Bake Off

Today, after hilariously grooming the other two psychotic dogs, we decided on some time in the kitchen.

I made a paleo chocolate mousse, but used a different recipe to last time, this one containing dates, that just didn't want to process in the food processor, and then it was even a struggle in the blender, so NO dates next time!

Then the kids made some chocolate mud cake cupcakes and muffins.

Home made pizzas for dinner and super Saturday footy on Foxtel tonight. I am having a poor week in the tipping competition, but it was enjoyable seeing Newcastle Knights pip Melbourne Storm at the post .. especially because Knight in Shining Armour is a Newcastle Knights supporter!

I think that I have yawned at least 33 times in the last hour, so I believe that's my cue to go to bed!

Bubbles and I will be taking our cameras on a photographic jaunt very shortly, so hopefully I will get to share some photos. It's the super moon, full moon tomorrow night and I have some ideas. Whether they come to fruition or not, is another matter!

So watch this space!

Nite all.

Results

After what seemed to be a very very long 72 hours, we finally heard from the doctor today, advising that Adoring Husband's tumour was 'low grade malignant' and that he didn't need any further treatment like chemo or anything, but would need to go back in three months to have further procedures to check on both his bladder and his prostate.

I am ecstatic with this outcome and hopeful that AH will grow healthier over the next 3 months so that no further treatment will be necessary.

The whole experience has been painful, embarrassing and uncomfortable for poor AH and we'll be happy when he is feeling 100%.

Thank you to everyone who sent good wishes. It was lovely to have such wonderful support from friends and family. It made the ordeal just a little more bearable. We appreciate you all very much.

I'm also happy to say that I submitted my video assignment on time this evening .. with a couple of hours to spare! Now we wait and see.

Lastly, I am very excited that Manly lost to South Sydney tonight and that my team, Brisbane Broncos had a fabulous win over Canterbury Bulldogs! A great way to start the weekend :)

Nite all.

No News

No news yet on Adoring Husband's test results.

Today, with the help of Bubbles and Knight in Shining Armour, I completed my video presentation for the next assignment.

Tomorrow morning I will write the 300 word critique to go with it and submit it as early as possible to get it out of the way and then I can enjoy some time with the family before I need to submit the next assignment.

I actually only have 11 days to get the next one completed, which is a pain, because I thought I had until 25th. Ugh!

My other achievement for the day was grooming one of the psychotic dogs.  It took over 2 hours with lots of bribes and yet more assistance from the family.

The other two dogs will have to wait a day or two for their pampering.

So after all of that, I'm feeling quite exhausted .. especially after waking at 6am and having to start the day doing Adoring Husband's work for him.

We have big plans for tomorrow, so it's time for me to sleep.

Nite all.

Mending

Adoring Husband arrived home on the train tonight after his tests in Brisbane.

The surgeon removed a tumour from his bladder which has been sent for testing and we should have the results within 48 hours of the surgery .. so I guess that means some time tomorrow or the next day, because his surgery was quite late on Tuesday.

His prostate will be monitored and will be tested again in 3 months.

Needless to say, he is feeling a little the worse for wear at the moment and will probably need some TLC for a few days.

That's where I come in :)

Bubbles and Knight in Shining Armour are here!  Yay!

We've had an afternoon of Rubber Ducky birthday fun .. that's the theme that I chose for Bubbles' birthday party and you know .. I didn't take a photo of the birthday cake or the cupcakes that I made or the decorations or the hundred rubber duckies or the hundred+ yellow and red balloons.

Knight in Shining Armour has made a few changes to my script for my video assignment and we are going to act it out tomorrow, then I can write my essay to go with it and have it submitted before midnight on Friday.

Let's hope it goes smoothly!

Anyway, once again, it is after midnight, so I'm off to bed. AH is not up to working tomorrow morning, so I need to be awake in less than 6 hours. Eep!

Nite all.

Recovery

Adoring Husband has survived his medical tests today and is resting with a little discomfort in hospital tonight.

The doctor will visit him tomorrow to give him the results, diagnosis and prognosis.

I will keep you informed.

Looking forward to seeing Bubbles and Knight in Shining Armour tomorrow!

Nite all.

Making a List

I've just made a list of all the things that I have to do tomorrow.

