Closed

This blog is closed for business.

I don't seem to be keeping up with it and that's an understatement. I'm not too worried, it was only a bit of an experiment anyway to see what the experience is like.

I may come back to the blogosphere at some point but for now I am content to just read others.

Thanks for reading (scott!) xx

Sorry September

You were busy. I was lazy. You missed out on a blog post. You'll survive.

Casting my mind back for some September highlights I found this amongst the chaos:


via

Draco Malfoy. LOVED his character in 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince'. He was one of the highlights of the film, and dare I say it, outdid Alan Rickman in my opinion. Also HELLO! - when did he get so hot?!

Progress

This is what I have done so far on my 'Starry Serenade' embroidery project. I only had about 25 minutes this arvo before Little Jac woke up (he was rather needy today) so I've just started. See how I've turned the 'girl' into a 'boy'? What do you think? I'm really pleased so far. Hope I don't stuff it up with the actual stitching! ;)

Crafting

Ooh I'm excited - I'm finally going to do some 'crafting' this arvo!

I have printed out a cute embroidery design (along with instructions!) by Loobylu. Her piece was designed for a redwork square but I have chosen different colours so we'll see how we go. Also I'm planning on changing one of the little 'girls' into a boy.

I've also enrolled in a Beginners Crochet course! Very exciting. I found the course with the help of my old friend google. It's at a place called Morris and Sons (which looks most excellent) in Melbourne's CBD. Only three weeks and one day to go til that one.

Yay for me!

Almost forgot - I also have a raw pine spice rack to paint - creativity abounds (let's hope)!

What do you think?

Ooh just changed my blog colours. The background is lighter and the title is darker. Much nicer I think. Now I just need some nice graphics or something to pretty it up. Anyone got any tips?

:)

Here's where I'm up to

Yay! Some blogging motivation thanks to the Meet Me At Mikes blog :)

Making : Plans for the weekend
Cooking : French Onion Soup
Drinking : A glass of white wine tonight
Reading: The Age of Reason by Jean Paul Sartre (for book club)
Wanting: A more wakeful brain
Looking: Like my hair needs a wash!
Playing: 774 in the car...not technically playing, more like listening but oh well
Wasting: Time sleeping on my days off
Sewing: Um...I sewed some ric rac on a skirt recently
Wishing: I was talented at craft
Enjoying: This footage I saw on Loobylu's blog - makes me wish I was aquatic
Waiting: For tomorrow night (the end of my work week)
Liking: Stephen Fry's take on America
Wondering: How on earth Pip from Meet Me At Mikes seems to do so bloody much with every day
Loving: My big man and my little man
Hoping: My little man is happy and satisfied with his mum and his life
Marvelling: At the price (and beauty) of this diamond
Needing: More Matt Preston on the telly
Smelling: Someone's feet!
Wearing: A cardigan in a GREAT shade of red
Following: A multitude of amazing blogs
Noticing: Catherine McClements and Samuel Johnson paired up again in "Rush" (first paired in "The Secret Life of Us")
Knowing: I must write my aunt a belated birthday card
Thinking: It's past my bedtime
Feeling: Sleepy
Bookmarking: Twitter on my work computer - naughty
Opening: A Catherine Manuell catalogue and drooling over the products
Giggling: At Shaun Micallef on the telly

Finally, after completing this list, reflecting on the fact that perhaps I don't do as much cool stuff or have as much space to think as I possibly could thanks to the telly monster :(

The last day of July

Jimminnies! It's the last day of July and I have only posted once this month. Gotta be more disciplined. Or perhaps get a more blog-worthy life.

I'm currently feeling guilty for my total slack-arse attitude around the house. I've had four sessions of 'spare time' (ie. Little Jac sleeping) in the last two days. This is what I should have done:

• Swept and mopped the kitchen floor. It's had a lovely mixture of dog and cat slobber and dog wee on it since last time it was done and Little Jac is always crawling around on it
• Cleaned our desk in order to inspire me to start our Thailand album
• Scrubbed the bath clean of Little Jac's bath ring, and done the rest of the bathroom too
• Cleaned the cat's poo splatter off the laundry walls
• Cooked some proper food for Little Jac
• Called Archicentre to find out about extensions.

This is what I actually did:

• Slept
• Snoozed
• Rested on the couch
• Surfed the net
• Wished I was a clever crafter
• Had cups of coffee and ate biscuits
• Sewed ric-rac onto a skirt (ok, this was productive if not a priority)
• Admittedly I also put the dishwasher and washing machine on a couple of times.

Could be better Jac!!

