Plugging Along At Life

The weather is beginning to shift and the nights are fairly cool.  A couple days last week it was cloudy and raining.  We just snuggled up in sweatshirts and kept working.  Last Thursday we were invited to dinner at our friends, John and Teresa's house from church.  John used to put the St. Mary's bulletin together and he wanted Daniel to meet his son, Zach.  I drove to their house just outside the city which was my first experience going somewhere new in Brisbane in the dark.  It was also my first time driving on the four lane freeways!  I did well.  I like to drive here and Daniel is a great and calm navigator.

We were greeted with delicious homemade pizzas and a glass of champagne to toast Daniel's birthday.  We listened to blues music and talked and laughed.  Terry, from church also joined us for dinner and dessert.  That afternoon, Daniel and I had baked cookies to bring for everyone.  They turned out really great and were super simple to make.  The recipe was for a sugar cookie, however we tend to cook off the cuff and added almond extract and a bit of honey instead of the "required" amount of sugar.  On top, I sliced raw almonds for some and for the others I placed some Reese's Pieces!  It was really a lovely evening and fun to get to know some people from church more intimately.

Friday evening we went to Kerbside (where we celebrated Sarah's birthday) to hug our friend, Greg, who just turned thirty three!  My new tradition, I've decided, is anytime I go to Kerbside, I'm going to wear something pink.  In my pink pants, Sarah and I drove downtown to pick up Daniel from school.  Then the three of us went to meet our friends.  We were only able to stay an hour because Terry was picking us up to go to Carolyn's house where she was hosting another Joke/Laugh Gathering and dinner.  It was different than last time in that people randomly started singing this time, mostly songs that Daniel and I did not know.  Carolyn asked me to sing Australia's national anthem and I told her I couldn't!  She laughed and told me that she couldn't either.  She's been living in Brisbane almost thirty four years; she likes to tease me.

The weekend was mellow.  Daniel and I started a detox diet cleanse which basically means we're eating organic vegan diets with herbal remedies for clearing the liver, stomach, and bowel.  And the grains we're ingesting are wholemeal and healthy.  So far it has been pretty easy and we're getting creative with what we make and eat.

Sunday was neat at church because two sets of twin babies were baptized.  I wish I had known as I would have brought our camera.  The baby girls slept through the entire process.  The boys were a bit older and very active.  Terry lead the ceremony, which was quite relaxed, and everyone laughed a lot.  He suggested one of the baby boys be held face down so he could splash his hands in the water.  It was great fun for him, and really entertaining for us observers.  That late morning the weather was really warm so Daniel and I took a trip to Boggo Markets for fresh fruit and veg.

The last few days have been extremely busy because Simon is in the process of moving in!  Yesterday, Daniel went to school while Simon and I reorganized and cleaned the entire kitchen.  We even pulled out the refrigerator to clean behind it.  Lucky we did, because we found a huge cleaver that Sarah had been looking for.  It took us nearly five hours because we pulled everything out of all the cupboards, wiped them down, and made space for his kitchen items to blend with ours.  After Sarah got home and dinner was had, the three of us watched and laughed at The Biggest Loser together.  Finally, Daniel returned from school and we spent some time together before going to sleep.

We're surrendering the master bedroom to Sarah and Simon.  Daniel and I will move into the back bedroom which is going to be a cozy new sleeping place for us.  When we get in there, I'll post pictures of our new bedroom for you!

Since the weather has been great the past few days, Daniel, Churchill and I have been on quite a few walks.  And today Daniel suggested we go to Streets Beach.  I spent an hour and a half laying on the sand.  Daniel was in the water for the first half hour.  He's so brave.  Or I am a complete cold water wimp.  Probably both!  It's always great to get some vitamin D from the sunshine at Streets Beach.  I people-watch and take short naps while Daniel reads school papers and we talk about project ideas for his classes.

Here come the random photos!!

These moths were mating on our bedroom screen for 

a few hours earlier this week.

One is the length of my index finger!

We had one more pizza crust left to use, so Daniel and I had a date night!

This was our dessert!

And then a different girl climbed on my date's lap!

This is the first time I've seen Chantelle willingly sit on a human.

She loves Daniel!  She followed him around the house last night.

Sarah's Kerbside photo bomb! 

 Sarah and Daniel like this photo because they think

my mirror self is less blurry than my real self.

(It must mean something!)

A very blurring photo of Terry and Daniel.

I was laughing when I took this because we were all singing Happy Birthday

to them.  Daniel did not want to be sung to this year.

We still take walks, even in the rain.

Life is well for us.  I'm getting new clients and having business successes, Daniel is feeling good about school and his future.  We have a busy weekend coming up moving Simon the rest of the way in and switching bedrooms.  And then it'll only be a few days before we set off on another adventure.  Daniel and I leave next Thursday to spend a day in Singapore!  After that, we meet Steve and Francoise in Taipei, Taiwan for some fun and exploration.  Most of you know that Daniel lived in Taiwan when he was a boy.  He is excited to see how it has changed, and also what has remained the same.  For me, it'll be my first trip to Asia and I so look forward to joining Daniel, taking in his boyhood sights.  It has also been entirely too long since we have seen his folks and we're both excited for hugs and great conversations!