Happy 30th Birthday Erica...

Happy 30th Birthday to Erica...

It was very quiet at work this morning, in fact we stop sales at 10.30am. I worked until 12.15 though as I had to ensure wages and my production report were submitted for Monday as I am taking Monday as an annual leave day.

We are off to Dean and Erica's for a bbq this afternoon as it's Erica's 30th birthday. We are also celebrating Logan's birthday but her actual birthday is on the 7th November. I am taking Crunchy Asian Salad with us, as requested. This salad seems to get requested everywhere we go, but I don't mind as it is very easy to make. I might even make a roast pumpkin (well it is Halloween) on depending on how I go for time!!

It should be a big afternoon, thankfully Dean and Erica only live around the corner so if worse comes to worse we can walk home........ lol!!!!

My Family from WiddlyTinks.com

Melbourne Cup Long Weekend

Yes us lucky people who live in Melbourne get a public holiday on Tuesday for the "Race that stops the nation" ~ The Melbourne Cup. It is always on the first Tuesday of November. While the public holiday is the Tuesday most companies are shut on the Monday also... generating an extra long weekend. Noel has an RDO and while I can work I the Monday I have elected to have an annual leave day and spend time with the crew. Sadly though this year, the kids will go to school on Monday (which has never happened in the histoy of the Murray's attending Kananook as the school has normally elected to have a ciriculum day). Unless of course we decided they too can have the long weekend. I will work Saturday morning as usual but that's only until 12.30pm.

It's hard rubbish time in our area (where you get to put old unwanted items on your nature strip and the council comes, collects it and takes it to the tip for you at no cost). So most of this weekend will be focussed on cleaning/sorting through the garage and house turfing things that we no longer use or need that's not good enough for the upcoming garage sale we are planning to have. We threw out a lot of stuff last year so there shouldn't be too much but I am sure we will find enough to pile high outside.

Saturday afternoon we are off to a BBQ. It's Erica's 30th birthday so it should be a nice get together and local for us! We haven't seen anyone for awhile so it will be great to catch up and have a drink together. I have had my usual Crunchy Asian Salad requested and I might just take some spooky treats for the kids as well...

Other than that no major plans for the long weekend except, as mentioned, the sorting and turfing of our humble abode plus a flutter or two on the nags on Tuesday!

My Family from WiddlyTinks.com

Speaking Welsh....

Being Welsh I have always had a fasination not only with my country's accent but with the Welsh language itself.

I remember as an 8 year old returning to Wales and being put in a junior school that spoke Welsh ONLY every Wednesday. OMG I was lost and had no idea what anyone was saying to me!! My mam said it was the quietest day of the week for our household. LOL!! And when I did eventually start speaking very broken Welsh she said I sounded like a german gone wrong!! I guess having a strong Aussie accent didn't help when pronouncing words that have additional alphabetic letters in them.

Yes additional alphabetic letters, 28 letters in total in the Welsh Alphabet compared to the normal English alphabet which has 26. Now while this doesn't sound too bad it's the addition of letters such as ch, dd, ff, ll, ng, ph, rh and th that makes a huge difference.

This is the Welsh alphabet:

a b c ch d dd e f ff g ng h i l ll m n o p ph r rh s t th u w y

At home, Welsh wasn't a spoken language except of course for the swear words which we have all been taught. Our main language was english as it was in my parent's houses and before. Coming from South Wales, the use of the language isn't as prevelant as it is in the North.

Over the last few years I have been toying with the idea of enrolling in some form of correspondence school in order to learn my home language. In all honesty, I would love for my children to learn it to as I do try to tell them as much as I can about Wales. Being both born here in Australia I would love them to know about their ancestry.

Recently I have come in contact with Liz, a Welsh girl living in Mackay. Funnily enough, she grew up in Bedwas (not far from where I was born) before emigrating several years ago. She has passed on an internet link for some free online lessons (www.s4c.co.uk/dysgwyr/) so I am going to give that a go....

Menu Plan Monday

Okay so what is cooking in our kitchen this week?

