One more thing....

I am now on facebook! I recommend you do too....(Mum, Mel...) I am putting more pictures up there because I can make it to where only my 'friends' can see them. I like being able to do that...and it's also much easier to say "hi" on.

Oh, and the ads are nowhere near as bad as Myspace....but don't fall for any of their 'free-trial' ads...they are scams! (ie...by starting the free trial, you are agreeing to buy the product once a month etc. etc. etc....fine print..........and they are very hard to cancel....don't ask me how I know!)

So, sign up and be my 'friend' LOL

New background....

How do you like it...it's called "Spurs n' Spit"....LOL How western can you get.... ;)


Oh, and if anyone is looking for a facelift....I get mine (and they are super easy) from here. Just click on "backgrounds" on the left, check them all out and follow their directions!

I told you they were cuter in Texas....!

Especially for my sister Kristy...

I told you they were cuter in Texas!!!!



We've got John Deere....(for the tough little monkeys)
We've got pink camo....(for the girly girls...)
We've got blue/brown (for those who are NOT girly girls....the very thought!)
We've got regular cowboy boots for the young men...Oh.....and we've got snake boots for those who like to hunt!

Sorry so long!

Hello! Sorry for the great silence here! We have been crazy busy, and when I haven't been crazy busy, I guess I've enjoyed the lazy moments. :) Tim has gone home and I'll try to get some pictures up soon! Kids have been sick, one at a time, although at this very moment they are all OK! Hope they stay healthy for a while. You may notice my new profile picture....yes I got a spiral perm, and yes she took a lot off! LOL It's the shortest I've had in a long time. It wasn't supposed to be that short, but when I realised how much she was taking off....there wasn't much point in saying anything!

Thanks...

For all the gifts you sent....the kids have had a blast...don't have pics of all of them yet, but here's one.

Unca Tim....

The kids are lovin' him. They've painted him....They've given him the "chicken pox"They've pulverised him...Oh, and they've played baseball....but that was kinda boring....(Just kiddin'...)

Safe and Sound....

Well, he made it....my little brother is here from Australia! We picked him up from the airport yesterday, although we were a little late so was he.....thankfully! He was supposed to arrive at 3:25 and we got there about 3:40 and ran as fast as we could (read...me in high heels...lol) to his gate. We had got up real early and spent time with the church in Ft. Worth, and then ate with some friends. The men were talking then got burning some mp3 cds, and so although we weren't far from the airport....ahhhh we cut it a little too close. But we made it there before he did, so all was good. We threw him in the car and headed home....got home just as our local church was finishing up their meeting, and headed over there, to introduce Tim, and eat a meal together.

It has been told to me that a certain person stuck their head in the door and said "he has a really cool accent, you should come and listen to it" (or something to that effect), then stuck their head back in and said "it's even better than Crocodile Dundee!" LOL I have been a great dissappointment to all with my lack of an Aussie accent....but somehow I think that Tim will make up for a lot of that. I also think they will probably find that I have a shocking mongrel accent while he's here....a TEXAUS accent...*grin*

Today I think we'll take it easy...right now he's still hibernating....it's after 9, but I'm guessing he'll be out soon. Lee's at work, but maybe if he gets enough done today, he'll have some time off tomorrow.

Well, guess I should go and make some bread for lunch! Then I have about 60 apples to peel so that I can make apple pie filling for the freezer. I might make some candy/toffee apples with the kids. Yes, they were on sale. Yes, I am following in my mother's footsteps with bargain hunting....LOL They were on sale 10/$1 for the small ones....I got 29 (that was all they had at the second store I tried) Then knowing that my SIL was near another store, so I asked her to get me another 30, they were out of the little one's but the manager said she could have the big ones at the same price.....Yessss! ;) Then I have a huge pumpkin to cook/mash for the freezer, but I'm gonna make Tim cut that up.... See? I'm also making use of the extra help....and if he's bored, I can find something for him to do....I'm learning Mum, I really am! It's funny how much you understand your Mum once you become one yourself...LOL

Anyway, must go!

Pant, Pant, huff, huff!

Okay, now just in case you are all wondering where in the world I have been....let me give you just a little glimpse of my recent life....

