Do Mobile Phone's Come With 'L-Plates'?*

My mother is pretty new to the texting game. She owns my father's 'hand-me-down' mobile phone and since my father has gone gallivanting over to the other side of the world to visit my sister (amongst other places) mum has had to learn the techniques of mobile texting. My dad is texting both of us to let us know where he is etc.,

Two weeks ago my mum only knew how to answer her phone.

Last week she learnt how to read text messages.

This week she is writing them.

Not bad for a 61 year old who wouldn't even know where to turn on a computer (let alone operate one) and only bought a microwave oven in the last 4 years. And she's never really operated a dishwasher before, but she is getting one of those too in the very near future when her 30 year old kitchen is being remodelled. (I don't know who is more excited about that - her, or me, who lives over 3000 kilometers away!)

I spoke to my mother on the phone on Monday and told her she could practise her texting on me. So she did.

My text: Hi. Just got your card in the
mail. Monet said thank you and thinks the card is beautiful.
Xx

My mum's (return) text:

My text: There was no writing in your
message. Did you just do that to let me know you got my
message?

My mum's text: Good

My text: You did it! Yippee.

My mum's text: Fantastic

My text: Getting better!

My mum's text: Fantastic

My text: You already sent that
one. Monet is just about asleep in her Max and Milly chair. She fell
asleep on the couch last night at 7pm. Slept until 6 45am.

My mum's text:

My text: Nothing there again.

My mum's text: Sorry

My text: Do you know how to put in gaps
so you can write a sentence? One word sentences are fine
though.

My mum's text: Yes I do but no full
stops etc

My text:Ahh well done! Don't worry about
punctuation.

My mum's text: Yes I do but no full
stops etc

My mum's text (again): Yes I do but no
full stops etc

My text: You have sent that message to
me 3 times now. But that is ok.

My mum's text: Yes I do but no full
stops etc

My text: 4 times now.

My mum's text: Yes I do but no full
stops etc

My text: 5 times now. Same text
message. You need to delete it.

That was on Monday. We laughed about it on the phone on Wednesday when we spoke. But she is definitely improving on this text messaging thing which is great, as I never thought I'd see the day when I would see her use a mobile phone.

I'm hoping the new dishwasher is easier to use than her mobile.

*Kimbofo - you need to show Dad this post. I hope he finds it amusing.

Pan-roasted Pork Cutlets with Balsamic Vinegar and Thyme

This dish was surprisingly very beautiful to eat. It would also be lovely omitting the pork and adding beef steak... I served it with some steamed carrots and on a bed of garlicky, cheesy mashed potatoes, which is recommended in the recipe.

*Taken from Tobie Puttock's 'Daily Italian'*

Ingredients

2 x 200g pork cutlets

1 tbs thyme leaves

sea salt

freshly ground pepper

1 tbs olive oil

2 1/2 tbs balsamic vinegar

Method

Using a sharp knife, cut a crisscross pattern into the flesh of the pork. Mix the thyme with a pinch of salt and pepper, then massage the mixture into the grooves created by the incisions.

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook the pork for 1-3 minutes on each side, or until the flesh is nice and brown.

Splash in the vinegar, making sure to turn the pork over so that both sides get a coating. Once the vinegar has nearly evaporated, remove the pork from the pan and allow it to rest. Add 2 tablespoons of water to the pan, and give it a shake to loosen the vinegar. Arrange the cutlets on plates, and drizzle with a spoonful of the pan juices. Serve with a green salad and mash potatoes.

Serves 2

Feeling Hungry?

You are more than welcome to come over tonight to help us eat this pavlova...

Or why don't you bake one yourself? You can view the recipe here on my Recipe Blog.

Enjoy. Or drool over the image. It is up to you...

Margaret Fulton's Pavlova

Another wet day here at home, so what better thing to do but bake? With plenty of eggs sitting in the fridge and some cream nearing it's expiry date, what's better than to decide to bake a pav! I used 4 egg white and 1 1/2 cups caster sugar in this recipe, which Margaret recommends for a smaller, family-sized pavola, but leaving everything else the same. I also always dust my baking sheet with cornflour when baking pavs to ensure it doesn't stick!! Enjoy.

