Busy & Fun

Hiya! Been kind of quiet on my end. Just getting through the day to day stuff at the moment. I have 16 more work days, until I am unemployed. I have an appointment with a Temporary staffing agency in a couple weeks. Hopefully they will be able to get me into work, shortly after I get home in January. Had a Dr appt yesterday, and have an RDO (rostered day off) tomorrow.

Also, tomorrow 31 October 2008 is Ralph's Birthday. Ralph will be two. He is such a cute little guy. And GM loves him to bits too. I do not know how GM is going to deal w/ leaving him here, when we go on our trip. In celebration of his birthday, and our day off, we are going to Vaughn Springs as described in a previous blog. On Saturday, we are going to The Victoria Market, and then to a bbq at a friends house. Sunday will hopefully be quiet. Monday I have another RDO- hopefully I can get more stuff organised for our trip. 24 days till we touchdown in Seattle. And Tuesday is a Public Holiday for Melbourne Cup Day. What a lovely five day weekend I have ahead of me. Oh, and I think on Tuesday we are having a bbq at our house with the neighbours. So, all in all a great time is coming.
Oh, tonight I am going to get some prescriptions filled, and then meet GM & Ralph to go for a walk around a place called The Nook. It is a beautiful place, next to a vineyard, a waterhole, and a nice long walking track. Then we will get fish & chips for dinner, and go home. I think it will be great!

Okay, guess I gotta work now. Back soon!

~Melissa

The Fruitcake!

Okay, Here is the Fruitcake I made. A pic of the Recipe, and the book is above. I think it turned out okay, but my mother in law must have liked it, because she has gotten all of the stuff to make this recipe too.

I think it is pretty yummy. Lots of Brandy mind you, but very nice! There is a bit of work involved in it, but it is so worth it! I altered the recipe a bit, because I used a bag of dates I had, instead of the raisins. But it is very nice! Too bad I can't take some to the USA with me.

Anyway, hope everybody's day is going well!

~Melissa

Vaughn Springs & Fruitcake!

Okay, I was able to find the pics of my last Vaughn Springs experience.
Here goes:

I am Really not up myself, GM just had the camera most of the time. lol It is a beautiful place, and I am looking forward to going there again. Yeah!

We got our suitcases out of the attic over the weekend, and have decided which ones we are taking, as this is our last big trip for a long while, we are going to borrow another case, rather than buy a new one. I do hope the dollar recovers a little before we head overseas, but I do not really see that happening. So, it will be a tight, but GREAT holiday.

I made my first Christmas Fruitcake last night. I hope it turns out well. I will check it out when I get home today. I took it out of the oven and put it on the counter just before I went to sleep last night. I will try to take a photo too, if it turns out okay. I will try to get a recipe & post it, just so you can see all that goes into making it. They are LOVELY to eat. hehehe Evidently you can store them for up to a year. WOW. But I think mine will only last a few months. . lol

Anyway, gotta run! Talk soon!
~Melissa

20 October 2008

Monday Again! Had a good weekend, and watched The World According to Garp yesterday with GM. How funny, haven't seen that movie in ages. Also saw Elizabeth with Cate Blanchett on Friday night- Was a really good movie.
Nothing too exciting going on. Just going along as per normal I guess. I have 24 more working days left, till I am unemployed. And have sent my name and details to a few Temp agencies for when we get back. I do hope I can get something pretty easily when we get back from holidays. I would hate to be out of work for too long.
Had most of last week off, and tried to spend that time on me. Loved it! I like getting to do what I want when I want. Got to talk to my sis, and that is always a bonus. Talked to my mom a bit. Bought a few things to take overseas with us. Watched some shows, got the craft room cleaned up a little. And made biscotti last night.
Let's see, tomorrow night we have Michelle & Daniel coming over for dinner, and to watch the Ice Hockey. Then on Thursday night, we(Milner clan) are all going to go out for Chinese as our last 'get together' before everyone starts leaving town for the holidays or just before. I think it will be nice. And I always like Chinese food, and the left overs you get the next day!
In-Laws, Sis-in-law & Hubby & other Sis-in-law & Niece all go out of town on 31 October (Halloween).
GM & I were going to go out of town too, but just took the day off, to go on a picnic with Ralphy instead. We are going to a place called Vaughn Springs. GM took me there several years ago, and we walked and played on the slide, and had a great time. I think Ralphy will like it too. I cannot wait. If I can find the pics from last time, I will post them.
Only babbling today. . .lol
Talk to you soon!
~Melissa

Here we are again!

Okay, it is Monday. Had a very busy weekend, and am not feeling the best as it is. Nothing dreadful, just stress I think. With any luck, the rest of the day will float by nicely.

Friday I had a Dr appointment, so did my sis-in-law. We went together, and then came back to the city together. Then went to dinner with our husbands in Sunbury. It was kinda cute. We ended up having lunch at the train station, before we went out to our Dr's. Then Saturday, I was at work by 8am, and worked until 1:30pm. Went home, and hung out with GM for a while, until we did some running around. I think we ate dinner at 9pm that night. Then Sunday, we went to The Rocky Horror Picture Show (Theatrical Production). I thought it was fantastic. Then we went to dinner. Turned out to be a lovely day with just a hiccup or two.

We played Wii in there somewhere too. I guess there is not too much going on at the moment, which is not bad!

Hope you all have a great day!

Sadie Arlene Vaughn

Fantastic news, my brother and his wife have had a beautiful little girl. Her name is Sadie, and she is gorgeous!

Born 7 October 2008 @ 8:43pm.

