Merry Christmas

I could tell you that I have been really, really busy curing a ham, fattening a turkey, hand making wrapping paper and carving my own wood toys for Christmas gifts, but I'm afraid that would be a big, fat fib. I've just been cruising along, taking Le Artiste to the movies (Where the Wild Things Are, which we both really enjoyed), swinging in the park, tending the vegie garden (boo to tomato rot I say, although the kids did turn 'who can catch the most manky tomatoes' into a new and exciting game) and gearing up for the arrival of the big fella in red on Thursday night.

I've also been taking a moment each day to stop and smell the flowers. These flowers to be exact, so sublime with their heady fragrance filling a corner of our balcony. Mmmm.

Thursday will also herald the arrival of the first batch of relatives, Uncle W, Auntie M and four cousins, quickly followed by Grandma, Uncle D, Auntie S and the Wee One. In fact I think the Waffler dance card will be all full up over the coming week, but if you smile nicely and ask politely I will try and squeeze you in, okay ?

I hope you're getting excited, enjoying the fairy lights and sparkly decorations and humming the odd carol. Even if you've got some last minute shopping hanging over your head like a giant ACME anvil, take a minute to look at the faces of the children, feel that buzz of anticipation in the air around them and join in, even if it's just for a second or two.

Happy Festive Season Peeps xxx

My Creative Space

Well *phew*, I've just managed to squeeze this one in before the lovely Kirsty takes a breather and wraps up the My Creative Space meme for a Christmas break. It's a quick post today, really I just wanted to share the final version of Witchy, who is definitely my Witchy of choice, and as it so happens, was the piece selected by my friend to be shipped off to Melbourne.

Bye bye little Witchy and safe travels.

If you would like to catch the last of the creative offerings for 2009, head on over to Kootoyoo and enjoy.

A Touch of the Crazies.

Week in, week out, I put together a shopping list (actually 'The Shopping List', but that's another blog post entirely), load up the green bags in the boot and hike off the mountain to do the grocery shopping. Generally it's an expedition which runs with military precision. First we knock over fruits and vegetables, then we move to the other end of the supermarket to cover household cleaning products, then we work our way back to our final stop in the dairy section.

I never take more than one child but I'm always quick to offer a sympathetic smile to the poor frazzled women I see with multiple children hanging off the trolley (with at least one wonky wheel) like a collection of banana-lust driven monkeys.

I realise having a completely neurotic system like this doesn't work for everyone, but for me it makes a generally tedious chore, well, not quite so tedious.

Then comes Christmas and my perfect little system which has served me so well through-out the year, goes flying out the window, just like a couple of turtle-doves and a partridge escaping a pear tree.

Have you noticed what happens in the supermarket just prior to Christmas ? People start to go into a stock-piling frenzy and it's not just because Aunt Mabel, Uncle Ron and their twelve children have come to stay, it's because.....shock horror....the supermarket will be closing it's magical glass doors for a WHOLE DAY.

I know, right, a whole 24 hours without access to the wondrous aisle upon aisle of cans and boxes. I mean, sure, there are small convenience stores which we can rely upon to NEVER, EVER close under ANY circumstances, but what if we need a can of Argentian Gumb fish for the salad or twice pickled South American Hoho berries for the dessert ? Will we find those at the convenient store ? I think not.

So en masse we get a touch of the crazies. We stand in the baking aisle with a packet of long-life milk in each hand, wondering if ten packets will possibly be enough, we are talking twenty-four hours after-all. We load up on products on the off-chance that there is a massive post-Christmas glitch which leaves the supermarket doors closed for ever.

My warning to you all is get in early, grab your seventy packs of toilet tissue and your cans of Argentian Gumb fish whilst you still can. Because next weekend you will need full body armour and finely honed trolley maneuvering skills to outwit, outlast and outshop. Good luck.

Where've ya been ?

