2012 - been and gone

Oh. So I lost interest a little in the blog :-) 2012 came and went!

Jenolan Caves

Image by vitualis via Flickr

Meant to put this up last week.

Saturday 27th saw us all up early and out of the house by 6.45am for the 2hour 45 minute to the Jenolan Caves, in the Blue Mountains.

All the way through to the mountains we were in mist/fog, until we cleared the 'cloud deck' to see the sun - and the cloud layer covering Sydney!

We visited the Orient Cave this time (having been when we visited Sydney before we emigrated), and did the selfguided tour. 

Picnic lunch then off to Leura for a pitstop before the final leg home.

up north for coffee

Image via WikipediaWe managed to get out of the city yesterday - put some fuel in the car (did you know UL 95 is now 13c more than plain unleaded! When we moved here in 2006 it was only 4cents more expensive.), and made our way up to the F3/M1)


First stop - Ettalong Beach - home of 'the largest covered market on the Central Coast'. It didn't disapoint being even more tacky and lame than I could ever have imagined. Fair enough we are in the 2nd part of the GFC, and middle of winter, but please!


So out of Ettalong Beach (avoiding the Ettalong Beach Mantra Hotel - looking particularly out of place), and off to Pearl Beach, passing through Umina on way.


Pearl Beach is nice, quiet, end of the road. There is a restaurant, cafe and a kiddy park. 


As it started to rain, we packed up and drove to Patonga - but didn't stop.


The plan was then to go back home via Umina for coffee/milkshakes, but having looked quite busy and vibrant on the way in, now in the rain and later afternoon, it looked a little dull and dead. So back to Pearl Beach and the cafe.


Filled up on coffee and milkshake, time to get back into the car for the journey home. Callum to advantage of this to have a little sleep. Amelia was just quiet.


Once home, a quick use of the hoover to remove the excess beach that had come back with us, and time to watch Nemo on the TV.

sweet

Amelia has a play date next week with one of her classmates.




It's a boy.




On the one hand I shouldn't be surprised - she plays with lots of kids in her class. 
On the other hand, I thought she mainly played with other girls.


Oh well, it's not like she's 14.



Yet.



[mini summer heat wave is just about over - 22C and still winter! lovely!]

a sunny morning out, after all the rain recently

Image via WikipediaSunday morning saw us manage to get up and out of the house at a reasonable time to benefit from the fact that it wasn't raining in Sydney for the first time in about a week!


So off to Ku-ring-gai's Wildflower Garden on the edge of St Ives, and a moderate walk around one of the longer (paved) trails. A &C both took their scooters, but C was much more interested in running everywhere. A wasn't so interested in scooting after she came off her's, and grazed her elbow quite well.


Once back to the main area, a quick detour via the ponds and time to contemplate the frogs - or rather the sound, as we couldn't see them!

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back from a rest

Image via Wikipedia

Well, back at home now after 3 nights away - WITHOUT CHILDREN - in the Hunter Valley. Stayed at Mystwood Retreats (just outside Wolombi) - visited a number of vineyards including Tyrrell's, Tempus Two (UGG! So commercial!) and Allandale (we like)- quite a lot of wine tasting...

Ate at Margan Vineyard restaurant in Broke one night.

Tried the hottub at the retreat (hmm - too much chemicals - know that they are needed but didn't wash off very well).

So, back to work tomorrow - busy week, then work visit to Singapore at the weekend.

Happy Tin Anniversary to us

Tin years ago today (well, by the calendar, and if you ignore timezone issues), at Donnington Valley Hotel, Berkshire, UK.

getting colder - down to single figures at night

Image via WikipediaIts getting colder - down to single figures at night - so out come the 2 electric oil filled heaters (2.4kW each), and 4 new hot water bottles. Still, the electric blanket is still in the cupboard (but I suspect it won't be long!)

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past events

Image via WikipediaHad a week off work just before Easter.


One day was at the Sydney Royal Easter Show - A&C are now old enough to appreciate it. And showbags unfortunately. 


The other day out was down at  Illawarra Fly Treetop Walk which was interesting given my dislike of heights.

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• Sydney Royal Easter Show (socyberty.com)
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slack as ever

Image by avlxyz via FlickrI had planned to put some posts up over March - and look, now it is April!


On Sunday we managed to get into the city by about 9.30! Quite impressive really. Spent some time around Paddington, then across to Chinatown for lunch at 1pm. Amelia enjoyed the Roti at the Malaysian restaurant Mamak, Callum wasn't so sure.


