Montessori Name Game - an update

Today was Montessori day. I was a little nervous going today, as last week was a little disappointing. . . see below . . .

I took this picture of her just as we were heading out the door.

For those of you who we have not told about the name game at Montessori, here's a brief explanation: it occurs during circle time, and the teacher and parents sing a little song ("I wonder what your name is, I wonder if you know . . . your name is Charlotte! Hello, hello, hello) - when the child's name is called they get to go up to the teacher and take a laminated name tag and place it on a Velcro board for all to see. Last week, after 6 weeks at Montessori, Charlotte still didn't have a name tag made for her, so I brought this to the teacher's attention (not entirely sure how she didn't realize this herself) and happily, this week Charlotte had her very own name tag. When her name was called, she proudly stepped forward and took her name tag from the teacher (saying "ites", which translates to "thanks" when receiving it) and scurried over to the board to place it on the Velcro strip. She couldn't have been more pleased with herself, and walked back to me beaming and clapping. So sweet.

A new week is here

Yesterday we took Charlotte to the Glenelg Christmas Pageant. To most Canadians, a pageant would conjure up ideas of contestants in flowing evening gowns talking about how they want to achieve world peace, but here in South Australia, it refers to the annual Christmas parade. Most of the "floats" were not really floats at all, but instead groups of people walking down the street in Halloween-type costumes. Lots of fairies, Spidermen, angels, pirates, etc. Not really Christmas-y, but it still seemed to entertain the little ones. Santa did make an appearance at the end of the parade / pageant, but we didn't stick around to meet him - by that time Charlotte had had enough and it was time to go home for a nap.

We've had a few weeks of cool weather recently, but finally today the sun is shining, and even though the breeze is cool, it's warm enough to spend some time outside. Charlotte and I took advantage of this fact and spent a couple hours down at the beach this morning. She ran along the water's edge and was delighted when the water came up to meet her feet, stopping every now and then to pick up a rock or shell to hand to me or to chase after a bird. She ran along the whole length of the beach and was quite tired out by the time we got to the end. She happily retired to the comfort of the Chariot and was quiet and mellow for the entire walk home. Once we got home she helped me vacuum the sand out of the stroller (whereby her assistance entailed climbing on top of the vacuum and giggling).

Yesterday I took some pictures of her while we were colouring. She wanted to get in to the shoebox that we keep the crayons in, as you can see. She was also more interested in putting the crayons into and out of the box than actually colouring with them.

More Pictures

The whole fam damily.

Bridgeclimbers.

Bridge and Opera House.

Happy, happy.

G-rafs.

Can you see the otter? Charlotte did, although she was not that interested.

Meerkat. Charlotte really liked these guys.

Elephants.

Charlotte and mom on the way to the zoo.

Charlotte walking around on the ferry from manley to circular quay.

Heading down to the pool.

Happy girls.











Sleepy Charlotte.

More Taronga Pictures

Can you see the baby Chimp?

Can you see the Bridge?

Hey you goats, do you know which way to the city?

Charlotte was tired that night.

Mama was tired the next day too!

Taronga Zoo

Although it was raining when we awoke from our slumber on Saturday morning, we were not going to let it get it in the way of our trip to Taronga Zoo. We grabbed a ferry from Circular Quay at 9:45am and were at the zoo about 15 minutes later. We had to drop some folks off at Fort Denison which is an island in Sydney Harbor that was going to be a prison then was changed into a military fort after the decided that it was not a good idea to keep prisoners in an area that would a be a main tactical depot if there ever was an attack on the harbour.

The zoo is right on the hillside opposite Circular Quay and when you arrive at the zoo by ferry, you take a cable car to the top part of the zoo and then walk back down to the ferry through the zoo. The cable card ride gives you a bit of preview of what you are going to see for the day (as you can see from the photo above, which was taken about half way up the line). The rain stopped as soon as we arrived at the zoo which meant we pretty much had the zoo to ourselves for the first hour and a bit. Charlotte was such a good girl, she sat in her stroller for most of our 3 hours at the zoo pointing at the animals and saying ooohhh or making the sign for bird when she saw one walk or fly past. There were many animals I had not seen before, and I think the gorillas were my favourite. The Alpha male just stayed on his back with his arms and legs sprawled, looking at the people - he was very tired or possibly has had his spirits crushed by his existence in a zoo environment - oh well, i enjoyed seeing him, and although there was no emotion in his blank stare, I could feel he enjoyed seeing me too. The Taronga zoo is very nice, designed perfectly for walking and well worth the small fee and short trip. Charlotte may be a little young, but when you can keep her in the stroller for an extended period of time, you know she is content with her surroundings. We had a small lunch at the zoo, and then Charlotte zonked out as we got back on the ferry (see below).

