Renovations on a rental house... we MUST be crazy!

I must preface this post by saying that we are SOOOO used to owning our own home. When we found a house that suited us in a location that was TO DIE FOR, we decided to pretend, if only for a moment, that it was ours. The end result is that we have set the owner of the house up for heaps of long-term profits, in Sydney rental standards, by doing a lot of work that truly needed to be done. Here are some photos to prove it...

Front of our house and fence when we moved in (Feb. 2008)

Front of our house now (notice the rust-proofed and painted fence, along with the gardening)

Kitchen floor when we moved in...

Kitchen floor after we replaced it...

Back yard before and afters...

And for good measure, one of Brady before...

And the kids after

That pretty much sums up what we've been doing lately! There are heaps more things we've done to the house, but these are the most noticeable. I'm so happy the kids will have a decent place to play this summer when we're not at the park or playdates!!

Some pics of Brady and other Aussie news

I managed to get a few of Brady in September, and as usual they are action shots =) There are a couple of them together mixed in.

Is this photo a spitting image of Blake or what?? Talk about a mini-me...

Climbing, his all time favorite pastime

I love these pictures of the kids in their new toybox... they're about to outgrow this one as well!

Since it's necessary to wear sunscreen here every day in the summer, I decided to cut Brady's hair short so it's not getting in his hair when I put it on... I have mixed feelings about the haircut because it makes him look like such a big boy!!

I think he looks a little bit like his Mommy here... one of the only pictures where he does!!

Emptying the kitchen cabinets is great fun and keeps them entertained for about 10 minutes... that's nearly a lifetime in my world, and certainly long

enough to switch the laundry loads!!

In other news, Blake's company has decided to close down several of their international operations, with Australia being one of them. Blake has the task of implementing the entire shut-down, so we'll be here to see it through until all centres are closed. We're expecting this to take us to the end of May or early June, but it could be sooner. I'm sad that we're leaving Sydney 6 months earlier than planned, but am looking forward to enjoying a wonderful and sun-filled summer before we go. We're not sure where we'll be living when we return to the US, but I'll be sure to keep everyone posted when we know more in the next 6-9 months.

Cheers!

Only the princess...

Anna Paige has a way about her... she can pretty much wrap you around her finger and be the most darling little angel or the worst little devil, depending on her mood! This post is all pictures of Anna from the past month, mainly because she gets into the biggest messes of the 2 kids at this age, and also because Brady won't sit still long enough for me to photograph him often!

Anna eating Lynnette's left over salad from the rubbish bin... found her like this after walking Lynnette and Christian to the door when they were leaving! Fortunately it was in a secure container at the top and not buried in the rest of the garbage...

Eating chippies with real American ketchup instead of tomato sauce like the Aussies use... she liked it so much she started skipping the fries and eating the ketchup with her hands.

She has discovered that it's quite enjoyable to wash her hair (fortunately just before her bath) with mashed potatoes

Baby girl climbing into the camera again!

At one of our many parks... I love this series of pictures!

Eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and wearing her American dress (compliments of her wonderful grandparents, thanks Patty and Boo!) and chasing a seagull after a romp on the beach at Balmoral

So there you have it... Anna between 17 and 18 months old... our little "train wreck"!!

A typical day in Sydney

Here is a typical day for us in Sydney... driving 10 minutes to the beach in Manly and walking around with the kids... geez. does it get any prettier than this on a morning walk?

On the walk to Shelley Beach

Brady at the beach cafe

On the corso in Manly, playing in the water

Morgan and Brady playing on the way to Shelley Beach

They're here! Ferry to Manly and visit to McMahon's Point

After 9 months and a REALLY long flight (with a "nice" 5 hour overnight layover in LAX) my parents arrived in Sydney on Saturday, 16 August. After some R & R we were ready to get out and about on Sunday. We took the rail down to Circular Quay and then the ferry up to Manly so they could see the harbour and the beautiful views along the way...

Walking around Circular Quay whist waiting for the ferry...

Sydney's Central Business District (CBD) from Circular Quay

Views from the ferry now, the "heads" where the harbour meets the Pacific Ocean

The Opera House from the side

The Opera House from the front

In Manly now, Mom at Manly Wharf

Anna is tired from the 25 minute journey

Allison, Brady and Mom on the beach at Manly

It was a long, fun and chilly day in Manly! On Monday we ventured out to McMahon's Point, which you've all seen views of in previous posts. Dad was exhausted from the walk down, around, and back up the hills, but we had fun taking them to see North Sydney for the first time. The kids enjoyed the little playground...

A great shot my Dad got of the bridge and North Sydney CBD from McMahon's Point

That's all for days 1 and 2... stay tuned for the next 10 days in pictures!!