Merry Christmas Everyone - 2010

Yesterday was the first day of my holidays, I don't go back to work until 10th Jan - yay!!

As we will be on the road driving firsto Sydney today for Xmas with Mr Mel's family, and then on the 27th Dec to Warrnambool in Vic for post-Xmas & New Year with family, I'm not sure if I will be able to post anything, I've promised myself to try and stay offline!!  yeah right!

So to everyone who has passed through, stayed a while, made a comment or joined to follow my blog - THANK YOU & I wish you and your family a very merry & safe Christmas and a terrific start to the new year, may all of your dreams come true.

Until 2011,

The Day A Cow Gave Me The Finger & A Massive Lightbulb Moment

For anyone who googled ‘cow’ and ‘finger’, please note this is not a porn story, so move along right now thanks.

Ok so for anyone else, today I had a massive lightbulb moment courtesy of a steer (male cow), well a few steers, while they were ‘flicking me the bird’, ‘giving me the finger’, etc.

At work we have a small herd of 8 Charolais cattle, today it was time to move them from one of the horse paddocks they’d been cleaning out, back to the bush/dam block.

3 of us were up for the job, the new girl was hiding behind the gatepost to the holding yard, ready to shut the gate when the herd ran into the holding yard, the boss was on the quad bike moving them up and I was on a side, flanking them in.

We got them close to the yard and they bolted my way, so I run, well shall I say lumber off, and try to head them off before they get to open paddock and go bolting down the other end.

So while I was running in front of the cattle, heaving and panting, I thought ‘well Mel doesn’t this show you just how unfit you are’, then I turned round and the cattle all stopped, 7 of them turned back towards the yard, but 1 stood there staring at me, I yelled at him, waved me hands, and he just stood there, I thought ‘you cheeky sod’.

About 10 seconds later he took 3 steps towards me, I took 3 towards him, and we were having a face off. Steer v Me – now for anyone who knows cattle, they’re meant to turn away from you and be scared of you, not this cheeky bugger, he was just staring at me, like a cheeky teenager flipping you the bird, daring you to do something.

So I’m standing there panting & wheezing, red faced, staring at this steer, I ran at him, and he stood his ground till the last second, then turned on a dime, with a look over his shoulder at me that was almost a derogatory smirk, and went straight into the yard with his mates.

I walked into the yard, and he stops munching on the hay we put out to entice them, and just stares at me, now I know I’m reading to much into it, but I just now that steer, was saying ‘Mel go have a look at yourself, I’m just a stupid steer and I can see you’re not in good shape’.

So I went to the bathroom, trying to catch my breath, and saw my red face, messed up hair, and thought yes Mr Charolais, I take your point.

The moral or point to the story, 2011 is my year to get healthy and fitter, which in my case means losing about 30kgs, so wish me luck everyone, and Mr Charolais, or shall we say Nemesis, we shall meet again, and thanks for the inspiration!

Till next time,

Ollie the pug - an old vid

I was loading some You Tube vids for work and had a memory drop by that I'd loaded a video of our dog Ollie a while back, I searched for 'Ollie The Pug' and there he was :)

So for a little Xmas cheer, here's a very amateur video of our mad dog - Ollie The Pug, at our old house at the farm  :)

Till next time,

An Aussie Santa

Mr Mel & I headed down to Blue Bay for a family Xmas do, staying overnight in a multi-million dollar property, owned by a family friend, where the backyard merged into the sand of the beach.

Soooo relaxing, and reminded me of my childhood in Warrnambool, growing up in a seaside town, the beach is such a part of every day life.  I hope to one day get back to a seaside lifestyle, here's hoping!

We had a great day, feasted on delicious Xmas fare, a night of chatting with the extended family. Then awoke to a beautiful sunrise over Blue Bay.

On the Saturday arvo we even had a visit from Santa, in a true Aussie Style!!

Till next time,

Can We Do It Update - final of 2010

Ok so I've gotten a tad sidetracked off my 'Can We Do It' Goals & Updates, but the fact they're still out there in blogland, gives me the push I need to get back to it.

