Published Sunday 7th June 2015
Sunday 31st May 2015.
In the morning I made the most of the Sunday vibe, enjoying a lie before walking to Feast cafe in Wembley where I was warmly greeted by Colin, Lisa, Hannah, Lauchie and Issabella. Although I'd initially gone for a hot chocolate while I wrote my journal, I ended up staying for lunch and scoffing a plate of eggs benidict.
I was in the mood for a chilled afternoon so was planning a movie marathon - it wasn't until I was already inside Blockbuster that I stupidly realised I wasn't a member so couldn't rent anything! Instead I walked home along Ruislip Street, the quieter road parallel to Cambridge Street, and watched Mama Mia from the kids' folder of DVDs. Part way through, Emily the cat peered curiously over the edge of the sofa before climbing delicately onto my lap and comfortably curling herself into a ball. I let her stay there, enjoying the cuddles and purrs, promising myself that I would take an antihistamine later!
In the evening I continued my lazy streak with pizza, Anzac cookies, cider and the latest P!nk tour DVD.
Once fast asleep in bed I was woke at 11pm by JJ thundering up and down the garden playing soccer!
Monday 1st June 2015
As today was a public holiday (WA day), when I woke up I lazed in bed researching Scouting and Girlguiding to help inform my decision as to which organisation to become part of when I return to the UK. There are plenty of pros to each movement and my research will have to continue when I arrive home.
After a few chores around the house I ventured into the city to explore the activities put on around the cultural centre for the long weekend. There was certainly plenty happening and there was quite a buzz but it was all very child oriented so I wandered around Northbridge, admiring the street art, picking up a Ben and Jerry's sundae (talk about a heart attack in a cup!) and returned to the cultural centre for a curry for lunch. Inside the State Library I caught up with my journal before heading home.
By the time I arrived home, the Bakers were back from their camping trip and were acclimatising themselves to the prospect of returning to school and work the next day.
Tuesday 2nd June 2015
Today was certainly a jobs day and after I'd dropped the kids at school (with today's homework completed) I:
- hung 3 loads of washing out
- tried to find some geocaches around Herdsman Lake
- tidied my room
- stuck photos into an album for the Bakers' leaving gift
- bought AFL books for the kids
- bought a fleece and a beanie in preparation for Tasmania
- returned my library book
- put a tutoring ad on Facebook and Gumtree
All before I collected Sophie and Hayden at 3:10pm! As a treat because it was my last week I took the kids straight to Ingredient Tree where we indulged ourselves in hot chocolate with chocolate sauce and marshmallows as well as croissants (which Sophie opted out of in favour of a very decadent chocolate mouse!)
Back at home Sophie and I got creative with origami and fashion design while Hayden played in the garden. The evening was filled with crocheting some gloves for Sophie.
Wednesday 3rd June 2015
The morning started off with a 'hairy' start! I remembered at 7:50pm that Sophie was due at choir practice at 8:10am so started firing orders of 'Get dressed!', 'Put your shoes on!' and 'Feed the dog!' amongst others. Amongst the moderate chaos that ensued I heard a quiet 'Hazel, can you help me please?'escape from the bathroom. Sophie emerged with a comb stuck in her hair, as if she were unintentionally mimicking a world famous rapper but not quite pulling it off. In an attempt to curl her hair, she'd spun the front section around the comb and her hair was now literally matted around the comb. After around 25 minutes of delicately (followed by forcibly) trying to remove the hair, lots of tears, a missed choir rehearsal and some welcome distractions and hand holding from Hayden we had to resort to cutting the offending comb from her hair - there was no other option! We were then left with a rush to school in the car but that did mean I could continue straight to the library where I created a version of my tutoring advert for home educated children.
After a successful morning of self-advertising, I returned home to make some spag bol for Sophie's dinner which she'd eat amongst her afternoon activities. Post-lunch I wrote a couple of blogs - I was keen to get up to date before leaving Perth and then collected 4 talkative boys from school.
Thursday 4th June 2015 was a usual day filled with washing, cleaning and blog writing. After school the kids played engergerically on the oval (as they had every other afternoon) and when we arrived home I surprised them both with AFL folders. They both methodically filled them with the cards they had been gradually collecting for successfully completing their homework before playing teachers.
The evening was filled with purposefully writing blogs which took up quite a few hours.
Friday 5th June 2015
My day off and I didn't wake up until 9am but made up for it by puzzling over uploading photos to my Rottnest blog. Technological issues hampered progress but by the time Jo and I went out for lunch, I'd succeeded and begun adding text.
Jo and I enjoyed a delicious lunch at Santa Fe in Subiaco and when my chocolate brownie appeared and the waitress poured chocolate sauce onto the boiling plate, it sizzled and steamed like fajitas, creating quite a spectacle.
As this was my last free evening in Perth I took the bus to Cottesloe and treated myself to some chips on the beach. I really wasn't hungry but l wanted to complete the sunset with traditional seaside flavours. The sunset was even more stunning than last time I came. Initially I'd been disappointed that there were a few clouds but these created beautiful colours and patterns streaked across the sky.
Add sunset photos from camera
Returning to the bus stop I walked below a group of trees where the rainbow lorikeets were deafeningly swarking and chirping and flashes of colour darted from branch to branch.
Saturday 6th June 2015
This morning Sophie was pleased when I gave her her new completed gloves which I'd finished off last night. My day time was filled with weekly sporting activities kicking off with Sophie's netball match. She's a fierce competitor and this coupled with her height advantage ensured her opposition were limited with goal scoring opportunities.
After lunch and bag packing, it was Hayden's turn on the soccer field where he spent an hour hairing around the pitch. He's a real soccer fanatic and even between halves and after the match he made a bee line for a soccer ball!
Walking back to the car, the kids couldn't resist gumballing and log rolling down the hill.
In the evening, we donned our favourite Saturday night clothes and headed to the curry house in Wembley where we got our fix of butter chicken which Jo and I had been pining for since our takeaway a couple of weeks ago. This time however, we ensured we ordered a naan bread each as last time we'd all made a dive for the single piece!
We exchanged gifts and I loved the charms which complete my Aussie bracelet perfectly as well as my Baker school report. Jo had put so much thought and effort into my 'report' and I roared with laughter especially as my honest appraisal of my lacking camp fire maintainance skills.
Sunday 7th June 2015
Sadly my time in Perth and with the Bakers had come to an end. With lots of hugs and promises of postcards, Jo and I dropped Justin at the kids at Hayden's footie practise. We continued to the aiport and shared a teary farewell at Terminal 3. It wasn't until I was on board the plane though that my departure really hit me, I glimpsed my new charms and burst into tears. I really had loved every minute of my time in Perth. Yes, Hayden and Sophie had thrown a few challenges my way including broken windows and trapped combs but every single day they made me laugh and smile. I have also found new friends in Justin and Jo. I've been so lucky in finding such warm and welcoming people who have added to making my time in Australia truly unforgettable.
There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open. - Jawaharlal Nehru
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