Heading Home

Friday afternoon now and I’m sat in the Air New Zealand lounge in Sydney airport awaiting my flight back to San Francisco. It’s been a great week—have spent a lot of time with my colleagues creating plans for 2009 and solving some of the challenges we’ve faced in 2008. Some of the things that have stood out include:

1. With the time difference, I’ve woken up around 5am each morning. Given the usual post-work dinner and drinks, the days have run long.
2. It’s very warm here. I went for a morning run on Monday and it took me an hour to cool down. I didn’t make that mistake again.
3. I saw the biggest spider ever this morning. From end to end, it was probably 2-3 inches in length. We stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Then, it blinked and disappeared.
4. Oddest sight of the week; a metal statue of Ned Kelly (check your history books) dressed in a Santa outfit and holding a rifle, out front of a house down the road. Merry christmas, everybody.
5. Unfortunately, I left my book on the Titanic disaster at the house I was staying at. I may never know what happened to the unsinkable ocean liner.

Have a quiet weekend planned, followed by preparations to fly to England next Sunday. Am excited to see family and for Jack to meet his great-grandparents.

Once Upon a Time...In a Land Far, Far Away

As I write this, I have just arrived in Australia to spend some time with my marketing counterparts in the company’s Brisbane office. At some point in the future, it will be interesting for Jack (or perhaps Marcus and Deagan) to look for some of the places that I flew over on my way from Los Angeles to Sydney…the Channel Islands, Honolulu, Nadi, Papeete, Samoa, the South Pacific Ocean, Coral Sea, and Tasman Sea. Of course, there'll be a test at the end of it.

After the 14-hour flight (not helped by the fact that United’s aging jumbo jet didn’t have seat-back TVs), I had a couple of hours in Sydney waiting for my connection on Qantas to Brisbane. As usual, I picked up a newspaper to see what’s happening in Australia—I find it a good way to acquire some conversation-starters and show that you know something of day-to-day life here.

Of course, it’s summer at present, so Brisbane (which is in the tropics) is very warm—
temperatures are above 30C/85F. Staying at the house of work colleagues of mine, I spent Sunday afternoon alternating naps and work, before having a very good dinner (steak, couscous, red wine) with several members of the team.

Tomorrow is the first of 4 days in the Brisbane office before returning home on Friday. Jack and Kelly will be back from Michigan the following Tuesday and we’ll be preparing for our Christmas trip to England, which we are all very excited about.

World Traveler

Jack's passport arrived yesterday. He has a nice little photo in it, complete with wide eyes and flamboyant hair. Thankfully, you cant see my hands around his body (I was holding him at arms length in front of the camera). As such, he is set to begin accruing border control stamps on each page. Amazing to think that by the end of his first calendar year, he will have taken at least 6 flights. They grow up so fast.

His musical tastes are developing, falling asleep to Kanye West and laughing up a storm to the Grand Ole Duke of York. If a hip-hop version of the latter ever gets released, Jack will be beside himself.

The Same Old...

I just realized I hadn't posted in a while so thought I'd just provide a quick update while Jack naps.

The last few weeks have been relatively uneventful, though we are doing various activities to prepare us for the holidays. Last weekend we went and applied for Jack's passport which he'll need for our flight to England at Christmas. The passport arrived today, suggesting that the State Department has ironed out the kinks in the passport application process which plagued them a few years ago. Mick is in the process of filling out paperwork to register Jack as a British citizen; this means Jack will have dual citizenship. We have begun our holiday shopping (have had 2 weekends of it now) and are almost done with our list, which is a relief!

Jack is doing well, growing (as usual) like a weed, as is evident from these pictures. He is sleeping very well at night - usually a good 10+ hour stretch once he falls asleep around 11 pm. We'd still like his bedtime to be a bit earlier, but we realize how incredibly fortunate we are that he's been sleeping such long stretches since he was about a month old. We think he's started teething so that's throwing a bit of a curve to us but we are managing. The biggest challenge for me has been to find teething products that are not made of plastic with BPA and/or are not made in China. I just don't trust the plastic & painted products from China, particularly for something that is supposed to be in his mouth. I have found a few options, including Sophie la Giraffe who is handmade in the French Alps; her price certainly reflects this.

We changed our plans for Thanksgiving as Mick now has travel to Australia for work right after Thanksgiving. We were going to fly to Michigan for the holiday but now are going to drive (eeek!) which will be interesting as Mick isn't a big fan of the drive & Jack HATES his car seat. Shergar and I have done the 12-hour drive many times before and aren't bothered by it so we will try to impart that attitude to our traveling companions.

