October 2022

Happy Halloween

6 Comments / Entertaining, Planning and Hosting Tips

Hey friends Happy Halloween and hello Monday! I hope that you all had a great weekend and I’m very happy to be back here today joining Holly and Sarah for today’s Hello Monday post. We enjoyed a fun weekend that went by way too fast as usual! Saturday I was so excited to see the sun shining brightly on Saturday. I went out onto my verandah and noticed that this beautiful plant that my wonderful bestie gave me is starting to bloom! See the pretty red flowers. It makes me happy to see lovely flowers in the front garden. The coriander and basil that I planted in September are still alive! Believe me, if you know what a terrible gardener I am, you will know this is a huge achievement. I think that the coriander might be going to seed! I made a tomato, roast capsicum, boconcini and basil (from my pot plant) salad for lunch on Saturday. Then in the afternoon, I got stuck into folding some laundry and I decided to throw these socks away. I haven’t found their matching pair in ages and I don’t need this kind of negativity in my life 😂 .So I threw them out! I bet that now I have done that, the matching socks will turn up!! In the evening I went to see the Australian Fleetwood Mac tribute show with a couple of friends. Poor Steve had to work which is a shame because he loves their music. It was a fun night and my friend and I were on the dance floor the whole time. Before the show, we had a quick dinner. Oh my goodness it was probably up there with one of the worst meals I have ever had. All I ordered was a cheeseburger and fries. I think a cardboard box with tomato sauce would have tasted better! My friend’s husband had a very chewy steak. Needless to say, we won’t be ever going back there again! But we did have a very fun time and it was nice to get out on a Saturday night. I haven’t done that in a while! Sunday My lovely friend invited me to her daughter’s first birthday party and I had the best time. She did such an amazing job with the decorations and activities for the kids. I think she has such a gift for planning children’s parties and I am always in awe of her attention to detail. Gorgeous party bags. So much delicious food! Craft stations for the kids. I remember hosting parties for my kids when they were little and it was fun but so exhausting! It was much easier when they got a bit older and we could have parties at venues like laser tag and bowling. It’s Halloween! I guess that wraps up my weekend. It’s a short and sweet post today because I’m off to join my cousin, her kids and the rest of the family. We are trick-or-treating together for the first time. I am really excited and it should be a fun night even though storms are predicted. I’ll be back later on in the week to tell you all about it Happy Monday and Happy Halloween!

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Last Week Of October

2 Comments / Friday Favorites

Hey everyone well well well….. isn’t it crazy how quickly this week went by and now it’s Friday already! I hope that you all had a great last week of October. I’m excited to be here linking up with Andrea and Erika for today’s Friday Favourites post. Thanks so much for stopping by to have a read and for letting me share with you a little bit about what went on in my week. The Last Week Of October! Some New Sneakers I was really happy that my new sneakers got delivered on Monday. They were waiting for me when I got home from work and it was like opening a birthday present even though I had ordered them for myself. Yesterday I blogged about simple things to be happy about. Receiving parcels in the mail is definitely on the list! Because I haven’t exercised in forever I actually didn’t even own a pair of proper sneakers. So when I joined the fun dance exercise classes a couple of weeks ago. I had to wear my work shoes because they were the closest thing to a sneaker that I owned! A Play Tent For Our Preschool Room We got a new tent for our preschool classroom. It was easy to put together but I had to get inside it to attach the poles. Hahaha! Medical Stuff Tuesday really wasn’t my favourite day because I had to have my thyroid scanned to get some nodules checked. I get my results next Wednesday but I think everything is looking like it’s ok. Anyway, I was stressing before my appointment because whenever I have to deal with anything medical my anxiety just skyrockets!! I had a few hours to kill before my appointment so I did some stress cleaning and cleaned out the cupboard under the ensuite sink. BEFORE AFTER Dinner Out Wednesday evening was fun because we went out for dinner. We had some bruschetta on black bread with prosciutto and figs. It wasn’t anything like the bruschettas we normally have but it was very delicious. Then for mains, we had some good old chicken schnitzel with salad chips and gravy. Hooray For Some Sunshine! We finally had a few sunny days this week along with nice temps in the mid 20’s! Uni Welcome Sam got a nice welcome letter from the university where he will be studying next year. I still can’t believe he’s 18. He has one more exam next Monday and then he’s officially done with school. Halloween House I walk past this house on my way to work every day and I think that this is the only house in my suburb that has any Halloween decorations! But in saying this I have to admit that I don’t decorate for Halloween either. All I have are two plastic pumpkins sitting on my verandah. World Teachers Day Today was World Teachers Day and our lovely director welcomed us with some surprises this morning. She had all our names on individual certificates stuck up around the staff room. We got to choose a pen and notebook! I picked a brown notebook because neutral colours make me happy! I couldn’t resist a glittery pink pen because I love pink too! And that’s it the last week of October! Wow, I can hardly believe that the month has just sped by and left my head spinning! I hope that you all have the best weekend and I look forward to being back here on Monday. Happy Friday!

