South Durras

We had a week away in South Durras with Amy's parents last week. The week had it's highs and lows but fortunately a lot more highs than lows. Eli was a bit out of sorts for one day, cutting his first tooth, and Audrey found it hard to have her day sleeps so was a bit cranky at times. One night, after a visit to the zoo, she was convinced that there was a snake in her room!

There was a lot to keep us occupied - sandcastles to be built, fish to be caught, slides to go down and kangaroos to spot. It was our second visit to South Durras - this time we stayed in a cabin by the sea. It was lovely to sit outside and look at the ocean. Although it was whale watching season we didn't spot any (although Trevor wonders whether he spotted a couple on the horizon!)

Here a few snaps of the holiday.

making sandcastles

Pebbly Beach (not a pebble in sight)

Eli dips his toes

Audey feeding the deer and kangaroos in Mogo zoo

It felt a lot bigger reeling it in!

another monster catch!

South Durras Beach

Narooma beach (Ivor, Audrey and Wendy)

Audrey on the slide (click here to see how it looked in February!)

Bateman's Bay Botanic Gardens (children's discovery walk)

On the beach in South Durras

Our holiday house

Jean Genie

Since having Audrey, it has become a habit of both mine and Trevor's to make up silly songs about nearly everything we do. Sometimes we're inventive and make up our own words and other times we use other people's lyrics - usually in a different context to what the writer originally intended.

When we get Audrey into a pair of jeans we automatically sing David Bowie's Jean Genie to her - usually just the chorus part "Jean Genie let yourself go" at very loud volume. Trevor decided to introduce her to the real song the other night and the look on her face was priceless. She did a double take and then gasped "Jeanie song, Jeanie song". And that was it....there was a lot of foot stamping and shaking of hair and singing along (as best you can when you're 2) and requests for it to be repeated and then for another song. She ended up dancing to about 3 or 4 old Bowie tunes. Now when Trevor comes home from work she requests that he put the "Jeanie song" on for her. Bowie would be pleased I'm sure - a new generation of fans!!

A Round Egg

The egg carton in our fridge contained this rather curious round egg - masquerading as a table tennis ball...

See also
and also

Piallago Garden Centres

We've recently discovered an area of Canberra near the airport called Piallago. I say discover, but we're not exactly up there with Captain Cook or Columbus as it's right next door to the city's airport and has a dual carriageway racing by.

It's probably how Canberra was 20 or 30 years ago; there are fields with horses and farms with geese, cows and pigs, all this neighbouring Canberra airport, which meanwhile has high ambitions on becoming an Australian transport hub. I wonder what international visitors landing in the Australian capital think as they touch down and the field next to the runway has cows in it.

Anyway, hidden from the road are a mass of garden centres. There must be about 10 of varying sizes, all competing for your dollar, and all now resplendent with spring and summer flowers. Most of them have cafes a lot of them seem to have children's playgrounds.

We spent a nice morning at one this morning (tomato plants a bargain at $2 each) and Audrey enjoyed some time on the slides. The centre we visited also had half a dozen peacocks strutting about (terrifying the children every time they landed in the play area.) I guess peacocks never get high enough off the ground to trouble the planes, but a potentially messy accident is certainly a possibility.

our little boy is growing up

In the back garden

Here are a couple of snaps of Audrey and Eli enjoying some sunshine in the back garden.

Yummy biccies Mum!

Long live the Queen

Audrey has been learning the letters of the alphabet with Trevor at bath time and is now very good at it - A for Audrey, D for Daddy, G for Grandma, M for Mummy and Q for Queen - "What?!!". Yes, Trevor is unashamedly brainwashing our daughter...not only that she then breaks into a rendition of "God save the Queen".

Today at lunch she had a 10 cent coin she had found and was keeping to put in her piggy bank and she was saying "Where's the Queen?" and then flipping the coin over and saying "There she is" (yes, Australian coins still have a picture of the Queen on them!). To top it off she was then saying "She's a nice lady" and singing "God save the Queen". Hmmm...perhaps I'd better take over at bath time from now on....R for Rabbit? - oh no, Audrey R is for Republic!

Fruits and Seeds

Today we went to the Botanic Gardens to take part in a school holiday programme celebrating the 21st anniversary of Australia's national emblem, the golden wattle. Today's session involved planting red-stemmed wattles. All the kids loved getting their hands dirty and the fact that they got to take their plants home; one planted in seed form and one sapling.

A waratah - not a wattle but pretty nonetheless!