30

The big day is here. Today I'm 30. I feel better today, much better than I have the last few weeks. I've been dreading today, like I dread my Birthday every year. But here it is, and there's nothing I can do to stop it.


I feel ready to move on from my 20's in a positive way. I plan to lose all that tension and anxiety about who I am and what I want to be.


I am going to embrace life. Did I think my life would be like this 10 years ago? Probably not. But I love what I have. 2 gorgeous kids. An amazing partner. A fantastic family who care about me. A new home that I feel blessed to call my own and my health. At the end of the day, what more can you ask for.


Tonight my parents are minding my babes while James and I are heading to dinner at Rockpool in the city. Tomorrow, no plans yet. We will see where the day takes us. Mathildas Market, the beach, who knows. Sunday, my whole family are heading to Bather's Pavilion at Balmoral Beach for a gorgeous lunch. Hopefully the sun will shine, the salty breeze will blow and we will laugh and be merry.


See you on the other side. xx

90 Years Young

Today we are off to Port Hacking in southern Sydney to celebrate James's paternal grandmother's 90th Birthday. What a milestone. Her name is Mary. She is the sweetest old thing. And such a trooper. She's had many ailing health issues lately but surprisingly continues to surge on. She will meet Edward for the 1st time today. Her party is being held at the local Yacht Club near the retirement home which she resides in.

I hope when I turn 90, I look like this... I can only hope I'm still rocking out in 2071.

30th Birthday Destination # 2

Somewhere alot closer and cheaper than Thailand is Noosa on the sunny Sunshine Coast in QLD.


Noosa is so lovely. I adore every holiday I've had up there. Except dealing with the tropical monsoons in the month of January.


We have a holiday house up there which my parents frequent often. What I love about Noosa is that it is far away enough from Sydney to feel like a holiday, but not too long on a plane which is great with little kids.


If we go to Noosa for my 30th, another bonus is that I can ask friends to join us. Accommodation is super cheap in the winter months up there, and 2 of my best friends turn 30 right before I do so we could make a real celebration of it if they joined us.


Here are some reasons why I love Noosa and why it's a contender for my big 3-0!

Amazing restaurants to choose from. The 2 photos above are of my favourite place to dine, Sails on Hastings Street.

Gorgeous beaches, friendly locals, so many activities to keep yourself occupied...

Gustos is my favourite restaurant in Noosaville (the River). This place is amazing, very kid friendly.

The famous Eumundi Markets are a short drive away. Great stalls, lovely locals, amazing food and lots of fun.

I know some people might think this is odd, but I like the idea of having a good mall nearby for supplies. Noosa Civic is a quick car trip and you can stock up on food, booze and emergency toy supplies if necessary.

Lake McKenzie, located on Fraser Island, is a long but FUN 4WD away. The whole family went there once and it was amazing. Fresh lakes, white sand, but lots of headaches from the bumping in the 4WD. Not for everyone, but lots of fun indeed.

I've been twice before but I'd go again and again. Australia Zoo is a GREAT place for kids. Very educational and entertaining. Not a cheap day out, but lots of fun.

30th Birthday Destinations

I'm turning the dirty 30 in August. I can't believe it, 30! And I want it to be special. I've had some sub-par birthdays in the past and hopefully this year will be stellar!

We went away to Bali for James's 30th last year and it was amazing. Private villa, staff, drivers, the whole experience was a dream. Except for me getting sick at the end of the trip, major bzzt.

By the time August rolls around, I will have a 3 yr old toddler and a 5 month old newborn to accompany us wherever we decide to go. James and I have been discussing going away somewhere, but we cannot decide.

Here is the 1st place we have talked about. A dear friend from school got married here about 12 months ago and said it was DEVINE!

Trisara

This is the standard view from most of the villas. Sheesh!

I could see myself celebrating here!

This is the main pool area, not too shabby!



Floating pontoon out in the ocean

Massages here? Where do I sign up?

Best of all, they have a complimentaty kids club which looks fantastic! They take the kids outdoors to the beach and pool too.

This place is a little on the high end of our budget so we would only go for a few nights with a stopover in Bangkok or Singapore. I'm not sure about how Abi would go eating local food though. And I've heard of many people getting "thai tummy" (diarrhea and tummy upsets) from the local food and water. So this destination does have some risks.



Flashback Friday.

Eddie Murphy / Rick James - Party All The Time

Happy Friday to everyone. Today's flashback is dedicated to my Dad because today is his 60th Birthday. A very special day indeed.

I helped my Mum organise a surprise party for him tonight, on board a luxury yacht on Sydney Harbour with his closest friends and family.

This week on the golf course, one of the invited guests let it slip to my Dad about the party tonight. Mum was devastated but got over it quickly. So Dad knows something is happening tonight, but has no idea what.

My family have organised babysitters, and bought new dresses. Ipods are charged and are full of his favourite music, canapes are being prepared as I write this and his favourite alcohol is being chilled below deck. We have a magician doing a short performance as well as a poker table set up so my Dad can play his favourite game on board too.

I made a DVD slide show of family photos which will run on the TV on board. And I bought a memory book too for all party guests to sign.

I'm heading down to this salon in a few hours to get waxed and have professional make-up applied too.

So think of me and my sister tonight, on board this yacht, dancing away on the harbour. The weather in Sydney is perfect today and hopefully will ensure a balmy night on the seas.

Birthday Present Getaway

So I'm settling into my new age quite well. 29 isn't that bad... 4 days in.

