Prep.
Well, it’s official. Ty is a preppy at St Stephens College. He woke up ready and rearing to go! He put on his uniform and strutted around like one cool kid. We dropped off Lily first so his old teachers and some friends from Bonny Babes got to see him in his big kid school uniform. He was eating it up. It took forever to fight through the first daily of school traffic, but we made it! Two of Ty’s mates from daycare are at his table and the one next to him – wondering how long it will be before we get a call from the Headmaster about those troublemakers… :).

Dad.
I try not to get too emotional when I think about my dad (he died when I was 8), but by some show of fate, my Facebook has been blowing up with memories of dad. He was a bit of a rock star (booking agent) back in the day and some people are reminiscing about the good old days. I can’t help but think this is his way of letting me know he is watching over us – in particular his grandson on his first day of big kid school.

Celebrate!
I picked up Ty from school and was so happy to see that he had a great day! I thought we needed to celebrate so he and I had a little date. We went to Maccas and got McFlurries. One of his new mates, Xavier (pronounced Zavia in Ty’s Aussie accent) was there with his family. The kids started pouring in from a whole bunch of different schools. It was kind of fun to see all of the kiddos sporting their school uniforms. One of Ty’s classmates from Bonny Babes was there, as well. They all had fun playing on the PlayPlace together.

Uniforms.
So speaking of uniforms, I think I am a fan. When Ty puts on his uniform, it’s like I can visibly see his chest puffing out, his chin held higher – he is proud to be a student at St Stephens. He pays more attention to keeping it clean – usually remembers to use a napkin so that he doesn’t get his uniform dirty. He waits until he finishes his brekky and brushes his teeth (which he doesn’t argue about) before putting it on. As soon as he comes home from school he takes it off and places it nicely in the laundry room (instead of seeing how far he can flick it off with his foot). He has been saying “please” and “thank you” a lot more – to us and random people. He hasn’t been able to express to us what he has been learning at school (“mom, we don’t do letters and numbers at big kid school”) but they seem to be doing something right. I think he is having so much fun that he doesn’t even realize he is learning.

Letter.
Ty received a very special letter in the mail this week. One of his favorite friends from back home, Jana, drew a picture, “laminated” it, and used her excellent writing skills to jot down a little more to him. He was THRILLED! Thank you Jana!!!

Sports.
Saturday is sport day in our house. We started the day off with swim lessons. The term ended at Gullivers and we decided that Ty needed a change of scenery. One of the Ty’s friend’s mom told me about a lady in our neighborhood that does lessons at her house. She had taken her son there a few times and had seen heaps of progress. We wanted to try it out and if it went well, we are going to share a lesson with her son. After a little rough start (coach had overslept), things greatly improved. She worked on Ty’s kicking and arms, focusing on technique instead of just doing laps with bad form. Huge improvement! Jay had taken Lily out for a buggy ride during the lesson, but Saturday afternoon they went for a swim and he could see the difference. We won’t be able to go there in the winter as her pool isn’t heated, but it will at least get him back on track.

After swimming, we headed off to rugby lessons. I think that playing sports with the big kids at vacation care has made him a bit more athletic. He was doing really well. Such a proud mama. He got his uniform this week. We gave him the option of number 10 or 11 like mama, or 52 like dad. No surprise which number he chose.

Bikes!
I have been keeping my eyes out for a bike for me and a trailer for Lily for a while now. Jay found an awesome deal on Gumtree – a women’s bike, men’s bike, and dual kiddo trailer for $150!!! Jay already had a bike, but we figure Auntie Em can use the new men’s bike. He had to stop and pick up a bike rack (also a bargain on gumtree) on his way to pick up the bikes. He came home with sand on his feet…turns out he made a pit stop at the beach. :). When he got home we ran to the sporting goods store and got bike helmets for Lily and I. She loves it. So much, so, that she wouldn’t take it off. Even when we went to the boat store next door, she insisted on leaving it on. Such a goofball. I loved going on a bike ride! Haven’t done that for years. I might not be able to sit for a week though..,

Date!
Jay and I were overdue for a date night so we decided to go out Saturday night. It was a beautiful night (after the rain cleared), perfect for dinner and a walk in the beach. We tried a Hibachi Japanese steakhouse called Zushi. Yum!

After dinner we walked off some of our calories by doing a little random shopping. I saw this and had to buy it…

We sat down at an Irish pub that had a guy singing and playing guitar and had a drink. There were bills from all over the world stuck against the bar. I said “too bad we don’t have any USD” and Jay opens his wallet and pulls out a $2 bill that he has been carrying around for 6 or 7 years. I grabbed a Sharpie, wrote Shearer across it in big black letters and they stuck it front and center behind the bar. Look for it next time you are on the Gold Coast. 🙂

Brooke!!
Brooke and Tansie have had a long day. They flew from Des Moines to Dallas (small plane, rough flight, no Bueno), then Dallas to LA, then an hour and a half delay, then FINALLY they took off at 1:45 AM in LA. Since they had a delay, they did some shopping. Brooke picked up a new purse for me. :). I don’t think they will make their connecting flight in Sydney in the morning, so this should be interesting. Not sure how I am going to track her down as she can’t use her phone when she lands in Australia. I am hoping she can either find free wifi or someone is nice enough to let her borrow their phone. It will all work out. :). So excited for them to get here!!!!

Looking forward to the week ahead. Month end for Jay, new employee for me, sight seeing for Brooke and Tansie, and packing for a fun next weekend. G’day mates!!