The new best thing... and least for a rainy day

A rainy day and we've discovered the BEST amusement for a toddler - the mini shopping trolley in a hardware store. A very serious business helping us, as you can see. So cute! It took two hand stamps and a balloon on a stick to prise him away when the trolley couldn't come all the way home with us!

A little liquid sunshine...

...couldn't dampen the fun in our Mum's group Xmas get together. Here we (Amanda, Teresa, Anike and Julia) are with our not so little ones (Benji, Nicholas, Sophia & Toby), Dads (Steve, Dan & Neil) and a couple of newer additions (Rory and Benji's due-any-day-now sibling). And this is just the half of it. Once we could have tea and cake whilst our babies gurgled on the floor. Now it's a full person's job to wander.. to the sea...to the swings...to the dog water bowl... in the rain. What fun! So great to grab the minutes we did together, though.

"Who IS this guy?"

" I didn't get him last year. And he's still a bit strange. Maybe next year I'll get excited or, at least, understand." This photo was taken at Nicholas's Childcare's Christmas party - complete with presents, food made by the kids (luckily mostly the pre-prep kids), a show and, of course, Santa. Very cute.

Swinging in the rain, just...

...swinging in the rain. Well, it wasn't raining just yet, but it did before we made it home. Please note (although not in any league near our northern hemisphere readers!) the warm get-up for this SUMMER day...4th Dec...wearing longs. Whatever the weather, it's getting hard to get the little fella off the swing these days.

Best gate yet!

Last weekend we visited Uncle Ben and Aunty Karyn on their property and, not only were there very cool puddles to dunk trousers and shoes in (repeatedly), there was this great gate to open. And close. And open. And close. Obviously, from the outfit in this photo, the gate game was playing after the puddle game!

One of these plugs the sink and...

...the other one temporarily plugs the way into that contented tummy. Hmmm. Our little mate is quite taken with running water at the moment. If not for my guilt over wasted water, he could be in this playpen for hours!

This Sunday strolling is tough stuff

Here are the boys, both looking a little tuckered out after a spot of off-track Mt Coot-tha action. One has the advantage of a nice, soft place to just have a little nap along the way "Keep on walking, Daddy, not far to go now. I'll be quite hungry by the time I wake up!"

Someones 40th!!

Yes T has reached a special time in Life's Big Adventure - 40!!
Friday starts with the very important present opening... done by our little mate of course - a very serious business is deciding which piece of paper to play with! His little top read 'Happy 40th Birthday - love you mummy!! In french of course 'cause his english is rubbish still...

A special surprise was Jeremy being able to come down from Rockhampton. It was a big effort and absolutely tremendous to see him.






...Saturday and off to Nanna and Grumps to drop the little fella off for only the 2nd time we have been without him... he was very keen to get some gardening in and keep his skillset up to date...

Another present opening ceremony... woohoo!!

The Birthday Bash was at Ciao Baby and we had the entire upper floor to ourselves! The outside balcony was a brilliant space for everyone to just hang before heading inside...

Teresa, Dan, Debbie and Sarah before the duck pizza arrived! (Sarah won the 'the longest journey to be here' award - she flew from Mackay and brought little Amelie to play with us as well!)

Jeremy and Craigie being ever so 'cool and sporty' as the French like to say ....

It was a brilliant night... so easy to move around and chat .... the food was excellent... it was great to catch up to everyone ... Megan bunked study to be there, Sandra was looking just brill, Tash aka Aunty Boof had to put another bloke straight on priorities, so good to see Craig, Mr and Mrs Jeffy and Andrea lent some respectability, The Book crew sauntered along with Marcia in tow (who stayed up late - obviously a party grrl in the making), The Younger Winfields dumped the kids and showed up to party as usual, Tim and Jen wouldn't miss a night out... and a big, big thankyou to the Lodges for making a huge effort to come down it was just great to see you.

Thanks everyone for making it a brilliant night!! Love you all!!

Uncle Vince and Jandowae!

The long overdue trip to Jandowae happened on the wettest weekend I think have ever seen out there. Jandowae is about 4hrs west of Brisvegas and where the Healy family originates. Being on the very flat black soil plains of the Darling Downs when it rains the water forms great sheets a few inches deep and hundreds of acres across and moves across the landscape like a muddy, stubbly milkshake. So the numerous floodways between Dalby and Jandowae kept T's interest up!

