cook off

Word on the street {not my street mind, as I've been trumpeting this event for three weeks now...} is that tonight is the finale of Hells Kitchen UK.

In this series my love for Ade Edmonson has grown so strong that I may well fly to the UK and reef him from his loving wife Jennifer Saunders's arms. Shan't though as I love her too.

However, I'm also becoming increasingly fond of Linda Evans...

Hmmmmm.

Now, as a huge Young Ones fan from way back I feel a certain pull towards Mr Bastard, however, Krystal provided some high points in my Dynasty viewing career {and serves as one of the anchoring points for many a Fug Girl quip...}

Let's see shall we?

moody blues

These are my freshly painted fingernails {yes, with the focus actually pointed at the violets... whoopsies}

It's my new lust - OPI No Room For The Blues. Now my freshly-trimmed-for-netball nails look so pretty tapping on my keyboard.

Surely I'm bound to get HEAPS of work done now...

monday must-do

This week, whew, I'm totally planning to be on fire. Yep, this week is the one where I get on top of everything and start the smooth cruise toward Christmas...

The sky's blue, it's warm and I've had a damn fine cup of coffee - what more could you ask for to start your week?

What've you got planned?

verdant vista

Oh, did it rain this weekend! We've returned from a weekend at my in-laws to find grass that you could hide your ankles in and lush new growth on absolutely everything.

This weather's mighty crazy, but the plants sure are loving it!

tis the season

Regular readers will know that I love me an event. Halloween, Easter, birthdays... love 'em all. However, a truly special place in my heart is reserved for Christmas where I get a whole month to plot, plan and party.

Traditions? We're full of 'em. First of all the tree goes up on December 1 - not a day earlier or later. We decorate it together while playing cheesy christmas carols on the iPod.

Then we'll pop up the lights on the verandas, and in the windows - along with the Santa, please stop here sign in the garden.

Next on the agenda is a visit to Santa at David Jones: where my brother and I sat on Santa's knee eight million years ago.

On the weekends we'll drive around to the suburbs that have christmas lights and ooh and ahh at all the displays. Luckily there's enough variety in Newcastle to visit one location per weekend in the lead-up {obsessive? moi?}

Christmas eve we make our annual pilgrimage to church {usually the Civic Theatre in the city} where we meet friends and sit together to enjoy the show put on my the local high school kids. Then we go to my in-laws where all the family catch-up for supper and the massive Christmas Eve sleepover {my husband's one of five - all kids now have kids, some of whom also have kids... it's gigantic}.

Our daughter's bedtime book on this night is always The Night Before Christmas, and before tucking her in she leaves out cookies and milk for Santa, and carrots out the front for the reindeers.

We'll usually wake at dawn to excited children saying "Santa's Been" as the sacks that had been laid out the night before are now stuffed with toys and gifts.

Lunch is always a traditional roast cooked by my gorgeous mother-in-law, with everyone chipping in with vegies, serving or washing up. Finger's crossed for lovely weather this year so that once the massive meal's gone down we can sink into the pool and relax.

Then, five days later it's our gorgeous gal's birthday. We've always made sure that it's special and separate to Christmas - although she's pretty chuffed that her birthday month is punctuated with lights, celebrations and fireworks on New Year's Eve.

Hope you have yourself a merry little Christmas... x

phew, it's friday

Is it just me or is this year zooming along at warp speed? My sister- and brother-in-law and our two divine nieces will be coming out from the UK in December and I just can't wait to see them again. We're planning on having them stay for a few days and giving them a beach-resort holiday - without the bill at the end.

I'm thinking days spent by the pool, with early morning or late afternoon walks down to the beach to explore the rockpools. BBQs on the back veranda or fish 'n' chips at the beach. Lots of relaxing, chatting and getting-to-know-you-once-again time.

Can.

Not.

Wait.

bare esscentuals

I would find it near-to-impossible to name my must-have cosmetic. "Nail polish!" I'd cry. "Oooh, no eye-shadow!", "Lipstick, lipgloss, lipstain...", "Brow brush", "Tinted moisturiser..." I'm a total make-up junky.

However, I'm also completely besotted with scents - so when an email proclaiming the arrival of this floral blossom sensation arrived in my in-box today I swooned.

Guess what I want for Christmas...

pretty pictures

Here are a few of my favourite things - all combined in the one glorious photograph.

Turning sighs into smiles - always a good thing.

fluffy fings

I am an extremely tactile person. Much as I try to avoid it, I'm that person who veers off course in a store to fondle a particularly amazing fabric. So, while I adore these shoes, I think they'd be inherently dangerous as I'd be constantly either looking down to admire them, or bending down to stroke them.

However, danger aside - they're a damn hot pair of shoes non?

lazy daybeds...

This here is the smartest thing we did in our backyard reno. A nice shady spot to sit, or, on the weekends to lie on the daybed and read, is perfect while the kiddies are swimming.

Cost per use our reno is almost seeming cheap now. I can't believe that we waited so long to do it...

Today it was a mild 20 degrees, but our daughter insisted on going for a swim with her dadda when he got home from work. Luckily, because our pool gets sun all day it was a pleasant 25 degrees in the water. Bliss...

past times

This just landed in my in-box, and I'm not happy about it. Yes, I remember Chachi - and would prefer that he stayed that way, back in the past, without his far-too-open-necked shirt, sleezoid expression and protestations about how long he can go without sex.

