The last blog for the year. Mum and Dad's stay at Werribee South Caravan Park was now over and they were going to head north through Daylesford and Bendigo etc, so we suggested to go up to the Castlemaine house for the weekend. Everyone seemed keen for a spot of antique shopping and wine & food tasting, so that's what we did. I also found that the 1880's chinese cabinet that I was eyeing off last July was still there and temptation proved just too much. We really did need that cabinet for the dining room and the ute was just big enough (or nearly big enough as it turned out!) to take it home, so we did, and it is now standing resplendent in the dining room (photos to come). On Sunday afternoon we said goodbye to Mum and Dad, then we headed back to Melbourne with Matthew & Justine and partied into the new year with more food and Moet. Tomorrow the fitness regimes start.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!
Dec 29 - The Ruby Wedding party
Mum and Dad's Ruby Wedding anniversary is 2 Jan 2007, so whilst we were all together we decided to have a bit of a party. Location was Point Cook Beach Picnic ground and we had all sorts of goodies to eat (we're still on Christmas left-overs). Tom also gave us frisbee throwing lessons (our family needed remedial tutorials) and I think we all learnt a bit.
Dec 28 - Post Christmas sales
Claire, Justine & I hit the shops on Thursday to see what bargains were to be had. A very successful trip for all of us particularly for shoe shopping! We saved heaps of money and so we could afford a yummy hot chocolate at Max Brenner's afterwards! Claire and Justine have some good photos of this trip, so I'll post a link once they've had a chance to load the pics.
...just found out England have lost the test...in 3 days. All out for not much again. A lot happens (or not much in England's case) when you're off shopping!
...just found out England have lost the test...in 3 days. All out for not much again. A lot happens (or not much in England's case) when you're off shopping!
Dec 27 - The Boxing Day test
After the hectic schedule of Christmas day we have just had two days which were the complete opposite... relaxing at the MCG watching the 1st and 2nd day of the Boxing Day Test. The first day was cold... bitterly, with the going quite tough also out in the middle of the ground. England chose to bat and took a long time to get not very many... but we were all engrossed and waiting for the moment when Warney would get his 700th wicket. The day went well for him, because he also got his 704th wicket too! Australia got to bat before the day was over, and by the end of the second day (which was a bit warmer) had recovered from a shaky start to have quite a useful lead (a commanding lead as it turned out) at the end of the second day, with both Hayden and Symonds scoring more that 150 each. What would happen the next day? Only time would tell.
Dec 25 - Christmas Day
As a reward(?) for having been overseas for the last 6 years, 2006 was the year that Tom & Rachelle got to host Christmas lunch. So exciting was the prospect, that 21 family members signed up to come for lunch with an additional 3 for the evening. How were we to cope in a 2 bedroom bungalow with 21 people on a day forecast to have rain and 16C in Melbourne, and with snow in the mountains (this is after having 42.5C only a few days earlier mind you)? It could have been done with a detailed plan and timetable orchestrated to perfection, but then we could also choose the other option and "wing it"... which is of course what we did.
After being badgered by the sisters in law & others for "what do you want us to bring, Christmas is only 6 weeks away", a few essentials like the ham, trifle, rocky road and icecream pudding were delegated to various parties. More worrying than what we were going to eat was "where are we going to sit?" and "what happens if it rains?". For the latter I didn't worry too much despite it always being a distinct possibility that it could rain or snow in Melbourne the day after being 42.5 degrees, mainly due to the fact that every time in the last six months that rain was forecast we got a rumble of thunder, 3 drops of rain and the the clouds passed over and the sun came out... this would happen on Christmas day too, right?!
On to the seats... and tables... well a brainwave struck and we thought a couple of trestle tables in the back garden would do the job just fine, and with Tom's mum's connections at St Mary's, surely we could get a couple of tables from the hall and some chairs too. Well this turned out to be no problem at all. With nice white tablecloths from Margaret promised, the plan was working well.
A moment of panic hit when I realised that I was going to be out of the country for a week prior to Christmas, with only a few days to prepare, and do all the shopping (not to mention all the year end stuff at work... a pretty busy time for the Finance team). So I had to get the menu and shopping list sorted. No problem for sweets - all these wonderful ideas in the Delicious magazines and I'm sure with the help of Claire and Justine we can make them all. Then I settled on the mains - Italian Roast Pork (a la Jamie Oliver), Salmon fillet on the barbie plus lots of interesting salads...but then I realised that Claire doesn't eat Pork or Fish - she'll have to have Ham... or maybe we could do a rolled turkey roast too... yes let's do Turkey as well. And then the starters would be a choice of Mackerel Pate or Ham & Goat's cheese salad. And the whole house to be decorated with blue and silver theme.
