Monday, October 31, 2011

Trick or treat?

Or should that be treat or treat?

Halloween's popularity is growing rapidly. Especially in our neighborhood. We had a few door knockers before our girls hit the streets, and whilst it was not the majority, I have to say I think some kids need to work on their manners. Naturally, I drilled my kids (and the extras that came with us) on Halloween etiquette before we headed out. Steve's job was to ration out the lollies (they always seem to disappear quicker than I expect).

The kids just love Halloween. I mean really, at what other time are they permitted to collect so many lollies? The real challenge is stopping them from eating them all before bedtime. There are so many kids in our street that everyone pretty much embraces Halloween. I did give the 'young professionals' (read: uni students) a warning to be better prepared next year. We are extremely tolerant when it comes to their loud parties, you'd think they'd throw a few lollies the kids' way.

Happy Halloween!
From the She Devil, the Mummy and the Zombie Punk

Saturday, October 29, 2011

What a trip!



Ava and I have spent the past two nights at the hospital after she took a bad fall on Thursday afternoon when she tripped over a netball.

I was watching Ruby's netball game when Eadie rushed over to me to say Ava had fallen over and really hurt herself. As I ran towards her she I could see she was frozen, crying "My bone's sticking out and it really hurts!".  I took a deep breath as I approached her and although relieved that the bone wasn't actually sticking out, her right forearm had a distinct bend in it. I scooped her up and raced her to the first aid room where a splint was put on it. Sadly for Ava, she didn't get any pain relief.

A friend, who is also a doctor, drove Ava and I to the Starship hospital and that's where we stayed till 10.30 this morning! X-rays confirmed the break and options were discussed. Then the long wait started but of course at that stage we had no idea how long we were actually going to spend there. In my naivety, I thought if you broke a bone they "fixed" it, put a cast on and sent you on your merry way. It seems that Ava was not the only child to break a bone that day as there was an unprecedented number of orthopaedic cases forcing them to open more operating theatres.

Twice she was taken down to the pre-op room only to be told a case with a higher priority had come in. The poor child only had breakfast yesterday, and then nothing until 11pm last night. That was one of the hardest parts of the whole ordeal. That, and the waiting, and the boredom.

Getting a temporary half cast put on until she got the real thing.

The doll we decorated whilst waiting for Ava's turn in theatre – one of the things we did to occupy the time.

Happy to be back at home.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Soaking it up


We just went down to Wynyard Quarter and Queen's Wharf to soak up the last of the RWC atmosphere. There were a few people around but it wasn't overly crowded. Unfortunately the queue to go inside the big rugby ball was really long with an estimated waiting time of two hours – no thanks!




I wonder how everyone's going to be feeling tomorrow?

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Do or die

We're at Eden Park.
Kick off is still an hour away.
The crowds are filing in.
Come on boys, don't let us down.
This is it!

Saturday, October 15, 2011

A quickie

We had a couple a spare hours between flights today which was just enough time for a quick catch up with family.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Burning memories


Our trip to Queensland just happens to coincide with cane harvesting season. Locos are chugging, the mills are pumping and, if you're lucky like us, you get to witness a cane fire or two.



Standing next to a cane fire is quite an awesome experience. As the flames sweep their way through the field, the crackling gets louder and louder, releasing black cane trash into the sky, until it eventually dies off. When I was a kid we used to scream "It's snowing! It's snowing!", as we ran around trying to catch the trash.

It doesn't matter how many cane fires you've seen in your life time, they still manage to captivate.




Friday, October 7, 2011

Broccoli salad


I just can't get enough of this broccoli salad. It's my "go to" side dish at the moment which can be whipped up in three minutes flat. It also has the added benefit of being really good for you and broccoli is cheap at the moment [at least it is in my part of the world]. So what are you waiting for!

Adapted from this recipe, my variations are:
  • substitute goats cheese for fetta
  • use mixed beans instead of chick peas
  • swap flaked almonds for pine nuts [straight from the packet]
  • I also used two head of broccoli not one [nuked in the microwave].
Of course, these ingredients were used because that's what I had on hand. I'm sure Stephanie's variation is ok too :)