So 2011 will be the year of converting goals into achievements, I'll be back in early 2011 to set it out properly, but until then, my last Can We Do It Update for 2010:

Mortgage - We bought our home in July 2009, We're aiming to have our mortgage paid off in 7 years from starting out, which would make it July 2016.

Update - We're on month 19 of our mortgage, and we're going quite well, we've got 56.33% equity . 

Other debt - Our total non mortgage debt includes a car loan (as part of mortgage package, at same interest rate), and a VISA we've since closed. Our aim is to have all of this debt paid off by mid 2015.

Update - Compared to when we started back in July 2009, we're sitting at approx 48.65% non mortgage debt gone, which is good, we've got the bulk of our money against the mortgage, not sitting in the car, so we're happy with that situ.

Weight - As per other updates, my weight covers a few areas, getting healthy & fit, getting my body in the right place to conceive (and fit in a near 'normal' wedding dress!!). 

Update - Let's just say I totally lost my mojo, will review in 2011!

Business - In Feb 2010 Mr Mel gave up his job in Sydney to have a go at turning his hobby into a business. 

Update - Mr Mel's business is growing steadily, he's working hard at it and the results are coming in, he's probably at about 75% of his Sydney wage so far, yay!  Combined with my bloodstock investments/business, we're chugging along ok.  Looking at another part to the business in early 2011, but will update later on that.

I promise I'll be back in 2011 to redo the goals :)

Till next time,

Our foal - an update

Back on 20 September our lovely mare foaled a big strong colt - http://canwedoityepwecan.blogspot.com/2010/09/our-new-arrival.html

Well he is now 11 weeks old and continues to impress us.  He is a big strong and correct colt, and lucky for all of us who have to work with him, he has a gorgeous temperament.  We have a few foals on the farm who are shall we say less than cooperative, but our boy is just a gem (so far!!).

This is a pic of him at about 4 hours old

This is a photo of him from today, at about 11 weeks old

As you can see he is growing into a lovely lad, not that I'm biased much!!  :)

Till next time,

First time in 15 years!

I first posted this on the Simple Savings forum, but thought I should put it on my blog to so here goes!

Yes as sad as it might seem, Saturday night is the first time I have worn a dress in over 15 years!

It was an engagement party, with a 'casino' dress code, so I thought right dress it is.

2 weeks ago I went dress shopping, tried on 4, all hideous (I am in the plus size range!).

Went home very depressed, and resigned to wearing my 'usual uniform', of black pants, fancy black top.

Then on Sat am, 5 hours before the party, Mr Mel and I arrived in Sydney went to Castle Hill to get him a new shirt for the party. Found his shirt in the first 10 mins at Myer, very happy.

Wandered around, with Mr Mel trying to encourage me to look for another dress. I resisted, then we're outside of David Jones and I say 'stuff it I'm going in, I'll probably be back in 5 mins'.

So off I go, and wandering around the plus size section with a load of women at least 10-15 years older than me (so depressing if I'm being honest). And I spy a dress that isn't horrible and flowery.

I try it on and hello it actually doesn't look woeful, except for being sleeveless which i just don't do. So I wander out, with dress over my arm, and there's a nice bolero jacket type thing on a different dress. I try it on and it fits and actually looks ok.

Only issue is I wasn't in shopping clothes, so I only had flat shoes, ordinary bra, and no spanx type thingos on, so I'm not 100% confident.

I call Mr Mel and get him to come see. He looks at it on the hanger and says 'if you like it chickadee get it', I blah on about but I don't do dresses, I'm too yukk for it. What if I get it home and hate it.

He says if you get it home, with all your gear and hate it, we'll bring it back tomorrow before we head home and get a credit/exchange, no big deal. You've got your backup plan with pants & top.

So I buy the dress (sleeveless, v neck, black, lace from bottom of vneck, then a black ribbon under bust, and lace over flesh coloured under material, to just below knees. And a bolero type thing, black with short sleeves and flounces. $150 for the lot, not too bad.

So I get home, get all sucked in by the spanks, and proper bra, heels on, and it doesn't look too bad. I show Mr Mel & Sister In Law and they love it, but can tell I'm not comfortable/confident, so say try the pants/top on. I do and they say I look alot more confident, but both look nice.

