Dec 14 - Catching Up

After wading through several blogs worth of trip details I thought I would spend a moment or two catching up with a few smaller events that have occurred in the meantime.

Colin at a Robotics Fair

The day before we left for our last trip I volunteered to accompany Colin's class to a robotic competition hosted by the Melbourne Grammar School. It was a fun day and great to see Colin so focused on the various tasks and challenges. I was also proud to see he tried to steer clear of the distractions that some of his other male classmates were unable to resist. The way home was a gong show of trams and trains but it was another great opportunity I never get when I'm working.

Colin's Muscial Soiree

I spent another evening at Col's school watching his choir perform for parents at the end of year soiree. One of the very few boys in the choir he did his whole musical family proud singing at the front and even doing a wonderful job with a solo. You can't really compare the choir here in Melbourne with Maurice Cody and its many amazing choirs but we are happy that Colin still loves to sing and continues to do so down under.

Trimming the Tree

On December 1, after mailing our Christmas Lists to Santa (I hope he hasn't run out of single malt!)we spent $29.99 at the local discount grocer for a beautifully fake plastic tree. It's not bad actually and having purchased a few cheap ornaments at the Christmas Cave a few weeks prior we spent the evening setting up our tree and trying to create some Christmas spirit. A few carols on the i-pod, cards on the mantel and prezzies under the tree have all helped but it continues to be difficult to imagine Christmas when it's 25 degrees under the palm trees.

The Boys at Adventure Playground

While Lint was away, I needed a diversion so the boys and I trammed our way down deep into Melbourne to check out a very cool playground. Free of charge and run as a community supported co-op, the park was full of very cool and imaginative play structures designed and made by the locals. It was a breath of fresh air and I loved the chance to make a cup of coffee in the communal kitchen and then wander outside to see the boys laughing and running and playing. After two hours of fun we went off to check out Luna Park and play in the gentle surf at St Kilda beach.

The Blair Family for Dinner

Though I continue to keep a Facebook account off my resume, I must admit it has its advantages. Case in point was the connection that Linton made with old friends from high school and university - the Blair family. They and their kids are on an incredible tour of Asia and the Pacific and just happened to be in Melbourne where we hosted them for a home cooked meal and a little Canadian convo. Their boys and our boys got along famously and the adults enjoyed the chance to reacquaint or get to know each other over red wine and lamb sausage. They were off to their next great destination the following day but it was great to have a momentary connection with Canadians and to share our observations about living life abroad.

So that's a little more of what we've been up to in amidst the tours of Uluru and the hills and high rises of Hong Kong!