Back to Some Old Haunts

After the boys arrived back in Sydney the weather was very warm, over 30 degrees for a few days in a row. On the first day of school for Sean and Craig, Graham went to the beach.

He had a new hat. It keeps his ears out of the sun much better than his old cap.

The local cockatoos seemed to be happy about being able to eat on the balcony again.

Dee Why Oval was still spacious.

And plenty of climbing was done.

It's the type of place that attracts kids.

The playground near the Dee Why beach carpark was also unchanged.

Craig climbed his favourite tree as usual.

The boys even walked all the way up to the top of the beach to another playground.

Craig now 'smiles' like this whenever a camera is pointed at him.

Graham was too hungry to smile. He just ate his snack and then went back to playing.

It was a long walk back for someone with such short legs.

On the next day the two smaller boys were at yet another playground next to Narrabeen Lagoon.

Life has ups and downs when you're small.

Last Days on Holiday and the Long Drive Home

The mornings of the last few days in Yeppoon were glorious. The boys were taken to Lammermoor beach just for a change. Graham liked sitting in the warm water of a tidal creek.

Meanwhile, the older boys kicked a beach soccer ball.

This photo was taken at 5am from the top verandah at Grandad and Grandma's house. Sleeping in was not an option for people whose bedroom windows faced east.

In the evenings, Sean had an excellent solution to an unusual problem. Graham had a habit of singing at the top of his voice while listening to music. Giving him earphones to wear stopped the singing, to the relief of music lovers throughout the house.

Mornings at Lammermoor continued to be beautiful.

Craig and Graham dug in the sand while their father swam up and down the beach.

Amusingly, Graham wouldn't go near the ocean. He was afraid of the waves! No, really, those tiny waves scared him.

He still surpervised Craig carrying water from the sea up to the castles they were building.

The afternoons were spent at playgrounds where the boys could practice their climbing skills.

They can stay busy for quite some time.

They even climb on things that aren't really built for that purpose.

There's plenty to climb on in Yeppoon.

On the last night, Grandad had given Dad a voucher to spend at The Strand Hotel. So, the boys had a really nice dinner there.

Craig and Graham both liked their chicken nuggets and chips.

Living in Yeppoon must be very healthy because Dad lost almost 5 kilos in less than two weeks. All that swimming probably played a part, too.

Sadly, the time came to start driving home. They set out just after 5am. After some rolling hills west of Rockhampton they turned onto the Leichhardt Highway. It's quite a straight road.

They stopped for breakfast beside the road at around 7:30am after travelling about 200km. They still had another 625km to go for the day.

Fifty kilometres later the road didn't look much different.

Fifty kilometres after that it hadn't changed much again.

The playground in Taroom was a very welcome break. Craig and Graham ran around playing as much as they could for 20 minutes. After travelling 350km so far they had plenty of energy.

Back in the car and the road was ...... straight.

A snack was had in Miles beside a memorial and playground because it was too early for lunch and the driver needed a break.

The road between Miles and Goondiwindi is unbending.

But, the scenery was slightly different due to the appearance of farm fields.

Still, the road stretched out ahead.

After lunch in Goondiwindi there was more farmland as they continued south.

Finally, they arrived in Moree, 835kms from Grandad and Grandma's place in Yeppoon. The little boys were ever so pleased that there was a playground beside the Mehi River, walking distance from our motel.

Fortunately for all concerned no photos were taken of Day 2 of the long drive. The scenery was different. The road had bends and there were many more farms especially in the Liverpool Plains but the driver was too tired to do anything other than concentrate on the road that led them all the way home.

The Scene of the Crime

Many years ago when Sean was a little tyke he was taken to a tiny zoo called Cooberrie Park. It wasn't one of the happiest days of his life because a cockatoo bit him and ripped off a thumbnail. So, taking him back again more than 10 years later was bound to bring back memories.

Fortunately, Sean wasn't fazed. He's much bigger now. He can feed kangaroos while making ducks wait their turn.

There are plenty of peacocks in Cooberrie.

Sean continued to get up close to some quite tame wildlife.

In fact, Sean's job was to distract the animals away from Craig and Graham. The two little boys were quite worried about live animals getting up close. They preferred sleeping koalas behind wire.

If a non-Australian asks, How can you tell the difference between a male and female kangaroo? I usually say that the males are the bigger ones.

Craig and Graham didn't have any fun at all with the anmials. Then, when they got into their swimmers to play in the pool a storm arrived!

It only rained for about 45 minutes. Sean and Craig spent most of that time sitting around waiting for the rain to stop.

Graham huddled in a towel under an umbrella trying to stay warm.

The peacocks are supposed to stay out of the barbecue area but post-lunch pickings are too tempting for them.

This is just a typical Cooberrie scene: peacock and kangaroos with emus behind the fence in the background.

Sean was good enough to pose in front of the cockatoo cage just before it was time to go.

Cooberrie closes at 3pm. On the way home a stop was made at a playground beside the north end of the main beach of Yeppoon.

The playground is made for kids Graham's age.

Craig tried to get into the spirit of it but most of the things to play on were a bit small for him.

Graham had a lot of fun in the playground, ten times as much as he had back at Cooberrie Park.

He refused to leave the playground and had to be carried out by his impatient father just when he thought he could stay forever. Sadly for the little boy, Dad had to get back to Grandad's house to cook dinner.