Family Life

Just like that, It’s bye-bye July and hello August! I can hardly believe how fast the year is going by. And here we are back for this month’s edition of Currently hosted by Jennifer from Overflowing With Thankfulness. It feels like only yesterday we were looking at what we were currently up to in July. Anyway, it’s great to be back for this fun link-up and this month we are looking at what we are currently loving, looking forward to, starting, thinking and wearing. Let’s go! Loving I am loving this artwork that my friend gave me recently when I visited her during the winter school holidays. Her dad painted it a long while ago. I was so touched when she said that her sisters have his artwork and she knew he would want me to have one as well. I love the colours and I also love that every time I look at it, it reminds me of my friend and her lovely Dad. Here I am with my friend’s dad – the artist! Looking Forward To Spring! I am so excited that it’s the last month of winter and we can say hello to spring in September. Now I have to admit that so far we have had one of the warmest winters that I can ever remember. So I can’t really complain. But I just love spring because it’s a time of renewal and optimism. When I see the budding flowers, vibrant colours and the weather starts to feel warmer it really lifts my spirits. Starting I have started to go back to limiting snacks during the week. I used to wait for the weekend before I got stuck into the chocolate, bags of chips and Bundaberg ginger beer. Then gradually I started snacking on treats all week long. I don’t know what happened, maybe it was because I was off from work for four weeks. Or maybe I was so excited and relieved that I no longer had to worry about my thyroid. So I decided that I wanted to celebrate this every night by cracking open a bar of chocolate! Thinking I am thinking that it’s crazy how the price of everything is increasing! Interest rates have gone up, groceries, electricity, and health insurance. You name it, it’s increased! Wearing I wore my pale pink jumper on the weekend when I went to see Barbie. And it was fun seeing so many other people wearing all different shades of pink at the cinema. Even though as I mentioned before it’s quite warm for this time of the year. I have still been layering up because the mornings and evenings are still quite cold. I’m counting down the days to embrace warmer weather outfits! And that’s a wrap for the August edition of Currently! Thanks so much for stopping by and reading my blog. Until next time, cherish every moment and stay fabulous!    

Hi there friends and Happy Wednesday! Welcome to the July edition of What’s Up Wednesday hosted by Sheaffer and Shay. This is a fun opportunity to spill the beans on what we have been eating, loving, watching, looking forward to and a whole lot more! So let’s get started! WHAT WE’RE EATING THIS WEEK It’s still all about cozy winter comfort food over here. Monday- Lamb with roast veggies Tuesday- Turkey Bolognese and homemade garlic bread Wednesday- Leftover bolognese because I made plenty Thursday-Chicken pie, veggies and mashed potato. Friday- Burgers and wedges Saturday- Chicken casserole and rice WHAT I’M REMINISCING ABOUT The winter break almost feels like such a distant memory now. I am reminiscing about being able to stay up super late and then having the luxury of enjoying a sleep-in. But now that I’m back at work I still stay up pretty late but it’s nothing compared to those holiday nights. Right now I am in the middle of writing a post about early risers and night owls. Let me tell you, I am definitely on team night owl! WHAT I’M LOVING I am currently working with not one but two of my besties! There is a temporary change with our staffing arrangements and a good friend of mine has joined our team for three days a week at preschool for most of this term. These two lovely ladies light up my days!! WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO During the winter break, I enjoyed a fun trip to stay at my friend’s house at Avoca Beach. We celebrated Christmas in July with my family. During the July school holidays, I loved having the time to work on my blog and write posts about my favourite topics, like why the 80s was the best decade. For the last couple of weeks, I have been getting back into the usual routine of work and Sam started back at uni this week after a super long mid-semester break. Steve and I are also enjoying our regular date nights and now that he also has Sundays off from work. We have been catching up with friends who we haven’t seen for a while. It’s so nice having him home for two nights of the week. WHAT I’M DREADING I’m not dreading anything and I am extremely grateful! WHAT I’M WORKING ON Lately, I have been on a mission to incorporate some much-needed stretching into my daily routine. It’s a small change that is really making a difference in how I feel. Whether I am at work sitting on those teeny tiny preschool chairs, doing daily chores or working on the computer. I’m making a conscious effort to pause and stretch those muscles. It not only helps with any stiffness, but it also helps my posture. win-win! WHAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT I can’t think of any big plans that we have that I’m excited about. It feels like we are all just