Eventually though we got to Uncle Vince's place at Jandowae (after a stop at Toowoomba for 2nd breakfast - love the country!) ... and the most amazing thing happened... Nicholas was lifted out of the car and with a quick look snuggled straight into Uncle Vince's shoulder! Maybe it was the honest country boy looks?! It's a rare thing for him to lunge for a cuddle without much of an introduction! The little fella was even going to him for consolation after a few wayward adventures into coffee tables, door posts etc!

Seeing the home town was great - and it sure is looking good with all that rain! Loved the hospitality and we'll be back soon!

A new Winfield!

Marcia is the latest addition to Winfield clan and isn't Zoe a proud sister! Dad is hanging around in the background while Mum is having a rest! Congratualtions Winfields!!

Sunday Training - family style!

We love our Sunday outings... our little mate likes to see new stuff and here a cockatoo is saying good morning to him while dad takes a break from the carrying duties!

And Tress loves to get pack fit by carrying a pack loaded with tents and water to get the weight up!!

Bit of a drizzly start to our Sunday walk the other week... lovely to be out though and we discovered a new track at Mt Cootha that seems to be for a research project as there is tape and information on a lot of the trees which had all the humus cleared from around their bases... The WE Wildchild showed its true pedigree with its heavy duty raincover that extends over the entire pack... important stuff to keep the pack dryish when child carrying – not only to have a dry pack being dragged into the tent but the drier you can keep the pack fabric the less it wicks onto the little bloke and the happier he is...

Cutting sexy code?!

The little fella loves bottles with lids, blenders with lids are especially cool cause they make a good noise and mum and dad use it... but best of all is mum's keyboard! 'cutting code' is a software writer speak and 'sexy code' is very elegant code.. and I am sure that is what he is doing ... honest :)

An old friend came in from out of town

Look who was in town from London! Not Jeffy - although we need to see more of he and Andrea, too! Jeff, Anne and I went to uni together and here we are looking not too much older and having just as much fun. Anne, so lovely to meet Matteo in person and to see you and Mario again.

- Teresa

Adventure at O'Reilly's

We finally got to do our first test of gear and ideas to take the little bloke 2 or 3 days bushwalking. Our first lists resulted in huge pack weights and some of the inherent problems like keeping a small person amused, asleep in one place in a tent etc took a bit of planning and hoping! So with the final rush of hurried packing we were of to O'Reilly's at Lamington National Park for a test run.


Keeping him amused was an interesting exercise which basically came down to one of us following him to ensure he didn't get eaten by a pademelon or carried off by a bush turkey..



Keeping him in one place on a sleep mat turned out to be easy enough!






The walk out to Bithongabel was a little slower than usual - and I had forgotten what a 24kg pack feels like! But Tressies famous double choc brownies capped off an excellent adventure!

Ultralight camping meets mtb endurance racing!

an unusual post... our friend Ryan aka Rhino http://thechargingrhino.blogspot.com/ is a top moutain biker. He has raced on the Australian team at the World Marathon champs and is currently in Europe racing and having a fun time.
Forever looking for a challenge he was wondering about a race called the Great Divide Race in the states - a 2 weekish odyssey that starts in Canada and finishes close to Mexico along the western range. So knowing my obsession with ultralight kit for bushwalking he popped me an email looking for ideas... I like my effort so I have decided to share the email I sent back...
It is a great look at what you can do with light gear and applies to bushwalking, mtb'ing, canoeing etc

Warning... if you don't like gear, or bushwalking, or multi stage racing - look away now!

Ryan,
Here are some ideas about ultralight techniques and equipment you may find useful…
The context is racing a pushie thru a mountain range that will have variable weather conditions BUT because you are very mobile you can choose where you camp - which won’t be out in the open at the top of a 2500m pass with 60knot winds and sideways sleet – leave that for when you are making a summit assault. A quick look (and it was quick) suggests camping would be lower down with min overnight temps around 0 to 10 in the north and 10 to 20 in the south. Precipitation looks to be wettish in some areas but fine in others. The wind is fine. In other words - not really inclement conditions. (ie more days 20 to 40knot wind than not, constantly well below zero, snow load or heavy precipitation eg Iditarod race) And you’ll be passing thru towns every 2 or 3 days aren’t you?

the idea of ultralight is less stuff and lighter weight but get the job done... . And there lies the rub you might say… your reasonably comfortable may be my survival exercise… however…

