Ms Nosybella: What's for lunch?

Dear Eaters of the Blogiverse

Lately I'm fascinated by how fascinated I am with what people are eating for lunch. A couple of blogs I love have asked the question and it's fascinating, I tell you. Fas.in.ATE.ing.

What do people eat for lunch? That meal in the middle of the day where you're generally on your own and you're not too bothered.

LOML packs me my lunch these days (if that freaks you out a bit, you'd better read here). Today I'm having a chicken and rocket grainy-bread sandwich with low-fat mayo and a salad with an Asian dressing. See, it's fascinating... isn't it?

Well... I do want to know, so tell me:  What's your favourite lunch?

Oh, and while I'm at it, do reveal whether you have ever cut out your children's sandwiches with a biscuit cutter... I really do need to know the stats on that one! Susan Yuen, one of those amazingly creative and dedicated mothers that I have nothing but praise and hot pokers for, makes amazing bento boxes for her kids' lunches - see image above. I predict that the kids' bento box is the next trend in Australia... you read it here first. Much like those bloody cake pops...

'Til next time,

[Image by Susan Yuen]

Ms Nosybella: what's the one...?

Hello Maxabella Lovelies

Go on, you know you've missed Nosybella from the bottom of somewhere deep inside where you keep all your secrets... haven't you?!

I'm still coming to grips with the fact that I'm behind on my Fridge Chronicles by, like, months now (how will I ever get it back?)... so I couldn't let Ms Nosybella go the same way.

Today, I want to go deep and talk about how you live. If the things we do every single day define our life, how are we tracking? Ages and ages ago I did a post about beliefs and ever since I've been thinking about how the way we live day to day impacts on our philosophy. I have a post marinating in my brain somewhere (probably stuffed in there behind the leftovers), but before I get it out, I want to know (my answers in italics):

What's one thing you think about every day?
Sex (and how to avoid it) (Am I joking?)

What's one thing you do every day?
See above (Am I joking?)

What's one thing you wish you didn't have to do every day?
Oh, enough with the sex jokes, Ms Nosybella! 


The one thing I think about every day is how to nurture my children's creativity; the one thing I do every day is kiss my husband; the one thing I wish I didn't have to do every single day is wake up and get out of bed. But one day I will regret that wish, I just know it!

I would be very interested in all thoughtful responses (or silly ones, as long as they are really funny and not just wanna be funny like mine!).

'til next time

[Image via weheartit and lost forever more in etherspace]

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As if you haven't had enough of my many and varied opinions lately, I'm over on the Mummy Panel at Alice Becomes today (or maybe tomorrow, depending on when you're reading!) talking about how I like to help Other Children's People raise their offspring.

The Mummy Panel is such a super-cool initative that I wish I'd invented it myself! Enjoy!

Ms Nosybella: I really must do something about that...

Hello Bellas

My sister Al from the Pink Fibro and I were having a laugh the other day about all the little (and not so little) things around the house that need fixing. All the things that have probably needed fixing since we moved into our respective homes but time has passed and these days we just put up with the constant irritation. Women are good like that.

On this occasion, rather than wondering about our own homes, we were commenting on each others'. You see, we'd swapped houses between Chrissy and New Year and because we are no-holds-barred sisters, the conversation was full of things like:

"OMG, what's going on with your kitchen tap?!"

and

"Are pool pumps supposed to be that loud?"

and

"Aside from nearly killing myself on your front steps..."

and

"We couldn't lock the doors upstairs... um, do you ever actually lock the doors upstairs?"

So, here is an abridged list of things that desperately need attention in Maxabellaland:

• The front steps are crumbling sandstone. Nice if you live in a castle.

• Yes, it's true, the upstairs doors don't lock. Hello Hamburglar.

• There are no working door handles. Hello shut out of my own house on more than one occasion yet still we have not fixed the door handles.

• The seat on the second toilet is loose. Slip sliding awaaaaay.

• The stove does not work. The oven works well. This is why I'm a baker, not a fighter.

I could go on...

Alongside your 'To Do' list, do you have this kind of 'Things that never get done' list? 

