Three times and you’re locked outside forever
(on the way to school)
Dad: You’re brining your ammonite fossil?
RJ: Yeah. I want to show it for news.
Dad: Be extra super careful with it… Most kids don’t get to bring ammonites to school. Know why?
RJ: Because they’re really hard to find?
Dad: Yep… but mostly because their parents know they are going to drop them.
RJ: I think there’s a rule. You can drop them one time, and that’s okay, but drop them two times and you’re out. No more fossils for you.
Iris Awards Finalist!
I’m feeling pretty nervous today! Tonight is the opening night of the PCP Iris Award Exhibition… and I’m in it!
Two weeks ago I received a phone call letting me know that I was a finalist for the Iris Award for Contemporary Portraiture. It’s run by the Perth Centre for Photography, a local organisation promoting photography and emerging talent. It’s a huge deal for me, because it’s judged by both professional photographers and artists with a strong grounding in contemporary photography and art history.
It doesn’t help that I’ve seen some of the other finalists (and rejected entries) and they were just awesome.
All I can say is, “I’m not worthy!” and, “They Like Me, They Really Like Me!!!”.

Barn Unfinished Breakfast : My entry for the Perth Centre for Photography Iris Award for Contemporary Portraiture... What a mouthful!
The secret of my success? Having really cute kids and taking way more photos than any human being should reasonably be allowed to.
Seriously, if there was a tax on megapixels the IRS and ATO would be hunting me down.
Communication breakdown
(walking home from school)
RJ: I have a girlfriend, you know.
Dad: I didn’t know that.
RJ: Yeah. She’s at my other school.
Dad: That’s cool. What’s her name?
RJ: L. But we don’t talk much.
Dad: Really?
RJ: Actually. She doesn’t talk to me… and I don’t talk to her either… but she’s still my girlfriend.
Worst… Party… Ever…
Time to see what’s in the invention box
(while eating breakfast)
LR: RJ, the Earth wont be around forever. The sun is going to blow up and the Earth will get completely burned.
RJ: But I want to do something awesome. I know, I’ll save the mammoths!
LR: You’ll have to go past Jupiter.
RJ: I’ll take them to Pluto. It’s icy.
Dad: But where are you going to get the mammoths. They’re extinct now.
RJ: I’ll need a time machine… But I have to invent it first.
And on that note…
(while eating dinner)
Dad: I love that song. Maybe I could learn to play it on the piano!
LR: Or on the guitar!
RJ: Or on the ukelele!
LR: Or on the flute!
RJ: Or on the computer!
LR: Or on the drums!
RJ: Or on a violin, but the bow is made from lots of spider webs that are stretched very long on a stick… But you would have to play it very carefully.
And that’s final!!!
(in an airport)
Dad: Come on RJ, let’s go to the toilet before we get on the plane.
RJ: I don’t need to go. I’m fine.
Dad: It’s a lot easier to go now. You’ll have to sit still after we get on the plane.
RJ: I’m not going anywhere! EVER!
Dad: Last chance, mate.
RJ: (yelling) I’M STAYING RIGHT HERE… UNTIL THE SUN BLOWS UP!
So… What have the Romans ever done for us?
(while eating dinner)
RJ: I’d like to thank somebody tonight. I’d like to thank the Romans… for inventing toilets.
RJ: THANK YOU ROMANS!
(LR, Mum and Dad): Thank you Romans!
Dad: They invented plumbing and running water in houses too.
… a few moments later …
RJ: I’d like to thank somebody tonight. I’d like to thank the Romans again… for inventing running water!
RJ: THANK YOU ROMANS!
LR, Mum and Dad: (groaning) Thank you Romans!
… a few minutes later …
RJ: I’d like to thank somebody else tonight. I’d like to thank the Egyptians! For inventing paper!
(LR, Mum and Dad): ARRGGGHH!!
Shhhhhhhhh!
QUIET! We’re pinching net access from the local library at the moment, so things are going to be very quiet around here until we reach another branch of civilization (where the tubes for teh internets are plugged in right).
More to come soon!
P.S. The people around here have VERY large belt buckles — we’re talking dinner plates here. The best thing is that they’re wearing them with shorts. I love this crazy place.









![<a href="http://tobob.com/200910/we-have-a-winner/">We have a winner!</a> - Remember this picture?
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LR was very excited to receive a package in the mail yesterday from Double Helix magazine. It turns out that her wonderful Solar System picture won her a prize in the competition!
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... We have a winner!](http://tobob.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/200908-Aug18-21-IMG_4729-Edit-450x326.jpg)




![<a href="http://tobob.com/200912/rj-in-concert/">RJ in Concert</a> - At the end of the year, the kids have a seemingly endless run of concerts and exhibitions. RJ has been working on his song for a while and finally had his big concert. He did a fantastic job and got a massive round of applause.
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Make ... RJ in Concert](http://tobob.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/wpid1109-200912-Dec13-12-IMG_2489-321x450.jpg)
![<a href="http://tobob.com/200912/live-in-concert/">Live, in concert</a> - LR had her first piano recital on the weekend. She was incredibly nervous and needed a little extra time to get up there, but after a few other kids had their turn, she was up and did a great job.
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Read on to see a video of her perfor... Live, in concert](http://tobob.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/wpid1008-200911-Nov29-11-IMG_0394-450x299.jpg)
