Sun, Fun, Bubbles and Cockatoos

Fall has arrived in Sydney and the weather has been incredible.  Gorgeous sunny skies, cool, crisp mornings and afternoons that are a bit warmer, but not hot. The perfect weather to throw on a pair of jeans and a cozy sweatshirt and to drink a cup of tea or hot chocolate.  The weather reminds me of home and I keep expecting to see pumpkins and Halloween decorations in the stores, but no such luck.  Thankfully, the parks have been full of tons of leaves to crunch and play in!  Coop and I even had a leave throwing fight the other day! :)

Today, the boys and I ventured out to the Royal Botanic Gardens. We hadn't been there in quite some time.  Cooper had found an old, dried out palm tree frond that he insisted on taking to the Cockatoos at the Gardens. He thought they needed it to clean their teeth...

baby duckling

We took our usual path to the Gardens and saw many of the usual birds- Magpies, Butcherbirds, Darters, Ducks, Kookaburras and Ibises.  But the cockatoos were no where to be seen.  Coop was very sad. I explained to him that you have to be patient when bird watching and you have to listen as well as watch for the birds you want to see. Finally, we then heard a Cockatoo call coming from the distance and headed that way. On the way, we came passed the duck pond and to our surprise there were 4 baby ducks and 2 baby Dusky Moorhens (duck like bird with a bright orange beak and a crazy honking call). They were adorable! We watched the ducks for quite some time. While we were watching, a Cockatoo landed in a nearby tree.  Then another came along and another.  Coop took the stick he had been carrying the whole time and approached the Cockatoos. The Cockatoos bit at the stick! They even played with it a bit! Cooper was SOOOOOOOO happy! It was truly a dream come true for him.

A sad Cooper wanting to see a Cockatoo.

While walking back home, we came across, Mr. Incredi-Dubble or the Bubbleman. We stayed to watch and play in the bubble for almost an hour.  

The boys loved it!  

Sun, Fun, Bubbles and Cockatoos

Fall has arrived in Sydney and the weather has been incredible.  Gorgeous sunny skies, cool, crisp mornings and afternoons that are a bit warmer, but not hot. The perfect weather to throw on a pair of jeans and a cozy sweatshirt and to drink a cup of tea or hot chocolate.  The weather reminds me of home and I keep expecting to see pumpkins and Halloween decorations in the stores, but no such luck.  Thankfully, the parks have been full of tons of leaves to crunch and play in!  Coop and I even had a leave throwing fight the other day! :)

Today, the boys and I ventured out to the Royal Botanic Gardens. We hadn't been there in quite some time.  Cooper had found an old, dried out palm tree frond that he insisted on taking to the Cockatoos at the Gardens. He thought they needed it to clean their teeth...

baby duckling

We took our usual path to the Gardens and saw many of the usual birds- Magpies, Butcherbirds, Darters, Ducks, Kookaburras and Ibises.  But the cockatoos were no where to be seen.  Coop was very sad. I explained to him that you have to be patient when bird watching and you have to listen as well as watch for the birds you want to see. Finally, we then heard a Cockatoo call coming from the distance and headed that way. On the way, we came passed the duck pond and to our surprise there were 4 baby ducks and 2 baby Dusky Moorhens (duck like bird with a bright orange beak and a crazy honking call). They were adorable! We watched the ducks for quite some time. While we were watching, a Cockatoo landed in a nearby tree.  Then another came along and another.  Coop took the stick he had been carrying the whole time and approached the Cockatoos. The Cockatoos bit at the stick! They even played with it a bit! Cooper was SOOOOOOOO happy! It was truly a dream come true for him.

A sad Cooper wanting to see a Cockatoo.

While walking back home, we came across, Mr. Incredi-Dubble or the Bubbleman. We stayed to watch and play in the bubble for almost an hour.  

The boys loved it!  

Rainbow Lorikeet

Cooper was invited to another birthday party for a classmate.  On the invitation it said, "Dress as your favorite animal." The minute I read that I knew exactly what he would choose and I was right. He wanted to be a rainbow lorikeet.  Of course I agreed because I knew how much it meant to him and because I love a challenge. I had never sewn any clothing before and thought this would be a good first project.  And, I figured all those feathers would cover any mistakes I made.

I gathered a ton of feathers, some green felt, orange felt and a mask. I also purchased a red t-shirt. I really had no clue what I was doing, but I channeled a good friend (Thank you, Corey) and made it all work. I put all the parts together then Cooper and I spent the week gluing feathers on different parts of the costume.

It turned out pretty well if I do say so myself.  Cooper LOVED it. Tucker wants one of his own. It was a huge hit at the party. And, I am SO glad it is done. :)

Cooper, the rainbow lorikeet

Cooper told me he just wanted to wait a bit to join the party.
He stood on one leg and said "I want to wait like a real bird."

The back of the costume.

The party was at a local parkland. There were tons of
waterbirds there. Coop managed to get some bread from a
random family to feed the birds.

The kids playing "Statues" or "Freeze Dance" as we call it.

Things got a little overwhelming for Coop. He took off his
 costume, found a shady spot under a tree and spent a little time on his own before rejoining the group.

He found some great sticks. Nice and sharp for
cutting the grass....

Then he was back in the swing of things with his buddies from
school, Marco and Louie.

Cake time!

Waiting for cake.

One the way back to the bus, Coop stopped to talk
with some HUGE geese...

to wave to a cockatoo in a tree....

and to chat with some black swans.

It was a wonderful afternoon for Coop. He was surrounded by friends he likes, birds he could talk to and chocolate cake. Not sure life can get much better for him.

Rainbow Lorikeet

Cooper was invited to another birthday party for a classmate.  On the invitation it said, "Dress as your favorite animal." The minute I read that I knew exactly what he would choose and I was right. He wanted to be a rainbow lorikeet.  Of course I agreed because I knew how much it meant to him and because I love a challenge. I had never sewn any clothing before and thought this would be a good first project.  And, I figured all those feathers would cover any mistakes I made.

I gathered a ton of feathers, some green felt, orange felt and a mask. I also purchased a red t-shirt. I really had no clue what I was doing, but I channeled a good friend (Thank you, Corey) and made it all work. I put all the parts together then Cooper and I spent the week gluing feathers on different parts of the costume.

It turned out pretty well if I do say so myself.  Cooper LOVED it. Tucker wants one of his own. It was a huge hit at the party. And, I am SO glad it is done. :)

Cooper, the rainbow lorikeet

Cooper told me he just wanted to wait a bit to join the party.
He stood on one leg and said "I want to wait like a real bird."

The back of the costume.

The party was at a local parkland. There were tons of
waterbirds there. Coop managed to get some bread from a
random family to feed the birds.

The kids playing "Statues" or "Freeze Dance" as we call it.

Things got a little overwhelming for Coop. He took off his
 costume, found a shady spot under a tree and spent a little time on his own before rejoining the group.

He found some great sticks. Nice and sharp for
cutting the grass....

Then he was back in the swing of things with his buddies from
school, Marco and Louie.

Cake time!

Waiting for cake.

One the way back to the bus, Coop stopped to talk
with some HUGE geese...

to wave to a cockatoo in a tree....

and to chat with some black swans.

It was a wonderful afternoon for Coop. He was surrounded by friends he likes, birds he could talk to and chocolate cake. Not sure life can get much better for him.