REALLY HAPPY

Well, I don't know quite why, but I feel really happy today.
Actually, I was really happy yesterday too.

I think getting my 'faux fireplace' in the lounge is making me rather happy.... it's been something I've been thinking about for bloody ages, and to finally act on it, and have it coming to fruition so fast is awesome.

ABOVE:  The only thing I'm not enjoying... paint all over my hands.  It's so drying, and feels yuk.  I hope the painting phase is over for today at least.  We are adding 'something' else to the 'fireplace', probably tomorrow, that will need painting.  So better not put away the paint just yet.

Having the Sue's call in yesterday was just so neat!  I don't get many visitors, so them popping in was special.

I took a tiny video of them on me floor:



ABOVE: How cute are they?  I really like those crazy tarts.

Today, well this afternoon, we are going to Stew's work Christmas function.
Something different for a change too.
We are starting in the afternoon with a Scavenger Hunt, finding 'clues' scattered all over Hamilton in teams, then after that we are doing drinks somewhere in Hamilton East before going somewhere else for dinner.

It all sounds like fun.  Might have to wear comfy shoes ... what am I saying?  I always wear comfy shoes!  I've never been a high heel type of girl anyway.

So this morning will be spent doing some housework I suppose.  Stew wants to get the lawns mown... they are growing so fast right now, I swear Stew only just finishes doing them and the clover flowers appear again the next day!

I thought our agapantha's were not going to flower this year after we cut them down quite severely months ago... but no.  All of a sudden we have really tall flowers appearing!  I haven't taken a photo yet as the flowers have not burst out enough yet.  I love that they are BLUE.  *smiles*  Our hydrangeas are all flowering too... blues and whites.  So pretty.

AND that fig tree out the front that we chopped down?  

GROWING again.

We have decided to let it grow for now and see how it goes.

And that's all for now... catch ya later.  Have a lovely day.

ONWARD...

I got up with Keera before 7.30, then had to wait till 10.30 before Stew was up and fed before we could go down to Mitre 10 to get the screws and wall fixings etc for the fire surround.

It was painful watching him eat his breakfast and drink his TWO cups of tea!  I wanted to throttle him.. and he knew it!

But in jest... we did finally get everything we needed and the fireplace is almost attached to the wall!  We still have to make the extra 'something'... but that has to wait till tomorrow.

Soon we have to start getting ready to go out.

Right now I've got hair dripping down my back... Brylee is going to dry it and straighten it for me.  Then it will be 'put the face on' time.

10.01 pm:  And we are home after having a very enjoyable time.  I think everyone had a good time doing the scavenger hunt.  It involved going to various places around Hamilton and taking a photo or video to prove you were there.  We got a photo clue of where we had to go.

I didn't expect to enjoy it so much!  We had two hours to complete the hunt, and ended up back at a local pub, where we had a couple of drinks before going around the corner for dinner.

Dinner was OK too.  Home now and enjoying watching Coronation Street.  

YOU CAN'T PLEASE EVERYONE...

The one thing I find difficult with having a 'public blog' is that you inevitably get well meaning people giving you their ideas/opinions.

Now there is nothing wrong with that of course, I do it too.
But at the end of the day... when it comes to what I'm doing with stuff in my home I have the final say.

And so... I will be doing the fire surround and mantle piece my way.  Sorry if it's not what you would do, but that's the beauty of us all being different!

This is kinda how it will look:

ABOVE:  We cannot move the brown corner lounge suite, so part of the 'fire surround' bit is obscured.  It is what it is, nothing we can do about it, and that is why I had thought of having it more as a 'shelf' as opposed to a fire surround/mantle piece.

So, we are leaving it as it is, but not adding all the extra side bits of wood it came with, they are not necessary.

I was thinking of painting it the same colour as the walls, but Stew thinks it will look better white, so I'll put the white undercoat on, then sit it against the wall again to see how it would look staying white.

If I don't like it, I can then paint it the same as the walls.

I have no intention of leaving it as 'natural' wood.  That's NOT the look I'm going for.

So, after I get Keera to school, I will be coming home and cleaning up the wood ready for painting.  It's already been sanded a bit, so I don't have to do too much myself.

I'm hoping to have the undercoat on by the end of the day, then I can position it again, and see how it will look white.

ONWARD...

