Animal Encounters

I was thinking yesterday that I should share some of my animal encounters is Australia. I was taking groceries out of the car last night in the dark and remembered the time a gecko had gotten into the car and was running around our feet. Poor gecko, but it freaked me out. I couldn't put my feet down until I knew it was gone. I remember stopping with the family somewhere to try to find it and shoo it out. We couldn't find it and finally had to just drive around with it in the car for a few days before it found its way out.

The next one I remember is a cockroach. There are many cockroaches here. I often wake up in the middle of the night and open a drawer in the kitchen only to find a disgusting little creature staring back at me. They used to really scare me, but now I just get out a shoe (my weapon). It seems to help if we keep things really clean and remember to take the trash out at night. One of my first encounters with these pests, it actually flew into my hair. I had never and never since have seen one fly, but I assure you they do fly and one got stuck in my hair. Frightening experience.

The next was a magpie. Magpies can be frightening during the spring when they are nesting. They swoop on unsuspecting victims seemingly for no cause at all. Ethan got swooped by the same bird every time he passed its tree riding to Aviation High on his bike. The bird would eye him as he approached and they would have a bit if a showdown. Ethan would ride as quickly as he could past. Once he had passed, the bird would swoop down on him, hitting his helmet violently. He gave up riding shortly after that. I got swooped once walking home with the boys from the car service centre. I had on a hat so it didn't get a chunk from my head, but still frightening.

One of my favorite animals are the kookaburras. I love hearing their laugh. Sometimes they get going in the morning. It's such a pleasant sound to wake up to. Much better than the crows, who we hear frequently too, outside the window. I've been known to throw things at them when they get up with the sun around 4 am in the summer.

The bush turkeys are funny. When we first got here there were two that lived in our backyard. I named them Verne and Shirley. They messed up all the wiring for the lights on the pool by building their nests. They push all the scrub up into big piles to nest. They had a bunch of baby turkeys that were fun to watch. At one point, we had left the door open and then left the house for the day, closing the door and locking it. Apparently, one of the turkeys had come in when the door was open and had enjoyed a day in our house. We found him in Ashlee's closet. Ethan and I cornered him and put a basket over him and took him outside with his brothers. We haven't seen the turkeys in a while.

After the turkeys disappeared, we started seeing tails disappearing underneath the house. At first, I thought we had a huge snake, but one time when I was out in the garden, I spied two huge lizards. They were actually blue-tongued skinks. They didn't bother us too much so we decided they could be our new pets. They disappeared once it got cold. I wonder if they'll be back this summer?

We also have several bats. They are fruit bats with maybe 3 ft wing spans. They hang in the palm trees and talk all night. They sound something like children chattering. It's not an annoying sound at all. They are sort of funny, although they make a huge mess and their droppings are extremely sticky.

Possums are creatures of the night. I'm pretty sure they are the ones that always got to my vegetable garden and took anything that might have grown. Sometimes, they'll run on top of the roof and they are quite noisy. It sounds like a large dog.

We also found a python once in our tree. The kids were playing in the front yard when I heard Ashlee say. "Hey guys, look at the snake." She was pretty unconcerned, but I rushed out knowing what kinds of snakes might be lurking. It was a green python and we looked up all sorts of information about them. It was just a baby and they are relatively safe at that size.

Robert once found a Huntsman spider in a suitcase as he was opening it to prepare for a trip. The bag had been under the house and he had brought it upstairs to pack. He was so startled, he fell over. It was pretty funny actually.

I was doing some laps in our pool last summer, when the crows started making an awful ruckus. I looked up on our pool fence and there were two tawny frog-mouthed owls. They were the ugliest creatures I had ever seen and I was quite frightened until the crows started picking on them. They didn't really fight back and I suddenly felt very sorry for them. Those poor birds were so ugly, nobody wanted them around. What a way to live.

Robert's uncle Roy lives in Wacol, out by Ipswich, a little way out of town. He is opposite a large forest. Last year, when we were over visiting, we saw a huge kangaroo just opposite his house. He just stood and stared at us.

Another bird I really like are the rainbow lorikeets. They are beautiful and they are very chatty. They like to hang out in the big trees next to Chermside shopping Centro. Especially at twilight, they all are chatting in the trees. I always imagine the conversations they are having and make up words for them. They are really funny.

The most recent animal encounter was with a duck. I was sitting in the front room with a couple of friends and could hear noises coming from the fireplace. When I looked in, there was a sooty duck staring back at me. My brave friend tried to pull him out to no avail. I gave him a little water and called the Animal Rescue Unit. They finally showed up several hours later and rescued the poor thing.

The Whitsunday Adventure

One night, nearly a year ago, Robert whispered "For my 40th birthday, I think it would be really great to sail the Whitsundays". Thus began the adventure that ended not a bit as we thought it would. What could be more romantic then spending a whole week alone with your best friend and husband. We prepared well by taking a class, organizing a sail guide for a day, reading 3 different books, practicing tying knots and avoiding any movies or books involving death or storms at sea. I bought the cute new swim togs, sunglasses, organized the food and had everything perfect.

