Pingelly - a weekend away

Now I’ve never actually asked him but I’m pretty sure my father in law (Totch) likes when I visit so he has an excuse to drink. He’s always trying to offload his latest drop on me. Here Miranda… finish this… c’mon!! I’m partial to a drop of the old vino, but let me tell you, what he served up last Saturday was tough to swallow. Thankfully I was doing the dishes at the time and found it easy enough to wash the light passionfruit hues and not so subtle nail polish remover undertones swiftly down the sink. He decided to finish the bottle himself.

 

After lunch my mother in law (Jen) decided she would take the kids to the pool for a swim to give us drinkers a ‘rest’. I waved her off and snapped a few pics of Narducci St before settling back in on the verandah. Meanwhile Totch had decided to crank up the wireless. Ok, I’m exaggerating a little, it was a CD player but old school none the less. All thoughts of a ‘rest’ were banished as the beer disappeared and the shoulders started to bop to the sweet tunes of the Eagles. The conversation soon turned to photos and I told him about my Project Life photos. I needed a photo of ‘style’ for the day. We decided a trip to the Exchange Tavern should provide plenty of material so off we went.

 

 

We had the run of the pub initially and settled in to chat with Nadine the German backpacker who was bartending as well as peeling a 2kg bag of Nadine potatoes. Soon enough news of the patronage spread and some locals arrived to share a few yarns.  I was impressed by the drinks fridge, they may have been light on alcohol but they had a solid stock of Mellow Yellow and that goes a long way in my book. Before long the locals started repeating the same yarns and I was also under increasing pressure from Totch to dance on the bar so he could take a photo. Hmmm, time to go, but not before I signed my name on a bar plaque. In our wisdom we had roped Kris along for the ride, someone had to drive us home.

 

Sunday morning started off with a sleep in, Kris and I didn’t rise until 7:45! Next time we think we don’t have time to go to Pingelly I’m going to remember that extra 3 hours sleep and just go! Before long we were heading down to the bottom of Narducci Street where Kris’ Nonna lives. Lachy could crawl to the pantry and raid Nonna’s goodies long before he could walk. Not much has changed in 8 years, he just has a few extra accomplices these days. On visits to Nonna’s there is always a variety of transportation in use. Totch usually rocks in in the ute having been called out to fix something, someone brings a car, someone walks, someone usually rides a bike and someone ALWAYS rides the gopher. And usually we all go home in a different way to how we came!

 

This visit to Nonna was as action packed as always. The kids rode the tractors, inspected the chooks and dams, caught koonacs, ran through the garden, spoke to George the cocky, rummaged through the cantina, and ate plenty of food. Lachy also learned to use the new camera this visit – here he is with Nath the Nikon.

 

A visit to Nonna is never complete without loading the car with produce. This time we brought home onions, capsicum, eggplant, zucchini, 6 pet koonacs and some money to buy the kids an ice cream.  Now when life gives you onions, capsicum, eggplant, zucchini, 6 pet koonacs and some money to buy ice cream, what else is there to do than turn it into lasagne.... munja munja!

 

 

Date night - Is nothing sacred?

Can I start by saying I have the perfect husband. Ask anyone, EVERYONE loves Kris. BUT….he really doesn’t like leaving the house much. Who can blame him really? After all, I’m usually here.  If I ever suggest going out for a meal he insists on cooking instead.  So to my absolute surprise when I told him I was going out shopping on Thursday night he said NO. Apparently he had made plans for a movie and takeaway Thai and had even organised a babysitter. OM(F)G – who is this man and what has he done with my husband? It all sounded pretty damn good to me but in the spirit of being a control freak I suggested we go shopping together instead and then eat in at the restaurant so we could actually talk. He agreed and date night was on!

I must admit I was rather nervous, would we find anything to talk about. Could I last 3 or 4 hours without checking in with my BFF (iPhone.) I resolved to keep the BFF out of sight and concentrate on the date. Romantic stop number one was the Brunswick café for a Coke and some Burger Rings. He had me at Coke.