Well in the end it turned out pretty well... considering it did actually rain... quite a lot. Also we forgot to serve the Ham until late in the evening for Tom's Ham and cheese toasties. So for those who are interested, the final menu was:
After being badgered by the sisters in law & others for "what do you want us to bring, Christmas is only 6 weeks away", a few essentials like the ham, trifle, rocky road and icecream pudding were delegated to various parties. More worrying than what we were going to eat was "where are we going to sit?" and "what happens if it rains?". For the latter I didn't worry too much despite it always being a distinct possibility that it could rain or snow in Melbourne the day after being 42.5 degrees, mainly due to the fact that every time in the last six months that rain was forecast we got a rumble of thunder, 3 drops of rain and the the clouds passed over and the sun came out... this would happen on Christmas day too, right?!
On to the seats... and tables... well a brainwave struck and we thought a couple of trestle tables in the back garden would do the job just fine, and with Tom's mum's connections at St Mary's, surely we could get a couple of tables from the hall and some chairs too. Well this turned out to be no problem at all. With nice white tablecloths from Margaret promised, the plan was working well.
A moment of panic hit when I realised that I was going to be out of the country for a week prior to Christmas, with only a few days to prepare, and do all the shopping (not to mention all the year end stuff at work... a pretty busy time for the Finance team). So I had to get the menu and shopping list sorted. No problem for sweets - all these wonderful ideas in the Delicious magazines and I'm sure with the help of Claire and Justine we can make them all. Then I settled on the mains - Italian Roast Pork (a la Jamie Oliver), Salmon fillet on the barbie plus lots of interesting salads...but then I realised that Claire doesn't eat Pork or Fish - she'll have to have Ham... or maybe we could do a rolled turkey roast too... yes let's do Turkey as well. And then the starters would be a choice of Mackerel Pate or Ham & Goat's cheese salad. And the whole house to be decorated with blue and silver theme.
Well in the end it turned out pretty well... considering it did actually rain... quite a lot. Also we forgot to serve the Ham until late in the evening for Tom's Ham and cheese toasties. So for those who are interested, the final menu was:
Appetisers
Blinis topped with Tasmanian smoked salmon, cream cheese and dill
Basil & Cashew dip with biscuits
Champagne (and Aussie sparkling) with/without strawberry schnapps
Starters
Smoked Mackerel Pate with cress salad and sourdough toast
or
Chicory and mixed leaf salad with Prosciutto and grilled goats cheese
Mains
Porchetta seasoned with Fennel and Chilli (Italian style Roast Pork a la Jamie Oliver)
Barbecued Salmon Fillet with lemon and dill
Roasted Turkey Fillet with cranberry
Leg Ham
accompanied by
Butter bean pepper and goats cheese salad
Tomato, Bocconcini and basil salad with balsamic dressing
Rocket and Spinach salad
Red cabbage, apple and walnut salad
Tom's spuds
and a variety of condiments including Tomato Relish, Chutney, Apple and Cranberry sauce (but no gravy!)
Dessert
Nora's Christmas pudding
Catherine's Midori trifle
Margaret's pudding ice cream
Marie's Christmas cake
Mini cheesecakes with cranberry fruitmince topping
Homemade chocolate truffles
Teresa's Rocky Road
Fruit & Cheese platter
Justine's Bayerisher shortbread
Gingerbread hearts & stars
+ more
Dec 24 - Matthew's Birthday
Most of my family arrived in Melbourne yesterday for the Christmas break, with only Greg, Andrea (and lately Lena) missing from the party. Christmas preprations aplenty were going on today for the big day tomorrow with 21 family members for lunch, all to be fed out of my kitchen! But the most important event of the day was Matthew's birthday and we celebrated by having lunch at a local restaurant. Food and company was great and enjoyed by all. Evening was followed by more food and wine and Christmas carols, expertly accompanied by Justine on the piano. See photos coutesy of Matthew & Justine's website.
Dec 23: I'm an aunty!
A little bit late, but very welcome, my niece Lena Juliet Holmes was born in England at 08:24am. All of the family are very proud and planning their next trips over there to see her.
See the Link to Andrea & Greg's blog for more details.
See the Link to Andrea & Greg's blog for more details.
Dec 18 - Vietnam trip
Am just back from a short work trip to Vietnam. I was also lucky enought to be able to spend a couple of extra days there to do some sightseeing and Christmas shopping. Was time well spent!
Nov 25 - my first 5K race
After 6 months of inactivity back in Australia I felt the urge to shed a few pounds and do something with my running. I missed my running in Richmond Park and when asked by my colleagues what I was going to do in the Corporate Games I thought that perhaps this was the opportunity I was looking for. Hence I started my training about 2 months beforehand and for 3 times a week shuffled around the suburbs at a blistering speed, alternating between walking and running. Eventually I could make the ultra-flat 5K around Albert Park lake without stopping and I recorded my first race time of 33 minutes and 19 seconds when crossing the finish line on Pitt Straight. Unfortunately I couldn't quite pass my nemesis of the last few hundred metres, despite my finishing burst.
Nov 24 - Work Christmas party
Early for a Christmas party, but a great start to the season, this year's work party was at the Fox Classic Car Museum in Melbourne's Docklands precinct. The theme was Dangerous Dudes and Dazzling Dolls. This is the one I want for Christmas!See more photos on the attached link.