*Taken from 'Margaret Fulton's Kitchen'*

Ingredients

6 egg whites, at room temperature

a pinch of salt

2 cups caster sugar

1 1/2 tsp white vinegar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

1 1/4 cups cream

fresh fruit to decorate

Method

Preheat oven to 200C. Place a piece of baking paper onto a baking tray and mark a 23cm circle on it to use as a guide (the pavlova will spread a little).

In an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and salt at full speed until they stand in stiff peaks. Sift the sugar and gradually sprinkle into the egg white mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating at high speed until all the sugar has been added. Lastly fold in the vinegar and vanilla. Spoon large dollops inside the circle on the baking sheet and smooth over the top lightly. Place in the oven (reducing the heat to 150C) for 1 hour. Turn off the heat and leave pavlova in the oven until cold. (If using a gas oven, bake at 150C for 1 hour, reduce heat to 120C for a further 30 minutes and then turn heat off and leave the pavola in the oven until completely cooled.)

When the pavlova is cooled, slide onto a large, flat cake plate, removing the baking paper. Don't worry if it collapses slightly, you should also expect cracks on the surface. Whip the cream until stiff but still shiny and spoon over the top of the pavlova. Decorate with fresh fruit and serve.

Serves 8-10

Hair Fixed

Monet had her hair cut, or "hair fixed", (as she says) yesterday, for the first time. I know, I wish I could go 2 years and 9 months without visiting a hairdresser!!

It was so cute to see her sitting all propped up in the chair, sipping away at the offered juice and nibbling on the two biscuits given to her. Just like a real grown up...

She had that worried look on her face the whole time her hair was being attended to.

"I'm okay" she reassured me. But when she says that, I know she is reassuring herself... (Her hairdresser thought it was hilarious!)

After cutting, the hairdresser sprayed her hair with 'princess sparkles' which left a layer of 'sparkles, glitter' all through her hair, (and hands and face and legs) much to Monet's delight. Hmm. It did look pretty cute though.

My hair is now due for a cut, since Monet's new 'do' looks so neat and tidy against mine.

When was the last time you visited the Hairdressers? And did it cost you A$9 like Monet's did?

The Skyrail Experience

After living in the Cairns area for 14 months time, we decided it was about time we visited the much awarded Skyrail. A tourist destination. We had been wanting to go on the Skyrail since we moved but it was just one of those things we just didn't do. But since last week's escapade to Cooktown, we've decided to actually get out and about more up here and see the sights. We've got a list that is slowly dwindling, but we've still got a lot more adventures to go on. Like we did today.

The Skyrail was worth waiting to travel on. Sure, the weather wasn't crash hot (it ended up pouring with rain), but it brought out the beauty of the rainforest. After all, it was rainforest area we were in. Only seems fitting that it rained.

So what is the Skyrail? Opened in 1995, (and built by a local, who has just bought a multi-million penthouse apartment in the complex at Lyndon's work!!) it is a 7.5 kilometre trek through rainforest clad mountains. The catch? It is via a cableway, being one of the world's longest gondola cableway and was a lot of fun. The cableway towers were lifted into the rainforest via the use of helicopters, to avoid disturbing the rainforest. Something like only 12 trees were destroyed along the stretch, which I find amazing.

The gondolas (114 in total) stretch up over mountains, above the rainforest canopy. The view was amazing, from above. There would be no way one could trek through the forest below...

There were two stops along the way. The first one was called Red Peak Station, where a ranger gave us a walk along the 175 metre boardwalk, where the views were fabulous and it was oh so green. It was nice to stand and look up to see tall trees and all types of ferns and the like.

The second stop was at Barron Falls, but since it is in the dry season, they weren't at full force like they were when we saw them when we first moved up here (just after Cyclone Larry had passed through).

The cablecars finished at Kuranda, a self-proclaimed Hippy Town in the Rainforest. Full of markets and eateries, we had been here a few times before so there was no need for us to explore the town. Instead we went for a quick wander down 'the main drag' then settled into the old Irish Pub near the Skyrail Station. It was one way to avoid the onslaught of tourists and the buckets of rain that arrived not long after we did. (And the rain didn't stop!)

