Good Times in Caravan Parks!

Seriously! Lovely!

Our Beach hut...

Tathra

Tathra is gorgeous! Our little beach hut at the caravan park was right across from the beach access.



The weather was changeable, but the water was clear and warm-ish.

One side of the beach is all rocky cliff, and one evening, we scrambled along the rocks from the Tathra Pier back to the beach.

First Day on the Beach

The first couple days we spent on the South Coast were cool and breezy. That didn't stop us from getting in the water...

Happy Holidays!

I hope all of my family and friends had a joyous Christmas! I hope your food was delicious, your company excellent and your blessings too many to count!


I spent Christmas with Andrew's family in Sydney. We ate well. Seafood was plentiful in addition to the old standbys of ham and turkey.
 I really enjoyed spending some more time with Andrew's parents, and his brothers and their families too.

We are now in Merimbula for a week, before heading back to Melbourne. We've had adventures as well as some very restful times, and now that I have some time and some internet access, I'll share some of it with you.

Shopping for Xmas Gifts

There are such great places to shop in Melbourne in the city and on High Streets, that I have been able to avoid frequenting malls for the three years I've been here.

With my holidays and Christmas tasks officially starting this week, I needed to buy a very specific gift  for Andrew at a very specific store. There's only two of them in Australia, one is in Sydney, and the other is newly arrived here in Melbourne: The Gap.

For my purchases, I missioned all the way out to Chadstone, a massive shopping mall in the South Eastern suburbs, otherwise known as "The Shopping Capital", and the "Paris of the South". (Look, it's big, but it's not any West Edmonton Mall.)

I found the Gap in the Luxury section of the mall, down from Louis Vuitton and Jimmy Choo.

Look, if I really miss North American vanity sizing, I might mission down to "Chaddy" and blithely  purchase a size 0 or 2 again for a bit of an ego boost.  However, if it's a good deal I'm after, (and I love a good deal!)... forget about it! Melbourne will never see any of those great end-of-season sales you can expect at the Gap back in Canada. The average price for anything here was about $79....pre-Christmas sale price. Retailers in Australia may be desperate to get people in the doors as they compete against on-line shopping this year, but apparently the retailers in the Luxury section of Chadstone have a different clientele and a different interpretation of the term "price-reduction."

The salesperson who assisted me was delighted to discover I was Canadian, (like most Aussies, he had spent a ski season in Banff), and then shocked that I could live in Melbourne for three years, and only just now make my first visit to "Chaddy".

 It's true,  I'm now no longer a "Chadstone virgin", but I'm just left feeling a little underwhelmed.

Pro-D

Our Professional Development week finished off with a fun day of workshops. I chose to cruise through a cupcake decorating class.... mostly because you got to eat what you made. :)

Note to Self #26

You can expect all the neighbours to show up to annual Christmas street parties. 

Block Party!

Last weekend, on a hot and sunny Saturday, we went to the annual Bridge Street Christmas Street Party. Nobody parked on the street that day, and council blocked off  both ends of the street from traffic.

There was chalk art.

a Jumping castle for the neighbourhood kids.

Lots of people came with salads, drinks and chairs and sun umbrellas. The trees are quite leafy and full on the "nature strip", so most people sat under trees on the grass beside the sidewalks. Zac and Rose and I brought our chairs, drinks and brownies to share.

BBQ snags and rissoles on bread with tomato sauce were served up.

Dads and kids played Street Cricket.

Santa made an early appearance with a bag full of lollies.

The bands of Bridge Street all played: 3 in total. (We have a very musical street!)

The street loved the music!

Rose and I had a bit of a boogie.

MIna's Shower

Matt and Jasmina are having a baby any day now. The little O'Neill bub is due on December 13th, but who knows... 2 weekends ago, we all gathered to shower her with gifts and goodwill.

Lots of sweet treats!

Emma and Shanah (Note the Cricket in the background. Very Aussie!)

Mina and her sister-in-law Vanessa and nephew Toby

Me and Mina 

Seed or Pod

I saw this big tumbleweed-like thing when we were on the foreshore at Dee Why. There were a few of them scudding across the footpath. I've no clue what they are, but they look interesting.

