Love, bubs and life on our little farm

This story actually starts last year when my romantic of a husband informed me that he had booked us a surprise holiday away for our wedding anniversary - right down to having already organised babysitting for the girls so we were free to eat, drink and remind ourselves what relaxing feels like.

 He had chosen 3 days on a beautiful island in the Great Barrier Reef at a boutique resort as well as a few nights to chill out in Cairns in a five star hotel. Nicely played. I have been looking forward to it for what felt like FOREVER!

Well despite being torn between excitement for lots of couple time and the ability to sleep in and do absolutely nothing and sadness at not bringing my beautiful girls along with me, I had the best time.

 Hard not to when you are literally swimming with green turtles, snorkling in amazing coral and fish, eating yourself stupid, reacquainting yourself with napping and reading during daylight hours, complimentary sunset drinks every evening, taking night nature walks and even being able to hold your husbands hand as neither of you have full hands of kids/bags etc etc. We had the most amazing couples massage and I had a giggle at the shock of the masseuse at feeling the extent of the tension knots in my shoulders. She probably wouldn't have been quite so surprised if she knew what my life was like!

After leaving our peaceful island, we settled into the Hilton in Cairns, where they managed to mess up the romantic gift requests Jase had made to surprise me for our wedding anniversary. Combined with the fact that he is a gold card holder and we were booked into the executive floor, well they were mortified. We were showered with free things including champagne, white wine, red wine, ca nape plates, cheese platters, sparkling water and extra gifts. It became a little overwhelming but was pretty funny.

 I ate so much beautiful food, drank way too much and slept more than I needed - bliss. In fact it was so decadent, it wore me out and I was ready to come home to some reality!

Arriving at the gorgeous island - only one tiny resort and a whole lot of rainforest

Whiling away a lazy morning by the resort pool

These photos don't do the huge room justice, it was beautiful

One of our many snorkling trips - just the two of us exploring the coral and we got to swim with a turtle we lucked upon

Feeding some of the bigger fish off the glass bottomed boat

Just one of the many gorgeous spots we swam at

Our top level room in Cairns enjoying some of our freebies

My wedding anniversary tropical flowers from my hubby

Cocktails by the pool - it was tough really!

but check out these great looks from Victoria Beckham's 2012 Autumn/Winter collection at New York fashion week.

I am ready to step out of my kaftans and into some of these cute dresses and boots - love it! (and yes my last post was on her too - makes me look like I am more of a big follower of her of then I actually am!)

All photo credit to Getty Images.

I want that double black belt for this winter!!

So wearable and makes me crave cold weather. What a great collection!

Too tired to write what I was planning - have a killer headache from work - trying to jam a weeks work into three days before we head on our holiday is so draining.

But this made my night - I love Victoria Beckham's fashion line and I actually quite like her. And now I like her even more.

Cheers to all the mums with careers tonight, give yourselves a break, no one else will  xo

Oh my gosh I love my little girls so much and they make my heart melt. They are just so cute at the moment - almost 4 and almost 2 is a very sweet little combination.

But far out I am so looking forward to rewarding and nourishing myself and my relationship with my husband! In less than 3 days, we jet off for 5 days alone - 3 days on a little island in the Great Barrier Reef and two days in an executive room at the Hilton in Cairns. This is all in order to celebrate our wedding anniversary  - our seventh. I am aching for the chance to sleep-in, drink a cocktail beside a pool, eat food in a posh restaurant, walk aimlessly, chatting uninterrupted, snorkle and swim without a barnacle child attached to me and nap or watch tv during the day. Bliss.

So yes I will miss my gorgeous girls but oh I will be so recharged and refreshed when I get back to them!

Hubby has gone all out with this trip - we will want for nothing with his airport lounge memberships, executive club access at the hotel, breakfasts every day, a couples massage already booked at a beautiful day spa and room upgrades thanks to his status cards. I have a feeling I will be a couple of kilos heavier by the time I return!

