We had an appointment to see an apartment in St. Kilda a few days ago. The unit was on the third floor of a building that resembled an American motel. One of the ways to get to the apartment was by way of an enclosed concrete stairwell.
We arrived ahead of the agent. We called the agents office to make sure we were in the right spot, so he knew we were waiting. A few minutes later we hear someone yell out, "Mauwwk, Mauwwk". Mark does nothing. Finally I responded. Mark looked at me and said.."Shit, he was calling my name. He sounded like a damn crow squawking. "
We were laying in bed laughing about it. Mark explained that there are 4 Marks at work, "there are crows everywhere." It cracks me up how accustomed he has become to the American R.
Friday, June 4, 2010
There are Crows Everywhere.
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Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Hotel
Here's the view from our hotel window. It overlooks a great 4 story indoor mall. I'd stay here forever if it were half the price and allowed dogs. Minor details, really.
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Droid
I'm obviously a cell phone whore as I've had 3 in 2 years. I went from my blackberry which I loved to the iPhone which I loved to the Droid which I'm trying to love. In my defense, the iPhone was a gift from Mark. Since our American phones won't work in Australia we had to get new ones anyway. I had planned on getting another iPhone, but CNET reviews, Mark, and the Telstra sales guy convinced me to get the Droid.
I like the physical feel of it better. It has a rubberish shell which creates more friction so it doesn't slip out of your hands so easily. It seems like it'll absorb a bit more shock if it's dropped, and unfortunately, it will be dropped.
It's open source so there will be oodles of apps, but some aren't out yet--like my favorite, Kindle. But it's apparently coming.
The screen has amazing resolution. I think I will love it as well once I get passed the learning curve.
And the reason I'm dedicating an entire blog post to my cell phone when I have a boatload of other stuff going on? Well I have been up since 3 am and I needed to find something to entertain myself that wouldn't wake the family. So, I found the Blogger app!
PS-They call them mobiles and message banks here, not cells and voicemail.
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Sunday, May 30, 2010
The Whirlwind
Who knew a dental hygienist could be so influential?
On April 14th, I schlepped the kiddos to Makena's dental appointment. We love our dentist and his staff, for too many reasons to list. But the one that matters this time is everyone remembers us. Not just our names, but what we were last up to. So, the hygienist, Heather, asked about our trip to Australia this past February. I told her how great it was and that we were planning to move to Melbourne in the next year or two. She was excited for us. The conversation progressed to what will happen in a year or two that will send us on our way. I gave the same answer that Mark and I discussed--the economy turning around as well as Mark and I accomplishing somethings we set out to do.
Driving away from the office, I started thinking, why wait? I mean, will we be able to accomplish what we hope to accomplish in a year or two? The longer we wait, the more ingrained Makena will be in school. I could quickly see a year or two becoming three, four then never. Then I had the first "what if" moment. What if we did it now? Whatever we wanted to accomplish in the US we could do in Australia. After a solid 4 minutes of pondering the scenario I decided to pitch the idea to Mark. It really felt good.
I pounced on Mark as soon as he got home from work. His response was, "that's a fascinating idea." We tossed some ideas around and decided that Mark would start looking for a contract. Immediately he learned that the economy is going well in Australia. He found a few jobs that he thought were quite suitable. He interviewed for one and was offered the position--start date: 3 weeks! And the race was on. We sold 80% of our belongings, had offers on both houses, found a broker to sell both cars, renewed Makena's and my American passports, got Kessler an Australian passport. We weren't sure whether it would work out that I could or should come with Mark. The permanent residency visa takes 4-6 months to process. There was talk from immigration that I could not travel to Australia on a visitor visa with a permanent residency visa already lodged. But an immigration attorney suggested that I travel with Mark and the kids, then apply for permanent residency a few weeks after arrival. So, that's what we decided to do--which meant I didn't have any extra time to tie up any loose ends!
So, here we are. We arrived Saturday; Mark started his first day of work today. I'm trying to find us some short term accommodation so we can move out of the hotel, which is wonderful by the way. It's right in the middle of downtown Melbourne. I can't describe it. I love this city, but I'll have more on that later!
