Busy, yet calm, that's my mantra for today. The to-do list is long, but do-able. The roses are fertilised, the towels and a load of my husband's sport and garden clothes are washed {with a cup of white vinegar added to deal with the sweat - he's been working hard}, I've sent off one piece that was due and plan on starting the other at 1.30. I also need to tidy the living room and kitchen and fly to Coles for the makings of dinner.
My Sex and the City post inspired a little debate or even declarations on men, love, marriage and lust {well, internally it did}. See, I've watched every episode of SATC, quite a few times over, and seen the film a few times too. And despite this, I don't get the Big thing. Sure, he's sexy with the whole "Abso****lutely" thing, and I love his penchant for Moon River but I don't consider him a keeper.
I'm not a patterned tights kinda gal, but these lil pretties from here could well change my mind. Hello, cuteness incorporated! 
Spoiler alert!
I know that yesterday was officially Shoe of the Day but I couldn't help it - I fell in love. And when I'm in love I'm one of those share it with the world types. Yes, chances are there'd be public displays of affection, endearing {to us} pet names, lustful gazing, petting, stroking... 
In cause for celebration we had the final french lesson last night and after one semester I'm starting to feel confident. It's taken a while, but things are finally starting to sink in and I'm learning to think french. Hurrah. I went to the Monday class last night instead of my usual Thursday, but luckily one of my fellow classmates also attended. It's amazing how quickly you can bond isn't it? After nine weeks I feel like I know these people - mainly because we have a love of all things French in common.
Doesn't everything look prettier with a bow? These Valentino shoes caught my fancy this morning and it wasn't just the crisp black and white patent that set my heart a'flutterin'. Adding something a little bit quirky to an item is essential as far as I'm concerned. And the bow detailing on this lover-licious pair of shoes really does it for me.
Catching up with the gals really soothes the soul. I'm back from my weekend away refreshed and relaxed and in the mood to continue to effect positive changes in my life. It's nice to step outside of your usual zone and look at your life from a different perspective. After a few days away I'm feeling inordinately blessed with my life. Lovely hubby, gorgeous daughter, lovely home, fabulous friends, great working lifestyle. Bliss I tell you, bliss.
See this? This is one of the three bedrooms in the house that my friends and I are staying at this weekend. Three rooms, three queen-sized beds, three gals. That's a triple treat my friends and I'll bet that we're each going to enjoy it. I'm leaving in an hour {squeeeeeee}. There's champagne chilling in the fridge and cheeses ready to go alongside it in the cooler. I've packed a range of frocks and my toes are a pretty shade of mauve thanks to Melissa's post.
I love the town I live in. I grew up here and while we had a few glorious years in Sydney in Newtown and Bronte, moving back to Newcastle made me feel at home. In the years that we were away a lot of change occurred. The BHP closed down and the revitalisation started. Firstly Darby Street became an eating strip to be proud of, then the Foreshore took off as home to some seriously stunning eateries. Then, over a year ago, one of my friends from Uni, Marcus Westbury set off the most amazing project. Renew Newcastle has seen an abundance of artisians move into vacant buildings in the previously bereft Newcastle Mall. Not only have they injected life into the area and seen boarded up or vandalised shop fronts filled with colour, vitality and talent - it's had a knock-on effect with businesses moving into the area along with the crowds.
I'm headed off for a girls weekend this afternoon. I'm catching up with two dear friends who I don't see anywhere near enough of - which is why we decided we needed a whole weekend - rather than a dinner or lunch chat. So I'm sending off the article that's due today and then packing the car and heading off around 4.30pm. Woo hoo. I'll be taking champagne and because it's our first night we're simply having champagne and nibblies for dinner - the whole point of a weekend away is not cooking!
Tis very grey and miserable outside today. So I thought I'd share this gorgeous image from a Grace Coddington shoot in US Vogue from nearly 10 years ago. A fluffy big poodle, a pastry-cabinet to sigh over, and a pair of mary janes on the model. Just luffley.
Should I be finishing off the article that's due on Friday? Yes. Should I be researching the other one due next Wednesday? Mmmhm. Perhaps I could wash my daughter's sheets before they walk out of her room and throw themselves in the washing machine? Well, yeah. Or I could be planning my netball training schedule for this afternoon. But, ah no. 
While peonies, violets and lavender all hold a special place in my heart, roses fill my front fence with beauty and my life with joy.
Bedtime is my favourite time of day. I love pulling back the covers, snuggling into my pillow reading a chapter or two and then drifting off. That's what I'm loving about the colder change {well, what we're getting of it}. Sleeping on a hot summer's night is never an appealing prospect, but in autumn and winter... oh my!
Don't you just love an easy meal? The other night my gal was at a sleepover, my husband wanted a man-sized t-bone and vegies and I didn't know what I was in the mood for. Luckily my fridge, garden and pantry offered up a tin of tuna, linguine, garlic, lemons, parsley, chillies and tomatoes. So I quickly sauteed the chilli and garlic in a touch of oil while the pasta boiled, then I added the tin of tuna {broken up with a fork}, next went the tomatoes, olives and a bit of lemon zest. All were quickly tossed together with a bit of chopped flat leaf parsley and lots of black pepper and washed down with a glass of rosé. Yummikins!
What a difference a year makes. See that top photo? That was our lilly pillies not long after we'd planted them last February. See the bottom one? That's them now. Check out the growth. They've filled out to form a dense hedge and they're getting close to the top of the fence - all 2.4 metres of it! We're hoping they'll grow to around 4 metres, obscuring the house that's on the hill behind us. It's such lovely, lush growth on these lilly pillies. We have had issues with psyllids, but if you keep the water and the fertiliser up then they seem less affected. When we've been slack with the watering we've had to spray the new growth with Defender - but it seems to have calmed down now.
Here's the results of this weekend's labour - my husband's not mine. Our vegie garden has had a few tonnes of soil and rubbish removed from atop of it and it's been dug through, has had gypsum applied and is ready for the manure and top soil before planting. Through the centre we've got a wee step and we're going to use the large pavers we have left over from the backyard to form a division between the two gardens. They'll go beautifully with all the reclaimed convict sandstone we've used as edging. Now, the photos don't do it justice, but these chunks of sandstone, as well as being over 100-years-old are also huge and damned heavy. My husband's managed to use his brute strength to lug them into place, and built some mighty nice muscles in the meantime!
Whew, all my pressing deadlines have passed. I still have work to do, and then I need to start the onerous task of pitching story ideas to editors {eek} but today's catch-up day. There are piles of washing calling my name, shopping to do, meals to plan, watering to do... So the plan is to slowly chip away at all of this, breathe, and stop for a second and look around.
