Our Weekend ...

was great. Took the girls to see Rio the movie on Saturday which they really enjoyed. I would really like to go there - the scenery looks amazing (the animated scenery did anyway), they showed some of the poverty in the movie, but it looked like an amazing place anyway. Today we took the girls to the circus - Webbers circus is showing at Belconnen near the lake. They enjoyed this as well. This is the first "traditional" circus they have seen, as opposed to the Cirque de Soliel type circuses.

Had trouble getting Dave and Jas to come to dinner tonight they were too busy doing this:

Dave is busy turning our eldest into a Nerd Girl - she really loves playing Magicka with her Dad at the moment! Tonight they were playing on line with her cousins. I think its funny that she gets the huge LCD to play on (not that Dave's screen is that small!)

Here is a couple of layouts I have done this week, mainly for the purpose of demonstrating something for course notes on journalling:
(All layouts use new Crate Paper product lines)





I have also managed to finish "Beastly" book by Alex Finn (very light reading) which has been turned into a movie. Have also finished Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson a SciFi Cyber Punk book, and I have now started reading "Matter" by Ian M Banks (Sci Fi), and "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro (author also of Remains of the Day, not sure how I would classify this book as yet have heard it has a twist that verges into Sci Fi).

A beautiful day ...

It was such a nice day today here, that we decided to get out of the house for a while. We drove our beautiful little girls over to Lake Ginninderra, parked the car near one of the play areas, and then walked part way around the lake to buy some lunch - which for three of us consisted of this: (mainly because we couldn't find a sushi place which I must of imagined existed around that side of the lake!)

We had to then walk off the said burgers, and walked back to the play area along the lake's edge got some cool pics such as this -

and this

and this

We found an area near the lake we hadn't seen before - which consisted of exercise equipment - we thought long and hard about doing some exercise but after three chin ups from me, one almost chin-up from Jas, and some general climbing over the equipment by Eliza -

we gave that up as a bad idea and headed off to the real play-ground areas:


I must admit that I love Autumn leaves, and the leaves are all changing into beautiful shades of green, yellow and orange - so the mummy papparazzi got some more pics:



After some climbing around over the rocks near the water, we headed back home. After a quick pirate board game (which Eliza won - I thinks she cheated!), Eliza and I made some yummy cookies (went a bit over board with the pink food colouring in the icing me thinks!):


while Dave and Jas my gaming duo headed off to Dave's study to play Back to the Future on the computer (must really get Jas to watch the movie - I am sure she would love it):

After we feasted on some cookies and milo for afternoon tea there was much jumping on the trampoline before heading off to the bath - we bought a gorgeous smelling grapefruit bubble bath cake from Lush (there's one now in the Canberra Centre - we came out of there smelling like the shop yesterday after Jas tried all the roll-on perfumes on us).

My gorgeous daughter then decided she was going to cook dinner for us all (Yay!!!!), so she headed off to cook Parcels of Fish and some veggies with a little supervision from mum. She manages quite well using just a steak knife to cut up the veggies that need chopping! At eight years old she can cook basic meals (which is more than I can say for the husband - still waiting for him to cook a meal - I'd better not hold my breath waiting). Anyway - Jas manages to make me feel a bit special when she makes me coffee and does little things like helping cook dinner!!!


Okay - so here are some more layouts I've done recently:









I have also managed to finish the EPIC Peter Hamilton Book - Pandora's star.... it's like reading 4 huge books! I have also read Linger the sequel to Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater's and Book 2 of the Wolves of Mercy Falls series. I have started reading today "Beastly" by Alex Flinn, which I really wanted to read prior to the movie being released, as I want to see the movie. It is a nice read, and I have already finished half the book! I am also reading "Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson which is a cyberpunk novel (I haven't tried a book like this before so it's quite the novelty). On that note, I'm now heading off to bed to do some more reading.

Our Weekend...

has simply flown past. We caught up with Jeff and Fiona for a coffee on Saturday before heading to the Mall for lunch, and doing one weeks worth of shopping. Cost us more than $150 extra doing it at Coles though, as opposed to the bulk 5 week shop I do at Aldi/Woolworths/Coles. Maybe taking the girls and Dave was not a good idea though, as we walked out of the supermarket with way more we needed. Anyway - doing a 5 week shop next week, after I de-frost our second freezer so we can actually fit food in it(yep - the one in the garage is not frost-free).

We spent Saturday arvo doing housework, playing, watching a new scooby-doo and making Aunty Gen birthday cards (one from each girl). I have to buy more Glimmermist spray now, as they go a bit crazy with it, but have a heap of fun! Made a delicious soup that night with Pork Meatballs, Udon Noodles and pak choy. Girls loved it too - I didn't put chilli in theirs though! Have to start adding more spices to their food gradually so I can start cooking more spicy Thai food again - perhaps I should start on a few mild Indian curries!

