The Boys have now been back at school for 2 weeks and into the swing of early mornings again! Must admit, it was a bit tricky for the first few days and they did find it difficult to string a sentence together, but think we're there now! Sam is now in Year 10 and Will in Year 9. This week Will went on a 3 day surf camp to Lorne and had an awesome time but was exhausted when he got home! Next week he is going to swim with seals - not quite what's on the English school curriculum!!

Jack has started his new SEDA course (Sports Education and Development in Australia) and is specialising in football. It's a 2 year diploma in Sports Management and Coaching so he gets to play football virtually every day - right up his street! He has also been doing quite a lot of reffing.

Sam has started training with his new football team "Bentleigh Greens". They seem a far more professional set-up than the team he was playing for last year (Brighton) and he likens it to Eastleigh Academy who he played for in the UK, so that is good.

Chris was in Sydney for the week and had quite a stressful time. His operation seems to have been successful - he now goes out for 3 hour bike rides including hill-climbs and has cycled into work a couple of times.

I have been making some blinds this week and am doing some interior decorating for Natalie next week. Had a Tri this morning - conditions were hot (33 degrees) and windy (30km/h) so not the best. Am taking part in the PRW Corporate Triathlon next Sunday since someone dropped out of the PwC team and Chris kindly offered my services! There are over 6,000 competitors - the largest Triathlon to take place in Victoria! Let's hope the weather conditions are better than today :)

Olympic Distance Triathlon!

This morning I completed my first Olympic Distance Triathlon in 3.20 hrs! This is composed of a 1.5km open water swim, followed by a 40km bike ride and then a 10km run to finish up.

I didn't enter till yesterday because I was in two minds whether to do it or not. The forecast was 30kph winds coming in which would make the swim difficult. But I went ahead and spent the rest of the evening wondering what I had done!

Didn't sleep a wink all night, so got up at 4.45am and headed off at 5.25am, arriving nice and early in the pitch black but with plenty of choice of parking spaces!

My age group went off at 7.23am. The water was flat which was fab, till you had 1,100 competitors in there and then it roughed up somewhat! Certainly didn't enjoy it but managed to get around.

Then we had the longest ever transition from the beach running to the bike compound, it was ridiculous! The bike and run legs I was really pleased with. The 40km ride was along Beach Road, my normal training ground, so it was nice because I knew the course so well. I thought the run was going to be a killer but I actually enjoyed it and felt good, over-taking quite a few men who were giving up and walking!

I reached the finishing posts with the biggest smile on my face :)

Weather wise, it's been a strange old day. When we started the swim it was 28 degrees, by the time I finished it was 33. An hour or two later, the winds they forecast arrived, the temperature has dropped to 17 degrees and we are now in the middle of a tropical storm and had a power cut for 4 hours!

Poor Jack has been reffing all day so will be absolutely soaked when I get him in a minute. In an hour they have indoor footie and then we are off out for dinner to celebrate Chris's birthday and my first ever Olympic Tri :)

Rookie of the Tournament!!!

Today, Sam had to attend the Ballkids party at 11a.m and he has just texted me to say that he got an award for "Rookie of the Tournament"!!! Not only that, but he is on Rod Laver Arena for the 4th day in a row! Today he has the mixed doubles semi finals and the women's doubles finals!!!

Yesterday was Australia Day so everyone had the day off. Chris went for a 75km bike ride and I did the Great Australia Day 1.4km Swim with Natalie at Brighton. I was very pleased to complete my first open water swim of that distance in 40 minutes! Then it was back to Nat's for a barbie, whilst watching Sam on the

TV ball-boying Kim Clijsters v Azarenko and then Maria Sharapova v Kvitova.

4.15 pm :- I have just been sent a text from Sam which reads as follows... :) Andy Murray was over the moon to find that Ballboy 184 (Sam) will be ball-boying him in his semi against Novac Djokovic tonight :) I'm the only first year to make final squad.

WOW!!!

That was the week that was!!

Well, Sam's week at the Aussie Open has just got better and better! He'd been on Margaret Court 3 times which he was chuffed about, but then on Monday, he was allocated the Hisense Arena (number 1 court) and was sooo pleased! Usually the "newbies" (1st year Ballkids) don't get to go on the two main courts so he felt honoured. I decided to go in and watch him and managed to buy a ticket from a lady for only $40 - and it was 3 rows from the front and in the shade all day so I was VERY pleased!

It was a fantastic line-up. First of all it was the Legends Doubles which was between Henri Leconte/Guy Forget and the "Woodies" - Todd Woodbridge/ Marke Woodforde. Henri Leconte was hilarious, messing around the whole time but is still such a great player. They went on to win the match.

