Twelve Feet, Six Continents, One Year

Lily's hair got shorter and shorter during the year; she started by donating her pony tail in Minnesota! In Melbourne in January her hair got a lot shorter. Also, check out those freckles! The hair on my head has been getting scarcer for at least 20 years. Every haircut I've gotten in the last fifteen has been shorter than the one before it. For the last ten years I've been giving myself buzz cuts in the mirror, trusting Elise to tell me when I've missed a spot. Every few years the guard on the clippers has gotten smaller. During this time, I've missed barbershops and their casual banter. Elise once gave me a gift certificate to a place where I got a buzz, a beer, plus a hand and face massage but no chatter. I went to a place in our neighborhood and paid $30 for a buzz and a can of hipster beer but I was definitely too old and square to earn a conversation. Besides, even if I took a trim every two weeks (I prefer weekly), that would be an expensive habit....

We spent this weekend being full-time tourists. On Friday we took the tram downtown, ate lunch in a burger bar near "the pirate ship" and then walked to the aquarium. For the most part, we were really impressed. The kids enjoyed a lot of interactive exhibits. On the low side, however, the penguin exhibit was probably the saddest things we've seen. The Polly Woodside Henry was quick to find the Megaladon jaws Lily in disguise Ali or Cate with a friendly ray Ali struck a pose with a sea turtle (sculpture) Contemplative Cate On Saturday we bought a two-day pass for one of those adorable, double-decker, hop-on-hop-off sightseeing buses. On board the sightseeing bus Part of the downtown skyline, which seems to be expanding daily The view as we cross the Yarra River We rode around for about an hour until we reached the "Melbourne Star," one of those adorable, gigantic ferris wheels. A view from the Melbourne Star ...

First of all, is my math right? I know that we started on June 23rd but that was in the United States. Today is January 8th but that's in Australia. It's only January 7th in the US. Does that mean the trip is longer or shorter? Can anybody explain daylight savings time to me? Second, we've been having a really good week. Elise took the day off on Monday and regained some energy. We found a daycamp here that is effectively drop-in during their school holidays. For friends in Portland: this is like Campfire mixed with Trackers. In other words, it's awesome. We showed the kids the "menu" if activities on each day and the result was that Henry and Lily went on Tuesday, Ali and Cate on Wednesday and all four on Thursday. Arriving at St Kilda Park Primary School for TeamKids Camp We feel really satisfied and proud that our kids show up at a new venue with unfamiliar kids and adults and plunge right in. Henry made a friend, which led to a playdate and possibl...