Babies babies babies.........

Sylar Ares Stock, just starting to smile

Paije Alexandrea Klein, dressed in her bear outfit!

Libbee and Super Poppa with Paije

Make the paparazzi go away!
 

Our only picture of Paije-daddy, Wade, and Libbee together

Proud father Chris with Sylar

The beautiful Brittney, partner to Chris and great mother to Sylar

Brittney with Sylar, Libbee with Paije, Super-Nanna and Nanna

All the cousins, Brittney, Chris, Hannah, Libbee and Kelli

Four generations, Mackay, September 2014

Sylar knows a secret but isn't sharing!

Nanna Ingrid with Sylar and Super-Aunty Katrina with Paije

Sylar at bathtime

Super-Poppa and Super-Nanna with a very new Sylar

Smiles of delight and relief all round after Paije's birth

A job well done Libbee

Nanna Ingrid and Paije in hospital

Well, here we are just about to leave Mackay, however reluctantly, after the birth of our first two great-grandchildren, Sylar (b. 9th July, 2014) and Paije (b. 12th August 2014).

We've been granted temporary refugee status by Mackay for the last 6 weeks, having hot-footed it across Queensland to be here for the early weeks of the first two babies of the next generation.  Thanks to a house-sitting stint for cousins Iris and John at their home at Slade Point, we've been able to make the most of our time here, with lots of visits, cuddles and photographs to remember over the next few months.

Katrina, Kelli and Hannah visited from Brisbane 2 weeks ago as well so we managed to update our photos, and herd everyone together for the "4 generations" photo (though the term "herding cats" comes to mind!)

It's gratifying to see everyone getting on with their lives and even in the time we've been here, to see the babies grow and change, and start to respond to those around them.  Think we'll get to know the 1000 kilometres of the Pacific Highway between Brisbane and Mackay pretty well over the next few years - photos just don't cut it!

So, we're on the road again and heading south.  It's high summer here already so we may stop at a beach along the way and dawdle our way back to Brisbane, or we may decide to rush on and keep on going to Sydney to catch up with the family there (and another new baby to admire, a son Duke, to great-niece Nikki and husband Matt).  Whatever we do, we're into the home run now and will be back in Ormiston Springs on 1st December.

We really look forward to getting home and being able to once again eat fresh produce from our own garden, but will also miss life on the road.

There's probably one more blog to be done - a retrospective on the last year and a bit.  That one will require deep thought.

Thanks for reading, and commenting.  It's been lots of fun choosing photos and writing about all the wonderful places we've been, but I promise just one more - some time in the future!

Cape Hillsborough

View to the east from Andrews Point track, over Wedge Island 

Cape Hillsborough beach, in front of camping area

The mob on the Andrews Point walk

Lunch on the rocks, waiting for the tide to drop

Wedge Island is accessible at low tide

C.H Beach just before sunrise

A regular morning sight on the beach - what do they eat?

Sunrise over Wedge Island

Our magnificent walk through the remnant rainforest, Hidden Valley

Brahminy Kite with Sandy Bay in the background

Our intrepid walkers, Sally, Marlene, David, Jan and Graeme. Ray is the one with the camera

Low tide, C.H. beach

What intricate patterns are made by the sand bubbler crabs

Balancing rock - don't walk on the wrong side

So, I know this is going to be slightly out of order, because the Baby Blog should be here, but we're waiting to get the whole family together in a week's time and go mad with the camera, so Cape Hillsborough it must be.

Our wonderful house-sitters, David and Jan, were on their way through Mackay to the annual Shag Islet Cruising Yacht Club "do" in the Whitsundays, along with almost-neighbours Graeme and Marlene from Brisbane, so we arranged to meet for a few night's camping at Cape Hillsborough, approximately 50km north of Mackay.

Cape Hillsborough National Park at 1012 ha, is one of the most beautiful parks on the Central Queensland coast.  Lowland vine and rainforest grow along creeks, valleys and hillside gullies.  Rocky hills and headlands support open eucalyptus forest, while patches of low heath survive on exposed slopes.  Large rhyolite boulders scattered over the headlands and beaches are a reminder of volcanic activity millions of years ago.  It has much in common with the Whitsunday islands, which were once joined to the mainland.  The park also has a small but spectacular length of coastline with wide sandy beaches, steep rocky headlands and a dense cover of hoop pines.

It was originally home to the Yulbera people, with many signs of indigenous occupation including archaeological remains of a stone fish trap, stone fireplaces, pieces of ochre apparently brought from other areas, and artefacts such as stone axe heads. James Cook named Cape Hillsborough, Cape Palmerston and Cape Conway during his voyage up the Queensland coast in 1770.  Cape H was named after the Earl of Hillsborough, a member of the English and Irish parliaments.

But apart from all this useful information, Cape Hillsborough campground at the end of the road, is one of the prettiest campgrounds you could find, with many kangaroos lazing around, a birdwatcher's Paradise, and with the beautiful beach just a few steps from your door.

David and Jan took a cabin for 3 nights, we trundled along in our motorhome, Graeme and Marlene arrived in their caravan and Molly and Colin brought along their tent.  A diverse bunch we were and spread out over the park, but thanks to David and Jan's cabin, we had more than enough room for sundowners each evening, which mostly morphed into dinner as well (thanks Jan).  It was a wonderful 3 nights camping, terrific days walking the various trails, and a great catch-up time.  We especially enjoyed the company at sundowners, and while we were able to return to Mackay to dry out, the others were all headed to party central with the Shag Islet Cruising Yacht Club (commonly called Shaggers).

For those among you who who have never heard of this organisation, it is a network of people, each a Vice Commodore (there is no Commodore), and with the rule that there are no rules and it was created as a social and assistance network for cruising yachties.  There is a huge shindig every year in the Whitsundays at Gloucester Passage (apart from multiple social events throughout the year in every place where Shaggers gather) and is a great fundraiser for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia.

We headed back to Mackay and our grand-babies after 3 great days/nights at Cape Hillsborough, and realised that it has been a month now since we became honorary Mackay residents, and another 2 weeks until we leave for our travels towards home.  We're house-sitting cousin Iris and John's house while David and Jan are house-sitting ours, and I think we probably have the better bargain.  We have the run of a beautiful house with huge verandah facing Slade Point "swamp" which is a haven for birds and water birds of all kinds.  In fact the mornings are a cacophony of bird song.

It is only 2 weeks until Favourite Daughter arrives, bringing her 2 Favourite Daughters, to visit the new babies, and then we'll be on our slow way south once again, leaving everyone in Mackay in peace.  John and Iris will be back in their house, Prettiest Daughter is back at work, and Libbee will have possession of her car once again, after kindly lending it to us to save us trundling round town in the motorhome.  It'll be Farewell Mackay and Hello Brisbane.

It's been a wonderful few weeks catch up with the Mackay mob and the biggest regret we'll have on leaving for home will be missing out on the baby milestones of Sylar and Paije.