ROTTO!

We finally got to Rottnest today! We've always said we'd go during previous holidays but full schedules and a light wallet meant we'd skipped it. So, filled with the type of excitement only new adventures bring, we hooked up with Fi and Jay and boarded the Rottnest Express at Freo this morning.

Rottnest sits 22km south of Perth and is famed for its crystal clear waters, reefs, traffic-free roads and quokkas - the island's native marsupial. It also has an impressive 63 beaches, 20 bays and the best bakery we've found. The pies in Perth are pretty flavoursome as it is but man alive they are nothing on these babies! D and I shared a beef and bacon (delicious) and lamb and rosemary number (delicious x 2) whilst the kids happily gobbled down fresh sausage rolls. With the bellies full, we followed our guides for the day (Fi, Jay, Marni, James and little Ben) and headed to The Basin - an award winning beach that's great for a spot of snorkelling.

This was one of the busier beaches we've been too, but the place has a special feel to it - calm, slow, tranquil with a steady flow of happy, contented people. Fin had a go at snorkelling and D and I saw some lovely fish a bit further along the reef. Bay preferred to hang out closer to shore and build fairy tale sandcastles: one for Cinderella, one for Sleeping Beauty, one for Snow White and so on and so on.

Lunch was at the Quokka Arms Hotel followed by a few delicious G&T's and much entertainment from Bay and Ben dancing around. It was nice to see the lady having fun with a new friend...she misses her London crew :(

The day ended with the kids launching themselves off the jetty followed by a rather hairy ride home on the Rotto Express. Fin and I wussed out big time and ended up clinging on to each other for dear life whilst the boat bounced from side to side and the horizon disappeared from view. I managed to avoid a big hurl (just...) and generated a few sympathetic (or maybe that's pathetic) looks from aussies who had obviously witnessed our distress en route. And this is apparently the slow boat......

All in all a great day, can't wait to go back.

Hangover Saturday

The two K's put on an excellent spread last night - some beautiful food, nice wine and great company followed by a particularly drunk game of 'Welfare' Pictionary. Sadly the boys nailed it...just.

Feeling a tad worst for wear on a Saturday morning is a recipe for disaster when there's energetic kids to entertain, but thanks to Ronnie McD we managed to pull ourselves together and attempt at being dutiful parents again. First stop was the basketball court at Joel Terrace park - the boys got all sweaty trying to whoop each other's butts whilst the lady and I sat in the shade, read the paper and played in the park.

Fin fancied a games sesh at Uncle Chris'x 'Xbox house' so whilst the boys got cosy with their remote controls, Bay and I headed into Mount Lawley for some girl time. First stop was the Gelato shop (Strawberry for lady, White choc and Macademia pour moi). Then a mooch around the shops and a delicious half hour in the cool confines of Planet - an independent book store that's packed with great reads, coffee table books, music and limited edition stuff. This is one of those places you could spend half a day in and not notice the time. I love it here. We even found some new Oliver Jeffers stuff and learnt a bit about fairies, much to missy B's delight.

Had a lovely skype sesh with mum and dad who read the kids a bedtime story (thanks mum - saved me a job!) and now its' movie time...Scott Pilgrim V the world (ok...ish...so far) followed by Angelina in Salt.

Looking forward to a good sleep tonight before we head to Rottnest tomorrow :)

Hyde Park saves the day...

I have a day off today....well not exactly a day off, but the kids are tiring Nana out at the park which means I can tidy up the house and get some work done ahead of the weekend. Thankfully the weather's taken a more comfortable turn too. Temps are mid-70's at the mo, thank the lordy. We even have a breeze coming through around tea time which is super nice and gives each of us Green's a little boost before the evening sets in.

The kids and I have had an ok couple of days. Don't get me wrong, we love each other, but the heat coupled with a distinct lack of any kind of social circle is starting to grate and turn me into a bit of a monster mum. To remedy it and try to inject an element of fun into our day, we headed to Hyde Park where we found other kids (hurrah!) a park (double hurrah!) ducks (triple hurrah!) and a nice bench for me to sit on and read whilst the kids explored the play equipment. This is them at the top of a very high climbing dome which kind of made me nervous (though not enough to put the camera down) and provoked other mums with smaller impressionable kids to stroll over and ensure they didn't attempt the same thing.

