July Fun

... or some of the fun. We didn't take many pics!
Pre-movie sushi. Can I just say how completely surreal having a 4 1/2 year old yell out "MUUUUM! I want EEL! I want EEL!" at the Sushi counter... what the?!  Only to have me reply, "No, just have the salmon (raw) today"

When I was a kid we were very lucky to have delicious and varied food made from scratch. My other friends' mums didn't do so well. Egg and chips, fish and chips, beans and chips.

So nice to be in Australia with all the healthy and diverse food!

My kids pretending they're Monsters... they do better impressions at about 7pm every night. So cute.

Our kids LOVE Ribs night. We don't have ribs very often, usually when the LDS Missionaries come over for a feed up.. we all get stuck in. :)

Having lots of mucky fun at the park with charcoal.

A very proud boy after making his bed and arranging all the teddies very carefully.

Proud moments

Lucas came home with 10 merit awards yesterday. He'll be presented with his bronze certificate today. All but one are for Personal Best. :)

The boys enjoying the last few days with Dad before he goes back to shift work. It's been a wonderful 8 months having him home!

Riley blows his pre-school teachers away with his creativity. This was yesterday's effort. Lots of moving parts, crane and support stands, winches etc.

Here he is putting his masterpiece by his picture for tomorrow's adjustments. 

"And it's a firetruck Mum!!" Of course Riley, what else would it be?! haha Our little firetruck fanatic.

He spends so long concentrating that I have trouble getting him to leave the lego alone at dinner time. He also wants a keyboard so he can play me long songs (he can sit for ages!).  So we'll have to keep and eye out for one. Meanwhile Lucas is determined to make a noise on the flute/fife that we have at home. He's taken it to school today for show (just for fun, his news was yesterday).

Early June

Not really much of a title I know.. but this is just what we've been up to:


 Steve and I went on a date day..We didn't talk much, walked around some beautiful places,

..found another Mum and Dad and disturbed their peaceful moment

 We sat together, said nothing, and enjoyed it!

Then onto a marvelous time on the Queen's birthday long weekend, showing the kids an important part of their English heritage.. rock!

 We found an angry crab at the shops

 .. and a happy crab (he's always happy!)

My Norwex team tripled in May and I made Sales Leader (the first ever in Sydney might I add)...

..saw the funniest thing at the shops. Watching a middle aged woman struggle with the massive card and phone (doing the chalk board writing body wobble) gave me the giggles.

Family on Anzac Day

Gosh it's been a while! It's been a busy busy year. We had a family get together on Anzac day which was lovely because it was the first time I'd seen (not so) little Liam!

x

Holidays (Fire, insects, family and fun) Jan 2013

We've really enjoyed ourselves over the holidays. Just taken time together, had a bit of fun with friends and cousins. Spent time making delicious and healthy food... having an accident with the healthy food, and just being silly with Dad.

Don't care what you say, my lemon pancakes are the thinnest, lightest most delicious-est EVER, and even achieved with whole grain organic flour. (Who cares?! - just me I'm afraid)

My lovely neighbour showered me with gifts when they returned from Christmas holidays in Melbourne. Some were baking supplies and cook books. These were a treat to find, super healthy but still really yummy breakfast muffins. Two small ones with yoghurt had me full until lunch! Gotta love low GI. 

.... unfortunately, they're not fire proof.

(We awoke to Lucas saying, "Mum! Dad! There's a fire in the kitchen" There was so much smoke that I had to take the kids and "get down low and go! go! go!". Fruit muffin for 11 mins on high = lots of flames and smoke. Goodbye microwave! Good riddance!)

 Being silly with Mum's phone camera...

.. and Lucas doing the "Look what I caught Mum!" while I keep an enthusiastic face, seem interested and then say cheerfully, "why don't you take him for a walk in the garden?" then crumble because I'm squeemish.

 Riley asked me, "Does he protect our garden?" so I told him no. He's just happy waiting for his dinner.
Our lovely little monk was given to us by our Thai neighbours, together with the odd meal of the MOST delicious Massaman curry you've EVER tasted!  Gotta get a cooking group together to learn that one.

 FINALLY I grow something in our garden of rock. This is what (as well as my delicious little boys and the every day delight they bring) makes my heart smile. From dirt to dinner.

Bowling fun. Riley coudln't quite get that it's ok not to get all of them down. He got a bit cross but finally chilled out.

 Most of all we've just enjoyed time. Time with these little ones that LOVE and want our attention. We're trying to drink it all in. Aren't they beautiful?!

 We finally went over to our cousins house to see their new view. If you look closely you'll see the 7 year old on the quad bike from next door (what the!?).

 It's so relaxing to eat dinner outside and watch the cows come in and the sun go down.

Christmas and New Year

 

Christmas was great. Lego, Lego and more Lego. Just what they wanted.

 Riley was so thrilled with his fire station Lego set and matching fire man's equipment that he wanted to put on his thick rain coat to match. Good job it wasn't a hot day!

These photos make me crack up (Riley made me the red pasta necklace for Christmas - that's not the funny bit) because Riley's mooning Action Man. So we had to take another picture and he's wearing his "I'm doing what I'm told but I'm not happy about it" face. So cute :)

Just before New Year we decided we'd put something right. See the pile of large rocks on the right near the neighbour's pool? Those were a few of the rocks that the boys had lobbed in the pool over time.

 So while they were away we cleaned up their front garden and put all the rocks back looking nice and neat.

 We all loved having a go of the leaf blower :)

Then the special pick up truck arrived - Thanks Gramps and Farmor for posting that for us.

According to my relative (who is still living in the same area of Aberdeen as they did 4 generations ago when they first left the boarder counties) the thing to do is make three pointed short bread at Hogmanay. So here is the first one ready for the oven.

We went to a friend's for dinner on New Year's Eve (Steve's birthday) which was lovely. Then I stayed up to watch the last night of the Proms. Jiří Bělohlávek's very last time. He's wonderful and really gets it right.

 There's nothing like Jerusalem, God Save the Queen and Auld Lang Syne to get a thump in my heart and tear in my eye. I'm looking forward to watching re-runs of the Edinburough Tattoo with the kids.

Happy New Year!