CAMPING....FINALLY!!

We love to camp so on Halloween when our friends the Graces told us that they wanted to go camping we readily agreed. However, with schedules nothing got planned until last weekend. Hard the first week of school, but we managed. We stuck the coordinates into Sue (our heaven sent GPS) and headed out after picking up the kids from school a bit early. It was supposed to be 90 minutes south of Sydney - I guess that all depends on where you start counting from, because it took us three hours. Had I known that might have done it on a longer weekend - but live and learn. Soon there was a road closure due to a big accident on the highway. Since we have no idea where we are going and have no idea exactly where our destination is, we decided to pull off the highway into a little town and ask. Come to find out we are almost there - we did know at least this much because Sue tells you how much time left to your destination. I got a call from Regina and they are on their way. She called the RPA and finds out that the road will be closed for another two hours and the detour is at least a three hour drive through switchbacks and narrow roads. We decide to stay put in Kiama and wait it out. Not a bad place to get stuck really. We walked along the beach front and played on a playground. We then started walking towards the lighthouse but decided it was too far for the kids to go and the road had opened. We found out later we should have kept going to the lighthouse because there is a big blowhole there that is amazing. Oh well!

Finally we made it to our destination, Gerroa, and started putting up our tent and uploading the car. Look at the concentration on Coop's face. He was such a bit helper and loved to hammer in the stakes. We brought a little Utah dirt with us as well - hopefully no bugs that will pollute Australia - it got through customs.We were right by the riverbed, but due to the tide the river was a ways out. This was good for Madi she spent two days searching and catching crabs. Within a half an hour of being there this is what Rylee looked like, gotta love camping with little ones!!!

That night we had a really late supper - the BBQs were not really quick heaters. Then we got in our PJs and took our chairs out to the open space by our tents and took in the sky. It was amazing. I haven't seen stars like that in such a long time. Not only were there millions of stars, but they look different in the southern hemisphere. They are in different locations. We finally saw the southern cross and countless shooting stars. We stayed up late talking and finally went to bed around 12:30.

We were woken up at 6am to the screeching of the cockatoos - I swear there was a bird right in the trees above us and was so tempted to get out and throw rocks at it. I didn't have the energy to do that so I just tried to ignore it.

We decided after breakfast to head to the nearby beach - seven mile beach. The wind was so bad I thought our trip would maybe last 10 minutes. Rylee was screaming because of the wind and the tiny bits of sand pelting her constantly. We never actually made it to the beach but to a tributary in front of it. Through exploring a bit I found a sheltered spot which turned out to be the best place to play anyway. The water was really shallow for Rylee and there was a deeper part for the kids to play in. It was perfect. We spent a few hours there playing around, having mud fights, and enjoying the weather. I took a walk out to seven mile beach to see it and thought I was in a sand storm the entire way (didn't see much either). We then headed back to the camping area and played in the pool. After lunch in a nearby cafe we packed up the car, played a bit of cricket (French cricket this time - there are so many backyard games), stopped by the camp playground to see the big inflatable bubble you could jump on, and headed home.

Here is Cooper playing cricket - we are going to buy a little set to bring home so we can play backyard cricket. It is pretty fun and Cooper loved it!

It was a fun weekend, but a tiring one as well. It made me realize how much I miss family camps and camping with friends on the weekend back home. When you drive 45 minutes to your favorite camping spot and enjoy the sounds of nature all around you. Making smores and banana boats and listening to the crackle of the fire. Oh how I enjoy a good camping trip. Anyone wanna go when we get home you let us know!!!