Thanksgivukkah....

It's what you get when you cross Hanukkah with Thanksgiving!

We have shared four Thanksgiving with our lovely friends here in Austrilia. They again put together a lovely feast and this year we were able to enjoy a little Hanukkah fun too.  The evening included; lighting the Menorah, gifts for the kids, latkes, dreidel, the Thanksgiving feast, followed by swimming and dessert and many fun chats. Success!  

From my phone - the last two months

Sick kids .

Annmarie painting....with a turkey.

Playing dress up with my dress. Sticker fun. Smile. Helping this turtle go around the world.

This boy.

Said boy is good at being two - car park disputes are always fun (umm, no). Beach fun. Checking out the new view. Readers.

Walking home from dinner. Inspecting a stick bug on the soccer ball.

New street. New house. Sunset. So big.

He cleans up well. At some fancy Melbourne Cup party.

Lovely lunch in Balmoral with these lovely ladies.

Jamie saw John Butler and he can be seen in the check shirt. Picture posted by the venue peeps.

And I'll just add Halloween to mix. Halloween is just starting to catch on here, so of course I went all out on costumes (umm, no). Ben is the moon and we went through Annmarie's toys after school and went with a pirate. There was no complaints - win win.

xx

California

We went to California so long ago now. I have no idea how to write this up, so it's just going to be a matter of fact type of post - bullet points. I tried keeping notes on my phone of what we did, so I'm going with those. I also didn't take a whole lot of pictures. So backing up a bit, like most things for us lately, the trip just happened. We had already booked Bali and we were not really planning on going back to the US until the Christmas holidays. However as things started shaping up, it worked out best to go when Annmarie had her two week spring holiday and she would only have to miss four days of school and we would be gone for three weeks. So off we went.

The flight. Loooooong.
This is torture. You see basically the same blue screen the entire flight.
Ben did the opposite of great. Annmarie was fine.
I didn't sleep like at all. It was long.

Day One.
My Dad picked us up at the airport.
We got settled.
Jamie went to visit his grandfather.
We had Mexican for dinner. Yum
(this is how I wrote my notes)

Day two.
We visited with Papa.
Jamie went for a run with his buddies.
Pizza for dinner.

Day three.
Another visit with Papa.
Annmarie has a sleepover with Grandma and Papa.
Thai for dinner with Bonnie
(yes, I kept track of what we ate for dinner every night)

Day four
Jamie and Ben watch football together.
Breakfast with Grandma and Papa.
Lots of shopping.
Chipotle for dinner over at Terry's.

Day five.
Jamie works.
Little farm.
Dinner at home - spaghetti.
Annmarie has a sleepover with Grandma and Papa.

Day six.
Jamie works.
Ben and I go out for Brekky
Hang out. Relax
Meet up with Uncle Jon and Papa Tom
Annmarie has a sleepover at Jon's.
Back Forty takeaway for dinner (ribs)

Day seven.
Cathy is back from France.
Ben and I visit with Cathy.
AM and Jamie hang out with Papa Tom and Jon and go swimming.
Dinner - Mexican in Concord. Yum. We really really miss Mexican food.

Day eight
Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkley.
Sushi for dinner.

Day nine.
Jamie and I have a day date in SF. Oysters at the Ferry Building. A good coffee - finally. Shopping.
Grandparents look after the kids.
Dinner at Burma Super Star with Bonnie and Glenn.

Day ten.
Jamie goes to Giants game.
Dinner over at Jamie's Aunt and Uncle.

Day eleven.
Hang out. Watch football at home.
Annmarie sleepover with Grandma and Papa.
Homemade hamburgers for dinner.

Day twelve.
Jamie works.
AM and I meet up with a friend from Oz.
AM is not feeling well.
Takeaway Chipotle for dinner.

Day thirteen.
Jamie works.
Ben and I meet up with a old friend from work.
AM still not well.
Chinese takeaway for dinner.

Day fourteen.
Jamie works.
Hang out with Grandma and Papa.
Thankfully Annmarie feels better.
Dinner (fajitas) over at Kai's with friends. Fun!

Day fifteen.
Jamie works.
Fairyland!
Dinner at the Dead Fish for Grandma's Birthday!

Day sixteen.
Jamie works.
Go to Trader Joe's for the second time. Miss that place.
Jamie and I go out in P Hill! Meet up with A and K for drink. Dinner at Serpentine. Dessert at Chocolate Lab.

Day seventeen.
Jamie, Annmarie and I go to the Cal Game. Hottest Day ever in Berkley. Ben stays with Grandparents.
Jamie then hops on Bart and goes to the A's playoff game (but not before getting a burrito).
We go to Chipotle again for dinner. :)

Day eighteen.
Visit and lunch with the H's.
Pizza for dinner
Say goodbye to grandparents.

Day nineteen.
Jamie, Nana and the kids go to the Oakland Zoo.
I have the day to myself! Shopping and mani pedi. Dinner with old friends.

Day twenty.
Pack.
Visit Papa.
Pack.
Dinner at Moshi Moshi - Sushi. Yum!
Go to airport. Annmarie cried.
Flight time- 10:30pm

Flight back went a lot smother, both kids crashed on the plane and Jamie and I both got some sleep in.
We did what we could. So many people we didn't get to see or would have loved to see more of. Places we would have loved to go to. But that is just how it goes.

It was fun being back home. 

xx

Nippers

Annmarie started nippers at the local beach the weekend we got back from the US. It's a great program that teaches children about surf awareness. It's pretty low key at this age and they keep it fun and simple. Annmarie is going along with it right now, the thing is she's not very keen to go in the water right now, because the water is still pretty fresh (cold) - she is not a fan of cold water. Thankfully, they are not in the water all that long. But it's good for her to understand the temperament of the sea, especially while we are living here. That's what makes this program so great is that they start teaching the kids that while the beach is a lot of fun, there are a lot of things that you need to be safe and cautious about. She seems to enjoy most of the activities they do in the sand.  She is pretty wiped out by the end, but loves getting a sausage when its over.  The program runs over spring and summer with a break around the holidays, so we'll see how it goes.

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Caps. Here they jumped into the water at the rock pool and had to collect tennis balls and then try to climb back up to the side.

The girls were split into two groups and they had to run down to the shore and collect a bucket of water and put the water into a bigger bucket...the team with the most water wins.

Sausage sizzle.

Relay racing.

More running - here you need to pick up the flags in the sand, they take away one or two until the last girl is standing. 

Good old fashion tug-of-war.

Girls vs. Dads

Paddle