We decided to do a trip to the Twelve Apostles and Michaela was our tour guide as she had been there. I am so glad we did the drive – the scenery was breathtaking.

We then headed to Port Campbell for lunch and a swim before returning back to camp.

We had the cutest birds come to our campsite – they would hop right into the tent – these little Superb Fairywrens were gorgeous.

Aaron enjoyed his new cricket set and the older kids had a marvellous time catching waves on their bodyboards.

Hami and Ethan had a go at fishing too but caught nothing.

We took a walk to the Marriner Falls one day through the beautiful lush forests. The large tree ferns reminded me of New Zealand. Aaron and Zoe were brave enough to hop into the icy water for a dip.

New Years Eve found us heading into Apollo Bay where the kids enjoyed the carnival – Zoe experienced her first ever carnival ride (yes believe it or not at 11) and she loved it.

We saw the New Year in with an amazing fireworks display that we all enjoyed before heading back to our tents.

We were so blessed in that we had the most amazing weather – no rain and beautiful hot days. Hami and I both agreed that having an annual holiday had to become a non-negotiable event in our lives. Looking forward to the next holiday!!

Didn’t she look so lovely?

Michaela had her school awards evening  and she won an award for being one of the top 12 year 11 students. She achieved distinctions for every subject this year – she really does have my brains haha!! Talking about brains, I have lost mine. I have been working at an energy company making customer servive follow-up calls, and a nine hour day on the phones with very few breaks does make you a little potty after a while. Nonetheless I am gaining some Aussie work experience which is helpful and the pay is good.

Fortunately the crazy work was interrupted by our week away at Marengo Bay which Iwill post on shortly. So much news…. so little time…. and it’s back to work tomorrow!

I did manage to get a family photo this year and everyone dutifully co-operated – well sort of….

Wishing you all an amazing and blessed 2012.

We have another new event happening in our home – two new additions to the family – our Isla Brown hens named Rosy and Penny. Finally our chook coop has inhabitants. It has been wonderful having fresh eggs everday – that always seems to be what I run out of when I am baking, so hopefully no longer. These lovely ladies are very sweet and tame and the  younger kids are thoroughly enjoying a little bit of “farmlife” in suburbia.

I am still hanging out for a piece of land that is at least an acre in size so we can grow veggies and have a few more chooks. Michaela has told me that a puppy is definitely on the cards when we have our own property.

Another new experience for me is Art Journaling. I am trying my hand at keeping a journal that is not just words but contains art and words to create something unique and beautiful. this is a new concept to me and one I hope to explore more so I will keep you all posted.

We have another author in the home. Zoe wrote and illustrated her first little book. She has completed this for her Prep Buddy that she helps at school. Well done Zoe – a brilliant effort – I think I will get her doing my children’s book illustrations.

It is only ten days to Christmas and I have done no shopping – ZERO –  NIL – Zip – Nada – a big nothing!!

I am not looking forward to getting into that mall – I feel a rash coming on when I think about it – mainly because our big shopping mall is under construction as they extend and trying to find parking is almost impossible. Never mind I will psyche myself up and head out late at night when hopefully most people will be finished shopping – I hope there is still stuff left!!

Enough rambling from me

Be Blessed Everyone xxx

Easy French Country Table Makeover  or if that doesn’t work then here Home .

That being done, lets get back to the triathlon. This was all in preparation and training for the big one – The Ironman New Zealand at Lake Taupo in early March 2012. We parked our car in this street at the race – is this not prophetic?