I am so stressed at work at the moment - I would kill for a work day where I didn't spend the day in a state of panic over how much I have to do and how many staff I have to supervise, assist and guide. But instead I just have to make sure I leave it all behind me so I can make the most of these five days.

My mum bought me a gorgeous new handmade evening bag and I can't wait to take it out to a lovely restaurant to celebrate our anniversary.

Oh happy days!

I am starting to get inspired for the Autumn-Winter 2012 trends. Loving the new Myer shots, like above.
I am sure that the Great Gatsby inspiration will be strong. Have you seen the gorgeous shots from the Baz movie set? I bought T -bar style heels today - a modern twist but still a T-bar silhouette.

Some of the other trends I am getting ready for:

Peter Pan Collars. So cute. I have tried a few dresses on with this neckline and liked them but yet to find one I love.


Animal Print. I have always avoided animal print - probably something about growing up near the Gold Coast and seeing many a bronzed sixty year old wearing it with white pants and gold shoes. But I have finally thrown that association and can see the fashion in it. I have just bought a great dip dyed zebra print scarf that I am looking forward to wearing as it cools. And my latest favourite work outfit is a grey leopard print fitted box top tucked into a high waisted black tulip skirt. Don't mock it till you have tried it, I have learnt! Do it in a ballet flat if you don't dare to anywhere else!



Maxi Skirts. I have held out so far but they are set to still be on trend this winter. I think a pair of heels is essential to stop you looking dumpy. They do have drama. I think I may just have to buy one...




Prints. Still all about clashing and mixing your prints. Add add texture - crochet is big, or knitted jumpers. I am pleased with this as I have a great crochet vest I bought last winter and wanted to get some wear with it!

Getty Images

Now to pretend it isn't sweltering hot outside still!

that this cute hat from Mimco I just ordered turns up before our tropical holiday... we leave next Thursday (early), I am not confident! But hey a girl can hope. It would be perfect for all the cocktail drinking, beach walks and lazing around the pool sessions I have planned :)

Loving all the shopping rewards, my fave shops have been sending me for my birthday! I scored $20 from Pure Indulgence, $20 from Witchery and $30 from Mimco.

It is my birthday today. I didn't unwrap a single present this morning. Pre-kids and responsibilities I used to have lots of presents and cards with gift vouchers to tear open first thing in the morning.

Instead I am getting my horse arena extended - at some point, when it gets organised and so on.

But instead I just felt so lucky and loved thank to the beautiful card from my husband and the excitement of my girls. Totally enough. And I am not just saying that.

I think I have reached that age - call it maturity, contentment, whatever, but when you "get" life. When you really know what matters. I like it. And that is what I am concentrating on - rather than commiserating about leaving my 20's well and truly behind.

Elka made me this card all by herself with no help from anyone and it made my happier than nearly any gift I have ever received. She wrote my name, her name and drew our family, right down to Jase wearing glasses.
I worked a 10 hour day of complete and utter craziness - between my two Masters students starting, two grant applications, an overseas travel funding application to write, five conference abstracts to edit, a publication proof to correct, new staff and a million disease outbreak investigations to juggle, I didn't have time to eat today let alone remember that it was my birthday. But when I came out of an exhausting 90 min teleconference, I found a note asking me to go down to the security desk... and I found a gorgeous box of flowers from my lovely hubby delivered for me. Perfect timing to remind me that in the middle of the craziness someone was still thinking of my birthday and trying to make it special. I love that man. And for some reason he seems to love me too!

 Not to mention the three course meal and sparkling wine that was waiting for me when I got home.

Don't stare too hard at my desk! In my defence that is my disorganised corner, where my project folders that are pulled out umpteen times a day build up... and yes I think I am the only person left who uses a paper-based diary!

This weekend my family are traveling up to the Gold Coast to meet us so we can take the girls to my brothers resort apartment pool for a day in the sun to celebrate my birthday belatedly with our favourite fish and chips.

