16 May 2011

day trip to Sydney

Greetings all,
'twas a whirlwind Sunday - we headed off to Sydney to visit our families, as we generally do when handsome soldier is home for more than just-a-weekend.  We literally dragged ourselves out of these delicious toasty new bedcovers . . . 
 & into this icey car.
 My husband changed the oil on Saturday afternoon & left the car outside the garage.  Brrrr.  He's used to Brisbane's lows of 15C overnight, we're more like -5C!!
 I was organised with car craft.  Inspired to try hexagons in the school holidays, so i made up my own method & pressed these hexagons on Saturday night to stitch together in the car.
 First stop, my parents in St Ives.  Our eldest daughter chose to interview Grandad for an Integrated Humanities assignment.  He ticked all the boxes . . . born in the depression; decorated military war history; & a sharp memory - questions included "who is the oldest family member you can remember".  I found out so much more about his life, my ancestry & his grandfathers.  Our children were on the edge of their seats listening to his stories, including one which, let's just say didn't end well for the kittens the family cat kept having.  Very graphic & my father doesn't come with a PG warning. 
 We named our first born after my father & he always says "i have 14 grandchildren but number 8 is named after me".  They have a very special bond. 
 
 Is there a fence my children won't try to climb or a hill they can resist rolling down??
Then we headed to the cemetery to lay flowers at the tombstone of my mother-in-law.  The children hadn't done this for a while & had a good look around her neighbours graves.   
 We had lunch & spent the afternoon with my father-in-law in Summer Hill, various family members popped in, then we headed for Bowral.  It was getting late & i was feeling very run down, so we had a quick visit with my sister & her family.  She presented us with eggs from her chickens & snacks to sustain the last 200km of our trip home to Canberra. 
By the time we got home it was after 7p.m. & simple 'farm fresh' fried eggs made for a suitable dinner, then i raced my husband back into our new bedlinen for a good night's sleep.  Sure it was a long trip of 700km in 12 hours but, we sang, laughed & danced in the car.  The children read books, played games & were all round fabulous.  Ah, here's to a beautiful week of sub zero evenings, cross country trials & lots of sewing for a Sunday market.  Love Posie

20 comments:

Kylie said...

Brr - hear it is chilly in your neck of the woods. A friend had no water to her house for a few hours after the water had frozen in the hot water pipes. Nece welcome to winter:)

anne said...

Brrr we have had some cold mornings here in Sydney lately. I am curious as to how you make your hexies. Could you share please.

Leah said...

No wonder you were feeling rundown - that's a lot of travelling time without even considering the emotions always brought up when visiting family. Hope you've recovered now :)

Sindy said...

Lovely seeing that ice - I have cold envy. I just got back from Costa Brava for the weekend, where after seakayaking all morning, I now have nasty red thighs with a shorts mark at the top - mmm sexy...

deux chiens et un garcon said...

Ice all over the car and yard here too.

Snuggle up tonight.

My lovely package arrived today. Mmmaux.

jill x

1000 Homes of Happiness said...

oh wow, look at that ice. Very chilly indeed. Love the part about Grandad and the interview. I remember doing the same with my lovely Pop and all of us mesmorized by his stories and wisdom.

xoxox

Kellie.

The Moerks said...

Sorry Posie, I can't look at your bedlinen without snickering re your child's noisy comment. Blush, blush!
That child holding the red roses is just a bit too gorgeous! How ever to you discipline dimples like those?

Anonymous said...

Ha ha ha. How funny. On Saturday, we drove from Sydney to Canberra and back in a day!!!

Bec R said...

Wow that's one heck of a day trip but sounds like it was well worth it. I have fond memories of listening to my Grandma's 'when I was young' stories as a teenager, I just wish I had asked her to put it down on paper before she passed!

Anonymous said...

Oh Posie what a wonderful weekend was had by all. I blanched at the thought of what grandad told the kids about the kitties! I hope you're feeling better now as well x

Tania said...

Wonderful for your kid's to hear all the old stories. We often do eggs on a Sunday night too. Easy, filling and delicious.

polkadotpeticoat said...

What a perfect day with family....we had eggs for dinner also great minds think alike! enjoy hubby how nice!

polkadotpeticoat said...

Oops me again don't you get carsick sewing?

The House That A-M Built said...

What a beautiful weekend!I am so impressed that you can work in the car... I get so carsick even if I look down! A-M xx

Brenda said...

Looks like a jam-packed day full of frost, fun, family and the eggs too....food.

Have a happy week my dear, Love Brenda.

P.S. Your bed covers are divine!

Michelle said...

what a gorgeous story! I remember those icy Canberra mornings! We only spent 2 years there, but the memories remain, I remember feeling so bad one morning dropping the girls off to school in -2C! And it is so good that you are hearing your Dads stories now. My Grandfather was a very quiet man, and I felt devastated to only hear his heroic war stories at his funeral, especially since I was the only descendant to follow into the military myself. It is so important talk to them now!

Maxabella said...

Arh! Next time I'll expect a visit, dear Posie!! Glad you enjoyed your whirlwind trip. Always worth it for family. x

Seaweed and Raine said...

Ha! We were in your neck of the woods at the beginning of the month - and now you were in mine! I am not at all envious of the ice all over everything, but I will say that it sure is pretty.
Your Hexies look good - I can't wait to see how and what you do with them.
Hope you are feeling better soon. The smalls and I are snuffling too.
Love S x

Cat said...

Wow what a weekend, looks very cold there love the photo of the ice though:) Glad you could get some crafting in there when you've got such a long drive, to do nothing can be a bit boring sometimes. Have a great week. xo

posie blogs Jennie McClelland said...

Blogger is still eating some of my comments, VERY annoying when i have a giveaway on, love Posie