So I thought bugger it, I'm wearing the dress.

We head out, and I'm very self conscious for the first 1/2 hour at the party, thinking everyones looking at my not so slim calves and thinking what's she doing in a dress.

Then 3 girls I've never met complimented me on my dress, all within 20 mins, the last 2 were in the ladies when I visited. And shazaam I feel ok.

I come back from the ladies and Mr Mel says 'what happened you look so much happier', and I told him what the girls had said.

He replied 'see chickadee, I told you that you looked gorgeous but you'll never believe anyone because you think they don't want to upset you, but a stranger saying it you have to believe it, you look gorgeous princess'.

While I think gorgeous is a huge stretch, I have to say I really really enjoyed my first dress in 15+ years. :)

So if any bigger than 'normal' girls are out there, don't lose hope, just keep looking for a dress that suits, it can happen!

The dress I wore

Till next time,


PS - thanks to all the lovely ladies on SS for their wonderful comments, it gave me the confidence to post about it here :)

Happy Birthday To Me!

Well Happy Belated Birthday to be accurate!! Sunday 7th Nov was my Birthday, another year older, hopefully a bit wiser!

I am so thankful for friends, family & Mr Mel, I was sooo spoilt!

We booked a restaurant we had been eyeing off for ages, Amanda's On The Edge at Pokolbin.

On the Thursday before I was discussing the dinner with my boss and his wife, as Amanda's is my boss' wife's favourite restaurant.  About 8pm that night I had a call on my work mobile, usually at that time of night it's not a good call, usually a vet/horse emergency.  But this time I was pleasantly surprised!  My boss & his wife wanted to shout Mr Mel and I out for dinner for my birthday!  I was blown away, and gratefully accepted the generous offer.

Saturday night rolled around for our 7pm booking.  As we walked in Amanda (the owner) greeted us with a 'Happy Birthday Mel', I was very impressed. We were seated at one of the best tables overlooking the vineyard.

Amanda asked if I would like a cocktail for my birthday, I replied 'oh only if it's mango', she said there were no mango cocktails but she thinks there's a mango in the kitchen, and that she'd go check.  She returned a few minutes saying how about a mango daquiri, why of course I replied!!

5 minutes later a delicious mango daquiri arrived, again very impressed.

We ordered, and were very happy with our choices:

Mel
- Goats Cheese & Leek Tart - just delicious, the texture was like mousse, so light and tasty, with a gorgeous rocket salad and pine nuts
- Crispy Skinned Duck Maryland with roasted onions, cripsy kipfler potatoes & asparagus - the duck was very moist and tender, although the skin wasn't crispy, it wasn't a huge negative, the potatoes, onions & asparagus were a great match
- Toffee Creme Brulee with blueberries & cookies - very tasty, the brulee had a good crack, and the blueberries went well with the soft creme, dessert was served with a dark chocolate 'Happy Birthday Mel' on the plate, a great way to top off a lovely dinner

Mr Mel
- Creamy Crab & Bug Meat Bisque served with crusty bread - Mr Mel knows his seafood and soups, and he was raving, I tried it and while not a big fan of seafood soups it was very tasty, Mr Mel wants to make a bisque at home now, uhoh!
- he was tossing up between the lamb & a special of Red Emperor, went with the fish and was a little disappointed, thought it was a bit over and bland, but not terrible
- Greek Custard Pastry with Cinnamon Icecream - Mr Mel thought the pastry was a bit lacklustre but was raving about the cinnamon icecream, rates it the nicest icecream he's ever had!!

We took our own bottle of wine, one of our favourites, the Rosalie Joan Verdelho from Ernest Hill at Pokolbin

All in all a lovely night out, very nice food, great service and a lovely location.

On the pressie front I was very spoilt, a juicer from Mr Mel and lots of vouchers to the best garden centre in the area :)

Till next time,

40 Clove Chicken - delish

Mr Mel & I love to cook together on weekends, we cook well together, and have had some delicious dishes and some near disaster dishes.

