town and is really fun.

It boasts a medium size roller coaster (about the size of the one at Sea World), toboggan ride, go-carts, a maze, water slides, mini golf, playground equipment, super slides, and probably other stuff I can't remember.

I love this photo of Reubs, he really was having a blast.

Charlotte was a bit of a dare devil at this place going on everything, starting with the roller coaster (which I actually thought was a bit too much for her). She loved it! It was so funny watching and waiting to see her face so I could tell if she was enjoying it. At one point (you know the big dip right after the big climb at the beginning) I thought I would see tears and screaming but no, just laughs. There was one worried look but the HUGE cheeky grin she was wearing at the end said it all - she takes after her dad!

This beach was right behind our caravan park.

Merimbula is a beautiful place and somewhere we will definitely go back to. I'd really love to stay longer next time. If I lived in Victoria or southern NSW this would be my holiday place.

First Day

2010-02-10T17:35:00.003-05:00

Charlotte started Kindergarten yesterday!!

Has this been a long time coming or what?

Not for me but for my last born! It's the end of an era for me and I'm feeling a little bit sad but ok. I am ready to discover what the next chapter has in store for us.

Charlotte's first trip to the school was when she was only 2 days old and since she could talk she has been asking when the day will come that she can stay 'for real'.

Yesterday morning everyone was up bright and early (except for Isaac - he had a student free day) and eager to get to school to check out their new rooms and catch up with friends. Reuben is in year 6 this year, Bella in year 3 and Isaac is in year 8.

Mt Nelson has a new Kinder teacher, Heather Hazell, who was teaching at Maydena before coming to us. She is young and enthusiastic and is great with kids. She seemed very relaxed and at home. My other three children all had the same kinder teacher, Mrs Nolan, who was absolutely wonderful so we were a little disappointed when she told us last year that she was going to retire (lucky thing she's pretty young to be retiring, she's only in her mid fifties!) It's not bad though seeing as though the new teacher is so lovely. Plus Mrs Nolan lives just down the road from us so we see her all the time :)

It was so weird seeing Charli all dressed up like a big kid. She seems so much older.

This photo DIDN'T capture the moment! really and truly they were all very excited to be returning to school

I'm sure that by grade 6 she will have grown into her "anything but pink" backpack.

All day long I kept looking behind me and wondering, for a second, where Charlotte was. Then I'd remember and wonder what fun things she would have to tell me at 3 o'clock.

P.S Thanks for the loan of your camera Chels x

Sadness

2010-02-04T20:11:00.004-05:00

Sunday was supposed to be a day where we met up with everyone at church again, settled back into our callings, chatted about our awesome holiday, caught up with what we've missed as we fielded "welcome home!" comments...It didn't happen that way. An hour into church Matt discovered our rear window in the van smashed in and my camera bag containing my much loved camera and lenses etc valued at around $3000+ was stolen. It also had my sd cards etc containing the last part of our holiday. I don't usually have my camera with me of a Sunday but my nephew was getting baptised after church and I thought it would be nice to get some good photos for his family. It was only in the car for an hour and wasn't in plain sight but nonetheless it was gone! We spent the remainder of the day making 'should a, would a, could a' comments whilst waiting around for the police to arrive.

Forensics were able to get some good prints and the police are fairly certain of who the culprit is but I sensed they were as frustrated as we were because their hands are tied in so many instances. The real stinger was when I spoke to our insurance company. They only cover $500 worth of items stolen from a vehicle. If it had been stolen from somewhere else it would be totally covered!! :( So...I jumped in the shower, had a bit of a cry and then tried to get some perspective. As much as I LOVE my camera it really is only a thing. I can replace it...one day very far off! and our back window was replaced the very next day. You never know my camera could even be recovered.

For many years I have wanted a 'nice' camera and here's where the irony is; I was able to purchase it because of a pay out I received because I had been the victim of a crime, now the camera is gone because I've been a victim of crime!

HELLO!!!

