We've made it to Townsville!

Howdy Everyone!

So, we have made it to Townsville via a stopover at Bowen last night. We went there coz some people at Airlie Beach said we should check it out. Went passed the Big Mango on the way there, the road trip was mainly watching the sugar cane crops!
Bowen was a nice town but really we could have passed through and kept going - not heaps to do. The park that we stayed at had a great pool, so there was lots of time spent in that! Some washing to catch up on and some driving around to see the beaches that are suppose to be award winning!!! We also went to a lookout where we could only just see some islands across the water -  the weather again not playing nice for us to have a clear view!
We arrived in Townsville today around lunch time. We had a stopover at a truck stop about 20min from Townsville, so there we got an early lunch because everyone was peckish! Once finally deciding on which park we were going to stay at we made our way there. It's the park that's close to the town centre and a big shopping complex. After setting up we had to check out the pool, it stops Pheobe and Maurice from nagging at us if we just get in the pool straight away!
 After swimming for over an hour, we got back into the car and had a look around Townsville. Went right along the waterfront and we were reminded of our trip that we had about 6 years ago when we went to Magnetic Island! Trent took me to a lookout that Jade had taken him to when we were here 6 years ago. It was great, you could see all over the town - it's HUGE! Townsville is a much bigger place than I ever remembered. Trent even thinks that there has been a lot of development since we were last here.
 We went to the shopping centre to have a look around and we also went to the post office - look out GD, Papa, Popstar and Grandpa for those Father's day cards coming your way! Pheobe went shopping in Diva and got 2 new headbands, Maurice went into the ABC Shop and got himself a Rory the Racing car torch.
Back at the caravan the kids played with a little girl who has been travelling around Aus for 6 months from Switzerland. She has her Mum and Dad and her 8 month old brother with her. They are staying in a 4WD with a tent on top of the car! Pheobe and Maurice think it's pretty funny sleeping on top of the car!!! Anyway, we had dinner (hot dogs and pasta tonight for the kids and Steak and salad rolls for us big kids!), the kids and Trent had a shower in our ensuite, I bathed Flick in the sink (& fed her a Mandarin while she was having a bath!). After Milkshakes and a bottle Flick went to bed, I had my shower and when I got back in the van Pheobe was sleeping in my bed so we got Pheobe and Maurice into their beds and here I am updating the blog, enjoying the great breeze that we have flowing through the van. We haven't had this breeze for over a week or so now and I am enjoying it! We have mostly had humid sticky weather, and I have had to put the air con on to dry the air out when we are sleeping at night for comfort. Not the case tonight, the breeze is fantastic. Trent has even said that he is cold! Not me! Just enjoying it!

This is taken from the road that we were travelling on, a train moving the sugar cane.

The Big Mango!

Felicity now knows how to say CHEESE!

Maurice asleep in the car today! We got him so new goggles for in the pool (Pheobe got some too) and he was trying them out in the car and fell asleep with them on!

The next 6 photo's are taken from the lookout that we went to in Townsville this afternoon, the lookout was called Castle Hill. The Island out this first shot is Magnetic Island!

Anyway, not really sure what the plans are for tomorrow, but I will blog again when there is more fun things to tell you all. We decided against going back to Shute Harbour and going over to Daydream Island, the weather hasn't really improved there so we thought we would just keep moving. We have thought about going over to Magnetic Island, but no firm plans yet.
Hope everyone is well,
Love The Guye Gang! xo

Happy Birthday Nannie Jac!

Just a quick and very special blog to wish Nannie Jac a very Happy Birthday!
We hope that you have had a lovely day.

We also need to wish Will a Happy 2nd Birthday

And, Erin a very Happy 18th Birthday! 

Looking forward to catching up with you all when we get home.

We should say a Happy 21st Birthday to Holly for yesterday, and a Happy Birthday wish to Uncle Stuart for the 28th!

I think we have covered everyone now for a few days with the Birthday wishes!

Happy Birthday everyone, Love The Guye Gang!  xo

Hamilton Island & Whitsunday Island - Whitehaven beach Photo's.

Wild Oats 11 Yacht.

Trent, Pheobe, Maurice & Felicity in front of the Marina at Hamilton Island.

Trent & Krista at Hamilton Island.

Another view of the Wild Oats 11

The Yacht Club on Hamilton Island.

This is on Trent's wish list for Father's Day!

As you can see we didn't have a bright sunshiny day that we would have wished for when visiting the Islands, but we made the most of the overcast conditions that we did have. Trent & Krista have decided that Hamilton Island is a place we'd like to visit again without the kids - just so we can sit back and relax at one of the lovely resorts that are on the Island. We managed to get a bus tour around Hamilton Island which was interesting, even the late George Harrison still has a place on the Island!

