I'm here, and still very much alive (thanks for checking Brooke!). I've just been super busy with work, planning Max's party and having visitors come and stay.

We had Max's party yesterday and it went really, really well.

I have a quick sneak peak for you now and will be back tomorrow with a full post.

I hope you all had a great weekend!

I'm dreaming of a White & Blue Christmas

Over here in the Riley household I have a self imposed, 'no Christmas decorating before Max's birthday' rule. I want his birthdays to be about him, and not just a part of the month long Christmas celebrations. His birthday is on the 2nd of December, so it's not too bad. But I'm already seriously itching to get my decorations up.

This year I'm planning a blue and white Christmas, with enough beach thrown in to keep it Australian.

Here's some of the images that are inspiring me. (All can be found on my Christmas PinBoard.)

What colours are you using this year, and have you started decorating yet?

Invites and Holidays

Today I finished up the invites for Max's 2nd Birthday party. I'm really proud of them, it's the first time I've done the graphic design without Sean's help. :)

This weekend I need to get my butt into gear and finish prepping everything else for his party.

Even more so, now that I've found out what Sean's surprise is...

Next weekend we're heading away to Wolgen Valley Resort courtesy of Sean's parents. I am beyond excited!! Two days of doing nothing but relaxing. Sean's parents are staying at our place and taking care of Max, so it will be like a mini second honeymoon for Sean and I.

Back soon with more party decorations :)

Sean Has A Surprise

My lovely husband Sean has a surprise for me, and it's killing me! I love surprises, but I also hate not knowing everything.

Everyday I ask him to tell me what the secret is, but instead he's giving me random clues. Which means I'm spending way to much time everyday trying to guess what the surprise is.

The clues he's given me are: Blue, Nature, Melbourne Cup and Heritage.

So far I've guessed the following (but he won't tell me if I'm right):

1. Underwater World in Mooloolaba
 - Blue = Water
 - Nature = Fish
 - Melbourne Cup = We're going on the first Tuesday of next month
 - Heritage = Max's Grandparents are coming with us

2. Outback Spectacular (A show) on the Gold Coast
 - Blue = The ocean on the Gold Coast
 - Nature = Outback
 - Melbourne Cup =The horses that are in the show
 - Heritage = The show is about our Australian Heritage

3. A Holiday to Cairns
 - Blue = The ocean in Cairns
 - Nature = The Great Barrier Reef
 - Melbourne Cup = MC is sponsored by an airline and we will fly to Cairns
 - Heritage = The Daintree Rainforest is Heritage Listed

4. A Night at Kingfisher on Fraser Island
 - Blue = The ocean
 - Nature = Fraser Island
 - Melbourne Cup = We'll need to wear hats
 - Heritage = Fraser is Heritage listed

5. My Grandma is Coming to Visit
 - Blue = She will through the blue sky to get here
 - Nature = She;s coming from New Zealand
 - Melbourne Cup = She will fly with Emirates (MC Sponsor)
 - Heritage = She is my heritage.

So there you have it, that's what I've guessed so far.

If any of you want to put on your detective hats I would love some help deciphering these clues!!

Accent Vlog

Ok, I'm jumping on another bandwagon and doing the 'accent vlog' meme.  The gist is that you read out load a bunch of words and then answer some questions.

Just in case my Aussie accent is a little hard to follow, I've also copied and pasted the words and questions below!





Say these words:
Aunt, route, wash, oil, theatre, iron, salmon, caramel, fire, water, sure, data, ruin, crayon, toilet, New Orleans, pecan, both, again, probably, spitting image, Alabama, lawyer, coupon, mayonnaise, syrup, pajamas, caught

And answer these questions:
What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
What is the bug that curls into a ball when you touch it?
What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
What do you call gym shoes?
What do you say to address a group of people?
What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
What do you call your grandparents?
What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?
What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
What is the thing you use to change the TV channel?

So there you have it, my Aussie accent. Please leave me a link in the comment section if you have done an accent vlog. Like I said in the video, I love to hear what everyone sounds like.

Happy Monday :)

Max's Birthday Party

In three short weeks, my gorgeous little guy is turning two!

Last year I didn't have a theme or do any decorating for his birthday, so this year I am making up for it!

Ever since we flew to Adelaide in October Max has been obsessed with planes. Everyday he tells me how he went in a plane with Nona and Mumma. He even does little actions with his hands and says 'weeeee'. Adorable!

I've been pinning heaps of inspiration and I think I have a really good idea about how the party is going to look.

Invite Inspiration

Plane Cake (We'll make a plane topper out of fondant though)

Plane Banner from Etsy

Plane Cupcake Toppers - also from Etsy

How adorable are these stamped wooden spoons?!

You can see the rest of my inspiration images here. 


We're not planning on having a huge party. Just family and friends that live close by. I'm still really excited though, I think Max will love it!

I'm going to get the invites done and posted today and then get started on the decorations. A perfect weekend in my book!

I hope you all have a great weekend too :)

The A - Z of Me

I have seen this Meme just about everywhere now. Which means I probably should have jumped on board a loooong time ago. Anyway, better late than never right?

Here goes. The A - Z of me...

A - Age: The big Three - Oh. I don't feel it though. Most days I'm still convinced I'm in my mid twenties.

B - Best Friend: I'm lucky enough to have two besties. My sister Jenny and my brother sister from another mother, Erin. Love you guys!!

C - Chore that you hate: Vacuuming and Moping. Euch. I would love to have someone come in and do that for me a few times a weeks. Any takers? I can pay in craft supplies...

D - Dogs: Cooper - my first baby.

E - Essential Start to Your Day: Coffee and baby snuggles. Bliss.

F - Favourite Colour: I have a few at the moment. Teal, Aqua, Peacock, Navy Blue, Sky Blue. Notice a trend?

G - Gold or Silver: My engagement ring and wedding band are both Gold. I like silver too though.

H - Height: 5'6". I'd like to think I look taller than that though :)

I -  Instruments You Play: Recorder?

J - Job Title:  Mumma to Max, Wife to Sean, Part-Time Customer Service Analyst (and hopefully one day - Event Planner).

K - Kids: My gorgeous munchkin Max.

L -  Live: Queensland. The best place on Earth.

M - Mother's Name: Helen. Hi Mum!

N - Nicknames: Sean calls me Smexo.

O - Overnight Hospital Stays: 5 nights when I had Max.

P - Pet Peeve: Too many to list. I'm not always the most tolerant person. Something I definitely need to work on...

Q - Quote from a Movie: I'm not much of a movie person. I maybe watch three or four movies per year, tops.

R - Right or Left Handed: Right. 

S - Siblings: One sister Jenny. And a brother-in-law, Mark.

T - Time You Wake Up: Between 5.30am - 8am. It depends on what I'm doing that day and what time Max sleeps until. Today I was up at 5.45am.

U - Ultimate Vacation: The Maldives. I'll let this picture do all the talking.

V -  Vegetable You Hate: There's probably too many to mention... Broccoli, Cucumber, Zucchini, Onion, I could go on forever...

W -What Makes You Run Late: Me. I am the number one reason for my own lateness. I'm always late, something I definitely need to work on.

X - X-Rays You've Had: My ankles, my wrists, one foot, and my face. The first two lots were from my gymnastics days, the third was because I was re-living my gymnastics days and the last one was when a doctor randomly wanted to check me out for Sinusitis before treating me for a post-lumbar puncture spinal headache.

Y - Yummy Food You Make: I make a mean lasagne, and my truffles are very yummy :)

Z - Zoo Animals: I don't know about this one... Polar Bears maybe. My favourite animals are dogs and they aren't zoo animals.