going with the flow. However, I am looking forward to August since it marks the end of winter, and that’s something that I’m really excited about! WHAT I’M WATCHING I started watching ‘Succession’ but I can’t say that I’m loving it because most of the characters are so mean. I have been rewatching old favourites like Gilmore Girls, Law and Order and Everybody Loves Raymond. But I’m looking for something new to watch, any suggestions? WHAT I’M LISTENING TO Right now I am listening to the dryer. Did you know that we only bought a dryer last year and I honestly don’t know how we ever got through so many winters without one! WHAT I’M WEARING I’m still layering up because it’s cold! WHAT I’M DOING THIS WEEKEND I’m super excited because on Saturday I’m going to the city with my lovely friend. We have plans to enjoy a late breakfast at The Palace Tea Room at the QVB and then we are going to see the Barbie movie. We thought about getting our nails done in hot pink before the movie. But then we decided not to because we will probably not have enough time. WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH We have our usual Cousin Connect dinner and I always look forward to those! Then it’s my husband’s birthday in the middle of August so I’m sure we will do something fun that involves food. WHAT AMAZON PURCHASE DID I LOVE THIS MONTH Bio-Oil – This is an incredible product that I love using as part of my regular skincare. The good news is that it is also a game changer for my scar-healing journey after my thyroidectomy. It’s going to take about 6 months before my scar is less visible but after using Bio-Oil regularly I can tell that it already feels smoother. And that’s a wrap for the July edition of What’s Up Wednesday! Thank you so much for stopping by to have a read and I hope that you all have a wonderful day! See you back here tomorrow.  

Hi there friends I hope you all had an amazing weekend! Today we are back with Adrienne, Dara, Jen, Joanne, Lauren and Sarah for the July edition of ‘Not Just A Mom’. And this month we are sharing our Top 5 Favourite Family Activities. Life sure does move fast, doesn’t it? Our kids have grown up and are busy venturing into their own exciting chapters. Our oldest son Luke moved out about 5 years ago and lives with his fiancee. And then there’s our Sam who is 18 and living at home but embracing the whirlwind of uni life, going to the gym and enjoying a full social life. So having a favourite lineup of family activities is super important to ensure we keep making memories and stay connected. So here are our top 5 favourite family activities that keep the fun alive even though our kids have all grown up. Top 5 Favourite Family Activities Family Dinners Family dinners are the perfect opportunity to slow down, savour delicious meals and catch up with what has been going on in our everyday lives. We try really hard to get the family together as often as possible to have dinner. This has been no easy task. Because my husband works in hospitality and up until a few weeks ago he worked all weekend long. Thankfully his roster has changed and now it looks like he will be having Sundays off, at least for now. But once the warmer weather hits and the restaurant where he works gets busy. He may have to go back to working Sundays again. But being able to have regular family dinners has been wonderful! Monthly Cousin Connect We all have really strong bonds with our cousins. So to nurture these amazing relationships we organise monthly cousin connect get-togethers. Each family takes turns hosting and we always have a fantastic time. I never take these for granted and I am beyond grateful that we all love being together and get along so well. Movie Nights This is a favourite family activity for sure! I love a cozy movie night and to tell you the truth I don’t really mind what movie we watch (as long as it’s not horror). I’m just happy that it’s an activity that we enjoy doing together. Sometimes we watch comedies, action, classics or cute kid’s movies. A while ago we watched The Godfather trilogy and now we are thinking of watching the good old classic spaghetti western trilogy which includes ‘The Good, the Bad and the Ugly’. Family Jackbox Game Night Luke introduced us to Jackbox Games. Which is made up of a whole lot of interactive games that you play on the TV and everyone uses their own phones or tablets. If you haven’t played this then you really should especially if you have teens. It is hilarious and I guarantee that you will all laugh until your stomach hurts! Family Visit To An Art Gallery Or Museum Most of our favourite family activities involve food and this activity is no exception. I love art galleries and museums but to be honest, the rest of my family are not huge fans. But if I organise somewhere nice to eat either before or after. Then they are all in! So every year I pick an exhibition at a gallery or museum. I also book a table at either a cafe or restaurant and we all go. The good thing is they all end up enjoying the exhibitions too. Well, that’s what they say to me but maybe they are just being kind! 😂 Life has a way of pulling us in different directions, with work and studies taking up so much of our time and energy. These 5 favourite family activities are lots of fun and perfect for keeping us connected!        

