The work Christmas lunch today was at Gill's Boathouse. We sat on the balcony and had a nice meal overlooking the lake. In honour of my sister I chose the lemon and macadamia tart for dessert. It was lovely accompanied by a strawberry and clotted cream. And no surprise - Stephen didn't make it. He probably knew that I was planning to waylay him and quiz him on the work he promised me weeks ago and has been avoiding ever since.

We have had a very busy weekend!
Up at 3:30 to take Olivia to the airport; home to take the dogs to the kennel for their overnight treat;
Off to the dancing breakup to collect Olivia's exam results - Congratulations for first class honours in her tap exam;
Into Melbourne for Bill's work Christmas do -  a great night celebrating 20 years of ROV. The photo montage included a pic of Olivia as a baby at the family style gathering held that year. The dinner was very good and a few drinks were enjoyed as for once we didn't have to drive home. Nearly 250 people attended the function in the River Room;
Overnight at the Crown Metropole with a great buffet breakfast this morning;
A cuppa with Bon who is looking a little better than she did on Friday, then;
Off to Ballarat for the car club Christmas lunch at Pipers on the Lake. Again, a nice meal in good company;
Finally we are home, and after collecting the dogs, I am looking forward to an early night and a good sleep before facing work tomorrow. Very little food is required as I have been well fed over the last two days!

Christmas cooking

Feel like I have been non-stop running this term. Olivia was no sooner back from paddling on the Glenelg than we were washing and repacking most things for her trip to Japan. All done finally and thinking about retiring for the night as we have to be up at 3:30 tomorrow to see her off.

We found a little time to bake Christmas cakes last Sunday so that is one step towards Christmas for us. Olivia is old enough now to do all the mixing while I prepared the tins and the cakes look great in spite of me forgetting the almonds!

I haven't had a moment to look for a recipe for my sister but I'll do that next week. I too think that she saw the recipe while visiting.

A long time ago my youngest sister and I played duets on the piano. I have great memories of that time and am delighted that Olivia is (just) advanced enough to start playing those same duets with me now.

We have lots of fun trying to get it all together. She is still a novice player and I am struggling to remember what came much easier to me when I practiced regularly!

We have started with the Blue Danube Waltz which is many, many pages with lots of repeated sections and no doubt we will still be getting it together this time next year. The poor manuscript has seen better days as it originally belonged to my mother. It cost 2 shillings and sixpence when new.

There are many wrong notes and lots of hesitation but over all there is lots of laughter and I know that I will cherish this time spent together doing something we both enjoy for many years to come.

An end or a beginning?

Olivia finished primary school today without fanfare as she will continue at the same campus for her secondary education. Having changed schools this year, she is feeling a little let down as all her old schoolmates are eagerly looking forward to their "graduation" next week.

She has had a very busy week however with practise and then exams for dancing taking up hours every day after school. They are all finished now too and we await her results and her school report to provide closure to a very busy and fun-filled year.

Olivia has provided many insights into the various teaching styles she has encountered this year. She is very pleased to have had "Mr C" as her class teacher. He has made lessons come to life with practical demonstrations and class participation that has enhanced the learning process.

Ararat

Olivia had a dance comp in Ararat last week. As I was incapacitated, a friend offered to look after Olivia at the comp. Bill drove up to Ararat on Friday to drop her off and it was freezing! Good thing they were going to be indoors all day.

My sisters came to keep me company and we had a lovely day just socialising. Bill got home about 4:30.

Saturday morning I was feeling well and so braved the trip back with him. The weather was even more miserable, raining all the way. Luckily the comp was running late and we arrived in time to see Olivia and her partner compete in their last duo.

We had a tasty lunch in the RSL next door to the hall before driving home again! It's a good thing that Bill thinks nothing of a 4hour drive each day.

Olivia had a great comp, placing in her tap, song & tap and jazz solos and scoring a first in their tap duo and second in their jazz duo. She tried hard to look after herself as much as possible.

Thanks to Deb and Indya for looking after her for me.

birthday greetings

After much hair-pulling I finally remembered how to find images I had up-loaded to my web albums. I must get into the habit of doing this more often so that I don't forget the good bits. I am sitting here typing left-handed which is very hit, miss and go back and correct that too!

This layout was created for Olivia's dance teacher's 50th birthday. Happy Birthday, Leanne.