Today we had special guests for lunch... Simone from Great Fun 4 Kids and her awesome family were on their way to a pirate party in our city and decided to catch up for the afternoon!
Simone and I have only ever met once before in 'real life' (here), but even so, being blogging friends means you pretty much know each other better than you know some of your own friends (strange isn't it).
The kids and dads instantly got on, and while the kids played and the blokes talked about deep things, Simone and I made sure we got some great shots for our blogs :P
Thanks to the Graham family for such an awesome time - you guys rock!
The more I think about it, the more I realize that I actually come from a rather CRAZY family. They just seem to do really strange things... often.
The great thing is that we all get to laugh often at each others expense.
Some things can't be shared, but here is a sample of a few of the things members of my extended family have gotten up to...
Faking having asthma for the doctor so that they could get inhalers for their pet poodle who was wheezy.
Filling out a form for that same poodle so that it could get it's own food ration coupons during the war.
Trying to return a DVD to a liquor store... in their slippers, and wondering why the man at the counter seemed rather amused about being given a Wiggles DVD.
Deciding that the poor policeman's horse next door needed more exercise so secretly untying it at night and taking it for walks.
Asking a lady in a children's clothing store if she was pregnant, and when being told she wasn't, covering up by telling her that it would be the perfect place to work if she was.
Realizing at the checkout that you can't find the chocolate bar that you were going to buy and discovering it in your purse.
Accidentally giving the cat's worm tablet to the husband.
Going into the house of a relative who had since moved out (and this person had already visited that person in their new home but had forgotten) and yelling out inside the house for the person and when discovered by strangers continuing to insist that they must be joking about the relative moving out.
Crossing the road and finding a pair of panty-hose falling out of their pants leg.
Today I observed someone being spoilt - spoilt in a good way... and boy did I love it.
As I sat and watched this beautiful pregnant lady opening gifts at her baby shower I was struck at how special the moment was.
This lady has not long been in our country - she is new here to our land with no extended family or old friends. She is about to have her third child, and has never had a baby shower or been treated in such a special way.
I watched as she opened gifts surrounded by new friends and even some people who have never met her before, yet wanted to welcome her into our 'family'... her eyes filled with tears as she shared in her broken English how she has never felt so special and loved, especially from people she has never met.
It moved me.
It made me wonder how many other people are out there in my life who have never experienced being treated 'special'... people who need to feel spoilt.
I think there must be quite a few people out there who need a bit of spoiling... I might just have to find some.
As promised, here is the recipe for these yummy muffins.
Whenever my banana's start to turn brown or spotty (beyond anyone wanting to eat them anymore) I shove them in the freezer. Once I have a few stashed away in there, I get them out and sit them in a bowl until they have defrosted, then squeeze out all the banana and throw the rest away! Great way to reduce waste and heaps softer for baking with.
Banana & Chocolate Chip Muffins
Ingredients
2 cups self-rising flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup sugar
1 cup chocolate chips
2 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup milk
¼ cup butter, melted
2 medium bananas, mashed (to yield about 1 cup)
Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F). Grease twelve standard muffin cups or line them with parchment paper cases.
In a large mixing bowl, sift together the self-rising flour and baking soda. Stir in the sugar and ½ cup of the chocolate chips. Make a well in the centre.
In a small mixing bowl, combine the eggs, milk, melted butter, and mashed banana. Add all at once to the flour mixture and stir until just moistened (the batter should be lumpy).
Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling them two-thirds full. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup chocolate chips.
Bake until golden brown and a wooden skewer or toothpick inserted into the centre of a muffin comes out clean, 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool in pan for 5 minutes.
The bunting and balloons were hung, delicious treats were eaten (including more of these) the requested Yo Gabba Gabba cake was made (she actually wanted a Jack Black cake - long story), the giant water slide was enjoyed (by little kids and one 'big' kid) and along with family and friends we celebrated another year of life.
Our little baby girl will be turning 3 years old tomorrow!!
I am always amazed at how fast time seems to fly (except when you are stuck in a hot car full of screaming kids). I seem to have forgotten about the first 6 months where she would scream unless she was lying in a sling... the crazy 1 year old that would climb out of her cot continually falling and hurting herself, climb up sets of drawers to jump off or use chairs to get into dangerous places.
If I hadn't blogged about it I would have probably forgotten about the time she decided to have 'cups of tea' with the toilet water... or tell me loudly that old men in the supermarket were 'cute'.
But I remember her first smiles when she was only a couple of days old - they were real smiles, and only happened when she saw her Daddy. I love her little dimples and her bright blue eyes.
I can't imagine life without this bright little girl.
I think today is totally appropriate for a flashback!
I really really loved my phone sock - but then it got all old and my mum needed to borrow it as her new Christmas present phone kept getting scratched.
While sitting in the car yesterday while Symon took the kids into the library, I decided to do something I've never done before... crochet without a pattern or instructions!
I made a cover for my phone - and I really, really like it.
Mum's already ordered one for herself... anyone want and old stinky phone sock?
