Silent Sunday

I'm grateful for...

Brenda from Mira Narnie is hosting Maxabella Loves' Grateful Saturday this week. I know I'm a day late but I suffer FOMO (fear of missing out) when it comes to these things. So here is what I am grateful for this week.

4. A haircut. I only get my hair cut two or three times a year so it's a treat when it happens. My hairdresser is two hours away in Melbourne. She has been cutting my hair for ten years now and always does a fantastic job (at least I think so), even so that my hair grows out really well. Hence, the infrequent cuts. Here is the latest 'do' but please excuse the tired, post night duty, post workout look on my face!

5. Liquorice allsorts. I actually don't like them, but The Squeeze and The Bear love them. Why? Apparently they "make you dance."

Mr. H took the girls fishing yesterday afternoon while I slept. They picked up some liquorice allsorts from a local sweet shop on the way (in case the girls became bored trying to catch fish). Mr. H told me that no sooner had they arrived at the river, and The Squeeze and The Bear had started to eat the treats, they started dancing on a log, yelling "Look Daddy, look. See? We told you."

As for the fishing, The Squeeze caught a little rainbow trout, much to The Bear's excitement!

6. Being outside. Spring is in the air, the sun is out, the bees are buzzing and I am loving being outside more. The smell of freshly mowed grass and the warm air just rejuvinates me. Tra, la la, la la!

What are you grateful for? Pop over to Brenda's to tell us.



Have you met Mr. H?

I am feeling rather smug writing this post. When I began blogging a few months ago, Mr. H rolled his eyes at me and called me - 'What was it, darling?'- oh that's right, a fruitloop! But he did find he was getting some reprieve from my ramblings. He then discovered he was getting the odd mention on my blog, and asked if I would read my posts to him when I publish them. This was when my smuggy smirk started to appear on my smuggy face.

Last week, after reading a post to Mr. H, he says: "You haven't mentioned me for a while. Maybe you should introduce me. Officially." It turns out I'm not the only one who likes attention.

"Are you serious?" says me. "This is my blog." Yes, he was serious. Some turnaround, hey. So, let's humour him.

Meet Mr. H.

Awww. He chose this pic because he thought he looked cool!

We met at Derby Day ten years ago. He picked me a yellow rose (thanks Flemington Racecourse!), and then invited himself, his flatmate, his cousin and his girlfriend around for dinner for later that week. Quite forward for someone who claims to be very shy.

It then took three weeks before we first kissed, and to this day, we still argue over who kissed who first.

Mr. H used to sport a mullet, and drive a panel van. Bogan!

Noice! I've cheated with a recent photo because I didn't have one from the eighties (that's a wig. Mr. H is now balding.)

I love Mr. H's dancing. He is quite worldly and has taught me all the moves to the sprinkler, the shopping trolley, and the lawn mower. He once agreed to come to tango classes with me, only to later confess that he only said that to advance his chances with me!

Mr. H is six foot five, and I am five foot three. We would have looked ridiculous dancing the tango together.

But despite his inner boganess, his lack of hair, and the fact I have to stand on a step-ladder to kiss him, Mr. H is divine in every single way I want a man to be. Even when he calls me a fruit-loop.

Dirty money

I finally had a chance to catch up with a few friends for a cuppa this week after school drop off. One conversation topic was our upcoming school fundraising ball, and what costumes we were all pondering to wear. (The theme is 'Around The World', and I am open to costume suggestions.)

A couple of the mums were giving another mum money for their ball tickets who then (I think this is right) shoved the money in her bra strap.

Cue conversation topic number two. Where did we used to stash our moola when we used to go out? There was the usual: jeans pocket, bra, shoes, stockings. Until one friend piped up with this one. She had a friend who used to stash her dollars in her knickers, in that extra seam of fabric in the crutch!

I think our collective "Ewwwwwwww!" was heard out on the street. We all paid for our drinks, then quickly dashed home to thoroughly wash our hands.

The Gallery: A Happy Memory

I grew up on a property my dad managed in the central west of New South Wales. It was a great lifestyle for my brothers and I, for any kid really. In those days, before OH&S and Work Safe, there was a lot we kids could do. We would help with shearing, mustering sheep and cattle, lamb marking and mulesing, drafting, calving. It was a lot of fun.

We had a creek that ran through the property, and on weekends, friends from surrounding properties would come and meet us on the creek for a BBQ picnic. And by BBQ I mean sausages and chops cooked on a plough disc over a fire.

My brothers would ride our horses down, Nutmeg and Mrs. Pepper. We had the dinghy, Mary-Rose (yes, I named her!) And, there was the flying-fox so we always took our togs (bathers/swimmers/budgie smugglers - whatever you like to call them.) There was also the resident goanna who used to amble in for a sausage or two, hang out for a bit, then climb back into his tree and watch us from there.

These are from this happy memory.

What are your happy memories? There are a lot more happy memories over with Tara at Sticky Fingers.



Silent Sunday

Listography: Games I used to play

Kate's Listography this week is games we used to play when we were kids. Fun!

1. Duck, duck, drake. This game involved you all sitting in a circle while the person who was 'in' went around the circle tapping each of you on the head saying duck, duck, duck, etc. But if that person tapped your head and said drake, you then had to get up and chase them around the circle. If they sat down in your place before you caught them, you were then 'in'. You need at least six of you to play this.

2. Stuck in the mud. It's a bit like chase, but if you were caught, you had to stand still until someone freed you by crawling through your legs. The crawler had to be careful not to get caught in the process of freeing someone.

3. "What's the time Mr. Fox?" Someone - 'Mr. Fox' - stood some distance from everyone else with their back to them. Everyone would call out "What's the time Mr. Fox?" and once Mr. Fox gave a time, everyone would approach Mr. Fox as quietly and quickly as possible. But, if Mr. Fox spun around to look, you had to stand perfectly still, and if you were caught moving, you were sent back to the start. The first person to reach Mr. Fox, tap them on the shoulder and run back to the start without being caught by Mr. Fox was the winner. I was hopeless at this game for two reasons. I was not very athletic, and therefore not very fast. So if I reached Mr. Fox, I always got caught. Secondly, I was as stealth as an elephant. I was lucky enough to reach Mr. Fox let alone be chased by him/her!

4. Brandies. Again, someone is 'it' and they tagged you by throwing a tennis ball at you. If you were hit, you were out. This game always seemed to end with someone in tears, and everyone covered in red welts. Someone would always sneak off and wet the ball, so if you were hit, it bloody hurt!

5. Having rides on the billy-cart behind the motorbike. This always guaranteed exhilarating squeals of laughter.

One of my brothers, my cousin and myself.

My cousins and uncles going for a spin.

The Squeeze (front) enjoying a ride with her cousin.

What games did you play as a kid? Did you play the same ones as me?