 

We arrived in Bunbury to do the shopping and made the most of our freedom by buying nappies and wipes.  They weren’t even on special but on date night nothing was going to dampen my spirit. What a man…sigh…

 

With the shopping done it was time to start enjoying the fun part of the evening and we arrived back at the car just in time to witness a magical sunset over the Golden Arches. Only this time, we weren’t sitting under those arches opening toys, wiping up spills and doing toilet runs.

 

Not even a brush with the law could tame our enthusiasm. Excuse me officer, we are ON A DATE. Can you please let us through? No, the wine is not open…yet! Yes we’d love an escort, thanks ever so much.

 

What a magical feeling, strolling through the streets hand in hand. We both pissed ourselves laughing when we caught our reflection in the windows. So of course, I took a photo.

 

We arrived at dinner like a pair of lovesick puppies, all smiles and hearts a flutter. I was disgusted to find Kris trying to take a swig out of my wine glass and gave him a quick brush up on the old “b” and “d” table manners. Wine glasses sorted, it was off to the loo for me and I was so pleased to encounter a statue of Bertha that I went back with the BFF to get this pic…

 

Dinner was fantastic, we barely ate anything as we were far too busy gazing into each other’s eyes, and well, far too full from the Coke and Burger Rings. On the way back to the car we came across a massage parlour that was still open. I’ve been desperate for a neck massage the last few weeks so we thought it was worth a shot. I opted for the 15 minute session and it was absolute bliss. Laying on the table, music on, feeling his rhythm, hearing his breath, something warm touched my hand…Oh my, if this is what he can do with his hands imagine….Unfortunately my thought process was cut short as a group of people walked past the front door and yelled “Do you do happy endings?” I stifled the giggles and got off the table, leaving with some Chinese medicine patches to try overnight and promised to return in a week without my chaperone.

And so began the car trip home to wind up the evening. In summary:

Snacks $8, Shopping $140, Dinner $73, Massage $40, Getting caught squatting on the side of the road: PRICELESS! (Yes he took a photo – NO I won’t be sharing it!)

Amidst all the excitement of the massage and the exhilaration of the busted wee stop we decided to finish the night off with some light reading.

 

Now call me what you will, it was only our first date but what the heck, I threw caution to the wind (have always wanted to say that) and let him spend the night. In the morning he made me breakfast in bed and scrubbed my shower, I think he’s a keeper!

 

Giddy Up

I have wanted to go horse riding FOREVER! The last time I rode a horse I was in Primary School and it wasn’t riding so much as sitting on a horse and being led around. I’ve loved horses for as long as I can remember but have never really had any horsey friends to take advantage of. Add that to the fact that I always thought I’d be too heavy for the poor horse and I guess that’s why I’ve never pursued my horse riding dreams.

A few months ago however, I was talking to my oldest friend (who just happens to be the last person to have ever led me around on a horse) and we decided we’d go together. Now we’ve decided things like this before but life gets in the way so this time I wasn’t taking any chances. The tickets were booked and we roped two others into the ride.  I know I was insanely excited about the ride, as for the rest of them I think the counter meal and beers afterwards may have been the clincher?

As with any event, the anxiety over what to wear started early.  Pants must be long and tight, which is just perfect given my indulgences over the festive season. Surely Mr Ed won’t notice if my jeans are undone? T-shirts must have sleeves and no loose tunic style tops or singlets allowed. Hmmm, I only wear singlets with loose style tops over the top, and I swear I don’t own a single T-shirt. And are we allowed to have camel toes whilst horse riding? Surely this is the one time a short top with leggings is actually acceptable? Arghhh, this was supposed to be fun! Despite a million texts and Facebook messages we still weren’t really sure what we were all going to turn up in. Although Houghy had decided on these earrings which put us all at ease.

