Christmas 2012 is over now...

Oh, Christmas, you were such a joy!

The kiddies and parents at school gave me all these goodies.

My colleagues gave me these pressies:

I turned this pile of my favourite books into a bookish Christmas tree. 

Favourite decorations could be found around the house.

Christmas dinner was delish!

Mum's trifle was divine!

 We had fun in the shade.

We visited  with family.

I got more Christmas loot!

And now...onto 2013!

Happy New Year to you all!

xx

Film Love - The Hobbit

So excited about the Hobbit! We loved, loved LOVED the Lord of the Rings series, so going to see the Hobbit gave us the chance to step back into that magical Tolkien world.

Things you need to know :

1. The end of the movie is not really the end - there will be two more films to make a Hobbit trilogy. The second one will be released in December 2013, the third in June 2014. 

2. Some favourite characters are back, like Gandalf, Galadriel, Elrond and Saruman. Gandalf plays a huge role and has some of the best lines. 

3. Billy Connolly plays one of the dwarves - didn't know this until later because he is so unrecognisable!

4. Barry Humphries plays the Goblin King, and although the character is pretty much an animation, he actually looks somewhat like Barry Humphries!

5. You have to see this film in the cinema because the landscape is amazing and you are able to appreciate the full scale of the monsters.

6. The troll scene is hilarious. 

7. The Grey Orc is way ugly.

Just thought I'd prepare you! 

Also, the previews for upcoming movies are so cool! I cannot wait for this one:

Heaps of famous faces, including James Franco, Mila Kunis and Michelle Williams.

And this version of Jack and the Beanstalk, called Jack the Giant Slayer, stars the lovely Ewan McGregor:

 The beautiful scenes in Life of Pi:

And although I've never seen a Cirque de Soleil show, I would love to see this film:

Magical movies!

Have you seen any movies over the Christmas holiday?

xx

A Snap, A Set and a Song - Family

So....I've been gone for awhile, because life was crazily busy, and I had to step away from the computer to get everything done! Although, really, the last couple of days have been truly lazy with lots of napping! Christmas food and hot, hot weather will do that to you!

I have heaps of blog catching-up to do now, so get ready for some belated posts.

First of all, I'm joining in with Thea at A Snap, A Set, and a Song for the first time in AGES!
This week's theme is FAMILY, so I'm heading right back to the beginning of December, when we celebrated three birthdays in the family by heading to a park in Joondalup for a picnic.

Lily turned 3.

Jack turned 14, and James, my nephew, (in the background) turned 22.

My set is a collection of more pics from the day:

  

And my song is a cheery tune about birthdays:



Go visit Thea to see some more SS & S posts about families!

xx

Tuesday's Tune - The Presets

Just popping in quickly to share a new song from The Presets.

There is no dramatic video, or complicated lyrics, but the melody is so sweet, and the high notes are so angelic. When I hear this song, I am transported back to the New Wave pop of the 80s, like Phil Oakley's Together in Electric Dreams. Anyone who plays against me on Songpop, knows how much I love my New Wave music!

I've thrown the Phil Oakley song in too, for an 80s flashback:

That movie was so cute!

Join up with Thea at A Snap, A Set and A Song for some more Tuesday's Tunes!

xx

It's Monday, What Are You Reading?

Hello to my bookish friends!

This week's reading has been:

What a funny book this was! It reminded me of a dark comedy movie like Weekend at Bernie's or 

Pulp Fiction, except with a whole lot of famous world leaders and scientists thrown in for good measure!

The book pivots between the life of Allan Karllson in the present, which is the story of him travelling around the countryside with a group of criminals; and his past, which is the story of him travelling around the world meeting political leaders. I am not usually into reading about politics, but Jonasson makes it interesting and not at all dull. The scenarios are often quite ridiculous and unbelievable actually, but there is something lovable about this band of characters. It is a very amusing book, which I have found to be a rare thing. The ending is a little sudden, but not disappointing; I think I just wanted the story to keep going!

Not sure which book is up next, but Christmas is in the air and it might be time for some Christmasy reads. Any books you can recommend?

Popping over to Book Journey now, to find out what has got everyone else turning pages.

Have a fun week!

xx