Adventures in Hervey Bay

Sunday, 9 April, 2017

Phew! We are back home and Dad is very happy to be done this course. He really enjoys teaching, but this course has been quite draining since he basically had to create the course. The guys all passed - all of the guys already had experience working on the B737, but needed to take this course to make it official on their licenses.

I spent my week going to the gym and socializing (big surprise there, eh? 😊) On Tuesday, I met up with my Aunt Beth (Poppy's sister) in Brisbane. We met at 'The Coffee Club' and sat there the whole time we visited (5 hours). I enjoyed an iced chocolate (of course!) for morning tea and we stayed there for lunch as well (I was good for lunch only having a ham, cheese and tomato sandwich). It was so nice visiting with Aunt Beth - we get along really well and never have trouble filling in the time chatting with each other. It's nice to find out what my cousins and their families have been up to, as well. Because Aunt Beth is nine years younger than Poppy and she moved to Sydney when she was quite young, I never got to know her kids when I lived in Australia, so this gives me a chance to get to know them, through her, a little better..

Aunt Beth

See the bird in the middle of the picture behind the table? It just flew in the cafe - it happens all the time and it doesn't faze anyone - it walked around checking for any crumbs on the floor and then made its way back outside again

A beautiful church I saw from the bus on my way home from hanging out with Aunt Beth

On Thursday, Dad and I met up with Niles, a fellow instructor of Dad's, for dinner. Niles chose the restaurant, a little German place called 'Des Alpes', which he raved about to us. The meals were a bit pricey, so we figured that they would be big portions - Dad and I decided to get a salad each and then share the main meal. Not such a good idea. The portions were quite small, although the food was tasty. We had a great time catching up with Niles - he is such a nice guy and so easy to talk with. We were hungry after we left him, though, so we drove to the nearest Hungry Jack's (Burger King) for a kid's burger. 😏

Me sitting outside of 'Des Alpes' waiting for Niles

We noticed the doll and teddy on the 'swings' near 'Des Alpes' - how cute!

Table which we sat at to wait for Niles - I love the saying written on it

Here is the meal Dad and I shared - three little pieces of meat - pork and beef - about four bites each and a glorified hash brown

Dad, me and Niles at 'Des Alpes'

On Friday, I walked to QAC (Dad's work) to meet up with Dawn and to see Melinda (one of Dad's bosses) and her new baby - Ava Grace - she is three weeks old and such a cute and healthy looking baby. I got to snuggle with her (when I could get her off Dawn {the grandma}) and it was so nice having a baby in my arms again. After we got our cuddles in, Dawn and I went off to the mall to spend some time hanging out there together. Even though I am not a big fan of shopping, it always seems that I end up buying something while I am with Dawn. 😊 This time, it was a blue purse I have been looking for for ages, a security bag that I am going to use when we go to France and Italy in June and some dresses for my granddaughters (yep, spoiling them again, what can I say? 😊

Ava Grace Murphy - isn't she such a cutie

Me holding Ava

Dad and I spent Saturday morning cleaning the house and getting it ready for the next instructor to come to. Then, finally, it was off for home - it was a 3 1/2 hour drive and we drove straight through. Even though we enjoy travelling around Australia for Dad's work, it is always so nice to come home. We are here for three weeks now, which will go fast, I am sure - we always seem to end up having no trouble filling up our time while we are home.

Sunday, 2 April, 2017

We only have one more week here in Brisbane. Dad's first week of the practical course went okay. It started off well with the airplane being available for Monday and Tuesday, but then it wasn't available on Wednesday or Thursday. Fortunately, it was available on Friday again. Dad really enjoys this part of the course and his students are really liking being able to look at the airplane and talk about things they have discussed in the classroom. Dad has also made up a number of troubleshooting activities for the guys to do and that's really helpful and useful to them as it's really applicable to their work.

