Friday Favourites

Hey friends it’s so great to be back for this week’s Friday Favourites. Wow, so it’s the first weekend in December. Can you believe it? I know that I can’t! This week has flown past in a flash and I’m sure that the next few weeks will be exactly the same. Because December is just such a busy month! I don’t mind December being so busy because it is just such a fun month of planning, prepping and catching up with friends and family. Yes, it really is my favourite month of the year! As usual, I am linking up with Andrea and Erika today. Thanks so much for stopping by and letting me share with you a few of my favourites from this week.  #1 I mentioned last week that I bought some new make-up for a wedding that I went to. I tried to do a smokey-eye look but I’m not sure how successful I was. I’m always very conservative when it comes to using makeup. But anyway I was happy with how my makeup turned out. And I’m sure that if I applied more than what I normally wear for special occasions then I just wouldn’t have felt comfortable anyway. I bought this lovely NARS eyeshadow palette from our local Mecca store. It has all of the earthy brown colours that make my heart sing! The bottom row of colours also had some nice shimmer. I was happy with all of the colours and how soft they were to blend together. I hadn’t bought any makeup for myself in ages. Because my mum used to love using Estee Lauder products. And she would always stock up on her face creams etc when they had gift pack offers. Then she would give me the gift packs which came with eyeshadows, lipstick, mascara and even sample-sized jars of eye and face cream. #2 I also bought an Hourglass eyeliner. Except for this time I went with a brown colour instead of the black colour that I normally use. As I’m getting older I think that black eyeliner looks a bit too intense and harsh on me. #3 I have been really happy with the Chanel lipstick that I always wear. But the bright dazzling lights in the Mecca store had me in a trance I think. Because I splurged and bought myself a new Hourglass lipstick (which looks very similar to the colour I already own 😬). The good thing about this lipstick is that I’m pretty sure that it can double up and be used as a self-defence weapon. Because look at the lid…….it’s super pointy!! #4 I went out to the front of the house to put the rubbish out and I spotted this big beautiful pink rose. It smelled so lovely too. It’s funny that I hadn’t really noticed it before but that’s probably because I don’t often put the rubbish out. That’s Sam’s job but he’s away until Monday. #5 I used the pledge grab-it duster to dust my blinds. It did an amazing job of picking up a lot of dust. Look at how grey and yucky the duster looked when I had finished. #6 Thursday night my bible study group got together for our end-of-year dinner. Our lovely hostess made us the most delicious cocktails. It was such a lovely evening! We started with an amazing cheese platter. Then for mains, we had a  delicious fall-apart lamb with a variety of salads and sides. Then we finished off with a cheesecake and ice cream. #7 I was in Bed Bath and Table the other day and I saw this cute gingerbread man decoration. I nearly bought six for the tree but I was in one of my indecisive moods and I didn’t buy any. Then when I went home I couldn’t stop thinking about how cute they were and how I wished that I had gone ahead and bought them. Anyway, I was telling my friend this story and the next day she messaged me to say that she had found the last two at the shop and she had bought them for me. How sweet was that? So I’m very happy to have two of these cute gingerbread men. And next time I won’t be so indecisive!! I guess that wraps up my seven favourites for this week. As soon as I finish this post I’m going to get ready for our monthly family dinner at my cousin’s house. Then tomorrow I am so excited to spend the day with my bestie. We are heading into the city for the opening of the new building at The Art Gallery Of NSW. Then we are going to have a look at The Rocks Christmas markets. Going to a Christmas market is number one on my December bucket list. So I’m happy that I get to tick this off the list so early. I’m looking forward to a fun weekend and I hope that you have a great one too. Happy first weekend in December and Happy Friday!

