Hanging on the Porch

Saturday while Mark mowed the lawn the kids watched from the porch. They had a snack and were playing so happily together. I tried to capture this moment on film...I have so becoming the annoying Mommy saying "smile...smmmmiiiiilllleee...Luca, Scout look at mommy, over here...smile." I gave up after about 50 shots, thank goodness for digital cameras! -kel

Easter 2010

After a casual Easter morning at home, a walk to the park and a beautiful day in Sydney we headed to a friends house for the mothers group Easter Egg Hunt. The Easter Bunny left foot prints marking the way, Luca and Scout both filled their baskets and had a blast. Happy Easter wishing you and your family all the best! -kel

Pearl Beach

It's been ages since we have had a weekend getaway. Kelly and her friend Katie found a great place at Pearl Beach on the Central Coast of NSW about 90 minutes from where we live. The Central Coast has grown with a lot of people commuting to Sydney however Pearl Beach has somehow remained largely immune to these changes and is an isolated area, very leafy, with no shops other than the local cafe and filled with weekenders.

The weather was superb for this time of year, 29 degrees C (I think that equates to the high 80's F) so we spent a lot of time walking to grab coffee's and checking out the neighborhood, playing in the yard of the place we rented and swimming at the beach.

Our friends Dieter and Katie have two boys who are a couple of years older than Luca but who are great at including him so he had a blast and got to sleep in the room with them. Scouty just had a lot of new exploring to do and was racing everywhere. Great food (thanks Kel) and great company, a relaxing way to spend a weekend while not being so far from home.

Breaking in the new picnic blanket

Over the last couple of years Kelly has made some awesome quilts and it pains me each time she gives one away. We get to keep the newest one and on Sunday we gave it a run with a picnic at our favourite Harbour spot.

Although we are now well into fall, summer really hasn't left and we are still getting days (weeks) in the 90's. Great weather for an early morning visit to the zoo before heading off for our picnic. The kids love the zoo and because we only see a small amount each time they get to see new things quite often. One place we always visit is the farm animals and petting zoo - this week they both got to pat rabbits and blue tounge lizards.

The blanket got a good workout, ants and all, and mummy and daddy got an even better workout keeping Scout out of mischief.

Scout

She is so much fun...and I get to dress in her pink! -kel

Scout Lingo Lesson #1

I haven’t done a lingo lesson in a long time. We’ve recently had a friend visiting from the states who pointed out all sorts of my funny slang. I hardly seem to notice anymore…

Scout is starting to talk , while there is no discernible Aussie accent it might be because her vocabulary is fairly limited:

Mamma –
Please give me that object right in front of me, no not that one the other one.
or
Please give me whatever Luca has NOW.
or
I am hungry.
or
Please pick me up.
or
Don’t put me down.
or
Luca pushed/kicked/bumped/wrestled/grabbed or took something from me.
or
I want to go outside even if it is night/rainy/blazing hot.
or
I want to climb the cement stairs even if I am hardly able and basically look as though I am going to fall and crack my tiny head right open at any moment.
or
Please give me the remote control for anything, I am not picky, the stereo, tv, computer, hard drive etc as long as there are lots of buttons to push.
or
Look at me I am jumping on the bed/couch/foot stool and at any moment I will fall off.

Occasionally we get a bye, night night, daddy or papa out of her, but mostly it’s just mamma for everything all the time at various volumes and speeds!

Photo of Mark and Scout in the doorway to the kids room, one would think, being the daddy's girl she is, her word of choice would be dadda not mamma! -kel

A Step Toward Independence

A momentous day for all of us. Luca started pre-school today and he did it in style. To ease him into it he only had to go for an hour today. We had been building school up for the past week but deep inside I think Kel and I had expected a hard separation... but how wrong we were. Luca had a bit of a death grip on my hand as we approached the school but as soon as the gate was opened and the teacher invited him in, he walked in turned around once and said "bye" to Kel and I and walked off into the classroom like he'd been doing it for years. We picked him up after an hour and he told us he had a great time. Mum and dad were proud, relieved, happy and sad all in five mins ... our boy is growing up.

Toy Story in 3D

Luca really hasn't been to the movies at the cinema before so it was with a lot of ambition that I took him to the Toy Story double feature. Added complexity in that it was the 3D version so he had to wear glasses the entire time. But with a monster tub of popcorn for help he did exceptionally well to make it through about three hours of movies without a single complaint, he just said about 3/4's the way through the second movie we can watch the rest at home dad and he got up to leave.... and so we were off.

