US2012 - Preparing to Go

We have discovered that, while it is a great idea to have people stay at your home while you're away, it adds additional stress to preparation. It just adds another element to the project: keeping the home fires burning.
And burglars please note: We are not leaving our house empty, and our dog is on alert!
The family who is staying in our home will come into a house that hasn't been so clean and tidy since, well, grandma was here to visit. Beds have been freshly made and instructions have been written about the dog's routine, the rubbish collection, the dishwasher, the TV, the internet, emergency contacts.
And we are not out the door yet. T - 1d.
Then there's the plan for collection at our destination, not so simple when there are kids and car seats and lots of luggage involved. Again thanks to Grandma and our friends.
Next stop: Twin Cities.

UPDATE Friday June 30 22.35 US Central: Arrived safely yesterday, and settled in to our Maple Plain base. Girls already made cookies this morning with Grandma.
Life is good. Day 1 in Minneapolis got up to a very comfortable 91 degrees.

Being Connected - Our Next US Adventure 2012

I write this from a chilly grey Sydney as we prepare and pack for our next US visit.

Being a family of dual citizens, we feel it's important to maintain the connectedness with our US family and friends by making the trek across the Pacific as regularly as possible.

While it is an expensive undertaking (two adults and two children traveling to and around the US at peak time), thanks to structural changes and competitive forces, international travel has become comparably far less expensive than it was, say a decade or two ago.

What awaits us in the US?
Grandma, uncles, aunts, cousins, friends... warm weather, "american" food, hugs, stories... connectedness.
It's perhaps the greatest motivator of all. Belonging, being connected, loved and understanding where you've come from.
So as we gear up for 18 hours of flying time with a five-and-half-year-old and an almost three-year-old, we will focus our attention on the promised outcome. See above.

The steps we all take to be connected

Oh, and if you see a family that includes young kids on your next long-haul flight, please cut them a break, maybe even smile or offer them a hand. It might be us! And we're all just wanting to be connected, after-all.

I will try to post a blog or two while we are on our travels. In keeping with the theme of this blog, it's about living in a cross generational age.

The Great Adventure

Reading with interest Travels with Mel and Mic and jealously flicking thru their pics on FB... Tuscany, Syracuse, Sicily.
The great adventure, really. Priceless moments :-)

Wishing you all happy safe travels and lots of moments to build the story of the great adventure over many glasses of moderately great wine.

How easy is it to break a leg?

In my previous post, I reported that I broke my leg. Well, technically, ankle, the bottom of my left fibula.

The question always comes up: "How did you do that?" The answer: "Quite easy really."

Nothing heroic or adventurous... playing with our daughter at one of the local public play grounds.

Recently refurbished, this playground's centre-piece includes a dual slippery slide - just right for our thrill seeking toddler. However, it is set on a mound that is covered by a durable surface, intended to be safer to play on or near.

Toddler placed at the top of the slide; Dad decends the mound to assume the classic catching position at the bottom... slips, grips, falls forward, twist... CRACK... flat on face with shooting pain in ankle and up leg.

Toddler, waiting at the top of slide for me to crawl to the position, slides down; playtime unexpectedly cut short. I will keep the ensuing details and remind her when she is old enough to feel a little more sympathetic.

The thing is... it's THAT EASY. Analogies for life, experiences, ups and downs, good breaks and bad flow here. For now, when you are next playing with your play mate, keep in mind that you may be just a short slip away from a trip (apologies!) to the orthopaedic department.

[With many thanks to the wonderful and caring staff at Sydney's Royal North Shore Hospital]