Australian Update from the Grants

Man, are we having a FABULOUS time!! Here’s a quick summary of what’s up since I last wrote.

Wednesday was our “off” day and we went and ‘hung’ with the kids. We took Sally and Sydney to the Sydney Aquarium, and then we all went to grab some dinner. Then we brought Sally back to the apartment and the girls went to sleep, and Andy and I ventured back out.

In fact, we were attempting to hail a cab when the person next to me handed me free theatre tickets for that moment. So we turned back and walked the 2 blocks to the theatre and enjoyed an excellent Stephen Sondheim show called “Company.”

Thursday was time for Firewalking, which was absolutely extraordinary. Read the full account here: Fire walking.

I called my mum (Nana) to check in and let her know we were all right (we were “right” as they say here down under) and when I mentioned firewalking, she laughed and said, “What’s next? Laying on a bed of nails?”

Hmmm, I hadn’t thought of that. We’ll see.

Friday was the final day of the conference – Lynne McTaggart was the speaker (from the movie “What the Bleep – Down the Rabbit Hole” and author of “The Field” and “The Intention Experiment”). She was excellent and we even participated in a live quantum physics experiment with the University of Arizona Research Center.

We also got to practice some telepathic exercises, which was quite a trip. We partnered up with someone (Andy and I happened to sit together in a way that made us partners for the exercise). First, I was to think of a simple concept, like love or peace or joy. Then we set the intention that I would send it and he would receive it, then we would see what he “got.”

For the first one, I was thinking “sticky” and he got the “hunny pot” from Winnie the Pooh.

Wow.

Andy and I were spot on for all except 1, where I was thinking of bubbles and he was thinking of a wooden stick. Go figure.

Friday night was the black tie gala, which was lovely, and then Saturday (after checking out of the Intercontinental and rejoined the kids & Penny at the apartment) we got up early to go on an all-day wine tour of the Hunter Valley region. We found some great wines, and bought about 9 bottles. Yum yum, I wonder how many will actually make it back to Colorado?

Sunday we took a cab to North Sydney to attend Unity church again, and then we met up with a new associate of Andy’s (got started just the night before in Andy’s home-based business) who lives within walking distance of the church. After we had lunch with him, we headed back to the apartment for nap time.

While the kids napped, Andy and I dashed over to the Sydney Fish Market, which was a real treat – I really missed having access to heaps of ultra-fresh seafood. We bought a ton of stuff for a seafood feast dinner – mussels, barramundi (Australian fish, very yum), and huge tiger prawns. Then we took Sally to the amusement park called Luna Park.

She met a little friend there named Dakota – just about 6 months older than Sal – and they really hit it off. We stayed until the park closed, and then cabbed it back to the apartment (driven by a software engineer who was having his very first day as a cab driver. Andy suggested that he consider an alternative way to make money…and gave the guy his card.)

We did have one concern about Sally – it seemed as though she was having some regression on this trip (3 potty accidents in 1 day) but we suspect she may have a bladder infection, so we are pumping some water and cranberry juice into her to see if we can knock it out quick.

Well, I think that brings things up to speed. More to come….

Mum and Dad Walked on Fire Today...

Yes, it's true.

Today, as part of the personal development confernece we're attending, Andy and I walked across burning hot coals, about 1100-1200 degrees (not sure if that was Celsius or Fahrenheit, but does it really matter?).

It was an extraordinary experience -- talk about mind over matter!

There was really nothing to it -- I found myself thinking, "Why am I walking so fast? Because this doesn't even feel hot."

500 of us just walked over searing hot coals, steaming and flaming. And nary a blister or burn among us.

What's interesting is this--- there was no hype, no putting ourselves into a trance, no altered state of being.

I just made up my mind that I would do it and be fine...and I was.

Fascinating!!

In other news...Penny took the girls to the park today. She said Sydney seemed to have more fun at hte park than Sally (go figure).