Hi friends it’s great to be back again for Friday Favourites with Andrea and Erika. Today I’m sharing a few happy snaps from my first week of term break. I’m actually away for a few days staying at my friend’s place in Avoca Beach. We have been enjoying some lovely walks, eating out at beautiful cafes and restaurants and spending cozy evenings in front of the fire having cheese and wine before dinner. It sure is a lovely part of the world here and I’m excited to share all my adventures with you next week. But for now, here are a few of my favourites from this past week. Camellia Gardens Tea House My friend and I enjoyed lots of delicious treats at the Camellia Gardens Tea House. It was wonderful to sit down and catch up over a fancy high tea. It felt like forever since I had seen my bestie and we had so much to chat about. It’s incredible how filling the high tea was. And I ate everything but had to leave half the scone because I was so full! Camellia Gardens After High tea we went for a stroll through the gardens. Even though it was a grey and very cloudy day, it was lovely to walk around looking at all the lovely plants and camellias. As we walked around there was a strange smell and we couldn’t work out what it was. It smelt like sheep or cows and was not very pleasant. My friend soon discovered the source! See this tree, it’s only one of many trees full of bats! That’s right all those hanging things are not fruit like I first thought when I looked up because I’m no good at seeing distance. They were full of hanging smelly bats!! Lunch Date In The City Steve and I went into the city and had a fantastic lunch at a cute French restaurant. It was such a warm winter’s day and the temps reached as high as 21°C. I sat by the window and the cozy sun was shining right on me and it felt so good! I had paté with bread and cornichons as an entree. Steve had the king prawns. Then we both ordered the most tender veal with a delicious sauce. Steve had the hazelnut and praline ice cream for dessert. And I ordered the créme caramel which is my favourite dessert. The three-course lunch was divine! Afterwards, we walked around looking at Darling Harbour. I haven’t been there in a while and it has changed a lot. There is a lot of construction going on and new buildings are going up. It will be great to see it all finished. Dinner At Home As much as I love going out, I always appreciate simple dinners at home with my family. Luke came over the other day and we had fish and salad. I love it when all four of us are home just like old times. Luke lives about 30 minutes drive away and with everyone’s work schedules, we don’t get many chances to be together very often. After dinner, we watched Paddington Bear 2. It was such a wholesome feel-good movie which we all really enjoyed. It was a welcome change from the zombie movies we have all been watching lately. It’s been a fantastic first week of the school holidays and now as I go into the second week I am really hoping that the days don’t fly by so fast! Thank you so much for being here today and letting me share a few happy snaps from my week. I hope you have a wonderful weekend and I look forward to being back here on Monday. Happy Friday!  

