The Old and the New

Or perhaps that should be the NEW and the OLD.

My newest little niece Rohanna Jordan was born a couple of weeks ago and it was wonderful to have a visit with her and her family 2 weekends ago. She is just lovely and it was fun to hold her and think about holding her little cousin-to-be like that in just 20 weeks.

Here's the oldies....nieces Erin, Andie and Brielle. Playing with cousins and eating chicken sandwiches on the floor on a rainy Saturday before going to see a musical...priceless!

The last outing with our trusty camper. The old girl is now enjoying her new home further out west. But as you can see, the new toy has been purchased and used...3 times already. Jon is enjoying his 'rocket ship' - a WR250 2-stroke Husqvarna. He is working towards getting it registered so we'll have 2 vehicles again.

And the final newie is actually an oldie. The camper is gone, the tray is gone and the tub is back on the Navara. Thanks to the Bilo boys who did a great job helping reattach and rebuild the Nav, especially our supervisor, Grand dad!

So with the old gone, it's time for new adventures.

Bring 'em on!

Here's the Newest Little Van I

Baby JAK is only 20 weeks old this week and having a jolly old time inside his Mummy. S/He has been a great baby so far...hasn't made Mum sick once!

I have just started to feel JAK move...which makes this whole pregnancy thing so very real! I am certainly getting bigger and slower, but I know, 'you ain't seen nothing yet!' Seeing JAK in the ultrasound room was very exciting, so was the news that both baby and Mum are doing fine. Daddy's pretty fine too!

We have started playing 'the name game' and it's proving somewhat controversial! J doesn't like my names and so far, I haven't been a fan of the 1 one name he has suggested. Hmmm....lucky there's 4 months to go before JAK actually needs a proper name.

In other baby-related news....we have officially sold our Carry-Me-Camper! The money is in the bank, but not for long as J will spend part of the weekend looking at new toys..AKA motorbikes! The camper gets delivered to her new owners in the next couple of days and while I am a little sad to say goodbye, I will be saying a big 'hello' to having our style side back for the Navara. So now, back to tenting. Gotta get one though coz our last one got blown to pieces up at the top of the cape last September:)

Lately...

Remodeling the footpath, family visits, Easterfest in Toowoomba and a

big bill from the mechanic.

Ahhhh! It's been a great couple of weeks.

A highlight of Easter - apart from remembering Jesus' amazing love

and sacrifice - was hanging out with friends in Toowoomba and getting

along to 3 days of fun at Easterfest. It was Jon's first go at EF and

being the sound buff he is, he had a ball. We discovered a few new

bands that hit the sweet spot and revisited some old favourites.

Newsboys still know how to rock!

Spent time with my family in Nanango on the way down and enjoyed a

mud crab lunch and wood fired pizza dinner. Why is food always such

a big part of family celebrations? Not sure, but I know I like it

like that:)

The remodeled footpath was simply Jon and his Dad going crazy with

the chainsaw and taking away one of our big trees. But I am happy,

despite losing some shade, because A. the rubbish truck can now

collect my bin and B. those stinky, sticky seed pods are gone! Maybe

it's a 'nesting' thing happening already, but there's a few other

round the house jobs I am eager to get done in the next couple of

months.

We had to get a new clutch put in our faithful Navara...hence the

bill. But with things looking up re: the sale of the camper, we

should clear that bill soon. And hopefully have money left over for

Jon to make his next toy purchase...a motorbike.

So the days are good and all's well here. Baby JAK was described as

'a happy camper' by the doc the other day, so that makes Mummy

and Daddy pretty happy too:)

Our niece Andie, a happy camper:)

The boys go to town with the chainsaw.

Jon rocks out at Easterfest....Yo! KJ-52!

Andie rocks out too!

Bye bye Easterfest...you were GREAT!!!

And we'll be back:))

We've Done It!

In one sense I guess you could say our round Australia adventure is over. We have completed the lap, arriving in Biloela where it all began way back in February. BUT we are NOT done yet!

Grandma is shocked? dismayed? bamboozled? by Jon's post-lap analysis. Grandfather thinks it's a great story.

Not quite the finished product as we plan to keep on driving. But if you look really closely you can see where the mighty Navara has taken us since February....south, west, north, south, west, north, east, north, south.....all over really! 37 000+ km.

And the best bits.....definitely July-September which was spent across the top of WA, NT and QLD hitting all the 4WD 'Big Ticket' items like: The Kimberleys, Gulf, Cape York. Tassie and the Victorian High Country still rate a mention in the 'best bits' list.

We get to go back to Fraser Island next week.....wonder where it will rate?

