Front Door

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I find doors fascinating. Whenever I pass an interesting door I am dying to see what treasures and delights lie within. I would love to be brave enough to have an outrageous front door but I fear I may never have the courage.

A House Becomes A Home

I'm going to revisit the very beginnings of Castle Kiely while I'm waiting 'oh so patiently' to move forward.

We bought in 2000 with grand plans of renovating and extending in a year or so!! As you can see it has proved to be a longer process than first anticipated due in part to the arrival of 2 small children.

I didn't fall in love with the house but I thought with a few cosmetic changes I could be on my way. It was never supposed to be our 'forever' house but now we don't want to live anywhere else.

Here is our lovely lady looking in dire need of some TLC on the day we bought her....

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Surfer Boy didn't see the house in the flesh, so to speak, until the morning of the auction but luckily after an inspection to check stumps, roof lines and boring stuff like that, he agreed with me that there was heaps of potential to be uncovered.

We tried to squint our eyes at the red brick garage, the ARC pool fence and the red concrete verandah and 'Wallah!!!' A beauty was born. Nothing Surfer Boy couldn't fix! Needless to say after some inspired bidding by yours truly she was all ours and the dream became a reality.

Next up I'll give you a glimpse at the paradise that was the back garden!

Till then..

JK

A Change Of Direction

It is getting tantalisingly close to 'renovation time' at our place. After 6 months at council we may finally have our plans approved in the next couple of weeks (or not, depending on the lovely people in the heritage department). I have been holding myself on a tight rein so as to not be too disappointed in the event of a knock back. My natural inclination to become completely immersed in paints finishes and floor treatment etc is on hold until we get a big red tick from the powers to be.

I had almost decided to stop this blog but I figure I may need an outlet for all my ideas so I am thinking Chalk & Talk may become heavily 'house obsessed' in the near future. I'm sure other stuff will make it's way on to the blog but I am going to try and focus on 'Castle Kiely' for the majority.

See you soon

JK

My Boys

I've been making the most of Facebook lately after a slow start. I used to only look at it if I was contacted through it but now I check it daily and keep up with what everyone's doing and it's addictive. My favourite part of Facebook is staying in contact with some of my students through the years. Quite a few have found me and added me as a 'friend'. I now get to see them as they get older and move on to new and exciting phases of their lives. I can't belive that my babies are now grown men!

Grade 4 - 1997

Boy in Blue (my, hasn't he changed!)
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Grade 3 - 2000

Skater Boy (with cigarette I notice!)

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Grade 4 - 1997

Ok, so they didn't all turn out to be rocket scientists - but at least they're having a good time!

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Movie Of The Week - CRAZY HEART

Synopsis: JEFF BRIDGES stars as the richly comic, semi-tragic romantic anti-hero Bad Blake in the debut feature film CRAZY HEART from writer-director Scott Cooper. Bad Blake... Bad Blake is a broken-down, hard-living country music singer who's had way too many marriages, far too many years on the road and one too many drinks way too many times. And yet, Bad can’t help but reach for salvation with the help of Jean (MAGGIE GYLLENHAAL), a journalist who discovers the real man behind the musician. As he struggles down the road of redemption, Bad learns the hard way just how tough life can be on one man’s crazy heart.

(Via Rotten Tomatoes)

**** 4 stars from me!

It's Not Fair

A couple of times a week we are lucky enough to share afternoon tea with some lovely friends. The down side of this is that when it is their turn to provide afternoon tea, it kind of beats my offerings hands down. Last week Leslie produced this for Friday Arvo..

and Caitlin brought this out on Wednesday!

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How is a girl supposed to drop the kgs with friends like these?

Even Eliza had it in for me with this confection arriving on the table for Saturday lunch!

I GIVE UP!

(Note - Lygon St Cakes made Eliza's although I'm sure she could make it too!)

Serena Style

Another fabulous outfit by Blake Lively for Serena Van Der Woodsen.