Of course the beer was tasty. Midday this time.

The trip back down to the original Station, 7.5 kilometers back along the mountains was just as enjoyable, bar the fact that we were draped in clouds, fog and rain. But we remained dry of course, all snuggly in the pods above the rainforest.

Experiences like that makes you appreciate nature. And makes you want to preserve it.

Okay I'm all inspired now, I'm off to do this.

The Lion's Den

I had been wanting to visit the infamous Lion's Den since my sister visited there in the summer of 1990. It was just one of those places people talked about. The Lion's Den? I hear you ask. It is a well-known watering hole (ie. pub!) which dates back to 1875 (another history lesson here!)

It is off the sealed road to Cooktown, but is situated on the non-sealed coastal route up to Cooktown, which runs through the Daintree and Cedar Bay National Parks.

The three of us actually really loved the Lion's Den. We didn't want to leave. We figure we might one day, even ditch 5-star resort style accommodation for a night spent here. (They have basic cabins, campsites available!) It was really nice, with a safe playground (which someone didn't want to leave), loads of freshly cut lawns to run around on, roaming pet dogs, a few chooks pecking around the whole place and overall it had this lovely warmth to the place. Here's the website, so have a little look.

And considering we had travelled out of our way (a whole 4 kilometers off the main road) and we had been wanting to visit The Lions Den, Lyndon and I had to have a beer each. Had to. It was an Aussie thing to do. At 10:30 in the morning. And let me tell you, it went down an absolute treat. No wonder we wanted to stay.

Monet enjoyed seeing the Lion which greeted us under the outside sign. She thought it was funny and did her best to imitate the Lion for her parents...

(Cute ain't she?)

Inside the pub was amazing. It was full of memorabilia, graffiti, hats, stickers, flags - you name it. And a great array of bottled/canned beer on offer (no 'taps' in this neck of the woods.)

If you are ever up this end of Australia, a visit to The Lion's Den Hotel is an absolute must. I can't wait to revisit some point down life's busy highway...

Cooktown

In June of 1770, Cooktown became the site of Australia's first non indigenous settlement, when Captain James Cook anchored his ship, The Endeavour, on the banks of its river. (The river later became known as the Endeavour River!) Captain Cook and his crew spent 48 days here while they repaired damage to his ship which had earlier struck a reef off Cape Tribulation. It was during this time that Joseph Banks, the chief naturalist on this voyage, named the kangaroo. Aren't I just a wealth of information?

There is a plaque near the river which (as shown above) shows us where abouts Captain Cook stepped onto Australian dirt for the first time. The plaque reads "THIS CAIRN MARKS THE SPOT WHERE CAPTAIN JAMES COOK BEACHED HIS BARQUE H. M. S. ENDEAVOUR ON THE 18th OF JUNE 1770"

I can see why Captain Cook stayed here for so long (besides the fact his ship was being repaired!). The view from Grassy Hill was spectacular and oh so peaceful.

Driving up the hill was probably one of the most hilarious things we have done in a long while. The track (no sealed section here!) was at least a 50 degree angle (maybe more) and very, very bumpy. It was not made for a 2WD 4-door Utility to go up. The three of us laughed practically the whole way up. I'm not sure if it was because of nerves or because it was just so damn funny! You should have heard Monet in the back going "Whoa!!! Bumpidy-bump-bump" then giggling away...

We stayed at the only resort in town (of course!), the Sovereign, which was pretty nice. The three of us stayed in the same room which consisted of a single and a queen-sized bed. Have you ever slept in a room with a 2 1/2 year old who had her own bed? That was another hilarious thing we laughed and laughed at. Talk about one excited little girl. (And two extremely proud parents!)

Before bedtime though, we had explored the 'main drag' of Cooktown. Lots of old, beautiful buildings but not a lot happening. To say the least it was very quiet, but we had expected that. With a population of now of 1600 people it is full of 4WD vehicles which gather outside the one pub at one end of the street. I think the rest of the town spent their afternoon/evening fishing down at the lovely wharf. Cooktowns population once reached 30,000 with 94 pubs!! 94 pubs!!! Now, there is just one. And we didn't even have a drink from there! (I know, sooo unlike us!) Oh well.