2010-01-13T01:24:00.003-05:00

This is just a short little post to say that we are having THE BEST TIME and I don't want to come home! I haven't really had access to the internet while we've been travelling to update my blog so I'll have to have a major blog session when I get home at the end of the month. We have loved having continued warm (sometimes way too hot!) weather, endless swimming and lazing around. My kids are the colour of chocolate :) Some lady tried to take a photo with "the little aboriginal girl" (Bella) at Darling Harbour yesterday. Don't worry we are being sun smart. Have been through 5 large bottles of sunscreen!!!
Can't wait to share our holiday experiences with everyone.

Blanche

Family Christmas #1

2009-12-06T04:52:00.004-05:00

Because we are leaving on our trip this week and will miss Christmas with Matt's family, we all got together on Saturday to celebrate the season together. Despite the weather forecast predicting rain, it was a pleasant day without a single drip! We celebrated in true Aussie style with a scrumptious BBQ and an assortment of salads followed by a beautiful selection of desserts.

There was plenty of laughing, singing, dancing and playing for all.

Keith and Dawn enjoying a joke.

It was nice to have everyone over to test out the new room and deck!

below: Matt and his brothers Paul, Joe and James.

Aimee and Amy - oh and little Meggie too (she is sooo cute!)

It's always fun to see the kids exchange gifts and find out who their Secret Santa was.

It's fun to get together to swap stories, to laugh at each others expense, to hang out, to eat way too much, to share pressies, to make heaps of mess, and to just be together. Some people think it's a bit of a pain to have to do Christmas twice with both sides of the family, but I don't. I feel very blessed to be able to share fun family times with all of the family we have - although we do madly miss our family who are absent (Lou, Dan, Zeek & Ollie, and Declan, Justine, Gus, Tilly & Felix, and Bridey, Tone, Sam, George, Jack and Mia) We wish you were here! Looking forward to seeing your family soon Lou and to spending Christmas #2 with you guys Bride. Can't wait.

Christmas pageant

2009-11-27T05:36:00.011-05:00

Last Saturday our family did as many other Hobartian families did and took to the streets of Hobart to watch the Christmas Pageant. It was a cool morning and I had the WORST headache I've ever experienced (it lasted for 3 days!!!! horrible) but I was so glad we went. I think the last time we went Reuben was a baby. I loved the Christmas spirit that was everywhere. The parade was so colourful and multicultural. I took lots of photos and I've made a little book for Charlotte to read during 'quiet' times. Anyway check out this years' Hobart Christmas Pageant in photos:

the kids were pretty excited to see these guys walking our streets!

the dragon was my favourite! They came right up to the crowd. so cool.

Go Hawks!

Kilroy was even there!

HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

BLEURGH...

2009-11-18T23:36:00.003-05:00

I had planned to visit Chelsea today to check out her new house and to give her some hand-me-down clothes of Charli's but I never made it. Why? you ask, well....

I was approaching the first set of traffic lights into Hobart from Mt Nelson when I heard the familiar sound of my mobile phone ringing. It was the office lady at Taroona High saying, "Oh hello love, I have Isaac here, he looks a terrible shade of green, he's saying he feels like he's going to throw up, can you come and get him?"

I turned my car around and headed for Channel Highway. I picked up my 'green' son and headed for home. Once he was settled in bed with a bucket and a book I decided he'd be ok by himself. I had an appointment in town so I headed in that direction. Following the appointment I called Isaac - all ok so I thought I'd zip out to Chelsea's for just a bit. I was only in second gear when my phone rang again. "Oh Hello Blanche, Reuben is feeling a bit unwell, he thinks he might throw up, can you come and get him? A quick U-turn and I'm once again heading for Mt Nelson. Almost there and the phone rings AGAIN. " Hello, is that Blanche? yes. "I have Isabella here, she's unwell. Are you able to come and get her?".

It's like dominos!

I collect my children and on the way out I overhear Reuben's friend Conner, talking with the teacher. Conner is also sick but his mum can't get him "because she's at work today". So I bring him home with me too (one for goodluck!!)

Isaac spewed

Reuben didn't

Bella Spewed

Conner didn't.

