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Best Buddies

Yared and Bronte get along quite well. Bronte has decided she likes being an older sister and takes very good care of Yared. Her imagination and creativity are delightful and he goes along with anything she concocts. He will truly miss her when she starts Kindergarten in Feb.

Darling Harbour

We braved a bit of cold and wind to enjoy a nice morning out. This is a main harbor in Sydney and is teeming with life and activity. The kids (and I) had a great time!

Better than McDonalds!

We've started a new Saturday morning tradition -- yogurt parfaits. So far, after week 1, Ravi declared them better than McDonalds. It's a good thing, since I was quite proud of myself: I made the granola and the yogurt and we had a great array of fruit. Yum!

More Wildlife

We took Sheridan to Featherdale Wildlife Park -- we'll never tire of going there. I love the calm, the animals, the natural beauty and sounds. It's just so pleasant. Each time we go, our Australian wildlife IQ goes up a few points. We're getting better at kangaroos vs. wallabies, emus, cassowaries, koalas, flying foxes, and an endless array of birds. This crocodile is over 4 meters long! Yared clapped after having the courage to pet the kookaburra this time.

Fun new plans

Through an interesting set of circumstances, our friend Sheridan arrived this week from NYC. She will be staying with us for 3 months to help out while I go back to work at the U.S. Consulate temporarily. It's a good fit for her and for us. While I'm waiting for my official job offer and start date, we've been having fun and seeing the sites. The kids love her and we're really glad to have her here!

Bronte's Photos

What child doesn't take great photos? Bronte was thrilled with her work: especially the inside of the dishwasher and microwave. Maybe we'll go on tour...

She also enjoys painting and playdough and will keep herself occupied for quite some time.

Scrabble

We opened Scrabble the other night and quite enjoyed it. Our favorite words were Ravi's "q-u-i-t", Chris's "e-q-u-i-t-y" and my "i-n-e-q-u-i-t-y" on double and triple squares. It was great fun but takes too long. However, after visiting the wildlife park again, I've got a few new words to try: "quokka" "echidna" "quoll" and lots of others.

Team Aussie

We stayed up LATE (2:30a.m.) to watch the opening ceremonies live. Ravi made it until midnight when he tuckered out. It was so fun watching with Ravi and getting excited over the whole production. He'd make comments like, "Wow! Those Chinese are so clever! I wonder what's going to happen next!" and "There's Djibouti!" "There's Eritrea!" "There's India!" He recognized many countries from Google Earth and his talking globe. He just loved it all, though he fell asleep before Team USA and the finale, which was phenomenal as you saw.

Luckily one of our 5 free TV channels provides coverage and I'm really excited about the Olympics this year. However, I've never watched the Olympics while in another country. Of course (what was I expecting?) everything here is focused on Australians. Ravi even asked, "Which team are we cheering for again?" Chris said we cheer for Australians and we cheer for Americans. If they play against each other, we can cheer for USA. I'm a bit sad to say I don't know the USA athletes or their stories. I miss the familiar broadcasting faces. I'm still struggling understanding the 'strine' accent. But, nonetheless, we are in full Olympic mode. One world, one dream...

Motivation

I've started a new sticker chart for the kids where they earn dollars to spend on items in the buy box. It's already a hit -- Ravi calculates all week, plans, thinks it through, strategizes. Bronte doesn't want to do the work, but when it comes time to buy she wants it all. Hmmm...

Cleaning Machine

Some of you may notice a tainted smell arriving from our direction. If so, it's because I've forbidden anyone living under this roof to take a shower until further notice. Today I accomplished my semi-annual cleaning of the bathrooms. This means that no one may use the toilet, wash their hands, shower, or brush their teeth, or leave any other evidence of existence. As a result of scrubbing away grime and water-stains all morning, I am in need of a shower myself. However, the question is: where? Do I use my own glass shower that is so sparkly clean I can actually see my reflection in it? Should I use the kids' bathroom where the counter is white again after scraping layers of dried toothpaste off? Should I use the guest bathroom that has a huge STOP sign on the front door since we have company arriving in a few days and no one is allowed to step foot inside? The last time I cleaned the bathrooms, Ravi asked me after school what I had done all day. I told him. He said, "Mom, that's a lot of work to work all day cleaning the bathrooms -- and for what? The bathroom's clean. Oh well." I have to say I agree with him, which is why I can't muster the time, energy, or creative outlets for Bronte and Yared to keep them busy while I accomplish such a large hurdle more than once in a long while. Yes, I will do a quick clean of the counter tops periodically and Windex the mirrors. But this kind of cleaning only comes when the build-up is so intense it requires serious effort and actually counts as my aerobic exercise for the day. I don't recall anyone, ever -- relation or stranger -- commenting on how impressed they were with such an accomplishment. "Wow! What clean bathrooms you have! I noticed how clean the light fixtures are and how you must have spent extra time on the faucets to get them shining. Wow! You used earth-friendly products too? And washed all the towels and rugs and vacuumed loose hairs and dust? And kept your children busy painting and exploring through imaginary play? Wow! That toilet seat is clean enough to eat off of too!" It just doesn't happen. So, if any of you want to come visit, please do -- immediately. Otherwise, there's no guarantee we'll have things clean for you...