Fly by.

The Australian Grand Prix was this weekend in Melbourne. We live pretty close to where it's held, so it's been a noisy four days! I could care less about the cars or the race but the Qantas 747 plane that flew over at the beginning of the final race was pretty cool! We climbed up on our neighbors' roof for a closer look...

It was cool to see it fly so low over the city. I imagine it was really fun for the pilots!

Notice the race flag on the side of the plane and I've always thought the kangaroo on the Qantas planes is pretty awesome! Very Aussie.

We just finishing watching the race (why not, right?) and it was as if we had surround sound. Kind of strange to be watching it on TV but be hearing it all around us!

Girls Night!

We had a little girls night last night. I've only just recovered! Those kind of nights out are oh so good for your mind and spirits but oh so bad for your physical health!! I had a great time with great friends. I feel really blessed to have such a wonderful group of ladies as friends here in Melbourne. Friends are always an important part of your life but when you're away from home and family, your friends are more important than ever. I just don't know what I'd do without them!

Photo shoot! :)

Oh my. Silly girls!

Thanks for a fabulous night out ladies! Let's do it again soon! xoxo

Weekend Recap

Honestly, I can't think of anything better than a laid back, go-with-the-flow weekend. I was sick at the end of last week, so a relaxed weekend was even more appreciated than usual to help get me feeling back up to scruff. Melbourne is an amazing city for doing as much or as little as you want and this past weekend the weather cooperated beautifully for a do-whatever-makes-you-happy-kind-of-two-days.

For us that meant, sipping a morning coffee by the ocean, buying fruits and veggies at the market, barbecues, bubble baths, long afternoon naps...

...time just hanging out together, watching movies, decorating the house for Easter...

...and baking. It's always so nice starting a new work week feeling refreshed! I'm grateful for quiet, peaceful weekends.

In other news, I want to say hi to the new followers who have joined this space lately. I can't tell you how exciting it is to see someone new has started following. It seriously makes my day! So, a big thanks to you for taking the time to read and follow!

Hope you all had a do-whatever-makes-you-happy-kind-of-two-days too! xo

7 Random Things...

Steve has a cute bum.

I love coffee. I went years and years never drinking coffee, only to become the girl that gets a take away coffee every.single.morning on the way to work. I'm all about a nice skinny latte in a cute take away cup. This is what Melbourne has done to me. Thank you Melbourne!

Steve is cute. I like him a lot. I think I'll keep him. :)

Dressing up and going out on the town with good friends is lots of fun. Getting hit on by an 18 year old boy makes you feel old, contrary to popular belief.

Jesse literally makes my heart hurt, he's that cute. Steve has stiff competition in the cute department.

I love eggs benedict. A lot. But not as much as I love coffee. However, a breakfast of eggs benedict and a coffee at the cafe around the corner from my house pretty much makes for the perfect Sunday morning.

Life is giving me lots of reasons to smile lately. I'm grateful.

I'm pretty crap at taking our camera with us these days and usually end up just snapping most of life's little moments on my iPhone. I thought it was about time to share a few of those random shots!

Weekend Highlights...

...summer weather ...(hot!)

...the naked bike ride (yup, they were totally naked!) we saw go through the town of Daylesford, while we sipped lemon lime and bitters and ate wood fired pizza...

...the adorable little jacket I found in a thrift shop for five bucks...

...the Moomba Festival just down the street from our house...

...walking home from the festival through the Botanical Gardens and stopping for an afternoon glass of wine, just as it started to rain cats and dogs...

...a run with a friend...

...take away Thai and a few drinks with friends at our place...

...take away lattes with my hubby at the cafe around the corner...

...spring cleaning (okay, autumn cleaning in Australia!)...

...baking cookies...

...walking J...

...spending three whole days with my loving hubby!

I *love* long weekends. The countdown is on for the next one (Easter...not long to go!). I really believe the world would be a much happier place if every weekend was three days long. Agree?

I'll be back soon with more photos from our weekend adventure! xo

Holy Hot!

Steve and I went for Asian food tonight at a restaurant down the street from us. Every dish on the menu had a spicy rating...
1 little chili pepper picture = mild
2 little chili pepper pictures = spicy
3 little chili pepper pictures = super super hot!!!

