These last few months have been so busy especially with family committments.  No time to write much but I'll put up a few photos to give you an idea of what's been happening. 

Eamon Dylan Conville was born on June  24 2012 - three weeks early so he took us all by surprise.  He is thriving and Kimberley and Richie are very happy parents if a little tired at times.

Alanis Coral Koolah Lowe was born on August 14.  A second daughter for Andy and Christy and sister to two year old Pelagia.  They are all very happy with the addition to their family and are all doing well.

My parents have had more than their share of health problems this year and I have spent a lot of time with them in Queensland.  At the moment they are both back home from hospital and doing fairly well but we are looking into higher care options for the future.

 

 Natalie and Jono had a son this month, Gabriel David Clark.  All doing well.  He would have been Phil's 10th great grandson.

Tomorrow I am off to Sydney for Nicky and Hui's wedding on Thursday then I fly to UK on Sunday for a holiday with Andy and Christy.  Can't wait to hug that new baby but will miss Eamon.  He is such a delight.

Thirteen years ago today

Such a happy day and there were thousands more that followed.  We were very blessed.

I would love to be able to rotate this!!!!!

Sad that so many old friends are no longer with us. 

The photo quality is poor - we didn't have a digital camera back then so I copied these with my phone - they still bring back so many good memories.

The week in pictures

Christy has had the week off work so we've done lots of lovely things together.  Most days that has included at least coffee and cake and sometimes lunch out.

It wasn't surprising that Pelagia's first two-word combination was ' more cake'

We had a lovely day at Spring Bank Farm with Christy's friend Alli and her son Lewis who is 3 days younger than PPA so a few photos with the animals follow.  Note the addition of Oscar the doll - we bought him for PPA on the day the Oscar awards were announced so it seemed a fitting name.  He is now a constant companion.  Christy hopes PPA will learn not to throw him about nor poke his eyes out before the new baby arrives in August.

Pelagia is a no-TV child so the occasional look at a YouTube video of a nursery rhyme on Andy's iPad is a real novelty.

We've had a few dips in the hot tub on the deck.  The challenge is to jump out quickly at the end and get indoors before you freeze to death.

Most days I have a walk along the cliff tops - it's a good workout and often quite bracing.  There have been a few beautiful sunny days and this was one of them.

The one thing that has occupied a lot of our time with week but I can't show you is packing boxes in preparation for the move at the end of the month.  Christy and I are now up to box 59!!!  Probably another 10 or so to do before we need to pause.  The rest will have to wait till nearer moving day.

The only other thing of note is that I have been treating my face with Efudix since I arrived.  It is a cream for dealing with pre-cancerous sunspots.  My skin specialist recommended it back on August/ Sept but you need to stay out of the sun when you are doing it - for about 6 weeks.  Winter in the UK seemed like the perfect time but I look really odd.  I have taken a photo of my face to remind myself how awful it is should I ever be tempted to go out in the sun again without covering up.  I'm not brave enough to post the photo.  It is unbelievably gross.  I am just hoping it settles a bit before next Tuesday otherwise they mightn't let me on the flight.  I look as if I've got some nasty contagious disease.

Photos

I have failed to put photos onto this blog from my iPad.  There must be a way but I can't work it out. So I've resorted to using Christy's laptop.

These are a bit of a random collection from the past 2 weeks but will give you a flavour of my visit so far.  Today Andy and Christy are at work ( she is oncall tonight as well so we won't see her till after work tomorrow) and Pelagia has gone to nursery.  I'm off to Brighton on the bus now and will pick up PPA after lunch.  Andy has a parents' evening at school tonight so it will be just us 2 girls at home alone.

If Grandma is looking after you, there is one thing for certain - you'll be going for an early morning walk regardless of  the weather - just add a few more layers of clothes.

Lots of snow on the hills around Seaford for the first few days.  It's all gone now and the weather is quite mild this week

The village of Corfe Castle with the ruins of the castle behind.  We spent the week in one of these stone cottages - it was delightful.

Lulworth Cove in Dorset.  The last time I was here was Sept 2010 when Phil walked these paths with enthusiasm.  You can see those photos on this blog if you look in 2010/ September

My birthday lunch at River Cottage Canteen at Axminster in Devon.  We drove across from our cottage in Dorset last friday.  I have enjoyed watching Hugh Fearnley-Wittingstall's programs on TV at home so it was a real treat to eat at his restaurant.  Delicious food, great atmosphere, good company - what more could you want.  Christy took this photo which includes her friends Chris and Gabby who spent the week with us.

Love babychinos

Walking along the seafront at Seaford after church last Sunday

Burling Gap - still no sign of my backpack that failed to make it into the lifeboat back in 2010!!!  All hope of finding it must surely be gone.  

Fields of snow when I arrived 2 weeks ago

With family in UK

It was absolutely freezing when I arrived ten days ago - lots of snow and temps scarcely getting past zero.

Just after I arrived I went with Christy for her 12 week scan - all is well and my #3 grandchild is due on August 23 - a week after Andy returns from a month in South America so we all hope s/he won't arrive 2 weeks early like Pelagia. I had never been to an antenatal scan before - i was quite emotional watching this tiny person with a beating heart moving about and sucking his/her thumb.

The past week has been milder with some days as warm as 8 degrees. And it has been fine and we have been outdoors a lot in spite of the temps. Last week we spent in Dorset in a cottage at Corfe Castle with good friends of Christy and Andy's, Chris and Gabby and their dog Rufus. We had a great time. Long walks everyday, mostly along the coast which is spectacular. It was hard to believe that it was just 18 months ago that Phil and I were walking the same coast paths.

Chris and Christy are both gourmet cooks so we needed the long walks to work off our dinners. On Friday we had lunch at Hugh Fearnley-Witingstalls River Cottage Canteen in Axminster - I am a fan of the ABC TV series from River Cottage which focuses on sustainable seasonal food. The meal was fabulous. Interesting menu, beautifully cooked and presented in a professional but relexed atmosphere. All six of us really enjoyed it.

It is so good to be here. It gives me time to put aside for a time some of the burdens of last year and the mountain of tasks still to be done. Pelagia is a delight. A very happy easy child and very funny.

This afternoon we went to look at the new house. It should be a really nice home for them with a good size garden. They are unlikely to move in while I am here But a least I can help sort stuff and pack some boxes.

It's my birthday today and I've had a lovely day. This time last year Eleanor put on a wonderful champagne afternoon tea for us all in Phil's hospital room in Sydney - what a lot has happened in a year.

I want to add some photos to this blog but I haven't yet worked out how to do it on my iPad. No doubt it will be quite easy but ....... So watch this space for pictures later.