It's time for the next generation to get acquainted - thankfully, I know some and no one is of the Star Trek variety, as far as I am aware, yet. Some I last saw when I was 5 and visited my great-grandparents; some I've seen as recently as my sister's wedding, some I've hung out with somewhere in between and some I have never met. The plan is to take it slow and easy, use wheelchair to conserve my energy and spend lots of time supervising the boys in the pool... in my bikini purchased in Australia! Surprisingly enough, my incisions are below the lines of my suit (thanks, Dr YUM!) and it's a hell of a testimony for a cancer survivor to be wearing a bikini less than a month after surgery - one small step for a BRA chick, one GIANT step for a 40 yo mom with a very disfigured belly button due to the amazing advances in laparoscopic surgical procedures, but a very brave one... there may even be photos at some point in the future. ;-P
The story behind the bikini purchase is somewhat amusing. When I planned my trip I had two swimsuits I planned to take with me and felt a bikini was just pushing it for a 40 yo mom. The first lost it's elastic in the boob department on our GBR trip, I tucked someone's camera case in for a moment and it was the straw that broke the camel's back - had to buy a $20 souvenir t-shirt on the boat to prevent indecent exposure. The other one-piece I had with me - a true mom suit with tummy control lining, was just too hot to be comfortable. The third day of our trip we were in a resort town that had a few boutiques. I popped in one morning while the kids were preparing to sky dive (not in my itinerary) and asked if they happened to have any in my size. Thankfully, they had 3 to choose from in the generous boob carriage department, and I found 1 I liked. However, when you purchase a bikini in a resort town, they tend to be priced at a premium. Before the trip, the core BRA chix had given me VISA gift cards for a splurge of my choice during my excursion - once I used all three VISA cards (!), my bikini was reduced in price from obscene to almost affordable, so splurge I did. What a rejuvenating experience. The result was not pretty, but it was refreshing. And now that my controlled diet has removed another dozen pounds, it's even a slight improvement.
Back to AUS trip photos (YAY!). Day 5 was the day we embarked and broke camp at 5 a.m., traveled in a van w/ no A/C to get to the Steve Irwin Zoo by opening at 9. We arrived in the parking lot at 8:30, breakfasted and packed lunches from our community food kitty and spent the entire day in the zoo, while our guide spent the day getting the AC fixed - great use of time!
Still learning layout tricks on this system... Photo 1 is the entrance sign so I know where I took the photos... Photo 2 is snack time for the crocks with the goofy Americans first on the menu, just kidding, he's a 14 ft long preserved croc. No way I'd be that close to a live one. Even the lizards running free like our zoo pigeons were freaking me out (photo # 5). The prerequisite kangaroo feeding (3) and (4) a wombat on a leash. The park was ridiculously expensive to gain admission ($48/person) but was fastidiously clean and there were visible improvements in every exhibit. It appears that the death of Steve Irwin has given the means to preserve and improve the park, the employees and visitors feel a deep sense of honor to support the animals he used to educate the public and protect. The amount of information about each animal was impressive. I took lots of photos of each for future kid reports - not everyone will have a cassowary report in 5th grade.
This was the morning I only saw my live kangaroos as we were leaving our campground, they were grazing near the entrance much like deer. I came to realize that we see kangas as an exotic animal and to the Australians, they are much like our deer - roving grazers that don't respect private property, populations explode and the meat is highly nutritious and sustainable. I read an article that kangaroo meat is one of the most healthy available in the world due to the fact that they exist in a less polluted habitat, get vital exercise in their method of movement, eat a more healthy natural diet than commercially raised cattle and chicken and have less fat due to their energy level. I only tried kangaroo meat once and it was a taste which reminded me of dark meat turkey crossed with steak texture.
This week will be busy with errands prepping for the SD trip, one last surgical post-op appt., getting the guys to help with packing and just getting it all completed before 10:00 a.m. Saturday?! I'll touch base from SD as Dan will not leave home w/o his laptop. He will be the photo guru for the week to capture all the festivities. He did so well with Denise's wedding, it's now a given role for him and makes social interaction easier to hide behind a camera.
It will be a week of pushing the envelope and many, many naps - pray for patience, energy and safe travels. I may post again later this week, but time may get away from me. I'll at least make a short one after the surgeon report on Wed.
Peace and Blessings!
Michelle ;-P 8 >= <-- me wearing said bikini, the emoticons just keep getting more unique...
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