October 7. Day 280. Nude dudes

My memory of what we were taught in Social Studies was that human survival required food, CLOTHING and shelter. Yes clothing people.

It protects against the elements.

I have nothing against the human body. I am not a prude but seriously if you have big breasts, a bra would be the minimum clothing requirement for a game of beach volleyball in my humble opinion, just saying. 

My fear of skin cancer alone would be enough to make me keep my kit on while going for a swim but if I was going to go au natural I can see the attraction of Alexandria Bay in the Noosa National Park.

It's stunningly beautiful and quite a trek to get there so it's not as if you are likely to terrify stray small children with your wobbly bare bits.

At least some of them had the good sense to wear a hat (although some of those delicate parts looked like they could have done with a bit of protection).

The walk through the national park was just one of the things on the agenda to make the most of our last day of holidays.

I was up before dawn and on the beach to capture the sunrise and to give the fur friend a last romp in the sand before heading back to reality.

I was also treated to a whale frolicking off the coast and as an added bonus a flock of black cockatoos decided to stop for breakfast on the foreshore as I walked by. Jolly nice of them.

It is very sad that the holiday had to come to an end but I am pretty sure we will be back.

I suppose if I was to decide to go starkers it would make packing easier.Fortunately for the rest of you, it's not going to happen.

October 6. Day 279. Mother knows best

If I was less mature I'd say "I told you so". But of course I'd never do that (well not out loud, anyway). It is no secret that the boy was a reluctant starter on this holiday business. Not that you would have known it today.We all went to the beach, played in the ocean, sat in the park and checked out the action in the skate bowl, browsed the Sunday beach markets and generally had a really lovely day.Three generations and the puppy just chilling at the beach. It doesn't get better than that. So much so that the teen announced he'd like to come back here every holiday.Okay, I'm not very mature. I told you so. Occasionally mother does know best.

  

October 5. Day 278. Crabs!

I think I must be adopted. My mother and I can not be related. Our biorhythms are not in sync. At all. This morning, I was up as normal and down the beach not that long after Sunrise.
I had crabs in my sight while Mum was still snoring.
By the time Mum emerged from the bedroom just after 11am I was pretty much ready for my afternoon nap.
Mum NEVER has an afternoon nap. That's the proof right there. It's hard to believe anyone with any of the same DNA as myself isn't a nap-a-holic. Naps are my crutch.
By late afternoon we both managed to be awake at the same time and went for a walk in the Noosa National Park. Very nice it was too.
I was especially grateful to be able to walk in the bush with my mum given how ill she was this time last week, in hospital, on a drip with acute renal failure.
It's such a relief to have her back to her normal self. Given what she's been through, I suppose I can forgive her a little lie in.

October 4. Day 277. You're dumped!

Everyone remembers the first time. You think you are going to die. You don't know which way is up. Every orifice is filled water.You can't breathe. Much as I love the ocean I know that it is a powerful beast that must be treated with respect. Get dumped and you'll know about it.
This is something my fearless fur friend is discovering this week.
The twice daily walks along the beach have been a real highlight of this holiday for Rumple and I. We love them. This morning there had been a noticeable change. It was cooler and the wind had really picked up.The surf was rougher and a little unpredictable.
So it was that Rumple found himself caught between the sand dune carved out at the creek mouth and the incoming tide.
He was never in any danger but it was enough to get his little heart started. I'm suspecting he'll be a little more cautious in future

October 3. Day 276. Retirement plan

I want to retire to the beach. I love it. We all love it

There is one small technical problem. Actually it's more a large financial problem. Unless I have a previously unknown rich relative who has named me in the will, coming up with the $$$$ may be an issue.
So I have a cunning plan and it involves my beach-loving fur friend. Wherever we go he makes friends. People want to play with him. They want to pat him. They want a photo with him. Just a small contribution from each and there's the beach house. I'm pretty sure Rumple wouldn't mind. Look at the joy of both Rumps and the two boys he found to play chase with on the beach this afternoon. Smiles all round. Time to earn your keep young pup and keep your mother in the manner in which she would like to become accustomed.

October 2. Day 275. Game changer

In a weird way, my fur friend Rumple changed everything.
Some things I had predicted. Others not in a million years.
It is Rumple's "fault" we are spending this week at Castaways Beach on the Sunshine Coast.
Although I lived and worked at the Sunshine Coast for years, in recent years I have been a Gold Coast girl.
What's more, even when the Sunshine Coast was the destination of choice it was never anywhere quite as quiet and isolated as Castaways between Peregian and Sunshine Beach.
But desperate times call for desperate measures, and let's be honest there just were not many houses available at the last minute that ticked all the boxes AND allowed dogs.
In the end there was but one available property that was suitable so we took it.
And it's perfect.
The home as ocean views and overlooks the national park and the dog beach extends for kilometres.
Without the push factor of a puppy we would never have found this place.
This morning's walk along the beach took Rumple and I to a section south of Sunrise Beach where a fresh water stream from the national park meets the ocean. It is spectacular.
I have little doubt we'll be back.

October 1. Day 274. Diving in

 

I could say my announcement that we were going away for the second week of the school holidays, was met with universal excitement. I could say that but it would be a lie.
The teen's response could be at best described as completely underwhelming.
So I promised (without even crossing my fingers) there would be broadband Internet, TV, video and all the comforts of home. In addition, I would not nag him to do holiday stuff. He's a big boy now. His holiday too. His call.
And I have kept to that. So I was pleased that without a word of "encouragement" from me, there he was in the pool this afternoon. You can take a boy to water and you may not be able to make him swim but he just might decide to do it anyway. Round one to Mum.