Life Goes on

Introducing Grand daughter Number 5.

Another impatient lass who obviously wants to see as much of 2025 as possible.

Flora Nadalin

18th January 2025

2 weeks early 

7 lb 5 oz  (3,400 gm)

Little Sister to GD #2 & #4 

(Miss H and Miss I)

(With 5 Little Girls maybe it's time for that Embroidery Machine????)

Cakes, Cookies & Parties

Whittlesea show:

A Bit of a difference this year with just One Demonstration each day.

 

Our President Iced and decorated a Christmas Cake while 'Yours Truly' ran the commentary!

GD#2 - Picnic Birthday

What could possibly go wrong?

An Uncle holding a Piñata at arms length while a 2 yr old swings at it with a Broomstick!

More Birthdays:

Late night Text from DS#1:  

"I hate Fondant - And my Hands Hurt!": 

For Little Miss H's 4th Birthday He Made 

A (hand coloured) striped, Fondant Covered, Stacked Black Forest Cat in the Hat Birthday Cake.  

Very ambitious for just his 4th Cake! 

Biscuit baking:

I don't know just HOW this started but I find myself delving into the realm of Sugar Cookies. 

(I am blaming it on Instagram!) 

"Freeze the Cookies before Baking" (They had better be worth it for all the fuss.)

September 19th

 

Celebrating a Very Happy 40th Birthday 

With Family

and Friends

and Cake

And Balloons...

And a chance to get all 4 Granddaughters stationary at the same time!

JUNE

 What do you do when it is your Birthday on a Cold day in June?

Go to the Zoo and hang out with the Butterflies!

OR

Have a Chat with a T Rex

(The Dinosaurs are only here until July 14th)

November

Once again I am playing 'Catch Up' So - What happened in November?

The First Weekend in November is Demonstrating Simple Cake Decorations to the Children at the Whittlesea Show.  

Each year we hope we will get some new Members for our efforts.

At home, we Introduced DGD#2 

(Little Miss H) to Our Fairy Garden.

Looks Like Grandpa is a bit Big to play in here! 

She also Celebrated her 3rd Birthday with a Cat Themed Party.

Her Cake was made by Mum (DDIL#1) from the Iconic Australian Women's Weekly Birthday Cake Book.

The rest of the Month was taken up with Renovating the Bathroom. 

It's a Long process if you are to do it right.

Flooring had to be removed to prepare for the Shower Base to be Installed.

When we removed the Tiles from the Shower recess wall we found a Power point or in fact the back of one.

At some point in time a Plumber didn't think that THIS could be a Safety Issue.

Fortunately the Month ended with the arrival of the Electrician and moving the Power Point was added to the list!

Happy Birthday Little One

Miss P.  GD#3
She arrived a Year Ago next Tuesday, 

But today is her 1st Birthday Party. 

She was a little overwhelmed by all the attention

and almost slept through "Cake Time".

I think DD did a wonderful job of the Cake

after a quick Phone call of

"Help Mum I need Mermaid Decorations!"

All I had to do was make the Mermaid Tails

which was very Simple once I located some Moulds at a Local Party Shop.

(I also dusted some Guerlain Seashell Chocolates which when carefully separated made excellent decorations too!)

  

Hello World .

 Introducing -

Penelope Esme

Born 4:20 am

31 October 2022

The bit that they don't tell you about being Grand Parents is...

Trying to explain to a Sick* 2 yr Old who just wants "Mummy Cuddles" that Mummy is a Bit Busy at the moment.

And the fact you will need to be On Call to leave a Half Hour before they actually call you!

Mum & Bub are Fine - Grandparents VERY sleep deprived!

*GD#1 has a Cold

Little Miss A is turning 2.

And as this was the first opportunity for her to have a Party 

- Her Cake had to be awesome.

I had always planned on using the Top Tier of DD's Wedding Cake (which had been vacuum packed) but 8 years was too much and although it looked fine - it just didn't taste good.

