That's a Wrap

Reflecting that many bloggers out there do a wrap up post at the end of the year, neatly cataloging all their makes, or highs and lows to look back on in the future, I lamented to Steve that I can't do that since I've got so many things that I've made in the last six weeks that are as yet, un-blogged, my list would be pretty incomplete, or at least not a good reflection on the year. I guess people who blog for work can be a little more planned about things and maybe they are working in advance, but not so much with me. Even though I've been at the blogging for nearly 20 years now....

Anyway, in lieu of a "Here are all the things I made in 2024" I thought I'd do a little wrap up post with the fun things that have happened in the last six weeks that have helped the year speed to it's ending. Things that are just small and fun but special to us and I'll want to remember. 

The girls made boats. 

With an eleven week term to finish the year, the teachers at the girls school got creative and ran a bunch of activities to make the final week interesting and fun. One of these was a boat race across the school pool. Students were invited to make their own boat and it had to carry a ping pong ball across the eight metre pool. Both Sophie and Rachel were interested so we got into it. 

Inspired by the Pop-Pop Boat in Ponyo, they investigated different engines. Rachel made her boiler from a beer can and straws which was powered by steam when the heat from the candle did it's job. Sophie tried a variety of different designs - variations on the same theme - the most complex of which was bending copper pipes to be the boiler. Unfortunately her boat couldn't take the weight of the pipes and we had to try again. 

There was so much trial and error in both the boats. Loads of fixing one thing to have something new break. Sophie's especially which went from wood, to two layers of wood, to wood with balloons (supporting the weight of the pipes), and then to a variety of different milk bottle designs (when the balloons caused too much drag and we needed to nix the pipes in favour of a more compact boiler). After we finally gave in with the boiler, we switched to fan powered and Sophie did all the wiring to make the fan work from a 9V battery, including a switch in the circuitry. Thanks to girl guides for teaching her how to do most of that! 

Rachel, testing the Carmelita 3 in our neighbour's pool.

In the end we learnt a lot and had two functioning boats to launch in the pool on race day. Neither won, (or even made it all the way across the pool), but neither did they sink, so we still counted it a victory. The boats were named after we finished reading and watching the Netflix version of A Series of Unfortunate Events,  the Carmelita 3 (Rachel's boat), Beatrice 2 (Sophie's pipe boat) and The Persistence (Sophie's final fan boat). 

Sophie has been given the leadership role of Library Captain for 2025 at school. We are pretty proud of our girl, and think the role suits her to a T. Both girls actually signed up as Library Helpers this year and were very serious about turning up for their "shifts". In the last week of school when the kids were loitering around classrooms getting given jobs by teachers, both girls were requested at the library to help catalogue the new home readers. Hilarious. 

I came to school in my staff week to find this little beauty on my classroom door. I rescued him, took this selfie and he promptly jumped on my head. Managed to get him into a nearby garden to hopefully live out a full and happy life; it honestly made my day. 

Even when my school year wrapped up (a week earlier than the girls), I wasn't resting. Typically, I volunteered to help coordinate the Community Carols event hosted by the girls' school. It was a lot of work, easily twice the size of last year, but it made my heart oh so full to see the churches of the area coming together to celebrate Christmas and serve the community. 

After that, I spent the week packing things up and sorting things out and then Steve and I went off to Bundy for a quick one night (the girls started their holidays with sleepovers at grandparents) to celebrate Steve's sister's 30th. 

I got to make the cake. Which was a lot of fun. 

We had thought we were going to miss our Street Christmas Party (being in Bundy) but the Saturday night in Brisbane was so rainy they ended up postponing until the next day. Hooray! Steve and I could make it after all. The girls had made oreo truffles and my contribution to the food was this mango and avo sushi platter. 

Mango sushi - so delicious! 

Speaking of food, the following Saturday my family got together to celebrate what would have been my Pa-Pou's 100th birthday but also, 100 years of the Greek Faros Family in Australia. We all made greek food and had a lovely evening together. I contributed this bread which was just delicious. 

It was really lovely to be together sharing food and memories. I heard a language teacher recently mention that they feel bi-cultural, and I think I often feel that way. Growing up in Australia but with a strong connection to our Greek heritage. It's even more confused now with how influenced we are by my Japanese experiences, but I think it's something to embrace. What is God's vision of the future if not a city where every nation and every tongue is represented?  

Steve has continued sweating it out at Jiu-Jitsu each week, despite some injuries this year to level up to his purple belt. It's been over four years of training and he still loves it. Sophie had a six month break but has decided to give it another shot and now we can't keep her away - even in the heat of summer. 