A couple of weeks ago we cooked a Roast Duck, after visiting the Nulkaba Hatchery. On that same trip we purchased a free range chicken. And yesterday we decided we'd cook roast chook for dinner, so I went googling.

I recalled watching a Jamie Oliver show where he cooked a 40 garlic clove chicken, so I searched for it, and one of the links that came up was to a blog I visit daily, Not Quite Nigella, Lorraine from NQN has a brilliant blog, it's so obvious she's doing something she loves, and has found her calling, her niche so to speak.  I find Lorraine and her blog inspiring, and love trying her recipes.

So we got set to cook NQN's Roast Chicken with 40 Garlic Cloves, Mr Mel was a bit dubious at first, thinking 40 cloves would kill the taste of the chicken, but once he saw the photos on the NQN website, he was converted, he is a sucker for cripsy skin chicken.

We don't have an oven proof dish with a lid, so we used a baking tray with foil on top, and cooked the potato, pumpkin & sweet potato separately. We added thyme to the rosemary to pop inside the bird, as our thyme is growing madly, and needs to be used up.

Our oven is very dodgy, we have plans to replace it, but that's another story..... In any case the 1.5hrs cooking time, that I'm sure works perfectly in 'normal' ovens, meant 2.5hrs in our dodgerama oven. Even with adding an extra hour, the chicken was tender and moist, with a lovely subtle garlicy sweet yet earthy flavour.

We poured the juices from the pan into a frypan, reduced them, then added some gravy powder, and squeezed a few of the cloves, mixing them through the gravy. We served some of the roasted garlic cloves with dinner (3 each), and popped them out of their skins, they we scrumptious.  We've put the rest (around 25) into the freezer to use in future meals.

The end result was delicious, thanks Lorraine :)

Recipe - from NQN site with a few of my own tweaks

1 free range chook
1 lemon, halved
1 sprig of rosemary
3 sprigs of thyme
40 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
1 tsp oil
1 cup white wine - we used chardonnay
1 cup chicken stock
salt & pepper

1 - Preheat oven to 180c. In frypan heat oil, brown breast side of chicken until lightly golden. Lift out with tongs. Stuff chicken with lemon, rosemary, thymem and about 8 garlic cloves. Tie up the legs, our cavity was still quite open with legs tied, so we stuck toothpicks through the bum of the chicken into the lemon, to hold it down. Place chicken in baking dish, add wine & stock and remainder of garlic cloves. Cover tray with foil. Bake for 1 hour.

2 - After an hour remove the foil, brush the chicken with a light coating of oil, salt & pepper. Bake for another 30 mins, or until golden & cooked, our oven is terrible, took another hour and a bit, most would take 30 mins.

3 - Remove chicken from tray, pour the liquid and any 'bits' into a frypan, reduce slightly to remove some of the liquid, mix through some gravy powder, squeeze a couple of garlic cloves, and stir well. Reduce again until consistency you want.

4 - Serve with roast vegies, gravy, and a few extra cloves per person.

Till next time,

Kiva - update

Just a quick post after I've been on the Kiva site, reloaning my repayments, I realised it's been a while, back in June, since I updated on Kiva. My old post is here.

To update, of my now 46 loans, 25 are full repaid.

Currently as at 19th October 2010 the team I made, Aussie & Kiwi Savers is made up of :

79 members
501 loans (202 are 100% paid back already)
US$12,600 worth of loans

Again, just for any newbies I'm not advocating everyone get involved, I would highly recommend anyone who is interested in joining us reads everything they can on Kiva, either through the Kiva website http://www.kiva.org/   or by googling Kiva, and make your own decision.

There but for................. rings so true to me when I think of Kiva.......

Till next time,

Our 1st Goat Curry

Mr Mel & I headed to the Newcastle Farmers Market on Sunday, our first time there, it's a great market, good variety of stalls, but not that big you're sick of it half-way round.

While wandering through one of the sheds we saw a stand for Booma Boers (goats) we had a chat with the owner, very down to earth guy, explained to us what the different cuts of goat are best for, and how he cooks it. So we thought why not we'll give it a go.