Hhhhmmmm let's see.....

Sat - Braised Prawns and Vegetables in Bird's Nest

Sun - Beans on toast with poached eggs (we went out for lunch)

Mon - Glazed Pork and Veal Meatloaf and cheese and fresh bread rolls

Tue - Coriander Pork Stirfry with steamed rice

Wed - Garlic Steak with Creamy Mash and Pumpkin

Thu - Chicken and Bacon Casserole

Fri - Herb and Spice Steamed Fish

I love menu planning and you can find more menu's over at I'm An Organising Junkie, where lots of other's share their ideas and lots of recipes.

Our recipes can be found at A Dash Of Flavour, once we have cooked them.

Sean's Birthday....

It was Sean's birthday on Saturday but we didn't get together until Sunday to celebrate. We all met at the Chelsea Height's Hotel, which is quite nice and we have been there before. Not a bad meal and I am once again guilty of picking the wrong meal.... weightloss wise but hey we only live once! LOL!! What an excuse that is!!

Sean and Vicky have just got a new barbecue so it was only fitting to buy a bbq cookbook, hinting that the lobster tails on page 105 would be lovely next time we went to visit.

Noel and Sean sat together and chatted, or should I say stirred each other up all the way through lunch. It's good to see them comfortable and relaxed with each other.

Christian is growing as is Vicky's belly - she is quite large now but still has 3 - 4 weeks to go. And she is glowing.

As usual it was a wonderful afternoon spending time with family and yes, it does make me wonder about my life and what it would be like should things had been different. But hey, such is life!

Chirstmas is not far away.... seriously

Well looking at my counter (to the right ~>) I cannot believe it's now only 62 days until it all happens. The fat man in the red suit pays our cherubs a visit leaving them spoiled as usual, we all eat and drink to much etc.

Christmas means so much to me... it's a time that I really, really enjoy. Infact it's the one period of the year that I look forward to.

Yes I do go overboard but that's me..... I like to ensure there is a theme, lots of decorations, a menu, and most of all it has to be perfect. I love to offer a little imagination to people, a little sense that this is a magical time, a time to be a child again......

Anyway these are picture's of last years Christmas Day.... hhhhmmmm what to do this year?

(Click on each picture to enlarge)

My mam is flying in on the 18th December exactly one week before Christmas. I can't wait to see her again. She is always a wonderful help, and like me believes that Christmas is a truly special day.

This year we will also have another baby in the family with Vicky due to give birth on November 13th... not long to go now.

The children's Christmas "Wish" Lists were written last night and I think a win on the lotto is in order to make both lists a reality!! LOL!!!

Off to do some planning......

Menu Plan Monday

I cannot believe that it's Monday again and we are facing another week of routine. The weekend came and went so fast it is actually ridiculous and the fact that Christmas is only 67 days away!!! OMG I need to pull my finger out and get organised.

Saturday night I finally found the recipe for a low fat hollandaise that I have been trying to find for about 2 years now.... funny how you get something in your head and it stays there! Needless to say I had to experiement with it on Saturday night!! For dinner we had a nice peice of steak with some prawns, normally listed on Australian menu's as "Surf and Turf " plus a serve of the hollandaise on the side... this was the start of the food fest!!

Lunch on Sunday was the grand finale. We took mam and dad to the Lynbrook Hotel. A new hotel which was somewhat local. It has only been open for just over 2 months and came highly recommended to us. Although it was a normal hotel with pokies and a sports bar as well as accommodation, the bistro had a different appeal as the only food served was by way of an International Buffet. No A La Carte Menu to be found. Overall opinion - magnificent and if you live local you should definitley give it a try. Price wise it was perfect and the food well ~ let's just say we were all very full when we left and happy!

Needless to say weigh in tonight should be interesting!! LOL!!

So with it being Monday that brings us to menu planning for the week.....

