September Holidays

Goodness this blog really is suffering from neglect!
The children are having great September holidays. They spent the first week with Granny and Gramps who were up visiting from Adelaide and they are spending this week with Daddy and Grandma in Bundaberg. In the first week they went to see Spy Kids at the movies followed by McDonalds and a shopping expedition. They also went ten pin bowling with friends and had good times riding their bikes and scooters at the park.
This week in Bundaberg, they have attended 2 birthday parties and one still to come, swum in the pool and been out fishing. They'll need to return to school for a break.
I also have had a lovely break with a whole weekend to myself. I am working this week but am enjoying looking after just myself. I have achieved lots in the house and have washed and washed and washed all of the winter woolies and blankets. Hopefully the cold will not return. I have also managed a little scrapbooking too.

My niece, Alex has come through her major surgery very well and is resting up in an attempt to return to school soon.

Some photos of Miss Penny riding her bike and the kids ready for the school disco - theme "black and white". Penny insisted that she needed some black and white clothing to wear so after going through the material box we found some material and I whipped her up a skirt the night before and a little broach to wear on her shirt. She had so much fun dancing and Nick had fun mucking around.

Some scrapbooking from August.

Have a good week.

Rach xx

About Time ...

for another post. I was waiting until I had edited some photos but I haven't 'found' enough time. Poor priority of time is probably the answer.
What have we been up to? Well I have worked 9 out of the past 10 working days due to holidays and illness of other sonographers at my practice. Of course Craig has been away. Penny has been busy with ballet exams and thoughts of aspiring to a stage career as well as thinking about what to wear and how to dance at the school disco. Nick has had a facial altercation with the fireman's pole at school and still has bruising and a swollen face 2 wks on but no fracture thank goodness. He also decided to have illness consisting of a cold and temps which was in my very busy working week but we managed. He was my helper at work. Today Nick received a trophy at his soccer break up and was also chuffed to win the raffle which is a Roar jersey with his name and number and all of the team's signatures on. Makes up for all of the bad luck he has had recently.
My parents arrive on Tuesday to help out with holiday care and to see our Brisbane house which will be lovely. Also a special good luck to my little niece, Alex who goes in for major surgery on Wednesday all being well. She has already had a false start after becoming unwell 2 days before this surgery was scheduled a week ago.
Here are a couple more LO's. I haven't done too much scrapping recently but plan to get back to it soon.

Have a happy week.

Rach xx

Tapping Queen

Here is our little tap queen who did her exam last week. She loved it and was not nervous at all. Bring on the ballet exams in September.

Craig and I enjoyed a trip away to Cairns over the weekend thanks to his company. I travelled up with Craig's boss' wife on Friday. After a beautiful dinner on Friday night we  ventured out to the Innisfail race day on Saturday. Whilst we didn't come away winners, we had a good day. Another memorable dinner on Saturday night in Cairns and after a morning tea visit to Craig's sister we flew home. The children stayed with my SIL, Trudie and their cousins. They had a pretty busy weekend and Penny slept for 13hrs last night!

I haven't scrapbooked much in the last week, but here are 2 more recent LO's.

The children only have 3days of school this week due to the show holiday and a ministerial holiday (pupil free day). We plan to venture to the Ekka on one of the days.
Have a good week.
Rach xx

Things That Make My Heart Happy @ Present

First up are flowers. I am buying flowers for my kitchen every week. As a child, our house was always filled with roses for most of the year as Mum had over 100 rose bushes and when they were dormant we had daffodils. These roses are from the flower markets just down the road bought for me by my good friend, Joanne.

I also have 2 African Violets in my kitchen that sit by the sink in front of a window and they are flowering like they're on steroids. I think I have my mother's touch when it comes to these.

The music from the Dr Zhivago musical features highly.

My gorgeous 15yo cat, Holly is my little darling. She is such a sook and always so pleased to see us. Here she is enjoying ice cream on her birthday in June.