So, where have you been huh ? Oh, you mean me ? Oh yes, well, you know, around the traps as they say. I don't know about you, but I get a little antsy at this time of the year. The pressure to get a thousand things done, attend Christmas do's and school/kindergarten break-ups and concerts. Then there's lodging the school stationary orders for NEXT YEAR before the 11th, squeezing in uniform purchases, getting the septic tank de-sludged, flying down to the hairdressers, picking up those last minute Christmas gifts, getting hams, getting turkeys........getting a headache. *Phew*....thank goodness I can have one of these to ease the stress levels....

So anyway, my blogging absence was unintentional, I've just been a little busy sitting and rocking back and forth in the cupboard.

But now, now school holidays are upon us. Today I took the kids to the local pool and then we went out for some lunch. According to Le Artiste, this put today high up in the ranks of 'The best days ever' (still hard to top the birthday expedition to Time Zone, but I'm glad a morning at the pool still fills him with such enthusiasm). And this afternoon I harvested the crops, I'm so proud of my sieve full of beans and snow peas. Tonight we shall feast on a Hungarian cucumber salad (oh yes, the cucumbers have gone berserk as well) and a bean and snow pea concoction which I am leaving to The Coach, he's the man for culinary experimentation (well, with a little help from Stephanie Alexander and The Cooks Companion).

And to keep things nice and Aussie, we'll throw a few snags on the Barbie. All together now, Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi.

So I will be around, I will be finishing Witchy (so, so close) and I will be swinging by to catch up on all your lovely blogs. It just might be a far more casual schedule, 'cause we're on holidays you know. Happy holidays everyone. xx

My Creative Space

There have been all sorts of creative activities taking place around here this past week. We've decorated a Christmas tree. I baked a seriously delicious orange and hazelnut torta for The Coach's birthday. And as per the request from my friend, Witchy received a soft wash of watercolor.

Now I think it's been fairly well established that I am rather partial to a stroke or two of bright gouache colour, so I'm thinking that I just might have to play with a second copy of Witchy. A Witchy with oomph, I will keep you posted.

Thanks again to Kirsty for hosting another week of My Creative Space. Pop on over to Kootoyoo for plenty more creative spaces.

What's Hot + What's Not

Thought I'd jump in quickly again this week and play along with Claire's What's Hot + What's Not meme.

NOT

Post school swim carnival colds. Have we not had enough coughs and sniffles for this year ? Urgh.

Ticks. Ticks on cats. Big ticks on cats. Silly cats that won't let you remove the big ticks. *Sigh*

HOT

Getting the Christmas tree up. Yay. I can't help but smile each time I glance over at the tree.

The teeniest, tiniest vegetables in the world. Is that not the cutest little green bean you have ever seen ?

Cucumbers. Do you love a Greek salad ? Mmmm, we do.

They're green tomatoes, but they're not fried. Grow my little beauties, grow.

A day for painting. That's what today shall be, just as soon as I finish typing. Painting is hot, don't let the kindergarten kids have all the fun. Pick up a paintbrush and join in, you can't help but enjoy it.

So what's hot + what's not at your place this week ? If you want to play scoot over to Loobylu's and join in the fun.

Hello Monday

I thought in my absence you might have started fretting that I'd run away and joined a circus, but it's okay, no trapeze knife juggling for me just yet. See, here I am, having a jolly old time at Le Artiste's annual junior school swim carnival. Can you see that enthusiasm etched into my features ? That is the face of a woman having fun, fun, fun I assure you.

But really, it's not about us is it folks ? It's about the kids, and whilst Petal was supremely unimpressed that she couldn't leap in and give those Year Three boys a run for their money *le sigh*, I think Le Artiste had a great day. The weather was perfect, there was a sausage sizzle and numerous lolly snakes were consumed (tutt tutt Coach, I saw, oh yes I did).