School officially starts in three weeks. Not that I'm counting or anything...

Have a great weekend all :)

The mighty red back

These little blighters are everywhere in Australia. They are most at home in the corners of shed's, garages and verandas where they can whip up an impressive little web and live comfortably away from the prying eyes of us humans. Some, however, have been known to venture into houses and climb into wardrobes (and more notably, people's shoes and clothes) where they will happily attack any infiltrators.

The female is the one you've got to watch out for, her venom can potentially land you in hospital and give you a series of muscle spasms, palpitations, abdominal pain and vomitting for 24 hours after. 14 deaths have been recorded but since the introduction of anti-venom in 1984, nobody has fallen prey to its vicious bite. In fact it's believed that thousands of aussies are bitten each year with only 20% requiring medical treatment. Phew.

Her diet consists of innocent insects that wander into her web. She also has a taste for mice, lizards and dead snakes and is one of the few spiders will eat her own mating partner (presumably after he's delivered the goods that is).

Fin discovered this doomed female in our car port (whilst wandering around without shoes on I might add) so naturally we squished it and then took a pic. We've since introduced a 'shoes at all times whilst outdoors' policy and have started teaching the kids to search their togs before they get dressed in the mornings.
If you look closely at the pic above you can see the trail of venom she excreted during her final seconds of life. Mad to think something so small can puck such a nasty punch. Hats off to you Mrs Redback.

Shelley

Say hi to Shelley. She's a big boxer, ten years old and full of life, despite her late age. She's strong, muscular and has a lovely soft shiny fur coat that doesn't malt. She's also fun to be around and has transformed my kids attitude to K9's with her flirtatious attitude and obedient nature.

She likes to sleep, gets anxious when away from her family and enjoys daily helpings of chicken and pork sausage. What she doesn't like very much is other dogs, especially small ones that fair poorly in a fight. We'd best not introduce her to Mister Fin (sausage dog at neighbours house)...she'd probably eat him in one glutinous gulp.

So that's Shelley. Super tough but a big softie at heart. Love you Shelley belly.

CK

'UH...oh...it's that strange lady taking pics of me again....'

This is CK (Otherwise known as Christian), my little nephew, gorgeous, funny and feisty as hell, but regretably cuddle-resistant with aunty Larsy. I'm not sure whether it's the long limbs, dark hair or big lens that puts him off, but what he doesn't know is that we will be great friends one day....

His favourite things are cars, drinking from colourful IKEA cups, biccies and looking at the moon. He also loves Fin and has been known to wake up in the night calling out 'innie!!!!!!!' In typical Fin style, he has embraced his new found popularity and has made it his plight in life to protect his little cousin and make him laugh at every available opportunity. I think the two of them will be great friends.

Today is the first day of work for D, so I am busily trying to plan our month so we have plenty to keep us occupied, let the mini people say 'muuuum I'm borrrrred' at their own peril.

xxxx
 

Hello 2011...

We celebrated the new year in Busselton, a seaside town 2.5 hours south of Perth famed for it's jetty (the longest in the Southern Hemisphere I'm told) and long stretches of sand. Beach lover that I am, I swooned at the site of the turquoise sea and shallow waters, perfect for kids (we didn't have any on this occasion), dogs, novice swimmers and anyone with a fear of sharks as you'll be able to see them coming way off....

My first 'yes' of the year was to jump on a jet ski with beloved and charter those waters with ferocious speed and vigour. Hell, I even had a go myself but kept to a more respectible speed which gave D a bit of a twitchy leg. He proceeded to take over and bounce over those waves like the nutcase that he is, causing a bit of panic on the back seat and an irritating ring in his ear for the rest of the arvo.

The rest of our day was spent at Southbound, an eco-friendly music-fest packed with skinny teens in tight shorts and perfect tans (grrrrrrrr). Tired as we were, we held on, filled up on beer, coffee and nachos and saw the night through. I also got to have a good jump around to Interpol (woo-hoo) and Ladyhawke before we drove back to Perth. Great stuff.

Happy New Year all. Hope 2011 is your best yet. x