A TEENAGER

I can't believe it .... today my baby turns 13 .... a teenager.



Happy Birthday !

I will pop back in and do some more updating, pics etc .... Only 6 more sleeps 'til we go to New Zealand !

Back to School ...

Today was back to school for Blake .... he was looking forward to his first day in Year 8.




Before heading off to school for the first day of the school year we always stop for a quick visit and photo with Nan & Pop ....





this year was quite a buzz with my niece (Jessica) starting high school (yesterday)




and nephew (Jacob) off to Kindergarten for his first day today.




So here we go for another school year ...




Now for a busy weekend covering books etc !

Me & My Boy ....

We have a tradition of an outing of Blake's choice on the last day of school hols ... today it was just him and I cause DH was sleeping (shiftwork).

It was just a simple outing ... a bite to eat and the movies to see this



Not a bad movie ... the storyline is pretty basic with a few humerous parts & some catchy tunes.

It fills my heart to spend time with my 'soon to be 13 year old' boy, always my baby but growing up so fast. Don't know how much longer he'll be happy to hang out with his mum but for now i'll cherish whatever comes my way :O)

Need some retail therapy ???

Here's a peak at some yummy things to tickle your taste buds ....

Lots of cute MAYA ROAD




Spunky GENERATION Z from LYB




and the always gorgeous PRIMA



Nothing like some new product to get the creative juices flowing!

Well, today is the last day of school holidays in our house. We are off to do our traditional 'last day before school' outing .... then back to routine tommorrow!

Keep smiling :O)

... so where was i ....

Oh yes, more pics and chat about our school holiday activities.

Following our fab day at Nelson Bay, the next morning we were up bright and early (well actually, i'm not so sure about the bright, but we were up early LOL!) and headed off to Sydney (for the 2nd Sunday in a row).

Every year my sister (Karen) and i ponder over what to give each other's kids for Christmas ... which usually results in just exchanging money in cards .... this year we decided instead of presents/cash we would organise a day out together.

So off we went on our little day trip ..... we caught the train, then the ferry to Darling Harbour.




The weather was quite warm but certainly not complaining about a gorgeous sunny day on Sydney Harbour!



We visited the Maratime Museum and seen their current special exhibition of Mythical Creatures ...





and then walked through the rest of the musuem which has lots of interesting things





We had lunch and a bit of a wonder around (always so much to see with just the general 'goings on') and a bit photo play at the pier under the bridge (gotta take the opportunity whilst the kids are being co-operative)...







We spent the afternoon at Wildlife World. I love the butterfly enclosure there .... twice butterflies landed on the kids but i wasn't quick enough with the camer :O(

But the taking this photo in the spider section was a bit of fun !



What a great day ..... i love visiting Sydney!!




Needless to say after a big day/weekend and long train ride home we fell into bed and slept like logs!!

Hope everyone is enjoying their school hols ... can't believe we only have a little over 1 week left [eeeek]! All the school shopping (uniforms, shoes, stationery etc etc etc is all done ..... now just to squeeze the last bit of holiday mode out of the next few days before the routine starts again for another year!

Keep smiling :O)

Julie x

SCHOOL HOLIDAY FUN !

We have been busily enjoying the school holidays and lots of day trip activities.

Saturday with other friends/families we headed up to Nelson Bay. Firstly in the morning the kids and a few dads had a session of Battlezone Playlive laser skirmish. We have done this before (including Blake's birthday party last year) as they hold sessions at Maitland Gaol ... the kids (and big kids) love it !

Here is a pic of the group "hoo haaing" their chant before they set of into the bush for battle !


and the troups are off ...


Ready for action ...



After a couple of hours in the bush we then ventured into the bay and where a lovely shaded table beside the bbq was waiting for us and we spent the day (& early evening) by the waterfront. Lots of eating, drinking, swimming & relaxation ... perfect!!

The kids spent the whole day doing this ...


Sunday we were up bright and early and out for another full day of fun and adventure .... will be back soon to share some more pics!

Cheers,
Julie :O)

GOTTA LOVE A BARGAIN

.... nothing like some bargain shopping to kickstart your scrapbooking in 2010 ... 40% OFF ... take a look HERE

GETTING ORGANISED ....

Today Blake and i spent the day out shopping for 'back to school' .... all done and ready to return for Year 8.

We had planned to have brekkie at one of the cafes by the lake but left home a little later than originally planned so we done brunch instead ..... i love little outings like this with my boy. Have to make to most of it .... i know that the time will come when he busy hanging out with young girls not his dear old mum !! LOL!

