Happy 3rd Birthday!

A fantastic birthday at Grandma & Grandpa's home. Six friends, plus four little siblings....many great gifts...a Garfield ice-cream cake...and when it all gets a little overwhelming, a little rest in the cat-basket under the kitchen table to get away from things for a while!

Port Fairy

Hanging out, and relaxing with Nana in Port Fairy, Victoria.

Glenelg Sunset

A beautiful sunset (also a photo posted on March 11th), down at Glenelg Beach in Adelaide. It was such a relief after a 37 degree day.

The Three Of Us

Pics of just the 3 of us. Coping with the heat in Adelaide & Port Fairy. Not a bad way to spend March!

Hanging Out....

With cousins in Canberra!
Ruby (8), Otis (3), Banjo (2)

What an Adventure...

What a long way to go for an 'almost-3-year-old'!
Four weeks in Australia via Singapore...and a lot of new experiences...

Frightened? You Should Be!

During work on the Commonwealth Games, we the crew got an irresistable offer to shoot a trap gun with the coach of the Australian Team.

At my turn, and very obviously nervous, with about 20 people gathered around watching…the Australian coach whispered in my ear, “you call for the target, and I’ll tell you when to pull the trigger…no-one will ever know…!”.

I still didn't hit the target though...and after 3 tries I had a small bruise on my shoulder a few days later!

Pressure to Pay.

Signs on the train from Lilydale into Melbourne.... (click to enlarge)

Australian Adventure...Week One

Lily with her Grandad at the Adelaide Zoo (looking at the meercats), and with me on Glenelg Beach at sunset (a nice cool evening following a 37 degree day....!).

And Some More...

From the foggy freestyle...

Freestyle Finals

Finals of the Womens' Aerials at Sauze D'Oux.
Yes, I was a spectator!
It was a foggy & delayed start, but worth the wait for an Aussie bronze.

Curling Chaos

Curling at Pinerolo. Feb. 13th to Feb 24th.

Images of Torino

Not much to be said about these familiar images...

Tiesbreakers? Not For Us!

The best part about tiebreaker day...
skiing at Prali in the alps! Amazing!
www.prali.it (photos courtesy Glenn)
The worst part...
trying to use the toilettes (translate, hole in the ground)
with ski boots on!

After 16 Hours At Work...

It's never a good sign when.....

More From Torino...

Most of the TOBO/CBC curling crew have arrived by now. About 140 faces...most of them familiar from various events over the years! (Athens, Sydney, CBC, Winnipeg....even some aussie friends...although not on the curling!) In fact incase you're an Aussie & have no idea what curling is, check out: www.curling.ca.
Had a couple of days training at the venue in Pinerolo with an old friend from BCTV in Vancouver who now works in Italy!
That is done now...and we are started the usual meetings/rehearsal process. Have eated well...checked out various restaurants over the last few days...and of course the bar at the 'Tre Dente', where the rest of the crew are staying. A livelier & more casual hotel than the Relais Barrage. Didn't quite get to the Aussie Pub (The Ayers) up the road which is where many went after the crew BBQ tonight.
Here is the view from near the hotel (not taken by me)....and the view from my room.
ciao for now.

Torino Adventure

Day 4 in Torino.
Our arrival day was quite the adventure....in retrospect, my flight was a breeze compared to other crew members, and even with the other CG operators I met up with in Frankfurt, that had pretty much been waiting all day to connect!
In Torino, the four of us boarded a huge coach...and headed to Pinerolo, with a driver who spoke no English, and didn't know the area. After arriving in the town, we then drove around for 2 hours trying to find the hotels, our driver with cellphone in one hand, steering wheel in the other as he stared at his GPS....we veered into oncoming traffic, cut people off...and nearly ran in the ditch on many occasions. Brian & I finally arrived at the Relais Barrage...which turned out to be a huge, new hotel...and we were it's first 2 guests 'ever'.
So...finally worked out how the TV, lights etc. worked in this high-tech hotel....and learned (on day 3), that in order to get the water hot enough to shower, I need to turn it on....go downstairs for breakfast...and about 45 minutes later when I get back to my room...its finally hot enough to shower!
Anyway...better get going here...after my hotel rant. Will blog more about the actual event soon, hopefully some photos.

Ciao for now...

Passport Photos.....Always Good For A laugh

3 of Lily's passport photos, for her Canadian & Australian passports.At age 5 months, 6 months and 2 years.What a difference!