I'm dreaming of a white Christmas...

Dear friends,

It's been a while! I know that was the same opening message of my last blog post, but I have been beyond busy. Between working 30 hours a week for my host family, plus 25 hours a week at lululemon, plus babysitting in the evenings for a couple families and studying for my two final exams, life has been a little chaotic! However, I have still found some time to have some adventures so I've got pictures and things to report on.

First things first - I went out in Fremantle! Sarina, Wanda (aka: Wombie), Sophie, Hannah, Sarina's co-workers and myself went out for some dancing on the coast. After a little bit of a fiasco (involving a poor young man over indulging and getting very sick), we hit up two bars/clubs, danced all night, I sang with a street performer and got home at 4am. Here are some highlight photos:

Sarina and I at the pre-party

Classic

Hannah (fellow Canadian!) and myself at the club. Please note the guy to the left!

Wanda, Sarina, Myself and Sophie!

Sarina and I getting our dance on.

The au pair crew.

Singing at 3:30am on a street corner!

As you can see, we had a pretty incredible night and I'm sure we'll have some more soon. The next major event was a short two-day excursion/road trip to Busselton and Margaret River with Sarina! We drove down on a Monday morning and returned on a Tuesday afternoon. We got the pleasure of staying with Paul and Diane, friends of my host family, who were so incredible and hospitable! They've adopted me as their Canadian daughter and invited me to come and stay with them for the Southbound Festival in January, YES PLEASE!

We went into Busselton and saw the long, long jetty then realized there wasn't too much else to see there so hopped back into the car and drove to the chocolate factory outside Margaret River. YUM! Here are some highlight photos from our road trip, I hope we have another when she gets back from Canada!!

On our way back to Perth we stopped in Bumbury at the Dolphin Discovery Centre (where wild dolphins come into the shore every day) and we had missed them by one minute that day. Can you believe our luck? I was pretty sad about it.

As you can see, Sarina is a serious driver.

That little kid grabbed my flip flops and threw them over the wall!

 Just a few 'roos, kickin' it.

Sarina and I enjoying the beautiful sunset on the beach in Busselton 

Getting goofy before bed

Sitting, hoping and wishing that those wild dolphins will come back

So since that little trip, I've really just been working an awful lot! If you know me, you know I love to be busy, so I have been really enjoying it! Cycling to and from work in the city is probably my favourite (and least favourite) part of working in the CBD (central business district for all you non-Australian folk). Favourite because I get 25 minutes of exercise each way and enjoy the scenery as I go. Least favourite because there is consistently a head wind on my way home!!

There have been a few times in the past couple of weeks that I've finished a shift at the perfect time to enjoy the sunset on my bike ride home. Talk about a luck gal, eh?

I'm hoping to do some longer bike rides soon and will hopefully head north along the coast (wind permitting of course!).

 As for news here at the house, little Paul just celebrated his second birthday!!! We rang in the celebrations with a family trip to the pool. Of course I brought my handy underwater camera for some shots of the action. Paul is an absolute fish, just like his brothers. He loves going underwater and is very good at holding his breath, blowing bubbles and even kicking his legs. Pretty good for a new two-year-old who doesn't talk yet!

The three brothers

Sue and Paul - look at that smile! 

Myself and Adam 

Awesome! 

I'm not drowning this baby. 

Adam, Me, and Luke!

Underwater family shot (Gavin was missing).

So folks, that's my large, complete with colour photos, update! I've written the two exams for those two online courses I was taking (thanks, Concordia) and my Christmas cards are all ready to get popped in the mail! My apologies to those who do not receive theirs before Christmas day; they are more Holiday cards I guess...(good excuse?).

Saturday evening I have a Christmas party with all the au pairs here in Perth. It's at a restaurant/bar that has a dress code and I've realized that I don't have anything but thongs (flip flops) to wear, which are not up to code...guess it's time to have a little look around the Aussie shops!

I really can't say it feels like Christmas here because to me, it is perpetually August. Whenever I see something referring to Christmas and snow I get a little bit homesick, but because it's so hot and sunny here it doesn't feel like I'm missing anything. By that I mean that if it were snowy and cold I would be longing for Christmas at home, but Christmas here is so laid back! Well, not for some; my family loves Christmas and the kids are very enthusiastic about it. I'll love you and leave you with a photo of what I came home to one night after work:

Stay cozy and warm my North American friends. Sip tea by the fire for me and enjoy the Christmas movies on CBC, I'll be missing them and you!

With love,
Megan

Bad blogger, Megan, BAD BLOGGER!