They all slept

my house smells like...mmm... sickness

I have a huge headache.

On a slightly different note...hasn't it been the most glorious day today in Hobart? More please.

New Lounge Room

2009-11-10T05:05:00.003-05:00

FINALLY...the extension video. The room still has some furnishings to come (I have my eye on a red chair and a lovely coffee table) but we are in and very much enjoying! It's quite amazing how one extra room can make such a difference.

CHELS

2009-10-31T08:51:00.009-04:00

This is my gorgeous cousin Chelsea and her man Tom. Aren't they a cute couple?

On Friday afternoon Chelsea and Tom came to visit. And or course they brought with them their beautiful daughter Mai (named after Chelsea's mum who died from cancer in 1996). They live on the East Coast and were in Hobart for Mai to have day surgery. Everything went extremely well.

We enjoyed the balmy conditions we were blessed with on Friday afternoon by sitting out on the new deck catching up, eating watermelon (what else on a hot day?), munching on biscuits and dip, and downing lots of iced water.

The kids played and of course I took photos.

Chelsea and Tom enjoyed a good laugh thanks to Matt, who is always up for joking around.

I think Chelsea has the most beautiful smile.

Trying to get a family shot proved a little too difficult - Mai just wanted to bounce on the trampoline! Fair enough too.

Thanks for making time to come and see us for a couple of hours.

I loved it xx

NEW ROOM

2009-10-25T21:43:00.003-04:00

Our new room is all finished.

I LOVE it.

It has made such a difference to our home. I'm so glad we did it. Rory and Joel have done an excellent job. It was so nice to have them hanging around for a while. We had some good conversations - I think we covered every topic known to man!

We don't have any furniture in the room yet (apart from a new tv and stand) but it is really nice to have a lounge room with carpet. I really do love our hardwood floors, they are so family friendly but when I veg out in front of the box I like to sprawl out on the floor...now I can :)

The deck is awesome. Charlotte does laps around the house all day long.

I can't wait to have some friends over or a family get together so we can test it out.

I will put all the photos together and post something soon.

Jim & Sue

2009-10-23T02:05:00.009-04:00

last month Carmen & Chernoa asked if I would like to take some photos of their parents, Jim & Sue. They offered to pay me but seeing as though I have no qualifications other than a keen interest and an adult ed course under my belt I said I'd do it for nothing and notch it up to experience.

We met at the warf for a few shots and moved around to a few other locations nearby. It was a perfect day for photos all morning but as Murphy would have it by lunch time (when we had planned to meet) the rain had began to sprinkle. It wasn't heavy rain at all but we did get wet and it did ruin a number of good photos. Flat, drenched hair never looks good really!

Anyway...Jim and Sue were a bit nervous and I must admit I was a little nervous too. It's not like taking photos of your own family who have to love you no matter what. I was worried about the weather and very conscious of the fact this was quite possibly the only chance we would have to get together. And then when I was going through them later I would look at a photo I thought was pretty nice and then wonder "will they like it", "Is that the way they normally look", "will their eye for what looks good agree with mine". Eventually I managed to choose about 30 that I thought were the best of them all. I've put up just a few that were my favourites.

This is my very favourite and the one I think they should put up!!!

Thanks for a fun day, it was a real learning experience for me.

Now I just need to get my head around editing.

SOUTHPORT

2009-09-26T02:09:00.012-04:00

During the school holidays we went to Southport. We stayed in the Hutchin's cabins (one of Matt's perks). It's a great set up. 4 cabins with bunks lining the walls and a 'main block' containing showers, toilets, kitchen, dining area, lounge area, and some open space with ping pong tables and other games. There is a wood heater and ceiling heaters (I discovered on our second last day!!). One of the cabins is the 'teacher's cabin' and has ensuites -basic as they are- which is handy. There are foam matresses on all the bunks and pillows galore. You need to take all your own linen. There is also one innerspring mattress in the teacher's cabin and you guessed it, I get it every time - one of my perks!

We try to go down to Southport once a year and invite some other families to come and share the joy of open spaces, beach, bush, toasted marshmallows and late nights. We usually have the BEST time (except for that one year hey Bride and Jus!!!).

