Winter wonderland

In the meadow we will build a snowman... or maybe we should sing

In the water we will wear a wet suit...

It is officially winter. Did you know it got cold in Australia? It is nothing like Wisconsin in Sydney but it is certainly a change in seasons. We have had some pretty cool nights - in the low 40's. But, most days, the sun comes out and it is nearly 60. The strangest thing about winter is that Christmas is not even close. In a few days it will be July 4th. It is so strange to think that we are getting "rugged up" for the cold weather with jackets when everyone back home is preparing to celebrate Independence Day - complete with watermelon and bbq's. This past week we even had to deal with a broken heater. I am not sure if I will ever get used to this living on the other side of the world bit with the seasons backwards to me. It is strange when you go to write the date and start to write October when it is July. It just feels like October to me! None the less, we have been having some winter time fun.

We went up the Blue Mountains a few weeks ago. It was much colder there so it certainly felt like winter. We enjoyed seeing the amazing Three Sisters. A rock formation down in the valley. Our three sisters sure enjoyed posing in front of it!

Here you can see a bit more of the Three Sisters behind us.

After we saw the Three Sisters, we went on to a place called Scenicworld. A tourist attraction for sure but it was a fun outing. We rode a very steep train down into the valley where we walked around the rainforest. It was very dark down under the canopy. Then we took the cable car back to the top. Despite the tourist trap feel, it was a great way to have a little bushwalk through some rainforest and fun ride up and down the valley.

Just goofing around down in the valley!

The kids are now on winter school holidays for three weeks. We have been very happy to see the sun and the kids have been playing outside like crazy. Alex got a new ripstik which has provided many hours of entertainment over the last few days. The kids have also been pogo sticking and jump roping (err.. skipping rope) like crazy!



When they get bored of those things, or it is cold outside, they always manage to find a way to entertain themselves. What a bunch of crazy worms! Happy Winter!

Close encounters with an Emu - Part 2

After my trip to the zoo earlier this week with the little girls, the two big kids were feeling alittle left out. So, Saturday we made another trip to the zoo as a family. The main attraction? THE EMU!

A was happy to be near the Emu but M was not too sure about it when she saw how big it really was! Although, I have to admit, the Emu was not very interested in us today. It was really pacing back and forth and not following us around like the other day. Maybe next time!


We also had lunch at the zoo - only worth mentioning here because it was an Aussie first for me. I had a burger with some very Aussie ingredients. Can you see what it is? BEETS! It was actually very good. Next thing to try on my burger- a fried egg. That is a burger with the works. I will be sure to let you all know when I have conquered that one.

Of course we saw lots of other favorites like the giraffes. It is very fun to watch the baby now at the zoo. Hardly a baby anymore - she get so excited about the animals and squeals and points. Very fun. We have switched to the baby carrier most of the time now so she can see better.

Best buddies - an awesome big brother to his little sisters. And they just love him!

Freedom! Enjoying a little time to wander.

A - our budding photographer - took this picture of us! What a fun day at the zoo!

On the way home, I decided a little exercise was in order so the big kids and I decided to walk home rather than drive. J took the little ones in the car and put them to bed while we enjoyed the sun a little longer. It is not far to the zoo from our house -3km maybe - so it is an easy walk. On the way we cut through a little park area and had our very own local bushwalk. We all just love to use the word bushwalk so this was a perfect opportunity. Here are some pics from the walk home.

All in all, another wonderful day with my wonderful family!

Mommy's Little Girl

Just like mom - I could not be more proud!

The fruit of the spirit is...

Last year we started the fruits of the spirit tree in our house. Ironically, it is harder to peg those fruits than you think. You know, just simple obedience is NOT a fruit of the spirit. So, in an effort to increase the love, joy, peace, etc. in our household, we started this tree.


The way it works is the kids get an apple sticker whenever I see some "fruit" in them. Then when we get 100 apples on the tree, it is time for a family fun night. Might be a special movie and popcorn or an evening of bowling. We have been doing this for some time and of course, I have not been too consistent doling out apples lately. So, when a friend just recently made a tree with her kids, it gave me new inspiration to get our apple tree in full fruit again. When she sent me the email with her picture, she added jokingly, "who can name the fruits of spirit?" I thought this video was a great response to her email and too cute not to post for you all to see. With the help of Colin Buchanan's CD "Boom Chicka Boom," all of my kids can name the fruits!

