Sunday, December 26, 2010

Part 1 Before the dinner.........

.......they all looked like this, bright eyed and bushy tailed....lol This is my daughter Julie-Anne.
David and Lauren playing silly buggars with the fruit while Angela looks on. Three of my beautiful Grandchildren.

This is what the table looked like....before we all sat down to an extremly satisfying meal.

Last, but not least the HUGE Christmas pudding.......made by ME. There wasn't any holly for the top, had to settle on a sprig of mint.
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Part 2. After the dinner.......

.......this is what it looked like ! Bodies laying everywhere, tummies full of food. Grandson Matt sound asleep on the floor while his 2 Children, Abby and Sam build lego spaceships and burger outlets. lol
Popeye (aka Willi) eating his pudding. Grand-daughter Lauren sleeping on the couch, too tired......
......while Lauren's brother David (my grand-son) has found a place to crash out on the other couch. Could only catch a glimpse of camera shy Angela sitting at the other end.
Sleepy head Lauren, crashed out at the table before she collapsed on the couch while Julie-Anne (daughter & Lauren and David's Mum) ponders over what she will do will all of the left over food. A GREAT DAY, Enjoyed by All. Thank you Julie for arranging it.
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Monday, December 13, 2010

Pigface

The common name for this spectacular plant is PIGFACE......now why would anyone give such an unflattering name to such a pretty flower?
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Monday, November 29, 2010

Cactus Orchid

This plant is one of the ugliest, that is before it bursts into bloom. The pink one, I've had for a very long time, it never gets any bigger because I keep giving cuttings away to almost anyone that sees it. I does not like the cold and struggles to thrive against the warmth of the brick wall.
Glorious delicate colour, and a different shape than the red one below.
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Friday, November 26, 2010

Mini mince pies

Preparing for Christmas, today's effort is 48 mini mince pies. They wiil go into the freezer until Christmas day when they will be dfrosted and refreshed in the oven, then dusted with icing sugar. Some have shortcrust pastry stars and the remainder have frangipan tops sprinkled with slivered almonds.
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Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Unusual activity.......

......right at our front door. A European wasp has decided that it is an ideal spot to build a nest.
Firstly check that all is OK on the outside
Quite unaware that I'm here taking photos of her home making.
then go inside to see if its snug enough. I don't think she will inhabit this spot long........wait till I tell Popeye.

24/11/2010

Well the nest is no longer adorning our front door. Popeye waited until the "mother" wasp was inside the nest, placed a plastic bag around it and with a quick twist of the wrist the whole kit and kaboodle was inside the bag with mother showing extremely aggressive behaviour.
After he killed the poor mother wasp (I can't help feeling a bit sorry for her) we inspected the nest, no eggs inside as yet, but little 'cubicles' which looked almost as if they were made of paper, where they were to be laid. Apparently they chew up wood to construct their nest, hence the resemblance to paper. Very interesting.
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Thursday, November 11, 2010

Spring beauty

THis is a new iris that I purchased at the Meadows Market last Easter. Very aptly named HYPNOSIS. I asked the stallholder to recommend a pink variety, this is what I got, the pictures do not do it justice.
It is the most delicate shade of apricot with bright orange beards. It almost does hypnotise one, to see it slighty moving in the breeze.
The blue one is DREAM OF YOU. This is one I purchased from the same seller the previous year.
They never fail to amaze me, such strong foliage and extremely delicate blooms.
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Tuesday, October 12, 2010

The Aussie sense of humour

I'm sure that every one has heard of the mythical monster that inhabits the waters of Loch Ness in Scotland, but are you aware that here in South Australia we also have a creature living in the salt encrusted waters of a lake in the mid-north of our state ? Just on the northern side of the town, Lochiel.

You might have to click on the photo to get a good look at it. I was lucky to be there at the time it "surfaced" to take a breath (lol) There it was....the Loch Eel !!

