​This week our bloggers revisit a favourite time they have shared or experienced. These types of holidays either public holidays or family holidays are always fun and create memories we can recreate in future years.
 
It was also Jessy’s last day with us. Jessy our support worker has left a huge mark on our hearts and we always remember her for her kindness…
 
My favourite holiday would probably be Halloween, though it’s not an Australian holiday it’s a day that I’ve been able to bond with friends over and that’s really important. There’s nothing better than dressing up and being a little bit extra about characters or monsters that you connect with! It’s also a day that many people are able to express themselves creatively and artistically. Added bonus there’s lollies, chocolate and the coolest decorations ever.
 
Its also the day that I watch Tim Burton’s A Nightmare Before Christmas, I absolutely love this movie because I think that the characters are super cute and I love how different Tim Burton movies are to the traditional Disney movies. I know that many children dress up and go trick or treating and that’s very exciting for them, I really enjoy handing out lollies to the trick or treaters as well. I myself don’t go trick or treating because knocking on strangers doors on a normal day is scary enough.
 
I don’t do any of the really scary movies because I’m not very good with horror. But I love that Disney + have a Halloween collection during the month of October and I can watch something different to what I’d normally watch. Honestly it’s something to look forward too and as I said share with others. Seeing all of the decorations and the Halloween themed products makes me so happy because all of the Halloween enthusiasts can share in the excitement and joy of the spooky season.
 
There’s just so much that I enjoy about Halloween, even talking about it is exciting and I am very lucky to have people that also share my excitement and love of all things spooky and Halloween.
I am in my spooky era.
Your friend,
Shan
 
 
Hey friends and welcome back it’s Thursday again which means back to blogging. Today’s topic is public holidays or any special occasions.

 I have chosen to write about my favourite holidays which are Christmas time and Easter time because my family gets together to have lunch with each other and sometimes my cousins and aunts and uncle come along also.

One of the best things about Christmas is getting presents and my birthday is three weeks later. We have lots of fun and lots of laughs together which makes the day a whole lot better.

My second choice is Easter because we get lots of chocolates and just spending quality time as a family. I love getting easter bunnies and easter eggs and we sometimes do an easter egg hunt. They are usually hiding in the garden and hanging off branches high in the trees.

What are your favourite public holidays or special occasions readers? Tell us about your fun and adventures in the comments. 

Thank you for reading my blog, this is bubbly Bethany signing off until next week.
 
 
Hello readers. What a nice and sunny day today! I hope you all are doing well and had a great Easter break. 

Today’s blogging topic is about our favourite holiday. Do you have a favourite holiday like Christmas break, Easter break or is anyone still at school and enjoying school holidays? 

Hmm, if someone asks me what my favourite holiday is I like Christmas holidays and New Year because it's a long break and I celebrate Christmas with my family. We usually enjoy around three weeks break from Umbrella Support, we finish in mid-December and come back in mid-January. I still remember that I really enjoyed the term four breaks when I was at school because its more than two weeks. 

I also enjoy Christmas break because I get Christmas presents, I get to rest as well and take it easy, even though the weather is hot. It’s summer season during Christmas holidays and I don't like the too hot weather but I still enjoy it. I still remember during Christmas and New Year break long time ago I went to the beach with my parents, my brother and my aunty, uncle and cousin it was fun and memorable. We made sand mountains and I think we had a barbeque lunch at the beach and also other time we ate KFC for lunch. 

Do you all like going to the beach during Christmas holidays with your family because it's summer? 

Christmas and New Year breaks are also great for me, because since 2015 New Year my grandmother from Indonesia has visited Australia. She decided to come in the summer because she can't stand the cold as she lives in a tropical country, she usually stays for a long time and has celebrated Lunar New Year here with us. When she is here we get to do lots of family things together like the Christmas Myer Windows. 

Do you like seeing Christmas Myer windows or other Christmas decorations? 
This year is a little different around Easter, the usual four days off and also the following Friday for Anzac Day which gives us two short weeks to enjoy. That’s something to look forward too. 

I have a fact to share with everyone. Even though I celebrate Lunar New Year with my family, in Indonesia it's a public holiday.  But here, it isn’t. So my fun fact is that I had to work on Lunar New Year as I work every Wednesday.

Joke of the day is related to Christmas. What is a Christmas tree's favourite candy? Ornamints.  From: Cool Jacinda
 
Dear readers, this week’s topic is what is your favourite public holiday or special occasion. Let me start by telling you about my favourite special occasion
which is my birthday.
 
I love my birthday every year because I get to celebrate it with my family and friends. I even like a good sleep-in but to be honest the thing I don’t like is getting older. However, I do love to eat delicious black forest cake and to receive presents as well.  I look forward to getting to choose what we eat for my birthday dinner and especially this year because it is a big one.
 
My favourite holiday is Christmas because there’s no reason. I just love Christmas. I get to spend time with my direct family however I feel sad because it was my dad’s favourite holiday as well. I love waking up and getting to open presents with my family because I get to see my family's warm smiles after giving them their presents. Of course I love to receive my Christmas presents too.