We took home 2 forequarter chops of goat, and hit Google for some recipes, there are heaps online, majority have a curry slant, so we thought we'd go curry, and found a recipe at http://allrecipes.com.au/recipe/10361/katch22-s-kid-khorma.aspx that sounded nice and looked like an easy convert to the slow cooker.

Happy to report that the curry was delicious, alot stronger flavour than lamb (stall man said it was due to lower fat content, because they're more active than sheep and eat a wider variety of plants).  The meat fell off the bone, and was melt in your mouth.

We added a bit more chilli than in the recipe as it didn't have a real kick when we tasted it early on, next time we'll probably add more of all of the spices to give it a bit more of a punch, but the base flavour was nice.

So goat is going into rotation in our house.

We eventually want to have a small farm and become as self-sufficient as we can be, raising goats for cheese was part of the plan, but now raising them for meat is part of the equation, yay!

Have you ever tried goat?

Till next time,

Poor Little Duckie

DP & I have driven past the sign pointing to Nulkaba Hatchery many times, saying we should check it out, well on Saturday we did.

It's a small farm, raising free-range chickens & ducks, when we drove in there were 2 big white dogs sleeping under a tree, apparently 'guarding' the stock.

As we turned the corner there would have been thousands of ducks sitting on the grass, under trees, wandering around on the grass. Near a barn there were hundreds of baby chickens, wandering through dust, and swimming in puddles. 

We pulled up, there was 1 other car there (they were buying chickens & related stuff to set up a pen at home), and went into a little room come shop. There was a wall of free range chicken, duck & quail eggs. Another wall of honey & jams (I had to resist the passionfruit jam). A feezer of frozen chickens, ducks & quails, and a fridge of the same.

We selected a duck & a chicken from the fridge, and a dozen free range eggs, totalling $31, which we thought was pretty good value.

We were hoping for duck breasts but went with the whole bird, as the hatchery is still waiting on Council approval to build a processing factory to sell breasts etc.

The owner of the hatchery gave us instructions on cooking the duck (our first), in an oven bag, slow and not too hot, because they're free-range they don't have as much fat as intensively farmed ones, therefore can't be cooked to hard.

We went shopping for fresh veg to cook with the duck and were set.

Now I don't know how much blame we can lay on our dodgy as hell oven (which we're replacing soon), our our cooking skills, but we cooked it at 180c for an hour in the bag, then out of the bag for another 30 mins.  The skin was kind of crispy in spots, but the meat (when we could find it!) was quite overcooked we thought.

It still tasted nice, but it was hard work to get much meat off the bird, we made a terrible mess of the poor little duckie.

The experience has probably scared us off cooking a whole duck again for a while, but we're keen to try cooking breasts on their own, we will not allow duck to be our nemesis :)

Till next time,

Our To-Do List

Ok so it may seem a bit obsessive, but I love tracking things, at the moment I have spreadsheets for:

• mortgage
• super
• shares
• debt
• horse expenses
• weight loss

And a few months ago Mr Mel & I decided that we need a list of things we keep thinking of we need to do, that we forget to get round to doing.  And since we started it, we've got through a couple, which is better than none, so I thought I'd list our to do list here too, so I can track it (I did say a tad obsessive!!).

So here goes, this is our list:

• Security system for house - 90% done - being installed next week
• House & Contents insurance re security 
• Solar installation for house - 5% done - have 2 crews coming out to quote
• Look into Sasha's Blend for the pug
• Build shelves in laundry
• Paint 2nd toilet walls & door
• Sell lounge suites taking up the garage
• Replace dying Mazda - DONE - I love my new i30 :)
• Investigate extended warranty on the Ford - DONE - signed up, covered for next 3 years
• Blog - not this one, a new one that we'll both work on - 10% done - I have setup the domain
• MYOB for business - 90% done - I detest it, but almost done for the 2009/10 year
• Personal & Business tax for 2009/10 - 90% done - as per MYOB 
• Replace office chair - DONE
• Get treadmill working - DONE
• Get allergy test done
• Water tank
• Organise & book trip to Brisbane for Mr Mel - work related (he works for himself)

So that's the list, we're working our way through, and adding more now and then.  We have them written on a whiteboard on the side of the freezer (faces out from kitchen), so we see the list all the time, and often stand there planning.  It won't happen overnight but it will happen :)

So dear readers, do you have a to-do list, or are Mr Mel & I, as we kind of suspect, a tad freaky??

