I. Must. Give. Up.

You may remember I told you about my addiction to V here. Well things have offically got out of control.

It is at the point of obsured proportions. I calculated how many V's I drunk in a week. The figures will not shock you but will probarly make you feel sick. In one Monday to Sunday week, I drunk 5 Bottles, 3 small cans and 4 large cans. Now to do the math on that. A bottle of V is $3.20, a large can is $4 and a small can is $2.80 (figures from the local shoprite by my work which has so far been my supplier). That equals a total of $40.40 per week or $2,106.00 a year ON V!!!!!

But that ends. NOW. I have decided to go on a de-tox. It will be hard to break my addiction and fight the syndrome that I am suffering from, Caffeinism.

Caffeinism is a syndrome resulting from the chronic consumption of caffeine and addiction. The symptoms include nervous irritability, tremulousness, occasional muscle twitching, sensory disturbances, tachypnea, palpitation, flushing, arhythmias, diuresis, and gastrointestinal disturbances.

I mean surely overcoming this syndrome can be nothing but good right? WRONG.

Today is day 4 of my detox and the effects of caffeine withdraw seem to be worse than the symptoms of the syndrom itself! These include:

• Irritable
• Restless
• Muscle stiffness
• Difficulty concentrating
• Headaches, moderate to severe
• Chills and/or hot spells
• Jitteriness
• Difficulty sleeping
• Anxiety
• Flushed face
• Nausea
• Accelerated heartbeat

BLAH! It sounds nicer to stay on the drug!

So for the sake of my health and our bank balance I will try and fight the symptoms and beat this diease!

Lets see how I get on.........

Tick !

Number 85 on my 5 year plan is to own a sewing machine.

I did a lot of sewing at college and actually got second in my class :) I really enjoyed it. Then after school I kind of forgot about it and let my passion for it slip.

This all changed when I needed to get my bridesmaids dresses made for our wedding but run out of budget. So I decided to try and sew them myself. I was very pleased with the result considering I hadn't sewn in about 8 years!

So when I saw a practically new Brother XL2610 for sale on the "For Free, For Sale or Wanted in the Wairarapa" Facebook Group I snapped up this puppy for 1/3 less than the recommend retail price.

With 25 Built-In stitches and 59 stitch functions - including buttonholes and zips I can see this serving very nicely :)

This weekend  I am going to try and whip up some cute little pieces for my nieces. There are a few items I am going to try my hand at..... you will all get to see these bits in a new project I will be working on with Frances (my sister) so watch this space for more information ;)

Happy Birthday to ME!

So in exactly 2 months it is my birthday YAY

So to help out my darling husband I am going to post some ideas of things I would really love for my birthday:

GHD

Every year I get my yearly bonus from work, I promise myself I will buy a GHD. And every year I never do!
So this year I would really love this one for my birthday.

And to make things even easier I have found a cool pack and website to buy it from cheap :) so, Cody, go here.

Spa Pool

I dint care of the color or make I would just LOVE a spa pool. I would put it on our patio. How awesome would it be to sit outside in the snow in a hot pool and sip on vinos...can you imagine it........

NancyBird

My new obsession! A Melbourne based designer who makes the coolest bags, wallets and scarfs.

My current loves are;
The George Bag

And this - the Classic Weekender

Plus the SS12 Long Wallet



A new bed

But not any new bed. The new Beautyrest Black

I mean come on, have you ever seen a sexier bed?

And not only does it look super amazingly comfortable but it is actually being marketed as the worlds finest bed!

The exclusive Beautyrest Black bed has been hand-crafted to the highest detail to produce the world's finest, most luxurious Beautyrest. With advanced technology from Simmons, the inventors of Pocket Springs, the Beautyrest Black bed is made with triple Helix Advanced Pocketed Coil springs and includes technologies such as Transflexion Comfort Technology and Alpaca fibres for superior comfort. With hundreds of crystals from Swarovski Elements and fabrics sourced from around the world, the aesthetics of the Beautyrest Black bed, turn the ultimate sleep solution into a timeless fashion statement.

Swarovski crystals!! IN A BED!

It is super drool worthy - and course has a price tag to match, with the queen starting at $13,995 and the Superking at $16,995. But if you are going to have a super bed like this then you may as well go all out and get the Superking right? :)

OPI Nail Enamel

In particular the following colors:

Honk if you love OPI



Yodel Me on My Cell

Shorts Story

Alter Ego

But really I would be happy with any colors :)

Oh and of course a new shatter.......maybe silver

And of course Jewellery is always welcomed.