What is your favourite public holiday or special occasion?
 
Written by Charlotte
 
 
My special occasion to blog about is New Year’s Eve because it’s my birthday and I absolutely love celebrating my birthday with friends and family.  My highlight is that my late grandfather would say I am the limited edition in the family. 

My mum would tell me to go to bed early so she could wake me up to watch the fireworks and bring in the New Year with my family and friends. When I was young I would go camping along the Murray River with my family. I remember one year I got drunk until I got a hungover, and to this day I don’t get a hangover anymore as I’ve learned my lesson from drinking.
Thank you, I’m back. Ash. 
 
I love to go to holidays, they are so much fun.  I can’t stop thinking about Jessy today, she is moving away. 

I saw Joker and Harley Quinn at Movie World and Wet n Wild.  It was so much fun in the water and then I got a sunburn on my back. 

Sea World was wonderful and I saw polar bear, really cute. There were also two girls with me, oh lord they were crazy and funny.  I love fun with my friends and crazy stuff together too. – TJ
 
Good morning and welcome to a relaxing holiday blog. My favourite holiday is Anzac Day as I have a tradition of going to the rugby with my dad to watch the Melbourne Storm play. It gives me a chance to not only enjoy the sport I love but also pay my respects to the soldiers who have fallen to make this country what it is today. I also love this as they turn off the lights for the ceremony which is cool to witness.
 
I also love watching the Anzac eve AFL match between Melbourne and Richmond as it provides the perfect lead in to the big day. No matter how many times you listen to the last post it still gives me tingles. Do you like Anzac Day? What do you do to celebrate and commemorate?
 
Keep being awesome and Lest we Forget – Ben VR
 
 
I’m not like a regular girl, I’m the spooky girl. I love Halloween, my dream would be to go to America to see how they do it.  I’ve read on the internet that turnips were the first vegetables to get the carving rather than pumpkins.

Also, I read that they got trick or treat from Aprils 1st is April fools day is 6 months away from October 31st Halloween.  
 
April fools would be trick and October 31st is treat. Anyways, I love Halloween not just for the treats. I love horror movies and I would do a thirty one days of Halloween horror movies, kinda like Christmas but better. 
 
Last year for the thirty one days of Halloween I tried to watch all movies, I haven’t watched before, 
 
I’ll just name a few 
P2 (2007)
Slaughter high (1986)
Tourist trap (1979)
 
When I was little, we would go trick or treating and get heaps of lollies, even money. 
I think everyone is entitled to a good scare once in their lifetime. Last year, my friend and myself went to Luna park for Halloween. Let me tell you, it was a hell of a ride. There was a walk through haunted house maze, and the people would walk up to you and scare you and there were fake feet and hands hanging from the ceiling. We even dressed up. I dressed up as a broken doll and my friend dressed up as the bent neck lady from the Haunting of Bly Manor. It was the greatest time ever. I hope we can do it every year.
 
Well that’s me all wrapped up, I’m a bit scary, a bit spooky and all kinds of sweet.  – Haley
 
 
My favourite holiday is Christmas because I get to celebrate with friends and family. I love receiving and giving presents. I love having Christmas lunch with my friends and family. My favourite food for Christmas is ham, and for dessert is Chinese custard tarts.

My other favourite is the weekend just gone because we celebrated Easter. I go out with friends on the weekend sometime or shopping.
What is your favourite holiday? - Thank you From Ben C
 
Hi readers, we are going to talk about our favourite holiday or public holiday.
My favourite holiday is Christmas because I get presents. The best gift I have ever received was a smaller version of a flight simulator that my dad gave me. It is so much fun the way it works and it connects with my computer and you learn how to manoeuvre it like your are in a real  aircraft. Have you ever received a gift that made you happy?

Anzac Day (25th April) is special to me because we acknowledge all who have fought in any of the wars. Another place I have been to is Pearl Harbour and have walked through the ship. It was interesting and moving.
There is oil still leaking from the ship which is a burial site. I also sat on the submarine. Have you been to Pearl Harbour and if so, what did you think of it.

Do you have a favourite holiday and if so where is it

Cheers Nick 

Happy Easter friends!
Do you love Easter? Do you celebrate this occasion the same way you do Christmas with your family and friends? What is different about it? Do you go away or stay home? There are so many questions we have and today we will answer them telling you all the way we love to celebrate this time of the year.
 
 What does Easter mean to you?
Hello and good morning welcome to our blog. We are writing about the Easter holiday and the first thing that came into my mind was spending it with my family. This Easter our family is going on a long holiday and I am so excited. We are cruising to Vancouver and will travel by train to an amazing place called Niagara Falls and much more. We will take the train through the Canadian Rockies. It is going to be so fun but I know everyone is going to miss me and I will miss my friends too. I can't wait for dancing, food, drinks and lots of fun with my family. I will take a lot of photos and I will get my haircut on the ship.
I love Easter, my favourite is eating hot cross buns toasted, with butter. I also love decorating my house with the beautiful crafts that I make at Handmade on Monday and Tuesday crafts as well.

