We spent a day at the Pet Porpoise Pool and it was fantastic. It was like water world on a much smaller scale and the most impressive thing about it was that they allowed really close contact with all the animals. The kids got to hand feed a huge walrus, tiny fairy penguins and to "kiss" a dolphin! It was magical!
The best part for us was being able to walk through the banana platation and see the bunches of bananas ripening on the trees. We also saw lemon, lime, tangerine and advocado trees dotted around. 
The kids got a real kick out of seeing the fruit hanging on branches that they normally only see stacked on supermarket shelves. 
We also saw a really old tractor that was rusting away under the banana trees. It had the old fashioned starter crank at the front and poor Rhiannon was terrified that we were really going to start it up when she was on it! She took a lot of persuading that it was not as noisy as Uncle Patsys tractor on his farm in Mitchelstown!
Another beautiful nature reserve in Coffs Harbour was Mutton Bird Island. It is a small island that is connected to the mainland by a walkway. It is home to a colony of birds called (unsurprisingly) Mutton birds! They nest in burrows in the ground so you have to keep to the paths provided
It was a really hot day and we weren't sure if the kids would tolerate the long walk but we decided to have a try. They did really well and really enjoyed it.
The kids were so excited to see the turtle in its natural environment and said it was better fun than going to an aquarium.
One afternoon we decided to explore a little further afield and did a 1 hour leisurely drive to Dorrigo National Park. They had a small walkway through the tops of the trees. The kids were really excited to be walking so high up. It was a bit dizzy looking down into the forest below. 
A short drive away was another area of rainforest with clearly marked paths through the forest floor. Having read about the unusual fungi and leeches I was a little bit reluctant but Mr B was in full bushwalking mode so off we went!
It was eerily quiet walking in the dappled half-light of the forest. It was so wonderfully cool compared to the heat of the sun on the higher tree tops walk. The kids were really excited pointing out many of the trees that we had read about in the information center. Luckily we managed to escape from being sucked to death by giant leeches!
We finished the day with one last stop at a magnificent waterfall and had our hearts in our mouths as local kids jumped off the rocks and plunged down the 30 metre drop into the water below.
It's going to a bit quiet on the blog front for the next two weeks....
We are off on a family holiday. It is the first holiday we will have been on since Rhiannon learned to walk that doesn't involve travelling with extended family or friends.
Despite being here for over a year we have only been a couple of hours north to Nelson Bay. This holiday is in Coffs harbour. 5 hours drive away.
Day two and we decided to bring Elly off to Blackbutt reserve to see some Koalas and kangaroos before she heads back to Sydney. There was a new baby Koala hanging on to it's mum for dear life. We tried to get a photo of it but it kept hiding it's head in its mums fur.
When we were done admiring the wildlife we raced off to Kotara shopping center for a little bit of retail therapy. We met up with Elly after going in separate directions for an hour. She was laden down with bags so a successful day of bargains I think!
P.S Melissa, I saw what Elly bought you for your birthday..... Very nice!!!
We are having a quick cuppa at home and leaving for the train in about 10 minutes so just time for one last message from Elly to everyone at home.....
"I have had a lovely two days and enjoyed seeing the sights around Toronto. I'm back to Sydney for a few days then off to New Zealand. See you all soon (unless I decide not to come back!!!)"
It's the 2nd day of 2007 and already we have a visitor! Elly Rivett.
Byron used to work with her brother Chris back in Dr Martins in the UK. We met Elly at Chris's wedding 3 years ago and when Chris said that she would be travelling around Australia and New Zealand for Christmas and New Year we said the usual "We live a bit away from Sydney and the bright lights, but if she wants to visit, always a spare bed etc etc" On New Years day while we were nursing the mother of all hangovers we got her email confirming she was arriving into our local train station at 10.30am the next day. The house was a tip, the fridge was empty and we felt like we wanted to crawl into our beds and never get up again...AAARRGGHHHH!
This morning I was feeling a lot better (although vowing never to drink again!) I set to work, tidying, making up Elly's bed. I even paid Sian $1 to hoover the house, good Girl! (It actually fell out of my pocket as we were moving clothes around so she kept it as a bonus!)
When we got home we all had baths and showers before making "Rocky Road" An Australian invention of almonds, marshmallows, coconut + Turkish delight all mixed into melted chocolate. We put it back in the fridge to set while we had our BBQ. Basa fish marinaded in honey and soy sauce. Wrapped in soft tortillas with spicy cous-cous, parmesan and balsamic salad and shredded cabbage - Yum! Everyone cleared their plates. Maybe it was the added bribery of the rocky road for afters! What a good feast. We were stuffed afterwards. 
When the kids went to bed Elly rang home and then we did a web cam chat with Chris to let him know we had treated his little sister well! 
Joe and Rhonda decided to Baptise their new baby Cian on New Years Eve this year.
The ceremony was in their local church in Sydney at 6pm and then we were invited back to their house in Neutral Bay for "Celebrations and fireworks" Very posh! Luckily for them their balcony overlooks the Harbour bridge where the traditional firework display happens every New Year!
The ceremony was lovely and Cian smiled through the whole thing. We really missed having my parents and sister there. It is at times like this that we feel far away from family.