Last couple of weeks....get ready for a huge garage sale that I am having with my sister in law....in other words...go through the entire house looking for stuff to get rid of....go through kids toy boxes and steal, I mean take, their toys and put them in a black plastic trash bag while they are not looking....then go through their clothes and weed out what they don't need....find out that your five-year-old has over 15 skirts!!!!!! (why is it then, that I can never find just one, just one, for her to wear????? Oh, I forgot, they are buried in the pile of clean laundry that is piled on the guest bed....note to self....fold the laundry....) Then come to the realisation that, now I have to price all of this junk....sigh....get it all priced...then realise now I have to get it all to her house....sigh... Then find out that she actually expects me there around 6am to pull it all out of the garage....aaaauuuugggghhh! Never! Never! Never!!!! (never say Never!) She sweetly suggests that the kids sleep over so that I don't have to get them all up the next morning..... Take Jazz home, get up at 5:15 am (thanks Jazz, who needs an alarm clock???) Fix coffee...drink coffee....pry eyelids open with toothpicks (ok, not really on that part), realise that husband actually can sleep in seeing as he finished a job early, start tip-toeing, take three times as long to get ready....head out the door, remembering to put the twin stroller in the car, that you just pulled apart and washed last night. Get to S-I-L's house, drink more of that coffee, and start pulling stuff out....turn around to see your first customers showing up (some with flashlights/torches) at 6:30am, obviously they didn't know how to read seeing as the ad clearly said that it started at 7:30am, still not sure how they managed to figure out we were having one!! SIL tells me that the kids won't need to sleep over tonight as they were all up at the crack of dawn anyway....*snort* Oh, and if anyone needs a garage sale hint....here tis....put a set of bunk beds out the front, borrow them if you must, they will attract customers all day....*grin* SIL was selling some and although she sold them before we even started, everybody would stop and ask about them..... Oh, and have a friend who works in the veggie section, bring you cases of caramel apples to sell....Yuuummmm! Uh, only I don't think I was supposed to eat them all....ooops! Spend the whole day there.....go home and get up at the crack of dawn and repeat....

Sunday....garage sale is over, church fellowshipping, eating, and back to church.....Monday.....hurry and wash laundry and attempt to straighten house, because Lee's employer is sending him to town an hour and a half away, and putting him up in a hotel, and we can go too! Quickly pack, forget about the house, run out the door, meet him for supper at Burger King/Hungry Jack's (for you Aussie's), and then dash off to go visit some friends who live there....find that the highway is closed off, follow detours, miss one of them and find yourself lost in the boonies....call friend put the husbands on, get directions to follow the fence posts according to their colour, and other landmarks....finally get to friends house...late... Have fun, go to the hotel and crash. Get up, read the Bible, let the kids watch something as decent as possible on the TV, decide to be sweet and offer to pick up Lee some lunch and after much trial and error, and an hour later, have that done. Follow the detours, and don't miss one this time, make it there just fine....spend the afternoon/evening with them, head back to the hotel, crash, get up, pack, and head home. OK, this is now Wednesday, Jorge's 7th b-day (and Steve's), and we are going camping tomorrow (Thursday), I still have to do laundry, pack, shop for food/supplies etc. Do some laundry, Pack, shop, throw hands up in the air as to the condition of the house. (that I had finally just got into shape befor the garage sale fiasco) And quickly throw a b-day cake in the over for Jorge to have after Bible Study....seeing as I ran out of time to make the cheesecake he had requested! Got up Thursday, finished whatever packing didn't get done last night, and managed to leave around 9:30am or so! Phew! Had a lovely time (more on that soon) Pack back up, and came back on Saturday evening, after visitin with some friends in a small town on the way home. Skipped unpacking the car, went to bed, got up late (9am), got self and children ready for church, was extremely thankful for SIL doing my share of cooking (the church eats together every Sunday - pot luck style). After our time with our church family, went home and attacked the house with a vengeance! Several hours later.....much improved, but still working on it today....more laundry to do..... Thankfully neice is coming over to school Jekkie, and the others are working at their own pace. Rescued Jazz from leaning over the top of our 6' fence to look at the dogs (pit bulls) next door. Wiped up potty training puddle....and started blogging...

So, if you were wondering why I haven't blogged??? I'm sorry....been busy...kinda

Speaking of Rats...

We were, were we not?... We do have a problem with those, and thankfully...other than yesterday, it is an outdoor problem. Last winter they decided that our grill/bbq was the best place for a nest....yes, you read right...our grill. You know the thing that you cook your burgers on....nice juicy steaks....yeah. Wanna come over and 'cook out'? I wasn't very happy sharing my cooking surface with a family so Lee (OK, that's my husbands webname now, for all you commenters) came up with a way to down the population....All you rat lovers may now leave. He would sneak out there ever so quietly....and turn the gas on, wait a few minutes....and throw in a match! BOOM! Worked great..... Now, this doesn't necessarily kill them but it does flush them out...stunned, dizzy and blinded....and often with a new fur-style too. Then you finish them off with a sturdy piece of wood....and if you miss a few....repeat the process the next night.

And that is our rat elimination process....and that works for me....as we have kids, I don't want poison in the back yard if I can help it! Now for any of you rat lovers, (I feel sorry for you...), but uh, germ ridden rats must be 'taken care of' and whether you shoot, smash, burn, or poison 'em they, er, end up, um....dead. And if you wish to come and hold a burial service....most of them should be in the vacant block near our house.....respectfully tossed of course.

My Adorable Kids......