I continued on with the gym this week and by Tuesday, I had reached my second weight goal. I decided to treat myself to a manicure, so off I went to the mall after my yoga class. I went back to the same nail place I had been to before and had another lovely pampered session. The photos don't really show the colour I chose - but, since the nail polish on my nails comes off after about three days, I chose a silver sparkle polish which doesn't show as much when it chips off.

My silver sparkly nail polish - how long before I start biting my fingernails, though :-0

Thursday was a very exciting day here in Brisbane - on Wednesday, Cyclone Debbie hit land way up north in Queensland and created a ton of devastation. On Thursday, however, the effects of the cyclone were felt all the way down the coast of Queensland and into New South Wales. The rain was so heavy all day and the wind was whipping around like crazy. So much so, that the government closed a number of schools in Queensland as they were really concerned about flooding and suggested that businesses close at noon and allow their employees to get home safely. I had been following the news all morning and was messaging with Dad to let him know what they were saying. Shortly after 10:30am, Dad told me that he had sent the guys home and that he would be home in half an hour. I was glad that he did that as we had no idea how bad things would get. Fortunately for us, although it rained a ton that day, it never amounted to anything in Windsor (where the house is located).

Today, Dad and I drove to a city called Ipswich (about 40 minutes from where we are staying) to visit with our friends, Trudy and Peter (I am annoyed with myself that I didn't get a photo of them while we were there - grrr). They used to live in Hervey Bay, but when Trudy retired from teaching at the university in HB, they decided to move close to one of their children (about ten minutes away) and closer to the Brisbane Temple. They have a lovely home, although, as it turned out, their daughter has since moved away from there (lesson: don't move close to your children cuz they will move away :-) Trudy made us a delicious lunch and we visited with them for about four hours. It was really nice to catch up with them and to see how they have been making out since they left HB.

Sunday, 26 March, 2017

Dad was home all this week prepping for next week when he will start the hands-on part of the course. It was nice to have him home for lunch every day. He spent most of his days in the office, so I spent most of my time either at the gym or knitting. I did go out on Wednesday to the mall and met up with Dad's boss' wife, Dawn, for another round of shopping, chatting eating and iced chocolate. :-)

Yesterday, I took the bus to the mall so that I could get a pedicure. I decided that my reward for losing the first ten pounds was to get my nails done. I love being pampered and it was wonderful at this nail place. I sat on the massage chair and relaxed while the young girl gave me the spa pedicure. It took her an hour from start to finish (including drying time) and it was heaven. :-)

I love getting bright colours on my toenails :-)

Dad picked me up from the mall and we drove to a restaurant called 'Harry's Diner' for dinner. We have decided that we will go out once a month for a meal. This place is set up like a 50's diner - mostly hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries and milkshakes on the menu. Dad and I shared a meal: hamburger, french fries, onion rings - and an A & W root beer for Dad and an iced chocolate for me. The food was delicious, but Dad and I decided that it was a bit expensive for what we got. It's always nice to try new places, though.

Harry's Diner - 50's style

Painting on the wall of Harry's Diner

I thought that this sign was funny with twelve hour hands :-)

The front of Harry's Diner

Me with my iced chocolate - so yummy! :-)

Our shared meal

Dad at Harry's Diner

Sunday, 19 March, 2017

Another week of much the same as last week. Dad finished up his course which he was really glad about. Since he spends so much time either teaching or prepping, it is very mentally taxing for him - he was at the point where he really needed a break. All five of the guys passed their last theory exam with Dad (there's one more exam for the electronics part of the course) and the guys gave Dad glowing evaluations which is always nice to see. Hopefully, Harry (Dad's boss) will read them and appreciate what a valuable employee Dad is. Dad will not be teaching this coming week, but will have to spend many hours prepping for the two weeks hands-on part of the course.

