Ukulele Family

© Melissa Gaggiano

The Pinky Family

© Melissa Gaggiano

    What do you do for fun? Me, I occasionally wake up the cat and herd my family in front of a wrinkly bed sheet for a ten second photo shoot.

    Click here to see more of my photographic work.

A Walk in the Park

    It's not always a walk in the park, but sometimes there are going to be wonderful moments when being a parent is.

Photography by Melissa Gaggiano.

Happy Trails and Pizza Tonight

Yesterday my familywent for an excursion in the car. We drove to the other side of the city, all the way to Clifton Hill to buy a trailer to attach to the bicycle. Now that we have gotten rid of The Suzi, me and the girls will need an alternative mode of transportation.

The bike shop was an impressive set up. With long, long rows of bikes lining up, leaning, and dangling, plus an incomprehensible selection of accessories, as well as a repairs department all the way down the back. Customers flowed in and out of the shop every five minutes, often with a bike. The front entrance to the shop included a small wood staircase. A thin wood ramp had been built into the side of the stairs making it easier for people to enter and leave with a bicycle in tow. I could tell some of the people had ridden their bicycles to the shop. Though when we arrived, a customer towered over a sales person who was knelt and making adjustments to a bicycle, and he was dressed in a tailored corporate suit – I guess work doesn’t stop for people like that. Not even for a Saturday. An indie radio station played throughout the shop. I didn’t recognise it, but it was easy listening. Was I hearing the sound of jazz? I think the shop had once been a factory. It was made of brick and I could sense the ghosts of an old industrial age.

The trailer was packed into the car and being that it was way past noon we circled about looking for an eatery. We found a fancy café called Degani Café Bakery. Michael and I each ate the Degani beef burger – grilled, not fried. I ordered for Gwen fish ‘n’ chips and a chocolate milk shake. They gave her chicken nuggets, chips and a chocolate milkshake in a tall sundae glass. Gwen couldn’t finish her milkshake so I made sure to help her. Her drink was so tall Gwen had to kneel on her chair to reach the straw.

After everyone had something eat and drink [even Keira had her formula bottle] we drove onward and away from the city. It was time to meet some old friends, whom we had not seen in three years. Gwen loved playing at Rosemary and Walter’s home. Especially in the wilderness that is their yard. What with all the rains we have been having since the end of the drought the yard is thick with plants, grass and trees. The flora is an overflowing waterfall of green. It was fantastic. Gwen calls it a jungle where cheeky monkeys live. I call it a secret garden.

I am sitting outside again. It is late afternoon. It is summer and yet I am comfortable. There is a breeze and just a little sun filters through the massive tree that grows on the property next door. Michael is indoors with Gwen. And Keira is napping. My baby strawberry plants are growing okayish. I can see them from here. I am thinking of making cuttings from the gardenia so I can plant more throughout the yard. My underarms are itching. I have a rash from picking the weeds out of the front garden. At moments like this I feel like I could write into infinity. We are having pizza for dinner tonight. That’ll make everyone happy.

I have discovered that, like a monkey, Gwen can climb up her bunk all the way to the very top. Once I caught her, sitting and playing on the top, I brought her down. I then asked her to show Michael and I how she did it, so that we could know what Gwen is capable of. Sure enough she was using the safety bars to step and pull herself up. I was surprised by the strength in her limbs and just how quickly she could scale the bunk. Michael has suggested we remove the safety barriers so that she cannot use them to climb.

Saturday

Saturday — The opener for the weekend. This is usually the day that people get out and take stock of what hasn’t been done during the week. Be it grocery shopping, cleaning the truly gross build up in the toilet, and clipping the cat’s claws. All those generally mundane chores that is tiresome but often necessary.

Just sometimes though, Saturday comes along and the house is in order and there is enough in the pantry to seriously put Old Mother Hubbard to shame. So what do you do when a gem of a Saturday like this comes your way? Can you say ‘relax’?

Today is just one of those magical Saturdays. You may wonder how we are making this work. Well, there really are only two little trade secrets. Though I really wouldn’t say ‘secret’. There is nothing clandestine about what I am to share with you.

·      For starters, shopping is saved for another day, usually the middle of the week.

·      Sections of the house are cleaned as it is required, and not saved up for the one day of the week. Thus cleaning up does not become an all day endurance event.

There was nothing complicated about that, was there?

Saturday has become a day of relaxation for my family. A snap shot of this peaceful scene, you will find my daughter blowing bubbles, my husband playing Playstation 3, and I while away the time knitting, reading and writing this little piece. We may fit in a family walk and visit some pretty local park. Sit down to a cup of tea and a little bit of chocolate; discuss the week gone by and plans for the future.

What are you doing with your Saturday?