+ a day at the farm +

After a phenomenal night's sleep, with no waking from jetlag through the night, we made our way out to the farm (Danny's brother's in-laws) this morning for another play & visit. This has been one place that I have been dreaming of coming back to while we have been far away in Utah. There is nothing quite like a cotton farm with fields stretching for miles. I was also dying to see our boys trying out the grand fort that Scott & Ainz have built. It exceeded my expectations & the boys loved it! 

We got to read lots of books, mediate been a few fights & have loads of kisses & cuddles. Just what I was dreaming of all the way over in America!

Danny got to fulfill his dreams & play farmer with his brother, driving the tractor while Scott harvested some sorghum with the header. He decided after an hour that he wanted to quit his stressful job & go farming. Of course we all know that farming comes with its own type of stress but for Danny this morning, it was just what the doctor ordered.

A lovely day...



:: some lost days... ::

We got to fly in one of the amazing painted Qantas planes!

Sorry for my absence but I do believe that losing a day in the air is a good reason for not posting. We arrived at Danny's parents house about 30 hours after we started travelling, feeling very tired but happy to be here. It is all so green & so deliciously familiar. It is just so wonderful to be somewhere where I know the streets & where to go to get whatever we need. It is something that you take for granted when you have been living somewhere for a long time.

The plane trip went well. We had no screaming fits or meltdowns in the air. Jamin watched non stop dvds for about 8 hours, only stopping for 5 hours sleep because Danny forced him. Taking the car seat for Kael was a great idea, especially when Oma created a little cubby house for him so that he could sleep. It was so wonderful to have an extra set of hands. We could get used to that kind of travel! Saying that, it is still an exhausting 30 hours that I could do without but this was definately the best one so far.

We had wonderful reunions with my sister & Danny's brother, Scott, Ainsley & their 3 boys. I got to meet Eli for the first time & had some very special cuddles with him & his older brothers. Jamin & Isaiah are two little peas in a pod & have finally grown up enough to play without getting into punchups after 2 minutes. Kael & Jai both have these gorgeous little cheeky smiles that must be some shared gene. Yes, I do wonder what they will get away with whilst flashing those smiles at us.



Jai, Eli & I - happy Aunty Al!

Must go & have a short nap now, It's 2 o'clock here & we are all fading. But it will only be a quick 15 minutes... I promise!

:: off we go! ::

Our bags are almost packed & we are on the last few hours countdown until we leave for the airport. Danny has just returned from his last morning snowboarding for a couple of months, the only sad thing about leaving the winter behind here. I elected not to go based on my rate of injury these past couple of months. Can you think of anything worse than sitting on a plane with 2 little boys nursing some kind of snowboarding injury? I can't, the fun of the morning would not be worth that pain!

We have a bag of toys but are mostly going to be relying on our two, yes 2, iPads. Oma brought hers along to visit & it has been in hot demand by our two boys who are developing their own taste in apps. Every night in the lull between dinner & bedtime they have some time sitting with Dad playing games, watching movies & learning the way of the future. 

So say a prayer for us on the plane & we will see you all on the other side of the world Tuesday morning!

{this moment}

 A time in our lives that I don't want to forget...

The reality of winter...

Park City, Utah

:: wintery walks ::

Last week we had a break in the below zero weather, as in it reached maybe 6'C. This felt so warm to me that we headed out of the house & our self imposed exile to visit our local park. Jamin rode his bike, which needs some adjusting, he must have grown a bit taller in the last few months & I squeezed Kael into the pram in his snow suit. 

Riding past the swimming pool we noticed that it was filled & mostly frozen over. The slide also has some ice at the bottom. Pretty funny thing to see we thought!

Kael got out of the pram & attempted to walk. Being so wrapped up in clothes doesn't do much for his sense of balance but he keeps trying. Jamin is no longer wearing a helmet because he starting throwing a hissy fit that it was so cold. The best I could do was pull his hood up & hope that the helmet police didn't see. By the way, did you know that its not even illegal for motorbike riders to ride without a helmet. Something about Americans wanting to keep their civil rights. So I don't think they would care about a kid not wearing a helmet on a bike path but the Mummy in me felt guilty...

The very icy swings. We didn't stay long, it was just too cold, but we did enjoy getting out in the fresh air & seeing our favourite places covered in snow. I just can't wait till spring arrives!

:: raw food ::

My Mum & Sister-in-law, Lara, have been exploring the raw food movement for the last couple of months & Mum has been catching me up on some of the things they are learning over her visit. If you want to get the basics have a look at the page about Raw Foodism on Wikipedia.

I am interested & open to new ways of eating & cooking but have the challenge of catering to my husband, who prefers meat & 3 vegetables, & 2 somewhat fussy eaters. Some nights all 3 of them flatly refuse to eat what I have lovingly prepared, the last recipe being a vegetarian curry. I figure if all 3 of them claim that its inedible then majority rules & they can have toast. 

When a local friend found out that Mum was interested in raw food she mentioned Omar's Rawtopia, a restaurant in downtown Salt Lake City. Mum was very keen to check it out so we decided to wait till a child-free day & then venture down. 

The menu was interesting. Although the meals had names that were recognisable, they looked very different when they appeared on the table. The first photo was of Raw Pasta on the left & Pizza on the right. I had a moment of feeling quite dubious when the meals appeared but pushed forward with bravery... and was well rewarded! It was on of the most amazing taste sensations that I have experienced. Different but not too different to be undeserved of being called a pasta dish. 

Mum loved it!

And finally... dessert!

A chocolate, vanilla Creme Pie with raspberry sauce & blueberries.

It was amazing!

So although I cannot say that I am an instant convert to the raw food lifestyle I had a very positive experience & will piggyback on any good recipes that Mum & Lara discover along the way. If I find an especially good one I might just share it here, ok?!

< jamin's first ski >

It's official! Jamin has inherited his Dad's natural athletic ability & my unwavering confidence when it comes to learning new sports. Danny & I have decided that it really is the best combination of our abilities & couldn't be prouder of our little 3 year old!! 

We headed up to Solitude on Sunday morning with our good friend Valerie who had volunteered to teach Jamin to ski. Jamin was very very excited & jumped right into the skis & off he went. 

Our little family at the foot of the beginner slope. Jamin is learning how to walk in the skis. Kael is still having a lot of trouble walking in his snow boots so he just hangs out. 

Heading straight up the lift. He loved looking out at the trees & the other people skiing although he did want to be on Mummy & Daddy's chair.

Here's his first ski down the slope. He has an amazing sense of balance & was pretty comfortable going at a medium pace. We were all pretty impressed.

Jamin saw Danny jump a few times on his snowboarding to get himself moving so guess who started jumping on his skis? Yes, he definitely is our little boy & no, he didn't even fall over (unless you count this one in the video which he does on purpose)!

By this point Kael was all kipped out, so him & Oma took a break & Kael had a little sleep. Apparently he attracted a lot of attention & conversation about kids skiing.

This video is one of Jamin's best stacks & he got up laughing. I think he is pretty used to hearing about us going skiing & coming home hurt from falling over.

This last photo is one of our favourites from the morning. He keeps talking about how "we are going to go skiing lots of times now, hey Mum?".  Not sure how Danny & I are going to get away to go snowboarding on our own anymore...