spring in the hunter

This weekend was the first that really felt like summer. It was hot and the air carried the smell of smoke from the preventative burns they have been doing in the western suburbs. The Husband and I both needed a change of scenery so we took a drive to the Hunter Valley. It was in full spring bloom - flowers everywhere. Lots of colour to photograph.

We took the long, winding way up, enjoying the view. I don't think I will ever get over the bizarre beauty of this country. Sometimes the scenery takes your breath away. Other times, it seems straight out of a Dr. Seuss poem.

Back to work this week, with the anticipation of a long weekend coming up. And it's The Husband's birthday, so we will have a little celebrating to do as well.

under the weather

I have yet another cold. And this one seems to have moved in for one of those long extended stays. It's packed a few suitcases and brought it's own pillow. It's not going anywhere. I am miserable. I hate having a cold. Especially now that the weather is warming up and starting to hint that summer might actually come sometime soon. Instead of getting out and enjoying it, I am huddling over a tissue box, coughing up a lung. (I love that expression! Just try and get that image out of your head!)

The good thing about having this cold is that I get to cancel all my training classes this week and spend some quiet time in the office. All my office mates are So Glad that I am sharing the whole "I've got a cold" experience with them.

I am including this picture only because it's the one thing inspiring me to leave the couch this morning.

picnic weather

Spent the most beautiful, hot & sunny day yesterday at Kurraba Point with some new friends. Spring is in the air and the sunshine is hot and delicious. I hope it's the first of many picnics to come this year!

wind

We took a wander down to Bondi last weekend for the Festival of the Winds. Bondi isn't my favourite beach in the summer - I find it too crowded and there is very little shade for those of us who can fry like an egg in 30 seconds flat. Also, it's pretty far from home and extremely hard (and expensive!) to find parking. But in cooler weather, Bondi is gorgeous. And as we are just starting our spring season here, we took advantage of a warm, sunny day to check out the kite festival.

There were hundreds of brightly coloured kites, all shapes and sizes. Beautiful against the blue sky and the ocean. So many interesting people to watch. I could have done an entire photo collage of funny dogs we saw on the boardwalk. (Might have to keep that in mind for the next time we go for a wander.)

It's so nice to have warmer weather and be able to get out and enjoy it on the weekends. Looking forward to some fun weekend plans in the coming weeks!

september

It's September again. Seems like I was just celebrating my 30th birthday, and here it is two whole years since. Time sure does fly. I always used to love this time of year in North America. September meant the end of summer, cooler weather, autumn holidays, and back to school.

The first two years we were here, I had a really hard time in September. I wanted it to be autumn, and it felt weird that it wasn't. But this year, I am so looking forward to spring. It's felt like a long winter here, and I am ready for some sunshine. Can't wait for beach weather, kayaking weather, and picnics by the ocean. Looking forward to snorkeling with The Husband too.

If you are in the northern hemisphere... what was your favourite part of summer this year? And if you are here down under... what are you most looking forward to this year?

victoria

She is my youngest sibling, so much like I was it's almost scary. She is so full of life and she absolutely cracks me up.

summer vacation in Michigan

It was hot, sunny, and gorgeous. We spent time with my family, and a couple of days in Frankenmuth. Such a fun vacation - relaxing and full of laughter. Sorry we don't have great photos - I was having too much fun to take many!

changing seasons

Gosh, I am not doing so well with this blogging thing, these days. Sorry to the (maybe) one or two people who still check it occasionally, hoping that perhaps, just maybe, I found some time to actually write something.

We had dinner last night with some folks who have just moved to Sydney from the good ol' USA and we were commenting on blogging. I was thinking back to when we first came here, when everything was new and exciting. It was easy to blog then, everything seemed interesting and "blog worthy." Nowadays, I think back over my week (work, grocery shopping, laundry, dinner, work...) and think, meh, not much to report! Sad, I know.

Perhaps it will help that is is nearly spring here in Oz. Cannot tell you how nice that is. It's been a chilly winter and I am ready to get me some sunburn, I mean some summer. Pretty soon the jacarandas will be blooming!

Our vacation back in Canada / Michigan was a nice one, but too short. We had a great time with G and with our friends and family. Since returning, we have been back to work and busy. Traveling for both of us - a conference for The Husband and Brisbane last week for me. Teaching 4 back to back sessions on the same thing, not exactly my idea of pie and ice cream, but it was fun to see another city.

It's nearly autumn back home again, and it gets easier and easier each year to deal with the changing seasons. I still miss my birthday month being about pumpkins and falling leaves... but here we look forward to the spring sunshine and upcoming beach picnics. So, it all evens out. We have some fun plans for the next few months. A few weekend trips, a friends wedding, and a big end-of-year finale. Can't wait. Have to try harder to get my blogging shoes on more often.

life takes over

We are in the middle of our third winter here in Sydney. Sometimes it amazes me that we have lived here nearly three years. There are days when I don't know where the time has gone... like it was just yesterday when we arrived. I remember the day I exited the airport into the heat and humidity, taking in the smells and sounds of Australia for the first time. I remember learning how to find my way around on the bus and the train and on foot. I remember hearing the Aussie accent over and over again until it no longer sounded foreign and started to sound normal.

At the same time, there are days when I feel like we have been here forever. I think back to all our firsts here; all of the things that are now part of our daily life. Things we now do without even thinking about them. We have done what we set out to do here - we have made a life. And it's a good life. We have made the effort to learn about Australia and have come to appreciate so much about this country and it's people.

I joke sometimes that I either love it or hate it here. But to be honest, I have had more joys here than sorrows. Last week I planned to meet a friend in the city after work. So I left my car at home, took a bus into the city, walked to meet her, spent an hour showing her around the city, grabbed sushi, then walked back to the station and took the bus home. As we crossed the harbour bridge, I looked out the window at the lights of the city and found myself thinking, "I love it here." And the truth is, I have had so many of those moments here. And someday, when our time here is over, I can honestly say I am going to be very sorry to say goodbye to Australia.

I haven't been blogging much lately, for lots of reasons. One, I joined Facebook. Yeah, I know. I joined in a moment of weakness when I was really sad and lonely and somehow I thought FB would make everything better. Ha. Can I just say, if you treated me like crap in high school, is there a reason why we'd want to chat it up now? Anyway, another reason I haven't been blogging is because I started a new job in June and my life has surprisingly become a lot calmer. It suddenly felt like I had my life back, and it's been nice to just experience what that feels like. And speaking of life, the other reason I haven't been blogging is because, well, because life has just sort of taken over.

For the most part, life here isn't sort of new anymore. It's comfortable. It's grocery shopping and weekends and dropping off clothes at the cleaners. It's just.. life. And while life is good and we are good, there doesn't feel like there is much to talk about. It feels like the honeymoon is over and I have accepted that Australia is never going to put it's socks in the hamper. And I am ok with that. But I am not ready quite yet to give up on the excitement. There is still so much we haven't done here yet.

So, starting in August, I am going to try and get some of that honeymoon feelin' back. I am going to make more of an effort to find things to get excited about. But first, I need to spend a weekend in bed to try to get rid of this cold.

random winter photos

A few random photos from last weekend's trip to the markets.