When we set out for dinner at a swanky (well, as swanky as Cooktown gets!) restaurant down by the wharf, we saw the most spectacular sunset. One that I will remember (hopefully) forever. The last time I saw such an amazing sunset, was in Edinburgh in 1997. True. I'm sure you'll agree with me that it was pretty impressive (such vivid gorgeous colours!) Even the restaurant staff stopped for 10 minutes to watch, the waitress said.

Our meal was delicious (mine was Coral Reef Trout on Coconut and Orange infused rice!) and the Heineken's which we washed down with them were just as delightful.

We spent the morning being eaten half to death by the tiny little sand flies down at the playground (my legs are covered in awful itchy bites - worse than bloody chicken pox they are!) and the little girl who spent the most time playing in there only got 3 bites. Typical.

We walked around and then exited Cooktown at about 10am, not before having a peek at the peaceful Quarantine Bay just down the road...

We enjoyed Cooktown and we're all very glad we went. It made us, well, me anyway, very appreciative of our Country. I'm thankful for the opportunity that life dishes out to us sometimes, to explore and travel. I would have never have thought two years ago that I would ever see Cairns, let alone Cooktown for that matter and now look at us!!

Stay tuned for the detour we took, 35 kilometers south of Cooktown. Heehee.

On The Road To Cooktown...

On the spur of the moment on Saturday morning, we decided to drive north to Cooktown, some 4 1/2 hours away (or 330 kilometers). Lyndon usually works on a Saturday so when he came home on Friday and announced that he wasn't going to work in the morning I rubbed my hands with glee. I had been wanting to visit Cooktown since we moved to Far North Queensland. But more on Cooktown in another post. I want to tell you about what we saw on the way up there today...

The road to Cooktown has only been fully sealed in the past year. There was a section of 30-odd kilometers that had never been sealed, which made Cooktown very isolated. But the road we travelled on was lovely. So smooth.... (Don't you love smooth roads?)

(Double-click on the map to enlargen)

There are two roads to Cooktown from the south. One road leads you through the Daintree Rainforest, otherwise known as the Coastal Route, but you can only use 4WD vehicles after Cape Tribulation due to the road crossing creeks and the like, so that option was not an option for us, as we were going in Lyndon's (company) car. ie. Free petrol. We do want to go past Cape Tribulation in the Daintree at some point, so we will be taking our other car, a Subaru Outback, which will get us over those creeks safely (hopefully). The other road leading north to Cooktown, goes inland and it is basically pretty much desert-like. And wonderful.

We stopped a couple of times to stretch our legs and give Monet the opportunity to have a little run around.

If you know Lyndon, he likes a good Meat Pie, so when we spied this Bakery at Mt. Molloy, well, we had to stop...

Our other stop was at Lakeland. Didn't actually see any lakes though at Lakeland funnily enough. It is a junction hamlet, where one road leads to Cooktown and the other across to the Cape York Peninsular. It was a tired and dusty town but it was full of life at the picnic ground where there is a shop and petrol station. The toilets there were pretty charming... check out the sink to the ladies... you can probably imagine what the actual toilet looked like... (no, I didn't take a piccie of the loo!)

The road was straight, the views were spectacular and we saw cattle roaming the roads (no fences out these parts) and wild Brumbries too which kept Monet entertained in the back seat.

There were a few little dusty towns/fuel stops along the way and there were parts of the road that wound their way along little mountain ranges.

About 30 kilometers south of Cooktown was a mountain range that was very surreal. I had never seen anything so spectacular and weird (!) in nature.

Called Black Mountain National Park, the hills here were covered with thousands of stacked, square, black granite boulders, that look as if they might tumble down on the road that goes between them at any moment. It was just amazing and as I said, I have never seen anything so spectacular and weird in nature. I can't say much more than that, I'm hoping you can see what I'm talking about in the photos...

Our next and final stop was Cooktown, our destination.

Stay tuned...

Here's a Sneak Peek At Where We've Been...

I'm a bit tired to post but I thought I'd put up this photo taken in a gloriously beautiful part of Australia. It is a special town in this wonderfully diverse country of ours. I wonder if you can guess where abouts we've been?

