Summer holidays

Sometimes, the pictures all fall into place, but the words do not. Our summer holidays were hot, slow, long, fun, full and at times very, very challenging. In our house the wonderful lack of routine that would generally create a relaxed holiday instead creates all sorts of trouble.

However, as I look at this bundle of pictures that have captured the last six weeks, it is a stark reminder that no matter how grey the day, there is always colour to be found. Above would be Roboboy's lego mini figure avatar that seems to end up in all sorts of odd places, including this bowl of florist beads the kids chose from the markets, just add water and they grow.

The stack of books my boy read this last few weeks. The only problem now is where on earth do you go from Harry Potter? (tips welcome).

The simple things are the best -  birthday parties with hills and large pieces of cardboard.

Floral arranging sessions. We walked the streets sampling all the blooms on the footpath.

We spent our usual amount of time under the hose on the trampoline.

We played jewellery shop cafe's,

Hot chocolate with marshmallows anyone ?

and built extravagant paediatric hospitals,

created storyboards for the three little pigs,

organised rooms and shuffled furniture to give my boy a desk of his own,

spent hours and hours in construction at the Ipswich Art Gallery

And after more than a year away, we finally made it back to our favourite beach.

As the years pass and we come back here time and time again, the memories just build and pile up atop each other. This is three years ago,

And the exact same spot now.

We made mermaids,

and just like previous times we have come to Moffat beach, there have been some milestones passed.
Like the catching of her very first wave,

first sand dune slide,

and most excitingly, the first bike ride without training wheels. Just like that she was off, haring down those paths to the sea that she knows so well.

We rode all the way to the Mr McGee tree (it was perhaps a little too far in hindsight) and we climbed to the very top ( well not me, I was down the bottom taking photos). The view was amazing.

There was also the usual rock hopping,

tidal creek paddling,

After a swim in the ocean pool at Kings beach, we stumbled across a man snorkelling in one of the tidal pools. As is our way, we of course had to find out what he was up to. He was catching some rare fish and when he left he gave us his leftover bait so we too could hand feed the fish.

So late that afternoon we trotted back with our buckets and nets and hand fed the fish with our raw prawns. We even managed to catch a few for our collection. Then of course we tipped them all back in, squealed at the sight of an eel where our toes had just been and rode our bikes home. I love that we now have another new favourite spot to go back to next time.

It always astounds me how much my children remember from all the other visits to this very beach. This time when we got to a particular spot, Liongirl asked me to play the rock stacking game we played there once, more than a year ago. This time we made beach houses for the crabs, with stones for the windows and doors, a path up to the front door and a seaweed mat.  I wonder if next year we will come back to this spot and do it all again.

She and I spent an afternoon together exploring. We found six sea cucumbers and a nudibranch. Not a spectacular colourful one, but amazing just the same.

We were either at the beach, riding our bikes, eating calamari and chips or in here for the entire seven days.

Summer holidays, we think we did you justice. Now it's time for the relief of that old familiar routine of school.