Monthly Archive

Charlie has obviously been watching Ella mothering her dolls.  He sat on the chair this afternoon cradling the doll on his lap and even pretended to feed her milk from his bottle.

K

After Ella & Charlie were changed into their pyjamas last night, they wandered through and selected a book from the bookcase before settling themselves on the steps to read before bed.

K

We had a leisurely morning on the Monday holiday. Charlie had a longer sleep than usual, probably due to a late night last night. When he woke we all went over to MSAC for a swim and then had a late lunch at the Wine Bar.

Charlie thought it a good idea to climb into the parcel tray under the pram…..

…..then got very upset when he realised he was stuck!

Alan with Charlie & Ella

K

Blanche’s parents invited us to their place down in Mount Eliza on Easter Sunday.  They have a beautiful home which Alan has dubbed ‘Casa Manuell’.  Ella and Charlie both had lots of fun in the pool with Lily (Blanche’s sister).   We hoped that exposure to their dog, Roxy, would  help Ella overcome her fear but to no avail.

Naturally lots of chocolate was consumed…….it was Easter after all!!

Ella all set for the car journey

And Charlie too…..

Charlie took a naked dip in the pool

Then wrapped up warm with mummy

Ella with Lily in the pool

K

Ella’s friends Hugh and Maddie came over on Friday - they spent time painting eggs, drawing and having fun together.  Lots of mess and lots of fun!  Maddie stayed for a sleepover much to Ella’s delight and they had fun in the bath together.

Hugh, Maddie & Ella

Alan & I with Rory

Charlie fancied some yoghurt when he raided the fridge!!

Fun at bathtime

K

Ella loves to paint so today, once Charlie had gone down for a nap, we got the paint pots out and let the artist in her loose!  Just before heading up the hallway to put the ironing away I said to Ella “Mummy will be back in a couple of minutes, remember we only paint on the paper”.  This is what I found on my return…..

K

The Australian Grand Prix cavalcade hit us last week.  We had dinner at the Wine Bar on Friday with Fi, Mark, Hugh & Rory and the atmosphere was great.  Lots of people, drinks being taken and fun with kids around.

On Saturday morning we took Ella & Charlie in to the circuit and surprisingly they both kept their earplugs in when the F1 cars were practicing.  Hugh was definitely way more impressed by the whole thing than Ella.  In the afternoon Jill & Dave had a BBQ and it was nice to meet some of the friends they’ve made through work but also a bit sad because it was goodbye to ‘Auntie Aoife’ (Fi’s sister who was heading back to Ireland after almost a year in Melbourne).  To see it through the eyes of a child, Ella said to her “It’s alright, I’ll come to visit you on the airplane”.

Maddie & Charlie

On Sunday Alan, Mhairi & Harry, Jill & Dave all went to the big race.  Ella, Charlie & I stayed home although we could hear it loud and clear.  The fighter jets and qantas flyover were impressive.

K

Amanda, Olivia & Sophie had been back in Ballarat for the weekend so when they got home on Tuesday we met them for an early dinner at their restaurant, Rococo, on Acland Street. It was hectic with Sophie being the only angel not to escape at some point…..that is until she finds her walking feet!

Ella & Olivia

Charlie & Sophie

Amanda, Ella, Olivia, Kirstin, Charlie & Sophie

K

Alan was catching up on some emails and paperwork over the holiday weekend and Ella stated that she wanted to “work like Daddy”.  She proceeded to get her ‘Dora Laptop’ and hop up onto a bar stool beside Alan and type away on the keyboard.

K

As Monday was a holiday, and extremely hot, we headed along to the outdoor pool at Prahran.  Mark & Hugh came along too and lots of others had the same idea!!  It’s a great pool for the little ones on a hot day because its covered by a sun shade.

Family fun

Charlie

Follow the leader….

Charlie about to make a splash

Hugh & Ella making sure they look after each other walking back to the cars

K

Another typical showing from a Scotland team - high hopes before the competition, lose first three games then just when you think all is lost - they beat England! Fantastic!

Uncle Dave, being a rugby man, was looking forward to a resounding English win, so Charlie thought it was appropriate to wear his Scotland strip when we went round to their’s for a BBQ on Sunday night….here he is basking in glory

Charlie enjoying a cob with Eiona in the background….

