Reunited

"Reunited and it feels so good
Reunited 'cuz we understood
There's one perfect fit, and sugar this one is it...
We both are so excited, 'cuz we reunited, hey hey."

I can't get the chorus to "Reunited" out of my head after I found my missing ugg boot this afternoon.  I don't know where it was but Lulu bought it back out from wherever she'd hidden it.

Now I just have to wait for it to dry out and they'll be happily reunited with my feet as well.

Tom's big Year 12 Formal tomorrow night - I'm excited and I'm not even going - wish I could be a fly on the wall just while they're all arriving - oh well hopefully I'll be allowed to see the photos on Facebook.

Winter Wednesday - 2

Where did that week go?  It's time to join in with Hazel's Winter Wednesday. 

Every winter I tiptoe through the mud and puddles down to the back shed to get wood.  So last weekend I got Richard to lay me a path so I could wander down without getting wet feet.

He used the black squares that we've been looking after for the kindy since 1997.  When Tom started kindy I joined the Committee and was involved in redoing the outside play area.  As we dug things up we had nowhere to store them so lots of bits and pieces ended up down the back of our block.  Eventually most of the bits went back but the black squares were non-returnable, not needed, unwanted etc. etc. So they have graced our garden or been stashed behind the sheds ever since.

Some of the spaces between the black squares will require a leap to reach the other one but hey it's better than jumping over puddles.  Well actually this winter it would of been a hop over the puddles because....

it would seem a certain 4 legged young lady has stolen one of my ugg boots. I found this one this morning on their outside bed but no sign of the other one.  I've got my fingers crossed that I'll find it, maybe wet and soggy, but hopefully in one piece.

Quick flick

I grabbed one of the books from work today to have a quick flick while I was waiting for the boys.

I love little books like this.  Easy to pick up and put down when you need to do something "more important"...

 One of the the gems was about saving the gift wrap off the presents you receive.  My mum was big on not ripping into presents, always wanting to preserve the paper for another present, while the rest of us couldn't be bothered.

Another one...to get more juice out of your citrus fruit, either use them at room temperature or drop them into a bowl of warm water before you juice them.

A cure for hiccups - 5ml of cider vinegar stirred into a glass of warm water.  To help a sore throat, combine equal parts of cider vinegar and honey and take 15ml 4 times a day.

Did you note the use of cider vinegar - now we all know it has to have some "mother" in it for it to be effective.  I'm still taking my 2 teaspoons a day for general health and well-being.  How about you?

I make a lot of Anzac biscuits so I loved this hint - 'when measuring honey, golden syrup or treacle smear a little oil on the measuring spoon or cup...the sticky substance will just slide off.'

And the golden rule the author saved until the end:

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you".

Down the back today

This morning as I was sitting in the family room, supposedly doing some planning for this week at Kindergym, I noticed a glint through trees.

So I slipped on my uggies - looked fantastic with my pj's - and hot footed it down the back.  Obviously I had to grab the ladder too, otherwise there was no way I could see over the fence.  Fortuntely it was only a shed being built on the front block but then I noticed it...

someone has marked out house foundations on the block.  Looks like the time has come that when I look out of the family room I'm going to see someone else's roof line down the back.

Our block and the 3 next door to us and the same behind us all belonged to one family.  They had a small dairy and grew vegetables for the local community.  They then subdivided our side and kept their side of the block as one until recently when they subdivided their side.  We toyed with the idea of buying one of the blocks and rebuilding but we missed out, which I'm sort of relieved about because the blocks are smaller than what we have.  But on the other hand a new house would of been good.

While I was down the back I took some vege plot photos - they are growing - very slowly tho.

Wishing you all a splendiferous week.

Bookclub

Bookclub was on Thursday night at Val's.  We had an interesting discussion about "The Catcher in the Rye".  Most of us thought it was a fizzer, Mandy loved it (of course) and we found lots to discuss about it.  A couple of us (not me) went on the internet to discover more about the book and author and found more about the book to like afterwards.

I commented on the use of the "f" word in the book, Carol had no idea what I was talking about.  We discovered that her book was one of the censored editions.  I was amazed that the "f" word was even around in 1945 when the text was first published in serial format.  JD Salinger also used the word "flit" as a description for a gay person.  Sort of changed the meaning when Judy said later that "she'd been flitting around the place".

Dessert was a delicious Black Forest Cake, with lots of yummy chocolates beforehand.  With cuppa in hand I unveiled the next book - 

Back cover says:

"In the misnamed town of Lovely, newcomer Julia Heath is struggling to adapt to life in the country, especially when she begins to suspect that her yoga-teacher husband is having an affair with the butcher's wife.  But she soon falls under the spell of Tom, a handsome, if troubled, dairy farmer who experiences the world through extraordinary senses.  When Julia's husband sets out to cure Tom's memory lapses and migraines, all three lives become inexorably entwined and Julia is forced to deal with the wounds of her past and abandon all ideas of the perfect family."

What I didn't realise when I researched it on the internet was that it was a romance...I had my fingers crossed that it wasn't going to be too sappy.

And I've finished it tonight - was it that good that I couldn't put it down or that bad that I had to finish it straight away or maybe today was just a good day for sitting and reading??  Sorry can't tell you yet.

   

Finally finished

Yay for me!!!

After much dragging of the feet, I have finally finished the book....

Bookclub tonight so we can talk and discuss it - might need a glass or two of champagne before that can happen.

My choice next, fingers crossed that I've chosen well.  I haven't started it just in case it's a bad choice because I haven't got time to go and buy another.  I suppose I'll soon find out.

Welcome Winter

I love winter, it's one of my favourite seasons. 

I also love my electric blanket too.  Sadly last night my side wasn't working very well and instead of jumping (ok maybe falling) into a warm cosy bed I hit the cool sheets.  It was such a surprise.  I chastised poor Richard for being a slacker and not putting them on early enough and he had no idea what I was talking about - nothing unusual there tho.  I stretched my feet across to his side which was toasty and warm and before I could roll over and grab his side he was in and I was out in the cold.

I'm going to give the electric blanket one more chance to do it's job tonight and if it doesn't, it's in the bin - unless I forget to buy a new one and then I suppose cool sheets are better than cold.

I'm joining in with Hazel's Winter Wednesdays and this morning, we certainly knew winter had arrived here in the hills.  It was a very chilly 1 degree when I left for work.  The car was covered in ice, fortunately Richard had the day off, so he had the job of throwing buckets of water at the windscreen so I could see.

Winter wouldn't be the same without our wood fires.   I love the combustion heater.

And all the boys in our house love nothing better than a bonfire.

And of course Richard loves his wood box, it means he can still sit outside on the weekend but keep warm while he reads the paper.  Well when he gets to use it.