If so, my question today is: 

What are your top three 'Never get done' items?

'Til next time

[Image by Michael Wildsmith/Getty via The Guardian]

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The auction for Lori starts at 9am on Australia Day (26/1). Click here to be a part of it.

Ms Nosybella: Help me out a little...?

Dear knowledgeable ones

I have questions. There are all these niggling little questions at the back of my mind and I feel my new-year life might be easier if I could find the answer to them. I figure that the readers of Maxabella loves... are a diverse and interesting bunch, so why not put my questions out there and see what comes back! So, if you know, please, you know, let me know...

How can I fix a sewing machine that sews a normal stitch on the 'right' side, but a jangly, jumbled mess on the 'other' side? It started happening when I mucked around with tension and some other stuff and I freaked out and left it and it's been about five months now. That's how freaked out I was.

Is there any way I can deter the cockatoos that roost in the gumtrees out the front of our house? The noise is a given but they also poo all over my front path - WELCOME to our home.

Why are our strawberries rotting on the branch before they ripen? I was so proud that we grew an actual strawberry and now... not so much.

How can I prevent outdoor cushions / soft furnishings from going mouldy? They are under cover, but I guess they get wet sometimes. I am too lazy to bring them in every day (there are just so many) and even if I wasn't I would have nowhere to put them.

How can I clean the outside of my windows that are reeeeeally high up, double-hung sash with panels and have fly screens on them? It's been three years now and I think it's time...

Is there any way to reinforce the toes on boy's shoes? It's amazing how quickly they scrape through them!

So, if you could help me out with any answers to the above questions, I would be... amazed!

'Til next time

[Image by Florencia Delboy]

Ms Nosybella: What would you...?

Hello Kind (or not so? Read on...) Readers

There was an incident at my place a weekend or so ago. Let's just say that I lost my temper and made my MIL cry (a little bit). I felt like such a bully. It's an ugly, ugly side of me that I have never embraced but seem unable to be free of.

Fortunately, I can count on... three hands the number of times I've lost my temper and barked at someone. But I would love to change my fiery, redhead ways if I could. That and keeping my big mouth shut when it's not my turn to speak. And my incessant need for instant gratification has to go too. Oh and I wouldn't mind being a lot more patient when it comes to teaching my children new things. Plus I talk to much. I go on and on and on and... well, you know that already.

My question this time is: what would you change about yourself if you could?

'Til next time

[Image by Anton Tang]

Ms Nosybella: How do you...?

Hello my lovelies

Summer's coming, it's just down the hill parading its beaches and pools and flimsy, floaty garments. I see oodles of orange, dimpled flesh about to spill forth like a wishful offering to the sun. Shudder.

I don't do the fake tan business. I'd rather be ghost-like than splotchy brown with that strange orange glow radiating just under the surface. The stinky goop and unctions necessary to prep the skin, the time commitment involved to maintain it all. One of my most freaky beauty therapist moments was the nude fake tan, up against a white wall while she brandished the air gun like an AK-47. Meet the Firing Squad Moment there.

So, all in all, my summer preps are reasonably modest. I shave my legs more often than once a winter. After 20 years of waxing, I shaved when preggers with Maxi-Taxi as the waxing was waaaaay too painful and... it was so easy, so convenient, so exactly the same result as waxing but without the pain factor that I never went back. I go back to regular pedicures for sweet toes. I exfoliate more than once every month. That's it.

You'll note that the word Brazillian did not come up, not even once. I have never and will never go there. I'm not interested in looking like a pre-pubescent (and really, the idea that LOML would like such a thing turns me right off instantly) or a strange little barbie doll*. I do a bikini line tidy up whenever things begin to get ursine, but no landing strips for this herbal diva. No freaking way.

What about you? Do you fake tan it? Do you wax or shave? 

Do you take it aaaaaall off?

* With respect to those who indulge. It's a personal thing, you understand. x

'Til next time,

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Ms Nosybella: Do you watch...?

Good day to you all

Last week, my sister publicly outed me as a Wife Swap fan. This was during the same week that I publicly outed myself as a Bust A Move fan. I'm all class, me.

