Got any room?? Weaving around the South West corner of WA to wherever we could nab a site.

A few different places - basically any place that had space, it is super busy down the South West corner of WA at the moment!

Wednesday 28th December - Tuesday 3rd January 

The 7 days after we left Wellington Dam went like this:

Wed 28th Dec

We left Wellington Dam mid-morning then stopped in at the Donnybrook Apple Playground where the kids enjoyed the huge playground. After that we popped into Bridgetown for a walk around the cute old town to look at the street art and browse in some of the shops before a swim in the Blackwood River. Afterwards we popped into Manjimup so the kids could see about spending some of their Xmas money. We finally made it to Fernbrook Farm and spent the late afternoon/evening with friends we'd met at Sandy Cape (Ilia and Emily).

Donnybrook Apple Farm

The kids interacted with some of the street art at Bridgetown.

This one was my favourite.

Thus 29th Dec

After a slow morning we headed out to Fonty's Pool, with a stop at one of the local farms where we stocked up on fresh fruit and vegetables. We had an awesome time at Fonty's Pool, a swimming pool filled with fresh spring water, floating on tractor tyre tubes and relaxing in the sun. The funniest moment (thankfully not caught on video) was when I sat on a huge tube Jackson had just managed to nab. A few seconds after I sat down, I slid right through the middle, bum first, with my arms and legs up in the air. Daniel (and heaps of other spectators) weren't sure whether to laugh as apparently it looked so awkward that Daniel was sure I would have hit my head on the bottom or hurt myself somehow- when I finally reached the surface unharmed we all laughed so hard at my klutziness!

The huge tyre that I couldn't even sit on without falling off!

That night we all took turns using Jackson's slingshot rocket launcher, as we had lots of open space at the farm camp.

Fri 30th Dec

Today we left to go to Olive Hill Farm near Margaret River. We stopped in Manjimup, Nannup and Workman's Pool on the way. Workman's Pool, a huge natural swimming hole, was just what we all needed as it was a hot day. After setting up at Olive Hill Farm we went to look at Redgate beach, it looked like an awesome beach but it was blowing a gale so we couldn't really enjoy it. We returned to camp and did the walk down to the back of the property to where the Margaret River flows through. When we got back Jackson discovered a bike jump so he spent ages practising the jump whilst the rest of us relaxed at our picturesque camp amongst the olive trees.

Sat 31st Dec- New Year's Eve

We ended the year with a day of fun. We started at Monkey Business, a high ropes and zip lines course, where the kids had a heap of fun whilst Daniel and I relaxed in the sunshine. After that we went to Dunsborough and had a delicious cold brew coffee whilst we walked along the beach, then we drove up the coast to Bunker Bay for swim before heading to Swings and Roundabouts winery for a late lunch. Daniel and I did a tasting, then we enjoyed a lovely bottle of Rose with our wood fired pizzas. We even managed to nab a table with the popular swing seats! After a long, lazy lunch we headed back to camp where we spent the evening with a family we'd met in Busselton. Jackson and Emilia had a great night playing with their kids whilst us adults sat around chatting until about 10pm. We put the kids to bed then Daniel and I tried to stay up a bit longer but it was cold and windy and we seemed like the only ones in the campground still up! We decided we'd made it to 12pm Victorian time so that was good enough!! 

Ready for some fun!

Below are some photos and videos of the kids enjoying the high ropes courses and the zip lines at Monkey Business - they had an awesome 2.5 hours challenging themselves and zooming though the tree tops.

This one was particularly hard - it was very high up and the loops of rope moved when they stood on them- Emilia nearly did the splits mid air (see below).

We stopped for a swim at Bunker Bay and there was a huge inflatable in the ocean - the lifeguards didn't know who it belonged to, so told Jackson to go and enjoy it- he did!

We had such a lovely time at Swings and Roundabouts - how can you not when the seats are swings? It was so much fun!! The wine and the pizzas were incredible too.

Sun 1st Dec

Lazy day- the kids enjoyed playing with Mahli and Tynan at the Olive Hill Farm campground, then we went to the Margaret River shops and skate park in afternoon. On our way back we all enjoyed a sneaky shower at the RAC resort.