This triathlon is the longest one he has done yet and the conditions were pretty tough. The race started and hour late which was a bit annoying. There was not one unfit looking competitor – all the athletes looked super fit and had all the latest gear – except us of course!!Hubby doesn’t have a bicycle that costs more than our car and requires a mortgage. We later discovered that every athlete was there as this triathlon is considered a qualifying triathlon for whatever they are trying to qualify for!! That meant that there were cut-off  times for every leg of the race and the times were quite stringent. No pressure!! By the time the event got underway the wind was blowing vigorously – that meant there were waves in the lake and that the water was a beautiful muddy brown – you could not see even 20 centimetres in front of your nose. This is Hami’s worst nightmare for swimming – he hates swimming in dark water and waves make him seasick!! Good news though was that he has been training in Lake Lysterfield near home and so the dark water was okay and he has had some experience in the wind too. I was so proud of him as he did his 2 kilometre swim well in the cut-off time and he managed to do it in the most awful conditions – even the top athletes were struggling. I even tried commanding the waves on the water to be still like Jesus did – I must say I was a little annoyed that they didn’t listen – they were meant to I know because if Jesus could do it, so can I – have to keep practising that one!!

I am always glad when the swim is over!! He came out the water looking a beautiful shade of seasick green and he mentioned as he ran past me how sick he felt. Next was a 120 kilometre cycle. That was just as bad as the wind picked up even more and made it very difficult for the cyclists. They were blown all over the road, rained on and in between managed to get sunburned when the sun came out.

Last leg was a 20 kilometre run around the lake and by then it was just getting cold – wind still blowing. The good thing was that Hubby’s knee behaved itself and didn’t give in much to my relief. He just continued on – he says he is like the tortoise in the Tortoise and Hare – slow but steady – he gets there in the end. He finished his race in 8 hours and 17 minutes and we were all very proud of him. It was very good training for the Ironman as he learned a lot about nutrition, what works for him and what doesn’t so that was good. I think being able to swim in such horrible conditions also gave him confidence.

The Hemingway support crew were awesome!!

This little Common Mynah bird was so cute – he kept hopping around my feet looking for food crumbs!

We stayed in a cool cabin at a tourist park and had a great stay. I love exploring other parts of the countryside and seeing new areas. We passed through a town called Euroa and found out that Ned Kelly and his gang robbed the bank in this town. Ned Kelly is a famous outlaw in Australia – he wore a metal helmet over his head and his gang robbed banks. Although he was hanged for killing policemen, he is considered a bit of a hero in Australia for his daring feats. The buildings in Euroa were lovely – I love that old red brick – it reminds me of a town called Pietermaritzburg that I grew up in as a child. Euroa may be a small town but it was unanimous with the family – they make the best pizza we have ever tasted!

All in all a really cool weekend!! Well done to my honey for a great triathlon – you make us proud!!

I received wonderful news today and it’s all thanks to you!! This is the email I received:

Hi Caro Hemingway,

Congratulations! With 61 percent of the vote, your Hub was selected by the HubPages community as a winner! Excited? We are!

Your profile picture and an excerpt and link to your Hub will be included in today’s weekly HubPages newsletter that is sent to over 150,000 HubPages community members. You will also receive the HubNuggets Accolade, one of the rarest Accolades on HubPages.

Let me be the first to congratulate you and encourage you to continue to write such wonderful Hubs. You’re an example for all Hubbers who are getting started and an encouragement to “veterans” as well.

We hope that you continue to enjoy writing at HubPages and participating in the community. We certainly enjoy your work.

Congratulations again, and we look forward to seeing you around.
– Patty Inglish – MS

What can I say but thank you to everyone who voted for me – without your support I would never have achieved this – it has really helped boost my confidence and will give me more exposure so THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

I must say it was a great way to start the day! I have been feeling very excited about certain things unfolding in our lives – can’t exactly say what they are but I have itchy feet (This is probably not a good sign) and I am itching for some change. I can’t help myself – I am a nomad and it’s all my parents fault I think (just kidding Mom and Dad – I love that I like adventure or life would be so boring!!). The last few weeks I have found myself looking at real estate and dreaming of our own home. At this point we would need a miracle to get there, but hey, one can dream right? Now usually when I look at houses, I look at what we could possibly afford – that means they are too small for our family and we would have to squeeze in, but lately I have been looking at my dream property and not at the cost of it -okay I don’t look at homes in the millions – not quite that big a dreamer yet , but I have seen some amazing places that whet my appetite. I figure that if God doesn’t know exactly what I like then I won’t ever get it! This is the kind of house I absolutely love – yes a veranda is a must!!

