adventures in socializing

our pony! gloria gardner, gg for short.


payton met a fellow at work (he and his wife are both hydrogeologists and they have two little girls), and he and his family own a bunch of land down south in the coorong - a wetlands area. supposedly beautiful and full of good bush walking, four-wheeling, and surf casting, glen was thrilled to find out that we have a 'trol (they abbreviete everything here and end most things in "y" or "ie"). omg - first friends?

actually, we went to a bbq at payton's boss's house this sunday. i got to meet a lot of the people payton works with - a really diverse and great group of people. it was REALLY nice to meet everyone (i managed to keep most of my non-sequitors to myself). there were a bunch of kids there and nova is a total party animal.

on saturday, payton and some folks from work went to a pro footy game - port adelaide power vs. brisbane. the power won (hooray!) and payton said it was quite a site. he guesses the footy oval is about as wide as a regular nfl field is long!!! but there's 18 a side, so 36 people on the field fills up the space a bit. they love them some footy here and the games are family affairs. i guess there's some sort of lineage clause here. the players don't move around like our grid iron (aussie term for american nfl) players do, and if you play on a pro team and your son is good enough to go pro, your team gets first dibs on your son.


this is just a better - but still not very good - picture of the front of our house.


everyone needs a cracker after their bath sometimes.


this a gum tree (eucalyptus) - there are so many eucalypt species here, they are not even all catalogued yet. this photo does this tree any sort of justice (yet another reason why one must physically come to visit), but they are HUGE and beautiful. this was taken in the botanic garden - free to the public and just a 10 minute walk from our house.


robey one kinobe.


this picture and the one below is for mom and dad and lauren. lauren wore this dress when she was a little girl and mom saved it (and many other special dresses from our childhood).



we've started nova's physical training early... i know videos of kids are only really funny for their handlers, but still, give it a shot.


again, you probably don't need to watch the full three minutes of this video, but music does the wildest things to kids. i remember watching a young ty snow (our nephew) get possessed by the music mike and krista's wedding, and i am pleased to see that nova has the same inclination to dance. this video was actually taken at adam's law school graduation party in santa fe. what you don't see in the video is the slew of adults all watching nova and cheering her on.

lots to do... #2

here are some pics of the house. i'll get a better picture of the front door and add one of gg (the car) on the next post. anyway, here is the front door and patio.



the backyard. you can't see it very well, but we have a clothesline back there. i love hanging laundry out and used to do it all the time in montana. we don't have a drier here - in fact we had to purchase a washing machine, everyone here owns one and it travels from rental to rental with the tenant. not only is there no vent for the drier (we've come to the conclusion that this, - i.e. venting the drier - along with sufficiently insulating their homes, is not something australians do), there is no plug and hardly any room...


...because the laundry room is also the bathroom!! i mean, who doesn't love the convenience and efficiency of a doing laundry while on the toilet? i mean, i'm a sitter, and usually a reader, but the mulit-tasker in me can hardly resrain the joy!


here is our kitchen table, just to left, out of pic, is our little galley kitchen. so, a huge corner of our dining/kitchen area is windows. it's beautiful - let's in all this natural light (the windows you see here are south facing - but, remember, over here, that's the cool side. oddly enough, speaking of a south-facing backyard and north-facing front door, payton and i, ever since we first moved in together way back in montana on sussex st., have ALWAYS - from the three houses we lived in in montana, the slc house and now in aus - we have always had a north-facing door and south-facing backyard. weird, huh? also, depsite all that north facing, i have yet to find a scene out my front windows that is as beautiful as the one in durango) and you get a full view of the backyard from the table. perfect for nova - she can run around outside and we can keep an eye on her if we need to be doing stuff inside (or don't feel like running circles around a tree).


don't look too close, the kitchen is rathe messy. but here it is.
nice little gas stove and an oven with degrees in CELSIUS! the first time we cooked home fries in the oven, we just cranked it up to 375, and boy, did those potatoes cook fast. i kept wondering why an oven would go to "high" after only 400 degrees. until we realized that was 400 degrees c. oh.