I will eat Easter chocolates too but I like hot cross buns better. My mum buys them from Coles. - I am happy From your friend, Claire. Bye for now I will be back in 6 weeks.
 
Hey friends how are you today? 
Today’s topic is what do you do for Easter?

Easter Sunday is a special day for my family and friends. 
We get together for lunch and have lots of food and then when we finish our dinner we get excited and open up our easter eggs. This is the best day ever when we can eat as much chocolate as we want and not get in trouble (does an evil laugh hahaha)!

My favourite easter eggs are Kit Kat easter eggs, Humpty Dumpty easter eggs with marshmallows and Smarties in them. Bunny rabbits and mini eggs. I also forgot to mention hot cross buns.

Wishing everyone a Happy Easter and a wonderful safe holiday.

How do you enjoy your easter holiday my readers? 

This is Bethany signing off until next week.
 
 
 What does Easter mean to you? 

“Easter means that you can have chocolate for breakfast.” A quote from Haley. 

It seemed appropriate to start this blog with a quote, even better that it was a quote from a fellow blogger and friend. I feel like Easter for me is a time for giving and spreading kindness. The Good Friday appeal is always important for the Royal children’s hospital and I believe it’s a charity that is close to many of our hearts. For those that can donate even the smallest amount it’s something that I’m sure is greatly appreciated. “If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.” – Dalai Lama 

Easter is also a time for appreciating. Appreciating the people, animals and everything that we have in our lives. It’s important to take a moment to practice gratitude and appreciate those we love. We have an opportunity to celebrate an event with others and share joy and kindness. Even if the celebration is with your animal family that’s still really special and worth the celebration. We should also be appreciative for what we have and the time we have with our loved ones. “Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.” – Quote from Google. 

Easter is also a great time for some self care and self love because why not? Make it a tradition to give yourself some kindness at some point during the Easter break, get yourself some nice P.J.s, some fluffy socks and have your favourite snacks. Because you are worth it! “It’s not selfish to love yourself, take care of yourself and make your happiness a priority. It’s necessary.” -Mandy Hale 

Taking the time during Easter to think about what Easter means to you would be a great thing to do if you have some down time. Or make it a journal prompt. 
Enjoy the week ahead my friends, 
Happy Easter,
Your friend Shan.
 
 
What does Easter means to me? If I’m honest, it kind of confuses me. How is it that we have an Easter Bunny, but somehow we get Easter eggs?  I’m 100% sure Bunnies don’t lay eggs. 
 
Well anyways, when I was younger at Easter time we would go away camping with my cousins, Aunty and Uncle. On Easter morning we would do an Easter egg hunt and each kid had a pile of Easter eggs waiting for us back at the campsite, after the egg hunt. 
 
When we got a little bit older, I did Scouts and we would go away on a camp over Easter. I remember because when we got home on the Easter Sunday my parents would place my siblings and eggs on our bed. 
 
I wasn’t much of a chocolate eater in my younger days, so I would get a movie and an Easter chocolate. My oldest brother was a chocolate fanatic. He would have eaten his chocolate by the end of the day. 
 
As I got older Easter just become another normal day for us. Until my first niece was born, we had egg hunts and Easter eggs again. Then my nephew came along so we started going away camping again. We do egg hunts at the campsite site just like I did when I was a kid. There are so many people camping we are restricted to only our camp site.  But we still had fun.
  
Now they are older we don’t really do much for Easter anymore. 
So it’s just my parents and myself. My mum always gets me kinder surprises, their chocolate is the best, well to me it is. 
 
We still like having hot cross buns on the day, and you’re allowed to eat chocolate for breakfast on Easter without being pestered by anyone. 
 
Happy Easter, enjoy the chocolate eggs, and family time.
Haley. 
 
 
Hi everyone, today's topic is Easter, how do you celebrate Easter?
I celebrated Easter when I was a kid and to be frank I cannot remember much about that time but these days I like to celebrate by staying home playing video games.

If I get to see my dad our plan is to go to Kilcunda and we usually go to the pub for dinner and we meet with some of his friends there.

My dad and I have been there so many times that we know most of the locals at the pub. I feel that I am too old to celebrate and for me Easter is like any other day.
I know a lot of my friends love to celebrate Easter and I want to wish all of you Happy Easter and hope you will have a great time with your family and friends.
 
Thank you for reading my blog Nick
 
 
Hello and welcome to another Egg-citing blog. With Easter fast approaching we are blogging about Easter. For me Easter is about chocolate chocolate…………......and did I mention chocolate? Did you know that in England they have something called the cheeseter egg. It’s an easter egg made entirely out of cheese. I love this concept as I can’t have too much chocolate.
 
As a kid I loved going on easter egg hunts and eating lots of chocolate. I am a massive white chocolate fan. We always used to play the chocolate dice game every easter which is one of my favourite games to play. I love the easter Monday tradition of watching my Hawks play Geelong. I love eating chocolate hot cross buns. Do u have any favourite chocolates or easter traditions? I have some more coming up in a later blog.
 
