90/365 New Adventures

Today.

Today was the first day of our new adventure. Today my beautiful boys started school. Our family's adventures in homeschooling have been some of the most wonderful years of my life. And the most  exhausting, lol, but I am eternally grateful for these extra years spent in each other's gaze. I am taking comfort in the knowledge that we have so much "home-and-world-learning" (as I'm calling it ;) ahead of us together as a family... there are still many adventures to come! They'll just fit around a more traditional schedule of holidays and school hours. 

The best part? Both boys are excited and happy. I am so proud of them :) We picked them up this afternoon, rushed them out for icecream, and - I never thought I'd be saying this but - I think they look super-cute in their uniforms! #love.

89/365 Sand Play

Ahhhh...
Best. Ever. Hair :) Excited to have some more photos of this beautiful gal and her spunky little sister on the blog soon! x

88/365 Getting The Band Back Together

Yup.

This is how rock n' roll it is at our house on a Saturday night ;) But, it's a true joy to see these three snuggled up reading together because it means that daddy's home!!

87/365 Om

Om Mani Padme Hum.

This was my late-night-realisation-that-I-hadn't-taken-a-photo save. 11:30pm. I rolled out of bed and picked up my camera with sleepy eyes, surveyed the darkened room for inspiration and quickly knew what it would be... the loveliest thing about being home - apart from being able to see your friends and family of course! - is having your favourite things around you. Travelling is so minimal, so spare, which is definitely one of it's joys but your home tells so many of your stories.

I could tell the stories about these two pieces. But it's almost that time again and my eyes are getting sleepy again and instead I want to share the Dalai Lama's translation of the infamous mantra. My own food for thought as I drift to sleep.

"It is very good to recite the mantra Om mani padme hum, but while you are doing it, you should be thinking on its meaning, for the meaning of the six syllables is great and vast …. The first, OM … symbolizes the practitioner’s impure body, speech, and mind; it also symbolizes the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha….
The path is indicated by the next four syllables. MANI, meaning jewel, symbolizes the … altruistic intention to become enlightened, compassionate and loving….
The two syllables, PADME, meaning lotus, symbolize wisdom….
Purity must be achieved by an indivisible unity of method and wisdom, symbolized by the final syllable HUM, which indicates indivisibility….
Thus the six syllables, om mani padme hum, mean that in dependence on the practice of a path which is an indivisible union of method and wisdom, you can transform your impure body, speech, and mind into the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha…."

- His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama

x

86/365 It's All About The Hair

Wow.

Hug decided to get his hair cut short. His first back and sides. And, even though I lurve his hair wild and curly (he really has awesome thick hair which he clearly gets from his dad) I am shocked by how much I like it! Oh my, I think we are going to have a hearbreaker on our hands! xx

85/365 Harry Potter

Woohoo!

The munchkin is super-excited to have finished Harry Potter 3. After the trials and tribulations of getting through books 1 and 2, he's finally found his flow. #proud. Do you remember the book that made you a READER - or your favourite book series - growing up? x

84/365 Gifted

Awwww, feeling spoilt :)

The lovely Megan from Big Tree Photography sent me an unexpected present! Who doesn't like surprise gifts?!! ❤ Take a sneak-peak at my instagram page if you want to see what it was... 

83/365 Flow

Sharpes Beach. This afternoon. These two had to stay together. x 

82/365 Rainbow Bright!

Pop! 

Adding some colour to the kitchen with a dash of cheap and cheerful shopping (hello Target sale!). I also stocked up on new towels and sheets for everyone... exciting! It's the little things isn't it :)

81/365 Zzzzz...

T has been working so hard. 

His second night in the house since we got home... and he fell asleep on the couch while I was in the shower. Apparently I should have woken him up! But I couldn't bring myself to ❤

80/365 Cheeky Devils

Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart.

In my rush to get the boys and myself packed, ready and out the door early on Friday morning I - gasp - forgot to grab my charging-overnight camera battery... Eeeek. So, a day with no camera means (seeing that I'm the only one setting the rules to this #photoaday2014 challenge :) that I get to post a cute photo from last week in Tasmania. Look at these two cheeky devils!! This hall of the museum will stay in my mind for a long time because it was while we were in there that Hug voiced his personal decision to return to being vegetarian. Unlike his friend here, the Tasmanian Devil. They actually have a sample of Tassie Devil poo on display - the thing that looks just like a stick to the left of this image - but close up? Close up it is full of bones and echidna spikes and... teeth! #ouch :)

79/365 Me

I've moved the mirror in our room to make space for the armoire (yes, i love moving the furniture around!! do you?!) and it's conveniently by the bed now. Hahaha. Hiiii! 

78/365 Gardenia Love

Utopia Cafe. March 17. 2014.

I love Gardenias. We planted one in our yard but it fell over in a big storm (we get a lot of big storms here!) before we went away and had to be cut down. I'm happy to say its growing back now :) but too little to flower. Luckily there are gardenias in the gardens on the main street in town so I nabbed this fragrant beauty on my way to cafe-school! The boys are working on their own travel blogs and I'm, err, drinking coffee and photographing gardenias :) #happydays! x

77/365 Home

Even though I loved being away, there's nowhere quite like home is there?! x

76/365 Full Moon Rising

Full moon rising. The Tamar River, Tasmania.

