Tag Archives: homeschooling while travelling

Across Australia Trip, Family Happy Snaps, Photography, Travel Journal

Day 346: 9 Mile

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Wednesday, 14 May 2014

Pack up day. It was a calm day, and with the boat on the roof, that meant it got hot here in camp. Normally we avoid this by being on the water whenever it is good weather, but not today.

Reading, maths and spelling for school today. Nath changed the coolant in the car, but couldn’t get the whole lot to empty out, so he flushed it as good as he could and then added the entire bottle of coolant. That should do the job for now.

Ray came by and asked if, instead of going to empty the toilet with Dad, would they like to drive the Blue Mule with him and his dog Emmy. Well, of course they couldn’t refuse an offer like that, so they went. They had a ball. They each got to drive one way, to Ray’s camp and then back to ours. Nath had also taken the coolant water in the party tub to go and dump up at the tip too, but of course, it sloshed about over the bumps and splashed inside the boot of the car. When he got home we had to give it a good wiping out as I am not sure what radiator water with used coolant in it could do to the paint, fabric, fridge and outboard; and I don’t want to find out.

This evening, just as Jen had sat down with her book and a cuppa, I went over to see how she makes her shell mobile that I noticed when they first arrived. Nath came over after too as I was gone for a while, having a great old chat. We got to see inside their camper, which Pete had made himself. It was very cool, he is so clever.

Tonight we are almost ready for tomorrow, although we have discovered that both of us could quite happily sit here for a few months. It really is a top place, and I think now takes our favourite place in Australia.

 

 

Until next time…. Happy and Safe Travels.

Across Australia Trip, Travel Journal

Day 345: 9 Mile

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Tuesday, 13 May 2014

It rained at 1am this morning so Nath and I raced out to bring things undercover. When it was daylight, we had an easy morning. I felt better, which I knew would be the case. Elokin and Hendrix did their school work in the morning and then we went out in the boat. It was not glass as we had expected it to be. It was very choppy, much like a washing machine. I caught a 50cm Spango but we let him go as we still have fish in the freezer. Then my reel came apart and for a while I had lost the screw that held it all together somewhere in the bottom of the boat. Both Nath and I started looking for it, but in the wishy washy water, I stopped pretty quickly as I didn’t want to throw up. Nath did better than me and got down on his hands and knees, head down looking. He admitted later that perhaps that wasn’t the best idea as that had made him feel queasy. Luckily Nath managed to find the screw, right near the back seat. I wouldn’t have thought it possible to get that far, but it did. He then put my reel back together so I could continue to fish. That was short lived in the current conditions, as we decided that it really was unpleasant and headed home.

In the afternoon I made blueberry muffins with Elokin and Hendrix as part of their schooling – Home Ec. They had fun and got to lick the bowl and spoon. I walked past Ray and Pete eating one and carrying a warm muffin to Nath who was at the water’s edge packing up the boat, and I think Nath was very lucky to actually receive his. Ray was very keen on eating it. The packet doesn’t quite make enough to share around the camp. Maybe next time I will have to have more than one batch.

This evening the boat went back up on the roof of the car, ready to leave in a couple of days.

Until next time…. Happy and Safe Travels.

Across Australia Trip, Family Happy Snaps, Photography

Day 344: 9 Mile

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Monday, 12 May 2014

Well, I felt like crap today, achy and lethargic. Hmm, this is familiar…. The third time this trip. Still have no idea why or what causes it, but for whatever reason, it keeps happening to me. So I spent most of the day in and out of bed trying to recover. Elokin and Hendrix did school work and Nath made 2 loaves of bread. Both were cooked perfectly in our weber and absolutely delicious! One was a YUM (normal) loaf of bread, but the second he made as a pull-apart loaf, with an egg yolk in the middle, plus ham, tomato and cheese. Yummo!

