Summer Holidays

Happy holidays, Happy New Year (better late than never)

It's just about time to go back to school again... so I thought I'd better leave some notes about my relaxing but still pretty full holidays. It's been really good.

Hasn't been so hot this year. Feels much more like a Minnesota summer than a subtropical Brisbane one - complete with plenty of mozzies :) In fact, I hear you Minnesotans have been trying to have a summer holiday at the same time as us this year! Good on ya! It looks to be lovely and green there - even greener than here!

We've been spending a lot of time with family. It seems somehow they're always around now since we've moved out to the suburbs and we're closer to a lot of family. It's really nice. There was a Christmas party and a Nanna's birthday and a Mum's birthday yesterday, and oh yeah - back on New Year's day we had a housewarming party at our own home. The first party we've actually ever thrown as a couple. (not counting a couple of weddings. :) Dan Bar-b-que'd and I played pregnant hostess and heaps of people hung out in our back yard ... and I think I've got some photos of that somewhere. Nikita was the star photographer of the day.

Nikita & Ali

Dan Lynam (eating), Wayne & Kate (admiring their baby), Paul and Thea Lynam (being cute bro and sis)

Dan (getting food), Bec & Jeremy (They just moved into a house walking distance from us!), Nanna Lynam's next to me

Auntie Pam and Uncle Rob (They live just around the corner from us too)

Sara-Ellen (cousin on the Smith side), Dominika & Dominic & Sebastian

So I guess I should detour for a moment to officially mention the really exciting news that many of you who read this blog already know. Yep, we're gonna have a baby :) Should show up sometime in the middle of August. At the moment I am 11 and 1/2 weeks along, and everything seems to be going really well. Had plenty of morning sickness (aka - morning, afternoon and all night yuckiness) just to prove that everything's growing as it should and we're both normal. Great stuff :) But I've been taking some Ginger & B6 vitamins since about week 8, and I've been feeling much better since then. Other than that, let's see... Baby Smith is now about 4 and 1/2 cm long - you do the conversions. She's tiny! No - we dont' know the boy-or-girlieness of the baby yet. But we do want to find out. We'll let you know whenever they tell us if they know for sure...but that'll probably still be a couple of months yet. The only thing we're keeping a secret is the name. We've got a few picked out, and they'll be a surprise. (to us too probably, as it's taking me a while to make up my mind - suprise, surprise!)

So I've been enjoying these quiet weeks off - mostly spending large chunks of time sleeping, eating and reading a wide variety of pregnancy books, mags, and websites. Trying to get my head around becoming a mother. incredibly exciting and a bit frightening.

But we have taken 2 little trips recently. One weekend we went camping (back to the site of the notorious snake and spider in the toilets episode. Needless to say, I did not visit that particular spot in the middle of the night this time.) It was really refreshing to just be outside and hang out with some friends. good times.

Wildlife everywhere....out in the bush. I took plenty of happy snaps of the roos, but didn't bother trying to take any photos of the Bandicoots that shuffled up after sundown. I'll just have to remeber what they looked like. Cute little things- about the size of pudgy housecats, with long pointy noses and little pointy ears. We tried desperately to spot a platypus too - apparently there were sightings by a couple of couples at the campsite that weekend. But we were not to be that lucky. I just think it's cool to know that one or two of those shy and bizzare little creatures was just a few short steps away from us - down in the muddy & somewhat dehydrated creek.

Then last week Dan and I spent a lazy 4 days up at the Sunshine Coast. We stayed in Caloundra at the Grand Pacific, hung out in the seaside town and beaches (Bulcock beach - which I think is hilarious!), and basically did a whole lot of indulgent nothing. Didn't even take photos. It was blissful :) And the gelato ice cream & sorbets at the little shop there are the best we've ever had.

And today is Australia Day, so we're off soon to celebrate in the classic way - at a bbq with friends. and lamb chops of course :)

Happy summer!