:)

Till next time,

Like minded

On Sunday we went to our local market, the first one they've held since I moved here 3 years ago.

We were hoping it would be a bit more than a fete type setup, so that it would encourage the tourists who come to the Valley to spend more cash locally, and keep the market going, as currently the closest good markets a 2 hour round trip away.

Anyway we arrived at 8am, and were pleasantly surprised to see the car park filling up and stalls galore, excellent!

Our 2nd stall stop was a tiny one with organic seedlings, because the market was just starting up there weren't huge numbers rolling through yet so had a chance to chat with the stall holders. Gloria and her husband Bob.

They live about 10 mins from us on a couple of acres and have converted an acre or so of lawn/garden into an organic vegie patch.  Mainly due to Bob being ill and needing a hobby.

We got chatting, they're trying the first market with seedlings to test the market, then next month bringing the produce along. And they also have a stall at their property, which we'll be heading to this weekend!

I've been thinking more and more over the past couple of years of how much our lifestyle and especially food contributes to our health.

How do we know what the stupormarkets are getting farms to spray onto their produce to ensure it has a longer shelf-life or is more attractive to buyers, or has a uniform appearance, or is available out of season?

Over the past 10 years or so there has been alot of coverage about the effects of asbestos, and people now can't believe that houses were allowed to be built with such a toxic substance.

I wonder if in 20 years our children will be reading the same sort of headlines, but instead of asbestos, it being about chemical 1234 (etc) being highly toxic and having been a common spray for produce 'back in the 2000's'.

Longterm Mr Mel's and my plan is to have our own farm and be as self sufficient as we can be, growing as much produce as we can, and raising and slaughtering our own meat etc.

But in the meantime, we have put alot of effort into our veggie garden, this season we're growing : tomatoes (2), capcisum, chilli, lettuce (5), spring onions (10), snow peas (15), mushrooms, strawberries (5), mint, coriander, sage, oregano, parsley, bay.  It's only small, but it's a start, we haven't had to buy spring onions or parsley for at least a year, and get through summer with our own supply of tomatoes, capsicum, lettuce & snow peas, usually with some left over for neighbours etc.

Gloria & Bob asked for our details after our chat about organics/health etc, and I'm looking forward to maintaining and growing a friendship of sorts.  They've asked if we'd be interested in bringing our surplus veggies out to their stand, for them to sell (and give us veggies in return), and Mr Mel are very excited to get involved in some bartering and exchanging produce.

We're quite excited about having bumped into some like minded people who live close by, even though they're 25+ years older than us, we all had an instant connection, which is rare these days I feel. Especially when we're relatively new to the area (me 3 years from Melbourne, Mr Mel 1 year from Sydney).

I'm excited  :)

Till next time,

Our New Arrival

No not the 2 legged, crying type (yet!), a 4 legged, gorgeous colt, which our mare foaled this morning at 2.30am.

Weirdly last year she foaled a filly at 2.30am also, but 3 days earlier.

The filly weighed 55kgs, this colt is a big boy weighing in at around 75kgs!

All is well with mum & bub, will take some better photos soon, this one is from Mr Mel's phone, we're both extremely happy, and as you can see mum is very proud :)

Till next time,

Can We Do It - Update 5

Another month down and it's mid September, unbelievable, this year is flying.  This is update 5 on my 'Can We Do It Goals', some movement forward, and a fair bit of treading water unfortunately, but it is what it is!

Mortgage

We bought our home in July 2009, We're aiming to have our mortgage paid off in 7 years from starting out, which would make it July 2016.

We're on month 14 of our mortgage, and we're going quite well, we've got approx 54% equity . 

According to my obsessive excel calculations, if we continue on the same path we'll have the mortgage paid off by mid 2016, even allowing for a couple of years at minimum payments (fingers crossed that becomes reality soon!! read below)

Other debt

Our total non mortgage debt includes a car loan (as part of mortgage package, at same interest rate), and a VISA we've since closed.