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Simple Things To Be Happy About

7 Comments / Life Hacks

Sometimes life can throw some real curve balls at us. But even though we might not feel happy during challenging times. I think that it’s important to remember that there are a whole lot of things that we can be happy about. It’s important for our mental health and well-being to practice gratitude. So today I have put together a list of simple things to be happy about. When we recognise the simple things that bring us a sense of happiness then we will soon realise that we really do have a whole lot of things in our lives that we can be thankful for every day. Simple Things To Be Happy About A Hot Shower After A Long Day Washing away a long hard day in a soothing hot shower is my absolute favourite thing to do. When I step out of the shower and feel all squeaky clean then put on some fresh clothes I instantly feel happier. Dancing It’s hard to stay grumpy when you hear your favourite music from your teenage years. Go ahead and dance like there is no one watching. Better still find a fun exercise dance class and dance your way to happiness every week! Laughing So Hard Your Sides Hurt This is just such a great feeling! Apple Pie And Ice Cream The best go-to comfort dessert ever! Perfect for either cold winter nights or warm summer days. Stationery New pens, notepads, sticky notes and shiny paper clips. They are just instant mood lifters. My favourite stationery shop for all these lovely stationery items is Kikki. K. Fresh Clean Sheets The feel and smell of crisp clean sheets are one of the most simple things to be happy about. Washing Your Hair I love how soft my hair feels after I wash it. Then every time I catch the smell of shampoo it just makes me feel so happy. Cuddling Up Next To Your Partner On The Sofa I feel warm cozy and safe when I cuddle up next to my husband on the sofa. Of course, if we are watching something scary on TV then he is on his own because I’ll be cuddling the closest pillow! Lunch Breaks I always joke with my coworkers that the best part of the working day is lunch breaks! Fridays Even the hardest days are bearable when it’s a Friday and you know that you have the weekend to look forward to. Scented Candles Lovely soft scents evoke feelings of warmth and coziness. Getting Dressed Up I love having a fun event to look forward to that requires getting all dressed up. I feel so happy planning my wardrobe, hair and make-up leading up to the event. Cheese Boards And Wine Any favourite food will always make me feel very happy. But enjoying a lovely glass of wine with a cheeseboard just always feels so luxurious. Sleeping In Waking up naturally without the shock of the alarm going off makes me feel so relaxed for the rest of the day. Rainbows When I spot a rainbow in the sky I am reminded of how even after all the dark clouds and rain there will eventually be some bright sunny, colourful days. My beautiful friend also encouraged me to remember that rainbows are like a sign from our loved ones in heaven saying hello to us. Holding A Baby Cuddling new life in our arms is just so precious. Long Distance Phone Calls From Family Or Friends I love chatting with my aunt and cousin who live so far away in the USA. We spend ages catching up and reminiscing. My face almost hurts from so much smiling after we have finished our long-distance conversations! Watching A Good Comedy Spending a couple of hours lost in a good comedy plot can do wonders to lift my mood. Receiving Parcels In The Mail When I receive a parcel in the mail, I feel as excited as I do when I unwrap a birthday gift! Seeing A Ladybird Ladybirds remind me of spring. So whenever I see one I feel happy because it means that warmer days are just around the corner. They are also the only bugs that I am not deathly afraid of! Having A Clean House Nothing beats the feeling of a fresh clean house because it means that I can relax and enjoy myself without worrying about any housework waiting to get done. Seeing The Bottom Of The Laundry Hamper Even though this lasts about one minute in our house. It’s still one whole entire minute of happiness! Squeaky Clean Teeth Squeaky clean teeth mean lovely fresh breath Visiting An Antique Store My happy place is a big antique shop called Mitchell Road Antique And Design Centre located in Sydney. Whenever I go for a visit it’s like I take a trip down memory lane. Seeing all the fun decor from the ’70s and ’80s makes me feel so happy…….ah those were the days! Fairy Lights Fairy lights are just so magical and can make any space look so inviting. You can’t help but feel happy whenever you are around some pretty fairy lights Family Get Togethers Having family in our life is just so special and I think that it’s so important to never take them for granted. The happiest memories that I have are the ones of my family being together. Having My Hair Stroked I love having my hair stroked because it just feels so soothing. It’s just the best feeling when someone plays with my hair! Related Articles Ways To Be Instantly Happier How To Stay Positive In A Negative World