10 am:  And I've been working on making the lounge work better, and I came up with an idea first thing this morning, and couldn't believe no one had thought of it sooner!

I have taken a little video to show you... it's still uploading.

In the meantime...

ABOVE:  I've been adding bits 'n' pieces BACK to the verticals, so now we don't have to cut out the skirting board at all.  WINNING!  lol

HERE'S why I'm so happy this morning:



ABOVE:  Lounge and 'fake fireplace' sorted!  Now I simply can't wait for it to be up and looking gorgeous.

3.23 pm:  And I haven't got much done with the painting!
We got unexpected visitors ... the SUE'S!

ABOVE: Sue #2 on the left, and Sue #1 on the right!  Cuddling with the puppies.  
We spent a lovely couple of hours chatting and wasting time with the pups.
So lovely to see them after quite a long time.

Next year I can meet them on a more regular basis, as I won't have to rush home in time to pick up Keera from school.  

Now though, it's back to that painting.

The painting is going well.  I was going to show you how it is going to look, but Stew and I are working on the 'tweaks' to it... so I don't think I'm going to show you any more now till it's done.
And that will probably be Sunday night at the earliest.

So... come back then!
(or sooner, cos ya know I will be blogging tomorrow too eh?  *smiles*

It's stinking hot again tonight, I swear it just gets hotter and hotter as the day goes on.
Quiet evening ahead, painting, planning .... and so on.

SWIMMING, THEN HAMILTON

I won an auction on TradeMe last night, so after I've dropped Keera at school, and been to Aqua Fit,  I'm going into Hamilton to pick up my purchase.

Want to know what I won?...

...
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ABOVE:  Yep, it's a fireplace surround and mantle piece!
And yep, I don't have a fireplace!  It's Kauri too... so rather special.

lol... I plan on probably cutting it down and only using the top part ... from the scroll bits up, but we will see how it looks once it's here.

I really miss having a mantle piece, so once this is on the wall I will paint it either the same colour as the walls or white.  Then I can put pretty candles on it like I had in Auckland:

ABOVE:  This is what I am aiming for, without the fire!  Like a fancy shelf... sorta.

What do ya think?

Diet front:  blew it yesterday... utterly.
Back to it today.  I will keep the calories down low to account for yesterday's lunch.
And now... off to start the day.

ONWARD...

With Christmas coming up, I decided to put the extensions in the dining table, so I did that late yesterday afternoon.

Then, at 11.30 pm last night I decided ... as ya do, to move one of the shelving units from the lounge to the family room.  Cos it has all the serving dishes on it.... So Brylee and Griffin helped me:

ABOVE:  I think it looks awesome there.  I don't like that round, white and blue tray on the top, that's getting moved asap.

Now I can see, and will USE, the various dishes on there again.  I tended to forget I even had them while they were 'out of sight, out of mind'  in the lounge!

3.26 pm:  And it's been a busy day!
Brylee and I went swimming, the pool was lovely.  Lots of people there today in the class, well over 30.
We got into Hamilton bang on 11.30 and picked up the fire surround/mantle piece.  It was in bits, as expected.

Then we went and had lunch (club sandwiches, so yum), and after that Brylee and I  went out to the Base for some Christmas decoration shopping.

I wanted to get a few things for the mantle piece!  Shit, I hope we actually get it up BEFORE Christmas!

Then home in time to pick up Keera from school.  OMG it's another scorching day out there!  It's 30 degrees in my family room, I've turned on the air con, it's NECESSARY!

We will be having takeaways for dinner, I can't bear the thought of cooking in this heat.  I need a night off.

 ABOVE:  Christmas decorations that are not getting taken out until we have a mantlepiece to put them on.

ABOVE:  The main parts of the fire surround/mantle piece that I will be using.  As you can see, they will need to be shortened some what. 
I will get the height sorted out tonight, and do some sanding tomorrow.

So, Stew got home to the job of cutting the height down, which is now done.
Tomorrow I will do some sanding, then painting.

A quiet evening ahead... it's too hot to be bothered doing anything much.

THE BIG CHOP

Today is the day I've been sort of dreading, but looking forward to as well.
Both the puppies are getting a full groom this morning.

Coco is too.  They all go to the groomer at 10 am, and I expect them to be there for at least 3 hours, if not longer.