Nov 4 - Derby Day
It was Derby Day in Melbourne and with fashions on the field and my sister Claire in town, where else was there to go but to the races? The day started a bit dreary but fined up through the day. Did we win? I don't remember, but we had fun trying! Sep - NZ Ski trip
In September Tom and I took a well earned week long break to New Zealand. The main objective was skiing, but with the fabulously sunny weather, there were plenty of other things to look at as well. We flew into Christchurch and then drove all the way down to Wanaka in the one day - a stunning but quite long day. Next morning we woke to a cloudless warm day and rather than exhaust ourselves skiing straight up, took a leisurely relaxing day by the lake. Skiing was fun, if a little icy in parts, as we attempted to master the slopes of Treble Cone (I'm not sure mastering is quite the word there) and Cardrona. One rainy day was not going to be much fun skiing, so we opted for the tourist options of Queenstown and Jetboat riding on the Shotover river.
Aug - the month of the garden
The front garden was always one of the lesser features of our house, and the last six years have done nothing to change that, so we decided it was time to make an upgrade. The tired lawn which didn't grow anyway was to go and be replaced with pathways and garden beds filled with natives. Perfect for these times of drought.Also part of the plan was to render the ugly cream brick wall and tidy and fill the gaps in the back garden. This is all now pretty much done... now the plants just need to grow!
Jul - Art Classes
During the winter Tom started back doing some artwork, and even joined som art classes run through the social club at work. Now we have quite a few interesting originals around the house.
May 28 - Moving day
After taking posession last weekend (and spending most of it cleaning) we received our shipment of furniture during the week, we moved out of our apartment and back into our old house today. It's nice to be home!
Oops! It looks like our movers packed our compost bin from UK. Strange that Customs didn't pick it up. Better call the Quarantine Services!
Oops! It looks like our movers packed our compost bin from UK. Strange that Customs didn't pick it up. Better call the Quarantine Services!
April 17 - We've got wheels
After a couple of weeks without a car (excluding of course the 6 years in UK) we took the trip to Sydney for Easter and picked up my Dad's old car (the ute). This would be our car for all those bush trips we were going to do (but haven't)... we still haven't bought our city car yet, and the ute is going strong (with plush new sheepskin seatcovers a pet shark installed from the rear view mirror).
The ute has been very useful though, for all those loads of sand and mulch for the garden, not to mention transporting tables and chairs for Christmas dinner (see December 25 story) and antique cupboards.
The ute has been very useful though, for all those loads of sand and mulch for the garden, not to mention transporting tables and chairs for Christmas dinner (see December 25 story) and antique cupboards.
Apr 1 - Destination Melbourne
Today we left UK for the next stage in our life...back to Melbourne. The long flight was uneventful, though tiring as always. For the next 6 weeks or so until our furniture arrives in Melbourne and clears customs, our home was to be a serviced apartment in South Yarra, just off Toorak road and round the corner from Chapel street. Perfect!
Also in short distance walk was the wonderful Royal Botanic Gardens of Melbourne and the "tan" running circuit (which sadly I would not use as much as I should). Other delights that were to find in the locality were the wonderful Pacific Seafoods Chinese restaurant on Toorak Road with to die for fresh scallops, steamed with chilli, ginger, garlic and black bean, and numerous other restaurants... and of course the shops! With limited storage space in the apartment the wallet did not suffer too much damage though.
Also in short distance walk was the wonderful Royal Botanic Gardens of Melbourne and the "tan" running circuit (which sadly I would not use as much as I should). Other delights that were to find in the locality were the wonderful Pacific Seafoods Chinese restaurant on Toorak Road with to die for fresh scallops, steamed with chilli, ginger, garlic and black bean, and numerous other restaurants... and of course the shops! With limited storage space in the apartment the wallet did not suffer too much damage though.
Mar 27 - Packing up
Today the movers arrive to pack up all our stuff. A big job... and I'm not ready for them yet. Haven't worked out what I need to pack in my suitcase, and still have food to give away/through out. It's going to be a busy day!
Feb 19 - our wedding anniversary
I was still in Melbourne for our wedding anniversary this year and Tom was back in London so he sent me some wonderful flowers and champagne and I celebrated with Frank, Margaret and Catherine having a BBQ on the Yarra.
Feb 11 - the Bavarian wedding - Part 2
Greg and Andrea had the second leg of their wedding party in Campbelltown in Mum & Dad's backyard in February this year. Much the same costumes for the bride and groom (minus the coats) as in Munich in December. A great time was had by all. Andrea and Greg followed up witht he third leg of the part in Edmonton, Canada in June. Unfortunately I was not able to make that one, but my sister Claire did - see photos.Jan 30 - Trip to Melbourne
For the next 3 weeks I'm going back to Melbourne to check out things for my new job, meet the team and get some things started. Will be nice to bet some sun as a break from our dreary winter! Also I get to go to Bangkok for a few days work trip whilst I'm there.
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