Rosie likes to lick

The kids are moving out into the lounge room tonight. Ruby is still sleeping on her mattress on Dustin's bedroom floor because I haven't finished her room. Today I am taking both their mattresses out and putting them on the floor in the lounge room so they can have a 'slumber party' tonight by the fire while watching DVDs.

I have to do the last coat on Dustin's floor and also spray paint his bed because the silver I painted on his bed first didn't take very well for some reason. That shouldn't be a huge job providing I can spray paint his bed without getting silver paint everywhere. We'll see! I have drop sheets. I should take the bed apart and put it outside but last time I did that I broke it.

Tonight we have friends coming around for pizza so all the kids can lay down and go to sleep on the floor while watching 'Alice in Wonderland' our new favourite movie. I have a lot to do today. I have to go and buy stuff for dinner (I am out of flour), make pizza bases, chop up stuff for pizza, tidy up the house and paint Dustin's floor and bed. I also want to try and mow the lawn later.

AND, I am reading the second book in Charlaine Harris' Harper Connelly series and I have to find SOME time to get a few chapters of that in!

Last night we had hot dogs and Monopoly night! I made everyone hot dogs I had the vegetarian variety and then we settled down by the fire to play Monopoly. Ruby got bored first even though she was buying all the good real estate and cleaning up on rent payments! So we packed all our money and real estate up and put it in paper bags for next time.

August is a good month to be a vegetarian

For the month of August I am going to be a vegetarian! Dustin is a "vegetarian except for bacon and sausages" so since he is refusing to eat meat (only because he doesn't like it) I am going on a vegetarian diet for a month to discover some new recipes and ways of cooking without meat or anything from a dead animal.

I am also interested in monitoring how I feel, what I miss, any serious cravings I have or any kind of withdrawals I get from not eating meat. I know a month isn't very long but I think I will get an idea of whether my body does well without meat and whether it is something I can live without permanently.

I don't think I can be a vegetarian for ever because there is so much great food out there in the world I wouldn't want to miss out on, however it may be possible for me to become a 'part time' vegetarian. I'd like to be able to refrain from meat products unless it was farmed in a humane way or unless it was farmed by me. I think that is highly possible.

Poor me

I only have one step in my house but yesterday I managed to fall down it in spectacular You Tube footage fashion. Fortunately no one was here to see and laugh but unfortunately since no one was here and I was having problems breathing, and on the verge of blacking out, I had to call Scott who was with the kids doing some work on his boat, and have him come home for a while.

Turns out I was OK. Just winded and very sore. Today I am even more sore and feeling rather sorry for myself but I will live. Might go and get all my chores done so I can lay in bed this afternoon and play with the kittens while the kids watch movies.

I am getting an iPhone 4 too!

Lazy school holidays

It is school holiday time and although Dustin only goes to kindergarten two days a week we are still in holiday mode which includes sleeping in and lazy mornings. Our mornings go like this:

5.00am Scott gets up and gets ready for work (no holidays for him).
5.01am I wriggle over into the middle of the bed and go back to sleep.
5.45am Scott comes and kisses me goodbye and wishes me a good day. I grunt and go back to sleep.
7.00am Dustin comes in and crawls into bed with me and gives me a kiss and a cuddle and goes back to sleep.
7.30am Dustin gets up goes out into the lounge room and watches cartoon/news/porno movies? I don't have a clue because I am still asleep. (For the record we actually don't own any porn that I know of).
7.40am Dustin comes in to tell me he is "STARVING" I tell him ok I'll come and make him breakfast then he goes back to the TV and I go back to sleep.
7.50am Dustin comes in and says "MUUUUUMMM!" I'm STARVING". I say "OK Honey I'm getting up right now" he goes back to the lounge room and I go back to sleep.
8.00am Ruby comes in and gets in bed with me and gives me a kiss and a cuddle and goes back to sleep.
8.10am Dustin comes in getting mad now and I tell him I am coming. I lay there for a second thinking about what a bad mother I am and then go back to sleep.
8.30am Ruby wakes up and asks me to make her a hot chocolate. I say OK she goes to join Dustin and I go back to sleep.
8.40am Both kids come in and jump on me and put their cold hands on me and plead for breakfast.
8.41am I contemplate giving them permission to make their own pancakes for breakfast but am deterred the the mess I will inevitably have when they are finished so I reluctantly get up and make them hot chocolates and breakfast.


So yesterday I finished my lady in the storm and put her in a little vintage Italian brass frame. I'll hang her up in my art and craft room when I buy some little nails in town today.

I've kept the little silk print that was in the frame and put it in a draw for future use. I love these little Italian frames and will have to get some more. They are great for little embroideries like this.

On the look out for a new bunny

Since we lost sweet Jasper I knew right away I had to get another angora rabbit. I called the breeder who I bought Jasper from but she only has older rabbits. I could take Jasper's brother and I was tempted but I went to the trouble of house training Jasper so that he could come inside and play with the kids and jump around the lounge room. Rabbits are very clean so having him in the house was less trouble than even the cats, who insist on leaving dirty foot prints on everything.

I was told about a lady here in Tasmania whose has a litter of kits so I expressed interest in them. So far I haven't heard back from her though, so I will contact her today. I am hoping to get one from her, otherwise I'll have to keep looking. Angora rabbits are rare in Australia so it isn't easy to always find one.

I am thinking about becoming a breeder myself, except that I am kind of busy and they need a lot of grooming. I also don't have a lot of room,but maybe in the future I might set up a rabbitry here on the farm. Maybe when the kids are both at school full time.

I was planning on opening a shop in our closest town when the kids go to school but since living here for that last five years I realise Scottsdale isn't a very good town for business. Scottsdale isn't really a very good town for anything. Unlike some of the other pretty historical towns in Tasmania, Scottsdale is commercial and ugly. I am glad we live out here in Springfield where it is only farms and bush.

Now I am planning on a home business when the kids are at school. I cant wait to have that freedom after being a stay home mum for more than five years. I miss making a substantial living, although Scott does pretty well in his business I miss having that independents of knowing you work hard for everything you have.

I have the farm and I make a little money from that. Mainly from leasing out some land. I am due a cheque any day now from the potato farmers who have been leasing some of our land for the potato growing season. Most of that money will go towards house renovations.

Yesterday we went to Launceston to pick out paint for Dustin's new bedroom. He chose red, blue and silver. So this weekend will be busy painting. We also have Juliet's house to build. As soon as we have an appropriate house for her she will loose her virginity and hopefully in Spring we will have lots of little baby piggies :)

Feeling better

The lady who I bought Jasper off just sent me an email about some new bunnies which were born last week and I have asked her to organise one for us. She also offered me Jaspers brother and I am thinking about taking him as well. I was planning on getting a female for Jasper in the Spring time. So I feel a little cheered up this morning.

Today I have to get ready for a trip. We are off to Hobart for the weekend, a long weekend. We leave after Dustin finishes Kindergarten this afternoon.

Not so well

I've been crook for the last week. Not very sick, I've been managing to do most of the things I usually do, just not as well. I really want to stay in bed and hide under the covers but having children doesn't afford you that luxury. BUGGER!

I hope I feel better by Friday. I am going away to Hobart for the weekend with a lovely lady and a very special little man :)