A Boy, a Dog and a Little Red Wagon

Beaufort Bomber Restoration

Restoration is taking place on a Beaufort Bomber up here in Toombul. We joined a group of 50 people today to inspect the restoration work. During the visit I had a bit of a revelation. We were told how some of the parts had been salvaged from the jungles of Papua New Guinea. I was feeling one of the wings, the way the aluminium had eroded, and seeing the dints and damage of the piece. I then realised that the wing sitting in front of me had been attached to a plane, had carried a crew of four men, and somehow ended up in the jungle of PNG. This plane has history. What happened to the crew? What happened to the families of the crew? Today was a glimpse back in time.

The Gutty Crew

The wing of revelation....

Climbing the Walls

Anaconda camping and equipment store has a rock climbing wall. Tammy and I took the children there this afternoon and the children had a great time climbing this rock wall. Lilly, Tildy, Josiah, Beth and Elsie all gave their best, with Josiah, Bethany and Elsie reaching the top and setting off the buzzer.

Just getting in some practice for our Wallaby Scrub rocks!

Back in the City

Lilly stated that today's drive didn't seem half as long as usual. We all agreed it was because we were going to our friend's house.

The mobile phone alarm started buzzing and vibrating at 6.30 this morning. Elsie and I greeted it with eyes that wouldn't open and we certainly did not want to brave the cold morning. Half an hour later we dragged ourselves out and set to work waking everyone else up.

We finally hit the road at 10 o'clock, checked the post office on the way through town, and kept driving until our servo stop around 2ish. It wasn't until nearly 5 that we arrived at Tammy's. The past 7 hours have flown by; talking, eating, watching movies, playing with puppies. And the inevitable cleaning up when there are 16 children and 3 adults in a house.

I also got to catch up with Robyn, my midwife for Willem's birth. It was so nice to see her again. I was able to tell her about the amazing impact she has had on my understanding of caring for babies and raising children.

The children have bunked up wherever they have found room. The girls in one room, the boys in another, babies with their mums, and the older two watching a very late DVD.

So here we are, a long way from Wallaby Scrub. Us country folk can get a bit overwhelmed by all these city slickers. Well, I'm sure we'll survive our week in the big smoke, and then head back to the bush .... where we belong.

Coir Ainnir

Josiah snapped this shot of Elsie tonight on the verandah. She wanted to show off her new leather bracelet... and her muscles. She obviously wasn't worried about the temperature - a singlet in this weather! Brrrrrr!

By the way, Coir Ainnir is Irish Gaelic for Fair Maiden, and is the name Elsie and her sword go by.

Farmer's Kitchen

I bought myself a Fowler's bottling kit. This is my first attempt at preserving pears. If it works I'll invest in some more bottles.

The Last Couple of Days

We enjoyed our time with Grandpa and Grandma over the weekend. There was little spare time, and I ran out of time to do some of the things I wanted to. After a scrumptious roast lunch down at the RSL on Sunday, the children and I headed for home. It was just on dark as we hit 'Nine Gates', and poor Elsie had to brave the cold to open and close the gates. We were all very tired and the best we could do for dinner was fruit, cheese and salami, washed down by a hot cuppa. Then we all hit the hay and no-one stirred till morning.

Today was cold, drizzly, windy and quite dull. As we had emptied out the car last night, we woke to a teensy weensy bit of a mess in the house. That was our first priority. Breakfast dragged on for ages; it seemed like everyone wanted something different. While the children finished off their tasks I managed to paint the blackboards and had them drying under the carport.

The children started heading off to their favourite spots after lunch which gave me the opportunity to lay some vinyl in the kitchen. I didn't get very far when all three littlies clearly showed they needed a rest time. The two little girls hopped into bed, Willem climbed up into my lap. I took the opportunity to sit in a comfy chair by the fire. I have to admit I did the old head roll a few times.

This evening Matilda and Lilly got the Magnastix out. They ended up playing 'car races' with them on the new kitchen floor. Lilly also made some finger puppets, Elsie told me of all the wonderful ideas she's been having lately, and Bethany curled up on the futon with a book and a blanket.

Over the sounds of sleeping children I can hear the wind whistling through the trees and rattling the verandah. It's cold out tonight, but we're snug and warm inside.