This year we were joined by the Toselli's and Parsons' and they all proved to be fun company. Once again the kids and adults got on exceptionally well.

As soon as the toselli's arrived we headed for the beach to use up some of the energy the kids (and adults) had accumulated gearing up for this little holiday. What better way to do that than beach soccer?

Next morning was Father's day. The kids showered their dad's in home made and handpicked gifts while Kirsten and I cooked up a yummy Father's Day Gourmet Brekkie.

One evening we built a campfire and let the kids play with it!!!!! They had a blast lighting the ends of their sticks and writing messages in the dark. look at the cool way the camera caught the sparks from the fire in the photo below. Not a great photo but I like it anyway.

A campfire wouldn't be complete without gooey, sticky burnt marshmallows!

Of course we took Rosie with us. She loved all the free running space she had and all the attention she received from little Izzy Toselli.

Time out with Chelsea wouldn't be complete without a little bit of 'camera talk'.

and a few photos.
You can't go as far as Southport and not include a visit to Hastings! By all reports the thermal pool was fun but maybe 'tepid pool' would be a more accurate description. The kids had a blast. Thank goodness for dad's (eh Chels???) who have to do those things the mum's don't want to, like swimming with the kids on a Freezing, overcast, wet day!! Thanks Matt 'n' Dave.

Something the kids have enjoyed doing over the years is building forts in the bush. A couple of years ago they were fortunate enough to have 'supplies'. Adam Rea supplied, timber, nails, axes etc and the forts were awesome. This year they had to do it survivor style and rely totally on what they could find in the wild. Isaac and Reuben couldn't leave without photographic evidence (to show the Rea boys) that they could do it without the supplies!! So they took these few photos. I love the skull and crossbones :)

And this last photo I have included simply because when I took it I said

"that's going on the blog!"

There are several things I didn't take photos of but you can check out Chelsea's blog for her take on the holiday. I'm happy to say that I was way too busy having a relaxing few days away from the phone and the tv -( although we did have Chris' projector for a couple of nights and enjoyed a movie or two!!) To take photos of everything we did.

MUD CAKE

2009-09-20T00:23:00.004-04:00

Several people have asked me for the recipe for the Mud Cake I made for Matt's party.

So here it is. It's a long recipe but it is super easy to make and it totally luscious!!!!

Chocolate Mud Cake Recipe (serves 16...at least!)

Note: USE A WHISK TO STIR INGREDIENTS TOGETHER

Cake ingredients

250g cooking chocolate (half dark, half milk)

250g salted butter

1 tsp instant coffee granules/powder (decaf is fine)

¾ cup (188ml) water

2 cups + 2 Tb (325g) plain flour

¼ cup + 2 tsp (30g) cocoa powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 ½ cups (550g) caster sugar

4 large eggs (min weight 59g)

2 Tb (40ml) peanut oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup (125ml) buttermilk

Ganache

150g milk chocolate

150g dark chocolate

1/3 cup (84ml) thickened cream (not lite/fat reduced cream)

Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celcius (150* fan forced)

Grease and line (with non stick baking paper) sides and base of a deep 23cm or 24cm diameter deep cake pan. If you have a spring form tin it will be a little easier to remove. Extend the paper above the top rim of pan.

Place chocolate, butter, coffee, and water in large saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally. When choc and butter have melted, remove from heat and allow to cool to room temp.

Sift flour, cocoa and bicarb together in very large bowl.

Add sugar to flour mix and whisk together until well combined.

In a medium bowl, place eggs, oil, vanilla and buttermilk. Whisk together until well combined.

Add the egg mix to the flour mix and whisk until well combined

Add choc mix to egg and flour mix in three batches, stirring until combined after each addition.

Pour mix into prepared pan

Bake for about 1hr +15mins (24cm tin) 1 hr +30 min (23cm tin). Insert a thin bladed knife or a wooden skewer into centre of cake to test whether cake is cooked through. If the knife/skewer comes out clean or with moist (not gooey) crumbs attached, it’s ready. If not, return to oven for further 5-10 min before testing again.

