DAY 90

Today I am grateful for: extended family

So this motley looking crew are part of my extended family. My aunty Sandie is my Dad's youngest sister. She is also my inspiration in the kitchen. Think of a busy mother who still manages to produce amazing dinners on the table every night seemingly effortlessly. That is aunty Sandie. It can only hope that one day I will cook with such ease. Must come from putting dinner on the table for 5 hungry guys, day after day, week after week, year after year. All that practice!

Myself, mum and also Alison (plus crew) all have a standing invitation for dinner any time we need it. I love dinners at this table. When all of my four cousins are at home it makes my heart happy to hear them all. The laughter, the jokes, the typical Australian sarcasm, the unsolicited life advice, the prodding about who is in love with which girl, the why are you being such a player? etc etc etc.

I am blessed to have family further than my immediate family nearby. They continue to be an amazing support to mum and I. As we have no husbands, or boyfriends, or easily accessible male siblings around to help us out with manly things, we call on this family from time to time. I know if I call uncle Rodney or one of the boys (they will always be boys to me!) will help with whatever needs doing. And they have power tools. Excellent.

I remember earlier in the year I talked my youngest cousin Craig in to coming over and helping tame my wild garden back in to submission, and he came and helped and didn't complain. That is family love.

I am grateful for extended family. For the ones who love you for so much more than just sharing a last name.

DAY 89

Today I am grateful for: cups of tea

I don't drink coffee. I am one of the few people in the world who are not coffee addicts. I don't like the smell or the taste of it. Some days I wish I did though - coffee drinkers seem to get so much joy from each sip.

I am a tea drinker. I take it white with a teaspoon of honey. To me, it's like a mug full of springtime.

This afternoon the lovely Anna made me a cup of tea in my sexy* red cup (as she does most days. I love Anna) and then tempted me with a new type of tea - green tea with caramel. Amazing. It was like a tea party for one right there on my desk.

Is that a true tea lover - more than one cup on the go at a time?

Today I am grateful for a simple cup of tea.

* Look closely at the pattern on my cup. The background isn't what you think it is! Thanks to Anna again!!

DAY 88

Today I am grateful for: a dinner guest

I'm not sure what it is about cooking, but I seem to need someone to share my successes, and to commiserate my failures. I think that is why I love cooking for others as it means we all share in the happiness - my happy from the making, and my friends happy in the eating.

Tonight I had a guest for dinner - my knowledgeable mother was here to advise me on my second roasting attempt. A successful rosemary lamb roast was had by all, even Molly who was sitting at the table with us. I know all you non-cat people will be appalled at having a cat on the dinner table, but I am a cat person, and it is okay with me, and I am the boss of this table. I'd also like to point out that if someone other than a family member was dining with us that there would not be a cat on the table. Molly would be on the floor pouting about the injustice of it all.

So today I am grateful for my mother (the dinner guest). It is nice to occasionally have someone other than the TV over dinner, and a reason to dig out my nice 'Maxwell Williams' plates.

DAY 87

Today I am grateful for: rain

Often when it rains a song from my childhood plays in my head…

And ...that’s why I like the rain,

When it pitter patters on my window pane.

It makes the garden grow and the rivers flow,

Makes everything green again.

That’s why I like the rain.

Apparently Don Spencer wrote a little ditty that has stuck with me for 25 years.

So... spring has been delayed a while by some rainy weather. I am going to try and be positive about it - all those drops of water are making the flowers happy and the grass green and our dams full. Hooray!

DAY 86

Today I am grateful for: TCC

Today I am grateful for my church - Toowoomba City Church. A place where I feel at home, learn something, see my friends and try charm their children all in the same place.

DAY 85

Today I am grateful for: overcoming stigma's

(well one of them anyway)

In my early 20's I came to the realisation that I needed to get over my own personal fear of going to the movies alone or I would never actually get to see anything on the big screen. You can only wait so long for things to come out on DVD.

For whatever reason I found myself with a Saturday night empty; no boyfriend, no sister, no friends available and a movie showing that I really wanted to see. I wish I could remember what it was - maybe 'City of Angels' or 'Bad Boys' or something from that era.

I remember sitting in my seat before the movie started, thinking that all those snuggly smug couples around me were judging and snickering at me - I could almost hear their comments: "What loser, that homely looking girl has no friends or boyfriend so she has to see this movie on her own. I am so thankful that I have {insert ruggedly handsome guys's name here} so I never have to be like her". I think I pretended to text someone on my phone to make it look like I was more popular than it seemed. I walked out of that movie feeling somewhat freed. I had survived a solo movie experience.

Since then I often go on my own. Quite often I have the time to see a movie but no friends or family are either available or interested. The thing that I am most grateful for is that I don't care any more. Actually I kind of even prefer it.

Here are my top 5 reasons why going to the movies alone is better:

5 - You don't have to get dressed up. You are invisible to everyone in the theatre anyway.

4 - You can eat whatever you want. No one cares.

3 - You don't have to share the armrest or movie snacks.

2 - You can sneak in to that last remaining seat in the back row rather than sitting in the front.

1 - No one distracts you by making comments during the whole movie .

I know girls who have never been to a movie alone, or would even consider it. They seem to have a string of single friends and boyfriends at their disposal, or an agreeable husband. I guess my overcoming this stigma was born out of necessity.

As a single girl I have done lots of things I never thought I would do - like holidaying alone, owning and using a tool kit (even if it is pink), travelling solo internationally, standing up for myself, signing a mortgage that will take me until I am middle aged to pay back, comforting instead of being comforted, buying my own diamond jewellery, growing up and (sadly enough) becoming a cliche (does 'single female, 30+ with more than one cat' ring any bells?).

So I guess this grateful is about more than just overcoming the movie stigma, it is being grateful for finding the strength to step out of my comfort zone and doing things that frighten me.

I wonder who I might have become if I hadn't done these things? Probably living a life coloured with more grey. I am thankful I will never know.

DAY 84

Today I am grateful for: cupcakes sent from heaven

So I whipped these little packages of deliciousness up last night and, as the cook, had to sample one to make sure they were not hideous. They were not. I have never eaten a cupcake so amazing in my life.

I shall share my secret with you all, so you too can share in this incredible culinary joy.

Today I am grateful for white chocolate & strawberry cupcakes.

White Chocolate & Strawberry Cupcakes

225g butter (softened)

225g castor sugar

225g self-raising flour

1tsp baking powder

4 eggs

1tsp strawberry essence

100g white choc chips

Icing

200g cream cheese (softened)

175g icing sugar

1tsp vanilla essence

3tbs chopped fresh strawberries (optional)

- Preheat oven to 175g

- Combine butter, sugar, flour, baking powder, eggs & strawberry essence and beat in mixer until light and creamy

- Stir in choc chips

- Spoon into 18 muffin cases

- Bake for 20mins

- Cool on rack

- To make icing beat all ingredients together - except strawberries. Add these at the end

- Spread on top of cupcakes before serving