Singing at the Kelmscott Show

There aren't many photos to show for it, but we had another fantastic year at the Kelmscott show. This year, Elliot was part of the entertainment as he performed with the Clifton Hills PS choir despite only having two practices and only sort of knowing the words. They all sounded fantastic.

Afterward, we checked out the show bags, watched some BMXers do some awesome jumps, pigged out on fair food, and rode on a few rides. Elliot and Cailey went on a big kid ride all on their own too. They were fearless and stomached the ride like champs (unlike the poor soul who vomited on the ride just before the kids boarded.

Richie turns 50

Richie's 50th birthday was a great excuse to catch up with the whole family and hear all about Sue, Rich and the boys' fantastic holiday in NYC.

Home sweet home

As much fun as we all had on our three months travelling around North America, there really is nothing better than getting home and sleeping in your own bed. Catching up with our Australian family and getting licked to death by Nacho was pretty awesome too!

The bad thing about coming home is having to go back to work, and in my case, work hit me like a tidal wave. Due to maternity leave and other unfortunate circumstances, my workplace was left with a serious lack of leadership, and upon my return, I was promptly approached and persuaded to take on a full-time management role until Xmas. The bank account thanks me for agreeing to the promotion/extra hours. The waist line is not so thrilled.

And now it is March, I'm still in the management role (although I negotiated for 80%) and I'm only just now trying to catch up on blogging, before the workload from my studies this semester gets too crazy. Wish me luck!

What an adventure!

100 days
3 countries
10 US states of glorious travel with
3 of my very favourite people, exploring new places, revisiting special spots and seeing them through the boys' eyes, and catching up with friends and family some of whom I haven't seen for over 20 years.

We slept in houses, campers, hotels, vacation rentals, Air BnB's, ferries, and even an overnight bus.

We travelled by car, train, ferry, horse, bicycle, gondola, monorail, subway, kayak, speed boat, raft, canoe, bus, taxi, bicycle taxi, water taxi, steam wheeler, and horse carriage.

Some days seemed really, really long (especially when Oliver flatly refused to do anything educational!) but now those three fantastic months seem to have sped by in a blink.

The boys got on out nerves (and each others), but we knew that would happen. What really surprised me was how often they amazed me.

Elliot passionately inhaled our adventures, soaking up the new knowledge and different cultures. He bravely tried all sorts of new things and convinced Paul and me (sometimes unwittingly) to try them too. By the end of our trip, El had decided that his calling in life was to be an explorer in the Amazon Rainforest discovering new creatures and cultures.

Oliver approached our travels much more hesitantly wavering between embracing the adventure and missing his friends and life back home. This is why we were perhaps even more proud of Ollie's journey. He overcame numerous fears (roller coasters, swimming in the waves or in water he couldn't see the bottom), and as we approached the end of our trip Ollie decided that maybe he wasn't 100% ready to go home. He also surprised us with his knack for picking up Spanish despite refusing to do any sort of practice beforehand.

I am heart-burstingly grateful that I've been able to live my dreams and show a part of the world to our kids. Watching them take it all in is one of the most rewarding experiences this mum has known.

P.S. I can't wait to take off again in 2019!!

Loving our LA Layover

Despite poor Paul's ear trouble, we had so much fun during our quick visit to LA. Monica met us for an awesome Lebanese lunch after Paul's doctor appointment where she and I did our usual speed catch-up to fill each other in on the last 18 months of each others' lives.

Then we made our way to Venice Beach to watch the skateboarders and parkour dudes while killing time before our night flight. When we pulled the plug on that, we stumbled upon the most amazing hotel just blocks from Manhattan Beach. We checked in quite late, but made the most of the hotels free bike and beach equipment rental the next day. The boys and I rode along the beach to meet Paul for lunch overlooking the Pacific Ocean. In the afternoon, we lazed on the sand and splashed in the waves. And Monica, Ian, and Erik joined us for an impromptu pizza and bundt cake poolside party in the evening. 

The next day we made our way to Santa Monica where the boys rode rides at the amusement park on the pier, visited the aquarium, made friends with the local bird dude, and lastly tried out all the amazing beach acrobatic equipment, including trapezes, slack lines, and the amazing travelling rings on which Elliot proved to be a natural. But we always knew that he was part monkey.

It was an amazing and unexpected 48 hours in LA, and despite all the pain Paul had to go through, I'm kinda glad we got to add two more days to our trip.