Mini Me... (well, kinda)

The older Monet gets, the more independent and helpful she seems to be getting. And the more she copies me too. I am now more aware of my actions and what I say than ever (ever) before...

At 2 years and 8 months of age she basically baked her first cake alone yesterday, with only me measuring out the ingredients. She mixed it together wonderfully. The result of her Banana Bread was delicious and you can view the recipe here....

She now loves to independently paint masterpieces (yes, I have my very own Monet watercolour hanging up!) and gluing things to paper is a favourite past time of hers.

As helpful as she sometimes is, gee, sometimes it can be a little painful, but I don't say anything to her, I let her be. Because her latest burst of 'helpfulness' is helping me hang out the washing. (Don't forget we live in an apartment and use a fang-dangle clothes horse to hang out our clothes.)

She copies me flat-chat when hanging out the clothes. I tend to give the wet items a firm shake before hanging on the 'line' (saves me ironing most things!). Monet tries to do the same. It's pretty amusing to watch. She then grabs a peg and tries her hardest to stick it on the wet item. She found her own solution to pegging out items though. I wonder if you can spot it on this item of clothing she stuck on the 'line' this morning...

...the peg is upside down. She's a thinker!

That's my girl.

Banana Bread

This recipe was so (so) simple, that I am not lying to you when I say that Monet practically made it by herself! Sure I measured out the ingredients but she used the sifter, mixed and help add the wet ingredients. The only thing she really didn't do was put it in the oven and she most definitely liked the bowl!! I will no doubt, be making this recipe again. It was easy and the result was delicious...

*Taken from the Australian website 'Taste'*

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups Self Raising Flour

1/4 cup plain flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

2/3 cup firmly packed, brown sugar

1/2 cup skim milk

2 eggs, lightly whisked

50g butter, melted, cooled

2 bananas, mashed

Method

Heat oven to 180C. Grease a loaf tin with melted butter then line with baking paper, draping the paper over the sides.

Sift together the SR flour, plain flour and cinnamon into a large bowl. Mix in brown sugar. In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, eggs, butter and bananas. Combine this with the flour and sugar mixture. Mix until well combined.

Pour into prepared tin and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.

Enjoy!

Chargrilled Chicken and Sprout Salad

The book states this is for 4 people but this served both only Lyndon and I. I guess if you had extra guests you could serve it up with something else to make it go further. It was pretty easy to prepare and was tasty too.

*Taken from 'Tossed. A Murdock Book'*

Ingredients
600g chicken breast fillets
1 tbs olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tbs lemon juice
1 cos lettuce, leaves roughly torn
50g snowpea sprouts, white ends trimmed

yoghurt and caper dressing
200g low-fat, thick plain yoghurt
2 tbs capers, rinsed, drained and chopped
4 tbs lemon juice

Method
Put the chicken breasts in a shallow, non-metallic dish. In a small bowl, mix together the oil, cumin, coriander and lemon juice. Pour the mixture all over the chicken, rubbing it in thoroughly to coat all sides. Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for 1 hour, or up to 8 hours.

Nearer to serving time, make the yoghurt and caper dressing. Put all the ingredients om a s,a;; bowl and add a few grinds of black pepper and 1-2 tablespoons of water to thin it slightly. Whisk well and set aside.

Heat a BBQ grill or chargrill pan to medium. Add the chicken and cook for 6-8 minutes on one side, then turn over and cook for a further 4 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly, then slice into strips.

Put the lettuce and snowpea sprouts in a serving dish and add the sliced chicken. Pour over the dressing, mix gently and serve.

Indian Marinated Chicken Salad

This was a tasty salad to make, even though it was a little fiddly to make. It was refreshing to eat though and a little different! I served it as a main meal for 3 adults, but is more suited for 2...

