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  • FEATURE: Oh my, you have a very big… boat!

    FEATURE: Oh my, you have a very big… boat!

    WITH all the excitement of our Melbourne trip now behind us *sigh*, we’ve already started planning the next interstate holiday *jump for joy*. But it’s not for a quite a few months yet *sigh*. But by then the weather will have picked up *jump for joy*.

    Our options are to fly or go via this.

    Well, the version without eyes and a mouth, anyway.

    Princess Ella gets to see this out the lounge room window every day. If you haven’t figured out what it is, it’s the Spirit of Tasmania. Each time we watch it come in and out of the Mersey River, Ella remarks “there’s Uncle Rick’s boat’’. He doesn’t own it; he just sailed on it – once.

    Funny story, just prior to going to Melbourne, Julian was talking to Ella’s child carer. Ella repeated her usual “yes, we’re going to Melbourne to see Uncle Rick, aren’t we Dad?’’.

    “We hear so much about Uncle Rick. Apparently he has a really big boat?’’ the child carer said.

    Julian then had to explain that the “big boat’’ is actually the Spirit. The child carer had more than a little chuckle at that.

    Due to the boat being so visible, there’s been repeated requests we go to Melbourne on “Uncle Rick’s big boat’’ instead of the plane this time. However, there’s a huge issue with that.

    As I was telling Tina Gray on her post the other day – the post where she revealed a rather green looking version of herself on the Manly Ferry – I actually suffer the same disease. This is despite being the daughter of a rather keen trout fisherman.

    I might add though, there’s a big difference between fishing in a lake and fishing in the sea. Although, give me fishing from the shore and that will make me really happy.

    A very young Ella fishing with her Nan.

    Unless I don’t catch anything.

    Ella after catching her very first fish a couple of years ago.

    I NEED calm seas when I’m on vessels of any size. The last time we went to Melbourne on the Spirit of Tasmania, I ran out of seasick tablets, followed by having a panic attack and then ending up in the single bed WITH The Bloke in The Shed.

    Let’s just say, he wasn’t impressed! It was 27 degrees, there was no ventilation and me squishing him up against the wall just made things even hotter. And no, I don’t mean in THAT way. There was nothing romantic about this scene at all.

    Anyway, after all that, we’ve now debating whether to go to Sydney and Queensland too.  No boats, ahhh. If anyone would like to sponsor these trips, my bank account details are…

    What’s your favourite place to holiday? Is there somewhere our family should be visiting?

  • PHOTOS: History repeats

    PHOTOS: History repeats

    HISTORY repeats. I know this to be true, because after downloading a host of photos the other day, I stumbled across this photo of Ella “walking the plank”.

    Ella, a couple of weeks ago.

    Which looked uncannily like this photo.

    Me, kindergarten 1982

    This is me “walking the plank”. Kinder, 1982. A photo to place on the front of a Christmas card addressed to my Mum.

    Linking up with My Little Drummer Boys’ Wordless Wednesday. Click on the link to check out more photo posts.

  • FEATURE: Do real men cry?

    FEATURE: Do real men cry?

    The Bloke in The Shed with Baby Holly

    I MARRIED a crier. Not just the high-pitched cry you hear accompanying your name because a spider is in the kitchen. That happens, yes.  And not just the victory cry when Collingwood make it into yet another grand final. That whimpering sound in the background is usually me. And not just the cry when he kicks his toe on Ella’s train set… again.

    He’s a full-on emotional, tears streaming down the face kinda crier. Usually, complete with sobbing.

    The topic was brought up the other night on Twitter. Tina from tinagray{dot}me tweeted she was watching Love Actually – one of my all-time fave movies. It prompted me to tweet how I’d coincidentally just mentioned the movie in Julian’s submission for Reservoir Dad’s Mentally Sexy Dad Competition. You see, Julian cried in Love Actually – all five times he watched it. Tina then tweeted how her hubs cried during The Notebook. But shhh, she didn’t tell us that, OK?

    Then Kym, from Mumma’s Mini Mes, added how the only time her hubby had cried was in their wedding and birth of their Mini Mes. “Tough country bloke’’, she said, followed by an “lol’’. I assured her he cries – just on the inside.

    Next, Lisa from Hey Hoe Warren dobbed in her Dad. “I’ll nominate my dad, Kellie… he cries watching TV commercials! Such a softy. Lol’’ Now, if it’s the Fred Hollows ad (you know, In 1993 Australia lost a friend, a husband, a father), then I can understand. If it’s the Oz Zoot Reviews ads, then he’s got a problem.