Nice to chat again readers and have an eggscellent holiday.
 
Keep being awesome. - Ben
 
 
Hello readers! 
Today I want to start my blog with a quote:-
“The great gift of Easter is hope". Why did I choose that quote?  It's because this week, our blogging topic is about Easter. 

Do you like to celebrate Easter? If you celebrate, do you celebrate with your nuclear family only or do you like to have a big gathering with your Aunty, Uncle, cousins, niece and nephews? I do celebrate Easter with my family, but we are not sure what we will be doing for Easter this year. I don't have many extended family members  here so it’s quiet which is okay for me because I don't like big gatherings.

My brother is still working overseas so I guess my dad might cook something.  We usually go to church for Holy Week Mass. We might visit my grandparents on Easter Sunday and wish them a Happy Easter, if they are well and healthy that Sunday. My grandparents live in aged care now. 

Usually on Easter Sunday or any special occasions that I celebrate, I like to choose an image on Google. There's a huge variety of images to choose. There are cute ones like Bunny rabbits, cartoon characters like Snoopy or Disney, and there's a simple one that just says "Happy Easter".  You might be asking me "What do I do with that picture"?
I screenshot it and keep it saved on my gallery on my phone. I like to choose two different pictures for special occasions that I celebrate. One is to put on my Instagram to wish everyone out there a Happy Easter. The other one is to send to my close family that live overseas and message to my brother. If he was at my house I wouldn’t need to, I would just wish him in person. Do you like to find an Easter image on Google too like me? Which one do you like?

I’ve already chosen my Easter image this year. One is a picture of Snoopy and one is a picture of a children’s cartoon called "Sunny Bunnies". I find its busy for me sending these images to all my close family but not all my extended family celebrate Easter. Mostly they are Buddhist so they celebrate something else. My cousin is very thoughtful as she sends me an Easter greeting and a Christmas greeting even though she doesn’t celebrate them. 

Some people get gifts for Easter like those cartoon character mugs with the giant Easter egg in a box or a Bunny plush toy. I don't really get any Easter egg chocolate from my parents or a Bunny soft toy anymore, only when I was still living in my old house my parents got my brother and I an Easter Bunny plush. My brother got the sky blue one and I got the pink one. I remembered I named my Easter Bunny "Pinky" because she is pink and my brother named his Bunny "Bugsy". My brother and I  don't keep those Bunny toys anymore, we gave them away before we moved to this house. 

I remember some Easter gifts that I’d received over the years. In Easter of 2009 my brother and I were still children, then in 2010 for Easter my brother and I got another present, it was a Peter Rabbit plush toy it came in a box and there was Easter chocolates inside too. Do you like Peter Rabbit? I also remembered my Aunty, who lived in Melbourne, she gave my brother and I a mug with a big Easter egg. I got a My Little Pony mug and my brother got a Ben-10 mug. I remember my cousin made an Easter card for my brother and I with fun activities on the card like word-search and colouring in. 

I also remember another mug with Easter eggs from my mums friend in 2021 I think it was. It was a Mickey Mouse mug.

When we were still living in Indonesia my parents, my brother and I would attend all the masses from Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter vigil and Easter Sunday. You all might think that's a lot but the reason why we go on the Easter Sunday mass is because they have children's mass and when the mass is over we got goodie bags. It had various snacks like Hello Panda, pocky sticks, tiny teddies and other things like that. One of the items from the goodie bag that I remember the most was a Winnie the Pooh dinner plate.  It was aqua-green my favourite colour, and my brother got a Mickey Mouse one. So yes, childhood Easter was fun because we got treats. 

I hope everyone has a lovely Easter for those that celebrate whether you have big gatherings or just spending time with your close family like me. Or, if you don't celebrate Easter I hope you enjoy the long weekend. 

Let's end my blog with an Easter joke: What kind of dancing do bunnies like ? Hip hop. Hahaha.  From your cool friend: Jacinda
 
Today we are writing about Easter.
I'm going away for Easter with my mum and dad. I am going to see my friend Bri up at Echuca and we will be staying in a house and Bri my friend will be staying in a caravan nearby.

Sometimes my mum gives me hot cross buns for breakfast, and we will probably go shopping to a craft shop. This will be my first time going to Echuca and I am looking forward to it.

My mum and dad and I might donate to the Royal Children's Hospital this year to help raise funds for equipment for the hospital.
From Ben C
 
Dear readers, this week's topic is Easter.
 
Let me tell you about  what  Easter means to me.

I like to celebrate Easter with my family and every year on Good Friday my family and myself donate to the Royal Children's hospital.  One of the reasons we donate is because I used to be patient there and I remember how well I was looking after while being there.

My mum makes fish soup for us to eat on good Friday and then on Easter Sunday we are with our family doing an Easter egg hunt. Eating Easter eggs is a tradition in my family.

Easter lunch which is coloured eggs with ham, horseradish and apple sauce.
I am excited for my family from Brisbane who are coming down for Easter to spend time with us and I'm very excited  to see my younger cousin.
 
Happy Easter to my readers.
 
