Dec 27, 2010

Christmas Ramblings, a Saucy Dish and some Good Looking Birds.

We woke up to another rainy day on Christmas morning. After Breakfast we watched our son open his presents. Hubby and I opened ours and then it was time to do a bit of cleaning until it was time to go to my sister-in-laws place. For those who read my blog about the whole Christmas day drama, you would know that I wasn’t looking forward to going. Anyway, we get there and walk into their downstairs rumpus room and it is full to the brim with toys! I mean they only have two children, aged 3 and 8 and the amount of presents was way beyond excessive. Who buys an adult sized skate-board for a three year old? Hubby and I were not impressed to say the least. So these kids were so over opening presents buy the time it came to opening ours. Or so we thought. We had bought the little girl the Barbie doll she had once pointed out to me on a shopping trip. Our son had bought her one to play with in the bath. She played with these two Barbie dolls all day, declaring that they were her favourite presents ever! (*insert smug chuckle here*)
The little boy spent all day playing with the Chuggington train set we got him for his birthday (which was the day before) and the Toy Story Rex we got him for Christmas. (*Insert next smug chuckle here*).
So score 1 for the POV people! LOL! We may not be able to afford to buy the kids hundreds of dollars in presents, but we defiantly got them just what they wanted! And yeah Mum was a little miffed. (HEH)
So I also had to put up with my husband’s horrible mother, who, after she realized that my Hubby was not going to be sweet and indulgent to her, she turned nasty, and attention seeking for the rest of the day. Though she copped it from me a couple of times. One time Hubby was teasing our son and she told him he should give hubby a raspberry. Which I replied loudly “No he won’t because he isn’t that rude”. Then she got into trouble with her daughter because the little girl turned around and did it to her father. (LOL)
Oh and after all my efforts of making fruit mince pies, and being denied making the deserts, my hubbys sister ended up making pavlova AND trifle. So no-one ate the pies. Oh but everyone had the lactose-free ice-cream we made specially for her son and loved it. The little boy was in rapture eating it because he hadn’t had it before!
At 3:30 in the afternoon we eventually had lunch. Yes. 3:30. My brother-in-law cooks about 19 roasts (ok so only 5 but you get what I mean..) to the point of them being almost dried shriveled husks (ok so maybe not that bad but they are a bit on the overcooked side) . The highlight of the lunch/afternoon tea was that two beautiful King Parrots came and sat on the railing (We were eating alfresco). So beautiful. I managed to get a pic of one when it flew into the tree. It sat there for ages watching us! After desert (pavlova not made by me) we had a game of Pictionary Man with some cosmopolitans (mmm.. vodka).

King Parrots mate for life so it was a rare sight to see the two of them.
Boxing day we woke up late, and went to the sales. Our son spent his gift voucher from his Aunty (my little sister), and we bought new pillows for all the beds. (dbs, you’ll appreciate that one). Later I made MY Pavlova with Chantilly cream and my special strawberries in sauce. Hubby cooked a pork roast he’d been preparing for two days. We had his dad and his lady-friend over for dinner. We played xBox Scene-it, and then Scrabble. I went out in the pouring rain to get myself a couple of bottles of red wine. The roast was perfect (naturally my hubby is a genius cook) and they had second helpings of my pavlova (naturally I am just as talented..LOL). It was a great night. Much calmer than Christmas day. Oh and they left with some pies.. lol.

MMMM... PAVLOVA!
It has been raining so much for so long that all the rivers are flooding. Towns are getting cut off, bridges swept away and roads are being closed everywhere. I know I remarked that I wanted a wet Christmas but this is getting serious. Our river is expected to peek over 11 meters (over 36 feet!) this evening! Lucky for us we live on a hill of sorts. Our little wrens think it’s great. Splashing in the little river in our yard that runs from the water tank. I’ve been very snap-happy lately and managed to get a few pics of our birds around here.
So hard to get a pic of these little guys. They never stay still for long enough! This was taken on megazoom from my house.
Rainbow Lorikeets enjoying the rain
And the rest who decided they'd had enough rain.
P.S I hope the Christmas part of this blog didn't come off as too bitchy. I guess if I can't spend Christmas with my family then they are the next best thing and there are people out there who don't have anyone to spend special days with. But it goes to show that money isnt the be all and end all. Also, Hubby and I couldn't help but be a little amused that the kids loved our presents more.
Next year we are going to ether have christmas at our place, or go to an old peoples home, or homeless shelter and volounteer our time to people who will appreciate it. Not to be self-righteous or anything, but because it's something we want to do.

