The Athletics Carnival is Done!!!

Translation: My entire school from Pre-Primary to Year 6 kids compete against each other in a big Track and Field Meet and I am the sole convenor. There were about 550 kids to organize into 5 events and 12 games. Crazy! The Junior Carnival was yesterday and the Senior "Carnival" or meet just finished today! The last 8 weeks of preparations came together beautifully. There were field event trials, running timed trials for the sprints heat placements and all the planning and preparations for scoring. The meet was a huge success. And it is done!!! NO more getting up at 5am, spending 11 hours at work, and still having to look at a growing "to do" list.  Horaay!!!

Just look at how adorable these kids are... and what fun they have at school :)

I will now sleep like a baby. AND I can finally start to think about our upcoming holiday to Singapore and Thailand. Ahhh...

P.S. Just a quick note about the Mandurah weekend in Wayne's last post: don't be fooled by the nice pictures. It was a blast, but we also dubbed it the Mandurah Triathlon! 3 of us went for a 10 km run in the morning to the south end of Falcon Island. Then Sean, our 'tour guide' was suppose to take us for a 1 to 1 and a 1/2 hour bike ride. Well, we were on our bikes for 3 and a 1/2 hours! And we covered the perimeter of the north end of the island. Ellise and I were dying. Her legs, and my b _ _ _!! Then we were so hot and scorched from the sun, we had to swim. So we all decided that it was a Rennie Triathlon (meaning it was done in reverse: swim last instead of the run). I'm just sitting comfortably as of today!

Mandurah Bike Ride & Bonfire

Sept. 20

This weekend we visited our friends (the Rennie's) down in Falcon, and they took us for a great bike ride around the island where they live.  We rode along the estuary into the city of Mandurah, and then returned along the foreshore with ocean views.  The ride had a little bit of everything: single dirt track, boardwalk, sandy stretches, grass, paved cycle path, and sidewalk.  We saw several pelicans and other water birds along the way, as well as a blue tongue lizard.

In the heart of the estuary.

The shallow estuary is home to a wide variety of birds and marine life.

The boardwalk through the estuary.

Suzie tearing up the single track.

The estuary has many channels near town with lots of gorgeous waterfront homes.

Many of the bridges have bike paths built in underneath the roads.

Ellise enjoying her "Squashed Frog" at the Dome restaurant.
Her reward for such a long bike ride.

The foreshore cycling path.
Palm trees and oceans views, what more can you ask for.

Unique rock formations along the Falcon foreshore.

After our bike ride, we headed to the beach for a quick dip to cool off, and cool off we did because the water is still very cold.  Then it was back to the Rennie's to meet up with some other exchange families who were coming to meet us for a potluck dinner and bonfire on the beach.  We are so fortunate to have met some great friends from all over Canada that are here in WA with us this year. We always have a great time together!

The kids having fun at the beach.

The Family.

The Girls.

The Guys.

The Bonfire at sunset.

Now its back to the Rennie's for more drinks, food and fun!

Mater Christi Cross Country Champions

Sept. 9

Congratualtions to Coach Suzie Fetter and the Mater Christi Cross Country Team on their first place finish in their inter-school cross country carnival.

Mater Christi Primary School Cross Country Champions

Ellise's Athletics Carnival

Sept. 17

Ellise running the 200 m race.
She finished second behind her speedy friend Maddy who blew away the field.

The medal podium for the 200 m race.

Ellise concentrating on the box throw.
She is trying to get the tennis ball into a wooden box about 10 ft. away.
Along with the regular track and field events, there were several activities and games that each student participated in as well.

Ellise's team mates and some of her best friends from her class.
Each of the students is placed in one of four factions, and they receive points for all of the events that they compete in.

The free throw shooting competition.
Ellise was the only one who got one in for her team.

Third in the 80 m dash.

Anchoring the relay team who won easily.
She also got a second place in the long jump.

Noah would have competed as well, but he volunteered to be the camera man and take pictures of all the events for the school.  He did participate on the cross country and ultimate frisbee teams for his school this term.  Unfortunately those photos are on my phone and I can't seem to download them onto the computer.

Araluen Botanical Gardens & Serpentine Falls

Sept. 13

Spring has sprung here in WA!  The weather is warming up and the tulips, and wildflowers are in bloom.  The people of Western Australia definitely have a "cup half full" mentality.  I especially like how they call their weeds wildflowers.  Several of our neighbours have many different types of wildflowers growing on their properties.  It sounds so much better than "I have weeds growing on my lawn".  And I must admit, several of the wildflowers are quite vibrant and eye-catching.

Today we visited the Araluen Botanic Park for the Tulip Festival.  It is a beautiful area in the hills just east of the city.  A perfect place for a day trip and family picnic. 

Tulips in bloom.

Ellise tiptoeing through the tulips.

Suzie & Noah by the creek running through the gardens.

Family photo time.
Testing out my new tripod that I got for Father's Day which was on Sept. 7 here in Australia.

A quiet spot in the "bush" (forest).

Suzie beside the bright red blooms of the Banksia tree.

Tulip garden with wildflowers in the background.

After spending the morning exploring the gardens and having our picnic lunch, we made one more stop at the Serpentine Falls on our way back home.

Mother and daughter enjoying some quiet time at the watering hole.
Some adventurous people were swimming, but the water was still really cold,
so we just dipped our toes in.

School Photo Day

Sept. 3

City To Surf Marathon

Sorry I haven't updated the blog for a while, but I will try to get it caught up to date this week.

Aug. 31

The City to Surf Race is a popular run in Perth that includes a marathon, half marathon, 12 km run and 4 km walk.  It attracts over 50,000 participants each year.  It starts in the Perth CBD, runs along the Swan River, around Kings Park, then through some of Perth's trendy suburbs before ending at City Beach.  It is trademarked as one of the most beautiful marathon courses in the world taking in some of the most scenic places in Perth.  The marathon started bright and early at 6 am.  I didn't think it was so great when I had to wake up at 3:30 am to get to the start-line on time, but seeing the sunrise over the Swan River was a gorgeous way to start the day!  Fortunately the rain that was forecasted finished earlier in the night, so the weather was perfect for running.

This race was the first big hurdle in my Ironman training because it was my first marathon in 15 years! It was a challenging course; the second half of the marathon was very hilly, and not just by Windsor standards.  I was feeling good until about the 25 km mark, and then the hills started taking a toll on my legs, specifically my IT Bands. The tighter they got, the shorter and slower my stride became.  I had to walk several times to make sure that I didn't sustain a more serious injury.  I finished in 4:11:23, which all things considered, I was very happy with.

Suzie completed the half marathon which was the second half of the marathon course, the hilly part. Their race started with a steep 1 km climb up to Kings Park.  Not an easy way to start a 21 km run. But she was a trooper, and finished in just over 2 hours.  It helped that she had her friend Krystin and about 20,000 other people to talk to along the way.  Here are a few pictures of the event.

Suzie and the kids with our friends the Rennie's at the start line for the half marathon.
Suzie and Krystin ran the race together.

The start of the half marathon climbing up the hill to Kings Park.

Running through Kings Park.

"The Finishers".