Let the (Fun &) Games Begin!

As Mum and Dad Van Itallie departed, Mum and Dad Litzow arrived….with (Kirsty’s brother) Nathan in tow. With the full team now assembled, our Cape trip was ready to begin.

We enjoyed the winding roads through the Daintree rainforest as they took us into a new Top 5 campsite….Noah Beach (just south of Cape Tribulation). Nestled under a rainforest canopy and only metres from the white sand and azure waters of the ocean, this was a perfect base for a bit of Fathers’ Day exploring in the area. We even found a nice, croc-free swimming hole to enjoy.

The Bloomfield Track has to be one of Australia’s top drives for those lucky enough to own a 4WD. It winds its way through rainforest on the edge of the east coast, offering stunning views out over the reef and ocean. Creek crossings, an ice-cream stop at the famous Lion’s Den pub and a waterfall swim in a ‘local secret’ were some of the highlights as we made it to Cooktown.

We had a great 2-night stay with ex-Gladstone friends David and Emily. Jon caught his first fish of the trip….so what if it was a tiny herring to be used for bait! Cooktown has a very colourful history and it was great to stand in places where Captain Cook had stood over 200 years before us and enjoy a lovely dinner over the water at D & E’s favourite restaurant ‘Cook’s Landing’.

We farewelled Nathan before hitting the road for Cape York….just the Terracan and the Navara, and the question: “Will we make it to the tip of the top in one piece?” (Actually the Navara drivers thought no such thing, but they did wonder how the Hyundai would go.)

PS...Taking too long to load photos with only 2 bars of service, so you'll have to check back in a week or so to see them....sorry:(

Days in the sun

And the kilometres just keep clicking over....

Darwin was great...hot and sandfly ridden...but it was terrific to catch up with a Gladstone friend working for YWAM and get to the beach markets and opening concert of the Darwin Festival. Troy Casser-Daly puts on a good show:)

Kakadu had a flying visit from us....just 2 nights. But it was good to go see what all the fuss is about and I can appreciate the World Heritage listing. We saw aboriginal rock art, billabongs, birds and a few crocs, along with LOTS of tourists. Also, a little travel tip...NEVER camp at Merl. I nearly didn't live to tell the story. No not crocs attacking.....but swarms of ferocious, carnivorous, ravenous mosquitoes!

Now....Jon's currently firmly wedged under the Navara investigating a mysterious 'clunk' while I got to go shopping in Katherine....needed to buy an anniversary gift for Mr Wonderful. It's 2 yrs tomorrow:)

Tomorrow...as long as the car gets sorted - again - we'll head to Mataranka and then tackle the second half of the Savannah Way across the Gulf. We aim to be in Cairns by the end of the month, relaxing on a beach somewhere and getting ourselves psyched for the Great Cape Adventure with my folks.

Lotsaflies!

Our trip north through South Australia has started....and watch out! We are headed waaaaayyyy north....almost right back to QLD! Tonight we are at Leigh Creek, a mining town 574k from Adelaide. We got here via the spectacular Flinders Ranges where we camped for 2 nights under clear, brilliantly starry skies. The pics below are all taken in and around the FR National Park, where we climbed another mountain, went 4WDing, snapped pics of some old copper mine and met up with the locals....mostly of the reptilian and insect species. Think I needed to buy a hat with corks before we got here!

'The Thinker' in action on Mount Ohlssen Bagge. This was a four hour hike on the edge of Wilpena Pound. 

One of the many locals we shared the mountain with. Very friendly!

Looking back over the Pound towards the southern ranges.

North of the National Park headed out to the ruins. Bare, rocky landscapes of the sheep stations. Saw a few emus and lots of kangaroos.

The Navara is still travelling well....in fact she just eats up these dry, dusty conditions.

So the fun continues and the adventure rarely stops. So much to see and plenty to do. We're both loving the trip and so thankful we have made it to week 8! Might be a while until you next hear from us because we're about to tackle the Simpson Desert!

Pics...

Ahhh! This is the life. Our first night on the road.

The Big Golden Guitar was alright, but lapping Mount Panorama at Bathurst was better - even with the 60k restrictions.

She's a beautiful thing - note the new additions of side rails and roof racks.

One of many border crossing photos to be taken I am sure.

My kitchen....don't you think it's so cute??

On the Road

Well, we're off! Have enjoyed the last 4 days on the road and you'll read more than enough about them if you make it thru this very long post. I promise the next ones will be shorter....just let me indulge in a little of the excitement of the whole trip finally moving from dream to reality. I do apologise for the layout too....seems you can't cut and paste from Word directly into your blogspot post. Oh yeah....photos to follow sometime soon. 