I continued on with attending my gym classes - I had a bit of a hard time at the beginning of this week - I just seemed a little bit weary when I was doing some of the classes. It was a bit discouraging since I have been doing really well up to now. Fortunately, by the end of the week, I was back on track. I also began crocheting a square for the blanket the Relief Society sisters in HB are crocheting for - I decided to mail it to Robyn so that she can show Effie (who was our instructor and is putting the blanket together) to see if I was doing it right - and if not, how I can do it right. Then, once I get her feedback, I can work on doing more of them. They work up really fast - I can do one in a day in between everything else I am doing.

Dad and I had my birthday day all planned out for yesterday - we were going to do lunch, then a movie, then dinner and birthday cake. Then, the movie theatre decided to change the time of the movie we wanted to go to and it didn't work out with our plan. So, new plan: go to a late lunch, postpone the movie, and have my birthday cake after dinner.

We went to a restaurant called 'Hogsbreath' which is similar to the Keg, but nowhere near as good or as classy - the Keg is also better value for the money. However, because we have a frequent diner card, you get a free dinner on your birthday, so we figured that was a good choice. Dad and I both ordered a prime rib and Dad had pork ribs as well. The portions were huge - and since we are not eating big these days, we were full for the rest of the day (no supper for us). We did buy a chocolate mud cake and had a slice each later on in the evening (very yummy!).

Dad with is prime rib, pork ribs, jacket potato (with sour cream) and Caesar salad

Me with my prime rib, jacket potato (with sour cream) and garden salad

My chocolate mud cake birthday cake

Mud cake with ice-cream - so yummy!!!!

We decided that we would put off the movie until Tuesday - better time and better price since it's 'cheap Tuesday at the movies' on that day. We are going to see a movie called 'Jasper Jones' which is an Australian drama film based on a novel of the same name. It's basically the story of two boys (one white and one part aboriginal) who try to uncover the person who killed their friend. I have seen a couple of Australian movies which have been quite good, so I am hopeful that this one will be the same calibre.

Sunday, 12 March, 2017

This week was pretty much the same as last week as far as what Dad and I got up to.

On Thursday evening, two Relief Society sisters came to visit teach me. They are assigned to visit teach any sister who is new to the ward, visiting the ward for an extended time or newly re-activated. Sarah and Jackie both have a Canadian connection, too: Sarah's Dad was born in Manitoba and Jackie was born and raised in Montreal and spent some time living in Mississauga before she moved to Australia to do nursing here. She was originally coming for one year, but loved it so much, she stayed and has been here for ten years now. We had a lovely visit together learning more about each other - they wish that we were moving here, they told me. :-)

On Friday, I walked to Dad's work (about 32 minutes) for a luncheon they were having for one of Dad's bosses, Melinda, who is going on maternity leave. Sarah, her assistant, arranged for chicken, fries and garlic bread to be delivered and also bought a white chocolate mud cake. All of the staff who were here that day were invited to the staff room (along with me, Dawn and another wife (who couldn't make it)) to give Melinda a send-off. It was nice to see all of Dad's colleagues again and to celebrate the coming of Melinda's baby (who will be named Ava Grace).

That's it for this week - short and sweet - hopefully, next week, we will have more to tell you since we are going to go out for the day on Saturday to celebrate the 30th anniversary of my 29th birthday. :-)

Woodwork on the doorframe leading into the dining room from the living room - and bars on the dining room windows so that the windows can be left open when it is hot (no screens on the windows)

We think that they used to have a woodburning stove in this space where the oven is - there is a smoke chimney and a couple of air vents above where the stove is now

The back of the house - we park in the back and have to climb those stairs to get to the back door (good exercise :-) - just to the right of the top of the stairs, you can see a part of the house which sticks out - that is where the stove used to sit in - you can see the chimney sticking up from it - this kind of house is called a Queenslander as it sits up high so that the breeze can help keep the house cool and keep it from flooding back in the old days - often, the bottom of the house is open, but a previous owner constructed open slat walls around the outer edges so that it can be used as a secure storage area - there is also a washing machine plus a second bathroom and shower down there

Woodwork above our bedroom door - I just love it - so much character - it is hard to see, but there is an emu on the left side and a kangaroo on the right side which are on the Australian coat of arms

Sunday, 5 March, 2017

This week was pretty much the same as last week. Dad continued on with his instructing and prepping. The guys had two exams this week and all passed with flying colours. Dad is finding his days to be long and mentally tiring. Since he has never taught this class before, it is taking him ages to get ready for the next day. He puts a lot of time into getting ready for the course and making sure he provides relevant questions for the guys to ensure they are getting maximum learning about the airplane.

