Eisteddfod

G'day,

Did you know?

Taree has the biggest regional ( outside the major cities ) Eisteddfod in Australia. It lasts 6 weeks and moves through music, singing, dance to Speech and Drama as all good Eisteddfods do. Jen gets involved through her Group Dance and performed Classical Ballet, Jazz, Modern and something else where they were fairies. Bron took this picture in the warm up tent before her Classical Ballet yesterday ( Jen, Ella, Amber and Ciahn ). They apparently danced beautifully and were up amongst the best. I'm not sure what the parents are up to in the background...................interfering, no doubt.

I couldn't resist. The word Eisteddfod originates from Wales where it is thought that the first such festival occurred in the 12th century. The word actually means " lots of parents rushing around after their children and disagreeing with judges' decisions ".

Not much else has happened this week. We have had our fair share of positives and two serious negatives............our ride-on mower won't start and we lost our first match of the hockey season to Chatham Maroun.

Short and sweet today as I have had a hectic call - typical when this was the one weekend when I wanted to be at home with Bron and the kids before heading off to Vienna on Tuesday.

Seeya.

Dylan, Bronwyn, Matt and Jen

Mother's Day 10 May 2009

Greetings from Taree !

Only in Taree - and truly, I do not mean to be cynical.................but, on Mother's Day weekend ( of all weekends ), Taree's latest attraction and biggest building opened - Bunnings Warehouse. Bunnings is a nationwide hardware store chain with everything from plants to spider spray, timber to tools.............the kind of place I walk into and pretend I know what I'm looking for and suggest that I know how it works. We didn't attend the festivities which included Jumping Castles, discount prices and a Fireworks display but will have a family outing to check it out soon - everyone else has! As far as geography is concerned Bunnings is on the western outskirts of town. The Golf Course is just beyond the trees in the picture and yes, the golfers soon got drenched by the afternoon storm.

The weeks seem to be getting busier and the nights are longer. We are still in Autumn rather than Winter but everyone here expects a cold one. I had a worthwhile " academic day " at John Hunter Children's Hospital in Newcastle on Tuesday and then facilitated an ADHD meeting between Paediatricians and Child Psychiatrists there on Tuesday night - just a small group and nothing fancy but nice to get a bit more involved than just being a passive recipient.

I stayed up to watch the Sharks last night and like a lot of you, wished I hadn't. A friend who moved from Pietermaritzburg to Taree with his wife and 3 kids about 9 months ago came round to join me so we commiserated together. Still it was good to see some of you on TV and the Moses Mabhida Stadium is looking spectacular.

As I say goodbye, I am left wondering why Bron seems to be so unhappy with the toolset and bag of cement we bought her for Mother's Day...............

With love

Dyl, Bron, Matt and Jen

Collage 3 May 2009

G'day !

Matthew learnt ( and has taught me ) how to do collages and made this one. I thought it might be a good opportunity for you to hear from someone else for a change, so here he is................

Hello all,
This week has been awesome. Jen and I have been doing very well at school, mum has been cleaning and coaching my hockey team the u13 Tigers, Dad has been at work and doing all the normal things, Tessa and Holly are still smelling, sniffing, and sleeping.

Here is the sports news.

Me :- I played against Sharks ( which always beat us 7 or 8 nil, its was getting really annoying ) and the score was 2-1 to them. It was because of our excellent goalkeeper Aaron Billingsley ( Stumpy ). Also probably 'cause of our awesome coach.
Jen :- Jennifer's team the Taree Panthers lost 1 nil. She had a great game. Jennifer mostly played forward so didn't get the ball that much. Her rivals were Wingham.
Dad :- His game was deferred. He was almost in tears ( kidding ).
I got a new stick, Gryphon Taboo for my REP hockey in the Central Coast at the end of June and State Championships at Illarwara in the beginning of July.

Through the week Jen and I have been begging for a fire which we are doing tonight. We have also been looking through the telescope looking at Saturn and the Moon.

Anyway, I hope that gives you a taste of my life in Taree.

Matthew

Well, that's me off the hook! I must add that after my mail about Aussie Pride last week, the Monday papers were full of scoldings for how ANZAC day is not respected enough and is just used as an excuse for a party..................never claimed to be living in Utopia.

With lots of love,

Dyl, Bron and Jen