Hi friends, as usual, I am linking up with Andrea and Erika for today’s Friday favourites. Thank you so much for stopping by to read about my week and some of this week’s fun favourites. It honestly feels like I blinked and we went from Monday straight to Friday! I’m sure you will all agree with me that the days are just flying by so fast. And I can hardly believe that it will be Christmas in only a few short weeks. I hope that you have all had a great week and that my friends in the U.S.A had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I’m really looking forward to reading about everyone’s fun Thanksgiving blog posts! But first here are a few of this week’s fun favourites that I am excited to share with you. End Of Year Parent Comittee Dinner We had our end-of-year parent committee dinner at our local club. This is when the preschool staff and the parents from our management committee get together and enjoy a lovely dinner to celebrate the end of another preschool year. The amazing parents do a wonderful job volunteering on the committee. They take on various important roles that help our preschool to run smoothly. It was a really nice evening and I was so happy to have the opportunity to chat with some of the lovely parents. Even though all the covid rules and restrictions have been abolished in NSW. At preschool, we are only just starting to let the parents on the premises. So sadly this year we haven’t had many opportunities to get to talk to the parents when they come to drop off or collect their children. When I reflect on this I realise that this is another way that sadly covid has robbed all of us yet again. It’s been two years of not being able to build proper relationships with our preschool parents. On a brighter note, I think that next year things will be different. And we will be returning to the good old days when parents were free to come in. I’m really looking forward to this a whole lot! A Fun Cocktail And A Delicious Meal At the dinner, we enjoyed a deliciously refreshing watermelon cocktail. It was so sweet and delicious but it was packed with ice. My throat is still sensitive and the cold just sends me into a fit of coughs. So I was forced to drink this super fast before it got too cold hahaha!! Luckily it really wasn’t a strong cocktail so I didn’t feel it go straight to my head. I ordered the pork belly with sweet potato mash, gravy and salad. It was a delicious meal and we had a very fun time. Time For New Hairbrushes I was excited to find some hair brushes in the exact same size that I was looking for in T.K maxx the other day. My other brushes were looking pretty old and a bit icky. Date Night Another one of this week’s fun favourites is that Steve and I enjoyed a date night on Wednesday night. We had a delicious meal and then finished off with a cheese board. I often prefer to finish a meal with a cheese board instead of a sweet dessert. On the way home, I snapped a pic of the pretty sunset. Preschool Concert The children have been rehearsing for their end-of-year concert. It’s been two years since we have had a concert where the parents have been allowed to come into the preschool to watch their children perform. So it will be really lovely to feel like things are finally back to normal this year. Although in saying that, we are now in the middle of another big covid wave. But I can’t see us ever going back to any restrictions or lockdowns ever again. This is one of the songs that the children have been practising. Friends this is the cutest song ever! And I don’t even mind that this song is stuck in my head on a constant loop. It is just so cute!!  So if you have little ones I really encourage you to show this song to them. I guarantee they will love it and you will too. Some songs drive me insane especially when I can’t shake them out of my head (hello…..Baby shark!!) but this one is a firm favourite for sure! A Dash To The Mecca Store This afternoon I did a mad dash to Mecca for some eye shadow and lipstick. We are going to our friend’s son’s wedding tomorrow and I needed some make-up. Well, confession time I didn’t need make-up because I do have some BUT it was a good excuse to get some fresh new products. It has been ages since I updated my eye shadow palette. I’m keen to do a smokey-eye look so I have been watching a few YouTube make-up tutorials. Fingers crossed I get the look right because the last thing I want to look like is a racoon! I don’t wear a lot of makeup even when I go out. I always like to keep everything subtle and I’m a firm believer that less is more. But I have always wanted to try a smokey eye look and right now I’m feeling a bit more daring. After all, if it looks bad I can always wash it off, right? Hmmm….we’ll see. Getting Ready For A Fun Weekend I picked up some chicken chow mein for dinner tonight because I knew that I wouldn’t have time to cook. And Sam was so excited because we don’t get takeaway very often. But there are quite a few things that I need to get done tonight like colouring my hair and packing for our overnight stay after the wedding. The church and the wedding reception are both about an hour or so from where we live. So we thought that it would be a fun opportunity to make the whole event