Then off to Pitt Street mall as the clouds opened, and back onto the train and home for the Malaysian F1 Grand Prix (just noticed the coincidence!)

autumn already

Where did the Summer go? In fact, other than a couple of weeks, where was the summer??

you know it is hot when

The carpeted floor feels hot
The lino in the kitchen feels hot
You turn on the cold water tap and it comes out hot
The internal door handles feel hot
Hot food is just too hot


The fan on the graphics card is running 80% - even though the PC is idle
The ceiling fan has only a marginal impact
You wake up during the night thinking you are drowning!


You consider going to bed with all the doors left open (sod the security)
You do sleep with an industrial fan running - even with the noise!

round the world and back again

Image via WikipediaWell, I'm back at home now (although suffering from the heat!) - in the last two weeks I've been to Dallas for the yearly conference with work, then a quick detour via UK and Dublin, before returning to Sydney - via Dallas.


SYD->LAX->DFW->LHR->DUB  ->LHR->DFW->LAX->SYD


I can confirm that American Airlines have the oldest staff, planes, and entertainment system out of any that I've flown on an international flight with. That said, the flight from DFW->LAX did at least have LCD screens instead of CRTs, with a half decent film to while away the hours (The Social Network - quite enjoyed it).


On the plus side I missed the snow in Texas now, and it was above zero C in the UK and Dublin (although it often didn't feel it!).


Travel back was 36 hours or so, and arrived at Sydney International Airport on time, Sunday morning. Through immigration quickly and then had to wait ages for the luggage. Sigh. 


Melbourne the next day seemed quite a short hop!

decoro creativity: an evening with kevin

Image by Matt Taylor via Flickrdecoro creativity: an evening with kevin: "Last night the husband was away, the children were in bed asleep giving me a chance to spend some quality time with Kevin. He cou..."

I don't know - here I am working hard at the sales conference in Dallas, and what is the wife doing? Spending time with another man :-)

New Year's Eve 2010

Image by Leorex via FlickrFor the first time since we emigrated here, we didn't make it to the harbour for the 9pm family fireworks - sorry kids. But we did hear them round friends here in the upper north shore!

Recorded both sets off the tv - might even watch them!

so true

So true. and funny - http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/signs-that-youre-a-sydneysider-20110111-19mrn.html

ack - 2011 already

Image by World of Oddy via FlickrWell, shame on me - was going to do some posts over xmas - just didn't get round to it with the festivities and pool time ;-)


December 15th was Amelia's birthday - twelve 6 year olds running around the garden and using the bouncy castle we hired for the day. Alas they got bored (and hot - fair enough) after about 30 minutes! Lemonades for all later and back on the castle.


One of the Saturdays before Xmas saw the yearly trip into Hornsby's David Jones for the Christmas Photos with Santa. First in the queue (good!), there was little time for A & C to get wound up about seeing him and thus straight into the grotto. And for the first time we didn't have any tears. Although it was difficult to get Callum to actually look in the direction of the camera.


One night before Xmas, we got A & C ready for bed, and then into the car to see the various xmas lights in the area. a couple of large 'installations' in West Pymble, as well as a couple on the next road up (Hesperus Street), but nothing on the scale of Borgnis Street (which we didn't make this year).


Xmas day dinner was a starter of pesto prawns (done on the bbq), followed by steam salmon, then a snooze. Weather was warm enough for the first time to actually get into the pool on Xmas day. How Australian ;-)

been busy - just not on here!

Image via WikipediaWell, shame on me again - few updates recently, and (until now) nothing in November!


Callum did have his 4th birthday party - with a Pirate theme. Once he got over his shyness, we think he enjoyed it. We played walk the plan, canonball pop (black balloons), and the kids got to eat "dead people in seawater" jelly (blue jelly with jelly babies in bottom) and drink sharks blood (red cordial icecubes in sprite).

Just cool

take a look - you'll need something like Google Chrome - it will work in Firefox, but it's way slow!

http://www.thewildernessdowntown.com/

when nature attacks

Image by marcleh via Flickr

So - it's spring - must be time for the local wildlife to attack us!

So far we have had:

• two ant nests - one in the hall cupboard (apparently organic leg wax is yummy. And unfortunately very sticky! The other was a little more major - a complete nest, complete with eggs behind a chest of drawers in the kids bedroom.
• the dead funnel web under the fridge
• and most recently, a live spider (big, black, unsure what it was) in our bedroom. next to the bed.
• plus the usual cockroaches coming in....

Joy. Still, it keeps the chemical companies in business.