So anyway, silly season seems to have started early for us this year and my poor little diary is chockablock for the next three weeks. But most of my Christmas shopping is done and the tree is up, yes, we are almost counting down on an hourly basis now, yikes. My plan is to try and enjoy the relative calm before the school holidays begin, that's when things really turn up a notch and we have a house full of 'the crazies'....hang on....just taking a few breaths into the brown paper bag after thinking about it. How are you coping with the start of the festive season ? I am sure we can all get through it together...one, two, three...breathe into the bag, that's the way.

My Creative Space

I don't have many words this week but I want to say a huge "THANK-YOU," for all your feedback last week. It helped me enormously and I'm pleased to say that after some tweaking Witchy is now ready for some colour. I'm so much happier with this piece now and although I couldn't apply all your advice, it gave me heaps to consider.

I also thought I would share this little beauty with you. It's a fairly rough and ready bookmark which according to The Coach (just call him the Bookmark Police) breaks all the rules for allowable book mark widths....whatever....and features three of Petal's latest characters. I just adore them and say "phooey" to the Bookmark Police.

Thanks again to the lovely Kirsty for hosting another week of My Creative Space. I just love it.

Following the White Rabbit, Part Two.

Now where was I ? Stealthily merging in with the crowds at Saint-Lazare station in Paris I believe. After the excitement of the train ride in, Ms Sassy Britches and I decided to move at a much more sedate pace for a spell. We drifted around amongst the throng of hyped up revellers. We took some time out to eat a ridiculously over-priced super thin pizza (and really, who puts an entire slice of ham on the top ? That's just crazy stuff) and we went for the obligatory view of the Eiffel Tower, dodging spruikers at every turn...um hello, do we look like tourists ? We live here *ahem*.

It wasn't long before we were overcome with an unquenching thirst, all that running around you know, and we ventured off to an Irish bar which Ms Sassy Britches was familiar with (fearless and quite the girl around town).

Now I'm sure that you can understand that from this point forward, events become slightly blurred (obviously the pizza and that giant slice of ham), so I will try and keep them in order to the best of my ability.

Firstly, it has been my experience, that drinking in a bar and attempting conversation is a tricky business when you all speak the same language. Throw multiple Nationalities into the mix and it is downright hysterical and suddenly turns into a drunken game of charades. Which in itself is challenging when the person initiating the charades has probably forgotten what it was that they were trying to say about half way through the 'conversation'.

Secondly..actually I don't have a secondly, I just wanted to say 'firstly', so we'll just continue on shall we ? There was a rather diverse mix of characters in the bar that evening, from locals to tourists to drifters like ourselves. But I just have to mention Axl...yes, as in Rose, but said with a French accent of course. Axl was hot, he was a Parisian local, and he had that rocker bad boy thing going on. Axl and Ms Sassy Britches were 'acquainted' from a previous evening spent at the Irish bar and I rather believed that Ms Sassy Britches was still quite enamoured with his rugged charms.

So imagine my surprise when Axl came over and started to whisper (read, holler loudly over the music) French sweet nothings in my ear with a devilish smirk on his handsome features.

"Urm," stuttered I, clearly a master of the English Language, "Are you looking for Ms Sassy Britches ? I think she's right over there,"

"Oh no, no, no," crooned Axl with his velvety accent "It is you I am looking for,"

"Um...er......but I thought...."

Much to my relief, this was the moment that Ms Sassy Britches decided to head back on over. Axl gave my hand a gentle squeeze, winked, kissed Ms Sassy Britches AND I both on the cheeks, then vanished back into the night like a mysterious French vampire.

Oh dear, I know I'm going to make you groan, but it looks like we're going to require a Part Three, sorry Peeps. x

Eye Spy.....Joy

I had no idea that choosing this weeks Eye Spy theme would be such a reality check. I have spent a lot of time this year whinging and moaning about all the things that have made me unhappy, but when I sat down and thought about what I would like to include today, I have realised that I have an extraordinarily long list of things that bring me joy. Who would've thunk it ?

I don't have a pic, but it goes without saying that my family and friends bring me joy. They can also cause me many new grey hairs and much frustration, but the joy is right up there.