Being the wimp that I am with spice, we opted for a dish with 1 little chili pepper picture. Oh. my. gosh. I almost died. My mouth and lips are still burning. Holy hot!! It was loaded with fresh red and green chili peppers, as well as dried chili peppers. Even Steve, who loves spice thought it had a pretty good kick! It just makes me wonder, what the heck must the 3 little chili pepper dishes be like? Yikes.

It was still a pretty lovely dinner out. Plus, it's Friday tomorrow, so all is right with the world!

An evening stroll...

I've had a few challenging days lately. It's been tough getting into the routine of working full time again and making time to take care of my health, my dog, my house, etc...all while having the time to do the fun stuff life is really all about. Balance is hard to achieve and I'm learning that without balance, I'm unhappy. I'm slowly finding my groove again though and more optimistic it's achievable with each new week. One thing that always, always helps to clear my head and put things in perspective is a walk around our neighborhood with Steve and Jesse...

There's just so much to see and I'm so grateful to live in the neighborhood that we do. Our evening walks have become something I really look forward to, even on the days when I'm exhausted and cranky!

Did you know that Melbourne is home to the largest tram network in the world?

It's been cooling off lately. I'm wondering when autumn will make it's grand entrance. I'm not sure I'm quite ready for it just yet...

The Shrine of Remembrance.

This is Jesse's buddy. He lives around the corner from us and Jesse will actually refuse (put all paws in a full halt position and not move) to cut down the street that means not going past this puppy's house. So, we always pass his home and as we approach, Jesse cries and whines the entire way to the gate, pulling hard on the leash until we reach the place where this oh so cute pooch awaits. I've never seen Jesse so in love with another dog. It's pretty cute! They sniff, play through the gate and make lots of crying noises to each other. Maybe they are soul mate puppies torn apart by humans and large iron gates...?

Haha! There's construction going on everywhere in our neighborhood at the moment. This is Steve being a dork. Pretty funny though, if I must admit! :)

I miss my family today. Lots. Just sayin' is all. I miss you guys! xoxo

Fruit salad, yummy, yummy.

Did anyone else just sing that title as the Wiggles song? I don't even have kids and I get those catchy little tunes stuck in my head! I was hoping to post a few photos from our Monday evening stroll around our neighborhood tonight but blogger is refusing to cooperate. So, I'll leave you with the yummy fruit salad we enjoyed upon arriving home from our lovely (although chilly!) walk. Could it be that autumn is in the air already? I'm feeling inspired today and am looking forward to the coming week. Four goals for this week, in an attempt to maintain some balance between work and living;

~ Run 2 times.
~ Blog 3 times.
~ Bake cookies.
~ Paint my nails.

Wishing you all a joyful and well balanced week!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I had such a special Valentine's Day, it really couldn't have been better! Steve surprised me with tulips (my fav!), and a heart necklace that reads "Wherever you go, go with your heart". Steve knew he was going to be stuck at work late tonight, so we went out for a Valentine's Day breakfast instead of dinner and I found $50 in the pocket of a coat I haven't worn in awhile...score! Tonight, while Steve is at work, I got take away noodles, drank a nice glass of wine, walked J and now I'm watching Sleepless in Seattle on TV. I'm looking forward to my Valentine coming home soon, as a wonderful end to a very happy day! Wishing you all a very magical Valentine's Day with a great big sprinkle of romance!! xoxo

Happy Valentine's Day Eve!

One more sleep until Valentine's Day! I've been really looking forward to it and in honor of the special day, I made a few little Valentine's Day treats. Just in case you're wanting to make something sweet for your sweetie, here's a recipe I think you might enjoy...

Sugar Cookies

3/4 cup hard butter or margarine (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 tsp. salt

Cream butter and sugar together. Add egg and vanilla. Beat well.
Combine dry ingredients. Add to butter mixture in two additions, mixing well after each addition. Divide in two portions, shaping each into flattened discs. Wrap in wax paper. Chill for at least 6 hours or overnight.
Roll out dough on lightly floured board to 1/8 inch thick. Cut out shapes using cookie cutters. Arrange on a greased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart and bake in 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until just golden brown around the edges. Let stand on cookie sheet for 5 minutes before moving to wire rack to cool. Decorate as you please...that's the fun part! :)

I also made some vanilla and chocolate cupcakes but cheated and used a mix. They're still pretty yummy though and oh so pretty!

Happy Valentine's Day baking!! xoxo

Hello!

I was looking here for a photo saying "hello" because I wanted to say hi and check in with you guys. That's when I stumbled upon this picture and fell in love. How cute is this? What a special picture!