After the ceremony we went back to Joe and Rhondas and let the kids watch the 9pm fireworks.
It was great hearing their reaction to them. Tenelle asked Gareth if he liked them and told him that his Uncle Joe had done them especially for him. Gareth was awe struck! He decided that the white flashes were for him, the pink ones were for the girls and the multi-coloured ones were for the whole family. Good ol' Uncle Joe! Tenelle couldn't leave it at that though. Just as Joe was standing there looking remarkably smug Tenelle told Gareth that Uncle Joe could do fireworks for Gar's next birthday! Gar looked excited, Joe looked a bit panicked!!!
After the kids had been put to bed on the floor of one of the bedrooms the party moved up a gear and the drink really flowed! A 1500ml bottle of Tyrells white wine was opened and I was the only one drinking it. Every one else was on red or beer. It was a bit scary to see what an indentation I made to the bottle. I can't quite say I finished it off but I wasn't far off!
My Mum, Dad and Sister rang us near midnight to wish us Happy New Year. They could tell I had had a few drinks but thought Byron was stone cold sober! They thought he was the designated driver for the night and felt very sorry for him. Little did they know that we were stopping over and would finally fall into bed at 4am!
We woke up the next morning feeling remarkably well. I don't think the hangover actually hit us till about midday and "Oh Boy" did it hit us bad! We made it back to Toronto for about 4pm and spent the next few hours wishing away the day till bed time.
A few emails to family and friends and an inspired visit to an Irish photo developing service and we were off to bed, sleeping away our hangovers while Bonusprint Ireland were busily printing photos of the Christening and preparing to send them direct to my Mum and Dad!
Not a bad start to 2007!
Happy New Year everyone!
We have discovered a fantastic outdoor swimming pool in neaby Speers Point. It is a public pool with 3 different areas. Adult lengths pool, kids lengths pool and a baby splash pool. It cost the grand total of $9.20 for the whole family to get in (£3.70 Uk!) The kids had a ball. It was safe, clean and had lots of shaded picnic tables where Byron and myself sat and read the paper while the kids splashed and swam to their hearts content. It will be a perfect place to bring our friends Cathy and Derek when they visit at Easter with Alex, Myles and Grace. Roll on March!!!
We have had many good nights at Anne and Kels.
Generally they involve food, kids watching a DVD in Kel's Cinema room and one of us drinking a generous amount of alcohol while the other (designated driver) has to sit back and watch as everyone has a ball! Anne has often mentioned as it gets late into the evening that we should have thought in advance and come prepared to sleep over so that we can both join in the drunken merriment late into the night while the kids sleep through in one of the downstairs bedrooms.
With Joe and Rhonda heading back to Sydney on Thursday, yesterday was a perfect opportunity to try out this plan. We had a great night as Tenelle made many different and very potent cocktails and the evening ended with the obligatory Irish Coffee made by myself. I was drinking my glass of water between each drink hoping to magically avoid a hangover and miraculously this seemed to work as I felt pretty good this morning!
Poor Byron is back in full work mode so I had to drop him home by 8am. He didn't look very happy as I drove away back to Anne and Kels for breakfast. He looked even less happy when 5 minutes later I drove back up the driveway to collect all our swimmers, lifejackets etc for a day of watersports without him. Looks like Boxing day was back on track but poor Mr B couldn't join in.
Obviously I could say that we had a lousy day and that it was boring being whizzed around Lake Maquarie on Kels speeedboat, the kids hated it and I fell out with my brother and his wife, then got sunburned......
Sorry Byron, We had a ball, (Except the sunburn where I missed a spot on my back - Ouch!) 
We were asked to join some friends on a trip to a local fruit farm to pick our own blueberries. The farm was tucked away down a long winding single track road so I was very glad to be following the other cars. I don't think I would ever have found it myself.
When we got there we did a quick check-list... Sunscreen, mozzie repellent, hats, water bottles. It felt like we were about to go trekking through wild unchartered jungles!
A quick hello to the owners who gave some advice to the kids about which berries were ripe, (the blue/black ones) which ones were the sweetest (the big plump ones about the size of a marble) and how to pick them (put your hand underneath the fruit and "tickle" them?!!)
Off we marched with our empty buckets and opened the gate into the blueberry field.
The kids started gingerly, asking advice before picking each berry and not daring to eat any. Over the next hour they gained confidence and were soon pushing their way through the densest corner of the overgrown field.
They were filling their buckets at an alarming rate! And their mouths too! I was paying by weight and had no idea what a full bucket of blueberries would cost. I had brought $50 cash with me. In the supermarket a small punnet costs about $6-$9 and the kids had at least 10 punnets worth between them.
When we went to weigh in back at the farm house I held my breath waiting to hear the final bill. I was wondering which child to try selling if we went over the $50! After an agonising wait while the lady carefully tied up the kids berries in net bags she told me we owed a grand total of $14.50! Bargain! Good job she didn't weigh the kids going in and out. I think we might have owed a bit more!
We now have a fridge full of juicy blueberries. We have lots of plans to bake some wonderful treats. Blueberry muffins, pies and smoothies.....
We had a lovely day and will definitely be making a return trip.
