Girl Friends

Jen & Leonie in front of Ficus Trees in Lattice Formation
Cute Llamas

Jen, Me, Gemma, Aunty Dympna skyping with Kim (on screen)

iPhone Geeks

Busy crafting and Photoshopping!

Don't you just love catching up with your girlfriends? You may recall I have mentioned Jen, the friend with whom I did my general nursing and midwifery (maternity) training. She has a younger sister Leonie, and we have known each other since 1970 - long before our husbands and children were on the scene. They both live with their families on the Gold Coast and at the last minute we arranged to have a girls' weekend here at our place in Ballina. They came prepared, each carrying their laptop and camera. From the minute they arrived in time for morning tea on Friday until the moment they left after lunch on Sunday, we were kept very busy with craft work or sharing computer (Photoshop & Skype) and iPhone skills. Jen had a new iPhone that she was getting used to, and as I have had mine for several months now, I was able to show her some handy hints to get the most out of her gadget. Leonie taught us how to use the photomail option in Photoshop which I find very handy, and Jen walked us through setting up the layers of a scrapbook page on Photoshop. We all learnt a lot.

Jen & Leonie wanted to check out their favourite shoe shop in the main street, so we wandered down there on the first day, and lo and behold, I found myself a pair of shoes to wear to my nephew's wedding. Now I just have to find a dress to go with them! Ha ha. Jen & Leonie never found any shoes...but they did find some other things!

For Friday lunch we went to a delightful cafe where there is a maze created out of ornamental figs (Ficus hillii) set on 1/2 acre. The maze contains more than 9000 trees and the paths are over 2 km in length. We were delighted to see some young llamas in the grounds, as were the group of children leaning over the fence trying to pat them. On the way home we dropped into a small country shopping mall and found some pretty bulbs for me to plant in readiness for next spring. After an afternoon spent learning new Photoshop skills, we got dressed up to greet our dinner guests - my sister Gem, her husband Bill and my Aunt Dympna. I had made salmon vol au vents served with oven baked potato chips (recipe courtesy of my brother Tony) and salad. Bill made a delicious apple and rhubarb pie for dessert, which was served with freshly whipped cream. As usual there was a lot of laughing to accompany the pleasure of sharing the meal.

Saturday started out very relaxed as we all went to a 45 minute meditation class run by my aunt. It was such a lovely day that we left meditation and walked across the road to a gallery cafe where my sister & aunt joined us for a coffee. Another day of craft followed before we visited my aunt to share in a Skype session she had arranged for 5pm with my daughter Kim in Copenhagen. My sister Gemma joined us as well, and I think Kim was quite sad when we signed off after about 40 minutes. Jen, Leonie & I then drove home via the beach - we were a bit disappointed that we had missed catching the sunset to try out our photographic skills, but proceeded to take photos of the waves and the red evening sky to experiment with various settings on our cameras. We realised we really needed a tripod!

Fortunately Murray was kept busy with sporting events on TV while the girls were visiting - Masters Golf & football being the main attractions. He stayed behind while the 3 of us walked to the nearby Chinese restaurant for dinner, but we returned by 9pm to resume our computer activities. It was quite funny seeing all 3 laptops set up in the study with us buzzing around like bees at a honey pot!

Sunday morning started with tea/coffee and toast on the back patio checking out the new growth on most of the plants. They are really flourishing and it will be exciting to return from the USA and see how they have grown in our absence. Even though it will be winter while we are away, Ballina area is designated sub-tropical, so it will be cool rather than cold such as our North Dakotan friends would experience in winter. Murray & I walked to Mass and on our return, Leonie & Murray made an amazing discovery. The father of Leonie's partner of over 25 years, Stan, and Murray's father were both from Poland, both went to England during the war and fought as a Rat of Tobruk then both emmigrated to Hobart, Tasmania, Australia on the same ship in 1947. How is that for a mind boggling discovery. Sadly, neither of the men are alive today. After a satisfying lunch at a cafe in town, Jen & Leonie packed their car and headed back to their families. Life is good - very, very good.