Welcome back

The best part of coming home after our wonderful holiday in France and Istanbul was seeing family again. Even Pete from Sandy Beach timed his surprise visit on Friday so we could catch up with Lawrence family news.

Miss E had changed a lot..much more grown up looking, and more like her Daddy at the same age. Her hair has grown longer and is much lighter in colour.

Angie has adapted very well to his new diet, thanks to his Mummy's careful intervention and planning. He is feeling better...but it is early days yet, so no one is taking anything for granted.

Another change I noted today at our family get together was that Ella was interacting with the boys a lot more, as a playmate and a peer. She thinks they are awesome.

Rod's water features are always a very big attraction. They always seem to require reorganisation.

Miss E loves trying all the party food. She decided she adores Granny K's coconut cake just like all the girls in this family do. She managed to finish off both Jody's and Josh's helping.

But there were no hard feelings!

Welcome back to you all. Our holiday was wonderful and over the next few weeks I might cover a few aspects of our trip in this blog if I can make it not too boring. One of the highlights was catching up with Davey and Cath in Istanbul. It was a treat to spend the time with them and to meet the beautiful, warm and funny Cath T.

Against a background of tumult in the global financial system and minor hiccups in local elections and the national political agenda, our lives will continue in unremarkable but fulfilling ways. We are grateful for the love of our family, that they are all happy and care for each other and that we are all back safely after experiencing such joy and excitement on our travels.