On with the Show!

Sometimes being an adult can be hard and rather boring having to be responsible all the time. So, when those occasions get you down it's best to regress to childhood and take part in carefree activities like attending the Royal Melbourne Show. I don't have a memory of the last time I ever went to the show, but I'm informed that we definitely did go as kids, and every year I see the fireworks display and hear the music playing and the sound of people having fun. So, you might as well join them! The big lure for me was having the chance to spend the day with lots of wonderful animals and that was worth the entry in itself. All your cares seem to disappear when you are patting a warm, beautiful creature or hand feeding a sheep and feeling their mouth hoover down the food you held out for them. There was just nothing like it. Well, actually, patting a tiny Spring lamb while sleeping comes close, or watching them smile while looking into their beautiful eyes melts your heart. (Yes- and re-affirming why I'm a vegetarian!) When patting the Merino sheep, I thought, wow, this is the wool of some of my favourite clothes that kept me warm during the winter, so I made sure I gave them a big thank you on all our behalf. 

From this...

To this! Award winning wool!

'Hey! Somebody stole the wool off our backs! Oh well, at least Summer is on its way, we can feel the breeze now!'

And here's what you can come up with when using such beautiful natural fibres such as Alpaca wool.

They are such gentle creatures and make great pets! 

I wished I had a bigger backyard, I would take one of these home with me. Aren't they gorgeous! Actually, I would take 1 of EVERYTHING!

This gave me a great idea for a vertical garden, made out of pallets which are so cheap and you could even paint them pretty stripe colours. Great space saver for those with limited areas but big green thumbs!

Ah, something rather soothing about jams! Especially a whole cabinet devoted to them wrapped in pretty little gingham hats! 

Cabinets like these made me cry tears on the inside being a Coeliac sufferer and seeing such a display of delicious wheat! Oh how you taunt me so!

That's one way to jazz up your dining chairs with some colour!

You can't have a carnival without Hot Chips! It's just not right! So I did my bit.

Look at that pose! Work it!

I have never seen one of these in real life- only movies where I don't want to point out the fate of them! Amazing! Such grace swanning around the pen with those feathers hoisted up in the air.

As night falls, the rides really come alive with carnival atmosphere, even the seagulls got in on the act.

When we arrived at the show and saw this ride at the entrance and heard the screams coming off it, I certainly did not anticipate that I would conquer my fear of roller coasters but as the sun set, that's just what I did! And I think my screams made quite an impression to the staff as our carriage pulled up at the end so I just had to get a souvenir photo of my mouth wide open on the ride. Such an exhilarating experience that I figured life gives you more twists and turns, this ride only lasts a few minutes so I'm glad I bucked up and faced my fear- and lived to see the glorious fireworks display to end what was a great, fun day!

Can't wait for next year!

Winter Highlights and Indulgent Delights

Yes! Finally Winter is upon us. That means another year older for me, grey skies, frizzy hair from drizzle, eating without consequence- just add another woolly layer and none the wiser and it also means making an effort to accept the seasons and the impact it has on your energy, mood and motivation. The moody blues have a way of lingering like the grey skies, but as someone wise keeps telling me, don't fight it, work with it. Great time for indoor tasks like fashion scrap booking, baking treats, watching great old movies and inspiring documentaries and sewing and knitting your winter wardrobe. Very true, for if it was a sunny day, you would just want to go outside and play. Well, lucky for me, the sun did stay for two whole days while it was my birthday (I have it over two days just to be greedy as I was born late afternoon, so hey, that counts to start the 24 hours from there doesn't it?) 

So, after more months than I care to recount, I got up on my birthday chilly morning and put on the best 80's inspired aerobics outfit I could muster half asleep and actually went for a run to kick start my ageing motor. And even though at times I felt like my body would be found flat on the sidewalk from wheezing and the realisation I am still not fit, I kept at it, and saw the most delightful sights along the way with the beautiful light and autumn leaves still hanging on for dear life.

I also knew that what waited for me at the other end, was an indulgent, lets put the fat back on breakfast of Gluten Free (yes folks, birthday present of diagnosis of being a Coeliac Sufferer confirmed) Corn Bread French Toast with cream, maple syrup, cardamon, cinnamon and Honey Dew melon. Yum!

One should always try and co-ordinate their nails to their crockery, or just be glad when it happens by accident!

No thin spreads of jam for me- I like to see ripples! 

Nature never lets you down providing beautiful blooms from the garden to brighten the table.

The lesson here is to always look up! If you spend your life looking at the ground, or checking your phone while walking (you know who you are people), you will miss such magical delights like finding the most beautiful array of coloured birds sitting on top of the trees already glowing the most intense colour. It certainly was a birds eye view!

Everyday sights like traffic lights always look better in the late Winter light!

Two interesting signs I came across. Pity someone didn't do a spell check on the Internet before they sprayed this one, but I kinda like it, even though they did tarnish my favourite yellow wall. And two things not to be in life I guess are Boring and Stupid. Enough said.

Missing my cat terribly on my birthday, I was so excited when this new short haired stripey variety turned up in my letterbox. It looked pretty happy to me, but glad it came with instructions on how to look after it! 

And I'm not a fan of missing out on things that I love, so even with a Coeliac diagnosis, you can still eat delicious birthday cake! This orange flourless cake courtesy of my sister was so moist, it actually tasted better than heavy wheat ones. Do you think we put enough cream? 

I hope you all enjoyed your first week of Winter here and treat yourself with all manner of things that make you happy and nurtured. As for the Northern Hemisphere, well, I could celebrate my birthday on the 1st day of Summer had I been there, but you all have suffered through a long winter, so shed your layers and soak up that sun and kiss the waves and the sand for me till I meet them next!
xx