The Breakfast Club

Rumi (not the poet), Carbarita Beach, New South Wales

I had a lie in today. Up at 8 o'clock, I was last in the house to rise. Jaiya and Flynn had been up for simply ages...

Children are always a challenge for me. Oh, I love them, but their reaction to me? Well that's another thing altogether. Two is a good age for me though. Fear has generally been replaced by curiosity. Naturally, I was given a good once over, over the breakfast table but by the end of the meal, I had been given the seal of approval. I say end of the meal, but in fact my morning cuppa had just arrived. In a manoeuvre that was to become a regular theme whenever a cup of tea landed by my side, a wee hand was outstretched and I was led outside to explore the breadth of Flynn's domain. I was given the grand tour of the patio and shown his most treasured possessions. Attention then turned to his desk, upon which were some stackable crayons. At least I knew they were stackable, but I'm not sure Flynn had ever used them to build a tower before. We had lots of fun building them up and even more fun picking them up and throwing them down. Kabooooom! A little bit of counting when we stacked and lots of laughter when we crashed!!! Then we moved onto our musical number. Two stacks, not for throwing, but for playing. Before long, we were both swinging our instruments to the big band sound of Glenn Miller's In the Mood. He plays a mean crayon trombone, does Flynn! :-)

Arriving a little early on another gorgeous morning in Byron Bay, before we met up with Christine, Gitama and I had enough time for a wee ride along the shore and up to the lighthouse; a quick scout for a visit later in the week. The girls met up back in Byron and we jumped into the car and headed on our tour of a few of Gitama's favourite blip spots. One aspect of my trip which I've really enjoyed is not only visiting all the places I've seen shot so beautifully over the past couple of years, but to do it in the company of the very people who inspired me to take this trip in the first place. It's been a real treat.

First on the list was the Crystal Castle. Gitama has blipped and talked about this amazing place many times. Created in the hills of Montecollum, it's a place close to her heart and it's easy to see why. A walk around the gorgeous gardens and terraced lawns filled with amazing sculptures and crystals is a wonderful visual feast, before you even consider the spiritual aspects of the location, which is also home to the World Peace Stupa that had been blessed and opened in November last year. A heathen towards any form of religious or spiritual belief (sorry G), it was still a wonderfully relaxing place to visit.

Back in the car, we headed off to Brunswick Heads. Another favourite spot, we were introduced to the local wildlife, some more magnificent Pelicans. I still can't get over the size of these birds. We met a group at the river boat harbour who were chillaxing on some fallen trees by the water's edge. Heh, there was always at least a couple of eyes on our band of merry photographers at all times though! A wander around the headland at Torakina beach took us inevitably to lunchtime and a stop off to sample the wares of the local chippy. I had another new fish, tasty bream today, made to order while Christine couldn't resist their world famous breaded calamari. I was bullied tempted into trying a bit and it has to be said, was quite nice. Nothing like I expected it to be. It didn't even bounce! Holding off on tucking in until we arrived at another of Gitama's blip locations, her enchanted forest on Devines Hill, we spent a little time taking in the view while munching away.

Next stop was New Brighton, where I was looking forward to seeing the blue soldier crabs that G has shot a couple of times to great effect. Initial disappointment at lack of said crabs turned to excitement as we saw some scuttling in the distance. Too much excitement from one member of the party, who kept chasing after them and away from any possibility of shooting. Honestly! Haha, they were absolutely amazing to watch though and a complete nightmare to shoot. I really needed my big lens with me. Unfortunately it wasn't in the bag. I managed to snap a few before they corkscrewed themselves into the ground though. We also played our part in crime busting when the local ranger came out onto the beach and spotted a few fishermen fishing where they shouldn't be in the reserve. With no way of contacting the office, my mobile was handed over and put to good use. Good guys, one. Crims, nil! We didn't actually see the use of lethal force, but I'm sure it would have been necessary!

Deciding to stop off at the house to pick up Rumi for our afternoon adventure, a wee cuppa was in order. As my cup was placed on the table, once more my hand was grasped and "outside" muttered from my new best friend. Unfortunately, there were casualties this time as brown and orange crayons especially succumbed to the destructive powers of tower demolition. We had to play trumpets in the afternoon. Flynn picked up playing his new charge easily. A gifted natural!

A run up to Carbarita beach was first on the afternoon agenda. It was lovely to see Rumi frolic. Up and down every path he could find, he didn't really care where the rest of us were going. He was checking them all out. His regular schedule was really knocked out by my visit so it was good to see him having fun on the beach with G. We wandered up along the foreshore trail to the headland with the intention of catching the sunset, but our attention was drawn out to the sea and waves crashing against the rocks that I think Gitama was the only one who actually saw the sun dip below the horizon. Another D'Oh! moment. There have been a few of those over the past few weeks too! Undeterred we headed off for our final stop at Hastings Point. Too dark for handheld photography, the tripods all came out. I lost the girls in the quickly fading light as I settled into a bit of time shooting tree silhouettes against the beautiful pink band that separated day from night.

I think Gitama had pushed herself a little too much today after not feeling too good the day before (something I didn't discover until later - tsk, tsk) and so was feeling a little tired as we drove back down the road, so I dropped her off at the house before taking Christine back down to Byron Bay. Thanks so much for taking the time out of your hectic schedule to come down, Christine. Too short a visit, but sweet all the same.

Dinner was waiting for me when I got back up the road. While we had been out having fun, Jaiya had been slaving over the stove. A nice wee bowl of chicken and vegetable soup followed by a wonderful crumble. I got more, since I was a bloke, and blokes need more. I like your thinking, J! :-) Heh, it wasn't to be Jaiya's night though. Gitama decided to have a bit of an early night and so she was left to entertain me through her weekly "me time" in front of the telly. By entertain, I mean, answering all the inane questions one simply has to ask when joining a series half way through its run. Who is that? Why are they doing that? What does that mean? Heh, sorry Jaiya. I hope you were still able to catch enough of the shows to follow on next week! Oh, did your favourite contestant in UK and Ireland's Next Top Model make it through the next round? It hadn't looked good.

Coming to think of it, that was the first night I spent in front of the telly on my holiday. Ahhh, the comforts of home!