Readers, I have a question: What do you do for easter?
 
 Written by Charlotte

It’s cold! Brrrrrr. What does that mean to us and how does that make us feel? Some of our bloggers LOVE the change to the cooler weather and others do not. THIS, is what makes us so different and unique. Today, we blog, about soup, scarves and heated blankets!
 
 
Hello readers, 
 
How are you today? As winter approaches, we thought it would be great to share some thoughts on how we prepare for the colder months. 
 
Personally, I have a love-hate relationship with winter. On one hand, I loved getting cozy under a warm blanket after a hot shower, and there's nothing like a hot cup of coffee in the morning or tea in the afternoon to warm me up. Pumpkin soup is also a favourite of mine during this time. 
 
On the other hand, when the cold weather becomes too much to handle in Melbourne, I love escaping to Queensland for some sunshine. And, of course, Summers is the place to go for me and it is a whole different story – I enjoy outdoor activities, festivals, markets, and trying all sorts of delicious food and drinks with my close friends. 
 
Now, I'd love to hear from you: what do you do to prepare for winter? Do you have any favourite activities, foods, or traditions that help you cozy up during the colder months?
 
Thank you for reading my blog, Thomas
 
 
Isn’t it funny how we prepare ourselves for the different seasons?
That’s the topic this week. Winter is coming and what do we do to prepare or do during winter?
 
Well I know in the mornings during winter the heater is on, so I wake up toasty and warm.  Even our food changes.  In the summer time it’s usually salads and a BBQ, but, in winter it’s soup and stews and something warm to warm your insides.   
Sometimes people also have a summer closet and a winter closet and they swap each season.   
 
Winter closets consist of scarves, mittens, beanies and anything knitted.  Whilst in the summer it’s dresses, shorts, skirts and sun hats.  I add extra blankets on my bed in the winter. Even with two cats on the bed, I know when it’s getting cold at night as they both try to snuggle into my neck and legs. I also put on different Pyjamas, and sometimes even a jumper.  
 
Some people even dye their hair for winter, usually a darker tone to keep the warmth, but in summer they put some highlights in.  I’m guilty of this. 
 
In the winter time my family will have stews/ soups, but in the summer time we barely have them, isn’t that funny?  Why do we eat food for different seasons more than others? In winter we barely eat salads, let’s be honest , who would want a cold salad during winter? 
 
Winter is also a great time to cuddle around a campfire and roast marshmallows, in a safe environment of course. This would be one of my favourite things to do. 
 
One thing I would love to do is go somewhere where Christmas is in the Winter and have a white Christmas.  Because in Australia, Christmas is in the summer time, and I think Christmas lunch in winter time would hit differently. 
Thank you for reading Haley.
 
 
 Hi friends how are you today?
Today’s topic is preparing for winter.

I am looking forward to wearing warm clothes in the winter as they make me warm and cozy like my long sleeve pj’s. I also love wearing long warm dresses with thick socks or tights. Having a long warm showers to keep warm. But the most important thing I love about winter is the change in food and drinks. 

The foods that I like to eat during winter are:
Chicken noodle and tomato soup. 
Pasta bake with tomato and sausage and zucchini.
 
I love beef and potato shepherd’s pie and cheesy crust casserole. Bangers and mash, creamy chicken pasta. Pumpkin, spinach and ricotta lasagne.

Some of the best hot drinks to have during winter are ;
Peppermint hot chocolate with marshmallows
Mexican hot chocolate which has some spice in. 
Pumpkin spice latte, Gingerbread hot chocolate. White chocolate with marshmallows and Peppermint chai with vanilla and marshmallows.

This is why I love winter. 

This is Bethany signing off until next week
 
 
Dear readers this week’s topic is preparing for winter.
Let me start telling you about what I do to prepare for winter
I like to prepare for winter by putting my warm doona on my bed and buying warm pjs, and socks. On my feet I usually wear them all the time at home. I even wear a Oodie. My bed is so warm and comfy.
 
I love the house to be warm and my mum makes delicious warm soups, and stews but my favourite is chicken schnitzel with lots of different sauces especially my favourite which is  cherry sauce and this recipe has been handed down by my mum's grandma which she had for a long time.
 
I love to wear my track suit pants, jumpers and put on my puffy warm jacket and sometimes I wear a scarf and  fingerless gloves to keep me warm.
 
Readers I have a question: What do you do to prepare for winter?
 
Written by Charlotte
 

Today is how we prepare for winter. How do you like to get ready for the cold months? There are lots of things you can do.
You can have warm drinks in warm pyjamas. I like to wear hoodies. You can have pies and hot chocolate too. You can have sausage rolls as well.
There are so many things you can do to prepare for and enjoy winter. I wonder if our blog will give you some ideas. Ben C
 
 
Hi everyone today we are writing about how to stay cozy and warm during winter.
In my room I have a heater to keep me warm, I have warm clothes and good warm food like pies, and I like to make a hot chocolate or coffee while watching horror movies or YouTube. Yeah, so make sure you all are always warm and stay warm where it is safe. I always try to keep warm, and it makes me feel good.

