Just after New Years we headed up to Byron for the week. It pretty much rained the whole time we were there, but that just meant we had more time to eat, eat and eat some more.

On the few sunny days we quickly grabbed our rods and headed to the wharf. G was on a lucky streak, pulling in these 2 beautiful bream.

The weather was perfect for Maree’s chicken and corn dish. Mmm chickorn goodness.

She cooked it in the slow cooker which meant less time in the kitchen and more time to take photos of Lily.

I’d been craving pancakes for a while but always felt ripped off paying for them, so on my birthday my favourite people in the world cooked the best breakfast: Pancakes with bacon, bananas, maple syrup and a hash brown.

We spent the rest of the day eating, watching chick-flicks (3 in total) and taking more photos of Lily.

Lily eating Bella’s ear. Yum, tastes like dog.

It’s a great birthday when you satisfy 2 cravings in one day, craving number 2: apple and rhubarb crumble. Yum!

We organised a little party at my office for NYE. It was a bit of a last minute thing but we ended up with a pretty big turn out, about 30 people all up. Hope you all had a great time!

Wish I’d gotten more shots of the fireworks but it was a bit hard with a drunk friend hanging off my shoulder. Oh well, at least I remember seeing the fireworks, unlike some people. hehe..

Check out the smog after the fireworks.

It was a pretty good night all up but honestly, I was just glad when it was all over. After organising numbers, wristbands, drop offs, eskies, ice and drinks, there was still the horrible thought of the clean up. Big thanks to everyone who helped!

A lot of the cleaning was done on the night but there was still a lot to do the next day. Unfortunately G and I spent most of New Years Day cleaning up and emptying eskies.

We tried to clean the outside balcony but some stains just don’t come out. There’s now a nice little spew stain on the balcony that will forever remind me of NYE 2010/2011.

Christmas is always a crazy time of the year; the shopping, battling crowds, rushing around, wrapping presents, and of course the big family dinner.

As usual, there was too much food. We all sat down to eat and when we finished the table was still full of food.

Here’s my contribution to the table.

It took 3 failed attempts but I finally managed to make a successful(ish) pavlova.

Rambo chillin’ at the office Christmas party.

We went to Rubyos in Newtown for Anna’s birthday and boy was there a lot of food! We went with the Banquet menu and it just did not stop. Highlights of the night were the pork belly salad and the peking duck. Yum! I was really impressed by the pancake that went with the duck, it was so soft and silky.

Sorry I didn’t really get good photos of the food, I felt slack making everyone wait for me to take a photo so I just took one photo and let everyone dive in.

All up, great night. Good food, good drinks and great company to share it with.

Happy Birthday Anna! Hope you have a great night and like your pressie!

I can finally tick U2 off my “Bands to see before I die” list. Yay! Here’s a few pic from the night.

Jay-Z opened for U2, which I thought was really strange, but man he went off! We got there just in time for Empire State of Mind and everyone was bopping to the music. Wasn’t expecting him to be that good but boy did he lift the crowd.

We had floor tickets (because they were the cheapest) so we got pretty close to the stage at times.

Funny bopping heads.

Now for the stage… the freaken amazing spaceship stage. The thing was giant!

And the screen moved up, down and expanded like an accordion. It was worth going just to see the stage set up.

Crazy!

The only annoying thing about the night was not being about to sit down. That and a bunch of punks jumping the fence to get into the floor section. This one guy jumped the fence and fully landed on me, idiot nearly knocked me over. Gr… But besides that it was great to see U2 live.

My new favourite thing to BBQ.

After months of putting it off I finally got myself to Toni & Guy for that much needed haircut. G and Anna always rave on and on about how good it is there and finally got me to check it out for myself.

I get it now. Love Toni & Guy! It is a bit expensive, but it’s worth it.

A bottle (or 2) of Moët should only be cracked open on a special occasion and what better occasion than celebrating when your mate finishes an excruciatingly painful 5-year Masters degree.

Emma’s Wollstonecraft apartment was the perfect spot for pre-drinks. Sophisticated, classy, and with a stunning view of the city. It was just what we needed before hitting town to hang out in a run-down pub, alleyway and a bunch of warehouses.

I was actually planning to take more photos but I got a bit distracted by the free booze.

I love this photo! It sums up the night: Blurry, colourful and full of laughter.

Aww.. Aren’t they the cutest! Amy’s kitty had kittens so I went a bit camera happy.

They can’t even walk properly yet.

Size comparison with my beer.

And look, it’s Healthy Harold. Remember him? Didn’t think they still had Health Harold at schools anymore.