SCOOP MAGAZINE TERM 3 2016

MAGAZINE
BROUGHT TO YOU BY DOUBLE BAY PUBLIC SCHOOL P&C
7 WAYS TO
BE PRESENT
While Parenting For The Future
TIPS &
TRICKS
To Get Your Home
In Shape This Spring

P&C
President’s Report
Dear Double Bay Public students, parents
and friends,
What another terrific term it has been!
Firstly, I can finally say the sunshade is in
the process of being installed, as most
of you will have seen if you visited the
school grounds this week.
This has been a long project, supported
by our whole community, and it is fantastic
to see that support and patience
coming to fruition.
Juniors, School Assembly’s, the Daceyville
Big Band Bash, and the NSW School Band
Festival. On Tuesday 20th September,
there will be a Training Band and Strings
Spotlight at 3.15 at school - please come
along and listen to the wonderful progress
the new band students have been
making.
The P&C are working on plans for the
upgrade of our amenities block. We received
a grant to go towards this project
at the end of 2015.
The Fathers Day Breakfast & Fathers Day
Stall was a huge success. The P&C have received
so much positive feedback from the
event, and we made $3000 as well!
The Book Fair Cake Stall looked delicious,
and everyone enjoyed the morning
book parade, and opportunity to visit the
students classrooms. We made $1400
from the Cake Stall.
The Winter Disco was again a popular
event for K-4. The sausage sizzle a sell
out, and the kids loved dancing with their
friends!
The P&C thank all the volunteers at these
fundraising events - your enthusiasm and
time make these community events so
successful and fun, and build a real sense
of community in our school.
The school Bands have had a very busy
term, performing at Showcase at Souths
Next term we have our major Fundraiser
for the year: Thurs 27th October, 6.30pm
at the Royal Oak Hotel Double Bay. We
look forward to a fabulous night!
Term 4 will also see the staging of the
School Musical: Peter Pan. The students
are so excited about this and we
look forward to the performances on November
29th & December 1st.
The P&C meet twice each term, and we
welcome your presence and input at
these meetings. Please come along if you
can. For further information, please go to
the P&C website: www.dbpspc.org.au
Enjoy the school holidays, and we look
forward to an exciting Term 4!
Best Wishes,
Georgia Powell
P&C President

At The Royal Oak Hotel
Bay St, Double Bay
(Entry from Cooper St)
Thursday, 27 October, 2016 • 6.30-10.30pm
Silent Auction • Live Auction
SAVE THE DATE
With thanks to our sponsors
Richardson & Wrench | Double Bay

How do we find the balance?
Here are 7 ways to be present,
while still parenting for the future.
1. Slow down the pace
We are living life at a tremendous speed. Society deems us to live at this hurried, crazy
pace and we are reaching the maximum capacity of the ‘hurry up’ culture. We are ferrying
our kids from one after school activity to another, we are filling in every moment of the day
with something and we are constantly in a rush to get somewhere. We are telling our kids to
‘hurry up and eat your breakfast’, ‘hurry up and get your shoes on’, ‘hurry up and grow up’.
If we slow down the pace of our lives enough to take in the wonder and awe of our children,
we can see who they really are and nurture it. It is in this down time that we are building the
strong, connected family relationships and living for the moment. It is also in this time that
we can have fun with our kids and build positive memories.
2. Perfection is an illusion
A lot of the time we are parenting our kids to be the ‘model citizen’. We are pushing and polishing
them to be perfect and forget that perfection is actually an illusion. We are all human
and have our faults and differences – so do our kids. Disciplining can quickly change to criticism
and we become critical of every little thing our child does ‘wrong’. It is actually OK for
our kids to make mistakes and learn from them. It is OK if they only do what we want from
them for 80 per cent of the time and aren’t perfect 100 per cent. We need to be clear on the
traits and values we want to instill in our children from the very start and pour our focus only
on them. If we try to guide and teach our children to do and be everything, it won’t work.
3. Parent for the future, but meet kids in the now
Kids, by their very nature, live in the moment. Unlike adults, they don’t plan every integral
time period of what will happen in two weeks time and they don’t dwell on what happened
a week ago. They live for now and we need to meet them there. We need to connect with
them and have fun with them now. A great way to do this is through micro moments of
connection. A high five at the door on the way out in the morning, a wink across the table, a
spontaneous dance off in the kitchen or a note in their lunch box means much more to our
kids than setting up an hour every second weekend to do ‘special time’. They want to live for
now so join them in it.
4. Say YES more often
Provide plenty of opportunities to have fun with your kids. How often does your child say
‘Can we go to the park and get an ice-cream?’. No. ‘Can we go on a bike ride?’. Not right
now. ‘Can we go to the beach?’. Not today. Why not? Because we have filled our lives with
so many other plans and arrangements, we run out of time to do the fun things with our
kids.Being spontaneous and saying yes allows us to have fun with our kids and live the positives
in life. Childhood is so short. My daughter turns 11 in a few weeks and she already wants

