Recently in Personal Category

I've been back at work for a couple of days now and I must say it was very hard after having last week off. We all had a great time camping, and the 5 days we were away went very quickly. The weather was great, and the biggest problem we had was chasing the shade all day. The afternoons were spent around the pool because it was much cooler than the shade of the trees.

New Years Eve there was a fancy dress party and there were lots of pirates. One family won a holiday in one of the cabins, so if we go again I'll be much more particular about the costumes.

This is Alex as a "Punk", Zeke as a little pirate with Daniel (another punk), and Carly was Pretty in Pink.

Lauren and I both took advantage of the relaxing time and read as often as we could. I took the laptop with us and we watched DVDs of an evening, sitting under the stars. It was great. The first couple of nights were freezing cold, and we wrapped up in blankets, but the nights were great for sleeping. Even the beds were good. I had a camp stretcher, while Carly used an inflated mattress, and Alex had three pieces of foam for a bed. No complaints from anyone. Lauren and Daniel had a big inflatable mattress and Zeke had a foam lounge. He was so good on his first camping trip. He got a bit excitable with all the kids on bikes, but didn't wander too far without making a game of it and wanting us to chase him.

Emily spent the day with us on Saturday, and came back Sunday to do the same. She should have stayed the night and saved herself the driving to and fro. On Saturday we all went to the Ettamogah Pub near Albury and had lunch, and looked at all the Australiania. I got a couple of souvenirs but as with all that stuff, they're rather over-priced. A bonus was a drink bottle each for the kids for only $3 each.

Alex took advantage of all the activities at the Great Aussie Resort, and he and Daniel did an activity a day: abseiling, flying fox, night laser shooting, archery, tennis and fishing (although there was very little water in Lake Hume).

It rained one night we were there for about 2 hours (much needed rain!), and on Monday we managed to get everything packed into the cars and trailer before more rain. We were home around 3pm on Monday afternoon and I spent the night washing before I had to be back at work on Tuesday. We had a good bit of rain on Tuesday, and although everyone is talking about drought-breaking rain, we're yet to see it.

Remember...
May no gift be too small to give, nor too simple to receive, which is wrapped in thoughtfulness, and tied with love.
- L. O. Baird

Yesterday was Christmas and I had a strange awakening. No kids!! Both Carly and Alex stayed at their father's house on Christmas Eve (which was also Carly's birthday), and it was quite different from past years, waking up on Christmas morning in an empty house. Alex was adamant he wasn't staying anywhere else, and threatened to ring me early in the morning to come and pick him up, but it was nearly 10 when Carly rang and when I asked Alex how it was, he said "Awesome!". So now I'm glad I made him stay there.

We had a wonderful day. I cooked a hot lunch for my Mother and Reg, and we opened a bottle of bubbly and enjoyed a 3-course meal that lasted for over 2 hours. It was 3pm before we left the table, all so full it was uncomfortable. Even the kids enjoyed a glass of wine, but with orange juice added to tone down the taste.

I spent a couple of hours in the afternoon setting up the kids' iPods for them and loading a ton of music on them. They're both over the moon with them. The rest of our little family arrived around 5pm with more gifts, and no-body was disappointed with their presents. Zeke was sitting quite comfortably in his little camp chair I bought for him while we watched a Johnny Depp movie called The Nine Gates, that Lauren brought over. It's one of his older movies, but was great. I just love him as an actor, and he's not too hard on the eyes either.

It was after 8 before we sat down to another meal, this time salads and cold chichen and ham. How I was hungry I don't know. I could have gone two days without eating after the lunch we had, but by 8 I was starving!

I charged the batteries in the camera on Christmas Eve, so it would be ready for yesterday, and didn't take a single photo. Today I'm kicking myself. The excitement of the day made me forget I suppose. Today I'll wash and pack the trailer for our holiday at the Great Aussie Resort that I'm looking forward to. There's lots to do to get ready. I'll be away for 5 days, and back to work the next, and there's no internet where we're going (not for me anyway), but I'll take the laptop and we'll be able to watch movies.

Enjoy the rest of the holidays as I know I will and have a happy New Year!

We have a busy few days coming up, with a Christmas Party for Carly's Tuesday night touch team this afternoon. I finish work at 1pm and we need to be in Wagga by 2pm so the rush is on.

Tomorrow Aileen and the girls are coming over. I think they're sleeping, but not sure at this stage. Sunday is Carly's birthday, and we need to go to Wagga Sunday afternoon to exchange a few gifts and catch up with those people we won't see Christmas day.

This time of year is so hectic, and I don't want to be at work today. I have so much to do that I can't concentrate on the work at hand. I ordered a few Christmas presents through a catalogue that Alex brought home from school, as they still haven't turned up. I'm in a bit of a flap because there's three little girls who I have nothing for Christmas if it doesn't come. I still have the weekend for last-minute shopping, but I'm no millionaire, and these presents are already paid for. I won't be so quick to support the school with this type of fund-raiser next year.

There won't be much time for posting to the site, so until the silly season is over, Merry Christmas to all.

