Coastal Camping Day 2

The morning began with more bird photography thanks to Ella. She didn't have to try too hard with all the native wildlife around the camp area being so desensitised to humans. Several parrots took up prime position on top of our shelter! Turns out that these bright orange and green birds are Australian King Parrots.

On a recommendation from a fellow camper, we began the morning with a short walk over the headland to the next bay. I'm sure this is the real Pebbly Beach. The sound of the water cascading back into the ocean is just amazing. This little beach was not at all suitable for swimming but great for impromptu discus!

After our discus practice we had a snack while discussing the options for the rest of the morning. Our persuasion of more walking and coastal exploration fell on deaf ears. Instead we turned on our heels to return to the campground beach.

So the most of the afternoon was spent at the beach!

Katy loved jumping waves and came around to liking seaweed.

Meanwhile Ella loved boogie boarding with Andy.

And of course both girls love building sand castles....

As the sun descending into the horizon, the kangaroos emerge to feed on the lush grass and the girls extremely eager to light the our fire. The previous nights efforts on fire lighting were pretty woeful - I tried numerous times, then Andy came over to demonstrate his expertise only to really struggle. I mean we couldn't even get paper to light properly thanks to the recent rain and high humidity. Luckily our friendly next-door camper noticed our struggle and offered us a handful of firelighters insisting this was the only way we would be able to get the fire going! So we were much more prepared today with a trip to the local shop for a box of firelighters and even with these it was still a challenging task! Post dinner we enjoyed roasted marshmallows.

Camping at the Coast

We continued with our tradition of heading to the coast for the last week of summer holidays when NSW and VIC kids have started school. Only this time, we chose to camp mainly because we were too busy to organise a house and stay for 3 nights rather than a whole week.

It was a very relaxed departure on Wednesday morning as we were not on a time schedule and there were no other families to co-ordinate with. So after briefing Alice, one of Andy's PhD students on all the intricacies of our pets and house, and stopping by Little Oink for a coffee we were on our way.

Normally when we are going to the coast, it's after school/work and we are trying to get to 'where ever' by dinner. Today was not the case. In fact we earmarked to stop at Monga National Park located just outside of Braidwood prior to heading down the Clyde for a picnic.

It was a short drive off the Kings Highway into the park, where we checked out the Dasyurus picnic area only to continue on to the next one, Mongarlowe River picnic area. We wandered down the short loop train through the cool temperate rainforest to the Mongarlowe River. The recent rain gave the forest a soft and relaxing feel. Ella was excited spotting and attempting to photograph a variety of interesting birds. A nice place for a picnic lunch.

 

Bird photography by Ella . Can you see it?

Before continuing on to the coast, we decided to drive a little further to Penance Grove much to the displeasure of both girls who stated they weren't getting out of the car. The very short drive took up though massive tree ferns all hints of what was to come. On pulling up we were instantly amazed by all the tree ferns with a boardwalk disappearing into the grove. Funnily enough both girls were suddenly interested!

Penance Grove gained it's name from a sad crime that occurred over 30 years ago prior to Monga attaining National Park status. One morning locals discovered that illegal tree-fern cutters had taken scores of old tree ferns out of this grove probably to sell at Sydney markets. Unfortunately as tree ferns grow only from the tip, the remaining stumps were dead looking like skeletons in the forest.  Despite it's sad history, this little grove is a special place to visit and I'm so glad we stopped by plus we even saw the largest moss in the world, Dawsonia superba, growing wild!

  

It was a little over an hour still listening to The Enchanted Wood (by Enid Blyton) which certainly kept the girls enchanted and content in the back before we pull into our campsite at Pebbly Beach located in Murramarang National Park about 20km north of Batemans Bay. We quickly set up camp before heading down for some fun at the beach despite the overcast conditions.

 

   More bird photography by Ella.

  

Garden Grand Designs

Finally time to redesign the back garden to accommodate the new extension. Has involved lots of thinking and discussions on the pros and cons of existing layout and proposed concepts. And as with many things at our place it will evolve over time!

We are super impressed with our friends garden makeover and so decided to meet up with their garden lady to extract her expert opinion about our garden. Basically the bones of the garden are good but does need a little colouring in! She made several suggestions regarding the layout, materials and information on the pond as well as tweaking several garden beds.

