On Saturday the local Flinders church held its annual fete. With the rest of the Flinders community, we went along.
The visit turned out to be very exciting. Will spotted two armchairs in the Trash and Treasure stall. We rather liked the shape of them and they were well made. They will be perfect for our front sitting room when reupholstered in a simple linen or the like.
The best part was the price - $20 for the pair.
I confess to finding this short video very amusing.
But then I have a silly sense of humour.
There is another lovely beach near Melbourne, called Mount Martha, that I have fond memories of. We used to weekend there as children and I recall early morning swims with my grandfather before taking fresh baked bread home to the rest of the family for breakfast.
Mount Martha beach is one of several Melbourne beaches that still has the traditional bathing boxes sitting above the high tide mark. These relics of the 19th century are very handy for storing all manner of beach equipment.
On Monday we spent the afternoon with friends who holiday at Mount Martha. It was a perfect, hot summer's day - a day to remember.
Our host rowed his little wooden boat up the beach to collect the fish and chips for the children. They ate dinner under umbrellas as the afternoon sea breeze picked up and the sun descended.
Will, who used to row at school and university, loves any chance to pick up an oar. He took the boys for a little row around the bay after dinner. All in all, it was the perfect beach day.
There hasn't been much time for crafting this summer. We've been having too much fun for quieter pursuits. There is one project, though, that I did manage to complete. A gift for a new baby.
Right now I rather like it in our bedroom as it looks pretty with the fabrics there. So there it will stay for a little while yet.
This has been a wonderful summer. We've all really loved it.
Henri is old enough now to get through a busy day without a sleep, and with only one child who can't swim our visits to the beach are more relaxed.
So I've been making the most of this summer, as next year will be an entirely different story with a baby in the mix.
I don't normally dress the boys identically, but having them in matching swimmers serves a purpose. It makes the many head counts I do from the shore a quicker exercise.
Some inspiration for a nappy bag or two I think.
One of my few book purchases in Tokyo. There are some pretty images and lovely fabrics in this book. There are more images and ISBN details on my flickr pages.
And then this morning I was further inspired by Tiny Happy's beautiful embroidery. I always love her work. Time to get the embroidery hoop out to start sketching some design ideas.
My father is rather handy with his tools and got busy in his shed at Flinders. With a few golf buggy wheels and an old boom off my brother's wavejumper he fashioned a billycart for the boys.
Mum and Dad's land is gently sloped so the boys can't come to much harm.
The corgis love it too (when they're not getting bowled over) and run alongside barking.
We've just returned from 3 nights on exquisite Three Hummock Island. We waited until a high pressure system was on the way, then booked flights. Some friends came down with us this year. There have been many changes since our visit a year ago. The original homestead on the island has been renovated so this is where we stayed.
We took the boat out and explored the beautiful little bays and coves around the coast. We spotted this cave (below) from the water so pulled in for the boys to explore. It is rumoured that treasure was hidden somewhere on the island, after a ship was wrecked off the shores many years ago. The valuable cargo it carried was never recovered. Many treasure seekers have visited the island over the years in the hope of finding it. The boys thought this cave looked like a good hiding spot.
While at this bay we snorkelled for abalone and came away with that night's first course.
I've seen a lot of Australia's coastline, and Three Hummock Island has the most beautiful beaches I've ever experienced. The huge granite boulders in the sand create the most wonderful swimming holes.
As we sat on beautiful Eleanors Bay beach and watched the boys swim we marvelled that no-one had probably set foot on this beach since we visited it a year ago. It really is paradise.
The boys fished off the jetty just below the homestead and caught the last night's dinner.