This is my brother David, the morning after our get-together on Saturday night. He's looking a bit worse for wear, but we were all feeling the same so it didn't matter.

Twenty one people came and we had the best night. The only family member not to come was my sister Jennifer, who lives in Sydney, (and we were missing Graham, of course). Mum had a great night. She went home around 11pm but I think she would have liked to stay too. There was so much food, drink and talk that the night went on to the early hours, and on Sunday it was 5 o'clock in the afternoon before everyone that stayed over went home. That was good because we ate and drank again on Sunday, and not much of the food was left by then. Certainly none of the beer was, but there's still a couple bottles of wine in the fridge that should make it till Xmas day.

I don't know what I was so worried about. The house sparkled, it was so clean, and though the day was hot, we had a nice shady spot out the back and for anyone who couldn't cope with the heat, the house was air-conditioned. I've decided to cook Xmas lunch and invite Mum and Reg around, and my Nanna who is in the nursing home. I think she'll enjoy getting out of there for a couple of hours. After lunch Carly and Alex always spend the afternoon with their father, so I can take Nanna back at the same time. I'm looking forward to it. If I can cater for 20, I'm sure I'll manage 6 on Christmas day.

Remember...
The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering.
Augustine of Hippo, 354 - 430

Bushfires are raging across Victoria and New South Wales while temperatures continue to soarand I walked out of work this afternoon and was struck by how smoky the air was. You can't see the surrounding hills, which are only a couple of kilometres away. Only a year ago we had the New Year's Day fires here in Junee and my heart goes out to all those people who are going through the same thing now. There seems to be no relief in sight and the situation can only worsen.

I have the day off work tomorrow so I can get ready for our family gathering on Saturday night, and temperatures are expected to be around 39. The air-conditioner works great, but with around 20 people here, there's no way we'll all fit in the lounge-room. The pergola I had set up out the back got all bent out of shape with the gale-force winds we had last week but I'll try to set it up again. I have some lovely shade trees out the back, but it won't be cool, we'll be cooking. A few cold beers will go down well.

Remember...
A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent in doing nothing.
George Bernard Shaw

All I seem to do is go on about how busy I am, and coming up to Christmas, we have something on every weekend, so life will get busier still.

I did the Grandmother thing and brought Zeke home with me on Friday night while Lauren and Daniel went to Daniel's work Xmas party. It was just me and Alex because Carly went to a disco in Wagga and stayed with friends. Zeke was a joy to look after. He cried for about 5 minutes when it was time for him to go to bed, and he woke up at 7:30am when he heart me moving around in the kitchen. Alex had cricket Saturday morning, and the two little girls from down the road took turns pushing him around and looking after him. It was too easy.

After lunch I took him home and Carly and Alex had touch football. They both won easily, and next week is the start of the finals so there's only a couple of weeks left (thank God!!!). It was 6 before we got home, and I had a 50th to go to. I could easily have stayed home and done my usual when I'm invited somewhere (which is to beg off), but it turned out to be a good night and I'm glad I went. I'm not much of a drinker though, and had a thumping headache this morning. Sorting washing with my head pounding was no fun at all.

I spent the day between wash loads playing with the Council website that I'm still working on. I've gotten the layout pretty much down pat, except for an expanding vertical menu that I'm having trouble with. I've got until Xmas to get it right, so I've been fiddling with it every chance I get. I've done most of the work at home, and therefore not getting paid for it, but I'm proud of how it looks and the old saying works for me: Pride of achievement and achievement of pride.

On Monday, Alex and I went to Sydney for the Primary School Touch Football Knockout. Junee Public School had made it through to the quarter finals, along with seven other teams from around NSW. A few car-loads of parents with kids drove up and Alex and I played music and sang most of the way there. We had to listen to his CD first, but I didn't mind because it was Guns'n'Roses and ACDC. He likes heavy rock.

I had a terribe time finding the place, and after driving around for ages, lost, I eventually asked the receptionist at a Real Estate office if she knew where the street was. She didn't, but had a street directory and photocopied the area for me. We stayed in a cabin at the Nepean River Caravan Park in Emu Plains and got there around 3.30pm. That gave me time to get some groceries while the boys trained. The park was lovely, but right next to the railway station, and I heard trains every 15 minutes during the night. Everyone else slept like logs, so it must have been me.
The games were played at Nepean High School and the Junee boys won 3 rounds to take out the State Cup, which Alex is pictured holding. It was Melbourne Cup day and I didn't get a bet on, and when I later heard the winners I was glad I hadn't wasted my money. Between each of the boys' rounds, the girls' teams played, and South Wagga Public School (where I attended primary school), won the girls' competition. Riverina cleaned up on the day, with Junee and Wagga only 20 minutes from each other.

The boys' coach shouted the team to Macdonalds after the games and we got some Crispy Creme Donuts to bring home. They were so yummy, Carly was into them as soon as we got home. She'd stayed at her father's house on Monday night, and was waiting for us when we got home around 9pm.

I thoroughly enjoyed my couple of days off work and though I was tired from all the driving I felt I'd had a great time. I slept like a baby that night.