Mildly Panicked

At five to nine this morning, I suddenly panicked and wondered whether I should be working in the shop today!

I sent a quick text to The Motivator asking her if she was working. She did not reply immediately, so I rushed into the shower, just in case 'I' was the one who should have opened the shop!

Thankfully, she replied to my text, laughing and telling me to relax and it was my day off.

Whew!

So I chose today to do some landscaping in my nether region (if you get my drift) so that I could wear my swimming costume in the pool.

I bought this costume four years ago before our trip to Magnetic Island.

Mrs Bucket, Woman of Many Talents, Reality TV Queen and I drove north to spend ten days on the Island for Mrs Bucket's birthday. We were staying in a resort with a pool, so I bought the swimmers specifically for that purpose.

I didn't go in the pool and came home from the trip five days early. My swimming costume was shoved to the rear of the dressing table drawer ... until just recently.

I tried them on, only to discover that the sticky plastic patch that protects the crotch area was still intact!

Until today, I'd worn 3/4 yoga pants and either an old swimming top or a singlet into the pool.

I'm here to tell you that swimmers are a pain the butt to put on and I would much rather wear the yoga pants. Humidity is not my friend.

I spent almost two hours in the pool this morning and only got out to make lunch for AH and I.

At 2pm, The Motivator picked me up to attend a La Reve essential oil party that lasted for 3.5 hours.

It was a lovely day and the hostess had gone to a lot of trouble to provide a delicious spread of food and drinks.

I knew most of the fourteen ladies there and it was well after 5pm when I was dropped home.

I considered swimming again but chose to sit on the couch and watch a Bollywood movie before reheating the dinner that I'd prepared last night for tonight.

We are watching Mama Mia as I write this ... well actually AH is snoring in the chair beside me and I'm ready for bed now.

Nite all.

Busy Editing

I was so busy editing wedding photos last night that I forgot to do my blog!

I didn't even realise that I'd forgotten to do it 🤪 until Adoring Husband asked me what happened!

All I remember about Thursday is that I worked and it was a pretty good day

The pool got a workout.

I've been exercising - swimming laps - freestyle, breast stroke, side stroke left, side stroke right and backstroke. 50 burpees. 50 twists. 50 running on the spot steps. 10 left and right leg lifts. Lots of floating.

Oh and the umbrella finally arrived!

Now for the Bali Hut and the Bali Outdoor Daybed. Fingers crossed that it's all here before Christmas.

Today, Mama Mia and I caught the bus into The Bay and spent four hours at the RSL. We had roast pork for lunch and listened to the live entertainment of Trevor Judge while we ate. I had some luck on the pokies and bought myself some new shoes with my winnings!

The Motivator manned the shop while I enjoyed my play date.

I didn't arrive home until 4pm and I tossed up between 'a swim' or 'the club'.

'A swim' won out and I stayed in the pool until about 6pm. Adoring Husband joined me for a while too.

He spent the day constructing this ...

It's a path that leads to the pool fence from our alfresco area and it's made out of all the old sleepers that surrounded our raised garden beds which had to be removed to make way for the pool. There is still a bit of work to do on it and there will be grass tufts planted along the edges later as well.

What a clever chook he is!

I'm feeling all worn out now, so it's bed time for me.

Nite all.

What a Day!

There have been warnings for the last 24 hours about how volatile our weather was expected to be, so I was feeling a little uneasy as the time drew near to leave for our lady's Christmas lunch.

The air was hazy and heavy - so much so that it was difficult to tell if the haze was cloud or smoke or dust.

For once, I only looked at the BOM once before I left for lunch and it showed nothing even developing on the radar.

Higgins Storm Chasers warned on Facebook this morning that the weather was so unpredictable that very dangerous storms could develop over a matter of 15 minutes and that we could expect 9cm hailstones and destructive winds, possibly tornadoes.

Scary stuff.

That was at 11am.

Just 90 minutes later, Adoring Husband phoned me to ask if I was ok.

There was nothing much happening around our marquee. Sometimes a strong gust of wind would blow through the trees and bamboo blowing up the leaves that covered the ground, and we could hear thunder in the background, but that's about it.

He told me that a big storm was currently hitting home and that the rain was heavy enough to flood our new outdoor kitchen.

That's when I checked the BOM again and there was a line of very nasty storms to the north of us and to the south of us - a gap in the middle - where we were enjoying our lunch!

The Universe took care of us, just as I had asked earlier in the day.

(I have to mention the amazing lighting in the marquee because The Motivator designed it and supervised the installation. It looks and feels fabulous.)

It was a really nice day and the food was great, though it was cold by the time it reached my table. Three different proteins (ham, turkey and pork) with cranberry sauce and a beautifully presented potato bake on the plate. A plate of salad and a plate of roasted veggies to choose from in the centre of our table. I chose the strawberry tart as my GF option dessert, which was served with a small side dish of whipped cream.

I heard some people complain about the food, saying it was hard, cold and not very tasty, but I disagreed.

By the time we made our way home, the storms had well and truly dissipated and there was hardly any evidence of them, apart from a few small puddles.

The Whinging Pom and I stopped at the bowls club for an hour to play the pokies before we came home. She was very successful. I was not.

After I got home, Adoring Husband recruited my Trades Assistant skills and I helped him finish the pool fence, then I prepared dinner for AH.