Emilia could do the pump track at the skate park on her rollerskates - she skated so much she ended up with blisters!!

Mon 2nd Dec

After a rest day the day before, I planned a huge day exploring some of the 'must do' sights in the area. Along with a few hundred other tourists we went to Canal Rocks, The Aquarium and Injidup Natural Spa. After that we headed back to Bunker Bay hoping to boogie board, however the swell had died down so it wasn't ideal for catching waves. Jackson and I still tried though. He caught a wave but got dumped close in to shore and ended up with an eye full of sand and seawater- it got so inflamed a few hours later that he had to wear sunglasses all afternoon and evening (even the streetlights driving home hurt his eyes too much). He still managed to have fun with Emilia in the water before we left though - the waves were the perfect size for their surfer toys. We left Bunker Bay in the late afternoon and went to Busselton where Jackson spent his Xmas money on a scooter. He immediately tried it out at the Busselton skate park (and we've been hanging out at a lot of skate parks since then!). To end off a great day we decided to have fish and chips on the beach and watch the sun set. The best fish and chips were a bit out of the centre of town so we all headed down with the plan of walking along the beach whilst our dinner was cooked. We'd been told a half an hour wait.....1 1/4 hours later we finally got our fish and chips and ended up eating in the dark!! Luckily they were good fish and chips!! By the time we got home it was after 9pm and we'd been out for over 12 hours!! It was an epic day (minus the long wait for dinner).

Canal Rocks (photo from the bridge over the canal), the waves crashing over the rocks were huge and the water surged up the canal so quickly.

Looking back onto Canal Rocks on our way to the Aquarium- the beaches along the coast here are all so picturesque.

The Aquarium- it is a large pool surrounded by rocks so really protected from the huge waves. We had a lovely swim and climbed up on the rocks to watch the huge waves crashing.

Injidup Natural Spa - there is a small gap in the rocks where the waves crash into the small rockpool and create a spa like effect. The swell was high this day so the waves crashing through were huge- some of them crashed several metres into the little pool and completely wiped people out! The kids and I sat in the pool on a rock whilst Daniel watched the huge waves come through. It is a pretty incredible place.

Jackson tried out his new skim board at Bunker Bay- there were more spills than skims!

Waiting patiently for our fish and chips!!

The sun had set by the time we got them - but they were good.

Jackson LOVES his scooter (Thanks Grandma & Pa and Nanna & Opa for the Xmas money).

Tue 3rd Dec

We moved to Margaret River Tourist Park as they had a single night stay available and we all needed a shower (one we hadn't sneaked in to!). On the way we spent an hour at the awesome Margaret River Skate Park, where Jackson learnt a few tricks on his scooter. We had a jobs day- the big highlight was fresh sheets (its been awhile!). We went back to the skate park in the afternoon - Jackson on his new scooter and Emilia on her rollerblades. We also tried the kids new stunt kites on the nearby footy oval- they got them up a few times but the wind wasn't consistent so they kept diving to the ground.

Daniel giving Jackson a lesson on flying a stunt kite.

Jackson carved it up at the skate park and managed to do some jumps already - his legs were so sore the next day!

Santa found us! Celebrating Christmas at Wellington National Park.

CHRISTMAS- Wellington National Park, WA

Friday 23rd - Wednesday 28th December

We had a fabulous Christmas at Wellington National Park, where we managed to score a secluded camp site for 3 nights, then one with water views for another 2 nights. We arrived on the 23rd and immediately began making our site and caravan 'Chrismassy'. We'd passed a pine plantation on the way and seen a small, lonely tree on the roadside that looked like it needed a new home. It was the perfect Christmas tree for us. We had a few basic decorations and the kids made beautiful nature themed baubles (with empty bauble cases that I'd got from Spotlight). We finished the tree off with a Christmas star we made from yellow leaves we'd found (and quite a bit of craft glue!). It looked great. The kids also made wreaths from a prickly, holly like plant that was growing near camp. We added Christmas lights and some festive tunes and finally it felt like Christmas.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were spent feasting, enjoying the water in between feasting, sharing gifts, playing with new toys & games, video calling our families (and feeling homesick afterwards), walking and riding the trails around camp and just enjoying the great weather and being together in such a beautiful place. 