Anyhoo, I haven't been around much this week. It's taking a little bit of practice getting back into the routine of working full time again. I'm sure I'll get in the swing of it all in no time but if you could just bare with me until I do, that would be much appreciated! :) For now, just want to say hi! xoxo

Imagine found here.

Holy Rain!

We kicked off the weekend with a crazy rainstorm that dumped an insane amount of water in a very short amount of time. Steve enjoyed playing in the ankle deep water on our street and the water that poured out of our gutter. I enjoyed staying dry and snapping photos from inside!

A big thanks to everyone for the best wishes on my new job. My first day went really well and I'm very happy to be back to work again!

I'll be back tomorrow with a longer post. For now, I'm going to go enjoy the last few hours of my weekend. I have to take full advantage now that I'm a working woman again! :)

Get a job. Check.

Remember yesterday when I said 'job hunting' was on my to-do-list for this week? Well, check that off the list because I GOT A JOB!!! I found out late yesterday afternoon. It's an administrative job in my field (early childhood) and I couldn't be happier. I'm really glad I held out for something I really wanted! I start on Friday and I have to say, I'm nervous! It's always a little stressful starting a new job but especially after you've been off work for awhile. I feel out of practice! It will be really nice to be back into a routine again though and be getting a regular paycheck!

Steve and I celebrated with a very fattening dinner (pasta, Caesar salad, bread and wine!) last night....

...and it was so yummy!

Keep your fingers crossed for me that all goes well on Friday!

Weekend Recap...

The highlights of this past weekend included;

...catching up with our friends Dan and Amy for Friday night drinks and Greek souvlaki, while they were in Melbourne for a visit...

...going to the osteopath for a much needed tune up (holy sore hip!)...

...enjoying a delicious Saturday night dinner at our neighbors' house, followed with watching the tennis finals...

...going out for Sunday morning brunch with our Brisbane pals, delicious eggs benedict and a cappuccino...

...ice cream on a very hot summer day (40.5 degrees Celsius!)...

...followed by a lovely stroll along the beach in St. Kilda, where all these pictures were snapped...

All and all, another fabulous weekend! On the to-do-list for this week;

...get all documents in order for our permanent residency application, including our medicals and X-ray appointments (check!)...

...swim laps at the pool...

...more job hunting (boo!)...

...babysitting Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday 8:30 to 5...

...drinks with a friend on Thursday evening...

...dinner with a friend on Friday night...

...and just for fun, paint my toe nails and use my new nail art stickers I bought for $1 yesterday! :)

Wishing everyone a happy week!

Macadamia, white chocolate and raspberry muffins...

I've been craving white chocolate and raspberries muffins for awhile, so I asked facebook if anyone could suggest a good recipe. This one was recommended by a friend. I'm not a huge macadamia nut fan, so I wasn't too sure if I'd like them but decided to give them a try anyway. They actually turned out pretty good and I think they look really pretty! I added a little dusting of icing sugar for extra prettiness! :) I'm still not completely sold on the nuts though. I find it a little overpowering. I'm thinking that the next time I try making them I might go sans nuts but still use the macadamia nut oil. Maybe then, it won't taste so nutty. I'm quite picky when it comes to nuts! Steve really liked them and so did my neighbors, who I shared them with. I'd still love to find a recipe that focuses more on the white chocolate than the nuts though. I fa-la-la-love white chocolate! So, if you have any great recipes to share, please send them my way...

Be back tomorrow with a weekend recap. Hope you all had a wonderful one!

Feeling red. And white. And pink.

I'm really looking forward to Valentine's Day. I just *love* it! Although, who doesn't love a universal day intended solely to celebrate love? So, in preparation for the big day, I've been doing a little crafting. I made this heart tree for our living room and I made a heart garland for around the window (I'll show you that another time). I can't wait to make heart shaped sugar cookies and a few little handmade Valentines for those special people in my life who I simply adore! Ah yes, it's that time of year again, when your heart just can't help but be filled with a little extra love!! xoxo

Our little family of three...

Our friend Angela is a wonderful photographer (see her work here!), so when she offered to take photos of the three of us, I obviously couldn't pass it up! She took pictures on two different days, once in the park and another time at the beach. These are a few of my most favorites...

I definitely plan on printing and framing a few of these. They make me smile every time I look at them! :)

Thanks Ange! You're the best!