Next was Jo-Wilfred Tsonga v the Japanese boy Nishikori. A 5 -setter which had us sitting on the edge of our seats and was won by Nishikori - a real upset! He is the first Japanese man to reach the semi-finals and he certainly deserved it.

Finally, it was Richard Gasquet against David Ferrer and it was Ferrer that won.

As we came home on the train together, Sam was on a complete "high"! I warned him that he probably would be put onto an outside court the next day.

But it was not to be!!! Yesterday (Tuesday 24th January) he went in for an 11 o'clock shift. He texted me to say he had been put onto Rod Laver Arena, the Centre Court over here! How I would've loved to have seen his face when he found out! We were all estactic for him and I managed to get a ticket on-line!

He had Pat Cash/ Goran Ivanisevic in the Legends Doubles, then Azarenka v Radwanska, followed by Caroline Wozniacki v Kim Clijsters. Aussie Kim played really well and managed to win the match against the World's number 1!

Finally, he had Roger Federer v Del Potro!!! I was such a proud Mum to see our Son ball-boying the Champion of Champions, Roger Federer! And what an amazing experience for him!

So, today, I REALLY thought he would be back to an outside court, but no! He is back on Rod with Maria Sharapova and later, Andy Murray v Nishikori.

He has written a list of all the people he has Ball-boyed and wow! What a list it is! All he needs now to finish it off is Nadal and Djokovic!!!

Masses of new fotos on Flickr to your right. Wonderful that the Grandparents and lots of people in the UK have been able to watch him on Eurosport :)

What a week!

First day Sam was on Court 3 and was ball-boying Mardy Fish amongst others. Tuesday, he was on Margaret Court (3rd largest show court) and was servicing the match with Ferrer and then Dokic.

Although we didn't go to the tennis on Tuesday (because Granny and Grandad were leaving), we watched Sam on TV instead! Lots of the Boys friends were face-booking to say they had seen Sam on TV!

Wednesday, Sam had an amazing day! He went in at 4pm and was on Margaret Court again. The first match he had was between John Isner (who had the epic 3-day match at Wimbledon 2 years ago) and Nalbandian. It was an incredible match to watch, with Nalbandian playing better although Isner was the seeded player. It went to a long 5 sets, with a bad (and incorrect) call going against Nalbandian at the very end so that Isner won.

Then on came Baghdatis (CYP) and Wawrinka (SUI), an immense game. The crowd was full of Cypriots who insisted on singing inbetween each point! It was more like a very rowdy football crowd rather than a tennis audience, I have never seen anything like it! At one stage, Baghdatis was so cross with himself for losing a set that he broke 4 of his rackets by slamming them on the ground! Eventually at midnight, Stan Wawrinka won the 5 set game and Sam and I got the last train home at 1a.m.

See all the new fotos on our flickr site (press on the fotos on the right to enlarge them.)

Into the city we go...!

Had a busy day today. Judy, Tony, Jack and myself went into the city and went first of all, to the Queen Victoria Market, stopping en route at Melbourne Central to see the conical glass window and clock that plays "Waltzing Matilda" on the hour.

Then we headed for Melbourne Park, to watch Sam in action on Court 12 and to support our English players James Ward and Laura Robson through their first day of Qualifying. Laura Robson played convincingly, winning the first set 6 - 3 and the second set 5 - 0. Then she lost her nerve to close the match and we sat there for another nail-biting half an hour, till she finally won the second set 6 - 4!

Tomorrow, Granny and Grandad are going for lunch on the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant and Sam is having a day off!

(click on the "latest fotos" on the right to see further pictures and to enlarge them...)

(Forgot to say, Judy Murray was watching Laura Robsons match!)

The Australian Open begins...!

Today, Sam had to go in for Orientation Day , the day before the Qualifying Tournament begins. Basically, it was a press release and they took all the Ballkids to stand outside Parliament House in Melbourne for a foto shoot. Sam is standing third row from the back, 2nd one in from the right!

We are all really excited now as the AO is about to commence and we are looking forward to going to see Sam in action on the first day, the 16th. He came home with 16 free tickets today two of which are for the first Monday evening in the Rod Lever Arena (Centre Court) - guess who's having those!!!

There are 20 Ballkids from Korea, 9 from NSW and WA, 5 from S.A and 2 from Tasmania, the rest being made up from Victoria. Ana Ivanovic (World No.22) attended the press launch. Sam saw Andy Murray today who actually smiled at them! Laura Robson, our young English hopeful, is playing in the Qualifiers, so we are hoping to go and see her this week and offer her our support!