How good is it seeing the looks on the kids faces on Christmas morning ? I love giving gifts, it makes me bubble over with happiness.

The kids artwork. This is me, with green hair, as drawn by Petal. Check out those eyelashes and the mega tan (?) phwoar.

Bubbly and chocolate cup cakes. How could you not smile at that combination ?

Watching the snow peas creeping up the trellis frame. Quite fascinating and beautiful to behold.

If you would like to see some more joy, go and check out Cindy's, I bet you're smiling and nodding your head by the time you're done.

My Creative Space

I am taking a really deep breath. This is one of those posts that I'm not sure I want to make. I love joining in with My Creative Space, but my space this week is causing me heartache. I was hoping, with a little time apart, that Witchy would some how flow more easily.... hmm, perhaps more time ?

Actually, Witchy has grown on me, but I really don't like the window. I like the boy on the left, but the boy on the right isn't quite what I was after. Oh dear, what to do ?

The Coach thinks I should start again. Perhaps I should take out the stone wall ? If you have any suggestions please let me know, because I'm starting to feel like I'm banging my head against said wall and I'm developing a rather tremendous headache.

For more creative spaces click on over to Kirstys, I'm sure you'll find lots of lovely bright and colourful treasures to tickle your fancy.

What's Hot + What's Not

It's the middle of the week and I am in a serious creative slump. It's a bit like having teeth slowly extracted, but with a pencil...and some paper....and well, actually it's nothing like having teeth extracted, but it is causing me some serious angst and I need a pick-me-up quick smart. Luckily, as it is a Wednesday, Ms Loobylu is hosting another week of What's Hot + What's Not, so I am going to join in whilst I wait for my creativity to return.

NOT :

Planting lettuces just before a heat wave. They have gone straight to the giant salad bowl in the sky.

Humidity. It's great if you have a flowing mane of ringlets. I don't have a flowing mane of ringlets. Humidity is not my friend.

Fat Cat scoffing her dinner so quickly that she proceeds to regurgitate it all over the kitchen floor. Sheesh Fat Cat, how many times have I told you, chew every mouthful one hundred times, at least.

HOT :

Finding new and inventive ways to stay cool whilst watching the television. Yes, that's Petal's foot. She's catching the breeze with her toes, but I'm sure you already worked that out for yourself.

Watching the vegies grow. You may think I'm a dork but I will have the last laugh as I feast on my organic produce. Nom nom nom.

Exercise. No, that's not a typo and I haven't accidentally put that in the wrong category. I'm embracing exercise again, but just to be clear, not that jumpy up and down sweat inducing exercise, oh no. I'm talking calm, controlled, work up a light glow kind of exercise. Thirty minutes of Pilates puts me in a much better head space, must be all that deep breathing and building my inner core strength.

So what's hot or not at your place ? Why don't you play along ? You know you want to.

Eye Spy.....Adventures.

I know, I know, this is still not Paris part two, but bear with me, I promise it will come shortly. To be perfectly honest I wasn't going to play along with eye spy this week, because I couldn't think of any adventure pics to post. Then a light bulb went off above my head (completely alarming Fat Cat who was trying to crawl inconspicuously on to my lap) and I thought about my childhood diaries, full of stories, love found, love lost, friendships and significant milestones. Now there's an adventure or two folks.

I also thought of a wonderful memoir that my grandmother put together (that's her up there on the right), starting with some family history from 1848 and continuing on until 1984. It is absolutely amazing and I'm so glad that she took the time to compile her story so that it can be passed down to my children. With her permission, I might share some of her adventures here, they will knock your socks off. You think you're having a bad day ? Try being five months pregnant with your third child, paralysed from the neck down with meningitis and popped in to a padded hospital room so your screams don't disturb the other patients. Now that folks is a bad day.

Thanks Louise for your theme, I think I may have to find a quiet corner to start re-reading again and for more interesting adventures, trek on over to Cindy's neck of the woods.