I like to go to the snow and it's so much fun. Last year we went on a holiday to the snow, I think it was Mount Buller. We threw snowballs and threw it at my friend's face lol. We all walked around, and we had hot food. I tried snowboarding but it was too hard for me. The important thing is I gave it a go.
Thanks for reading my blog, From your friend TJ.
 
 
Good morning everyone. How is your day so far?
Today I am back again to blogging from home. This weeks topic is "How to keep winter happy, cozy and comfortable?"

Do you like Winter?   

I love Winter then Summer because I love wearing trackpants, jumpers and my Oodie.  They keep me warm. I also have a few adorable winter slippers but I haven't worn them yet this year, maybe I will wait when it's closer to Winter.  I usually wear socks if I wear Winter slippers. 
 
It is easier to sleep in winter than on a hot scorching summers day. I don't like too hot weather in the summer. I usually like to have an extra blanket, so I have my doona cover and a cozy blanket. They keep me warm when I sleep in winter and I have winter pyjamas too they have various pattern such as: Bunny, cupcake and teddy bear. Have you got any cute winter pyjamas? I also wear winter socks to bed, I bought them at Daiso as they have nice ones. 
 
Since the cold weather is around the corner, yesterday my parents cooked simple soup. The ingredients are potatoes, spam, carrot, sausage, celery and cabbage. My parents put vegetables in the soup to make it healthy. There are also other foods that are suitable for winter such as: spaghetti bolognese, chicken kiev, chips (well you can actually eat chips during any season), fish and chips are good for winter too because one time we went to San Remo fish and chips in winter time and it was so yummy. 

What's your favourite winter food? My favourite winter foods are spaghetti bolognese, chicken kiev and chips. 
 
You can stay warm by turning on the heater, I don't usually have my heater all day at home. I actually haven't used the heater yet this year, but if we used the heater we usually turn it on in the morning. Usually I was the first person to wake up in the morning or sometimes if Dad has to work super early he turns it on. Then we turn the heater on again at night time and my parents will turn the heater off when they go to bed. Some people think that winter is not their cup of tea because its freezing but I love it because I like to wear winter clothes. 

There are a lot of activities that you can do in winter. You can still go for a walk as long as you wear a winter coat, beanies, socks and  trackpants. You can still go on a family outing or travelling together. Last year we went to Geelong in the winter that was fun. Doing some crafts in your room, colouring-in, read your favourite books, watch a family friendly movie with your parents and your siblings. I used to do that with my parents and my brother in my old house and eat some potato chips while watching a movie.  You can still catch up with your family and friends and go to the cinema that's perfect winter activities because it's nice and warm there.
​
I hope you enjoy reading my blog. I hope you all have a good week. I know winter is not everyones favourite season but think of the great things about winter like wearing an Oodie and trackpants, and maybe your favourite winter food and activities. 
From Jacinda, you winter “fan girl”. 

 
Winter is coming, and I love winter. I love the fire pit outside it keeps me warm.
I love my family and warm hugs so in the winter I always make sure I give more warm hugs to the people I love.

A warm shower is the best and getting into my warm pyjamas straight away. I love to have a hot chocolate in the lounge watching my favourite YouTube channels.
Mum cooks lots of warm soup and bread, and pasta too in the colder months. Pasta is my favourite and I have it for lunch today. I like creamy and tomato pasta and spicy foods keep me warm in the winter too.

It's the best to have warm clothes, many layers, a scarf and a skivvy. I need slippers on my feet to stay warm at home. My support worker helps me at home with keeping my room tidy and clean and she will help me with putting my winter sheets on my bed on Friday.

My family and I like to watch movies when it's cold on the big screen at home.
Dad's garden looks different in the winter. His trees become orange and yellow and red, and the leaves will drop off. But in the spring they come back.
Winter makes me happy because I love to be cozy and cuddled into my warm clothes and the lounge.
 
Thank you once again for reading, Claire. 


Winter has recently become a season I look forward to, it does get very cold and rainy days can be miserable but I get to be warm in bed with a ridiculous amount of blankets, cuddled up with my dog and have a hot beverage in a cute mug. I can wear scarves, beanies, cute gloves, my favourite hoodies and jackets everyday. I can look like the Michelin man and no one will question it because we are all in the same seasonal boat, the cold one. This makes me all kinds of happy because winter to me equals being comfortable and cosy. What’s better then that? (That’s a rhetorical question, I don’t wanna start the summer versus winter debate).


My preparation for winter is mostly just having everything ready so that I can be warm, my family gets the heater ducts cleaned, blankets and winter clothes come out and get washed if they need it. It’s nice to have fresh bedding too, I recently got new bedding and pillows which is exciting and I like to get heat packs out if they’ve been in hiding. I also check if I need anything for winter like bed socks or heat packs or a rain poncho.