The kids had made both Daniel and I lovely gifts (they’d hand sewn bags and filled them with chocolates, then bought a Kombi keyring for Daniel and handcream for me, then Emilia did me a fabulous detailed mermaid drawing), and we were so surprised. They'd done really well keeping it a secret from us. They loved all of their presents (from Santa and from us) and enjoyed having the time to try out all their new things over the following days. 

 On Boxing Day we moved sites to a great spot with water views. We just relaxed over the next two  days and walked/rode/swam in between feasting on all the leftovers. 

Although we all missed being with family over Christmas, we still had a really memorable time.

Emilia and the wreath she made using a prickly plant that was growing near camp.

The kids got gifts for each other and decided to exchange them on Christmas Eve- they were very happy with what they got. Jackson got Emilia a Total Girl magazine and a Crunchie and Emilia got Jackson a slinky and a Crunchie too- clearly they have similar tastes!!

We spent about 20 minutes paddling around trying to get a good picture of us all together..it was great fun. We managed to get Daniel and the kids standing up on the paddle board for a few minutes before they wobbled and fell off!

Making the bon-bons for Christmas Day- we filled them with chocolates.

Emilia got the job of popping the first bottle of bubbles- - it took all of her strength (see the funny expression in the first photo), but both kids were pretty excited when the cork shot out into the air! 

Our Christmas Eve seafood feast- fresh prawns, garlic prawns, marinated crayfish and salmon with a mango, mint and quinoa salad. It was all incredible.

We relaxed with a funny Christmas movie (A Sunburnt Christmas) on Christmas Eve- it was a mild evening and it was lovely sitting outside near the Christmas tree. 

The kids were so pleased with their gifts from Santa - they both got kites which they were super excited about.

After opening all their presents from Santa, we moved over to the tree where they got even more presents from Daniel and I (**take note of Emilia's outfits - every time she got a new item of clothing she had to put it on!).

The kids were extremely happy with all their Christmas presents- Santa did well!

The Christmas day feasting begins...french toast with berries for breakfast.

Then a platter with all the fancy things we normally don't buy for lunch.

Daniel whipping the cream for the meringues- we didn't have electric beaters so we improvised! I actually had the song 'Whip It' playing in the background to inspire him!!

We decided to do dessert before dinner - this is our late afternoon dessert platter- trifle, cheesecake, chocolate brownie and mini meringues.

The kids and the awesome bon-bons they made.

Our Christmas dinner - honey & maple baked ham, potato salad (with prosciutto and sundried tomatoes), grilled asparagus and quinoa and mango salad. All washed down with a few glasses of sparkling. It was all delicious. 

Jackson loved the slingshot rocket launcher Santa got him! We all had fun shooting it and dodging it when it came back down.

Enjoying the water - and trying to get a bit of exercise ready for the next feast!

We had to wait until Boxing Day to decorate the gingerbread house as it had been too hot. The kids spent an hour and a half perfecting the 3 sections they each had (and probably eating lots of the lollies and icing whilst the decorated!).

Jackson loved his Christmas shirt and was still wearing it 3 days later.

Catching up with friends from home at Busselton

Busselton, WA

Sunday 18th- Friday 23rd December

The highlight of our time in Busselton was definitely catching up with our friends from Yarrawonga, Kelly, Simon, Logan and Lucas. I have known Kelly since we moved up to Bundalong, as Logan and Emilia were in kindergarten, then Prep together. The low-light was Emilia came down sick with Covid!

We still managed to have a great time, even though Emilia was confined to the van for a day and a half as she was too sick to do much else.

