The Unknown- Oh the places you'll go

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the begininning or the end!

DR SEUSS's  book - Oh the places you'll go....If you've ever read it you'll understand why....if you haven't....read it!! It's not just a children's book - it's the story of one's life....EVERYBODY's. Sometimes despite all that happens people just need to know they are still loved & can/will succeed.

So to end here, I must say a BIG THANKYOU & Merry Christmas to all those I hold dear...including those few kind Blogging Buddies. 

Merry Christmas

Caroline xo

 

Wordless Wednesday

Saturday

Pizza for Dessert

Last night after dinner I felt like having something sweet.
 In our house we don't usually have dessert every night after our evening meal, so if I do decide we are going to, I usually have to make my mind up sometime in the afternoon so I can make a pudding or the like.

Being 8o'clock at night I didn't feel like baking but I still had the sweet craving. I had some home-made pizza bases in the freezer so I decided to make a dessert pizza with simple things I had on hand.

I put the pizza base in the oven to defrost slightly, then I took it out smothered it in Nuttella spread, covered it in chopped bananas & put it back in the oven for a few minutes. When I took it out I lightly sprinkled it with icing sugar. It was a huge hit all made ( & eaten ) in under 15mins. Defiantly be making this up for a quickie dessert in the future.The bananas were a yummy caramelized sweetness with the warm choccy spread.  DELISH!!

Happy Friday to you
Caroline

I am Loved

Lately my friends & family have been laying so much
love on me.


 Words of  comfort ( and wisdom) little treats to make a day special, coffee @ weird  hours 
of  day and phone calls at even weirder times.

Tears of  sadness BUT many of laughter.

at hard times it's just what one needs.........I feel lucky.

Thankyou, I love, cherish & appreciate you.

Caroline xoxo

Wordless Wednesday

No more photos please

I'm all photo'd out

Cleaning Saddles

Cleaning Saddles

And boots

and even MORE boots

Sitting in the warmish winter sun, drinking coffee and enjoying the smell of Leather, saddlesoap and horses.

Caroline.....

Cold!!

It was cold here yesterday and Somebody didn't want to get out of bed.

She finally showed herself about midday.

The man & I call her the contraceptive dog -always wanting to sleep in between us.

Yep, I know, to much information!!

Hope your keeping warm (or cool if that's where you are)

Caroline xoxo

Wordless Wednesday

Winter Sun

I love this time of year when the winter sun swings around swamping my dining room with it's warmth.
I sat here the other day enjoying my morning cuppa, and it was so wonderful compared to my cold dark office that I lugged all my bookwork upstairs and sat doing it all warm and cosy in my pj's, it was so good that I didn't mind doing it nearly half as much as usual.

Have you got a nice spot where you enjoy in winter??
Caroline xoxo

The Show Ball

It was our towns show ball here on Saturday night. It was a great night and all the Show Queens & Princesses all looked lovely, they had put so much effort in over the last few months.

 Ds partnered one of the show princesses, she of course looked beautiful & my son most handsome

if not just a little James Bond'ish don't you think?

Hope you all had a fantastic weekend, we had  friends visit and with 10 to lunch on Sunday it was lovely. 

Caroline xoxo

Left holding the baby.......

This new "gramps" was worried about holding Emmalyn.

He'd never held a newborn before.

Then I think he looked at her and his heart melted :)

Now it's all o.k & he knows she won't break. lol!

Thankyou darling,  I know you're going to make the most fantastic gramps just like you did as a Dad when you bought my children up as your own. I love the way Soldier Boy hugs you & tells you he loves you (several times) everytime we all hang out together, now his own daughter will feel that love to.

Had a great time this afternoon hanging out with Soldier Boy & Dil.  Dil is doing so well and is being an awesome new Mummy.

Love granny xo

Welcome Baby Girl

 Emmalyn Jane

 8lb 6oz

Love Granny xoxo

Soldier boy comes home

Told you all last week I'd have some very exciting news..........

Soldier Boy had a quick & unexpected return home from his overseas deployment, Dil had a few baby problems and the Army very compassionately made the decision for his deployment to be terminated.

 (as if any of us are complaining)

For a family that were all struggling with the fact that he wouldn't be here to see his first born arrive,

nor see her until she was a few months old we are absolutely thrilled to have him safe home to our own terra firma.

No one told the "little poppet" that S.B was coming back, only that we were going to the airport to welcome some other soldiers home. She couldn't believe her eyes when he walked through those airport doors. Neither could we AND we knew.

Greeting his little bubba,

 he never expected he would see his wifey (as he affectionately calls her)

still pregnant.

                                                           He said to me "she's huge MUM"

I could have slapped him around the ears, (jokes)  if I could have seen him through my tears.

Yep, definitely Bro's & definitely happy.

Mumma and Soldier Boy.

Unfortunately Darling daughter wasn't here to see his safe arrival home, this year has probably seen her not make the wises of life choices, but then sometimes being 18 (or any age) can be hard.

 As long as she realizes her family are all still here when she needs them and we all love her VERY much  :-)  ENOUGH SAID!!

and of course you can probably all guess what my next post is going to be about......

it's so exciting!!

Caroline xoxo

(A relieved MUM)

For today....

Soldier Boy's Birthday

As Soldier Boy isn't here to celebrate his Birthday we  thought we would all get together & celebrate it for him. For obvious reasons we thought we would do the "Aussie + Army theme. 

We all had a ton of fun with lotsa yummy food & cake. We even set a place for him with his photo so he could "join us". 

Everybody got groovy Aussie party favours.  D.I.L & I got super sexy make your ears sore Australian Flag earrings (courtesy of our local dollar store) While we all looked simply stunning  in our stylish Australian party hats.