Quick but important …
Keeping body temperature in a good range… warmth comes from loft because it traps the warm air your body produces and stops it floating away thereby creating a warm layer next to your skin… , loft can be wool, feathers, synthetic fibres or lofts… water soaked clothes are cold because water conducts heat away (if it is cold rain) and also flattens wool fibres, feathers etc so that they no longer have loft. Trapped sweat also has this effect hence WB jackets are not a good option for hard physical activity. You merely get wet you’re your own sweat rather than the rain coming in… (eVent is by far the best material though if you must have a WB jacket/pants e.g. cycling over a freezing pass in the rain with a 30knot breeze blowing)

Shelter system
key function… to stop wind blowing warm air away trapped in your sleep system, to stop precipitation killing the loft in your sleep system.

hardcore – Gouge out hip and shoulder sleep holes and line the body area with grass, leaves etc, wrap a 6’ by 8’ polycro/cuben/silnylon groundcloth or tarp around you by putting 1/3 on the ground, put sleeping bag/ just you with every piece of clothing you have, get into bag, wrap the rest of the groundcloth around and tuck under the edges, feet end first top next and put pack/kit by your head. You will want a synthetic bag with more protection than just a coating of DWR ... and get a hotel every 3rd or 4th night…
weight about 150-250g

My choice… A tarp bivvy with a tarp
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/bpl_vapr_bivy.html a tarp bivvy as opposed to a bivybag has a very breathable pertex top half with DWR finish but definitely not waterproof with a very water resistant bottom layer.
The tarp I would go for would be either a cuben fibre catenary curved 8’x9’ tarp 218g http://www.mountainlaureldesigns.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=21&products_id=132 with carbon fibre poles Or a cuben fibre poncho tarp http://www.mountainlaureldesigns.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=32&products_id=53 like this but in cuben fiber is 120g – a tarp that can be a poncho and a tarp. I would use a mixture of ti and carbon fibre stakes - 6 of each.
Pros – mostly you would not need a tarp over you… just roll out the tarp bivvy with your bag in it (if it is not wet) – so simple!! But… if there was rain about then you can cook, dress, wait out rain under a tarp, it is very quick to put up once you get the hang of it - unlike a tent. Very versatile you can use this in very hot weather or very cold weather, when it is raining you put the tarp up first and sit underneath to sort the rest of your gear. You can also put your bike under a big 8’x9’ tarp. Very packable – each stuff sack packs to about 9” x 3” tube size and squashable. The tarp you can either put in a small stuff sack or stuff into a pack pocket
Weight ½ zip tarp bivy 240g, or a lighter small zip model from BPL. I have this one but I would go for a ½ zip next time like the one that MLD do.
weight of Cuben Fiber grace tarp 8’x9’ + spectra guylines 218g, carbon poles 56g, 6x ti stakes 42g, 6x carbon stakes 40g. approx total 356g
You may like to have a polycro groundsheet 20” x 96” long to spread your gear also weight 48g,

Bivy made from eVent… http://www.integraldesigns.com/product_detail.cfm?id=693 Pros… put your sleeping bag in and sleep. Cons… This is not 100% waterproof also you do need experience in using one as you can get wet from the inside. You also need to manage down loft by drying your bag a lot. You can’t cook in one if it is raining outside (may not be a problem if you just eat cold and catch up with hot food at towns) you will also need 4 stakes for this cause you need to keep them still. Bulky Package
weight 630g

big Bivy you could kinda cook in… http://www.integraldesigns.com/product_detail.cfm?id=859&CFID=2108124&CFTOKEN=59941161
weight 1330g

cuben fiber stuff sack for bivy 8g http://www.mountainlaureldesigns.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=24&products_id=63
cuben fiber stuff sack for neoair 8g
cuben fiber stuff sack for stakes 7g

total 619g


Sleep system
key function… warmth baby

sleeping bag
notes… high loft down 800+ is light (500g for a 4in bag) up to half the weight of a 600 loft bag (at least 1kg) , you cannot moisten it or use a compression cover and expect it to retain loft, you cannot wash it normally and expect to keep your bag in one piece, it won’t last as long as 600 loft down.
When I say 3in or 4in bag I mean the measurement of how high the bag lofts off the floor. Measurement taken at the chest and knees and divided by 2. quest what is warmer a 3in 800+ loft down bag or a 3in 600loft down bag? Ans. it is how much air that is trapped not what traps it that counts so both the same.