They all had a slumber party last night -- apparently Sydney didn't want to sleep last night, so they were all up a good part of the night. Penny and hte girls are at the apartment in Darling Harbour, adn Mum and Dad are over at the Intercontinental in Circular Quay. Firewalking was a fabulosu experience. We're just back in teh room to freshen up and then head over to Chinatown for dinner.

So, off we go. Cheers!

Bob Proctor Rocked the House

Do you know who Bob Proctor is?

If you saw the movie "The Secret," Bob is the handsome older gentleman dressed in the blonde suit and tie. He's all throughout the movie, but especially in the beginning.

The guy is a living legend in terms of personal development -- he's been in the industry for more than 39 years, and he's been studying the Law of Attraction for almost 50 years.

To see/hear him speak was an honor and a real treat.

His presentation was absolutely flawless. Afterwareds, I felt like I had to go sit by myself somewhere and process everything I'd just heard.

Spectacular.

Here's a pic with me and Bob:

Takin' It Easy

Last night, we ate at a restaurant with some of our business associates who were here for the conference.

For a full account of that adventure, see my other blog -- the post entitled "This Isn't America, You Know."

Today we just took it easy, giving my feet a chance to relax (I lanced the blisters and we visited a chemist to get soem advice on how to treat it aftewards).

I got some work done, and we all napped -- we gave Penny a break to get out and about and do some shopping.

Then it was party time --

Andy and I had to be at the hotel for a "meet adn greet" with some other team members for 3PM, and then we came back to the apartment to relax before our big Welcome Reception at 7PM.

Food at the Welcome Reception (this was part of hte actual conference) was DIVINE -- really yummy. There were also aboriginal entertainers, performing traditional dances. It was nice because one guy was explaining the significance of every dance just before they did it.

We talked and talked and talked that night, and then we headed back to the apartment. It was our intention to move over to our hotel room, leaving the girls with Penny, but we ended up just crashing at the apartment.

No worries! Tomorrow, Bob Proctor is speaking, can't wait to hear him....

Trip to Church in Sydney

Today we thought it would be fun to find a Unity Church to attend. We hopped online and found out there is one in North Sydney, about 16 miles from our hotel.

Since it took us awhile to get us all ready, we had to cab it over to the church.

I had flashbacks of our Unity church in Metairie -- "Church of the Shopping Center." This one was actually in an office high rise building. We had called ahead to let them know we were coming, and to get directions.

This was the tiniest Unity church we've attended so far (not counting the one time when we had church while sitting in lawn chairs outside, after Katrina wrecked our old church).

There were about 11 people TOTAL in attendance (including the 5 of us AND the minister). Penny (she's been with Unity for years adn years) said this minister was definitely "old school Unity."

The service was very nice, and afterwards they had refreshments.

One lady was making curried egg sandwiches taht morning, and said she had a "hunch" that she should make twice as many sandwiches today.

Good thing she listened to that hunch -- those sandwiches were delicious! We also had tea and biscuits, sweet cakes and guacamole adn crackers. Yum yum.

It was a real treat to sit and talk with these people -- such warm and inviting folks, adn some of them had traveled to Colorado or otehr parts of the U.S. And they answered our questiouns about Australia, and we answered their quesitons about America.

And -- get this -- this was a total "New Orleans moment" for me. The minisiter and Penny BOTH KNOW some of the same people.

Now is that a small world, or what??

After church, we hit a health food store and walked around a bit (had a walkabout), and then we caught the train back to our apartment to fix some lunch.

The weather was kind of yucky this morning -- rainy adn a bit cold, but then it cleared up adn the sun came out, whcih was very nice.

Andy and I ran a few errands in the afternoon (I've got a huge blister on the bottom of each foot -- got to get these taken care of) and then it's time to prepare for some busienss associates who are coming by this evening for a little welcome reception..then we're all off to dinner (Penny will stay back with the girls)

OK, gotta run -- cheers!

