Xavier hard at work while Xaria attempts to look busy

At least my son's got clothes on

Problem is, they generally never get them finished. Xavier’s is now on the fridge only half done. And Xaria, well, I have no idea where her’s is, perhaps she ate it.

Heading out of town past the Naval Base towards the Yacht Club

Heading down the infamous Lawes Road towards Konedobu

Heading along Wards Road from the hospital towards Murray Barracks

We don’t have a ute, and get around in a 4×4 Honda CRV supplied by Aaron’s company.  Is it safe to admit to the interwebs that my kids like to ride in the boot?  And if the baby is scratchy she rides up front sharing my seatbelt while I breastfeed her?  On well, that’s just how we roll here in Mosbi:)

Images taken on my cell phone while cruising Port Moresby the last few days.

PNG banana’s are my favourite, and this is the cutest lil pineapple I’ve ever seen. Fresh fruit is just the best.

One thing I’ve noticed in the supermarket is fruit and vege don’t have the “store perfect” look you get back home. Here it may have blemishes, or be an irregular shape, but it’s fresh and grown the way it should be. And PNG fruit and vege is so tasty. The only imported produce I buy are apples, oranges, lemons and onions as they don’t seem to be grown here. Otherwise I only buy local produce from the supermarket or street vendors.

Maria is very quiet, but often tells me about her home life, and I always ask after her wantok (whanau / family). She lives with her elderly parents and her much older brother and his extended family (wife, children, and grandchildren).

One day she told me of an incident that happened “where she stays” last year. She lives in Sabama, which is about 3 to 4 suburbs over. Two different tribal groups started fighting and the men send all the women and children up the mountain behind where they live, while the men protected their homes. Maria said they went up the mountain and down the other side into another village, who made them all sit around the church grounds to wait out the fighting. Needless to say, she didn’t go to work that day. Afterwards, the Sabama markets were closed for a while … this is where the fighting broke out. The very same markets that Maria walks through everyday. Bus stop is on one side, housing on the other. Hence why she works school hours (approx 9-2). Other Haus Meri’s don’t have this luxry, I know of many whose meris start at 7am in the morning andwork till 5 at night. Definately not safe hours to be travelling around Port Moresby on PMVs (passenger motor vehicle i.e. bus).

Methinks it’s definitely time to

• get more sleep at night
• finish weaning off my PND meds

Looking down at Koki taken from near the end of our street

Compound razor wire and guard house (not our housing complex though)

Looking forward this year to:

• running / jogging -> surely that equals weight loss
• carving out some time for regular sewing and a little crafting
• whipping my haus meri into shape (managing a housekeeper is not my forte, and when left to her own devices only the absolute bare minimum is done)
• study … or at least contemplating some study, like a teaching degree via www.open.edu.au
• blogging more would be nice too, specially since I don’t scrapbook or keep a non digital photo-album, I need to preserve some memories for my children when they’re older

Hubbies new ta moko – it is a disguised manaia with our whanau depicted in it. The middle koru is me (wifey) and the three koru round the bottom/side are the kiddies. The manaia represents Aaron, guardian of his whanau.

Finished Xavier’s camo garland / bunting … am now weaving in the ends.

More creative spaces here.