My Weekend

Hey everyone! Welcome to Hello Monday, I hope you all had an amazing weekend and are ready for a fresh start to the week.  We’re now in week seven of term four. Friends, I’m on the countdown to the end of the school year because this girl needs a holiday!! I’m so glad that you have stopped by. Today I’m sharing some highlights from our weekend so let’s get to it!

Saturday

The best thing about Saturday morning is not having to wake up to the alarm! But having said that these days I have a different kind of alarm-our cats! They haven’t gotten the memo that Saturday morning breakfast for them doesn’t need to happen at 5.45 am!

I fed them and went back to bed but couldn’t sleep, so I got up to do a few things. As I have shared before I try super hard to get my chores all done during the week so that the weekends are mainly chore-free. But of course, as I’m sure you ladies know, there are always things to be done!

Like emptying the dishwasher. But at least I’m not handwashing dishes anymore like we used to before we got a whole kitchen renovation about three years ago. Now every time I open the dishwasher and see shiny clean dishes, glassware, pots, pans and baking trays. I am extremely thankful!!

I also used the Dr Beckmann washing machine cleaner and ran the drum cycle on my washing machine. When the cycle finished my machine smelled clean and fresh.

Then it was time to go to the shops to get a few things that I needed for Sunday. I decided to invite my girl cousins over for lunch and to watch the live broadcast of the Miss Universe final on the Miss Universe YouTube channel. It took me a little while for my brain to kick into action and remember what I needed to buy. So I sat there and stared at the notepad for a while before I put together a thorough list. I have learned that I absolutely need a list otherwise I forget things.

Ironically, there have been times when I have reached the shops only to realise that I left my detailed list behind on the kitchen counter…grrrr!! So this time I wrote my list and put it in my handbag straightaway.

Sunday

One of my fondest memories as a kid and teenager was watching the Miss Universe pageant with my mum. She loved this beauty pageant so much, and together we would sit, admiring all the stunning outfits and cheering for our favourite contestants. Who of course were Miss Australia and Miss Peru!

Surprisingly, when I compiled my mum’s tribute video for her funeral ( I wasn’t brave enough to get up and speak, so I spoke on the video) this is one of the cherished memories I shared. Astonishingly, when my brave cousin got up to speak she also said that it was one of her fondest memories of spending time with my mum! We hadn’t coordinated what we were going to say at my mum’s funeral, yet we both shared this significant memory. This is why the Miss Universe pageant holds such special meaning for us and why I decided to host a watch party this year.

We had such a fun time and we kept wondering what my mum would have thought of some of the gowns (she was very cheeky, so we had a good laugh imagining some of her possible commentaries). Now we have decided that the Miss Universe pageant watch party will be a yearly event. It seems that we have started another tradition in memory of my mum.

Miss Universe 2023 Watch Party

I bought some crowns for us to wear. They were only $2.00 each from the dollar shop.

I found some really nice decorations at Kmart, they have such good and affordable stuff for any occasion! I hung these paper decorations on my wire thingy that I have on the wall in the lounge room.

For lunch, I decided to opt for finger foods. That way we could eat and watch at the same time. I went for a high tea vibe and served dainty snacks and treats.

I made chicken sandwiches and they were so delicious! I’ve had much less successful attempts in the past, but this time was different. The secret is to use a mix of half mayonnaise and half sour cream. This combination really elevated the flavour and the texture of the sandwiches. They were much lighter and tastier. So good!

Boconcini, grape tomatoes and salami skewers.

Mini quiches – I bought them frozen from the supermarket and then heated them in the oven.

I’m so glad that I bought this cute stand for the sweet treats, another great find from Kmart. It’s made from strong shiny cardboard and it was easy to put together too. I also love it because I can dismantle it until I need to use it again another time. So it doesn’t take up any storage space.

We got super excited when Miss Australia made the top three. But the Miss Universe 2023 title went to Miss Nicaragua.

We had a fantastic time and after everyone left I texted my husband who had gone to hang out at the local pool. He didn’t want to be in the way of our girls-only event.

By the time he got home, I had cleared everything away and we sat down to eat some of the leftover sweet treats with a cup of coffee and watch TV.

It was a really lovely weekend! I know that I have shared this photo before but I have to share it again. Here is my favourite Miss Universe, we took this pic back in 2021 when we had a family Halloween party. It was a perfect costume for our number-one Miss Universe fan!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend too!

Linking up with Holly and Sarah