I continued on with my exercise classes at the gym. Here's my schedule which I will continue on with while we are here in Melbourne: Monday - Body Balance (a combo of tai chi, yoga and pilates) and Aquafit, Tuesday - Yoga, Wednesday - Aquafit, Thursday - Pilates, and Friday - Over 50s Workout and Aquafit. I enjoyed all the classes, although I much prefer the Wednesday Aquafit instructor to the Monday/Friday instructor - the Wednesday woman keeps us moving, changes up the exercises quickly and makes better use of the pool compared to the Monday instructor.

On Thursday, Jon, our housemate, who we have been getting along with really well, and Dad and I went out for Vietnamese. When Jon found out that I wanted to try that kind of food, but wanted to make sure that we went to a restaurant which served good food, he suggested we try one this week which he recommended. The restaurant itself was pretty ordinary, but the food was fabulous. We went at 6pm and there weren't many others there, but by 7pm, the place was packed and there were people waiting to get in. We decided to each choose a dish and get some steamed plain rice. We had crispy chicken with plum sauce, sizzling Mongolian lamb and barbecued pork with noodles. Yummy!

Dad, me and John with our Vietnamese food

Dad and I are trying new ideas for our eating plan - this one was shared with us by Jennifer - ham and egg nests with cheese and green onions - so delicious and quite filling!

Sunday, 26 February, 2017

Dad's week was pretty much taken up with either instructing or prepping for instructing. There are only five guys in the class which Dad likes - he is teaching the B737 aircraft this time. The guys are really keen to learn about the airplane and ask Dad lots of questions, which he likes.

I took the time to check out what was available at the local gym as I wanted to find some place where I could do tai chi, aquafit and yoga to continue on with my exercising that I was doing in HB. The gym is within walking distance (about 7 minutes away) and has a pool, a gym area and exercise classes. I was able to get a 25 day pass which works out to $9. per day. So far, I have tried a couple of aquafit classes and an Over 50s Workout class and I enjoyed them all. Next week, I will try some more classes which are offered at the gym.

'Fitness First' - our local gym

On Tuesday, I met up with Dad's boss's wife, Dawn, at Chermside Mall which is a huge mall about a 15 minute bus ride from where we are staying - the bus stop is about a 3 minute walk from the house. Dawn and I get along really well, so it was nice to spend some time with her. She was the one who introduced me to iced chocolates, so I had to have one while I was out with her. :-) We did a lot of walking around the mall while we did some shopping and we also had lunch there. I was able to get a delicious Indian meal (butter chicken and chicken korma) as Dad wasn't with me - he can't eat curry meals cuz it upsets his stomach and he doesn't even like the smell of it.

Dawn

The iced chocolate I just HAD to have :-)

Yesterday, Dad drove me to the temple so that I could meet up with the sisters of HB who had planned a day at the temple. It was nice to be able to attend a session at the temple with my friends, especially Robyn. It is so peaceful at the temple and it is so nice to go in and leave all the worldly cares and thoughts outside and just concentrate on the things of the Lord.

The Brisbane Temple

With our weight loss / get fit plan, Dad and I have decided to go out for dinner just once a month and last night was the night. We checked out a few places we could go to which were near to the house and chose a Mexican one called Guzman Y Gomez - we both love Mexican food and this place did not disappoint. Dad had nachos and I had a burrito - both were yummy!