Cindy has also asked me to come up with next weeks theme and I have chosen.........

Eye Spy...Joy.

It can be anything that makes you smile, that improves your mood on a bad day and that basically just makes you feel good.

Winners are Grinners.

If you are most anxiously awaiting the second installment of my adventures in Paris, then I'm afraid I must apologise. Today I fell into that frightening abyss that is ebay...eek....I feel like my brain has been shredded and fried like a Masterchef challenge gone awry. So the words are a little mumbly jumbly at the minute but I have managed to get the camera back off The Coach just in time to show you an absolutely divine little bundle that arrived in the mail on Friday.

Yes, I won a blog give away, on my birthday no less, from the oh-so-clever Sherrin at Starashan. Such a thrill I have to say and I'm thoroughly delighted with all the luscious little bits and pieces, the kimono fabric bag, the lavender, orange and rose geranium soap and the surprise brooch, so yummy. And just for the record, Sherrin has the most insanely beautiful handwriting, I'm terribly jealous.

Anyway, before someone announces that they are plating up, I shall continue on to the next job on that never ending list. I hope you had a perfect weekend and I plan on considerable more blog love during the next week. (Yeah, yeah, promises, promises.)

Just tell me where the white rabbit is, okay.

.: Image from here :.

Ah Paris, the city of lurv, a city of thespians and artists, the city where I had the single most surreal experience of my life, somewhat akin to questioning whether my name had in fact changed to Alice and I had followed that darn white rabbit down a very long hole.

It was New Years Eve and a night of endless festivities had been planned. Well I use the word 'planned' rather loosely, unless purchasing a train ticket counts as planning. I met up with a fellow Australian Au Pair, Miss Sassy Britches, and we hopped on the train bound for Paris, giggling and excited as any other couple of young foreigners.

From the get go there was a certainty that this was going to be an evening unlike any other I had experienced in my rather pleasant and sheltered upbringing. Nothing gets the adrenaline flowing quite like being surrounded by a large gang of teenage boys for a forty minute train ride. Me ? I avoid confrontation like the plague, I'm a walk the other way or cross the street kind of gal. Miss Sassy Britches, she had a more forward, take the bull by the horns approach. Suffice to say that the situation soon became rather heated, but interestingly enough, not one other person on the fairly crowded train came to our assistance.

It was only on my return home that I learnt from Le Idjut that these teenage gangs were quite a large problem and no one would intervene for fear of being injured. Sure, I can appreciate that a knife wound would be a serious dampener on your planned New Years Eve activities, but sheesh, turn a blind eye and hope the two young girls can sort it out themselves, a little harsh I must say.

Anyhoo, as luck would have it we pulled into St Lazare station just as the language barrier was being broken with a colourful exchange of expletives, and we quickly scurried away and hid in the throng of passengers milling around the platforms. The heart was racing and nervous energy was coursing through me in continuous waves. Miss Sassy Britches grabbed my hand and turned to look at me with an enormous grin on her face and her eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Wasn't that insane ?" she laughed "Let's get out of here, where shall we go first ?"

Good grief, clearly I was in the company of a slightly deranged thrill seeker *gulp*, and it was only late afternoon, what on earth was I in for ?

To be continued.....'cause I'm cruel.....and you may have other thing you want to get done today. Sometimes I have to be cruel to be kind.

Eye Spy....A Favourite Gadget.

So we don't really need to say it do we ? I know what you're thinking, you know what I'm thinking....but hey....it's time to play Eye Spy again with the lovely Ms Cindy . And what an excellent theme choice by Ms Kellie over at 74 Lime Lane, I just had to partake, yes I did.

I love gadgets, I do, I think they're swell and this little beauty is one of my all time favourites.

Have you ever seen one of these babies in action before ? If not, prepare to be seriously dazzled.

You take one lovely green apple.

You turn the handle around and around and around....