    Lastly, Kelley from Magneto Bold Too chimed in with: “My husband cries during Grey’s Anatomy. I WIN!’’ Yes, Kelley. Yes, you do. Our men don’t hold a candle to yours.

    It got me thinking about all the times The Bloke in The Shed has cried. I started a list, but the paper wasn’t long enough. So I thought I’d just mention a few highlights. He cried:

    • During the birth of the girls, Ella and Holly. There were also quite a lot of tears trying to get to the hospital on time with Ella.
    • Numerous movies – Love Actually, Juno and Shankshaw Redemption. Well, that last scene was a real tear jerker.
    • The video of Ella’s first year. I always know when he’s clicked on the link, because I start hearing slow breathing, followed by little snorts and then a grab for the tissues.
    • The blog post Love you to the moon and back. See above.

    But we wouldn’t have him any other way.

    What’s your hubby or partner like? Is he in touch with his emotional side or is he too man enough for that whimpy stuff?

  • BLOG: These are a few of my favourite memes (aka blog hops)?

    BLOG: These are a few of my favourite memes (aka blog hops)?

    THREE Li’l Princesses’ audience is fast growing and so far I haven’t had to sell my soul. I could say I’ve been blessed or that my “content is king’’, but I really doubt either are true. I can’t pinpoint exactly what it is, but I’m guessing it might have something to do with:

    • The sheer volume of comments I make on other bloggers’ blogs. No, I’m not stalking you.
    • Getting involved in social media – Twitter and Facebook. It helps save hubby’s ears from my constant natter.
    • Giveaways. Because who doesn’t like something for free? Unless it’s a cold and then, no thanks.
    • Memes (aka blog hops). Rhymes with “cream’’, not “Demi’’.

    The latter is where I see huge spikes in traffic and comments. I’ve road tested quite a few and have four that have worked really well for me. They are:

    This one is pretty simple. You upload a photo. End of story. Although, it isn’t end of story for me, as no words causes huge headaches for my homepage thumbnail, so mine is never truly “wordless’’. And maybe also because I can’t keep my mouth shut. Even for just one post.

    Choose your best post from the week. I’ve found the key to this one working is an eye-catching headline – and headlines have never been my strong point. Thank goodness I married the rather clever Bloke in The Shed (please don’t tell him I said that).

    One of my favourite memes of the week, this one is simply a post about what you’re grateful for. I’ve slightly copied Maxabella’s format, in that she usually posts three things. Hers are numbered and mine and mere dots, so I’m being “slightly’’ original. It’s also my chance to spruik the silly things my three-year-old daughter Ella does.

    This one is just too easy. Allison picks a topic and you have to dive into your archive (or you can just scroll through, if you like) and find a post that fits the subject. Love, love this one!

    My advice though is to 1. Make sure you include the badge in your post to credit the wonderful work of the meme host. 2. Comment on other posts that are part of the meme. *UPDATE* This meme is now hosted by the lovely MultipleMum of And Then There Were Four. Check her out. She has a fab blog.

    *UPDATE*

    Since writing this post, I was asked by the gorgeous Tina Gray to co-host the Aussie Giveaway Linkup. The aim is for bloggers and business owners who host giveaways on their blogs to link up each Sunday morning to 1. attract more traffic to their giveaways and 2. give readers a chance to find giveaways all in the one spot. The linky closes on Tuesdays at 7am.

    If you’re a blogger, do you take part in memes? What are your favourites? If you’re a reader, what memes attract your attention?

  • WIN: Secret women’s business (Miss De Jour giveaway)

    WIN: Secret women’s business (Miss De Jour giveaway)

    IF YOU’RE male and hoping to catch a laugh from The Bloke in The Shed, may I suggest you visit his page. This post really isn’t for your eyes.

    SINCE the day I first hit “womanhood’’, life has been fraught with embarrassing moments.

    If you’re a male and still reading, let me just say: this is secret women’s business. Umm… how can I put it? It’s about menstruation. No, not mentalstration. That’s what happens to my daughter when she picks her nose with too much vigour. I’m talking… periods. Yes, we’ll see you later then.

