Lately - postcards and morsels from Good Things

Lately, life at the Blue House has been deliciously interesting, if not just a little bit busy. We're settling into our retirement and making the most of each and every day. Of course, there's the mundane of daily life (minor illness, keeping fit, dieting, and so on), but in between that we've managed to squeeze in a bunch of outings and a few short getaways, too.

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Peter's lovely mam came to stay with us for a week at the start of Spring and we were fortunate enough to be invited to attend the launch of Floriade, Canberra's annual flower festival. It seemed as though we had the entire park to ourselves. Mam had a ball inspecting all the flowers, and Peter and I had our first ever ride on the ferris wheel. 

After Floriade, we took Mam to High Tea at the Burbury Hotel. The finger sandwiches, sliders, scones and little cakes were delicious, but just a little dainty for my Peter (and I forgot that he really dislikes capers and mayonnaise!). That said, we all enjoyed the selection of teas. And the service was lovely too.

We've driven past Tulip Top Gardens on the Old Federal Highway at Sutton more times than I care to remember, so we thought it was time to pay a visit. The blossoms and tulip beds were at their brilliant best and we loved the chance to sit and listen to chamber music (and the song coming from the frog ponds) while we snacked on some little Dutch pancakes. Mam was quite mesmerised by the beauty of the blossom trees. 

The family of magpies has returned to our garden, after disappearing before last Spring. One dominant bird peers in through the French doors and sits on the kitchen window sill, trying to get our attention. They love the snippets of fresh meat we've been putting out for them and serenade us in chorus, almost as a gesture of thanks. As many as six or eight birds visit at a time! We're hoping they like us enough not to swoop us when we go cycling. 

I thought I'd try my hand at juggling oranges recently. It was part of a playful photo shoot for my spot on Geodip. In case you were wondering, no I can't, but I'm going to keep trying.  Ü

We had such a wonderful time at the Sapphire Coast earlier this year, we thought we'd take the opportunity to pop back down to Eden for a spot of whale watching. Right now, hundreds of whales are migrating south, many stopping to play with their calves in Eden’s Twofold Bay. This event is celebrated annually with a whale festival, to be held at Eden on 1-2 November this year. Armed with all-weather gear, cameras, ginger pills, and plenty of hope, we boarded the Cat Balou for a morning out to sea. It was an amazing experience and we did manage to see around a dozen whales (mostly mothers and their calves), but none poked their heads, flukes or tails out of the water. Of course whales are wild animals and whale watching is very much dependent on weather conditions and whether the whales are curious and playful on the day. It was really quite rough out on the water the day we went out. If I were a whale, I think I might have kept my head down and minded my own business too. We made the best of the trip and enjoyed sightseeing and photo walks in the area, including a visit to the Eden Killer Whale Museum. Incidentally, sunsets at Snug Cove in Eden are among the best we've seen! 

Stay tuned for postcards and morsels from our recent trip to Young, NSW for the long lazy lunch among the cherry blossoms, as well as our road trip to Queensland a few months back. 

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Now tell me, dear readers, what have you been doing lately? Do please pop in and say hello, you know that I love hearing from you. Bizzy xox