And voila, a you beaut apple slinky. How insanely cool is that ? The kiddies think that they are the bees knees and I think they're ace too. (By the way, I am single-handedly attempting to get the word 'ace' back into circulation, so feel free to throw it around as much as possible over the following week. That'd be ace.)

My Place and Yours..A View of your Secret Weapon

I was going to resist the urge to play another Meme...I totally was....and then I saw this weeks My Place and Yours theme, thanks to My Bricole, and I just couldn't stop myself. Anyone starting up a group for Meme's Anonymous, I think you better sign me up.

I know, it's not so much a secret weapon, more an entire arsenal. Once a make-up artist, always a make-up artist it would seem. I'd show you the 'Professional Case,' but it could cause you to keel over in amazement, and I don't have any blog-read-related indemnity insurance, so you'll just have to take my word that it's pretty darn impressive.

If you're like me and just love having a little sneak peek at other people's lives, head on over to Pip's for more My Place and Yours fun.

My Creative Space

It appears that I have hit a snag with a hag. Yes, I possess rather exceptional poetic wit also, but that's not what today is all about, is it ? I fear that I may have alluded to much creative greatness this week...something about 'many little ideas....busy, busy, busy,' or some such waffle.

Well I'm afraid that I have stumbled into a small creative void. I have attempted to start a new piece but I'm struggling, poor old Witchy, she's just not floating my boat.

There are aspects that I like, but more that I don't. The biggest problem is that she is for a very dear friend of mine, so I am determined to make this work. *Sigh*, I'm sure if I keep my cool that she will eventually start to fall into place. Deep breaths Waffles, deep breaths.

In the meantime, I thought I would share some bright and cheery kiddie pieces. Petal's brightly coloured butterfly which looks to me rather more like a hungry and unimpressed zombie.

Le Artiste's birthday masterpiece which features Petal...with fangs. Hmmm, it would seem that Halloween has indeed influenced our creativity with witches, zombie butterflies and fangs. Either that or I should book us all in for a happy family group therapy session. Excellent.

Oh, I also thought I would include a panel of 'The Petal' series, as there were a few requests last week. It's quite lovely to see the difference when they are all placed together.

You know the drill now, don't you ? Quick, over to Kirsty's you go, for many, many more snippets of creative cleverness and inspiration.

What's Hot + What's Not This Week.

"Why Waffles," I can hear you exclaim in disbelief "You're joining in another Meme ?" Well, yes. Yes I am and this Meme is the brain-child of the lovely Ms Loobylu, so how could I possibly resist ?

I have decided to follow the reverse Not/Hot option, 'cause I like to finish up on a positive note.

NOT :

Sad, soggy, wilted herbage from the green grocer. I tended them with care, sang them little lullabies, but alas, my parsley seems to be heading to the great Vegie Garden in the sky.

Ticks. Ticks are never hot, no they are not. Especially when they are embedded in the heads of the bebes. Totally not hot.

An unidentifiable, not right, odour lurking in the fridge. Erk. Nothing worse then sniffing through shelf by shelf. Moving things, tossing things, then quietly tearing your hair out when the source remains hidden.

HOT :

Yours truly. No, no, I don't have tickets on myself. Quite literally I'm sweltering away from that fiery ball in the clear blue sky. Seems like someone may have decided we should skip Spring this year and launch straight into Summer. Phew.

Fresh, lovely green herby goodness, relocated this morning onto my kitchen bench. I love fresh herbs, just can't get enough I tell you. We also have a freshly planted up vegie patch just over-flowing with an assortment of herbs and vegetables. That is hot, yes it is.

Chocolate cupcakes, of course they're hot, especially when they have a birthday candle planted in them. Birthdays mean negative calories, which means more cupcakes, but I'm sure you already knew that.

Hot Tip for the Melbourne Cup.

And.....they're off. But quite frankly it could be hard to pick a winner, seems like half the field aren't even certain which direction they should be running in. Just go, go you good thing. Oh yeah, a hot tip from the Waffler, my money's on the black. You can do it......woo hoo....

