Day 171. Darwin

Today we did nothing. The End.

Ok, maybe we did a bit more than 'nothing' - but not by much.

Entrance to the Free Spirit Caravan Park

Scarlett was up at the crack of dawn; waking both Bec and me and asking to go to the 'dinosaur bone dig'. This is the first activity that Scarlett will attend at this caravan park, and I'm pretty certain that it wont be the last. Unfortunately the 'dinosaur bone dig' didn't start until 9am; so she still had a wee bit of a wait yet.

So to kill some time she went for a bike ride around the park on her 'new' bike. She has really surprised me at how quickly she has mastered this larger bike, and she continues to amaze me daily with how 'grown up' she is becoming. What ever happened to my little girl?

The main pool area; complete with bar and restaurant

Next, Scarlett talked us into going down to the pool for a morning swim. Luckily we were able to worm our way out of actually doing any swimming; as there were kids everywhere. She's met up with some kids; Max and Grace, who have literally just jumped off the plane from Spain. They are here in Australia visiting their grandparents who just happen to be grey nomads 'touring' Australia. I think Scarlett is coping with the language barrier very well; and I think "Dora the Explorer" has a lot to do with that. "Dora" is always teaching Scarlett Spanish, and now she is actually getting a chance to use the few words she has already mastered. She went swimming with Max and Grace and played very well. I have seen a remarkable difference in Scarlett's behaviour since we arrived in Darwin and its great to see.

Scarlett and her treasure box

Well, 9am finally arrived; and nothing could stop Scarlett from dragging me over to the camp kitchen - where today's activities would be held. There must of been about a dozen other 'little people' there, and as soon a we settled in, Scarlett quite discreetly came over to me and whispered "Dad, its all right. You can go now". I think she is now reaching an age of real independence, and it's great to see her getting involved in activities with new kids all the time. So I left her behind and went for a walk.

I returned about an hour later, and found Bec standing nearby talking to some other mothers. I wandered over and joined in, and before we new it the kids had finished their activity. On the way back, the kids got a little side tracked and ended up veering over to the jumping pillow. Bec and I continued back to the van; and Scarlett eventually joined us about an hour later; wanting some lunch.

After lunch, I took the opportunity to go into town and catch up with an old work mate; Bernie. It didn't take long for me to find him, and he filled me in on all the 'work' gossip. As Bernie was also a mate of Bec's, he decided to follow me back to the van to say "G'day". Bec was so surprised when Bernie walked in the door, and we were soon downing a 'few' drinks while chatting about the old times and discussing what there is to do in Darwin.

After Bernie left, I discovered that Scarlett also attended the afternoon kids club activity; which was 'arts and craft'. She was very excited to show me what she had made; which consisted of two 'magic' wands, and a treasure box. They looked fantastic, and I let her know how good a job she had done. (Believe it or not, but its the little things like this that make all the difference when on the road. We all try to get some time away and to do something we enjoy doing, and this is something that Scarlett is absolutely loving at the moment).

Mango Tandoori Chicken Pizza

Light and tasty...

Bec decided to make gourmet pizzas for dinner. Yummy! They consisted of an authentic thin base; topped with mango tandoori chicken, rocket, mushroom and fetta. It tasted fantastic, and I think Bec has found another winning formula!

Thanks honey!

After dinner, Scarlett went next door to Max and Grace's motorhome to watch a movie with them. She has been on her best behaviour, and her manners have been noted not just by us, but from other parents as well. Its nice to hear good comments on how your daughter is behaving, and Scarlett has been getting a lot of praise these last few days.

Northern sub-species
Common Brushtailed Possum

Tonight, Bec and I heard a 'noise' outside and found a possum climbing the trees opposite our van. Upon further investigation, the possum looked a little different from it's southern cousins that we are use to seeing. As it turns out, the critter was a Northern sub-species of the Common Brushtailed Possum. The differences are that it is smaller in size, short-haired, has a rufous buff in colour with a sparsely furred blackish tail.

As you can probably tell, we didn't really do a lot today. Yes we are on holidays, and yes we are doing and seeing lots of this great big land of ours; but sometimes you really need 'time out'. Being on the road 24/7, and living in each others pockets can be stressful at times. It's great to be on holidays, but believe it or not its hard work. I think Scarlett feels it the most; as she is only 5 years old after all. We take her on bush walks, on tours, shopping, and spend all our time with her. She probably has the most to complain about. Even when we aren't doing anything; we still spend all our time driving from place to place, and setting up/packing up camp. It takes a lot of work, and we have to do it everyday 'on our holiday'.

So this week is about relaxing and not doing much. From the results we are seeing with Scarlett and her behaviour since arriving in Darwin; we know we are doing the right thing.