to be with her friends more than she wants to be with us. She is creeping into teenager
hood and thankfully we have snuck in many more fun, ‘yes’ times that we should have in our
time together.
5. ‘Be’ with your kids, don’t ‘fix’
Our kids don’t need fixing because they are not broken. They are born with their own personalities
and traits. If you have more than one child, you know just how different each personality
and character can be and while we have a set ideal in our mind of what our kids
‘should be like’ each one is not necessarily going to meet that standard. Rather than fixing
or changing our kids, they need us to be with them and to be there for them as a guide or
mentor. They need us to know who they are and build our relationship around that, rather
than always trying to turn them into what we want them to be.
6. Disconnect and reconnect
We live our lives connected to technology – we have our iPhones, kids have their iPads,
WiFi is everywhere and we are connected to what is going on in our online world. You just
have to go to the local park or swimming pool to see this. At a park last week, every Mom
was holding her iPhone 10 inches from her face looking at Facebook or Instagram while
her child played on the swing, climbed the monkey bars or slid down the slide. There were
even a couple of kids that had bought their iPads to the park and were playing side by side
on them. We are so connected to technology, and in this case, at the expense of connecting
with our kids. Put the phones down at the park and push your kids on the swing. At the
end of the day when they are reliving the fun things you did together, do you think it will be
watching you on your iPhone at the park? Probably not. This is where the connection with
our kids happens – when we interact, when we get involved in their fun times. Not when we
sit back and connect with our technology.
7. Don’t discipline all the time
Parenting now is a very serious business. When we were growing up, often free-range parenting
was how we were raised. We came home when the street lights went on and we
learnt a lot of things the hard way. Along the way we became
resilient and independent. It seems parenting has
taken a full turn in many circles and the term ‘helicopter
parenting’ is rife. We hang too close to our kids and we are
constantly disciplining them. ‘Don’t do that’. ‘Don’t say that’.
‘Don’t touch that’. I followed a mother around the supermarket
with her toddler in tow the other day and she must
have said ‘no’ and ‘don’t’ 80 times or more. It is reminder to
let our kids have some freedom and do some of the learning
on their own. They don’t need to be controlled by us at
every turn. Guide and protect, but don’t spend all your day
disciplining because where is the fun in that!
I am glad my son called me out on focusing on the bad
things last night, rather than looking at the good. Our kids
are awesome and we don’t need to constantly tell them
how to do things the best way but learn to appreciate them
for who they already are. My son’s lesson to me: Parent for
the future, but please live with me in the moment.

Tips And Tricks
To Get Your Home Ship
Shape This Spring
As much as it sounds cliché, there really is no better time
than springtime to put a broom through the house,
dust off the cobwebs and throw out any junk. The sunshine,
fresh air and warmer weather is a great incentive for a
spring-clean. Here are our top tips and tricks to getting
your house ship shape this springtime.
• Use a lint roller to clean off your lampshades (you will be
amazed at how much dust they pick up!).
• A mix of water, vinegar and lemon juice works a treat
when trying to remove scum off your bathtub.
• Clean out your washing machine by running a cycle with
bleach and then another cycle with white vinegar.
• Slide post-it-notes between the keys of your computer
to pick up and remove dust.
• Wipe down ceiling fans and shutters using a spray bottle
filled with water and two tablespoons of distilled white
vinegar and an old pillowcase.
• Empty out your freezer. Use up any leftovers and give it
a good wipe out.
• Go through all the family’s clothes and cull, cull, cull.
Springtime is a great time to get rid of any old shoes and
clothes and donate them to charity.
• Make a note of the next council clean up and start
accumulating any clutter that could be tossed out.

Spring Breakfast
Muffins Florentine – Breakfast
Preparation:10min
Cook: 20min
Ready in: 30min
Serves: 4
Ingredients
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 800g baby spinach leaves
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 4 wholemeal english muffins, split
• 8 chives (optional)
• Yogurt and chive sauce
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup (130g) Greek-style yogurt
• 8 chives, snipped
Directions
1. Firstly, we will make the sauce. Whisk the egg yolks,
mustard and yogurt in a heatproof bowl over a large
saucepan of simmering water (without allowing the bowl
to touch the water) for approximately 10 minutes until
thick, then remove from the heat. Add the chives and
season to taste. Cover the bowl to maintain warmth in
the sauce.
2. Heat the oil in the pan, add the spinach and stir-fry
over a medium heat for 2–3 minutes until wilted. Drain
in a sieve, pressing down with the back of a spoon to
remove excess moisture. Season to taste, then cover to
keep warm.
3. To poach the eggs, fill the pan with 1/3 water. Add
the vinegar and a pinch of salt and heat to simmering.
Carefully break in the eggs, one at a time, and cook
gently for 2–3 minutes until they are cooked as you like
them, spooning the hot water over the yolks towards the
end of the cooking time. Meanwhile, toast the muffins.
Using a spatula or large spoon, delicately lift the eggs
from the water one at a time and drain on paper towel.
4. Divide the spinach among the muffin bases, place a
poached egg on top and spoon over the warm sauce.
You can garnish with whole chives, if you wish, sprinkle
with pepper and rest the remaining toasted muffin halves
on the side.

