Beth Down Under 2008 - Magnetic Island

Our very first glimpse of Magnetic Island


As you know, Andrew left the UK in advance of me and the children, and we were joined on the journey home with our niece Beth. She had just turned 18 (as you will also know if you have been following!), and her gift from her mum was a trip to Australia to stay with us. We were very pleased to have her, and decided that our gift to her would be a trip to the Barrier Reef, staying on Magnetic Island. This was genius for a number of reasons - it would be a really great experience, I would have to go with her (hurrah, a holiday in the sun!) and a precedent has been set that I take nieces and nephews on holidays to sunny places!

So after a couple of days recuperating from the long flight, Beth and I took off again for a flight to Townsville in tropical Far North Queensland. From there we took a ferry to Magnetic. And boy, was it beautiful! The temperature was around 24 degrees, which apparently was unseasonably cold for the area - there were people wearing woolly hats! - but given that it was deep mid winter, we thought that was pretty good, and a lot warmer than it had been in Sydney. We stayed at a cute little hotel called the Tropical Palms Inn and hired the most ridiculous open top car you've ever seen. It was as old as the hills and had gears, which I'm no longer used to, so there was a lot of amusement as I tried to negotiate the hills around the island!

Highlights would probably be hand feeding rock wallabies, holding a koala, snorkelling on the Barrier Reef and Toad Racing. We also did an 18 kilometre bike ride, which was tiring but very enjoyable. However, in the afternoon after this, my legs ached so much I had to take Nurofen! At least I wasn't like Beth, who had had a very hard bike saddle (look - I'm nearly 40 - I deserved the cushioned gel saddle on my bike!), and could barely sit down for the next few days.

I should clarify about the snorkelling....at great expense we bought two snorkelling sets, and decided to go to what was known to be the best beach for the activity. It wasn't accessible by road, so we set off on foot for a pleasant walk to the Arthur Bay. When we got there, it was beautiful, and we got kitted out. There were a couple of other people out there but I felt a bit apprehensive - in order to see the reef you have to go out quite far, and once there, there is nothing to catch hold of if you need a rest, and no chance of standing up. But we thought - having come all this way to see the reef, we should get on with it. So off we went, walking awkwardly in our flippers at first and then starting to swim. Suddenly the reef was in view, and what was the very first thing I should see? A bloody jelly fish! Now let me explain about jellyfish, and Australian fish generally. Far North Queensland is famous for box jellyfish which can kill you. July is not supposed to be the season for them, but there are also any number of other creatures on the reef that can kill you, and some of them are jelly like. The very last thing I wanted to see whilst swimming was a jelly fish. The moment I clapped eyes on it, I panicked and started to do comedy swimming in my attempts to get away (just for info - breast stroke does not work well with flippers it would seem). Apparently, in doing so, I kicked up a lot of sand which blinded Bethany. Before we knew it we were stumbling out of the water again. And that was it - we didn't go in again. Too scared! Initially I thought I had got away with it with the jellyfish, as it clearly hadn't stung me. However, we chatted to the couple on the beach who had been snorkelling and they told me that there are some types of jellyfish which you don't know have stung you for about half an hour, then you start to feel really ill. I spent the next half hour checking my watch and having a panic attack.

Dear Reader - you will be relieved to know I survived....



Arthur Bay - where we kinda sorta went snorkelling!



A rock wallaby and her joey - how cute??



Toad racing - we bet a lot but didn't win anything! It was a great laugh though.



The Tropical Palms Inn



Beth pretending to drive our funny little car!





Holding a koala was a real experience. Their fur is like sheep's wool



Beth all kitted out to brave the reef!



How cool am I? NOT...



Beth at West Point Beach, at the end of our bike ride.



Not bad for the middle of winter, eh?







Beth with another selection of native Australian wildlife.

Finding your rhythm....

James and Lewis - Lewis is in hospital at the moment suffering from pneumonia. We are all sending him hugs and kisses, as I am sure you are!

God - I really am behind with this aren't I? I imagine all the regular readers have given up on me, but fear not! I am just struggling to get back into the swing of things following our trip to the UK, then my trip to Magnetic Island with Beth, then two weeks of doing touristy things (mainly shopping!) with Beth, then a week of everyone being ill. I'm hoping this will be just be a normal week of school runs, work and the gym, and that I will manage to get the house back in order (I can't even begin to describe the state of my house at the moment, but suffice to say that there is an ironing pile that would challenge even the most dedicated mountaineer, and the mess.....well. It's just shameful really).

Also events at home have been preoccupying me. As I've said before, when people you love are suffering, it really brings home how far away we are. But also it proves to me that it is possible to be a family and be thousands of miles apart. Love travels well.

So - how am I going to catch up? Well I wanted to make sure I put some pics of the children and their friends in Milford on here, so I'll do that. Then I'll tell you all about Beth's visit (which was soooo much fun!), then I'll move onto the usual comments on Aussie life and our more recent adventures. Then I absolutely promise - normal service will be resumed.

Enjoy!



Anna and George with the lovely Bray boys, Henry and George



Anna and George with the Bray boys and the Bray girls - Zara, Lizzie and Martha in the pram!



Anna and George with Abby and Olly, who came to Center Parcs with us




Anna and Jamie



George and all the Milford Boys! We couldn't get over how much their hair had grown! From left to right - Conor, Thomas, Oliver, Colm, George, Joe and Piers. They are all wearing the australian t shirts we brought over for them.



