Family Matters...

Any weekend that involves eggs and hollandaise sauce is going to be a good one.  Combine that with some strong coffee and sunshine and you've got yourself a pretty perfect weekend if you ask me.  

I feel guilty admitting that I managed to stay in my pj's until noon on Saturday while I caught up on emails and laundry.  The weather was too nice to stay inside any longer so J and I grabbed our towels and hit the beach, only leaving when our skin began to sizzle (okay, this is a slight exaggeration but it was really hot and you get the point).  Back home, we got ready to head out to a friend's bbq but not before I managed to work a bit on my presentation for next week's work trip to China (more on that later, but let me just say it involves public speaking -gulp).

Sunday was a family affair.  Over breakfast we celebrated the arrival of a new little cousin and while the exhausted parents opened their gifts, I took a few photos of this beautiful cafe in Glebe, which is the restored Belleveue House.   With bellies full of eggs, toast and way too many cups of coffee we wrapped up the weekend by reading books and looking up how to make the perfect, wait for it - hollandaise sauce. yum...

Santa Surprise

We put away the Christmas tree this weekend.  There were almost tears.  I hate this part of the holidays, when the decorations go away, the baking stops and I have to go back to secretly listening to Christmas carols on my iPod.  

Since J knows how much I love Christmas he surprised me with a belated Christmas dinner when I came home from work last week.  My family had sent us a box of presents from Boston so we turned up Bing Crosby's 'White Christmas' for the last time, poured ourselves a glass of eggnog and sat under the tree unwrapping our presents.  We restocked our Dunkin Donuts coffee supply, J got a headlamp for camping that provided some fun photo opps and I got the bread making book I've been wanting (yup, I'm a bit of a dork) among other awesome goodies from back home. It was the perfect way to wrap up an amazing holiday and I can't thank J or my family enough for making it so special, I love you all. x

Bali Bliss...

Okay I promise this is the last Bali post...

I just had to share a few final photos before I come to grips with the fact that I'm no longer on holiday (I'm finding it hard to adjust to reality).  Now, I could sing the praises of Bali for weeks however I think I'll leave you with a few deep thoughts to ponder over:

• Do not - I repeat - do not get a spray tan right before you leave for vacation.  Even if your friend got one at the same place and looked really cool, don't do it, you will look orange - very uncool. 
• When walking in Ubud, avoid slippery sidewalks or you will most likely fall into a drainage ditch on your first day, causing not only embarrassment but unsightly bruising all over your legs. Again, very uncool.
• If you happen to wear contacts, I strongly suggest putting on your glasses when stumbling to the bathroom at night. You never know when you are going to find a snake waiting for you. Yes, this actually happened. 
• 'Bali Belly', much like it's cousin, Montezuma's Revenge, is not enjoyable in any way, shape or form. This is true even if you try very hard to convince yourself that it's  similar to a 'cleanse' or 'detox'
• The movie 'Stepbrothers' -even while suffering from Bali Belly- is still hilarious.

Well that's it folks - back to reality...

Santa in Sanur...

Santa was good to me this year, he brought sun to Sanur on Christmas day and I couldn't have asked for a better present.  When we left Ubud we traveled to the coastal town of Sanur.  It was here that we met up with our friends Cia and Nick from Boston, buried our feet in the sand and let the holiday pass us by in uneventful bliss.  I did, however, manage to snap a few quick photos of our Christmas lunch before we all fell into food coma and I need my annual xmas nap  - this time on the beach...

Hello 2011...

I'm going to take a small break from showing the forty million photos from our Bali trip to wish everyone a belated happy new year!

Considering I don't normally like New Year's Eve, I found it fitting that when the clock struck midnight I was in a plane, sound asleep, on my way back to Sydney.  There was no count down, champagne toast or midnight kiss, we just landed a few hours later and it was 2011.

For some reason I always find the night to be a little sad, so instead I like to say goodbye to the past year and look forward to a clean slate, a chance to start fresh.  I'm not a resolution type of person but I do believe in setting goals and god knows I love a good list so this is the perfect time for a list maniac like myself to draft up all the projects and goals I'd like to accomplish in the coming months. But I'm also a procrastinator which means it normally takes me until mid-June to finish my list of 'non-resolutions'.


Anyways before the opportunity was lost, I just wanted wish those in my life, both old and new, a happy, healthy start to the new year - may good things come your way. x

Incense & Offerings...

No matter what your religious or spiritual beliefs are, the moment you enter Bali you are overcome with the beauty of the Hindu religion.  Every home has their own temple and you'll find offerings to their gods all over the place - in taxis, on the sidewalk, in stores, hotels - everywhere.  It was beautiful to see entire villages walking through the streets to temple and the smell of incense is always in the air.  I found the people to be amazing and their spirituality refreshing...

Postcards From The Edge...

Bali. 

I'm back and it was amazing. I had the best of intentions to wake up each day, sit leisurely by the pool and type away. In this fantasy land, I would update posts daily accompanied by stunning photographs and tidbits of local information and I might even go so far as to provide some deep insight into the Hindu culture.  But who am I kidding? What really happened was that I lost all motivation to do anything productive yet somehow mustered the energy to wrap my hands around a cold bottle of Bintang beer and stroll the streets of Ubud just taking it all in.  

