leg one

A yarn-bombed tree at a pitstop in Echuca

On the road again. This time we headed to Canberra, Australia's capital city. The first day of our journey took us to Yarrawonga, where we dropped off the boys with a friend and had a fun evening, cooking dinner on an out of control barbecue on the edge of a beautiful lake. Then Pasca and Maeve and I went for a stroll along the lake's edge, enjoying the gorgeous light of the "golden hour" and just being silly. You'll see...

Echuca is famous for it's paddle boats

We are models

Pasca and Maeve showing off real talent at the pool at our hotel

After many hours in the car and no real lunch, our quick dinner of burgers and the like was SO GOOD

A tour boat on the lake, and the beginning of a goofy photoshoot with the girls

Maeve looking as happy as can be

The beginning of our model shoot...

We were more than delighted to be out of the car. Can you tell?! And in such a picturesque setting! Great start to the trip. 

home

We have arrived back at Hightor after a long, long day on the road. Here's a quick preview of the highlight of my trip, the National Arboretum. There's plenty more to come, but for now I'm off to bed before a full day of work tomorrow. So happy to be home, and can't wait to see darling Tom!

good morning

Enjoying some green tea in my new mug (a little treat to myself, couldn't resist that face!), and a sneak peak from last night's party. We're just packing up the car now for the first leg of our drive to Canberra. I'll blog from the road if I can, otherwise, see you next week!

gold

Today the sun was warm and the wind was cold. Summer is already slipping away, and I couldn't be happier. Don't get me wrong, I love the hot, sunny days where the only option that seems reasonable is throwing on a bikini and diving into the lake. But with this sudden cold snap, I'm feeling refreshed, happy, and full of energy and inspiration. Went for a long run this morning, and then was distracted in my work outside by how purely content I was. And the bodily memory that says this type of day should be spent wandering around La Mesa's Oktoberfest. That's a "problem" I wish on every one of you. And now my mind is racing with things to do, sew, cook, draw, write, you name it! So in celebration, here's a playlist of songs that capture the season for me. Nothing particularly themed or anything, but I do notice that this weather has me craving a very specific type of melody and mood. Happy listening!
                                             

                                            


This weather also has me remembering a trip my dad and I took to see the fall leaves years ago in Ohio and West Virginia. Driving down two lane, back country highways, finding random towns to sleep in, never having a plan besides knowing when we needed to be back at the airport. Always say yes to quick trips! Here's a handful of pictures from those few days, and contrary to the evidence they provide, I can promise you that my dad really was there. Acting as faithful driver and photographer, while I was the DJ. Thanks dad.

Scraping ice off the car, always a good start to your day

A sweet little town we settled in one night in Ohio

And a fascinating ancient Native American burial mound there

A random stop on the road

The Glade Creek grist mill in West Virginia

The New River Gorge bridge. Beautiful

Charleston's capitol building. The whole place was deserted when we arrived, it was pretty eerie

The most gorgeous autumn tree

wilson's promontory

Road trip part two. After our time on Phillip Island, we drove to Foster, a small town just outside Wilson's Promontory. We had booked units through a hostel, and they turned out to be self-contained apartments, all fitted with kitchens and laundry! The only complaint- we didn't all have 70s themed outfits to fit the decor! But really, the accommodation and the town were just lovely. Really reinforced the idea that I want to settle in a small town someday. And as for Wilson's Promontory-continental Australia's southern most point-it was gorgeous. We visited just two sites there, Tidal River and Squeaky Beach, but definitely feel like I experienced something unique and beautiful and grand. Tidal River flows down to the ocean, and it was great fun watching kids catch the tide and head downstream to the waves. After a while there, we picked up and walked to Squeaky Beach. As evidenced in my posts about our last trip, you'll know I was in paradise walking on the tree-covered path with the soundtrack of crashing waves. And then the beach came into view. White sand, huge boulders, just breath-taking. Reminded me of a jumble of parts of beaches in Hawaii, California and New England. Spent many happy hours playing in the surf with the kids, and though the rip tides were fiercely strong and didn't allow for too much venturing out, we joyfully body-surfed and just let ourselves be tossed around like rag dolls. It was the perfect last day to our holiday, couldn't have asked for more.

Love seeing the variety of colorful birds in Australia

The beach at Tidal River from above

Happy day with my favorite girls

Squeaky Beach!

After our time at the beach, we headed to the campgrounds to try and spot a wombat. Apparently they're so used to living in close quarters with humans that they wander freely around and even sneak into tents to steal food! After some patient waiting by one's hole, half of our group came bounding back saying one just walked by. We all hurried over, and my goodness, it was adorable! One major Australia bucket list item checked off!

And then it ran away under a camper for some privacy

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