After visiting Hamilton we got another ferry/boat to Whitsunday Island and the location of Whitehaven Beach. We had a great BBQ lunch on the boat before being asked to get off the front of the boat into the water and onto the beach! The kids thought this was great fun! We had a great afternoon on Whitehaven Beach, they are right about the sand, its so soft and white! Again, if the weather had have been better it would have made for better pic's but we had a great time anyway! There were plenty of activities for us to do, the crew that came on the beach with us from the boat brought with them the buckets and spades, lots of ball games, beach cricket, volley ball were just some of the things we could do. Mostly we spent our time in the water or just near it. The kids were soooo tired by the end of the day, Maurice and Felicity fell asleep on the bus on the way back to the caravan park!

Pheobe and Maurice in their stinger suits!

Trent and Felicity with another of Trent's wish list items in the background!

Maurice having a swim in his stinger suit!

Pheobe playing in the sand with her stinger suit on!

Having time on the beach playing.

Pheobe enjoying her time on the beach.

The Guye Gang on Whitehaven Beach - Whitsunday Island!

Pheobe swimming with a noodle.

Maurice swimming with a noodle.

Pheobe writing her name in the sand!

Maurice with his name in the sand!

Flick walking along the beach and Trent, Pheobe & Maurice in the water in the background.

The view up the beach, we were near the south end of the beach which is located on the east side of Whitsunday Island.

Anyway, that's it for this blog.
Love The Guye Gang! xo

An update from Airlie Beach

Hi Everyone!

Just a quick update before we leave Airlie Beach. We have had a relaxing 5 days here at Airlie Beach. It's been a little wet therefore not everything that we have wanted to do has been done, but the park that we are staying at has provided us with much entertainment.
  Kids have had a few trips to the pool, water slides being the main attraction there. Airlie Beach itself is a nice little town, lots of shops to look in and plenty to eat at! Pheobe was rather happy with her trip to the bead shop, making a necklace, earings and a bracelet for herself among other things. Maurice had a trip to a toy shop and got himself a new leggo helicopter, so he's right now for a while! Flick is just Flick, still tagging along and making herself known when she has to.

So, because of the weather we didn't really make any plans to do much, but today we took a trip over to Hamilton Island and to Whitsunday Island on to Whitehaven Beach. It was a pretty good day, the best bit getting to play on the wonderful beach at Whitehaven. We had some breaky on the boat before we got to the Island. It was an early start with a bus picking us up at 6.55am to take us to Shute Harbour where the boats leave from to go to the Islands.
 Hamilton Island was nice to visit but unless we were staying at a resort there isn't heaps to do with the kids. Trent and I could fill in our time there no probs, so a trip back one day for us only is on the cards! We did take a bus tour over the Island and saw all the places to stay, all the private houses, the airport, golf course and went to the lookout, but again, because of the weather we weren't able to see anything from the fog! We took a walk around the marina at Hamilton Island, there had just been a race week there for yachts, so there was still some lovely ones to look at. Saw Wild Oats 11 up close which was good because we had heard of that boat from the Sydney to Hobart race!
Anyway, we then got back onto anther boat which took us to Whitsunday Island. We had a BBQ lunch on board then were dropped off at Whitehaven Beach for a few hours. We had to get off the front of the boat into the water before we got onto the beach! We had so much fun playing in the sand and in the water swimming. The adventure cruise boat that we took over there also have two staff members on the beach with us and they brought all sorts of activities for us to do and play. The kids had fun with the buckets and spades! We had beach cricket, balls, beach volley ball and plenty more!
When it was time to go the boat came back from being just off shore to collect us. We had to walk a little through the water again to get up onto the boat. Afternoon tea was supplied while the crew packed everything up and then we were on our way back to Hamilton Island. Once there, we boarded another boat which took us back to Shute Harbour on the mainland. We then got on our bus which was waiting for us. Kids were so tired that Flick and Maurice had a sleep on the way home. The bus took us right to the front of the caravan park, Once back at the van, we bathed the kids, got them some dinner and now they are all in bed exhausted from the days events. I think the Mum and Dad are too!!

So, not exactly sure what and where we are up to and going next. Half a plan to go only to Bowen because if the weather improves in the next day or so we'd like to do a trip over to Daydream Island for a night with the kids and stay at the resort there. All very kid friendly, but we don't want to do unless the weather is fine. If we only go as far as Bowen, then it's not all that far to come back to do that.

Hope everyone is well and we will blog again when there is more to tell you all.
Lots of love to everyone,
The Guye Gang!   xo

Maurice on the water slide!

Felicity by the side of the pool!

Pheobe on the water slide!

Maurice really enjoying himself.

Pheobe diving into the water!

Felicity rugging up after her dip in the water.

Maurice in his element!!!

Felicity feeding her friends some bread and chips!

Here's another one of Pheobe's best looks!

Anyway, I will post some more of the other pics from today when I get a chance.
Cheers everyone! xo

We've made it to Airlie Beach!

Hi Everyone!