Both girls helped to paint some Christmas decos for Church this year and Rachel is pretty proud of her little cow in the nativity scene. 

I have sewn so much - lots of presents and then just lots of little things. Actually looking forward to cataloging those as well (it kind gives January an easy start having all these things made and ready to blog about :P), just have to find the time. 

I'll finish this post of somewhat random collection of things with what I consider to be the Quote of the Year from Rachel. Last week, the girls had come with me to grab some groceries and we drove past school. I mentioned that the playground was dismantled (the P&C are funding a new one next year). Rachel says: "Oh that playground. I didn't play there much because it was always infested with children."

Beauty in the Darkness

When I listen to music on Spotify and the album or list ends, as I'm sure you may have also experienced, the music continues on. Spotify trying to find music I like to listen to, to keep me connected. I know it's all about money making capitalism, but I don't mind it. It can be hit and miss, but in October, after listening to a musical album (can't remember for sure, but maybe Ride?) it started spitting out musical tracks including this one from a musical I'd never heard of. 

Mythic played in 2018 at the Channing Cross Theatre in London. It's got a cast album recording, but not much else existing in the way of being able to see it. I was pretty instantly drawn to the lyrics of the song and looked up the album. 

It's based on the Greek myth of Persephone and Hades but is looking at it through the lens of the relationship between Persephone and Demeter. It's got lots to say about teenagers and growing up and making choices. Not as deep and challenging as Hadestown (which deals with some similar characters), but still meaningful and lots of fun. The whole album was honestly 90% a total banger, though I will admit the last two songs are not quite up to a big finish, but I feel like that's because everything that's come before is so hard to follow. 

I loved it and pretty quickly shared it with the girls, who are also very into Greek myths. That's thanks, in large part to Percy Jackson, but also the musical Hadestown and the plethora of Greek myth books we've got in the house. We are enamoured and I wish there were a way I could convince a theatre company in Brisbane to perform the show. 

In the meantime, I'm going to share with you the song that got me in - Beauty in the Darkness. Definitely worth a listen. Especially for the deep people who know that sad is happy. 

I saw the spires of Tartarus
Strolled along the Styx
Pet the great dog Cerberus
Who lay there scratching ticks
People say the underworld is cruel and dark
Did you know that deep inside it, there's a spark?

I found bliss among the ruins
I felt life within each tomb
I found shelter in the shadows
I saw light inside the gloom
There's a peacefulness in sorrow
If you stop and take a breath
There is beauty in the darkness
There is so much love in death

The spires are cracked in Tartarus
They're all in disrepair
The Styx is drenched in hopelessness
And swimming with despair
Only thing that's hopeless is your point of view
Everything has such potential, even you

'Cause there's treasure in the wreckage
Underneath all the distress
If you glanced beyond the mayhem
You'd see magic in the mess
There is mercy in the monster
Underneath his fiery breath
There is beauty in the darkness
There is so much love in death

There's redemption all around you
If you stop and take a breath
There is beauty in the darkness
There is so much love in death

Athena

Time for a random side quest into gardening. This is our Kalamata olive tree, planted in the front garden bed. We've wanted one for a long time. I love their silvery leaves. We happened to be at a garden centre one morning and the girls were campaigning hard. 

They named her Athena Sharp-Spear in the car on the way home. For her silvery, pointy leaves. 

Greek Easter

Taking a break from sewing, here is a post about food! Greek, or Orthodox, Easter is something that my family have always celebrated to some extent. Sometimes it lines up with "normal" Easter and we enjoy the long weekend at the same time as the regular folk do, and other times (more often than not) it's on a completely different weekend. 

This year, it was at least a month after Easter was celebrated by most Aussies. My parents had skipped the country on another travelling adventure, but I still wanted to have some Greek Easter festivities. So for the first time in my life, I made the Greek Easter Bread (Tsoureki) and the Greek Easter Biscuits (Koulourakia) and dyed the eggs red. 

It was honestly really strange doing all of these things myself since my mum has always been in charge of them, and before that, her mum or aunts. Greek cooking is very matriarchal it seems. The girls helped with the short bread (below), which again, was special to share with them. 

It was a real delight to have family and friends over to share the roast lamb and all the other things I take for granted at Easter time that others have never experienced. We all said the Greek greetings and had fun cracking the eggs. It was honestly just so great to be together with people we loved too, and felt very much "out of Covid" at last. 

Yay for Greek Easter. I'm honestly so lucky to celebrate what Jesus did for us twice every year. 

Life Goal Achievement Unlocked

Made Baklava.

Yep, that's one to cross off the to do list. It was delicious.