Jack, Shergar, and I will stay in Michigan after Thanksgiving so we have company while Mick is away. We'll return via car (just me & Jack... that's the trip I'm nervous about!) in mid-December, just in time to pack for England as we're leaving on Dec. 21.

It's so hard to believe that just a year ago Mick and I were in Australia together, still in a bit of shock that we were newly expecting. That trip to Sydney and to the Great Barrier Reef will forever seem to me like our last travel hurrah before becoming parents. Now, travel and vacations have a whole new meaning (and require a LOT more preparation & list making!).

We'll keep everyone posted about our holiday travels. Knowing us, I am sure there will be some good stories...

A New Era

It has been an incredible night here in the Collins household and throughout America. Mick and I are very aware of what a momentous occasion this is and we feel a tremendous responsibility to ensure that Jack understands it too, someday.

We've popped the champagne, rejoiced when we saw that our beloved Virginia finally voted Democratic (first time since 1964!), and smiled along with President elect Obama as he gave his acceptance speech.

There are no words to express how incredible this moment is, how fortunate our son is to be born in a country where the people's voice and choice counts (at least in this election), and how truly meaningful this is to those whose voices have been squandered for hundreds of years.

It is my sincere hope that Jack understands the significance of this moment, just 43 years after the Voting Rights Act was passed. As the parent of a dual citizen, it is not lost on me that many countries look to the U.S. as a beacon of hope, as a symbol of what can be. Sadly, the last few years have tarnished that reputation and have made me even more eager to reestablish our standing as a great society that cares for its poor, its environment, and its sick.

Ultimately though, I hope that this election enables all Americans -- regardless of political persuasion -- to come together to work to reestablish America's position in the world as one of the greatest nations in the world.

Voting

We voted!

It took two tries, but we made it happen. I went by myself to the polls around 6:15 this morning (they opened at 6 am) but the line was insane - about 500 people long! I knew Mick had to be to work early, so I came home and decided to go later.

Jack and I then headed out at noon to try again. I packed a bag for us, complete with two bottles, three diapers, two pacifiers, one change of clothes, etc. Wouldn't you know though that I didn't need ANY of it! There was absolutely no line when we arrived so we just walked straight up to the voting booth and voted. Jack received a "Future Voter" sticker - exciting.

Sadly, Mick, Shergar, and Jack all have the same voting privileges: none. If Mick had married me a year earlier, he'd have his dual citizenship by now and would be able to vote, but that's another issue...

We have champagne chilling in the fridge for tonight as we watch the election results roll in.

Lots of Fall Fun

The last few weeks have had us busy doing all sorts of fall-related activities. As you can see from this picture, Jack loved Halloween. So many people have told us over the last few months that his hair makes him look like a rock star that we decided that's exactly what he'd be for Halloween. The sunglasses are an early Christmas present, courtesy of Papa (thanks!).

Actually, the pumpkin carving earlier in the day went well. Jack and Shergar sat on the porch with us (Mick took the day off) while we cleaned the pumpkin and carved. Unfortunately, the trick-or-treating time coincided with Jack's "unhappy hour" which usually lasts a few hours every evening.

The weekend before Halloween we went to Great Falls, VA for a gorgeous hike with Shergar. The leaves weren't really changing yet but the weather was mild and Jack was well behaved in the Jack Pack.

This past Sunday, we headed downtown as Jack hasn't been to the Mall yet. We have taken him downtown to see our offices, but he hadn't seen the monuments yet. We were able to show him the Lincoln, the Washington Monument, the new WWII Memorial, the Capitol, the Jefferson, and the FDR. He tolerated his stroller for the first 15 minutes and then he wailed (he hates his stroller & car seat) so Mick carried him around for the rest of our trip.


I have updated our photo album so take a look to see more of these pictures. Oh, and a quick explanation on the random pictures of Jack with the cloth on his face:
He has taken to constantly putting his burp cloth on his head and then covering and uncovering his face. He doesn't do peek-a-boo yet so I can't figure out why he loves this so much. It can literally keep him occupied for a half hour or more. Mick and I just laugh. The first time I saw it, Jack was on the floor and his entire head was covered with the cloth. I asked Mick why he did that and Mick looked at me as if I were crazy and said "I didn't do that... he did!" So I just had to take pictures of it. What a weird child.