Happy New Year!

I can't believe it is already 2010 ...... even harder to believe that the Sydney Olympics was almost 10 years ago!

Last year was a massive year for the Keens - we relocated from Sydney to Mittagong, had Madeline (now nine months), Paul changed jobs, my dad had two heart attacks and we finally got rid of our Kennards Hire fence! Eventful to say the least!

I am hoping 2010 will be little less eventful .......... but fantastic all the same!

Tree change

Since we moved out of Sydney to the Southern Highlands in January this year, tempting first home buying offers have driven many more of our friends out of Sydney to where house prices are far more affordable and you can get so much more, allowing them to live the old fashioned Australian dream!

Central Coast, Southern Highlands, Wollongong and QLD seem to be calling people at the moment.

Many more have said to me that they would love to live out of Sydney - I say do it! Apart from the long commute Paul has to make working in the heart of Sydney, we love it. The air, the people and lifestyle are massive draw cards! You only live once - you may as well enjoy it!

You know you no longer live in Sydney when.......

1) You can actually see stars in the sky.......thousands and thousands of them!
2) The Woolworths checkout guy offers to help you to your car with the shopping (OK I was 8 months pregnant, but still!!)....and there were at least three people waiting in queue behind me!
3) You go to buy a ticket in the biggest lottery in Australian history ($106 million) and there is no queue at all!
4) The only way to get seafood is to buy it off the back of a truck......literally!! Fresh from the coast!
5) You get stressed if you can't get a parking spot right outside your destination.
6) You have to have a five minute conversation with anyone and everyone.
7) You meet someone at the park, who just happens to know the person you met a month ago at the play centre, who knows another person you met at the park about three months ago.....and so on!
8) Dogs have two heads...OK maybe not, but you never know around here!!
9) You can park your car at the station all night without being stolen, keyed or broken into.
10) You can take your car to get something fixed and it only takes an hour, rather than a whole freakin day!
11) They will also drop you off at the shopping centre while you wait and then pick you up!! Now that's service!!
12) NRMA comes in five minutes!
13) The most amazing array of birds hangout in your backyard and no magpies or mynor birds in sight!!
14) You can still buy golliwogs!!

I could go on......but my brain has gone to sleep and I think you've probably read enough by now!

There are some things that never change though........

1) Old people still give you the death stare when your toddler chucks a tantrum in the shopping centre!
2) Maccas is always packed
3) Blokes that drive SS Holden Utes are still idiots!
4) Coffee is just as great!