Sunshine on a Sunday.

You've got to make the most of the beautiful sunshiney winter days here in Victoria - they're a rarity! Today was one of those gorgeous days so my little bird lover & her bird phobic mum headed to our local wetland reserve to do a spot of bird watching, bird chasing (her not me obviously) & some topping up of our Vitamin D levels. The two big kids are both quite unwell, so they were at home with dad.

We spotted this little swan family there, mum, dad & four cygnets gliding through the water, i wish i had of taken a better shot, but i wasn't get any closer to the protective parents! Hope you all enjoyed your Sunday too, whatever you did.

Treaure.

I have not had a chance to go op-shopping in what seems like forever...........and i'm really feeling the urge to get scrounging & thrifting. So this little artwork & easel is something i bought a while ago & would love to share with you all.

This little oil painting is only tiny - about 12cm x 9cm, but i think the detail is quite amazing. I often wonder who painted it & where that beautiful scene is........
Go check out all the wonderful treasures that Sophie & other lucky ducks have found over at Her Library Adventures.

Sigh.

Starting a new job, one child with croup, flat car battery, a poor dead goldfish, school reports, a baby with fevers, a hot-water service on it's last legs, school excursion, freezing cold weather, doctor appointments, a laptop that's been away getting fixed, a pasta machine that broke, certainly no time at all for op-shopping.........That's our week, so please excuse my absence & lack of creativity lately.........i just want to runaway (expect i love my new job too much!).

Source: fotokudra.lt via Malea on Pinterest

A - Z of me.

A fun little getting to know me exercise i found over at Her Library Adventures......you know i'm a sucker for these things! If you join in let me know.

A - Age :: 34

B - Bed size :: queen

C - Chore you hate :: cleaning out the fridge.

D - Dogs :: none, but Chas is saving for one apparently.

E - Essential start to your day :: A cup of green tea & a browse of my favourite websites.

F - Favourite colour :: yellow at the moment.

G - Gold or silver :: silver, have never worn gold.

H - Height :: I don't now, isn't that terrible?! But i am short, that i know.

I - Instruments you play :: I learnt the organ when i was younger, but hardly remember how to play it now.

J - Job Title :: Retail sales assistant. Yes i got a job! And in my favourite clothes store too :)

K - Kids :: Three, Chas (7), Amity (5 1/2) & Scarlett (16 mths).

L - Live :: gippsland, victoria, australia

M - Middle name :: jane

N - Nicknames :: some people call me Marley, my family call me "witch", hehehe.

O - Overnight hospital stays :: 5. Three for when i had my babies, 1 when i had concussion when i was 5 & 1 for when Amity had an op. Hopefully that'll be it.

P - Pet Peeve :: Bad spelling & grammar, i'm one of those people who secretly correct people's posts.

Q - Quote from a movie :: "Frankly my dear, i don't give a damn....", need i say anymore?

R - Right or left handed :: right

S - Siblings :: two sisters & one brother

T - Time you wake up :: I set the alarm for 7.30am but don't get up until 8am, luckily The Bloke is a morning person.

U - Unusual fact about yourself :: i have a phobia of chooks, seriously they scare me so much - it's a family joke

V - Vegetable you hate :: capsicum

W - What makes you run late :: The Bloke, he's always late, if i'm not with him i'm on time.

X - Xrays :: teeth & brain (and yes, i do have one!)

Y - Yummy food that you make :: wontons are a speciality of mine.

Z - Zoo animals :: giraffes are cool. 

From The Archives.

Linking up again with The Beetle Shack, with another photo from my archives.

This is my two sisters & i, this photo was taken in about 1985 - 86. We had just been to our local Show, a huge event in a small country town, where we had all just won "Miss Showgirl". Vanessa & i came equal first in our section & Kristen came first in her section. As you can see, we were in co-ordinating dresses that mum had made. Most exciting part was that we made the front page of our local paper the following Wednesday! I love this photo, such a wonderful memory - also because of the fact that it was taken in my Nanna & Nonno's lovely front garden, who luckily for us, lived next door.
And yes, Vanessa & i had to walk around with that sash around the both of us, hahaha!

Lemon Cordial.

If life (or in my case, the mother-in-law) gives you lemons.................make cordial!

1 1/2 cups lemon juice
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp lemon zest
Method:
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan & bring to the boil, stirring. Simmer until the sugar has dissolved. Allow to cool. Strain the cordial & pour into a bottle. Refrigerate. Before serving dilute with water & ice.

Enjoy!

Scenes from our weekend.

We soaked up some sunshine in our hometown with family this long weekend. Here are a few snaps before the camera battery decided to die.

Was just what we needed.