I took this picture some years ago when we were traveling through to the Territory. One, or maybe a few of the local "wags" have constructed "OUR" monster from car tyres. Good old Aussie humour !!
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Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Its been a while...

....but I've been working on it. You see today is my 75th Birthday and this is a picture of the house where I was born, my maternal Grandparent's home at number 17 palmer street Pt. Pirie West (the house has since been demolished and a new one built there) The event taking place in the front left hand side bedroom about mid-morning. I was named Ronda after my father (Ronald) and Joy after Mum (Joyce) and known ever since as Joy.
The earliest picture I have of myself, approx 8 months old. Cameras were few and far between, most pictures were taken in a Studio.
On the Pt Pirie docks, where we used to swim. My Mother's family were great swimmers, my mother being diving champion at age 16. How about those cossies? very becoming don't you think? lol

And last for this part of the blog is me at about 3yrs old dressed entirely in red. No colour film then. I lived with my Nanna in the same house until she passed away from breast cancer when I was 4 years old. I can still remember her.

Blogging through Picassa will only allow 4 pics at a time so sorry folks, this has to come in 2 parts, and hopefully I have it the right way around this time.

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Growing older.

This photograph is me sitting astride Bonnie, a trotting horse. My Nanna used to keep and race trotting horses and after she passed away my Uncle Don (mother's brother) took over with the horses. I then livedin the same house with Uncle and wife until I was sixteen years old
In this shot I was 13 years old, (can't remember being so skinny !) My dress canary yellow, made by my Mother.
I wont bore my readers with heaps of pictures taken through the years because I'm mostly doing this for my family. I have chosen some that portray me as HAPPY. That's how I want to be today. The one above was taken in my early 40's and the last in my early 70's.
My apologies for being indulgent today, but this, being a MILESTONE birthday, I feel I'm entitled to be. Now only have another 25 years to wait before the Queen's congratulatory telegram. Not really, she probably wont be Queen then and I probably wont be here LOL
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Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Not walking the dog........

...........walking the chooks !! I've been looking through a box of old photographs (doesn't every house have one?) and came across these taken in the late 80's when Popeye (aka Willi) on the left, used to work in the outback. The trip usually took 2 or 3 days, and when they wanted to take some chickens so they would be guaranteed fresh eggs for breakfast this is how they did it. Chooks were transported in a cage but had to be let out for a "comfort stop" Outback Australia is BIG and they had to devise a method to "contain" them because, of course, they would be lost forever with no hope to catch them again. Look closely and see, they each have a piece of bale twine around one of their legs.
Anyway they all arrived safely, in good nick and as far as I know supplied an egg or two each day. Good to have a chuckle at some old photos. Willi actually still had some hair !!
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Friday, July 30, 2010

Baby lambs.

Cute little blighters, frollicking around in the paddock all day long.
Cant get too close to them, they are off in a flash!
Three girls and one boy. We have sold most of our sheep and only kept 10 ewes and 2 rams, so there will only be ten babies this year.
This shot was meant to show all four, flat out in a race....this is the last one !! They're too quick for me, I only managed to get the slowest one.
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Monday, July 26, 2010

Macchiato

We've had a visit from my son and daughter-in-law, (he is an habitual coffee quaffer from Canberra) they brought with them their old coffee machine which they promised to me when they purchased their new one. When I visited them in the A.C.T. I saw him drinking these little coffees, very strong, 3 definite layers. We had coffee in an Adelaide Cafe' yesterday which was NOT at all like this even though it was the one he ordered.
So, I decided to show him that I could make a better one. This is it. What do you think? I'm rather proud of my first attempt. He enjoyed it. (maybe too polite to tell me otherwise?)
Sadly they are now on their way home again and we probably won't see them for quite a few months. It was disappointing for them to have traveled 1,200 kms to see their football team get soundly thrashed.

I've been a little lazy with blogger for a while, I've made a mental note to myself to make sure I take the camera with me when I leave the house. I pass lots of interesting places which when I see them think, "that would make an interesting blog", but, no camera in the car ! Ughhh.
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