The night we were leaving was deceptively calm. We knew the forecast called for a little wind, but you can't sail without wind, right? We also saw that a few showers were forecast as well. No big deal, you sail to another side of the island and it will be clear, right?

The next morning was a little brisk, but we boldly sailed forth with our sail guide, Kate, and our skipper, Robert, at the helm. We hoisted the main sail, learned to tie reefs in the line and felt comfortable with the wind and the waves. We dropped Kate at Daydream Island and headed for Nara Inlet. 

You can't imagine what it is like to be so involved in the lives of 6 children and a husband, and suddenly to not have that responsibility. Robert's sister had flown over from the states to stay with the monkeys. The isolation was wonderful. Robert would tell you that the food was one of the best parts of the vacation. I had planned some great meals and as I'm used to cooking for 8, we had a great deal of food. 

After the visit to the Aboriginal Caves at Nara Inlet by the Ngaro people, we tried to tie off at another, rockier shore. We had bought beautiful reef shoes to explore the shores, which we forgot on the boat. I learned first-hand why people wear reef shoes on the rocks and spent the remainder of the trip with the bottom's of my feet in band-aids. 

It started to rain shortly after that and rained that night although our night was relatively calm in this inlet. The next morning dawned overcast and we made our way out of the inlet and up the western coast of Hook Island. We hoisted sail around the point and had a good time riding the wind on a beam reach. Just a little rocky as the wind had picked up some. We went a little farther out to sea to pull in the sails as we planned to moor and do a little snorkeling. The ropes wrapped a little around the headsail, but we felt we had everything tied up, so headed into shore. Suddenly a large gust of wind ripped the headsail out with ropes flinging everywhere. The ropes got more tangled and neither of us knew what to do. The wind was blowing at 25 knots and we were having all sorts of trouble keeping the boat headed into the wind. I haven't prayed so hard in a very long time. I am certain the Lord answered my prayers when the sails suddenly caught wind in the right direction and untangled the ropes from the sail. We were able to pull the headsail in and that was the end of our sailing.

We made it to shore and did some snorkeling. It was very cold! Luckily we had wetsuits on. The coral was every brilliant blue, orange, green, yellow, pink you could imagine. The fish were amazing colors and designs. My favorite was the Emperor, a large, bright, red fish with white mouth. After motoring back to Stonehaven, we spent a very rocky night on board Fizzle-gig. But, the food was good! The next morning we attempted to go back to Nara Inlet where we might at least get a better night sleep. Robert, as skipper, bravely took us out in 30 knot winds around the point. The waves were pounding our ship with force and we came crashing over 3-4 meter waves. We finally made the decision to head back to our moor at Stonehaven and radio for a rescue. We spent that day moored at Stonehaven and explored the shore. There were definitely breaks in the clouds and when we could get out of the wind, the sun was quite pleasant. We found a sanctuary for beautiful butterflies and saw prints from a wallaby.

After another rocky night, I was determined to get home, so took the helm and held on tight through the point where the waves were most rocky. I didn't want to let Robert take the wheel as I knew he would most likely turn back and I wanted to get back. All I could do was to sing. I sang every hymn I could think of. Finally, I got us around the point and to a place I felt Robert wouldn't turn back and let him at it. I sat at the top of the stairs and just tried to keep from getting sick. The wind picked up more than 30 knots and the swells were up to 4 meters high. We would get rocked nearly on one side only to be picked up on the other, then come crashing down on top of the waves. We were now going wind over tide which means we were against the wind and the tide was going against the wind. This made for a very rocky ride. At one point, one of the cupboard latches came loose and all the plates and dishes came crashing down and shattered on the floor. As I tried to salvage the dishes that hadn't completely been destroyed, I had to come above board where I efficaciously lost my breakfast.

We made it back to the marina in one piece. The best part of the adventure was that evening after we had gone on a walk and had dinner. We talked about the kinds of things going through our minds as we were fearing for our lives. We laughed for a good half hour and continued to giggle all evening long.

We came home to a house full of sick kids, grey skies and the coldest June Brisbane has seen since 1973. As Kyle (9-year-old) put it to Ingrid when she got back from taking us to the airport to find milk and cereal all over the floor "And you thought you were coming on vacation..."

Sometimes life doesn't go exactly as planned, but in the end all you can do is laugh! I'm glad I have my best friend to laugh with.

Coming soon....All the incredible anecdotes and analogies Robert and I thought up as a result of this adventure. It should keep us with plenty of material for talks and lessons for a very long time.

Oh, and maybe you're asking, boy...will they ever sail again? The morning of our departure we woke up to clear skies and waters and were both thinking, "Maybe we ought to take her out."