Chopper has his oodies, jumpers and jackets ready to go for winter, he gets anything that needs washing washed too and for anyone asking Chopper is our dog and like any other family member he is also part of the preparation for winter. He needs to be warm too and look adorable on walks. Katut just needs the house to be warm for her, she wouldn’t appreciate it if we tried to dress her in clothes, as she is a bird who is fine with just her feathers and her warm hut at night. She also doesn’t go outside the house often so she gets the luxury of heating and cooling inside.


I do more preparation for winter than I thought, funny how you do things routinely without much thought because it’s just something you do. I love that when we blog it brings things to light in our mind and we all learn something new about our routines or just us in general. Have you thought about how you prepare for winter? Do you enjoy winter or do you just wait for it to end so you can get your Spring, Summer or Autumn on? Maybe this can be a journal prompt for you? Or just something to think about.

​Enjoy some time with you my friends,
Shan

Today we are going to become smile makers. That means we are going to do our best to make you smile reading about things that make us smile. Is that a deal?
 
We welcomed Jacinda to our blogging team and were so happy to read her very first blog. See! We’re already happy and smiling…
 
 
Dear readers  this  week’s topic is  something that brings you joy or happiness
 
Let me start by telling you about what brings me joy or happiness and that is  seeing  my Umbrella friends and listening to music. My family and my family dog Gucci and getting my nails done once in while. I also love reading and watching  my favourite  movie  Twilight. Just to clarify, I also read the Twilight books and I also like to watch the tv show the Vampire diaries. I like going shopping and going glamping with my  family  for some of you that don’t know what is glamping is, it's fancy camping in a caravan and I really like when it’s a warm sunny in the afternoon because I like to go outside and sit outside under the carport in sun.
 
I've written this week’s blog at home because I was feeling a little bit unwell but by time you read this I hope be back at Umbrella.
 
I have a question for the readers: what is something that brings you joy or happiness?
 
Written by Charlotte
 
 
I see acts of kindness at my work all the time. I make sure I say "Hi friends have a nice meal...enjoy"
And I see that it makes people smile.
The people I serve at work also give me tips and that is kind.
My special mate at work is coming with me to Somers Camp in May. I am looking forward to it and my other friend is coming too. Everyone is kind at Somers Camp and they are close friends.
Close friends are kind to each other and always say "Hi".
A smile is kind and being nice with your eyes. My friend Brooke is very kind. If someone smiles at you, always smile back.
Not everyone is kind but it is important for me to be kind to everyone.
Thank you, your kind friend, Thomas
 
 
I am kind and I have smiles for everyone.
I have lots of kind people that I love and they are kind to me.
I love Mondays at the park with my Umbrella “Handmade” friends. We dance and laugh and sing, we are kind to each other.

Hugs are being kind and I like to hug my closest people. I hug my friends and they smile.
When I go on holidays I see many kind people, and I am excited for my birthday that is coming. I have a huge cruise coming up to Canada for 6 weeks.

I love my boyfriend and he is kind. He has kind eyes. And he is kind to me for my birthday too.

I have Krystle who is kind, smart and special. She is a good woman. We go to the movies and lunch together. We also play a word game which we like called Splat. Every time we listen to Disney, we sing together on the way to the movies. And on the way home too.
Thank you for reading, your kind friend Claire.
 


Hello everyone, my name is Jacinda how are you all ? This is my first time doing blogging from home. It can be nervous starting something new, but Cindy and Krystle said there’s nothing to be worried about. This weeks blogging topic is "What brings you joy?"

Firstly, things that makes me happy and bring me joy are when I go on holidays with my family. I have been to Japan twice, New Zealand, Indonesia (which is my nationality). I haven’t been to many countries but I would love to go to more. 
Everyone deserves to go on holidays. I can be envious sometimes when people go on special holidays but they deserve to be happy just like me. 

Last year I went to Japan in March and April. I really love going to cute places like Tokyo Disneysea, Super Mario World in Universal Studios, Sanrio shop (Sanrio is where Hello Kitty is from like Mickey Mouse is from Disney). Do you like cute things like me? 

The most memorable part of that holiday is when I went to Super Nintendo World with Mum. Dad didn't go he just hung around. My ticket says I can enter the Mario World by 6:40pm so I could not enter before 6:40pm. I was very impatient because I really love Super Mario characters so much, especially the Cheep cheep fish. Have you heard of that character before? 

Then when it was my time to go in I was super happy. I went on a ride called “Mario kart bowser challenge". It was fun and I really loved the toilet in Mario world because it’s underwater theme. Can you guess what the wallpaper was in the toilet? Cheep cheep and his friends Blooper and the colour is light blue as its underwater theme. I would love to thank mum for accompanying me there, I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to go to Mario World in Universal Studios Osaka Japan

Thank you for reading my very first blog
Bye from 
Jacinda



I love watching my friend Mark work on his plane which he pulls apart into a million pieces. I love to work on lawn movers which make me happy and hopefully I can fix them.
 
On the weekend I went to Maryborough to help my friend Mark to take the wings off his plane. It took hours and it was great fun.I had to unscrew the nuts and bolts there was so many of them. It was so hard but I found it so interesting and fun to do.

