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Hi friends and happy Friday! It’s time to link up with Andrea and Erika to share some favourites from the week that zoomed by oh so fast! Monday I got an early mark from work! It’s that time of the year when we have to write some detailed summaries of the children’s progress at preschool. Our director has rostered some time for each of us to work from home, where we can hear ourselves think. Our centre isn’t purpose-built. The building used to be an old council chamber that has been used as a preschool for over 70 years. While it has a lot of historical charm, it’s also very noisy and cramped. We’re constantly bumping into each other just trying to fit into the office. Finding a spot to work without interruptions is nearly impossible! So on Monday, I enjoyed a walk home at midday and couldn’t help thinking that working a four-hour day felt pretty good! Of course, I didn’t only work four hours because as soon as I got home I got stuck into those summaries. I had set myself some high expectations and thought that I would smash through them. But no, the time flew by and I didn’t get through as many as I had hoped. I’ll tackle more of them over the next few weeks. In the evening it was time to get together with some friends at our local club for dinner. It was a nice evening and the fish and chips were delicious. But I was eager to get home to hear about how Steve went on his first evening shift back at work. He is easing into work and doing fewer hours for this first week and so far so good. Yay! Tuesday Our go-to person for organising work socials—who’s young, fun, and always enthusiastic—was busy exploring potential venues for our Christmas work lunch. Without her enthusiasm, we’d probably miss out on some pretty great socials! Before she joined our team even making a decision where to go was always such a ‘thing’. Not anymore and now she makes sure we book early to avoid missing out because all the good restaurants get booked up fast during the festive season. I’m still having trouble getting my head around the fact that the festive season will soon be upon us. Holy guacamole! Wednesday I had totally forgotten about Educator’s Day but our kind director didn’t. She surprised us with some treats and kind words. I picked out this cute notebook, a couple of chocolates (I’ve eaten more than a couple since Wednesday!) and a pen that says Outdream Yourself. I love a pen with a boost of inspiration. A kind mum brought us some Lebanese pizzas and they were delicious! We also received a box of chocolates from another parent, along with a lovely note that really meant a lot to us. Thursday I got some Barramundi for dinner from Woolworths, and I also picked up garlic, herb, and butter from them. Woolworths gives these for free when you buy fresh protein, which makes the fish delicious and my life easier! Friday I came across this piece of wisdom on Instagram and used Canva to create my own graphic based on it. It’s true, isn’t it? Life is too short and I need to remember this more often. I’m off to get ready for dinner with my lovely work colleagues. They’re a fun bunch, and I’m looking forward to actually having a proper conversation for once! Even though we work together, we never get a chance to chat—let’s just say the kids at preschool keep us very busy! I hope you have a wonderful weekend and I look forward to being back on Monday. See ya! Linking up with Andrea and Erika

Hey everyone! I’m so happy to welcome Friday back today—are you the same? It always feels like Friday is an eternity away when the alarm goes off on Monday morning, but then the week flies by so fast! And here we are again, ready to share a recap of the week and some favourites that make life más bueno. Thanks so much for being here! It’s always a great start to the week when our favourite casual teacher comes to work—and it’s not just because she brings us snacks! That super germ that took me down also hit two of our usual lovely staff members. Thankfully, we were all back by the end of the week. Our energy levels are still a bit low as we recover, but I think we’re all on the mend. I made our favourite guacamole for our Tuesday night burrito bowls. Along with some Mexican Street Corn Salad. My family loves some Mexican food on a Tuesday or any other day of the week too! Our preschool children went on a Book Week parade excursion to a local primary school. As expected, the kids were extra excited and couldn’t wait for the bus ride. I think that’s always the highlight of any excursion! It makes me wonder if we should just hire a bus and go round and round—maybe the kids would even fall asleep, haha. The school entrance was all colourfully decorated. The children watched as each grade took turns parading their costumes around the playground. When it was our turn they had a blast high-fiving the big school kids as they walked around. It was very cute! The school provided us with a delicious morning tea of sandwiches and cupcakes. We were famished and everything was so tasty—it was practically all gone in 60 seconds! As fun as excursions are for the kids, it’s always a relief when we’re all safely back on the bus and everyone is accounted for. My group was the first on the bus, so we got the back seats to ourselves. Hooray, we made it! I’ve discovered Oust, and I love the smell. It’s much nicer than Glen 20, which has such a strong scent that you can even taste it in the back of your throat after spraying. The only downside is that I can’t find Oust at the regular supermarket. I have to order it online from Officeworks and do click and collect to avoid paying postage, which costs as much as a can. Onto some cleaning products. I’ve found a simple way to cut down on plastic packaging: Bath and Shower refills. It’s a great way to reuse the bottles you already have instead of buying new ones all the time. Plus, it’s better for the planet and my wallet. Win-win! Same thing with this laundry refill. I never buy frozen yoghurt, but a few online shopping deliveries ago, I ended up with part of someone else’s order. They have great taste—we all tried it and loved it. Once we finish this small tub, we’ll definitely be buying it