Tuesday 17 May 2016

From the Outback to the South East

I left the Outback and flew home yesterday afternoon and, for the first time, I haven't felt the chilly temperature as soon as we hit the Toowoomba Range. The weather here is still very warm for this time of the year and it was 27C today which is hard to believe as we are usually rugged up by now. Mind you, I am not complaining as I haven't dragged out my winter clothes yet but it does make you wonder what summer is going to be like. I did read online though that the temps will plummet at the beginning of June so I guess things will get back to normal then. One thing I noticed was that the sun rises an hour later in Mt.Isa and it is just getting light at 7am which makes it very easy to sleep in.


 
However, by the time I dragged myself out of bed my daughter had already been up for an hour or so as it isn't easy to get a sleep-in when you have three children including a toddler. School starts early in The Outback and the bell goes about 8.20am so it is a mad dash getting everyone fed, dressed and in the car by 8am each day. School finishes at 2.30pm because of the heat up there I guess. 

The flight home was uneventful thank goodness as it was quite a bumpy ride on the way up. 
 
 
We left Mt.Isa on time. This was taken as we were leaving the city...
 
 
...and then we were fed 'lunch' and were handed a cardboard box containing Peri Peri Chicken Pizza plus a mini packet of M & Ms which I handed back and afterwards were offered tea or coffee in a cardboard cup. When I first started flying up north we were given a tray with a meal and possibly fruit or a dessert plus a hot drink in a washable cup but I presume that serving a meal in a box etc. means less work for the staff. I find it very disappointing considering that the normal fare one way is approximately $400 although I always buy when specials are on. What can you do though? One good thing is that you can now take knitting needles and crochet hooks on board as my bamboo needles went through okay and I asked if metal knitting needles are permitted and the answer was yes. 


 I used to be able to watch a movie on the screens on the back of the seat in front of me but it seems that the older planes now fly to Mt.Isa and when I checked in yesterday I was given instructions on how to download the QANTAS Entertainment App onto my iPad before we flew and then once we were on-board I went into 'Settings' then 'Flight Mode' then 'WiFi' and then connected up with QANTAS and was able to watch movies, TV shows etc. on my iPad. Nothing there interested me though so I watched the scenery below and as soon as I saw some green areas I knew we were near the Sunshine Coast. This is my favourite part of the trip home as I see the Glasshouse Mountains...




...which are on the left in the photo and the ocean which is on the right. I really wanted to take a photo with my camera but the seatbelt sign had gone on and we were told to put our bags under the seat in front and all that but I quickly picked it up and got my phone out and took a photo which didn't turn out very well but that is what you get for not obeying the rules :-) Even though it was hazy it is always a spectacular part of Queensland to see from above. A couple of minutes later we descended and with a rather loud bump were on the ground once again. Then it was a rush to pick up my luggage and walk over to the area where I picked up the Greyhound coach for the drive home which always seems to be the longest part of the trip. 


I only saw my granddaughters before and after school and at the weekends but this little fellow and I spent a lot of time together as his Mum had a really busy week. We got into a routine of play, then morning tea on Nanna's lap to quieten down and relax before having a morning sleep at the same time each day and he would sleep for a couple of hours. He is a gorgeous child - full of fun and mischief and I am sure he understands everything that is said to him. When his sisters are home he tries to keep up with them and it is so funny watching him. The girls are enjoying school and are growing up so very quickly as children do. I think the years before school starts are so precious as once Prep starts everything changes and Mum is no longer the centre of a little one's universe. 

So now life is almost back to normal....whatever that is. Gertrude my sourdough starter has been fed, Sally the chook is following me around like a lost puppy and the plants are getting some extra TLC. I hope all is well in your neck of the woods and don't forget if you live in our area that our Simple Living Toowoomba Tunisian Crochet Workshop is on this Saturday the 21st May. I can't wait! 



14 comments:

  1. As you talk about cooling temps and shorter days we are getting warmer and longer days. I am so ready for some hotter weather. I've really been rather miserable this winter. Cold is not for me. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Monica, it is much warmer at the moment than it normally is but I will enjoy it while I can as our house is so cold in winter. Enjoy the heat when it arrives.

      Delete
  2. Welcome home Chel, glad to hear the flight back was smooth, I request vegetarian meals when I fly but sometimes what you get tastes revolting and really doesn't resemble Food.
    I was a bit distracted yesterday clearing a few things out of the fridge and had tipped half of Gertie down the sink before I realized it wasn't some leftover coconut milk from 2 weeks ago in a similar jar....oh crap ! I quickly added some water and a mix of rye flour and unbleached bakers flour, gave it a stir and waited half an hour with bated breath until it started to froth up.....saved
    So nice for you to have one on one time with your little man, they are so entertaining at that age and it is very hard to leave indeed, thank goodness for skype and some face to face time between visits, I think gmail has something the same.
    Hope you all have a lovely morning os Saturday, I will be at the coast.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad you managed to rescue some of Gertie or I would have to give you some more Gertrude. LOL! I just made a couple of loaves tonight and she gave me no problems at all. My girl doesn't have internet access at present apart from her smartphone but hopefully she will get some again soon. I haven't heard what Gmail has. Enjoy your time with your family, Margaret.

      Delete
  3. Sounds like you had a wonderful time with your family Chel, and were a great help to your daughter too I'm sure. Is it lovely to be home again? We are a tag team, as I fly to Victoria on Monday to spend a week with my daughter and two grand daughters on the Mornington Peninsula.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope you have a nice time with your girls, Sally. I think I would rather visit the Mornington Peninsula than the Outback. ;-) I am not a great fan of the heat there. When we flew home from our daughter's wedding there my husband kissed the tarmac as he was so thankful to be back in the south east once again. LOL!

      Delete
  4. It made me smile when I read about Gertrude, as that was what mum used to call me when I did something to annoy her. I had forgotten that until now. I bet your little fellow is missing his Nana. It is good to know you had a lovely holiday with him and your three girls.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's funny, Sherri. Gertrude is quite an old fashioned name isn't it? I wasn't sure whether to call my starter Gertrude or Ethel. Ha ha!

      Delete
  5. Welcome home, glad you enjoyed your family holiday. Guida

    ReplyDelete
  6. Nanna Chel,
    We definitely are not having usual weather for this time of year. Sounds like you had another good time with your mob and how your grandson has grown! I'll see you at the workshop on Saturday.
    -Shiralee.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Shiralee I am looking forward to the workshop. It should be fun. I bought some Afghan hooks on eBay so have lots to experiment with :-)

      Delete
  7. Thanks Guida. I hope to see you on Saturday at the workshop.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Well its not 27 but we are definitely having a warm spell of 20 degree days only two weeks away from "Winter" (whatever that is). Any minute now i'm going to write a post. You do realise i'm applying that old adage that "absence makes the heart grow fonder"?

    ReplyDelete
  9. I was thinking of you today when I was hanging up the washing and wondering how you are. I am waiting for a blog post :-)

    ReplyDelete

Thanks so much for leaving your comments as I love to hear from my readers. As soon as I check them they will be published. If for some reason you have trouble leaving a comment feel free to email me directly by filling out the 'Contact Me' form on the sidebar at the right.

Printfriendly

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...