What will 2012 bring....40C temperature, that's what!!

Happy New Year to you all!

We'll what another busy month!

Tom was due to have an operation on Monday 12th. He was going to have his tonsils removed, adenoids removed and his grommets replaced in each ear. However at the eleventh hour, well actually about twenty past three in the afternoon when he was in his gown and had been given his pre-op paracetamol when they came and told me that they were cancelling his operation. There had been an emergency and had to use the theatre for it. So we were offered  another date at the end of January which would of course been too late so they finally came up with a date at a different hospital the following Monday which went ahead just fine. Tom did really well and you would have barely known that he had been under the knife except for the fact that he was speaking like Alvin the Chipmunk for about ten days.

Christmas eve was a scorcher at 37C but Christmas day was a bit cooler so doing the Barby was not too uncomfortable. We had steaks and the others had huge prawns along with roasted veg and corn on the cob all on the Barby. It certainly cuts down on the amount of washing up!
After that and some present opening we went to the beach just because we could! Too easy mate!



Since the weather has been so good the kids have been in the pool at least once a day for the last month and they are swimming so well, we are really pleased. They just love the water so much but it is now the slightly more worrying bit where we have to watch out for their ability being passed by the over confidence. But to put your mind at rest, the pool is totally enclosed and we have very strict rules regarding being in the pool area which the kids observe well.
However the kids were worried that they had seen a couple of Crocs in the pool but we got it sorted!

Crocs sighted at West Beach!

 

Rachel and I had a couple of nights away between Christmas and new year whilst the kids were looked after by their Gran and Grandad which was lovely. On the drive down to the place we stayed at we saw some new road safety signs and I had to stop and photograph them as we couldn't quite believe them.





I know the Aussies have a habit for plain speaking but I don't quite think they would pass the Advertising Standards in the UK!








I thought this might make you smile. It is the Ant-ivenom fridge in the emergency department for all the horrible and nasty Australian things and I don't mean Rupert Murdoch!

The Anti-venom fridge.

For new year celebrations we took the kids along with Rob and Alison down to the beach to watch fireworks. They very considerately put on a display at 9.30 as well as midnight so the kids get to watch one and get to bed before they have a tiredness meltdown. There were lots of kids there all covered in glo-sticks and it was warm in both weather and atmosphere, a real family event.

After a lovely Christmas and new year with Rachel home for ten days, and Rob and Alison having left in early January, we suddenly realised that our Australian adventure was drawing to a close. It was time to begin the mundane process of packing up and shipping out. It is going to be sad to leave as we have made some lovely friends as have the kids but it will be wonderful to be in our own home and to get to see all our lovely family and friends again. I don't know where the year has gone!

So the next blog will be my final one as all good things must come to an end and I hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. I will include an appendix of the latin quotes for you.

I'm off to bed now to dream of my fair England where the grass is greenest.

Good night xx

In somnis veritas