Sydney Mini Break

I usually have Wednesdays off, and this week, I flew to Sydney on Tuesday evening after work to meet Andrew. He had a gig earlier that day in Sydney's CBD, and was staying a day longer to catchup with his parents.... so yes, I met his parents, Tony and Liz... and his brother Jono, Jono's wife Sandra and their little boys: Thomas and James. (That's not the whole family, but it's a good start!)

The weather was gorgeous, with a bit of a breeze. We met Tony and Liz for lunch in a cafe overlooking the foreshore. For the rest of the day, we hung out and lounged on the beach, and had a play and a swim in the water (warmer than Lorne ocean!)

We were back on a plane that evening and in Melbourne by 10 pm, refreshed, relaxed, ready and set to finish the rest of a busy week.

Best mini break ever!

Signs of Summer

It's a month until Christmas, and the holiday decorations are out everywhere! The weather is heating up. Case in point: last night was the warmest overnight so far in Melbourne this year --- 22 degrees. Nice! It's also MANGO season!

It would not be exaggeration to say that I adore mangoes. They are making a frequent appearance in my meals: with yogurt, in smoothies and in salads. Stay tuned for Mango vodka slushies!

Saturday Afternoons

Last Saturday, Andrew and I spent a warm sunny afternoon wandering around the sculpture park at the Heide Art Gallery.

There were people picnicking on the grass, and bees humming all around the beautiful grounds. Funny, but I was more concerned we might disturb a snake during our wanderings.

No snakes... but just my luck, one of those bees hummed up my skirt and stung me!

An antihistamine and a Monteith's Apple Cider later... it's all good! Who knew? Better than an Epi-pen.

It's Been a While

Rock sculptures in North Lorne

Life's been busy, and my internet has been dodgy... but here I am, with an update.

• Teaching continues to be fun and easy.
• Spring is in full swing in Melbourne.
• I've got projects for next year in the works.

Andrew and I got away for the Long Weekend at the beginning of November. Melbourne Cup is "the race that stops the nation". For those punters who love the races, it means a weekend of suits and ties, frocks, fascinators, betting on horses and drunken shenanigans. For us, it meant that we could get away down to Lorne for three whole days!

There was some sun, some rain, some surf and a great deal of relaxation!

Sea sponge

Home

I've been back in Melbourne for a week now. My jet lag is dissipating and Spring has properly arrived to welcome me home. It's a warm day today (22 degrees) and I spent a fair bit of it weeding and tidying up our little courtyard garden. The sun is gorgeous and warm and the wonderful scent of jasmine, lilac and roses waft down our street and laneway.

I'm lucky to feel at home in two places in the world. I had a beautiful visit back to Victoria, BC to spend time with family and dear friends.... and I had a blissful return back to Melbourne, walking right into the embrace of the man I love.

Where's home? In this land here, which continues to offer me surprises, opportunity and a future full of potential.

Thanks for Food!

The turkey is a great holiday bird.

Dad carves.

It's a ridiculously American vegetable dish for holidays, but it has long been my favourite: Yams baked with marshmallows, butter and brown sugar. Ambrosia!

Ubiquitous pumpkin pie.

Island Scents

There are some scents that evoke particular moments from one's past, and memories of these moments flood in pretty strongly when you haven't smelled those scents for a long time. In the past three weeks, during my stay in the "country of my origin", these are the scents that have been triggers for me. (In no particular order...)

• Tim Horton's kiosks
• Salt air
• Creosote on the wharf pilings at Fulford Harbour
• Wet cedar chip trails being warmed by the sun
• Dry oak leaves and pine needles
• Mom and Dad's coffee brewing in the morning
• Walking past Roger's Chocolates on Government Street
• Turkey baking in the late morning
• Pebble beaches

Bedtime Stories

In my best Australian accent, I read Wombat Stew to Aubrey before he went to bed.

He takes pretty good pictures for a 4 year old.

It was the best friend dinner! Lori and Peter made the best bbq ribs in the world with rice and green beans... with lots of good red wine and a Blueberry galette for desert.

Sunny

Weather in Victoria has been ridiculously gorgeous this last week. It got grey and soggy today, but on Wednesday, we drove to the breakwater and enjoyed the warm afternoon sun and light breeze.