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3 Comments / Family Life

Hey everyone thanks so much for stopping by for the October 2022 edition of ‘What’s Up Wednesday’. Can you believe it’s November next week? I can’t wrap my head around how fast the weeks are flying by and there are only about eight weeks until Christmas!! As usual today we are looking at a few fun topics like what we’re eating, loving, watching and wearing just to name a few. So let’s jump in with WHAT WE’RE EATING THIS WEEK Monday night we had Butter chicken with rice and veggies. We went out for dinner on Tuesday night Turkey bolognese is on the menu for Wednesday night Thursday night we are having chicken skewers with salad and pita bread I have no clue what were eating on Friday night but it will be something simple for sure! Saturday I’m planning on making burgers and Sunday we’ll have some kind of pasta. WHAT I’M REMINISCING ABOUT I can hardly believe that we only recently enjoyed Spring break. But I’m reminiscing about the freedom of not having to stick to a routine. I miss staying up late binge-watching TV shows and fun movies. But I’m sure that I’ll blink a couple of times and bam it will be the Summer holidays!! WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO Apart from the usual work work work. My boys celebrated their birthdays this month. Luke turned 29 and Sam turned 18. Where did my babies go!!!!! WHAT I’M DREADING Last ‘What’s Up Wednesday’ post I shared that I had some nodules on my thyroid that needed to be followed up. My scan appointment was yesterday and it looks like nothing has changed which is really good. But I still have to see my GP next Wednesday for some blood test results and I really don’t want to hear him say ‘fine needle aspiration’ when he looks at my scan results. I had that done two years ago and it was no fun. I wish I could be calm and rational when it comes to medical things but I am not at all. I catastrophise and get really anxious. So I guess I am dreading my appointment next Wednesday. WHAT I’M WORKING ON Not catastrophising! WHAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT My whole family is planning to get together for Halloween. So that will be a blast. Oh yes, we also have our friend’s son’s wedding towards the end of November and I am really looking forward to it. The church and reception venue are over an hour away from where we live. So we will be staying overnight at a lovely hotel. I’ve been looking forward to this for months. I just love weddings so much!! WHAT I’M WATCHING I started watching “The Watcher” I only saw one episode but I didn’t like it so I’m not sure if I’ll continue. Sunday night I watched ‘Luckiest Girl Alive’ which was pretty good. I finished watching ‘Maid’ which I really enjoyed. Last night we finished season 4 of Cobra Kai and I just loved it!!! Now onto season 5. WHAT I’M LISTENING TO October has been all about listening to Kate Bush! I have always liked her music but ever since I finished watching ‘Stranger Things’ I have been listening to her music on repeat. WHAT I’M WEARING Well, I’m happy that I am no longer wearing heavy coats and jackets every day. We still haven’t hit consistently nice spring weather even though it’s October. So some days I still need to wear a few layers in the morning and then peel them off as the day gets slightly warmer. I guess we are in that transition stage where we still need some lighter jackets. This pale blue one that I bought a couple of years ago is perfect for this time of the year when it’s still cool. I was really excited to wear shorts for the first time last week! And now I’m wearing my workout gear for the first time in years since I started going along to fun exercise dance classes. I have also been wearing my clogs and they’re just so comfortable! I love buying them from a shop called Funkis because they have such a great variety of clogs as well as leather goods and clothes. WHAT I’M DOING THIS WEEKEND I have been invited to my lovely friend’s daughter’s first birthday party. It feels like she was only born yesterday and now she’s turning one!! I am really excited to be joining them to celebrate. WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH This year I want to start my Christmas shopping early and not be in a mad rush in the last two weeks before the big day. I want to soak up all the festivities and I am in the middle of putting together a bucket list of things that I want to do before Christmas. Every year the holidays come along very quickly. So this year I want to be fully prepared!! So I guess that wraps up October 2022! Thank you so much for stopping by to read about what has been going on in my little part of the world. I hope that you all had a great October and I look forward to being back here tomorrow. Have a great Wednesday! Linking up with Shay and Sheaffer for today’s What’s Up Wednesday’ post.