On April 14th, I schlepped the kiddos to Makena's dental appointment. We love our dentist and his staff, for too many reasons to list. But the one that matters this time is everyone remembers us. Not just our names, but what we were last up to. So, the hygienist, Heather, asked about our trip to Australia this past February. I told her how great it was and that we were planning to move to Melbourne in the next year or two. She was excited for us. The conversation progressed to what will happen in a year or two that will send us on our way. I gave the same answer that Mark and I discussed--the economy turning around as well as Mark and I accomplishing somethings we set out to do.
Driving away from the office, I started thinking, why wait? I mean, will we be able to accomplish what we hope to accomplish in a year or two? The longer we wait, the more ingrained Makena will be in school. I could quickly see a year or two becoming three, four then never. Then I had the first "what if" moment. What if we did it now? Whatever we wanted to accomplish in the US we could do in Australia. After a solid 4 minutes of pondering the scenario I decided to pitch the idea to Mark. It really felt good.
I pounced on Mark as soon as he got home from work. His response was, "that's a fascinating idea." We tossed some ideas around and decided that Mark would start looking for a contract. Immediately he learned that the economy is going well in Australia. He found a few jobs that he thought were quite suitable. He interviewed for one and was offered the position--start date: 3 weeks! And the race was on. We sold 80% of our belongings, had offers on both houses, found a broker to sell both cars, renewed Makena's and my American passports, got Kessler an Australian passport. We weren't sure whether it would work out that I could or should come with Mark. The permanent residency visa takes 4-6 months to process. There was talk from immigration that I could not travel to Australia on a visitor visa with a permanent residency visa already lodged. But an immigration attorney suggested that I travel with Mark and the kids, then apply for permanent residency a few weeks after arrival. So, that's what we decided to do--which meant I didn't have any extra time to tie up any loose ends!
So, here we are. We arrived Saturday; Mark started his first day of work today. I'm trying to find us some short term accommodation so we can move out of the hotel, which is wonderful by the way. It's right in the middle of downtown Melbourne. I can't describe it. I love this city, but I'll have more on that later!
Monday, April 12, 2010
Happy Birthday, Mommy.
Before school on Friday, Makena let Mark know that she wanted to surprise me for my birthday. When they got home after school they went quietly into the kitchen and hid. When I came downstairs, they jumped from behind the counter and yelled "Surprise!" :)
Makena told me about the card she made for me; the one that daddy left at school. She proudly delivered it today:
Makena told me about the card she made for me; the one that daddy left at school. She proudly delivered it today:
Cutie Pies
Here are the school photos for March. I was late bringing them in that day, so the teacher took them straight back when we got there. I hadn't filled out the form for the pictures yet (surprise, surprise) so she had me come with. It's always so sweet to watch your kids when you're not supposed to be there! Every time Kessler laughed, he covered his mouth. Every time Makena laughed, she bent over. They must have taken 20 pictures each.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Facebook killed my blog.
Facebook is only partly to blame. But, I'm mad at it at the moment so it's going to carry the brunt. Another culprit is my trading--that's probably more to blame than anything, but I can't be mad at it because you don't bite the hand that feeds you, someday. Any day? The other blog inhibitor is my sanity. Blogging used to be my therapy for the tough mommy days. Those days are much less frequent so therapy 5 times a week isn't necessary. Shew!
But, I know I'm going to regret not keeping a journal of the stories. There have been a few. Just the little things that make me smile just thinking about them.
I'll start with our trip to Australia in February for Julie and Ken's wedding. The trip there was quite noteworthy--4 flights, 36 hours! The kids were extremely tired. Kessler cried nearly the entire time from Brisbane to Melbourne, until the wheels hit the ground and he was out! I carried him through Melbourne airport, which was no small accomplishment. I'm glad I did though, for two reasons. The first of which is Kessler is getting so big. The days of carrying him are numbered. And secondly, it made me love the people of Melbourne. At least 5 people offered to help and countless others made some sort of endearing comment as they were passing by. It was quite sweet. I truly love the United States, but it makes me sad that these simple exchanges with strangers are gone.
Much of the rest of the trip was a blur because of jet lag and the fallout from trying to trade while there. There are a few things I do remember. The first is what an absolutely stunning bride Julie made. Not that I expected anything different, but she looked as if she stepped off the cover of a bridal magazine. Her dress was gorgeous!
