SO MUCH FUN.

The post Min and Dray – Newcastle, NSW appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

The post adventure session on cockatoo island appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

The post An elephant in the snow appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

One of the things I love about Yarrangobilly Caves is the solitude.  I’ve only been there twice, so I’m not a frequent visitor, but both times there have only been one or two other small groups there, and no-one in the caves at the same time with us.  If you’re thinking of visiting, obviously dress warmly, take some water in with you, and if you have small children (say, under ten) try headlamp torches rather than hand held.  There are some quite steep steps inside the cave system, and the rails can be a little slippery from the moisture inside.

Spot the small children….

The post Yarrangobilly Caves appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

We managed a trip to the Mt Selwyn snowfields.  Arlo hadn’t seen snow since he was 2 (and never snowfall), and his friend had never seen it at all.  Although cold, it had been sunny and clear in Tumut, and on the mountains, for the week before we arrived, so we were very lucky that on our way up to Mt Selwyn it starting to snow softly.  We pulled over and opened the windows, upholstery be damned, to let the boys catch snow flakes and hear that peculiar muffled semi-silence that accompanies snow.  They caught flakes in their hands, we discussed how snow flakes form, and of course the boys tasted it.

Last time we went to Tumut, the season had not quite started, and although we drove all the way to Jindabyne, we were unable to do anything more than throw a few measly snowballs.  This trip, we hired toboggans, made a snow man (he was a bit special, was our Snow Vader), and pelted each other with snowballs.  My camera stayed safely wrapped in a plastic bag. And Arlo enjoyed monitoring the temperatures in the car thermometer – he worked out the point at which the reading would start flashing, which was the warning to beware of ice on the road.

Next time we head to the snow, I think there will be skiing involved for all of us!

The post Snow Vader appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

His punny self realised that if you remove the X, Sixth becomes Sith, and so we hosted Arlo’s Sith Birthday Party.  Instead of a cake, I decided – in a moment of insanity – to make Star Wars character biscuits, after searching for themed party ideas.  I cribbed from these amazing biscuits made by someone who actually knows what she’s doing.  Mine were recognisable, once you knew the general theme.  Before you see my poor attempts, you should go and check out Sweet Sugar Belle’s actually awesome Star Wars iced biscuits/cookies. They are out of this world amazing.

With only a few days to plan, coming up with Star Wars birthday party ideas was not so easy.  I bought some metallic crepe paper for decorations, and a large Star Wars poster so we could play Pin The Lightsabre On Luke Skywalker.  I even spent half an hour cutting cardboard lightsabres out for all the kids.  We didn’t get around to playing the game, as all the kids were too busy having light sabre fights in the back yard.

For food, we had the usual party food, but I made a couple of Star Wars pizzas which were not at all Pinterest worthy, but the kids loved them.

This year, the party plan is *much* simpler.  But last year’s party was a lot of fun, despite the long hours it took to make and ice the biscuits!

Oh look, here’s Madeline from The Things We Do and The Places We Go!

The post Star Wars birthday party appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

The post Port Macquare appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

The post My boys appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

In those days, I say as a crotchetty old broad, the only contact we had was one email a day, because of time differences.  There was no broadband internet, and Skype and Facebook would not exist for several years yet.  The few phonecalls we made were plagued by the dreaded time lag, or static, and were too expensive to spend more than a few minutes talking.  So email was our chosen form of communication, and it really allowed a richness of description that I don’t think would have been there otherwise.  One of the things that came through loud and clear was his affection and respect for the family he spent so much time with.  I have all those emails printed out somewhere, since hotmail does not have my 12-years-old email archives.

Back in 2005, he travelled again to the States and this time I was able to go with him, and I, too, was introduced to the marvels of reading at B&N into the wee hours.  Australia doesn’t work like this – very few stores stay open that late, and there is no model for a book shop that moonlights as a reading room for books you’ve not bought and are not intending to buy.

Best of all, of course, was that I was introduced to this beautiful family.

Fast forward to 2012, when I was invited to the wedding of the younger daughter, Raquel.  Arlo was ‘adopted’ by the extended family on the day, gaining some new aunts and cousins (as though he doesn’t have enough cousins already!), and we both had a blast (Mark was tied up with work and couldn’t be there, but he managed to visit a few weeks later).

It was Raquel and Tyler’s first anniversary last week – happy anniversary to you guys in Sioux City, all the way from Newcastle!  Can’t believe it’s been a year already…. how time flies!  Miss you all xox

Photos from the wedding… the first few are from the day before the wedding.  I love the light in North America, so different from home!

Oh, Ella!

Three beautiful generations of girls here, and I luff them all!

Maureen’s got her bag and her glasses, let’s get this show on the road!

Arlo’s crew for the weekend:

I don’t usually adorn my child with a crown for special events, but I think the effect is tamed somewhat by the pirate tattoo.

Wanna know what made them laugh so uproariously?  Yeah, that’s right: I used my best Aussie accent and said I was going to throw another shrimp on the barbie.  I’M NOT ASHAMED.  I’d do it again.

It was Cinco de Mayo, so there were just a few excited people downtown…

Wrong guy, Raquel!

Uh, I think that’s cheating, you guys…

The post Sioux City wedding appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.

The post Sioux City, and legs appeared first on What Xanthe Saw.