Back to Reality...

So the post holiday blues have definitely kicked in, and I'm left reminscing about our trip and dreaming of the next glorious holiday!

Unfortunately with a wedding to save for now, it looks like this might not be on the cards until the honeymoon which saddens me to end - but you can be sure I'm going to make it one hell of a trip to make up for it! Don't get me wrong though... I'm still basking in my newly engaged glow, and am loving catching up with family and friends to celebrate the good news with them!

Another thing about being home is having my little boy by my side again!

It is cray-cray how much difference a little red dog makes to daily life! I missed him so much the entire trip, and everything we did I couldn't help but think "Rocket would love this" or "How good would this be if Rocket was here?!"

After weeks of eating out and not cooking, I've also been relishing getting back into my kitchen and producing some tasty food!

I had a killer craving for caesar salad the other day, so I whipped up this baby.

It was only after we'd devoured more than half of the dish that I realised I'd completely forgotten to add my cajun spiced chicken and a gloopy poached egg on top! Whoops.

In other news, the minor reno job we did to the front yard was still looking good when we arrived home, and the new grass we'd planted has been coming on strong! I'm dying to add some colours and pretty flowers to spruce things up, and I will have to share the results once this is done.

We're also going full steam ahead with the backyard revamp, and have got our builder friend working away at our new deck extension as we speak! This is the last time it will look like this...

I'm a keen jellybean to get home and see the results! Our chippy and his beautiful wife (good friends of ours) are absolute perfectionists at anything they do, so I know the result will be stellar!

I'll be setting some time aside soon to go through my holiday photos, so hopefully I'll have a few updates coming up where I can share some snaps! Not to mention talk a bit about my wonderful proposal, and how cute my gorgeous man is!

Until next time :) xx

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday : New Camera!

I have had a brief absence from the world of blogging lately, although I've been checking in every now and then to read what you had all been up to! Things have been so busy lately, and I've just had a complete lack of motivation to sit down and actually write! But I'm hoping that I'll have a blogging resurgence and will be able to re-enter the World of Blogging with a vengeance.

However before I do that, I'm probably going to disappear for a couple of weeks.  Tomorrow Liam and I are off to the airport and we're heading to Malaysia.  We'll be starting in the East, heading to Kota Kinabalu.  We'll be climbing a mountain, adventuring a rainforest, getting on board a steam train, and heading to an island resort where we will do nothing but eat, sleep, drink tasty cocktails and bask in the sunshine! Then we're off to Kuala Lumpur for more food and drink, but also hopefully an immense amount of shopping to be done!

Rocket's missed the blog, and has told me to say hello to you all! And although I know this is a far from wordless post, he's dying to feature in yet another Wordless Wednesday!

 Ahh, time for bed!



WAIT. What's that? A new camera?!?!

Can I see? Pleeeeeeeease, can I seeeeeeeeeee?!

We got a new camera to take with us on our trip, so hopefully I'll have lots of killer holiday snaps to share once we get back! Hope all has been good with everyone, and I'm off to catch up on some of my favourite blogs! :)


Wordless Wednesday happens here, here, here and here!

Wordless Wednesday : Happy Herbs

Rocket is pretty pleased with our haul of parsley from the garden! :-D

Our Home : The Roof, The Roof...

So I still have been a little slack on the blogging scene but... I'll get there!

I've been meaning to take some photos of the home as it progresses, but I haven't been very good with that either. I'll try to take some shots on a lovely sunny day, so you can see the way that the light streams through the back windows in the morning and the front of the house in the afternoon!

One thing that we have been working on lately is our outdoor area.  We don't have a huge yard, but we do have a lovely little deck which we are determined to make into a lovely area to entertain guests, or just sit and relax on a sunny day.

The picture below is a photo of the deck from the realestate listing, before we moved in. 

As you can see, it was a little bit grubby and the garden was way overgrown!

A few days after we moved in, my parents came to visit and dad took this snap of the back deck.

We had cleaned it up a little, but there was still something missing out there!

Given the Melbourne weather, and the fact that I love being outdoors at any time of the day, we decided that a roof would be essential.  We wanted to be protected from the elements, as well as being able to make full use of our deck all year round!  So with that in mind, we got to work...

When I say "we", I mean Liam and our Chippy friend.  I did have the ever-important role of making pancakes with berries and ice cream to fuel the job though!

Did you know that beer is also an essential tool for building a deck roof?

 With all the essentials taken care of, and lots of beer and pancakes filling their bellies, the boys worked hard and pretty soon our new roof started to take shape!

My dedicated little workers bees did a fantastic job, and by lunch time the roof was complete!

Let me tell you, I could not be happier with the result...