Plan B - Outsource the base cake from a company that makes Cakes to decorate.  

I still needed height for the cake and made a Gluten Free layer to sculpt.  Keeping it away from the Caramel Mud was a challenge but achievable.

Thursday Night:  I had the 2 layers together, sculpted and Crumb coated with (GF) Buttercream, and covered in Fondant.

Friday Morning was scheduled to help clean and prepare DD's house for the Party. 

I could spare the morning but not getting home until 4:00 pm meant I would be burning the Midnight Oil to get this cake made. 

By dinner time I had the bones of the Cake's main feature taking shape.

11:30 pm  It was not just Dragon who needed propping up for a sleep but he was done all but the Dusting and that could wait until the morning.

It is amazing how a touch of Colour (applied not unlike Makeup) can bring a model to life.

I was extra pleased that He actually looked somewhat like the photo in The Book!

(Enchanting Magical Cakes by Debbie Brown)

Happy Birthday was Sung 

(in a Surprisingly Tuneful way) and the Cake was cut and devoured in less time than it took to make.

Little Miss A's comment of 

"Dragon asleep on Mountain" 

made it all worth it.

And a Cake Review from one of the Guests (Ryan 7)

"That Cake was amazing.  It looked so good and tasted good but I think it looked better than it tasted that's how good it looked". 

Um? ... I'll take that as a Compliment. Thank you.

* * * * *

Footnote:  

This post is dedicated to 'Auntie' Em.  

Who lost her Mum the day before and still came to the Party.  Love and Hugs.

Happy Birthday.

Where has the year Gone?

In a Whirlwind of Firsts!

A lot of which we have missed

But not this One.

 Today it is GD#2

Little Mis H's FIRST Birthday!

Birthdays Lockdown Style.

Yesterday we were given a bit more "Freedom".  

Our 5 km restriction was stretched to 10 km.  (Although I am starting to feel like a Puppy on a Retractable Leash, I understand why we have to do this.)

As a Kid, Try as I might I just could not understand Venn Diagrams.  

Today I happily drew one - 10 km from Us and 10 km from DD.

Somewhere in the middle they Overlapped.  

And we were able to see her for her Birthday!

Now, we ARE allowed a Picnic (with conditions) BUT I am sure the wind was straight off the Antarctic.  

So Picnic in the Car it was!

[And Bessie has a Great Cubby in the Back ;) ]

And while the Grown-ups were sorting Whose Coffee was Whose...

In swooped 'The Strawberry Thief"

For a Little One that has only just turned One - She did a very good impression of the Seagull that Stole my Sandwich!

There wasn't much left of the Birthday Cake Decoration by the time Miss A had finished - 

This Girl LOVES her fruit and devoured every single piece she took.

So Happy Birthday to MY DD.  

It may not have been the Celebration we would have liked but a precious memory anyway. 

Hope the next one can be celebrated in Style!

Happy Birthday Little One

 

One Year ago we were in lockdown.

One year ago we welcomed our 
First Grand Daughter -on Zoom - 

and waited for our first cuddle.

Today we are again in Lockdown

Today we wished her Happy Birthday 

- Via Google Duo - 
and wait for a Birthday cuddle.

A Week to Remember

Restrictions on travel between Regional and Melbourne were lifted

 as at 11:59 PM Sunday 8th November.

We had not seen our D-DIL since May when they arrived with THIS in hand.

Surprize!

Unable to go to them, 

We have watched her progress through Instagram, 

emails and Zoom.

With Baby due December 5th

We have even had the Baby Shower via Zoom

Monday, the restrictions on reasons 
for travel were lifted. 

Tuesday, they came down to Melbourne
to Attend the Wedding.

Wednesday 11:40 PM

Obviously not wanting to miss any more of the "Fun that is 2020"

Hazel Mae turned up

- 3 Weeks early!

In the space of 34 hours we gained a Daughter-in-Law and a Grand Daughter.

It's been a VERY big week.

"Equal Parts Prayer and Science"

And Speaking of Miracles...

I have waited all Year to Share This Bit of News.

Our DD's Announcement Read:

After Years of Heartache,        we are beyond Thrilled to Announce the Safe arrival of little Ada Ashlyn.

Equal Parts Prayer and Science.

Born at Dinnertime 07/08/2020





And from me - "Grandma and Grumpy" are Thrilled Too!

*It's been a VERY Big week.*

Happy Birthday

Or should it be 

Happy (.....Socially Distant.....) Birthday

It was definitely NOT the Cake I would have made

It was not the Celebration we would have had

And it hardly feels like anytime since I was posting their 21st Birthday Photos.

A Shop bought Cake and Homemade Honeycomb for Decoration - Not my usual Style.

But we could all gather together (without anyone having to travel).

We brought our offerings to the Table, 

Said Grace as a Family

And enjoyed Time Together - But Apart.

And the Cake?

It was brought to the Table

and They Blew

And the Candles went out

I can still work Birthday Miracles!

Argggh - It's December already

I do this every year - 

Every year December comes around EXACTLY when it should, 

so why does it 'sneak up' on us?

I can't get into the swing of the Festive Season until the last Birthday of the year is Past.
THAT happens on the 3rd December.
I spent all day Monday making Black Forest Birthday Cake - and when I was  finished I was too tired to cook Dinner....

Why? they ask, does She wait until the last minute to bake a Cake?

Unlike these Two who decided to watch Spring turn to Searing Summer through the back door - I had other things to do.

There was Christmas Break-up Lunch and Demonstration at Cake Decorators to attend.

I didn't feel like going but then I never do and once I am there I am glad I went.

It was a fun demonstration. Instructing us on making adorable figures for a Christmas Cake topper.

And then we had some Transport problems which started off with a Fire, which closed Sydney Road and the 19 Tram line for almost 24 hrs.

There was also an issue in the City Loop which stopped all trains going through at the same time a Sell-out Bon Jovi Concert finished.

Trams were packed and sometimes held up. (Note: If you are going to get yourself arrested - It would be greatly appreciated if you don't do it on the tram line!)

So why was it a problem for Us?

We were waiting up for that "Pick us up at the . . ." Call from DS#2 and his GF who were in the City on a Special Date.

Dinner, MSO Concert, Romantic walk along the River, Ice Cream and - a Proposal!

It was a VERY late night!

* * *

Ah Yes - It Is December already!

Happy Birthday to Me ....

This year I hit a milestone Birthday and was determined to not let it pass without doing SOMETHING special.

So I packed everyone into the car and headed for the Mornington Peninsula.

Our first stop was at the Arthur's Seat Chairlift.
There has been a Chairlift at Arthur's Seat since 1960 and after years of problems and accidents it was finally replaced in 2016 with a new European style all weather Gondola system.

Although as a child, I spent many weekends holidaying at Dromana, I have never ridden the lift (sitting on a seat swinging in the breeze was not my 'thing' even way back then). So when I heard it was being upgraded I couldn't wait to check it out.

The verdict - not nearly as terrifying as the Cairns/Kuranda Skyrail.
And one day - I will get to ride one of these things when it is not raining!

Next stop was the township of Flinders - it sits on the 'other side' of the Peninsula where Western Port Bay meets Bass Strait.

The township has certainly changed since I was there last and afternoon tea was a delight at Mornington Peninsula Chocolates.

There was one last place I wanted to visit before we headed home.

I do love lighthouses!

To me they symbolise safety and protection and steadfastness.
And remind me of all my favourite childhood Sunday School songs.

This one is at Cape Schanck and has been faithfully protecting all those who pass by her since 1859.

I did fully intend to be well on the way home before dark but, time got away from us and. . .

- well - 

What a perfect way

 to finish the day!