Sorry it's been a few days since our last update! Not really heaps to report, we've travelled a bit since being in Yeppoon, had a stop over at Mackay and then to here at Airlie Beach. The trip from Yeppoon found us on the highway for a long days drive through mostly bush scenery until we got closer to Mackay where most sides of the road were full of Sugar Cane crops. We had a couple of stops on the side of the road for snacks and of course a lunch stop! Wraps for Pheobe seem to be the flavor of the month and they are easy to make on the side of the road! Maurice has been taking lessons from Trent when it comes to 'bush wee's'! Felicity is getting more use to the car than she would like I think with each time we stop she yells "Yeah" and claps her hands! I've suffered from a fever with major hot and cold sweats, a headache and a seriously sore throat the past few days. I actually ended up filling my emergency script that Dr. Joe did for me for some antibiotics and it's only today that I feel like doing anything at all! So it was probably good that we were just in the car travelling and I could put my head back a little. The fever has stopped now, the headache is slowly resolving (thank goodness for Panadol and Neurofen!) and the throat has mildly improved, hoping the antibiotics will keep doing there job there.
Anyway, enough of all of that. We have made it to Airlie Beach and a great caravan park. It's a Big4 called Adventure Whitsunday Resort. Everything we need is here! Such a great place to stay for the kids with Swimming pool and water slides, two playgrounds, jumping pillow, outdoor movies, children's bathroom, ducks to feed! There is a kids club that we can access on the weekend if we want to for Pheobe, Maurice and Felicity are too young! Our particular site is close to all the things we will need to use so we are all very happy.
  We've been for a quick look down the main street and there is lots to see and do there too. The Big Lagoon for a swim, we have also been told to look out for a bead shop so that Pheobe can make bracelet or necklace! Thanks Kerren for the heads up on that one. And of course we are in the Whitsundays so a trip to one of the Islands is on the cards too. Hoping that the weather will improve so we can enjoy it all a little more. It's been rather windy and a little overcast the past couple of days. Still warm enough for shorts, t.shirts and thongs, so we aren't doing too bad!

Anyway, here are some pics from the past few days, haven't taken many as there hasn't been many photo opportunities to tell you the truth. Great to speak with GD, Samara and Nannie Rose today, nice to hear your voices, we are missing you all very much. Mac and Mollie are having a good time at the farm with Nannie Rose and Papa, so that makes us all happy too. Sorry Papa that you haven't had anything to read when you come in at night the past few nights, will try and keep it more regular because we heard you enjoy the updates!!!

Pheobe & Maurice on the outside of the rodeo ring at the Great Western Hotel in Rockhampton.

We had lunch at the Great Western Hotel coz Lee Kernaghan use to own it!

They have a big Rodeo arena at the back of the hotel which of course holds weekly rodeo's & comps, they also can change the arena & hold concerts here. Lee has of course played here, along with Keith Urban and many other country singers! Pheobe & Krista had a ball here eating lunch and listening to the music that we know and love. Trent & Maurice had a call watching the big TV showing all the bull riding events - Go the 'Buckin Bulls!' And, now when we see the big bulls in paddocks the kids yell 'Buckin Bulls!' Just for you Papa!!!

This was a display of what a typical bull rider wears!

Coming into Rockhampton we took this pic of a Big Bull, we didn't notice it until we were right on it because we were making sure we were in the right lane at the round about. So we just took the photo through the car windscreen.

Flick having a bath in the kitchen sink in the caravan. The night we stopped at Mackay it was too hard for us to take her to the showers so I just bathed here in the sink & Pheobe & Maurice went & had a shower with Trent.

Felicity loved her bath in the sink! She sat and watched kids shows on the TV. I know we have a shower in the van but she doesn't seem to like it in there very much and it takes a while to heat up the water, so I tried this and she loved it!

These are some of the birds that get fed daily at the Caravan park we stayed at in Mackay.

This is a pic taken from the car of a Train carting the Sugar Cane. It's a familiar scene up here at the moment, and as you can see they grown the sugar cane right up to the road and even right up to their houses!

This was just a quick pic that I took this arvo of the kids feeding the ducks here at our site in Airlie Beach. They are really having a great time.

Oh, Happy Birthday to Morgan for yesterday! Hope you feel better soon and can celebrate. We were thinking of you and are sure that you were spoilt.

Take care everyone.
Love The Guye Gang! xo

The Frog in the Toilet!

Had to include this one on Pheobe's behalf. She thinks that everyone should see it coz it's very funny. Maurice says he doesn't like Frogs now!

Here is Trent letting the Frog go. We did tell management this am but they clearly didn't do anything about it! We did notice that the toilet had been cleaned, but the Frog wasn't gone. Perhaps the frog was hidden under the rim where he was when we discovered him - not sure. Anyway, we thought that it would be better for the frog if we tried to get him out and put him somewhere else safe - and not drinking chemical toilet water!!!

We also came across another friendly thing that lives at this caravan park, here is a pic now:

The Bush Chook as he is known! Kylie - he's a little bigger than yours Trent said to tell you!!! I had to also tell the kids not to chase him or try and feed him!

Anyway, that's it for now and we will blog again soon.

Cheers,

The Guye Gang! xo