NOT on my list, is cleaning the shop loos and attending two morning teas, which I also have to do tomorrow!

The rest of the stuff .. and there are 19 items on my to-do list .. has to be done after lunch and first thing on Wednesday morning.

I'm not feeling confident.

I've convinced Bubbles to help me with the video assignment for my course, so that has to be done on Wednesday afternoon .. after that is completed, I have to find 300 words to critique myself as an interviewing therapist.

Anyway, I need to go to bed. I have to set my alarm for 4.30am, so that means I should get around four hours sleep tonight.

Ugh.

Nite all.

Big Week

Adoring Husband and I have a big week ahead of us.

A couple of weeks ago, AH's doctor told him that the results of his scan came back with some questionable results and that he thought he had bladder cancer.

As you can imagine, this was very shocking news to both of us, and at the time, I had just arrived on the Sunny Coast, so we weren't even together to absorb and discuss this turn of events.

Last Tuesday, we travelled to Brisbane to visit with a specialist and after he looked at all of AH's test results and asked a few questions, he told us that he didn't think AH had bladder cancer, however, he was concerned with his prostate readings.

So he is following up both possibilities, and this week AH is spending a night in a Brisbane hospital to have the follow up tests for both bladder and prostate cancer.

I am feeling positive and hopeful that the results of these tests will be clear.

While I can't even entertain the idea that we will have to deal with the worst case scenario, AH's mindset is different, which is to be expected, because this is his experience and everybody deals with this kind of experience in their own way.

He is focussed on all the worst possible outcomes and I am focussed on the way his current GP has let him down .. but I shall save that for another post on another day!

The second big event happening this week is Bubbles and Knight in Shining Armour arriving on Wednesday for two weeks!

Adoring Husband is especially looking forward to it because he gets to visit Fraser Island with them to do a 4WD tour. I don't enjoy that kind of thing, so I will save my excitement for the whale watching tour instead!

We are really looking forward to seeing them both and hope that we can show them a great time!

Having had an early night last night and sleeping for 8 hours, I think I would like to get into the habit of earlier nights. My brain and my body seemed to be quite thankful for the extended rest period :)

So I shall sign off now .. at 10.20pm .. and make my way towards the bedroom.

Nite all.

Productive

We had Sweet Potato patties with our chicken wings at lunch time. They were very nice, but I needed to make them a bit earlier to cool the potato mix in the fridge properly before forming the patties.

I will try them again and take photos and share the recipe next time!

I got a bit more of my assignment done .. not a lot because my brain was still suffering the effects of 5 glasses of wine the night before! I didn't feel hungover (in the usual sense of the word) but I did feel a little scrambled.

So much to do, so little time!

.. and for my positive take on what tomorrow will bring ..

Only 4 more sleeps til Bubbles and Knight in Shining Armour arrive! Wahoo!

I do believe the weather has turned a little chilly this evening. Time to put the big UGH boots on!

Or perhaps it's time for bed .. 8.30pm .. it's been a long time since I went to bed THAT early!

Nite all.

TGIF

I really look forward to Friday nights at the local Bowls Club with our friends.

The Bowls Club has a badge draw, lotsapots draw, $100 club and the weekly raffles, all on a Friday night.

Just about everyone at our table won something tonight, except Adoring Husband and I, which is unusual in itself, because Adoring Husband is known as the 'raffle king' and wins regularly.

We all had dinner in the restaurant together, after the raffles, because Lady Lynn and Happy Harry are off on holidays for a couple of weeks.

I had an extra glass of wine tonight, which made me extra chatty! I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, but I had fun, so I don't care if everyone else struggled with my chattiness.

I did get a good chunk of my video assignment done today .. none of the video itself, but I laid out the basic plan and wrote the script for my role play. I also discovered that the assignment is due on the 8th August and not the 5th as I first thought .. which gives me an extra 3 days to procrastinate!

Wahoo!

I took some photos this morning, but once again haven't looked at them yet, so if any of them are worth sharing, you'll see them tomorrow.

Ten minutes til midnight .. I'm off to bed.

Nite all.

Annie

I recorded a program on the Studio channel early yesterday morning on the famous photographer Annie Leibovitz. She began her career with Rolling Stone magazine and moved to Vanity Fair and she also took the very last photograph of John Lennon just 5 hours before he died ...

and you all remember the pregnant and naked Demi Moore!