    Anyway, back to the story…

    My first red-faced encounter was during the end of Grade 6 summer holidays at Nan and Pops. Yes, you can probably already see where this is going. I went a whiter shade of pale when I first discovered that spot of red and had to lie down. On checking an hour later to see if it was just a figment of my imagination, I discovered more of the stuff. I was horrified, mortified, terrified. Terrified? Well, there was the little task of now having to tell Nan.

    “Oh duck, you’ve probably just got a touch of piles,’’ Nan said. Yes Nan, of course, because I sit on cold cement all the time and no, I’m not of “that age’’. Really!  At bath time, she revisited the subject. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell Pop. We’ll see how you go and if we need to we’ll get you some rags’’. What? Rags? What are you talking about? She then left the bathroom and made a beeline straight for Pop to announce how I’d “just become a woman’’. Let’s just say I didn’t look Pop in the eye for a few days afterwards.

    More embarrassing moments ensued during the following year.

    • Like the time “my monthlies’’ went unnoticed by me but was visible by everyone else in Grade 7 as I walked around in my white and light blue school uniform.
    • The time I didn’t want to participate in the school swimming carnival and told the teacher I didn’t know how to use tampons. She proceeded to try and explain it to me. Ewww.
    • Then there was the moment Ella decided to empty the contents of my handbag all over the shop floor, pick up the tampons and ask “what are these, Mum?’’, while onlookers tried to divert their eyes.
    • My biggest concern now is wondering how I’m going to deal with the day my two girls come to me with the words “I’m bleeding’’ and this time a Wiggles bandaid just won’t cut it!

    Where was Miss De Jour through all this? Well, Miss De Jour, an Australian company solely owned by an Aussie woman, is going to be there for one lucky reader by giving away a year’s supply of tampons. You have to admit, looking at her design, she’s made tampons you’d be proud to show off. Sassy, or what? In fact, she said she “thought that tampon packaging 12 years ago was very florally, very Laura Ashley and thought, `wow what happens if I ‘Calvin Klein’ the tampon market?’’’ You can find Miss De Jour on Facebook and Twitter.

    To go in the draw to win a year’s supply of Miss De Jour tampons, tell me either the moment you discovered you had entered “womanhood” or an embarrassing moment dealing with your “P plates’’.  The giveaway closes *EXTENDED DATE* Sunday, June 19 at 7pm and a winner will be drawn randomly and announced on this blog and via Facebook and Twitter. Australian residents only. 

    Are you game to try for more entries? Then here’s how you can up your chances in the draw. Each task is worth one extra entry, but must be included as a separate comment (or it won’t count).

    1. Click the Facebook button below and share this giveaway with your Facebook friends. Then leave a separate comment saying something along the lines of “I’ve shared this on Facebook’’.
    2. Click the Twitter button below and share this giveaway with your Twitter followers (Twitter handle is @ThreeLil). Then leave a separate comment saying something along the lines of “I’ve shared this on Twitter’’.

    **DISCLAIMER: I received a year’s supply of Miss De Jour tampons. All opinions expressed are purely my own.

    Aussie Giveaway Linky
    Hosted by Three Lil Princesses and Tina Gray {dot} Me

    Winner of the 12-month supply of Miss De Jour tampons was:

    Meagan. Congratulations Meagan!

    Meagan’s (embarrassing) answer was:

    I remember getting my periods, they come at the worst possible time whilst we we’re out camping in the middle of no where!!! Poor mum was in a tizzie and we ended having to drive to town for ‘Supplies’. God love her she had to argue with my dad that we had to go and get important supplies as other families were there and she didn’t want to embarrass me by announcing to the whole camp that I had just become a women! In the end we got there tho…lol

    Scroll down to the comments to read some more hilarious stories.

  • FEATURE: I’m grateful for patience

    FEATURE: I’m grateful for patience

    Our new li'l crawler

    This week I’m grateful for:

    • Being an extremely patient person. Just listen to this conversation. Ella: “Can we go to that place again?’’ Me: “What place?’’ Ella: “You know.’’ Me: “No darling, I don’t.’’ Ella: “Well, either do I.’’ Who knows!
    • Having the luxury of staying home to watch Baby Holly as she begins to learn to crawl. OK, so it’s more like a backwards scoot, but she’s getting there.
    • The Bloke in The Shed regularly posting on this blog. It’s a way to find out what’s going on in that head of his, including Be careful what you ask for. Yes, he’s ratting on me again.

    I’m joining with Maxabella Loves to share what I’m grateful for.