Ann and I have spent the better part of the last 12 months making preparations for her permanent residency, together with further preparation for the coming of her daughter JJ. As I have explained before, these are processes that are long and quite difficult. I suspect that some have fallen by the wayside, but we have been both lucky and persistent and not a little diligent too. Ann will leave her housekeeping job next month to focus on bringing JJ to Australia following which she will immerse herself in English-language study at TAFE. So, this year promises to be a challenge on many levels and I pray that we can reach Christmas unscathed.

We took the rare opportunity of a work-free day today to hike-out on the Narrow Neck Peninsula at Katoomba. You really can go on for miles and miles if you desire, descending to valley floor or keeping to the ridge. We did the latter, not having more than a few hours to spare. Here we are inside the first gate, with some way to go.