Save the Date!
Double Bay Public School
Proudly Presents
November 29th & December 1st 2016
Matinee and evening performances

Handy
Home
Hacks
∙Lengthening Vegetables Lifespan∙
If vegetables become cheaper in price due to ageing,
you should stock up. As soon as you have your produce
at home slice and dice it and then place it in freezer
bags. If you immediately freeze it then you will halt the
ageing process. Plus, you’ll have ready-to-use frozen
vegetables for whenever you want to make a stew or
sauce
∙Storing asparagus∙
We all have experienced vegetables getting soft and
limp inside the bottom drawer of the fridge. How do
we keep vegetables alive longer? Place a vegetable like
asparagus upright in a jar, or cup in your fridge. Remove
the bottoms of the storks, put them together into
bunches and soak in a few centimetres of water to ensure
they retain their freshness.
∙Homemade frozen yoghurt∙
It’s hard to beat a homemade healthy yoghurt dessert.
But who has the time to spend churning and turning to
produce the results? To achieve the same result, buy
a single-serve size of creamy yoghurt and a packet of
wooden sticks. Don’t take the lid off, instead, pierce it in
the centre with the stick. Next, put it in the freezer and
then when the weather’s warmer and you’re after a treat,
remove the lid and ease the now frozen yoghurt out of
the container.
∙Watermelon lollies∙
Eating watermelon can be difficult at best. Watermelon is
awkward to eat, big and difficult to move around on your
chopping board, let alone cut. Then the fruit’s natural
juice all over you. Rather than slicing the melon into
traditional slices, cut it in half, then slice into strips and
stick in a toothpick.
∙Keep bananas ripe for longer∙
Wrap your bananas with plastic cling wrap on their ends
and they will last days longer.
∙Delicious homemade iced coffee∙
Enjoy a glass of homemade iced coffee that’s better than
any store-bought caffeine kick. The trick to making good
iced coffee is preparing frozen coffee cubes in an ice
tray in advance. When needed you can add the cubes to
ensure your coffee stays cold, then it keeps its strength
rather than be watered down.
∙Removing strawberry tops∙
We always tend to waste a lot of strawberries by
chopping off their stems.
Instead of using a knife, which doesn’t get close enough
to removing only the stork, use a straw. Pierce the base
of the berry with the straw, by pushing it through you
will see only the unwanted stem is removed from the
strawberry. It is not messy and quick as well.

R&W DOUBLE BAY
DATE MARKET WRAP UP
by James Dunn R&W Double Bay
Real Estate Market Wrap Up
As a new parent, yes my wife and I
welcomed a baby boy in August, I ask
myself, will he ever be able to afford
to own a home in Sydney’s Eastern
Suburbs? Will this market ever peak, will
it just keep rising and rising? I’m sure
as parents, you are all asking yourselves
the same questions. I can’t answer them
and I’m not sure if anyone really can,
but what I do know is that if you plan
ahead anything can be achieved. My
wife and I will work hard and plan ahead
for our children’s future and part of that
planning will be to encourage and assist
them where we can, to buy real estate,
good old bricks and mortar!
When I bought my first home, an apartment
in Double Bay, it was a struggle
at first to meet the mortgage, but like
my parents before me and theirs before
them, I did it and within time I was able
to upgrade from that apartment to a bigger
apartment, big enough to accommodate
my growing family. I understand it’s
getting harder as prices rise and rise, but
money is cheaper than it’s ever been, interest
rates at an all-time low and access
to a wide range of financial services available
out there.
So don’t get disillusioned, your children
will get ahead, they will buy their own
home and like all of us, they will learn
how to budget to manage their finances
and meet their mortgage payments, the
important thing is to encourage them to
get into the market as soon as possible.
Whilst our company and my speciality
area is Double Bay and the eastern suburbs,
there are plenty of options to invest
in real estate, it doesn’t have to be in this
area, it can be anywhere in Sydney or indeed
in other states. Look further afield
just to consider getting in to the market
is the key. We can help you in any areas
of Australia with our Franchise network,
just let me know and I’m happy to help.
Meanwhile, what is going on in the market,
it is by far the lowest supply and
highest demand we have seen for a very
long time, which is resulting in some
extraordinary results, and it’s across the
board in Australia, though Sydney definitely
shows the strongest results.
The CoreLogic Home Value Index recorded
a 1.1% rise in dwelling values in August,
with six of the eight capital cities
recording a lift in dwelling values over
the month.
The CoreLogic Hedonic Home Value
Index recorded a 1.1% rise across the
combined capital cities over the month
of August, while the performance of the
combined regional areas (based on a
one month lag) remained comparatively
soft, with dwelling values virtually flat at
-0.1% over the month.
R&W
But back to more pleasurable discussions;
our market report produced twice
a year, which goes out to around 3500
homes, has had the cover of the February
report featuring the winner of the School
Art Prize, Sacha Tehan with her version of
“My Street”. Each year winner, received
a book voucher and Sacha along with a
book voucher, receives an IPAD for her
class. Congratulations Sacha!
Meanwhile, I couldn’t help but show you
a picture of my new addition to finish off.
#proud dad.
I look forward to seeing you all at the October
fundraiser.
James Dunn
Partner
Richardson & Wrench Double Bay