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Enjoying The Little Things

4 Comments / Friday Favorites

Hi everyone it’s lovely to be back again for today’s Hello Monday link-up with Holly and Sarah. Didn’t the weekend just fly by so fast!! I had a few plans to do this and that but in the end, I just had a very much-needed low-key weekend enjoying the little things. After spending so many weeks longing for Spring. Most days have been like this. We had a gorgeous weekend last weekend and then that was it. It was goodbye sunshine and hello neverending grey skies for the rest of the week including this weekend! There is so much humidity and the air just feels so thick. We are really lucky in that we usually do have such beautiful blue skies. So when it’s so grey and gloomy like this I don’t really feel in the mood to do very much. Enjoying The Little Things So even though the weather wasn’t helpful. I still wanted to keep a positive mindset and so I thought that a good way to do this was to appreciate and document the little things that I might sometimes take for granted when I’m busy or distracted. Things like……. A cup of tea and vegemite on toast for breakfast. When I was little I really hated vegemite and I didn’t grow up eating it because my mum never bought any. She was always horrified by the taste and couldn’t understand how people could eat something so salty that looked like shoe polish! When I was in kindy I ordered a vegemite sandwich from the school canteen. I had seen my friends eating it at lunchtime and they seemed to love it, so I must have had a serious case of FOMO when I decided to order it. Well, I didn’t have the best introduction to vegemite. Because, the enthusiastic canteen ladies must have spread about an inch’s worth of vegemite on the sandwich, ugh!!! That is such a no-no. You only need a small amount. I threw it out and decided that vegemite was not for me and my mum was totally right! It was only after I got married that I started to eat vegemite. I would buy it because Steve loved it and I would often steal a few bites of his toast. So eventually I ended up liking it too. I guess you could say that it’s an acquired taste! I Enjoyed A Haircut! On Saturday afternoon I went and got a haircut. It wasn’t really a cut, it was more of a trim to get rid of the dry ends. Even though I didn’t get much taken off the length, my hair felt instantly lighter and bouncier. Then after I finished at the hairdresser I wandered around the shops for a little bit. Christmas Decor It was really nice to see so many Christmas decorations in the shops. This always makes me happy! I didn’t see many Halloween things, here in Australia it’s mainly all about Christmas decor from mid-October onwards. These gift tags were cute so I went ahead and bought them. I need a new wreath for my front door but the ones that I saw were huge and probably bigger than my actual door so I passed on them. I saw some cute tops in Witchery so I went in and tried on a few. They looked ok and they fitted well. But I didn’t really love any of them so I stuck to my wardrobe organisation rule and didn’t buy any of them. Candles! Because this weekend was all about enjoying the little things. I made sure to burn some lovely scented soy candles. They make me happy, especially on days when the weather is dreary. Scrambled Eggs I was really craving scrambled eggs when I woke up on Sunday morning even though it was early. I was surprised because I’m not much of a breakfast eater early in the morning. So I went ahead and made some but first I snapped a photo of the eggs because I thought that they looked so nice all lined up in the box. They seemed to be all the same colour too and I thought that they were very good-looking eggs haha!! Church After breakfast, I went to church. It was such a drizzly morning that I was so tempted to stay home but I’m glad that I ended up going. Roast Beef Roll I had some roast beef leftover from dinner so we had some roast beef rolls with gravy for lunch on Sunday. So delicious and perfect for a cold drizzly day. I gobbled it up so fast and forgot to take a pic! Chocolate Chocolate with hazelnuts is such a simple little pleasure that brings me so much joy!! I ate a few squares after I finished doing some blogging. And that’s a wrap! I had a lovely weekend enjoying the little things. Thanks so much for being here and reading along. I really hope that you have a great week! Happy Monday!