Rambutan

I had a Rambutan the other day. It tastes a little like a Lichee sweet and a little slimy. Maybe compares to a grape? Very tasty once you get the outer shell off.

August 2011

I know it's been a while. Since I haven't posted since July, I thought it would be a good idea to update by months. Feel free to read at your leisure... Life has been hectic in our house and I barely have time to sit still. August was mid-winter for us. The house gets awfully cold with no insulation, but with space heaters we made do. I would often find the kids in the morning sitting on the floor eating breakfast while the heater would blow on them. The sun wouldn't come up til almost 7, so we all slept in, keeping warm in our beds!

Ammon and Kyle got fishing poles for their birthdays. I think they've used them once since then. It was a great idea. I hope we get to use them more soon!

Most weekends from March to August were spent at the Rugby Union. We had a good time figuring out the sport. Ammon was particularly keen on bashing fellow players.

Ammon's birthday party. We had a safari theme. I have never had such a time trying to get 6-year-olds to sit still and play a game. I was pretty exhausted after that. 

Aaron's favorite chore. He loves helping me with the dishes.

Sheep shearing at the Ekka. The Ekka is basically the state fair. It was sooo crowded, but was really fun. I especially loved the animals. The kids were more excited about the rides and the showbags. The showbags are bags put together by different commercial companies to sell their stuff. It's incredible how much money you can spend on junk. I got sucked into buying one for each of the kids. Pink Panther for Ashlee, the mega candy thing for Ethan, Kyle got a Batman one, Ammon a Bakugan, Aaron got Barney and Wyatt...hmmmm...maybe Wyatt didn't get one :( Ammon got called out of the audience at the sheep shearing to help with a game. He loves the stage!

 Love the Smurfs...

 The equestrian events were really cool. We watched while we waited for the fireworks to start.

 Kyle's 9th birthday party. I love trying new cake designs.

 Ammon plays soccer too! He's pretty athletic. Here's a funny story. At the athletics carnival this year, he was running a race and lost his shoe. He was a little confused as to what to do. He started to run back for it, then decided to just finish the race with one shoe. Wish I would have gotten it on tape. I thought I did, but somehow it got deleted :(

 Ahhhh.....my cute kids :)

Ashlee also auditioned for the cast of Mary Poppins. That was a great learning experience. She made it to the 4th call backs before being eliminated. I was awfully relieved I must say. She was disappointed, but we agreed there would be more opportunities later.

That's all of August that I can think of. I'll try to update for September tomorrow night. Lots of traveling that month and some family visits.

4am

What a lame updater I am. My life should be hugely exciting enough to post at least every other day. Unfortunately, since I am trying to simplify my life, the blog has gotten pushed down on the priority list. However, I will try to update as I can.

Kyle was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on August 29th. Here's a picture:




We went to Moreton Island for Spring Break (mid-September). Here's some pictures from that:



We took Family Photos at Moreton Island:



I cut Aaron's hair. Here are the before and after pictures.




In other news...
Aaron has taken to playing with cars lately. He's learned to buzz his lips to make them go. I also gave him a haircut. I'll see if I can post a picture before I'm done with this post. He's also started "talking" a lot more. We don't always understand what he's saying, but here are some of the words we've figured out.

bah, bah = ball (this was definitely his first word. He gets pretty excited about balls)
duh, duh = drink
ma (short a), ma = food
uh oh = uh oh
babble, babble, goo, haha,we, boo, ga, oh = "I love you" or "come play with me" or "I've discovered how to use quantum physics to overcome the laws of nature and transport myself to another dimension. I really wish I could communicate this to you. I hope I remember it when I'm a little more advanced in your strange way of communicating."

We've also learned quite a bit of "Strailn". See if you can guess the meanings of these words. Some of them may not be exactly what you think they do.

Brolli
Brekki
Bunny wrap
Theatre
Theatre costume
Bonnet
Mozzi
Brizzi
Togs
Pink fit
Red bag

These are just a few I can think of off the top of my head. Give them a go (another phrase often heard here), and I'll post again soon to give you the answers.

I was at the butcher a little while ago. I wanted some ground sausage. It took me forever to explain it to them (you'd think they didn't speak English here.) Finally, figured out it's called minced sausage here.

Well, this post is getting too long, but there you have the update on the Brouwers. I guess I'll update you on my baby. I went to a doctor's appointment on Friday. Of course, there's not usually anything new to learn. I generally go in, he listens to the heartbeat, asks if I have any questions, which I usually don't, charges me $80 and off I go. It takes about 7 minutes total. Anyway, it looks like everything is good. The baby is already in place, but I've known this for the last couple of weeks. It's a little uncomfortable if you know what I mean. If you don't, don't ask. I have 7 more weeks. Robert is really hoping I go late, so the baby can be born on his birthday on December 11th. Since the baby is due on November 25th, just imagine my icy stare at him. He also hopes I go late because he's taking a trip to Malaysia 2 weeks before the due date.

Sorry for the long post. I love you all.