again. It’s perfect with pancakes because it’s lighter than ice cream and has a delicious, mild coconut flavour. If you love berries and coconut, this one’s a winner! It has been incredibly windy the last few days. The other day, when I was walking home from work, the wind was so strong it gave me a huge shove. I pushed on and got home safely, but there were branches and debris scattered everywhere. I was a bit freaked out about the possibility of a branch or tree falling on me, especially since a huge tree came down at the end of my street on a windy day a couple of weeks ago. Thankfully, no one was hurt and no property was damaged because that was one huge tree! CPR training on Thursday wasn’t exactly my favourite, especially after a long day at work. But the trainer was really nice, and we only had to do a one-hour yearly refresher course. So we were finished by 5 pm. And that was my week, thanks for catching up with me! I hope you have a fantastic weekend ahead, and I look forward to being back here on Monday. Linking up with Andrea and Erika  

Hi friends! It’s time to link up with Andrea and Erika to share some recent favourites. Well, it was back to work for me on Monday. Even though I had an amazing break, when Monday morning rolled around, it sure felt like it had gone by in a flash. Fun, relaxing times always seem to go by so fast! I shouldn’t complain because my winter school holidays were pretty terrific. I got quite a lot of things done around the house that I wanted to do. Things like painting and reorganising which I never have much time for when I’m at work. Plus, I spent time with friends and family and a fun time away in Gosford was also a highlight. Our first day back at work was a pupil-free day. We started the morning with a team meeting, followed by morning tea—fruit bun, strawberries, and blueberries, compliments of the preschool. Then it was time for a workshop called “Understanding Yourself and Others.” This session was all about getting to know different personality styles and how these differences can either lead to conflicts or foster cooperation. We also did a personality self-assessment, which was very insightful and reminded me of all those quizzes I loved as a teen from “Dolly” and “Cosmopolitan” – “Are You His Type, Take This Quiz and Find Out! We also explored practical ways to encourage respectful communication and teamwork.  And it was honestly one of the most interesting workshops I’ve ever attended. I’ve been to so many that are a sure cure for insomnia, but I was wide awake for this one and learned so much. After the workshop, it was time for lunch, again kindly provided by the preschool. We had delicious BBQ chicken with salad, pickles, and chips. I added a big dollop of garlic sauce—enough to keep the vampires away for the rest of the year! I’m back to walking to and from work, and it feels great. It’s definitely a huge favourite. Another big bonus this week has been the amazing weather. With temps hitting as high as 23ºC, it almost felt like spring on Thursday and Friday. I’m so excited that soon we’ll only have one more month of winter, then it will be spring, and all will be right with my world again. I’m so happy with my SILVTJÄRN glass jar from IKEA (I wish I spoke Swedish). I swapped out the pineapple container that you can see at the back of the photo. I used to keep my hoop earrings and a few bracelets inside the pineapple container, but I never loved it as it looked a bit odd on my dressing table. I’m much happier with this new container; I think it looks much nicer. It was only $8.00! My lovely cousin flew in from her holiday in Switzerland, and her mum picked her up from the airport so they could join us for our Cousin Connect Christmas in July. Since it was her birthday while she was away, we had a surprise birthday cake waiting for her. My aunt baked it, and doesn’t it look nice with the macarons on top? Another recent favourite is dessert! It’s a special treat since we don’t often have dessert, but this week, I made caramel bananas for Wednesday night. We’re all still enjoying homemade garlic bread over here.  I’ve been buying bread from the fruit shop near my place and making my own garlic butter. It’s a bit of extra work, but it tastes great, and I split it in half and freeze it for later—win/win! I used to steam my zucchini because, you know, we need to eat veggies for health. But they never tasted great. These days, I roast them in the oven and sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese on top. Mwah! Delicious! Even though the days have been warmer, the evenings are still cold. Dunking these almond biscuits from IKEA in my steamy cup of tea is a winner! Olive oil is so expensive right now! The European heatwave and drought have sent prices through the roof due to a significant drop in production. We use a lot of olive oil, so I was excited to find this bottle at a slight discount. My mum always used to say, “Use all your special things whenever you can and don’t save them only for a special occasion.” I love this thinking and try to follow it. So yesterday, I pulled out this Corningware that my mum and I brought back from our visit to see my uncle in New York way back in 1984. We carried the set as part of our hand luggage, and I still don’t know how we managed it—it’s so heavy! But back then, this Corningware wasn’t readily available here in Australia, and it was quite the sensation at our dinner gatherings. Fast forward to yesterday, and I used the big dish to make a pot roast. I had heard a while ago that this set was going for thousands, and I didn’t think much of it. I just Googled it, and— no way, that can’t be right, can it?   By the way, the pot roast turned out delicious, but it made a bit of a mess of the dish. Don’t worry—it came out perfectly clean in the dishwasher. Now I’m wondering if we might be sitting on a gold mine. Who on earth would pay so much for a Corningware set? Seriously?? That’s a whole lot of trips to Disneyland! Hmmm… On that note, I’m going to list my Corningware on eBay – just kidding! I’m having a shower and getting ready to go out for dinner. Hooray for the weekend!! Happy Friday, and thank you so much for stopping by!              