Sat ~ Surf and Turf, low fat Hollandiase

Sun ~ Lynbrook Hotel (although for lunch)

Mon ~ Pastitsio and salad

Tue ~ Steak with Blue Cheese Sauce

Wed ~ 'Big Bucket in the Sky' Chicken

Thu ~ Chicken Jelfrezi with steamed rice

Fri ~ Grilled Rockling with Asian Slaw

As usual more great menu ideas can be found at Menu Plan Monday on I'm An Organising Junkie and all recipes (in time) can be found over a A Dash Of Flavour.... Just click on the links for each meal when they appear or just click here.

Happy cooking.....

A Visit From The Tooth Fairy

Last night we had a visitor.... madam tooth fairy.

Alex lost a tooth (not entirely unaided by princess herself)..... so it was left out overnight for the tooth fairy to come and collect.

To her surprise she got $5 for this tooth..... and yes she came out of her bedroom beaming!

Reminiscing and looking towards the future....

I decided to add labels to all of my posts. This in itself is a huge task considering how long I have been blogging about the House of Murray!

It has also given me a chance to reminisce about what we have done over the years. A lot of fun has been had, many good times but unfortunately some sad times also. One thing that has stood out and yes, I have known this for a long time, is my obsession to have a relationship with my sister. With all that has happened between us, it made me realise it doesn't matter what I want, if she doesn't want it then it's not going to happen ~ simple as that.

I decided yesterday that I am going to shut the door on this part of my life. I am not going to lock it behind me for who knows what the future will hold. I have also decided that Claire needs to know once and for all how I feel now so I have decided to contact her one last time by letter and truly leave the ball in her court.

This is what went in the mail today....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Claire,

Whether you read this or not is totally up to you!

I have been putting off writing this letter as I keep hoping that with every new day our situation would change. BUT sadly this will be the last time I am going to contact you by my choice.

I want you to know that I do have your new mobile number although you have not given it to me and probably don’t want me to have it. I will only use it if there is an emergency concerning Mam as I believe you should hear certain news from family.

Thankfully we are all now starting to see your boys more than ever and it’s wonderful. It’s good for not only Oliver and Alex to spend time with their cousins but I too am enjoying it as now I am getting to know my nephews.

With regards to me seeing Jamie ~ you probably consider me as an enemy right about now. To be perfectly honest I don’t care what you think. You lost my respect when you chose to shut me out of your life and lie to me especially when you had the chance to tell me the truth.

As for us ~ it’s no longer an option for me to cry anymore about our broken relationship and lack of friendship. I have stopped worrying what I may have done wrong and/or if there were things I should have done as your sister.

Just remember I will always be your sister ~ nothing can change that. As it has always been and will always be you are welcome to contact me but as of now that will be your decision.

Needless to say, I do wish you and your boys all the best with the upcoming move and the beginning of a new chapter in your life. I hope things turn out the way you want them to and that ultimately you are happy with your choices.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Whether she reads this or not is totally up to her, whether she responds is also her choice. But I have tried and cannot waste anymore of my energy trying. I have probably over-dramatised the situation and you are all probably sick of reading about it ~ but mentally and emotional I am over this chapter in my life's story and it's time to move on.... with or in this case, without her.

Time will tell what the future will bring..... hopefully joy and happiness as I focus on me and my family!

Healthy plans....

Well after what really wasn't an argument but more of a pointed discussion about healthy eating all is back to normal in the Murray household. As I have struggled with my weight since as long as I can remember (and now Noel is too) I just wish and hope that Alex doesn't end up experiencing the same things that I have over the years. So I have made the conscious decision to take the lead and promote healthier eating at home.

Saying this I have rejoined Weight Watchers to help me on my weightloss journey and hoping to lead by example. So far a loss of 5.1kgs. (And I am quite happy with that!)

Last night's dinner was great - a Vietnamese noodle dish which actually surprised me as to it's outcome. Low fat in fact no fat used at all in the cooking and filling and so full of flavour. If you want to treat you and your family to something different then gives this a go. It's called Chicken Pho and it is a dish that will definitely get cooked again. Everyone liked the fact that it was a basic noodle broth to which you could add your own extra herbs, vegetables and sauces to create your own signature dish.

