sunday at mum's

Kai, Li and I spent the day with Mum on Sunday. It was our usual meandering, roaming St.Kilda day and it was lovely. We took the boys to the Blessington Street Gardens and then onto the video store. We had planned to meet Mart and Gaye later in the afternoon after they had gotten back from visiting Mart's Nana in Inverloch, but her car had broken down on the way home and they had to take transport to get home. They were back in time for dinner and we all got to hang out for a little while. The kids fell asleep on the way home so Eli and I got to watch a movie, which is rare.

christmas day in melbourne...

Christmas started early for us, Dad came over yesterday and totally surprised me by giving me a new acoustic (classical) guitar and amp and pick-up. It was so thoughtful and I loved it... all. The kids had a fun time with the gifts they got and it was hard to imagine that Christmas day hadn't even started. Mum stayed the night, the kids woke early and it was so much fun to watch them be so excited about the presents. I was allowed to go back to bed and get a few more hours sleep before lunch... then it seemed like everything was a mad rush after that. Lunch was great in the park... started off a bit hectic, but then settled into a really softly windy, sunny day. We are all home now and I feel pretty exhausted, the house is a wreck, but can wait until tomorrow.
here are a some pics...

ok birthday week is nearly over... tomorrow : )

Have spent the day trying to think of special things to do, but as I was free to work today and needing to work it has ended up being a pretty usual sort of day. I did go out and buy a cake so the kids and we can blow out the candles. Yesterday I got some lovely presents from everyone, E gave me a beautiful book about Illustrating children's stories, and Mum gave me a DVD with acoustic guitar lessons... plus I got loads of make-up so I am happy about that.
I had a pretty crappy nights sleep last night so the best birthday present I could have now is an early night with no crying babies [:o
On Sunday we all got together and had our book club and Gaye made a yummy cake...
here are a some pics...

the gorgeous miss martine...

and her green tonic...

my beautiful mumma's birthday...

This morning we woke mum up by singing Happy Birthday to her... I had quickly worked out the chords and was able to play along. Then we all went out to breakfast up in the Hills. It was so rainy and a bit scary driving but we made it to a fun pancake place that was really yummy. The best part was the little munchkins fells asleep on the way home so should have a couple of hours of peace and quiet, until the next stampede.

my birthday starts this week...

I have decided to slightly stretch out my birthday this year so started early and had the most beautiful Thai dinner with my friends last night. We went to the local Thai restaurant here and I think it's pretty great. Marti said her Tom Yum didn't compare to the ones she was having last month in Thailand, but still thought it was good. Andrew and Roula gave me a book of Leonard Cohen's poetry which looks amazing and Simmone gave me the most beautiful silk coat... and chocolate... and many more beautiful things...
So even though it isn't officially the 16th I would have to say already 36 is going to be a good year : )

power family christmas party

Yesterday we all drove to Preston for the annual Christmas Party. It is amazing to me how big the extended Power family is. I still feel pretty shy and not too good about introducing myself (the name tags helped a bit), but slowly year by year I am getting to know people and start sorting out the individual families in my head. It's funny to think because of Grandpa we are all connected in this way. I get a bit sad when I see uncle Phil, because he kinda reminds me of Grandpa... and I missed him.
Here are a some pics...

childbirth vs. getting a tattoo on your ankle...

hmmm, thought it would be a fun thing to get the little tattoo on my ankle updated after seeing a new shop had opened in Upwey. It was a fun and whimsical thing to do... I thought... until the guy started working and I remembered what it felt like to have a hot needle working around the ankle bone... ahhhh... I think it's more painful than giving birth...
I didn't flinch and kept it together although at one point I did start to feel a little nauseous... luckily it didn't take too long.
Just one of the many fun things I am getting up to on Thursdays, which is now becoming official "me day"!

grandpa don's visit

Dad came up yesterday and spent the day with us. He bought some books to show me and we got to concentrate on a bit of guitar. Eli also got his harps out, the kids started dancing and I think we were all actually jamming there for about... 2 minutes. Liam is a little gremlin when I am playing as he has worked out that the best way to make me stop is to twist all the tuning heads as I play.
We took the kids for a walk and got them off to sleep, Dad is starting to get used to all the hills around here. I fell asleep as soon as the kids were in bed and E and Dad stayed up yakking.

