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Published: December 17th 2013
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Another bus driving lesson
We have spent many hours tootling around Dalby in small buses such as this. We are still in Dalby Queensland. Peter is still driving buses. Wendy is no longer working for Muffin Break so is looking for other employment. She has been learning to drive small buses with the intention of getting a job alongside Peter. Peter is a good (and patient) teacher. Yesterday, 16
th December 2013, Wendy went for her LR driving test ……and passed! She is now able to drive mini buses and light trucks … and our motorhome. We are hoping that she will secure a driving job in the New Year.
To celebrate our 39th wedding anniversary we headed east to Gatton where Shannon had been to a residential school for a few days. We stayed the night in a very noisy hotel. After a lovely breakfast we headed out for some geocaching/sightseeing/exploring the Lockyer Valley. Lunch was enjoyed at our favourite cafe in Toowoomba, Bon Amici and then Shannon treated us to some of the loveliest ice-cream before she headed back to Brisbane on the Greyhound bus.
To break the monotony of the wide flat plains and dead-straight roads we took a day trip up to the Bunya Mountains on the Monday of the long weekend.
Alan Cunningham Lookout
Alan Cunningham (could be a relative) explored extensively in the Lockyer Vally area. The contrast was amazing. The steep winding road up into the hills was quite the adrenaline rush. Bunya Mountains National Park covers about 20,000 hectares of subtropical cool green rainforest, eucalypt forests and woodland. The star attractions of course are the Bunya Pines. The weather is milder than what we experience at Dalby, the grass is lush and wildlife is friendly. We had a lovely lunch on the veranda of one of the cafes, and have made a promise to ourselves that we will return to spend a night at one of the quaint cottages and do some more of the bushwalks and see some of the waterfalls.
In the very early hours on Tuesday 15th October, Wendy drove Peter, who was in severe pain, to hospital. The nurse suspected a bowel obstruction, supplied painkillers and muscle relaxants and sent us home to get some more sleep. On arrival back at the hospital at a more respectable hour, after being attended to by 3 doctors, appendicitis seemed to be the most likely culprit. He was transported to Toowoomba Base Hospital and more than 36 hours later had a gangrenous appendix removed. On Sunday 20th he was discharged.
Happy Grandparents Day
We met up with 2 of our grandies for a lovely day in Coolangatta before spending a few days with them in Lismore A week later (on Grandparents Day) we met Mel, Gareth and the girls at Coolangatta, for a lovely day in the sun, by the beach. We followed them to Lismore to spend a few days with them. While there Wendy was able to secure a few hours' work at the local primary school. It pays to have connections!
On return to Dalby, Peter wasn't too keen to sit out his medical certificate so he visited the doctor to get clearance to go to work on light duties. The office staff were pleased to have another hand on deck to get through the mountain of paperwork. Gradually he got back into the bus driving - being very selective about which bus he drove and which run he was assigned. He's back on full duties now and pleased to be out of the office. He's actually enjoying the school run he's been assigned, and glad to be doing rig runs again too, although that means getting out of bed at 3.15am!
Saturday 30th November marked Peter's 60th Birthday. Wendy had the day organised with treasure-hunt clues to guide him to lots of special treats and experiences, including a
They haven't changed .....
"They haven't changed their outfits in 50 years!" one cynical family member commented. hot-rock massage, lunch at our favourite restaurant in Toowoomba, Weiss Restaurant, and Skype communication with our daughters to tell him that we had tickets for the Seekers concert in Brisbane the following Wednesday night. He was STUNNED! Speechless in fact! We arrived back at the caravan park in Dalby in time for happy hour with all our new friends here. The concert was amazing. Our 8th row seats were wonderful and the tickets were only purchased a week before! A year ago, to the day, the Seekers had decided to do a 50th Anniversary Tour of Australia (50 YEARS!!). The series of concerts got under way but in March, Judith Durham suffered a brain aneurism. Naturally everything was put on hold, waiting to see if she’d ever sing again, let alone perform in a national concert tour. All we can say is Judith Durham; you’re a legend, a real trooper and still THAT voice! The concert we attended was the last of the tour. The world may never see the 4 Seekers on stage together again.
But wait..... that's not the end of the birthday celebrations. Another getaway was organised for the following weekend in Stanthorpe. We shared a
holiday house with Shannon, Mel, Gareth and the girls. We enjoyed family time, birthday cake, apple juice tasting, geocaching, an amazing lunch at the wine college, card games, far too much home-cooked food and Anouk’s first attempts at walking! We all had a delightful weekend.
Dalby finally got some rain last week. It started off as a little storm and then some steady rain for about an hour. It eased off overnight and by 7 am we had another little bit of precipitation for about another hour. Hey – this IS newsworthy! Everything greened up for a couple of days. It was lovely.
Our plans for the Christmas period are that we hope to be in Thornton for Christmas Eve and most of Christmas Day and arrive on the coast late Christmas Day. The following week will be the usual frenzy of catching up with family and friends before we return here to Dalby to continue our adventure.
So it’s that time of year when we wish you all a very merry Christmas and a safe and prosperous New Year and we look forward to seeing you in our travels.
Wendy & Peter
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Dave & Jenny keegan
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Merry Christmas
Dear Wendy & Peter May your Christmas be filled with love laughter and joy and most of all enjoy travelling and exploring in 2014 all our love Dave & Jenxxx