Around Here: Signs of Summer

It's not officially summer yet but it sure feels like it! It's supposed to hit 40°C this weekend. And what better way to welcome unofficial summer than to have a BBQ with friends? It's still early in the mango season but we couldn't resist buying a few at the markets this weekend to toss into our new favourite salad. They smell so sweet!

In other news, Andrew had a quick lesson in how to drive manual from the same friends who fed us. Our friends are truly the best.

(Learning to drive manual is yet another thing we should have learned before we became adults. Note to self: Make sure the boys learn it early.)

Time to Relax

These photos were from our visit to The Spit a month ago, when we lazily spent the afternoon playing in the sand and water. It was a spontaneous day trip to the coast and we stayed until the sun started to set. We walked along the warm water all the way back to the car. It was so simple, yet immensely relaxing.

Now that Andrew's finished writing his exams for this rotation, I'm ready to enjoy a bit of R&R before we start the whole cycle again.

The Kiddos and Me

It has been way too long since I've had a decent picture taken with the boys. I'm usually the one holding the camera, following everyone around. so it's nice to be on the other side of the lens.

Just in case I can't remember...

Nathan: age 8
Caleb: age 3
Location: The Spit, Gold Coast
What we're doing: Slowly making our way back to the car, along the shoreline as the sun sets behind us. The air was cold but the water was warm so we walked in the waves for as long as we could.

Grateful for...

... tender moments captured from the sidelines

... freshly made gozleme and paella

... and our little spot on the field.

Happy weekend!

Art in the Sky

The other day we were driving out as the sun was setting and I looked up in the sky and saw these amazing clouds. 

How does that even happen to clouds? I have never seen anything like them before. I was just so blown away I kept staring and snapping pictures.

Table for 12

It's not often you find friends who love you like family, but when you do, you hang on tight and let them know how much you appreciate them.

Happy Friday!

Gumtree Finds

I've been spending a lot of time on Gumtree lately and though I rarely find anything I'm willing to drive out for, I did find something this week.

A lady was selling off pieces from a cafe that had closed down and I got all but two of the following pieces for $2.80! Two dollars and eighty cents for 8 pieces. I could not believe my ears.

Even as we were walking out the door, I was starting to regret not picking up a few more pieces.

On the way home, we were passing by an op shop so I asked Andrew if we could stop and take a peek. I was a little shocked at how high the prices were. We're talking about a second hand thrift shop here. I ended up walking out with two more items: a light blue dish and this box full of old Monopoly pieces. Those were $2 each.

There really was no logical reason for me to buy that Monopoly set. I literally told Andrew I had no idea what I was going to do with it, but I wanted to have it. And it was only $2. So he paid and we went home. 

And the first thing we put to use? 

The Monopoly set. Caleb and I played with numbers, using the houses to work on counting and the dice to introduce addition while I prepared dinner. I guess it was a worthwhile purchase after all.

Let It Snow

This morning, I woke up to a blizzard outside my window.

I love watching it snow so this was wonderful for me, but not so wonderful for Andrew who was in a rush to get to his placement on time. So I ran outside in my PJs to help him brush off his car one last time. And later on, the boys wanted to help my dad shovel snow so I ran out (still in my PJs) to help them one last time.

Throughout our entire visit, there has been a constant supply of snow.

This is our first time back in the winter since we left for Australia three years ago. I was excited for the boys to enjoy a bit of the white stuff and do some true Canadian winter activites, especially for Caleb since he'd never seen or played in the snow before. I wanted to see everything covered in white, not just a light dusting but a real covering.

So I prayed for snow. I prayed for lots and lots of snow, and boy did we get it.

So many people we talked with told me that we picked the "wrong" year to come back - the past two years there was barely any snow and all of a sudden, this year it's been snowing non-stop. They complained of how cold it's been and how much shovelling they've had to do this year compared to the years before. They sympathized with us, saying it must be unbearable for us to be here instead of in the warm Australian weather.

I didn't tell them we wanted this. And I definitely didn't tell them I prayed for all this snow.

But I did, and boy am I glad we all got to play in the snow again. It's been such a treat.

Lazy-ish Saturdays

It's not every Saturday...

... that we can get up and ready early enough to have a delicious breakfast out. We devoured it quickly because it was so tasty, but also because we had to pick Nathan up before his game. It would have been lovely to enjoy it leisurely but that can happen another day.