grandpa walter's visit

Walter came on a whirlwind visit last week. It was great that he got to spend some time with us during his work trip this month. We didn't do too much, just stayed close to home mostly, but that was nice... and relaxed. On Monday Eli had to work so Walter and I spend a really good and constructive day with the kids. We managed to get them both to sleep at the same time and then took them for a walk to the park. The kids spent the whole time running through puddles and getting soaked with water and mud. It was one of those situations where you just have to give in and let them be kids... they can have a bath later. As I was watching them slop around in the cold mud I had a very strong sense memory of what that felt like, I remember spending hours outside in the mud... rain, hail or shine, I just loved it!

oscars alehouse is finally open...

Last night was the first night the doors opened at Brad's bar. It looked amazing. I had dropped E off earlier in the morning, but purposely didn't look in because I really wanted to experience walking into the bar with fresh eyes. It really felt bigger than I remembered... maybe because all the tools and junk were not there. It looked perfect. Eli promptly set himself up at the end of the bar (his equivalent posi from the Townhouse in LA). I think he is really proud of all he (and Brad) have accomplished.
I hardly spoke to Gyps as they were so busy working, but can see in time it will be such a nice place to go and have a catch up (seeing as we hardly see each other now, between work and kids etc).

crazy upwey weather...

Today was pretty warm. I had to get about 3 buses to get to a doctors appointment and by the time I got there It was really hot in the bus and kind of stifling. Anyway it started to storm after the kids got home and then the hail came down. It was amazing and HUGE! The roof felt like it would cave in under the heavy pelting. This is the kind of weather I missed all those years in LA.
I have been pretty sick this week, but not letting it keep me down too much. I guess I should try and rest a little bit but can't seem to find the time. Right now the house is a bit of a disaster and I have been trying to clean up without too much success. I am madly trying to find my guitar tuner, which I think Liam may have thrown in the bin... maybe I should learn to tune my guitar without one (please dad!)... it's just so easy to use.
The bar is opening on Friday night so we are all planning to head down there to have the first of what I think will be many fun nights. I am so excited to see the final product of Brad, E's and (Gyps) hard work. Something tells me Oscars is going to be a pretty cool place...

fun party for lily's birthday...

It was Lily's first birthday party today and even though it was storming and hailing up here it was a really nice day. Simmone's house looked beautiful. Everyone was having fun and the kids seemed relatively subdued and relaxed for the most part. Kaisy started to fly later in the day due to extreme tiredness and sugar consumption... He really needs to have some kind of a nap or quiet time during the day, but it was a party and not an option.
Simmone's whole family were there including Caine and it was really cool to be able to see everyone together. I must admit after knowing Simmone for so many years I kind of felt like part of the family and that was a nice feeling. I guess that's the thing about getting older, your old friends start to be like an extended family. I just love getting together with Gyps and Simmone. We started to really talk, like the old days and I wish it could have gone on, but it started to rain on us and we moved inside.
I am so wiped out and don't know if I can outlast these kids tonight...
I left Eli at the party at the top of a ginormous pine tree. He and Stell started to climb for some reason and he was up way too high and had drunk way too much for me to stomach it... anyway I left and trust all will be OK... ahhhh!

HERE ARE THE PHOTOS...

hiding out in my undies drawer!

This one was a little more feisty than the others... it freaked me more because it was jumping around my undies drawer and harder to catch... ahhhh
I have just dropped the kids off at school... and am drinking in the peace and quiet around here. I have so much work to do I don't know where to start. I have been procrastinating all morning but need to get a start.
We had a pretty good weekend. Eli looked after the kids all day Sunday while I went to the city to see Wicked with my Nana (Harvey). She used to take me to the ballet and opera when I was little and when I started working in my early 20's I started to take her to shows that were on in town. We saw Sunset Blvd and a couple of others. I am trying to keep up the tradition now we are back here and thought Wicked would be a fun show to see. We did both enjoy it, but also agreed we prefer to see plays more than big musical extravaganzas. Also we both found the fact the Australian cast spoke with very strong American accents off putting. I just wondered why they couldn't speak the dialog and sing with Australian accents... apart from that it was pretty entertaining.
Walter is in town this weekend and we have two kids parties to go to so it should be a pretty busy and fun weekend. Mart said she may come up on Friday night too, which would be great as it's really hard to get her to make the trek up here.

survived another friday with the kids...

