SURPRISE, CHRISTMAS IN JULY!!

I was feeling jittery with excitement. I kept watch as we waited for them to knock on the door.

I am terrible at keeping secrets and the anticipation was making me feel faint. Bing Crosby was crooning his christmas songs as the guys tried to keep an eye on who was winning the surfing while the kids played in front of the television and us girls busied ourselves getting the food ready and setting the table. There were a couple of false knocks at the door which were enough to have me break out into a small sweat and go crazy hissing and yelling to everyone to sit at their seats at the table, and as annoying as it was, it was fantastic opportunity to perfect our surprise. The real knock was faint and unassuming and when we opened the door to them, seeing her face brighten and shy away into her hands made my eyes well up with salty drops. 

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

Kodak Portra 160 & Ilford HP5

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DULL DAYS

The waters today rippled like a gigantic helicopter was about to land in the ocean. The swell was big and only for the bravehearted. The surfers had a big audience, people watching from the rocks, the cafe and the look outs dotted up above the rocks.

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

Fuji 800z & Ilford HP5

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AFTER SCHOOL THIS AFTERNOON

"Don't forget about our play this afternoon", were his last words this morning as he twisted the straps of his school bag around his shoulders and then he turned on his heel and walked off towards the school gates. Sometimes I get kisses and sometimes I don't. Today was one of those days where I didn't get one. We we spent the last five minutes of the car ride arguing over who forgot to bring his school hat.

The afternoon spent was a lovely contrast to our time this morning. We were both excited to catch up with friends at the park and to have a play. Pat got to get some sand in between his toes and we both looked for the whales which had been sighted playing close to the shore earlier in the day. We saw lots of kids splashing around, people learning to surf and men spear fishing but no whales. In the park the kids played and we chatted and laughed until it started to become dark and the kids let us know that they had had enough when they started chanting for hot chips for dinner.

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

Kodak Portra 800 & Ilford HP5

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BACKSTREETS

 After the gym yesterday we decided to walk to the coffee shop around the corner because all of our babes were sleeping and/or looking quiet restful in their prams, and in our experience it's not worth waking a sleeping baby, particularly for a drive which could be walked. So we took off on foot, the little pram brigade that we were, and we navigated the quiet back streets to escape the hustle of the main road. This is what I saw along the way.

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

Kodak Portra 400

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SHHHH, I LOVE YOU

He is my baby and here he is holding my other baby. He loves cuddling her and it's the first thing that he does after waking up in the morning and the first thing that he does when he arrives home from school in the afternoon. Usually she is just as happy to see him, her little mouth chattering away with all sorts of baby goo-goo-gaa-gaa's and bambi eyed smiles, but today she was tired and wanting nothing more but for someone to gently rock her to sleep. He tried and tried and was very patient with her. He told me to let her cry and that it was ok. As her cries got louder and more deliberate and as she started to slide down from his bear hug, I had to intervene. I cradled her up, with one arm branching across her bottom and the other arm gently folded across her back and patting her shoulders and we both watched her drift off to sleep.

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4
Kodak TRI-X 400
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WEEKEND PRAM PUSHING

This is what I saw over the weekend. Despite being late in the afternoon as well as being cold and windy, the sunshine drew the people outside. Small pockets of people stood huddled on the beach and children zoomed around on their scooters, chasing the last hours of the school holidays.

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4
Fuji 800Z and IlfordHP5

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CITY STROLLING

Little boys don't walk. They hop, skip, jump, run, bounce and dart from left to right and they don't like to wait around for too long. So I had to shoot from the hip and this is some of what we saw walking from the Powerhouse Museum back to Central Station on our day out.

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4
Fuji 400H & IlfordHP5

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NOT FRUIT CAKE

As a kid I can remember attending several Baptisms and my favourite part of the day was always when I finally got to enjoy a slice of the cake which I had been stalking all day. They were usually covered in cloudy-like-tufts of sweet white buttercream icing and it was usually harbouring a vanillary sponge cake or a dense chocolate mudcake underneath. Only once had I been let down, I had innocently thought it was a vanilla sponge cake with chocolate chips and it turned out to be fruit cake. Fruit cake.

On this day Vinnie cried uncomfortably during most of the ceremony and she fell asleep minutes prior to getting her head wet, she howled seconds after her little head became soaked. Paddy was beautifully patient with her crying and his calmness made me calm. After the ceremony Matty was in his element as he started up the BBQ, and Paddy kicked off his formal attire to play with his friends. They ran around the salty oval chasing, kicking and passing the beloved football. The rest of us soaked up the wintry sunbeams as we sat on a patchwork of assorted picnic rugs. My favourite part of the day was when we shared lunch together and finally cut into that cake.

P.S. It was cream cheese frosting + chocolate fudge cake.

P.P.S. Thank you to my beautiful friend Angie, for capturing the first image xo

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4
Kodak Portra 800

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CREMA DE LA CREMA

His hands lay bricks and they also make a good coffee too. Liquid gold crema like this makes the corners of his mouth lift and I just love watching that first dollop of milk rollercoaster into the coffee cup. 

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4
Fuji 800z

Please do not use my images without permission.