We're sitting at approx 25% non mortgage debt gone, which is good, we've got the bulk of our money against the mortgage, not sitting in the car, so we're happy with that situ.

Our aim is to have all of this debt paid off by mid 2015, so we're on track there too.

Weight

As per other updates, my weight covers a few areas, getting healthy & fit, getting my body in the right place to conceive (and fit in a near 'normal' wedding dress!!). I am easily distracted from weightloss, so hoping this blog can keep me on the straight & narrow!! We've been talking wedding options over the past few months (even though Mr Mel hasn't proposed yet!!!! don't get me started!), so have to keep on keeping on!!

A new goal is Xmas, Mr Mel & I are venturing to my old hometown for the first time since I 

moved to Melbourne (1992) and I want to move some pudge before heading home.  So the timeframe is set!!

My goal is:

Lose 15kg by 20th December, that gives me 18 weeks, that SHOULD be do-able, the only thing stopping me, is me!!  C'mon me!

Since this new goal was set on 16 Aug, I've lost the miserly amount of 1.4kg, which is pathetic, but the good part is I was pathetic, little to no extra exercise, and too much naughty food, so at least I still lost while being very naughty.

So on that goal of 15kg, I'm 9% there, it's better than 0%, so that's a start!

The good news is we fixed the treadmill, so this week I've been on the treadmill every morning, after walking the pug.  Results should follow!

Business

Mr Mel's work (majority of our business) continues to grow, he gets frustrated that he's not 'bringing home all the bacon he should' but we'll get there, as long as he's happy in what he's doing that's the main thing, the rest will follow

Our bloodstock side of the business (my part) had it's first profit a few weeks back, so it was nice to make a deposit from the horses, instead of constant outgoings.

I think that's about it for the month.....

Till next time,

Boys v Girls oh the differences!

Mr Mel & I are definite soulmates, and know each other inside out, but it still amazes me the fundamental differences between males & females, as an eg:

Saturday morning I'm booked in for a haircut and eyelash tint at 8am, as I'm walking out the door Mr Mel asks if 8.30am is ok to meet me up the street for breakfast, I laugh and say 'yeah right' thinking he's joking, only to look at him and see a face of 'why not' looking back at me.

I gave him a hug and a kiss and say 'you boys are so cute', I'll call you when I'm almost done.

So I head off for my haircut (a local salon that's as good as any I've been to in Sydney or Melbourne), after an hour and a half of coffees, head massaging, hair washing, conditioning, treating, eyelash tinting, cut, blowdry, I'm feeling totally rejuvenated.

As I'm walking to my car, I'm fumbling in my bag for my mobile to let Mr Mel know I'll scoot home and pick him up (we live 2 mins from centre of town), and I hear a familiar whistle, there's Mr Mel walking behind me.

He said he'd left home at 9.30, thinking an hour and a half was more than enough, then had walked by the salon 3 times, once he saw my hairdresser and me laughing, then the next passby I was sipping a coffee, and the next walkby reading a magazine.

He thinks a hair cut should involve:

8am - arrive
8.01am - sit in chair
8.10am - stand up from chair, quick thanks mate to barber
8.11 am - pay and leave

I detailed my appointment for him:

8am - arrive, chat with receptionist for a few mins
8.03am - sit at chair, consult with hairdresser, order coffee
8.10am - head massage, hair wash, conditioner, treatment
8.30am - back in chair with halo thing on giving the treatment a zap, read a mag, enjoy latte
9am - eyelash tint with hair still wrapped, lovely relaxing music
9.20am - chat with beautician about other spa treatments available, have a look downstairs at new setup
9.30am - back in chair, blow dry, hair cut, tonged waves for something different, chat with hairdresser, plus a few of the other girls
10.15am - pay and leave feeling sooooo relaxed

Mr Mel was dumbfounded, and walked with me for breakfast shaking his head and saying 'chicks'................

I'm sure I'm not the only chick whose had a similar situ.......:)

Till next time,