I have learned that on Fridays I have to really plan what to do with Kai and Liam. I usually just pack up the pram and start walking, we sometimes get the train and sometimes go and visit a friend. I play netball with a mothers group on Friday so Ferntree Gully is where we are usually bound.
Today Kai woke up banging his head and ears telling me he couldn't hear me. He seemed pretty freaked about it and I made a doctors appointment straight away. I didn't have the car and because it was pouring with rain, Roula drove us there. So lovely to have her as a neighbor. Luckily she wanted to come to Glen Waverley with us so I didn't have to get the bus. I went to buy Liam a chest of drawers and found some great ones. Then we went to a special chocolate shop and had the most amazing cake ever! I am still dreaming about it. When we got home I just herded the kids outside and we played in the little house together. Kai is getting really good with the camera and he took some of these photos.
Unfortunately I think I may have wrecked the new chicken coop by opening it before it had dried from the rain and Eli may have to rebuild some of it... he's not too impressed, but the kids couldn't wait to jump around in it.

sunset at st. kilda beach

I drove Gaye home after she visited on Wednesday. It was such a hot day and I knew it would be a hard trip going back on the train.I also really wanted to go for a walk with Mum. We only then realized it was the first time kai would have watched the sun go down on the beach. We stayed until it got dark and then I drove home and kaisy fell asleep in the car.

sunday in st kilda...

The boys and I headed down to St. Kilda today to meet up with Mart and Mum before heading onto the book club. Mart had to rush around getting ready for a Christening so it wasn't our usual lazy wander around that we usually have. I think I like it better when we have no plans and we end up at the beach or at the Adventure Playground... or just walking...
Lovely to see all my aunties and Nana and we got to organize the Christmas party. I thought maybe we could have everyone up here but reneged a few minutes later thinking about the massive clean-up... so Jells park it is, which everyone loves anyway.
Mum looked after the boys for a while but then came to Gaye's and immediately fell asleep with Li, those kids will do that to you!
Everyone was reading great stuff, but I think I'll read American Dad (Gaye's book)... after I get through the stack of bodice-rippers I have by my bed.

i guess they just like it here...

This one was under an orange i picked up...
ahhhhhh!!!!! It was even bigger than the other one!!!!

beautiful... beautiful... beautiful...

Beautiful Boys...

li and I caught a huge spider in the kids playhouse...

It totally freaked me out. LiLi didn't seem too fazed, and he helped me catch it and put it in the garden.
It was just a big huntsman, but I think the biggest I have seen...

october is rolling on by...

The weather has been getting much warmer. All the flowers are out and it's been really magical discovering all the plants we have in the yard we didn't know about. Eli has been planting more fruit trees and recently some timber bamboo.
Eli has been working the last few weeks and I have been left without a car. It has been a great motivator to get me moving again. I have walked about 2-5km every day and am feeling really good. Also playing netball twice a week. Today was a BAD game though. We have decided since there are so many people who shoot goals in my Saturday team we will take it in turns to play the attack and defense positions, giving everyone a turn. I just seem to choke because I feel pressure to be a good goaler... or something. I don't know what it is, but I am totally sabotaging myself. I am playing the rest of the game pretty well, but when it comes to shooting the ball in I am just freezing and then doing terrible shots that I know I am better than. It's really frustrating, and I screamed "F**K" after woefully missing a final goal I was allowed after the siren... it just got to me.
The boys have been good. Kai is getting more and more active. He loves jumping on his bed and doing acrobatics. He is really great at balancing and making up little jumps and twists. I was really into doing acrobatics and gymnastics too when I was a kid. Maybe we need to get him some monkey bars.
Here are some recent pics...

girls night out... with patti smith...