Sunday was spent making these beautiful cup-cakes:


and going to Gen's birthday at Hogs Breath, following by bowling at the Belconnen AMF Bowling alley (got cheap $5 games before I went - as I have one of those AMF bowler cards - not that we go bowling often!). We had time before we drove from Civic to Belconnen for a couple of goes on the Merry-go-Round:




Eliza won her first game of 10-pin against Jas and little tiny Annie. I'm ashamed to say she actually got a better score than I did against Evan, Jane and Dave! I am pretty hopeless though - balls too heavy (that's my excuse anyway!). Thank God Jas won her second game against Eliza, otherwise there may have been tears!




Now for a couple of recent layouts - will post some more later (as internet performance is not the best tonight!):

So what have we been up to?

Well, it's looking like monthly blog posts is all I can manage at the moment. Never seems to be enough time, and the last week, I have been feeling pretty exhausted!

Since my last post we have:

Mid Feb we drove to Sydney to go to the Reed Gift Fair. We managed a little spot of shopping, dinner at Cockle Bay complete with fireworks, the Gift Fair on Sunday, while Dave took the girls to the Lego exhibition at the Sydney Aquarium and Wildlife Centre. We had lunch at Cockle Bay before heading home.

Julie watching the fireworks with the girls.

The girls at th Lego Exhibition

February the girls are settled into school - Eliza looks so grown up in her Sports Uniform (and yes she's a poser like her sister sometimes):


Her teacher does some interesting things at school to teach them their letter sounds - the other day she had to dress as a pirate for "P" for pirate day:


Later in Feb we had the Holloways over for a BBQ as we hadn't seen them for a couple of weeks. Fiona and I ended up on BBQ duty (not unusual I might add), while all the boys big and small (and the girls) played computer games (what a social bunch they are!):


First weekend in March we had a little down-time. The girls and I managed to fit in a batch of Jaffa cupcakes, and had a nice relaxing spa bath (first time in years - and yes, we put way too many bubbles in there!)


On the long weekend in March Julie, Les, Dave and I flew down to Melbourne to the Toy Fair - to buy even more loot for the video shop (great spending shop money instead of our own!). We went to the Toy Fair on the Saturday, had a nice dinner on Saturday night at the Steak and Wine Co, and then afterwards Les went to the NRL Storms game while the rest of us went to see a movie at the Casino Cinema. Sunday we went up to the top of the Eureka Tower and did the Edge experience before walking to Lygon Street for lunch at a great little Italian Restaurant, before flying home. Jeff and Fiona and the boys took great care of the girls at our place while we were away.

The girls are fully into the swing of homework (I can't remember getting that much homework when I was younger, maybe I have blocked it from my memory though). I think it's hilarious that they both poke their tongues out when they are concentrating!



Jas is so cute, she makes me special things all the time - this is the last little gem she gave me (after tinkering away in the scrappin room, and refusing to let me come in):


Apart from that I have spent my spare time doing scrapbooking, mainly work layouts to include in class hand-outs. I will post some of these when I get a spare moment.

My goal of reading 52 books this year (ie. one a week) is going very well, so far I am almost up to 20 books, and it has been 10 weeks so I am trending ahead. Thought I would include a list here which I will update every couple of months.

Fantasy
1. Graceling - Kristen Cashore
2. Fire - Kristen Cashore
3. The Alchemyst - Michael Scott -

Supernatural (angels, vampires, werewolves, witches)
1. Fallen - Lauren Kate - Book 1
2. Torment - Lauren Kate - Book 2
3. A Caress of Twilight - Laurell K Hamilton - Book 2 (Merry Gentry)
4. Shiver - Maggie Stiefvater - Book 1 (The wolves of Mercy Falls)
5. Last Sacrifice - Richelle Mead - Book 6 (Vampire Academy)
6. Quick Bite - Lynsay Sands - Argeneau Vampires Book 1
7. The Awakening - LJ Smith - Vampire Diaries Book 1
8. Dark Fever - Karen Marie Moning - Fever Series Book 1
9. Half-way to the Grave - Jeaniene Frost - A Night Huntress Novel Book 1
10. The Iron Witch - Karen Mahoney
11. Anita Blake Book #6 - Laurell K Hamilton

Sci-Fi
1. Pandora's Star - Peter F Hamilton (in progress)

Romance
1. Confessions of a Shopaholic - Sophie Kinsella
2. Dance Upon the Air - Nora Roberts
3. Secrets of a Summer Night - Lisa Kleypas
4 The Second Sight - Amanda Quick - The Arcane Society Book 1

Crime/Thriller
1. Double Cross James Patterson

Looking forward to a relaxing weekend with the family - good night all!