A day trip to Darlington Park

In July, our Coronavirus restrictions were eased, so we decided to go for a much needed day trip. We went out country to one of our favourite spots - Darlington Park.

It was in the middle of our winter and, while it was sunny, 

there was a chilliness in the air. Below - Aaron taking photos with 

his miniature poodle, Scarlett, by his side.

I'm a sucker for trees. 

We've visited this site quite a few times but, this time around, 

the birds took a real liking to us....

or maybe it was the food we had with us. LOL 

Not to be confused with the Indian Myna bird, 

the birds below are Australian Noisy Miner birds 

and, they had no qualms getting close to us. 

This one was right beside my legs. 

They are obviously used to being spoiled by campers.

We even had some Magpies and a Blue-faced Honeyeater show up for a feast. 

This Honeyeater was cheeky enough to demand some coffee... 

...while a Kookaburra watched on from a nearby tree 

I was surprised to find some cherry tomatoes growing by the river bank. 

I guess campers threw away tomatoes or seeds at some point and they grew.

Tomato shrubs are definitely not the norm in our rugged Aussie bush 

We had such a lovely day out and it was sad to leave and head home. 

Maybe we will make it back out that way one day soon.

And there ends my post for today. 

I hope you all stay safe and well. 

Love, Light and Peace to you.

A day trip to Darlington Park

Yesterday, we took off to Darlington Park for a picnic. It is located out past Beaudesert so about an hours drive away. It was a beautiful day! SO relaxing to picnic at the edge of the Albert River while listening to birdsong and and the sound of water rushing through the river rocks. It turned out to be quite a hot day so we picked a nice spot shaded by a tree and the umbrella helped too.

Spotted a White-faced Heron looking for food

And some wood ducks enjoyed the park too

WOW! Just look at all those tadpoles!

Aaron's car gives perspective on how large this particular tree was

You can see where this tree's roots are now exposed due to the soil has been washed away when the river rises during heavy rain periods

And I even managed a quick ink sketch

It was so relaxing that we all felt like a nap when we got back home. Instead, we watched the movie, Signs, starring Mel Gibson and Joaquin Phoenix.

Until next time...

A trail walk and some sketches

Yesterday, Bradley, Aaron, and I went on a day trip to Mount Tamborine. It turned out to be quite a hot and humid day up on the mountain. We decided to go on a trail walk to Cameron Falls — a 2.6km return walk.  The trail had lots of rocky steps and was quite narrow in areas with a steep drop on one side.  That made Bradley quite nervous but he held onto my arm the whole way so I could guide him through it.

A concrete bridge across a small creek bed

Some huge and interesting trees along the way

Root mass of a palm tree

It was quite dense in areas and we even came across the odd flower or two

and the occasional scrub turkey

We made it to the lookout but we were a little disappointed to find that Cameron Falls was little more than a trickle off the cliff face at this time of year.

Beautiful views though. We weren't looking forward to the trek back as it was mostly uphill, rough in areas, and it was still very humid.

We headed home mid-afternoon, worn out from our trail walk but filled with a sense of satisfaction.

Below are a couple of sketches from my week. 

First up — Lemons!

Bradley had an Occupational Therapy appointment on Wednesday and his therapist mentioned that an Irish entertainer would be performing in the Mater Mothers hospital foyer at lunch-time so we stayed around to see it.

I did the following pen sketch from a photo I took of Shane playing the guitar and singing.

And finished him up with some watercolour and coloured pencils.

I'm linking up with Sunday Sketches this week hosted by the amazing author/illustrator, Alexandra Macvean. To see the work of other participants, click HERE.

We are getting some rain at the moment and I sure hope it cools things down. It's very muggy right now. I hope you are enjoying a lovely weekend.

a day trip to the mountain and a birthday

A few weeks ago, 

Beau, Aaron, and I went on a day trip 

to Mount Tamborine. 

Beau had heard there was a 

Local Artisan Fayre 

and wanted to go along for some inspiration. 

We did connect with one lovely artist,
Sharon McLeod,
a Bohemian faery artist. 

I bought a set of Sharon's Animal Tarot cards

as well as some of her gift cards. 

I liked her style.

Afterwards, we had veggie burgers 

and hot chips at a local eatery. 

SO yummy!

Then we decided to take a walk 

through the rainforest.

Aaron (youngest son) was such a sweetie,
he kept looking back to see if I was okay.

A downed tree still clutching a big boulder in its roots.

This is a male Australian Scrub/Brush Turkey
I was SO close to him but all he was focused on
was building his mound (the slope behind him).
The males build huge mounds of leaf litter and debris
to attract a female scrub turkey.
The female will then dig a hole in her chosen mound,
lay the eggs,
and the male will cover it over
and maintain the mound until the chicks hatch.
The mound also acts as a safe haven for the chicks as they grow.

We walked to Curtis Falls

Aaron and Beau

The rainforest has LOTS of tall trees
which act as a canopy and protection
keeping the temperature within the rainforest
much lower than outside.
Perfect for a hot day!

the tree below made me think of Celtic knots

and this tree had formed a ring with its above ground root system

a perfect place to nestle in for the night

here I am
sitting on the edge

**************************************

Today, December 23rd, is Aaron's 17th birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AARON! 

You make me very proud to be your Mum.
Love you heaps, my son. xoxo