My heart lies waiting over the foam

Well.

We’re back.

It’s taken me a week to sit down and write this and I pretty much know why it’s taken me so long.

To get through last week – to cope with the jet-lag and the tiredness and the being straight back to work, and how miserable and wet and cold it was and how emotional I was – I went into auto-pilot mode.
A survival mechanism of sorts methinks.
And this meant not really allowing myself to think about our wonderful, wonderful trip home, let alone look at the pictures.

I’m a bit ashamed to admit that we really didn’t take many photos. I kept meaning to, honest I did.
I wanted to take photos up at mum’s house, and of the wide streets and green spaces and huge open expanses of sky and of the ocean and the vineyards and hills ....
But I forgot.
I did, however, soak it all in.
And it was a deep, pure breath of fresh air.

Being in Adelaide felt on the one hand so familiar and it was so very easy to slip back into the laid-back pace and sleepy simplicity. And on the other hand I felt like a tourist in my home town. Struck anew (of for the first time?) by how Australian everything looks, how different, how unique. How small and yet how expansive. How beautiful.

Suffice to say, I loved being home. It was a crazy, hectic highlights package of all that we know and love. We ate ourselves silly and saw as many people as we possibly could in the time we had. And our friends and family bent over backwards to show us a great time.

Thanks and love to all.


** click on photos to make them bigger/better - something weird has happened and they're poo-tastic in their smaller form. I know not why. **

Hello my pretty. Driving between Victor and Middleton

Our BBQ in the park - baby bonanza!

So much unbearable cuteness

These guys know how to multi-task

Christmas Eve at TD's - Ho-Head with Grace (aka Gracie Lou Freebush)

Christmas Lunch down at the shack.

Perfection

Silly hats and antlers are a must

The big kids and one mini Ramsey to-be

(no, not in my belly, that's just roast potatoes and pudding)

Mini-me/Tessa and the most spoilt dog in the history of the world

Christmas Dinner at Dad and Susan's

Early when everyone was still behaving

Fernando and Farky - discussing docking???

Roula, Toula, Soula and Agape - embracing Holly's heritage

Sisterly love?

The whole bunch of us

Aquacaf at Middleton with the Sidwells

Coffee, delicious cakes and kiddies = bliss

Paul and his mini-me's

New Years Eve - M and the Coconut swap stories

The setting for a hilarious evening

I'm not actually wearing a douchy headband - it's a glow stick thing.

That I stole from one of the kids ...

Stevasaurus and Katie-K

.

Happy 2011!!

Our final lunch before we flew out was down by the beach

Just a bit different from Cannes beaches .....

And then it was back to France.

For more adventures. And a 2011 that is promising to be just as interesting and mishap filled as the last two.

But Peter Allen said it best

(well, actually, the QANTAS ads with the kids singing in cool locations really said it best)

I still call Australia home.

xxx