monday

Could there be a better start to the week...

(point and shoot camera so not great quality photos)

Getting suited up

instruction time

ready, set...

go

she's up, way to go Rach.! I do believe "utterly terrifying' might have been screamed out

Johanna waiting for her turn

time to swap

another one ready to go

number two is off, big sister is leading the way

Johanna up and paddling

sisterly love

Today is the kind of day we dreamed about when we decided to move to Barwon Heads - family and fun by the sea.

one and two

One week in Tassie and two in Barwon Heads, that is the next couple of months for Johanna and I. We have just returned from our week in Tassie (Monday to Friday) where Johanna needs to attend school and where I get to catch up with my family. It feels strange to be there and not in our apartment at Seaport (we stay with my mother). It also feels strange to be here in Barwon Heads. Neither feels like home at the moment and our coming and going will probably mean it will be a while before anywhere feels like home. It is surprising how much rhythms and routines give structure to a day or a life. After three days at home it feels like Colin should be leaving. Johanna now works all weekend and is around during the week days. Our work, non work schedules have all changed. The pattern of our lives has been turned on its head and sometimes I find myself a bit confused and lost - where am I this week, what day is it, what needs to be done.

Despite the unsettling nature of change and the fact that it is winter and cold we are thoroughly enjoying life on the coast again. There is something about living by the sea. And Barwon Heads has that small village feel and we are getting to know our neighbours and exploring the nooks and crannies of this place. And Melbourne is an hour and a half away, close enough for the kids to come down and for us to go up.
And there is the promise of warmer and slower days to come....

Colin heading into the Barwon River to christen his SUP

changes

There are a lot of things changing at the moment, not just where we live, though that is a big one. We have changed States and houses, consolidating two places into one. We have become a household of three most of the time instead of less than half the time. Johanna and I will be travelling (every third week Monday to Friday in Tassie so Johanna can attend school) and Colin will be staying at home. He will live and work in the same State and his commute will be by car or train not plane and will be most days rather than Monday and Thursday. Johanna will complete a lot of her schooling independently with support from her teachers and plans to work as much as possible as she saves for her gap year next year. I will no longer have the same caring role for my father. The rhythm of our lives these past few years has come to an abrupt end and we are tentatively finding our way with all these changes. For each of us 'life' has taken a major turn and we are navigating the unknown. It is exciting, exhausting and occasionally overwhelming...

barwon heads

One week in and amidst all the unpacking, cleaning and organising (and numerous visits to Bunnings and Kmart) have been walks along the beach and local paths, 

and a foggy Sunday morning walk (Colin's photos from his iPhone),

and we have checked out the local shops and cafes and it looks like Johanna may already have scored herself a job!

running on empty

Well, we now officially reside in only one place, Colin lives and works in the same state and all the family is in the Melbourne/Barwon Heads area. A massive few weeks after a full on year complete with a couple of major crises, some unexpected drama and a myriad of 'stuff' that is 'normal life'. To say we are running on empty would be an understatement. But we are here and mostly unpacked and in another week or so will collect the (heavily laden) cars from Tassie and then the end will be in sight.

An iPhone panorama from Johanna, the view at the end of her walk today.

Hoping the beauty of this place soothes our souls...

interlude

This year is number 8, our annual mid winter break in Byron Bay. Familiar places and familiar faces. So far; blue skies, sunshine, rolling surf, dolphins, whales.... Our 9 days here are sandwiched between packing, cleaning, moving, organising and all the other stuff that goes with relocating, times two. It is impossible to switch off completely but we are thankful for moments that distract and that focus our attention on the here and now and something other than all that has occurred in the last few months and all that is yet to come...

morning coffee

overload

It has been a while since I have felt as stressed as the last few weeks (well months really). A culmination of a lot going on and things going wrong and the feeling that sometimes it is all a bit too much. Experience tells me that life is like this sometimes and that it will pass. We have reminded ourselves that we have family and friends to help, that we have resources and choices, that we are so very fortunate, even when it all feels overwhelming. And most importantly we have each other. I think of these things as I lie awake at night or when I feel too nauseous to eat, not to dismiss or minimise my feelings or current experience but to provide a perspective within which to place them. We are 'riding out a storm' on the back of a season of storms and looking forward to arriving in a safe haven for bit...