I met Mum, Gaye and Carm, Alli and her friend Jenni in at Fed square tonight. Alli had tickets for a Patti Smith bio movie at ACMI. It was really great to watch. She is quite amazing and strange and wonderful. I came home and have been listening to Horses ever since. The best part was that Patti came on to introduce the movie as she is in Melbourne right now for a show. She sand one song on stage and it was just a really cool surprise. Mum and the girls were so in awe and wonder. It was greater for them because to them Patti has been a hero for years. I enjoyed seeing her with her kids the most, it was what I could relate to the most. Alli bought all the tickets for us and it was really generous and thoughtful.
Today it's sunny and warm outside so we are all going to plat a vege bed I think.
I need some sun as I have been a bit blah the last few days.
It seems to brighten everything up.

judy's last day before she heads home...

Judy is off back home to the States. We had a really great visit. Judy seemed to really settle in to the relaxed Upwey lifestyle. She took a walk up to the shops everyday which is great as it's a pretty long and hilly walk. We will all miss her.
We had a great day at Ruby's 7th birthday party yesterday. Roula made so much yummy food, party pies, sandwiches and yummy cake. The weather was great and everyone sat outside while the kids played Totem Tennis and jumped on the trampoline. Kai and Ruby have a great way with each other. They just amuse themselves for hours on end, with relatively no arguments. It's a great thing for Roula and I. It's a rainy old Monday, so today may be a bit of a cozy, by the fire, inside day.
Ruby's Party pics

great time at the wedding

Gyps came over early and we got ready for Jacki and Hiro's wedding. It was fun, reminding me of the old days when we would get dressed up to go out together. We got caught in bad traffic getting there and were a little late. It was a great night. Fun to see old friends and have a dance. It was really moving see Jacki and Hiro showing so much love for one another and their families. We got a great lesson in traditional Japanese dance from Hiro's uncle. Everyone was having a ball. The food was delicious, roast lamb with roast pumpkin, potatoes, beets, and green beans. My heels were too full-on and by the time we were walking back to the car I was about to die in pain. I was so happy when we finally got home and I was able to jump into bed and rest. So much fun, but I am getting too old for late nights these days.
Photos from last night are here...

kai and liam's party...

We had a beautiful day in the park. It looked like rain all morning, but then the sun came out just as the party started and it stayed sunny all day. It was a magical day with our family and friends. Eli had brought his hammock, which was a big hit. We had footballs and soccar balls flying around all day. I almost kicked a ball into both my nanas at one point and decided to stop playing in case I did any real damage. Kai and Liam were thoroughly exhausted by the end of the party. They had so much fun and have been playing with all their new toys and reading all their new books. Thank you to everyone who came along to make this a real birthday to remember.
PS: Also thank you to Nana Judy for flying so far to come and whom helped so much along the way...

HERE ARE THE PHOTOS...
HERE ARE MORE PHOTOS...
HERE ARE EVEN MORE PHOTOS...

kai and li's party: update

grand final bbq...

Just got back from a lovely barby at Dan and Brads.
Here is a funny photo of Simmone and I in the kitchen.
It was just one of those quintessential Australian days, with the grand final in the background, Paul Kelly & Aussie Crawl playing inside, and the kids kicking the footy around the yard.
It made me quite emotional, as I feel so much like coming home was the right thing to do for us and everything is falling into place. E was really bonding with the blokes and that was also great to see.

gaye's book meeting...

We have been meeting about once every 2 months to talk about the books we are reading. It is lovely to get together with my beautiful aunties, nana and friends and talk about books. It always leads to other great conversations.
I do feel like my books are a little low-brow though compared to the other books...
hmmm.. may have to finally start reading Crime and Punishment next...

happy birthday kai's and liam...