Friday Favourites 18-11-2022. Hi, friends thanks so much for stopping by for today’s Friday favourites! I hope that you all had a great week and are looking forward to the weekend! As usual, I am excited to join Andrea and Erika with this fun link-up where I am sharing a little of what has been going on with me during the week. Covid Got Me! Well guys I have to start by sharing with you that Covid finally caught up with me in a big way!! I had somehow managed to avoid getting it up until now. And I was starting to think that I might be immune or that I was blessed with some kind of special covid resistant gene. Maybe I was a Novid!! After all, I have been a close contact so many times and I managed to avoid getting sick every single time. But nope, it turns out that I am none of those things and covid knocked me down pretty hard! I don’t think that I have been so sick in a very long time. I was off from work for a week and then I went back to work yesterday. But I probably should have just taken the whole of this week off too. Because I still felt unwell today and I ended up leaving work at lunchtime. Fingers crossed that after this weekend I will feel like myself again. So I guess that one huge favourite for this week is that I am slowly starting to feel better. Even today after I came home early and had a rest I am feeling much better than I did this morning. After being flat out on my back with high temperatures, back pain, face pain, all over my body pain, nausea etc (so many random symptoms!!) even my scalp hurt!! I am just so thankful to be improving every day. My cute little cat kept me company while I lay there watching TV and wishing myself better. Boosting My Immunity I am on a mission to boost my immunity! So I have been taking these echinacea, zinc and vitamin C tablets. They are really nice and refreshing too. I just pop one in a glass of water and it tastes like a fizzy drink. When I did my online grocery order I made sure to order some fresh berries, mango and kiwi fruit. I also ordered some frozen fruit to make smoothies. Initially, I lost my appetite, along with my sense of taste and smell. Thankfully everything is slowly coming back. But I found that it was much easier to drink a smoothie than it was to eat a whole meal. I love eating and I will smash through a big plate of anything! So I am really looking forward to being well enough to actually enjoy my food again. My Favourite Cup My sweet friend gave me this Starbucks cup a while ago and it’s my favourite. It kept me hydrated the whole time I was sick. Vitamin D Last Monday I gathered up enough strength to have a shower and wash my hair. Afterwards, I sat out in the sun to get some vitamin D for a bit before the weather turned. I’m still waiting for spring over here!! I think we are going through some kind of freak polar blast at the moment. Sigh! Chicken Pie And A Cannoli My husband was worried that I wasn’t eating much so he made a trip to one of our favourite cafes and bought me a chicken pie and a cannoli. It was very delicious and I managed to finish the pie for lunch and the cannoli for dinner. Ha! cannoli for dinner…that’s a first!! Healthy Pancakes Wednesday this week I finally felt well enough to get up and cook something so I made some pancakes. I also cut up some delicious fruit. I love the golden kiwis, they are my favourite fruit and I prefer them to the normal green kiwi. These pancakes are really delicious and healthy too. They are super easy to make and they contain nutritious ingredients such as mashed banana, ground sunflower seeds and pepitas. My family love these pancakes for breakfast or as a snack. You can find the recipe here. We had our pancakes with a good splash of maple syrup. Lately I seemed to have a better appetite for sweet things than savoury which is kind of weird because I prefer savoury foods normally. Maybe covid has changed my tastebuds permanently! I was testing negative by Wednesday so I felt ok about moving around the house. Up until then, I had isolated myself and every time I had to go to the bathroom I would disinfect everything I touched as well as spray with Glen 20. Thankfully Sam and Steve managed to avoid getting covid this time. They both had it earlier this year and luckily only had very minor symptoms. A Flowering Peace Lily I was excited to see that my peace lily was growing again this year. It seems to flower every year around this time.   I guess that just about wraps up this week’s Friday Favourites post! I spent the whole week recovering from covid and didn’t really do much. I’m really looking forward to healthier days ahead so I am making sure that I get plenty of rest this weekend. Hopefully, I can also get back on track with blogging. I felt so sick that I could hardly stand looking at a computer but I should be ok next week. I really hope you guys have a fantastic weekend and I look forward to being back here on Monday. Happy Friday!  

