From my family to yours, we'd like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas! I hope it's full of love and laughter, and that it's a safe, peaceful, and healthy time for you all. I'm going to take a little blogging break for a few days to spend with my darling family, but I'm eager to come back in a few days to catch up with you all and read all about your Christmas! Until then, I'll leave you with a few photo's I took last night when we drove around our neighbourhood looking at the Christmas displays, and a picture of my One True Love dressed up as Santa with his little Elf, Paris Fifi. Aren't they adorable together?! lol. Also, Rhonda of Farmhouse Style has tagged me, so I'll answer that before I go and turn my full attention on my family. Best wishes for a Merry Christmas.........Amanda.

Scrooge or Elf?

1.Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper, ribbons & bows!
2.Tree...real or artificial? Would love real, but have artificial.
3.When do you put Christmas tree up? December 1st.
4.When do you take the tree down? December 31st.
5.Like eggnog? Yes.....chilled and over ice (aussie style!).
6.Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, it was my Nana's.
7.Favourite gift received as a child? A 3 storey Barbie doll house with an elevator that ran up through the middle. It was soooooooo cool!
8.Hardest person to buy for? My loved ones. The more I love someone, the harder they are to buy for because I want the gift to be PERFECT!
9.Easiest person to buy for? Me, myself & I.
10.Worst gift? One year I gave someone 6 crystal goblets, and they gave me a pair of socks!
11.Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail!!
12.Favourite Christmas movie? Any Christmas movie really, but I really love to watch old home movies at Christmas time.
13.When do you start shopping for Christmas? I shop all year round for both Christmas and birthdays.
14.Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? No, but I have refunded a few......
15.Favourite food to eat on Christmas? Fresh prawns & crab.
16.Clear or coloured lights? Clear on the house, coloured on the tree.
17.Favourite Christmas song? White Christmas by Frank Sinatra, and Silent Night.
18.Travel during Christmas or stay home? Home!!
19.Can you name Santa's reindeer's? Some, not all. But Rudy is my favourite!
20.Angel or star on tree top? One of our tree's has a star, the other has an Angel.
21.Open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? One small gift each on Christmas Eve, the rest on Christmas morning.
22.Most annoying thing about this time of year? Hardly anyone shows any Christmas spirit or cheer at the shops or malls, they look at you like you're off your rocker if you show cheer or spirit to a stranger! ARGH! Kinda sad too really...

I'm going to tag Karen @ My Yellow Farmhouse.

I've been tagged by Jan @ Life & Times of Li'l Ol' Me, Michelle @ Back Through Time, and Karen @ Karen's Korner to do the Christmas Hoopla! Here's what you have to do:

1. List 12 random things about yourself that has to do with Christmas.2. Please refer to it as hoopla and not the dreaded m-word.3 According the the creator, Andrea, you must specifically tag your people. There's none of this saying, "if you reading this consider yourself tagged.4. Hurry, Christmas is coming and Andrea would like as many people to get involved in this as possible so it can make the rounds and we can read 12 things about everyone and Christmas!

Hold on to your kittens girls, we're off! (Don't ask me what that means, it's a silly saying my One True Love always says to us whenever we get into the car with him! lol He's a little............odd. But that's a whole nuther post!) Ok, enough stalling......

1. Christmas is my all time favourite season. I love to start celebrating it from as early as I can get away with, and make it last as long as I possibly can! I love the whole feeling of Christmas, presents have very little to do with my love of it, it's more about the spirit and the meaning of it for me.

2. I love to send and receive Christmas cards in the mail. None of this e-card business for me. I love to go out to the letter box each day and look for a surprise, hold the card in my hot little hand and read what my friends and family have written to us in their own hand writing, then hang the card up so we can see them all the time.

3. For the whole month of December I am obsessed with Christmas music (my favourite song is White Christmas by Frank Sinatra). I have it playing from the minute I wake up........until Precious Princess starts to protest too loudly over the music! Sheesh! Party pooper.

4. Most years we have been away, staying with family for Christmas, but on the years that we have been home, I like to turn the air/con up really high to make it really cold in the house to make it feel more like Christmas should be! Not stinking hot like we have it. I'd love to experience a real white Christmas at least once!

5. We always open one present each on Christmas Eve, just a small gift, then we open the rest on Christmas morning before sitting down to a lovely family breakfast.

6. I always buy a really special card each for my daughter, husband, and my mum then leave them in the tree for them to find. Inside I put either a voucher, gift card, lotto ticket or money.

7.When our daughter was little, after she had gone to bed, my husband used to put his big work boots on and walk through some talcum powder, then walk up the driveway (since we don't have a fireplace!) and through the house leaving white footprints everywhere that looked like Santa's snow prints. When our daughter woke up she would think Santa had walked through the house to deliver her gifts. lol So cute! Not a fun clean up job for me, but lots of fun to watch her reaction!

8. Everyone still always has one gift under the tree that is marked "From Santa". That includes me, even though I buy them all! You know, Santa always seems to know just what I like........gotta love the big guy!