A new nice gold necklace is definetly in order ;)

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

Yeah sorry, this is going to be another snow post. Facebook is full of snow photos but I have some too and want to share :)

They are calling it a polar ice blast, I have also heard it referred to as 'Snowmageddon' which is my new favourite term.

The storm is leaving in its wake communities cut off by hazardous roads, stranded travellers, businesses facing staff absences, and parents forced to stay at home with their children because of school closures. There has also been no mail - which means I cant moan about the bills I get.

And there is more to come! Metservice are advising that the snow will continue to fall until at least Thursday.

Its even snowing in Auckland! Auckland hasn't had snow since the 1930's. Here in Masterton is has been the biggest snow dumping I have ever seen, or that my dad has seen! And by the sounds of it it will be the last time we see snow like this in our lifetime.

There have been warnings to stock up on food and batten down the hatches - but where is the fun in that!!! This is what we got up to:

I made a snow angel

Cody threw snowballs at me

 We made a snowman 

AND hes a DIRTY SMOKER!

We then got picked up by the four wheel drive and did a bit of boarding

 - well the boys did anyway

 We made MEGA snow balls

Even the puppies had a play in the snow:

Levi with our snowman

The horses however, were not impressed!

And here are some general pretty photos from around my house

Our patio on day 1 of snow...

 Day 2 of snow



                                                           

 Backyard and clothesline

There is a garden in there somewhere...

View from the lounge window looking west

This is the fence outside our kitchen, it shows how thick the snow was, I have no white trim on this fence. It is about 6inches thick!

With all the snow and spending a cold day outside it was time to get home and rug up by the fire. Even the dogs were allowed to sleep inside on their blankets.

 And because it was a cold day and I was home I whipped up a batch of these puppies! It was my first time making eclairs and I was pretty proud of the result. They did not last long at all!!

So that was my snow day run down! Did you get snow where you are? What fun did you have in the snow?

Can I share a secret with you?

I love to cook. I am not the greatest cook, but I still give everything a go. I am one of those people who watch MasterChef and am all like "I could totally do that", try it, and fail terribly!

I do have a couple of fail safe recipes though and one of them is THE most delicious (but awfully bad for you) chocolate Fudge Cake - which is a cross between a brownie, a cake and fudge OMFG it is like an orgasm for you mouth  - NO LIES.

So since I seem to have a loyal following on my Blob (cheers guys) I will share this recipe with you - but I swear to god if you tell anyone I will unfriend you on facebook - and we all know that that is the worst type of de-friending!

Ingredients:
100gms cocoa
200gms butter, melted
400gms caster sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
90gms plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
200gms chocolate melts - yep you read that right 200gms!
Icing sugar, to dust
 
Fresh raspberries, hulled, to serve

Steps:
1. Pre heat oven to 150 C.

2. Sift cocoa into a medium bowl, add melted Mainland butter, sugar, egg and vanilla. Combine until smooth.

3. Sift in flour and baking powder, add chocolate and fold to combine.

4. Pour mixture into buttered and floured 20cm x 30 cm cake tin and bake for 45-50 minutes or until cooked.

Cool in pan then slice, dust with icing sugar before serving with fresh berries to the side and chocolate mousse or ice-cream.

It will even keep for a few days and you can either eat it cold or zap it in the mircowave for 30 secs just to get those choc bits oozing....

Seriously - give it a go and let me know how you get on :o)

Fortnightly Countdown -

Five things that I never understood:
1) The share market, wall street, the NASDAQ, Dow Jones. News broke this week that the stock exchange sinks. I must admit that shares and the stock market was never something I really understood. As far as I know, my salary comes into my account and I spend it and pay for things at what they cost. My dad used to have shares in the company he worked for but that was as far as my knowledge went.... I just don't get it!
2) How do planes fly? I have done a fair bit of flying in my time and every time I fly it still scares the living jeebies out of me, its the same as boats floating. Planes weigh millions of tonnes and they just seem to glide along effortlessly. You hear the occasional story of planes falling out the sky - so why don't they always?
3) Why do men like blondes? We were in the car the other day and a blonde walked out of the service station, a male friend of ours in the car wolf whistled and said "hello Blondie" - now this girl was not even attractive! So I asked why he did it and this started a conversation about why blondes are more attractive than say a brunette. But why?
4) Why is a pair of undies called a pair? There is only one of them!
5) Why do dogs go crazy over sticking their heads out car windows? Our lab cross goes crazy over the prospect of going for a car ride - like literally! He jumps about, crys, runs around the full works. Then when he is in the car he goes absolutely ape sh*t If it is a cold day and I don't put the window down then he cries and whimpers and whines until I put it down. Even on the freezingist (like the word I just made up :o) ) day he will stick his head out. His ears, lips and general face flap about in the wind but he seems to absolutely love it!

