Meeting Jessica

For a few years I have been reading a blog called "Wellness Warrior". It is written by  a lady named Jessica Ainscough and her journey with a very rare form of cancer she was diagnosed with at age 22. It started in her middle finger on her left hand and progressed up her arm. Chemotherapy and radiation did not work and she was booked in for a full amputation of her arm. to prolong her life. She decided not to go ahead with this and instead followed a controversial treatment called "the Gerson Therapy" and try and heal her body through diet, meditation and coffee enemas. Six years later she is thriving.  She recently published a book about her story and new healing lifestyle... 

She arranged a tour of Australia to promote her book and Janelle and I purchased tickets for her Perth visit in November. Unfortunately Jessica's mum passed away from breast cancer a few weeks beforehand so the tour was postponed to February this year. As Janelle would be in Sydney then she was lucky enough to buy a ticket to see her Sydney talk and it was only 200 m from where Janelle was staying. Janelle was also very happy to see Pete Evans (from My Kitchen Rules) as he was one of Jessica's guests...

So I took Peter along to the talk in Perth. We were entertained by singer Wes Carr...

 And Jessica's other guests were Melissa Ambrosini and Paul Ried ( a award winning musician and owner of the organic cafe Solomons)...

 It was an interesting night listening to their stories and getting inspired...

We scored seats front and center in the 2nd row and Peter worked out there was about 1 male to every 20 females!...

 And we got in both photos!...

It was nice to meet Jess afterwards and come away feeling grateful for our health...

Maiden Voyage

After a busy few months and with no kiddies at home we headed off on our maiden caravan voyage. It was a rush to get organised and certainly a big lesson to be more organised next trip! The dogs knew something was up and and made sure they stayed totally in our way whilst we were trying to pack...

 We weren't going to venture too far on our first trip and wanted to have plenty of time to set up before dark. So Four Seasons just past Busselton was our choice (mainly because it is a dog friendly park)...

Our allocated bay was on a corner and after a bit of disagreeing about which way to park the van and manoeuvring we eventually got it fairly level and set up...

Just in time for a dusk walk along the beach...

 We didn't sleep too well - mainly waiting for the dogs to bark but they were very good. Next morning they were quite happy wandering around our site on their ropes...

 We purchased a child/dog carrier to put behind a bike. We thought with them getting older and not walking as far this would make our caravaning less restrictive. Peter put it together...

And off we went! Well the first few minutes were OK as we think they were in shock then the crying started. They both got so worked up, Lucy scratched and put a hole in the netting and we had to stop so many times to calm them down. We rode a few km's down the path near the highway so no-one one could hear the carry on! 

We all needed a rest after that. A few views of our setup from different angles...

Nicole had driven down to Sugar Loaf Rock to take some photos with her new 70D camera. We discovered that one of our favourite cafes down south (Samudra)  is dog friendly so we met Nicole there for afternoon tea...

Nicole loves her new camera and was testing settings for some food photography... 

 And people photography...

Samudra have recently revamped their garden - it is looking fantastic and I wouldn't mind all this in my backyard!...

One of Nicole's great photos of Sugar Loaf Rock... 

Nicole came to visit our little set up in the caravan park and we went for a wander around...

 After all her anxiety from her morning ride we couldn't believe it went Lucy climbed in the trolley later and had a sleep...

Next morning was quite cool so we had our brekky in they sun and then packed up. We were pretty pleased with ourselves having it all done in 50 minutes...

 After morning tea scones at Mum and Dad J's we headed home to unpack. These 2 were filthy and very tired...

So all in all it was good fun. We would like to have stayed away longer and that time will come. Travelling with the dogs is quite restrictive but it was interesting talking to the other dog owners in the park and they all seem to get along fine.   

January

Some how January just disappeared so quickly. We didn't do anything special to welcome in the new year - I had to work NYE and we just stayed awake long enough to see the clock tick over watching the Sydney fireworks on TV.

The weekend in between Christmas and New Year Nicole and Daniel and all their mates went out camping near Collie. Nicole did some great photography of their fun on the water...   

Janelle, Sarah and I took a drive down to one of our favorite cafes Samudra and treated ourselves to a mini feast of beautiful healthy food...

Peter, Janelle and I went to Perth to have an inspection of Janelle's new accommodation for the year ( a unit her friend Emma's parents purchased which they will both be renting). We were all happy with the location and set out inside. We then went down to Fremantle to have a late lunch  at the new Raw Kitchen restaurant. It has moved to a new location and is huge!...

The weather has been very hot so we went for a late  afternoon/evening paddle around the canals... 

I purchased myself a new toy I have been wanting for a long time - a NutriBullet. Its great for whipping up 1 smoothie or drink with only the cup and the blade to wash and so powerful. I love it!...

Janelle put on all her gear and went for a few bike rides now that her eye is a bit more tolerable to wind. She also had to be rescued with a flat tyre a long way from home...

George had a makeover with a new canopy, side steps, roof racks and clear view mirrors...

We have been having fun exchanging photos with some friends in Canada. They have been having one of their coldest winters on record while we swelter through such hot temperatures here. This is the view from their front door - love the imprints of the door on the snow... 

 This is the front of their house...

 We send them photos like this. We have spent a bit of time down the beach so far and loving the warm calm water. The dogs have had so much fun...

On the Australia Day long weekend we went for a drive to Busselton and visited J &G and their Kombi set up as they were camping with their friends...

It was a very hot evening and absolutely beautiful down the beach...

 Mum J also dug out this old family photo of us she found...

Nicole and all her mob celebrated Australia Day in their usual way - party, party, party! Janelle was feeling brave and she went for a while... 

Nicole and Danika

Pool overflow

Janelle flew over to Sydney towards the end of January for her chosen elective as part of her medicine course. She spent a few days staying in the center of Sydney and went of exploring and doing a few mini tours... 

Inside the Opera House

 She spent a day with her Great Aunty Norma and they caught the ferry everywhere looking around from Manly to Bondi. It was an interesting day for Janelle and one she will never forget :-)

.

 While she was out shopping in a bookstore Janelle got to meet and chat to Joe Cross. He signed a copy of his new book for her and they had a good chat. He is famous for his documentary called "Fat, Sick and nearly Dead" which we have watched...

Sarah packed, unpacked and repacked so many times trying to get her backpack just right! Finally the time came for us to drop her off at Nathan's house all loaded up and ready for their backpacking trip to Europe. All we know is they are flying to Rome and will be in Budapest for her birthday in early February.

 Bon voyage!...

Sarah loaded up and ready to go