The Wife Swap thing began when LOML and I lived in London. Wife Swap started in the UK and then the Americans got a hold of the format and took it to a whole new level (of course they did). So now we have Wife Swap USA where we have hippies swapping houses with rednecks and exercise junkies swapping houses with committed slobs. There are pirates, there are burlesque dancers, there are lumberjills, there are goths, there are devil worshippers (always fun when they swap with a devout Christian).  I don't even care if it's not 'real', it's an amazing insight into the different ways that people live.

It's seriously the most fascinating, addictive show on television. I can't stop watching.

So, my nosy question this time is... What TV shows can you simply not miss? Any embarrassing moments in there? And will you still be my friend now that you know I'm a Wife Swap fan?

'Til next time,



[Image source unknown]

Ms Nosybella: Do you really...?

Lovely ladies and gents (LOML, Dad, Glen... you know who you are, fellas*)

I'll cut to the chase this week. I just want to know your answers to two personal hygiene questions and then I'll be on my way. Don't fret, not tooooo personal.

1. Do you really put sunscreen on yourself / your children every single day?

Because I don't. I kid myself that I have issues with the chemical content on young skin (and possibly I do) but the real reason is that I hate the greasy, sticky, smelly feeling it gives you all day. It's like walking around with a latex glove plastered to your face.

Plus I'm desperately lazy.

I just tell the tsunamis to stay out of the sun as much as possible, to cover up and to wear their hats. I do the same for me.  I confess I may have smirked just a little bit when I read about Aussie kids with Vitamin D deficiency. There'll be none of that around here, thank you very much.**

2. Do you really moisturise top to toe every day?

Because I don't. See 'desperately lazy' above. I do my face, neck and décolletage (see, gone all fancy pants on you there...) every night, but I just couldn't be arsed (don't worry, it didn't last) to do the full body thing. Every week or so I feel guilty and slather myself in the stuff for days in a row and then I slacken off again. Skin seems okay.

So, I guess I really want to know if you take better care of yourself than I do of me...

'Til next time

* If there are any other fellas that read my blog, please let me know.
** DO NOT under any circumstances remind me of this post when I write about my melanomas.

[Image: ouch, I've forgotten where I collected this one from. Badness]

Ms Nosybella: what's your best...?

Dear Earthlings

Lovely to be back...s t r e t c h. I've been inspired by Pink Patent Mary Janes (easy to be) and I'm asking for handy household hints today. I gave her my best laundry tip yesterday (fill up the fabric softener with half vinegar and half water and add 8 drops of lavender essential oil... soft, fluffy, clothes and beautifully fragrant!).

Do you do things a bit different to the 'norm'... a couple of short cuts or earth-friendly cleaning solutions that smell nice? I get the bicarb and vinegar one-stop solution for all cleaning needs. I do. But it just doesn't smell good and I've had no joy tackling a mouldy bathroom with this solution...

So, tell me, what are your top tips for keeping things fresh around the home?

'Til next time.

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Ms Nosybella: what would you...?

Greetings friends.

As you know, my curiosity and general nosiness will get me into trouble one day (again), but not today. Today it merely fosters an intimate exchange between consenting parties that won't be getting any of us into trouble. A thrilling ride on the Compulsion to Share train, if you will.

Today, I'm asking what would you... my woulds below.

... do if you saw a major car accident and you were the first one there?

I race out of my car very purposefully, speed dialling 000 on the BlackBerry as I leap towards the needy and then flap around a lot looking for pale people as I simultaneously curse my inability to remember anything other than 'if the head is pale, raise the tail' from my 2004 St John's Ambulance course. I would be all flap, no trousers, unfortunately.

... change about yourself physically?

I used to list the standard bums, tums, thighs here, but getting older has made me realise that there are worse things in life than an ample lower half. I wouldn't even ask for scaffolding to jack up the boobs. I would ask for sweet-smelling feet and no psoriasis. Man, what am I, eighty? That's beyond sad.

... change about yourself generally?