Better Watch What I Say

Hi, Jennifer K---y.
Kevin Rudd (KevinRuddPM) is now following your tweets on Twitter.
A little information about Kevin Rudd:

918429 followers501 tweetsfollowing 171124 people

Retro Surfer Boy

Surfer Boy has been going through some old photos, mostly from the days when he was more 'Climber Boy' than Surfer Boy. My how times have changed. I remember the days when every surface had the potential to be climbed and every building/bridge/wall was surveyed for it's possibilities. Even the long hair is long gone. As much as I loved it, it is much easier to be the wife of a surfer than a climber.
Thank god he doesn't have the time to do both anymore.

Wedding at Buller

Thanks to everyone who has asked how the wedding was - it was fabulous! Bride and groom were radiant, Mt. Buller was spectacular, good friends, lots of laughs, dancing, buckets of delicious food and apparently very drinkable drinks!

Congrats to the new Mr and Mrs Shanks and thanks for sharing the day with Surfer Boy and I.

Look What I Found - Web Love

LITTLE EATS is a recently launched website that provides a quick and easy guide at a glance to a cafe’s kid-friendliness and the services they provide. Their focus is mainly on Melbourne cafes that specialise in weekend breakfasts, brunches and lunches.
Each review consists of a simple checklist that includes whether or not a venue provides highchairs, change tables, easy pram access, a separate kids menu, or whether the normal menu has suitable options for little ones, the kid-friendliness of the staff, whether there is a play area for kids or activities and toys provided, as well as prices and the overall atmosphere of the place.
On top of that they also share their personal experiences with you and their opinion on the overall “vibe” of the venue and how welcoming and suitable they are to the little ones in our lives.
Pop by and have a look - it's definitely worth it. Little Eats.

Out and Proud Zac Fan

To celebrate Zac and Vanessa being in Australia I thought I'd share some of my favourite photos of them.

Crazy Ladies Singing

If you had walked past The Corner Shop in Yarraville this morning you would have been treated to a rendition of all the major songs from 'Romper Room', sung divinely by myself and my partner in crime. (It's best not to ask why)

'P in C' has just sent me the original - I assume so we can compare renditions. I vote for ours.

Rob Pattinson

I've just been posting over at www.visitstarshollow.blogspot.com about Rob Pattinson's latest photo spread with Detail magazine and I came across this photo. It's not from the shoot - not sure when it was taken.
I'm not a huge fan of Rob's but I must admit I kinda like this shot.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALEX

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KRIS

Pole Dancing!!!

Well I did it - and won't be doing it again! (Before you ask, I am not in this photo - not that silly.)
It was hilarious, ridiculous, bloody hard work and did I mention hilarious?
My lovely friend Lisa is getting married on Friday so this hour of torture was part of her pre-wedding shenanigans. Hope you had fun Lise, although judging by the hilarity I'd say you did.

This Is What An Australian Summer Is All About

Long busy days on the beach

and long warm nights BBQing with mates.

Could we get any luckier? I'm so thankful that I can bring up my children in such a fantastic environment.

Miami Horror

The Australian band reminding me what the soundtrack to year 9 sounded like! You'd almost believe it was 1983 not 2008.
(Thanks for the heads up Lizey)

Why I Love Yarraville

There are so many reasons to love this particular part of Melbourne but this morning was a perfect example of the colour and variety on show.



While Krissa and I sat over our cups of tea this morning at The Corner Shop we watched these lovely ladies across the road. They were fabulous and we commented that although they received double takes and smiles, in general they were treated as a fun but fairly commonplace sight. That sums up Yarraville perfectly for me.

Horchata

For those of us in Australia who own and love Vampire Weekend's new album 'Contra', here is the answer to a question I have been asking myself - and you may have too...

What on earth is Horchata?

Mexican Horchata
A refreshing cold drink made of rice, almonds, cinnamon (canella), lime zest and sugar. This drink is rumored to be a cure for a hangover and is frequently served at breakfast time. Even though the drink has a milky appearance it is completely dairy-free.