As you can probably tell I was quite excited by this dish. I get excited about cooking anything especially for the first time. But what I love more than cooking itself, is when the kids get involved, and they did last night. Oliver cooked the spices until fragrant, measured all the ingredients out for the stock while Alex helped with getting the vegetables ready.

When we all work together on something it makes the outcome even more special ~ no matter what the project is!

Treasurer for another year....

Last night we had the Annual General Meeting for the Junior Football Club. The 2009 Committee was disolved and a new one elected.... guess who's treasurer for the 3rd running??? ME!! I am glad as I do really enjoy playing such an important role within the club. It is a little demanding of personal time but not that bad.

Saying this I wasn't fully focussed this year due to all the happenings within my family and with health issues.... like a fellow committee member said "2010 is going to be a better year" ~ I agree!

Menu Plan Monday....

I would normally post this over on A Dash Of Flavour but I don't think by doing so as a sidebar item is giving it justice. Nor do I really like the look of it.

This blog is about our family and what we are up which would include menu planning. A Dash of Flavour is about cooking and recipes and although it is fitting to include Menu Plan Monday over there I would prefer each post to be a recipe, if you can understand that. (I hope I don't confuse anyone that normally goes to A Dash Of Flavour.

So here is my first Menu Plan Monday on this blog. As per usual our week starts Saturday and you will get used to it, this is due to us normally food shopping either Friday night or Saturday afternoons.

Saturday - Steak and salad

Sunday - BBQ (beef kebabs, hamburgers and sausages), cauliflower au gratin, salad

Monday - Parmesan Crusted Rockling with Fried Potatoes with Sundried Tomatoes and vegetables

Tuesday - Pork and Capsicum Hot Pot (slow cooker)

Wednesday - Chicken Pho (Vietnamese Noodle Soup)

Thursday - Thai Beef with Cashews and steamed rice

Friday - Big Bucket in the Sky Chicken with homemade wedges

So there you have it.... well that's the plan so far. Unfortunately I do have trouble sticking with this but I know I have to learn to...

To see what other wonderful people are having for dinner, don't forget to visit I'm An Organising Junkie.

An afternoon with family....

I have to admit I am sitting here one content little Aunty having spent the afternoon with my nephews..... I love them to bits but given the circumstances with my sister I have to be patient and see them only when my brother in law agrees. As he only gets them every second weekend it definitely is his "quality" time with them and I don't want to impose too much. It's very strange how much closer we have all become since my sister seperated from him but I truly admire him for letting the children see each other ~ let's face it if he didn't then my kids would not see their cousins!! Prior to the seperation, we hardly saw them so we have already missed out on so much!

Kyle, Alex, Stuart and Oliver

Angus

Alex

Stuart

Oliver and Kyle

Wesley

As you can see we had a bbq lunch and the beef skewers were a hit! Bathurst was on but I spent most of my time watching the kids playing together. Jamie also painted our laundry ceiling for us as it was peeling due to the heat of the dryer.

Families definitely work in strange ways ~ some ways people just don't understand. But it is wonderful that we can have Jamie and the boys over for lunch even though, sadly, my sister wasn't included. I guess it all depends who puts in the effort to keep families together and in this case it's obviously not my sister!!

The weekend has suddenly become busy....

The weekend has suddenly become busy.... but I really don't mind at all....

Working until 12 takes a huge chunk out of Saturday but it's extra spending money and more time Noel can spend with the children by himself. He has been working long hours this last few weeks and has hardly spent any time with them, seeing them just before dinner and then they go off to bed. So Saturday mornings are his "quality" time.

It is a beautiful day here in Melbourne, the sun is shining and the wind calm.

This afternoon we are off to get the family portrait done. This should be interesting (especially seeing what Alex will decide to wear) but I am looking forward to it. The portrait itself will be framed and only costs $10 with all profits going back to the school. The trick is to walk away with the portrait only not the whole package that these companies put together so you are tempted to spend extra money. We did this a few years ago and I ended up purchasing the whole package for about $200... but they were nice photos.