I think Annie is beautiful .. she reminds me of a cross between Barbra Streisand and Julia Roberts.

She makes me want to be a portrait photographer!

So, after Adoring Husband arrived home from his SES meeting, we spent the the rest of the evening watching that program.

It's almost midnight and I seriously want to pick up my camera and go wake people up to photograph them!

Unfortunately, I didn't get another photo for the symmetry challenge and now the challenge is over. There are some great entries (and some not so great), however, I don't stand a chance this month. The winner will be announced next Monday .. I have my favourites picked out already.

I think I have stretched my procrastinating to it's very limits and tomorrow I simply MUST get serious about my video assignment. Wish me luck!

Nite all.

Symmetry

I'm struggling to find the right pic for the 'symmetry' challenge this month.

Here is the front runner at the moment .. with only 24 hours left for submissions!

I'm not completely happy with it, so I am still searching the universe for something else. I have two more ideas which I will try tomorrow, but I'm not feeling confident.

The video presentation for my next assignment is also swirling around in my head, so the brain needs to go into overdrive and I simply MUST get creative and stop procrastinating.

I'm looking forward to morning tea tomorrow, with a friend who I haven't spent time with in a while (more procrastinating?).

Now, I'm off to watch a little more of the Commonwealth Games before bed.

Nite all.

Quick Pics

Just quickly sharing some pics tonight ...

Crested Hawk (aka Pacific Basa)

Cauliflower and fresh turmeric soup with walnuts

Chocolate cake sandwich with chocolate mousse, cream and strawberries

Nite all.

Grounding or Earthing

Walking bare foot on the earth.

Kick your shoes off and spend half an hour in your garden or walk on the beach or play frisbee in the park or splash in muddy puddles!

History shows that humans once had constant contact with the earth. That was before shoes, floors, bitumen, rugs and all those things that now separate us from bare ground.

There have been, and are currently, multiple studies documenting the improvement in balance, stress, sleep, heart health and blood viscosity, among other things, when grounding is practised.

Earthing allows a transfer of electrons (the Earth’s natural, subtle energy) into the body.

Inflammation is caused by free radicals and they are neutralised with electrons from any source, so this is where grounding will be beneficial in easing, healing or improving all manner of different ailments and illnesses.

Earthing restores natural self-healing and self-regulating mechanisms.

If you really want to get into the nitty gritty (pardon the pun) of earthing, then go here, where you will find lots of detailed information.

For more studies and some interesting videos that show how grounding works, go here.

You must admit, you always feel good after a long bare-foot walk along the beach. The sand grinding between our toes and the fresh, cool, salty water cleansing our feet.

I know I'll be doing that more often and I hope to drag Adoring Husband along to enjoy the benefits.

I've taken a few photos over the last couple of days, but I haven't looked at them yet .. perhaps tomorrow. Food, birds, symmetry, flowers and bees.

It's almost 11pm.

I think I'll get an early night!

Nite all.

Relief

Headaches seem to be a common problem among my friends and family.

Headaches are generally caused by:

• Poor digestive health
• Dehydration
• Caffeine - either too much, or withdrawal from.
• Alcohol
• Sugar consumption
• Food intolerances
• Artificial food additives such as MSG, preservatives and colourings
• Mineral imbalances
• Vitamin B deficiency
• Prescription Drugs
• Artificial sweeteners
• Chemicals such as household cleaners, pesticides, perfumes etc
• Lack of grounding
• Lack of sunlight
• Chronic stress
• Tight muscles
• Misaligned skeletal system
• Smoking

I am very lucky because I rarely get headaches - perhaps once or twice a year - and when I do, I prefer to drink plenty of water and then sleep it off, rather than take any type of pain relief medication.

The most popular forms of pain relief are codeine and non-codeine. Non-codeine - ibuprofen, paracetamol and aspirin are most common. Codeine pain relievers are related to morphine and are used for chronic pain and are generally prescription medications.

If you suffer from a headache once a week or more, then you need to take a close look at your lifestyle and make some changes for the better.

