Too long

How long is it since I wrote anything on my blog - 17 days? And to think when I started, it was almost daily. Good intentions..........................
A lot has happened in the last 17 days - well a lot for me. Don and I drove to Sydney and had a wonderful few days with our two little grand daughters. I'd love to put up some photos, but we have agreed not to take the risk. We also spent a short time in Canberra catching up with my brother and some very old(not in age) and dear friends. It always amazes me how with some friends it doesn't seem to matter how long it is since you have met, the closeness and comfortable feeling is still there.

On Saturday we are going to the wedding of a cousin and my son Mark is doing the catering. He has been cooking up a storm in my kitchen for a week - and doing his own cleaning up. He's lucky he has a mother who loves buying kitchen equipment so he has a fairly well set up area to work in.
Then, on Monday, its back to school. To be honest I wasn't looking forward to this year with an expected class of 32 Year 6/7 kids - and a mixed lot at that. I was very pleased to go back on Wednesday and be greeted with the news that we had enough new enrolments to make an extra class, so I will start the year with 20 kids - pure bliss! Even more exciting is the news that the new enrolments are also new arrival children from Vietnam. Lobethal is very conservative, very much a white Australian background and it is going to be wonderful for our children to have children from another culture at school. My class is having two Vietnamese girls in Year 7 and I am so excited about it.

I took my non-digital camera away with me as it had a film in it to finish. The photos came back today, so I am sharing a very special one with you.

Don's Christmas present last year was a visit with the cheetahs at Monarto Zoo, so of course I had to share it with him. It was the most amazing and awesome experience.

Liz Needle

Ooops!!

Puddling around the house last Saturday, still in my PJs at about 11.00, when Mark asked me if Don and I were going out that evening. Rather puzzled as to why he would ask that, I replied that no, we weren't and why would he think we might because we rarely go out Saturday night - or any night for that matter.
He replied, "Well, it is your wedding anniversary!" Don and I looked at each other, then simultaneously burst out laughing. We had both completely forgotten. Usually he forgets and I remember, but this year it had completely slipped our minds. 45 years of wedded 'bliss' and we had forgotten this 'significant' day. Needless to say, we still did nothing. Too hard. We just spent a very companionable and relaxing evening at home watching a movie - Sandra Bullock (Don's favourite) in some film or other.

And here we are on that fateful day 45 years ago. Don, all 10 stone of him and me with a 19 inch waist - how things have changed!! So young and inexperienced. Both 21 and parents 9 months later.

Finding that photo got me going so here are a couple more Me with my mother and little brother, Fran; Don with his mother and big brother, Fred.

These old photos are such fun. Must get my scanner organised and do some more.

Liz Needle

Where has the time gone

The second week of the year already and all those NY resolutions if not forgotten then at least disbanded. I did walk for 2 days, but I haven't eaten any less and the weight hasn't decreased as yet - and not likely to. Little housecleaning done, no sewing and no gardening done. In fact I just don't seem to be able to stir myself to get moving. I have read a lot of books, answered numerous email, surfed the net and played Patience on the computer.

I did finally get motivated enough to clean and tidy the pantry shelves - and my sewing room is still immaculate - only because I have a quilting block and haven't done any sewing in the darn room these holidays!!

I was actually horrified at the state of the pantry. So many things had passed the 'use by' date. Items had I bought on a whim because they would be useful some day and then were never used. Items doubled up because they were on a 'special'. I think I half filled one of those council bins with packets, bottles, jars and tins of unwanted foodstuff. Such a waste!! I can just hear what my mother would have said,
"Just think of all those starving people in Africa," just like she used to when I was little and wouldn't eat my tea. I can remember then telling her that she could put my tea in a box and send it to the starving people!

One of the packets had a 'use by' date of March 1990!!! Probably could have taken it in to the local 'antique' shop and sold it for a fortune. Still in the original packet - unopened.

Never again! From now on I am going to keep my pantry in order the way my mother would have expected. Oh dear! Another NY resolution.

Liz Needle

Family

Monday Jan 1st

Happy New year everyone. We celebrated with just the two of us - New Year is never a big thing for us and I much prefer to be quietly at home with Don and safely off the roads on New Year's Eve.

This morning I started out as I plan to continue - very funny!! I took the dogs for a 3km walk then came home to a braekfast of fruit and cereal. Then I weighed and measured myself in preparation for the 2007 onslaught on the middle-aged spread - I wonder how long that will last - the onslaught, not the middle-aged spread!

Last Friday we had our annual family Christmas get-together with Don's family. It was a lovely evening and great to see two new additions to the family - great nieces Matilda and Jessica. That makes 12 of the next generation. I do enjoy these get-togethers and every year we say we should do it more often, and every year everyone is always too busy.

Jill and grand daughter Matilda










Olivia and Will with our old dog, Jeb





The old boys!

The 'not so old' girls




Liz Needle