Xmas 2011, part 4/4 - Davey and Curtis

The 'real' Xmas afternoon was spent with my family - as there are currently no small kids we tend to have a few too many wine / champers / cider / beer and go into food comas from mum, Grandma, Anita and Bree's fantastic cooking. Unfortunately by this time I didn't have the energy to take happy snaps, here are a few the next morning.

Dad, Mum and Kimmee on Dad's pressie

Dad & Grandad testing it out

Joel and Bree's emu

Even the dogs got pressies this year.

Xmas 2011, part 3/4 - Aurisch and Bell

The 'real' Xmas morning with Aurisch's & Bells.

Hurry up Uncle Matt!

Sammy decided she was a Xmas pressie:

Xmas 2011, part 2/4 - extended Davey family

Xmas with most of the extended family on my Dad's side, at my cousin's (gorgeous!) new place.

It wouldn't be a family BBQ in Queensland without a large piece of plastic, a sprinkler and a squirt of detergent :)  

...and the big kid!

Xmas 2011, part 1/4 - Aurisch and McMillan

We're baaack! Moved into the new place and it is FANTASTIC! More about that later, but here are the Xmas piccies I promised...


This year's Xmas trip north was a short one. My work year finished late and Matt started his new role early in the new year. Sadly, I also spent much of the week in bed with some type of viral thingy and we had to cancel some of our long awaited catch ups. Despite this it was lovely to spend time with our families.

Our first 'Xmas' was the night I arrived as Ewen and Margaret were heading to Gladstone the next day. It was also my first time seeing Anita and Scott's new place.

The view from the back porch!

Quick catch up then off the grid

It has been a crazy few weeks. During the last week of work for the year (ie busy), we found our next home after nearly a year of looking. It's a perfect 2 bedder federation semi less than a k from where we were. Matt was in Qld and Liam working long shifts so lots if racing around for me to make it happen.

Then it was up to Qld - squeezing a 2-3 week holiday into 1. I sadly crashed off the adrenaline I was running on and spent the whole week very sick (fluey). We did manage to have a wonderful Xmas with family (photos to come soon) though we cancelled on our friends and meeting the new babies, Dante and Pela.

Matt has started his new job, Visual Effects Editor (note: no 'assistant' in the title!) for The Great Gatsby - Animal Logic while we have been moving house. I am shattered but it's nearly done. We have no internet for 3-4 weeks though we both have our smart phones. Contactible, but the photos from Xmas will have to wait a bit.

Hope your 2012 has got off to a great start. See you soon!

A few random photos and ramblings

Street art opposite Zanzibar in Newtown.
Can you read the text? It says: Free calls to the premier. This is an initiative of the state government of NSW.

My Scoots outside work - Youth Centre, 'graffiti building' in the mirror

Obligatory photo of Mr Smokey.
The context: I was lying in bed online chatting to my mum at the time. She asked if I was home alone (Matt in QLD and Liam at work). I said not exactly, then took and sent her this photo taken from my tablet I was chatting on at the time, I didn't have to get up to do it :)

Congratulations Trent and Laura on the birth of their precious daughter, Emily! I can't wait to meet her in person when you are next down under. (Trent was 3rd out of the four friends I mentioned in an earlier post)

Congratulations Madonna and Nathan on your wedding! You looked stunning, Don, I loved the hot pink flowers and lace parasols. ZOMG... Paige is so grown up.

December in the Balcony Garden

View from inside looking out

Left/1st - the 'other' corner - Mr Smokey's pot
Middle/2nd - that cocoon
Right/3rd - zuchini tendrils



Work has been crazy busy (end of year usual crazy) and Matt is up in Qld, so I have enjoyed a fair bit of down time in the garden. Over the past 2 weekends some of the things I have done include:

• Removed the nasturtiums - they were so eaten by the caterpillars they looked ugly and I wonder whether they were helping to attract the cabbage butterflies
• Moved the thyme to where the nasturtiums were, leaving two plants in that pot (parsley and thyme) and two in the pot where the thyme was (rosemary and mint) - both pots are now flourishing
• Harvested a tray of worm poo (compost) - added to the main planter
• Put the box of failed mushrooms compost into the worm farm - the balcony doesn't stink anymore
• Removed two of the broccoli/cauliflowers. I originally planted a mix of the two and can't remember which are which, now I am now using plant labels :) The broccoli/cauliflower, again, are so caterpillar eaten that they are sickly, I left the three healthiest, but they may go eventually
• Staked and tied the tomatoes and zuchini
• Planted some german camomile seedlings the guy at the nursery gave me after we had a chat about companion planting (they were a little sickly anyway). I have pegged them in the pot to help them develop new roots, one has definitely taken and looks really healthy now, the other, fingers crossed
• Divided and potted (seedling pots) some onion bottoms that had sprouted - 5 seedlings from 2 onions
• Put a couple of sweet potatoes that sprouted in the pantry in the empty pot. Trying this time - NOT planting them, just sitting on the soil and loosely covered in mulch - 3rd time lucky perhaps?
• Watched a caterpillar build his cocoon! (while doing the above). Didn't have the heart to remove it after watching him build it - removed plenty of others. Plan is to watch this one through to hatching
• Gave the BBQ a really good clean (this was a few weekends back) with the intention of using it more, now we have a lovely balcony area to cook and eat - but haven't yet because of late nights at work and constant rain
• Harvested a lot of rain - in buckets - added to the tank
• Gave the tiles a really good scrub during a storm. It was fun in the rain :) and saved using heaps of water from the tank or taps. Then, while taking the above photos and the doormat was removed from cleaning, slipped over badly - thankfully nothing broken, just body, ego and phone bruised
• Researched organic ways to combat aphids - I now have: alfoil under the worst affected (to make light reflect up to the underside of the leaves, two little yellow pots (old lids) half filled with water - aphids are attracted to yellow apparently and then drown, have ordered some cute butterfly shaped yellow sticky traps and have plans to research making garlic soap to spray on the underside of the leaves.