I have done no scrapping over my Xmas/New Year break .... i really want to but just seemed to be busy doing nothing in particular and just didn't get into it.

Here are a couple of simple layouts i done before Christmas (sorry 'bout the poor photography) ...




Hopefully i'll get motivated and have more to share soon (or find some others in my stash that i haven't shared yet) he he !!

Enjoy the rest of your week !!

Julie :O)

A Day trip to Sydney ...

Happy New Year to everyone ....

We had a very quite New Year's this year .... just a bbq tea with Mum & Dad and watching the clock 'til midnight to welcome 2010 before climbing into bed .... very uneventful but quite enjoyed it that way!!

Today we were up nice and early, on the train and down to Sydney/Darling Harbour for the day.



The weather was very ordinary but the rain pretty well held off and certainly didn't spoil our day; however, i didn't really get the chance to play with my new toy (camera) as much as i would have liked :O(

We went to the Imax Theatre and seen this in 3D:



AVATAR .... this is actually the 2nd time we have seen it but Blake was quite enthralled and given the amazing special effects & cinematography we figured seeing it at the Imax would be a real hit! We went with other family friends .... the boys just loved it. Blake advised on the way home he would like to go and see it again ..... i think twice is suffice but will definately get the DVD for him when it is released.

Back to Work tommorrow [sigh] ... back to reality.

Never mind, it has to happen 'sooner or later' .... although i will be having a few days off "here & there" over the school holidays and hoping the have the last week off.

Hope everyone had a great weekend.

Keep smiling :O)

Julie x

Better update before next year ....

I can't believe how quickly the time passes ..... i'm always popping in to read everyone elses blog but rarely sit and take the time to update my own ... i really hope to improve this for 2010.

Although .... i did try and update back in Nov and blogger wouldn't co-operate, so in the end i just gave up.

I'll catch up in point form.

* Went to a concert in the vineyards with friends, atmasphere and company was fab but the main act (band) was very ordinary. At least the weather was kind and wasn't too hot.
* Had a wonderful weekend away with the girls at the Scrapbook'n'bits Retreat. Here is a pic of the layouts we created in my workshop.




* We attended a few parties in Dec for a 50th Wedding Anniversary & a 40th .... at both we caught up with old friends we haven't seen for quite a few years. Always great to catch up! 2010 will see lots of 40th birthday parties amongst our friends (but not me .... i have a little longer to go he he ) .... that will mean seeing lots of old friends and reminiscing!

* DH started a new job .... we are really happy with him being fortunate to get this opportunity .... now just to re-adjust to new rosters etc. It's all good!

* Blake finished his first year of high school .... hard to believe [sigh]. We attended his end of year awards ceremony and were very thrilled that he received 4 awards (3 being subject scholastic awards for being in top 5% of his year) ... very proud!

* Lots of Christmas Cheer and parties throughout December .... although i whinge about being so rediculously busy etc .... i really do love Christmas.

.... and then it was CHRISTMAS ....

We were all very spoilt and had a lovely day. Just hard to believe it is all over in the blink of an eye and another year rolls on.

I will share some photos soon (taken with my new Xmas present camera [wink]) ...

Well, here's hoping this post will upload (not like the last one).

Last but not least ..... to my beautiful niece (in the top LO above) .... sending birthday wishes for yesterday (26th Dec) ... HAPPY BIRTHDAY ! xx

Have a great new year's everyone. I hope 2010 brings you a year of happiness, good health and all your dreams come true :O)

Julie xx

Time for some Summer scrapp'n !!

The weather is heating up and we're in the mood for some

SUMMER SCRAPP'N ...
COME & JOIN US !

Runnin' up that hill ....

We are back into the school routine for the last term ... wow, Blake's first year of high school is almost over .... he'll be borrowing the keys to the car before we know it!! [screech] Now, that's a scary thought !!

The two weeks of school holidays were a lovely break from routine; however, my work schedule was more hectic than ever and my grand plan of having the first week off (DH had a week off also) so we could duck away in the van for a week sadly never came to fruitition [sigh] ... in fact i barely spent time at home and my days stretched out to near 12 hour days.

Not to worry .... i did manage 2 days off in the 2nd week and we spent time up at Nelson Bay. Such a gorgeous place ... only an hour from home but always feels like another world away!