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!      

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!                                                                                    

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!  

Boohoo!! Yes friends it’s my last week of spring break. So it’s back to work on Monday. It’s been a fantastic couple of weeks. I have had the best time getting out and doing some fun things as well as hanging out at home. I have been able to relax and also do some chores that had been on my list for when I had more time (hello oven cleaning). It’s been absolutely brilliant not having to stick to a routine. And as I have mentioned many times before….. I have loved loved loved staying up late! But the days just went by so quick and I missed catching up with some lovely friends but that’s ok I’m sure we will get together soon! Even though I wished so hard. Time just didn’t slow down and the days just flew by in a flash! Anyway, such is life and I am lucky that I work at a great place with some lovely people and that we are going into term 4 which is my favourite term. Term 4 is my favourite not just because it’s the last term of the school year. But because to me, it’s the most fun term. All the kids are settled, we are all in a great routine and we get to do fun festive activities. Bring on Term 4!!! But before all that, thanks so much for being here where as usual I am linking up with Andrea and Erika for today’s Friday Favourites. Fun Favourites For My Last Week Of Spring Break #1 Monday night was our once-a-month dinner catch-up with our friends. To celebrate the last week of spring break I enjoyed a margarita!! We had some dim sims as a small starter and I had my usual steamed barramundi and rice. My friend Marianne always orders the same dish too. We were laughing about how we ordered the same meal every single month. Haha, it’s just so delicious and healthy! #2 Steve had the day off from work on Tuesday. Normally he has Wednesdays off but one of the other guys was away so they did a reshuffle. We enjoyed staying home all day. Then in the evening we had a small cheese plate and some prosecco and settled in to watch our favourite cozy show ‘ All Creatures Great And Small’. #3 Wednesday morning we went out for breakfast which was very delicious. Steve went off to get a remedial massage on his legs. Poor guy, he has dodgy knees and tight calf muscles from being on his feet all day at work. While Steve got his massage I got a pedicure and a manicure. This time I chose a colour called mulberry which I really liked. I always stick to neutral colours but look at this wall of colours. Maybe one day I’ll go home with a fluoro colour…….Nah I like safe neutrals too much! Before we went home I stopped off at Mecca and bought some BB cream and blush as well as a new make-up brush. I normally just use bronzer for my cheeks but I thought I would give this soft colour a try. #4 Thursday morning I went to visit a very dear friend’s father who is now living in an aged care facility. My lovely friend met me there and we spent a few hours with her dad. It was so great to see them. I have known this lovely friend and her family since we were little. Her mum and my mum were very best friends. They were inseparable and whenever they were together they were like two giggling school girls as you can see in this picture! Sadly my friend’s mum passed away many years ago and now her dad is 94. He is doing quite well but his short-term memory is not the best. So it was hard when he asked me a few times how my own mum was and I had to remind him that she was in heaven. What was even harder was when it came time to leave and say goodbye. I couldn’t help getting teary and of course, my friend did too. We had a lovely time during the visit though. After lunch, we played dominoes and boy oh boy my friend’s dad is as sharp as a tack when it comes to dominoes. He beat us every single time even though we tried really hard!! It was a very special day and I’m looking forward to the next time I visit. #5 I popped into some of my favourite shops on the way home from visiting my friend’s dad. The first stop was West Elm. I love all their homewares and decor but I don’t really love their prices! It is fun to browse and get some decorating ideas. I spotted this mirror and the price tag said it was $499. I have a very similar mirror in my small hallway that I bought from Ikea at a fraction of the price!! It goes to show that you really don’t need to spend so much to achieve a very similar look. They also had some fun Halloween plates and mugs #6 Then I went and had a look at Pottery Barn where they also had cute Halloween mugs. I love this all-white bed! #7 Finally, I went and had a look at Williams Sonoma and bought this delicious pulled chicken starter. It’s so good and it’s become an easy-to-prepare family favourite. #8 Sam finally turned 18! He has been counting down the days until he is officially and legally an adult. He did a little bit of studying for exams on Thursday morning. Then he went out in the evening with some friends to Karaoke followed by dinner at a burger place. All the boys or should I say young men came back to our place to sing happy birthday and have cake. We will organise some kind of family celebration once the HSC

