More fun with Grammie and Papa

I am so far behind in my blogging so apologies that these photos are in a mixed up order. When we got back from Karijini we had another two weeks with Grammie and Papa staying with us...it is the BEST! They are so helpful around the house with Grammie cooking and cleaning and Papa fixing up our garden! They also play with the kids non stop which is a huge break for me. I was able to start going to the gym again while they were here and often took solo trips to the shops (a huge luxury) and Clinton and I were able to go on some dates. We so appreciate them making the effort to come here and spend time with our family. As I said, these photos aren't in order and some are my photos and some are Papa's..like these ones of Sienna (and Harry) dancing.

I left Sen and Alissa outside to paint and came back to find this...teaches me for not supervising them properly!

 Lissy was devastated that I wasn't happy about her being covered in paint!

 Nana Patsy sent Harrison lots of varieties of tomato seeds - Papa helped him get them ready. We may have left it too late in the year to do them Nana...it's been so hot and only one has managed to survive even though Harrison is watering them every day. We still have seeds left so we'll try some more when the weather cools off. 

 Harry was so excited to get his seeds from Nana in the mail

 Grammie and Papa were great with reading stories to the kids at night

 Alissa's latest obsession is the movie 'Frozen' and she made Papa sit and watch it...too many times!

 Papa and Grammie often sat outside to watch the kids on their bikes and scooters,..they love an audience!

 Harry showing his trick of jumping with the scooter. 

 More frozen...

 Alissa has become really good on her scooter - she can even coast along. 

 Alissa's fluffy slippers from grammie...she loves them!

 Harry's spy Lego from Jarom and Monique...

Karijini - Weano Gorge & Joffre Gorge

After Hancock Gorge we ate lunch in our car (the eco retreat provides you with one packed lunch) and then drove on to Weano Gorge to see Handrail Pool. 

 The little trail leading to Handrail Pool

 You can see why it's called "handrail"

 So much to ponder...

 The reflections were stunning

 The water wasn't as clear but we still had a swim 

 Surprisingly we didn't see many lizards or any snakes (thank goodness) 

 Then we went to Joffre Gorge, which unfortunately didn't have much water running at that time of the year.

 We swam in this Olympic sized pool - it just went on and on...some backpackers swam to the end and back (you can't touch the bottom) and said they had never swam so far in their lives.

 Back to our tent and dinner at the restaurant again...our tent by night. The stars are incredible out there! 

On Monday morning we had another yummy breakfast then packed up our stuff and sadly said goodbye to Karijini. We drove through Tom Price to get some fuel and snacks. On the way home we drove through some pretty decent bush fires and were stopped by a fireman at one point. We had to wait until they got the blaze under control before we could drive on. 

We were so excited to see the kids, and happy to see that Grammie and Papa had survived! The kids had had a great time with their grandparents all to themselves. We so appreciate Clinton's parents for letting us have such an incredible experience in Karijini. Once we had unpacked the car, Clinton got to work cleaning all the red dirt off it. The kids decided to help! 

 Sen loved being in charge of the hose!

Karijini - Hancock Gorge

On Sunday morning we got up early and had a delicious cooked breakfast before driving to Hancock Gorge. Our plan was to get there early for better light in our photos and to have less people around. It worked! This gorge takes a bit more effort to get in to...you go down a ladder to get in and then often have to scale along the rock walls to go in deeper.

Having a drink from my camelbak, we could never get enough water.

 Leaving our shoes to climb along the rocks

 We climbed along the edge of this rock wall...isn't it beautiful?

 Then "spiderwalking" into Kermits Pool (Clinton and my favourite spot in Karijini)

 Having a swim - the water was icy cold but so refreshing. You can't touch the bottom of Kermit's Pool it's very deep but the water is crystal clear. 

 There is another amazing waterfall beyond Kermit's Pool but it's roped off and you're only allowed in there with a guide. 

 We only left when another couple arrived...this is a part of Australia everyone should see.