Australia Trip Days one and Two: Part B

So my first post was a little scattered. I was rushed. Everyone was waiting on me to go to dinner. We ate at Nando's which is the equivalent of El Pollo Loco but with varying levels of spiciness. So here is the run-down.

Day 1:

• We landed at 7:30am, breezed through customs, and met the Yermacks at Sydney airport.
  
• We got 6 kids and 5 adults plus all the luggage into a single vehicle and arrived 30 min later at the hotel around 9am and can't check in b/c it was too early.
  
• So we drop off our bags and descended onto the Chinese Gardens down the street about 1Kilometer away.
  
• A couple hours later we check in and go to lunch in China Town at "The Market" food court.
  
• I ate sushi and sea food soup with fresh white rice noodles.
  
• Then we went over to the Power House Museum and saw the Star Wars exhibit and the other various engineering contributions by famous Aussies.
  
• Then we went to the Hanna's Meat Pies (fresh). I ate a beef and mushroom meat pie. Yum.
  
• Then we went back to the hotel and rested.
  
• Then we all went out and ate Spanish Tapas and great Sangria in the Spanish sector about 1/2 K away from our hotel.
  
• Then we came home and I passed out from eating and drinking large quantities.

Day 2:

• Silvia was up at 3:30am and was working. I was enjoying sleeping in a bed like a normal person as opposed to the economy plane seat for 14 hours.
  
• Then she went and got a plug adapter to plug in the laptop b/c she ran down the charge.
  
• I had to fix a client's backup which was failing. Internet access is $22aud/day. Meh.
  
• We all got organized and made it to breakfast at the corner place around 9:30am.
  
• Seating 11 people is sometimes a challenge but rarely an issue for these poor restaurants in the city. I must say though that the denizens of Sydney have been very gracious and accommodating.
  
• For b-fast I had Scrambled Eggs, Sausage, Canadian Bacon, Mushrooms and Onions, Beans, Salad w/ roasted tomato, thick toast (two slices), and an Espresso. This was listed as the "Big Breakfast" on the menu. We were so jet-lagged it was hard to make decisions. The girl who missed dinner ate almost as much as I did!
  
• After breakfast and several trips back to the hotel to use the bathroom we headed off to the Botany Gardens and the Opera House. I swear the majority of my time in restaurants is spent shuttling children to and from the bathroom.
  
• After the Garden tour and the Opera House tour, we cruised the shops and then ate pizza at a nice restaurant on the water front. Sydney has a many wonderful water front eating and shopping areas. It is definitely an model that some US cities should emulate.
  
• Then we walked around aimlessly and listened to Aboriginal music while we ate gelatto. Yum. I had Pistachio gelatto of course.
  
• I bought a CD of Aboriginal music.
  
• Then we came back to the hotel and rested.
• Then we left again...wandered around looking for a place to eat. We found a food court underground somewhere and I had Doner Kabob.
  
• Then we came home and I passed out from eating and drinking too much...again.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Australia Trip Days one and Two

We arrived in Sydney at around 8am after 14 hours non-stop from LA. These long flights get tougher every trip. We met up with the Yermacks in the airport. They had arrived an hour or so before us from Perth having travelled all night. The girls were glad to see each other. The trip from the airport to downtown was eventful as usual with 6 kids and 5 adults. But we made it in one van!

This picture was actually taken on our second day in the city. It was beautiful. I got sunburned. There is significantly less ozone in AU.


Our first excursion was to the Chinese Gardens by the convention center. It was very interesting and the kids ran around. There were lots of local school children on field trips.


Here is one of the Sydney locals... He looks poisonous. Let me tell you that the wild life in AU is very aggressive and not to be taken lightly. A single ant bite can more likely than not put you in the hospital here.
Here we are eating meat pies. Hmmm meat pies.

Meghan is at breakfast our second day. She is still a little jet-lagged.
I am eating Vegemite. I am very tolerant of new foods from around the world. This is one that is both sour and bad tasting in many respects. Clearly an acquired taste.
More from the Aquarium and the Maritime Museum tomorrow.

