Journal

Welcome to the Newest Power Family Member

Smile_Teddy I am sorry it has been a while and I know that so many people have been asking about the new addition...

Edward James Power (Teddy Bear) was born on the 7th June, almost 1 year to the day that we kicked off the PowerShot Great Aussie Road Trip.

The girls adore their little brother and can't wait to hit the road with him. Infact, our first trip is next weekend, we are taking the family to the snow. Teddy is a little over 3 months now and has settled into Power family life so well, especially spending time in the car, so we know it won't be long til we hit the road again and we all can't wait!

Book has been put on hold for a few months, is still in the planning stages however life kind of got in the way (well I knid of let it, Teddy is a great time waster!) You will see a new site coming soon too with lots of new features. I know I have been promising this one for a while too but now I have help so it will actually happen!

The bug is still biting so rest assured, the Power Family will be on the road in the Camper soon!

Almost 6 months on

Submitted by Rachel Power on Mon, 23/02/2009 - 9:17am.

Well, here we are almost 6 months on from returning home. So much has changed for us with a new baby on the way, Jasmine has started school and we are dying to get out and travel again.

I'll start with the baby as I have had a few people ask me about that - or should I say HIM! He is healthy and all is going well, a couple of hiccups in the beginning but nothing I am not used to now this is number 3. We are all looking forward to having a little baby around again and Jemma keeps asking "when is the baby going to fall out?"

Jasmine is now starting her 4th week of kindy and loves every second of it. She is such a confident child and is the one who will go up to any other child and ask them to play. I have had a few mother's so thankful for Jasmine as they were worried how their daughters would fit in not knowing anyone but after the first week they all knew (and loved) Jasmine! While she was a very self confident child before I attribute her love of making friends to the trip. On her first day I couldn't help but remember the way she used to study every car that would enter the caravan park and if there were shildren on board she would stalk them! No sooner had the family set up camp, she was there with soccer ball in hand ready to play with her new friends. Seeing her so happy at school is such a blessing, she never worries about leaving me (which is good because I think I would be a blubbering mess if she burst into tears) as everything is an opportunity to her. She really has learnt so much more than we realised she would on the road trip.

Jemma loves the chance to have me to herself 2 days a week, the other 3 days she is with her family day care mother Swarna and 2 other little girls. This is nice as she is slowly coming out of Jasmine's shadow. She too is more confident although she has always had Jasmine to do the talking for her, now she has to make her own friends and talk for herself. While we see so much of Jasmine's personality in Jemma, she has also developed her own stories from the trip and her own way of making new friends which is lovely to watch.

We put all our home videos onto dvd last week and I think we have watched them 5 times already. re-living the memories and seeing the wonderful places like Eighty Mile Beach again has been so nice, however it has also reignited the travel passion in us all. It was such a wonderful time to spend together that we just want to go back - no work, no interruptions, plenty of time to do and see what we wanted and above all - no yard work! Greg is spending a lot of time finishing off the yard for the girls to play as they adore being outside. Most nights we climb exhaustedly into bed and one of us will make the comment "imagine we were climbing into our camper right now..." to which the other always groans in agreeance!

I can not tell you how much this trip has changed our lives and how much more we want to keep travelling. It truely is addictive and we have BIG plans. I am still contacted by media for comment on travel in Australia which I am more than happy to talk about but I want to relive it, there is still so much more for us to experience.

The journey continues

Submitted by Rachel Power on Wed, 14/01/2009 - 1:55pm.

I have to thank all of you for following our journey and the great feedback that we have received. I am pleased to announce that we are now publishing a book about our adventures in the hopes that so many more people will get out and see our fantastic country.

The book will have the journal with added entries that are not currently online, our favourite places with more information about them, how to take a great photo everytime and some of the tips and tricks we have learnt along the way.

We expect the book to be available for sale in a few months. I will sell it through this website as well as list stores who will be stocking it. It is a very exciting conclusion to one part of our journey with plans for another big trip in 4 years. I'll keep you updated on those plans.

Not content being at home any more we are now planning some more adventures. Starting with a story that has been in many newspapers and tv stations. Yes - the Power Family are applying for the Best Job In The World. QLD Tourism are looking for someone to be the face of the Reef Islands and showcase what an incredible part of the world they have. We agree but would love your help. While the job would officially employ one of us, we are offering our whole family for the price of one.

In the next few days we will be submitting a video to the job website www.islandreefjob.com and we would love your help to get the wild card entry into the interview process. Tourism QLD will choose 10 applicants to interview however they will also give a wild card entry to the people's favourite video application. Lets make it a family who can show everyone how holidaying is really done!

Just to make things interesting, the job starts on July 1st 2009 - yes that would mean we miss another Canberra winter (shucks). It also means that our baby will be 4 weeks old, Jasmine will be 6 and Jemma will be 4. What a perfect way to show how easy it is to explore and enjoy the reef and islands from every aspect or age.