Dec 23, 2010

The Fruitiest Mince Pies Ever!


My whole house smelt like these little guys today. A week ago I made my own fruit mince from scratch and today I finished making them. SO of course I had to take a picture of them with my new camera. lol. They were given the thumbs up from my Hubby, who is a fussy git so I am happy with them. That's one more for the recipe book! (We are actually writing a recipe book..)
Oh and I may not be on the next few days so I want to take this time to thank all of you who follow and/or comment on my page (and whos' pages I follow) and have been so thoughtful, thought provoking, inspiring and nice, and have made my new experience here on blogger to be a very awesome one.
Merry Christmas and have safe and happy New Years celebrations.

Dec 22, 2010

Despite this, My Cat still Loves Me..

After many weeks of saving I finally bought myself a new camera! It's a Canon Powershot XS120 IS. I love it. It is so clever. While I work out the many features on it ,I have the setting on AUTO and it does everything. After visiting Carens' Cat Chat I was inspired to do some creative Photography. Subject: Moby.
While he wasn't a very co-operative model I did manage to snap a few cute pics. (After I realised I should have set the camera to SMALL CHILDREN AND PETS. lol.. oh well.. live and learn!) Merry Christmas everyone!
I managed to sit him in a white wreath I have

this one was blurry because he was trying to escape..

This one is my favourite so I jazzed it up a little

Dec 21, 2010

Bah Humbug!


This is the time of year that kind of hits a raw nerve with me. This year I am sad about the loss of our ivf/embryo/baby. I am missing my parents. My husband’s health is not good. I start thinking about how pissed off at my sisters I am. And now Christmas day itself has turned into one big drama. Courtesy of my husband’s sister.
Here’s the thing..
Every year we have gone to their place for Christmas because they didn’t want to come to our place.  I get that the first year was because my brother-in-law had just come home from his tour of duty in Iraq and wanted to do his Christmas thing, which includes roasting every sort of meat known to man. I get that. Then the year after it was that our house was too small (Even though their house was way smaller). This year there was no excuse, it was a flat out “NO, we are doing it at OUR place”. And given that we don’t have much money we agreed reluctantly, on the condition that hubby would make his fabulous chicken roll, and I would make the deserts. We discussed this on one or two occasions. Tonight we ring them and his sister says, no you can’t bring a chicken roll, I’m roasting a chicken. AND she is also making a Pavlova. Which I said I would make. She ended up yelling at my hubby down the phone and pulled her “Everyone is against me” routine, stressing my hubby out and making him not feel well (easy to do with a dying heart).
So basically they have made us out to be the pov people who aren’t bringing anything, and once again they can throw in our faces how much more money they earn than us. I know this sounds like awful bitching but I am pissed off! Mainly because they have forgotten the fact that my husband doesn’t have that many Christmas’s left in him and all he wants to do is entertain. That’s his bliss. And also because I am sick of having to do everything THEIR way. No really, it happens all the time and I am getting more than annoyed about it.
So I hit the roof. I let them know I was mad, which is something I normally don’t do. I told them flat out that we are doing Christmas at our house next year, and if they don’t come then tuff!
Am I being a bitch or are they being unreasonable and selfish? I know Christmas is supposed to be the time of good cheer and stuff, and that my whining may come off as trivial, but it’s turning out to be the one day I’d rather sleep right through and miss.

Dec 17, 2010

Memories of Christmas.