I would go a 3in 800+ loft ½ zipper bag eg Mountain Hardware Phantom at 480g. By using your lofted jacket, merino clothes, gloves, beanie and socks it would good for 0 for me. I have used a 4in bag like this to -5 … if you are a cold sleeper or you think you will be a cold sleeper after riding all that feckin way you may want a 4in bag at 580g I reckon a 4in is the shot – less stuffing around and you know its warm.

sleeping mat
function… ground insulation, some comfort,
I wouldn’t use a ¾ thermorest here cause it is a little fiddly in getting the pressure ok and you will be stuffed at night anyway. Instead I would go the new Neoair at half the weight (but puncture risk – so care needed) http://cascadedesigns.com/therm-a-rest/mattresses/fast-and-light/neoair/product or a cut down foam Z rest… this is a closed cell foam pad, rugged, but not as comfortable, same weight as Neoair
Small neoair 260g
I would also carry a small BPL collapsible pillow at 30g you can’t rely on clothing in your stuff sack as a pillow cause it may be wet or being worn and a pillow is comfort!

cuben fiber dry bag 34g http://www.mountainlaureldesigns.com/shop/product_info.php?products_id=148 dry bag is used here because the penalty for failure of a down sleeping bag is high

total 904


Clothing system… just the after ride stuff.
key function… warmth, to stop wind replacing warm air with cold air, to stop precipitation killing loft,

wind shirt to stop wind weight 110 to 140g wind shirts are the ducks nuts in protective gear. Ultra breathable, very warm for the weight cause it totally blocks any breezes. Mine is an Outdoor Research http://www.montane.co.uk/products/men/windproof/lite-speed-jacket/46 here is a hooded one from Montane
long sleeve merino t-shirt 180g comfortable, non smelly (fine for a month if used as night/after riding gear)
long johns merino 190g having long sleeved and long legs with socks, beanie and gloves is very warm, comfortable and protects the down bag from body grease/dirt which will kill loft eventually. Night/Day clothes system is so you only have 2 sets of clothes. Though you will have more knicks etc
Rab or Montane or Berghaus or BPL lofted jacket maybe even a hooded one but with synthetic loft 300g… only if you think you will need to extend your sleeping bag range or you think you will need to keep/be warm once off the bike. Otherwise just hop into your night clothes and get straight into your bag and cook/eat from there. Remember with nightclothes + windshirt + WB jacket you can be quite comfortable down to 10 or so… http://www.rab.uk.com/clothing/primaloft/xenon_jacket---269/ this one is hooded from Rab
spare cycling socks for night 48g nice to put all new kit on once you are of the bike
macpac merino beanie or polar fleece beanie 38/50g
light gloves or cycling gloves 51g
cuben fibre stuff sack x2 7g each http://www.mountainlaureldesigns.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=24&products_id=63 lofted jacket in one, clothes in the other - will pack to about the size of a biggish apple.

I am assuming you will take Macpac eVent WB jacket in your ride gear

Total 933g


Cooking system
key points… can you do without? Hot dinners every 3 or 4 nights at towns
only for heating water… ie all cooking would be hot water added to breakfast cereal or freezies or tea/coffee etc. reason.. little washing up
usage based on 600ml of water heated twice a day which is brekky + hot drink and dinner + hot drink

ti alcohol stoves 11g with a ti windshield 9g fuel about 500g per 10 cooking days… pros: light… cons: fuel is messy, easy easy easy to have an accident - especially if you are stuffed or rushing. The penalty for failure if you spill on your kit or spill onto flame or tip burning stove is not worth it IMHO but tons of guys love it…
ti hexy stoves 11g with a ti windshield 9g fuel 250g for 10 cooking days pros:… light, easy to use, safe… cons: esbit http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/esbit_pocket_stove_fuel.html is what they use over there and not as easy to come by as alcohol, leaves some residue on cook gear need to put kettle in own cuben fiber bag 8g
isobutane gas stoves 70g with a ti windshield 12g fuel a 363g cylinder can easily last 15 -20 cooking days…. Pros, simple, easy, quick, no mess, very efficient fuel which means the weight is waaay less over the course of a few weeks …. cons a little heavier but not over the long term, need to use either small or large isobutane (eg red MSR)cylinder at 224 and 363 respectively, harder to come by in the small towns not that this should be a problem anyway
you can also get a ti double pass wood burner to fit an MSR ti kettle that is very efficient etc but you have to gather some kindling and a little bit of fussing so it is not really race worthy I don’t think

tough choice here… between hexy or gas… nah I’d go gas I think… ummm maybe the hex it is bombproof… umm…