Next is my soccer player Nick. We returned to the soccer fields on Sunday for photos. It never ceases to amaze me how they make these little boys put their arms behind their backs so that in their ill-fitting tops they look like they're armless. I think the zoomed photo of Nick's face looks much better although I had a great laugh out of the other photo!

My Penny also makes my heart happy. She has a cold at the moment but is on the mend.

Lastly, of course my scrapbooking fills my heart. Here are a few LO's.

Oh of course I must mention my significant other if I could remember what he looked like as he's away so much at present. We have a weekend up in Cairns together planned in August which should be lovely and WARM!

What is making your heart smile this week? :)

Rach xx 

I went to see Dr Zhivago this afternoon with my friend, Penny who lives around the corner and I have to say it was superb. It was so sad and stunningly beautiful. Anthony Warlow was supreme as Yuri Zhivago as was the beautiful Lucy Maunder who played Lara (Yuri's mistress) and the pretty Taneel Van Zyl as Tonia (Yuri's wife). The special effects were brilliant incorporating a little cinematography. The sadness and pain of the war and poverty in Russia in the early 1900's was portrayed with such realism. The music is lovely and beautifully portrays the love story. I think this musical is probably one of my favourite of all time. If you haven't been to see it, you really must. It is only on in Brisbane for another couple of weeks.
Rach xx

The Baker Going Ons

School is back in and the holidays seem but a distant memory. On the last weekend of the holidays Pam came back to look after the children whilst Craig and I attended the horse races at Eagle Farm. It was a cold day and we didn't come home winners but a fun day out with friends. We then picked up Pam and the kids and went to watch the fantastic Rugby Union Reds game on our friends' Pay TV. I didn't think I could get excited over such a game but it was great. My workplace images the Red players when they're injured and they are BIG guys.
This weekend I attended a Think Pink high tea at one of the school mum's homes with 70 other ladies. It was a fun afternoon and I even managed to win a prize of a voucher from a new boutique furniture shop in Paddington. Can't wait to go and check out their wares.
Craig has taken to the cycling phase and has bought a bike and all the gear. He is struggling a little in the botty area at present but has verbally signed up to do a charity ride to Longreach next May (@ 200km/day) so he's really going to have to ramp it up as he's only at 1-2km/day at present!

In other exciting news, Penny has lost the trainer wheels on her bike. We took her down to the park today for her first session without t/wheels and she got it! She still struggles a little to do a standing start but will have it in no time. I think the ballet may have helped with her balance perhaps and possibly the lure of a new pink bike for her birthday.

Not much else to report. This coming week I am off to the dentist and hope to keep my clean filling-less record and also to the optometrist where I hope not to come out with 4 eyes although between you and me, a needle is becoming quite difficult to thread. I have been doing some more scrapbooking. Here are some more LO's.

Have a great week.

Rach xx

Bundaberg Friends

We have had a great holidays catching up with Bundaberg friends. On Thursday the children and I drove up to Petrina's parent's beautiful place near Mt Nebo for delicious afternoon tea and a play with Petrina's kids and their cousins. They had a great time digging worms out of the garden and feeding them to the chooks next door and playing in the mud. On Friday the Petersons came to stay with us for a night. We had a great catch up whilst the kids played. I cooked pumpkin soup, red curry slow cooked lamb shanks and a sticky date self saucing pudding which were all well received.
On Sunday Craig's mother arrived and the kids have had a lovely time with Grandma whilst I have worked this week. We are hoping to catch up with some school friends for the remaining days of the holidays and then it's back to school next week.
Happy Birthday to my brother Richard and my cat Holly who turned 15yo last Thursday. Richard was home on Sunday so it was great to catch up over a coffee and yummy cake.
Here are some more LO's that I haven't shown. I am really liking the templates (that I bought at the Scrapbooking Expo) that I have sprayed glimmermist over (flowers in 1st LO, houndstooth in the 2nd, butterflies in 3rd).

Have a great Thursday.

Rach xx