Christmas Holidays

Another long overdue post. 

Here is George, taken late last year. He is proudly displaying his sticker chart and wearing the prize that he was allowed to choose.

This is from the day that George turned 5 and a half. We had a small celebration and some cake. It is hard to watch your brother turn 10 and get all those presents.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Max had some things to get off his chest so he wrote a list of all the things about George that annoyed him. In hieroglyphics.

Max and Ruby posing for the camera.

They're getting older now, and it's natural that the boys would start to be interested in chicks.

Mmmmm delicious dirt!

Running back to the car in the hail.

 Max is the resident reptile handler. When this creature appeared in the back yard I just tied up the dog and waited for Max to get home from school and catch it.

The boys found this beautiful frog in the back yard trying to hibernate in our old paddle-pool.

Max and Ruby as two dragons!

Some lucky people got a Christmas card with a picture of Santa and his elf on it. The sad thing is how terribly mistreated Santa is by one of his own elves.

 Santa took the time to write George a letter this year.

Here is a video including Max and George as "football fans" on the right - from the school's Christmas breakup.

On the same night, here's George doing the heel and toe polka.

We had a mini pre-Christmas get together with the local cousins.

Santa Claus had left some presents in our car, as we got up early on Christmas Day to drive 4.5 hours to nanny and gramps' house. Other presents Santa had left in our house and still more were at Nanny and Gramps's.

All the kids at Nanny and Gramps's

 Ruby and cousin Arlo.

 Here they are swimming with Uncle Mike and cousin Saskia.

 Back at home, we spent a 42C day at the beach.

Other hot days we got out the slip and slide in the backyard.

 Of course there are frequent Skype conversations with Dad, Max took this photo.

Playing with presents from Dad.

At Roseneath beach.