Rain and stormy days

...just going back to New Year's eve for a minute...we got Emily up for the midnight fireworks...


...and the show was spectacular!


It was worth every minute spent agonising over whether we would make it in and out unscathed.

In the end we were the first yacht up the river...although we were in a wave of speedboats that were in front of us, behind us and on both sides of us too...and all going considerably faster than us too.

Yesterday was a peaceful, if hot and humid, day spent shopping and installing a TV antenna up the mast. Although it was Nick up the mast, I was acting sparky offsider and in charge of the ropes for his harness, and the tool bag. I lost count of how many times I brought that darn tool bag up and down the mast (to add new tools and bits to it). Lots of fun!

Today we caught the Rivercat in to Darling Harbour. We had Yum Cha at the Marigold on Sussex Street (YUMMY) and then went looking for a small climbing harness for Emily...she is dead keen to climb up to the crow's nest on the mast. We finally found a pint sized harness in Mountain Equipment.

We then went back to Darling Harbour and were enjoying an ice cream on the side of the harbour when there were suddenly screams and a general ruckus coming from the other side of the harbour. We looked up to see the most amazing rain front screaming towards us...


We upped stakes and RAN as fast as we could to the cover of an expressway. It POURED and POURED down...and was really quite spectacular except that we had no umbrellas or raincoats and were miles from the ferry wharf.

The kids finished their now liquid icecreams...


...then we lashed out on Peoplemover tickets which got us as far at Wildlife World...where we bought luxury $3.99 rain ponchos!

By the time we got back to Cabarita it had stopped raining and the sun was out.

This next shot shows Lucey Blue...at the VERY, VERY FURTHEST END of the Marina. I tell you what, I'm getting in some great exercise stomping back and forth between the showers, toilets, laundry, kiosk and Lucey Blue...at least 4 times per day!!


I had just sat down to compose this post, when I noticed the most amazing storm front on the horizon...


...so I've spent the last half hour desperately dragging in the washing and closing hatches before it got here. I nearly lost some of the washing the wind was so strong.

Hope you are all having fun!

Sam.