The other thing I remember is the night before the wedding. Ken and Julie treated everyone to dinner. We were trying to get Kessler dressed. We pulled out his adorable little linen, long sleeve oxford shirt. He started crying as soon as he realized it was headed toward him! "No, I don't want to wear daddy's shirt!! I want to wear a baby shirt!!" Somehow, we won this battle, which still amazes me. Come to think of it, maybe we didn't win as I seem to remember Kessler being pretty cranky the rest of the evening.
Makena, on the other hand, loved getting dressed up! Lucky enough, she was able to do it again the next day. She and cousins, Phoebe and Ruby had the cutest little dresses. They looked like little princesses. Now, Makena is fascinated by weddings. She wanted to know if she could marry Kessler. She asked if we could go ask our neighbors if they would like to marry her. She finally gave up on mom and dad making the arrangements. One day last week when I came to pick her up, Ms. Danielle explained that she was in the middle of a ceremony. She pointed to the corner where Makena and Dillan were both playing in fancy costume dresses and high heels!! They had just gotten married! Apparently they have gotten remarried nearly everyday since!
Ballets have become popular lately as well. Shortly after getting back from Australia, Makena asked if she could put on her wedding dress to go to the ballet. As I was getting the dress, Kessler started asking for his ballet clothes. In the midst, the phone rang. A few minutes later, the kids started down the stairs, holding hands. Makena was wearing her dress over her clothes and Kessler was wearing "daddy's shirt" and underwear. It was so amazingly sweet.
I had planned on writing more, but I don't want to hurt myself as I attempt to reenter the world of blogging!
But, I know I'm going to regret not keeping a journal of the stories. There have been a few. Just the little things that make me smile just thinking about them.
I'll start with our trip to Australia in February for Julie and Ken's wedding. The trip there was quite noteworthy--4 flights, 36 hours! The kids were extremely tired. Kessler cried nearly the entire time from Brisbane to Melbourne, until the wheels hit the ground and he was out! I carried him through Melbourne airport, which was no small accomplishment. I'm glad I did though, for two reasons. The first of which is Kessler is getting so big. The days of carrying him are numbered. And secondly, it made me love the people of Melbourne. At least 5 people offered to help and countless others made some sort of endearing comment as they were passing by. It was quite sweet. I truly love the United States, but it makes me sad that these simple exchanges with strangers are gone.
Much of the rest of the trip was a blur because of jet lag and the fallout from trying to trade while there. There are a few things I do remember. The first is what an absolutely stunning bride Julie made. Not that I expected anything different, but she looked as if she stepped off the cover of a bridal magazine. Her dress was gorgeous!
The other thing I remember is the night before the wedding. Ken and Julie treated everyone to dinner. We were trying to get Kessler dressed. We pulled out his adorable little linen, long sleeve oxford shirt. He started crying as soon as he realized it was headed toward him! "No, I don't want to wear daddy's shirt!! I want to wear a baby shirt!!" Somehow, we won this battle, which still amazes me. Come to think of it, maybe we didn't win as I seem to remember Kessler being pretty cranky the rest of the evening.
Makena, on the other hand, loved getting dressed up! Lucky enough, she was able to do it again the next day. She and cousins, Phoebe and Ruby had the cutest little dresses. They looked like little princesses. Now, Makena is fascinated by weddings. She wanted to know if she could marry Kessler. She asked if we could go ask our neighbors if they would like to marry her. She finally gave up on mom and dad making the arrangements. One day last week when I came to pick her up, Ms. Danielle explained that she was in the middle of a ceremony. She pointed to the corner where Makena and Dillan were both playing in fancy costume dresses and high heels!! They had just gotten married! Apparently they have gotten remarried nearly everyday since!
Ballets have become popular lately as well. Shortly after getting back from Australia, Makena asked if she could put on her wedding dress to go to the ballet. As I was getting the dress, Kessler started asking for his ballet clothes. In the midst, the phone rang. A few minutes later, the kids started down the stairs, holding hands. Makena was wearing her dress over her clothes and Kessler was wearing "daddy's shirt" and underwear. It was so amazingly sweet.
I had planned on writing more, but I don't want to hurt myself as I attempt to reenter the world of blogging!
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