Welcome 2013 , Ive been waiting for you !

As I reflect on the year nearly behind us

a very turbulent year 

and look ahead with hope & excitement.

I had to stop trying to understand why the people closest to us when we needed them most turned their backs & I had to try to understand that some people just cant cope with helping people close to them ,  just in need of a hug , company or even a kind word of encouragement. 

I will never understand but I can let go & move forward.

If you have family that are close to you & are loving , caring & kind hold onto them tight & never take it for granted that they are there & give the same affection back to them.

2012 wasnt all disheartening. 

Why........

Because my two beautiful children were in it & they had some amazing positive experiences

My handsome sons first year at school we learnt what a bright boy he is , made lots of new friends & equally lots of parties to attend !

 My beautiful daughter's creativity continues & love of dancing. 

I have to thank God they had good times as well.

As I look forward , it will be with a positive energy .

I wish you all a wonderful year ahead full of all your hopes & dreams.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Karyn x

Seizing The Day..... a wonderful day

This beautiful day .......

 5am picked rambling gardenias from the garden ,

the scent was devine.......

6am Baking banana & cinnamon muffins ......

6.30am - the resident magpie dropped by I think because he could smell 

the muffins cooling on the windowsill

( can magpies smell , probably not ).......

8am - after breakfast , Master J decides he wants to do a painting

he painted a road with a truck & wrecker ......

10 am - time for morning tea 

12 noon - Lunchtime 

lettuce & tomatoes fresh from our garden.......

1pm - party time at Southport Aquatic Centre

Now this is where I left Master J with daddy watching

 when I had to go & pick up big sister from ballet rehersals.

He was jumping into a pit of foam

 ( it was supposed to be a pool party but as there was 

a threat of electrical storms , swimming was out for the time being)......

1.30 pm - When I came back this is where he was , standing on a 3 meter diving platform !!!

I call out " noooo"

 too late apparently he had already jumped off the 5 meter one just a few minutes ago...... 

2 pm - 4pm There was no stopping him.

He loved it. 

All the parents were sitting back watching the kids 

having the best time. 

When out of the blue & out of character for me , I said Im jumping in

in my clothes !!! What really , yep I did it !!

A little hesitation then just said in my mind DO IT !!

More parents followed.

The kids thought it was great , it was so freeing to just let go.....

( I was going to post the picture of me in my wet clothes 

Nah, still cant reveal myself , maybe that should be my next challenge ) 

Because of the storm threat earlier in the day , basically everyone had left 

& the party we were invited to were the only ones there.

I have never been there in all the years of living on the coast.

It was a great idea to have a party & our lifeguard was the best !!

On the way home ( in my still damp clothes ) I got the craving

for a good old fashioned hamburger.

I havent had one in years !!!

Stopped at Paradise Point , kids had chips & played on the sand after.

5.00pm - Of course the seagulls stopped by 

to see if we had chips to throw their way.

We bid them farewell & headed home.

6.00 pm - Kids bathed & in their cosy PJ's 

We had such an amazing day we didnt want it to end.

Out came the popcorn & The Lorax DVD.

Perfect Day

Have you had one of those lately 

or taken a chance out of the ordinary & just seized the moment ? 

I would love to hear about it

Karyn x

Winner & Powder Room Makeover Before Shot

I was a winner this week !!

I won a fabulous prize at a time it was really needed.

It was from the wonderful A-M ( 'The house that A-M built' blog ) & Masters Home Improvement

First I browsed for 2 hours the Masters website before finding many fabulous products 

I could finish off our long drawn out renovation !!

I was so excited I entered A-M's chance to win a $500 voucher , never thinking I would actually win !!

Then I received the amazing news

I WON

I couldnt believe it !!

Off to Masters we went to see all the products I had liked on line

We had just been to Nippers with the kids & called in on the way home.

I famously said to them " just having a quick look at a few things"

This was not the case.....

Mmmm it turned out to be a 3 hour quick look !!!

We kind of went from one end to the other , up & down every aisle & measuring & asking lots of friendly staff about different things from pots & plants to bathroom fittings , wallpaper & even timber decking & fencing.

We pushed the kids around in a huge double trolley to keep them happy ( even though I think a 6 & 9 year old dont need to be pushed in a trolley ) but you do what you need to do sometimes.

I wish I had taken a photo !

I wrote out a long ( very long list ) & came home with a gorgeous plant & wallpaper samples.

All the duck egg blue wallpapers I had thought I would use were just too pretty for the powder room.

But we had brought home one hubby had picked.

Now if you knew him , he is not into making decorating decisions at home at all. That is why when he suggested a wallpaper that was black ( and I thought personally was too dark , but I did love the print ) I humoured him and the sample came home.

I will admit I loved it when we got home because it was so striking , it was perfect !

( Please don't tell hubby I said that though )

So we narrowed our long wish list down to finishing the powder room & our patio area.

This is our little powder room area 

It has been like this for 12 months now

We will be using some of the Masters voucher to finish this off

Its open &  off the hallway

I predict in two weeks it will look totally different ,

it will finally be finished !!

Keep checking in for the big finale'

Karyn x

When life gets in the way of blogging........

My mantra 

I say everyday

****

5 months since I blogged , where has the time gone.......

Well here is the short version

full version will come over the coming days

18 months ago my husband was diagnosed with liver cancer ,

Went on a liver transplant list ,

Had a liver transplant 3 months ago ,

I had to try and run his business & look after two young children while he recovered in Brisbane

Meanwhile a multi national company opened up directly across the road 

from our business ,

80% down in sales instantly

we went under within weeks ,

closed down a business that had been there for 30 years ,

now unemployed for the first time ever !