Weight 6lbs 1oz

Length 18.8 inches long

I think I have a hole in my heart, just like I did when Tommy was born, because I wanted to be there. But I am glad all has turned out okay, and from what I hear, mom & baby are doing fine. I am so thankful!

Here are the pics so far!

I feel very blessed, and very happy to have this lovely little girl in our life!

More Train Pics

Of course, I pick a potty to start my blog with. . .lol

The potty. if you look down in the toilet, you could see the train tracks as you went.
The sign above the floor push button in the pic above
The Washroom- boys
The Toilet- girls

the blinds- those are hooks to pull them up and down
An oasis out the window
Sleeping quarters
About The Parlor Car

GM & I after lunch
A skink on the railroad track
Man what a gorgeous smile!

A bottle brush tree
Up close and personal with a bottle brush!

Check out all of the warnings on the river where we were.

Again viewed from our lunch table- It's a concrete wall painted.
The view of the river from where we had lunch

GM- Almost to Tocumwal

The Train on the station at Tocumwal

The Train Trip

SRHC Picnic Train - Seymour to Tocumwal

Okay, we went on the train trip, and it was great! We started at Sunbury (bottom of the map ) and drove up to Seymour(1/3 up from the bottom of the map). Then caught the train to Tocumwal(top right on the map), which was over the state border into New South Wales. Enjoyed it very much! Here are some pics.

The Lovely GM
The Yarra Parlor Car
The Urinal in a washroom
With a little plate that says empty slowly, as it pours out underneath the train, while the train is moving and I am sure you do not want it to slosh. . .lol- That sooo cracked me up

Quickie!

Okay, the train trip was good. Not that I wanted to admit it mind you. But, it was great fun. I had a a book, and ipod, and cross stitch, because I thought I would be that bored. Not at all. I did not take any of them out of my bag at all. Didn't look to them, or think of it. I will put pics in a post tomorrow I think. Had a great time. We left way too early in the morning, and got to Tocumwal about 11:30 am. We meandered to the local market, then went and had our lunch on the river. It was beautiful! Caught the train back @ 2:50pm. Getting back into Seymour @ 6:10pm. Had dinner at McDonald's- I remember now, why I do not like fast food like that. Got home about 8:30pm, and I was ready for bed immediately.
Today was a pretty quiet day, did a bit of work around the house, and GM worked outside. I talked to my two best friends today, one on the computer, and one on the phone. Loved it!
Also, day light savings started this morning, but my little time doesn't match. Add an hour to Melbourne time. Hopefully it will fix up soon!
I made a marble bundt cake today, with a light glaze tonight. I am going to slice it, and put it in our lunches this week. I also made a lamb roast, and bbq chicken (thank you Lori) in the oven. And because I need protein, I cooked the bbq chicken in an oven bag, with a can of baked beans, bbq sauce, and an onion. It tastes pretty good too!
Okay, that is the boring run down. . .lol
I will post pics tomorrow. And a little more about the train trip!

Friday again!

Well, not too much going on. Just a quiet morning at work. Life is good, health is good, GM is good, and Ralphy is good. All around, not much to complain about. . . lol.

I am hoping to night will be an early night, and may get GM to watch a movie with me. Otherwise, I need to tackle the craft room, and get it under control, as it is storage for all the crap we are taking back to the states on our holiday as well as my craft room. And of course I would love to Wii, if I get some time.

Tomorrow is a train trip with GM. I am not completely sure about it, as I take trains every work day. But, I know GM will love it, and it is a day out. I think we are leaving at 7:30 in the morning, and will get home about 8pm. Ralphy will be pissed. I have a good book to read, and an ipod to listen to. Of course that is only if GM, his sis, brother in law, and the scenery are not entertainment enough. :) I think I am making lunches, and it should be nice!

Sunday stay at home, and try to get our house into some kind of order. With all the late nights, and things going on, we need to dedicate some quality time to our house, and fixing up the garden!

Rainbow- I am going to get a couple tattoos while in the states, I just don't know exactly what one of them is yet. My Tattoo advisor (Lil Sis) has some drawings to show me. . .lol. The other tattoo will be an enhancement of our butterflies. I think we are going to get another butterfly, and some wispy smoke or something. . . I'll keep you posted!

Oh, and I am reading the Stephenie Meyer Vampire books, and they are great! That is what I will read on the train tomorrow. And GM and I got Travis, Tyler & in the future Tommy a fantastic book! It is called "The Dangerous Book For Boys," it sounds scarier than it is. Check the website out, as it is just a fantastic book, everything from building a go kart, to how to play Aussie rules football, to how to play poker, to how to make paper airplanes, to the history of Australia, and the Queen. It really is fantastic! There is one for girls too- with different stuff in it.

Okay, that's it for now! Talk to you soon!

~Melissa

Go Hawks!

Wednesday morning- I just finished Tuesday's post. lol.

This week has been kinda crazy, but I think they all are lately. My mom is out of the hospital and doing better. She is unhappy with me, but that is her choice. I will be honest with her whether she likes it or not! She is doing better though, so that is what's important!

GM and I had Monday off, and just spent time together, we went to a tattoo place, because his team the Hawks won the Grand Final (Superbowl) on Saturday. That is what I forgot to put in about Saturday, we were on pins and needles to see if his team would win the game, and couldn't watch it live, but recorded it, and watched it after they had indeed won. Anyway, GM wants a tattoo of his teams symbol. I think he is going to wait till we get to The Pacific Northwest, before he gets it though!

Health is fine, everything is pretty darn good, just a bit tired, from too many late nights!
Okay, will post more later!