When I am at home I have fun playing my games on my computer and my favourite game is flight stimulator with Ethan my best friend, this makes me smile.
Another thing that makes be smile is when I am working and I find some interesting things.

I love to hang out with my friends, this makes me smile
Nick
 
Welcome to another happy and smiley blog. Today we are talking about what makes us smile. As people know I love my sport but I also love media. I love how I can be myself and express myself and add emotion into anything I do.  It doesn’t matter if it’s here at blogging, podcasting, editing or working. I feel like my disability disappears when I get behind a computer or microphone.
 
I’ve always had a passion for media so to be able to do what I love without my disability interfering is amazing. I’ve made some lifelong friends who I’m very grateful for and who support me in everything I do.  I hope to get a job sports media one day to combine my love for sport and media.
 
Keep being awesome. – Ben VR
 

An act of kindness that has made me smile.
Acts of kindness are truly magical acts for all that need it and even those who don’t need it at that moment but will remember the kindness for life and may even pass it on to others. From paying it forward with a coffee or meal or leaving a small uplifting note I’m a big believer in spreading kindness and making the world a little brighter, it’s just such a beautiful moment knowing someone will benefit positively from a small act that may be seen as huge to someone else. Our world needs all the kindness it can get to be honest.

I have seen many people benefit from acts of kindness and it honestly makes my whole heart happy, doesn’t have to be an act of kindness that I have participated in it just needs to be something that has made someone smile. I remember other people’s joy far more than my own however there have been some acts of kindness that I have been the recipient of that have hit me all in the feels.

As a young child I had always wanted a sibling so when my sister was born I saw that as a gift to me from my parents, so I believed this to be the ultimate act of kindness and it really made me the happiest big sister in all of Victoria.
 
I feel like all the things that make me smile that I could write about start and end with my sister. She is my absolute favourite and I can say that because I only have one sibling so there is no chance of jealousy.
 
My second act of kindness I want to talk about is when a lovely, beautiful and kind person gifted me my sewing machine when my old one was no longer working and needed to cross over to sewing machine heaven. I was not expecting that level of kindness and I am EXTREMELY thankful and grateful that I was so lucky. My sewing machine helps me to make scrunchies and then I am able to build on my confidence and attend markets and sell the scrunchies I make.
 
I also pass on the kindness by gifting sewn goods to others and I have also been able to help out with a primary schools performance costumes.

I am extremely grateful for all acts of kindness that come my way and also grateful to the people that help to spread kindness around our world because this is how humanity should be.

Go out and spread kindness to others but also don’t forget to be kind to yourself. You are truly wonderful and deserve some kindness too.
Your friend always,
Shan
 
 
Have you showed an act of kindness or has anyone given you an act of kindness? 
Some people also say “pay it forward” for example a pay it forward situation is where one person can do something nice for someone, they would say pay it forward, so that person who received help, will help another person.  The simple acts of kindness usually makes someones day, like opening the door for them, smiling at them or even saying hello. 
 
Acts of kindness and happiness, belong together I think. Acts of kindness usually brighten up peoples days, and can bring them happiness for the day.
 
What brings me happiness, is being around people, where I can be my true self. My very own quote “Some people make me feel like I’ve got a trench coat on, but other people, make me feel like I can open the trench coat and be myself.” 
 
My cats are Maggie and Banshee.  Last night I had a delivery and it was a cat tie and a laptop, I dressed Banshee up as a business man, he was adorable. My family and I had a great chuckle at him. This made me happy. 
 
Spending time outside in the sun with the cats also makes me happy.  
For some reason Maggie will only go out with me, no one else.  I think she trusts me a lot, which makes me happy too.  Haley.
 

Good morning readers,
What makes me smile is when I see my mum and dad smile. I live with two of my friends who make me smile when they come into my room and sit down on my couch and have a chat. Kindness to me is love when think of mum and dad.

Kindness to me is friendship when I think of my housemates and closer friends.
The other thing that makes me smile is when I speak to my friend on the phone. That is what makes me smile a lot. If I am being kind I am being helpful, with a smile and happy face.
Over and out, for another week. Ben C
 
 
An act of kindness that made me smile 

I’m happy for when people are kind to me and others. Everything makes me smile and helps me feel calm.  At Handmade on Mondays when they listen to me and I listen back to them. I always be kind and respectful, love each other and be friendly.

If you want to be happy to hangout with your friend or family, always be kind and love.  Sometimes I listen to music which makes me calm and have a lovely day.
 
Your friend, TJ
 
Hi friends how are you today? I am writing my blog from the city. Today’s topic is something that brings you joy or happiness.  Something that brings me happiness is starting my own business for people with disabilities or special needs, and their Mum and Dad. Support workers are more than welcome to come, my friend Amelia has inspired me to start my own business. My business would be called BB karaoke and it would be big for parties or just for fun and I would make a facebook post about it and I would also sell T shirts. I would also make invitations and sell them to all of my friends. I want it to be like a party theme and disco lights and smoke machine and balloons. I want everyone to dance and sing their worries away.
 
What brings you joy or happiness readers
Thank you for reading my blog?
 
This is Bethany signing off until next week.