Hey friends! It’s time to link up with Andrea and Erika to share some favourites! I can’t believe how fast the week has flown by, taking the first week of my holidays with it! But I can’t complain because it really was a good one! First up, I got to hang out with my lovely friend and spend a day shopping at Chatswood with her on Monday. What a brilliant way to start the winter school holidays! We work at the same preschool, but we don’t get much of a chance to talk during the week because we’re always so busy! As soon as we got out of the train station, we looked for a place to have brunch and found a little café inside Westfield. We did wander around for a while like two lost sheep because Chatswood shopping centre is so huge and neither of us visits often. We both had smashed avocado on sourdough with poached eggs, and I forgot to ask for no chilli! Luckily, it wasn’t too spicy. I moved all the chilli bits to the side of my plate just to be safe (chilli be gone!). Phew! It was actually one of the nicest smashed avocados I’ve ever had. It came with an avocado dressing that had a delicious flavour. I bought my favourite concealer because I had run out and concealer is my best friend these days. Steve had manipulation therapy on his leg on Wednesday. I waited for hours at the hospital cafe and caught up on reading blogs. I could have gone home because the hospital is a five-minute drive from home. But I didn’t mind waiting. I also went for a walk around the block and it was a nice sunny day. The good news is that all went well and Steve wasn’t in much pain afterwards. Now he’s on a mission to improve his walking. After 13 years of walking with a limp, it has become a habit, and he can’t shake the protective walking technique. So he’s retraining his brain to walk without limping. Now that I’m off from work, I’m his walking coach. I emptied out our small walk-in wardrobe and painted it. I’m feeling so good that I got onto this task this week and didn’t leave it until the next. It’s amazing how much stuff we had and how much stuff I have bundled together to give to charity. Prepping for a paint job is not a favourite but I did find two Kit Kats while I was gathering my paint supplies. One of the fun things about pulling everything out and going through boxes is finding treasures like my Lulu doll. Ha! I’ve had her since I was five and I love her so much. She’s lost her hair ( she used to have two plaits) and she’s wearing one of my creations I sewed for her when I was about ten. I also found Snoopy who always has trouble keeping his jeans up! My uncle gave me this Snoopy when I was about nine. Then there are the photos!! Don’t laugh, ok go ahead and laugh, I sure did!! This is what I had to wear to my cousin’s ex-wife’s second wedding. We were super close, and even though she divorced my cousin, she wanted me to be her bridesmaid. I remember not loving the huge outfit she chose for me. Can you believe that even though it was the 80s, those sleeves were not a criminal offence? Here is the finished closet. I went to Ikea and Kmart and bought clothes hangers, shoe boxes, and other storage boxes. I have another closet in the spare room where I keep my clothes, and this one is mainly for Steve’s clothes. I’m so happy with how it turned out because the shelves, walls and ceiling needed a big refresh! I’m excited for this weekend! Steve and I are going away to Gosford for a couple of days. It will be fun to get away for a short trip. I’m not sure when I’ll be back here next week, as I might take a little break. But then again, I may not—I’ll see how it goes. I hope you all have an amazing weekend and thank you so much for stopping by!