Why on earth would a Mum and Dad want to take a picture of their two oldest girls, together? I mean, what on earth would be the significance of them both playing rep netball? (Even if it is for different associations at this point)? What sort of weirdo parents would think it'd be nice to get a picture of them, together, in their respective rep dresses at a rep carnival? I mean, ewwww.

Who knows.. parents are a bit weird like that sometimes.


Yes, Cait, we know Ali doesn't have a patch on right now, but getting you both off the court at the one time isn't that easy at a rep carnival. (Heaven knows, we didn't manage to do it all of last year...) Just imagine the C for Centre patch on her chest eh.

And don't get too close either. You wouldn't want to be seen with your arms around each other's shoulders or anything chummy like that....

Yep, and thanks for the goofy grin.


(Really, darling, it's only because we want to record the fact that we will spend several Sundays this year watching you girls play rep netball, and in years to come we'll present it as proof of our undying commitment to you. Or something like that.)

Labels: kids, netball, photos

I have many blog posts swishing around my head, but none have made their way into a comprehensible form.

So in the meantime....

I am fascinated by clouds. And I don't manage to take nearly as many photos of them as I'd like.


Took this one through the front windscreen of the car as we drove home from the netball carnival on Sunday.

Labels: photos

[Hey, I could qualify for Wordless Wednesday with this !]

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Edited to add: Photo by Cait, who is becoming a bit arty farty with her photography lately! (Probably helps that she does a Photography unit at school!)

Confession: It was taken last Wednesday (along with a whole pile of other shots) after a storm. We had more rain yesterday, and so as I was hanging out the clothes today, ankle-deep in water, I decided her photo was more than appropriate!

Labels: daily, photos

From this morning's ride:



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Ed to add: The house is apparently vacant. The cycling friend I went riding with does this route most Tuesday mornings (as she is trying to train herself.. and another friend up .. to do the next Big Ride - or Great Escapade as it is called this year.) The farmer who owns it stops to talk to her often - but never seems to remember her, but one time he did tell her that since the old farmhouse was vacant it had been vandalised.

Yesterday he asked her again where we were going:

"When I told him we were the usual cyclists he saw on a Tuesday and that we were in training for a major ride, he looked me in the eye and said "I've been training all me life. It's never done much for me yet." Smiled and drove on."

Labels: bike riding, daily, photos

OK, so my mate Misc Mum has started another 'self-reflection' prompt type challenge thingy for blog posts. She's called it "Hello Gorgeous". The idea is to find a photo of yourself from any age, a photo that you like. One you are "Truly happy with", to quote MM:

"The picture could have red-eye, be blurry or slightly distorted, but there will be a look on your face that you recognize as you: true and unadulterated."

Me being me, of course, I couldn't relate at all to ever feeling "gorgeous".. Could be a reflection of starting to feel my age - dealing with the onset of wrinkles, and looking, oh, about 20 years older than I did 20 years ago? Or maybe because of some of the shit I'm going through emotionally right now... I'm not sure. I immediately posted a 'woe is me' comment, wailing that I've never related to ever feeling 'gorgeous'.

After a cup of tea, a bex and a good lie down (ok, well, just the nap -I got up at 5 am to go bike riding ok!).. and then sussing out MM's own example, I decided I needed to follow through with the project, for the sake of my self esteem - even if I still couldn't relate to the pink button! Too girlie!! (Yes! Sorry! Even though my daughter made it for her!!!)

This is the photo I have chosen.

I didn't really intend to go back to that age, where I'd just get wistful over my lost youth.. but this one does capture a time when I was really happy and carefree, almost as if I'd discovered the meaning of life. Maybe I had. The meaning of my life, anyway.

It was taken around 1987 or 1988 when I was twenty something. I'd finished college, was working, finally independent, and after feeling like the proverbial square peg (trying to fit in and have a 'good time' the way everyone else did) I'd met people (and one person in particular) who showed me how to have a good time doing a range of amazing and challenging things outdoors. We used to spend most weekends and holidays out bush somewhere.. In summer we'd spend a lot of weekends canyoning and this photo was taken when we were eating lunch in the middle of a canyon. We'd brought yoghurt, but forgotten the spoons, so we were improvising with orange peel. And I think, from memory it was just before doing a very memorable, free fall abseil - the canyon was called, most appropriately "Heart Attack"!

Hmmm, still makes me wistful. Slimmer, younger... *sighs*. But not 'girlie' !! And anytime I manage to get back out somewhere like a canyon, my inner self still does feel as happy as I look in this photo.

Labels: hello gorgeous, photos

No whinges, no tapping off.. just 'minutiae'.

It might not be very interesting though. Sometimes I think me having a rant is much more exciting.

I've done a lot of sleeping in, which I feel a bit guilty about, especially when Marc is having to go to work, and the work is stressful to the point that I am quite concerned about him.

He likened it last night to having about 20 cakes to make at once, and everyone's cake order is urgent, so he is having to try to make them all at once, instead of what would be the sensible thing to do and make them one after the other. Problem with doing that is he has 'contractors' he must supervise - and he can't leave them doing nothing while he concentrates on making sure his cakes are done properly, because they will be being paid a few hundred dollars an hour to do nothing.

