Well, Christmas 2009 came and went with a bang in Sandy Point. We had the tree, we had the weird singing snowman and reindeer toys, we were joined by our great friends Laura and Miles, Laura made the stuffing, bread sauce and peeled all the veg, I made the cranberry relish and a pavlova. With great moral support from Laura, I bbq'd the 5 kilo turkey. We went for a splash in the sea on Christmas morning, opened our presents before lunch, had a delicious bottle of Pol Roger 1998 Champagne with the Luckin family Christmas must-have - smoked salmon on brown bread (crusts cut off).
We sat out on the deck, shaded by the umbrella as it was 30 degrees and the sun shone whilst we toasted absent friends and family.
The best Christmas present of the day for Laura and Miles was the koala who sat in a tree in the garden all day.
Kim and Jac (who I'm delighted to announce has agreed to be one of my bridesmaids) arrived on 27th December, accompanied by Larry their border collie - he makes the saying "As happy as Larry" really make sense. We bbq'd one night and Laura cheffed up a delicious pasta dish the next night. We have surfed, kite surfed, been wakeboarding behind Kim and Jac's boat, and done some gardening, intermingled with sitting on the deck in the sunshine setting the world to rights over some cold beers.
Laura and Miles set off for Warnambool (near Victorian/South Australian border) to spend New Year's Eve with other friends. Laura's mission for the holiday was to stand up on my surfboard - mission accomplished and so she was able to leave for the next leg of their trip back to Adelaide!
Karl joined us on the afternoon of 31st December - another gloriously sunny day, but immensely hot. Emmy his Belgian Shepherd dog arrived, much to Larry's delight. I put a very large piece of lamb on to the spit roast in the bbq, did some baked potatoes and made a salad.
At about 10.45pm the heavens opened with thunder and lightening and mother nature put on a firework display of her own for us - so we de-camped the party into the car port!
We counted the new decade in with the radio caller live from Sydney and here we are on 2nd January 2010.
Here are a few snaps. Happy New Year to all of my fans who read this, I hope it gives you a sense of life in Melbourne. I am terribly excited to be joining the Bryce family as Paul's wife. Planning is underway - not exactly sure where to start! I only know that James and Charlie will be required to sing a duet somewhere in amongst the proceedings. Signing off now, until next time.......
