The April school holidays were a time for us to make some progress towards our move back to Sydney. We wanted to have a look at our house and see what we wanted to do before moving in. We wanted to take the kids to their new school and talk about that transition back to mainstream. We also started to talk about what we need to do to prepare the Wamboin house for sale and this led in a round-about way to a tree planting project. We did of course also want to catch up with family friends and were lucky that or trip overlapped with the Cookski crew.
I have to share this photo as it is an amusing first encounter with celebrity for our kids. We have really enjoyed watching The Amazing Race Australia this year (and if you’re looking for something for joint down-time that everyone can get into I really recommend it). The Darwin leg included a challenge at this well-known laksa house so on our way through Darwin we HAD to have dinner there are the kids were very excited to meet the owner and cook, Amye...
Sydney was her usual sparkling self. We had a rather chaotic day at the Zoo with mum and Dad. The chimps were a highlight but the crowds were enough to make even me (at the more relaxed end of the covid fear spectrum) doubt the wisdom of our attendance. It was lovely to be out and about, however and we had fun.
We managed to get to the house with an interior designer and although it seemed a terrible indulgence I feel so much more confident now that we are making decisions on paint and curtains and rugs and tiles that we are going to be really happy with for a long time. We have emails and photos that look (excitingly!!) a little like this...
Our biggest achievement for the holiday was our tree-planting day. We had always intended to plant more trees on the property (which is all previously cleared farmland that is endlessly fighting a battle against weeds and erosion). As our time in the NT extended and we made the decision to move to Sydney it became clear that that regeneration might not happen. We got 100 trees in the ground 3 years ago and at least 80% of those were now well established and we were disappointed to not have backed that up with a second effort. This year was an el nina year down south so the ground was moist and ready for growth so we decided we had to take advantage of these unusually good conditions to make this happen. We had done a lot of coordinating from Darwin with the help of Lee and Don in particular. Our tenants granted us access to the property. We had an excavator lined up to rip lines in which to plant so I spent a glorious crisp morning back on our property moving rocks and directing the excavator (I did not ask them to rip enough so some digging was still required on planting day). The Lawton and Auzins children joined me and I loved watching them roam the outdoors the way they used to.
I had ordered tree guards and trees which were stored with (and watered by!) Lee and Don. I had ordered fertilising liquid and the fungal spores that work synergistically with native trees to promote growth and increase carbon sequestration. Mum had baked cakes and brought them down to keep the team nourished and in good spirits. We had a team of helpers who agreed to come and help on the day. Some popped in for an hour and planted a dozen trees and others stuck it out all day and went home with sore backs and cracked nails. All together we planted 150 trees.
We loved seeing our old friends too as evidenced by the adorable antics of these idiots:
These nutters:
And these little angels:
We spent several days with the beautiful Cookskis. We scooted and ate dumplings and saw Frozen onstage and wandered the city and celebrated the happiness of John and Deb in a stunning wedding during which we were able to catch up with those Myb girls who are gorgeous in all the most important ways.
I took the kids to their new school and we marvelled at green screen videos and electrical circuits and maths olympiad and orchestra and all the opportunities of an inner city school. Importantly we also checked out the cafe across the road and it has our tick of approval!
Overall a very busy but satisfying trip. We are looking ahead now to the next big shift!
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