Now, I'm feeling quite weary. It's been a big day. Time for bed.

Nite all.

Puffy Eye

I think something bit me on Sunday night as I slept.

My eyelid was swollen on Monday morning and even though the swelling eased quickly during the morning, my eyelid still feels numb and feels like it's sitting heavily against my eyeball.

A very strange feeling.

It was a good morning with the girls and Mama Mia joined us while The Motivator attended an appointment.

We all started with a chat, followed by a mad dash through the clothes that I had removed from my wardrobe then almost everyone did a little shopping in The Happy Abode and everybody had left by 11.30am.

There was a steady stream of customers until around 1.30pm and then it went very quiet for an hour so I was able to tidy up a few loose ends before locking the doors.

It's bin night, so I had to find some strength and muscles to tear up all the cardboard boxes so that they could fit in the big bin and then try to avoid falling in the driveway again as I dragged the sulos out to the footpath. (I was wearing the same shoes that I fell in a couple of weeks ago)

I survived!

There was a light sprinkle of rain as I rode home so I was pedalling pretty fast trying to beat the downpour. Adoring Husband chose that moment to phone me, so I had to stop in the rain to answer the phone!

Doh!

He had preheated the oven so that I was able to put the chicken and all the veggies in the baking tray when I arrived home. With the chicken we had potato, sweet potato, pumpkin, green beans and zucchini with home made gravy - yummy.

No swimming today. It didn't feel hot enough and it was raining lightly for most of the afternoon.

I must say that I'm feeling pretty weary this evening, so it will be an early night for me.

There are nasty storms forecast for Wednesday and we have our lady's Christmas luncheon in a wall-less marquee so let's hope the storms come late in the day!

Thank you to The Motivator for coming in to work and allowing me to attend the lunch. I appreciate the gesture especially because time with Mama Mia is so precious. Big hugs 💕

I'm off to bed.

Nite all.

A New Week

What a stinker of a day! It was hot and steamy outside, but the shop was lovely and cool with the air conditioner running and the first sound as each customer walked through the door was a sigh of relief as they entered the cool air.

Monday is a Gypsy day, so we had lots to talk about, as always.

A great Monday for the shop as far as sales go.

Plenty of locals through the door, in fact I greeted the first ten customers by their first name as they entered.

It's definitely gift giving season because most of the purchases today were Secret Santa gifts or Christmas presents.

Some kids' snap bracelets arrived today, along with some unicorn buttons. Three pairs of freshwater pearl earrings arrived too and I sold one pair before they reached the display stand.

Customers were still coming through the door after 3pm so it was well after 3.30pm by the time I left.

It was still very hot as I was riding home so as soon as I arrived, I changed into my swimmers and once again made a beeline for the pool. The water was tepid and we really need the umbrella to cover the pool and keep the temperature down because the hot sun beating on the water all day heats it up.

I expected the umbrella to be here by now. They told us three weeks when we ordered it and it's been about six weeks. I'm ready to put a negative review on their website, so they'd best move their butts!

The water temperature in the pool, according to our little whale thermometer showed 30C.

I was in the water for about 90 minutes and Adoring Husband even joined me for a while.

I love our pool.

I know you know that.

I'm going to continue telling you 🤪.

I have a couple of chores to complete before bed, so I'm signing off now.

Looking forward to coffee with the girls in the morning and sharing all my clothes.

Nite all.

Productivity Plus

Thank goodness my motivation levels were high when I woke this morning.

I was out of bed before 7am on this, my Sunday off.

I took my coffee outside to sit with my feet in the pool and Adoring Husband brought some toast out to me, so I started the day feeling the love.

I got a LOT done today.

I moved all of my decluttered clothes to the back room and added some more to the pile.

I cleared all of my crap off the dining table ... it was completely covered with both mine and Adoring Husband's crap ... now it's clear to be used as intended again.

I cleaned out the fridge and wiped down the shelves. It wasn't a full clean, but it's much better than it was.

I chopped up, cleaned and packed ten big bunches of celery into water filled containers to store in the fridge for my juicing every morning. That was a big job!

I cleaned the kitchen and washed all the containers that came out of the fridge.

I cleaned the bathroom. I tried The Blonde Bombshell's suggestion of hydrogen peroxide to remove mould under the silicone but it didn't work. Thanks anyway.

I cleaned the toilet.

I cleaned the laundry.

I swept the floors.

I mopped 'some' floors - Adoring Husband mopped the rest.

I did four loads of washing.

I did some ironing - perhaps ten items?

I dusted in the family and dining rooms.

I made a pitcher of Margarita mix, a platter of fruit and put some crackers and dip on a plate in preparation for the arrival of The Motivator and Mama Mia who were coming for a swim - our first visitors to the pool.

We swam for about two hours, drank our margaritas, ate our snacks and needed to pee a lot!

I've had a really great day! When I have the cleaning bug and I'm feeling motivated, I really enjoy doing all these chores ... but those days are SO few and far between!

Now that I have my pool ... my goal for 2019 is to hire a regular cleaner!

I think I will sleep well tonight. I'm all worn out. I'm surprised that Adoring Husband is still awake given all the hard labour he did outside clearing everything from between the shed and the fence. I think he did three trips to the tip!

We were BOTH very productive today.

Nite all.