After two months of the most glorious weather things turned a little strange…

On Thursday 24th September we awoke to a peculiar blood red sky. Our house borders a nature reserve, and so our first thought was a bush fire – only there was no smell of smoke. We rushed outside to find all the neighbours in our street equally confused. I turned on the TV just as a special news broadcast was reporting on a dust storm that had enveloped Sydney. Quite a spectacular and very rare sight. Overnight our world had been transformed into a Martian landscape providing amazing photo opportunities!

9h10 The sun through the dust

9h15 Savannah in the front garden

Dusty view of the Harbour Bridge from a North Sydney appartment

And we thought the dust was bad... Look what else the storm blew in!

Eventually the dust settled and the clean up began… everything inside and out was covered in a thick layer of fine red dust – even worse than driving hell through leather around the Kalahari Gemsbok Park with the car windows open!

And then came the rain… which mercifully washed away the dust, but brought plummeting temperatures far colder than we’d experienced all winter. I'm so glad we hadn't packed away the winter woolies and electric blankets yet!

It was a beautiful but sad weekend…

Weekends in Sydney are better than peanut butter on warm toast….

It’s normally an early start for Pete on the Saturday morning. Aromatic coffee, with one or two (perchance 3?) of Ren’s homemade rusks and a quick online catch-up of world news, sport and stocks/shares round up. At which time one of the offspring will arrive, tip-toeing up the passage, whispering “Good morning Daddy,” immediately followed by a “can we watch a DVD?” (TV is a special treat only allowed on a Sat or Sun morning or when it’s raining and mom’s trying to remain sane!)

Once the kids are settled, Pete makes another tea or coffee and quietly places one next to Sleeping Beauty. It’s a treat for Ren to sleep in on weekends because weekdays are under her whip. Then it’s a hasty exit for Pete and down to the study for a quick catch-up for ½ hour or so….

After mom leaves for the gym, it’s off to the Fish market or to Lane Cove‘s delightful little village with Kyle and Savannah for a babychino and a coffee for Dad as the weekend eases into first gear. Riding with dad on the bike is great fun!

Winter afternoons are Soccer time for Pete, with his family of avid fans cheering from the sidelines. After a beer or two the socializing continues - either an evening out with friends, or entertaining at home, very rarely a quite Saturday night in.

Ah, then it’s Sunday!

Same early morning drill, except a little more speed as its Savannah’s swimming lesson at 9h30. How cool it is, watching your daughter with big goggled eyes pouncing into the lesson and then practicing in the big pool afterwards with Kyle. Sometimes Ren even fits in a quick aqua-box class with her friends.

This particular Sunday was a little sadder. We babysat one of our friends dogs (a sweet little sausage dog) and during the course of the week, we took our eye off the ball and it promptly killed Simba, our baby Guinea Pig (we’re now back to having only the original two). Mom and Dad were devastated but the kids took it in their stride. Not sure if they “get it” yet, but Rene and Pete fielded the innocent questions about heaven and earth, whilst shielding watery eyes, and trying to keep their voices even …. We decided to bury little Simba in the garden with a little bush marking the spot. Sad it was, but also a good opportunity to share lessons on life and death with the 4 ½ and 2 ½ year olds. Rest in peace, Simba darling...

And the rest of the afternoon was a merry mix of painting, playing in the playroom and watching the Monsters Inc DVD (with much delight Savannah announced that it WAS raining) followed by Ren’s homemade (fantastic!) pizza’s, and the normal evening activities : If you’ve had kids, you know the drill, get them fed, bathed, read to, lights off, quick battle for supremacy, lights off again, dad and mom regroup and regain their energy… ready for another week.

Early to bed (Pete’s off to Perth at the crack of dawn) warm and snug, listening to the rain, grateful for the goodness of life in Sydney.

A South African "Bring'n Braai"

Also known in Australia as "Bring a Plate"

What's it called in the USA, I wonder?

(PS - A Braai is a South African term for a Barbeque. )

What do you mean ANOTHER holiday?

There go the travelling Whalleys again!

Off on another adventure – this time a road trip along the northern New South Wales coast to visit our friends Philippa and Tony in Yamba and to see the sights along the way.

First stop the beautiful Sails resort in Port Macquarrie.

Then a few days at Annuka Beach Resort just north of Coffs Harbour.

The award winning Pet Porpoise Pool at Coffs Harbour is a most impressive attraction.

We loved the hands on interaction with all the animals, complete with dolphin kisses, smelly seal cuddles, and baby penguins to feed.

No surprise, the entire Whalley family hogged the lime light with their participation in the show.

A visit to the Butterfly Farm and the Honey Place to see busy bees at work in a real hive delighted the kids.

We even got to pick our own strawberries at the farm.

What a great way to educate the kids – Maria Montessori would be so proud of us!

We immediately fell in love with Yamba and had a great time staying with Phil and Tony.

Savannah and Kyle had such fun playing with Sammy & Nathan.

Mom and dad had their first surfing lesson and are totally hooked! I can just see us a few years from now - travelling around the world like ageing hippies with surf boards on the roof of the van. What better way to spend the kids inheritance!

And the best part of all – quality family time and fun with good friends. How blessed we are.


Now lets plan our next trip...

Our time at Coffs Harbour

June 2009

Seven years into our marriage. (And we weren't forced to pose for this...)

Another exciting week in the life of the Whalleys

Gosh, it's been another busy, fun filled week....

Our next door neighbor invited us over for duck. Savannah and Kyle dived right in!















And our other neighbours were doing some renovations. And Kyle dived right in!





Savannah loves going to Camaragal Montessori School.
She's learning to read big tricky words!

Did we mention Savannah now does Ballet with her best friend Arabella?

And she's become quite a little baker!

Kyle loves mountain biking best of all!

Let's not forget Dad and Mom...

Yup, dad's playing soccer again for the over 35's Lane Cove Soccer team.

Kyle and Savannah are his biggest supporters!

And mom had another birthday! Yes, 37's been real good to her...

Sorry there are no photos - she's the one behind the camera these days!

Twins!

We've all heard the warnings before: there is a good chance that when you purchase a female guinea pig you may be getting more than what you bargained for... No kidding!

For the past two weeks we've watched our dear little Flash grow fatter by the day, until our suspicions were confirmed by the vet. Yes, we were expecting...

Imagine the excitement in the Whalley household this morning when Flash finally gave birth to two baby guinea pigs.

Guinea pig puppies are surprisingly large and are born complete with fur, an identical replica of the adult. They are quite self sufficient and were hopping about on the grass eating vegetables and seeds within a few hours of being born.

Savannah and Kyle are ecstatic, and I have to admit that Pete and I are quite smitten too!

Pete's been wanting another baby for a while now, and, yes, I guess he did get more than what he'd bargained for!