Hey, there friends it’s great to be back today on this very unusually warm winter’s day. I am excited to be joining Jennifer from Overflowing With Thankfulness for the July edition of Currently. This month we are looking at what we are Currently Loving, Savouring, Celebrating, Remembering and Trying. And I am so glad you are here! So let’s jump right in shall we? Loving It’s the winter holidays and I am off from work for two weeks. I always love the freedom of the holidays because I don’t have to stick to a timetable and I’m free to enjoy some downtime. I also love having the time to catch up and do some fun things with friends and family. On top of that, it’s also great not having to go to bed until very late and instead, I can stay up guilt-free and binge-watch some of my favourite shows. Savouring Food! Being on term break means that I have been going out to savour and enjoy some delicious meals. Monday I enjoyed high tea with my sweet friend. Today I really savoured a delicious French lunch when I went out on a lunch date in the city with Steve. Nom nom! I have also been savouring eating lunch at home on a real plate instead of eating in a cramped staff room out of a plastic lunch box. Celebrating Over the weekend we celebrated Christmas in July and you can read all about the fun time we had here. It was great getting together with the family and enjoying a winter-themed Christmas in the middle of the year. We all had an amazing time embracing the cozy traditions typically associated with the holiday season. Having a Christmas dinner in winter instead of the usually hot and sweaty Australian summer was a real novelty! Remembering Inspired by a post I wrote last week about why I thought that the 80s was the best decade. I have been right into listening to 80s music and watching some of my favourite ’80s movies. So I guess I have been reminiscing and remembering what it was like to be a teen during the mid to late 80s. Fun times for sure! Trying I go through spurts of really trying to remember to drink more water. Unfortunately, it usually takes a major headache for me to realise that I am dehydrated. I guess because I’m a bit out of routine now that I am on holiday from work. I have been a bit slack when it comes to staying on top of my water intake. The other day I felt really unwell with a horrible pain on the right side of my head.  After a few glasses of water, I felt so much better. So now I am definitely trying to drink more water to avoid this from happening again! Well, folk that’s a wrap for the July edition of Currently. Can you believe how ridiculously fast these months have zoomed past? It’s mind-boggling! And now we are diving head first into the second half of the year. But hey, before you dash off, I want to say thank you for taking the time to swing by today. It means the world to me that I could share a glimpse of what we have been up to. Take care and I look forward to being back here tommorow! Happy Wednesday friends.

Hi friends I can hardly believe that it’s time for a What’s Up Wednesday-June recap. The month has sure flown by so fast! I am excited to be linking up with Shay to share a little about this and that. Thank you so much for stopping by today! What’s Up Wednesday-June Recap WHAT WE’RE EATING THIS WEEK Monday -Chilli con carne with rice Tuesday-Quiche with pumpkin steamed beans and sliced tomato Wednesday-Chicken schnitzel, jacket potatoes with sour cream and chives, vegetables and lots of gravy Thursday- Salmon and pea risotto Friday- Burgers and wedges Saturday-Dinner at my cousins WHAT I’M REMINISCING ABOUT Summer! I am currently reminiscing about summer. But I have enjoyed reading about the awesome summer fun of my friends who live in the northern hemisphere. I think I have reached that point where I’m done with feeling cold and I am really looking forward to spring. Only 65 days to go! WHAT I’M LOVING I am loving the rest that I am getting at the moment and just hanging out at home. WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO Sam is off from uni until the end of July so he is enjoying a nice long break. I am off from work at the moment recovering from surgery. The winter school holidays start next week so I won’t be back at preschool until after the break. Steve is looking forward to taking some time off from work soon too. WHAT I’M DREADING Nothing and I am so grateful! WHAT I’M WORKING ON At the moment I’m getting used to doing nothing! It feels so weird giving myself permission to do nothing while I recover. So other than blogging I haven’t been working on much at all. WHAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT I’ve started making some fun plans for the school holidays! So far Steve and I are looking forward to a fun lunch date in the city next Wednesday. And then on Thursday, I am going away to stay at a friend’s house in Avoca until Sunday. I am also making plans with my lovely friend to go see ‘Mama Mia’ which is currently on at Sydney Lyric Theatre. I also want to go shopping, enjoy high tea somewhere fancy and catch up with friends and family. Did I mention how excited I am!! Gosh, I haven’t felt this excited in ages and it’s not even spring!! WHAT I’M WATCHING I finished watching 9-1-1 and then picked up watching 9-1-1 Lone Star again. But I don’t think I love it as much as I loved 9-1-1. I find Rob Lowe extremely visually captivating but I miss Chim, Hen and the rest of the gang. WHAT I’M LISTENING