A good night

Caroline

Lemon Chicken Slow Cooked

and the slow cook deemed to be the essential part. I think this young rooster may have run around this place for a little to long before anybody got around to catching him-he was full of free ranging flavour though.

Into the slow cooker he went along with salt, pepper & bay leaves. A good dousing of white wine & then a glass for moi. Some leeks that I picked up really cheap out of  the throw out section at the supermarket (does nobody cook in my little town anymore) & lots of  homegrown lemon & limes that "The Man" bought home from one of his thoughtful clients. Squeezed some of the juice out of them, then threw the rest in skin 'n' all for a bit more lemony goodness.

Oh by the way !!! I was not to poison any of my little family by using the lemon skin as they were homegrown chemical free :-)

Have a lovely weekend
I'm REALLY going to....tell you why next week!!
Caroline

Dear Granny

Please spare a kind thought for my granny (or a prayer if that's something you do) She's had a bad fall.
Luckily she wears a carer alert and when she fell she was able to activate it so was able to get help quite quickly.

Granny is 88 and still lives by herself. She is pictured here with her great granddaughter (my daughter)
on Christmas 1993. This October my granny will turn 89 my daughter 19 they're both October birds.
 Not long now and Granny will be a Great Great Granny, maybe even by this time next week, when Soldier Boy & Dil deliver there first child :-)

Love you Gran
Caroline xo

R.I.P

Pikelet  Amadeus 

2004 -2012

Happy Birthday Soldier Boy

How time flies son. It doesn't seem that long ago you were playing soldiers & digging trenches through the back yard (yep! he really did)

So much has happened in just the few short years since this picture was taken.
You've been married, had lots of good times & some bad, been on two deployments and now to top it all off you will become a daddy ANY day now!!

We had a little Birthday party for you tonight, darling wife & the "little poppet" came, it was kinda weird that you weren't  here but far far away in a place that seems so strange to us. We hope your day wasn't TOO bad, and the boys didn't give you to many belly slaps. Ha Ha!!

Loving you as always
Stay safe
Mumma xo

Smoked Cod Pot Pie Recipe

• 500g Smoked Cod
• 2tbsp. Butter
• 2tsp. Curry Powder
• 1tbsp. Plain Flour
• 1 1/2 cups Milk
• 300g Frozen Mixed Vegetables
• 800g Potatoes (cooked & mashed)
• 2/3 Cup Fresh Parmesan Cheese (grated)

Boil fish until tender, drain well & remove all the skin & bones.
Flake the fish into pieces & place in a bowl, add the frozen vegies & gently combine.

Heat butter in a small saucepan, add curry powder & flour cook for 1 minute to develop the flavour from the curry powder. Stir in milk, stirring until the mixture boils & thickens. Pour sauce through the fish & vegetable mixture.

Stir the grated parmesan cheese through the hot mashed potato ( I always whip my mash with the electric beaters to make a light fluffy potato topping) 

Place your mashed potato on top of your fish/veg mixture & cook in a 180c oven until nicely browned on top.

ENJOY!

Does certain food evoke memories of the past for you? It does for me.

 I made this pie a few days ago. I hadn't made it since my two eldest children were very very young. It bought an instant picture to my mind of my eldest (soldier boy) sitting up at our breakfast counter with a big spoonful saying "This is yum MUM" then laughing as he had rhymed his words, then his little sis who had just started talking copied  his exact words "This is yum MUM" 

 (she ALWAYS copied whatever  he said)

Caroline xoxo

It's important to....

Watch a sunrise at least once a year

H.Jackson Brown

On a Cool Rainy Saturday

• A game of battleships for the boys
• Little dog & me on the lounge snuggling & reading

We support you, Can you support us?

Caroline.......

On this Anzac Day....

May we never forget the ultimate sacrifice 

that fell upon our diggers from the past

and bless our present & future diggers

 may they all come home to the safety of our 

beautiful shores.

Lest we Forget....

Caroline

Hint Hint...

Well.... I left you all a little hint in one of my comments yesterday....

did anyone pick up on it??

So this is a BIG hint!

Seems like this "Granny" isn't good at keeping secrets.

Caroline xo

Another photo from the last post...

Now most people that know me realize that atm the sight of a photo of Soldier boy can reduce this Mumma very quickly to tears.

Well here it is, this is the one that really "gets" me going.

This is a photo of Soldier Boy just before he left with the Dil's little poppin. The heartwrench on his face of leaving a little girl he loves as his own.

That's how BIG this guys heart is.

I would like to be able to tell you all that he's going make an awesome Dad when his first born arrives in a few weeks but the fact is he already is.

AND that's all folks...

Caroline xoxo

*****I really wanted to put this photo in my post this morning but at the time I hadn't

asked Dil if I could add the little Poppin's photo in & I didn't want to publish it till I got the oky doky.

26days to go

till I get to meet my first grandbaby.

Little grandbaby will now be born on the 14th May.

Had a great dinner at Dil's last night there was 9 of us all up, all of us family along with Dil's Aunt & cousin from England.

Mmmm... maybe or maybe not my youngest son might have been a bit sweet on the 15yo cousin (he won't be :) at me when he sees this lol!)

And who do you think calls while we were all sitting around eating, talking & laughing?? Soldier Boy so of course the phone got passed around & around the table. Everyone got to have a good chat as he was able to stay on the line a fair while. Needless to say lots of love hugs & kisses were sent down the phone.

One last kiss for Soldier Boy's firstborn babe-he won't get to

see his babe till it's a couple of months old.

Last photo's of a BIG/little brother - 61/2yrs between them

you wouldn't thunk it!!

and of course the sad little sister

Goodbyes.......can't wait till the day I see my baby hold his baby.

It's a beautiful autumn day outside so I'm going out to enjoy it...

Caroline xoxo