9. I love to decorate the entire house. Inside, outside, front, back, top to bottom. Everywhere! My husband says it always looks like Christmas exploded in our home, but he loves it too, even if he does get tangled in a few of the decorations from time to time. hehehehehe

10. Our beloved pets always have gifts waiting for them under the tree too. As you can see by the photo's my daughter, Precious Princess, took yesterday, the pets have their outfits to wear as well each year. Every year my One True Love dresses up as Santa and Precious Princess dresses up as an Elf, and they hand out all the presents to everyone. Even the grown ups love to come over to Santa and get their gift. Now the pets are in on the act too! lol (Did I mention we are...........odd?)

11. I didn't get to spend a Christmas at home with my family until I was 13yrs old. I had a serious childhood illness that always seemed to see me in hospital at Christmas time. I can so clearly remember Santa coming to the hospital and handing out gifts to all of us sick kids, and I treasure the memory of my first Christmas at home! I think that's what makes the whole Christmas season seem so special to me now, to be home with my family.

12. When I was pregnant with our daughter, she was due on December 23rd, but didn't arrive until 3 weeks later on January 14th! That was one looooooooong, HOT, uncomfortable Christmas!

I'm going to pass the Hoopla fun on to:

Kate @ Our Red House
Dena @ Swaddle Cottage
Melissa @ The Inspired Room
Leigh Ann @ There's No Place Like Home
Julie @ Nunnie's Attic

Have a wonderful day all!
Love Amanda xx

Drum roll please!.............. Manuela @ The Feathered Nest! Congratulations sweetie! If you'll email me your details, I'll get your package straight off to you! Thank you to everyone who entered, also a big THANK YOU to everyone for all your well wishes and congratulations. I really appreciate it a lot! I'll be hosting another give away in 3 weeks time in honour of my daughter's 14th birthday, and next time there will be a bit of a guessing game involved, so thinking caps on girls! lol I wish you all a wonderful Christmas and hope that it is a happy, healthy and safe one. Merry Christmas! Love Amanda xxx

(I'll post photo's of what the give away was after Manuela receives it so that I don't spoil the surprise for her!) hehehehehe Aren't I cruel?! lol

Woo hoo! I made it! 100 posts. Wow, that just flew by! I'm sorry I haven't posted in a couple of days or been around visiting anyone (although I have been thinking of you all and wondering how everyone is!), but I've been sick with a nasty little tummy bug. It really knocked me for a 6, but I think it's all over with now, and I'm good as gold again. Now I can start popping by, knocking on your doors for a visit again! I take one sugar and a dash of non fat milk in my coffee, thank you xxx.

Ok, so we've made it to 100 posts. I say we because with out anyone of you stopping by to share with me, encourage me, and inspire me I probably would have given up long before! So, I'd like to say thank you to all who visit me, some of you come by from time to time, some of you come by to see me daily, some people visit and don't leave a comment, but you are all very much appreciated. Precious Princess and I have put together a box of goodies to post off to the lucky person who is randomly selected. We'll put all names in a hat, shake them up really well, and then.......hey presto, a winner will be drawn! All you have to do is leave a comment on this post (which I'll leave up for a couple of days because I know everyone is extremely busy at this time of year), if you tell others to come visit and they leave a comment, you'll go into the draw twice! Everyone is welcome to enter, if this is your first visit here, or if you've been visiting but never left a comment before, that's no worries, just say g'day now!

Ok, now Precious Princess and I are off to do the last of our Christmas shopping and get haircuts! I hope you're all having a fantastic day! I'll pop round and visit you all when I get home "sarvo" (aussie slang for this afternoon)! lol Until then , take care, and I'll leave you with a couple of photo's of our little Paris Fifi floating around in our pool. She cries with excitement begging to get into the pool with us, so here she is on her royal doggie throne....lol..........love Amanda xxx

Sitting by the pool this morning having my coffee, I looked over at this beautiful display on our Frangipani tree and thought it was just so gorgeous that I wanted to share it with you! I hope you are all having a lovely relaxing weekend too. Yesterday we had friends over. The kids had a wonderful time in the pool and opening the Christmas gifts that were exchanged between families. The day was full of good friends laughing together, eating until we thought we'd burst, and making wonderful memories with our kids. So today we're having a quiet one. It's a hot lazy day, just perfect for relaxing in the pool and working on that tan.............

I thought I'd share some photo's of our humble little cottage with you today, now that she's all dressed for Christmas. So please, do come in and make yourselves comfy. I've got the air con on for you so that we don't all melt. Would you like a lovely cold glass of eggnog over ice? mmmmmmm delicious! Just what we need on a hot Christmas day. Maybe a slice of pavlova with fresh plump juicy mango pieces on top? Then later we'll take our tall cool drinks, with little umbrella's sitting atop the frosted glass, out onto the pool deck and sit with our legs languishing in the refreshingly cool water. So what do you say, are you up for a Christmas bikini party by the pool today? lol

Good morning! Please come in, make yourself at home. Let me take your coat. I'll pop the kettle on and we can sit and visit for a spell over a piece of this delicious and very decadent chocolate mud cake. Tea or coffee? How do you take it? One lump or two? Come visit again soon! Hope you have a sweet day too!
Love Miss Mudcake...

Christmas shopping...........floating in the pool........having friends over.....Christmas shopping........floating in the pool............having friends over.......can you see a wonderful pattern happening here? Since not much else is going on here right now, I thought I'd share some more photo's from our holiday to the Great Barrier Reef last Christmas. This is one of the boats that we took a few all day cruises on when we went Island hopping, and a couple of views from the back of the boat. The ocean is just such a beautiful, massive, awe inspiring life force that just amazes me. I love it, it's gorgeous! I hope you enjoy having a little peep into my world, as much as I enjoy seeing into yours. Have a fantastic day!

Oh my gosh! It's sooooooo hot! The humidity is so high that as soon as you step out of the shower, you are already sweating again. All you want to do is lay around under these.........float around in this..........and eat this. Yesterday I scrubbed the house from top to bottom and had to keep stopping to jump in the pool to cool down a bit, then I'd start cleaning again. All I can say is thank goodness we have a pool and an air-conditioned house! Today Precious Princess and I went Christmas shopping and to the movies to see The Game Plan (her choice). We would normally stop for lunch too, but since Princess still can't chew yet (because of her braces), we just got a couple of mango smoothies to tide us over, then on we shopped! Tomorrow we've got some more shopping planned, then home to jump in the pool again. Is it me, or is there a bit of a pattern developing here?! lol Anyway, I hope you are all keeping nice and warm where you are (or nice and cool of you're over here struggling through the aussie summer too!). If you're willing to send some of your cold weather this way, I'm more than happy to have it!

Yay! Now we really are on holidays! All the end of year school, dance, and bowling concerts and parties are finished with for another year. Finally we can spend a few idol days floating around in our pool, relaxing under the hot summer sun. Can't wait! But first I promised to show you some photo's. I wasn't allowed to take the camera into the auditorium (security almost tackled me to the ground! lol), so I got a couple of photo's in the dressing rooms. Let me just tell you, it was HOT and CHAOTIC in there! Costumes and dance shoes flying everywhere! I spent half the night spraying hairspray on all those heads who forgot to bring their own, and the other half running around like a headless chook! lol. So here's a photo of Precious Princess in her favourite costume, a Charleston dress. The rest of the costumes I just laid out on her bed today and took a photo for you. It was such a crazy night and I was running back and forth from the dressing rooms where I'd help her get dressed, then race back over to the hall to watch the dance, then back to the dressing room again......over & over! So sometimes the camera got left behind on my seat...........sorry! Anyway the concert went really well, everyone enjoyed the night tremendously, especially the kids, so it was worth every effort to see their proud and happy faces up there dancing all night!

Then this morning was the Christmas break-up party at the bowling alley. Precious Princess is a part of a teenage 10 pin bowling league, this was her first year with the league, and she has enjoyed it very much. It was a family party, where we played a couple of games of bowls, played party games, had lunch, then had the awards presentation ceremony. Can you just imagine how shocked and excited my family was when Precious won 3 trophies! One was for Highest Game Score Over All, one was for Most Improved, and one was for High Achievement. We were totally not expecting to win anything being as it was her first year, but she's done so well and enjoyed it every week, so I guess that has paid off. We're just so proud of her! Thank you for letting me have a mummy brag today, I really wanted to share our beautiful daughter's success with you too! Hope you're all having a fantastic weekend with your loved ones too.

It's here! The day has FINALLY arrived! Tonight (Saturday night) is Precious Princess' end of year dance concert! All 6 costumes are packed in the car already so that we don't forget anything, my house is covered in sequins and glitter.........and this arvo (aussie word for afternoon) will be a whirl wind of make-up, perfume, deodorant, hair pieces, bobby pins and hair spray. The ozone layer will definitely be a little more damaged after night's event! One True Love runs for the hills when he sees all of this going on. Safest place for him too, I think! lol I'll try to sneak some photo's to show you, but camera's (either still or video) aren't allowed into the auditorium because it's being professionally videoed and photographed, but I'll try for ya! Then tomorrow we'll all be up early after the late night tonight, because Precious Princess has her end of year Christmas break up party for bowling. It's a family party, so we're all going (yes One True Love, that means YOU too! I can see you hiding there ya know... Oh stop crying One True Love, it won't kill you! Geesh!) So my friends, I'll leave you with some more Christmas photo's from around our humble abode, and tomorrow afternoon I'll tell you all about it!

P.S. I just wanted to "Thank You" all for leaving your well wishes, sympathy and advice for my Princess in regards to her braces. They are still hurting her quite a bit, but she's getting better each day. We've stocked up on soft foods, panadol and big cuddles, so I know we'll get through! Have a wonderful weekend everyone, and I'll be around to visit you all as soon as I can. Don't forget me! lol

Amanda xxx