My Place and Yours : Blog HQ

Yes, here is is, another view of my favourite nook in the house. Often my creative corner and also the place where I sit and tap away at the keyboard or scroll through the web drinking up bloggy goodness.

In case you have missed it in some of the other 10,000 posts, here is a slightly more sunny alternate angle of my blog HQ. I like to have my back to the wall (pretty sure that's some deeply ingrained Ninja technique) and I love that I can view various areas of the house whilst at my carefully selected vantage spot.

I can also reach quickly behind me to grab my trusty old copy of Roget's Thesaurus circa 1972, who could have known what a handy little book that would be for blogging and tweeting. 1972 meet 2009, I love it.

For more 'My Place and Yours' fun scadoodle over to Pips and thanks to Ninon for her Theme Queen topic this week.

My Creative Space

Oh dear, it's a rather sad state of affairs at Chez Waffler this week, all the creativity is still in the box. But rest assured that I have many little ideas buzzing around in my head and I intend to get busy, busy, busy over the next week.

I did however find some time over the weekend to finish the last of The Petal series. Bold gouache colours this time. And I have to say, aside from the misgivings about the hair (bane of my existence) I am rather attached to the vibrant colours, as is Petal herself. Guess which version she has chosen for her wall ?

For many, many more creative spaces go on over and visit Kootoyoo, you know you want to.

What I Learnt Today.

You'll have to excuse me if this post makes no sense whatsoever. I awoke with a panic attack at 5.45am this morning after dreaming that the five hour kindergarten excursion we attended today had in fact been changed to a week long camp, and I hadn't packed any clothes for Petal or myself.

Anyway, today was a learning experience for children and adults alike. Here's what I learnt.

• If you haven't taken a group of four year olds for a bush walk in a torrential down pour then you don't know the meaning of fun.


• Don't wear a dress if you want to hold the giant carpet python, unless you plan on providing the other parents which much x-rated hilarity.


• You know that really annoying girl in the class who almost dislocates her shoulder because she is so keen to shoot her hand into the air and answer every single question. That is my daughter.


• Petal wants to be first. Every. Single. Time.


• My new Mary-Jane style runners (sneakers or trainers, if you prefer) were an excellent choice except for when standing atop a bull ants nest.


• I should have taken out an award for having the worst baseball cap hair at the conclusion of the excursion.


• Even healthy home made muffins are considered contraband with kindy teachers, but if you eat them hiding behind your lunch box with your mum, it's okay.

And now for your amusement, here are some kitty cat pictures which represent our appearance before and after our day at the Environmental Education Centre.

Photo from here.


Photo from here.

I hope that you had an educational day today too.

My Place and Yours : Bedside

It's time to play at Pip's place again, with a super theme picked by the adorable Ms Lexi : Bedside. Really, it's all about the AWA clock radio, the B110 model no less. It has an LED display, and a clock and AM/FM radio, isn't technology amazing.

The truth of the matter is that I have grown rather fond of my ugly old clock radio, I just haven't the heart to replace it with some new stylish model, and it's yet to let me down. I may be wrong, but I think this clock radio once sat on my mother's bedside table, I guess that would make it a family heirloom, how lucky are my kids I ask you ?

A gorgeous package from across the sea.

I received a gorgeous little package yesterday. A gift from across the Bass Straight, that counts as a sea right ?

How adorable is this ? And look, the cutest little spotty earrings in the world. I love them to pieces, 'cause they go with my dinky flip hair style, see, I'm wearing them right this minute.

I'm also pondering the meaning of life and smiling at the little blue bird just out of frame. Do you like the soft focus ? Petal is such a masterful photographer, is she not ? (The soft focus may or may not have been intentional).

If you haven't already, pop over and have a look at what Sophie is up to, she's a super sweet, clever gal who makes really lovely stuff. She can't sell you a whimsical expression and soft focus, but you can pick up a pair of these cute as a button earrings or a beautiful brooch, cool hey ?