I'd always think before speaking and then think some more and then probably not speak at all. Ever.

... do all over again?

Travel through Africa with LOML on the back of an overland truck but this time with an air mattress.

... do-over if you could?

I'd embrace my inner quirkiness far more at a younger age. I wouldn't try so hard to fit in when clearly I didn't. Hard to do that as a youngster, I know. It's the benefit of hindsight that tells me I'd be accepted without issue for just being me.

... give up tomorrow if it was easy?

Chocolate and cleaning

... start doing tomorrow if you could?

Sewing and making 'stuff' more regularly.

How about you? What would you... share?

'Til next time

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Ms Nosybella: A couple of random moral questions

Well good day to you! I've got a few pressing questions today. They are random things that I've been wondering about for a while now so I thought I'd just put them out there and see what you think. They go like this...

Moral dilemma 1: Is it rude to choose the middle public toilet in a row of 3?

My theory is that even though you may invariably end up sitting right next to someone simultaneously weeing in the cubicle next to you (harmony anyone?) this awkwardness is outweighed by the fact that most people won't choose the middle loo for fear of being rude so you end up in a 'less used' loo thereby potentially cutting down on the germ factor. Just a theory.

Do you use the middle cubicle?

And just because we're on the subject and I'm nosy:

Do you put toilet paper down on the seat before you sit down? Or do you just plonk yourself right down on there like I do?

Or do you hover and wee all over the seat for others? I'm just saying.


Moral dilemma 2: Is it wrong to use bribes to discipline your children?

I am a graduate of the 'if you don't do this, you can't do that' school of parenting to get the kids to do what I want them to do. If they have a playdate coming up on Saturday, I'm holding it over their head as early as Monday. If they don't eat their peas, they don't get their fruit. If they don't clean their room, they don't get a story. If they don't cuddle their mother 37 times and give her 108 kisses, the car door doesn't open. You get the idea.

Do you bribe your children?

Moral dilemma 3: Is using the dryer as a sherpa over the mountain of washing okay?

I want to be a good, environmentally-lovely citizen. But I just cannot break my dryer habit. If I rely soley on the line, I end up with a backlog of washing that extends from the laundry, through the house and into my brain. Is it okay to use the dryer if it saves just one woman from a nervous breakdown?

Do you use the dryer?


Moral dilemma 4: Is speeding always bad or just usually bad?

I'm not at all happy with speeding in suburban streets. Never. But put me on a freeway or even on a stretch of road without pedestrians or houses and I think it's reasonable to pick up the pace a little. Not a lot, just a little.

So, my final question is: Do you speed sometimes?

That's all for now. I'm fully expecting a lecture or two about the dryer and the speeding... and possibly those messy hovers might be a bit miffed. But what is life without discussion?

'til next time

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Ms Nosybella: What's your favourite...

I was going to do a 'what makes your blood boil' Nosybella,  but I think there's just been enough negativity floating around bloggerspace for the time being. So, instead, today I'm interested in favourites. I know, I know, favourites change all the time. I'm into something one week and right out of it the next. But what's your favourite-for-now (my favourites in brackets)...

Past time? (Gardening / Dreaming)

Television show? (Modern Family)

Book? (At My French Table)

Food? (Currently Indian - Butter Chicken and Plain Naan) (Not home made) (Have never tackled Indian food - have you?)

Colour? (Teal right now, but ask me in a minute...)

Exercise? (Riding my brand new shiny bike... whooooosh... that was me rocketing down the hill outside my house... yipppppeeeeee!)

Drink? (supercold Savignon Blanc in front of the fire)

Blog? (Kootoyoo)

Recipe? (Rosemary Olive Bread)

What are your favourites right now?

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Ms Nosybella: have you ever...?

Nosybella's baaaack. Asking all the questions, begging for all the answers.