and here is YOUR bedroom! a mattress, a fireplace, and your own shipping boxes!! obviously, the best way to get a feel of the house and your room is to actually come here. so while i'm sitting on the toilet, i'll be sure your sheets are nice and clean, ready for your arrival!


the living room. nova has more toys, and therefore, more shelf space, than we have books...


our room - this is where the magic happens, people! because it takes some magic to get a sound night's sleep for us, still! across from the bed is a floor to ceiling built-in wardrobe. most rooms don't have robes or closets.


nova's room. her window faces the street and she gets some nice northern sunlight. she likes to get into her wardrobe and just sit in there. she gets mad at you if you open the door. what a kook!


and her big-girl bed.


and her tent.


well, of course, i even mention daycare and all three of us get sick. so, this weekend, june 27th and 28th, we mostly hung out around the house. did our grocery shopping - all just a five minute walk away. the bob doubles as a shopping cart on these days. what a great stroller. if you are or anyone you know is having a baby, just get the bob. it's the greatest thing, a true multi-tasker. even after we got one, i always thought the ads were silly - they had a picture of a dirt trail through the woods as if you might actually take your baby and stroller trail running. well, as is usually the case when i open my mouth, it turns out i was wrong. and the bob manufacturers were right. nova and i have already covered some miles running over dirt paths, beaches, rocks and even pavement in the bob.

but, i digress. nova's napping is still a little iffy and we're all a little stuffy, so on sunday we went for a drive through our local valley o' wine. we figured it was a good, low energy way to explore and hoped the low rumble of gg's engine might lull nova to sleep (as it turned out, she didn't actually fall asleep until the final 20 minutes of a 4 1/2 hr drive, and that was with a fight). anyway, we drove through the barossa valley - about 1 1/2 hrs NE of adelaide with vineyard after vineyard and open cellar doors (for tasting and sales straight from the vineyard; one sign advertised a case for $50! sean and laura callari - where are you?!) covering every mile. most of you have probably heard of jacob's creek wine - it is a HUGE vinyard in the barossa, but there are a lot of other smaller vineyards that look more interesting to visit. the valley itself is not that long (but you could spend a LONG time sampling wine there) so once we reached the top, we started on a loop back home throught the adelaide hills (which are the south end of the flinders range). even in the hills, where small towns are separated by these vast, rolling hills, orchards, and sheep ranches, vineyards dot the landscape - also with roadside signs proclaiming "cellar open".

the winter light here feels more like fall to me, and has that same thick, sweet honey color to it As ever, the idyllic scenery is so pleasing to the eye and imagination. We passed a large horse ranch - becky talley, you will appreciate this - and left me daydreaming about getting to be a kid growing up there - wow! nova was asleep when we got home, so payton and i left her in the car and enjoyed a glass on wine on the front porch.


in order to be able to blog as regularly as i do (ha ha), i had to get a few minutes of free-time. so, nova started "school" at the gumnut montessori (just a 5 - 10 minute walk from the house) on monday. she goes mondays and tuesdays and loves it. she doesn't really care when i tell her good-bye and leave - she's already partying with the kids. and on tuesday, when i came to pick her up, i asked if she wanted to go home and she looked right at me and said, "no". so i had to stick around for another 30 minutes. of course, then i found myself just chatting the ears off the teachers... which is a whole other episode in my life right now. jerome - somehow, i don't imagine you were this way when you were stay-at-home dad with ty, but i know whitney, you can sympathize. when you are home alone with your kid all day (mom, i remember you talking about this) there is not a lot of stimulating conversation. you know it's bad when you start listening to david sedaris' "santaland diaries" in june just to hear another adult voice. but what is also alarming is the things your start telling perfect strangers - who have the politeness and misfortune to ask "how are you?" or who say, "oh, that's a nice wallet." for example, as i was buying a paper, the checker complimented my billfold. so, of course, the next most obvious thing to say (which i say) is, "oh, yeah, thanks. you know, the first thing my daughter did when i got was to throw it in the toilet" (fortunately, i had the wherewithall not to mention that i had just finished peeing in the toilet - i don't know where that restraint came from). or like, the gal at ikea who said, "oh, that's a nice bracelet" and instead of a simple "thank you", i had to go into the entire story about how i broke my femur years ago and had a rod put in then taken out and then - and who wouldn't do this with their medical-grade titanium orthoedic hardware? - had it made into bracelets for me and my husband. well, when i mentioned that, the bracelet (which she'd asked to see) about jumped out of her hands as if i had just ripped it out of my femur moments ago and wiped it off with my sleeve before handing it to her.

