Swans, Macaws and Flowers

Bill and I walk past the Gordon pond most mornings on our morning walk with the dogs. The swan family is usually waiting for us and when they see us come over for some cereal I have been feeding them. Usually father swan is first out the water and stands guard while the young ones eat. He is pretty scary, I wouldn't want to mess with him, I never get too close.

 The young ones are really growing up, some of their feathers are starting to turn black and their beaks are turning red as well. Evidently one they are old enough around 6 months the parents will push them off to find their own place- it will be sad to see them go!

My hellebores are now flowering- these have taken ages to grow but pretty impressed that they have got to this stage, especially considering all the minus mornings we have had this year.

Budgie loves getting a scratch, she just relaxes into it and  you can see the enjoyment on her face- here she is with Amy.

Zonta Birthing Kits

Saturday was the annual Zonta Birthing Kit Packing Day that our church helps out with. One of my tasks as Stake Relief Society President was to liase with Zonta who use our chapel and make sure everything was ready to go. I went over on the Friday to open up and help set up, I had to organise someone to transport tables across from Garran but they really took care of nearly everything else.

Zonta raise the money for the birthing kits, get the necessary items and then the public and members come in and help assemble the kits. In the morning we fold a black plastic sheet that goes into a small ziplock bag. The black plastic is put on the ground so the mother can give birth onto a clean surface and not on the ground-this simple things stops babies from getting tetanus and reduces the mortality rate of babies by 60 percent. In the afternoon pieces of gauze, gloves, soap, string and a blade are packed into the ziplock bag. We pack 3000 kits in the one day, there is a real buzz to the room and it is just such a simple but valuable and  worthwhile activity. We were packed up and cleaned up by about 4pm,

Saturday morning at Lyneham chapel everything is packed up and ready to go- just waiting for the volunteers to arrive at 10am.            

                       

  Everyone hard at work, having fun and chatting away

Girls Time Out

I managed to escape our the mad menagerie at home and head up to Sydney for an overnight visit with Sarah, Tara and Emma from my ward to visit the temple on Saturday morning. Being the older more sensible one, my task was to keep these girls in line. We left Friday morning and headed north, lots of chattering in the car- no time for a snooze. After lunch in Parramatta we checked in to the temple accommodation and then worked out a plan of action. First stop was Parramatta Westfield with colour consultant Sarah whizzing us through the different stores and advising us on which colours suited who- some us feel a bit fashioned challenged so it was a good education!

We couldn't not take a photo of these shirts in Zara- but no money was harmed in the making of this shopping trip- just a poor by passer who was roped into taking this photo!

Next we negotiated the Sydney rail system and caught a train into the city and walked around Darling Harbour. It was a bit cool and windy but being Canberra girls we were up to the challenge.

We had dinner at Darling Harbour then headed across to the Lindt Cafe where some of us ordered a hot chocolate and relived tea party moments from our childhood.

Saturday morning we headed up to the temple and enjoyed some time there, which was the purpose of our trip. The photos are not the best but just to prove that we did make it there!

We headed back to the temple accommodation, cleaned up, packed up and headed back to Canberra. Surprisingly no one was in a hurry to return to their eagerly awaiting children so we took a detour off the freeway into the historic town of Berrima- no quick stops at Macca's for us classy girls. We checked out some of the lovely old buildings in the town and a few of the shops.

Lovely old courthouse in Berrima 

I resisted the urge to buy one of these cute wooden ducks- I need to save my money for the Gumnut Patisserie!

I liked the ladder hanging up in one of the shops, thought something like that might work at home for the birds. This shop might have been a little dangerous for some of the family budgets, but they all resisted the urge to purchase but I wouldn't be surprised if at some future point this shop became a point of call on a trip to Sydney.

The Gumnut Patisserie is a favourite place of our family and there is an unwritten family law that if heading home to Canberra and the patisserie is open one must make some purchases, and so I had to fulfill that requirement and in the process may have corrupted my fellow travelers- the certainly have some tasty wares! Then it was time to resume our journey and head for home and return to the reality of family life! It was a great little trip away and enjoyed by all.

Shepherds Hill Lookout and Strathnairn Gallery

We have had lots of minus 5 and 6 degree starts to the day and Friday morning was no exception. The upside is that they turn into lovely sunny days- cold but sunny and if you are in a sheltered spot it can be very nice. So on Friday afternoon Amy and I headed out to Strathnairn Gallery at Holt. I had heard about an exhibition there and when I looked up the gallery it looked like a lovely setting so I was keen to discover and area of Canberra I hadn't been before. There were lovely views heading up to Holt and the Gallery, we had a wander through the gallery and then had a look at the Link Building which is part of the new development that is going up at Ginninderry.

After that we went for a walk to Shepherds Hill Lookout which gave  you a lovely view down to Uriarra Crossing and the Murrumbidgee River. It was a very pleasant afternoon to be out and about exploring the city we are so lucky to live in.

30th Wedding Anniversary

July was our 30th Wedding Anniversary- can't work out where 30 years have gone! We got away for a short break, just over 24 hours. We drove up to Fitzroy Falls and went for a walk around the East Rim and West Rim. It was rather cold and windy, but as we dropped down a bit it got a bit more sheltered. Lovely views across from the falls.

The Southern Highlands were not looking as green as they normally would and there did not seem to be much water coming down the falls.

We heard quite a few lyre birds then spotted one on our way back. He was singing away and scratching away, quite a special sight to enjoy.

 We then headed to Peppers Manor House at Sutton Forest where we stayed the night, it was a lovely place to stay. We headed into Moss Vale for dinner then a relaxing night back at our hotel. It was a very windy night then a cool start to the day. I went for a wander around the grounds before heading to breakfast.

Someone surprised me with an extra large box of Haigh's truffles so I was feeling very spoilt! We drove home the back way from Goulburn through Tarago and Bungendore which was quite a scenic route home. It was a short but relaxing break away.

Bike Racing

Bill is not riding at all these days and I am not racing over winter, have just been doing the Tuesday night criteriums over summer. I was rostered on to be the  Race Director of one of the Saturday afternoon races just up the road at Lookout Hill. Being race director looks a very daunting job for someone who hasn't done it before so I  volunteered Bill to do the race director job and was one of his marshals. It was rather involved, We were there by 12 noon to brief the other marshals and put up all the signage that has to go out. Fortunately the race was uneventful, it was very windy and gusty so I didn't miss racing at all! Makes you appreciate what some of the people do every week in setting up and running these races,

 Just some of the signs that need to go out

  Graham in the van setting up to start taking registrations. He comes out nearly every week or organises someone else.

The view from Lookout Hill where the race started from, a 10 minute drive from our place. I ride through here almost every week but you can't really appreciate the view from the bike.