2016 in short

It seems I've been a little behind the times......................

Well here we go, attempting to reactivate my blog!  What has happened so far this year?  Let me perhaps attack it in point form, we'll see how that goes!

• I have now been working in the cafe as a waitress for 16 months.  Things have not changed a lot apart from cosmetics, although the business seems to have grown with the tourism and is getting busier.  I have done my barista training at an outside venue, I have also done my RSA.   I do so like the customer service, dealing with people each day, but it has it's moments..... 

• Number 1 son completed his epic first overseas trip earlier this year, exploring Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.  Accompanied by Ash and a couple of her friends, by all accounts he had a wonderful time and is destined to travel again.  I look forward to hearing about it two weeks before he leaves...

• Number 2 son headed off to University in Melbourne in 2015 to study Italian and International Studies.  He got through the first year ok, but will be exiting Uni this month.  Re-locating back home, he will go back into the workforce until he decides what to do in the future.

• But first, he will be going over to Italy with the Trentini for 3 weeks, then spending another week in Rome with his host family.  He is excited to be going back to Italy, after first going over with school in year 12 and loving it.

• At the start of Feb this year we lost Oscar, my Ragdoll xPersian cat, affectionately known as "Croissant".  We was such a loving and affectionate soul with such a presence, and I miss him so much.  He always came to me for cuddles.

• And whilst on the subject of furry family members, the old boy is really getting on now. Shady is really filling out, and struggles to get up the back steps.  I worked out taking him up on an angle was easier for him.  And getting up into the back of the Bluebird is a bit of a challenge as he still tries to jump up and won't let you lift him.  Blokey man has to catch him mid-flight and hoist him up.  He is however still very prone to attempting to take out the ozone layer on his own, has incredible reach with his snoring, and extremely talkative whilst upside down on his mat kicking his back legs around.  And a wet nose in the face at 4am in the morning still tells you that he needs to go wees, and I'm not talking about the Blokey Man!

• His counterpart, the little fart, is still very active for her age, which would be very close to Shady's maybe 14??  She still buries her Goodo's in Shady's bed then tries to keep him off it.  He still walks around the whole bed every time he goes to sit down looking for hidden Goodo's beneath his bedding.  It really is a circus.  And whilst she's now lived here for some time, she's still very passionate about having the last word with those two big boys that seem to put her on edge.

• The Blokey Man has been loving the trucking life, gone in the dark, home in the dark, loving the life....  And Facebook, lets not forget Facebook, because he'll never be "in your face with that"....  There's nothing quite like the gentle booming of rock'n'roll music at 2am when the truckie loving Blokey Man is preparing for departure with a little "in your face time".  And where would he be without all those cupcake selfies with his other truckie loving mates, what's not to looovvveee about that?  

• Well, he still needs a social life, so we also have Soccer every Sunday, and isn't that a treat for everyone?  Who would have thought that wearing a Marshall's vest could calm the Italian blood during a battle of blues...because it just doesn't!  Apparently he hates that game, it's so frustrating and they need to shirtfront more.... but his boy played like a champion and he's going to kick a goal.  He is most certainly one of the most entertaining supporters there, and I am very fortunate to have my camera handy so that I can wander the pitch at a distance when he is being extra passionate.

Needless to say there would be no show without this fella either.  I'm sure he walks around the pitch looking for someone every time his phone rings, because you've just gotta, "hey, watch this..."

This dear fellow is the inspirational Mr Aldi, who is more than happy to sit in his little space and hide from me... and offer us his words of wisdom about the game in hand.  It is always good to see Mr Aldi at the games.

• So Soccer.  Number 1 son has been playing between seconds and seniors, but his passion is with his peers in the twos.  Short of players at the start of the season, they have maintained a good group of players, from the younger fellas showing lots of potential and improvement, to the seniors dropping down or having a run.  Having that consistency in a regular list makes it all come together so much better.  With Number 2 sons playing indoor whilst at Uni, he has now returned to the ranks in the seconds with his brother. Although departing shortly for Italy, he will manage a few games before and when he gets back.  Whilst needing to gain a bit more fitness, nothing could make the return to the pitch sweeter than bagging a goal.  Sweet.

• And again, with smaller towns struggling for a photo appearance of their chosen codes in the local papers, it's not always going to work.  And then there are so many teams, and a focus on the Senior Men and Senior Women, that not all the teams get represented with photos.  Because I enjoy it, and because I want decent photos to scrap and share, I go along to the games I can make with the intention of getting as many photos of the seconds, so that I can upload them to the club's Facebook page.  At least that way if we don't make the paper the teams will still get a few photos to look at.  And you're always going to get a few funny ones too, and that keeps the page interesting.

• I've been trying to get a few family catch-ups going this year, just so that we can all keep in touch.  Summer seems to be the best time as we can enjoy the lake, fishing and bbq's. We discovered Nug Nug reserve, which is a great little camping spot.  If we plan ahead we'll better be able to manage out catch-ups, it really is great for everyone.

Now let's see how long it takes to get the next post up!