THINGS I WANT TO DO 2012

Happy New Year to all my wonderful Blogland friends.

Let's hope it is much better than last year ( here in Queensland anyway! )

Here's my "To Do " list for 2012.
It sort of replaces a New Year Resolutions List - more like a plan of things I'd like to accomplish in 2012.
If I write them down here I might be reminded to do them all !!

1. LOSE WEIGHT
I know , I know, I say that every year but this may be the year when it happens.
2. LEARN HOW TO TAKE MOVIES ON MY PHONE
In this day and age you never know when you might need this function - in good or bad situations.
3. KEEP PLAYING MY LEARN TO SPEAK FRENCH TAPE
I 'm not much good but if I keep at it I will be better next time I'm in Paris  - and I'm going back to Paris one day!
4. LEARN A BIT OF ITALIAN
For when I go to Italy. I don't know when that will be but I need to start preparing myself if I want to communicate a little.
5. MAKE A PRETTY APRON
Just for me ... and perhaps one for Sally too
6. MAKE A QUILT FOR SALLY
In time for her birthday
7. HELP SALLY FINISH OFF HER HOUSE
There isn't much to do. Let's finish painting those doors and get those blinds and curtains UP !
8. FINISH DECORATING MY BEDROOM
Get some stuff up on the walls and find the mirror that I've been wanting for ages. Perhaps do the ribbon embroidery I've bought all the equipment for ( if I can still remember how - perhaps I should put RE- LEARN RIBBON EMBROIDERY IN THIS LIST ?!!!)
9. RE-COVER THE CHAIRS IN THE GARDEN ROOM
Not a big job really and shouldn't be too difficult with a staple gun
10. CROCHET A RUG FOR BRETT
I actually have a request for this one.
11. START PLANNING A QUILT FOR THE SECOND BEDROOM
Perhaps that quilt-as-you-go one I've been looking at for ages?
12. LEARN QUILT-AS-YOU-GO
See 11. !!!
13. FRAME THE RIBBON EMBROIDERY I DID LAST YEAR
Just a sampler but something to put up on my bedroom walls
14. MAKE THIS CUSHION WITH YO-YOS

I scanned the picture from a magazine. Use the materials left over from my quilt.

15. FRAME THE LOVELY POSTCARDS I BOUGHT IN HONFLEUR

I meant to do this when we came home from our trip to France in 2010 . I have the frame ready to go.

Well that's a good start. Let's see how I go with these for a start.

Cheers

WORDLESS BOXING DAY !!!

Over  and  out  !!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

To all my Blogging Buddies

Tony and I wish you a very Merry  Christmas

and a Happy and Prosperous  New Year.

Cheers.

CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

At this time of the year I'm usually here whinging about the weather.

How hot and steamy it is

and that I'd rather be somewhere else

..... preferably somewhere cold and snowy....

and because of the heat I usually don't enjoy Christmas.

Even with the aircon going it struggles with a house full of hot bodies ( usually around 20 ) who go in and out the door to the garden room and let the hot air in.

However this year the weather is just about perfect for me.

Warm but not hot, a little sun and a little rain that keeps the temperature down to around 28C in the day and down to cool nights of about 20C.

So on a lovely Summer night in the days before Christmas there is nothing nicer to do than go and look at Christmas lights ...

on  houses .

In recent years more and more houses are being decorated with Christmas lights.

People often start with a few and add to them every year.

The fact that you can buy LED lights that are solar powered means that huge electricity need not be the result either.

Last night Tony and I set off after tea with the addresses of all the houses in this year's Christmas Lights Competition.

Brisbane is a large sprawling city spread out over a huge area so there was no possibility of looking at many. We decided to drive to a neighbouring suburb where we once lived and look at a few in that neighbourhood.

I have to tell you that they were outstanding.

The owners must have been working for weeks/ months to get these displays ready.

Lots of families were out looking too and the City Council provides buses to take people to see the lights so at times there were traffic jams while these buses were trying to wind their way through narrow suburban streets choked with families out to enjoy the spectacle.

Christmas carols were playing and the mobile ice-cream vans were doing a roaring trade while wide eyed littlies in prams and on foot decked out in Santa hats were enjoying the balmy night air way past their bedtimes.

Our final stop was at an amazing house where the lights and music were synchronised in an absolutely breath taking display.

The house was on a corner and opposite there was a wide section of grassed footpath where chairs had been set out so that older viewers could sit and watch the display.

The music played from a portable tape recorder set on a stool by a neighbour's fence and went for about half an hour before repeating itself.

Tony filmed it but try as I might I cannot load it to Blogger, so I found this on YouTube so you can get the idea. 

I'll leave yo tonight with another Aussie Christmas card.

Cheers.

CHRISTMAS FUN (from JibJab)

Always ready to make fools of ourselves !

Click here for our Christmas performance.

Yesterday I broke down and made a Christmas cake.
I haven't made one for years as I am the one who ends up eating it and I don't need the calories.

Only a boiled fruit cake with a tin of crushed pineapple added to make it tasty and moist.

I'll feed most of it to Tony.

He can fill out those loooong legs a bit !

There's a new card taking up pride of place on the sideboard.

It's winged its way from my blogging friend Kate, who lives in a lovely cottage on a hillside overlooking Glastonbury.

She took the photo from her house.

My dream is to one day have a white Christmas in a place like this.

Many thanks for sending me something to dream on Kath.

