17 Week...

and feeling like a real bump now!


* On another note our hearts and thoughts go out to all who have been affected by the fires here in Victoria. It has been so sad watching all the devastation and we look forward to the hope that comes with rebuilding lives and homes.

New Zealand: Mount Ruapehu

I still have a few photos to share from New Zealand, better late then never.
We went and stayed near Mount Doom! It's real name is Mount Ruapehu. But imagine it without the snow and you can just see little Frodo Baggins climbing this to destroy the ring.
We stayed in the gorgeous Bayview Chateau Tongariro,

which had endless views of the surrounding snow capped mountains.


On our first day we hiked to Taranaki Falls. The falls flow 20 metres over the edge of a large lava flow, which erupted from Ruapehu 15,000 years ago. It was a fantastic walk with spectacular views the whole way.



On the second day we went to Whakapapa Ski Field – the largest ski field in New Zealand. The Maori pronunciation for WHA is FA, I will leave you to work out why this amused us so! It was Adam's first time ever in snow. The snow was a bit too crunchy to make good snow balls. However, that didn't stop us enjoying ourselves. We rode the chair lift to the stop, slipped around and had some hot chocolate while admiring the view.




We also learnt that you do indeed pull the safety bar down on the lift. After I initially said to Adam that it didn't seem like anyone else was pulling it down so it mustn't be the cool thing to do. After a rather scary ride, we noticed all the people in front of us pulling up their safety bars. Needless to say the second trip was a lot more relaxing.

Knitting

My mum taught me to knit years ago. I am very competent when it comes to knitting squares and rectangles in garter stitch! But recently due to a group of ladies who meet up every month or so to do some stitching and bitching ( and a lot of eating) I have developed a renewed interest in knitting.

Mum new about my renewed interest and gave me a knitting book for christmas. An even better present was the time she spent with me teaching me how to purl and read a pattern.I came up with one lone slipper (it was really to big to be called a bootee!). Since then I have completed my own pair of bootees.
The pattern called for cats but I changed them into mice.

Mum sent me a pair of cute white bootees she made from the same book. They are so small!

And one of the mentioned friends from my stitch'n'bitch group made me this hat. It is called the umbilical cord hat. It is very soft and tiny.


It is so much fun to look at baby knits and they are quite quick to whip up. I love knitting away and imaging what the little person who will wear it will be like. It seems everyone else likes to knit for babies too. Lucky the baby is being born in winter. Let's hope it is a cold one.

Now onto the next project!

Announcing...

the reason for the absence...
I have been cooking up a new addition to the family. It should be ready in about 6 months or so. We are very excited! I have been tired and busy but only had a few sick days which I am thankful for. The blue cross on the test has faded a bit but I can't throw it out! This is the first test I took while Adam was at work. I had to wait a whole day to share the news with someone. I told Adam to go have a look in the bathroom, he thought I had broken something so was very surprised to find the positive test. We couldn't stop laughing and smiling.

Adam has been busy nurturing his own creation. His lemon tree. He proudly showed me his first batch of lemons. It is just about the right size for a fairy tea party.


And of course I have to say Happy Australia Day! We went to the beach early to celebrate this morning. It was a beautiful and sparkly day and we had some quiet time before the train loads of crowds started pouring onto the beach. We laid around, read books and played catch in the sea. It was a wonderful reminder of the relaxed lifestyle we love in Australia.

Now we are listening to music and pottering around enjoying our public holiday (another things we Australians hold dear to our hearts!) Since we don't have gas for the barbecue we are going to give a nod to our neighbours across the ocean and have home made rice paper rolls for dinner in honour of the Chinese New Year. Although I guess we should have been having lamb.

Wishing everyone a true blue relaxing day, no matter where in the world you are.

A belated Birthday Wish

After a long hiatus (a couple of months, really? How time flies!) I thought it high time to get back into the blogging business. So to get me back into the swing of things a belated birthday post is in order.

To my sweet hubby who celebrated his birthday earlier this month. I cooked him a roast turkey and we went and bought a half chocolate chip cheesecake from the Cheesecake Shop.


Adam got a Wii for his birthday from me which has been providing hours of entertainment. He also received some other lovely things including this telescope from his mother. We took it out onto our little balcony and looked at the moon.

Christmas came early

I got my christmas present from Adam early this year. A brand new sewing machine. It is a Janome DC3050.

The first thing I made was this cushion. It was quick and fun to make and so satisfying to complete on the brand new machine!

New Zealand: Rotorua

We picked up our rental car on the third day and headed to Rotorua. Just before we left we made a stopover at Kelly Tarlton's Antarctic Encounter and Underwater World. It had some interesting information on expeditions to Antartica and nice displays.


We took the thirty second challenge. You had to put your hand in ice water and keep it there for thirty seconds. I made it (just)Adam made it too but obviously he didn't find it as challenging as I did (or he is too cool to react!)


We made it safely to Rotorua and explored the town.



While in in Rotorua we went white water rafting.


Of course Rotorua is most famous for its geothermal activity-geysers and bubbling mud. The sulphur smell is so strong! On our first evening we slept with the windows open and I woke up in the middle of the night feeling sick from the stink. I had to rush around and close every window.

We also ate very well. We had Thai and Indian and an excellent pub meal.
It was a beautiful place.