Australia Day traditions

...meat pie...

...pavlova...

...blue chesty bonds...

...some possum magic...

...with cricket, beers, board games, backyard fun, Aussie tunes, family and friends!

Love Australia Day.

And she's off!

Elara's (current) favourite song was playing on the radio on the way to her first day at school ever...

"Baby you're a firework

Come on let your colors burst

Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh!"

As you shoot across the sky"

I just know that school is going to bring out the best in her!

(Just a note: I'm not suggesting her as a great role model for your kids, but these lyrics are from the fun Katy Perry song, Firework.)

Smiling

Tomorrow Elara is starting something.

When she finishes it, she will have become a young woman.

It's wonderful, and heartbreakingly real.

I feel quite ill prepared.

Not in the I-haven't-finished-covering-her-books kind of way.

More in the I-have-to-release-her-to-become-who-she-will-become kind of way.

Love is an evolving thing.

And so I smile at the future.

She can't possibly be?

Is it just me or does this dress look too long for a girl who was happily resting (and by that I mean kicking and squirming) in my womb only 5 short years ago? Perhaps I'm just trying to believe that she could not possibly be old enough to start school next week!

I love the fabric in this dress, which I recycled from one of my old dresses. And, if given the chance I will always add a splash of red (in this case, some binding to make a pillowcase style dress) to something pink!

Embrace the camera: cupcakes

Elara and I embracing the camera while we do one of our favourite things together...decorating cakes!

Why I prefer to spend my time baking chocolate cakes

Not much bread or milk around town here,

and we're certainly low on fruit and veggies.

So I made some bread today (kneading is so therapeutic!)

And some pumpkin soup to get our fruit and veg intake up.

Remember I said I would try to put more effort into our dinners this year...

Well I loved it.

Tim skipped dinner because he was in the groove with the gardening/mowing.

The girls would only eat a bit of bread with peanut butter on.

And even then they left the crusts.

Sometimes dinner just doesn't work!

PopScene

Recently I made this disco cake for a friend.

We used to dance at a great little place named PopScene.

It was the best club.

And played all the music I loved.

I never met a drunk there.

I was never asked on a date.

I don't remember there being a bouncer to keep out the hooligans,

because everyone knew...

This place was for dancing.

They were great times.

Now I can't stay up past 9pm!

Oh and yes, that's seven layers!