Naracoorte (Part 2): Australia Day Weekend
We joined my parents in Normanville/Carrickalinga for a week that was dominated by us moving into a new rental house and getting set up. We then drove to and from Naracoorte for another visit.
This time we went home to Naracoorte with a specific purpose. My Mum was a part of the Soroptimists International team that was recognized at the Australia Day ceremony for creating the community event of the year in 2019. So that was a super proud moment for our family. We did a couple more fun activities in Naracoorte too. Some highlights were:
Australia Day and Awards Ceremony. We joined the annual tradition in Naracoorte (& across Australia) with a community breakfast at 7am in the town square, followed by the guest speaker and awards ceremony at 8am. It was an unusually cool summer morning, with even a little drizzle, but it didn’t dampen the celebration. We ate, played games, sang songs, listened to the guest speaker and hung out. Mary (my sister) was back from London so we all enjoyed the day. We all loved seeing my Mom (Mum) recognized again for a contribution to the Naracoorte community, just as special was seeing Scarlett and Nora in the front row proud of Australia Grandma. A super special morning.
Kangaroo (& Wombat) Refuge. We didn’t need another reason for the trip home, but this experience was incredible. We met a lady and her husband who help injured kangaroos and wombats. They have been doing it from their home for over 47 years (not a typo!). They are amazing and wonderful people. We spent over an hour in their home, holding a baby kangaroo and a baby wombat. She taught us all about how she cares for them when they are brought to her (injured, broken, sometimes as super small babies), and the bond she builds with each in the time she has with them before they are released back into the wild. It was intense, amazing and inspiring. We were all absorbed by the dedication to this cause, it was a living example of amazing passion, care and nurturing. We were so grateful for this time.
Tiny Train (& more) Park. This was a fun few hours too. The pictures tell the story, it is literally a tiny train that Scarlett and Nora sat on the back of with other kids and it goes surprisingly fast around the track. Very cool. They also have a massive jump pillow and a mini-golf course that we all enjoyed. A fun time, could have easily spent longer but lunch, and therefore the bakery, was calling.
ParkRun (https://www.parkrun.com/). We joined up and did the Naracoorte Lake Parkrun with friends and we loved it. Free 5 Km (~3 mile) organized runs at 8am Saturday around the world. It was a lot of fun. We did parkrun Aldinga the following week and plan on joining them anytime we are in an area that has one.
Field Hockey. I grew up playing field hockey. Loved it. Naracoorte has a new synthetic turf hockey pitch so I was keen to have a hit on it. I told the girls I was going to teach them some hockey. Scarlett was convinced that meant ice hockey, a classic reminder of her Seattle, USA upbringing. Anyway, we borrowed some hockey sticks and balls from a neighbor and had some fun playing hockey for a couple of days. Hopefully I planted the field hockey seed with Scarlett and Nora.
It was an emotional and fun family week. Mum, Dad and Mary stayed at home. Whitney, Scarlett, Nora, Hazel and I rented a little AirBnB house. Then we headed back to Carrickalinga and Normanville.