TO I have Smooth FM playing very softly in the background. Music tends to distract me sometimes so I like to keep it barely audible when I am trying to concentrate. I could never understand how my kids could study with music going either on speaker or through their headphones. Maybe they were pretending to study?!?! WHAT I’M WEARING All the warm layers, jackets, coats and jumpers. It’s been freezing over here! I am also wearing scarves and turtle necks until the scar on my neck heals. It’s going quite well but it’s still obvious and although I think a scar trumps a visible lump. I am looking forward to when it looks fainter. WHAT I’M DOING THIS WEEKEND It’s time for cousin connect again and this time my cousin who lives about 20 minutes away is hosting. We are all excited because a couple of my much younger cousins are visiting for the school holidays. They live in Banora Point (9 hours away) with their mum but are staying for a week in Sydney. We haven’t seen them for a year so we are all very excited to catch up with them soon. WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH The winter school holidays! WHAT AMAZON PURCHASE DID I LOVE THIS MONTH I bought this eye mask for Steve as he has trouble staying asleep. Sometimes he gets home from work in the early hours of the morning. So he doesn’t get a lot of hours to sleep when it’s dark. This mask is great for keeping the light out and it’s also super lightweight. He has claimed it as a winner! And that’s a wrap for the What’s Up Wednesday-June recap. I hope that you all have the best Wednesday!

Hey everyone it’s great to be here today for this month’s edition of ‘Not Just A Mom’ hosted by Adrienne, Dara, Jen, Joanne Lauren and Sarah. Today we are sharing about how we became a Mum (or Mom). I had been dreaming about being a mum since forever. Looking back now, I was that kid who was always playing with baby dolls. And I could hardly wait until I had my own little real live baby! I was 19 and my husband was 25 when we got married. By the time I was 23, I was more than ready to finally have the baby that I had always wanted. Looking back now I can’t help but chuckle, we were so young, full of enthusiasm and virtually owned nothing. We were renting a small flat and probably couldn’t even afford a cot let alone a baby. Anyway back then I didn’t worry about things like that. We were just so excited to be having our own baby that practical things like being able to afford one didn’t really cross our minds. Now I seem to have more than made up for my worry-free days and have a knack for worrying about almost anything! Luke Anyway, we had our little boy in 1993 and named him Luke. My husband chose it because it was a biblical name and it got my vote. Because hey, I’m a huge Star Wars fan! I just loved being a mum and I made sure to document every detail and milestone. I still have Luke’s baby book complete with a lock of his baby hair and hospital bracelet. Anyway, I always knew that I wanted a gap between kids and I thought that maybe 4 years was just right. Well, life had other plans for us. My husband became really unwell with an overactive thyroid when Luke was about 4. I had no clue about thyroids back then. And I didn’t know how badly they can impact a person when their thyroid becomes overactive. Trust me it’s bad and the fact that we survived those years is a miracle. So fast forward about ten years since we had Luke. We were finally in a good place and we decided that if we didn’t want Luke to be an only child. Then we better have another one…. and soon! I am an only child and I always wished that I had a sibling (I still do!) Thankfully I fell pregnant really fast and I was so excited about telling Luke that he was finally going to be a big brother. I sat him down and had not considered that by the age of 11, he had gotten quite used to being an only child. So when I broke the news to him, his response was nothing at all what I had envisioned. He burst into tears and asked me “Who told you you were having a baby”. I said,” Well, the doctor did”. His response “Why did you have to go and ask him for…waaaaahhhhhh?”. Hahaha! I laugh about that moment now! (but I didn’t then). Sam Sam was born in 2004 and we named him after my cousin Sam who lives in Los Angeles and is one of the nicest people on the planet. Having children 11 years apart was interesting. On the one hand, I knew that time just flew by so fast and the baby stage was over in a blink. So I savoured every moment and didn’t stress so much over the small stuff. But on the other hand, it meant that Luke was a teen when Sam was a toddler and didn’t always enjoy having an inquisitive little person getting into his ‘stuff’. Now they are super close and Sam will always turn to Luke for advice. He really looks up to his big brother and Luke loves his little brother. Except neither one of them are very little, Luke is 29 and Sam is 18. They are both over 6 feet tall and every time they get together, they measure each other. Sam is determined to be taller but at the moment they are the same height. So I guess this is a super short version of how I became a mum. I think it all went by too fast and I long for the days when the boys (men) were babies. The saying “The days are long, but the years are short” is just so darn true! Thank you so much for stopping by today and letting me share with you my story about how I became a mum. I hope you have a wonderful week.      