 I am a big believer in being grateful for what you have and I am glowing with gratitude for all that I have and that I am celebrating another year.

I decided to be all non-materialistic for Valentines Day since we are spoiling ourselves rotten with a tropical island getaway next week (Excited much?!).

So I thought I would be all wifey and cook my husband a pie ;) a lemon meringue pie for his dessert. Of course, I worked an 11 hour day first so had no prep time and was whipping it up (literally) with tired cranky kids attached to my legs and a million jobs to do.

But that said, I don;t think I have a valid excuse for why it turned out like this.

Mmmm lemon soup in burnt crust - nothing else says I Love You (or that I need a housekeeper/chef/nanny) quite as well..

Fortunately, my lovely hubby thought it was funny. And of course I looked extra bad because he bought me a gorgeous couples massage at a day spa for our holiday that I had been drooling over. Oh well there is always next year...

The weather has been a little hit and miss this Summer. But we have finally had some hot humid weather.. and with it comes the afternoon storms. And we have been copping it - not like usual though, no wind, no rumbling thunder. Just heavy heavy rain. Buckets of rain following close on the tail of the floods we just had. The ground is so wet, the dams are too full and we can't use the water in the tanks fast enough, cue flash flooding. This is what we have been dealing with.
This is the driveway - recovering from having been under water..




And the side of the house where the tanks are. The laundry paved courtyard (just visible) came close to flooding into the house.

Love storms as they cool down the hot humid days but would prefer less rain and power losses and more gorgeous lightening and thunder!

I have commented before on just how much there is to be had in bargains with retail spending being down. Today was a pretty good example of that - I started the day with an email from Mimco telling me that they had just put $50 on my card, then got an email from Witchery telling me that they had put $30 on my Witchery card, then opened a Myer letter to find a Myer Card rewards gift card for $20 and finally when putting my new card into my wallet discovered I had a $55 Big W gift card already sitting in there ready to expire next week! How I love being rewarded for buying things by being giving money to buy more things. Hehe I probably just made about 20 buddhists cry with that statement! Anyways, to cheer myself up this evening after discovering that Jase was delayed at the airport on the way home from a work trip, I dived in and spent my Mimco voucher online.
This is one of the things I bought (yes I bought accessories as I am in love with my current Oroton handbag and feel no desire for any others - not sure how long my fidelity will last though!. I am keen for some slides to sweep back the front of my concave bob particularly as I am finally mastering curling with my GHD (curling short bobs is hard!). Now what to spend the others on... Anyone else doing well with the retail rewards at the moment?

I had a gorgeous weekend - watching an old dear friend get married in the most wonderful relaxed and fun filled ceremony and reception whilst enjoying a weekend away at the beach with my hubby and friends. I love weddings that are just filled with happiness, we all danced the night away and my cheeks were hurting from laughing so hard with some of the shenanigans on the dancefloor!


The whole weekend was peaceful and we made the most of having the girls babysat. Wine with a seafood lunch by the sparkling water, a swim without children attached to me, a lazy afternoon in the spa, a delicious long late breakfast with a restaurant full of wedding guests laughing at the memories of the night before.

The view from our balcony

And I got to get all frocked up - loving my Cue dress and the heels lived up to their beauty, proving to be comfortable for the 8 hours straight I wore them.

We scrub up OK!

And like all our kid free weekends away, the coming home to the girls is nearly the best bit. Though my two seemed to have barely missed me! Now back to the craziness that is our life - work trips, research grant applications due, two school drop offs/pick ups to co-ordinate, school events, speech pathology for Bronte, animal appointments, two new research students to supervise, house repairs (the hole in the ceiling!)and so on. But there is fun too - only a week until my birthday and then only a week after that until our wedding anniversary trip to Cairns/Great BArrier Reef - we are nearly all sorted, I should definitely do a post on it all :)

my daughters are able to love the amazing place I grew up.