Bad light, no flash and a phone camera but you get the idea from the photo... we had a lot of fun, as did Luca's Buzz Lightyear and Woody action figures who came with us.

Zoo

As one of Scout's Birthday presents we got an annual family pass to the Sydney Zoo.  The zoo is only about 20 min. from our house, has fantastic exhibits and amazing views over the Sydney Harbor.  It was a cool and cloudy day when we went, but the kids had a blast.  Here are a few pics from our trip.  I am sure with an annual pass we'll have many more pics to share! -kel

One

Today Scout turned one.  My how quickly this last year has gone.  Here she is this morning enjoying a yummy breakfast.  She is cheeky and adorable, super cuddly and one of the happiest kids I know.  Her curls are turning a redish blond and growing so long that barrettes or piggy tails are now a daily must.  We love you Scouty, here is to another fantastic year! -kel

Super Mark

9:30 PM last night, kids in bed, washing up finished, time for a Sunday night movie, that was until we were interrupted by a visitor…  

Mark pulled off a minor miracle, proved his true and unwavering love for me and fought off a lizard running around our house with a toy reindeer. Seriously people this was funny stuff, the lizard was like a speed demon at one point running all over our ceiling.  

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE Mark lately? He is funny, really funny fighting a lizard with a toy reindeer, and super handy to have around when it comes to reptile repellent.

I didn't capture last night on film, but with skills like these I felt this photo did Mark's super awesome-ness justice!–kel  

(ps neither the reindeer nor the lizard were harmed)

Swing

Scout loves the swings, here she is today having a blast. Below with Luca on the slide, looking at that sibling love. -kel

North Curly Park

We are lucky to have a number of awesome playgrounds within walking distance of the house. While the park at North Curl Curl Beach is not the one we get to most often we have been making our stops there over the years.

from our garden

This year we've tried a few veggies in the garden.  

We've had great success with lemons and oranges and have now branched out to spring onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, broccoli and jalapenos.  So far everything has been fantastic, we are now harvesting the tomatoes and have just pickled the last of the cucumbers. We are loving every moment of summer and our new veggies are keeping both Luca and Scout gowing like weeds. -kel

Scouty's First Christmas

Santa feasted on a chocolate and caramel candy Koala, peaches and a kids take-out coffee cup as he stacked presents under the tree. The reindeers, or more likely the 12 white boomers (Kangaroos), that carry Santa's sleigh across Australia were heard in the front yard during the night; and there was great anticipation from Luca at what Santa would bring.

Definitely an awesome Christmas mainly because Luca is at the age that it all comes together. Luca even made a big effort to speak with Santa at our annual pre-Christmas trip into the city to meet the man in red and white this year whereas last year there were only tears (Scouty more than made up for things in the tear dept. however and mummy and daddy ended up in the Santa photo again!).

We had a leisurely opening of presents at our place in the morning. Leisurely because Luca wants to take everything out of the box that he gets and play with it immediately and because we try and get Scout to show as much interest in the presents as in the wrapping paper (which if we are not careful ends up in her mouth). 

After opening presents we headed up to my parents house for lunch and a swim before heading home for some left over Turkey and crash.

A great day to reflect on how lucky I am and what a great family I have.

 - M

Christmas Eve

Since we moved into our new house three years ago we have been inviting friends and family over to kick off Christmas celebrations with an amazing dinner that Kelly spends days getting ready. The highlight is always the turkey, people don't cook turkey's so much over here (they are expensive and also there is no Thanksgiving) and everybody at dinner always marvels at how big the bird is.

This year we were joined by family from both sides we had a great time and ate and drank till we dropped (almost). Post-dinner clean up there is always just enough energy to get things all ready for the kids big day.

Mark & Kelly with Mark's sister Susie and her husband Clayton

Merry Christmas and happy new year to you all. 

 - Mark & Kelly

sprinkler

We ignored the water restrictions, had some very funny laughs, threw off Luca's clothes and turned on the back yard sprinkler...fantastic!

Luca had a blast!

Saturday we hosted Luca’s Intergalatic Space 3rd Birthday Party. I can’t believe Luca is 3, he is growing up so fast, seems like just the other day we were taking him home from the hospital!