1 ti pot , MSR kettle 122g
1 ti spoon 11g, you shouldn’t be using food that needs a fork or knife
Small scrubber 4g
Small vial of wilderness wash or similar 16g packed with cook kit so it is easy to use when washing hands before cooking about 1cm x 4cm
Bic lighter small 12g
Water treatment tabs in small vial 10g about 1cm x 4cm
All packed in ti kettle except where large gas container is used in which case it goes in personal stuff bag

Total 452g


Backup kit
When you have an OTB and no-one is around…

1st aid kit. Sheet of red nurofen, sheet of panedeine forte, (maybe add a sheet of Imodium and a sheet of stemitol for nausea), dropper bottle of Betadine, 1m of that sticky stretchy gauze that I have forgotten the name of (use it to stick wounds together or bandages on or wrap ankles etc) , 2x 10x10non sticks, 4x small eyewash vials, in 6x6cm aloksak 50g
Flint, striker and tinder balls 15g easy to use, reliable fire
Brunton compass 12g
1.5m Duct tape 14g
Flat whistle 6g
Zip led torch 7g
All packed in Aloksack and in personal stuff bag. This links to balm jars, dropper bottles, aloksaks and stuff http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/xdpy/s/Packing%20Systems/index.html

Total 104g


Personal kit
Mobile phone 80g
Small camera 200g
Airline toothbrush and paste 17g
Small container of alcohol hand antiseptic 20g small container means a balm jar measuring 1” across and ¾” deep from Backpacking Light
Lipcream stick 11g
Lipcream sunscreen 11g
Small container sunscreen 15g
Small led microlight 7g
…or …Petzl zipka (head torch) 65g dump this as you will have AyUps
Spyderco Jester (small folding knife) 14g about 1 ½” long for opening freezies etc, cutting bandages
TP x 4 days 25g
Cuben fiber stuff bag 7g packs to about 2”x 7” and squashable

Total 486g

Total weight carried 2646g !! brilliant weight for a huge range of weather conditions!!

carry system
a normal hydration/backpack will put weight on your shoulders… wingnut style packs will keep the weight over your hips better… Wingnut have sewn in hip ‘wings’ that are meant as stabilisers and the harness takes the weight. Good if you are only carrying med weight. But if you plan on putting 6 - 8kg or so in it then you have to tighten the hip harness to get effective weight transfer - if you are carrying lots of water for example, it inhibits your up and down leg movement, so even better is a Wilderness Equipment Control Freak http://www.wildequipment.com.au/daypack_detail.php?Code=WECONTROLF if you plan on carrying +kg in your pack. They use independently rotating hip harness with foam stiffeners to stop foam creep. But importantly it rotates with your cycling leg movements. Amazing weights can be carried with this. 1.1kg

Amazingly I have all this stuff (except the duo tarp – we use a Golite Hex 3 pyramid tarp) so if you want to check it out fly up to Qld and say hi…

Packability…. The lofted vest will easily fit into a small stuffsack to be carried in your frame bag – as will all the other stuffsacks of stuff except the sleeping bag which goes on your handlebar bag and the kettle with cook gear in it which goes in your seat bag. WB gear is carried on your pack or stuffed somewhere close… a windshirt can go in a jersey pocket…

This stuff forms the basis of what we use everywhere – above the Arctic Circle (add wet gear, mountain axe, crampons, ski gloves, higher loft jacket), 4 to 5 thousand metres in Bhutan, add a lofted jacket, wet gear, more gloves and beanies. So it works well, though you will need to work out what is best for you and practise with that.

The little fella loves to explore anywhere and everywhere... and every week there is a new 'fave' bit of stuff that goes everywhere with him ... Brown Bottle (a Perfect Potions empty squeeze bottle) was a highlight for weeks and was much loved... a length of wiring loom wrap was huge last week... anything can catch his inquiring and sometimes seriously appraising eye - and today it is one of Dad's shoes! He often likes to drag both shoes across the kitchen into the lounge and leave them anywhere in between... but it is all done with the utmost thought and considered care ...

Out for a Sunday stroll

We've managed a couple of bush walks close to home, at Mt Coot-tha, this month. It's hard to work for our brunch when Sunday's are usually a cruise straight to breakfast - but it does make the food taste yummier! Last Sunday, when this photo was taken, we went off-track exploring up a disused bike path and down following a spur...but home safely! Today was a little more on the beaten path but with to a soundtrack of cockatoos (screeeech, screeeech) and whip birds (somewhat nicer).