*Taken from 'Tossed. A Murdock Book'*

Ingredients
1 1/2 tbs lemon juice
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
1 1/2 tsp vegetable oil
325g chicken breast fillets (I used tenderloins)
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1 zucchini, thinly sliced on the diagonal
60g picked watercress leaves (I used baby spinach)
80g (1/2 cup) freshly podded peas (I used frozen)
1 tomato, finely chopped
1 small handful coriander leaves

yoghurt dressing
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp coriander seeds
2 tbs thick plain yoghurt
1 tbs chopped mint
1 tbs lemon juice

Method
Combine the lemon juice, garam masala, turmeric, ginger, garlic and 1 tsp of the oil in a large bowl. Add chicken and onion, toss well to coat all over, then cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Remove the onion from the chicken marinate, then heat 1 tbs of the oil in a large frying pan. Cook the chicken over medium heat for about 4-5 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Cut each breast across the grain into 1 cm slices.

Heat the remaining oil in the pan and saute the zucchini and marinated onion for 2 minutes, or until lightly golden and tender. Toss in a large bowl with the watercress. Cook the peas in boiling water for 5 minutes, or until tender, then drain and rinse under cold water to cool. Add to the salad with the chicken, tomato and coriander.

To make the yoghurt dressing, dry-fry the cumin and coriander seeds in a frying pan over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant. Put the seeds in a mortar and pestle and pound them to a powder. Mix together with the yoghurt, mint and lemon juice. Gently fold the dressing through the salad and divide into 2 bowls.

Funky

Did you know 'leg-warmers' are back in fashion?

How could we (my mother and I) resist when I saw the little leg-warmers staring at me in Pumpkin Patch? Monet thinks they are wonderful and 'funky'. (She says 'funky' all the time - it is something I say often, so no wonder walks around saying particular clothes are 'funky'!)

I remember my Big Sis having a pair of leg-warmers back in the '80s. Weren't they trendy? I am sure I had a pair too but can't remember what colour they were, though I'll never forget Big Sis's were maroon. They probably matched her 'rah-rah skirt'. I wonder if mine matched my 'balloon skirt'? Or my fingerless gloves?

I had Monet in a dress yesterday (see photo below) that my mother had kept, which used to belong to both myself and my sister. If my calculations are correct I'd say the dress is a good 35 years old! A nice 1970's dress, with a '60s mod look about it. The only thing that gives it away that it is so old is that the miniature spotty flower material is faded, but otherwise it would look pretty 'funky'.

I know my mother also kept a dressing gown my Granny had knitted for my sister when she was a youngster (maybe 6?) When we visited my parents place in November of last year, Monet wore it every morning, with the sleeves rolled up. Also in my old wardrobe is a winter coat with a matching hat, which would have been very expensive in it's day. It belonged to me and I have a picture of me wearing it in the snow in 1977. I'm sure if we were living in cold (cold) Victoria this winter, Monet would probably be wearing it. It would just about fit her.

This post makes me think that maybe I should keep a few nice, good, trendy items from Monet's wardrobe. Just in case she happens to have a daughter in the year 2040 (*giggle giggle*) and fashion from the '00's is trendy again. Or funky.

Melody's Mother's Day

The best Mother's Day present arrived for me at 6:50pm last night. A fast-asleep Monet. On the couch, next to me. Already in her gym-jams, conked out. Fast asleep. And she never woke up throughout the night, even when transferring her to her bed. You have to understand that this is a little girl who rarely naps during the day and will usually be fast asleep at around 8-8:30pm. Not 6:50pm!

We had gone out for a late lunch after a morning trying to decide (unsuccessfully) on a new lounge suite in the furniture shops that Cairns has to offer. We are after a two-seater and a three-seater lounge combo. We figure we will wait until we both find something that is a)comfortable, b)practical and c) looks good.

Lyndon had cooked us bacon and eggs for breakfast after giving me this skirt form him and Monet for Mother's Day...

...yes, another tasteful Esprit skirt to add to my growing collection. (I love Esprit skirts in case you don't know!)

We headed down to our local Italian-influenced restaurant down at the beach at around 3pm, when we knew it would be a lot quieter than at Midday with the Mother's Day Crowd.

We indulged in two delicious wood fired pizzas (one being ham and pineapple, the other was Angus beef, caramelised onions and bulbs of roasted garlic) and the garlic bread/pizza. All washed down with a couple of Stella beers, of course! The three of us left the restaurant with our tummy's very (very) full an hour later.

So within the two and a half hours of getting home, Monet played, read, watched some Dora, changed into her pjs and fell asleep, next to me on the couch.

