January photo share

 I caught the reading bug this year, I hadn't read a thing for years, and I've already read eight books this year! It started with this one. So unlike me. I am enjoying the down time.

 I planted two zucchini plants last year, and now I have them coming out of my ears. 

 My favourite breakfast. I have cut down to having two eggs on one piece of sourdough. 

Dinner at the pub with my girls.

A brand new niece for me and cousin for the girls. 

 A few days at the holiday house and the obligatory holiday Monopoly fight.

 The Porch Sessions, held just out of town. Three fabulous music artists, wine, nibbles and a picnic blanket. Highly recommend.

 Quirky at the public library

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What I haven't shared on social media

There's no huge scoops or secrets here. I've just been a bit quiet. School holidays, busy doing all the things and not necessarily sharing all the things.

The alarm is though set for 6:30 am for school to start and I am back to work for another term of gymnastics coaching. Totally ready.

I am forever finding photos like this on my phone. Warms my heart. Crazy kids.

Ghostly makings with tissues. 

Taking yet another requested photo. Spoilt cat. It meows at her window in the mornings to be let in. Does my head in, but in comes the cat, through her bedroom window for a quick cuddle until it realises the head chef hasn't yet served her meal.

Local library school holiday activities. Making shit that lives on the kitchen table for a week then gets thrown out. Always fun to take part in. 

Face painting. Those eyes. The girls did each other. I can't even remember what Summer did to Izzy.

This one is constantly nagging me to be more grown up than she is. In the school holidays I let her dye her hair. Not permanantly of course. She was a little miffed when this washed out in a couple of washes. I am constantly reminded how my mum waffled on about what lovely hair I had when I was young, and why would I ever dye it? Children have the most amazing highlights that we all pay a pretty penny for, to get when we're older. I can see Mums point now.

My early morning breakfasts before the people wake. Poached eggs on sour dough toast, with ricotta, feta, spinach, avocado and spring onion. It's a fave at the moment.

A friend showed Isabel how to knit. She lost interest, but it ignited that time my Gran tried to teach me. I am at knitting squares to make a blanket...

There was a party down the road, this turned up in our trees the next day. The kids had to retrieve and bring it inside. 

Joining in and sharing at Denyse Whelen's Blog for #lifethisweek

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In the picture

I have always been one for taking photos. Always the one with the chuck away camera, clicking away, and having to wait for them to be developed. The photo processing shop was one of my regular haunts.

I remember my sister commenting twenty five years ago, that I had way too many photos, especially of my new son. I should have realised back then that photography may have been the obvious path to take but there was some time in between then and now that I hardly took a photo. 

I have realised that I don't get myself in the photos too much anymore, I am always the one behind the camera.

I do remember a horrid sod, who once bluntly told me I am not photogenic, and it was hard to capture a good photo of me. I let it get to me at the time, but now when I think back about it, I realise that he should have taken a long walk off a big cliff!

We are all, well most of us, gorgeous souls and worthy off being in the picture. There are many who will appreciate those pictures in years to come and look fondly back at the moments in time captured.

Here are some of the pics I managed to get my ugly mug into over the last few weeks, thanks to Brett who awesomely took the reigns of the camera, or his phone, to capture most of these.

My friend of over thirty years! We met in high school and got to hang out for a couple of days while in QLD. You can't see the bottle of vino in my hand :)

You should recognise this bird. We've been online friends for almost five years and I finally got to have a face to face chat with the lovely Emily from Have a laugh on me. 

In line for the Batman ride at Movieworld. Bloody kids. She had a ball, and I am glad I did it with her. 

The girls first plane ride. Adelaide to Coolangatta. 

Along the Gallery Walk in Mount Tamborine Summer cracked up at this 'treeman', we stopped for a photo. Why not?!

Pick the tourists!

 I am trying hard to crack a smile, not easy with a drying face mask on.

Joining Leanne at Deep Fried Fruit

Life this week....

Who hasn't had a go at Shoebox yet? 

The new way to store and share your memories. It's a lot of fun to create entertaining slideshows of your treasured pics. You can link and pull photos straight from your Facebook or Instagram accounts. It's easy.

I am excited about it because my blogging friend Denyse is starting a new linky on a Monday, called Life this week. This is the perfect way for me to easily share what's been happening, in a neat way. I am practicing for it already!

Her linky will be making it's debut on September 12th. Write it in your blogging calendar!

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My sister had a birthday last week. We are the same age for the next two weeks, after which I will turn 44. That number is really uncomfortable to say. I tend to live in denial mostly, and am always having to actually think about how old I am. How did I get here?

I made her a salted caramel chocolate tart. It's based on a Valli Little recipe, called Forest Gump tart, mostly relating to life being like a box of chocolates, hence the Lindt and Ferreros on top.

Summer cut her darn hair, mainly her beautiful fringe. The good thing is that hair grows. Not fast enough.

She had two days of Book Week dress ups, one of those days she insisted on going as Spider Girl, who ever that is. Surely out there somewhere has written her into a book!? I didn't care, she was happy. THAT'S ALL THAT COUNTS....says Mummy's sanity.

