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Natasha takes loans seriously. She came all the way to Australia to pay back the $5 we loaned her on the last day in Mexico. Good thing the interest rate was favourable.

We did A LOT of fun things together. It was great.

We went for a swim and a photo session at Brighton Beach.

Baby’s first snot block. (And by “baby” I mean Natasha! Cripes people ;))

Melbourne has the best alleys. We did a lot of walking.

Top notch Melbs graffiti.

Our favourite work at the National Gallery of Victoria (which is free, by the way).

I tried a macaron from Maccas. It was a confusing experience.

We went to an AFL game at the MCG. The crowd was lively and Collingwood lost so it was a good night.

The view from Arthur’s Seat, on the Mornington Peninsula. You can see the tiny gap in the otherwise enclosed Port Phillip Bay, and the actual ocean in the very back.

Playing on the rocks at Cape Schanck.

At Yering Station in the Yarra Valley. That was a very cheese, chocolate, wine and cider filled day. Thank you Scott for driving us around.

All that was in the first week! The second week I kinda had to get back to my normal routines, and Natasha explored on her own. And then she found a ride to Adelaide and continued on her lap around Australia. I hope she comes back to visit again, or we are able to meet up with her somewhere!

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It’s been a while since I’ve done a life update. I guess because we’ve settled into a bit of a routine now.

WORK: Mine is going well. It’s been a bit challenging trying to learn everything when I’m only there a couple days a week, and with everyone sharing the work, but it’s coming together. Scott’s is… going. :/

HOUSE: We moved! We upgraded to a two bedroom apartment a bit more central to work and family. The apartment is small, but nice, and I love the neighbourhood.

EXERCISE: I joined a new gym near our new house and it’s GREAT. They have an epic gym area, swimming pool, and lots of classes, so I’ve been able to add yoga and swimming back into my exercise plan (in addition to weights). Scott started biking to work (10km each way!), and still plays basketball and the occasional extra game of soccer or more basketball.

CRAFTS: My latest project is creating cross stitch patterns that I am trying to sell on Etsy. It’s hard though!! I have to make the patterns, test stitch it, photograph it, list it, and then advertise it. I’ve got two patterns in my shop but I still have SO much more work to do.

I also taught Scott how to crochet, so we’ve been making granny squares to eventually turn into a blanket. The biggest challenge is getting our tension to match each other.

FRIENDS: I’ve still been going to trivia most weeks with my internet friends. They are great. I also get together with a sub-group of them to Stitch n Bitch every month, which is fun. We usually eat lunch, and then crochet/cross stitch.

We used to go to a different trivia night with some of Scott’s friends but the pub changed the night so that is off until we find a good replacement.

We had Jemma and Damien over for a games night the other weekend. We played Wasabi and Carcassonne. I think we are getting close to teaching them Agricola!!!

VISITORS: Cassia and Pablo came to visit Melbourne with two of their Spanish friends. We went to Chin Chin for dinner the first night (1.5 hour wait!!! but really tasty), and then did a mega tourist day the next day at Brighton Beach, Fitzroy, and the CBD. I hope Silvi tags me in her pictures because I didn’t take any. :/

Natasha has arrived in Australia as well. She’s in Sydney at the moment, but we expect to see her in the next couple weeks. I can’t wait! We’ve got the guest bedroom all set up ready to go. :D

SUMMER: One really hot day we drove out to Sorrento back beach to play in the tidepools. It was lovely but Scott severely sunburned his feet which was SO GROSS. It wasn’t that hot of a summer, but it is lingering a bit. It’s still been above 30°C most days, but thankfully it gets cool overnight, so it’s been okay.

SKELETON: My FOMO about not sliding this season hasn’t actually been that bad because 1. I still get timesheets from Whistler to analyze, 2. the World Cup races are on at very convenient times here so I’ve been able to watch most of them live. 3. Instagram stories make me feel like I’m right there, and 4. My old coach Rob has been keeping a daily vlog. So yeah, that’s cool. The final race of the season is next weekend, in Korea on the future Olympic track! Should be interesting.

OK I can’t think of anything else at the moment, so… hasta luego.

 

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I just realized that I never actually posted my 2016 video on here. I spammed it everywhere else, but not on the ol’ blog. So… here it is! What an epic year it was.

My favourite clips are Feb 29th, May 12th, and May 21st. :D

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I know a lot of people considered 2016 to be pretty crappy… but to be honest it was one of the best years of my life, for sure. I’ve picked 12 pictures here but that doesn’t even come close to including all the awesome things that we got to do. I feel very lucky and grateful, and will reflect on my year fondly.

The IBSF World Cup coming to Whistler and getting to meet my skeleton hero, Martins Dukurs.

Finally finishing my crochet blanket. That’s an ipad by the way… the blanket is enormous. I also did A LOT of crossstitch.

Not coming in last in my final skeleton race of my career. I actually ended up finishing 4th out of 8, behind three very talented national team girls.

Being my own personal island in a cenote in Mexico. Renting that big house with 11 great friends was SO. MUCH. FUN.

Experiencing Antelope Canyon, my top road trip bucket list place. It was just as cool as I hoped.

Exploring Yellowstone National Park on opening day. Scott’s roadtrip bucket list place. Seeing Old Faithful erupt 5 minutes after we got there without being able to check the schedule.

Spending a ridiculous amount of time and money to go to the Jorna Indian restaurant in Ipswich. TOTALLY WORTH IT.

Walking half way across Spain to get our ticket into heaven. Destroyed my feet but it was definitely a cool experience.

OK well this isn’t really a highlight for Scott, but it’s still one of my favourite pictures of the year. Eating all the cheese possible in France.

Turning 30 in Thailand.

Being brave and making new friends in Melbourne.

Lots and lots of family time. This picture is from Christmas Day.

2016 Video Every Day project coming V V SOON!

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Cassia invited me for a visit last week and since I was just bumming around and flexible enough to get cheap flights to Adelaide… I accepted.

Extra leg room is so wasted on me.

Jill, Cassia and I went on a drive to Hahndorf. It was rainy and sunny and warm and freezing, but we had a nice little stroll through town and lunch in a cozy cafe with fireplaces.

After lunch we drove through the hills a bit on the way to Mt Lofty. I found a koala immediately after getting out of the car. No, the novelty of koalas has not worn off for me yet. They are so cute!

And then we went out for a super delicious French-Vietnamese dinner at Cliché. I got to try the cheese soufflé, crispy pork belly (!!!) and beef cheeks that were incredibly tender. All great.

The next day Cassia and I did a lot of quality hanging out. We also went for a walk through the botanical gardens and through the city. So many bats! Bats are cool.

Cassia had to work on Tuesday so I spent the day with Jill. It was Melbourne Cup day so we went to a pub and wore fascinators and watched the race. We bought a few of those random horse tickets, and one of ours came in second. Woot!

That night we all went out to do trivia at a nearby bar. We won three out of four free jugs, haha! (We gave two of them away.) And we ended up coming in second. Not bad for a team of foreigners. Pablo knows abs!

Cassia and I before going to work/going home. Thanks for a great visit Dafoe’s!! I had a nice time, and it definitely helped distract myself from waiting for my test results.