Treasure Hunting

Today has felt a bit like one long treasure hunt. Not on purpose! Just the way it turned out. Firstly, we went to a Tupperware party. At this party I picked up the stuff I ordered from my party, including a mystery pack! Now I knew I was getting a mystery pack (I had ordered it after all) but it doesn't detract from the excitement from getting to open it and find out what I actually got. Treasure! Then we went to the shops. While I was in Big W looking for dishwashing liquid, I found Three Wise Monkey garden ornaments. I have been trying to find some for ages. I want to put them by the girls' banana trees. Treasure! After that we went to the museum. Particularly to see a collection that is on show in Perth from the British museum. Lots of amazing things that aren't normally on display here including actual pirate spoils. We also checked out some of the other parts of the museum and in the butterfly section realised that they have different insects painted on the wall. I don't know how many times we have seen this display and this is the first time we have seen them. Lots of treasure for us to find at the museum! The State Library is conveniently located next to the musuem. It has an awesome discard library bookshop with super cheap books. We all found some treasures here ;) And, as a follow up to yesterday, outside the library were banners declaring 2012 is the National Year of Reading (in Australia at least). So not only is this another thing proving that 2012 is going to be amazing, I am pretty sure such a discovery also counts in my treasure total for the day. A wonderful day with the three most important treasures I have. And filled with so many random exciting finds. I always knew I wanted to be a pirate when I grew up.

Self Fulfilling Prophecy

This post probably would have made more sense in early January, but I am claiming it as being one of the first few days of the New Year in the Chinese calendar, or reflection as I approach my birthday and enter a new year for me. Really you may justify it anyway you like! Or I guess, as this is my blog, it pretty much means I can waffle as much as I like (and that I am the only person to blame if you all stop following to me as clearly I just talk too much about nothing. I am like this in real life too).

But back to the point. After much consideration I have decided this year is going to be awesome. Why you may ask? Three simple reasons. First 'Twenty Twelve' is just simply much easier to say then 'Twenty Eleven'. I feel this bodes well.

Secondly, I just knew it was going to be a fabulous year once I found out it was the Chinese Year of the Dragon. (See? My opening paragraph did have some relevance) and I just love dragons. I don't know when or why this started but I actually have quite a nice little collection of them. It also makes it easy for people to get me presents when they have no other ideas!

The final, and most important, reason is I simply believe in self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe things are going to work out, in most cases they will. A lot of the time it is all about your perspective. Clearly not always, but a lot of the time it is.

If anyone is still reading, wishing you a very happy year of the Dragon (even if I am a few days too late!) and I hope 2012 is a year where you get to make some of your dreams come true!

PS Apologies to anyone who also follows the Two Mummy Duck blog. Halfway through writing this I couldn't out which blog this belonged on so decided to post it on both!

Survivors!

Just a note to say ....

We survived:-

1. The first day of school (high school for Reanna); and

2. The first couple days of dance; and

3. Erin's first night at "big" Guides; and

4. Reanna and Erin's first time catching the bus to school; and


That:-

5. I think I have all our timetables sorted for first semester; and

6. I haven't messed up when I am supposed to be at work (not that I ever have before, well only once, but I was really sick); and


Next comes:-

7. Aimee's first night of Guides without either of her sisters; and

8. Registering Erin for soccer; and

9. Erin's first music lesson; and

10. First week back for uni.


Until then I am making the most of the "spare" time.

And in case anyone is wondering why so heavy on the Erin activities, she picked soccer instead of a second dance class and got accepted into a music program at school!

Hope you have all had a fabulous start to February!

Lazy Daisy

My most favourite thing I have read this week:

"I am not lazy. I am just incredibly motivated to do nothing".

I have no idea who I should be crediting for this amazing quote, but I saw it on facebook (surprise, surprise).

This would look great on a magnet. Or a sign. Or on a door mat. I have another few doors that needs a cool mat. My front door has one that says 'The house was clean yesterday. Sorry you missed it'. I think the others might be getting a little jealous.

I may be feeling a little guilty that I didn't get everything done I wanted to around the house over the school holidays. But it was hot. And worse, humid. I personally do not cope well with the humidity.

Time to focus on the positives though! We did so much fun stuff, caught up with lots of people and we did get some projects completed around the house.

First day back at school tomorrow (and dance and Guides) - wish us luck! Oh, and in case you were wondering what daisy was referring to, I just liked that it rhymed. However for the sake of completeness bouquets to all of us ... just because ... everyone needs flowers every now and again.

School Days!