Scott Baio might be 45 and single, but I wish he'd do so off my television set {particularly as I now know that he wasn't particularly single at the time. Ahhh, reality television - taking a wide berth of definitions...}

After a scorcher of a day yesterday it's cool and grey - yep, nothing like consistency! I had to do a lot of watering yesterday to soothe my poor drooping plants - the trees by the pool were particularly unhappy with the 38 degree temperatures and hot, lashing winds.

I did find the process quite meditative though. As a non-meditator I find it hard to switch off. Scarily, television is my meditation... But even that's not working. I found myself drifting off and eye-rolling last night in my favourite show - The Rachel Zoe project. At the end, when she was dizzy and nauseous? Um, did anyone recommend that she actually ate something? Crazy.

What do you do to chill out and switch off?

life lessons

Well, just as I'm over my hump of stress, come two great pieces of writing to cheer me. The first was over at girlwithasatchel, the second found on facebook.

Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most-requested column I've ever written.

My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:



1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone...

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first pay check.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, and wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42. The best is yet to come.

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

serenity now

I had a blissful few weeks of being chilled after our gorgeous holiday - but I knew it'd have to end. Today I've got bucketloads to do - and quite possibly nowhere near the amount of time I need to do it in...

It's been like this for a while now, and I've been coasting, but today, oh no, today my body's not letting me coast.

It's decided to stress.

So, I'm going to take some deep breaths, ignore the non-essentials, and just get in and do what needs to be done.

See this chick in the pic? That'll be me, chilled, calm and with a rather fab set of red lips...

detox duty

Well, it was a rather fabulous weekend, but boy, do I feel the need for some detoxing...

Salad, seafood and plenty of water are on the menu this week. Along with bucketloads of water, daily walks and the odd swim.

It's gorgeous and summery outside today so I imagine I'll pick up my gal from school and she'll come home and go straight out and dive in the pool. I'll head out shortly to restock my paltry pantry and make sure there's some yummy summer fruits on offer for her after-school snacks...

blood and guts trifle

Well, the blood and guts trifle for the halloween party was pretty yummy, so I thought I'd share the recipe.

First of all I poached about 8 halved white nectarines {skin on, seeds intact} in a sugar syrup with rose syrup added {no measurements here, I just covered the nectarines with water in the frying pan, added about 1/4 cup of sugar and then a good slurp of Molin rose syrup}. I poached them for ten minutes skin side down, and then turned them over.

When I took them out the skin peeled away beautifully and the seeds popped out. I then added some vodka and a vanilla pod to the poaching liquid and reduced it till I had about a cup of thick, jelly-like syrup.

Then I made some vanilla custard {from a packet, next time I'll just buy a carton!} and toasted some flaked almonds.

In a large bowl I added sliced mini jam sponge rolls {I sliced them into 1.5cm slices}, then moistened them with syrup and an extra sloosh of vodka. Then I diced the nectarines, added a layer, then tossed over a handful of crumbled, frozen raspberries {for the blood clot effect}. Then a layer of custard went on, and some toasted almonds. This was repeated and I topped it all with a fat layer of whipped cream. Sprinkled over the top were more crumbled raspberries and toasted almonds. Finally, I drizzled some rose syrup over the top.

Sadly the phone in my battery died before I could take a pic, but it did look rather pretty. I think I'll be making this again, and renaming it the more appealing Raspberry and Nectarine trifle...

halloween scene

Just thought I'd share a pic of me and the gal ready to hit the halloween party last night. We had an absolute ball. My lil snakes were quite the success - it did help that I already have medusa-like hair to start with!

mini ha ha

We're off to a school trivia night tonight, amazingly, my first-ever trivia experience. I'm beside myself, as I have a head full of trivia that I'm dying to share. But, you watch, tonight, I'll know nothing... Will still have fun though!

For our table of ten I'm taking some nibblies to share. Red wine and crispy pancetta risotto balls {make risotto in the usual manner, then pop them in mini muffin tins and bake for 15 minutes or so till the tops are crispy} and mini steak sarnies {with caramelised red onions, garlic mayo and a sirloin sliced into rounds and served on sourdough baguette}.

Yum.

puppy love

I've always been a cat person. I don't know if it's because my starsign's Leo, or if it's just something that happened, but dogs and me, well, we never really got each other.

However, the other day I was out shopping and saw my neighbour {who lives in the street behind me} on crutches. I quickly asked what happened and she'd been competing in the masters and was in the first kilometre of a 5k run when her tendon in her foot snapped. Now, me? I'd be on the ground sooking, she? Kept running and won the race and the title. She's a legend. Now her foot's been operated on, but she can't walk her dog.

He's a beautiful big, black beast. Huge, but so gentle. So I've offered to take him for a walk. You know, gets me out of the house. I took him on Wednesday, but yesterday things got frantic, husband delayed at work, child with bucketloads of homework... So I called and asked if I could walk him this morning instead.

I turned up this morning and he almost wagged his tail off in excitement, then turned, ran back and grabbed his leash in his mouth running back to me almost turning his body inside out with figure eights of delight. I snapped the lead on and took him off and just felt his joy emanating from every pore.

Now I'm in love. Luckily I've got a few more weeks to spend with this bundle of black joy. Now I understand the dog thing. I get it, cos he's got me.

foot fetish

As I'm completely obsessed with the Halloween party I'm attending on Saturday night {costume, food, drink, cosmetics...} I thought these shoes would just be smashing - should Medusa wear Valentino.

I think I'll go with green fingernails {a really pretty Chanel shade} and black toenails - and go barefoot for a real Medusa experience.

If I were wearing these for reals though, I do believe that a bright pink toenail should peep out. You?