Solstice, Xmas, and New Year

Final new decade's resolution: Blog at least 45 times in the 48 weeks that are left of 2010.
Party season is more or less over, and not a day too soon.
Noven and Ngatina kicked things off - as pagans they have a jump on the christians (and the rest of us defaultarians) by having their big party on the solstice. They put on an amazing spread, and as C & I were able to leave K with my mum, much fun was had without having to worry about bedtimes or disrupted sleep patterns (except for ours).
K's birthday was next - C and F organised a toddlers' bash on the deck, and the kids were amazingly fun and friendly - nary a tantrum between them in over 4 hours, and actually sharing their toys and playing together on the swing and slide.
Last year our Christmas day was somewhat desultory, but this year Junior and Vanessa had us round to their new place. People were out in numbers, and Junior kept the braai turning out food at a rate of knots - it was a Christmas day to remember, not least for those adults kidnapped and held captive upstairs by the roaming bands of feral-child prison guards.
The next day, boxing day, Steffan and Iris had a party by the creek at their place, and again people were out in force (some of them, clearly, not having slept since the day before). The temperature was in the high 30s by the afternoon, so a swim in the creek was welcome.
Amongst our friends heading off to Woodford were K&C, keen to have someone look after their place while they enjoyed the festival. My mum volunteered to feed their chooks and keep their swimming pool in good order, and we took advantage by leaving K there overnight a couple of times - bliss. There were a couple of rest days, and then a full-on NYE party at Bishops Creek. No photos from that one, as this is a family blog and the theme of the fancy dress was "lingerie". Let's just say that Junior proved that tight lycra tutus are available in a size 26 in Australia.

And Baby Makes Three

As K was born by C-section, C had to stay in hospital for three days after the birth. Each morning Rose and I drove into Lismore, and we helped C look after K during visiting hours, and ran errands in Lismore during the ward's "quiet time".

We organised an xmas lunch on the patio in front of C's hospital room. On Boxing Day we packed up our stuff and brought K home to Nimbin. She seemed to enjoy the car ride, which was a relief, and has so far settled very well to life at home. Obviously at this age she is not very interactive yet - but she takes notice of some of the wildlife and rainforest noises around her, and, though she can't focus her eyes yet, she definitely tracks things of interest using her head.

As K has not cried very much (only for food or nappies in the main) we have had time to finish off a few of the chores that got left as loose ends when we headed into Lismore for the birth. I shinned up the Jacaranda tree in our back garden and lopped off five or six large branches. I took out the in-window air conditioning unit which we had set up in the bedroom in readiness for C to labour at home. C and I moved the crib into our bedroom and surrounded it with mobiles and pictures (entirely unappreciated as yet, of course).

We also had a second xmas after we got home - polishing off the food C didn't eat when in hospital, opening the rest of the presents, and C having her first "post-tot" tot of Baileys after eight months of strict abstemiousness - K slept very well that night.

For much of the week we've been trapped indoors by heavy rain - being used to having the run of the garden, we're all getting cabin fever. Nonetheless, we have managed a quick walk in the Nightcap Ranges national park, where little K had her first alfresco nappy change. We have also made it out to the weekly Saturday market in Nimbin, and the monthly Sunday market too. At the Sunday market, C was able to relax with a hot chocolate at the chai tent, where K happily fell asleep in her lap to a local folk/harp trio.

The new baby lack-of-sleep thing isn't bothering me so far (especially as K has cried very little) but I expect that will change next week when I have my first 7:30am meeting.

Won't someone stop that evil man - not only is he blowing his carcinogenic cigar smoke into his baby daughter's face, but he's clearly drunk in charge, oblivious to the feral lizard just waiting to strike, and to top it all he's exposing his newborn's face to the antipodean sun.