Luckily Izzy only had to dress up once. She was happy to be The Little Mermaid, and we have the book! Her best friend went as Ariel too, they were mermaid twins.

We stayed at our holiday house in Pelican Point on the weekend. Sunrise, sunsets, fishing and beach walks. 

What has your week looked like?

Something I hadn't prepare earlier

Just a quick one from me, as I am spending way too much of my little time, going through all my photos in preparation for this weeks show entries.

This Millicent annual show is on over the weekend, and I'm entering some produce and flowers from the garden, and photos. Exciting, but SO much to organise and do. Bit nervous about actually having any decent roses to actually enter.

Thursday is the day I have to drop everything off. I still have to order my prints online, and get Brett to pick them up after work in the Mount before then. It's stressing me out just thinking about it! Hoo, breathe.

The kids are putting a few things each in the show too.

Isabel has been wanting to use my camera, and I've been cautiously letting her. She's getting one for her birthday (not an expensive one like mine), because she is showing interest in photography. Her sister and I have become sitting ducks, along with the next door neighbours dog. So she'll be putting in a few photos.

This is one of Izzys, a close up of her sister. It was a nice surprise to find this on my camera. It is awesome.

I'm off my meds now, and everything seems to be going ok.

There's so much happening between now and Christmas. The show, the kids birthday parties, the Christmas pageant, end of school concert. We'll get there in the end, just have to meet things as they come.

We've just gotten the Gymnastics concert out the way this past weekend, done and dusted. One to cross off the list. Isabel is starting pre competition classes in a couple of weeks. Apparently she 'has it'. I hope she enjoys it. If not, she can go back to normal gym classes. That's OK.

I hope you all have a great week, and remember to meet life as it comes. I am trying not to stress about what's ahead, because really, it will be just fine.

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One last hurrah from a dead camera

These photos are from the end of September. They've been sitting in my dead computer, which karked it soon after importing. Thankfully it's fixed now, and I can share them. Can anyone say "back up".

Funnily enough they are they last photos that I took with my old camera, which also decided it was time to go to techno heaven (probably listening to some phat beats, laid back with a cool drink I can imagine), a few days after the computer. It was a trying time.

Wonderful husband (on this occasion) surprised me with a new Canon he'd had on layby for Christmas. I cried a little bit. I can't help but think all those years with a $150 digital camera from Target was like an apprenticeship of sorts in photo taking, and now I am gunning with the big boys (as soon a I work out how to use it).  I've been coveting this camera for a long time, thinking it was a little out of reach of our budget. I am a lucky girl.

We'd gone down to the holiday house for the day. These are all taken around Carpenter Rocks, a small fishing village a couple of kays from Pelican Point. More importantly, there's a pub, and a shop to buy ice cream and hot chips.

Do not even ask me what this is. It was the size of my fingernail and unfurled a bit like a prawn. When it did I was creeped out. It seemed almost alien!

 

 

Cape Banks lighthouse

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A much needed day, on Rivoli Bay

This post represents my life right now. There's walls I need to get around, there's ups and downs. I am a hell of a lot better in getting over them, than a year ago.

While being an obstacle we could do without, walls force us to problem solve. They make us stronger, more resilient. If not for those walls that sometimes get in the way, we can't learn or grow. Mostly they send us bat shit crazy.

My place in time #100 - any time of the day that describes how you feel with life

Life is also ebbs and tides. Some days we are up, and the next may be not so good. Whether your up or down, surfing the waves means you are living. Sometimes it's a struggle to stay on the surf board, and that's OK.

It doesn't hurt to admit you're having trouble, or ask for help. It just means you're human. Most of the people around you are in the same boat, some are better at making sure friends and family know. Be one of those people. I am not very good at it.

This day was a good one. The sunshine was warming. I was alone with my thoughts, no distractions.

It was the first week of the holidays. Mum had taken the girls for a drive, so I jumped in the car and drove in the opposite direction. I had found some old CDs the day before and belted them out on the way. So good for self morale, even if I had forgotten most of the words.

There were sounds of seagulls, vacationing families and a gentle breeze.

I strolled about camera in hand. I bought second hand books and homegrown lemons. I ate kiwi fruit and apples and tasted the fresh sea air. It was the kind of day I needed to get back to myself.

Today it's back to school for Izzy and who could believe Summer starts pre-entry kindy for half a day a week today too. I am a little too excited to be going grocery shopping on my own from now on, the first time in almost six years.

A memorial for W.L.E. Danswan and T.W. Todd, who lost their lives destroying a German mine in 1941. It exploded and made them the first casualties on Australian soil, due to enemy action, in WW2. In little old Beachport, who would have thunk it.

Looking from the surf beach to the township

The town centre's roundabout. I love it. I have photographed this cyclist sculpture before. It's had a revamp.

If this isn't called Turtle Rock, it should be!

My place in time #6 - construction
This is a common sight in Beachport at the moment. Old houses knocked down to make way for the new. With a view like the photo below, who could blame them!

 

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