Cool in pan (cover with a tea towel)

When the cake is room temp remove from tin. Cake may have a crusty edge, you can remove if you wish (but make sure you eat it or share it with someone because it’s yummy)

Turn cake upside down to give a flat surface for icing.

Make ganache and spread over with a palette or flat blade knife.

Store cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator and allow to come to room temp before serving.

Ganache

Place chocolate + cream in a medium heavy-based saucepan over very low heat. Stir frequently, and remove from heat when chocolate has just melted and mixture is smooth. Allow ganache to cool slightly to obtain a spreadable consistency.

If you have larger or smaller pans you wish to use, just shoot me an email at mksayers@iinet.net.au

and I can give you the quantities for your particular pan.

Far Out Man...

2009-09-19T02:30:00.008-04:00

This post is a little late but I was unable to put any photos on because I took all of these on mum's camera on the night and only today had a chance to get them onto my computer. Anyway better late than never I guess. Plus Matt will be 40 for a whole year!!!

Matt's 40th birthday party was held during the school holidays. As it turns out school holidays is probably not the best time to have a party, everyone goes away! It was a bit of a shame that quite a few of our friends were away or unable to come but we had a fun night nonetheless.

Seeing as though Matt was born in 1969 - the year of Woodstock, the first moon landing, the time of Sonny and Cher, the Beatles, Jimmi Hendrix, Bob Marley and the Vietnam War. to name just a few, we thought a '69 dance party would be fun. We hoped that everyone would channel their inner flower child and get into the groove. Almost everyone got into the spirit of the night and did dress up. These photos are just in random order. I have no time to organise them sorry.

Mum and dad looked fabulous as 'woodstock hippies'

Toni Menzie looking very cool

It was great for Matt to have all of his siblings there. Lou and Dan came down from Sydney and Jimbo and Aimee made the trek from Shearwater. It was so wonderful to meet our new little Nephew, Oliver (Lou and Dan's bub). He's a cutie. We think he looks a bit like his daddy.

PEACE NOT WAR

Sonny and Cher

(I actually didn't recognise Keith when he walked in)

The Birthday Boy and Me (the boots were great Bride!)

Our next door neighbour and good friend Karen and her daughter Holly. Simon (Hubby) was on babysitting duty with Charlotte and baby twins Max and Ben.

Reuben made and Awesome Jimmi Hendrix

Neighbours (on the other side) and good friends Paul and Jen.

Jen also turns 40 at the end of this month and is having her own 'woodstock party'

in a few weeks.

My cousin Joel (not a great photo of him - sorry Joel) and Bruce Menzie.

A few other guests, Sue Smith, Debbie Carmichael, Andy King, Steve King, and Garry Carmichael- notice how the 'didn't dress up' lot stuck together!!!!

Matt with his family

Louisa, Amy, James, Joe, Paul, Dawn & Keith

getting our groove on

this was a delicious mud cake - I'll post the recipe later cause it's a good one!

I made the cake and mum decorated it. Unfortunately it was very hard to photograph. But it did look 'cool'. Mum put a lot of effort into it, making all of those musical notes etc. The golden 'stuff' on top is toffee, it looked like hair! and the choc tipped strawberries were perfect and nicely matched our chocolate fountain (yummo)

The most gorgeous Hippy award goes to.... Aimee (and Meg of course)

Our family with Ma and Pa. Isaac didn't want his photo taken but he is there hiding behind me!

Thanks everyone for helping Matt to celebrate getting to the top of the hill.

He wants everyone to know that the view is totally amazing!!

Girlies

2009-09-16T02:13:00.011-04:00

I have been borrowing a lens from Chelsea to see how I like it before I go ahead and get one of my own.

So today the girls came with me to check out some good spots

for taking photos.

We went all over the place and took heaps of pics.

They both got totally sick of it but we did manage to find some great places.

These are my favourites.

silliness makes for fun photographs

Charli and her 4 braids.

the water at the warf was like glass.

sharing a giggle

just about had enough.

sisterly love.