• Eat a healthier diet full of fresh foods and remove processed foods
• Take good quality probiotics to improve gut health
• Reduce your caffeine and alcohol intake
• Drink more water
• Cut out sugar - read the labels on on everything because there is sugar in all packaged food
• Stop using artificial sweeteners - they are as bad, if not worse than sugar!
• Get yourself grounded - walk bare foot in your garden or on the beach (I will write a post tomorrow explaining more about grounding)
• Get 30 minutes of sunshine every day - this is my number one piece of advice for good mental and physical health
• Get a massage. Learn yoga. Meditate. See a chiropractor. These will cover/relieve chronic stress, tight muscles and misaligned skeletal system.
• Change your cleaning products to vinegar and water - chemical cleaners are completely unnecessary and we only buy them because clever advertising has convinced us that a house is not clean unless we use strong chemicals to kill the germs. Quite frankly, the chemicals are far more dangerous than any germ in our home.
• Check the side effects of your medication - talk to your doctor. You may need to reduce or change your meds to stop the headaches

The fact is, you should not be suffering from headaches and instead of popping pain pills every day/week/month, you should be investigating further and eliminating that which is causing your pain.

As with all forms of medication, there are side effects and long term effects of using pain relief medication on a regular basis:

• Headache (how ironic)
• Dizziness
• Thirst
• Ringing in the ears
• Fluid retention
• Abdominal pain
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Heartburn
• Bladder irritation including pain or frequent urination
• Anaemia
• Ulcers
• Kidney and Liver disorders
• Blurred vision
• Dry mouth

So pain medications are not as harmless as they seem - especially if they are being used on a regular basis.

It may be time to look more seriously at your pain relief habits.

Nite all.

Good Morning!

I thought I'd share some delicious breakfast drinks with which to start your day.

The best one of all, and my favourite, which I drink on an empty stomach, is hot lemon water. Squeeze half a lemon (don't use bottled lemon juice) into your biggest coffee cup and fill it with warm water (not boiling). Don't eat anything until you have finished your lemon water.

Warm lemon water aids digestion, cleanses your system, boosts your immunity, clears your skin, balances your pH, freshens your breath, lifts your mood and hydrates your lymph system.

The next one is watermelon juice. A combination of watermelon, cucumber and mint leaves is lovely. First thing in the morning, juices should be either warm or at room temperature to be gentle on your body.

Watermelon contains vitamins A and C, potassium, lycopene, beta-carotene and antioxidants. It's very hydrating, due to it's high water content. It's a diuretic, so it relieves water retention. It has positive effects on blood pressure and cholesterol and balances your pH. The lycopene in watermelon provides a mild and natural sun protection too.

The third drink is a cup of warm green tea with the juice of either lemon, lime or orange. This has positive effects on your heart health and it lowers your bad cholesterol levels while raising the good cholesterol. The polyphenols in green tea and the flavinoids in citrus help provide 'some' protection against 'some' cancers. Of course the citrus provides vitamin C, which is a wonderfully healing vitamin - especially when consumed in your fresh, healthful, raw foods.

Of course, you should always follow up this great start to the day by being active and continuing healthy eating throughout the rest of the day.

It seems pointless to have such a cleansing start and then filling your body with toxic processed foods and sugars for the rest of the day, which puts pressure on your digestive system and doesn't give your body the nutrients to regenerate all the bits that it replaces in time.

The cells in almost all of your body, replace themselves over time. It takes 20 yrs for your heart to replace itself, 2-3 weeks for your lungs, 2-4 weeks for your skin, 5 months for your liver, 10 years for your bones, 2-3 days for your intestines, 4 months for your red blood cells, your eyeballs (except your cornea) remain the same for all of your life, as does most of your brain. That's just to name a few.

You need nutrients in your body to replace these cells, so if you are eating junk food, or processed food and not consuming enough good, healthful, fresh foods, then your body is going to struggle to replace itself and cause you health problems at a much earlier age than someone who is providing all the necessary nutrients to their body. Long term poor nutrition means big trouble for you!

So that's your education for this part of my course. Today's lesson is over.

Nite all.  

Bad Tipping

So the first two football matches for the week and I've already tipped the two losing teams .. ugh!

I have absolutely nothing to share tonight and I am about to go to bed because I'm feeling incredibly tired. It's been a very big week and I successfully fought off this cold, and I think my body is telling me GET ME TO SLEEP BEFORE MIDNIGHT PLEASE, I NEED TO REST!

