Week 3: You've Been Hazed

November 2nd-8th

Week 3

How are we in November already? And how have I already been here 3 weeks?

Things are feeling rather normal and I am very settled into the routine of life here. My Mondays-Wednesdays are great because both boys are at school. Which results in a lot of “Me Time” during the day. This usually means, Swim, Tan, Shower, Shopping. Or whatever I feel like. Thursdays and Fridays are a bit more involved as the youngest boy is at home with me. This usually means playground, café, and playing ninja turtles.

Things worth mentioning:

Au Pair initiation/hazing:

I have come to the conclusion that I am unstoppable. This is for several reasons:

1.     I have stepped on a Lego…and didn’t cry. And I know what you’re thinking…No I’m not a witch.

2.     I fearlessly did the “smell-test” on a 4 year-old's underwear that was sitting on the laundry room counter to determine if they were soiled or not. They were. I did not vomit.

3.     Even though I wash them repeatedly, my hands seem to have become infused with the aroma of Vegemite from all of the sandwiches I have been making the boys.

4.     Had a 3 inch cockroach crawl across my foot while in the kitchen. I did not scream.

5.     Found a cockroach in the kitchen a day later (May or may not have been same cockroach from number 4). Calmly placed bowl over it so Mark could take care of it when he got home.

(I’m not particularly proud of number 5, but it’s the best way I know how to cope right now.)

Other things worth Mentioning: 

Connect Group:

Connect Group is what they call 'small groups' at my church. This is a group of people that you meet with on a weekly or fortnightly basis outside of church. This is time to hang out, do a bible study, catch up on each others lives, etc. Anyway, last time I was here, I was in Linh’s connect group, so naturally when I return, I am jumping right back into it. A few of the members are still the same as last time, but there are A LOT of new faces. On Monday night I attended my first Connect Group 2.0. The group has certainly grown a lot since I was here last. The group consists of: Diego, Stephanie, Leonardo, Antone, Linh, Gabriele, Kassio, Sophia, Meli (Whom when first meeting said, ‘My names Meli’ but as she said it she kind of slurred ‘namesmeli’, so I heard ‘my name is smelly’, which of course meant I had to confirm saying “Smelly?” which prompted this room full of people I had just met to laugh at me. First impressions are awesome), Karsten, and Yunita. I think they said that there are more people who just couldn’t make that meeting. Everyone was super nice and welcoming and I’m excited to get to know them more. We meet every other week.

2 is company, 3 is a crowd

Tuesday was the famous Melbourne Cup day here in Australia. Melbourne Cup is, in short, a day of horse races. (Follow the link to learn more.) People go out and party hard. Women wear fancy dresses and silly hats and head-bands. I watched a bit of the races earlier in the day but was more interested in what the women where wearing.

But why does this mean 3 is a crowd? Well, because people party so much, one of the mums at school asked if I could bring her daughter, Poppy, home with Lachie. The biggest race was at 3pm which is exactly when kids need to be picked up. I had no problem doing this. But watching 3 kids was incredibly more involved that watching my 2 boys. Poppy is a sweet girl, but she is, as the locals might say, Full On. So much energy packed into a tiny little girl. I was chasing them around, preventing one disaster after another. Once Mark and Dan got home I politely retreated to my room and closed the door. 

Creative Team Meeting

After connect group on Monday, Gabriele invited me to creative team meeting on Thursday. This is a time where all of the people on the creative times (music, set design, lighting, etc) get together for a service that it specifically for them. Afterwards, they offer several master classes in different categories. So for vocalists, they can go to vocal workshops. I went to a photography one where we talked about different types of lighting and which type is best suited for certain subjects. It was pretty cool and I may go again, depending on what master classes are offered that night.