That was the best present she could have given me. (I'm sure all Mother's out there understand that!)

Thank you Monet. Not only were you a pretty much well-behaved girl all day yesterday, you also made me into a Mother. That, I can never repay you. Being a Mother is the best thing that has ever happened to me.

Love, Melody Mum. xx

Mobile Phone Blogging?

For months now I have been having awful trouble with my Mobile Phone. The battery power was pathetic, so if someone rang me I would have to plug it into a power socket. Lyndon began complaining that he couldn't hear me clearly when we spoke to each other via our mobiles, so the time had come to get a new phone.... Yippee!

My contract is up in August but my phone company said they would upgrade me for nothing.

So this is my new fang dangle mobile phone...

...and don't I just love it? Yes, I do. It's a Sony Ericsson Cyber-shot. The camera on it is pretty flash with it being 3.2 mega-pixel which I think is pretty impressive for a mobile phone. It also came with portable speakers for a MP3 player which I had been after for my iPod for quite some time. (That's them in the back of the photo).

What are they going to come up with next in regards to Mobile phones? Probably set up a Blog via Blogger! Oh, that's right, mine does this. I have a new blog (yes, I know! ANOTHER blog!!!) which I set up via my phone. The photos I take I can send to this blog page of mine!

I was going to send the photos to this blog but decided against it. The new one is purely photos, taken via my Mobile camera phone, with a simple heading. I can post anywhere and everywhere (where there is mobile coverage of course) and I may scrap the whole idea once I get my next phone bill! Heehee...

I don't expect you all to visit, but you are more than welcome to pop over to Melody's Mobile Blog any time you wish.

Friday Night Blogging

Asleep, Standing Up

You didn't think it could be done, did you? Well, it can.

The Best Sweet Muffins

I took this recipe from the Australian Dairy website. And how lovely they are... Mmmm... As I used a mini muffin pan, I ended up making about 60 from this one mixture. Muffins always freeze well so most of them are tucked away in the freezer for now. I actually divided the mixture up into two bowls. In one I added frozen raspberries and choc chips. In the other I added one mashed ripe banana and chopped up jersey caramels. Deeeellllliccciiousssss....

Ingredients
3 cups Self Raising Flour
3/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups milk
170g butter, melted

Raspberry and Choc Chip Variety
1/2 cup raspberries
1/2 cup choc chips (white or milk)

Banana and Carmel Variety
1 cup mashed ripe banana
1/2 cup chopped Jersey Caramels

Apple and Cinnamon
1 tsp cinnamon
1 apple, peeled and chopped

Method
Sift the flour into a bowl and stir in the caster sugar. Whisk together the eggs, milk and melted butter. Pour this into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Do not over mix. Add any variants.

Spoon mixture into buttered muffin pans.

Bake for 200C for 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through.

Allow to cool.

Makes 12 Muffins or 48 mini Muffins or 6 Texas Muffins

Dora the Spanish Teacher...

Surely not all television can be bad for kids. (Can it?)

The littlest member of this household (which will probably be me in the near future - Monet is sooooo tall!) can count to 7 in Spanish, thanks to Dora the Explorer! True. The bilingual cartoon girl and her red boot monkey side-kick, have taught my 2 and a half year old daughter to count in Spanish. It's pretty impressive. Within the show Dora asks you to find things, count things and help her on her adventure. She speaks to the children watching, in both English and Spanish. It's not a bad show actually, if you can get over Dora's big head and that her best friend is a monkey who is blue and talks!

Some children television shows can be educational. Dora proved that to us.

Monet tends to sing a lot (note: a lot) of Hi-5 songs. Lots. And she's very good. She sings awfully clear sometimes too which is a little scary. (Maybe not entirely in tune, but sings all the same!)

So I have no qualms of her watching either Dora or Hi-5, both of which we have countless DVD's.

I remember (after my mother reminded me earlier on in the week) that I once said that I would never let my child watch television when they were young. But I do. And I don't mind. Monet can count to seven in Spanish without just by watching a program and we aren't a bilingual family. Most of the time anyway hahaha!!

Rainy days...

New Banner

I hope you like my new banner. Thanks to Rachel for giving me hints on how to correctly put my own picture behind my Blog name.