I spent the first 18 years of my life living in paradise. And as you do when you have something from birth, you don't appreciate it. It was only after I left, I realised that it wasn't the norm to live in rambling tropical gardens, grown wild and barely tamed like something out of the Secret Garden, to live on a peaceful plateau balancing over a valley with views to mountain ranges and to lighthouses 30kms away.

And nothing has changed - in the 12 years since I left. The gardens are wilder, more perfect in their picturesqueness, just tweaked tiny bits by my mothers brilliant hands. Little lanterns hanging from the shady boughs of a tree over a little metal garden seat. Sculptures of fungus sitting in niches of gnarled tree trunks, little paths winding through thick ferns.


And the wooden handmade swing, hung by my father, still suspended from the straight low branch reaching from the giant tree grove. Everything has grown even bigger since I was a little girl, and Elka looks like a little fairy swinging amongst the thick leaves.

The girls race down the paths I loved skipping down and marvel at the little animals - bilbies, wallabies, giant tree frogs, that I thought everyone got to see everyday when I was young.

And they get to follow their beloved grandparents around doing the morning and afternoon routine of feeding the animals, that anyone who owns property knows is the backbone of your daily life. They even get to do something I didn't have when I was little - the newest additions to the beautiful gardens is a magical little fish pond.

Call it what you will -- the circle of life or such. But there is something that feels complete in my heart seeing my dear little girls experience everything that was magical in my childhood.

So I am a big fan of vegetables in this house - and 2012 is my year of concentrating on our healthy eating. I am blessed with kids that fight each other for the last piece of carrot or broccolli on their plates. But I like to find different ways to get a variety of vegies and beans into their diet.

Minestrone is one of my best recipes for that. Kids love it, its full of vegies but hearty and delicious at the same time. Tick tick. And because it is rainy and miserable (Still!) here in Qld, I have whipped up a batch to put in the fridge for the busy Monday night dinner. No fuss dinner sorted before I get home is a lifesaver when settling back into the insanities of the working week. Did I mention that Elka and Bronte now go to school/daycare about 30 mins apart from each other??? Stressful much, on top of my usual work commute!

image from theage.com.au

Here is my quick but yum recipe. Give it a go - couldn't be easier! And actually made me feel better when I had morning sickness - magic!

Now this is not a sponsored post (I wish!) - more about making sure you get a good deal that I have been enjoying...

You may have noticed, one of my favourite clothing stores is Witchery. They suit my now-30-and-mother-of-two-kids-want-to-be-fashionable-but-not-mutton-dressed-as-lamb style and tend to use good quality fabrics that fall well. And more to the point, I love my Witchery card - so easy to join - check it out here. You get 5% of sale items with your card and free shipping over $200 online shopping - always a nice bonus and it does add up, I buy a lot of sale items as they do great discounts and I think their prices can be a little high when not discounted so I prefer to wait for the mark downs. But even better - three times in the last 6 months, they have put $20 on my card. No fine print - no minimum spend, just $20 for me to shop with. Nice. I bought a great sale top - got the 5% discount, then the $20 off from my card and I handed over a $2 coin to finish paying for it. Better value than the $2 rides the kids normally coerce me into spending my coins on!

I just spent my last $20 reward they have given me and used the instore promotion of Buy Three, Get One Free. I got a gorgeous tan leather belt, a delicately beaded headband and a funky zebra striped dip dyed scarf (yay for transeasonal dressing!) for $13 out of my own wallet - the actual full ticket price of the three items added up to $125.

I am always up for a bargain :)

And because I was on the Witchery site for that link, I may as well put up a few pretties from the sale that caught my eye and I would snap up.

Scoop Neck Tunic - on sale $29.95 - perfect for getting ready for Autumn dressing - add a scarf and leggings

Grecian Tank - on sale $29.95 - effortless elegance, I would wear this with tailored shorts and some tan sandals for lunch out on the weekend

Jersey T shirt - on sale for $34.95 - throw on with jeans and ballet flats to take the kids on a playdate