Today I'm all about life experiences and the many little past yous that add up to a whole today you. So, I'm asking, have you ever (my evers in brackets)...

lived overseas? (Four years in London with LOML in my late twenties. Good times.)

hitch-hiked? (Most of the way around France and parts of Ireland. Remind me to tell you about the time the busker with the manequin picked us up outside Roussilion.)

bought a self-help book? (Dr Phil takes pride of place on my shelf. You can't change what you don't acknowledge, people.)

skinny-dipped? (Many times, but privately. Is that the same?)

tried accupuncture? (Needle-phobic, but so desperate for back-pain relief during pregnancy that I tried it and I liked it.)

had a one night stand? (Seemingly a necessary part of growing up in Sydney in the nineties.)

re-gifted? (Often, a great way to recycle!)

loved somebody so much it makes you cry?  (Having a Brandy moment there... and the answer is I've wept)

Have you ever... shared?

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Ms Nosybella: How did you... break bad habits?

Ms Nosybella is back, asking all the questions I ever wanted to know about other people but wasn't drunk enough to ask.

This week I'm wondering if you've successfully stopped doing something that you used to love doing or want to stop doing something that you do right now. Habits. Erksome things.

Three habits I've broken and how:

1. Smoking. See, I wasn't always the clean-living, virtuous type you see before you now. Pack a day of Peter Styvies and during my wanky uni days I even rolled my own Port Royals. Nice. I stopped for a year when I went overseas. A whole year and then, wham, back in Ciggieville. Let's face it, Europe is a hard place for ex-smokers.  Only 50 people on the whole continent are non-smokers . 

The next time I seriously tried to stop (as opposed to giving up for about 2 hours here and there or foregoing lighting up at 8am for a week or two) was when I was pregnant with my first baby. That was seven years ago and I've had about 10 cigarettes in all those years. I just don't want to be a smoking mum.

2. Never exercising. For years I told myself that running around chasing a busy, busy life was plenty of exercise. And cleaning the house is a workout, right? But one day I just left my house and went for a run. Well, a shuffle more like. I don't know why I did it but I do know that it felt really good. Go on, puff yourself out a little and make your muscles burn a little a few times a week and I promise you're going to feel good about yourself. It's a mental thing.

3. Diet Coke. I'm two weeks clean after chugging down 1 or 2 or sometimes 3 cans of diet coke every day. Somehow drinking that much of the black stuff seems even dirtier than the smoking. I am drinking copious cups of green tea in exchange. So far, so good. But I really, really miss it so it's going to be a bumpy ride.

And a habit that I would love to break but am so far unsuccessful:

Overeating fats and sugars. My colleague at work, who is a personal trainer and Fitness First instructor in his spare time (annoyingly healthy and one of the reasons I fake liking Gaga) is helping me with this one. "Don't eat your feelings, Maxabella!" he calls whenever I express a desire to clean out Darrell Lea. I kinda want to slap him senseless when he does it, but I'm sort of grateful too. I'm the Miss Universe of Self-Delusion when it comes to training my eating habits. I mean, I can eat half a block of Whittakers watching The Biggest Loser. I just mustn't want it enough... I've actually started a sister blog to Maxabella to try and explore these issues.


Your turn now... any habits you've squashed or would like to?


I really, really want to know...

Ms Nosybella: How often do you... clean?

I'm curious to know how often others do the things we all need to do. I'm not sure why, but there's a yearning in me to ask and I just have to get it out.

So, how often do you (my frequency in brackets)...

• Clean the shower (most weeks)
• Clean the toilet (every other day)
• Change the towels (weekly if I can get them dry between goes)
• Vacuum (once a week / twice a week if the Tsunamis have been particularly forceful)
• Clean the fridge inside (fortnightly)
• Change the bed linen (about every fortnight - mostly, god sometimes it can be weeks... shocker! - or daily for bed wetters... sigh)
• Wash the floors (weeklyish)
• Clean the oven (gosh, hardly ever... but I do line with alfoil and change that, well, hardly ever!) 

What are your 3 least favourite household chores? Mine are:

• Putting away folded clothes
• Ironing (I just don't)
• Changing the bed linen (see above)

And household chores you secretly don't mind doing?

• Scrubbing the bathroom
• Vacuuming
• Pegging out the clothes

Please share. Ms Nosybella really, really wants to know.