Hi everyone, I hope you are all well! This first week of spring break has flown by just way too fast. But that’s always the way when you are on holiday right? Anyway, it is so lovely to be off work and not have to worry about schedules and timetables. I did all the usual fun things like staying up super late and sleeping in. I’ve been binge-watching shows and also had a couple of really fun outings. Candles I was in Tk Maxx earlier this week (I think it’s called TJ Maxx in the U.S) and I found an entire stand full of Sand & Fog candles! I was really excited because they haven’t had a great variety of candles lately. It’s been a case of slim pickings. Now usually I love to buy Ecoya candles but they really are on the pricey side. A 400g candle usually costs $44.95 when it is not discounted. And I only ever find them discounted 20% at the most. These 340g Sand & Fog candles were only $12.99 so I grabbed a few. I have been at home a lot this week so it’s been so lovely to have them burning nearly all day. They give off a really nice subtle scent and they have made my home smell amazing! A Lunchtime Catch Up Sam went to the gym on Tuesday and when he finished. Steve and I met him at a cafe in our local Westfields. There’s been a lot going on since he graduated. He’s had celebrations with friends as well as an overnight stay on a friend’s farm to celebrate an 18th birthday. We felt like we hadn’t had a chance to sit down and have a proper chat. So it was really nice to catch up and hear about all the fun things that he had gotten up to in the last few days.  He told us all about how he learnt to drive a manual in an old truck. He went dirt bike riding and also rode in the back of a ute (he assured me it was a very slow drive). It was lovely to hear all his stories. Sam was super hungry after a big workout at the gym so he had a chicken schnitzel wrap with chips. Steve and I had already had lunch earlier so we just had some delicious taro lattes. A Beautiful Sunset In the evening we went back again to the St George Motor Boat club for the seafood platter. We love it so much and I think that this is the third or fourth week in a row that we have been! Sam was going to join us but he had to do something online for uni at 6 pm. I took a photo of this beautiful sunset as we were walking toward the club. See the sun through the clouds, it looked so pretty. Krispy Kreme Doughnut Decorating My sweet cousin Jessie invited me to join her and her two kids along to a Krispy Kreme doughnut decorating school holiday event on Thursday afternoon. We had the best time! I used to take my boys to fun school holiday activities like this one when they were younger. It was so great to hang out with my cousin and her kids were so funny. You should have seen how much icing they poured over their doughnuts !! In the end, I think that they had more icing than doughnuts!! We got two doughnuts and some containers with lollies. They had the icing in tubes on the table and we just helped ourselves to the different colours. I also bought four neatly and professionally decorated doughnuts to take home. The Krispy Kreme store we went to is in Mascot which is about a 15-minute drive from my place. They make hundreds of fresh doughnuts there every day. I loved watching the whole process so I took a video! I’m always fascinated by how things are made. Museum Of Contemporary Art I had never been to the Museum Of Contemporary Art before and neither had my lovely friend. So we decided to go for a visit. This museum is right near Circular Quay station so we didn’t have far to walk which was a good thing because it was raining on and off quite heavily. The museum is full of works by contemporary artists from Australia and around the world. I have to admit that I didn’t really love any of the art. Most of it was very strange and some exhibits were downright disturbing! But anyway it was fun to visit with my bestie and we had a great time wandering around. These works of art were ok to look at. But then see what I mean by disturbing! I have no clue what this was all about and there were a few exhibits like this one. In all honesty, I thought that the best part of the museum visit was the gift shop. They had so many cool, original and funny things. Like this “Self Help Book”…….take a look at what was inside bahahahaha!!!!! The Rocks After visiting The Museum Of Contemporary Art we wandered around ‘The Rocks’. We found the shortest street in Sydney called Atherden st. We also visited another gallery called the Billich Gallery. This gallery is inside a three-storied historic building which was once the home of naval sailors. We had a look inside the British Lolly Shop and I bought some peanut brittle. By then it was lunchtime and we were starving so we went to a little Italian restaurant and enjoyed some pizza and pasta. So many things on the menu but I couldn’t resist some good old bolognese. It was delicious and saucy just the way I love it! Just before we left The Rocks we stopped to have a look at a shop called ‘sticky’ where you can watch how they make lollies. We left The Rocks and started making our

