Bush Walk

In early September we had our first official family bush walk, and were lucky enough to hear about the Muogamarra Nature Reserve from a friend who has become my living 'Encyclopedia of Fun'.  Kind of like Onstar for anyone who might have it.  You just ring her, and she fills you in with all sorts of fun information.  Sometimes you are really SUPER lucky and you open your email or a text message to find a golden nugget...  like this one!  We sure love this lady, and I am proud to call her a friend...  but here we'll call her Doe (another name for a girl kangaroo)!  Thanks, Doe! (I swiped this off your FB page!  I need to get you and my camera in the same room soon!)

The reserve is only open a few weeks each year when the wildflowers are in bloom, to preserve the area.  

We had a friend of Joy's along for the journey.  We'll call him little man.  Here is a picture of them after parking and preparing to start our adventure!

They gave us a photography guide of the wildflowers, and we took turns taking pictures of them as we found them!  Who ever spotted the flower off the guide got to take the picture.  I have no idea who took which pictures now, but I have to say we all did a great job considering we were using my iPhone!

Here are some of the amazing flowers we saw during our few hours in the bush...

I LOVE this pod.  I wish I had put my hand next to it so you could see just how big it was.  Think really big pine cone.  I wonder if these had anything to do with the development of castanets?

This next one is related to the similar version that we eat.  Only this one is kind of a last mean option, if you know what I mean.  Interesting it is red.  DANGER.  DO NOT EAT ME.  One wonders these things, especially if you are tired when blogging!

Awesome, right?

So many plants and flowers.

Check out the size of this one compared to Boomer's face!  It has a huge bloom, and stands close to six feet in the air.

I really liked this shot. Don't know which kid got it, but well done!

Okay, now for the scenery. The views were AMAZING. Prepare to be inspired to book a ticket down under!

I like this one, especially those three human looking weeds...

Ah, the Roo family...

Everything is so amazing.  Just the trees take my breath away.

I'm going to hang this one on my wall.  This is like ten minutes from my house.  How did I get so lucky?!

Joy and Boomer on top of the world.  Boomer is standing in a rock that was carved out by the natives for shelter once upon a time.

Here are a couple of Joy and Little Man.  They really had a great time together.

These are their Hunger Game pictures.  They don't have a clue who Peeta or Katniss are but as I was taking the pictures of them, that is what was running through my head!

Another contender for the wall...  it is hard for me to not believe in God when I see such beauty.  Man can't create anything quite like this!

Or this...

This tree has caused me much reflection and contemplation.  It was gutted, literally, by fire.  But it still stands.  It still lives.  It still produces leaves and provides shelter for animals and crawly things in need.

Life isn't easy for any of us.  Many of us feel gutted by fires (trials) that attack us or our forest (family).  If our roots are deep enough...  if we keep trying...  we not only endure - we adapt and become stronger because of it.

Easy?  No.  But much better than the alternative, and worth it in the long run!

More adventures to come!

Girls Day Out

Joy and I have already met some great friends here in Australia.

K & K took us into Sydney for the first time in August. We went for high tea, and had a great time.

Little K and Joy were great fun.

In hindsight, however, perhaps fancy high tea isn't the place to take kids who aren't keen to eat everything placed in front of them. Joy was not impressed with the sandwich options! Little K did okay with some of the sandwiches but wasn't a fan of the scones or some of the treats.

Big K and I enjoyed it - and ate our fill since our little ones weren't so interested in everything.

They were adorable all dressed up!  They ordered hot cocoa first, then ordered peppermint tea.

After our tea, big K took us to see the Sydney Opera House.  We just did a drive by, and hopped out of the car for a quick walk and photographs.

I don't know why, but I love this next one of Joy and little K.  Can you tell they were attempting to act like adults by Joy's hand motions...  or was that just because I was there?  They were so funny!

Little K took this picture of Joy and me.  We both have our eyes shut, but it is the only proof that I have of us being there together, so it is going up!  :)

Moving around the world is exciting, but often daunting.  You leave behind new friends, people you love and cherish.  People who will be a part of your lives forever.  It is always sad to leave.  Finding new friends, the kind you know will join the list of the loved and cherished, however - makes it all worth while.

Thanks Big K and Little K, for joining our list of cherished friends - and for showing us a great time in Sydney!

Nameless Blogging

I love the opportunity blogging gives me to share our adventures and experiences with friends and family around the world.

Some of the people we want to keep updated aren't technically savvy! My previous blog with the password protection has not been easy for these people.

So, I'm entering the wild world of no password/no name blogging!

Since we are hopping all over the world, and are currently 'Down Under', I'd like to introduce you to our Kangaroo family!


This is Boomer. A boomer is the male kangaroo. All future blogs and (hopefully) comments will use Boomer, rather than Boomer's real name.



This is Flyer. A flyer is the female kangaroo. All future blogs and (hopefully) comments will use Flyer, rather than Flyer's real name.


This is Joy. Joey is a baby kangaroo. She'll always be our baby, but doesn't like the sound of JoeY, as it is a boy name. Plus this little roo brings us great joy. So, all future blogs and (hopefully) comments will use Joy, rather than Joy's real name.



This will be a weekly blog, although I'll be doing some catch up over the next few weeks to get you all updated on our adventures down under - thus far!