Hello friends! Wow, I can hardly believe that we are just about to hit the middle of the year! It almost feels as if I blinked and May flew by in a flash. And now here we are again for What’s Up Wednesday, May 2023. This is a fun monthly link-up with Shaeffer and Shay where we get to share a little of what’s been happening during the month. So let’s go ahead and dive right in! What’s Up Wednesday- May 2023 WHAT WE’RE EATING THIS WEEK Monday-Meatballs with mashed potato and veggies! I made meatballs on Sunday night and we had leftovers for Monday. Tuesday- Chicken schnitzel, jacket potatoes and sour cream, veggies and lots of gravy Wednesday- We are going out for dinner. Yay! Thursday- Beef stroganoff, rice and veggies Friday- Hopefully, leftovers Saturday- I’m still deciding on the menu for our Cousin Connect dinner. I’m thinking I might make lasagna, garlic bread and salad. WHAT I’M REMINISCING ABOUT The warm weather! Brrrr we are now right into the cold weather and I’m not a fan at all. I know that compared to many other countries our winters are mild. But here in Sydney as soon as it gets under 16°C I pull out my thermal underwear, jumpers, puffer jackets, scarves …..and complain a lot!! WHAT I’M LOVING Eating all the comfort food and drinking endless cups of tea and hot chocolate! The best part about winter is eating all those delicious carbs, not feeling guilty and then saying “Oh I’m hungry and can’t stop eating because I’m so cold”. WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO Steve and I have both been busy with work but still enjoying our regular Wednesday night date nights. Sam is on holiday from uni classes and has just started his student placement at a nearby hospital. He has really been enjoying it and telling me that there’s never a dull moment on the ward he is on. He also says it is giving him a really good picture of what nursing is all about. WHAT I’M DREADING I am booked in for surgery on the 15th of June and so I’m really dreading that A LOT! It will be so good when it’s all behind me. You can read all about what’s been happening here. WHAT I’M WORKING ON A garden to decorate the wall in our preschool classroom! Many of the kids are really interested in insects so we have jumped on this and are in the process of creating a fun collage. The children have been busy adding to it each day and it has become a real draw card for some of our reluctant preschoolers. Term 1 was tricky as we had a lot of new children and some were struggling to settle. But this term our little group is starting to thankfully come together and it’s so great to see progress. The classroom teacher and I high-fived each other today because it feels like we have finally turned a corner! WHAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT After the 15th of June, I’ll be excited about everything! WHAT I’M WATCHING I really needed a good comedy to take my mind off things. So I have been watching Everybody Loves Raymond. It’s such a funny show and it always makes me laugh. I really should start from season one but I have just been randomly picking episodes. Masterchef started a couple of weeks ago but I only started watching it this week and I am hooked. It was so sad that Jock Zonfrillo, one of the judges on Masterchef died one day before the premiere of the current season. He was only 46. WHAT I’M LISTENING TO Right now I am typing this while I’m on my lunch break at preschool. And I can hear lots of noise from the preschool classroom! WHAT I’M WEARING All the coats and jackets to keep me warm! WHAT I’M DOING THIS WEEKEND It’s time for Cousin Connect again! On the first Saturday of every month, my whole family gets together for dinner and this time it’s my turn to host. WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH We have a long weekend coming up on the 12th of June for the King’s Birthday. Even though we don’t have any plans to go away anywhere. I’m still excited about a three-day weekend! But to be totally honest and at the risk of sounding like a broken record. The thing that I am most looking forward to is getting that surgery over and done with! WHAT AMAZON PURCHASE DID I LOVE THIS MONTH This Matcha powder has been great for making delicious and healthy smoothies. This Garnier Olia hair dye is hands down the best! I recently made the big mistake of buying another brand that was half-price at the supermarket. And it left my hair dull and dry. I don’t know why I never thought of buying this hair dye from Amazon before. But I’m so glad that I had a light bulb moment and I ordered it. To top it off, it’s so much cheaper on Amazon than it is from Woolworths. Garnier Olia does exactly what the box says, it leaves my hair soft and the colour is long-lasting. I don’t have the time or patience to go to the salon to get my hair coloured. And at the rate my grey roots grow I would have to be at the salon every three weeks! So I absolutely love Garnier Olia and I use 6.0 light brown. It also comes in a variety of colours and shades. And that just about wraps up a little of what has been happening in May. Thank you so much for stopping by today, I always appreciate you guys reading my blog and I hope you have the best Wednesday!  