I have four of those kids that are perfectly adorable.....you know the kind....don't get dirty, are always sweet, never fuss or fight.....yeah right.... ;) Well, they are great....at least two of them still are, anyway. The other two? Well, here's a little story for you, just to help you understand....

I had exchanged my Son #1 for my Niece for the day....she's great with the kids...after a while she commented that two little people sure were quiet...and headed off to find them. Realizing she was right; I too headed after her, only to meet her coming out of the guest bedroom, where all the girls had slept the night before....with this weird look on her face. "You don't wanna go in there...." she said. "They've got your eggs out the fridge and are cracking them on Jekkie's "pallet"/bed-on-floor..." Sure enough, I went in there to find two of my dear, sweet, adorable kids sitting on the "pallet" amidst yolks and slime, and more eggs....Aren't they sweet? Want some? Kids I mean, not eggs, I need those....

Then take this morning for instance....first I hear Jorge yelling his head off at his little brother to " Put that down!!! PUT THAT DOWN! PUT THAT DOWN!!!!! Then I hear Iddy start screaming....."Jazz, put that down!!!!, Put that down right now! PUT THAT DOWN!!!! aAAAAAHHHHH!" (you get the picture, right?) So I figure that he's really up to something this time, and quickly head that direction hollerin' "What in the world does he even have??????" The reply comes quickly back...."A RAT!!!! Jazz has a rat, and he's bringing it inside!!!!" Do what???? Sure enough, my son, my dear darling son has brought a large, dead, eyes bulging RAT....into my house, and at the command of his terrified siblings, drops.it.on.the.floor. Yep! Want him? (you can have the rat too....got plenty of those)

Thus is the life at my house....and really....I love it.... And no you can't have my kids....they're adorable, as if I'd give them away!!!! But you can have the rats.

No internet....

We went out of town over the weekend for a family dove hunt....and when we got back I found that our broadband modem had totally quit! So, I've had no internet till last night when I finally got the replacement in the mail! No email, nothing! My Google reader had close to 200 posts when I went to check them today! Wow... I'll try to post for real soon, as I am looking forward to showing you what I made for our trip this weekend....they turned out sooooo cute!

I did it....

....all by myself! Look at the bottom of my page....I put a site meter on here! All by myself! My sister will be so proud of me! LOL (and I even changed the style....woohoo!)

Recipe Swap #2!

Updated!!! I added the flour and the correct amount of milk....OOPS!

Just for fun...here's another recipe for the GCC Recipe Swap....

Karen's Quiche

3 eggs
3/4 cups plain/all-purpose Flour
1 1/2 cups Milk
chopped bacon/ham (to taste...1/2 cup?)
corn (1/2 can?)
1 cup grated cheese
....................................................
Mix together eggs, milk, and flour. Throw in bacon, corn, and cheese, and mix all together. Pour into a greased dish and bake in a 180*C/375*F oven for 30 - 40 mins.

You can also switch the bacon and corn for spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, or whatever your little heart desires! I think I am going to go and make this for lunch....all this talk of food has made me hungry. Enjoy!

Recipe Swap!

Hello! This is the second time that I have participated in Gayle's Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap....you can get the last recipe here. This one is a vegetable side dish, that I originally got from the book Fit For Life... Welcome to my new blog!

Sweet Basil Carrots
12 medium carrots
3 Tbspns sweet butter (I use regular salted butter!)
2Tbspn pure maple syrup
1-2 tsp fresh basil (I use dried...start with one tsp)
1/4 tsp sea salt
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Slice carrots into rounds about 1/8" thick, and cook for about 10 minutes (steam or microwave), melt remaining ingredients together, and pour over drained carrots, stirring to coat well. Serves 4-6

The original recipe directions were more complex, but this way is so much easier! LOL Hope you enjoy it! Make sure you leave a recipe over at Gayle's too....that way I can try yours!

Welcome to the New Blog!

I decided to start a new blog, and eventually plan on making my old one private for family/friend use so that I can post more pictures without it making me nervous as to who is visiting! For now though it is still public here. I also plan on updating this one's design, once I can figure it all out...or my sister gets her land line or internet and can help me out! ;)

For anyone new who may stop by, Welcome! Here's a quick introduction....I am a mum/mom of four children 8 and under. I live in Texas but was born and raised in Australia....hence the name of this blog TexAus momma! My name is Narelle. On this blog I will be using nicknames for my kids, and ask that friends use these when commenting please. My oldest daughter is Iddybiddy (8), then I have a son, Jorge(6), another daughter Jekkie (5), and another son Jazz (2). My husband, (don't have a nickname for him yet....lol) is a wonderful, godly, supportive man whom I love deeply. We met in Australia, married in Australia, and then moved to Texas (where he is from), and have lived here for about 7 years, and 2 years in Australia's capital, Canberra. (NOT SYDNEY....lol) I'm sure that I will share more as I blog, but for now, I am sick of talking about myself! Feel free to ask questions.