A man with a frown

There is an old ghost in town
Who is known as "The man with a frown"
He frowns everyday
And only stops in the month of May

He eats a lot of hay
Thirty-two kilos he weighs
He only grins a few times
He does not talk but mimes

Birds are all afraid of him
Because he takes all their eggs with a grin
He used to be really bad
Always rude to his mom and dad

Night time he sits next to his grave
Daytime watches the people who pretend to be brave,
Peaches and plums make him mad
As well as the ugly old cat.

He can camouflage as anyone
Even as a rotten bun
Be careful, watch out for him
He could be your only kin..

(written by my kid as an assignment to write a ghost story about a topic people believe.)

How time flies !!

It seems just like yesterday that my baby was born and she is already started going to school today. A few tears were shed.. by  me.. She was just excited to be in school, meet new people and have new friends.  The house seemed lonely. The TV was switched off and there was silence all around.  I guess that is what every parent  goes through at some point of their lives. But I'm glad I was lucky to spend the 5 beautiful years with her 24/7.. the time that will never come back.. 

Mindset

Nothing much to do.. waiting for the kids to be back home.. and suddenly its starting to rain. I hear the pitter patter of the rain and the chirping of the birds .....It just takes me back to my childhood. I remember those times in summer when I would sit on the window ledge and wait for my papa to come home. The smell of wet mud just before it starts to rain was divine.  I loved sailing paper boats in the puddles, collecting hailstones to eat and simply getting wet in the downpour.  I remember the sun shine after the rain, the hue it cast on the walls, the feeling of being fresh..  Nothing seems to give the same feel thought the rain hasn't changed.. Probably its my mindset that has changed. I've grown too old to enjoy the rain.

Swinging or sliding?

My gate had been dangling on one hinge for quite some time and I dont know how long it could go on. Since its a small job, getting a trades person for the job has been quite a challenge. We finally decided to get a new gate but are unable to decide whether it would be a sliding one or swinging one. Many factors to take into consideration but its mainly the cost. Anyone with any ideas..

Surprise Mom..:)

What gift could ever surpass the surprise given to me by my kids.  They toiled all evening and produced the most beautiful birthday cake I have ever eaten. My elder one hopes to be a Masterchef someday and so I hope too.  She roped in her little sister and both set out on an adventurous evening baking me a trio flavoured chocolate sponge cake. For the topping they melted dark chocolate which is my favourite , vanilla icing and mixed berry jelly.


It was simply the best birthday gift  I ever had.

Road Trip from Sydney to Melbourne

The thought of driving for over 10 hours was daunting but looking at the airfares this was the cheaper option available. We started at around 7: 30 A.M and drove out of Sydney within 30 min. Then the route was pretty empty and straight all the way till we reached Melbourne.  We stopped over at Gunning which is about 2.5 hrs from Sydney.  Its a very small town with hardly 1000 people.  There are toilets on either side of the road.. one at the petrol station and another one next to the court house.

The next break was taken at Gundagai. We passed by the Dog on the Tucker box sign, but did not stop over Maybe next time.

There are fast food restaurants in Gundagai.   There are rest stops throughout the journey though I thought that the ones in NSW were much better than the ones in VIC.

The next stop was at Albury which is roughly 3 hours from Melbourne. A small city but with shopping malls its a nice place to stop.  Its a good idea to stop somewhere in Albury or Wangaratta as then its quite a while before you find some town on the way.  We did not find any coffee shops on the way till we reach Seymour.

Its roughly one hour from there to the northern edge of  Melbourne city . Altogether we took over 12.5 hours to reach Bundoora.

When in Melbourne, a visit to Ballarat is worth the effort . You get to feel the life during the Gold Rush. Its a whole day's programme but fun for all.  Have fun.

Farewell 2011

What a year it has been. With all the natural calamities side by side the man-made ones, one just hopes that the coming year 2012 brings some good tidings with it. God help those who have forgotten how to use their judgement for the betterment of humanity and hope peace and prosperity reigns over all nations.

Wishing all my readers a Happy and Prosperous New Year