A Quickie Post

I know I've been very slack this week in posting but I will make up for it next week :D

I'm off to Melbourne Friday morning and get back Sunday evening.

Until then my friends ...........

Stay safe and happy :D

Monday Mashings

Mondays are my swimming days. I drop the boys off at school, then go around and collect Bonnie, then go over to the pool.

Its been quite a long time since I did any lap swimming (7 & 1/2 years to be exact lol) but its like riding a bike, you never forget.

I think we've been going about 5 or 6 weeks now and its such a great way to exercise. I've only started on between 500 and 800 meters but slowly I'm working my way up.

Today we decided to swim in the 25m pool.

What a great decision it was! It seemed a lot easier to swim 2 x 25m than 1 x 50m and I swam a greater distance today than last swim.

I think we'll have to keep to that one :D Also its heated so will be great as the colder weather starts.

(This is the actual pool we've been swimming in until today)

After swimming, Bonnie & I went to a little Op Shop. Some great little treasures there. Then over the road to Koorong where I bought the boys a devotional each (will blog more on this later).

After that was out of the way we went and had lunch at a little cafe attached to a fruit shop. Can't remember the name but Bonnie will :D

I had a ham, cheese & pineapple toasted turkish bread. Can anyone say YUMMY!!!!

YUMMY!!!!!

It was so yummy and I haven't even felt like dinner yet. I also had one of their white chocolate macadamia cookies. Devine!!!

The Party is OVER!!!!

Can we all say YAHOOOOO!!!!

30 kids, 18 adults and lots of sugar makes for a fantastically loud day :D

It really was great. Justin had the best time (until he got clocked on the head after the pinata) and so enjoyed having his friends over. He really got spoilt.

So tired though. Absolutely exhausted actually :D

Who said this was ever a good idea?

Justin turns 6 on Tuesday 24th March so I agreed to let him have a party tomorrow (Sat 21/03).

How stupid am I? hahahahaha

Not only did I say yes to the party but I also said yes to inviting his whole class plus a few extras :O I've heard back from less than half the class so far so who knows how many kids will actually be here. Everything is wet cause it keeps raining and I don't know if I've got enough stuff to entertain a rained in party crowd.

And did I mention I'm STILL not drinking coke? Surely I deserve one little glass of the black gold?

Wish me luck!

Silence is Golden

I'm sitting here in a silent house even though it has 4 people in it at the moment. Its very unusual for my house to be silent. Cameron and Gary are asleep, Connor is still home sick but reading quietly and it is so peaceful.

Sometimes with all the noise and rush of life, I feel "harassed". Its the times like today when the silence is so complete that I feel I am able to breathe deeply. My soul so appreciates the quiet times in life. I feel connected when I can relax.

Know what I mean?

I hope you do cause I don't know how else to explain it :D

Its been great because I've sat down today and just completed a task that I've been meaning to do for the last fortnight - changing phone/internet providers. I think I've found the right one and I'll let you know all about it soon.

And so life follows .........

For my remaining guinea pig, Flame, life has followed the same path as his brother Spike.

With all the rain that we had last week, I guess it was too much for the little guy. Gary found him Thursday morning and removed him before the boys could see.

I don't think I'll get anymore for awhile :(

Rachel's Tears

I finally got this book last week and have now started reading. Already I'm enjoying what I've read so far. Can't wait to get a bit further and be able to start my review :D

I'm still knitting my purple scarf. I ended up pulling it out and starting over. I didn't like the width I'd made it.

I'm currently crocheting a face washer and instead of using cotton I'm using bamboo. It is so soft I can't wait to use it. Will try to get a photo of it tomorrow and post.

Painting Day Fridays

My painting days are on a Friday morning. I drop the kids off at school and go straight to painting.

I didn't go yesterday. I woke up with a killer headache so decided to rest at home instead.

We went to my parents again for dinner tonight and since I was feeling good decided to do some painting. I painted for about 2 hrs while the kids played and hubby watched the football.

My painting is coming along so nicely now.

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

40 Day Challenge

Have you heard about the Love Dare?

Friends in the U.S. have told me about the movie Fireproof and how fantastic it is.

Unconditional love is eagerly promised at weddings, but rarely practiced in real life. As a result, romantic hopes are often replaced with disappointment in the home. But it doesn't have to stay that way. The Love Dare, a New York Times #1 best seller and major plot device in the popular new movie FIREPROOF (from the makers of Facing the Giants), is a 40-day challenge for husbands and wives to understand and practice unconditional love. Whether your marriage is hanging by a thread or healthy and strong, The Love Dare is a journey you need to take. It's time to learn the keys to finding true intimacy and developing a dynamic marriage. Take the dare!

This sounds like a great challenge and I'm going to do it!

I think it would be really great if friends did it too and we could all discuss.


The Love Dare is $19.95 from Koorong.

Days Like These

To be free as children are. Wouldn't it be nice?

I wish I could be!

These days, you wouldn't find me jumping in the water with my clothes on let alone swimming in just my underwear :D

Not that you would want to see that image (hehehehehe)

And before long, the kids will start to become shy about doing it too. The start to lose their innocence as they become more aware of things.

I know its the natural progression of life but still ....... it is sad! Days like these will eventually end yet I wish that they could be forever.

I wish my kids could always have the freedom of thought and actions.

Its Monday again

Where has the last week gone?

I sure don't know. I didn't realise it has been a week since my last post.

Well, today makes 10 day without coke or any alternative like pepsi, la ice, ac cola. No caffeine drinks. *Yay!!!!*

I'm really happy to say that last Monday night was probably the toughest of all though if I see a can/bottle of coke, I still want one.

Oh well, baby steps :D

Today the weather has been a bit abysmal. Rain, wind, no sun shining.

Instead of swimming I hung out with Bonnie and we found some really great bargains. We found this nifty Vinnie's shop and scored some great stuff. I got 3 sets of knitting needles for .......... 20c each ........

Can you believe it?

We couldn't. Definitely going back to that shop one day :D

We then went off to Kmart and guess what I found on sale?

Can't guess?

Well, I'll tell you.

A slow-cooker/crock pot for $50. Yep! It was normally $80 so that's a great bargain.

My mum used one as I was growing up and some people in my "now" life use them. It always smells so good when they are cooking I just had to get one and start using it.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, I will cook my first meal in it - Beef Stronganoff.

Can't wait.

Day 3 Without Coke

Wow! Day 3. I can't believe I've lasted this long actually. 

I feel the "need/desire/yearning" for a coke deep down. Its a burning ball sitting in my gut at the moment but I'm not giving in. Hopefully not in any near future either.

Yesterday I stood in front of a shop fridge just staring at the bottles of coke. I was having such a good conversation in my head and I bet I looked very strange :D The conversation went like this:

"Oh look coke is 2 for $5"

"Yeah and its $5 staying in your wallet"

"But, its on sale"

"Yeah, but you're not drinking it"

"But surely one won't hurt"

"I bet Bonnie won't say that"

"Oh that's right, bring out the big guns"

"Anything to keep you from buying that coke"

And you know what, I walked away empty handed.

Did I regret doing that?

Heck yeah! I am so badly wanting a coke right now I could of cheerfully shot myself but I'm sure it was a good decision.

Goes to show how badly I've been addicted to the stuff but I am glad I didn't give in.

Since Christmas I've lost 9 kgs and hopefully this will help me knock a bit more weight off. Plus going swimming every week is helping to build strength.

As Bonnie said, just need to find a small bottle of something good that I can have instead of coke but I don't want it to be any other type of softdrink.