I took yet another little video, this time of the pups before their groom.  It's so much easier than trying to get them to keep still for a photo!




ABOVE:  BEFORE their groom.

When they come home I will get an AFTER video, they are going to look  SO DIFFERENT!

While they are at the groomers I will pop home and do some sewing, then I have a Christmas Lunch to attend with some of the Cards Group.

That should be fun.

So, it's a full morning/midday for me.
It works out great as the groomer is over the same side of town as the lunch venue.  All going well the dogs will be ready to pick up just after we finish lunch.  Well, I hope so anyway.

ONWARD...

I just had a very scary experience.  So did Coco.
I clipped her into the back seat of the car to travel to the groomers.  (pups were in travelling cases).

As it was stinking hot, I lowered all the windows, Coco was loving being able to stand up and stick her head out the window!  She was on the shortest lead possible, which was VERY FORTUNATE as...

OUR ESCAPE ARTIST decided to jump out of the car! While we were travelling!

OMG I nearly died on the spot.  I jammed on the brakes, jumped out of the car, ran around the side and grabbed my dangling dog and threw her back in through the window!

LUCKILY the guy in the car behind me saw what was happening and he stopped in time, and didn't run into the back of me!

Lesson learnt.  NEVER EVER lower the window enough for Coco to climb out.  Totally forgot she can climb over just about anything!  Seriously.

4.30 pm:  Lunch was just lovely!  Met up with about a dozen ladies from the walking group and Cambridge Connections at the Cafe at St Kilda.  Lovely place.  Lovely food and service.

Got the text from the groomer just as I was about to leave, talk about perfect timing.

Picked up the dogs, was very polite to the groomer, but really wasn't happy.


ABOVE:  It's a very patchy groom, some places shorter than others, and their faces/heads?  Nope, not happy.

right.... As it was her first time grooming the pups all over, I am giving her a free pass this time.  As Stew said, they are wriggly little puppies, very hard to do an 'excellent' job.  If the groom is still not that good next time we will change groomers.

In the video I said their next groom was at the end of February, that's wrong, it's end of January.  So not that long till the next groom.

It's been a quiet evening, as per usual really.  Stinking hot inside, I had the air conditioning on for most of the afternoon and it's STILL 30 degrees inside.  Seriously, it's cooler outside!

Not looking forward to going to bed.  So hot.

OUR CHRISTMAS TREE IS UP

It took me half the day yesterday to get our Christmas tree up, but now it's done and I couldn't be happier with it:



ABOVE: I thought it would be much nicer for you to see a video, cos my phone's camera is utter crap in poor lighting.
So I hope you enjoyed it.

One day I will do a 'walk through' of our house, weird I've never thought of doing it before!

Today Brylee and I are off to the pool, me for Aqua Fit and her to just swim for an hour and cool off in the pool.

Cool off!  Pfffft. The town pool is at around 28 degrees, which is warm to me.
But, never mind, it's still lovely to be in the pool.

After Aqua Fit it will be home to do some housework/sewing.  OMG I keep procrastinating about making the last few Christmas bags!
Maybe I will do one today?

That's all for now... off to start the day.

ONWARD...

Pool was actually a bit cooler getting in today... which was pleasantly surprising.  I heard some ladies even complain it was too cold!
Not for me, it was perfect.
The Aqua Fit class had 25 people today, which is a good number, any more and it's getting crowded.

Home/shower/relax for a little while.  My arms always feel tired after the pool.
And today I kept getting cramps, no doubt from sweating so much the past few days.

I didn't do any laps today, just wasn't up to it. 

3.18 pm: So hot! 29 degrees.  Haven't done a bloody thing.  It's too stinkin' hot.
I've got Card Night tonight, so have to get dinner sorted out, face on, hair done and so on.

Fed the family Chicken and veges for dinner, while I had some nibbles at cards.

Cards... was lovely.  Just a small group of 5 tonight.  I did not bring home the winner's trophy tonight.  I was the loser.  How 'lucky' that the girl with the Loser's trophy was not there!  ha ha.

Home now, and it has finally cooled down.  OMG it was so hot today.

I am NOT cooking a casserole in the oven again!  It made the family room even hotter!

Winding down time.  Then bed.

BIG JOB TODAY

One job I loathe ... but has to be done:

ABOVE:  Christmas Tree and decorations.  *sigh*
I better get it done though, cos Stew and Griffin sweated gallons finding them and getting them down from the attic!