So look out for the Power Family video application, I'll post a link when we upload it. The more votes you give us, the more chance we have to sell ourselves in person to Tourism QLD and show them that a family can sell Australia to anyone.

New beginnings

Submitted by Rachel Power on Thu, 06/11/2008 - 9:36am.

I promised to tell you about the girls returning to normal life, preschool and day care. Jasmine was so excited about seeing all her friends again and showing off her photos and collections of everything she brought back. She loves preschool so much and gets so excited every day she gets to go. It is really a joy taking her to school and watching her face light up as soon as she wakes up on school days.

Jemma on the other hand, she loves taking her sister to preschool however when we leave she gets all sad because she doesn't want to go to care. It is heart breaking having a child who just makes this sad face and won't let you go when you get to the door. I know she cheers up and has lots of fun while she is there but I still hate leaving her. After having us all to herself 24/7 she doesn't want to give that up. She isn't too bad with Daddy going to work or if I go out without her however when we both leave there is tears. She had 2 weeks of Care when we got back and now her Day Care Mother, Swarna, is on leave for her daughters wedding. Jemma enthusiastically waves good bye to everyone in the mornings and runs to me excitedly for a big hug. She is happy through the day to draw and play on her own and is a different child from when she is with Jasmine. It has been an interesting time with her. She is looking forward to going to preschool herself and gets so excited at the thought, unfortunately that won't be until 2010.

This weekend marks the official closing of the PowerShot Great Aussie Road Trip Project. While this is the official end, it is just the beginning for us. We are currently working on book deals, articles, Photographic Tours and lots more as a result of our fantastic time we had on the road. We are itching to get out and travel more and will be doing it a lot more often (as soon as Greg finishes off the paving).

Just to throw a spanner in the works, I am happy to announce that we are expecting our third child - see trips like this really do change your life! I have been struck hard by morning sickness that also hits in the afternoon. I have to say that I have renewed my love for the DreamPot as a lifesaving device for cooking dinner at lunchtime - the only time I feel ok! The girls are very excited and want a baby sister while Greg and I would like a boy, we would love whatever we have but a boy would be a nice change. Jasmine keeps saying "Mummy, if you have a girl it's cheaper... you don't have to buy new clothes or toys we have everything already!" Wise beyond her years that one, it is true though everything we own is pink and girly!

Watch this space for news of our latest offerings and make sure you tell us on the forum what you would like to see from us.

For anyone in Canberra please come and see us this weekend at the FBA Family Expo at the National Zoo and Aquarium. We will have our camp set up with lots of photos to show off and we are looking forward to chatting with lots of people who have been following our adventures.

There are new images from our trip on the gallery so make sure you check them out. THanks for following and while I won't be updating this as regularly now we are home, I will still make posts to let you know how we are going.

We are planning a 6 week trip too at the moment and will keep a journal for that one too. It will have an interesting aspect as we will have a very little one with us on that trip! Stay tuned...

Being home

Submitted by Rachel Power on Tue, 14/10/2008 - 8:54am.

Well, here we are, a little over 2 weeks since we got home and how are we coping?? Greg started back at work late last week and I was preparing for the worst with the girls (especially Jemma who has loved Daddy's attention). To my surprise, they both took it in their stride and there was no effect at all.

We are settling back into home life and Greg is finishing off the landscaping. Our backyard is quite a sight with pavers, landscaping rubbish and knee high grass. I think this is the hardest part for the girls, not having the wide open spaces to play. Daddy gets very upset when bikes are ridden on the unfinished paving, the girls get upset that they have no where to ride them! Nearing the end so all will be well in a week or so hopefully (finger crossed).

I have found keeping the kitchen and lounge clean is so much easier and Jasmine in particular is much more helpful when it comes to cleaning up that she has been. I think living in confined spaces has changed us. I am still determined to get rid of a lot of things however as it feels so cluttered we just have so much 'stuff' it's time to go!

Jasmine is looking forward to starting back at preschool on Thursday. She counts down the sleeps. We are putting together a photo album for her to take in and show off. She is so excited, it is great to see.

Jemma is looking forward to going back to care (2 days a week while Jas is at preschool) because she found out that Swarna hs a new bike for her to ride! The first few weeks will be interesting with her. I have noticed an increase in the spontaneous cuddles from Jemma which I love however I am sure it is because she doesn't want things to change. She loves having Daddy and Mummy 24/7 and it will be hard to get back into her routine with care. I mentioned finding an early preschool for her and she got so excited so I guess I have my work cut out to now find one.

We still haven't unpacked the Camper Trailer. I think we are procrastinating as it really means the end. We have our first weekend away booked for the end of November which we are all looking forward to. I think the trick is to have the next trip planned so there is something to look forward too.

I will post again next week and tell you how we went with school and care starting back... it will be an interesting time.

For those of you in Canberra I will be roof sitting on Friday 17th Oct to raise money for Juvenile Diabetes. Come out and see us and sponsor us per hour, we will be at Urban Contractors, Beltana Road Pialigo (on the other side of the round about from the nurseries). Come and say Hi.