So it's good night from me.

Nite all.

Turning 30!

My youngest daughter, Bubbles, turned 30 years young today. In her own words, this is how she spent the day...

"What a long exciting exhausting day!!
Being 30 is tiring.
I had an awesome day at work,
flowers from the girls,
a cake from the guys.

I come home to find Matt had decorated the shit out of the house!
I get a lovely call from mum.
I get picked up for dinner in a limousine.
I have a beautiful dinner with awesome family.
I got SUPER spoilt.

Couldn't be a happier girl right now.
Thank you all for making my 30th a day I'll never forget!!"
♡♡♡♡

She is having a big birthday bash on Saturday night and then another one when she arrives here in two weeks. Well ... a big bash with just the four of us, but it will be special!

We've organised a theme party .. but the theme is a surprise, so you don't find out til I post photos after the event.

Adoring Husband and I spent a good part of today picking up the final goodies for the celebration.

I wish I could be there for her big party this weekend, but AH will be there.

My throat is feeling much better tonight .. I believe that I have successfully fought off the cold/virus/flu before it set in and took hold! Thank goodness!

My challenge right now is to get into bed before the strike of midnight .. I have 8 minutes!

Nite all. 

It's a hit!

I just checked how many hits I've had on my recent 'filofax' post and *oh my goodness* it's a hit! Almost 200 hits and I wonder how many of them clicked on the link to Vegan Chickie's blog.

I guess that proves what she said about there being some obsessive filofax users out in the big wide world of the web!

I'm wondering if all of you know how to answer this for yourself ...

My label would have to be something about not waking me up. I value every minute of my sleep and if I am woken up from a deep sleep for any reason except something pre-arranged, then I am likely to be cranky all day .. and I mean ALL DAY.

Adoring Husband is aware of this after being on the receiving end of my day-long wrath on a few occasions. I become totally unreasonable and my brain just doesn't see sense. So perhaps my warning label would read:

"BEWARE! CRANKY, BITTER AND TWISTED IF WOKEN UNEXPECTEDLY"

I'm fighting some kind of cold or virus at the moment. About twenty minutes into our train trip yesterday, I felt my throat beginning to feel a bit tender, which was frustrating because usually when I feel that happen, I can tend to it immediately, but on the train, I had to wait it out.

So since I got home last night, I've been dosing up on raw honey and lemon, drinking lots of water and I juiced some organic oranges this afternoon and had a couple of big glasses of juice. I sat in the sunshine this morning for over an hour and have eaten lots of green leafy vegetables today, for lunch and dinner.

My throat still feels a little tender, but it hasn't progressed any further, so I feel like I'm holding it back well.

Another good night's sleep tonight should help, but it's already after midnight, so I'd best get moving!

Nite all.

Long Big Day Out

Here we are, at the end of a very long big day out.

4am start. On the train at 5.45am. Into the city at 9.50am. Back on the train at 4.55pm. In the car, driving home from the train station at 9pm. Pulled into our driveway at 9.30pm.

I'm well and truly done for the day.

At the beginning of the day, I was disappointed that I didn't take my camera, but by the end of the day, I was glad not to be lugging all that extra weight around town.

Needless to say, I don't have any photos to share.

The psychotic dogs were very happy to see us arrive home this evening .. it's nice to get such a happy welcome after a big day out.

Thank you to Happy Harry and Lady Lynn for being our friends.

Nite all.

Big Day Out

I submitted another assignment today, that was not due until Friday, but I needed to get it out of the way, ahead of a big week coming up for Adoring Husband and I, so I submitted it at 4.30pm today and it was marked and returned to me before 5.30pm. It was my best mark yet! 100%

Very happy with that!

My next assignment is due in 2 weeks and is a video presentation. This assignment is the one that almost stopped me from doing the course .. I am feeling very intimidated by the prospect and I think my time will be very limited to get it done. Fingers crossed for me please!

This is a photo that I took yesterday morning down by the river ...

It was a beautiful start to the day and the river was looking it's finest vibrant blue, with lots of bird life in our company from pelicans to cormorants to kites to egrets. I love the river on a bright sparkling Winter's morning.

Well, we've got a big train trip to Brisbane tomorrow, so I'm off to get myself organised before it gets too late.

Nite all.