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Since our Australian adventure is over, this blog is on the move. The blog's new home is p-parker-patrick.tumblr.com.

Montana!

Well... we have been home for a little over a week and can not get of enough of Montana! WE LOVE IT HERE! Parker has been loving all the attention he gets from all of his family and friends.

it ends...

Our adventure started with a few suitcases and ended with a bub. We are better people because of it. The flights went well... Parker would not sleep in the bassinet but we were thankful for the extra legroom. On the 14 hour flight from Sydney to LA, Parker probably slept 10 hours. Tyler and I only managed around 2 hours. I have high hopes that Parker will move into his US sleeping schedule smoothly. I love America more than I can put in words, my heart sparkles thinking of all the wonderful things I will get to re-experience with new insight. So happy to be home!

waiting for our flight out of Sydney on a rainy day

a sign greeting us upon arrival in Los Angeles

at the airport

It's raining cats and dogs here today, but we made it to the airport. Best news of the day so far... is that the one of the bassinet seats is officially confirmed ours! Let's hope it is as leg-roomy as we think it might be. Now it is just a matter of waiting a few more ours to board and then we will be in Montana in no time at all.

Parker is sacked out right now. We ended up taking a taxi instead of the train. The concierge at the hotel recommended a taxi service that has infant car seats available, so we went with that. Much easier than hauling luggage through train stations and the rain. Parker really enjoyed his first car ride too. Signs of things to come? Let's hope.

moving out and heading home...

What a day, what a day! I woke up at 3:30 and could not fall back asleep. Tyler set an alarm for 5:00, so that he could do one last load of laundry. And Parker slept in until 6:00. Despite Tyler's worry that we could not get everything cleaned, we finished with time to spare. At 10:30 I headed to campus one last time... Parker had a bump on his eyelid that I wanted looked at by the doctor. Turns out he did have a small infection, so it was good I played it safe. While Parker and I were at the doctors, Tyler took a taxi with all of our bags and checked into a hotel in the city. We are staying the night at the Travelodge (the same hotel we first stayed at when we moved to Sydney).  We both met back at the apartment around noon. Our checkout was scheduled for 12:30, but the property manager did not show up until 2:00. While we sat waiting, a huge storm started brewing with lightning, thunder and lots of rain. The checkout went very well, one of the real estate agents commented "did you guys even use the kitchen". It also helped that Parker was quite the charmer, shooting cheeky smiles for everyone to see. It is safe to say that we will be receiving our bond (deposit) in full!

After they took our keys, we hung around in the apartment waiting for the rain to calm a bit, just as we decided to cut our loses and make a dash for the bus stop... it stopped raining! We made it to the hotel around 3:30. Neither of us had eaten anything all day, so Tyler made a mad dash out to his favorite kebab shop for some much needed grub. He also stopped at a corner shop for some TimTams. Even being in the hotel seems like a whole new world. For one, I am sitting in a chair at a proper table instead of balancing the computer on the arm of the couch. We have heat, and carpet and a real bed (two actually, his and hers... Brady Bunch style)! Not long now until we head to the airport and begin our journey... we leave Sydney on Tuesday at 1pm and arrive in Billings on Tuesday at 6pm. That's 21 hours of travel but only 5 hours on the clock.

packing, cleaning and coffee with mates

We spent most of our day today packing and cleaning. We each have one bag plus the pack n play... and that is it. I am still amazed at how we managed to live so minimally this year. Later in the afternoon we walked down into Randwick and had coffee with our mates. I wanted to get a picture of Erwin holding Parker, but he was too nervous. Hopefully when Erwin moves to the Bozeman in July, Parker will be big enough for him to hold.

a walk, a nap and sardines

We had a big adventure today when we took a walk to some shops... We were out of the house walking around for almost 5 hours. When we got home, Parker and I took a much needed nap!

Now let me tell you... Tyler has been a picky eater for as long as I have known him. He has made so many brave food moves over the year including eating refried beans, cooked onion, and shark. To top it off, he would gladly eat all of those things again (a very big improvement)! I have been so proud of him. So when Erwin (our friend from Malaysia) insisted on not only taking Tyler out to a Malaysian restaurant, but ordering for him as well... Tyler figured he could handle one more new challenge. Turns out the challenge included sardines, yes sardines. When Tyler came home and told me that he ate sardines for lunch, I was floored. He managed to choke them down - bones, scales, eyes and all. It made me gag hearing about it. I am sure he will never eat them again... but I do not blame him. We are both looking forward to eating good old American food in less than a week! 

a morning chat

Here's a little video...

at the coffee shop

Parker and I went on a long walk today and ended up in a little coffee shop. I was the only one there, so all the workers flocked over to me when they saw I had a baby. They all oohed and ahhed over how adorable Parker is. They were amazed when I told them that he is only six weeks... saying that he is so alert and has impeccable head control. I agreed with all their statements and enjoyed the warm glow I was feeling as a proud mother. I am most looking forward to introducing Parker to all of you. My heart will shine with so much joy as all my friends and family swoon over my little bundle of joy. He really is the best, you will see.

6 weeks!

Our little mister is six weeks old today. I took him for his last appointment with Dr. Salmon, and he was such a trouper despite having to get his immunizations. He is very healthy and average on all the growth charts. His soft spot is still on the small side, but she said that it is one of those "wait and see" kind of things. As long as his head continues to grow at a good pace, he should be fine.