Having just read a lovely Christmas story by dbs here , and just finished making a batch of fruit mince from scratch I am feeling all nostalgic-y, so I thought I'd write about my memories of Christmas.
I can't really remember any of my childhood Christmas's all that well. I remember my older sister making me grope around for presents in our parents dark wardrobe. I felt something soft, fluffy and with a plastic nose.
That was the year she got a large stuffed Basset-hound toy. I also remember the year I pestered my parents for a pair of skates, that they couldn't afford. Christmas morning I woke up to a pair of gleaming white skates with red wheels. I also remember the year I finally got my very own bike and not my brothers hand-me-down. It was a pink mountain bike. I remember the year I decided to make a baked Alaska and it turned out to be the hottest day in the history of our time. I had my Mum helping me shape the meringue into a snowy mountain, so we could quickly whip it in the oven before the ice cream melted everywhere! We were in fits of laughter as I yelled "GO! GO! GO!" like a commando squat team leader. One year we were renting a house that had a pool and so as luck would have it, it turned out to be the coldest, rainest Christmas in the history of our time. It didn't stop us kids from plunging into the pool though. That is the best Christmas I remember with my brother and sisters. It was 1992. (My anger towards my siblings now is an entirely new blog in itself)
I remember that we were a poor family with three kids, and yet my parents always managed to get us that one gift we'd all been dying to receive that year. And it wasn't until I was a parent (single mum) myself that I realised just how much my parents sacrificed for us kids. I went through my childhood not even knowing that we were poor. We were always fed, happy, and with a roof over our heads. But as I got older and understood the value of money, I realised that my parents did everything they could to provide us with a happy and safe home. Even if it meant that they went without some things. These days kids learn about the value of money earlier I guess. If my son wants something he saves and saves his pocket money for it.
This is the first year that I will be spending Christmas without my parents. They are retired now and are traveling around Australia. I was really disappointed when they said that they wouldn't be back for Christmas. It's hit me a bit hard (especially after our recent tragedy) just how much I miss them and how special every Christmas with them was. But they are living their dream and I would not begrudge them for that.
So I am spending Christmas with my husbands family this year. Which is nice.
But just not the same.
This is my tree. In a red, green and white theme this year. Yeah I'm a little crazed when it comes to decorating and the whole present matching thing.

Dec 15, 2010

How I met my Cat.


How I met my Cat.
In 2001 I was a very new single mum. I had moved in with my parents, and when my son was 8 months old I decided to get myself a kitty. So I looked through the local papers until I found an add I liked the sound of. I rang the owners and a time was set to view the kittens.
When I arrived I was greeted at the door by what I was later told was the kittens mother. She was a gorgeous short haired ginger and white kitty. The Daddy was ginger and white as well but he had longer hair. The owners took me to the room that the kittens were in and I sat on the floor to watch them for a bit while they waddled around and played with each other. They were only three weeks old at this stage, and today I was only picking out which one I wanted. They wouldn’t be ready to take home for a few more weeks after they were weaned off their mummy.
I eventually decided on one kitten that was a light ginger all over, and cuddled it for a while before bidding a reluctant goodbye.
Some time later the kittens owners rang to tell me my little fur baby was ready to be picked up!
When I got there things didn’t quite go to plan. I spotted the kitten I had picked and when I went to pick it up it hissed at me and ran away! Oh no! What was I going to do? I couldn’t bear to have a kitty who hated me! Lol..
I sat there for a while hoping that the kitty would come out. But while I was waiting, another kitty spotted me. He was a very cute chubby baby, with lovely ginger and white markings on him. He waddled over to me, climbed into my lap and looked up into my eyes. I had been PICKED, and I was in love. The feeling was obviously mutual.
I took my new fur baby home. He was so small and cute. I named him Moby. My son and Moby got along so well I nick-named them “The Twins”. If one was getting into mischief you could bet the other was not far behind, or lending a helping hand/paw.
Moby grew into an enormous long haired scruff of a cat. He is extremely loving and follows me everywhere, sticking to my leg like a barnacle. His fur gets everywhere. He once went missing for two days, before he eventually turned up again. One morning I found him with a cat food tin stuck on his head. He loves to chase sticks, hates dogs and chases them to. He loves to squeeze his big body into the smallest of places. He sometimes sleeps in the weirdest of spots, and in the craziest positions.
It shocked me to realize that he is now nine years old. I think he is the cat I’ve had for the longest amount of time. I’ve been very lucky in that he has been a very healthy cat, having only had to take him to the vet once in all his years.
 I know He is an old timer now, and that one day he will eventually pass on, but while he is still with us he will be dearly loved.
He will be my Moby.