Hello everyone! I am so happy that you are here today joining me for this month’s edition of Currently hosted by Jennifer from Overflowing With Thankfulness. Today we are going to be looking at what we are loving, picturing, craving, wishing and collecting. I love this link-up because it’s a great monthly reflection. And it really makes me pause and think about things that I might otherwise take for granted or forget to acknowledge altogether. So without further ado let’s get right into what I am currently…… Loving I am loving that it’s still beautiful Autumn weather and we haven’t hit the cold days yet. The sunsets have been beautiful and the skies have been so blue during the day. There’s a chill in the air but if I find a nice sunny spot while I’m in the preschool playground, then it’s actually really pleasant during outdoor playtime. Picturing I am picturing that the next Saturday is going to be fun. I’ve had a few low-key weekends which have been just what I needed but now I’m excited for a few fun events. We have our cousin Connect lunch on Saturday. And then in the evening, I am going out for dinner with friends and after that, we have tickets to see a band. It’s going to be a fun day with lots of eating involved so I am also picturing myself wearing elasticized pants! Craving I am craving a BBQ! We didn’t BBQ very much during summer because we had to throw out our old charcoal Webber. It was just too old, the grates were rusty and the ashtray was starting to fall apart. I was really sad to see it go because we had enjoyed so many delicious BBQs over the years. There’s nothing quite like the smoky aroma of the charcoal. The flavour that it adds to the food is absolutely unbeatable! Hopefully, we will get another charcoal Webber BBQ next summer. Until then I’m beyond excited that I’ll get to satisfy my BBQ craving this Mother’s Day! My Aunt is hosting a BBQ and our kids will be cooking for us. I can hardly wait! Wishing I am really wishing that my motivation to finish painting would come back. Last year I painted two bedrooms, the hallway and the dining room in my compact home. But I never got around to doing the lounge room. We have to move the TV and lounge as well as other furniture and to tell you the truth I can’t be bothered with all the mess at the moment. I also want to paint the skirting boards and doors which really need a fresh coat. Once I get going it’s fine, I’ll listen to a podcast or audiobook and paint until it’s done. But I’m currently on a motivation vacation and I’m waiting for my inspiration to come back! Collecting I’m not into really collecting anything probably because I’m always on a mission to declutter. The last time I got into collecting something was when Coles released their Little Shop collection a few years ago. You had to spend over $30 in one shop to get one collectible. I went crazy trying to get my hands on every single item. It’s like my inner child came out in full force and I had to make sure I collected every one of those miniature grocery items, they were just so cute! But then when I finished my collection, I realized that I didn’t really know what to do with them. Haha! I’ve stored them away in a box and although I like them a lot. I’m really glad that I didn’t pay hundreds of dollars on eBay for the whole collection as some people did during the height of the frenzy. People were in such a panic (and I was one of them) about missing out on the ‘rare’ ones. I was obsessed but not totally nuts enough to pay money for them. So I just collected and swapped with friends and family until I collected them all. And in the end, the rare ones weren’t so rare anyway.   And so I guess that’s a wrap for Currently May 2023! April sure went fast! I hope that you all have a fantastic Wednesday and I look forward to being back here tomorrow. Take Care, Friends!