Have to win the lottery first as that will mean bringing the family too - Christmas is all about family isn't it?

Cheers.

CHRISTMAS NUMBER ONE

My first celebration of Christmas 2011 is now completed.
Under my belt you could say - in more ways than one !!!

Sally and I made the trip to Hervey Bay for Christmas with the family up there while Tony stayed here to look after Baker and Dash.



Dad was very happy to spend some time with his beloved grand daughter...

a little quality one-on-one time before the rowdy group made hearing difficult for him.

Tall stories and reminiscences.

while Grand-ma was busy ( as usual ) in the kitchen doing last minute preparations for dinner for nine people ( she's 89and a half !!)

Preparing custard for the Christmas pudding.
It's nice to see them happy and enjoying life in their lovely Retirement Village.

............................

After two nights we set off for home once again and after about one and a half hours we were in Gympie and ready for a break from driving.

We found this cute Tea / Coffee Shop.

The coffee was good......

in pretty cups



and the tempting cakes and biscuits were too good to refuse !

It's not looking good on the diet front !!!

Cheers.

FAVOURITE THINGS FRIDAY

Twenty years ago we moved from a relatively inner suburb to a semi- rural outer suburb where we had 13 acres.

Horses, dogs and lots of space.

That's when I first discovered Storm Lillies.

Imagine my delight when I spied a paddock of these beauties a couple of days after a Summer downpour.

Growing wild in the paddock they had multiplied and every time we had a decent downpour ( only during Summer ) up would pop these delicate pink flowers by the hundreds.

Armed with my little spade, I snuck into the paddock and dug up a few bulbs then took them home and planted them.

In the garden, in the paddock, under trees, along the fenceline, just a bulb here and there.

Over the years we were there they multiplied and I dug some up and placed them in a pot on the verandah so we could see them up close.

The only time they bloomed was after rain. Watering the pot had no effect at all.

When we moved after 16 years I brought my pot of Storm Lillies along and planted them in my garden here.......

and with the recent summer rain they are doing what they do best.

When I noticed them blooming away today I thought I'd take a drive out to photograph the paddock with its pretty pink lillies for you.

Imagine my disappointment when I found nothing growing there where they had been in their hundreds.

All gone , the result of progress!

Earthworks in the paddock had put an end to the dear little pink beauties.

Gone without a trace.

At least I have this little pocket of them growing still in my garden here.

I'll have to give them lots of encouragement to grow, thrive and multiply so they are not lost from the area altogether.

These little beauties are my favourite thing to day.

........................

I'm a bit early with my FTF post but Sally and I are off to Hervey Bay for an early Christmas with Mum and Dad and my brother. Tony is staying home to babysit the geriatric dogs

Cheers.

BE STILL MY HEART !!

Oh my!

I found this lovely book of cakes.

Luscious, delectable, scrumptious cakes !

Savory cakes too.

My friend M cooked this one recently.

Indonesian Nutmeg Cake.

Spicy and delicious.

And here's today's Aussie Christmas card.

Cheers.

ps. Hope your preparations are coming along well



AUSSIE CHRISTMAS

Another image of an Aussie Christmas.

No snow and sleigh bells for us!

Cheers.

JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED

The very hot, muggy day has passed.
We've had two good storms this afternoon to cool the air a bit.
Now, what to make for Sunday night tea?

Pizza !

Quick and easy.



Tropical  ham, pineapple, tomato and cheese.

Vegetarian - mushroom, caramelized onion, pumpkin, tomato, capsicum, feta and mozzarella.

Into the hot oven and 10 minutes later ....

 

Perfect!
Just what the doctor ordered !

Cheers.

FAVOURITE THINGS FRIDAY

It's the final day of the school year today and all the State
Primary School kids have now joined the High School and Private school kids on their loooong Summer holidays( 6-8 weeks ).

With the thought of hordes of kids in the shopping malls from Saturday on, I set out to try to finish the Christmas gift shopping today.

( Remind me next time I set out for this type of day to wear my flat, comfy sandals NOT my glamorous peep-toe wedges !!! )

Anyhow, off I sailed fearful that there would not be any parking spaces and I would have to drive round and round stalking people returning to their cars before I found a spot.

But that was not the case and I parked my car easily in the usual spot and set off with my list grasped very firmly in my hand.

( Yesterday, when I quickly ran down to the local shops to get a few last minute items for the dinner I was preparing for friends, as I was hurrying towards the shops a gust of wind whipped my list out of my grasp and blew it underneath a car where it was completely beyound reach !! ....But I digress )

Following some advice from a fellow Brisbane blogger I'm happy to report that I have had some success on the Aussie card front today.

They are all humorous ones depicting the way Aussies spend Christmas..

like this Christmas BBQ !

They are drawn by Richard Galbraith as are the other ones I have shown you in the past.

I'll be trotting out some more of them as we move towards Christmas.

On the home front a little decorating has been done

The entrance now delivers a Christmas message ...

and these old favourites  ( they're about 28 years old ) are back in place for another year.

I made these sequined balls about 25 years ago and they are beginning to lose their vibrant colours now but they are here to stay.

After all that work I love them.

The Christmas tree is up with its fibreoptic lights merrily blinking and changing colour

and most of the presents are wrapped and under the tree !!!

So there you are.

 I'm almost organised  ... already !

Thunderous round of applause for me !

So being organised is my favourite thing today.

Cheers.