What a week!  Here’s the Hits:

1. School holidays!  Yay, to long lazy days by the tepid pool, ice-creams leaving sticky, drippy, trails down salty, sun-kissed arms and almost wet, humid air, all set to the background drone of the cricket commentary.  No morning rush to dump the kids at prison school.  No homework.  No lunchboxes.

2.  Setting up the Christmas Tree.  We make a bit of a big deal about it, having a roast and some cranberry drinks to celebrate turning on the lights.  Sweet traditions of ornaments old, and one new.  The advent drawers with a tiny gift from the Elves every night.  Let’s hope they remember to leave said gifts, every.single.night, for twenty-four nights.

3.  A day of no time constraints and no drama, sitting by the pool today at a mate’s place.  Happy kids.  Happy Mums.  Happy days.

4.  Plotting and planning all things Christmas, handing out the teacher’s presents, finalising all the other present purchases, and just basically, getting ready for the fun that is the weeks to come.

5.  Chocolate and beer.  A match made in Heaven.  The End.

Have you set up your tree? Send me a pic.  Or not.  As you wish.

Here’s the hits you’ve been waiting for:

1. Setting up the Christmas Tree.. Yay!  Christmas is finally here (sort of)… We have a busy weekend of work and parties, and trimming the tree is a bit of an event around here; we have a roast, a christmassy dessert, and of course a cranberry inspired bevvy or two.  So we’ve set it up a day early (we usually do it on the 30th).  We listened to Rod Stewart croon the shit out of those carols, lit the chrissy candles and had a fine ol’ night.

2. The school Christmas Carols. Very sweet to see the kids onstage and working as a group.  For the first time Unit Two was down the front with her peers and then up on stage.  No Mummy-leg-holding.  That’ll do me for Chrissy thanks.

3. Catching up with some idiots I love on the weekend.  Idiots who know me better than most anyone in the world, and yet still seem to like me (most of the time…dance moves not withstanding).  How tolerant.  How spesh.  Nothing much else to add, other than “Cosmos anyone?”

4. Getting a few twitter RTs this week from Mrs Woog, John James and Kelly Exeter: Twitter and blogging royalty.  Puffed and chuffed, me is.

5. A visit from the Mother-In-Law.  So far she’s done all my ironing, pretty much handled the aforementioned roast and played shit games with the kids. All whilst plying me with a very tasty savvy b… Who knows what I will be able to get her to do* before the weekend is through?  You rock Jenna.

* One of the things she will be doing is making us her cray-cray ‘no bowl’ slice.  It has a tin of condensed milk, so you know only good things can come of it.  Winning.

Have a great weekend.  Are you trimming your bush tree this weekend?

Do you make an event of it?

Here’s my top five, peeps, and no, cancer is NOT on the list.

1.  Vespas. How cool are they?  Hahaha, that was a joke. Vespas suck.  We all know that right?  So stop buying them then people.  And stop driving them in front of me at 50kms in an 80km zone.  Thanks.

2.  Two visits to The Green Room at Eumundi in one week.  Love that place.  Love that green. If it was closer, it would be my new local. And, in fact, if I could convince more people to meet me out there for a sneaky mid-week, mid-day glass of sparkles, then I suspect it would be, regardless of distance.  Sorry Red, you’re grouse, but green is the new black.

3.  My $2 tomato plant from the world’s worst store (Bunnings).  It’s planted in a tiny bit of sandy “soil”, receives no love, and has currently yielded seven juicy ripe tommies.  FYI I am also growing basil, mint and chives, so yeah, basically self-sufficient. Just call me Don Bourke… Without the swears (except for the blog yesterday, sorry about that.)

4.  My awesome home-based barista (everything is home-based now isn’t it?). He just bought me a cup of the hot, perky brown stuff.  Better than George Clooney… yes, yes, I know there’s a new ad. Mmmmm George I mean, Nespresso.

5.  Blogging. Thanks for reading, all of you. Thanks especially for the shares, likes and comments.  I know I’m pretty self-indulgent, and rant on about my own shit all the time, in fact, Sam gave me a gift yesterday that said exactly that…  But I really do appreciate you letting me know when you are reading, what you like reading, and egging me on.  I love doing this.  It’s my first ever real hobby.

How about you?  Any hobbies?  

What’s your top 5?

Hit me baby, one more time:

1. The Emporium Hotel. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, that joint rocks. I look forward to them giving me a free night there sometime soon, due to all the amazing advertising I am providing…

2.  This new top from Big W… I dunno what is going on with designers making clothes for cheapo shops, but I was in Big Dub the other day getting the photos developed and I saw this top. It set me back twenty five bucks, and it’s perfect for work.

3. Ohhh yesss. Now that’s what I like to see in the beer economy. I would have thought a home visit would be worth a six pack at best, (and of course I did it as a favour, not for the grog*) but how about this for a surprise payment? Maybe I’m better than I thought… Home visit anyone?

4. Mazzy Fine Photography. I am getting so much joy looking at, and sharing our anniversary using the fantastic pics by THE MOST PATIENT PHOTOGRAPHER EVER. Thanks luv!

