what's cooking wednesday

Even though I'm pretty sure that last week I would have only managed around a 50 per cent success-rate with cooking to my plan, I'm still going to persist. Some weeks I manage to cook 100 per cent of the recipes on the list, others it can be as low as 25 per cent when life gets in the way... Here's what I'm going to attempt this week:

Wednesday: My gal's got a fitness and footwork session for netball, followed by umpiring classes. She'll be starvational when she gets home. So I'll have a beef curry and rice ready to serve - cooked in the slow cooker I think. Mmmmmm. Let's hope that we've got another cold day in store.

Thursday: Ballet class for the gal, so salmon patties, green beans, sweet potato chips and mash will be the flavour of today.

Friday: I'm off to Sydney for dinner to catch-up with old workmates and friends. Hurrah. Hubby and the gal will probably make home-made pizza.

Saturday: I probably shouldn't tell you what I'm getting up to as you may get jealous. I'll give you a hint though, it'll involve champagne, cheese, pork belly, French dessert and BabyMacBeth and CorinneDazeofmylife. I know, I'm jealous of myself too.

Sunday: I'll be sulking that I'm not having champagne, cheese, pork belly, a French dessert and two fun gals for dinner. Guess I'll have a roast chicken instead...

Monday: Steak and salad.

Tuesday: Long ballet class day so I'll cook a pasta bake with chicken and chorizo I think.

So, you - what's on your menu?

let there be light...

Typical, I've whinged and whinged and whinged about the heat and humidity - so today it's like winter. It's cold, grey and possibly even a bit nippy outside. But there's light. Thanks to the tidying I did on the weekend I don't have the depressing sight of messy rooms. And the house feels lighter thanks to a massive decluttering that took place as well.

Is there a better feeling than ditching stuff you've kept: just in case - or because you should?

In exciting news I went to the netball AGM last night and am thrilled with my netball team. I've got four members of my team from last year, and two new girls who are shooters - and another new girl who's a defence. A complete team! I've also got a co-coach - a fifteen year old who's very keen apparently.

Should be a great year!

shiny shiny

There's nothing that'll brighten up a drizzly, yet still horribly humid, day like a pair of sparkly Louboutins. Can everybody say "aaaaaahhhhhh".

Guess what I did yesterday? Not one skerrick of work. For the first time in living memory I did not do any work on a Sunday and it was bliss. Remind me to do it again sometime.

How's your week shaping up? I have our netball AGM tonight where we find out teams {fingers crossed my gal is in a team with some nice friends}. Hopefully I'll also be assigned a junior coach that I can mentor this year too. It should be fun.

Okay, off to make a coffee and get started on work.

fabulous with a capital F

I think the only thing I love more than a touch of whimsy is a splash of fabulous. That deer's head? Quite possibly the most awesome thing I've ever seen in my life.

I wonder if I could convince my topiary-loving husband to bring this wee pet home?

everybody's got to work...

Whoah, things have been busy in this neck of the woods. You know how sometimes you get so busy that when you stop you start to notice strange things? Like the pile of washing that gets moved from my bed to the chair next to my bed, then back to my bed... Today it's going away. Then there were the empty champagne bottles in the pavillion I noticed yesterday - from last Friday night... Eeek. Unfortunately productiveness in one area of my life seems to lead to slatternliness in others.

Not today though. The hubster's away, my gal has another pal coming over, and I only have a few hours of work I need to do to catch up. After that I'm tackling the piles of clothes - and they're all going where they're meant to be. The champagne bottles have been rinsed and moved to the recycling bin - then I'll start on the living room.

Wish me luck!

flowers for friday

Honestly, those people over at Martha can always be relied upon for ideas that are just so ridiculously gorgeous they make me want to weep. Such as this.

Makes me want to gather my egg cups {or espresso cups} and come up with a similar arrangement.

Simplicity eh, there's nothing like it...

come to mama...

How pretty would this look amidst my rather extensive perfume collection? V pretty indeed I'd imagine. The new David Jones catalogue was delivered to my in-box today and oh-my! Sadly I'm still far too traumatised by my local David Jones closing down to think about visiting. But this little pretty may end up tempting me...

Or, should I just buy it in London? Yes? Yes.

lookin' good

I'm a tad besotted with this look on the luscious Florence. Obviously her hair looks perfect {as always} but I'm also loving this couture update on Bjork's Oscar's swan frock.

Fabulous.

Don't you think there should be more fun in fashion?

vivez la langue - Paris

J'aime... beaucoup!

what's cooking wednesday

C'mon, seriously, didn't I just write one of these yesterday? Honestly, this year continues to zoom on by. But, nonetheless, here's what we'll be eating this week.

Wednesday: Roast chicken. I've got a hankering for the stuff, so roast chicken it is.

Thursday: Our gal's got ballet twice a week this year - and is always starvational afterwards. So I think I'll have to make pork cutlets, wilted spinach and mashed pumpkin {with sweet potato chips for my non-pumpkin eating gal}

Friday: Okay, the hubster's away for a golfing weekend {don't worry - I'm away with some fab gals next weekend!} and my gal has a pal for a sleepover. We might make chicken gozleme - the gals will love that.