Hi, friends what a week we just had! It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions and now I’m beat!! It’s Friday afternoon and I am exhausted so I’m going to take the afternoon and evening to process this past week, get a grip and try and regroup. I don’t have a bunch of favourites this week. All I have is two big events that made a huge impact on me. Queen Elizabeth II Funeral Along with most of the world, I watched Her Majesty’s funeral on Monday. It was so beautifully done and I was so amazed at the precision and attention to every detail. It was a sad and solemn occasion and my heart goes out to her family during this very difficult time. Whether you are royalty or not it doesn’t matter when it comes to grief. Last Times This week has been all about the end of things and I’m struggling! Do you ever stop and think about the last time that you ever did something or something significant happened? I know that I have been doing a lot of wondering about this in the past few days. I wonder when was the last time that I had to get up to comfort one of my boys during the night when they were little. When was the last time that they came bounding into our bedroom at some ungodly hour full of beans and jumped all over my sleepy head,  When was the last time that I was actually able to lift them and carry them in my arms? When?? I just can’t remember. But this week I do know that Thursday night was the last time that I had to wash Sam’s uniform. I also know that Thursday morning was the last time that I ever had to make him his school lunch. And it was the last time that I ever had to wake him up and maybe nag him just a little to get him out of bed. Last times……I’m not very good when it comes to last times. sigh! Sam’s Graduation The morning just went by so fast and it was all a bit of a blur. I was making sure we were at school on time. And I didn’t even get a photo of Sam with Steve and me. I was just too busy snapping photos of Sam. As soon as his year 12 class filed into the school auditorium for the last time I felt the tears welling up. My heart was just bursting with pride, joy, sadness, excitement, happiness, and more sadness. How did this little boy of mine grow up so fast? Sam We are so thankful for our little Sam as we affectionately call him. Our Sam is such a good egg! (that’s another one of his nicknames ‘the egg’ haha) I love that we have great chats together. He really values good conversations and sometimes we can spend ages talking about anything. He makes me laugh as he has such a wonderful sense of humour. He’s the type of guy that can be pretty quiet sometimes in social gatherings and then he will come out with a funny one-liner. And he has everyone practically everyone on the floor in stitches. Sam is kind and helpful, always willing to lend a hand in any situation. He is also sweet and affectionate. This year has been tough for us and he is always so tuned in to how his loved ones around him are feeling. He can sense when I’m feeling sad because I’m missing my own mum. “Hey, mum” he will say ” Do you need a hug?”. He gives great big warm hugs. The Future We are happy for our little Sam. He is just so excited for his future and is keen and ready to get out there and do life. I on the other hand want to rewind the clock to 2004 when he was born. I remember holding him and cradling his little coconut-sized head in the hospital and wishing for that moment to last forever. Forever just isn’t long enough. Sam still has to do his HSC exam which begins in a couple of weeks. Then the final event will be his school formal. So there are still some more school things to get done but today was the graduation ceremony. Where we all came together to celebrate the end of school life. Thankfully Sam has been offered early entry into university in a couple of courses. Now he just has to decide which one is best for him. Never has this saying felt more true than it did today “The days are long but the years are short”   Linking up with Andrea and Erika for today’s Friday Favourites post   Previous Posts From This Past Week You Might Like To Read A Sunny And Warm Weekend How To Simplify Your Life