Yesterday we got the little club house bulit for the boys. It looks fantastic. I was a little worried as it is a little way away from the house, but it turns out that it is just perfectly placed. They seem to love it already. I am just imagining sunny days lazing around in the back of the yard. It is shaded a little by the trees so it shouldn't get too, too hot.
I am madly trying to get ready for the boy's party. I am doing the usual and making the decision early to get help with the food etc, but then at the last minute I end up deciding catering is just too expensive. So now I have a long list to go through to get things ready. Luckily I have the help of Mum, Marti and Gaye... and Nana Judy is here too, so it should be fine.

he's an artist!

Over at Nanny's the other day, Kai quickly scribbled this little "boidy"

renovations in the house...

I have been doing a lot of painting inside. For those who have been here you may remember that the inside walls are quite dark, a deep blue and rust color, just not my cupper at all. Anyway I have finally decided to freshen up the walls with some light (white actually) colors. I picked a very subtle green to break up the white. Anyway, it's moving along slowly as I have to work around the kids etc. But I am starting to really feel the change. I feel happier... lighter... feels like Spring is really here!

the little ones...

mid august...

So it happened for the first time... Eli and I totally forgot our wedding anniversary. Oh well, life is pretty busy and I guess it just slipped our minds. We have now been married for 9 years. That is a pretty huge accomplishment I think. We have two beautiful boys, a beautiful house in the hills, wonderful family and friends... what more could we want.

yukky stomach bug...

Gosh, this season we have really been slammed with viruses and bugs. Anyway Eli and I are still recovering from a pretty miserable 24 hour stomach flu. The kids seem OK which is good, they went to school, giving us a chance to sleep all day. We even watched a movie, Gangs of New York. I hadn't seen it since watching at the cinema in New York. I really love Daniel Day Lewis, he is just amazing, although the blood and gore didn't help my tummy much. Eli is set to go back to the bar tomorrow and I am planning on filling in for a Mother's netball team in the morning... crazy!

having dinner at zugame's...

Hmmm, I thought maybe it would be a nice idea to all go out to dinner tonight as I am still pretty sacked out with the flu. I had heard about this place where the kids can play while we eat. Sounded too good to be true... and it was. It was basically a Tab hotel with a small indoor playground. Either E or I had to be looking after the kids playing and took it in turns to eat our meal.
I took Liam up into a minature climbing maze and then realized I was completely claustrophobic. I had millions of little kids climbing over me as I navigated my way back out...freaky. We got a movie on the way home for the boys from the video shop called The Iron Giant. It was a great movie and we all ended up having a nice mellow night.
Maybe no more Zugame's though... for a while anyway...

kung fu panda...

Kaisy has started Karate and he seems to be loving it. It was a bit touch and go if he could maintain concentration to see a class through, but the Sensei seems to think he will be fine.
Everything has been cruising along pretty smoothly here. It's been really cold and damp and that hasn't helped any of us totally shrug off our various colds, flus and viruses. Right now I am suffering pretty badly, worse than the others. Somehow though I am pulling it together to get things done.
Eli has a possible job in Boston on a movie, but things seem to change from one day to the next. I am trying to just leave it up top fate and not worry to much about if he will be going or not. Part of me would be fine if he didn't go as I think right now the boys really need him around. Kai especially seems to be bonding pretty strongly to him and it would be a hard adjustment for him to make to have his Daddy away for over three months.
I had a lovely Sunday lunch up here with Jeannette and Brooke. We all ate yummy food and sat around the fire. Eli had taken Kai to a BBQ so we had a chance to talk. There is so much to catch up on it seems we never really get to go into anything too deeply.
Will try and keep more current on the blog...

night out with the girls...

I had a wonderful night out with all my friends last night. We went to a bar/cafe called the Local in St Kilda. I was a little nervous as I hadn't seen everyone together for a long time. I guess I don't naturally make an effort to reconnect with old friends, I have always let connections fade away and move on, but it has been so lovely and natural to see all my old friends. I have had to confront a lot of fear I had about it and am very glad I have. I love that I am now close with Simmone again (one of my childhood/adolescent best friends). And now seeing all the girls (Brooke, Sasha, Bec, Jeannette and Kate) makes me realize that even though time passes and we all change and move on, grow up, it still really great to catch up.