Family holiday to Brunswick Heads

Our first joint family getaway, with the recently arrived and soon to depart Frenchies. What a fantastic long weekend we just had. Here's a photo of us all together. T's the photographer, casting a shadow, Steven's sporting T's jumper and finding the afternoon sun a little bright, Ryan and Nicholas are packed for comfort and Christo is sporting a matching smiley "handbag" / jumper combo between Lynnie and Dan.

Fun at the pub...

A pre-dinner apperitif was shared in the Brunswick pub beergarden. Steven and Nicholas enjoyed one of the pub's more wholesome activities, playing on the row boat. The rest of us spent the time between our beers and saving the boys from falling overboard - I'm sure we used to be bored... you know, in the olden days... before kids!?

An early morning paddle?

Even better, the electric motor and outrigger make this the perfect set-up for fishing the Brunswick river - stable, quiet and able to access the trickiest spots. Of course, this was all lost on Nicholas who just enjoyed hanging over the side and having the water course past his fingers. Simple joys. Another was playing in the sand and water of this stretch of beach on the National Park side of the river. More holidays please!

Welcome Kai!

How little is this cute 4 day old fella?! Tim and Jen are now a family with Kai joining them on 1July (just!) - Mum and baby definitely doing well as you can see here and Tim's beeming somewhere out of shot. In a strange echo of some visits we had last year, Nicholas spent the visit demonstrating there can be advantages to child- and noise-proofing your home whilst Kai slept peacefully - a year off passing on the tradition!

The Frenchies arrive!

So great to see Lynnie and Christo and meet their little fellas, Steven and Ryan. Pictured here is Steven returning Nicholas to us after a little boys own adventure whilst we picniced at Kangaroo Point cliffs. A beautiful winter's afternoon spent with good food and great company.

Visit to Grandma

Early in July, we visited (my) Grandma and Aunties Jean, Heather and Lois on their Girls Own Adventure to the Sunshine Coast. Here we are being photoed by the Aunt Paparazzi - we're almost all looking at the same person! It was wonderful to see everyone - and so close to home in sunny-and-almost-warm Queensland. Happy 80th Grandma for the 23rd!! - Teresa

Gramps aka "Grumps" is a big fave with our little mate... We haven't featured him much but he tells Nicholas all the good stories and lets him eat whatever he catches.

Smoko break amongst Alexander Palms

another trip to Lamington National Park... we managed to descend of the ridgeline enough to get to the Alexander Palms which have their own little ecosystem going in this particular valley... it is only an hour down which was good because one of our party is going to have to put more training in if we want to do overnight walks.. and it wasn't T!

Please..just one little silver ball, please?

Pictured are our two best recent creations: Nicholas and his birthday cake! Happy Birthday, Nicholas! Yesterday, our recently raised carport played host to a gathering to celebrate our (not so) little fella turning one. A great time was had by all, especially Nicholas, who was played with, fed, followed and hugged by just about everyone. I don't think he ended up with a silver cachous (cashew?) but well enjoyed the chocolate cake, chocolate icing and cream.

Whilst Mummy's making my cake

I was busy icing and decorating the little fella's first birthday cake. He hadn't been happy that I wasn't paying him attention. We went to the front room to look outside. I left him well amused with some blocks but...a few minutes later...silence. Silence!!?? Here's how the birthday boy was amusing himself. And such an innocent face.

Happy Birthday Little Mate!!

Our little mate is starting to be not so little. Today Nicholas turned 1 - a whole digit!! Pictured here, he is very excited about a present that has arrived addressed to him. Although he is also keeping his current favourite toy, an empty plastic bottle, close to hand!
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Nicholas had a grand time at kindy today - including an afternoon tea party with all his kindy mates, scoffing down a banana birthday cake liberaly dusted with cinnamon and icing sugar is a giant "1" (packed and ready in top-right corner). Word has it he went for a 2nd piece and downed that no trouble at all (after polishing off his sizeable lunch box) - we have no doubt all this fuel is jet-powering his growth.
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Mummy also enjoyed her day... at work... a world away from this same day last year!

Helping out!!

