Zoo trip

We had family visiting recently and, as you do, took them around to see some of the sights.  One of our favourite places to go is Melbourne Zoo. 

We somehow never make it through the whole place in one day, but we get to see something new every time.  The kids loved the section with all the snakes and lizards!

My favourite is always the butterfly house.  It is the coolest thing ever to have butterflies land on you!

 

We discovered a part of the ocean section we had not been to before. 

It really was a day full of adventure!

Sorrento and wet kids

Out location scouting, we spent the day at a beach in  Sorrento.  The kids had an absolute ball! They were so excited to be going to the sea, they did not fight at all on the long trip there.  Hubby dearest decided that the kids should not swim, since two of them had the sniffles… I packed spare clothes and towels and blankets.  They were soaked by the time we left!

 

The sandstone rocks were filled with caves that the kids loved to explore.  I love discovering the little details the stone hides.

Cold, wet and covered with sand, the kids were still all smiles.

It really was a beautiful day!

Guinea pigs

I really wanted to get the kids a dog for Christmas, but our rental agreement did not allow it, so they settled for some guinea pigs.  This was quite a new experience for us, since we have only had dogs and hamsters in the past.  The kids absolutely adore their new pets!  They are really sweet and seem to try to communicate by ‘chirping’ when they want attention.

As it turned out, one of the females we bought, was pregnant.  Now we have three little baby guinea pigs in the house, but they will have to find new homes.  Until then, the kids are having a great time playing with them.

Working with a tripod

Things are finally calming down and getting back into routine.  One of my recent assignments has been to take a photo at night (with a tripod) that had more than one light source, take a photo in studio and then merge them.  Tricker than it sounds!  I am still playing around, but this is one of the attempts so far.

These are the two original images.  My boys have become very handy assistants!

Scott Kelby World Wide Photo Walk 2011

I had such a great time on Saturday taking part in this year’s photo walk.  Met some great friends and shared a lot of fun stories.  The city was eerily quiet, with few people not watching the AFL Grand Final.

We were worried we would be rained out, but the weather cleared up real well.  (This is Simon, our walk leader, keeping warm.)

Even the kids appreciated the peace and quiet of the city.

Night-time the city came alive with people celebrating (and mourning!)

Thanks to all who took part and to Simon, our walk leader for organising everything!

 

For more photos, click here.

Tesselaars Tulip Festival 2011

This year the festival started earlier than usual.  The warmer weather had caused all the flowers to bloom sooner than normal.  The display was definitely worth visiting!

We spent the day with wonderful friends, the kids having a ball running between the brilliant rows of flowers. 

    

 

The different days of the festival are themed.  We went on a Turkish day (the foods were really fabulous!).  The marching band was quite the experience to see.

Definitely going to visit again next year!

Practice

The last couple of months have been a little chaotic.  My son came back from camp with a bit of a cold.  By the Saturday, he couldn’t keep his eyes open, kept on falling asleep.  At first we thought he just picked up a bit of the flu.  But by Tuesday I rushed him to emergency because of the rash he developed.  They were really quick in seeing him, though we ended visiting quite a few different specialists.  Turns out he had zoster ophthalmicus, a rare form of shingles that attacks the eye nerve.  Recovery took quite  a few weeks.  So far he has passed all his eye check-ups.  The final one is only in January, but so far all is looking good.

So we got through those weeks, then my younger one went on camp.  He came back with a serious case of the flu.  Doctor says two weeks for him to recover, which covers the whole of the school holidays.  We are watching lots of dvds and eating lots of ice cream … and I am playing around, trying to learn a few new things.  The “planet” above I created following the tutorial on this page: http://www.fxencore.de/tutorial_detail/photoshop-tutorials/bildmanipulation/realistischer-planet/

Maybe I will do some housework over this time… or maybe not!