It's INCREDIBLY HOT up under the roof!  If I ever want a sauna, I can just go up there!

I had planned on going to Aqua Fit this morning, but I think I'll just get on with the tree, before it gets horribly hot later on today.
There is nothing to stop me from going for a swim later on today actually!  I will see how I feel later.

When you have a shit job in front of you, ya just want to get it done and over with.. right?

ABOVE:  I can't wait to put that cute little Santa on the tree!  But that's all I'm looking forward to! lol

Now... what else?  Washing (Brylee can do it), vacumming (Griffin can do it), and get the smallest kid to school (I will do it)... lol.
And that's only cos the other two are still in bed and probably won't be up till 11 am!

NAH, I'm gunna get their lazy butts outta bed around 10.00 today.  They both have plans to meet up with friends in town today, so I want to get them doing their jobs before they bugger off.

And that's all for now ... off to start my day.

ONWARD...

9.30 am:  And so far so good.  It's a sizzling day out there.  I picked up my prescription from the Drs, and while waiting or me pills, saw this cutie and bought it:

ABOVE:  so handy for my bag, for going away and so on.  I have a large one that holds 4 weeks worth of pills, but I hate having to fill it up!  This one works for me.

After the chemist, I popped into the supermarket for some fresh veges, and bought this:

ABOVE:  Has anyone used this product before?  Review/Opinion?  

Now.. on with THAT JOB.

12 noon:  And ummm... I've unpacked some of the decorations!
And just had my lunch.  And ... I've done everything but get the tree out of the box!  Might do that next.

Still have to check all the lights work...

 ABOVE:  I'm getting there!

ABOVE:  Front door.  Rather cute.

2.35 pm:  And the lights are on.  Thank God.  And surprise, surprise!  It wasn't that arduous after all.  I'd coiled the 5 strings of lights separately so it was actually, dare I say it, EASY to do!

Time to pick up Keera, then back to it.

4.45 pm:  and it's done.  And it looks so pretty.  I took a little video rather than a photo as it shows up better.
Will put that on the blog tomorrow... it's still uploading.  Man that takes ages!

Dinner for the family tonight is mince/bacon/tomato mix over pasta.
I will be having a bucket full of lettuce!  lol
Nah, I'll be having some of the meat mix on it's own.

12.29 am: Whoops, didn't realise the time!  Better get off to bed, Brylee fully expect me to take her to the pool tomorrow.

PROTEIN?

I've been having some fun working out MFP, yesterday I couldn't get the food tracker to register my cheese as a protein.

So I talked (via text) with Lynda and she sorted that issue out for me.  Thanks Lynda.  Great help.

I'm totally on track so far... got all the percentages worked out FOR ME, and so far it's been fairly easy to keep within them.

I am not going to be using 'Exercise' to enable me to eat more.  I never have done that.
So, I won't be tracking my exercise on the app at all.

STILL LOVING IT!

Bex, Brylee and I went for a very late walk last night, once the temperature had dropped.
It was WONDERFUL.

ABOVE:  The first 'walk' I've done in 5 months that wasn't a FBG one.  Probably be doing heaps of them now, as most of the FBG ones are not at a good time for me.  Bit sad cos I will miss seeing my FBG girlfriends.

Can't be helped though... summer time heat means late night walks for me.

Bex and the boys will be going home sometime today, not sure when.  Not that it matters really.
Their time away has given Steve a chance to do some maintenance work on their current home,  without little boys under foot.

So... time to get moving and do something...

ONWARD...

I found our bright strip lighting the other day, it used to be in the old Britto Cabinet.  And I pondered where to put it.

Then it came to me just before:

ABOVE:  How cool is that!  'Hollywood' lights around me bathroom mirror.

And I forgot to show you how my lounge looked yesterday...

ABOVE:  The kids in their 'tent'.  It's actually our beach sun shelter... it looks enormous in the lounge!  Not so big on the beach funnily enough.

Nearly lunchtime here, which is good cos I'm just a bit hungry.

OK... where is everyone?  If you are not here leaving me a nice comment, you BETTER be having a darn good time somewhere in the sun!  Or snow, where ever you are!

