Pebbly Beach

Sunday, September 30, 2012

We headed on our vacation today.  We are headed to Narooma.  It is about 3-4 hours from us.  It is amazing how long it takes to get a short distance here.  The roads are very curvey, mostly two lanes, and the speed limit only gets up to about 55 (110km).  Then you go through all the little towns which makes it an even longer trip.  At times, it felt like we had been driving for hours instead of just one.

Adam, Sydney, and Dagan walking on the "shelf."

Adam waiting for our return.

The kids exploring.

To break up the drive, we stopped at Pebbly Beach in Murramarang National Park.  We drove for a few miles on a gravel road to get to the beach.  It was really pretty.  The beach had a "shelf" of sand, so we were able to walk a good ways out into the ocean without getting super wet.  On the north part of the beach, there was a rock face and rocks by the water.  We walked around them to do some exploring.  There were some really cool formations.  We could have spent most of the day there.  You really need to have on shoes because the rocks and shells hurt bare feet.  Next time, we will take our crocs. 

Sydney and Dagan finding smooth rocks to walk on.

Dagan getting close to a kangaroo.

When we headed back to the sand, we saw kangaroos on the beach.  This was one of the reasons we stopped here.  This was the first time we got to see kangaroos in the wild.  The kids walked up pretty close to them.  Fun!

Sydney by the kangaroos

We got back into the car and headed to Narooma.  It took another 40 minutes.  We checked into our hotel, went down to the boardwalk to look for stingrays (no luck), and got some dinner.  We relaxed tonight, but realized the kids needed to be more active today.  They didn't burn enough energy.  We will have to run them hard tomorrow.

First Belt Exam

Friday, September 28, 2012

Look at Dagan's good push up position.

The kids had their first belt exam today.  This morning they cleaned up their rooms and made their beds to be prepared when Master Walker asked them about this.  We went to last month's belt exams to see how they were run.  Dagan went first.  He did really well.  He was confident and did everything he needed to do.  We were glad he spoke loudly and clearly during the oral part. 

Dagan sparring.

Dagan with the other Dragons that passed the exam.

Sydney demonstrating her punches.

Sydney receiving her certificate.

Sydney is in the high school group that works with the adults.  She did well, too.  She was asked at the end by Master Walker if it was really hard, and she said a little.  Both were nervous, but worked together to be prepared.  They reviewed their moves, the white pattern, and oral material.  Adam and I did very little to help them.  We are very proud of their efforts.

Sydney with the other Eagles and adults who passed the exam.

Sydney at Karloo Pools

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Sydney getting into the pool.  It was too cold for one of the girls

Sydney relaxing after her swim.

Sydney with Erin, Elle, and Brianna

Sydney was invited to go bushwalking with some friends from school.  She went to Karloo Pools in the Royal National Park with Erin and her family.  They picked her up in the morning.  Sydney said they hiked to the pool, went swimming, saw an eel, saw a lizard, and saw some parrots.  She thinks we should go back as a family.  After the hike, she went back to their house for a while.  They have a yellow lab.  Sydney enjoyed petting it and playing fetch, but the dog really made her miss Topaz.  

A picture of the lizard

Tulip Time

Saturday, September 22, 2012

These were the largest tulips we had ever seen.

We went to Tulip Time in Bowral.  It was at Corbett Gardens.  It ended up being a small venue.  Adam and I had to pay $20 to get in.  We were not sure it was really worth it after entering because the gardens are not very large, but the tulips were really pretty.  There were a variety of colors and shapes. 

Sydney and Dagan in the middle of the tulips.

colorful tulips

feathery tulips

Some were really big, others feathered, pink, purple, multi-colored, black and more.  After walking through the garden, we walked through town.  We decided to stick around for the parade.  It ended up being small, too.  The Mukwonago Father's Day parade is much larger.  The best part was their band.  We went back to one of the stalls in the garden because we wanted to get some hats.  Adam and Dagan got hats that remind us of Indian Jones.  Sydney and I got brimmed "girly" ones.  They will definitely help protect us from the sun. 