I am not a girly girl, but when it comes to houses I do like pretty houses.

I have also looked at properties that are on bigger sections and slightly out of the suburbs so that we have views and space – I am longing for country living again and I really don’t know why. In the meantime Hami is indulging me and has built me a chicken coop in the backyard so that I can have a couple of egg-laying chooks. He has completely built this house out of thrown away materials and scraps he has found – the only expense we have had has been the chicken wire and that only cost us $20 for two rolls. Not bad when these coops sell for nearly $400 in the shops. I couldn’t even find one that cheap on Ebay. Couldn’t take any photos today but I will as soon as all building rubble is cleaned up.

Exams are over and Michaela is ecstatic. Zoe is getting ready for her year 6 graduation from primary school and so we are in the process of designing her a dress for it – I have decided to make her one and so hope that all goes well. Aaron starts his prep school orientation next week and is very excited about it all. I hope I will be allowed to take some photos of him.

So this is an exciting end to another year – looking forward to next year being even more promising!!

I have some very exciting news to share. A few weeks ago I mentioned that I am doing some content writing for a couple of sites to learn better writing skills and hopefully be able to do more freelance writing work. Well this is the email I got today.

Hi Caro Hemingway,

We’re happy to inform you that your Hub, Safety Tips for Travel to South Africa, has been selected among 6 candidates for this week’s HubNuggets contest on HubPages! The HubNuggets contest features high-quality Hubs published by new writers like yourself. Winners of each week’s contest receive special Accolades and are featured in our weekly newsletter, which is sent to over 150,000 recipients.

The criteria for selection as a HubNugget is entirely dependent on votes, so please encourage your friends to vote for your Hub on this page before Wednesday of this coming week:

ANYONE can vote and voters do not have to be members of HubPages. Consider sharing the voting link as a status message on Facebook, as a tweet, or in your email or discussion forum signatures, to help get the word out.

Good luck and thank you for publishing on HubPages!

Now usually I would never impose on people asking them to vote for me but this time I am going to be bold enough to ask that if youlike the article then please vote for me – I don’t win a prize but rather exposure which would really help me in the long run SO thanks in advance if you vote for me – it will be much appreciated.

The link to vote is :

Travel and Places

All you have to do is click  on the link above to go to HubPages. There will be a heading that says  hubnuggets – vote! Underneath that are the six articles that are in the contest – find mine – I write under the name Caro Hemingway  and then check the vote box and finally the cast my vote tab underneath and you are done!

More exciting writing news is that I have been accepted as a writer on another site so another door has opened for me. I have also taken steps to get a quote for my novel. I decided to go the route of a publishing company that offers more than some of the little self-publishing companies on the internet. this company is Australia based and there is one-on-one support. They will set out my book correctly, do the cover under my approval, get me an ISBN number , put my book into 25000 bookstores worldwide, put it on kindle and give me media coverage in Australia when it is published – that is pretty good I reckon. I was a little worried about the quote – let’s just say that it is not affordable to me right now, but it is possible to achieve. So now that I have a goal I am back into it seriously tweaking and rewriting sections I am not quite happy with. Very exciting.

I feel my dreams are coming true.

Things are getting hectic here in our household – exams are about to start which means two  one teenager actually studying and stressing about them and the other not even aware of his timetable!! Hami is setting exams and marking them furiously getting ready for the end year reports. Oh how I hate this time – twice a year of hell writing these reports that have to be so long-winded – do the parents actually read all that stuff I wonder (or maybe it’s just me and I’m a bad parent). Anyway the end of the year is quickly advancing. We are getting Zoe ready for high school next year and so she is getting ready for her graduation ceremony coming up.