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Favourites For The Week

4 Comments / Friday Favorites

Hi, friends thanks so much for being here. I hope that you have all had a fantastic week but if you are like me. Then I’m sure that you are very excited that it’s finally the weekend! As usual, I am linking up with Andrea and Erika for this week’s Friday favourites post. Today I’m sharing a few fun favourites for the week so let’s jump right in with my first favourite….. #1 I went along to a really fun dance exercise class for the first time this week! I used to go to Zumba classes for years and then sadly our amazing instructors stopped holding classes about three years ago. So that was the end of my Zumba journey! I don’t love exercising and going to the gym just doesn’t appeal to me at all. My only motivation to do any exercise is fun music and dancing! I was really missing Zumba recently and then just by chance I discovered Dance Nation. An ad for their local Tuesday night dance classes came up on my Facebook feed. So I pulled out my exercise outfit that hadn’t seen the light of day in ages and went along for the hour-long class. I had the best time!! The theme for the night was ’90s music and when I got there they were handing out fluorescent bangles. It was so cool to see everyone glowing in the dark! I loved all the music they played and I ended up getting a really great workout. My legs felt it for sure! Oh my goodness it was so hard getting up off the floor the next day at preschool when I was playing with the kids! I am excited to go back again next Tuesday night and I’m hoping that my sweet cousin (and former Zumba buddy) will be able to come along with me too. #2 Another huge favourite for the week was winning a $50 Country Road gift card at the dance class. It just so happened that on Tuesday night Dance Nation was celebrating its third birthday and they were giving out some prizes. I couldn’t believe it when my ticket number was drawn!! The best thing is that Country Road is actually my favourite clothing store. So I am very excited because now I have to go shopping for something haha!! #3 My kind neighbour knocked on my door the other day and she gave me a bunch of silverbeets from her own garden. She is such an amazing gardener and she loves growing all sorts of vegetables. I steamed the silverbeet and served it with our dinner that night. Yum! #4 I bought these cleaning brushes the last time that I went to Ikea. They are just so handy and I use them to clean all the hard-to-reach places in the shower. They are part of my cleaning kit and I totally recommend them! I can’t remember if I have already shared this with you but they are such a favourite that I just had to mention them again! #5 I really love reading and commenting on other people’s blogs. But for some reason, I was having so much trouble with commenting on some blogs. You see sometimes I would type a comment enter my name and URL then press submit and boom it would disappear! This has been happening for ages and it was just so annoying. Then the other day I had a light bulb moment. Instead of commenting with my name and URL I just commented as anonymous and typed my name after the comment. It worked and my comment went through! Yay!! I still can’t comment on some sites that ask me to enter my WordPress password. That just totally confuses me. If anybody can help me out that would be so great. #6 I always have some preschool favourites for the week that I love sharing with you. As I have mentioned before term four is my favourite term. The kids are just so settled, they know the routine and I have all built some really lovely relationships with them. I get sad thinking that some of them will be off to ‘big’ school next year because I will miss them. There is so much growth in term four! In the last few weeks, I have seen kids who have had such an aversion to holding a pencil begin to really enjoy drawing and colouring in. The children who were afraid to say boo are now laughing and enjoying my silly sense of humour in the classroom. We always encourage the kids to draw their own pictures but today they were asking me to draw spiderman, batman and Anna. I gave in and drew while they all oohed and aahed at my drawings. Kids can sure make me feel like a gifted superhero!! #7 After a long exhausting week, I think that it’s always nice to look forward to some treats. Tonight I am really going to enjoy a cup of tea as well as a couple of these yummy biscuits! So that wraps up some of my favourites for the week. I really hope that you have a wonderful weekend and I look forward to being back here on Monday! Happy Friday!

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Simple Life Hacks That Actually Work