The big day arrived and here’s how it went:

The road trip: The girls mocked me for googling directions – particularly Houghy! She waited until I had planned the whole trip and then threw a spanner in the works with a non-scheduled pick up! Surprisingly I didn’t lose my shit, just let her lead the way from there on. Big mistake – it’s been a while since Tones, Houghy and I have been in a car (or anywhere) together without 27 kids and we were so distracted with chatter we missed our exit and had to rely on Toni’s cold sore covered nose to find our way to Carly’s. Thankfully we arrived safely and still had time for a delicious Nespresso and a little brush up of our riding skills session in the kitchen.

Intro to Horses: After signing our lives away and a million oohs and ahs over the fabulous collection of coloured pens, we settled in for a quick intro to horses and what we’d be doing. Tones turned as white as the chair she was sitting on and looked close to vomiting at the mention of feet getting stuck in stirrups! At this point we thought we’d be leaving her behind in the shed to make the cuppas. We were all a little concerned for her, even more so when she admitted to not knowing which end was the front of the saddle!

Gearing up: Silly me ran to the loo at this crucial moment and the other three fashionistas pounced on the cool helmets! Tones also chose to protect her precious hands with gloves and don a fly net. Houghy was pleased to discover Tones had snitched three gloves so she got to wear one thriller style!

Horse allocation: Now the jury is still out as to how they picked the horses we were to spend the ride on. Some thought it would be based on weight, then height seemed likely after Carlz was allocated Estelle the short horse, but then Houghy was given Chrissie (as opposed to Krissy, no she did not spend the morning riding my husband.) Chrissie was also quite short and the instructor clearly underestimated her long legs and had her set up like a little jockey – all 174cm of her! Next was me who was allocated Bertha. My Great Nanna was named Bertha and it was love at first sight and finally some clarity as to the allocation process. Bertha was without a doubt the prettiest horse so I’m guessing they based the allocation on our looks? Yes Houghy – Chrissie was also very pretty but as discussed much smaller and we all love a big girl don’t we? Finally Tones was given Poppie (a boy ) and we were set to go.

The ride: Well I can only speak for myself on this one but here’s how I saw it. Bertha and I, while a match made in heaven as far as our big girl status and glorious looks, should not have been paired. Bertha had a competitive spirit matched only by her enormous appetite and I spent most of the ride trying to keep her behind Estelle instead of overtaking, and trying to lift her enormous head off the ground while she grazed. And much to the other riders disgust, every time we got a trot happening we had to stop so Bertha and I who had right laned it could fall back into line. Tones (the scaredy cat) got the horse which refused to stay in line and preferred riding on the road to the trail. Carlz had the lazy horse and was placed in front of Bertha and I meaning poor Estelle copped a little nip on the butt by the ever frustrated Bertha. Chrissie and Houghy zoomed along on auto-pilot, I doubt if Houghy jumped off and had a wee Chrissie would have even noticed. I only managed to sneak the iPhone out of my bra once during the ride and this was the result.

Lunch – Outstanding! So much food AND a beer, need I say more. Although poor Carly was disgusted that despite what we had already knocked off at lunch the rest of us insisted on stopping at the roadhouse for Cokes and chocolates. This led to one passenger almost vomiting from over indulgence!

Overall the day was fantastic, filled with giggles, belly laughs, horse shit and the odd missed high 5. I’m bruised and battered yet smiling like crazy at all the memories. And oh so glad I hounded the girls for pictures so we can remember it forever. Here’s to us girls and to making dreams come true, one pub lunch at a time!

I’m so exhausted I’ve decided not to proof read and I’m very concerned I’ve mixed up my use of first and third person. Don't let it bother you - just look at the pictures - everyone loves a pretty picture!

Ouch that hurts - some things are hard to swallow

In the spirit of a good rant I thought I’d take the time to share some of the things that have bothered me over the last week.

My grammatical errors. OK, I asked for corrections but damn, they we’re hard too swallow ;-) Such simple bloody stuff ups. I promise to try harder or the virtual Freddo list is going to turn into the longest post I have on here. (When I get around to posting it that is.)