I also took Matt with me the other day

and I quite like these two of him

I am starting to notice the limitations of the lenses I have. They were part of the kit that came with the camera. For their price, I think they are ok but I would like a 'nicer' lens. I have done so much reading of reviews it's not funny and I've spoken to all of the camera savvy people I know. I have pretty much dedided to get a 50mm but I also like the idea of owning the 17-40mm but I'm not sure how it will perform on my 450D. Chelsea I might have to play with yours when I come over to give the 50mm back!! I wish I had stacks of $$$ so I could get both!

My Family

2009-08-30T21:16:00.007-04:00

Who knew Reuben had such insight????

(actually I did know he has a good eye)

For FHE a few weeks ago we talked about all of the good things we each bring to our family. We finished with beautiful pictures of everyone. We could do the drawing any way we liked as long as it was what you thought was a true representation of each of the members of our family. Everone's pictures were displayed proudly on our laundry door (which is off the living room) so we could all look at them and be reminded of our fantastic family. About week later I was doing the washing when I decided to take a closer look at the details in the kids pictures.

WEEEELLLL....Reuben is the artistic one and his pictures were very interesting AND MORE IMPORTANTLY very accurate.

Check them out.

and finally this... hmmm

Oh man, what a crack up.

Since I took a closer look at these I have decided that maybe I should get to bed a little earlier! And maybe look into getting some botox???

40

2009-08-23T08:10:00.002-04:00

-Cue Bryan Adams softly playing in the background...it was the summer of '69...

It was the summer (in America!) of '69 when little Matthew Keith Sayers was born. Yes he's been on this earth for 40 years. Today is his birthday and I think he had a pretty good day.

We began the day with the traditional gift opening. We got him clothes, because that's what he wanted. "I think it's time for me to become trendy, so I just want clothes", he says. He's never specifically asked for anything before so I was really happy to oblige.

I can't wait to take my new 'trendy' husband out on the town. Oh yeah we did that already!! We went out for dinner on Friday night with David and Chelsea. Had a fun night of chatting and laughing, wondering why so many people want to walk the kokoda trail these days, swapping stories, listening to some great live flamenco guitar, and enjoying a yummy Turkish banquet. I was so stuffed, my tummy hurt! I'm sure Matt would agree that the highlight of the night was getting his very own, brand spanking new BMW (photos later).

IS THE TRUTH REALLY OUT THERE?????

2009-08-19T02:21:00.008-04:00

What are all these strange markings on our lawn ???

This is what the CIB did today after our encounter with what we, and they, believe to be extraterrestrials. Last night Matt and I had the weirdedst experience. It was close to midnight and suddenly our house went completely dark. It was very eerie. Then just as suddenly the brightest lights I've ever seen filled our living room. I can't really talk about what happened next, I'm still trying to process it really...

Actually I'm not processing it at all, I'm making it up as I go!!!!

The true story is...

In a month or so there will be an extension where Bella is standing in the photo above.

We are adding a family room.

Our family is growing and taking up more space.

They are bringing more friends home.

They are getting noisier.

We need somewhere to put them.

We need somewhere to hide from them.

We just need more room.

Where the window is in the photo below will become large double doors that will open into a lovely 7m x 5m living room.

The new room will also open onto a new deck which will aso be accessed from our existing living area. Our builder, who is also my cousin - Rory Wright from Southcoast Builders, came up today to mark it all out. Dad will do all of the excavation work on Saturday. Good ol' Dad is also going to help us put in some drainage through our back and side yards and level it all out.

This is so exciting. It's gonna be like a little renovation rescue weekend! I am so grateful for all of the help dad has (and will) give us. Matt and I will have to 'give back' a weekend to help mum and dad at 'the farm'.

I'll update as we progress.

ALRIGHT...

2009-08-16T05:26:00.004-04:00

so everybody HAD to know the gory details.

Yes Rory succumbed to the sharp end of a spade ok.

I did some research and consulted some experts on the most humane way to euthanise a chook and this is it...