Feb 26

We’ve just finished eating our first dinner meal on the road and it was delicious! How could it not be….sitting by a creek (50ks south of Tamworth in a little place I can’t even pronounce the name of) with a peach sunset going on behind us, lightning dancing in the clouds to the south and the prospect of this being our life for the next 11 or so months. Very nice!

We left Mum and Dad’s at the lake yesterday morning and headed south to Brisbane for more car work….tyre check this time. Bought a SatNav on the way  - which despite my protests for the past 6 months has proved to be very useful. We used it to get from the north side of Bris all the way thru the mess of roadworks to Jon’s brother’s workplace, under the Story Bridge and then out to our friend’s place 15ks out of Stanthorpe. Lovely to catch up with Noel and Jude who moved from Gladstone earlier this year and enjoy a last night in a real bed in a real house.

Set off on the real journey today – Jon calls it ‘real’ because we actually left the state. Cockroach territory now. Highlight of Kirsty’s day was finding a loaded apple tree beside the road and without too much coaxing, getting Jon to do a u-ey and go back to pick a few. Lunch in a park in Armidale and then a photo with the Big Golden Guitar in Tamworth. Our plans to get to Bathurst for the night fell by the wayside and we found a freebie overnight spot right beside a First Fleet Memorial in the middle of central, country NSW. Go figure! Apparently it is the only memorial in Australia that lists all the First Fleet voyagers – both convicts and British Military. Did you know there was only 1 free settler on the First Fleet…a Mr Smith! There were 3 Knights who were marines – Knight is Kirsty’s Mum’s maiden name. Too bad they weren’t convicts….there’s more notoriety in that. 

Dinner: pre-made stew  Weather: a few drops of rain  Mozzies: yep…Note to Self: I must wear a shirt, not just a singlet, on dusk.  Quote of the evening: Jon – “I know you think I’m a geek….but this is so cool….sitting beside my camper, on my laptop, surfing the web.

26 Feb

Lots of dirt roads today as we wound our way from Wallabadah through backroads to Merriwa and Bathurst and Goulburn. Got to take the Navara on laps of Mount Panorama…very cool. Much steeper than I thought and so many properties on/in it – even a winery. Plethora of wildlife on the drives today….white cockatoos, swimming snake at lunch stop, mobs of roos and a wombat facing the sky on the side of the roadL Did 4 or so creek crossings too….only 5cm deep max, so I didn’t have to get out and do a walk thru. Finally stopped close to 9pm outside of Canberra….by a lake on which sheep graze. No water at all. Cold here and the ground so hard J couldn’t get the pegs into itJ Slept under 4 layers…sheet, doona, sleeping bag and the canvas bed cover.

27 FebInto the nation’s capital today and started our visit with a tour of Parliament House. Our bright and bubbly tour guide was most informative and her style was such that we weren’t sure if she was a politics or drama major at uni. Despite this being about the 10^th time Kirsty has been to P House, she still didn’t get to see parliament sitting…seems it’s unconstitutional to sit on a Friday. Really!!! We made our way 20ks out of town to check out the Cotter Reserve campsite right by the mighty Murrimbidgee River. Not so mighty at the moment as drought certainly has a stranglehold on Canberra and surrounds. A quick trip to Tidbinbilla Space Station allowed us to marvel at the achievements of mankind beyond our planet. Quite amazing stuff, but the best bit was seeing the moon rock. Our home for the night came with 2 bonuses – showers and barbeque fireplaces. Both were very welcome, especially when the marshmallows were finally found in the bottom of the food crate. A lovely summer’s evening under the stars.

28 Feb

A really warm day in Canberra with strong, dry winds. Talked to the ranger this morning and he said the current conditions are a lot like those in 2003 when the big fires tore thru most of the parks surrounding Canberra and burnt houses in outlying suburbs too. He was actually on his way south to Victoria tomorrow to continue to assist the parks and wildlife staff and CFA in fighting fires. Good man. A 30k bush run was being held in the area and we had 40 or so super keen (or silly) runners sprint, trot, limp, waddle past us as we ate breakfast. Questacon (National Science Centre) was a heap of hands on fun for the morning and we especially enjoyed the ‘Boom Crash Boing’ show with Sven, the crash test dummy in training. The afternoon was spent by the lake – trying to get a bit cooler and then at the very moving War Memorial. I have a hard time staying dry eyed whenever I am there. Did you know that there are over 102 thousand Australians who have lost their lives serving in wars? The sound and lighting shows about bombing raids in Germany and the Japanese mini-subs in Sydney Harbour were very good. And we got to see the daily closing ceremony where a lone piper played a lament on the steps of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Headed south out of Canberra to a rest area where we are the only campers. We’re on our way up into the high country tomorrow.