Hello dear friends, family and celebrated readers and followers of my blog,

First off, I want to apologize for my extended absence from the blogosphere. I don't know who to blame other than the adorable little Paul who keeps me up to my elbows in dirty nappies...but look at that face! I can't blame him!

Playing in the bubbles at the pool

So what's been happening?

I've been MELTING. Seriously. It was 37 degrees today with a UV index of 11 from 8am - 4pm. Talk about sweltering! I've been told ever so lovingly by Gavin and Sue that I really haven't seen anything yet. It gets worse.

Every time I write down the date, I think that I must be mistaken. It cannot be November, it's summer! Then I realize that I need to pop Christmas gifts in the mail and QUICK because Christmas is around the corner. I don't know if it'll really feel like I'm missing out on much because it won't feel like Christmas...

SOME REALLY GREAT NEWS: I am now employed for my days off! The lovely lululemon Perth City has taken me onto their team as a part-time educator so I can continue to work out, do yoga, enjoy life and get paid to hang with great people. Awesome? Awesome. 

Let's talk about the library for a second...

Groaning are you? Yeah, that's probably because you're thinking of that god-awful university library that you visiting only for a stack of carefully selected books in order to pull quotations from for that horrific 15 page paper on that subject you hated. That or your thinking about the hours you spent there late into the night working on homework or studying because it was supposed to be a quiet place to study without people cell phones going off, (Oh yeah, I'm talking to you, girl in the blue zone at Webster last year who answered her cell phone and talked loudly about the night's plans. I hope you failed whatever it was you were working on).

BUT NO! Ladies and gentlemen, I urge you to back away from the university library that will forever hold a negative connotation and move toward your public libraries that are ever so great and free! Not only that, but they offer fantastic little programs and meetings. Every Monday morning I take Paul down to the local branch for a kiddie time with songs, stories and a craft. Magical doesn't even begin to explain it.

I have a library card. Yes, that's right and having fun is not hard. So far I've read 2.5 books and I will continue to use the fantastic free resource as much as possible. Right now I've got two books from a series by Jasper Fforde I'm reading, two cookbooks and two travel books for New Zealand. I'm even considering joining their knitting circle on Tuesday evenings. I'll keep you posted.

CROSSFIT:
Yeah, that's right. I finally got my act together and joined a CrossFit affiliate here in Perth. It's really fantastic and I'm feeling stronger every day. I'm also trying my best to follow a Paleolithic diet (lean meat, fruit, veggies and basically nothing else). I promised myself that this year was for me and therefore I'm going to feed my need to exercise and nourish my body properly. So far, so good! I've read The Paleo Diet by Loren Cordain (got it at the library!) and it's proven very interesting. Check out the wikipedia page about it if you want to learn more.

On the left: Greens, avocado, tomato. On the right: Mushroom, red pepper scramble. At the top: Green tea.

My spider senses were tingling in the bathroom the other day and since I had yet to have an encounter with a large Australian spider, I knew my time would come. This guy was hanging out waiting for me to have a shower. I've seen a few bigger ones outside the house but thankfully none that I would "have to kill with a shovel" yet. I'm not about to name any of them Charlotte either.

Oh, hi there.

So on Sunday this past weekend we had "Early Christmas Dinner" which was a party put on by the five families that are all in the same little circle of friends. What a blast! Swimming in the pool, BBQ (no shrimp though...I'm beginning to question the validity of Western Australian's as there has yet to be any shrimp on any barbie), champagne, and presents of course!

Drinking champagne in style.

Sarina and I making faces

I've been biking around Perth to get from home to CrossFit to work to the library and the beach but it seems no matter what direction I'm headed, there's a headwind. Seriously, the wind changes to make my life hell. I guess it is kind of nice when the heat is emanating off the pavement to get a nice gust of wind to cool you down...but I swear I'm fighting it all the time! On Saturday, Sarina and I cycled to the beach and took a Christmas photo for you all:

On the beach with matching shirts and Santa hats!

As you can see, Sarina did an excellent job applying sunscreen to my back that day

Today, Paul and I went for a swim at the pool to cool off from the heat. He is such a fearless swimmer! He's almost two and he's got his floats, he'll put his face in, he'll jump off the side in the deep end into my arms. The kid is a fish and I love him!

More bubbles!

Dolphin rides!

That's all for now folks. I'll keep you all in mind as I bear the heat and as you all enjoy the first real snowfalls in Ottawa and Montreal. Stay cozy, Canadians!

With love,

Megan

Driving...

ME CRAZY!!