Everything here is Upwey is fine. Kids are getting over colds and doing great. I took them both to have immunizations on Friday. It was hard for Kai. He was so unaware of what was coming with the needle and when it finally spiked him he was so surprised and freaked out. Liam not so bad.

Here are a few pics of us playing at home...

very quiet weekend away...

We have just returned from a weekend away with our neighbors, Carl, Mel, Kurt and Blake. Corinella is close to Phillip Island and we had all sort of plans to get out and about, but ended up lazing around the house all day instead. I guess we all needed the rest. Next time I would love to go and see the penguins, also show Eli Phillip Island.
The kids all loved playing together and were pretty rambunctious, to say the least.
We made really yummy pizzas on Friday night, but had pretty disappointing fish and chips on Saturday night.
I slept a lot n Saturday and am feeling really refreshed now.
Eli is taking the day off tomorrow and we are taking the kids to the Science Museum.
Here are some pics from this weekend.

boys at the museum...

We went to the museum last week and Kai and Li had great fun in the Kid's Gallery. They loved the little kitchen and didn't want to leave. I re-joined for this year, so we will go often I hope.
Things have been very busy for us, what's new. Eli has been busy working with Brad on the bar. They seem to be moving full-steam ahead, I am really excited to see the outcome of their labor.
Liam is pretty sick tonight. He is wheezing again and so I think I will take him to the doctor tomorrow. He had this same thing same time last year. I hope this doesn't mean he has any asthma, as the doctor we saw last year said that if it comes back it is a good chance he does have it. We will see. I think I will sleep in with Liam and Kai tonight just to monitor him tonight.
Will keep you posted...

April is gone... May is flying by...

I can't believe it's already half way through 2008... This year is speeding by for me.
We have all been doing pretty well. The kids are recovering from what seems like a 2-month long cold/virus/flu. Kai got it pretty bad and had a huge cold sore on his nose for a while. Last week was something out of an episode of Super Nanny (minus the help of Super Nanny), with the kids home sick, Eli at work and me holding forte.
Luckily I had some help from my loving aunties, but even with their help it was pretty crazy. Kai was just feeling so crappy and I think a bit of cabin fever and he became really naughty. I had a really hard time getting him t listen and my disciplining tactics became more and more all-over-the-place. I feel like I am back on track now, but still have a lot to learn during those really tough times.

Eli is working a lot lately. He has been working nights the last week, but luckily tonight is his last for a while. He will start work on Brad's Bar this week...Hooray. It will be nice to have him to close to home.

Last weekend I went out and caught up with some old...old friends. It was an impromptu arrangement and not something I usually would instigate, but it turned out to be a lovely evening. I was a little nervous, but that passed during the night. The had flathead and chocolate cake for dessert. I haven't done the girls night out thing for so long, it was a real treat.

Mother's Day was really nice. We all went to Chaddy so I could buy some boots, which I did. They are pretty groovy and I can't wait to wear them out.

Will try and post more frequently as I know this is a good source to get the latest on the Power-Golub clan. And, no Grandpa, my hands haven't fallen off, they are just so busy wiping bottoms...pouring juice... putting in DVDs... washing hair, brushing teeth... etc etc, ha ha

Here are some recent pics

so long since posting...

Life has been moving so speedily these last few weeks. Judy and Walter's visit came and went. It was lovely to have them here and give them a real sense of our new life. The boys are great. We have only just started to explore our new surrounds. But today we went to the local primary school and it is really spacious and green. The three of us (Li, Kai and I) walked around exploring all the different classrooms. Kai got a little bit scared when we went right around the back to what looked to be an old house converted into a school area. I felt really excited knowing the boys will probably be going there in a few years. Eli has been working lots, he is glad to be on a familiar movie set (The Knowing and The Pacific). He is slowing starting to adjust to the work environment here. I always knew there would be some adjustments to be made. Liam was a little sick last week and both the boys have been living with some virusy thing the last month or so... I think the crazy hot/cold weather pattern plays a big part in that. Eli is working all next week, so I am going to get around on public transport for the most part, although sometimes that can be fun for a change.
Here are some pics of everyone taking over the last few weeks