Australia Zoo

Last Tuesday, we left Murphy's Creek at 6.30 am for a two-day trip to the Sunshine Coast, where we met up with Alan's American friends Glenn and Janet. The thermometer in the car indicated it was going to be a cold day: zero degrees Celsius and we were all rugged up. Once at the Coast, however, it was a warm 24 degrees...
We spent Tuesday at Australia Zoo, where we saw otters, elephants, crocodiles, eagles, kangaroos, snakes, wombats, tigers and many more.(see photos) A great day was had by all. The entry to the zoo is not the cheapest (52 dollars per person) but it has to be said that the animals live there in wonderful conditions and have a lot of space and a "natural" environment.
On Wednesday, after saying goodbye to Glenn and Janet, who were heading up north, we took to the beach. On one of the shortest and coldest days of the year, Alan and Tom went in the ocean...
We got home on Wednesday night very tired...and Alan had to hit the exams straight away...after a last great effort last night ( until 2 am), the holidays are finally near.

It's winter in Murphy's Creek

Winter is here! The thermometer in our lounge room read 8 Degrees Celsius on Sunday morning. The days are still nice and sunny though, with a comfortable 22 degrees at lunch time. Although this probably seems like Summer for people in the Northern Hemisphere, it gets quite cold inside without central heating.
We have enjoyed the cooler weather and have spent quite a bit of time in the garden, putting in a vegetable garden. Tom planted radishes, lettuce, snow peas, cabbage, spinach, leek and lots more. He has also enjoyed "playing" with his new chickens. They are very tame and love being picked up bu my son, who twirls them around in the air while singing 'Spiderchook" (see The Simpsons-movie: Spiderpig)

A lot of words from movies are creeping in to Tom's daily vocabulary. Here are some examples: D'Oh (simpsons), "Oh Man" (dora), "sugarbumbs" (the Joker in Batman), "Pink-eyed-freak" (Flushed Away), mostly directed at his dad when wrestling together."I've still got the moves" (Spiderman), "My-brother-from-another-mother" (Sharktale), "I'm melting" (Wizard of Oz) and many more.
This does not mean that he spends all his time in front of the TV; he actually prefers playing oustside riding his bicycle, playing on the swings, hanging upside down on the trapeze or playing with his two dogs Gomez and Charlie.

Furthermore our lives have been busy as usual: Alan is swamped with schoolwork (the time of the year for it), Tom still goes to kindergarten on Wednesdays and Fridays and playgroup on Mondays. I have been doing some private tutoring in French. Looking forward to the school holidays in two weeks time when we will finally get started on our deck. No rest for the wicked...

Some photos

Here are some photos:
1. the guys digging out the old stumps under our house, to be replaced with new ones.
2. Tom eating his own home-grown tomatoes: he grew them from seeds and is very proud of them. A great success in getting him to eat more vegetables.
3. Our happy little man.

I want to be a superhero

It is finally decided: Tom is going to be a superhero when he grows up. As of yet, he cannot decide whether it will be the Phantom, Spiderman or Batman....

Playschool fun

Tom and Humpty Dumpty.
We had a wonderful time at the playschool concert last Wednesday. All the "classics" were played and sang: "Incy wincy spider", "the scarecrow", "the wheels on the bus" and many more kids' favourites.

Citizenship Test

I successfully completed the Citizenship Test this morning. 100%.
This means that I can now start the application process and become an Australian citizen. Here are a few of the questions I was asked:
* Colours of the Aboriginal Flag?
* What happened in 1967 that was important for all Australians?
* Who can change the Australian Constitution?
* Constitutional Head of State?
* Name of the Australian anthem?
* When was the Gold Rush?
* What is the job of the Australian Parliament?
* How long have aboriginal people lived in Australia?

Weekend at Seaworld

Last Sunday, Tom and I left Murphy's Creek for the Gold Coast. We had booked a room at Seaworld Resort with Maarten (Tom's best friend)and his mum Nele and little sister Lien. The weather gods were with us, as the Gold Coast was basking in the sun and we hit the pool upon arrival. The boys had a marvellous time on the water park (Tom's latest word "awesome" was tossed around here) and in the pool. The afternoon flew by and by 5pm we had a few very tired boys. After a good - although fairly short - night, we were ready to hit the breakfast buffet. We all filled our tummies and were ready to go and discover Seaworld, but not before every one's favourite Sesame Street-character Elmo paid a visit to the hotel. After a few soft red hugs, we finally jumped on the monorail to the park. There we saw sharks, dolphins, penguins, polar bears, fish, seals, more dolphins and went on a dozen or so rides. Needless to say that the three kids fell asleep in the car on the way home...totally exhausted, but very pleased with themselves (as was I). I can definitely recommend a visit to Seaworld and the adjacent resort to anybody visiting Australia or any Australians wishing to have a short break. I know it will be an adventure that will be talked about in our house for several months to come.