Whilst in Busselton:

- We caught up with Kelly, Simon and the boys at the foreshore on the day we arrived. While Kelly and I had a well overdue catch up (we chatted whilst standing in the calm bay keeping ourselves cool), the boys and the kids enjoyed jumping off the swimming pontoon, using the paddleboards and splashing around in the water. Later that afternoon/evening the adults enjoyed a few refreshing pale ales at a brewery overlooking the jetty, whilst the kids made the most of the awesome pirate themed playground on the foreshore.

- We went to Smith's Beach near Yallingup and tried to boogie board. The waves were dumping us though (I got dumped so badly a man on the beach was about to run in and rescue me!) so we just jumped waves and enjoyed the water instead. A big pod of dolphins swam by and put on a show for us.

- Then we popped into Canal Rocks, where we planned to have lunch and a look around, however Emilia started shivering and saying she felt unwell, so we hightailed it back to the caravan to RAT test her (which showed what we had suspected...she had Covid).

- The boys tried their luck night fishing off the Busselton Jetty but only caught a small squid which they used for bait to try to get the hundreds of herring they could see - but the herring didn't want the bait!

- While Emilia rested, Daniel, Jackson and I took turns spending time at the Busselton foreshore- snorkelling, jumping off the jetty and paddleboarding.

- We had a picnic dinner on the foreshore and enjoyed the sunset (this was Emilia's first time out of the caravan in about 30 hours, we kept her away from other people and the fresh air helped her).

- We went back to Kilcarnup beach hoping to get some more crayfish for Christmas. Unfortunately the conditions were not good. Jackson and Daniel still went out to try, but the swell was high and the visibility was terrible. Jackson tried his hardest to navigate the kayak (and himself) safely back to shore through the crashing waves, but one crashed right on the back of the kayak. It tipped the kayak over, sent Jackson flying and distributed Daniel's snare and catch bag on the sandy ocean floor. Daniel was trying to swim to Jackson and I ran in from shore but thankfully he was able to grab the kayak and guide it back in. He was very brave as it was a bit of scary situation. We spent the next 20 minutes walking along the ocean floor trying to find the snare, then Daniel went in with his mask and managed to find it! All of this excitement and no crayfish to show for it- luckily we'd kept some in the freezer for Xmas!

- I went walking with Kelly two mornings in a row. It was lovely walking along the foreshore chatting, then we treated ourselves to coffees with a view of the ocean and jetty. 

- Daniel and I battled the Christmas crowds to get all of our food for the Christmas feasts we had planned.

- We caught up with Kelly, Simon and the boys again on Thursday (when Emilia was feeling better and symptom free) and the kids and dads had a blast on the inflatables in the bay, while Kelly and I swam and talked. We finished off with dinner at the brewery.

We can certainly see why Busselton is such a popular holiday destination- and we were so lucky with the weather- 5 days of sunshine and minimal wind. But what really made my time (but also made me a bit homesick) was seeing Kelly.

Enjoying the foreshore beach with their mates from school.

It was so lovely to see Kelly.

The kids having a short break from the playground - they played for hours and didn't want to go home (even though it was nearly 8pm by the time we left).

Warming up after enjoying the waves at Smith's Beach.

Jackson and his sand mermaid...we got him a new hat on the way home!!

White sand, crystal clear water, rolling waves and dolphins - Smith's Beach was awesome!!

Emilia's last hour of feeling good before she went downhill fast......

...when we got home a few hours later she tested positive to Covid.

That afternoon, when Daniel and I had popped out for some Xmas shopping and the kids were relaxing in the caravan, a huge storm passed over. The hail was huge. The kids closed all the windows and hatch but couldn't lower the awning. Daniel and I got home just in time...the water and hail was pooling and the awning was about to break. The storm got us, but missed our friends who were staying only 2km down the road.

We watched the sun setting over the jetty after having a simple dinner on the foreshore.

She got her smile back after a day and half of feeling crappy and resting in the caravan.

The swimming area at Busselton - we all had fun jumping off.

On a mission to get some more crayfish for dinner...unfortunately the swell was too big (lucky we had some crayfish in the freezer).

Ready for a few hours of fun on the inflatables

Daniel had as much fun as the kids.

Afterwards we had dinner at the brewery while the kids enjoyed their last play together on the awesome foreshore playground.