May 22 - A Lesson in Art

We went into the city to check out the National Gallery. They have a couple of little art activities that the children can do each month. I think this month they were talking about the textiles of the Greeks. The kids were supposed to make either a belt or a cape. Lilly took a piece of fabric and attached everything she could find on our table. We discovered the stapler to be the best way to adhere all the extras.




Lilly and I walked down the river to go to a play park. I was surprised to run into a small beer festival. I took a couple of pictures but couldn't take Lilly in to see what was going on. I didn't think security would like it if I asked them to keep an eye on Lilly. So we just went to the play park and I let Lilly play for a bit.



On our way back to the train station we stumbled on another festival of sorts. We were able to see singer Archie Roach from basically the front row. I had to look up the actual event was and it was sponsored by The Long Walk - a charity that highlights issues related to Indigenous Australians.

May 17 - A Little Accident

Lilly liked to take her scooter to Kinder. We would leave her scooter at school and then she would ride it home. On this day, we ran into a little problem. It was the pavement. I ended up carrying the scooter and Lilly home. I didn't make it all the way with both of them. I told Lilly I had to drop the scooter or her. She was very upset but as soon as I got her home I went back and got the scooter (at least I made it to the apartment complex so I didn't have to leave her by herself).



She doesn't even like to have ice on her wounds so it was an interesting time trying to get her to settle down.



I was worried about her teeth as she busted her gums. It took a month before I stopped worrying because the inside of her mouth was still bruised.



It all could have been a lot worse. And at the end of the day, she was still happy.

May 13 - Happy Birthday to Me

We went for another drive on my birthday. We didn't have anywhere we had to be so we went to check out some scrapbook stores and I thought we would go to the Dandenongs, a mountain range about an hour away from the city. Of course, the weather wasn't bad but it got a bit wet somewhere in there.

First stop a scrapbook store. We had to go around the block for this one as we passed it and were looking in the wrong direction.



Second stop - Sky High Mt. Dandenong. I think the gardens were free, but we had to pay to park. And the guy was a little vague when we asked questions about the garden and what was at the top. Well, we figured out why when we got to the top. You are supposed to be able to see the city from the observatory and this is the view we got:



I think the guy was afraid to say there were no views cause then we wouldn't pay to park in the lot. So we tried walking around a bit. There was supposed to be a trail to walk on and we kept seeing signs for it but they just kept leading us to different levels of the parking lot. It was very frustrating. So instead we made a wish at the wishing tree and moved on . . .



And went on to two more scrapbook stores . . .




And to end the day, Emily, Lilly and I went for dinner and cake at the home of a good friend of mine. Not too shabby!

May 12 - Run into the City

I went through to check out some stuff in the blog and I realized I never did announce that the family has received our Permanent Residency here in Australia. In fact, we received it two days before Seth left the country. What does this mean for us? Not much. We don't have to renew Seth's work visa or if he quits his job, we don't have to leave. And I guess we can come in and out of the country pretty easily. People ask if we are going to get our Australian Citizenship, but we don't know. I know if you get that you HAVE to vote - they have a fine if you don't vote. That would mean I would need to learn a little more about the government and I'm already confused enough just by the council set up.

Anyway, that was the reason I needed to get my Australian licence (that isn't a spelling error, i swear). So while Emily was here I had my appointment to go get my actual licence. Well, to pay for it anyway and get the picture taken. We dropped Lilly off at Kinder and took the tram towards the city. I had my paperwork all filled out and the appropriate forms and identification and that was it. They gave me a temp piece of paper and said the new one would arrive in about a week. Nothin' to it.

We had a few hours to spare before getting Lilly so we headed to the National Gallery of Victoria. I figured I could show her some Aboriginal Art since the art trail we walked through wasn't the clearest. We spent some time looking around and then headed up to an exhibit put on by some graduating art students. There were some impressive displays. I would post some pictures but I don't have the names of the artists so I'll leave those out this time. And yes, I don't have any of the names but I figured you'd want to see a picture or two.




Can I just add that for some reason we were just late this day? We had to rush to get to my appointment and then when it was time to pick up Lilly, I was late again. I had to run from the train to her Kinder. We were getting to comfortable with our relaxed schedule.

May 11 - Trip to Phillip Island

Tuesday was the best day to make a trip out to Phillip Island to see the penguins. Although it would make for a late night and Lilly had Kinder in the morning, we took our chance and hoped she would sleep in the car on the way home (wishful thinking on our part, who were we kidding?).

On the drive to the Island we thought we would check out some scrapbook stores. I mapped out three and we set out on our way. We saw a lot of stores that week so I can't even remember which ones were good. I just have all the pictures and I'll have to check them out again some time.





It seems that whenever I get out to Phillip Island the weather doesn't cooperate and this day was no exception. On the way out it rained. Big huge black clouds appeared and so did the rain. BUT, we see lots of rainbows down here and Emily got to see one and it was a good one.



We went to the Nobbies which is where you are supposed to be able to see fur seals but I've never seen one from there. It's always very windy when I go. We took a picture of the three of us but it came out quite dark. I could probably fix it but I don't know if you would be able to recognize us because we look like three Medusas with our hair all wild and crazy. So here's one as the sun was starting to head down.



And of course we went to see the penguin parade. You aren't allowed to take pictures of the actual even although I should have taken a picture of all the people who were there. Because it was just us. There are two stadiums and everyone sat on one side and we sat on the other so we could get really close to where the penguins walk. It was cold and rainy but we sat there for a long time waiting for the penguins and then at least an hour while they paraded up the beach. The little penguins are just so cute (these guys used to be called fairy penguins, now they are just little, take a second and look them up, they really are quite small, I mean, little). Emily was able to sneak a shot (without a flash) inside the visitors center. Shhhhh!

May 10 - Happy Late Mother's Day to Me

Lilly didn't go to Kinder last week since we went to Brisbane so we missed the Mother's Day Tea. This Monday was her first day back so she was able to get a present from me from the Mother's Day Stall. I love when she picks something out for me.



The hand soap went immediately in the downstairs bathroom where Lilly is the one who is most likely to use it.

Lowe's (in the US) has wonderful programs for the kids on the weekends where they can build neat little wooden projects. They've done treasure boxes, helicopters, coin bank and many others. I took Lilly to our local store called Bunnings and they also have weekend programs. When we went, Lilly painted a board from a picket fence. And then sprinkled glitter on it. Needless to say, Lowe's has a better program and Emily has brought some of the projects over. She helped Lilly make a jewelry stand while she was here.

May 9 - To Market, To Market

Sundays are relatively lazy days around here. Although I have noticed that there are a lot of cities who hold their markets on Sundays and community groups hold their fetes (usually like a fund raising carnival or market) then as well. We hopped onto the tram to the city and then down to St. Kilda. Not only could we hit an art market but also the beach and Luna Park.

We didn't really take pictures at the market but here are some of the beach and the park:



The large wooden coaster in the background is interesting. The driver rides in the middle of the cars standing up. I'll try to get a picture next time we head down there.



I can't leave without some fairy floss (AKA cotton candy)!



You can imagine how many shells a 4 year old puts in her pocket when we see this many!