Ooopppps!

Two ooopppps!

1. I may have jumped the gun a little. We didn't head off on our trip last week, but we did leave Biloela and make it to Kirsty's folk's place at the Sunshine Coast. But the really exciting news is we do head off tomorrow morning (Tuesday) for Brisbane and then a little further afield...maybe Stanthorpe. In my books, that's officially 'on the road'. Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We will be heading south through NSW, ACT and hopefully into the Victorian High Country. Have to be at the Port of Melbourne on March 7th at 8am to catch the Spirit of Tasmania across the strait to the Apple Isle.

The 2nd oopppppps was not mine! On Friday we had the Navara booked in for roof rack and side rail fittings. The latter went well, the former, not so great! The fitter failed to fit the racks correctly...one was 100mm out. So we then got to spend a whole other day at the coast while the panel beater removed the racks; welded up the holes - which included peeling back some of the interior ceiling; refitting the racks in the right place then painting and drying and blending the roof. But he did it well and we're back on track. The rig sure looks good with the roof rack and basket and the side rails now on....we'll post pics soon. So apart from a couple of little jobs Jon is doing now and packing the whole thing properly, we're ready to go!

This is the week!

We're hitting the road this week....sometime! After 2 weeks of l-o-n-g days in the shed, Jon almost has our Round Oz Rig ready to roll. My hero! He has been very busy and with help from his Dad, has done heaps! Below are a few pics of just some of the bits and pieces he has worked on. There's a number of others but they don't photograph as well:) Although, dismantling the glove box and half the dash did look pretty scary. More photos soon - I hope - of the finished products.

The Shed has been a hive of activity for 2 weeks.

There was even a job or 2 Kirsty could help with.

The tool drawer.

This shelf is where the back seats in the Nav's cab used to be. It will be home to the freezer and clothes boxes.

The pantry. 2 plastic boxes slide into the compartments on the left.

On the right will be Tupperware containers of food and our Shuttle Chef thermal cooker.

PS. Had a lovely Valentine's Day yesterday working in the shed together...inhaling paint and glue fumes. Roses, DVDs, cuddles, chocolates and personalised bickies in the mix too. Ahhh...love's grand:) So's the thought of being only a few sleeps away from heading south!

A week on....and then some

Can't believe how we're flying through Feb! Jon has spent the last 8 days in his parents' shed, working hard. He's been designing, problem solving, constructing, fitting, wiring, cutting, welding, sweating and a whole lot of other 'ings'. All to get the Navara and the CMC ready to take on tour round the world's most amazing country. He's doing a great job and hopefully enjoying the time in 'the cave'. Meanwhile, Monday afternoon - on his first day of leave - he worked so hard he got a blister! How ironic! Can't begin to tell you how busy Kirsty has been - not! She's currently visiting her sister and family and sunbaking, swimming, facebooking, sleeping, reading and a whole lot of other fun 'ings'. Still no firm departure date, but it's gotta be soon.

What happened in the shed on Boxing Day?

The men went to work! They modified the fuel caps and pipes...so now we CAN fill up at the servo. And even more exciting, they fitted Digby.

Digby is our Ironman 12000lb winch!

The trial run. Worked a treat...only 1 minor hiccup but then.....purred like a kitten....or like a tiger???? 

Uncle Stu made sure the boys didn't run the Navara into the barbed wire fence. Check out the finished tray...looks great hey?

Success! Thanks to all the supervisors and TAs. And that's how you get a ute ready for a big drive. She looks TUFF! All done now, just waiting on the Carry Me Camper (due in Brisbane at the end of January) and maybe a set of roof racks. 

Good Bye My Friend!

We said farewell to a faithful friend today. Kirsty's lovely old Lancer is no longer a part of our family after we sold it to a girl in Biloela this afternoon. Yay! Another Yay! is God's goodness in allowing Kirsty to drive it out to Bilo and miss all the storms (and the hail) that swept across the region. The girl we sold the car to was very excited, so it was easy letting the car go in the end...even after such a close and trouble-free relationship for the past 9 years. Meanwhile, that takes us another step closer to hitting the road next year, helping us pay for a couple of tanks of fuel and other goodies like....a winch, portaloo and big shovel!  Another step forward was also made by Jon and his Dad finishing the tray for the ute. Yay! x 3!!! 