So there you go - never say you don't learn anything at CHALK & TALK! Apparently Horchata is commonly served with massive long donut thingys called Fartuos - it's sounding better and better.

They're Off

Well it's official - I am the mother of TWO school children and as such Surfer Boy seems to think that the house will be immaculate, meals will be prepared, and various home crafts will be completed. He was a little miffed to find that nothing has changed in one day! Little does he know that I headed straight for 'The Corner Shop' cafe and sat around with various lovely ladies until 1.30pm!! There really wasn't much time left after that for chores of any sort. Maybe tomorrow will be different - but I doubt it!
Here's the lovelies off to their first day -

Gidget - year 2

Moondoggie - Prep

(and before you ask - no I wasn't at all sad or sentimental. He was so happy to be there that there didn't seem much point)

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What's Surfer Boy Been Up To??

L.O.L.

Flashback Friday

We had people over for dinner tonight and during the course of the evening, for some reason, the wedding photos were brought out. They are a whole other Flashback Friday, but when I was putting them all back I came across this photo.

This is the group of people I spent much of my teens, and all of my 20s with on an almost daily basis. I think it must have been taken in the mid 90's. Most of us met at dancing class in 1984 (year 9) and we were inseparable for well over a decade. This photo makes me miss those days so much - before, husbands and wives, before kids and mortgages, when every day was an adventure and we lived for each other.

I am happy to say that every one of these people is well loved, with families and big joyous lives. Doesn't stop me missing 'us' though.

(By the way, that's me at the front in the delightful cream canvas coat thingy!)

There's Always One In Every Holiday Snap!

The First In A Series.....

Drop In And Visit

Upper Silver Lake, Michigan.

Keith, Kid and Sheryl

Help For Haiti was a huge success but this was a stand out for me - bet you can guess why...

Bugs Bitten Back

Well, we've been to the architect - seems like our plans are still stuck at council but at least we now know what the next steps will be. If they decide to give us the green light and ignore the heritage consultant then Woo Hoo, but if not then we'll send in the big guns!!! We did make sure our architect knows that we're not scared to take the issues to VCAT so fingers crossed council will decide we're too much work and let good sense rule!!

The meeting has put the extension back at the front of my mind, especially as we had to let council know exactly what colours and materials our house will be. I think I'm feeling all enthusiastic again after loosing interest there for a while.

(We're having a cathedral ceiling upstairs hence the photos - tipping ours won't be quite so grand!)

I Can Dream

We've got a meeting with our architect tomorrow to discuss the progress of our extension which is languishing away at council due to the heritage consultant. That is a long boring story for another day, but the meeting did inspire me to buy a new home mag today at the supermarket. I've been having a lovely time imagining this to be my new kitchen...

In fact the whole home is delightful and fills me with envy. The home is situated in Seminyak, Bali which explains a lot but surely I could replicate some of their ideas? I wish I could show you the rest of the house but my scanner is on the blink. Best you pop out and buy the magazine.


(Real Living - Jan/Feb 2010)

The Boys Are Back - and they're going to kick arse!

Twitter Update

DanMacPherson - So im MCing an event with Prince William this week. deciding whether to shave my beard off? i mean, its not like its the Queen...
about 4 hours ago from web

Golden Globe Gorgeous

Miss Kristen Bell

She Really Is Fabulous

Cute Twitter Pic

Wednesday Wedding - It's all about the cardys

I loved this photo as soon as I saw it but when I looked closer and saw that all the groomsmen are wearing cardigans I was hooked.  They look absolutely fabulous and I wish I had thought of that back in the day.

wildflowersphotos.com

Yay Keith - Congrats!!!

I'm Feeling Your Pain Dax!

via TWITTER

daxshepard1 - Next year I am going to remove my xmas tree from the house by blowing it up with a stick of TNT. I guarantee it wouldn't be any messier.
1:52 PM Jan 4th from web