Charlie with cob, Ella, Eiona and Auntie Jill…

Alan

This is a holiday weekend in Melbourne and the Moomba Waterfest ran from Friday to Monday. Yesterday we headed into the city to watch some of the Bird Man Rally which involves people attempting to fly from a platform above the Yarra River. Some looked only to be in fancy dress and others had gone to great lengths to design their flying contraptions. The winner cleared 10m with a craft which had a wingspan of 7.1m. The even drew huge crowds despite the soaring heat of around 35 degrees.

Later in the afternoon we took Ella & Charlie to Collingwood Childrens Farm. They both had great fun with Ella loving the guinea pigs and Charlie happy chasing the ducks.

Daddy & Charlie (this is the only way to keep Charlie contained when he’s not in the pram!!)

Charlie having fun with the ducks

Check out the sign - it’s definitely not a farm in Scotland!

Ella feeding one of the guinea pigs

K

At dinner tonight Ella and Charlie decided it was a great idea to feed each other their yoghurt - there was much hilarity and much mess as you can imagine!

K

Ella was invited to Harvey’s 3rd birthday party this morning. It was at a place called Gourmet Kids where each party guest gets to bake a recipe chosen by the birthday boy/girl. They made smiley face cookies. While the cookies baked the children tucked in to party snacks and played pass the parcel. Such a great idea and lots of fun!

Harvey gearing up for his party

Ella mixing the cookie ingredients

Ella’s cookie ready to be baked

Hugh & Ella enjoying some party food

Harvey blowing out his candles

K

We stopped for dinner at the Middle Wine Bar on Friday - its become a bit of a habit since around November and we’re probably on our last few weeks of eating outdoors before the weather cools down. Mark joined us for a glass of wine and Jill & Dave had dinner with us. Ella and Charlie were both in great form (maybe due to a late afternoon snooze) and thrive on the attention they get. Here are some pics:

Charlie making sure he finishes every last drop of his ice-cream

That was delicious Daddy!!

Ella with Auntie Jill

I might just polish off the chocolate drizzle from Uncle Dave’s Tiramisu

Yum!

K

The doorbell rang around 5p.m. on Thursday and Ella said “A parcel for Ella Mummy”. She was right, parcel deliveries usually come in the early evening and it was for Ella and Charlie. Ella was delighted to open up an Easter parcel from her Uncle Alex and Auntie Ros back home in Scotland. At her insistence we read the new books immediately and laid out her (and Charlie’s) new clothes to wear in the morning. Here they are:

K

Yes, the beginning of March signals the start of Autumn for us here in Melbourne.  It was a beautiful morning today so we headed along to the park with Amanda, Olivia and Sophie.  Its lunchtime now and the temperature is at 26 degrees - not very autumnal to a Scottish person!!

Ella pushing Olivia on the swing

Sophie & Charlie trying to climb

Olivia & Ella walking home

K

Alan & Neil had been out enjoying a beverage (or 10) on Friday night so were both suffering a bit when Ella & Charlie woke them at the crack of dawn this morning! We grabbed breakfast at Cowderoy Dairy then had some fun in the park. Poor Ella fell off her chair in the cafe and it took a lot of consoling to stop the tears.

Yummy Vegemite

Ella & Mummy

Alan & Charlie with Neil & Ella

In the afternoon we headed into the city with Jill & Dave to the Great Aussie BBQ - part of the Food and Wine Festival. For $35 you could choose 4 tasting plates and there was a great selection. Ikea had sponsored a kids club too so Ella was able to do some colouring etc.

Charlie is a handful on the tram

Ella insisting on feeding Auntie Jill her juice (shortly followed by spilling the contents all over Uncle Dave!)

Cheeky Monkey

K

Ella decided she wanted to bake on Friday afternoon while Charlie was asleep. We started out making chocolate crispies only for Charlie to wake up as Ella was stirring the mixture. It was impossible to keep him away so we gave him a spoon and this is the result…..2 very happy children and a very messy kitchen!

K

This picture was taken when we were having early dinner with some friends a few weeks back. Maddie and Ella were in full song and Frankie just watched in amazement…..

K