We took far too many photos to post them all at once so I'll try to spread them out over the next few days. Our first few nights were spent in Ubud, which is in the mountains and looking back was one of my favourite places.  It is here that we strolled back streets surrounded by rice paddies and tried to channel my inner Julia Roberts straight out of 'Eat, Pray, Love'. You'll notice that J got an iPhone right before we left so many of our photos were taken with some of the retro photo applications and all credit goes to him - I was too busy eating Nasi Goreng to take many photos...x.

'Tis The Season

I spent last night watching 'The Grinch' - the old school one, with grainy film and that adorable dog Max.  It has to be one of my favorite Christmas movies and the message is perfect.  As I was running around this morning doing last minute errands I stopped and looked at all the madness around me.  

People were literally pushing each other out of the way to get to the register first.  It makes you rethink how you approach this time of year and to try and remember what this holiday is really about - and it has nothing to do with plastic toys and maxed out credit card bills. I consider myself so lucky to have the opportunity to go to Bali this year and couldn't ask for a better gift than the chance to travel but even as I'm boarding that plane I'm grateful that I get to spend the holidays with J's family and our Boston friends that are meeting us over there.  I'll miss my own family back home but I'll be with them in spirit and will happily re-live the memories and traditions of my childhood Christmas's...

As I said before, I hope to post during my holiday but if something goes wrong and I can't get my hot little hands around some free wi-fi then consider this a wish for a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! x

The Mosquito Coast...

This week I've been so consumed by and in awe of the madness surrounding Oprah's visit, that I completely forget to vent my frustration on the most annoying of subjects: the mosquito.  

The mosquito is no stranger to summers in Boston but ever since moving to Australia I seem to be a magnet for these little guys.  I'm not just talking about a bite here or there, I mean I'm actually covered in massive welts, the most recent one a huge lump on my forehead - not a good look.  I've tried vitamins and repellent but I think I'm going to have to resort to buying a mosquito net for our room.  

Despite the constant itching there is a positive spin to this, and I seem to have become more interesting to children.  On the bus today the child behind me, blurted out "mummy, what are all those red bumps on that lady?" as I tried to slide down further into the seat and hide.  Hopefully I'm not the only one with such a strong hatred towards this insect but if anyone has any home remedies please feel free to share before I have to battle the mosquito beasts in Bali!

Dark & Stormy...

Can someone please tell me where the first half of December went?  I know I say this every year but I can’t believe Christmas is only 2 weeks away...how did this happen?

For so many months we’ve been planning and saving for our upcoming Bali trip and I can’t believe that I’ll be on a plane this Saturday (yeah!) Maybe it’s because this year is extremely non-traditional that it seems to be going by so quickly but even this weekend was over in a flash. From Thursday on it was a blur of relaxing days at the beach, company Christmas parties that got a bit too merry, Christmas lunches with the family, catching up with friends and simply enjoying the absolutely stunning weather that has finally arrived. 

On a side note,the title of this post has nothing to do with the weather but instead is dedicated to my new drink of choice - the beautiful combination of rum and ginger beer that makes up a dark and stormy (and will be consumed beach side in Bali, in large quantity).

It's Beginning to Look Alot Like Christmas...

Okay, so I figure since it's almost mid December it's perfectly acceptable to be out in the open about my obsession with Christmas. No longer do I have to hide the fact that I listen to Christmas carols in early November (or year round for that matter - they make me happy) or start creating gift lists in early January. I love this time of year even despite all the crazy madness.  

I'm still getting used to celebrating Christmas in warm weather - I mean how can you compete with snowy nights and sitting by the fire?  I suppose there is something to be said for BBQ's and warm weather but this Boston girl still isn't convinced - yet.

So I'm enjoying these next few weeks - writing cards, wrapping presents, listening to Bing Crosby and watching every Christmas movie I can get my hands on...

Whirlwind...

Melbourne. 

Every time I visit all I get to see is the inside of the exhibition centre or a hotel room, 

so I can't even tell you how nice it was to finally see a new area of the city. I loved 

St. Kilda - the little area that I did get to see - and really love the overall vibe of

Melbourne, it kind of reminds of Boston in some ways. If I can ever pry the surf board out 

of J's hands, I might consider moving there.

Anyways, it really was a whirlwind of a trip but I had such a great time working with the 

Magnolia Square team and seeing how the St. Kilda event came together. I even got to meet 

the lovely Captain kk who stopped by and said hello. I was really excited to finally meet 

her in person and was bummed out to miss the other gals who stopped by. Hopefully next time...  

Last Chance...

Today is the last day to stop by the St. Kilda Magnolia Square market.  Come on by to say hello (I'll be working all day) and to check out all the amazing goodies just in time for Christmas...x

St. Kilda - Magnolia Square

Another crazy weekend begins...

I've got an action packed few days ahead of me. Tomorrow I'm flying down to Melbourne (such the jet setter) to help out at the last Magnolia Square market of the year. I'm looking forward to seeing Alice Flynn's Design Lab and stocking up on some Christmas presents (for myself perhaps?)  If you happen to be near the St. Kilda Town Hall then make sure to stop by and say hello!

Mother Dearest...

Someday I hope to become a mother. When I do, I hope to god that I can be a fraction of the woman my mother is - beautiful, strong, selfless, honest, caring.  She is my role model, has perfected the apple pie and even knows how to get jiggy with it.

Today is her birthday.

Happy Birthday, Mom - I love you. x