Happy Christmas!

Your first blog…

I think we were walking around the grounds of the hotel in Dunkeld when you talked about wanting to write more, just after Paddy and Emma’s beautiful wedding. You were full of exciting stories, tales and enthusiasm for the unusual life you’ve led and I thought yup - this would definitely make for an interesting read! So, here’s a space to get you started. If you want. You might simply want to continue to write in your own way, away from prying eyes and the annoyance of the Internet. But this blog is here if you want it. To help inspire you. To give you the motivation to get it down and share it. To remember those amazing stories…and to seek out the old photos to go with it.

Hope you enjoy it. And don’t forget, blogs aren’t like dogs. They can be just for Christmas. You won’t have the RSPB (The Royal Society for the Protection of Blogs) at your door if you choose not to feed this online animal. People tend to write out of love, and at the time and in the manner of their choosing. So if this isn’t what you had in mind, that’s ok, no-one else need know about this blog’s existence. Well. No-one except us two and the seven billion other people who use the Internet of course. No pressure.

Happy Christmas!

Kerry and Mark

Once Paul had decided to settle down in Australia we visited him and his partner Aly several times. We had some amazing trips and saw quite a bit of Western Australia. One place in particular we loved was Monkey Mia - still one of my most favourite places.

Feeding the dolphins in Monkey Mia

Another place we loved was Kalbarri where a huge pelican would arrive on the beach every day to be fed.

Kalbarri

A huge pelican would arrive on the beach every morning for a feed of fish, much to the onlookers’ entertainment.

Then an absolute highlight and something I’ve always wanted to do was when Paul treated us to a hot air balloon experience followed by a champagne breakfast.

Our hot air balloon experience

Paul’s family grew with the addition of two gorgeous boys, Mitchell and then Fletcher two years later. I’ve included some photos of our visits below. We loved spending time with the boys.

Ten pin bowling

Monty and Paul always fitted in a game of ten pin bowling. They were very competitive!

And then in summer 2023 Paul and the boys made it to Da Rock for a holiday! That was very special as we were all together as a family, joined by Mark and his kids too. We even had a visit from Wendy and David Bourne, Mitchell and Fletcher’s Australian grandparents, which was a real treat.