March 2008

March 2008

You guessed it.... March was still a hot month - when is this summer going to end?? Well to be fair we did have some slightly cooler days spread in with the 30-36C days this month. And the evenings have definitely cooled off, which means we can sleep without the AC or fan on us every night.

Anyway we got good use out of our pool this summer and kept it going in March when we hosted a party for Claudia and Ray so they could catch up with their friends while they were in Perth from Melbourne. Lots of kids made for a busy time, but everyone had fun and C&R then enjoyed some time in Dunsborough and Mandurah. Jasper was very good with his cousin, sharing his toys and being most concerned when she cried, which was often, unfortunately. I don't think she warmed to him as quickly as he did to her. But all in all, they played nicely together.



Jasmine and Jasper hanging out at our house

We joined them for a day in Mandurah which coincided with the Crab Fest there, so had fun strolling around the various stalls, listening to bands on the foreshore, enjoyed a nice dinner at the Brighton Hotel and then Jasper boogied away to the bands before watching his first fireworks show. A busy day and a tired little boy in the car on the way home.




Cool Jas. Poppo and grandkids. Louise at 33.5 wks PG



Scitech


Jasper's playgroup had an outing to Scitech in March and he enjoyed the puppet show (and made a great assistant to the presenter) as well as "working" on the construction site.

On the construction site

Later that week Jasper and I returned to the Mandurah timeshare to spend the last night with mum. We took the train down there and he enjoyed the ride even more this time, pointing out all the trucks, boats, cars etc on the way. Mum drove us back the next day and kindly babysat while Sean and I enjoyed a dinner party at Julie and Andy's and the West Coast Blues and Roots Festival on the Sat afternoon and evening. Our fave bands were Xavier Rudd (always good), KT Tunstall (lots of other good songs, aside from her big hit "Suddenly I see" and Maceo Parker, a funky blues musician from the US. There were loads of other acts from all over the country and world.


Out for dinner, 34 wks PG. Playing at Mandurah - 34 wks PG

Easter

Easter was a fairly quiet affair, but we enjoyed catching up with an old California work buddy of mine, Tracy who has been living in Sydney with her hubby Carl for the past 18 mths. They visited Perth and Margaret River before they return to San Francisco.

We also had a lovely Easter Sunday lunch at Kath and Bruce's house (a Canadian couple who I met thru my Pit Crew job). They have a little boy, Campbell, the same age as Jasper and the boys had an Easter egg hunt in the back yard before lunch. Jasper certainly had a keen eye for chocolate eggs - see the video.




After lunch and a nap, we took Maddy and Jasper to the park and Jasper flew his kite, which he loved. See the video.



Well that about wraps it up for March. My last day in the Pit Crew office is tomorrow the 26th. The baby is due on April 24, but I have a feeling I may not make it that long. I think it could be up to 2 weeks early, which means I'd better get cracking and finish off lots of articles I need to write for work, plus a load of jobs around here - including getting the baby's room ready.

Will keep you posted on new arrival news.

February 2008

February 2008.

Well the hot summer continues in Perth. The Australia Day long weekend was a scorcher with temps ranging from 36-40 degrees C for the three days. We went to Dunsborough and enjoyed cooler temps there by a 4-5 degrees or so. Perth broke another heat record with the longest consecutive days over 35 degrees - I think we had 9 days. It's been awful - I hate this kind of heat.

We went to a couple of outdoor movies at the Moonlight Cinema in Kings Park in Feb. It's such a nice way to watch a flick -- kicking back on beanbags or low chairs, enjoying a picnic dinner and wine or beer to start with, and all under the stars on a balmy summers evening. We saw Into the Wild which was great! We had both read the book some time ago so were keen to see the film and it did not disppoint. It's not a particularly uplifting movie, but will have you thinking long after you've seen it. And the scenery was breathtaking. We also saw the Darjeeling Ltd, which was a quirky kind of movie and not what I expected, but enjoyable enough.

Feb 13 - Jasper's 2nd birthday

Yep, another stinking hot day, so we celebrated in the early evening with a pool party at home for Jasper's little mates and their folks. Julie, Andy, Connor and Camie were there, along with Kirstyn, Chuck, Charlie and Grace, and of course Melissa and Beth. Mum and dad came up from Bunbury and we had a lovely BBQ dinner, lots of swimming and birthday cake. Jasper received some lovely gifts such as his first Thomas engine, little Tonka trucks and cars, Mega Bloks train, a remote controlled boat from Poppo and a toy drill, which he put to use immediately with a few quick repairs. Check out the pics.

Right after his birthday Jasper had a weekend down in Bunbury with mum and dad which allowed Sean and I time to sleep in, catch one of the above mentioned flicks and generally enjoy a rare and relaxing, peaceful weekend by ourselves. As our car was being fixed (a result of the 1st and only "placenta brain" moment from moi, where I hit a parked ute in the parking lot and smashed the headlamp) we took the train to Mandurah to meet mum and dad half way to pick up Jasper. He then had his first train ride home after a great weekend with his Pop and Grandma.

At the end of the month my sister, Claudia, her hubby Ray and their little girl, Jasmine came to visit.

Sean and I took Jasper to one of the Festival of Perth's Movies on water and while we didn't stay for the movie, he loved the band and fireworks and running around with his little mates, Beth and Camie.