Weeks ago, James and I agreed that I didn't need any gifts this year and all I asked was for a weekend away somewhere to relax and take some much needed time out. We talked about the Blue Mountains, Bowral, Byron Bay, Port Stephens and Mollymook.

To my surprise on my Birthday, I opened his tropical looking card to see an itinerary booked for 3 nights at Qualia on Hamilton Island. I nearly fell off the sofa with surprise and excitement!

We are leaving Abigail with my Mum for 3 nights as we fly to Hamilton Island to begin our sojourn.

I am so excited that I've already read the spa and dining menus and had a look at the weather forecast too.

I will be sad to leave Abigail for 3 nights but with James starting his MBA at Grad School in a few weeks, this is really the only time we have to getaway from Sydney and relax.

So, without further ado, THIS is where I'll be resting my head in 2 weeks. BLISS

All images via Qualia website

Happy Birthday to Me

Image

Yes, I'm turning 29 today. The big 29. Almost 30... but not quite.

I feel good today. Not as grumpy as I've been the last few days. Abigail is still as clingy as ever. But today, that's ok. I'm liking all the cuddles and kisses.

I slept in till 8:30am, and Abi slept in till 9:30am which meant I had a nice quiet morning to read birthday emails.

I had lunch with my mother-in-law and gran-in-law up at the local nursery, which was lovely. They have a little indoor cafe with play equipment next to it, so Abi was in heaven. She refused to eat anything for lunch, even TINY TEDDIES, and wanted to slide and run and climb. She is now quietly tucked into bed, drifting off to sleep before we head out to dinner tonight with my siblings at a family restaurant in Baulkham Hills.

Below is a photo from 1987. That's me on the left, my younger sister in the middle then my brother in white. This is how I remember birthdays. Although it wasn't mine, I just remember birthdays were the best thing on the family calender.

My sister and I don't even look possibly related in this photo. And my facial expression is awesome. I hope I look like that tonight at dinner.

xx

DJ Lance Rock Party Hat

My mother-in-law bought this DJ Lance Rock party hat and glasses for Abigail's Birthday. Abi wasn't overly fussed to even try it on, but I encouraged everyone else at the party to pose with it.

Here are the best photos.

Nephew Mikey getting into the spirit.

My gorgeous brother Tim, giving it all he's got! 

Younger sister Louise, trying on the hat. Only Louise could still look beautiful in an orange fluffy hat!

And getting into a pose too. Such a charming face!

This is my older sister Jacki. I love this candid shot!

YOOOOOOOOOOO!

Brother-in-law Grant, sporting the do!

Cousin-in-law Bettina doing a fabulous DJ Lance!

My husband's much younger cousin Max. He is 12, at that wonderful awkward phase. Bless his heart for posing. He's a good sport.

My husband's uncle Tim. A very cool uncle indeed. Max taking a pic of him too on the iphone.

My sweet cousin Josh was very proud to strike a pose for me!

My cousin Matt, a little shocked at how funny he looks!

My Dad, even sporting "spirit fingers" for the photo. Bless his heart, love you Dad!

Last of all, ME! And I found Foofa so we could pose together. YO GABBA GABBA!

Abigail's 2nd Birthday Party

On Saturday 24th July 2010, my baby turned 2 years old. She is no longer a baby, but a fully fledged toddler.

The theme was 'Yo Gabba Gabba' which is one of Abigail's favourite shows. We had tickets to see the live show in June but it was cancelled due to licensing rights and filming apparently.

Almost all the invitee kids cancelled due to illness or, well, illness. I'm sure this will be a reoccuring trend because Abi has a winter birthday. But we still had the best fun, if not, even more fun than we would have, had everyone been able to make it.

I ordered a party pack online and had it shipped from the USA. The party pack included official themed party plates, napkins, balloons, and decorations. They had so many things you could buy, like an adult DJ Lance Rock costume which I almost convinced my husband to wear.

The party ran for 2 hours at my in-laws house in Dural. They have lots of room to host a party with plenty of parking too.

There was a colouring in table for the kids with Yo Gabba Gabba characters to colour in, a bubble machine outside which kept them entertained on the deck, Abi's bike to ride around the verandah and 85 decorative balloons on the ceiling which my nephew Mikey really liked.

My mother-in-law and gran-in-law made a pink 'Foofa' cake for Abi which was gorgeous. Abi loved it. They also made mini cupcakes which were a real hit. Abi ate about 6 of them on the day and was definately on a sugar high.

They also made her outfit which was a pink tutu, a white 'Foofa' t-shirt and tights. Abi loved her tutu and wanted to wear it to bed. She looked devine and you could tell she loved her party clothes. My nephew also wore his 'Brobee' t-shirt so he looked the part too.

Abi was really spoiled with lots of wonderful and generous gifts including a gorgeous wooden doll house, a camera, a tea set, a pink scooter, clothes, pj's, swimwear, some duplo lego, a bean bag for her room and so many more gifts.

We bought her a wooden easel, the new Baby Alive and Alphie robot toy which Abi loves. It's not as junky as it appears on ads on the TV.

When we sang 'Happy Birthday' to Abigail, she chuckled nervously and laughed. It was gorgeous.

Here are some of my favourite photos of her special day.

Abi opening her 1st present.

Birthday girl

Abi pondering

Abi with my Mum

Abi's Foofa cake

Tamsyn loving the balloons

My nephew Mikey getting into the fairy bread!

Fairy bread aftermath

My angel

James and Abi singing 'Happy Birthday'

Abi on her new pink scooter!

Birthday girl

Mini cupcakes

Food, decorations, party time aftermath