Neck pain. This week saw my return to unrestricted exercise after my neck surgery. I admit I was scared but also VERY excited. So I started with some interval runs and a Michelle Bridges DVD. It felt good to be so sore afterwards but after the muscle pain wore off the neck pain remained. So that was a big ouch – I don’t think I’m ready to go hard just yet L

Credit Card Balance. Yes it’s Christmas (well it was) and we’re all in holiday mode but far out…the balance is insane. Helped along somewhat by the addition of the lovely Theo (Thermomix) and the 5 months interest free period on the new card that I’m planning on taking advantage of, but yep it’s big and so very hard to swallow! The credit card balance that is girls…think I lost a few of you for a second?

The holiday is over. Kris has had a glorious two weeks off work and is returning on Monday so it’s back to reality and having the kids ask me for stuff instead of him.  Just to rub salt in the wound, on Saturday morning he looked at the pile of dirty coffee mugs out the front and asked me “Are you all right with those?” Big ouch!            

I ran out of milk. This may not seem like a big deal but to me it’s a real sign of weakness…I’m slipping. Thankfully I keep a Harvey Fresh long life in the pantry just in case. The debut mashed potato in Theo was saved, phew! The long life was replaced today so my bunker is officially restocked ‘just in case’. If anyone ever runs out of essentials I will more than likely be able to help with the following: milk, bread, washing powder, dishwashing liquid, toilet paper, condoms, hair dye (L’oreal Darkest Brown), condoms and pregnancy tests.

Post Xmas Jeans Dance. So I’ve been off the Michelle Bridges bandwagon since early December as Kris was going away, then it was Christmas, then New Years, then just because… but the ‘getting into the jeans’ dance was a little uncomfortable on Friday. Time to get back on the wagon before the credit card feels the pinch of new jeans!

Fucking Pepsi. I LOVE COKE! I was so excited to take the boys to the movies so I could get a big cup filled with GLORIOUS COCA COLA and the candy bar sold Pepsi. I settled for Mountain Dew and M&M’s but rest assured I made up for it the next day.

One Direction. Now I’m all for a good teeny bopper song but why on Earth Ed Sheeran sold them the lyrics to Little Things is beyond me. It’s just not right having those boys sing to me about my cellulite. This boy on the other hand…

Rant aside it really has been a fantastic week filled with lots of family fun. Sleepovers, dam trips with the kayak, board games, card games, movies, beach, long lunches, BBQ dinners and sleep ins (yeah right.)

 

Oh, did I mention I got a blister while I was mopping the floor? Fuck my life.

The minor details

Ok...so I've done two posts and I'm hooked - I will attempt to see this blog thing through. A morning out with the family and I'm flooded with ideas and things I want to blog about, the most exciting by far was the 'scrunchies' on the mini van. How did I miss this Christmas craze?

But before I get cracking a few minor details that are stressing me out:

 - I HATE spelling mistakes
 - I HATE grammar errors
 - I HATE words used in the wrong context

But alas, if I'm going to give in to this urge to blog, and spend hours at the computer late at night I know I'll slip up. Not only do I promise to make mistakes, I promise to reward you should you be the first to point them out to me.

I have a million old writing rules floating around in my head. Is it true that a sentence should never start with And or But? Or is it just Because? See all these minor details are going to do my head in so I'll need all the help I can get in my quest to be brilliant.

What's in it for you? I've decided to reward anyone who takes the time to point out mistakes with a virtual Freddo or a blog dedicated to a topic of their choice. Given the likelihood of multiple errors I'll be restricting this amazing opportunity to one per person per month.

The Virtual Freddo list should read like a who's who of the intellectuals in my life.

Ok so I've cleared that up, I think I'm set to go....now to see if anyone reads my ramblings?

Mmmmm....I'm off to find a Freddo.

Just another stupid love song

I love music!

And I confess to loving Top 40! I used to bop away quietly to all the pop stuff when no one was looking but having kids has afforded me the luxurious freedom of buying 'pop' for my iPod.

A quick disclosure: I have Gangnam Style and yes...I LOVE IT! You may like to stop reading now?

If you chose to read on, thank you from the bottom of my love song filled heart.