4 Comments / Life Hacks

Life hacks are simple and very useful shortcuts that make everyday tasks easier and save you time. Everyone needs some simple life hacks that they can refer to for sensible solutions. Here is a list of 15 simple life hacks that actually work and that I use all the time. I hope that you find them useful too! A List Of Simple Life Hacks That Actually Work 1. Keep Your Alarm Out Of Your Reach If you struggle to get out of bed in the mornings as I do. Then one good tip that I have found to be incredibly useful. It is to place your alarm or phone across the room and away from your comfy cozy bed. That way when the alarm goes off in the morning. You will have no choice but to get out of bed to turn it off. There is no chance of hitting that tempting snooze button if your alarm is not within your reach. 2. Prepare The Night Before A good way to start the day off feeling more organised is to get your things ready the night before. Doing simple things like deciding what to wear and then laying out your clothes the night before can be a real game changer. If you have kids this is also a great habit to teach them. It’s no fun running around looking for sports uniforms, misplaced shoes or library bags in the morning. Everyone will leave the house feeling totally frazzled and it’s definitely not a nice way to start the day. Another thing that can make mornings easier is to pack lunches the night before. I know that it can be tempting to leave it until the morning. But again if lunches are all made the night before then this is one less chore that will eat away at your precious morning time. 3. Have A Designated Spot For Everything A place for everything and everything in its place. This is such a great motto for life! If you have a designated spot for things like keys, wallets, sunglasses and hand sanitisers etc. Then you will always know where to find them. I think that the best place to keep all these things is right near your entryway. Even if you have a small entryway it’s still very helpful to have either a shelf, table or even a basket where you can drop all these essentials when you walk in the door. Then all your items will be in one place ready for you to grab when you leave home again the next time. 4. Clean As You Cook Another simple life hack that makes everyday life so much easier. Is to clean the kitchen as you cook instead of leaving a pile of dirty pots and pans until the end. While you are waiting for something to boil or the oven to heat up. Why not go ahead and clean and pack away the things that you have already used and won’t be needed again? You can also use this waiting time to do things like wipe out your microwave, clean the finger marks off your cupboards or give your fridge a quick tidy up and throw anything out that has seen better days. 5. Make Your Bed Every Morning Your bedroom will look instantly tidier once you have made your bed. It takes only minutes to make your bed in the morning. And the benefit of feeling like you have already accomplished a task is great motivation. 6. Keep A Water Bottle On Your Bedside Table If you keep a water bottle on your bedside table then it is so much easier to remember to hydrate first thing in the morning. I function so much better when I remember to drink water. I also like to have a small glass of water before bed and sometimes I get thirsty during the night. So it’s handy if I have water within easy reach. 7. Cook Extra Whatever you cook for dinner, go ahead and make a bit extra. That way you will have leftovers for lunch the next day. Or a meal for the freezer which will always come in handy. If I am making a casserole I will usually make a double batch and freeze one batch in a zip lock bag. Perfect for those crazy busy nights when there is no time to cook! 8. Easy Way To Clean Your Kettle Kettles are one of those appliances that can get easily overlooked. Have you looked inside yours lately? Chances are that it might need a good cleaning. A super easy way to bring your kettle back to its dazzling shine. Is to fill it with a mixture of half white vinegar and half water then leave it overnight. In the morning all you need to do is rinse it out and it will be as clean as can be. 9. Sock Solution Odd socks are one of those things that drive me crazy. A simple life hack to deal with this is buying the same type of socks whenever possible. 10. Washing Toys Children’s toys can get very germy and even sticky. A good way to give them a good wash is to simply pop them inside a laundry bag to keep them contained. Then wash them in warm soapy water and lay them out to dry in the sun. This simple hack is useful at home if you have children or if you work in an early childhood education setting where toys need to be washed regularly. 11. Lint Rollers Lint rollers are not only perfect for removing pet hair from your furniture. Lint rollers are also great for removing dust from fabric lamp shades. 12. Easy Glass Cleaner If you want sparkly shower screens, mirrors or glass table tops, ditch the spray-on window cleaners. Because they always seem to leave streaks. Even the ones that say streak-free on the label. Instead, simply use a damp microfibre cloth

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A Beautiful Sunny Weekend

8 Comments / Hello Monday

Hi friends, I am so happy that we had such a beautiful sunny weekend! We haven’t had the best start to spring and the days have been a real mixture of some really wet and cold days with the occasional sunny day. But this weekend the weather was absolutely glorious and it finally felt like spring! Friday Night I was so exhausted on Friday night but I really wanted to get on top of some laundry and other household chores. Because the best weekends are the ones free from housework! I didn’t have to bother with cooking because luckily I had a delicious chicken pie in the freezer. I bought it from the farmer’s market last weekend so all I did was quickly pop it in the oven. Then I roasted some potatoes and sweet potatoes. Steamed some veggies and we had a delicious dinner ready in no time. I always try to make Friday night dinners as easy as possible. That way I can get all caught up on other things that I need to do around the house. I even managed to clean my washing machine after I had done a couple of loads of laundry. It was starting to smell a bit dodgy so I cleaned the filter and poured this product into the drum and ran the cleaning cycle. It smelled lovely and fresh once it was all done and I found $2.00 and a bobby pin in the filter. I was excited about my little payment for cleaning the machine. Saturday It was such a warm day and so I was able to wear shorts and sandals for the first time this season! It was great to ditch the winter clothes this sunny weekend. Steve and I decided to go to the farmers market and make the most of being outdoors and enjoy the warm weather. I was extra keen to get back to the markets because I wanted to grab another chicken pie! Luckily when I got to the stall there was one left. The nice lady said she had sold out of all the other family-sized pies. I can totally understand why. It’s because they are so good! I really want to try the beef one so I’ll have to make sure we get to the markets earlier next time. I also bought some blueberries that I needed for Sunday’s pavlova. One fruit stall was selling a large punnet for $25 but luckily I found another stall that had them for $16. Which is still expensive but not as bad as paying $25! These smoked almonds that I bought were great too. I used up all the candles that I bought from TK Maxx a few weeks ago. So I bought this lovely soy candle and it smells so good. We stopped for a quick bite to eat before we left the market to go home. Steve and I shared a delicious gozleme and had a couple of coffees to go with it. Online Grocery Order Saturday afternoon I got my online grocery order delivered. It’s so great that I hardly ever have to go to the grocery store anymore. I joined Woolworths unlimited last year and this means that I can order as many times as I want and delivery is free. As long as I order over $50 worth of groceries. This isn’t hard at all because prices have just gone up so much in the last few months. Prepping For Sunday Lunch Saturday evening I made some lamb shanks in red wine sauce for Lukes’s birthday lunch which we were having on Sunday. I have only ever cooked lamb shanks in a slow cooker before. But my slow cooker broke about a year ago and I still haven’t replaced it. The lamb shanks were so easy to make in the oven. So much easier than I had anticipated. I just seasoned them with garlic, salt and pepper and put them in a large baking dish. Then I made the sauce in a saucepan and poured it over the shanks. I covered the baking dish in foil and popped them in the oven. And they were fall apart tender after about two hours. Easy peasy! Sunday We were all super excited that Luke and his lovely fiancee were coming over for lunch. Before they arrived I made some creamy mashed potatoes and steamed some peas to go with the lamb shanks. I have this super easy mashed potato recipe that guarantees the most creamy and fluffy mashed potato ever. Also, the best thing about this easy recipe is that you don’t even need to use a masher. You can find the recipe here. We had a delicious fruity pavlova for Luke’s birthday cake. It’s his favourite and it’s mine too! The great thing is that pavlovas are just so easy to put together. I just bought the base, whipped the cream and added some fresh fruit. I’m still having trouble believing that Luke turned 29! A Fun Trip To ‘The Gamesmen’ After lunch, Steve went to work and the rest of us hopped in the car and went to one of our favourite stores called ‘The Gamesmen’. It’s such a cool shop where they sell consoles, games, lego etc. Luke wanted to buy a game for his new console. There is also a very interesting gaming museum at the back of the store which I love looking at. They have consoles and games dating all the way back to the 70s and early 80s when gaming was just beginning. I saw some game and watch just like the one that I used to spend hours playing when I was a kid. I still have it but sadly it doesn’t work anymore. I’m sure I must have worn the poor thing out. Yes, I really love all things gaming! I spotted this Nintendo 64 which is exactly the same as the one that I bought Luke when he was little. Look

