A highlight reel from our time in Darwin includes:
- Arriving at Janie Momo in Virginia, to some very excited cousins! A plethora of activities including mosaicing, dress ups, swimming pool and running wild through the bush!
- WEEK ONE we spent with our cousin's (Nephews) while Aunty Ali & Uncle Adrian were working. We had pancake breakfast, opened belated birthday presents, played Noodle King in Grumpy's pool, climbed on haybales, and mini golfed with Claire's cousin Brian and his wife Naoko & kids.
- We enjoyed the evening time with Aunty Ali & Uncle Adrian, walking the dogs around their bush block, gardening, cooking delicious meals & enjoying kid free time after dark playing board games and watching the Crocodile Dundee trilogy 😂🐊🐊🐊🤠
- It was a lovely chance to get to Uncle Ken's wedding. A beautiful relaxed Darwin style event, complete with barefoot bride & groom, the dessert table was to die for 🍰🍰🍰🤤🤯 there were lots of old faces from Claire's childhood which made for a lovely catch up. Even in the church Claire went to as a little girl, she thought everything had shrunk...for some strange reason 🤔😂
- We went into the Mindil Beach markets and joined the hoards of people. Watching the sunset while we drank our mango smoothies and ate pizza, crumbed prawns & Chinese food. Micah bought a new shirt, "I like" "I like" as we walked past😂
- We went to Coolalinga markets and met up with Janie Momo & drank more mango smoothies!! And mum caught up with and old family friend - Ruth
- Clint made 4 trips into town to fix suspension, get tyers checked and car serviced, he also spent the afternoon washing the car with Banjo - spick and span ready to go again!!
- WEEK TWO Aunty Ali had off work and we went on a fishing adventure to Gunn Point with a childhood friend, Kristen Mills and her family, also three boys.
- We went to one of Janie Momo's art workshop at the Palmerston public library. The boys painted & printed on paper and fabric. It was great getting to see Janie in action!
- We visited Claire's childhood friend Elizabeth (Missy) with her family, the boys loved playing Lego and tasting Pop-Tart's for the first time.
- Litchfield National Park was on our list of adventures, to avoid to large crowds we went to the quieter end of the park, Walker Creek. It still had a steady stream of people thanks to the new bitumen road looping through the back of the park to Darwin. The day was blissfully spent soaking in the rock pools, building dam walls & eating a picnic lunch by the river.
- Pizza cooked in the camp oven for dinner
- Catching up with childhood family friends Amy and Lisa Taylor and their kids. Also, Ashlee Kirkham, it was lovely to spend time together, like no time has really passed.
- Birthday bash in the bush for the three kids. Micah (2), Riley (6) & Judd (6). With all the Darwin family.
- Territory Wildlife Park adventure, with the bikes. We had a great time riding around the park patting wallabies and frilled neck lizard, learning bush survival skills, admiring all the art in the park including Janie's mosaics.
We loved the aquarium with a big range of fish & a big crocodile. The nocturnal house, birds, snakes, buffalo, monsoon Forrest, barramundi, turtles BUT the boys were more concerned with finding the 8 stuffed wallabies hidden around the park!! We found them all 👏😂 At the end of the day we had and opportunity to hold a baby freshwater crocodile. The boys thought it was fantastic 😁 the skin was bumpy yet so soft.
- Lastly, we celebrated our Juddy boy, balloons and presents in the morning followed by banana pancake breakfast. We were then off to Palmerston Water Park for a fun morning of sliding and soaking in the sun! We ate a BBQ lunch & headed back to Ali's for some cake and games. Everyone won a prize! Piniata was lots of fun.
Goodbyes are hard, we have loved living with our Darwin family. Judd said "I want to go back to Aunty Ali's, I've love spending time with my Darwin cousins".
The boys (and mum & dad) have really appreciated having a home base. Toys, books, friends, family, familiarity, home cooking...and so much LOVE! 🧡
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