Graham's Favourite Playground

As mentioned previously on this blog, Clontarf Reserve has an excellent little playground. Graham, in particular, loves it.

The last time he was there it was pretty crowded.

This is his favourite thing to play with.

He pulls sand up in the little bucket.

And, tips it down a pipe.

It's great execrise. He always sleeps well after an hour or two of this game.

Craig kept busy climbing and sliding.

He also helped fill the little bucket with sand for Graham.

And even got to play with it himself occasionally.

There's also a jungle gym that requires concentration as well as balance.

But it's popular and often crowded.

Graham had a turn at being King of the Castle.

Before moving on to some other climbing.

Craig's climbing skills are already well honed.

Graham climbs slower and stays lower than Craig but he still enjoyed himself just as much.

There was fish and chips for lunch.

Perhaps it would be more accurate to say, everyone else had fish and chips while Graham just had chips.Fortunately, there was plenty.

Summer Hols

As those who live here know only too well, Sydney can be very, very wet. Approximately One Bajillion litres of rain fell over a three consecutive days in early January. The boys couldn't go outside.

The situation had them climbing the walls.

Graham has only recently started climbing walls.

He's been trying to copy Craig for years.

Finally, his legs are long enough!

Some of the local birdlife know that when their natural food is all wet they can come to a certain balcony for food.

The first day after the big wet, the boys went for a walk.

They had no trouble finding puddles to play in.

There was also a walk to Middle Creek Reserve beside Narrabeen Lagoon, a few days later. It was 8 km and Graham walked all the way there and back without being carried. :)

One day, when the wind blew hot from the west and the temperature climbed to the high 30s, the boys cooled off at Collaroy beach.

It was right on high tide and the rock platform beside the pool was covered in waves.

The boys didn't mind. They had plenty of fun on the sand.

When the water retreated a little the boys went exploring out on the rock platform.

They found lots of sea snails.

Graham can be quite bossy when there is work to be done.

The next day the boys went to Rocket Park in Warriewood.

The boys haven't been here often.

There's plenty to do.

The bottom part of this slide was scalding hot but the kids were moving fast by the time they got there.

It was all fun in the sun.

Well, except for the bits that have shade cover.

Graham didn't want to slide down the steel slide. He came down the rough rubber bit at the side. No wonder his shorts always wear out in the bum.

The boys stayed long enough that they needed a snack so they would have enough energy to keep playing.

Then, the next day boys got on their bicycles for a ride to Narrabeen Lagoon.

Once again, when out riding it is impossible to take photos of Craig because he speeds away far ahead while Graham proceeds at a much slower pace.


They had a picnic lunch.

Graham really likes to play with Craig's new watch.

Then it was time to ride home, at a stately speed.


He sped up a little when going downhill but refuses to go fast.

New Year's Day

The weather was perfect on New Year's Day, warm and sunny with a gentle cool breeze. Craig and Graham didn't go far, just to the little park downstairs from home. Graham spent most of the time with one of the Christmas presents.

Craig stuck with an old favourite.

The boys were happy to stay downstairs in the park as long as there were Smarties to eat. Fortunately, Dad had a big bag! Craig had to hit seven balls a required distance to get two Smarties. He was happy with the deal and kept playing for more than an hour.


Graham's task was to run around in circles with the soccer ball at his feet until the string reached either the top or the bottom of this toy. His reward was two Smarties each time.

And he was happy, too.



Not pictured is Dad sitting in a folding lounge chair in the shade, reading a book and dispensing Smarties.As you do.

Weekends Should Be Like This

Movember! It's a thing, even at schools for little people.

A type of family tradition has begun recently. Friday evening barbecues. Every Friday after school/work the boys get taken "out" for dinner in a literal sense. This week they went to Dee Why. This park is very close to the beach but the water is just out of sight.

Graham hadn't slept well the night before and decided he needed a nap more than dinner.

 Sean and Craig played soccer.

 It was a close game with lots of incident.

 Craig had to take a break to have a drink.

 Then, there was volleyball.

 It was more restful than the soccer especially when waiting for the ball to come back.

The ball did spend some time being passed back and forth.

 Craig lost interest from time to time but otherwise it was all good fun.

 On Saturday night it was time to decorate the Christmas tree.

 Graham and Craig have done this before.

 There was plenty of supervision by the older brother of the younger brother's work, which is only natural.

On Sunday, the weather was perfect for the beach.

The boys had to walk to Dee Why because Mum had driven the car to work. Sean even went swimming in the rock pool but there's no photos of that.