Our little mate just loves the W.E. pack! Here he is helping Dad out putting the hinges up for the new gate ... we go walking 3 or 4 times a week around the neighbourhood and he is so happy just to chattle to himself and point his 'yonder daddy' finger (a carefully raised index finger) at things he would like a closer look at/feel of. He especially likes it when Mum comes with us because he can play 'hidey' or play with her hair when she comes within reach!

Tressie's 1st Mum's Day!!

The little fella was so excited about Mum's day he had a new shirt commissioned with "You are the best Mum in all the world" just so he could get his best wishes out... but because he doesn't speak english really well yet ... he had it printed in French!! clever little fella!! and he was also very keen to give Mum a big hug!!

Mist on the path

Bhutan highlights - 3 of 10

The beauty of the place is mindnumbing... Here a pony caravan is coming down fromt the pass Bale La - a 'low' pass at only 4000m - incredibly atmospheric stuff. The ponys know the way of course and the little ones follow mum for the first few. For the ponies the trips would last from a a few days to a few weeks. On this day we gained 700m then dropped 1700m to the hot springs at Gaza - a big day. Gaza was really the symbolic end of the trek.

First 1st Birthday party

Happy Birthday to you,

Happy Birthday to you,

Happy Birthday dear Lauren, Zahlia, Nicholas, Sophia, Benji, Toby, Molly and Byron

Happy Birthday to you!

Mum's group 1st Birthday party... a couple of cupcakes to make a cupcake cake, champers and gooshy cheeses - celebrating our gorgeous little boys and girls, our first year as in-love parents and a supportive group of great new friends.

Jeff and Andrea get married!

... in Murgon!! ... 4 cruisy country hours from Brisvegas. The wedding was held in a very green garden on a very green property (after all the rain we’ve been having). The warmth from the friends and rellies was infectious and fun – nearly as much fun as the bride and groom had when they took to the dance floor for first dance! Reception was at the Murgon Town Hall – a tremendous fair dinki-di old style country hall complete with lavish amounts of good food and booze. And if you hadn’t got enough of the friendly stuff – brekky was back at the wedding property with the groom amazingly doing the cooking over the barby with the bride helping out. Thankyou Mr and Mrs Eagle - it was a bloody tremendous event to be part of!

Awwwhhhh shucks!!!

The little cuties were just all nervous and bashful... well as nervous and bashful as they get!

Thimpu Traffic

Finally getting some of our Bhutan videos up as promised long ago. This is 2 of 10...

Thimpu is the capital of Bhutan. Like the rest Bhutan it is somewhat paradoxical. You are looking at the crossing of the 2 major streets. They tried putting in a traffic light in the 60's but no-one paid any attention so now the police do this amazing traffic control with a pair of white gloves. All the buildings were here - securities exchange, amazing post office (we got some brilliant stamps), little trading houses, tourist restaurents that haven't changed in 30 years since the country was first opened up. Lots of shops selling the normal things in civilisation... food, tools, clothes, buddhist supplies, ... what the?!.. yep! quite a few stores cater to the budding monk! different material for the Bho - the national dress. Just like Scotland the different regions have different colours and patterns. All very ordered in a sleepy kind of way. People weren't rushing. They chatted. Shopkeepers didn't hassle or harangue anybody (very unasian-like) - they were going to get your money but if they didn't ... well ... karma would provide... very Bhutanese!

Blokedom...

We were chatting the other day about non-gender specific baby raising... our little mate doesn't seem to bother with any of that PC stuff - he just goes straight to the gadgets, shiny bright things and loves watching machinery stuff - and driving seems to fit in well with that!!

Lazing on a Sunday afternoon...

Thursday nights I like to do some reading...
Fridays I go dancing in the Lounge..
I’m bound to be proposing on a Saturday night
But I’ll be lazing on a Sunday
... lazing on a Sunday
... lazing on a Sunday afterno-oon

Uncle Jezz rolls into town for a visit!! WOOHOO!! chance to get out and about and put down some styleee! I am looking too-o-o groovy in my overalls but hey! that's what it's all about! and now I have serious skillz in the furniture surfing department so luckily I can be slowed down with my new fave toy - an empty (all natural) deodorant bottle... !

Picturesque scene ahoy!

The little bloke loved the canoe... well... he loved sitting in mummy's lap anyway... and how cute is that little lifejacket?! ...can't wait to take our little mate fishing with his own little rod and reel. Dan

Brunswick Heads!!