Luca had a blast at his party. There were cakes, lollie bags, rocket painting and a rocket landed in the back yard just for the party (homemade by Mark’s dad). The weather was perfect, warm but not hot, we served egg and bacon rolls and everyone had a swim. Luca really enjoyed having all of his friends over and on Sunday asked Mark if he could have his party again today. Here are a few photos from the big adventure. -kel

Noosa photo's

Noosa Heads

Luca at main beach Noosa

As a joint birthday gift to ourselves we took a five day holiday to Noosa on Queensland's Sunshine Coast with kids in tow. The plan was to stay near the beach and not get a car so that there was little organising required, just a ton of time to relax at the beach and the pool with the kids. The holiday was everything we had hoped for, and with all that mum & dad time in the pool, Luca's swimming has come on enormously.

Happy Thanksgiving

This week we took a family holiday to Noosa, QLD.  (More on the trip with photos later.)  A highlight of the week for Luca were the wild turkeys wandering all over Noosa. We had no real Thanksgiving celebration here in Australia, apparently it was beach time, not feast time, for the Turkeys. -kel

There is a (new) New Fish in the sea

Summer is here in a big way with a few 100 degree days lately and more coming this week. The pool is getting lots of use. Luca's swimming and enjoyment in the water is night and day versus last summer and Scout has a perma-grin whenever she goes in the water. Scouty's first swimsuit issue audition below (and as you can see she is still waiting for her two top front teeth... maybe she will get them for Christmas).

Melbourne Cup Pool Party

Yesterday I hosted my mothers groups Melbourne Cup Party. It was 35 (110) and steamy so the party was more of a pool party where we watched the horses for about 2 mins. Not really your traditional Melbourne Cup affair. Luca and Scout had a blast. To quote Luca this morning "my friends came over to watch our horses in the pool". Here are a few pics, Scout sporting her first barrette (my attempt at a fascinator). Oh and Shocking won the race, cool name for a horse huh!-kel

Hot and Cold

10 min after Luca went to bed...

Luca: Daddy, daddy, da...dd...yyyy (yelled very loudly from his room)

Mark: Yes Luca (standing in Luca's room)

Luca: I am hot

Mark: Ok mate we can fix that (removes quilt from Luca's bed)

5 min later...

Luca: Daddy, daddy, da...dd...yyyy (yelled very loudly from his room)

Mark: Yes Luca (standing in Luca's room)

Luca: I am cold

Mark: Ok mate we can fix that (put quilt back on Luca's bed and pretends to turn on Luca's heater)

5 min later...

Luca: Daddy, daddy, da...dd...yyy (yelled very loudly from his room)

Mark: Yes Luca (standing in Luca's room)

Luca: I am hot and cold (said with a very very cheaky smile)

Oh the joys of parenthood! -kel

Melbourne (a couple of weeks ago)

It's always a bad year when we don't make it to Melbourne at least once so it was with great enthusiasm that we accepted an invitation to friends Adam and Amanda's wedding ... in Melbourne.

We travelled without the kids, without Scout for the first time, so we were a little sad to leave but the upside was days of sleeping in, long breakfasts in cafes reading magazines and relatively unplanned cruising around.

We stayed in the heart of the action in South Yarra - although in Melbourne the action is really spread out pretty thick. We hit our favourite Italian cafe, Brunetti, and a couple of Kel's favourite fabric stores on the first morning and we spent the afternoon shopping on Chapel St followed by a few beers and sushi for dinner. The sleep in part was an anti-climax, being so used to 6:00AM wake ups accompanied by being woken at least once during the night to adjust blankets or administer a feed, we found we were up and ready to go by 8:30.

Day two was fun, we always manage to discover something new on our trips to Melbourne and this time it was Albert Park. We went there on a whim to a cafe we had read a recommendation about and to visit a store Kelly had seen in a magazine. The cafe was good, although there were half a dozen others on the same strip that could have easily filled the brief, the shop we went to see was marginal at best however the area had a ton of other interesting stores and we ended up spending half a day there and I didn't even make it to Andrew's Burgers (supposedly the best in Melbourne). 

After Albert Park we ticked off another favourite of ours, eating vanilla slices on Ackland St, St Kilda. Full stomachs and back to the hotel for cruisy wedding prep.

The wedding ceremony was out on a pier in the middle of Port Phillip Bay and it was blowing a gale, the 15 minute walk out along the pier was a tough one for Kel. For the ceremony we were in shelter but there was still the walk back to the reception. We had a really fun night and I even got a quick opportunity to show my dance floor clearing moves which always provide Kel a few laughs.

