2011: A new year begins...

Work finished for me on Dec 17th (friday). Unfortunately this day was tinged with sadness as I attended the funeral of a 14yr old boy, one of my students. His unexpected death the previous Sunday was a shock to all. Two of his favorite songs were played at the funeral , both are by Nickelback. Here are the lyrics to one of those songs. Thinking of you, Nathan.

"If Today Was Your Last Day"

My best friend gave me the best advice
He said each day's a gift and not a given right
Leave no stone unturned, leave your fears behind
And try to take the path less traveled by
That first step you take is the longest stride

If today was your last day
And tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?
Would you live each moment like your last?
Leave old pictures in the past
Donate every dime you have?
If today was your last day

Against the grain should be a way of life
What's worth the prize is always worth the fight
Every second counts 'cause there's no second try
So live like you'll never live it twice
Don't take the free ride in your own life

If today was your last day
And tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?
Would you live each moment like your last?
Leave old pictures in the past
Donate every dime you have?
Would you call old friends you never see?
Reminisce old memories
Would you forgive your enemies?
Would you find that one you're dreamin' of?
Swear up and down to God above
That you finally fall in love
If today was your last day

If today was your last day
Would you make your mark by mending a broken heart?
You know it's never too late to shoot for the stars
Regardless of who you are
So do whatever it takes
'Cause you can't rewind a moment in this life
Let nothin' stand in your way
Cause the hands of time are never on your side

If today was your last day
And tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?

Would you live each moment like your last?
Leave old pictures in the past
Donate every dime you have?
Would you call old friends you never see?
Reminisce old memories
Would you forgive your enemies?
Would you find that one you're dreamin' of?
Swear up and down to God above
That you finally fall in love
If today was your last day

RIP Nathan

Pic of me with baby pekin ducks I incubated as part of a program at school. They then came to live at my place.


Pic: new baby alpaca born on Dec 8th: Mother is Bantiarna and father is Iceman. White female though looking rather dirty in the pic. Check out the pic of 'Icestar' in the paddock with huge mushrooms. They all grew in a semi-circle!





The days leading to Christmas and New Year were a whirl of cooking, buying and wrapping of gifts, housecleaning and catching up on those must do jobs and errands. I have babysat 8yr old Jasmine (grand daughter) on one Monday and Tuesday (she stayed over on the Mon evening)Lily is only 2 so is in care each day, whilst Jasmine is at school. Now the holidays are here she goes to vacation care and then 2 days per week with me. Today is a public holiday for New Year so I was not getting her till tonight but she has mild sunstroke so is home with mum (my eldest daughter, Melanie) and I will pick her up before Mel goes to work tomorrow. Hopefully Jasmine will be feeling better as have planned to go to my friend Maree's house and take Jasmine with me.(especially to see Maree's angora rabbits)Plus picking up "Goldie' a sateen rabbit Maree has given to me.

This was the first Christmas without all our children present. Krystal, my youngest, has always wanted a white Christmas so she and partner Sam went to the USA. They went to LA then hired a mustang and drove to Las Vegas. From there it was off to Chicago, Washington and finished in New York. They were caught up in the biggest snow storm in years in NYC and were snowed in! Looking forward to seeing some of their photos on the big TV screen tonight. They brought back a Las Vegas Tshirt for me, M and M's socks and a bling phone cover. (Late 2010 saw me upgrade quite an old nokia phone to the new iphone 4 and I love it!) Chrismtas lunch for them was at the Waldorf Astoria so how swish is that! Other comments about these places and the USA in general:
* Shopping is great and cheaper than here (she bought a to die for Guess handbag)
* Loved New York: Felt safe though amazed by the amount of people everywhere.
* Enjoyed seeing the historical monuments in Washington but didnt like the city.
* Found it hard to find food they liked..felt there were not that many healty options.
* Loved going to see an icehockey game as well as NBA game.

Sounds like it must go onto my bucket list! Christmas here saw our son Peter, his fiancee Kathryn and best mate (other son to us) stay over with us on Christmas Eve. Also, let's not forget their labrador, Chloe. We watched carols together and talked and it was very peaceful. Kim made pizzas for tea. He makes good pizzas using pita bread for the base. I like very thin bases and these come out really crispy and thin. On the day Melanie and children, Jasmine and Lily plus Mel's partner Ben arrived to open gifts and share lunch. The weather was reasonable though not warm enough to eat outside. We have had such cool weather and I am so grateful for the sunny weather of the past few days. Last year was a secret Santa and the first time we had done something different. This year we all exchanged gifts and next year will again be secret santa, though this does not include the 2 children. I was totally amazed that the alpacas, chooks and ducks gave me a large box of chocolates! I have a small collection of rubber ducks which include one from Britain and one from Ireland. My two dogs had kindly bought me a 'punk duck'. Kim gave me a white diamonds perfume set as well as a beautiful pandora bracelet: pink leather which supports the cancer council. Peter and Kathryn gave me a 'teddy bear' pandora bead as well as a lovely dish and planter pot. Melanie gave me elizabeth arden creams.

After dinner Melanie and family headed off as the children go to their other grandparents and to see their father. Peter, Kat, Adam and ourselves then went to a bbq held at the home of Kathryn's parents. More food,,more drinks,,,and good company.

Pics show Christmas at our place. Sadly Jasmine has only one of my cockatiels on her shoulder as the other one flew away a few days prior to Christmas. Billy is really missing his mate.


Good friend Ralph arrived over from Melbourne (capital city of Victoria) to stay with us on Dec 30th till Jan 9th. He came over for a short holiday as well as to attend a 21st birthday party on New Year's eve. Apparently Ellyn was the first baby born just after midnight 21 years ago.

New Years eve Krystal and Sam arrived back from New York. They were supposed to arrive several days earlier but JFK airport had ground to a halt due to severe blizzard/snow storms. The pictures of the deep snow were amazing. They had planned to attend a friend's party that evening but that ideas was soon shelved in favour of an early night after an exhausting flight home. We went to friends John and Ronnie in New Norfolk for a meal with friends though decided not to stay overnight as originally planned as Kim did not drink much so no problem to drive the forty or so minutes home.

New Years Day was great weather, very sunny and hot! Just the way I like it! Ralph and I went to Salamanca markets and then to the Taste of Tasmania, held on the waterfront. Too many people for Kim. We had Indian food there, bought a glass each and drank some wine in the sun before heading to the New Sydney Hotel. This pub has locals who come in and play Irish music every Saturday arvo. Kim, our son Peter and mate Adam met Ralph and I there for a couple of ales before heading back to our place. We were joined by Peter's fiancee Kathryn, Sam and Krystal as well as friends Rog and Thel. Had a BBQ, played pool, chatted and enjoyed the company. A great start to the year!!