Brunswick Heads is a magic spot and we used to go there quite a bit when I was into fishing in a a big way... but moutain biking is time consuming and it has been at least 2 years since we have got down here. T demanded a holiday so a week was spent sorting fishing gear and we were off! 4 days in bream paradise! This phot is a morning fishing session when the bream are most likely to hit surface lures - and hit they did! It was brilliant fun and good fishing trying out new techniques and experimenting with old ones. Dan

Look at those legs!!

After giving a nano-snuggle to Mum I scoot across with my best crawling technique to say hi to Dad!

Too young to be bird watching

...and I don't even want to start on Nicholas! We finally got out for another bushwalk yesterday - a day trip to Binna Burra. How happy does he look?! A great day was had and we luckily escaped the rain that set in for the day in Bris-Vegas. There were all sorts of things to look at (birds, trees, fungi, a few snakes - I wasn't called upon to kick any out of the way today!) and, when that was done, a comfy place for Nicholas to nap. Which is what we needed by the end of the day - just 12kms but we're out of condition and have a few tight spots today! - Teresa

Off to play school, horse in hand

Toxic Donkey in hand and comfy in his armrest laden front-facing chair, Nicholas was off to his first day at child care this week. How did it go....?

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Suspecting something was up he clung to me - resisting all offers of sandpits and nuts & bolts toys. Heartbreaking as it was, I left him with the lovely girls and at the centre that we'd visited a few times already. Although there were tears, he calmed quite quickly (so I'm told!) and played and ate and napped and ate with his new friends. Oops, did I say "ate" twice?!

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Nicholas will be going once a week until I return to work in May when he'll then attend two days. I've been lucky to line up my return to permanent work on a half fulltime basis so, together with Nanna's Day, the week will be well covered - enough for me for work and leaving plenty of time for play.

- Teresa a.k.a Mummy

Out with Uncle Ben

Uncle Ben came to town and caught up with us for lunch this week. Green shirts and jeans was the outfit du jour. Nicholas is pictured here having just enjoyed a good chew on the menu and smile exchange with Ben. Two wines for the two gentlemen? Pictures can be deceiving - the other glass of wine was for a much-in-need Mum sitting just out of view. So good. A well enjoyed lunch - delicious food, crisp dry wine and great company.

Check out my chompers

I now have 7 teeth... all of them sharp. All the better to eat... well... anything you put near me. I'm also pretty adept at this sucky sippy cup thingy. And I'm smiley - happy to be out with Mummy and Daddy at our local coffee spot, Retro Expresso.

... So there I was ...

... looking for adventure, having an explore, seeing who was out there to meet... when all of a sudden I had run out of cot and ... whoooosh! I was flying through the air - and kerplomp! I stopped at the floor using my noggin as a brake!!!

Well, what a surprise that was! ... but not nearly as much a surprise as it was for Mum and Dad when I let out a cracker of a scream early on a Sat morning! And soon adventure and new people were all around! - it was lovely to see the emergency room and the nurses all loved my big smile and I got lots of hugs ... sadly we didn't stay as the nice doctor said I was fine and could go home...

It was all rather fun but I am a little more tentative around cot railings - mainly 'cause Dad has made them higher!

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But the end of Mum and Dad's bed is still a good place to explore...!

Save me Mum!

The little fella was ok to a point about getting a hug from Dad who had just completed 8 hours of mountain bike race! Surprisingly he actually doesn't care about the smells...

Often when you come back from a run or ride he is always up for a snuggle and it doesn't seem to faze him at all ... though Mum is not keen when she has to feed a baby who has been held next to a grubby, sweaty Dad!

8 hours of dust and fun!

The first race of the season for me and it was a cracker... The Lunar C 8hr was an apt play on word sound if you haven't done any endurance training! Starting at midnight on Friday night and going thru to 8am the next morning around a very dusty 10km's or so of track. Us solo guys just took it easy for the night laps and hoped in the morning there was anything in the tank to keep going for the last daylight hours.

Here, Pete -who did well to get a podium in Masters - and I, come in for quick change of hydration packs/food/mechanicals in the early morning... I was well stuffed by 8am and was cramp managing for the last half of the race.

The midnight start is a fun concept and hope it will be back next year!

Who's got a cutie-cherub-head?

That's me!!

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Thanks, Golden, for the new cherub-head game, says Nicholas.

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Golden (pictured left) visiting also means that we get to catch up with Angie (pictured right) and The Nelsons who hosted a very pleasant sunset drinks and delicious meal on their deck this week.