Sunday we caught up with our friends Dieter and Katie who were also down for the wedding from Sydney. We had a great morning wandering the laneways of Melbourne enjoying a lazy breakfast and some window shopping. In the afternoon we visited our good friends Franc and Di (Scouty's god parents), had pizza and watched the rugby league grand final on TV. A quick diversion for gelato on the way home.

Monday involved some more eating and catching up with the newly married couple and then home to see the kids. Melbourne is awesome and so is getting home to see Luca and Scout.

Sneaky Exit From Work

Nothing better than a day that seems like two and no better end to the week than sneaking away from work a little early to hang out with kids at the beach for a few hours. Granted it was still a little chilly, but a million miles from work and only a minute from home, here's to a few more sneaky exits from work and to many hours of fun at the beach this summer for Kelly, Scouty, Luca and I. 

Luca Sings Johnny Cash

Luca's favorite singer is Johnny Cash (clearly influenced by Mark!).  Tonight he was in performance mode...-kel

Spring Weekend

We've had a busy few weeks, Mark and I have both had heaps on with work and we took a long four day's in Melbourne (kid free) last weekend.  Since we were kid free last weekend, this weekend it was all about the kidos...Saturday I took Luca and his best friend Sean to see the Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends Show, Sunday was lunch at our favorite Aussie Pie shop and a picnic in the park.  Scout is crawling everywhere, chasing Luca.  Luca is talking non-stop and his imagination is running wild.  Seeing the two of them together is amazing.  We are really looking forward to a nice warm summer and can't wait to see these two in the ocean! -kel

Dust Storm

This morning we awoke to bright red skies, it was unlike anything I've ever seen in my life.  Sydney was hit by a dust storm, gale force winds have been blowing dust from Australia's red center through the entire state.  At 6:30 AM it should have been bright and sunny, instead the skies were so full of dust it was a bright red day.  Truly unbelievable.  I took a few photos (above over our cabana and pool), however check these out from the Sydney Morning Herald. The skies have now cleared to a very windy day...time to wash the car and dust the entire house top to toe!-kel

Father's Day

Not just a Father's "day" this year I got an entire Father's weekend!

On Saturday we went over the "big" bridge to Rozelle for a bit of exploring and lunch with my parents. Back tracking slightly... before we made it to the "big" bridge Luca vomited in the car. Luckily Kel carries a change of clothes for each of the kids in their diaper bag so we snuck into someone's yard washed off the clothes, changed Luca and we were on our way.

We spent a bit of time at the Rozelle markets walking around. The markets are in the grounds of the elementary school that my mum and I both went to so it is always a bit of a nostalgia trip - but hey, it's my weekend so I can indulge myself. Kel and my dad accosted the coach of the footy team we support, the Balmain Tigers, (the guy was just trying to enjoy a lazy Saturday visiting the markets) and gave him the third degree about not making the play-offs this year. We brought a few things and Luca was sick again - Kel is always prepared but not that prepared so Luca came away with a new t-shirt.

An enjoyable lunch at the Three Weeds and a few beers down we headed home for the nights entertainment.

On Saturday night Kelly had organised for us to go to a black tie fund raiser for Bear Cottage. A rare chance to get all dressed up. It was a lot of fun and all for a great cause.

Sunday the festival of the father continued with the purchase of a new car, very unexpectedly, which Kelly positioned as a surprise Father's Day present (a bit sneaky if you ask me!). Our current car is coming off lease soon. We had identified what we wanted to replace it and after looking for a few weeks to get a feel for the market we found exactly what were looking for on Sunday morning.

The action continued ... off to football (soccer) for our last game of the season (we got whacked) with the game followed by a bbq with all the players families afterwards.

I already knew I had the best family in the world but after getting a whole Father's "weekend" I feel incredibly blessed.

Fire House Visit

One of the girls in my mothers group arranged for a visit to a Fire House in the city.  Her brother is the chief of the house so the kids got to enjoy an extra special tour including trying out the hoses!  Needless to say, Luca had a BLAST! -kel

crawling lessons

Luca giving Scouty "crawling lessons" over the weekend.  She's rolling and soon to be on the move. -kel

double decker

Mark, Luca & Scout at the markets this weekend.  Mark got a great workout carrying these two around on a beautiful winters day in Sydney. -kel

picture of you taking a picture of me...

Our little man is growing up, he’s a walking talking decision making bundle of energy. His latest love, photography. Camera above built of Lego courtesy of Daddy. On the Christmas list from Santa…a kids digital camera maybe??? Posting here has been sparse as our home computer had a complete hard drive failure, we need a new computer. Now our big decision….do we go MAC??? -kel