'ello, 'ello, 'ello.......

I've been away for AGES I know!!

Actually, for one week we really were away, WITHOUT the laptop...... never take the laptop on holiday, that's my motto::

We went on a fabby little holiday to Adelaide which is about 630kms west (and a little bit north) from where we live - about an 8 hour drive for us, taking it at a leisurely pace and stopping every now and then for a bite to eat and to find the nearest public convenience!

Our kids are the most phenomenal travellers and are quite happy to sit with a good book or listen to an audio book for quite a L-O-N-G time (I mean a few hours at a time), even then all it takes is for me to pull out something to munch on or drink and we are happy for another stretch - this makes for fairly easily journeys which, I have to say, is SUCH a bonus.

This time we also had the soundtrack for Mamma Mia in the car which meant that we all sang along very loudly as we drove - which is probably why we didn't encounter any wildlife on the highway - they could hear us coming!

We had a few things planned for the days we were there but seriously, as with many holidays, there is so much more you could do but you have to get that balance between what the kids would like to do (play on the beach and in the ocean) with what the grown ups would like to do (visit all the interesting little towns and galleries, sip morning coffee and have lots of cheese tasting experiences thrown in for good measure - having said that the children will quite happily join in the cheese tasting experiences!)

We opted for a bit of being 'out and about' in the mornings and then spent the latter half of the afternoon/early evening on the beautiful (and deserted!), white-powdery-sand beach....... and in the water - well the children and Brian got in the water.....




this is as far as I ventured!


I'm not a sea lover...... but I REALLY enjoy building sandcastles and taking walks to find THE BEST shells on the beach (or other random bits of sea treasure!!)

So apart from being in the ocean, here is a little picture story of what we did......

enjoyed the early morning.......


mid afternoon..........


and evening views from our back porch........


Visited a really eccentric old boy with one of the largest private collections of LEGO in Australia.......


Isaac was like a kid in a candy shop........


I did tell him that if he built all his LEGO sets and displayed them on his shelving unit in his bedroom he could charge an entry fee........ just a thought.......


We visited Handorf (the oldest settled German town in Australia) and did a little of the aforementioned cheese tasting (and purchasing!!), then went on to pick strawberries at the Beerenberg Strawberry Farm.....


Had to taste a few just to make sure they were nice and sweet.......


and then brought 1.5kgs home for to have (dipped in chocolate) for dessert after dinner, then again for breakfast, lunch, tea, breakfast........ oh yes, they were GOOD!


We ventured out one day at sunrise to go dolphin watching. There are only a limited number of places around the world where you can go and swim with wild dolphins and Adelaide is one of them. So Brian, Isaac and Evie donned the wet suits......



and jumped into the ocean behind a 58ft catamaran holding onto mermaid lines and spent time spotting dolphins!


Did I mention that I'm not a sea lover??!!!! I stayed on board the boat and took LOTS of photos......



The dolphins tracked the boat and were super speedy..... but oh, so beautiful to watch......


After three swims, Isaac decided to shed the wetsuit and become an official 'spotter'.......


By the end of the cruise we were all just enjoying the beautiful sunshine and being out on the water (not in it!!)


We did spend a day in the city of Adelaide itself visiting the South Austrlia Museum, the Art Gallery and the State Library - but I guess our fondest memories will be those of sandy shoes.............and feet, and hair, and swimsuits, and shorts.......


and, of course, building sandcastles......