Dear Ruby....part nine

Dear sweet Ruby, 

You are almost one ! A whole year old ! 

Can you believe it ? We can't......this year has gone so fast. 

And you are growing.

And learning.

Four teeth.

Crawling.

Pulling yourself up onto EVERYTHING.

Desperate to get walking.

Slow down little girl.

Yes, that's Aunty Dee, Part-Time-Aunty George and RUBY ! 

At a winery, obviously. 

And oh my goodness.......you are so very cheeky !

You love music, especially your big sister's guitar and singing.

The louder the toy, the better it is.

You love your dog that you stole  you were given from your cousin Chloe.

You love waving to the cockatoos and kookaburras with you Dad in the afternoon. 

You're already a 'foodie'.

NO baby mush for you, your food must have flavour. And spice ! 

Hiya sweet baby girl.

We're coming to Sydney to celebrate you birthday. 

With pink balloons and cupcakes and presents. 

Our little trip with your Mummy didn't quite work out, but don't panic....there'll be more.
You're coming to Melbourne next month......

See you soon baby girl,
i love you loads, Dee xxx

One day, when I grow up....

I'm quite sure that when I was younger my play time was equally divided between having tea parties for my Barbies and bears,

Yes, me in high tea party mode.
Please note plates, jug and table cloth that I now  search op shops for on a weekly basis !

Teaching my long suffering  brother his ABCs

and having a shop. 

In my shop I would then sell my overfed Barbies and bears,

to,  no doubt my now genius (thanks to my teaching, obviously) brother.

Well, as a (somewhat) grown up I have definitely waitressed, served in shops and completed some teaching,

but this weekend, finally, it was my very own shop.

Well, mine with a few friends.

We had a Pop Up Shop in Marysville. 

It was SO much fun.

So lovely to be able to set up shop for a few days. 

To share the space and running of the shop

with four  very talented ladies.

It was great to be able to able to breathe life into an empty shop in Marysville for the weekend.

It was especially great to celebrate with wine afterwards.

And we definitely plan on POPping UP again soon. 

In a different location......

Until then, while I recover,

 it'll be tea parties at home ! 

Dee 

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Funny, funny April in Melbourne

Forgive me Blogger....

It has been over two weeks since my last post ! 

Ohhhhh, April in Melbourne ! 

You truly are one of all time favourite months in my all time favourite city.

Footy is back and the Cats are winning. 

(Yes, I'm a complicated woman, don't judge me and my passions !)

The weather is cooling, which means boots and dress weather,

but it's not too cold, so outdoor beers are still on the agenda.

There are craft markets with amazing talent to see and buy. 

And, possibly most importantly, it's Melbourne International  Comedy Festival Time !

Tram car bar at the fabulous Spiegeltent , Arts Centre Melbourne.

We are big fans of the Comedy Festival, and treat it as a marathon of laughs.

So far we've seen
 Ruy Wax,
the very clever, witty and hilarious Hannah Gadsby at the NGV,
Tripod
and the deliciously funny, DeAnne Smith.

And there are more to come !


Of course, seeing the shows usually means a cheap dinner of dumplings and then drinks.

The city is a buzz of activity and laughter.

And I love that so many of the performers can be found
 propping up the Town Hall  bar, just like us
or catching the 86 tram into thier shows, just like us,
or drinking and chatting in the tram car bar, just like us,
or seeing Hannah Gadsby at the NGV, just like us.

It's a very good time to be in Melbourne.

And exhale..............

Look, I'm the kind of person that when a friend needs a hand.....

I'm there.

If that friend happens to have a fridge stocked  with wine and cheese

AND be the mother of my adorably cute guide child....

I'm there ! 

So, I flew to Sydney last week to hang out with Ruby and her mum.

This visit wasn't as crazy busy as some of our visits together, but we still managed to eat well

and I got a good dose of Ruby love. 

Sunday brunch Cronulla style.

My little laundry assistant. 

Introducing Ruby to the wonders of fabric shopping ! 

Falling in love with a grand old Italian dame.

Some crafting.....

a BIG market ! 

and thankfully a successful market, great to be back in the market season. 

Post Market Dinner Date at a new (to us) Mexican spot in Brunswick.

Los Hermanos - delicious food and mojitos - highly reccomended. 

And back at home and missing this little girl.

It's a busy week again, which is good, but something has to give.

I'm declaring today a pj and mental health day. 

Happy Monday to you,

Dee x

Joining with the lovely Em and her Stills collection. 

Dear Ruby : Part 8

Dear Ruby,

Hello sweet girl.

Guess what ?

Yep, I'm coming to visit !

Can you believe you are almost one whole year old ???

No, neither can I.

You are a crawling machine now. Very eager to explore your world and EVERYTHING in it !

Soon, you, your mummy, myself and Aunty George are taking a trip together. We're all very excited, but, and here's a life lesson for you Miss Ruby, we mustn't show your daddy, big sis and big bro just how excited we are !

This visit is all about helping your Mum. Spending time with you.

And giving myself a reward.

And just maybe some wine and cheese sampling.

And if we can give your big sis a much needed boost, then it'll be a very good visit indeed.

See you soon Ruby,

Love Dee xxxxx

'Round these parts.........

So, it's March.

How did THAT happen ?

And in Melbourne town it is HOT! 

Here's what we've been up to......

(well the photo worthy bits anyway)

There was a family dinner in Geelong for Mum's birthday.

There was a very hot night  market. 

Delicious organic vegies purchased at said market.

A well deserved post-market beer.

And another market to start preparing for.

Friday we explored some new and familiar haunts.

The best way to beat the heat is with beer......obviously.

We headed to the very surprising and very cool Park Hotel in......Werribee ! 

I know, Werribee ! 

We'll definitely be back. As my G said, "dinner with the inlaws (ie, my family) just got a lot better"! 

Closer to home, The Alehouse Project never dissapoints. 

This time with one of our New Zealand favourites, Parrot Dog, on tap.

And, a hot balmy evening was complete with a walk to the infamous Raccoon Club

for beers, chats and tacos ! Bliss.

Saturday and despite the heat, we ventured into Fitzroy for some retail therapy.......

There's dinner with friends tonight (I can't wait)

and I'm sure this extra long weekend will see itself out with more relaxing with beers out the back.

It's been stressful and busy 'round these parts the last couple of weeks

and so I am thoroughly enjoying the 'go slow' vibe of this weekend.

Time with G, some sleep ins (when it finally cools down a little),

and not thinking about the 'to-do list' and work.

Long weekend, I like you a great deal.

Hope you are having a great weekend,

Dee 

Joining in with the lovely Lou and Em today