Sean gets what he always wanted...

...a Snuggie (with the book light)

Sean breaks his hand....

So Sean got accidentally tripped on the way to lunch, fell, and broke his fall with his hand which broke a bone in his hand. It was swollen and hurt when he moved it. But he is in good spirits and we'll see the pediatric orthopedist tomorrow to get a real cast put on.

Holidays Post #2

Mamita Dominga is 94 this year and sits with seven of her great-grandchildren.

• Meghan
• Chris
• Sean
• Mamita
• Cassie
• Julia
• Warren
• Kyle

David has enjoyed Krispy Kreme donuts so often this vacation that they made him an honorary employee complete with his own hat.

Holidays post #1

Here are the four sisters all together and playing Wii Guitar Hero.

Here are the three oldest on the Nintendo DS's linked together racing each other in Mario Cart. Trash talking is in full swing...

Warren is enjoying feeding the birds at the Long Beach Aquarium.

Here are the three smallest petting the bat rays at the petting pool. Chris wasn't paying attention and while splashing around, a big ray came up and scared the bejeezus out of him. Where was my camera then?

Four of six accosting the sea otter at the Aquarium.

Meghan and the mall Santa

Meghan visited Santa at the mall and said she wanted a pink pony doll. Phew... Sean didn't want to go. He felt his letter was enough.

Letter from Santa

Sean received a letter from Santa today. Unfortunately, the girl's letter was not immediately found in the mailbox and she is upset. But apparently, all the mail didn't make it out of the mailbox and a second inspection revealed a letter from Santa to Meghan. Phew. That was a close one.

The Girl's Christmas Program

Meghan had her Christmas program last week. Here are the pics.

Painting and stuff...

So I am rushing to get mom's room painted and ready to put the new floor in on Tues. New doors, door casings, painting, and baseboards. We haven't painted it since we bought the house. Wilson wasn't much help, but likes his picture taken.


The boy demonstrated his literacy skills today. Unfortunately, it was targeted at a 4 year old who can't read yet.

The girl likes pink. Santa asked what she wanted for Christmas..."Pink Toys", she says.

Grass! It was like magic.

Sod is awesome. I should have thought of it earlier... It is like magic front yard. Just keep watering it. Sprinklers are done and working. Getting the control wires from the garage was a bit a challenge as I had to feed them through the old part of the house and then the new part of the house. I had to go under the house 3 times and drill through the sub-floor. Thank god for cordless drill motors.

Now comes landscaping and stuff...

So the house is done! Well, less painting the doors, door casings, and baseboards. Oh, and the landscaping. Ok, so the house isn't 'done'. So at the behest of my wife, I started on the landscaping. The old tree we had chopped down is still angry with me. I have had to dig up all the old roots in order to get the trenches dug for the sprinklers. So I have to trench in the sprinklers run the control wire, sweat a valve onto the cold stub-out, yadda, yadda, viola! All Finished.

We'll be in Las Vegas for Turkey Day. Hope everyone has a good holiday.

Sean's Seventh Birthday!

So Sean is seven years old. I can hardly believe it. It seems like just yesterday we were taking him to Teriyaki Hut for the first time. Well, Sean had a great time at the jumper place. He had about 20 friends show and they ran, yelled, slid, and jumped for 3 straight hours. Thanks to all the parents for their generosity and for helping to make Sean's day so great.

Sean's Soccer Picture

Halloween

Happy Halloween! The evening was a balmy 70 degrees and the trick-'r-treaters were out in force. We lit the candles in our slightly shriveled little pumpkins and then suited up to beg for gratuitous candy from houses with the illuminated porch lights. Shouts of "I got a Tootsieroll!" fill the evening, but the little ingrates rarely remember to say thank you. All in good fun. Then we went to the Halloween festival at the park where they had games and attractions. No gold fish this time. The last one lived for 2 years. It was time to go home when their sugar saturated blood was announced by aberrant behavior. Until next year...

Bathroom Tile

It took a week, but the tile is done. I did the demolition, floor prep, and grout. We had a highly recommended tile guy do the tile setting.






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