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A Good Start To The Term

4 Comments / Friday Favorites, Home

Hi everyone, it’s great to be back again for this week’s Friday favourites link up with Andrea and Erika. Wow, this week went by so fast! And now week one of term four is done and dusted! It’s been a good start to the term and funnily enough spring break almost feels like a distant memory! The days are just flying by so fast but I’m excited that we are now really heading into the fun festivities. It’s so great to see all the Christmas decorations hitting the shelves in the shops. I have also seen Halloween things but here in Australia Halloween is not such a big deal. I did a blog post about some of the reasons why Australia doesn’t fully embrace Halloween. And also about my plans for this year’s Halloween that you might like to read here. Preschool Favourites It was good to see the preschool staff and catch up on what everyone had been up to during the break. We hit the ground running because we didn’t have a pupil-free day like we usually do when we start a new term. We had kids attending preschool right from day one. But it was great to see that they were all happy to be back at preschool and they settled in like champs! A good start to the term meant that we had lots of the usual fun favourites like messy sensory play with shaving cream. Playdough noodles for me! One afternoon I was tidying up our preschool classroom when I spotted this poor doll. I burst out laughing and wondered which child might have done this! So funny!! I wore my new shoes to work this week. They are not the fanciest shoes but they are comfortable for running around preschool all day. They also fit my custom-made orthotics which is a bonus. Comfortable shoes are my favourite!! I was chatting with one of my sweet preschoolers and she showed me her new shoes. I told her mine were new too and we both agreed that hers were the prettiest. She asked me to take a photo of our shoes so that she could show her mum. I love chatting with the kids at preschool and I think that this is definitely one of my favourite things about working with children. Food Favourites Onto some food favourites for this week. This delicious dip!! I bought this dip during my trip to the farmers market last weekend. I almost didn’t buy it because I saw that it contained jalapeño and I thought that it might be too hot. But the lady who was selling the dips assured me that it was mild and she was totally right! Not only was it mild but it was also very delicious. My family love hummus and I usually make it myself. I have a really simple hummus recipe that you might like to try. But I’m more than happy to buy this dip again, especially because the jalapeno and roasted capsicum added a really nice flavour to it. Another thing that I like about the dip is that it isn’t made with canola oil and I really try to stay away from canola oil if I can. Look at these huge scrolls! We bought these from a place called Oregano bakery as an end-of-holiday treat last Sunday. The bakery is famous for its delicious scrolls and they have such an amazing variety of flavours. We chose Nutella and banana, banoffee, and cinnamon scrolls. They were so big and so filling that it took us a couple of days to finish them. I’m back to healthy eating now that I’m at work. I was pretty good during the holidays but as you can see I did indulge in some delicious treats and snacks. Which is totally fine, I’m all for a balanced diet that includes treats. I’m not a vegetarian but I did enjoy my all-vegetable lunch on Tuesday. A New Bible Study Group I started a new bible study group on Thursday nights. I was originally going along to a Wednesday night one. But I changed because I couldn’t make it on Wednesday nights anymore. There are about ten of us in the group and they are all a bunch of really nice people that I know from church. This term we are looking at Growing In Prayer. I really enjoyed going along on Thursday night. It was very relaxed and casual. We started off with a cup of tea and cake, there was time for sharing thoughts, casual conversation about the topic and lots of laughter. I really like being part of a bible study group that enjoys good humour. ********** That wraps up a few of my favourites for this week. It was a good start to the term but I am so tired after just one week back at work! I am really looking forward to this weekend. The weather is supposed to be beautifully sunny and warm tomorrow. So we have plans to go out for breakfast. Then on Sunday my son, Luke is coming over with his lovely fiancee. We are going to have lunch together to celebrate his 29th birthday. We are waiting for Sam to finish his HSC exams in a couple of weeks and then we can celebrate properly with the rest of our lovely family. Fun times are ahead! Happy Friday!