Wollongong Public School Concert

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Dagan had a concert at school tonight.  We went early for the barbecue.  We had sausages on white bread.  We've noticed that they use bread for sausages instead of buns.  We can see why because the buns are too big, and you end up eating more bread than anything else.  Dagan ditched us right away.  He joined his friends playing hand ball.  To Adam and I, it looked like four square with a racquetball.  It is really nice to see him fitting in at his school. 

We had to buy tickets for the concert.  We lucked out and got front row seats.  The concert reminded me of the variety show.  There were songs, dances, plays and instrumental acts.  The school has a number of organized groups:  a choir, a dance group, and a group that has learned to play ukeleles.  Each of these groups in addition to some of the classrooms performed at the concert.  Adam, Sydney, and I think Dagan should sign up to learn the ukelele next year.  That looked like fun.

Dagan wouldn't look at me for a picture.

The Batman group pretended to be sneaky.

Dagan's class performed with his Kindergarten buddy class.  It was a play/musical about being a superhero.  Dagan was in the Batman group.  He had fun with it.

Kiama

Sunday, September 16, 2012

View of part of the market

 We went to Kiama today.  Once a month, Kiama holds an arts and crafts market.  It was really good.  All of us found things to look at.  We ended up getting some metal pieces.  Adam and I got some fish, Dagan got a dragon, and Sydney got a peacock. 

A spray from the blowhole

Sydney and Dagan by the sea pool

We walked through the market, and then headed to the blowhole.  We passed one of the sea pools on the way.  The kids really want to swim in one of these.  They look really neat.  We lucked out and were at the blowhole when the water came through.  You could hear the water under the rocks before it spurted out.  The spray was fairly high. 

Sydney and Dagan climbing on the rocks.

A view from the top of the rocks

Sydney and Dagan by the light

 The kids liked the blowhole, but the rocks were calling their name.  You could walk over the rocks to a small light.  They were off.  The rocks would have been slippery if the tide was higher.  Some parts were very steep.   It dropped off right into the ocean.  It was a beautiful view, but a little scary.  There were a few tidal pools.  In one there were red sea creatures.  They looked cool, but I don't know what they were. 

The red sea creatures in the tidal pool

After getting back to the walking path, we picked up some fish and chips.  While we were waiting for our food, we watched the fisherman feed the pelicans.  After they filleted their fish, they tossed the guts to them.  They swallow the guts whole.  It was gross and cool at the same time.  It is pretty amazing how big pelicans are.

The pelican waiting for some food.

On our way home, we took the kids to the top of Mt. Kiera.  You can see our apartment from there.  It is a good view of Wollongong.

Happy Father's Day

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Happy Father's Day!

With that form, the shot must have been good.

Yes, I did write Happy Father's Day in my title.  In Australia, they celebrate Father's Day on the first Sunday in September.  Since we weren't with Adam on our Father's Day (he was traveling back to the states), we decided to celebrate here.  Sydney took him to a breakfast at her school on Friday.  Adam was able to meet some of her friends and another family that is here from Kansas City.

We are walking back to the tee box.

I hope it was a good shot!

Today, we went golfing.  We can look out our windows to see if the course is busy or not.  There wasn't really anyone on the course, so we headed over.  It was pretty nice, but the hole set up is a little strange.  Sometimes you have to walk back 50 yards from the green to the next tee box.  The course is right on the ocean, so on a few holes if you hit it wide your ball would land on the beach or in the waves. 

Do you think he made it?

We did have a few unusual things happen while we were golfing.  First people walk on the hole closet to the beach.  There isn't a path, but there they are.  They even bring along their dogs.  If you weren't careful you could hit them on the tee shot.  Second, there was one couple that walked right across all the holes, so they could get wherever they were going.  Having us playing golf didn't stop them.  Third, before you head to the back nine, there is a path to the beach.  The 7th green is right next to the path.  As we approached the green, there were girls doing cartwheels and flips on the fringe.  Finally, the best one was the group that walked out to sit under a tree on one of the holes on the back nine to have a picnic.  They laid out their blanket, sat down, and had lunch.  This would never happen in the states.