Saturday: I'm taking my gal out to dinner. There's a place that does dumplings a few suburbs over and I'm going to sate my cravings. We might also catch a screening of Gnomeo and Juliet while we're there...

Sunday: The hubster returns - possibly with a two-day hangover. Roast beef dinner shall soothe that I'd imagine.

Monday: pasta with chicken and chorizo. Mmmmm.

Tuesday: long day of ballet - classes finish at 6.30pm. Salmon patties with roasted vegies and salad will do the trick I'd imagine.

You?

gwynnie's shoe

Dancing atop a slippery grand piano in these Christian Louboutin Colourblock Booties? Gwyneth, that's the epitome of fierce.

sleepy head

I went to bed last night at 8.30 - I know! Of course, it did have the side effect that I woke at 11.15pm completely refreshed... Honestly, what's the secret to a good night's sleep? I know it involves not being woken in the night by small beings {thank goodness those days are behind us}. And, I must say, our new comfy mattress is certainly helping to send me off to the land of nod more deeply.

Perhaps it involves this gorgeous screen behind the bed in this shot? I was so excited when I found this image that I neglected to take note of where it's from - but gee, it's glorious isn't it?

What's your dream bedroom?

grammy awesomeness

So, we had Cee Lo in an enormous feathered neckfrill and gigantic sequins skullcap, muppet back up singers, a freaky little pug-muppet/Cee Lo doppleganger bopping aside the piano and Gwyneth looking 9 million shades of awesome {loved her hair, her plunging neckline, her earrings, her SHOES!}

Awe.

Some.

frock-tastic

Here are a few fabulous frocks from the Baftas. The colour of Julianne Moore's frock is giving me palpitations. She arrived on the arm of Tom Ford so I'm assuming it's one of his creations.

Sigh.

Thandie's frock may well be my fave - the structure, the colour, the pattern oh my!

Emma Watson looks adorable as ever.

And Colin, just because...

coffee love

Check out the coffees I made for me and my hubster this morning - both with a wee accidental loveheart in the middle. {Seriously, I don't think I could have created them if I'd really tried.}

Happy Valentines Day!

ssssso ssssssexay

I must admit, I do like me a bit of snakeskin {except for last week when there was a snakeskin, on the road RIGHT NEXT TO THE DOOR OF MY CAR - I know, where was the freakin' snake?} But, I digress...

After being v envious of Mrs Woog's snakeskin shoe bargain, and then having a friend come to dinner at my house on that same night of envy {wearing the same, heavily discounted shoes - I kid you not} I've got me a spot of snakeskin craving.

So these pink Miu Miu numbers are more than tickling my fancy - they've got my fancy in hysterics! Would these not make the ideal Valentine outfit when combined with something ever-so-scarlet? Oh yes indeedy they would.

customer service?

Today I'd finally had enough and went out to buy a new telephone for my study {I know, I've been complaining for years about my old phone...}. So, after doing some research on-line we went to a store, let's call them The Bad Boys shall we? Why I continue to go to this store is beyond me. Despite their all-singing, all-dancing ads, they refuse to offer me the one thing I require when I step into a store - service.

Nobody caught our eye. Nobody came to see if we were okay when we stood in front of the phones for 15 minutes. Not the guy who assiduously stared at everything except us, not any of the others who bustled past us, doing lordy knows what. Not serving us apparently.

So we left, and went to Domayne - just up the road. We were very quickly served by the nicest of guys, talked us through all the options, explained a problem with plastic keys on phones {apparently the numbers can wear off - particularly if you're like me and tend to dial with your fingernails...} So we walked out of there with two new phones, he had a good sale - and we'll go back there again.

You can take your singing and dancing Bad Boys - just give me customer service - it's why I didn't buy the phone cheaper on-line!

just lovely

Now, while I don't tend to do anything special for Valentine's Day, these pretties I spied over at Martha's have got me mighty tempted...

and relax...

Okay, so I may be feeling a tad on the seedy side today - just a tad... We had friends for dinner last night and a fair amount of champagne washed down the french cheese, duck confit, pear, pecan and rocket salad {with a yummy dressing: apple cider vinegar, olive oil, seeded mustard, cinnamon, lime juice and honey - shaken and yum}. For afters our friends brought along a Apple in Wonderland cake - which was divine! It was quite the perfect night, except my friend's sister came along and I spent the whole night coveting her hair {yep, you guessed it, she's a gorgeous redhead}. I did have to explain to her my love of a titan hue so she didn't get too creeped out by my constant wistful gazing in her head's general direction.

I would quite like to be lying on this hammock today - but that shan't be happening. I have two gals to entertain this morning, then this afternoon my french study-buddy is coming over so we can do our french homework together {hopefully - it's already really difficult and we're only in week one!}

Tonight the gal's at a pal's for a sleepover so it's just me and hubby. We might even find ourselves something to do as we have free babysitting. Movies perhaps?

So, tell me all about you. What are your plans for this fabulous february weekend?

sweet tooth

Cupcakes spotted in a Melbourne patisserie.

I know.

{It's a dodgy, through the glass shot, after too many lemondrop martinis - but let me tell you, the quilting on the Chanel cupcake was TO-DIE!}