needless to say, although i still have few opportunites to interact with other adults and familiarize myself with the aussie culture (this will all come, i know), it is nice to have a couple days to myself.


nova's first day of school. mom - you were right, she needed the backpack, she takes it every day! look at my poor kid - she looks like a little rei model!


what picture posting is complete without one of the baby in the bath! check out how long the little punk rocker's hair is getting. what a dear-heart!

lots to do... #1

nova at port elliot beach - she actually wore her sunnies for awhile.


hard workin' bob.


nova and lindsey at port elliot


mmm, apple.


nova was fascinated by the seagulls.... they were fascinated by the food in her hand.


port elliot. still wearing those shades! amazing!


payton and nova beginning our walk along basham park.


a titch warmer, and we would have gone swimming...


basham park/port elliot


the color of the water and the waves were beautiful. no surfing at this beach in particular, but just down the way....


along basham beach regional park. the picture below is nova and payton sandbogging in the bob. nova is always thankful for the five-point harness when daddy's driving...


where to begin? well, let's go back a few weekends and start there...

let's see, that was the 20th and 21st of june. that saturday, we took a soggy, 30 minute walk into the city to have a look at the central market. what a sight! a very crowded, very busy market with heaps of local veggies, fruits, meats, fish, bakeries (oh, the meat pies... YUM! YUM!), cafes, nut and lolli (lollis are candies - not to be confused with lollipops) stands, and random little stores. it is similar to pikes place market in seattle, but whereas i recall pikes as being more linear and less chaotic, adelaide's central market appears to all have fallen out of the sky in one big jumble, people and baby strollers included. on the walk home through the greenway we watched part of local footy game. it's a little easier to follow along when watching in person vs. on the telly or listening on the radio. can't wait to see our local norwood redlegs play (their oval is just a block away from us) or to go to a pro game to see the adelaide crows or the port adelaide power play.

on sunday, the 21st, we took a 1 1/2 hr south of adelaide, across the fleurieu peninsula, past mclaren vale (yet another pocket of local vineyards) and down to victor harbor and port elliot. what a gorgeous day! here it is winter - and it can get quite rainy and grey - but it can also be clear blue skies, warm temperatures, and barefoot-with-your-jeans-rolled-up-why-didn't-i-bring-my-flip-flops wading through the water - even nova. we had a delightful, somewhat sandy, picnic lunch on the beach. the bob - ever the heavy lifter - did some serious work. after braving steep stairs, bogging through soft sand and crashing waves, the bob carried our lunch and gear to a happy eating spot and afterward, served as nova's bed for her nap while payton and i strolled along the reserve (a greenway or park).

they often have paved paths along the beach or through a reserve, and this is what we followed, only to suddenly come across a whale watching spot! complete with whales! how lucky. apparently, the southern right whale comes here either to (there appears to be some debate about this, i'm too lazy just now and our internet is too slow to verify one side or the other) feed to calve. perhaps it is both. anyway, we saw three whales swimming around, playing, blowing, sticking their tales in the air. it was great. fortunately, we had the forsight to bring the binos (payton had an in on the potential whale sighting). on the way back we saw a seal at - where else? - seal rock. a happy drive back to adelaide with nova singing us home. this was father's day.

magical usb cord - unpacked! (=pictures can be uploaded)

qantas check-in: we'd just arrived in sydney, been through customs, and had our epic four-day trek to the opposite end of the terminal. it's hard to appreciate just how much stuff we had, but believe me, it was a LOT!