... that we get to watch Nathan and his teammates fight hard to win. This was by far their closest match this season. The score was tied all the way until the last minutes and our team came out on top. I think they all learned a little lesson about the benefits of working hard. They're real champs.

... that I'm happy about being stuck inside. After a slightly disappointing trip to the mall, we came out to discover it was pouring rain. That meant we'd be stuck inside for the rest of the day but that meant we could finally tackle that long list of housework I've been writing in my head. Andrew did most of the tackling (thank you!). Nathan and I pitched in but we ended up playing (read: learning) on this iPad app that teaches programming concepts.

... that our youngest son decides to climb into a duffle bag and zip it up with his legs inside because that duffle bag is in fact, a boat.

I love it when my Saturdays play out like this.

The Start of Something

This morning I was in a bit of a haze.

I had stayed up way too late again (I'm getting very used to hearing the birds wake up). My body wanted to stay home and rest but my mind couldn't stop thinking about the two awesome options I had come up with for today's activity.

So in the spirit of seizing the day, I let Nathan choose his own adventure for the day. I presented him the choices: go to a new water park (which I thought he would definitely choose based on yesterday's reaction) and go watch a movie (which, well, I guess I should have known better).

The State Library of Queensland is showing a rotation of seven different movies for their Family Film Festival, playing two movies a day. Scheduled for today were My Neighbour Totoro and Shrek Everafter.

I was especially excited about My Neighbour Totoro - I have adored that movie (especially the adorable totoros) since the first time I watched the movie.

It's such a classic and unique animation and I'm so glad I had a chance to share it with the boys outside of our home. It's just not the same sitting the boys down and saying, "Hey, watch this because I like it".

I loved hearing Nathan laugh. out. loud. while watching the movie. I enjoy that Nathan understands the humour, especially the subtle parts, and also, Nathan has the most infectious giggle and laughs his face off whenever he finds something hilarious. It's unrestrained, so natural and free. So it made me a little sad when he stifled his laugh a little during the second movie.

On the way to our car, I realized that when I first watched it, it was in Cantonese and when the little totoros walk around, they say "bombomba chichicha" and that was missing in the English version! So naturally, I had to tell the boys and then they couldn't stop chanting it. Caleb was also singing the Totoro theme song which was absolutely adorable.

I'm so glad my sister sent me these little stuffed Totoros when she was in Japan because when we got home, I showed them to the boys and they were even more excited about Totoro. They've been around for a while now but the boys never paid too much attention to it. I asked Nathan why and he said he "didn't know Totoro was so cool" and that he "just thought it was a weird looking grey cat thing"!

Ever since my first and only trip to Japan, I've been dying to go back. I think I've managed to convince the boys (at least Nathan) how cool it would be to visit Japan. Now I just need to convince one more person.

Sunsets

I will never get tired of watching gorgeous sunsets like this one.

We're so lucky to have such an awesome view of the sunset from the front of our house. Well, except for those telephone wires, but it's still fantastic. We even have a bench on our balcony for us to enjoy it from.

This is definitely one thing I'm going to miss when we move.

Sitting

We'll be seeing lots of our friends this weekend. Our weekend is packed with sleepovers, Halloween parties and birthday parties.

Here's a quiet moment from this afternoon when a bunch of our boys were sitting all in a row.

Vintage Typewriters

While looking for home decor to make our home feel more like home the other day, we wandered into a little vintage boutique called Can you keep a secret?

We didn't find anything to decorate our bare walls, but we did happen to stumble upon a little vintage typewriter.

A little while ago, I mentioned that I've been wanting a vintage typewriter to scrapbook with. After searching online and locally, all the typewriters I found were either not working, out of my price range or on the other side of the world. So I temporarily gave up the search.

Seeing that little typewriter revived my hope and since it was right in front of me and reasonably priced, I had to find out if it was still in working condition. And it was.

Moments later, Andrew was carrying the typewriter (in it's carrying case!) to our car.


So after the boys went to bed, I spent three hours cleaning that baby up and now it sits on my scrapbooking table, ready to be used.


Now I just have to find some new ribbon for my typewriter. Anyone know where I can find some typewriter ribbon? Or what model my typewriter is? Or can someone confirm whether it's the Olympia SM9?

I'm so excited to start playing with my typewriter!


I think someone else is, too!

Venturing to Carindale for Coke

We decided to drive out to a new mall today.

Before that, though, this brave little boy got 4 shots - 2 in each arm.