Close encounters with an Emu

Today was one of our first sunny days in weeks. It has been raining buckets here almost every day for the last two weeks. I was starting to wonder if we accidentally moved back to the UK instead of Australia. The only positive is with weather like this, I just had to get myself a new pair of wellies... thank you shopbop.com for your free, 3 day international shipping! I am now the proud owner of a pair of Aubergine Hunters. Nice!

Because it was such a beautiful, sunny day, I decided to take the little girls to the zoo. We grabbed our fleeces, packed a lunch and off we went. Today we decided to check out the children's zoo. Amazingly, in all the times we have been to the zoo, we had not made it to that side yet. The best part of having a pass is we are happy to go for an hour or two. That means, we have not yet fully covered the whole zoo and sometimes only see a few animals before we head home.

Today we started with the elephants. These are my favorite and maybe C's as well. The new baby elephant, Pathi Harn, is lots of fun to watch. Today he was wrestling around with another young elephant Luk Chai. Even W loved it. She was giggling, squealing, and pointing the whole time. Here is a picture of the two young elephants from the zoo website. They are so much fun to watch.


After the elephants, we headed on towards the gorillas. Check out who was the cutest monkey at the zoo today!


Then on to the children's zoo. I am not one for petting zoos and fortunately was able to avoid touching the animals. The girls were content to look at the sheep and goats without touching. Phew!

Another part of the zoo is an area called backyard to bush. It is full of animals from the Australian bush.
We saw the kangaroos, wombats and then the emu!


As we were walking out of the wombat cave we were greeted by the scary looking creature.


He was very interested in us and got a little too close for my comfort. He was taller than me, had huge reptilian looking claws and red beady eyes. Not my favorite creature at the zoo! Oddly enough, the girls loved it! I guess the Wiggles and all those Emu songs are making an impact.

An Apple A Day...

We have been eating a lot of apples around our house lately. M has her first "wiggly" tooth and just can't wait to get it out. She usually starts very determined to get the tooth out and very brave...until the first bite. This face says it all - ouch! I wonder how long until we have a visit from the tooth fairy!



Of course, with each painful bite, we have another discarded apple. Luckily the baby sis is our little garbage disposal. She will eat anything and wants everyone's food. She is more than happy to take M's apples and chow down! Yum Yum!

Wedding Bells

As usual it has taken me a bit of time to get this post up but I promised news and pictures of my brother's wedding. We of course had a fabulous time and the trip itself turned out to be not so bad. I traveled by myself with the two big kids so it was a much easier trip than last time. They were fantastic on the plane. I have to say that I let them watch movies and play video games the entire time for my sanity and they were happy to indulge! They even both slept a little on the flight.

Once we got to Denver it was a whirlwind of a weekend but loads of fun. We had manicures and pedicures, got our hair and makeup done, indulged in a few hours of power shopping, and of course - the wedding itself. The wedding and the bride were beautiful. It was wonderful to be a part of this special day for my brother and his new wife. I am blessed to have a wonderful new sis and a darling nephew as well!

Through the weekend my kiddos enjoyed lots of special moments with their cousins and their Gia and Boppa. They have a special tree that they climb and most of their down time was spent in that tree. We had quite a bit of sap in the hair and on the clothes but that is a small price to pay for such childhood joy. I am thankful that I was able to bring them with me so they could build those memories!

Sadly, after only 3 days, we had to turn around and make the nearly 20 hour trek home. Again, the kids were perfect on the plane and I got to watch movies and read. Wow! No fights to break up and no babies to attend. Wonderful! We even got to sit behind an Australian rock star, Jimmy Barnes, on the way home. Of course, I had no idea who he was and had to ask my neighbor - all the people taking pictures with him gave it away. All in all, I could not have asked for a better weekend.

My only regret for the weekend was that the two little girls and my hubby could not join us. We decided it was just too hard to fly so far for the weekend. They stayed home and had a good time on their own. And, I came home to a clean house, all the laundry done, and happy babies. I have a fantastic husband! I could not ask for more. What a guy to allow me to enjoy the weekend without worry and truly have a relaxing time. It all happened over Mother's Day and could not have been a more fitting weekend!

Congratulations little brother!

Cousin time


Loving on Boppa at the rehearsal dinner on Coors Field

Almost ready...

The beautiful bride