Taking Stock – June 2019

Not the most flattering photo of either myself or my daughter but it captures the excitement of the whole Harry Potter and the Cursed Child experience. This is us outside the Princess Theatre in Melbourne about to go in for Part 2. Absolutely loved it!

Well blow me down it’s that time again!  I was contemplating what I would write about for this day when I remembered that I was due to do the next Taking Stock post!  Seems like only a week or so ago I did the last one, Taking Stock – March 2019.  How time flies!  If you’ve been visiting here for a while you’d know I do a Taking Stock post quarterly. So this is the second one for 2019.  The next one after this will be in September and then a final one in December.

So let’s go!  

Making:  Another crochet blanket is still in the works!  I’m doing lots of willow squares that will eventually have to be joined together.  I put it down for a long time but now that it’s winter hopefully I’ll make some major progress with it.  
Cooking:  Gorgeous winter warming meals in the slow cooker.  This is one of the many things I love about this time of year!
Sipping:  Delicious red wine at my friend Rita’s house in Melbourne on my recent trip. The wine was made by her father-in-law and it was superb!
Reading:  Jo Tracey, guess what?  I’ve finally got around to reading your first book – ‘Baby It’s You’ – and I’m really enjoying it!  
Looking:  Forward to 5 nights away at ‘Straddie’ soon with one of my sisters, her two kids (1 male tween, 1 female teen) and the teens friend!  Gosh I need this break away!

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

Chicken and Vegetable Soup

Chicken & Vegetable Soup – leftovers for lunch!

Listening:  To Mrs Woog and Mrs Berry on The Hot Flush Podcast always puts a smile on my dial!
Wishing:  I had an endless supply of money!  I could spend it … easily!
Enjoying:  The cooler weather. Oh how I love it!  I was born for a more temperate climate. I go into survival mode during summers in Brisbane. I thrive in our Brisbane winters!
Waiting:  I’m not waiting for anything that I can think of. I don’t want to wish away time. It’s going by too quickly as it is!
Liking:  The fact I’ve been to Sydney and Melbourne since the last Taking Stock post and Stradbroke Island coming up next and Cairns later this year!
Loving:  The fact that I had some time with my daughter recently. Our birthday gifts this year was a trip to Melbourne to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. She had a week off work and our time included some time here at home and two nights away in Melbourne.  Considering she now lives in Far North Queensland, this was wonderful! 
Buying:  I bought another pair of Dannii Minogue’s ‘Petite’ jeans, but in black this time. They’re just so fabulous for my ‘petite’ height (or lack thereof) and they were only $30!
Watching:  The Handmaid’s Tales – Season 3.  Praise Be – it’s been ages!  
Hoping:  That the cooler weather sticks around for quite a while yet. The break from summer humidity and heat is divine!

Happy Place – cosy and warm on the bed in my uggs with my best pal ‘Ava’, room lit by candle light, drinking a glass of Baileys on ice and reading a book in the Kindle app on my phone. This creates the ‘Hygge’ feeling in me (refer to my post on June 11 2019).

Needing:  To work out dates and make bookings to visit my daughter in Far North Queensland.  September might be a good time I think!
Wearing:  Jeans and cooler weather clothes gives me much joy!
Following:  The 7 Up series!  At the time of writing this sentence the next one I’m to watch is 35 Up.  It goes up to 63 Up so far.  
Noticing:  The sparrows in Melbourne that sadly we never seem to see anymore in Brisbane like we did when I was a kid!
Sorting:  Myself out before I head off to Straddie. Lists and tasks to be completed and ticked off. I’m the Queen of ‘to do’ lists.
Getting:  A massage in Melbourne while my daughter went shopping was a very good decision. I had so many aches and pains and it was enormously helpful!
Saving:  Overripe bananas and making banana bread with them has become a weekly thing in this house.  Great to avoid wastage and popular with the male folk! Lots of sugar (brown) though!

Bookmarking:  In Facebook has become a thing for me.  I ‘save’ things that I might want to post at a later date or recipes that I might want to refer back to. 
Coveting:  I’d feel too selfish and spoiled to covet anything again so soon, considering I got what I was coveting in my last Taking Stock post – the Uberkate Ruby Red Corundum Limited Edition Cocktail Ring – bought with birthday money.

Opening:  Parcels that get delivered could become addictive.  Don’t you think?!  Oh boy!
Giggling:  During Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Parts 1 & 2). There were funny bits, serious bits, scary bits. Gosh I loved it!
Feeling:  Shocked but pleased that I’ve made it to 55 (birthday was 31 May), reasonably in tact and in reasonably good health *touch wood*.
Hearing:  At the time of typing this sentence (Sunday afternoon), I can hear activity in the kitchen (clanging and banging, water running, the microwave oven banging shut). Someone getting lunch for themselves I suspect!
Obsessing:  Over Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – Parts 1 and 2.  It was just so fantastic!  If you can get to see it – do it!

The ‘Taking Stock’ concept is the brainchild of Pip from Meet Me at Mikes.  You can go HERE to grab a blank list of the word prompts to copy & paste and take stock yourself if you’d like to!  

The next Taking Stock post from me will be towards the end of September 2019.

Three days till I head off to Straddie – yippee!  Keep watch on my Instagram feed and Facebook page as I’m sure to post some photos and it’s so pretty over there. 

Please note that I won’t be publishing any blog posts next week or participating in The Lovin’ Life Linky, as I’ll be taking a bit of my own advice and apart from posting some pics to Instagram at times, I will be making the most of my time away at Straddie and all the beautiful nature it provides to be mindful and present and soak it all up and of course to use the time to rest and revive and come back feeling rejuvenated and great!

Ciao for now,