He was so good the whole time. He sat so still in my lap, cried when the needles went in but the second the nurse started blowing bubbles, he was all smiles again. So proud of my little guy!

Then, at the mall, guess what I spotted:


For a moment, it felt like I was home again.

After a quick walk around the store, we were off to find the Coke kiosk (aka the whole reason we were at this mall today).


Why the Coke kiosk, you ask?

Because I heard somewhere that they were giving away free cans of Coke with your name on it, as part of a campaign they're currently running! Little personalized cans of Coke!

Of course, we had to get one for each of us.


And then I had to get one for my sister. It's like a sickness I've had since we were kids - whenever I get something, I have to see if she wants one/get one for her.


And of course, because I have a need for "symmetry", we had to get one for Andrew's brother as well.


But because he's getting married, we couldn't leave his fiancee out, so we kind of smushed their names together. We had a 12 character limit, and we tried to ask for the second "C" to be capitalized but they wouldn't do it.

And after a highly successful shopping trip (for me), we headed home.


To Jay, Chris and Charita: this was supposed to be a surprise but I am obviously very deficient in the area of keeping small gifts a secret, so I hope you like these.

Chillax

Nothing like dipping your toes in the cool water on a hot summer day.


If we move out of Toowong, one of the things I'll miss most is being so close to South Bank.

Happy Mail and Hopscotch

Every month, I impatiently wait for a little red slip to show up in my mailbox telling me that my box of paper goodies is at the post office, ready for us to pick it up.


Nathan was around when the box came home this month so I got him to help me open it. Look at that concentration.


I like to lay all the contents out so I can see what I got.


Here's a close-up of the rainbow goodness that is Mr. Hueys. And the smash* date stamp I've been waiting so long for. And a replacement white gel pen because the one that was supposedly brought over from Canada when the grandparents came to visit still hadn't turned up.


And that is how I open my happy mail!

Caleb wanted in on the action, too!

* * * * * * * * * *
Here's a layout I made last night with last month's kit. I originally wanted the title to be in an arch shape, but as I lay the letters down, I ran out of space so I made it into a little "bounce" shape instead.


* * * * * * * * * *
Studio Calico just had an amazing Last Call sale and while I was clicking around, Nathan said:

Hurry, mom! Take one of each off the shelf and put it in your cart! Maybe take two of each. Or take 5 of each because your oldest son is 5! Quick, buy it all!

Want to know what happens when you take your five-year-old's shopping advice? You'll have to come back when I post next month's happy mail to see what I got!

A Night At The Drive-In

We were cooped up at home all last week and by Saturday, I was desperate to get out of the house. The only problem was that I was having a lot of trouble breathing and even walking was hard on my lungs. I needed fresh air, but I also needed to just sit.

So just for fun, I decided to look up drive-in theatres to see if there were any nearby. And there was! It turns out that Tivoli Drive-In is just a 25 minute drive from where we live, they had a good kid's movie playing this past weekend (A Bug's Life), and best of all, they have free admission until the end of December.


It was the perfect combination for us. And though we were still coughing, I was determined not to let this opportunity pass us by.

The night air was beautiful - just the right temperature for us to have the windows rolled down without having to worry about bugs bothering us.


This time around, I made some quesadillas and cut up some fresh strawberries and watermelon for us to eat in the car. If we go again on a warmer night, we might grab a nice ice cream treat from the cafe!


I wish I could have taken pictures to capture the boys' reactions.

Caleb was so fascinated by the pictures moving on the huge screen. He was cheering as he watched for the first little while. Caleb also loved standing half out the window, banging on the door and calling out to our neighbours.

Nathan sat in Andrew's lap and you could see how happy he was to be sitting in his daddy's lap watching a movie. His eyes were bright and his little laughs and giggles could melt your heart. I'm so glad he enjoyed the movie.


It was a magical night for me.

I wanted our first drive-in experience to be a good one, and I'd say it definitely was.

From Japan With Love

If you've been following my Tweets, this is old news to you. But if not, I felt this was worth documenting.

When I found out my sister was going to Japan, thoughts of washi tape filled my head. I told her about it and she was a little skeptical about how she would find it and get it to me.

But she did it anyway. She managed to find the washi tape and Skyped me from the store to make sure it's what I wanted.


The package arrived yesterday. And it was filled with all sorts of goodies!


I've been trying to convince Andrew to go to Japan. But for now, I can't wait to start making stuff!