Phil popped over for a chat and then Darrell and Tonia arrived to say goodbye as they are heading home early in the morning. I did the “suck it up princess” and got on with having people over. I was feeling a bit better by this stage, and I knew that tomorrow I would be fine. After Darrell and Tonia had left we decided we would go ahead with having dinner with Phil and Yvonne at our place. We made the stuffed squid tubes again, but this time they were not as nice. Phil was nice enough to bring his fire over so we sat around it to eat and show them our movies. We called it a night only when it was no longer possible to sit around the fire and be warm. Damn cold weather.

 

Until next time…. Happy and Safe Travels.

Across Australia Trip, Family Happy Snaps, Photography, Travel Journal

Day 342: 9 Mile

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Saturday, 10 May 2014

This morning we started with school work. Some spelling, reading and writing. Fred came by and asked if we needed anything in Coral Bay. We took him up on the offer for some water and gave him our empty 20Lt jerry and $2, as that is what it would cost. Luck is on our side again.

After lunch we walked along the beach as a family collecting driftwood for an arts and craft project this afternoon – Nath’s idea. Elokin stood on a stick almost immediately and hurt her foot. After much sulking she returned to camp by herself. Hendrix, Nath and I walked further along the beach before returning to camp loaded with sticks of all shapes, sizes and lengths.

Even though it was also my Mother’s Day present, I assisted in the making by helping Nath saw them into the desired lengths. Nath rigged up his drill battery, as it was dead, so we can use it again. It is now plugged into a 12vt socket and works! Hendrix and Nath assembled my present with Nath drilling the hole and Hendrix threading them onto the fishing line. I love it! It is exactly what I wanted. Although I do have to pretend that I didn’t see it until tomorrow. Nath and I then made 2 smaller ones for presents.

This evening we made squid balls from Julie’s recipe, except we put in WAY too much garlic, to the point that garlic was all we could taste! Oops. We will try these again another day with less garlic.

 

 

Until next time…. Happy and Safe Travels.

Across Australia Trip, Animals, Destinations, Family Happy Snaps, Our Rig, Photography, Travel Journal

Day 340: 9 Mile

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Thursday, 8 May 2014                                                                                                 84.8kms

What a terrible night sleep we had. It was rainy, windy and Hendrix woke up crying in the wee hours. At 6.30am it was still dark, when it would normally be light. I looked outside and couldn’t see across the bay through the rain. We almost filled all the buckets we put out last night which is awesome. Lots of rain and lots of water collected.

It continued to rain during the morning, so we got some maths done with Elokin and Hendrix. When the rain stopped, we raced around and put all of the wet and damp stuff out in the sun to dry. We then had morning coffee with Phil and Yvonne at their van. They have a pod coffee machine and run it on a generator, so Nath took him up on the offer of one, while he ordered me a Chai Latte. Yummo.

For lunch we headed down to Coral Bay via the main highway rather than the coast track and bought pies and sausage rolls from the bakery. They were delicious. We also got bread, a few groceries and boat fuel on our way to the boat ramp. Today we were lucky and finally saw Merv the big Queensland Groper than hangs out at the boat ramp. He really is a very big fish. We were kicking ourselves for not taking the GoPro in the car, as we would have stuck it in the water with him, even though we have been told that he likes to eat cameras.

We then headed back to camp to organise fish sandwiches for dinner on our fresh bread. The landscape around the area is so lush and green now after all of the rain. The wildflowers have started to come out too. After this morning’s rain, the sun stayed out for the remainder of the day.

Dubbo Distance Education School rang and let us know that Elokin and Hendrix’s enrolment is happening, they have been accepted. Yay! That is awesome news.

 

Until next time…. Happy and Safe Travels.

Across Australia Trip, Destinations, Family Happy Snaps, Landscapes, Our Rig, Photography, Travel Journal

Day 337: 9 Mile

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Monday, 5 May 2014

During the night we had gale force winds. It was pitch black inside the van as the night light had gone out. The sounds and movement of the camper reminded me of being in the museum in Darwin listening to Cyclone Tracy. Nath had to keep getting up to check on stuff. We then got a lot of rain with the wind. This morning it was still raining, but luckily it is not as windy as last night.

