It was a respectable game for a tough fighting group of freshmen against the #11 BCS team. We had a field goal that was inaccurately called “no-good” and we had a freshman holding on the second to last play when he didn’t need to. If those 2 situations were their exact opposite, we would have beat OU 27 to 24. Oh well, there is always next year.
I’m heading back Down Under tomorrow on a 10:00PM flight and will commence the last twenty something days of Madelyne’s Year 6 school year. Then we are off to the Whitsundays for Christmas. Check it out here: http://www.longislandresort.com.au/
Enjoy the rest of your 2012; I know we will!

Hard to believe, but it was exactly 1 year ago today when The Smiths set foot in Australia as a family. So much has gone flying by! No pictures to show this time; just an acknowledgment of a significant milestone. One year ago I was concerned about whether MBD would adjust. Turns out she has done just fine this year, and is ready to start high school at the end of January after a long and well-deserved summer break. MBW has had a good year as well, helping out at Manly West Primary School and will move on to something new and interesting now that MBD has almost completed her studies at that school.

So I’ll keep on posting to this blog because there’s always something intriguing to report about our life in the wonderful world of Oz!

MWH

Well, MBD is off for a 3-day adventure to the Australian bush. To be honest, we’re not quite sure where the “Bush” is, but years 5 & 6 are off to a grand adventure this morning!

At the Four Olives Restaurant, in downtown Manly, NSW. MBD had french toast and TWO milkshakes! LBT waited on us!

It’s a good thing when you can celebrate your birthday on two different continents! Photo by MBD’s iPhone.
Lookin’ good, MBW!

Today I took MBD and her friend Niamh (pronounced “Neeve”) on the Manly Ferry for an adventure around Sydney Harbour. What a sparkling, wonderful spring day in Oz!

This is MBD and her friend Bella at the Peddlers’ Parade yesterday. With all those freckles she reminds us of MBD’s dear friend Malone that we left behind in Knoxville, Tennessee. Funny how life sometimes takes turns like these!

MBD and friends were baking cookies last weekend to prepare for this event held at school. Kind of like a fun bake sale / flea market to raise money so the 6th grade class can purchase a gift for their school. Four girls, all sleeping over on a Saturday night! Wild times in the Smith household!

LBT stands for “Little Blonde Traveller” as she describes herself on her blog. This young lady was one of MBD’s swim coaches when we were back in Whittington Creek. She is on a global trek to discover the world, and the Smiths invited her to hang out with us for as long as she likes to explore New South Wales and the Sydney area. She already has spent quite a bit of time in Oz, but not in the Sydney area. To MBD, it feels like she’s got a big sister. “Can I keep her, Mom? Pleeeze?” she texted us last week. Welcome LBT! We’ve got the extra space, so feel free to hang with us!

For the past week, MBW and MWH have been up in Thailand, doing a mind-and-body detox and cleansing. We ate nothing but green smoothies (greens and fruit in a blender) and fruit. Took MWH 3 days to shake his caffeine headaches from withdrawal. We also focused on perceptions and thoughts that we’ve held onto over the years and allowed them to dictate our attitudes and responses. So both the physical and mental dimensions were addressed. The retreat sponsored a one-day getaway to allow us to see something of Thailand. Saw monasteries, a giant Buddha statue, and of course a few fruit markets because that was how we were getting nutrition during the week. The fruit was fantastic, but some things were definitely not found in the USA! Open your mind, eat the fruit….

I even made a friend with a true native Thai!