Saying Goodbye Again

So here we are, on our last morning in the UK. It's been lovely, but I'm relieved to find that I'm feeling ready to go back home....Andrew left a week ago, going to meetings in Paris and Hong Kong on the way back, and we follow at 10pm tonight accompanied by Bethany, our niece.

I was worried about coming back on 2 counts - I was afraid that I would feel like an outsider in a place where we belonged for so long, and I was also afraid that I would not want to return to our home in Sydney. In the event, neither of these things have happened. We slipped straight back into life here as if we had never left, and I feel blessed to have two places on opposite sides of the world which I can call home. At the same time, I feel like it's time to go - to get back into the routine of life, and to sleep in my own bed.

The children, in particular, have had a wonderful time. It has been a month of sleepovers, special occasions and lovely memories. For Anna, this has unsettled her a little - we've had some tears and some heartrending requests to stay back in Milford on Sea forever. I'm pretty certain that once we get back, she will be fine, but my heart breaks for her. It's a difficult thing we have done. George, on the other hand, has had a great time, but is more stoic. He says he is starting to miss his Australian friends, and wants to get back to normal.

I don't know when we will be back all together. It's an expensive trip and not one we will be repeating on a regular basis. Andrew's parents will be with us for Christmas, and my parents will be back out for a visit in February. I may come back for a couple of weeks next year, and may bring one of the children, but nothing is concrete as yet. We didn't get to see everyone we planned to while we were here, so if we missed you, please accept my apologies. You will see from the photos when I start putting them up that we have been absolutely manic. Having spent time with my parents and siblings, and Andrew's parents and sister, I've tried to make the priority facilitating the children's wishes to spend time with their friends. I think they needed that.

When we get home, I'll start putting pictures on, but until then, au revoir!

The sun has got his hat on....

So...

In Australia we are very conscientious about sun sense. We are covered from top to bottom in factor 30, wearing hats and seeking out shade.

This does not explain, in any way, why we would have sat out in the back garden of Andrew's parents house in the New Forest on Sunday and allowed ourselves to get burnt to buggery. Attractively, I have a perfect imprint of the necklace I was wearing on my decolletage, and am therefore going to have to wear said necklace for the remainder of our holiday.

However, you will gather from this that currently, the English summer is defying all our worst fears and providing us with beautiful sunshine. It's a strange thing to be back in the place of your birth and seeing it through the eyes of a visitor. I actually think everyone should have this experience in order to really appreciate where they live. There are so many things you forget about a place when you live there all the time. England really is very, very green. It is absurdly lush in its greenery. And the flowers - the gardens really are a riot of colour. I don't want to start sounding like a romantic poet, but I have to go on to say that the heady scent of those flowers is almost more than can be borne. What a beautiful country this is. Course, next week it will be winter and we will be congratulating ourselves on our foresight in emigrating.

However, there are a number of other things I had forgotten....like the number of cars. And the worrying number of old people. And the wasps (which unlike Ozzie wasps do give a nasty sting).

We can at least, get a good curry, and spend time with really good friends. It is so wonderful to walk through the village and bump into so many people we know. Everything is reassuringly unchanged so far, and the children are thrilled to be able to spend some time with their friends. I am thrilled to have been able to spend some time with Nugs, who I have missed immensely.

Somehow, it is as if we had never been away...