HELP! I need some decorating advice!

Okay, so you see that very big white wall? That lives in our kitchen and back in March when we had that crazy storm and flooding, it got covered in water stain marks. Which, now has kind of worked in our favor because the landlord says we can paint it, any color we want! The problem is, we can't decide on a color. I'd like to make it a fun accent wall and eventually hang some prints on it. Any suggestions on color?

Here's the rest of the kitchen. Brown cupboards and an orange/gold/yellow-ish 70s floor. Never mind that broken drawer that Steve has to fix!

Looking into the kitchen from the dining/living room. It's not a very bright kitchen, even on a pretty sunny day. I would like to add some cheer in there but not have it be too over the top.

Looking out from the kitchen. More brown, this time bricks. We really need some color in this place! We've just signed on for another year here and I would really like to spruce the place up a bit, especially now that I'm home all day! I can't help but want it be a cozy, happy place!

Here it is, one last time, the wall. So, let me know what you think! I'm counting on all my lovely and talented blog readers!:)

Happy Birthday to Steve!

It's Steve's birthday today! He doesn't really care much about birthdays, but since he's married to me, he has no choice but to celebrate and celebrate BIG! I cooked him a special dinner, decorated the house with balloons, and sang him Happy Birthday with cupcakes. Doesn't he look like he's having a fabulous time? I know he loves it, he's just too cranky to admit it!

Kurth Kiln Regional Park

On our drive into the park we saw this little wombat by the side of the road. We were pretty excited and stopped to take his picture, but he was more interested in scratching his bum and eating grass than getting his picture taken. He refused to look at us. Snobby wombat!

We went for a lovely walk in the woods. We only did about an hour walk, but it was really peaceful and good for the soul!

Jesse loved it!

It was very green and smelled like fresh rain. Bliss.

Wombat homes.

Jesse has a few very strange obsessions. One is that he likes to hump blankets, especially when he's hyper. The other is that whenever he goes in a steam, he wants you to toss stones in the water. He stares you down intensely until you throw rocks up and down the stream. He never catches any, although he has chipped 2 teeth playing this game. Luckily for him, I've learned to throw the rocks with better aim in the last 8 years!

It took Jesse a long time to decide if bumming orange from me was worth leaving the water. Water is the only thing that trumps food in Jesse's world.

The autumn colors are really bright and colorful now and everywhere around Melbourne. I feel like I should be starting my Christmas shopping, not heading into July and August! I'm not sure I'll ever get used to the backward seasons here!

This past weekend was a real eye opener for me as far as leaving work. Even the smallest amount of exercise or outing leaves me feeling completely wiped out. I recuperate with lots of naps and down time and am feeling better with each day. I see now that taking the time off work was the best thing I could do. Working everyday, and trying to live my life left no time for proper resting, which is clearly what I do need right now. I'm thankful that we are able for me to take some time off and feel good again. There really is nothing better than lying down when you need to, having lots of time and energy to cook healthy meals and go for walks without feeling like it's taking what little energy I have left. My spirits are definitely picking up!:)

Jesse

It was a long weekend here this weekend, and so Steve had today off. He found a park online that had hiking trails and allowed dogs, only about a 45 minute drive outside the city. Camping and hiking parks never, ever allow dogs here, so we were very excited! This was the first time since we came to Australia that we walked Jesse off lease in a forest. I was nervous at first that he'd find a wombat hole (we saw a wombat!) and stick his head in but he was a perfect puppy and stuck pretty close to us. I think he was just so thrilled to be walking in the woods with us again that he didn't want to do anything to screw it up! We only did a short hike but took lots of pictures which I'll post tomorrow. It was really nice to get out of the city, breath the fresh air and relax. I think I really needed it!

Hubby cooks...

Steve's a pretty good cook. He likes making more unique dishes, unlike me who generally sticks to pasta, stews, soups, etc...it's a good balance! He's been wanting to make THIS pork dish forever (well since our pal, Jeff told him about it) but finding the annatto seeds that it calls for was pretty much impossible. Steve googled it and found that a little family run Mexican shop in Fitzroy might have them, so off we went on a wee seed finding adventure.

It was the cutest, littlest, busiest shop ever, with everything imported from Mexico or California. It made me think of and miss my beautiful Mexican friend, Mariana.

Thank goodness for iPhones. I snapped these shop pics with mine. Much more subtle than a big ole camera in a small, busy shop.

Also, quite possibly the friendliest service ever at this little shop! We'll definitely be going back for all our Mexican cooking needs!:)

Once back home, Steve set to work. Grinding the seeds was a bit of an ordeal. You're meant to use a coffee grinder, but we don't have one, so it was and hour and a half of Steve grinding seeds, me taking pictures and one very sore shoulder at the end of it all! What? The camera gets heavy! Just kidding.

Steve assessing the damage halfway through the grinding! The beer helped to numb the pain! I enjoyed the view;) There's something sexy about a man grinding seeds, I just can't put my finger on exactly what it is...the bulging arm muscles, the arm muscles that bulge...something.