Keera and I have been outside in the sun, under the sprinkler even!  So warm today.  I bought some new togs (swimmers)... they fit on the top but are a bit baggy on the bottom.  Such a pain.

But I'm only ever going to wear them here at home, so it doesn't matter.

Poor Stew and Griffin had a shit job to do this evening.  But, after much hunting and sweating, they found all the Christmas decorations and trees up in the attic space.

The day is finally cooling down... winding down time.  Watching the final of Trust Me, it's been a good series.  

TOTALLY LOVING MFP

Why oh why didn't I switch to this programme sooner?

It's bloody amazing!

Tracking is so much easier, all food is given a value (which I like) and it's so simple to plan/track and print your day out. 

Today's menu was planned out last night, and printed out too.

ABOVE:  Most days I will track as I go, and print it out at the end of the day.  I will keep them in my 'tracker' book for a record of my days.

I love that it is so simple to use... it must be cos I can do it!  lol

You may notice that I have added a WW's Chocolate Pretzel snack bar.  As I recently bought TEN  boxes of the freakin' things, I will be having one every other day as a treat.  I doubt that much sugar will affect my diabetes?

And I'm not cutting out all carbs, so today I have two slices of burgen bread... it's a 'good' option if one is having bread I think.

Totally within my self inflicted 1,300 - 1,400 calorie limit.

Something else I am instigating... NO eating before 11 am or AFTER 8 pm.  It's called intermittent fasting  I have been doing something like it for YEARS anyway, as I virtually never have breakfast.

The only change is that I won't be eating after 8 pm.  

Does anyone else do something like this?  Thoughts?

Today we are expecting Bex back around lunchtime.  Hopefully she does not have a mega hangover!
If she does, I suppose she can retreat to our room, close the door and sleep some more, lol.

She's staying the night before going home tomorrow.

We have no definite plans for today really... just taking it as it comes.




ABOVE:  Scrolling through music videos on YouTube last night, I came across this one... I fell in love with it and wanted to share.  Turn the volume UP, it's worth it.  *smiles*

ONWARD...

So Bex turned up mid-morning... not hung over, but tired.  
We have had a very leisurely morning, just watching the kids and puppies play.

I could be doing all sorts of productive things, but seriously?  Nah.

Might get into the sewing room this afternoon.

ABOVE:  Bex looking ever so enthusiastic ... even her bunny ears are drooping.  lol

We had a massive downpour at around 7 pm tonight, so I decided it would be an excellent night for a walk.  It will be so much cooler later on.
I'm dragging Brylee  and Bex out with me too.  I didn't even have to twist their arms!

After that.... it will be a quiet evening, before bed.

VISITORS TODAY

Today Bex and the boys are coming down to visit.
Well actually, Bex is just coming down to drop the boys off, then she is heading back to Auckland.

It's Steve's work Christmas function tonight and we are babysitting the boys.

We don't get to babysit them very often, so it should be a lovely day.

Keera is going to be so excited when she gets home from school to find the boys here!

Last night, after so many recommendations, I joined this :

ABOVE:  I managed to track yesterday's food and exercise, so hopefully I can continue doing it right.

The only thing I couldn't find was how to read barcodes on my phone.  I downloaded MyFitnessPal onto my phone, but I can't find the barcode scanner anywhere on it?  Anyone know how I can find it?

I spent some time last night getting a 'Weight Loss Book' set up.  First (new start) weigh in tonight before dinner.  Stew is going to be my weigh in man to keep me accountable.

I'm feeling very confident I can do this with support from the friends I have made at the local WW's group, and YOU!  *smiles*

While I wait for Bex and the boys to arrive, I will get some housework done, then some sewing.  Once the boys are here I will be hanging out with them.

ONWARD...  

BARCODE READER FOUND!  Thanks to Kelly and AllyS.  Now I'm off to try it out on a few things.

ABOVE: The boy have arrived.... and just love playing with the puppies. SO SWEET.

Just found out if you don't leave a space after the video before you copy it into your post, you can't type after it!

AND you can't remove it either!

So, now it has to stay at the bottom of this post forever!

BEX:  I can't believe how QUIET it is WITH YOUR BOYS!  

But now that Keera is home, the noise has ramped up.  To be expected I suppose.

End of the day:  peace reigns.  Kids are all asleep and it's time for some quiet tv watching.... Coronation Street.  *smiles*