Weekending

In a matter of seconds the sky was blazing with a hundred tiny fires.

24.04.2010

Early morning rain makes me feel cosy and warm inside my home.

Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree

We don't get a lot of kookaburras here in the suburbs, but lately there's been a group of three of them hanging around. I snapped this magnificent one sitting on the neighbors clothes line this morning.

Spring Sunshine

The sunshine always seems more dazzling after the rain.

And so does everything else.

I am completely in love with this bougainvillea which is creeping over from next door.

Enjoy the weekend!

Morning Sky

This morning it was cold again after some warmer weather. Looking up at the sky made me feel like I was submerged in an icy lake looking up at the surface.

Walking on a Winter's Afternoon

Every afternoon the boys and I go walking, the little one sitting (or standing) in his pram and the big one on his bike. Sometimes going for a walk is the last thing I feel like doing, but once we are on our way I never regret it. I love being out in the fresh air and having the chance to observe some of the beautiful pockets of nature in our area. Though it is still winter here, our winters are so mild that in many respects this is the best time of the year to go walking.

Here are a couple of things I particularly liked on yesterday's walk:

Striking pink bougainvillea against the blue blue sky

These luminous berries look like miniature oranges for fairies. This tree also has gorgeous delicate lacy purple flowers that are out at the same time as the berries, and the purple and yellowy orange make a stunning colour combination. Sadly it was only when I got home I realised I'd missed out on capturing the flowers too.

Beach in Winter

Yesterday was one of the last remaining days of the school holidays so I took the boys to see the sea. I love the beach in winter. There is something so perfect about being on the beach in a sweater!

Sunrise (Again)

I know I've posted a lot of sunrise shots lately, but this morning's was just so spectacular I had to share! We were under a sea of pink and orange clouds.

I like the one below, the sun is just coming up behind the trees, sending out a ray of pink out to the right.

Sigh, what a wonderful way to start the day.

Crystal Balls for Lady Beetles

Sugar Snaps and Sunrises

Sometimes it's a real struggle on these cold winter mornings to hop out of bed when I hear bubby crying out in the darkness.

But then slowly the light seeps into the world outside and I am rewarded with a spectacle like this:

I think he wakes me up early some mornings just so I don't miss such a wonderful sunrise.

In the vegie garden the sugar snap vines have finally got their first flower!

I had almost given up on them, after all the vine was already this big

They were planted at the same time as the butter beans next to them, and the beans have all but finished their harvest.

Apricot Dawn

It's Snowing...

Jasmine, the cold weather has it bursting into bloom like the first snowfall.

But their snowy whiteness is the closest we'll get to snow here in Brisbane. Most years we don't even register a frost. That doesn't mean it doesn't get cold though!

Nature Excursion - Minnippi Parklands

I have decided to move our "nature excursions" to Saturday so that the whole family, especially DS8, can benefit from the outdoors time.

Last Saturday we went to Minnippi Parklands which is a large grassy tract of parklands in Murrarie beside the Gateway motorway. Getting to the park for the first time is a little dubious as you drive through an industrial estate then a deserted little lane way through bushland, but the park itself was inviting and bubbling with families when we got there.

There is a large natural pond in the lower part of the park where we stopped to look at the ducks and waterfowl. There are some cycling paths and the standard playgrounds dotted around the place, but one of my favourite parts of the park was a playground by a giant fig tree, built of concrete and designed to look like an old tower ruin. I really enjoyed its originality. The plaque below was at the base of the big old tree.

It reads

To call a tree sprite forth to play

Gather leaves x4 this day

And here while mixing pods and seeds

Recall a fairy from your dreams

Early Morning Sunshine in the Garden

Coating everything in its gorgeous honey glow.

My Little Helper in the Garden

Yesterday we had a big afternoon in the garden. Out came the straggly tomatoes, and in went some rhubarb. I really like rhubarb, it's my favourite "cooked" fruit. I wanted to start a whole patch of it, but there were only two teeny rhubarb plants at the shop, so we'll start with that and be on the look out for some more next time.

I also had a chat to my neighbor over the fence who was out in her garden and she pressed some sweet pea seeds onto us. The generous aspect of gardening is so heartwarming. We have had quite a few seed and plant exchanges over that fence!

Oh to be Eight Again...

I so want to climb that tree!

Grey Skies

It hasn't rained here in over a month, so this is most welcome. I know it's a cliche but waking in the night to the sound of rain outside was just so comforting.

Nature Excursion Close to Home

The irony of driving somewhere to enjoy nature is not lost on me, so last Friday we set up the picnic rug and enjoyed a "nature excursion" in our own back yard.

We have a teeny-tiny back yard. I do dream of living surrounded by land instead of suburbia but as that isn't in my near future I tell myself that until I have exhausted the possibilities of the land that we do have, I really can't wish for any more! And that keeps me satisfied for the most part...

As I started to really look around our back yard, I noticed there was a lot to see.

The bougainvillea is blooming beautifully

As is the yellow grevillea

And the pink one

The gum tree is laden with gum nuts

I was also surprised at just how many food plants we have.

The just-blooming bean flowers. These are exquisite, so delicate like tiny little fairy orchids.

Cherry tomatoes, surely on their last legs by now:

Passionfruit, also one of the last of the crop: The lemon, the one and only lemon to be produced by our tree so far. Baby is obsessed with trying to pick the lemon, but it is holding tight for now.

Kaffir lime looking ridiculously green and glossy:

The view from the best seat in the house:

Not a cloud in the sky What a perfect day!

Friday Nature Excursion - Wellington Point

It was another stunning day on Friday, so we headed out to Wellington Point, on the bay.

I have lived in Brisbane pretty much all my life so I am embarrassed to admit that I was in my 20s before I even knew this place existed! It is now my favourite destination when I want to be by the bay. There is even a little area where you can swim, though its too cold for that now.

In the first picture, out to sea on the left hand side you can see a little island. I'm not sure what this island's really called, or if it even has a name, but it seems to be known as "Pirate Island" to the local kids. At low tide there is a sandbar that you can walk across for about 1km to reach the island. There is nothing on the island, but it is a great adventure!

Seagulls are considered a bit of a pest around here, but I think they're gorgeous, I love their snowy whiteness.

Happy Mothers Day

Happy mothers day to all the wonderful mamas!

Mothering is the most wonderful, amazing, trying, frustrating, and important thing I will ever do, I am sure of that. While it has been so nice to be spoilt by DH and the boys today, mothers day is also a good reminder for me of how lucky I am to have the little ones and DH and how special they are.

Yesterday I went to Hawkins nursery, in Chandler, to buy some herbs for my mother and MIL.

I thought I'd share some of the lovely little set-ups they have there:

I'm sure that last one is a little fairy's island. Here is a close up of the staircase leading to the magic Faraway Tree: