A River Runs Through It

That would be the Parramatta River ...

On Saturday Holden ran in the Kings Cross Country, placing respectably but not astonishingly.

In the afternoon we went out on our cousin's boat, down the river. You can see that the kids were having a horrid time. I fished for ages (unsucessfully but happily) and even went for a swim (trying not to think about pollution).

And now it's rainy and horrid and I have too much work and not enough time.

Mystic Pizza

There's nothing bloody mystic about it. Pizza, the takeaway variety, is what happens when you haven't had more than a couple of hours at home at a stretch for over a week.

I haven't even had time to take and upload photos. Remind me why I needed a camera?

1. Thursday last week Holden won his school cross country.
2. Friday last week I worked in the city for a client, then had to dash early to take Phoebe to hospital. We got home shortly after 11pm. We're still not sure what the problem is.
3. Saturday Holden's team won their baseball grand final. Then the children dispersed and we drove to Bundanoon for a friend's birthday (yes, I did the food for it too - don't you make pate at 7am on a Saturday?).
4. Sunday we drove back from Bundanoon in time for another friend's birthday.
5. Monday. Let me see, it's all blurring now. I think I went into the city. Oh, and then we had Andrew's father's retirement dinner (yes, dinner out on a Monday night, guaranteed to stuff up your week).
6. Tuesday. I'm pretty sure I went into the city again. Yes, and then had Holden's parent-teacher conference. And then took Phoebe to Kumon.
7. Wednesday. Phoebe in for dental surgery. This was, tragically, the highlight of the week. The procedure was successful, and watching her lurch around like a drunk zombie afterwards was excruciatingly funny. Don't worry, I did dote on her, I just laughed at the same time.
8. Today. Is today Thursday? I went into the city again. I got home at 6.40pm, to a filthy house and a child missing in transit from soccer. He got home at 7.30pm after his coach took him on a tour of the Inner West.

And I ordered pizza. Now I'm just waiting for Andrew to ring me and say 'can you pick me up from uni?'. Who could blame me if I sighed deeply?

More of the same ahead ...

One Hour Photo

Bugger the GFC. Life without a camera is just WRONG. So this one is on its way to me ... I have high hopes that it will reach me before the weekend.

Little Miss Lumpy Lymph Nodes is back at school today. She wanted to go, I didn't want her to go, Doctor said she could go. Hmmm.

I am helping with the food for a small birthday bash on Saturday. I came up with a menu involving roast rolled loin of pork and quince and pear crumble and various other delightful things, only to be told it's not a sitdown affair. So I shall have to make party food instead, which is also fun. Stuck for a dessert, though, as a cake is being made by Someone Else ...

PS - IT JUST ARRIVED!!! My brand new, lovely lovely lovely camera.

Wall Street

Blind rabbit. Tick. Sick child. Tick. Sudden influx of work when said child has to stay home from school. Tick. Bloody hell.

It's Sod's Law, isn't it? I've been moaning about lack of work, then the moment I get told that Phoebe can't go to school, it FLOODS in.

Poor child has a golf-ball sized swollen lymph node on her neck. Blood tests, blah blah. Actually, right now she is sitting on the couch, watching Mamma Mia, singing and screaming with laughter and rewinding her favourite bits, so don't feel TOO sorry for her.

Feel sorry for ME instead. I'd much rather be watching Mamma Mia with her than writing about margin lending and structured products ...

Watership Down

It was a hectic weekend. Hol had a friend over Friday night, Andrew went off to run his ultra-marathon on Saturday morning, Hol played basketball (and shot the winning basket for his team), then we watched the 12s win their baseball Grand Final. In the afternoon we visited friends to see their new baby, then eventually Andrew hobbled in the door about 7pm.

Yesterday we had people over for brunch - a cross-cultural, cross-era mish-mash of food because I felt like it - poached white nectarines with yoghurt, beignets and kedgeree. My mother thought the kedgeree was very 19th century of me. But everyone loved it.

Once brunch was dealt with, the second shift started with the arrival of my Quince Fest Cohorts. We peeled, we chopped, we mouli-ed, we stirred.

Midway through Andrew had to take Cottontail to the vet (not that he was involved in the quincing). Although the rabbits are not our favourite pets, being unfriendly, bitey creatures, we do take our pet-owning responsibilities seriously, and Cottontail had an eye that looked very sore. Poor thing has apparently somehow injured it (how, we don't know) and now we have to feed her antibiotics in the hope of saving the eye (although she will probably be blind in that eye anyway).

And suddenly it's Monday again. Two trays of quince paste are drying in my kitchen as a reminder of the weekend ...

Chariots of Fire

Taking the sage - if sadistic - advice of a friend, I made good use of my underemployment by going for a short run this morning.

Notes:

1. You can get seriously unfit by, believe it or not, simply NOT doing any aerobic exercise. Who knew?
2. Doing the above (ie sitting on one's arse) can lead you to forget that you are asthmatic. The fire in the lungs (see post title) dispels this illusion quick smart.
3. Phoebe's iPod Shuffle matches my running top but I'm not sure about the diamante earphones.

Kindergarten Cop

No photos.

I taught two days this week - Kinder and 1/2. I therefore deserve my weekend.

Hol had his baseball semi-final this morning and it was an exciting game, with the Boomers (our team) eventually beating the opposition. The final is in two weeks. I am very bad at sport in all senses - I can't throw or catch or run or anything, and I'm also terrible at dealing with the stress of watching a game. I fret and pace and shout and swear.

Phoebe is apparently on the cover of our local paper, but I haven't seen it yet.

And my mother made Jill Dupleix's list of the best 50 recipes in the world here.

Fame, if not fortune, for some of us, at least.