Two more sleeps until the girls go back to school! I am very sad that it is the end of school holidays and very, very sad about how big the girls are getting! It is a big year for us this year. Reanna is starting high school (Year 8 here), Erin is going into 'senior school' (at their primary school years 6 & 7 are senior school and get to wear a different shirt) and Aimee is in the upper half of the school (Year 4).

Funnily enough I am not that freaked out over Reanna starting high school. I think I spent all last year and part of the year before having to think about it, because that is just how the process works so now we are finally here I have coped. That said, I was labelling their school stuff tonight and Reanna and I had lots of trouble trying to work out what she should take to school on her first day, because she can't take everything and won't know what she will need each day until she gets her timetable. I am assuring her though that everyone else will be in the same boat.

Aimee starting year 4 on the other hand has hit me hard! Not just because she is my baby, but because she is such an infant!! At my primary school, year 4 was a big deal because it meant you were old enough to go on a 12 day camp once a year that was offered to all five Schools of the Air in WA (I will blog more about my station childhood later as I have mentioned it a few times now!) I look at Aimee and just can't picture her being old enough for that! Even though I could imagine it for the other two at that age.

It is also a big year for Erin. She has decided to branch out this year. She is starting to play soccer this year rather then doing an extra dance class and is beginning to learn a musical instrument. The one dance class she is doing is musical theatre which is a new class for this year and one neither of the other two are doing. Creating her own pathway which is different to her sisters'. Very important!

Reanna and Erin are also going to catch the bus to school three mornings a week instead of going to childcare. So big changes in our house at the moment! I would like to say I am coping beautifully ... at the moment ... but we will see how I am on Wednesday.

Five seconds

Literally all that this post is going to be! But just wanted to say, I have read another book of the 100ish and therefore it is another tiny bit off my 101 challenge! If you are interested click here to read the review of 'Ice Station'.

I also forgot to say last time that I have Skype! So another thing crossed off the list. Well almost, I am still learning how to use it.

But today I have to run. I have a poledancing class to go to and I am running late. Thanks to blogging and the fact I spent the early hours of this morning painting. Are you impressed?! It is only 9am here :)

Have a fabulous day everyone!

Aussie! Aussie! Aussie!

Oi! Oi! Oi!!

For all of you who live overseas, today is Australia Day!! And we have had a fabulous day :)

We stayed at my father-in-law's last night (after a late night dessert of pavlova) so we could get up and go to the Big Aussie Breakfast put on by his local shire. Lots of the shires/councils do them, but he has been a councillor for the last few years so going to support him being a part of the community has turned into a bit of a tradition for us.

Lazy day at home. With it being over 40 degrees Celsius , this seemed like a sensible plan. Then we cooked up hamburgers with patties in the shape of Australia and went to the fireworks. Complete with Australian t-shirts, tattoos and glow sticks of course. It is one of my favourite days of the year. It isn't always the same, but is always filled with catching up with friends and family and is a chance to remember how lucky we are.

So why the mixed feelings?

A very short legal/social history: 26 January is the date that Australia was first claimed as terra nullis, an empty land. A claim which totally ignored the Aboriginal people and which was later found to be invalid by the High Court of Australia (which has impacted on land rights, but that is a whole other story I am not going into here!!)

A lot of Aboriginal people feel Australia Day is really invasion day. I can't say I blame them. There is a lot of bad history about how Aboriginal people were treated once Australia was colonised. Some of which occurred during living people's memories.

This year there has also been media stories about correlations between people who fly the flag on their car and people who are racist. Sensationalist journalism, but of course it has sparked a whole heap of racist and offensive posting on facebook about migrants (and really at the end of the day we were all migrants or convicts originally) and refugees.

So mixed feelings. I have to admit I would celebrate with cleaner conscious if it was on a different day. That said, I use today as a time to talk to my girls about our past. And a day to talk with them about some of the less pleasant aspects. Also of course some of the nicer parts! Why my family came to Australia. Well my mum's side anyway. We don't actually know when or why my dad's side came to Australia. Last year we watched a Citizenship ceremony which I think was a good experience for them.

All this Australiana brings funny moments too. We were singing Australian songs today. One of them, which they all do know, was 'Waltzing Matilda'. The song has some very old Australian words in it which do not come up in everyday conversation. Ok really most of them don't come up in conversation ever and we mustn't have sung it in a while so they asked for a translation of what it all meant. Basically it is about a sheep stealer who jumps into a lake and drowns rather then be arrested. There was a long pause at the end of this. Followed by the next song request!