We've still got a bit of work to do with it, but I'm pretty pleased with it for the moment! We've bought some snazzy new outdoor furniture to complement it and I'm looking forward to a summer full of BBQ and drinkies out on the back deck!

Next step is to pull up and replace all the existing timbers, and extend it our slightly.  We're also in talks to create and install a water wall which I've got all sorts of ideas for!  We have gotten a quote for some shade blinds but it's come back at a rather high price.  Does anybody have any ideas for alternatives to keep the rain out and the heat in on colder evenings?

I'm looking forward to doing somemore cosmetic work over the summer, to pretty it up a bit.

Watch this space! xx

Wordless Wednesday : Forty Winks

Rocket loves an afternoon nap.

I wonder what he's dreaming about?

Wordless Wednesday happens here, here, here, here and here!

The Early Bird Gets the Worm!

I was awake bright and early on Saturday morning.

Not because I had to be.  I didn't have any pressing business to attend to, or anywhere I had to be.  Liam left early for work, but I was free to laze around and have a mega sleep-in.  But I didn't. 

I didn't, because I couldn't breathe. 
It's hard to breathe when you have this fatty lying across your body, compressing your lungs!

But with a face like that, it's hard to stay mad!

I decided to start my day with a long soak in the hot tub.  I've been coming down with a fluey sort of cold, and the steaming hot water did wonders for my aching muscles!

We were having friends over on Saturday night, so I headed to the shops to pick up some supplies.  While I was there, I decided it was time to get some fresh flowers to replace the drooping bunches that I bought last week.  I managed to find these native buds for a mere $4! What a bargain. 

I also picked up some gorgeous yellow lilies for the top of my step cabinet, but I forgot to take a photo.  They look fabulous though!  I've got a beautiful healthy looking stem which I picked out of last week's bunch sitting on the coffee table too.  As I mentioned in my previous post, the natural lighting in the house is fabulous and that with the addition of fresh flowers scattered throughout the house it almost feels like you're outside enjoying the sunshine, from the comfort of my own living room!

Saturday night's activities involved copious amounts of alcohol, some oldschool Atari battles, and dancing around the back deck trying to learn the choreography from internet tutorials to Oppa Gangnam Style.  If you haven't seen it yet (perhaps you've had your head buried in the sand?) you should YouTube it quick smart!

We ordered some Vietnamese take away from the restaurant around the corner, but beer, cider, red bull & vodka, and perfecting our Gangnam Style took precedence.  Rocket didn't mind though, because it meant there were plenty of leftovers for his dinner the next day!

No where it my pet care manuals does it give me serving suggestions for noodles, so I made sure to cut them up into small pieces so he wouldn't choke on them.  With the speed that he wolfed down his dinner, I can safely say that Rocket did not object to the way I served his dinner, and it appears he is partial to some egg wonton noodles, and combination beef pho!

The humans of the house however, had a spicy green chicken curry for sustenance.

My lovely mother text me early on Sunday to tell me that she had spent her morning in the kitchen whipping up a curry and spaghetti bolognaise for the week.  She also kindly informed me that I could swing by at any point that day, and collect my serve of each.  I do not object!

And before we know it, and all too quickly, yet another weekend is gone!  Four and a half days until the next one... bring it ON!

I shall end this post with some words of wisdom, and the motto from my weekend.

Do it.

Wordless Wednesday : Settling In

Rocket is loving his new home.

We're settling in nicely! :)

Wordless Wednesday happens here, here, here, here and here!

Wordless Wednesday : It's Moving Day ...

... and Rocket is keen to go!

Ready for our new home.

Wordless Wednesday happens here, here, here, here and here!

Happy Weekend!

My favorite time of the week is finally here... WEEKEND!

It's chilly outside in old Melbourne town. 

I'm trying to build up the courage to get up out of bed to start my day.  

But in the mean time...

I've got my beautiful boy snuggled up keeping me warm while Liam is at work.

On second thoughts, I think I'll stay here a while... this is a perfect start to the day!

I hope you all have a Happy Weekend! xx

Grateful For A Little Winter Reprieve!

If you live in Melbourne, you'd be accustomed to the cold weather it has been bestowing upon us lately!

However, I'm looking out the window right now and it is a beautifully sunny day!

We were fortunate enough to have a lovely uncharacterisically warm day on Saturday too.

It was such a gorgeous day, and it's making me so excited for Spring. 

Liam made the most of the good weather and attacked our overgrown lawn for the last time ever!  We only have the tiniest patch of grass in our new house.  I will miss the vast expanse of lush green grass in the backyard, but one thing I will definitely not miss is the hours of maintenance it required!

Rocket spent the afternoon supervising the work, and soaking in the rays.

I hope the sunshine is here to stay!

Wordless Wednesday : Three Musketeers!

