10 years in Australia

Today is the 10th anniversary of the day Rob and I arrived to live in Australia. Back then Rob had a shaved head and I sported a short spiky bleached thing. We had just finished 4 months travelling across the US, the Cook Islands and New Zealand, and carried no more than a backpack each. At the time we knew we were here for the Millenium and the Sydney Olympics (both staggeringly memorable events) but I'm not sure we knew we'd still be sitting here 10 years on. We've lived in 6 different houses, had 4 different jobs - Rob 9 years at IBM and now at QBE, me at New Woman and the The Sydney Morning Herald. We've managed trips to San Francisco, New York, Connecticut, England, Scotland, Italy, Cape Town, New Caledonia, Bali, Lombok, Cambodia, Vietnam, New Zealand, some more than once or twice. We've learned to sail and sailed ourselves around the Whitsundays twice, we've dived on the Great Barrier Reef, driven up and down the east coast of Australia, finding a favourite beach and town along the way and popped to the big red centre to look at the rock. We've paid high taxes, but discovered the hard way they were taxes worth paying, as we've seen inside more hospital rooms that anyone should in a lifetime and came out not just alive but highly impressed with the level of care. We found property here is an expensive as London, which is why winning the lottery forms most of our long-term financial plan. We've eaten amazing food, drunk fine wine and been invited to some brilliant parties. We've made fantastic friends and more than doubled our circle thanks to many of us having children around the same time. And best of all we have produced two beautiful dinky di Aussies of our own, born in the same hospital room, who couldn't love each other more than we love them, and who are beach-loving, water babies. Here's to the next 10 years, may they be as happy and lucky.

It ain't over till it's over...

And it was over at 7am on Sunday morning. I even got up at 5am to watch the game and it was worth it to see Percy being pushed over the barrier into the cameraman. We are no longer the world champions. There, Rob. I said it.

We started the week at a spectacular 10-course French/Japanese wine-matched dinner at Sushi-e. One of a programme of special dinners planned as part of Good Food Month. We had a brilliant night with James and Amelia, sans children, that made me feel young again. It was a proper late night with too many cocktails, too much champagne and too much wine, lots of laughs and good conversation. Well, as good as conversation can be after all that. On Saturday night after a hot day at the pool, Melissa and Larry, Giles and Megan came over, with assorted children, for take out pizza and gelato. Megan and Giles's kids are 6 and 8 and spent the evening happily entertaining Scarlett and Lotus while the growns sat around catching up. We also had a short period of children's entertainment where the best joke, song and acrobatics performances were fiercely competed for. Scarlett and I did our death-defying balancing act. Talk about feel old again. I remember when I was the kids' entertainment at my parents' parties. The purchase of a badminton set, boules, mini golf, frisbee and boomerang, all for $15, also guaranteed children were very much taken care of for the evening.

On Sunday, with the mercury climbing to 30 degrees we set out for Bondi, the famous beach/car park. It was packed and is not a place we would normally head to on a weekend but our mates Kate and Bill, who moved back to Perth a couple of years ago, were in town for the weekend for a wedding, and Bondi is their old stomping ground. From there we hit the pool to cool off, Flo had her first swim of the season and we noticed how very long limbed Scarlett is. All this activity was enough to take my mind off the rugby. Four more years, boys. Four more years.

Let's go England, let's go

I feel so guilty that being English I always expect we will lose. But in the words of, oh that's right, me 'Of course we are the world champions'. It's much better that way because then we are amazed and thrilled in equal part. The Aussies have quite a different take on all forms of competitive sport from kids cricket to professional rugby - you play to win and if you don't win, you should be taken into the street and flogged. Not many people realise that since losing to England last week the entire Wallabies squad has been executed.

The hardest part about all this victory, is that it's all happening in the middle of the night here. In 2003, the World Cup was held right here so we could watch all the games live. This time around I have to wait until morning to read results on line or wait for Rob to come in from a night shift and guess from the look on is face who has won. Florence started celebrating as soon as her Weetbix was finished. Scarlett watched The Wiggles.

While Jonny was kicking us into the final I was sleeping off the several champagnes I slurped in honour of my friend Jacqui's 40th last night. Having missed out on the celebrations for Moira's, Fraser's, Liz's and Sarah's this year, it was nice to join in at last. It was a great party, held at Jacqui's parents lovely north shore house. I got to catch up with my friends from work I haven't seen for months and by the sound of it, I couldn't have timed my maternity leave better. The last round of redundancies have left the paper understaffed and morale is low it would seem.

October is Good Food Month in Sydney so last Wednesday we squashed children into prams and jumped on the tram into the city for the Night Noodle Markets, meeting up with Julia and Ella and Uncle Brett. It's a top night, with about 50 fantastic south-east Asian food stalls in a lantern lit park, DJs, a bar and dance floor.

Anyway, to the final - c'mon England - show us your tackle.

Wigstock Oct 2007

Wigstock is here again. And they're getting younger, people.

Here we see Scarlett modelling a cool '70s style, reminiscent of a young Shaft. Not to miss out on the action, Florence wrestles for control of the hairpiece to create her version of the climatic scene from Hair.

Oh Jonny....

Jonny, Jonny, Jonny, Jonny Wilkinson. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. Once again, England don't get to play the All Blacks. Why is that again, Rob?
Oh, that's right because, they got kicked out last night. It's like 2003 all over again.

In other news, we had a blast from the past this week when Rob's old mate from NZ and later London, Darryn Cherry turned up in Sydney for a night. I ended up missing him completely as he arrived at our house for a drink way passed my bedtime, but Rob stayed up until the early hours with Darryn and girlfriend Rachel, reminiscing about happy days in NZ and London. Here they are checking in on a sleepy Scarlett.

After a week of fabulous weather, with some days in the low 30s, we invited mates Sam and Christy and Melissa and Larry over for a lunch in the garden alongwith assorted children. A sudden change in the weather sent us all indoors, grabbing plates and wine glasses as we went. It seems we fared well as on the harbour boats were blown off moorings and skiffs were overturned. Today it's beautiful again.

Now Florence is sitting up, it's opened up a whole new world for both Flo and Scarlett and they have started doing things together. Flo's favourite thing is to be plonked on a rug with a box of lego between her knees. Scarlett sits with her and builds stuff while Flo looks on adoringly. Scarlett has also taken to feeding her in her highchair. We'll have her babysitting soon.