A Date for Mum and Dad

This morning, I had a couple of business calls to make, so when those were done, I took Sally down to the indoor pool.

The pool was actually bloody cold, so we spent about an hour or so in teh hot tub (which I would actually call teh warm tub). But it was nice, nonetheless.

AFterwards, we all got cleaned up adn then had some lunch, then Sally went down for a nap and Andy and I took off. With Penny looking after hte girls, we knew we had sevearl hours on our own, to go off and have some fun.

So we bought some all-over transport passes, a 7-day pass that allows you to take advantage of ALL of Sydney's fabulous public transportation services: monorail, light rail, water ferries, buses, trains, all of it. I think it was only about $65AUS apiece for the week. Not too shabby!

We went to Paddy's Markets -- definitely the place where I'll buy some of hte otehr stuff the Montessori school requested. Reminded me of the French MArket in New Orleans, but it's indoors, so it's not all smokey! And there is some bargaining going on, but I didn't at all feel like I was getting ripped off or antyihng.

Lots of purses, clothing, t-shirts, jewelry, toys, food, and Australian goods. The markets are open Thursday through Sunday, so I'm sure we'll be going back.

Then we headed over to Circular Quay (pronounced Circular KEY) for a walkabout. We checked out the hotel where we'll be staying for our Summit Conference. Swanky ! Ran into some friends there, and took the elevator up to the 31st floor to check out the views. Very sweet.

We walked over to the Opera house -- it was packed, because there is the Sydney Film Festival going on this weekend. Foudn out the Barber of Seville is running, starting this week -- I wanted to see it, until I realized it was the opera, not a play....and it's in Italian. Ah, well.

Luna Park looked so appetizing, I suggested we jaunt over there and ride the Ferris wheel, so we did. Also won Sally a prize (a giant sheet of stickers -- she'll be thrilled). We checked out Luna Park, and I think it will be nice to take Sally down there, as she is likely tall enough now to ride some of the cool stuff.

We got some phenomenal photos from Luna Park adn from the Ferris Wheel. We watched the sunset, and it was stupendous.

Then we headed back to Woolworth's to get some bread, milk, a few other things we needed.

SIDE NOTE -- It's funny -- their major grocery chain here is Woolworth's. The Woolworth's is massive -- 4 floors, and it's more like a Wal-Mart than a grocery. They have an internet cafe inside the Woolworth's.

We're checking into listings to see if we can find a Unity Church (why not?)

Also of note -- in teh same building as our apartment is Sydney's Landmark Education Center! We checked to see if any seminars were going on, but they have one that just ended. There is a Forum going on right now, this weekend.

Absolutely gorgeous weather today -- warmer, I didn't even need a scarf until the sun started to dip, and didn't need my coat until after sundown.

Let's see what tomorrow brings....Cheers!

Fun-Filled Day - Taronga Zoo, Sydney

Today we took the kids to the Taronga Zoo. Andy adn I were here during our last visit to Sydney, so we already knew it was a fabulous zoo. Looks like they may have added some more stuff as well. They're planning a new "ocean adventures" section for 2008.

We did the Koala Encounter again -- this time it was $16.95 instead of $2, but they take a nice photo, and it's all very professional looking.

Instaed of seeking kangaroos laze around, some were actually hopping. We saw all the Aussie classics: koala, echidna, kangaroo, wombat, tasmanian devil, dingo, crocodile, bilby, etc. The meerkats were rather docile. IT was kinda chilly (40deg F?) so some of hte animals were just hanging around their heat lamps, staying warm.

Good thing I bought a coat yesterday at Myers department store -- they were having an annual sale, or something, so it was crazy busy. I got a warm Esprit poncho for the baby, and a beanie hat and mittens, and a nice warm fleece hat for Sally. Got myself a lovely scarf for warmth, as well. Everyone wore their new stuff and we were toasty warm all day.