glenelg beach: nova's first-ever trip to the beach. not bad.


frewville city fringe apartments. ah, hotel living. here's payton hard at work in his cell. it was an all-in-one living space: bedroom, dining room, office, living room...


nova's hotel digs


whoa!! it's hard to stay contained in suitcases for two weeks.


henley beach: this beach is directly west (~25 min drive) from where we live. it is so hard to hold nova back from the water. i can't wait until it is hot enough to let her charge in to waves like she wants to do. in the meantime, her camo gum boots with skull and cross bones on the side will have to try to keep her dry so she can at least wade in up to her ankles (and baby ankles aren't very far of the ground. she gets wet a lot. trips to the beach always involve a couple changes of clothes).


henley beach


nova at glenelg beach


love bug. nova was thrilled when this article got pulled out of the box. i'm not sure why/how it got packed - i don't think they do halloween over here. she, of course, doesn't need the excuse, so maybe we'll just wear it anyway...


go ozito!


of course, the kid gets her stuff built first! first home-cooked dinner in the new house.


brekky with daddy.


nova enjoys brekky at her new table... which turned out to a bit of an oversight on my part. ikea was out of stock of these tall, little-person chairs that would have brought nova comfortably up to our level of dining. so, i nabbed it, thinking myself a fast thinker: this little set was cheaper, available, and oh, so cute for when her cousin comes to visit this spring or when she has friends over. as it turns out, all three of us now eat all our meals at a table made for midgets. payton's and my knees are somewhere between our ears and our plates... but nova seems right at home with it.


can anyone see the kangaroo in this photo?!

crouching diaper, hidden tantrum

wow. well, that threatened to be the shortest-lived blog ever. sadly, my australian basketball career was even shorter. after two games - where i didn't even sit bench because they had no uniform for me - where there was a full team plus subs, i finally asked if they really needed me. i was politely informed that, no, i think we're good, but thanks for scoring our game tonight.... so, i am again on the hunt for some sort of sport team to join up with. i think payton should play footie (he's got the perfect background: cross-country endurance mixed with battering ram mentality, and he mostly understands the game already).

regardless of our club recreation, we have spent the past couple weeks playing "the price is right" at ikea and following up with some rigorous furniture building. the ozito (we did not name that one outright, it is the brand name, but still we refer to it as though it is its given name), the ozito is a tiny little hand drill that kept us from screwing a thousand little screws in by hand. our forearms are thankful.

we've also finally been able to unpack the boxes we shipped - those things go through hell! boxes were burgered left and right, they hardly needed any encouragement to collapse into the recycling bin - with only a single casualty (a rocking horse rocker). nova unearthed her fuzzi bunz diapers and was beside herself. she has since been carrying them around with her, trying to put them on her stuffed animals, trying to put them on herself, wearing them on her head (don't worry, they're all clean), using them as blankets, transporting them from drawer to wardrobe to drawer to mama and daddy's bed to various meals to the grocery store (she's only allowed to take one on stroller outings), etc. she is also enamored with a pair of red patent leather lug-soled mary jane hand-me-down shoes (kb callari, you might recognize them) that will probably actually fit her when she is three or four (i can't judge sizes that well yet). so, she insists we put them on her first thing in the morning and she clomps around in them in her footie pajamas until one of us finally gets around to changing her diaper and putting her in some real clothes. she is also starting her terrible twos early and can throw a tantrum to rival any two-tonne opera diva you can name. this is made slightly more embarrassing when you live in a "unit" - i.e. share a common wall with the family RIGHT next door.

