It's the weekend!!

Thank goodness!! Even with the public holiday in the middle of the week, this week still draaaggggggggggged on. Between fighting with a car hire company (the b@stards have charged us $3500 for damages we didn't do), negotiating with the reception venue and trying to find a hotel in the city for Trav's next visit that isn't exorbitantly priced, I've copped my fair share of stress and hard work this week.

Thankfully, I've got a fabulous weekend coming up. Not to mention I've also got Monday off. Woo hoo!!

Tomorrow I'll be spending at a day spa, relaxing in a Fijian spa bath followed by an hour long massage. The Fijian spa was a birthday gift from one of my best friends (thanks Lizzie!) and I thought I'd spoil myself and book the massage as well. I can't wait!

Then I'm very excited about Sunday - I'm taking my bridesmaids to try on dresses! We're going to a one stop wedding shop, so I'm hoping I'll be able to sort out the flowers and cake while I'm there. One of the best things is that I don't actually have to try anything on - always an advantage, especially when you're having a bit of a frumpy week (as I do so often).

Have a fantastic weekend everyone!!

P.S. That gorgeous little girl in the photo is my cousin and god-daughter, Cara :-)

Produce Day

Ever since I can remember I've been surrounded by food. Growing, picking, killing, cooking, buying and playing with have all been adjectives I'm pretty comfortable around.

From my maternal grandparents growing rows of tomatoes and herbs and a large chestnut tree in their backyard to my dads parents growing strawberries and selling them at markets. From seeing Nonno's yard turned into a production line making scores of bread in the wood fired oven and tomato sauce to remembering the wine vats bursting, spreading a river of red wine all over the drive way and into the gutter. From helping Nonna make cotolette and sneaking bits of raw meat to being given bread dough to play with and then bake and eat. From seeing dead chickens hanging from the verandah to realising that some of the cute cows ended up on my plate...and so on and so forth. I could go on for ever about the enormous impact food and everything related to it has had on me. In fact, I chose to study Nutrition at university and it was no coincidence that my first boyfriend was a chef!

My love affair with food began before I can even remember and there are foods that my enjoyment of them isn't just about the taste but also about the memories associated with them. When I'm sick, all I want is pastina. When I'm upset, I turn to a glass of milk with my favourite 'cafe latte' biscuits.

This is my first post about food but it will not be my last. Food is inextricably linked to me, my family and my life. Having an Italian background probably helps :-)

I wanted to share some pictures of beautiful fresh produce that I've been fortunate enough to eat lately. Tomatoes from Mum's garden and fresh fish that my brother, Tony, caught. There's something incredibly satisfying about knowing where your food has come from and how fresh it is.

Enjoy :-)

New Jewels!!!

I took advantage of the quiet weekend to work on some of my jewellery. I've had these pretty Swarovski crystals for awhile but wasn't sure what to do with them. I wanted to make something really pretty and really girly and I think I've achieved that. Definitely one for the girly girl!

The second item is this beaded necklace, which I'm really proud of. I don't often make necklaces but I had a number of beautiful one off beads I wanted to use. It's really pretty and feminine and I think appeals to a broad age range. I was very tempted to keep this one for myself! I also think I'd like to make more necklaces like this. Stay tuned to see what I come up with next!

Congratulations Stav and Bec!!!

Just found out the most beautiful couple just got engaged!! Stav and Bec have been together for ages and are really just perfect together. It's clear that they love each other's company, always have fun together and make a strong team. I also love that they haven't lost any of themselves in the process - they're both gorgeous people and together they're even more perfect.

I know I'm gushing but I'm just so happy for them.

Congratulations Stav and Bec! I wish you all the love in the world and am excited for the journey you're about the embark on. Right now I bet you're on Cloud 9 - Enjoy!! Lots of love x

Our reception venue

I thought I'd give you a sneak peek into our wedding by showing our reception venue. Harrington Grove Country Club is fairly new and Trav and I were pretty impressed the first time we saw it. Beautiful architecture and styling surrounded by native bushland. Absolutely gorgeous and very us!

I went there yesterday to show my family and while we were enjoying a Devonshire tea in the restaurant, a kangaroo casually bounded through the bushland in front of us. Beautiful!



All pictures from the Harrington Grove Country Club website www.harrington.com.au

A new kid on the blog

Hi there,

My name's Cat and I live in Sydney, Australia. Welcome to my first ever blog entry!

I never thought I'd be the kind of person who blogs about my life. Afterall, why would anyone be interested in little ol' me? I am the kind of person who does love to keep a record of things though. I keep all my tickets and photos are very important to me. My hopeless memory means I need all the help I can to remember things.

Upon realising just how big a year 2010 is going to be for me, I thought it would be a good idea to amalgamate all my little notebooks, scrapbooks, post-it notes and snap shots into this...an online record of all the trials, tribulations, love, laughter, joy and heartache I know is ahead of me.

The biggest event planned for this year is the wedding. The Wedding. Our Wedding. On 4 December 2010, my fiance Travis and I will officially be bound to each other for the rest of our lives. I can't wait :)

I love this pic of us - it was taken from my laptop the morning after our engagement party.

Our situation is a little unusual at the moment as Trav's just moved to Papua New Guinea for work. So, as well as plannning our wedding, I've also got the additional challenge of missing my fiance terribly. It's his first job as a pilot and the the plan is to stick out the seperation until our wedding. Then we can reevaluate the situation.

2010 is also going to be the year I finally get into the property market. I've been saving for years and April is my target month to purchase my first home. Very exciting! Then comes the part I'm most excited about...decorating!!

Just in case I thought I wasn't busy enough (and to prevent myself going mad from boredom and loneliness), I've also started making and selling my own jewellery.



As you can see I'm going to be a very busy girl! Thanks for starting this journey with me. I hope you'll help me out with advice and comments as I could always do with some extra help. Enjoy and stay tuned... :)