We are all getting a little excited as I have confirmed a get together with Jamie and the boys for tomorrow. They are coming to our place for lunch and it will be great to see them again. It's been a few weeks but as much as I would love to see them everytime they are with Jamie, it is his time and he needs to enjoy all the time that he gets. While they are visiting, Jamie is actually painting the laundry ceiling for us as the paint is flaking from the heat of the dryer. Cost for painting the laundry ceiling is free lunch.... lol!!

So before we know it the weekend will be over but it will be enjoyed......

TGIF!! The weekend is here...

I am looking forward to this weekend... good weather has been forecast for the whole weekend so hopefully we can venture outside at some stage.

Not quite sure what we are planning although it must and will incorporate cleaning at some stage, as boring as that sounds ~ it does need to get done.

Getting our family portrait (photo) taken Saturday afternoon so that should be good. It wasn't a planned event, actually a fundraiser through the school. We had it done many years ago so an updated version will be great.

Better fly the weekend has started.......

Happy Birthday Mam....

~~ Happy Birthday Mam ~~

We hope you have a wonderful birthday!!

Back to school..... holidays are over!

Well I cannot only complain about the weekend passing by fast again but these two weeks of school holidays did also. I guess it was harder with the fact that Noel and I worked through them and the kids spent most of their time with Nana and Grandad.

We had a wonderful weekend, it was really good to spend some quality time together.

Saturday night we babysat Christian for the first time overnight. Confession firstly, we spent most of Saturday afternoon childproofing the house for a two year old. Ornaments up a little higher, etc. Now that both of our children are older you don't think about the little things until you start looking at where they.... Christian wasn't bothered at all by the fact that his mam and dad were leaving him with us, however I think mam and dad felt differently. We all waved them off and then before we knew it Christian had run back into the house without a second thought about his parents wanted to wave to him as they drove past the house again (after doing a u-turn of course). Sean and Vicky were off to a birthday party, to which no children were invited. I am not a fan of these occasions, its a rarity when ares are not with us as well.
After a huge cooked breakfast (healthy of course) we all went to Myuna Farm in Doveton. Noel and I hadn't been there before whereas the kids had been with the school. It was actually quite good considering I really didn't have high expectations.

The highlight I have to admit was watching the kids on the pony rides. At first Oliver didn't want a ride, but as we got closer he changed his mind which I was glad about and doing so he went first.

Then Christian who I just didn't think would go anywhere near the horse (to be honest Shetland Pony) but he seemed to enjoy it.

Alex giggled all the way through her ride and I have promised now to take her horse riding at a proper horse farm! Now that's going to be interesting!!

After dropping Christian back of at his home, it was time for our next adventure for the day. Our last adventure for the school holidays. We had pre-organized tickets for Gold Glass to see Julie and Julia, and decided that we would have dinner out just to make a night of it. Dinner was at Hog's Breath Cafe, which we all enjoyed and I have to be honest and say that I did eat too much. It was the first time that the kids had been there so it was quite novel to them.

But gee did their eyes light up from the minute we got to the cinema.... Gold Class is such a different experience to the normal cinema's. We ordered our drinks and were then ushered to our seats or should I say arm chairs? It was funny to watch the kids change the positions of their seats, up and down, up and down but they enjoyed the novelty of it all! I thought the movie was great as did Oliver, Noel thought it was good but Alexandria was bored. Julie and Julia is a movie about a food blog writer and a cookbook writer. Julie Powell sets out to cook every recipe from Julia Child's cookbook, Mastering The Art Of French Cooking, whilst at the same time the film showed Julia Child writing her cookbook. Well worth seeing if you are a foodie with a cooking blog like me. At time I could see the looks on my family's faces and knew all to well that they were thinking "that's exactly what mam is like or does at home".... lol it was funny!

Although school holidays are over I must say that my beloved weekly "routine" is back to normal or well it is at least for the next 10 weeks when school holidays starts all again!