Meantime the cake orders keep coming in (and he gets more emails in a day than he has time to deal with). And people from that project in Malaysia coming out today and tomorrow, so that one guy who has 'all the knowledge in his head' can impart what he knows.

Maybe I should have made him resign.

At least he got sleep-ins over Easter. And at least given I'm at home, he doesn't have to worry about what's for dinner, and all that sort of crap. Except when I do stuff like make bolognaise for dinner, then realise I didn't buy spaghetti while I was in town! And so he has to stop at the shops and buy spaghetti on the way home.

We went in to the shops on Tuesday because #1 had organised to go iceskating with friends. I was feeling blecchy that day (hence forgetting the spaghetti) but it didn't stop me spending money... (or maybe that's what made me spend money!)

I bought this apple slicing/coring/peeling machine:



I had seen it at christmas time when we visited a friend, and I thought back then "I want one!". She'd got it through a school fundraiser thingy though. I'd forgotten about it till someone mentioned bringing theirs to netball so we might try to flog some slightly healthier alternatives to all the lollies we sell. She told me where I could buy one around here.



I think we are going to be getting through a lot more apples around here, simply because of the novelty value. It's even making me eat one right now.

I also bought some new sandals for me. Don't get too excited. These are Orthaheel casual slip-on sandals to wear around the house, and not too far afield. Given that I have to wear orthotics in my normal shoes, you can imagine how hard it is to wear casual slip-ons. The girls have not called them 'Grandma shoes' yet - they probably realise they will get a flea in their ear if they do.



And I had to buy the younger two more joggers. Ali's were coming apart at the sole, and Zoe was growing out of hers. Kids! Why do they have to keep growing (and wearing things out?!)

They wear them everyday for school, plus need them to be ok for cross country which is coming up this term. I went in to Amart Sports because I felt I should attempt to buy cheaper shoes if at all possible. I wasn't in the headspace for it - feeling a bit nauseous and dizzy. Then I survey tables upon tables of shoes on sale, as well as all the shoes at 'normal' prices on the wall display. It made me more dizzy. How the hell would I know what was an appropriate fit.?(Given my orthotic issues, I have always erred on the side of expense and having them fitted for shoes which give them appropriate support, as they all tend to pronate like I do - or so the machine at Athlete's Foot tells me.) I was asked if I needed some assistance, and when I said yes, we need joggers, and they need to be measured, the guy said 'Um, we can't find our shoe measurerer at the moment.'

FFS!! Oh well, it was the excuse I needed to walk out, drive round to the Plaza, and let Athletes Foot do all the decision making for me. The only problem I had there was that there was only the one style in kids shoes (which thank heavens Ali still fits in, even though she could also fit in an adult's size at around $50 more!)- BUT! They only had that style with PINK bits, and my 11, nearly 12, year old daughter DOES NOT LIKE PINK. Nor is she particularly enamoured of having exactly the same shoes as her 8 year old sister!!

Her only other option was the boys' style, and it had far too much black on it for her liking. I buried my head in my hands for a minute.. and Thankfully! she opted for the lesser of two evils - pink trim. And, after the assistant suggested it, she came home and coloured over some of the trim with a blue texta.


Had a lazy day yesterday. Guilty as anything because I spent far too much of it inside, and it was the best day we'd had since the start of the holidays/Easter. Wind had dropped to a bearable level. Finally I dragged Zoe with me to walk up onto the headland near us (and then walk up the beach with me), so that I got a big dose of 'DO YOU REALISE JUST HOW BLOODY LUCKY YOU ARE LIVING WHERE YOU DO?'



Our house is only one street back from the street along the beachfront.



And this is 'our' headland.

Meanwhile Caitlin stayed in her pjs ALL DAY, and I just didn't have the energy to hassle her. Her logic is that in term time it's full on (and she is right), so I suppose, why shouldn't she be a sloth. Even if it's excruciatingly hard to deal with as a parent because you feel she should be out in the fresh air getting just a little bit of exercise...

Today we have to hit the shops again, this time for her, because, goddammit, the girl has grown out of pretty much all her clothes. Hello puberty, belated as it is compared to her peers. Problem is this is just the start of it, really. She has finally got the height, but is just starting with the shape. So it is a bit scary wondering how long anything we buy today will fit her. The girl does need to wear clothes though, so there is nothing for it but to buy stuff.

What is even more scary is if she doesn't fit into the chainstore clothes anymore, and we have to venture in to the OTHER shops.. the ones with the REALLY REALLY LOUD music, and clothes that are designed to only go half way up their bum crack.

Wish me luck.

Labels: photos, shopping, Trivial and lovin' it

Australian natives, cont. Another grevillea. For E.

Labels: photos

Photo time. Daughter's actually - she's taken to wandering around, camera in hand, trying to be artistic. She's pretty happy with this one. I'm pretty happy that we are in the digital photography era - expense wise!

For those not familiar with Australian native plants, it's a grevillea. The link is to a 1600x1200 pixel size, for the benefit of a particular friend who sometimes likes Aussie photos as wallpaper!!

Labels: photos