A few days ago I took some photos of Michaela in the garden wearing this gorgeous dress she found at an op shop. She needed it for a photographic assignment and so I thought I would get some photos of her in it. The poor girl was not feeling too flash – she has a nasty head cold but somehow she still manages to look beautiful no matter what. Please note how beautiful my roses are looking – being scratched to shreds while pruning them definitely paid off!! The roses are gorgeous but my daughter is way prettier than them – together they make an awesome combination!!

Look at those eyes!

And lastly, one of my favourite photos.

I realise I have been a little absent from my dear friend (I’m talking about this blog and you of course!!) but I have been trying to get a few things set in place.

I am not very good at keeping things the same for too long – I get easily bored and need change constantly. Sometimes this is a good thing, but other times it is a real pain. It means that I often don’t finish things I start  and this is not a quality I like about myself. No indeed, it is frustrating to those around me as well as to myself (Hubby would be vigorously nodding his head at this point!!).

I am trying to change this about myself and to see things through.

I have launched out on a new venture (yes again! This time I hope I have found what stirs me). I am not living in dream world believing that I am going to make big bucks, but I have decided that since I enjoy writing I may as well try to earn a few bob from it. So because I don’t want my blog full of advertising I have joined some writing forums. These sites enable me to write for them on any topic I like and through Google, Amazon and other places I earn a little for advertising. I have decided to do this because mostly I love writing and it will stand me in good stead should I ever try to tackle freelance writing jobs in the future. I am convinced that writing is the future for me and God has been almost needing a loudhailer to get my attention regarding this. I guess if He keeps saying it to me then I need to start believing I am capable and  get busy with it instead of sitting in doubt and lack of self-confidence.So this is my way of  getting content out there.  I have published a few measly posts and I have already had welcomes from fellow members and a few views so that is exciting to me.

The other project that Michaela and I are busy with, is trying to set up an Etsy store as we need an outlet for our creative abilities. Again I don’t see us making a mint, but every line in the water hopefully will catch a few fish along the way. So will keep you updated as that progresses – I am hoping to be up and running in the next few weeks. We have a home market planned for early December where we plan to invite some ladies to a tea/coffee/cake afternoon to see our things. Invites are already designed and planning happening. Just need to make sure we have enough goodies!! This is simply a sideline and a way for us to keep ourselves busy and supplement our family income. I have already determined in my heart that everything I make I aim to give at least twenty percent (Hopefully more if I can) towards the orphanage we as a church support in Gunthur India. If you want to check out these cute kids then go to http://www.friendsfirstchurch.com.au/centre-of-hope-guntur-india .

The reason for all this crazy activity is that I am feeling pressure to get a job next year once Aaron is settled into his school routine. Hubby and I have spoken about quality of life and not slogging away and having no family time so we are thinking of both working part time. Hami  (I have decided to give to start giving this wonderful man a name instead of a title – another new change for mad me!!) already works part time as a science and maths teacher and his hours may be even better next year. This means that I need to do my share too! Unfortunately my studies will not be complete so I won’t be working in that line yet, but the thought of  going teaching again literally makes me feel physically sick! I really don’t want to be a primary teacher again – I feel that I am over that phase of my life. Don’t get me wrong, I like teaching – just hate all the red tape and administration nightmares that go with it. So I am throwing a few lines in the water and seeing what bites. Please pray for me! I also need to get my books published and finished which means I need to be earning. I really believe in these projects and I can see the finishing line in sight but I am just not getting there yet.

Otherwise all is good and I am hoping to enjoy the season we are going into. Hami and I have some other projects up our sleeves that we hope to reveal to you all soon – can’t wait! So there is a lot happening in our household – creativity is aflow but there are just not enough hours in the day!!

What exciting adventures are happening in your life?

This is a letter to my best friend…

Happy Birthday honey…. it has been my privilege to hang out with you for the last 22 plus years. You are my best friend and the one I share my dreams and hopes with. You have seen me when I am at my very best and you have seen me at my absolute worst and you have loved me anyhow. I have never regretted one day with you – our lives have been full of adventure and we have travelled the world together. We have laughed and cried together over the years. You were there with me through the birth of our beautiful children and you have been a wonderful dad to them all.

