Well, it's been 8 months since Sang has signed on and I threatened to post something if she didn't get back online...so here I am. We've all been very busy since January. They boys have been 'full-on' at school: swimming, science club, school projects, camp, rugby, basketball, tennis and Zoe keeps Sang busy a
s well. Rugby (Union - there are different 'codes' of Rugby) was fun once Jonah (and I) learned the rules. Jonah scored the team's first 'try' of the season - he was in the right place at the right time and we were proud of how he played his first season. Sang kept asking him if he wanted to wear any headgear for protection after noting a few scratches/bruises. But Jonah declined, saying the mouthguard was enough protection for him (making me proud). For those of you who are wondering if the boys will take up cricket - probably not. I've tried to have the game explained to me many times, but still don't get it. I'll need to see one live before I pass judgment on the sport. I made a trip to the US (where it was frigid cold and everyone's accent sounded funny to me) in February and Jim and Jenn visited in March. They also made a trip to Fiji and it was good to have U
ncle Jim and Aunt Jenn around! Sang's sister, Vicky visited in April. Sang worked with Vicky and her running and they also got to spend some 'sister' time together in Sydney. Vicky noted that Australia seemed much cleaner than LA, especially the beaches. We agree! Sang decided to run the Gold Coast Marathon in July, so her training started after Vicky left, which added more activity to Sang's already busy days, playing taxi cab driver for the kids. In the back of our minds, we were wondering if Sang was going to get to accompany me on a Mediterranean cruise. Fortunately it all worked out after we decided to hire some very expensive, but very capable babysitters - we flew Mom and Dad back out to stay with the kids while we enjoyed a once-in-a-lifetime work holiday! We
prepped M&D with a driving lesson for Dad (on the left side of the road and to only be necessary in case of an emergency) and a play-by-play for each day. There were no emergencies, but Dad did have to pick up Lucas from school because apparently it's not good when kids sneeze snot all over each other. Mom and Dad were great and we're so grateful for their help! Fortunately their visit coincided with Lucas' First Eucharist, which he received at St. John Vianney's Church. 
After flying through Dubai to Athens where toured the Acropolis, we boarded the Crystal Symphony and embarked on a week-long cruise: Kusadasi, Turkey, Rhodes, Delos, Mykonos, Santorini, Greece, Sorrento and Rome, Italy. It was amazing to tour ruins thousands of years old. One of our evenings was spent dining amongst the ruins at Ephesus - an unforgettable night! After saying good-bye to Mom and Dad, it was July before we knew it and we celebrated 1 year in Oz, but not before Sang completed the Gold Coast Marathon in 3:41:00 - a personal best! There were a lot of Japanese runners (total runners was 8,000 including
the half-marathoners) and they looked like they had fun as one newly married couple ran in their wedding gear and another guy ran the whole thing backwards. In addition to Sang's accomplishment, a 60 year old Kiwi-woman ran it in 3 hours, apparentl
y a world record. The whole family cheered her on and was able to catch her 3 times along the route (which followed the coastline on a perfect day). We vacationed up in Cairns (stayed on Trinity Beach, away from all the tourists), snorkeled a portion of the Great Barrier Reef (Frankland Island) and Jonah turned 10 on Aug 1...where has the time gone?!?! Now we're looking forward to our next adventure in September to Uluru and Sydney and our family trip back to the states for Christmas. Oh yeah, the boys would want me to post this: we finally figured out what the weird chirping sound is at night - we have big flying foxes (bats) in the trees around us. They're very common here in Queensland, especially around the mango trees. That's it for me, hopefully you'll hear from Sang next time...
s well. Rugby (Union - there are different 'codes' of Rugby) was fun once Jonah (and I) learned the rules. Jonah scored the team's first 'try' of the season - he was in the right place at the right time and we were proud of how he played his first season. Sang kept asking him if he wanted to wear any headgear for protection after noting a few scratches/bruises. But Jonah declined, saying the mouthguard was enough protection for him (making me proud). For those of you who are wondering if the boys will take up cricket - probably not. I've tried to have the game explained to me many times, but still don't get it. I'll need to see one live before I pass judgment on the sport. I made a trip to the US (where it was frigid cold and everyone's accent sounded funny to me) in February and Jim and Jenn visited in March. They also made a trip to Fiji and it was good to have U
ncle Jim and Aunt Jenn around! Sang's sister, Vicky visited in April. Sang worked with Vicky and her running and they also got to spend some 'sister' time together in Sydney. Vicky noted that Australia seemed much cleaner than LA, especially the beaches. We agree! Sang decided to run the Gold Coast Marathon in July, so her training started after Vicky left, which added more activity to Sang's already busy days, playing taxi cab driver for the kids. In the back of our minds, we were wondering if Sang was going to get to accompany me on a Mediterranean cruise. Fortunately it all worked out after we decided to hire some very expensive, but very capable babysitters - we flew Mom and Dad back out to stay with the kids while we enjoyed a once-in-a-lifetime work holiday! We
prepped M&D with a driving lesson for Dad (on the left side of the road and to only be necessary in case of an emergency) and a play-by-play for each day. There were no emergencies, but Dad did have to pick up Lucas from school because apparently it's not good when kids sneeze snot all over each other. Mom and Dad were great and we're so grateful for their help! Fortunately their visit coincided with Lucas' First Eucharist, which he received at St. John Vianney's Church. 
After flying through Dubai to Athens where toured the Acropolis, we boarded the Crystal Symphony and embarked on a week-long cruise: Kusadasi, Turkey, Rhodes, Delos, Mykonos, Santorini, Greece, Sorrento and Rome, Italy. It was amazing to tour ruins thousands of years old. One of our evenings was spent dining amongst the ruins at Ephesus - an unforgettable night! After saying good-bye to Mom and Dad, it was July before we knew it and we celebrated 1 year in Oz, but not before Sang completed the Gold Coast Marathon in 3:41:00 - a personal best! There were a lot of Japanese runners (total runners was 8,000 including
the half-marathoners) and they looked like they had fun as one newly married couple ran in their wedding gear and another guy ran the whole thing backwards. In addition to Sang's accomplishment, a 60 year old Kiwi-woman ran it in 3 hours, apparentl
y a world record. The whole family cheered her on and was able to catch her 3 times along the route (which followed the coastline on a perfect day). We vacationed up in Cairns (stayed on Trinity Beach, away from all the tourists), snorkeled a portion of the Great Barrier Reef (Frankland Island) and Jonah turned 10 on Aug 1...where has the time gone?!?! Now we're looking forward to our next adventure in September to Uluru and Sydney and our family trip back to the states for Christmas. Oh yeah, the boys would want me to post this: we finally figured out what the weird chirping sound is at night - we have big flying foxes (bats) in the trees around us. They're very common here in Queensland, especially around the mango trees. That's it for me, hopefully you'll hear from Sang next time...
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