Why do I love music? It always fills the gap or helps nut out the feelings. Songs I love generally fall within a few categories:

Catchy Tunes - Think Bieber and Ke$ha, maybe a bit of Carly Ray Jepsen? I know you're singing Call Me Maybe now - embrace it!

Drinking Tunes - Think FloRida, actually yeah, he has enough of them. The songs that make you wish you were young and free and drunk and dancing on podiums at seedy nightclubs. I'm positive he wrote Wild Ones for me.

Sob Tunes - Think Angus and Julia Stone and Snow Patrol. These songs always help the tears flow when they need to flow. The kind of songs you put on repeat before you go to bed and cry yourself to sleep to.

Shoulder Tunes - Think Contact High, Pumped Up Kicks and Polyester Girl. The songs might be a little more refined and dignified than Flo Rida but even without champagne I can't keep my shoulders still when I hear them. It's a little awkward when people are over, maybe they think my shoulder shimmy moves are just neck stretches?

Table Top Tunes - a little different to Flo Rida in that you absolutely must STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND DANCE ON THE TABLE! Think Son of a Preacher.

Love Tunes - songs that make you fall in love, feel in love, want love, anything to do with love really. There are way too many of these to list, think Roxette, Michael Buble, Alex Lloyd, Pete Murray etc.

Other Tunes - think LMFAO, Hilltop Hoods, Guy Sebastian, Gotye, Powderfinger... all the other fillers that you can't live without on your iPod.

Songs are so powerful, they can take you somewhere in an instant and remind you of good times, bad times, fun times, old friends, new friends...the list goes on! And I love that everyone can take what they want (or need) from them. Some appeal to some and not others, some need to listen to some and not others. But there is always a song for everyone, or a few it would seem.

Robbie Williams is an all time favourite of mine as far as lyrics go, but here's a list of the lyrics that got me through 2012!

hey I heard you like the wild ones....whoooo oooo ooooooo
tonight we are young, so lets set the world on fire...so if by the time the bar closes, and you feel like falling down, I'll carry you home tonight
coming out of my cage and I've been doing just fine
walk it off now...you can tell them all how, how hard we tried to work it out
we'll do it all, everything, on our own..if I lay here, if i just lay here, would you lie with me and just forget the world
take me to your best friends house, goin 'round this round a bout oh yeah
closing time, you don't have to go home but you can't stay here
wound heals but it never does...these battle scars don't look like they're fading
take a little time to hold yourself, take a little time to feel alright
I swear I've drunk enough for both of us tonight...baby I'm gettin' better
Oh lord I'm still not sure what I stand for...most nights I don't know anymore
hey, don't write yourself off yet...just try your best, try everything you can..it just takes some time, little girl in the middle of the ride, everything everything will be just fine, everything everything will be all right

What song is stuck in your head now?

And so it begins....

But first a name...

I love how inspiration always strikes when my head hits the pillow.  It occurred to me at 11pm tonight that if I ever started the blog that someone suggested I write I would call it 'This Rolling Stone'. I was thinking about phrases and childhood games of Wheel of Fortune (as you do at 11pm.) My two favourite phrases at the time were ' a rolling stone gathers no moss' and 'a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush'. I can now confess to not knowing the meaning behind either - I had just memorised the cards that slotted into the game and could win easily if I didn't spin the old bankrupt up. So 'This Rolling Stone' was supposed to represent my freedom and not standing still to let the crap pile up - a new year and a new me and all that fluffy stuff. A quick google search and I found out the intended meaning was actually nomads who travel around and never sit still, never settling down. I am just about as far from well travelled as it gets hence the name..."The stone's not rolling".

Yep that's me - grounded, settled, stuck! Perfect - we have a name. Now to work on some witty content and figure out what I want the blog to be about. Maybe there will be no rules? I'd like to say I'll post weekly but perhaps in my grounded, settled, stuck life there won't be much to write about? I'm sure I'll include lots of pictures to make up for poor wordcounts. Everyone likes pictures don't they?

Until then...