Christmas and New Year

Again Ozzie Christmas did feel very different but fun for a change. Although very hot the turkey was still there with all the trimmings + was delicious despite the sore head. At least I was sober on Xmas day itself that is more than can be said for one nameless friend who became uncharacteristically sozzled and frisky (strictly in the verbal sense of course).

It all became pleasantly busy on the social front being the festive season: drinks at the park; a pool party at a friends house (where everyone’s kids took it in turns to injure themselves at half hourly intervals) and a great New Years Eve party – definitely the first time I’ve brought in the New Year in the pool with a glass of bubbles eyeing up my girlfriend in her sexy new Sea Folly bikini. In between parties we managed to squeeze in some good days out. We spent a wonderful day at Sellicks beach where you can drive your car right onto the sand - the kids had their first taste of driving on Daddy’s lap before we found out that normal road rules apply. We enjoyed a couple of wineries in the Maclaren Vale (d'Arenberg was excellent) before being treated to a delicious lunch at a winemaker friend’s house. His daughter Cordelia is the same age as Ruby which was great for both of them as well as Harley who seemed to enjoy trying to keep up with the big girls in the pool. Two outings to the Adelaide Hills were fun as well, including a brief tasting at Penfolds, lunch at a fantastic microbrewery in Loebethal, a koala cuddling at the local wildlife park and least impressively a visit to the world’s largest Rocking Horse. (Harley concurrently attempted the world’s longest whinge and received his first bottom smack of the trip).

2008 already and my resolution in to make no resolutions but try to keep things as they are with my beautiful girlfriend and wonderful kids. Luckily they are forgiving too as I spend January 1st on a boy’s day out. Despite New Year’s Eve excesses we manage to get to the golf club by 10am. The temperature soon climbs to a toasty 42 degrees in the shade, so we are quite glad we hired a couple of buggies. Just in case we are not yet dehydrated enough, we retire to the bar for a late lunch. More beers at a 20:20 cricket match at the Adelaide Oval and a few games of pool to take us through to closing time at the oldest pub in Adelaide follow this.
Cunningly I take a pint of water and the wonderful Ozzie invention Barocca before bed, as it’s another early start in the morning heading for the Barossa Valley.