At least once per term I take a photo of my APS child (or children!) at The Growing Tree. It’s A Particular Tree, where I often park the car when I go up to the school to drop off/ pick up said child/ren.

So it was G by herself for two years, then two with both of them. Now it’s back to one child at that school, again, being photographed at the tree.

He’s growing like topsy. He’s settling in again to the routine of being a school child after a fabulous summer. He’s funny and clever and kind. He is loving his job this year of being a Buddy to a new Kindy kid.

I think he is going to rock Year 5.

This morning T and G participated in the Weetbix Try-Athlon out at Olympic Park. We stayed overnight right next door, as it was a very early start.

The place was buzzing when we went across the road at 7am. So many participants checking in with their families there to cheer them along.

Firstly it was a stop at Numbering – where the kids got their bib numbers on their arms and legs. These were also on stickers for their bikes and bike hats.

Then it was into the athletics stadium, where the bikes went into the transition area, along with the change of clothes for the bike and run legs.

There was a bit of waiting around in the Village aka the retail and eating and grandstand area. It was a hot old day in Homebush.

Going into the pool viewing area was a blessed relief. Nothing like air con when looking out for your child in a sea of children in the same coloured swimming caps!

After the swim it was on the the Transition Area for the kids, a quick towel off and into their clothes for the bike leg. Bikes readied and off for that leg.

Transition again and off on the run! I was exhausted just following the kids around from pool to stadium, let alone participating. G was in the second group to head off, and T was in the last – we went back and forth!!

Both the kids did so well. They were proud of themselves, and justifiably so! It was a busy, long morning for all of us.

A and I are toasting absence tonight, it’s the end of another trip around the sun without our Sue, his beautiful big sister. It’s five years today since she died.

We still miss her so very much, and often ponder what she’d might’ve thought about this or that. I like to think that she would still be so very proud of her little brother, and amazed by her nieces and nephew. I often wish that I could talk to her about her tween and teen-ness, and get a bit of insight to the Weakley Girl phenomena, that might help me with my own little one. I also wonder if G would’ve pegged her yet, like she has Aunty C, my other sister-in-law.

She’d have definitely loved the enormous bottle of Shiraz we cracked open tonight. Red wine was her signature cocktail!

This fabulous photo sums up the eternal optimism of the Weakley Family!!

Why yes, we will picnic as planned, whatever the weather, whilst touring by car in Greece. Taken by A – way back in the last century.

Today I got to walk my lad into the playground and get his pic with The Usual Sign. He managed to smile!

Today was also the school swimming carnival. After a quick playground catch up I dashed home to get organised to head out to spectate poolside.

The lad was happy to see me when I did head into the stands. I couldn’t help but think of the first swimming carnival G attended at that school. I walked in a little earlier (as you need to when your child is 8 and competing in freestyle, it’s guaranteed to be the first event). G was sitting by herself in the boiling sunny part of her House’s area in the stands. She had started at the school a couple of weeks earlier and truly knew no-one in her House. An acquaintance Mum came up to me and said “oh, yes, G was with her cousin, in the wrong House area, so I told her to move”. I could’ve strangled that woman. To see your child alone at an event like this breaks your heart just a little. I bundled my kid up and moved into the stand, where we bustled up to a Grandma and another girl who we’d met years before once or twice. They, of course, were happy for us to join them, and G seemed happy that I’d come along and got her into the shade, at least!

So T swam his heart out in the events he chose to participate in, and placed in both.

I had a good chattering catch up day with friends I hadn’t seen for six weeks.

T and I took ourselves off to the indoor pool for a cooling swim after I signed him out. 42C was what it said in the car. I believed it.

After picking G up (as we were kind-of in the vicinity) and flopping about the house cooling down, the executive decision was made to have fish and chips for tea. A new fish and chips place has opened at Rockdale. It’s good. We will venture there again!!

Joe Cool found his sunnies in the car. Handsome dude!

G started high school today. We got her there in time. She managed to give us the slip in the foyer after a hug and a kiss goodbye, and find her friends from primary school. We eventually located her across the hall (without making eye contact or waving or anything) and sat elsewhere for the bit of the Welcome Assembly where parents were indeed welcome, at least by the school itself if not our offspring!

Once dismissed we were invited to the Parents Morning Tea, run by the P&C, in the Old Hall. It was lovely. I had to make sure that we called in for a cup of tea, as I truly appreciate the effort that goes in to running one of these. It’s the first time in forever that I was a guest not an organiser!

The baked goods were delicious. I knew we weren’t in Arncliiffe any more, there was a tray of ham sandwiches on the table too!

I chatted to some people I hope I meet again, parents whose daughters had attended other primary schools. One woman has a daughter in my best friend’s son’s class, I discovered, and another is married to one of my ex-flatmates. I did know this connection before I introduced myself to her. The world can seem quite small sometimes, even so!

You have to love a school that loves on it’s parents. I think we’ve made a very good decision with G’s high school.

Here’s to a great six years!!

This little one is starting high school tomorrow. She is ready, we are ready.

How this chickadee can now be twelve I don’t rightly know, but she is.

