Cape Hillsborough picnic

So... we invited a friend of ours who recently returned to Mackay out for a picnic at Cape Hillsborough today. The children were keen as mustard to get down to the beach and swim in the sand and water. Shar wasn't very happy for them to get wet and sandy but that's pretty much what happened anyway...

Sharlene grabbed the camera and snapped Dan and Liana together.

Zekiah..."Hey you! No cameras!" Zekiah was just happy to play by himself at the beach.

Azariah..."It's my turn isn't it?" He got wetter, sandier and in more trouble-er than all the other children.

Riah, Zekai and friend sprinting for the beach.

Liana-Roze creating a bit of sand art.

Zemiel spent some time just gazing out to sea. He loved looking at the islands...

...Just like this.

Liana..."To go in or not to go in...hummmmm."

"Yup. Going in it is!"

Liana and friend digging by the shore.

After being successfully extricated from the ocean, a dripping wet toddler makes a break for the surf once more!

Zemiel - Student of the Week

Observe: The many faces of Zemiel...

...Down wit' it. This is where it's at!

...Irish dancer. Betcha can't do this!

...Kamikaze. Sock it to me!

...Robot. Target: camera, mission: fake smile.

...Famous. Make sure you get my good side.

Mainly Music Break-up

Throughout the year, Sharlene has taken the younger three children to Mainly Music on Thursdays. Last Sunday, they had their break-up...

Zemiel went straight to the petting zoo and made some friends.

Azariah couldn't wait to get his face painted.

 Zekiah had so many ice blocks that he ended up vomiting.

Liana thought she saw something in the mirror...hey don't I know that person?

Whoever it is, they are beautiful! Mmwah!

Double Birthday

Sharlene and Liana share their birthday. Sharlene got a rainbow cake, cemented together with cream and jam.

Liana celebrated her birthday with her Sabbath School friends. Although she was more interested in holding the matches...

...and grabbing the candle...

Finally, with arms restrained, we can light the candle...

...and Zekiah can blow it out! Hooray!

Zekiah's 3rd Birthday

Zekiah's favourite shirt is the red one with a shark on the front holding a soccer ball in its mouth. We get a happy dance every time we pull that one out. For this birthday, Zekai got a cake based on that picture. 

When it finally came to changing his age, Zekai liked the idea of turning 3 but utterly rejected the notion that he was a 'big boy' now.

Trip to Bowen

In September we drove to Bowen to show-off Liana and see our old friends. We'd been slack and hadn't visited nearly as often as we ought. Church was great and we shared lunch in the hall afterwards.

Before we drove back to Mackay, we stopped at Horseshoe Bay. Zemmy just sat on the sand for a while taking in the waves before coming to join Azariah and Zekiah on the rocks.

After rock-hopping for a while, we went back to the car and thought we would attempt a climb up to a lookout. The boys were keen so off we went...

This is a zoomed in photo, taken from the lookout, of the rocks that we climbed on earlier.

Zemiel on the bridge leading to the lookout platform.

Sharlene and Liana-Roze resting in the shade near the lookout platform.

Zekiah on the walking track. We were very proud of his effort in walking the whole way.

Zekiah again. This time in a narrow gap between rocks. What an adventure for him!

At one point in the track, we could see these trees in flower on the next hill. 

Cole Kids - How they grow III

Azariah wanted a robot cake for his birthday this year...

We went up to broken river with Aunty Rosie and Uncle Piotr. 

We got to see the platypus come in really close at the lookout. So cool!

We enjoyed going to the botanic gardens with our Adventurers Club. 

Liana loving the camera.

Zekiah had great fun in the sand. He loves getting wet and dirty. 

Azariah felt he missed out on some photos so he decided to pose a little. 

Zemiel doesn't always cooperate to take a nice photo, but today he was in good form.

Cole Kids - How they grow II.

We are forever thankful for the years God has granted to Great Nanna Hurford who was 104 years old when this photo was taken. The boys enjoyed reacquainting themselves with their Great Grandma Kerr as well. 

Azariah is quite creative with his hands. He frequently uses offcuts of wood and any other objects he can scrounge to create vehicles, planes or rockets.

This may be a rare moment when both Riah and Zemi are sitting still together.

Liana started to stand the day before she was 6 months old. But didn't walk independently until she turned 1.

One of my favourite photos. So nice to see all the children together and smiling.