George and Colm. We made Colm bend down a bit so that George didn't look like a midget!


Anna and all her BFFs - Nancy, Rosalind,Anna, Jessica, Lauren and Megan. Ellie and Gigi couldn't make it.




Three very blue eyed girls - Phoebe, Anna and Ophelia.

The Pettifers Down Under UK 2008 - Friends

Sarah, Andrew and I, Charlotte and the wonderful Charlie. We are walking along the sea wall at Keyhaven, which is a walk we often used to do with Charlie. I was bloody freezing!



Nugs, Anna, Phoebe and Nancy




Me and my best friend in all the world - Nugs



All the Enfield and Latymer boys up in St Albans after a great Indian. I look huge-mungous in this picture!



Me and my lovely friend Hazel



Lynne and Thomas



Andrew and Caroline



Louis, Johnny and George.

The Pettifers Down Under UK 2008 - Babies

After a few barren years (not literally) on the baby front, suddenly when we left, everyone started reproducing! I'm fairly certain that the two things are not related, but it did mean that when we got back to the UK, there were a number of small people we needed to get acquainted with.

First there was the new addition to Hazel and Dave's family. Martha was born a few days before we left for our trip, so we were especially honored that at 11 days old she travelled from her home in Nantwich to her Uncle Jim's in Lincolnshire, just to see us. It was a fleeting visit, but it was lovely to get to see her when she was so tiny. And Dave better start worrying - with 3 daughters now, that's three weddings he is going to have to pay for! He might have to sell some of his international property portfolio!

Then friends Gary and Lynne had gorgeous Thomas, who was exactly as a baby should be - all chubbly and smiley and happy. His two brothers, James and Ross seemed quite pleased with him too!

Lastly, we were lucky enough to have our very much loved former au pair Josefine come over and stay in Lymington for a week while we were there - along with her 18 month old daughter, Ophelia. Anna and I last saw them in Koln when Ophelia was about 8 weeks old, but George had never met her, so it was lovely to catch up. Now Ophelia is a walking, talking, bundle of fun, who managed to teach both George and Anna a few words of German. We are all hoping that they will come and see us in Australia sometime, although it is difficult with Josefine's studies.

There was one other baby - Sam and Neil had Ben just after we left for Australia, and we met him for the first time. He was gorgeous, but I forgot to take a picture!

It was all almost enough to make me want to go out there and procreate!

But not quite.....



Me and Martha - she is only 11 days old here!



The beautiful Martha again.



Gary and Lynne's gorgeous baby, Thomas. He was a real cutie.



Thomas again - who could resist those blue eyes?



Miss Josie Jo and the wonderful Ophelia

The Pettifers Down Under UK 2008 - Birthdays

There were a lot of birthdays whilst we were in the UK. Some of them were celebrated rather in advance, but we took advantage of the opportunity to be with family and friends and did it anyway!




Bob was seventy! And he doesn't look a day over 69!



I blew out the candles on a boob cake for an early celebration of my 40th with all the Jeynes peeps

We had a birthday cake when I was up at Mum and Dad's in the early part of the visit, to mark the fact that this September I will be forty. I'm planning to have the most drawn out birthday ever, because a few weeks after that, my best friend Nugs allowed me to have a fortieth birthday party at her house. This was particularly kind of her because the day of the party was actually her daughter Phoebe's birthday, so we were careful to make sure she got some of the limelight on her special day. I received a number of very generous gifts (many of which were shoe themed! Seems people have noticed about my shoe obsession!), amongst which was a ticket to do the Sydney Harbour Bridge climb. Caralyn, Mark, Nicky and Matt were responsible for this, and I have made it my project for this year to work up enough courage to actually do it (or alternatively directing all that energy into learning how to use photo shop so that I can transpose my head onto someone elses in order to dupe everyone into thinking that I've done it....hehehehehehe). The party was tremendous fun - I didn't get too drunk, but it did go on to the wee hours and there may have been some swimming in the pool....but hey - to be honest - I think people would have been disappointed if I hadn't!



Me and Nugs - before all the fun begins!



Pettifer representation at my 40th - Madeleine, Tony, Grace, Bob, Karen, Andrew, the birthday girl, and Abs and Anna at the front. Doesn't everyone look gorgeous?



Me with good friends Mark, Caralyn, Nicky and Matt



Amanda and Mike at my UK (lol) 40th party



Nicky and Matt



Sarah and Roy busting some moves on the dance floor



A toast to being fab and forty!



Tim and Syd



Johnny and sister Trace - peas in a pod!



Caralyn and Mark



Very much later in the evening (in the early morning in fact), when Andrew and I are no longer looking the slightest bit glamorous!

Then our niece Beth was 18! Unfortunately Andrew missed it, but Karen and Tony treated us all to a lovely meal at Sway Manor with lots to drink and plenty to eat. It was great to spend some more time with everyone.



The crowd for Beth's 18th birthday dinner - Grace, Matt, Tony, Karen, Beth, Adrian, Mads and me, then George, Sophie, Anna, Abigail and Bob kneeling down at the front



A great picture of Beth, Karen and Tony



The birthday girl herself!

It was also niece Emily's birthday, and we were lucky enough to be able to get to her purple party in the park. Unfortunately it was absolutely pouring with rain and I left the camera in the car by mistake, so didn't get any pictures. However, if Lucy sends me some, I'll add them to this page!