A week with Jony and Scarlett (Part 1, Liffey Falls)
For the past week we were lucky enough to have my sister, Scarlett, and her husband, Jony, visit. Jony cam e down to do the electrical rough in on the house and Scarlett came down to see me (she probably came down just to see Chloe we will pretend that it was to see me.
There is so much about Tassie that Eden loves (though he is not loving the wind while he is trying to get the roof up) and at times he sounds like a tourism ad for the state. He wants those who visit Tassie to see how great it is too (fingers crossed they might move down). The weather turned pretty poor when they arrived but Eden still managed to show Scarlett and Jony some of the sights.
We went to Liffey Falls for the second time in a week and a half. I don't mind as it is a lovely walk and close to home (though the windy roads tend to make the trip there less then fun) and Chloe loves it. As we walk down she runs down the track collecting treasures and does not want to hold any ones hand.
Last week when we went to Liffey Falls with my Dad the weather was warm and Chloe didn't mind having a splash in the water though this time with the chill in the air she had other ideas!
A week with Pa
We were lucky enough to get to spend a week with my Dad/Pa. It was nice having another face from home around. I was worried that Chloe wouldn't remember him but she did, though her running around showing off for the first half an hour that she saw him showed that while she knew him he was still a bit novel.
Dad was happy to just hang out though we did manage to drag him around a bit. We went to Ashgrove Cheese Factory, Anvers Chocolate Factory, Liffy Falls, Bakers Beach, City Park and big old Del City but mostly we hung out at home and at our 'new home'.
Dad is fanatic about having sharp knives (he even happened to be sharpening a knife when Eden asked him if he could marry me). I remember growing up that even attempting to sharpen a knife with a steal was out of the question (as we would inevitably blunten it). I love having sharp knives to cook with and had sometimes taken my knives to Dad to sharpen but never thought to ask him to show me how until I had already moved down. So when he was down we stayed up one night and I became the diligent student in the art of knife sharpening (with a stone and all). So far there has only been one little casualty and it has been me (having worked with blunt knives for a couple of months I got into some silly habits because I knew that there was no way I could be cut but I think I have learnt my lesson now) and it is more like a graze but I am a huge wimp and am still wearing a band aid two days on even though it never really needed one. But it is definitely worth it to know who to sharpen knives.
The morning after Dad left Chloe realised that she hadn't seen him yet and said "Pa" as if she was asking where he was. I guess we will just have to rely of Skype until we head up to the bid smoke in a couple of months.
So Dad, thanks for coming down to see us, for sharp knives and the know how, for hanging out and for all your help.
xx
There's a house with a roof (well sort of)
Eden has finished putting up the trusses on out house and as I type is working hard at getting the roof on while the weather is good (though it just got a bit windy so we cut lunch short so he could get back up there as some very large sheets were only tacked on). He was hoping to be a little further along with the roof but the sheets that were suppose to arrive on Thursday morning didn't get here until late yesterday but at least it gave him a chance to finish off a bunch of little boring jobs that so often get pushed back. Hopefully in a week or two I can show you what the house looks like with a finished roof.
Oh and thank you Nick for painting our fence nice and white, another one of those jobs that had been put off and is a bit too messy for a mummy with a very quick toddler at her side.
My new favorite color
Red is my new favorite color.
When I arrived in
Tassie it was the end of the
raspberry season and thought that I would have to wait a whole year to enjoy these yummy berries. Lucky for me some flowers made an appearance a couple of weeks ago and have been checking the greenhouse almost on a daily basis (I know, desperate). I went out a few days ago to get some strawberries with Chloe (she thinks the hot house is only there to provide her with strawberries and cucumbers, one day she will
realise it is only there to provide me with
raspberries :) and I noticed that there were some ripe
raspberries. I had to control myself and not pick everything that showed the slightest ting of red.
Here is what we ended up with, minus the handful that Chloe ate (I think I have got some competition as far as the
raspberries are concerned).
And this is what we did with them which brings me to my second favorite color. A five minute drive from where we live is
The Christmas Hills Raspberry Farm Cafe which make these delicious chocolate covered
raspberries (for around $5 for 100g- Eden and I have indulged a few times) which I had a go at making. They turned out just the same as the
Cafe's ones and were eaten just as quickly.
You probably all think that I am a nut job for obsessing over
raspberries but they truly are a heavenly food. I often tell Eden that being able to grow
raspberries in Tasmania and not
Sydney was the
draw card in getting me to move down. He thinks I am joking.
Baker Beach
Yesterday afternoon Eden finished work early (4:30ish) and we went to Bakers Beach to show Dad some of Tasmania but mostly so that Eden could have a swim/fish. Eden hadn't been there since he was a teenager and it had changed a bit so after a bumpy drive on dirt roads looking for the beach we settled for a small shelly shore.
I was worried that Chloe would get bored easily but she did not care that there was no sand to play with and I think that she sat in this spot for at least fifteen minutes having fun sorting through the shells, collecting treasures.
I got a bit shutter happy and took some 230 photos while on our short outing. Lots of a grubby little girl, a handsome merman and a doting Pa but most were just playing (as it is so easy to do with digital cameras and large memory cards). Here are a few playing photos.
Eddison Point (better late then never)
Last Thursday Eden decided that the weather on the weekend looked great and decided that he wanted to go to Eddison Point to get some crayfish and abalone (?), so off to Eddision point we went. He managed to convince Levi and Louise (though it didn't take much to convince Levi), Jared and Becky, Sam, Ben and Laurie to come along as well. We didn't get there until about 6pm on Friday night but the boys still managed to get wet and even catch (not that you have to catch them) some abalone to go with our dinner. It was windy and cool at the beach and I can't believe how long they stayed in the water though they keep trying to convince us that it was warmer in there then up on the beach (even if that is the case you still have to get out out some stage and that's the part I don't like).
While the boys were swimming Chloe enjoyed playing on the sand, chasing the seagulls and patting William on the head.
While we were at the beach we saw a couple of rainbows and one was part of a really beautiful sunset but I am afraid that I am no Steve Parish so you will just have to believe me (or look at Louise's blog).
We only stayed one night which was a bit of a drag as it was a long drive and setting up a tent for one night seems like such a waste. However I think the Ben, Sam and Laurie (who are all childless) were only too thankful. Kelsea would have to take the award for being the
Best Behaved Little Camper at Night. I think William was great for his age and I know Chloe could have been worse so I'm just thankful for that.
The next morning the boys went fishing again. The water was too enticing for both Kelsea and Chloe and they both ended up without their pants on as a result of sitting in the very wet sand and walking a bit too close to the water. It was a good look walking back to camp with jumpers, nappies, boots and chubby little thighs where pants should be (I would have a photo but the camera battery was flat).
After lunch we packed up camp and went to the boat ramp for some more fishing. The boys were determined to get the elusive crays that they had been unable to get their hands on. In the end the crays were untouchable (this time) but we did come home with lots of abalone for dinner.
On the way home Chloe slept the whole three hours and it was great to spend some time just talking with Eden (a rare thing these days). It was nice to get out for the weekend and especially nice for Eden to get a break for the house that he is working so tirelessly on.
For the past week we were lucky enough to have my sister, Scarlett, and her husband, Jony, visit. Jony cam e down to do the electrical rough in on the house and Scarlett came down to see me (she probably came down just to see Chloe we will pretend that it was to see me.
Last week when we went to Liffey Falls with my Dad the weather was warm and Chloe didn't mind having a splash in the water though this time with the chill in the air she had other ideas!
Scarlett and Jony
Chloe having a well deserved drink after walking (and running) for so much of the trip.