Annatto seeds, before and after grinding. They weren't easy to grind but they had nothing on the cloves! Wow, they're like little rock hard sticks!

Have I ever talked to you about my "Happy Chopper"? Oh.My.Goodness. I bought this through Tupperware and it is quite possibly one of the best things I've ever purchased! All you need to do is throw your peeled garlic cloves or quartered onion pieces in, put the top on, twist and...

...Voila! Three seconds later, perfectly chopped garlic or onion! Brilliant! This is especially great if chopping onion makes you cry, which isn't the case with me, it's my superpower. That and the fact that I can feel rain fall before most people. Steve never gets ice cream headaches. That's a cool superpower!

Steve's dish was delicious, both for dinner last night and leftovers tonight. Sadly, no final photo because our neighbor joined us for dinner and we were too excited eating and chatting to take pictures. You'll just have to trust us that it was a not only a tasty dish, but a pretty yummy looking one too!

I love it when Stevie cooks!

PS. It's Steve's birthday tomorrow! :)

Melbourne at night...

Melbourne really is a fabulous city, especially at night. Steve and I went downtown for dinner on Friday night, the first time we've been out of the house together in 2 weeks! Steve took these great photos and I just had to share!

An emotional week.

Just a warning, this post is a bit of a downer. It's been a tough week here in the Dickinson house.

I saw the specialist yesterday and he's run about a zillion tests (seriously, I've never had so much blood drawn in one sitting before!) and advised that I take the next 2 to 3 months off work to rest and recover from this horrible fatigue. He thinks I have an autoimmune disease and chronic fatigue as a result of being sick so much in the last year and run down.

I had to go into work today to tell them that I wouldn't be returning. I was so nervous I was sick. It broke my heart to not be able to give them more notice, but at this stage my health needs to come first. The doctor has told me that working in a child care setting right now is not a good idea, as we are going into winter and the kids will all be sick and little germ spreaders. I can't risk getting any more sick and run down than I already am. My boss, Steve was absolutely great about the whole thing and very understanding. I have been very blessed to work for such wonderful people. They truly are the nicest people I have ever worked for. They deserve very good things and I wish them all the best.

So, now I'm going to focus on building myself back up and perhaps choose a hobby that will help to keep my mind busy but not require too much physical energy. Any suggestions? I'm going to need something to do or else I may go a bit nutty! I go back to see the specialist in 2 weeks, and will hopefully have more answers then and a game plan on how to move forward. It's been a really emotional week, but it's good to know that the wheels of change are in motion and I'm working towards feeling better. Each day can only get brighter.

Imagine found here.

1000th Post!!!

Wow! 1000 posts! Seriously, that's heaps! If I were Oprah or Ellen I would be giving away 1000 cars or something. Sadly I'm not, so don't get too excited. I wanted to do something extra special for my 1000th post, although to be honest, it couldn't have come at a worst time. I haven't worked since my last post and my health is at an all time low. Remember I said I've been run down and sick a lot? Well, I was really struggling to get through a day at work with the kids and after a chat with my very understanding bosses, I've taken 2 weeks off to rest and relax. Problem is, I'm a week in and still feel like crap, even though I sleep all the time and take perfect care of myself. I went to the doctor yesterday and with a shaky voice told him that my health is ruining my life. I didn't even care if I sounded like a drama queen! He was fabulous, made a phone call and tomorrow I am seeing a specialist who apparently has a knack for finding out what's wrong with people who feel run down and tired for no medically obvious reasons. I'm not getting my hopes up too much, but it would be nice to know why I feel so exhausted and weak all the time! I've never had lots of energy to spare but this last year has been just terrible!

So, this morning I stumbled upon a little project that felt 1000 post worthy. It's a story of a girl and her sick dog. Enough said, right? I'm a sucker for any story of a girl and her dog but a sick dog? Well. Her dog needs an operation to survive and she is selling aprons to raise the money for it. I would love to buy 1000 in honor of the cause but that's a wee bit much for me at the moment. Perhaps someone could let Ellen or Oprah know? I know they are both dog lovers! Anyhoo, head on over to her BLOG and buy your own apron to support the special pair! The aprons are adorable and only $20! I'm crossing my fingers tight that Jake gets the operation he needs and stays healthy!

I'm dreaming of...

...finding myself one of these! You know...a cheap, old, awesome one at a flea market or thrift shop. One I can fix up and then put all of my 10 000 craft supplies neatly inside. It's possible, right? My Mom believes that when she thinks about something she really wants from a used place, it will eventually happen and then she'll know when to go pick it up because she'll get a feeling. Shopping for used things is all positive thinking and instinct, apparently. She's definitely the reason why I enjoy shopping at a thrift store or used clothing store more than I enjoy a trip to the mall! So, let it be said...I am thinking very strongly about wanting one of these! Now, I guess I wait for the instinct to kick in on when and where to go to get it...Let's put this theory to the test! I'll keep ya posted!

PS. This is my 999th post! Wow! I don't think I've ever committed to anything this long in my life, other than Steve and Jesse, of course! I'll have to make my 1000 post a special one! Stay tuned:)

Original imagine found here.