Tuesday week

Instead of saying "next week", in Australia they would say "Tuesday week" for example. So I would like to announce that we are coming home Tuesday week!!! Parker is oh so excited to meet everyone and give lots of smiles. 

On another note... Tyler took me out to my favorite ice cream shop on Mother's day. It was not until I looked at these pictures that I realized this ice cream was "South American style"... no wonder I loved it! Australian ice cream is very fluffy, more like whipped cream than the ice cream we are use to. 

Happy Birthday Clare!

Clare is the best because:

• She is effortlessly cool
• She loves animals just as much as I do
• She has some really sweet dance moves
• She is talented in so many incredible ways (gymnastics, art, animal whispering, the game of life)
• She is very empathetic
• She wrote us the best email that we have ever received
• She takes Parker's pictures to school with her because she is so proud of him
• She has the climbing skills of a monkey
• She is a fearless skier
• She has crazy morning hair, almost as crazy as mine

showing off our wild morning hair

Happy Mother's Day!

Well, it was my first mother's day. We went to the beach for one last time before we head home. We thought it would be really fun, but Parker had other plans. As soon as we stepped onto the sand he was crying, but he was cooperative enough for us to take a couple photos. We were hoping to get some family photos, but this was the best one we got.

As for the two best mums that we know (Mary and Kathy), happy mother's day! We love you both so much and will treat you to something special when we get home.

in the city

We had a cracker of a day in the city today! We took the bus to Paddy's Market, then we walked through Chinatown on our way to Darling Harbour, and from there we walked through the city to Hyde Park before catching a bus back home. Parker was a champ, such a gentleman all day long!

a mover and a shaker

Parker is a mover and a shaker that is for sure. We adore him!

why so sad?

Sometimes, like everyday, Parker gets so worn out from fighting his nap that he cries really hard. He makes the cutest cooing sound when he pauses to look at me with his pouty lips. After an hour of this tonight, he finally fell asleep with a big tear still in his eye.

5 weeks!

It really felt like fall today. The air was brisk, the wind was ripping, and it rained all morning long. After Parker's morning feed, we snuggled on the couch together and he soon fell asleep in my arms. At this point I would usually try and put him into his bed, but today I just snuggled him. I told myself that he needed the sleep and would be more likely to stay asleep if I just held him... but the truth was that I just wanted to spend the morning snuggling and loving on my beautiful little boy... I mean, come on, look at that face!

... in a fortnight

We will see you in a fortnight! Today my day included: no napping, a 2-hour walk, a stranger telling me I was too young to have a baby, cereal for dinner, and lots of daydreaming of our life to come. Parker can be difficult as he inherited two kinds of stubborn from his parents... but we love him and would not change who he is for anything. He is perfect and we love being parents!

big tears and children's books

Parker had such a hard day today. It is 10pm and he has only had one nap the whole day. This morning he was so upset... crying big tears. He was well fed. I checked his diaper, that was not the problem. He was not hot or cold. I could tell that he was very tired but there was no settling him, he would not stop crying. He was crying so hard and nothing could console him. So I put him in the carrier and we went on a walk.

As soon as I stepped outside the door, he was fine. He still did not sleep, but he was so happy to be looking around as we walked. Tyler tells me that Parker is just a very enthusiastic personal trainer. He keeps me motivated to continue my daily walking by shouting and demanding I bust a move.

We headed to the uni where I stopped by a coffee shop for a treat and then I wondered into one of the many campus bookstores. After I perused through the parenting section, Parker and I headed over to the children's section. There were so many great books. It had been so long since I have been able to look through children's books. I forgot how great it feels to thumb threw a fantastic new find. I saw so many that I wanted to buy. I cannot wait to get home so that I can dig into all my great books and more importantly read them to Parker!

a lovely Sunday

We had a lovely Sunday. We slept in, we went to church, we ate lunch out, shopped around a bit, and to top it off... it was the perfect temperature for walking!

Yay for May!

Yay, May is here! This is going to be a great month for sure. We get to come home, it will be my very first Mother's Day, three very important people in my life have birthdays to celebrate, and to top it off I might even get a new little niece at the end of the month. Can't you tell by the look on Parker's face that he is so excited for the events ahead?

registry

Tyler and I have battled back and forth with the idea of doing a baby registry. I never want people to feel obligated to buy us gifts. On top of that, it is hard to do a registry when you can't go to the store and look at all the items. Plus, most of the stuff on the Target website is available online only and that is a whole other issue. However, we have had lots of people asking how they can help us out when we get back and we understand that having a registry makes that easier. We are a bit daunted by the fact that we will have nothing when we arrive. Long story short, we have created a registry at Target with some basics for people who were curious for ideas.

For all the mothers out there... what are/were your favorite baby items? Is there anything you think we can't live without?

good nights

The last few nights Parker has sleep wonderfully! He goes to bed around 12:30 am and wakes up around 6:30 am. I am so thankful for a good night of rest. During the day however, he is quite the little sook. He does not want to sleep and if he is somehow tricked into it... putting him in his bed wakes him immediately. Today he sleep for 2 hours intermittently... 10 minutes at a time. His awake hours include me getting a total body workout of bouncing, dancing, rocking my body, swaying, and let's not forget juggling a very wiggly and strong baby. Papa Tyler came home for a two hour lunch. I ate lunch and hopped in the shower only to find the two of them just relaxing on the couch when I emerged from the bathroom. 

4 weeks!

Parker is four weeks old today! It really seems like he has been around for a lot longer than that, but it also seems like he was born just yesterday.

coming soon...

Montana here we come... see you in three weeks!