I tried to take a photo but it got a bit dangerous - but this is exactly what he looks like:

Four things that drive me crazy:
1) People who park their shopping trolley in the middle of the aisles while they stare aimlessly at the shelves
2) Little gangs of teenagers that hang out on the street corners listening to music on their phones and yelling at their bros on the other side of the street
3) Groups of people who walk 4 abreast on the footpath and really slowly so you cant walk around them!
4) People who don't rinse their dishes!!! I know this sounds really anal but it makes life SO much easier if you just give them a quick rinse. The 2 boys I live with and my sister are shocking for this! especially when it comes to baking trays that have been used for roasts, sausages etc and anything with cheese!

Three awesome things about being married:
1) Being referred to as Mrs Buchanan
2) Calling Cody my husband - Boyfriend sounded like we were just together and it wasn't serious, partner could be taken as lesbian- not that I have anything against lesbians but I am not one. Fiance is way to fru fru
3) Being able to spend the rest of my life with my best friend

Two songs that totally stop me dead and I MUST sing to no matter where I am:
1) Oasis - Wonderwall
2) Tracy Chapman - Fast Car
Of course there are plenty more but this is a countdown and I can only pick 2 :p

One reason not to buy an All Blacks jersey from Adidas:
Cos they are ripping New Zealanders off by charging more than double for the price of the jerseys than overseas retailers. Rebel Sport have decided to sell their jerseys for a $124.45 loss. But it is still rat sh*t that they are doing this.

Did you know
That if all the people in China stood on a chair and jumped off at exactly the same time, they could knock the earth off its orbit.

Now this is the life.....

So this weekend just been, me and hubby spent the weekend with good friends of ours -Steph and Shep, at Nana Buchanan's Bach down at Lake Ferry. You may have remembered I talked about the Bach in this post, when Cody proposed.

The Bach was built at the beginning of time by Cody's grandfather, Bruce, and it is still in the family. It is the cutest place to go for a getaway - not too far from town but you feel like you are a world away.

Source

Lake Ferry or Onoke, is a small settlement between the shores of Lake Onoke and Palliser Bay. Europeans have been farming here since about 1844 and it was used to drive their stock from Wellington.

Following a drowning in 1850, a ferry service was established across Lake Onoke. The ferryman needed accommodation and a way to supplement his income, so he opened the Lake Ferry Hotel in 1851.

Today Lake Ferry is a mixture of holiday homes and permanent residents.

The view from the Bach is to die for! The lake was like glass and I was tempted to jump right in - if it wasn't so COLD!! That lake is also FULL of whitebait! - eat that Hokitika!

Not far from Lake Ferry (about a 15min car ride) is Ngawi and Cape Palliser. Ngawi is the greatest fishing spot and Cody and I regularly fish there with Cody's dad. Blue Cod, Terakihi, and Groper are plentiful. But it wasn't the fish on this trip we were looking for....

Can you spot what we did, hidden in these rocks?

How about now?....

Source

Yep - SEALS! And we hit the jackpot on this trip. We found this little pool that was hidden amongst the rocks, and there were about 20 baby seals playing there! Swimming, lazing in the sun and chasing each other. We watched them for awhile..... until the Mumma seals started hissing at us.

Cape Palliser also has the famous red and white striped Lighthouse - which at 58 metres from the ground, up 250 steps, was a bit much for us on this trip. 

Source

Spending 2 nights and 3 days on the rugged South Wairarapa coast line, certainly makes you look at your own life. Things were so basic and simple out there. No one cares what kind of car you drive or how much your earn. Its all about enjoying your surroundings, being lost in the views and of course the occasional All Black game down at your local - and don't worry if you are drunk and fall off your bar stool by 7 -cos that's OK down there.

** All photographs supplied by Miss Stephanie Drumm unless otherwise stated**