Trying now to find a way to save our home.

*******

Have entered unchartered waters

Feel like I have aged 10 years but I 

have learnt I am a strong woman , stronger than I have ever imagined.

*****

Grateful for the chance my husband has been given to see his young children grow up.

 Saddened at the same time a life was lost for this gift to our family.

We must embrace life 

no matter what challenges lay ahead for our family.

*****

For now saying my mantra.....

Karyn x

Image: www.katrinaleechambers.com.au

Francessco , a fishy story.....

Our 'New' addition to the family

Its very hard to get a fish to stay still for a great shot !

Here are the supplies for set up we purchased at the pet shop in Oxenford ,

 I already had this bowl & was told it was 

perfect for one 'fighting fish'.....

First the kids added the rinsed white stones.....

Then we added the living plants & water with a few drops of water ager

There he goes being gently lowered in by two little peoples hands.....

Keeping a close eye as he swam around in his new surroundings....

Happy in his new home.....

We were going to get a puppy but we weren't ready yet

for such a big responsibility (in time Master. J )

We of course picked white stones & him for his stunning blue colour.

What a surprising joy Francessco is , we have since added a mirror we take in & out 

each day for his daily stimulation & exercise , as they are a fighting fish & we were told by the pet shop they need to.

Well my brother had gotten a red one the same week as us.

When his looks in his mirror he becomes very aggressive as you would expect.

But not our Francessco he looks in his mirror & says (in a French accent of course)

"I am a lover not a fighter" sure he fans out his beautiful tale but he likes what he sees.

Often when I am doing my bookwork at the bench he swims over & looks at me.

Its funny but with my youngest of to school now , 

Francessco is lovely to watch for a calming destraction when Im working.

He only eats a few tiny pellets a day & we clean his bowl about every 10- 14 days.

The only trouble we had for the first week was our cat took a interest in him.

The novelty wore off after a few days of putting a food net over his bowl when were weren't around.

Karyn x

All images Hope Island Home

New "RESPECT" App

Thought for today

So often I have seen this happening , especially around children.

Be aware of this, what are we teaching the next generation about human communication.

Our children & family deserve more.

Show respect , teaches respect

Karyn x

Wagga & many Aussie towns flooding.......

Here we are again ! 

Too many towns to mention across NSW & Vic flooding

A farmer tries to save his sheep. 

So many heads of cattle have been lost to rising flood waters. Bare a thought for the helpless animals that are at the mercy of the gods.  Hopefully these will be the lucky ones. 

Prayers to you all

Stay safe

Karyn x

We miss you magic land.......

We miss you magic land at Gallery Of Modern Art , Brisbane

It is an immersive and vibrant installation.

Created by artists Pip & Pop

Made of coloured sugar , it took 8 weeks to construct

A must see this weekend as it finishes this Sunday the 4th.

Pathways & peepholes will lead you  to different worlds ....

a magical forest filled with strange flowers , vines , 

mushrooms & animals.....

Miss. S was in a girly dream.....

complete with twinkly stars......

I wish I had close ups , the photos were only taken on the iphone.

We went a couple of times over the summer , best of all the exhibition is free.

Karyn x

Sunday Musings - Matisse Drawing Life Exhibition

We visited the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane for the Matisse Drawing Life Exhibition ,

Highly recommended 

It is the most comprehensive of Henri Matisse's prints & drawings ever mounted.

Presented in partnership with the Bibliotheque nationale de France.

First you take in the exhibition ,

Exploring the themes and subjects to which Matisse repeatedly turned throughout his long career, providing insights into the artists daily drawing practice

with over 300 drawings , prints & illustrated books.....

The drawing room is an interactive large scale drawing studio for visitors inspired by Matisse &

his working enviroments to encourage visitors in the creativity of drawing.....

There is even a violinist playing in the room adding o the ambiance......

See the nude statue in the middle of the room .....

Well, when we arrived I said to my 9 year old where would you like to sit & draw first (after all we were there for her , she is my little artist)

All the lovely areas with displays of  flowers & fruits 

No she walked over to the nude sculpture perched herself on the stool right in front , in the middle of the room , crossed her dainty legs like a little lady & proceeded to sketch the nude sculpture.

I stood back to observe , give her space , all the while thinking is this politically correct ? 

Twenty minutes later , she comes over to me , hands me one complete head to toe nude man sketch.

(at least he wasnt a live model)

My daughter using one of the interactive tablets also available to use...

This is where I was sitting next to her & decided to 'have a go' .

 Ive never been able to draw but I was so drawn into what was going on in the room , I 

become oblivious to every one around me. And produced not one but three sketches. I first did the bottles in front of me & then the large leaves in the beaker.

Here are the leaves I did , I was pleased with my effort , considering I never sketch.

(the one in the background is my nine year olds sketch)

All the beautiful quality paper , pencils & clipboards are provided.

A selection of the still life arrangements 

which include sculptures to fabrics & furniture......

(See the blue & white pot with the white orchids , it has been added to the list of 

must haves for the house )

Even the Matisse Cafe is inspired by his work.

More study's influenced from Matisse's time in Tahiti overlooking the Brisbane river....

to finish off there is an amazing exhibition shop for all Matisse books, art supplies

& fantastic French items.

I know this is a long post but I was so impressed with this exhibition & I learnt so much about the artist.

Im not by any means a artist or a expert & Ive taken my daughter to all the major

exhibitions at the gallery the last few years , but this one had drawn me in the most.

The exhibition is on until 4th March.

Karyn x