Final BBL Game

The Big Bash came back to Canberra for the play off between Thunder and Heat for a spot in the grand final. We secured tickets and returned from the coast early enough to unpack, get organised and arrive at the game by 7pm.

It was a disappointing game especially with the Heat easily winning. The funniest moment of the evening was when a group of boys (around 10 - 12yrs) started collecting bucket hats from the stands and stacking these on one of the their heads. The hat stack was getting quite high with the boys having trouble reaching high enough to put the next bucket on. The main boy would bend down, then the other boys would stand on steps in order to reach high enough. Anyway the hat bucket stack grew very high and caught the attention of the crowd. It rose higher and as the boy walked the stack began to wobble and the crowd would ooh and aah at this precarious situation! Unfortunately the stack wobbled a bit too much and tipped over right spilling bucket hats everywhere - the crowd went wild!! More unfortunately this occurred in front of a security officer who subsequently gave the boys a dressing down and confiscated the majority of the bucket hats much to the displeasure of the crowd who booed very loudly!! Great entertainment!

The Coast Calls

We were all excited to be going away for the last week of the summer school holidays. Time down at the beach in the waves on our surfboards and soaking up the sunshine was just what we needed to refresh prior to the commencement of the 2021 school year. Despite the temperature reaching the mid 30's the previous weekend, the weather for our us was not kind. In overcast conditions we left Canberra driving down Brown Mountain in the misty rain! 

In spite of these conditions we trudged down to the beach for an afternoon swim. The weather deteriorated further over the next few days but again we still managed to swim even if it was in our wetsuits!!

On Friday, the rain set in and after a visit to the chemist, the girls set up a beauty salon - nails painted and hair braided.

After lunch Andy, Ella and myself headed back to Canberra for Ella's afternoon appointment with the orthopaedic surgeon. Again we were shrouded in mist as we climbed Brown Mountain. The surgeon was thankfully on time and we discussed Ella's ankle treatment options of which there was only one - surgery! None of us were surprised. The day surgery was booked for 10 days time and Ella emerged from the appointment with a big smile - the Dr told her she could do without her crutches until then!! It was very weird to see her walking again!! After filling out a few forms to organise the said surgery, we jumped back in the car for the return drive again in the rain and arrived in Tathra around 9pm.

Our last full day saw the sun trying to break through the clouds in the morning. We were a little worried about the number of blue bottles that were washed up on the beach, however no-one was stung while swimming. Intermittent showers unfortunately dominated the afternoon.

After packing up on Sunday morning, we headed over to Andy's work colleague's newly acquired house and admired not only their amazing house but also the spectacular views over the Bega River to the ocean. Then it was time to head back home - once again up Brown Mountain in the misty rain - a fitting end to our so called summer beach holiday!

The Not So Good News

Ella returned to GMI for a follow up MRI and Xray on her ankle. After 6 weeks on crutches not weight bearing we were seriously hoping that the lesion had had enough time to begin to repair itself. We had our doubts though as Ella had made comments about it still being sore. Seems like she was right. Unfortunately the imaging demonstrated that the lesion was unchanged and so it's now time to visit the surgeon. Have only the X-rays to show...

Keeping Busy on One Foot!

Ella has managed to keep herself entertained and sane over summer. Apart from dreaming up new bedroom designs, she has cracked out the sewing machine and visited a few salvos shops to find clothes that can be altered! I must admit she is pretty handy at adhoc sewing - changing clothes to fit, altering clothes to be a different style and just plain making up a pattern! This outfit that she wore to the cafe the other day was purely her own creation - the skirt was completely her design from anew piece of fabric while the top got a new lease on life with a crossover pattern on the back and shoestring shoulder straps! I love that fact that she is so happy and proud to wear something that she has made :) I remember making a fair few things - patchwork quilts that never quite stayed together plus tops, pants and shorts for home ec at school. I think only the shorts got to see life outside my wardrobe!!

Also she is lucky to have Indi to cuddle!

Oh Dear

In an attempt to do some exercise that wouldn't cause more injury to my calf, I decided on a mountain bike ride through Burce Ridge. Unfortunately I managed to  stack on a short steepish downhill despite the fact I had already unclipped one foot and was just rolling down. It was a case of not enough speed which resulted in my front wheel coming to a halt and me going over the handle bars! Needless to say I cut my ride short and returned home to assess my wounds. My thighs came off second best after connecting with the handlebars with some extensive bruising developing! Here is the change in colour of the left thigh a few days apart!

 

Summer Projects

The deck was well overdue for an oil, so the opportunity arose from a clean and redcoat completed on the same hot day!

Next was a little bit of renovating of Ella's room. The list included a few repair patches in the walls, and a new coat of paint on the walls, reorganisation of the boxes around Ella's desk and repainting of her door. Also Ella decided to Mod Podge her glass wardrobe doors with photos! This is an ongoing job with only the boxes, patches and undercoat of the door completed.

Old  New (no boxes at head height)

Goodbye to Ella 

A result of the reorganisation of the boxes, is that Katy has now a little box shelf above her bed which she has found to be very useful! Win, win for everyone!

Summer Harvest

It was a rainbow of colourful produce from our garden! The nectarines would be considered 2nds with lots of damage so we cut them up and stewed them.

 

Andy's Summer Adventures IV

And the adventures keep rolling in. This time Andy was invited on a bush walk in search of the elusive Ginini Falls. These falls are the highest in ACT but difficult to get to with no tracks to follow. The Ginini Falls Search Party included Andy, Tony (the main instigator), Rob (previously visited the falls in wet conditions while preparing for his trek in the Himalayas), Dave and Julie (fellow outdoor enthusiasts).

It was an epic day out - 12km of mostly bush bashing over 9 hours! The first km was by far the easiest - along a trail to the trig at Mt Franklin. From there is was through the forest which was thick and littered with lots of fallen timber plus it was steep! Despite all this the waterfall was located and admired from many angles before the intrepid explores returned the same route back! Andy was shattered and the next few days had lots of unexpected sore leg muscles from all that leg lifting!!

Andy's Summer Adventures III

Andy and Katy joined by Mira, Ev and JP went on a small mountain bike adventure exploring the Cotter Pines trails.

Andy's Summer Adventure II(b)

The following morning the crew were up early packing up camp once breakfast was finished. Today's trek saw them climb to the trig on the summit of Mt Twynam, descend by Blue Lake then cross Snowy before the short sharp steep climb out to Charlotte's pass where the car was parked. All up a 12km hike in the high country. A car shuffle was necessary before the drive back to Canberra

Andy's Summer Adventures II

An overnight hike from Guthega to Mt Twynam has been on our radar for some time now. As I was busy working and Ella incapacitated, Andy and Katy took the opportunity of the nice weather to explore the mountains. They were joined by Rob, Mira, Max and friend Will as well as JP and Ev. 

They left Sunday afternoon to spend the first night at the lodge and do a car shuffle leaving one car at Charlotte's Pass. The next morning, bags were packed and the group left Guthega bound for a campsite on Pond Creek under the peak of Mt Anton. It was 7km of walking with several rest stops while the kids got used to walking with heavy packs.

After choosing and setting up camp followed by lunch, it was time for exploring! There was a bit of playing in the creek, a short walk and rock climb up Mt Anton as well as a snowball fight with some skiing!!