Monthly Archives: June 2011

Bikes and Pictures

Unfortunately we didn’t seem to get the good weather the rest of the UK got this weekend, but when you live in Scotland you learn just to get wet!  Saturday we once again employed the wondrous service of Nancy next door to baby sit Ellis for a few hours whilst we went to the Pitfichie Downhill track with Rich (Nancy’s worser half).  This is where we really enjoy and reap the rewards of buying a 4wd car last winter – ‘Scrappy’ (yes she has a name) can drive to the top of the DH track with bikes on the back thus giving us the luxury of not having to push up after each lap for 35 minutes and can get more time going down than pushing up!

The rain showers were coming in and out making the track really slippy, once again Lara’s fear of wet slippy off camber roots came into play.  Many a cloud of blue air came from the wife as these things strike the fear of god into her! 

apart from the wet roots we managed to get four runs each (as we take turns in shuttling to the top) and had a great time, it is one of those tracks the more you ride it the more you get to know the lines and get faster and faster each time you go.

I have one of my best mates Mr &Mrs to be Raven’s Weddings coming up in a few weeks, normally I love weddings and get very excited for them.  Not this one, for some reason I thought it a great idea to offer my services as the wedding photographer.  It seemed a great idea at the time, but as the time gets closer and closer I am really starting to sh*t it!  I have been a keen amateur photographer for many years, usually just trying to get decent pictures for blogs or records of our doings.  I have done little what I would called ‘ proper ‘ photography.  Now doing the pictures for someones’ wedding is what I would call important, and thus should be taken seriously. There is only one other added pressure, the Mr and & Mrs to be have just started a blossoming career as wedding photographers…… so no pressure there then!

I have started practising, mainly on lara and the baby, but I am going to soon meet up with a few friends and start having portrait sessions with them.  Basically the more pictures I can take the better chance I have of not completely messing up the pictures for the big day.  With the ever suffering wife we went off to take some pictures.  Don’t worry I will not bore you with hundreds of pictures, but maybe just one or two.

Above : I sat there trying to coax a smile out of her for about 5 minutes and then gave up as she was just sitting there randomly rolling over into the dirt and then chatting to the twigs. But I wanted a picture of Ellis in the woods so just took it, I like it but would have been better if she would have given me a smile.  I think Ellis is going to have to work on her modelling abilities before I offer any sort of pocket money!

Again , far more interested in the wheat than looking and giving me a smile….  thankfully Lara was a much more helpful model and was being kind to me, I shall give her her pocket money 🙂

As a side note Richard and his five year old daughter Katie came to the woods with us and went for a bike ride together

I watched then ride off down the little singletrack paths into the woods, and I have to admit I was rather  jealous of Rich being able to go riding with his daughter, she was having a great time loving being on the bike only having dumped her stabilisers 6 weeks ago and whizzing around everywhere with a smile on her face.  I suppose my time will come and before I know it Ellis will be having to wait for ‘ the old man’ when we go biking together.  All good things come to those that wait.

We like long days up here

Coming up to Summer Solstice we have very long evenings after work to go out and play with.  Me, Rich, Martin, Scott and Rob went out for a good ride in the Cairngorms.  We met at Loch Muick car park and went up and over into Glen Clova (the Chapel Mounth descent is amazing) bottom we decided not to risk it (this time)

After the normal post wicked descent ” you nearly hit this” & “I so thought I was going over the bars on that rock” type chat we headed up to the falls of Bachnagairn.  Scott and I stood at the top of the waterfall contemplating jumping into the plunge pool, but not knowing how deep or the rocks under the water we decided to leave it for a sunny day so we can go and really check it out.

It was a bit of a hide a bike back up on to the top then descended down the ‘lightening strike’ back down to Loch Muick.

I had a pretty good stack here, managing to grab onto a load of heather to stop me sliding off down to the left.  Nothing serious just a few cuts and bruises.  Got to the bottom and then rode around the loch and back home to bed and get tucked in fast to get enough sleep not o fall asleep at the desk tomorrow!  A great ride and even better to be able to do it on a school night!  Rest of the pictures can be seen by clicking here

Lara’s Birthday

We went to Glentress with Matt, Emma and Rich.  It was great to get Lara back out on the bike again, I looked after Ellis as Lara went off and biked, it was the first real time I was left alone with Ellis for a great amount of time due to her not taking a bottle easily.  It was good to allow Lara some time off, as she dissapeared off into the forest, I looked down and it dawned on me ” oh sh*t, I am alone with the baby!”  She just sat there adn dribbled a bit.

Above the bikers.  We stayed over night in Peebles as well and it being Lara’s birthday we all went out to dinner in Peebles.  We stayed in the camp site and it was Ellis’s first time camping

We had been doing some internet reseearch and there are not real sleeping bags available for babies as small as her thatIi would be comfortable allowing her to sleep outside in.  So instead we bought her a goose down snow suit to sleep in.  Looks toasty doesn’t it!

We put her to bed and sat outside the tent drinking wine to celebrate Lara’s birthday.  Was great being back outside and camping again.

We even brought the baby monitor with us.  Ellis was fine and slept no problems, a huge relief which gives us the green light to take her away alot more.  She is a good little baby.  She even comes for morning cuddles with dad in the tent.

Surprise Visit

We tricked mum to come up for a week and she thought it was just going to be here looking after Ellis, little did she know that her beloved antipodean daughter and husband had flown over as well!!!!!

Poor mum nearly had a heart attack when Rachel rang the door bell when she answered it, I am sure they were tears of joy rather than any thing else……?

It was great, it is not very often we get the whole family together, we spent a lot of the time going for walks in and around Deeside, below is in Glen Tanar where we had a great walk with Ellis first visit to the Cairngorm National park

We also visited the local falconry centre, Lara and I had been meaning to come here for years, and it was well worth it, you get to handle the birds and a couple where even tame enough to stroke.  Amazing creature.  One decided that the bate the handler had wasn’t enough so plucked his own lunch in the form of a local starling out the ski and happily ripped it to shreds.  Rather amazing to watch nature in action like that.  My favourite was ”Smudge’

He was a barn owl who liked to be scratched under his chin!  cute little fella he is above with mum holding him.

Ryan now works for Wilson so brought a back of rackets with him, most days we played either squash or tennis, it was great to play as a family, Rachel was the worst ball girl ever though, in fact I think she actually fell asleep!

A huge massive wopping thanks to R&R for coming over to see us, it is a huge effort and promise we will be over to Oz soon when Ellis is big enough to take the flight.  The rest of the pictures can be seen by clicking here