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My Favourite Fragrances

3 Comments / Fashion Files

My Favourite Fragrances- I have been on a quest to find a signature fragrance for years. There are just so many lovely-smelling fragrances to choose from. So finding just one has been a fun challenge. In the past I have smelled fragrances on friends and have really thought “that’s the one for me!!” But when I have worn the same one myself. I haven’t liked it nearly as much as I did when I smelled it on them. So over the years, I have narrowed my favourite fragrances down to five. I like to use a little perfume every day but I don’t wear too much because I have a super sensitive nose. I much prefer a soft and faint effect when it comes to fragrances. A List Of My Favourite Fragrances Chanel Nº19 I love this classic fragrance. My husband gave it to me many years ago. It was either an anniversary or a birthday present. I can’t remember because it was that long ago. I loved it then and I love it now. For me, Chanel Nº19 is a perfect balance of floral and woody. It contains bergamot which is one of my favourite scents. And this probably explains why I love drinking Earl Grey tea. One of the main ingredients in Earl Grey tea is actually bergamot oil. White Linen By Estee Lauder My dear uncle Bill, the best uncle in the whole world gave me a small bottle of White Linen perfume when I was a teenager. He brought it back especially for me when he returned home from a trip to America. I love White Linen because it is a gentle floral fragrance that reminds me of spring. It is also very special and I love it even more because my uncle introduced me to this lovely fragrance all those years ago. Narciso Rodriguez For Her This beautiful fragrance smells so lovely with a distinct yet subtle note of patchouli. I remember trying this perfume when I was pregnant with my younger son. I was in the Myer city store and shopping for baby things but I went ahead and treated myself to this fragrance. Because I knew that after I had my baby it would be a long time before I would have the luxury of a leisurely day out shopping. O de Lancome This is one of my favourite fragrances because it is very different to the usual floral, woody ones that I love. O de Lancome has more of a citrus smell. So it’s quite fresh and perfect to wear on a summer’s day. When I think about this fragrance, I think of crisp white shirts! Coco Mademoiselle This is probably my most recent fragrance purchase. One of my very good friends used to wear it a lot and it reminds me of her. I like it on me too! It’s a very elegant fragrance and I usually wear it at the weekend if I am going somewhere special or if I go out for dinner. This fragrance is different from the others that are my favourite. Coco Mademoiselle has a slight oriental note to it. So it’s less subtle than my other fragrance favourites. I feel a bit more daring when I put it on. Probably because it is a more obvious scent. I really love it though and it’s nice to have a special occasion fragrance. ********** These are my five favourite fragrances. Now I don’t own all of them at the moment and I have certainly never owned them all at the one time. I tend to alternate between them. Currently, I am wearing Narciso Rodriguez For Her on the days when I remember to quickly spritz as I run out the door. And I leave Coco Mademoiselle for more special occasions. I have tried other fragrances in the past that I have liked. But probably not enough to buy another bottle. So although I haven’t found just one fragrance that I love enough to call my signature fragrance. These five fragrances are my favourites that I always go back to! Fashion-Related Posts You Might Be Interested In Accessories Every Woman Needs Ten Wardrobe Essentials For Every Woman How To Look Luxe

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