Thursday

They say there's nothing as friendly as a wet dog but a wet cat who's looking for cookies can be just as friendly! The rain continues but the cats are still trekking outside - and we are grateful for that because the more they’re outside, the less litter tray action there is in here! Although given how wet it's been, we wouldn't mind if they did choose to go inside - that way they wouldn't need to be to welled down when they get back inside!

My Ikea Family card arrived - and it is cool - if see-through and orange is (are?) cool. And that's just as well because you always have to carry it with you because there's no way it's easy to memorize the card number - it has 19 digits! We can't wait to try it out - when you swipe you go in draws, get discounts, and free hot drinks! Come to think about it, it's a little bit like The Big House's Absolute Rewards card! I was just thinking that they must be missing us - but we were only there last week! It does seem like longer ago though.

It's almost time for Pearl to have another play date with Socks - and hopefully it will be fine enough on the weekend so we can do that. We could drop her at Nana's for the day on Saturday while we go to Dinosaur Island. Mmmm ... dinosaurs. And it's time we saw the Polar Bears and the Sharks again! And squeezed in one last visit on our Passes before we have to buy new ones! (Sounds better all the time doesn't it?)

I was a bit disappointed yesterday when I looked out over the lawn and saw that there were tyre marks on it - obviously D's trailer was very loaded up when he took it out the other evening - and the damp grass couldn't cope with it. Hopefully it will look less damaged after a good mow - but we have to wait for the rain to stop to make that happen. We'll just have to try to not look at it until then.

I'm not sure where the bird life is hiding during the downpours, but it certainly isn't as evident as it was last week. Even the ducks have taken themselves off somewhere dry. The only ones braving the weather are the crows ... and they'll have to watch themselves now because it appears that someone on the Coast is out to get them; and the law enforcement folk think that it may be the same person who had the vendetta against magpies last year. Of course, they're worried lest a child pick up and eat one of the laced baits.

It's funny to see the clothes change as it gets colder and wetter. Boots are definitely the go now ... two out of three females in Zarraffas this morning had them on. I'm still in runners although as I stood trying not to make waves in the puddle where I got out of the car this morning, I wished I wasn't.

That puddle, though, had nothing on the one which has formed at the Gilston Road roundabout. (Quick, Tink, get out of the car!!) The roads have coped as well with the wet as they usually do, especially the roads where there is roadwork in progress. Driving through this morning, I realised that more than half the road at the roundabout was under water, and given the pock-marked bitumen on approach, I was sure that if I drove through the puddle, it would prove to be at least 2 metres deep and Lars would very neatly sink to the bottom of it. Some days I would take the chance, but not today!

It was an elimination tonight on MasterChef (and according to the ads three will be eliminated next week!) and everyone gathered to watch - in real time! The elimination was over three rounds. A big factor in the challenge was the restriction on ingredients. You had to use all the ingredients. You could only take the prescribed number of ingredients. There was only one serve of each ingredient. First round - 8 people, 8 ingredients, 30 minutes - best 3 dishes are safe. Second round - 5 people, 5 ingredients, 30 minutes - best 2 dishes are safe. Last round 3 people, 3 ingredients, 30 minutes - goodbye Treagan. And, no surprises here, the MasterChef car turned into a taxi ... again!