Ate bangers and mash for lunch (yum yum) and did I mention our friend/business associate Sherry joined us? We were quite the crew.

Sally is back to normal -- she was perfectly behaved today (thank goodness, I don't think I could have taken much more of the demon child) so she got a great big lolly (candy) on the way out.

We were also given some money and a list of treasures to buy for Sally's Montessori school. Apparently, any time one of hte families travels someplace exotic, they ask them to bring stuff back for the school.

We found some of hte things on the list here at the Zoo, including:

- Small hard plastic animals (echidna, platypus, koala, wombat, tasmanian devil, kangaroo). They have these felt mats with scenes on them -- the children use hte animals on teh scenes, determining which animals go with which scenes adn where in the scene (birds in teh sky, fish in the water, etc.)

- toys or games. Got some Australian dominos, with Aussie anmials on them.

- coloring books. We went one better and found a book "how to draw Australian animals." The book includes instructions, plus interesting facts about each animal, pictures to color, and a riddle about each. Nice!

The school also asked for pairs of matching postcards, child's outback clothing, Australian cookbook, and a small digeridoo.

We'll keep an eye out for the rest...

Sydney in Sydney!!!

Our little Sydney is now in Sydney. Can you tell we love Australia? Our first daughter was born on Australia day, and we named our second daughter Sydney. Man, this is a great country.

So yesterday was a rough day -- Sally didn't get a nap and she was supremely cranky.

We finally got checked into our apartment, and we were very fortunate (Law of Attraction in action again) because remember I said we had paid in full to a booking company? Well, when Andy called them (and they are still trying to figure out where the communication breakdown was, that the apartments didn't know we were coming) and told them we found a new place, they were ecstatic to hear it, because they have been wanting to do business with this apartmetn complex.

So Andy worked it out, they got the Goldsbrough apts signed up as a vendor ASAP, adn they simply transferred our money. We paid the difference, somthing like $14AUS a day, which is a steal considering how fabulous our view is from the top floor. Hooray!!

We wandered into the nearby shopping center to grab some sushi in the food court (do you love that? sushi at the food court!) and shop a bit. Then we were off to find a grocery so we can stock up our apartment's kitchen. The produce here is amazing -- so fresh and lovely. And Penny (our nanny -- she eats quite healthy) was reading labels in the grocery adn was so pleased to find that nothing here seems to have phosphates, which she says are very bad for us.

And of course, they don't put corn syrup in anything here. It's good ol' fashioned SUGAR.

I bought some Billy Tea, among otehr things. Apparently it's called Billy tea because when people were flocking here for the Gold Rush, French tinned beef was a staple food. But the Aussies apparently couldn't pronounce "boeuf" (french for Beef) so they called it Bully for short, which later became "billy." Apparently, the empty tins were perfect for making tea, hence the name "billy tea."

It's delicious -- but quite strong!! But that's how I like it. Also got some super-fab Australian Honey, which comes in about 10 different flavors/varieteis. We went with Red Gum.

Certain familiar logos have different names here -

Dunkin Donuts = Donut King
Burger King = Hungry Jacks

and we no longer have a stroller...it's a Pram. And we also made arrangements to rent a cot (crib) for Sydney. And of course, diapers are nappies...and we are being careful not to use words like "root" and "stuff" as these are derogatory words for sex. Good stuff to know before you open your mouth, yeah?

ok that's all for now...more to come as the Grant adventure continues....

MILESTONE: Sally's 1st Passport Stamp

Well, San Franscisco was fun (cold -- brrr!!!) but since Sally didn't nap for two dang days, it was good to finally get to our ultimate destination: SYDNEY.

And since we all (including Sydney) had stamps in our passport, today was a milestone for Miss Sally to receive her very first passport stamp.

Of course, this wasn't her first international flight -- I think she's been to Mexico 3 times, and Canada once. But thanks to the new international travel laws, she had to get a passport.

Kind of strange that Sydney actually got a stamp before Sally -- we had to get Syd's passport the last time we went to Cancun (Sally stayed home).