Whilst there we went to the new 'Shark & Stingray Centre' ... what an awesome place. You can feed the sharks & stingrays from the side of the large pool or you can get in with them!! Yep, right in the thick of it all .... which is exactly what my guys did!!

You have a choice of wearing waders or a wet suit .... my guys chose to wear the waders over their clothes .... very attractive LOL!

Then it was into the water ..... (i probably should have mentioned that the stingrays are "de-barbed" so no danger apparently) ...

oh, and the sticks you can see in the photos are to feed them .... not to fend them off !! LOL !!






Then there was this rather large lady ... the photos really don't justify her size .... she was huge ... but harmless apparently ....

and i just had to include this next photo he he cause if you didn't know any better, you'd think Blake was about to be eaten !!!

It truly was a great experience ... my guys just loved it but next time plan to wear a wet suit so they can get a little more "up close & personal" ..... i think i'll volunteer for camera duty again LOL!

The weather has really started to warm up this week and whilst i am not a fan of hot weather i do love long pleasant afternoons.

On Thursday afternoon we headed to the waterfront and enjoyed some fish & chips for tea.

The boys kicked the ball around the park for a while and as the sun went down it was time for home.

We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful place!

and before i go ... just a quick reminisce .... this weekend 12 months ago we arrived home from our holiday in America .... wow, there's that 'time flying by' thing again!!

This weekend is very laid back with no plans & nowhere we need to be ... hope you are enjoying your weekend too!!

Keep smiling :O)

JULIE x

... and 3 months later

WOW .... i can't believe it has been almost 3 months since i updated. Where has the time gone? Why does it feel like it is getting faster? Why do i feel like each week is geting busier? Actually .... crazy busy??!

I've even had to grab my diary so i can recap ...

Rewind to July ...

Just after my last post we jumped on a plane (my sister & I and the kids) and flew up to QLD to meet up with Mum & Dad (who had been away travelling for some months) and we all spent a week together at Bribie Island. What a lovely place. Our units were fab and great position ... at the end of the main street and opposite the pier/waterfront ... Gorgeous!




We had a few days enjoying Bribie and a few days of outings. One outing was to Eumundi Markets and the Ginger Factory at Buderim (which now also incorporates the Super Bee). It was very interesting finding out about all sorts of things to do with ginger, the bee information session and the honey tasting. They also have an attraction called "Overboard" which is a boat ride through an animated 'Gingerbread Man' adventure ... too cute!






Upon returning home we 'hit the ground running' as August flew by with work, school excursions, hosting a trivia night for the local pre-school, and organising for our annual snow trip.

Our week in the snow was once again a fantastic time with 10 other families ... yep 40 of us !

Our first day on the snow was a bit of a shock to the system with almost "white-out" conditions ....





This certainly didn't stop everyone having a great time and the kids were super enthusiastic and energetic as usual. Blake learnt to snowboard this year and joined in on the action with DH!



After the first day the weather turned glorious .... beautiful clear skies, perfect snow weather (minus the snow IYKWIM .... LOL!!).



We came home from the snow and barely had time catch-up on everything, unpacked, washed and re-packed and headed off to Gloucester for a 3 day weekend. DH competed in an adventure race thing whilst i spent a few days relaxing. Although it was hectic going away again in such a short time, it was lovely to get away in our van as we hadn't used it for 18 months .... that's that 'time flying by' thing that i mentioned earlier!! I took my camera away but took not one photo [shock horror] ... i simply couldn't be bothered!

Since then we have had one other night away, i have hosted another Trivia Night, work has been busy busy, and everything else has been the usual hectic routine ..... i am soooo looking forward the the upcoming long weekend. We are not going away ... it will be lovely to have a few consecutive days at home ... !

School holidays start from this weekend too .... yipeeee !!

Oh ... and better not forget to mention that hideous dust storm we had last week ... how bizzaar ...

These pics are straight from the camera .... no tweaking (except for blanking the number plate on DH's car).
I took these pics at about 7.30am .... thank goodness it lifted as the day went on but what a mess was left behind. Then of course, just after we started to make headway with cleaning everything .... a repeat on Saturday (luckily no where near as heavy) .... grrrr .... my thoughts go out to anyone that lives in areas where this is a common occurrence .... it would drive me 'round the twist!!





Well that pretty much brings me back up to date again (a very condensed version anyway ... LOL).

Just before i go ..... a BIG HAPPY BIRTHDAY WISH to the lovely Miss Jane !!

Promise i will try and be back before another 3 months passes he he ...

Keep smiling :O)