PS. We'll post a picture of the new 'tuff' tub-less tray-full Navara soon.

The Gr8 Unveiling....not quite!

There's still too many cable ties holding the new tray together for it to be said that 'the tray's finished.' So until next time, you'll just have to be satisfied with a picture of another step in the process. In order for the Candy Camper people to cut out the right length of canvas for our rig, we had to do the 600kg weight test. Thanks to our Port City friends for their enthusiastic assistance with this task. So yes....we are another step closer to owning a Navara that's ready and able to carry a camper. Yay! A huge THANK-YOU to the incomparable Mr Roger Van Itallie (Jon's Dad) for all his amazing work in helping us get to this stage. Dad is a whiz with a welder and put in hours of work in a stinking hot tin shed to make and paint our creation. U R a legend Dad! How awesome to have such generous and skilled family to help you out in life. And a huge THANKS to Mum VI too who so generously shared her husband with us for so long to do the work.....even on their anniversary:)

The 'GR8 TRAY MAKING ADVENTURE'

Stage 2....measuring, cutting, welding, grinding, painting and all sorts of other fun things that boys can do in sheds!

Stage 1 ......remove the tub from the Navara. It has a new resting place by the chook pen. I have to say, the Navara looked more than a little weird naked:)

New Boots & Old Stuff

Saturday was 'G Day!' Our Garage Sale took place, along with another 17 in Gladstone apparently. We consider ourselves very fortunate to have sold as much of our old stuff as we did, considering how much competition was out there. The day started incredibly early...1am and the storm started, so I was up moving some of the gear we'd set up the night before out of the 'wet zone'.  By 2am it was bucketing down and Jon and I had to move more stuff and sweep the excess water out of the carport. We were told by a customer later in the morning that we'd got 2.5 inches in the 2 hrs of storms. Anyway, we were set for a 7am start but had 20 customers by 6.30! 6 hours later we were packing up, all smiles after a successful morning of sales and socialising. 

To add to the excitement of the day we had my sister, her husband and their 2 year old visiting on the weekend; Jon's work Christmas party on Saturday arvo; an awfully smelly blocked drain which has our kitchen sinks and dishwasher not working AND a tour of our house by potential renters. Phew! The adventures never stop!

The previous Saturday saw our trusty Nissan get 'new boots'.....tyres! It looks great, ready for all sorts of off-road adventures in '09. We chose BF Goodrich All Terrains and were able to get them very easily through Bob Janes here in Gladstone. Feels a little different to drive....but I'll let Jon explain the technicalities of all that.....next time.

This week more work gets done on the Navara...it really is getting 5 star treatment. Jon and his Dad will be spending some quality time together in Dad's big shed building a tray for the back of the Nissan. They are such clever boys!

Giving the Navara a Run

Jon and a heap of guys from church headed off on an adventure for the weekend to Byfield NP - north of Yeppon. They had a night camping and spent the day in 4WDs on the beach. He survived the Orange Bowl....hasn't always been able to say that:) It's adventures like these that continue to whet the appetite for next year. Meanwhile, I spent the weekend doing things not at all related to adventuring. Cooked, cleaned, dyed my hair, watched a chick flick and went to a Tupperware party. How will I survive 09 on the road, far from all things 'girly'????? You know, I think I'll be just fine!

We have a PLAN!

The last fortnight has been very exciting! We've decided to hit the road in 09 and travel around Australia. WOW! What an adventure:)

The time is right....feel a real sense of God-given peace, there are no kids as yet and a number of other factors have also contributed to the decision.

Here's a few:

• J was sick earlier in the year and that time raised a few of life's BIG questions. Pointed him in a different direction in many ways.
• We had an awesome touring holiday in Tasmania and Victoria. Life on the road treated us so well that we thought we'd like to do it again...for longer. Highlights included cruising on the Great Ocean Road; chasing wombats; climbing mountains; eating cheese and sitting in front of log fires.
• It's in K's genes. Mum and Dad did a 6 year working holiday around Oz in the 70s and I was on the road with them for most of that time.
• We visited 'Leisurefest' and were introduced to the Carry Me Camper (Google it!) which is our accommodation of choice for next year. Sleeping in a tent for a year. Hmmmmm.

So the plan began to formulate. 

So far we have:

• Told our bosses we won't be around next year
  
• Put a snorkel and lift kit on the Navara
• Set up Skype
• Starting piling up stuff for our November Garage Sale...please come
• Sold J's motorbike and the Lancer
• Ordered our camper

The wheels are in motion.

We're very excited to have you join us on this adventure....keep reading our blog for future adventure updates.