But Sally is quite excited to have her official passport stamped, and it's so perfect that the first stamp is Australia, since she was born on Australia day!

Today was a little strange -- we arrived in Sydney and called the place where we were staying, to see if we could check in early. Even though we had booked through a booking agency and paid in full for our 10-day stay in an executive apartment, the actual place had no knowledge of it.

What's more, they informed us that the apartment we were requesting had been flooded over a week ago.

Well, that sucks.

Only it didn't really -- I had an urgent file I had to send, so we were darting all over town looking for an internet cafe that was open at 7:00 in the morning. When we finally found a couple, none of them would let me hook up my laptop to send it -- it was all set up to use their computers only. We finally found a viable solution, only to discover what I just mentioned above about our (lack of) apartment.

Then the Law of Attraction kicked in, like it alwasy does.

The cab driver (well, to be honest it was more of a mini-bus or a super-van, actually. Very nice.) 'suddenly' remembered someplace that he thought would be wonderful.

He kept telling us "I don't know why, but this place just popped into my head. You will be so lucky if you get in -- it's fabulous and very reasonable."

It's called the Goldsbrough Apartments and don't you know, they happened to have a room.

And get this -- not only was the location slightly better than the other (although the location for our 'original' apt was excellent), but it has AMAZING views and a couple of addiitonal perqs -- like daily maid service.

We are up on the Penthouse level, and the views are completely stunning. You can see all of Cockle Bay and Darling Harbour and the sunrises and sunsets are just spectacular.

And of course it had an indoor pool, spa and sauna. And located very close to teh monorail and the light rail (which they call the "tram").

Hooray!!!

So we are getting settled, adn more to come shortly.

MILESTONE: Sydney's First "real" Food

We had some friends over for dinner tonight, so Andy seemed to think an hour before they got here was a good time to give Sydney a Biter Biscuit.

Now for the sake of those who don't have little ones in your life, a biter biscuit is a hard cookie that is about as big as a very fat man's index finger, and it is fairly bland -- sort of the way cheap animal crackers taste (not the good shortbread ones that come in teh little circus boxcar). They help babies soothe their gums -- kind of like a chew toy for dogs.

Anyway, I was a little concerned -- first off, we are only supposed to be trying out single-ingredient foods, adn this has a fairly long list of ingredients. Also, the child has no teeth yet and the box clearly says "for 10 month babies who can sit up fine, and who are accustomed to chewing chunks of food or mashing food up with their gums."

Seems to me, if you can chew chunks of food, you don't need a biter biscuit.

But we gave her one nonetheless. Not only was there no choking (and a glorious gooey mess from her head to her knees, including evertyhing taht came into contact with her during teh experience) but she handled the whole thing like a pro. Ate the entire cookie!

Well, Andy adn I come from a long line of good eaters, I suppose.

So now we're free to experiment wiht more solid foods. I also bought one of those things -- can't recal what you call them, but they are sort of mesh on one end, you put fruit etc in it adn they can mash it up without getting too big of pieces. So we'll try that soon, too.

Fun times!!

MILESTONE: Sydney Sits Up!

Sydney had her 6-month dr's visit today, and as we were going through the checklist of milestones, he asked us whether she was sitting up.

We explained taht she would sit up for sevearl seconds if you propped her up with her hands in front of her on the floor, sort of like a tripod. So we proceeded to show him as we were explaining, and I'll be danged if the kid didn't pick up her arms and sit as though she had been sitting up for weeks now. What a stinker.

She's perfectly fine -- something like 37th percentile for weight (go figure -- Sally was always at 97th percentile), something like 40-something-ish-ith for height, and a whopping 97TH PERCENTILE for head circumference. Poor kid has dad's head!

But I think she looks great. Then again, I'm a bit biased.

So all is well, we are gearing up for the big trip down under, no worries, we'll be blogging while we're there!