Last post 2010

Lily with our new pet Bunker who was found be Dad under a tree at the golf course

 Phil is happy to receive favourites at Christmas and Opa Noel is planning how to bug people with his robotic bug

and Opa

Lovey and Mooney the sheep love to hang out with Lily in the paddock

and they tried to help Mum with folding the washing

It's not easy to get a picture of little kids all at the same time - this not picture was shot at a picnic at the caves

Crikey, no postings since Nov 13.  My New Year resolution is to post at least once a week for 2011.  I love looking back on the last couple of years worth of post and remembering the things the kids said and did.

So here is a catch up for the end of 2010!

Yay for the weekend

Mmmmm choc chip pancakes with banana and ice-cream - pretty good, and they taste even better when the kids make them.


 


Yesterday we went to town and did all the usual groceries and a once around Bunnings for a new toilet seat and a load of seedlings for the garden.  Ali decided to give Lily a piggy-back at the supermarket and carried her for a couple of aisles, luckily without incident.

 The chooks and lambs have been facing one another down lately.  The chooks are quite keen on sheep nuts (pellets) and steal them out of my hand as I am feeding the lambs.  Then they go scavenging for any the sheep have dropped while the sheep bunt them away.  When they are on opposite sides of the fence they often stand nose to beak just checking on another out.  I am so curious as to what they could be thinking.

 Ali must have been reading a very sad story for Lily when I snapped these ones...

 but Lily cheered up immensely when she found an avocado seed behind the sofa!

Back to the beach

We went to the beach for a playcentre trip today.  Lily was running and jumping in the chilly water for the longest time enjoying her first swim of the summer.  There were lots of other kids there but Lily was just doing her own thing.

Weekend trip to the big smoke.

Last weekend we gave the chooks and the lambs a giant feed and headed down to the big smoke.  Although the camera was in my bag the whole time somehow it never made it out to take a photo.  So for the sake of posterity here are the great shots I missed - 

• Delia's severed thumb a week late for halloween
• Delia's delicious waffles
• Buddy and Delia's dog Fraggle playing nicely in the yard
• Ali, Ava, Cade and Cian rough-housing nicely in the yard
• Lily and Ali scoffing cake at their great-grandmother, Oma Mary's house
• Oma Mary's cat strategically ignoring the dog 
• Oma Mary - looking well
• Opa Theo's surprise when he woke to find us visiting
• Opa Theo scoffing cake
• The kids driving everyone at the markets nuts with their birdwhistles
• All the great junk at the markets
• Le Creuset pot for $12
• Anita from down the road bumping into us at the deep fried banana pancake caravan
• The deep fried banana pancake man
• Parvan's mother still selling the pork buns - Lily especially liked these, buns with meat
• Opa Noel at Bunnings
• Granny Rosie drinking tea
• Lovey and Mooney when we got home

Sometimes

Sometimes Lily wants to look right inside the camera

Sometimes the children make me laugh

Sometimes I wonder how many pictures of the kids I have to take before I get a good one...

Sometimes I wonder why there are no strawberries in my strawberry patch,  sometimes I wonder where all the flowers from my garden got to...?

School Fair

The neighbouring primary school had their annual fair this morning so we were there bright and early to rummage through the jumble sale. We found some wetsuits, just the right size for the kids for $2 each. Lily wore hers for the whole afternoon and seemed keen to sleep in it tonight until Phil insisted she wear Pajamas. After we'd found all the bargains we headed to the petting zoo and pony rides.






We finished off with badly cooked sausages and big bags of candy floss. Ahhhh the school gala experience is complete.

School Trip to the Zoo

Ali won a Principal's Award and had her story about the trip published in the school newsletter so I thought I'd transcribe it here since her blog commentary was not so detailed.

The Zoo

When we arrived at the zoo I couldn't wait to see the animals.  The first place we went to see was the giraffes.  We got to see them eating.  I saw two baby zebras and one baby giraffe.  They were both so cute.  I liked the red panda most.  I learnt heaps about red pandas and tigers.  My favourite was the baby meerkat.  We got to go through heaps of tunnels.  I just about got lost,  It was funny seeing the monkeys doing their camera poses.  We had to go home.

by Ali

I am under the head of the lion.
I am on the Elephant.
I am holding a hippo's tooth.

Ali and Mum went to the Zoo on a school trip today. Ali is in charge of this blog post but she didn't tell you about the loooong bus trip down, and how much fun it was to see all the animals, and the amazing opportunity we had to explore the items in the class room - pieces of rhino hide, turtle shell, zebra and giraffe skins and the claws still in the lion skin - pretty cool.

Expotition to find the North Pole

Ali found a fine branch for jumping and swinging up high in the air

Hooray for the long weekend, we actually managed to get in the garden and do some weeding, mow the lawns and go for an expedition (expotition if you're Winnie the Pooh) for pine needles to mulch the strawberries. Manpha and Jessie, the niehgbour's girls came as well.

My Brown Bear Barney

Here is Lily's Brown Bear Barney inspired by the story of the same name. Michelle from daycare made this with Lily and both of them were pretty proud of this effort.


Phil scooped all the best photos of calf club, but I would like to add these ones of Ali's winning decorated biscuits.

and this one of Mr Mooney (the lamb) pruning the plum tree... aww how cute.

Calf Club Day Photos.

This is Ali's classroom. The flowers behind Ali and Lily are just a part of the many displays the students made for the day. All the pictures hanging from the ceiling are earlier works. Her classroom is such a rich and happy learning environment. So far from the days of old!
Lovey wears a red and blue ribbon ensemble. These are in fact awards for first and second place in the "Condition" category for Meat and Wool. They also picked up third and fourth place ribbons for "Calling and Leading." Not a bad effort for a couple of Rookey Calf Club entrants.
Lovey and Ali enjoy a moment together on a beautiful spring day.