Orange You Glad it's Friday 5th October?

Well hello, remember me?

I’m the one who disappeared in the middle of the school holidays without even a polite goodbye…
I’m sorry. I didn’t expect to be gone for so long.

I brought you flowers and a gift to make up. Can you stay for a cuppa?

I’m not quite sure what happened but now I plan to #GetBackOnTrack

in more ways than one…

How about a nice cup of Malaysian tea for a change?

It’s been revolving doors here…

Our two Home Stay Year 12 school students from Hong Kong and China have just finished ten days of mock examinations for the International Baccalaureate Diploma. Never in the history of our household, has every exam taken, been deemed “very good”.

I’m, of course taking full credit for this. Putting their success down to healthy dinners, and the extra mental boost they get from the copious amounts of lime juice and jelly beans I have supplied!

Some serious studying going on at our place

Our sitting room was offered as a makeshift study hall, where for three weeks they could leave out their books. It has been transformed into a mini library, and the exam timetable is posted on the fireplace mantle. You should see the books. They arrived in a minibus, trundling suitcases groaning under an impressive array of literature and past IB exam papers .

With our open-plan living my three teenage kids come bounding down their stairs each morning to be faced with students already hard at work – a perfect example of how it should be done.

I would put this in-your-face illustration of how the rest of the world works to achieve academic success, as one of my finest achievements of the September school holidays!

Barrots to you too!

Barrots, was one of my lesser accomplishments.

With a full house, I seem to have been cooking a lot, this hols. I haven’t done it without help. Above is a perfect example of why you never send your husband to the grocery store to get broccoli. Just look what he came back with…and not a broccoli head to be seen.

It’s called a barrot. A cross between beetroot and a carrot, and he hates beetroot! We had a long conversation about whether I should cook it in the same pan as the carrots. But he assured me that carrots don’t turn everything orange…

As you know, I get away with a lot on the culinary front because the majority of our house guests have never left their country of origin and I boldly carry it off as ‘Australian’, whatever my disaster. Well not so that evening.

Everyone was suspicious of my dinner. The barrots were, granted a talking point. But the slightly pink-dyed carrots…

Ermm moving swiftly on, drink anyone?

The Cups Estate vineyard, Mornington Peninsula

Wine

Yesterday we enjoyed lunch at the Cups Estate on the Mornington Peninsula. Daughter No 1 took this photo and we love the vines reflected in the wine glass. She’s been here there and everywhere this holiday showing her visiting British boyfriend the sights.

Travel

We counted we’ve had ten trips to the airport this holiday for various family members. I told you it’s been revolving doors.

Daughter No 2 gets back from competing at the Australian University Games in Queensland today. They will come away with the Women’s Football Silver medal after the Grand Final went to extra time.

We’ve enjoyed a few parties these holidays, last weekend we were in Wilson’s Promontory at the southern most tip of the State. I will blog more about this next week. But in the meantime here is a teaser photo, It is spectacular.

Picnic Beach, Wilson’s Prom, Victoria

Even the dog has had a lady friend to stay, with eight in the house and two dogs, that’s it. I put the ‘closed for business‘ sign up on the front door. Full. No space in the Inn.

Tennis

We are starting to think about the Tennis in January – The Aussie Open tickets go on sale next week and they have just announced the biggest prize money ever, good news for the players! Here is the Crazy Poodle and his lady friend in front of our local tennis courts.

Mutt and Molly

Horse Racing

Well can’t stop I’ve got a big invitation for tomorrow. We’re off to the races. So I’ve got my orange hat out to show you, last worn at Melbourne Cup 2003. I’m thinking of wearing it tomorrow. Well, why not? (apart from hat fashions have changed in the last decade…)

Shopping

Two problems, we’ve sadly not got a runner tomorrow (our lass is out at grass) and that means no car parking space at Flemington so I might look a tad OTT on the train. And we’re buying a vacuum cleaner on the way, which is a huge excitement, sad person that I am. I will definitely look a tad overdressed in Godfrey’s tomorrow with my hat on. They have a sale so it will be a scrum…

I have put a call to a friend to check and apparently, there will be hats in the Committee Room at the Victorian Racing Club on Saturday. My kids are doubtful as to whether I should/could carry the orange hat off. They said I should put it out there on Facebook…

Hat – Hot or Not?

Whadda you think?