This whole left side of the road thing... if only I got paid every time I hit the windshield wipers instead of the turn indicators instead of having Gavin laugh! I can't believe I forgot to tell you all that I drove on Sunday. It was an experience, let's leave it at that. The good news is that I'm a great driver, even on the wrong side of the road. Thumbs up, I won't kill the kids or anyone else.

Me on one of my cycle trips around the city

This week was a lot (and still will be a lot) of working for my family, but I am enjoying every second of it. Any spare time I get, I'm either taking a nap or going on a bike ride. Wednesday, a day off for me, was enjoyed in a bathing suit at my friend Sarina's place by the pool. Sarina invited a couple other au pair girls (German, of course) and one of her friends from work. We made and devoured delicious food, hopped in the water, drank some cider, enjoyed the sun and each others company, it was a fantastic time! I've gained about 200 new freckles, much more to come as it's not even summer yet.

Sarina about to jump!

Me joking around about diving in.

Afterwards I cycled over to Fremantle (nicknamed Freo) to check out the coastal suburb and sit on the beach. I stuck my feet in the Indian Ocean! It was such a beautiful place, I sat there for a while and soaked it all in. This will be my new day off activity - cycle to a new beach and read a book. Can't complain, really.

The beach in Freo.

Tomorrow I have the morning off so I'm going to cycle further North on the coast to some of huge, popular beaches here in Perth to check out the local spots and some of the surf schools up there. Before I leave Perth I vow to be PADI scuba certified and be able to hang ten like a PRO (obviously my surfing skills are better than most Canadians but here in Oz, I'm a nipper, baby).

Rottenest Island is supposed to be really beautiful and one of the must sees here in WA (Western Australia) so on one of my free days (probably Tuesday after my lululemon interview) I will hop the ferry with my bike and cycle around the island. Did I mention that when I got my helmet and cycle computer I also got a Canadian cycle jersey?! Oh yeah, 50% off at the local bike shop. It was meant to be! Pictures to come.

One thing I've found out - Canadian Lifesaving Society certifications don't transfer down here, you have to retake all the courses (Bronze Med, First Aid, Pool Lifeguard). Talk about a bummer, I was hoping to pick up some guarding shifts down at the pool...oh well. Either I suck it up, pay and take the time to certify myself here, or I just leave the pool for now. I'll keep you posted on what I decide.

I've got a jam packed weekend full of children, movies, sports and pizza! I'll let you know if I survive...

With love,
Megan

New hair, new bike!

Friends and family,

This is going to be one BIG update as it's been a few days!

So the first great piece of news is that I know have a mobile here in Australia. That's right, I'm connected! Even better? It's a blackberry so I have free BBM and What'sApp to keep in touch with all you other smartphone users. Even worse? I get all my emails and everything to it so it's constantly making noise and flashing red lights. The joys and terrors of technology!!

Paul rocking my sunglasses...

like a boss!

This week also marked my first sighting of a cockroach. Huge doesn't even begin to explain. SO disgusting. Apparently I should prepare for more as it's spring and they will be coming in. I shudder to think about it!

So for the past few days it's been quite rainy. And I'm not talking about the kind of rain that we get in Canada which is really just drizzle for the day. I'm talking about absolute downpour, the kind we get in the summertime during a thunderstorm that last for only ten minutes, except that here, that kind of rain can last all day. It was incredible to watch.

I made a hat for Paul with a scarf

He loved it!

 Saturday night I went into Perth city with Sarina for an Au Pair meeting with all the Au Pairs in the Perth area. Now, I am not in any way exaggerating, but every single other au pair here is from Germany. ACTUALLY. Even Sarina. ALL FROM GERMANY. There were 45 of us at the meeting/getting drinks at a bar and everyone was German. We went to a cool place called the Greenhouse downtown Perth. It was a great little restaurant and rooftop bar venue with the exception of the drink prices - wow! So expensive! Cocktails were $18+. I decided I wasn't going to drink anything at the bar (I had a couple of ciders prior to going in true student style).

After we chatted with a bunch of girls, we decided to go to Northbridge which is where all of the bars and clubs are. We went with two other au pairs (German, of course) to the Mustang Bar (an American bar) and danced to two great live bands and played some pool. I had a great time busting out some classic dance floor numbers. The girls here dress very provocatively! Dresses and shorts had some serious butt hanging out and all the girls wear high heels. I felt pretty over dressed in jeans and dock shoes.

On Sunday I went into the city again for a meeting at the lululemon Perth City (hopefully my newest place of employment shortly!). When I got home I got to see the lovely little Paul's first haircut!

