Another of my favourite things... Travel

I have recently had a friend return to Oz from India and every time he jets off somewhere new it reminds me of that one time I was able to adventure off to foreign shores.

There is nothing like travelling overseas! Whether it is for work or pleasure or a mixture of both it can be a real thrill to hop onto a plane and leave the safety and security of friends and family. I see travel as the greatest education one can ever get, it is an opportunity to truly see and learn about other countries, other cultures and other people. It is also the ultimate education about yourself. Travel exposes you to new and unusual situations that you must deal with and learn from and all the while you have this great freedom and this eagerness to discover the new and unexplored.

I hope one day soon that I will get to travel again... This time it would be great to have my wonderful wife and beautiful kids along too... A chance to learn even more about ourselves and each other. Until that chance comes along though I will watch enviously (the sky and the web) as planes fly over my head and as gorgeous views from America, Italy, Spain, Ireland, etc. appear in my inbox or on facebook, glad that my mates are discovering a new experience, a new place and even something new about themselves.

Happy travels!!

The Wonderful Chaos of School Term in Winter

The school term has begun again and I am beginning to curse the cool winter mornings.
The holidays have been great with the kids rising early with me so we can eat breakfast together while I get ready for work (a big thanks to my beautiful wife and our amazing friends who have looked after the little ones over the two week holiday break). Now that the older two are back at school and kindy has started another term I am finding less and less that the kids are up with me and happy around the breakfast table... Now I get them out of bed and they find a way to crawl back in.

I am struggling to get up each morning when the radio tells me it is a brisk 3 degrees, so I can sympathize with my kids... almost admiring their determination to gain that extra five minutes of warm snug as a bug feeling that can only be found under the blankets and eiderdown and surrounded by millions of teddy bears. I did say almost... Get up! Get out of bed!! Breakfast time!

Following breakfast is always two of the most frustrating games that parents and kids can ever play... Game one I like to call 'who can get dressed the slowest' and game two is 'what can I leave at home which I desperately need with me at school/kindy'. I wonder if you can guess how these games are played (and who usually wins!)?

I say bring on the weekend and a looooooovely sleep in!!!

Winter V Summer... Why I love winter the most

The greatest argument of all, the battle of the seasons... extreme heat verses extreme cool. Well here is why I love winter the most.

1. My birthday is in July and it is always a great chance to catch up with friends and family, get spoiled by the people I love and who love me, a wonderful reminder that life is awesome.

2. So many bed covers you feel like a bear slumbering until the spring (snuggling with the kids and my gorgeous wife are really nice too).

3. The wild weather, the sound of rain on the roof and windows, the flash of lightning and the BOOM of thunder... Nature at its wildest and craziest.

4. Fine red wine and dark chocolate... It seems to suit winter the best. If you can combine those two pleasures with an open fire roaring away then you have it made.

These are just four great things that come to mind when I think of winter. I argue that the old man image with the wispy white beard is unfair to label on such a wonderful season.

What do you think though? Do you love hitting the beach on a hot hot day and enjoying ice cream while soaking up the sweet sunshine?

Goodbye 34 years...

Such a special day yesterday. My birthday come and gone for another year. It reminds me of just how lucky I am with a family who loves me and does everything in their power to make my day such a special one. My youngest spent all lunchtime telling me she loved me (every five minutes... adorable) while my eight year old son and almost seven year old daughter were so eager to wish me the best day ever. My gorgeous wife, my princess and the love of my life went above and beyond as always to truly make me feel like her prince.

My friends too sent out text messages and other forms of social media to remind me that I was in their thoughts. So much love I hardly had time to respond to them all. Thank you everyone for your kind words and well wishes. To top off a brilliant day I also got a call from my brother and God son who did a happy birthday duet over the phone (got my birthday hug and high five!)

At work there was cake and a card and more well wishes. Thanks guys... A great day even if I was at work.

So I say goodbye to 34 and look forward to what lies ahead. I must say... So far so good!!