Hughes of Balmain: November 2004

Tuesday, November 30, 2004

Congratulations x 2

First, Anna completed her TAFE certificate last night, when she took the plant identification test that she has been revising and practising for over the last few weeks. Apparently, she sailed through with full marks - well done! Last, but by no means least, it's the final birthday of the Hughes family for another November. Today is my elder brother, Peters', birthday (sorry I couldn't find a better photo, but you can see Peter looking right, behind Anna's mum) - we both hope you have a great day! Chris

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Monday, November 29, 2004

Phew!

This weekend saw the start of some pretty warm weather, mid-30s and higher on both Saturday & Sunday. Anna was out attending the final practical day of her TAFE course on Saturday, while I was helping a hashing friend of ours, Sam, move house - so we both got pretty sweaty. After our exertions, a swim seemed like a good idea, but neither of us could raise sufficient energy, so we decided to go the following morning. Sunday morning, and we were off to the Ryde Aquatic Centre, to try and escape the heat for an hour or two. It was my first time there, but Anna had been with a friend a few weeks ago. Although it was quite busy, we were still able to do a few laps without crashing into people, plus it will be a good location to take the baby to next year, as they have specialised classes during the week. After lunch, we managed to arrange with another hashing friend, Henry, to come round and help me move the wardrobe upstairs. Anna was a little skeptical that we'd be able to manage with just the two of us, but we made it OK - so, once we decide exactly where to put it, we can do the last of the unpacking! In the afternoon & evening, Anna was practising the violin for her upcoming performance with Balmain Sinfonia, and I was off for a run with the Full Moon Hash (yes, it was still 35+ degress). Looks like a fan is likely to be the next purchase, as it's forecast to reach 42 degrees tomorrow, before cooling down a little... Chris

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Friday, November 26, 2004

Birthday #2

November seems to be a busy month for birthdays in our family (we're not finished yet). Today, it is Wendy, my eldest brother's wife, who celebrates - I hear that she is having a party tomorrow. Again, best wishes from Anna & I in our absence. Chris

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Wednesday, November 24, 2004

Special Video

It was a day for baby-related activities yesterday. First of all, Anna was visiting the obstetrician to undergo a variety of tests, including the glucose test. Circumstances conspired to make the last appointment very rushed, but there was more chance to meet with the doctor this time. He did his normal review of blood pressure and fundal size, and concluded that things were pretty much within the expected norms, so hopefully all will go well with the final results to the various laboratory tests. In the evening it was time for our regular ante-natal class - lots of good information on parentcraft. The highlight, however, was watching a video filmed locally regarding, for want of a better phrase, "how special it was to be a parent and taking notice of the interactions with your baby". By chance, we happened to have seen one of the mothers featured in real-life a few weeks before and, by the looks of her now-toodler-aged son wandering around alone and eating rocks off the floor, I'm guessing the "special-ness" has worn off! Chris

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Tuesday, November 23, 2004

Everybody Move

Anna's brother and his wife, Richard and Tiziana, moved house a week or two before us, and Anna's dad was kind enough to send through a few photos from their new place. They must have been pretty organised with the move because they recently hosted a weekend including Tiziana's mother and brother from Italy, as well as Richard's parents and grandmother. Best wishes with the new place, we both hope you'll be very happy there. Chris

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Monday, November 22, 2004

Maroubra Sun

Over the weekend, Anna & I visited Gary, Nadine & Lucy (some hashing friends) who live in Maroubra for Sunday brunch. Although it was a mostly cloudy day, we both managed to catch the sun, and look a little lobster-like in the evening - have to pay more attention to the sun now we're getting close to summer. Lucy is now nearly one year old, we last saw her when we were all in Cardiff earlier this year, and seems to be flourishing. Anna & I both had a quick go at holding her, and reading her a "Danny the Duck" book, which was nice. However, after I'd been holding her a while my book reading skills obviously slipped a notch, as Lucy started going red in the face and filled her nappies. Fortunately, since she isn't ours, we could simply hand her back to be changed - but not too long now before we're the ones responsible. Also managed to find a bookcase on Saturday, so that's another couple of boxes emptied and disposed of. I think there's only one unpacked box left now, but that's still waiting on the wardrobe making it upstairs. Chris

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Friday, November 19, 2004

Last Weekend

It was our first wedding anniversary recently, and to celebrate Anna & I visited the Wild Edge Retreat in the Wollombi Valley. The retreat really was quite spectacular, and was tucked away at the top of one of the many ridges in the area. The gravel road up to the ridge line was fine in our RAV4, but you'd want to take it slowly if you were worried about a lower, sportier car. We drove up from Sydney on Saturday afternoon, stopping at the Wollombi Tavern once we got into the town, and had a relaxing evening at the retreat. Sunday started with a massage for Anna (I don't know why, but I can never relax enough to enjoy massage myself), then we headed into Yengo National Park for a tour around and a picnic lunch. We had a good dinner at Quarantini's in town, along with a cast of several hundred insects, before heading off to bed. Monday, we had a relaxing breakfast before driving back to Sydney. As had happened the day before, we had our breakfast on the deck outside and a local magpie took a fancy to the feast in front of him. Once we had finished and started clearing away, as soon as we were both inside, the magpie was sitting on a chair having a look at what might be left - not much as it turned out! All in all a very relaxing and enjoyable trip! Chris

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