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So much has happened to the family Chissell in the last twelve months that it has absolutely whizzed by. I hope it has been the same for all of you. I apologise for the lapse in updates, but here is a bumper issue to compensate ha ha. Since my last entry we have been exploring more of our lovely state over Easter such as the beautiful Bribe Island, walking across the ocean bed to an unhabited island off Wellington Point , the spectacular views of Mount Cooth-Tha and of course we have celebrated 3 big birthdays, School fun days and my first aussie Mothers day.
Here Conor is participating in his school Easter Parade. He made his own bunny ears and was asked to wear the colour orange as part of a Humanities (Tolerating Others) day to show he was from overseas. Over a quarter of the children in his school are from overseas with the majority coming from the UK. Olivia and mummy made some colourful Easter goodies too so that no one would miss out on all the fun.
A snap shot of visit to Bribie Island. We had such a lovely day and the weather was much warmer than expected. It was a good job we took spare clothes for the small people as they got drenched playing on the beach. The following weekend we visited Mount Cootha-Tha and got these amazing views of the city. It is a popular spot for wedding photo's and great for watching the sunset and jets flying into the airport. I have the most amazing video footage.
Above are pictures of early Brisbane. The good fortunes of the city exploded with the hosting of the 1988 World Expo. Apparently more people visited the Expo. that year than the entire population of Australia at that time. As part of the ANZAC celebrations, Conor was chosen to hold the Company Scout flag and march with the Australian and New Zealand war veterans. The march was very moving and I did shed a tear for the 'Diggers' and my little man who marched so proudly. Thank goodness I had just enough video tape left in the Cam-recorder on the day.
Below are some photo's of a fabulous day where we walked across the bay to an uninhabited Island at Wellington point. Olivia and I managed the trek there and back safely, but Conor, Ryan and Daddy took so long exploring that they had to wade back across as the tide came in rapidly. I developed a few grey and white hairs that day for sure.
We also met up with Phil's work colleagues for a team BBQ in the park which was great fun. The children had a ball and you may remember from my recent letters that Ryan and his little friend inadvertently car jacked another childs toy. The father pushing Ryan thought the car was ours and I thought it belonged to him. The actual owners saw the funny side which was a huge relief. Ryan obviously has a taste for theiving though as I caught him scoffing the sultanas in the pantry.
oops busted, I had better put on my cute face!
Well as you know, I hit the big '40' this year and celebrated Mothers Day the following weekend. A big thank you to everyone for the fabulous cards and gifts, it eased my pain considerably. I now have digital pics of you on my key ring thanks to Connie and I had many weeks of pleasure from the lovely tropical flowers from Sue.
Conor's school had a fun day recently and Olivia and Ryan were invited to participate. As I have mentioned before Olivia is desperate to start school and so these little meet and greet sessions are keeping her on the boil. I have promised we will buy her uniform in October (around her birthday time) even though she will join the school until next January. Here she is with Conor and Ryan making a necklace and colourful crowns etc.
We also joined the Scouts on a City Safari which was a fabulous way to learn about things of interest around the city. We joined up with Conor's pack at the crack of dawn and caught the train into the city centre. Conor earned his 'Heritage, Adventure Challenge and Caring/sharing badges'. It all got a bit too much for Ryan though and he had a timely snooze during lunch.
oops busted, I had better put on my cute face!Well as you know, I hit the big '40' this year and celebrated Mothers Day the following weekend. A big thank you to everyone for the fabulous cards and gifts, it eased my pain considerably. I now have digital pics of you on my key ring thanks to Connie and I had many weeks of pleasure from the lovely tropical flowers from Sue.
Conor's school had a fun day recently and Olivia and Ryan were invited to participate. As I have mentioned before Olivia is desperate to start school and so these little meet and greet sessions are keeping her on the boil. I have promised we will buy her uniform in October (around her birthday time) even though she will join the school until next January. Here she is with Conor and Ryan making a necklace and colourful crowns etc.
We also joined the Scouts on a City Safari which was a fabulous way to learn about things of interest around the city. We joined up with Conor's pack at the crack of dawn and caught the train into the city centre. Conor earned his 'Heritage, Adventure Challenge and Caring/sharing badges'. It all got a bit too much for Ryan though and he had a timely snooze during lunch.
Along with all the fun mentioned above, it has also been a sad time too. Unfortunately My aunt passed away this month and it cut deeply that I was not able to be there for my mum, sister and all my cherished family. Such will be the way of things in the future I know. We released some balloons to coincide with the funeral in England. On a happier note our next visitor will be Phil's brother Tim who will joining us on the 4th July. Next time I will update the blog with pictures from Ryan's birthday. Yes my little bubba turned 2 on the 26/06/2008. Thank you to everyone for the super presents and cards. In the meantime I will leave you with a final picture of our latest friend found hanging from our Euchalyptus tree in the back garden.
It is apparently called a Goliath Mantis and measured over 6 inches. The children avoided that corner of the garden for a few days. The species are completely harmless thank goodness but far too large for my peace of mind!
Take care everyone and keep intouch, we want to hear all about your news.
Big hugs Mrs C. xxx