On the ferry and did a little tour around the harbor seeing Shark Island, Watson Bay, the Heads and some of the most expensive real estate in the world. The Heads is the only entrance/exit to the Sydney Harbor, so all cruise liners, tankers, cargo ships that come to Sydney enter from the pacific ocean . There were hundreds of sailing boats out enjoying the days, not an exaggeration, we will post the pics at some point. Charlotte woke up as we got back to circular quay and was happy to stay in her stroller as we went picked up some Chevapchichi for dinner. Upon our return to the apartment, we went for a swim in the pool. Charlotte was in a great mood and enjoyed the pool but probably enjoyed the hot tub a little more. She was laughing and splashing the entire time.

I'll let Kate take over from here. Neale

We had a quiet evening and when we woke up today we were ready for some more Sydney sight-seeing. We headed out to the Rocks (a nearby funky neighborhood) for breakfast and to check out their weekend market. Charlotte was still operating with a sleep deficit, so we were back at the apartment by 10:15 am and she's been sleeping since then. Who knows what's in store for us when she wakes up . . . stay tuned!

Sydney: sun, sea creatures, Sloan and Sadie!

How's that title for an alliteration? It does sum up much of our first full day here in Australia's biggest, busiest city. Charlotte and I arrived yesterday afternoon after a challenging flight. Tired but relieved, we got to the apartment around 4:30 pm. After trying unsuccessfully to get Charlotte to nap (she hadn't had her regular 3 hour afternoon sleep), all three of us headed out to Circular Quay to check out some of the sights. It was hot, windy and busy, but we hustled along with the crowds and managed to see some sights before heading back to the apartment to eat supper and get the little one to bed. We were up before Charlotte this morning (Friday) and awoke to a warm, sunny morning. It was 25C by 8 am, so we knew we were in for a hot one. Soon after getting up, Charlotte and I were off to the Sydney Aquarium (Neale wasn't able to join us because it was a work day for him), which is conveniently a 10 minute walk from the apartment. We arrived shortly after it opened and it felt like we had the place to ourselves. We saw a huge crocodile, thoousands of fresh- and salt- water fish, sea horses, jellyfish, fairy penguins, sharks, huge manta rays, turtles, and although we tried desperately to see the resident platypus, we weren't patient enough to wait for him / her to emerge from it's hiding spot. The best part was the "oceanarium" which was a section of the aquarium that had us walking through an enclosure that had sea life all around us - above, on both sides and underneath. This was the part where we saw the biggest creatures - 20 foot sharks, manta rays that were 2 meters across, giant logger-head turtles - it was amazing. Charlotte was very interested in the exhibits and sat contentedly in her stroller for almost 2 hours. For those of you who know her well, that is almost unheard of for her! It really was an impressive sight, and I hope the pictures do it justice. I'll be sure to post some soon.
After finishing up at the aquarium, Charlotte and I carried on along Sydney's famous harbour to Darling Harbour. Despite it's posh reputation, we were disappointed with it's lack of interesting sights, so we carried on home. By the time we reached the apartment we were tired and sweltering, so we headed downstairs to the pool and went for a nice refreshing swim. After that it was back upstairs for lunch and Charlotte's nap.
After Charlotte woke up, she and I headed out to Manly to visit Kathy Donnelly and her twins, Sloane and Sadie. We took the ferry from Circular Quay (30 minute ride) and met Kathy at the Manly wharf to walk back to their place in Queenscliff. They treated us to a great barbecue, and the three girls entertained each other well in to the evening. The skies lit up with lightening around 7pm, so we quickly packed up to head back to Sydney, trying to beat the rain. We got a little wet on the walk to the ferry, but Charlotte was a trooper and didn't even make a peep. Now we're home, Charlotte's been asleep for almost an hour, and we're looking forward to another exciting day tomorrow . . .