75/365 Bounce It Out!

Yes.

We totally need to have one of these huge bouncing pillows installed in our backyard at home so the boys can work off some of their abundant energy for a few hours each morning! Completely genius. What's the best way to tire your kids out? 

74/365 In Conversation

Getting inspired.

Tristan Bancks and Nikki Gemmell in conversation on the art of Writing the Children's Novel at the Festival Of Golden Words. Beaconsfield, Tasmania. 

73/365 The Kangaroo Kid

First things first. I did not take this photo. But it IS my choice for today's #photoaday2014 :D

This is 10 year old Hug's work. I don't think I realised what an up-and-coming photographer I had on my hands until I saw this shot! Oh, to be 10 and so talented :)

Having travelled north from Hobart we are now staying in the Tamar Valley just outside of Launceston in a quirky little faux-Swiss-village called Grindelwald. We have out own little Swiss chalet (you can see a few more images on my instagram) and a run of animals at our doorstep; masses of wild rabbits, ducks and just on the other side of a little fence - kangaroos! 

Hug has been asking to use my camera, and he's obviously got a natural eye for composition as well as the patience needed to capture great animal images. Now to find some kids photography competitions for him. Does anyone have any recommendations? x

72/365 All Quiet In The Court

Hug channeling his inner-judge at the Penitentiary Chapel Courtrooms, Hobart.

71/365 Daci and Daci Deliciousness

Our time running out in Hobart and ready for a sugar hit, we were torn between going to Daci & Daci as recommend by my sister-in-law (Hi KJ!) and Jackman and McRoss as recommended by my brother (Hi Monty!). Running out of time, Daci won. It was 3 minutes closer. Yes, sometimes we are that lazy ;) No, not really but we were stealing T away from his work so time was of the essence.

We were NOT disappointed.

Daci & Daci is my idea of heaven. French heaven. In Tasmania. Lordy!

Hug had a salted caramel chocolate cake. Lovely, a gluten-free chocolate meringue and mousse delight. T and I bargained to share one sweet / one savory. Our savory was an AMAZING pumpkin and goats cheese tart with pretty much the best savory pastry I have ever eaten. Insane.

I couldn't choose the sweet. Too many pretty things! Eventually, I offered T colours...  Brown? Pink? Green? And green it was :)

x

70/365 Hobart

Jackmore & McRoss Bakery. Hampden Road, Battery Point. Hobart. 

69/365 The MONA Bar

We went to MONA. 

T had been before but I hadn't. This is my first trip to Tasmania and I'd been waiting to get to MONA for what felt like forever. Or at least since 2011 ;)

If you haven't heard of it yet, it's an über-cool privately-owned world-class art gallery here in Hobart. MONA stands for Museum of Old and New Art and the story goes that collector David Walsh (who describes MONA as a "subversive adult Disneyland") funded it all with his hard-earned gambling profits!

I have more to post, but here's a taste for my #photoaday2014 challenge. x

68/365 Runway

Bye Sydney! Goodbye lovely friends and fam-bam. I love you. See you again sooooon. x

Sydney | On The Harbour

Today we leave Sydney and fly on to Hobart.

These images were taken on the Manly Ferry; passing the Sydney Opera House, The Sydney Harbour Bridge, the city skyline, a multitude of yachts and out along the Heads.

Sydney, you are world-class... and SO breathtaking. Miss you already

67/365 Yes Officer

We stumbled upon a police open day today. So here I present newly appointed Officer Lovely - in a real current model NSW Police Force car and cap! No cheeky business allowed ;)

66/365 Life In Motion

We got to spend the day with the babies. aka my youngest nephews. They are the sweetest, funniest, smiliest cutesos I have ever met! My boys think they're pretty damn awesome too.

And apparently Stanton isn't shy of a little splashing. Be still my heart. 

65/365 Sydney Street Style

My boy is becoming a young man before my eyes! Amazing. 

64/365 City Lights

Sydney. I like the frame the hotel window creates.

63/365 And Then There Were Seven

Have you ever tried to take a photo of your son? 

How about your son with his first-grade best friend? Yes? 

How about your son with his once-best-friend-before-we-moved-10-hours-north AND his brother AND his best-friend's brother and HIS two-year-old triplet sisters? 

Ha! Got you there ;)

I can not believe I captured a shot where they are all visible in the same frame! Full post to come... :)

62/365 Skydive Splashdown

Our new digs has a pretty sweet high-rise / sky-rise pool.

Home for the next four days :) Helloooo Sydney!!

61/365 Puppy Dog Eyes

After a scary evening (Wisdom 101: don't ask Dr. Google for medical advice, even for your dog) Boston went to the vet and was diagnosed with a bacterial infection of the paw - hence the 'Elizabethan Buster Collar' aka. Dog Cone - but nothing worse. 

Praise.The.Lord. 

It's nervewracking having a mature-age dawg :( Lucky he's still got the super-cutes about him!

60/365 Sydney

Look mama.