Anyhow the creation of the pond went smoothly and all five fish are still alive. So that's great. Now time to reclaim the garden. So after a general tidy up, our first job was to establish a path to the veggie patch. The original flagstone path through the lawn was not as successful as I'd hoped, so we moved these down the side of the house to create a path to nowhere!

With several railway sleepers made redundant thanks to the extension which claimed the sandpit and a large garden bed, we thought about how these could be incorporated into our design. It was decided to cut these into similar lengths then place them evenly along a curved line to create the path. Using 20mm river pebbles, we would fill the gaps in between the sleepers.

Over several days, we levelled the path, cut the sleepers, positioned these and the corrugated edging, inserted the weed mat and then added the pebbles all between orienteering sprint races, work, and looking after children!! Plus the girls found their own fun too!

  

 

 

All done thanks to some wonderful help from the girls in spreading some of the pebbles! Now time to mulch to the right of the path and think about laying new grass on the left hand side!

Thanks Grandies

We love you and miss you already! Looking forward to your next visit.

Last Day with the Grandies

Over dinner and while the boys were having their hair  done, it was decided that with Nemo missing in action, we should get the water tested - a free service provided by the pet shop.

So between Bunnings shopping, coffee stops and the boys building the second half of the walk in wardrobe we squeezed in a visit to the pet shop.

Turns out the water was fairly ok. No major problems to fix. The girls pestered Grandad to buy another fish and so Doof Doof joined our clan!





Back at home we introduced the water plants into the ponds. To position the water lily adequately we were required to take out all the river stones. Very carefully, trying not to squash any fish and then who appears? None other than 'missing' Nemo who was very much alive! So now there are 5 fish :)

While doing this, the boys finished off the walk in wardrobe fit out despite some challenges with lack of studs and the position of the sliding door. All worked out wonderfully though. Not only have they done a fantastic job but have saved us a stack of money in the process. A quick coat of paint on the railings and a good clean was needed before the clothes could be organised.

Newest Family Members

Friday was fairly sedate, with the Grandies and girls playing at home until I returned from work just after lunch. Our afternoon involved venturing out to a garden shop in Pialligo to seek out potential water plants for the pond. We were very lucky to receive wonderful information chatting to the shop assistant on all things ponds.  An hour later we emerged with a water lily, water rush and duckweed and lots of things to consider regarding fish.


Next stop was the pet shop to buy mince for Pippa although I knew we'd walk out with more than that! Another in-depth conversation with the pet shop fish expert was also very good although we did receive slightly conflicting information to the pond guy. Anyhow we emerged from the shop with 4 goldfish and two very excited girls!

Each girl picked a fish as did Nana and Grandad. By the time we got home all fish were named! So without further ado, I'd like to introduce the newest additions to our family....


Following the pet shop fish guy's instructions very carefully, we introduced the fish to their new home. They seemed to like it. I did manage to get a photo of all four fish together before they disappeared into the rocks.

As you can imagine we were on the look out for any signs that things weren't ok. We kept checking on the fish.

Saturday morning dawned and prior to Little Aths we could only spot 3 fish....

after Little Aths we could only still spot 3 fish. Funnily enough Nemo was the 'missing' fish. With no evidence of a body, we sadly decided that Nemo had been taken possibly by a bird. All I could think was thank goodness it was Grandad's fish!!

Grandies Come to Stay!

We were blessed to have both Grandies come to stay for a week in mid January. Perfect timing for a little school holiday care too! The girls had numerous suggestions as to activities to keep everyone entertained.

The first to be nominated was a visit to the National Zoo and Aquarium. Tuesday turned out to be just as hot as it was on their previous visit to the zoo, 2 years ago! However this time the aquarium was open and provided some relief from the intense heat. Needless to say, the girls only lasted a few hours which was plenty of time to see all that was on offer although many animals were also sheltering from the sun!

Dinner was enjoyed on our deck, with Grandad trying to eat Ella's ice cream...luckily he was unsuccessful! Katy meanwhile was very safe on Nana's lap!

With the forecast to be hotter again, an indoor activity was requested for Wednesday. Questacon was the selected destination. Arriving early to beat the crowds, the girls and Grandies throughly enjoyed the morning playing and discovering.

And such a day was perfect for an evening at the lake. Meeting up at Yarralumla after work, the girls cooled off with a dip in the lake before we all enjoyed a picnic dinner and a few drinks.

By Thursday, the Grandies were well and truly ready for a rest, so the girls visited Nana and Grandpa for the afternoon so the Grandies could catch their breath!