You catch them at night when they are in their coop sleeping , that way there's no stress.
You put them into a hessian (or similar) bag.
You dig a hole.
When the time comes, you quickly and forcefully 'chop'. Because he's already in the bag there's no mess, just a bit of flapping (which is reflex)
Then you simply cover in the hole unless you want to 'dress' him - to eat .Don't have those details sorry you'll have to google it:)

There are other suggested methods involving alcohol or ether or carbon monoxide that sound much 'nicer' but they're not guaranteed to work. I didn't want him to suffer at all and I wanted it to be quick and successful.

Just so you know I didn't do it myself, I couldn't. A very experienced and very kind friend offered to 'help me out'. And incase your wondering why my darling hubby didn't do the manly thing and do the deed. He wasn't here.

I love animals and this really was a last resort. I tried to give him way (and Nettie you'll be happy to know that I called the wildlife parks including Zoo Doo) but no one wanted him. It's illegal to keep them where we live (if they are noisy) and the fine is a hefty one. Unfortunately sometimes we have to do stuff we don't really want to do. I've shed a tear or two for poor old Rory (actually he wasn't that old - only a youngen) and now I'm enjoying the quietness that greets us - and our neighbours - every morning.

On a nicer note. Our neighbour over the back fence was chatting with Matt yesterday and noticed that our brown chooks look just like the 'stray' one he has living with them. Some of you might remember my post about our 'missing' chooks last year. Well lo and behold it was her!! I can't believe she was living so close to us all this time. So now we have all of our girls back with us. Once she got over the intial shock of Rosie (our dog) checking her out she was happy as Larry scratching and digging with her sisters.

Funny how things turn out.

Going, Going, Gone...

2009-08-14T01:37:00.002-04:00

Just a little update on Rory the Rooster.

HE'S GONE...

...to heaven.

Don't ask me any questions!

PJ's

2009-08-12T07:23:00.004-04:00

I've been doing HEAPS of sewing lately. Roman blinds for a friend, 11 costumes for the school play, and today I made Charli some PJ's.

She loves them.

She has had them on all day since lunch time and even did a little fashion parade before bed tonight.

I thought these photos were funny and really portray Charlotte's personality so well.

don't you just love the pursed lips?

And this one is kinda weird... She looks like an angel with wonky legs!!

Tuckered out after we'd dropped everyone else at mutual and activity night.

I think the new jim jams are a hit!

KFC

2009-08-12T07:15:00.003-04:00

Ok nobody guessed his name! I think Nettie is closest though 'cause at least she had the right letter...R. His name is:

RORY

I'm going to give him to Kim though because she needs him the most. I'll stick him in the post tomorrow. If you don't want him Kim I'm just gonna drop him off at Kingston KFC. I'm sure they'll look after him there.

Seriously though if you know anyone who wants him PLEASE let me know.

What's in an name?

2009-08-09T20:19:00.002-04:00

This is our Rooster....

He's a pretty good looking sort and I think the girls (by that I mean the female chooks!) kinda like him 'cause they never seem to mind his 'advances'.

We got 'the rooster' from mum and dad after their chooks had babies (so cute) last year. Mum was hoping for a few more chickens but ended up with about 10 roosters!

We wanted to have our own babies too and things have been going quite well until about the last fortnight. Our rooster has never been an early riser, thank goodness, and will only crow at about 7.30am which is quite civilised.

BUT NOT ANYMORE !!!!!!!

He has changed his habits over the last couple of weeks and now he IS an early riser who crows at 6.05 am every morning. NOT GOOD seeing as though we live in a suburban area surrounded by (long suffering) neighbours. So we decided through bleary eyes this morning that he has to go!

I thought I'd make it a little bit more fun than just taking him back to mum and dad's farm, so if don't mind the sound of a 6.05am 'cockadoodle do' you might like our rooster.

All you have to do is guess his name.

If you don't want him but want to have a guess anyway that's ok too!

Or if you want him but don't guess the right name, you can still have him.

AND for those of you who are thinking "Just eat him"

forget it, that's not happening!