If she has half the sass that this little one was displaying, she’ll be fine. Lord she was a cutie pie. Still is!

I do love a good Timehop or FB Memories.

The lad is back tomorrow as well, and the Federated League of Grandparents (Shire Branch) are sending a delegate to assist with school duties “Up The Hill”. A will be with me and G getting our High School Thing started!

Busy times ahead.

January is almost over, and I’ve managed to play along at home every day. This week I took some photos in the day, found some from our recent trip, and others serendipitously turned up in my Timehop or Facebook memories.

22 I Went Here

Oak Park for a swim with my children and parents.

23 A Drink

A nice cup of tea in a London mug!

24 Landscape

One of my favourite views on our recent trip, between Glen Innes and Yamba at Raspberry Lookout.

25 White

A detail from our dining room ceiling.

26 What I Wore Today

Marimekko makes me smile.

27 A Sign

Classic neon in Burwood, taken on the date, last year.

28 The Sky

Through a skylight in either our new bathroom or laundry, taken on this date a year ago, before our extension was finished.

Once again, pop over to my insta if you’d like to! Mary_j_jordan.

We’re in the middle of a long weekend here, and with this comes quick decision to do things that mightn’t usually happen on a Sunday evening.

Early this evening we caught the bus into Newtown. Made an equally quick decision to have Thai for dinner (T’s choice, and there are dozens of these restaurants on King Street!) which was a good call – we all like that cuisine and it had been a while! Then it was time to see “Mary Poppins Returns” at the Dendy. We are all big fans of the original and this one did not disappoint! So much fun, so much Disney-London, so many references to the original. We all laughed, and I cried too, unsurprisingly!

Perhaps the songs aren’t as catchy as those in the original. Though with 54 years to become classics it’s no wonder that we all know them. The story begins with a lamplighter making his way across London, putting out gas street lights – winding his way to 17 Cherry Tree Lane. Michael Banks lives there with his three children, his wife has died and they’re in dire straits financially, and so very sad with missing her, their Lost Thing. Mary Poppins comes in on the wind, in a spectacular fashion, and, of course, helps them find their way again.

This film plays so much homage to the original – scenes, jokes, the music and the cameo roles. Being Mary Poppins tragics we loved all the A-ha Moments!

Coming home the cabbie was a delight too – he was pleased to have a family in the taxi for a change, and G and T both joined in the conversation!

Dinner and a movie, it was a family date-night!!

This morning we loaded the car up with kids (ours and the neighbours) and headed in to Mrs Macquarie’s Point, for our almost predictable annual watching of the nautical festivities. I think we’ve been more often than not since our kids were 3 and 1. This was the first time we’d taken in the other members of our Street Gang!

It was a stunning day, Sydney Harbour was as beautiful as ever. I sat there on the picnic rug and thought about all the people who would’ve used it as a lookout point for thousands of years. It was Yurong for the original custodians of this land. Mrs Macquarie was the wife of one of our early governors back when Sydney Town was a penal settlement. The story goes that she would walk across to this point, to Mrs Macquarie’s Chair (a bench carved out of sandstone – it’s still there) and look up the harbour, hoping that a ship might come through the heads with news from England.

Although it is a part of the Sydney Domain, it is hard to imagine it covered in native vegetation, until you realise that there are large swathes of harbour foreshore that make up the Sydney Harbour National Park. So if parts of the northern harbour’s edge was transposed, and more of the rocky harbours edge was exposed perhaps there would be a feeling of an older time, where the tracks were dirt for walking only, and people cane down to fish and look for shellfish on the shoreline.

Australia Day is a strange beast, made even stranger in current times. This year’s is a special case when the day itself isn’t declared a public holiday so those who work on Saturdays are paid their usual wage , and another day is tagged on to the weekend as the holiday.

The harbour sparkled, and the programme of events on the water, and in the air, rarely changes. Favourite things were the fire boat and the old ships, that Opera House and Bridge built when there were only 400 cars in Sydney (apparently!). I have also realised that I love a fly-by!

I’m glad that A suggested we head in this morning.

Last night at G’s sleepover party the children were watching “The Sound of Music” on dvd. I was rushed straight down memory lane.

I adore that film. To the point of goosebumps during some of the songs.

I adore Salzburg. In 2017 I dragged the family to Austria so that we could visit Salzburg together. I’d been there by myself way back in the last century. It was loads of fun then, and it didn’t disappoint on a return visit.

The geography of the town is superb. The buildings in the old town are gorgeous. The food is delicious. Really it was an all-round winner!

We had two fantastic meals at the St Augustine Monastery. T announced after the first visit that it was his best meal ever, so we knew we had to go again!

We spent a day doing The Sound of Music tour, which we all loved. It wasn’t as amusing as the tour I’d done from the youth hotel all those years ago, but it was great. I kept pinching myself, it really was a great feeling being there again, with my very own family.

When we were at the church where they filmed the wedding of the Captain and Maria I had to buy a small bottle of Holy Water. It stayed in my handbag for over a year, much to my amusement!

Ahhh, Salzburg! I hope I get to see you again in real life, sometime!