A new year begins.......

After leaving Jill and Rob's place we drove back to Perth stopping at Boyanup and on Rob's recommendation had a Pie for lunch.   Really tasty and real meat!

We continued on and arrived at our destination a little after 4.00pm.  Our friends Pat and Russell had offered us the driveway at their rental property in Cloverdale.  They were renovating the house between tenants and so we jumped at the offer, shower and toilet and a place to call home for the next week while we caught up with the kids and grandchildren for the final time this trip.

We arrived just as they were finishing up for the day and after a quick catchup we had arranged to have dinner with them at the Belmont Tavern.  A little later we enjoyed a very good steak sandwich, a bottle of Red and heard all their news before it was time to head home for bed.  It had been a big day!

The next day we headed back to the South Perth foreshore for a picnic with all the family.  It was a beautiful day and it was so good to see Taegan, Gareth and Noah waiting for us when we arrived.  Sarah, David, Corbyn & Amelie arrived next followed by Anne and Paul back from their Christmas in Melbourne.  We were also joined by Lesley and Martin who were visiting from Canberra.  We had a fabulous time catching up with everyone and loved seeing the kids again.

The next day we spent a lovely afternoon with Debs and John at their place for drinks and nibbles.  Marg and Gunther were there too and we had a great time catching up on each other's adventures of the last few years.  The afternoon rolled on into the evening before we knew it so we decided that Pizza might be nice instead of all having to go home and cook.  A great idea, delicious pizza and another couple of hours passed before we said our goodbyes and went home to bed.

On Monday we headed of to Sarah's house with the basket of washing and soon after it was on the line we were at the pool watching Corbyn and Amélie at their swimming lessons.    Back at their place we stayed inside to escape the 43.8 deg the weather man said it was and enjoyed the afternoon with the kids.  Corbyn helped make dumplings for our dinner that night. 

After dinner we said our last goodbyes for this trip and had lots of kisses and cuddles before we drove back to our driveway home.  The next day we avoided the heat in the shopping centre as we were looking for a coffee grinder.  Later in the afternoon we headed up to see Taegan and Noah and enjoyed our time with them both.  

Once Gareth arrived home from work we had fish and chips for dinner and then it was time for another round of goodbyes.  The only bad part of visiting is that we must leave again.  

On Wednesday we did our final shop for the next part of our trip and called in to see Pat and Russell at their home before heading back for our last night in Perth.  

So it's a big thank you to everyone who fed us, entertained us and fitted in with us over the last three to four weeks.  We have had a great time in Perth and look forward to doing it all again one day.  No idea when but we'll be sure to let you know next time we are coming to town.  

And now it's time for us to hit the road again and head back to Melbourne taking in some new sights along the way.  Keep watching to see where we pop up next.

until next time........