we went for a hike/walk up in the adelaide hills at norton summit (of note because supposedly there is a great pub there) and saw - hooray! - kangaroos!!! payton and i were like giggly little kids. we got all excited pointing and whispering like you do when you need to keep impressing the fact that you're seeing something great even though the person standing next to you is seeing the same image and does not require further assistance from the little jabs of your forefinger aimed at the scene or the urgent, rather loud whispers repeatedly naming what it is you are both seeing - as if the alert, wild creature staring back at you in fluorescent-got-it-at-the-patagonia-outlet-sale-orange raincoat hasn't noticed you yet. i'm not sure nova got to see the first few roos due to getting rapidly slung from side to side in the backpack as payton twisted and turned trying to get her a view. nonetheless, we (including nova) actually got to see quite a few kangaroos... and it was made readily apparent just how new we are to the country.

we (rather, i - everyone knows payton - who is curretly sacked out next to me - does not do much blogging) love hearing everyone's comments - it's like getting mail at camp. only it's electronic and this is a substantially longer camp than ones we remember as kids. and farther away. we've finally got internet again, so i'll try to be more regular with this. as it is, i'm just going to post all the photos i finally uploaded to this here posting. provided i can figure that out. afterwards, i'll try to keep the right photos with the right words.

cheers
lindsey

love the car, love the house...

oh wow, what a great weekend.

saturday was my 31st birthday, so to celebrate, we went car shopping. after much cruising of the main car lot drag, protesting from nova, fending off drooling and bloody-toothed used car salesmen, we found our new ride. we had looked at the toyota hilux (think four-door tacoma with a little bed), the nissan navaro, the holden rodeo, the jeep cherokee (liberty), the toyota land crusier (they love their cruisers here, and the price tag shows it)... but all a no go, for one reason or another. and then, the last dealer at the end of the day.... we found her! and you can't get one of these in the states.... a turbo diesel nissan patrol (nissan's version of the cruiser). she's a tank. she's gold, so we named her gloria gardner, but call her gg for short. we are so proud and can't wait to get in to the outback - apparently a common past-time for aussie's in the winter (a good time to go interior, as it's just WAY too hot in the summer) and with their families. payton and i figured that camping and being feral are a couple things we know how to do.

but the adventure continues... all along, with all the recent craziness in our lives and lack of exercise, i've been telling payton, "we need to get on some sort of sports teams when we get there" - you know, a great way to meet folks, play, get some exercise... astound with our athletic prowess.... and what do you know, but we're sitting down to sign the papers on gg and the gal looks me up and down and asks if i've ever played basketball. sure (in middle school, mind you. marie - i hope you're reading this). well, she says, i'm eight months pregnant and need someone to take my place on the team, you want to do it? (aussies may be a bit too trusting, or optimistic, or mistaken that a "tall enough" american probably knows how to play basketball). so i say, uh...sure. i see payton's head crank around to look at me in shock (i prefer to think of it as awe, however), and then she invited payton to be the coach!! now it's my turn to stare at him as he says sure (i, of course, being a homemaker, am thinking "who's going to watch nova?").

now, let me tell you, payton and i are athletic enough to try anything (i ain't saying it's going to be pretty, or fast, or successful, but we'll try) and there are many sports that either one of us might be alright at due to past experience.... but basketball is NOT one of them. footy, rugby, soccer,... even cricket, since we could claim total ignorance, would have been a better choice. but no. i can't shoot a basket to save my life and payton just keeps repeating, "pick and roll, pick and roll", whatever that means! first game is tonight... oh boy.

well, the rest of the weekend was uneventful (which is fine, because it was eventful enough as it was). we had our potential rentals down to two: one more inland, closer to payton's work, closer to the city and in a cool, funky part of town; the other was very near the beach, but teensy tiny with no patio/grilling/sit-outside-and-drink-a-beer space. we chose the one inland, knowing gg would be happy to take a few trips to the beach every week and knowing we'd enjoy the space more day to day. i'm considering not posting pictures, so you have to come visit if you want to see it.... but probably i'll post pictures. mind you, there are three bedrooms, so we're planning on company....

hope all's well in everyone's time zone.

cheers,
lindsey

love adelaide - where are all our friends?!

wow, well we finally made it. that is one long ass flight - made longer with small whirling dervish we call our daughter... and as usual, detouring adventures abound for the gardners.

