Life is a Journey – Page 163 – The life and times of Libby Withnall

Amy’s “Teen” Bedroom

Posted on January 29, 2012November 6, 2026 by Libby Withnall

Amy turns 13 in just under a month and we figured it was time to update her little girl room. It became a great project for Kevin and Amy to work on together, with decorating input from me.

Step 1 – Get new furniture from IKEA….

Step 2 – somehow fit it all into a prius….

Luckily we didn’t have Christy with us :-)….

Step 3… choose a paint colour….

and start painting….

Step 4…. cart furniture upstairs and start assembling….

modifying current equipment where appropriate….

Step 5…. put up shelves…..

Step 6….. decorate….

This cute black couch is actually a sofa bed for when friends sleep over.

I LOVE it all, but this desk is just a dream…..

And her new bedding (which was the first thing we bought) is fabulous. It’s double sided with stripes on the back, which I think will make a nice change for Winter. It’s a silver colour with purple and pink flowers…

So what do you think? Here’s before…

and after…

I might be a long way from being a teenager but I could be totally happy in this room. It’s also got the best view in the house!

Australia Day

Posted on January 27, 2012November 8, 2026 by Libby Withnall

We aren’t big Australia Day people, and with an overcast/rainy/humid morning and Kevin & Amy painting Amy’s bedroom, we just did a lunch with Nan & Pop.

There was damper…

BBQ steaks/veggie patties and salads…

and pavolva for dessert…

Followed by this Australian Afternoon Tea that I picked up this morning… it didn’t really taste different to any other black tea but it was nice…

with Tim Tams and lamingtons….

Definitely a very yummy way to celebrate Australia Day. Unfortunately my arthritis was VERY bad so I spent the afternoon on the couch feeling sorry for myself while more painting was done upstairs.

The Week That Was

Posted on January 24, 2012November 7, 2026 by Libby Withnall

It was the week I revisited an old friend…..

and the week the girls and I combined our nail polish collections….

It was the week of Harry Potter games…

and the week of new Harry Potter wands….which I didn’t get the chance to photograph…

It was the week of a special package for an online class I’m doing with Stacy Jullian….

It was the week of lunch and exploration at the Nan Tien Temple…

and the week I finally took my braids out…

It was the week of friends to sleep over…. and friends to have water fights with….

It was the week of another trip to the dog beach….

where the girls all got buried…

and Rosie dug a HUGE hole….

It was the week we took a family trip to Minnamurra…

where looks can be deceving. It was a beautiful spot but you couldn’t spot the strong current until you got caught in it. Both girls were aided by a person onshore, Kevin & I, who had left after them, managed once we realized you could stand a bit further around…. but it was scary for the girls. Of course, then we had to get back to the other side… which we managed by walking further up the sand and coming back on an angle. It was certainly an eventful outing….

It was the week of visiting birds…

It was the week of Sunday afternoon games…

and pasta making….

It was the week of a minimally processed food challenge so our menu featured the like of blackbean burgers….

homemade pizza and garlic bread….

rice paper rolls by Amy….

and healthy banana muffins…

It was also week we decided that our 20th Anniversary trip in December is going to be Walt Disney World….

and a Caribbean cruise…

It been 8 years since we were there and we (well, the girls and I) are VERY excited. Let the planning begin….

Whole Food Kitchen

Posted on January 20, 2012November 7, 2026 by Libby Withnall

I’ve been a long time admirer of Heather and her blog Beauty That Moves. I took her 30 day vegan class last year and it was fabulous. Can’t wait for the new one Whole Food Kitchen. It starts 6th February so you’ve still got time to sign up. If you want to learn more about eating whole foods definitely go check it out. This class is not vegan, or even vegetarian.

Let me know if you’re going to be my classmate – I already know Jackie is.

As a bit of head start we’re having a no/low processed food week in our house. 4 days in and we’re coping surprisingly well.