2017: A year & word in review

These past 6 months have flown by! One minute I was taking Cherub to her first day of school, and the next I am watching her perform in her Kindy Christmas concert! The days seriously go by faster when you no longer have littlies at home.

This year I chose "Nourish" as my guiding word. While I spent the first half of the year indulging a little in my art, I nourished the spare time I had on my hands. Since August I have had my mind focussed on getting my business up & running, so haven't spent as much time as I like creating or taking care of my health & fitness. At this stage, I am still unsure on what my guiding word will be for the new year, but I know I need to include getting fit and focussing on my health (both mental & physical) so I am a healthy Mumma to my girls.

So what's been happening this year?

Well we've celebrated a few firsts this year with Cherub starting school, me starting a business, Popette dancing in her first dance festival and performing in the choir for the first time.

We have gone on some lovely camping trips to Dubbo and the Grampians, done lots of bushwalks or just gone exploring around our area.

I wrote about some of the lovely places you should visit at Kangaroo Island, shared 5 tips on ways to nourish yourself, and took the time to appreciate the little things.

In April, I shared a print I created, and wrote about being enough - something we often forget as mothers/wives/daughters/sisters/friends.

I remembered the days of yesterday and today, and wrote a letter to my girls.

Shared some ideas on how to declutter, along with some art I have been creating.

I had moments when I found parenting hard, felt like I was failing, and tried to lead by example.

I've also had moments when I've remembered to be grateful, and enjoyed time with my girls.

So as it turns out it's been a pretty busy year...thank you to all of you who read and comment on my blog, it's much appreciated.

I would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I hope you have a relaxing Christmas day wherever you are, and get to spend it with the ones who make you happy, whether that's with your family, relatives or a bunch of friends.

I will be taking a well earned rest over the school holidays, and be back in the new year.

xJulie

Thinking of you: A letter to Dad

It's hard to believe that tomorrow marks 5 years since you passed away. While it has gone by quickly, it also hasn't in some ways. While I love Christmas, and doing Christmassy things with the girls, it's a bittersweet time.  When the anniversary arrives it brings that sad reminder that you are no longer here with us and another Christmas around the corner, but without you sharing it with us. 

I wish you were here to see your two granddaughters growing up. You would be so very proud of them. They are such sweet girls Dad. I am so lucky to have them both, but so wish they had a Poppy in their life. 

You wouldn't believe it but my little premmie, Popette, is nearly taller than me! She's such a cheeky girl. She loves playing the piano, dancing, and writing stories. Cherub is now at school and such a little smarty. She loves playing with her My Little Ponies, riding on her scooter and being creative like her Mummy. Even though they were little when you died, we talk of you often and miss you very much. 

Mum misses you terribly. This time of year is always hard on her.  What I miss most is seeing you both together, and her being happy.

I miss you and wish we had more time together. I miss catching up with you and Mum over a meal, playing a game of cards together, going on picnics, outings or just a cuddle. It's not the same without you. I don't know why I didn't get more photos of you and I together. The last photo I have of you, me and Mum is on my 39th birthday when you came over for lunch. I guess it's not something we worried about at the time.

The rose we planted in memory of you (which is your favourite, Mr Lincoln) is in full bloom again, and has been a lovely way to remember you and your love of the garden.

You are loved Dad, but definitely not forgotten. xxx

Christmas is on its way

Can you believe it's less than 3 weeks until Christmas! The end of the year has gone by just as fast as the beginning of the year.

Today we had Cherub's Kindy Christmas concert at school. Unfortunately Hubby couldn't make it so I took Mum along so she could see her youngest granddaughter perform. It was such a wonderful performance, with Cherub very excited to be singing the christmas carols and songs, they had been practising hard all term!

Our house is starting to look all things Christmassy with the girls decorating the Christmas tree, the girls are so excited about Christmas and love taking turns in checking the pockets of the advent calendar every morning to see what sort of activity or treat is installed for them. Cherub has 'helped' me wrap some Christmas presents, but I still have laybys I need to get out, and a few presents to buy. I'm hoping to get it all done before the mad rush begins!

We have a week and a half left of the school term, then we are on holidays! I think I'm more excited about having a break from the school run then Christmas! No uniforms, school lunches or homework to worry about for 6 weeks, bliss!!

At Christmas time I love to bake shortbread and gingerbread. I have been baking the same shortbread for the past 11 years, so am hoping to get my bake on and make some batches of my shortbread for family, friends & teachers...here's the recipe if you would like to try it. 😊


What has your lead up to Christmas been like?

Recipe: Shortbread biscuits

Ingredients:
150g plain flour
150g butter, softened
75g cornflour
75g caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla essence

Method:

Preheat oven to 170⁰ C.

Place softened butter and dry ingredients into a bowl and mix until ingredients are combined together.

I firstly soften the butter in the microwave for a few seconds so it is easier to combine with the other ingredients.

I make my dough by hand as I don't have a food processor, so it does take a while to blend. If you have a food processor, place all the ingredients into the processor and blend until the mixture holds together.

If you are making the dough by hand, combine ingredients with a wooden spoon or with your hand until the dough is quite smooth and you no longer see any crumbs.

On a floured benchtop, roll out half of the dough to approximately 1cm thick. If you roll them out too thin they will burn. The girls love using my cookie cutters and make various Christmas shapes!

Place biscuits 1/2 cm apart on a baking tray, then prick with a fork.

Finally, sprinkle with a little caster sugar before placing in the oven.

Bake shortbread for approximately 20 minutes or until very pale.

Note: I have had to adjust the cooking time, as I usually make a larger batch, which take approximately 40-45 minutes, and we had a few that were a little burned.

Cooking time will vary on the thickness you have made the biscuits.

Lastly enjoy!