Birthday Party Marathon

Our last weekend in Australia seemed like a great time to celebrate Isabella's birthday and Emmett's early birthday. On Saturday Emmett and 9 other boys tore up the house Star Wars style, every boy but one ending up in the pool (freezing cold water). On Sunday we followed up with a manicure/karaoke party for Isabella and her girl pals. After dozens of renditions of "I Gotta Feeling," "I Kissed a Girl," and "Halo" sung by girls with freshly painted nails, we declared the party, and the whole weekend, a great success. Most of the girls ended up in the pool too. PK and I ended up going to bed very early.

Expedited!

The children's US passports were due to expire three days before our flight date. Rut Ro. But the American Consulate came through and we received new passports within a week. Must be that awesome Secretary of State doing wonders for her people.

Sold!

Finally, our chariots found new owners. We suspect one buyer simply took pity on us, but yes, against all odds in a glutted used car market, we sold the cars. Godspeed Mama Saab and Baby Saab--you treated us well.

City Slickers

Dear Readers, it is getting a little painful to blog as our departure date draws nigh. We're going through every emotion in the book.

Clearly needing some "us" time, PK and I decided to take a night away in the city. Grandma Joan agreed to stay with the kids at Whalie so off we went. After an exhausting workout with Major Tom (our friend the trainer at Circuitry in North Av), we met our friend Maya at Icebergs on Bondi Beach for a scrumptious lunch sitting sort of inside/outside on one of this winter's loveliest days. Yes, Americans, this is "winter" in Sydney: 75 degrees (faren), crystal clear skies, and turquoise water. As we ate (we had earned it, after all), of course the humpback whales swam by with their greetings.

Sleepy from the wine and workout, we checked into the Shangri-La where we were upgraded to a corner suite with harbour views. Lordy. We met PK's cousin Ann Marie and her husband Ben for drinks at the Blue Bar overlooking the Opera House and then headed over to Woolloomooloo (yes, really) for dinner at China Doll with our friends Alex and Andrew Bird (see Australia Day blog entry).

The morning was even lovelier than the day before, so we just watched the sailboats cruising all around the harbour from our hotel room. Bliss.

Photos to come...

Waratahs v Brumbies

While Sid and the girls were squashing it up in Newcastle, Emmett & Philip went to the rugby. The Super 15 is the premier rugby tournament in the world, played between 5 regional teams from Sth Africa, Australia and New Zealand. This weekend saw the last round before the finals - and the local team from Sydney, the Waratahs (a flower, in case you wondered) needed to beat the Canberra based Brumbies (a wild horse) to cement a spot in the finals. A group of 8 - Emmett & PK, Grandma Joan, brother Jonathan, brother in law Mick & some of his kids - made the trek out to the stadium to catch the game. The stadium itself is in the Olympic complex, the site of action from the 2000 Olympic games. Despite the team nicknames, the Waratahs outmuscled the Brumbies & won comprehensively, 41-7. Joan & Jonathan, loyal Brumbie supporters tried hard to hide their disappointment, although Jonathan did cover his brumbie jersey with his coat half way through the game. Emmett enthusiastically waved his Waratah banner every time the team scored. He enjoyed that more than the game itself.

Off to the finals for the 'tahs!

Aussie Squash Tourney

Clare and Isabella were invited to play for the city of Sydney in the 2011 New South Wales Green Shield Annual Squash Tournament. Five teams compete from various regions of NSW (including ACT, for some reason), fielding 3 girls and 4 boys from each age group. The tournament was in Newcastle (Newie! Our home away from home) at the Cardiff courts. Up we trekked with the team in 3 vans with trailers. The girls played with great poise and sportsmanship, each of them leading their age group to a division win (u 11s and u 13s). After each athlete played 4 matches, the organizers tallied up the scores and . . . (drum roll please) Sydney got the win for the first time in 15 years or so!

The girls not only proudly sported the Sydney colors, they also made some friends. We stayed at the Bimet Motel Lodge, 3 to a room, including parents. Yours truly bunked with two other squash mums; luckily we not only had squash children in common but also a love for the "goon" (that's wine of a certain ilk). Though our girls were good about getting enough sleep, the same cannot be said for a few renegades. We mums tried to outlast the group on Saturday night, but at 1:30am had to call it a night. Some of the kids reportedly stayed up until 4 and at least 2 ended up in the pool (which was freezing). Not to worry, the kids played brilliantly the next day (ah youth).

We had so much fun, we're talking about returning next year (although it may not be kosher to "ring in" from the US). Photos, from the top: Sydney Squash! the u 11s--they won with only 2 girls! the u 13s (one not pictured, don't ask), the girls with Don, the Sydney coach, with the Green Shield itself!

Family Reunion

After some furious organizing, we managed to gather together a sizable chunk of family members from Grandma Joan's side of the tree. Joan & her elder sister Maria (their younger sister Margaret passed away a number of years ago), 2 of Maria's 5 kids (Sean & Melissa), 3 of Joan's 4 (Philip, Jillian, Jonathan), 2 of Margaret's 3 (Annmarie and Amanda), together with partners and at various times, the next generation...it was quite a gathering.

Saturday night at a local Indian restaurant - whom seemed unfazed by the 22 or so, then 30-odd people up at our place at Whale Beach. Fortunately the weather cooperated & we could all enjoy the lovely setting, and more importantly, the gathering of the clan.

Slainte! See those sausages sizzle!