5.  All the great reading I’ve been doing this week… From Stephen King to all the bloggy chicks, I’ve had a great week of eye action.  If you want some ideas of where to start, here are my faves this week: Kelly Exeter, Nikki Parkinson, Mrs Woog.

That’s it for me, off to bed now cos I’ll be arising early…. from the Ashers xx

Have a great weekend.. What’s your top tip from the week?

So here it comes… If life was a mix tape, and I was your DJ (which I would be, because: bossy) this is what we’d be groovin’ along to:

The Hits:

1.  FINALLY we had some rain on the Sunshine Coast.  Amazing lightning on Wednesday night, with heaps of action out to the west.  We went onto our top deck (yes it’s called TopDeck and no it’s not called BarUP, regardless of what my husband might tell you), and watched it all unfold.  I added some ‘interest’ to the sky-show by screaming with every fork.  Freaked the brats out a bit.   #winning

2.  Halloween chocolates from Aldi. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned my Aldi Allergy before, but I have it, and I can.not.go.in.there.  But I anti-histaminedd up, and got these. So YUM for cheapshit choccies.   Allergy may be waning.

3.  The excitement the kids had anticipating Halloween.  I hear all the ‘ween naysayers being all Grinchy and “it’s so American” about this PAGAN ritual, but to you, I say a big WHATEVs.  We decorated this place with shite plastic and creepy things and they LOVED it.  They didn’t even do the trick or treat thing, but went to Bunnings and yet, loved it still.  I rate you Halloween.

4.  The big kid going to camp.  I’ll tell you more about that another day, but yes he went, (he walked off on me with hardly a ‘bye Mum) and YES he is home again.  I need to harden my heart.

5.  Liam’s new electric guitar.  Some sweeeet tunes coming out of that bedroom these days. The current song to be mastered is “Joker and the Thief”… He can drum it, so we await the one man band.

The Shits:

1.  Crumbs on the floor.  How do you get there?  HOW? No wonder I love wearing shoes so much.

2.  BAS. You suck. You know it.  That is all.

3.  My new iPhone being full already.  Seriously? Is there a 64GB?  Bloody music.

4.  No Brody on Homeland.  Where is he?  What is happening?  How much more of that insipid daughter can we stand, and how many panic attacks from Carrie can I handle?  Gimme Brody, and gimme him now.

5.  Commonwealth Bank ads.  NO.  The Toni Collette one was bad, but now the singing dude? Really?

Have a great weekend…

What are your Hits?

What SHITTED you?

…From DJ SHADOWCAT xx

The Hits:

1.  Having My Friend John and Olive here for the weekend.  Even if Friend did fall asleep after nowhere near enough beers, whilst putting Olive to bed… Still, so good to hear those kids laughing and giggling and smiling together.   Then as an added bonus, we got to have lunch with some of Hayls and John’s friends on Sunday.  Some we knew, and some we didn’t.  Lovely, yet bittersweet.  I just missed her so bloody much.  And of course wanted to get her ‘run down’ on who was who, and how they fitted in.     Sigh.

2.  The sound of the green frog (please, please, please be a frog and not a cane toad) in my down-pipe, or spouting, or wherever he is. Funny little thing must be thirsty- he’s been singing for days.  We’ve had precisely 17 drops of rain.  Yet still he sings.

3.  Grandparents day at school today.  The youngest was very excited for Nanny to take them to school, jumping up and down like popcorn.  The oldest was more reserved, and pretended he didn’t care (that’s 9 for you), but loved Nanny being there to see his classroom, and check out whatever crazy things he’s been up to.  Such precious times.

4.  Pimms and lemonade.  Need I say more?   My new fave drink for a long, hot Queensland Summer.  Lucky I have a good supply of mint.  Thank you Mr.Pimms.

5.  Today Coco came upstairs crying because Liam had called her “a penis”.  I have no idea why, but I found this immensely entertaining.  Coco was beside herself, because “it’s mean”.  Once we were able to discern that, in fact, she wasn’t a penis, I was able to get her to see the funny/ridiculous side.  I’m now waiting for Mr.Vagina to come upstairs crying….

The Shits:

1.  Another casualty in the Asher Apple Orchard.  This time Liam’s iPod.  The bloody thing literally jumped out of my handbag and onto the concrete when I was getting out my purse.  Damn you Apple and your seductive, irresistible and fragile technology.

2.  This wind. Beat it wind.  You are no friend of mine.

3.  No daylight savings.  Come ON Queensland, this bird and bright light bullshit at 4.30am is doing my head in.  It must be the menopause, but I can no longer sleep through all the rays and ruckus.  Please Clive Palmer, I implore you: save me.

4.  My sore toe.  Three weeks and still not healed.  Toe, you sir, are being ridiculous, and are impairing my shoe wearing capabilities.

I may have to be hospitalised..

(If you can’t tell, it’s my little toe.)

5.   Nonsense click-bait blog posts from women who know better.  Yes Mia, I’m looking at you.

Have a great weekend everyone.  Hope you rack up the hits and don’t get the shits..

Any plans?