our 8 pm plane out of albequerque was delayed due to weather (much thanks to abi for helping us haul all our carry-ons - stroller, car seat, guitar, diaper bag, school bag, back packs, baby - to our gate) so we missed our connecting flight to sydney. bummer. sarah, you'll be envious to here we had to spend an unexpected 24 hrs (because, of course, there are not frequent flights to australia, even from la) in the city of angels, where, thanks to a rental car and the ENORMOUS generosity of whitney's sister, julie, we did find a peaceful place to stay with food and beer and baby toys and fresh food before hopping on the 14 hr flight to sydney. much benadryl and only 6 hrs later, nova was wide awake trying to scream her way in to first class (kid's got taste). elbows flying side to side, she made many laps up and down the aisles and through the galley, payton and i switching off between exhaustion and nova.

shockingly, the flight came to an end and we finally landed in aus. where, adam, i have yet to see a corn dog. but oh, the meat pie is very tasty. krista, this will offend mike enormously, but for us it is a comfort - i feel like he's always near us because every dude sounds like him. anyway, customs was a treat. not only did we have the aforementioned carry-ons, but now we had to cart our luggage as well - 6 very large (wheelie, fortunately) bags. everyone was very friendly and loved to tease us about "how long are you staying?!", it was gratifying to answer that yes, all this baggage is in fact necessary because we are now living here. so after customs, we had, literally, about a mile trek pushing, pulling, or carrying some 600# of luggage between the 2 of us to the end of the terminal where we would catch ANOTHER flight... to adelaide. dripping with sweat and feeling uncomfortably like the beverly hillbillies, we finally made it to the qantas gate. the poor woman didn't know what to do with us or all our stuff, so after much measuring, weighing, calling to higher ups, and waiving of MAJOR baggage fees, we finally got to get on the bus to get to the terminal to get on our plane. fortunately, nova was cheery as a cheerio and the cereal they served us for breakfast on the flight has in fact become one of our favorites and remains steadily stocked in our little extended stay hotel kitchen.

once we got to our little one room apt., nova took a 17 hr nap and payton and i tried to stay up as long as possible to get through the time change asap. adelaide, oddly enough, is 30 minutes ahead of sydney, so we are 16 1/2 hrs ahead of all you in the states (mountain time). after a blurry week of recovery, house hunting, a lot of tea and a frantic search for decent coffee (instant is rather popular over here. and they don't have 1/2 and 1/2, you get the real thing, baby, all cream), we are finally getting on our feet. payton has gone in to work, confirmed that his guitar made the transition just fine, and is currently out car hunting. nova, because she sleeps better without us in the room, has a twin mattress on the floor of the single bedroom, sleeping sweetly next to the double bed in there, leaving payton and me to figure it out on the other twin bed that's set up in the living area. so, instead of being barefoot and pregnant in a trailer in wyoming (as i was a couple years ago when we were working in yellowstone), we are now back to how we used to sleep in college, and have only slightly more in the bank. although this time, all our stuff doesn't fit in the back of our truck....

nonetheless, we are thoroughly enjoying ourselves and having fun getting to know an entirely new system. driving is breathtaking, mainly because a right hand turn leaves you facing off with other cars at the intersection - an experience more commonly left to the left-hand turn in the states. the beach is beautiful and very fun to play on. the days are quite short, shadows rather long, but even though it is fall, when it rains it feels like spring.

ken - we looked at a house the other day and the fellow showing it looked so much like you, we looked around the place a few more times just to see him and feel like we'd seen you that day. unfortunately the place was a shit hole, but it was nice to see you with an australian accent all the same. whitney, where are you and kai? nova picked up the "more" sign from kai right before we left and now she taps her fists together and says "mommy, mommy, mommy" all the time for...everything.

hope all is well for everyone. please forward this email on to anyone you think would like to get it. i know we have plenty of friends who are not on facebook, so pass it on. we'd love to hear from you. we usually have skype turned on - your evening is our morning.

cheers,
lindsey

ps. i'll post pictures as soon as we unload boxes and find the camera cord.