The best things in life

One of the best things in life is SLEEP. I love sleep. There is nothing better than lying my head down on my nice firm pillow and settling in for the night. Here are some things that I reckon make the sleeping experience even better:

• clean sheets
• clean pyjamas
• toasty warm bed from the electric blanket
• knowing I can sleep in
• knowing Mr Jac will look after little Jac if he wakes

And the ultimate luxury - all of the above plus sleeping in the MIDDLE of the queen size bed and having it all to myself.

I seriously love it - do you?

Where's my magma?

We had dinner guests last night and I attempted to cook them chocolate fondant. I was inspired by seeing this delicious looking dessert on Masterchef, a reality tv cooking show (you'd have to be living in Outer Mongolia not to know it). The dish is supposed to be a kind of chocolate crust or shell with liquid chocolate sauce in the middle. One of the judges on Masterchef describes said sauce as 'molten magma'....mmm.

The first time I saw this dish attempted on Masterchef it failed and became 'chocolate pudding' as the whole thing set like a cake. The second time around the Masterchef team seemed to pull it off easily and produced the dish en masse for a wedding. "It can't be that hard then..." I thought and armed with an internet recipe I got to work.

After an absolutely delicious vegetable and lentil cottage pie made by Mr Jac I put the chocolate fondant in the oven. This is where I like to think it all went wrong, thanks to our dodgy oven. A dessert that was meant to cook for 12 minutes had to be extended another six minutes, then another eight minutes, then another nine minutes. The bloody tops of the fondants wouldn't set!

Finally they were done on top and I dished them up happily as I thought I could see a 'damp patch' on their bottoms that surely indicated the presence of magma. We all dug eagerly in to our fondants to discover a SOLID and rather tough cakey texture throughout the whole pudding. Masterchef #fail. Everyone politely chewed through it, although only one out of four of us actually ate the whole thing.

It was a very disappointing result. I'm putting it down to a combination of our unreliable oven, that last nine minutes (a wee bit too long), and perhaps that fact that where the recipe stated to 'whisk', I 'beat' instead. I shall persevere however, and inform the blogosphere when I do succeed with chocolate fondant. I want my magma.

Saturday night

It's been a while so I thought I better do another post.

It's been a long week. My little boy, Little Jac, developed his first flu this week (he's one). The symptoms seemed to chop and change all week but included yukky cough, snotty nose, fever, vomiting and lengthy periods of either lying in bed or on me kind of groaning. So I suppose it was an "intensive caring" week for me, with lots of extra comfort and entertainment required. He seems to be coming out on the other side now thankfully, and I feel good I have been able to nurse him in what I hope was a competent manner. Feel like I did some successful mothering - yay!

It's been cold this week in Melbourne, but I don't think I've been quite as cold as this girl. I'd contemplate feeling sorry for her if only she'd put some clothes on.

Mullet with headlights

Mr Jac sent me to this you tube video of a reworked "literal" version of Bonnie Tyler's Total eclipse of the heart. So funny - you have to watch it. My favourite 'lyric' is "...mullet with headlights..." It's right near the end though so watch it all the way through!

Words and Pictures - Souvenirs

I have been collecting souvenir cloth patches since I was a kid. I have an old blanket that I sew them on to. The oldest ones must date from the late 80s. I try to collect one from every place I have a holiday. There are at least ten more in my sewing basket that are waiting to be added. As you can see I've always had trouble trying to keep them squared while sewing!

People have offered to bring me patches back from their own travels but I have to decline. Their meaning comes from me visiting each place and finding each patch. The only place I've visited where I couldn't find a cloth patch was Singapore.


Incidentally, one corner of my blanket is covered in all my old Brownie and Guide badges :) Some of them are quite worn as you can see! I loved achieving those badges - I remember the one with the bee was 'Thrift', the one with the quill I think must have been 'Writing', and the one with the magnifying glass I'm pretty sure was 'Collecting'. Good times.

First post

Hello. This is my second try at a blog. My first one consisted of about two posts and was awful, so hopefully it is lost never to be found in the blogosphere.

I have been reading some interesting and entertaining blogs lately, and the feeling that I'd like to get into it myself has been building. The catalyst was today's 'Words and Pictures - Souvenirs' post on meetmeatmikes blog (I will learn how to link that!). I have a little something I'd like to contribute, which will be in my second post.

I'm not overly happy with the title of my blog, I'm not much of a gabber, more of an infrequent rambler I think. It'll do for now though. Also the colour is a bit too bright. I love pink, but I'd like a paler version for my background. Details, details. I hope to 'fix things up' at some point in the future.

OK, better publish before I chicken out (also I have a little man asleep in a cot who sounds like he will soon be getting up).