When there was a break in the rain we quickly raced around and got things done outside. I also raced up onto the dune to grab a photo of camp but got caught out and rained on. More rain then followed.

Finally some sunshine came out and I used the time to mend the tear in our bed end, as the rain had blown in there last night and wet Nath’s pillow and the bed under it. I know, it took me long enough, as it was just one of those repairs that never seemed all that important. Well, now it has become my top priority. And in the end, it took me less than half an hour to stitch it up. Nath propped the mattress up to dry under it and his pillow went out on the line as well as our wet clothes. We chatted with Tonia and Phil too. Elokin and Hendrix finished their Whaleshark poster project and it looks great. I am very proud of their work and their effort.

The sun was out for ages, and it was breezy too. The perfect drying weather. Nath made crepes for lunch and they were delicious. We will definitely be having these again.

Julie and Tonia came by and shared Julie’s squid ball recipe. It was sunny for most of the afternoon thankfully, which was great. Nath and I worked on the website some more, while Elokin and Hendrix did maths. And we got the bed dry!

Tonight we ate bacon and vegie stir-fry for dinner which has now become a family favourite and a regular on our menu. It is still tonight and so far no rain. A few bugs are around, but nothing as bad as it has been. The stars are out which is a good sign. Elokin, Hendrix, Nath and Phil ran around catching crabs after dinner while Yvonne and I chatted. Once they had caught plenty, the kids ran around while us adults chatted some more. We did eventually call it and go to bed.

 

Until next time…. Happy and Safe Travels.

Across Australia Trip, Animals, Family Happy Snaps, Photography, Travel Journal

Day 334: 9 Mile

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Friday, 2 May 2014

During the night we were woken by the blowing wind rattling the awning. This morning we woke to the complete opposite, a perfectly still day. We were in no rush this morning and mucked about camp for a while before heading west in the boat across the channel. By then the wind had picked up a bit and the ride over wasn’t very pleasant. We found the big bombie again and dropped anchor. Something smashed my bait but I pulled the hook in my excitement. We then had to pull up the anchor as the swell was big and we were drifting slowly towards the bombie that had waves breaking on it. The sea reminded me of a washing machine, it was rough.

We then headed back across the channel and it calmed down. On the way we had a lone dolphin come and play at the front of the tinny. Elokin and Hendrix loved watching it cruise along in front of the bow, every now and then turning on its side to have a look at them.

The fishing on this side, close to the shore, was terrible. We drift and trolled, used bread as burley and fished for hours. We eventually caught one squid and one Charlie court. By then we weren’t having fun anymore and headed home for a late lunch. I cooked scones in the weber and they were delicious.

In the afternoon, Elokin and Hendrix did some spelling and maths. Then at 5pm we walked down to the rocky reef again, this time with the camera to capture all the cool things we find. A guy walked past us and showed us a huge, I mean biggest one I have ever seen, live cowry shell. We told him to put it back as it was still alive, but he kept saying that he has never seen one with so much colour and perfect before. We were very disappointed that he kept it and was willing to kill such a beautiful creature. I will be honest, I love collecting shells, but I don’t kill them to get a perfect shell. That is part of the luck, if you find one that is already dead and in great condition that is the thrill of it. After that we decided not to tell anyone what we found. Lots of furry crabs, a bumpy crap, a red hermit crab, clam shells, an octopus, sea slug and another huge live cowry shell. This one was not as big as the one that was destined to die, so after we had taken photos of it and shown Elokin and Hendrix, we hid it under some weed, in the hope that no-one would find it. I know that eventually someone will and it will meet a similar fate to its mate.

Red Hermit Crab Image
Red Hermit Crab Image

We headed back to camp when the light had started to fade. For dinner we ate our Charlie court and squid coated in garlic with a hint of ginger seasoned with salt and pepper cooked on the bbq.

After Elokin and Hendrix were asleep, we worked on our website, for hours. It is definitely coming together now and looking so much better. Soon, it will be up-to-date and more user friendly than before.

 

Until next time…. Happy and Safe Travels.