Neale here, It has been nice to have Kate and Charlotte in Sydney to see the sights. I think I have taken this beautiful city for granted as it has been a pretty stressful stretch as far as work is concerned. You really need to stop and look up at all the beautiful old buildings and appreciate it and I have not done much of that in the last 10 weeks. Greg and I drove to Manly at about 5 oclock today and were greeted by a course of "daddies" from the 3 girls. Kathy prepared a very nice dinner as the girls ran around the apartment and we watched the surfers enjoy some pretty nice sized waves. I would like to give the surfing a go, but those who know me, know that water and I do not get along to well. I may not have a choice as the it is early summer, and we may need to use the ocean to keep cool. We are hoping to go to the zoo tomorrow as we have heard very good things about the Sydney zoo. It is about a 5 minute ferry ride from Circular Quay. Circular Quay is about a 5 minute walk from our apartment and you can catch a ferry to all the main spots from there. Yesterday when Charlotte and Kate arrived, we walked down to to circular quay which is also very close to the Sydney Harbor Bridge and the Sydney Opera house. It was very windy but Charlotte loved running on the vast concrete fields that surround the opera house. We got a few pictures with Charlotte running with the bridge in the background. On the other side of the Harbor, you can see #42 Wallaby Way which is famous from a certain movie for having a denist office in it - can anybody name the movie? Think children's genre. We'll post pictures soon.

Heatwave!

Well, maybe it's not quite a heatwave, but today is really hot, and yesterday was, too. Tomorrow it is onlt supposed to get to 26C, which will feel positively cool after today's 38C cooker. Charlotte's cheeks were actually flushed today after playing outside for about 10 minutes. She never gets pink cheeks (unless it's from crying or teething). As you can see in the picture, Charlotte has found a way to keep cool. The hose on the deck is a recent favorite, and if she could play out there all day with it, she would.

Charlotte and I are off to Sydney tomorrow for the weekend. Looking forward to seeing another Australian city and visiting the Donnelley's at their home in Manly, which is apparently a very nice ocean-side suburb in Sydney. This will be a practice flight for our big trip home next month, and will be my first time flying alone with Charlotte. Wish us luck!

Will post more when we're home from Sydney. Have a good weekend, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD! Wish we were there to celebrate with you :)

Warrawong and Melbourne Cup

Charlotte and I have been doing a lot of playing the last few days. I have been in Adelaide since Friday morning which is the longest stretch since we arrived here in Australia. Our favourite game is to move her toys from one place another and then back again. We repeat several times until Charlotte decides we have had enough. We sat in her tent this evening and read 1 book about 40 times. I tried to introduce others, but she would just throw them out of the way and pick up the same one over and over again. I tried to hide it, but she would just give me a "just read the damn book" look and we would begin reading again. I could hear Kate giggling everytime I would start the same book again.

On Sunday, we all went into the hills to Warrawong Nature reserve. It is a free nature reserve with many types of Australian animals. We saw an albino Kangaroo which was quite interesting looking. We thought we would get to see a Duckbilled Platypus, but there were none at that time of day. Charlotte chased down an emu, but quickly retreated when it turned around and looked at her. It was a good day, Kate and I agreed that we are going to try and get out and explore as much as we can.

It is Tuesday night now and today was Melbourne Cup day. It is a big deal of a horse race and there were many parties throughout the city and country. Horse racing is so huge here and this is by far the biggest race of the year. People, young and old, get dressed to the nines (ladies all have some type of god awful hat) and watch "The race that stops the nation!" I did not watch it, Kate did not watch it, Charlotte watched Barney. Australians wait all year for this day, horse racing is a big part of the culture here as you can bet on the ponies in pretty much every corner store.

-Neale

Happy Halloween

Since we were all feeling so much better this weekend, we decided to have a little fun. After last weekend, which was spent taking care of each other and trying to feel better, we were ready for an outing or two. Friday was Halloween and although it really isn't celebrated here, Charlotte still dressed up in her costume. Instead of trick or treating (which again isn't done here) ,we took her out for ice cream after supper. A fair substitute for mini chocolate bars and candy corn, I guess. She wasn't too keen on the hat that went with her costume, but we managed to get one before we left for ice cream.

The next picture is of her in McDonalds eating her treat. She was pretty enthusiastic about the huge cone we got her (it wasn't until later that we thought we should have asked for a baby cone, which they may not even have). Even after she was clearly done with it (and long before it was finished), it was hard to get the cone away from her sticky little hands.

We took her outside after getting her cone and she splashed around in the fountain for a while. It could have helped to clean her off a bit, but as you can see, she was still clutching her ice cream cone.

She also decided that it was time for a poop about the time this shot was taken, so soon after we headed back to the car and then straight home to clean up our messy child. A fun Halloween evening, even if it was somewhat different than it would have been if we were at home in Saskatoon.