A rare moment of calm.

They're hard to come by whenever these three are together!

Wordless Wednesday happens here, here, here, here and here!

Country Getaway

As part of Liam's birthday present, I decided to arrange a weekend escape to the country to spend a little bit of quality time together.  Just the two of us, and Rocket dog!

We finished up work early on Friday, and headed off to the country town of Trawool.

Upon arriving, we were shown to our cute little cottage.  The property is just off the main highway and is home to two gorgeous little guest cottages, as well as the owner's residence and a restaurant/cafe.

The two guest cottages are situated side by side, surrounded by lovely gardens and an sprawling open yard that is perfect for the dog! And not far away is the cafe where the owner's spend most of their time and are always available should you need anything. 

We let them know roughly what time we expected to arrive, so by the time we got there the fire was roaring and the cottage was so lovely, warm and cosy!

Rocket found his spot by the warmth of the fire!  Liam, the self-professed "Master of the Fire" made sure that the fire kept roaring all weekend long, keeping the cottage the perfect warm place to stay in the cold weather. 

By the time we ran into town for supplies and take away for dinner it was getting cold and dark so it was a perfect place to settle for the night.  We ordered some Indian takeaway in town, and spent the evening cuddled up on the couch watching a fantastic Hawthorn victory.

I managed to get a fantastic deal and as a result breakfast was included both mornings of our stay. 

Nothing like a nice pot of tea and a delicious hot cooked breakfast to start your day off right!  Liam ordered a full breakfast, whilst I opted for an omelette with mushrooms, bacon and cheese.  YUM

After breakfast, we decided to go for a quick wander into one of the near by towns. 

We had a little jacket for Rocket to wear so he didn't feel too cold in the back of the ute.  I feel that it emasculated him somewhat, but have to admit that he did look kind of cute! The above photo makes it look like he is wearing a cape, and for some reason reminds me of Sherlock Holmes.  All he needs is a hat and a pipe! Anybody else agree, or am I just insane?

Speaking of insane, Liam looks slightly loopy in this photo! Aww, my boys <3

Wandering through town, it was bitterly cold and windy so we decided to head back to our cottage.  Rocket must have had enough, and promptly crashed out!

We left him there and made our back back to the cafe, where we sat out on the balcony and  feasted on a lovely cheese platter, which was also included in our package! It was divine, and I would have happily paid oodles for it.  Totally worth it!  We enjoyed a lovely bottle of moscato to accompany the cheese and basked in the sunshine which would intermittently break through the clouds. 

What a perfect way to spend the afternoon!

Not content with just a perfect afternoon though, I was determined to make it a double, and follow it up with the perfect evening too!

The big West Coast vs Essendon game was on and we planned to stay in by the fire again to watch another fantastic victory.  This time I was feeling a little more adventurous than just take away and wanted to prepare some warming winter comfort food to enjoy whilst we watched the football. 



I set to work in the "kitchen" whilst Liam prepared some baked potatoes using the coals.

Et voila, here is our cottage feast!

Potatoes baked on the coals topped with garlic butter, tasty cheese, coleslaw and copious amounts of sour cream! Accompanied by pork pepper and mustard sausages with caramelized onions. YUM

I'm not sure you can get any more perfect!

A tasty meal,  the company of my wonderful man and our cheeky pup, cuddled by the fire in front of the TV watching a victorious game of football! I was a very happy camper.

Day two started out with another pot of tea with breakfast! This time I chose bacon and eggs for my meal and an English Breakfast tea, whilst also stealing sips of Liam's pot of chai. 

After breakfast, we went for a wander around the property :

I love that garden and chair set! It's looks like it's been thereforever, and the area around it has become mossy and overgrown, but that only seems to add to the charm.  We met this curious Alpaca who came bounding over to say hello, but was very wary of the dog.  So cute!  I marvelled in the gorgeous colours of the area.  The grass was just so lush and green, whilst the leaves on the trees had turned the most stunning array of earthy Autumn shades. 

Rocket was very patient with me as I set him to work as my little model...

Unfortunately all good things come to an end, and after a fabulous weekend away it was time to head home! :( As you can see, Rocket did not want to leave.

Here he is, staring sadly at the ute while we packed everything up ready to go.  I can't blame him though... I did not want to leave either! It was such a nice relaxing weekend away. 

Liam is now looking up land an property in the country, as he has always wanted to move out that way and away from the big smoke!  He is now determined that after purchasing a little house in the suburbs, the next step is to buy a piece of land in the country as a holiday destination/investment piece.  Ever since we got back, he's been trying his best to convince me and show me properties for sale to win me over!

Well... I think I can safely say that he enjoyed his birthday trip...

Perhaps a little too much!