Tired but happy

Dog, deep, down, darn tired. Cant imagine why, can you?

But happy. We've just had the most delightful family wedding. Mae is well and on her honeymoon.  My business is up and running, albeit slowly. The house is great to live in and we love it. David's health is steady and the medications seem to be helping.


The other kids seem fine, full of hopes and ideas and moving on in their lives. Lian has plans to go and live in New York, sooner or later joining her husband Matt, who is on a work contract there and just LOVING the place. A few visa and career details to sort out but I'm sure this move would be good for her and for them. Wim also plans to leave Australia soon, has booked a round the world flight starting mid June. With his qualifications and experience he should find work readily enough, has a work visa for the UK which lasts until 2015 and has lots of relatives living in and around London. Same as Lian, this will be good for him. A re-boot, he calls it.

But it's a tug on the apron strings, all this. The aim of parenting is to launch independent, self motivated and adventuresome people, right? Then they leave and make great lives! Without you! But that's good! Yeah...

Here's an independent, self-motivated and adventuresome young family - our lovely niece Kathryn, her husband Florin and their two adorable children Lorenz and Anna-Louise. Normally they live in Berlin where Florin works as a neurologist at one of the hospitals, and Kathryn is soon to resume her English teaching role. This visit to Australia is to see family, friends and do some camping and beach related things. Beach related is right up our alley and it was lovely to have them stay a couple of days, with the weather doing the right thing. Here are some photos.

A little bushwalk one day, beside the rainforest and round the headland - all in bare feet for Florin! With his bare feet and Akubra, he's more laid back Aussie than the rest of us.

 It was such a treat to have little kids to stay. Takes you back.

The butcher birds performed on cue and were flapping around our heads and sitting on people's hands. Lorenz was not at all sure about all this. Birds are small and a long way off in Berlin.

 But he was delighted with the "boat bath"

 Bertie and The Bear was read over and over.

Black Head beach, our local. Water was warm, surf pleasant. Thank goodness. Florin caught a few waves. Diamond Beach dumped him but he came up smiling.

Lorenz loved the beach, loved the sand, loved the ocean pool, loved the walks. The stones was the best bit, he said. Some beach stone collecting happened.

Anna-Louise is a lovable little scrap. Very smiley and tolerant. Except when the food is slow to arrive, then she squeals.

We all did crazy shell smiles, monacles etc. Fortunately the baby was facing the other way at the time Daddy did this one. But she probably would have just laughed.

We harvested some rosellas - the plant not the bird - and made some rosella jam.

David also harvested some of Florin's young musclepower for a rock placement job, around the new overflow pipes under the land bridge crossing to the dam. Florin said his sore back was much better afterwards. Florin is endlessly charming.

Dude the horse came over for some carrot treats. We also visited the new puppy next door, but it was a bit too enthusiastic in its greeting, so we may have set Lorenz back a bit in the dog-tolerance department. There were sheep and cows across the road, viewed from a suitable distance. Its all very children's farm picture book around here. Wallabies and ducks were sighted but the neighbourhood koala did not put in an appearance.

It really was lovely to see them all and to give Kathryn and Florin the chance to have a swim in the surf sans enfants.