Dec 12, 2010

Special Children's Christmas Party

Today we took our son to the annual Special Children's Christmas Party. It was held at the convention centre and I can honestly say it was awesome! It was held over two of the huge halls and was full of jumping castles of every shape and size and a giant ball pit (which reminded me of my favourite Big Bang Theory episode. BAZINGA!) While waiting in the line at the sinking Titanic jumping castle, we got to talking to another mother who had her little son with her. She told us that she didn't know if he would be able to climb up the chute that led to the top of the slide, so my son took the little boy in charge, and guided him up the stairs and even slid down the slide with him, each time. One camera man thought it was so cute (more like a great piece of footage) he filmed it and it was on the evening news! We were so proud of him! (Our son...not the camera man, though I am sure he is talented....)
There were police vehicles and a bunch of Harley Davidson's for the kids to get photos with. Our boy sat on a police motorbike. There were also heaps of characters walking around the halls. Our son got photos with Darth Vader, A bunch of Storm Troopers, and the dude from Halo!
He got to pat baby farm animals, and a police puppy-in-training, and saw a police horse do a huge pee on the carpet (which he thought was hilarious). He got a huge blue and white balloon hat given to him by some talented policemen (who apparently moonlight as balloon artists).
Every kid who went (and there were heaps), got a present at the end as well. Our son got a really cool remote control Camaro (like Bumblebee) with light-up wheels, some light-up dice, and this cool flashlight with a radio and a compass in it.
It was a big day, but it was also a GREAT day. 
ARMED AND DANGEROUS!
(This was outside before we went into the halls.)

Dec 10, 2010

MY ART

Just wanted to share some of the things I've painted/drawn over the last few years. Hope you like.
Hibiscus. Christmas present for Mum 2009

Quick sketch and watercolour wash of Koi pond (It didn't scan all that well)

Trevelly. Christmas present for Dad 2009

Dragon

Elephant Tray. Present for Mum

Lillies. For myself, I like lillies :)

Bowl of Fruit (Photo is fuzzy, took it on with my phone before I discovered digital cameras..lol)

Old World Roses. Pretty mirror

Dec 7, 2010

BIG KITTIES!




Last year we were lucky enough to afford to get yearly passes to Dreamworld Theme Park. I didn't care for whatever else we had planned for the day after I saw my Tigers. They are what I went for. I even got to pat one once!I'm pretty much in love with all of these big beautiful boys. I have many photos of them, but I picked out a few of my favourites to share with you.



This white one is the Daddy


Dec 6, 2010

To Breathe - A Poem

I wrote this when I fell in love with my husband.


To breathe


To learn to live

To letting go

Opening your heart

To not be afraid

To welcome new feelings

To forget old fears

To love fiercely

Without thought or effort

To just being with you

To hold

To breathe



26/8/08
©SWestlake2008

Dec 2, 2010

I feel like...

my heart has been ripped out of my chest and stomped on and then put back in. I feel this overwhelming sadness that, although has eased from yesterday (which was truly the saddest day of my life so far) to just lingering there in the background, to come out in my quiet times, or when I see something that reminds me of babies. Even now my throat aches and my eyes well up with tears. I did alot of crying yesterday. Great sobbing inconsolable crying. So much that it gave me a humongous headache. It started in the toilet. I had been having those stomach aches I get before I get a period, then I went to the loo and there it was. I started sobbing in there and Hubby came to the door. "Oh hunny" he said sadly.. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry".... I sobbed and bawled. "Please come out so I can comfort you" he said.  We lay on the bed for ages while he held me and I cried. There was just nothing else to do.
I know its silly to cry over the loss of a 5 day old embryo. But it was MY little embryo. It was the start of a new little life. It had been placed in my care and it died. Never to have the chance. We had named it "Eggy".
To know that it was in there and it still didn't live is even more heartbreaking. I cant fathom how other women can do this, time and time again. This is the most horrible feeling ever. I can barely see the keyboard My eyes are so full of tears. I'm not just morning the loss of this embryo, I'm grieving that I will never have the chance to have another baby. That is a hard thing for me to deal with because I am a healthy fertile female. 
Hubby is blaming himself.
He is blaming the leukemia he had as a child.
But I don't blame him. He cant help that he got sick. It's just something that happened.
I didn't want to have to deal with the grief and loss I am feeling now. This was our last hope with IVF. We just don't have the money to do it again. Even if we did I don't know if I could go through with it again. This is just too hard. It hurts too much.