To some, your value may be measured by your work for God over the years – some have judged you harshly, but to me you have never lacked credibility, integrity or passion in everything you have done. I have always known you to be a true person of integrity and I have never doubted you in our years together. What others may have said is irrelevant to me because I know you better than anyone else on this earth. I know that when the Father looks at you, He is proud of you, loves you passionately and that His favour is always on you.

Looking at the flood of birthday wishes you received on Facebook, from new friends, to people you have taught, to old friends way back when, they all love you and respect you and you have made a difference to their lives. I am proud of who you are and what we have achieved together over the years. Our focus has changed a little over the last few years – we have realised that we can be and do anything we like and we are on this exciting journey together. I am so glad that the road ahead is not a replica of the one we’ve travelled – I don’t do well with the mundane and neither do you – that’s why we fit like a glove.

I know that as you fulfill some personal dreams this year that you will find new ones beginning to grow. This is your time to reach your dreams – enjoy it. Thank you for the way you have supported and worked for our family, allowing me to follow my dreams and to be a stay at home Mum while the kids were young – I know we will see the rewards of it. I love you sweetie – Happy Birthday – you will always be my best friend….

The last few days of holiday were great. On Saturday we headed out into the hills for a drive. It was exciting not following a map and just driving. We discovered a few places of interest and some lovely new areas of Melbourne.

First we stopped at the Silvan Reservoir Reserve. This was a lovely big park with picnic areas, playgrounds and walking tracks. The Rhododendrons and azaleas were in full bloom and rather magnificent.

Then we headed to Lilydale. We stopped at a park and had a picnic lunch. The kids played and enjoyed the park. Hubby and I were relieved to see that the young magpies are getting quite big now which means that swooping season will soon be over – yay!!

On our way home we passed the Tulip festival. This is a beautiful tulip farm that has thousands and thousands of tulips in bloom. We considered going in but the vast quantity of people changed our minds. I managed to get a couple of tulip pictures though.

On Sunday morning I woke to rain beating on the window – not a good sign. Hubby was running in the Melbourne Half marathon and the weather was miserable. We all got up (except for Ethan who loathes early mornings and was enjoying not having to get up for church as per usual on Sundays)  and headed to the city at 6:30 am. Aaron kept complaining that it was the middle of the night. We dropped hubby off at the start and then had to find a parking – no easy feat when there are about  30 000 people competing in this race. It was freezing with the occasional rain shower.

We made our way to a point where we would see him running – that too was wishful thinking – there were so many competitiors that when he first ran past us we didn’t see him in the crowd. After an hour and a half he finally ran past us again and we could cheer him on. The girls love cheering for him when he runs or does triathlons – secretly I think he really loves it too!! This is a photo of the cheering squad.

By the time we made our way to the finish line we were disappointed to see he had beaten us to it. Nevertheless we were delighted that he was fine and that his knee was not hurting too badly. This knee concerns me a little as it plays up for him every now and then. We all looked at his medal and the kids raided his goodie bag as they do.

I managed to get a lovely photo of the river and the city skyline.

All in all it was a great way to end off the holidays as we relaxed all afternoon.

I watched the Australia versus South Africa world cup match and Hubby was laughing at me -I was madly shouting for the South Africans even though we live here in Australia. My logical reasoning was this: I really want the All Blacks to win the world cup and I figured that I would prefer them to play SA rather than the Wallabies as we have to live among these people and would probably be teased endlessly if they beat us. Crazy logic I know but anyway. I couldn’t watch the New Zealand /Argentina match as we went to friends for dinner but a marvellous friend kept me updated via txt message every time the score changed. So it looks like my All Black boys will be playing the Aussie blokes next – lets hope they trounce them!!

I am slowly getting back into routine – had a very productive “working” day today with my new idea – very excited about it!!