Here is Sue cutting Paul's hair and Luke, Paul's oldest brother collecting the trimmings.

What a handsome fella!

Luke getting into the Christmas spirit

Sunday also marked the putting up of the Christmas decorations. Far too early by my standards, but hey, I guess it's just around the corner? My family tradition is to get our real Christmas tree ALAP (as late as possible) because we're all grown up and busy. My mom always picks the best one and we decorate it together as we drink wine and listen to good music.

In other exciting news, I HAVE A BIKE!!!!!! You bet. I got myself a fantastic road bike off of the Triathlon Western Australia classifieds for very cheap. I will be bringing it back to Canada to also enjoy the Canadian summer with it. Went on a nice ride today and averaged about 30km/h which felt sooooooo good. I will be riding it everyday, promise. Photos soon!

Speaking of triathlons, I've been looking into different swimming clubs and tri clubs here in Perth and it's looking like I'll join the Fremantle Triathlon Club. I'm also really interested in open water swims, so hopefully I'll be doing some serious distance swimming too. Ever heard of the Rottnest Channel Swim? It's my dream event...19.7km of endurance swimming! Apparently it's incredibly difficult to get a spot in because people come from all over the world to do it. Plus, you need a support boat and surf ski, which I don't have. Sigh...maybe another year?

I've got the afternoon off on Tuesday and I believe I will be biking down to Fremantle to check out the beach! Weather permitting of course...

With love,
Megan

What the heck is the Melbourne Cup?

"The race that stops the nation"

"Megan, I'll tell you right now that nobody is working anywhere in Australia. Everyone is watching this race."

Paul and I at the Melbourne Cup party! Dresscode is fancy/summer dress and a fancy hat. This is all I brought and Paul loves my hat!

So ladies and gentlemen,

May I present to you - The Melbourne Cup winner! He wasn't the jockey/horse that I pulled out of the hat, but Sue, my host mum was the lucky winner at our party! I guess I'm getting ahead of myself...

So what is this thing?
When I was at the Brisbane airport someone mentioned it to me and I thought they were talking about a sailing race...haha!
Every year, in Melbourne, there's a huge (end of the season?) horse race. It's the fashion event of the year for Australia and all the women wear their best dress and hat. Think...Oscars red carpet, but throw in sunshine, horses, bets, and wicked hats...plus some monarchy here and there. Tradition states that people throw parties, get dressed up, place bets, drink champagne, eat and be merry. Oh, didn't I mention the race was at noon on a Tuesday. Yeah...what?!

Everyone places $1 (AUD) into the pool and then randomly draws a horse from a hat. The person who has the winning horse "sweeps" and gets all the cash. So, we enjoyed champagne (a few glasses), food and then sat down to scream at the screen as those horses races their butts off to the finish. Of course, the two horses I picked, named "Older Than Time" and "Unusual Suspect" were not the best in the pack.
After all the excitement was over we enjoyed a lovely lunch outside (our "Bring a plate") and more champagne. For dessert I enjoyed my first ever pavlova...delicious. I will be making this from now on.

Tongue out like a true gentleman. He loves my hat so much that every time he comes into my room he puts it on and marches around the house! 

After all the excitement (and clean up), I went to the shopping centre close by to try and work out a mobile phone. Of course I got there and realized I forgot my Canadian cell...DUNDERHEAD. I bought a $2 SIM card off Vodaphone, but lovely Rogers has locked my cell phone to their service. I will therefore treat myself to a new phone and one that has the ability for WhatsApp an app that my sisters and dad use to text for free. I went to KMart and bought some cheap chocolate to make myself feel better. Please note, however, that I've adopted a chocolate regimen. Now that I'm posting it on the world wide web, I have to follow it! I've got a bag of treat size Dairy Milk bars and I am allowed one per day per workout. Today I worked out twice so I had two! :) This is merely to help control my chocolate addiction or I would gobble up the whole bag.

Today was another SCORCHER. It's definitely summer here, at least thirty degrees. This morning I lazed around in bed and didn't get up and going until 6:30am so when I finally got on my run I didn't finish until 7:30am and it was far too hot. Not that I'm complaining my fellow winterized Canadians! I went to the gym this evening with my one and only friend so far (there are really only families in this neighbourhood), Sarina from Germany. She is the au pair that had my position before I got here and she's fantastic. I'm soon going to be part of the Perth Au Pair group and all the au pairs are meeting in the city this Saturday night! Maybe I'll have more than one friend my age...

But I will always have a friend in Paul!

Goodnight, it's way past my bedtime!! More soon, I promise. BEACH THIS WEEKEND!

With love,
Megan